797 



CATAPHRACTUS. . 



CEANOTHUS. 



798 



the capsule silique-formed, long, cylindrical, 2-valved ; the dissepi- 

 ment opposite the valves ; the seeds membranous at the margin, with 

 pappus at the base and apex. The species are trees with simple 

 leaves, opposite or disposed three in a whorl ; the flowers terminal, 

 panicled. 



C. tyringaifolia has flat cordate leaves, three in a whorl. This plant 

 is a native of North America, and is found on the banks of the Ohio, 

 Mississippi, and Delaware, also in the forests on the Wabash in 

 Illinois, where it occurs in so great abundance that the wood is cut 

 up for palings. It is a low-spreading singular-looking tree, with suc- 

 culent shoots, easily injured by the frost The leaves are large and 

 come out late ; the petals are white, spotted with purple and yellow. 

 It is a plant well adapted for large shrubberies. There is one in the 

 gardens of Gray's Inn, which is said to have been planted by Lord 

 Bacon. The name of the genus appears to have been derived from 

 the plant growing on the banks of the Catawba River. It does not bear 

 fruit in this country. 



C. longittima, has oblong or ovate-lanceolate leaves, acuminated, 

 three in a whorl, undulated. It is a tree 30 or 40 feet in height. It 

 contains much tannin in its bark. It is known in the West Indies, 

 by the name of French Oak, and the French call it Chdne Noir. 



There are several other species of Catalpa, all elegant plants. The 

 C. tyringafolia thrives well in common garden soil, and may be pro- 

 pagated by seeds or divisions of the root. The other species grow 

 well in a mixture of loam, peat, and sand, or any light rich soil. 

 Cuttings half-ripened root readily if planted in sand with a hand-glass 

 over them. 



CATAPHRACTUS, a genus of Fishes to which some Icthyologists 

 refer the Armed Bull-Head. [ASPIDOPHOBUS.] 



CATA'STOMUS, a genus of Fishes belonging to the Abdominal 

 Malacopterygii and family Cyprinidcc. The fishes of this genus are 

 peculiar to the rivers of North America, and the species may be dis- 

 tinguished from others of the Carp section by their having the lips 

 thick and pendent, and crenated or fringed at the edges ; the dorsal 

 fin short, as in the genus Leueuciu (which contains the Roach, Dace, 

 &c.), and opposite to and above the ventral fins. M. Lesueur describes 

 17 species of this genus in the 'Journal of the Academy of Natural 

 Sciences of Philadelphia.' 



CATCHFLY, a name applied to several plants which have the pro- 

 perty of retaining insects, either by their viscid surface or by some 

 other means. In Apocynum androtttmifolium, and some others, they 

 are caught in the hairs that clothe the mouth of the corolla ; in Silent 

 by the glutinous substance that exudes from the calyx ; in Dionrra 

 by the collapsing of the two sides of the irritable-toothed leaves. 

 [SILENE ; DION^A ; LYCHNIS.] 



CATECHU, an extractive matter containing large quantities of 

 tannin, obtained from species of Acacia. [ACACIA.] 



CATENI'PORA, a genus of Corals found only in the Palaeozoic 

 Strata, and in Britain only in Silurian Rocks. [MADREPHYLLICBA.] 



CATERPILLAR, a name given to the larva state of Butterflies and 

 Moths. [LARVA.] 



CAT-FISH. [ASAHRHICAS.1 



CATHA, a genus of plants belonging to the natural order Cdattra- 

 eetf. C, edulit is the Kat or Khat of the Arabs. " It would appear," 

 says Dr. Lindley, " to be of a stimulating character. According to 

 Forskahl the Arabs eat the green leaves with greediness, believing 

 them to have the power of causing extreme watchfulness, BO that a 

 man may stand sentry all night long without drowsiness. They also 

 regard it as an antidote to the plague, and assert that a person wearing 

 a twig of it in his bosom may go among the infected with impunity ; 

 they even believe that the plague cannot appear in places where the 

 tree is cultivated." (' Vegetable Kingdom,' p. 587.) At the same 

 time Forskivhl adds, "The taste of the leaves does not seem to indicate 

 such virtues." 



CATHARTOCARPUS (from xaeatpu, to purge, and mJpiros, fruit), 

 a genus of plants belonging to the natural order Leyuminwur. It has 

 very blunt sepals, hardly joined at the base, more or less unequal ; 

 5 unequal petals; 10 unequal free stamens, the three lower ones 

 longest, the four middle ones short and straight, the three upper ones 

 bearing abortive di {formed anthers ; the anthers ovate, opening by 

 two chinks at the apex ; the ovary stipitate ; the legumes terete or a 

 little compressed, indehiscent, woody with elevated sutures, trans- 

 versely many-celled inside, the cells 1 -seeded and filled with pulp ; 

 the seeds elliptic, rather compressed, horizontal. The species are trees 

 with abruptly-pinnate leaves and racemes of large yellow flowers. In 

 appearance they are not unlike the Common Laburnum when in 

 flower. This genus of plants was formerly comprehended under 

 Cassia [CASSIA], but was separated by Persoon, who has been followed 

 by Lindley, Nees von Esenbeck, and others. The habit of these 

 trees and the character of their fruit differ from the species of Catiia. 

 It is also undoubtedly desirable that a genus like CVuna, with nearly 

 200 species, should be subdivided. 



C. Fistula, the Purging Cassia, or Pudding Pipe-Tree, has leaves 

 with 4-6 pairs of ovate rather acuminated glabrous leaflets ; the 

 petioles glandless ; the racemes loose, bractless ; the legumes cylin- 

 drical, rather obtuse, smooth. It is supposed to have been originally 

 a native of tropical Africa, but is now extensively diffused over the 

 globe, and is found abundantly in Hindustan, China, the East Indian 



Islands, the West Indies, and South America. It is a tree from 30 to 

 40 feet high, with yellow flowers and long cylindrical black pods, from 

 9 inches to 2 feet in length. The valves of this pod are thin, 

 hard, and brittle ; and its cavity is divided by numerous thin brittle 

 transverse dissepiments ; the partitions thus formed have each a single 

 hard flattened ovate seed, surrounded by a soft pulp. The pulp has 

 a sweetish flat not unpleasant taste, and is separated by boiling the 

 pod in water, straining the fluid, and then evaporating it to the con- 

 sistence of a thick extract. This extract acts as a mild purgative on 

 the system, and was long in great repute in Europe on that account. 

 It is now however seldom used ; and although admitted into the lists 

 of Materia Medica of the British Pharmacopoeias, is only placed there 

 as entering into the composition of the Electuarium Cassise and the 

 Confectio Senna;. The pulp, according to Henry, consists of 61 per 

 cent, of sugar, 6'75 of gum, and 13'25 of tannin. It probably also 

 contains Cathartine or an analogous principle. 



C. Javaniciu, Horse-Cassia, has leaves with 12-15 pairs of ovate 

 obtuse glabrous leaflets ; glandless petioles ; axillary racemes ; nearly 

 cylindrical, very long, and transversely torose legumes. It is a native 

 of Java and the Moluccas. Its legumes are above two feet in length, 

 and contain a black cathartic pulp, which is used as a horse-medicine 

 in the East Indies. G. Don has described a species of Caihartocarpui 

 (C. conipicuut), which is a native of Sierra-Leone, where the pods 

 are called Monkey Drum-Sticks. 



(Christison, Dispensatory ; Don, Gardener's Dictionary.') 



CATILLUS, a fossil genus of Bivalve Shells, allied to Crenalitla and 

 Perna, so named by Cuvier and Brongniart. In the Chalk occur 

 species of large size, remarkable for their largely fibrous texture. 

 They have also been called from this circumstance Inoceramits by 

 Sowerby, who includes in the genus one species from the Lias and 

 others from the Gault. 



CATKIN, in Botany, a kind of inflorescence which differs from the 

 spike in nothing but its falling off the stem by an articulation, after 

 its temporary office as the support of the organs of reproduction is 

 accomplished. It occurs in the willow, the poplar, the birch, &c., 

 which hence are sometimes called Amentaceous plants, amentum 

 being the Latin name of the catkin. 



CATLINITE, a form of argillaceous mineral called Pipestone by 

 the North American Indians. It comes from the Coteau des Prairies, 

 and is a red claystone or compacted clay. A similar material is now 

 accumulating on the north shore of Lake Superior, at Nepigon Bay. 

 Another variety is used by the Indians of the north-west coast of 

 America. (Dana, Mineralogy.) 



CAT-MINT. [NEPETA.] 



CATOBLEPAS. [ANTILOPE*:.] 



CAT'S-EYE, a form of Chalcedony, of a graenish-gray colour, 

 having a peculiar opalescence, or glaring internal reflections, like the 

 eye of a cat : the effect is owing to filaments of asbestos. It comes 

 from Ceylon and Malabar, and possesses considerable value as a gem. 

 (Dana, Mineralogy.) 



CAT'S-TAIL GRASS, the common name of PMeum pratenae, an 

 agricultural plant, also called Timothy Grass. [PHLEUM.] 



CAU'CALIS, a genus of plants belonging to the natural order 

 UmbeUiferct, the sub-order Campyloiprrmeas, and the tribe Caucalinetse. 

 It has a calyx of five teeth, the petals obcordate, with an indexed 

 point, outer ones radiant and bifid, the point slightly laterally 

 compressed, the carpels with filiform bristly primary and more or 

 less prominent secondary ridges, all bearing 1-3 rows of prickles. 

 The species are herbs, with multiplied leaves and white flowers. 

 They are called by the common name of Bur-Parsley. Two of the 

 species are found in England, C. daucoidei and C. latifolia. They are 

 found in corn-fields on chalky soils ; the last is a rare plant, and has 

 been probably introduced. (Babington, Manual of British Botany.) 



CAUDISONA. [VIPERIDJ!.] 



CAULERPITES, a group of Fossil Fucoid Plants, of which many 

 species occur scattered through nearly all the marine formations. 

 In the Oolites seven species have been found. The recent genus 

 Cavlerpa is found in warm southern climates. 



CAULIFLOWER. [BRASSICA.] 



CAULINIA, a genus of aquatic plants, belonging to the natural 

 order Naiadacece. One of the species, O. fragilis, exhibits a circula- 

 tion in its transparent joints, and was one of the first plants in which 

 this phenomenon was noticed by Amici, and also probably by Costa. 



CAVIA. [CAVT.] 



CAVY is the vulgar name applied to various species of animals 

 belonging to the genus Cana. Of these the most common is C. Aperea, 

 the Restless Cavy, or Guinea Pig. An account of this animal, with 

 the species to which it is allied, will be found under HYSTRlciD.fi. 



CAWK. [BARYTES.] 



CAYENNE PEPPER. [CAPSICUM.] 



CAYMAN. [ALLIGATOR.] 



CEANOTHUS, a genus of plants belonging to the natural order 

 Rhamnacue. The calyx is 5-cleft, campanulate, cut round after 

 flowering, with the base permanent and adhering to the fruit ; petals 

 hooded, with long spreading claws ; fruit dry, 3-celled, loculicidal, 

 with papery valves : cells 1 -seeded. The species are smooth or 

 pubescent shrubs, with erect branches ; alternate serrated 3-nerved 

 leaves ; and very slender white blue or yellow flowers, disposed in 



