Canterbury (District occupying most)
a district occupying most of the center of South Island, New Zealand, with a coast line of 200 miles, and a greatest breadth of about 150 miles. The W. part is traversed by mountains, from which a fertile plain of 2,500,000 acres slopes gradually down to the sea. Banks' Peninsula is a projection on the E. coast, consisting of an assemblage of densely-wooded hills, and containing several harbors. The famous "Canterbury Plains," extending extending along the coast, are admirably adapted for agriculture, while the interior is fine pastoral country, though, except near the highlands, very destitute of trees. It has considerable mineral resources. The chief places in the province are Christchurch, the capital; and Lyttelton, the port town, 8 miles from Christchurch. Area, 13,858 square miles. Pop. about 200,000.
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Canterbury Tales, The
The, a collection of stories by Chaucer, first printed in 1475. The work consists of twenty-two poems and two prose tales, told by a company of pilgrims on their way to Canterbury. See Chaucer
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Canterbury-Bell
a name given to species of Campanula, C. medium and C. trachelium.
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Cantharis
Spanish-fly or the Blister Beetle-fly, Cantharis vesicatoria, a coleopterous inseet, the typical one of the family Cantharidæ. They are collected principally Hungary in , Russia, and the south of France, and are imported in cases of 100 to 175 pounds weight. In several parts of England they have become so naturalized as to be almost native. They are about eight lines long; the elytra are a fine green color. They have a disagreeable odor and a burning taste, taste, and contain a crystalline substance, Cantharidine. The insects described above are externally used as a rubefacient in the form of a liniment, also as a vesicant in the form of the common blister. They are applied to diseases and painful joints, also in cases of pleuritis, pericarditis, pneumonia, and other internal inflammations. Internally they are given in chronic affections of the nervous system, especially of the spinal cord. They have also a diuretic action. They should never be administered except by a physician.
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Canticle
certain detached psalms and hymns used in the service of the Anglican Church, such as the Venite exultemus, Te Deum laudamus, Benedicite omnia opera, Benedictus, Jubilate Deo, Magnificat, Cantate Domino, Nunc dimittis, Deus misereatur, and the verses used instead of the Venite on Easter day. The word is also applied to that book of the Old Testament also known as the "Song of Solomon."
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Cantilever
or CANTELEVER. See BRIDGE.
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Canton
a large city in China. The population of the city with its suburbs is estimated at 900,000. It is inclosed by brick walls twenty-five feet high and twenty feet thick, having a circuit of over six miles. There are a dozen gates. All close at night-fall, oriental fashion. The streets are straight, clean, and narrow. Goods are carried on bamboo frames, a man walking at each end. Common people walk; the aristocracy are carried in sedan chairs. There are many imposing temples, among others two lofty pagodas. The prevailing religion is Buddhism. The city is situated on the Pearl River about eighty miles from the sea. Wharves extend for several miles. A very great number of houseboats, as many as 20,000 or 30,000, crowd the river. It is thought that 200,000 people have no other home. Families live for generations in these floating dwellings. They catch a few fish, but make their living chiefly by conveying merchandise. Canton merchants are shrewd business men, noted for their honesty. The foreign business, chiefly with the United States and Great Britain , amounts to about $40,000,000 a year. European ships began to visit Canton by way of the Cape of Good Hope in 1517. See China ; Shanghai 2026 Editor's Note: By way of comparison, Guangzhou (the article's Canton) today is a megacity of roughly 15 million, up from the 900,000 this article estimates. (Ed: BR 2026-07-16)
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Canton
a small division of territory, constituting a distinct state or government, as in Switzerland.
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Canton (City and county-seat of O)
city and county-seat of O.; on Nimishillen creek Stark co., O. and the Pennsylvania, the Baltimore and Ohio, and the Wheeling and Lake Erie railroads: 60 miles S. of Cleveland. It is in a fine wheat-growing district, with coal, limestone, and pottery clay in the vicinity, and was for many years the residence of President McKinley. Canton is a Business Industries. manufacturing city of considerable importance. The principal industries are the manufacture of agricultural implements, brick and tile, foundry and machine shop products, iron bridges, steel goods, and stoves. There are two National banks, besides several State and savings banks. Public Interests. - Canton has an electric light and street railway system, and well-paved streets. The notable buildings are the postoffice, high school, public library, auditorium, two hospitals, and McKinley National Monument, and sev- Pop. (1910) 50,217; eral churches. (1920) 87,091.
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Canton (City of Illinois in Fulton co)
a city of Illinois, in Fulton co. It is on the Toledo, Peoria, and Western, and the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy railroads. It is the center of an important agricultural and mining community. There are agricultural implement works, cigar factories, founim dries, marble works, etc. The city has a public library, theaters, parks, and the hospitals. Pop. (1910) 10,453; (1920) 10,928.
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Canton (Town of Massachusetts)
a town of Massachusetts, in Norfolk co. It includes several villages. It is on the New York, New Haven & Hartford railroad. The town is the seat of the Massachusetts setts Hospital School and has a public library and other public buildings. The industries include manufactures of woolen and rubber goods, electrical supplies, fire hose, etc. Pop. (1910) 4,797; (1920) 5,945.
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Canton Flannel
a stout, twilled cotton cloth woven of soft twisted yarns, with a more or less dense nap on one side. If napped on both sides, the fabric is called double-faced. The name canton flannel is from Canton, China, from which place this fabric was first imported into England. Canton flannel is put on the market, bleached, unbleached, and dyed in plain colors. It is used as a substitute for wool flannel; also for linings, bandages, and working gloves and mittens. It is sometimes called cotton flannel .
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