June 25. 1853.] 



NOTES AND QUERIES. 



623 



The term was very familiar to our older writers. 

 The following references to Dodsley's Collection of 

 ■old Plays (1st edition, 1744) may assist in explain- 

 ing its use : 



Vol. I. — Page 45. Jack Strawe. 

 Page 65. New Jack. 

 Page 217. Sir Jacke. 

 Page 232. Jack Fletcher. 

 Page 263. Jacknapes. 

 Page 271. Jack Sauce. 

 Vol. II. — Page 139. Clapper Jack. 

 Vol. III. — Page 34. Prating Jack. 

 Page 64! Jack- a- lent. 

 Page 168. His Jacks. 

 Page 214. Black Jacks. 

 Yol. v. — Page 161. Every Jack. 



Page 341. Skip- Jack. 

 Vol. VI. — Page 290. Jack Sauce. 

 Page 325. Flap-Jacks. 

 Page 359. Whirling Jacks. 

 Vol. VIII. — Page 55. Jack Sauce. 

 Vol. X. — Pages 46. 49. His Jack. 



Your correspondent is perhaps aware that Dr. 

 Johnson is disposed to consider the derivation 

 from John to h& an error, and rather refers the 

 word to the common usage of the French word 

 Jacques (James). His conjecture seems probable, 

 from many of its applications in this language. 

 Jacques, a jacket, is decidedly French ; Jacques de 

 mailles equally so ; and the word Jacquerie em- 

 braces all the catalogue of virtues and vices which 

 we connect with our Jack. 



On the other hand, John, in his integrity, occurs 

 familiarly in John Bull, JoAji-a-Nokes, John Doe, 

 John apple, John Doree, Blue John, John Trot, 

 John's AVort, Jb/m-a-dreams, &c.; and Poor John is 

 found in Dodsley, vol. viii. pp. 197. 356. C. H. P. 



Brighton. 



PASSAGE IN ST. JAMES. 



(VolviL, p. 549.) 



On referring to the passage cited by S. S. S. in 

 Bishop Taylor's Holy Dying, vol. iv. p. 345. 

 (Heber's edit.), I find I had marked two passages 

 in St. James's Epistle as being those to which, in 

 all probability, the bishop alluded ; one in the first 

 chapter, and one in the third. In the commence- 

 ment of his Epistle St. James exhorts his hearers 

 to exercise patience in all the worldly accidents 

 that might befal them ; to resign themselves into 

 God's hands, and accept in faith whatever might 

 happen. He then proceeds : 



" If any of you lack wisdom" (prudentia ad dijudi- 

 candum quid in singulis circumstantiis agendum sit — 

 Grotius), " let him ask of God " (postulet ab eo, qui 

 dat, nempe Deo : ut intelligas non aliunde petendum 

 sapientiam. — Erasmus). 



Again, in chap. iii. 13., he asks : 



" Who is a wise man, and endued with knowledge 

 among you" (eiriffT^/ioiJ', i. e. sciens, sive scientia prse- 

 ditus, quod recentiores vocant scientificus. — Erasmiu), 



He bids him prove bis wisdom by submission to 

 the truth ; for that cunning craftiness which mani- 

 fests itself only in generating heresies and conten- 

 tions, is — 



" Not from above," oAA* ^iriyuos, 'Vvx^idi (animalis,— 

 ista sapientia a natura est, non a Deo) Sai/j.ovtwdris.—' 

 Vid. Eph. ii. 2., and 2 Cor. iv. 4. 



These passages would naturally afford ample 

 scope for the exuberant fancy of ancient commen- 

 tators ; and it is not unreasonable to suppose that 

 Bishop Taylor may have had the remarks of one 

 of these writers running in his mind, when he 

 quoted St. James as reprobating, with such minute- 

 ness of detail, the folly of consulting oracles, 

 spirits, sorcerers, and the like. 



I have not, at present, access to any of the com- 

 mentators to whom I allude ; so I am unable to 

 confirm this suggestion. H. C. K. 



Rectory, Hereford. 



There is no uncanonical epistle attributed to this 

 apostle, although the one received by the English 

 from the Greek and Latin churches was pronounced 

 uncanonical by Luther. The passage to which 

 Jeremy Taylor refers, is iv, 13, 14., which he in- 

 terpreted as referring to an unlawful inquiry into 

 the future : 



" Go to now, ye that say, To-day or to-morrow we 

 will go into such a city and continue there a year, and 

 buy and sell, and get gain : whereas ye know not what 

 shall be on the morrow : for what is your life? It is 

 even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then 

 vanisheth away." 



Hug (Wait's Trans., vol. ii. p. 579.) considers 

 the apostle as reproving the Jews for attempting 

 to evade the national punishment threatened them, 

 by removing out of their own country of Judaea. 

 Probably, however, neither Taylor nor Hug are 

 correct in departing from the more obvious signi- 

 fication, which refers to the mercantile character 

 of the twelve tribes (i. 1.), arising mainly out of 

 the fact of their captivities and dispersions (5io- 

 (TTTopa). The practice is still common in the East 

 for merchants on a large and small scale to spend 

 a whole season or year in trafficking in one city, 

 and passing thence to another with the varied 

 products suitable respectively to each city ; and 

 such products were interchanged without that 

 extreme division of labour or despatch which the 

 magnitude of modern commerce requires. The 

 whole passage, from James iv. 13. to v. 6. inclu- 

 sive, must be taken as specially applicable to the 

 sins of mercantile men whose works of righteous- 

 ness St. James (iii. 17-20.) declared to be wanting, 

 in proof of their holding the faith necessary, ac- 



