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London: Printed by WILLIAM CLOWES and SONS, Stamford Stroet. THE PENNY CYCLOPÆDIA OF THE SOCIETY FOR THE DIFFUSION OF USEFUL KNOWLEDGE. SIG SIGO'NIO CA'ROLO was born at Modena, about the year 1520. He was a pupil of Franciscus Portus, who taught him Greek. He afterwards studied medicine and philosophy at Bologna, and he also visited the university of Pavia. In 1546 he was invited back to Modena to fill the chair of Greek literature, which had become vacant by the departure of Portus. In 1552 he accepted the chair of belles-lettres at Venice, where he became acquainted with Panvinio, who, like himself, was a diligent student of antiquity. His reputation having become widely spread by various works on classical antiquity, he had invitations both to Rome and Padua, at which latter place he accepted the chair of eloquence in 1560. At Padua he again met with Robortello, with whom he had already had a dispute on the names of the Romans, and the disputes between these two scholars, being renewed, were carried to such a pitch that the senate of Venice found it prudent to silence the combatants. [ROBORTELLO.] Sigonio left Padua in the year 1563 for a place in the university of Bologna, where he received a handsome salary, and was made a citizen. His reputation attracted numerous students to Bologna. Roman antiquity was his special subject, and his instruction was characterised both by comprehensiveness and accuracy. He also occupied himself with middle-age history, and with this object he visited the great libraries and collections of Italy. It was at the request of Pope Gregory XIII., in 1578, that he commenced the ecclesiastical history, of which his friend Panvinio had formed the plan. Sigonio having discovered some fragments of Cicero's treatise De Consolatione,' undertook to restore the work, which he completed and published as a genuine work of Cicero. The fraud was detected and exposed by Riccoboni, one of his pupils; but Sigonio, instead of confessing the fact, endeavoured to reply to the arguments of his opponent; and so well has he succeeded in imitating the expression and manner of Cicero, that the work 'De Consolatione' long passed for genuine, notwithstanding the criticism of Riccoboni; and Tiraboschi, who maintained this side of the question, was only convinced by seeing some unpublished letters of Sigonio, in which he acknowledges himself to be the author. Sigonio retired to the neighbourhood of Modena, where he died in 1584. His numerous writings were collected by Argellati, Milan, 1732-1737, in 6 vols. folio, to which is prefixed a Life by Muratori. All his works on matters of antiquity are also contained in the 'Thesaurus Antiquitatum Græcarum et Romanarum' of Graevius and Gronovius. The following, which are among the principal works of Sigonio, will indicate the general character of his labours: 'Regum, Consulum, Dictatorum ac Censorum Romanorum Fasti, una cum Actis Triumphorum à Romulo rege usque ad Tiberium Cæsarem; in fastos et acta triumphorum explicationes,' Modena. 1550, fol.: there is also a second edition of this work, Venice, 1556; De Antiquo Jure Civium Romanorum Libri Duo; de Antiquo Jure Italiae Libri Tres; de Antiquo Jure Provinciarum Libri Tres,' Venice, P. C., No. 1359. 165790 SIK 1560, fol.; De Republica Atheniensium Libri Quinque; de Atheniensium et Lacedæmoniorum Temporibus Liber Unus,' Bologna, 1564, 4to.; De Judiciis Romanorum Libri Tres,' Bologna, 1574, 4to.; De Occidentali Imperio Libri xx., ab anno 281 ad 575,' Bologna, 1577, fol.; Historiae Ecclesiasticae Libri xiv. ;' this work comes down to the year 311, but it was the intention of the author to continue it to 1580. Sigonio was one of the great scholars to whom we owe much of our knowledge of antiquity, and particularly of Roman history. His industry was unwearied, and his learning was sound and comprehensive. He wrote the Latin language with ease and correctness, and his style is simple and perspicuous. Modern scholars have often been more indebted to Sigonio than they have been willing to allow, and the results of his labours have been used by one person after another, and sometimes without making any discrimínation between what is right and what is wrong. Heineccius was largely indebted to him, as will appear from examining his Syntagma.' If we consider what was done before his time, and what he accomplished towards the illustration of Roman antiquity, we shall find few scholars who have so well deserved a lasting reputation. It would require a minute investigation to ascertain how far some of the more recent views of the Roman polity have been suggested by the writings of Sigonio. His remarks on the Agrarian laws, though far from being marked by sufficient clearness and precision, are still worth reading. (De Antiquo Jure Italiae.) SIGUENZA, a large town of the province of Guadalaxara in Spain, situated on the declivity of a hill near the source of the river Henares, in 40° 58′ N. lat. and 2° 57′ W. long. It is the see of a bishop, suffragan of Toledo, and has a university, which was founded in the year 1441. The town is badly built; the streets are narrow and crooked, but clean. Of the numerous ecclesiastical buildings which this town contains, the cathedral is the only one worthy of mention. It was built at the beginning of the fourteenth century, in the pure Gothic style; it contains one nave and three aisles, and measures 330 feet by 112. One of its chapels, that of Santa Catalina, is greatly admired for its large dimensions and the beautiful marble tombs which it contains. Siguenza is the antient Saguntia, mentioned by Pliny (iii. 4) as one of the six towns among the Arevaci in Hispania Tarraconensis. Livy (xxxiv., 19) calls it Seguntia; and in the ‘Itinerary' of Antoninus it is mentioned as Segontia. Inscriptions bearing the latter name have been found in the neighbourhood. It was the seat of a contested battle between Pompey and Sertorius. In 1106 Alfonso VI., king of Leon and Castile, wrested it from the Moors, who had occupied it since the beginning of the eighth century. An antient castle which commands the town is the only remain of Mohammedan architecture. The population, according to Miñano (Diccionario Geográfico, &c.), was about 30,000 in 1832. The only trade of the place consists in coarse flannels, blankets, and hats, which are exported to Toledo and Guadalaxara. VOL. XXII.-B SIKE or SIECKE, HENRY, an Oriental scholar of some repute, who lived in the latter half of the seventeenth and the beginning of the eighteenth centuries. He was a native of Bremen, and a professor of Oriental languages at Utrecht, and afterwards at Cambridge. It appears that owing to some misdemeanor he was to be subjected to punishment; and in order to escape from this disgrace, he put an end to his life by hanging himself in 1712. The only work of any note which he published is the 'Evangelium Infantiæ Christi, adscriptum Thomæ, 1697, 8vo., a very curious apocryphal gospel. It is reprinted in Fabricius's 'Codex Apocryphus Novi Testamenti,' tom. i., pp. 127-212. Sike also founded with L. Küster, at Utrecht, the literary periodical called 'Bibliotheca Novorum Librorum,' to which he contributed several papers. (Saxii Onomasticon Literarium, v., 490, &c.) SILENA'CEÆ, a natural order of plants, belonging to SILE'NE, the name of an extensive genus of plants belonging to the natural order Caryophyllaceae. It is known by its having a tubular, naked, 5-toothed calyx; 5 bifid unguiculate petals, which are usually crowned in the throat with 5 bifid scales; 10 stamens; 3 styles; capsules 3-celled at the base, ending in 6 teeth at the apex. The species are in general herbaceous, many of them are annual, very few shrubby. Their stems are leafy, jointed, branched, and frequently glutinous below each joint. The calyx and leafstalks are also frequently viscous. The leaves are opposite, simple, and entire. The petals are mostly red and white, sometimes greenish or yellowish. Some of them give off a delicious perfume, especially at night. The extent of this genus is very great, and constant additions are being made to it by the collections of travellers. The greatest proportion are inhabitants of the South of Europe and North of Africa. Don, in Miller's Dictionary, enumerates 256 species of this genus; of these we shall give a few examples of the more common and interesting forms. S acaulis, stemless Catchfly, or Moss Campion: whole plant glabrous, cespitose; leaves linear, ciliated at the base; peduncles solitary, 1-flowered; petals crowned, slightly notched. It is a native of Europe, and is found abundantly on the Alps. It is found on nearly all the Scottish mountains, and also on Snowdon, and the highest hills of Devonshire. Chamisso also gathered it on the islands of the western coast of North America. The flowers are of a beautiful purple colour, and it forms one of the greatest ornaments of our Alpine flora. Several varieties of this plant have been recorded, varying chiefly in the form and existence of parts of the flower. S. inflata, bladder Campion or Catchfly: stems branched; flowers numerous, panicled; calyx inflated, netted; petals deeply cloven, scarcely any crown; leaves ovato-lanceolate. This is a very common plant throughout Europe, and is met with in almost every field and wayside in Great Britain. Like most plants that are widely and largely diffused, many varieties of it have been recorded. This plant has been recommended to be cultivated in the garden on account of its edible properties. The shoots gathered young, when about two inches high, and boiled, are a good substitute for green peas or asparagus. They are thus eaten by the natives of Zante, and in 1685 the inhabitants of Minorca are said to have been saved from famine, oceasioned by a swarm of locusts, by using this plant as food. S. noctiflora, night-flowering Catchfly: panicles forked; petals bifid; calyx with long teeth, oblong in fruit, with ten connected ribs; leaves lanceolate, lower ones spathulate; whole plant clammy, pubescent. It is a native of Sweden, Germany, and Great Britain; it resembles very much the common red and white campion (Lychnis dioica). It is not a common plant, and is remarkable for opening its flowers at night only, and in warm weather, when they exhale a powerful and delicious scent. S. quinquevulnerata, five-wounded Catchfly.stems branch ed; leaves lanceolate, lower ones obtuse; calyx very villous, with short teeth; petals roundish, entire, with toothed appendages. The petals of this plant are of a deep crimson with pale edges, giving them the appearance of having been stained with blood in the centre; hence their specific name. It is a native of Spain, France, and Italy, and has been found in the county of Kent in Great Britain. It is frequent in gardens, but loses by cultivation much of the colour of its flowers. S. muscipula, Spanish or Fly-trap Catchfly: plant smoothish, clammy; stem erect; branches alternate, long; lower leaves lanceolate, upper ones linear; flowers panicled; calyx clavate, netted; petals bifid. It is a native of Spain, with intensely red petals. It is exceedingly clammy, so that when flies alight on it they are caught; and hence the name Catchfly, which is given to the whole genus, though few of the species possess the property. S. fruticosa, shrubby Catchfly: stem shrubby at the base, much branched, tufted; flowering stems simple; leaves obovate, dark-green, permanent, ciliated, particularly towards the base; flowers crowded; calyx clavate; petals deeply emarginate, obtuse, with 4-parted appendages. This plant is a native of Sicily and of the island of Cyprus, and grows among rocks. It is frequently cultivated in gardens, and makes a handsome ornament. . S. compacta, close-flowered Catchfly: plant glabrous, glaucous; stem erect, branched; leaves ovate-cordate, sessile; flowers crowded into dense corymbs; calyx very long; petals entire, obovate, crowned. It is a native of Russia, and very nearly resembles the S. armeria, but is distinguished by its entire petals. It is one of the most beautiful of the genus, and deserves a place in every collection of flowers. In the cultivation of the species of Silene no great art is required. The hardy kinds may be planted in the open border, and the smaller species are well adapted for rockwork. The seeds of the hardy annual kinds may be sown in the beginning of the spring, where they are to remain. The perennial kinds are best increased by dividing them at the roots in the spring. The greenhouse kinds thrive best in a rich light soil; the cuttings of shrubby species should be placed under a hand-glass. SILE'NUS (Σeiλŋvóg), a Greek deity. The traditions of his birth are various: he is said to be son of Pan, of a nymph, of the earth, and to have sprung from the blood of Uranus. He was the instructor of Bacchus, a lawgiver and prophet, sometimes confounded with Bacchus himself, of the family of Satyrs, whom he resembled very much in appearance and habits. He is represented as an old man, bald, with a beard, and depressed nose, sometimes with a tail, at times holding the infant Bacchus in his arms, or with a wine-skin on his shoulders. He has a conspicuous place in the Bacchic chorus, and occurs in various combination with fauns and nymphs. Though endowed with supernatural wisdom, he is of a comic disposition; his whole character is a mixture of jest and earnest; he is harmless, sportive, fond of children, addicted to wine; sometimes he rides on his ass reeling and supported by a satyr; is said to have conducted Bacchus from Thrace to Phrygia; and to have been ensnared by Midas in a garden, and compelled to exert his marvellous power of speech. His discourse was of the second world, of the land of Meropis, and of its strange men, beasts, and plants, of the origin of things and birth of the gods, and he showed the miserable condition of this present life. In all that he uttered was an irony consistent with his motley character. The ass by which he is accompanied has given rise to many conjectures; the Bacchic myths and those of Apollo speak of this animal as sacred to both deities. It may therefore be considered as the link uniting the two worships, and we find accordingly Apollo called the son of Silenus. (Porphyry, Vit. Pythag., p. 10, ed. Rome, 1630.) Attempts have been made by Bochart and others to connect Silenus with the name Shiloh in Scripture, and his ass with that of Balaam. Other imaginary resemblances are noticed by Creuzer (Symbolik), founded on the theory that the ass is the symbol of prophecy in the East. The myth of Silenus has been further thought by Creuzer to have reference to cosmogony. He quotes Porphyry (Euseb., Pr. Ev., iii., p. 110, Cologne, 1687) in support of this opinion, and considers Silenus as the half-embodied soul of the universe, the struggle of the shapeless into shape, or, to speak physically, the moist breath which, according to the Egyptian and old Ionian philosophies, nourishes the stars.' This theory is made still further to interpret the connection | 4950 feet above the level of the sea, the Glatz Mountains, &c. between Silenus and Bacchus, and the various modes in In the interior there are some ranges unconnected with the which he is represented on antient monuments: the argu- great chain-the principal of which is the Zobtengebirge, ments on which it rests are however too numerous and in-2318 feet above the level of the sea. On the right side of the tricate to be here entered upon. Oder, from the part where its course is to the northward, the high land disappears, and those immense plains begin which characterise this part of Europe. The Oder, called by the common people the Ader, that is, the vein,' comes from Moravia, and receives all its rivers, with the exception of some on the frontiers. The principal are the Elsa, the Klodnitz, the Slober, and the Bartsch, on the right side; the Oppa, the Neisse, the Ohlau, and the Katzbach, on the left. There are few lakes, and those which are so called are rather large ponds. The largest are the Koschnitz, Moswitz, and Schlawer lakes. The last is however four miles in length, but nowhere above a mile in breadth. The climate varies very much in the different parts of the province. The air on the whole is very mild, except in the mountainous tracts; but in proportion as we approach the southern frontier, the temperature becomes lower, and the winter longer and more severe, which is owing to the elevation of the country, to the extensive forests, and partly to the lofty Carpathians and the winds that come from them. The distinction between Sileni and Satyrs does not appear very clearly made out. According to authorities quoted by Creuzer, the Sileni are the older of the two. The terms were certainly not co-extensive; that of Satyr may be considered as the genus. They were mostly represented in the same manner, with beards, tails, and pricked ears like beasts. In the procession of Ptolemy Philadelphus (Athen., v. 197) they were dressed differently from each other, and the Sileni have sometimes a more human form. See Creuzer's 'Symbolik,' and Grüber's 'Worterbuch der Mythologie,' for representations of Silenus; Millin's · Galérie Mythologique,' and the various works on gems, sculpture, vases, and other monuments of classical antiquity. SILESIA. This country, which is now divided between Prussia and Austria, was once inhabited by the Lygii and Quadi, who, in the sixth century, were forced to yield to the pressure of a Slavonian tribe from Poland, by which event Silesia became subject to that country. Under the dominion of Poland, the Polish language and manners, which still remain in the eastern parts of the province, and the Christian religion, were introduced. To promote the latter a bishopric was founded in 906, at Schmogor, which was afterwards transferred to Breslau. The country being in course of time divided and subdivided among the descendants of Boleslaus III., king of Poland, numerous small principalities arose. Being weakened by these divisions, and by the dissensions between the princes, it was subdued by the king of Bohemia in the fourteenth century. Under the dominion of Bohemia the doctrines of Huss, Luther, and Calvin gained ground, and their adherents obtained the partial exercise of their religion. With the Polish princes Polish manners and customs disappeared; everything was placed on the same footing as in Germany; trade, manufactures, arts, and sciences flourished. The prosperity of the country would have been greater in former times, had not the Protestants been so much oppressed under the Austrian government. Austria, which obtained possession of Silesia, together with Bohemia, in the early part of the sixteenth century, retained it undisturbed till the death of the emperor Charles VI. in 1740, on which Frederic II. of Prussia revived a dormant claim to the western part of Silesia, which he immediately invaded; and the greater part was ceded to him in 1742, and confirmed to him by the treaties of Dresden, in 1745, and of Hubertsburg, in 1763. Austria retained the smaller portion. SILESIA (in German, Schlesien), the Prussian Province of, is situated between 49° 40′ and 52° 8' N. lat., and between 14°25′ and 19° 15' E. long. It is bounded on the north-west by Brandenburg; on the north-east by Posen; on the east by Poland; on the south-east by Cracow and Galicia; on the south by Austrian Silesia; and on the south-west by Bohemia. Including the county of Glatz, and the Prussian part of Upper Lusatia, its area is 15,600 square miles. The province is 210 miles in length from north-east to south-west, and from 70 to 80 miles in breadth from east to west. The river Oder, which becomes navigable soon after entering the Prussian boundary, divides the province in its whole length into two nearly equal parts, which are very different from each other. That on the left bank, which is called the German side, is mountainous, but has a very fertile soil, which amply rewards the labour of the husbandman, and supplies almost the whole province. That on the right bank, called the Polish side, is very different; it consists chiefly of a sandy and not very fruitful soil. There are however some sandy tracts on the German side, and some rich and productive spots on the Polish side. The country is highest on the south-eastern frontier, and declines more towards the north-western frontier, where it is the lowest. Where the frontiers of Silesia and Bohemia meet, a mountain-chain rises, which extends southwards to the sources of the Breswa and the Ostrawitza, where it joins the Carpathians, divides the basin of the Oder on the one side from those of the Elbe and Danube on the other, and forms the natural boundary between Silesia and Bohemia and Moravia. This chain, called by the general name of the Sudetic chain, is divided into different parts, bearing different names, as the Isergebirge, the Riesengebirge, the loftiest and wildest part of the whole chain, the Schneekoppe, which is Natural Productions.-The animals are-horses, horned cattle, sheep, goats, swine, game, fish, bees, and domestic poultry. Wolves are found on the Zobtengebirge, otters in the Bober, and sometimes beavers in the Oder. The vegetable products are-corn, pulse, garden vegetables, fruit, flax, tobacco, hops, madder, woad, teazle, and timber. The minerals are copper, lead, cobalt, arsenic, iron, and zinc. This last metal is found in Silesia and in the adjoining republic of Cracow in far greater quantities than in any other country in Europe. Other mineral products are sulphur, marble, alum, lime, and, above all, coal, of which from two millions to two millions and a half tons are annually obtained, which are worth from 100,000%. to 130,000l. sterling. Though Silesia is on the whole one of the most fertile and best cultivated provinces of the Prussian monarchy, and produces much corn, so that in good years it can export a portion to Bohemia, yet, as it is very densely populated, it has not sufficient in unfavourable years for its own consumption, and is obliged to import. The cultivation of potatoes has become much more general of late years. The manufactures of Silesia are of the greatest importance, and that of linen has existed from a very remote time. It is carried on with little aid from machinery, and chiefly by the country-people, though this branch of industry affords them but a scanty subsistence; it is however their chief occupation. Dieterici says:- A third part of all the looms at work in the Prussian dominions, viz. 12,799 out of 36,879, is in Silesia. The linen annually manufactured in Silesia is estimated at between eight and nine millions of dollars (1,333,000l. to 1,500,0007.). Uncertain as such estimates are, the quantity exported may be assumed to be worth between three and four millions of dollars. Woollen cloths are manufactured in some towns, and cottons at Reichenbach. There are sugar-houses in several places; tanneries at Breslau and Schweidnitz, and breweries and brandy-distilleries in most of the towns. With respect to spinning and weaving, we may observe that machinery is beginning to be introduced into some larger manufactories. The population of the province, which at the end of 1837 was stated at 2,679,473, had increased, at the end of 1840, to 2,868,820. They are mostly Germans, and some Slavonians of Polish origin. About half the inhabitants are Protestants, and the remainder Roman Catholics, besides about 18,000 Jews: all have the free exercise of their religion. The province is divided into the three governments of Breslau, Oppeln, and Liegnitz; and has twenty towns with above 5000 inhabitants, as noted in the statistical table in the article PRUSSIA. All the most important of these towns are described under their respective heads. AUSTRIAN SILESIA is that part of the province which was retained by Austria in the treaty of Hubertsburg in 1763 It is united with Moravia, with which it forms one province. It is bounded on the north-west, north, and north-east by Prussian Silesia, on the east by Galicia, on the south by Hungary and Moravia, and on the south-west by Moravia. The area is about 1750 square miles, with 430,000 inhabitants, who are partly of German and partly of Slavonian origin. Next to the kingdoms of Lombardy and Venice, it is the most densely peopled part of the Austrian dominions |