May 8. 1852.] 



NOTES AND QUERIES. 



449 



he may have been mistaken for his namesake, 

 Denham the poet. Este. 



Constable of Scotland (Vol. v., pp. 297. 350.).— 

 In vol. i. p. 175. of the Analecta Scotica (Edinburgh, 

 1834) will be found some curious " fragments 

 relative to the office of Great Constable of Scot- 

 land," more particularly before it became heritable 

 in the noble family of Erroll. E. N. 



The Iron Plate in Lewes Castle (Vol. v., p. 342.). 

 — In answer to A. W. I beg to say that the iron 

 plate was taken from the ruins of a cottage which 

 was burnt down on the estate of Sir Henry Shiff- 

 ner some time since ; it formed the fire-back of the 

 kitchen : the inscription was turned to the wall, 

 and therefore not visible. 



This inscription is a fac-simile of the iron plate 

 placed to the memory of Ann Forster in the 

 church of Crowhurst in Surrey, and it would ap- 

 pear that the founder cast several plates similar to 

 that in Lewes Castle, which are known to exist and 

 be used as fire-backs. See Brayley and Britton's 

 History of Surrey, vol. iv. p. 131., and note at 

 foot of the same page. William Figg. 



Lewes. 



The monumental (cast iron ?) plate in Lev/es 

 Castle, referred to by A. W., probably came from 

 the church of Crowhurst in Surrey, where there 

 are several monuments to members of the family 

 of Gaynsford, and there were (in Sept. 1847, when 

 I visited the building) more than one iron plate 

 in the pavement with inscriptions of the exact 

 character of that at Lewes, and with the letters 

 similarly inverted and reversed. My impression 

 is that I saw the memorial in question in the 

 church ; but I cannot now discover the notes I 

 made on the subject at the time, nor a rubbing 

 which I took of another iron'plate of a more ornate 

 though not less rude character. I remember, in 

 passing within sight of the church on the Dover 

 llailway, since 1847, to have noticed scaffolding 

 about the tower ; possibly the plate now at Lewes 

 may have been removed at that time. R. C. H. 



The plate was presented to the Antiquarian 

 Museum in Lewes Castle by Sir H. Shiifner, Bart., 

 about two years ago, when he rescued It from a 

 farm-house burnt down on his property near 

 Lewes. It has been traced to a cottage where 

 it previously served the same purpose as at the 

 fixrm-house, as back to the fire-place; but no 

 further record of its former history can be disco- 

 vered. It is not unusual, however, to find mo- 

 numental plates thus desecrated. E. A. S. 



Chelwoldeshury (Vol. v., p. 346.). — Allow me 

 to suggest to your correspondent W. H, K. the 

 possibility that the name in question may origin- 

 ally have been Ceolwoldsburh or Ceolweardesburh, 

 L e. the burgh or castle of Ceohoold or Ceohceard, 

 analogously with Brihthelmstun, now contracted 



into Brighton. The A.-S. ce has constantly been 

 corrupted into che. D. 



"■The King's Booke" (Vol. v., p. 389.).— The 

 printer's account supplied by Mr. Buktt does not 

 relate, except possibly to a very trifling extent, to 

 the Basilicon Doron ; but it is evidently Robert 

 Barker's bill, mainly in the matter of King James's 

 Apologie for the Oath cf Allegiance. R. G. 



Key Experiments (Vol. v., pp. 152. 293.). — In 

 an edition of Hudibras of 1704 appears the follow- 

 ing "annotation" to the line "As Friar Bacon's 

 noddle was:" — 



" The tradition of Friar Bacon and the Brazen-head 

 is very commonly known, and considering the times he 

 lived in, is not much more strange than what another 

 great philosopher of his name has since deh'ver'd of a 

 ring that, being ty'd in a string, and held like a pen- 

 dulum in the middle of a silver bowl, will vibrate of 

 itself, and tell exactly against the sides of the divining- 

 cup the same thing with, Time is, Time was, &c." 



I have tried this experiment with the ring, and 

 find the oscillation takes place as described by 

 Agmond with the shilling. If, however, the thread 

 is tightly pressed between the finger and thumb, 

 the vibration ceases. This latter circumstance 

 appears to support Agmond's idea, that the motive 

 power is due to the pulse, the circulation of the 

 blood ceasing by pressure. C. N. S. 



Rhymes on Places (Vol. v., p. 404.). — The 

 places mentioned in the following lines are all 

 within about four miles of each other in the 

 county of Gloucester, and twenty years ago the 

 adjectives exactly described the condition of the 

 people ; but the great civiliser, the steam-engine, 

 has now taken away the force of the description ; 

 and although the first and third lines may be as 

 true as ever, the second and fourth are not : — 

 " Beggarly Bisley, 

 Strutting Stroud, 

 Hampton poor. 

 And Painswick proud." 



AV. H. Baxter. 



Old Scots March, Sfc. (Vol. v., pp. 280. 331.). 

 — I have to thank both Mr. Crossley and Dr. 

 RiMBAULT for their information regarding the 

 Ports, of which I have willingly availed myself by 

 consulting the various works to which they refer ; 

 and I have been fortunate enough to see a transla- 

 tion of the greater portion of the Straloch lute- 

 book. Hitherto, however, I have failed in my 

 endeavours to discover two of the ports mentioned 

 by Mr. Tytler, namely. Port Gordon and Port 

 Seton, both of which I am anxious to obtain. 



E.N. 



Ecclesiastical Geography (Vol. v., p. 276.). — 

 Allow me to add to the list of books on this sub- 

 ject. Atlas sacer sive ecclesiasticus, Wiltscb, pub- 

 lished at Gotha in 1843. "VV. S. 



