422 



NOTES AND QUERIES. 



[2"'i S. N» 99., Nov. 21. '57. 



Dorset, son of Michael Christian Festing, the 

 celebrated violinist : that Serjeant Greene died 

 unmarried, having by his will devised an estate 

 in Essex of the value of about 700Z. a-year to his 

 natural son John, who was a barrister and steward 

 of the manor of Hackney, and that this son died 

 about 1750, having by his will devised the whole 

 of his estate to Dr. Maurice Greene. 



The names of " John Greene, Esq.," and " the 

 Rev. Thos. Greene, Prebendary of Ely, &c.," ap- 

 pear in the list of subscribers to Dr. Greene's 

 Forty Select Anthems, published in 1743. Possi- 

 bly an inspection of the wills of the above-named 

 members of the Greene family (which would most 

 likely be found in either the Prerogative Office, or 

 the Bishop of London's office in Doctors' Com- 

 mons), miglit furnish a clue by which to discover 

 farther particulars. W. H. Husk. 



On the chance of affording Henri a scrap of in- 

 formation, I beg to state that stopping on Decem- 

 ber 27., 1854, to refresh at a small inn, "The 

 Falcon," at the entrance to Hitchin from the 

 Welwyn road, my eye caught the notice over the 

 doorway, that " The Falcon " was kept by one 

 Maurice Greene Festing. I found " mine host " 

 to be an elderly gentleman, and a supervisor in 

 the Excise. In conversing with him, I under- 

 stood that he was the youngest of a numerous 

 family, and the son of a clergyman. From the 

 name, doubtless Maurice Greene Festing must be 

 of musical descent, and may be able to impart 

 some notes to Henri. Edwin Roffe. 



Medal: Clement X. (2"* S. iv. 366.) — This 

 no doubt is a medal struck to commemorate the 

 opening of the " Porta Santa " of S. Mary Ma- 

 jor's at Rome by Cardinal Rospigliosi, at the year 

 of jubilee, which recurs every twenty-five years. 

 The Pope on these occasions, before proceeding 

 himself to officiate at the opening of the Porta 

 Santa at S. Peter's, deputes three cardinals to 

 conduct the like ceremony at the other three of 

 the Basilicas which have the Porta Santa; viz, 

 S. John Lateran's, S, Mary Major's, and S. 

 Paul's without the Walls. The inscription on the 

 reverse of* the medal appears to be either imper- 

 fectly struck or copied, but written at full it 

 would probably be, " Jacobus titulo S. S. Joannis 

 et Pauli Romanae Ecclesiae Presbyter Cardinalis 

 Rospigliosius Liberianae Basilicas archipresbyter 

 aperivit." Portam is of course understood. Car- 

 dinal Rospigliosi, being archpriest of S. Mary 

 Major's, the chapter of which church is always 

 presided over by a cardinal, was doubtless for that 

 reason appointed the Pope's deputy. 



This Basilica is called Liberiana from having 

 been originally built under the pontificate of S. 

 Liberias, about the year 352, in consequence of a 

 vision which he and John the Patrician had the 

 same night, and which was confirmed the follow- 



ing morning, August 5, by a miraculous fall of 

 snow which extended over the space the church 

 was to occupy ; and hence it is also called " S. Maria 

 ad Nives." A detailed account of the ceremony 

 will be found in Picart. Vebna. 



Scroohj (2"^ S. iv. 378.) — Strict accuracy, 

 even in minor matters, is at all times desirable, 

 especially in the pages of " N. & Q.," which enjoys 

 so high a reputation for truth, generally, that I 

 the more regret the inadvertence which even 

 would seem to cast suspicion on its fair fame, for 

 the purity of which your correspondent H. evinces 

 a very proper jealousy. That the error in as- 

 signing Scrooby to Norfolk instead of to Notting- 

 hamshire (which it is right to state is entirely my 

 own, arising from carelessness in transcribing), 

 carried with it its own antidote, any one may see 

 who will take the trouble to verify my " quota- 

 tion ; " " whence taken " is also equally clear, I 

 think, from inference, — ^my remarks, as the open- 

 ing paragraph plainly shows, being founded on 

 statements made in " the memoir prefixed to the 

 works of Robinson, the Pilgrim Father" (vide p. 

 306., a7itea.) In selecting one of the appellatives 

 there given to Scrooby — " the cradle of Massa- 

 chusetts," H. (unless I mistake him) uncharitably 

 takes occasion to sneer at the band of faithful 

 men of whom Robinson was the head, and from 

 whose struggles and privations, borne with so 

 much Christian fortitude and heroism, are mainly 

 derived the benefits and blessings we, in these days 

 of comparative freedom, enjoy. To those who 

 may be disposed, like H., to depreciate the self- 

 denying laboui's of our Puritan forefathers (very 

 possibly from being uninformed of the nature and 

 extent of the trials they endured), I would com- 

 mend the perusal of the " Memoir " in question, 

 written in a truth-loving and impartial spirit, re- 

 membering that (to use the graphic words of Car- 

 lyle therein quoted at p. 54.) — 



" The poor little ship, ' Mayflower,' of Delft Haven, 

 hired by common charterparty for coined dollars, caulked 

 with mere oakum and tar, provisioned with vulgarest 

 biscuit and bacon, had in her a veritable Prome- 

 thean spark — the life spark of the lai'gest nation on our 

 earth — so we may already name the Transatlantic Saxon 

 nation. They went seeking leave to hear sermon in their 

 own method— these ' Mayflower' Puritans, — a most in- 

 dispensable search ; and yet, like Saul the son of Kish, 

 seeking a small thing they found this unexpected great 

 thing. Honour to the brave and true ! They verily, we 

 say, carry fire from heaven, and have a power that them- 

 selves dream not of." 



Henky W. S. Taylor. 



Southampton. 



Anne, Mary, Louise, Male Christian Names 

 (2"'' S. iv. 378.)— Are not these the French forms 

 of names, which in the original differ, but in that 

 language are alike in the masculine and feminine 

 terminations ? Thus the Hebrew masculine name 

 is Annas (S. Luke iii. 2.), and Anna (S. Luke ii. 



