Notes and Queries, Number 213, November 26, 1853

"The proposition, every animal is either rational or irrational, cannot be resolved into, Either every animal is rational, or every animal is irrational. The former belong to pure categoricals, to latter to hypotheticals [Query disjunctives]. In singular propositions such conversions would seem to be allowable. This animal is either rational or irrational, is equivalent to, Either this animal is rational, or it is irrational. This peculiarity of singular propositions would almost justify our ranking them, though truly universals, in a separate class, as Ramus and his followers did."—P. 59.

This certainly seems unanswerable.

If Dr. Latham is a reader of "N. & Q.," I should be glad if he would give his reasons for adhering to his original doctrine in the face of such facts as those I have instanced.

C. Mansfield Ingleby.

Birmingham.

THE CORONET [CROWN] OF LLEWELYN AP GRIFFITH, PRINCE OF WALES

A notice, transferred to The Times of the 5th instant from a recent number of The Builder, on the shrine of Edward the Confessor, after mentioning that "to this shrine Edward I. offered the Scottish regalia and the coronation chair, which is still preserved," adds, "Alphonso, about 1280, offered it the golden coronet of Llewelyn, Prince of Wales, and other jewels."

Who was Alphonso? And would the contributor of the notice favour the readers of "N. & Q." with the authority in extenso for the offering of this coronet?

The period assigned for the offering is certainly too early; Llewelyn ap Griffith, "the last sovereign of one of the most ancient ruling families of Europe" (Hist. of England, by Sir James Mackintosh, vol. ii. p. 254.), having been slain at Builth, Dec. 11, 1282. Warrington (Hist. of. Wales, vol. ii. p. 271.), on the authority of Rymer's Fœdera, vol. ii. p. 224., says: "Upon stripping Llewelyn there were found his Privy Seal; a paper that was filled with dark expressions, and a list of names written in a kind of cypher;" omitting, it will be observed, any reference to Llewelyn's coronet. That monarch's crown was probably obtained and transmitted to Edward I. on the capture, June 21, 1283, or shortly after, of his brother David ap Griffith, Lord of Denbigh, who had assumed the Welsh throne on the demise of Llewelyn; the Princess Catherine, the daughter and heir of the latter, and de jure sovereign Princess of Wales, being then an infant. Warrington states (vol. ii. p. 285.) that when David was taken, a relic, highly venerated by the Princes of Wales, was found upon him, called Crosseneych, supposed to be a part of the real cross brought by St. Neots into Wales from the Holy Land; and he adds that, besides the above relic, which was voluntarily delivered up to Edward by a secretary of the late Prince of Wales, "the crown of the celebrated King Arthur, with many precious jewels, was about this time presented to Edward," citing as his authorities Annales Waverleienses, p. 238.; Rymer's Fœdera, vol. ii. p. 247.

There are some particulars of these relics in the Archæologia Cambrensis; but neither that periodical, nor the authorities referred to by Warrington, are at the moment accessible to me.

Cambro-Briton.

Minor Queries

Monumental Brass at Wanlip, Co. Leicester, and Sepulchral Inscriptions in English.—In the church of Wanlip, near this town, is a fine brass of a knight and his lady, and round the margin the following inscription, divided at the corners of the slab by the Evangelistic symbols:

"Here lyes Thomas Walssh, Knyght, lorde of Anlep, and dame Kat'ine his Wyfe, whiche in yer tyme made the Kirke of Anlep, and halud the Kirkyerd first, in Wirchip of God, and of oure lady, and seynt Nicholas, that God haue yer soules and mercy, Anno Dni millmo CCCmo nonagesimo tercio."

Mr. Bloom states, in his Mon. Arch. of Great Britain, p. 210., that—

"There are, perhaps, no sepulchral inscriptions in that tongue (English) prior to the fifteenth century; yet at almost the beginning of it, some are to be met with, and they became more common as the century drew to a close."

Is there any monumental inscription in English, earlier than the above curious one, known to any of your correspondents?

William Kelly.

Leicester.

Influence of Politics on Fashion.—Can any one of the numerous readers of "N. & Q." explain the meaning of the following passage of the note of p. 305. of Alison's History of Europe, 7th edition?—

"A very curious work might be written on the influence of political events and ideas on the prevailing fashions both for men and women; there is always a certain analogy between them. Witness the shepherd-plaid trousers for gentlemen, and coarse shawls and muslins worn by ladies in Great Britain during the Reform fervour of 1832-4."

Henri van Laun.

King William's College, Isle of Man.

Rev. W. Rondall.—Can any of your correspondents give information respecting the Rev. William Rondall, Vicar of Blackhampton, Devonshire (1548), who translated into English a portion of the writings of the learned Erasmus?

Historicus.

Henry, third Earl of Northumberland.—The above nobleman fell on the battle field of Towton (Yorkshire), 29th March, 1461, and was interred in the church of St. Denys, or Dionisius, in York, where his tomb, denuded of its brass, is still pointed out. Pray does an account exist, in any of our old historians, as to the removal of the body of the above nobleman from that dread field of slaughter to his mansion in Walmgate in the above city, and of his interment, which doubtless was a strictly private one? Again, does any record exist of the latter event in any book of early registers belonging to the above church? Doubtless many readers of "N. & Q." will be able to answer these three Queries.

M. Aislabie Denham.

Piersebridge, Darlington.

"When we survey," &c.—Where are the following lines to be found?

"When we survey yon circling orbs on high,Say, do they only grace the spangled sky?Have they no influence, no function givenTo execute the awful will of Heaven?Is there no sympathy pervading allBetween the planets and this earthly ball?No tactile intercourse from pole to pole,Between the ambient and the human soul?No link extended through the vast profound,Combining all above, below, around?"Alledius.

Turnbull's Continuation of Robertson.—Some years ago, a continuation of Robertson's work on Scottish Peerages was announced by Mr. Turnbull, Advocate of Edinburgh.—I shall be glad to be informed whether it as published; and by whom or where.

Fecialis.

An Heraldic Query.—Will any one of your contributors from Lancashire or Cheshire, who may have access to ancient ordinaries of arms, whether in print or in manuscript, favour me by saying whether he has ever met with the following coat: Per pale, argent and sable, a fess embattled, between three falcons counterchanged, belled or? It has been attributed to the family of Thompson of Lancashire, by Captain Booth of Stockport, and an heraldic writer named Saunders; but what authority attaches to either I am not aware. Is it mentioned in Corry's Lancashire?

Heraldicus.

Osborn filius Herfasti.—Were Osborn, son of Herfast, abbot of S. Evroult, and Osborn de Crepon (filius Herfasti patris Gunnoris comitissæ), brothers? or were there two Herfasts?

J. Sansom.

Jews in China.—A colony of Jews is known to exist in the centre of China, who worship God according to the belief of their forefathers; and the aborigines of the northern portion of Australia exercise the rite of circumcision. Can these colonists and aborigines be traced to any of the nations of the lost tribes?

Historicus.

Derivation of "Mammet."—The Rev. B. Chenevix Trench, in his book on the Study of Words, 4th edition, p. 79., gives the derivation of the old English word mammet from "Mammetry or Mahometry," and cites, in proof of this, Capulet calling his daughter "a whining mammet." Now Johnson, in his Dictionary, the folio edition, derives mammet from the word maman, and also from the word man; and mentions Shakspeare's

"This is no world to play with mammets, or to tilt with lips."—Henry IV. (First Part), Act II. Sc. 3.

As both Dr. Johnson, the Rev. Ch. Trench, and many others, agree that mammet means "puppet," why not derive this word from the French marmot, which means a puppet.—Can any of the readers of the "N. & Q." give me a few examples to strengthen my supposition?

Henri van Laun.

King William's College, Isle of Man.

Non-recurring Diseases.—Among the many diseases to which humanity is subject, there are some which we are all supposed to have once, and but once, in our lifetime. Is this an unquestioned fact? and if so, has anything like a satisfactory explanation of it been offered?

פ.

Warville.—There being no w in the French language, whence did Brissot de Warville derive the latter word of his name?

Uneda.

Philadelphia.

Dr. Doddridge.—A poem entitled "To my Wife's Bosom," and beginning

"Open, open, lovely breast,Let me languish into rest!"

occasionally appears with the name of the Rev. Dr. Doddridge as the author. Is it his?

M. E.

Philadelphia.

Pelasgi.—In an article which appeared some time ago in Hogg's Instructor, Thomas de Quincey, speaking of the Pelasgi, characterises them as a race sorrowful beyond conception.—What is known of their history to lead to this inference?

T. D. Ridley.

West Hartlepool.

Huc's Travels.—I was lately told, I think on the authority of a writer in the Gardener's Chronicle, that the travels of Messrs. Huc and Gabet in Thibet, Tartary, &c., was a pure fabrication, concocted by some Parisian littérateur. Can any of your readers confirm or refute this statement?

C. W. B.

The Mousehunt.—I should feel much obliged to any reader of "N. & Q." who would refer me to any mention of in print, or give me any information from his own personal experience, respecting a small animal of the weasel tribe called the mousehunt, an animal apparently but little known; it is scarcely half the size of the common weasel, and of a pale mouse-colour. It is said to be well known in Suffolk, whence, however, after some trouble, I have been unsuccessful in obtaining a specimen; young stoats or weasels having been sent me instead of it. I could not find a specimen in the British Museum. Some years ago I saw two in Glamorganshire; one escaped me; the other had been killed by a ferret, but unfortunately I neglected to preserve it. Near the same spot last year a pair of them began making their nest, but being disturbed by some workmen employed in clearing out the drain in which they had ensconced themselves, were lost sight of and escaped.

Mr. Colquhoun, in The Moor and the Loch, ed. 1851, says:

"The English peasantry assert that there are two kinds of weasel, one very small, called a 'cane,' or 'the mousekiller.' This idea, I have no doubt, is erroneous, and the 'mousekillers' are only the young ones of the year, numbers of these half-grown weasels appearing in summer and autumn."

The only description I have met with in print is in Bell's Life of Dec. 7, 1851, where "Scrutator," in No. 15. of his Letters "On the Management of Horses, Hounds, &c.," writes:

"I know only of one species of stoat, but I have certainly seen more than one species of weasel.... There is one species of weasel so small that it can easily follow mice into their holes; and one of these, not a month ago, I watched go into a mouse's hole in an open grass field. Seeing something hopping along in the grass, which I took for a large long-tailed field mouse, I stood still as it was approaching my position, and when within a foot or two of the spot on which I was standing, so that I could have a full view of the animal, a very small weasel appeared, and quickly disappeared again in a tuft of grass. On searching the spot I discovered a mousehole, in which Mr. Weasel had made his exit."

W. R. D. Salmon.

Lockwood, the Court Jester.—In some MS. accounts temp. Edw. VI., Mary, and Elizabeth, now before me, payments to "Lockwood, the king's jester," or "the queen's jester, whose name is Lockwood," are of almost annual occurrence. He appears to have travelled about the country like the companies of itinerant players.

Are any particulars known respecting him, and where shall I find the best account of the ancient court jesters? I am aware of Douce's work, and the memoirs of Will. Somers, the fool of Henry VIII.

William Kelly.

Leicester.

Right of redeeming Property.—In some country or district which I have formerly visited, there exists, or did recently exist, a right of redeeming property which had passed from its owner's hands, somewhat similar to that prescribed to the Jews in Leviticus xxvi. 25. &c., and analogous to the custom in Brittany, with which Sterne's beautiful story has made us familiar. Can you help me to remember where it is?

C. W. B.

Minor Queries with Answers

Dictionary of Zingari.—Can you direct me to a glossary or dictionary of this language? I have seen Borrow's Lavengro, and am not aware whether either of his other works contains anything of the sort. I should imagine it cannot be a perfect language, since the Rommanies located in our locality invariably use the English articles and pronouns; but knowing nothing more of it than what I glean from casual intercourse, I am unable to decide to my own satisfaction.

R. C. Warde.

Kidderminster.

[A dictionary of the Zincali will be found in the first three editions of the following work: The Zincali; or, an Account of the Gypsies of Spain; with an original Collection of their Songs and Poetry, and a copious Dictionary of their Language. By George Borrow, 2 vols., 1841. This dictionary is omitted in the fourth edition of 1846; but some "Specimens of Gypsy dialects" are added. Our correspondent may also be referred to the two following works, which appear in the current number of Quarritch's Catalogue: "Pott, Die Zigeuner in Europa und Asien, vol. i. Einleitung und Grammatik, ii. Ueber Gaunersprachen, Wörterbuch and Sprachproben, 2 vols. 8vo. sewed, 15s. Halle, 1844-45." "Rotwellsche Grammatik oder Sprachkunst; Wörterbuch der Zigeuner-Sprache, 2 parts in 1, 12mo. half-bound morocco, 7s. 6d. Frankfurt, 1755."]

Sir Robert Coke.—Of what family was Sir Robert Coke, referred to in Granger, vol. iii. p. 212., ed. 1779, as having collected a valuable library bestowed by George, first Earl of Berkeley, on Sion College, London, the letter of thanks for which is in Collins?

T. P. L.

Manchester.

[Sir Robert Coke was son and heir to Sir Edward Coke, Lord Chief Justice of the Kings Bench. The Cokes had been settled for many generations in the county of Norfolk. Camden has traced the pedigree of the family to William Coke of Doddington in Norfolk, in the reign of King John. They had risen to considerable distinction under Edward III., when Sir Thomas Coke was made Seneschal of Gascoigne. From him, in the right male line, was descended Robert Coke, the father of Sir Edward. See Campbell's Lives of Chief Justices, vol. i. p. 240.]

Regium Donum.—What is the origin and history of the "Regium Donum?"

Henri van Laun.

King William's College, Isle of Man.

[In the year 1672, Charles II. gave to Sir Arthur Forbes the sum of 600l., to be applied to the use of the Presbyterian ministers in Ireland. He professed not to know how to bestow it in a better manner, as he had learnt that these ministers had been loyal, and had even suffered on his account; and as that sum remained undisposed of in "the settlement of the revenue of Ireland," he gave it in his charity to them. This was the origin of the Regum donum. As the dissenters approved themselves strong friends to the House of Brunswick, George I., in 1723, wished too to reward them for their loyalty, and, by a retaining fee, preserve them stedfast. A considerable sum, therefore, was annually lodged with the heads of the Presbyterians, Independents, and Baptists, to be distributed among the necessitous ministers of their congregations.]

Who was the Author of "Jerningham" and "Doveton?" (Vol. viii., p. 127.).—Mr. Anstruther begs to decline the compliment; perhaps the publisher of the admirable History of the War in Affghanistan can find a head to fit the cap.

Oswestry.

[On a reference to our note-book, we find our authority for attributing the authorship of these works to Mr. Anstruther is the Gentleman's Magazine for September, 1837, p. 283. In the review of Doveton the writer says, "There is in it a good deal to amuse, and something to instruct, but the whole narrative of Mr. Anstruther is too melodramatic," &c. However, as he declines the compliment, perhaps some of our readers will be able to find the right head to fit the cap.]

Alma Mater.—In Ainsworth's Latin Dictionary I observed he limits the use of that expression to Cambridge. I have been accustomed to see it used for Oxford, or any other university. What is his reason for applying it to Cambridge alone?

Ma. L.

[Bailey, too, in his Dictionary, applies the epithet exclusively to Cambridge, Alma mater Cantabrigia: so that it seems to have originated with that university. It is now popularly applied to Oxford, and other universities, by those who have imbibed the milk of learning from these places. The epithet has lately been transplanted to the United States of America.]

Replies

ALEXANDER CLARK

(Vol. viii., p. 18.)

In communicating a few particulars about Alexander Clark, I must disappoint your correspondent Perthensis; my subject answering in no respect to Peter Buchan's "drucken dominie," the author of the Buttery College. Alexander Clark, who has fallen in my way, belongs to the class of "amiable enthusiasts;" a character I am somewhat fond of, believing that in any pursuit a dash of the latter quality is essential to success.

Clark was by profession a gardener; and as my friends in the north always seek to localise their worthies, I venture to assign him to Annandale. My first acquaintance with him arose from his Emblematical Representation falling into my hands; and, pursuing my inquiries, I found this was but one of some half-dozen visionary works from the same pen. In his View of the Glory of the Messiah's Kingdom, we have the origin of his taking upon himself the prophetic character; it is entitled:

"A Brief Account of an Extraordinary Revelation, and other Things Remarkable, in the Course of God's Dealings with Alexander Clark, Gardener at Dumcrief, near Moffat, Anandale, in the Year 1749."

"In the month of August, 1749," says he, "at a certain time when the Lord was pleased to chastise me greatly in a bed of affliction, and in the midst of my great trial, it pleased the Almighty God wonderfully to surprise me with a glorious light round about me; and looking up, I saw straight before me a glorious building in the air, as bright and clear as the sun: it was so vastly great, so amiable to behold, so full of majesty and glory, that it filled my heart with wonder and admiration. The place where this sight appeared to me was just over the city of Edinburgh; at the same instant I heard, as it were, the musick bells of the said city ring for joy."

From this period, Clark's character became tinged with that enthusiasm which ended in his belief that he was inspired; and that in publishing his—

"Signs of the Times: showing by many infallible Testimonies and Proofs out of the Holy Scripture, that an extraordinary Change is at Hand, even at the very Door,"—

he was merely "emitting what he derived directly, by special favour, from God!"

"The Spirit of God," he says on another occasion, "was so sensibly poured out upon me, and to such a degree, that I was thereby made to see things done in secret, and came to find things lost, and knew where to go to find those things which were lost!"

This second sight, if I may so call it, set our author upon drawing aside the veil from the prophetic writings; and his view of their mystical sense is diffused over the indigested and rambling works bearing the following titles:

"A View of the Glory of the Messiah's Kingdom." 1763.

"Remarks upon the Accomplishment of Scripture Prophecy."

"A Practical Treatise on Regeneration." 1764.

"The Mystery of God opened," &c. Edinburgh. 1768.

"An Emblematical Representation of the Paradise of God, showing the Nature of Spiritual Industry in the Similitude of a Garden, well ordered, dressed, and kept, with Sundry Reflections on the Nature of Divine Knowledge, 1779."

In his Address to the Friendly Society of Gardeners, Clark gives some account of his worldly condition; of his early training in religious habits; his laborious and industrious devotion to his profession, with which he seems to have been greatly enamoured, although poorly paid, and often in straits. Subsequently to the great event of his life—his vision—our subject appears to have come south, and to have been in the employment of Lord Charles Spencer at Hanworth in Middlesex. Like most of the prophets of his day, Clark was haunted with the belief that the last day was approaching; and considering himself called upon to announce to his acquaintance and neighbours that this "terrible judgment of God was at hand," he got but contempt and ridicule for his pains:—more than that, indeed, for those raising the cry that he was a madman, they procured the poor man's expulsion from his situation. Under all these discouraging circumstances, he maintained his firm conviction of the approaching end of time: so strongly was his mind bent in this direction, that "I opened the window of the house where I then was," says he, "thinking to see Christ coming in the clouds!"

"I was three days and three nights that I could not eat, drink, nor sleep; and when I would close my eyes, I felt something always touching me; at length I heard a voice sounding in mine ears, saying 'Sleep not, lest thou sleep the sleep of death:' and at that I looked for my Bible, and at the first opening of it I read these words, which were sent with power, 'To him that overcometh,'" &c.

Poor Clark, like his prototype Thomas Newans, laboured hard to obtain the sanction of the hierarchy to his predictions:

"I desire no man," he says, "to believe me without proof; and if the Reverend the Clergy would think this worth their perusal, I would very willingly hear what they had to say either for or against."

The orthodoxy of the "Reverend the Clergy" was not, however, to be moved; and Alexander Clark and his books now but serve the end of pointing a moral. With more real humility and less presumption, there was much that was good about him; but letting his heated fancies get the better of the little judgment he possessed, our amiable enthusiast became rather a stumbling-block than light to his generation.

J. O.

AMCOTTS PEDIGREE

(Vol. viii., p. 387.)

Although I may not be able to furnish your inquirer with full pedigree of this family, my Notes may prove useful in making it out.

From a settlement after marriage in 1663, of Vincent Amcotts of Laughton, in the county of Lincoln, gentleman, I find his wife's name to be Amy; but who she was is not disclosed. It appears she survived her husband, and was his widow and relict and executrix living in 1687. Their eldest daughter Elizabeth married John Sheffield, Esq., of Croxby, and I have noted three children of theirs, viz. Vincent, who died s.p.; Christopher, who, with Margaret, his wife, in 1676 sold the Croxby estate; and Sarah. What farther as to this branch does not appear, although my next Vincent Amcotts may be, and probably was, a descendant. This Vincent Amcotts was of Harrington, in the county of Lincoln, Esq.; and who, from his marriage settlement dated May 16 and 17, 1720, married Elizabeth, the third of the four daughters of John Quincy of Aslackby, in the county of Lincoln, gentleman: and I find the issue of this marriage to be Charles Amcotts of Kettlethorpe, in the county of Lincoln, Esq., who died in 1777 s.p.; Anna Maria, whom married Wharton Emerson; Elizabeth, who died previous to her brother Charles; and Frances, who married the Rev. Edward Buckworth of Washingborough, in the county of Lincoln, Clerk, Doctor of Laws.