Aug. 14. 1852.] 



NOTES AND QUEKIES. 



159 



derburn, of Wedderburn and Birkhill, is pater- 

 nally a Scrynigeour, the surname of Wedderburn 

 Laving been first assumed by his uncle (to whom 

 his father succeeded) on inheriting the estate of 

 the same name in 1778. In the account of the 

 Maitland family, in Douglas's Peerage, I can find 

 no mention of the oflice of " Hereditary Standard 

 Bearer," which is assigned to the Earl of Lauder- 

 dale in modern Peerages, and also in the list of 

 the"lloyal Household" (Scotland) contained in 

 Oliver and Boyd's Edinburgh Almanack. In the 

 course of the proceedings before the Privy Council, 

 in 1823, on the dispute between the Duke of 

 Hamilton and Lord Douglas relative to the right 

 of bearing the Scottish crown at royal processions, 

 it was stated by J\lr. Warren (one ot Lord Douglas' 

 counsel) that " the office of Standard Bearer in 

 Scotland had been seized by creditors, and sold, 

 under a judgment of the Scotch Courts." Per- 

 haps some reader of "N. & Q." may be able to 

 communicate the case to which the learned counsel 

 referred, which I have hitherto failed to discover, 

 and which in all probability will throw some light 

 upon the subject of your correspondent's inquiry. 



E. N. 



Baxter's '■'■ Saint" s Rest" (Vol. vi., p. 86.). — I 

 have before me a copy of this admirable book, 

 which proves that the author of the Scholar Armed 

 was wrong in speaking of " the two editions printed 

 before the year 1660 ;" seeing that my copy pur- 

 ports to be " the seventh edition," and was jirinted 

 m 1658. I have no opportunity of comparing it 

 with any later impression, but it certainly contains 

 a passage, Part I. chap. 7. sec. 4., which bears out 

 to a great extent the criticism quoted by your 

 correspondent R. G. Before coming to it, I will 

 transcribe as a somewhat curious matter, the 

 assemblage of divines whom he brings together 

 amongst " the spirits of the just men made 

 perfect : " 



" Will it be nothing conducible (he says) to the 

 compleating of our comforts, to live eternally with 

 Peter, Paul, Austin, Chrysostom, Jerom, WicklifFe, 

 Luther, Zuiiiglius, Calvin, Beza, Bullinger, Zancliius, 

 Parens, Piscator, Camero, — with Hooper, Bradford, 

 Latimer, Glover, Saunders, Philpot, — with Reignolds, 

 Whitaker, Ciirtwright, Brightman, Bayne, Bradshaw, 

 Bolton, Ball, Hildersham, Penible, Twisse, Ames, 

 Preston, Sibbs?" 



And, after some further remarks, he proceeds : 

 " I tliink, Christian, this will be a more honorable 

 assembly than you ever here beiield : and a more 

 happy society than you were ever of before. Surely 

 Brook, and Pirn, and Hampden, and White, Sec, are now 

 members of a more knowing, unerring, well-ordered, 

 right -ayming, self- denying, unanimous, honorable, 

 triumphant senate, than this from whence they were 

 taken is, or ever Parliament will be. It is better to be 

 door-keeper to that Asseml)ly, whither Twisse, &c. are 

 translated, than to have continued here the Moderator 



of this. That is the true ParUamentum Beatum, the 

 blessed Parliament; and that is the only Church that 

 cannot err." 



C. W. B. 



The Name of Dodo (Vol. vi., p. 35.). — As Mr. 

 HooPEB would no doubt be glad to know of other 

 instances of persons of this name, besides those 

 mentioned by him, I subjoin a note taken from an 

 Issue Roll of the Exchequer, temp. Edw. IV. : 



"Jacobo Dodo et sociis suis mercatoribus de Venisia 

 in denariis eis liberatis (in part repayment of loan), 

 £100." 



J. Bx. 



" Sacrum pingue dabo," §-c. (Vol. vi., p. 36.). — 

 Bayle, in his Dictionaiy, under the word " Cain," 

 attributes this distich to Politian, Father Mabillon 

 also attributes it to him. It is, however, commonly 

 supposed to have a higher antiquity. 



There is another distich equally curious : 



" Patrum dicta probo, nee sacris belligerabo 

 Belligerabo sacris, nee probo dicta patrum." 



The first verse is from a Catholic, the second 

 from a Huguenot. 

 Again, a thii'd : 



" Retro mente labo, non metro continuabo; 

 Continuabo metro ; non labo mente retro." 



A tutor explaining one of the odes of Horace to 

 his scholars, after the explanation of each ode 

 dictated in hexameter verses the ode he had ex- 

 plained. He did this, he said, as an exercise. It 

 cost him some trouble : he hesitated sometimes in 

 his dictation, and substituted other words occa- 

 sionally. His pupils thought the composition had 

 been prepared. Some thought he would not 

 succeed in his effort : and others maintained that, 

 having begun, it was a point of honour to complete 

 his task. The context gave rise to the distich. 



James Cormsh. 



Age of Trees (Vol. vi., pp. 18. 45.). — Your 

 correspondents Agmond and Unicorn would con- 

 fer a favour on me and other readers, if they 

 would have the kindness to state the evidence for 

 the age of the five remarkable trees, in Switzerland 

 and France, to which they advert. As has been 

 shown in former Numbers, an impression often 

 prevails that a tree of unusual size is likewise of 

 great antiquity. It rarely happens, however, that 

 the age of a tree can be determined by any satis- 

 factory evidence. AVhen, for instance, it is said 

 that a certain fir-tree near Mont Blanc has been 

 ascertained by M. Berthelet to be more than 120O 

 years old, it would be interesting to know the 

 method by which this result has been obtained, and 

 how he has proved that this tree began growing 

 before 650 a.d. It is clear that he cannot have 

 counted the rings, as the tree Is still standing. 

 Again, if it is a historical fact that a colossal oak 



