869 



CANES VENATICI. 



CANKER. 



570 



India islands, particularly Jamaica, also on stouy hills ; and in woods 

 of the mainland of South America. It was called by Linnaeus, at one 

 time founts Winteranus (' Spec.,' ed. i. p. 371), and at another Winteriana 

 Caneila (Lin., ' Sp." 636). It is referred to a small tribe called Canelkai, 

 related to Gttttifertf. The bark of the young branches of this tree, 

 freed from its outer rind, is the Canetla atba of the shops (called also 

 Cogtu dttlcia and Costus corticosiis, and Cortex Winteranus sparing, or 

 False Winter's bark). Owing to' its white appearance, it has received 

 the name of white cinnamon, which it also resembles in smell as well 

 as cloves. The whole tree is very aromatic, and when in flower per- 

 fumes all the neighbourhood ; even the dried flowers, when softened 

 again in warm water, have a fragrant odour, similar to that of musk. 

 The smell of the leaves resembles that of laurel. The bark is brought 

 to Europe in rolls or quills of two or three feet long, or short broken 

 pieces of from a-half to one and a-half inch in diameter, and a half to 

 one and a-half line in thickness. The outer surface is either reddish- 

 yellow or verging to a whitish-yellow ; the inner surface smooth, 

 resembling the external in colour. The taste is at first agreeably 

 aromatic, and somewhat bitter ; afterwards acrid and peppery. 



According to Petroz and Robinet, it contains a very acrid aromatic 

 volatile oil (which Sloane says is heavier than water, Henry and Car- 

 theuser say is lighter, and which is employed for the adulteration of 

 oil of cloves), a bitter extractive, a resin, a sort of manna sugar, called 

 'ftm f/tn, gum, albumen, and starch. It is rarely, if ever, adulterated, 

 but is itself often substituted for the hri/inis H'iittert, or true Winter's 

 bark. The two may be distinguished by the following characters : 



CANELLA ALBA. 



Of a pule orange or ash colour. 

 Fracture whitish, marbled. 



Internal surface covered with a whitish 



pellicle. 

 Odour agreeable, resembling clove*. 



Taste acrid, bitterish. 

 Powder white. 

 Watery infusion pale* 



"WINTER'S HARK. 

 Gray or reddish gray. 

 T'r.icture compact or foliaceous, gray at 



the circumference, red towards the 



centre, with a very obvious line of 



demarcation. 

 Internal surface of a deep red or 



black. 

 Odour peppery, and, when powdered, 



turpentine-like. 



Taste sharp, burning, intolerable. 

 Powder grayish yellow. 

 Watery infusion red. 



The cold infusion of each, treated with the following re-agents, con 

 duct themselves thus : 



TINC-II-HK or GALL*. 

 Canclla Alba. Slight whitish disturb. 



ance. 

 No action. 



Drymis Winteri. 



Caneila Alba. 

 Drymis Winteri. 



Srl-PHATE OP lEOX. 



No action. 

 Precipitate. 



MuttlATE OF IRON. 



Brown yellow discoloura- 

 tion. 



Dark brown discoloura- 

 tion. 

 NITRATR OF BARYTES. 



No action. 



Precipitate. 



Alcohol is the most appropriate menstruum : water takes up the 

 lea* powerful principles only. As the infusion is not affected by many 

 articles which it is often desirable to give at the same time, it affords 

 an eligible vehicle for these, such as tincture and infusion of galls, lime- 

 water, tartar emetic, and the salts of iron and mercury. It may also 

 be given in powder. From its aromatic properties it is likewise a 

 suitable adjunct to mere bitter infusions, such as those of gentian. 

 In the dyspepsia, attended with constipation, of sedentary people, 

 along with sulphate of iron, aloes, and sulphate of potass, it is a most 

 efficacious medicine. This is an improved form of a powder still 

 popular, properly Hiera Picra, corrupted into llicri/ Pirry. 



i ,//./ ,ill,n is used both by the Caribs and the Negroes in the West 

 Indies as a spice and as a preserve, thought to be useful against scurvy. 

 In Martinique the berries furnish a liqueur much prized. 



CANKS VKNA'TICI, the Hounds, a constellation added by Heve- 

 lius, who called the nearest to the pole Asterion, and the other C'hara. 

 They arc held in a string by Bootes, and are surrounded by Bootes, 

 Coma Berenices, and Ursa Major. [Cou CABOLI.] 



The following are the designations of the two principal stars in this 

 llat.ii M i : 



No. in Catalogue 



No. In Catalogue of British 



' Character. of Flamstecd. Association. Magnitude. 



d 8 4235 4 



a U 4348 2-5 



CA.N'i;, CANi^'K. or KEA, a large wooden collar, used as an 

 instrument of legal punishment by the Chinese. It is a species of 

 walking pillory, fitting close round the neck of the culprit, and of such 

 a weight that he can carry it, though with pain and difficulty. The 

 weight is proportioned to the nature of the otfencc ; but the cang most 

 >nly in use weighs from fifty to sixty pounds. When it is 

 fastened round the neck, long slips of japcr are pasted over the two 

 parts of the cang, which opens and shuts like our stocks; cm tin 

 japers the mandarin puts his seal, so that the parts cannot be sepa- 

 rated or the criminal relieved without it being perceived. The crime 

 for which he suffers and the duration of his punishment are then 

 insuril.ieil on the cang in large letters, anil the officers of the police parade 

 the criminal thron ;h thr town, after which he is left exposed in some 



much-frequented street or square, or at one of the gates of the city. 

 As the cang prevents his making any use of his hands, he must be fed 

 by others. M. Hue, in. ' L'Empire Chinois' (Paris, 1854), relates that 

 on one occasion, at Fou-ki-hien, he and his companion found a man 

 suffering under the cang, who implored their forgiveness. They 

 examined the slips of paper, and found he was " condemned to fifteen 

 days of canque, the nights not excepted, for the offence of disrespect 

 towards the strangers of the West ;" and they succeeded in procuring 

 his release from a punishment for the offence of calling them by a 

 common nickname, and of which they had been entirely ignorant. 

 The Chinese consider this species of punishment very infamous and 

 degrading. Correct representations of the instrument and the manner 

 in which it is applied are given in Sir George Stauuton's account of the 

 Chinese, and in the work of Sir J. F. Davis. The cang, called by them 

 Tahtakulah, was formerly in use among the Turks. 



CANIS MAJOR, the Greater Dog, a constellation which contains 

 SIRIUS* the brightest star in the heavens, called also the Dog Star. To 

 this article we shall refer all historical and mythological information 

 connected with this constellation, it being in fact the star, and not the 

 constellation, about which we shall have to speak. 



This constellation is directly found by the bright star Sirius, which 

 is in the continuation of the line drawn through the belt of Orion. 

 The surrounding constellations are Argo, Monoceros, Orion, Lepus, 

 and Columba Noachi. At the end of January, Sirius is on the 

 meridian at midnight. 



The following are the principal stars in this constellation. The 

 letters within parentheses are from Rally's Flamsteed : 



Character. 



w 



7 

 S 



No. in Catalogue 

 of Flumsteed. 



1 

 2 



3 



9 



20 

 21 

 22 

 23 

 25 

 28 

 31 

 13 

 16 

 24 



No. in Catalogue 



of British 



Association. 



2051 

 2061 

 2066 

 2213 

 2274 

 2293 

 2309 

 2319 

 2345 

 2391 

 2458 

 2246 

 2267 

 2318 



Magnitude. 

 3 

 2 

 4 

 1 

 4 

 3 

 4 

 3 

 3 

 3 

 4 

 4 

 4 

 4 



CANIS MINOR, the Lesser Dog, a constellation situated above the 

 Greater Dog, and distinguished by a remarkable star of the first mag- 

 nitude, PROCYON, which see for information connected with the 

 history of this constellation. It may be found in the heavens thus : 

 draw a line through Orion's belt and Sirius ; a perpendicular to this 

 line from Sirius upwards will pass through Procyon, which is too large 

 a star to be mistaken. It is also nearly in the line joining Sirius and 

 Pollux, about midway between them. 



The following are the principal stars in this constellation : 



Character. 



No. in Catalogue 

 of Flamsteed, 



3 



10 



No. in Catalogue 



of British 



Association. 



2462 



2522 



Magnitude. 

 3 

 1 



CANKER. This term is applied, perhaps not with strict propriety, 

 to a very serious disease of the foot of the horse. The horn having 

 been separated from the sensitive portion of the foot, a fungous sub- 

 stance is produced instead of new and healthy horn. The treatment, 

 however, is exceedingly simple. Every portion of horn that has begun 

 to detach itself must be removed. Some superficial caustic must then 

 be applied in sufficient quantity to repress the growth of the fungus, 

 and to rouse the exposed surface to healthy action, but not to eat into 

 and corrode the foot. The butyr (protochloride) of antimony is the 

 best agent for accomplishing these purposes ; for, being speedily 

 decomposed by the moisture of the part, it can only act as a super- 

 ficial caustic. The fungus having been repressed, the Friar's Balsam 

 may succeed as a mild stimulant to the secretion of good horn. No 

 ointment should touch the cankered foot ; but pledgets of soft and 

 clean tow should be placed over the sore, and bound firmly upon it, 

 making as equable a pressure on every part of it as can possibly be 

 effected. The foot should be dressed at least once in every day, and 

 kept as dry as circumstances will allow. 



Inflammation of the internal part of the ear of the dog will some- 

 times produce a fungous ulceration, to which also the term canker has 

 been applied. A dog may be observed to be continually shaking his 

 head, or scratching his ear, or carrying his head on one side. If the 

 part is examined, some degree of redness or enlargement of the irre- 

 gular projections on the inside of the ear will be seen. This will 

 generally yield to a few washings with warm soap and water ; but 

 should actual ulceration have commenced, a drachm of the extract of 

 Irad should lie added to half a pint of a decoction of the heads of 

 white poppies, and this substituted for the soap and water. The 



