Queries.

Yours to his power to be comanded,Johs' Walton, Cler."

Yours to his power to be comanded,

Johs' Walton, Cler."

I have no information as to either party, and no date is affixed to the request.

E. D.

Salutations.—The parting salutations of various nations are strikingly alike. Thevaleof the Latins corresponds with theχαῖρεof the Greeks; and though Deity is not expressed distinctly in either, it was doubtless understood: for who can be kept in health without, as the ancients would say, the will of the gods? The Greek word perhaps has a higher signification than the Latin; for it was not a mere complimentary salutation, says Macknight: "St. John forbids it to be given to heretical teachers, Eph. ii. 10, 11." The French, on taking leave, say "Adieu," thus distinctly recognising the providential power of the Creator; and the same meaning is indeed conveyed in our English word, "good-bye," which is corruption of "God be with you." The Irish, in their warmth of manner and love of words, often extend the expression. A well-known guide, upon my leaving one of the loveliest spots in Wicklow, shook hands with me heartily, and said, in a voice somewhat more tremulous through age than it was when Tom Moore loved to listen to it: "God Almighty bless you, be with you, and guide you safely to your journey's end!" This salutation, when used thoughtfully and aright, has not only a pleasant sound, but deep meaning.

E. W. J.

Crawley.

Good Times for Equity Suitors.—Having lately met with the following particulars in Bishop Goodman'sDiary, I send them for insertion, if you think fit, in "N. & Q.:"

"Then was the chancery so empty of causes, that Sir Thomas More could live in Chelsea, and yet very sufficiently discharge that office; and coming one day home by ten of the clock, whereas he was wont to stay until eleven or twelve, his lady came down to see whether he was sick or not; to whom Sir Thomas More said, 'Let your gentlewoman fetch me a cup of wine, and then I will tell you the occasion of my coming;' and when the wine came, he drank to his lady, and told her that he thanked God for it he had not one cause in chancery, and therefore came home for want of business and employment there. The gentlewoman who fetched the wine told this to a bishop, who did inform me."

Abhba.

The Emperor of Russia and the Order of the Garter.—The Emperor of Russia is a knight of the Order of the Garter. Now, according to the statutes of the Order, no knight ought to take up arms against another, or in any way assist anybody so to do.

In illustration of this, we find it stated in Anstis'Register of the Most Noble Order of the Garter, who quotes from Caligula, L. 6., inBib. Cott., that when the French king wished to borrow a sum of money from Henry VII., to employ in the war with the King of Naples, the answer was:

"Que le Roy ne povoit avec son honneur bailler aide et assistence a icelluy son bon frere et cousin a l'encontre du Roy de Naples, qui estoit son confrere et allye, veu et considere qu'il avoit prise et recue l'ordre de la garretiere. Et si le roi autrement faisoit, ce seroit contrevenir au serment qu'il a fait par les statuz du dit ordre."

Will the Emperor of Russia be deprived of his ill-deserved honours, or what is the course now pursued? It was not unusual formerly for kings to exchange orders, and to return them in case of war.

Oscar Browning.

Owing to the almost perfect identity of these verses with some by a German poet, George Rudolph Weckerlin, a doubt has been expressed in a German work as to whether they are to be considered the production of Sir Henry Wotton, or a translation from theGeistliche und weltliche Gedichteof Weckerlin, a lyrical poet of considerable eminence and popularity in his day, and who died in London in 1651. Weckerlin was employed in important affairs connected with the Protestants in Germany during the Thirty Years' War, as secretary to an embassy in London from that country; and was also employed on several occasions by James I. and Charles I. An edition of Weckerlin'sPoemswas edited by him while he resided in London, and was printed at Amsterdam in 1641, and again in 1648. A previous collection hadappeared at Stutgart in 1618. Many of his poems, which he had left in MS. with his brother Ludwig in Germany, perished with him during the horrors of the war. "What has become," Weckerlin feelingly exclaims, "of myMyrta, that dear poem, composed of so many sonnets and stanzas?"

Perhaps some of the readers of "N. & Q.," who are conversant with the literature of England and Germany during the period alluded to, may be able to solve the question as to the real author of the verses mentioned.

John Macray.

Oxford.

Plants and Flowers.—Might I inquire of your correspondentEirionnachwhy his long-promised Notes on the "ecclesiastical and rustic pet names" of plants and flowers have never been forthcoming? I have often lingered on the threshold of the "garden full of sunshine and of bees," whereEirionnachhas laboured; would he kindly be my guide to the pleasant domain, and indicate (without trespassing on your columns I mean) the richest gatherings of the legendary lore and poetry of the vegetable kingdom? Are there any collections of similes drawn from plants and flowers? Dr. Aitkin has broken ground in hisEssay on Poetical Similes. Any notes on this subject, addressed to the "care of the Editor," will greatly oblige

Sigma.

Customs, London.

Quotations wanted.—Whence the following:

1. "Condendaque Lexica mandat Damnatis, pœnam pro pœnis omnibus unam."

Quoted at the end of the Preface to Liddell and Scott'sLexicon?

2. "RexeratElizabeth, sed eratRegina Jacobus?"[1]

P. J. F. Gantillon.

Footnote 1:(return)Rapin has given the parentage of this pasquil at the end of his History of James I.:"Tandis qu' Elizabeth fut RoyL'Anglois fut d'Espagne l'effroy,Maintenant, devise et caquette,Regi par la Reine Jaquette."

Rapin has given the parentage of this pasquil at the end of his History of James I.:

"Tandis qu' Elizabeth fut RoyL'Anglois fut d'Espagne l'effroy,Maintenant, devise et caquette,Regi par la Reine Jaquette."

"Tandis qu' Elizabeth fut Roy

L'Anglois fut d'Espagne l'effroy,

Maintenant, devise et caquette,

Regi par la Reine Jaquette."

"Extinctus amabitur idem."

Unde?

W. T. M.

Griffith, William, Bishop of Ossory.—Any facts relative to the life of this prelate will be acceptable, as I am about to go to press with a work comprisingLives of the Bishops of Ossory.

James Graves.

Killkenny.

"Cowperiana."—Southey, in his preface to the last volume of his edition of Cowper'sWorks(dated Aug. 12, 1837), speaks of his intention to publish two additional volumes under the title ofCowperiana. Were these ever published? If not, will they ever be?

W. P. Storer.

Olney, Bucks.

John Keats's Poems.—Can any of your readers inform me what legend (if any) John Keats the poet refers to in his beautiful poem ofSt. Agnes' Eve, st. xix., when he says:

"Never on such a night have lovers met,Since Merlin paid his demon all the monstrous debt."

"Never on such a night have lovers met,

Since Merlin paid his demon all the monstrous debt."

And pray let me know what is implied in the concluding lines of his absurd poem ofHyperion, as they have always been a mystery to me.

Ξανθος.

Holland.—We have the kingdom of Holland, we have the Holland division of Lincolnshire, and in Lancashire we have the two townships of Downholland and Upholland. Is the derivation of each the same, and, if it be, what is the affinity?

Prestoniensis.

Armorial.—Can the younger son of a peer use the supporters to his family arms?

Prestoniensis.

Stoke and Upton.—These names of places are so very common, and in some counties, as Bucks, Worcester, and Devon, apply to adjoining villages, that it would be interesting to know the origin of the names, and of their association.

Jno. D. Alcroft.

Slavery in England.—One of the recent volumes published by the Chetham Society, theStanley Papers, part ii., contains the household books of the third and fourth Earls of Derby, temp. Queen Elizabeth. I find in the "orders touching the government of my Lo. his house," that at the date thereof (1558) slavery in some form or other existed in England, for in the mansion of this powerful noble it was provided—

"That noslavesnor boyes shall sitt in the hall, but in place therefore appoynted convenyent."

And,—

"That the yemen of horses and groomes of the stable shall not suffre any boyes orslavesto abye about the stables, nor lye in theym, nor in anie place about theym."

Was there then in England the form of slavery now in existence in the United States, and until lately in the West Indies; or was it more like the serfdom of Russia? And when was this slavery abolished in England?

Prestoniensis.

"Go to Bath."—What is the origin of this saying?

R. R.

Mummy Chests.—Harris, in hisNatural History of the Bible, says:

"The imperishable chests which contain the Egyptian mummies were ofcypress."

Shaw, in hisTravels, p. 376., says:

"The mummy chests, and whatever figures and instruments are found in the catacombs, are all of them ofsycamore."

Which is right, and how can we account for the contradiction?

N. L. J.

The Blechenden Family.—Thomas Blechenden, D.D., a Prebendary of Canterbury, whose will was proved in 1663, had a younger brother Richard, who had a daughter Mary. It is desired to know if Mary married, and if so, to whom? The family were of Ruffin's Hill in Kent, and Richard is described as "of London."

Gwillim.

Philadelphia.

Francklyn Household Book.—In the extracts from this MS., given in theArchæologia, vol. xv. p. 157., is an entry,—

"Given to the prisoners at White Chappel, 1s."

Who were they?

"Nov. 12, 1624. Given to Mr. Atkynson's man for writing out the causes which are to be hearde in the Star Chamber this tearme, 1s."

Who and what was Mr. Atkynson?

"June 13, 1625. Spent by Wyllyam when he was sworn by the pages, 6s.6d."

What does this refer to?

"April 17, 1625. Given to Sir Charles Morrison's groomes, 3s."

Who and what was Sir Charles Morrison?

In another extract given elsewhere, I find,—

"August 5, 1644. For bay salt to stop the barrells, 6d."

What does this mean?

"January 17, 1644. For four giggs and scourgesticks, 1s."

What are giggs and scourgesticks?

"November 10, 1646. For haulfe a pound of cakes and jumballs, 10d."

What are jumballs?

Can any of your readers tell me where thisLivre des Acconts pour Chevalier Jean Francklyn en son[sic]Maison au Wilsdennow is? When the extracts were published in theArchæologia, it was said to be in the possession of the late Sir John Chardin Musgrave, Bart. I have applied to the present Sir George Musgrave, and also to George Musgrave, Esq., of Gordon Square, and Bedfordshire, who is descended from Sir Christopher Musgrave, who married to his second wife a daughter of Sir George Francklyn; but neither can give me any tidings of this MS.

J. K.

Lord Rosehill's Marriage.—An American paper of August 22, 1768, has the following:

"Last week was married in Maryland, the Right Honorable Lord Rosehill to Miss Margaret Cheer, a lady much admired for her theatrical performances."

Who was Lord Rosehill?

W. D. R.

Philadelphia.

Colonel Butler.—Can you give me any information respecting Colonel Butler, who fought during the civil wars, I fear, under the banner of the usurper? He belonged to a Lincolnshire family, and either his daughter or some relative married a person of the name of Hairby or Harby.

Agares.

Willesdon, co. Middlesex.—Information is solicited respecting the families of Willesdon, Roberts, Francklyn, Barne, Poulett, Atye, Troyford, and Nicolls of this place, as well as of other families known to have belonged to this parish.

Any communications as to the church, its original construction, or its reconstruction about the end of the fourteenth, or beginning of the fifteenth, century, or illustrative of the general history of the parish in early or recent times, or biographical notices of its vicars, will be gladly received; and as such information may not be generally interesting to your readers, I would request contributors to address any communications they may be pleased to favour me with, to J. K., care of Mr. Fenton, Kensall Green, Harrow Road, Middlesex.

J. K.

Ashes of "Lignites."—A paragraph has been making the circuit of the public papers, recommending the use of ashes oflignites, to preserve esculent roots. It may have originated with some dealer inlignites; but plain dealers would like to be informed whatlignitesare?

Rusticus.

[Lignite is a fossil wood carbonized to a certain degree, but retaining distinctly its woody texture. Dr. MacCulloch,On Rocks, p. 636., observes: "In its chemical properties, lignite holds a station intermediate between peat and coal; while among the varieties a gradation in this respect may be traced; the brown and more organised kinds approaching very near to peat, while the more compact kinds, such as jet, approximate to coal."]

Bishop Bathurst.—I have heard it often asserted that the late Dr. Bathurst, Bishop of Norwich, was the youngest offorty-twochildren. Can thisbe satisfactorily ascertained? I remember hearing it many years since during the bishop's lifetime. Such a circumstance is not beyond the bounds of possibility, if we are to believe the Parish Register of Bermondsey; for there appears an entry there of the marriage, on Jan. 4, 1624-5, of James Harriott, Esq., one of thefortychildren of his father. I myself knew intimately a lady, a clergyman's widow, who was the mother of twenty-six children (Vol. v., p. 106.; Vol. ix., p. 186.); and I have heard it said that one of her brothers-in-law was father of twenty-four, and another of fourteen children. The late Sir Robert Wigram, Bart., had twenty-four children: he died at the age of eighty-six.

Y. S. M.

[Mrs. Thistlethwaite, in herMemoirsof her father, p. 6, states, that "Benjamin Bathurst, Esq., the father of the Bishop of Norwich, having married, first, Miss Poole, an heiress, he had issue by her twenty-two children; by his second wife, Miss Brodrick, daughter of Dr. Brodrick, a Brother of Lord Midleton's, Mr. Bathurst had a second family of fourteen children, of whom my father was third child and second son. He was a seven months' child, and I have heard that he was so extremely small an infant, that he could not be dressed like other children for some time after his birth, but was obliged to be wrapped in cotton. My father used to say in a joke, that he was wrapped in cotton, and put into a quart mug." The bishop's father had four children, one daughter and three sons. These four had a hundred children between them, thirty-six of whom fell to the lot of the bishop's father.]

"Selah."—What is the meaning of the wordSelah, which occurs so often in the Psalms? I have observed that most people, in reading, omit it. Should it be read or not?

F. M. Middleton.

[A diversity of opinion prevails as to the exact import of this term. The great musical critic Mattheson, in a work written on the word, having rejected eleven meanings, decides in favour of the twelfth, which makes the word equivalent to the modern Italianda capo. In this view, the wordselahdirects a repetition of the air or song from the commencement, to the parts where it is placed. Herder held thatselahdenoted a swell, or a change in the rapidity of the movement, or in the key. The Easterns, he says, are fond of a very uniform, and, as it appears to Europeans, mournful music; but at certain points, they of a sudden change the key, and pass into a different melody. These points, he thinks, were among the Hebrews indicated by the wordselah. The balance of authority, however, is in favour of the former view.—The People's Dict. of the Bible.Consult also, Julius Bate'sCritica Hebræa, and Gesenius'Hebrew and English Lexicon.]

The Long Parliament.—Where is a list of it, including its various changes, to be seen?

Y. S. M.

[Among theKing's Pamphletsin the British Museum (Press-mark, E. 1836.) is the following "A List of the Names of the Long Parliament, anno 1640; likewise of the Parliament holden at Oxford; as also of the three ensuing Parliaments holden at Westminster in the years 1653, 1654, 1656, and of the late Parliament, dissolved April 22, 1659, with a Catalogue of the Lords of the other House. London: Printed in the year 1659." There is also another pamphlet entitled "The Names of the Members of Parliament which began on the 4th June, 1653. 4to. London, 1654."]

"The Three Pigeons."—Was it the house at Brentford, mentioned byDr. Rimbault(Vol. ix., p. 331.), that suggested Tony Lumpkin's convivial ballad in praise of "The Three Jolly Pigeons?"

G. Taylor.

Reading.

[It is highly probable that the scene "An Ale-house Room" in Goldsmith's comedyShe Stoops to Conqueris the "Three Pigeons" at Brentford, as this remarkable hostel dates its origin from the days of Shakspeare and Ben Jonson. It is frequently mentioned by the early dramatists, and appears at one time to have been in some repute, having had for its landlord the celebrated tragedian, John Lowin, cotemporary of Shakspeare, and one of the original actors in his plays, who died in this house at a very advanced age:"Thou art admirably suited for the Three PigeonsAt Brentford, I swear I know thee not."—The Roaring Girl."We will turn our courage to Braynford—westward,My bird of the night—to the Pigeons."—Ben Jonson'sAlchymist.See Faulkner'sHistory of Brentford, p. 144.]

"Thou art admirably suited for the Three PigeonsAt Brentford, I swear I know thee not."—The Roaring Girl."We will turn our courage to Braynford—westward,My bird of the night—to the Pigeons."—Ben Jonson'sAlchymist.

"Thou art admirably suited for the Three PigeonsAt Brentford, I swear I know thee not."—The Roaring Girl.

"Thou art admirably suited for the Three Pigeons

At Brentford, I swear I know thee not."—The Roaring Girl.

"We will turn our courage to Braynford—westward,My bird of the night—to the Pigeons."—Ben Jonson'sAlchymist.

"We will turn our courage to Braynford—westward,

My bird of the night—to the Pigeons."—Ben Jonson'sAlchymist.

See Faulkner'sHistory of Brentford, p. 144.]

Captain Cook.—Wanted, the pedigree of Capt. Jas. Cook (the circumnavigator), and full account of his lineal and collateral descendants.

Wardale G. McAllister.

Philadelphia.

[Dr. Kippis'sLife of Captain Cookmay be consulted with advantage. It is carefully compiled, and will be found in the fourth volume of hisBiographia Britannica, as well as in a separate 4to. volume, 1788. For the death of the eldest and only surviving son of the celebrated navigator, seeGentleman's Magazinefor February, 1794, p. 182., and p. 199. of the same volume.]

Varnish for old Books.—Can any of your readers oblige me with a good receipt for varnishing the bindings of old books? Bees-wax and turpentine, used very thin, is a tolerably good one; but I am desirous of learning another.

Investigator.

[A little common glue-size, made thin, would be better than bees-wax and turpentine. The best varnish that can be used is that made in France, and may be had at Barbe Lechertier's, Artists' Colourman, 60. Regent's Quadrant. It is called French varnish for leather, and is sold at 14s.per pound. There is also a common varnish for leather, which can be purchasedat Reilly's varnish manufactory, 19. Old Street, St. Luke's. It is sold at about 3s.6d.per pint.]

Cabbages.—When were cabbages first cultivated in England? Who introduced them?

C. H.

[Evelyn says, "'Tis scarce a hundred years since we first had cabbages out of Holland, Sir Anthony Ashley, of Wiburg St. Giles, in Dorsetshire, being, as I am told, the first who planted them in England."—Acetaria, sect. 11. They were introduced into Scotland by the soldiers of Cromwell's army.]

(Vol. ix., p. 373.)

After the correspondence that took place ("N. & Q.," Vol. v.), I had hoped that Addison would have been left in peaceable possession of those "divine hymns" ascribed to his pen; but this is not to be. A former correspondent, J. G. F., doubted whether they were not composed by Andrew Marvell? This inquiry was, I hope, satisfactorily answered, by myself in the first instance, and afterwards byMr. Crossley, Vol. v., pp. 513, 548.

In No. 234. a later correspondent, S. M., asks whether the hymn "When rising from the bed of death," which he says is "taken from the chapter on 'Death and Judgment,' in Addison'sEvidences of the Christian Religion," was written by Addison or Dr. Isaac Watts? In what edition of theEvidencesdoes S. M. find either the chapter he speaks of, or this hymn? The place which it occupies is in No. 513. of theSpectator. As I have elsewhere stated, Addison was accustomed to throw a little mystery over these poems; and "the excellent man in holy orders," to whom this hymn is attributed, is unquestionably the ideal clergyman, the occasional visitor of the club, spoken of in the second number of theSpectator.

In the letter that accompanies this hymn, the supposed writer says,—

"The indisposition which has long hung upon me, is at last grown to such a head, that it must quickly make an end of me or of itself.... Were I able to dress up several thoughts of a serious nature, which have made great impressions on my mind during a long fit of sickness, they might not be an improper entertainment for one of your Saturday's papers."

What a natural remark from a writer who, Addison tells us, treats divine topics "as one who has no interests in this world, as one who is hastening to the object of all his wishes, and conceives hope from his decays and infirmities!" This sublime paper, or "series of thoughts," stamped with the peculiar beauties and polish of Addison's style, closes with the hymn in question, composed, as the writer says, "during this my sickness."

Watts survived the date of this paper above thirty-five years. Had it been his own composition, would he not have claimed the authorship, and incorporated the hymn amongst his sacred songs?

Let us not, in the pages of "N. & Q." at least, witness farther attempts to misappropriate the writings of one, whose undying fame will be cotemporaneous with the literature of England. Still, in the beautiful language of Addison's friend Tickell, may he in his hymns—

——"warn poor mortals left behind,A task well suited to his gentle mind."

——"warn poor mortals left behind,

A task well suited to his gentle mind."

J. H. Markland.

(Vol. ix., pp. 174. 255.)

A communication from a gentleman, who married into a family of this name, informs me that the Longfellows of Brecon were a branch of a Yorkshire family; and that a portion of more than one family, probably from the same county, are now settled in Kent. My friend has not before had his attention turned to this subject, but he promises farther inquiry.

T. S. N.

Bermondsey.

Why shouldW. P. Storersuppose that the name of Longfellow originated otherwise than in the lengthy proportions of an ancestor? Surely the well-known surnames, Rufus, Longshanks, Strongbow, are sufficient to warrant us in saying that Longfellow need have nothing to do with Longueville. From what shall we derive the names of Longman, Greathead, Littlejohn, and Tallboy?

John P. Stilwell.

Dorking.

By the kindness of the Registrar-General, I am enabled to point, with some precision, to a few of the localities in which the name of Longfellow exists in this country. Upon reference to the well-arranged indexes in his office, it appears that the deaths of sixty-one persons bearing this name were recorded in the years 1838 to 1852; and of these, fifty occurred in the West Riding of Yorkshire, namely, in Leeds thirty-five; Otley, and its neighbourhood, ten; Selby four, and in Keighley one. The other instances were, in the metropolis seven, and one each in Swansea, Newport (Monmouth), Tewkesbury, and Hastings. More than one third of the males bore the Christian name of William.

It is not probable that the Longfellows are numerous in any part of England: indeed, as weknow that of the general population the average annual mortality is 2.2 per cent, the sixty-one deaths in fifteen years, or four deaths yearly, might be supposed to result from about two hundred persons of the name; but inferences of this nature, except when large masses are dealt with, are often very fallacious.

May not the derivation of the name be fromlong fallow, of the same family as Fallows, Fellowes, Fallowfield, and Langmead, which are not uncommon?

James T. Hammack.

19. St. Mark's Crescent, Regent's Park.

C. H. quotes some lines said to have been written on a window-shutter of the "Golden Lion," Brecon, when a Mr. Longfellow was proprietor, fifty or sixty years ago:

"Tom Longfellow's name is most justly his due;Long his neck, long his bill, which is very long too;Long the time ere your horse to the stable is led," &c.

"Tom Longfellow's name is most justly his due;

Long his neck, long his bill, which is very long too;

Long the time ere your horse to the stable is led," &c.

These lines remind me of the following passage of the poet Longfellow's in hisHyperion, which, not to speak of a possible plagiarism, has at least a strangefamilyresemblance:

"If you go to Zurich, beware how you stop at 'The Raven.' I wrote in the travellers' book—'Beware of the Raven of Zurich;'Tis a bird of omen ill,With a noisy and an unclean breast,And a very, very long bill.'"If you go to 'The Golden Falken' you will find it there. I am the author of those lines—Longfellow."

"If you go to Zurich, beware how you stop at 'The Raven.' I wrote in the travellers' book—

'Beware of the Raven of Zurich;'Tis a bird of omen ill,With a noisy and an unclean breast,And a very, very long bill.'

'Beware of the Raven of Zurich;

'Tis a bird of omen ill,

With a noisy and an unclean breast,

And a very, very long bill.'

"If you go to 'The Golden Falken' you will find it there. I am the author of those lines—Longfellow."

G. Dymond.

(Vol. ix., pp. 78. 226.)

As the subject is interesting, you will probably permit me to cite a few more examples:—In Geo. Chalmers'Catalogue, "Burnt by the hangman" is appended to a copy of Wm. Thomas'Historie of Italie, 1549; but I do not find this stated elsewhere. The opinions emitted in this work are of a free nature certainly, in respect to the governed and governing powers; but whatever was the fate of his book, I rather think Thomas (who was executed in Mary's reign) suffered for some alleged act of overt treason, and not for publishing seditious books.An Information from the States of the Kingdome of Scotland to the Kingdome of England, showing how they have bin dealt with by His Majesty's Commissioners, 1640: in a proclamation (March 30, 1640) against seditious pamphlets sent from Scotland, this tract was prohibited on account of its containing many most notorious falsehoods, scandals, &c.; it was ordered to be burnt by the common hangman. (Rymer'sFœd., as quoted by Chalmers.)

There is now before me a modern impression of an old cut in two compartments: the upper representing the demolition of the "Crosse in Cheapeside on the 2nd May, 1643;" and the lower a goodly gathering of the public around a bonfire, viewing, with apparent satisfaction, the committal of a book to the flames by the common executioner, with this inscription:

"10th May, the Boocke of Spartes vpon the Lord's Day, was burnt by the hangman in the place where the Crosse stoode, and at (the) Exchange."

That great lover of sights, Master Pepys, notices one of these exhibitions:

"1661, 28th May, with Mr. Shipley," says our gossip, "to the Exchange about business; and there, by Mr. Rawlinson's favour, got into a balcone over against the Exchange, and there saw the hangman burn, by vote of Parliament, two old acts: the one for constituting us a Commonwealth, and the other I have forgot; which still do make me think of the greatness of this late turne, and what people will do to-morrow against what they all, thro' profit or fear, did promise and practise this day."

A note to this passage in theDiary(vol. i. p. 236., 3rd edit.) supplies the defective memory of Pepys, by informing us that the last was an "Act for subscribing the Engagement;" and adds, on the same day there had been burnt by the hangman, at Westminster Hall, the "Act for erecting a High Court of Justice for trying and judging Charles Stuart." They seem to have been just then cleansing out the Augean stable of the Commonwealth: for it is added, "two more acts" were similarly burnt next day.

InA Letter to a Clergyman, relating to his Sermon on the 30th Jan., by a Lover of Truth, 1746, the lay author (one Coade, I believe), inveighing against high churchmen, reminds the preacher that he—

"Was pleased to dress up the principles of the Presbyterians in a frightful shape; but let me tell you, Sir, in my turn, that the principles of your party have been burnt, not by a rude and lawless rabble, but by the common hangman, in broad day-light, before the Royal Exchange in London, and by authority of Parliament. Perhaps," he continues, "you never heard of this contemptuous treatment of the Oxford principles, and therefore I will give it you from the Parliamentary Records:—'Anno Domini 1710. The House of Lords, taking into consideration the judgment and decree of the University of Oxford, passed in their Convocation July 21, 1683,—it was resolved by the Lords Spiritual and Temporal in Parliament assembled, that the said judgment and decree contains in it several positions contrary to the Constitution of this kingdom, and destructive to the Protestant Succession as by law established. And it was thereupon ordered, by the Lords Spiritual and Temporal in Parliament assembled, that the said judgment and decree shall be burnt by the hands of the common hangman before the RoyalExchange, between hours of twelve and one, on Monday the 17th March, in the presence of the Lord Mayor of the City of London,' &c."

Doleman'sConference about the next Succession to the Crown of England, reprinted at N. with licence, in 1681, was, in 1683, condemned by the University of Oxford, and burnt by the common hangman.

In the above examples I have confined myself to those books, &c. only which were expressly consigned to the flames by the hangman. The instances of book-burning where this indignity was either not imposed, or its infliction not recorded, are numerous. Among the curiosities of literature of Elizabeth's reign, were certain books ascribed to a Dutchman, by name Henry Nicholas, translated into English, and probably imported from the Low Countries. This person, imbibing the "damnable heresies" of David George, of Leyden, became the apostle of a sect who styled themselves "The Family of Love," and their fanatical books becoming obnoxious to the dominant party, they were, by proclamation, ordered to be burnt; and, as such manifestations of the royal will usually ran, all persons were held punishable for having them in their possession. (See Herbert'sAmes.) As an example of the spiritual power thus dealing with a book, apparently upon its own authority, the following may be offered:—Servetus de Trinitate, &c.(London, 1723.) This edition, which is without name of place or printer, and without date, was printed by Palmer for Osborne the bookseller; but, as soon as completed was seized at the instance of Dr. Gibson, Bishop of London, and burnt, with the exception of a very few copies. (Davis'Journey round the Library, &c.) The last unfortunate book I shall mention is theMetrical Psalmsof Dod; which was also, most likely, an episcopal seizure. Mr. Holland, in hisPsalmists of Britain, quoting from George Withers'Scholler's Purgatory, says, "Dod the silkman's late ridiculous translation of the Psalms was, by authority, worthily condemned to the fire," and, judging from its extreme scarcity, I should say very few escaped.

J. O.

I have not seen in your list of martyred books the following, in the yearA.D.1684:A Plea for the Nonconformists, by Thomas De Laune, Gentleman. He died in Newgate, during his imprisonment for the book, in pursuance of the following sentence:

"Ad General. Quartercal. Session. Pacis Dom. Regis tent. pro Civitat. London per adjornament, apud Justice-hall in le Old Bayly, die Mercurii Scil. Decimo Sexto die January, Anno Regis Caroli Secundi cundi nunc Ang. &c."Thomas De Laune Convict. pro illicite Scribend. Imprimend. et Publicand. Libel. Seditios. dert. concernen. librum Communis præcationis. Fin. 100 Marc. Et committit, etc.! Et ulterius quousq; Inven. bon. de se bene gerend. per spacium Unius Anni Integri ex tunc prox. sequen. Et quad libel. sedit. cum igne Combust. sint apud Excambium Regal. in London, et si Del. Sol. 5 shil.Wagstaffe."

"Thomas De Laune Convict. pro illicite Scribend. Imprimend. et Publicand. Libel. Seditios. dert. concernen. librum Communis præcationis. Fin. 100 Marc. Et committit, etc.! Et ulterius quousq; Inven. bon. de se bene gerend. per spacium Unius Anni Integri ex tunc prox. sequen. Et quad libel. sedit. cum igne Combust. sint apud Excambium Regal. in London, et si Del. Sol. 5 shil.Wagstaffe."

In a letter containing a narrative of his trial and imprisonment, written by him from prison, occur many touches of humour. In his remarks on the sentence he says,—

"The six shillings to be paid on my discharge is to the hangman, for the faggots, I suppose.""The Court told us that, in respect to our education as scholars, we should not be pillory'd, though ('twas said) we deserved it.... We were sent back to our confinement, andthe next execution-dayour books were burntWITH FIRE(not with water, you must note), and we continue here; but, since I writ this, Mr. Ralphson had a supersedeas bydeathto abetter place!"

"The six shillings to be paid on my discharge is to the hangman, for the faggots, I suppose."

"The Court told us that, in respect to our education as scholars, we should not be pillory'd, though ('twas said) we deserved it.... We were sent back to our confinement, andthe next execution-dayour books were burntWITH FIRE(not with water, you must note), and we continue here; but, since I writ this, Mr. Ralphson had a supersedeas bydeathto abetter place!"

In his account he affirms that, on his own confession of being the author ofThe Plea, and because he could find no bail, he was committed to Newgate—

"Lodged among the felons, whose horrid company made a perfect representation of that horrible place which you describe when you mention hell. A hard bench was my bed, and two bricks my pillow. But after two days and nights,without any refreshment, the unusualness of that society and place having impaired my health, which at the very best is tender, and crazy, I was removed, and am now in the press-yard, aplace of some sobriety, though still a prisonubi nihil amabile est!"

Twenty years after, 1704, his Plea was republished, with his narrative, by one of his fellow-prisoners, who had been released, and who calls it "an elaborate piece"! He adds, that De Laune, being unable to pay

"the seventy-five pound, his children, his wife, and himself were imprison'd, andalldy'd in New-gate; of which myself was an eye-witness, and a companion with him for the same cause in the same prison, where I continued above a year after his death."

E. F. Woodman.

P. S.—Query, What is the meaning, in the foregoing, of the expression "at the next execution-day"? Have we any instance on record of the execution of a malefactor in front of the Royal Exchange? and, if not, did the hangman come from Newgate, after "doing duty" there, and burn the book at the Exchange?

In 1611 the books of Conrad Vorstius were publicly burnt in St. Paul's Churchyard and both the universities by the king's order. (Wilson'sLife and Reign of James I., p. 120.)

On Sunday, November 21, 1613, the books of Francis Suarez, the Spanish Jesuit, were publicly burnt at St. Paul's Cross. (Court and Times of James I., vol. i. pp. 279, 280.)

C. H. Cooper.

Cambridge.

(Vol. ix., p. 272.)

With respect to the wines called Sacks, much diversity of opinion has prevailed, and although the question has been frequently discussed, it still remains, in a great measure, undetermined. It seems admitted, on all hands, that the termsackwas originally applied to certain growths of Spain. In a MS. account of the disbursements by the chamberlain of the city of Worcester for 1592, Dr. Percy found the ancient mode of spelling to beseck, and thence concluded that sack is a corruption ofsec, signifying a dry wine. Moreover, in the French version of a proclamation for regulating the prices of wines, issued by the privy Council in 1633, the expressionvins secscorresponds with the wordsacksin the original. The termsecis still used as a substantive by the French to denote a Spanish wine; and the dry wine of Xerez is known at the place of its growth by the name ofvino seco. The foregoing account is abridged fromThe History of Ancient and Modern Wines, by Alex. Henderson, Lond. 1824. The following is taken from Cyrus Redding'sHistory of Modern Wines, Lond. 1833:

"In the early voyages to these islands (the Canaries), quoted in Ashley's collection, there is a passage relative to sack, which will puzzle wise heads about that wine. It is under the head of 'Nicols' Voyage.' Nicols lived eight years in the islands. The island of Teneriffe produces three sorts of wine, Canary, Malvasia, and Verdona, 'which may all go under the denomination of sack.' The term then was applied neither to sweet nor dry wines exclusively, but to Canary, Xeres (i. e.sherry), or Malaga generally. In Anglo-Spanish dictionaries of a century and a quarter old, sack is given asVino de Canarias. Hence it was Canary sack, Xeres sack, or Malaga sack."

Ἁλιεύς.

Dublin.

In reply to your correspondent, I believe sack to be nothing butvino secco, dry wine, probably identical with sherry or madeira. I once, when an undergraduate at Oxford, ordered a dozen from a travelling agent to a London wine merchant, probably from Shakspearian associations, and my belief is that what he sold me under that name was an Italian wine of some sort, bearing a good deal of resemblance to thevino panto, of which Perugia is the head-quarters.

B. D.

This is the same wine which is now named sherry. Falstaff calls itsherris sack, and alsosherrisonly, using in fact both names indiscriminately (2Henry IV., Act IV. Sc. 3.). For various commentaries regarding it, see Blount'sGlossographia; Dr. Venner'sVia recta ad Vitam longam, published in 1637; Nares'Glossary, &c. Cotgrave, in hisDictionary, makes sack to be derived fromvin sec, French; and it is calledseckin an article by Bishop Percy, from an old account-book at Worcester, anno Elizbethæ 34.

N. L. J.

(vol. ix., p. 270.)

What has been mistaken by your correspondent for a piece of Irish barbarity, was, until the Act 12 Geo. III. c. 20., the usual punishment awarded by the law to culprits standing mute upon an arraignment of felony (that is, without speaking at all, or without putting himself upon God and the country). The judgment in such case was:

"That the man or woman should be remanded to the prison, and laid there in some low and dark room, where they should lie naked on the bare earth, without any litter, rushes, or other clothing, and without any garment about them, but something to cover their privy parts, and that they should lie upon their backs, their heads uncovered and their feet, and one arm to be drawn to one quarter of the room with a cord, and the other arm to another quarter, and in the same manner to be done with their legs; and there should be laid upon their bodies iron and stone, so much as they might bear, and more; and the next day following, to leave three morsels of barley bread without any drink, and the second day to drink thrice of the water next to the house of the prison (except running water), without any bread; and this to be their diet until they were dead. So as, upon the matter, they should die three manner of ways, by weight, by famine, and by cold. And the reason of this terrible judgment was because they refused to stand to the common law of the land."—2Inst.178, 179.

In the Year-Book of 8 Henry IV. the form of the judgment isfirstgiven. The Marshal of the King's Bench is ordered to put the criminals into "diverses measons bases et estoppes, que ils gisent par la terre touts nuds forsque leurs braces, que ils mettroit sur chascun d'eux tants de fer et poids quils puissent porter et plus," &c., (as above).

It appears also, from Barrington'sObservations on the Statutes, that, until the above-mentioned act, it was usual to torture a prisoner by tying his thumbs tightly together with whipcord in order to extort a plea; and he mentions the following instances where one or more of these barbarous cruelties have been inflicted:

"In 1714 a prisoner's thumbs were thus tied at the same place" (Old Bailey), "who then pleaded; and in January, 1720, William Spigget submitted in the same manner after the thumbs being tiedas usual, and his accomplice, Phillips, was absolutely pressed for a considerable time, till he begged to stand on his trial. In April, 1720, Mary Andrews continued so obstinate, that three whipcords were broken before she would plead. In December, 1721, Nathanael Haws suffered in the same manner by squeezing the thumbs; afterwhich he continued under the press for seven minutes with 250 lbs., and then submitted."

Barrington also says in the text:

"As it is very unusual for criminals to stand mute on their trials in more modern days, and it was not unfrequent, if we go some centuries back in English History, it may not be improper to observe, that the occasion of its being then more common, was to prevent forfeitures, and involving perhaps innocent children in their parents' guilt. These forfeitures only accrued upon judgment oflife and limb, and, to the disgrace of the crown, were too frequently levied with the utmost rigour. The sentence, however, hath continued to be put into execution till the late Act of Parliament (12 Geo. III. c. 20.) properly abolished it."

He mentions two other cases, one of which happened at the Sussex assizes, under Baron Thompson, and the other at Cambridge, in 1741, when Baron Carter was the judge. I do not think there are any more modern instances than these, for they are the only ones cited by counsel in General Picton's case, in justification of inflicting torture on a prisoner. (State Trials, vol. xxx.) The Marquis Beccaria, in an exquisite piece of raillery, has proposed this problem with a gravity and precision truly mathematical:

"The force of the muscles and the sensibility of the nerves of an innocent person being given, it is required to find the degree of pain necessary to make himself guilty of a given crime."—1 Bl. Com. 327. n.

A prisoner standing mute at the present day would be sentenced to undergo the punishment that would be awarded to him, if found guilty of the crime laid to his charge.

Investigator.

Manchester, April 4, 1854.

Blackstone (book iv. chap. 25.) speaks of the cases in which punishment of "peine forte et dure" was inflicted according to the ancient law. It would occupy too great space to quote what he says on this point, and, therefore I must refer your correspondent to his work itself, where he will also find an inquiry into its origin. The punishment is described almost in the words of your correspondent's quotation; thus:

"That the prisoner be remanded to the prison from whence he came, and be put into a low, dark chamber; and there be laid on his back, on the bare floor, naked, unless where decency forbids, that there be placed upon his body as great a weight of iron as he could bear, and more; that he have no sustenance, save only, on the first day, three morsels of the worst bread, and, on the second day, three draughts of standing water, that should be nearest to the prison door; and in this situation this should be alternately his daily diet,till he died, or (as anciently the judgment ran) till he answered."

Blackstone farther intimates that this punishment was abolished by statute 12 Geo. III. c. 20., which shows, of course, that it continued to be according to law for more than thirty years after the date mentioned byAbhba.

R. O.

The punishment, or more properly torture, alluded to byAbhba, was the "peine forte et dure," commonly applied in the early part of the last century to such criminals as refused to plead. Many died under it in order to save their estates, &c. from forfeiture to the crowns. In my forthcoming anecdotes of "The Eighteenth Century," several cases are cited from the newspapers of the time; but, as the MS. is now in the printer's hands, I cannot refer to them. Writing from memory, I think that the last case in which this torture was applied at the Old Bailey in London was in 1735, and reported in theLondon Magazineof that year. The "Press-yard" at Newgate derives its name from being the scene of these tortures.

Alexander Andrews.

(Vol. ix., p. 303.)

Perhaps the best mode in which I can comply withMr. C. Mansfield Ingleby'srequest, is to send for insertion in the "N. & Q." my MS. note on the text in question:

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