Dec. 3. 1853.] 



NOTES AND QUERIES. 



539 



Popes Elegy on an Unfortunate Lady. — In the 

 new edition of Pope's Works, in course of publi- 

 cation, edited by Mr. Carruthers, Inverness, it is 

 conjectured that the poet threw " i(]eal circum- 

 stances " into his most pathetic and melodious 

 elegy, and " when he came to publish his letters, 

 put wrong initials, as in other instances, to conceal 

 the real names" (Pope's Poet. Works, Ingram, 

 Cook, and Co., vol. ii. p. 184.). The initials are 

 Mrs. W., niece of Lady A. I have always thought 

 that a clue might be obtained to the name of this 

 lady, by following up the hints in Pope's printed 

 correspondence. Mrs. or Miss W. is mentioned 

 or alluded to by Craggs and Pope, in connexion 

 with the characters in tlie Pape of the Lock. One 

 suggests the other. Inquiry should be directed 

 to the families of Pernor of Tusmore, Lord Petre, 

 and Sir George Brown. But I have heard a tra- 

 dition in a Catholic family in the north of Eng- 

 land that the lady was a Blount ; probably one of 

 the Blounts of Soddington, or of some one of the 

 numerous branches of that ancient family. 



Ax Inquibeb. 



" Too wise to err, too good to he unkind." — In 

 what author may this passage be found ? 



" Too wise to err, too good to be unkind." 



E. P. H. 



Clapham. 



Passage in the '■'^ Christian Year." — In the beau- 

 tiful lines on Confirmation in this work, the fol- 

 lowing verse occurs : 



" Steady and pure as stars that beam 

 In middle heaven, all mist above, 

 Seen deepest in the frozen stream : — 

 Such is their high courageous love." 



I should be grateful for an explanation of the 

 third line. A. A. D. 



David^s Mother. — I used to think it was im- 

 possible to ascertain from the Old Testament the 

 name of David's mother. In the Genealogies re- 

 corded in the Sacred Scriptures, by J. S. (usually 

 assumed to stand for John Speed, the historian 

 and geographer), the name of the Psalmist's mo- 

 ther is given "Nahash." Can this be made out 

 satisfactorily ? Will the text 2 Sam. xvii. 25., as 

 compared with 1 Chron. ii. 15., warrant it? 



Y. B. N. J. 



Emhlems. — Can any of your readers inform me 

 what are the emblematic meanings of the different 

 precious stones, or of any of them? or in what work 

 I shall find them described ? N. D. 



" Kaminagadeyathooroosoomokanoogonagira." — 

 In an appeal to the Privy Council from Madras, 

 the above unparalleled long word occurs as the 

 description of an estate. I believe that its extreme 

 length and unpronounceable appearance is without 



an equal. Can any of your readers acquainted 

 with Indian literature translate it? if so, it would 

 greatly oblige F. J. G. 



" Quid fades" &fc. — I have lately met Avith the 

 following curious play on words in an old MS. 

 book. Can any of your correspondents give any 

 account of it ? 



" Quid ficies, facies Veneris si veneris ante? 

 Ne pereas, per eas ; ne sedeas, sed eas !" 



Balliolensis. 



Will of Peter the Great. — M. Lamartiniere, in 

 a French pamphlet on the Eastern question, gives 

 a document in several articles containing advice 

 with respect to the policy of his successors on the 

 throne of Russia, in which he advises her to make 

 great advances in the direction of Constantinople, 

 India, &c., and advocates the partition of Poland. 

 Upon what authority does this document rest? 

 and who is M. Lamartiniere ? R. J. Allen. 



H. Neele, Editor of Shakspeare. — In the pre- 

 face to Lectures on English Poetry, being the Re- 

 mains of the late Henry Neele (Lond. 1830), 

 mention is made of a new edition of Shakspeare's 

 dramatic works, " under the superintendence of 

 Mr. Neele as editor, for which his enthusiastic 

 reverence for the poet of ' all time ' peculiarly 

 fitted him, but which, from the want of patronage, 

 terminated after the publication of a very few 

 numbers." These very few numbers must have 

 appeared about 1824 — 1827; yet the answer to 

 my repeated inquiries after them in London is 

 always " We cannot hear of them." Can any one 

 give me farther Information ? — From the Na- 

 vo?-scher. J. M. 



MS. by Rubens on Painting. — May I inquire of 

 M. Philakete Chasles whether he ever saw or 

 heard of a manuscript said to be written in Latin 

 by Rubens, and existing in the Bibliotheque Na- 

 tionale at Paris ? One or two fragments have 

 occasionally been quoted : I think one may be 

 found in Sir Joshua Reynolds' Discourses, and the 

 same Is used by Burnet In his work on painting ; 

 but no authority is given as to the source of t^e 

 information.* 



If such a work can be found, it would confer a 

 great boon upon the profession of the fine arts, if 

 It were brought to light without del.ay. 



Weld Tatlob. 



Peter Allan. — Will some correspondent of 

 "N". & Q." afford Information as to the exact date 

 and place of birth of the celebrated Peter Allan, 

 whose cave at Sunderland is regarded as one of 

 the principal curiosities of the north of England? 



[* This may probably be Ilubens's MS. Album, of 

 which an account is given in Vertue's Anecdotes of 

 Painting, vol. ii. pp. 185, 186. — En.] 



