Replies.
SCOTTISH REGALIA.
(Vol. iv., p. 208.)
The story referred to by Jeremy Taylor reminds me of a somewhat similar instance of dishonest astuteness I lately heard of in Scotland, from an old Highlander; the which, though courtesy forbade me to dispute, I at the time received "cum grano," and have since been unable to verify. It was as follows:
The custodians (whether rightful or not, I know not, as no date was assigned to the action of the narrative) of the Scottish regalia being bound by an oath to deliver it to the Governor of Carlisle, as the nearest representative of the English sovereign, by a certain day, determined upon a plan for performing (!), and at the same time evading, their promise. Having selected the most able steed in Scotland, a suitable deputation escorted the regalia and the horse to the appointed place of tradition. The embassy carrying with them the more valuable and portable of their treasures—the jewels, not the horse, of which hereafter,—were duly admitted to an audience with the governor, who received them in the presence of the principal inhabitants of Carlisle: and having produced and surrendered the regalia (and doubtless taken an acquittance!), surreptitiously, and with gipsey adroitness, regained possession of it, and conveying it from the audience chamber, immediately delivered it to an expectant messenger; who, mounted on the before-mentioned horse, awaited its return outside the hall; and who, ventre à terre, pursued his eager flight across the border, nor once drew rein until his precious burden was again deposited in the custody of Scottish tenure. Whether the deputation was dismissed, and escaped before the discovery of its chicanery, or whether the conspirators received the well-merited punishment of their audacious dissimulation, my informant knew not. And although the story tells more in favour of the astuteness than the honesty of his countrymen (if true), he narrated it with considerable unction, and declared that it was generally believed and admired in Scotland; the patriotism displayed, the dangerous nature of the enterprise, and the success which attended it, palliating any stigma which might attach to the want of faith, double dealing, and casuistry which marked the transaction.
The method by which the horse's title to be considered the ablest in Scotland was ascertained, was ingenious. The horses the most renowned for fleetness and endurance were secretly collected, and having been deprived of water for a considerable time, were presently, one by one, permitted to bury their heads in the grateful bucket, and the duration of each draught was scrupulously watched and recorded; the animal that retained its nostrils for the longest time immersed being selected for the honour of rescuing the royal treasure, as having given proofs of its superior wind and bottom.
Is any credit to be attached to the story: and if historical, can any reader inform me where it is recorded?
C. A.
St. John's Wood.
GOSPEL OAKS.
(Vol. v., pp. 157. 209.)
The replies of FABER, EXON., and P. T. to the inquiry of STEPHEN, concerning the origin of Gospel Oaks, are not very explanatory.
The oak was consecrated to the god of thunder—Ang.-Sax., Thunor; Gallic, Taranis; Irish, Toran; Anc. N. Thorr—as being more generally struck by lightning than any other tree; and the acorn was called by the Romans Jovis glans, the fruit of the supreme god.
"Quercus Jovi placuit."
Phædrus, III. 17.
"Magna Jovis antiquo robore quercus."
Virg. Georg. III. 332.
At Dodona stood the δρῦς ὑψίκομος Διός.—Od. XIV. 327. Woods, groves, and trees were the temples and sacred emblems of the Deity among the greater part of the Pagans, but especially among the Teutonic and Celtic tribes. Maximus Tyrius, an author of the second century, informs us, concerning the worship of the Celts:
"Κελτοὶ σέβουσι μὲν Δία, ἄγαλμα δὲ Διὸς Κελτικὸν ὑψηλὴ δρῦς."
And Tacitus gives us the oldest testimonies concerning the Germans, Germ. 9.:
"Ceterum, nec cohibere parietibus Deos, neque in ullam humani oris speciem assimulare, ex magnitudine cœlestium arbitrantur. Lucos ac nemora consecrant, Deorumque nominibus appellant secretum illud, quod sola reverentia vident."
Vid. Germ. 39. cap. 40. cap. 43., &c.
Also, a passage of the later Claudian is to the same purpose:
Ut procul Hercyniæ per vasta silentia silvæ
Venari tuto liceat, lucosque vetusta
Religione truces, et robora Numinis instar
Barbarici, nostræ feriant impune bipennes.
Cons. Stilich. I. 288.
From these passages it will be seen that the gods dwelt in these groves, and that sacred vessels and altars were placed there, but no images; neither were temples erected.[2] The practice of worshipping the gods in woods and trees continued for many centuries, till the introduction of Christianity (Vid. Willibald, A.D. 786, in Vita Bonifacii), and the converters did not disdain to adopt every means to raise Christian cultus to higher authority than that of Paganism, by acting upon the senses of the heathen, e.g. using white robes for those baptized, lighting of candles, burning of incense, &c.; and they erected the Christian churches, for the most part, upon the site of Pagan tree or temple; Sulp. Severus (ed. Amst. 1665), p. 485.:
"Nam ubi fana destruxerat (Martinus), statim ibi aut ecclesias aut monasteria construebat."
Dietm. V. Merseb., 7. 52., p. 859.:
"Fana idolorum destruens incendit, et mare dæmonibus cultum inmissis quatuor lapidibus, sacro Chrismate perunctis et aqua purgans benedicta, novam Domino ... plantationem eduxit."
[2] Brissonius De Regno Pers. II. 28.: "Persæ diis suis nulla templa vel altaria constituunt, nulla simulacra."
The heathen gods were represented as impotent, in opposition to the true God, though not as powerless in themselves, and were converted into inimical evil powers, which must submit, but could nevertheless exercise a certain hurtful influence.
Some heathen traditions and superstitions remained, their names only being altered into those of Christ, Maria, and the saints. In this manner they spared the assuefactions of the people, and made them believe that the sacredness of the place was not lost, but henceforth depended on the presence of the true God.
The above facts will perhaps sufficiently explain the origin of the Gospel Oak.
PROFESSOR THEODORE GOEDES.
Hampden House, Reading.
There is a tree called by this name a few miles from Winchester, in the parish of Tichborne or Cheriton,—I think the latter, but have no means of ascertaining at the present moment. Mention of it is made in Duthy's Sketches of Hampshire.
L. G.
MITIGATION OF CAPITAL PUNISHMENT TO A FORGER.
(Vol. iv., p. 434.)
The case related by MR. GATTY is interesting, but requires sifting. Perhaps he will be good enough to do it, or to put me on the trail. As the energetic sister may be a reader of "N. & Q.," I do not wish to annoy her by printing the forger's name, but I shall be glad to have the place and date of the conviction.
About twenty years ago, the rule of hanging for forgery was broken in the case of Fry, a school-master, who was sentenced to death without any hope of mercy, and not reprieved till he had heard the "condemned sermon"—I think, not till the day before that which was fixed for his execution. He showed great fear; rolled upon the chapel floor, and delivered to the sheriffs a well-written protest against the right to inflict capital punishment. His being spared caused much surprise; and between that event and the abolition of the punishment of death for forgery, few, if any, were executed for that crime.
The sister, falling, at the feet of Baron G——, who "was notorious for his unflinching obduracy," is a melo-dramatic event which, I think, would have found its way to the newspapers. But the most extraordinary thing is the conclusion:
"The forger was placed in the hulks prior to transportation; and before this took place he had forged a pass or order from the Home Secretary's office for his own liberation, which procured his release, and he was never afterwards heard of."
Letters to convicts in the hulks are opened by the officers before being delivered to the prisoners. It is not usual for the Home Secretary to write to a convict enclosing "a pass or order." On the contrary, a pardon is attended with a good number of formalities, and without one I do not think that any convict would have been allowed to quit the vessel. In that class of prisoners, leave of absence on parole, or a "day rule," would have been something peculiar enough to make the turnkey ask, "Where did you get this?" In short, a convict who made his escape as described must be as extraordinary a person as the strong American, who could sit in a basket and lift himself upon a table by the handles.
"She returned to the city at which the assizes had been held just as they were concluded. The two judges were in the act of descending the cathedral nave, after partaking of the Holy Sacrament, when," &c.
It is usual for the judges to attend divine service on the commission-day if they arrive soon enough, or the day after if they do not. If a Sunday occur during the sitting of the commission, they also attend; but I never knew, and on inquiring I cannot hear, that they ever so attended at the close of the assizes, when they are always glad to get on to the next town, if the circuit is not concluded, and away altogether if it is.
H. B. C.
U. U. Club.
LORDS MARCHERS OF WALES.
(Vol. v., pp. 30. 135. 189.)
Allow me to call upon your correspondent I. J. H. H., who dates from St. Asaph, to explain what he means by a Lordship Marcher; and what proof he possesses that his friend Mr. Lloyd is the "only Lord Marcher now extant in the kingdom?" The most authentic single record which we possess of the number, names, and situation of these lordships is the statute 27 Hen. VIII. ch. 26. The writs issued to the Lords Marchers, at various times before that statute, would perhaps furnish materials for a more exact enumeration of them; but the above Act was unquestionably intended to include all of them; and the only reason why the information conveyed by it is not complete is, that some of the names specified in it may perhaps be those of townships, or other districts within, or parcel of, some Lordship Marcher, and that other lordships seem to be comprehended under a general description, such as "all lordships lying between Chepstow Bridge and Gloucestershire." Hence, the number of real Lordships Marchers may, perhaps, be fewer or more than are there mentioned. Herbert, in his History of Henry VIII., says that there were 141 Lordships Marchers. (Kennett's Compl. Hist., vol. ii. p. 189.)
The lordship of Kemes is not, I think, specified in the Act; but I presume that it is comprehended within some of the descriptions of lordships in it. Probably it is included in sect. 16. In old writs of summons to attend the King in his wars, Kemes is associated with Dyvett or with Llandovery.
The statute referred to did, in fact, extinguish the most characteristic privileges of a Lordship Marcher, and reduced it nearly to the level of an ordinary lordship, with such royalties only as have often been granted, and are still enjoyed, by Lords of Manors, or honours in other parts of England and Wales. The franchises left to them are enumerated in sections 25. and 30., explained by the later statute 1 & 2 Phil. & Mary, ch. 15. The palatine jurisdiction which they once possessed, and the exemption from ordinary process, exist no longer; and the various local customs prevailing in each lordship, which were repugnant to the common law of England, must have been almost wholly abolished by the operation of that Act. The lordships themselves remain in name, and in little more than in name.
Hence I am afraid that I. J. H. H.'s friend must be prepared to surrender the distinction of being the sole surviving Lord Marcher. In the strict and original sense of the term, there is now no such lordship in existence. In the sense in which alone the title can now be assumed, he shares the honour with many others; among others, with the Duke of Beaufort, who holds the very extensive and important Marcher Seignory of Gower and Kilvey.
Probably the number of private lordships of this kind is not now great; for, at the passing of the above statute, the majority were in the Crown; and if any have since been re-granted, it is most likely that their franchises and tenure would be so modified as to leave no vestige of the Marcher privileges in them.
The statement of your correspondent suggests to me another doubt. How could any Lordship Marcher be "erected by Martin of Tours?" Every such lordship must be of the creation of the Crown, either shown or presumed. The date of the establishment of these marcherships is so ancient that, perhaps, no one may have actually seen any document to prove them but charters of confirmation and inquisitions post-mortem; still the law refers their origin to specific Crown grants, and not to the act or authority of a mere subject. If, therefore, Martin, who was a tenant in capite of the Crown, founded the lordship of Kemes, he must have done—as the military invaders of Ireland in a subsequent reign did—conquered the territory with his own arms, and obtained palatine jurisdiction over it, with the assent and by the authority of the King.
Let me add, that the MS. treatise in the Harleian Collection (referred to ante, p. 135.) is printed in Pennant's Wales, and, more correctly, in vol. ii. of the Transactions of the Cymmrodorion Society. It is much to be lamented that the treatise on the Lordships Marchers, bequeathed by Sir Matthew Hale to the Society of Lincoln's Inn, is not to be found in that library. If the work was composed by that eminent judge himself, it must be one of the highest value and authority. Does any one possess it, or a copy of it?
E. SMIRKE.
DOCTRINE OF THE RESURRECTION.
(Vol. iii., p. 374.)
"Can any of your readers inform me of any traces of the doctrine of the resurrection before the Christian era?" I shall endeavour as briefly as possible to do justice to this important subject by giving extracts from, and references to, various authors, especially Hody in his work The Resurrection of the (Same) Body Asserted from the Traditions of the Heathens, &c. The arguments derived from this source are as follow:—
1. "The gross notions of the heathens concerning the soul in its state of separation, that it has all the same parts as the body has."
Confer Farmer on the Worship of Human Spirits in the Ancient Heathen Nations, p. 419. et seq.; Æschyli Persæ, v. 616.; and Blomfield's note; Nicolaus de Sepulchris Hebræorum, &c., cap. ix. and xiv.
2. "Their opinion concerning the transmigration of souls." Confer Vossii Idololat., lib. i. c. x.
3. "Their opinion concerning the duration of the soul as long as the body lasted, and its adherence to the body after death," v. Cicero, Tuscul. Quæst., lib. i.; Lucret., lib. iii. Concerning the opinion of the Egyptians, v. Greenham on Embalming.
4. "The belief that some men have ascended up into heaven in their bodies, there to remain for ever," v. Hody.
5. "That others have done so even after death upon a re-union of their souls and bodies." (H.) "There were not only certain persons under the law and among the Jews who were raised to life; but there were also histories among the Gentiles of several who rose the third day; and Plato mentioneth another who revived the twelfth day after death, Plato de Rep., lib. x.; Plin. lib. vii. 52., "De his qui elati revixerunt;" Philostrat. lib. iii. c. xiii."—Pearson on the Creed. There are histories of this description in Bonifacii Hist. Ludiceæ, p. 561. et seq.
6. "The opinion of the Pythagoreans and Platonists, &c., concerning the restitution of our bodies, and of all other things in the world to their former state, after the revolution of many ages, by a new birth or production." On the Platonic year confer Gale's Court of the Gentiles, book iii. c. 7.; on the Phœnix cycle of the Egyptians, Rev. Edw. Greswell's Fasti Catholici and Origines Calendariæ. By some this restitution is considered as merely astronomical, v. Costard's Hist. of Astronomy, p. 131. "The opinion of some of the Genethliacal writers, that the soul returns and is united to the same body in the space of 440 years."—Varro ap Aug. de Civit. xxii. 28.; Jackson's Works, vol. iii. p. 424. "The opinion of the Stoics concerning the reproduction of all the same men, &c., after the general conflagration," v. Eusebii Praep. Evang., lib. xv.; M. Antonin. Imp., lib. xi. The resurrection was asserted by the Persian Magi, the Indian Brachmans, and other philosophers both oriental and western. "Thus we have demonstrated what evident notices the heathens had of the last conflagration, with the ensuing judgment, and man's immortal state; and all from sacred oracles and traditions."—Gale, ut suprà.
BIBLIOTHECAR. CHETHAM.
CAN A CLERGYMAN MARRY HIMSELF?
(Vol. v., p. 370.)
A Query has been put respecting a clergyman marrying himself. Such a thing did once occur in the case of the Rev. J. D. T. M. F——g, curate of the parish of S——n M——t, Somersetshire. The parish register informs us that—
"On three several Sundays, namely, on the 22nd and 29th days of July, and the 5th August in the year 1787, banns of marriage were published in the parish church between J. D. T. M. F——g and H. V. B——t; and after the third publication, no impediment being alleged, the said J. D. T. M. F——g and H. V. B——t were immediately married in the face of the congregation, on the 5th of August, 1787, by J——n F——g curate."
The parties' names are appended to the form "This marriage was solemnised between us;" and then follows, "in the presence of" two witnesses who signed their names, one of them being the "clark," as he spelt the word. The event occurred "on a Sacrament Sunday." An aged parishioner, who was about seventy-four or seventy-five years of age when my informant wrote, perfectly remembered the ceremony; and added, that previously to Mr. F.'s return from the Lord's Table to the reading desk, in order to continue the service, from the Second Lesson, he exchanged a kiss with his blushing bride! It appears that, owing to several persons having disputed the validity of this marriage, the said parties were re-married by the Rev. W. N——s, officiating minister, on the 9th October in the same year.
I have heard that Mr. F. was always regarded as an eccentric man, if not deranged. I think I have heard that the bride was a milk girl, with whom the reverend gentleman fell in love because "she reminded him of his first love!" The marriage was decidedly opposed by his relatives and friends, which led to the above-mentioned singular occurrence. I believe, before performing the ceremony himself, Mr. F. publicly inquired "whether there was any one provided to marry him?" As there was not, he proceeded to the performance of the ceremony himself.
I have heard also of some such case of a clergyman marrying himself in Ireland. But the marriage was, I believe, pronounced null and void, and the clergyman deposed from the ministry.
Connected with this subject, I would relate another circumstance related to me as a fact by a clergyman, now a surrogate, who for very many years was curate of the parish adjoining that in which it occurred. He related it to justify and to explain his own somewhat unusual practice of using the surnames as well as Christian names of the parties throughout the Marriage Service, saying that in the parish of B——y, Gloucestershire, the not doing so led to the wrong couple being married, owing to the stupidity of the parties and their friends! The rector, Rev. Mr. M——d, on discovering the mistake, formally pronounced the whole proceeding null and void, and then married the right couple!
A correspondent lately inquired whether a person could be buried in a garden! In N——h, Gloucestershire, such a thing occurred about sixteen years ago. An eccentric old gentleman built a kind of summer-house in his garden, and prepared his own tomb in it, and was there buried according to his directions. I rather think the funeral service was read, under the express sanction of the bishop, by the rector of an adjoining parish, who was a friend of the deceased.
E. W. D.