_The Strand Maypole._--"E.F.R." inquires what was the ultimate fate of
the "tall Maypole" which "once o'erlooked the Strand"? It was taken down
about the year 1717, when it was found to measure a hundred feet. It was
obtained by Sir Isaac Newton, and borne on a carriage, for timber, to
Wanstead, in Essex, the seat of the Earl of Tylney, where, under the
direction of the Reverend Mr. Pound Breton, it was placed in the Park,
for the erection of a telescope, the largest then in the world,
presented by a French gentleman to the Royal Society.
_To Fettle._--What is the derivation of the verb "to fettle?" In the
North it means to amend--to repair--to put a thing, which is out of
order, into such a state as to effectuate, or to be effectual for, its
original, or a given purpose; e.g. a cart out of order is sent to the
wheelwright's to be fettled. It has been suggested that the word is a
verbalised corruption of the word "effectual." Bailey, in his
_Dictionary_, has designated it as a north country word: but it is
evident that he misunderstood its entire meaning; for he has merely "to
fettle _to_," and seems to have been ignorant of the use of the word
"fettle" as a verb active. To revert to my former example of its use--An
injured cart is fettled by the wheel-wright; the wheelwright fettles the
injured cart.