Syra
the most important, though not the largest of that group of islands in the Ægean Sea known as the Cyclades. It is about 10 miles long by 5 broad, has an area of 32 square miles and is bare, rocky and not very fertile. Its prosperity is of quite modern growth. During the War of Independence Syra remained neutral, hence many fugitives of commercial enterprise flocked thither from Chios and other parts of Greece. Pop. of island about 27,000. The capital Syra or Hermoupolis, is situated on a bay on the E. side of the island. Pop. about 20,000. It rises in terraces from the shore, is well built, and is the seat of government for the Cyclades, and the seat of a Roman Catholic bishop. This port is the chief commercial entrepôt of the Ægean. Exports tobacco, emery stone, valon valona and sponges.
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Syracuse University
a co-educational institution in Syracuse, N. Y.; founded in 1871 under the auspices of the Methodist Episcopal Church; reported at the close of 1919: Professors and instructors, 368; students, 4,033; volumes in the library, 103,222; Chancellor, Rev. J. R. Day, LL.D.
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Syriac
a dialect or branch of the Aramaic, and thus one of the Semitic family of languages. It was a vernacular dialect in in Syria during the early centuries of our era, but ceased to be spoken as a living language about the 10th century, being crowded out by that of the Arabian conquerors . A very corrupted form of it, however, is still spoken by a posites or other plants. The species are numerous, and the larvæ diverse in habits. Most of the latter feed on the roots or bulbs of plants, or live in decaying wood, mud, or sewers, or in the water, or as parasites in the nests of wasps and bumble bees. Genera more than 40 and among them Syrphus, Volucella , Eristalis, Helophilus, etc. of
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Syrian Protestant College
an institution for higher education, founded at Beirut, Syria, in 1863, and opened in 1866. It includes a college of medicine, a college of commerce, nurses' training school, and a teachers' training course. During the World War the institution was used as a hospital. Before the war it had an enrollment of about 1,000 students. President, Rev. Howard S. Bliss.
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Syrian Rite
CHURCH OF THE, a portion of the Oriental church which had its seat in Syria, and comprised those Christians who used the Syriac liturgy of St. James. This liturgy was originally composed for the patriarchate of Antioch , whi which included the churches of Palestine and Mesopotamia, and acby Apostle cording to tradition by James . There is no Greek MS. of it in existence of an earlier date than the 10th century, but the Syriac liturgy of the same name almost exactly answers the description given of it in various writers. After the Mohammedan conquest (638) the orthodox Syrians were drawn into SYZYGIUM 220 Myrteæ; trees or shrubs with the flowers in cymes or corymbs, the calyx with its limb undivided; the petals, four or five. S. jambolanum, called also Eugenia jambolana, is a moderate-sized tree, wild or cultivated all over India. The bark is astringent and is used, as are the leaves, in dysentery. The decoction of the bark constitutes a wash for the teeth; its fresh juice with goat's milk, a medicine for the diarrhœa of children. A vinegar prepared from the unripe fruit is a stomachic; carminative; and diuretic. The fruit is astringent, but is eaten by the natives who in time of famine consume also the kernels. The leaves of S. terebinthaceum are used in Madagascar to impart an aroma to baths. S. guineensis is worshiped in Gambia and the fruit is eaten.
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Syringa
. See Lilac
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Syrinx
An Arcadian nymph, who being pursued by Pan fled into the river Ladon, and at her own prayer was metamorphosed into a reed, of which Pan then made his flute. Tacitus, C. Cornelius. A celebrated Latin historian, born in the reign of Nero. Of all his works the Annals is the most extensive and complete. His style is marked by force, precision, and dignity, and his Latin is remarkable for being pure and classical. Tacitus, M. Claudius. A Roman, elected emperor by the Senate when he was seventy years of age. He displayed military vigor, and as a ruler was a pattern of economy and moderation. He died in the 276th year of the Christian era. Tamesis or Tamesa (Thames). A river in Britain, on which stood Londinium, flowing into the sea on the eastern coast. Caesar crossed the Thames probably at Cowey Stakes, seven or eight miles above Kingston, but Horsley seems to be of opinion that he forded it near that town.
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Syrphus
the typical genus Syrphidæ. The larvæ feed on aphides. One of the most common is S. pyrastri, a blue-black fly, with whitish or yellowish transverse bands on the abdomen, black thighs, and yellowish legs. It is sometimes mistaken for a wasp. The larvæ is a footless grub, living on plants infested by aphides.
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Syrrhaptes
in ornithology, a genus of Pteroclidæ, with two species . Bill small, conical, nostrils concealed by feathers, tarsi hirsute; toes short, concrete hirsute above, hallux absent ; the two middle tail-feathers and first two quills of wings produced into pointed se wpoustu puaпшacy. Among them are S. aurantii, S. Limonis, S. papaveris, S. sennæ, etc.
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Syrus
PUBLIUS, or PUBLILIUS, a Roman writer of mimes who flourished about 43 B. C., and was most probably a Syrian slave brought to Rome in early youth, educated, and freed by some indulgent master. After Laberius he reigned supreme on the stage, and his mimes, being as full of shrewd epigrammatic wit as broad humor, did not perish with him. About 200 apothegms are still extant, under the title "Witticisms of Publius Syrus."
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Syzran
a town of central Russia, a few miles from the right bank of the Volga, and 90 miles S. of Simbirsk. Laid out in 1685, it has tanneries and noted market gardens, and a large trade in grain, timber, salt, and manufactured goods. Pop. about 48,000.
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