286 



GOBI COBLJRG. 



ambassador to Paris, through the credit of his cousin, 

 ond remained there till 1805. He died Aug. 30, | 

 1810. He was the last of the family of Cobentzl. 



COB! (in Chinese, Shamo); a great desert in the 

 mitral part of Asia, extending from the sources of 

 the Indus and Ganges, beyond those of the Amour, 

 from twenty-three to twenty-tour degrees of longitude 

 in length, and varying from three to ten degrees 

 of latitude in breadth. But little is known ot this 

 immense region, of about 847,000 square miles in ex- 

 it iu. Its great elevation, anil the salt with which it 

 is impregnated, render it very cold. The frightful 

 uniformity of vast fields of sand and gravel is hardly 

 broken by the small rivers, lined with narrow tracts 

 of pasture, by the salt lakes, and a few fertile oases 

 interspersed here and there, like islands in the ocean. 

 A few little hills rise out of the general level, which 

 extends all around the traveller, as far as the eye can 

 mich. The small Mongolian horses wander about 

 iii large droves, and the wild djiggetai snatches a 

 liasty meal from the pastures. The camel is commonly 

 used by the Mongols to transport burdens. 



COBLENTZ (anciently Confluentia. from its situ- 

 ation at the confluence of the Rhine and Moselle), 

 formerly the residence of the elector of Treves, then 

 chief place of the French department of the Rhine and 

 Moselle, now the capital of the Prussian circle of go- 

 vernment (Rcgiertingsbezirk) of Coblentz (belonging 

 to the province ef the Lower Rhine), containing 1928 

 square miles, with 337,470 inhabitants, is situated on 

 a most charming spot. Opposite Coblentz is Tha- 

 lehrenbreitstein, a small place on the right bank of 

 the majestic river, at the foot of the rock, on which 

 the Prussians rebuilt the fortifications of Ehrenbreit- 

 stein, and rendered it one of the most remarkable 

 productions of military architecture. Over the 

 Moselle is a bridge of 536 paces resting upon four- 

 teen arches of stone. From this bridge there is 

 one of the finest views on the Rhine. Coblentz 

 (1050 houses and 14,900 inhabitants) consists of 

 the old city and the new, or Clement-city, and is. 

 in general, well built. There are several fine public 

 buildings. An aqueduct, constructed by the last 

 elector, brings the finest water from a height near 

 Metternich, over the Moselle bridge, into all quar- 

 ters of the city. The chief articles of commerce are 

 the Moselle wines and French wines. About one 

 mile from the city is a building, formerly a Carthu- 

 sian monastery, which is well worthy the attention 

 of travellers, on account of the view which it affords 

 of the two rivers on which the city stands. This 

 building is now changed into a fort called Hunnen- 

 kopf. On the other side of the Moselle fort Francis 

 is situated. These two forts protect the city on the 

 left bank of the Rhine, and some other fortifications 

 are to be added. These works, with those of the 

 strong fortress of Ehrenbreitstein (q. v.), will render 

 Cobleutz one of the strongest fortresses, and a very 

 important defence to Germany, particularly to the 

 Prussian monarchy. The confluence of the two rivers 

 has always given Coblentz great military importance, 

 even in the time of the Romans, who built a strong 

 camp here. On the road from Coblentz to Cologne 

 is the monument of general Marceau, mentioned by 

 lord Byron in Childe Harold's Pilgrimage. 



COBRA DA CAPELLO ; the Portuguese trivial 

 name of the vipera naj'a the hooded snake or viper 

 of the English ; serpent d lunettes of the French ; a 

 reptile of the most venomous nature, found in various 

 degrees of abundance in different hot countries of the 

 old continent, and in the lands adjacent. The species 

 of the viper kind are all remarkable for the manner in 

 which thej spread out or flatten the sides of the neck 

 nnd hefld when disturbed or irritated. In the cobra 

 dn capelfo the conformation necessary to this action is 



found in the most perfect condition, as the animal is 

 provided with a set of ribs or bony processes, moved by 

 appropriate muscles on the sides of the neck, which, 

 when expanded, give the anterior part of the body the 

 appearance of an overhanging arch or hood ; on tin- 

 middle of which, posterior to the eyes, is a greenMi- 

 yellow mark, resembling the run of a pair of spec- 

 tacles. From this mark the French name is derived. 

 When disturbed by the approach of an individual, or 

 any noise, the cobra raises the anterior part of ita 

 body, so as to appear to stand erect, expands its 

 hood, and is prepared to inflict a deadly wound. So 

 exceedingly poisonous is its bite, that, in numerous 

 instances which are well authenticated, death has fol- 

 lowed within a few minutes ; under ordinary circum- 

 stances, a few hours is the longest term that inter- 

 venes from the infliction of the bite till the death of 

 the sufferer, where prompt measures for his relief 

 have not been resorted to. So numerous are UI.-M- 

 dreadful vipers in some parts of India and Africa, 

 that they are frequently found in dwelling-houses, 

 and, in some instances, liave taken up their quarters 

 in the beds. Death of necessity must follow, under 

 such circumstances, should the animal be alarmed or 

 irritated by any sudden motion. In case a bite is re- 

 ceived from this (or, indeed, any other) venomous 

 creature, the first thing to be done is to make a firm 

 and well-sustained pressure beyond the wound, on 

 the side nearest the heart. The excellent experi- 

 ments of doctor Pennock, which have been already 

 referred to, prove that a sufficient degree of pressure 

 thus kept up will prevent the poison from affecting 

 the system ; and this is rendered evident by the good 

 effects derived from ligatures applied around bitten 

 limbs, above the wound, by the natives of India, 

 though such ligatures generally act but imperfectly. 

 The good effects of pressure, combined with the ad- 

 vantage of withdrawing the poison, will be obtained 

 by applying a well exhausted cupping-glass over the 

 wound ; a substitute for which may almost always be 

 made of a drinking glass, small bottle, &c., if proper 

 cups be not at hand. It would be well for persons 

 travelling or residing where these vipers are com- 

 mon, to be provided with a bottle of volatile alkali, 

 or spirits of hartshorn, which, applied to the wound 

 several times a-day, and taken internally, in doses of 

 thirty or forty drops, repeated according to circum- 

 stances, will avert the injurious consequence of th 

 poison. To heighten the curiosity of the multitude, 

 the jugglers of India select these venomous reptiles 

 for their exhibitions, and, having extracted their 

 fangs, keep them in cages or baskets, to exhibit 

 as dancing snakes. When the cage is opei.ed, the 

 juggler begins playing upon a pipe or other instni 

 incut ; whereupon the viper assumes the erect atti 

 tude, distends its hood, and remains balancing itself 

 in this position until the music is suspended. It is, 

 however, most probable, that this viper, in common 

 with lizards and other animals, is peculiarly affected 

 by musical sounds. A friend, who passed a con- 

 siderable time in the kingdom of Ava, informed us, 

 that a colira entered a room while a gentleman wns 

 playing on the flute, and advanced gently towards 

 him so long as the music continued ; whenever it 

 was supended, the animal halted, and when it was 

 entirely stopped, it gradually withdrew. This cir- 

 cumstance induced them to spare the viper, which 

 uniformly made its appearance on several successive 

 days when the flute was played. With the exception 

 of the spectacle mark on the back of the neck, and 

 its distensible hood, the cobra is not especially distin- 

 guished from other vipers. Its colours are dull, 

 being a dark greenish-brown, lighter towards the in- 

 ferior parts. 



COBURG ; a Saxon principality in central Gen 



