Page:Notes and Queries - Series 9 - Volume 2.djvu/491

 ii. DEC. 17, mi

NOTES AND QUERIES.

483

faireentendredistinctement jusqu'aux plus extremes confins du monde. Ronan se servit de la sienne pour avertir au temps de brume les navires fare's et leur signifier qu'ils eussent a s'eloigner de la cote. Aussi les naufrages devinrent fort rares'(p. 201). Le saint avait sa cloche dans sa main quand on le trouva mort dans sa cabane. Lorsque les boaufs qui trainaient son corps se mirent en marche, ' la clochette commenca d'elle-meme a tinter. Pen- dant toute la dur6e du trajet elle sonna ainsi & petits coups greles et lents comme un glas.' Sur le trajet, ajoute la le'gende, on rencontra ;\ un lavoir la me'chante K6ban, 1'ennemi acharne"e du saint, qui se leva furieuse et, brandissant son batoir, tua 1'un des boeufs. Puis elle cracha au visage du mort et disparut, le sol s'e"tant ouvert sous ses pas. En souvenir de ce fait, la grande procession s'arrete li les jours de pardon. Bien entendu, Le Braz, qui est sceptique, donne tout cela comme l^gende et non comme histoire."

Accompanying the opuscula Mr. Coleman forwarded a pen-and-ink sketch, made in France, headed "Trois cloches anciennes dans le diocese de Quimper." St. Ronan's occupies the centre, is more oval in form than the two others, and measures 5 in. from the tip of the tongue to the handle inclusively, and 2f in. in width. The drawing fully bears out the description given above.

Miss Stokes in her ' Early Christian Archi- tecture in Ireland ' makes no allusion to St. Ronan's bell, though she gives woodcuts of the " rude iron square " bell of St. Patrick, and of the cone -like Clog Beannaighthe (p. 83), and mentions St. Erc's, "the^bell which was the best of bells." It was either outside her knowledge or her scope. She has a word to say, however, with regard to the dimensions of these Irish bells, which runs thus :

' " Yet no bell that we have heard of has been found in Ireland to exceed 13 in. in height. They are generally without ornament, but Lord Dunraven in his work on Adare (' Memories of Adare,' p. 152) has described one which is enriched with a border and a cross. It is of fine bronze, and measures 12 in. high, 9 in. wide, and 9 in. deep. This bell was found at Cashel in the year 1849."

It only remains to be added to the above : (1) that these ancient and very curious Irish bells were, of course, from their size and structure, handbells, though often used in towers; (2) that St. Ronan probably im- ported his into Brittany from Ireland ; (3) that the only reference to this latter which I could discover after much research occurs in vol. i. of the Cork Historical and Archaeological Journal, which I quoted at 8 th S. iv. 393 ; (4) that J. T. F.'s query, which I reproduced in the same Journal, vol. iii. p. 131, received no reply ; and (5) that I prefer ' N. & 0.' to that Journal wherein to incorporate the matter Mr. Coleman has placed at my disposal, since the subject of

Irish bells was first broached in these pages by MR. J. H. McGovERN, to whose interesting notes the present communication will serve as, I trust, a not unworthy pendant.

J. B. S.

Manchester.

' DICTIONARY OF NATIONAL BIOGRAPHY ':

NOTES AND CORRECTIONS.

(Continued from p. 343.)

Vol. LVI.

P. 35 b. Sir John Temple. See Life of Dr. H. Hammond, prefixed to his ' Practical Catechism,' 1715, and in Wordsworth's 'Eccl. Biog.,' v. 365.

P. 35 b. " Blandesby or Blansby in York- shire." The parish should be given ; it is Pickering.

P. 39 b. Temple, Viscount Cobham, was a patron of Richard Glover, who dedicated to him ' Leonidas.'

P. 49. Sir Wm. Temple is praised in Burnet's ' Letters from Switzerland,' 1686, p. 295 ; on his ' Ancient and Modern Learning ' see T. Baker's 'Ren 1, on Learning,' 1700; his runic ode in T. Warton's ' Poems,' 1748.

Pp. 57-60. Abp. Tenison was one of Robert Boyle's trustees, 1697 ; praised for his " celestial piety " in Garth's ' Dispensary,' canto ii. ; see ' Life of Stillingfleet,' 1710,

E. 107. There were dedicated to him John dwards's ' Perfection of H. Scripture,' 1693, W. Derham's 'Physico-Theology,'and Grotius's ' De Veritate Relig- Chr.,' Amsterd., 1718.

P. 63 a. " Chauncey." ? Chauncy.

P. 63 a. "Selby in Wensleydale "; some mistake.

P. 63 b. S. Tennant on diamonds, see Mathias, ' P. of L.,' p. 357.

P. 90. Tennyson occupies much less space than Thackeray. Why ?

Pp. 91-105. Some notices of the Thackeray family in Prof. Geo. Pryme's ' Autob. Recoil.,' 1870.

P. 91 b. " Bowood '' ? Longwood.

P. 142, 1. 5 from foot. For "Gantby" read Gautby. >i

Pp. 178-9. Elizabeth Thomas. See Hone's 'Year -Book,' 473-4; Curll's 'Miscellanea,' 1727; 'N. & Q.,' 1 st S. xii. 277-9.

P. 180 a, 1. 9 from foot. For "Kingston" read Kington.

P. 190. Samuel Thomas was a friend of Bp. Bull; see Nelson's ' Bull,' 23, 211.

Pp. 192-3. Thomas Thomas. See notice in preface of Ainsworth's ' Latin Dictionary.'

P. 208. B. Thompson, Rumford. See Chambers's 'Miscellany'; 'Book of Days,' ii. 236-7; ' N. & Q.,' 3 rd S. xi. 443 ; 8 th S. viii. 293.