OpenLLM-France/wikimedia huggingface dataset:
# Dictionary of National Biography, 1912 supplement/Paget, Sidney Edward

​PAGET, SIDNEY EDWARD (1860–1908), painter and illustrator, born on 4 Oct. 1860 at 60 Pentonville Road, London, N., was fourth son of Robert Paget, vestry clerk from 1856 to 1892 of Clerkenwell, by his wife Martha Clarke. At the Cowper Street school, London, Paget received his early education, and passing thence to Heatherley's school of art, entered the Royal Academy schools in 1881, where he was preceded by his brothers, Henry Marriott and Walter Stanley, both well-known artists and illustrators. At the Academy schools, among other prizes, he won in the Armitage competition second place in 1885, and first place and medal in 1886 for his 'Balaam blessing the Children of Israel.' Between 1879 and 1905 Paget contributed to the Royal Academy exhibitions eighteen miscellaneous paintings, of which nine were portraits. The best-known of his pictures, 'Lancelot and Elaine,' exhibited in 1891, was presented to the Bristol Art Gallery by Lord Winterstoke. In 1901 Paget exhibited a whole-length portrait of the donor, then Sir William Henry Wills, which is now at Mill Hill school, while a study is in the possession of Miss J. Stancomb-Wills. Among other portraits painted by him were Dr. Weymouth (R.A. 1887), headmaster ​of Mill Hill School, a three-quarter length in scarlet robes as D.Litt.; his father, and brother, Robert Ernest (his father's successor as vestry clerk), both in the town hall, Finsbury; and Sir John Aird, as mayor, in Paddington town hall.
It was as an illustrator that Paget won a wide reputation. His vigorous work as a black-and-white artist became well known not only in the United Kingdom but also in America and the colonies, by his drawings for the 'Pictorial World' (1882), the 'Sphere,' and for many of Cassell's publications. He also drew occasionally for the 'Graphic,' 'Illustrated London News,' and the 'Pall Mall Magazine.' Paget's spirited illustrations for Sir A. Conan Doyle's 'Sherlock Holmes' and 'Rodney Stone' in the 'Strand Magazine' greatly assisted to popularise those stories. The assertion that the artist's brother Walter, or any other person, served as model for the portrait of 'Sherlock Holmes' is incorrect.
A few years before his death Paget developed a painful chest complaint, to which he succumbed at Margate on 28 Jan. 1908. He was buried at the Marylebone cemetery, Finchley. He married in 1893 Edith Hounsfield, who survived him with six children.
[The Times, Telegraph, Morning Post and Daily Chronicle, 1 Feb. 1908, and Sphere, 8 Feb. (with portrait and reproductions of drawings); Who's Who, 1908; Graves's Royal Acad. Exhibitors; information from Mr. H. M. Paget, Royal Academy, and the headmaster of Mill Hill School.]
J. D. M.
# Dictionary of National Biography, 1912 supplement/Stevenson, Thomas

​STEVENSON, Sir THOMAS (1838–1908), scientific analyst and toxicologist, born on 14 April 1838 at Rainton in Yorkshire, was second son and fourth of the six children of Peter Stevenson, a pioneer in scientific farming. Thomas, a first cousin of the father, was an author and publisher, whose business at Cambridge was acquired in 1846, a year after his death, by Daniel and Alexander Macmillan, the founders of the publishing firm of Macmillan. His mother was Hannah, daughter of Robert Williamson, a banker and coachmaker of Ripon.
​Stevenson, educated privately and at Nesbit's school of chemistry and agriculture, studied scientific farming for a year with his father and then in 1857 became a medical pupil under Mr. Steel of Bradford. In 1859 he entered the medical school of Guy's Hospital, graduating M.B. in 1863 and M.D. at London in 1864. In the earlier examinations he gained the scholarship and gold medal in organic chemistry (1861), in forensic medicine, and in obstetric medicine (1863). In 1864 he became M.R.C.P. and in 1871 F.R.C.P. London. In 1863 he started private practice in Bradford, but after a year returned to Guy's Hospital, where he became successively demonstrator of practical chemistry (1864–70), lecturer on chemistry (1870–98), and lecturer on forensic medicine (1878–1908), succeeding in both lectureships Alfred Swaine Taylor [q. v.]. He was analyst to the home office from 1872 to 1881, when he was appointed senior scientific analyst. That office he held till death. He was also analyst to the counties of Surrey and Bedfordshire and the boroughs of St. Pancras and Shoreditch, and medical officer of health to St. Pancras. He served as president of the Society of Medical Officers of Health, of the Society of Public Analysts, and of the Institute of Chemistry. Pre-eminent as a scientific toxicologist, Stevenson was best known to the public as an expert witness in poisoning cases, especially in the well-known cases of Dr. G. H. Lamson (aconitine) in 1882; Mrs. Maybrick (arsenic) in 1889; Dr. Thomas Neill or Cream (strychnine) in 1892; George Chapman (antimony) in 1903; Miss Hickman (morphine) in 1903; Arthur Devereux (morphine) in 1905. He was an admirable witness, his evidence being so accurately and carefully prepared that cross-examination strengthened rather than weakened its effect. He was knighted in 1904.
Stevenson died on 27 July 1908, and was buried at Norwood cemetery. He married in 1867 Agnes, daughter of George Maberly, a solicitor of London, and had issue two sons and five daughters. His portrait was painted and is in possession of his family. A cartoon portrait appeared in 'Vanity Fair' in 1899.
Stevenson edited and greatly enlarged the 3rd edition of A. Swaine Taylor's 'Principles and Practice of Medical Jurisprudence' (1883), and together with Sir Shirley Murphy edited a treatise on 'Hygiene and Public Health' (1894). He made eighteen contributions to the 'Guy's Hospital Reports.'
[Brit. Med. Journ. 1908, ii. 361; information from son, C. M. Stevenson, M.D., G. A. Macmillan, and F. Taylor, M.D., F.R.C.P.]
H. D. R.
# Dictionary of National Biography, 1912 supplement/Stevenson, David Watson

​STEVENSON, DAVID WATSON (1842–1904), Scottish sculptor, born at Ratho, Midlothian, on 25 March 1842, was son of Wilham Stevenson, builder. Educated at the village school, Ratho, he was for eight years (1860–8) in Edinburgh as pupil of the sculptor William Brodie [q. v.]. During that time he attended the School of Art and the Life School of the Royal Scottish Academy. In 1868 he took a studio at Edinburgh and commenced work as a sculptor on his own account. Subsequently, in 1876, he pursued his studies in Rome, and later interest in modern French sculpture took him frequently to Paris. Elected an associate of the Royal Scottish Academy in 1877, he gradually added to his reputation, and in 1886 he was chosen academician. As early as 1868 he undertook the groups of 'Labour' and 'Learning' for the Prince Consort memorial, Edinburgh, and amongst later commissions of a monumental kind were the Platt memorial, Oldham, the colossal figure of Wallace for the national monument on the Abbey Craig, and statues of Tannahill at Paisley, 'Highland Mary' at Dunoon, and Burns at Leith. Of his ideal works, 'Nymph at the Stream,' 'Echo,' 'Galatea,' and 'The Pompeian Mother' may be named. He also executed many portrait busts. While his earlier work was pseudo-classic in manner, his later shows a certain sensitiveness to modern developments in which realism, individuality, and style are combined. After a few years of failing health, he died unmarried in Edinburgh on 18 March 1904. His younger brother, Mr. W. G. Stevenson, R.S.A., is a sculptor, and his sister, Mrs. Drew, is an accomplished embroiderer.
J. L. C.
# Domestic Encyclopædia (1802)/Mutton

Edition of 1802.
​MUTTON, denotes the flesh of sheep, after they have been deprived of life.
The best and most nutritive mutton, is that of sheep which are at least three, but not more than six years old; and which have been reared on dry, sweet pastures. The meat afforded by such as have been fed on salt-marshes, or near the sea-coast, is likewise sweet and wholesome, for they have acquired both firmness and a fine flavour, from the saline particles abounding in such situations.
The flesh of ewes, and especially of wethers that have not been kept above the age before stated, is of a rich and invigorating nature; while that of rams is not only tough and coarse, but also has a strong, unpleasant taste. Young meat abounds with sweet juices; and is easy of digestion; though, if under three years of age, it seldom attains its peculiar rolish, and is generally somewhat ropy.
If a piece of mutton be designed for roasting, it will be advisable to expose it to the open air for several days, according to the state of the weather or season. Thus, it will afford a savoury dish, which is easily digested, and agrees with every healthy person. Mutton-fat, however, is with great difficulty converted into aliment, and ought therefore not to be eaten by invalids, or those whose organs of digestion are relaxed, or impaired by excess; as it coagulates in the stomach, and oppresses its action.
Mutton-suet dissolved in milk, or the feet of sheep boiled to the consistence of a jelly, afford excellent clysters, in complaints arising from an acrimony or irritability of the intestines, such as dysentery, &c.: the latter preparation, being a very nourishing dish, may also be eaten.
# Domestic Encyclopædia (1802)/Myrrh

Edition of 1802.
​MYRRH, a gummy-resinous, concrete juice, obtained from a shrub growing in the East Indies, but of which we possess no certain account.
The best myrrh is somewhat transparent, of an uniform brownish, or reddish-yellow colour; of a slightly pungent, bitter taste; with a strongly aromatic, not ​disagreeable odour, though nauseous to the palate.
In its medicinal effects, this aromatic bitter, when taken by the mouth, is supposed to warm and strengthen the stomach and other viscera; it frequently occasions a mild diaphoresis, and, in general, promotes the fluid secretions.—Hence it has been used with advantage, in cases of debility; in diseases arising from suppression of the urine, or from immoderate discharges, in cachetic habits, and those persons whose lungs and throat are oppressed by viscid phlegm.—It is farther believed to resist putrefaction in all parts of the body; on which account it is highly recommended in malignant, putrid, and pestilential fevers; and in the small-pox.—For these purposes, it should be taken in doses of half a dram or upwards; and it may also be usefully combined with nitre, cream of tartar, or some other cooling salt.—Being, however, a heating and stimulating medicine; its proper choice requires some precaution, and ought to be directed by professional advice.
# Domestic Encyclopædia (1802)/Nipple-wort

Edition of 1802.
​NIPPLE-WORT, or Lapsana, L. a genus of plants, comprising five species; one of which is indigenous, namely, the communis, Common Nipple-wort, or Dock Cresses. It grows in hedges, shady places, and on rubbish; where it flowers in the months of June and July.—The young and tender leaves of this vegetable have the flavour of radishes, and may be eaten raw, as salad. Though possessing a bitter taste, they are a wholesome vegetable; and, in some parts of England, the country people boil them as a substitute for greens.
# Domestic Encyclopædia (1802)/Mustard, the Hedge

Edition of 1802.
​MUSTARD, the HEDGE, or Erysimum, L. a genus of plants, comprising ten species, four of which are natives of Britain.
1. The officinale, Common Hedge-mustard; Worm-seed; Bank-cresses; or Scrambling-rocket: it grows under walls and hedges, on road-sides, and among rubbish; where it flowers in the months of May and June.—This species possesses a warm and acrid flavour; and, when cultivated, is used as an early pot-herb. Its seeds, taken internally, promote expectoration, the discharge of urine, and other fluid secretions. The juice has been employed with unparalleled success in ulcers of the throat, and for removing hoarseness, occasioned by loud speaking.—Sheep and goats relish this species; but cows, horses, and swine refuse it.
2. The Barbarea, Winter-cresses; Winter-rocket; or Rocket-wormseed; which grows on walls, in watery places, on banks of running streams, and is sometimes found in cultivated fields: it flowers from May to October.—In Sweden, the common people use the leaves of this herb in early salads in the spring, and late in the autumn: they also boil them as kale.—It is sown in Britain, to obtain spring-salad, and ​eaten under the name of French Cress.—Cows devour this plant; but horses and swine refuse it; and it is disliked by goats and sheep.
The Alliaria, Garlic Hedge-mustard, Jack-by-the-hedge, Sauce-alone, or Garlic Wormseed, thriving on ditch-banks, in hedges, and shady places; it flowers in the month of May.—When growing in farm-yards, poultry are induced to eat this herb, which imparts to their flesh an intolerable rank taste. The Prussians eat the leaves, in the spring, with salted meat; and they are equally useful with lettuce, and the colder salads.—In Wales, it is frequently used as a frying herb.—The seeds excite sneezing.—Bautsch employed this herb with advantage in the process of tanning.—Cows and goats eat the plant; but horses, sheep, and swine refuse it.
4. The cheiranthoides, Treacle Hedge-Mustard, or Treacle-Wormseed, thrives in corn-fields, and on the banks of rivers; it flowers in the month of July.—The seeds of this species are, according to Dr. Withering, successfully used by the country people, for destroying worms.—The plant is eaten by horses, cows, goats, sheep, and swine.
# Domestic Encyclopædia (1802)/Mustard

Edition of 1802.
​MUSTARD, or Sinapis, L. a genus of plants, comprising nineteen species: three of which are natives of Britain: namely,
1. The arvensis. See Charlock.
2. The alba, or White Mustard, which grows in corn-fields, and on road-sides; it flowers in the month of August.—This species, when cultivated, thrives best in a soil that is naturally heavy, but which has been reduced to a fine mould, by tillage: it is propagated by sowing one bushel of the seed per acre, in the month of March; it should be frequently hoed; and, when the plants arrive at a proper size for transplantation, they may be set out, ten inches apart.—Mustard may be sown on the same land, for three successive years; and it always leaves the soil in ​sufficient tilth for the reception of any other crop. Its leaves afford a grateful food to sheep, and other cattle: the seed yields from every cwt. 33 or 36lbs. of a sweet, mild oil.—Bees are remarkably attached to the flowers.—This plant is likewise raised by gardeners in the winter, and early in the spring, with a view to supply the table with salad.
3. The nigra, or Common Mustard, growing in corn-fields, on ditch-banks, and road-sides; flowering in the month of June.—The sauce, called mustard, and in daily use at our tables, is prepared from the seeds of this species, obtained by culture, and reduced to powder. They likewise afford a considerable quantity of expressed oil, which partakes but little of the acrimony of the plant.—When unbruised, they impart a very weak flavour to boiling water; but, in a pulverized state, they coagulate milk, and strongly impregnate both fluids.—If a watery infusion be taken in a considerable quantity, it operates as an emetic; but, in the proportion of a table-spoonful or two, it is a gentle laxative; in this form, it has proved of service in cases of asthma, chronic rheumatism, and palsy.—Cataplasms, prepared with crumb of bread, vinegar, and pulverized mustard-seed, are excellent stimulants, when applied to benumbed or paralytic limbs; to parts affected with fixed rheumatic pains, and to the soles of the feet, in fevers that require such treatment.—In short, mustard acts powerfully upon the nervous system, without exciting a high degree of heat: by its acrimony and pungency, it stimulates the solids, and attenuates viscid juices; so that it is deservedly recommended for exciting appetite, assisting digestion, and promoting the fluid secretions, being greatly preferable to the generality of acrid plants of the antiscorbutic class.
In 1798, a patent was granted to Mr. Robert Johnston, for his contrivance of a medicine, which he calls Improved Essence of Mustard. The particulars of this patent are inserted in the 9th vol. of the Repertory of Arts, &c.
# Domestic Encyclopædia (1802)/Myrtle, the Dutch

Edition of 1802.
​Myrtle, the Dutch. See Gale the Sweet.
# Domestic Encyclopædia (1802)/Nails, in Anatomy

Edition of 1802.
​NAILS, in anatomy, are horny lamina or plates growing over the ends of the fingers and toes of men, as likewise over the lower extremities of the inferior animals.
The nails apparently possess similar properties with the epidermis, or outward skin, being devoid of sensation; and, if the latter membrane be separated from the true skin, by any accident, the nails are likewise in danger of being removed, or materially injured.
These excrescences are divided into three parts, namely, the root, the body, or middle, and the extremity, or end. The root is a soft, thin, white substance, which terminates in the form of a crescent, and to which the epidermis strongly adheres: from this part, the nails increase, and derive all their nourishment. The body, or middle, is considerably broader, thicker, and of a deeper red than the root; while the extremity is of still greater firmness.
The use of the nails, in animal economy, is to defend and cover the nervous warts or papillae of the toes and fingers from external injury, when they come in contact with rugged bodies. Hence, though cleanliness require them to be occasionally cut, that operation ought not to be carried too far; because the sense of feeling would thus be impaired and diminished: on the other hand, they should not be suffered to grow to a considerable length; as the impurities collecting beneath them not only present a slovenly picture, but such neglect also renders the nails liable to be split and broken by various accidents.
# Domestic Encyclopædia (1802)/Nails, in Building

Edition of 1802.
​NAILS, in building, are small pointed spikes, generally with a flat, or convex head, made of brass, iron, or other metal; which, when driven into wood, serve to connect several pieces, such as boards and laths, or to fasten a piece of timber, &c.
Nails are divided into numerous classes: their figure and size vary according to the purpose for which they are designed; and which it would be superfluous to enumerate. As they are of such essential importance in building, the arts, and economy in general, several privileges have been granted for new inventions, or improvements, in the manner of casting, or manufacturing them. On account of their ingenuity, the following patents deserve to be mentioned; namely, Mr. Finch's, obtained in 1790; Mr. Clifford's, registered in the same year; and Mr. Spencer's, granted in 1801. But, as these processes can only be understood and practised by manufacturers, we cannot enter into any detail, but refer the curious reader to the 7th, 9th, and 15th, vols. of the Repertory of Arts, &c.; where full specifications are inserted; and Mr. Spencer's patent is illustrated with an engraving.
# Domestic Encyclopædia (1802)/Muslin

Edition of 1802.
​MUSLIN, a kind of fine cloth, loosely woven of the finest cotton yarn.
Formerly, all muslins were imported from India; but, at present, very considerable quantities are manufactured in Manchester, Glasgow, Paisley, &c. which, for fineness and durability, are little inferior to those of the East. It should, however, be remarked, that the British muslins acquire a yellowish cast, after they have been repeatedly washed, while the genuine India-muslins retain their original whiteness.
Plain muslins, Nankin cloths, and also flowered or stitched muslins, when imported, pay, on being deposited in the East India Company's warehouses, the sum of 7l. 10s. per cent. according to their value. They are likewise subject to a farther duty of 19l. 13s. 9d. per cent. on being taken out for home consumption.
# Domestic Encyclopædia (1802)/Myrtle

Edition of 1802.
​MYRTLE, or Myrtus, L. a genus of exotic trees, comprising forty-two species; of which the communis, or Common Myrtle-tree, only is cultivated in Britain. There are several varieties, known under the names of Broad-leaved Roman, Dutch, and Jew's Myrtle; orange-leaved Spanish Myrtle; the Thyme-leaved, Rosemary-leaved, Box-leaved, and Upright Italian Myrtles, &c.
All these varieties are beautiful ever-greens; which, though requiring the shelter of a green-house in the more northern parts of Britain, during the winter, vegetate most luxuriantly in the county of Cornwall, and on the southern coast, in the open air, without being sheltered from the severity of the winter.
The Common Myrtle is easily propagated by cuttings, which may be set in beds of a rich, but light soil, beneath glasses, or in a green-house, where they thrive with uncommon rapidity.—In the Island of Minorca, the young tops are employed for tanning; and the berries are eaten by the inhabitants.
In Britain, however, this species is cultivated chiefly for ornament; though it is likewise of service as a medicine. A distilled water is obtained from its leaves; which, being both detersive and astringent, is sometimes used in gargles, or as a cosmetic for fixing the teeth, when loosened by the scurvy. Its berries are distilled; and the oil they yield, is reputed to be excellent for thickening the hair; on which account it is frequently used as an ingredient in pomatums, and other cosmetics. Lastly, a decoction of the flowers and leaves is said to be of great service in fomentations.
# Domestic Encyclopædia (1802)/Drank

Edition of 1802.
​Drank. See Darnel.
# Domestic Encyclopædia (1802)/Dove

Edition of 1802.
​Dove: See Pigeon.