June 9. 1855.] 



NOTES AND QUERIES. 



445 



very delicately, a nurse changinnj the linen of a 

 child. Constant Reader. 



" Oriana." — Can any of your correspondents 

 tell me of which of the old romances Oriana is the 

 heroine? Doubtless it is a very well-known 

 thinor, but I have been unable to obtain any ac- 

 curate information about it. Mr. Tennyson re- 

 vived the legend in his poems, and since then it 

 has been alluded to rather frequently. Mention 

 is made, in Thackeray's Esmond, of the loves of 

 Oriana and Beltenebros ; and Kingsley uses the 

 phrase " this peerless Oriana " in his last delightful 

 «ovel, Westward Ho. In an old madrigal of the 

 sixteenth century it is used as a euphuism for 

 -Queen Elizabeth, like the Gloriana of the Faery 

 Queene. L. S. 



' Way-side Crosses. — Can any correspondent in- 

 form me of the origin and purposes of crosses 

 ■erected by way-sides ? Funerals are said to have 

 stopped at them for rest and devotion. Was there 

 any particular service used ? How long is it since 

 they were used ? Are there many known now to 

 •exist in this country ? J. Sattbkthwaite. 



Roasting of Eggs. — When and wherefore did 

 this practice cease in England ? That it was for- 

 merly common we know from our old proverb, 

 " There is reason in the roasting of eggs." It con- 

 tinued to the time of Shakspeare, for Touchstone 



" Truly thou art damned ; like an ill-roasted egg, all 

 on one side." — As You Like It, Act III. Sc. 2. 



The ancient Romans prepared their ova in this 

 way, — 



" Et sua non emptus prseparat ova cinis." 



Martial, bk. i. ep. 56. 



In allusion, it seems, to this custom of antiquity. 

 Pope says, — 



" The vulgar boil, the learned roast an egg." 

 Whether the learned do so still, I cannot say. My 

 experience has lain among the vulgar, and cer- 

 tainly I have never seen a roasted egg. If, as the 

 line from Martial suggests, the ashes of a wood 

 fire are essential to the operation, the general use 

 of coal may have put an end to the old custom. 



F. 



Coachmakers' Hall. — Who was the "Doctor," 

 who is frequently mentioned in the papers of the 

 day as a conspicuous orator at Coachmakers' Hall, 

 in the year 1779 ? And where can we meet with 

 an account of the meetings and proceedings at this 

 place about this period ? E. H. 



Blue Mould on Coins. — I shall be much obliged 

 if you will insert a Query on this head, with a 

 view to some of your correspondents pointing out 

 to me a method of getting rid of blue mould on 

 some provincial copper coins in a cabinet of mine. 



I am not aware of the cause of the mould, but it 

 is very troublesome to eflFect entirely. Anon. 



Naturalisation Laws. — The contributors to 

 "N. & Q." would confer a favour by stating what 

 are the qualifications required of a foreigner be- 

 fore he can become a citizen of Great Britain, and 

 be entitled to a vote. Also, what are the dis- 

 abilities of an alien before naturalisation, and 

 after, if any. Give quotations from such clauses 

 of enactments as bear directly on the points re- 

 ferred to. 



Information relative to naturalisation-laws in 

 other countries would also be acceptable. 



J. H. A. Bone. 



Cleveland, Ohio, U. S. America. 



Green Water. — A communication in the Fre- 

 derick Examiner from Mr. T. H. Myers, states that 

 the water in the Monocacy river has assumed an 

 appearance as green as grass, which it even retains 

 when dipped up in a tumbler. He also states that 

 the water had retained this colour for ten days, 

 and calls on the scientific for an explanation. 

 Can it be given in the columns of " N. & Q. ? " 



w.w. 



Cathedral Registers. — Are marriages and 

 christenings never performed in a cathedral? Fu- 

 nerals certainly are, and were before the new 

 Registration Act. In the latter case, where were 

 such burials registered ? If in any document or 

 book kept in the chapter-house, why not available 

 for marriages and baptisms also ? A. 



Jean Paul, Comte de Cerdan. — Can any one 

 give me any information concerning Jean Paul, 

 Comte de Cerdan, or concerning either of the two 

 following works, which Barbier assigns to him as 

 their author ? 



" L' Europe Esclave, si I'Angleterre ne rompt ses Fers. 

 Cologne, 1677." 



" L'Empereur et I'Empire trahis, et par qui et comment. 

 Cologne, 1680." 



'AAtewy. 



Dublin. 



The Red Dragon. — Did the Pursuivant of Arms 

 so called derive his name from the alleged ensign 

 of Cadwallader, or the banner ascribed to St. 

 George? R. D. 



'■'■ SihylW'' or '■'■ Sybille." — We have had for the 

 past five weeks in our harbour two large-class 

 frigates, both owning the same name — the one 

 British, the other French ; but the British ship 

 spells her name Sybille, and the French Sibylle. 



Commodore the Hon. Charles Elliot, who com- 

 mands the Syhille, informs me that the ortho- 

 graphy of his ship's name is frequent matter of 

 controversy ; and he readily approves my sugges- 

 tion, that the question be referred for decision to 

 you and your correspondents. 



