CUTWORM 



1678 



CYCADS 



the eyes. The arms are used to catch shellfish 

 food, or to attach the animal tp various ob- 

 jects. In the broad head are two large eyes. 

 A frilled fin edges the oval body. By drawing 

 in or forcing out jets of water from a funnel, 

 cuttlefish are enabled to move backward or 

 forward. 



CUT 'WORM, a greasy, dull-brown or gray 

 caterpillar pest of gardens, fields and orchards, 

 the larva (young) of a yellowish or pearl-gray 

 night moth. This destructive worm hides in 

 the ground by day and at night comes forth to 



CUTWORM 



(a, b) Moth and larva of one common species; 

 (c) larva of another species. About actual size. 



feed. It cuts off young plants at the level of 

 the ground, destroying more than it eats. Lit- 

 tle armies of cutworms have been known to 

 destroy entire fields of young wheat, Indian 

 corn or garden vegetables over night. They 

 also attack tobacco, cotton and leaves and 

 buds of fruit trees. Treatment with poison 

 sprays is effective in destroying these pests. 

 An excellent preventive consists in sprinkling 

 the ground with poisoned branmash before the 

 plants come above the ground, for cutworms 

 will eat a mixture of Paris green, bran, and 

 sugar-sweetened water in preference to vegeta- 

 tion. 



CUVIER, kuvya' , GEORGES LEOPOLD CHRETIEN 

 FREDERIC DAGOBERT, Baron (1769-1832), one of 

 the greatest naturalists the world has produced, 

 was born at Montbeliard, France. After fin- 

 ishing his education at Stuttgart he accepted 

 a situation as tutor in Normandy. Several 

 theses on zoological topics established his rep- 

 utation and procured him admission to the 

 learned societies of Paris. In 1802 he suc- 



ceeded to the chair of comparative anatomy at 

 the Jardin des Plantes (botanical and zoolog- 

 ical garden), and devoted himself to the 

 studies which have perpetuated his name. His 

 great book on the animal kingdom (Le Regne 

 Animal) was for a long time the highest au- 

 thority on zoology ; this and many other works 

 raised him to the pinnacle of scientific fame. 

 Cuvier filled many offices of importance, par- 

 ticularly those connected with educational 

 institutions. Napoleon treated him with much 

 consideration, and Louis Philippe raised him 

 to the rank of a peer of the realm. He died 

 suddenly of paralysis in Paris. 



CUZCO, koos ' ko, a city far inland in South 

 Central Peru, the capital of a department, or 

 state, of the same name, situated in the cen- 

 ter of a fertile agricultural district in the 

 Andes. It is 11,300 feet above sea level, and 

 although only 12 south of the equator, has 

 a mild and inviting climate. Important man- 

 ufacturers of woolen and cotton goods, sugar, 

 embroidery and leather are carried on and 

 there is extensive island commerce. Cuzco is 

 one of South America's oldest cities, founded in 

 the eleventh century, and at one time was the 

 capital of the empire of the Incas (see INCA). 

 The ancient city was stormed and destroyed by 

 Pizarro in 1535, but remains of its former 

 glory are seen in the palace of the Incas and 

 a mighty Temple of the Sun, the object of 

 their worship. The modern city is well built 

 and contains many handsome buildings. Pop- 

 ulation, about 30,000. 



CYANOGEN, sian'ojen, a colorless gas 

 formed by the union of carbon and nitrogen. 

 It has the odor of peach pits and burns with 

 a purplish flame. It is valuable only for its 

 compounds. A compound of cyanogen with a 

 metallic element is called a cyanide. When a 

 cyanide is heated with sulphuric acid the 

 deadly poison prussic acid is formed. Potas- 

 sium cyanide, the most important compound, is 

 used in large quantities in the "cyanide proc- 

 ess" of extracting gold from its ores. See GOLD. 



CYCADS, si'kadz, a family of large tropical 

 and sub-tropical naked-seeded plants (gymno- 

 sperms) of palm- or fern-like appearance and 

 habits. As they bear cones, however, they are 

 more nearly related to pines than to the palms. 

 Fossil remains show that such plants, with 

 their columnlike stems topped with rosettes 

 of feathery, fernlike leaves and huge cones, 

 were once very abundant everywhere, but they 

 are found only in small areas at present. One 

 species, however, is still almost as thick as 



