—Can any of you correspondents furnish me with the arms borne by the Allens of Rossull and Redivales, Lancashire? Of this family was the celebrated Cardinal Allen. Also the arms borne by the Pendleburys, another Lancashire family?
J.C.
Number of the Children of Israel.
—In Exod. xii. 37. it is stated that the numbers of the children of Israel constituting the Exodus was "600,000 men," "besides children." No specific mention is made of women: it will be diminishing the difficulty if the 600,000 are considered the aggregate of the adults of both sexes. It is said that the time the Israelites remained in Egypt was 430 years (Ex. xii. 40.). The number who were located in Egypt was seventy (Gen. xlvi. 27.). I wish to ascertain from some competent statistician what, under the most favourable circumstances, would be the increase of seventy people in 430 years? I am aware that Professor Lee, in his invaluable translation of the Book of Job, is of opinion that 215 years is the time the Israelites actually remained in Egypt; and the remainder must be considered the previous time they were in Canaan. If the Professor's calculation be adopted, the statistician could easily show the difference at 215 and 430 years.
ÆGROTUS.
Computatio Eccles. Anglic.
—In Bishop Burnet's "Hist. of the Reform.," vol. ii. of first folio edition, London, 1679, Coll. of Records, b. ii. p. 100. No. XL. is "An instrument of the speech of the Archbishop of Canterbury (Chicheley) made to the House of Commons about it," scilicet, Statute of Provisors. It begins as follows:—
"Die Veneris, penultimo mensis Januarii, A.D. secundum cursum et computationem Ecclesiæ Anglicanæ millesimo quadringentesimo decimo septimo, indictione sexta, pontificatus.... Martini Papæ quinti anno undecimo."
Now as Martin V. was chosen Pope by the Council of Constance, November 11, 1417, his eleventh year would extend over January, 1428, and the sixth indiction answers to the same year, which would, however, be styled 1427 in ecclesiastical documents till March 25. Can the Computatio Eccles. Anglic. mean anything more than a reference to the distinction between the ecclesiastical and historical times of commencing the year? If it does not, decimo septimo must be an error for vicesimo septimo, made in transferring the numeral letters into words. Has this error been corrected in subsequent editions of Burnet?
H.W.