Page:Notes and Queries - Series 9 - Volume 5.djvu/435

 9*s. V.MAY 26, i9oo.] NOTES AND QUERIES.

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but, on the other hand, we have not commonly gone to the French for our nautical terms, and it is singular that the French for "jury" (mast) is " (mat) de fortune." At any rate, I do not remember ever seeing it referred to as "de duree." I should rather have ex- pected to find the Dutchman than the French- man in it. DOUGLAS OWEN.

UNICORNS (9 th S. v. 314). For the " betrayal by trees " of the unicorn, see Shakespeare, ' Julius Csesar,' II. i. 204 ; and Mr. Aldis Wright's note, in which Topsell's ' History of Beasts' and Spenser's 'Fairy Queen,' II. v. 10, are duly quoted. The story seems to be a modification of an older one ; for in Philip de Thaun's ' Bestiary ' it is a creature called aptalon whose horns used to be caught in a bush ; and the proper way to catch a unicorn was to induce him to lay his head in a girl's lap. Hence he was called the lufar (lover) unicorn by King James I. in his * King's Quair,' st. 155, as explained in my note.

WALTER W. SKEAT.

Like as a lyon, whose imperial powre A proud rebellious unicorne defyes, T" avoide the rash assault and wrathful stowre Of his fiers foe, him to a tree applyes, And, when him ronning in full course he spyes, He slips aside ; the whiles that furious beast His precious home, sought of his enimyes, Strikes in the stock, ne thence can be releast, But to the mighty victor yields a bounteous feast. Spenser, ' Faerie Queene,' book ii. canto v.

stanza 10. He loves to hear

That unicorns may be betrayed with trees, And bears with glasses, elephants with holes.

Shakspeare, ' Julius Caesar,' Act II. scene i.

In a note to this last passage there is a general reference for these wonders to Pliny's 4 Natural History,' book viii. But I have not got Pliny by me, and cannot verify the reference. E. YARDLEY.

NOTES ON BOOKS, &c. CromwelVs Souldiers Catechism. Edited by the

Rev. Walter Begley. (Stock.)

Two hundred and fifty-six years after it saw the light this curious manual of militant Congrega- tionalism is reissued in facsimile. As with the companion volume, ' Cromwell's Souldiers Pocket Bible,' two copies only one of them, from which the reprint is made, in the possession of Mr. Begley are known to exist. While, however, the 'Bible' has been frequently reprinted, the 'Catechism,' which is even more curious and interesting, is now first republished. It is an important contribution to our knowledge of the wars of the Commonwealth, and is held to have been largely instrumental in bringing to the block the head of King Charles. For a history of the book, and the influence it

exercised, we must refer the reader to Mr. Begley's very interesting introduction. It is written 'in plain and simple English, not unlike that of Bunyan, which could be easily understood of the people, and is animated throughout by a fierce indignation. The blame of " this unnaturall Warre" is thus laid upon " 1. The Jesuites, those firebrands of mischief, with all the Popish party. 2. The Bishops and the rotten Clergie, with all the Prelaticall party. 3. The Delinquents, that were not able to abide the triall of Justice, with all the Malignant party. 4. The formall Gospellers of the Kingdome, that hate a Reformation, with all the Atheistical! party." The book, the interest of which is signal, is got up in excellent facsimile on antique paper, and is appro- priately bound in coarse leather.

The Yorkshire Archaeological Journal. Part 59.

(Yorkshire Archaeological Society.) MR. W. H. ST. JOHN HOPE'S account of Fountains Abbey is a very careful paper. The history of this great'religious house is better known than that of most of its sister abbeys. It is in its beginnings highly picturesque. The first brethren were seceders from the Benedictine establishment of St. Mary at York. As is common with reformers, they suffered much opposition in early days, but they won powerful friends. At first they seem to have been mere squatters in a wild tree-grown valley on the margin of the Skell, an affluent of the Yure. Here they led for a time a hard life ; but wealth carne to them. The permanent buildings were pro- bably begun as soon as they emerged from poverty and had procured from the lord of the fee a right to settle in the place where they dwelt. Mr. Hope has carefully examined the buildings which yet remain, and has illustrated them by an excellent plan on a large scale. His researches have led to some important corrections in the names of portions of the fabric which have been wrongly identified by previous archaeologists. We wish he may be moved to enlarge what he has written and give it to the public in a separate volume.

An antiquary who withholds his name has pub- lished all that remains of an account roll of Selby Abbey for the year 1397-8. It is one of many others which are the property of the Earl of Londes- borough. The estates of Selby were widely scattered, and consequently many persons were connected either by neighbourhood or friendship with the house. Some of these were in the habit of making presents. Lady de Roos on one occasion gave a couple of sporting dogs ; and a swan and some eels came from Crowle, in the Isle of Axholme, a place which in those days was almost surrounded by meres. Many noteworthy persons, places, and things are mentioned to which we cannot find room to draw attention. The document is annotated in a scholar-like manner.

The late Rev. Canon Atkinson, whose death all antiquaries deplore, contributed a paper on the field-name Masthill. It is, like all he wrote, well worthy of study. The canon was especially learned as to field nomenclature.

Mr. J. T. Micklethwaite'spaperon the Cistercian Order is informing, but has little special relation to the North Country.

St. Pancras Notes and Queries. Reprinted from

the St. Pancras Guardian.

Two parts of this periodical have been issued. Among the contributors are Col. Prideaux, R. B. P