Notes and Queries, Number 29, May 18, 1850

    C.H.

As lazy as Ludlum's Dog (No. 24. p. 382.).—This proverb is repeated somewhat differently in The Doctor, &c., "As lazy as Ludlum's dog, as leaned his head against a wall to bark." I venture to suggest that this is simply one of the large class of alliterative proverbs so common in every language, and often without meaning. In Devonshire they say as "Busy as Batty," but no one knows who "Batty" was. As I have mentioned The Doctor, &c., I may was well jot down two more odd sayings from the same old curiosity-shop:—"As proud as old COLE's dog which took the wall of a dung-CART, and got CRUSHED by the wheel." And, "As queer as Dick's hat-band, that went nine times round his hat and was fastened by a rush at last."

    J.M.B.

St. Winifreda (No. 24. p. 384.).—Your Querist will find some information in Warton's Hist. Eng. Poetry, vol. i. p. 14., note, 1824.

    J.M.B.

Totnes, April 18. 1850.

"Vert Vert" (No. 23. p. 366.)—It may be of some assistance to your Querist "ROBERT SNOW," in his endeavour to trace illustrations from Gresset's "Vert Vert," to know that the mark of RAUX, who is said to have painted these subjects, was composed of ten small ciphers; seven of which were placed in a circle: the other three formed a tail, thus,

something like the Roman capital Q. This artist, between the years 1750 and 1800, was employed in the decoration of the Sèvres porcelain: his usual subjects were bouquets or groups of flowers; and his mark will be found underneath the double L, interlaced, inclosing some capital letter or letters denoting the year such ware was manufactured.

    W.C. Jun.

"Esquire" and "Gentleman."—The amusing article in No. 27., on the title of "Esquire," recalled to my memory the resolution passed by the corporation of Stratford-on-Avon, when they presented the freedom of that town to Garrick. It runs something like this:—

"Through love and regard to the memory of the immortal Mr. William Shakspeare, and being fully sensible of the extraordinary merits of his most judicious representative, David Garrick, Esquire."

Had David a better right to the title than the great poet? Shakespeare, in the latter part of his life, was no doubt Master Shakspeare, a title so common as even to be bestowed upon the geometer of Alexandria. In Bayford's collection is preserved a Catalogue advertising "Master Euclid's Elements of Plain Geometry."

    J.O. HALLIWELL.

Pope Felix and Pope Gregory.—"E.M.B." (No. 26. p. 415.) inquires who was "Pope Felix," whom Ælfric called the "fifth father" of S. Gregory the Great? This is a much disputed question, and a great deal depends upon the meaning to be attached to the unsatisfactory expression "atavus," used by Pope Gregory himself, in Evangel. Hom. xxxviii. § 15., and found also in the dialogues commonly attributed to him. (Lib. iv. cap. xvi.) Your correspondent may consult Beda, Hist. Eccl. Gen. Anglor., lib. ii. cap. 1., with the note by Mr. Stevenson, who supposes that Pope Felix III. was alluded to by his "venerable" author: This is the opinion of Bollandus (ad 25 Feb.), as well as of Cardinal Baronius; (Annall. ad an. 581; et Martyrol. Rom. die Feb. 25. Conf. De Aste, in Martyrolog. Disceptat., p. 96.; Beneventi, 1716); but Joannes Diaconus (S. Greg. Vit. lib. i. cap. i.) employs these decisive terms, "quartus Felix, sedis Apostolicæ Pontifex." It is of course possible to translate "atavus meus" merely "my ancestor;" and this will leave the relationship sufficiently undefined.

    R.G.

Love's last Shift (No. 24. p. 383).—"The Duchess of Bolton (natural daughter of the Duke of Monmouth) used to divert George I. by affecting to make blunders. Once when she had been at the play of Love's last Shift, she called it 'La dernière chemise de l'amour.'"—Walpoliana, xxx.

    C.

Quem Deus vult perdere (No. 22, p. 351., and No. 26, p. 421.).—"C.J.R." having pointed out a presumed imitation of this thought, it may not be impertinent to observe, that Dryden also has adopted the sentiment in the following lines:—

"For those whom God to ruin has designed,
He fits for fate, and first destroys their mind."

    Hind and Panther, part 3.
    G.S. FABER.
Dayrolles (No. 23. p. 373).—The following information is appended to a description of the Dayrolles Correspondence, in 21 folio vols. in the Catalogue of Mr. Upcott's Collection, sold by Messrs. Evans a few years ago:—

Note copied from the Catalogue of Manuscripts, &c., belonging to the late Mr. Upcott.

"James Dayrolles was resident at the Hague from 1717 to his death, 2nd January, 1739.

"Solomon Dayrolles, his nephew, commenced his diplomatic career under James, first Earl of Waldegrave, when that nobleman was ambassador at Vienna. He was godson of Philip, the distinguished Earl of Chesterfield, and was sworn a Gentleman of the Privy Chamber to George II., 27th Feb. 1740, in the room of Sir Philip Parker, long deceased, and on the accession of George III. was again appointed, 5th February, 1761.

"In 1745, being at that time secretary to Lord Chesterfield, in Holland, Mr. Dayrolles was nominated to be secretary to his lordship at Lord Lieutenant of Ireland.

"In May, 1747, he was promoted to be President in the United Provinces; and in November, 1751, Resident at Brussels, where he continued till August, 1757. He died in March, 1786."

    J.T.C.

Solomon Dayrolles.—

"24th Dec. 1786. Married Baron de Reidezel, aid-de-camp to the Duke of Wirtemberg, to Miss Dayrolles, 2d dau. of the late Solomon Dayrolles of Hanover Square."—Gent. Mag. v. 56, p. 1146.

Probably Mr. Dayrolles' death may be recorded in the register of St. George's.

    B.

Emerods (No. 18. p. 282.) pro hæmorrhoids. "Golden emerods" would be an absurdity if emerod meant "emerald." "The Philistines made golden emerods," i.e. golden images of hæmorrhoids (diseased veins), in commemoration of being delivered from plagues, of which such states of disease were concomitant signs.

    TREBOR.

Military Execution (No. 16. p. 246.).—Your correspondent "MELANION" is informed that the anecdote refers to Murat, and the author of the sentiment is Lord Byron. See Byron's Poems, Murray's edit. 1 vol. 8vo. p. 561., note 4.

    C.

"M. or N." (No. 26. p. 415.)—I do not think that "M. or N." are used as the initials of any particular words; they are the middle letters of the alphabet, and, at the time the Prayer Book was compiled, it seems to have been the fashion to employ them in the way in which we now use the first two. There are only two offices, the Catechism and the Solemnisation of Matrimony, in which more than one letter is used. In the former, the answer to the first question has always stood "N. or M." In the office of Matrimony, however, in Edward the Sixth's Prayer Books, both the man and woman are designated by the letter N—"I, N., take thee, N., to my wedded wife;" whilst in our present book M. is applied to the man and N. to the woman. The adoption of one letter, and the subsequent substitution of another, in this service, evidently for the sake of a more clear distinction only, sufficiently shows that no particular name or word was intended by either. Possibly some future "J.C." may inquire of what words the letters "A.B.," which our legislators are so fond of using in their Acts of Parliament, are the initials.

    ARUN.

"M. or N." (No. 26, p. 415.).—"M." and "N.," and particularly "N.," are still in frequent use in France for quidam or quædam; so also is X. We read every day of Monsieur N. or Madame X., where they wish to suppress the name.

    C.

Sapcote Motto (No. 23. p. 366.).—This motto is known to be French, and as far as it can be decyphered is—

"sco toot × vinic [or umic]

× pones,"

the first and last letters s being possibly flourishes. This certainly seems unpromising enough. The name being Sapcote, quasi Sub-cote, and the arms "three dove-cotes," I venture to conjecture "Sous cote unissons," as not very far from the letters given. If it be objected that the word "cote" is not in use in this sense, it may be remarked that French, "After the scole of Stratford atte bowe," might borrow such a meaning to suit the sound, from "côte," in the sense of a side or declivity. And if the objection is fatal to the conjecture, I would then propose "Sous toit unissons." If we reject the supposed flourishes at the beginning and ending of the inscription, and take it to be—

CO TOOT VNIC

CONC,

the c being a well-known ancient form of s, there is a difference of only one letter between the inscription as decyphered and the proposed motto.

If either of these is adopted, the sentiment of family union and family gathering, "As doves to their windows," is well adapted for a family device.

    T.C.

Durham, May 2. 1850.

Finkle or Finkel (No. 24. p. 384.).—Is not "Finkle" very probably derived from Finc, a finch, in the A.-S.? Fingle Bridge, which spans the river Teign, amidst some most romantic scenery, has the following etymology assigned to it by a local antiquary, W.T.P. Short, Esq. (vide Essay on Druidical Remains in Devon, p. 26.): "Fyn, a terminus or boundary; and Gelli, hazel, the hazeltree limits or boundary." But, Query, is not the second syllable rather Gill, akin to the numerous tribe of "gills" or "ghylls," in the North Countrie?