ORDER FOR THE SUPPRESSION OF VAGRANCY, A.D. 1650-51.

At a time when the question of "What is to be done with our vagrant children?" is occupying the attention of all men of philanthropic minds, it may be worth while to give place in your pages to the following order addressed by the Lord Mayor of London to his aldermen in 1650-51, which applies, amongst other things, to that very subject. It will be seen that some of the artifices of beggary in that day were very similar to those with which we are now but too familiar. The difference of treatment between vagrant children over and under nine years of age, is worthy of observation.

"By the Mayor.

"Forasmuch as of late the constables of this city have neglected to put in execution the severall wholsome laws for punishing of vagrants, and passing them to the places of their last abode, whereby great scandall and dishonour is brought upon the government of this city; These are therefore to will and require you, or your deputy, forthwith to call before you the several constables within your ward, and strictly to charge them to put in execution the said laws, or to expect the penalty of forty shillings to be levyed upon their estates, for every vagrant that shal be found begging in their several precincts. And to the end the said constables may not pretend ignorance, what to do with the several persons which they shal find offending the said laws, these are further to require them, that al aged or impotent persons who are not fit to work, be passed from constable to constable to the parish where they dwel; and that the constable in whose ward they are found begging, shal give a passe under his hand, expressing the place where he or she were taken, and the place whither they are to be passed. And for children under five years of age, who have no dwelling, or cannot give an account of their parents, the parish where they are found are to provide for them; and for those which shall bee found lying under stalls, having no habitation or parents (from five to nine years old), are to be sent to the Wardrobe House^[2], to be provided for by the corporation for the poore; and all above nine years of age are to be sent to Bridewel. And for men or women who are able to work and goe begging with young children, such persons for the first time to be passed to the place of their abode as aforesaid; and being taken againe, they are to be carryed to Bridewel, to be corrected according to the discretion of the governours. And for those persons that shal be found to hire children, or go begging with children not sucking, those children are to be sent to the several parishes wher they dwel, and the persons so hiring them to Bridewel, to be corrected and passed away, or kept at work there, according to the governour's discretion. And for al other vagrants and beggars under any pretence whatsoever, to be forthwith sent down to Bridewel to be imployed and corrected, according to the statute laws of this commonwealth, except before excepted; and the president and governours of Bridewel are hereby desired to meet twice every week to see to the execution of this Precept. And the steward of the workehouse called the Wardrobe, is authorised to receive into that house such children as are of the age between five and nine, as is before specified and limited; and the said steward is from time to time to acquaint the corporation for the poor, what persons are brought in, to the end they may bee provided for. Dated this four and twentyeth day of January, 1650.

Sadler."         

John Bruce.

LETTERS OF EMINENT LITERARY MEN.

Sir,

I send you, as a New Year's Gift for your "N. & Q.," transcripts of half-a-dozen Letters of Eminent Literary Men, specimens of whose correspondence it will do your work no discredit to preserve,

British Museum, Dec. 26, 1853.

I.

Dean Swift to * * * * * * *.

[MS. Addit., Brit. Mus., 12,113. Orig.]

Belcamp, Mar. 14th.

Sir,

Riding out this morning to dine here with Mr. Grattan, I saw at his house the poor lame boy that gives you this: he was a servant to a plow-man near Lusk, and while he was following the plow, a dog bit him in the leg, about eleven weeks ago. One Mrs. Price endeavored six weeks to cure him, but could not, and his Master would maintain him no longer. Mr. Grattan and I are of opinion that he may be a proper object to be received into Dr. Stephen's Hospital. The boy tells his story naturally, and Mr. Grattan and I took pity of him. If you find him curable, and it be not against the rules of the Hospitall, I hope you will receive him.

II.

The Rev. Thomas Baker to Mr. Humphry Wanley.

[Harl. MS. 3778, Art. 43. Orig.]

Cambridge, Oct. 16th [1718].

Worthy Sir

I am glad to hear Mrs. Elstob is in a condition to pay her debts, for me she may be very easy: tho' I could wish for the sake of the University (tho' I am no way engaged, having taken up my obligation) that you could recover the Book, or at least could find where it is lodged, that Mr. Brook may know where to demand it. This, I presume, may be done.

If you have met with Books printed by Guttenberg, you have made a great discovery. I thought there had been none such in the world, and began to look upon Fust as the first Printer. I have seen the Bishop of Ely's Catholicon (now with us), which, for aught I know, may have been printed by Guttenberg; for tho' it be printed at Ments, yet there is no name of the Printer, and the character is more rude than Fust's Tullie's Offices, whereof there are two Copies in 1465 and 1466, the first on vellum, the other on paper.

May I make a small enquiry, after the mention of so great a name as Guttenberg? I remember, you told me, my Lord Harley had two Copies of Edw. the Sixth's first Common Prayer Book. Do you remember whether either of them be printed by Grafton, the King's Printer? I have seen four or five Editions by Whitchurch, but never could meet with any by Grafton, except one in my custody, which I shall look upon to be a great Rarity, if it be likewise wanting to my Lord's Collection. It varies from all the other Copies, and is printed in 1548. All the rest, I think, in 1549. One reason of my enquiry is, because I want the Title, for the date is at the end of the Book, and indeed twice; both on the end of the Communion Office, and of the Litany. But I beg your pardon for so small an enquiry, whilst you are in quest of Guttenberg and Nic. Jenson. My business consists much in trifles.

To the worthy Mr. Wanley, at the
Riding Hood Shop, the corner
of Chandois and Bedford Streets,
          Covent Garden,
                    London.

A note in Wanley's hand says, "Mrs. Elstob has only paid a few small scores."

III.

Extract of a Letter from Wm. Bickford, Esq., to the Rev. Mr. Amory of Taunton, dated Dunsland, March 7, 1731.

[MS. Addit., Brit. Mus., 4309, fol. 358.]

I cannot forbear acquainting you of a very curious passage in relation to Charles the Second's Restoration. Sir Wm. Morrice, who was one of the Secretaries of State soon after, was the person who chiefly transacted that affair with Monk, so that all the papers in order to it were sent him, both from King Charles and Lord Clarendon. Just after the thing was finished, Lord Clarendon got more than 200 of these Letters and other papers from Morrice under pretence of finishing his History, and which were never returned. Lord Somers, when he was chancellor, told Morrice's Grandson that if he would file a Bill in Chancery, he would endeavour to get them; but young Morrice having deserted the Whig Interest, was prevailed upon to let it drop. This I know to be fact, for I had it not only from the last-mentioned Gentleman, but others of that family, especially a son of the Secretaries. As soon as I knew this, I took the first opportunity of searching the study, and found some very curious Letters, which one time or other I design to publish together with the account of that affair. My mother being Niece to the Secretary, hath often heard him say that Charles the Second was not only very base in not keeping the least of the many things that he had promised; but by debauching the Nation, had rendered it fitt for that terrible fellow (meaning the Duke of York) to ruin us all, and then Monk and him would be remembred to their Infamy.

(To be continued.)

BURIAL-PLACE OF ARCHBISHOP LEIGHTON.

On a visit this autumn with some friends to the picturesque village and church of Horsted-Keynes, Sussex, our attention was forcibly arrested by the appearance of two large pavement slabs, inserted in an erect position on the external face of the south wall of the chancel. They proved to be those which once had covered and protected the grave of the good Archbishop Leighton, who passed the latter years of his life in that parish, and that of Sir Ellis Leighton, his brother. On inquiry, it appeared that their remains had been deposited within a small chapel on the south side of the chancel, the burial-place of the Lightmaker family, of Broadhurst, in the parish of Horsted. The archbishop retired thither in 1674, and resided with his only sister, Saphira, widow of Mr. Edward Lightmaker. Broadhurst, it may be observed, is sometimes incorrectly mentioned by the biographers of Archbishop Leighton as a parish; it is an ancient mansion, the residence formerly of the Lightmakers, and situated about a mile north of the village of Horsted. There it was that Leighton made his will, in February, 1683; but his death occurred, it will be remembered, in singular accordance with his desire often expressed, at an inn, the Bell, in Warwick Lane, London.

The small chapel adjacent to the chancel, and opening into it by an arch now walled up, had for some time, as I believe, been used as a school-room; more recently, however, either through its becoming out of repair, or from some other cause, the little structure was demolished. The large slabs which covered the tombs of the good prelate and his brother were taken up and fixed against the adjoining wall. The turf now covers the space thus thrown into the open churchyard; nothing remains to mark the position of the graves, which in all probability, ere many years elapse, will be disturbed through ignorance or heedlessness, and the ashes of Leighton scattered to the winds.

In times when special respect has been shown to the tombs of worthies of bygone times, with the recent recollection also of what has been so well carried out by Mr. Markland in regard to the grave of Bishop Ken, shall we not make an effort to preserve from desecration and oblivion the resting-place of one so eminent as Leighton for his learning and piety, so worthy to be held in honoured remembrance for his high principles and his consistent conduct in an evil age?

Albert Way.

Minor Notes.

Grammars, &c. for Public Schools.—Would it not be desirable for some correspondents of "N. & Q." to furnish information respecting grammars, classics, and other works which have been written for the various public schools? Such information might be useful to book collectors; and would also serve to reflect credit on the schools whose learned masters have prepared such books. My contribution to the list is small: but I remember a valuable Greek grammar prepared by the Rev. —— Hook, formerly head master of the College School at Gloucester, for the use of that establishment; as also a peculiar English grammar prepared by the Rev. R. S. Skillern, master of St. Mary de Crypt School, in the same place, for the use of that school. I also possess a copy (1640) of the Romanæ Historiæ Anthologia, for the use of Abingdon School, and Moses and Aaron, or the Rites and Customs of the Hebrews (1641), both by Thos. Godwin, though the latter was written after he ceased to be master of the schools.

P. H. Fisher.

Stroud.

"To captivate."—Moore, in his Journal, speaking of the Americans (January 9th, 1819), says:

"They sometimes, I see, use the word captivate thus: 'Five or six ships captivated,' 'Five or six ships captivated.'"

Originally, the words to captivate were synonymous with to capture, and the expression was used with reference to warlike operations. To captivate the affections was a secondary use of the phrase. The word is used in the original sense in many old English books. It is not used so now in the United States.

Uneda.

Philadelphia.

Bohn's Edition of Matthew of Westminster.—Under the year A.D. 782, the translator informs us that "Hirenes and his son Constantine became emperors." Such an emperor is not to be found in the annals of Constantinople. If Mr. Yonge, who shows elsewhere that he has read Gibbon, had referred to him on this occasion, he would probably have found that the Empress Irene, a name dear to the reverencers of images, was the person meant. The original Latin probably gives no clue to the sex; but still this empress, who is considered as a saint by her church, notwithstanding the deposition and blinding of her own son, was not a personage to be so easily forgotten.

J. S. Warden.

French Season Rhymes and Weather Rhymes.—

Ceyrep.

Curious Epitaph in Tillingham Church, Essex.—

Which has been thus ingeniously paraphrased by a friend of mine:

C. K. P.

Newport, Essex.

Queries.

DOMESTIC LETTERS OF EDMUND BURKE.

In the curious and able article entitled "The Domestic Life of Edmund Burke," which appeared in the Athenæum of Dec. 10th and Dec. 17th (and to which I would direct the attention of such readers of "N. & Q." as have not yet seen it), the writer observes:

"There is not in existence, as far as we know, or have a right to infer from the silence of the biographers, one single letter, paper, or document of any kind—except a mysterious fragment of one letter—relating to the domestic life of the Burkes, until long after Edmund Burke became an illustrious and public man; no letters from parents to children, from children to parents, from brother to brother, or brother to sister."

And as Edmund Burke was the last survivor of the family, the inference drawn by the writer, that they were destroyed by him, seems, on the grounds which he advances, a most reasonable one. But my object in writings is to call attention to a source from which, if any such letters exist, they may yet possibly be recovered; I mean the collections of professed collectors of autographs. On the one hand, it is scarcely to be conceived that the destroyer of these materials for the history of the Burkes, be he who he may, can have got all the family correspondence into his possession. On the other, it is far from improbable that in some of the collections to which I have alluded, some letters, notes, or documents may exist, treasured by the possessors as mere autographs; but which might, if given to the world, serve to solve many of those mysteries which envelope the early history of Edmund Burke. The discovery of documents of such a character seems to be the special province of "N. & Q.," and I hope, therefore, although this letter has extended far beyond the limits I originally contemplated, you will insert it, and so permit me to put this Query to autograph collectors, "Have you any documents illustrative of the Burkes?" and to add as a Note, "If so, print them!"

N. O.

Minor Queries.

Farrant's Anthem.—From what source did Farrant take the words of his well-known anthem, "Lord, for thy tender mercies' sake?"

C. F. S.

Ascension Day Custom.—What is the origin of the custom which still obtains in St. Magnus and other city churches, of presenting the clergy with ribbons, cakes, and silk staylaces on Ascension Day?

C. F. S.

Sawbridge and Knight's Numismatic Collections.—In Snelling's tract on Pattern Pieces for English Gold and Silver Coins (1769), p. 45., it is stated, in the description of a gold Coin of Elizabeth, that it is "unique, formerly in the collection of Thomas Sawbridge, Esq., but at present in the collection of Thomas Knight, Esq., who purchased the whole cabinet."—Can any of your readers inform me who this Mr. Knight was, and whether his collection is still in existence; or if it was dispersed, when, and in what manner? I am not aware of any sale catalogue under his name.

J. B. B.

"The spire whose silent finger points to heaven."—I have met with, and sometimes quoted, this line. Who is its author, and in what poem does it occur?

J. W. T.

Dewsbury.

Lord Fairfax.—In the Peerage of Scotland I find this entry:

"Fairfax, Baron, Charles Snowdon Fairfax, 1627, Baron Fairfax, of Cameron; suc. his grandfather, Thomas, ninth baron, 1846. His lordship resides at Woodburne, in Maryland, United States."

Fairfax is not a Scotch name. And I can find no trace of any person of that family taking a part in Scotch affairs. Cameron is, I suppose, the parish of that name in the east of Fife.

I wish to ask, 1st. For what services, or under what circumstances, the barony was created?

2ndly. When did the family cease to possess land or other property in Scotland, if they ever held any?

3rdly. Is the present peer a citizen or subject of the United States? If so, is he known and addressed as Lord Fairfax, or how?

4thly. Has he, or has any of his ancestors, since the recognition of the United States as a nation, ever used or applied for permission to exercise the functions of a peer of Scotland, e.g. in the election of representative peers?

5thly. If he be a subject of the United States, and have taken, expressly or by implication, the oath of citizenship (which pointedly renounces allegiance to our sovereign), how is it that his name is retained on the roll of a body whose first duty it is to guard the throne, and whose existence is a denial of the first proposition in the constitution of his country?

Perhaps Uneda, W. W., or some other of your Philadelphia correspondents, will be good enough to notice the third of these Queries.

W. H. M.

Tailless Cats.—A writer in the New York Literary World of Feb. 7, 1852, makes mention of a breed of cats destitute of tails, which are found in the Isle of Man. Perhaps some generous Manx correspondent will say whether this is a fact or a Jonathan.

Shirley Hibberd.

Saltcellar.—Can any of your readers gainsay that in saltcellar the cellar is a mere corruption of salière? A list of compound words of Saxon and French origin might be curious.

H. F. B.

Arms and Motto granted to Col. William Carlos.—Can any reader of "N. & Q." give the date of the grant of arms to Col. William Carlos (who assisted Charles II. to conceal himself in the "Royal Oak," after the battle of Worcester), and specify the exact terms of the grant?

μ.

Naval Atrocities.—In the article on "Wounds," in the Encyc. Brit., 4th edition, published 1810, the author, after mentioning the necessity of a surgeon's being cautious in pronouncing on the character of any wound, adds that "this is particularly necessary on board ship, where, as soon as any man is pronounced by the surgeon to be mortally wounded, he is forthwith, while still living and conscious, thrown overboard," or words to this effect, as I quote from memory. That such horrid barbarity was not practised in 1810, it is needless to say; and if it had been usual at any previous period, Smollett and other writers who have exposed with unsparing hand all the defects in the naval system of their day, would have scarcely left this unnoticed when they attack much slighter abuses. If such a thing ever occurred, even in the worst of times, it must have been an isolated case. I have not met elsewhere with any allusion to this passage, or the atrocity recorded in it, and would be glad of more information on the subject.

J. S. Warden.

Turlehydes.—During the great famine in Ireland land in 1331, it is said that—

"The people in their distress met with an unexpected and providential relief. For about the 24th June, a prodigious number of large sea fish, called turlehydes, were brought into the bay of Dublin, and cast on shore at the mouth of the river Dodder. They were from thirty to forty feet long, and so bulky that two tall men placed one on each side of the fish could not see one another."—The History and Antiquities of the City of Dublin from the Earliest Accounts, by Walter Harris, 1766, p. 265.

This account is compiled from several records of the time, some of which still exist. As the term turlehydes is not known to Irish scholars, can any of the readers of "N. & Q." say what precise animal is meant by it, or give any derivation or reference for the term?

U. U.

Dublin.

Foreign Orders—Queen of Bohemia.—It is well known that in some foreign Orders the decorations thereof are conferred upon ladies. Can any of your correspondents inform me whether the Order of the Annunciation of Sardinia, formerly the Order of the Ducal House of Savoy, at any time conferred its decorations upon ladies; and whether the Princess Elizabeth, afterwards Queen of Bohemia, ever had the decoration of any foreign order conferred upon her? In a portrait of her she is represented with a star or badge upon the upper part of the left arm.

S. E. G.

Pickard Family.—Is the Pickard, or Picard, family, a branch of which is located in Yorkshire, of Norman origin? If so, who were the first settlers in England; and also in what county are they most numerous?

One of the Family.

Bradford.

Irish Chieftains.—Some account of the following, Historical Reminiscences of O'Byrnes, O'Tooles, O'Kavanaghs, and other Irish Chieftains, privately printed, 1843, is requested by

John Martin.

Woburn Abbey.

General Braddock.—Can any of your readers furnish me with information relative to this officer? His disastrous expedition against Fort Du Quesne, and its details, are well known; but I should like to know something more of his previous history. Walpole gives an anecdote or two of him, and mentions that he had been Governor of Gibraltar. I think too he was of Irish extraction. Is there no portrait or engraving of Braddock in existence?

Serviens.

Minor Queries with Answers.

Lawless Court, Rochford, Essex.—A most extraordinary custom exists, in a manor at Rochford, in the tenants holding under what is called the "Lawless Court." This court is held at midnight, by torch-light, in the centre of a field, on the first Friday after the 29th Sept., and is presided over by the steward of the manor, who, however, appoints a deputy to fulfil this part of his duty. The tenants of the manor are obliged to attend to answer to their names, when called upon, under pain of a heavy fine, or at all events have some one there to respond for them. All the proceedings are carried on in a whisper, no one speaking above that tone of voice; and the informations as to deaths, names, &c. are entered in a book by the president with a piece of charcoal. I may add, the business is not commenced until a cock has crowed three times, and as it is sometimes a difficult matter to get Chanticleer to do his duty, a man is employed to crow, whose fee therefor is 5s.

Now Morant, in his History of Essex, merely cursorily mentions this most singular custom, and has nothing as to its antiquity or origin; I should therefore feel much obliged for any information concerning it.

Russell Gole.

Motto on old Damask.—Can your correspondents furnish an explanation of the motto herewith sent? It is taken from some damask table napkins which were bought many years back at Brussels; not at a shop in the ordinary way, but privately, from the family to whom they belonged. I presume the larger characters, if put together, will indicate the date of the event, whatever that may be, which is referred to in the motto itself.

The motto is woven in the pattern of the damask, and consists of the following words in uncials, the letters of unequal size, as subjoined:

"sIgnUM paCIs DatUr LorICæ."

the larger letters being IUMCIDULIC. If the U's are taken as two V's, and written thus X, it gives the date MDCCLXIII. Perhaps this can be explained.

H.

Explanation of the Word "Miser."—Can any of your readers explain how and when miser came to get the meaning of an avaricious hoarding man? In Spenser's Faerie Queene, II. l. 8., it is used in its nearly primary sense of "wretch:"

Again, Faerie Queene, II. 3. 8.:

In Milton's Comus, which was written about fifty years after the first three books of the Faerie Queene, the present signification of the word is complete:

J. D. Gardner.

Bottisham.

"Acis and Galatea."—Is there any good evidence in support of the commonly received opinion that the words to Handel's Acis and Galatea were written by Gay? Hawkins merely states that they "are said to have been written by Mr. Gay." I have no copy of Burney at hand to refer to; but I find the same statement repeated by various other musical historians, without, however, any authority being given for it. The words in question are not to be found among the Poems on several Occasions, by Mr. John Gay, published in 1767 by Tonson and others. Have they ever been included in any collective edition of his works?

G. T.

Reading.

Birm-bank.—The bank of a canal opposite to the towing-path is called the birm-bank. What is the derivation of this?

Uneda.

Philadelphia.

General Thomas Gage.—This officer commanded at Boston at the breaking out of the Revolution, and served under General Braddock. Where can I find any details of the remainder of his history?

Serviens.

Replies.

RAPPING NO NOVELTY.

(Vol. viii., pp. 512. 632.)

The story referred to is certainly a very curious one, and I should like to know whether it is exactly as it was told by Baxter, especially as there seems to be reason for believing that De Foe (whom on other grounds one would not trust in such a matter) did not take it from the work which he quotes. Perhaps if you can find room for the statement, some correspondent would be so good as to state whether it has the sanction of Baxter:

"Mr. Baxter, in his Historical Discourse of Apparitions, writes thus: 'There is now in London an understanding, sober, pious man, oft one of my hearers, who has an elder brother, a gentleman of considerable rank, who having formerly seemed pious, of late years does often fall into the sin of drunkenness; he often lodges long together here in his brother's house, and whensoever he is drunk and has slept himself sober, something knocks at his bed's head, as if one knocked on a wainscot. When they remove his bed it follows him. Besides other loud noises on other parts where he is, that all the house hears, they have often watched him, and kept his hands lest he should do it himself. His brother has often told it me, and brought his wife, a discreet woman, to attest it, who avers moreover, that as she watched him, she has seen his shoes under the bed taken up, and nothing visible to touch them. They brought the man himself to me, and when we asked him how he dare sin again after such a warning, he had no excuse. But being persons of quality, for some special reason of worldly interest I must not name him.'"—De Foe's Life of Duncan Campbell, 2nd ed. p. 107.

After this story, De Foe says:

"Another relation of this kind was sent to Dr. Beaumont (whom I myself personally knew, and which he has inserted in his account of genii, or familiar spirits) in a letter by an ingenious and learned clergyman of Wiltshire," &c.

But he does not say that the story which he has already quoted as from Baxter stands just as he has given it, and with a reference to Baxter, in Beaumont's Historical, Physiological, and Theological Treatise of Spirits, p. 182. Of course one does not attach any weight to De Foe's saying that he knew Dr. Beaumont "personally," but does anybody know anything of him? Nearly four years ago you inserted somewhat similar inquiry about this Duncan Campbell, but I believe it has not yet been answered.

S. R. Maitland.

OCCASIONAL FORMS OF PRAYER.

(Vol. viii., p. 535.)

From a volume of Forms of Prayer in the library of Sir Robert Taylor's Institution, I send you the following list, as supplementary to Mr. Lathbury's. This volume forms part of a collection of books bequeathed to the University by the late Robert Finch, M.A., formerly of Baliol College:

A Form of Prayer for a General Fast, &c. 4to. London. 1762.

In both the Morning and Evening Services of this Form "A Prayer for the Reformed Churches" is included, which is omitted in all the subsequent Forms. This is a copy of it:

"A Prayer for the Reformed Churches.

"O God, the Father of Mercies, we present our Supplications unto Thee, more especially on behalf of our Reformed Brethren, whom, blessed be Thy Name, Thou hast hitherto wonderfully supported. Make them perfect, strengthen, 'stablish them: that they may stand fast in the Liberty wherewith Christ hath made them free, and adorn the Doctrine of God our Saviour in all things. Preserve the Tranquillity of those who at present enjoy it: look down with compassion upon such as are persecuted for Righteousness' sake, and plead Thy cause with the oppressors of Thy people. Enlighten those who are in Darkness and Error; and give them Repentance to the Acknowledgment of the Truth: that all the Ends of the World may remember themselves, and be turned unto the Lord; and we all may become one Flock, under the great Shepherd and Bishop of our Souls, Jesus Christ, our only Mediator and Advocate. Amen."

Form, &c. Fast. 1776.

Form, &c. Fast. 1778.

Form, &c. Fast. 1780.

Form, &c. Fast. 1781.

Form, &c. Fast. 1782.

A Prayer to be used on Litany Days before the Litany, and on other days immediately before the Prayer for all Conditions of Men, in all Cathedral, Collegiate, and Parochial Churches and Chapels, &c., during his Majesty's present Indisposition. 1788.

The following MS. note is inserted in the handwriting of Mr. Finch, father of the gentleman who bequeathed the collection:

"Mrs. Finch accompanied my Father (Rev. Dr. Finch, Rector of St. Michael's, Cornhill) to the Cathedral, where he had a seat for himself and his lady assigned him under the Dome, as Treasurer to the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, the original patrons of the Charity Schools. Mrs. F. was so fortunate as to obtain a seat in the choir, and saw the procession from the choir gate. Myself and Robert saw the cavalcade (which was extremely grand, and continued for the space of more than three hours, both Houses of Parliament with their attendants preceding their Majesties) from Mrs Townsend's house in Fleet Street."—April 23, 1789.

Form of Prayer and Thanksgiving for the King's Recovery. 1789.

Form, &c. Fast. 1793.

Form, &c. Fast. 1795.

Form, &c. Fast. 1796.

Form of Prayer and Thanksgiving for many signal and important Victories. 1797.

Form, &c. Fast. 1798.

Form of Prayer and Thanksgiving for the Victory of the Nile, &c. 1798.

Form of Prayer and Thanksgiving for the Victory over the French Fleet, Aug. 1. 1798.

Form of Prayer and Thanksgiving for the safe Delivery of H. R. H. the Princess of Wales, and the birth of a Princess. 1796.

Form, &c. Fast. 1799.

Form, &c. Fast. 1800.

Form, &c. Fast. 1801.

Form and Thanksgiving for the Harvest. 1801.

Form and Thanksgiving for putting an End to the War. 1802.

Form, &c. Fast. 1803.

Form, &c. Fast. 1804.

Form, &c. Fast. 1805.

Form of Prayer and Thanksgiving for Lord Nelson's Victory. 1805.

Form, &c. Fast. 1806.

Form, &c. Fast. 1807.

Form, &c. Fast. 1808.

Form, &c. Fast. 1809.

Form, &c. Fast. 1810.

Form, &c. Fast. 1812.

Form, &c. Thanksgiving for the Peace. 1814.

Form, &c. Thanksgiving for the Peace. 1816.

John Macray.

Oxford.

CELTIC AND LATIN LANGUAGES.

(Vol. viii., p. 174.)

There was a Query some time ago upon this subject, but though it is one full of interest to all scholars, I have not observed any Notes worth mentioning in reply. The connexion between these two languages has only of late occupied the attention of philologers; but the more closely they are compared together, the more important and the more striking do the resemblances appear; and the remark of Arnold with regard to Greek literature applies equally to Latin, "that we seem now to have reached that point in our knowledge of the language, at which other languages of the same family must be more largely studied, before we can make a fresh step in advance." But this study, as regards the comparison of Celtic and Latin, is, in England at least, in a very infant state. Professor Newman, in his Regal Rome, has attention to the subject; but his induction does not appear sufficiently extensive to warrant any decisive conclusion respecting the position the Celtic holds as an element of the Latin. Pritchard's work upon the subject is satisfactory as far as it goes, but both these authors have chiefly confined themselves to a tabular view of Celtic and Latin words; but it is not merely this we want. What is required is a critical examination into the comparative structure and formal development of the two languages, and this is a work still to be accomplished. The later numbers of Bopp's Comparative Grammar are, I believe, devoted to this subject, but as they have not been translated, they must be confined to a limited circle of English readers, and I have not yet seen any reproduction of the views therein contained in the philological literature of England.

As the first step to considerations of this kind must be made from a large induction of words, I think, with your correspondent, that the pages of "N. & Q." might be made useful in supplying "links of connexion" to supply a groundwork for future comparison. I shall conclude by suggesting one or two "links" that I do not remember to have seen elsewhere.

1. Is the root of felix to be found in the Irish fail, fate; the contraction of the dipththong ai or ê being analogous to that of amaïmus into amêmus?

2. Is it not probable that Avernus, if not corrupted from ἄορνος, is related to iffrin, the Irish inferi? This derivation is at any rate more probable than that of Grotefend, who connects the word with Ἀχέρων.

3. Were the Galli, priests of Cybele, so called as being connected with fire-worship? and is the name at all connected with the Celtic gal, a flame? The word Gallus, a Gaul, is of course the same as the Irish gal, a stranger.

T. H. T.

GEOMETRICAL CURIOSITY.

(Vol. viii., p. 468.)

Mr. Ingleby's question might easily be the foundation of a geometrical paper; but as this would not be a desirable contribution, I will endeavour to keep clear of technicalities, in pointing out how the process described may give something near to a circle, or may not.

When a paper figure, bent over a straight line in it, has the two parts perfectly fitting on each other, the figure is symmetrical about that straight line, which may be called an axis of symmetry. Thus every diameter of a circle is an axis of symmetry: every regular oval has two axes of symmetry at right angles to each other: every regular polygon of an odd number of sides has an axis joining each corner to the middle of the opposite sides: every regular polygon of an even number of sides has axes joining opposite corners, and axes joining the middles of opposite sides.

When a piece of paper, of any form whatsoever, rectilinear or curvilinear, is doubled over any line in it, and when all the parts of either side which are not covered by the other are cut away, the unfolded figure will of course have the creased line for an axis of symmetry. If another line be now creased, and a fold made over it, and the process repeated, the second line becomes an axis of symmetry, and the first perhaps ceases to be one. If the process be then repeated on the first line, this last becomes an axis, and the other (probably) ceases to be an axis. If this process can be indefinitely continued, the cuttings must become smaller and smaller, for the following reason. Suppose, at the outset, the boundary point nearest to the intersection of the axes is distant from that intersection by, say four inches; it is clear that we cannot, after any number of cuttings, have a part of the boundary at less than four inches from the intersection. For there never is, after any cutting, any approach to the intersection except what there already was on the other side of the axis employed, before that cutting was made. If then the cuttings should go on for ever, or practically until the pieces to be cut off are too small, and if this take place all round, the figure last obtained will be a good representation of a circle of four inches radius. On the suppositions, we must be always cutting down, at all parts of the boundary; but it has been shown that we can never come nearer than by four inches to the intersection of the axes.

But it does not follow that the process will go on for ever. We may come at last to a state in which both the creases are axes of symmetry at once; and then the process stops. If the paper had at first a curvilinear boundary, properly chosen, and if the axes were placed at the proper angle, it would happen that we should arrive at a regular curved polygon, having the two axes for axes of symmetry. The process would then stop.

I will, however, suppose that the original boundary is everywhere rectilinear. It is clear then that, after every cutting, the boundary is still rectilinear. If the creases be at right angles to one another, the ultimate figure may be an irregular polygon, having its four quarters alike, such as may be inscribed in an oval; or it may have its sides so many and so small, that the ultimate appearance shall be that of an oval. But if the creases be not at right angles, the ultimate figure is a perfectly regular polygon, such as can be inscribed in a circle; or its sides may be so many and so small that the ultimate appearance shall be that of a circle.

Suppose, as in Mr. Ingleby's question, that the creases are not at right angles to each other; supposing the eye and the scissors perfect, the results will be as follows:

First, suppose the angle made by the creases to be what the mathematicians call incommensurable with the whole revolution; that is, suppose that no repetition of the angle will produce an exact number of revolutions. Then the cutting will go on for ever, and the result will perpetually approach a circle. It is easily shown that no figure whatsoever, except a circle, has two axes of symmetry which make an angle incommensurable with the whole revolution.

Secondly, suppose the angle of the creases commensurable with the revolution. Find out the smallest number of times which the angle must be repeated to give an exact number of revolutions. If that number be even, it is the number of sides of the ultimate polygon: if that number be odd, it is the half of the number of sides of the ultimate polygon.

Thus, the paper on which I write, the whole sheet being taken, and the creases made by joining opposite corners, happens to give the angle of the creases very close to three-fourteenths of a revolution; so that fourteen repetitions of the angle is the lowest number which give an exact number of revolutions; and a very few cuttings lead to a regular polygon of fourteen sides. But if four-seventeenths of a revolution had been taken for the angle of the creases, the ultimate polygon would have had thirty-four sides. In an angle taken at hazard the chances are that the number of ultimate sides will be large enough to present a circular appearance.

Any reader who chooses may amuse himself by trying results from three or more axes, whether all passing through one point or not.

A. De Morgan.

THE BLACK-GUARD.

(Vol. viii., p. 414.)

Some of your correspondents, Sir James E. Tennent especially, have been very learned on this subject, and all have thrown new light on what I consider a very curious inquiry. The following document I discovered some years ago in the Lord Steward's Offices. Your readers will see its value at once; but it may not be amiss to observe, that the name in its present application had its origin in the number of masterless boys hanging about the verge of the Court and other public places, palaces, coal-cellars, and palace stables; ready with links to light coaches and chairs, and conduct, and rob people on foot, through the dark streets of London; nay, to follow the Court in its progresses to Windsor and Newmarket. Pope's "link-boys vile" are the black-guard boys of the following Proclamation.

Peter Cunningham.

At the Board of Green Cloth,
in Windsor Castle,         
this 7th day of May, 1683.

Whereas of late a sort of vicious, idle, and masterless boyes and rogues, commonly called the Black-guard, with divers other lewd and loose fellowes, vagabonds, vagrants, and wandering men and women, do usually haunt and follow the Court, to the great dishonour of the same, and as Wee are informed have been the occasion of the late dismall fires that happened in the towns of Windsor and Newmarket, and have, and frequently do commit divers other misdemeanours and disorders in such places where they resort, to the prejudice of His Majesty's subjects, for the prevention of which evills and misdemeanours hereafter, Wee do hereby strictly charge and command all those so called the Black-guard as aforesaid, with all other loose, idle, masterless men, boyes, rogues, and wanderers, who have intruded themselves into His Majesty's Court or stables, that within the space of twenty-four houres next after the publishing of this order, they depart, upon pain of imprisonment, and such other punishments as by law are to be inflicted on them.