Page:Notes and Queries - Series 9 - Volume 12.djvu/224

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NOTES AND QUERIES. [9 th s. xn. SEPT. 12, 1903.

the introductory note to * Ballads and othe Poems,' the poem was written in the early morning of 30 December, 1839, the actua" disaster having occurred only a few week* before.

Perhaps some American reader can tel us the origin of the name " Norman's Woe ' as applied to the reef upon which the Hesperus struck. EDWARD LATHAM.

The " Reef of Norman's Woe "where the Hesperus and others vessels were wrecked in December, 1839 is off the Massachusetts coast, near Gloucester, which lies about thirty miles north-east of Boston. (See 'Life of H. W. Longfellow,' vol. i. p. 337.) Thi sufficiently shows that it has no connexion with the loss of the " White Ship."

WALTER JERROLD.

Hampton-on-Thames.

MORE CHURCH, SHROPSHIRE : MORTUARY INSCRIPTION AT CLUN (9 th S. xii. 146). The arms alluded to appear to be those of William Smyth (or Smith), appointed Bishop of Lichfield and Coventry 1492, Bishop of Lin- coln 1496-1514. He was also Archdeacon of Surrey, President of Wales, Chancellor of Oxford, and co-founder of Brasenose College, the arms of which should be referred to for comparison. The inescutcheon bears the arms of the See of Lincoln.

GEORGE C. PEACHEY.

Mico ^AMILY (9 th S. xii. 145). According to * A List of some Eminent Members of the Mercers' Company of London ' (1872), Sir Samuel Mico was Master Warden of that company in 1666, and died during his mastership. "His widow left to the Com- pany 1,500/. to found almshouses for ten poor widows." These almshouses are situated at Stepney, where they stand on the south side of the church facing the churchyard. A stone thereon is thus inscribed :

The Gift of Dame

Jane Mico Relict of

S Sam Mico Mercer Dec.

Built An" 1691

Rebvilt By the Worshipfvl Company of Mercers

A.I). 1856

Possibly the existence of these almshouses at btepney may point to some connexion between the Mico family and that place.

West Haddon, Northamptonshire.

"WAKE 'W VILLAGE FEAST (9 th S. xii. 107,

I 34 )- The " wakes " is still in popular use in

Derbyshire, Cheshire, and Staffordshire, in

'

, ,

i wi !?. as, we11 as villages. Far from the facilities for travelling" being likely to cause

(as HIPPOCLIDES imagines) the term to decay, they are more likely to perpetuate it. The week beginning with the first Sunday in August sees the wakes of Stoke- upon-Trent, and special trains run each day during " Stoke wakes week." I found the advantage of the wakes when in Liverpool one day during that week, being able to remain there an hour and a half later than usual.

M. ELLEN POOLE. Alsager, Cheshire.

The custom sometimes varies within a county, but this may be due to infection from neighbouring counties. In the im- mediate neighbourhood of Nottingham, for instance, wakes is common, as it is in Derby- shire, but twelve miles away eastward, where I was born and brought up, it is never heard, nor have I ever heard it in the neighbouring villages of Leicestershire. Wake I have not heard anywhere. C. C. B.

Wakes are doubtless the remains of an old Romish custom of celebrating the anniversary of the patron saint of the parish church, now generally discontinued. Further informa- tion will be found in Strutt's ' Sports and Pastimes,' Brand's ' Popular Antiquities,' Wheatley's ' Book of Common Prayer ' (1859), Andrews's 'Church Treasure' (1898), and N. & Q.,' 2 nd S. xii. 229. It is recorded in 9 th S. ii. 183 that the annual wake at Albrighton, near Wolverhampton, had been discontinued so recently as the year 1898.

EVERARD HOME COLEMAN. 71, Brecknock Road.

RIMING EPITAPH (9 th S. xi. 487 ; xii. 51, 92, 172). " The story told : ' by the Penny Maga- ine, 1835, and the very similar one by Mrs. jratty, 1890, and the comments since made, ead any one at first to exclaim : "How toolish were 'the gentleman and the pious cleric ' in ' not perceiving the point ' when we shall ' and ' we must ' had to be read as )art of a sentence which a di-al ('die-all') lad to complete ! "

But were they so wanting in perception 1 A. lady comes to their timely rescue. My -ister, by her stupendous intelligence, saves he gentleman and the pious cleric from the harge of obtuse folly brought against them. The reading that they supplied was not " We hall clock ! " The original reading might ust as well be made " We shall sun ! " The Criticized ones used a dial, as well as any )thers did. If the time-indicator-by-shadow las a dial, so also has the clock ! The clock- ace is termed a dial, and will fulfil the mnning purpose of the legend just as well as the other sort of dial. Therefore it is