Replies.

[The fifteen O's are fifteen prayers commencing with the letter O, and will be found inHoræ Beatissime Virginis Marie, secundum usum ecclesiæ Sarum, p. 201. edit. 1527.]

Meaning of Pightle.—As I dare say you number some Suffolk men among your readers, would any of them kindly inform me the meaning and derivation of the word "pightle," which is always applied to a field adjoining the farm-houses in Suffolk?

Philo-Stevens.

[Phillips, in hisNew World of Words, has "PigleorPightel, a small Parcel of Land enclosed with a Hedge, which in some Parts of England is commonly call'd a Pingle."]

Inscription on a Guinea of George III.—Round the reverse of a guinea of George III., 1793, are the following initials:—"M. B. F. ET H. REX—F. D. B. ET L. D. S. R. I. A. T. ET E." The earlier letters are sufficiently intelligible; but I should be glad to learn the meaning of the whole inscription.

J. H. C.

Adelaide, South Australia.

[Of the Faith Defender, of Brunswick and Lunenburg Duke, of the Holy Roman Empire Arch-Treasurer and Elector.]

Meaning of Crambo.—Sir Thomas Browne (Religio Medici, part ii. § 15. ed. 1678) says:

"I conclude, therefore, and say, there is no happiness under (or, as Copernicus will have it, above) the sun, nor any Crambo in that repeated verity and burthen of all the wisdom ofSolomon,All is vanity and vexation of spirit."

Query, What is the meaning ofcrambohere, and is it to be met with elsewhere with a similar meaning?

J. H. C.

Adelaide, South Australia.

[The words "nor any Crambo" mean that the sentiment expressed by Solomon is a truth which cannot be too often repeated. Crabbe says, "Crambois a play, in rhyming, in which he that repeats a word that was said before forfeits something." In all the MSS. and editions of theReligio Medici, 1642, the words "nor any Crambo," are wanting. See note on the passage in the edition edited by Simon Wilkin, F.L.S.]

(Vol. iii., pp. 119. 286. 353.)

Dr. Rimbaultjustly observes that "the history of the Tradescants is involved in considerable obscurity." He does not, however, seem to have been aware that some light has been thrown on that of the elder John Tradescant by the researches of Dr. Hamel, in his interesting Memoir published in theTransactions of the Imperial Academy of St. Petersburg in 1847, with the following title:—"Tradescant der Æltere 1618 in Russland. DerHandelsverkehr zwischen England und Russland in seiner Entstehung," &c.

Dr. Rimbault'snote contains a good epitome of the most obvious English notices respecting the Tradescants; but while correcting the errors of others, he has himself fallen into one important mistake, in stating that "Old John Tradescant died in 1652;" for that is the date of the death of his grandson, John, who died young. Old John died in 1638, leaving a son, also named John, who was born in 1608, and died in 1662, having survived his only son ten years; and, having no heir to his treasures, he had previously conveyed them, by deed of gift, to Elias Ashmole, who seems to have contrived to make himself agreeable to him by his pursuits as a virtuoso, and by his alchemical and astrological fancies. When Dr. Hamel was in England, I had the pleasure of indicating to him the site of "Tradescant's Ark" in South Lambeth. It was situate on the east side of the road leading from Vauxhall to Stockwell, nearly opposite to what was formerly called Spring Lane. Ashmole built a large brick house near that which had been Tradescant's, out of the back of part of which he made offices. The front part of it became the habitation of the well-known antiquary, Dr. Ducarel. It still remains as two dwellings; the one, known as "Turret House," is occupied by John Miles Thorn, Esq., and the other, called "Stamford House," is the dwelling of J. A. Fulton, Esq.

In his indefatigable researches to elucidate the early intercourse between England and Russia, Dr. Hamel's attention was accidentally called to the Tradescants and their Museum; and the following passage in Parkinson'sParadisus Terrestris, p. 345. (Art. "Neesewort," then calledElleborus albus), led to the discovery of a relation of Old John's voyage to Russia:—

"This (says Parkinson) grows in many places in Germany, and likewise in certain places in Russia, in such abundance, that, according to the relation of that worthy, curious, and diligent searcher and preserver of all nature's rarities and varieties, my very good friend John Tradescante, of whom I have many times before spoken, a moderately large ship (as he says) might be laden with the roots thereof, which he there saw on a certain island."

The same notice, in other words, also occurs in Parkinson'sTheatrum, p. 218.

In searching among the MSS. in the Ashmolean Museum, Dr. Hamel bore this passage in memory, and one MS., thus described in Mr. Black's excellent catalogue, No. 824., xvi., contained confirmatory matter:

"A Voiag of Ambassad undertaken by the Right Honnorabl SrDudlie Diggs, in the year 1618.""This curious narrative of the voyage round the North Cape to Archangel, begins with a list of the chief persons employed in the embassy, and contains observations of the weather, and on the commercial, agricultural, and domestic state of Russia at that time. It is written in a rude hand, and by a person unskilled in composition. The last half page contains some chronological notes and other stuff, perhaps written by the same hand."

"A Voiag of Ambassad undertaken by the Right Honnorabl SrDudlie Diggs, in the year 1618."

"This curious narrative of the voyage round the North Cape to Archangel, begins with a list of the chief persons employed in the embassy, and contains observations of the weather, and on the commercial, agricultural, and domestic state of Russia at that time. It is written in a rude hand, and by a person unskilled in composition. The last half page contains some chronological notes and other stuff, perhaps written by the same hand."

Thus far Mr. Black. The full title of the MS. is,—

"A Viag of Ambassad undertaken by the Right Honnorabl SrDudlie Diggs in the year 1618, being atended on withe 6 Gentillmen, whiche beare the nam of the king's Gentillmen, whose names be heere notted. On M. Nowell, brother to the Lord Nowell, M. Thomas Finche, M. Woodward, M. Cooke, M. Fante, and M. Henry Wyeld, withe every on of them ther man. Other folloers, on Brigges, Interpreter, M. Jams, an Oxford man, his Chaplin, on M. Leake his Secretary, withe 3 Scots; on Captain Gilbert and his Son, withe on Car, also M. Mathew De Quester's Son, of Filpot Lane, in London, the rest his own retenant, some 13whearof(Note on Jonne an Coplie wustersher men) M. Swanli of Limhouse, master of the good Ship called the Dianna of Newcastell, M. Nelson, part owner of Newe Castell."

Dr. Hamel says:

"What the words in Italics may signify is not quite clear, but that 'on Jonne' must relate to Tradescante himself. Perhaps this passage may lead to the discovery that Tradescant did not, as it has been conjectured, come from Holland, but that he was a native of Worcestershire. The name Tradescant might be an assumed one (it was also writtenTradeskin, which might be interpretedFellmonger)."

From documents in the archives at Moscow, Dr. Hamel recovered the Christian names, and a list of Sir Dudley Digges' attendants in this voyage, which corresponds with that in the MS., thus:—ArthurNowell,ThomasWoodward,AdamCooke,JosephFante,ThomasLeake,RichardJames,GeorgeBrigges,JessyDe Quester,AdamJones,ThomasWakefield,JohnAdams,ThomasCrisp,LeonardHugh, andJohn Coplie. This last must therefore have designatedJohn Tradescanthimself, who was certainly there.

Sir Dudley Digges, to whom Tradescant seems to have attached himself in order to obtain knowledge of the plants and other natural curiosities of Russia, was sent by King James I. to the Czar Michael Fedorowitsch, who had in the previous year despatched an embassy to the king, principally to negotiate for a loan. This ambassador, Wolünsky, returned at the same time, in another vessel accompanying that of Sir Dudley.

Dr. Hamel in his memoir has given considerable extracts from the MS. narrative of the voyage, which show that Tradescant was an accurate observer not only of objects connected with his studies of phytology and natural history, but of other matters. Parkinson has justly styled him "a painful industrious searcher and lover of all natural varieties;" and elsewhere says: "My verygood friend, John Tradescantes, has wonderfully laboured to obtain all the rarest fruits hee can heare of in any place of Christendome, Turky, yea, or the whole world." The passages in the journal of his voyage, which prove it to be indubitably his, are numerous, but the one which first struck Dr. Hamel was sufficient; for in following the narrator on the Dwina, and the islands there, and, among others, to Rose Island, he found this note, "Helebros albus, enoug to load a ship." There are, however, others confirmatory beyond a doubt. Parkinson, in hisParadisus Terrestris, p. 528., has the following passage:—

"There is another (strawberry) very like unto this (the Virginia strawberry, which carrieth the greatest leafe of any other except the Bohemian), that John Tradescante brought with him from Brussels (l. Russia) long ago, and in seven years could never see one berry ripe on all sides, but still the better part rotten, although it would flower abundantly every yeare, and beare very large leaves."

Tradescant mentions that he also saw strawberries to be sold in Russia, but could never get of the plants, though he saw the berries three times at Sir D. Digges's table; but as they were in nothing differing from ours, but only less, he did not much seek after them. It is most probable that he brought seed, as he did of another berry, of which he sent part, he tells us, to his correspondent Vespasian Robin at Paris.

Of a man to whom the merit is due of having founded the earliest Museum of Natural History and Rarities of Art in England, and who possessed one of the first, and at the same the best, Botanic Garden, every little particular must be interesting, and it would be pleasing to find that he was an Englishman, and not a foreigner. The only ground for the latter supposition is, I believe, the assertion of Anthony à Wood, that he was a Fleming or a Dutchman. The name Tradescant is, however, neither Flemish nor Dutch, and seems to me much more like an assumed English pseudonyme. That he was neither a Dutchman nor a Fleming will, I think, be obvious from the following passage in the narration of his travels:

"Also, I haue been tould that theare growethe in the land bothe tulipes and narsisus. By a Brabander I was tould it, thoug by his name I should rather think him a Holander. His name is Jonson, and hathe a house at Archangell. He may be eyther, for he [is] always drūke once in a day."

Now, had Tradescant himself been a Fleming or a Dutchman, he would at least have been able to speak decisively on this occasion; to say nothing of the vice of intemperance which he attributes to the natives of those countries. Again, it is quite clear that this journal of travels was written by Tradescant; yet that name does not appear either in the MS. or in the Russian archives: but we haveJohn Copliein both, with the indication in the MS. that he wasa Worcestershire man. Let us therefore, on these grounds, place him in the list of English worthies to whom we owe a debt of gratitude. But supposingTradescantto have been his real name, it is quite evident that he travelled under the name ofJohn Coplie; and it is perhaps vain to speculate upon the reasons for the assumption of a pseudonyme either way.

Dr. Richard James, who accompanied Sir Dudley Digges as chaplain, appears, from Turner's account of his MSS., which are deposited in the Bodleian, to have left behind him a MS. account of his travels in Russia, in five sheets; but his MS. seems to have been lost or mislaid in that vast emporium, or we might have some confirmation from it respecting Tradescant.

South Lambeth was in former times one of the most agreeable and salubrious spots in the vicinity of London, and at the time when Tradescant first planted his garden he must have had another worthy and distinguished man for a neighbour, Sir Noel Caron, who was resident ambassador here from the States of Holland for twenty-eight years. His estate contained 122 acres; he was a benefactor to the poor of his vicinity by charitable actions, some of which remain as permanent monuments of his benevolence, in the shape of almshouses, situate in the Wandsworth Road. The site of Caron House is now possessed by Henry Beaufoy, Esq., who has worthily emulated the deeds of his predecessor by acts of munificent benevolence, which must be fraught with incalculable good for ages yet to come. Mr. Beaufoy has, among his literary treasures, a very interesting collection of letters in MS., written in French, by Sir Noel Caron to Constantine Huyghens, I think, which contain many curious illustrations of the events of that period.

Let us hope that time may bring to light further and more complete materials for the biography of these Lambethan worthies, who have deserved to live in our memories as benefactors to mankind.

S. W. Singer.

Manor Place, So. Lambeth, May 5. 1851.

In Chambers'sEdinburgh Journal, No. 359., New Series, may be found an account of this family, written by myself; I hope to be excused when I say that it is the most accurate hitherto published. It gave me great pleasure to find that so distinguished an antiquary asDr. Rimbaultmainly corroborates the article alluded to; but I regret that I feel bound to notice a serious error into which that gentleman has fallen.Dr. R.states that "Old John Tradescant died in the year 1652;" and in another place he states that—

"It was not theyoungestJohn Tradescant that died in 1652, but theoldest, thegrandfather, the first of that name that settled in England."

The conflicting accounts and confusion in the history of the Tradescants, have no doubt arisen from the three, "grandsire, father, and son," having been all named John; consequently, for the sake of perspicuity, I shall adopt the plan of our worthy editor, and designate the Tradescant who first settled in England, No. 1.; his son, who published theMusæum Tradescantianum, No. 2.; and the son of the latter, who "died in his spring," No. 3. Now, to prove that it was the youngest of the Tradescants, No. 3., who died in 1652, we have only to refer to the preface of theMusæum Tradescantianum, which was published in 1656. There we find that Tradescant No. 2. says that—

"About three years agoe (by the perswasion of some friends) I was resolved to take a catalogue of those rarities and curiosities, which my father had sedulously collected, and myself with continued diligence have augmented and hitherto preserved together."

He then proceeds to account for the delay in the publication of the work in these words:

"Presently thereupon myonely sondied, one of my friends fell sick," &c.

Again, in Ashmole'sDiarywe find the following entry:

"Sept.11th, 1652. Young John Tredescant died."

And, further on, Ashmole states that

"He was buried by his grandfather, in Lambeth Churchyard."

The wordby, in the quotation, meaning,by the side of,close byhis grandfather. The burial register of Lambeth parish gives the date of the interment, Sept. 16, 1652. Ashmole'sDiary, as quoted byDr. Rimbault, and the burial register also, give the date of the death of Tradescant No. 2., who survived his son ten years: the family then became extinct.

Ashmole, who became acquainted with the Tradescants in 1650, never mentions the grandfather (No. 1.), nor is his name to be found in the burial registry; and consequently the date of his death, as far as I have read, has always been set down as uncertain. There are other parish records, however, than burial registers; and I was well repaid for my search by finding, in the Churchwardens' Accounts of St. Mary's, Lambeth, the following entries:

"1634. June 1. Received for burial of Jane, wife of John Tradeskin, 12s.""1637-8. Item. John Tradeskin; ye gret bell and black cloth, 5s.4d."

"1634. June 1. Received for burial of Jane, wife of John Tradeskin, 12s."

"1637-8. Item. John Tradeskin; ye gret bell and black cloth, 5s.4d."

This last entry, in all probability, marks the date of the death of the first Tradescant. Assuming that it does, and as the engraving by Hollar represents him as far advanced in years, his age did not exclude him from having been in the service of Queen Elizabeth, so much so as it would if he had died in 1652. I read the line on the tombstone,—

"Both gardeners to the Rose and Lily Queen"—

as signifying that one of the Tradescants had been gardener to Elizabeth, the Rose Queen, and the other to Henrietta, the Lily Queen. However, as that is little more than a matter of opinion, not of historical fact, it need not be further alluded to at present.

I am happy to say, that I have every reason to believe that I am on the trace of new, curious, and indisputably authentic information respecting the Tradescants. If successful, and if the editor will spare me a corner, I shall be proud to communicate it to the readers of "Notes and Queries."

Tradescant's house, and the house adjoining, where Ashmole lived, previous to his taking possession of Tradescant's house, after Mrs. Tradescant's death (see Ashmole'sDiary), are still standing, though they have undergone many alterations. Even there, the name of Tradescant seems forgotten: the venerable building is only known by anick-name, derived most probably from its antique chimneys. I had many weary pilgrimages before I discovered the identical edifice. I have not seen the interior, but am aware that there are some traces of Ashmole in the house, but none whatever of Tradescant in either house or garden. I had a conversation with the gardener of the gentleman who now occupies it: he appeared to have an indistinct idea that an adept in his own profession had once lived there, for he observed that, "If old What's-his-name were alive now, the potato disease could soon be cured." Oh! what we antiquaries meet with! He further gave me to understand that "furrinerssometimes came there wishing to see the place, but that I was the only Englishman, that he recollected, who expressed any curiosity about it."

Therestorersof the tomb of the Tradescants merely took away the old leger stone, on which were cut the words quoted by A. W. H. (Vol. iii., p. 207.), and replaced it by a new stone bearing the lines quoted byDr. Rimbault, which were not on the original stone (see Aubrey'sSurrey), and the words—

"Erected 1662.Repaired by Subscription, 1773."

But although the name of the childless, persecuted widow, Hester Tradescant, is not now on the tomb which she piously erected to the memories of her husband and son; still, on the west end of it, can be traced the form of a hydra tearing a human skull—fit emblem of the foul and vulture-like rapacity of Elias Ashmole.

William Pinkerton.

Dalmeny Cottage, Ham, Surrey.

(Vol. iii., p. 265.)

In reply to your correspondentNemo'sQuery, whether any such personage as Pope Joan ever held the keys of St. Peter, and wore the tiara? and if so, at what period, and for what time, and what is known of her personal history? I would remark that the story runs thus: that between the pontificates of Leo IV., who died in the year 855, and of Benedict III., who died in 858, a female of the name of Joan found means to cause herself to be elected Pope, which post she held for a term of upwards of two years, under the title of Joannes VII., according to Sabellicus, or, according to Platina, of Joannes VIII. She is generally said to have been an Englishwoman, the daughter of a priest, who in her youth became acquainted with an English monk belonging to the Abbey of Fulda, with whom she travelled, habited as a man, to many universities, but finally settled at Athens, where she remained until the death of her companion, and attained to a great proficiency in the learning common to the time. After this she proceeded to Rome, and having by the talent she displayed in several disputes obtained the reputation of a learned divine, was, on the death of Leo IV., elected to fill the pontifical chair. This position she held for upwards of two years, but soon after the expiration of that time was delivered of a child (but died during parturition), while proceeding in a procession between the Coliseum and the Church of St. Clemente.

The first mention of this story appears to have been made by Marianus Scotus, who compiled a chronicle at Mayence, about two hundred years after the event is said to have occurred, viz. about 1083. He was followed by Sigebert de Gemblours, who wrote about 1112; and also by Martino di Cistello, or Polonus, who wrote about 1277; since when the story has been repeated by numberless authors, all of whom have, more or less, made some absurd additions.

After the satisfactory proofs of the fictitious character of the story, which have been produced by the most eminent writers, both Catholic and Protestant, it may appear a work of supererogation to add anything on the point; yet it may perhaps be permitted to observe, that in the most ancient and esteemed manuscripts of the works of the authors above quoted, no mention whatever is made of the Papissa Giovanna, and its introduction must therefore have been the work of some later copyist.

The contemporary writers, moreover, some of whom were ocular witnesses of the elections both of Leo IV. and Benedict III., make no mention whatever of the circumstance; and it is well known that at Athens, where she is stated to have studied, no such school as the one alluded to existed in the ninth century.

The fact will not, I think, be denied that it was the practice of the chroniclers of the early ages to note down the greater portion of what they heard, without examining critically as to the credibility of the report; and the mention of a fact once made, was amply sufficient for all succeeding authors to copy the statement, and make such additions thereto as best suited their respective fancies, without making any examination as to the truth or probability of the original statement. And this appears to have been the case with the point in question: Marianus Scotus first stated, or rather some later copyist stated for him, the fact of a female Pope; and subsequent writers added, at a later period, the additional facts which now render the tale so evidently an invention.

R. R. M.

Pope Joan(Vol. iii., p. 265.).—You have referred to Sir Thomas Browne, and might have added the opinion of his able editor (Works, iii. 360.), who says, "Her very existence itself seems now to be universally rejected by the best authorities as a fabrication from beginning to end." On the other hand, old Coryat, in hisCrudities(vol. ii. p. 443.), has the boldness to speak with "certainty of her birth at a particular place,—viz. at Mentz." Mosheim tells us (vol. ii. p. 300.) that during the five centuries succeeding 855, "the event was generally believed." He quotes some distinguished names, as well among those who maintained the truth of the story as amongst those who rejected it as a fable. Bayle may be included amongst the latter, who, in the third volume of his Dictionary (ArticlePapesse), has gone deeply into the question. Mosheim himself seems to leave it where Sir Roger de Coverley would have done,—"much may be said on both sides."

J. H. M.

Robert Burton, his Birth-place(Vol. iii., pp. 106. 157.).—A friend who has just been reading theAnatomy of Melancholy, has referred me to the following passage, which seems to give conclusive testimony respecting the birth-place of Burton:—

"Such high places are infinite ... and two amongst the rest, which I may not omit for vicinities sake, Oldbury in the confines of Warwickshire, where I have often looked about me with great delight, at the foot of which hill I was born; and Hanbury in Staffordshire, contiguous to which is Falde, a pleasant village, and an ancient patrimony belonging to our family, now in the possession of mine elder brother, William Burton, Esquire." [Note on words "I was born." At Lindley in Lecestershire, the possession and dwelling place of Ralph Burton, Esquire, my latedeceased father.]—Anatomy of Melancholy, Part ii. Sec 2. Mem. 3. ad fin.

I knew of the following, but as it merely mentions Lindley as theresidenceof the family, it would not have answeredDr. Rimbault'sQuery.

"Being in the country in the vacation time, not many years since, at Lindly in Lecestershire, my father's house," &c.—Ibid.Part ii. Sec. 5. Mem. 1. subs. 5.

C. Forbes.

Barlaam and Josaphat(Vol. iii., pp. 135. 278.).—I do not know of any English translation of this work. If any Middle Age version exists, it should be published immediately. A new and excellentGermanone (by Felix Liebrecht, Münster, 1847) has lately appeared, written, however, for Romish purposes, as much as from admiration of the work itself. It would be well if some member of our own pure branch of the Church Catholic would turn his attention to this noble work, and give us a faithful but fresh and easy translation, with a literary introduction descriptive of all the known versions, &c.; and a chapter on the meaning and limits of the asceticism preached in the original. In this case, and if publishedcheap, as it ought to be, it would be a golden present for our youth, and would soon become once more afolk-book. The beautiful freeOld Norwegianversion (written by King Hákon Sverresson, aboutA.D.1200) mentioned in my last has now been published in Christiania, edited by the well-known scholars R. Keyser and C. R. Unger, and illustrated by an introduction, notes, glossary, fac-simile, &c. (Barlaams ok Josaphats Saga.8vo. Christiania, 1851.) The editors re-adopt the formerly received opinion, that the Greek original (now printed in Boissonade'sAnecdota Græca, vol. iv.) is not older than the eighth century, and was composed by Johannes Damascenus. But this must be decided by future criticism.

George Stephens.

Stockholm.

Witte van Haemstede(Vol. iii., p. 209).—It may be of use to the editors of the "Navorscher" to know thatAdrianus Hamstediusbecame pastor of the Dutch church in Austin Friars, London, in the year 1559. He succeeded Walterus Delaenus, and resigned his office, one year after his appointment, in favour of Petrus Delaenus, probably a son of the before-named Walterus.

I cannot answer the question as to whether there still exist any descendants ofWitte van Haemstede; but as late as 1740,Hendrik van Haemstedewas appointed pastor to the Dutch congregation in London. He held the office until the year 1751, when Henricus Putman succeeded him.

Edward F. Rimbault.

The Dutch Church in Norwich(Vol. iii., p. 209.).—The editors of the "Navorscher" will find the early history of this church in Strype'sAnnals of the Reformation; Blomefield'sHistory of Norwich; and in Burn'sHistory of the Foreign Refugees. Dr. Hendrik Gehle, the pastor of the Dutch church in Austin Friars, who is also the occasional minister of the Dutch church at Norwich, would be the most likely person to furnish information as to its present state.

Edward F. Rimbault.

Fest Sittings(Vol. iii., p. 328.).—Festingis, I presume, without doubt, a Saxon word. A "Festing-man," among the Saxons, was a person who stood as a surety or pledge for another. "Festing-penny" was the money given as an earnest or token to servants when hired.

In the wordsittingstheremightbe some reference to thestatute-sessions, which were courts or tribunals designed for the settlement of disputes between masters and servants.

R. Vincent.

Quakers' Attempt to convert the Pope(Vol. iii., p. 302.).—I beg to refer B. S. S. to theCorrespondance inédite de Mabíllon et de Montfaucon avec l'Italie... edited by M. Valéry, Paris, 1846, vol. ii. p. 112. In a letter from the Benedictine Claude Estiennot to Dom. Bulteau, dated Rome, September 30, 1687, he will read:

"Ce qu'on a dit ici des quakers d'Angleterre n'est ni tout-à-fait vrai ni tout-à-fait faux. Il est certain qu'il en est venuunqui a fort pressé pour avoir une audience de Sa Sainteté et se promettait de le pouvoir convertir à sa religion; ou l'a voulu mettre anPassarelli; monseigneur le Cardinal Howard l'a fait enfermer au couvent de saint-Jean et Paul et le fera sauver sans bruit pour l'honneur de la nation."

C. P. Ph****.

The Anti-Jacobin(Vol. iii., p. 348.).—As you have so many articles in theAnti-Jacobinowned, I may mention that No. 14, was written by Mr. Bragge, afterwards Bathurst.

When I was at Oxford, 1807 or 1808, it was supposed that the simile inNew Morality, "So thine own Oak," was written by Mr. Pitt.

C. B.

Mistletoe(Vol. iii., p. 192.).—

"In a paper of Tho. Willisel's he names these following trees on which he found misseltoe growing, viz. oak, ash, lime-tree, elm, hazel, willow, white beam, purging thorn, quicken-tree, apple-tree, crab-tree, white-thorn." Vide p. 351.Philosophical Letters between the late learned Mr. Ray and several of his Ingenious Correspondents, &c.: Lond. 1718, 8vo.

R. Wilbraham Falconer, M.D.

Bath.

Verbum Græcum.—The lines in Vol. i., p. 415., where this word occurs, are in a doggrel journal of his American travels, written by Moore, and published in hisEpistles, Odes, and other Poems. They are introduced apropos to the cacophony of the names of the places which he visited.

D. X.

"Après moi le Déluge" (Vol. iii, p. 299.).—This sentiment is to be found in verse of a Greek tragedian, cited in Sueton.Nero, c. 38.:

"Ἐμοῦ θανόντος γαῖα μιχθήτω πυρί."

Suetonius says that some one, at a convivial party, having quoted this line, Nero outdid him by adding,Immoἐμοῦ ζῶντος. Nero was not contented that the conflagration of the world should occur after his death; he wished that it should take place during his lifetime.

Dio Cassius (lviii. 23.) attributes this verse, not to Nero, but to Tiberius, who, he says, used frequently to repeat it. See Prov. (app. ii. 56.), where other allusions to this verse are cited in the note of Leutsch.

[We are indebted for a similar reply to C. B., who quotes the line from Euripides,Fragm. Inc.B. xxvii.]

"Après moi," or "après nous le Déluge" sounds like a modernisation of the ancient verse,—

"Ἐμοῦ θανόντος γαῖα μιχθήτω πυρί,"

the use of which has been imputed to the emperor Nero. The spirit of Madame de Pompadour's saying breathes the same selfish levity; and it amounts to the same thing. But it merits remark that the words of Metternich were of an entirely distinct signification. They did not imply that hecaredonly for himself and the affairs of his own life; but that he anticipated the inability of future ministers to avert revolution, andforebodedthe worst. Two persons may use the same words, and yet their sayings be as different as the first line of Homer from the first of Virgil. The omission of the French verb disguises the fact, that the one was said in the optative, and the other in the future indicative.

A. N.

Eisell, the meaning of which has been much discussed in the pages of "Notes and Queries," is a word which seems to have been once the common term for vinegar. TheFestivalin the sermon for St. Michael's day employs this term thus:

"And other angellis with hī (St. Michael) shall brynge al the Instrumētis of our lordis passyon, the crosse; the crowne; spere; nayles; hamer; sponge;eyseel; gall, scourgestall other thynges ytwē atte cristis passyon."—Rouen,A.D.1499,fo.cl.b.

D. Rock.

"To-day we purpose" (Vol. iii., p. 302).—The verse for which your correspondent G. N. inquires, is taken fromIsabella, or the Pot of Basil, an exquisitely beautiful poem by Keats, founded on one of Boccaccio's tales.

E. J. M.

Modern Paper(Vol. iii., p. 181.).—Cordially do I agree with every word of your correspondentLaudator Temporis Acti, and especially as to the prayer-books for churches and chapels, printed by the Universities.Experto crede, no solicitude can preserve their "flimsy, brittle, and cottony" leaves, as he justly entitles them, from rapid destruction. Might not the delegates of the University presses be persuaded to give us an edition with the morning and evening services printed on vellum, instead of the miserable fabric they now afford us?

C. W. B.

St. Pancras(Vol. iii., p. 285.).—In Breviar. Rom. sub die XII Maii, is the following brief notice of this youthful saint, whose martyrdom was also commemorated (Sir H. Nicolas'Chron. of Hist.) on April 3 and July 21:

"Pancratius, in Phrygia nobili genere natus, puer quatordecim annorum Roman venit Diocletiano et Maximiano Imperatoribus: ubi à Pontifice Romano baptizatus, et in fide christiana eruditus, ob eamdem paulò post comprehensus, cùm diis sacrificare constanter renuisset, virili fortitudine datis cervicibus, illustrem martyrii coronam consecutus est; cujus corpus Octavilla matrona noctu sustulit, et unguentis delibutum via Aurelia sepelivit."

Amongst the reliques in the church of St. John of Laterane, in the "the glorious mother-city of Rome," Onuphrius (de VII. Urbis Ecclesiis) and Serranus (de Ecclesiis Urbis Rom.), as quoted by Wm. Crashaw (temp. James I.), enumerate:

"Item. caput Zachariæ Prophetæ, et caput Sancti Pancratii de quo sanguis emanavit ad tres dies quum Ecclesia Lateranensis combusta fuit."

Cowgill.

Joseph Nicolson's Family(Vol. iii., p. 243.).—A. N. C. is justly corrected as to the insertion of the letterhin Dr. Wm. Nicolson's name, though it has been adopted by some of his family since. The mother of Dr. Wm. and Joseph Nicolson was Mary Brisco, of Crofton; not Mary Miser.

I find fromNichols' Correspondence of Dr. Wm. Nicolson, that his brother Joseph was master of the Apothecaries' Company in London. He died in May, 1724. He lived in Salisbury Court, where it would appear the Bishop resided at least on one occasion that he was in London.

Monkstown.

Demosthenes and New Testament(Vol. iii., p. 350.).—The quotations from Demosthenes, and many others more or less pointed, are to be found, as might be expected, in the well-known, very learned, and standard edition of the new Testament by Wetstein.

C. B.

Crossing Rivers on Skins(Vol. iii., p. 3.).—To theLatinauthors cited byJanus Dousaillustrating this practice, allow me to add the following from the Greek. Xenophon, in hisAnabasis, lib. iii. cap. v., so clearly exhibits themodus operandi, that I shall give a translation of the passage:

"And while they were at a loss what to do, a certain Rhodian came up and said, 'I am ready to ferry you over, O men! by 4000 heavy armed men at atime, if you furnish me with what I want, and will give me a talent as a reward.' And being asked of what he stood in need:—'I shall want,' said he, '2000 leathern bags; and I see here many sheep, and goats, and oxen, and asses; which, being flayed, and (their skins) inflated, would readily furnish a means of transport. And I shall require also the girths, which you use for the beasts of burden. And on these,' said he, 'having bound the leathern bags, and fastened them one to another, and affixing stones, and letting them down like anchors, and binding them on either side, I will lay on wood, and put earth over them. And that you will not then sink, you shall presently very clearly perceive; for each leathern bag will support two men from sinking, and the wood and earth will keep them from slipping."

Skins, or tent coverings, stuffed with hay, appear also to have been very generally used for this purpose (Vid. Id., lib. i. cap. v.). Arrian relates (lib. v. Exped. cap. 12.) that Alexander used this contrivance for crossing the Hydaspes:

"Αὐτὸς δὲ (Ἀλέξανδρος)—ἄγων ἐπὶ τὴν νῆσον καὶ τὴν ἄκραν, ἔνθεν διαβαίνειν ἦν ἐγνωσμένον. Καὶ ἐνταῦθα ἐπληροῦντο τῆς νυκτὸς αἱ διφθέραι τῆς κάρφης ἐκ πολλοῦ ἤδη παρενηνεγμέναι, καὶ κατεῤῥάπτοντο ἐς ἀκρίβειαν."

E. S. Taylor.

Martham, Norfolk.

Curious Facts in Natural History(Vol. iii., p. 166.).—There is a parallel to the curious fact contributed by your Brazilian correspondent in the "vegetable caterpillar" of New Zealand. This natural rarity is described in Angas'sSavage Life and Scenes in Australia and New Zealand, vol. i. p. 291.:—

"Amongst the damp moss at the root of theratatrees, in the shady forests not far from Auckland, and also in various parts of the northern island, are found those extraordinary productions called vegetable caterpillars, thehoteteof the natives. In appearance, the caterpillar differs but little from that of the common privet sphinx-moth, after it has descended to the ground, previously to its undergoing the change into the chrysalis state. But the most remarkable characteristic of the vegetable caterpillar is, that every one has a very curious plant, belonging to the fungi tribe, growing from theanus; this fungus varies from three to six inches in length, and bears at its extremity a blossom-like appendage, somewhat resembling a miniature bulrush, and evidently derives its nourishment from the body of the insect. This caterpillar when recently found, is of the substance of cork; and it is discovered by the natives seeing the tips of the fungi, which grow upwards. They account for this phenomenon, by asserting that the caterpillar, when feeding upon theratatree overhead, swallows the seeds of the fungus, which take root in the body of the insect, and germinate as soon as it retreats to the damp mould beneath, to undergo its transformation into the pupa state. Specimens of these vegetable caterpillars have been transmitted to naturalists in England, by whom they have been namedSphæria Robertii."—Savage Life and Scenes in Australia and New Zealand, by G. F. Angas: London, 1847, vol. i. p. 291.

I recently had several specimens of the insect, with its remarkable appendage, which had been brought from the colony by a relative.

R. W. C.

Prideaux(Vol. iii., p. 268.).—The Prideaux, who took part in the Monmouth rebellion, was a son of Sir Edmund Prideaux, the purchaser of Ford Abbey. (See Birch'sLife of Tillotson.) Tillotson appears to have been a chaplain to Sir E. Prideaux at Ford Abbey, and a tutor to the young Prideaux.

K. Th.

Our readers will probably remember that the result of several communications which appeared in our columns on the subject of the celebratedTreatise of Equivocation, found in the chambers of Tresham, and produced at the trial of the persons engaged in the Gunpowder Plot, was a letter from a correspondent (J. B., Vol. ii., p. 168.) announcing that the identical MS. copy of the work referred to by Sir Edward Coke on the occasion in question, was safely preserved in the Bodleian Library. It was not to be supposed that a document of such great historical interest, which had been long sought after, should, when discovered, be suffered to remain unprinted; and Mr. Jardine, the accomplished editor of theCriminal Trials(the second volume of which, it will be remembered, is entirely devoted to a very masterly narrative of the Gunpowder Plot), has accordingly produced a very carefully prepared edition of the Tract in question; introduced by a preface, in which its historical importance is alone discussed, the object of the publication being not controversial but historical. "To obviate," says Mr. Jardine, "any misapprehension of the design in publishing it at a time when events of a peculiar character have drawn much animadversion upon the principles of the Roman Catholics, it should be stated that theTreatisewould have been published ten years ago, had the inquiries then made led to its discovery; and that it is now published within a few weeks after the manuscript has been brought to light in the Bodleian Library." The work is one of the most important contributions to English history which has recently been put forth, and Mr. Jardine deserves the highest credit for the manner in which he was discharged his editorial duties.

Horæ Egyptiacæ, or the Chronology of Ancient Egypt discovered from Astronomical and Hieroglyphical Records, including many dates found in coeval inscriptions from the period of the building of the great Pyramid to the times of the Persians, and illustrative of the History of the first Nineteen Dynasties, &c., by Reginald Stuart Poole, is the ample title of a work dedicated to the Duke of Northumberland, under whose auspices it has been produced. The work, which is intended to explain the Chronology and History of Ancient Egypt from its monuments, originally appeared in a series ofpapers in theLiterary Gazette. These have been improved, the calculations contained in them subjected to the most rigid scrutiny; and when we say that in the preparation of this volume Mr. Poole has had assistance from Mr. Lane, Mr. and Mrs. Lieber of Cairo, Dr. Abbot of Cairo, Mr. Birch of the British Museum, Professor Airy, and, lastly, of Sir Gardener Wilkinson, who, in hisArchitecture of Ancient Egypt, avows that "he fully agrees with Mr. Poole in the contemporaneousness of certain kings, and in the order of succession he gives to the early Pharaohs," we do quite enough to recommend it to the attention of all students of the History and Monuments of Ancient Egypt.

Books Received.—Plato Translated by G. Burges, vol. 4. The new volume of Bohn's Classical Library is in the fourth volume of the Translation of Plato, which, strange as it may sound to those of our readers who know anything of what is essential to a popular book in these days, has, we believe, been one of the most popular of the many cheap books issued by Mr. Bohn. How much the impression made on the public mind by the well-worn quotation, "Plato, thou reasonest well," may have contributed to this result, we leave others to decide.—What is the working of the Church of Spain? What is implied in submitting to Rome? What is it that presses hardest upon the Church of England? A Tract by the Rev. F. Meyrick, M.A.London: J. H. Parker. These are three very importantQueries, but obviously not of a nature for discussion inNotes and Queries.—The Penny Post, I. to IV.,February to May. The words "thirtieth thousand" on the title-page, show the success which has already attended this Church Penny Magazine.

Catalogues Received.—T. Kerslake's (3. Park Street, Bristol) Catalogue of Books lately bought; Cole's (15. Great Turnstile) List No. XXXV. of very Cheap Books; C. Hamilton's (22. Anderson's Buildings, City Road) Catalogue No. XLII. of a remarkably Cheap Miscellaneous Collection of Old Books, Tracts, &c.; G. Johnston's (11. Goodge Street, Tottenham Court Road) Book Circular.

Diana (Antoninus) Compendium Resolutionem Moralium.Antwerp.-Colon. 1634-57.

Passionael efte dat Levent der Heiligen.Folio. Basil, 1522.

Cartari—La Rosa d'Oro Pontificia.4to. Rome, 1681.

Broemel, M. C. H., Fest-Tanzen der Ersten Christen.Jena, 1705.

The Complaynt of Scotland, edited by Leyden. 8vo. Edin. 1801.

Thoms' Lays and Legends of various Nations.Parts I. to VII. 12mo. 1834.

L'Abbé de Saint Pierre, Projet de Paix Perpetuelle.3 Vols. 12mo. Utrecht, 1713.

Chevalier Ramsay, Essai de Politique, où l'on traite de la Nécessité, de l'Origine, des Droits, des Bornes et des différentes Formes de la Souveraineté, selon les Principes de l'Auteur de Télémaque. 2 Vols. 12mo. La Haye, without date, but printed in 1719.

The same. Second Edition, under the title "Essai Philosophique sur le Gouvernement Civil, selon les Principes de Fénélon," 12mo. Londres, 1721.

Pullen's Etymological Compendium, 8vo.

Cooper's (C. P.) Account of Public Records, 8vo. 1822. Vol. I.

Lingard's History of England.Sm. 8vo. 1837. Vols. X. XI. XII. XIII.

Miller's (John, of Worcester Coll.) Sermons.Oxford, 1831 (or about that year).

Wharton's Anglia Sacra.Vol. II.

Phebus(Gaston, Conte de Foix), Livre du deduyt de la Chasse.

Turner's Sacred History.3 vols. demy 8vo.

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

G. E. F.Will this correspondent oblige us with another copy of his Query respecting the Knapp Family? The Query to which he alludes came from a gentleman who has shown by his published works that he is both able and willing to search out information for himself. It is the more surprising, therefore, that he should have overlooked the very obvious source from which the information was eventually supplied.

We are unavoidably compelled to omit from the present Number our usual list ofReplies Received.

Foreign Churches.W. A.thinks we should be doing a kindness to our foreign visitors by reminding them of the existence of theDutch Church in Austin Friars,and of theSwedish Church, Prince's Square, Ratcliffe Highway,around which are yet flourishing some of the trees imported and planted by Dr. Solander.

Mercuriiis thanked for his last packet. We shall make use of some parts of it when we return, as we purpose doing very shortly, to the proposedRecord of Existing Monuments.We cannot trace the Queries to which he refers. Will he oblige us with copies of them?

E. H. Y.Will our correspondent say where we may address a communication to him?

Vols. I.andII.,each with very copious Index, may still be had, price 9s. 6d. each.

Notes and Queriesmay be procured, by order, of all Booksellers and Newsvenders. It is published at noon on Friday, so that our country Subscribers ought not to experience any difficulty in procuring it regularly. Many of the country Booksellers, &c., are, probably, not yet aware of this arrangement, which will enable them to receiveNotes and Queriesin their Saturday parcels.

All communications for the Editor ofNotes and Queriesshould be addressed to the care ofMr. Bell, No. 186. Fleet Street.

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THE FAIRY GODMOTHER and other Tales. By Mrs.Alfred Gatty.

"Her love for Fairy Literature has led Mrs. Alfred Gatty to compose four pretty little moral stories, in which the fairies are gracefully enough used as machinery. They are slight, but well written, and the book is altogether very nicely put out of hand."—Guardian.

London:George Bell, 186. Fleet Street.

Just Published, 8vo., price 7s.6d.

THE THEORY OF ELLIPTIC INTEGRALS, and the PROPERTIES of SURFACES of the Second Order, applied to the Investigation of the Motion of a Body round a Fixed Point. ByJames Booth, LL.D., F.R.S., &c., Chaplain to the Most Honourable the Marquess of Lansdowne, and formerly Principal of Bristol College.

London:George Bell, Fleet Street. Cambridge:John Deighton.

In the Press, Volumes III. and IV. of

THE JUDGES OF ENGLAND. ByEdward Foss, F.S.A. Comprehending the period from Edward I. to Richard III., 1272 to 1485.

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VOLUMES I. and II. of the same Work; from the Conquest to the end of Henry III., 1066 to 1272.

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