CANTERBUBY-BELL 330 CANTON 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 pro- jection on the E. coast, consisting of an assemblage of densely-wooded hills, and containing several harbors. The famous "Canterbury Plains," 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 Christ- church. Area, 13,858 square miles. Pop. about 200,000. CANTERBURY-BELL, a name given to species of Campanula, C. medium and C. trachelium. CANTHARIS (pi. can-thar'-i-des), the Spanish-fly or Blister Beetle-fly, Cantharis vesicatoria, a coleopterous in- sect, the typical one of the family Can- tharidse. They are collected principally in Hungary, 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, and contain a crystalline substance, Cantharidine. The insects described above are ex- ternally 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, peri- carditis, pneumonia, and other internal inflammations. Internally they are given in chronic affections of the nerv- ous system, especially of the spinal cord. They have also a diuretic action. They should never be administered except by a physician. CANTICLE, certain detached psalms and hymns used in the service of the Anglican Church, such as the Venite exulfemus, _ Te Deum laudam-us, Bene- dicite omnia opera, Benedictus, Jubilate Deo, Magnificat, Cantate Domino, Nunc dimittis, Deus misereatur, and the verses I 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." CANTIGNY, BATTLE OF. This action was notable, not because of the number of troops engaged, but because it marked the beginning of offensive op- erations in Europe by the United States army. It took place on May 28, 1918, at Cantigny, a small town N. W. of Montdidier, France, which at the time was at the apex of the German thrust aimed at Amiens. It had a strong posi- tion on a hill that commanded a valley running into the American lines and gave the enemy valuable opportunities for observation. It had a series of cel- lars that were linked up with a long tunnel that gave excellent shelter for troops and artillery. The most careful preparations had been made for its re- duction. Most of the engines of mod- ern warfare, tanks, gas, flame throwers, smoke screens, machine guns, and artil- lery, were used by the Americans who went over the top at seven o'clock in the morning. They swept forward in three waves, with separate detachments to whom the task of "mopping up" the cel- lars of Cantigny had been assigned. In thirty-five minutes they had stormed the village, capturing 200 prisoners and in- flicting heavy losses in killed and wounded on the enemy. The Americans also captured the defenses to the north and south of the town, making an ad- vance of a mile on a two-mile front. Then they consolidated their newly won positions and defended them success- fully against the fierce counter-attacks that followed. On a comparatively small scale, it was one of the most deftly executed and finished actions of the war. The American casualties were very small. ; CANTILEVER, or CANTELEVER. See Bridge. CANTON, a small division of territory, constituting a distinct state or govern- ment, as in Switzerland. CANTON, called also Yang-Ching (1 e., "city of rams"), a large com- mercial city and port in the south of China, and capital of the province of Kwang-tung (of which the name Canton is merely a corruption), on the N. or left side of the Shu-kiang, or Pearl ' river, in a rich alluvial plain, 70 miles N. of Macao and 90 N. W. of Hong- kong. The Pearl river is the estuary of the same stream that higher up is called Boca Tigre, or Boca Tigris. Farther up still, the stream is known as the Canton river; and this is but the chief channel by which the united waters of the Si- kiang and the Pekiang rivers reach the sea through the delta. The city is sur- rounded by walls partly brick, partly sandstone, 25 to 40 feet high, 20 feet thick, with an esplanade inside, 6 miles in circumference; and it is divided by a
