More than one of these 7 encyclopedias carries each of the following subjects — but every one of them treats it in a sentence or two and then moves on. They are gathered here so the different accounts can sit side by side.
Gneiss
Collier's New Encyclopedia: a metamorphic rock, consisting of orthoclase, quartz, and mica. It is akin to mica schist, which, however, is distinguished by having less orthoclase and more mica. It has exactly the same materials as granite, but is stratified or foliated. Sometimes hand specimens are found, in which lamination is so little traceable that they might pass for granite. Fundamental gneiss, Laurentian gneiss, the name given by Sir Roderick Murchison to the oldest stratified rock in Scotland. It is found in the N. W. of Ross-shire and in Sutherlandshire, besides forming the whole of the adjoining island of Lewis in the Hebrides. It has a strike from N. W. to S. E., nearly at right angles gles to the metamorphic strata of the Grampians. The Lower Cambrian and various metamorphic rocks rest on it unconformably.
Aiton's Encyclopedia: nis. See Granite
Covered by Collier's New Encyclopedia and Aiton's Encyclopedia
Goatsucker
Aiton's Encyclopedia: an Old World bird of the whip-poor-will family. It breeds in temperate Europe and flies to the south of the Mediterranean in winter. Like its American relative, it takes insects chiefly on the wing at nightfall. The name comes from an opinion long entertained that this bird drew the milk of goats during the night. Other popular names in England are night-jar, fern-owl, churn-owl, and moth-hunter. See Whip-Poor-Will; Nighthawk
Collier's New Encyclopedia: one of the English names of a remarkable migratory bird, Caprimulgus europeus. The erroneous belief that it sucks goats seems to have arisen among the goatherds in ancient Greece, who called it aigotheles, from aix (genit. aigos) =a goat, and thele= the nipple; and the Romans, falling into the same error, denominated it caprimulgus.
Covered by Aiton's Encyclopedia and Collier's New Encyclopedia
Goiter
Aiton's Encyclopedia: an enlargement of the thyroid gland, producing a large lump on one side of the throat. The cause is not understood, but it is supposed to be in some way associated with the quality of drinking water. It is prevalent about the eastern end of Lake Ontario; in some parts of Michigan; in the cantons of Freiburg and Berne, Switzerland; in the southern Alps, and in Savoy; in England, where it is called Derbyshire neck; in far Siberia, and in the heights of the Himalayas. In some sections of Europe eighty per cent of the inhabitants are afflicted with goiter. Physicians recommend bathing the goiter with tincture of iodine, and a change of residence. Exposure to the rays of the sun seems to have a beneficial effect. It is more common in women than in men, and is most likely to appear in middle age.
Collier's New Encyclopedia: or GOITRE (Latin, guttur the throat), or Bronchocele. A disease which arises arises from a morbid enlargement of the thyroid gland, causing an unsightly, but painless, deformity. It is more common among women than among men, in the proportion of about 12 to 1. It prevails chiefly, if not exclusively, in villages situated on or close to limestone rocks.
Covered by Aiton's Encyclopedia and Collier's New Encyclopedia
Goldenrod
Aiton's Encyclopedia: an autumnal flower of the composite family. There are over a hundred kinds, half or more found in eastern North America . They divide fairly the honors of autumn with the asters, and are the undisputed rival of the sunflower in late summer. The flowers are almost always yellow and are crowded in small heads. The flowers or florets in the outer circle of each head have strap-shaped corollas and both pistils and stamens. The inner florets have pistils only. After frosts the dry seeds fly in the wind like dandelion seeds. The root makes ready in the fall for early growth. While goldenrods may seem an endless maze, it is not difficult to separate the species in any one vicinity into four groups, whose flowers are disposed in masses that are (1) flat-topped; (2) pyramidal; (3) wand-like or bending to one side, or (4) clustered along the stem in the axils of the leaves.
Collier's New Encyclopedia: a genus of Compositæ, closely allied to aster. Only the common S. Virgaurea is British, a few others are European, but most (more than 100) belong to North America, where their bright coloring lightens up the autumn scenery. Some-e. g., S. canadensis, grandiflora, etc. are found in old-fashioned borders. S. Virgaurea had at one tim a great reputation as a vulnerary. The leaves of this and a fragrant North American species, S. odora, have been used as a substitute for tea.
Covered by Aiton's Encyclopedia and Collier's New Encyclopedia
Goldfinch
Aiton's Encyclopedia: a genus of the sparrow family. The American goldfinch breeds from Hudson Bay to South Carolina and winters near the Gulf. The male is of a bright yellow with black wings and crown. He is a plump-bodied, fluffy little fellow, rather vain of his appearance. The female is tinged with olive. Three to six bluish white eggs are placed in a nest lined with thistledown in a bush or tree. The goldfinch flies in a wavy line. It is not unlike a canary in general appearance. It lives on seeds, being especially fond of thistle seeds. Speaking of his pleasure in seeing them in the winter time, Bradford Torrey declares that, "The twittering of half a dozen goldfinches is like the music of angels."
Collier's New Encyclopedia: Carduelis elegans, a well-known bird belonging to the family Fringillidæ, and the sub-family Fringil linæ. Bill pale born colored, the tip black, the circumference at its base crimson, nape of the neck white; the top of the head, carpal portions of the wing, the smaller wing coverts, and part of the surface of the primaries black; back and rump dusky brown, greater wing coverts, and part of the expanse of the others, gamboge yellow; under surface of the body dull white. The eggs are four or five, spotted with purple and brown.
Covered by Aiton's Encyclopedia and Collier's New Encyclopedia
Goldfish
Aiton's Encyclopedia: a small carp with golden or silver scales. The goldfish comes originally from China, where the practice prevails among wealthy people of keeping them in basins in their homes or in courts. Goldfishes are hardy. They withstand changes of temperature and do not require frequent changes of water, especially if an aquatic plant or two be placed in the fountain. They are thought to show affection for each other, something not generally observed among fishes. The bright golden colors of the most prized varieties have been developed, it is said, from dull colored ancestors, just as improved live stock has been bred from the original wild animals.
Collier's New Encyclopedia: the trivial name of a beautiful species of carp, found in the fresh waters of China. It is greenish in color in the natural state, the golden yellow color being found only in domesticated specimens, and retained by artificial selection. These fishes are reared by the Chinese and kept for ornament. They are now distributed over nearly all the civilized parts of the world.
Covered by Aiton's Encyclopedia and Collier's New Encyclopedia