360 



NOTES AND QUERIES. 



[No. 180. 



particular against Dr. Whitaker, Dr. Fulke, Dr. Bil- 

 son. Dr. Reynolds, Dr. Sparkes, and Dr. Field, the chiefe 

 upholders, some of Protestancy, some of Puritanisme ; 

 divided into three Parts, &c., &c., &c. By S. N., 

 doctour of divinity. Permissu superiorum, mdcxv." 



Who is the author S. N., and what other parti- 

 culars are known respecting it ? , Lewis Kelly. 



Leeds. 



[Sylvester Norris is the author. Tliere is an edition 

 published in 1622, 4to.] 



Beads. — When was the use of beads, for the 

 purpose of counting prayers, first introduced into 

 Europe? C. W. G. 



[For the repose of a bishop, by Wilfrid's Canons of 

 Cealcythe, a.d. 816, can. x., seven belts of paternosters 

 were to be said ; the prayers being numbered probably 

 by studs fixed on the girdle. But St. Dominic in- 

 vented the rosary, which contains ten lesser beads re- 

 presenting Ave Marias, to one larger standing for a 

 paternoster.] 



BROAD ABKOW. 



(Vol. iv., p. 412.) 



With reference to my Note, ascribing a Celtic 

 origin to this symbol, I have just met with some- 

 what of a curious coincidence, to say the least of 

 it. In Richardson's Travels in the Sahara, Sfc, 

 vol. i. p. 420., speaking of the camel, he says : 



•' The camels have all public and private marks, the 

 former for their country, the latter for their owner ; 

 and, strange enough, the public mark of the Ghadames 

 camel is the English broad R," &c. [Arrow, he should 

 have said.] 



Now, the Celtic t (as before mentioned) is typi- 

 cal of superior holiness, &c. &c. ; and it is singular 

 that a city of Marabouts (saints or holy men, such 

 as the Ghadamsee are described to be) should 

 have adopted this symbol as their public (or 

 government) mark. The population of Ghadames 

 is a strange medley of Arabs, Touaricks, negroes, 

 half-breeds of all kinds, &c., and whence their 

 claim to superior sanctity does not appear. 



That Celtic tribes once sojourned in Northern 

 Africa is attested by Druidical remains in Morocco 

 and elsewhere. Mr. Richardson mentions the 

 frequent occurrence of pyramidal stones in the 

 Sahara, incidentally, without specifying whether 

 they are rocks in situ, or supposed to be the work 

 of man's hand. The language of Ghadames is one 

 of the Berber dialects ; and according to Mr. 

 Urquhart (Pillars of Hercules, vol. i. p. 383.), 

 these, or some of them, are said to contain so 

 much of the Celtic element, that Highlanders 

 from the garrison of Gibraltar, and the natives 

 about Tangier, can mutually understand each 

 other. 



The above, however, are mere speculations; 

 and I would suggest that, previous to further 

 research as to the origin of the broad arrow, it 

 would be as well to ascertain how long it has been, 

 used as " the King's mark." I should incline to^ 

 believe that the earliest mark upon governmei>t 

 stores was the royal cipher — ER (with a crown, 

 above) perhaps. On old guns of Henry VIII^ 

 and Elizabeth, we find the rose and crown, but 

 no broad arrow; more frequently Elizabeth's 

 bear her cipher. A few articles I have seen of 

 William III. are stamped with Wl (with a crowa 

 above) : no broad arrow. Nor do I remember 

 having ever seen it upon anything older than 

 George III. This, however, is a question which 

 may interest some gentleman of the Ordnance- 

 Department, and induce him to make research 

 where success is most likely to reward his trouble, 

 viz. in the Tower, in the Royal Arsenal at Wool- 

 wich, or amongst the ancient records in the Ordr 

 nance Office ; for I presume there be such. 



P. C. S. S. (Vol. iv., p. 371.) says that "he al- 

 ways understood " the broad arrow represented 

 the " Pheon " in the arms of the Sydney family ; 

 but, as he quotes no authority, we are at liberty 

 to doubt the adoption and perpetuation of a bear- 

 ing appertaining to any particular master-general 

 of ordnance as a " king's mark," howsoever illus- 

 trious or distinguished he might be. A. C. M> 



Exeter. 



ENGLISH COMEDIANS IN THE NETHERLANDS. 



(Vol. ii., pp. 184. 459.; Vol. iii., p. 21. ; Vol. vii., 

 p. 114.) 



Returning to this question, I will communicate- 

 a few extracts from the Gerechtsdagboeken (Mi- 

 nutes of the Council) of the city of Leyden : — 



Sept. 30, 1604. — " Die van de Gerechte opt voor- 

 schryven van Zyne Ex« en versouc van Jan VVoodtss,. 

 Engelsman, hebben toegelaten ende geconsenteert dat 

 hy geduyrende deze aenstaende jaermarct met zyn 

 behnlp zal mogen speelen zeecker eerlick camerspel tot 

 vermaeckinge van der gemeente, mits van yder pcrsoen 

 (comende om te bezien) nyet meer te mogen nemen- 

 nochte genyeten dan twaelf penn., ende vooral betaelen- 

 tot een gootspenning aen handen van Jacob van Noordc, 

 bode metter roede, vier guld. om ten behouve van de 

 armen verstrect te worden." 



Translation, 



Tlie magistrates, on the command of his Excellcnca, 

 and on the request of John Woodtss, an Englishman, 

 have permitted and consented that he, with his coni.- 

 pany, during the approaching fair, may play certain 

 decent pieces for the amusement of the people, pro^ 

 vided he take no more than twelve pennings from each 

 person coming to see, and, above all, pay to Jacob van- 

 Noorde four guilders, to be applied to the use of the 

 poor. 



