228
NOTES AND QUERIES. [io* s. in. MARCH 25, iocs.
seventeenth century, and is most anxious to
trace where the extract comes from and its
probable author and date :
St. George to save a Mayd a Dragon slew,
And 'twas a brave exployt, if all be true.
Some say there are noe Dragons ; nay, 'tis sayd
There was noe George ; Pray God there be a Mayd.
W. K.
KING'S COCK-GROWER. In 2 nd S. iii. 69 is a curious statement about an officer called "the King's Cock-Grower," who during Lent crowed the hour every night, and on the first Ash Wednesday after the accession of the House of Hanover so startled the Prince of Wales, afterwards George II., that the office was abolished. No references of any kind were given by NOTSA. From this paragraph in 'N. & Q.' the statement has apparently been copied into other works. The func- tionary is not mentioned in the 'English Historical Dictionary ' nor elsewhere, so far as I can discover. Is any more information procurable about the custom? or is the whole thing a hoax ? HERBERT THURSTON.
NAMES OF LETTERS.
1. Does the qualification of thinness in the names of the Greek letters e and v, et/<iAoi', v^iAoV, refer to their form or sound? I cannot detect any thinness in either.
2. Why do the French call the letter ?/ the Greek i, though the fyiXov never had the tailed form?
3. Why has the spirant h been called by the Italians acca, by the French ache, by the English eitch, though these names do not bear the slightest resemblance to the sound they are to designate ?
4. From what circumstance does the letter y derive its English name wail Perhaps DR. FOAT will have the kindness to give the clue. To him or any other helper my thanks in advance. G. KRUEGER.
Berlin.
MASONS' MARKS. I asked recently for information as to " masons' marks," and was referred to 8 th S. vii. 208, 334, 416; viii. 18, 91, 198. I have looked these up, and found no information, [only reference to publications by no means easy to obtain. I wish to know :
1. With what object were the marks put on the stones ?
2. At about what dates were they employed?
3. Had they any symbolic significance ?
4. Can any inference be drawn about a building on which they appear ?
A. A. KIDSON.
' BROWN'S SUPERB BIBLE.' I shall be grateful for information concerning ' Brown's
Superb Bible.' I have recently bought a
copy in excellent preservation. The title-
page is an elaborate woodcut, bearing the
following inscription on a fringed banner :
"The most Superb Folio and Self-Interpreting Bible, Containing The Old and New Testaments, with a Paraphrase on the Most Obscure and Im- portant Parts ; explanatory Notes & Evangelical Reflections. By the late Rev. John Brown, Minister of the Gospel at Haddington."
Printed and published by C. Brightly and T. Kinnersley, Bungay, Suffolk, 26 May, 1812. The forty woodcuts are full-page illustra- tions, and are chiefly by W. M. Craig, del., and J. Barlow. There are a few woodcuts by Finden, and some by J. Brown. Is the Bible well known ? Each woodcut is headed by the announcement, "Engraved for Brown's Superb Bible." (Mrs.) BLANCHE HULTON.
[In its original shape Brown's ' Self-Interpreting Bible ' appeared in Edinburgh in 1778 (2 vols.). It enjoyed immense popularity, and was printed in very numerous editions and forms. See ' Brown, John, of Haddington,' ' D.N.B.,' vii. 12-14.]
LINES ON A MUG. I have a farmer's double-handled mug, on which are the fol- lowing verses, in letters of a form belonging, as I suppose, to about the beginning of the last century :
Let the Wealthy & Great,
Roll in Splendor & State,
1 envy them not I declare it :
I eat my own Lamb,
My Chickens and Ham,
I shear my own Fleece & I wear it.
I have Lawns, I have Bow'rs,
I have Fruits, I have Flow'rs,
The Lark is my morning alarmer :
So jolly Boys now,
Here 's God speed the Plough,
Long Life & success to the Farmer.
Can one of your readers tell me the origin of these verses ? I cannot trace them in the Music Catalogue of the British Museum.
ALFRED MARKS.
[Quoted with slight variations at 5 th S. x. 399.]
DR. JAMES BARRY. Interest in this lady, who at one time held the position of Inspector-General of Army Hospitals, has recently been aroused here, and I am anxious to discover any references to her in con- temporary literature ; or, indeed, to ascer- tain any information I can about her. An article on her appeared in All the Year Round for May, 1867, in which it is stated that she died at her lodgings in London, and was buried at Kensal Rise, July, 1865. In an extract from an Irish newspaper, name unknown, which is quoted in the Cape Town Advertiser and Mail of 11 October, 1865, it is, however, asserted that Dr. Barry died at
