Page:Notes and Queries - Series 10 - Volume 12.djvu/177

 10 s. xii. AUG. 21, 1909.] NOTES AND QUERIES.

141

LONDON, SATURDAY, AUGUST 21, 1W9.

OONTENTS.-No. 295.

NOTES :-Serjeant-Major Cotton of Waterloo, 141 Houses of the Nobility c. 1680, 143 'Notes by the Way,' US- Thomas Creevey and the Duke of Wellington T. E. Brown Dorset Gardens Estate, 146 Nicholas Spencer of Westminster " Shot at the rook," &c. Edward IV. 's Standard-Bearer at Barnet, 147.

QUERIES: "Never too late to mend " " Dainty Daisy " Taylor = Berkeley, 147 Naylor of Canterbury Samaritan Society Merdon Manor, Hursley Maltese Beef -eaters Rodd Family Authors Wanted Mayors elected in Churches 'A Sketch from Nature' Draw- bridges still in Use Yorkshire Similes Twelve Sur- name Magna Charta Barons Holderness Families " Le Meriole'': "Le Colebrehous" " FasSole" "The Mauraden" "Protection for burning," 1592 " Stagga Bob-tail Warning "Godfrey of Bouillon and Rashi, 149

"Land Office business" John Bossom, 1729/30 Wooden Lectern at St. Cross, Winchester Macleay Family, 150.

REPLIES : Macaulay, Thorns, and 'The Dunciad,' 150 Donna Maria of Spain -" The I very," 152" Pennyworth " Leaden Figures Vintners' Company Eel-Pie Shop, 153 -Abbots of Evesham English Poem in Welsh Metre

" Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John," 154 Farnese Arms Chaucer : " Strothir "Hollow Loaf foretelling Death Gainsborough, Architect, c. 1300, 155 "Coffee" Windows from Church at Trier, 156 John Kelsall, Mayor of Chester Castor Oil, 157 Mechanical Road Carriages Balloons and Flying Machines " Seynt-pro- Seynt," a Wine Pins substituted for Thorns Hus before the Council of Constance Authors Wanted, 158.

NOTES ON BOOKS : ' Folk-Lore and Folk-Stories of

Wales ' ' The Pronunciation of English.' Booksellers' Catalogues. Notices to Correspondents.

SERGEANT-MAJOR COTTON OF WATERLOO.

COTTON'S Museum of Relics and the Grand Museum Hotel at Waterloo are for sale. The auction will be conducted in the notaries' public salerooms, 38, Rue Fosse-aux-loups, Brussels, by notary EC tors, in conjunction with notary Brabant, the preliminary bidding being on Friday, 3 Sept., and the final bidding on Tuesday, 5 Oct., 1909. An illustrated catalogue, in French and English, of the contents of the museum and hotel has been issued.

Many of the relics are of much interest. Among them are (1) a case containing coins and a snuff-box with portrait of the Duke of Wellington taken at Paris, which was presented to Cotton by Major Anstruther ; (2) Cotton's Toulouse, Orthez;, and Waterloo medals ; (3) many presentation copies of works relating to the battle, one of the most important being a copy of the third edition of Capt. Siborne's account of the battle, which was given by Tennyson (then living at Farringford in Freshwater parish), with

selections from his own works, in 1865. The chief relics found on the battle-field, including several in this collection, are said to be described in ' Pendant et apres Water- loo,' 1908, by Louis Navez ; but no copy of this work is at the British Museum. The date of the foundation of the Museum by Cotton is painted over its entrance as 1825 ; the hotel has been in the hands of the family since 1827, and during that time has served annually over 30,000 visitors, about a third of the number being English and American. It is much to be hoped that the collection will remain on its present site. The Council of the Royal United Service Museum were in correspondence with the owner of the collection some time ago, but so large a price was put upon it that terms of purchase could not be arranged.

Edward Cotton became, and is recollected as, Sergeant-Major Cotton of the 7th Hussars. In 1871 Charles Roach Smith, the archaeo- logist (who was born near Shanklin, in the Isle of Wight, in August, 1807), visited this " museum of arms." He was much im- pressed with the excellence of the English spoken by the proprietress, and in response to his inquiries found with delight that the family came from Freshwater, also in his native isle. Smith impressed upon her " the policy of retaining the museum intact until the Belgian Government should offer to purchase it." On his return to England he made inquiries about the family, but Cotton " was not remembered either at Freshwater or anywhere in the Isle of Wight" ('Retrospections,' iii. 65-6). The Rector of Freshwater informs me that there are in the registers many entries of the family of Cotton, but that there is no mention of any Edward Cotton between 1780 and 1800.

Cotton mentions that he was three times, viz., at Orthez, Haspereen (about 12 miles from Bayonne), and Waterloo, when under the command of Peter Augustus Heyliger, engaged with the French, and that Heyliger was wounded on each occasion. The 7th Hussars formed part at Waterloo of a brigade which should have consisted of the 7th and 15th British Hussars, and the 2nd Hussars, King's German Legion ; but as the German regiment was still on the frontier, its place was taken in the battle by the 13th Light Dragoons. The colonel of the 7th Hussars was Lord Anglesey, and the brigade was commanded by Major-General Sir Colquhoun Grant. During the retreat through Genappe on the 17th of June the 7th Hussars were prominent in the struggle which took place