2°* S. N« 113., Feb. 27. '58.] 



NOTES AND QUERIES. 



179 



the gates of the church with evergreens and 

 flowers. This floral bond a " silver" key never 

 failed to unloose. I know not the origin, but I 

 consider that the toll paid is a great reason for 

 perpetuating the custom. J. B. S. 



Woodhayne. 



Great Events from small Causes : Washington 

 (2°'* S. v. 139.) — According to poor Colton's 

 Lacon, George Washington's father, Augustus, was 

 overthrown in his carriage, in the county of 

 Chester, in 1730. Colton adds, that the accident 

 threw Augustus into the company of a lady 

 whom he married, who emigrated with him to 

 America, and who there became the mother of the 

 great Washington. This is one of Colton's fanci- 

 ful premises whereon he builds a false conclusion. 

 What are the facts ? The father of George Wash- 

 ington (Augustin, not Augustus) was born in 

 America, where his family had been settled since 

 the year 1657. It was, at least, about that time 

 that the brothers, John and Lawrence Washing- 

 ton, emigrated from England to Virginia. Both 

 of them married. John had two sons ; Law- 

 rence bad one daughter and two sons, John and 

 Augustin. This Augustin was twice married, and 

 the great George Washington (born in 1732) was 

 the eldest son of the second marriage. For far- 

 ther information concerning the Washington family, 

 I refer your correspondent, Mk. J. P. Phillips, 

 to Upham's Life of Washington (1851). 



J. DOEAN. 



People with Tails (2"^ S. iii. 473.) —The Golden 

 Legend says that S. Augustine came to a certain 

 town 



" which refused his doctrine and preaching utterly, and 

 drove him out of the town, casting on him the tails of 

 thornback and like fishes, wherefore he besought the Al- 

 mighty to shew His judgment on them ; and He sent to 

 them a shameful token, for the chilciren that were born 

 after in the place had tails, as it is said, till they had re- 

 pented them." 



It is said commonly that this fell at Stroud in 

 Kent, but at this day is no such deformity. The 

 anecdote is also related in Dyce's Skelton. 



Mackenzie Walcoit, M. A. 



MONTHLY rEUILLETON ON FRENCH BOOKS. 



There is some comfort in finding at least one nook 

 ■where we can escape from the din of politics and the per- 

 plexities of the Indian question. The columns of The 

 Times are very well in their way, but look at the books 

 marshalled before me in all the glory of their smart 

 bindings, and honestly say whether you would not for- 

 get, if it were onl}' for a few hours, Lord Palmerston and 

 Mr. Roebuck, whilst enjoying the company of Madame 

 de Courcelles, Madame de la Guette, the ^larquis d'Ar- 

 genson, and even Bussy-Rabutin ? Yes, Bussy-Rabutin 

 himself! He was something of a scamp, I grant; but 



just turn to his Memoirs *, and see how curiously, how 

 completely, they illustrate the history of the grand siecle! 

 M. Ludovic Lalanne, the new editor of Madame de S€- 

 vigne's/as^ cousin, correctly remarks that Bussy-Rabutin 

 never calumniates. This is an assertion which can be 

 made of only a very small proportion of biographers, and 

 it gives additional value to the book I am now talking 

 about. It is quite certain that if truthfulness is our au- 

 thor's quality, the heroes, and especially the heroines, he 

 introduces to his readers' acquaintance must have been 

 rather questionable characters, as far as morality goes. 

 La Comtesse d'Olonne ! Madame de Chatillon ! Madame 

 de Bussy! and all the frail beauties mentioned in the 

 Histoire Amoureuse des Gaules.\ Well, let us leave them 

 for what they were, and take up, by way of compensation, 

 Rabutin's correspondence J, the natural sequel of his me- 

 moirs. The first volume of this important reprint has 

 just been issued, also edited by the scrupulous and ac- 

 complished M. Lalanne ; it is peculiarly valuable, because, 

 " outre Bussy, qu'elle nous fait connaitre k fond, avec 

 toutes les qualites de son esprit et tons les defauts de son 

 caractfere, la correspondance met en lumifere des person- 

 nages plus ou moins oublies jusqu'ici, et dont quelques- 

 uns nous semblent meriter d'etre classes au nombre des 

 excellents ecrivains du xvii® sifecle." 



Thanks to all the publications which have been issued 

 from the Paris presses during the last few years, we shall 

 soon know about Louis XIV. and his times more than 

 ever we dreamt of in our philosophy. But there is ano- 

 ther epoch which is perhaps still more curious, and respect- 

 ing which, till lately, we had only very few documents of 

 any moment : we allude to that interval comprised be- 

 tween the reign of Louis XV. and the French revolution. 

 Dangeau stops with a.d. 1722 ; Saint Simon takes us to 

 the year following ; and then, for the next half-century, 

 we have nothing but a few autobiographies, such as that 

 of Marmontel, scraps of anecdotes similar to those con- 

 tained in Marais' journal, and memoirs of a purely literary 

 stamp, like Bachaumont's volumes or the correspondence 

 of La Harpe, Grimm, and Mettra. In order to supply 

 this deficiency, M. Gharpentier has added to his collection 

 of historical works an excellent edition of Barbier's 

 journal, now first correctly and entirely printed from the 

 original MSS. The Sociiti de V Histoire de France had 

 already, some time since, advertised on the list of its 

 publications this most interesting journal ; but through 

 ill-grounded scruples, they merely put together scanty 

 extracts from Barbier's Diary, and omitting all the pas- 

 sages which were of what our neighbours call too scabreux 

 a character. We must thank M. Gharpentier for having 

 enabled us, through a correct edition, to judge of the 

 Orleans' Regency and the reign of Louis XV., in all their 

 repulsive deformity.§ The anonymous editor has added 



* " M^moires de Roger de Rabutin, Gomte de Bussy, 

 nouvelle edition revue sur un manuscrit de famille, aug- 

 mentee de fragments inedits, suivie de I'histoire amou- 

 reuse des Gaules, avec une preface, des notes et des tables 

 par Ludovic Lalanne. 2 vols. 12°. Paris, Gharpentier." 



f " Histoire amoureuse des Gaules, par Bussy-Rabutin, 

 revue et annotee par M. Paul Boiteau d'Amblj', suivie des 

 Romans historico-satiriques du xvii" si^cIe, recueillis et 

 annot^s par M. G.-L. Livet, 3 vol. Paris, Jannet (^Bibl. 

 Elzevirienne')." 



J " Correspondance in^dite de Bussy-Rabutin, publics 

 par Ludovic Lalanne. Paris, Gharpentier." 



§ " Ghronique de la Regence et du Rfegne de Louis XV. 

 (1718 — 17G3),ou journal de Barbier, avocat au parlement 

 de Paris. 1"^" edition complfcte, conforme au manuscrit 

 autographe de I'auteur, publiee avec I'autorisation de S. 

 E. le ministre de I'instruction publique, accompagnee de 

 notes et eclaircissements, et suivie d'ua index, 8 vols. 

 12°. Paris, Gharpentier." 



