Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 05.djvu/243

COMB. the comb had a place in the church soi-vice. Careful ritualistic directions have been found for combing the abbot's hair in the sacristy before vespers and other services. In the tombs of the martyrs in the catacombs combs of ivory and boKwood have been found, which testify to this ancient cvistom of the priests a;'ranging their hair before the altar.

An ancient Irish long rack comb is in the iii.useum of the Royal Irish Academy. The sides are hog-backed, and between them are set the pectinated portions, varying in breadth from lialf an inch to an inch and a quarter, according to the size of the bone out of which they were cut. The whole is fastened together with brass pins riveted. By this contrivance, any damaged portion could easily be replaced.

Jlodern combs arc made of tortoise-shell, ivory, horn, wood, bone, metal, india-rubber, and" celluloid. Tlie material is first made into plates of the size, shape, and thickness of the comb, and then the teeth are cut. The old method of cutting the teeth is by the stadda or double saw, which has two blades of steel set parallel to each otlier, with a space l>etween them equal to the thickness of the intended tooth. Combs with 50 or 00 teeth to the inch may be cut in this manner. The teeth are then thinned, smoothed, and finished by means of thin, wedge- shaped files.

Many combs are now made by a method called 'parting.' Bj' the ]irocess of cutting, above de- scribed, the material corresponding to the spaces between the teeth is of course wasted ; by the method of parting, this is made available to form the teeth of a second comb. The plate of horn, tortoise-shell, etc., is cut through by means of a stamping-cutter, whose essential features consist of two thin chisels inclined to each other, which represent the edges : between these, and connecting the ends, is a small cross- chisel. When this compound cutter descends with sufficient force upon the plate it will cut one of the teeth. By simple machinery, the table carrying the plate is made to advance a distance equal to the thickness of one tooth while the cutter is rising, and thiis the siccessive cuts are made. A slight pull is now sufficient to part the ])late into two combs, the teeth of which only require filing and finishing. India-rubber combs are manufactured by pressing the caoutchouc to the required form in molds and 'vulcanizing' or combining it with sulphur afterwards. By this means a high degree of hardness can be obtained.

COMB, or COOMB. An old corn measure, containing four bushels. In many localities hol- lows or valleys among hills are called combs or coombs.

COMBA, kom'ba, Emiuo ( 1839—). An Ital- ian writer, born at San Gemiano Chisone. As ])rofcssor at the Istituto Valdese, at Florence, he, in 1873, founded the review entitled Hivista Cristiana, a work of a somewhat ])olemieal na- ture devoted to a discussion of religious topics. The history of religious reform in Italy is well described in the interesting works entitled, Francesco Spiera. Baldo Luherlino. martirc dclla relr(]inne e della liherta : Introduzioiie alia sforia delta rifoniia in Ilnlin.

COMBACONUM, kom^ft-kr/nnm, or KUM-BHAKONAM (Skt.. .iar-edge. from l-itmhlia. jar + kona, edge). A town of Madras, British India, situated within the delta of the Kaveri River, about 30 miles from the sea (.Map: In- dia, 6). It contains a number of interesting temples, gateways, and a gat« pyramid nearly 150 feet liigh, profusely adorned with stat- uary in stucco. The large reservoir, which is supposed to be filled with water from the (ianges every twelve years by a subterranean passage -206 miles long, attracts great numbers of pil- grims. The city is regarded as sacred by the natives. There is a considerable commerce and a well-developed weaving industry. The English have established a small college here. Population, in 1S!U, 54,300; in 1901, 59,700.

COMBAT (Fr., from combattre, to fight, from Lat. com-, together -f ML. battere, to fight, from Lat, batuere, to beat). Single. Among the early Norsemen, a careful distinction was made between the ordinary single combat, or einvigi, and the holm-grinija, or island duel. The former was unencumbered with rules and traditions, and was a simple fight between two> opponents. The other, which received its name from the fact that it was always held on a holm, or island, generally of a river, was accompanied by very elaborate rites and rules, and could be engaged in only under certain circumstances, to be de- termined by the authorities. It was regarded as a sort of court of final appeal, and at the meeting of every Parliament, or Thing, a place for the holding" of these official duels was set aside. Many old Norse warriors were famous as fighters of holms, some even receiving nicknames from this circumstance. The holm was abolished by the Icelandic Parliament, about l000, probably as the result of the recent establishment of a new court of appeal, which made it unnecessary. The liylm continued in Norway for a few years longer. Some connection may exist between the holm and the Norman tournaments, and the modern duel, with its formal procedure, represents the same idea in an unofficial form.

COMBE', kom, Georoe (1788-1858). A Scotch phrenologist, born in Edinljurgli. He entered the legal profession, became a writer to the Signet in 1812, and continued to practice until 1837, when he resolved to devote himself to scientific pursuits. He published his Essays on Phrenology in 1819, five years later his System of Flircnology, and in* 1828 The Constitution of Man Considered in Relation to External Objects. Combe contributed largely to the Phrenological Journal (20 vols., 1824-47). Besides the works mentioned, he wrote on ethics, education, politics, economics, and theology. He also traveled in America and Germany, and published Notes on the United States of North America (3 vols., 1841) : Notes on the Reformation in Germany (1846) ; and The Relation Between Science and Religion (1857). In his day his writings were popular, but they have no importance now. For his Life, consult Gibbon (London, 1878).

COMBE, (1741-1823). An English author. He was born at Bristol, and was educated at Eton and at Oxford, hich he left without a degree. After rapidly spending a small fortune that had been left' him. he settled in London as a law student and hack writer. In 1776 he published his "Diaboliad, a poem dedicated to the worst man in his Majesty's dominions." By his pen he earned a precarious living, and