lining of an old cover of a book, and thus escaped destruction. It is surmounted, at the left hand corner, by a small woodcut representing St. George slaying the dragon, and on the right, by a shield, which, with part of the margin, has been cut away by the bookbinder. But few words are wanting, which are supplied by conjecture in Italies. It appears from Staveley's History of Churches in England, p. 99., that the monks were sent up and down the country, with briefs of a similar character, to gather contributions of the people on these occasions, and that the king's letter was sometimes obtained, in order that they might prove more effectual. It is most probable that the collectors were authorised to grant special indulgences proportionate to the value of the contribution. No comment is necessary upon these proceedings, from which at least the Reformation relieved the people, and placed pious benefactions upon purer and better motives. MISO-DOLOS. "Unto all maner and synguler Cristen people beholdynge or herynge these present letters shall come gretynge. "Our holy Fathers, xii. Cardynallys of Rome chosen by the mercy of Almighty God and by the Auctorite of these appostles Peter and Paule, to all and synguler cristen people of eyther kynde, trewely penytent and confessyd, and deuoutly gyue to the churche of oure lady and Seynt George the martyr in Sowthwerke, protector and defender of this Realme of Englande, any thyng or helpe with any parte of theyr goodes to the Reparacions or maynteyninge of the seruyce of almighty God done in ye same place, as gyuynge any boke, belle, or lyght, or any other churchly Ornamentis, they shall haue of eche of us Cardinallys syngulerly aforesayd a. C. dayes of pardon. Also there is founded in the same parysshe churche aforesayd, iii. Chauntre preestis perpetually to praye in the sayd churche for the Bretherne and Systers of the same Fraternyte, and for the soules of them that be departed, and for all cristen soules. And also iiii. tymes by the yere Placebo and Dirige, with xiiii preestis and clerkes, with iii. solempne Masses, one of our Lady, another of Seynt George, with a Masse of Requiem. Moreouer our holy Fathers, Cardynallys of Rome aforesayd, hathe_graunted the pardons followethe to all theym that be Bretherne and Systers of the same Fraternyte at euery of the dayes followynge, that is to say, the firste sonday after the feest of Seynt John Baptyst, on the whiche the same churche was halowed, xii. C. dayes of pardon. Also the feest of Seynt Mychael y Archangell, xii. C. dayes of pardon. Also the second sonday in Lent, xii. C. dayes of pardon. Also good Frydaye, the whiche daye Criste sufferyd his passion, xii. C. dayes of pardon. Also Tewisday in the wytson weke, xii. C. dayes of pardon. And also at euery feeste of our lorde Criste syngulerly by himselfe, from the firste euynsonge to the seconde euynsonge inclusyuely, xii. C. dayes of pardon. Also my lorde Cardynall and Chaunceller of Englande hathe gyuen a C. dayes of pardon. rejects as a plagiarism in Gray the instance quoted Your correspondent VARRO (Vol. iii., p. 206.) the ground that Gray has himself expressly stated by me from a note in Byron (Vol. iii., p. 35.), on that the passage was 66 an imitation of the one in Dante. I always thought that in literature, as in other things, some thefts were acknowonly difference between them was, that, while the ledged and others unacknowledged, and that the acknowledgment went to extenuate the offence, it the more completely established the fact of the appropriation. A great many actual borrowings, but for such acknowledgment, might pass for coincidences. "On peut se rencontrer," Chevalier Ramsay said on a similar occasion. as the The object, however, of this Note is not to shake VARRO's belief in the impeccability of Gray, for whose genius I entertain the highest admiration and respect, but to show your readers that the imputation of plagiarism against that poet is not wholly unfounded. First, we have the well-known line in his poem of The Bard,— "Give ample room and verge enough,”— which is shown to have been appropriated from the following passage in Dryden's tragedy of Don Sebastian: "Let fortune empty her whole quiver on me ; I have a soul that, like an ample shield, Can take in all, and verge enough for more." "Yet, ah! why should they know their fate, And happiness too swiftly flies; Where ignorance is bliss, 'Tis folly to be wise." The same thought is expressed by Sir W. Davenant in the lines: "Then ask not bodies doom'd to die To what abode they go: Since knowledge is but sorrow's spy, obviously traceable to these lines in Prior: "Seeing aright we see our woes; "Dark with excessive light thy skirts appear." And Gray, with true poetic feeling, has applied this image to Milton himself in those forceful lines in the Progress of Poesy, in which he alludes to the poet's blindness: "The living throne, the sapphire blaze, Where angels tremble while they gaze, He saw; but, blasted with excess of light, Closed his eyes in endless night." There is a passage in Longinus which appears to me to have furnished Milton with the germ of this thought. The Greek rhetorician is commenting on the use of figurative language, and, after illustrating his views by a quotation from Demosthenes, he adds: "In what has the orator here concealed the figure? plainly in its own lustre." In this passage Longinus elucidates one figure by another, a not unusual practice with that elegant writer. HENRY H. BREEN. St. Lucia, April, 1851. ON THE APPLICATION OF THE WORD "LITTUS IN THE SENSE OF RIPA, THE BANK OF A RIVER. The late Marquis Wellesley, towards the close of his long and glorious life, wrote the beautiful copy of Latin verses upon the theme "Salix Babylonica," which is printed among his Reliquiæ. In this copy of verses is to be found the line, "At tu, pulchra Salix, Thamesini littoris hospes." Certain critics object to this word "littoris," used here in the sense of "ripa." The question is, whether such an application can be borne out by ancient authorities. To be sure, the substitution of "marginis" for "littoris" would obviate all controversy; but as the objection has been started, and urged with some pertinacity, it may be worth while to consider it. The ordinary meaning of littus is undoubtedly the sea-shore; but it seems quite certain that it is used occasionally in the sense of "ripa." In the 2d Ode of Horace, book 1st, we find: Iliæ dum se nimium querenti -meaning, as I conceive, that the waters of the Tiber were thrown back from the Etruscan shore, or right bank, which was the steep side, so as to flood the left bank, and do all the mischief. If this interpretation be correct, which Gesner supports by the following note, the question is settled by this single passage: "Quod fere malim propter ea quæ sequuntur, littus ipsius Tiberis dextrum, quod spectat Etruriam: unde retortis undis sinistrâ ripâ Romam alluente, labitur” Thus, at all events, I have the authority of Gesner's scholarship for "littus ipsius Tiberis." There are two other passages in Horace's Odes where "littus" seems to bear a different sense from the sea-shore. The first, book iii. ode 4. : "Insanientem navita Bosporum Tentabo, et arentes arenas The next, book iii. ode 17.: "Qui Formiarum mænia dicitur Princeps, et innantem Maricæ Littoribus tenuisse Lirim." Upon which latter Gesner says, that as Marica was a nymph from whom the river received its name, "Hinc patet Lirim atque Maricam fuisse duo unius fluminis nomina." But I will not insist upon these examples even with the support of Gesner, because Marica may have been a district situate on the sea-shore, and because, in the former passage, "littus Assyrium" may mean the Syrian coast, which is washed by the Mediterranean. But to go to another author, in book x. of Lucan's Pharsalia will be found (line 244.): "Vel quod aquas toties rumpentis littora Nili Assiduè feriunt, coguntque resistere flatus." This seems to be a clear case of the Nile breaking its banks, and is conclusive. Again, in book viii. 1. 641.: "Et prior in Nili pervenit littora Cæsar." And again, "littore Niliaco," book ix. 1. 135. Lastly, in Scheller's Dictionary, the same meaning is given from the 8th book of Virgil's Æneid: "Viridique in littore conspicitur sus ;" where, beyond a doubt, is meant "littore" fluviali. It appears, then, from these examples, that Lord Wellesley is justified in his application of the word "littus" to the adjective "Thamesinus." Q. E. D. (A Borderer.) Minor Notes. Epigrams by Coulanges and Prior.- Has the following coincidence been noticed between an epigram of M. de Coulanges and some verses by Mat. Prior? "L'Origine de la Noblesse. "D'Adam nous sommes tous enfants, Et que tous nos premiers parents "Mais, las de cultiver enfin La terre labourée, "That all from Adam first begun, • Sc. Zephyri. C. P. PA*** Brewhouse Antiquities. -In Forth and others versus Stanton, Trinity Term, 20 Charles II., Timothy Alsopp and others sue for 100l. for cost of beer, sold by them to defendant's late husband. Can this Timothy Alsopp be a lineal predecessor of the present eminent firm of Samuel Alsopp and Sons? We are told that Child's is the oldest banking-house-which may be the oldest brewing establishment? J. H. S. Joseph of Exeter de Bello Antiocheno.-Joseph of Exeter, or Iscanus, was the author of two poems: 1st, De Bello Trojano; 2dly, De Bello Antiocheno. The first has been printed and published. The second was only known by fragments to Leland. See his work De Scrip. Brit. p. 239. Mr. Warton, in his History of English Poetry (1774), affirms, that Mr. Wise, the Radcliffe librarian, had informed him that a MS. copy of the latter was in the library of the Duke of Chandos at Canons. Query, where is it? It was not at Stowe. It is not in Lord Ashburnham's collection, nor in the British Museum; nor in the Bodleian Library, nor in the archives of Sir Thomas Phillipps. For the honour of the nation, we earnestly hope that it may be discovered and committed to the press. EXONIENSIS. Illustrations of Welsh History: 1. Offer by David, Prince of Wales, to become a Vassal of the Pope.-2. Death in the Tower of Griffith ap Llewellyn, Prince of North Wales. - In Madox's Collections in the British Museum (Add. MSS. No. 4565., vol. lxxxviii. p. 387.) are the annexed references to two interesting incidents in the history of Wales, noticed in a MS. Chronicle of John De Malverne, in the library of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge. The references are sent for insertion in "NOTES AND QUERIES," in the hope that some member of the University may be induced to favour the readers of "NOTES AND QUERIES" with the passages referred to by Madox. "Per idem tempus David Princeps Norwalliæ ad alas papalis protectionis confugere proponens, terram suam optulit ei ab ipso tenere, reddendo inde sibi quingentas marcas, cui perhibetur D. Papa favorem præbuisse in magnum regni Angliæ præjudicium: novit enim mundus Principem Walliæ ab antiquo vassallum Regis Angliæ extitisse. Ex eod. Chron. [MS. Joh. de Malverne, M. 14.] A. Dom. 1244." "Griff. fil. Lewel. Princeps Norwallia, being in the Tower of London, fell down as he tryed to make his escape out of a window, and dyed. Ib. ad. Ann. 1244." JOHN AP WILLIAM AP JOHN. Inner Temple, May 28. "This year (1695) the parliament made an act for remedying the coin of the nation, which was generally debased by counterfeits, and diminished by clipping, and laid a tax upon glass windows, to make good the deficiency when it should be taken in. And, for the speedy supply of money to the subjects, upon calling in of the old money, there were mints set up in York, Bristol, Chester, Exeter, and Norwich. The mint in Norwich began to work in Sept. 1696. Coined there 259,3711. The amount of plate and coin brought into this mint was 17,709 ounces.' These quantities are identical with those given by Blomefield (History of Norwich, fol., 1741, p. 300.). 1. The duties chargeable on windows, as now collected, were regulated by Sched. A. of 48 Geo. III. c. 55.; but, assuming the correctness of Nobbs' statement, is it generally known that this tax originated in the year, and under the circumstances, above recorded? Bishop Burnet (Hist. Own Time, 8vo., 1833, vol. iv. pp. 252. 258.), describing the proceedings taken by parliament for rectifying the state of the coinage, without telling us by what means the money was raised, says (p. 290.): "Twelve thousand pounds was given to supply the deficiency of the bad and clipped money." Is this sum the amount of the proceeds of the tax laid, as our chronicle records, upon glass windows? If so, or from whatever source obtained, it may, in passing, be remarked, that it appears to be ridiculously inadequate to meet the requirements of the case; for, according to the Bishop, in another place (p. 316.): "About five millions of clipped money was brought into the exchequer, and the loss that the nation suffered, by the recoining of the money, amounted to two millions and two hundred thousand pounds." The window duties have of late provoked much discussion, and it would prove of some interest, if, through the medium of your pages, any of your correspondents would take the trouble to investigate a little further the subject of this note. It very easily admits of confirmation or denial. 2. The principal reason, however, for now writing, is to request answers to the two following Queries: 1. What amount of money was respectively coined during 1696, and the following year, in the cities of York, Bristol, Chester, and Exeter? and 2. In what parish of each of these places, including Norwich, was the mint situated? And now let me add a sentence or two respecting the compiler of the above-named chronicle, which I am induced to do, as his name is closely connected with that of one of the most celebrated controversial writers of the Augustan age of Anne and George I., the friend of Whiston, of Newton, and of Hoadley, and the subject of Pope's sarcastic allusion: "We nobly take the high priori road, And reason downwards till we doubt of God." It appears, on the authority of a MS. letter before me, dated Aylshamn, Norfolk, Jan. 25, 1755, and addressed to Mr. Nehemiah Lodge, town clerk of Norwich, by Mr. Thos. Johnson, who was speaker of the common council of that city from 1731 to 1736, that Nobbs "Was many years clerk of St. Gregory's parish in Norwich, where he kept a school, and was so good a scholar as to fit youths for the university, amongst whom were the great Dr. Samuel Clarke, and his brother, the Dean of Salisbury.' The old man's MS. is very neatly written, and arranged with much method. It was made great use of, frequently without acknowledgment, by Blomefield, in the compilation of his history; and besides the chronicle of events immediately connected with the city, there are interspersed through its pages notices of earthquakes, great famines, blazing stars, dry summers, long frosts, and other similar unusual occurrences. The simplicity, and grave unhesitating credulity, with which some of the more astonishing marvels, culled, I suppose, from the pages "of Holinshed or Stow," are recorded, is very amusing. I cannot refrain from offering you a couple of examples, and with them I will bring this heterogeneous “note” to a close. “In the eighth year of this king's reign (E. II.) it was ordained by parliament, that an ox fatted with grass should be sold for 15s., fatted with corn 20s., the best cow for 12s.; a fat hog of two years 3s. 4d.; a fat sheep shorn 14d., and with fleece 20d.; a fat capon 2d., And whosoever sold a fat hen 1d., four pigeons 1d. for more, should forfeit his ware to the king. But this order was soon revoked, by reason of the scarcity that after followed. For, in the year following, 1315, there was so great a dearth, that continued three years, and therewith a mortality, that the living were not sufficient to bury the dead; horses, dogs, and children were eaten in that famine, and thieves in prison plucked in pieces those that were newly brought in, and eat them half alive." But, again, sub ann. 1349: "This year dyed in Norwich of the plague, from the first of January to the last of June, 57,374 persons, besides religious people and beggars; and in Yarmouth, 7053. This plague began November the first, 1348, and continued to 1357, and it hath been observed that they that were born after this had but twenty-eight teeth, whereas before they had thirty-two." This latter notice refers to the first of those three destructive epidemics which visited Europe during the reign of our Edw. III., and are so frequently mentioned in ancient records. It is styled the "Pestilencia Prima et Magna, Anno Domini 1349, a festo Stæ. Petronillæ usque ad festum Sti. Michaelis." (Nicolas, Chron. of Hist., p. 345.) COWGILL. Minor Queries. Gillingham. Can you, or any of your correlocal historical or any spondents, furnish me with data that may tend to identify the place where that memorable council was convened, by which the succession to the English crown was transferred from the Danish to the Saxon line? Hutchins, in his History of Dorset (Edw. II., 1813, vol. iii. p. 196.), says: "Malmsbury mentions a council held at Gillingham, in which Edward the Confessor was chosen king. It was really a grand council of the realm; but the generality of our historians place it with more probability at London, or in the environs thereof." I am not aware of anything else that can be advanced in support of the claims of the Dorset shire Gillingham to be the scene of this event except it be the fact that a royal palace or huntingseat there was the occasional residence of the English kings early in the twelfth century, and subsequently. I do not know whether its existence can be traced prior to the Conquest; and unless that can be done, it is obviously of no importance in the present inquiry. Now it had occurred to me that, after all, Gillingham, near Chatham in Kent, may be the true locality; but, unfortunately, my knowledge of that place is limited to the fact, that our London letters, when directed without the addition of "Dorset," are usually sent to rusticate there for a day or two. Perhaps one of your Kentish correspondents will favour me with some more pertinent information. QUIDAM. A regular Mull—Origin of the Phrase.-"You have made a regular mull of it," meaning a complete failure. This expression I have often heard, from my school days even to the present time. Can you give me the origin of it? In reading a very clever and interesting paper communicated by J. M. Kemble, Esq., to the Archæological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland in the volume of their proceedings for 1845, entitled, "The Names, Surnames, and Nicnames of the Anglo-Saxons," I found the following paragraph: "Two among the early kings of Wessex are worthy of peculiar attention, viz., the celebrated sons of Cênberht, Cadwealha and his brother Mûl. Of the former it is known, that after a short and brilliant career of victory, he voluntarily relinquished the power he had won, became a convert to Christianity, and having retired to Rome, was there baptized by the name Petrus, and died while yet in the Albs, a few days after the ceremony. His brother Mûl, during their wars in Kent, suffered himself to be surprised by the country. people and was burnt to death, together with twelve comrades, in a house where they had taken refuge." This "Note," I think, answers my Query. Do you know of any other explanation? W.E. W. Register-book of the Parish of Petworth. — Can any reader of "NOTES AND QUERIES" assist in discovering a document which was formerly quoted by this title? Heylin used it for the reign of Edward VI., but his learned editor (Mr. Robertson) appears to have searched for it in vain. St. Catharine's Hall, Cambridge. C. H. Lion Rampant holding a Crozier. -I met with and should be glad to ascertain whether the dethis crest some time since on a private seal, vice was borne by chancellors and archbishops who exercised these functions contemporaneously, the last of whom was the Archbishop of York, who was also Lord Keeper from 1621 to Nov. 1625. The motto on the seal is "Malentour." To this I cannot trace any meaning. Perhaps some of your heraldic antiquaries can favour me with a solution of the above device of the motto ? F. E. M. Monumental Symbolism. On a monument dated 1600, or thereabouts, erected to a member of an ancient Roman Catholic family in Leicestershire, there are effigies of his children sculptured. Two of the sons are represented in a kneeling posture, with their hands clasped and upraised; while all the others are standing, some cased in Going to Old Weston.-When a Huntingdonarmour, or otherwise. Can you, from knowshire man is asked "If he has ever been to Old ledge of heraldry, or any other source, decide conWeston," and replies in the negative, he is inva-fidently what is the reason of the difference of riably told, "You must go before you die." Old posture, or rather what it is intended to denote? Weston is an out-of-the-way village in the county, and until within a few years was almost inapproachable by carriages in winter; but in what the point of the remark lies, I do not know. ARUN. READER. Ptolemy's Presents to the Seventy-two.-Josephus (Ant. b. xii. ch. ii. sect. 15.) mentions, as among the presents bestowed by Ptolemy on the Seventytwo elders, "the furniture of the room in which VOL. III.-No. 84. |