Produced by Charlene Taylor, Jonathan Ingram and the Online
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by The Internet Archive/American Libraries.)
[Transcriber's note: Original spelling varieties have not been
standardized. Characters with macrons have been marked in brackets with
an equal sign, as [=e] for a letter e with a macron on top. Underscores
have been used to indicate _italic_ fonts. In footnote 4, [Greek:
estian], as taken over from Byron's text, seems to be a typographical
error for [Greek: hestian]. A list of volumes and pages in "Notes and
Queries" has been added at the end.]
NOTES AND QUERIES:
A MEDIUM OF INTER-COMMUNICATION FOR LITERARY MEN, ARTISTS, ANTIQUARIES,
GENEALOGISTS, ETC.
"When found, make a note of."--Captain Cuttle.
Vol. IV.--No. 92. Saturday, August 2. 1851
Price Threepence. Stamped Edition, 4_d._
CONTENTS.
Page
NOTES:--
Proverbial Philosophy 81
Paraphrase on the 137th Psalm by Churchill 82
On the Description of the Medicean Venus in Childe
Harold 83
Minor Notes:--On the Word "raised" as used by the
Americans--Contradiction: D'Israeli and Hume--A Ship's
Berth 83
QUERIES:--
John a Kent and John a Cumber, by J. Payne Collier 83
Swearing on the Horns at Highgate 84
Minor Queries:--Proverb of James I.--Mrs. Hutchinson
--Early Translation of Amadis de Gaule--Hogarth and
Cowper--Latin Translation of Butler's Analogy--"Non
quid responderent," &c.--"The Worm in the Bud of Youth,"
&c.--Queen Brunéhaut--Sculptured Stones in the North of
Scotland--Prophecies of Nostradamus--Quaker Expurgated
Bible--Salmon Fishery in the Thames--Cromwell Grants
of Land in Monaghan--Siege of Londonderry 85
MINOR QUERIES ANSWERED:--The Twentieth of the Thirty-nine
Articles--Exons of the Guard--Curious Monumental
Inscription--Meaning of Deal--La Mer des Histoires--"The
noiseless Foot of Time" 87
REPLIES:--
Passage in Virgil, by T. Henry, &c. 88
The Vine of St. Francis 89
"Jusjurandum per Canem;" "Sedem Animæ in Digitis
ponunt;" "Fiat Justitia, ruat Coelum" 90
Hugh Holland and his Works, by Bolton Corney 91
Lady Flora Hastings' Bequest 92
Replies to Minor Queries:--Coke and Cowper--Dunmore
Castle--Gooseberry Fool--Dryden and Oldham--Theobald
Anguilbert and Michael Scott--Penn Family--Bummaree--Miss
or Mistress--Book Plates 93
MISCELLANEOUS:--
Notes on Books, Sales, Catalogues, &c. 94
Books and Odd Volumes wanted 94
Notices to Correspondents 94
Advertisements 94
Notes.
PROVERBIAL PHILOSOPHY.
The following "sententious truths" are extracted from Bishop
Jewel's grand performance, _A Defense of the Apologie of the
Churche of Englande_, fol. 1571, a work as remarkable for "the
pomp and charms" of its eloquence, as for the profound erudition,
and the consummate ability, with which its "good doctrine" is
exhibited and enforced. In common, however, with the other
productions of this illustrious champion of the Reformation, it
has an additional and most attractive feature; one, indeed, which,
less or more, characterises all the literary achievements of the
gigantic geniuses of the Elizabethan period, the "very dust of
whose writings is gold."[1] The "Defense" abounds with _proverbial
folk-lore_ of the rarest sort; and this is so skilfully and
appositely introduced, that the subject-matter presents itself to
the reader's mind rather as a corollary, naturally deduced from a
self-evident proposition--for who would think for a moment of
questioning the truth of what has the semblance of a popular
adage?[2]--than as a nicely managed argument, which receives no
other help from the latter than that of illustration, employed for
the simple and single purpose, not of strengthening such argument,
but of rendering it comprehensible by the "meanest capacities."
[Footnote 1: Bentley, of Bp. Pearson, in _Dissert. on Phalaris._]
[Footnote 2: I have somewhere met with an amusing instance of
this. It seems that Dean Swift, with a party of friends, were
invited to view the garden of a gentleman, the walls of which were
laden with peaches of a most tempting ripeness, but which they
were strictly forbidden to touch. This injunction was followed,
until Swift ('twas like him) at length put forth his hand and
plucked, at the same time observing, with all becoming gravity,
"As my deeply venerated grandmother used to say,
'Never fail to pluck a peach,
Whene'er you find one in your reach.'"
'Twas enough. The authority of the adage was sufficient to
overrule every other obligation; and the rest of the company, much
to the disgust of the master of the garden, immediately proceeded,
with infinite gusto, to follow the Dean's example, not for a
moment doubting the propriety of the act. "The court awards it,
and the law doth give it."]
With this little bit of criticism, let me take the liberty of
recommending to such of your readers, and I trust they are many, who
seek for knowledge and wisdom in the richly-stored tomes, especially of
the divines, whose appearance imparted a further glory to the days of
our "good queen Bess," to note down the "wise saws and modern instances"
which lie scattered along their glowing periods, like "dew-drops on the
flow'ry lawn," for the purpose of transferring them to your very
appropriate pages.
The remark of our old lexicographer, Florio[3], that "daily both new
words are invented, and books still found that make a new supply of
old," may, in its latter part, very fitly be applied to our proverbial
philosophy; for, great as is the light which has already been thrown
upon the subject, it must be admitted that a more _systematic_
examination than they have yet received, of the works of the Elizabethan
writers, would elucidate it to an extent that can scarcely be
appreciated.
[Footnote 3: _Worlde of Wordes_, Ital. and Eng. Pr. 1598.]
With these observations I offer you my little string of pearls, under
the hope that row after row may be added to it.
"1. A contentious man wil never lacke wordes.
2. A Judge must walke with feete of lead.
3. An ignorante Judge was never indifferente.
4. A simple eie is soone beguiled.
5. By a smal draughte of sea-water, though maiste judge the
verdure of the whole.
6. Error can not be defended, but by error.
7. Evils must be cured by theire contraries.
8. He is very doumbe, and can speak but little, that cannot speake
ill.
9. He that cannot judge Golde by sounde, or in sight, yet may trie
it by the poise.
10. Il wil is ever plentiful of il woordes.
11. In the fairest rose thou maiste soonest finde a canker.
12. It is a desperate cause, that with woordes and eloquence maie
not be smoothed.
13. It is very course woulle that will take no colour.
14. Let Reason leade thee; let Authoritie move thee; let Truthe
enforce thee.
15. Of an Impossibilitie yee maie conclude what yee liste.
16. Oftentimes he is hardiest man to speake, that hathe leaste to
saie.
17. One demanded this question of Zoilus the Railer: Why takest
thou sutche pleasure in speaking il? Zoilus made answere, Bicause,
whereas I woulde doo it, I am not hable.
18. Rashe judgemente argueth somme folie.
19. The Heares of a mannes Bearde, or Heade, never ware white al
togeather.
20. The mouthe which speaketh untruth killeth the soule.
21. The report of an enimie maketh no proufe.
22. The slowe paced horses kepe backe the chariot.
23. The Truthe wilbe hable evermore to beare it selfe.
24. To mainteine a fault knowne, is a double faulte.
25. To spende woordes without cause, is affliction of the sprite,
and losse of time.
26. Vesselles never geve so great a sounde, as when they be
emptie.
27. Untruthe cannot be shielded, but by untruthe.
28. Where the woulfe is broken in, it is beste for the poor sheepe
to breake out."
It is as well to remark that the above aphorisms are contained within
the first 365 pages of the "Defense." Their orthography and punctuation
have been carefully preserved, as they ought always to be in such like
cases. Some of them I have not elsewhere met with, and others present
_variæ lectiones_ of an interesting character. They are all delivered in
a quaint simplicity of style, which admirably illustrates the general
tone of thought and language of the period.
COWGILL.
PARAPHRASE ON THE 137TH PSALM BY CHURCHILL.
A paraphrase of the 137th psalm by Charles Churchill may, perhaps, be
deemed not unworthy of a place amongst your Notes. It was originally
sent to Mrs. Baily of Cadbury, who had remonstrated with him on his
devoting his pen exclusively to satire. That lady gave them to my
maternal grandfather. Three lines of the last verse are lost.
R. C. H. H.
Thimbleby.
"Our instruments untun'd, unsung,
(Grief doth from musick fly)
Upon the willow trees were hung,
The trees that grew thereby.
"'Raise, raise your voice,' the victors say,
'Touch, touch the trembling string,
In Sion's manner briskly play,
In Sion's manner sing.'
"Our voice, alas! how should we raise
In Babylonish ground?
How should we sing Jehovah's praise
In Pagan fetters bound?
"If ever, much lov'd Sion, thou
Dost from my mind depart,
May my right hand no longer know
Soft musick's soothing art.
"If when in jocund songs I smile,
Thou'rt not my choicest theme,
May my tongue lose her wonted skill,
Nor drink at Siloa's stream.
"When Babylon's unhallowed host,
Flow'd in with hostile tide,
'Down, down with Sion to the dust,'
The sons of Edom cried.
"Hear, hear O Lord these sons of spight,
Nor let thy anger sleep,
Let their own wishes on them light,
In turn let Edom weep.
"Blest is the man whose fated host
Shall Babylon surround,
Who shall destroy her impious boast,
And raze her to the ground.
"Blest is he, whose devouring hand,"
*** *** ***
UPON THE DESCRIPTION OF THE MEDICEAN VENUS IN THE 4TH CANTO OF CHILDE
HAROLD, STANZAS LI. AND LII.
LI.
"Appear'dst thou not to Paris in this guise?
Or to more deeply blest Anchises? or,
In all thy perfect goddess-ship, when lies
Before thee thy own vanquished Lord of War?
And gazing in thy face as toward a star
Laid on thy lap, his eyes to thee upturn,
Feeding on thy sweet cheek![4] while thy lips are
With lava kisses melting while they burn,
Showered on his eyelids, brow, and mouth, as from an urn!
LII.
Glowing, and circumfused in speechless love,
Their full divinity inadequate
That feeling to express, or to improve,
The gods become as mortals, and man's fate
Has moments like their brightest ----" &c. &c.
[Footnote 4: To these beautiful and glowing lines the author has
appended the following:
"[Greek: Ophthalmous estian.]"
"Atque oculos pascat uterque suos."
OVID. _Amor._ lib. iii.]
It seems to me that the noble poet has condescended to avail himself of
a little _ruse_ in referring to this passage of Ovid. It would have been
perhaps more honest to have referred his readers to those magnificent
lines in the opening address to Venus, by Lucretius, "De Rerum Naturâ,"
beginning,--
"Æneadum genitrix, hominum divômque voluptas,
Alma Venus!" &c.
I subjoin the verses which Lord Byron _really_ had in mind when he wrote
the foregoing stanzas:
"Nam tu sola potes tranquillâ pace juvare
Mortaleis: quoniam belli fera moenera Mavors
Armipotens regit, _in gremium_ qui sæpe _tuum se_
Rejieit, æterno devictus volnere Amoris:
Atque _ita, suspiciens_ tereti cervice reposta
_Pascit amore avidos, inhians in te, Dea, visus;_
Eque tuo pendet resupini spiritus ore.
Hunc tu, Diva, tuo recubantem corpore sancto
_Circumfusa super_, suaveis ex ore loquelas
Funde, petens placidam Romanis, incluta, pacem."
Surely if the author of _Childe Harold_ were indebted to _any_ ancient
poet for some ideas embodied in the lines cited, it was to Lucretius and
not to Ovid that he should have owned the obligation.
A BORDERER.
Minor Notes.
_On the Word "raised" as used by the Americans._--An American, in answer
to an inquiry as to the place of his birth, says, "I was _raised_ in New
York," &c. Was it ever an English phrase? And if so, by what English
writer of celebrity was it ever used? Dr. Franklin, in a letter to John
Alleyne, Esq., Aug. 9, 1768, says:
"By these early marriages we are blest with more children; and
from the mode among us, founded in nature, of every mother
suckling and nursing her own child, more of them are _raised_."
JAMES CORNISH.
_Contradiction: D'Israeli and Hume._--
"Rousseau was remarkably trite in conversation."
_Essay on Literary Character_, vol. i. p. 213.
"Rousseau, in conversation, kindles often to a degree of heat
which looks like inspiration."
Quoted by D'Israeli in the same vol., p. 230.
JAMES CORNISH.
_A Ship's Berth._--Compilers of Dictionaries have attempted to show, but
I think without success, that this word has been derived from one of the
meanings of the verb _to bear_. I conjecture that it has been derived
from the Welsh word _porth_, a port or harbour. This word is under
certain circumstances written _borth_, according to the rules of Welsh
grammar. A ship's place in harbour (_borth_) is her _berth_. A sailor's
place in his ship is his _berth_.
S. S. S. (2)
Queries.
JOHN A KENT AND JOHN A CUMBER.
I am much obliged to you, Mr. Editor, for giving additional circulation
to my inquiry (through the medium of the _Athenæum_ of the 19th ult.)
regarding the two ancient popular wizards, John a Kent and John a
Cumber. I was aware, from a note received some time ago from my friend
the Rev. John Webb of Tretire, that there are various current traditions
in Monmouthshire, and that Coxe's history of that county contains some
information regarding one of these worthies. That fact has since been
repeated to me by a gentleman of Newport, who wrote in consequence of
what appeared in the _Athenæum_, and whose name I do not know that I am
at liberty to mention. I may, however, take this opportunity of thanking
him, as well as the transmitter of the curious particulars printed in
the _Athenæum_ of Saturday last.
One point I wish to ascertain is, whence John a Kent derived his
appellation? This question has not been at all answered. Has his name
any connexion, and what, with the village of Kentchurch, in
Monmouthshire; and why was the place called Kentchurch? To what saint is
the church dedicated? and has the name of that church anything to do
with the name of the saint? Anthony Munday (or Mundy), in his MS. play
(now in my hands by the favour of the Hon. Mr. Mostyn, and by the kind
interposition of Sir F. Madden), does not give the slightest clue to
the "birth, parentage, and education" of John a Kent. As to John a
Cumber, all we learn is, that he was a Scottish conjuror, employed by a
nobleman of the same country to counteract the proceedings of John a
Kent, who is represented as in the service of Sir Gosselin Denville, a
person who appears, from what Munday says, to have had power and
influence in South Wales.
Now, the name of Sir Gosselin Denville itself suggests a Query; because
I find in Johnson's _Lives of Highwayman, &c.,_ fol. 1734, p. 15. (I do
not of course refer to it as a book of any authority), that there was a
celebrated collector of tribute from travellers who bore that name and
rank. He, however, came from Yorkshire, and lived (according to the
narrative of Johnson, who had it most likely from Capt. A. Smith, whose
work I have not at hand) as long ago as the reign of Edward II. Let me
ask, therefore, whether there exist any tidings respecting such a person
as a native of Wales, and as the "master" (I use Munday's word) of John
a Kent?
But this is not the principal object of my present communication, which
relates to one of the heroines of Munday's drama--a daughter of
Llewellin, Prince of North Wales. To her the name of Sidanen is given,
and she is constantly spoken of as "the fair Sidanen," with the
additional information, in one place, that "sonnets" had been written in
her praise. Every person who sends a Query must plead ignorance, and
mine may be great as regards Welsh poetry, when I inquire, who was
Sidanen, and where has she been celebrated? By the second volume of
_Extracts from the Registers of the Stationers' Company_ (printed for
the Shakspeare Society), it is evident that she was well known about the
middle of the reign of Elizabeth, for on p. 94. I read the following
entry:--
"xiii Augusti [1580]
"Rich. Jones. Rd. of him for printinge a ballat of brittishe
Sidanen, applied by a courtier to the praise of the Queen."
British Sidanen probably meant Sidanen of Ancient Britain, or Wales, to
whom some unnamed and adulatory courtier had compared Queen Elizabeth. I
fancied also that I recollected, in Warner's _Albion's England_, some
allusion to Elizabeth under the name of Sidanen, but I cannot at present
find it.
As I have my pen in hand, may I add another word, quite upon a different
subject: it is upon the _nimium_ (pardon the word) _vexata questio_
about _esile_, as it is spelt in the first and second folios of
_Hamlet_. Have any of your correspondents, from MR. SINGER to MR.
CAMPKIN, with all their learning and ingenuity, been able at all to
settle the point? Surely, then, I cannot be blamed for not taking upon
me dogmatically to decide it eight years ago. I stated the two positions
assumed by adverse commentators, and what more could I do? What more
have your friends done? The principle I went upon was to make my notes
as short as possible; and after pages on pages have been employed in
your miscellany, it seems, in my humble judgment, that the case is not
one jot altered. _Esile_ may still either mean vinegar (eyesel) or the
river Eisell.
J. PAYNE COLLIER.
SWEARING ON THE HORNS AT HIGHGATE.
Can any of your readers give a satisfactory explanation of what Lord
Byron, in the LXXth stanza of the first canto of _Childe Harold's
Pilgrimage_, calls the _worship of the solemn horn_? The whole stanza is
as follows:
"Some o'er thy Thamis row the ribbon'd fair,
Others along the safer turnpike fly;
Some Richmond Hill ascend, some send to Ware,
And many to the steep of Highgate hie.
Ask ye, Boeotian shades! the reason why? (15)
'Tis to the worship of the solemn Horn,
Grasp'd in the holy hand of mystery,
In whose dread name both men and maids are sworn,
And consecrate the oath with draught and dance till morn!"
And the note (15) merely refers to the poet's writing from Thebes, the
capital of Boeotia.
I have a faint recollection of a circumstance which occurred on a
journey from York to town some forty years ago, and which I almost fancy
may throw some distant light on Lord B.'s horn. Among the inside
passengers by the stage was a middle-aged Yorkshireman, apparently a
small farmer, who kept the rest in a continual titter with his account
of various personal adventures, which he related in a style of quaint
and ludicrous simplicity; and as, in the course of conversation, it
appeared that he had never visited the metropolis before, it was
suggested by a couple of wags, that on the arrival of the coach at
Highgate he should be invited "to make himself free of the Horns."
Accordingly, when in due time the vehicle halted at the above-mentioned
place, and the inside passengers, with the exception of York, had
quitted it, an ostler, having received his cue, appeared at the door
with a pole, to which we attached a pair of gilded ram's horns; and
inquired if the "genelman" from Yorkshire, who was on his first visit to
London, wished to obtain his freedom by swearing on the horns, or would
rather forego the ceremony by a payment of the customary fee. The
Yorkshireman was evidently taken aback by the unexpected question; but,
after a moment's hesitation, intimated that he preferred the horns to
forking out the cash. He was thereupon directed with mock solemnity to
place his right hand upon the horns, and to follow the ostler in
reciting a ridiculous formula; which, if I remember right, consisted in
his vowing, under certain penalties, to prefer wine to water, roast beef
and ale to a dry crust and water gruel, the daughter to the mother, the
sister to the brother, laughing to crying, and songs and glees to
requiems and psalms, &c.
Can you then oblige me with any information respecting the worship of
the solemn horn alluded to by Lord Byron; and, secondly, with any
account respecting the solemn farce of swearing in strangers on the
horns when reaching Highgate on their first visit to the metropolis,
which farce I presume has long since been exploded by the introduction
of the railway.
KEWENSIS.
[Moore, in his edition of Byron's _Works_, has the following note
on this passage:--"Lord Byron alludes to a ridiculous custom which
formerly prevailed at the public-houses in Highgate, of
administering a burlesque oath to all travellers of the middling
rank who stopped there. The party was sworn on a pair of horns,
fastened, 'never to kiss the maid when he could kiss the mistress;
never to eat brown bread when he could get white; never to drink
small beer when he could get strong;' with many other injunctions
of the like kind, to all which was added the saving clause,
'unless you like it best.'" Our correspondent, W. S. GIBSON, Esq.,
in his _Prize Essay on the History and Antiquities of Highgate_,
has preserved some curious notices of this burlesque oath. He
says, "All attempts to trace the once prevalent, but now obsolete,
custom of 'swearing at Highgate' to any really probable source
have proved unavailing, and the custom has fallen into disuse. The
early identity of the site of the present hamlet with the ancient
forest, and the vicinity of Highgate to a park or chase, naturally
suggests the possible connexion of these trophies with huntsmen
and their horns; and it is not difficult to perceive that the
spoils and emblems of the chase, and the hunter's joyous horn, may
in time have acquired the character of household gods, and at
length, become like the sword of the warrior, a sacred emblem upon
which vows were taken, and the most binding engagements made. It
is, however, less difficult to imagine the reality of such an
origin, than to account for the strange degeneracy exhibited in
the modern aspect of the custom. 'Swearing on the horns' was an
observance at all events more than a century old; for a song which
embodied a close paraphrase of the oath, according to the best
authorised version yet extant, was introduced in a London
pantomime at the Haymarket Theatre in the year 1742."]
Minor Queries.
42. _Proverb of James I._--In the _Miscellaneous State Papers_
(published 1778), vol. i. p. 462., we find Steenie (the Duke of
Buckingham) writing to his royal master as follows:--
"Give my leave here to use your own proverb,--_For this the devil
cone me no thanks._"
At the risk of being thought very dull, I ask, what is _cone_, and what
is the meaning of the proverb? James was no _ignoramus_, after all.
VARRO.
43. _Mrs. Hutchinson._--What became of the celebrated Lucy Hutchinson,
who wrote the memoirs of her husband--where did she die? and from whence
is all the information that can be got about her, subsequently to her
autobiography, to be obtained?
M.
44. _Amadis de Gaule, Early Translation of._--I have lately purchased a
black-letter volume, dated 1595. The first part has no title, but the
second is called,--
"The Second Booke of Amadis de Gaule, containing the description,
wonders, and conquest of the Firme-Island. The triumphes and
troubles of Amadis. His manifold victories obtained, and sundry
services done for King Lisuart. The kinges ingratitude, and first
occasion of those broils and mortal wars, that no small time
continued between him and Amadis. Englished by L. P. London:
Printed for C. Burbie, and are to be sold at his shop at the Royal
Exchange, 1595."
The Epistle Dedicatory to "Master Walter Borough" is signed "Lazarus
Pyott," which is perhaps an assumed name; and, if I mistake not, I have
seen it assigned to some known writer of the time. As I do not find this
work noticed by Lowndes, perhaps MR. COLLIER or some of your readers
would kindly give me some information respecting its rarity, &c.
J. M. S.
45. _Hogarth and Cowper._--Which preceded the other, and who was the
greater artist, Hogarth or Cowper, in the portrait and description of
the stately and antiquated lady going to church on the winter's morning
with her boy, who--
"Carries her Bible, tuck'd beneath his arm,
And hides his hands to keep his fingers warm?"
JAMES CORNISH.
46. _Latin Translation of Butler's Analogy._--In Bartlett's _Life of
Bishop Butler_ mention is made (p. 62.), on the authority of a late Dean
of Salisbury (Dr. Pearson), of a translation of _The Analogy_ into
Latin, which had been executed with a view to its publication in
Germany, and had been submitted for revision to Professor Porson.
Was this translation ever published or is anything now known of it?
THOS. MCCALMONT.
Highfield, near Southampton, July 22. 1851.
47. "_Non quid responderent_," _&c._--In the Life of Bishop Jewel
prefixed to the edition of his works, 1611, §24., there occurs a
sentence attributed to _Cicero in Verrem 3._:
"Like Verres in Tully, _Non quid responderent, sed quemadmodum non
responderent laborabant_."
But are the words to be found in _Cicero_ at all? They give no bad
representation of what is called _fencing_, while unwillingly subjected
to an examination; and the true authorship would oblige
NOVUS.
48. "_The Worm in the Bud of Youth_," _&c._--With whom did the following
idea originate, and where are the words to be found?
"The worm is in the bud of youth, and in the root of age."
Can any similar expression be adduced from the ancient classics?
R. VINCENT
49. _Queen Brunéhaut._--I read in a French book of travels that the
abbey of Saint Martin's, at Autun, contained the tomb of Queen
Brunéhaut, upon which was engraved the following inscription:
"Ci-gît la Reine Brunéhaut,
A qui le Saint Pape Gregoire
Donna des éloges de gloire,
Qui mettent sa vertu bien haut.
Sa piété pour les saints mystères
Lui fit fonder trois monastères,
Sous la règle de Saint Benoît:
Saint Martin, Saint Jean, Saint Andoche,
Sont trois saints lieux où l'on connoît
Qu'elle est exempte de reproche."
1. Who was the Saint Gregory mentioned in this inscription? I believe
there can be little doubt that it was Pope Gregory I., commonly known as
Gregory the Great, and the cotemporary of Queen Brunéhaut. The only
other Pope of that name, that has been canonized, is Gregory VII., the
famous Hildebrand; but as his canonization did not take place till the
close of the last century (700 years after his death), an inscription,
which, from its obsolete rhymes of "Benoît" and "connoît," bears
internal evidence of having been made in the sixteenth or seventeenth
century, could not have applied to him the epithet _Saint_.
2. Brunéhaut having been one of the most profligate queens that ever sat
upon a throne, and Gregory the Great one of the most virtuous Popes that
have shed lustre on the tiara, a second Query presents itself:--Is it
possible that such a Pope could have degraded himself and his office by
eulogising such a queen? The bare idea is at variance with the known
character of that Pope; and the imputation, if substantiated, would
materially detract from his established reputation for piety and wisdom.
3. Is there any passage in the writings of Gregory the Great that can be
cited in support of the allegations of this inscription?
HENRY H. BREEN.
St. Lucia, June, 1851.
50. _Sculptured Stones in the North of Scotland._--Some time ago Patrick
Chalmers, Esq., of Auldbar, in the county of Forfar, obtained drawings
of all the sculptured stone obelisks in Angus, and got them lithographed
for the members of the Bannatyne Club. The work has excited considerable
attention among historical students in this country as well as abroad,
and certainly has laid a foundation for correct comparison of these with
other similar remains of a symbolical nature in other parts of the
country. In Aberdeenshire there is a considerable number of these
obelisks, which, either from the more primitive state of the people, or
the hardness of the granite, are much less elaborate than those in
Angus. None, however, can exceed the obelisks in Easter Ross for beauty
of execution. It is singular that no monument of this class has been
found south of the Forth. The Spalding Club (Aberdeen) proposes to
obtain drawings of all the stones of this description in the North of
Scotland; and the artist who depicted the Angus stones so accurately and
well for Mr. Chalmers has commenced his labours. Circulars have been
sent to the clergy of about 240 parishes in the North, asking for
information as to the locality of any sculptured stones in their
districts, but as yet answers have been obtained from only about 150. It
is probable that where no return has been made, there is no stone of the
description alluded to; but it would be desirable to know that the
Spalding Club had exhausted the matter.
ABERDONIENSIS.
51. _Prophecies of Nostradamus._--In a little work I am meditating on
the subject of English Popular Prophecies, I shall have occasion to
introduce a notice of this celebrated astrologer, whose successful
prediction of the Great Rebellion, and consequent English popularity,
almost entitle him to a place among our native vaticinating worthies.
The curious prefiguration of the fate of Charles I. stands thus in the
original edition of the _Prophesies_: Lyons, 1572, under the head, "A
mes Imprimeurs de Hongrie:"
"Senat de Londres mettront à mal leur Roy."
In the only other edition to which I have the opportunity of referring,
London, 1672, "Translated and commented upon by Theophilus de
Garencieres," it is much amplified:
"XLIX.
"Gand et Bruxelles marcheront contra Anvers.
Senat de Londres mettront _à mort_ leur Roy.
Le sel et vin luy seront à l'envers
Pour eux avoir le Regne or desseroy."
The more literal accuracy of this version, and the number of the
quatrain (interpreted by the commentator to refer to the year of
Charles's death), induce doubts as to its authenticity. Collections of
early editions of Nostradamus are not of frequent occurrence in England:
but I am told that a fine series exists in the "Bibliothèque du Roi,"
and as the subject is interesting, some one, perhaps, out of the many
readers of "NOTES AND QUERIES" who will visit Paris this holiday time
may be induced to examine them, and make a note of the _earliest_
edition in which the latter form of the prediction occurs.
SPERIEND.
52. _Quaker Expurgated Bible._--In an extremely curious and interesting
volume entitled _Quakerism, or the Story of my Life_, I meet with the
following passage, p. 386.:
"About four years ago, an English Friend waited on me, to request
me to enter my name as a subscriber to an edition of the Bible,
which a Committee of Friends were intending to publish. The
printed prospectus stated that the work was designed to be one
suited for daily perusal in Friends' families; that from it would
be carefully excluded every passage that was indelicate, and unfit
for reading aloud; and also those portions which might be called
dangerous, which it was possible the unlearned and unstable might
wrest to their own destruction."
Can any of your readers tell whether this expurgated Bible was ever
published, and where it is to be procured?
A copy of the prospectus alluded to would also be very acceptable.
T.
53. _Salmon Fishery in the Thames._--This was once of great importance
to the inhabitants of the villages upon the banks of the Thames, who
appear to have had each their assigned bounds for their fishery. In the
Churchwardens' Book of Wandsworth, under date 1580, is the following
entry:
"M.D. that this yere in so[=m]er the fishinge Rome of Wandesworthe
was by certen of Putney denyed, and long sute before my L. Mayor
of London continued, and at the last, accordinge to Right,
restored by the Lord Mayor and the Councell of London. And in this
so[=m]er the fysshers of Wandesworthe tooke betweene Monday and
Saturday seven score salmons in the same fishinge, to the gret
honor of God."
I have heard my mother say, that Thames salmon was plentiful when she
was a younger woman, and that it was the most esteemed of any. She died
recently, aged eighty-nine.
Shall we ever have Thames salmon again?
R. J. R.
54. _Cromwell Grants of Land in Monaghan._--Are there any records, and
where, of grants of land in the county of Monaghan, Ireland, as made by
Cromwell?
E. A.
55. _Siege of Londonderry._--Are there any details of the siege of
Londonderry, particularly as to the names of officers engaged on the
Protestant side, other than those to be found in Walker, Mackensie, or
Graham's account of it?
E. A.
Minor Queries Answered.
_The Twentieth of the Thirty-nine Articles._--In a note to a work
entitled _Sketches of the History of Man_, Dublin, 1779, at vol. i. p.
104. I observe the following statement:
"In the Act 13th of Elizabeth, anno 1571, confirming the
Thirty-nine Articles of the Church of England, these Articles are
not engrossed, but referred to as comprised in a printed book,
intitled 'Articles agreed to by the whole Clergy in Convocation
holden at London, 1562.' The forged clause is, 'The Church has
power to decree Rites and Ceremonies, and authority in
Controversies of Faith.' That clause is not in the Articles
referred to; nor the slightest hint of any authority with respect
to matters of faith. In the same year, 1571, the Articles were
printed both in Latin and English, precisely as in the year 1562.
But soon after came out spurious editions, in which the said
clause was foisted into the Twentieth Article, and continues so to
this day," &c.
This is a grave charge. Is it a true one? I have not at hand the
authorities by which to examine it, and therefore seek an answer from
some of your readers who may be able to give it. My question refers to
the imputation of a clause having been foisted into our Articles of
Faith by a forgery, and still continuing in them; not to the truth of
any part of our Articles as they now stand. To this there is sufficient
testimony.
CM.
London, July 25. 1851.
[The following note from p. 131. of Mr. Hardwick's recently
published _History of the Articles_ will furnish a reply to this
Query:--
"He (Laud) was accused of forging the contested clause in Art. XX.
And after appealing to four printed copies of the Articles, one of
them as early as 1563, and all containing the passage which the
Puritans disliked, he added, 'I shall make it yet plainer: for it
is not fit concerning an Article of Religion, and an Article of
such consequence for the order, truth, and peace of the Church,
you should rely upon my copies, be they never so many or never so
ancient. Therefore I sent _to the public records in my office, and
here under my officer's hand, who is public notary, is returned to
me the Twentieth Article with this affirmative clause in it, and
there is also the whole body of the Articles to be
seen.'_--_Remains_, ii. 83. (quoted by Bennet, 166.) The copy thus
taken before the destruction of the records is said to be still
extant; Bennet made use of it, and has printed it in his _Essay_,
167-169."]
_Exons of the Guard._--Can any of your readers inform me what are the
duties of these officers, and the derivation of their title? I find, in
the papers describing her Majesty's state ball, the following: "the
exons or capitaines exempts _de la garde du corps;_" but that does not
throw much light upon the subject.
E. N. W.
Southwark.
[The name of _Exempts_ or _Exons_ is manifestly borrowed from that
of the officers in the old French _Garde du Corps_, who were
styled in their commissions _Capitaines Exempts des Gardes du
Corps_. Richelet describes the _Exempt_ as the officer who
commanded in the absence of the Lieutenant or Ensign, and who had
charge of the night watch. In both cases, the duties of the
English and French officers are completely parallel.]
_Curious Monumental Inscription: "Quos Anguis tristi."_--Have any of
your readers seen Latin verses constructed in the following curious
manner? I copied these many years ago from an old magazine:--
"Qu an tris di c vul stra
os guis ti ro um nere vit,
H san Chris mi t mu la
Quos anguis tristi diro cum vulnere stravit,
Hos sanguis Christi miro tum munere lavit."
J. O. B.
[The inscription quoted by our correspondent has been preserved by
Stow, in his _Survey of London_, who, describing the monuments in
the church of St. Anne in the Willows, says (p. 115. ed. 1842),
"John Herenden, mercer, esquire, 1572; these verses on an old
stone."]
_Meaning of "Deal."_--I shall feel greatly obliged to any of the readers
of your entertaining and instructive miscellany, if they can explain the
meaning of the word _deal_, as used in Exod. xxix. 40. A tenth of flour
is the verbal rendering of the Hebrew, the Septuagint, and the Vulgate.
It was introduced by Coverdale and Tyndale, and is, I believe, in all
our English translations except the Puritan or Genevan, which has "a
tenth part;" and Mr John Ray of Glasgow, in his revised translation, who
renders the word "the tenth of an ephah." Is this use of the word _deal_
noticed in any dictionary?
GEORGE OFFOR.
Hackney, July 13. 1851.
[The word "_deal_" in the passage referred to by our correspondent
clearly signifies "_part_," and corresponds with the German
"_theil_." It is from the A-S.; and Chaucer uses the phrases
"never a _del_" and "every _del_," for "never a bit" and "every
bit." In the _Vision of Piers Ploughman_ we have a nearly parallel
phrase to that used in our Bibles:
"That hevedes of holy church ben That han hir wil here Withouten
travaille _the tithe deel_ That trewe men biswynken."
L. 10571. _et seq._, ed. Wright.]
_La Mer des Histoires._--Who is the author of _La Mer des Histoires_? I
have seen the first volume in large folio; the type and paper are
beautiful, the capital letters very fine. It is stated in the preface to
be a translation from the Latin of _Rudimentum Noviciorum_, with the
addition of the French Chronicles, and made at the instance of André de
la Haye, Seigneur de Chaumot, Paymaster of Sens. It is printed at Paris
in the month of July, 1448, by Pierre le Rouge. In how many volumes is
the work comprised? Is it very scarce?
R. C. H. H.
[Greswell, in his _Annals of Parisian Typography_, p. 307., says,
"The designation _La Mer des Histoires_ seems, as a popular one,
to have been given to French chronicles of various descriptions.
Two impressions thus entitled appeared Parisiis, post 1500, viz.,
'_Mer des Histoires et Chroniques de France_: extrait en partis de
tous les anciens chroniquers, &c. jusqu' au temps de Francois I.,'
2 voll. fol. Galliot du Pres, 1514, 16; and more especially _'La
Mer des Hystoires et Croniques de France_: Extraict en partie de
tous les anciens croniquers,' 4 voll. fol.--'Le _premier_ volume,'
Galliot du pre, 1517; 'Le _second_ volume,' M. le Noir, 1517; 'Le
_tiers_ volume,' sine anno et impressoris nomine; 'Le _quatriesme_
liure,' Par. 1518. Panzer says that both these chronicles, of
which the latter seems to be an improved edition of the former,
are said to have been compiled by Johannes Descourtils, the French
king's historiographer."]
_"The noiseless Foot of Time."_--Not having by me at present the means
of ascertaining, will some one kindly inform me where the above words
are to be found in Shakspeare, giving me the exact reference?
R. VINCENT.
["Let's take the instant by the forward top;
For we are old, and on our quick'st decrees
The inaudible and noiseless foot of time
Steals ere we can effect them."
_All's Well that ends Well_, Act V. Sc. 3.]
Replies.
PASSAGE IN VIRGIL.
(Vol. iv., p. 24.)
Your correspondent ERYX inquires, in your paper of July 12, whether
Servius's interpretation of
"Viridesque secant placido æquore silvas."
Virg. _Æn._ viii. 96.
be correct. I beg to reply that it is not. The interpretations of
Servius are almost invariably incorrect; Servius was a very illiterate,
ignorant, and narrow-minded man, and totally unable to understand the
author whom he attempted to illustrate. His comments on Virgil resemble
those which we might expect a hedge schoolmaster in Yorkshire now to
make upon Milton. These comments, which are only valuable on account of
the mythological traditions which are preserved in them, have been very
injurious to the right understanding of Virgil.
The meaning of the passage in question is, that the Æneadæ row up the
river among the green woods, or (literally) "secant silvas," _travel the
woods_, "placido æquore," _on the calm surface of the water_, _i. e._ by
rowing up the placid stream of the river. This, and not that assigned by
Servius following Terentienus, is the true meaning. 1st. Because
_secare_ with the objective case means constantly in Virgil to _travel
along_. Compare "viam secat ad naves," _Æn._ vi. 902.; "secuit sub
nubibus arcum," v. 658., &c. 2ndly. Because the Tiber is described only
as _placid_, not as _clear_; and as appears from _Æn._ vii. 31., was
actually _very muddy_, "multa flavus arena." The immediately preceding
words, "variisque teguntur arboribus," have been pronounced by a very
learned critic (one who has often deserved well of Virgil) to be _idle,
otiosa_. (See Wagner ad _Æn._ i. 678.) And his opinion has been
sanctioned by the usually judicious Forbiger. But they are not idle; on
the contrary, they are necessary to convey the idea that the Æneadæ
passed up the river _under the shade of the trees_; and so are
supplemental to the statement contained in the words cited by your
correspondent, which inform us only that they went up the river. Hence a
confirmation of the correctness of the received interpretation.
JAMES HENRY.
34. Westland Row, Dublin, July 14. 1851.
Your correspondent ERYX wishes to know, whether in the passage (_Æneid_,
viii. 96.)--
"Viridesque secant placido æquore silvas,"
the word _secant_ can legitimately convey the same idea that is
expressed in Tennyson's lines--
---- "my shallop ... clove
The citron shadows in the blue."
There can be little doubt that this well-known passage in the _Æneid_ is
the _original_ of Tennyson's image; that, in fact, it is an excusable
plagiarism on the part of the latter, who, in introducing, his image,
has, I think, missed the appropriateness, and therefore increased
beauty, belonging to it in the original passage of Virgil.
When Æneas is journeying up the Tiber to visit Evander, the river, in
order to lessen his labours--
"refluens ... substitit unda;"
but notwithstanding this, the journey was arduous as is shown in the
_whole_ of the three lines 94-96.
"Olli remigio noctemque diemque fatigant,
Et longos superant flexes, variisque teguntur
Arboribus, viridesque secant pacido æquore silvas."
That is to say, "They labour at the oar till night is wearied out, and
day also is obliged to give place in its turn; they master one by one
the long serpentine bends of the river, and, though covered and inclosed
by the varied foliage above them, they cut their way through the
opposing woods, which lie, as it were, in their path in the shadowy
surface of the clear, still water."
The word _placido_ is surely sufficient to prevent any one falling into
the common-place interpretation alluded to by your correspondent as the
one "usually given."
H. C. K.
---- Rectory, Hereford, July 14.
THE VINE OF ST. FRANCIS.
(Vol. iii., p. 502.)
I feel much obliged for the information afforded by your Dutch
correspondent. When I sent you my Query on the subject more than a year
ago, I wrote principally from memory; but as I have now the work in
question lying beside me as I write, and as it seems to be rarer and
less known than I had imagined, you will perhaps find place for a more
minute description of it.
_The Vine of St. Francis_ is a folio volume, containing 418 numbered
leaves, a "Prologhe" of one leaf (next to the title-page), and a "Tafel
v[=a] dit boeck" at the end, of five leaves and a half unnumbered.
The title-page contains a full-length picture of the saint, with a
nimbus round his head, the knotted cord round his waist, and his palms
extended, displaying the sacred stigmata. Above the picture is the title
in red and black. I have written in Italics the words printed in red:
"_Den_ wÿngaert v[=a] _Sinte_ Franciscus _vol_ schoonre
_historien_ legenden ende _duechdelÿcke_ leer[=e]nghen allen
_menschen_ seer profÿtelÿch."
And under the picture "Cum _gratia_ et _privilegio_." On the back of the
title-page is printed as follows:--
"Dit is die generael tafel v[=a] dese wÿngaert dwelcke ghdeylt is
in drie boecken.
¶ Dat eerste boeck inhout
Sinte Franciscus grote legende
Sinte Franciscus oude legende
Den aflaet van portiunkel
Sinte Franciscus souter.
¶ Dat ander boeck inhoude
De leg[=e]de v[=a] de .v. marte mind-brod's
De leg[=e]de v[=a] de seu[=e] mar. ooc mind'b.
Sinte bonauentura legende
Sinte lodewÿc biscop legende
Sinte anthonis v[=a] paduen legende
Sinte bernardÿns legende
Sinte clara legende
Sinte puo priesters legende
Sinte lodewÿc coninex legende
Sinte elzearius graue legende
Sinte elizabets legende.
¶ Dat derde boec inhout
Een tractaet v[=a] S. Franciscus oorden
Sinte Franciscus geselle leuen
Die geleerde e[=n] edele v[=a] S. Fr[=a]ciscus oorden
Dat getal der broeder[=e] e[=n] prouintien
De aflaet v[=a] rom[=e] mitt[=e] aflaet des oord[=e]s
De kal[=e]dier mitt[=e] feest[=e] des aflaets."
Under these tables of contents occur two stanzas, the first containing
five lines, the second containing seven lines. They commence:--
"¶ O salige wÿngaert seer diep gheplant
Groyende in duechden van vruchten playsant," &c.
The preface to the _Grote Legende_ informs us that it is Saint
Bonaventura's life of Saint Francis, and mentions why it is called the
_Great Legend_. This life ends at folio 47.
The preface to the _Oude Legende_, which next follows, states that it is
"gathered from the writings of his companions and the chronicles of the
order of the Brothers Minor;" and the "Prologhe" (which succeeds the
preface) mentions--
"Die leg[=e]de van zÿn drie gesellen den spiegel der
volcom[=e]heyts der minderbroeders. Broeder Thomas oude legends
e[=n] d[=e] boeck der ghelÿcheden daer seer schoon besereu[=e] is.
Hoe ghelÿck dat dese heylighe man Franciscus: Christo Jhesu."
These lives, I suppose, are--that joint narrative compiled by three
intimate associates of the Saint, "zÿn drie gesellen," that composed by
Thomas of Celano; and the _Liber Conformitatum_.
The 39th chap. of this _Oude Legende_, folio ciii., relates, as the
preface says--
"¶ Hoe dat S. F. woude reysen in verre l[=a]den om dat vole te
bekeren e[=n] te vermaenen e[=n] v[=a] die grote tribulacie die hi
leet int solda[=e]s lant e[=n] hoe hi gerne martelaer hadde
geworden e[=n] hoe die broeders te Antiochien sÿn oord[=e]
a[=e]naemen."
On which Jewish-converting martyrdom-seeking journey Dr. Geddes (in his
curious little work on the _Romish Orders of Monks and Friars_, Lond.
1714) quaintly remarks:
"A Quaker's having gone from England to Rome to convert the pope
to his religion, is a mighty jest with some people, who are very
much edified with this story of Francis's going from Italy to
Egypt to convert the sultan, but these two adventures do to me
appear to be so much alike that I shall leave it to anatomists to
tell whether good wits that prompt others, have not their brains
either made of the same size, or much in the same posture."
The _Oude Legende_ ends folio 44. Next follows:
"¶ Die historie van d[=e] aflaet van Sinte Maria van d[=e]
enghelen diem[=e] porti[=u]kel heet,"
as the preface hath it. Some of your readers may have seen an
advertisement respecting a series of Franciscan works (to be published,
I think, by Richardson of Derby), entitled the _Portioncule Library_;
and seeing in the above table of contents "Die aflaet van Portiunkel,"
or the Indulgence of the _Portiunkel_, they may be at a loss to know its
meaning, so I shall quote a note from Mrs. Jameson's highly interesting
and valuable work on the _Monastic Orders_, which is to the purpose: