608 



NOTES AND QUERIES. 



[No. 139. 



THOMAS GILL, THE BLIND MAN OF ST. EDMUNDSBURT' 



Putting in order this morninp; a mass of pam- 

 phlets, which my women-kind threaten to sweep 

 into the kitchen unless more tidily kept, I came 

 upon a few poetical tracts by " Thomas Gill, the 

 Blind Man of St. Edmundsbury." Not having 

 had any previous acquaintance with this poetical 

 moralist, I have looked over the lot ; but beyond 

 the above description of himself upon their titles, 

 they afford little information regarding their author. 



There is, however, proof, in The Blind Man's 

 Case at London^ 1711, that Gill was a character in 

 his day. In what he loftily calls " The Argument" 

 to these eight pages of doggrel, he says : 



" Tl)c Blind Man of Bury by the Persuasions of his 

 Printer, and some other supposed Friends, takes his 

 Wife with him to London, with an Intention to settle 

 there, where they met with so many Inconveniences, 

 and so great Difficulties and Charges, as soon disgusted 

 them with the Place." 



Hereupon the blind man, finding himself dis- 

 appointed in his expectations of, apparently, a 

 larger sphere for his begging operations, opens out 

 upon the metropolis in a fine round style of abuse 

 in his " Letter to his Good Friend and Benefactor 

 at Bury." 



Desirous that my successor in the O 



library should have the advantage of all the in- 

 formation I can collect, in regard to the biblio- 

 graphical curiosities therein contained, I am in- 

 duced to avail myself of the medium your pages 

 afford to inquire whether any of your Suffolk an- 

 tiquaries can give me, or point out where I can 

 help myself to, any particulars touching my new 

 friend with an old face. J. O. 



BRONZE MEDALS. 



Having applied in vain to several distinguished 

 numismatists respecting certain bronze medals in 

 my cabinet, which have baflfled my own researches, 

 I now beg to seek for information through the 

 medium of " N. & Q.," to which I have been al- 

 ready much indebted ; and have little doubt but 

 that among your many intelligent correspondents 

 some one will be found to solve my dlfiiculties. 



The medals to which I refer, and which I will 

 describe very briefly, are the following ; and I am 

 desirous of obtaining some account of the persons 

 in whose honour they were struck : — 



\. Astalia. Size (Mionnet's scale), 16. "Diva 

 Julia Astalia," Bust to the left. Rev. " Unicum 

 for. et pud. Exemplum." A phanix rising from 

 its ashes. Probably not later than the early part 

 of the sixteenth century. 



2. Concstagius. Size, 15 1^. " Hieronlmus Cone- 

 stagius, MDXC." Bust in armour to the right, 

 with ruff round the neck. Beneath, " mart, s***." 



Rev. A pen and a sword in saltire. An oval in 

 high relief, of Italian workmanship, 



3. Meratus. Size, 13|-. " Franciscus Meratus 

 i.p.r." Bearded bust to the right. Rev. " Me Duce 

 Tutus Eris," A figure seated holding a book in its 

 right hand. Query the meaning of the initials 

 after the name ? 



4, Aragonia. Size, 13. " D. Maria Aragonia." 

 Bust to the right, with a crown falling from her 

 head. Rev. None. 



5, Ilanna. Size, 18. " Mai-tinus de Hanna." 

 Bust in a gown, to the right. Rev. " Spes mea in 

 Deo est." A full-length figure, with hands clasped 

 and raised towards heaven : apparently a foreign 

 Protestant divine. 



6. Corsi. Size, 20, " Laura Corsi March, Sal- 

 viati." Hooded bust to the left, with crucifix sus- 

 pended from the neck. Beneath, " mdccviii," 

 Rev, "Mens immota manet." Full-length female 

 figure, with helmet on her head, leaning on a spear 

 round which a serpent is twined, with a stag by 

 her side. In the background, on one side, is re- 

 presented a castle on a wooded height; on the 

 other, a vessel is seen labouring in a storm. A 

 striking medal ; and the lady's portrait makes one 

 feel interested to learn her history, which seem- 

 ingly ought to be known : but I must confess my 

 ignorance even whether the Marquisate of Salviati 

 be in Italy or Sicily. John J. A, Boase. 



P,S. — John de Silva, Count de Portal egre, who 

 accompanied Don Sebastian in his expedition to 

 Africa against Muley Moloch, published at Genoa 

 in 1585 a work entitled DeW Vnione del Regno di 

 Portogallo alia Corona di Castiglia, un^er the 

 name of Conestaggio ; but not having the book by 

 me, I do not know whether the Chi-istian name 

 "Geronimo" also appears, 



[The remainder of the title-page reads, " Istoria Del 

 Sig. leronimode Franchi Conestaggio Gentilhuomo 

 Genovese."] 



acworth queries. 



In the church of St. Mary Luton, Beds, there 

 is a brass slab bearing the figures of a knight and 

 his two wives, with the following inscription : 



" Pray for the soules of John Acworth Squyer and 

 Alys and Amy his wyfes, which John deceased the 

 xvij day of March the yer of our Lord ji'v^xiij. On 

 whose souls Jhu have mercy." 



For arms, he bore quarterly, 1st and 4th, erm. 

 on a chief indented gu, 3 coronets or, 2nd and 

 3rd, or, between 3 roses a chev. gu. 



In the reign of Henry VIII. there was one Johan 

 Acworth (a lady of the bedchamber to Katherine 

 Howard), who married Sir John Bulmer, and went 

 to reside at York. 



John Acworth was, I believe, succeeded by his 

 son, George Acworth, who married Margaret, the 



