9" s. vm. JULY e, 1901.] NOTES AND QUERIES.
27
Jn his gratitude for this relief, the earl gave Roger
the control of the fiddlers and rabble generally
of Chester a not too desirable privilege, which
Roger transferred to Hugh de Button and his heirs.
This custom became one of licensing the musicians
of the county. We cannot go further into the sub-
ject, but will only say that the last court was held
so late as 1756, and that the right is supposed to be
vested in the heir-general of the Buttons, though
Thomas Button, the last of the male-line owners
of Button, under Puritan influence refused a
licence for "piping and dancing " on Sundays. It is
a curious fact that the Buttons in the time of Eliza-
beth had a special exemption from the penalties,
including whipping, pronounced against their clients
as " rogues and vagabonds." Had Scott known of
the bestowal of this privilege, he would probably
have used it in 'The Betrothed,' the period of
which it might be made to fit. At the time of the
Domesday Survey a follower of the Conqueror, from
whom a direct descent can be traced, was established
at Button, then Buntune, in Cheshire. The family
is described by Leycester as "of great worth and
antiquity." Sir Thomas de Button, the first knight
of the family, was Sheriff of Cheshire in 1268. In
the fourteenth century the family branched to
Hatton, near Chester, a property then considerable,
which had been acquired by marriage. Apropos
of this the writer says that "Sir Christopher Hat-
ton, Queen Elizabeth's dancing Lord Chancellor,
' claimed kindred there and had his claims allowed.' "
Others of the Buttons had previously fought in the
Crusades, with Hotspur, at Agincourt, or on one or
other side in the Wars of the Roses. Sherborne,
whence comes the title of Lord Sherborne the
book is dedicated to Lady Sherborne was pur-
chased in 1551 by Thomas Button. Branches of the
family settled in Yorkshire, Staffordshire, and
Benbighshire, and individuals of the name are
heard of in various posts of danger or authority.
Sir Piers Button assisted zealously in the suppres-
sion of the monasteries under Henry VIII. In
Little Gaddesden Church, Herts, is a striking
monument, erected by Lord Chancellor Ellesmere,
her grandfather, to Elizabeth Button, who died " a
wife, a widow, and a maid in the year 1611, aged
sixteen." She was formally betrothed to John
Button when eleven years old. Her husband is
supposed to have been accidentally killed on the
day fixed for the consummation of the wedding.
Thomas Button, the last of the direct male line,
and twentieth in descent from Odard, the founder
of the family, died on 28 Becember, 1614, his son
John having predeceased him in 1609. High interest
attends the bloodthirsty duel fought on Calais sands
in Becember, 1610, between Sir Thomas Button
and Sir Hatton Cheke (grandson of the famous Sir
John Cheke), in which the latter combatant was
slain. The fight is characteristically described by
Carlyle in the fourth volume of his 'Miscellanies.'
This duel was followed in 1712 by another perhaps
the most celebrated in English history between
the first Lord Button, better known as the Buke
of Hamilton, and Lord Mohun, in which both com-
batants met their death. Among those who have
dealt with this fight are Swift and Thackeray.
Sir Ralph Button, of Standish, raised a regiment
for King Charles eight hundred strong, which with
flying colours joined the royal standard at Notting-
ham, being the second regiment raised.
We cannot follow the further fortunes of this noble family, of which Lord Sherborne, a welcome
contributor to our columns, is a present repre-
sentative. Lord Sherborne has, indeed, printed for
private circulation the records of the Sherborne
branch, a work which we have not seen, and one,
as we have proved, difficult of access. The author
of the present volume writes like a scholar and a
gentleman, and supplies, in addition to a spirited
chronicle, notes of historical and literary value. His
book is enriched with an excellent index, useful
appendices, pedigrees, facsimiles, and illustrations,
including portraits, admirably reproduced, of Lord
Chancellor Ellesmere, the fourth Buke of Hamilton,
and Lord Mohun. The frontispiece presents what
remains of Button Hall, in Cheshire, erected in
1539-42 by Sir Piers Button and Bame Julian (sic)
his wife. Other views of the Hall, of achievements
of Button arms, &c., also appear. Many letters and
documents previously unprinted are given, and the
work is a model of what a family history ought to
be. It is admirably printed, and is bound in cream-
coloured canvas with a coat of arms of the Buttons
in gold and colours upon the side, and is in all
respects de luxe.
JANE AUSTEN" has become a constant figure in current literature, and each successive month brings with it some new criticism or tribute. In the Fortnightly Mr. Rowland Grey writes on the bores in her novels. These are numerous, and may well indeed be so when " courteous, gentlemanly Mr. Woodhouse" is numbered among such. Mr. Grey does not, however, confine himself to bores, but has something to say on other types in Miss Austen's well-filled galleries. Under the title 'A Sportsman on Cruelty to Animals' Mr. Aflalo defends himself from the attacks of the " humani- tarians." It is not necessary, however, to be one of those who forbid the slaughter of animals for food in order to condemn their destruction for sport. Lady Jeune writes amusingly on ' Bridge.' Mr. W. S. Lilly devotes much space to 'Le Fantome ' of M. Paul Bourget, whom ne regards as "the greatest novelist that France has produced since the days of Balzac." The subject of the book on which Mr. Lilly comments is dreadfully un- pleasant, but so, for the matter of that, are the sub- jects of many of the fictions of Balzac. While over- praising, as we fancy, for we have not read the book, the merits of a story " worthy of the pens of the old tragedians of Hellas," Mr. Lilly takes the oppor- tunity to express his own views as to the value of religious sanctions in the enforcement of the moral law. Mr. William Laird Clowes advocates 'The Cheapening of Useful Books.' He comments, as well he may, upon the manner in which people of all classes have been coaxed into buying by instal- ments "an imperfect and partially antiquated book," and he holds that " we are not yet a great reading nation, but we are on the point of becoming one." Mr. Stephen Gwynn dwells on ' Some Recent Books,' among which is M. Maeterlinck's ' Life of the Bee.' Mr. Karl Blind supplies to the Nineteenth Century some facts not generally known concerning the origin of the 'Marseillaise.' If we may accept the statements now made, Rouget de I'lsle has enjoyed honours to which he was not entitled. The
- Marseillaise' was, we are told, made in Germany,
being part of a mass composed in 1776 by Holtz- mann, the Kapellmeister of the Elector of the Palatinate. Rouget de I'lsle, we are further told, narrowly escaped the guillotine, was saved by the overthrow of Robespierre, and lived until 1836.
