REPLIES

"They speak the tongue that Shakspeare spoke,The faith and morals hold that Milton held," &c.?

"They speak the tongue that Shakspeare spoke,

The faith and morals hold that Milton held," &c.?

and was it applied to the early settlers of New England?

Genealogical Queries.—Can any of your genealogical readers oblige me with replies to the following Queries?

1. To what family do the following arms belong? They are given in Blomfield'sNorfolk(ix. 413.) as impaled with the coat of William Donne, Esq., of Letheringsett, Norfolk, on his tomb in the church there. He died in 1684.

On a chevron engrailed, two lioncels rampant, between as many crescents.

Not having seen the stone, I cannot say whether Blomfield has blazoned it correctly; but it seems possible he may havemeantto say,—

On a chevron engrailed, between two crescents, as many lioncels rampant.

2.WhichSir Philip Courtenay, of Powderham, was the father of Margaret Courtenay, who, in the fifteenth century, married Sir Robert Carey, Knt.? and who was her mother?

3. Where can I find a pedigree of the family of Robertson ofMuirtown, said to be descended fromJohn, second son of Alexander Robertson, ofStrowan, by his second wife, Lady Elizabeth Stewart, daughter of John, Earl of Athol, brother of King James II.? which John is omitted in the pedigree of the Strowan family, in Burke'sLanded Gentry.

C.R.M.

Parson, the Staffordshire Giant.—Harwood, in a note to his edition of Erdeswick'sStaffordshire, p. 289., says,—

"This place [Westbromwich] gave birth toWilliamParsons, [query Walter,] the gigantic porter of KingJames I.,whose picture was at Whitehall; and a bas-relief of him, with Jeffry Hudson the dwarf, was fixed in the front of a house near the end of a bagnio court, Newgate-street, probably as a sign."

Plot, in hisNatural History of Staffordshire, gives some instances of the great strength of Parsons.

I shall feel much obliged if you or your readers will inform me, 1. Whether there is any mention of Parsons in contemporary, or other works? 2. Whether the portrait is in existence? if so, where? Has it been engraved?

C.H.B.

Westbromwich.

Unicorn in the Royal Arms.—When and why was the fabulous animal called the unicorn first used as a supporter for the royal arms of England?

E.C.

The Frog and the Crow of Ennow.—I should be glad to get an answer to the following Query from some one of your readers:—I remember some few old lines of a song I used to hear sung many years ago, and wish to learn anything as regards its date, authorship,—indeed, any particulars, and where I shall be likely to find it at length. What I remember is,—

"There was a little frog, lived in the river swim-o,And there was an old crow lived in the wood of Ennow,Come on shore, come on shore, said the crow to the frog again-o;Thank you, sir, thank you, sir, said the frog to the crow of Ennow,...But there is sweet music under yonder green willow,And there are the dancers, the dancers, in yellow."

"There was a little frog, lived in the river swim-o,

And there was an old crow lived in the wood of Ennow,

Come on shore, come on shore, said the crow to the frog again-o;

Thank you, sir, thank you, sir, said the frog to the crow of Ennow,

...

But there is sweet music under yonder green willow,And there are the dancers, the dancers, in yellow."

But there is sweet music under yonder green willow,

And there are the dancers, the dancers, in yellow."

"She ne'er with treacherous Kiss."—Can any of your readers inform me where the following lines are to be found?

"She ne'er with treacherous kiss her Saviour stung,Nor e'er denied Him with unholy tongue;She, when Apostles shrank, could danger brave—Last at His cross, and earliest at His grave!"

"She ne'er with treacherous kiss her Saviour stung,

Nor e'er denied Him with unholy tongue;

She, when Apostles shrank, could danger brave—

Last at His cross, and earliest at His grave!"

C.A.H.

"Incidit in Scyllam" (Vol. ii., p. 85.).—

"Incidit in Scyllam, cupiens vitare Charybdim;Sie morbum fugiens, incidit in medicos."

"Incidit in Scyllam, cupiens vitare Charybdim;

Sie morbum fugiens, incidit in medicos."

Has any of your readers met with, or heard of the second short line, appendant and appurtenant to the first? I think it was Lord Grenville who quoted them as found somewhere together.

FORTUNATUS DWARRIS.

Nicholas Brigham's Works.—Nicholas Brigham, who erected the costly tomb in Poets' Corner to the memory of Geoffrey Chaucer (which it is now proposed to repair by a subscription of five shillings from the admirers of the poet), is said to have written, besides certain miscellaneous poems,Memoirs by way of Diary, in twelve Books; and a treatiseDe Venationibus Rerum Memorabilium. Can any of the readers of "NOTES AND QUERIES" state whether any of these, the titles of which are certainly calculated to excite our curiosity, are known to be in existence, and, if so, where? It is presumed that they have never been printed.

PHILO-CHAUCER.

Ciric-Sceat, or Church-scot.—Can any of your readers explain the following passage from Canute's Letter to the Archbishops, &c. of England, A.D. 1031. (Wilkins Conc.t. i. p. 298):—

"Et in festivitate Sancti Martini primitæ seminum ad ecclesiam, sub cujus parochia quisque degit, quæ AngliceCure scetnominatur."

J.B.

[If our correspondent refers to the glossary in the second vol. of Mr. Thorpe's admirable edition of theAnglo-Saxon Laws, which he edited for the Record Commission under the title ofAncient Laws and Institutes of England, he will find s.v. "Ciric-Sceat—Primitiæ Seminumchurch-scot or shot, an ecclesiastical due payable on the day of St. Martin, consisting chiefly of corn;" a satisfactory answer to his Query, and a reference to this very passage from Canute.]

Welsh Language.—Perhaps some of your correspondents would favour me with a list of the best books treating on the Welsh literature and language; specifying the best grammar and dictionary.

JARLTZBERG.

Armenian Language.—This copious and widely-circulated language is known to but few in this country. If this meets the eye of one who is acquainted with it, will he kindly direct me whither I may find notices of it and its literature? Father Aucher'sGrammar, Armenian and English(Venice, 1819), is rather meagre in its details. I have heard it stated, I know not on what authority, that Lord Byron composed the English part of this grammar. This grammar contains the two Apocryphal Epistles found in the Armenian Bible, of the Corinthians to St. Paul, and St. Paul to the Corinthians. Like the Greek and German, "the different modes of producing compound epithets and words are the treasure and ornament of the Armenian language; a thousand varieties of compounded words may be made in this tongue," p. 10. I believe we have no other grammar of this language in English.

JARLTZBERG

My attention has recently been drawn to the inquiry of J.M. (Vol. i., p. 260.) respecting the work bearing this name. He inquires, "Was the book ever extant in MS. or print? What is its size, date, and extent?" These questions may in part be answered by the following extracts from Parsons'sTreatise tending to Mitigation, 1607, towhich J.M. refers as containing, "perhaps, all the substance of the Roman equivocation," &c. It appears from these extracts that the treatise was circulated in MS.; that it consisted of ten chapters, and was on eight or nine sheets of paper. If Parsons' statements are true, he, who was then at Douay, or elsewhere out of England, had not seen it till three years after it was referred to publicly by Sir E. Coke, in 1604. Should the description aid in discovering the tract in any library, it may in answering J.M.'s second Query, "Is it now extant, and where?"

(Cap. i. § iii. p. 440.):—

"To hasten then to the matter, I am first to admonish the reader, that whereas this minister doth take upon him to confute a certain Catholicke manuscript Treatise, made in defence of Equivocation, and intercepted (as it seemeth) by them, I could never yet come to the sight therof, and therfore must admit," &c.

And (p 44):—

"This Catholicke Treatise, which I have hope to see ere it be long, and if it come in time, I may chance by some appendix, to give you more notice of the particulars."

In the conclusion (cap. xiii. §ix. p. 553.):—

"And now at this very instant having written hitherto, cometh to my handes the Catholicke Treatise itselfe ofEquivocationbefore meneyoned," &c.... "Albeit the whole Treatise itselfe be not large, nor conteyneth above 8 or 9 sheetes of written paper."

And (§ xi. p. 554.):—

"Of ten chapters he omitteth three without mention."

I.B.

I have too much respect for the readers of "NOTES AND QUERIES" to consider it necessary to point outseriatimthe false conclusions arrived at by MR. HICKSON, at page 81.

The origin of "news" may now be safely left to itself, one thing at least being certain—that the original purpose of introducing the subject, that of disproving its alleged derivation from the points of the compass, is fully attained. No person has come forward to defendthatderivation, and therefore I hope that the credit of expunging such a fallacy from books of reference will hereafter be due to "NOTES AND QUERIES".

I cannot avoid, however, calling Mr. Hickson's attention to one or two of the most glaring of hisnon-sequiturs.

I quoted the Cardinal of York to show that in his day the word "newes" was considered plural. MR. HICKSON quotesmeto show that in the present day it is used in the singular; therefore, he thinks that the Cardinal of York was wrong: but he must pardon me if I still consider the Cardinal an unexceptional authority as to the usage of his own time.

MR. HICKSON asserts that "odds" is not an English word; he classifies it as belonging to a language known by the term "slang," of which he declares his utter disuse. And he thinks that when used at all, the word is but an ellipsis for "odd chances." This was not the opinion of the great English lexicographer, who describes the word as—

"Odds; a noun substantive, from the adjective odd."

and he defines its meaning as "inequality," or incommensurateness. He cites many examples of its use in its various significations, with any of which MR. HICKSON's substitution would play strange pranks; here is one from Milton:—

"I chiefly who enjoySo far the happier lot, enjoying theePre-eminent by so much odds."

"I chiefly who enjoy

So far the happier lot, enjoying thee

Pre-eminent by so much odds."

Then with respect to "noise," MR. HICKSON scouts the idea of its being the same word with the French "noise." Here again he is at odds with Doctor Johnson, although I doubt very much that he has the odds of him. MR. HICKSON rejects altogether thequasimode of derivation, nor will he allow that the same word may (even in different languages) deviate from its original meaning. But, most unfortunately for MR. HICKSON, the obsolete French signification of "noise" was precisely the present English one! A French writer thus refers to it:—

"A une époque plus reculée ce mot avait un sens différent: il signifiaitbruit, cries de joie, &c. Joinville dit dans sonHistoire de Louis IX.,—'La noise que ils (les Sarrazins) menoient de leurs cors sarrazinnoiz estoit espouvantable à escouter.' Les Anglais nous ont emprunté cette expression et l'emploientdans sa première acception."

MR. HICKSON also lays great stress upon the absence, in English, of "the new" as a singular of "the news." In the French, however, "la nouvelle" is common enough in the exact sense of news. Will he allow nothing for the caprice of idiom?

A.E.B.

Leeds, July 8. 1850.

News, Noise(Vol. ii., p. 82.).—I think it will be found that MR. HICKSON is misinformed as to the fact of the employment of the Norman French wordnoise, in the French sense, in England.

Noyse,noixe,noas, ornoase, (for I have met with each form), meant then quarrel, dispute, or, as a school-boy would say, a row. It was derived fromnoxia. Several authorities agree in these points. In theHistoire de Foulques Fitz-warin, Fouque asks "Quei fustla noyseqe fust devaunt le roi en la sale?" which with regard to the context can only be fairly translated by "What is going on inthe King's hall?" For his respondent recounts to him the history of a quarrel, concerning which messengers had just arrived with a challenge.

Whether the Norman wordnoasacquired in time a wider range of signification, and became the Englishnews, I cannot say but stranger changes have occurred. Under our Norman kingsbaconssignified dried wood, andhosebaundea husbandman, then a term of contempt.

B.W.

1.News.—I regret that MR. HICKSON perseveres in his extravagant notion aboutnews, and that the learning and ingenuity which your correspondent P.C.S.S., I have no doubt justly, gives him credit for, should be so unworthily employed.

Does MR. HICKSON really "very much doubt whether our wordnewscontains the idea ofnewat all?" What then has it got to do withneues?

Does MR. HICKSON'S mind, "in its ordinary mechanical action," really think that the entry of "old newes, or stale newes" in an old dictionary is any proof ofnewshaving nothing to do withnew? Does he then separatehealthfromhealandhale, because we speak of "bad health" and "ill health"?

Will MR. HICKSON explain whynewsmay not be treated as an elliptical expression fornew things, as well asgreensforgreen vegetables, andoddsforodd chances?

When MR. HICKSON saysdogmaticè, "For the adoption of words we have no rule, and we act just as our convenience or necessity dictates; but in their formation wemust strictlyconform to the laws we find established,"—does he deliberately mean to say that there are no exceptions and anomalies in the formation of language, except importations of foreign words? If he means this, I should like to hear some reasons for this wonderful simplification of grammar.

Why may not "convenience or necessity" sometimes lead us to swerve from the ordinary rules of the formulation of language, as well as to import words bodily, and, according to MR. HICKSON'S views of the origin ofnews, without reference to context, meaning, part of speech, or anything else?

Why may we not have the liberty of forming a plural nounnewsfrom the adjectivenew, though we have never used the singularnewas a noun, when the French have indulged themselves with the plural noun of adjective formation,les nouvelles, without feeling themselves compelled to makeune nouvellea part of their language?

Why may we not form a plural nounnewsfromnew, to express the same idea which in Latin is expressed bynova, and in French byles nouvelles?

Why may not goods be a plural noun formed from the adjectivegood, exactly as the Romans formedbonaand the Germans have formedGüter?

Why does MR. HICKSON compel us to treat goods as singular, and make us go back to the Gothic? Does he say thatdie Güter, the German forgoodsorpossessions, is singular? Why too must riches be singular, and be the French wordrichesseimported into our language? Why may we not have a plural nounriches, as the Romans haddivitæ, and the Germans havedie Reichthumer? and what ifrichesbe irregularly formed from the adjectiverich? Are there, MR. HICKSON, no irregularities in the formation of a language? Is this really so?

If "from convenience or necessity" words are and may be imported from foreign languages bodily into our own, why might not our forefathers, feeling the convenience or necessity of having words corresponding tobona,nova,divitiæ, have formedgoods,news,riches, fromgood,new,rich?

Newsmust be singular, says MR. HICKSON; butmeans"is beyond all dispute plural," for Shakspeare talks of "a mean:" withnews, however, there is the slight difficulty of the absence of the nounnewto start from. Why is the absence of the singular an insuperable difficulty in the way of the formation of a plural noun from an adjective, any more than of plural nouns otherwise formed, which have no singulars, asclothes,measles,alms, &c. What says MR. HICKSON of these words? Are they all singular nouns and imported from other languages? for he admits no other irregularity in the formation of a language.

2.Noise.—I agree with MR. HICKSON that the old derivations ofnoiseare unsatisfactory, but I continue to think his monstrous. I fear we cannot decide in your columns which of us has the right German pronunciation ofneues; and I am sorry to find that you, Mr. Editor, are with MR. HICKSON in giving to the Germaneuthe exact sound ofoiinnoise. I remain unconvinced, and shall continue to pronounce theeuwith less fullness thanoiinnoise. However, this is a small matter, and I am quite content with MR. HICKSON to waive it. The derivation appears to me nonsensical, and I cannot but think would appear so to any one who was not bitten by a fancy.

I do not profess, as I said before, to give the root ofnoise. But it is probably the same as ofnoisome,annoy,the Frenchnuire, Latinnocere, which brings us again tonoxa; and the French wordnoisehas probably the same root, though its specific meaning is different from that of our wordnoise. Without venturing to assert it dogmatically, I should expect the now usual meaning ofnoiseto be its primary meaning, viz. "a loud sound" or "disturbance;" and this accords with my notion of its alliances. The French wordbruithas both the meanings of our wordnoise; andto bruitandto noiseare with us interchangeable terms. The Frenchbruitalso has the sense ofa disturbancemore definitely than our wordnoise. "Il y a du bruit" means "There is a row."I mentionbruitand its meanings merely as a parallel case tonoise, if it be, as I think, that "a loud sound" is its primary, and "a rumour" its secondary meaning.

I have no doubt there are many instances, and old ones, among our poets, and prose writers too, of the use of the nounannoy. I only remember at present Mr. Wordsworth's—

"There, at Blencatharn's rugged feet,Sir Lancelot gave a safe retreatTo noble Clifford; from annoyConcealed the persecuted boy."

"There, at Blencatharn's rugged feet,

Sir Lancelot gave a safe retreat

To noble Clifford; from annoy

Concealed the persecuted boy."

3.Parliament.—FRANCISCUS's etymology of Parliament (Vol. ii., p. 85.) is, I think, fit companion for MR. HICKSON's derivations ofnewsandnoise. I take FRANCISCUS for a wag: but lest others of your readers may think him serious, and be seduced into a foolish explanation of the wordParliamentby his joke, I hope you will allow me to mention thatpalam mente, literally translated, meansbefore the mind, and that, if FRANCISCUS or any one else tries to get "freedom of thought or deliberation" out of this, or to get Parliament out of it, or even to get sense out of it, he will only follow the fortune which FRANCISCUS says has befallen all his predecessors, and stumblein limine. The presence ofr, and the turning ofmensintomentum, are minor difficulties. If FRANCISCUS be not a wag, he is perhaps an anti-ballot man, bent on finding an argument against the ballot in the etymology ofParliament: but whatever he be, I trust your readers generally will remain content with the old though humble explanation ofparliament, that it is a modern Latinisation of the French wordparlement, and that it literally means a talk-shop, and has nothing to do with open or secret voting, though it be doubtless true that Roman judges votedclam vel palam, and thatpalamandmensare two Latin words.

C.H.

"Delighted" (Vol. ii., p. 113.).—I incline to think that the worddelightedin Shakspeare represents the Latin participledelectus(fromdeligere), "select, choice, exquisite, refined." This sense will suit all the passages cited by MR. HICKSON, and particularly the last. If this be so, the suggested derivations from the adjectivelight, and from the substantivelight, fall to the ground: but MR. HICKSON will have been right in distinguishing Shakspeare'sdelightedfrom the participle of the usual verbto delight, delectare=gratify. The roots of the two are distinct: that of the former beingleg-ere"to choose;" of the latter,lac-ere"to tice."

B.H. KENNEDY.

Meaning of the Word "Delighted."—I am not the only one of your readers who have read with deep interest the important contributions of MR. HICKSON, and who hope for further remarks on Shakspearian difficulties from the same pen. His papers on theTaming of the Shrewwere of special value; and although I do not quite agree with all he has said on the subject, there can be no doubt of the great utility of permitting the discussion of questions of the kind in such able hands.

Perhaps you would kindly allow me to say thus much; for the remembrance of the papers just alluded to renders a necessary protest against that gentleman's observations on the meaning of the worddelightedsomewhat gentler. I happen to be one of the unfortunates (a circumstance unknown to MR. HICKSON, for the work in which my remarks on the passage are contained is not yet published) who have indulged in what he terms the "cool impertinence" of explainingdelighted, in the celebrated passage inMeasure for Measure, by "delightful, sweet, pleasant;" and the explanation appears to me to be so obviously correct, that I am surprised beyond measure at the terms he applies to those who have adopted it.

But MR. HICKSON says,—

"I pass by the nonsense that the greatest master of the English language did not heed the distinction between the past and the present participles, as not worth second thought."

I trust I am not trespassing on courtesy when I express a fear that a sentence like this exhibits the writer's entire want of acquaintance with the grammatical system employed by the great poet and the writers of his age. We must not judge Shakspeare's grammar by Cobbett or Murray, but by the vernacular language of his own times. It is perfectly well known that Shakspeare constantly uses the passive for the active participle, in the same manner that he uses the present tense for the passive participle, and commits numerous other offences against correct grammar, judging by the modern standard. If MR. HICKSON will read the first folio, he will find that the "greatest master of the English language" uses plural nouns for singular, the plural substantive with the singular verb, and the singular substantive with the plural verb. In fact, so numerous are these instances, modern editors have been continually compelled to alter the original merely in deference to the ears of modern readers. They have not altereddelightedtodelightful; but the meaning is beyond a doubt. "Example is better than precept," and perhaps, if MR. HICKSON will have the kindness to consult the following passages with attention, he may be inclined to arrive at the conclusion, it is not so very dark an offence to assert that Shakspeare did use the passive participle for the active; not in ignorance, but because it was an ordinary practice in the literary compositions of his age.

"To yourprofessedbosoms I commit him."King Lear, Act i. Sc. 1."I met the youthful lord at Laurence' cell,And gave him whatbecomedlove I might.Not stepping o'er the bounds of modesty."Romeo and Juliet, Act iv. Sc. 3."Thus ornament is but theguiledshoreTo a most dangerous sea."Merchant of Venice, Act iii. Sc. 2."Then, in despite ofbroodedwatchful day,I would into thy bosom pour my thoughts."King John, Act iii. Sc. 3."And careful hours, with time'sdeformedhand,Have written strange defeatures in my face."Comedy of Errors, Act v. Sc. 1.

"To yourprofessedbosoms I commit him."

King Lear, Act i. Sc. 1.

"I met the youthful lord at Laurence' cell,And gave him whatbecomedlove I might.Not stepping o'er the bounds of modesty."

"I met the youthful lord at Laurence' cell,

And gave him whatbecomedlove I might.

Not stepping o'er the bounds of modesty."

Romeo and Juliet, Act iv. Sc. 3.

"Thus ornament is but theguiledshoreTo a most dangerous sea."

"Thus ornament is but theguiledshore

To a most dangerous sea."

Merchant of Venice, Act iii. Sc. 2.

"Then, in despite ofbroodedwatchful day,I would into thy bosom pour my thoughts."

"Then, in despite ofbroodedwatchful day,

I would into thy bosom pour my thoughts."

King John, Act iii. Sc. 3.

"And careful hours, with time'sdeformedhand,Have written strange defeatures in my face."

"And careful hours, with time'sdeformedhand,

Have written strange defeatures in my face."

Comedy of Errors, Act v. Sc. 1.

In all these passages, as well as in that inMeasure for Measure, the simple remark, that the poet employed a common grammatical variation, is all that is required for a complete explanation.

J.O. HALLIWELL.

Execution of Charles I.—Sir T. Herbert's "Memoir of Charles I." (Vol. ii. pp., 72. 110.).—Is P.S.W.E. aware that Mr. Hunter gives a tradition, in hisHistory of Hallamshire, that a certain William Walker, who died in 1700, and to whose memory there was an inscribed brass plate in the parish church of Sheffield, was the executioner of Charles I.? The man obtained this reputation from having retired from political life at the Restoration, to his native village, Darnall, near Sheffield, where he is said to have made death-bed disclosures, avowing that he beheaded the King. The tradition has been supported, perhaps suggested, by the name of Walker having occurred during the trials of some of the regicides, as that of the real executioner.

Can any one tell me whether a narrative of the last days of Charles I., and of his conduct on the scaffold, by Sir Thomas Herbert, has ever been published in full? It is often quoted and referred to (see "NOTES AND QUERIES," Vol. i., p. 436.), but the owner of the MS., with whom I am well acquainted, informs me that it has never been submitted to publication, but that some extracts have been secretly obtained. In what book are these printed? The same house which contains Herbert's MS. (a former owner of it married Herbert's widow), holds also the stool on which King Charles knelt at his execution, the shirt in which he slept the night before, and other precious relics of the same unfortunate personage.

ALFRED GATTY.

Ecclesfield, July 11. 1850.

Execution of Charles I.(Vol. ii., p 72.).—In Ellis'sLetters illustrative of English HistorySecond Series, vol. iii. p. 340-41., P.S.W.E. will find the answer to his inquiry. Absolute certainty is perhaps unattainable on the subject; but no mention occurs of the Earl of Stair, nor is it probable that any one of patrician rank would be retained as the operator on such an occasion. We need hardly question that Richard Brandon was the executioner. Will P.S.W.E. give his authority for the "report" to which he refers?

MATFELONENSIS.

Simon of Ghent(Vol. ii., p. 56.).—"Simon Gandavensis, patria Londinensis, sed patre Flandro Gandavensi natus, a. 1297. Episcopus Sarisburiensis."—Fabric.Bibl. Med. et Infint. Latin., lib. xviii. p. 532.

Chevalier de Cailly(Vol. ii., p. 101.)—Mr. De St. Croix will find an account of the Chevalier Jacque de Cailly, who died in 1673, in theBiographie Universelle; or a more complete one in Goujet (Bibliothèque Françoise, t. xvii. p. 320.).

S.W.S.

Collar of Esses(Vol. ii., pp. 89. 110.).—The question of B. has been already partly answered in an obliging manner by [Greek: ph]., who has referred to my papers on the Collar of Esses and other Collars of Livery, published a few years ago in theGentleman's Magazine. Permit me to add that I have such large additional collections on the same subject that the whole will be sufficient to form a small volume, and I intend to arrange them in that shape. As a direct answer to B.'s question—"Is there any list extant of persons who were honoured with that badge?" I may reply, No. Persons were not, in fact, "honoured with the badge," in the sense that persons are now decorated with stars, crosses, or medals; but the livery collar wasassumedby parties holding a certain position. So far as can be ascertained, these were either knights attached to the royal household or service, who wore gold or gilt collars, or esquires in the like position, who wore silver collars. I have made collections for a list of such pictures, effigies, and sepulchral brasses as exhibit livery collars, and shall be thankful for further communications. To [Greek: ph].'s question—"Who are the personsnowprivileged to wear these collars?" I believe the reply must be confined to—the judges, the Lord Mayor of London, the Lord Mayor of Dublin, the kings, and heralds of arms. If any other officers of the royal household still wear the collar of Esses, I shall be glad to be informed.

JOHN GOUGH NICHOLS.

[To the list of persons now privileged to wear such collars given by Mr. Nichols, must be added the Serjeants of Arms, of whose creation by investiture with the Collar of Esses, Pegge has preserved so curious an account in the Fifth Part of hisCurialia.]

Hell paved with good Intentions(Vol. ii., p. 86.).—The history of the phrase which Sir Walter Scott attributed "to a stern old divine," and which J.M.G. moralises upon, and asserts to be a misquotation for "theroadto hell," &c., is this:—Boswell,in hisLife of Johnson(sub15th April, 1775), says that Johnson, in allusion to the unhappy failure of pious resolves, said to an acquaintance, "Sir, hell is paved with good intentions." Upon which Malone adds a note:

"This is a proverbial saying. 'Hell,' says Herbert, 'is full of good meanings and wishings.'—Jacula Prudentum, p. 11. ed. 1631."

but he does not say where else the proverbial saying is to be found. The last editor, Croker, adds,—

"Johnson's phrase has become so proverbial, that it may seem rather late to ask what it means—why 'paved?' perhaps as making theroadeasy,facilis descensus Averni."

The Plant "Hæmony"(Vol. ii., p. 88.).—I think MR. BASHAM, who asks for a reference to the plant "hæmony", referred to by Milton in hisComus, will find the information which he seeks in the following extract from Henry Lyte's translation of Rembert Dodoen'sHerbal, at page 107, of the edition of 1578. The plant is certainly not called by the name of "hæmony," nor is it described as having prickles on its leaves; but they are plentifully shown in the engraving which accompanies the description.

"Allysson.—The stem of this herbe is right and straight, parting itself at the top into three or foure small branches. The leaves be first round, and after long whitish andrough, or somewhat woolly in handling. It bringeth foorth at the top of the branches littleyellowfloures, and afterward small rough whitish and flat huskes, and almost round fashioned like bucklers, wherein is contained a flat seede almost like to the seed of castell or stocke gilloflers, but greater."Alysson, as Dioscorides writeth, groweth upon rough mountaynes, and is not found in this countrey but in the gardens of some herboristes."The same hanged in the house, or at the gate or entry, keepeth man and beast fromenchantments and witching."

"Alysson, as Dioscorides writeth, groweth upon rough mountaynes, and is not found in this countrey but in the gardens of some herboristes.

"The same hanged in the house, or at the gate or entry, keepeth man and beast fromenchantments and witching."

K.P.D.E.

As a "Note" to DR. BASHAM'S "Query", I would quote Ovid'sMetamorph., lib vii. l. 264-5.:

"Illic Hæmoniá radices valle resectas.Seminaque, et flores, et succos incoquit acres."

"Illic Hæmoniá radices valle resectas.

Seminaque, et flores, et succos incoquit acres."

T.A.

Practice of Scalping amongst the Scythians—Scandinavian Mythology.—In Vol. ii., p. 12., I desired to be informed whether this practice has prevailed amongst any people besides the American Indians. As you have established no rule against an inquirer's replying to his own Query, (though, unfortunately for other inquirers, self-imposed by some of your correspondents) I shall avail myself of your permission, and refer those who are interested in the subject to Herodotus,Melpomene 64, where they will find that the practice of scalping prevailed amongst the Scythians. This coincidence of manners serves greatly to corroborate the hypothesis that America was peopled originally from the northern parts of the old continent. He has recorded also their horrid custom of drinking the blood of their enemies, and making drinking vessels of their skulls, reminding us of the war-song of the savage of Louisiana:—

"I shall devour their (my enemies') hearts, dry their flesh, drink their blood; I shall tear off their scalps, and make cups of their skulls." (Bossu'sTravels.) "Those," says this traveller through Louisiana, "who think the Tartars have chiefly furnished America with inhabitants, seem to have hit the true opinion; you cannot believe how great the resemblance of the Indian manners is to those of the ancient Scythians; it is found in their religious ceremonies, their customs, and in their food. Hornius is full of characteristics that may satisfy your curiosity in this respect, and I desire you to read him."—Vol. i. p. 400.

But the subject of the "Origines Americanæ" is not what I now beg to propose for consideration; it is the tradition-falsifying assertion of Mr. Grenville Pigott, in hisManual of Scandinavian Mythology(as quoted by D'Israeli in theAmenities of English Literature, vol. i. p. 51, 52.), that the custom with which the Scandinavians were long reproached, of drinking out of the skulls of their enemies, has no other foundation than a blunder of Olaus Wormius, who, translating a passage in the death-song of Regner Lodbrog,—

"Soon shall we drink out of the curved trees of the head,"

turned the trees of the head into a skull, and the skull into a hollow cup; whilst the Scald merely alluded to the branching horns, growing as trees from the heads of aninals, that is, the curved horns which formed their drinking cups.

T.J.

Cromwell's Estates.—Magor(Vol. ii., p. 126.).—I have at length procured the following information respectingMagor. It is a parish in the lower division of the hundred of Caldicot, Monmouthshire. Its church, which is dedicated to St. Mary, is in the patronage of the Duke of Beaufort.

SELEUCUS.

"Incidis in Scyllam," &c.(Vol. ii., p. 85.).—MR. C. FORBES says he "should be sorry this fine old proverb should be passed over with no better notice than seems to have been assigned to it in Boswell'sJohnson," and then he quotes some account of it from theGentleman's Magazine. I beg leave to apprise MR. FORBES that there is no notice whatsoever of it in Boswell'sJohnson, though it is introduced (inter alia) in a note ofMr. Malone'sin the later editions of Boswell; but that note contains in substance all that MR. FORBES'S communication repeats. See the latereditions of Boswell, under the date of 30th March, 1783.

Dies Iræ(Vol. ii., p. 72. 105.).—Will you allow me to enter my protest against the terms "extremely beautiful and magnificent," applied by your respectable correspondents to theDies Iræ, which, I confess, I think not deserving any such praise either for its poetry or its piety. The first triplet is the best, though I am not sure that even the merit of that be not itsjingle, in which King David and the Sybil are strangely enough brought together to testify of the day of judgment. Some of the triplets appear to me very poor, and hardly above macaronic Latin.

Fabulous Account of the Lion.—Many thanks to J. EASTWOOD (Vol. i., p. 472.) for his pertinent reply to my Query. The anecdote he refers to is mentioned in theArchæological Journal, vol. i. 1845, p. 174., in a review of the French workVitraux Peints de S. Etienne de Bourges, &c. No reference is given there; but I should fancy Philippe de Thaun gives the fable.

JARLTZBERG.

Caxton's Printing-office(Vol. ii., p. 122.).—The abbot of Westminster who allowed William Caxton to set up his press in the almonry within the abbey of Westminster, was probably John Esteney, who became abbot in the year 1475, and died in 1498. If the date mentioned by Stow for the introduction of printing into England by Caxton, viz. 1471, could be shown to be that in which he commenced his printing at Westminster, Abbot Milling (who resigned the abbacy for the bishopric of Hereford in 1475) would claim the honour of having been his first patron: but the earliest ascertained date for his printing at Westminster is 1477. In theGentleman's Magazinefor April, 1846, I made this remark:

"There can, we think, be no doubt that the device used by Caxton, and afterwards by Wynkyn de Worde, (W. 4.7 C.) was intended for the figures 74, (though Dibdin, p. cxxvii, seems incredulous in the matter), and that its allusion was to the year 1474 which may very probably have been that in which his press was set up in Westminster."

Will the Editor of "NOTES AND QUERIES" now allow me to modify this suggestion? The figures "4" and "7" are interlaced, it is true, but the "4" decidedly precedes the other figure, and is followed by a point (.). I thinly it not improbable that this cypher, therefore, is so far enigmatic, that the figure "4" may stand forfourteen hundred(the century), and that the "7" is intended to read doubled, asseventy-seven. In that case, the device, and such historical evidence as we possess, combine in assigning the year 1477 for the time of the erection of Caxton's press at Westminster, in the time of Abbot Esteney. IfThe Game and Play of the Chessewas printed at Westminster, it would still be 1474. In the paragraph quoted by ARUN (Vol. ii., p. 122.) from Mr. C. Knight'sLife of Caxton, Stow is surely incorrectly charged with naming Abbot Islip in this matter. Islip's name has been introduced by the error of some subsequent writer; and this is perhaps attributable to the extraordinary inadvertence of Dart, the historian of the abbey, who in hisLives of the Abbots of Westminsterhas altogether omitted Esteney,—a circumstance which may have misled any one hastily consulting his book.

JOHN GOUGH NICHOLS

The Fawkes's of York in the Sixteenth Century, including Notices of the Early History of Guye Fawkes, the Gunpowder Plot Conspirator, is the title of a small volume written, it is understood, by a well-known and accomplished antiquary resident in that city. The author has brought together his facts in an agreeable manner, and deserves the rare credit of being content to produce a work commensurate with the extent and interest of his subject.

We learn from our able and well-informed contemporary,The Athenæumthat "one curious fact has already arisen out of the proposal for the restoration of Chaucer's Monument,—which invests with a deeper interest the present undertaking. One of the objections formerly urged against taking steps to restore the perishing memorial of the Father of English Poetry in Poets' Corner was, that it was not really his tomb, but a monument erected to do honour to his memory a century and a half after his death. An examination, however, of the tomb itself by competent authorities has proved this objection to be unfounded:—inasmuch as there can exist no doubt, we hear, from the difference of workmanship, material, &c., that the altar tomb is the original tomb of Geoffrey Chaucer,—and that instead of Nicholas Brigham having erected an entirely new monument, he only added to that which then existed the overhanging canopy, &c. So that the sympathy of Chaucer's admirers is now invited to the restoration of what till now was really not known to exist—the original tombof the Poet,—as well as to the additions made to it by the affectionate remembrance of Nicholas Brigham."

Messrs. Ward and Co., of Belfast, announce the publication, to subscribers only, of a new work in Chromo-Lithography, containing five elaborately tinted plates printed in gold, silver, and colours, being exact fac-similes of anAncient Irish Ecclesiastical Bell, which is supposed to have belonged to Saint Patrick and the four sides of the jewelled shrine in which it is preserved, accompanied by a historical and descriptive Essay by the Rev. William Reeves, D.D., M.R.I.A. By an Irish inscription on the back of the case or shrine of the bell, which Doctor Reeves has translated, he clearly proves that the case or shrine was made in the end of the eleventh century, and that the bell itself is several hundred years older; and also that it hasbeen in the hands of the Mulhollands since the time the case or shrine was made; that they bore the same name, and are frequently mentioned as custodians of this bell in the "Annals of the Four Masters."

We have received the following Catalogues:—William Heath's, 29. Lincoln Inn Fields, Select Catalogue, No. 4., of Second-Hand Books, perfect, and in good condition. Thomas Cole's, 15. Great Turnstile, Catalogue of a Strange Collection from the Library of a Curious Collector. John Petheram's, 94. High Holborn, Catalogue of a Collection of British (engraved) Portraits. Cornish's (Brothers), 37. New Street, Birmingham, List No. IX. for 1850 of English and Foreign Books.

BLOOMFIELD'S RECENSIO SYNOPTICA, Vols. III. and IX.

Letters, stating particulars and lowest price,carriage free, to be sent to Mr. BELL, Publisher of "NOTES AND QUERIES," 186. Fleet Street.

VOLUME THE FIRST OF NOTES AND QUERIES,with Title-page and very copious Index, is now ready, price 9s. 6d., bound in cloth, and may be had, by order, of all Booksellers and Newsmen.

Erratum.—No. 38. p. 113. col. 2. l. 37., for "participle" read "particle."

MR. A.K. JOHNSTON'S NEW GENERAL GAZETTEER.

In One Large Volume 8vo. of 1,440 pages, comprising nearly 50,000 Names of Places, price 36s.cloth; or half-russia, 41s.

A NEW DICTIONARY of GEOGRAPHY, Descriptive, Physical, Statistical, and Historical; forming a complete General Gazetteer of the World. By ALEXANDER KEITH JOHNSTON, F.R.S.E., F.R.G.S., F.G.S., Geographer at Edinburgh in Ordinary to Her Majesty.

"He appears to have executed in a very laudable manner the task which he has undertaken, and to have taken every precaution possible to secure accuracy and precision of statement."—Times.

London: LONGMAN, BROWN, GREEN, and LONGMANS.

ROCHEFOUCAULD'S MAXIMS, WITH NOTES.

Just published, in fcp. 8vo. price 4s.6d.cloth,

MORAL REFLECTIONS, SENTENCES, AND MAXIMS of FRANCIS DUC DE LA ROCHEFOUCAULD.

Newly translated from the French. With an Introduction and Notes.

London: LONGMAN, BROWN, GREEN, and LONGMANS.

In Post 8vo., price 2s.6d.

THE FAWKES'S OF YORK IN THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY; Including Notices of the Early History of GUYE FAWKES, the Gunpowder Plot Conspirator. By ROBERT DAVIES, Esq., F.S.A.

Published by J.B. NICHOLS and J.G. NICHOLS, 25. Parliament-street, Westminster.

PARKER'S EDUCATIONAL CATALOGUE, including the Books produced under the Sanction of the Committee of Council on Education, and the Publications of the Committee of General Literature and Education appointed by the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, will be sent free of Postage, on application to the Publisher, 445. West Strand, London.

CAMBRIDGE BOOKS RECENTLY PUBLISHED.

A TREATISE ON MORAL EVIDENCE. Illustrated by numerous Examples both of General Principles and of Specific Actions. By EDWARD ARTHUR SMEDLEY, M.A., late Chaplain of Trinity College, Cambridge. 8vo. 7s.6d.

"The very grave and important questions opened by Mr. Smedley ... he treats them with considerable ability, and in a tone and temper befitting their great interest and solemn character."—Guardian.

"Lucid in style, and forcible in argument, this treatise is distinguished by great felicity of illustration ... a masterly specimen of reasoning ... a most valuable contribution of the theological literature of this country."—Morning Post.

II.

FOUR SERMONS preached before the University of Cambridge, in November, 1849. By the Rev. J.J. BLUNT, B.D., Margaret Professor of Divinity.

1. The CHURCH OF ENGLAND—the COMMUNION OF SAINTS2. The CHURCH OF ENGLAND—its TITLE AND DESCENT.3. The CHURCH OF ENGLAND—its TEXT—the BIBLE.4. The CHURCH OF ENGLAND—its COMMENTARY—the PRAYER-BOOK.

Price 5s.

III.

By the same Author.

FIVE SERMONS preached before the University of Cambridge. The First Four in November, 1845. The Fifth on the General Fast Day, Wednesday, March 24, 1847. 8vo. 5s.6d.

IV.

Second Edition.

THE APOLOGY OF TERTULLIAN, with English Notes and a Preface. Intended as an Introduction to the Study of Patristical and Ecclesiastical Latinity. By H.A. WOODHAM, LL.D., late Fellow of Jesus College, Cambridge. 8vo., 8s.6d.

AN ANALYSIS of PALMER'S ORIGINES LITURGICÆ; or, Antiquities of the English Ritual; and of his DISSERTATION on PRIMITIVE LITURGIES: for the Use of Students at the Universities, and Candidates for Holy Orders, who have read the original Work. By W. BEAL, LL.D., F.S.A., Vicar of Brooke, Norfolk. 12mo., price 3s.6d.

VI.

FULWOOD'S ROMA RUIT: Wherein all the Several Pleas of the Pope's Authority in England are revised and answered. By FRANCIS FULWOOD, D.D., Archdeacon of Totnes, in Devon. Edited, with additional matter, by CHARLES HARDWICK, M.A., Fellow of St. Catherine's Hall, Cambridge. 8vo., 10s.6d.

This Work will serve the purpose of a Text-Book on the subject of the Papal Jurisdiction, reproducing, in a short and well digested form, nearly all the arguments of our best Divines.

PREPARING FOR PUBLICATION.

THOUGHTS ON THE STUDIES OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE. By ADAM SEDGWICK, M.A., F.R.S., Fellow of Trinity College, and Woodwardian Professor, Cambridge. The Fifth Edition, with a Copious Preliminary Dissertation. Nearly ready.

LITURGIÆ BRITANNICÆ; or the several EDITIONS of the BOOK of COMMON PRAYER of the CHURCH of ENGLAND, from its Compilation to the last Revision; together with the Liturgy set forth for the Use of the Church of Scotland: arranged to show their respective variations. By W. KEELING, B.D., Fellow of St. John's College. Second Edition.

JOHN DEIGHTON.

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