SCO 
828 
of white liquor upon the sting. And Mr. Leeuwenhoek dis¬ 
covered an opening on each side of the sting of this creature, 
for the emission of the poison, which he supposes is not 
discharged till the sting is buried in the wound. Baker's 
Microscope, p. 213. 
SCORPIO, a species of Curculio ; which see.'—Also, a 
species of Cerambyx ; which see. See also the preceding 
article. 
SCORPIO, in Ichthyology. See Scorp^ena. 
SCORPIOIDES, the name of the Blennius Ocellaris, 
described by Artedi as having a furrow between the eyes, and 
a large spot on the dorsal fin, being of a faint green, varie¬ 
gated with black spots; and either wanting the eye fins, or 
else having them extremely minute. 
SCORPIOIDES, in Botany, so named by Tournefort, 
from the resemblance of its contorted and jointed legume, to 
the tail of a scorpion. See Scorpiurus. 
SCO'RPION, [ scorpio , Lat.] An insect. See Scorpio. 
Well, fore-warning winds 
Did seem to say, seek not a scorpion's nest. Shakspeare. 
Full of scorpions is my mind, dear wife. Shakspeare .— 
One of the signs of the zodiack.—The squeezing crab and 
stinging scorpion shine. Dryden. —A scourge so called 
from its cruelty.—My father hath chastised you with whips, 
but I will chastise you with scorpions. 1 Kings. — \Scor- 
pius, Lat.] A sea-fish. Ainsworth. 
SCORPION, Water, Scorpio palustris, a name given 
to a very remarkable genus of water-insects. SeeNEPA. 
SCORPION FLY, a name given by Mouffet, and other 
writers, to a kind of fly, remarkable for carrying the end of 
its tail turned up in the form of the scorpion’s sting. 
SCORPION, or Scorpio, is also the name of an ancient 
military engine, used chiefly in the defence of walls, &c. 
S06 Artillery 
SCORPION GRASS, in Botany: see Scorpiurus.— 
Scorpion Grass, Mouse-ear: see Myosotis.—Scor¬ 
pion Senna: see Coronilla.—Scorpion’s Thorn: see 
Genista. 
SCORPIURUS [of Pliny. 2 koo7t?o? ovpx, Scorpion’s- 
tail; from the twisting of the pod], in Botany, a genus of 
the class diadelphia, order decandria, natural order of 
papilionacese or leguminosse.-—Generic Character. Calyx : 
umbel simple : perianth one-leafed, erect, inflated, very 
slightly compressed, half-five-cleft, acute: teeth almost 
equal: the upper ones less divided. Corolla papilionaceous; 
banner roundish, emarginate, reflexed, spreading; wings 
subovate, loose, with a blunt appendix ; keel half-mooned, 
with the belly gibbous, acuminate, erect, two-parted below. 
Stamina: filaments diadelphous,. (simple and nine cleft,) as¬ 
cending. Anthers small. Pistil: germ oblong, cylindrical, 
a little reflexed. Style bent in upwards. Stigma a termi¬ 
nating point. Pericarp: legume oblong, sub-cylindrical, 
coriaceous, striated, rugged, revolute, divided internally into 
several transverse cells, obscurely knobbed externally by the 
contraction of the joints. Seeds solitary, roundish.— Essen¬ 
tial Character. Legume divided by isthmuses or transverse 
mrtitions, revolute cylindrical. 
1. Scorpiurus vermiculata, or common caterpillar.—Stalks 
herbaceous, trailing, above a foot long, lying on the ground, 
and having at each joint a spatulate leaf on a long foot-stalk. 
Peduncles axillary, sustaining at the top one yellow flower, 
which is succeeded, by a thick twisted pod, the size and 
appearance of a large green caterpillar.—Native of the South 
of Europe. 
2. Scorpiurus muricata, or two-flowered caterpillar.— 
Peduncles two-flowered, legumes bluntly prickly outwards. 
This has stronger stalks than the first; and the leaves are 
much broader.—Native of the South of Europe. 
3. Scorpiurus sulcata, or furrowed caterpillar.—This has 
slenderer stalks than either of the former ; the leaves stand 
upon shorter footstalks, but are shaped like those of the first 
sort; the peduncles are slender, and frequently support three 
flowers; the pods are slender, not so much twisted as the 
former, and armed on their outside with sharp distinct spines. 
SCO 
—Native of the South of Europe, and Barbary about 
Algiers. 
4. Scorpiurus subvillosa.—Peduncles mostly four-flowered, 
legumes with acute spines in clusters outwardly. Stems 
striated, subvillose, procumbent. Leaves wide-lanceolate, 
entire, petioled, subvillose, acute.—Native of the South of 
Europe, and Barbary about Algiers. 
Propagation and Culture. —These plants are propagated 
like all other hardy annuals, and are introduced into gar¬ 
dens, more for the curiosity of their fructification than their 
beauty; the pods at first sight appearing like green cater¬ 
pillars feeding on the leaves. 
The first sort is the best worth cultivating; the pods being 
large and more visible than the others, and more in form of 
a caterpillar. 
SCORPIUS. See Scorp.ena. 
SCORPIUS Marinus, in Ichthyology. See Cottus. 
To SCORSE, v. a. [skoja, “ Sueth. vulg. commutare, 
praecipue equos.” Serenius. The Exmore dialect has 
scoace, or scorse, to exchange. Grose. Sherwood notices 
this word as scoursc, to exchange, and adds to it “ a hoarse- 
scourser."~\ To barter; to exchange. 
But Paridel sore bruised with the blow 
Could not arise, the counterchange to scorse. Spenser. 
[ Scorso , Ital. pursued.] To chase. Not in use. 
Him first from court he to the citties coursed, 
And from the citties to the townes him prest. 
And from the townes into the countrie forsed. 
And from the country backe to private farmes he scorsed. 
Spenser. 
To SCORSE, v. n. To deal for the purchase of a horse. 
See the Swedish term, particularly applied to horse-dealers, 
under the verb active.—Will you scourse with him ? you 
are in Smithfield; you may fit yourself with a fine easy¬ 
going hackney. B. Jonson. 
SCORSE, s. Exchange. 
Therein sat an old old man, halfe blind, 
And all decrepit in his feeble corse. 
Yet lively vigour rested in his mind. 
And recompenc’d them with a better scorse; 
Weake body well is chang’d for mind’s redoubled force. 
Spensef\ 
SCORTICK, a lake of North America. Lat. 62. 5. N. 
long. 106. 20. W. 
SCORTIUM, among the Romans, a measure of capacity 
of a round form, which used always to be heaped. 
SCORTON, a village of England, North Riding of York¬ 
shire ; 1J mile north-east of Catterich. Population 449. 
SCORZONERA [quasi viperaria, from the Catalonian 
Escorso, a viper. Tourneforf\, in Botany, a genus of the 
class syngenesia, order polygamia asqualis, natural order of 
composite semiflosculos®, cichoracese (Juss.)— Generic 
Character. Calyx common imbricate, long, subcylindrical: 
scales about fifteen, scariose at the edge. Corolla compound 
imbricate, reniform: corollets hermaphrodite numerous, the 
outer a little longer, proper one-petalled, ligulate, linear, 
truncate, five-toothed. Stamina: filaments five, capillary, 
very short. Anther cylindrical, tubular. Pistil: germ 
oblong. Style filiform, length of the stamens. Stigmas 
two, reflexed. Pericarp none. Calyx ovate oblong, con¬ 
verging and finally spreading and reflexed. Seeds solitary, 
oblong, cylindrical, striated, shorter by half than the calyx. 
Pappus feathered, (sessile, with chaffy and bristly rays 
mixed. Grertn.) Receptacle naked. —Essential Character. 
Calyx imbricate with scales scariose at the edge. Pappus 
feathered, sessile. Receptacle naked. ; 
1. Scorzonera tomentosa, or white viper’s-grass.—Stem 
straight, simple, tomentose. Leaves alternate, scarcely 
half-embracing, sharpish. Branches floriferous, axillary, 
one or two-flowered, scarcely longer than the leaf. One or 
two lanceolate bractes.—Native of the Levant. 
2. Scorzonera humilis, or dwarf viper’s-grass.—Root 
■ • thick, 
