Page:Notes and Queries - Series 9 - Volume 1.djvu/466

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NOTES AND QUERIES.

[9 th S. I. JUNE 4, '98.

apparent changes of position. It is, there- fore, quite irrelevant to quote a passage in which it is stated to be possible, and even probable, that the stars have "some in- dependent movement of their own." This "probable" movement GENERAL DRAYSON evidently considers to be quite inappreciable to our observations, for he undertakes to

Eredict the place of a star in the heavens a undred or a thousand years hence by the simple application of his so-called second rotation of the earth, which (whether his theory be true or false) could manifestly not be done if the star had a proper motion of its own perceptible to our observations. My argument was that the motions which astro- nomers have recognized cannot be due to any cause of this kind, because they frequently differ greatly in direction and amount in the cases of stars the apparent places of which are very near each other.

I should have quoted Prof. Payne's remark in full, given in answer to a query, in * Popular Astronomy,' vol. iii. p. 42 :

" Mathematical astronomers are free to say that there is no such movement of the earth as that described by General Drayson. The discussion of the topic we have seen by himself, we must say, is extremely weak in the use of mathematics."

W. T. LYNN.

Blackheath.

[No more contributions on this subject will be inserted.]

DAME ELIZABETH HOLFORD (9 th S. i. 208, 371). The baronetcy is presumably that of Halford of Welham (not Wistow), co. Leicester, created 1706. I have a note that the will of Dame Elizabeth Halford (calling herself Holford), widow of Sir William Hal- ford, Bart., of Welham, was proved January, 1720/1, in the C.P.C. Her burial as "Dame Elizabeth Holford " took place 17 Nov., 1720, at Allhallows Staining, but that of Sir William does not occur in Col. Chester's copious extracts from those registers. The burial there, 25 Feb., 1700/1. of "Henry Harbin, merchant," refers probably to her first husband ; the baptism, 20 July, 1682, of " Henry, son of Henry and Elizabeth Harbin,' and the burial, 23 Sept., 1703, of "Henry Harben," to a child by her first marriage The long extract from the well-known ' Reli quise Hearnianse ' has now been twice given (see 2 nd S. iv. 316), each time in extenso, in this work. G. E. C.

LIST OF BOOKS (9 th S. i. 368). A lis of books printed between 1564 and 1616 would. I think, take up more space than is desirable for a subject which has been already

o fully dealt with by specialists. I should ike to point out to J. B. S. that in addition ,o the authors referred to by the Editor he vill find a valuable list of such books as he wants, printed between 1564 and 1603, in Johnsons ' Typographia,' vol. i. p. 530 and onwards. I find there a list of forty-five winters, who printed 1,322 dated books in
 * he period named, together with many others

n the same time undated. If J. B. S. has any difficulty in consulting a ' Typographia,' dnd will communicate with me, I shall be pleased to lend him my copy.

WM. NORMAN. 4, St. James's Place, Plumstead.

"CROSS" VICE "KRIS "(9^ S. i. 85, 317). PALAMEDES expresses surprise at my putting a note of exclamation after Valentyn's 'Xavier" as an alternative for "Javiere," and refers to the interchangeability of / and x in Spanish and old Portuguese. But I would point out that, as I stated, " Javiere " represents the Sanskrit name Jaya Vira J = Conquering Hero), and has no connexion in the world with the name of the Apostle of the Indies. Hence my " ! "

DONALD FERGUSON.

Croydon.

What evidence has PALAMEDES for asserting that "in old Spanish and Portuguese both./ and x were used to represent the sound of French j " 1 He further adds that " the latter sometimes had the sound of French ch" I contend that the observation only applies to the latter language, and not at all to the former. In the Royal Spanish Academy's ' Ortografia de la Lengua Castellana ' (Madrid, 1770), where each letter is separately and fullv treated, not a hint is given as to any such pronunciation, which would be intolerable to the Spanish ear. Our word Sherry (Falstaffs Sherris) is most probably derived from Xerez, now spelled Jerez ; if so, it is only our cor- ruption of the sound, and has nothing to do with Spanish pronunciation, old or new. Compare Don Quixote, and Cardinal Ximenez, where the letter j has now taken the place of x. Lastly, I may add that St. Francis Xavier, when starting on his missionary journey to the East, went first to Goa, a Portuguese settlement, where his name, Spanish though it was, would naturally be pronounced by the people after the manner of their own nation. JOHN T. CURRY.

"IN ORDER" = ORDERED (9 th S. i. 408), "It 's i in order, sir," is unassailable as to diction, as j the sentence = " Your wants are stated in your order still." By no means can "in order " =