cos 
C O T 
44 a 
cos 
plaited leaves, the lobes of which are very 
long, add are placed regularly round the end 
of a long spiny footstalk, in a manner repre- 
senting a large umbrella. The flowers are 
produced on a branched spadix, from a com- 
pound spatha or sheath; they are hermaphro- 
dite*, and each consists of one petal, divided 
into three oval parts, and contains six awl- 
shaped stamina, surrounding a short slender 
style, crowned with a simple stigma. The 
germen is nearly round, and becomes a large 
globular fruit of one cell, including a large 
round stone. These plums having a plea- 
sant flavour are held in esteem by the In- 
dians. 
CORY n-LENA, in ichthyology, a genus 
belonging to the order of thoracici. The head 
is declined and truncated ; the branchiostege 
membrane has six rays ; and the back-lin 
runs the whole length of the back. There 
are twelve species, most of them natives of 
foreign seas. The most remarkable are the 
blue .and parrot fishes, described by Mr. 
Catesby. The head of the first is of an odd 
structure, resembling that of the spermaceti 
whale : the mouth is small, each mandible 
armed with a single row of even teeth, so 
closely joined that they seem entire bones; 
the iris of the eye is red. On the back is a 
long pliant fin, somewhat indented on the 
edge; behind the gills are two fins, one under 
the abdomen and 'another behind the anus. 
The tail is forked; and the whole fish entirely 
blue. They are taken on the coasts of the 
Bahama islands, and in most of the seas be- 
tween the tropics. The parrot-fish has a large 
mouth, paved as it were with blunt teeth, 
closely connected after the manner of the 
lupus marinas. The body is covered with 
large green scales ; the eyes are red and yel- 
low ; the upper part of the head brown, the 
lower part and the giiis blue, bordered with a 
dusky red; a streak of red extends from the 
throat behind the gills, at the upper end of 
which is* a bright-yellow spot. The fins are 
five in number : one extending almost the 
length of the back, of a bay or cinnamon co- 
lour ; there are two behind the gills, blended 
with black, green, and purplish colours, with 
the upper edge verged with blue; under the 
abdomen is another red fin verged with blue ; 
under the anus extends another long narrow 
green fin, with a list of red through the mid- 
dle of it. At the basis of the tail on each side 
is a large yellow spot. The tail is large, 
forked, and green, with a curved red line run- 
ning through the middle parallel to the curve, 
and ending in two points. This fish is more 
esteemed for beauty than the delicacy of its 
taste. They are taken on the coasts of His- 
S janiola, Cuba, and the Bahama islands. See 
jlate Nat. Hist. figs. 145, 146. 
COS, the whetstone, in natural history, 
a genus of vitrescent stones, consisting of 
fragments of an indeterminate figure, sub- 
opake and granulated. Of this genus there 
are several species, some consisting of rougher 
and others of smoother, or even of altogether 
Impalpable, particles; and used not only for 
whetstones, but also for mill-stones and other 
similar purposes. 
Cos turcica, turkey-stone, a species of 
stones of the garnet kind, belonging to the 
siliceous class. It is of a dull white, and often 
of an unequal colour; some partsappearing 
more compact than others, its specific gra- 
vity is 2598 : it strikes lire with steel, and ef- 
fervesces with acids. Mr. Kirwan found that 
100 parts of it contain 25 of mild calcareous 
earth (carbonate of lime), and no iron. Cron- 
stedt is of opinion that there are probably two 
sorts of stones known by this name, as that 
described by Wallerius neither gives fire with 
steel nor effervesces with acids. It is used 
as a whetstone ; and those of the finest grain 
are the best hones tor the most delicate cut- 
ting tools, and even tor razors, lancets, &c. 
CO-SECANT, in geometry, the secant of 
an arch which is the complement of another 
to 90°. See Trigonometry. 
COSHERING, a seigncral prerogative, 
whereby the lord and his followers lay and 
feasted themselves at his tenant’s house. 
COS1NAGK, a writ that lies where the 
tresayle or great-grandfather is seized in his 
demesne, as of fee at the day of his death, 
of certain lands or tenements, and dies, and 
then a stranger enters, and abates ; for then 
shall his heir have this writ of cosinage. 
CO-SINE, in trigonometry, the sine of an 
arch, which is the complement of another to 
90°. Sec Trigonometry. 
COSMOGRAPHY, a description of the 
several parts of the visible world; or the art 
of delineating the several bodies according to 
their magnitudes, motions, relations, &c. It 
consists of two parts, astronomy and geo- 
graphy. 
COSTIVENESS, ohstructio alvi, in me- 
dicine. a preternatural detention of the fasces, 
with an unusual dryness and hardness of them, 
and thence a suppression of their evacuation. 
See Medicine. 
COSTS, inlaw. By the statute of Glou- 
cester, 6 Ed. I. c. 1. it is provided that the 
demandant may recover against the tenant, 
the costs of his writ, together v ith his damage ; 
and that this act shall hold place in all cases, 
when the party is to recover damages. 1 N ew . 
Abr. 511. Costs of the writ extend to all 
legal costs of suit, but not expences of travel, 
loss of time, &c. 2 Inst. 988. When double 
damages are given by act of parliament, the 
costs shall be doubled also ; for damages in- 
clude costs. Str. 1048. Persons suing in 
forma pauperis, shall not pay costs. 3 Black. 
400. 
If it is an action, wherein there can be no 
such certifying, as debt, assumpsit, trover, 
trespass for taking goods, trespass for spoil- 
ing goods, trespass for beating a servant 
whereby he lost his service, it is out of . the 
statute, and the plaintiff may have full costs. 
Salk. 208. Where costs are allowed, it is not 
necessary for the jury to give them, but they 
may leave it to the court to do it, w ho are the 
best able to judge of what costs are tilting to 
be given. It is the course of the court of 
king’s-bench, to refer the taxation of costs to 
the proper officer of the court, and not to 
make any special rules for such matters, ex- 
cept it be in extraordinary cases. 1 Lit. 
Abr. 338. 
The matter of costs in equity, is not held 
a point of right, but merely discretionary, ac- 
cording to the circumstances of the case, as 
they appear more or less favourable to the 
party vanquished. 3 Black. 451. If costs 
be refused to be paid, an attachment lies. 
1 Nels. Abr. 550. The king and any person 
suing to his use, shall neither pay nor receive 
costs. Stat. 24 II. VIII. c. 8. 
The 18 Geo. 111. c. 19. authorizes any jus- 
tice, who shall have heard and determined 
3 K 2 
the matter of a complaint made before him 
to award such costs to be paid by either party 
and in such manner as to him shall seem 
meet, to the party injured: and if the person 
so ordered by the justice, shall not forthwith 
pay, or give satisfaction to the justice, the 
same shall be lev ied by distress : and it goods 
and chattels of such person cannot be found, 
the justice shall commit him to the house of 
correction for the place where such person 
shall re-side ; to be kept to hard labour for any 
time not exceeding one month, nor less than 
ten days; or till such sum, with the expences 
attending the commitment, be lirst paid. 
Provided, that upon the conviction of any 
person upon a penal statute, where the pe- 
nalty shall be at or exceed the sum of 5/. the 
said costs shall be deducted by the justice, at 
his discretion, out of the penalty, so that such 
deduction shall not exceed one-fifth part of 
tiie penalty ; and the remainder of the pe- 
nalty shall be divided among the persons 
who would have been entitled to the whole 
thereof, if this act had not been made. Costs 
double or treble are allowed to defendants 
sued for acting under almost every statute re- 
lating to officers of justice, customs or other 
duties, highways, paving, &c. For more 
matter concerning costs, see Bac. Abr. & 6 
Vin. Abr. tit. Costs. 
COSTUME, a term among painters: 
thus, a painter must observe the costume ; 
that is, he'must make every person and thing 
sustain its proper character; and not only 
observe the story, but the circumstances, the 
scene of action, the country or place, and 
make the habits, arms, manners, propor- 
tions, and the like, to correspond. 
COSTUS, in botany, a genus of the mo- 
nandria-monogynia class of plants, the flower 
of which consists of three lanceolated, con- 
cave, equal petals, placed pretty erect; the 
fruit is a roundish, coronated, trivalvular cap- 
sule, with three cells, containing several tri- 
angular seeds. There are three species. The 
root of this plant, or the costus Arabians in 
pharmacy, is an attenuant, a diuretic, and a 
sudorific: it is given in obstructions of the 
menses, and in chronic cases, in which there 
are infractions of the viscera : its dose is from 
ten grains to half a dram, but we seldom hear 
of its being given singly. It is used in the Ve- 
nice treacle, initnridate, and caryocostine 
electuary. Costus must be chosen recent, 
dense, odorous, bitterish, and not carious. 
It pays on importation a duty of 3 
87, 
100 
d. per 
pound, and there is a drawback on exportation 
of 3JiSLd. 
lOO, 
CO-TANGENT, the tangent of an arch, 
which is the complement of another to 90°. 
See Tkigonometrv. 
COT LSI AN theorem, in geometry, an 
appellation used for an elegant property of 
the circle discovered by Mr. Cotes, The 
theorem is this : 
If the factors of the binomial a -f- x be re- 
C/0 
quired, the index c being an integer number. 
With the centre O, (Plate Misceh fig. 21,) and 
radius AO = a, describe a circle, and divide its 
circumference into as many equal parts as there 
are units in 2c, at the points A, JB, C, D, &c. ; 
then in the radius, produced if necessary, takq 
OP — y; and from the point P, to all the points 
of division in the circumference, draw the lines 
PA, PB, PC, &c. ; so shall these lines taken al- 
ternately be the factors sought ; viz. 
