Page:Notes and Queries - Series 11 - Volume 9.djvu/492

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NOTES AND QUERIES. in s. ix. JUNE 20,

Fox OF STRADBROKE. (See 11 S. ix. 168, 216, 310, 352). So much has lately appeared in your columns anent Sir Stephen Fox that I think the epitaphs in Farley Church which I have just copied may be of interest. 'There are three large highly ornamented tablets on the north wall of the Ilchester mortuary chamber, now used as a chapel for daily service : that to the first wife on the west ; the one to the knight and his second wife in the centre ; and that of the son and !iis wife on the east. They are written in Latin, French, and English respectively, and run thus :

Hie .jacet Honorab. D na D ua Elizabetha Fox'

Hon'' lis Viri Stephani Fox Eq tiH Au'r. E Regiis, qui Fisco mine praesunt, Curatoribus, Conjux, per quadraginta & quinq' annos, conjunc-

tissima ;

Quern bene multis auxit faecunda liberis,

Sed cunctis, prater Qui adhuc Bini supersunt,

Immatura morte dudum pracreptis.

Vixit Ilia quidem, dum vixit, Bene,

Nee vero potuit Latere ; Sanctis in media nirnirum aula Moribus,

Larga erga Egenos manu ;

Et Rei familiaris tarn Laute provida ;

Lt vix Maritus Superstes major! cum Laude

Aut minori cum Invidia publice providerit.

Decessit uno minor Septuagenaria.

Aug sti xl: MDCXCVI.

Cy Gist Le Tres Honorable et Le Tres Ancien Chevalier

Sir Stephen Fox

Fondateur De Ceans

Qui Trespassa age de 90 Ans

Le Vingt troisieme de Septembre

1716.

Cy Gist La Tres Honored Dame

Christine Hope epouse en seconde Noces

Du Tres Honorable Chevalier

Etienne Fox

Elle Trespassa agee de 39 Ans Le dix septieme de Fevrier

1718. Dieu Aye Merci de Leurs Ames.

.Here lies the Body of Charles Fox, Esq. second son of the Rt. Hon ble

Sr. Stephen Fox by his first wife, which Charles was

paymaster of the forces to King James, King William &

Queen Anne, he died aged 53

Tlepresentative in Parliament for the City of Salisbury September 8 th 1713

He married

Elizabeth Carr Trollope

sole daughter & heir of

Sr William Trollope Baronet of

Caswick in the county of Lincoln

which Elizabeth died

March 15 th 1704 aged 42 years

& is interr'd near this place.

E. L. H. TEW.

^Upham Rectory, Hants.

A SOURCE OF DEFOE'S ' ROBINSON CRU- SOE.' In the ninth part of Onze Eeuw, a Dutch periodical (1909, IX. iii. 360/.), Mr. Hoogewerff pointed out that an episode in a book bearing the title ' Hendrik Smeeks, Beschrijvinge van het magtig Koningrijk Krinke Kesmes, Amsterdam, 1708,' was one of the sources of Defoe's ' Robinson Crusoe.'

Hettner in his ' Literaturgeschichte des achtzehnten Jahrhunderts ' had already pointed out the connexion between the two works, but as he mistook the date of the first German edition (1721) for the date of the original Dutch publication (1708 : eleven years before the appearance of ' Robinson '), he looked upon the episode in Smeeks's book as an imitation of ' Robinson Crusoe.' As German scholars had hitherto adopted this view of the matter, I drew up a short article for the May number of the Germanisch Eomanische Monatschrift (1914, vi. 304pp.), to which article I beg to draw the attention of English investigators.

LEON POLAK, Ph.D.

Haarlem.

Two MYSTERIOUS FRENCHMEN AND A DOG. Among the archives of the Town Council of Banff I have discovered a curious letter from one of the magistrates of Edin- burgh, written to the Provost of Banff, 4 April, 1794:

" In consequence of some papers having been accidentally left behind by two men travelling through Grantham very lately, it has been dis- covered that they are Emissaries from the French Convention and probably Members of that Body, who have come into this country with intentions hostile to the peace and security thereof."

Accordingly, he sends a description of them, " as there is reason to suspect they are travelling Northwards." The description runs thus :

" One of them is a young man about 22 years of age, thin person, fair complexion, and stands about 5 ft. 10 in. high ; light eyes, hair plaited and turned up behind with a comb ; rather well looking ; wears a dark blue coat with yellow buttons, a green and brown striped coat ; light blue cassimer breeches ; boots ; a round hat.

" The other is an old man about 50 ; a thin figure, standing about 5 ft. 11 in. dark com- plexion ; long face, hair hanging down ; stoops a little ; a very dark brown greatcoat, which he wears constantly buttoned, so that it is not known whether he has an under coat or not ; buttons the colour of the coat ; boots, and a round hat.

" They have a rough spaniel with them, with black ears, white body with black spots ; it is old. This is the best mark of any, for as they seem'd very careful of it, tho' they may have changed their cloathes, it is not likely they would part with their dog, which they seem'd very