COL 
The varieties moft commonly propagated by the florifts 
are the following: The meadow-faffron with white flow¬ 
ers ; meadow-faffron with ftriped flowers; broad-leaved 
meadow-fafi'ron; ftriped-leaved meadow-faffron; many- 
flowered meadow-faffron; mef.dow-faffron with double 
purplifh flowers; meadow-fafi'ron with double white flow¬ 
ers ; and meadow-faffron with many white flowers: no 
cattle eat it. In a pafture where there were feveral horfes, 
and which was eaten down pretty bare, the grafs was 
clofely cropped even under the leaves, but not a leaf of 
the meadow-faffron was bitten. This is one of thofe 
plants which, upon the concurrent teftimony of ages, has 
been condemned as poifonous; but Di>. Storck of Vienna 
has taught us that it is an uf'e.ful medicine. The roots 
have much acrimony. An infufion of them in vinegar, 
formed into a fyrup, by the addition of fugar or honey, 
is found to be a very ufeful pectoral and diuretic. It 
feems, in its virtues, very much to refemble fquill; but 
it is lefs naufeous and acrimonious, though more feda- 
tive. Allioni relates, that he has experienced the fquill to 
be more fafe and efficacious than the meadow-faffron. 
2. Colchicum montanum: leaves linear, fpreading very 
much. This has a fmaller root, with a darker coat; the 
leaves come up foon after the flowers decay, and continue 
green all the winter, like the faffron ; they are long, nar¬ 
row, and fpread on the ground; they decay in June ; the 
flowers are of a reddifh purple colour, and appear in Au- 
guft and September. The whole plant is little more than 
a finger’s height; native of Spain and Portugal, Italy, 
the fouth of France, and Swiflerland; cultivated here in 
1629. 
3. Colchicum variegatum, or variegated meadow-faf¬ 
fron : leaves waved, fpreading. Leaves fmaller than thofe 
of the common fort, for the moft part three in number, 
and of a paler and frefher green colour, lying clofe upon 
the ground, broad at the bottom, a little pointed at the 
end, waved about the edges; root not fo large as that of 
the common fort; flowers fmaller, but very beautiful, 
whitifh, with deep blue or purple l'pots. It flowers late, 
frequently not till October or November, and is fome- 
what tender. Native of the Greek iflands; cultivated in 
1629 by Parkinfon, Tuggie, &c. alfo among queen Hen¬ 
rietta Maria’s flowers at Edgecombe in'Surry, in the gar¬ 
den of fir John Tunftall, gentleman ufher to her majefty. 
Propagation and Culture. Thefe are all very pretty plants 
for a garden, producing their flowers in autumn, when 
few other plants are in beauty. The leaves begin to- de¬ 
cay in May ; foon after which time, is the proper feafon 
to tranfplant their roots; for, if they are Buffered to re¬ 
main in the ground till Auguft, they will fend forth frefli 
fibres, and after that it will be too late to remove them. 
The roots may be kept above ground until the beginning 
of Auguft; at which time, if they are not planted, they 
will produce their flowers as they lie out of the ground ; 
but this will greatly weaken their roots. For the manner 
of planting their roots, lee Tulipa 5 and, for flowing the 
feeds, fee Xiphium. Thofe who are delirous of obtain¬ 
ing varieties in the flowers, muft propagate them from 
feeds. See Bulbocodium. 
COL'CHIS, or Colcmos, a country of Afla, at thefouth 
of Afiatic Sarmatia, eaft of the Euxine fea, north of Ar¬ 
menia, and weft of Iberia, now called Mingrelia. It is 
famous for the expedition of the Argonauts, and the 
birth-place of Medea. It was fruitful in poifonous herbs, 
and produced excellent flax. The inhabitants were ori¬ 
ginally Egyptians, who fettled there when Sefoftris king 
of Egypt extended his conquefts in the north. 
COL'COTHAR,/ The browared calx of iron, which 
remains after the diftillation of the acid from martial vi¬ 
triol : it is ufed for polilhing glafs and other fubftances 
by artifts, who call it crocus, or crocus martis. The term 
given it by modern chemifts is, red oxyd of iron by the 
fiulphuric acid. 
COLD, ad), [colb, Sax. halt , German.] Not hot; not 
warm; gelid; wanting warmth; being without heat.— 
Vol, IV. No. 236. 
COL 765 
The diet In the ftate of manhood ought to be folid ; and 
their chief drink water cold, becaufe in luch a ftate it has 
its own natural fpirit. Arbuihnot. 
The aggregated foil 
Death, with his mace pefrific, cold, and dry, 
As with a trident, fmote. Milton. 
Caufing fenfe of cold : 
Some better (hroud, fome better warmth, to cherilh 
Our limbs benumb’d, ere this diurnal ftar 
Leave cold the night, how we his gather’d beams 
Reflected may with matter fere foment. Milton . 
Chill; fliivering; having fenfe of cold : 
O noble Englilh, that could entertain, 
With half their forces, the full power of France p 
And let another half ftand laughing by, 
All out of work, and cold for attion. Shakefpeare . 
Having cold qualities; not volatile; not acrid. — Cold 
plants have a quicker perception of the heat of the fun 
than the hot herbs; as a cold hand will fooner find a lit¬ 
tle warmth than an hot. Bacon.- —Indifferent; frigid ; 
wanting paflion ; wanting zeal; without concern ; unac¬ 
tive; unconcerned; wanting ardour.—To fee a world in 
flames, and an holt of angels in the clouds, one muft be 
much of a Itoic to be a cold and unconcerned fpeCtator. 
Burnet. 
O, thou haft touch’d me with thy facred theme, 
And my cold heart is kindled at thy flame. Rowe. 
Unaffe&ing ; unable to move the paflions.—What a deal 
of cold bulinefs doth a man mifpend the better part of life 
in ? In fcattering compliments, tendering vHits, follow¬ 
ing fealls and plays. Ben Jonfon. —Referved ; coy ; not af¬ 
fectionate; not cordial; not friendly. The commiflioners 
grew more referved, and colder towards each other. Cla. 
rendon. —Chafte ; not heated by vitious appetite: 
Convey your pleafures in a fpacious plenty, 
And yet leem cold. Shakespeare. 
Not welcome; not received with kindnefs or warmth of 
affeftion : 
My matter's fuit will be but cold, 
Since fhe refpe£ts my miftrefs’ love. Shakefpeare. 
Not hafty; not violent. Not affecting the feent ftrongly; 
She made it good 
At the hedge corner, in the coldejl fault. Shakefpeare. 
Not having the fenfe ftrongly affefted : 
Smell this bufmefs with a fenfe as cold 
As is a dead man’s nofe, Shakefpeare. 
COLD,/. The caufe of the fenfation of cold ; the pri¬ 
vation of heat ; the frigorific power. — Heat and cold are 
nature’s two hands, whereby fhe chiefly worketh : and 
heat we have in readinefs, in refpeCt of the fire : but for 
cold, we muft ftay till it cometh, or feek it in deep caves, 
or high mountains: and, when all is done, we cannot 
obtain it in any great degree. Bacon. 
The fun 
Had firft his precept fo to move, fo fliine 
As might affeft the earth with cold and heat 
Scarce tolerable, and from the north to call 
Decrepit winter, from the fouth to bring 
Solftitial l'ummers heat. Milton, 
The fenfation of cold; coldnefs; chillnefs : 
When fhe faw her lord prepar’d to part, 
A deadly cold ran fhiv’ring to her heart. Drydeie. 
A difeafe caufed by cold ; the obftruCUon of perfpiration. 
What difeafe haft thou ?- 
A whorefon cold, fir; a cough. Shakefpeare. 
9 I The 
