436 



NOTES AND QUERIES, 



[;2nd s. No 100., Nov. 28. '57. 



condite knowledge which judicious students of 

 antiquity, and judicious students only, are found 

 to amass." (Sketches^ pp. 95, 96.) 



" Lord Stowell's judgments, during the years when he 

 presided over the High Court of Admiralty and the Con- 

 sistory Court, exhibiting all the aspects of each case, 

 enable us to guess at the dexterity with which he pre- 

 sented the favourable views of the causes committed to 

 his charge, and the beauty with which he graced them." 

 . . . . " His more popular judicial essaj'S— for so his judg- 

 ments mav not be improperly regarded — are those pro- 

 nounced in the Consistory.Court. Partaking more of the 

 tone of a mediator than a censor, they are models of 

 practical wisdom for domestic use." * 



One further tribute to his merits ere I close : 

 " The genius of Lord Stowell, at once profound and ex- 

 pansive, vigorous and acute, impartial and decisive, pene- 

 trated, marshalled, and mastered all the difficulties of 

 these complex inquiries — the greatest maritime questions 

 which had ever presented themselves for adjudication — 

 till, having ' sounded all their depths and shoals,' he 

 framed and laid down that great comprehensive chart of 

 maritime law which has become the rule of his successors 

 and the admiration of the world. What he thus achieved 

 in the wide field of international jurisprudence he accom- 

 plished also with equal success in the narrower spheres of 

 ecclesiastical, matrimonial, and testamentary law." f 



It is refreshing to read these passages, when 

 speaking of one whose name is enrolled with the 

 Hales, the Hardwickes, and the Mansfields, in 

 perfecting his own peculiar department of the 

 law|; but whose judgments, as we have seen, 

 can, in the opinion of your correspondent C (1.), 

 ** now only interest the dilettante lawyer," and who, 

 as his highest merit, is to be regarded an aristo- 

 cratic, judicial Joe Miller. J. H. M. 



I find upon inquiry that only three of the judg- 

 ments of this eminent civilian have been published 

 by Messrs. Clark of Edinburgh, i. e., those which 

 were pronounced in the cases of Dalrymple v. 

 Dairy mple, the "Maria," and the "Gratitudine :" 

 so that I think there is still room for such a work 

 as I ventured to suggest ; and I am glad to learn 

 that J. H. M. takes so lively an interest in the 

 matter. E. H. A. 



EARLY SATiaiCAL POEM. 



(P' S. vii. 569. ; 2"* S. iii. 383.*469.) 



At length, through the kindness of the ori- 

 ginal contributor, I am enabled to correct three 

 mistakes which have been made either in the 

 transcribing or printing of this poem, and by 



• Quarterly Review, vol. Ixxv. p. 46., article on " Lord 

 Eldon and Lord Stowell," attributed to the late Mr. Jus- 

 tice Talfourd. 



+ Twiss's Life of Lord Eldon, vol. iii. p. 256. 



J I refer to Mr. Townsend's Lives of Twelve Eminent 

 Judges, a work of much interest, and well worthy the 

 perusal both of " the aspirant " and " the practical 

 lawyer." 



consequence to explain two of the hitherto un- 

 explained words in it. Ooyddes should be Ovyddes^ 

 as already by me suggested. Gomards should be 

 gornards, i.e. gurnards or gurnets. (Of. Pol. Verg. 

 vol. i. 23., Camden Soc), " There aboundethe 

 likewise all sorts of fishe .... as gomards, whit- 

 ings, mullets, &c." Yn syrryd should be yn vyri'yd, 

 i.e. envired, surrounded. (Cf. Halliwell, envirid, 

 inversed, A. N.) : 



" Of the Holy Gost rounde aboute envirid." 



Lydgate MS., Soc. Antiq., 134 f. 27. 



" Myne armey are of ancestrye 

 Enveryde with lordev." 



3iS. Lincoln, A. i. 17. f. 71. 



I am inclined further to think that Chynner 

 should be Chaucer, and that ryllyons mean eme- 

 rillons, i.e. merlins. There is but one objection 

 to this last supposition, viz. marlyons occurring in 

 the preceding line. 



The poem in modern English (if you think it 

 worth inserting again) is as follows : 



" When nettles in winter bring forth roses red, 

 And a thorn bringeth [forth] figs naturally. 

 And grass beareth apples in every mead[ow]. 

 And laurel cheiTies on his cropi so high, 

 And oaks bear dates plenteously, 

 And kexes^ give honey in superfluence. 

 Then put in women your trust and confidence. 



" When whitings walk forests harts for to chase, 

 And herrings in parks the horns boldly blow. 

 And merlins .... herons in Morris ^ do unbrace,'* 

 And gurnards shoot merlins out of [i.e. by means of ] a 



cross bow, 

 And goslings go a hunting the wolf to overthrow, 

 And sparlings ^ bear spears and arms for defence, 

 Then put in women your trust and confidence. 



" When sparrows build churches and steeples of a [great] 

 height, 

 And curlews carry timber in houses for to dight,^ 

 Wrens bear sacks to the mill, 



And finches (?) bring butter to the market for to sell. 

 And woodcocks wear woodknives the crane for to kill. 

 And griffins to goslings do obedience. 

 Then put in women your trust and confidence. 



" Ye scions of Chaucer ( ? ), ye Lidgates pens, 

 With the spirit of Boccace ye goodly inspired, 

 Ye English poets excelling other men, 

 With wine of the Muses your tongue enwrapped, 

 You roll in j'our relatives 7 as a horse immired; 

 With Ovid's pencase ye are greatly in favour, 

 Ye carry Boece's inkhorn ; God reward you for your 

 labour." 



J. Eastwood. 



1 crop=rhead or top of a tree. — Halliwell. 



2 ^ea:es=stalks of hemlock. 

 5 Morris=:danee. 



4 f7n6race=umbrace, or embrace. (^Attain? — Halli- 

 well.) 



5 SparKngs=smelts. 



' X>;i5iA<=dispose ; also, adorn, deck, &c. 

 7 Relatives:=Te\sitioixs, narrations. 



