Mar. 19. 1853.] 



NOTES AND QUERIES. 



281 



villages besides Tisslngton in which this innocent 

 iand pleasing custom is still observed. I am aware 

 that there are many places, especially in the north 

 of England, in which a rustic celebration takes 

 place annually at wells sacred from olden time ; 

 but is not the " well-flowering" a distinct custom? 

 Wm. Sii>nex Gibson. 

 Newcastle. 



Devil" s Marks in Swine.— '^Wc don't kill a pig 

 ■every day," but we did a short time since ; and 

 after its hairs were scraped off, our attention was 

 directed to six small rings, about the size of a pea, 

 and in colour as if burnt or branded, on the inside 

 of each fore leg, and disposed curvilinearly. Our 

 labourer informed us with great gravity, and 

 ■evidently believed it, that these marks were caused 

 by the pressure of the devil's fingers, when he 

 ■entered the herd of swine which immediately ran 

 violently into the sea. — See Mark v. 11 — 15.; 

 Luke viii. 22. 33. Tee Bee. 



Festival of Baal — The late Lady Baird, of 

 Ferntower, in Perthshire, told me that, every year 

 .at "Beltane" (or the 1st of May), a number of 

 men and women assembled at an ancient druidical 

 ■<Mrcle of stones on her property, near Crieff. They 

 iight a fire in the centre; each person puts a bit of 

 oatcake into a shepherd's bonnet; they all sit down 

 and draw blindfold a piece of cake from the bonnet. 

 One piece has been previously blackened, and who- 

 ever gets that piece has to jump through the fii-e 

 dn the centre of the circle and to pay a forfeit. 

 This is, in fiict, a part of the ancient worship of 

 Baal, and the person on whom the lot fell was for- 

 merly burnt as a sacrifice : now, the passing 

 through the fire represents that, and the payment 

 of the forfeit redeems the victim. It is curious 

 that staunch Piesbyterians, as the people of that 

 part of Perthshire now are, should unknowingly 

 keep up the observance of a great heathen festival. 



L. M. M. R. 



LORD MONBODDO. 



In my copy of The Origin and Progress of Lan- 

 gvxigey I have recorded a little aveic^orov of the 

 author, which is now probably known to nobody 

 but myself, and which you may perhaps think 

 worth preservation. It was related to me some 

 fifteen years ago, by a learned physician of this 

 •city, now deceased, who had it from Dr. James 

 ^Gregory himself. 



It appears that Lord Monboddo, in spite of fail- 

 ing health and very advanced age, felt a wish to 

 pay one more visit to the English metropolis, in 

 the literary circles of which he was fond of 

 jningling. That he had actually set out \ipon this 

 ^formidable journey, was known to Dr. Gregory, 

 wlio, being a few hours afterwards at a short dis- 



tance from Edinburgh, was a little surprised to 

 meet his venerable friend returning homewards. 

 He was on horseback, equipped in his usual travel- 

 ling costume, — cocked hat, scarlet 7-oquelaure, and 

 jack-boots, but looking extremely ill and depressed 

 in spirits. " What, so soon returned ? " was 

 Dr. Gregory's exclamation. " Yes," said the old 

 man, "I feel myself quite unequal to the journey, 

 and was just thinking of a passage in Horace, and 

 adapting it to my own case." " What, ' Solve 

 senescentem ?'" said the Doctor. "No," replied 

 his lordship, " it is one not quite so hackneyed." 

 He then repeated, with much emotion, the follow- 

 ing lines from the second Satire of the second 

 book : 



" Sen recreate volet tenuatum corpus; ubiqiie 



Accedent anni, et tractari mollius aetas 



Imbecilla volet." 



This was the last time Dr. Gregory saw him out 

 of doors, and he died not long after. 



W. L. Nichols. 



Bath. 



ST. VALENTINE. 



The subjoined cuttings from an American news- 

 paper (}Vooster Democrat, Feb. 3) will show the 

 persistent vitality of popular follies, and at the 

 same time serve to exhibit the peculiar literature 

 of transatlantic advertisements : 



" The great increase in Marriages throughout Wayne 

 Co. during the past year, is said to be occasioned by 

 the superior excellence of the 



VALENTINES 



sold by George Howard. Indeed so complete was his 

 success in this line, that Cupid has again commissioned 

 him as the 'Great High Priest ' of Love, Courtship, 

 and Marriage, and has supplied George with the most 

 complete and perfect assortment of ' Love's Armor ' 

 ever before offered to the citizens of Wayne County. 

 During the past year the ' Blind God ' has centred 

 his thoughts on producing something in the line far 

 surpassing anything he has heretofore issued. And it 

 is with ' feelinks ' of the greatest joy that he is able to 

 announce that he has succeeded. 



' Howard has got them. 



*' To those susceptible persons whose hearts were 

 captured during the past year, George refers, and ad- 

 vises others to call on them, and find them on their 

 way rejoicing, shouting praises to the name of Howard. 

 The ' blessings ' descend unto even the third and fourth 

 generations, and it is probable that the business will go 

 on increasing year upon year, until Howard's Valentines 

 will be a 'household word' thoughout the land. The 

 children on the house-top will call to the passers-by, 

 shouting 



Howard's Valentines I 



while the cry is echoed from the ground, and swelling 

 over hill and vale reverberates the country through. 



