Page:Notes and Queries - Series 9 - Volume 5.djvu/80

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NOTES AND QUERIES. [9 th s. v. JAN. 27, 1900.

obtain information about the lady to whom refer- ence was made, and he will then be in a position to acknowledge in a further communication to ' N. & Q.' that the phrase of C. was strictly accurate."

Were it not for the challenge conveyed in the last few words, I should have taken no notice of this anonymous letter. But the answer is plain. The other Madame Vestris, men- tioned in what I suppose to be the 'Bio- graphie Universelle,' which is not so rare a work as to need the particular instructions given above for finding a copy, must be, I presume, the famous French actress, born 1746, died 1804. This reference is, for other reasons, no more accurate than the former one. C. had said that she was the daughter of Vestris. This lady was nothing of the sort. She was the daughter of no M. Vestris, " pre- ceptor in dancing " or in anything else. She was the daughter of an actor, Dugazon, who had a son and another daughter, both in "the profession." She married Paco Vestris, an indifferent actor, and brother of the famous Vestris, the dancer. But she was in no way related to the dancer. She was a great tragic actress. She never danced. She never taught dancing. She acted at the Comedie Frangaise, and for a short time at the Palais Royal, from 1768 to her death. She was never in London. Johnson was never in Paris. She is not a new fact to me. But she was just as much out of the Question as the Madame Vestris who charmed London in the early part of this century, if we may still call it by that name, under the Editor's authority and protection. JULIAN MARSHALL.

EARLS OF ST. POL (9 th S. iv. 169, 293, 386, 444). I transcribe from Anquetil's history other notes concerning this family. Frangois de Luxembourg, Due de Piney, lived in the year 1590:

" 11 etait arriere petit-fils d'Antoine de Luxem- bourg, cornte de Brienne, et baron de Piney, fils puine du fameux Louis, connetable de Saint-Paul ; sa petite-fille Marie Charlotte porta les biens de sa branche dans la maison de Clermont Tonnerre, et Madelaine-Charlotte : Bonne-There8e, fille de cette derniere, dans la maison de Mpntmorenci, par son manage avec Francois - Henri de Montmorenci, comte de Bouteviile, connu sous le riom de Marechal de Luxembourg. Les biens de la branche ainee e"taient passes a la maison de Bourbon par le mariage de Mane, petite-fille du connetable, avec Francois de Bourbon, comte de Vendome, bisai'eul de Henri IV." Vol. viii. p. 118, note.

The following note seems to show that the name of one of the branches was Martigues, and not Marigues, as given in another part of the work :

"Marie de Luxembourg-Martigues etait fille de Sebastien de Luxembourg-Martigues, comte, puis due de Penthievre, du chef de aa mere Charlotte de

Brosse, soeur et h^ritiere de Jean de Brosse, dit de Bretagne, et arriere petite-fille de Francois de Luxembourg, premier vicomte de Martigues de cette maison, second fils de Thibaut de Luxembourg, sieur de Fiennes, frere puine du fameux connetable de Saint-Pol." Vol. viii. p. 155, note.

The name of St. Pol is mentioned in the list of nobles who rebelled against the Crown in 1614, under the Prince de Conde and the Due de Bouillon. John, Count of Brienne, who was King of Jerusalem and afterwards Emperor of Constantinople, might seem from his name to have belonged to this family. But Anquetil says nothing about him.

I think that I ought to call attention to dates. Anquetil says that from Henry of Limbpurg, who died in 1280, proceeded the principal families of St. Pol and Brienne. Voltaire speaks of a Count of St. Paul who flourished in the year 1204. John, Count of Brienne, Emperor of Constantinople, flourished in the year 1228. It is clear that there were Counts of St. Paul and Counts of Brienne before the time of Henry of Lim- bourg, who was Count of Luxembourg through his mother. E. YARDLEY.

"HOASTIK CARLES" (9 th S. iv. 477 ; v. 16). The parishioners of Cowling, another parish in Craven, have the story of the floating moon told of them, and are locally well known as the " mooin-rakers." Stanbury, near Haworth, and Trawden, near Colne, have the cuckoo tale as part of their parochial assets. The same tale, too, is told of Zennor and of St. Agnes people in Cornwall. Of " sacred " Haworth it is said that when the church tower needed heightening the farmers of the parish willingly gave manure to spread round the base of the tower that it might grow the more rapidly. Fearing the vengeance of a certain society on account of this last para- graph, I merely append my initials.

J. H. R.

"MiDDLlN"' (9 th S. iv. 416, 495). This is an expression prevalent in Mid and North Devon as an equivalent for " pretty good " or u fair," and mignt be the answer to an inquiry as to a person's health, condition or yield of crops, a man's ability as a shot, a hand at cards in fact, is in every-day use in all cir- cumstances. W. CURZON YEO.

Richmond, Surrey.

DANDY'S GATE (9 th S. v. 9). This old toll- gate was situated in Jamaica Road, near the north-east entrance to the churchyard of St. James's, and was removed soon after that church was built in 1820. The toll was fourpence, and its payment cleared all gates to Woolwich. W. T. LYNN.