216 



NOTES AND QUERIES. 



[2nd s. NO 37., Sppt. 13. '56. 



for reason^ I Uaye given in a former number of 

 "N. & Q." I doubt it ever having been culti- 

 vated expressly for archery, although I have no 

 doubt it was used, when found growing wild, for 

 this purpose. But its extreme slowness of growth 

 would have, I think, prevented its being planted 

 for this use. Superstitious or religious uses were, 

 I fancy, more likely to have caused it to be planted 

 on hill-tops, or perhaps it was chosen, from its 

 longevity, as well suited for a land-mark. 



One other Query may as well be started about 

 the yew, — Is it poisonous to cattle ? Much may 

 be said on both sides ; but I can say that at times 

 it certainly is. Probatum est. 



Let me add, that the quotations above given 

 are by a brother of Gilbert White, who not only 

 persuaded him to publish, but largely himself con- 

 tributed to, the Natural History of Selborne. 



A. Holt White. 



Southend. 



UepICeS to ifiCnor ^uerteS. 



Shere Thursday (2"'^ S. ii. 194.) —In that rare 

 work the Liber Festivalis^ Caxton, 148-3, I find 

 the fi)llowing reason why the Thursday in Passion- 

 Week was called " Sherethursday." 



" It is also in Englysshe called sherthoursday for in 

 olde fa.lers dayes the people wolde that daye shere theyr 

 hedes and clyppe theyr berdes and polle theyr Ijedes, *nd 

 so -.palce theym honest ayenst Ester day. ..... 



Thenne as Johan Bellet saycth, on shertliursday a man 

 sholde do polle hjs here and elyppe his berde, and a preest 

 sholde shaue his cro\yne soo that there sholde nptjiynge 

 be by twene god and hym. For heres come of vej'nes 

 and of humours of the stomake, and they sholde pare 

 theyr nayles of hpndes and feet that cometh of super- 

 fluyte of the fylthe with oute forth, and thenne shryue 

 t'.'ovTi, and make them clene within his soule as with- 

 out." 



HpNRY KE^iSINGTON. 



Smith's " History of Kerry " (2"'^ S. ii. 27.) — 

 I have three copies of this work, now very scarce. 

 Two of the copies are old and dilapidated, evi- 

 dently from use. The other copy is in perfect 

 condition, beautifully bound, uniform with Smith's 

 Histories also of Cork, t\yo vols., and Waterford, 

 one vol., which I have. The title-pages of my 

 three Histories of Kerry are alike, the same as 

 that first mentioned by R. H. There is no por- 

 trait of Smith, nor does it appear to have been 

 removed ; one of my old copies only has a map of 

 the county. My impression is, that there was 

 never more than one edition of Smith's History of 

 Kerry printed. I had this from a gentleman 

 whose father knew Smith, and entertained him at 

 his house in Kerry. There is no " M.D." after 

 Smith's name in any of my copies, and I have two 

 copies also of his Waterfoi-^, I have seen Smith's 

 portrait several times, but I cannot at this mo- 

 ment state accurately that I saw it in any of his 



works. I think the second title-page, to which 

 R. H. refers, was supplied by some bookseller to 

 perfect his copies ; an epitome of the original 

 title-page, but no date. Smith was somewhat of 

 a notable m those days ; his portrait was engraved, 

 and no doubt readily added to such volumes as 

 came into a bookseller's hands. The date in the 

 History of Cork is 1750, in Waterford 1756. 1 

 am partially certain I have a copy of Smith's por- 

 trait among some old papers : the print is quite 

 familiar to me. Simon Wajid. 



The last Gibbet in England (2"'^ S. i. 351.) — 

 It is stated that " the last gibbet erected in Eng- 

 land was demolished by the workmen employed 

 in making the extensive docks for the North- 

 Eastern Railway Company, upon Jarrow Stoke, 

 on the Tyne." This statement is not quite cor- 

 rect. At the corner, of Ditchling Common, in 

 Sussex, near to the turnpike-road which leads 

 from Ditchling to Lindfield, there still remains a 

 piece of an old gibbet, and a very unpleasant 

 looking log of wood it is, known by the name of 

 " Jacob's Post ; " that being^e name of the man, 

 a Jew, who committed a vejy barbarous murder 

 near to the spot, and yras hanged in chains there 

 in 1734. 



The Jew, Jacob, having put up his. horse at the 

 public-house close by, attacked his liost, a person 

 named Miles, whilst he was engaged in cleaning 

 his horse, and cut his throat. In the same way 

 he destroyed the servant-maid, who, it is suppose^, 

 had been disturbed by the noise in the stable, an4 

 was descending the staircase to see what was the 

 matter. He then went upstairs and cut the throat 

 of poor Miles's wife, who was lying on a sick bed. 



Some very rude verses, still preserved in the 

 neighbourhood, of which I send you a few spe- 

 cimens, record the circumstances of this frightful 

 massacre : 



" In the mean time, the poor distressed maid 

 Had got away, for so the neighbours sajd, 

 He, missing her, into the stable ran, 

 And looked about, but could not find her then. 

 He thought that there was no time to delay, 

 But took his horse with speed and rode away. 

 The women both that night this world forsook, 

 But Miles did live until the wretch was took. 



At Horsham Gallows he was hanged there, 



The 31st of August that same j'ear. 



And where he did the crime, they took the pains 



To bring him back, and hang him up in chains. 



It is a dismal sight for to behold, 



Enough to make a heart of stone run cold." 



R. W. B. 



Lord George Gordon's Riots (2"'^ S. i. 287. 518. ; 

 ii. 156.) — 1 am in possession of the Morning 

 Chronicle and London Advertiser for 1780, and 

 have examined with some little care the papers 

 for June, July, and August of that year. I find 

 that one hundred and thirty-four persons were 



