The original 4to letter-paper served as the means both of communication and of concealing that which was written; being after a time divided into the 8vo note-paper, and a separate envelope. Why and when? I understand F. C. H. to say that the franking system produced note-paper. Yet I am at a loss to see what occasion there was to reduce the 4to sheet by one half, if a M.P. was allowed to frank a letter up to an ounce in weight: for I suppose an entire 4to sheet never weighed more than one ounce. However, it is a question of fact; and notes of the last century in 8vo may still be in existence. But until I am informed of them, I continue to suppose that the introduction of the penny post, limiting the weight of letters, was the origin of the general use of 8vo note-paper and envelopes. W. H. S. SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS'S PALETTE (3rd S. viii. 475; 4th S. vii. 307.)— "Gedenket des Vorigen von Alters her."-Jesaia xlvi. 9. It is well for nations as for individuals to venerate the memory of the past, and to cherish objects that have belonged to, or been used by, those who have illustrated their country and their name either by their words or works. What has been so very justly done with Sir Joshua's palette, I do with that of Paul de la Roche, with whom it has been my good fortune to live on very intimate terms. He gave me his palette himself, and I set great store by it, having for years seen him make daily use of it in painting many of his most celebrated pictures: "Del nostro amore e del caro compagno, What would we not give for the possession of the brush Titian dropped whilst painting Charles V.'s portrait, and which was picked up by the puissant emperor and returned to him with a gracious smile and graceful compliment? P. A. L. LUTHER "GRAND HÉRÉSIARQUE" (4th S. vi. 276, 396.)-I find in Dr. Rees' New Cyclopædia (vol. xxi. part ii. "Luther") the following as regards the great man's last moments at Eisleben, where he was born and died: "His last public service was in the church, where he was seized with a violent inflammation in the stomach. His natural intrepidity did not forsake him; and his last conversation with his friends was concerning the happiness reserved for good men in a future life. On the morning of the 12th February, 1546, being awakened from a sound sleep by his disorder, and perceiving his end to be approaching, he commended his spirit into the hands of God, and quietly departed this life at the age of sixty-three." I can only wish the worthy père at St. Roch to be able to do the same. 66 'Charms, which act on the mind of the person charmed, always have some effect; in incantations, commonly a mischievous one. Hearne, the traveller in North America, relates somewhere that, being solicited by an Indian to give him a charm against some enemy, and convinced of the harmless folly of such sorceries, he complied, and drew on a sheet of paper some circles, signs, and words. The Indian who received this took care that the doomed man should know it: he immediately sickened, and before long died. Hearne resolved to make no more magic papers. "Sometimes faith produces a visible and useful effect. A woman who had bad eyes obtained an amulet to cure them. Hopeful of its efficacy, she refrained from shedding tears, and her eyes recovered. But some zealous enemy of sorceries attacked her upon the wickedness of getting well in this way, and prevailed on her to give him the amulet to examine. When unfolded, the paper showed nothing but these words: Der Teufel cratze dir die Augen aus, und scheisse dir in die Löcher.' As soon as the woman saw how she had been amended, she lost faith, took to tears again, and her eyes became as - Wier, Opera, p. 403."-Vol. i. xxxii. A. O. V. P. CHEVISAUNCE OR CHEVISANCE (4th S. vii. 343, Sir Bulwer Lytton had in his mind when he wrote 447.)-Chevachance is probably the word which and means a knightly exploit. "chevisaunce." It is derived from chevancher, bad as ever. p. Thus, in Wynley's Lord Chandos (1592, p. 36), it seems to mean knightly horsemanship: : "And made us swear that feasts continuance, Which was maintained through noble chevachance." And on p. 45, a cavalry raid "A second rode doth into Berry make, And countrie round at pleasure spoile and take. St. Dunstan's, Regent's Park. HENRY H. GIBBS. Told it as a great secret at Lady F.'s, the Countess of Waltham Abbey. HOOD'S "ADDRESS TO MR. CROSS" (4th S. vii. 472.)-ERAT is, I think, right in his supposition that F . . . . is intended for Sir T. Fowell Buxton. When at school Buxton was nicknamed "Elephant Buxton," from his great strength and stature. Vide Life of Sir T. F. Buxton, by C. Buxton, p. 26, published by Murray. JOHN L. RUTLEY. A CROMWELL NOTE (4th S. vii. 429, 481.)—The patronymic of Cromwell, MR. HENFREY clearly shows, could not have been continued by the descendants of the second Protector, Richard Cromwell; and the following extract from the Imperial Dictionary of Universal Biography seems to displace the claim of Dr. Smith as being the last lineal descendant of Oliver Cromwell: "Cromwell left two sons and four daughters-Richard, who succeeded him; Henry, lord-lieutenant of Ireland; Bridget, married first to Ireton, afterwards to Fleetwood; Elizabeth, married to John Claypole, Esq., of Northamptonshire; Mary, married to Lord Fauconbridge; and Frances, married first to a grandson of Lord Hawick, and afterwards to Sir John Russell." (P. 1141.) "The last representative of the Protector was Oliver Cromwell, great-grandson of Henry Cromwell. He practised as a solicitor in London, and died at Cheshunt-park in 1821." (P. 1142.) CHARLES NAYLOR. J. R. B's contributed extract states, in effect, that the last lineal descendant (I presume the learned warden meant "in the male line ") was Dr. Smith, née Cromwell, great-grandson of Richard Cromwell, q. ob. previous to 1809. On the other hand, MR. HENFREY shows-and I believe correctly-that Richard Cromwell had no sons. In order to aid in clearing this matter up, or in making confusion worse confounded, I offer you the following, copied from a chart in my possession, for the pages of "N. & Q." : "Oliver Cromwell's second son, Henry, who, by the way, was a most excellent man, though he lived principally in seclusion, was married; to whom I know not. His great-great-grandson, Oliver (?), last of known descendants, succeeded to the estate of Theobalds, through Richard's children, and died at Cheshunt Park, Hertfordshire, æt. 79, A.D. 1821. He wrote memoirs of Oliver Cromwell and sons, 1820." I should be glad if some of your more deeply read correspondents would throw some light on this incongruity. JUNII NEPOS. Alderley. CHESHIRE CATS (4th S. vii. 417.)- In connection with this subject allow me to ask the meaning of [the proverb-"He grins like a Cheshire cat"? I have always understood that the saying referred to the feline tribe and not to the ladies. Do Cheshire cats grin more than those of other counties? I am glad to find from P. P. that Cheshire ladies are not toasted as cats, for such a process would place them on a level with Welsh rabbits-which are always toasted. STEPHEN JACKSON. "STREAK OF SILVER SEA" (4th S. vii. 390, 445, 486.)-I suspect that whoever first used this phrase had in his mind the line of Wordsworth "That silver thread's the river Dnieper,"describing that river as seen from a considerable height in a balloon voyage; and that this is the original idea of this frequent quotation. F. C. H. "THE SUN NEVER SETS," ETC. (4th S. ii. 535; vii. 210, 293, 398, 482.)-Apropos of the above, Í send the following imitation, or rather adaptation, of a well-known German song, written several years ago to the spirited German music: : "Where doth proud England's boundary stand? Her boundary farther yet must go. By rocks, or by the sea's wide strand?] "Where doth proud England's boundary stand? "Where doth proud England's boundary stand? The earth doth smile, the sun doth shine,- F. C. H. SPENSER, THE POET OF IRELAND (4th S. vii. 317.)-The following fine stanza (Faery Queene, book ii. c. 9, s. 13) is, as Henry Reed points out in his Lectures on the British Poets, in all probability a life-like description of Spenser's neighbours, the wild Irish: "Thus as he spoke, lo! with outrageous cry, A thousand villains round about them swarmed Out of the rocks and caves adjoining nigh; Vile caitiff wretches, ragged, rude, deformed, All threatening death, all in strange manner armed; Some with unwieldy clubs, some with long spears, Some rusty knives, some staves in fire warmed: Stern was their look; like wild amazèd steers, Staring with hollow eyes and stiff upstanding hairs." JONATHAN BOUCHIER. WINDLESHAM CHURCH (4th S. vii. 476) is mentioned by Manning & Bray (vol. iii. p. 85) as dedicated to St. John Baptist. It stands about a mile and a half from Bagshot. The old building was burnt by lightning June 20, 1676, but the pointed arch over the door on the south side seems to be part of the original building. It was rebuilt in 1680, as stated in an inscription on the west wall.... Mr. Aubrey says that on two beams of the old church there was written in old characters, "William Whitehill was maker of this werke," &c. &c., and states that there was a date, but he does not give it. G. F. D. STOW-ON-THE-WOLD (4th S. vii. 344, 420.)There are few sayings more true than the popular one "Stow-on-the Wold, Where the winds blow cold." I inserted this proverb in a note to one of the poems in my Poems of the Peasantry, &c. (Griffin and Co.); but, by a printer's blunder, "Stair" was substituted for Stow. JAMES HENRY DIXON. Miscellaneous. NOTES ON BOOKS, ETC. The Book of Ser Marco Polo, the Venetian, concerning the Kingdom and Marvels of the East. Newly translated and edited, with Notes, by Colonel Henry Yule, C.B., late of the Royal Engineers (Bengal), &c. In Two Volumes, with Maps and other Illustrations. (Murray.) If any reader acquainted with Mr. Marsden's excellent edition of Marco Polo, should feel disposed to doubt the necessity, or even the propriety of a new edition of it, that doubt will be immediately removed by a perusal of Col. Yule's instructive and judicious preface. It will there be seen how much has been accomplished during the half century which has elapsed since Marsden brought his labours to a close by the great scholars of the Continent, not only to illustrate the work itself, its history and progress, but also to throw light upon the life of Polo, and explain much that is obscure in what has hitherto been told about both the author and his book. To show to what an extent these materials exist would be to transcribe Col. Yule's preface. It is little wonder, therefore, that when he had completed for the Hackluyt Society a somewhat kindred task, Cathay and the Way thither, a Collection of Minor Mediaval Notices of China-Col. Yule felt disposed to take in hand the work of the great traveller, and bring to bear upon it for the information of the English reader not only his own personal knowledge of the subject, but that of the many eminent men of letters in France, Germany, and elsewhere, who have of late years made Marco Polo and his travels the subject of their studies; and the English reader has great reason to rejoice that he yielded to the inducement, for the book is an admirable one. Not the least of the many advantages enjoyed by Col. Yule, in the preparation of this edition, has been the investigation which the Continental scholars have pursued as to the authenticity of the different versions of Polo's narrative. By a careful consideration of these, the editor has been enabled to produce in the volumes before us a text at once more full and more authentic than any that has yet been printed; and as this more perfect text is accompanied by a mass of literary illustration of the highest order, it is clear that Col. Yule's edition is destined to take its place (probably for many years) as the standard edition of Marco Polo. The book is beautifully got up, maps and woodcuts being introduced most profusely into its pages, whilst a very comprehensive index gives completeness to this edition of one of the most remarkable books which have been handed down to us from the Middle Ages. Life Theories: their Influence upon Religious Thought. By Lionel S. Beale, M.B., F.R.S., Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians, &c. With Six Coloured Plates. (Churchill.) National Health. By Henry W. Acland, F.R.S., Regius Professor of Medicine in the University of Oxford, &c. (Parker.) If these books are of a character not usually noticed by us, there are in each case sufficient reasons for breaking our rule. The first, because the author, whose right to be heard on the subject is shown by the fact that he received a few days since at the College of Physicians the gold medal for his discoveries in physiology, endeavours to show that the physical and chemical hypotheses on which the recent Life Theories are based have no secure foundation, and are therefore as much opposed to scientific progress as to the development of religious thought and natural theology. The second, on account of the high position and scientific attainments of the author, and the importance of the subject to every one, both in his individual capacity and as one of the nation. Journals kept in France and Italy from 1848 to 1852. With a Sketch of the Revolution of 1848. By the late Nassau William Senior, Master in Chancery, Professor of Political Economy, &c. Edited by his Daughter, M. C. M. Simpson. In two Volumes. (Longmans.) These two posthumous volumes from the pen of that acute reasoner and earnest politician, the late Master Senior, will be read with interest by all Englishmen, and might be studied with advantage by all Frenchmen. As our readers turn over its pages and study in them the story of the Revolution in 1848, remembering as they must the scenes so recently enacted in Paris, they will feel that what Talleyrand said of the Bourbons may be said with equal truth of the whole French nation-they have learned nothing, and have forgotten nothing. For the unhealthy feeling, as Mr. Senior points out more than once, which leads every Frenchman to regard the Government as existing for the sake of making his fortune, and as to be supported only as it performs that duty, and which induces the workmen to look for employment not in the open labour-market, but in works undertaken by the authorities for the purpose of supplying them with wages, still exists, and contributed no little to the recent disasters of France. But we are touching on politics, with which we have nothing to do, though it is difficult to avoid doing so when referring to a book whose only subject is the great political changes which have taken place in France and Italy. The book is a most valuable contribution to modern history. It contains Mr. Senior's Journals during his visits to Paris in 1848, May and July, 1849; of his Visit to the Pyrenees in the antumn of the same year, and of two visits to Paris in 1850. His Journal in Italy at the close of that year and the commencement of the following occupies the remainder of the first, and the commencement of the second volume, which concludes with the journals of his visits to Paris in May and December 1851. As Mr. Senior's talents and position procured him admittance to the highest society, political and social, and as one of his great gifts was the power of drawing out the thoughts and confidences of those he conversed with, while his retentive memory enabled him to record with remarkable accuracy the heads of the conversation he had held, it will be readily understood how much new and curious illustration of contemporary history will be found in these two amusing and instructive volumes. The Herald and Genealogist. Edited by John Gough In the preface to his sixth volume, which is brought to a close by the publication of the present number, the editor claims credit, and very justly, for the steady manner in which The Herald and Genealogist has hitherto pursued the useful objects for which it was established, and points with satisfaction to the manner in which it has been supported by many of the most eminent authorities on the subject. Mr. Nichols is himself so skilled in all matters connected with heraldry, that there is no fear of any attempt to foist spurious pedigrees or genealogies completed from "Cotgreave" collections into a journal which is under his charge. Miscellanea Antiqua Anglicana. The Old Book Collec- This is another new candidate for the support of lovers THE GRAMPIAN CLUB.-At late meeting Dr. Rogers, the Hon. Secretary, reported that his work, "Monuments and Monumental Inscriptions in Scotland," was in active progress, and the first volume, extending to 500 pages, would be issued in July. He was instructed by Mr. William Fraser, on behalf of the Marquis of Bute, to intimate that the "Chartulary of Camberskenneth Abbey" was in a state of forwardness, and that copies would soon be in the hands of the members. The original of the MS. of the "Scottish Peerage" which had been found in the Public Record Office, he had been fortunate enough in discovering among the Harleian MSS. in the British Museum. It would be carefully edited, and if possible printed and issued to the Members during the autumn. The club had increased to nearly 200 members. BOOKS AND ODD VOLUMES THE CAMDEN SOCIETY.-The Council of the Camden Particulars of Price, &c., of the following books to be sent direct to the gentlemen by whom they are required, whose names and addresses are given for that purpose : RUSKIN'S STONES OF VENICE. 3 Vols. Wanted by Mr. R. Somerwell, Jun., Wetherfield, Kendal. GOULD'S BIRDS OF EUROPE. 5 Vols. GREAT BRITAIN. After Part 10. Wanted by Mr. Thomas Beet, Bookseller, 15, Conduit Street, IMMANUEL BEKKER.-" The veteran ranks of German philologists," says the Pall Mall Gazette, "are thinning rapidly. A few days ago there died one of the most eminent members of the craft, Immanuel Bekker, born at Berlin in 1785. He was the foremost disciple of F. A. Wolf, at whose feet he sat at Halle for many years. Soon after the foundation of the Berlin University he was appointed professor of philology, and having soon afterwards been elected a member of the Academy of Sciences, he was commissioned by that body to go to Paris to examine the papers of Fourmont for the Corpus Inscriptionum Græcarum. Two years later he went to Italy, where he continued his researches in the libraries of Milan, Venice, Florence, Ravenna, Naples, and Rome. Nor did he neglect the collections of Oxford, Cambridge, London, or Leyden. His Anecdota Græca and his editions of texts-to the number of forty volumes-all based upon new MSS. researches, independent of previous editions, Notices to Correspondents. Z. Z.-We believe the family of the lady in question has not succeeded in establishing the fact that she had really attained the age of 100. E. K. should apply to the author. G. E.-The epitaph on Gen. Sir Thomas Warner ap O.-Worth, as a local appellation, has been discussed in our 1st S. vii. 584, 630; xi. 153. T. RATCLIFFE.-The lines attributed by you to L. E. Landon are most certainly Thomas Moore's, and will be found in Lalla Rookh-"The Fire Worshippers." E. Y. L.-The poem is not to be had where you imagine. W. G. (Keswick.)—We regret that we have not space for the lines on the "Roughs.” E. D. E.-You will have seen from p. 550 that the ballad is easily accessible. line will be found in the index to Winterton's Poetæ mino"SOLAMEN MISERIS," &c.- We are informed that this res Græci. To all communications should be affixed the name and address of the sender, not necessarily for publication, but as a guarantee of good faith. We cannot undertake to return rejected communications. LONDON, SATURDAY, JULY 8, 1871. CONTENTS.-No 184. NOTES:- On the Norman-French Cry of "Haro," 21 Chaucer: "Miller's Tale," 22-Sir Fulke Greville, Lord - - QUERIES:- Author wanted-Bacon of "The Times". - ON THE NORMAN-FRENCH CRY OF HARO. I suppose there is hardly any one who has not similar example of such an invocation of a prince The word haro is probably nothing more than Hárr is one of the Scaldic names of Odin, and |