248
NOTES AND QUERIES. cio* s. n. SEPT. 21,
of the present tricolour of France. The
stern of one of the English battleships flying
St. George's Cross is decorated with an im-
mense coloured carving of the Virgin and
Child. Did James II. ever adopt this cus-
tom? or is it a ship captured at any time
from Spain ? or, again, imaginary ? D.
WILTSHIRE NATURALIST, c. 1780. Perhaps some Wiltshire reader can tell me the name of the author of " A Discourse on the Emigra- tion of British Birds, &c., by a Naturalist,'" which was published at Salisbury in 1780 (cf. Brit. Mus. Cat.). He resided at Market Lavington, and he speaks of a 'History of British Birds ' which he had written, that was " now going to the press, and will appear in a short time." I have not been able to ascer- tain that it ever came out. Some copies of the ' Discourse ' (one of which is before me) were issued by John Bramby, 33, Castle Street, Leicester Square, in 1814, with a new title-page, and the name of George Edwards as author. This ascription was merely the bookseller's trick to palm off his dead stock, Edwards being the author of a once-popular book on birds. C. W. SUTTON.
Manchester.
[According to Halkett and Laing the author was George Edwards. ]
FONTAINEBLEAU. Is there any English literature bearing upon the history of Fontainebleau 1 I can find very little sub- stantial information in French writings as to the growth and origin of the forest. Being anxious to collect all possible information on this subject, I should be most grateful for any help from your readers. S. F. G.
Paris.
BEARS AND BOARS IN BRITAIN. Can any- body give me an opinion as to the latest date at which bears and boars ran wild in these islands? I note that in 'Chambers's Encyclopaedia' it is said that the former were not exterminated in Scotland before the latter part of the eleventh century. What is the authority for this statement 1 ?
G. S. C. S.
LEMANS OF SUFFOLK. In an old document I came across the following paragraph :
" The Leemans of Croft, Lincolnshire, claim to be descended from Sir John Leman's eldest nephew, John. This nephew had a son John, who again had four sons, the eldest of whom was called after him, and to whom he left the bulk of his property, cutting off the other three sons, Robert, William, and Thomas, with 20-s. each. These three sons settled in Lincolnshire/'
I have been unable to trace the will spoken of here, but have ascertained that Sir John's
elder brother spelt his name Leeman, by th
Beccles register. Have any of your reader
come across anything referring to it 1 ?
W. J. L.
JOURNAL OF THE HOUSE OF COMMONS. In a recent auction sale some documents wer described as pages u taken from the Journa of the House of Commons " ; amongst others! two or three of contemporary writing, dated 1640-1641, small folio. One, paged 189, is a petition of Lord Strafford relating to his trial. Has the Journal of the House of Commons at any time been robbed of these pages ? Or are these documents merely tran- scripts from the official Journal ? They have certainly been bound together at some time.
T. C. HARTLEY.
ALEXANDER AND R. EDGAR. I should be glad to obtain information concerning Alex- ander Edgar, who was admitted to West- minster School in 1766, and R. Edgar, who was admitted there in 1810. I believe they came from Bristol, and that an Alexander Edgar was Mayor of that city in 1787.
G. F. R. B.
SHAKESPEARE AUTOGRAPH. Ever since the first query appeared (1 st S. x. 443) upon this deeply absorbing subject, a number of so- called Shakespeare autographs have received attention in the columns of ' N. & Q., J but I ( have not traced mention of the following.
In 1864 one Partridge, a bookseller u\ Wellington, Salop, bought from a labouring man for the sum of eighteenpence a black- letter Prayer Book, dated 1596. At the time of purchase neither buyer nor seller had any idea that there was anything remarkable about the volume. Upon collating it Part- ridge found two signatures of William- Shakespeare, and a third was afterwards discovered by Toulmin Smith, to whom the volume was sent. Partridge duly advertised the item in his catalogue at three hundred pounds, and at once sold it, the buyer evidently sharing the general belief in the genuineness of the signatures.
There are many besides the writer who would be glad to know the present where- abouts of the Prayer Book. WM. JAGGARD.
139, Canning Street, Liverpool.
COUNTESS OF CARBERRY. In a delightful, though not new book by Sarah Orne Jewett, 'The Country of the Pointed Firs,' the author mentions a chat with one of her neighbours in the little Maine hamlet, who tells her of a recent death. Capt. Wilkinson says: "She has gone very easy at the last, I was informed. She slipped away as if she was glad of the
