Cruth-Loda, the war-god of the ancient Gaels.

Cuckold King (The), Sir Mark of Cornwell, whose wife Ysolde [E. seld] intrigued with Sir Tristram (his nephew), one of the knights of the Round Table.

Cud'die or CUTHBERT HEADRIGG, a ploughman, in the service of Lady Bellenden of the Tower of Tillietudlem.—Sir W. Scott, Old Mortality (time, Charles II.).

Cuddy, a herdsman, in Spenser's Shephearde's Calendar.

Cuddy, a shepherd, who boasts that the charms of his Buxo'ma far exceed those of Blouzelinda. Lobbin, who is Blouzelinda's swain, repels the boast, and the two shepherds agree to sing the praises of their respective shepherdesses, and to make Clod'dipole arbiter of their contention. Cloddipole listens to their alternate verses, pronounces that "both merit an oaken staff," but, says he, "the herds are weary of the songs, and so am I."—Gay, Pastoral, i. (1714).

(This eclogue is in imitation of Virgil's Ecl. iii.)

Culdees (i.e. sequestered persons), the primitive clergy of presbyterian character, established in Io'na or Icolmkill [I-columb-kill] by St. Columb and twelve of his followers in 563. They also founded similar church establishments at Abernethy, Dunkeld, Kirkcaldy [Kirk-Culdee], etc., and at Lindesfarne, in England. Some say as many as 300 churches were founded by them. Augustine, a bishop of Waterford, began against them in 1176 a war of extermination, when those who could escape sought refuge in Iona, the original cradle of the sect, and were not driven thence till 1203.

Culloch (Sawney) a pedlar.—Sir W. Scott, Guy Mannering (time, George III.).

Culprit Fay, a sprite condemned for loving a mortal maiden to catch the spray-gem from the sturgeon's "silver bow," and light his torch with a falling star.—Joseph Rodman Drake, The Culprit Fay (1847).

Cumberland (John of). "The devil and John of Cumberland" is a blunder for "The devil and John-a-Cumber." John-a-Cumber was a famous Scotch magician.

Cumberland (William Augustus, duke of), commander-in-chief of the army of George II., whose son he was. The duke was especially celebrated for his victory of Cullo'den (1746); but he was called "The Butcher" from the great severity with which he stamped out the clan system of the Scottish Highlanders. He was wounded in the leg at the battle of Dettingen (1743). Sir W. Scott has introduced him in Waverley (time, George II.).

Cumberland Poet (The), William

Wordsworth, born at Cockermouth (1770-1850).

Cumnor Hall, a ballad by Mickel, the lament of Amy Robsart, who had been won and thrown away by the Earl of Leicester. She says if roses and lilies grow in courts, why did he pluck the primrose of the field, which some country swain might have won and valued! Thus sore and sad the lady grieved in Cumnor Hall, and ere dawn the death bell rang, and never more was that countess seen.

therefore.jpg Sir W. Scott took this for the groundwork of his Kenihvorth, which he called Cumnor Hall, but Constable, his publisher, induced him to change the name.

Cunégonde [Ku'.na.gond], the mistress of Candide (2 syl.). in Voltaire's novel called Candide. Sterne spells it "Cunëgund."

Cun'ningham (Archie), one of the archers of the Scotch guards at Plessis lés Tours, in the pay of Louis XI.—Sir W. Scott, Quentin Durward (time, Edward IV.).

Cu'no, the ranger, father of Agatha.—Weber, Der Freischütz (1822).

Cuno'beline, a king of the Silurês, son of Tasciov'anus and father of Caractacus. Coins still exist bearing the name of "Cunobeline," and the word "Camalodunum" [Colchester], the capital of his kingdom. The Roman general between A.D. 43 and 47 was Aulus Plautius, but in 47 Ostorius Scapula took Caractacus prisoner.

Some think Cunobeline is Shakespeare's "Cymbeline," who reigned from B.C. 8 to A.D. 27; but Cymbeline's father was Tenantius or Tenuantius, his sons Guide'rius Arvir'agus, and the Roman general was Caius Lucius.

Cunstance or Constance (See CUSTANCE).

Cupid and Psyche [Si.ky] an episode in The Golden Ass of Apuleius. The allegory represents Cupid in love with Psychê. He visited her every evening, and left at sunrise, but strictly enjoined her not to attempt to discover who he was. One night curiosity overcame her prudence, and going to look upon her lover a drop of hot oil fell on his shoulder, awoke him, and he fled. Psychê now wandered in search of the lost one, but was persecuted by Venus with relentless cruelty. Having suffered almost to the death, Cupid at length married her, and she became immortal. Mrs. Tighe has a poem on the subject. Wm. Morris has poetized the same in his Earthly Paradise ("May"); Lafontaine has a poem called Psyché, in imitation of the episode of Apuleius; and Molière has dramatized the subject.

Cu'pidon (Jean). Count d'Orsay was so called by Lord Byron (1798-1852). The count's father was styled Le Beau d' Orsay.

Cur'an, a courtier in Shakespeare's tragedy of King Lear (1605).

Curé de Meudon, Rabelais, who was first a monk, then a leech, then prebendary of St. Maur, and lastly curé of Meudon (1483-1553).

Cu'rio, a gentleman attending on the Duke of Illyria.—Shakespeare, Twelfth Night (1614).

Curio. So Akenside calls Mr. Pulteney, and styles him "the betrayer of his country," alluding to the great statesman's change of politics. Curio was a young Roman senator, at one time the avowed enemy of Cæsar, but subsequently of Cæsar's party, and one of the victims of the civil war.

Curious Impertinent (The), a tale introduced by Cervantês in his Don Quixote. The "impertinent" is an Italian gentleman who is silly enough to make trial of his wife's fidelity by persuading a friend to storm it if he can. Of course his friend "takes the fort," and the fool is left to bewail his own folly.—Pt. I. iv. 5 (1605).

Currer Bell, the nom de plume of Charlotte Brontê, author of Jane Eyre [Air] (1816-1855).

Curta'na, the sword of Edward the Con'fessor, which had no point, and was therefore the emblem of mercy. Till the reign of Henry III., the royal sword of England was so called.

Curta'na or Courtain, the sword of Ogier the Dane.

Curt-Hose (2 syl.). Robert II. duc de Normandie (1087-1134).

Curt-Mantle, Henry II. of England

(1133, 1154-1189). So called because he wore the Anjou mantle, which was shorter than the robe worn by his predecessors.

Curtis, one of Petruchio's servants.—Shakespeare, Taming of the Shrew (1594).

Parson Cushing, pastor of the Orthodox Church in Poganuc. In fits of learned abstraction, he fed the dog surreptitiously under the table, thereby encouraging his boys to trust his heart rather than his tongue. He justifies the expulsion of the Indian tribes by Scripture texts, and gathers eggs in the hay-mow with Dolly; upholds the doctrines of his denomination and would seal his faith with his blood, but admits that "the Thirty-nine articles (with some few exceptions) are a very excellent statement of truth." He is Catholic without suspecting it.—Harriet Beecher Stowe, Poganuc People, (1878).

Custance, daughter of the Emperor of Rome, affianced to the Sultan of Syria, who abjured his faith and consented to be baptized in order to marry her. His mother hated this apostasy, and at the wedding breakfast slew all the apostates except the bride. Her she embarked in a ship, which was set adrift and in due time reached the British shores, where Custance was rescued by the Lord-constable of Northumberland, who took her home, and placed her under the care of his wife Hermegild. Custance converted both the constable and his wife. A young knight wished to marry her, but she declined his suit, whereupon he murdered Hermegild, and then laid the bloody knife beside Custance, to make her suspected of the crime. King Alia examined the case, and soon discovered the real facts, whereupon the knight was executed, and the king married Custance.

The queen-mother highly disapproved of the match, and during the absence of her son in Scotland embarked Custance and her infant boy in a ship, which was turned adrift. After floating about for five years, it was taken in tow by a Roman fleet on its return from Syria, and Custance with her son Maurice became the guests of a Eoman Senator. It so happened that Alla at this same time was at Rome on a pilgrimage, and encountered his wife, who returned with him to Northumberland and lived in peace and happiness the rest of her life.—Chaucer, Canterbury Tales ("The Man of Law's Tale," 1388).

Custance, a gay and rich widow, whom Ralph Roister Doister wishes to marry, but he is wholly baffled in his scheme.—Nicholas TJdall, Ralph Roister Doister (first English comedy, 1534).

Cute (Alderman), a "practical philosopher," resolved to put down everything. In his opinion "everything must be put down." Starvation must be put down, and so must suicide, sick mothers, babies, and poverty.—C. Dickens, The Chimes (1844).

Cuthal, same as Uthal, one of the Orkneys.

Cuthbert (St.), a Scotch monk of the sixth century.

Cuthbert Bede, the Rev. Edw. Bradley, author of Verdant Green (1857.)

Cutho'na, daughter of Rumar, was betrothed to Conlath, youngest son of Morni, of Mora. Not long before the espousals were to be celebrated, Toscar came from Ireland, and was hospitably entertained by Morni. On the fourth day, he saw Cuthona out hunting, and carried her off by force. Being pursued by Conlath, a fight ensued, in which both the young men fell, and Cuthona, after languishing for three days, died also.— Ossian, Conlath and Cuthona.

Cuthullin, son of Semo, commander of the Irish army, and regent during the minority of Cormac. His wife was Brag'elo, daughter of Sorglan. In the poem called Fingal, Cuthullin was defeated by Swaran, king of Lochlin [Scandinavia], and being ashamed to meet Fingal, retired from the field gloomy and sad. Fingal having utterly defeated Swaran, invited Cuthullin to the banquet, and partially restored his depressed spirits. In the third year of Cormac's reign, Torlah, son of Can'tela, rebelled. Cuthullin gained a complete victory over him at the lake Lego, but was mortally wounded in the pursuit by a random arrow. Cuthullin was succeeded by Nathos, but the young king was soon dethroned by the rebel Cairbre, and murdered.—Ossian, Fingal and The Death of Cuthullin.

Cutler (Sir John), a royalist, who died 1699, reduced to the utmost poverty.

Cutler saw tenants break, and houses fall. For very want he could not build a wall. His only daughter in a stranger's power, for very want he could not pay a dower. A few gray hairs his reverend temples crowned, 'Twas very want that sold them for two pound....

Cutler and Brutus, dying, both exclaim, "Virtue and wealth, what are ye but a name?" Pope, Moral Essays, iii. (1709).

Cutpurse (Moil), Mary Frith, the heroine of Middleton's comedy called The Roaring Girl (1611). She was a woman of masculine vigor, who not unfrequently assumed man's attire. This notorious cut-purse once attacked General Fairfax on Hounslow Heath, but was arrested and sent to Newgate; she escaped, however, by bribing the turnkey, and died of dropsy at the age of 75. Nathaniel Field introduces her in his drama called Amends for Ladies (1618).

Cutshamaquin, an Indian Sachem, whose disobedient and rebellious son was "dealt with" publicly by John Eliot. At the second summons and serious admonition, the lad repented and confessed humbly, "and entreated his father to forgive him, and took him by the hand, at which his father burst forth into great weeping."—John Eliot, The Clear Sunshine of the Gospel Breaking Forth Upon the Indians (1648).

Cuttle (Captain Edward), a great friend of Solomon Gills, ship's instrument maker. Captain Cuttle had been a skipper, had a hook instead of a right hand, and always wore a very hard, glazed hat. He was in the habit of quoting, and desiring those to whom he spoke "to overhaul the catechism till they found it;" but, he added, "when found, make a note on." The kind-hearted seaman was very fond of Florence Dombey, and of Walter Gay, whom he called "Wal'r." When Florence left her father's roof, Captain Cuttle sheltered her at the Wooden Midshipman. One of his favorite sentiments was "May we never want a friend, or a bottle to give him."—C. Dickens, Dombey and Son (1846).

("When found, make a note of," is the motto of Notes and Queries.)

Cyc'lades (3 syl.), some twenty islands, so called from the classic legend that they circled round Delos when that island was rendered stationary by the birth of Diana and Apollo.

Cyclic Poets, a series of epic poets, who wrote continuations or additions to Homer's Iliad and Odyssey; they were called "Cyclic" because they confined themselves to the cycle of the Trojan war.

AG'IAS wrote an epic on "the return of the Greeks from Troy" (B.C. 740).

ARCTI'NOS wrote a continuation of the Iliad, describing the taking of Troy by the "Wooden Horse," and its conflagration. Virgil has copied from this poet (B.C. 776).

EU'GAMON wrote a continuation of the Odyssey. It contains the adventures of Telegonos in search of his father Ulysses. When he reached Ith'aca, Ulysses and Telemachos went against him, and Telegonos killed Ulysses with a spear which his mother Circe had given him (B.C. 568).

LES'CHES, author of the Little Iliad, in four books, containing the fate of Ajax, the exploits of Philoctetes, Neoptol'emos, and Ulysses, and the final capture of Troy (B.C. 708).

STASI'NOS, "son-in-law" of Homer. He wrote an introduction to the Iliad.

Cyclops. Their names are Brontes, Steropes, and Arges. (See SINDBAD, voy. 3).

Cyclops (The Holy). So Dryden in the Masque of Albion and Albanius, calls Richard Rumbold, an Englishman, the chief conspirator in the "Ryehouse Plot." He had lost one eye, and was executed.

Cydip'pe (3 syl), a lady courted by Acontius of Cea, but being unable to obtain her, he wrote on an apple, "I swear by Diana that Acontius shall be my husband." This apple was presented to the maiden, and being persuaded that she had written the words, though inadvertently, she consented to marry Acontius for "the oath's sake."

Cyl'laros, the horse of Pollux according to Virgil (Georg. iii. 90), but of Castor according to Ovid (Metam. xii. 408). It was coal-black, with white legs and tail.

Cylle'nius, Mercury; so called from Mount Cylenê, in Arcadia, where he was born.

Cym'beline (3 syl.), mythical king of Britain for thirty-five years. He began to reign in the nineteenth year of Augustus Cæsar. His father was Tenantius, who refused to pay the tribute to the Romans exacted of Cassibelan after his defeat by Julius Cæsar. Cymbeline married twice. By his first wife he had a daughter named Imogen, who married Posthumus Leonatus. His second wife had a son named Cloten by a former husband.—Shakespeare, Cymbeline (1605).

Cymochles [Si. mok'.leez], brother of Pyroch'lês, son of Aeratês, husband of Acras'ia the enchantress. He sets out against Sir Guyon, but being ferried over Idle Lake, abandons himself to self-indulgence, and is slain by King Arthur (canto 8).—Spencer, Faery Queen, ii. 5, etc. (1590).

Cymod'oce (4 syl.). The mother of Mar'inel is so called in bk. iv. 12 of the Faery Queen, but in bk. iii. 4 she is spoken of as Cymo'ent "daughter of Nereus" (2syl.) by an earth-born father, "the famous Dumarin."

Cymoent. (See CYMODOCE.)

Cym'ry, the Welsh.

The Welsh always called themselves "Cym-ry", the literal meaning of which is "aborigines." ... It is the same word as "Cimbri." ... They call their language "Cymraeg," i.e, "the primitive tongue."—E. Williams.

Cyngæi'ros, brother of the poet Æschylos. When the Persians, after the battle of Marathon, were pushing off from shore, Cyngæiros seized one of their ships with his right hand, which being lopped off, he grasped it with his left hand; this being cut off, he seized it with his teeth, and lost his life.

ADMIEAL BENBOW, in an engagement with the French, near St. Martha, in 1701, had his legs and thighs shivered into splinters by chain-shot; but (supported on a wooden frame) he remained on deck till Du Casse sheered off.

ALMEYDA, the Portuguese Governor of India, had his legs and thighs shattered in a similar way, and caused himself to be bound to the ship's mast, that he might wave his sword to cheer on the combatants.

JAAFER, at the battle of Muta, carried the sacred banner of the prophet. One hand being lopped off, he held it with the other; this also being cut off, he held it with his two stumps, and when at last his head was cut off, he contrived to fall dead on the banner, which was thus detained till Abdallah had time to rescue it and hand it to Khaled.

Cyne'tha(3 syl.), eldest son of Cadwallon (king of North Wales). He was an orphan, brought up by his uncle Owen. During his minority, Owen and Cynetha loved each other dearly; but when the orphan came of age and claimed his inheritance, his uncle burnt his eyes out by exposing them to plates of hot brass. Cynetha and his son Cadwallon accompanied Madoc to North America, where the blind old man died while Madoc was in Wales preparing for his second voyage.—Southey, Madoc, i. 3 (1805).

Cynic Tub (The), Diog'enês, the Cynic philosopher lived in a tub, and it is to this fact that illusion is made in the line:

Cy'nosure (3 syl.), the pole-star. The word means "the dog's tail," and is used to signify a guiding genius, or the observed of all observers. Cynosu'ra was an Idaean nymph, one of the nurses of Zeus (1 syl.).

Cyn'thia, the moon or Diana, who was born on Mount Cynthus, in Dêlos. Apollo is called "Cynthius."

Cyn'thia. So Spenser, in Colin Clout's Come Home Again, calls Queen Elizabeth, "whose angel's eye" was his life's sole bliss, his heart's eternal treasure. Ph. Fletcher, in The Purple Island, iii., also calls Queen Elizabeth "Cynthia."

Cyn'thia, daughter of Sir Paul Pliant, and daughter-in-law of Lady Pliant. She is in love with Melle'font (2 syl.). Sir Paul calls her "Thy"—W. Congreve, The Double Dealer (1694).

Cyn'thia Ware. Auburn-haired girl living upon Lost Creek in Tennessee, in love with Evander Price, a young blacksmith. When he is sent to the penitentiary upon a false accusation, she labors unceasingly for a year to obtain his pardon. A year after it is granted, she learns that he is doing well in another State and has forgotten her. In time, he returns, married and prosperous, and calls upon his old friends upon Lost Creek.

Cyp'rian (A), a woman of loose morals; so called from the island Cyprus, a chief seat of the worship of Venus or Cyp'ria.

Cyp'rian (Brother), a Dominican monk at the monastery of Holyrood.—Sir W. Scott, Fair Maid of Perth (time, Henry IV.).

Cyrena'ic Shell (The), the lyre or strain of Callini'achos, a Greek poet of Alexandria, in Egypt. Six of his hymns in hexameter verse are still extant.

Cyr'ic (St.), the saint to whom sailors address themselves. The St. Elmo of the Welsh.

Cyrus and Tom'yris. Cyrus, after subduing the eastern parts of Asia, was defeated by Tomyris queen of the Massage'tae, in Scythia. Tomyris cut off his head, and threw it into a vessel filled with human blood, saying, as she did so, "There, drink thy fill." Dantê refers to this incident in his Purgatory, xii.

Cythere'a, Venus; so called from Cythe'ra (now Cerigo), a mountainous island of Laco'nia, noted for the worship of Aphrodite (or Venus). The tale is that Venus and Mars, having formed an illicit affection for each other, were caught in a delicate net made by Vulcan, and exposed to the ridicule of the court of Olympus.

Cyze'nis, the infamous daughter of Diomed, who killed every one that fell into her clutches, and compelled fathers to eat their own children.

Czar (Casar), a title first assumed in Russia by Ivan III., who, in 1472, married a princess of the imperial Byzantine line. He also introduced the double-headed black eagle of Byzantium as the national symbol. The official style of the Russian autocrat is Samoderjetz. D'acunha (Teresa), waiting-woman to the countess of Glenallan.—Sir W. Scott, Antiquary (time, George III.).

d.jpg

affodil. When Perseph'onê, the daughter of Deme'ter, was a little maiden, she wandered about the meadows of Enna in Sicily, to gather white daffodils to wreathe into her hair, and being tired she fell asleep. Pluto, the god of the infernal regions, carried her off to become his wife, and his touch turned the white flowers to a golden yellow. Some remained in her tresses till she reached the meadows of Acheron, and falling off there grew into the asphodel, with which the meadows thenceforth abounded.

Dagon, sixth in order of the hierarchy of hell: (1) Satan, (2) Beëlzebub, (3) Moloch, (4) Chemos, (5) Thammuz, (6) Dagon. Dagon was half man and half fish. He was worshipped in Ashdod, Gath, Ascalon, Ekron, and Gaza (the five chief cities of the Philistines). When the "ark" was placed in his temple, Dagon fell, and the palms of his hands were broken off.

Dag'onet (Sir), King Arthur's fool. One day Sir Dagonet, with two squires, came to Cornwall, and as they drew near a well Sir Tristram soused them all three in, and dripping wet made them mount their horses and ride off, amid the jeers of the spectators (pt. ii. 60).

Justice Shallow brags that he once personated Sir Dagonet, while he was a student at Clement's Inn.—Shakespeare, 2 Henry IV. act ii. sc. 2 (1598).

therefore.jpg Tennyson deviates in this, as he does in so many other instances, from the old romance. The History says that King Arthur made Dagonet knight "with his own hands," because he "loved him passing well;" but Tennyson says that Sir Gawain made him "a mock-knight of the Round Table."—The Last Tournament, 1.

Daisy Miller. Mrs. Miller, nouvelle riche and in true American subjection to her children, is travelling abroad. Her only daughter is pretty, unconventional, and so bent upon having "a good time" that she falls under the most degrading suspicions. The climax of flirtation and escapade is a midnight expedition to the Colosseum, where she contracts Roman fever and dies.—Henry James, Jr., Daisy Miller (1878).

Dal'dah, Mahomet's favorite white mule.

Dales (The), a family in Ashurst, where is laid the scene of John Ward, Preacher: By Margaret Deland. The wife is prim and dictatorial, a pattern housewife, with decided views upon all subjects, including religion and matrimony. The husband wears a cashmere dressing-gown, and spreads a red handkerchief over his white hair to protect his white head from draughts; reads "A Sentimental Journey;" looks at his wife before expressing an opinion, and makes an excellent fourth at whist (1888).

Dalga, a Lombard harlot, who tries to seduce young Goltho, but Goltho is saved by his friend Ulfinore.—Sir W. Davenant, Gondibert (died 1668).

Dalgarno (Lord Malcolm of), a profligate young nobleman, son of the earl of Huntinglen (an old Scotch noble family). Nigel strikes Dalgarno with his sword, and is obliged to seek refuge in "Alsatia." Lord Dalgarno's villainy to the Lady Hermïonê excites the displeasure of King James, and he would have been banished if he had not married her. After this, Lord Dalgarno carries off the wife of John Christie, the ship-owner, and is shot by Captain Colepepper, the Alsatian bully.—Sir W. Scott, Fortunes of Nigel (time, James I.).

Dalgetty (Dugald,) of Drumthwacket, the union of the soldado with the pedantic student of Mareschal College. As a soldier of fortune, he is retained in the service of the Earl of Monteith. The Marquis of Argyll (leader of the parliamentary army) tried to tamper with him in prison, but Dugald siezed him, threw him down, and then made his escape, locking the marquis in the dungeon. After the battle, Captain Dalgetty was knighted. This "Ritt-master" is a pedant, very conceited, full of vulgar assurance, with a good stock of worldly knowledge, a student of divinity, and a soldier who lets his sword out to the highest bidder. The character is original and well drawn.—Sir W. Scott, Legend of Montrose (time, Charles I.).

The original of this character was Munro, who wrote an account of the campaigns of that band of Scotch and English auxiliaries in the island of Swinemünde, in 1630. Munro was himself one of the band. Dugald Dalgetty is one of the best of Scott's characters.

Dalton (Mrs.), housekeeper to the Rev. Mr. Staunton, of Willingham Rectory.—Sir W. Scott, Heart of Midlothian (time, George II.).

Dalton (Beginald), the hero of a novel so called, by J. C. Lockhart (1832).

Dalzell (General Thomas), in the royal army of Charles II.—Sir W. Scott, Old Mortality (1816).

Dame du Lac, Vivienne le Fay. The lake was "en la marche de la petite Bretaigne;" "en ce lieu ... avoit la dame moult de belles maisons et moult riches."

Dame du Lac, Sebille (2 syl.). Her castle was surrounded by a river on which rested so thick a fog that no eye could see across it. Alexander the Great abode a fortnight with this fay, to be cured of his wounds, and King Arthur was the result of their amour. (This is not in accordance with the general legends of this noted hero. See ARTHUR.)—Perceforest, i. 42.

Dam'ian, a squire attending on the Grand-Master of the Knights Templars.—Sir W. Scott, Ivanhoe (time, Richard I.).

Damiot'ti (Dr. Baptisti), a Paduan quack, who exhibits "the enchanted mirror" to Lady Forester and Lady Bothwell. They see therein the clandestine marriage and infidelity of Sir Philip Forester.—Sir W. Scott, Aunt Margaret's Mirror (time, William III.). Damis [Dah.me], son of Orgon and Elmire (2 syl.), impetuous and self-willed.—Molière, Tartuffe (1664).

Damn with Faint Praise.