Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 14.djvu/240

* MYERS. 202 MYOSOTIS. sor of liislory and {julilical economy at the Uni- versity of Cinc-iimati, where five years hilor he was chosen dean of the academic faculty. His publications include: Life and Mature Under the Tropics (1871); Remains of Lost Empires ( IST.i) : and A'oHie; Its Rise and Fall (18'J0). MYIASIS, mi-ya'sis (Xeo-Lat., from Gk./xma, myia. tly). A medical term for the state of being infested" with the larviE of dipterous insects. A rather large number of Hies may infest human beings in this way, and the disease has lieen di- vided according as the larva" are found in the skin, in the ear, in the conjunctiva, in the in- testines, in the mucous membranes, in the nose, or in wounds. The most common form is the presence of the larv.-e of Hcsh-tlies, or blow-flies, in open and neglected wounds. In certain por- tions of the United States, the screw-worm Hy (Litcilia macellaria) deposits its eggs or larviE not only in open sores upon the bodies of men and womeni but many cases are on record whore the eggs have been deposited in the nostrils of per- sons sleejiing exposed in the daytime. Tliese ilies are especially apt to be attracted by an ofTensive catarrhal condition. Scores of maggots have been taken from the nasal passages of such in- dividuals, and a complete destruction of the soft palate has been brought about in this way. The European llesh-lly known a^ Sarcophila Volilfarti has been reared from larv;r found in numbers in the nasal cavities and in the ear of man. Lu- cilia. nobilis of Europe has also been reared from the ear of a man, causing extensive discharges and much putrefaction. The bluebottle lly (C'aJ- liphorit romilori(i) sometimes causes nasal my- iasis, and the common llesh-Hy [Sarcapliaga car- ■naria) has been reared from larva- found in the nasal passages. There are also cases of myiasis of the vagina. In all of these instances the flies are either Sarcophagida> or Musciihe. and the adults were attracted to putrid or septic wounds, or to an offensive or purulent discharge from the body, depositing their eggs or larv;r therein. In- ternal mviasis is nearly always caused by the larva> or Hies of the family Anthomyiida-. These flies deposit their eggs "in spoiled vegetables, which are afterwards eaten in the raw slate, as in salads. The larv;e of several species have been passed while still alive, and frequently cause in- testinal disturbances of a more or less serious character. Homalomiiia caniculnris. for example, has several times been reared in this way. In the family SepsidiP. the common cheese maggot (larva nf'i'iophiln cnsei) . taken into the stomach with old cheese, has been found alive in excreta. having passed through the entire alimentary canal. Cutaneous myiasis, aside from that of open wounds, is produced by several of the bot-tlies of the family ffistrida;. In tropical regions there arc one or more species of the genus Dermatobia, which may lay their eggs upon the skin of human beings, the resulting maggot forming a pus-sac Im-Iow the surface of the skin, and. if undisturbed, reaching its full growth in this sitiation. Such cases as this are not uncommon among the unclothed inhabitants of tropical countries, and persons while bathing occasionally become infested. The best known of these human botflies is Drrmntnhia ciianeircniris. oonniinn in South .merica. MYLIT'TA. A word long believed to he the name of a Babylonian deity, on the authority of Herodotus, who describes the cult of Mylitta in Babylonia. As a matter of fact, Mylitta is a corruption of the Babylonian helit{ady) . used as a title of the goddess,"who is more i)roperly known as Ishtar (q.v.). She originally represented the fcmali' portion of the twofold principles through which all creation burst into existence, and which, by their united active and passive powers, uphold it. Ishtar, however, develo])ed other qualities besides those typical of i)rocreation. She is a goddess of war, who, armed with sword, arrows, and spear, marches at the head of the Assyrian armies. Consult Jastrow. Religion of Bahylonia and Assifria (Boston, 1808). MY'LODON { Xeo-Lat., from :iIGk. liuUSoyt, myludoiis, molar, from Gk. /ttJXTj, mijlr. mill, mill- stone -f oduus, odoiis. tooth). A gigantic extinct edentate mammal, allied to Megatherium and Megalonvx, found in the Pleistocene deposits of North and South America. See MKt;.THERiVil. MY'NA-BIRD, or MINA-BIRD (Hind. miiiiiil. stavlingl. A starling (Sturnia religiosa) of the Kast Indies, deep velvety black in color, with a white mark on the base of tlie quillfeath- ers of the wings, yellow bill and feet, and two large brisht yellow wattles at the back of the head. It" is very lively and intelligent, and pos- sesses a power of imitating human speech ex- celled by none of the parrots. It has sometimes been trained to rejieat sentences of considerable length. It is therefore in great request, and is often brought to Europe and America, while in India it is one of the most familiar and in- teresting of village birds, and is regarded by the Hindus as sacred to Ram Deo. MY NOVEL; OR VARIETIES IN ENG- XISH LIFE. . novel by E. I'.ulwcr-Eytton (185.3). The story, told by P. Caxton, is partly of Hazeldean and "partly of London. The princi- pal hero is Harley L'Estrange, witty and bril- liant, the friend "of Squire Hazeldean. He at first fancies Helen Bigby, who marries Leonard, the son of Colonel Egerton. by an early, secret marriage, and finally marries Viola, daughter of an Italian gentleman, who with his friends forms a secondary story. The plot is involved, but the novel is one of Bulwer's finest productions. MYOCARDITIS (Neo-Lat., from myocar- dium, from (ik. ^LSs, niys. muscle, mouse -f- KapSla,hiirdi(i. heart). An inflammatory atVection of the wall of the heart. It is a term first used by Soberiiheim in 1837. Myocarditis is considered as an inllannnation due to infection. It is a disease .secondary to typhoid fever, diphtheria, scarlet fever, cerebrospinal meningitis, variola, ervsipelas, malaria, rheumatism, influenza, or septica-mia. See Heart, Diseases of. _ MYOMANCY. See Supekstitiox. MYOPIA (Xeo-Lat.. from Lat. mijops, from Gk. fiiuj'fr. short-sighted, from /xi5«i', mi/rin, to close -r ii'f/, ops, eve). Short sight. A form of ametropia due to "the fact that the antero-pos- lerior axis of the eyeball is too long: and hence its refracting media are not proportionately diminished in power. Parallel rays of light, therefore, are not brought to a focus on the retina, but in front of it. forming circles of dif- fu-i..n on the retina. See Sight. Defects op. MY'OSIN. See GioBtT-ixs. MYOSOTIS. See Fobget-me-not.