474
NOTES AND QUERIES. [9 th s. in. JUNE 17, 99.
froin which it would appear that the distance
varied.
From the descriptions given in the old romances as well as in the Percy ballads of Kobin Hood, Adam Bell, &c., something may be learnt, in so far at least as they express the popular sentiment of their age in their admiration of the skill of those who shot their arrows to a great distance.
Archery was practised in England for pleasure or for war from the Saxon epoch down to the period of the Civil War :
"The last arrow shot in warfare was believed to have been at the siege of Devizes under Cromwell."*
The weapon used on this occasion is said to have been the cross-bow. B. H. L.
BEDELL FAMILY (9 th S. iii. 149, 298). It may probably interest MR. W. D. PINK to learn that up to a few weeks ago (when one of them died in the workhouse) there were two persons of this name resident in this city. CHAS. F. FORSHAW, LL.D.
Hanover Gardens, Bradford.
ST. HELEN (9 th S. iii. 409). The fire of St. Hermes is a supernatural fire, which betokens good weather when double, and bad weather when single. When Castor and Pollux were sailing with the other Argonauts, a great storm arose ; and on the cessation of the storm two celestial fires appeared above the heads of the brothers. From that time for- ward these two fires often sat shining on the sails of a vessel, and were indicative of fair weather. Macaulay, in his ' Lays of Ancient Rome,' alludes to their appearance. When the fire was single it was the fire of Helen, the sister of Castor and Pollux, and signified bad weather. This fire has been known in more modern times as the fire of Helen, St. Elmo, or St. Hermes, and has continued to be esteemed lucky when double, or unlucky when single. This must be the origin of St. Helen as a weather saint, though doubt- less there is some more modern legend con- cerning her. E. YARDLEY.
Has the name here anything to do with the well-known luminous appearances at sea 1
Ill-boding Helena alone was there. See Brand's ' Antiquities,' iii. 409.
EDWARD H. MARSHALL, M.A.
SIR HUGH EVANS A GLOUCESTERSHIRE WORTHY (9 th S. iii. 381). It may be of inter- est to note that the name of this Gloucester- shire worthy occurs as a witness to the execution of the will of Robert Taylor, of
- 'Memoirs of the Verney Family during the
Civil War,' vol. ii. p. 110.
Sherborne, in Gloucestershire, dated 26 Oct.,
1546, and proved at London 14 May following.
In the list of witnesses " Sir Hugh Evans ; '
appears first. I understand that he died
while rector of Farmington, which is not far
from Sherborne. Probably his will was proved
at Gloucester. He may have been master of
Northleach School. M.
HEBREWS ix. 27 (9 th S. iii. 287, 415). There is a collection of notes on this inserted " all " in ' N. & Q.,' 7 th S. x. 6, under another heading. It may be worth looking at. W. C. B.
SILVER LADLE (9 th S. iii. 28, 137). In my possession is a little silver cup, without handle, on whose rim is the legend "Anno regni nono. Decus et tutamen." It was given to me by a relative, with the story that a family connexion, whose name was given to me in baptism, had it beaten out of a crown- piece. The inquirer seems not to recognize the inscription on the rim of crown-pieces ; they are not often seen. My cup would belong to the ninth year of George III., I suppose. But I have a further question to ask : Was this inscription put on half-crowns ? For my cup has the weight of a half-crown ; and I am curious to know whether the silver- smith, when beating out the cup, also beat out half the silver. E. H. BROMBY.
University, Melbourne.
In an old silver toddy ladle with a twisted whalebone (not ebony, as MR. JOHN HOBSON MATTHEWS remarks) handle, for generations in my family, a golden guinea is inserted in the bottom. The coin is of George II. 's time, arid bears the date A.D. 1758.
HARRY HEMS.
Fair Park, Exeter.
u CORN-CRAKE" (9 th S. iii. 385). The land- rail is always referred to as the "corn-crake" here. Miss Baker has a very good article on the word in her ' Glossary.'
JOHN T. PAGE.
West Haddon, Northamptonshire.
I have been familiar with this name all my life, in various parts of the Midland counties, but never heard any but "book-learned" people use the term " landrail." C. C. B.
"STOOK " (9 th S. iii. 206, 357, 412). I do not, of course, question PROF. SKEAT'S derivation of this word, but neither do I quite under- stand his " phonetic laws." I gather that in his opinion staucti could not possibly become stook. But the fact remains that the word known in standard English as stook is in certain of our dialects pronounced stowk (ow
