CRAYONS. They were known in France before A.D. 1422-improved by L'Oriot, 1748. CREATION OF THE WORLD. It is placed by Usher, Blair, and Dufresnoy, 4004 B.C. Josephus makes it 4658 years.-Whiston. The first date agrees with the common Hebrew text, and the vulgate Latin translation of the Old Testament. There are about 140 different dates assigned to the Creation: some place ic 35.6 years before the birth of our Saviour. Plato, in his dialogue entitled Critias, asserts his celebrated Atalantis to have been buried in the ocean about 9000 years before the age in which he wrote. The Chinese represent the world as having existed some hundreds of thousands of years; and we are told that the astronomical records of the ancient Chaldeans carried back the origin of society to a period of no less than 473,000 years. CREATION, ERA OF THE. In use by many nations. This era would be found convenient, by doing away with the difficulty and ambiguity of counting before and after any particular date, as is necessary when the era begins at a later period; but, unfortunately, writers are not agreed as to the right time of commencing. This epoch is fixed by the Samaritan Pentateuch at 4700 B.C. The Septuagint makes it 5872. The authors of fhe Talmud make it 5344; and different chronologers, to the number of 120, make it vary from the Septuagint date to 3268. Dr. Hales fixes it at 5411; but the Catholic church adopted the even number of 4000, and subsequently, a correction as to the birth of Christ adds four years: therefore, it is now generally considered as 4004 years, which agrees with the modern Hebrew text. CREED. The Apostles' Creed is supposed to have been written a great while after their time.-Pardon. It was introduced formally into public worship in the Greek church at Antioch, and subsequently into the Roman church. This creed was translated into the Saxon tongue, about A.D. 746. The Nicene Creed takes its name from the council by whom it was composed, in A.D. 325. The Athanasian Creed is supposed to have been written about 340.-See Apostles', Nicene, and other creeds. CRESSY, OR CRECY, BATTle of. Edward III. and his son, the renowned Edward the Black Prince, obtain a great and memorable victory over Philip, king of France, Aug. 26, 1346. This was one of the most glorious triumphs ever achieved by English arms. John, duke of Bohemia; James, king of Majorca; Ralph, duke of Lorraine (sovereign princes); a number of French nobles, together with 30,000 private men, were slain, while the loss of the English was very small. The crest of the king of Bohemia was three ostrich feathers, with the motto "Ich Dien," in English, "I serve;" and in memory of this victory it has since been adopted by the heirs to the crown of England.-Froissart, Carte, Hume. CRESTS. The ancient warriors wore crests to strike terror into their enemies by the sight of the spoils of the animals they had killed. The origin of crests is ascribed to the Carians. In English heraldry, are several representations of Richard I. 1189, with a crest on the helmet resembling a plume of feathers; and after his reign most of the English kings have crowns above their helmets; that of Richard II., 1377, was surmounted by a lion on a cap of dignity. In later reigns, the crest was regularly borne as well on the helmets of the kings, as on the head-trappings of their horses.-See Cressy. Alexander III. of Scotland, 1249, had a plume of feathers, by way of crest; and the helmet of Robert I. was surmounted by a crown, 1306; and that of James I. by a lion, 1424. From this period crests appear to have been very generally borne both in England and Scotland. In the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, the palmy days of heraldry, the crest was described to be, as it still is, a figure placed upon a wreath, coronet, or cap of maintenance.-Gwillim. CRETE. Now Candia, which see. This island was once famous for its hundred cities, and for the laws which the wisdom of Minos established about 1015 B.C. Some authors reckoned the Labyrinth of Crete as one of the seven wonders of the world. Crete became subject to the Roman empire, 68 B.C. It was conquered by the Saracens, A.D. 808; taken by the Greeks, 961; passed into the hands of the Venetians, 1194 and was taken from them by the Turks, in 1669.-Priestley. CRIME. "At the present moment," observes a popular periodical writer, " a one-fifteenth part of the whole population of the United Kingdom is subsisting by the lowest and most degrading prostitution; another fifteenth have no means of support but by robbery, swindling, pickpocketing, and every species of crime; and five-fifteenths of the people are what is denominated poor, living from hand to mouth, and daily sinking into beggary, and, as an almost necessary consequence, into crime." A comparative view of foreign countries with Great Britain demonstrates the effects of poverty and ignorance on the great mass of the population. In North America pauperism is almost unknown, and one-fourth of the people are educated; pre-meditated murder is alone capital; imprisonment for debt has, in several states, been abolished, and crimes, particularly of enormity, are exceedingly rare. The Dutch, who possess a competency, and are generally educated, are comparatively free from grave offences; and France affords a remarkable illustration in the same way. But in the United Kingdom, the difference is painfully exemplified : Scotland. England. Instruction of the people. Ireland. . 1 in 35 . 1 in 468 We have recently had a salutary revision of our criminal code, and several acts have been passed calculated to reduce the amount of crime, and mitigate the severity of its punishment. An act for improving the criminal law of England, passed 8 George IV., 1827. An act for consolidating and revising the laws relating to crime, conformably with Mr. Peel's digest, passed 9 George IV., 1828. Hanging criminals in chains was abolished by statute 4 William IV., 1834.-See Executions, Hanging, Trials, &c. CRIMEA. The ancient Taurica Chersonesus. Settled by the Genoese, in 1193. The Genoese were expelled by the Crim Tartars, in 1474. The khans were tributary to the Turks until 1774. The Russians, with a large army, took possession of this country, in 1783; and it was ceded to them in the following year; and secured to them in 1791. CRIMPING HOUSES. These were houses in London and other towns, used for the purpose of entrapping persons into the army; and hence the name of "crimp sergeant." In a riot, in London, some of these receptacles were destroyed by the populace, in consequence of the death of a young man who had been enticed into one of them, and who was killed in his endeavours to escape from it, Sept. 16, 1794. They were again attacked in London by large mobs the next year; but they were saved by the military. CRIPPLEGATE, LONDON. This well-known locality was so called, from the lame beggars who sat there, so early as the year 1010. The gate was new-built by the brewers of London, in 1244; and was pulled down and sold for ninety-one pounds, in July 1760.-See article London Gates. CRISPIN. The name sometimes given to shoemakers. Crispin and Crispianus were two legendary saints, born at Rome, from whence, it is said, they travelled to Soissons, in France, about A.D. 303, to propagate the Christian religion; and because they would not be chargeable to others for their maintenance, they exercised the trade of shoe-makers; but the governor of the town discovering them to be Christians, ordered them to be decollated. On this account, the shoe-makers, since that period, have made choice of them for their tutelar saints. CRITICS. The first society of them was formed 276 B.c.-Blair. Of this class were Varro, Cicero, Apollonius, and many distinguished men. In modern times, the Journal des Sçavans was the earliest work of the system of periodical criticism, as it is now known. It was originated by Denis de Sallo, ecclesiastical counsellor in the parliament of France, and was first published at Paris, May 30, 1665, and continued for nearly a century. The first work of this kind in England, was called the Review of Daniel Defoe (the term being invented by himself) published in Feb. 1703. The Waies of Literature was commenced in 1714, and was discontinued in 1722. The Monthly Review, which may be said to have been the third work of this nature in this country, was published in 1749. The Critical Review appeared in 1756; the Edinburgh Review, in 1802; and London Quarterly in 1809. The legality of fair criticism was established in the English courts, in Feb. 1794, when an action, that excited great attention, brought by an author against a reviewer for a severe critique upon his work, was determined in favour of the defendant, on the principle that criticism, however sharp, if just, and not malicious, is allowable. CROCKERY. In use, and made mention of, as produced by the Egyptians and Greeks, so early as 1390 B.C. The Romans excelled in this kind of ware, many of their domestic articles being of earthen manufacture. Crockery, of a fine kind, in various household utensils, was made at Faenza, in Italy, about A.D. 1310; and it is still called fayence in French.-See Earthenware. CROSIER. A bishop's staff, in the form of a shepherd's crook, intended to admonish the prelate to be a true spiritual shepherd. The custom of bearing a pastoral staff before him is very ancient, as appears from the life of St. Cæsarea of Arles, who lived about A.D. 500. CROSS. That on which the REDEEMER suffered on Mount Calvary, was found at Jerusalem, deep in the ground, by St. Helena, May 3, A.D. 328. Three crosses were found; but that of our SAVIOUR was distinguished from those of the thieves by a sick woman being immediately cured upon touching it!-Butler. It was carried away by Cosroes, king of Persia, on the plundering of Jerusalem; but was recovered by the emperor Heraclius (who defeated him in battle) Sept. 14, 615, and that day has been since commemorated as a festival. It is asserted by church writers that a shining cross, two miles in length, was seen in the heavens by Constantine, and that it led him to adopt it on his standards, with the inscription, "In hoc signo vinces:" "in this sign thou shalt conquer." With these standards he advanced under the walls of Rome, where he vanquished Maxentius, driving his army into the Tiber, Oct. 27, 312.-Lenglet. CROSS, SIGN OF THE, &c. First practised by the Christians, thereby to distinguish themselves from the Pagans, about A.D. 110. The Exaltation of the Holy Cross (Exaltatio Crucis), a feast held on the 14th Sept., was instituted on the restoration of the cross to Mount Calvary, in 642. Maids of the Cross were a community of young women, who made vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience, instituted in 1265. The Order of the Cross was instituted by the empress Eleonora de Gonzagna, queen of Leopold I., being an order of the higher rank, founded in 1668. CROSSES. Painted crosses in churches and chambers were introduced about the year 431. Crosses were first set up on steeples, in 568. They were erected in England in honour of queen Eleanor, in the places where her hearse rested, in 1307. Crosses and idolatrous pictures were removed from churches, and crosses in the streets demolished, by order of parliament, 17 Charles I. 1641. "Its CROW. The carrion crow was anciently thought to be a bird of bad omen. croaking forebodes rain."— Virgil. An act was passed for the destruction of crows in England (which breeds more of them than any other country in Europe), 24 Henry VIII. 1532. Crows were anciently employed as letter-bearers, as pigeons are now. CROWN. "The ancientest mention of a royal crown is in the holy story of the Amalekites bringing Saul's crown to David."—Selden. The first Roman who wore a crown was Tarquin, 616 B.C. The crown was first a fillet tied round the head; afterwards it was formed of leaves and flowers, and also of stuffs adorned with jewels. The royal crown was first worn in England by Alfred, in A.D. 872. The first crown or papal cap was used by pope Damasius II., in 1053; John XIX. first encompassed it with a crown, 1276; Boniface VIII. added a second crown in 1295; and Benedict XII. formed the tiara, or triple crown, about 1334. The pope previously wore a crown with two circles.-Rainaldi, CROWN OF ENGLAND. That of Alfred had two little bells attached; it is said to have been long preserved at Westminster, and may have been that described in the parliamentary inventory taken in 1649. The crown worn by Athelstan resembled a modern earl's coronet, 929. William I. wore his crown on a cap, adorned with points, 1066. Richard III. introduced the crosses, 1483. Henry VII. introduced the arches, 1485. The crown of Charles II. made in 1660, is the oldest existing in our day. The crown and other royal valuables were stolen from the Tower by Blood, in 1673.-See Blood's Conspiracy. The crown and regalia of England were pledged to the city of London by Richard II. for 20007., in 1386. "See the king's receipt on redeeming them."-Rymer. CROWNS AND HALF-CROWNS. These were coined in England very near to the present standard in the last year of Edward VI., by whom the coinage (which had been very much alloyed and debased by Henry VIII.) was in some degree restored and purified, 1553.-Fleetwood's Chron. Pretios. CRUCIFIXION. A mode of execution common among the Syrians, Egyptians, Persians, Greeks, Romans, and Jews, and esteemed the most dreadful on account of the shame attached to it: it was usually accompanied by other tortures. Among early accounts may be mentioned, that Ariarathes of Cappadocia, when vanquished by Perdiccas, was discovered among the prisoners; and by the conqueror's orders the unhappy monarch was flayed alive, and then nailed to a cross, with his principal officers, in the eighty-first year of his age, 322 B.C.-Bossuet. Regulus suffered the horrid death of crucifixion at Carthage, 255 B.C.-Livy. Crucifixion was ordered to be discontinued by Constantine, A.D. 330.—Lenglet. See Death, Punishment of CRUELTY TO ANIMALS. The statute called "Mr. Martin's Act," passed 3 George IV. 1822. Statute 7 and 8 George IV. 1827. Statute 5 and 6 William IV. 1835. This last statute enacts "that any person wantonly beating or ill-treating any horse, ox, cow, ass, sheep, dog, or other animal, or improperly driving the same whereby any mischief shall be done, shall upon conviction be fined or imprisoned; and that any person keeping or using any house, pit, or other place, for baiting or fighting any bull, bear, dog, or other animal (whether of a domestic or wild kind), or for cock fighting, shall be liable to a penalty of 51. for every day he shall so keep and use the same. The provisions of this act were extended to Ireland, by 1 Victoria, passed July 15, 1837. CRUELTY TO ANIMALS, SOCIETY FOR THE PREVENTION OF. "Every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills."—Psalm 1. 10. This society, which has lately received the distinction of Royal, is held at Exeter-hall, and was instituted in 1824. Through its most praiseworthy exertions several hundreds of cases of cruelty are annually prosecuted to conviction.-Report, 1838. CRUSADES OR HOLY WARS. (In French, Croisades.) Undertaken by the Christian powers to drive the infidels from Jerusalem, and the adjacent countries, called the Holy Land. They were projected by Peter Gautier, called Peter the Hermit, an enthusiast, and French officer of Amiens, who had quitted the military profession and turned pilgrim. Having travelled to the Holy Land, he deplored, on his return, to pope Urban II. that infidels should be in possession of the famous city where the author of Christianity first promulgated his sacred doctrines. Urban convened a Council of 310 bishops at Clermont in France, at which the ambassadors of the chief Christian potentates assisted, and gave Peter the fatal commission to excite all Europe to a general war, A.D. 1094. The first crusade was published; an army of 300,000 men was raised, and Peter had the direction of it, 1095.-Voltaire. The holy warriors wore a red cross upon the right shoulders, with the name of Croisés, Crossed, or Crusaders; their motto was Volonté de Dieu, "God's will." The epidemical rage for crusading now agitated Europe, and, in the end, these unchristian and iniquitous wars against the rights of mankind cost the lives of 2,000,000 of men. -Voltaire. CRYOPHORUS, THE. To demonstrate the relation between evaporation at low temperatures and the production of cold, was invented by Dr. Wollaston, about 1778. CUBA. Discovered by Columbus on his first voyage, in 1492. It was conquered by Valasquez, in 1511, and settled by the Spaniards. The Buccaneer Morgan took the Havannah in 1669. See Buccaneers. The fort here was erected by admiral Vernon, in 1741. The Havannah was taken by admiral Pococke and lord Albemarle, in 1762, but was restored at the peace, in 1763.-See Havannah. CUBIT. This was a measure of the ancients, and is the first measure we read of; the ark of Noah was made and measured by cubits.-Holden. The Hebrew sacred cubit was two English feet, and the great cubit eleven English feet. Originally it was the distance from the elbow, bending inwards to the extremity of the middle finger.-Calmet. CUCUMBERS. They grew formerly in great abundance in Palestine and Egypt, where, it is said, they constituted the greater part of the food of the poor and slaves. This plant is noticed by Virgil, and other ancient poets. It was brought to England from the Netherlands, about 1538. CUDDALORE, INDIA. On the coast of the Carnatic. This place was possessed by the English in 1681. It was reduced by the French in 1758 and 1781; and underwent a destructive siege by the British under general Stuart, in 1783, which was continued until news arrived of peace having been signed. Cuddalore also suffered in the subsequent wars with Hyder Ali.-See India. CUIRASS. This part of armour was that most in use by the Greeks and Romans.Tacitus. First, from the skins of beasts, and afterwards from tanned leather, was formed the cuirass of the Britons until the Anglo-Saxon era. In process of time it was made of iron and brass, and covered the warrior from neck to waist before and behind, as a protection against the spear and arrow. The cuirass was worn by the heavy cavalry in the reign of Henry III. 1216, et seq. CULDEES. Monks in Scotland and Ireland in the early ages of Christianity, of simple and peaceful lives.-Bishop Lloyd. They had their principal seat at St. Andrew's ; and in Tipperary was a Culdean abbey whose monks were "attached to simple truth and pure Christian worship, and had not yet conformed to the reigning superstition," in A.D. 1185.-Ledwich. CULLEN'S-WOOD, MASSACRE AT, IN IRELAND. This was a horrible slaughter of a vast number of the British by the Irish at this village near Dublin, on Easter, or Black Monday, so called from this massacre, A.D. 1209. The British were a colony from Bristol, inhabiting Dublin, from whence they went to divert themselves at Cullen's-wood, when the O'Birnies and Tooles, mountain enemies, fell upon them, and destroyed 500 men, besides women and children-one of the most unprovoked massacres on record. CULLODEN, BATTLE OF. In which the English, under William duke of Cumberland, defeated the Scottish rebels headed by the young Pretender, the last of the Stuarts, near Inverness, April 16, 1746. The Scots lost 2500 men in killed upon the field, or in the slaughter which occurred in the pursuit, while the loss of the English did not far exceed 200. The duke's army practised great cruelties upon the vanquished, as well as upon the defenceless inhabitants of the adjacent districts after the battle.Smollett. Immediately after the engagement, Prince Charles sought safety by flight, and continued wandering among the frightful wilds of Scotland for six months, while 30,000%. were offered for taking him, and the troops of the conqueror were constantly in search. He at length escaped from the Isle of Uist to Morlaix, and died at Rome, in 1788. CULVERINS. Ordnance, introduced into England from a French model, in 1534. CUMBERLAND, MERCHANT SHIP. Memorable and valorous achievement of Captain Barrett of this ship, who, with twenty-six men, defeated four privateers, taking 170 men who had boarded the Cumberland, Jan. 16, 1811. CUNNERSDORF, BATTLE OF. The king of Prussia, with 50,000 men, attacked the Russian army of 90,000 in their camp, and at first gained considerable advantages; but pursuing them too far, the Russians rallied, and gained a complete victory. The Prussians lost 200 pieces of cannon and 20,000 men in killed and wounded, August 12, 1759. CURACOA. In the Caribbean Sea, seized by Holland, in 1634. In 1800, the French having settled on part of this island, and becoming at variance with the Dutch, the latter surrendered the island to a single British frigate. It was restored to the Dutch by the peace of 1802, and taken from them by a British squadron, in 1807, and again restored by the peace of 1814. CURATES. They were of early appointment as coadjutors in the Romish church, and are mentioned in England in the seventh century, though perhaps there were then but few. Several acts have passed in the later reigns for the relief and protection of this laborious class of the clergy, among which are the 12th Anne, 1713, and 36th and 58th George III. Among the more recent laws for their better maintenance were the 53d George III., 1813, and the beneficent act 2 William IV., Oct. 1831. It appears by the late Parliamentary Reports on Ecclesiastical revenues, that there are 5230 curates in England and Wales, whose stipends amount to 424,6957. ; but the numbers in some benefices have not been returned to the commissioners. The greatest number of curates in one diocese is in that of Lincoln, 629; and the smallest is in that of St. Asaph, 43.-Parl. Rep. CURFEW BELL. From the French couvre feu. This was a Norman institution, introduced into England in the reign of William I., A. D. 1068. On the ringing of the curfew at eight o'clock in the evening, all fires and candles were to be extinguished, under a severe penalty.-Rapin. The curfew was abolished 1 Hen. I., a.d. 1100. CURRANTS. They were brought from Zante, and the tree planted in England, 1533. The hawthorn currant-tree (Ribes oxyacanthoides) came from Canada in 1705. CUSHEE PIECES. These were the invention of the bold and heroic Richard Leake, |