Part 2

WHIMSICAL BEQUEST.--On Saturday last, the unmarried of whatever age and sex, numbering between 800 and 900 residents in the parish of St. Leonard's, Colchester, received their new year's gift in the shape of 'a penny roll,' bequeathed to them in days of yore, under the following singular circumstances:--Many years ago, a piece of waste land, called 'Knave's Acre,' in the parish of St. Leonard's, was used as a playground by the boys of this and the adjacent parish of St. Mary Magdalen; but one day, the young gentlemen falling out, the affair ended in a regular 'fight;' and the result was that the boys of St. Leonard's vanquished their opponents, and ever after remained victors of the field. The ground was subsequently let for gardening purposes; but the owner, in perpetual remembrance of the juvenile victory, whimsically bequeathed its annual rent of 4l. to be appropriated in the manner above mentioned."

J. B. COLMAN.

_The Orkneys in Pawn._--Dr. Clarke mentions a curious circumstance, which was related to him in Norway, by Bernard Auker, of Christiana. He stated that Great Britain had the Orkney Islands only in pawn. Looking over some old deeds and records, belonging to the Danish crown, at Copenhagen, Mr. Auker found that these islands were consigned to England, in lieu of a dowry for a Danish princess, married to one of our English kings, upon condition that these islands should be restored to Denmark whenever the debt for which they were pledged should be discharged. Therefore, as the price of land, and the value of money, have undergone such considerable alteration since this period, it is in the power of Denmark, for a very small sum, to claim possession of the Orkneys.

KIRKWALLENSIS.

_Lord Duff's Toast._--Having made a considerable collection of old Scots almanacks, I find occasionally on the waste papers at the beginnings and ends some curious notes: they, however, chiefly refer to the weather, crops, fairs, and prices of corn, starting-hours of coaches, &c. I find the following toast noted on the _New Scots Almanack_ for 1802: I send it to "N. & Q.," not knowing if it ever has been in print:

"LORD DUFF'S TOAST A.D. '45.

A. B. C. A Blessed Change. D. E. F. Down Every Foreigner. G. H. J. God Help James. K. L. M. Keep Lord Marr. N. O. P. Noble Ormond Preserve. Q. R. S. Quickly Restore[3] Stewart. T. U. V. W. Truss Up Vile Whigs. X. Y. Z. 'Xert Your Zeal."

S. WMSON.

[Footnote 3: "Restore" corrected from "Resolve" by erratum in Issue 174.--Transcriber.]

* * * * *

Queries.

THE METEORIC STONE OF THE THRACIAN CHERSONESUS.

In the _Quarterly Review_ just published, the reviewer, in the course of an interesting article on "Meteors, Aerolites, and Shooting Stars," makes a suggestion which, if admitted into "N. & Q.," may {106} meet the eye of some English resident or traveller in the East, who will give to it the attention it deserves.

A great degree of interest is attached to the recorded fall of aerolites in times past, and the most remarkable and authentic record of antiquity on this subject is that of the massive stone which fell in the 78th Olympiad (about the time of the birth of Socrates), at Ægospotamos (the goat's river), on the Hellespont,--the place soon afterwards the scene of that naval victory of Lysander, in the last year of the Peloponnesian war, which subjected Athens and Greece for a time to the Spartan power. The fall of this stone, says the reviewer, is expressly mentioned by Aristotle; by the author of the Parian Chronicle; by Diogenes of Apollonia; and most fully by Plutarch and Pliny, both of whom distinctly state it to be shown in their time--the sixth century after its fall. Pliny's description is well marked. "Qui lapis etiam nunc ostenditur, magnitudine vehis, colore adusto;" and he adds the fact that a burning comet (meteor) accompanied its descent. Plutarch explicitly states that it was still held in much veneration by the inhabitants of the Chersonesus. He also speaks of its vast size. If the mass remained visible, and of such magnitude as described, down to Pliny's time, it is far from impossible (remarks the reviewer) that it may even now be re-discovered, with the aid, perchance, of some stray tradition attached to the place, surviving, as often happens, the lapse of ages, the changes of human dominion, and even the change of race itself, upon the spot. The locality, indeed, is not further indicated than by the statement of its fall at Ægospotamos; but the invariable manner in which it is thus described defines tolerably well the district to be examined. We learn (he adds) from the old geographers, that there was a town called Ægospotami on the Thracian side of the Hellespont, and we may infer a stream from which its name was derived. The description of the naval fight, and the situation relatively to Lampsacus (the modern Lamsaki), further define the locality within certain limits. The reviewer then adds some practical suggestions of importance. The traveller devoting himself to this research should make his head-quarters at various places near the spot in question. He should render himself previously familiar with the aspect of meteoric stones, as now seen in European cabinets, and should study the character of rocks and fragmentary masses in the vicinity, to appreciate the differences of aspect. A small part only of the mass may now appear above the surface, and may even be wholly concealed by alluvial deposits, in which case the research would, of course, be in vain, unless happily aided by local tradition, which at the outset should be sedulously sought for. The research, if successful, would be of interest enough, both for history and science, to perpetuate a man's name. In the hope that some of the correspondents of "N. & Q.," now sojourning in, or likely to visit the locality, may be tempted to undertake it, I send you these suggestions, extracted from an article of no small scientific interest and value; and I will conclude with the Query, whether the "sacred black stone," which is mentioned by Colonel Williams (the British Commissioner for the settlement of the Turkish boundary question) to be regarded by the Seids inhabiting Despool as their palladium, has any legend of meteoric origin connected with its history?

WM. SIDNEY GIBSON.

Newcastle on Tyne.

* * * * *

BANBURY CAKES AND ZEAL.

_The Tatler_, No. 220., in describing his "Ecclesiastical Thermometer" which gave indication of the changes and revolutions in the Church, and of the different degrees of heat in religion throughout the country, says:

"To complete the experiment, I prevailed upon a friend of mine, who works under me in the occult sciences, to make a progress with my glass through the whole island of Great Britain; and after his return, to present me with a register of his observations. I guessed beforehand at the temper of several places be passed through by the characters they have had time out of mind. Thus that facetious divine, Dr. Fuller, speaking of the town of Banbury near a hundred years ago, tells us, it was a place famous for cakes and zeal, which I find by my glass is true to this day as to the latter part of this description; though I must confess it is not in the same reputation for cakes that it was in the time of that learned author."

In Gough's _Camden_, vol. i. p. 298., there is rather an amusing account of the manner in which the town of Banbury gained a proverbial reputation for zeal; and the following note by Mr. Camden, in his MS. supplement to the _Britannia_, is added:

"Put out the word _zeale_ in Banbury, where some think it a disgrace, when as _zeale_ with knowledge is the greater grace among good Christians; for it was first foysted in by some compositor or pressman, neither is it in my Latin copie, which I desire the reader to hold as authentic."

And Ray gives as a proverbial saying:

"Banbury veal, cheese, and cakes."

and refers to the mistake in Camden.[4] Now it is {107} possible, that Dr. Fuller derived his estimation of the town of Banbury from Camden; still, as we know that Banbury in the seventeenth century had a character for Puritanism, he may have intended by the word _zeal_ to refer to the sectarian spirit of the inhabitants. But what I would ask is, whether any events occurred in Banbury in the eighteenth century, which justify _The Tatler_ in classing it among those places which were hot in the cause of the Church; and giving to the words of the "facetious divine," whom he quotes, a signification entirely different to that which must have been intended?

Also, where is the first mention of Banbury cakes? Did their reputation decline in the eighteenth century, and revive again afterwards; or had they a celebrity in early days to which the present age can present no parallel? The Banbury people would hardly assent to _The Tatler's_ disparaging remark.

ERICA.

Warwick.

[Footnote 4: [The following note respecting this misprint is given in Gibson's _Camden_, vol. i. p. 296., edit. 1772:--"There is a credible story, that while Philemon Holland was carrying on his English edition of the _Britannia_, Mr. Camden came accidentally to the press, when this sheet was working off; and looking on, he found, that to his own observation of Banbury being famous for cheese, the translator had added cakes and ale. But Mr. Camden, thinking it too light an expression, changed the word _ale_ into _zeal_; and so it passed, to the great indignation of the Puritans, who abounded in this town."--ED.]]

* * * * *

Minor Queries.

_Richardson or Murphy._--I have in my collection a portrait, purporting to be that of "Joseph Richardson, Esq., Barrister, and Member for Newport in Cornwall," engraved in line by W. J. Newton, from a picture by the late president, M. A. Shee, Esq., R.A.; and another impression, from the _same_ plate, inscribed "James Murphy, Esq., Architect." Will any of your readers be good enough to inform me which of those gentlemen was the real _Simon Pure_, and what induced the alteration of name, &c.?

I could cite numerous instances of the same kind of trick having been practised, and may trouble you with further inquiries on a future occasion. At present I am anxious to ascertain whether I have got a genuine or spurious portrait in my portfolio of artists.

J. BURTON.

38. Avenham Lane, Preston.

_Legend attached to Creeper in the Samoan Isles._--Walpole, in his _Four Years in the Pacific_, mentions a creeper of most singular toughness, to which the natives attach a legend, which makes it the material employed by some fabulous ancestor to bind the sun, and which they term _facehere_, or _Itu's cord_, affirming that it cannot be broken "even by the white man, clever as he is." Mr. Walpole certainly failed in his attempts to clear a way through it. Will any of your botanical readers give me the proper name of the plant? and also of the "Giant Arum," which the same people call the king or chief of plants?

SELEUCUS.

_Shearman Family._--Is there a family named either Shearman or Spearman in Yorkshire or in Wales? What are their arms? Is there any record of a member of this family settling in Ireland, county of Kilkenny, about the middle of the seventeenth century; his name, &c.? Are there any genealogical records concerning them?

JAMES GRAVES.

Kilkenny.

_American Fisheries._--Almost from the first settlement of the colony of Massachusetts Bay, this has been a troublesome question; and now that it is under the consideration of the English and American governments, it is to be hoped that it may be finally settled.

In June, 1623, a vessel arrived at Plymouth, Cape Cod, commanded by Admiral West, who had been sent from England for the sole purpose of preventing all persons, whether subjects of Great Britain or foreigners, from fishing on the coast, unless they had previously obtained permission for that purpose from the Council of New England. The admiral meeting with much opposition, and finding he could not settle the question in an amicable manner, left Plymouth in disgust, and sailed for southern Virginia. The colonists then appealed to Parliament, and an act was passed that the fisheries _should be free_.

Query, In what year was this act passed, and has the permission then granted ever been annulled?

W. W.

Malta.

_Grindle._--What is the true meaning of this word, and are any other parts of the kingdom called thus? The one I allude to is still called "The Grindle," close adjoining the town of Bury St. Edmund's; and consists of an encampment and earthworks, very similar to several mentioned before in "N. & Q." under the articles "Grimsdyke" (Vol. iv., pp. 152. 331. 454.; Vol. v., p. 43. &c.). A local guide to the town (Gillingwater, p. 5.) gives the word _Grim_, a fortress=_Grinneal_, depths in the ground.

Can any reader of your valuable Notes give any further explanation of the word, or of its origin at Bury?

C. G.

_A Gentleman executed for whipping a Slave to Death._--In the first volume of _Eastern Europe_, published in London by T. C. Newby, in 1846, it is thus recorded:

"During the administration of Spencer Perceval, on the 8th of May, 1811, the Honourable A. W. Hodge, a member of his Britannic Majesty's council at Tortola, was executed for the murder of one of his negroes by excessive flogging."

{108}

Might I ask if there is any other instance known of a gentleman's having suffered similar punishment for the same crime, during the period the West India islands were held as slave colonies of England?

W. W.

Malta.

_Brydone._--A. J. C. would be glad to be informed of the birthplace of Mr. Brydone, the tourist and author. The biographies state that he was the son of a clergyman, and born in Scotland; but do not give the exact _locus in quo_.

"_Clear the Decks for Bognie's Carriage._"--The announcement, in _Punch_, that the Lords of the Admiralty had ordered a large supply of arm-chairs (of course on castors) for the use of our veteran commanders, has recalled to my recollection the above, which used to pass current in Banffshire, as a call for a clear stage. Can any of your readers tell us who was "Bognie;" what was his "carriage," and what the connexion between it and "decks?"

FROM THE NEIGHBOURHOOD OF BOGNIE BRAE.

_London Queries._--Answers to the following Queries would very much oblige me.

The date when chains and bars were first erected for levying toll into the City of London.

The date of the erection of the first Temple Bar, its architect's name, and when pulled down or destroyed, and if burnt during the Great Fire.

The authority for the present gate having been built after designs of Sir Christopher Wren.

J. N. G. G.

_Scarf worn by Clergymen._--By what authority do clergymen, who are neither chaplains to any member of the royal family, or to any peer or peeress, or have not taken the degree of D.D., wear a _scarf_ either over the surplice or the black gown?

C-- J. T. P.

W---- Rectory.

_Life of Queen Anne._--Who is the author of

"The History of the Life and Reign of her late Majesty Queen Anne: wherein all the Transactions of that Memorable Reign are faithfully compiled from the best authorities, and impartially related. Illustrated with a regular Series of all the Medals that were struck to commemorate the great Events of this Reign; with a Variety of other useful and ornamental Plates. London, printed and sold by the Booksellers in Town and Country. 1740."

The size is small folio.

E. S. JACKSON.

_Erasmus Smith._--The undersigned is much interested in learning something of the life and history of Erasmus Smith, the founder of the numerous schools in Ireland that still go under his name, and are governed by a chartered incorporation. If it was a great act to found and endow so many schools, assuredly Erasmus Smith gives additional authority to the dictum, that "The world knows nothing of its greatest men."

D. C. L.

_Croxton or Crostin of Lancashire._--Can any of the readers of "N. & Q." furnish me with any particulars of this family; whether they bore arms, and what they were? They are, I believe, of Lancashire origin,--the name frequently occurring in the history of that county. Where is also the ancient (and formerly very extensive) parish of Crostin?

W. H. COLLES.

_Grub Street Journal._--Can any of your readers give me information as to the parties by whom this journal was conducted; or who formed the Grub Street Society, shortly before, and for a few years after 1730; or what this society was: or refer me to the best sources of information on the subject? My reason for asking the question is, that I have lately found a manuscript book--a common thickish square account-book in a vellum back--containing at one end, as it seems, the minutes of the meetings of the Grub Street Society, signed by the members at each meeting: at the other end, the accounts of the funds of the association. If it should prove that the entries are genuine, and they should prove to be of any interest, I should send you some extracts from the book.

REGINENSIS.

_Chaplain to the Princess Elizabeth._--What was the surname of the person who officiated as chaplain to the Princess Elizabeth during her imprisonment at Woodstock in 1554? His Christian name was William.

C. R. M.

"_The Snow-flake._"--In a comparatively obscure poem, _The Snow-flake_, not very long published, occurs the line:

"When Kola's mild blue eyes shall weep."

Pray, to what is allusion made?

A. S. T.

* * * * *

Minor Queries with Answers.

_Leamhuil or Lahoel._--Can you, or any of your readers, give me a description of the place, abbey, or other ancient building, called _Leamhuil_ or _Lahoel_, or refer me to some work where I may find the history of the same? In Lewis's _Topographical Dictionary_ it is said to be somewhere in Queen's County, Ireland. Also, inform me whether there has been any family of that name?

FREDERICK KENNETH.

Clonea.

[Leamchuill is in the barony of Portnehinch, Queen's County. Archdale, in his _Monasticon Hibernicum_, p. 595., states, that "St. Fintan-Chorach was abbot here towards the close of the sixth century. By some writers he is said to have been interred here; and from {109} others we learn that Cluainednach, or Clonfert Brendan, was the place of his sepulture. St. Mochonna was abbot or bishop here, but at what period is unknown." Stevens, however, says this abbey was in Leinster. "St. Fintan, otherwise called St. Munnu, in the sixth century, founded the abbey of Cluian Ædnach; those of Achad-Arglass, Achad-Finglass, and _Lanchoil_ in _Leinster_, and those of Dumbleske and Ross-Coerach in Munster." (_Monasticon Hibernicum_, p. 377., edit. 1722.) Consult also the authorities quoted in Butler's _Lives of the Saints_, art. St. Fintan, October 22nd.]

_Orte's Maps, Edition of 1570._--I have in my possession a quarto volume of fifty-three coloured maps, by Abraham Orte, and printed at Antwerp in 1570.

Almost all the maps are ornamented with some miniature paintings, representing the ships or galleys used in the country which the map describes. On many of these there are also the figures of whales and flat-fish. On the map of Russia, in one part, there are three large tents, with three men, clothed in coloured garments, at the entrance of them; and near by some camels are grazing. In another part is seen a cluster of trees, and seated in the branches of the first and largest there is the figure of a saint, to whom it would appear five men, or priests, are kneeling and praying, with their heads uplifted and hands outstretched. On the branches of the trees in the background several persons are hanging.

On the twenty-eighth map there is a large town represented at the foot of a hill, and above it these words: "Urbis Salis Burgensis genuina Descriptio." Can any of your correspondents inform me if there is another copy of this work known to be extant; and, if so, whether the maps are like those I have briefly described? In a catalogue of rare books, I have seen no mention made of this edition of 1570, though reference is made to one of twenty years a later date.

W. W.

Malta.

[This edition is in the British Museum, and agrees in every respect with the one possessed by our correspondent, except that it is in folio. It appears extremely rare.]

_Prayer for the Recovery of George III._--In 1815, when I first went to school, one of my schoolfellows had (I think in manuscript in the fly-leaf of his Prayer-Book) a prayer for the king's recovery, of which I remember only two detached portions:--"Restore, we implore Thee, our beloved sovereign to his family and his people"--"and whether it shall seem fit to Thine unerring wisdom, presently to remove from us this great calamity, or still to suspend it over us, dispose us, under every dispensation of Thy Providence, patiently to adore Thine inscrutable goodness." The rest I forget. Can any of your correspondents supply the remainder of the prayer; or tell me where it is to be found, or who was the author?

LAICUS.

[This prayer was composed by Dr. Sutton, Archbishop of Canterbury, and will be found in the _Gentleman's Magazine_ of November 1810, p. 484.]

* * * * *

Replies.

MRS. MACKEY'S POEMS.

(Vol. vi., p. 578.)

Mrs. Mary Mackey was "a real person," and the widow of a conveyancer in good practice. Of him she says (_Scraps of Nature_, p. 362.):

"The husband of poor Nature was a gentleman and an honest man, made a fortune and spent it nearly, in which his wife had no share, for that he governed and ruled the roast is well known to many: he had a noble and generous soul, but always kept poor Nature's talents under a bushel, where they shall never go again. He was old enough to be her father, and ever treated her like a child."

He left only enough to purchase for her a small annuity. She was uneducated, as she says, p. 274.:

"I never learned to write or spell, Although I read and write so well;"

but laboured under the illusion that she was a poetess. She sought an interview with Hewson Clarke by inviting him to meet a lady who admired his writings in White Conduit Fields. He went, and was somewhat mortified to find a matron of about forty-five, who placed her MS. in his hand, and requested his candid opinion on a future day. She was lady-like and sensible upon all matters except her own poems. Of course his opinion was easily formed; but he assured her that, though the poems were very good, they would not suit the public taste, and that she would be rash in publishing. She took his advice, but unfortunately happened to know Peter Pindar, who had been one of her husband's friends. She devotes a "scrap" to a kiss which he gave her (p. 215.). He was blind, but on hearing some of her poems read, he exclaimed, "Oh, my God, madam, there is nothing like this in Shakspeare!" Such a compliment turned her head; she sold her annuity to publish her book, and was reduced to extreme distress and misery. This is stated in a notice of the book in _The British Stage_, Sept. 1817, p. 210. The article, which is signed K., was written by the editor, Mr. Jones Broughton of the India House, a friend of Hewson Clarke, and once editor of _The Theatrical Inquisitor_.

I agree with G. C. that the "scraps" are _niaiseries_; as literature nothing can be worse; but they are curious and, I think, deeply interesting as genuine expressions of feeling. Mary Mackey was vain and weak, but true-hearted, {110} generous, and affectionate; she conceals nothing, and lays bare her poverty and her wish to marry again. She advertises herself under the form of a pony for sale: