Page:Notes and Queries - Series 9 - Volume 4.djvu/415

 9"" S. IV. Dec. 2.-99.] NOTES AND QUERIES. 455 by readers of Temple-Leader's book ('Sir John Hawkwood, L'Acuto'), wherein is shown how the mistake may have arisen, and that such a notion "accords ill with the condition of the family de Hawkwood." I.C.Gould. Henchman. (See General Indexes, Seventh and Eighth Series; 9th S. i. 154.)—It may be worth while to put on record in 'N. & Q.' the following entry from the 'Roll of Ex- penses of the Great Wardrobe of Edward III., 1347-9,' printed by Sir N. Harris Nicolas in Archceologia, xxxi. (at p. 92) :— '* Johanni Fige, Ricardo de Yatesley et Ricardo Merser, Hengsmannis Regis ad cotas et clocas yemales inde faciendas de dono Regis, viz., pro Fige v. ulna9 jinnni russettis et v. ulnas panni blank[etti] et Yatesley et Merser viij. ulnas panni russettis et viij. ulnas panni blankfetti]." On p. 85 we read that the same three henchmen received twelve ells of russet and twelve of " short blanket" to make " double winter coats and cloaks"; and entries on p. 100 show that Nicholas, the king's spurrier at London, supplied on several occasions "ij paria calcarum alborum pro hengsmannis Regis." Robt. J. Whitwell. C.C.C., Oxford. Vanishing London. (See ante, pp. 86, 149, 165.)—I believe that the construction of the new Hotel Russell, at the eastern side of Russell Square, has removed the western side of the old alley known as "Colonnade," between Guilford Street and Bernard Street, and also that such alley or lane is now just renamed " Herbrand Street." W. H. Quarrell. The Creation op Woman.—In the collec- tion of ' Legendes Religicuses Bulgares,' com- Eiled and translated into French by Madame ydia Schischmanoff (Paris, 1896), occurs the following ungallant account of the creation of Adam's helpmeet. The creation of man is related in the orthodox manner, but it is observed that " la femme est creee de la queue du diable, c'est pour cela qu'elle est si diable." An angel is commanded to create Eve out of a rib of Adam, and successfully abstracts a portion of the sleeping man's body. Return- ing, the angel meets the devil, who inquires what he has there and desires to inspect it. Once the rib is in his grasp, the devil runs off, hotly pursued by the angel. At length the prince of darkness escapes into a hole, leaving, like Tam o' Shanter's brave mare, his tail in the pursuer's hand. Distressed, the poor angel returns with the diabolical appendage to the Creator, who is also asleep, to acquaint him with his misfortune. Without opening his eyes the Creator reproaches the angel with disturbing him, and adds, "Que ce que tu as dans la main devienne ce que j'avais dit." What the fiend does with the rib is not stated. There are other curious stories in this col- lection, i. e., the creation of moon and stars from balls of earth made by the infant Christ, the source of earthquakes being the shaking of his head by the bull who supports our planet, ifcc. The latter reminds mo of the belief of some Russian peasantry that the earth rests on three whales. Francis P. Marchant. Brixton Hill. Keble and Thomas A Kempis.—The words " O pondus immensum ! O pelagus intrans- natabile: ubi nihil de rae reperio, quam in toto nihil !" in the 'Imitatio,' book lii. c. 14, s. 3 (Tournai, 1874), almost seem a model for Keble's well-known lines :— Till in the ocean of Thy love We lose ourselves in heaven above. But jt is most probable that many other religious writers have unconsciously imitated so impressive a writer as Thomas a Kempis. Palamedes. Henry Waller.—The copy of Digby's 'De Arte Natandi,' 1587, in the Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris, has a leaf at the end, appa- rently contemporary, which does not belong to the book, headed on the recto " Canta- brigiensis"; the number of the page is 41. It has some poetry signed " Henricus Waller, Coll. Regal. Gen." P. 42 is headed "Lacrymie," and a poem on it is signed "T. Kent, C.P." I make this note in case it may be ot any use in recovering a lost page. I do not find Henry Waller in Allibone. Ralph Thomas. " Camires."—Steadily, if somewhat slowly for the scientific mind, superstitions are passing away. It may well be that the practice of wearing " camires," largely in vogue among semi-enlightened members of the Hebrew community of a quarter of a century ago, may to-day be altogether out of fashion ; yet when I was a small boy study, ing the Talmud with my father, I used to watch him make many of these charms against the "ayin-horong" or "evil eye." Any coin was suitable; generally smooth sixpences were pressed into service. The letter n (one or the letters forming the Tetragramraaton) was incised by a sharp saw right through the coin or graven so as to form an intaglio. It was afterwards worn round the child's neck, from which under no pretence might it be removed,