400 



NOTES AND QUERIES. 



[No. 156. 



Serjeant was clothed in a long priest-like robe, with a 

 cape about his shoulders furred with lamb-skin, and a 

 hood with two labels upon it, a white coif of silk upon 

 his head, and party-coloured robes, that the people 

 should show the greater respect as well to their per- 

 sons as to their professions. The coif was made to re- 

 semble a helmet, as signifying that, as helmetted 

 soldiers ought to be bold in time of war, so ought 

 these to be in their clients' cause." — From a Note by 

 Strutt (^Saxon Antiq.), taken from the Harl. MSS. 



J. R. M.. ;vi.A. 



Armorial Bearings of Cities and Towns (Vol.vi., 

 p. 54.). — In Britannia Depicta, or Ogilby Improved, 

 a road-book published by Eman. Bowen, and 

 printed by Thomas Bowles in 1720, there is (as 

 the title sets forth) A full and pai-ticular Descrip- 

 tion and Account of all the Cities, Borough Towns, 

 Towns Corporate, ^'•c, their Arms, ^c. F. L. 



English Catholic Vicars Apostolic — Philip 

 Ellis (Vol. vi., p. 125.). — A. S. A. will find some 

 further particulars relative to Father Philip Ellis 

 in the Gentleman s Magazine for May, 1769, 

 p. 328. There is also a small engraved portrait of 

 him, by H. Meyer, published by Colburn, 1828. 



C J. 



Ireland^ s Freedom from Reptiles (Vol.vi., p. 42.). 

 — It is so emphatically expressed in the old alli- 

 terative line : " Ubi nulla venena veniunt, nee 

 serpens serpit in herba." And more at length in 

 the description of the island by Hadrianus Junius 

 (De Jonghe in his native Low Dutch) : 

 " Ilia ego sum Graiis olim glacialis lerne 

 Dicta, et Jasonise puppis bene cognita nautis, 

 Cui Deus, et melior rerum nascentium origo. 

 Jus commune dedit cum Creta altrice Tonantis ; 

 Noxia ne nostris dlffundant sibila in oris, 

 I Terrificje Creti tabo phorcynidos angues ; 

 Et forte illati compressis faucibus atris, 

 Viroso pariter vitam cum sanguine ponunt." 



Poemata, S^c, Lugduni Batav., 1598, 8vo. 

 Another versifier, but of Irish birth, in addition 

 to this happy exemption, and allusion to Ireland's 

 neighbourhood to a more powerful state, exclaims 

 in rather contestable language : 



" Genti tarn infida;, si non vicina fuisses, 

 Nou foret in toto faustior orbe locus." 



J. R. (Cork.) 



Harvest Moon (Vol. vi., p. 271.). — In Olmsted's 

 Mechanism of the Heavens, p. 169., are the follow- 

 ing remarks : 



" About the time of the autumnal equinox, the 

 moon, when near her full, rises about sunset a number 

 of nights in succession ; this occasions a remarkable 

 number of brilliant moonlight evenings ; and as this is 

 in England the period of harvest, the phenomenon is 

 called the harvest moon. The sun being then in Libra, 

 and the moon, when full, being of course opposite to 

 the sun, or in Aries; and moving eastwards, in or near 



the ecliptic, at the rate of about thirteen degrees per 

 day, would descend but a small distance below the 

 horizon for four or six days in succession ; that is, for 

 two or three days before, and the same number of days 

 after, the full ; and would, consequently, rise during 

 all these evenings nearly at the same time, namely, a 

 little before, or a little after, sunset, so as to afford a 

 remarkable succession of fine moonlight evenings." 



Tour correspondent E. A. S. may find the same 

 reasons in other astronomical works. 



John Algoe. 

 Eldon Street, Sheffield. 



"Z7/), hoys, and at them," — Since sending a Query 

 on these words, I have met with this extract Ironi 

 W. Jerdan's Autobiography : 



" It was mooted whether the action to be imparted 

 to the Duke's statue should not represent the moment 

 when his cry ' Up, boys, and at 'em !' roused his troops 

 to their last irresistil)le charge. ' Up, boys, and at 'em !' 

 replied the Duke : ' I never could have said any such 

 thing. I remember very well that I caused them to 

 lie down for shelter behind a rising ground, and by 

 that means saved many of their lives; but ' Up, boys, 

 and at 'em ! ' is all nonsense." 



A. A. D. 



Gotch (Vol. vi., p. 326.). — As regards the 

 derivation of the word gotch, there was a custom 

 prevalent in my part of the country, amongst old 

 families, particularly at Christmas, of having after 

 supper a cup, mug, or jug of what was culled gotchy 

 being composed of ale, h^andy, wine, sugar, nutmeg, 

 with a ivell-hrowned toast at the bottom ; and there 

 was generally kept for this purpose a cup, mug, or 

 jug which was never used on any other occasion, 

 and was called gotch cup : therefore, it is natural 

 to suppose that this very beverage may have 

 taken its name from the gotch, or jug, or cup 

 which contained it. And supposing also that 

 gotch is the German term for the vessel, I have 

 always understood that this potent drink was first 

 introduced into this country on the advent of the 

 Georges. 



This agreeable custom has fallen into general 

 disuse since the period of late dinners and no 

 suppers coming into fashion, as it was formerly 

 used at the latter meal, after the manner of the 

 loving cup at the Lord Mayor's dinners. 



For more than half a century I have possessed, 

 as my father did before me, one of these gotch 

 cups, holding about two quarts : and which is no\v, 

 alas ! comparatively useless, for it is kept as it 

 were sacred to its original purpose, and never 

 used for anything else. There certainly was a 

 something excessively pleasant in passing the gotch 

 cup round the table, putting every one in good 

 humour ; insuring an easy nightcap, and a sweet 

 repose. W. R. 



Surbiton. 



