COL 
COLORFFIC, adj. f cclorificus ■, Lat.] That which has 
the power of producing dyes, tints, colours, or hues.-— 
In this compofition of w bite, the feveral rays do not buffer 
any change in their colorific qualities by acting upon one 
another; but are only mixed, and by a mixture of their 
colours produce white. Newto?i. 
COLOR'NO, a town ot Italy, in the Parmefan : feven 
miles north of Parma. 
CO'LOS, a town of Tranfilvania: four miles north of 
Colofvar. 
COLOS'SE, or Colossls, anciently a large town of 
Phrygia, near Laodicea, of which the government was 
democratical, and the firff ruler called archon. 
COLOS'SE, or Colossus, /. [colojfus, Lat.] A ftatue 
of enormous magnitude; figuratively, any perfon of an 
overgrown or gigantic fize: 
There huge colojfus rofe, with trophies crown’d. 
And runic characters were grav’d around. Pope. 
A celebrated brazen image at Rhodes, which paffed for 
one of the feven wonders of the world. Its feet were upon 
the two moles, which formed the entrance of the harbour, 
and Ihips paffed full fail between its legs. It was feventy 
cubits, or 105 feet, high, and every thing in equal pro¬ 
portion, and few could clafp round its thumb. It was 
the work of Chares, the difciple of Lylippus, and the artift 
■was twelve years in making it. It was begun 300 years 
before Chrift; and after it had remained unhurt during 
fifty-fix or eighty-eight years, it was partly demolilhed 
by an earthquake, 224 years before Chrilt. A winding 
ftaircafe ran to the top, from which you could eafily dif- 
cern the (hores of Syria, and the fhips that failed on the 
coalt of Egypt, by the help of glaffes, which were hung 
on the neck of the ftatue. It remained in ruins for the 
fpace of 894 years; and the Rhodians, who had received 
feveral large contributions to repair it, divided the money 
among themfelves, and frustrated the expectations of the 
donors, by faying that the oracle of Delphi forbade them 
to raife it up again from its ruins. In the year 672 of 
the Chriftian era, it was fold by the Saracens, who were 
mailers of the ifland, to a Jewilh merchant, who loaded 
900 camels with the brafs, wtiole value has been eftimated 
at 36,000k Englilh money. 
COLOSSE'AN, adj. [ cokffeus, Lat.] ’ In form of a co- 
loffus; of the height and bignels of Inch a ftatue ; giant¬ 
like. 
COLOSTRUM, /. The firft milk of any animal after 
bringing forth its young ; that from cows is called beef- 
ings^It is remarkable that this milk is generally cathartic, 
and purges off the meconium; thus lerving both as an 
aliment and medicine. An emullion prepared with tur¬ 
pentine diffolved with the yolk of an egg, is fometimes 
called by this name. 
COLOSVAV, or Clausenburg, a town ofTranfil- 
vania, on the river Samos, where the dates of the pro¬ 
vince generally affcnible. It had an univerfity, which was 
fuppreffed in 178a: 255 miles ealt-fouth-eaft of Vienna, 
and 145 north-north-eaft of Belgrade. Lat. 46. 57. N. Ion. 
40. 7. E. Ferro. 
COLOUR, f [color, Lat. from cola, to adorn.] The 
appearance of bodies tothe eye only ; hue ; dye.—It is a 
property inherent in light, by which, according to the va¬ 
rious (izes of its parts, or from fome other caufe, it excites 
different vibrationsin the optic nerve ; which, propagated 
to the fenforium, r.ffeCt the mind with different fenfations. 
Hutton. —it is a vulgar idea of the colours of folid bodies, 
when we perceive them to be a red, or blue,orgreen, tinc¬ 
ture of the furface ; but a philofophical idea, when we 
conlider the various colours to be different fenfations, ex¬ 
cited in us by the refradted rays of light reflected on our 
eyes in a different manner, according to the different fize, 
or fhape, or fituation of the particles of which furfaces 
are compoled. Watts. —.The lights of colours are more re¬ 
frangible one than another in this order; red, orange, 
yellow, green, blue, indigo, deep violet, Newton, 
Voi,,lV. No, 238, 
COL 7H9 
For though our eyes can nought but colours Tee, 
Yet colours give them not the pow’r of fight. Dawes, 
The frefhnefs or appearance of blood in the face: 
A fudden horror leiz’d his giddy head, 
And his ears trickled, and his ro/sarfled. Dry den. 
The tint of the painter: 
The treach’rous colours the fair art betray, 
And all the bright creation fades away. Pope. 
The reprefen tation of anything fuperficinlly examined.—. 
Their wildom is only of this world, to put raife colours 
upon things, to call good evil, and evil good, againlt the 
conviction of their own confciences. Swift. —Conceal¬ 
ment; palliation; excufe ; fuperficial colour.—Their fin 
admitted no colour or excufe. King Charles. —Appearance 5 
pretence ; falfe fhew : 
Under the colour of commending him, 
I have accels my own love to prefer. Sbakefpeare. 
Kind ; fpecies ; character.—Boys and women are, for the- 
molt part, cattle of this colour. Shahejpeare. —In the plural, 
a ftandnrd ; an enfign of war : they fay the colours of the 
foot, and Jlandard of the horfe.—The banks were filled 
with companies, paffing all along the river under their 
colours, w'ith trumpets founding. Knolles. —Colours is ufed 
iingularly by Addifon.—> An author compares a ragged coin 
to a tattered colour. Addifon. 
The doCtrine of colours has long been a fpecies of refearch 
but little known to the artift, whether engaged in the fub- 
lime fcience of painting, or in the more diffufe precedes of 
the uleful art of dying. A line of reparation has for ages 
pa ft been drawn between the philofopher and the artift, 
pregnant with evils too generally annexed to eftablifhed 
orders in fociety. The former, fecluded from the great 
fchool of the world, abufed his talents in decking out the 
phantoms of a prolific imagination ; while the latter, di¬ 
rected by no claffic views, but urged by the inceffant calls 
of intereft, was imperceptibly led, as accident luggefted, 
to the difcovery of many valuable faCls ; obfcured, how¬ 
ever, and incumbered by a copious mixture of error and 
abfurdity. I t is, however, the peculiar boalt of the prefent 
age, that philosophy has emerged from the fhades of re¬ 
tirement, to mingle in the aCtive lcenes of life. The 
torch of fcience is extended to illumine every fubjeCt: 
which can exercile the ingenuity or the induftry of man. 
Thole myfteries, which craft or ignorance heretofore em¬ 
ployed to veil their operations, have gradually vanilhed, 
or have funken into- contempt ; and a liberal curioiity, 
awakened and inflamed, advances its enquires in all di¬ 
rections. The mafs of knowledge accumulated among 
artifts during the lapfe of ages, and the new facts 
which are continually developed by varying their pro¬ 
cedures, afford abundant materials with which we may 
build and improve rational theories. The philofopher 
now inftruCts the operator to diftinguilh what is eftential 
to the fuccefs of his manipulations from what is extrane¬ 
ous or hurtful; and each particular art, reduced to ele¬ 
gance and fyliem, is rendered eafy of acquiiition. Nor 
are there wanting fignal mitances of difcoveries, the molt 
important in their application to praCtice, which have 
originated in the minds of fpeculative men. This alli¬ 
ance, fo happily formed between fpeculation and aClion, 
between the fciences and the arts, has therefore proved 
reciprocally beneficial. Its influence has already, in a 
very perceptible degree, fweetened the various conditions 
of life; and perhaps it is finally deitined to change the 
fortunes of the human race. Modern chemiftry has en¬ 
lightened the dodlrine of colours, as well for afcertain- 
ing the molt valuable pigments, as for augmenting the 
beauty and durability of tints, in the delicate art of 
dying. In England, lome valuable effays relating to this 
fubjeCt were given, about forty years ago, by the ingeni¬ 
ous Dr. Lewis; but his labours have been latelv fuper- 
ceded by a number of ingenious men in France, who. 
9 P have.- 
