No. XXIX.—DOG LATIN
An old worn stone, with the inscription given below just legible, was found near to some ancient Roman remains, and was the valued possession of a local antiquarian, who was convinced that it dated back to the days of the Emperor Claudius:—
BENE
AT . HTH . IS . ST
ONERE . POS . ET
H . CLAUD . COS. TERT
R . I . P
ES . ELLE . RO
F . IMP
IN . G . TONAS . DO
TH . HISCO
N . SORTJ
A . N . E
His pride of possession was, however, shattered when a rival collector read it off into excellent English:—“Beneath this stone reposeth Claud Coster, tripe seller, of Impington, as doth his consort Jane.”
49
Here, as quite a novelty, is a double-barrelled missing words puzzle. As a puzzle, Part I. should stand alone, but the second part forms a thinly-veiled solution, which throws light upon the missing words. These are four in number and are spelt differently with the same six letters.
Part I
I tell of voices hushed and still,
I bid men prick their ears,
I help an army’s ranks to fill,
My gleam like gold appears.
Part II