HERON. 17 wliite, the former about 00 per cent, larger than the latter; and the reddisli egret (Ardea rufa), thi little blue heron (Ardea coerulea) , and the great white hernn (Ardea occidentalia) , all of which are dichromatic; the last is the largest American heron, and is about 4% feet long and 8 feet in extent. The largest known species is the giant heron of Africa (Ardea Golinlh). which slightly exceeds these figures. Among other herons of the Old World may be mentioned the following: The purple heron (Ardea purpurea) , which is of large size, purplisTi-blue plumage, and wiile distribution I see the (oloreil Plate of V'a1)ERS); the great wliite heron, or great egret (Ardea alba), is most common in Turkey and eastward. It is an extremely beautiful bird, with perfectly white plumage, much of it loose and flowing. The little egret (Ardea garzetta) has also white flowing plumage. Consult: New- ton, Dictionary of Birds ( I.x)ndon and New- York, 1896); Sclater and Hudson. Argentine Ornithology (London, 1888); and American or- nithologies. HE'RON. See Hero of Ai.exandbia. HERON", Matilda (1830-77). An American actress. She was born near Londonderry, in Ire- land, and was brought to the United States by her parents in childhood. She first appeared in Philadelphia in 1851 as Bianca in Fazio. Her chief parts were f'amille in La Dame aux Camelias, and Ulah in De Hoto. She played in all the principal American cities and visited London in 1861. She was married to Robert Stoepel, a musician, in 18.57. but was divorced in 1869. In the latter part of her life she taught elocution in New York City. HERON'DAS, or HERO'DAS (Lat.. from Gk. 'HpiipSat. or 'Hpwdas) . A Greek poet of the third century B.C.. born, probably, in the island of Cos. Of his mimes or mimiambi. as they are sometimes called, nothing was known before 1890 except a few fragments. In that year, however, an Egyptian papyrus was found which contains seven comparatively complete poems and parts of two others. These are all written in the metre called the choliambus. or lame iambic trimeter. L'nlike the works of the earlier iambographers. such as Archilochus and Hipponax. the poems of Herondas are not personal in their satire. They may be discribed as genre pieces descrip- tive of certain phases of life in the earlv Alex andrian time, and as such they are extremely interesting. The realism of these pictures is very striking. In tlieni the Alexandrian age lives again in all its hurry and flurry, all its outward brilliancy and s))iritual poverty. First [mblica- tion by Kenyon. Clamtiral Texts from Papyri m the British iilusenm (London, 1891 ) . The latest edition is that of Crusius. i'nterstiehungcn :u den Miiiiiamben des Herondas (Leipzig, 1892; 4th ed.. 1904). HEROPH'ILTJS (Lat.. from Gk. 'Bp6<ptot (c.300 B.C.). A famous surgeon of antiquity, born at Chahodon in Bitliynia. He studied medi- cine under Praxagoras, one of the followers of Hippocrates, and afterwards went to .lexandria in Egypt, where he became famous, and was one of the founders of the medical school in that city. His followers later spread to Pergamum, Laodicea, and elsewhere. Herophilus's greatest services were performed in the field of anatomy. HERPETOLOGY. HERO 8 FOUNTAIN. He discovered the nerves and made important observations in connection with the eye. Sev- eral names which he gave to different parts of the body are still in use. one such, toculnr Herophili, recording his ,;^^^, own name. He is said to have ri'jXj practiced vivisection upon con- demned criminals. His writings were numerous, but we have only fragments thereof. HERO'S FOUNTAIN (named from its inventor. Hero of Alexan- dria ) . A pneumatic apparatus, in which a vertical jet of water is pro- duced by the pressure of condensed air. A simple form of the appara- tus constructed of glass tubes is shown in the annexed figure. The column of water in the left-hand tube compresses the air in the lower vessel; this causes an in- crease of pressure on the surface of the water in the upper cistern, and causes it to gush out at the jet. HEROSTRATUS (Lat., from Gk. HpoiTTpaTos) . An Ephesian, who, from a desire for future fame, set fire, in B.C. 356. on the very night on which Alexander the Great was bom, to the magnificent Temple of Diana at Ephesus; only the walls and a few columns were left standing. Herostratus expiated the deed by a' painful death, and the Ephesians passed a decree that his name should never be mentioned. It was revealed by Theopompus. HER'PES (Lat., from Gk. lpTrr,s. herpes, from ipuTfiv, herpein, Lat. serpere, Skt. aui/i. to creep). A cutaneous eruption, characterized by spreading or creeping from place to place. The term was formerly applied to several different diseases, including eczema, psoriasis, lichen, and seborrlia-a, as well as zona, to which it properly belongs. Zona, or herpes zoster, is a cutaneous disease of trophic origin, occurring as a sequence of various lesions of the nervous system : it is a dermatosis of nervous origin — a fact established by pathologists. The disease is of an acute, inflam- matory nature, characterized by a set of vesicles as large as a split pea. occurring in clusters and following the course of a peripheral nerve. The course of the afl'ection is from ten to fourteen days in each locality to which it spreads, each irregular cluster of vesicles going through the process of increase, maturation, and decline, each vesicle drying into a scab. The inflamed areas are exquisitely tender to the touch, sometimes itehing at the same time. Soothing and cooling applica- tions should be made, avoiding ointments whose base is grease. (Galvanism is of benefit. Appro- priate internal treatment for the nerve condition nnist be employed. Herpes zoster is popularly called 'shingles.' HERPETOL'OGY (from Gk. tpirrrA.', her- peton. reptile, froin fpireix, herprin. to creep -f- -oyla, -logia, account, from X^eii", legein. to say). That branch of natural history which treats of reptiles and formerly included the amphibia. Now. however, the term is restricted to the Reptilia 'proper, which itH-ludes lizards, snakes, turtles, crocodiles, alligators, and various extinct aquatic and terrestrial reptiles. The first
