Page:Notes and Queries - Series 9 - Volume 1.djvu/33

 9 th S. I. JAN. 8, '98.]

NOTES AND QUERIES.

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tion causes a change of meaning, but not of syntax ; otherwise " A or B does not cite," the negation of " A or B cites," should be written "A or B do not cite," in accordance with Archdeacon Baly's notion.

With regard to the archdeacon's own phrase, let me say in conclusion that the affirmative "Either A or B cites" means that one of the two persons does something, while the negative " Neither A nor B cites " means by the letter that not one of the two does it, and inferentially that both abstain from doing it. Plurality is not expressed, and what need is there for grossly violating grammar to ex- press plurality when it is so clearly indicated by singularity ? F. ADAMS.

CAPT. EGBERT KNOX AND HIS WORK ON CEYLON. With reference to your notice (8 th S. xii. 520) of my pamphlet on Capt. Kobert Knox, I may say that my chief object was not so much to defend the old salt from the charges brought against him in the ' Dic- tionary of National Biography' as to bring together all the information I could regard- ing Knox and his family not hitherto printed, and also, if possible, to trace the interleaved copy of his ' Historical Relation,' with his additions, which was intended to form the second edition. Referring to this, you ask, "Is it possible that Robert Fellowes, who bound up with his own ' History of Ceylon,' London, 1817, Knox's ' History,' had access to it?" To this I can safely reply, No. Not only so, but Fellowes did less than justice to Knox by not only modernizing his spellings, but ignoring his list of errata. A properly edited reprint of Knox's book is a desidera- tum. Can any Yorkshire reader of ' N. & Q.' tell me if any of Knox Ward's descendants still live ? I shall be glad to send a copy of my pamphlet to any person interested in this subject or willing to assist me in my attempt to trace the missing " second edition " of Knox's book. DONALD FERGUSON.

Croydon.

"TABLE DE COMMUNION." In Matthew Arnold's essay on Eugenie de Guerin these words are translated "communion table." Has this mistake ever been noted ? It may be compared with pain benit by the way, in ' N. & Q.' lately this was wrongly spelt "be'ni" translated in Black and White not long ago as " sacrament." Of course, table de communion means the communion rails.

Matthew Arnold was not a man willingly to give to Provengal Catholicism a bourgeois English Protestant setting, like the Daily Graphic telling last year of Irish island peasants listening for a shot on the main-

land which announced " church service," and thus praying out of doors on the " Sabbath " when the weather was too rough to cross ; the meaning, of course, being that the Catho- lic peasants were assisting at the Sacrifice of the Mass, in the manner of any other Catholic unable to be present. But of this inartistic instinct Philistinism Matthew Arnold could not have been guilty. He would wish to see it reproved in ' N. & Q.,' and also his own mistake of ignorance (?), left uncorrected in later editions. W. F. P. STOCKLEY.

Fredericton, Canada.

LADY ELIZABETH FOSTER. Not long since in the Times I read that a print in colours, by Bartolozzi, of this lady had been sold at Christie's for sixty guineas. Who was she? That she was a friend of Gibbon's I know from the following amusing passage in the 'Journal' of Thomas Moore (vol. vii. p. 374):

"Here is an anecdote of William Spencer's which has just occurred to me. The dramatis personce were Lady Elizabeth Foster, Gibbon the historian, and an eminent French physician, whose name I forget ; the historian and the doctor being rivals in courting the lady's favour. Impatient at Gibbon's occupying so much of her conversation, the doctor said crossly to him. ' Quand mi lady Elizabeth Foster sera malade de yos fadaises, je la gue"rirai.' On which Gibbon, drawing himself up grandly, and looking disdainfully at the physician, replied, 'Quand mi lady Elizabeth Foster sera morte de vos recettes, je 1'im-mor-taliserai.' The pompous lengthening of the last word, while at the same time a long sustained pinch of snuff was taken by the historian, brought, as mimicked by Spencer, the whole scene most livelily before one's eyes."

M. McM.

Sydney, N.S.W.

HENRY R. MORLAND. With reference to the correspondence which appeared in 8 th S. xi. 8, 74, 147, 238. 291, under the heading of ' George Morland, Senior,' owing to an error of its beginner, but which is correctly in- dexed as above, it may be fitting to extract From the Times of 6 Dec. an account of the sale of an example of the 'Girl Ironing' at Christie's :

" The interest of the sale centred in one of a well-known pair of portraits by H. R. Morland, bhe father 01 George Morland. These two much- discussed pictures the artist apparently painted several times ; for at least half a century they have aeen described as portraits of the two celebrated Beauties, the daughters of John Gunning, of Castle Doote, Roscommon, that in the character of a .aundress representing, it is said, Elizabeth, Duchess of Hamilton (and afterwards of Argyll), and that as an ironer, Maria, Countess of Coventry. But they do not bear the slightest resemblance to either of these adies. The first pair of which we have any record as having occurred for sale by auction were n the great Stowe dispersal of 1848 (12 September),