548 



CRASSULACE.E 



CRATINUS 



there is much fervid poetry. The title of this col- 

 lection, which is due to the editor, not the author, 

 refers to its affinity with George Herbert's Temple. 

 An edition ( the third ) was published at Paris in 

 1652, tinder the title Carmen Deo Nostro, with 12 

 vignette engravings designed by Crashaw. A col- 

 lective edition of Crashaw's works was published in 

 1858, at London, by W. D. Turnbull, and a fuller 

 edition in 1872 by Dr A. B. Grosart. Crashaw 

 greatly resembles George Herbert in his cast of 

 thought, and is not inferior to him in richness of 

 fancy, though his conceits are more strained, and 

 less under the control of taste. His devotional 

 strains are nobly worded. Tutin's selections (2 vols. 

 1887 and 1900) are almost a complete edition. 



Crassillaceae, an order of calycifloral dicoty- 

 ledons, allied to the Saxifrages, are herbaceous or 

 sometimes shrubby plants, always more or less 

 succulent. About 400 species are known in the 

 genera, chiefly from warm and temperate countries 

 and in dry, sunny situations. South Africa and 

 Mexico are peculiarly rich in species. Sedum 

 (stone-crop) and Sempervivum (house-leek) are the 

 most familiar genera. These and allied forms, such 

 as Echeveria, are largely used for bedding-out pur- 

 poses, grown on rockwork, or cultivated in the 

 'succulent-house.' Crassula coccinea, which, like 

 nearly all its very numerous ( 150) congeners comes 

 from the Cape, is in general cultivation on account 

 of the beauty of its flowers. See SUCCULENT 

 PLANTS. 



CrassilS, the surname of several old Roman 

 families, among which that of the Licinii was most 

 remarkable. (1) Lucius LICINIUS, born in 140 

 B.C., was the best orator of his age, and was as 

 distinguished for his wit as for his rectitude in 

 the capacity of proconsul of Gaul. In 95 he was 

 elected consul, along with Quintus Scsevola, who 

 had been his colleague in all his previous offices. 

 During their consulship was enacted a rigorous 

 law banishing from Rome all who had not the full 

 rights of citizens, which imbittered the feelings of 

 foreigners toward Rome, and was one of the chief 

 causes of the Social War. As censor in 92 Crassus 

 closed all the schools of the rhetoricians, believing 

 that they exercised a bad influence on the minds of 

 young men. He died in 91 B.C., a few days after 

 vigorously opposing in the senate the democratic 

 consul L. Philippus. Crassus is one of the speakers 

 in Cicero's De Oratore, and indeed is the represent- 

 ative of the writer's own opinions. (2) MARCUS 

 LlClNIUS, surnamed Dives, the triumvir, was born 

 sometime before 115 B.C. His father was a partisan 

 of Sulla, and on the return of Marius and Cinna to 

 Rome in 87 made away with himself. Cinna 

 spared the boy's life, but subjected him to a jealous 

 and dangerous surveillance, to escape which he 

 went to Spain. He afterwards joined Sulla (83), 

 and distinguished himself in the battle against the 

 Samnites at the gates of Rome. As prsetor he 

 crushed the Servile revolt by the conquest of 

 Spartacus at the battle of Lucania (71 ), and in the 

 following year was made consul with Pompey, a 

 colleague whom he hated. On the other hand, 

 Ciesar valued the friendship of Crassus, the most 

 wealthy of Roman citizens. He was a keen and 

 far-seeing speculator, and devoted his entire energies 

 to the accumulation of money. We are told that 

 he even bought clever slaves, and had them taught 

 lucrative arts that he might enjoy the profits. 

 During his consulate, Crassus gave a feast to the 

 people, which was spread on 10,000 tables, and dis- 

 tributed to every citizen a provision of corn for 

 three months. Plutarch estimates his wealth at 

 more than 7000 talents, and Pliny states that his 

 lands were worth 8000 talents (say 2,000,000). 

 About 60, Caesar, Pompey, and Crassus entered into 



a private arrangement for their common benefit, 

 which paction is known as the first triumvirate. 

 In 55, as consul with Pompey, Crassus had Syria 

 assigned him for his province, and began to make 

 preparations of war against the Parthians, hoping 

 both for glory and for gain. The latter end he 

 effected in the meantime by plundering the towns 

 and temples in Syria. At length, however, he set 

 out, but was misled by a treacherous guide, and 

 utterly defeated in the plains of Mesopotamia by the 

 Parthians. Crassus now retreated to the town of 

 Carrha?, intending to pass into Armenia ; but was 

 beguiled into a conference with the Parthian 

 general, Surenas, and was slain at the appointed 

 place of meeting. His head was cut off and sent 

 to Orodes, who is said to have poured melted gold 

 into the dead lips, saying : ' Sate thyself now with 

 that of which in life thou wert so greedy.' His 

 quaestor, Cassius, with 500 cavalry, escaped into 

 Syria ; but the remaining Romans were scattered 

 and made prisoners, or put to death. 



4'rat:i'tt'lis. a genus of Rosaceae, sub-order 

 Pomepe, very nearly allied to Mespilus (Medlar) 

 and Pyrus ( Pear, Apple, &c. ), but distinguished by 

 the acute calycine segments, and by the round or 

 oval fruit, closed at the apex, and concealing the 

 upper end of the bony cells. The species are pretty 

 numerous, natives of the temperate parts of the 

 northern hemisphere, and in general have flowers 

 in beautiful terminal corymbs. They are all large 

 shrubs or small trees, more or less spiny, whence 

 the name Thorn has been very generally applied to 

 them. The only native of Britain is the common 

 Hawthorn (q.v.), (Cratcegus Oxyacantha). Most of 

 the species resemble it considerably in habit, size, 

 form of leaf, &c. A number of them are now fre- 

 quent in plantations and shrubberies in Britain, of 

 which perhaps the most common is the Cock's-spur 

 Thorn (C. crus-galli), a native of North America 

 from Canada to Carolina. Its leaves are not lobed ; 

 its fniit rather larger than that of the hawthorn. 

 The Azarole (C. Azarolus), a native of the south 

 of Europe, and the Aronia ( C. Aronia), a native of 

 the Levant, are occasionally cultivated for their 

 fruit, which is about the size of the Siberian crab, 

 and is used either for dessert or for pies. C. 

 orientalis (or odoratissima) and C. tanacetifolia 

 have also fruit of considerable size. The latter is 

 much eaten in Armenia. C. mexicana has a large 

 fruit, like a small apple, but not eatable. It is, 

 however, very ornamental. The wood of most of 

 the species much resembles that of the hawthorn. 

 It is common to graft the rarer species on the haw- 

 thorn. C. Pyracantha differs much in appearance 

 from most of the genus ; being a pretty evergreen 

 shrub, with lanceolate crenate leaves, and rich 

 clusters of red berries, which remain on it all 

 winter ; a native of rocky places in the south of 

 Europe and the Caucasus. It is often employed in 

 Britain as an ornamental covering for walls, and is 

 known as the Pyracantha. 



Crater. See VOLCANOES. 



Cratiims, a Greek comic poet, born about 519 

 B.C., who did not begin to exhibit till sixty-five, 

 and who died in 424. Next to his younger con- 

 temporaries, Eupolis and Aristophanes, he best 

 represents the Old Attic comedy. He changed its 

 outward form considerably, limiting the number of 

 actors to three, and he was the first to add to 

 comedy the interest of pungent and personal attack. 

 The habits, manners, and institutions of his fellow- 

 citizens he considered a legitimate mark for 

 censorious satire. Even the great Pericles did not 

 escape. Aristophanes repaid him in kind, but his 

 allegation of habitual intemperance Cratinus him- 

 self admitted and defended humorously in his 

 Pytine. His style was very metaphysical and 



