Notes and Queries, Number 201, September 3, 1853. Various
over and above the subscription-price for my Poem. How even the remaining books will see the light must depend entirely upon my pecuniary, not my poetical abilities. The work is well nigh completed; but not one solitary brother have I throughout the airy regions of Grub Street who is poorer than I. It is not impossible, however, but when some of my partial friends shall know this, they may enable me by their bounty to publish out of hand."
This leads me to doubt whether the third book was ever published, for I think the most "partial" of his friends—those who had given "four, five, and six times over and above the subscription price"—must have had enough in two books. If it were not published, it is a curious fact that, in a poem called The Battle of Minden, the battle of Minden is not mentioned; though not more extraordinary perhaps than the omissions of the "Explanation of the Apocalypse" in his previous work.
I come now to the question, Why did Junius speak so passionately and disrespectfully of Swinney, and what are the probabilities that Swinney had never before (July) 1769 spoken to Lord G. Sackville? These I must defer till next week.
MONUMENTAL INSCRIPTION IN PETERBOROUGH CATHEDRAL
The following Notes occur on a fly-leaf at the end of a copy of Gunton's History of Peterborough Cathedral, and appear to have been written soon after that book was printed:
"Among other things omitted in this history, I cannot but take notice of one ancient inscription upon a tomb in ye body of the church, written in old Saxon letters, as followeth:
✠'WS : KI : PAR : CI : PASSEZ : PVR : LE : ALME : ESTRAVNGE : DE : WATERVILLE : PRIEZ.'
"This inscription may seem to challenge some relation to William de Waterville, one of the abbots of this church. (See p. 23.)"
"On Sennour Gascelin de Marrham's tomb, mentioned p. 94., these letters seem to be still legible:
'CI : GIST : EDOVN : GASCELIN : SENNOVR : DE MARRHAM : IADIS : DE : RI : ALM.. DI EV EST MERCIS : PATER : NOSTER.'"
"In St. Oswald's Chapel, on ye ground round the verge of a stone:
'HIC IACET COR.... ROBERTI DE SVTTON ABBATIS ISTIVS MONASTERII CVIVS ANIMA REQVIESCAT IN PACE. AMEN.'"
"In ye churchyard is this inscription:
✠'AÑA IOANNIS DE SCO IVONE QVOĀ P[IO]RIS PMA Ā M DIIII PACE REQVIESCAT. AMEN.'
"This may probably relate to Ivo, sub-prior of this monastery, whose anniversary was observed in ye Kalends of March. (See page 324. of this book.)"
"In ye churchyard:
'Joannes Pocklington, S. S. Theologiæ doctor, obiit
Nov. 14, A. Di. 1642.'
'Anne Pocklington, 1655.'
'Mary, ye wife of John Towers, late Lord Bp. of
Peterborough, dyed Nov. 14, A.D. 1672.'
'Quod mori potuit præstantissimæ fœminæ
Compton Emery
Filiæ Joannis Towers S. T. P.
Hujus Ecclesiæ quondam Episcopi
Viduæ Roberti Rowell LL. D.
Nec non charissimæ conjugis
Richardi Emery Gen:
In hoc tumulo depositum: Feb. 4.
A marginal note states that "The Chapter-house and Cloyster sold in 1650 for 800l., to John Baker, Gent., of London."
FOLK LORE
Superstition of the Cornish Miners (Vol. viii., p. 7.).—I cannot find the information desired by your correspondent in the Cornish antiquaries, and have in vain consulted other works likely to explain this tradition; but the remarks now offered will perhaps be interesting in reference to the nation alluded to. The Carthaginians being of the same race, manners, and religion as the Phœnicians, there are no particular data by which we can ascertain the time of their first trading to the British coast for the commodity in such request among the traders of the East. The genius of Carthage being more martial than that of Tyre, whose object was more commerce than conquest, it is not improbable that the former might by force of arms have established a settlement in the Cassiterides, and by this means have secured that monopoly of tin which the Phœnicians and their colonies indubitably enjoyed for several centuries. Norden, in his Antiquities of Cornwall, mentions it as a tradition universally received by the inhabitants, that their tin mines were formerly wrought by the Jews. He adds that these old works are there at this day called Attal Sarasin, the ancient cast-off works of the Saracens, in which their tools are frequently found. Miners are not accustomed to be very accurate in distinguishing traders of foreign nations, and these Jews and Saracens have probably a reference to the old merchants from Spain and Africa; and those employed by them might possibly have been Jews escaped the horrors of captivity and the desolation which about that period befel their country.
"The Jews," says Whitaker (Origin of Arianism, p. 334.), "denominated themselves, and were denominated by the Britons of Cornwall, Saracens, as the genuine progeny of Sarah. The same name, no doubt, carried the same reference with it as borne by the genuine, and as usurped by the spurious, offspring of Abraham."
Northamptonshire Folk Lore (Vol. vii., p. 146.).—In Norfolk, a ring made from nine sixpences freely given by persons of the opposite sex is considered a charm against epilepsy. I have seen nine sixpences brought to a silversmith, with a request that he would make them into a ring; but 13½d. was not tendered to him for making, nor do I think that any threehalfpences are collected for payment. After the patient had left the shop, the silversmith informed me that such requests were of frequent occurrence, and that he supplied the patients with thick silver rings, but never took the trouble to manufacture them from the sixpences.
A similar superstition supposes that the sole of the left shoe of a person of the same age, but opposite sex, to the patient, reduced to ashes is a cure for St. Anthony's fire. I have seen it applied with success, but suppose its efficacy is due to some astringent principle in the ashes.
SHAKSPEARE CORRESPONDENCE
On Two Passages in Shakspeare.—Taking up a day or two since a Number of "N. & Q.," my attention was drawn to a new attempt to give a solution of the difficulty which has been the torment of commentators in the following passage from the Third Act of Romeo and Juliet:
"Gallop apace, you fiery-footed steeds,
Towards Phœbus' mansion; such a waggoner
As Phaeton would whip you to the West,
And bring in cloudy night immediately.—
Spread thy close curtain, love-performing Night,
That runaways' eyes may wink, and Romeo
Leap to these arms, untalk'd of and unseen."
"Runaways'" being a manifest absurdity, the recent editors have substituted "unawares," an uncouth alteration, which, though it has a glimmering of sense, appears to me almost as absurd as the word it supplies. In this dilemma your correspondent Mr. Singer ingeniously suggests the true reading to be,—
"That rumourers' eyes may wink, and Romeo
Leap to these arms, untalk'd of and unseen."
No doubt this is a felicitous emendation, though I think it may be fairly objected that a rumourer, being one who deals in what he hears, as opposed to an observer, who reports what he sees, there is a certain inappropriateness in speaking of a rumourer's eyes. Be this as it may, I beg to suggest another reading, which has the merit of having spontaneously occurred to me on seeing the word "runaways'" in your correspondent's