Chapter 8

Bibliography.—La Gerarchia cattolica, an annual directory published at Rome; Lunadoro,Relazione della corte di Roma(Rome, 1765); Moroni,Dizionario di erudizione, under the various headings; Card. De Luca,Relatio curiae romanae(Cologne, 1683); Bouix,De curia romana(Paris, 1859); Ferraris,Prompta bibliotheca(addit.Cassinenses), s.v.Congregatio; Grimaldi,Les Congrégations romaines(Sienna, 1891);Dictionnaire de théologie catholique, s.v.Cour romaine(Paris, 1907); Publications of the acts of the Roman Congregations: Bishops and regulars—Bizzarri,Collectanea in usum Secretariae(Rome, 1866, 1885). Council: theThesaurus resolutionumhas published all business since 1700; a volume is issued every year, and the contents have been published in alphabetical order by Zamboni (4 vols., Rome, 1812; Arras, 1860) and by Pallottini (18 vols., Rome, 1868, &c.). Immunity: Ricci,Synopsis, decreta et resolutiones(Palestrina, 1708). Propaganda: De Martinis,Juris pontificii de Propaganda Fide, &c. (Rome, 1888, &c.);Collectanea S. C. de Prop. Fide(2nd ed., Rome, 1907). Index:Index librorum prohibitorum(Rome, 1900). Rites:Decreta authentica(Rome, 1898). Indulgences:Decreta authentica(Regensburg, 1882);Rescripta authentica(ib., 1885).

(A. Bo.*)

CURICÓ,a province of central Chile, lying between the provinces of Colchagua and Talca and extending from the Pacific to the Argentine frontier; area, 2978 sq. m.; pop. (1895) 103,242. The eastern and western sections are mountainous, and are separated by the fertile valley of central Chile. The mineral resources are undeveloped, but are said to include copper, gold and silver. Cattle, wheat and wine are the principal products, but Indian corn and fruit also are produced. On the coast are important salt-producing industries. The climate is mild and the rainfall more abundant than at the northern part of the valley, and the effects of this are to be seen in the betterpasturage. Irrigation is used to a large extent. The province was created in 1865 by a division of Colchagua. The capital is Curicó, on the Mataquito river, in lat. 34° 58′ S. long. 71° 19′ W., 114 m. S. of Santiago by the Chilean Central railway, which crosses the province. The city stands on the great central plain, 748 ft. above sea-level, and in the midst of a comparatively well-cultivated district. It was founded in 1742 by José de Manso, and is one of the more cultured and progressive provincial towns of Chile. Pop. (1895) 12,669. Vichiquen, on a tide-water lake on the coast, is a prosperous town, the centre of the salt trade.

CURIE, PIERRE(1859-1906), French physicist, was born in Paris on the 15th of May 1859, and was educated at the Sorbonne, where he subsequently became professor of physics. Although he had previously published meritorious researches on piezoelectricity, the magnetic properties of bodies at different temperatures, and other topics, he was chiefly known for his work on radium carried out jointly with his wife, Marie Sklodowska, who was born at Warsaw on the 7th of November 1867. After the discovery of the radioactive properties of uranium by Henri Becquerel in 1896, it was noticed that some minerals of uranium, such as pitchblende, were more active than the element itself, and this circumstance suggested that such minerals contained small quantities of some unknown substance or substances possessing radioactive properties in a very high degree. Acting on this surmise M. and Mme Curie subjected a large amount of pitchblende to a laborious process of fractionation, with the result that in 1898 they announced the existence in it of two highly radioactive substances, polonium and radium. In subsequent years they did much to elucidate the remarkable properties of these two substances, one of which, polonium, came to be regarded as one of the transformation-products of the other (seeRadioactivity). In 1903 they were awarded the Davy medal of the Royal Society in recognition of this work, and in the same year the Nobel prize for physics was divided between them and Henri Becquerel. Professor Curie, who was elected to the Academy of Sciences in 1905, was run over by a dray and killed instantly in Paris on the 19th of April 1906.

His elder brother,Paul Jacques Curie, born at Paris on the 29th of October 1856, published an elaborate memoir on the specific inductive capacities of crystalline bodies (Ann. Chim. Phys.1889, 17 and 18).

CURIO, GAIUS SCRIBONIUS,Roman statesman and orator, son of a distinguished orator of the same name, flourished during the 1st centuryB.C.He was tribune of the people in 90B.C., and afterwards served in Sulla’s army in Greece against Archelaus, general of Mithradates, and as his legate in Asia, where he was commissioned to restore order in the kingdoms abandoned by Mithradates. In 76 he was consul, and as governor of Macedonia carried on war successfully against the Thracians and Dardanians, and was the first Roman general who penetrated as far as the Danube. On his return he was granted the honour of a triumph. During the discussion as to the punishment of the Catilinarian conspirators he supported Cicero, but he spoke in favour of P. Clodius (q.v.) when the latter was being tried for the Bona Dea affair. This led to a violent attack on the part of Cicero, but it does not appear to have interfered with their friendship. Curio was a vehement opponent of Caesar, against whom he wrote a political pamphlet in the form of a dialogue. He was pontifex maximus in 57, and died in 53. His reputation as an orator was considerable, but according to Cicero he was very illiterate, and his only qualifications were brilliancy of style and the purity of his Latin. He was nicknamed Burbuleius (after an actor) from the way in which he moved his body while speaking.

Orelli,Onomasticonto Cicero; Florus iii. 4; Eutropius vi. 2; Val. Max. ix. 14, 5; Quintilian,Instit., vi. 3, 76; Dio Cassius xxxviii. 16.

His son,Gaius Scribonius Curio, was first a supporter of Pompey, but after his tribuneship (50B.C.) went over to Caesar, by whom he was said to have been bribed. But, while breaking off relations with Pompey, Curio desired to keep up the appearance of impartiality. When it was demanded that Caesar should lay down his imperium before entering Rome, Curio proposed that Pompey should do the same, adding that, if the rivals refused to do so, they ought both to be declared public enemies. His proposal was carried by a large majority, but a report having spread that Caesar was on the way to attack Rome, the consuls called upon Pompey to undertake the command of all the troops stationed in Italy. Curio’s appeal to the people to prevent the levying of an army by Pompey was disregarded; whereupon, feeling himself in danger, he fled to Ravenna to Caesar. He was commissioned by Caesar, who was still unwilling to proceed to extremities, to take a message to the senate. But Curio’s reception was so hostile that he hurriedly returned during the night to Caesar. It was now obvious that civil war would break out. Curio collected troops in Umbria and Etruria for Caesar, who sent him to Sicily as propraetor in 49. After having fought with considerable success there against the Pompeians, Curio crossed over to Africa, where he was defeated and slain by Juba, king of Numidia. Curio, although a man of profligate character, possessed conspicuous ability, and was a distinguished orator. In spite of his faults, Cicero, as an old friend of his father, took a great interest in him and did his utmost to reform him. Seven of Cicero’s letters (Ad. Fam.ii. 1-7) are addressed to him. There can be no doubt that Curio’s behaviour in regard to the laying down of the imperium by Caesar and Pompey in great measure contributed to the outbreak of civil war. The first amphitheatre in Rome was erected by him (50), for the celebration of the funeral games in honour of his father.

Orelli,Onomasticonto Cicero; Livy,Epit.109, 110; Caesar,Bell. Civ., ii. 23, for Curio’s African campaign; Appian,Bell. Civ., ii. 26-44; Vell. Pat. ii. 48.

CURITYBA(alsoCoritybaandCuritiba), capital of the state of Paraná, Brazil, situated on an elevated plateau (2916 ft. above sea-level) 68 m. W. of its seaport Paranaguá, with which it is connected by a railway remarkable for the engineering difficulties overcome and for the beautiful scenery through which it passes. Pop. (1890) 22,694; of the municipality, 24,553. There is a large foreign element in the population, the Germans preponderating. The city has a temperate, healthy climate, and is surrounded by a charmingcampocountry, which, however, is less fertile than the forested river valleys. Maté is the principal export.

CURLEW(Fr.CourlisorCorlieu), a name given to two birds, of whose cry it is an imitation, both belonging to the groupLimicolae, but possessing very different habits and features.

1. The long-billed curlew, or simply curlew of most British writers, theNumenius arquataof ornithologists, is one of the largest of the familyScolopacidae, or snipes and allied forms. It is common on the shores of the United Kingdom and most parts of Europe, seeking the heaths and moors of the interior and more northern countries in the breeding-season, where it lays its four brownish-green eggs, suffused with cinnamon markings, in an artless nest on the ground. In England it has been ascertained to breed in Cornwall and in the counties of Devon, Dorset, Salop, and Derby—though sparingly. In Yorkshire it is more numerous, and thence to the extreme north of Scotland, as well as throughout Ireland, it is, under the name of whaup, familiar to those who have occasion to traverse the wild and desolate tracts that best suit its habits. So soon as the young are able to shift for themselves, both they and their parents resort to the sea-shore or mouths of rivers, from the muddy flats of which they at low tide obtain their living, and, though almost beyond any other birds wary of approach, form an object of pursuit to numerous gunners. While leading this littoral life the food of the curlew seems to consist of almost anything edible that presents itself. It industriously probes the mud or sand in quest of the worms that lurk therein, and is also active in seeking for such crustaceans and molluscs as can be picked up on the surface, while vegetable matter as well has been found in its stomach. During its summer-sojourn on the moorlands insects and berries, when they are ripe, enter largely into its diet. In bulk the curlew is not less than a crow, but it looks larger still from its long legs, wings and neck. Its bill, from 5 to 7 in. in length, and terminating in the delicate nervous apparatuscommon to all birds of its family, is especially its most remarkable feature. Its plumage above is of a drab colour, streaked and mottled with very dark brown; beneath it is white, while the flight-quills are of a brownish black.

Nearly allied to the curlew, but smaller and with a more northern range, is the whimbrel (N. phaeopus), called in some parts jack-curlew, from its small size; May-fowl, from the month in which it usually arrives; and titterel, from one of its cries.1This so much resembles the former in habit and appearance that no further details need be given of it. In the countries bordering on the Mediterranean occurs a third species (N. tenuirostris). Some fifteen other species, or more, have been described, but it is probable that this number is too great. The genusNumeniusis almost cosmopolitan. In North America three very easily recognized species are found—the first (N. longirostris) closely agreeing with the European curlew, but larger and with a longer bill; the second (N. hudsonicus) representing the British whimbrel; and the third (N. borealis), which has several times found its way to Britain, very much less in size—indeed the smallest of the genus. All these essentially agree with the species of the Old World in habit; but it is remarkable that the American birds can be easily distinguished by the rufous colouring of their axillary feathers—a feature which is also presented by the American godwits (Limosa).

2. The curlew of inlanders, or stone-curlew—called also, by some writers, from its stronghold in England, the Norfolk plover, and sometimes the thick-knee—is usually classed among theCharadriidae, but it offers several remarkable differences from the more normal plovers. It is theCharadrius oedicnemusof Linnaeus, theC. scolopaxof Sam. Gottl. Gmelin, and theOedicnemus crepitansof K. J. Temminck. With much the same cry as that of theNumenii, only uttered in a far sweeter tone, it is as fully entitled to the name of curlew as the bird most commonly so called. In England it is almost solely a summer visitor, though an example will occasionally linger throughout a mild winter; and is one of the few birds whose distribution is affected by geological formation, since it is nearly limited to the chalk-country—the open spaces of which it haunts, and its numbers have of late years been sensibly diminished by their inclosure. The most barren spots in these districts, even where but a superficial coating of light sand and a thin growth of turf scarcely hide the chalk below, supply its needs; though at night (and it chiefly feeds by night) it resorts to moister and more fertile places. Its food consists of snails, coleopterous insects, and earth-worms, but larger prey, as a mouse or a frog, is not rejected. Without making the slightest attempt at a nest, it lays its two eggs on a level spot, a bare fallow being often chosen. These are not very large, and in colour so closely resemble the sandy, flint-strewn surface that their detection except by a practised eye is difficult. The bird, too, trusts much to its own drab colouring to elude observation, and, on being disturbed, will frequently run for a considerable distance and then squat with outstretched neck so as to become almost invisible. In such a case it may be closely approached, and its large golden eye, if it do not pass for a tuft of yellow lichen, is perhaps the first thing that strikes the searcher. As autumn advances the stone-curlew gathers in large flocks, and then is as wary as its namesake. Towards October these take their departure, and their survivors return, often with wonderful constancy, to their beloved haunts. In size this species exceeds any other European plover, and looks even still larger than it is. The bill is short, blunt, and stout; the head large, broad, and flat at the top; the wings and legs long—the latter presenting the peculiarity of a singular enlargement of the upper part of the tarsus, whence the namesOedicnemusand Thick-knee have been conferred. The toes are short and fleshy, and the hind-toe is wanting. This bird seems to have been an especial favourite with Gilbert White, in whose classical writings mention of it is often made. Its range extends to North Africa and India. Five other species ofOedicnemusfrom Africa have also been described as distinct. Australia possesses a very distinct species (O. grallarius), and the genus has two members in the Neotropical Region (O. bistriatusandO. superciliaris). An exaggerated form ofOedicnemusis found inAesacus, of which two species have been described, one (A. recurvirostris) from the Indian, and the other (A. magnirostris) from the northern parts of the Australian region.

(A. N.)

1The name spowe (cf. IcelandicSpói) also seems to have been anciently given to this bird (see Stevenson’sBirds of Norfolk, ii. 201).

CURLING, THOMAS BLIZARD(1811-1888), British surgeon, was born in London in 1811. Through his uncle, Sir William Blizard, he became assistant-surgeon to the London hospital in 1833, becoming full surgeon in 1849. After filling other important posts in the College of Surgeons, he was appointed president in 1873. In 1843 he won the Jacksonian prize for his investigations on tetanus; and he became famous for his skill in treating diseases of the testes and rectum, his published works on which went through many editions. He died on the 4th of March 1888.

CURLING,a game in which the players throw large rounded stones upon a rink or channel of ice, towards a mark called the tee. Where the game originated is not precisely known; but it has been popular in Scotland for three centuries at least. Some writers, looking to the name and technical terms of the game, trace its invention to the Netherlands; thus “curl” may have been derived from the Ger.kurzweil, a game; “tee” from the Teutonictighen, to point out; “bonspiel,” a district curling competition, from the Belgicbonne, a district, andspel, play; the further supposition that “rink” is merely a modification of the Saxonhrink, a strong man, seems scarcely tenable. Curling is called “kuting” in some parts of Lanarkshire and Ayrshire, and very much resembles quoiting on the ice, so that the name may have some connexion with the Dutchcoete, a quoit; while Cornelis Kiliaan (1528-1607) in hisTeutonic Dictionarygives the termkhuytenas meaning a pastime in which large globes of stone like the quoit or discus are thrown upon ice. Possibly some of the Flemish merchants who settled in Scotland towards the close of the 16th century may have brought the game to the country. Unfortunately, however, for the theory that assigns to it a far-away origin, we find no early mention of it in the literature of the continent; while Camden, when describing the Orkney Islands in 1607, tells us that one of them supplies “plenty of excellent stones for the game called curling”; and incidental references to it as a game played in Scotland are made by several authors during the first half of the same century.

If the game be not indigenous to Scotland it certainly owes its development to that country, and in the course of time it has come to be the national sport. It was played at first with very rude engines—random whin boulders fashioned by nature alone, or misshapen granite blocks, bored through to let in the thumb of the player, having been the primitive channel stones. In course of years the rough block was superseded by a symmetrical object usually made of whinstone or granite, beautifully rounded, brilliantly polished, and supplied with a convenient handle.

Although curling boasts a literature of its own and songs innumerable, yet it has received but the scantiest notice from such important Scottish writers as Scott and Burns, or from contemporary literature in general. In 1834 an “Amateur Curling Club of Scotland” was formed, but this “mutual admiration amateur society came to nothing, as might be expected.” Far more businesslike were the methods of the men who set afoot the “Grand Caledonian Curling Club,” which began its existence on the 15th of November 1838, and which, under its present title of “The Royal Caledonian Curling Club,” is regarded in all parts of the world as the mother-club and legislative body, even in Canada, where, however, curling conditions differ widely from those of Scotland; devotion to the mother-club does not by any means imply submission. Starting with 28 allied clubs the Royal Club grew so rapidly that there were 500 such in 1880 and 720 in 1903. It was under the auspices of the Royal Caledonian that a body of Scottish curlers visited Canada and the United States in the winter of 1902-1903, and, while a slight margin of victory remained with the home players under their own climatic conditions,the visit did much to bring together the lovers of the game on both sides of the Atlantic. The assumption of the title “Royal” in place of “Grand” was due to the visit of Queen Victoria and the prince consort to Scotland in 1842, on which occasion they were initiated into the mysteries of the game on the polished floor of the drawing-room in the Palace of Scone; and the prince consort, who was presented with a pair of curling-stones, consented to become patron of the club. On his death he was succeeded by the prince of Wales, who, as Edward VII., still continued his patronage. The Club’s main duties are to further the interests of the game, to revise the laws and to arrange the important matches, especially the grand match, played annually between the Scottish clubs north of the Forth & Clyde Canal and those south of it. In the first of these matches (1847) only twelve “rinks” were played; in 1903 there were no fewer than 286. During this time the southern clubs were usually victorious. Curlers claim to be a united brotherhood within which peer and peasant are equal “on the ice.” To the same end the laws of the club are framed with a due regard to economy, not forgetting conviviality in the matter of “beef and greens,” the curler’s traditional dish, washed down with whisky. A formal freemasonry exists among curlers, who must be initiated into the mysteries and instructed in the grip, password and ceremony, being liable at any moment to be examined in these essentials and fined for lapses of memory. Betting, excepting for the smallest stakes, is discountenanced.

Glossary.—As curling has a language which contains many curious terms, puzzling to the uninitiated, the English equivalents of some of them are here given.Baugh ice, rough or soft ice.Bias, a slope on the ice.Boardhead(also house or parish), the large circle round the tee.Bonspiel, a match between two clubs.Break an egg on a stone, touch it very slightly.Broughs, the small circles round the tee.Chipping, striking a stone of which a small part can be seen.Core, old name for rink.Coweorkowe, a besom made of broom-twigs.Draw, to play gently.Drive, to play hard.Drug ice, soft bad ice.Fill the port, to block the interval between two stones.Gogsee, tee.Guard, a stone that covers and protects another.Hack, a hollow cut in the ice for the player’s foot, used in place of a crampit.Hands up!stop sweeping.Hog, a stone that stops short of thehog-score, a line drawn one-sixth of the length of the rink from the tee.Head, an innings, both sides delivering all their stones once.Howe, the middle of the rink, gradually hollowed by stones.In-ringing, gaining a good position by rebounding off another stone.In-wick, the same.Lie shot, the stone resting nearest the tee.Mar, to interfere with a stone while running.Out-Turn, to make the stone twist to the left.In-Turn, to make one turn to the right.Out-wick, to strike a stone on the edge so as to drive it towards the tee.Pat-lid, a stone that lies on the tee.Pittycock, the oldest form of curling-stone.Raise, to drive a “friendly” stone nearer the tee.Rebut, to deliver the stone with great force, so as to scatter the stones on the boardhead.Red the ice, clear away the opponents’ stones.Rink, the space in which the game is played; also the members of a side.Sole, the under part of the stone; also to deliver the stone.Soop, to sweep.Souter, to win without allowing the opponents to score at all; a term derived from a famous team of cobblers (souters) of Lochmaben, whose opponents seldom or never scored a point.Spiel, a match between members of the same club.Spend the stone, to waste a shot by playing wide intentionally.Stug, a fluke.Tee, the mark in the centre of the boardhead, against which it is the curler’s object to lay the stone. The tee may be any kind of a mark; a small iron plate with a spike in it is often used.Tozee, tee.Tramp,crampit,triggerortricker, an iron plate fitted with spikes which the player stands upon to deliver the stone.Wittyr, tee.

The Rink and Implements.—The rink is marked out in the ice, which should be very hard and smooth, in curling language “keen and clear.” To keep it swept every curler carries a broom, sometimes a mere bundle of broom-twigs, more often an ordinary housemaid’s broom. Good “sooping,” or sweeping, is part of the curler’s art, and is performed subject to strict rules and under the direction of the skip, or captain; its importance lying in the fact that the progress of a stone is retarded by the ice-dust caused by the play, the sweeping of which in front of a running stone consequently prolongs its course. Apart from the broom and the crampit, the “roarin’ game,” as curlers love to call it, requires no further implement than the stone, a flattened, polished disk, fitted with a handle. In weight it must not exceed 44 ℔, 35 to 40 ℔ being usual. It must not exceed 36 in. in circumference or be less in height than one-eighth of the circumference. The two flat sides, or soles, are so shaped that one is serviceable for keen ice and the other for ice that is soft, rough or “baugh.” The handle can be fitted to either side, as the case demands. The cost of a pair of stones is not less than £2, generally more. In the intense cold of Canada and the United States iron is found more serviceable than stone, and the irons weigh from 60 to 70 ℔. Even these are light compared with the earlier rough boulder-stones, some of which weighed over 115 ℔, although the very early ones were much lighter. The modern stone took shape at the beginning of the 19th century. The ancient stones had no handles, but notches were hewn in them for finger and thumb, and, as their weight varied from 5 to 25 ℔, it is probable that they were thrown after the manner of quoits. Channel-stones, stones rounded by the action of water in a river-bed, were the favourites, while the shape was a matter of individual taste, oblong and triangular stones having been common. The soles were artificially flattened. During the next period we find the heavy boulder-stones, unhewn blocks fitted with handles and probably used at shorter distances, 70 or 80 ℔ being no uncommon weight. The rounded stone, made on scientific principles, did not appear until about 1800. Even then it was of all shapes and sizes, with and without handles, and not uncommonly made of wood. The stones of to-day are named after the places in which they are quarried, Ailsa Craigs, Burnocks, Carsphairn Reds and Crawfordjohns being some of the best-known varieties. The stones are quarried and never blasted, as the shock of the explosion is apt to strain or split the rock.

The Game.—Curling is practically bowls played on the ice, the place of the “jack” being taken by a fixed mark, as at quoits, called the tee, to which the curler aims his stone; every stone that finally lies nearer than any of the opposing stones counting a point or “shot.” As each side has four players, each playing two stones, it is possible for one side to score eight points at a “head” or innings; but in practice it is found wiser, when a good shot has been made, to play some or all following stones to such positions as will prevent opposing stones from disturbing the stone lying near the tee. Stones thus placed are called “guards.” Strategic matters like this are decided by the skip, or captain, of the rink, who plays last, and who is an autocrat whose will is law. The “lead,” or first player, is expected to play quietly up the rink, leaving his stone as close to the tee as possible, but on no account beyond it. He is followed by the “lead” of the other side, who, instructed by his skip, will either try to drive away the first stone, if well placed, or put his own stone in a better position. When the skip’s turn comes he is “skipped,” or directed, by another player, appointed by himself, usually the third player. When all sixteen stones have been delivered the players cross over, the scores are counted, and the game proceeds from the other end of the rink. If a stone fails to cross the “hog-score” it is a “hog” and is removed from the rink, unless it has struck another stone in position. Stones that pass the back-score or touch the swept snow on either side are also removed. By a cleverly imparted twist a stone may be made to curve round a guard and either drive away an opposing winner or find a favourable lie for itself. This, the equivalent of “bias” in the game of bowls, is the height of scientific play. If the situation seems desperate a very hard throw, a “thunderin’ cast,” may succeed in clearing away the opponents’ stones from the neighbourhood of the tee. Different methods are adopted in delivering the stone, but in all of them a firm stand should be taken on the crampit, and the stone swung, either quietly, or, if the skip calls for a “thunderin’ cast,” vigorously; but care must be taken to avoid striking the ice with the stone so as to crack or “star” the ice. All matches are for a certain number of “heads” or of points, or for all that can be made within a certain time limit, as may be agreed.

Abridged Rules.—Tees shall be 38 yds. apart, and with the tee as centre a circle having a radius of 7 ft. shall be drawn. In alignment with the tees, lines, to be called Central Lines, are drawn from the tees to points 4 yds. behind each tee, and at these points Foot Scores 18 in. long shall be drawn at right angles, on which, at 6 in. from Central Line, the heel of the Crampit shall be placed. All matches shall be of a certain number of heads, or shots, or by time, as agreed.Every rink of players shall be composed of four a side. No shoes likely to break the ice may be worn.The skips opposing each other shall settle by lot, or in any other way they may agree upon, which party shall lead at the first head, after which the winning party shall do so.All curling stones shall be of a circular shape. No stone shall be of a greater weight than 44 ℔ imperial, or of greater circumference than 36 in., or of less height than one-eighth part of its greatest circumference.No stone, or side of a stone, shall be changed after a match has been begun, or during its continuance, unless by consent.Should a stone happen to be broken, the largest fragment shall be considered in the game for that end—the player being entitled afterwards to use another stone or another pair.If a played stone rolls over, or stops, on its side or top, it shall be put off the ice. Should the handle quit the stone in delivery, the player must keep hold of it, otherwise he shall not be entitled to replay the shot.Players, during the course of each end, to be arranged along the sides of the rink, anywhere skips may direct; and no party, except when sweeping according to rule, shall go upon the middle of the rink, or cross it, under any pretence whatever. Skips alone to stand at or about the tee—that of the playing party having the choice of place, and not to be obstructed by the other.If a player should play out of turn, the stone so played may be stopped in its progress, and returned to the player. Should the mistake not be discovered till the stone be at rest, or has struck another stone, the opposite skip shall have the option of adding one to his score, allowing the game to proceed, or declaring the end null and void. But if a stone be played before the mistake has been discovered, the head must be finished as if it had been properly played from the beginning.The sweeping shall be under the direction and control of the skips. The player’s party may sweep the ice anywhere from the centre line to the tee, and behind it,—the adverse party having liberty to sweep behind the tee, and in front of any of their own stones when moved by another, and till at rest. Skips to have full liberty to clean and sweep the ice behind the tee at any time, except when a player is being directed by his skip.If in sweeping or otherwise, arunningstone be marred by any of the party to which it belongs, it may, at the option of the opposite skip, be put off the ice; if by any of the adverse party, it may be placed where the skip of the party to which it belongs shall direct. If otherwise marred, it shall be replayed.Every player to be ready to play when his turn comes, and not to take more than a reasonable time to play. Should he play a wrong stone, any of the players may stop it while running; but if not stopped till at rest, the one which ought to have been played shall be placed instead, to the satisfaction of the opposing skip.No measuring of shots allowable previous to the termination of the end. Disputed shots to be determined by the skips, or, if they disagree, by the umpire, or, when there is no umpire, by some neutral person chosen by the skips. All measurements to be taken from the centre of the tee, to that part of the stone which is nearest it. No stone shall be considered without a circle, or over a line, unless it clear it;—and in every case, this is to be determined by placing a square on the ice, at the circle or line.Skips shall have the exclusive regulation and direction of the game for their respective parties, and may play last stone, or in what part of it they please; and, when their turn to play comes, they may name one of their party to take charge for them.If any player shall speak to, taunt or interrupt another, not being of his own party, while in the act of delivering his stone, one shot shall be added to the score of the party so interrupted.If from any change of weather after a match has been begun, or from any other reasonable cause, one party shall desire to shorten the rink, or to change to another one, and, if the two skips cannot agree, the umpire shall, after seeing one end played, determine whether the rink shall be shortened, and how much or whether it shall be changed, and his decision shall be final.SeeAnnualof the Royal Caledonian Curling Club, Edinburgh.

The skips opposing each other shall settle by lot, or in any other way they may agree upon, which party shall lead at the first head, after which the winning party shall do so.

All curling stones shall be of a circular shape. No stone shall be of a greater weight than 44 ℔ imperial, or of greater circumference than 36 in., or of less height than one-eighth part of its greatest circumference.

No stone, or side of a stone, shall be changed after a match has been begun, or during its continuance, unless by consent.

Should a stone happen to be broken, the largest fragment shall be considered in the game for that end—the player being entitled afterwards to use another stone or another pair.

If a played stone rolls over, or stops, on its side or top, it shall be put off the ice. Should the handle quit the stone in delivery, the player must keep hold of it, otherwise he shall not be entitled to replay the shot.

Players, during the course of each end, to be arranged along the sides of the rink, anywhere skips may direct; and no party, except when sweeping according to rule, shall go upon the middle of the rink, or cross it, under any pretence whatever. Skips alone to stand at or about the tee—that of the playing party having the choice of place, and not to be obstructed by the other.

If a player should play out of turn, the stone so played may be stopped in its progress, and returned to the player. Should the mistake not be discovered till the stone be at rest, or has struck another stone, the opposite skip shall have the option of adding one to his score, allowing the game to proceed, or declaring the end null and void. But if a stone be played before the mistake has been discovered, the head must be finished as if it had been properly played from the beginning.

The sweeping shall be under the direction and control of the skips. The player’s party may sweep the ice anywhere from the centre line to the tee, and behind it,—the adverse party having liberty to sweep behind the tee, and in front of any of their own stones when moved by another, and till at rest. Skips to have full liberty to clean and sweep the ice behind the tee at any time, except when a player is being directed by his skip.

If in sweeping or otherwise, arunningstone be marred by any of the party to which it belongs, it may, at the option of the opposite skip, be put off the ice; if by any of the adverse party, it may be placed where the skip of the party to which it belongs shall direct. If otherwise marred, it shall be replayed.

Every player to be ready to play when his turn comes, and not to take more than a reasonable time to play. Should he play a wrong stone, any of the players may stop it while running; but if not stopped till at rest, the one which ought to have been played shall be placed instead, to the satisfaction of the opposing skip.

No measuring of shots allowable previous to the termination of the end. Disputed shots to be determined by the skips, or, if they disagree, by the umpire, or, when there is no umpire, by some neutral person chosen by the skips. All measurements to be taken from the centre of the tee, to that part of the stone which is nearest it. No stone shall be considered without a circle, or over a line, unless it clear it;—and in every case, this is to be determined by placing a square on the ice, at the circle or line.

Skips shall have the exclusive regulation and direction of the game for their respective parties, and may play last stone, or in what part of it they please; and, when their turn to play comes, they may name one of their party to take charge for them.

If any player shall speak to, taunt or interrupt another, not being of his own party, while in the act of delivering his stone, one shot shall be added to the score of the party so interrupted.

If from any change of weather after a match has been begun, or from any other reasonable cause, one party shall desire to shorten the rink, or to change to another one, and, if the two skips cannot agree, the umpire shall, after seeing one end played, determine whether the rink shall be shortened, and how much or whether it shall be changed, and his decision shall be final.

SeeAnnualof the Royal Caledonian Curling Club, Edinburgh.

CURLL, EDMUND(1675-1747), English bookseller, was born in 1675 in the west of England. His parents were in humble circumstances. After being apprenticed to an Exeter bookseller he came to London and started business on his own account, advertising himself by a system of newspaper quarrels. His connexion with the anonymously-publishedCourt Poemsin 1716 led to the long quarrel with Pope, who took his revenge by immortalizing Curll in theDunciad. Curll became notorious for his indecent publications, so much so that “Curlicism” was regarded as a synonym for literary indecency. In 1716 and again in 1721 he had to appear at the bar of the House of Lords for publishing matter concerning its members. In 1725 he was convicted of publishing obscene books, and fined in 1728 for publishingThe Nun in her SmockandDe Usu Flagrorum, while hisMemories of John Ker of Kerslandcost him an hour in the pillory. When Curll in 1735 announced the forthcoming publication of “Mr Pope’s Literary Correspondence,” his stock, at Pope’s instigation, was seized. It has since been proved that the publication was really instigated by Pope, who wanted an excuse to print his letters, as he actually did (1737-1741). In his forty years of business Curll published a great variety of books, of which a very large number, fortunately, were quite free from “Curlicisms.” A list of his publications contains, indeed, 167 standard works. He died on the 11th of December 1747.

For Curll’s relations with Pope, see theLife of Pope, by Sir Leslie Stephen in the English Men of Letters series.

CURRAGH,a level stretch of open ground in Co. Kildare, Ireland, famous for its race-course and its military camp. It has an area of upwards of 4800 acres; and its soft natural sward, which has never been broken by the plough, affords excellent pasture for sheep. From the peculiarity of its herbage, the district is known in the neighbourhood as “the short grass”; and the young men of Kildare are jocularly distinguished as the “boys of the short grass.” The land is the property of the crown, which appoints a special officer as the ranger of the Curragh; but the right of pasturage is possessed by the landowners of the vicinity. The oldest mention of the Curragh occurs in theLiber Hymnorum(the manuscript of which probably dates from the 10th century) in connexion with St Bridget, who is said to have received a grant of the district from the king of Leinster, and is popularly credited with the honour of having turned it into a common. It is evident, however, that long before the days of the saint the downs of Kildare had afforded a regular place of assembly for the people of the south of Ireland. The wordcuirrech, cognate with the Lat.cursus, signifies a race-course, and chariot-races are spoken of as taking place on the Curragh as early as the 1st centuryA.D.TheAenach Colmain(Curragh fair), also calledAenach Lifè(the fair on the plain of the Liffey), is frequently mentioned in the Irish annals, and both racing and other sports were carried on at this, the principal meeting of its kind in southern Ireland, and the plain appears from time to time as the scene of hostile encounters between the kings of Meath, Leinster and Offaly. In 1234 the earl of Pembroke was defeated here by the viceroy of Ireland, Lord Geoffrey de Monte Marisco; and in 1406 the Irish under the prior of Connell were routed by the English. In 1789 the Curragh was the great rendezvous for the volunteers, and in 1804 it saw the gathering of 30,000 United Irishmen. The camp was established at the time of the Crimean War, and is capable of accommodating 12,000 men. The races are held in April, June, September and October.

See W. M. Hennessy, inProceedings of Royal Irish Acad., 1866.

CURRAN, JOHN PHILPOT(1750-1817), Irish politician and judge, was born on the 24th of July 1750, at Newmarket, Cork, where his father, a descendant of one of Cromwell’s soldiers, was seneschal to the manor-court. He was educated at Middleton, through the kind help of a friend, the Rev. Nathaniel Boyse, and at Trinity College, Dublin; and in 1773, having taken his M.A. degree, he entered the Middle Temple. In 1774 he married a lady who brought him a small dowry; but the marriage proved unhappy, and Mrs Curran finally eloped from her husband.

In 1775 Curran was called to the Irish bar, where he very soon obtained a practice. On his first rising in court excessive nervousness prevented him from even reading distinctly the few words of a legal form, and when requested by the judge to read more clearly he became so agitated as to be totally unable to proceed. But, his feelings once roused, all nervousness disappeared. His effective and witty attack upon a judge who had sneered at his poverty, the success with which he prosecuted a nobleman for a disgraceful assault upon a priest, the duel which he fought with one of the witnesses for this nobleman, and other similar exploits, gained him such a reputation that he was soon the most popular advocate in Ireland.

In 1783 Curran was appointed king’s counsel; and in the same year he was presented to a seat in the Irish House of Commons. His conduct in connexion with this affair displays his conductin a most honourable light; finding that he differed radically in politics from the gentleman from whom he had received his seat, he expended £1500 in buying another to replace that which he occupied. In his parliamentary career Curran was throughout sincere and consistent. He spoke vigorously on behalf of Catholic emancipation, and strenuously attacked the ministerial bribery which prevailed. His declamations against the government party led him into two duels—the first with John Fitzgibbon, then attorney-general, afterwards Lord Clare; the second with the secretary of state, Major Hobart, afterwards earl of Buckinghamshire. The Union caused him the bitterest disappointment; he even talked of leaving Ireland, either for America or for England.

Curran’s fame rests most of all upon his speeches on behalf of the accused in the state trials that were so numerous between 1794 and 1803; and among them may be mentioned those in defence of Hamilton Rowan, the Rev. William Jackson, the brothers John and Henry Sheares, Peter Finnerty, Lord Edward Fitzgerald, Wolfe Tone and Owen Kirwan. Another of his most famous and characteristic speeches is that against the marquis of Headfort, who had eloped with the wife of a clergyman named Massey. On the arrest of Robert Emmet, who had formed an attachment to his daughter, Curran was himself under suspicion; but, on examination before the privy council, nothing was brought forward to implicate him in the intended rebellion.

In 1806, on the death of Pitt and the formation of the Fox ministry, Curran received the post of master of the rolls, with a seat in the privy council, much to his disappointment, for he had desired a position of greater political influence. For eight years, however, he held this office. He then retired on a pension of £3000; and the three remaining years of his life were spent in London, where he became one of the most brilliant members of the society which included Sheridan, Erskine, Thomas Moore, and William Godwin. He died at his house in Brompton on the 14th of October 1817.

Curran’s legal erudition was never profound; and though he was capable of the most ingenious pleading, his appeal was always to the emotions of his audience. His best speeches are one fiery torrent of invective, pathos, national feeling and wit. His diction was lofty and sonorous. He was, too, a most brilliant wit and of wonderful quickness in repartee. To his personal presence he owed nothing; for he was short, slim and boyish-looking, and his voice was thin and shrill.

SeeCurran and his Contemporaries, a most entertaining work, by Charles Phillips, a personal friend of Curran’s (1818), and theLife of Curran, by his son, W. H. Curran (1819), and with additions by Dr Shelton Mackenzie, New York, (1855), both of which contain numerous samples of Curran’s eloquence. See alsoCurran’s Speeches(1805, 1808, 1845);Memoirs of Curran, by Wm. O’Regan (1817); Letters to Rev. H. Weston (1819); T. Moore’sMemoirs(1853).

CURRANT.(1) The dried seedless fruit of a variety of the grape-vine,Vitis vinifera, cultivated principally in Zante, Cephalonia and Ithaca, and near Patras, in the Morea (seeGreece). Currants were brought originally from Corinth, whence their name; in the 13th and 14th centuries they were known asraisins de Corauntz. In the Ionian Islands the currant-vine is grown on the sides of the lower hills, or in the valleys, the grape-vine occupying the higher and less open and rich ground. Gypseous marls, or calcareous marls containing a little gypsum, are preferred to limestone soils, as they allow of deep penetration of the roots of the vines. The most favourable situations are those where a good supply of water can be obtained for the irrigation of the plantations. This is carried on from the end of October to the close of the year, after which all that is necessary is to keep the ground moist. The vines are planted in rows 3 or 4 ft. apart. Propagation is effected by grafting on stocks of the grape-vine, or by planting out in spring the young, vigorous shoots obtained at the end of the previous year from old currant-vines that have been cut away below the ground. The grafts bear fruit in three years, the slips in about double that time. The vine stock for grafting is cut down to the depth of a foot below the surface of the soil; two or three perpendicular incisions are made near the bark with a chisel; and into these are inserted shoots of the last year’s growth. The engrafted part then receives an application of moist marls, is wrapped in leaves and bound with rushes, and is covered with earth, two or three eyes of the shoots being left projecting above ground. In December the currant plantations are cleared of dead and weak wood. In February the branches are cut back, and pruned of median shoots, which are said to prevent the lateral ones proceeding from the same bud from bearing fruit. In order effectually to water the trees, the earth round about them is in February and March hoed up so as to leave them in a kind of basin, or is piled up against their stems. In March, when the leaves begin to show, the ground is thoroughly turned, and if requisite manured, and is then re-levelled. By the middle of April the leaves are fully out, and in June it is necessary to break back the newly-formed shoots. The fruit begins to ripen in July, and in the next month the vintage takes place. At this season rain is greatly dreaded, as it always damages and may even destroy the ripe fruit. The plantations, which are commonly much exposed, are watched by dogs and armed men. In Cephalonia the currant-grape is said to ripen at least a week earlier than in Zante. To destroy the oïdium, a fungal pest that severely injures the plantations, the vines are dusted, at the time the fruit is maturing, with finely-ground brimstone. The currants when sufficiently ripe are gathered and placed on a drying ground, where they are exposed to the sun in layers half an inch thick; from time to time they are turned and swept into heaps, until they become entirely detached from stalk. They are then packed in large butts for exportation. The wine made from the currant-grape is inferior in quality, but is said to be capable of much improvement. The fresh fruit is luscious and highly flavoured, but soon cloys the palate.

(2) The currants of British kitchen-gardens—so called from a resemblance to the foregoing—are the produce ofRibes nigrumandR. rubrum, deciduous shrubs of the natural orderRibesiaceae, indigenous to Britain, northern and central Europe, Siberia and Canada. The former species bears the black, the latter the red currant. White currants are the fruit of a cultivated variety ofR. rubrum. Both red and black currants are used for making tarts and pies, jams, jellies and wine; the latter are also employed in lozenges, popularly supposed to be of value in relieving a sore throat, are occasionally preserved in spirits, and in Russia are fermented with honey to produce a strong liquor.

Currants will flourish in any fairly good soil, but to obtain large crops and fine fruit a good rich loam is desirable; with an annual dressing of farmyard manure or cowdung, after the winter pruning, for established trees. The plants are best propagated by cuttings, which should consist of strong well-ripened young shoots taken off close to the old wood. These should be planted as soon as possible after the wood is matured in autumn about 6 in. apart. The plants are grown with the best results as bushes, but may also be trained against a wall or trellis. In the matter of pruning it must be borne in mind that red and white currants form their fruit buds on wood two to three years old, and the main shoots and side branches may therefore be cut back. Black currants on the other hand form fruit buds on the new wood of the previous year, hence the old wood should be cut away and the young left.

The black currant is subject to the attacks of a mite,Phytoptus ribis, which destroys the unopened buds. The buds, when attacked, recognized by their swollen appearance, should be picked off and burned. The attacks of the caterpillars of the gooseberry and other moths may be met by dusting the bushes with lime and soot when the plants are moist with dew or after syringing.

The following forms are recommended for cultivation:—Black: Lee’s Prolific, Baldwin’s or Carter’s Champion and Black Naples;Red: Cherry, Raby Castle, Red Dutch and Comet;White: White Dutch. A kind of black currant (Ribes magellanicum), bearing poor and acid fruit, is indigenous to Tierra del Fuego.

CURRICLE(Lat.curriculum, a small car), a light two-wheeled vehicle, generally for driving with two horses.

CURRIE, SIR DONALD(1825-1909), British shipowner, was born at Greenock on the 17th of September 1825. At a very early age he was employed in the office of a shipowner in that port, but at the age of eighteen left Scotland for Liverpool, where shipping business offered more scope. By a fortunate chance he attracted the notice of the chief partner in the newly started Cunard steamship line, who found him a post in that company. In 1849 the Cunard Company started a service between Havre and Liverpool to connect with their transatlantic service. Currie was appointed Cunard agent at Havre and Paris, and secured for his firm a large share of the freight traffic between France and the United States. About 1856 he returned to Liverpool, where till 1862 he held an important position at the Cunard Company’s headquarters. In 1862 he determined to strike out for himself, and leaving the Cunard established the “Castle” line of sailing-ships between Liverpool and Calcutta. Business prospered, but in 1864 Currie found it profitable to substitute London for Liverpool as the home port of his vessels, and himself settled in London. In 1872 he came to the conclusion, after a careful study of all the circumstances, that the development of Cape Colony justified the starting of a new line of steamers between England and South Africa. The result of this decision was the founding of the successful Castle line of steamers (see under Steamship Lines), which after 1876 divided the South African mail contract with the older Union line, and was finally amalgamated with the latter under the title Union Castle line in 1900. Currie’s intimate knowledge of South African conditions and persons was on several occasions of material service to the British government. His acquaintance with Sir John Brand, the president of what was then the Orange Free State, caused him to be entrusted by the home government with the negotiations in the dispute concerning the ownership of the Kimberley diamond-fields, which were brought to a successful conclusion. He introduced the two Transvaal deputations which came to England in 1877 and 1878 to protest against annexation, and though his suggestions for a settlement were disregarded by the government of the day, the terms on which the Transvaal was subsequently restored to the Boers agreed, in essentials, with those he had advised. The first news of the disaster of Isandhlwana in the Zulu War was given to the home government through his agency. At that time there was no cable between England and South Africa, and the news was sent by a Castle liner to St Vincent, and telegraphed thence to Currie. At the same time by diverting his outward mail-boat then at sea from its ordinary course to St Vincent, he enabled the government to telegraph immediate instructions to that island for conveyance thence by the mail, thus saving serious delay, and preventing the annihilation of the British garrison at Eshowe. The present arrangement under which the British admiralty is enabled to utilize certain fast steamers of the mercantile marine as armed cruisers in war-time was suggested and strongly urged by Currie in 1880. In the same year he was returned to parliament as Liberal member for Perthshire, but, though a strong personal friend of W. E. Gladstone, he was unable to follow that statesman on the Home Rule question, and from 1885 to 1900 he represented West Perthshire as a Unionist. In 1881 his services in connexion with the Zulu War were rewarded with knighthood, and in 1897 he was created G.C.M.G. He died at Sidmouth on the 13th of April 1909.

CURRIE, JAMES(1756-1805), Scottish physician and editor of Burns, son of the minister of Kirkpatrick-Fleming, in Dumfriesshire, was born there on the 31st of May 1756. Attracted by the stories of prosperity in America he went in 1771 to Virginia, where he spent five hard years, much of the time ill and always in unprofitable commercial business. The outbreak of war between the Colonies and England ended any further chance of success, and sailing for home in the spring of 1776 after many delays he reached England a year later. He then proceeded to study medicine at Edinburgh, and after taking his degree at Glasgow he settled at Liverpool in 1780, where three years later he became physician to the infirmary. He died at Sidmouth on the 31st of August 1805. Among other pamphlets Currie was the author ofMedical Reports on the Effects of Water, Cold and Warm, as a Remedy in Fevers and Febrile Diseases(1797), which had some influence in promoting the use of cold water affusion, and contains the first systematic record in English of clinical observations with the thermometer. But he is best known for his edition (1800), long regarded as the standard, of Robert Burns, which he undertook in behalf of the family of the poet. It contained an introductory criticism and an essay on the character and condition of the Scottish peasantry.

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