EPISTEMOLOGY 



2953 



EPITHELIUM 



by applying cold compresses to the 

 toot of the nose and nape of the 

 neck. Holding the nose for a short 

 time may allow the blood to clot 

 and closri the bleeding vessel. Fre- 

 quently the bleeding point can 

 be detected, and a touch with a 

 cautery or with a piece of cotton 

 wool soaked in a 5 p.c. solution of 

 chromic acid, will usually suffice. 

 In severe cases plugging of the 

 nostril may be necessary. 



Epistemology (Gr. episteme, 

 knowledge ; logos, theory). Theory 

 or science of human knowledge. It 

 investigates the origin and limits of 

 knowledge ; defines the part played 

 in it by experience and thought 

 respectively ; and examines the 

 formation, meaning, and employ- 

 ment of its fundamental notions. 



Epistle (Gr. epistole, message, 

 letter). Term generally applied in 

 English literature to verses written 

 in the form of letters addressed to 

 specific persons, or to readers gener- 

 ally, as in the epistle dedicatory. 

 In the former sense it was a revival 

 of the use of the epistle by Horace 

 and other classical poets. Satiric 

 or moral epistles, such as Pope's 

 Essay on Man and Moral Essays, 

 more or less on the Latin model, 

 were a notable feature of English 

 literature in the 18th century, at 

 the close of which Burns gave the 

 epistle an easier and freer form. 



There are examples of epistles 

 in the O.T. and in the O.T. 

 apocryphal pseudepigraphic writ- 

 ings ; but the famous letters or 

 epistles of the Bible are confined to 

 the N.T. The chief writer is the 

 apostle Paul, to whom thirteen 

 Epistles are ascribed. These are 

 commonly divided into four groups 

 (1)1 and 2 Thessalonians, written 

 from Corinth in A.D. 52 or 53. (2) 

 Galatians, 1 and 2 Corinthians, and 

 Romans, written in A.D. 57-58. 

 (3) Ephesians, Philippians, Colos- 

 sians, and the Epistles of the (first 

 Roman) Captivity, written in A.D. 

 62 or 63. (4) 1 and 2 Timothy, 

 Titus, the Pastoral Epistles, so 

 called because they are addressed 

 to two pastors and deal with 

 matters relating to the ministry, 

 written in A.D. 65. The so-called 

 Epistle to the Hebrews does not 

 claim to have been written by 

 Paul, though ascribed to him in the 

 Eastern and later in the Western 

 Church, and the description Epistle 

 is hardly correct. Its author is un- 

 known. It seems to have been 

 written between A.D. 75 and 85. 



The rest of the N.T. Epistles are 

 commonly known as General or 

 Catholic Epistles, because they are 

 apparently addressed to Christians 

 in general. They are : James, 

 Jude, 1 and 2 Peter, 1, 2 and 3 

 John. The author of the Epistle of 



James may have been the brother 

 of the Lord. Jude describes himself 

 as " servant of Jesus Christ " and 

 " brother of James." Peter is the 

 famous apostle. The First Epistle 

 of John is closely related to the 

 Gospel of John. The Second and 

 Third Epistles claim to be written 

 by " the Elder." 



Epistolae Obscurorum Vi- 

 rorum (Letters of Obscure Men)'. 

 Series of satirical letters ad- 

 dressed to Ortwinus Gratius and 

 called into existence by the Reuch- 

 lin-Dominican controversy. They 

 played an important part in the 

 Reformation, and have been many 

 times reprinted. The first part, 

 consisting of 41 letters, was pub- 

 lished in 1515, seven more letters 

 being added in the 3rd edition, 

 1516. The second part, comprising 

 62 fresh letters, appeared in 1517 ; 

 its 2nd edition, same year, con- 

 tained eight more. The two series 

 were not published in one volume 

 until 1556. Their authorship, long 

 in doubt, was established by W. 

 Brecht, who proved the principal 

 writers of Parts 1 and 2 respec- 

 tively to have been Johann Jager, 

 called Crotus Rubianus, and Ul- 

 rich von Hutten. See text, ed. with 

 Eng. trans. F. G. Stokes, 1909; 

 consult also Die Verfasser der Epis- 

 tolae obscurorum Virorum, W. 

 Brecht, 1904. See Reuchlin, Johann. 



Epitaph (Gr. epi, on ; taphos, 

 tomb or grave). Inscription on a 

 tomb. The desire to record in last- 

 ing form the virtues or great deeds 

 of the dead is universal, and has 

 found expression in all ages. Some 

 of the earliest extant epitaphs are 

 found on Egyptian sarcophagi, and 

 they were commonly used among 

 the Jews. One of the most famous 

 Greek epitaphs is that recorded by 

 Herodotus as having been in- 

 scribed in honour of the Spar- 

 tans who fell at Thermopylae : 

 " Stranger, go tell the Lacedae- 

 monians that we lie here obedient 

 to their commands." Various an- 

 thologies and the catacombs of 

 Rome supply numerous Greek and 

 Latin examples. 



Epitaphs vary infinitely in style, 

 and reflect the literary taste of their 

 age. In England they range from 

 the lengthy recital of the deceased's 

 titles and dignities in Latin and the 

 solemn and elaborate survey of 

 his career in the English of the 

 eighteenth century to the severely 

 simple and the frankly humorous. 

 An effective Latin epitaph is that 

 on Sir Christopher Wren in S. Paul's 

 Cathedral, London, Si monumentum 

 requiris, circumspice (If you seek 

 his monument, look around) ; 

 while humorous epitaphs of the 

 jesting sort frequently allude to 

 differences between husband and 



wife. Much ingenuity has been de- 

 voted to the play of words in epi- 

 taphs, e.g. in S. Benet, Paul's 

 Wharf. London, is the following : 



Here lies one More, and no more than he ; 

 One More and no more, how can that he ? 

 Why, one More and no more may lie 



here alonp ; 

 But here lies one more, and that's more 



than one. 



Unconscious humour due to 

 carelessness or ignorance is occa- 

 sionally found, as on a tombstone 

 at Ventnor : 



Here lies the body of Samuel Young, who 

 came here and died for the benefit of 

 his health. 



Frequently, however, epitaphs of 

 the humorous kind are not genuine, 

 being composed as a form of liter- 

 ary amusement. Some of fine 

 quality come almost under the 

 head of epigrams. Such are most 

 of the epitaphs in Ben Jonson's 

 works; for instance, the lines Under- 

 neath this sable hearse, and the 

 beautiful tribute to Elizabeth L. H. : 



Would'st thou hear what man can say 



In a little? Reader, stay. 

 Underneath this stone, doth lip 



As much beauty as could die ; 

 Which in life did harbour give 



To more virtue than doth live: 



Leave it buried in this vault. 

 One name was Elizabeth, 



Th'other let it sleep with death; 

 Fitter, where it died to tell, 



Than that it liv'd at all. Farewell. 



Epitkalamium. Nuptial song 

 in praise of a newly wedded pair 

 and invoking blessings on them, 

 sung before the bridal chamber 

 (Gr. thalamos). Fragments of 

 Greek epithalamia by Anacreon, 

 Pindar, and others have been pre- 

 served. One of the most celebrated 

 by Latin poets is the epithalamium 

 on Peleus and Thetis by Catullus. 

 In English literature" Spenser's 

 Prothalamium and Epithalamium 

 are among the most beautiful 

 poems of this kind. 



Epithelioma. Form of cancer in 

 which the growth is mainly com- 

 posed of cells pertaining to the epi- 

 thelial or surface layer of the skin 

 or mucous membrane. See Cancer. 



Epithelium (Gr. epi, on ; thele. 

 nipple). Tissue composed almost 

 entirely of cells with little cement- 

 ing material. It forms the super- 

 ficial layer of the skin and lines the 

 internal cavities of the body. Pave- 

 ment epithelium, consisting of one 

 layer of cells fitted together like a 

 mosaic, is found in the air-sacs of 

 the lungs. Columnar epithelium 

 lines the stomach and intestines. 

 Stratified epithelium consisting of 

 numerous layers of cells, covers the 

 surface of the body. Ciliated epithe- 

 lium is a form in which the surface 

 of the cell carries a bunch of fine 

 filaments having a continuous 

 movement which sets up a current 

 over the surface of the tissue. This 

 form occurs in the air passages where 

 the ciliary movement helps to clear 

 the tissues of fine particles of foreign 

 material and other debris. 



