Page:Notes and Queries - Series 10 - Volume 3.djvu/386

 318

NOTES AND QUERIES, [iv s. m. APRIL 2-2. 1905.

in "food," as also in the word Manchuria (with the ch soft) and in the Japanese names Oku and Kuroki. The latter name is gener- ally twisted by English perversity into Kiuroki. To go further afield, the same rule applies to Sudan (Soudan or Soodan), Nubia (from the Greek Nov/fcu), etc. When the Matabele warriors were at the Earl's Court Exhibition some years ago I saw a gentleman go up to one of the men and ask for "Loben- gewla's kraal." The Matabele drew himself up to his full height, and, with a contemp- tuous glance at the erring Englishman, replied, "Lobengoola, Lobengoola."

FREDERICK A. EDWARDS.

TWINS (10 th S. iii. 249). Some thirteen years ago I sat down on Christmas Day with Mr. and Mrs. Dunn and seventeen out of their nineteen children. I believe four were " cases of twins." In one case at least the girls were so much alike in feature that their mother had to tie a ribbon on the arm of one to enable her to distinguish her from her sister. I can see these two pretty little girls in my mind's eye now. This answers one of the requirements of your querist. Another answer is that he can go to Hams- gate and make inquiries for himself, and will always be considered a welcome guest, for Mrs. Dunn is the proprietress of the West- bourne boarding-house there.

He may like to hear, as an important family matter very little known, that twins can be insured against at Lloyd's, and on payment of 101. the happy father, in case of twins, is made still*happier by the receip.t of 500. RALPH THOMAS.

A striking example of close likeness, both mental and physical, is that of E. It. and C. G. Allen, the well - known lawn - tennis players. I have known them well for years ; but though I know them apart when they are together please excuse the bull when conversing with one alone I am not always sure to which I am speaking. They have also many characteristics and habits of thought in common. E. E. STREET.

Chichester.

TIGERNACUS (10 th S. iii. 268). This is a Latin form of the Irish Christian name Tighearnach, having the same sense as Basil viz., " kingly." Tighearnach wrote the 'Annales Hibernici, which Dr. O'Conor printed in his 'Rerum Hibernicarum Scrip- tores Veteres,' 1814. A good account of his life and works will be found in the ' D.N.B.,' s.v. 'O'Braein,' which is the eleven th-century spelling of his family name. In modern

Gaelic it would be O'Braoin, and in English O'Breen, which last has the advantage of giving the man in the street a chance of pronouncing it correctly.

This seems a fitting place to protest against the muddled way in which the 'D.N.B.' spells Irish surnames, mixing up no fewer than three systems of orthography. Some- times Irish worthies are inserted, like Tighearnach, under obsolete Gaelic forms of their names, sometimes under modern Gaelic forms, and sometimes under Anglicized forms. Chronology has nothing to do with it, since Roderic O'Conor and Tiernan O'Rourke appear under English spellings, whereas their contemporary who ought consistently to have been called Dermot MacMnrrough appears under his Gaelic name, Mac- Murchadha. JAS. PLATT, Jun.

Permit me to answer my question above, as I find from advertisement of ' Bodleian Irish Manuscripts," about to be published, that " a fragment of Tigernach's ' Annals ' " is in the Bodleian ; so the singular-looking form of the name I quoted was the Latinized. CHARLES S. KING, Bt.

St. Leonartls-on-Sea.

[Replies also from MR. K. H. COLKMAX and MR. J. RADCLIFFK, the latter referring to Bishop William Nicholson's ' Irish Historical Library,' 1776.]

CURETON'S MULTANIS (10 th S. iii. 269). The present 15th Regiment of Bengal Lancers, known as "Cureton's Multanis," was raised by Capt. Cureton in 1858. It was formed of a number of volunteer risalahs of Pathan horse, named from their commandants Cure- ton's, Lind's, &c. In 1859 it was called the Multani Regiment of Cavalry ; in 1860, Cureton's Multani Regiment of Cavalry ; in 1861 it became the 15th Bengal Cavalry; and in 1890 the 15th Bengal Lancers. These details are from a very useful book recently published by the Government of India, 'A Sketch of the Services of the Bengal Native Army,' compiled by Lieut. F. G. Cardew, which gives the war services of this dis- tinguished regiment. W. CROOKE.

The unfamiliar word is one of the lament- able results of altering the spelling of his- toric names of places. Readers of Indian history are accustomed to Mooltan as the name of a place rendered famous by certain events. It cannot be supposed that the Mooltanis would be offended if their native place were spelt in the British historic way.

F. P. [Reply also from MR. F. A. EDWARDS.]