1899); Magnan, Le Délire chronique (Paris, 1890); Stewart Paton, Psychiatry (Philadelphia, 1905); Percy Smith, “Paranoia,” in Journ. of Mental Science (1904), p. 607. (J. Mn.)
PARAPET (Ital. parapetto, Fr. parapet, from para, imperative
of Ital. parare, to cover, defend, and petto, breast, Lat. pectus;
the German word is Brustwehr), a dwarf wall along the edge
of a roof, or round a lead flat, terrace walk, &c., to prevent
persons from falling over, and as a protection to the defenders in case of a siege. Parapets are either plain, embattled, perforated or panelled. The last two are found in all styles except the Romanesque. Plain parapets are simply portions of the wall generally overhanging a little, with a coping at the top and corbel table below. Embattled parapets are sometimes panelled, but oftener pierced for the discharge of arrows, &c. Perforated parapets are pierced in various devices—as circles, trefoils, quatrefoils and other designs—so that the light is seen through.
Panelled parapets are those ornamented by a series of panels,
either oblong or square, and more or less enriched, but are
not perforated. These are common in the Decorated and
Perpendicular periods.
PARAPHERNALIA (Lat. paraphernalia, sc. bona, from Gr.
παράφερνα; παρά, beside, and φερνή, dower), a term originally
of Roman law, signifying all the property which a married
woman who was sui juris held apart from her dower (dos).
A husband could not deal with such except with his wife’s
consent. Modern systems of law, which are based on the
Roman, mainly follow the same principle, and the word preserves
its old meaning. In English and Scottish law the term is
confined to articles of jewelry, dress and other purely personal
things, for the law relating to which see Husband and Wife.
The word is also used in a general sense of accessories, external
equipment, cumbersome or showy trappings.
PARAPHRASE (Gr. παράφρασις, from παραφράζειν, to relate
something in different words, παρά, beside, and φράζειν, speak,
tell), a rendering into other words of a passage in prose or verse,
giving the sense in a fuller, simpler or clearer fashion, also a free
translation or adaptation of a passage in a foreign language.
The term is specifically used in the Scottish and other Presbyterian
churches of metrical versions for singing of certain
passages of the Bible.
PARASCENIUM (Gr. παρασκήνιον), in a Greek theatre, the wall on either side of the stage, reaching from the back wall (σκηνή) to the orchestra.
PARASITE (From Gr. παρά, beside, (σῖτος food), literally
“mess-mate,” a term originally conveying no idea of reproach
or contempt, as in later times. The early parasites may be
divided into two classes, religious and civil. The former were
assistants of the priests, their chief duty being to collect the
corn dues which were contributed by the farmers of the temple
lands or which came in from other sources (Athenaeus vi. 235;
Pollux vi. 35). Considerable obscurity exists as to their other
functions, but they seem to have been charged with providing
food for the visitors to the temples, with the care of certain
offerings, and with the arrangement of the sacrificial banquets.
In Attica the parasites appear to have been confined to certain
demes (Acharnae, Diomeia), and were appointed by the demes to
which the temples belonged. The “civil” parasites were a class
of persons who received invitations to dine in the prytaneum
and subsequently in the tholos) as distinguished from those
who had the right to dine there ex officio. An entirely different
meaning (“sponger”) became attached to the word from the
character introduced into the Middle and New Comedy, first by
Alexis, and firmly established by Diphilus. The chief object
of this class of parasites was a good dinner, for which they
were ready to submit to almost any humiliation. Numerous
examples occur in the comedies of Plautus; and Alciphron and
Athenaeus (vi. 236 sqq.) give instances of the insults they had
to put up with at the hands of both host and guests. Some of
them played the part of professional jesters (like the later
buffoons and court fools), and kept collections of witticisms
ready for use at their patrons’ table; others relied upon flattery,
others again condescended to the most degrading devices
(Plutarch, De adulatore, 23; De educatione puerorum, 17). The
term parasite, from meaning a “hanger-on,” has been transferred
to any living creature which lives on another one.
See Juvenal v. 170 with J. E. B. Mayor’s note, and the exhaustive article by M. H. Meier in Ersch and Gruber’s Allgemeine Encyclopädie.
PARASITIC DISEASES. It has long been recognized that various specific pathological conditions are due to the presence and action of parasites (see Parasitism) in the human body, but in recent years the part played in the causation of the so-called infective diseases by various members of the Schizomycetes—fission fungi—and by Protozoan and other animal
parasites has been more widely and more thoroughly investigated
(see Bacteriology). The knowledge gained has not only
modified our conception of the pathology of these diseases, but
has had a most important influence upon our methods of treatment
of sufferers, both as individuals and as members of communities.
For clinical and other details of the diseases mentioned
in the following classification, see the separate articles on them;
the present article is concerned mainly with important modern
discoveries as regards aetiology and pathology. In certain
cases indeed the aetiology is still obscure. Thus, according to
Guarnieri, and Councilman & Calkins, there is associated with
vaccinia and with small-pox a Protozoan parasite, Cytoryctes
variolae. Guar. This parasite is described as present in the
cytoplasm of the stratified epithelium of the skin and mucous
membranes in cases of vaccinia, but in the nuclei of the same
cells in cases of variola or small-pox, whilst it is suggested that
there may be a third phase of existence, not yet demonstrated,
in which it occurs as minute spores or germs which are very
readily carried in dust and by air currents from point to point.
In certain other conditions, such as mumps, dengue, epidemic
dropsy, oriental sore—with which the Leishman-Donovan
bodies (Helcosoma tropicum, Wright) are supposed to be closely
associated (see also Kála-ázar below)—verruga, framboesia
or yaws—with which is commonly associated a spirochaete
(Castellani) and a special micrococcus (Pierez, Nicholls)—and
beri-beri, the disease may be the result of the action of specific
micro-organisms, though as yet it has not been possible to
demonstrate any aetiologica relationship between any microorganisms
found and the special disease. Such diseases as
haemoglobinuric fever or black-water fever, which are also
presumably parasitic diseases, are probably associated directly
with malaria; this supposition is the more probable in that both
of these are recognized as occurring specially in those patients
who have been weakened by malaria.
The following classification is based partly upon the biological relations of the parasites and partly on the pathological phenomena of individual diseases:—
A.—Diseases due to Vegetable Parasites.
I.—To Schizomycetes, Bacteria or Fission Fungi.
1. Caused by the Pyogenetic Micrococci.
| Suppuration and Septicaemia. | Erysipelas. |
| Infective Endocarditis. | Gonorrhoea. |
2. Caused by Specific Bacilli.
(a) Acute Infective Fevers.
| Cholera. | Infective Meningitis. |
| Typhoid Fever. | Influenza. |
| Malta Fever. | Yellow Fever and Weil’s Disease. |
| Relapsing Fever. | Diphtheria. |
| Plague. | Tetanus. |
| Pneumonia. |
| (b) More Chronic Infective Diseases (tissue parasites). | ||
| Tuberculosis. | Glanders. | Leprosy. |
II.—To Higher Vegetable Parasites.
Actinomycosis, Madura Foot, Aspergillosis and other Mycoses.
B.—Diseases due to Animal Parasites.
I.—To Protozoa.
| Malaria. | Kála-ázar. |
| Amoebic Dysentery. | Tsetse-fly Disease. |
| Haemoglobinuric Fever. | Sleeping Sickness. |
| Syphilis. |
II.—To other Animal Parasites.
Filariasis, &c.
