Chapter I: Part 1

Transcriber's note: A few typographical errors have been corrected: they are listed at the end of the text.

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{557} NOTES AND QUERIES:

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

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

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No. 215.] SATURDAY, DECEMBER 10. 1853. [Price Fourpence. Stamped Edition 5d.

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CONTENTS.

NOTES:-- Page
Original Royal Letters to the Grand Masters of Malta,
by William Winthrop 557
Penny Sights and Exhibitions in the Reign of James I.,
by A. Grayan 558
The Impossibilities of our Forefathers 559
Parallel Passages, by the Rev. John Booker 560
Astrology in America 561

MINOR NOTES:--"Hierosolyma est perdita"--Quaint Inscription
in a Belfry--The Chronicles of the Kings of Israel and
Judah--The Using a Circumstance as a "Peg," or "Nail," to
hang an Argument on, &c.--Turkish and Russian Grammars--
Chronograms in Sicily--Stone Pulpits--Advertisements and
Prospectuses 561

Queries:--

English Refugees at Ypenstein 562

MINOR QUERIES:--Petrarch's Laura--"Epitaphium Lucretiae"--
McDowall Family--Arms of Geneva--Webb of Monckton Farleigh--
Translation Wanted--Latin Translation from Sheridan, &c.--
Gale of Rent--Arms of Sir Richard de Loges--Gentile Names
of the Jews--Henry, Earl of Wotton--Kicker-eating--Chadderton
of Nuthurst, co. Lancashire--George, first Viscount
Lanesborough, and Sir Charles Cotterell--"Firm was their
faith," &c.--The Mother of William the Conqueror--Pedigree
of Sir Francis Bryan 562

MINOR QUERIES WITH ANSWERS--"The Whole Duty of Man"--"It
rained cats and dogs and little pitchforks:" Helter-skelter--
Father Traves--Precise Dates of Births and Deaths of the
Pretenders--Clarence 564

REPLIES:--
Mackey's "Theory of the Earth" 565
Sincere, Simple, Singular 567
Poetical Tavern Signs 568
Homo Unius Libri 569
The Forlorn Hope, by W. R. Wilde 569
Tieck's "Comoedia Divina" 570
Liveries worn by Gentlemen 571

PHOTOGRAPHIC CORRESPONDENCE.--Queries on Dr. Diamond's
Calotype Process--Albumenized Paper 572

REPLIES TO MINOR QUERIES:--Marcarnes--X on Brewers' Casks--
No Sparrows at Lindham--Theobald le Botiller--Vault at
Richmond, Yorkshire--Lord Audley's Attendants at Poictiers--
Portraits at Brickwall House--The Words "Mob" and "Cash"--
English Clergyman in Spain--The Cid--Exterior Stoups--Green
Jugs used by the Templars--"Peccavi," I have Scinde--
Raffaele's "Sposalizio"--Early Use of Tin: Derivation of the
Name of Britain--Unpublished Epigram by Sir Walter Scott--
Derivation of the Word "Humbug"--Bees--Topsy Turvy--Parish
Clerks and Politics, &c. 572

MISCELLANEOUS:--
Notes on Books, &c. 577
Books and Odd Volumes wanted 578
Notices to Correspondents 578
Advertisements 578

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Notes.

ORIGINAL ROYAL LETTERS TO THE GRAND MASTERS OF MALTA.

(_Continued from_ p. 99.)

In my first communication I did myself the pleasure to send you a correct list of all the royal letters which had been sent by different English monarchs to the Grand Masters of Malta, with their dates, the languages in which they were written, and stating to whom they were addressed. I now purpose to forward with your permission from time to time, literal translations of these letters, which Mr. Strickland of this garrison has kindly promised to give me. The subjoined are the first in order, and have been carefully compared, by Dr. Vella and myself, with the originals now in the Record Office.

No. I.

Henry by the grace of God, King of England and France, Defender of the
Faith, and Lord of Ireland, to the Rev. Father in Christ, Philip
Villiers de L'Isle Adam, Grand Master of the Order of Jerusalem.

Our most dear friend--Greeting:

The venerable and religious men, Sir Thomas Docreus, Prior of St. John's in this kingdom, and Sir W. Weston of your convent, Turcoplerius, have lately delivered to us the epistle of your Reverence, and when we had read it, they laid before us the commission which they had in charge, with so much prudence and address, and recommended to us the condition, well being, and honour of their Order with so much zeal and affection, that they have much increased the good will, which of ourselves we feel towards the Order, and have made us more eager in advancing all its affairs, so that we very much hope to declare by our actions the affection which we feel towards this Order.

And that we might give some proof of this our disposition, we have written at great length to His Imperial Majesty, in _favour of maintaining the occupation_ of Malta, and we have given orders to our envoys there to help forward this affair as much as they are able. The other matters, indeed, {558} your Reverence will learn more in detail from the letters of the said Prior.

From our Palace at Richmond,
Eighth day of January, 1523,
Your good friend,
HENRY REX.

No. II.

Henry by the grace of God, King of England and France, Defender of the
Faith, and Lord of Ireland, to the Rev. Father in Christ, Philip
Villiers de L'Isle Adam, Grand Master of the Order of Jerusalem.

Our most dear friend--Greeting:

By other of our letters we have commended to your Reverence our beloved Sir W. Weston, Turcoplerius, and the whole Order of Jerusalem in our kingdom; but since we honour the foresaid Sir W. Weston with a peculiar affection, we have judged him worthy that we should render him more agreeable and more acceptable to your Reverence, by this our renewed recommendation; and we trust that you will have it the more easily in your power to satisfy this our desire, because, on account of the trust which you yourself placed in him, you appointed him special envoy to ourselves in behalf of the affairs of his Order, and showed that you honoured him with equal good will. We therefore most earnestly entreat your Reverence not to be backward in receiving him on his return with all possible offices of love, and to serve him especially in those matters which regard his office of Turcoplerius, and his Mastership. Moreover, if any honours in the gift and disposal of your Reverence fall due to you, with firm confidence we beg of you to vouchsafe to appoint and promote the foresaid Sir William Weston to the same, which favour will be so pleasing and acceptable to us, that when occasion offers we will endeavour to return it not only to your Reverence, but also to your whole Order. And may every happiness attend you.

From our Palace at Windsor,
First day of August, 1524,
Your good friend,
HENRY REX.

No. III.

Henry by the grace of God, King of England and France, Defender of the
Faith, and Lord of Ireland, to the Rev. Father in Christ, Philip
Villiers de L'Isle Adam, Grand Master of the Order of Jerusalem.

Our most dear friend--Greeting:

Ambrosius Layton, our subject, and brother of the same Order, has delivered to us your Reverence's letter, and from it we very well understand the matters concerning the said Order, which your Reverence had committed to his charge to be delivered to us; but we have delayed to return an answer, and we still delay, because we have understood that a general Chapter of your whole Order will be held in a short time, to which we doubt not that the more prudent and experienced of the brethren of the Order will come, and we trust that, by the general wish and counsel of all of you, a place may be selected for this illustrious Order which may be best suited for the imperial support and advancement of the Republic, and for the assailing of the infidels. When therefore your Reverence shall have made us acquainted with the place selected for the said Chapter, you shall find us no less prompt and ready than any other Christan prince in all things which can serve to the advantage and support of the said Order.

From our Palace at Richmond,
Fourth day (month omitted), 1526,
Your good friend,
HENRY REX.

That the subject of the above letters may be better understood, it may be necessary to state that L'Isle Adam was driven out of Rhodes by the Sultan Solyman, after a most desperate and sanguinary struggle, which continued almost without intermission from the 26th of June to the 18th of December, 1523. From this date to the month of October, 1530, nearly seven years, the Order of St. John of Jerusalem had no fixed residence, and the Grand Master was a wanderer in Italy, either in Rome, Viterbo, Naples, or Syracuse, while begging of the Christian Powers to assist him in recovering Rhodes, or Charles V. to give him Malta as a residence for his convent. It was during this period that the above letters, and some others which I purpose sending hereafter, were written.

WILLIAM WINTHROP.

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PENNY SIGHTS AND EXHIBITIONS IN THE REIGN OF JAMES I.

The following curious list may amuse some of your readers. I met with it among the host of panegyrical verses prefixed to Master Tom Coryate's _Crudities_, published in 1611. Even in those days it will be admitted that the English were rather fond of such things, and glorious Will himself bears testimony to the fact. (See _Tempest_, Act II. Sc. 2.) The hexameter verses are anonymous; perhaps one of your well-read antiquaries may be able to assign to them the author, and be disposed to annotate them. I would particularly ask when was Drake's ship broken up, and is there any date on the chair[1] made from the wood, which is now to be seen at the Bodleian Library, Oxford?

"Why doe the rude vulgar so hastily post in a madnesse
To gaze at trifles, and toyes not worthy the viewing?
{559}
And thinke them happy, when may be shew'd for a penny
The Fleet-streete Mandrakes, that heavenly motion of Eltham,
Westminster Monuments, and Guildhall huge Corinaeus,
That horne of Windsor (of an Unicorne very likely),
The cave of Merlin, the skirts of Old Tom a Lincolne,
King John's sword at Linne, with the cup the Fraternity drinke in,
The tombe of Beauchampe, and sword of Sir Guy a Warwicke,
The great long Dutchman, and roaring Marget a Barwicke,
The mummied Princes, and Caesar's wine yet i' Dover,
Saint James his ginney-hens, the Cassawarway[2] moreover,
The Beaver i' the Parke (strange Beast as e'er any man saw),
Downe-shearing Willowes with teeth as sharpe as a hand-saw,
The lance of John a Gaunt, and Brandon's still i' the Tower,
The fall of Ninive, with Norwich built in an hower.
King Henries slip-shoes, the sword of valiant Edward,
The Coventry Boares-shield, and fire-workes seen but to bedward,
Drake's ship at Detford, King Richard's bed-sted i' Leyster,
The White Hall Whale-bones, the silver Bason i' Chester;
The live-caught Dog-fish, the Wolfe, and Harry the Lyon,
Hunks of the Beare Garden to be feared, if he be nigh on.
All these are nothing, were a thousand more to be scanned,
(Coryate) unto thy shoes so artificially tanned."

In explanation of the last line, Tom went no less than 900 miles on one pair of soles, and on his return he hung up these remarkable shoes for a memorial in Odcombe Church, Somersetshire, where they remained till 1702.

Another "penny" sight was a trip to the top of St. Paul's. (See Dekker's _Gul's Horne Book_, 1609.)

A. GRAYAN.

[Footnote 1: The date to Cowley's lines on the chair is 1662.]

[Footnote 2: "An East Indian bird at Saint James, in the keeping of Mr. Walker, that will carry no coales, but eate them as whot as you will."]

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THE IMPOSSIBILITIES OF OUR FOREFATHERS.

In turning over the pages of old authors, it is amusing to note how the _mountains_ of our primitive ancestors have become _mole-hills_ in the hands of the present generation! A few instances would, I think, be very instructive; and, to set the example, I give you the following from my own note-book.

_The Overland Journey to India._--From the days of Sir John Mandeville, until a comparatively recent period, how portentous of danger, difficulty, and daring has been the "Waye to Ynde wyth the Maruelyes thereof!"

In _Lingua, or the Combat of the Tongue_, by Brewer, London, 1657, originally published in 1607, Heursis complains that Phantases had interrupted his cogitations upon three things which had troubled his brain for many a day:

"_Phant._ Some great matters questionless; what were they?

_Heur._ The quadrature of the circle, the philosopher's stone, and the
_next way to the Indies_.

_Phant._ Thou dost well to meditate on these things all at once, for
they'll be found out altogether, _ad graecas calendas_."

Dr. Robertson's _Disquisition on the Knowledge the Ancients had of India_, shows that communications overland existed from a remote period; and we know that the East India Company had always a route open for their dispatches on emergent occasions; but let the reader consult the _Reminiscences_ of Dr. Dibdin, and he will find an example of its utter uselessness when resorted to in 1776 to apprize the Home Government of hostile movements on the part of an enemy. To show, however, in a more striking light, the difference between the "overland route" a century back, and that of 1853, I turn up the _Journal of Bartholomew Plaisted_: London, 1757. This gentleman, who was a servant of the East India Company, tells us that he embarked at Calcutta in 1749 for England; and, after encountering many difficulties, reached Dover _via_ Bussorah, Aleppo, and Marseilles in twelve months! Bearing this in mind, let the reader refer to the London daily papers of this eighth day of November, 1853, and he will find that intelligence reached the city on that afternoon of the arrival at Trieste of the _Calcutta_ steamer, furnishing us with telegraph advices from--

Bengal, Oct. 3. 36 days!
Bombay, Oct. 14. 25 days!!
Hong Kong, Sept. 27. 46 days!!!

Rapid as this is, and strikingly as it exemplifies the gigantic appliances of our day, the cry of Heursis in the play is still for the _next_, or a nearer _way to India_; and, besides the _Ocean Mail_, the magnificent sailing vessels, and the steamers of _fabulous_ dimensions said to be building for the Cape route to perform the passage from London to Calcutta in thirty days, we are promised the _electric telegraph_ to furnish us with news from the above-named ports in a less number of _hours_ than _days_ now occupied!

{560}

We have thus seen that the impetus once given, it is impossible to limit or foresee where this tendency to knit us to the farthermost parts of the world will end!

"Steam to India" was nevertheless almost stifled at its birth, and its early progress sadly fettered and retarded by those whose duty it was to have fostered and encouraged it--I mean the East India Company. From this censure of a body I would exclude some of their servants in India, and particularly a name that may be new to your readers in connexion with this subject, that of the late Mr. Charles P. Greenlaw of Calcutta, to whom I would ascribe all honour and glory as the great _precursor_ of the movement, subsequently so triumphantly achieved by the Peninsular and Oriental Company. This gentleman, at the head of the East India Company's Marine Establishment in Bengal, brought all the enthusiasm of his character to bear upon the question of steam _via_ the Red Sea; and raised such an agitation in the several Presidencies, that the _slow coach_ in Leadenhall Street was compelled to move on, and Mr. Greenlaw lived to see his labours successful. Poor Greenlaw was as deaf as a post, and usually carried on his arm a flexible pipe, with an ivory tip and mouth-piece, through which he received the communications of his friends. How often have I seen him, after an eloquent appeal on behalf of his scheme, hand this to the party he would win over to his views: and if the responses sent through it were favourable, he was delighted; but, if the contrary, his irascibility knew no bounds; and snatching his pipe from the mouth of the senseless man who could not see the value of "steam for India," he would impatiently coil it round his arm, and, with a recommendation to the less sanguine to give the subject the attention due to its importance, would whisk himself off to urge his point in some other quarter! I have already said that Mr. Greenlaw lived to see the overland communication firmly established; and his fellow citizens, to mark their high estimation of his character, and the unwearied application of his energies in the good cause, have embellished their fine "Metcalfe Hall" with a marble bust of this best of advocates for the interests of India.

J. O.

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PARALLEL PASSAGES.

(Vol. viii., p. 372.)

Adopting the suggestion of F. W. J., I contribute the following parallel passages towards the collection which he proposes:

1. "And He said unto them, Take heed and beware of covetousness, for a
man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he
possesseth."--Luke xii. 15.

"Non possidentem multa vocaveris
Recte beatum; rectius occupat
Nomen beati, qui Deorum
Muneribus sapienter uti,
Duramque callet pauperiem pati;
Pejusque leto flagitium timet."--Hor. _Carm._, lib. IV. ode ix.

2. "For that which I do I allow not: for what I would that do I not;
but what I hate that do I."--Rom. vii. 15.

"Sed trahit invitam nova vis; aliudque Cupido,
Mens aliud suadet. Video meliora, proboque:
Deteriora sequor."--Ovid, _Metam._, lib. VII. 19-21.

"Quae nocuere sequar, fugiam quae profore credam."--_Hor._, lib. I. epist.
viii. 11.

3. "Without father, without mother, without descent," &c.--Heb. vii. 3.

"Ante potestatem Tulli atque ignobile regnum,
Multos saepe viros, nullis majoribus ortos
Et vixisse probes," &c.--Hor. _Sat._ I. vi. 9.

4. "For I have said before, that ye are in our hearts to die and live
with you."--2 Cor. vii. 3.

"Tecum vivere amem, tecum obeam libens."--Hor. _Carm._, lib. III. ix.

5. "Let us eat and drink, for to-morrow we die."--1 Cor. xv. 32.

"Convivae certe tui dicunt, Bibamus moriendum est."--Senec. _Controv._
xiv.

6. "Be not thou afraid though one be made rich, or if the glory of his
house be increased; for he shall carry nothing away with him when he
dieth, neither shall his pomp follow him."--Ps. xlix. 16, 17.

"How loved, how honoured once, avails thee not;
To whom related, or by whom begot:
A heap of dust alone remains of thee.
'Tis all thou art, and all the proud shall be."--Pope.

"Divesne, prisco natus ab Inacho,
Nil interest, an pauper, et infima
De gente sub divo moreris,
Victima nil miserantis Orci."--Hor. _Carm._, lib. II. iii.

The following close parallelism between Ben Jonson and Horace, though a little wide of your correspondent's suggestion, is also worthy of notice. I have never before seen it remarked upon. It would, perhaps, be more correct to describe it as a plagiarism than as a parallelism:

"_Mosca._ And besides, Sir,
You are not like the thresher that doth stand
With a huge flail, watching a heap of corn,
And, hungry, dares not taste the smallest grain,
But feeds on mallows, and such bitter herbs;
Nor like the merchant, who hath filled his vaults
With Romagnia, and rich Candian wines,
Yet drinks the lees of Lombard's vinegar:
You will lie not in straw, whilst moths and worms
{561}
Feed on your sumptuous hangings and soft beds;
You know the use of riches."--Ben Johnson, _The Fox_.

"Si quis ad ingentem frumenti semper acervum
Prorectus vigilet cum longo fuste, neque illinc
Audeat esuriens dominus contingere granum,
Ac potius foliis parcus vescatur amaris:
Si, positis intus Chii veterisque Falerni
Mille cadis--nihil est, tercentum millibus, acre
Potet acetum; age, si et stramentis incubet, unde--
Octoginta annos natus, cui stragula vestis,
Blattarum ac tinearum epulae, putrescat in arca."--Hor. _Sat._, lib. II.
iii.

JOHN BOOKER.

Prestwich.

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ASTROLOGY IN AMERICA.

The six following advertisements are cut from a recent Number of the _New York Herald_:

"Madame Morrow, seventh daughter of a seventh daughter, and a
descendant of a line of astrologers reaching back for centuries, will
give ladies private lectures on all the events of life, in regard to
health, wealth, love, courtship, and marriage. She is without exception
the most wonderful astrologist in the world, or that has ever been
known. She will even tell their very thoughts, and will show them the
likenesses of their intended husbands and absent friends, which has
astonished thousands during her travels in Europe. She will leave the
city in a very short time. 76. Broome Street, between Cannon and
Columbia. Gentlemen are not admitted."

"Madame la Compt flatters herself that she is competent, by her great
experience in the art of astrology, to give true information in regard
to the past, present, and future. She is able to see clearly any losses
her visitors may have sustained, and will give satisfactory information
in regard to the way of recovery. She has and continues to give perfect
satisfaction. Ladies and gentlemen 50 cents. 13. Howard Street."

"Mad. la Compt has been visited by over two hundred ladies and
gentlemen the past week, and has given perfect satisfaction; and, in
consideration of the great patronage bestowed upon her, she will remain
at 13. Howard Street for four days more, when she will positively sail
for the South."

"Mrs. Alwin, renowned in Europe for her skill in foretelling the
future, has arrived, and will furnish intelligence about all
circumstances of life. She interprets dreams, law matters, and love, by
astrology, books, and science, and tells to ladies and gentlemen the
name of the persons they will marry; also the names of her visitors.
Mrs. Alvin speaks the English, French and German languages. Residence,
25. Rivington Street, up stairs, near the Bowery. Ladies 50 cents,
gentlemen 1 dollar."

"Mrs. Prewster, from Philadelphia, tenders her services to the ladies
and gentlemen of this city in astrology, love, and law matters,
interpreting dreams, &c., by books and science, constantly relied on by
Napoleon; and will tell the name of the lady or gentleman they will
marry; also the names of the visitors. Residence, No. 59. Great Jones
Street, corner of the Bowery. Ladies 50 cents, gentlemen 1 dollar."

"The celebrated Dr. F. Shuman, Swede by birth, just arrived in this
city, offers his services in astrology, physiognomy, &c. He can be
consulted on matters of love, marriage, past, present, and future
events in life. Nativity calculated for ladies and gentlemen. Mr. S.
has travelled through the greater part of the world in the last
forty-two years, and is willing to give the most satisfactory
information. Office, 175. Chambers Street, near Greenwich."

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Minor Notes.

"_Hierosolyma est perdita._"--Whilst studying in Germany, I remember seeing one day some Jews in a great passion because a few little boys had been shouting "Hep! hep!" On information I heard, that whenever the German knights headed a Jew-hunt in the Middle Ages, they always raised the cry "Hep! hep!" This is remembered even to the present day.

HENRI VAN LAUN.

King William's College, Isle of Man.

_Quaint Inscription in a Belfry._--I think the following unique piece of authorship deserves, for its quaint originality, a corner in "N. & Q." It is copied from an inscription dated Jan. 31, 1757, in the belfry of the parish church of Fenstanton, Hunts:

"January y^e 31, 1757.
Hear was ten defran^t
Peals Rung in 50 minutes
which is 1200,
Changes by thouse,
names who are Under.

1. Jn^o Allin
2. Jm^s Brown
3. Jno. Cade
4. Rob^t Cole
5. Will^m How."

"All you young Men y^t larn y^o Ringen Art,
Besure you see & will perform your part
no Musick with it Can Excell.
nor be compared to y^e Melodeus bells."

Perhaps I may as well add that this is a faithful copy of the original inscription, both in orthography and punctuation.

W. T. WATTS.

St. Ives, Hunts.

_The Chronicles of the Kings of Israel and Judah._--After the many conjectures which have been formed respecting the [Hebrew: SPR DBRY HYMYM] of the kings of Israel and Judah, allow me to suggest the probability of their bearing some resemblance to the records of the "wars" and "might" of the monarchs of Assyria, recently brought to light by Mr. Layard.

[Hebrew: P].

_The Using a Circumstance as a "Peg," or "Nail," to hang an Argument on, &c._--In the parliamentary debates we frequently read of one honorable member accusing another honorable member of dragging in a certain expression or quotation for the mere sake of hanging upon it some argument or observation apposite to his motion or resolution.--Query, The origin of this term?

My attention was drawn to it by reading the First Lesson at Morning Prayer for 25th May, viz. Ezra ix. 8., where the expression means something to hold by, or some resting-place.

In the following verse, the term is changed into "a wall," meaning some support or help.

Has this passage ever challenged the attention of any of your numerous readers, or can the common saying fairly be referred to it?

ANON.

Norwood.

_Turkish and Russian Grammars._--At the present moment it may be found interesting to make a note of it for "N. & Q.," that the first {562} Turkish and Russian grammars published in this country appeared at Oxford; the Turkish, by Seaman, in 1670, and the Russian, by Ludolf, in 1696. Both are written in Latin.

J. M.

_Oxford._

_Chronograms in Sicily._--After the opening of the gold mines at Fiume-di-Nisi, which are now being reworked, the Messinese struck coins bearing the motto--

"eX VIsCerIbVs MeIs haeC fVnDItVr."

Giving XVICIVMICVDIV. 1734?

On a fountain near the church of St. Francesco di Paola:

"D. O. M.
Imperante Carlo VI., Vicregente Comite de Palma,
Gubernante Civitatem Comite de Wallis.

P. P. P.
Vt aCtIonIbVs nostrIs IVste proCeDaMVs."

Which gives VCIIVIIVCDMV. 1724.

The death of Charles, Infanta of Spain, is thus indicated:

"FILIVs ante DIeM patrIos InqVIrIt In annos."

1568.

G. E. T. S. R. N.

_Stone Pulpits._--A complete list of _ancient_ stone pulpits in England and Wales would be desirable. Their positions should be specified; and whether in use or not, should be stated. I have seen the following:

Nantwich, Cheshire; at the junction of north transept and chancel (not used).

Bristol Cathedral; adjoining one of the north pillars of nave (not used).

Wolverhampton Collegiate Church; adjoining one of south pillars of nave (in use?)

T. H. KERSLEY, B.A.

Audlem, Nantwich.

_Advertisements and Prospectuses._--It is, I believe, the custom for the most part to make wastepaper of the advertisements and prospectuses that are usually stitched up, in considerable numbers, with the popular reviews and magazines. Now, as these adventitious sheets often contain scraps and fragments of contemporaneous intelligence, literary and bibliographical, with occasional artistic illustrations, would it not be well to preserve them, and to bind them up in a separate form at the end of the year; connecting them with the particular review or magazine to which they belonged, but describing also the contents of the volume by a distinct lettering-piece?

If the work of destruction of such frail, but frequently interesting records, should go on at the present rate, posterity will be in danger of losing many valuable data respecting the state of British literature at different periods, as depicted by a humbler class of documents, employed by it for the diffusion of its copious productions.

JOHN MACRAY.

* * * * *

Queries.

ENGLISH REFUGEES AT YPENSTEIN.

When I was at Alkmaar about thirty years ago, I strolled to the neighbouring village of Heilo, on the road to Limmen, where I saw, surrounded by a moat, the foundations of the castle of Ypenstein. A view of this once noble pile is to be found in the well-known work of Rademaker, _Kabinet van Nederlandsche en Kleefsche Oudheden_. This place, as tradition tells, once witnessed the perpetration of a violent deed. When the son of the unfortunate Charles I. was an exile in our country, this house Ypenstein was occupied by a family of English emigrants, high in rank, who lived here for a while in quiet. How far these exiles were even here secure from the spies of Cromwell appeared on a certain dark night, after a suspicious vessel had been seen from the village of Egmond, when an armed band of the Protector's Puritans, led by a guide, marched over the heath to the house Ypenstein, seized all the inhabitants, and carried them off, by the way they had come, to the coast, put them on board, and transported them most probably to England. In such secresy and silence was this violation of territory and the rights of hospitality perpetrated, that no one in the neighbourhood perceived anything of the occurrence, except a miller who saw the troop crossing the pathless heath in the direction of the coast, but could not conceive what had brought so many persons together in such a place at midnight.

I would gladly learn whether anything is known of this transaction; and if so, where I may find farther particulars of this English family, their probable political importance, &c. To investigate the truth of this tradition, that we may acquit or convict the far-famed Cromwell of so foul a crime, cannot certainly be untimely now that two celebrated learned men have undertaken to vindicate his memory.--From the _Navorscher_.

INQUAERITOR.

* * * * *

Minor Queries.

_Petrarch's Laura._--Mr. Mathews, in his _Diary of an Invalid in Italy, &c._, p. 380., in speaking of the outrages and indignities which, during the Revolution, were committed throughout France on the remains of the dead, and were amongst the most revolting of its horrors, mentions, on the authority of a fellow-passenger, an eye-witness, that the body of Petrarch's Laura had been seen exposed to the most brutal indignities in the streets of Avignon. He told Mr. Mathews that {563} it had been embalmed, and was found in a mummy state, of a dark brown colour. I have not met with any mention of these these circumstances elsewhere. Laura is stated to have died of the plague (which seems to render it unlikely that her body was embalmed): and according to Petrarch's famous note on his MS. of Virgil, she was buried the same day, after vespers, in the church of the Cordeliers. The date was April 1, 1348. That church was long celebrated for her tomb, which contained also the body of Hugues de Sade, her husband. The edifice is stated to be ruined, its very site being converted into a fruit-garden; but the tomb is said to be still entire under the ground: and more than twenty years after the French Revolution, a small cypress was pointed out as marking the spot where Laura was interred.

Is the circumstance of the desecration of her tomb mentioned by any other writer? If it really took place, are we to conclude that the tree--if it still exists--marks only the place where she had been interred: for, that the body was rescued and recommitted to the tomb, can hardly be supposed?

WM. SIDNEY GIBSON.

"_Epitaphium Lucretiae._"--The following lines are offered for insertion, not because I doubt their being known to many of your readers, but with a view to ask the name of the author:

"_Epitaphium Lucretiae._
Dum foderet ferro tenerum Lucretia pectus
Sanguinis et torrens egrederetur: ait,
'Accedant testes me non cessisse tyranno
'Ante virum sanguis, spiritus ante Deos.'"

BALLIOLENSIS.

_McDowall Family._--More than a century ago there was a family (since extinct) of the name of McDowall, in the county Cavan, Ireland, belonging to some branch of the ancient and noble Scottish family of that name, who had migrated to these shores. Perhaps some of your readers could inform me as to what branch they belonged, and when they settled in Ireland, as also if there be any pedigree of them extant, as I am very anxious to learn something of them at all events?

GULIELMUS.

Dublin.

_Arms of Geneva._--Will any of your correspondents oblige me with a technical blazon of the arms of the town of Geneva?

F. F. B.

Bury St. Edmunds.

_Webb of Monckton Farleigh._--Perhaps some reader of "N. & Q." would be so good as to inform me what were the arms, crest, and motto of the Webbs of Monckton Farleigh, co. Wilts; also, if there be any pedigree of them extant, and where it is to be found; or otherwise would direct me what would be my best means to ascertain some account of that family, who are now represented by the Duke of Somerset?

HENRI.

Dublin.

_Translation Wanted._--Can any of your correspondents inform me where I may meet with a translation by the Rev. F. Hodgson, late Provost of Eton, &c., of the _Atys_ of Catllus?

P. J. F. GANTILLON, B.A.

_Latin Translation from Sheridan, &c._--My treacherous memory retains one line only of each of two translations into Latin verse, admirably done, of two well-known pieces of English poetry. The first from a song by Sheridan, of the lines:

"Nor can I believe it then,
Till it gently press again."

"Conscia ni dextram dextera pressa premat."

The second:

"Man wants but little here below,
Nor wants that little long."

is thus rendered:

"Poscimus in terris pauca, nec illa diu."

If in the circle of your correspondents the complete translations can be furnished, you will by their insertion, gratify other lovers of modern Latin poetry besides

BALLIOLENSIS.

_Gale of Rent._--I can imagine what is meant by a _gale of rent_, and be thankful I have not to pay one. But what is the origin of the term _gale_ as thus applied?

Y. B. N. J.

_Arms of Sir Richard de Loges._--What were the arms borne by Sir Richard de Loges, or Lodge, of Chesterton, in the county of Warwick, temp. Henry IV.?

LN.

_Gentile Names of the Jews._--Are the Jews known to each other by their Gentile names of Rothschild, Montefiore, Davis, &c.? or are these only their _nommes de guerre_, assumed and abandoned at will on change of country?

G. E. T. S. R. N.

_Henry, Earl of Wotton_ (Vol. viii., pp. 173. 281.).--The editors of the _Navorscher_ express their thanks to BROCTUNA for his reply to their Query, but hope he will kindly increase their debt of gratitude by elucidating three points which seem to them obscure:

1. Which Lord Stanhope died childless? Not Henry, Lord Stanhope, for he (see p. 281.) left a son and two daughters; nor yet Philip, for his widow had borne him daughters. Or have we wrongly understood the letters _s. p._ to signify _sine prole_?

2. Was it the Earl of Chesterfield, half-brother of Charles Henry van den Kerckhove, or Charles {564} Stanhope his nephew, who took the name of Wotton?

3. Knight's _National Cyclopaedia of Useful Knowledge_ (vol. xi. p. 374.) names James Stanhope, Earl Stanhope, the eldest son of the Hon. Alexander Stanhope, second son of Philip Stanhope, first Earl of Chesterfield. Had the latter then, besides the above-named (see p. 281.) Henry, Lord Stanhope, also other sons?

_Kicker-eating._--Can any of your West Yorkshire readers supply me with information relative to a practice which is said formerly to have prevailed at Cleckheaton, of eating "kicker," or horseflesh? It is a fact that natives of that locality who come to reside at Leeds are still subjected to the opprobrium of being _kicker-eaters_.

H. W.

_Chadderton of Nuthurst, co. Lancashire._--When did the family of Chadderton become extinct? Had Edmund Chadderton, son and heir of George Chadderton by Jane Warren of Poynton, any descendants? and if so, what were their names and the dates of their respective births, marriages, and deaths? In short, any particulars relating to them down to the period of the extinction of this family would be most acceptable.

J. B.

_George, first Viscount Lanesborough, and Sir Charles Cotterell._--G. S. S. begs to submit the following questions to the readers of "N. & Q.:" When did George Lane, first Viscount Lanesborough, in Ireland, die? And when Sir Charles Cotterell, the translator of _Cassandra?_ Where were they both buried?

_"Firm was their faith," &c._--Who was the writer of those beautiful lines, of which the following, the only verse I remember, is a portion?

"Firm was their faith, the ancient bands,
The wise in heart, in wood and stone,
Who rear'd with stern and trusting hands,
The dark grey towers of days unknown.
They fill'd those aisles with many a thought,
They bade each nook some truth recall,
The pillar'd arch its legend brought,
A doctrine came with roof and wall!"

And where can they be met with entire?

P. M.

_The Mother of William the Conqueror._--Can you or any of your correspondents say which is right? In Debrett's _Peerage_ for 1790 the genealogy of the Marchioness Grey gives her descent from "Rollo or Fulbert, who was chamberlain to Robert, Duke of Normandy; and of his gift had the castle and manor of Croy in Picardy, whence his posterity assumed their surname, afterwards written de Grey. Which Rollo had a daughter Arlotta, mother of William the Conqueror." Now history says that the mother of the Conqueror was Arlette or Arlotte, the daughter of a tanner at Falaise. We know how scrupulous the Norman nobility were in their genealogical records; and likewise that in the lapse of time mistakes are perpetuated and become history. Can history in this instance be wrong? and if so, how did the mistake arise? I shall feel obliged to any one who can furnish farther information on the subject.

ALPHA.

_Pedigree of Sir Francis Bryan._--This accomplished statesman, and ornament of Henry VIII.'s reign, married Joan of Desmond, Countess Dowager of Ormonde, and died childless in Ireland A.D. 1550. Query, Did any cadet of his family accompany him to that country? I found a Louis Bryan settled in the county of Kilkenny in Elizabeth's reign, and suspect that he came in through the connexion of Sir F. Bryan with the Ormonde family. Any information as to the arms and pedigree of Sir F. Bryan will greatly oblige

JAMES GRAVES.

Kilkenny.

* * * * *

Minor Queries with Answers.

"_The Whole Duty of Man._"--Of what nature is the testimony that this book was written by Dorothy Coventry, "the good Lady Pakington?"

QUAESITOR.

[The supposition that Lady Packington was the author of _The Whole Duty
of Man_, arose from a copy of it in her handwriting having been found
at Westwood after her death. (Aubrey's _Letters_, vol. ii. p. 125.) But
the strongest evidence in favour of Lady Packington is the following
note: "Oct. 13, 1698. Mr. Thomas Caulton, Vicar of Worksop, in
Nottinghamshire, in the presence of William Thornton, Esq., and his
lady, Mrs. Heathcote, Mrs. Ashe, Mrs. Caulton, and John Hewit, Rector
of Harthill, declared the words following: 'Nov. 5, 1689. At
Shire-Oaks, Mrs. Eyre took me up into her chamber after dinner, and
told me that her daughter Moyser, of Beverley, was dead. Among other
things concerning the private affairs of the family, she told me who
was the author of _The Whole Duty of Man_, at the same time pulling out
of a private drawer a MS. tied together, and stitched in 8vo., which
she declared was the original copy written by Lady Packington her
mother, who disowned ever having written the other books imputed to be
by the same author, excepting _The Decay of Christian Piety_. She
added, too, that it had been perused in MS. by Dr. Covel, Master of
Trinity College, Cambridge, Dr. Stamford, Prebendary of York, and Mr.
Banks, Rector of the Great Church at Hull.' Mr. Caulton declared this
upon his death-bed, two days before his decease. W. T. and J. H." This
is quoted from the Rev. W. B. Hawkins's Introduction to Pickering's
edition of 1842; and a similar account, with unimportant variations, is
given in "N. & Q.," Vol. ii. p. 292.: see also Vol. v., p. 229., and
Vol. vi., p. 537.]

{565}

_"It rained cats and dogs and little pitchforks."_--_Helter-skelter._--What can be the origin of this saying? I can imagine that rain may descend with such sharpness and violence as to cause as much destruction as a shower of "pitchforks" would; but if any of your readers can tell me why heavy rain should be likened to "cats and dogs," I shall be truly obliged. Many years ago I saw a most cleverly drawn woodcut, of a party of travellers encountering this imaginary shower; some of the animals were descending helter-skelter from the clouds; others wreaking their vengeance on the amazed wayfarers, while the "pitchforks" were running into the bodies of the terrified party, while they were in vain attempting to run out of the way of those which were threatening to fall upon their heads, and thus striking them to the ground. So strange an idea must have had some peculiar origin.--Can you or your readers say what it is?

M. E. C.

P. S.--I find I have used a word above, of which every one knows the _signification_, "helter-skelter;" but I, for one, confess myself ignorant of its _derivation_. And I shall be glad to be informed on the subject.

[As to the etymology of _helter-skelter_, Sir John Stoddart remarks,
"The real origin of the word is obscure. If we suppose the principal
meaning to be in the first part, it may probably come from the Islandic
_hilldr_ pugna; if in the latter part, it may be from the German
_schalten_, to thrust forward, which in the dialect of the north of
England means 'to scatter and throw abroad as molehills are when
levelled;' or from _skeyl_, which in the same dialect is 'to push on
one side, to overturn.'"]

_Father Traves._--Can any of your Lancashire readers refer me to a source whence I might obtain information on matters pertaining to the life of one Father Travers [Traves], the friend and correspondent of the celebrated martyr John Bradford?

As yet I have but met with the incidental mention of his name in the pages of Fox, and in Hollingworth's _Mancuensis_, pp. 75, 76.

A JESUIT.

[The name is spelt by Fox sometimes Traves and sometimes Travers; but
who he was there is no particular mention; except that it appears from
Bradford's letters that he was some friend of the family, and from the
superscription to one of them, that he was the minister of Blackley,
near Manchester, in which place, or near to which, Bradford's mother
must then have resided. Strype says, he was a learned and pious
gentleman, his patron and counsellor.--_Mem. Eccles._, vol. iii. part
I. p. 364.]

_Precise Dates of Births and Deaths of the Pretenders._--Will any one be so kind as to tell me the date of the birth and death of James VIII. and his son Charles III. (commonly called Prince Charles Edward Stuart)? These dates are given so variously, that I am anxious to ascertain them correctly.

L. M. M. R.

[We believe the following to be the precise dates:--James VIII., born
June 10, 1688; died January 2, 1765-6. Charles Edward, born December
20, 1720 (sometimes printed as New Style, Dec. 31); died January 31,
1788.]

_Clarence._--Whence the name of this dukedom? Was the title borne by any one before the time of Lionel, son of Edward III.?

W. T. M.

[The title CLARENCE was, as we learn from Camden (_Britannia_, edit.
Gough, vol. ii. pp. 73, 74.), derived from the honour of Clare, in
Suffolk; and was _first_ borne by Lionel Plantagenet, third son of
Edward III., who married Elizabeth de Burgh, daughter and heir of
William, Earl of Ulster, and obtained with her the honour of Clare. He
became, _jure uxoris_, Earl of Ulster, and was created, September 15,
1362, Duke of Clarence.]

* * * * *

Replies.

MACKEY'S "THEORY OF THE EARTH".

(Vol. viii., p. 468.)

About the year 1827, when the prosecutions for blasphemy were leading hundreds and thousands to see what could be said against Christianity, with a very powerful bias to make the most of all that they could find, some friends of mine, of more ingenuity than erudition, strongly recommended to my attention the works of a shoemaker at Norwich, named Mackey, who they said was more learned than any one else, and had completely shown up _the thing_. It is worth a note that I perfectly remember the cause of their excitement to have been the imprisonment of the Rev. Robert Taylor, for publishing various arguments against revelation. I examined several works of Mackey's, and I have yet one or two bound up among my wonders of nature and art. As in time to come, when neither love nor money will procure a copy of these books, some tradition may set inquirers looking after them, perhaps it may be worth while to preserve a couple of extracts for the benefit of those who have the sense to hunt the index of "N. & Q." before they give up anything.

"The Virgin Andromeda, the daughter of _Cepheus_ and _Cassiopeia_, was
the representative of Palestina; a long, narrow, rocky strip of land;
figuratively called the daughter of Rocks and Mountains; because it is
a country abounding with rocks and stones. And the Greeks, really
supposing _Cepha_, a rock or stone, to have been the young ladies
father, added their sign of the masculine gender to it, and it became
Cepha-_us_. And mount Cassius being its southern boundary was called
_Cassiobi_; from its being also the boundary of the _overflowed Nile_,
called Obi, which the Greeks {566} softened into _Cassiopeia_, and
supposed it to have been her mother;..."--_Mythological Astronomy, part
second_, Norwich, 1823, 12mo., p. xiii.

"The story of ABRAHAM, notwithstanding all the endeavours of
theologians to give it the appearance of the history of human beings,
has preserved its mythological features with an outline and colouring,
easily to be recognised by every son of _Urania_ [Ur of the Chaldees is
subsequently made to contain the root of _Uranus_]. We have just seen
that the Egyptians have their harvest about the time which the sun
_passes over_ the equator, and if we go back to the time of _Abraham_
we shall find that the equator [perhaps he means equinox] was in
_Taurus_; the Egyptians must, then, have had their harvest while the
sun was in the Bull; the Bull was, therefore, in their figurative way
of speaking, the father of harvest, not only because he ploughed the
ground, but because the sun was there when they got in their harvest:
thus the Bull was doubly distinguished as their benefactor; he was now,
more than ever, become the _Bull of life_, i. e. he was not only called
_Abir_, the Bull, but _Abir-am_ or Ab'-r-am, the _Bull of life_,--the
father of harvest. And as their harvest was originally under the
direction of Iseth, or Isis, whatever belonged to harvest was _Isiac_;
but the Bull, _Abiram_, was now become the _father of Isiac_! and to
give this the appearance of a human descent, they added to Abir, the
masculine affix _ah_; then it became AB'-RH-AM who was the father of
Isiac. And we actually find _this equivoque_ in the hebrew history of
_Abram_ whom the Lord afterwards called _Abraham_, who was the _father
of Isaac_, whose seed was to be countless as the sand on the sea-shore
for multitude; even this is truly applied to _Isiac_ the offspring of
Ab'-rh-am; for countless indeed are the offspring of the _scythe and
sickle_! but if we allow _Isiac_ to be a _real son of Ab-rah-am_ we
must enquire after his _mother_. During the time that the equator
[perhaps he means the sun] is passing through the constellation of the
Bull in the spring, the Bull would _rise in the east_ every morning in
the harvest time, in Egypt,--but in the _poetical language of the
ancients_, it would be said that, when ABIR-AM _consorts_ with _Aurora_
he will produce _Isiac_. But _Aurora_ is well known to be the _golden
splendour of the east_, and the brightness of the east is called
_Zara_, and the morning star is _Serah_, in the eastern languages, and
we find a similar change of sound in the name of Isaac's mother, whom
the Lord would no longer call _Sarai_ but Sarah. _These_ ARE remarkable
coincidences!"--_Companion to the Mythological Astronomy_, Norwich,
1824, 12mo. pp. 177-179.

M.

In answer to the inquiry respecting this singular man, I beg to say that I remember him between the years 1826 and 1830, as a shoemaker in Norwich. He was in a low rank of trade, and in poor circumstances, which he endeavoured to improve by exhibiting at private houses an orrery of his own making. He was recognised as a "genius;" but, as may be seen by his writings, had little reverence for established forms of belief. At the period of which I speak, which was soon after the publication of his first work, I knew but little of his mind, and lost sight of him altogether till about 1840. Then circumstances connected with my own line of study led me to call on him in Doughty's Hospital, Norwich, an asylum for aged persons. I found him surrounded by astronomical apparatus, books, the tools of his former trade, and all kinds of strange litters. In the conversation that ensued, I learned much of the workings of his mind; though his high self-appreciation could not descend to unreserved converse with a woman. My object was, to ascertain by what steps he had arrived at his theory of the earth's motion, but I could gain nothing distinct. He mentioned the _Asiatic Researches_ as containing vast information on his peculiar subject; quoted Latin, and I think Greek, authors; and seemed to place great dependence on Maurice and Bryant; but, above all, on Capt. Wilford's _Essays_. He showed me some elaborate calculations, at which he was then working and still fancied himself qualified, perhaps destined, to head a great revolution in the astronomical world. I cannot say how far his knowledge of geology went, as I am not well acquainted with that science. He had evidently read and studied deeply, but alone; his own intellect had never been brushed by the intellects and superior information of truly scientific men, and it appeared to me that a vast deal of dirt, real dirt, had accumulated in his mind. My visit disappointed and pained me, but he seemed gratified, and I therefore promised to call again, which I did, but he was not at home. I think this visit was soon after he had removed into the hospital, for I then purchased his last work, _The Age of Mental Emancipation_, published 1836, before he obtained that asylum. He died before 1849, but I do not know the exact year.

In any next visit to Norwich, I will make inquiries on all points relating to Mackey, of the very few persons now left who took interest in him, and I think I can find the printer of his last pamphlet.

I have not the work mentioned in "N. & Q.;" but, besides his last work, I have _The Mythological Astronomy of the Ancients demonstrated_, which is partly in poetry.

I have been obliged to write this Note in the first person, as I can give only my own impressions respecting Mackey; and I wish that ere this you may have received clearer information from more competent persons. If your Querist have the _least grain_ of faith in the theory of Mackey, I hope he will not let the subject drop, for I have long been deeply interested in it.

F. C. B.

Diss.

Mackey, of whom your correspondent inquires, was an entirely self-educated man, but a learned shoemaker, residing in Norwich. He devoted all his leisure time to astronomical, geological, and {567} philological pursuits; and had some share in the formation of a society in his native town, for the purpose of debating questions relative to these sciences. I have understood that he was for some time noticed by a small portion of the scientific world, but afterwards neglected, as, from his own account, he appears also to have been by his literary fellow townsmen; and at last to have died in a Norwich alms-house. This is but a meagre account of the man, but it is possible that I may be able to glean farther particulars on the subject; for a medical friend of mine, who some time ago lent me _Mythological Astronomy_, promised to let me see some papers in his possession relative to this learned shoemaker's career, and to a few of his unpublished speculations. When I have an opportunity of seeing these, I shall be glad to communicate to your correspondent through "N. & Q." anything of interest. The title-page of _Mythological Astronomy_ runs thus:

"The Mythological Astronomy of the Ancients demonstrated by restoring
to their Fables and Symbols their Original Meanings. By Sampson Arnold
Mackey, Shoemaker. Norwich: printed by R. Walker, near the Duke's
Palace. Published May 1, 1822, by S. A. Mackey, Norwich."

The book contains a variety of subjects, but principally treats of the Hindoo, Greek, and Roman mythology; and endeavours to deduce all the fables and symbols of the ancients from the starry sphere. It also contains a singular hypothesis of the author's upon the celebrated island of Atlantis, mentioned by Plato and other Greek authors; and some very curious speculations concerning the doctrine of the change in the angle which the plane of the ecliptic makes with the plane of the equator.

Urania's _Key to the Revelations_ is bound up with the above work. I forgot to say that his _Ancient Mythology demonstrated_ is written in verse, and afterwards more fully explained by notes. His poetical abilities, however, neither suit the subject, nor are of a very high order. His prose is better, but here and there shows the deficiency of education.

E. M. R.

Grantham.

* * * * *

SINCERE, SIMPLE, SINGULAR.

(Vol. viii., pp. 195. 328. 399.)