COR'YPHENE, Corohcena, a genus of fishes of the family scomberidee, to which the name DOLPHIN, properly belonging to a genus of eetacea, has by some mistake been popularly transferred. The coryphenes are remarkable for the beauty and metallic bril liancy of their colors, which delight the spectator as they are seen gliding with extreme rapidity near the surface of the water, gleaming in the light of the sun; and the changes of which, as they lie dying on the shore or on the deck of a vessel, have acquired a pecu liar poetic celebrity. They have an elongated compressed body, covered with small scales, the head rising in a sharp crest, the mouth large. They are natives of the seas of warm climates, and some species are found in the Mediterranean, among which is the C. hippuris, the largest known, attaining a length of 5 feet. This and seine of the other species are often seen playing around ships; and great interest is occasionally awakened by their pursuit of shoals of flying-fish. In this chase, a C. may be seen to dart completely out of the making a leap of 10 yards or more. Capt. Basil Hall likens the velocity to that of a cannonball. The C. is often caught by sailors, with a glittering bit of metal instead of a bait.
COS (more anciently Meropis), an island of the Grecian archipelago belonging to Asiatic Turkey. Its modern name is Stanko or Stanchio. C. has a length of 23 m., with a breadth of 5, and a pop. of from 20,000 to 30,000, the half of whom are Greeks: the other half being Turks and Jews, who congregate in the towns. On the eastern
side of the island a range of hills extends along the coast, from cape Fonka on the n., to point Korkilo on the s.; but with this exception, C. consists mostly of delightful and fertile plains, which are well cultivated. S. of these plains, on which stands the prin cipal town, of the same name as the island, rises a high mountain range, which, from its jagged summit, is called mount Prion—the " sawing" mount, or sierra. There are many mineral springs on the island. The exports consist principally of raisins, lemons; salt, and grain. They amount annually to about £50,000. The chief imports are oil, soap, butter, butcher-meat, and English manufactures. The climate in general is pretty healthy. Many ancient Greek remains are scattered over the island. The chief town, Comopolis or Cos, is situated on the n.c. coast. It is built on the ruins of the ancient city of the same name; and in the center of the chief street is a gigantic palm-tree, said to have stood there before the Christian era. To the n.w. is an old fortress of the knights of St. John. The harbor is small, with only about 6 ft. of water init. The inhab itants are employed chiefly in agriculture. Modern Greek is the language spoken. In early times C. was sacred to the worship of 2Esetilapius. It was the birthplace of Ptolemy Philadelphus, of the painter Apelles, and the physician Hippocrates.