_ sonous fluid is thrown out. 
| depressed, and membranous, each ring being 
| covered by a coriaceous or cartilaginous plate, 
| and mostly having one pair of feet: the last is 
| usually thrown backwards, and elongated in the 
| form of a tail. 
| carnivorous, and uniformly endeavour to escape 
| from the light. 
_ the decayed bark of trees, the decayed timbers 
CENTIPEDE. 
medicinal properties of the officinal gentianee ; 
and they: completely surrender these qualities to 
either alcohol or water, so as to be exhibitable 
in the form of either tincture, infusion, or ex- 
tract. Previous to the use of cinchona, centaury 
was an ingredient in the celebrated Portland 
powder, and was much employed in the medical 
treatment of fever; and it might still be very 
beneficially used, in lieu of more expensive reme- 
dies, in cases of dyspepsy and other complaints 
of the stomach. 
CENTIPEHDE, or Scotopenpra. A genus of in- 
sects belonging to the order Myriapoda. They 
are distinguished by having antenne of 14 joints 
and upwards, a mouth composed of two. man- 
| dibles, a quadrifid lip, two palpi, or small feet, 
_ united at their base, and a second lip, formed by 
a second pair of dilated feet, joined at their ori- 
gin, and terminated by a strong hook, having an 
opening beneath its point, through which a poi- 
The body is long, 
These insects are nocturnal and 
They conceal themselves under 
of buildings, among stones, lumber, and rubbish, 
| whence they sally forth at night in search of 
prey. The centipede is one of the greatest pests 
to be encountered in the West India islands, and 
_ throughout the hot parts of the American conti- 
| nent. 
The materials of which the houses are 
constructed, and the rapid decay to which tim- 
ber is subject in such climates, afford these noxi- 
ous insects excellent hiding-places, and they 
multiply with great rapidity. The utmost vigi- 
lance, even in the most cleanly houses, is neces- 
sary to prevent these creatures from finding their 
way into the beds, which they often do notwith- 
standing all the care that is taken to prevent 
them. They always attempt to escape when a 
light is brought into the room. They run with 
considerable swiftness, but are quite ready to 
stand on the defensive, and bite with severity. 
This disposition to bite upon the slightest provo- 
cation renders them very dangerous when once 
they have entered a bed; the least movement of 
the sleeper over whom they may be crawling, 
and who can scarcely fail to be disturbed by their 
sharp-pointed feet or claws acting upon his skin, 
will insure a venomous bite, which wiil be fre- 
quently repeated if the centipede be not speedily 
dislodged. The bite is exceedingly painful at the 
moment, and is followed by a high degree of local 
inflammation and a fever of great irritation. 
Where the insect is large, and the bite severe, 
life is much endangered, and not unfrequently 
lost, especially if the sufferer be of delicate and 
irritable habit of body. The immediate applica- 
tion of a cupping-glass, or any convenient substi- 
| &e. 
known by the name of thousand legs, is common | 
in most parts of this. country, living under dead | 
CENTRANTHUS. vol 
tute, over the wound, removes the pain and dan- 
ger at once. Spirits of hartshorn (volatile alkali) 
applied to the part, and doses of the same admin- 
istered internally (80 or 40 drops) twice, thrice, 
or oftener in a day, will also lessen the pain, and 
avert dangerous consequences. The mode of 
treatment first mentioned is the quickest and 
most certain. A popular remedy, in all places 
where the centipede is common, is the application 
to the wound of brandy or rum in which a cen- 
tipede has been for some time preserved. This 
truly noxious insect grows to the size of six 
inches and more in length, and is a formidable 
inmate of most of the houses in tropical regions. 
Bishop Heber speaks of them as being very large 
and poisonous in different parts of India. So 
accustomed are the West India slaves and resi- 
dents to their presence, and regardless of danger 
from their bite, that no particular pains are taken 
to lessen their numbers, or to banish them effec- 
tually. It is very probable that they might 
be readily destroyed by placing poisoned food | 
within their reach; yet, while resident in the 
West Indies, we never heard of any one being at 
the trouble of the experiment, though centipedes 
were almost daily killed about the house. Spe- 
cies having considerable resemblance to the cen- 
tipede of the West Indies, and much dreaded on | 
account of their bite, are often seen about exten- | | 
sive collections of timber and lumber at the saw- 
mills on the head waters of the Susquehanna, 
A smaller, dark, reddish-brown species, 
bark or among decaying timbers. The order 
Myriapoda, to which these insects pertain, from 
their crustaceous covering, the formation of the | 
mouth, &c., appears to form the transition from 
the crustaceous or crab-like animals to insects 
proper. They are the only insects which, in 
their perfect state, have more than st feet, and 
have the abdomen not distinct from the trunk. 
They live and grow much longer than other in- | 
sects, surviving through several generations. 
When first hatched, they have but six feet, or, at 
least, fewer than they afterwards acquire. The 
alditional feet, as well as the rings to which 
they are attached, become developed as they 
advance in age—a sort of change peculiar to this 
race. 
CENTOTHECA. See Burpock. 
CENTRANTHUS. A genus of ornamental 
herbaceous plants, of the valerian tribe. The 
caltrop-leaved, C. calcitrapa, is a purple-flowered 
annual, of about a foot in height, blooming from 
May till July, and introduced about 180 years | 
ago, from Portugal. The red species, C. ruber, 
is a perennial-rooted wild plant of the meadows 
of Britain, growing about 20 inches high, and 
carrying a crimson-coloured flower from May 
till July; and a white-flowered variety of it, C. 
r. flore-albo, has long been cultivated in gardens, 
Two other species are known. The name cen- 
