Page:Notes and Queries - Series 10 - Volume 1.djvu/307

 10* S.I. MARCH 26, 1904.] NOTES AND QUERIES.

251

Corps Diplomatique. The word bridge is the Anglicized form of the Russian name for the game, which seems to be a combination of other games of the whist family, such a: Geralasch, Siberia, and Preference. It was first played in England about 1880, according to the 'Encyclopedia Britannica.' The rules of the game in English were printed in 1886, under the title of 'Biritch, or Russian Whist.' When I played it for the first time in London, in 1892, it had already attained some popularity. M. Jean Boussac says that the game was introduced into Paris from London in 1893, and quotes a paragraph from the Figaro of 26 November of that year, which gives a notice of the game. I think it as well to mention these dates, as the author of 'Badsworth on Bridge' gives a circumstan- tial account of the first introduction of bridge into England in the year 1894. F. JESSEL.

DANTEIANA (10 th S. i. 181). By an un- accountable lapsus oculi, involving a perver- sion of meaning, I wrote "less restricted " in the eleventh line, whereas it should, of course, have been "Dante's thought was more re- stricted." This, I hope, will rectify an almost unpardonable blunder. J. B. McGovERN.

St. Stephen's Rectory, C.-on-M., Manchester.

GERVAISE HOLLES (10 th S. i. 208). -Inquiries have already been made for the printed works of this noted antiquary in a complete form, but without success (7 th S. x. 348). So far as I can ascertain, extracts from the MSS. in the British Museum have appeared in the ' His- tory of Sleaford,' by Creasey ; Thompson's 1820 ; the Stamford Mercury, since the com- mencement of 1864 ; and the Topographer, vol. iii., 1790. A portrait of Holies was given in the ' Lincoln Diocesan Archaeo- logical Papers,' with a biographical sketch. For this list I am chiefly indebted to the contributors of 'N. & Q.' on various dates and occasions. EVERARD HOME COLEMAN.
 * Boston,' 185G; and Weir's ' Horncastle,'

71, Brecknock Road.

"MEYNES" AND " RfllNES " (10 th S. i. 49,

92, 217). I hope this may not lead to a new question. I go by the 'English Dialect Dic- tionary,' which gives rhine as a Wiltshire variant, with a note that it is there pro- nounced reen (presumably riming with been). And I dare say some pronounce it as rine, riming with line. But it is not so very certain that all these words arose from the same original, for our vowel-sounds do not wobble about wildly, as most people believe. It is a mere matter of curiosity to compare High German forms. As a fact, not a single

English dialect-form is of High German origin, nor ever had any chance of being so, except (indirectly) through Norman. But it is possible that the prov. E. rine, a stream, though absurdly spelt rhine to look Greek and " classical," or else to imitate the spell- ing of the German Rhine, reallv represents the A.-S. ryne, a water-course, the origin of our runnel and our prov. E. rinlet, with the same sense. This ryne is derived from runn-, the weak grade of rinnan, to run ; whilst the High German Rinne is derived from the prime-grade of the cognate Old High German form. It would very greatly conduce to clearness if we could only stick to English (Anglo-Saxon) forms, and let the Old High German slide. That is what I would plead for. When we know the history of our English forms we can compare the foreign ones at leisure, with fewer chances of error. WALTER W. SKEAT.

KIPPLES (10 th S. i. 109). Kipples is a local pronunciation of the name Cupples. In his ' Halloween ' Burns says :

She gies the herd a pickle nits,

And twa red-cheekit apples,

To watch, while for the barn she sets,

In hopes to see Tarn Kipples

That very night.

Tarn Kipples, it has been suggested, was a son of the Rev. Mr. William Cupples, minister of Kirkoswald (1720-52), where the scene of the poem is laid. Be this as it may, Mr. Cupples was locally known as Mr. Kipples, and others of the same name were
 * o known in Ayrshire and elsewhere.

In the same poem mention is made of Rab McGrean. This is a local form of Graeme or Graham. Burns's great-grandmother, a Kirkoswald woman, was Janet McGrean, otherwise Graeme or Graham.

William Cupples was a well-known man in his day, and edited John Stevenson's lurious tract ' A Rare Soul - strengthening Jordial ' (Glasgow, 1729, 8vo), in which fre- quent reference is made to his predecessor Elenry Adam, minister of Kirkoswald 1694- 1719. DAVID MURRAY.

Glasgow.

SPANISH PROVERB ON THE ORANGE (10 th S.

. 206). About fifty years ago a farmer in the

county of Durham said in my hearing, " The

ate Bishop Barrington used to say, 'Fruit is


 * old in the morning, silver in the afternoon,

nd lead at night' "; but I think the episcopal

utterance was not original, though I cannot

ust now cite an earlier authority. It is such

i, usual thing for me to refresh myself with

in orange about midnight, and to do so with