By the influence of his talents, he gradually rose to great reputation; and, during the administration of the duke of Portland, he obtained a silk gown. In 1784, he was chosen a member of the Irish house of commons. His abilities now displayed themselves to advantage, and he became the most popular advocate of his age and country. During the distracted state of Ireland, towards the close of the last century, it was often his lot to defend persons accused of political offences, when Mr. Fitzgibbon (afterwards lord Clare), then attorney-general, was his opponent. The professional rivalry of these gentlemen degenerated into personal rancor, which at length occasioned a duel, the result of which was not fatal to either party. On a change of ministry during the vice-royalty of the duke of Bedford, Mr. Curran's patriotism was rewarded with the office of master of the rolls. This situation he held till 1814, when he resigned it, and obtained a pension of £3000 a year. With this he retired to England, and resided chiefly in the neighborhood of London. He died in consequence of a paralytic attack, at Brompton, Nov. 13, 1817, at the age of 67.-Curran possessed talents of the highest order: his wit, his drollery, his eloquence, his pathos, were irresistible; and the splendid and daring style of his oratory formed a striking contrast with his personal appearance, which was mean and diminutive. As a companion, he could be extremely agreeable; and his conversation was often highly fascinating. In his domestic relations, he was very unfortunate; and he seems to have laid himself open to censure. The infidelity of his wife, which was established by a legal verdict, is said to have been a subject on which he chose to display his wit, in a manner that betrayed a strange insensibility to one of the sharpest miseries which a man can suffer. Mr. Curran appears never to have committed any thing to the press, but he is said to have produced some poetical pieces of considerable merit. A collection of his forensic speeches was published in 1805 (1 vol. 8vo.). Memoirs of his life have been published by his son, by Mr. Charles Phillips, and by Mr. O'Re

gan.

CURRANTS. Red currants, black currants and gooseberries are the fruit of well known shrubs, which are cultivated in gardens, and which also grow wild, in woods or thickets, in various parts of Europe and America. The utility of all these fruits in domestic economy has long been established. The juice of the red species,

if boiled with an equal weight of loaf sugar, forms an agreeable substance, called currant jelly, which is much employed in sauces and for other culinary purposes, and also in the cure of sore throats and colds. The French frequently mix it with sugar and water, and thus form an agreeable beverage. The juice of currants is a valuable remedy in obstructions of the bowels; and, in febrile complaints, it is useful, on account of its readily quenching thirst, and for its cooling effect on the stomach. This juice, fermented with a proper quantity of sugar, becomes a palatable wine, which is much improved by keeping, and which, with care, may be kept for 20 years. The inner bark of all the species, boiled with water, is a popular remedy in jaundice, and, by some medical men, has been administered in dropsical complaints. White and flesh-colored currants have, in every respect, the same qualities as the red species. The berries of the black currant are larger than those of the red, and, in some parts of Siberia, are even said to attain the size of a hazel-nut. They are occasionally made into wine, jelly, rob, or sirup. The two latter are frequently employed in the cure of sore throats; and, from the great use of black currants in quinsies, they have sometimes been denominated squinancy, or quinsy berries. The leaves are fragrant, and have been recommended for their medicinal virtues. An infusion of them in the manner of tea is very grateful, and, by many persons, is preferred to tea. The tender leaves tinge common spirits so as to resemble brandy; and an infusion of the young roots is useful in fevers of the eruptive kind. The dried currants of the shops do not belong to this family, but are a small kind of grape. None of these fruits are so much esteemed for the table as gooseberries. For culinary purposes, gooseberries are generally employed before they are ripe; but this is founded on erroneous notions of their chemical properties, since, either for sauces or wine, though they are more cool and refreshing, they do not possess the delicate flavor and rich saccharine qualities which belong to the ripe fruit. Wine made of gooseberries has great resemblance to Champagne. The skins of the fruit, after the juice has been expressed, afford, by distillation, a spirit somewhat resembling brandy. Vinegar may be made from gooseberries. Some of the kinds are bottled while green, and kept for winter use; and others are, for the same purpose, preserved with sugar.

Gooseberries vary much in color, size and quality. Some are smooth, and others hairy. Some are red, others green, and others yellow or amber-colored. Wild gooseberries are greatly inferior in size to those which are cultivated in gardens. CURRENCY. (See Circulating Medium.) CURRENTS, in the ocean, are continual movements of its waters in a particular direction. In lat. 39° N., lon. 13° 40′ W., we begin to feel the effects of the current which flows from the Azores to the straits of Gibraltar and the Canaries. Between the tropics, from Senegal to the Caribbean sea, the general current, and that longest known, flows from east to west. Its average rapidity is from 9 to 10 nautical miles in 42 hours. It is this current which is known by the name of equatorial current. It appears to be caused by the impulse which the trade-winds give to the surface of the water. In the channel which the Atlantic has hollowed between Guiana and Guinea, under the meridian of 18° or 21° W., from 8° or 9° to 2° or 3° N. lat., where the trade-winds are often interrupted by winds which blow from the south and south-west, the equatorial current is less uniform in its direction. Near the coast of Africa, vessels are often drawn to the south-east, whilst, near the bay of All Saints and cape St. Augustine, upon the coast of America, the general direction of the waters is interrupted by a particular current, the effects of which extend from cape St. Roche to Trinity island. It flows towards the northwest, at the rate of one foot, or one foot five inches, a second. The equatorial current is felt, although slightly, even beyond the tropic, in latitude 28° north. In the basin of the Atlantic ocean, 6 or 700 leagues from the coast of Africa, vessels, whose course is from Europe to the West Indies, find their progress accelerated before they arrive at the torrid zone. Farther north, between the parallels of Teneriffe and Ceuta, in longitude 44° to 46° W., no uniform motion is observed. A zone of 140 leagues separates the equatorial current from that great mass of water flowing to the east, which is distinguished by its elevated temperature, and of which we shall now speak particularly. The equatorial current impels the waters of the Atlantic ocean towards the Musquito shore and the coast of Honduras, in the Caribbean sea. The new continent opposes this current; the waters flow to the north-west, and, passing into the gulf of Mexico, by the strait which is formed by cape Catoche (Yucatan) and cape St. An

toine (Cuba), they follow the windings of the American coast to the shallows west of the southern extremity of Florida. Then the current turns again to the north, flowing into the Bahama channel. In the month of May, 1804, A. von Humboldt observed in it a rapidity of 5 feet a second, although the north wind blew violently. Under the parallel of cape Canaveral, the current flows to the north-east. Its rapidity is then sometimes five nautical miles an hour. This current, called the gulf stream, is known by the elevated temperature of its waters, by their great saltness, by their indigo-blue color, by the train of sea-weed which covers their surface, and by the heat of the surrounding atmosphere, which is very perceptible in winter. Its rapidity diminishes towards the north, at the same time that its breadth increases. Near the Bahama bank, the breadth is 15 leagues; in lat. 28° 30′ N. it is 17 leagues, and, under the parallel of Charleston, from 40 to 50 leagues. To the east of the port of Boston, and under the meridian of Halifax, the current is almost 80 marine leagues in breadth. There it turns suddenly to the east, and grazes the southern extremity of the great bank of Newfoundland. The waters of this bank have a temperature of from 8° 7 to 10° centigrade (7° to 8° R., 16° to 18° Fahr.), which offers a striking contrast to the waters of the torrid zone, impelled to the north by the gulf stream, and the temperature of which is from 21° to 22° 5 (17° to 18° R., 38° to 40° Fahr.). The waters of the bank are 16° 9′ Fahr. colder than those of the neighboring ocean, and these are 5° 4′ Fahr. colder than those of the current. They cannot be equalised, because each has a cause of heat or cold which is peculiar to it, and of which the influence is permanent. From the bank of Newfoundland to the Azores, the gulf stream flows to the E. or E. S. E. The waters still preserve there a part of the impulse received in the strait of Florida. Under the meridian of the islands of Corvo and Flores, the current has a breadth of 160 leagues. In lat. 33°, the equatorial current approaches very near the gulf stream. From the Azores, the current flows towards Gibraltar, the island of Madeira and the Canaries. South of that island, the current flows to the S. E. and S. S. E., towards the coast of Africa. In lat. 25° and 26°, the current flows first S., then S. W. Cape Blanc appears to influence this direction, and in its latitude the waters mingle with the great current of the tropics. Blagden, Benjamin Franklin and Jonathan Williams first made

known the elevated temperature of the gulf stream, and the coldness of the shallows, where the lower strata unite with the upper, upon the borders or edges of the bank. A. von Humboldt collected much information, to enable him to trace, upon his chart of the Atlantic ocean, the course of this current. The gulf stream changes its place and direction according to the season. Its force and its direction are modified, in high latitudes, by the variable winds of the temperate zone, and the collection of ice at the north pole. A drop of water of the current would take 2 years and 10 months, to return to the place from which it should depart. A boat, not acted on by the wind, would go from the Canaries to the coast of Caracas in 13 months; in 10 months, would make the tour of the gulf of Mexico; and, in 40 or 50 days, would go from Florida to the bank of Newfoundland. The gulf stream furnished to Christopher Columbus indications of the existence of land to the west. This current had carried upon the Azores the bodies of two men of an unknown race, and pieces of bamboo of enormous size. In lat. 45° or 50°, near Bonnet Flamand, an arm of the gulf stream flows from the S. W. to the N. E., towards the coast of Europe. It deposits upon the coasts of Ireland and Norway trees and fruits belonging to the torrid zone. Remains of a vessel (the Tilbury), burnt at Jamaica, were found on the coast of Scotland. It is likewise this river of the Atlantic, which annually throws the fruits of the West Indies upon the shore of Norway.—The causes of currents are very numerous. The waters may be put in motion by an external impulse, by a difference of heat and saltness, by the inequality of evaporation in different latitudes, and by the change in the pressure at different points of the surface of the ocean. The existence of cold strata, which have been met with at great depths in low latitudes, proves the existence of a lower current, which runs from the pole to the equator. It proves, likewise, that saline substances are distributed in the ocean, in a manner not to destroy the effect produced by different temperatures. The polar currents, in the two hemispheres, tend to the east, probably on account of the uniformity of west winds in high latitudes. It is very probable that there may be, in some places, a double local current; the one above, near the surface of the water, the other at the bottom. Several facts seem to confirm this hypothesis, which was first proved by the celebrated

At

Halley. In the West Indian seas, there are some places where a vessel may moor herself in the midst of a current by dropping a cable, with a sounding lead attached, to a certain known depth. that depth, there must, unquestionably, be a current contrary to the one at the surface of the water. Similar circumstances have been observed in the Sound. There is reason to believe, that the Mediterranean discharges its waters by an inferior or concealed current. Such a mass of ocean water, flowing constantly from the torrid zone towards the northern pole, and, at any given latitude, heated many degrees above the temperature of the adjacent ocean, must exert great influence on the atmosphere. An interesting table, in Darby's View of the U. States, Philadelphia, 1828 (page 364), shows this influence in a striking way. (See Malte-Brun's Geography, vol. i, and Humboldt's Personal Narrative.)

CURRYING is the art of dressing cowhides, calves'-skins, seal-skins, &c., principally for shoes; and this is done either upon the flesh or the grain. In dressing leather for shoes upon the flesh, the first operation is soaking the leather in water until it is thoroughly wet; then the flesh side is shaved on a beam about seven or eight inches broad, with a knife of a peculiar construction, to a proper substance, according to the custom of the country and the uses to which it is to be applied. This is one of the most curious and laborious operations in the whole business of currying. The knife used for this purpose is of a rectangular form, with two handles, one at each end, and a double edge. After the leather is properly shaved, it is thrown into the water again, and scoured upon a board or stone commonly appropriated to that use. Scouring is performed by rubbing the grain or hair side with a piece of pumice stone, or with some other stone of a good grit. These stones force out of the leather a white substance, called the bloom, produced by the oak bark in tanning. The hide or skin is then conveyed to the shade or drying place, where the oily substances are applied, termed stuffing or dubbing. When it is thoroughly dry, an instrument, with teeth on the under side, called a grainingboard, is first applied to the flesh-side, which is called graining; then to the grain-side, called bruising. The whole of this operation is intended to soften the leather to which it is applied. Whitening, or paring, succeeds, which is performed with a fine edge to the knife

already described, and used in taking off the grease from the flesh. It is then boarded up, or grained again, by applying the graining-board first to the grain, and then to the flesh. It is now fit for waxing, which is performed first by coloring. This is effected by rubbing, with a brush dipped in a composition of oil and lampblack, on the flesh, till it be thoroughly black: it is then sized, called black-sizing, with a brush or sponge, dried and tallowed; and, when dry, this sort of leather, called waxed, or black on the flesh, is curried. The currying leather on the hair or grain side, called black on the grain, is the same with currying on the flesh, until we come to the operation of scouring. Then the first black is applied to it while wet; which black is a solution of the sulphate of iron called copperas, in fair water, or in the water in which the skins, as they come from the tanner, have been soaked. This is first put upon the grain after it has been rubbed with a stone; then rubbed over with a brush dipped in stale urine; the skin is then stuffed, and, when dry, it is seasoned, that is, rubbed over with a brush dipped in copperas water, on the grain, till it is perfectly black. After this, the grain is raised with a fine graining-board. When it is thoroughly dry, it is whitened, bruised again, and grained in two or three different ways, and, when oiled upon the grain, with a mixture of oil and tallow, it is finished.

CURRY-POWDER. (See Turmeric.)

rum,

CURTIUS, Marcus; a noble Roman youth, known by the heroic manner in which, according to tradition, he sacrificed himself for the good of his country. In the year of Rome 392 (B. C. 362), it is said, a chasm opened in the Roman fofrom which issued pestilential vapors. The oracle declared that the chasm would close whenever that which constituted the glory of Rome should be thrown into it. Curtius asked if any thing in Rome was more precious than arms and valor; and, being answered in the negative, he arrayed himself in armor, mounted a horse splendidly equipped, solemnly devoted himself to death, in presence of the Roman people, and sprang into the abyss, which instantly closed over him.

CURTIUS RUFUS, Quintus, the author of a History of Alexander the Great, in ten books, the two first of which are lost, has been supposed to be the son of a gladiator. He recommended himself by his knowledge to Tiberius, and, during his reign, received the pretorship; under Claudius, the consulship, also the emperor's

VOL. IV.

consent to celebrate a triumph, and finally the proconsulship of Africa. He died in Africa, A. D. 69, at an advanced age. We should have had more complete accounts concerning him, if the first books of his work had been preserved. Curtius deserves no great praise as a historian. His style is florid, and his narratives have more of romance than of historical certainty. The lost parts have been supplied by Christopher Bruno, a Bavarian monk, in a short and dry manner; by Freinshemius, in a diffuse style; and by Christopher Cellarius, in a style which forms a medium between the two. The best edition is by Snakenburg (Leyden, 1724, 4to.). Among the new editions are that by Schmieder (Göttingen, 1814). Buttmann, Hirt, and Niebuhr (the Roman historian), have written treatises on his life. The last named gentleman read, in 1821, before the academy of Berlin, a disquisition on the period of Curtius-a performance distinguished for critical acumen and erudition. Niebuhr thinks that the work was written under Severus, and not under Vespasian. The essay is to be found in his Kleine historische und philologische Schriften, erste Sammlung (Bonn, 1828).

CURVES (from the Latin curvus, crooked, bent), in geometry. The simplest objects are the most difficult to be defined, and mathematicians have never succeeded in giving a definition, satisfactory to themselves, of a line. It is equally difficult to give a satisfactory definition of a curve. Perhaps the simplest explanation of it is, a line which is not a straight line, nor made up of straight lines. This definition, however, is deficient in mathematical precision. Since Descartes' application of algebra to geometry, the theory of the curves has received a considerable extension. The study of the curves known to the ancients has become much easier, and new ones have been investigated. Curves form, at present, one of the most interesting and most important subjects of geometry. Such as have not all their parts in the same plane, are called curves of a double curvature. The simplest of all curves is the circle. The spiral of Archimedes, the conchoid of Nicomedes, the cissoid of Diocles, the quadratrix of Dinostratus, &c., are celebrated curves.

Cusco, or Cuzco; a city of Peru, capital of an intendency of the same name, the ancient capital of the Peruvian empire; 550 miles E. S. E. Lima; lon. 71° 4 W.; lat. 13° 42′ S.; population stated from 20 to 32,000. It is a bishop's see. It was founded, according to tradition, in

1043, by Manco Capac, the first inca of Peru, on a rough and unequal plain, formed by the skirts of various mountains, which are washed by the small river Guatanay. The wall was of an extraordinary height, and built of stone, with astonishing neatness. The Spaniards, in 1534, found the houses built of stone; among them a temple of the sun, and a great number of magnificent palaces, whose principal ornaments were of gold and silver, which glittered on the walls. Cusco is, at present, a large city: the houses are built of stone, and covered with red tiles; the apartments are well distributed; the mouldings of the doors are gilt, and the furniture not less magnificent. The cathedral church is large, built of stone, and of an elegant and noble architecture. About three fourths of the inhabitants are Indians. CUSHING, Thomas, was born at Boston, in 1725, and finished his education at the college of Cambridge (New England), in 1744. Both his grandfather and father had spent a considerable portion of their lives in the public service, the latter having been, for several years previous to his death, speaker of the house of representatives in Massachusetts. He engaged early in political life, and was sent, by the city of Boston, as its representative to the general court, where he displayed such qualifications for the despatch of business, that, when governor Bernard, in 1763, negatived James Otis, the father, as speaker, he was chosen in his place, and continued in the station for many consecutive years. Whilst he was in the chair, he had frequent opportunities of evincing his patriotism and aversion to the arbitrary course of the English government; and, as his name was signed to all the public documents, in consequence of his office, he acquired great celebrity, and was generally supposed to exert a much greater influence in affairs than he actually did. This circumstance led doctor Johnson, in his pamphlet Taxation no Tyranny, to make this foolish remark-“One object of the Americans is said to be, to adorn the brows of Mr. Cushing with a diadem." Though decidedly patriotic in his principles, Mr. Cushing was moderate and conciliatory in his conduct, by which he was enabled to effect a great deal of good as a mediator between the two contending parties. He was an active and efficient member of the two first continental congresses, and, on his return to his state, was chosen a member of the council. He was also appointed judge of the courts of common pleas and of probate in the

county of Suffolk, which stations he occupied until the present constitution was adopted, when he was elected lieutenantgovernor of the state, and continued so until his death, which took place Feb. 19, 1788, in the 63d year of his age, in consequence of gout.

CUSTINE, Adam Philip, count of, born at Metz, 1740, served as captain in the seven years' war. (q. v.) Through the influence of the duke of Choiseul, he obtained, in 1762, a regiment of dragoons, which was called by his name. In 1780, he exchanged this for the regiment of Saintonge, which was on the point of going to America, to the aid of the North American colonies. On his return, he was appointed maréchal de camp. In 1789, he was deputy of the nobility of Metz, and was one of the first who declared for the popular party. He subsequently entered the army of the North, and, in May, 1792, made himself master of the pass of Porentruy. In June, he received the command of the army of the Lower Rhine, and opened the campaign by taking possession of Spire, Sept. 29. Meeting with feeble opposition, he took Worms, and, Oct. 21, the fortress of Mentz capitulated. On the 23d, he took possession of Frankfort on the Maine, on which he laid heavy contributions. Thence, escaping the pursuit of the Prussians, he threw himself into Mentz, which he caused to be fortified. With the opening of the campaign of 1793, he left Mentz, which the allies were besieging, and retired to Alsace. He was now denounced, and, in April, received his dismission; but the convention, in May, invested him with the command of the northern army. But he had hardly time to visit the posts. Marat and Varennes were unceasing in their accusations against him, and at last prevailed on the committee of safety to recall him to Paris. The revolutionary tribunal began his trial Aug. 15. He made a spirited defence; but his death was determined upon. He was condemned Aug. 27, and guillotined on the 28th.

CUSTOMS. (See Revenue.)

CUSTOS ROTULORUM; an officer, in England, who has the custody of the rolls and records of the sessions of the peace, and also of the commission of the peace itself. He is usually a nobleman, and always a justice of the peace, of the quorum in the county where he is appointed. He may execute his office by a deputy, and is empowered to appoint the clerk of the peace; but he is prohibited from selling his office under divers penalties.