Various

“ I feel that drawing these interiors so as not to offend the eye by either the excess or deficiency of perspective, is a great difficulty. But I think something may be done in the way of "humouring" the perspective, and approximating in our drawing to that which we know we see. The camera has thrown light upon the subject. We ought not to despise altogether the hints it gives us by its perhaps exaggerated perspective, in the case of parallel lines in the plane of the picture. ”

“ Having given The Truthteller a year's trial, we feel ourselves called upon, as a matter of justice to our family, to discontinue it as a newspaper. The negligence of too many of our subscribers, in not discharging their engagements to us, and the indifference of others of the Catholic body, to support the vindicator of their civil and religious principles, leave us no alternative but that of dropping it as a newspaper, or carrying it on at a loss. ”

“ The sounds grew louder and louder, and in great surprise I appealed to my friend for an explanation; when I learned that it was a custom in that part of the country, whenever it was discovered that a man had been beating his wife, for the neighbours to provide themselves with all sorts of instruments, fire-irons, kettles, and pots, in fine, anything capable of making a noise, and proceed en masse to the house of the offender, before whose door they performed in concert, till their indignation subsided or their arms grew weary ”

“ Amid earthquakes and showers of fire, the bewildered and maddened armies of the autocrat rush, sword in hand, against each other, while the Israelites and their Anglo-Saxon friends gaze on the spectacle with amazement and consternation. It does not appear that they will even lift their hand against that foe which they had come so far to meet. Their aid is not necessary to accomplish the destruction of the image. ”

“ Eighteen different editions of the Bible, printed by John Field, are in my collection, published between the years 1648 and 1666. In some of these he is described as printer to the University of Cambridge, in others as 'One of His Highness's Printers;' but in those which tradition says were published for the army, he is called 'Printer to the Parliament.' They are all as correctly printed as Bibles were generally published during that time, excepting that by Giles Calvert the Quaker, published in 1653, which is singularly correct and beautiful. ”

“ Dryden's attack on Milbourne occurs in his preface to the Fables (Scott's edition of his Works, vol. xi. p. 235.) . "As a corollary to this preface," says Dryden, "in which I have done justice to others, I owe somewhat to myself; not that I think it worth my time to enter the lists with one Milbourne and one Blackmore, but barely to take notice that such men there are, who have written scurrilously against me without any provocation. Milbourne, who is in orders, pretends, amongst the rest, this quarrel to me, that I have fallen foul on priesthood ”

“ The plate is to be allowed to drain; and then, when placed in the frame, is ready for the camera, and is easily impressed as a deep negative by a Ross's landscape lens instantaneously. To develop, I use always the same agents as I have before specified. One or two cautions are to be observed in this process. First, the grape-sugar or honey must be quite pure, and free from any strong acid re-action; and, secondly, these substances are much improved by a long exposure to the air, by which the oxidation of them is commenced, and the result made much more certain and effective. ”

“ Holy-loaf Money (Vol. ix., pp. 150. 256.) .—In Normandy and Brittany, and probably in other Roman Catholic countries, bread is blessed by the officiating priest during the performance of high mass, and handed round in baskets to the congregation by the inferior officers of the church. On inquiring into the meaning of this custom, I was told that it represented the agapæ of the primitive church; and that, before the first revolution, every substantial householder in the parish was bound in turn to furnish the loaves, or a money equivalent. ”

“ The reference would probably be to Horne Tooke's anticipation of the strange immoral reveries of Emerson and others, that truth is entirely subjective; because the word bears etymological relation to "to trow," to think, or believe: and so truth has no objective existence, but is merely what a man troweth. If that be an argument, Lord Brougham would say then the law of libel would be unjust, merely because "libel" means primarily a little book ”

“ Dr. Forster was born in London in 1789, of an ancient Catholic family; he was himself a Protestant until the year 1835, when it appears that he became a convert to the Church of Rome: at the same time he received the additional names of Ignatius Maria. It is most probable that he is yet alive and in Belgium, where he has resided for many years. The Editor of "N. & Q." has kindly sent me a list from the Catalogue of the British Museum, of some four and thirty works by Dr. Forster. ”

“ He bestows a certain "estate" upon every man as He bestows life: let both be dedicated to Him. For if you give first yourself, and then what He has given you, this is sufficient; you need not try to be more rich, that you may be more charitable. ”

“ Scarcely is this idea formed, than its execution is begun; and sudden and terrific as a whirlwind he enters the 'glorious land.' So sudden and unexpected is his onslaught, that the British power is unprepared, and Egypt, Ethiopia, and Libya fall into his hands.
"Meanwhile, Britain has been making strenuous efforts to stop the progress of this gigantic Napoleon; and every soldier that can be spared is sent away in the direction of the rising sun. But what can the British army do against such a host as the Russian autocrat has around him? ”

“ I remember well the custom of the congregations kneeling when the Lord's Prayer occurred in the lesson; it was left off in my own church about thirty years since, this custom, curtseying at the "Gloria," and some others, being considered ignorant, and therefore discountenanced by those who knew better.
P. P.
Arch-priest in the Diocese of Exeter (Vol. ix., pp. 105. 185.) .—A question has been asked: "Does a dignity or office, such as rector of Haccombe, exist in the Anglican Church?" I find something similar in the case of the vicar of Newry, who is entirely free from ecclesiastical control ”

“ It appears to us impossible to produce instruments of the same size possessing a richer and finer tone, more elastic touch, or more equal temperament, while the elegance of their construction renders them a handsome ornament for the library, boudoir, or drawing-room. ”

“ At Marchington, in Staffordshire, the custom exists of having what is called a "Rantipole Riding" for every man who beats his wife. The ceremony is performed with great care and solemnity. A committee is formed to examine into the case. Then the village poet is employed to give a history of the occurrence in verse. The procession goes round in the evening with a cart, which serves as a stage on which the scene is acted and from which the verses are recited. ”

“ However, I find that the addition of the least possible quantity of nitric acid has the same effect; but nothing is so good as long exposure of the sugar or honey, so as to become completely candied before mixing. The sugar may as conveniently of course be mixed in the collodion as in the bath, but in that case the keeping properties are lost, as the plate is not thus kept longer moist than usual. ”

“ I feel rather piqued, both on my own account and for the honour of "N. & Q.," at being baffled by two English books, and I am somewhat surprised that thirty years should have elapsed without any inquiry having been made respecting the remarkable quotations adduced by Dr. Forster. The Queries I now propose are: Who was the compiler of the Circle of the Seasons? Are the Anthologia and the Florilegium quoted in any works previous to Forster's time?
Eirionnach.
P.S.—Can I get a copy of the Catholic Friend, which is referred to in the preface of the Catholic Florist as a scarce and valuable work ”

“ At the church of South Stoke, near Arundel, I have heard the clerk respond after the Gospel: "Thanks be to God for the Holy Gospel."
At Southwick, near Brighton, the rector was wont (about four years since) to stand up at the "Glory" in the Litany.
The Bishop of London believes bowing the head when the doxology, or ascription of praise, is pronounced, to be a novelty in our Church (Letter to the Knightsbridge Churchwarden, March 28, 1854) . ”

“ I remember an old woman regularly attending the services of Exeter Cathedral, who was wont always to curtsy at the "Glory." And in The Guardian of April 25, W. G. T. alludes to a parish in Staffordshire where the custom prevails. And A. W. says:
"In the western counties of England there are many parishes where the custom of bowing at the 'Gloria' has been universally observed by the poor from time immemorial. ”

“ If you are single, give all you have to the service of God. But do not be anxious to make the gift larger by toil: for God only requires that which is suitable to the position in which He has placed you. ”

“ But if you choose a life of labour to gain an "estate" beyond the original position assigned to you in the providence of God, then you must reckon yourself responsible for the "one man" which God "made" you, and for the other which you make yourself besides.
I conceive the stanza to be a recommendation of the contemplative life with poverty, in preference to the active life with riches.
J. H. B.
ANCIENT USAGES OF THE CHURCH. (Vol. ix., pp. 127. 257.)
As your well-known correspondent from Clyst St. ”

“ The series of plates extends to fifteen, among which are those described by H. Some are remarkable for good drawing and spirited expression, and all are good for the time. The verses which belong to Plate 2. are printed on the back of Plate 1., and so on, which rendered transcription necessary on mounting them. Each represents, figuratively, one of the steps towards the philosopher's stone. ”

“ Fraser, B.C.L.
"Waestart" (Vol. ix., p. 349.) .—The querist, I humbly presume, is not a Yorkshireman himself; or, probably, he would have at once resolved waestart into the ungrammatical but natural inquiry, "Where ist' 'art"—ist' meaning are you, thou being vulgarly used for you; the h is elided in hurt, the u in 'urt being pronounced as a, changing the vowel, as is very common among the illiterate. For instance, church is often called charch by those who live a little to the north-west; and person, where the e is almost equivalent to the soft u in sound, is made into parson! ”

“ Indeed laws are daily made to restrain beggars, and daily broken by the connivance of those who make them; it being impossible when the hungry belly barks, and bowels sound, to keep the tongue silent. And although oil of whip {578}be the proper plaister for the cramp of laziness, yet some pity is due to impotent persons. In a word, seeing there is the Lazar's-bath in this city, I doubt not but many a good Lazarus, the true object of charity, may beg therein. ”

“ Testimonials from the best Photographers and principal scientific men of the day, warrant the assertion, that hitherto no preparation has been discovered which produces uniformly such perfect pictures, combined with the greatest rapidity of action. ”

“ E. W. I., in his answer to this Query in Vol. ix., p. 312., refers to the custom of tolling the church bell at eight o'clock on Sunday morning, and again at nine. This custom is followed at the chapel of ease (at Maidenhead) to the parishes of Bray and Cookham.
Newburiensis.
"The pudding bell," as country folks sometimes call it (under the impression that its use is to warn those at home to get the dinner ready) , is still rung in some of the old Lancashire parish churches as the congregation go out. ”

“ A RUBENS QUERY.
There is a somewhat curious mystery with regard to certain works of the immortal Rubens, which some of your readers, who are connoisseurs in art, may possibly assist to dispel. Lommeline, who engraved the finest works of Rubens, has left a print of "The Judgment of Paris," which {562}differs in several points from the subject of "The Decision of Paris," now in the National Gallery. For instance, in the one, Paris rests the apple upon his knee, and in the other he is offering it to the fair goddess of Beauty. ”

“ The answer returned was the second line, "Innumerabilibus sollicitudinibus,"—a line, in my opinion, much superior to the former, as well for other reasons as that it is free from any false quantity; while, as any Greek scholar will at once find out, the antepenultimate syllable of "Constantinopolitani" must be long, being derived from the Greek word πολίτης. ”

“ As to the Irish case—that of the Earl of Athlone—I can but repeat my Query. Whether right or wrong, it is not binding on the British House of Lords. The cases of the King of Hanover, the Duke of Wellington, and Earl Nelson, are not in point. His Hanoverian Majesty is not an alien; and though some British subjects may be recognised as peers by foreign states, it does not follow that a foreigner can be a peer of Britain.
H. G.
The Young Pretender (Vol. ix., pp. 177. 231.) ”

“ I will only add another extract from Illingworth's Scampton:—'On Sir John Bolle's departure from Cadiz, the Spanish Lady sent as presents to his wife, a profusion of jewels and other valuables, amongst which was her portrait drawn in green; plate, money, and other treasure. Some articles are still in possession of the family; though her picture was unfortunately, and by accident, disposed of about half a century since. This portrait being drawn in green, gave occasion to her being called, in the neighbourhood of Thorpe Hall, the Green Lady ”