CROMPTON
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of the highest order. Egypt under him almost became another land.
Cromp'ton, Samuel, was born at Firwood, Lancashire, England, Dec. 3, 1753, of poor parents. He educated himself, at the same time working as a cotton-spinner and playing the violin at the theater in the next town. In 1779 his spinning^mule was finished, after five years' labor, working at it even late at night. It spun yarn so wonderfully fine that his house was beset by persons eager to know the secret. Ladders were placed at the windows, and in almost every way the inquisitive tried to see it. He could not leave the house for fear his discovery would be stolen. All his savings had gone into the machine, and he had not a farthing left to secure a patent. In his misery he made known the working of the invention to a few manufacturers; from some he never got a cent, and in all he received but a beggarly $300. He managed, however, to start in business with the aid of friends, at first employing his own family as hands; but he was 60 years old before he received any return, when Parliament granted him$25,000. His mule came into use at once, and in 1811 there were in England 4,600,000 of them. He died near Bolton, England, June 26, 1827.
Cromwell (krom'wel), Oliver, Lord-Protector of the English Commonwealth and one of the most remarkable characters in English history, was born at Huntingdon, England, April 25, 1599. Little is known of his early life, except that he went to Cambridge. He had, however, but a short time for study, his father dying soon after he entered college, and he returned home to manage the family affairs. In 1628 he entered Parliament. When all hope of a reconciliation between Charles I and Parliament failed, Cromwell was among the first to offer to aid the state in defending its rights. He moved in Parliament for permission to raise two companies of volunteers, having been careful to supply the necessary arms beforehand at his own cost. He soon snowed his wonderfulfmili-tary genius. He commanded the right wing of the Parliamentary army at Naseby (June, 1645), where the king's forces were utterly routed. Charles, in May, 1646, escaped in disguise, and surrendered himself to the Scottish army at Newark, by whom he was handed to the commissioners of Parliament. In January, 1649, the king was tried, condemned and executed. Cromwell was a prominent member of the new council of state. He crushed the rebellion in Ireland and in Scotland, and soon became the leading man in England. He dissolved the Long Parliament in 1653, and summoned a new one. The work of this parliament, which was dissolved in five months, gave Cromwell supreme power and the title of lord-protector. Cromwell repeatedly called and dismissed parliaments because he wanted the people themselves to govern and also wanted nis
government to be strictly constitutional, but his government was iust and liberal toward the people and the country prospered under his rule. He died at Whitehall London, Sept. 3, 1658.
Cron je (kron'ye), Piet, a Boer commander in the war with Britain (1899-1901), was born in South Africa about 1835. He was a member of the Transvaal executive council, under President Paul Kruger, and in the raid of Jameson and his Uitlanders, in January, 1896, he brought about their surrender. He defeated Lord Methuen at Magersfontein, but afterward surrendered to Lord Roberts at Paardeberg, and was exiled to St. Helena. He has the reputation of being a fierce fighter and a resourceful commander.
Cronstadt (kron'siat), a strongly fortified seaport of Russia, is situated on the island of Koblan, near the head of the Gulf of Finland and 20 miles west of St. Petersburg. The island separates the approach to St. Petersburg into two channels, only one of which is navigable. This is narrow and strongly guarded by batteries. There are seven granite forts armed with heavy guns, and during the Crimean War Cronstadt was held to be impregnable. There are three harbors: the merchant harbor, which will hold 1,000 ships; the middle harbor, used for fitting vessels; and the war harbor, the regular anchorage for the Baltic-fleet section of the Russian navy. A large number of the people are sailors or workmen in the dock-yards. Cronstadt was founded by Peter the Great. Population, 59,939.
Crook, George, an American general, was born Sept. ^1828, near Dayton, Ohio. He graduated at West Point in 1852, and served on the frontier till the breaking out of the Civil War, in which he served with distinction, commanding a corps of Sheridan's army at the battles of Winchester, Opequan Creek and Cedar Creek. After the war he commanded in the west, becoming brigadier-general in 1873. His campaigns against the Pi Utes in 1872 and the Apaches in 1875 were ably fought. In 1882 he drove the Mormons and squatters from Indian lands, and brought the hostile Chiricahuas to terms. He was also concerned for the welfare of his Indian charges, among other reforms forcing the contractors to pay the Indians in cash for supplies instead of with store-orders. Under his management the tribes quickly became self-supporting. He died at Chicago on March 21, 1890.
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