Page:Notes and Queries - Series 11 - Volume 12.djvu/357

This page needs to be proofread.

ii s. xii. OCT. so, 1915.] NOTES AND QUERIES.


349


however, had some interesting associations, as the Chevalier D'Eon died in one of the houses, and another was for a short time the residence of George Colman the younger.

Afterwards, some houses in New Ormond Street were demolished, and Millman Street and New Millman Street thrown into one.

New Ormond Street, which was a continua- tion of Great Ormond Street from Lamb's Conduit Street to Millman Street, was about twenty- five years ago renumbered intc, and made part of, Great Ormond Street.

May I throw out, as a suggestion, that Hunter Street and Judd Street, which extend in a line from Brunswick Square to Euston formerly called the New Road, might correspond to the description of Podden Place and Upper Podden Place ?

WM. DOUGLAS.

125, Helix Road, Brixton Hill.

UNICORN'S HORN AT THE TOWER OF LONDON (11 S. xii. 302). Thomas Fuller writes :

" Some are plain, as that in St. Mark's in Venice ; others wreathed about, as that at Dyonis, near Paris, with anfractuous spires, and cocleary turnings about it, which probably is the effect of age, those wreaths being but the wrinkles of most vivacious unicorns. The same may be said of the colour: white, when newly taken from his head ; yellow, like that lately in the Tower, of some hundred years' seniority ; but whether or no it will ever turn black, as that of Plinie's description, let others decide." 'Worthies of England' (ed. Nicholls, 1811), ii 54.

Paul Hentzner, in his account of a visit to England in 1598, writes of Windsor Castle :

" We were shewn here, among other things, the horn of a unicorn, of above eight spans and an half in length, valued at above 10,OOW. " Dodsley's

  • Fugitive Pieces,' ii. 244.

And the Rev. Edward Topsell in his 4 Historie of Foure-footed Beastes ' (1607), p. 717, says :

" I doe also know that [horn] the King of England possesseth to be wreathed in spires, even as that is recounted in the Church of St. Dennis, then which they suppose none greater in the world."

The so-called horns of the unicorn appear to have been in reality tusks of the narwhal.

A. R. BAYLEY.

A note in Rye's ' England as seen by Foreigners in the Days of Elizabeth and James I.' informs us that

  • ' in 1641 the Marquis de la Ferte Imbaut. Marshal

of France, saw in the Tower of London a Unicorn's horn, covered with plates of silver, and estimated At the enormous sum of 40.00W." P. 203.

There was, and perhaps still is, a magni- ficent horn at Windsor of which Paul


Hentzner, who was there in 1598, testified that it was valued at above 100,000/. Very mean, after this, sounds a specimen at Somerset House mentioned in an inventory of Charles I. : it was priced at a poor 500. This may be read in Rye at p. 202.

ST. SWITHIN.

COCKNEY SPEECH (11 S. xii. 280). Tell yer want, MistrEderter, HI knows aow fair- muynded er man yew ar, an aow willin ter give hevry one ees chaunst (now one be"er), sow I sez ter myself I sez, " Haow'd it be 'f I wrowte a few luynes erbaout Cauck- neyissums in aunswer ter MR. ACKERMANN, waut waunts ter know erbaout deferni- tions"

Well fust aout there's the spellin, wich ees muyty differcult. Caus wy ? Caus we aighn't gaut letters ernough. See ere naow. 'Few've any desuyer ter be c'rect down yew iwer spell the litery word " paper " wiv an i in Cauckney naut unless yer hindulgin in carrerkertoor. Mr. Punch, ee wruytes Dossetshir a wiv two e's, ee does. F'rin- stance " Jeemes." Naow aour Cauckney a, it's more owpin luyke, but eet aighn't now i, 'strewf it aighn't. Wen I sez " laighces " HI aighn't a-finkin 'baout hinsects git aout. Saighm wiv paighper. Some years ergo, in dear ole ' N. & Q.,' a correspondent, oose naighm I've fergaut, ee truyed ter prove as aow Cauckneys didn' saigh " piper " in Mr. Chorles Dickens's tuyme. That gent's argyments was very good, but ee fergaut one fing, straight ee did. Good ole Chorlie ee lived een Baigham Street, Camdin Taown, ee did, wen ee was a boy, and now Dossetshir a was eard in Pancras then, swelp me. Wen Chorlie wrowte " paper " as one er that there noosboy's calls, he yerd " paighper," en wat's more ee said "paighper" eesself yew taighk eet from me.

HI've bin towld as aow litery people gits their speech waut they calls hinfected frough livin in London. Fren er muyne, oo shall be naighmless (hee was a Perfesser at Liverpool, in the Unerverserty, hee was, fore ee went beck ter Berlin ter taighk the plaighce of H Z , dee-ceased), ee towld me as aow a London laighdy laighdy er tuytle, mine yer oo went daown ter Liver- pool ter lecksher, walked up ter th' readin desk an looked raound at the B.A.'s an the M.A.'s, an started off wiv " The other daigh Naow this aighn't furough Cauck- ney, but " daigh " hees a bit of all ruyght. It's Saouf-Heastem, eet ees, see ? In the ole Kentish dyaleck a faousand years agow