Notes and Queries, Number 69, February 22, 1851. VariousЧитать онлайн книгу.

      I would fill up the lacuna—

      Perhaps, I repeat, some more able antiquaries will give their attention to this, and satisfy me on the points of punctuation, date, &c.

      Minor Notes

      Ayot St. Lawrence Church (Vol. iii., pp. 39. 102.). Ayot St. Lawrence, Herts, is another deserted church, like that of Landwade,—in fact a ruin, with its monuments disgracefully exposed. I was so astonished at seeing it in 1850, that I would now ask the reason of its having been allowed to fall into such distress, and how any one could have had the power to build the present Greek one, instead of restoring its early Decorated neighbour. I did not observe the 2 ft. 3 in. effigy alluded to in Arch. Journ. iii. 239., but particularly noted the elegant sculpture on the chancel arch capital.

      I would suggest to Mr. Kelke, that the incumbents of parishes should keep a separate register, recording all monuments, &c. as they are put up, as existing, or as found in MS. church notes, or published in county histories. In the majority of parishes the trouble of so doing would be trifling, and to many a pleasant occupation.

      Johannes Secundus—Parnel—Dr. Johnson.—In Dr. Johnson's Life of Parnel we find the following passage:—

      I will first extract Parnel's description, and then the passage of Secundus; to which, I suppose, Dr. Johnson referred.

      Secundus in his first epistle of his first book (edit. Paris, p. 103.), thus writes:—

      The King's Messengers, by the Rev. W. Adams.—Ought it not to be remarked, in future editions of this charming and highly poetical book (which has lately been translated into Swedish), that it is grounded on one of the "examples" occurring in Barlaam and Josaphat?"

      In the third or fourth century, an Indian prince names Josaphat was converted to Christianity by a holy hermit called Barlaam. This subject was afterwards treated of by some Alexandrian priest, probably in the sixth century, in a beautiful tale, legend, or spiritual romance, in Greek, and in a style of great ease, beauty, warmth, and colouring. The work was afterwards attributed to Johannes Damascenus, who died in 760. In this half-Asiatic Christian prose epic, Barlaam employs a number of even then ancient folk-tales and fables, spiritually interpreted, in Josaphat's conversion. It is on the fifth of these "examples" that Mr. Adams has built his richly-glittering fairy palace.

      Barlaam and Josaphat was translated into almost every European dialect during the Middle Age, sometimes in verse, but usually in prose, and became an admired folk-book. Among the versions lately recovered I may mention one into Old-Swedish (a shorter one, published in my Old-Swedish Legendarium, and a longer one, not yet published); and one in Old-Norwegian, from a vellum MS. of the thirteenth century, shortly to appear in Christiania.

      Parallel Passages.—Under "Parallel Passages" (Vol. ii., p. 263.) there occur in two paragraphs—"There is an acre sown with royal seed," concluding with "living like gods, to die like men," from Jeremy Taylor's Holy Dying; and from Francis Beaumont—

      Which of these twain borrowed the "royal seed" from the other, is a manner of little moment; but the correspondence of living as gods, and dying as men, both undoubtedly taken from Holy Scripture; the phrase occurring in either Testament: "I have said, Ye are gods … But ye shall die like men" (Psalm lxxxii. 6, 7.); quoted by our Saviour (John, x. 34.): "Jesus answered them, Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are Gods?"

      Cause of Rarity of William IV.'s Copper Coinage.—The copper coinage of William IV. is become so scarce, that possibly a doubt may some day arise, whether any but a very limited issue of it was ever made; it may be well, therefore, to introduce a note on the cause of its disappearance, while the subject is comparatively recent.

      When the copper coins of the last reign appeared, a slight tinge in the colour of the metal excited the suspicion of those accustomed to examine such things, that it contained gold, which proved to be the fact; hence their real value was greater than that for which they passed current, and they were speedily collected and melted down by manufacturers, principally, I believe, as an alloy to gold, whereby every particle of that metal which they contained was turned to account. I have been told that various Birmingham establishments had agents in different parts of the country, appointed to collect this coinage.

      Burnet.—In the list of conflicting judgments on Burnet, quoted by your correspondents (Vol. i., pp. 40. 120. 181. 341. 493.), I find no reference to the opinion of his contemporary, Bishop Nicolson. That