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ALE AT BREAKFAST.-I have seen it somewhere stated that Queen Elizabeth was accustomed to take a quart of ale to breakfast. Did ale in the days of Queen Bess form a part of the first meal? W. D. ANONYMOUS.-I shall feel greatly obliged for any information as to the authors of the following pamphlets:

1. "Jura Cleri: or an Apology for the Rights of the long-Despised Clergy, &c. By Philo-Basileus PhiloClerus," Oxford, 1661, 4to.

2. "The Doctrine of Non-Resistance or Passive Obedience no way concerned in the Controversies now depending between the Williamites and the Jacobites. By a Lay Gentleman of the Communion of the Church of England, by Law establish'd." London, 1689, 4to.

[By Edmund Bohun.]

3. "The Pretences of the French Invasion examined for the Information of the People of England." London, 1692, 4to.

[By William Lloyd, successively Bishop of St. Asaph and Worcester.]

4. "An Impartial Inquiry into the Advantages and Losses that England bath received since the Beginning of the Present War with France." London, 1693, 4to.

5. "The Conspiracy of Querini and Tiepolo. An Historical Drama." London: Smith, Elder, & Co., 1837, 8vo. CPL.

DANTE. Every reader of Dante must have been struck by the grotesque way in which he mixes up heathen myths with Christian sentiment. This strange-not to say irreverent-confusion reaches its climax in a passage in which the Saviour is addressed by the name of a heathen god. The passage to which I refer is in the sixth canto of the Purgatorio:

"E se licito m' è, o sommo Giove

Chi fosti 'n terra per noi crucifisso,
Son li giusti occhi tuoi rivolti altrove?

"

Is any other instance to be found of a Christian poet addressing the God of Christians by the name appropriated to a heathen deity? H. HARRIS, M.A.

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"Pearls of Eloquence, or the School of Complements; wherein Ladies, Gentlewomen, and Schollars may accomodate their Courtly Practice with Gentile Ceremonies, Complemental, Amorous, and high expressions of speaking, or writing of Letters. By W. Elder, Gent. London: printed for J. Lock, and are to be sold by Henry Eversden at the Grey-Hound in St. Paul's Church-Yard. MDCLVI."

In the epistle to the reader it would appear to be put forth as an original work. Is it so? And who was W. Elder? F. W. C.

Clapham Park, S.

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ILCHESTER.-I shall be obliged if any of your Somerset correspondents will state who is at present lord of the manor of Brooke juxta Montague, near Ilchester. C.

LYNCH'S "DICTIONARY OF ILLUSTRIOUS IRISH CHARACTERS."-In the year 1814, Mr. Patrick Lynch, Secretary to the Gaelic Society of Dublin, and well known as the author of sundry publications, issued a prospectus (of which a copy lies before me) of A Biographical and Historical Dicoctavo volume, price to subscribers, 11. 28. 9d. tionary of Illustrious Irish Characters, in one large The work is described as "preparing for the press, and "speedily to be published."

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Did it

ever appear, either complete or in part? and if not, where is the MS.? Some one of your Irish readers may be able to give the required information. ABHBA.

"MARIUM VICE-PRÆFECTUS."- What was a "Marium Vice-Præfectus" in 1680? Copied from the monument of a person who was a landsman, to the best of my knowledge. E. K.

MONUMENTAL DEVICES. looked over the various articles on this subject -I have carefully which have appeared in "N. & Q." from its commencement; but I do not see any notice of the device of scissors, or shears, and the sword. There are many of the kind in the ancient tombstones in the diocese of Durham. In the north porch of Gainford church several fragments of gravestones bearing these devices, and multiform crosses, were inserted in the walls for preservation. They were taken from the interior of the church when lately restored. The staff of the cross fairly intersects the stones; and the shears or scissors are traced invariably on the right side of the stone, and the sword on the left. They vary in dimensions, and in some cases are well preserved, and in good relief.

It is said the shears represent a female, the

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"A number of people carousing in an upper room of a tavern become so thoroughly drunk as to fancy themselves in a ship far out at sea; and their own unsteady footing in walking the deck,' they conclude to be the natural effect from the tumbling billows of the angry ocean, which in fact is gathering rapidly into every sign of a coming storm. One man in his anxiety therefore climbs a bed-post, which he takes for the mast-head, and reports the most awful appearances ahead. By his advice they fall to lightening ship: out of the windows they throw overboard beds, tables, chairs, the good landlady's crockery, bottles, glasses, &c., working in agonies of haste for dear life. By this time the uproar and hurley-burley has reached the ears of the police, who come in a body up the stairs; but the drunkards, conceiving them to be sea-gods-Neptune, Triton, &c.-begin to worship them. What accounts for this intrusion of Pagan adorations is this, viz. that originally the admirable scene was derived from a Greek comic sketch, though transplanted into the English drama with so much of life-like effect as really to seem a native English growth."-Works, Edinb. 1863, vol. xii. p. 201.

What is the "Greek comic sketch" to which De Quincey refers? The passage in Heywood is given in Lamb's Dramatic Specimens. It suggested Cowley's Latin play, Naufragium Joculare. EIRIONNACH.

"ORIGINES PAROCHIALES SCOTIE."- Can any of your correspondents tell me whether there is any chance of this most interesting and valuable work being continued? Surely there should not be much difficulty in finding the means for publishing at least the Archdeaconry of Lothian. Many of the noblemen and gentlemen of the district would, I have no doubt, contribute largely, while there should be no difficulty in obtaining a goodly list of subscribers for this volume at least. I trust that Mr. Stevenson or some other enterprising Edinburgh bookseller will try what can be done for at least one other volume. Has the map, of which portions are given in the published volume, ever been completed? LONDONIENSIS.

THE OSTRICH FEATHER BADGE. Is there known to be in existence any document, or any positive evidence of whatsoever kind, which may determine or illustrate the circumstances that led to the appropriation of the Ostrich Feather Badge

as their own especial ensign, by the Princes of Wales, heirs apparent of the crown of England? Also, what is the earliest known notice of this badge as the badge of a Prince of Wales? Queen Elizabeth used the group of three ostrich feathers as a royal badge, in especial association with the principality of Wales, as appears from her judicial seal for the counties of Caermarthen, Glamorgan, and Pembroke (Archæologia, xxxi. 495); and on another seal of the same sovereign the royal shield appears supported by two lions, each of them holding an ostrich feather.

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CHARLES BOUTELL.

POPE AND CARDINALS. "Some in the Romane Church write, that the Cardinalls of that Church are so incorporated into the Pope, so much of his body, and so bloud of his bloud, that in a fever they may not let bloud without his leaue." What Roman writers make this statement, and where ? CPL.

QUOTATIONS WANTED.—

"Not in vain the strivings, not by chance the currents flow;

Error merged, but truth directed, to their certain goal they go."

"The passions, prejudices, interests,

That sway the meanest being-the least touch

That moves the finest nerve!

And in one human brain

Causes the faintest thought, becomes a link

In the great chain of Nature."

"There, like a shattered column, lies the man." M. REED.

A Description of the Fates.

"Dash we cup of pity to the tomb,

And quaff our fill of desolation-ere
The morning breaks in brightness o'er the Earth,
And deems us darkness to approaching day.
Oh, never cease to snap this fatal thread,
Bnt gorge and glut beyond satiety

The blood of lovely woman, giant man."
Clytie gazing on the Sun.
"Fair and sumptuous,
Without one jot of prodigality
In form or feature. Soft in step-
More gentle than in earliest infancy."

E. R.

RING INSCRIPTION.-A short time ago a small diamond ring of gold was turned up on a piece of land very near the site of a large and rich priory in Lincolnshire. On the outside of the ring are engraved the names of the three kings of the magi, and in the inside an inscription which in modern characters runs thus:

"MAGA. OTRE. TO. TA. HERCE. LIP. MIN." Will some one of your readers, who is conversant with such matters, kindly help me to a full interpretation of this? MELCHIOR.

SANDYS'S "OVID."-The second edition of this was printed, 1621, 12mo. I should much like to be informed, what was the date of the first?

W. CAREW HAZLITT.

LOST STATUES. - Statues of Alfred the Great and Edward the Black Prince, by Rysbrack, were in Lord Burlington's, Carlton House, after the residence of the Prince Regent. Can any correspondent tell what has become of them?

W. J.

quite presentable; and it strikes me that the
writer of them could do, and did, something much
better in the way of vers de société.
D. BLAIR.

Melbourne.

[There is an excellent account, accompanied with a

SIR JOHN VANBRUGH'S PLAYS.—As I am read-portrait, of the witty Harry Erskine, in Chambers's Dicing, for the Philological Society's projected Dictionary, the works of some of the dramatists of the last century, may I ask your readers to explain the following expressions in Vanbrugh's plays, viz. ?—

1. "Rising of the lights.

""Tis a sad thing, Flippanta, when wit's confin'd; 'tis worse than the rising of the lights."-Confederacy, Act I. vol. ii. p. 18, ed. 1730.

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tionary of Eminent Scotsmen, ii. 243-246; as well as in John Kay's Series of Original Portraits and Caricature Etchings, edited by H. Paton, 2 vols. 4to, 1838; and a pleasing notice of him by his relation, Henry David Inglis, in the Edinburgh Literary Journal. Few men have enjoyed a wider reputation for wit than the Hon. Henry Erskine, and it is to be regretted that his convivial poems and witticisms have never been collected into a volume, especially those composed after his retirement from professional life, when he was enjoying otium cum diggin a tatie (potato). "The greatest treat to me," says Mr. Inglis, "was when, after dinner, he took down from the top of his bookcase, where it lay behind a bust, I think of Mr. Fox, his manuscript book, full of jeux d'esprit, charades, bon mots, &c., all his own composition. I do believe, that all the puns and bon mots which have been put into his mouth-some of them, no doubt, having originally come out of it-would eke out a handsome duo

decimo."

In his latter years Mr. Erskine was very much annoyed at the idea that his witticisms might be collected together in a volume. Aware of this, a friend of his resolved to tease him, and having invited him to dinner, he, in the course of the evening, took up a goodly-looking volume, and turning over the pages began to laugh heartily. "What is the cause of your merriment ? ” claimed the guest. "Oh, it is only one of your jokes, Harry."-"Where did you get it?"-" Oh, in the new work just published, entitled The New Complete Jester, or every Man his own Harry Erskine!" Mr. Erskine felt very much amazed, as may be supposed, upon the announcement of the fictitious publication.

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To the honour of Henry Erskine, he was never known to turn his back upon the poor man, or to proportion his services to the ability of his employers to reward them. It is said that a poor man, in a remote district of Scotland, thus answered an acquaintance who wished to dissuade him from engaging in a law-suit with a wealthy neighbour, by representing the hopelessness of his being able to meet the expense of litigation: "Ye dinna ken what ye're saying, maister; there's no a puir man in a' Scotland need to want a friend or fear an

enemy sae lang as Harry Erskine lives!"

Dean Ramsay has printed a clever impromptu of a judge's lady, produced in reply to one made by our witty advocate. At a dinner party at Lord Armadale's, when a bottle of claret was called for, port was brought in by mistake. A second time claret was sent for, and a second time the same mistake occurred. Henry Erskine

The verses are a little free, but harmless, and addressed the host in an impromptu, which was meant as

[* From the Annual Register, xxviii. 150.]

a parody on the well-known Scottish song, "My jo, Janet"

"Kind sir, it's for your courtesie
When I come here to dine, sir;
For the love ye bear to me,
Gie me the claret wine, sir."

To which Mrs. Honeyman retorted :—
"Drink the port, the claret's dear,
Erskine, Erskine ;

Ye'll get fou on't, never fear,
My jo, Erskine."

With all the liveliness of fancy, however, and with all these shining talents, Mr. Erskine's habits were domestic in an eminent degree. His wishes and desires are pleasingly depictured in the following lines by himself:

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Let sparks and topers o'er their bottles sit, Toss bumpers down, and fancy laughter wit; Let cautious plodders o'er their ledger pore, Note down each farthing gain'd, and wish it more; Let lawyers dream of wigs, poets of fame, Scholars look learn'd, and senators declaim; Let soldiers stand, like targets in the fray, Their lives just worth their thirteenpence a-day: Give me a nook in some secluded spot Which business shuns, and din approaches notSome snug retreat, where I may never know What Monarch reigns, what Ministers bestow: A book, my slippers, and a field to stroll inMy garden seat, an elbow-chair to loll inSunshine, when wanted-shade, when shade invitesWith pleasant country laurels, smells, and sights, And now and then a glass of generous wine, Shared with a chatty friend of 'auld lang syne;' And one companion more, for ever nigh, To sympathize in all that passes by, To journey with me in the path of life, And share its pleasures, and divide its strife. These simple joys, Eugenius, let me find, And I'll ne'er cast a lingering look behind."] THE SACRED NAME "JAH" IN THE PRAYERBOOK.-In a copy of the Book of Common Prayer in 12mo, printed at the Pitt Press, Cambridge, in 1834 (now before me), the word "yea" is substituted for the sacred name "Jah in the fourth verse of the 68th Psalm, the reading being: "Praise him in his name, yea, and rejoice before him."

I have compared this with several other editions of the Prayer-book, but do not find the same reading occur in any other instance. Is it an error of the press, or is it to be found in any other edition? WILLIAM KELLY.

Leicester.

[Lewis, in his History of the Translations of the Bible, p. 129, ed. 1818, speaking of Cranmer's, or the Great Bible of 1539, says, "According to this translation were the Psalms, Epistles, and Gospels, in our Liturgy, with very little variation, of which this is one, that whereas in this edition of 1539, Psalm lxviii. 4, is rendered Praise Him in his name JAH, and rejoice before Him,' by some

mistake or other the word Jah, in the after editions, is printed Yea." Consult "N. & Q.," 1st S. x. 105, 133, and the British Magazine, Oct. 1834, vi. 424.]

"GIVE A DOG AN ILL NAME, AND HANG HIM." What is the origin and meaning of this wellknown proverb ? C. S. W.

[The earliest English version of the proverb we have met with is in Ray, where it runs-" He that would hang his dog gives out first that he's mad;" and is thus explained-" He that is about to do anything disingenuous, unworthy, or of evil fame, first bethinks himself of some plausible pretence." The Spanish proverb corresponds exactly with Ray's—“Quien á su perro quiere matar rabia le ha de levantar;" and so does the Italian "Chi vuol ammazzar il suo cane, basta che dica ch'è arrabbiato;" while the French is not very dissimilar, “ Qui veut noyer son chien, l'accuse de la rage." The German "Wenn man den Hund schlagen will, find't man bald ein Stecken," comes nearer to our other English proverb, "It is easy to find a stick if you want to beat a dog."]

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THE FLUKE. What is the fish which Manksmen call by this name? ST. SWITHIN.

[This is the flounder, one of the most common of the flat fish, and is found in the sea and near the mouths of large rivers all round our coast. All the bays, creeks, and inlets of Orkney produce it, and it is taken in abundance in different parts of Scotland, where it is called Fluke and Mayock Fleuke-a term having reference to the flattened form of the fish. At Berwick and Yarmouth it is called a Butt-a northern term.]

Replies.

THE EVANGELISTIC SYMBOLS.

(3rd S. ix. 510.)

It is true that there has been much discrepancy in the application of the four living creatures seen by the prophet Ezechiel and by St. John; but for centuries it has been customary to follow the interpretation of St. Jerome, St. Gregory the Great, Venerable Bede, and others, who assign the Man to St. Matthew, the Lion to St. Mark, the Calf to St. Luke, and the Eagle to St. John, for reasons which will appear later. The explanation of St. Ireneus was different; but as Horne does not

tory of the Christian Church, deduced from the Apocalypse, and published under the name of Signor Pastorini. He considers these living crea

translate his words very closely, I give them here in the original. The Holy Father is showing that there could be but one Gospel, in four forms; and then he observes that the Cherubim were four-tures to represent the four greater prophets. The formed, and that their forms typified the various attributes of the Son of God; and he goes on thus:

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"For the first living creature, he says, was like a lion, signifying his efficacious power, and his principality, and royal dominion; but the second was like a calf, showing forth his sacrificial and sacerdotal order; the third having the face of a man, describing manifestly his coming as man; but the fourth was like an eagle flying, manifesting the grace of the Spirit flying down upon the Church. And therefore the Gospels agree with these, in which Christ is enthroned."

St. Ireneus proceeds to develope these symbols, understanding the Lion to typify St. John, the Calf St. Luke, the Man St. Matthew, and the Eagle St. Mark.

Lion, he says, represents Isaias, of the royal race of David; the Calf, the prophet Jeremias, in his character of a priest; the Man, the prophet Ezechiel, always addressed as the Son of Man; and the Eagle, the prophet Daniel, on account of his sublime oracles, soaring to the highest objects.

I presume, however, that the object of the inquirer, J. T. F., is to ascertain the generally received application in symbolical representations of the four Evangelists. Certainly the explanation of St. Jerome may be said to have been generally, if not universally, followed for ages, in every kind of ecclesiastical and artistic decoration. It is found on innumerable fonts, windows, crosses, banners, and illuminated manuscripts; and any attempt at a different appropriation of these symbols would now be rejected as a novelty, only calculated to create confusion. F. C. H.

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S. MATTHEW.

S. MATTHEW.
S. LUKE.

S. JOHN.
S. MARK.

S. LUKE.

St. Augustine explains the four living creatures When placed in saltire thusotherwise. He observes that interpreters before him have for the most part understood them to represent the four Evangelists; but he assigns the Lion to St. Matthew, the Calf to St. Luke, the Man to St. Mark, and the Eagle to St. John. See his Tract xxxvi. on the 8th Chapter of St. John's Gospel.

St. Jerome, however, is the great authority on this point, whose interpretation has been almost universally adopted. In the following passage from his Commentary on the first Chapter of Ezechiel will be found his explanation, and likewise the reasons for it.

"Quidam quatuor Evangelia, quos nos quoque in procmia commentariorum Matthæi secuti sumus: horum animalium putant nominibus designari: Matthæi, quod quasi hominem descripserit: Liber generationis Jesu Christi, filii David, filii Abraham. Leonis ad Marcum referunt : Initium Evangelii Jesu Christi filii Dei, sicut scriptum est in Esaia propheta: Vox clamantis in deserto, parate viam Domini, rectas facite semitas ejus. Vituli ad Luca Evangelium, quod a Zachariæ incipit sacerdotio. Aquila, ad Joannis exordium: qui ad excelsum evolans cœpit: In principio erat Verbum, et Verbum erat apud Deum, et Deus erat Verbum. Super quo quid nobis videretur, in supra dicto opere diximus: pleniusque in Apocalypsi Joannis horum animantium species, ac nomina referuntur ad quatuor Evangelia."

Of the many other interpretations of these four living creatures, I will mention only that of the learned Bishop Walmesley, in his General His

The reason of these symbols is thus explained: -
"Formam viri dant Matthæo
Quia scripsit sic de DEO
Sicut descendit ab eo,

Quem plasmavit, homine.
Marcus leo per desertum
Clamans, rugit in apertum :
Iter Deo fiat certum,

Mundum cor a crimine.
"Lucas bos est in figurâ,
Ut præmonstrat in Scripturâ,
Hostiarum tangens jura

Legis sub velamine.
Sed Johannes alâ binâ
Charitatis, aquilinâ
Formâ, fertur in divina
Puriori lumine.

"Quatuor describunt isti
Quadriformes actus Christi,
Et figurant ut audisti
Sua quæque formulâ :
Natus Homo declaratur,
Vitulus sacrificatur,
Leo mortem depredatur,
Sed ascendit Aquila."

Thus also Hildebert: -
"Matthæum signat vir; bos Lucam; leo Marcum;
Ales discipulum qui sine sorde fuit.
Matthæo species humana datur: quia scripto
Indicat et titulo quid DEUS egit Hoмo.

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