

CAPUCHINS CAR ACALL A . 



45 



Around Capua lie the fertile Campanian fields, which 

 prod uced three crops a-year. Living was cheap here, 

 and the climate healthy, so that it was a favourite 

 place of resort of the Romans. 



C APUC HI NS ; religious of the order of St Francis. 

 See Franciscans. 



CAPUT-MORTUUM (deadhead}; a technical 

 expression, in chemistry, for the deposit in the retort, 

 arising from dry distillation ; because, if the operation 

 is continued, volatile substances cease to be given oft". 



CAQUETA; a large river in South America, 

 which rises about sixty miles south of Popayan. Be- 

 ing enlarged by the addition of several streams, it 

 takes a course due east about 300 miles, when it di- 

 vides into three branches, one of which falls into the 

 lea; another takes the name of Yupura, and the 

 third forms the principal stream of the Negro. 



CARABINE ; formerly, a kind of guns, which are 

 now out of use. At present, short guns used by the 

 cavalry, have this name. Tacticians entertain very 

 different opinions respecting this kind of arms. Some 

 think that they are of no use whatever, as the aim 

 from on horseback is extremely uncertain. In some 

 armies, every third man of certain regiments of cav- 

 alry is armed with a carabine. The word carabine 

 is found in all European languages, with different end- 

 ings only. Many derive the word from Calabria, 

 which, for a long time, was famous for a certain light 

 cavalry. The transformation of the I into r would 

 not be extraordinary. Du Fresne derives the word 

 from a kind of arms called chavarina, of which men- 

 tion is made hi the fourteenth century. 



C ARABOBO ; a province of Colombia, forming, 

 according to the law of June 23, 1824, with the pro- 

 vince Caracas, the department of Venezuela. The 

 residence of the governor of Carabobo is Valencia. 

 This name has been rendered famous by the battle of 

 Carabobo, which was decisive of the independence of 

 Colombia. It was fought June 24, 1821, soon after 

 the armistice concluded between Bolivar and Mori No 

 liad expired. Bolivar, having formed a junction with 

 Paez in Varinas, advanced to attack the Spanish gen- 

 eral La Torre, who had taken a strong position upon 

 the heights commanding the only pass by which his 

 army could be approached. The battle was com- 

 menced*t)y Paez, who led on his division in person, 

 and, by the valour and impetuosity of himself and his 

 followers, drove the Spaniards from their intrench- 

 ments, and thus gained a complete victory, before the 

 second division, under general Cedeno, came up. 

 Of all the troops, the British, in the service of the 

 republic, distinguished themselves most : they chiefly 

 decided the day, and suffered most severely. The 

 battalion in which most of the British and Irish served 

 received the name of battalion of Carabobo. Caracas, 

 La Guayra, Carthagena, Cumana, and all that po- 

 tion oT Venezuela which is dependent upon them, w/ere 

 permanently secured to the patriots by this victory. 



CARACALLA, ANTO.VINUS BASSIANUS, eldest son 

 of the emperor Severus, was born at Lyons, A.D. 188, 

 and appointed by his father his colleague in the gov- 

 ernment, at the age of thirteen years. Neverthe- 

 less, he attempted his life. Severus died A.D. 211. 

 He was succeeded by Caracalla and Geta. The two 

 brothers, from their earliest years, hated one another 

 inveterately. After a campaign against the Cale- 

 donians, they concluded a disgraceful peace. They 

 then wished to divide the empire between them; 

 but their design was opposed by their mother, Julia, 

 and by the principal men of the state. Caracalla 

 now resolved to get rid of his brother, by causing 

 him to be assassinated. After many unsuccessful 

 attempts, he pretended to desire a reconciliation, and 

 requested his mother to procure him an interview 

 with his brother in private in her chamber. Geta 



appeared, and was stabbed in his mother's anus, 

 A. D. 212, by several centurions, who had received 

 orders to this effect. The prastorian guards were 

 prevailed upon, by rich donations, to proclaim Cara- 

 calla sole emperor, and to declare Geta an enemy 

 to the state. The tyrant caused Geta's children and 

 friends to be put to death. (See Papinian.) Dion 

 estimated the number of victims at 20,000. He af- 

 terwards executed many of the murderers of his bro- 

 ther, and caused him to be placed among the gods. 

 His pattern was Sylla, whose tomb he restored and 

 adorned. Like this dictator, he enriched the soldiers 

 with the most extravagant largesses, which extortion 

 enabled him to furnish. Cruefas Caligula and Nero, 

 but weaker than either, he regarded the senate and 

 the people with equal contempt and hatred. From 

 motives of avarice, he gave all the freemen of the 

 empire the right of citizenship, and was the first who 

 received Egyptians into, the senate. Alexander, 

 whose habits lie imitated, and Achilles, were the ob- 

 jects of his deepest veneration. He went to Ilium 

 to'visit the grave of Homer's hero, and poisoned lu's 

 favourite freedman, named Festus, to imitate Achil- 

 les in his grief for Patroclus. His conduct in his 

 campaigns in GauL where he committed all sorts of 

 cruelties, was stUwmore degrading. He marched 

 over the Rhine to the countries of the Catti and Ale- 

 manni. The Catti defeated him, and permitted him 

 to repass the river only on condition of paying them 

 a large sum of money. He marched through the land 

 of the Alemanni as an ally, and built several fortifica- 

 tions. He then called together the young men of the 

 tribe, as if he intended to take them into his service, 

 and caused his own troops to surround them and cut 

 them in pieces. For this barbarous exploit, he assumed 

 the name Alemannicus. In Dacia he gained some 

 advantages over the Goths. He signed a treaty of 

 peace at Antioch with Artabanus, the Parthian king, 

 who submitted to all his demands. He invited to 

 Antioch Abgares, the king of Edessa, an ally of the 

 Romans, loaded him with chains, and took possession 

 of his states. He exercised the same treachery to- 

 wards Vologeses, king of Armenia ; but the Arme- 

 nians flew to arms, and repulsed the Romans. After 

 this, Caracalla went to Alexandria, to punish the 

 people of the city for ridiculing him. While pre- 

 parations were making for a great massacre, he 

 offered hecatombs to Serapis, and visited the tomb of 

 Alexander, on which he left his imperial ornaments, 

 by way of offering. He afterwards devoted the in- 

 habitants, for several days and nights, to plunder and 

 butchery, and seated himself, in order to have a view 

 of the bloody spectacle, on the top of the temple of 

 Serapis, where lie consecrated the dagger which he 

 had drawn, some years before, against his brother. 

 His desire to triumph over the Paruiians induced him 

 to violate the peace, under the pretence that Arta- 

 banus had refused him his daughter hi marriage. 

 He found the country undefended, ravaged it, 

 marched through Media, and approached the capital. 

 The Parthians, who had retired beyond the Tigris to 

 the mountains, were preparing to attack the Romans, 

 the following year, with all their forces. Caracalla 

 returned without delay to Mesopotamia, without hav- 

 ing even seen the Parthians. When the senate re- 

 ceived from him information of the submission of the 

 East, they decreed him a triumph, and the surname 

 Parthicus. Being informed of the warlike prepara- 

 tions of the Parthians, he prepared to renew the con- 

 test ; but Macrinus, the pretorian prefect, whom he 

 tiad offended, assassinated him at Edessa, A. D. 217, 

 on his way to the temple of Lunus. Caracalla 

 erected at Rome some splendid monuments, magnifi- 

 cent baths, which bear his name, and a triumphal arch, 

 in commemoration of the achievements of Severus. 



