634 



CUXHAVEN 



CYANOGEN 



correlation of organs, he recognised, to quote his 

 memorable words, that ' the organism forms a 

 connected unity, in which the single parts cannot 

 change without bringing about modifications in the 

 other parts.' (3) In his hands classification became 

 more natural, being more thoroughly based on 

 real similarities of structure, and less on super- 

 ficial resemblances. He recognised the existence 

 of four great types Vertebrate, Mollusc, Articu- 

 late, and Radiate, a classification independently 

 confirmed by the embryological researches of Von 

 Baer. Although his four types are now known to 

 give a false simplicity to nature, the establishing 

 of structural classification, followed out in his sub- 

 divisions, introduced a new order in the animal 

 kingdom. (4) Before his work, fossil forms had 

 been very scantily known, arid still less under- 

 stood. His researches, however, especially among 

 vertebrate remains, not only revealed an undreamt- 

 of wealth of entombed forms, but disclosed to some 

 extent the relation between the living and the 

 dead. For the first time palaeontology was linked 

 to comparative anatomy, and the new contact 

 brought fresh light. Yet it must be remembered 

 that to hirii the Linnean dogma of the constancy of 

 species seemed unassailable. Clear as he was in re- 

 gard to the existence of fundamental and recurrent 

 types, he was as determinedly opposed to the 

 suggestion of Butfon, Lamarck, and others, that 

 animals were connected by. common descent. 



Among Cuvier's more important works are the 

 following: Lemons d' Anatomic Compare (1801-5) ; 

 L 'Anatomie des Mollusques (1816) ; Recherches sur 

 Ics Ossements Fossils des Quadruples (1821-24); 

 Discours sur les Revolutions de la Surface du Globe 

 (introduction to the last) ; Histoire naturelle des 

 Poissons (1828-49), written in concert with Valen- 

 ciennes. Better known perhaps than any of these 

 is the work which lias passed through so many 

 editors' hands Le Regne Animal distribue d'apres 

 son Organisation (1817), more familiar in the en- 

 larged and elaborated form which it received under 

 the editorship of Cuvier's school. Important too 

 for the history of zoology are numerous eloges 

 and historic reports delivered on various occasions 

 throughout Cuvier's life. 



See Mrs E Lee's Memoirs of Baron Cuvier (Lond. 

 1833) ; Pasquier's Eloge de Cuvier (Paris, 1833) ; Carus's 

 Geschickte der Zooloyie (Munich, 1872); Haeckel's History 

 of Creation (Lond. 1876). 



Cuxhaveil, a pleasant little German watering- 

 place, on the southern bank of the Elbe, at its 

 mouth in the German Ocean, 72 miles NW. of 

 Hamburg by rail. The port whence the Hamburg 

 steamers ply when in winter the Elbe is frozen 

 over, Cuxhaven has an old castle and a safe 

 harbour. Pop. (1890) 4905 in summer doubled by 

 visitors. 



I 1 liy<lbi, the capital of the Brazilian state 

 of Matto Grosso, occupies pretty nearly the centre 

 of South America. It stands on the left bank of 

 the Cuyabd, River, 980 miles NW. of Rio de Janeiro. 

 Founded by gold-diggers in 1719, and wrecked by 

 an earthquake in 1746, it is now a well-built place, 

 with a cathedral and 8000 inhabitants. It can be 

 reached by the rivers ParanA and Paraguay, a 

 voyage of 2500 miles from Buenos Ayres. 



Cuyp, or KUYP, JACOB GERRITSE, commonly 

 called the Old Cuyp, was born at Dordrecht in 

 1575. Jacob Cuyp's representation of cows and 

 sheep, battles ana encampments, are clever, but 

 his fame rests principally upon his excellent por- 

 traits. His colouring is warm and transparent ; 

 his manner, free, and spirited. Cuyp was one of 

 the four founders of the Guild of St Luke at 

 Dordrecht, and died after 1649. ALBERT CUYP, 

 Jacob's son, was also born at Dordrecht, in 1620. 



He excelled in the painting of cattle grazing or 

 reposing, moonlights, wintry landscapes, still waters 

 with ships, horse-markets, hunts, camps, and 

 cavalry-fights ; and in rendering effects of warm 

 golden sunlight he is without a rival. During his 

 lifetime and long after, Albert's pictures, although 

 in many respects equal to those of Claude, were 

 held in little estimation. Opinion, however, has 

 now changed regarding them, and a fine example 

 of his art has realised over 5000. England is 

 particularly rich in his works, the National Gallery 

 possessing eight of his subjects. He died at Dor- 

 drecht, 1691. BENJAMIN CUYP, a nephew of 

 Albert, was born at Dordrecht in 1608, and be- 

 came a member of the guild there in 1631. He 

 painted biblical pieces in Rembrandt's style, and 

 familiar scenes of country life. His best works are 

 in the manner of Teniers. His seashores have less 

 repute. 



CUZCO, a city of Peru, stands 11,440 feet above 

 sea-level, in a valley of the Andes, 345 miles ESE. 

 of Lima. It was the ancient capital of the Incas 

 (in whose language, says Garcilaso, Cuzco signifies 

 ' navel '), and at the time of its conquest by Pizarro 

 ( 1533 ) had 200,000 inhabitants. Now it has only 

 some 18,000, but it is one of the finest cities in the 

 republic, with a cathedral (1572-1654), a so-called 

 university (1598), and some remnants of Cyclopean 

 architecture. Cuzco gives name to a department, 

 with 238,445 inhabitants. See PERU. 



Cyanite, KYANITE (Gr. kyanos, 'blue'), 

 DISTHENE, or SAPPARE, a mineral composed of 

 alumina and silica. It often occurs crystallised, 

 and generally in broad prisms. It is sometimes 

 colourless, red, yellow, &c., but more frequently of 

 a fine sky-blue, slightly tinged with violet ; it is 

 transparent, and sometimes beautifully opalescent. 



Cyanogen, CN or Cy, although intrinsically 

 of little importance, is one of the most interesting 

 compounds of carbon. It was the first known com- 

 pound body which was proved to be able to unite 

 with elements in the same way as these substances 

 unite with each other. Thus hydrogen, H, unites 

 with chlorine, Cl, to form hydrochloric acid, and 

 sodium, Na, unites with chlorine to form chloride 

 of sodium, NaCl. Like these elements, H, Cl, or 

 Na, each a single substance, the group CN, con- 

 sisting of 12 parts of carbon and 14 of nitrogen, 

 enters into combination, acting as if it also were 

 for the time being an element ; thus it forms 

 cyanide of sodium, NaCN, or NaCy, and hydro- 

 cyanic acid, HCN, or HCy. There are now many 

 thousands of such radicals known, of which the 

 groups methyl, CH 3 , ethyl, C 2 H 5 , &c. may be 

 taken as other examples. 



Cyanogen is a colourless, poisonous gas, which 

 burns with a purplish flame. It is soluble in 

 water, and can Ibe condensed to a liquid, under a 

 pressure of about four atmospheres (60 Ib. per 

 sq. inch). It may be obtained by heating the 

 cyanide of mercury, HgCy 2 , when the cyanogen 

 passes off in the gaseous state. 



Cyanogen forms poisonous compounds with 

 metals called cyanides, of which the best known is 

 the cyanide of potassium, a salt of much import- 

 ance in photography. With hydrogen it forms the 

 deadly prussic or hydrocyanic acid, while it is 

 united with oxygen in cyanic acid. For the pro- 

 perties of cyanides, see HYDROCYANIC ACID. 



Cyanic Acid, HCyO, is a compound of cyanogen 

 which can hardly be prepared in the free state, 

 owing to its great tendency to decompose. It 

 forms a class of salts called cyanates, of which the 

 chief is the cyanate of potash, KCyO, produced 

 when cyanogen gas is passed into solution of potash? 

 For the cyanide process of gold-extraction, see 

 POTASSIUM. 



