Page:Collier's New Encyclopedia v. 03.djvu/64

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COCKATRICE expanded like a fan. The true cocka- toos are also all of generally whitish plumage, but often finely tinged with COCKATOO 1. Roseate Cockatoo. S. Head of Black Cockatoo. red, orange, and other colors, or mixed with these colors. COCKATRICE, a fabulous monster anciently believed to be hatched from a cock's egg. It is often simply another name for the basilisk. COCKBURN, SIR ALEXANDER, an English jurist; born Dec. 24, 1802; studied at Cambridge; was called to the bar in 1829, and soon became distin- guished as a pleader before Parliamen- tary committees. In 1847 he became mem- ber of Parliament for Southampton in the Liberal interest; became Solicitor- General and was knighted in 1850; was made Chief-Justice of the Common Pleas in 1856; and Lord Chief -Justice in 1859. He presided at the Tichborne and other famous trials. He represented Great Britain at the Geneva arbitration in the "Alabama" case. He died Nov. 20, 1880. COCK CHAFER, the popular name of a lamellicorn beetle, Melolontha vulgaris, found in England. The larvae are found in dung or in decaying vegetable matter or buried in the ground. 40 COCKRAN COCKER, a dog of the spaniel kin^, allied to the Blenheim dog, used for rais- ing woodcocks and snipes from their haunts in woods and marshes. COCK-FIGHTING, an amusement practiced in various countries, first per- haps among the Greeks and Romans. At Athens there were annual cock-fights, and among the Romans quails and partridges were also used for this pur- pose. It was formerly a popular sport with the British. In Cuba and the Phil- ippines it enjoys great favor. Cock- fighting is generally prohibited by local laws in the United States. COCKLE, a plant. Lychnis Githago, formerly called agrostemma githago. Its fuller English name is corn-cockle. It is an erect-branched plant, between one and two feet high with large purple flowers. It is also the popular name of the shells classed by naturalists under the genus Cardium, or the family Cardiadse. The most common one is C. edule; it is the one to which the name cockle is most frequently applied. COCK OF THE PLAINS (Centrocer- cus urcypJiasidnus) , a large North Amer- ican species of grouse, inhabiting deso- late plains in the W. States. COCK OF THE ROCK {Rupicola aurantia), a South American bird of a rich orange color with a beautiful crest, belonging to the manakin family. COCK OF THE WOODS. See CAPER- CAILZIE. COCKPIT, in a ship of war, the name still given to the compartment in the lower part of the ship where the wounded are attended to during action. COCKRAN, WILLIAM BOURKE, an American lawyer and public official, born in Sligo, Ireland, in 1854. He was edu- cated in France and Ireland and at Georgetown College, from which he grad- uated in 1900. After his removal to the United States in 1871 he taught school in Westchester co., N. Y. He was admitted to the bar in 1876 and soon became prominent in New York politics. He was delegate to many conventions, where he became well known as an orator. He opposed the nomination of Grover Cleveland in 1884 and 1892. He was a member of the 52d and 53d Con- gresses. In 1896 he opposed the silver wing of the party and supported McKinley for president. He returned to the Democratic party, however, in 1900, supporting William J. Bryan. He was elected to the 58th Congress in 1904, but later resigned. He was re-elected to the 59th and 60th Congresses, declining