Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 6.djvu/111

Rh tenderly handled, and deported to some field, where it is released and allowed to depart in peace, not killed&quot; (Thanatophidia of India). Great numbers, especially of young cobras, are killed by the adjutant birds and by the mungoos a small mammal which attacks it with impunity, apparently not from want of susceptibility to the poison, but by its dexterity in eluding the bite of the cobra. Mere scratching or tearing does not appear to be sufficient to bring the poison from the glands ; it is only when the fangs care firmly implanted by the jaws being pressed together that the virus enters the wound, and in those circumstances it has been shown by actual experiment that the mungoos, like all other warm-blooded animals, succumbs to the poison. In the case of reptiles, the cobra poison takes effect much more slowly, while it has been proved to have no effect whatever on other venomous serpents. The cobra is the snake usually exhibited by the Indian jugglers, who show great dexterity in handling it, even when not deprived of its fangs. Usually, however, the front fang at least is extracted, the creature being thus rendered harmless until the succeeding tooth takes its place, and in many cases all the fangs, with the germs behind, are removed the cobra being thus rendered innocuous for life. The snake charmer usually plays a few simple notes on the flute, and the cobra, apparently delighted, rears half its length in the air and sways its head and body about, keeping time to the music. The cobra, like almost all poisonous snakes, is by no means aggressive, and when it gets timely warning of the approach of man endeavours to get out of his way. It is only when trampled upon inadvertently, or otherwise irritated, that it attempts to use its fangs. It is a good swimmer, often crossing broad rivers, arid probably even narrow arms of the sea, for it has been met with at sea at least a quarter of a mile from land.  COBURG, or, in German Koburg, the capital of the duchy of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha and, alternately -with Gotha, the residence of the duke and the seat of the administration, is situated on the left bank of the Itz, an affluent of the Regen, and on the southern slope of the Frankenwald, 40 miles S.S.E. of Gotha. The town is for the most part old, and contains a large number of remarkable buildings. The ducal palace, or Ehrenburg, is a fine Gothic edifice, with an extensive library, and collections of coins, paintings, and specimens in natural history; it was originally a convent of the Barefooted Friars, received its present appropriation from John Ernest in 1549, and was restored by Ernest in 1844. In front of the palace is a bronze statue of the lattet duke by Schwanthaler, and in the court-garden is the ducal mausoleum. Among the churches the most remarkable is the Moritzkirche, with a tower 335 feet high, the beauti ful Hofkirche, and the modern Roman Catholic church. The educational institutions include a gymnasium, founded in 1604 by Casimir, and thus known as the Casimirianum ; a Realschule, established in 1848, a normal college, a deaf and dumb asylum, and a school of architecture. The arsenal contains a pu-blic library ; and the so-called Aitgiis- tenstift, where the ministry of the duchy is located, has an extensive collection of objects in natural history. Coburg further possesses a town-house, Government buildings, an observatory, and a theatre. On a commanding eminence in the vicinity is the ancient castle of Coburg, which dates at least from the llth century. Till 1348 it was the residence of the counts of Henneberg, and till 1547 belonged to the dukes of Saxony ; in 1781 it was turned into a penitentiary and lunatic asylum ; but in 1835-8 it received a complete restoration. The most interesting room in this building is that which was occupied by Luther for three months in 1530, and thus became the birthplace of his famous hymn, Eine feste Burg ist unset Gott ; the bed on which he slept and the pulpit from which he preached in the old chapel are still shown. Coburg is a place of con siderable industry, and possesses a large brewery, factories for the weaving of linen and cotton goods, tanneries, and dye-works ; and there is an important trade in the cattle reared in the neighbourhood. Among various places of interest in the vicinity are the ducal residences of Callenberg and Rosenau, in the latter of which Albert, the Prince Consort, was born in 1819 ; the castle of Lauterberg; and the village of Neuses, with the house of the poet Riickert, who died there in 1866, and on the other side of the river the tomb of the poet Thummel. Population in 1871, 12,819.  COCA. See.  COCCEIUS, or, (1603-1669), a Dutch theologian, was born at Bremen. After studying at Hambuig and Franecker he became in 1629 professor of Hebrew in his native town. In 1636 he was transferred to Franecker, where he held the chair of Hebrew, and from 1 643 the chair of theology also, until 1 650, when he became professor of theology at Leyden. He died on the 4th November 1669. Cocceius was a profound Oriental scholar, and his chief services were rendered in the depart ment of Hebrew philology and exegesis. The common statement that he held that every passage has as many meanings as it can be made to bear is founded on an entire misconception of his fundamental law of interpretation. What he really maintained was the sound principle that- individual words and phrases are to be interpreted according to their contextual connection, and not according to any predetermined dogmatic system, whether patristic or scholastic. As one of the leading exponents of the &quot;federal&quot; theology, he spiritualized the Hebrew scriptures to such an extent that it was said that Cocceius found Christ everywhere in the Old Testament and Grotius found him nowhere. He held millenarian views, and was the founder of a school of theologians who were called after him Cocceians. His most distinguished pupil was the celebrated Vitringa. He wrote commentaries on most of the books of the Old Testament, but his most valuable work was his Lexicon et Commentarius Sermonis Ileb. et Chald. (Leyden, 1669), which has been frequently repub- lished. The federal or covenant theology which he taught is fully expounded in his Summa Doctrines de Foedere et Testamento Dei (1648). His collected works were pub lished in twelve folio volumes at Amsterdam in 1701.  COCHABAMBA, a city and bishop s see of Bolivia, capital of a province and department, is situated about 8370 feet above the level of the sea, on both banks of the Rio de la Rocha, a sub-tributary of the Rio Grande, to the south of a considerable Cordillera. It is about 122 miles N.N W. of Sucre, its latitude is 17 27 S., and its longi tude 65 46 W. The streets are broad, and the houses for the most part of one story and surrounded by gardens, so that the area of the city is great in comparison with its population. There are fifteen churches, a gymnasium, and a cabildo ; and an extensive industry is maintained in the production of woollen and cotton stuffs, leather, soap, glass-ware, and pottery. The population is largely com posed of Indians ; and the prevailing language is Quichua. Cochabamba was founded in the 16th century, and for a time was called Oropesa. In the revolution of 1815 the women of the city distinguished themselves by their bravery, and successfully attacked the Spanish camp ; and in 1818 a number of the heroines were put to death by the Spanish forces. In 1874 the city was seized by Miguel Aguirre, and a large part of it laid in ruins, but peace was soon afterwards restored, and the regular authorities reinstated. The population in 1858 was 40,678.  COCHIN, a feudatory state of Southern India, situated within the presidency of Fort St George or Madras, between 9 48 and 10 50 N. lat.. and between 76 5 and 76 58 