Chapter I: Part 1

{197}

NOTES AND QUERIES:

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

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

* * * * *

No. 174.] SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 26. 1853 [Price Fourpence. Stamped Edition 5d.

* * * * *

CONTENTS.

NOTES:-- Page

Mary Stuart's Chair, by Cuthbert Bede, B.A. 197

Inedited Letter of Warren Hastings 198

Mediæval Emblems of the Passion, by Norris Deck 199

Bookselling in Calcutta 199

FOLK LORE:--Subterranean Bells--Old Weather Proverb--
Primrosen--Harvest Home Song 200

Inedited Poem on Chaucer 201

MINOR NOTES:--"Le Balafré"--Macpherson's "Ossian"--Epitaph
from Tichfield--"A horse! a horse! my kingdom for a
horse!"--Weight of American Revolutionary Officers--The
Patronymic "Mac"--Erroneous Forms of Speech--Hexameters
from Udimore Register--Dr. Johnson--Borrowed
Thoughts--Suggested Reprints 201

QUERIES:--

Rigby Correspondence 203

Heraldic Queries 203

On a Passage in Acts xv. 23., by J. Sansom 204

MINOR QUERIES:--Belatucadrus--Surname of Allan--Arms of
Owen Glendower--Tenent and Tenet--"I hear a lion,"
&c.--"The Exercist Day" at Leicester--Ecclus. xlvi.
20.--Etymology of Burrow--Alexander Adamson--
Psalmanazar--Coleridge's "Christabel"--Beaten to a
Mummy--Hanover Rats--Pallant--Curious Fact in Natural
Philosophy--Drying up of the Red Sea--Joan d'Arc--Diary
of Thomas Earl, &c. 205

MINOR QUERIES WITH ANSWERS:--Game of the Whetstone--
Meals--Haughmond Abbey, Salop--"As flies to wanton
boys"--Quotation wanted--Thomas Stanley, Bishop of Man 208

REPLIES:--

Old Satchels 209

Statue of St. Peter 210

Lord Clarendon and the Tubwoman 211

Discovery of Planets, by Henry Walter 211

Story of Genoveva 212

Ancient Dutch Allegorical Picture, by Dr. J. H. Todd 213

The "Percy Anecdotes," by John Timbs 214

Lady Nevill's Music-book: Mode of reading the ancient
Virginal Music, by Dr. E. F. Rimbault 214

Scarfs worn by Clergymen, by Rev. John Jebb 215

Unanswered Queries regarding Shakspeare, by J. Payne Collier 216

The Passamezzo Galliard, by Dr. E. F. Rimbault 216

PHOTOGRAPHIC NOTES AND QUERIES:--The Albumen Process--
Queries on Mr. Weld Taylor's Process--Difficulties in
the Wax-paper Process--Mr. Archer's Services to
Photography--Mr. Weld Taylor's Iodizing Process--
Sir J. Newton's Process 217

REPLIES TO MINOR QUERIES:--A Race for Canterbury--
"The Birch: a Poem"--Curtseys and Bows--Deodorising
Peat--Jacobite Toasts--Consecrators of English
Bishops--Chatham's Language, &c. 219

MISCELLANEOUS:--

Notes on Books, &c. 224

Books and Odd Volumes wanted 224

Notices to Correspondents 224

Advertisements 225

* * * * *

Notes.

MARY STUART'S CHAIR.

On the south side of the chancel of Conington Church, Hunts., stands a handsome, massive, and elaborately-carved oaken chair, which has been traditionally known as the very seat from which the unfortunate Mary Stuart rose to submit her neck to the executioner. The chair was probably brought from Fotheringay, and placed in Conington Church as a sacred relic, by Sir Robt. Cotton, who built Conington Castle partly with the materials of Fotheringay, and who (according to Gough, in his additions to Camden's _Britannia_, vol. ii., "ICENI," ed. 1789) "brought from there _the whole room_ where Mary Queen of Scots was beheaded." By this, perhaps, is meant, the deeply-recessed arcade that now forms the two _exterior_ sides of the ground-floor of Conington Castle; which arcade, doubtless, was on the _interior_ walls of Fotheringay, the windows being above it: the principal window being supposed to be that which now forms the staircase window of the Talbot Inn, Oundle. Modern windows have been placed within the eleven divisions of the arcade at Conington Castle.

In speaking of Conington Church, Gough says (see _Additions to Camden_) that "Lord Coleraine saw a chair of an Abbot of Peterborough in this church, 1743," which must have been the chair now under notice. The nature of its decorations shows it to have been a chair used for religious purposes; and the six principal figures that adorn it, are made to face at right angles with the chair; so that when it was placed on the south side of the altar, the faces of the figures would be turned towards the east.

A full description of the chair may not be without its interest to the readers of "N. & Q.," since (as far as I am aware) it has never yet received more than a passing notice from the historian; and if it indeed be a relic of Mary Stuart--as there seems good reason to believe--it deserves more attention (in these days of minute detail) than it has hitherto obtained.

The top of the chair is battlemented, and flanked by the two side-pieces which terminate in pediments supporting figures. Both figures are seated on {198} low chairs of a massive ecclesiastical character. The right-hand figure (which is headless) holds an open volume, and is apparelled in chasuble and alb. The left-hand figure is seated on a more highly-decorated seat, wears a crown, and is bearded; is vested in chasuble, alb, and dalmatic; and, though the hands are deficient, evidently did not, like the other figure, bear an open volume. Both figures face to the east. The upper part of the back of the chair is filled in with a pointed arch, cusped, and highly ornamented; the arcs being divided into smaller cusps, which terminate (as do the larger) with leaves and trefoils carved with great richness. In the spandrels of the cusps are birds with outspread wings, bearing labels. Those on the left appear to be eagles; those on the right have long bills, and may be intended for pelicans. The large right-hand spandrel of the arch contains a figure of the Virgin Mary, crowned as "the Queen of Heaven," clad in long flowing drapery, with her hands upraised, apparently in benediction, and her hair loose and streaming. Near to her is her emblem, the pot of lilies; the pot being much decorated, the lilies five in number. It stands upon a label, whose folds fill up the rest of the spandrel. The left-hand large spandrel contains the figure of an angel feathered to the elbow and knee, his wings outspread, and a label proceeding from one hand. The arms of the chair are divided into two parts. The first part terminates in a graceful curve, supporting a figure: the second part is continued with a curve, carried on into the wings of a figure kneeling upon one knee: the intervals are filled up with open Gothic work. The four figures on the arms are all angels, whose wings are made to rest upon, or join into, the curved form of the chair-arm. They all face to the east, and are clad in loose drapery; the folds of which (as in the cases of the other figures) are carved with great minuteness, and disposed with much knowledge of artistic effect. The upper left-hand figure holds a trumpet; that on the right a stringed instrument, which neither resembles the Grecian, Roman, Jewish, or Egyptian lyre, but has precisely the same form as the modern "banjo" of the negroes. Of the two angels on the lower divisions of the arm, the one on the right bears a legend, and the one on the left appears to have done the same, but the arms have been broken off. These legends may have been illuminated with texts of Scripture, &c. The sides of the chair are recessed, and filled in with a species of Gothic tracery that is apparently of later date than the rest. The front of the chair is panelled, and the foot is decorated with quatrefoils in high relief.

During the sleep of indifferentism which fell upon the church towards the close of the past century, all interest attaching to the chair seems to have been forgotten; and, after a lapse of years, it was discovered by the late Mr. Heathcote, of Conington Castle, in a room of the belfry of the church, where it had been thrust aside with other things as useless lumber, and daubed with the whitewash and paint of the generations of workmen who had cleansed their brushes on its broad surface. Mr. Heathcote, with a praiseworthy regard for a relic of so much interest, resolved to replace the chair in the position it had formerly occupied in the chancel of the church: but before this could be done, it was necessary to repair the ill usage which the chair had received, and to restore it, as much as possible, to its original condition. It was accordingly confided to trustworthy and skilful hands; the old ornamental portions were replaced, and the chair was in every way restored strictly in accordance with its original design. It is now in a good state of repair, and will probably remain for many ages a mute memorial of that tragic scene in which it once played its part.

And, could we imagine the Dryad that watched over its forest-birth had filled its oaken frame with speech and feeling: or that a greater Power had put a voice into its shape, and caused the beam out of its timber to cry out against the cruel death-scene in the banquet-hall of Fotheringay, we might almost suppose it to have denounced the English Queen in the words of the Prophet Habakkuk (ii. 10, 11.):

"Thou hast consulted shame to thy house by cutting off many people, and
hast sinned against thy soul. For the stone shall cry out of the wall,
and the beam out of the timber shall answer it."

And, so long as that chair remains in the church of Conington, and the stones of the banquet-hall of Fotheringay form a portion of its castle, so long shall that cry go up to heaven, and tell the hapless doom of Mary Stuart!

CUTHBERT BEDE, B.A.

* * * * *

INEDITED LETTER OF WARREN HASTINGS.

The subjoined letter, believed to be unpublished, is so characteristic of the energy and decision of the great governor-general of India, that I think it worth recording in your publication. It appears to be written and signed by him immediately after, as when it came into my possession the bright sand then in use was adherent more or less to the whole document. Sir Philip Francis and the other signature are in a different ink, and were so awkwardly in their place, that it would indicate that those signatures were previously obtained.

H. W. D.

"_To Capt. Robinson, Commander of the Morning Star._

(_Secret Department._)

"Sir,

"You are hereby commanded to proceed down the River with this Tide, to seize all the French {199} pilot vessels and pilots which you may be able to find, and bring them up to Calcutta.

"A pilot will be sent on board you by the Master Attendant, who will furnish you with orders to him to point to you such pilot vessels as may be in the service of the French nation.

"In the execution of this service the utmost secrecy is to be observed.

We are, Sir,
Your most obedient servants,
WARREN HASTINGS.
P. FRANCIS.
EDW. WHEELER.

Fort William, 9th July, 1778."

* * * * *

MEDIÆVAL EMBLEMS OF THE PASSION.

The venerable Priory Church of Great Malvern contains a series of these emblems, among which are some I have never before met with; and as they may be interesting to some of your readers, I have made a note of them. They have evidently been moved from some other part of the church to their present position in St. Anne's Chapel, and as a few of the more usual emblems are wanting, the series has probably been more complete than it is now. The date of the glass is the latter half of the fifteenth century, and consists of a series of demi-angels, each bearing a shield, upon which these emblems are depicted.

On the first are two heads, representing Judas kissing his Master, the head of the Saviour being surrounded by the usual cruciform nimbus.

2. The reed, here drawn as a bulrush with flag leaves, crossed by a mace.

3. The lantern.

4. Christ blindfolded; represented symbolically as having a thin muslin bandage over His eyes, which are seen through it and depicted wide open, as if not at all affected by it.

5. Two hands issuing from the dexter side of the shield, as if in the act of buffeting; from the sinister side issues one hand pulling a beard or lock of hair.

6. The spear of Longinus, with drops of blood and water trickling from it, crossed by the reed and the sponge.

7. The cock that warned St. Peter.

8. The crown of thorns.

9. The cross.

10. The falchion of St. Peter crossed by another mace.

11. The seamless vest.

12. The hammer between _two_ nails only.

13. The purse of Judas overflowing with money, represented as a merchant's gypciere.

14. The ladder.

15. Two scourges or flagelli crossing each other.

16. The sacred monogram, I.H.C.

17. The five wounds.

18. St. Veronica, with the napkin outspread impressed with the sacred head.

19. An impudent repulsive head in the act of spitting.

20. The lower portion of the pillar entwined with the cord.

To this Note I wish to add a Query. Have any of your correspondents ever met with, in similar representations, the instruments I have described as maces in shields 2. and 10.? The first has a round termination, with three triangular-shaped spikes issuing from it, one at the end, and one on each side of the ball; the second has a pointed oval, or egg-shaped end, and is quite studded with spikes, not triangular, but straight like the teeth of a woolcomb; they evidently refer to the "weapons" mentioned in St. John xviii. 3., and I am not aware of the existence of any similar types. I may also state that those mentioned on shields 1. 4. 5. and 19. are by no means usual.

While on this subject I will add a list of the other emblems I have met with not included in this series, and shall be glad to receive from any of your readers any additions to it.

The ear of Malchus; the two swords which they showed the Lord when He said "It is enough;" the three dice; the pincers; the thirty pieces of silver; the pitcher of water which our Saviour used when He washed His disciples' feet; the towel, generally represented hanging from a ring, with which He wiped them; the fire at which St. Peter warmed himself, and the three spice-boxes for embalming. I shall also be glad to hear if the representation of _two_ nails only instead of the usual number of _three_, occurs in any other instance.

NORRIS DECK.

Great Malvern.

* * * * *

BOOKSELLING IN CALCUTTA.

Looking over your Queries this morning, my attention was drawn to that now in course of elucidation in your pages--the origin of the phrase "Sending a man to Coventry." I am not about to offer any explanation thereof, but simply to chronicle in your columns, more for the amusement than the edification of your readers, a _reminiscence_ of an eccentric application of a passage in Shakspeare bearing upon this popular dislike to Coventry.

Any of your readers who may have visited the capital of British India will recollect the native _kitaub-wallahs_, or booksellers, who drive a good trade in the streets of Calcutta by thrusting their second-hand literature into the _palanquins_ of the passers, and their pertinacity and success in fixing _master_ with a bargain. For the information of the untravelled, I may further remark that these _flying bibliopoles_ draw their supplies from {200} the daily auctions arising out of the migratory habits or the mortality to which the residents in that city are subject; and it would somewhat astonish our _Sothebys_ and _Putticks_ to see the extent of these sales of literary property, and derange their _tympanums_ to hear the clamorous competition among the aforesaid half-naked dealers for lots not catalogued with their bibliographical precision. The books thus purchased, I may further observe, are subject to the overhaul of the better-informed of the tribe before they make their appearance in the streets; when deficiencies are made good, bindings vamped, and lettering attempted: finally, they are placed in the hands of the hawkers, when the following peculiarities are detectable:--where a title or last leaf may have been wanting, these _Calcutta editions_ occasionally display a _prophane_ book with a _sacred_ title; or a _pious treatise_, for the sake of the word "Finis," made complete by affixing the last leaf of _Tristram Shandy_ or the _Devil on Two Sticks_! Less intelligent jobbers will open their book, and, finding the first word "Preface," clap it incontinently in gilt letters on the back! I leave the imagination of the reader to fill up the _cross-readings_ which would likely result from such practices, and revert to my anecdote, which I had almost lost sight of.

Some twenty years ago, then, the dingy tribes were startled, and the auctioneer gratified by the appearance of a new face in the _bidders' box_--a brisk little European, who contested every lot, aiming, apparently, at a monopoly in the second-hand book trade. Shortly thereafter, this individual, having located himself in a commanding position, came forth in the daily papers as a candidate for public favour; and, in allusion to the reformation he contemplated, and his sovereign contempt for his black brethren, headed his address, to the no small amusement of the lieges, in the _Falstoffian_ vein:

"... No eyes hath seen such _scarecrows_.
I'll not march thro' Coventry with them, that's flat!"

This joke was no doubt thrown away upon his Hindoo and Mussulman rivals, but, alas for the reformer! he little knew the cold indifference of the Anglo-Indian about such matters, and, as might have been expected, he failed in establishing himself in business, and ultimately fell a victim to the climate. Of the previous history of this one, among ten thousand, who have left their bones in the land of cholera, I know nothing beyond the fact that he was a son of Thomas Holcroft, a dramatist of repute in his day.

J. O.

* * * * *

FOLK LORE.

_Subterranean Bells_ (Vol. vii., p. 128.).--The tower and nave of Tunstall Church, Norfolk, are in ruins; the chancel alone being used for divine service. The village tradition says, that this calamity was caused by fire; and that the parson and churchwardens quarreled for the possession of the bells which were uninjured. During their altercation, the arch-fiend walked off with the subjects of dispute; but being pursued, and overtaken by the parson--who began to exorcise in Latin--he made a way through the earth to his appointed dwelling-place, taking them with him. The spot where this took place is now a boggy pool of water, called Hell Hole; and an adjoining clump of alder-trees is called Hell Carr. In summer time, a succession of bubbles--doubtless caused by marsh gas--keep constantly appearing on the surface. Those who believe in the tradition, find in this circumstance a strong confirmation. For, as it is the entrance to the bottomless pit, the bells must be descending still; and the bubbles would necessarily be caused by bells sinking in water.

In the adjoining village of Halvergate, on the largest bell, is the following inscription:

"Sit cunctis annis,
Nobis _avita Joh[=s]_."

I suppose this must be "audita Johannes," but the inscription certainly is _avita_.

On the second bell:

"Intercede pia
Pro nobis Virgo Maria."

On the third bell, founder's name, and date 1653,--a solitary instance, I imagine, of an addition made to a peal of bells during the Puritan triumph of the Great Rebellion.

E. G. R.

Fisherty Brow, near Kirkby Lonsdale, supplies such an instance as J. J. S. inquires after. There is a sort of natural hollow scooped out there, where a church, parson, and all the people, were swallowed up ages since; and any one who doubts it, may put his ear to the ground on a Sunday morning and hear the bells ring!

P. P.

_Old Weather Proverb._--The old monkish Latin rhyme is very plainly verified this year:

"Se Sol splendescat, Mariâ purificante,
Major erit glacies post festum, quam fuit ante."

February 2nd was a most brilliant day here, where I live, not twenty miles from London: the ground is now covered with snow, and the frost very sharp.

"After Candlemas Day the frost will be more,
If the sun then shines bright, than it has been before."

"After Candlemas Day frost will follow more keen,
If the sun then shines bright, than before it has been."

C-- S. T. P.

W---- Rectory, Feb. 12.

{201}

_Primrosen._--The early appearance of primroses this year induces me to trouble you with some East-Anglian folk lore concerning them, premising that here the word still forms its plural in _en_.

At Cockfield, Suffolk, there are none, nor, it is said, do they thrive when planted; though they are numerous in all the surrounding villages, which do not apparently differ from Cockfield in soil.

The village legend says that here, too, they once were plentiful, but when Cockfield was depopulated by the plague, they also caught the infection and died, nor have they flourished since that time.

In East Norfolk some old women are still found who believe that if a less number of primrosen than thirteen be brought into a house on the first occasion of bringing any in, so many eggs only will each hen or goose hatch that season. When recently admitted into deacon's orders, my gravity was sorely tried by being called on to settle a quarrel between two old women, arising from one of them having given one primrose to her neighbour's child, for the purpose of making her hens hatch but one chicken out of each set of eggs. And it was seriously maintained that the charm had been successful.

Since then I have heard that it only has an influence over geese. Perhaps this may account in some measure for the belief. In early seasons, persons are induced to carry in specimens of the first spring flowers that they find. In such seasons, too, fowls lay early, and perhaps do not sufficiently protect their eggs. The ungenial weather which too frequently succeeds spoils the eggs, and the effect is attributed to the "primrosen" of course; the cases where a few flowers are brought in, and the fowls have numerous broods, remain unnoticed.

E. G. R.

_Harvest Home Song, sung in some Parts of Surrey._--

"We have plough'd,
We have sow'd,
We have reap'd,
We have mow'd;
Ne'er a load
Overthrow'd--
Harvest Home!"

R. W. F.

Bath.

* * * * *

INEDITED POEM ON CHAUCER.

I lately bought a black-letter Chaucer (1561), in which I find MS. notes by two or three writers. One is in rather a crabbed handwriting, and dates from 1574. I must own to being unable to decipher this gentleman's notes to my satisfaction; but the writing of another is clear and distinct. There are a few emendations on the "Rime of Sire Thopas," and the following "Eulogium Chaucerj." I do not know whether it has appeared anywhere in print before; and as my reading in the British poets is too limited for me to say anything about its author, I should be glad if you or any one of your correspondents would inform me who the lines are by:--

_Eulogium Chaucerj._

Geffrye Chaucer, the worthiest flower
Of English Poetrie in all the Bower.
So as w^{th} hym we maye compare
W^{th} Italy for Poet rare.
Dant, nor Boccace, nor Petracqu fyne,
But Chaucer he w^{th} them may syng.
W^{th} woords so fitt and sense so deepe,
His matters all he can so riepe,
The Muses nyne, I thynck their teats
To his sweete lypps did sweetly reatch.
As Plato, in his cradle Nest,
Is saied of Bees to haue bene blest.
So as, by Nature, noe man can,
W^{th}out rare guyst, prove such a man.
The rare euents that haue bene sence,
O how they call for his defence!
Though many one hath done his parte,
Yett he alone had toucht the harte.
Sith he then is so peereles fownd,
For hym lett bee the Laurell crowne,
And all the Birds of pleasaunt laye,
Therein lett them both syng and playe,
As itt weare ioygnyng all there noats,
W^{th} his sweet music and records.
O that, as nowe he sounds w^{th} penn,
His lyvely voice myght sownd agayne.
But Natures debt we must pay all,
And soe he hath, and soe we shall.
Though for his other parts of grace
Chaucer will live and shewe his face.

T. A. S.

* * * * *

Minor Notes.

"_Le Balafré._"--I was surprised to see that Miss Strickland, in the three volumes published of the _Lives of the Queens of Scotland_, always ascribes this well-known sobriquet to Francis, second Duke of Guise, instead of his son Henry, third duke. This is a mistake which I should have thought the merest tyro in history could not have committed about persons of so much note, and affords another instance of what Messrs. Macaulay and Alison had already exemplified, that writers of the most profound research will often err as to matters which lie, as it were, on the very surface.

J. S. WARDEN.

_Macpherson's "Ossian."_--It would appear as if Macpherson had picked up his information about British history in the pages of a kindred spirit, Geoffrey of Monmouth, for certainly he could have found in no other writer that Caracalla and Carausius were cotemporaries.

J. S. WARDEN.

{202}

_Epitaph from Tichfield._--The curious epitaph which I inclose was copied, as closely as possible, from a monument in Tichfield Church, Hants. You may perhaps think it worthy of a place in "N. & Q."

"The Hvsband, speakinge trewly of his Wife,
Read his losse in hir death, hir praise in life.

Heare Lucie Quinsie Bromfield buried lies,
With neighbours sad deepe weepinge, hartes, sighes, eyes.
Children eleaven, tenne livinge me she brought.
More kind, trewe, chaste was noane, in deed, word, thought.
Howse, children, state, by hir was ruld, bred, thrives.
One of the best of maides, of women, wives,
Now gone to God, her heart sent long before;
In fasting, prayer, faith, hope, and alms' deedes stoare.
If anie faulte, she loved me too much.
Ah, pardon that, for ther are too fewe such!
Then, reader, if thou not hard-hearted bee,
Praise God for hir, but sighe and praie for mee.

Here by hir dead, I dead desire to lie,
Till, rais'd to life, wee meet no more to die.
1618."

RUBI.

_"A horse! a horse! my kingdom for a horse!" Richard III., Act V. Sc. 4._--In the edition of the _Walewein_ published by Professor Jonckbloet, Leyden, 1846, is found, vol. ii. p. 178., a remarkable parallel passage to the world-famed line of Shakspeare, the verses 16007-8 of the _Lancelot_, a romance of the Middle Ages:

"Addic wapine ende een pard,
In gaeft niet om een conincrike."

"Had I weapons and a horse,
I would not give them for a kingdom."
_From the Navorscher._

J. M.

_Weight of American Revolutionary Officers._--On the 10th of August, 1778, the American officers at West Point were weighed, with the following result:

Lbs.
Gen. Washington 209
Gen. Lincoln 224
Gen. Knox 280
Gen. Huntingdon 182
Gen. Greaton 166
Col. Swift 319
Col. Michael Jackson 252
Col. Henry Jackson 238
Lt.-Col. Huntingdon 212
Lieut.-Col. Cobb 182
Lt.-Col. Humphreys 221

Only three of the eleven weighed less than two hundred pounds,--a result which does not confirm the Abbé Raynal's theory of the deterioration of mankind in America.

UNEDA.

Philadelphia.

_The Patronymic "Mac."_--The _Inverness Courier_ of 1823 gives a list of genuine Celtic surnames beginning with _Mac_, amounting to no less than 392.

KIRKWALLENSIS.

_Erroneous Forms of Speech._--Should you consider the following as worth a place in your publication, they are at your service.

1. The much used word _Te_e_total_ is wrong: it ought to be written _Te_a_total_. It implies the use of _tea_, instead of intoxicating liquors: that was its original meaning. Let us return to the proper spelling. Better late than never.

2. The expression, lately become very common, "_Up_ to the present time," and so forth, is wrong. It ought to be "_Down_ to the present time." The stream of time, like all other streams, is always descending. In tracing a thing backwards, from the present time, it is quite right to use the word _up_.

3. The words _down_ and _up_ are much misapplied by the inhabitants of the provinces in another sense, not knowing, or forgetting that, _par excellence_, London is considered the highest locality: _from_ every place, how high soever its position, it is "_up_ to London," and _to_ every such place, it is "_down_ from London." In London itself, St. Paul's Cathedral is considered as the highest or central point; and in every street radiating from that point, it is _up_ when going towards it, and _down_ when going from it. In going from St. Paul's to the Poultry we go _down Cheapside_.

4. The inhabitants of provincial towns and cities are much in the habit of saying such a person is not "in town" to-day. That is wrong: they ought to say "in _the_ town." The word _town_ is, _par excellence_, applicable to London alone.

ROBERT SMART.

Sunderland.

_Hexameters from Udimore Register._--The following hexameters are copied from the fly-leaf of a register-book which dates back to 1500. They were written by a vicar in Elizabeth's reign. The burden of the lament is, that the tithes, now worth about 500l. a-year, had been sold by a "sordid unprophetick priest" for 30l. per annum, and that consequently all his successors found themselves "vicars without tithes." The register-book is in the church of Udimore, near Rye, in Sussex:

"Udimer infelix! nimis est cui Presbyter unus;
Presbyter infelix! cui non satis Udimer una;
Impropriator habet Clero quæ propria durus,
Atque alter Proprios Clerus peregrinus et hospes;
Ex decimis decimis fruitur vir lege sacerdos
Alter Evangelio reliquis prohibente potitur
Eheu! quam pingui macer est mihi passer in arvo
Idem est exitium fidei fideique ministro
Ita queritur
STEP. PARR, Vic."

J. MN.

_Dr. Johnson._--The parchment containing the grant of the freedom of the city of Aberdeen to the "Literary Colossus," in 1773, once the property of {203} Mrs. Piozzi, was sold in Manchester in August, 1823, to an eminent bookseller in Bond Street.

KIRKWALLENSIS.

_Borrowed Thoughts._--We often hear the man who, from his more advanced position, looks with contempt on the wisdom of past ages, likened to the child mounted on his father's shoulder, and boasting that he is the taller of the two.

This no new idea. It is probably derived immediately from Mr. Macaulay, who in his _Essay on Sir James Mackintosh_ says:

"The men to whom we owe it that we have a House of Commons are sneered
at because they did not suffer the debates of the House to be
published. The authors of the Toleration Act are treated as bigots,
because they did not go the whole length of Catholic Emancipation. Just
so we have heard a baby, mounted on the shoulders of its father, cry
out, '_How much taller I am than Papa!_'"

But it may be traced farther; for hear what Butler says (_Hudibras_, ii. 71.):

"For as our modern wits behold,
_Mounted a pick-back on the old_,
Much farther off, much further he,
Rais'd on his aged Beast, could see."

ERICA.

Warwick.

_Suggested Reprints._--Acting on the suggestion of J. M., I make a note of the following:

"Joshua Sprigge's _Anglia Rediviva_, London, 1647, gives a florid but
authentic and sufficient account of this new-model army in all its
features and operations by which England had come alive again. A little
sparing in dates, but correct when they are given. None of the old
books are better worth reprinting."--Carlyle's _Letters and Speeches of
Cromwell_.

I would remark, also, that there are very few collections of maxims so good and profitable to the present time as Francis Quarles' _Enchiridion_, London, 1702, 12mo. A reprint would be very useful. There is an article thereon in the _Retrospective Review_, vol. v. p. 180.

K. P. D. E.

* * * * *

Queries.

RIGBY CORRESPONDENCE.

In looking over old family papers, I find a bundle of letters, sixty-seven in number, some of them very interesting, written to my grandfather by Richard Rigby, commencing in the year 1758, and ending 1781. This Richard Rigby, it appears, held the then sinecure office of Master of the Rolls in Ireland, but resided altogether in England, and held office under several administrations as Paymaster of the Forces. His letters from 1769 to 1781 are all dated from the Pay Office. He is the Mr. Rigby whose _awkward integrity_ is alluded to by Philo-Junius in his letter of 22nd June, 1769, and who is ironically styled "Modest" by Atticus in letter of 14th November, 1768. My object is to endeavour to ascertain from some of your correspondents whether there is any representative of Mr. Rigby who possibly might have in his possession the counterpart of the correspondence above alluded to, which to Irishmen could not fail to be of interest, and probably of historic value. The writer was a member of the Irish House of Commons, and, it appears, was in the habit of giving very graphic details of Irish politics in general, and of the proceedings of the House of Commons in particular. Under date of 8th December, 1769, Mr. Rigby thanks him

"For your constant accounts of what passes in your parliaments. If it
was not for the intelligence I give the ministers from you and the rest
of my friends, they would know no more of what is doing in the Irish
Parliament than in the Turkish Divan. For (neither) the Lord Lieutenant
nor his Secretary ever write a line to the Secretary of State."

Again, 2nd December, 1771:

"I am much obliged to you for your constant intelligence, and so are
greater persons than myself, for I happened to be with Lord Rochford
to-day when his letters arrived from his Excellency, and he had sent no
despatches of a later date than the 26th, so that his Majesty and his
ministers would have known nothing of a report having been made by that
committee, but for my information. Lord R. sent your letters with my
leave to the King. They will do no discredit to the writer, especially
when compared to that _blotting_ paper wrote by his Excellency."

In another letter he talks of the reports of speeches made by his correspondent being far better than those of any _note-taker_; so that if they are forthcoming, I have no doubt they would be of interest and value to the historian of Ireland of that time.

K. K.

* * * * *

HERALDIC QUERIES.

Can any of your correspondents furnish me with the names to the following coats of arms? Some are entire, others are lost, from the glass having been cut to fit the divisions. These remnants form part of the chapel and hall windows of the old Bishop's Palace (now the Deanery) at Worcester.

I. Quarterly 1 and 4. Barry of 6, azure and or, on a chief of 1st; 3 pallets between 2 gyrons of 2nd; over all an inescutcheon erm.

Quarterly 2 and 3. Quarterly 1 and 4 a chevron between 3 roses or
cinquefoils; 2 and 3, a chevron between 3 martlets. (Colours obliterated.)

II. Sable, 3 church bells or, impaling a shield, per fess invecked (this last cut off).

III. A saltire voided between 12 cross crosslets. {204}

IV. Quarterly 1 and 4. Arg. a chevron between 3 foxes' heads erased gu.

Quarterly 2. Arg. on a bend sa., 3 dolphins or.

Quarterly 3. Party per pale pily sa. and arg. impaling sa., a bordure
arg.

Over all a crescent for difference, and shield surrounded with following names, "Edmundus Fox secundus filius Charoli Fox, 1586." (Query, Who were these people?)

V. Imperial crown over poppy head. (Query, Whose emblem or badge?)

VI. A bull's head sa., guttée, horned, and langued, or. (Query, Whose crest or badge?)

VII. A chevron between 3 roundles, having for crest 2 lion's paws holding a roundle.

VIII. Sa. a chevron between 3 lions' faces or, crescent for difference, having for crest a griffin.

IX. Or 3 Talbot's heads proper.

X. Quarterly 1. Sa. lion rampant, or.

Quarterly 2. Paly of ---- gu. and arg. (Cut off.)

Quarterly 3. Arg. a muscle ----. (Colour gone.)

Quarterly 4. (Cut off.)

XI. ---- on a chevron between 3 lions' heads; 3 roses (colours gone), with crest. A man's head and shoulders robed with eastern crown on head.

XII. Or six fleurs-de-lis sable, 3. 2. and 1., with motto "Argrete constante."

XIII. Arg. on a chevron sa., 3 mullets of 1st between 3 lions' heads erased of 2nd.

XIV. Sa. a chevron arg. between 3 porpoises or, impaling lion rampant. (Colour gone.)

XV. Quarterly sa. and arg., a cross moline quarterly, erm. and ----. (Colour gone.)

The names to these coats of arms might enable one to trace whence the original bits came; it might be possible that the old windows of the cathedral (said to have been destroyed) served for filling up the borders of the old palace windows.

W. H. P.

* * * * *

ON A PASSAGE IN ACTS XV. 23.

Dr. Burton (_Greek Test._, Oxford, 1848), in a note on the words [Greek: hoi presbuteroi kai hoi adelphoi] (Acts xv. 23.), says: "Most MSS. read [Greek: hoi presbuteroi adelphoi]." I should feel much obliged to any of your readers who could kindly direct me to some particular manuscripts, to which Dr. Burton may possibly have alluded when he wrote the above note; or who could refer me to _any Greek MSS. of authority_, in which the [Greek: kai] is not found. I have been enabled to consult the _Codex Laudianus_, a MS. of the seventh century; also the _MS. Canon_, of the early part of the tenth century; and the _Codex Ebner._, of the twelfth century. In neither of these is the [Greek: kai] missing. Nor am I aware of any Greek Bible or New Testament printed without the [Greek: kai]; nor indeed of any translation without the conjunction (though there may be some such) in Latin, or in any other language, with the single exception of the Vulgate after St. Jerome, and its several versions. The Bibles of Sixtus V. and Clement VIII., agreeing in this particular, read alike, "Apostoli et seniores fratres." On the other hand, Vutablus, in his new translation, reads, "Apostoli et presbyteri _et_ fratres;" which is likewise the reading of the _interp. Syriac._, as given in the _Biblia Regia_; also of Beza, as given in the edition of the Bible, _Oliva Roberti Stephani_, 1556; whilst in the _Novum Testamentum e Græco archetypo Latino sermone redditum, Theodoro Beza interprete_, ed. Hanov. 1623, the reading is, "Apostoli, et seniores, et fratres;" which is also the reading in _Bibl. Sacr. ex Sebastiani Castellionis interpretatione_, ed. Francofurti, 1697. To which may be added the _Biblia Gallica_, 1580; the _Bibl. Belg._, ed. Leydæ, 1737; and Luther's German Bible,--all which retain the _and_.

I have also consulted a more important version, namely, the ancient Italic, which also reads, "Apostoli, et seniores, _et_ fratres;" but which (in Pet. Sabatier's edition, Par. 1751) has appended to the verse the following note:

"V. 23.--_MS. Cantabr._ Scripserunt epistolam per manus suas
continentem hæc, Apostoli, et presbyteri fratres, hiis qui sunt per
Antiochiam, et Syriam, et Ciliciam, qui sunt ex gentibus fratribus,
salutem.--_Græc. textui Laud._ consonat [versio _Italica_], nisi quòd
habet [Greek: kata tên Antiocheian, kai Surian, kai Kilikian], pro
Antiochiæ, et Syriæ, et Ciliciæ. _MSS. quidam_, pro [Greek: cheiros]
manum, legunt [Greek: cheirôn], cum Vulg.; _aliique plures tollunt_
[Greek: kai] _post seniores_. Irenæus, l. iii. c. 12. p. 199. a. legit:
Apostoli, et presbyteri fratres, his qui sunt in Antiochia, et Syria,
et Cilicia, fratribus ex gentibus salutem. S. Pacian., _Paræn. ad
Poenit._, p. 315. h.: Apostoli, et presbyteri fratres, his qui sunt
Antiochiæ, et Syriæ, et Ciliciæ, fratribus qui sunt ex gentibus
salutem. Vigil. Taps. l. xii. _De Trin._, p. 329. c.: Apostoli, et
presb. fratres, iis, qui Antiochiæ, et Syr., et Cilic. fratribus qui
sunt ex gentibus salutem."

This note certainly goes far to corroborate (if indeed it was not the chief authority for) Dr. Burton's assertion; but it does little to satisfy my curiosity on a point, which I conceive to be of considerable interest, and of no slight importance, at the present time. The Cambridge MS. appears to be in Latin only; as is also the passage referred to in Irenæus, whose original Greek is lost. So that, after all, there is some ground to suspect that there in fact exists _no Greek manuscript whatsoever_ without the [Greek: kai].

I will add another note, which I find at the passage in Irenæus (_Contr. Hær._, lib. iii. cap. 14. p. 199., ed. Par. 1710):

"Sic cum Irenæo habent codd. Cantabrig. et Alexand. et Vulgatus
interpres. _At in editis Græcis_: [Greek: presbuteroi kai hoi
adelphoi]."

J. SANSOM.

Oxford.

{205}

* * * * *

Minor Queries.

_Belatucadrus._--In the _Poetical History_, by the French Jesuit, P. Galtruchius, 5th edition, 1683, the sixteenth and closing chapter of the first book of this history of the heathen gods is devoted to those worshipped in England, and the last of whom mention is made is Belatucadrus, being introduced and summarily disposed of as follows:

"In time the idols did increase, and we find in ancient writers, some
who have been transported hither by the eastern people, as the God
(Abellio vocabatur in Gallia) Belenus, or Belatucadrus. The latter, to
my knowledge, hath been adored in the north part of England; for
lately, since the learned Camden hath mentioned him, there was a piece
of his statue found in Westmoreland, near Brougham, a castle belonging
to that bountiful and venerable lady, Anne Dorset, countess dowager of
Pembrook and Montgomery, &c.; and in the bottom this inscription is to
be seen: 'Sancto Deo Belatvcadro,' which idol was doubtless made by the
Romans, for it was their custom to adore the gods of the country which
they did conquer."

My object is to ascertain, if possible, if this portion of statue has been preserved? Has any subsequent discovery been made in the same locality respecting, or any additional light thrown upon, the one of which mention is herein made?

KAPPA.

_Surname of Allan._--Perhaps MR. LOWER, or some other etymological reader of "N. & Q.," may kindly assist me in my endeavours to find out the correct meaning and origin of this surname, variously spelt _Allen_, _Allan_, _Allin_, _Alleyne_, &c.? My theory on the subject, from various researches, is that it is a word of Celtic or Gaelic etymon, _Aluinn_, in that language, signifying "delightful or pleasant." And again, several islet-rocks romantically situated in the Firth of Clyde, Scotland, are called to this day _Allans_. I should much like, however, to have the opinions of older and more experienced etymologists than I can pretend to be; for few subjects present so interesting a field for different theories as that regarding the origin of family names does. As I am naturally interested in my own surname, I should also like to obtain a sketch of the different British families of note bearing the surname and arms of _Allen_ or _Allan_, and references to those works which give their history and lineage.

A. S. A.

Wuzzeerabad.

_Arms of Owen Glendower._--Could any of your correspondents inform me of the blazoning of the arms of Owen Glendower, which, according to the copy of his private seal, furnished by Meyrick to the editor of the _Poems of Lewis Glyn Cottie_, are, Quarterly, four lions rampant; supporters, a dragon (gules?) and a lion?

B. B. WOODWARD.

_Tenent and Tenet._--When did the use of tene_n_t (for opinion, dogma, &c.) give place to tenet? Surely both forms should be retained, and used according to circumstances. It is correct to speak of a tenet of John _Wesley_. When attributing the same doctrine to _Wesleyans_, it becomes their tene_n_t.

Y. B. N. J.

_"I hear a lion," &c._--Can any of your correspondents favour me with the origin of the following _jeu d'esprit_, reputed to have been addressed to the Speaker in the House of Commons?--

"I hear a lion in the lobby roar!
Say, Mr. Speaker, shall we shut the door
And keep him _out_?
Or shall we let him _in_,
And see if we can get him _out_ again?"

To ascertain by whom, and upon what occasion, the above lines were uttered, would considerably gratify

SAGITTA.

_"The Exercist Day" at Leicester._--In the Chamberlain's accounts for this borough for the year 1604-5, I find the following entry:

"_Item._ The vj^{th} of Novemb^r [1604], _being the
exercist daye_, given to the preacher and mynist^{rs}
at the exercistz, one pottell of clarett s. d.
wyne and one quarte of sacke ij iiij

There are also charges "for wyne drunk at the _exercist dinners_, on the viij^{th} of Jan^y, the fyfthe of Marche, and the ix^{th} of April," 1605. Were these meetings held for the purpose of _exorcising_ the evil spirits and witches, the belief in which had at that time greatly increased in England, through the recent accession of "the modern Solomon" to the throne? and, if so, was the practice a general one, or were they merely for religious _exercises_?

A few years afterwards nine unfortunate women were tried at our assizes for witchcraft, and were convicted and executed!

LEICESTRIENSIS.

_Ecclus._ xlvi. 20.--Why does the Church order this verse to be omitted in the reading of the lessons? Is it because the passage assumes the fact that Samuel himself appeared to Saul--a statement open to discussion?

BOEOTICUS.

Edgmond, Salop.

_Etymology of Burrow._--In the north of Gloucestershire I have met with the word _burrow_ (I do not answer for the orthography), meaning sheltered, secure from wind, &c. The side of a thick coppice was spoken of as "a very _burrow_ place for cattle." Can any of your correspondents give the etymology of the word, or other instances of its use?

BALLIOLENSIS.

_Alexander Adamson._--I should be glad to know who Alexander Adamson was (the tutor who accompanied Wm. and Patrick Ruthven, the son of {206} the Earl of Gowrie, in their flight into England in August 1600), and what became of him? There was a Wm. Ruthven, of Scotland, married at Chitterton, Northumberland, to Esther, daughter of Robert Adamson, vicar of that parish in 1681. Was he any relation to the Gowrie family?

E. H. A.

_Psalmanazar._--The great literary abilities of Psalmanazar, and indeed all the known circumstances of his life and history, excite some curiosity as to his real name. Can any of your readers inform me of this?

ST. JOHNS.

_Coleridge's Christabel._--In the original edition of this poem, the following lines are to be found at the beginning of Part II.:

"Let it rain, however fast,
Rest from rain will come at last;
And the blaze that strongest flashes,
Links at last, and ends in ashes!
But sorrow from the human heart,
And mists of care, will they depart?"

Now these lines, and a great many more which I cannot remember, as I have not the original edition, are to be found in an old volume of _Blackwood's Magazine_, in a review upon the poem. The poem, as published in the edition of Coleridge's _Poems_ edited by D. and S. Coleridge (Moxon, 1852), does not contain these lines, and no notice is taken of the fact by the editors. Either Coleridge did or did not cancel the lines mentioned; if he did, can any of your readers inform me in which of his works this fact is mentioned? If he did not, then one of the most beautiful poems in the English language has been edited in a manner that no one, I trust, will imitate.

S. Y.

_Beaten to a Mummy._--Whence comes this expression? It is used to signify, beaten so that form and feature are no longer distinguishable; whereas the immediate object of a mummy seems to be the preservation of the form and features of the deceased. Is not the phrase a corruption of beaten to a mammock, to a piece, to a scrap, to a fragment? And yet, in Marryatt's _Pottery_ (Murray, 1850, p. 250.) is the following passage:

"Diodorus Siculus (Book V. ch. i.), in speaking of the usages of the
inhabitants of the Balearic Isles, states that these people were in the
habit of beating with clubs the bodies of the dead, which, thus
rendered flexible, were deposited in vessels of earthenware."

The Gloucestershire peasants frequently use the word mammock, which they pronounce "mommock."

ROBERT SNOW.

6. Chesterfield Street, May Fair.

_Hanover Rats._--It is said that the native rat was extirpated from this country by the invading colonists from Hanover. What are the facts of this case, and where may the best account of this extermination of the natives be found? It is worth inquiring also, whether the aboriginal rat is now to be met with in any part of Great Britain. I should think that rat-catchers and farming folks could throw light on this interesting point of the British fauna.

SHIRLEY HIBBERD.

_Pallant._--In the town of Chichester there are four streets, north, south, east, and west, to which the name of "Pallant" is attached.

This particular spot, which is close to the High Street, is always called The Pallant.

Can any of your readers inform me of the origin and meaning of this word?

I have never met with any inhabitant of Chichester who could solve this difficulty.

A CANTAB.

_Curious Fact in Natural Philosophy._--The _Exeter Alfred_ of 1828 has in one of its numbers the following:

"Cut a couple of cards each into a circle of about two inches in
diameter; perforate one of these at the centre, and fix it on the top
of a tube, say a common quill. Make the other card ever so little
concave, and place it over the first, the orifice of the tube being
that directly under, and almost in contact with the concave card. Try
to blow off the upper card, you will find it impossible. We understand
that the cause that counteracts the effect at first expected of this
singular phenomenon, has lately puzzled all the members of the Royal
Society. A medal and a hundred guineas are said to be the reward of the
successful discoverer.

Could any of the correspondents of "N. & Q." give any additional information on this rather curious point?

ELGINENSIS.

_Drying up of the Red Sea._--Will some of your correspondents kindly assist me, by a reference to a passage in one of our modern historians, alluding to the extraordinary drying up of the Red Sea on one occasion? I thought I had read it in Rollin, as a quotation from Baronius, but cannot now find it in either one or the other.

W. STILLMAN.

Birmingham.

_Joan d'Arc._--Did Joan d'Arc (the Maid of Orleans) bear any heraldic insignia; and if so, what?

Is the family from which she sprung now represented; and if they bear arms, what are they?

Is there any family of this name (D'Arc), and if so, where? And what are the arms belonging to it, if there are any?

BEND.

_Diary of Thomas Earl._--Strype (_Annals_, vols. i. & ii.) sometimes refers to a MS. No. 206. in the collection of Moore, Bishop of Ely, which he describes as a Diary (vol. i. pp. 135. 180.) kept {207} by Thomas Earl, who was made parson of St. Mildred's, Bread Street, at the beginning of Queen Elizabeth's reign, and "seems to have been a diligent noter of matters of remark concerning religion in his time" (vol. ii. p. 539.). In the _Catal. Libr. MSS. Angl._, part ii. p. 366., it is described--

"Short notes of matters relating to the church by way of annals,
written by some that favoured Puritanism, from the year 1548 to 1599."

Bishop Moore left his library to the University of Cambridge. Is this MS. in their possession, and is it a piece of historic value?

Q. Q.

"_Jenny's Bawbee._"--I would be glad if any of the readers of "N. & Q." would inform me where the old Scottish song, "Jenny's Bawbee," is to be found? It begins,

"Your plack and my plack,
And Jenny's bawbee,
We'll put it i' the pint stoup,
An' birl't a' three."

J. MN.

_Lord North._--In Forster's _Life of Goldsmith_, the following remark occurs respecting Lord North, George III.'s premier:

"North was the son of the princess dowager's intimate friend Lord
Guildford, and scandal had not hesitated to find a reason for the
extraordinary resemblance he presented to the king in his clumsy
figure, homely face, thick lips, light complexion and hair, bushy
eyebrows, and protruding large grey eyes."

Will some one of your readers favour me with an explanation of the meaning of this insinuation? Is it really intended to say that "scandal" reported Lord North to be the son of an illustrious lady of the royal family? It is clear Lord North strikingly resembled George III.; did the latter "favour" his father or his mother in physiognomy? Did George III. represent the Guelphs or the Saxe-Gotha family?

OBSERVER.

_Ephippiarius._--What is the meaning of the word "Ephippiarius," occurring as the description of a person in a Latin diploma of the seventeenth century? Does it signify saddler, or, as has been suggested to me, esquire?

V.

_Nixon._--Can any of your readers inform me if there was a painter of this name living at Brighton in or about the year 1806, what pictures he painted, &c., and when he died?

JOHN GARLAND.

Dorchester.

_Tuebeuf._--Where is it? A royal charter to the town of Doncaster, given by the hand of Master Eustacius, Dean of Salisbury, Deputy-Chancellor, and witnessed by an Archbishop of Canterbury and others, is dated at Tuebeuf, 22nd May, 5 Richard I. (1194). In Miller's _History of Doncaster_ (Appendix, Deed No. 1.), the name is printed "Tuke or Toke," but on a reference to the original document it appears as above.