springs. These springs, of which there are two, occur near the shore of the South Bay, and a handsome Spa House in pleasant gardens contains them. The south spring is aperient, but contains some iron; while the north or chalybeate spring is more tonic in its properties. They are still in use, though of less importance than formerly in comparison with the other attractions of the town. The sea-bathing is very good, both bays having a sandy foreshore. Well-planted grounds fringe the steep slope down to the North Bay, in which there is a promenade pier; the South Cliff is similarly adorned. It is approached from the north by a lofty bridge over a ravine, to the west of which lies a pleasant park. The southern part of the town is the more fashionable portion. The principal buildings of entertainment are the aquarium (also used as a concert hall); the museum, a rotunda in Doric style, containing excellent antiquarian and natural history collections; two theatres, and the assembly rooms attaching to the Spa House. The promenade and drives are extensive, and there is an inclined tramway leading from summit to foot of the South Cliff. A great marine drive, 4200 ft. long, was opened in 1908. The neighbouring country is exceedingly picturesque, with high-lying moors intersected by narrow, well-wooded valleys. The hydrography of the district is remarkable, the Derwent, which flows S.W. to the Ouse and so to the Humber, having one of its sources near Scarborough within 2 m. of the sea. The climate is healthy and temperate; average temperature, 59·2° F. in July, and in January, 37·7.
The chief buildings of Scarborough apart from those already considered are the town hall, market hall and public hall, several modern churches and chapels, and charitable and benevolent institutions. The harbour, enclosed by piers and divided into two basins, lies on the south side of the castle peninsula. It is dry at low tide, but is accessible at spring tides to vessels of 13 ft. draught. It is largely used by fishing boats. The parliamentary borough, falling within the Whitby division of the county, returned two members until 1885, one since that date. The town is governed by a mayor, 6 aldermen and 18 councillors. Area, 2373 acres.
Although there is no mention of Scarborough (Scardeburc, Escardebuc, Scardeburg, Scardeburk, Scartheburg, Schardeburg) in the Domesday Survey the remains of Roman roads leading to the town indicate that it was in early times a place of importance. The castle was built during the 12th century b William le Gros, earl of Albemarle, who chose the site on the top of, a steep cliff now called the “ Scaur." Henry II. added greatly to its strength. From this time it was in the hands of a line of distinguished nobles appointed by the king. Scarborough is a borough by prescription. Its first charter of 1181 granted that the burgesses should possess all liberties in the same way as the citizens of York. They were also to render to the king yearly 4d. for every house whose gable was turned to the way, and 6d. for those whose sides were turned to the way. This charter was confirmed with various alterations and extensions b most of the succeeding monarchs. Henry III. in 1253 granted that a court of pleas should be held at Scarborough by the justices who went to old common pleas at York; he also gave the corporation a gild merchant. Edward II. caused the town to be taken away from the burgesses “for certain causes,” but it was restored to them by Edward III. in 1327. The charter of Edward III. in 1356 sets forth and confirms the privileges of the borough. Richard III. by his charter of 1485 appointed that the town should be governed b a mayor, sheriff and twelve aldermen, and also granted amongst other extensive privileges that this town with the manor of Whallesgrave should be a county of itself. However, on the death of Richard III. the charter took no effect, and the corporation returned to its ancient mode of government. In 1684 a mayor, 12 aldermen and 31 common councilmen were nominated as governors. Scarborough returned two members to parliament from 1295 to 1885. It is said that Henry II. held a market here which he granted to the burgesses, but of this there is no mention in subsequent charters. In 1253 Henry III. granted a yearly fair lasting from the Assumption of St Mary to the following Michaelmas. This fair was originally held on the sands. Jet was formerly an important manufacture.
See Thomas Hinderwell, History of Scarborough (Scarborough, 1832); J. B. Baker, History of Scarborough (London, 1882).
SCARF, a narrow wrap for the neck or shoulders; the term
is a wide one, ranging from a light band of silk, muslin or other
material worn by women as a decorative part of their costume
to a warm knitted muffler of wool to protect the throat from
cold. The O. Eng. scearfe meant a piece or fragment of anything,
and is to be referred ultimately to the root skar-, to cut,
seen in Dutch scherf, shred, Ger. Scherbe, potsherd, “scrap,” a
piece or fragment; “scrip,” a piece of leather, hence a pouch
or wallet. The particular meanings in English are to be referred
to Fr. escharpe, pilgrim's wallet, also scarf. The ecclesiastical
“ scarf ” was originally a loose wrap or muliier (band) to be
worn round the neck out of doors. In the English Church, in
post-Reformation times, the minister wore over the surplice
the “ scarf,” which was a broad band of black silk with fringed
ends arranged like the stole round the neck, but falling nearly
to the feet. Its use has been almost entirely replaced by that
of the stole (q.v.), with which it has sometimes been wrongly
confused.
Ultimately from the same root, but directly adapted from the Scandinavian, cf. Swed. skarf, joint, is the use of the word “scarf,” in carpentry and joinery, for a joint by which two timbers are fastened together longitudinally so as to form a continuous piece (see Joinery),
SCARLATTI, ALESSANDRO (1659–1725), Italian musical composer, was born in Sicily, either at Trapani or Palermo, in
1659. He is generally said to have been a pupil of Carissimi in
Rome, and there is reason to suppose that he had some connexion
with northern Italy, since his early works show the
influence of Stradella and Legrenzi. The production at Rome
of his opera Gli Equirfoci hell' amore (1679) gained him the
protection of Queen Christina of Sweden, and he became her
Maestro di Cappella. In February 1684 he became Maestro
di Cappella to the viceroy of Naples, through the intrigues of
his sister, an opera singer, who was the mistress of 'an influential
noble in that city. Here he produced a long series of operas,
remarkable chiefly for their fluency, as well as other music for
state occasions. In 1702 he left Naples and did not return until
the Spanish domination had been superseded by that of the
Austrians. In the interval he enjoyed the patronage -of
Ferdinand III. of Tuscany, for whose private theatre near
Florence he composed operas, and of Cardinal Ottoboni, who
made him his Maestro di Cappella, and procured him a similar
post at the church of S Maria Maggiore in Rome (1705). After
visiting Venice and Urbino in 1707, he took up his duties at
Naples again in 1708, and remained there until 1717. By this
time Naples seems to have become tired of his music; the
Romans, however, appreciated it better, and it was at the Teatro
Capranica in Rome that he produced some of his finest operas
(Telemaco, 1718; Marco Attilio Regolo, 1719; Griselda, 1721),
as well as some noble specimens of church music, including
amass for chorus and orchestra, composed in honour of St
Cecilia for Cardinal Acquaviva in 1721. His last work on a
large scale appears to have been the unfinished serenata for the
marriage of the prince of Stigliano (1723); he died at Naples
on the 24th of October 1725.
Scarlatti's music forms the most important link between the tentative “new music” of the 17th century and the classical school of the 18th, which culminated in Mozart. 'His early operas (Gli Equivoci nel' sembiante (1679); L’Honestà negli amori (1680) Pompea (1683), containing the well-known airs “O cessate di piagarmi” and “Toglietemi la vita ancor,” and others down to about 168) retain the older cadences in their recitatives, and a considerable variety of neatly constructed forms in their charming little arias, accompanied sometimes by the string quartet, treated with careful elaboration, sometimes by the harpsichord alone. By 1686 he had definitely established the “ Italian overture ” form (second edition of Dal male il bene), and had abandoned the ground bass and the binary air in two stanzas in favour of the ternary or da capo type of air. His best operas of this period are La Rasaura (1690, printed by the Gesellschaft für Musikforschung) and Pirro e Demetrzo (1694), in which occur the songs “Rugiadose, odorose,” “Ben ti sta, traditor.” From about 1697 onwards (La Caduta dei decemviri), influenced partly perhaps by the style of Bononcini and probably more by the taste of the viceregal court, his opera songs become more conventional and commonplace in rhythm, while his scoring is hasty and crude, yet not without brilliancy (Eraclea, 1700), the oboes and trumpets being frequently used, and the violins often playing in unison. The operas composed for Ferdinand de Medici are lost; they would probably have given us a more favourable idea of his style, his correspondence with the prince showing that they were composed with a veg sincere sense of inspiration. Mitridate Eupatore, composed for Venice in 1707,
