Page:Notes and Queries - Series 11 - Volume 8.djvu/94

88 NOTES AND QUERIES. [11 s. vn. FEB. i, MIS. it soon after 1838, when it was replaced by the ugly panelled ceiling remaining until the end. Mr. Philip Norman, F.S.A. ('Crosby Place,' p. 53), points out that the lantern shown in the illustration of this ceiling (The Builder, 3 Nov., 1851), and said in the Sale Catalogue to occupy the original position of the louvre, could not have formed part of it when the ceiling was in its original position.

I suggest that Cottingham rebuilt and restored it, departing from the original arrangement of its timbers to suit the requirements of his own apartment. Although Henry Shaw prepared the Catalogue, we may discredit his statement that it was then (1851) "in the highest state of preservation." The succeeding item offered at the sale, "A Metal Chandelier of the same character, suspended from the lantern with chain," was evidently designed and made for its purpose when the ceiling was reconstructed.

I am familiar with Mr. C. W. F. Goss's statement ('Crosby Hall,' p. 107) that the ceiling in Cottingham's collection was purchased by him in 1825 from Mr. Yarnold of Great St. Helens. In the light of Miss Hackett's letter I suggest this ceiling came from the ante-room, and is not identical with that remaining in Cottingham's possession until his death.

It is an interesting point in the history of Crosby Place, and the publicity afforded by a discussion of the matter may lead to the rediscovery of the Council Chamber ceiling, lost to us since 1851.

ALECK ABRAHAMS.

—Zinfandel is the name of a species of Californian claret which is in good demand here as a vin ordinaire. So far the word has not caught the eye of the lexicographers; but its origin is unquestionably Hungarian. In 1852 a red grape so called was introduced from Hungary by Col. Aguston Haraszthy, an enthusiastic viticulturist. It soon proved a success in its new home, and is now cultivated over a large area in the Napa and Sonoma counties. By 1877, however, other foreign vines, such as the Cabernet-Sauvignon and Merlot, had been acclimatized, and were found to yield a better quality of wine. Besides Zinfandel and Cabernet, there are varieties of port, sherry, hock (riesling), sauterne, muscat (muscatel), tokay, and champagne extensively manufactured, which, though not appealing to the taste of European connoisseurs, obtain a ready market in this country. The local product that goes by the name of Angelica, a sweet white wine of the nature of tokay, is not a true wine, being compounded of two-thirds of grape-juice and one of brandy; but it has become a favourite drink in the Eastern States, especially among ladies. Catawba, a rich white wine, of which there are both still and sparkling brands, is exclusively produced in Illinois, Ohio, and Northern New York. Most of these facts are obtained from Frona Eunice Wait's 'Wines and Vines of California ' (San Francisco, 1889).

—Who was this gentleman? The following extract is copied from The London Chronicle of 19 Aug., 1760, viii. 175:—

This sounds so like Dr. Johnson himself that it struck me as rather interesting.

—In 'British Liberty Endangered' Dr. John Burton, the "Dr. Slop" of Sterne's 'Tristram Shandy,' describes (p. 26) his ride to his estates of Birkwith and South-House in the Lordship of Naby in November, 1745, which led to his being charged with treasonable communication with the rebels. He went to Settle on 23 Nov., and found on arriving there that the Highland army had marched from Kendal towards Lancaster. On 24 Nov. he went to Hornby, the nearest market town to his estates. This town is clearly not the Hornby near Richmond, which is quite thirty miles north-east of Settle, but the Hornby in Lancashire, which lies between Settle and Lancaster. Burton