344 



NOTES AND QUERIES. 



[No. 154. 



downe stark dead, and neuer spake word. His men 

 (especially that knight) got them away, but some came 

 back again, and laid his body upon a collier's cart, 

 which one seelie leane beast did drawe unto the Citie 

 of Winchester, where he was buried on the morrow 

 after hisdeath, at whose buriall men could not weepe 



for ioye He was buried at Winchester, in the 



cathedrall church or monasterie of Saint Switlien, under 

 a plaine flatte marble stone, before the lectorne in the 

 queere ; but long since his hones were translated in a 

 cofier, and laide with King Knute's bones." — Stow's 

 Annates, edit. 4to. 1601, p. 189. 



Tlie name of Purkess was to be seen over the 

 door of a little shop in the village of Minestead in 

 1843 ; and the stirrup of Rufus is preserved in the 

 Court Hall at Lyndhurst. (Old England, vol. i. 

 p. 95.) I remember a paragraph which went the 

 round of the newspapers some years since, to the 

 effect that the wheel of the cart on which the 

 monarch's body was conveyed to Winchester had 

 been preserved up to tlvfit time, at a cottage in the 

 New Forest ; but in the course of the then severe 

 winter had been consigned to the flames, on account 

 of a scarcity of fuel. A scarcity of fuel in the 

 New Forest was, I shoidd have thought, too great 

 a flight of fancy, even in the direst dearth of news. 

 The tomb of William Rufus (which is not "flatte," 

 but of the dos d'une form) was violated in the Par- 

 liamentary war, and there were found " a large 

 gold ring, a small silver chalice, and some pieces 

 of cloth embroidered with gold, mingled with the 

 dust of the decayed body." Baker, in his Chronicle 

 (edit. 1674, p. 37. col. 1.) notes that 



" One Sugerus, a writer that lived at that time [t. e. 

 circa 1 100] and was a familiar acquaintance of the said 

 Tyrel's, against the current of all writers, affirms that 

 he had often heard the said Sir Walter swear that he 

 was not in the Forrest with the king all that day." 



The great interest of this subject will, I hope, 



seive to excuse the length of this communication. 



W. Sparrow Simpson, B.A. 



THE PASSAGE IN " L©VE's XABOUR's LOST." 



(Vol. vi., p. 296.) 



In the wish to be as brief as possible in my reply 

 (at p. 296.) to Mr. Singer's Query, I forebore to 

 notice a circumstance which materially affects the 

 right understanding of the passage in question. 



In all editions hitherto, the second line of the 

 Princess's speech is pointed off from what follows, 

 by making it conclude with either a full-stop, a 

 colon, or a semicolon ; as though that line formed 

 some complete sense in itself: e.g. 

 " That sport best pleases, that doth least know how:" 

 Thus making the not knowing how the means of 

 pleasing ! 



But if we place a comma at the end of this line, 

 and transfer the semicolon or a dash to the middle 



of the line next following, we shall then undoubt- 

 edly obtain what must have been the author* 

 true meaning: viz. 



" That sport best pleases, that doth least know how, j 

 Where zeal strives to content." 



It is the zeal, striving to give satisfaction, that 

 makes the performance pleasing ; even Avhen it 

 doth least know how. 



Thus the meaning of the whole sentence is this : 

 " That sport best pleases, (even) that (which) doth 

 least know how, where zealstrives to content; and 

 (where) the contents dies in the (very) zeal of 

 that which it presents." 



I therefore advocate the following as the proper 

 punctuation of the whole speech : 



*' Nay, my good lord, let me o'errule you now : 

 That sport best pleases, that doth least know how, ] 

 Where zeal strives to content — 'and the contents 

 Dies in the zeal of that which it presents : 

 Their form, confounded, makes most form in mirth. 

 When great things, labouring, perish in their birth." 



The last two lines being a sarcastic allusion to the 

 abortive Russian masque of The King and his 

 Company. A, E. B. 



Leeds. 



the robin. 

 (Vol. vi., p. 244.) 



It was on the day when Lord Jesu felt Hia 

 pain upon the bitter cross of wood, that a small 

 and tender bird, Avhich had hovered awhile around, 

 drew nigh about the seventh hour, and nestled 

 upon the wreath of Syrian thorns. And when 

 the gentle creature of the air beheld those cruel 

 spikes, the thirty and three, which pierced that 

 bleeding brow, she was moved with compassion 

 and the piety of birds ; and she sought to turn 

 aside, if but one of those thorns, with her flutter- 

 ing wings and her lifted feet ! It was in vain ! 

 She did but rend her own soft breast, until blood 

 flowed over her feathers from the wound ! Then 

 said a voice from among the angels, " Thou hast 

 done well, sweet daughter of the boughs ! Yea, 

 and I bring thee tidings of reward. Henceforth, 

 from this very hour, and because of this deed of 

 thine, it shall be that in many a land thy race and 

 kind shall bear upon their bosoms the hue and 

 banner of thy faithful blood ; and the children of 

 every house shall yearn with a natural love towards 

 the birds of the ruddy breast, and shall greet their 

 presence in its season with a voice of thanks- 

 giving !" Henna, t- 



Morwenstow, 



Your correspondent will, I think, find a_ more 

 satisfactory solution to the proposed question oil 

 the reputation of the Robin in the fact that this is- 



