Page:Notes and Queries - Series 9 - Volume 8.djvu/325

 9* s. viii. OCT. 19, 1901.] NOTES AND QUERIES.

317

LONDON, SATURDAY, OCTOBER 19, 1901.

CONTENTS. No. 199.

NOTES : -Birthplace of Lord Beaconsfield, 317-A Un'qu Book, 819 Shakespeare's Books Grammatical Di tionary, 321 " Tobacco" : "Pirogue" Mozart's Skull Stealing the Stars Halley Back-formations Joh Ramage, 322.

QUERIES : Arms on Mug E. Marston & Co., 323-Jeha Bytharne^Dickensiana Opera-hearers ' Hie Mulier e hjec Vir ' Cradock : Winter St. Kilda John Braham The Mitre, 324 Crossing Knives and Forks "Lungete John Powke Scott Query ' The Craniad ' Ballantyn and Lockhart "Ben-clerk" Thomas Williamson " Parver alley" Stone Pulpit Museum at St Bernard's 325 Authors Wanted, 326.

REPLIES : St. Clement Danes, 32*5 " Rooi-batje "=Red Coat " Halsh "South African Names, 327-Stl Marcell Children Hanged Artists' Mistakes, 328 Uses o Grindstones Floyd v. Lloyd, 329 Portland Vase Birth place of Goldsmith, 330 Scott Quotation " Toucan " The 'Marseillaise,' 331 Tragedy by Wordsworth Littl Gidding : Stourbridge Fair, 332 Archbishop Howley Parish Register of Broadwood-Widger Greek of the New Testament Phillippo, 333 West-Countrymen's Tails Author of Poem Mistakes of Authors "Ask nothinj more of me, Sweet," 334 Pall Mall -' Pseudodoxia Epi demica 'St. Christopher Family Likeness, 335.

NOTES ON BOOKS : Terry's 'Chevalier de St. George' Gardiner's 'Oliver Cromwell' Wordsworth's 'Cere monies and Processions of the Cathedral Church of Salis bury.'

Notices to Correspondents.

BIRTHPLACE OF LORD BEACONSFIELD. LONDON is loved of the Londoner by reason of long acquaintance and familiarity with its streets and buildings, which have become to him as old friends, while, should he be of archaeological bent, he finds the additional enjoyment of associations pervaded with the historic past. The greater his knowledge of the story of the streets, the more intimate his acquaintance with buildings made precious by age and history, and houses dis- tinguished by the births, lives, or deaths of famous men and women, the keener will be his zest as he takes his walks in and about London. The excellent Society of Arts does good service in marking the houses thus dis- tinguished, and it is my desire, in once more reviving an oft-discussed and almostexhausted subject, to call attention to the yet unmarked house 22, Theobalds Road (formerly 6, King's Road, near Bedford Row), where it is certain that Benjamin Disraeli, Earl of Beaconsfield, passed the first thirteen years of his life, and where in all probability he was born. That, however, there should have been hesitation in accepting the house as the birthplace is doubtless attributable to the several other claims that have been brought forward.

Two months after Lord Beaconsfield's death in 1881 Mr. Joseph Foster, in his 4 Collectanea Genealogica' (parti.), printed a pedigree of Disraeli, and notes, memorial inscriptions reproduced letters, &c., which were most acceptable. He thought the birthplace a mystery almost rivalling that of Homer, but attached much credit to information received from a lady (Mrs. Tait) in Scotland to the effect that in April, 1802, Lord Beaconsfield's father Isaac D'Israeli took her father's house " 6, John Street," near Bedford Row, and that her mother had told her that Benjamin Disraeli (I give the surname as father and son wrote it) was born in that house. To this Mr. Foster added that Mrs. Tait was " corroborated by the directories of the day " ; but there he made a mistake, for the contemporary-London directory, * Boyle's Court Guide,' gives other tenants to 6, John Street at the time in ques- tion, and shows clearly that the house occu- pied by Isaac D'Israeli between 1803 and 1817 (by the lease it appears that he took it in 1802) was 6, King's Road, Bedford Row. And here I must express surprise that inquirers about this matter have been so tardy in consulting Boyle's contemporary directory, the value of which is equal to that of a living witness. If they have looked into it, they have not taken it at its value for really what more is required? We find Lord Beaconsfield's parents living at 6, King's Road from 1803 to 1817, and naturally con- clude he was born there, 21 December, 1804, unless, indeed, his mother was from home. In regard to that possibility there is something to me of moment. Mrs. Tait, however, was not far wrong; and indeed it seems that 6, John Street was merely a slip of the pen or memory, 6, King's Road being intended. The through him, perhaps, the. * Dictionary of National Biography.' And here it may be asked if Mrs. Tait were not the daughter of tfr. John Sprot, D'Israeli's predecessor at 6, King's Road, according to the directory, from vhom, it is shown by the lease, D'Israeli took he house.
 * o say presently, though it does not appear
 * wo houses are very near to one another. But
 * he lady's slip has misled Mr. Foster, and

In 1884 the subject was discussed in N. & Q.,' and MR. JOHN A. C. VINCENT ffectively wielded the pen. He then thought Mr. Foster had printed all that could be dis- overed, but afterwards he himself by diligent earch discovered more. Obtaining access pparently to that great depository of Condon house - history, the Middlesex Registry of Leases, he found the register ofc he leases referring not only to King's Road