Page:Notes and Queries - Series 9 - Volume 3.djvu/167

 9"' S. III. MAR. 4, ; 99.]

NOTES AND QUERIES.

161

LONDON, SATURDAY, MARCH U, 18W.

CONTENTS. -No. 62.

Roger Bacon and the Telescope, 163 Ancient Wharf- Sirdar John Gerard Maidservants throwing Dice, 164 "Fretished" Extreme Unction Lord Lytton and Ibn Ezra Drydeniana Waller, 165 Epitaph at Whitby Fal- staff, 166 Parish Registrar, 167.
 * ,'OTES : The Provinces, 161 Westminster Changes, 162

UUERIES : Capt. F. Abney-Hastings Missing Portrait "Writer of sorts" Rev. W. Da vies Mayors. 1726 Cetinje, 167 " Paragon " Campbell's Wallace' - William III. " A wig of bread" Elias Martin, A.R.A. Velton Abbey-M. A. Bowes Christopher Lister, 168 Merlin's Mechanical Museum Scrimanski " No great shakes " Impressions of Seals Miss Bessie Rayner Parkes "The white faunch hind "Slough Hallingee Clau- molinespick, 169.

KEPLIES : Heysham Antiquities, 169- Agam Colours. 170 The Swallow's Song Village of Loggerheads John Vilett Brass at St. Albans Portrait ot Hugh O'Neill- Church Tradition, 171 Popladies Sir A. Iruin Book Terms Cure by the Hand of a Corpse Armorial- Beamish, 172 Dallas Holling Day Shakspeare and the Sea Sister Churches French Proverb ' Descent from the Cross' Holy Wells Lewes and Locke Royal Navy Club, 173 'Aylwin' Cromwell and Christmas Hepton- stall Montaigne Perth Charles I. Rings, 174 Clare Street Kylon A Child's Caul Relic of Napoleon, 175- Surnames'in -son Muse Plots Walton, 176 Silchester Place-names " Unspeakable Turk" Alaric, 177 Author Wanted Gordon Family Nonjurors "Aerial Tour" Instrumental Choir, 178.

NOTES on BOOKS : Henslow's Medical Works of the Fourteenth Century ' Lang's Scott's ' Quentin Durward ' Clutton- Brock's ' Cathedral Church of York ' ' Palmer's Index to the Times 'Warner's 'Landmarks in English Industrial History 'Wade's 'Symbolisms of Heraldry' Wallace-James's ' Charters of Haddington.'

THE PROVINCES.

THE expression "the provinces" has not the obvious meaning in England which it has in Ireland or France, where provincial divi- sions are recognized. Of course there are the two ecclesiastical provinces of Canterbury and York. It seems as if provincial divisions were coming again into use. Not long ago it was stated in the newspapers that there was a meeting of East Anglian bishops. There was also considerable stir amongst East Anglians when Lord Kitchener claimed to belong to that district. Mercia, Wessex, and Northumbria are often mentioned in this way as provincial divisions. It is well to note this desire to maintain these local divisions, and also to determine their number and limits. Those already mentioned take us back to the Heptarchy. So, starting from that division, we have the following : Kent, the East Saxons, West Saxons, South Saxons, East Anglia, Mercia, and Northumbria as the Anglo-Saxon provinces. Then there are the districts inhabited by the Celts: Wales, Cumbria, and Damnonia or West Wales. This would give ten provincial divisions in England, and, if we reckon London and the Isle of Man separately, twelve.

As to the limits of these divisions there is much confusion, and little is known as to the exact boundaries of each. Two small books give a great deal of information on this sub- ject : ' Celtic Britain,' by Principal Rhys, and ' Saxon Britain,' by Mr. Grant Allen.

Kent is represented by the modern shire.

East Saxonia comprises Essex, Middlesex, and Hertford. In ancient times part of Bed- ford was included.

South Saxonia includes Surrey and Sussex.

West Saxonia has recently been the subject of an interesting discussion in the English Historical Review. It would appear that it included Wilts, Hants, and Berks. Is Ox- fordshire to be included? It lies north of the Thames. Somerset and Dorset seem to belong to the Celtic Damnonia, as being principally occupied by Welsh kin.

East Anglia contains Norfolk, Suffolk, Cambridge, and Huntingdon. But Lincoln is counted amongst the East Anglian bishops. It is geographically East Anglian, but in old times was connected with Mercia and the Mid Angles. Modern usage seems to make it part of East Anglia.

Northumbria has in it Yorkshire, Durham, and Northumberland, but it formerly stretched to the Firth of Forth.

Mercia would include Staffordshire, Derby, Nottingham, Leicester, Northampton, Rut- land, Warwick, Gloucester, and Worcester ; also Bedford, Buckingham, and Oxfordshire possibly. For a long time the Severn was the western boundary, and until a compara- tively late period Shropshire and Hereford were the Welsh Marches, and, so far as race is concerned, to some extent Welsh.

Cumbria comprised Cumberland, West- moreland, Lancashire, and also Cheshire, which goes with the northern ecclesiastical province. This province formerly stretched into Yorkshire as far as Leeds.

Wales, the modern principality. The Severn was the old boundary.

Damnonia, Devonshire and Cornwall, with Somerset and Dorset, at an early period over- run by the West Saxons, but still mainly Welsh kin.

In Scotland the usual division is into the Highlands and Lowlands, but this obscures race and history. It, strictly speaking, con- tains four provinces, differing in race and history.

Dalriada, or the West Highland, is by race Scotic or Irish Gaedhelic. It is the land of the invers, as distinguished from the north-east, the land of the abers. Argyll, Inverness, and Elgin, and all west of these are contained in it.