316 



NOTES AND QUERIES. 



[2i.d s. X" 68., April 18, '57. 



of all, " Et cum Spiritu tuo " and other responds, 

 (ii. 334.) So Whitaker speaks of the clerks who 

 make responses to the priest in behalf of the whole 

 congregation, "whom they hire for a groat to stand 

 beside the priest at Mass." (First Controv. Quest, v. 

 ch. ix. p. 469.) " The Romanists say it is sufficient 

 if one only, whom they commonly call the Clerk, 

 understand the prayers, who is to answer Amen 

 in behalf of the whole congregation " (Quest, xi. 

 ch. xviii. p. 259.). Fulke argues that " the word 

 Clerus, 1 St. Peter v., which we translate ' parish ' 

 or ' heritage,' is confessed to comprehend in sig- 

 nification all Christians" (Def, Eng. TransL, 

 ch. vi. p. 275.) and Latimer inveighs against its 

 appropriation by ecclesiastics (Serm. on Lord's 

 Prayer, Dedic. p. 314.). The word Clerks, to 

 designate the assistants of the clergy, is still em- 

 ployed in the Book of Common Prayer, so that at 

 no time since the third century (see Bingham, 

 Orig. JEccles., bk. i. c. v. § 7.) has the appellation 

 been restricted to those in Holy Orders. The 

 origin of the title will be found in my English 

 Ordinal, iU History, &c„ ch, ii. pp. 17 — 19. 



Mackenzie Wai,cott, M.A. 



Thanks after the Gospel (2"'^ S, iii. 38. 237.)— In 

 the small church of St. Ethelburga, in Bighopsgate 

 Street, is stiU preserved the custom of chauntingthe 

 above thanksgiving, after the reading of the Holy 

 Gospel : as also the now almost obsolete form of 

 doing reverence at each recurrence of the " (Jlory 

 be to the Father," &c., during the service. 



Edward Y. Lownb. 



Not only in the mass of the B. Trinity, but in 

 all masses in the Catholic Church, " Laus tibi 

 Christe " is answered by the acolyths after the 

 Gospel. This practice dates from the eleventh 

 century, before which the responses varied. In 

 some places " Amen " was answered, in others 

 " Deo Gratias," and iq others " Benedictus qui 

 venit iji nomipe Domini." P. C- H. 



'^Pvll Devil, pull Baker" (2"* S. iii. 228. 258.) 

 — The true origin of this expression to denote a 

 violent contest is this. A certain baker in Lon- 

 don had supplied a Smyrna trader with such bad 

 biscuit, as to occasion sickness arjd death among 

 the crew. On her passage home from some port 

 in Italy, she was becalmed under the Isle of 

 Stromboli. and while thus stationary, they saw a 

 figure like the wicked baker on the verge of the 

 burning crater, struggling hard with somebody. 



As the smoke from the mountain cleared oW, the 

 captain could make out the person of the baker 

 distinctly ; and was also able to discover that his 

 opponent was no less a personage than the devil 

 himself! The object of Satan was to pull the 

 baker into the crater, while that of the baker was to 

 drag tlie demon from it. At first the victims of 

 the baker's knavery regarded the contest with de- 



light, he being in a fair way to receive his deserts ; 

 but when he seemed to make a good fight of it, 

 they forgot qll their vindictive feelings, and in th$ 

 true English spirit of fair play, cheered on the 

 combatants, clapping their hands, and vociferating, 

 " Pull devil, pull baker ! " as each in his turn 

 made a fair struggle for the mastery. The baker 

 fought well, but in such a contest the result could 

 not long be doubtful. When Satan found he had 

 such a tough-un to deal with, he rallied a little 

 more of his mettle, and soon dragged the poor 

 baker over the edge of the crater, which boiled 

 with rising fury to receive them. On returning 

 to England they found that the man h3,d died on 

 the very day and hour when they paw the fataj. 

 plunge. 



This, Mr. Editor, is the true and authentic 

 story : that about Old Booty, who so quietly ac- 

 companied the devil to Stromboli, is fudged from 

 it. Anon. 



Spinets (2°^ S. iii. 111.) — Spinets may yet be 

 found in old family mansions occasionally. I saw 

 one not long since. It was the shape of a grand 

 piano, but much smaller, and was valued as a cu- 

 riosity. It answered the description given of thsit 

 instrument in Rees'3 Cyclopcedia. P. P. 



Forge (2°* S. iii. 206.) — A young Cambridge 

 friend, specially qualified to take a high honour 

 in aquatics, informs me that he cannot suggest 

 any meaning of the verb " to forge," as used in 

 boat-races, save that in use at sea. He therefore 

 understands the word as signifying *' to go for- 

 ward, to advance;" as when one ship gradually 

 gains upon another, and is said to " forge ahead." 

 In this sense of the verb " to forge," I would de- 

 rive it from one or other of the many Dutch and 

 German words compounded with voor or vor 

 (before) ,• e. g., " vorziehen " (to draw ahead), 

 "voorgaen" and "vorgehen" (to go before). 

 The last seems the most likely. Taking heed to 

 pronounce the v like f, as usual in German, we 

 have vorgehen, forgehen — forge. Anon. 



Appearance of a Whale, ^c. (2"^ S. iii. 246.) — 

 There may be some humble Evelyn of the yeat 

 1857 who will have noted an advertisement for a 

 piece of ground some 40 feet by 60 feet " on which 

 to exhibit a whale," which appeared in The Times 

 about the end of the month of February ; if so, 

 in March the same year " said party " will in all 

 probability have also noted (see Household Words, 

 March 21) that the ground advertised for was 

 found, and the whale exhibited, in the Mile End 

 Road, London, till about March 14 ; making also 

 another note on the 21st day of the same month 

 to the effect that " on this day expired that as- 

 sembly of Honourable Members called the Com^ 

 mons (of 1852) in Parliament assembled." 



Let us hope that in a.,d, 2057 po " Turkish Spy]' 



