770 



STROPHANTHUS 



STKUTT 



is found in beautiful rhombic prisms in Sicily. 

 Nitrate of Struntin, SriXO,),, separates from a 

 hot concentrated solution in large colourless trans- 

 parent anhydrous octahedral ciystals, which dis 

 solve freely in water. By the 'addition of nitric 

 acid it i precipitated from iu aqueous mint ion. 

 This salt is insoluble in alcohol, but when finely 

 powdered and mixed with it it communicates to 

 t In- alcoholic Maine a beautiful red or crimson colour. 

 In consequence of this pro|K>rty it is employed by 

 tiie makers of fireworks, especially for liengal 

 lights (see PVROTKCHXY) ; but the mixture made 

 for this pur|M>se is highly dangerous, and has 

 caused bad accidents i>y "igniting spontaneously. 

 The most important of the haloid salts of strontia 

 is the ('/iliiri'tlr. Si ('!._ which may lie obtained in 

 crystals containing six equivalents of water. The 

 water is expelled at a moderate heat, leaving 

 the chloride anhydrous. The chloride is the only 

 salt from which the metal has hitherto been 

 obtained. 



Strontia was discovered as an independent sub- 

 stance almost simultaneously by Hope and Klap- 

 roth in 1793. In 1807 Davy obtained barium and 

 strontium from their oxides, but not in a pure 

 state ; and it was not till 1855 that Bunsen and 

 Matthiessen succeeded in procuring perfectly pure 

 specimens of the metal. 



KtropliailtlillS, a genus of plants belonging 

 to the natural onler Apocvnaceie, and natives ol 

 tropical Africa and Asia. The flowers are in ter- 

 minal heads ; the corolla is funnel-shaped, with its 

 limb divided into five long cord like segments 

 (hence the name, Gr. strojAos^ ' twisted cord," 

 ant/iot, 'a flower'); the style is thread-like, sur- 

 mounted by a cylindrical stigma ; and the fruit is 

 a double follicle. Each follicle contains a large 

 number of seeds having beautiful comose awns. 

 There are several species, but the liext known is 

 the S. hispidus, var. Kombf, the seeds of which are 

 now largely used in medicine. This species is 

 widely distributed in tropical Africa, and climbs 

 up the highest trees, hanging from one to the other 

 in festoons. It has follicles 8 to 12 inches long, 

 containing from about 100 to 200 seeds, each of 

 which weighs about half a grain. An extract of 

 the seeds is used as an arrow-poison (Komlie or 

 inee) in districts widely apart, as at Kombc, in the 

 Manganja country, in the Zambesi district, in the 

 Somali country, in the Gaboon district, in Guinea, 

 and in Senegambia. Dr Livingstone described it 

 as used for Killing animals only. The wounded 

 animal is followed until the poison begins to take 

 effect, it is then watched until it drops, the |>ortion 

 3f meat round the wound is cut away and all the 

 rest eaten. 



In the British Pharmacopoeia Strophanthus is 

 defined as the mature ri|ie seeds of S. htspitltis, var. 

 Komi" , freed from the awns. Each seed is alxuit 

 j inch long, J inch broad, oval in shape, and flat- 

 tened at the sides. The seed -coat is of a fawn 

 colour, and covered with silky hairs. The kernel is 

 white and oily, with a\er\ hitter taste. The seeds 

 contain an active principle, itropharttkm, which is 

 extremely pobo&ons, I lie medicinal dose of it lieing 

 jK to J a grain. The drug is usually administered 



111 the for f the oMicinal tincture of strophanthus 



made from tin- seed, of which the dose is 2 to 10 

 minims. Its action and uses are very similar to 

 those of Digitalis (q.v. ). 



Slroud. a manufacturing and market town of 

 Gloucestershire, 10 miles SSK. of Cloucester, on 

 an eminence in a valley sheltered l.y the Cotes- 

 MO|I|,, where the Krome and Slade rivulets unite 

 to form the Stroud Water or Krome. The water 

 of this stream being peculiarly adapted for use in 

 dyeing scarlet and other grain colours, cloth- 



factories and dveworks have been built along it 

 banks for ill miles ; and Stroud itself is tin- .nitre 

 of the woollen manufactures of Glouceslersline, 

 and contains a number of cloth mills. The patish 

 churcli, St Lawrence, was rebuilt, with exception 

 of the tower and spire, in 186U-68 ; the town hall, 

 ineor|Nirating an Kli/al>etlian facade, in 1865; and 

 there are also the Babtcription-rooini (if>30), the 

 Lansdown Mall ( IXT'ti, a hospital (ls;r,i. \c. 

 From 1832 to 1885 Stroud, with twelve other 

 parishes, formed a parliamentary iMiiouu'li. return 

 ing two members. Pop. ( 1881 ) 9535 ; ( 1891 ) US Is. 

 Strurnsee, .IIHIAXN Fl:lKl>i:ini, CorxT, was 

 the son of a German pastor of Halle, where he 

 was horn 5th August 1737. He studied medi 

 cine, and was appointed (1759) town physician 

 in Altona. But in 1768 he accepted tl,,. \ H ^\ of 

 private physician to Christian \ II. of Denmark 

 I 1749-1808). He soon gained the complete con- 

 fidence not only of the weak young king. but also 

 of his consort, Caroline ( 1751-7. r > ), sister of George 

 III. of England, who had a most unhappy lot as 

 the wife of Christian. Strncnsee and tne 



sjH'edily possessed themselves of all power in tin- 

 kingdom, dismissing the former ministeis. forcing 

 the king to abstain from all interference with 

 government, and endeavouring to free Denmark 

 from Russian influence, and to find a natural ally- 

 in Sweden. The changes which Struensee under- 

 took in internal afl'airs were directed to the advance- 

 ment of the prosperity of the country, of ciul 

 lilierty, and enlightenment. He put the finances 

 in order, reduced the expenditure, loosened the 

 fetters in which industry and trade had In-en 

 bound, encouraged education, mitigated the penal 

 laws, and brought order into the administration. 

 An act passed in 1771 to a certain extent aUilished 

 serfdom. But by all these measures he offended 

 and outraged the nobility and the clergy, and by 

 the haste and want of statesmanlike tact and skill 

 with which they were carried out he appeared to the 

 peasantry as little different from a despotic tyrant. 

 The disall'ected nobles and deposed ministers found 

 a supporter in Christian's step-mother, and pro 

 cured from the king an order for the arrest ( 16th 

 January 1772) of the queen and Struensec. From 

 Ixtth a confession of criminal intimacy was extorted ; 

 the queen was confined in the prison-fortress of 

 Kronl>org, while Struensee was cast in chains into 

 the citadel of Copenhagen. Various charges of 

 abusing the royal authority, attempting to force 

 the king to abdicate, besides that of adultery with 

 the i|iieen, were laid to the charge of the favourite, 

 and on 28th April 1772 he was behead ed. (Jneeu 

 Caroline's marriage was dissolve.!, and, parted 

 from her only little daughter, she was ...... vexed by 



a British frigate to Hanover, where she died at 

 Celle in 1775. 



See a very full account in the Mrmoin and Com- 

 r/Kttu/enre (184!!) of Sir Robert Murray Keith, who wag 

 British envoy to Copenhagen at the time, and saved 

 tin iguet-n from the fury of the populace ; W mail's 

 itul Tima of (Juern Caroline Matilda (3 vola. 

 IM.II: and the article by Professor Ward on Carolina 

 Matilda in the Diet. Nat Biog. (vol. ix. I - 



Sir II mil. a term equivalent to Scrofula (q.v.). 



Slrilll. losKI-ll, antiquary, was IMIHI at Spring- 

 field iii Essex, Octol>er 27, 1742, at fourteen was 

 apprenticed to an engraver, studied art in the 

 Itoyal Academy, and early gave himself to excep- 

 tionally lalNirious studies at the I'.iiti-h .Museum. 

 He died iii London, Octolwr 10, 1802, after a life 

 s|M-nt, spite of poverty and sickness, in devotion to 

 learning. His most important book was his last, 

 the invaluable >'//;-/\ nml I'lixtimm <,f tlif, Pruple 

 o/A>//"W( I sill). II is first IMM.U was The Regal 

 innl Seeletitutieal .1 //'////>.% <//' Kni/lnm! ( 1773); 

 among its successors were \wIIorda-Angel-Cynnan, 



