Page:Notes and Queries - Series 11 - Volume 1.djvu/315

 ii s. i. APE. 16, 1910.] NOTES AND QUERIES.

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ROSE'S HOLE : ITS LEGEND. There is a legend attaching to the old gravel -pit on Berkhamsted Common, Hertfordshire, known as " Rose's Hole," to the effect that an old man of Frithsden, named Rose, dreamed that there was a large chest of gold buried at the bottom of the pit, and that it should be his if he could get it up without speaking a word to break the spell. He took into his confidence a younger neighbour, and in the evening they shouldered their spades and proceeded to the pit. After some hours of arduous labour, and having dug to a con- siderable depth, their spades suddenly struck upon something metallic ; and when they had cleared away the gravel, there, plainly enough, was the top of a large iron chest. The sight of this evidence of the truth of the dream so overcame the younger man that he exclaimed, "Damn it, Jack, here it is ! " Scarcely had these words been uttered before the sides of the pit they had dug caved in, and they had barely time to escape premature burial. It was too late then to renew the task, so early next morn- ing they recommenced the work of excava- tion ; but although they toiled for many hours, and dug considerably below the spot where the chest had apparently lain, no sign of it could be seen.

Later attempts were made, I have been told, to locate the treasure, but all in vain. W. B. GERISH.

WE must request corresp9ndents desiring fo- rmation on family matters of only private interest to affix their names and addresses to their queries in order that answers may be sent to them direct.

POETS' DESCENDANTS. We have in pre- paration a work by Mr. Perceval Lucas tracing as far as possible the descendants of .11 our great poets. We should be greatly obliged if all those having information at their disposal which would help to make the work more complete would forward it to Mr. Lucas at the subjoined address.

Every care will be taken of pedigrees, MSS. tec., entrusted to us, and they will be re- turned in a few days. GERRARDS.

Westminster Press, 41U, Harrow Road, W.

JOHN II. OF FRANCE : HIS SWORD. Can

jy of your readers throw light on the

whereabouts of a large two-handled sword

said to have been taken from King John II

France at the battle of Poitiers, when

was made prisoner by Roger de la Warre ?

The blade of the sword is 3 ft. 4 in. in length, and bears the inscription ' ' En gladium Johannis Gallise.^ It was formerly in the possession of Mr. Copleston Warre Bamp- fylde, of Hestercombe in Dorsetshire ; but all trace of it has vanished since the death of his widow in 1872, though it does not appear to have been included in the sale of her effects.

ST. CYRES.

CAPT. JONATHAN HILL OF LONDONDERRY. At the siege of Londonderry two brothers, Major John Hill and Capt. Jonathan Hill, took part. Major John Hill became the ancestor of the present baronet, Sir Henry Blyth Hill, of St. Columb's, Londonderry. Can any one give me information concerning Capt. Jonathan Hill ? I should like, if possible, to get his genealogy to the present time, but am unable, being so far away from the centre of these matters, to get any information of him later than the siege of Derry. E. McC. S. HILL.

Wingham, Manning River, New South Wales.

BORROW IN THE ISLE OF MAN.- Going through Dr. Knapp's interesting ' Life of George Borrow,'- I find that Borrow had left, among numerous other MSS., " Notebooks of a Tour in the Isle of Man from Sept. 4 to Nov. 20, 1855, 2 vols., leather.' 5

Dr. Knapp has apparently incorporated some of the details of these notebooks in Borrow' s ' Life l ; I am anxious, however", to learn what has become of these notebooks and other MSS. of George Borrow. Dr. Knapp, I learn, died a couple of years ago and left no children ; but there must be some person who has possession of the MSS.

WILLIAM CTJBBON. 51, Victoria Street, Douglas, Isle of Man.

BOSWELL AND JOHNSON'S TOURS IN THE

HEBRIDES. When was the first edition of Boswell's ' Tour to the Hebrides * pub- lished ? The ' D.N.B.* says that it "appeared in the spring of 1786. n The British Museum Catalogue, however, men- tions two editions dated 1785. Did the book appear in 1786 with the previous year's date ?

What is the correct title of Johnson's account of the same tour ? It was pub- lished in 1775, and the B.M. Catalogue gives the title of the (or a) London edition of that year as ' A Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland. 1 I possess the (or a) Dublin edition of the same year, which is also entitled * A Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland. 2 The ' D.N.B., 1 however, calls it, in one place, * A Journey to the Western