Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 05.djvu/801

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CUTLASS-FISH. 693 CUTLEKY. coast, and 'silverfish,' heard in Florida. Its length may reach two or three feet, and it swims mostly at the surfaee, often leaping above it (whence another local name, 'skipjack') in pursuit of its prey: and it is sought l)y anglers both for sport and food. In Jamaica, indeed, it CUTLAS3 fish: MOUTH OPES AND SHUT. forms the object of a commercial fishery; and another species is the highly esteemed frostfish (q.v. ) of New Zealand. CUT'LER, Eldredce .Jefferson (1831-70). An American scholar and poet, bom at Hollister, ^lass. He was professor of. modern languages at Harvard from 18(3.5 until his death. His works include TlVn- Poems (1867) and Htella (1868). In addition to his creative work, he ■wrote nuich valuable criticism. CUTLER, Maxasseh ( 174-2-1823) . An Ameri <'an clerg^'man and botanist. He was born in Killingly, Conn., graduated at Yale in 176.5, and in 1767 was admitted to the bar. He then studied theology, was licensed to preach in 1770, and from 1771 until his death was pastor of Hamlet Parish, Ipswich, now the town of Ham- ilton, Mass. During the latter part of the Revo- lutionary War he served as chaplain of a Massa- chusetts regiment. He subsequently studied medicine and botany, and was the first to make a systematic study of the plants of Xcw Eng- land, 350 species of which he classified in ac- cordance with the Linniran system. As the representative of a number of old Revolutionary soldiers, he contracted with Congress for 1.500,- 000 acres of the public lands northwest of the Ohio, and in 17S8 materiallj' assisted the party of Connecticut farmers who, under the lead of Rufus Putnam (q.v.). founded JIarietta, Ohio (q.v.). He is generally credited, moreover, with having made the first draft of the famous Ordi- nance of 1787. He himself went to Marietta in 1788, but soon returned to Massachusetts, and from 1801 to 1805 was a member of Congress. He was a frequent contributor on scientific sub- jects to the Proceedings of the American Acad- emy, and wrote the chapter on trees and plants in Belknap's History of Aeiu Hampshire. Con- sult William P. and Julia P. Cutler. The Life. Jouriitils, and Correspondence of Manasseh Cutler (Cincinnati, 1888). CUTLER, Timothy (1683-1765). An Ameri- can clergyman. He was born at Charlestown, Mass.; graduated at Harvard in 1701. became president of Yale College in 1719, but was forced to resign (1722) on account of his pre- latical tendencies. He went to England and was ordained a minister of the Church of England by the Bishop of Xorwich (1723). and received the degree of D.D. from both Oxford and Cam- bridge; he returned to Boston, became rector of Christ Church (1723), and died there, August, 1765. CUTLERY (from cutler. AF. coieUer. OF. coteUier. Fr. eoutelier, from ML. cultellnriiis, knife-maker, from Lat. ciilteUus, little knife). A term broadly applied to cutting instruments in general, but as more commonly employed its use is limited to such cutting utensils as pocket, pen, and table knives, razors, shears, and scis- sors. Shells and sharp-edged stones formed the rudest and most ancient cutting instruments. These were followed by bronze weapons and in- struments which were used by the Romans as late as the beginning of the Chris! ian Era. In the remains of i'om]ii'ii, however, knives, slicars, and lancets were found made of iron or steel as well as bronze. During the ^liddle Ages, when the chivalry of the period .sought the best equip- ment, certain cities of Spain and Italy acquired a high reputation for the manufacture of cut- ting instruments, especially of swords. The knives used by the Anglo-Saxons resembled in appearance the modern razor-blade. Forks wore used only for sen'ing, as (he custom of eating with forks, which was inlroduce<l from Italy, was not known in England until the time of James I. Knives were not pla<-ed on the table until about the close of the fifteenth century, and each per.son carried a knife with him for use whenever the exigencies of dining required other instruments than his fingers. As early as the reign of Richard I. Shellield had gained a reputation for the excellence of its irhitlles, and in 1417 the cutlers of London obtained a char- ter from Henry V^. In the seventeenth century, when England had acquired a reputation throughout Europe for the quality of its cutlery, Birmingham was regarded as the centre of the industry; but during the nineteenth century Sheffield regained its old preeminence. The manufacture of fable cutlery in the Unit- ed States began in 1832. when a factory was built at Saccarappa, Maine. With the improve- ment of the quality and lowering of tlic price of American .steel, the industry has steadily devel- oped. The annual product now amounts in value to between .$3,000,000 and $4,000,000, of which less than 5 per cent, is exported. America excels in the production of 'medium' goods — that is, goods of tasteful design and good qual- ity at a moderate price; but in tlic manufacture of other branches of cutlery it has not been so successful. Although it is claimed that an equally good quality is produced .at home, still the United States imports from England large quantities of the finest grades. In the very cheap grades, such as vegetable and other kitchen knives which retail in this country for a few cents apiece, America cannot compete with Germany. The first pocket knives were made in a Connecticut factory in 1842, and many English workmen, attracted by high prices and steady cmidoymcnt, came over from Sheffield to work in the Connecticut shops. Some of these afterwards migrated to Walden, X. Y'., where they built a cooperative factory, and since that time over fifty factories, many of them cooperative, have -been established, a niniiber of which have failed, while others have sold out, or have been reorganized a.s corporations. The piece system of paying the operative still prevails to a large extent in cut- lery shops. . the early cutlery was hftnd- forged, and this practice is still general in Eng- land and in the T'nited States for the manufac- ture of some of the best pocket and pen knives. In the latter country to-day. however, large quantities of pocket and pen knives and appar- entlv all table knives and most carving and