COMISO 



CO.M.MAMHTK 



379 



French literature of the history M distinguished 

 from the chronicle. Unlike the chroniclers, 

 <'.. mines care** little for the mere spectacle of 

 cuiirtlv Hinl military life. His sympathies are 

 with tin- kin;,' against the nobles ; his interest is 

 centred in statecraft; he takes a keen delimit in 

 seeing the game of politics well playe.l. lli> 

 reflections on men ana affairs are always dispas- 

 sionate, and often pregnant and acute. His Lettres 

 .' \><f l ,tiiiti,>iiis were published in 1867-68. The 

 best edition of the Mtonoires is that by Chantelauze 

 (Paris, 1881). The English translation by Danett 

 <1596) was re-edited by Whibley in 1897. 



<'omi so. a town of Sicily, 37 miles WSW. of 

 Syracuse, \viili manufactures of soap and pottery. 

 Cotton is largely grown here. Pop. 19,333. 



Comitia were the legal or constitutional meet- 

 ings of the Roman people, convened by a magistrate, 

 iiMially for the purpose of putting a question to the 

 vote. According to the constitution of the several 

 gatherings, they were comitia curiata, comitia cen- 

 Jiti-i'ntfi, or comitia tributa respectively. See ROME. 



Comity Of Nations more frequently men- 

 tioned by its Latin equivalent, comitas gentium 

 is the international courtesy by which effect is 

 given to the laws of one state within the territory 

 and against the citizens of another state. ' In the 

 silence of any positive rule,' says Story, 'affirming, 

 or denying, or restraining the operation of foreign 

 laws, courts of justice presume the tacit adoption 

 of them by their, own government, unless they are 

 repugnant to its policy or prejudicial to its interests.' 

 See Story's Conflict of Laws ; and INTERNATIONAL 

 LAW. 



Comma* in the mathematical study of sound, 

 is a small interval, generally corresponding to the 

 vibration-ratio 81 : 80, which occurs between the 

 true pitches of two notes, which on the piano, 

 organ, and other tempered instruments, are repre- 

 sented by one only. See TEMPERAMENT. 



Commandant is the officer, of whatever rank, 

 in command of a fortress or military post of any 

 kind e.g. a station on the lines of communication 

 of an army. The title is also given to an officer 

 commanding a larger body of troops than is proper 

 to his rank, as captain-commandant, lieutenant- 

 commandant, &c., and to the senior lieutenant- 

 colonel of a volunteer battalion in the British 

 army, where there are two or more on its establish- 

 ment. There are also commandants to most mili- 

 tary schools. 



Commander, in the British navy, is an officer 

 next under a captain in rank, and serves either as 

 second in command in a large ship, or in independ- 

 ent command of a smaller vessel. In matters of 

 etiquette, he ranks with a lieutenant-colonel in the 

 army, but junior of that rank ; and he bears the 

 title of captain by courtesy. There were, in 1888, 

 160 commanders employed, with pay of 1 per day ; 

 while there were 69 on half-pay, but eligible for 

 re-employment, and 347 on retired pay ; but the 

 whole list of those employed, or eligible for em- 

 ployment, is to be raised to 270. Retirement is 

 optional at the age of forty-five ; and compulsory 

 at fifty, or after five years without employment. 

 In the United States navy, commanders have a 

 rank next below that of captain, and next al>ove 

 that of a lieutenant-commander, and rank with 

 lieutenant-colonels in the army. 



Commander-in-chief is the highest staff 

 appointment in the British army. After the death 

 of the Duke of Wellington in 1852, this title, which 

 had been borne by him for many years, was allowed 

 to lapse, and the administration of the army was 

 placed under a general on the staff who was styled 

 the general (or field-marshal, if of that rank) com- 



manding in hief. In 1887 the title of commander- 

 in-chief wan revived ; and in 1895 (on the resigna- 

 tion '>t tin- Duke of Cambridge) effect wan given to 

 the recommendations of the Hartington CommU- 

 simi, by a more perfect organisation of our national 

 defences under one supreme authority though nom- 

 inally since 1855 the commander-in-chief haa been 

 strictly subordinate to the Secretary of State for 

 War. His office, technically called the Horse 

 Guards, in the military department of the War 

 Office (q.v.). At its head is the adjutant-general, 

 and its several branches are presided over by the 

 quartermaster-general, the military secretary, the 

 inspector-general of fortifications, the directors of 

 artillery, of military intelligence, of the army 

 medical department, and of military education, 

 the chaplain-general, and the principal veterinary 

 surgeon. All promotions and military appoint- 

 ments are recommended by the commander- in -chief, 

 those of great importance being supervised by the 

 war minister, and, if necessary, discussed by the 

 cabinet. He is responsible for recruiting opera- 

 tions, the technical education of officers and men, 

 and everything connected with the efficiency, dis- 

 tribution, and mobilisation of the troops, together 

 with the construction and armament of fortifica- 

 tions. He exercises an inspectional control over 

 the men who are under the immediate command 

 of the general officers commanding the various 

 districts. See WoLSELEY. 



There is also a local commander-in-chief in India, 

 under whom all the forces there are placed, and in 

 many of the colonies the governor bears this title. 

 It would also be given to the officer in command of 

 any large army engaged in active operations. The 

 powers of these ofhcers extend only to those troops 

 that may be placed under them by orders from the 

 commander-in-chief at the Horse (jiuards. 



A naval coinmander-in-chief is the chief admiral 

 at any port or station. In the United States the 

 president is ex officio the commander-in-chief of the 

 army and navy. 



Commandery,the district under a commander, 

 specially used in connection with the Templars 

 (q.v.), the Hospitallers (q.v.), and other religious 

 orders. 



Command! te, SOCIETE EN, or PARTNERSHIP 

 IN, an expression used for at least two centuries 

 in France, to express a partnership in which one may 

 advance capital without taking part in the manage- 

 ment of, or incurring further liability in connection 

 with the business. The term ' sleeping partner ' 

 used in this country would nearly express the same 

 idea, were it not for the attendant unlimited liabil- 

 ity. The phrase is derived from the old meaning in 

 the commercial nomenclature of France of the word 

 commande, which was applied to the authority 

 given to one person to transact business for another. 

 The working partner had a commande from him who 

 nierely advanced capital. The term has acquired 

 importance in political economy, l>ecause the law of 

 France exempts the sleeping partners from respon- 

 sibility beyond the amount they agree to be re- 

 sponsible for. On the other hand, by the law of the 

 United Kingdom, every member of a partnership is 

 liable for allite debts ; limitation of liability being 

 only obtainable by incorporation under the Com- 

 panies Acts. Hence, in the discussions about the 

 <|uc-ticm, whether it would be pnident to relax this 

 law, and permit persons to invest money in trading 

 companies without undergoing this responsibility, 

 such companies were called 'partnerships in com - 

 mandite.' Proposals have from time to time been 

 made in Britain to establish a system of limited 

 partnerships independently of the Companies Acts. 

 The Act 28 and '_>!) Viet.' chap. 86, atli July 1865, 

 permits loans to trading firms in consideration of a 



