Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume V.djvu/601

CUTTY STOOL CUVIER 597 by Aristotle. (See SEPIA.) Cuttle fishes are found in the open sea in nearly all parts of the world ; and they appear near the coasts peri- odically in shoals. They have large eyes on the sides of the head, which seem designed for use in the night or in the darkness of deep wa- ters, as the animal avoids the light of the day. The cuttle fish attains a length of about 3 ft. CUTTY STOOL, the stool of repentance, for- merly employed in the Scottish kirk for of- fenders against the law of chastity. The crim- inal, having been deprived of church ordinan- ces, and duly taken to task privately for his or her oifence, was required to make a public acknowledgment of the sin prior to being re- stored to communion. The penance consisted in occupying the stool in face of the congrega- tion, and being lectured by the minister. Some- times the offender was clad in a white sheet, the stool being black, and placed conspicuously in an upper gallery. The custom has fallen into disuse. CUT-WORM, the caterpillar of an owlet moth of the tribe of noctuce and group agrotididce. The name has also been given to many other Cut-worm and Moth. grubs and worms living in the ground. This caterpillar remains by day about the roots of plants, and comes forth at night to cut off the tender stems and leaves of cabbages, beans, corn, and many other culinary plants. Some of the moths of this family fly by day, others only at night ; the wings are nearly horizontal when closed ; the thorax smooth and slightly convex ; the antennae of the males generally with two rows of fine tooth-like points on the under side ; the fore legs are often spiny. Most of these moths appear in July and August, laying their eggs in the ground ; in Europe the cater- pillars are hatched in early autumn, and feed on the tender roots of plants; descending deeper in winter, they remain torpid until spring. The caterpillars of the agrotidians are smooth, shining, naked, dark-colored, with longitudinal pale and dark stripes, and a few black dots on each ring; cylindrical, short, and thick, with 16 legs; the chrysalis is trans- formed in the ground, without a cocoon. The most destructive European species are the winter dart inoth (agrotis segetum), and the wheat dart moth (A. tritici both destroying the roots and leaves of winter wheat and buckwheat ; the eagle moth (A. aquilina), an occasional pest in vineyards; and the antler moth (charceas graminis), very destructive in meadows and mountain pastures. The Amer- ican species have the same habits, appearing about the same time, destroying whole fields of corn, potatoes, cabbages, beans, and other vegetables, and also ornamental plants. The caterpillars vary in length from one to two inches, and are thick, of a dark ashy gray color, with a brown head, and a pale dorsal stripe, with minute black dots ; the chrysalis is of a shining dark brown, and the moth appears from the 20th of July to the middle of August. There are at least five species in New England. The largest is the A. telifera (Harris), having the fore wings light brown, divided by two transverse bands of wavy dark brown lines, and with three spots (one lance-marked) encircled with dark brown ; the hind wings are pearly white, the abdomen gray ; expanse of wings at least two inches. The A. devastator (Har- ris), the moth of the cabbage cut-worm, has the fore wings dark satiny ashy gray, with four narrow, wavy, whitish bands edged with black, and white dots and dark spots ; the hind wings are a light brownish gray, dusky behind ; body gray; expanse of wings 1-J- to If inch. They fly only at night ; the last is not easily taken, from its rapid motions, and often flies into lamps and candles after the middle of July. Other species are described by Dr. Harris. The ravages of the true cut- worms are not pre- vented by any treatment of the seed, as they feed only on the young sprouts and stalks; the only effectual preventive is to open the earth daily at the foot of the growing plants and kill the worms, which are easily found. It is said that a manure of sea mud will protect a garden from these worms ; some cultivators protect their cabbage plants by wrapping a walnut leaf or paper cone firmly around the root, secured by an earth embankment. CUVIER. I. Georges Chretien Leopold Frederic Dagobert, a French naturalist, born at Mont- beliard (then belonging to the duke of Wurtem- berg), Aug. 23, 1769, died in Paris, May 13, 1832. The family came originally from a village in the Jura which still bears the name of Cuvier ; at the time of the reformation it settled at Mont- beliard, where some of its members held offi- ces of distinction. The grandfather of Cuvier had two sons, the younger of whom entered a Swiss regiment in the service of France; a brave man and excellent officer, he rose to high honors, and at the age of 50 married a lady con- siderably younger than himself, and had three sons; the oldest died in infancy, the second was the subject of the present sketch, and the third was Frederic Cuvier. As Georges had a delicate constitution; his mother watched over him with the tenderest care ; she taught him to read, made him repeat to her his Latin lessons, instructed him in drawing, and developed that ardent desire for knowledge which was so re- markable in him. At the age of 10 he entered the gymnasium, where he remained four years,