NOTES AND QUERIES:

A MEDIUM OF INTER-COMMUNICATION FOR LITERARY MEN, ARTISTS, ANTIQUARIES, GENEALOGISTS, ETC.

"When found, make a note of."—CAPTAIN CUTTLE.

CONTENTS

NOTES.

A NOTE ON "SMALL WORDS."

"And ten small words creep on in one dull line."

Most ingenious! most felicitous! but let no man despise little words, despite of the little man of Twickenham. He himself knew better, but there was no resisting the temptation of such a line as that. Small words he says, in plain prosaic criticism, are generally "stiff and languishing, but they may be beautiful to express melancholy."

The English language is a language of small words. It is, says Swift, "overstocked with monosyllables." It cuts down all its words to the shortest possible dimensions: a sort of half-Procrustes, which lops but never stretches. In one of the most magnificent passages in Holy Writ, that, namely, which describes the death of Sisera:—

"At her feet he bowed, he fell: at her feet he bowed, he fell, he lay down: where he bowed, there he fell down dead."

There are twenty-two monosyllables to three of greater length, or rather to the same dissyllable thrice repeated; and that too in common parlance proncounced as a monosyllable. The passage in the Book of Ezekiel, which Coleride is said to have considered the most sublime in the whole Bible,—

"And He said unto me, son of man, can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord God, though knowest,"—

contains seventeen monosyllables to three others. And in the most grand passage which commences the Gospel of St. John, from the first to the fourteenth verses, inclusive, there are polysyllables twenty-eight, monosyllables two hundred and one. This it may be said is poetry, but not verse, and therefore makes but little against the critic. Well then, out of his own mouth shall he be confuted. In the fourth epistle of his Essay on Man, a specimen selected purely at random from his works, and extending altogether to three hundred and ninety-eight lines, there are no less than twenty-seven (that is, a trifle more than one out of every fifteen,) made up entirely of monosyllables: and over and above these, there are one hundred and fifteen which have in them only one word of greater length; and yet there are few dull creepers among the lines of Pope.

The early writers, the "pure wells of English undefiled," are full of "small words."

Hall, in one of the most exquisite of his satires, speaking of the vanity of "adding house to house, and field to field," has these most beautiful lines,—

"What harmonious monosyllables!" says Mr. Gifford; and what critic will refuse to echo his exclamation? The same writer is full of monosyllabic lines, and he is among the most energetic {306} of satirists. By the way, it is not a little curious, that in George Webster's White Devil, or Vittoria Corombona, almost the same thought is also clothed in two monosyllabic lines:—

Was Young dull? Listen, for it is indeed a "solemn sound:"—

Was Milton tame? Hear the "lost archangel" calling upon Hell to receive its new possessor:—

A great conjunction of little words! Are monosyllables passionless? Listen to the widowed Constance:—

Six polysyllables only in eight lines!

The ingenuity of Pope's line is great, but the criticism false. We applaud it only because we have never taken the trouble to think about the matter, and take it for granted that all monosyllabic lines must "creep" like that which he puts forward as a specimen. The very frequency of monosyllables in the compositions of our language is one grand cause of that frequency passing uncommented upon by the general reader. The investigation prompted by the criticism will serve only to show its unsoundness.

K.I.P.B.T.

ON GRAY'S ELEGY.

If required to name the most popular English poem of the last century, I should perhaps fix on the Elegy of Gray. According to Mason, it "ran through eleven editions in a very short space of time." If he means separate editions, I can point out six other impressions in the life-time of the poet, besides those in miscellaneous collections viz. In Six Poems by Mr. T. Gray, London, 1753. Folio—1765. Folio—and in Poems by Mr. Gray, London, 1768. small 8o.—Glasgow 1768. 4o.—London. A new edition, 1768. small 8o. A new edition, 1770. small 8o. So much has been said of translations and imitations, that I shall confine myself to the text.

Of the first separate edition I am so fortunate as to possess a copy. It is thus entitled:—

"An elegy wrote in a country church-yard. LONDON: printed for R. Dodsley in Pal-mall; and sold by M. Cooper in Pater-noster-row, 1751. Price six-pense. 4o six leaves.

"Advertisement.

"The following POEM came into my hands by accident, if the general approbation with which this little piece has been spread, may be call'd by so slight a term as accident. It is this approbation which makes it unnecessary for me to make any apology but to the author: as he cannot but feel some satisfaction in having pleas'd so many readers already, I flatter myself he will forgive my communicating that pleasure to many more.

"The EDITOR."

The history of this publication is given by Gray himself, in a letter to Walpole, dated in 1751, and needs no repetition; but I must observe, as a remarkable circumstance, that the poem was reprinted anonymously, in its separate form, as late as 1763.

I have collated the editions of 1751 and 1770, and find variations in stanzas 1, 3, 5, 9, 10, 12, 23, 24, and 27. All the amendments, however, were adopted as early as 1753, except the correction of a grammatical peccadillo in the ninth stanza.

I make this communication in the shape of a note, as it may interest men of the world not less than certain hermits.

BOLTON CORNEY.

GRAY'S ELEGY IN PORTUGUESE.

In several numbers of the "NOTES AND QUERIES" mention is made of various translations into foreign languages of GRAY'S Elegy in a Country Church-yard. P.C.S.S. begs leave to add to the list a very elegant translation into Portuguese, by the Chevalier Antonio de Aracejo (afterwards Minister of Foreign Affairs at Lisbon and at Rio de Janeiro), to whose friendship he was indebted many years ago for a copy of it. It was privately printed at Lisbon towards the close of the last century, and was subsequently reprinted at Paris in 1802, in a work called Traductions interlinéaires, en six Langues, by A.M.H. Boulard.

P.C.S.S.

FURTHER NOTES ON THE AUTHORSHIP OF SHAKSPEARE'S HENRY VIII.

The Gentleman's Magazine for the present month contains a letter from Mr. Spedding, the author of the essay which appeared in the August {307} number of that magazine on the authorship of Henry VIII. After expressing himself "gratified but not surprised" by the coincidence between his views and those of Mr. Hickson in "NOTES AND QUERIES" (Vol. ii., p. 198.), Mr. Spedding proceeds:

"The resemblance of the style, in some parts of the play, to Fletcher's, was pointed out to me several years ago by Alfred Tennyson (for I do not know why I should not mention his name); and long before that, the general distinctions between Shakspeare's manner and Fletcher's had been admirably explained by Charles Lamb in his note on the Two Noble Kinsmen, and by Mr. Spalding in his Essay. And in respect to this I had myself derived additional light, more, perhaps, than I am aware of, from Mr. Hickson himself, if he be (as I suppose he is) the S.H. of the Westminster Review. But having been thus put upon the scent and furnished with principles, I followed the inquiry out by myself, without help or communication. That two independent inquirers should thus have arrived at the same conclusions upon so many particulars, must certainly be considered very singular, except upon one supposition; viz., that the conclusions are according to reason. Upon that supposition, nothing is more natural; and I must confess, for my own part, that I should have been more surprised if the coincidence had been less exact."

We will borrow one more paragraph from Mr. Spedding's communication (which is distinguished throughout by the liberality of tone of a true scholar), and we doubt not that the wish expressed at its conclusion is one in which our readers join as heartily as ourselves:—

"I hope, however, that Mr. Hickson may be induced to pursue his own investigation further, and to develop more fully the suggestion which he throws out as to a difference of style discernible in the scenes which he attributes to Shakspeare. If I understand him rightly, he sees traces in this play of the earlier as well as the later hand of both poets. I cannot say that I perceive any indications of this myself, nor, if it be so, can I well make out how it should have come to pass. But I should be glad to hear more about it."

It will be seen by the following extract from Mr. Emerson's Representative Men, for which we are indebted to our correspondent A.R., that the subject had attracted the attention of that distinguished writer.—

"In Henry VIII., I think I see plainly the cropping out of the original rock on which his (Shakspeare's) own finer stratum was laid. The first play was written by a superior, thoughtful man, with a vicious ear. I can mark his lines, and know well their cadence. See Wolsey's Soliloquy, and the following scene with Cromwell, where, instead of the metre of Shakspeare, whose secret is, that the thought constructs the tune, so that reading for the sense will best bring out the rhythm; here the lines are constructed on a given tune, and the verse has even a trace of pulpit eloquence. But the play contains, through all its length, unmistakeable traits of Shakspeare's hand; and some passages, as the account of the coronation, are like autographs. What is odd, the compliment to Queen Elizabeth is in the bad rhythm."

QUEEN ELIZABETH AND SIR HENRY NEVILL.

Many years ago I copied the following note from a volume of Berkshire pedigrees in the British Museum, my reference to which is unluckily lost.

"Queen Elizabeth, in her first progress at Maidenhithe Bridge, being mett by all the Nobility, Kn'ts, and Esquires of Berks, they kneeling on both sides of her way, shee alighted at the bridge foot, and walked on foote through the midst, and coming just agaynst Sir Henry Nevill of Billingbear, made a stay, and leyd her glove on his head, saying, 'I am glad to see thee, Brother Henry.' Hee, not pleased with the expression, swore she would make the court believe hee was a bastard, at which shee laughed, and passed on."

The masquing scene in Henry VIII., as described by Holinshed, perhaps furnishes a clue to the Queen's pleasantry, though Shakspeare has omitted the particular incident relating to Sir Henry Nevill. The old chronicler, after giving an account of Wolsey's banquet, and the entrance of a noble troop of strangers in masks, amongst whom he suspected that the king made one, proceeds as follows:—

"Then the Lord Chamberlain said to the Cardinal, Sir, they confesse that among them there is such a noble personage whom, if your Grace can appointe out 'from the rest, he is content to disclose himself and to accept your place.' Whereupon the Cardinal, taking good advisement among them, at the last quoth he, 'Me seemeth the gentleman in the black beard should be even he.' And with that he arose out of his chaire and offered the same to the gentleman in the black beard, with his cap in his hand. The person to whom he offered the chaire was Sir Edward Nevill, a comelie knight, that much more resembled the king's person in that mask than anie other. The King perceiving the Cardinal so deceived, could not forbear laughing, and pulled down his visor and Maister Nevill's too."

Sir Edward Nevill of Aldington, in Kent, was the second surviving son of George Nevill, Lord Abergavenny, and the father of Sir Henry Nevill above mentioned, who laid the foundation-stone and built the body and one wing of Billingbear House, which still belongs to his descendant. Sir Edward Nevill was beheaded for high treason in 1538, his likeness to Henry VIII. not saving him from the fate which befell so many of that king's unhappy favourites.

BRATHBROOKE.

Audley End.

MINOR NOTES.

Whales.—Tychsen thinks the stories of whales mistaken for islands originated in the perplexities of inexperienced sailors when first venturing from {308} the Mediterranean into a sea exposed to the tides. I think Dr. Whewell mentions that in particular situations the turn of the current occurs at a sufficient interval from the time of high or low water to perplex even the most experienced sailors.

F.Q.

Bookbinding.—While the mischief of mildew on the inside of books has engaged some correspondents to seek for a remedy (Vol. ii., 103. 173.), a word may be put in on behalf of the outside, the binding. The present material used in binding is so soft, flabby, and unsound, that it will not endure a week's service. I have seen a bound volume lately, with a name of repute attached to it; and certainly the workmanship is creditable enough, but the leather is just as miserable as any from the commonest workshop. The volume cannot have been bound many months, and yet even now, though in good hands, it is beginning to rub smooth, and to look, what best expresses it emphatically, shabby, contrasting most grievously with the leather of another volume, just then in use, bound some fifty or seventy years ago, and as sound and firm as a drum's head—common binding too, be it observed—as the modern cover is flabby and washy. Pray, sir, raise a voice against this wretched material, for that is the thing in fault, not the workmanship; and if more must be paid for undoctored outsides, let it be so.

NOVUS.

Scott's Waverley.—Some years ago, a gentleman of my acquaintance, now residing in foreign parts, told me the following story:—

"Once upon a time," the great unknown being engaged in a shooting-match near his dwelling, it came to pass that all the gun-wadding was spent, so that he was obliged to fetch paper instead. After Sir Walter had come back, his fellow-shooter chanced to look at the succedaneum, and was not a little astonished to see it formed part of a tale written by his entertainer's hand. By his friend's urgent inquiries, the Scotch romancer was compelled to acknowledge himself the author, and to save the well nigh destroyed manuscript of Waverley.

I do not know whether Sir Walter Scott was induced by this incident to publish the first of his tales or not; perhaps it occurred after several of his novels had been printed. Now, if any body acquainted with the anecdote I relate should perchance hit upon my endeavour to give it an English garb, he would do me a pleasure by noting down the particulars I might have omitted or mis-stated. I never saw the fact recorded.

JANUS DOUSA.

Satyavrata.—Mr. Kemble, Salomon and Saturn, p. 129., does not seem to be aware that the Satyavrata in question was one of the forgeries imposed on, and afterwards detected, by Wilford.

F.Q.

QUERIES.

BLACK ROOD OF SCOTLAND.

Can any of your correspondents give me any information on the following points connected with "the Black Rood of Scotland?"

1. What was the history of this cross before it was taken into Scotland by St. Margaret, on the occasion of her marriage with Malcolm, king of Scotland? Did she get it in England or in Germany?

2. What was its size and make? One account describes it as made of gold, and another (Rites of Durham, p. 16.) as of silver.

3. Was the "Black Rood of Scotland" the same as the "Holy Cross of Holyrood House?" One account seems to make them the same: for in the Rites of Durham, p. 16., we read,—

"At the east end of the south aisle of the choir, was a most fair rood, or picture of our Saviour, in silver, called the Black Rood of Scotland, brought out of Holyrood House by King David Bruce, and was won at the battle of Durham, with the picture of our Lady on the one side, and St. John on the other side, very richly wrought in silver, all three having crowns of gold," &c. &c.

Another account, in p. 21 of the same work, seems to make them different; for, speaking of the battle of Neville's Cross (18th October, 1346), it says—

"In which said battle a holy Cross, which was taken out of Holyrood House, in Scotland, by King David Bruce, was won and taken," &c., p. 21.

And adds,—

"In which battle were slain seven earls of Scotland.... and also lost the said cross, and many other most worthy and excellent jewels ... together with the Black Rood of Scotland (so termed) with Mary and John, made of silver, being, as it were, smoked all over," &c., p. 22.

4. If they were the same, how is the legend concerning its discovery by the king, upon Holyrood day, when hunting in a forest near Edinburgh, to be reconciled with the fact of its being taken by St. Margaret into Scotland? If they were not the same, what was the previous history of each, and which was the cross of St. Margaret?

5. How is the account of Simeon of Durham, that the Black Rood was bequeathed to Durham Priory by St. Margaret, to be reconciled with the history of its being taken from the Scotch at the battle of Neville's Cross?

6. May there not be a connexion between the legend of the discovery of the "Holy Cross" between the horns of a wild hart (Rites of Durham, p. 21.), and the practice that existed of an offering of a stag annually made, on St. Cuthbert's day, in September, by the Nevilles of Raby, to the Priory of Durham? May it not have been an acknowledgement {309} that the cross won at the battle of Neville's Cross was believed to have been taken by King David from the hart in the forest of Edinburgh? In the "Lament for Robert Neville," called by Surtees "the very oldest rhyme of the North" we read—

7. Is it known what became of the "Holy Cross" or "Black Rood" at the dissolution of Durham Priory?

P.A.F.

Newcastle-on-Tyne.

MINOR QUERIES.

Trogus Pompeius.—In Hannay and Dietrichsen's Almanuck for the Year 1849, I find the following statement under the head of "Remarkable Occurrences of the Year 1847:"—

"July 21. A portion of the history of Trogus Pompeius (the author abridged by Justin) is discovered in the library of Ossolinski at Berlin."

Not having noticed any contemporary account of this occurrence, I should be glad of any information respecting the nature and extent of the discovery.

E.L.N.

Mortuary Stanzas.—Could any of your readers supply me with information respecting the practice of appending mortuary stanzas to the yearly bills of mortality, published in many parishes; whether there are any extant specimens of such stanzas besides those memorable poems of Cowper written for the parish clerk of Northampton; and whether, also, the practice is still kept up in any parts of the country?

[Greek: Philopatris].

Laird of Grant.—In the north of England, I have repeatedly heard the auld wife remark, on observing any unwonted act of extravagance, such as burning more than the ordinary number of candles, &c. &c.,—"Who is to be Laird of Grant next year?" As this saying appears to be used only in the north, I have no other medium at present than to seek a reply through the aid of your valuable little work.

SENEX.

[A similar "saw" was formerly current in the metropolis,—"What, three candles burning! we shall be Lord Mayor next year."]

Bastille, MS. Records of.—Are there amongst the MSS. of the British Museum any documents relating to spies, or political agents, employed by the French and English governments from 1643 to 1715, who were incarcerated in the Bastille?

M.V.

Orkney under the Norwegians.—Torfæus (Orcades), under the transactions of the year 1430 (p. 182-3.), has an incidental mention of the Orkneys as among the forbidden islands, "vetitæ insulas," of which the commerce was forbidden to strangers, and confined to the mother country, as to this day it is with Denmark and her possessions of the Faroe Islands and Iceland, both mentioned in the paragraph of the historian among the islands whose commerce was restricted. It would be very desirable to know of the social state of Orkney under the government of Norway and its native Jarls of the Norwegian race, and or its connexion with Norway and Denmark; and some of your correspondents may take the trouble to point out sources of information on the subject of this Query.

W.H.F.

Kirkwall

Swift's Works.—In Wilde's Closing Years of Dean Swift's Life (2d edit. p. 78.) is mentioned an autograph letter from Sir Walter Scott to C.G. Gavelin, Esq., of Dublin, in the MS. library. T.C.D., in which he states he had nothing whatever to do with the publication or revision of the second edition of the Works of Jonathan Swift. This does not agree with the statement given in Mr. Lockhart's Life of Sir Walter Scott, 2d edit. vol. vii. p. 215. Who was the editor, and in what does the second edition differ from the first?

W.H.F.

"Pride of the Morning."—Why is the small rain which falls in the morning, at some seasons of the year, called "the pride of the morning?"

P.H.F.

Bishop Durdent and the Staffordshire Historians.—It is stated by Sampson Erdeswich, Esq., in his Survey of Staffordshire, p. 164, 12mo. 1717, that—

"Not far from Tame, Roger Durdent held Fisherwicke of the bishop, 24 Ed. I. And 4 Ed. II. Nicholas Durdent was lord of it, which I suppose was procured to some of his ancestors of the same name by their kinsman Walter Durdent, Bishop of Litchfield, in Henry II.'s time."

but no authority is given for this statement.

In Shaw's History of Staffordshire, p. 365., fol., 1798, it is further recorded that—

"Walter Durdent, in the beginning of Henry II., appears to have granted it (Fisherwicke) to some of his relations, for we find William Durdent of Fisherwicke temp. Henry II.; and in the 40th of Hen. III. Roger Durdent occurs, who held Fisherwicke of the bishop, 24 Ed. I. In the 4 Ed. II. Nicholas Durdent was lord of it."

Shaw refers to Erdeswick, and to the Annals of Burton Abbey, p. 364.

In Dr. Harwood's edition of Erdeswick, 8vo., 1844, the same statements are repeated, but no authority is adduced. Could any of your correspondents obligingly furnish me with the original {310} sources of information to which Erdeswick had access, and also with any biographical notices of Bishop Durdent besides those which are recorded in Godwin and Shaw? The bishop had the privilege of coining money. (See Shaw's Staffordshire, pp. 233. 265.) Are any of his coins known to numismatists?

F.R.R.

Pope and Bishop Burgess.—To what passage in Pope's writings does the conclusion of the following extract refer?¹

"Digammaticæ doctrinæ idem accidit. In his Popius eam in ludibrium vertit, &c. Sed eximius Poeta neque in veteribus suæ ipsius linguæ, nedum Græcæ monumentis versatus, tantum scilicet de antiqua illa litera vidit, quantum de Shakespearii SAGITTARIO."

W.W.

Footnote 1:(return)

3d ed. of Dawes's Mis. Critic, p. xviii, note x.

Daniel's Irish New Testament.—F.G.X. will be much obliged for information on the following points:—

1. Which is the most correct edition, as to printing and orthography, of Daniel's Irish New Testament?

2. Does the edition now on sale by the Bible Society bear the character for incorrectness as to these points, which, judged by itself, it appears to deserve, or is it really, though "bad, the best?"

3. F.G.X. is far advanced with an Irish Testament Concordance. Can any one possessed of the requisite information give him hope of the acceptableness of such a publication? He should expect it to be chiefly useful to clerical Irish students in acquiring a knowledge of words and construction; but the lists of Irish Bibles disposed of of late years would lead to the supposition of its being desirable also as pointing out the place of passages to the native reader.

4. Does the Cambridge University Library contain a copy of the first edition of Daniel's translation?

Ale Draper—Eugene Aram.—In Hargrove's well-known history of Eugene Aram, the hero of Bulwer's still better known novel, one of the guilty associates of the Knaresborough murderer is designated as an "Ale Draper." As this epithet never presented itself in my reading, and as I am not aware that draper properly admits of any other definition than that given by Johnson, "one who deals in cloth," may I ask whether the word was ever in "good use" in the above sense?

My main purpose in writing, is to propound the foregoing Query; but while I have the pen in hand permit me to ask,—

1. Whether it be possible to read the celebrated "defence," so called, which was delivered by Aram on his trial at York, without concurring with the jury in their verdict, and with the judge in his sentence? In short, without a strong feeling that the prisoner would not have been hanged, but for that over-ingenious, and obviously evasive, address, in which the plain averment of "not guilty" does not occur.

2. Has not the literary character, especially the philological attainments, of this noted malefactor been vastly over-rated? And

3. Ought not the "memoirs" of "this great man" by Mr. Scatcherd to be ranked among the most remarkable attempts ever made, and surely made

D.

Rotherfield

Latin Epigram.—Can any of your correspondents inform me who was the author of the following epigram:—

The person alluded to was Sir W. Browne, M.D., the founder of the Browne medals in the University of Cambridge. Some old fellow of King's College may be able to inform me.

The medals were first given about the year 1780, and in the first year, I presume, out of respect to the memory of the donor, no subject was given for Epigrams. It has occurred to me, that perhaps some wag on that occasion sent the lines as a quiz.

W.S.

Richmond, Surrey

Couplet in De Foe—

This couplet is at the end of the second letter in De Foe's Great Law of Subordination, p. 42. Is it his own? If not, where did he get it?

N.B.

Books wanted to refer to.—

"Hollard's Travels (1715), by a French Protestant Minister, afterwards suppressed by the author."

"Thomas Bonnell, Mayor of Norwich, Life of."

"Canterbury, Letters and Memoirs on the Excommunication of two Heretics, 1698."

"The Book of Seventy-seven French Protestant Ministers, presented to Will'm III."

If any of your readers can refer me to the above works I shall be glad. They may be in the British Museum, although I have searched there in vain for them.

J.S.B.

Water-marks in Writing-paper.—Can any of your correspondents indicate any guide to the dating of {311} paper by the water-mark. I think I have read of some work on that subject, but have no precise recollection about it. I have now before me several undated MSS. written on paper of which it would be very desirable to fix the exact date. They evidently belonged to Pope, Swift, and Lady M.W. Montague, as they contain their autographs. They are all of that size called Pro Patria, and two of them have as water-mark a figure of Britannia with a lion brandishing a sword within a paling, and the motto Pro Patria over the sword. Of one of these the opposite page has the initials GR, and the other has IX; but the paper has been cut off in the middle of the water-mark and only exhibits half the figure IV. Another sheet has the royal arms (1. England and Scotland impaled, 2. France, 3. Ireland, 4. the white horse of Hanover,) within the garter, and surmounted by the crown, and on the opposite page GR. within a crowned wreath. There is no doubt that they were all manufactured between 1715 and 1740; but is there any means of arriving at a more precise date?

C.

Puzzling Epitaph.—The following curious epitaph was found in a foreign cathedral:—

The following is plainly the solution of the last four lines:—

Thus the last four lines are,—

Can any one furnish a solution of the two first lines?

J. BDN.

[We would suggest that the first two lines are to be read "O super be, quid super est, tuæ super biæ," and the epitaph will then be—

MSS. of Cornish Language.—Are there any ancient MSS. of the Cornish language, or are there any works remaining in that language, besides the Calvary and Christmas Carol published by the late Davies Gilbert?

J.A. GILES.

Bilderdijk the Poet.—Banished from his native country, disowned by his own countrymen, the Dutch poet Willem Bilderdijk pitched his tent for a while on the hospitable soil of Old England. Prince William V. residing in 1795 at Hampton Court, he resolved to stay there; but, possessing no income at all, and, like the sage of antiquity, having saved nothing from the shipwreck but his genius, he shifted his dwelling-place to London, where he gave lessons in drawing, languages, and various, even medical, sciences. He was married in England to Katharine Wilhelmina Schweickhardt, on the 18th of May, 1797. His residence in the birthplace of "NOTES AND QUERIES" makes me ask, if there be still persons living, who remember him as teacher, friend, or poet? A presentation-copy of Mrs. Bilderdijk's translation of Rodrick, the Last of the Goths, was offered to Southey, accompanied by a Latin letter from her spouse. The poet-laureate visiting Leyden in the summer of 1825, Bilderdijk would not suffer him to remain lodged in the inn, where an injury to his leg urged him to favour the landlord with a protracted stay. Southey was transported accordingly to the Dutch poet's house; and did not leave it before he was cured, several weeks having elapsed in the meanwhile. Mention of this fact is made in a poem the British bard addresses to Cuninghame. I do not know whether it is alluded to in Southey's Life.

Bilderdijk's foot was crushed accidentally, in the sixth year of his age, by one of his play-fellows; and thus he, who, by his natural disposition seemed to be destined to a military career, was obliged to enlist in the militia togata. He fought the good fight in verse. It is remarkable that Byron and Sir Walter Scott, his cotemporaries, were also lame or limping.

JANUS DOUSA.

Egyptian MSS.—What is the age of the oldest MS. found in Egypt? Are there any earlier than the age of Alexander?

J.A. GILES.

Scandinavian Priesthood.—Will one of your correspondents do me the favour to let me know the best authority I can refer to for information as to the priesthood of the Scandinavians; the mode of their election, the rank from which they were generally chosen, whether they were allowed to marry, &c.?

MAX BRANDESON.

Thomas Volusemus (or Wilson?).—Is anything known of Thomas Volusemus (Wilson?) who edited the works of his father-in-law, Patrick Adamson, titular Archbishop of St. Andrew's, which were published in London A.D. 1619?

H.A.E.

REPLIES.

CURFEW.

We have received the following Replies to NABOC'S inquiry (Vol. ii., p. 103.) as to where the custom of ringing the curfew still remains.

Bingley in Yorkshire.—In the town of Bingley, {312} in Yorkshire, the custom of ringing the curfew existed in the year 1824. It may have been discontinued since that year, but I do not know that it has.

It is also the custom at Blackburn, in Lancashire; and it was, if it is not now, at Bakewell in Derbyshire.

H.J.

Bromyard, Herefordshire.—The curfew is still rung at Bromyard, Herefordshire, at nine P.M., from the 5th of November, until Christmas Day; and the bell is afterwards tolled the number of the day of the month. Why it is merely confined to within the above days, I could never ascertain.

G.F.C.

Waltham-on-the-Wolds.—The curfew is still rung at Waltham-on-the-Wolds, Leicestershire, at five A.M., eight P.M. in summer, and at six A.M., seven P.M. in winter; the bell also tolling the day of the month.

R.J.S.

Oxfordshire.—I see that NABOC's inquiry about the curfew is answered at p. 175. by a reference to the Journal of the British Archæological Association. The list there is probably complete: but lest it should omit any, I may as well mention, from my own knowledge, Woodstock, Oxon, where it rings from eight to half-past eight in the evening, from October to March; Bampton and Witney, Oxon, and Stow, in Gloucester; at some of which places it is also rung at four in the morning.

C.

Chertsey, Surrey.—In the town of Chertsey in Surrey, the curfew is regularly tolled for a certain time at eight every evening, but only through the winter months. There is also a curious, if not an uncommon, custom kept up with regard to it. After the conclusion of the curfew, and a pause of half a minute, the day of the month is tolled out: one stroke for the 1st, two for the 2nd, and so on.

H.C. DE ST. CROIX.

Penrith.—The curfew bell continues to be rung at Penrith, in Cumberland, at eight o'clock in the evening, and is the signal for closing shops, &c.

Newcastle-upon-Tyne.—The curfew is still rung by all the churches of Newcastle-upon-Tyne at eight in the evening; and its original use may be said to be preserved to a considerable extent, for the greater bulk of the shops make it a signal for closing.

G. BOUCHIER RICHARDSON.

Morpeth.—The curfew bell is still rung at eight P.M. at Morpeth in Northumberland.

E.H.A.

Exeter.—The curfew is rung in Exeter Cathedral at eight P.M.

The present practice is to toll the bell thirty strokes, and after a short interval to toll eight more; the latter, I presume, denoting the hour.

G.T.

Winchester.—Curfew is still rung at Winchester.

AN OLD COMMONER PREFECT.

Over, near Winsford, Cheshire.—The custom of ringing the curfew is still kept up at Over, near Winsford, Cheshire; and the parish church, St. Chads, is nightly visited for that purpose at eight o'clock. This bell is the signal amongst the farmers in the neighbourhood for "looking up" their cattle in the winter evenings; and was, before the establishment of a public clock in the tower of the Weaver Church at Winsford, considered the standard time by which to regulate their movements.

A READER.

[We are indebted to the courtesy of the Editor of the Liverpool Albion for this Reply, which was originally communicated to that paper.]

The Curfew, of which some inquiries have appeared in the "NOTES AND QUERIES," is generally rung in the north of England. But then it is also common in the south of Scotland. I have heard it in Kelso, and other towns in Roxburghshire. The latter circumstance would appear to prove that it cannot have originated with the Norman conqueror, to whom it is attributed.

W.

ENGELMANNS BIBLIOTHECA SCRIPTORUM CLASSICORUM.

(Vol. ii., p. 296.)

The shortest reply to MR. DE MORGAN'S complaint against a foreign bookseller would be, that Engelmann himself printed for any of the purchasers of a large number of his Catalogues the titles to which MR. DE MORGAN objects so much.

Will you allow me to add one or two remarks occasioned by MR. DE MORGAN'S strictures?

1. Engelmann is not, strictly speaking, a bookseller, and his catalogues are not booksellers' catalogues in the sense in which that term is generally received here. He is a publisher and compiler (and an admirable one) of general classified catalogues for the use of the trade and of students, without any reference to his stock, or, in many instances, to the possibility of easily acquiring copies of the books enumerated: and although he might execute an order from his catalogues, getting orders is not the end for which he publishes them.

2. Some foreign houses in London, as well as in other countries, bought a large number of his Catalogues, not as a book but as a catalogue, to be supplied to their customers at the bare cost, or, where it appears advisable, to be delivered gratis to purchasers of a certain amount.

3. It appears to me pardonable if, under these circumstances, a notice is inserted on the title, that orders may be directed to the house which has purchased a number, and supplies them without any immediate profit; and I may add that I do {313} not believe any of the houses concerned would object to a notice being taken of such a proceeding in your paper.

4. The error in omitting the words "from 1700" on the title-page, is one to which MR. DE MORGAN'S notice first directed my attention, classics printed before that date not being commonly in demand among foreign booksellers.

5. The practice of compiling catalogues for general use, with the names of the purchasers of any number of copies of the catalogue inserted on the title or wrapper, is very common in Germany.

Hinrichs of Leipsic issues—

1. A Six-monthly Alphabetical Catalogue, with a systematic index;

2. A Quarterly Catalogue, systematically arranged, with an alphabetical index;

Vandenhoeck of Gottigen issues half-yearly—

1. A Bibliotheca Medico-Chirurgica et Pharmaceuto-Chemica;

2. A Bibliotheca Theologica, for Protestant theology;

3. A Bibliotheca Classica et Philologica;

4. A Bibliotheca Juridica;

and Engelmann, from time to time, numerous general catalogues;—

all of which are not only supplied to London houses, with English titles, but may be had all over Germany, with the firms of different booksellers inserted as publishers of the catalogue.

Will you make use of the above in any way in which you may think it of advantage to your readers?

ANOTHER FOREIGN BOOKSELLER.

CROZIER AND PASTORAL STAFF.

(Vol. ii., p. 248.)

A correspondent inquires what was the difference between a crozier and a pastoral staff. The crozier (Crocia, Mediæval Latin), Fr. Crosse, Ital. Rocco Pastorale, German. Bischofstab, is the ornamental staff used by archbishops and legates, and derives its name from the cross which surmounts it. A crozier behind a pall is borne on the primatial arms of Canterbury. The use of the crozier can only be traced back to the 12th century. Cavendish mentions "two great crosses of silver, whereof one of them was for his archbishoprick and the other for his legatry, always before" Cardinal Wolsey. The fact did not escape Master Roy, who sings thus:—

Hall says that he removed from Whitehall "with one cross." In the Eastern Church patriarchs only have a crozier; a patriarch has two transverse bars upon his crozier, the Pope carries three.

The pastoral staff was the ensign of bishops. Honorius describes it as in the form of a shepherd's crook, made of wood or bone, united by a ball of gold or crystal, the lower part of the staff being pointed.

"In Evangelio Dominus Apostolis præcepit, ut in prædcatione nihil præter virgam tollerent. Et quià Episcopi pastores gregis Dominici sunt, ideò baculum in custodiâ præferunt: per baculum, quo infirmi sustentatur, auctoritas doctrinæ designatur; per virgam, quà improbi emendantur, potestas regiminis figuratur. Baculum ergò Pontifices portant, ut infirmos in Fide per doctrinam erigant. Virgam bajulant, ut per potestatem inquietos corrigant: quæ virga vel baculus est recurvus, ut aberrantes à grege docendo ad poenitetiam trabat; in extremo est acutus, ut rebelles excommunicando retrudat; hæreticos, velut lupos, ab ovili Christi potestativè exterreat."—In Gemmâ Animæ, lib. i. cap. 218, 219., apud Hitterpium.

In its primitive form it appears to have been a staff shaped like a T, and used to lean upon. It was gradually lengthened, and in some cases was finished at the top like a mace. The pastoral staff is mentioned in the Life of S. Cæsarius of Arles. Gough says that the pastoral staff found in the coffin of Grostete, Bp. of Lincoln, who died in 1254, was made of red wood ending in a rudely shaped ram's horn. It was inscribed:

In the first prayer-book of the Reformed English Church, 2 Edward VI., at the time of the holy communion the bishop is directed to have "his pastoral staff in his hand, or else borne by his chaplain." It was used in solemn benedictions; and so lately as at the coronation of Queen Elizabeth. The second book of King Edward VI., published A.D. 1552, being revived in that reign, the use of the staff was discontinued, as we find by the consecration service of Archbishop Parker.

"Postq' hæc dixissent, ad reliqua Communionis solemnia permit Cicestren. nullu. Archie'po tradens Pastorale baculum."—Bramhall, vol. iii. p. 205., Part i. Disc. 5. App., Oxon. 1844.

A crozier was borne at the funerals of Brian Duppa, of Winton, A.D. 1662; Juxon of London, 1663; Frewen of York, 1664; Wren of Ely, 1667; Cosin of Dunelm, 1671; Trelawney of Winton, 1721; Lindsay of Armagh, 1724. It is engraven on the monuments of Goodrich of Ely, 1552; Magrath of Cashel, 1622; Hacket of Lichfield, 1670; Creggleton of Wells, Lamplugh of York, 1691; Sheldon, 1677; Hoadley of Winton, and Porteus of London. Their croziers (made of gilt metal) were suspended over the tombs of Morley, 1684, and Mews, 1706. The bishop's staff had its crook bent outwards to signify that his jurisdiction extended over his diocese; that of the abbot inwards, as his authority was limited to his house. The crozier of Matthew Wren was of silver {314} with the head gilt. When Bp. Fox's tomb was opened at Winchester some few years since, his staff of oak was found in perfect preservation. A staff of wood painted in azure and gilt, hangs over Trelawney's tomb in Pelynt Church, Cornwall. The superb staff of the pious and munificent founder of the two St. Marie Winton Colleges is still preserved at Oxford, as is also that of the illustrious Wykehamist, Bp. Fox, to whose devotion we owe Corpus Christi College in that university. One of the earliest tombs bearing a staff incised, is that of Abbot Vitalis, who died in 1082, and may be seen in the south cloister of St. Peter's Abbey in Westminster. There were croziered as well as mitred abbots: for instance, the superior of the Benedictine abbey at Bourges had a right to the crozier, but not to the mitre. The Abbot of Westminster was croziered and mitred. I intended to write a reply, but have enabled with a note.

MACKENZIE WALCOTT, M.A.

7. College Street, Westminster

J.Z.P. will find a fully satisfactory answer to his Query, in regard to the real difference between the crozier and the pastoral staff, on referring to the article headed "Crozier," in the Glossary of Architecture. It is there stated, that "the crozier of an archbishop is surmounted by a cross; but it was only at a comparatively late time, about the 12th century, that the archbishop laid aside the pastoral staff, to assume the cross as an appropriate portion of his personal insignia." From which it may be inferred, that the only existent real difference between the crozier and the pastoral staff is, that the former is surmounted by a cross, and the latter is as it was before the 12th century, viz., surmounted by "a head curled round something in the manner of a shepherd's crook;" and the difference in regard to their use, that the crozier pertains to the archbishops, and the pastoral staff to the bishops.

R.W. ELLIOT

Cheltenham, Sept. 16. 1850.

PARSONS, THE STAFFORDSHIRE GIANT.

(Vol. ii., p. 135.)

Harwood's note in Erdeswick's Staffordshire, quoted by your correspondent C.H.B., is incorrect, inasmuch as the writer has confused the biographies of two distinct "giants"—WALTER PARSONS, porter to King James I., and WILLIAM EVANS, who filled the same office in the succeeding reign.

The best account of these two "worthies" is that found in Fuller, and which I extract from the original edition now before me:—

WALTER PARSONS, born in this county [Staffordshire], was first apprenticed to a smith, when he grew so tall in stature, that a hole was made for him in the ground to stand therein up to the knees, so to make him adequate with his fellow-workmen. He afterwards was porter to King James; seeing as gates generally are higher than the rest of the building, so it was sightly that the porter should be taller than other persons. He was proportionable in all parts, and had strength equal to height, valour to his strength, temper to his valour, so that he disdained to do an injury to any single person. He would make nothing to take two of the tallest yeomen of the guard (like the Gizard and Liver) under his arms at once, and order them as he pleased.

"Yet were his parents (for aught I do understand to the contrary) but of an ordinary stature, whereat none will wonder who have read what St. Augustine (De Civitate Dei, lib. xv. cap. 23.) reports of a woman which came to Rome (a little before the sacking thereof by the Goths), of so giant-like a height, that she was far above all who saw her, though infinite troopes came to behold the spectacle. And yet he addeth, Et hoc erat maximæ admirationis, quod ambo parentes ejus, &c. This made men most admire, that both her parents were but of ordinary stature. This Parsons is produced for proof, that all ages afford some of extraordinary height, and that there is no general decay of mankind in their dimensions, which, if there were, we had ere this time shrunk to be lower than Pigmyes, not to instance in a lesse proportion. This Parsons died Anno Dom. 1620."—Fuller's History of the Worthies of England, 1662 (Staffordshire), p. 48.

"WILLIAM EVANS was born in this county [Monmouthshire], and may justly be accounted the Giant of our age for his stature, being, full two yards and a half in height. He was porter to King Charles I., succeeding, Walter Persons [sic] in his place, and exceeding him two inches in height, but far beneath him in an equal proportion of body; for he was not onely what the Latines call compernis, knocking his knees together, and going out squalling with his feet, but also haulted a little; yet made a shift to dance in an antimask at court, where he drew little Jeffrey, the dwarf, out of his pocket, first to the wonder, then to the laughter, of the beholders. He dyed Anno Dom. 1630." Ibid. (Monmouthshire), p. 54.

From these extracts it will be seen that the Christian name of Parsons was Walter, not William, as stated by Harwood. William was the Christian name of Evans, Parsons' successor. The bas-relief mentioned by the same writer represents William Evans and Jeffrey Hudson, his diminutive fellow-servant. It is over the entrance of Bull-head Court, Newgate Street; not "a bagnio-court," which is nonsense. On the stone these words are cut: "The King's Porter, and the Dwarf," with the date 1660. This bas-relief is engraved in Pennant.

There is a picture of Queen Elizabeth's giant porter at Hampton Court but I am not aware that any portrait of Parsons is preserved in the Royal Collections.

EDWARD F. RIMBAULT.

EISELL AND WORMWOOD WINE.

(Vol. ii., p. 249.)

If Pepys' friends actually did drink up the two quarts of wormwood wine which he gave them, it must, as LORD BRAYBROOKE suggests, have been rendered more palatable than the propoma which was in use in Shakspeare's time. I have been furnished by a distinguished friend with the following, among other Notes, corroborative of my explanation of eisell:

"I have found no better recipe for making wormwood wine than that given by old Langham in his Garden of Health; and as he directs its use to be confined to 'Streine out a little spoonful, and drinke it with a draught of ale or wine,' I think it must have been so atrociously unpalatable, that to drink it up, as Hamlet challenged Laertes to do, would have been as strong an argumentum ad stomachum as to digest a crocodile, even when appetised by a slice of the loaf."

It is evident, therefore, that but small doses of this nauseously bitter medicament were taken at once, and to take a large draught, to drink up a quantity, "would be an extreme pass of amorous demonstration sufficient, one would think, to have satisfied even Hamlet." Our ancestors seem to have been partial to medicated wines; and it is most probable that the wormwood wine Pepys gave his friends had only a slight infusion of the bitter principle; for we can hardly conceive that such "pottle draughts" as two quarts could be taken as a treat, of such a nostrum as the Absinthites, or wormwood wine, mentioned by Stuckius, or that prescribed by the worthy Langham.

S.W. SINGER.

Mickleham, Sept. 30. 1850.

Eisell (Vol. ii., p. 242.).—The attempt of your very learned correspondent, MR. SINGER, to show that "eisell" was wormwood, is, I fear, more ingenious than satisfactory. It is quite true that wormwood wine and beer were ordinary beverages, as wormwood bitters are now; but Hamlet would have done little in challenging Laertes to a draught of wormwood. As to "eisell," we have the following account of it in the "Via Recta ad Vitam longam, or a Plaine Philosophical Discourse of the Nature, Faculties, and Effects of all such Things as by way of Nourishments, and Dieteticale Observations make for the Preservation of Health, &c. &c. By Jo. Venner, Doctor of Physicke at Bathe in the Spring and Fall, and at other Times in the Burrough of North-Petherton, neere to the Ancient Haven Towne of Bridgewater in Somersetshire. London, 1620."

"Eisell, or the vinegar which is made of cyder, is also a good sauce, it is of a very penetrating nature and is like to verjuice in operation, but it is not so astringent, nor altogether so cold," p. 97.

J.R.N.

REPLIES TO MINOR QUERIES.

Feltham's Works (Vol. ii., p. 133.).—In addition to the works enumerated by E.N.W., Feltham wrote A Discourse upon Ecclesiastes ii. 11.; A Discourse upon St. Luke xiv. 20.; and A Form of Prayer composed for the Family of the Right Honourable the Countess of Thomond. These two lists, I believe, comprise the whole of his writings. The meaning of the passage in his Remarks on the Low Countries, appears to be this, that a person "courtly or gentle" would receive as little kindness from the inhabitants, and show as great a contrast to their boorishness, as the handsome and docile merlin (which is the smallest of the falcon tribe, anciently denominated "noble"), among a crowd of noisy, cunning, thievish crows; neither remarkable for their beauty nor their politeness. The words "after Michaelmas" are used because "the merlin does not breed here, but visits us in October." Bewick's British Birds, vol. i. p. 43.

T.H. KERSLEY.

King William's College, Isle of Man.

Harefinder (Vol. ii., p. 216.).—The following lines from Drayton's Polyolbion, Song 23., sufficiently illustrates this term:—

In the margin, at the second line, are the words, The Harefinder. What other instances are there of Wat, as a name of the hare? It does not occur in the very curious list in the Reliquiæ Antiquæ, i. 133.

K.

Fool or a Physician—Rising and Setting Sun (Vol. i., p. 157.).—The inquiry of your correspondent C. FORBES, respecting the authorship of the two well-known sayings on these subjects, seems to have received no reply. He thinks that we owe them both to that "imperial Macchiavel, Tiberius." He is right with respect to the one, and wrong with regard to the other. The saying, "that a man after thirty must be either a fool or a physician," had, as it appears, its origin from Tiberius; but the observation that "more worship the rising than the setting sun," is to be attributed to Pompey.

Tacitus says of Tiberius, that he was "solitus eludere medicorum artes, atque eos qui post tricesimum ætatis annum ad internoscenda corpori {316} suo utilia vel noxia alieni consilia indigerent." Annal. vi. 46. Suetonius says: "Valetudine prosperrimâ usus est,—quamvis a tricesimo ætatis anno arbitratu eam suo rexerit, sine adjumento consiliove medicorum." Tib. c. 68. And Plutarch, in his precepts de Valetudine tuendâ, c. 49., says—

[Greek: "Aekousa Tiberion pote Kaisara eipein, hos anaer huper hexaekonta [sic vulgò, sed bene corrigit Lipsius ad Tac. loc. cit. triakonta] gegonos etae, kai proteinon iatro cheira, katagelastos estin."]

These passages sufficiently indicate the origin of the saying; but who first gave it the pointed form in which we now have it, by coupling fool with physician, I am not able to tell.

The authority for giving the other saying to Pompey, is Plutarch, who says that when Pompey, after his return from Africa, applied to the senate for the honour of a triumph, he was opposed by Sylla, to whom he observed, [Greek: "Oti ton aelion anatellonta pleiones ae duomenon proskunousin,"] that more worship the rising than the setting sun—intimating that his own power was increasing, and that of Sylla verging to its fall. (Vit. Pomp. c. 22.)

J.S.W.

Stockwell, Sept. 7.

Papers of Perjury (Vol. ii., p. 182.).—In the absence of a "graphic account," it may interest your correspondent S.R. to be referred to the two following instances of "perjurers wearing papers denoting their crime." In Machyn's Diary, edited by the accomplished antiquary, John Gough Nichols, Esq., and published by the Camden Society, at p. 104. occurs the following:—

"A.D. 1556, April 28th.... The sam day was sett on the pelere in Chepe iij. [men; two] was for the preuerment of wyllfull perjure, the iij. was for wyllfull perjure, with paper sett over their hedes."

In the same works at p. 250., we have also this additional illustration:

"A.D. 1560—I. The xij. day of Feybruary xj. men of the North was of a quest; because they gayff a wrong evyde [nee, and] thay ware paper a-pon their hedes for perjure."

J. GOODWIN.

Birmingham.

Pilgrims' Road to Canterbury.—Being acquainted with the road to which your correspondent S.H. (Vol. ii., p. 237.) alludes, he will, perhaps, allow me to say, that in the neighbourhood of Kemsing a tradition is current, that a certain line of road, which may be traced from Otford to Wrotham, was the pilgrims' road from Winchester to Canterbury. How far this may be correct I know not.

I have not been able to discover any road in the neighbourhood of this city which goes by the name of the pilgrims' road.

If any of your correspondents would furnish any particulars respecting this road, I shall feel much obliged.

R.V.

Winchester.

Capture of Henry VI. (Vol. ii., p. 228.).—In his correction of your correspondent, CLERICUS CRAVENSIS, MR. NICHOLS states:—

"Both Sir John Tempest and Sir James Harrington of Brierley, near Barnesley, were concerned in the king's capture, and each received 100 marks reward; but the fact of Sir Thomas Talbot being the chief actor, is shown by his having received the larger reward of 100l."

In this statement appears entirely to have been overlooked the grant of lands made by King Edward IV. to Sir James Harrington—

"For his services in taking prisoner, and withholding as such in diligence and valour, his enemy Henry, lately called King Henry VI."

This grant, which was confirmed in Parliament, embraced the castle, manor, and domain of Thurland; a park, called Fayzet Whayte Park, with lands, &c. in six townships in the county of Lancaster; lands at Burton in Lonsdale, co. York; and Holme, in Kendal, co. Westmoreland, the forfeited lands of Sir Richard Tunstell, and other "rebels." So considerable a recognition of the services of Sir James Harrington would seem to demand something more than the second-rate position given to them by your correspondent. The order to give Sir James Harrington possession of the lands under his grant will be found in Rymer. The grant itself is printed in the Nugæ Antiquæ, by Henry Harrington, 1775 (vol. ii. p. 121.), and will, I believe, be found in Baines' Lancashire. Mr. Henry Harrington observes that the lands were afterwards lost to his family by the misfortune of Sir James and his brother being on the wrong side at Bosworth Field; after which they were both attainted for serving Richard III. and Edward IV., "and commanding the party which seized Henry VI. and conducted him to the Tower."

H.K.S.C.

Brixton.

Andrew Becket (Vol. ii., p. 266.), about whom A.W. HAMMOND inquires, when I knew him, about twelve years ago, was a strange whimsical old gentleman, full of "odd crotchets," and abounding in theatrical anecdote and the "gossip of the green-room." But as to his ever having been "a profound commentator on the dramatic works of Shakspeare," I must beg leave to express my doubts. At one period he filled the post of sublibrarian to the Prince Regent; and that he was "ardently devoted to the pursuits of literature" cannot be a question.

His published works, as far as I can learn, are as follows:—

1. A Trip to Holland, 1801.

2. Socrates, a dramatic poem, 8vo. 1806.

3. Lucianus Redivivus, or Dialogues concerning Men, Manners, and Opinions, 8vo. 1812.

4. Shakspeare's Himself, or the Language of the Poet asserted; being a full but dispassionate Examin of the Readings and Interpretations of the several Editors, 2 vols. 8vo. 1815.

EDWARD F. RIMBAULT.

Passage in Vida (Vol. i., p. 384.).—Your correspondent A.W. asks for some light on the lines of Vida, Christiad, i. 67.:

He cannot construe "te incolumi." No wonder. Will not all be set right by reading, "Quin age, et incolumi," &c.?

J.S.W.

Stockwell, Sept. 7.

"Quem Deus vult perdere" (Vol. i., p. 347., &c.).—To the illustrations of the saying "Quem Deus vult perdere prius dementat," which have been given, may be added the following from the Fragments of Constantinus Manasses (edited with Nicet. Eugen., by Boissonade. Paris, 1819), book viii. line 40.:—

J.E.B. MAYOR.

Marlborough College.

Countess of Desmond (Vol. ii., pp. 153. 186.).—R. is referred to Smith's History of Cork, and European Magazine, vol. viii., for particulars respecting the Countess of Desmond. They show her picture at Knowle House, Kent, or Penshurst (I forget which); and tell the story of the fall from the cherry (or plum) tree, adding that she cut three sets of teeth!

WEDSECNARF.

Confession (Vol. ii., p. 296.).—The name asked for by U.J.B. of the Catholic priest, who, sooner than break the seal of confession, suffered death, is John of Nepomuc, Canon of Prague. By order of the Emperor Wenceslas, he was thrown off a bridge into the Muldaw, because he would not tell that profligate prince the confession of his religious empress. This holy man is honoured as St. John Nepomucen on the 16th of May, in the kalendar of Saints.

D. ROCK.

[U.J.B., if desirous of further particulars respecting St. John Nepomuc, may consult Mrs. Jameson's interesting Legends of the Monastic Orders, pp. 214. 217.—ED.]

Cavell, meaning of (Vol. i., p. 473.).—I concur entirely with the etymology of the word cavell given at p. 473. A lake having been drained in my country, the land is still divided into Kavelingen; as lots of land were formerly measured by strings of cord, kavel, kabel, cable. Vide Tuinman Trakkel, d. n. t. p. 165. Kavelloten is to receive a cavell by lot. cf. Idem, Verrolg, p. 97.

JANUS DOUSA.

Lord Kingsborough's Antiquities of Mexico.—Has Lord Kingsborough's splendid work on Mexican hieroglyphics ever been completed or not?

J.A. GILES.

[This magnificent work has been recently completed by the publication of the eighth volume, which may, we believe, be procured from Mr. Henry Bohn.—ED.]

Aërostation (Vol. ii., p. 199.).—The article BALLOON, in the Penny Cyclopædia, would give C.B.M. a good many references. The early works there mentioned are those of Faujas de St. Fond, Bourgeois, and Cavallo; to which I add the following: Thomas Baldwin, Airopaidia, containing the Narrative of a Balloon Excursion from Chester, Sept. 8. 1785. Chester, 1786, 8vo. (pp. 360.).

Vincent Lunardi published the account of his voyage (the first made in England) in a series of letters to a friend. The title is torn out in my copy. The first page begins, "An Account of the First Aërial Voyage in England. Letter I. London, July 15. 1784." (8vo. pp. 66 + ii. with a plate.) It ends with a poetical epistle to Lunardi by "a gentleman well known in the literary world" (query, the same who is thus cited in our day?) from which the following extracts are taken as a specimen of the original balloon jokes:—

Mr. Baldwin ascended in Lunardi's balloon, the latter being present at the start, though not taking part in the voyage.

M.

Concolinel (Vol. ii., p. 217.).—I have been many years engaged in researches connected with {318} the original music of Shakspeare's Plays, but it has not been my good fortune to meet with the air of Concolinel. The communication of your correspondent R. is of the greatest interest, and I should be for ever grateful if he would allow me to see the manuscript in question, in order that I might test the genuineness of the air "stated, in a recent hand, to be the tune of Concolinel mentioned by Shakspeare."

This air has double claims on our attention, as its existence, in any shape, is placed amongst the "doubtful" points by the following note extracted from the Rev. J. Hunter's New Illustrations of Shakspeare, vol. i. p. 268.:—

"Concolinel. In the absence of any thing like sufficient explanation or justification of this word, if word it is, I will venture to suggest the possibility that it is a corruption of a stage direction, Cantat Ital., for Cantat Italicé; meaning that here Moth sings an Italian song. It is quite evident, from what Armado says, when the song was ended, 'Sweet air!' that a song of some sort was sung, and one which Shakespeare was pleased with, and meant to praise. If Moth's song had been an English song, it would have been found in its place as the other songs are."

I, for one, cannot subscribe to Mr. Hunter's suggestion that our great poet intended an Italian song to be sung in his play and for this reason, that Italian music for a single voice was almost unknown in this country in 1597, at which date we know Love's Labour's Lost was in existence. Surely Concolinel is just as likely to be the burden of a song as Calen o Custure me, mentioned in Henry the Fifth (Act iv. sc. 4.), of which there is now no doubt.

I may just mention, in passing, that I have discovered the air of Calen o Custure me in a manuscript that once belonged to Queen Elizabeth, and have ample proof that it was an especial favourite with her maiden majesty. The commentators were at fault when they pointed out the more modern tune of the same name in Playford's Musical Companion, 1667.

EDWARD F. RIMBAULT.

S. Augustus Square, Regent's Park.

Andrewes's Tortura Torti (Vol. ii., p. 295.).—On what forms Mr. Bliss's third quotation, which does appear in some shape in Bernard, De Consid. ad Eugen., iii. 4. 18., the Bibliotheca Juridica, &c., of Ferraris observes, under the head of Dispensatio: "Hinc dispensatio sine justa causa non dispensatio sed dissipatio dicitur communiter a doctoribus, ut observant et tenent Sperell;" then referring to several Romish canonists, &c., the last being Reiffenstuel, lib. i., Decretal, tit. 2., n. 450., of which I give the full reference, his volumes being accessible in the British Museum, if not elsewhere.

NOVUS.

Swords worn in Public (Vol. ii., p. 218.)—A very respected and old friend of mine, now deceased, used to relate that he had often seen the celebrated Wilkes, of political notoriety, walking in the public streets, dressed in what is usually termed court dress, wearing his sword. Wilkes died in 1797. In connexion with this subject it may be interesting to your readers to know that in 1701 it was found necessary to prohibit footmen wearing swords. An order was issued by the Earl Marshal in that year, declaring that—

"Whereas many mischiefs and dangerous accidents, tending not onely to the highest breach of the peace, but also to the destruction of the lives of his Ma'ties subjects, have happend and been occasioned by Footmen wearing of Swords, for the prevention of the like evill accidents and disturbance for the future, I doe hereby order that no Foot-man attending any of the Nobilitye or Gentry of his Ma'ties Realms, during such time as they or any of them shall reside or bee within the Cities of London or Westm'r, and the Liberties and Precincts of the same, shall wear any Sword, Hanger, Bagonet, or other such like offensive weapon, as they will answer the Contempt hereof." Dated 30th Dec. 1701.

F.E.

Speech given to Man to conceal his Thoughts (Vol. i., p. 83.).—The maxim quoted by your correspondent F.R.A. was invented, if I may rely upon the notebook of memory, by the Florentine Machiavelli. The German writer Ludwig Börne says:—

"Macchiavelli, der die Freiheit liebte, schrieb seinem Prinzen so, dass er alle rechtschaffenen Psychologen in Verlegenheit und in solche Verwirrung gebracht, dass sie gar nicht mehr wussten, was sie sprachen und sie behaupteten, Macchiavelli habe eine politische Satyre geschrieben."

Le style c'est l'homme!

JANUS DOUSA.

The Character "&,", and Meaning of "Parse" (Vol. ii., pp. 230. 284.).—This character, being different from any of the twenty-four letters, was placed at the end of the alphabet, and children, after repeating their letters, were taught to indicate this symbol as and-per-se-and. Instead of spelling the word and, as composed of three letters, it was denoted by a special symbol, which was "and by itself, and." Hence the corruption, an ampussy and.

The word parse is also derived from the Latin per se. To parse a sentence is to take the words per se, and to explain their grammatical form and etymology.

L.

Wife of Edward the Outlaw (Vol. ii., p. 279.).—With reference to the Query of E.H.Y. (Vol. ii., p. 279.), there seems to be much confusion in all the accounts of Edward's marriage. I think it is evident, from an attentive consideration of the various authorities, that the Lady Agatha was {319} either sister to Giselle, wife of Stephen, King of Hungary (to whom the young princes must have been sent, as he reigned from A.D. 1000 till A.D. 1038), and sister also to the Emperor Henry II., or, as some writers seem to think, she was the daughter of Bruno, that emperor's brother. (See a note in Dr. Lingard's History, vol. i. p. 349.)

That she was not the daughter of either Henry II., Henry III., or Henry IV., is very certain; in the first case, for the reason stated by your correspondent; and in the second, because Henry III. was only twelve years old when he succeeded his father Conrad II. (in the year 1039), which of course puts his son Henry IV. quite out of the question, who was born A.D. 1049. It strikes me (and perhaps some of your correspondents will correct me if I am wrong) that the two English princes may have respectively married the two ladies to whom I have referred, and that hence may have arisen the discrepancies in the different histories: but that the wife of Edward the Outlaw was one of these two I have no doubt.

O.P.Q.

Translations of the Scriptures (Vol. ii., p. 229.).—C.F.S. may perhaps find The Bible of every Land, now publishing by Messrs. Bagster, serviceable in his inquiries respecting Roman Catholic translations of the Scriptures. The saying of the Duke of Lancaster is found in the first edition of Foxe's Acts and Monuments, and in the modern reprint, iv. 674.; the original of the treatise from which it is taken being in C.C. College, Cambridge. (See Nasmith's Catalogue, p. 333.)

NOVUS.

Scalping (Vol. ii., p. 220.).—W.B.D. confounds beheading with scalping. In the American war many British soldiers, it was said, walked about without their scalps, but not without their heads.

SANDVICENSIS.

MISCELLANEOUS.

NOTES ON BOOKS, SALES, CATALOGUES, ETC.

No one branch of antiquarian study has been pursued with greater success during the last few years than that of Gothic Architecture; and, to this success, no single work has contributed in any proportion equal to that of the Glossary of Terms used in Grecian, Roman, Italian, and Gothic Architecture. Since the year 1836, in which this work first appeared, no fewer than four large editions, each an improvement upon its predecessor, have been called for and exhausted. The fifth edition is now before us; and, we have no doubt, will meet, as it deserves, the same extended patronage and success. When we announce that in this fifth edition the text has been considerably augmented by the enlargement of many of the old articles, as well as by the addition of many new ones, among which Professor Willis has embodied a great part of his Architectural Nomenclature of the Middle Ages; that the number of woodcuts has been increased from eleven hundred to seventeen hundred; and lastly, that the Index has been rendered far more complete, by including in it the names of places mentioned, and the foreign synonyms; we have done more to show its increased value than any mere words of commendation would express. While the only omission that has been made, namely, that of the utensils and ornaments of the Mediæval Church (with the exception of the few such as altars, credences, piscinas, and sedilias, which belong to architectural structure and decoration), is a portion of the work which all must admit to have been foreign to a Glossary of Architectural Terms, and must therefore agree to have been wisely and properly left out. The work in its present form is, we believe, unequalled in the architectural literature of Europe, for the amount of accurate information which it furnishes, and the beauty of its illustrations; and as such, therefore, does the highest credit both to its editor and to its publisher; if, indeed, the editor and publisher be not identical.

Mr. L.A. Lewis, of 125. Fleet Street, has commenced a series of weekly Book Sales, to take place every Friday during the months of October and November, and has arranged that parties sending large or small parcels of books for sale during the one week, may have them sold on the Friday in the week following.

We have received the following Catalogues:—Bernard Quaritch's (16. Castle Street, Leicester Square) Catalogue No. 19. for 1850 of Oriental Literature, Manuscripts, Theology, Classics, &c.; John Miller's (43. Chandos Street) Catalogue No. 12. for 1850 of History, Antiquities, Heraldry, &c., and Conchology, Geology, and other popular Sciences.

BOOKS AND ODD VOLUMES

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TURNER'S SACRED HISTORY. Vol. III. First Edition, 8vo.

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THE QUARTERLY REVIEW, No. CLXXIV., is published THIS DAY.

CONTENTS

I. TICKNOR'S HISTORY OF SPANISH LITERATURE. II. CHURCH AND EDUCATION IN WALES. III. FORMS OF SALUTATION. IV. SIBERIA AND CALIFORNIA. V. MURE ON THE LITERATURE OF GREECE. VI. METROPOLITAN WATER SUPPLY. VII. ANECDOTES OF THE PROVISIONAL GOVERNMENT. VIII. COCHRANE'S YOUNG ITALY. IX. LAST DAYS OF LOUIS-PHILIPPE.

JOHN MURRAY, Albemarle Street.

Published this day Saturday, October 12th,

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On the 1st of October, No. 12, price 5s., published Quarterly,

THE JOURNAL OF SACRED LITERATURE. Edited by JOHN KITTO, D.D., F.S.A.

CONTENTS. Genesis and Geology. The Bible and Josephus. On the Authorship of the Acts of the Apostles. Jewish Commentaries on Isaiah. Voices of the Night. On the Literal Interpretation of Prophecy. Ramathaim Zephim and Rachel's Sepulchre. The Life of Hugh Heugh, D.D. Reconsidered Texts. Miscellanea.

Correspondence.—Notices of Books.—Biblical Intelligence—List of Publications.

London: SIMPKIN, MARSHALL, and CO., Stationer's Hall Court. Edinburgh: OLIVER and BOYD. Dublin: J. ROBERTSON, Grafton Street.

Second Edition, with illustrations, 12mo., 3s. cloth.

THE BELL; its Origin, History, and Uses. By the Rev. ALFRED GATTY, Vicar of Ecclesfield.

"A new and revised edition of a very varied, learned, and amusing essay on the subject of bells."—Spectator.

GEORGE BELL, 186. Fleet Street.

JOURNAL FRANCAIS, publié à Londres.—Le COURRIER de l'EUROPE, fondé en 1840 paraissant le Samedi, donne dans chaque numéro les nouvelles de la semaine, les meilleurs articles de tous les journaux de Paris, la Semaine Dramatique par Th. Gautier ou J. Janin, la Révue de Paris par Pierre Durand, et reproduit en entier les romans, nouvelles, etc., en vogue par les premiers écrivains de France. Prix 6d.

London: JOSEPH THOMAS, 1. Finch Lane.

IMPORTANT TO AUTHORS.—Gentlemen about to PRINT and PUBLISH either BOOKS or PAMPHLETS, will save nearly ONE HALF by employing HOPE & CO., Publishers, 16. Great Marlborough Street. A Specimen Pamphlet of Bookwork, with Prices, a complete Author's Guide, sent post free for 4d.

MEMOIRS OF MUSICK. By the Hon. ROGER NORTH, Attorney-General to James I. Now first printed from the original MS. and edited, with copious Notes, by EDWARD F. RIMBAULT, LL.D., F.S.A., &c. &c. Quarto; with a Portrait; handsomely printed in 4to.; half-bound in morocco, 15s.

This interesting MS., so frequently alluded to by Dr. Burney in the course of his "History of Music," has been kindly placed at the disposal of the Council of the Musical Antiquarian Society, by George Townshend Smith, Esq., Organist of Hereford Cathedral. But the Council, not feeling authorised to commence a series of literary publications, yet impressed with the value of the work, have suggested its independent publication to their Secretary, Dr. Rimbault, under whose editorial care it accordingly appears.

It abounds with interesting Musical Anecdotes; the Greek Fables respecting the origin of Music; the rise and progress of Musical Instruments; the early Musical Drama; the origin of our present fashionable Concerts; the first performance of the Beggar's Opera, &c.

A limited number having been printed, few copies remain for sale: unsold copies will shortly be raised in price to 1l. 10s. 6d.

Folio, price 30s.

THE CHORAL RESPONSES AND LITANIES OF THE UNITED CHURCH OF ENGLAND AND IRELAND. Collected from Authentic Sources. By the Rev. JOHN JEBB, A.M., Rector of Peterstow.

The present Work contains a full collection of the harmonized compositions of ancient date, including nine sets of pieces and responses, and fifteen litanies, with a few of the more ancient Psalm Chants. They are given in full score, and in their proper cliffs. In the upper part, however, the treble is substituted for the "cantus" or "medius" cliff: and the whole work is so arranged as to suit the library of the musical student, and to be fit for use in the Choir.

London: GEORGE BELL, 186. Fleet Street.

Just Published, Octavo Edition, plain, 15s., Quarto Edition, having the Plates of the Tesselated Pavements all coloured, 1l. 5s.

REMAINS of ROMAN ART in Cirencester, the Site of Ancient Corinium; containing Plates by De la Motte, of the magnificent Tesselated Pavements discovered in August and September, 1849, with copies of the grand Heads of Ceres, Flora, and Pomona; reduced by the Talbotype from facsimile tracings of the original; together with various other plates and numerous wood engravings.

In the Quarto edition the folding of the plates necessary for the smaller volume is avoided.

"These heads (Ceres, Flora, and Pomona) are of a high order of art, and Mr. De la Motte, by means of the Talbotype, has so successfully reduced them that the engravings are perfect facsimiles of the originals. They are, perhaps, the best of the kind, every tessella apparently being represented.

"Our authors have very advantageously brought to their task a knowledge of geology and chemistry, and the important aid which an application of these sciences confers on archæology, is strikingly shown in the chapter on the materials of the tessellæ, which also includes a valuable report by Dr. VOELCKER, on an analysis of ruby glass, which formed part of the composition of one of the Cirencester pavements. This portion of the volume is too elaborate and circumstantial for any justice to be done to it in an extract."—Gentleman's Mag., Sept.

London: GEORGE BELL, 186. Fleet Street.

Printed by THOMAS CLARK SHAW, of No. 8. New Street Square, at No. 5. New Street Square, in the Parish of St. Bride in the City of London; and published by GEORGE BELL, of No. 186. Fleet Street, in the Parish of St. Dunstan in the West, in the City of London, Publisher, at No. 186. Fleet Street aforesaid.—Saturday, October 12. 1850.