Part 3
The two valves of the shell of the common cockle are similar to each other, and somewhat circular in outline. The beak or umbo of each valve is prominent and rounded, and a number of sharp ridges and furrows radiate from the apex to the free edge of the shell, which is crenated. The ligament is external, and the hinge carries cardinal teeth in each valve. The interior of the shell is remarkable for the absence of pearly lustre on its interior surface. The colour externally is reddish or yellowish. The pallial line, which is the line of attachment of the mantle parallel to the edge of the shell, is not indented by a sinus at the posterior end. In the entire animal the posterior end projects slightly more than the anterior from the region of the umbones.
The animal possesses two nearly equal adductor muscles. The edges of the mantle are united posteriorly except at the anal and branchial apertures, which are placed at the ends of two very short siphons or tubular prolongations of the mantle; the siphons bear a number of short tentacles, and many of these are furnished with eye-spots. The foot is very large and powerful; it can be protruded from the anterior aperture between the mantle edges, and its outer part is bent sharply forwards and terminates in a point. By means of this muscular foot the cockle burrows rapidly in the muddy sand of the sea-shore, and it can also when it is not buried perform considerable leaps by suddenly bending the foot. The foot has a byssus gland on its posterior surface.
On either side of the body between the mantle and the foot are two flat gills each composed of two lamellae. _Cardium_ belongs to the order of Lamellibranchia in which the gills present the maximum of complexity, the original vertical filaments of which they are composed being united by interfilamentar and interlamellar junctions. In other respects the anatomy of the cockle presents no important differences from that of a typical Lamellibranch. The sexes are distinct, and the generative opening is on the side of the body above the edge of the inner lamella of the inner gill. The eggs are minute, and pass out into the sea-water through the dorsal or exhalent siphon. The breeding season is April, May and June. The larva for a time swims freely in the sea-water, having a circlet of cilia round the body in front of the mouth, forming the velum. The shell is developed on the dorsal surface behind the velum, the foot on the opposite or ventral surface behind the mouth. After a few days, when the mantle bearing the shell valves has developed so much as to enclose the whole body, the young cockle sinks to the bottom and commences to follow the habits of the adult. The usual size of the cockle in its shell is from 1 to 2 in. in breadth.
The common cockle is regularly used as food by the poorer classes. It occurs in abundance on sandy shores in all estuaries. At the mouth of the Thames the gathering of cockles forms a considerable industry, especially at Leigh. On the coast of Lancashire also the fishery, if it may be so called, is of considerable importance. The cockles are gathered by the simple process of raking them from the sand, and they are usually boiled and extracted from their shells before being sent to market. The cockle is liable to the same suspicion as the oyster of conveying the contamination of typhoid fever where the shores are polluted, but as it is boiled before being eaten it is probably less dangerous. (J. T. C.)
COCKNEY, a colloquial name applied to Londoners generally, but more properly confined to those born in London, or more strictly still to those born within the sound of the bells of St Mary-le-Bow church. The origin of the word has been the subject of many guesses, from that in John Minsheu's lexicon, _Ductor in linguas_ (1617), which gives the tale of the town-bred child who, on hearing a horse neigh, asked whether a "cock neighed" too, to the confusion of the word with the name of the Utopia, the land of Cockaigne (q.v.). The historical examination of the various uses of "Cockney," by Sir James Murray (see _Academy_, 10th of May 1890, and the _New English Dictionary_, s.v.) clearly shows the true derivation. The earliest form of the word is _cokenay_ or _cokeney_, i.e. the _ey_ or egg, and _coken_, genitive plural of "cock," "cocks' eggs" being the name given to the small and malformed eggs sometimes laid by young hens, known in German as _Hahneneier_. An early quotation, in Langland's _Piers Plowman_, A. vii. 272, gives the combination of "cokeneyes" and bacon to make a "collop," or dish of eggs and bacon. The word then applied to a child overlong nursed by its mother, hence to a simpleton or milksop. Thus in Chaucer, _Reeve's Tale_, the word is used with _daf_, i.e. a fool. The particular application of the name as a term of contempt given by country folk to town-bred people, with their dandified airs and ignorance of country ways and country objects, is easy. Thus Robert Whittington or Whitinton (_fl._ 1520), speaks of the "cokneys" in such "great cytees as London, York, Perusy" (Perugia), showing the general use of the word. It was not till the beginning of the 17th century that "cockney" appears to be confined to the inhabitants of London.
The so-called "Cockney" accent or pronunciation has varied in type. In the first part of the 19th century, it was chiefly characterized by the substitution of a _v_ for a _w_, or vice versa. This has almost entirely disappeared, and the chief consonantal variation which exists is perhaps the change of _th_ to _f_ or _v_, as in "fing" for thing, or "favver" for father. This and the vowel-sound change from _ou_ to _ah_, as in "abaht" for "about," are only heard among the uneducated classes, and, together with other characteristic pronunciations, phrases and words, have been well illustrated in the so-called "coster" songs of Albert Chevalier. The most marked and widely-prevalent change of vowel sound is that of _ei_ for _ai_, so that "daily" becomes "dyly" and "may" becomes "my." This is sometimes so marked that it almost amounts to incapacity to distinguish the vowels _a_ and _i_, and is almost universal in large classes of the population of London. The name of the "Cockney School of Poetry" was applied in 1817 to the literary circle of which Leigh Hunt was the principal representative, though Keats also was aimed at. The articles in _Blackwood's Magazine_, in which the name appeared, have generally, but probably wrongly, been attributed to John Gibson Lockhart.
COCK-OF-THE-ROCK, the familiar name of the birds of the genus Rupicola (subfamily Rupicolinae) of the Cotingas (allied to the Manakins, q.v.), found in the Amazon valley. They are about the size of a pigeon, with orange-coloured plumage, a pronounced crest, and orange-red flesh, and build their nests on rock. The skins and feathers are highly valued for decoration.
COCKPIT, the term originally for an enclosed place in which the sport of cock-fighting (q.v.) was carried on. On the site of an old cockpit opposite Whitehall in London was a block of buildings used from the 17th century as offices by the treasury and the privy council, for which the old name survived till the early 19th century. The name was given also to a theatre in London, built in the early part of the 17th century on the site of Drury Lane theatre. As the place where the wounded in battle were tended, or where the junior officers consorted, the term was also formerly applied to a cabin used for these purposes on the lower deck of a man-of-war.
COCKROACH[1] (_Blattidae_), a family of orthopterous insects, distinguished by their flattened bodies, long thread-like antennae, and shining leathery integuments. Cockroaches are nocturnal creatures, secreting themselves in chinks and crevices about houses, issuing from their retreats when the lights are extinguished, and moving about with extraordinary rapidity in search of food. They are voracious and omnivorous, devouring, or at least damaging, whatever comes in their way, for all the species emit a disagreeable odour, which they communicate to whatever article of food or clothing they may touch.
The common cockroach (_Stilopyga orientalis_) is not indigenous to Europe, but is believed to have been introduced from the Levant in the cargoes of trading vessels. The wings in the male are shorter than the body; in the female they are rudimentary. The eggs, which are 16 in number, are deposited in a leathery capsule fixed by a gum-like substance to the abdomen of the female, and thus carried about till the young are ready to escape, when the capsule becomes softened by the emission of a fluid substance. The larvae are perfectly white at first and wingless, although in other respects not unlike their parents, but they are not mature insects until after the sixth casting of the skin.
The American cockroach (_Periplaneta americana_) is larger than the former, and is not uncommon in European seaports trading with America, being conveyed in cargoes of grain and other food produce. It is very abundant in the Zoological Gardens in London, where it occurs in conjunction with a much smaller imported species _Phyllodromia germanica_, which may also be seen in some of the cheaper restaurants.
In both of these species the females, as well as the males, are winged.
In addition to these noxious and obtrusive forms, England has a few indigenous species belonging to the genus _Ectobia_, which live under stones or fallen trees in fields and woods. The largest known species is the drummer of the West Indies (_Blabera gigantea_), so called from the tapping noise it makes on wood, sufficient, when joined in by several individuals, as usually happens, to break the slumbers of a household. It is about 2 in. long, with wings 3 in. in expanse, and forms one of the most noisome and injurious of insect pests. Wingless females of many tropical species present a close superficial resemblance to woodlice; and one interesting apterous form known as _Pseudoglomeris_, from the East Indies, is able to roll up like a millipede.
The best mode of destroying cockroaches is, when the fire and lights are extinguished at night, to lay some treacle on a piece of wood afloat on a broad basin of water. This proves a temptation to the vermin too great to be resisted. The chinks and holes from which they issue should also be filled up with unslaked lime, or painted with a mixture of borax and heated turpentine.
See generally Miall and Denny, _The Structure and Life History of the Cockroach_ (1887); G. H. Carpenter, _Insects: their Structure and Life_ (1899); Charles Lester Marlatt, _Household Insects_ (U.S. Department of Agriculture, revised edition, 1902); Leland Ossian Howard, _The Insect Book_ (1902).
FOOTNOTE:
[1] The word is a corruption of Sp. _cucaracha_. In America it is commonly abbreviated to "roach."
COCK'S-COMB, in botany, a cultivated form of _Celosia cristata_ (natural order Amarantaceae), in which the inflorescence is monstrous, forming a flat "fasciated" axis bearing numerous small flowers. The plant is a low-growing herbaceous annual, bearing a large, comb-like, dark red, scarlet or purplish mass of flowers. Seeds are sown in March or April in pans of rich, well-drained sandy soil, which are placed in a hot-bed at 65° to 70° in a moist atmosphere. The seedlings require plenty of light, and when large enough to handle are potted off and placed close to the glass in a frame under similar conditions. When the heads show they are shifted into 5-in. pots, which are plunged to their rims in ashes or coco-nut fibre refuse, in a hot-bed, as before, close to the glass; they are sparingly watered and more air admitted. The soil recommended is a half-rich sandy loam and half-rotten cow and stable manure mixed with a dash of silver sand. The other species of _Celosia_ cultivated are _C. pyramidalis_, with a pyramidal inflorescence, varying in colour in the great number of varieties, and _C. argentea_, with a dense white inflorescence. They require a similar cultural treatment to that given for _C. cristata_.
COCKTON, HENRY (1807-1853), English humorous novelist, was born in London on the 7th of December 1807. He published a number of volumes, but is best known as the author of _Valentine Vox, the Ventriloquist_ (1840) and _Sylvester Sound, the Somnambulist_ (1844). He died at Bury St Edmunds on the 26th of June 1853.
COCKX (or COCK), HIERONYMUS [JEROME] (1510-1570), Flemish painter and engraver, was born at Antwerp, and in 1545 was admitted to the Gild of St Luke as a painter. It is as an engraver, however, that he is famous, a number of portraits and subject-pictures by him, and reproductions of Flemish masters, being well known. His brother Matthys (1505-1552) was also a painter.
COCOA,[1] more properly CACAO, a valuable dietary substance yielded by the seeds of several small trees belonging to the genus _Theobroma_, of the natural order Sterculiaceae. The whole genus, which comprises twelve species, belongs to the tropical parts of the American continent; and although the cocoa of commerce is probably the produce of more than one species, by far the greatest and most valuable portion is obtained from _Theobroma Cacao_. The generic name is derived from [Greek: theos] (god) and [Greek: broma] (food), and was bestowed by Linnaeus as an indication of the high appreciation in which he held the beverage prepared from the seeds, which he considered to be a food fit for the gods.
The common cacao tree is of low stature, seldom exceeding 25 ft. in height, but it is taller in its native forests than it is in cultivated plantations. The leaves are large, smooth, and glossy, elliptic-oblong and tapering in form, growing principally at the ends of branches, but sometimes springing directly from the main trunk. The flowers are small, and occur in numerous clusters on the main branches and the trunk, a very marked peculiarity which gives the matured fruit the appearance of being artificially attached to the tree. Generally only a single fruit is matured from each cluster of flowers. When ripe the fruit or "pod" is elliptical-ovoid in form, from 7 to 10 in. in length and from 3 to 4½ in. in diameter. It has a hard, thick, leathery rind of a rich purplish-yellow colour, externally rough and marked with ten very distinct longitudinal ribs or elevations. The interior of the fruit has five cells, in each of which is a row of from 5 to 12 seeds embedded in a soft delicately pink acid pulp. Each fruit thus contains from 20 to 50 or more seeds, which constitute the raw cacao or "cacao beans" of commerce.
[Illustration: Branch of Cocoa Tree, with Fruit in section, much reduced.]
The tree appears to have been originally a native of the coast lands of the Gulf of Mexico and tropical South America as far south as the basin of the Amazon; but it can be cultivated in suitable situations within the 25th parallels of latitude. It flourishes best within the 15th parallels, at elevations ranging from near the sea-level up to about 2000 ft. in height. It is now cultivated in Mexico, Honduras, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Brazil, Peru, Ecuador, New Granada, Venezuela, Surinam, Guiana, and in many of the West Indian islands, particularly in Trinidad, San Domingo, Grenada, Cuba, Porto Rico and Jamaica. Away from America it has been introduced, and is cultivated on a large scale in West Africa, Ceylon and the Dutch East Indies.
_History._--The value of cacao was appreciated in its native country before the discovery of America by Europeans. The Spaniards found in use in Mexico a beverage known by the Aztec name of _chocolath_, from _choco_ (cacao) and _lath_ (water). W. H. Prescott records that the emperor Montezuma of Mexico was "exceedingly fond of it ... no less than 50 jars or pitchers being prepared for his own daily consumption; 2000 more were allowed for that of his household." Bags of cacao containing a specified number of beans were also a recognized form of currency in the country. The product was early introduced into Spain, and thence to other parts of Europe. The _Public Advertiser_ (London) of June 16, 1657, contains an announcement that "In Bishopgate St., in Queen's Head Alley, at a Frenchman's house, is an excellent West India drink, called chocolate, to be sold, where you may have it ready at any time, and also unmade at reasonable rates." Chocolate was a very fashionable beverage in the early part of the 18th century.
_Cultivated Varieties._--Numerous varieties of the cacao, i.e. of _Theobroma Cacao_, are recognized in cultivation. According to Dr P. Preuss, who has travelled extensively in the cacao producing countries of the world studying this crop, it is impossible to embody in a single table the characteristics of the world's varieties. A separate classification is needed for almost each country. In 1882 the Trinidad forms were classified by Sir D. Morris. This table was later revised by Mr J. H. Hart, and more recently Mr R. H. Lock studied the Ceylon varieties. As the Ceylon cacaos were obtained mainly from Trinidad, and as Mr Lock's results agree substantially with those of Sir D. Morris, they serve to illustrate the distinguishing characteristics of the West Indian and Ceylon forms. The main divisions are as follows:--
1. _Criollo._--Pods relatively thin-walled and soft, rough, pointed at apex. The seeds or beans are plump and of pale colour. The ripe pods may be either red (colorado) or yellow (amarillo).
2. _Forastero._--Pods relatively thick-walled and hard. The seeds vary in colour from pale to deep purple. Various varieties are recognized, such as cundeamor, amelonado, liso, calabacillo, differing in shape, colour and character of beans, &c., and of each of these again there may be a colorado and amarillo sub-variety. Of special interest is calabacillo, a variety with a smooth, small pod, and deep purple beans. It is considered by some to be sufficiently distinct to form a third type equivalent to criollo or forastero. Others again would raise amelonado to the rank of a distinct type. Of the above calabacillo is the hardiest and yields the least valuable beans; criollo is the most delicate and yields beans of the highest value, whilst forastero is intermediate in both respects. In general pale coloured beans are less bitter and more valuable than purple beans. Both, however, may occur in the same pod.
_Alligator_, or _lagarto cacao_, is the common name of a variety cultivated in Nicaragua, Guatemala, &c. Its pods are distinctly five-angled and beset with irregular, warty protuberances. Some regard it as a distinct species, _T. pentagona_, but others only as a variety of _T. Cacao_. Its produce is of high value.
_T. bicolor_, indigenous to Central America, is another species of some interest. It bears small, hard woody pods about 6 in. long and 3 in. in diameter, with curious surface markings. The beans possess a fetid odour and a bitter flavour and are known as "tiger cacao." It is not likely to become of great commercial importance, although consumed locally where found. "_Cacao bianco_" and "_pataste_" are other names for this species.
_Cultivation and Preparation._--Cacao requires for its successful cultivation a deep, well-watered and yet well-drained soil, shelter from strong winds, and a thoroughly tropical climate, with a mean annual temperature of about 80° F., a rainfall of from 50 to 100 or more in., and freedom from long droughts. Young plants are grown from seed, which may either be sown directly in the positions the future trees are to occupy, varying according to local circumstances from 6 to 25 ft. apart in all directions, or raised in nurseries and transplanted later. The latter course is desirable when it is necessary to water and otherwise tend the seedlings. However raised, the young plants require to be shaded, and this is usually done by planting bananas, cassava or other useful crops between the rows of cacao. In some countries, but not in all, permanent shade trees are planted amongst the cacao. Various leguminous trees are commonly used, e.g. the coral tree (_Erythrina_ spp.) sometimes known as _bois immortel_ and _madre del cacao_ or mother of cocoa, _Albizzia Lebbek_, _Pithecolobium Saman_, &c. The various rubber trees have been employed with success. Wind belts are also necessary in exposed situations.
Cacao comes into bearing when about five years old, the small pink flowers and the succeeding large pods being borne directly on the trunk and main branches. The pods are carefully picked when ripe, broken open, and the slimy mass of contained seeds and their enveloping mucilaginous pulp extracted. The "beans" are next fermented or "sweated," often in special houses constructed for the purpose, or by placing them in heaps and covering with leaves or earth, or in baskets, barrels, &c., lined with banana leaves. During fermentation the beans should be stirred once daily or oftener. The time of fermentation varies from one to twelve or even more days. Pale-coloured beans usually require less time than the deep purple and bitter kinds. The method adopted also considerably modifies the time required. The process of fermenting destroys the mucilage; the seeds lose to some degree their bitter flavour and their colour also changes: the pale criollo seeds, for example, developing a cinnamon-brown colour. The "fracture" of the beans also characteristically alters. Fermentation is not universally practised; the purple colour and bitter taste of unfermented cacao being wanted in some markets.
After the fermentation is completed the beans may or may not be washed, opinion as to the desirability of this process varying in different countries. In any case, however, they have to be dried and cured. When climatic conditions are favourable this is commonly done by spreading the beans in thin layers on barbecues, or stone drying floors, or otherwise exposing them to the sun. Sliding roofs or other means of rapidly affording shelter are desirable in case of showers, excessive heat, and also for protection at night. Artificial drying is now often resorted to and various patterns of drying houses are in use.
The appearance of the beans may often be improved by "claying," a very slight coating of red earth or clay being added. Polishing the beans also gives them a brighter appearance, removes mildew, and remnants of dried mucilage, &c. This may be done by "dancing the cacao," i.e. treading a heap with the bare feet, or by the use of special polishing machines. The cacao is now ready for shipment, and is usually packed in bags. Hamburg is the chief port in the world for cacao. Until quite recently, however, this position was held by Havre, which is now second in Europe. New York imports about the same amount as Havre. London follows next in importance.
_Cacao-producing Countries._--In the following table the production in tons (of 1000 kilos = 2205 lb) of the principal producing countries, arranged under continents, is given for 1905 and 1901. During this period the total world's production has increased by about 40%, as indicated in the summary below. Study of the table will show where the increase has taken place, but attention is directed especially to the rapid development in West Africa.
_America._ 1905 (tons). 1901 (tons). Ecuador 21,128 22,896 Brazil 21,091 18,324 Trinidad 20,018 11,943 San Domingo 12,785 6,850 Venezuela 11,700 7,860 Grenada 5,456 4,865 Cuba and Porto Rico 3,000 1,750 Haiti 2,343 1,950 Surinam 1,612 3,163 Jamaica 1,484 1,350 French West Indies 1,200 825 St. Lucia 700 765 Dominica 597 .. ------- ------- Total, America 103,114 82,541
_Africa._ 1905 (tons). 1901 (tons). San Thomé 25,379 16,983 Gold Coast and Lagos 5,666 997 Cameroons 1,185 528 Congo Free State 195 .. ------- ------- Total, Africa 32,425 18,508