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COCKLE. 102 COCKROACH. Iieaiitiful in «-ulptui-f> miil ooloiint;. Tlic shell upon wlik-li Venus is represented, in uinient art, as ridin;^ ujxjn the sea is a cockle: and several other genera, such as Venus, t'ytherea. Selene, etc., are named in reference to this myth. Con- sult Lovell. Edible Molhisks of Uicut Brititi), etc. (London. 1SS4) ; and see Colored Plate of ClaM.S AM) KlIIBLE MlSSEL.S. COCKLEBUR, or Clotefr. A name .siven to the species of Xanthium. a fjeiius of Coni|)ositic. of which there are but few species, but these are widely distributed. Three species are all too common in the United States — Xanthium spinosuni (called spiny clotbur) and Xanthium strumarium. both of which were probably intro- duced from the (lid World, and the native species. Xanthium Canadense. For illustration, see Plate of Cornflower. They are coarse, annual, branch- ing ])lants, one to three feet higli, with alter- nate, rough, heart-shaped leaves. The stem is frequently spotted with brown or pur])le. The flowers are in separate groups, the female ones furnishing the well-known burs, which are about an inch long and covered with stout hooked prickles. These are troublesome to animals, especially to sheep, the wool of which is often seriously depreciated by their presence. The seeds contain two cells with an ovule in each. These retain their vitality for a long time, and both do not germinate in the same season. Being an annual, this weed can be exterminated if it be prevented from seeding for a number of years. In the south of Africa stringent laws for its eradication were enacted on account of the injury to the wool industry. COCKLOFT, Pindar. The nom-de-plume used by ashinytiin Irving in Hdlmuyundi. COCK'NEY. A word of disputed origin, used as a general term for a Londoner, more specif- ically for one "born within the sound of Bow- Bells." It has been connected with cocagne or Cockaigne, and with the Thames, which is said to have been called the Coekne.y. COCKNEY SCHOOL OF POETRY. A nick- name whieli •Tohn Gibson Lockliart tried to fasten upon a school of writers, including Leigh Hunt, Keats, and Hazlitt, whom he thought vulgar. Their productions were said "to consist of the most incongruous ideas in the most uncouth language." Consult the articles "On the Cockney School." in Bhiekiruod's Magazine (Edinburgh, October and November, 1S17), where the ex- pression was lirst used: also the article on Keats's "Endymion," in Quarterly Review (Lon- don. April. ISIS). COCK-OF-THE-PLAINS. See Grouse. COCK-OF-THE-ROCK ( so called from build- ing its nest on rocks). A remarkable bird of northern South America, representing a sub- family (Rtipicolinas) of the cotingas, three forms of which are known. The most familiar is Bupicola croeea, inhabiting the Lower Amazon Valley; it is about the size of a large pigeon, almost purely orange in plumage, and has a remarkable flat-sided crest. Two other species ( or varieties) are foiuid higher up the Amazon, and in Ecuador. In each case the female is dull olive- brown and nncrested. They inhabit rocky water- courses and btishy hillsides, where they remain close to the ground and build their nests, largely of mud. on some rock. They are among the birds which court the females bv assembling for 'dances* in certain cleared spaces, each displaying its showy plumage by queer antics until chosen by some observant hen. Great numbers of these splendid birds are shot annually, as their skins not only command a liigh i)rice for millinery purposes, but are nmch employed ')y the Indians in making a variety of beautiful decorations, and they are thus becom- ing rare. A large state mantle, formerly worn by the E-nperor of Brazil, was entirely composed 01 their feathers; and in some districts of South America, it is said, the natives are, . or were, compelled to bring a certain supply of skins as tribute. Their flesh is well-flavored, but of a very peculiar color, being bright orange-red. The cock of-the-rock is tnuch valued by residents of the Amazon Valley as a cage-bird. Consult Hudson, A Xaturnlist in the La Plata (London, 1802). See Plate of Coti.ngas. COCK-OF-THE-WOODS. See Capercaillie. COCKPIT. In old sailing men-of-war the apartment in which the wounded were placed during the engagement. It was ordinarily below the water-line on the orlop deck, and served, under ordinary circumstances, as a broad pas- sageway to the storerooms on each side of it. At one time the warrant officers were quartered in the forward cockpit, and occasionally other otBeers, for whom there was no room on the decks above, were quartered in staterooms open- ing from the after one, where storerooms were ordinarily placed. COCK-PIT, The. A London theatre of the sevcntcentli century, changed from a cock-pit, on Cockpit Alley, the present Pitt Place. It was succeeded by the Phcpnix Theatre, which in turn was replaced by the Drury Lane Theatre. COCKRAN, kok'ran, William Boukke (1854 — ). An American lawyer and politician. He was horn in Ireland, was educated in that coun- try and in France, shortly after his arrival in the I'nited States, in 1871, Avas appointed teacher in a private academy, and subsequently became principal of a public school in West- chester County, N. Y. He studied law at the same time, was admitted to the bar in 1876, and soon took a prominent ]iart as a Democrat in State jiolitics. In 1882 he became counsel to the sherifl' of New York City, and was reajjpointed in 188.). He was elected to Congress in 1886 and again in 1891: opposed the nomination of Cleve- land for the Presidency: in 1806 supported !Mc- Kinley; and in 1000, advocated the election of Bryan. He is an eloquent and polished, though somewhat florid, speaker. COCK'RELL, Francis Mariox (1834—). An American lawyer and politician. He was born in .Johnson County, ilo.. graduated at Chapel Hill College in 1853, and practiced law for some time at Warrensburg. !Mo. During the Civil War he served in the Confederate Army, in which he rose to the rank of brigadier-general, and since 1874 has been a Democratic member of the United States Senate. COCKROACH, or 'Roach. An orthopterotis insect of the family Blattida". several species of which are household pests throughout the civil- ized world. Those most common are: (1) The Croton-bug (lilatta (lermanica) . so called from its becoming noticeable in New York when Croton water was introduced, but which is of