bestowed on him the first professorship of astronomy at the university. A meridian had been drawn by Ignatio Dante (1575), in the church of St. Petronia, in that city. In 1653, Cassini conceived the idea of extending and correcting it. In two years he completed this difficult task, the first fruits of which were more correct tables of the sun, a more precise determination of its parallax, and an excellent table of refractions. By an observation at Città della Piave, he discovered the shadows cast by the satellites of Jupiter on the disk of that planet, when they are between it and the sun. By means of these, he corrected his theory of the motion of the satellites, and determined the period of Jupiter's revolution. At the same time, he made a number of observations on insects, which were published by Aldrovandi. In 1668, he published his Ephemerides of the Satellites of JupiIn 1673, Colbert prevailed on him to settle in France. He discovered four new satellites of Saturn, and the zodiacal light, proved that the axis of the moon is not perpendicular to the plane of the ecliptic, and showed the causes of her libration. The laws of this motion, which he determined with much accuracy, are one of his finest discoveries. He also

ter.

wrote observations on the Indian calendar. The meridian commenced by Picard and Lahire was continued by Cassini, in 1700, to the extreme limits of Roussillon, and, when measured 100 years later, showed a difference of only 21 toises. He died Sept. 14, 1712, having lost his sight some years before. Lalande gives a catalogue of his writings in the Bibl. Astronom. His first work was Observ. Cometa, Anni 1652-53 (Modena, 1653, fol.). His Opp. Astronom. (Rome, 1666) contain a complete collection of his earlier works. His nephew, Cassini de Thury, has published his biography, written by Cassini himself, under the title Mémoires pour servir à l'Hist. des Sciences (4to.)-2. James, son of the preceding, born at Paris, Feb. 18, 1677, was admitted into the academy of sciences in 1694. After several essays on subjects in natural philosophy, &c. he completed his great work on the inclinations of the orbits of Saturn's satellites and ring. His labors to determine the figure of the earth (q. v.) are well known. The first measurement of 1669 made the degrees of the meridian shorter towards the north than towards the south; whence it was concluded that the earth was an oblong spheroid. Cassini continued the measure

ment, and maintained this opinion in his work De la Grandeur et de la Figure de la Terre (Paris, 1720). In order to settle the question, the academy was commissioned, in 1733, to measure the whole length of France from Brest to Strasburg. Cassini directed this undertaking, but was led into some errors by the defective instruments of former observers. He died in 1756, at Thury. Besides the above-mentioned works, he wrote Elemens d'Astronomie (Paris, 1740, 4to.), and Tables Astr. His eloge in the Mém. de l'Acad. contains a biographical notice of him.-3. Cassini de Thury, Cæsar François, son of the preceding, born June 14, 1714, member of the academy from his 22d year. He undertook a geometrical survey of the whole of France, embracing the determination of the distance of every place from the meridian of Paris, and from the perpendicular of that meridian. When the support of the government was withdrawn, in 1756, Cassini formed a society for advancing the requisite sums, which were to be repaid by the sale of the maps constructed from the survey. The work was almost entirely finished, when he died (1784), leaving many writings relating to his great topographical undertaking.-4. Jacques Dominique, count, son of the preceding, born at Paris, 1740, is director of the observatory, and member of the academy, and is a statesman of ability, as well as a mathematician. In 1789, he presented to the national assembly the Carte Topographique de France, in 180 sheets, now increased to 182, by the addition of the Carte des Assemblages des Triangles. The Atlas Nationale is a reduction of it on a scale of one third, prepared by Dumey, and other engineers. Cassini was arrested by order of the revolutionary tribunal. He escaped with life, but lost the copperplates of the Carte de France, which had cost half a million francs. There is a second reduction of the large map, being only a fourth of the size of the original, in 24 plates.

CASSINO; a game at cards, in which four are dealt to each player, four being also placed on the board. The object is to take as many cards as possible, by making combinations. Thus a ten in the player's hand will take a ten from the board, or any number of cards which can be made to combine into tens. The greatest number of cards reckons three points, and of spades, one; the ten of diamonds, two; the two of spades, one; and each of the aces, one.

CASSIODORUS, Marcus Aurelius, a

learned Roman, lived at the time of the dominion of the Ostrogoths, and contributed to the promotion and preservation of learning. He was born at Squillace (Scylaceum), 480 A. D., or, as some say, 470, filled several public offices in Rome, and became secretary of the Ostrogoth king Theodoric, but, in 537, voluntarily retired to a monastery in Calabria, where he died, 577. He made the monks of his convent copy the manuscripts of the ancient authors, and his book De Septem Disciplinis liberalibus, in which he treated of the trivium and quadrivium, and inserted extracts from the ancient classic literature, was of much value in the middle ages. For Theodoric he also wrote his compilation of letters, Variarum Epistolarum Libri XII. He likewise composed Historia Gothorum (a History of the Goths), of which we have an epitome by Jornandes, and several theological works of little importance. His works have been collected by J. Caret (Venice, 1679, fol.; new edit. 1721).

CASSIOPEIA; daughter of Arabus, and wife of Cepheus, to whom she bore Andromeda. She dared to compare her beauty to that of the Nereides, who, enraged thereat, besought Neptune for vengeance. The god, in compliance with the request of the water-nymphs, laid waste the dominions of Cepheus by means of a deluge and a dreadful seamonster. Thus it appears that in ancient times, as well as in modern, nations have had to suffer for the faults of their masters. Cassiopeia was the mother of Atymnius by an intrigue with Jupiter.-In astronomy, Cassiopeia is a conspicuous constellation in the northern hemisphere, situated next to Cepheus. In 1572, a new and brilliant star appeared in it, which, however, after a short time, gradually diminished, and at last disappeared entirely. It was thought, at that time, by many persons, that this was the star which appeared to the wise men in the East. The constellation Cassiopeia contains 52 stars of the first six magnitudes. CASSIQUIARI; a river of Colombia, being a large branch of the Rio Negro, and remarkable as forming a communication between the two great rivers, the Amazon and Orinoco. The Cassiquiari flows from the Orinoco, and joins the Rio Ne gro, which last is a large tributary of the Amazon. The reality of this communication, which had been previously asserted by the Jesuit missionaries, was confirmed by the celebrated traveller Humboldt.

CASSITERIDES, in ancient geography; a name given by Strabo to 10 islands, N. W. of Spain, in the open ocean, abounding in tin and lead. Strabo says the Phoenicians only visited them. There are no islands where he describes them to have been. They are, perhaps, the modern Scilly islands. It is probable that the ancient merchants kept their true situation secret from interested views, which, in those times, could easily be done.

CASSIUS, Longinus Caius, the friend of Brutus, was the questor of Crassus, and preserved the few troops of that general who escaped from the bloody battle with the Parthians. With these he defended Syria against the Parthians till the arrival of Bibulus. In the famous civil war that broke out between Pompey and Cæsar, he espoused the cause of the former, and, as commander of his naval forces, rendered him important services. When Cæsar, after the victory at Pharsalia, was in pursuit of Pompey, he advanced with a few vessels, while crossing the Hellespont, against a fleet of 70 sail commanded by Cassius, and called upon him to surrender. The latter, astonished by his daring courage, surrendered at his summons. But, when it became evident that Cæsar was aiming at sole sovereignty, Cassius, who was a zealous republican, resolved to destroy the usurper, and executed his plan, with the aid of several fellow-conspirators, B. C. 44. He then, together with Brutus, raised an army to maintain his country's freedom. They were met by Octavius and Antony, who professed themselves the avengers of Cæsar, at Philippi. The wing which Cassius commanded being defeated, he imagined that all was lost, and killed himself, B. C. 42. Brutus called him the last of the Romans. (See Brutus and Cæsar.)

CASSOWARY (casuarius, Briss.); a genus of birds, arranged by Cuvier in his family brevipennes, the first of the order gralle, waders, to which they are related solely by their long, naked, stilt-like legs, and long neck. In the form of the bill and their mode of living, they more closely resemble the gallinaceous birds. The shortness of their wings totally unfits them for flying, and it would seem impossible for nature to have furnished muscular power sufficient to move wings large enough to sustain their great weight in the air. Unlike other birds, their pectoral or wing muscles are comparatively slight and weak, while those of their posterior limbs are very robust and powerful.

The wings of the ostrich are of some assistance to it in running, but those of the cassowary are too short even to be of service in this way. Indeed, its whole plumage is so poorly supplied with feathers as to resemble, at a little distance, a coat of coarse or hanging hair. The cassowaries have three toes, all provided with nails. Two species of the genus are well known, the common cassowary (casuarius, B.; struthio casuarius, L.), inhabiting various islands of the Indian archipelago; and the emeu (C. Nova Hollandia), or New Holland cassowary. The first species, called galeated or helmeted cassowary, has a laterally compressed beak, with a head surmounted by an osseous prominence, covered with a sort of horny helmet; the skin of the head and superior part of the neck is naked, of a deep-blue and fiery-red tint, with pendent caruncles, similar to those of the turkey-cock. There are some naked, rigid quills on the wings, which are used as weapons of defence. The inner toenail is the largest of all. The ostrich is the only bird which surpasses the cassowary in size and strength. From the form of its head, and bright eyes, the cassowary is of a fierce and threatening aspect. This, however, is not a true indication of its character, which is rather timorous and shy. It is about 5 feet long, from the tip of the bill to the extremity of the longest claw. The head and neck together measure 18 inches, and the largest toe, including the claw, is 5 inches long. The claw of the inner toe is 3 inches long. All the feathers of the cassowary are of the same kind, being entirely designed for covering, and externally are all of one color. They generally grow double, having two long shafts growing out of a short one attached to the skin. The double feathers are all of unequal length, some on the rump being 12 or 14 inches long, while others are only 3. The stem or shaft is flat, shining, black, and knotted below, having a beard arising from each knot. The beards at the ends of the large feathers are perfectly black, and towards the root of a tawny gray. The feathers on the head and neck are so short and scattered, that the skin appears naked, except towards the hind part of the head, where they are somewhat longer. The wings, without the feathers, are not more than 3 inches long. The rigid quills or prickles already mentioned are 5; the longest is 11 inches in length and a quarter of an inch thick at the base. The helmet is black in front and yellow

behind. The eye is of a bright yellow, and more than an inch in diameter.-The anatomy of the cassowary differs very materially from that of the ostrich, which it resembles so much in general appearance and habits. The intestines are short, and the cœcum small; there is no stomach intermediate to the crop and gizzard, and the cloaca is not larger, in proportion, than that of other birds. It feeds on fruits, eggs of birds, &c., but never on grain. It swallows its food with great voracity, and, like the ostrich, bolts down bits of iron, broken brick, glass, &c., without injury. In fact, such substances perform the service, in the digestion of these great birds, that gravel does in that of ordinary fowls.-As might be inferred from its structure, the cassowary is a swift runner, and its mode of progression, being unaided by wings, is as peculiar as it is efficient. In running, the cassowary appears to strike out powerfully with one leg, so as to project its body violently forward with a bounding motion, far surpassing the speed of a horse. It also kicks violently when, in a state of captivity, it is provoked to anger, and can inflict a very severe blow. The eggs of the galeated cassowary are of a grayish-ash color, verging to green, and are neither as round nor as large as those of the ostrich. The shell is not very thick, and is marked by numerous little deep-green tubercles. The largest of their eggs measure about 15 inches in length and 12 round.—The emeu, or New Holland cassowary, differs from that of the old world by being much larger, and standing higher on its legs, being 7 feet 2 inches in length. The head is destitute of the helmet, and feathered throughout, except around the ear. The plumage is thicker, and the webs of the feathers more perfect. It has neither caruncles to the neck nor prickles on the wings. The nails of the toes are nearly equal. The legs are stout, similar to those of the galeated species, but jagged or dentated along the whole of their back part. The emeu is swifter in running than the fleetest gray-hound. It has not yet been found any where but in New Holland. The flesh has a considerable resemblance to beef. The young of the New Holland cassowary are striped with white and brown.

CAST. (See Casting.)

CAST ENGRAVINGS. An important discovery has lately been made, which consists in taking moulds from every kind of engraving, whether line, mezzotinto, or aquatinta, and in pouring on this mould an

alloy in a state of fusion, capable of taking, as it is stated, the finest impression. No sooner is one cast worn out, than another may immediately be procured from the original plate, so that every impression may be a proof.

ČASTAGNO, Andrea del, an eminent painter, was born at the village of Castagno, in Tuscany, in 1409. Being deprived, when young, of his parents, who were extremely poor, he was employed by his uncle to attend the cattle in the fields, and, in that situation, by his surprising and untutored essays in the art, attracted the notice of Bernardetto de Medici, who placed him under the tuition of one of the best masters Florence then afforded. At first, he painted only in distemper and fresco, and was in high reputation when Domenico Venetiano visited Florence, who had learned, from Antonello da Messina, the new method of painting in oil and varnish, till then unknown in Tuscany. The splendor of this new mode of coloring was very much admired, and, by a pretended friendship for Domenico, Castagno obtained his secret from him; but, not satisfied with this, he desired to be the sole possessor, and determined to murder his friend and benefactor. This he effected without any suspicion, and continued to practise his ill-acquired art with great success. The real author of this atrocious act was never discovered until Andrea made a full confession of his guilt, shortly before his death, which happened in 1480. The best of his remaining works are at Florence, in the church of St. Lucia de Magnuoli, and in the monastery degli Angeli. The latter contains a crucifixion, by him, painted on a wall.

CASTANETS; small wooden rattles, made in the shape of two bowls or cups, fitted together, and tied by a string, and then fastened to the thumbs. The fingers being rapidly struck upon them, a tremulous sound is produced, which marks exactly the measure of the dance. Something similar to this was the crotalon of the ancients, who also made use of small cymbals in their dances and festivals in honor of Bacchus. It is probable, however, that they had their origin in the East, and were brought by the Moors into Spain. Here, too, they received their name castanuelas, from being commonly made of the wood of the chestnut (castano), or from their color. They are still in use in Spain, and here and there in the south of France. The charm of variety has also procured for them a place in bal

lets and operas, as, for example, in John of Paris.

CASTAÑOS, don Francisco de, a Spanish general, born 1743, compelled the French general Dupont de l'Etang to lay down his arms, July 20, 1808, in the Sierra Morena, and concluded with him the important capitulation of Baylen. He is descended from a distinguished family in Biscay, and was a pupil of the celebrated general count O'Reilly, whom he accompanied to Germany, where he studied tactics in the school of the great Frederic. In 1794, he served as colonel in the army of Navarre, under Caro. In 1798, he was made lieutenant-general, and soon after was banished, with many other officers, for enmity to the prince of peace. On the invasion of the French, he received, in 1808, the command of a division of the army, on the frontiers of Andalusia, towards which Dupont was preparing to advance his forces. With 9000 regular troops, and about 30,000 militia, he defeated general Dupont. (See Baylen.) He lost, however, a battle at Tudela (November, 1808). In 1811, the regency appointed him commander-inchief of the fourth Spanish army, and governor of several provinces. He was now the companion in arms of the duke of Wellington, and displayed great military talent in the battle of Vittoria, which was, in part, won by his bravery and the valor of his troops. The regency deprived him of his command, and appointed him counsellor of state. He wrote to the minister of war, "I have the satisfaction of delivering up to field-marshal Freyre, on the frontiers of France, the command which I received before Lisbon, in 1811.” On the return of Ferdinand, he was made captain-general of Catalonia, and had several orders conferred on him. In 1815, he commanded the army that was to invade France. In 1816, he resigned his commission. In 1824, he succeeded in defending himself from the charge of constitutional sentiments, was again appointed captain-general, and, in 1825, made counsellor of state.

CASTE; certain classes whose burdens and privileges are hereditary. The word is derived from the Portuguese casta, and was originally applied, by the conquerors of the East Indies, to the Indian families, whose occupations, customs, privileges and duties are hereditary. This term has been sometimes applied to the hereditary classes in Europe; and we speak of the spirit or the prerogatives and usurpations of a caste, to express particularly that un

natural constitution of society, which makes distinction dependent on the accidents of birth or fortune. The division into castes, among the people of the old world, comes to us from a period to which the light of history does not extend; hence its origin cannot be clearly traced but it is highly probable that, wherever it exists, it was originally grounded on a difference of descent, and in the modes of living, and that the separate castes were originally separate races of people. This institution is found among many nations. According to the accounts collected by Clavigero, some traces of it are apparent among the Peruvians and Mexicans; but it prevails principally in the East, where it has existed from the earliest times, and has become blended with the political condition of the people, because it favors despotism, which is the prevailing form of government. Thus, in Persia, even before Zoroaster, there was a division into four classes or castes; priests (magi), soldiers, husbandmen, tradesmen. But the division into castes was nowhere so perfectly formed, and so entirely interwoven in the whole fabric of civil society, as in Egypt and India. In Egypt (q. v.), this division was perfected, as a political institution, in the flourishing period of the Pharaohs; and the lines of separation which had been drawn, in earlier times, by a difference of descent, and different modes of living, were then rendered still more distinct. The number of castes in that country was originally seven. The class of priests, who formed, in some respects, a highly-privileged order of nobility, and maintained possession of the offices of state, was the highest. Next followed the soldiers, who were divided into two classes, and whose occupation was hereditary. Of the remaining castes, the husbandmen, the watermen (who navigated the Nile), the interpreters (who arose subsequently to the rest, and sprung from the Greeks who were invited into the country), and the two castes of herdsmen, formed a gradation of ranks, the order of which is not known, any further than that the herdsmen were the lowest. Among these the swineherd was considered impure, and despised, and was excluded from the temples. In India, there were originally four castes. (See Hindoos.) Probably the deep researches into Egyptian antiquities recently made, or in a state of progress, particularly those of Champollion, will throw much light upon this interesting subject.

CASTELCICALA (don Fabricio Ruffo), prince of, descended from a very ancient Neapolitan family, obtained great influence under the minister Acton (1796), in the infamous political inquisition or junta. When Acton resigned. his ministry, prince Castelcicala became minister, and Vanini committed suicide. After the battle of Aboukir, Castelcicala persuaded his court to declare war against France. In 1799, he fled with his monarch to Sicily. Two years after, he was Sicilian ambassador in London, and still later at the French court. In 1816, he signed the important treaty admitting all British productions and manufactures into Sicily on paying 10 per cent. duty. After the revolution (1820), he was appointed ambassador to Madrid, but remained in Paris.

CASTELLO, Gabriel Lancelot, an eminent antiquary, was born at Palermo, in 1727, of a noble family, and was placed under a private tutor, with a view to study botany, chemistry, &c.; but, accidentally meeting with some old coins, which had been dug up by a ploughman, he was seized with a great desire to decipher them, and from that time devoted himself to antiquarian pursuits. He formed a splendid collection of the remains of antiquity found in Sicily, and his museum was always open to foreigners as well as to natives. On his death-bed, he bequeathed a large quantity of books, &c. to the public library of Palermo. He died in 1794, being at that time an honorary member of the royal society, and of the academy at Paris. He published several works.-There was another Castello (Ignatius Paterno), who published an account of the earthquake in Sicily in 1783.

CASTI, Giambattista, a poet, born in 1721, at Prato, in the vicinity of Florence, studied at Montefiascone, became professor there, was appointed a canon, and made a journey to France. Receiving an invitation from the prince of Rosenberg, who became acquainted with him in Florence, he went to Vienna, and was presented to Joseph II, who knew how to appreciate the genius of the poet, and delighted in his conversation. Casti took advantage of every opportunity of visiting other courts, and joined several embassies, without office or title. Catharine II received him in the most flattering manner. He visited also the court of Berlin, and several other German courts. After his return to Vienna, prince Rosenberg, the director of the imperial theatre, caused him to be appointed poeta Cesareo on the