both the force and frequency of the pulse. It has been used in a great variety of diseases, most frequently perhaps in rheumatism and cholera, and has had a reputation in snake bites. Cimicifugine is a name improperly applied to an impure resin derived from this plant. The name cohosh, or blue cohosh, is also given to caulophyllum thalictroides or pappoose root. COIF, a head dress. In the middle ages a defensive covering for the head was called by this name, but it was applied more particularly to the covering for the shaven crown of the priests, and to the cap of the advocates. A barrister becoming a sergeant is said to be advanced to the degree of the coif, and takes position accordingly. COIMBATORE, or Coimbatoor. I. A district of British India, in the presidency of Madras, between lat. 10° 14' and 12° 19' N., and lon. 76° 36′ and 78° 16' E.; area, 8,099 sq. m.; pop. in 1871, 1,754,705. The district is enclosed on the north by the group of mountains bordering the table land of Mysore, and on the south by the Pulnai or Vurragiri mountains, and by the Animali range. The principal rivers are the Cavery, Bhowani, Noyel, and Ambrawutty. Although the climate is rendered insalubrious by several extensive morasses, it is better than that of the maritime parts of the Carnatic. Elephants abound. The vegetable productions consist mainly of dry grains. Among the productions are gram, various sorts of panic and of millet, turmeric, and tobacco. Teak and other valuable timber is produced, as well as castor oil and cotton; the last two articles form the principal exports. Experiments have been made with American cotton and Mauritius sugar, proving the fitness of the soil for their cultivation. The language spoken is the Tamil. II. The capital of the district, a well built town, occupying an elevated and dry situation on the banks of the Noyel, on the railway from Madras to Beypoor, 268 m. S. W. of Madras, and 600 m. S. S. E. of Bombay; pop. about 20,000. It contains a mosque built by Tippoo Sultan, who made this place one of his principal military stations. About 2 m. from the town, at Peruru, is a Hindoo temple, called Mail Chittumbra. It is roughly constructed, but covered with a profusion of Hindoo ornaments. Some time ago an ancient tumulus near Coimbatore was opened, and found to contain various weapons and other articles, such as were formerly in use among the Romans. The town was twice taken by the British: once in 1783, and again in 1790. A detach ment of native infantry is stationed here. The European quarter is eastward and detached from the town. COIMBRA, a city of Portugal, capital of the province of Beira, 120 m. N. N. E. of Lisbon; pop. about 19,000. It is situated on the river Mondego, in the midst of a mountainous but fertile and well cultivated tract. Its principal public building is the university, the only one in Portugal, founded at Lisbon in 1291, and transferred hither in 1308. It consists of 18 colleges, is divided into 6 faculties, employs 33 professors in ordinary and 22 assistant professors, has a library of over 30,000 volumes, and is attended by about 1,500 students; it is highly endowed, the courses of study are long, and the annual examinations are said to be severe. Coimbra is the seat of a bishopric, and has the wealthy Augustinian convent of Santa Cruz, with its immense Gothic structure. There are also a college of arts belonging to the Jesuits, a cathedral, eight churches, and several monasteries. On a hill near Coimbra is the splendid convent and church of the nuns of Santa Clara, Plaza, Coimbra. and in the valley of the Mondego opposite to it is the Quinta das Lagrimas, famed in poetry as the scene where Ines de Castro was slain. Seven kings of Portugal were born and four died here, and several princes derived their title from the town. Coimbra is said to be the Conimbrica of the Romans. It sustained many sieges in mediæval times. COIN, a town of Andalusia, Spain, in the province and 20 m. W. of the city of Malaga; pop. about 8,500. It is well built, has good streets and squares, and a promenade with a fountain. Besides two large churches, there are several chapels and convents, an episcopal palace, and a number of schools. In the vicinity are pleasure grounds and gardens, and in the adjoining hills are marble quarries and great quantities of jasper. Paper, linen, woollens, and other articles are manufactured, and the principal articles of trade are cattle, cereals, fruits, and wine. An annual fair is held in August. COINS (Fr. coin, a die or stamp), metallic money; specie; pieces of metal, generally gold, . 10 9 900 silver, or copper, bearing certain marks or de- yet for the most part the coins of the world vices to indicate their origin and value, and consist not of pure gold and silver, but of these designed to be used as money. How early gold metals alloyed with some other, generally copand silver began to be used as money, history per, in definite proportions fixed by law. The does not inform us. Nearly 2,000 years before difficulty of ridding gold entirely of the silver Christ Abraham returned from Egypt "very with which it is always found combined in narich in cattle, in silver, and in gold;" and in his ture has led in some countries to the practice purchase of the cave of Machpelah, he weighed of leaving enough silver to serve for alloy. out the consideration agreed upon, "400 she- This is the case in Spanish America, as is indikels of silver, current money with the mer- cated by the paleness of their doubloons. In chant." The use of the metals, however, in some European countries the silver is entirely the form of wedges or bars, though an immense removed, and copper introduced for alloy, givimprovement upon simple barter, or the use of ing to the coins a reddish cast. In the United cattle, grain, and other commodities, was still States the practice of the mint is to imitate the attended with inconveniences. At every trans- true color of gold in the coinage, by using an action the precise weight of metal must be alloy of about copper and silver; that is, computed; a hammer and chisel must be at in 1,000 oz. of standard gold there are 900 oz. hand to cut it off, and a balance to weigh it. pure gold, 10 oz. silver, and 90 oz. copper.— The fineness of the metal was also to be ascer- The term standard, as applied to coins, means tained. All these troubles were at length end- strictly the conditions of fineness and weight ed by the expedient of shaping the metals into to which they are required by law to conform. pieces of convenient size, and stamping upon | Thus, in the United States, the gold coins must each its exact value. He who first did this be made of metal consisting of pure gold was the inventor of coins; but history is silent and 100 alloy; in other words, they must be respecting his name, his country, or the date fine. This is the standard fineness, and gold of his invention. Homer, although he speaks of workers in metals, makes no mention of coined money. Herodotus says that the Lydians, as far as he knew, were the first who struck money; and although the oldest specimens of coin now extant have usually been supposed to be Grecian, there are reasons for thinking with Herodotus that the invention was Asiatic. Coins were probably used as early as the 8th century B. C., and by the 4th century money was found throughout the civilized world, every state having its proper coinage.-Most of the commoner metals have in turn been used for making coins. The early coins of Asia Minor were of electrum, a mixture of gold and silver, in the proportion of three of the former to one of the latter. Lycurgus banished gold and silver, and made the money of Sparta of iron, $100 worth of which required a cart and two oxen to remove it. Copper would be written 200 or simply 900; and formed the early money of the Romans; and bullion containing three fourths pure metal when Cæsar landed in Britain, coins of brass would be said to be 750 fine. In Great Britain and iron were found in use. Tin was coined two systems prevail, one for gold and one for by Charles II., and James II. even resorted to silver. The fineness of gold is expressed in gun metal and pewter. At the present day, carats, absolute purity being 24 carats fine. however, the precious metals, gold and silver, The standard fineness of British gold coins is with copper for the lowest denomination, are 22 carats, which is equivalent to 11, or 916 almost universally employed as the material of thousandths; so that if a given weight of Amercoins. Coins of platinum were formerly struck ican gold coin is worth $54, the same weight of in Russia, but its use for this purpose has re- British coin is worth $55. For the purpose of cently been abandoned. Gold and silver in a expressing minute degrees of fineness in bullion, state of purity are soft and ductile; and coins the carat is divided into four carat grains, and made of these metals would suffer loss and in- these again into quarters. At the British jury to a certain degree by abrasion, if there mint, assays are carried to the half quarter, were no means of hardening them. The addi- or the part of the carat. In this system tion of a small quantity of alloy is found to the United States standard of 200 would be produce this effect, without materially impair-expressed 2112 carats. The fineness of silver ing the ductility or beauty of the metals. Al- is estimated by stating the number of ounces though in a few countries coins are issued of of fine silver in a pound troy of the metal. almost absolute purity, such as the gold sequins Thus pure silver is 12 fine; and English silver of Tuscany and the silver florins of Hanover, | coins are 11 fine, because in a pound troy of of this quality is called standard gold. The weight of such gold required by law in each gold coin is its standard weight. Thus in the eagle there must be 258 grains. In estimating the value of coins, it is the quantity of fine metal contained in them which is considered; the alloy goes for nothing. The practice of the world is not uniform in regard to standard fineness of coins; some countries issuing coins of as low fineness as 250 thousandths, and others aiming at absolute purity. Great Britain still retains the old proportion of alloy; while in the United States, France, Spain, Belgium, and some other countries, the decimal proportion of 1 alloy has been adopted. Different modes of expressing the fineness of coins and bullion prevail in different countries. Where the decimal system of notation is employed, it is expressed in thousandths. Thus the standard fineness of 10 3 1 1 12 10009 1000 10 10 3 10 standard silver the law requires 11 oz. pure silver and of an oz. alloy. Thus it will be seen that while the British standard for gold coins is 916 thousandths, that of silver coin is 925 thousandths.-Coins are generally made flat, circular, and thin. By being flattened they receive better impressions, and are conveniently handled and piled. The circular form simplifies the process of fabrication, diminishes the abrasion to which the coins are subjected in circulation, and fits them for being carried in the pocket. Though the circular form was aimed at in ancient coinage, it was not till the 7th or 8th century that a true circle was attained. This is effected by striking the coin in a ring or collar. The exceptions to the circular form are not numerous. We have, however, the square ducat of Nuremberg, the square rupees of the Mogul empire, the parallelograms of Japan, the octagonal pieces of Assam, and the $50 octagons which were formerly struck in California. The thickness of coins is generally proportioned to their diameter, though in this particular there is great variety. The size of coins is also exceedingly variable. In the United States silver coins range from the three-cent piece to the dollar, or from 11 grains to 412 in weight, and from about inch to 1 inch diameter. Gold coins range from the dollar of 25 grains to the double eagle of 516 grains. The cent coin (copper and nickel), issued under the act of 1857, is about three fourths of an inch in diameter, and weighs 72 grains, while the bronze cent, under the act of 1864, weighs only 48 grains, but retains the same diameter.-The impressions upon coins present an endless variety. In monarchical countries the obverse of the coin usually bears the likeness of the reigning sovereign, and from this circumstance that side of the coin is in common parlance called the head. In republics it is usual to substitute some device emblematic of liberty. This is often a female figure, or head, with a pileus, or Roman liberty cap. The date is also placed upon the obverse in coins of the United States. verse of a coin commonly exhibits in the centre the national shield, or the denomination of the piece surrounded by a wreath. Running round the coin near the border, there is usually inscribed the name of the country in which it was struck. It is customary also in countries having more than one mint to distinguish the coinage of each by a letter or monogram. The several branches of the mint of the United States, at Charlotte, Dahlonega, New Orleans, and San Francisco, used to employ for this purpose the initials C., D., O., and S., respectively, coins from the mint at Philadelphia having no mark; but since the civil war no coinage has been executed at Charlotte, Dahlonega, or New Orleans, and the mints at the last two places have been discontinued by the coinage act of 1873, that at Charlotte being retained as an assay office only. In the United States the power to coin money is The re vested by the constitution in congress, and is prohibited to the separate states; and yet individual citizens are left perfectly free to coin money, provided only that the coins thus made be not in "resemblance or similitude" of the gold or silver coins issued from the mint. In the case of copper coins, however, in addition to the penalties of counterfeiting, the offering or receiving any other copper coin than the cent and half cent is prohibited by fine and forfeiture. Very large amounts of private gold coins have been struck and extensively circulated in different parts of the country. Such were the coins issued by Reid of Georgia, the Bechtlers of North Carolina, the Mormons in Utah, and several private mints in California.-The earliest coinage for America is said to have been made in 1612 for the Virginia_company, at the Somers islands, now called Bermudas. The coin was of brass, with the legend "Sommer Island," and a "hogge on one side, in memory of the abundance of hogges which were found on their first landing." On the reverse was a ship under sail firing a gun. As early as 1645 the assembly of Virginia, "having maturely weighed and considered how advantageous a quoine current would be to this collony, and the great wants and miseries which do daily happen unto it by the sole dependency upon tobacco," provided by law for the coinage of copper pieces of 2d., 3d., 6d., and 9d.; but this law was never carried into effect. The earliest colonial coinage was in Massachusetts, in pursuance of an order of the general court, passed May 27, 1652, which established "a mint howse at Boston. The order required the coinage of "12 pence, 6 pence, and 3 pence pieces, which shall be for forme flatt, and stamped on the one side with N. E., and on the other side with XIId., VId., and IIId., according to the value of each peece." These coins were to be of the fineness of " new sterling English money," and every shilling was "to weigh threepenny troy weight, and lesser peeces proportionably." They were soon after in circulation; but owing to the excessive plainness of their finish, they were found to be greatly exposed to "washing and clipping." To remedy this, the general court, on Oct. 19 of the same year, ordered a new die, and required that "henceforth both shillings and smaller peeces shall have a double ring on either side, with this inscription, (Massachusetts), and a tree in the centre, on the one side, and New England and the date of the year on the other side." In 1662 a twopenny piece was added to the series. These coins are now known as the "pine tree shilling," &c. The Massachusetts mint existed about 34 years; but all the coins issued bear only the dates 1652 and 1662, the same dies having probably done service throughout the period. In the reign of William and Mary copper coins were struck in England for New England and Carolina, having on the obverse an elephant, and on the reverse respectively, "God preserve New England, 1694," and "God preserve Carolina | and the lords proprietors, 1694." As early as 1662 an act was passed by the provincial assembly of Maryland "for the getting up of a mint within the province." It is probable, however, that the mint was never established; but shillings, sixpences, and fourpences of silver were made in England under the direction of Lord Baltimore, and sent to the colony, having on the obverse a profile bust of Lord Baltimore, with the legend Cæcilius: Dns: Terræ : Mariæ: &c.; reverse, an escutcheon with family arms, value of the piece, and the legend, Crescite: et: Multiplicamini. There were also copper halfpennies with the same obverse, and having on the reverse the legend, Denarivm: Terræ-Maria, and in the centre two flags on a ducal coronet. New Hampshire legislated for a copper coinage in 1766; but, as in the case of Virginia and Maryland, nothing more was done. In the reign of George I. an attempt was made to introduce into general circulation in the colonies coins made of Bath metal or pinchbeck, having on the obverse the head of that king and the legend, Georgius D. G. Mag. Bri. et Hib. Rex; and on the reverse a large double rose with the legend Rosa Americana, Utile Dulci, 1722 and 1723, in the last the rose being crowned. These coins were made by William Wood, under a royal patent "for coining small money for the English plantations, in pursuance of which he had the conscience to make 13 shillings out of a pound of brass." This "Wood's money," however, was vehemently rejected both here and in Ireland, where strenuous efforts were made to introduce it. From 1778 to 1787 the power of coinage was exercised not only by the confederation in congress, but also by several of the individual states. In Vermont a mint was established by legislative authority in 1785, in the town of Rupert, and copper cents were issued of the following description: Obverse, a sun rising from behind hills, and plough in the foreground, with the legend, Vermontensium Res Publica, 1786; reverse, a radiated eye surrounded by 13 stars, with the legend, Quarta Decima Stella. Some of the cents of 1786 and all those of 1787-18 have on the obverse a head, with the legend, Auctoritate Vermontensium, and on the reverse a woman, with the legend, Inde. Et Lib. Connecticut followed the example of Vermont, and in the same year, 1785, authorized the establishment of a mint at New Haven, and copper coins were issued, weighing six pennyweights, and having on the obverse a head with the words Auctori. Connec: reverse, a female figure holding an olive branch, with the legend, Inde. Et Lib. 1785. This mint continued in operation three years. New Jersey authorized à copper coinage in 1786. The parties procuring the patent established two mints, one at a place known as Solitude, about two miles west of Morristown, and the other at Elizabeth. The coins are thus described: Obverse, a horse's head with a plough beneath-legend, Nova Cæsarea, 1786, &c.; reverse, a shield-legend, E Pluribus Unum. Massachusetts, by act of Oct. 17, 1786, directed the establishment of a mint, and the following year the necessary works were erected on Boston neck and at Dedham. In 1788 cents and half cents were issued, exhibiting on the obverse the American eagle with arrows in the right talon and an olive branch in the left, a shield on its breast bearing the word "Cent"-legend, "Massachusetts, 1788;" reverse, an Indian holding a bow and arrowlegend, "Commonwealth" and a star.-As early as January, 1782, a plan for an American coinage was submitted to congress by Robert Morris, the head of the finance department, the authorship of which is, however, claimed for Gouverneur Morris. In February following congress approved the establishment of a mint, but no further action was taken till 1785, when congress adopted the plan of a national coinage presented by Thomas Jefferson, and in 1786 decided upon the following names and characters of the coins: An eagle, to contain 24626 grs. of fine gold, value $10, and half eagle in proportion, both to be stamped with the American eagle; a dollar, to contain 37564 grs. of fine silver; a half dollar, double dime, and dime, in proportion. The copper coins were a cent and half cent. In October, 1786, congress framed an ordinance for the establishment of a mint; but nothing further was done till 1787, when the board of treasury, by authority of congress, contracted with Mr. James Jarvis for 300 tons of copper coin of the federal standard. These cents were coined at the New Haven mint, and are of the following description: On one side, 13 circles linked together, a small circle in the middle with the words "United States" around it, and in the centre the words, "We are one;" on the other side, a sun dial with the sun above it, and Fugio, 1787, on opposite sides, and below the dial, "Mind Your Business." A few of these pieces are said to have been struck in the Vermont mint at Rupert. On April 2, 1792, a code of laws was enacted for the establishment and regulation of the mint, under which, with slight amendments, the coinage was executed for 42 years. The denominations of coin and their rates were as follows: Gold, the eagle of $10, to weigh 270 grs., the half eagle and quarter eagle in proportion, all of the fineness of 22 carats, or 9163 thousandths; silver, the dollar of 100 cents, to weigh 416 grs., the half dollar, quarter dollar, dime of 10 cents, and half dime in proportion, the fineness to be 1,485 parts fine in 1,664, or 892-4 thousandths; copper, the cent of 264 grs., the half cent in proportion. The same act declared the dollar to be the unit of federal money, and directed that all public accounts should be kept in conformity to the decimal system of coins above described. After the act of 1792 the following changes in the currency occurred: Jan. 14, 1793, the cent reduced to 208 grs., and half 100 3 50 10009 100 cent in proportion; Jan. 26, 1796, cent reduced to 168 grs., and half cent in proportion; June 28, 1834, the weight of the eagle reduced to 258 grs., and the parts in proportion, of which 232 grs. were to be fine gold, equal to a fineness of 899,225 thousandths, being an increase of 6-6,8 per cent. on the former value of gold as compared with silver, which remained unchanged. The disadvantages of the complex standards both of gold and silver determined Mr. R. M. Patterson, the director of the mint, to attempt an improvement. He accordingly drew up a well considered code of mint laws, which was enacted by congress, Jan. 18, 1837, by which the French standard of fineness of 900 for both gold and silver, was adopted. The weight of the gold coins remained unchanged, but the dollar was reduced to 412 grs., and the lesser silver coins in proportion. By the act of March 3, 1849, there were added to the series of gold coins the double eagle and the dollar; and by act of Feb. 21, 1853, the three-dollar piece. By act of March 3, 1851, there was added to the silver coins a three-cent piece (a legal tender for sums not exceeding 30 cents), of the fineness of 750 100%, and 123 grs. in weight, at which rates it continued to be coined till April 1, 1853, when its fineness was raised to 900, and its weight reduced to of the of the half dollar, or 115 grs. At this date also, in pursuance of the act of Feb. 21, 1853, an important change was effected in the silver coinage. The preëxisting laws had made both gold and silver coins (except the three-cent piece) a legal tender for any amount. At the ratio of silver to gold of 16 to 1, silver was undervalued in the United States as compared with Europe, and our silver coins were largely exported. The remedy provided was a seigniorage upon the silver coins, and making gold alone the legal tender. The weight of the half dollar was reduced from 2061 grs. to 192 grs., and the smaller coins in proportion. The mint ceased coining silver for individuals, but purchased silver at the market price and made the coins for government account-a policy a policy with respect to silver which was adopted in England as early as 1817. The effect of this change was to give to the silver coin of the country a current value sufficiently above its market price as bullion to prevent its exportation, and at the same time to make silver money subsidiary to gold. It is a legal tender now only to the extent of $5. The price at which the mint buys silver is fixed from time to time according to its value in the market, and in 1872 was $1 221 per standard ounce (·900 fine). The silver dollar was not included in this change. It was still a legal tender for all amounts, and its weight continued at 412 grs., while that of two half dollars, or an equivalent sum in smaller coins, was 384 grs. It was therefore intrinsically worth 742 per cent. more 10% per cent. more than a dollar's worth of the other silver coins; but as compared with their current value, only about 41 per cent. more. A further change in the currency was effected by the act of Feb. 21, 1857, by which the copper cent and half cent were discontinued, and a new cent, composed of 88 per cent. of copper and 12 per cent. of nickel, and weighing 72 grs., was substituted; which continued to be coined until the act of April 22, 1864, provided for the coinage of the bronze cent, consisting of 95 per cent. of copper and 5 per cent. of tin and zinc, and weighing 48 grs. The same act authorized the coinage of two-cent pieces weighing 96 grs.; and by the act of March 3, 1865, a threecent coin, three fourths copper and one fourth nickel, weighing 30 grs., was authorized. The act of May 16, 1866, provided for the coinage of a five-cent piece, three fourths copper and one fourth nickel, weighing 77.16 grs. The one- and two-cent coins were made a legal tender only to the amount of 4 cents, while the three-cent and five-cent pieces were a legal tender for sums not exceeding 60 cents and $1 respectively. The act of Feb. 12, 1873, known as the coinage act of 1873, prepared under the supervision of John Jay Knox, comptroller of the currency, and the passage of which was largely due to his exertions, has consolidated the regulations governing the coinage of the United States. Under this act the fineness of all gold and silver coins is to be 900. The alloy of the silver coins consists of copper; the alloy of the gold coins is copper, or copper and silver, the silver in no case to exceed one tenth of the whole alloy. The gold coins are a onedollar piece, "which, at the standard weight of 25.8 grs., shall be the unit of value;" quarter eagle, or two-and-a-half-dollar piece, 645 grs. 64.5 grs.; a three-dollar piece, 774 grs.; a half eagle, or five-dollar piece, 129 grs.; an eagle, or ten-dollar piece, 258 grs.; and a double eagle, or twenty-dollar piece, 516 grs. These coins are a legal tender to any amount. The silver coins are a "trade dollar," weighing 420 grs.; a half dollar, or fifty-cent piece, 124 grams, or 192.9 grs.; a quarter dollar, or twenty-fivecent piece, and a dime, or ten-cent piece, respectively one half and one fifth the weight of the half dollar. These coins are a "legal tender at their nominal value for any amount not exceeding five dollars in any one payment." The trade dollar is intended for the convenience of commerce with China and Japan; while the half dollar, being half the weight of the five-franc silver coin of France, Belgium, and Switzerland, of the five-lire silver coin of Italy, the five-peseta silver coin of Spain, the fivedrachma silver coin of Greece, and having the same weight as the new silver florin of Austria, is a step in the direction of international coinage. The minor coins are a five-cent and a three-cent piece, three fourths copper and one fourth nickel, weighing respectively 77·16 and 30 grs., and a one-cent piece, 95 per cent. copper and 5 per cent. tin and zinc, weighing 48 grs., which are a "legal tender at their nominal value for any amount not exceeding 25 cents in any one payment." The issuing of a |