2»d S. 2L Dec. 1. '60. J 



NOTES AND QUERIES. 



433 



brass, just above the heads of the figures ! ! I am 

 grieved to be compelled to confess that East Norfolk 

 is notorious for the shamefully neglected state in 

 which its fine old churches are : the honourable 

 exceptions are but few : among them- may be 

 mentioned Runton, near Cromer, Trimmingham, 

 and Sherringham — at this church the rood-loft 

 has been restored. On the other hand, the churches 

 of Cromer, North Kepps, South Kepps, Beeston 

 Kegis (here the north porch was formerly used as 

 a stable, it is still fitted up with an appropriate 

 door, &c.), Felbrigg, Overstrand, &c., are for the 

 niost part in a condition truly lamentable. At 

 North Repps a deed of barbarism was perpetrated 

 a few years ago in a mutilation of the beautiful 

 oak screen. The facts are these : there lives in 

 the parish a yeoman, whose ancestors have held 

 the farm he now occupies for more than 500 

 years ; one of them restored the church, and 

 carved on the screen the exhortation to the faith- 

 ful, common before the Reformation, to pray for 

 the souls of himself and family. Now, as this in- 

 scription was in the Latin language and old church 

 characters, it could not possibly have had a bad 

 effect on the minds of the present rustic congre- 

 gation ; yet the late rector, not content with 

 having the screen painted white, had the first 

 three words of the inscription cut out, so that the 

 remainder as it stands is sheer nonsense. The 

 work of, restoration has just been begun at Cro- 

 mer church, through the exertions of a public- 

 spirited lady; but, until the vicar's ideas become 

 moi'e expanded, I fear little will be accomplished. 



J. A. Pn. 



CONFESSION IN VERSE. 



(2"«S.x. 108.155. 218.) 



The following is from a newspaper cutting 

 marked Morning Chronicle. The date is not given, 

 but it must have been within two or three days of 

 the execution. It will be seen that though John 

 Smith used the common form of beginning, he 

 went on in the same metre, and his confession is 

 genuine : — 



" About a fortnight ago the prisoner sent for a gentle- 

 man of Maidstone, who attending the summons, received 

 from him a vehement injunction to make public what he 

 called a history of his life. The surprise of the gentleman 

 may be conceived when on examining the paper, he dis- 

 covered it to be a concise narrative of the place of the 

 prisoner's birth, his propensities, and finally his motives 

 for committing the murder, described in doggrel verse. 

 The original, which is in the hands of Mr. Agar, has been 

 followed literatim et verbatim. 



" Lines dictated by John Smith, aged 78 yearSj who was 

 executed on Pennenden Heath, on Monday, Dec. 23, 

 1822, for the wilful murder of Catherine Smith at Green- 

 wich, on the 4th of October last : — 



" ' In the county of Wicklow I was boi n'd, 

 But now in Maidstone die in scorn, 



I once was counted a roving blade, 

 But to my misfortune had no trade. 

 Women was always my downfall, 



And j'et 1 liked and loved them all: 



A hundred I have had in my time 



When I was young and in my prime : 



Women were always mj' delight, 



But when I grew old they did me slight. 



A woman from London to me came, 



She said with j'ou I would fain remain : 



If 3'ou will be constant, I will be true; 



I never want no man but j'ou — 



And on her Bible an oath did take 



That she never would me forsake ; 



And, during the time that I had life, 



She would always prove a loving wife. 



And by that means we did agree 



To live together, she and me, — 



But soon her vows and oath did break, 



And to another man did take, 



Which she fetched home with her to lay. 



And that proved her own destiny. 



So, as Jack Smith lay on his bed, 



This notion strongly run in his head. 



Then he got up with that intent. 



To find her out was fully bent ; 



Swearing if he found out her oath she'd broke, 



He'd stick a knife into her throat. 



Then to the Cricketers he did go, 



To see if he could find it out or no. ' 



Not long been there when she came in, 



With this same fellow to have some gin ; 



Then, with a knife himself brought in, 



Immediately stabbed her under the chin; 



And in five minutes she was no more. 



But there laid in her purple gore. 



Now to conclude and end my song. 



They are both dead, dead and gone : . 



The}' are both gone I do declare ; 



Gone they are, but God knows where. ' " 

 He received the sacrament just before he left 

 the gaol, and appeared very penitent and re- 

 signed at the place of execution. He spoke for a 

 short time to the people, saying that " women 

 were the cause of his downfall." 



I have copied the entire confession, but have 

 abridged the penny-a-linerj'. Fitzhopkins. 



Garrick Club. 



HuTCHiNS Queries (2"'^ S. i. 336.) — This 

 Query relative to Sir George Hutchins, one of the 

 Commissioners of the Great Seal in the reign of 

 William and Mary, having come under my obser- 

 vation, I may inform your correspondent C. H. 

 that his arms are — " ar. three lions passant, sa." 

 They are in one of the windows of Gray's Inn Hall, 

 where he received his legal education. 



Luttrell (vol. iv. p. 651.) relates that "Parson 

 Hickeringil," in a motion in the Court of Chan- 

 cery, said of Sir George, who was engaged as 

 counsel on the other side, " that he was something 

 akin to him, not by consanguinity, but by aflinity, 

 for he was a clerk, and Sir George's father was a 

 parish-clerk." To which Luttrell adds, " which 

 set the Court a-laughing." 



Can any of your readers explain this allusion, 



