CONSONANT 



1554 



CONSTANTINE 



Guildhall School, and others have the same 

 functions. I'.vt ry tin at city in America has a 

 conservatory of music, and some of these are 

 known throughout the continent among musi- 

 cians. In America tin- name is also applied to 

 a botanical garden or to a lesser display of 

 flowers and shrubs. 



CONSONANT, kon' sonant, a letter which 

 cannot be sounded perfectly without a vowel 

 litter, and which in being uttered requires 

 more or less obstruction of the breath by the 

 tongue, lips and teeth. L, TO, n, and r are 

 called liquid consonants, as they are more 

 easily uttered than others. B, d, p, k, t and 

 hard g are called mute consonants, as in pro- 

 nouncing them scarcely a sound is emitted, 

 and they really require a vowel before or after, 

 as ap, pa, at, ta. S, z and v are consonants 

 which do not necessarily require connecting 

 vowels, and are really semi-vowels. See ALPHA- 

 BET; VOWEL. 



CONSPIRACY, konspir'asi, an agreement 

 between two or more persons to carry into 

 effect an unlawful purpose. In order to render 

 the offense of conspiracy complete it is not 

 necessary that any act should really be com- 

 mitted following the unlawful agreement, or 

 that any person should actually be defrauded 

 or injured; simply the act of conspiring, or 

 planning, constitutes the crime. Each person 

 involved is criminally responsible for every- 

 thing resulting from such purpose, whether 

 specifically intended or not. Conspiracy is 

 punishable with fine or imprisonment; fines 

 may be as high as $10,000 and punishment as 

 great as fourteen years' imprisonment. If the 

 loss of human life results from a conspiracy 

 the more serious charge of murder is lodged 

 against those involved. 



CONSTABLE, kun'stab'l, the chief peace 

 officer in rural communities, including unin- 

 corporated villages. The constable not only 

 enforces the laws, makes arrests and imprison- 

 ments, but has right of search and authority 

 to execute processes. In sparsely-settled sec- 

 tions he is often tax collector and overseer of 

 roads. There is no uniformity in the duties 

 of a constable, as the laws respecting these may 

 vary in the different states or provinces. In 

 colonial times the office was of high impor- 

 tance. Compensation may be either in salary 

 or in a fee for each service performed. 



CONSTANCE , kon ' stahnts, LAKE, also spelled 

 KOXSTANZ, is a beautiful lake in Central 

 Europe, through which the River Rhine flows. 

 It is situated about 1,300 feet above the sea 



at i ho north base of the Alps, and is bounded 

 by Switzerland, Austria and the German states 

 <>l" Bavaria, Baden and Wiirttemberg. It is 

 about forty miles long and nine miles wide, 

 and is divided into two branches at its north- 

 west extremity. The north branch is called 



itrassburg 



GERMANY 



LAKE 



CONSTANCE 



V SWITZERLAND 

 r 



'Lake Lucer 



nejfa- 



.'ITALY 



LOCATION MAP 



Ueberlinger See, the south, Untersee, or Zeller 

 See. The surrounding country is given over 

 to agriculture, with orchards and gardens, and 

 dotted with interesting castle ruins. A char- 

 acteristic of Lake Constance which cannot be 

 explained is its occasional sudden rise and fall. 

 In 1770 it rose in one hour about twenty-four 

 feet above ordinary level. 



CONSTANTINE, kon' stan tine, CAIUS FLA- 

 vius VALERIUS CONSTANTINUS (274-337), a 

 Roman emperor called THE GREAT. In his 

 reign Christianity was adopted as the religion 

 of the empire, and the capital was removed 

 from Rome to Byzantium ; this latter city was 



ARCH OF CONSTANTINE 



renamed Constantinople, in his honor. He 

 was the son of Emperor Constantine Chlorus, 

 after whose death in 306 he was chosen em- 

 peror of the West. In 325 he became sole 

 head of the Roman Empire.. Indulgent with 

 his subjects, he was a favorite, and his admin- 

 istration was marked by a wise spirit of reform. 



