GASTRIC JUICE 



2406 



GATES 



up among people who had themselves seen 

 the end of the old regime, De Gaspe was al- 

 ways an eager listener to tales of the past, and 

 he retells them with a whole-hearted pride in 

 his race. As a novel the book is somewhat 

 formless, and it rambles far from its plot, but 

 its many digressions are the very features 

 which make it live, for they are intimate pic- 

 tures of the best features of seigniorial times. 

 Aside from its connection with his books, 

 De Gaspe's life is of little interest. He was 

 born in Quebec, and he died there. He was a 

 barrister by profession, and early in life was 

 highly successful. Later, he suffered four years' 

 imprisonment for not paying his debts, and 

 thereafter lived a secluded life on his small 

 estate. 



GASTRIC JUICE. See STOMACH. 



GASTRITIS, gastri'tis, an inflammation of 

 the stomach, which occurs in several forms. 

 There are three varieties of acute gastritis. 

 One, known as acute catarrhal gastritis, has as 

 its characteristic symptoms gas in the stomach, 

 nausea, severe headache, vomiting (some- 

 times), diarrhoea or constipation and a coated 

 tongue. It is due to eating spoiled food, to 

 indulgence in ice-cold drinks or alcoholic bev- 

 erages, to overeating and to certain infections, 

 and is very common except in the case of the 

 aged. Treatment consists in emptying the 

 stomach with a tube or pump, and the admin- 

 istration of a purgative. The patient should 

 abstain from food for two or three days. This 

 form of gastritis is not usually serious. 



A second variety of acute gastritis is toxic 

 gastritis, caused by alcohol, phosphorus, ar- 

 senic, corrosive sublimate and other poisons. 

 Vomiting of blood, agonizing thirst, faint pulse 

 and cold perspiration are typical symptoms, 

 in addition to those of catarrhal gastritis. The 

 body turns blue, and coma and death result 

 in very severe cases. An antidote for the poi- 

 son taken should be given, and the stomach 

 should be washed out in some cases. 



In purulent gastritis, the third variety of 

 acute gastritis, small abscesses form in the 

 submucous or muscular layer of the walls of 

 the stomach. Symptoms of dyspepsia occur 

 for several days, and are followed by burning 

 pain, thirst, high fever, irregular pulse and 

 vomiting of mucus and bile. The malady gen- 

 erally results in death. 



Chronic gastritis has the symptoms of ca- 

 tarrhal gastritis, but these continue perma- 

 nently. The victim suffers alternately from 

 constipation and diarrhoea, and has a sallow 



skin, coated tongue and uncertain appetite. 

 The disease is acquired commonly by men in 

 middle life, and is caused by eating rich foods 

 and overindulgence in the use of alcoholic 

 dfinks and tobacco. Treatment along hygienic 

 and dietary lines is of most avail. Mineral 

 waters are helpful in some cases, but drugs 

 are almost useless. W.A.E. 



GAS'TROPOD, one of a group of mollusks 

 consisting of over 20,000 species, among them 

 snails, slugs and limpets. These animals live 

 in damp places under fallen trees or decaying 

 logs, and on the bottom of ponds, rivers and 

 lakes. Great numbers are found along the 

 seashore and at various depths in the ocean, 

 sometimes as far down as three miles. Charac- 

 teristic features of gastropods are a distinct 

 head, usually provided with tentacles, and a 

 creeping "disk" which serves as a foot. Many 

 of them have a one-valved shell, but in other 

 species, such as the beautiful naked snails 

 found along the coasts, the shell is 'entirely 

 absent. See MOLLUSKS. 



GATES, HORATIO (1728-1806), an American 

 general during the Revolutionary War, gal- 

 lant and able, yet so ambitious he injured his 

 career and disappointed his friends. Gates 

 was born in Essex County, England. He en- 

 tered the English 

 army at an early 

 age, was rapidly 

 promoted and 

 was with Brad- 

 dock and Wash- 

 ington in the dis- 

 astr ous expe- 

 dition against 

 Fort Duquesne in 

 1755. He was 

 severely wounded 

 in the battle, saw 

 other active serv- 

 ice in the French 

 and Indian Wars, 

 and after the peace of 1763 settled in Virginia. 

 Upon the outbreak of the War of Independence 

 in 1775 he was named adjutant-general by 

 Congress. As first in command of the Amer- 

 ican army of the North he compelled the 

 British General Burgoyne to surrender his en- 

 tire force at Saratoga (1777), in what has been 

 declared one of the decisive battles of the 

 world. 



He became president of the board of war, 

 and in 1780 was placed in chief command in 

 the South, where he boasted that he would 



GENERAL GATES 



