Page:Notes and Queries - Series 12 - Volume 8.djvu/48

 36 NOTES AND QUERIES. [12 S.YIII. JAN. 8,1021. of an idle shiftless person as " a poor come day, go day, God send Sundajr creature." The saying about apples not causing belly- ache after St. Swithin has christened them I have often heard in South Notts, where, too, the snail rime, with slight variation I fancy, was familiar. We used, too, to stir the cream in the churn with a hot poker to make the butter come, but I do not remember any mention of witchcraft in connexion with this. I have known salt to be thrown into the fire "to keep the witch out of the churn " in Lincolnshire. C. C. B. The proper reading of this first saying is, "The silent sow sucks the most wash." All sows may be reckoned sly, but the moral is that people who chatter the least, but best attend to the business in hand, are those who make the most out of life. SURREY. 'POOR UNCLE NED' (12 S. vi. 287; ii. 373, 438, 514). Probably there are many variants of this song, and most of them arise from trusting to memory of words never seen in print. I, for example, did not remember, when I last wrote, to have had the song before me ; but I now find it in 'The Scottish Students' Song Book, compiled in 1897, one of the editors of which was " J. Malcolm Bulloch, M.A., Aberdeen," now well known to readers of 'N. & Q. In this, the first verse is thus given : There was an old nigger and his name was Uncle Ned, But he's dead long ago, long ago ; He had no wool on the top of his head In the place where the wool ought to grow. Den lay down de shubble an' de hoe, Hang up de fiddle and de bow, Dere's no more hard work for poor old Ned, He's gone where the good niggers go. But what is wanted to settle the words is a copy of them as they appeared in print in, the earliest sixties, when they were first sung in this country, as all versions fron memory so markedly differ. ALFRED ROBBINS. My recollection of this song is that th< first verse ran thus : There once was a nigger and his name was UncL Ned, But he's gone dead long ago ; He had no wool on the top of his head, In the place where the wool ought to grow. [Chonu.'] Hang up the shovel and the hoe-o-o-o, Take down the fiddle and the bow ; For there's no more work for poor Uncle Ned For he's gone where the good niggers go. Probably all the " thes " should be written - ' de. ") I know the tune quite well, and
 * ould write out the air but you wx>uld not

vant to print it. One thing that has made this old song tick in my memory is a version in " Daily Telegraphese " which my father used to quote. I believe this is it literally : 1 1 once had an avuncular relative whose name was Edward, but he has long since departed for that bourne whence no member of the community coloured or otherwise, has ever been known to return. He had no capillary substance on the summit of his pericranium, in that place where the capillary substance is wont to vegetate. " Hang up the mechanical instruments, agricul- tural or otherwise ; take down the musical instru- ments, stringed or otherwise. For there's no more nanual labour for my avuncular relative Edward, inasmuch as he has departed for that bourne- whence no member of the community, coloured or. otherwise, has ever been known to return." J. C. VOUCHER = RAILWAY TICKET (12 S~ vii. 510). The earlier form of railway pass- was a voucher by reason of the fact that it was printed on paper with a counterpart- The destination and amount of fare was added in. ink and a duplicate of the trans- action recorded on the counterpart. These- were in use at least until 1845, and possibly from the commencing date of railroad, transport. ALECK ABRAHAMS.. In the beginning the permit to travel by- train was conferred with more circumstance than at present, and, although I do not remember the receipt for a fare being called a voucher, the term does not seem out of character before the introduction of card- board tickets. At least on the line between Leicester and Swannington, metal tokens, octagonal in shape, were used. Each was numbered, and the number corresponded with that of the passenger, as entered in a. way-bill which was kept by the guard of the train. ST. SWITHIN. THOMAS FARMER BAILEY (12 S. vii. 410). There are at least five varieties of book- plates with the name Farmer Baily thereon, (not Bailey). They are as follows : 1. Farmer Baily (crest). 2. Farmer Baily, Hall Place, Kent (armorial). 3. Thomas Farmer Baily, Hall Place r Tonbridge (crest). 4. T. Farmer Baily, Hall Place (armorial shield (Baily impaling Addison) in a beadecl oval, in red).