when the wonderful chemical discoveries of modern days were undreamt of, any other more powerful acids of disintegrating force sufficient For such a purpose could have been discovered, and the knowledge of them been since lost. On the other hand, when the modern Italian language retains the precise word aceto (pronounced atchayto), meaning "vinegar" to this day, it certainly gives some sort of confirmation to the ordinarily accepted meaning of the Latin word used by the historian. I must say, however, that I incline to the probability of SIR T. TANCRED'S theory, that some confusion of words may have arisen between a verbal informant and the writer, arising from a somewhat similar pronunciation of two words having quite different meanings. The Italian for "an axe" is accetta (pronounced atchetta; for "a great big axe,” accettone; and either of these words might easily be confounded with the word which has been rendered "vinegar." It is true that aceto is masculine, and accetta feminine; but that does not altogether exclude the probability of the mistake having been made. I should be glad to see the point further treated by some of the able contributors to "N. & Q."

M. H. R.

The description of Livy is too minute to allow of the supposition that he meant anything by acetum but vinegar. The acetum was poured (infusum) upon the rocks, which had been previously intensely heated, and which were consequently disintegrated (putrefacta). But it is far from improbable, as is suggested, that the story had been confused before it reached Livy, through the double meaning of acetum. Besides similar cases alluded to by SIR T. TANCRED, there is one perhaps less known, which I met with many years ago, I think in the Asiatic Register. An officer, who was evidently a scholar, travelling in the Upper Indus, explained the story in Herodotus of the gold-finding ants, by the fact that the auriferous sands form the burrows of a species of marmot: and he adds that the name at this day, given by the natives to this marmot, is a word closely resembling the μυρμήξ of the Greeks. Hence the confusion.

De Vigne, in his Travels in Cashmere, also speaks of the marmot, but does not give the

modern Indian name.

J. C. M.

BIOGRAPHY OF THE CHEVALIER D'EON.

(4th S. ii. 131, 215, 236, 278.)

In the very amusing Memoirs of Louis Dutens, written by himself, a work now little known, are

* These Memoirs contain many historical anecdotes not elsewhere to be found. The late Mr. C. H. Cooper, of Cambridge, often suggested a new edition of the work in one volume, with notes; but pleaded his want of leisure as the excuse for not undertaking it himself.

the following notices of D'Eon, whose sex at that time was still in doubt:

"The King [Louis XV.] had secret ministers at foreign courts, who, without the knowledge of the ambassadors, corresponded directly with him. Such was the Chevalier d'Eon at the court of Russia; who, upon the recommendation of the Prince de Conti (to whom her sex was not then known), was sent to Petersburg; where she had the address to introduce herself to the Empress Elizabeth in female attire, and in fifteen days concluded an affair which the ambassador had been for a long time carrying on." - Dutens, iii. 27.

"The respect of Louis XVI. for the memory of the late King, went so far as to search for his private letters, and to obtain such as were in the hands of those with whom he corresponded. The celebrated Chevalier d'Eon, among others, had several which the King was desirous of suppressing. While the French government was fulminating against him, and exerting their utmost efforts to bring him back to France, either by promises or threats, Louis XV. maintained a correspondence with him, gave him a pension of 12,000 livres (500l.), and wrote to him: 'Take care not to come to Paris; they wish to ruin you.' Beaumarchais was sent to London by Louis XVI. to obtain the letters from the Chevalier, who consented to give them provided he had leave to return to France, and that his pension was continued. But Madame de Guerchi, who attributed the death of her husband to the chagrin he experienced from the Chevalier's ridicule, threatened, that if he dared to return to France, her son would wait for him at Calais and break his head. D'Eon having been apprised of this, laughed, and said: Well, I wish to put an end to all

declare that I am a woman. "

Dutens then alludes to the legal proceedings in England, which MR. BATES has noticed (antè, p. 278). The result of Beaumarchais' negotiation was, that D'Eon gave up the letters for five thousand guineas, a safe conduct, and permission to wear the cross of St. Louis. D'Eon then demanded four thousand guineas more to pay his debts, which was granted, but placed in the hands of Lord Ferrars, and it is not clear that D'Eon ever received it. He returned to France, and was obliged to resume the habits of the female sex. -Abridged from the same volume, pp. 138141. E. V.

The Chevalier D'Eon had a sister, who was married to the celebrated genealogist, com

piler, and littérateur, the Chevalier O'Gorman, a native of the county of Clare, of whom Daniel O'Connell was accustomed to say that he sported the pedigree of the O'Connell family. Mdlle. D'Eon brought the Chevalier O'Gorman a large accession to his fortune in the shape of certain rich vineyards in Burgundy; and he made periodical visits to his native country for the double object of selling the Burgundy of his own growth to his customers in Ireland, and of fabricating or embellishing the genealogies required abroad from the Irish in foreign service. The Chevalier O'Gorman furnished genealogies to certain of the "mushroom" lords, as they were designated at they the period of the passing of the Act of Union between England and Ireland. Of the Chevalier O'Gorman's career, character, &c. &c. I may furnish "N. & Q." with certain interesting particulars which I have gleaned from trustworthy sources. Mr. Roche, in his Critical and Miscellaneous Essays of an Octogenarian (privately printed, not published, Cork, 1851), states that Mdlle. D'Eon was attracted probably by the noble figure of O'Gorman, which in his youth must have presented a splendid specimen for his stature exceeded six feet five inches of Irish procerity. The Chevalier O'Gorman lost his French property in the Revolution; he was beggared, in a word; and his last days were spent among certain of the Irish literati in the Irish metropolis.

Limerick.

MAURICE LENIHAN.

FAIRFORD WINDOWS.

(4th S. ii. 222, 267, 306.)

These remarkable specimens of glass-painting seem to excite an amount of interest at the present moment which leads me to believe that the following description of them, transcribed from an unpublished MS. on painted altar-pieces and glass windows, in my possession, will not be without some value and interest:

"DESCRIPTION OF THE PAINTED WINDOWS IN FAIRFORD CHURCH, GLOUCESTERSHIRE.

"The Manor of Fairford was purchased by John Tame, a merchant of the City of London, of King Henry VII., and having taken a ship bound for Rome, in which was a large quantity of very curious painted glass, built this church, in the year 1493, for the purpose of placing the glass therein, and dedicated it to the Virgin Mary. This painted or stained glass is admired not only in England, but in most parts of Europe. It has twenty-eight large windows, in which are represented the most striking passages of the Old and New Testament; and some of them so exquisitely finished, that Sir Anthony Vandyke affirmed that the pencil could not exceed them. The designs were done by that eminent master, Albert Dürer, to whom the greatest improvements in the art of painting on glass are attributed, and the windows of the church are proportioned exactly to fit each story. In the north side are the stories of the Old Testament; in the east and south, those of the New; and that of the Judgment, in the west.

"WINDOW 1. The representation of the Serpent tempting Eve to eat the forbidden fruit; Moses keeping his Father's sheep in the Wilderness, and an imitation of the fiery bush which God appeared to him in; Joshua, who succeeded Moses, and an angel guiding him to war; Sheba, the Queen of the South, hearing and trying the great wisdom of King Solomon, and offering him gifts.

"WINDOW 2. The Salutation of Mary and Elizabeth; the Birth of John the Baptist; Mary going to visit her cousin Elizabeth; Joseph and Mary going to be contracted, and also the Contract.

"WINDOW 3. The Angel Gabriel's Salutation to the

Virgin Mary, (motto) Ave Maria plena dominus te (sic) 'Hail, Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee'; the birth of Our Saviour, who lies in a manger, and Mary standing over him; the Oxen feeding in their Stalls; the Shepherds with their Crooks; the Epiphany, or the Wise Men that came from the East to worship our Saviour, offering him Gold, Frankincense, and Myrrh; the purification of the Virgin Mother, who is offering a pair of Turtle Doves in a Cage; the Circumcision of our Saviour, and Simeon receiving him in the Temple; there is also a perspective view of the inside of the Temple.

"WINDOW 4. Joseph flying with Mary and the young child into Egypt, to avoid the cruelty of Herod; Joseph gathering fruit in the Wilderness, and an angel bending down the branches; the Assumption of the Virgin Mary; Joseph and Mary seeking our Saviour after the Feast at Jerusalem, who is found disputing with the Doctors in the Temple.

"WINDOW 5. The Advent, or our Saviour riding to

Jerusalem; Zaccheus in the Sycamore Tree; the Multitude crying Hosanna in the highest,' and singing (with notes before them), Gloria, laus et honor tibi sit- Glory, praise, and honour be unto Thee'; Our Saviour praying in the Garden that the Cup of Affliction might pass from him; Judas going to betray him; Pilate and the High Priest sitting in Judgment against him; their scourging him, and compelling him to bear his Cross. In the upper part of the window is a representation of the Crucifixion of our Lord, with the penitent thief on his right hand, and the blasphemous thief on his left; Mary, and other women; also the Roman soldiers attending his execution.

"WINDOW 6. Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus taking down the body of our Saviour, and placing it in the Sepulchre; a representation of the wonderful Darkness; St. Michael and his Angels fighting the Dragon and the fallen Angels, whom they overcome, with Belzebub looking through a fiery grate.

"WINDOW 7. The anointing of Our Saviour for his burial in the Sepulchre; the Angel that rolled away the Stone sitting in the midst and asking them: 'Why seek ye the living among the dead? Our Saviour is risen and gone'-with perspective views of buildings in the garden. The Transfiguration of Our Saviour; Moses and Elias; the Ten Commandments upon two tables of Stone. St. Peter, James, and John, with the Three Tabernacles which Peter proposed to make; Jesus appearing to his Mother, with this salutation: Salve sancte parens- Hail Holy Mother.'

"WINDOW 8. Christ appearing to two of his Disciples as they were going to Emmaus; his breaking bread before them; his appearing to the twelve Apostles, explaining the Scriptures to them, when all believed except Thomas, who said he would not till he had put his fingers into his side, and seen the print of the nails in his hands and feet.

"WINDOW 9. Jesus showing himself to Peter, Thomas, Nathaniel, John, and the Sons of Zebedee, as they were fishing in the sea of Tiberias, where they had been toiling all night without success; the Miraculous draught of fishes, and a Gridiron with fish broiling on it for them to eat; Our Saviour's ascension into Heaven from the Mount of Olives; and the Holy Ghost descending on his Disciples in the likeness of a Dove.

"The tenth, eleventh, and twelfth windows are each divided into four compartments; and in each compartment is represented one of the Apostles, with an article of the Apostles' Creed, in Latin, disposed in an oval form round his head.

"WINDOW 10. (1.) St. Peter, with a scroll, on which is written: Credo in Deum patrem omnipotentem, creatorem cæli et terra- I believe in God, the father Almighty, maker of Heaven and Earth.' (2.) St. Andrew: Et in Jesum Christum, filium ejus unicum, dominum nostrum-And in Jesus Christ, his only Son, Our Lord.' (3.) St. James: Qui conceptus est de Spiritu Sancto, nalus ex Maria Virgine-Who was conceived of the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary.' (4.) St. John: Passus sub Pontio Pilato, crucifixus, mortuus, et sepultus- Suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried.'

"WINDOW 11. (1.) St. Thomas: Descendit ad inferna, tertio die resurrexit a mortuis-He descended into Hell, the third day he rose again from the dead.' (2.) St. James the Less: Ascendit ad cælos, sedit ad dexteram dei patris omnipotentis-He ascended into Heaven, and sitteth at the right hand of God the father Almighty.' (3.) St. Philip: Inde venturus iudicare vivos et mortuosFrom thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.' (4.) St. Bartholomew: Credo in Spiritum Sanctum- I believe in the Holy Ghost.'

"WINDOW 12. (1.) St. Matthias: Sanctam ecclesiam catholicam, Sanctorum communionem-The Holy Catholic Church, the Communion of Saints.' (2.) St. Simon: Remissionem peccatorum-The forgiveness of sins.' (3.) St. Jude: Carnis resurrectionem-The resurrection of the

Jewish senators disputing points of the law; and a piece of glass, reckoned of great value, supposed to represent rubies and diamonds.

"WINDOW 17. The four Evangelists, with their symbols, writing their gospels.

"In the three next windows are twelve prophets, with the scrolls round their heads, whereon are written the following select parts of their prophecies concerning the Messiah, his Resurrection, Judgment, &c.

"WINDOW 18. Hosea, O mors ero tua 'Oh Death, I will be thy plagues,' ch. xiii. v. 14. Amos, Qui edificat in cælum ascenscione- He that buildeth his stories in heaven,' ch. ix. v. 6. Malachi, Sedam ad vos judicio; et ero testis velox-'I will come near to you in judgment, and I will be a swift witness,' ch. iii. v. 5. Joel, In valle Josephat judicabit omnes gentes' In the valley of Jehosephat shall he judge all nations,' ch. iii. v. 2.

"WINDOW 19. Zephaniah, Invocabuntur omnes eum et servient ei-' They shall call upon him and serve him,' ch. iii. v. 9. Micah, Eum odium habueris dimitte-Put away from thee hatred.' Ezechiel, Oʻvam [?] vos de sepulchris vestris pop'le meus-'Oh, my people, I will raise you out of your graves,' ch. xxxvii. v. 12. Obadiah, Et erit

"WINDOW 13. There are in this window, the primitive Fathers-St. Jerome, St. Gregory, St. Ambrose, and St. Augustin.

"WINDOW 14. King David sitting in judgment against the Amalekite for slaying Saul, as exprest in 2nd Samuel, chap. i. verse 10; and ordering his servants to fall upon the Amalekite for so doing.

"WINDOW 15. The fifteenth is the great west window, representing the Day of Judgment. In the upper part, Christ sits on the rainbow, and has the earth for his footstool; he is surrounded by cherubims and seraphims, and it is supposed that the Sword on his left hand, and the Lily on his right, are intended to represent the attributes of Justice and Mercy. Below St. Michael weighs a wicked person in one scale, against a good one in the other; and though a Devil attempts to turn the scale, the good outweighs the bad. The dead are rising from their graves (some with the grave-clothes on their backs, and others with them on their arms) to come to judgment. From the mouth of an angel, receiving a saint into heaven, proceeds a label, on which is written Omnis spi-s lauda D'um-'Oh, all my spirit praise God.' St. Peter, with the key, lets the blessed spirits into heaven, thus expressing himself: Gratias agam Dño deo pro-'I will give thanks unto God for this extraordinary gift"; alluding no doubt to the extraordinary powers which some suppose that apostle to be endowed with above others. When they pass from him, they are clothed in white, and crowned with crowns of glory, accompanied with this sentence, Bene-vit-deus in donis suis God hath blessed their lives with his own gifts.' On one side is the representation of Hell, with the great Devil, drawn with red and white teeth, three eyes, and scaly legs and face. Some are going to hell headlong; some on the devils' backs; and some on their arms. There is Dives in Hell, praying for a drop of water to cool his tongue, and Lazarus is placed in contrast among the blessed in Abraham's bosom; also, a woman going to Hell in a wheelbarrow, for scolding at her husband, with many other devices agreeable to the gross ideas of the designer. This window is of high estimation.

"WINDOW 16. This window is a little imperfect. In it is the representation of King Solomon determining to which of the two harlots the live child belonged; Midas, King of Phrygia, with asses' ears; Samson slaying the Philistines with the jawbone of an ass; Dalilah, that bereft him of his strength by cutting off his hair; two

ν. 21.

"WINDOW 20. Jeremiah, Datorem invocabatis qui fecit et indidit [?] selos-"Thou shalt call him the giver of all things, even he who hath made and established the heavens.' David, Deus dixit en filius meus es tu, ego hodie genui te-God said, thou art my son, this day have I begotten thee.' Psalm ii. v. 7. Isaiah, Ecce virgo concipiet, et pariet filium- Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son,' ch. vii. v. 14. Zachariah, Suscitabo filios tuos-'I will raise up thy sons,' ch. ix. 13.

"N.B.-The passages of Scripture are not agreeable to any of the translations now in use with us.

"The other eight windows are in the body of the church; in the four on the north side, the persecutors of the church are portrayed with devils over their heads. "WINDOW 21. Domitian, Trajan, and Adrian. "WINDOW 22. Antonine; Nero drawn with a red face, in allusion to his cruelty; and Marcus Aurelius.

"WINDOW 23. Herod destroying the young children; Severus, who came into Britain with his army, and was slain at York about the year 214; and Maximinus.

"WINDOW 24. Decius and Annanias, and Caleb that bought our Saviour of Judas.

"In the four windows on the south side of the body of the church are the twelve Roman emperors, preservers of the church, viz. Philippus, Valerianus, &c., with angels over them.

"The whole is extremely neat, and the lead of some of the windows so disposed as to serve for the darker shades. "In the historical pieces are represented many other figures and circumstances not mentioned in this short account, but which are very proper appendages to the main subjects. The whole was very happily preserved from the fury of men of intemperate zeal, in the great civil wars, by the care of Mr. Oldisworth, the impropriator, and others, not by turning the figures upside down, as some suppose (for they never minded which end was upwards, if they were but images and paintings), but by securing the glass in some private place till the Restoration, when it was put up again; but for want of skill in the person who had the direction, part of it was transposed, which accounts for the derangement and disorder apparent in placing the latter persecutors before the former.

"About the year 1725 the Honourable Mrs. Farmer gave the wire frames, which are placed before the windows on the outside, to preserve the glass from accidents."

The volume from which I have extracted the foregoing account is a thick quarto of more than five hundred pages. It is entitled

"A Guide to the Painted Altar-Pieces, Stained Glass Windows, and Valuable Pictures, in various Ecclesiastical Edifices in England and on the Continent, containing an account of the first Introduction of the Art of Painting on Glass in this Country; Instructions for the Preparation of Colours, and the Process for Enamelling the same; also a Description of Ancient Symbols formerly painted on Glass for Ornaments in the Romish Church; and Notices of upwards of Four hundred Scripture Subjects, painted on Glass, in Oil, Fresco, and Needle-work, in the magnificent Churches of Gouda in Holland, Fairford in Gloucestershire; the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge; Lincoln's Inn Chapel; and other Sacred Buildings, remarkable for fine specimens of pictorial talent; with other information and curious plates, to illustrate the work. 'Templa quam dilecta.' 1839."

At the end of this subject is an addendum, entitled

"Sacred Vessels, Types, and Emblems, formerly used in Religious Ceremonies among the Jews. Also Portraits of Saints and Evangelists, with their Symbols, and other devices, as originally painted in Churches for Ornaments, when the Art of Enamelling on Glass was first introduced into England."

are

The entire book is very neatly written and profusely illustrated with a great number of engravings of glass-windows, dows, many of which coloured, taken from various publications, and carefully laid down to illustrate the descriptions. It is furnished with a copious index, and seems to have been completed with a view to publication, or as a pet recreation of some veteran collector. The volume is handsomely half-bound, and is in excellent condition. The only clue to the authorship, or former ownership, is a book-plate, within the cover, on which appears a wood-engraving, representing an antique lamp on a book, surrounded by a wreath, and having beneath, the name "JOSEPH TAYLOR," and the motto from Dr. Johnson, "Curiosity is the thirst of the soul." Perhaps these indications may enable me to learn something of the history of this beautiful and interesting volume. WILLIAM BATES,

Birmingham.

"To preserve the Remembrance of the late dreadful Tempest, an exact and faithful Collection is preparing of the most remarkable Disasters which happened on that Occasion, with the Places where, and Persons concern'd, whether at Sea or on Shore. For the perfecting so good a Work, 'tis humbly recommended by the Author to all Gentlemen of the Clergy and others, who have made any Observations of this Calamity, that they would transmit as distinct an Account as possible of what they have observed to the Undertakers, directed to John Nutt, near Stationers' Hall, London. All Gentlemen that are pleas'd to send any such Accounts, are desired to write no Particulars but what they are well satisfied to be true, and

to set their Names to the Observations they send, which the Undertakers of this Work promise shall be faithfully Recorded, and the Favour publickly acknowledged."

The above appeal was liberally responded to, from all parts of the kingdom; and, shortly afterward, Defoe published the result in an octavo volume of nearly three hundred pages, entitled:

"The Storm: or, a Collection of the most remarkable Casualties and Disasters which happened in the late Dreadful Tempest, both by Sea and Land. London: Geo. Sawbridge, 1704."

The Rev. Edward Shipton's letter - which HENRY F. HOLT has forwarded to you, without any reference, and so that your readers might consider it an unpublished manuscript-will be found printed, verbatim, in the above work of Defoe, pp. 97-100.

I hope I may say, without offence, that a bibliophile, an archæologist, and an antiquary, should give reference and authority, especially as to any communication intended to be inserted in "N. & Q." W. LEE.

FAMILY OF NAPOLEON BONAPARTE (3rd S. xi. 507; 4th S. i. 38, 136, 304, &c.) - In p. 377 of Chevalier Artaud's "Italy" (L'Univers pittoresque, Europe, tome ii., Paris, 1857, ed. Didot), I recently met with the following passage, which, if authentic, is worth noticing:

"Un jour Napoléon interrogea Canova sur Alfieri, et Canova trouva occasion de rendre un important service à Florence, etc. etc. etc. Autoriser, Sire, le président de

l'académie de Florence à prendre soin des fresques et des tableaux.-Jele veux bien. Cela fera d'autant plus d'honneur à V. M., qu'on m'assure qu'elle est d'une famille noble florentine. A ces mots, l'impératrice (Marie-Louise) se tourna vers son époux, et dit: Comment, vous n'êtes pas Corse?-Si, répondit Napoléon, mais d'origine florentine. Canova reprit ainsi: Le président de l'académie de

Florence, le sénateur Alessandri, est d'une des plus illustres

maisons du pays, qui a eu une de ses dames mariée à un Bonaparte; ainsi vous êtes Italien, et nous nous en vantons. Je le suis certainement, ajouta Napoléon."

RHODOCANAKIS.

MADAME DE POMPADOUR (4th S. ii. 287.) -As I was the person who made a query in regard to the title of Duchess assigned to Madame Pompadour, I beg to thank His Highness PRINCE RHODOCANAKIS for the new information which he has now given. But I find in it an unexpected difficulty. The brevet says:

"Qu'elle jouisse pendant sa vie des mêmes honneurs,

rangs, préséances et autres avantages dont les duchesses jouissent."

This statement appears to me to leave her rank still a question. Was this the manner of creating a duchy in the time of the old monarchy? The declared to duchess; and the

wording of the brevet points toca possible dis tinction-namely, that being still in grade what she was before, nevertheless she is to enjoy a new precedence.

The case in England of younger sons and daughters of persons who would have been peers if they had survived long enough, throws no light on Madame de Pompadour's. The sovereign of this country grants those younger sons and daughters the rank which they would have had if their father had lived long enough; but the sovereign never creates a peerage by such a grant.

I am so likely to be mistaken in this matter, and the PRINCE is so little likely, that I assure him beforehand that I write chiefly with the view of obtaining more information through his hands.

Stuarts Lodge, Malvern Wells.

D. P.

HORACE VERNET (3rd S. iii. 112.) -The lovely and accomplished daughter of this celebrated artist-so much admired and wooed by so many whilst her father was director of the French Academy at Rome-was won there, in 1835, by one (sui generis) wholly worthy of her, the lamented Paul de la Roche. All three, alas! are now gone, but they live in their works. M. and Madame De la Roche have left two sons, Horace and Philippe, who bear their names most honourably, but have not felt inclination to follow the calling of their sires, thinking rightly that "noblesse oblige."

At Horace Vernet's funeral, Marshal Vaillant was present as "Ministre de la Maison de l'Empereur et des Beaux-Arts," and also as colleague at the "Institut" of the great painter, who made a full-length portrait of him in the trenches at the siege of Rome in 1849, which picture has been very faithfully lithographed by Léon Noël. P. A. L.

BURNS QUERIES (4th S. i. 553; ii. 283.) — It would gratify many lovers of literature if F. M. S. were to publish Dr. Thomson's account of Burns's death. A gentleman in Glasgow, the Rev. P. Н. Waddell, is now engaged on an edition of Burns, on which he is bestowing extraordinary pains. From DR. RAMAGE's statement it appears that Dr. Thomson attended the poet in his last illness merely as a friend of the family, not as a medical practitioner. A Mr. Brown, surgeon, and Dr. Maxwell, were the medical attendants. The late Joseph Parkes had a note of Burns's, addressed to Mr. Brown, asking for some more medicine, which he irreverently styled "extreme unction." Jessy

Lewars (Mrs. Thomson) was present at the poet's death, and she said that Burns, though tortured with rheumatism, was calm and resigned. C.

CURMUDGEON (3rd S. v. 219, 370.) - Permit me to refer your philological readers to a work

very insufficiently known here, Brinckmeier's Glossarium Diplomaticum. Therein (vol. i. pp. 568-9) will be found a few articles which may throw a new light upon this much-tried word; e.g. Curmedige, one "servilis conditionis," -curmede signifying what was possessed in absolute right: which suggests at once the analogous churl and villain, and may come nearer the mark than "corn-merchant," or even than "cœur-mechant."

W.

VAL OMBROSA (4th S. ii. 274.) - Many years have passed since I visited the Convent of Val Ombrosa, which your correspondent informs us is now dissolved. Some slight description of it may not be uninteresting at the present time:

"In March, 1834, we left Florence by the Porta Santa Croce, and traversed the Arezzo road to Pontasieve, from whence we ascended the hill to Pelago, a picturesquely situated village. Here it was necessary to procure horses. We wound along a romantic valley to a rustic bridge, where commences a steep ascent up a narrow paved way, winding through the luxuriant chestnut woods that clothe the declivities; ascending some distance, we arrive at some lofty pine woods which enclose a verdant lawn on which the convent is situated. It is a large square white building, surmounted by a tower of inelegant architecture. We were hospitably received by the frati, who gave us an excellent dinner, and showed us the interior of their chapel and convent, which however contained little worthy of observation. The situation was indeed superb : on one side the Tuscan Apennines and Vale of Arno appeared, with the surrounding country spread out before. us; the remainder was an amphitheatre of hills, clothed with pines, and partially covered with snow. Here a mountain torrent forced its way over rocks, and a little hermitage placed on a conical hill called Paradisino was most picturesque. This spot, from which Milton obtained his idea of Paradise, must ever be interesting:'Overhead up grew,

Insuperable height of loftiest shade,
Cedar and pine, and fir, and branching palm -
A sylvan scene; and as the ranks ascend,
Shade above shade, a woody theatre
Of stateliest view.'

"On our first arrival the fog, which had dissipated itself on the mountains, still remained below, and the scene presented resembled an extensive gulf, with occasional islands interspersed here and there. We lingered some time in this delicious retreat until the approaching evening warned us that Florence was distant, and we

must depart."

THOMAS E. WINNINGTON.

WHITMORE'S HERALDIC PROPOSAL (4th S. ii. 10.)-In reply to the inquiry of SP., I have to say that my pamphlet in favour of regulating the use of coat-armour in the United States contains no reference to Mr. Archer's Plea. I have never seen Mr. Archer's little essay until this week, when I have obtained a copy from London by the