CHÉRUEL, shā̇′rụ′ĕl′, Pierre Adolphe (1809-91). A French historian. He was born in Rouen, was educated at the Ecole Normale of Paris, became an instructor there in 1849, and in 1866 was appointed inspector-general of public education and rector of the Academy of Strassburg. Subsequently he held the rectorate of the Poitiers Academy. He wrote a number of accurate, thorough, and very readable works, such as the Dictionnaire historique des institutions, mœurs et coutumes de la France (2 vols, 1855; 6th ed. 1884), and the Histoire de France sous le ministère de Mazarin (3 vols. 1882-83).
CHERUSCI, kē̇-rŭs′sī̇. A German tribe first mentioned by Cæsar. They dwelt in the region of the Weser, their country lying to the northeast of that of the Chatti. They are chiefly memorable in connection with their great leader, Arminius, or Hermann, who, having formed an alliance with other German tribes, attacked and annihilated the Roman legions under Varus, in the Teutoburg Forest, A.D. 9. After the death of Arminius, internal strifes broke out among the Cherusci, and Tacitus says that they were subjugated by the Chatti, a neighboring tribe. Notwithstanding this, they again appear as the chief tribe in the military league of the Saxons about the end of the Third Century. In the beginning of the Fourth Century they are included among the peoples who had leagued against Constantine, and toward the close of the same century are still mentioned distinctively by Claudian.
CHER′VIL (AS. cerfille, Ger. Kerbel, from Lat. cærefolium, from Gk. χαιρέφυλλον, chairephyllon, from χαίρειν, chairein, to rejoice + φύλλον, phyllon, leaf) (Scandix cerefolium or Anthriscus cerefolium). An umbelliferous plant which has long been cultivated as a pot-herb, used in soups and for a garnish, in the same manner as parsley. It is much more used in some parts of the Continent of Europe than in Great Britain or in the United States. It is a native of Europe naturalized in some parts of England and in a few localities in the United States. The leaves have a peculiar, somewhat sweetish, pleasantly aromatic smell and taste, by which the plant may be known from its congener Scandix anthriscus, a weed whose leaves have a disagreeable smell, and which is also distinguished by its hispid fruit. The umbelliferous plant called Venus's-comb or shepherd's-needle (Scandix pecten or Scandix pecten veneris), a native of Europe, often found in grain-fields, and remarkable for the appearance and large size of its fruit, and another species, Scandix australis, which grows in the south of Europe, have a taste and smell resembling chervil, and are used in the same way on the Continent. Sweet chervil, or sweet cicely (Myrrhis odorata, the Scandix odorata of the older botanists), a native of the south of Europe and of some parts of Asia, common in the neighborhood of houses in Great Britain, although probably not a true native, is frequently cultivated in Germany under the name of Spanish chervil or anise chervil. In Scotland the plant is commonly called myrrh by the peasantry. Its smell is peculiarly attractive to bees, and the insides of empty hives are sometimes rubbed with its leaves, to induce swarms to enter. Chærophyllum tuberosum, sometimes called turnip-rooted chervil, is cultivated for the sake of its carrot-shaped roots, which are used in the same manner as carrots. The seed is said to lose its vitality quickly, and should be stratified or sown in the fall soon after ripening. The quality of the root is said to be improved by keeping.
CHERVILLE, shâr′vēl′, Gaspard Georges, Marquis de (1821-98). A French author. He was born in Chartres, and for some time collaborated with the elder Dumas. Subsequently he became known as a writer on the chase, angling, and animal life. From the list of his independent works may be cited: Les aventures d'un chien-de-chasse (1862; 2d ed. 1882); Histoire d'un trop bon chien (1867; an illustrated ed. 1884); and Les éléphants (1895).
CHER′WELL. A stream which falls into the Isis, or Thames, near Oxford, England. It rises in the southwest of Northamptonshire, and forms the western boundary of Oxfordshire for a considerable distance (Map: England, E 5).
CHES′APEAKE, The. A thirty-eight-gun vessel famous in the history of the American Navy. Early in 1807, after undergoing partial repairs in the Washington Navy Yard, she proceeded to Hampton Roads, where Commodore James Barron (q.v.) assumed command. On June 22, poorly equipped, insufficiently manned by an untrained crew, and wholly unfit for immediate action, she started across the Atlantic on a training cruise; but when well out to sea was overtaken and stopped by the British frigate Leopard, 50 guns, whose commander demanded the restitution of British deserters alleged to form a part of the Chesapeake's crew. On Barron's refusal to return the sailors demanded, or to permit search for them, the British attacked with vigor, soon killing three and wounding eighteen of the Americans and seriously crippling their vessel. From the Chesapeake only one gun was fired, and that with great difficulty and without effect. Barron finally struck his colors, and the British reclaimed four deserters, three of whom, though they had been formerly impressed into the British service, were native-born Americans. The affair caused intense excitement throughout the country, anti-British feeling ran high, and the people everywhere demanded ‘reparation or war.’ President Jefferson immediately (July 2) issued a proclamation, which proved futile, ordering British cruisers to depart from American ports and forbidding all aid and intercourse with them; and, through Monroe, indignantly demanded redress, but without avail, from the British Government. The incident was one of the chief occurrences that led up to the War of 1812, and is famous in American history as ‘The Chesapeake Affair’ or the ‘Chesapeake Outrage.’ On June 1, 1813, the Chesapeake, then commanded by Captain Lawrence and carrying 50 guns, fought a battle in Massachusetts Bay with the British thirty-eight-gun vessel the Shannon, Captain Broke, then carrying 52 guns. The two vessels were almost evenly matched, except that the Chesapeake had an untrained crew and had only recently changed captains. After an engagement lasting fifteen minutes, the Chesapeake, rendered unmanageable by the terrible fire of the Shannon, was forced to surrender after Captain Lawrence had received a mortal wound. This gallant
