2^^ S. X. Sai>T. 8. '60.] 



NOTES AND QUERIES. 



187 



that these neglected effigies of our kings should be trans- 

 ferred from their dark prison-house to Westminster 

 Abbey, where they would form an interesting link in the 

 series of British liistorical sculpture. There can be no 

 longer any harm in separating them from graves rifled 

 and empt}', and from an abbey now a prison. The French 

 government owes us some return for our ready compli- 

 ance with its wishes to possess the bones of Napoleon." 



Jos. G. 

 Inner Temple. 



St. James, Westminster. — The following no- 

 tice of the religious condition of this parish at the 

 commencement of the last century may be inter- 

 esting to some of your readers. The preacher of 

 the sermon -from which it is extracted, alludes to 

 various subjects for thankfulness in connexion 

 with his ministry, and amongst these he reckons 

 up the following : — 



" The numerous and orderly assemblies on the returns 

 of these daj-s, and those multitudes that without supersti- 

 tion or tumult every month crowd up to the altar; the 

 good congregations there are at all the four courses of 

 the daily prayers ; the encouragement that is given by 

 those who are advanced iu knowledge and years to the 

 catechising of children, by a greater appearance than 

 ordinary on the days of that eJjercise; the calling 

 for more opportunities of worship, which has added a 

 course to the daily service in one part of the parish *, and 

 occasioned the opening of a new chapel in another f; 

 the kind unanimity with which the parochial business 

 has been despatched, and the great peace that is pre- 

 served by that means; in a word, that charitj' which 

 has influenced all, and particularly shown itself in so 

 liberal a distribution to the necessities of the saints, and 

 the care of their poor children, as to encourage an addi- 

 tion to the number of those that were formerly taught, 

 are to me so many marks of your professed subjection to 

 the gospel of Christ." — Bp. Trimnell's Farewell Sermon 

 at St. James', IVestminster, Sunday, 30 Jan. 170|, p. 25. 



W. B. Macbat. 

 The London Ladies' Equestrianism in the 

 reign of Richard II. defended from the rude and 

 false aspersion of Sir Richard Baker, " Untill this 

 time (the reign of Richard II.) women used to 

 ride (astride on horseback) as men do." So alike 

 ungallantly and erroneously wrote this Richard 

 Baker in his Chronicles of England, folio 157. ; 

 but such a statement was unwarrantable and not 

 the truth; for the critical and veracious Thomas 

 Blount in his " Animadversions " declares : — 



" I have seen in Sir John Cotton's famous library a 

 deed of the Lady Johanna de Stuteville made in Henry 

 the Third's time with a fair seal, whereon the lady is 

 sculped sitting sideways on horseback, with her shield or 

 coat of arms in her hand." 



Now Henry III. reigned fifty-five years, and died 

 1272, just sixty-four years before Richard II. was 

 born. Humphry Clinker. 



Millionaire. — The following narrative will 

 probably point back to this expression as of Ve- 

 netian origin. 



' After the return of Marco Polo to Venice, iu 



the year 1295, after an absence of twenty-four 

 I years, chiefly spent at the court of the Khan of 



Tartary, he was constantly interrogated as to the 

 ! wealth of that potentate, which he estimated at 



ten or fifteen millions of gold ducats. This com- 

 : putation of wealth brought him the name of 

 ; Messer Marco Milioni. 



i The family dwelling-place was for centuries 

 j after termed " la corte del millioni ;" and (I now 

 j copy from the introduction to the Travels of 



Marco Polo, 4to. ed. 1818, p. xx.) : — 



" Sansovini, in his Venezia Descritta, attributes the 

 popular application of this surname to the immense 

 riches possessed by the Polo family at the period of their 

 retui'n to their own country. In this sense the French, 

 applj' the term ' millionaire ' to a great capitalist." 



The recent wealth of some of our English mag- 

 nates in riches has of late years naturalised the 

 word with us. The computation by francs, as in 

 France, may account for its earlier adoption in 

 that country. Here it would take twenty times 

 as much to form a millionaire in its common 

 monetary sense. Francis Trench. 



Islip, near Oxford. 



King's Street Chapel. 



t Berwick Street. 



MARQUIS DE VILLAES' "MEMOIRES DE LA 

 COUR D'ESPAGNE." 



Some years ago, at a' sale at Sotheby's, of which 

 I have unfortunately lost the catalogue, but which 

 I do not think was earlier than 1853, I purchased 

 a quarto volume in MS. (pp. 427. besides intro- 

 duction and index) entitled Memoires de la Cour 

 d'Espagne depuis Vannee 1678 jusqud Vannee 

 1682. After noticing the topics of interest which 

 the Memoires touch, the introduction contains the 

 following passage : — 



" Ces Memoires sont d'autant plus certains qu'ils ont 

 ^te faits par Messire Pierre, Marquis de Villars, qui a ^t^ 

 deux fois ambassadeur de France h, la cour d'Espagne 

 avant le Traite de paix de Niraegue de I'annee 1678, et 

 une troisifeme fois depuis 1679 jusqu'h, I'ann^e 1682. II 

 a rapport^ tous les faits qui ont ete de son ministere, 

 ceux qu'il a vu qui avoient du rapport au gouvernement, 

 et ceux dont il a ete assur^, dont la plus grande partie 

 ont eclate dans les cours des Princes de I'Europe. Le 

 Marquis de Villars est pfere de Louis Hector Due de 

 Villars, Pair et Marechal de France, Commandeur des 

 Ordres du Roy, vivant. 



"Ses Memoires ont et^ donnas pour instruction au 

 Marquis de Blecourt, Lieutenant General des Armees du 

 Roy, lorsque sa Majesty I'a envoy^ en Espagne, apres le 

 Trait(? de Partage, au sujet du Testament du Roy Charles 

 Second, et y a reste pendant plusieurs ann^es en qualite 

 d'Envoye auprfes de Philippe V. 



" On est encore redevable h M. le Marquis de Villars de 

 plusieurs autres ouvrages ; entre autres, 



" Des Memoires des Affaires eoncernant le Commerce que 

 les Ambassadeurs du Roy tris chretien ont poursidvi a la 

 Cour d'Espagne, depuis le TraitS de Nimegue, c'est a dire 

 depuis Vannee 1678 jusgu'a la Rupture de la Paix entre leg 

 deux Couronnes, arrive en Vannee 1689. 



