Page:Notes and Queries - Series 9 - Volume 9.djvu/503

 9">s. ix. JUNE 2i, 1902.] NOTES AND QUERIES.

495

which that learned Dantophilist shows that Dante makes an indirect reference to this word, actually citing the ablative singular, and that Costard's ablative plural, being ana- grammatized, reads : " Ubi Italieus ibi Danti honor fit," i.e., " Wherever an Italian is to be found, there honour is done to Dante."

Mr. Toynbee's 'Dante Studies and Re- searches' (1902, p. 113) show that Dante derived this word from Uguccione Pisano (ob. 1210), who says :

" Ab honorifico, hie et hec honorificabilis, -le, et hec honorificabilitas, -tis, et hec 'honorificabilitu- dinitas, et est longissima dictio, que illo versu con tinetur : Fulget honorificdbilitudinitatibus iste."

For a pleasing illustration of the fatuity of the " universal negative " (that fallacy so dear to a certain school of Old Testament critics as well as to Shaconians*} he may further see Mr. Edwin Reed's 'Bacon versus Shakspere' (1899). On p. 60 Costard's word is cited, along with an oddly truncated honorifica- bilitudino (which is said to occur on the "manuscript title-page of one of Bacon's works"), and the two are stated to be the only instances "in all the world's literature."

Q. V.

GORDON AS A RUSSIAN SURNAME (9 th S. ix. 148, 371). May I ask if it is impossible that any Russian Gordons of to-day who are Jews can owe their surname to being descended from any of the Scottish Gordons, mostly from Aberdeen, who settled in Russia and the Polish provinces in the seventeenth cen- tury ?

Military archives at St. Petersburg show that there was a Capt. William Gordon in the Russian army in 1631, and a Col. Alex- ander Gordon in it in 1634. The celebrated General Patrick Gordon, who became Peter the Great's commander-in-chief and intimate friend, spent the best part of his life in Russia, and died at Moscow in 1699, leaving three sons and two daughters. Both daughters married. The eldest son was for a short time in the Russian army when a youth. He left a numerous family. The second son became a colonel in the Russian army in 1690, and the third son a colonel in it a few

if unfortunate addition to our vocabulary, in order to distinguish the holders of a particular view of the authorship of certain plays from the real fol- lowers and students of the great master of inductive philosophy, who have for many years been correctly known as Baconians, just as the followers of Thomas Hobbes are called Hobbesians. See, for an example of the true use of the former word, Sir Humphry Davy's 'Chemical Philosophy' (1812), p. 32: "In the spirit of the Baconian school, multiplying instances, and cautiously making inductions.
 * This "portmanteau word" seems a necessary,

years later. A nephew became an admiral in the Russian navy. W. S.

FASHIONABLE SLANG OF THE PAST (9 th S. ix. 368). Although not specially pertinent to the subject immediately to hand, the enclosed cutting from the Family Herald of 17 November, 1900, may prove a' slight help towards a really good slang, cant, or dialect dictionary :

" ' It's fierce ' is New York's latest slang phrase. If one wears a shirt that has plenty of colour, one's friends say ' It 's fierce ' ; if a young lady comes out with snowy shoulders and a diamond tiara, her admirers whisper, one to another,' Isn't she fierce?' If a horse shows up well on the track, the word passes along that ' Whirlwind is tierce to-day.' The golfer who succeeds in winning five out of six holes is ' fierce ' ; and when the baby is brought out all dressed in its downiest coat and softest laces, its beautiful auntie holds up her hands and exclaims, 1 Oh, isn't the darling fierce !'"

HERBERT B. CLAYTON.

39, Renfrew Road, Lower Kennington Lane.

It is in my experience, dating back thirty- six years, that " No 1 " was common in "Pidgin English" in China for "tip-top," " very superior," long before Ichiban had any other but its plain, matter-of-fact meaning in Japan viz., first of a row. " B'long num- ber one" has been a Chinaman's highest eulogism on anything since the inception of " Pidgin English " probably. H. P. L.

ROYAL PERSONAGES (9 th S. viii. 184, 252, 349 ; ix. 89, 196, 257, 395). Lodge (Clarenceux King of Arms) is quite right as to the year of Prince Octavius's death, but wrong as to day. He died 3 May, 1783, and was buried at West- minster 10th of the same month, so that MR. COLYER-FERGUSSON is right as to day, but wrong as to year.

Prince Alfred died at Windsor 20 August, 1782, and was buried at Westminster 27th of the same month. In this case MR. COLYER- FERGUSSON is again wrong as to year and Lodge as to day of death. A. W. B. is also wrong in this respect. Lodge is correct as to dates of birth of both princes. The remains of both the royal brothers were removed to St. George's Chapel, Windsor, 20 February, 1820.

MR. DIXON is probably quite correct as to date of birth of Anne, Princess Royal. Ander- son and Clay Finch both give 22 October, whilst Voigtel, Hiort - Lorenzen, Oettinger, and Chiusole give 2 November, which is the same day, New Style. Hall and Toone say 9 October, and 'L'Art de Verifier les Dates ' 13 November. All agree as to year. He is absolutely right as to the date of Anne's marriage according to Old Style, Modern