C O R 
without bottom. Coral banks alfo grow, by a quick 
progreflion, towards the furface ; but the winds, heaping 
up the coral from, deeper water, chiefly accelerate tire 
formation of thefe into ihoals and illands. They become 
gradually fhallower ; and, when once the fea meets with 
refillance, the coral is quickly thrown up by the force 
of the waves breaking again ft the bank ; and hence it is, 
that, in the open lea, there is fcarcely an inliance of a 
coral bank having fo little water that a large fliip cannot 
pals over, but it is alfo fo (hallow that'.a boat would 
ground on it. I have feen thefe coral banks in all tire 
llages j fome in deep water, others with few rocks ap¬ 
pearing above the furface ; fome juft formed into illands, 
without the lead appearance of vegetation; and others 
from fuch as have a few weeds on the higheft part-, to 
thofe which are covered with large timber, with a bot- 
tomlefs fea at only a pillol-lhot diftance. The loofe co¬ 
ral, rolled inward by the billows in large pieces, wall 
ground ; and the reflux being unable to carry them away, 
they become a bar to coagulate the land, always found 
intermixed with coral; which fand, being eafielt raifed, 
will be lodged at top. When the fand-b'ank is raifed by 
violent ftorms beyond the reach of common waves, it be¬ 
comes a refting-place to vagrant birds, whom the fearch 
of prey draws thither. The dung, feathers, &c. increale 
the foil, and prepare it for the reception of accidental 
roots, branches, and feed, call up by the waves, or 
brought thither by the birds. Thus illands are formed : 
the leaves and rotten branches intermixing with the fand, 
form in time a light black mould, of which in general 
thefe illands conlilt, more fandy as lefs woody ; and, when 
full of large trees, with a greater proportion of mould. 
Cocoa-nuts, continuing long in the fea without lofing 
their vegetative powers, are commonly to be found in 
fuch illands ; particularly as they are adapted to all foils, 
whether fandy, rich, or rocky.” 
The obfervations lately made on this fubjecl by Mr. 
Macdonald, were given to the world by the late fir 
William Jones, in the fourth volume of the Afiatic Re- 
fearches, and are as follow: “ In the year 1784, (fays 
Mr. Macdonald,) I was directed to furvey the coaft of 
the Dutch diltriCts on the weft fide of Sumatra. During 
the courfe of this furvey, I had occafion to lay down on 
my charts, feveral fhoals, confiding of branched coral, 
fand, and fuch heterogeneous matter, as they will refill 
and incorporate with themfelves, when impelled againft 
them by the aCtion of the feas, winds, tide, or currents. 
The furfaces of thefe fhoals -were at various depths, from 
one foot to three or more fathoms. They are of a coni¬ 
cal form, the bafe, in proportion to the axis, being fmall. 
The fhape gives them,"in general, the appearance of trees 
of that figure, fuch as the poplar, &c. One of the fhoals 
I vifited, to the fouth-wefl of Pooloo Pinang, near Pa- 
dang, was at that time covered by two feet and a half of 
water, and could not be diftinguifhed by veffels palling 
at fome diftance, except at fuch times as the winds pro¬ 
duced a fvvell or agitation on it. I paffed along this part 
of the coall in February, 1789, very dole to this Ihoal, 
juft four years and feven months after the period at which 
the furvey had been taken; and was not a little aftonifhed 
fo obferve a fmall fandy illand, about ten yards in dia¬ 
meter, having a few bufhes growing on it, formed on the 
top.of the fhoal, which lies nearly in thirty-feven fathoms 
of water. I could not miftake this fhoal, as there was 
no other contiguous to it, and as my chart, by which I 
fuggefted the fafeft courfe to run in, then lay before me. 
In May and September, 1789, I had an opportunity, in 
going to and returning from Tappanooly-harbour, to be 
again on feveral of the fhoals included in my'chart of the 
coafts of the Dutch diltricts, and, according to my ex¬ 
pectations, found the depth of the water on them confi- 
derably diminifhed fince the furvey had been taken. In 
March, 1790, I was fent for by a gentleman, at Fort 
Marlborough, whofe houfe commanded a view of the 
fea, to cbferve the water breaking on two fhoals in the 
Vol. V. No. 264. 
C O R 189 
roads. This gentleman had refided on the coaft near fif¬ 
teen years, without having obferved thefe fhoals, which, 
had they appeared at any •former period, mull have been 
remarked, their fituation being clearly and diltinCtly ex- 
pofed to the daily and immediate obfervation of the fe^ 
tlement. At the diftance of feven miles from Fort Marl¬ 
borough, nearly in a fouth-wefl direction, there is a fmall 
illand, having a few cocoa-nut trees on it. Thirty miles 
diflant from this illand, one of the northern pepper fet- 
tlements is lituated.frn a riling ground. The gentleman 
refitting there has informed me, that he has always been 
able to dillinguifh the malls of velfels lying at anchor 
near this illa-nd; and that he lately twice diltinClly, in the 
proper bearing, obferved the trees of the illand: but 
that, afterwards, from hazy weather, or fome other af¬ 
fection of the atmofphere, he could not perceive the 
illand, or rather the trees on it. Former refidents of 
Laye, the place of obfervation, have, in vain, when tiling 
the bell glades, looked for this ifland, invifible till lately. 
, Such are the llubborn fnCts which may be adduced in 
proof, not only of the very rapid growth of coral, but 
alfo, of the formation of illands from it, as a necelfary, 
and obferved, confequence. The growth of coral alone 
may not produce this effect ; other aiding circumftances 
may intervene. Boccone and Marfigli have remarked, 
that, when coral meets with Hones, coarfe land, or any 
other lubftances, it feizes them firmly, and lpeedily in¬ 
cludes them within a ftrong extenfion of its clofe ramifi¬ 
cations. Thefe collections in feas, fubjeCl to frequent 
florins and agitations, mutt be con'fiderable, and promote, 
in no fmall degree, the rapid elevation of illands. In 
tills formation of illands from coral and fand, as foon as 
the fand appears above the furface_ of the water, birds 
carry roots and various feeds attached to them, for the 
conftruclion of nefts ; hence the fpeedy appearance of 
bullies and trees. Inltead of fuppoling with fome, that 
the numerous illands on this coall have been formed by 
the violent commotions of nature occafioned by earth¬ 
quakes, which feparated tliem from the continent, it is 
more reafonable to fuppofe their formation on the above 
principles, and chiefly by coral: more efpecially, when 
we conlider that the depth of water between many of 
thefe illands and Sumatra, is unfathomable. The nu¬ 
merous cinders of illands in the eaftern feas, from thirty- 
fix to fixteen degrees of eaft longitude, are all fupported 
by bafes of coral, and furrounded by Ihoals emerging 
from the furface, or pufhing their conical frullra into a 
new element. Experience lias afeertained the formation 
of illands from coral; and it is not altogether conjecture 
to fuppofe, that various groups of illands, in the great 
eaftern archipelago, will, in procefs of time, from this 
caufe, become continents, or in'fular trails or fpaces of 
land.” 
CO'RAL-STONE, f. A kind of red and white agate, 
found in Italy and fome parts of Saxony. 
CO'RAL-TREE, f. in botany. See Erythrina. 
CQ'RAL-WORT, f. in botany. See Dentaria. 
CORALLA'RIA,y; in botany. See Adenanthera. 
CORALLI'NA, the Coralline,/, in natural hiftory, 
a genus of the order of zoophyta, and the fmalleft of the 
coral tribe ; the characters of which are, An animal grow¬ 
ing in the form of a plant: ftem fixed, with calcareous 
fubdivided branches, moltly jointed. There are thirty- 
eight fpecies now known, which were till of late years 
fuppofed to be plants, endued only with vegetable life. 
Their Items are compofed of capillary tubes, whole ex¬ 
tremities pals through the calcareous cruft, and open 
into pores on the furface. The branches are always fub- 
clivided into (mailer branches, which are either loofe and 
unconnected, or joined as if they were glued together. 
They are diftinguilhed from plants by their texture and 
hardnefs; they alio yield in diftillation a conftderable- 
quantity of volatile fait; and their fmell, in burning, re- 
fembles that of burnt horns and other animal fubltances. 
Many of the corallines feem to confift of a fingle tube, 
3 C containing 
