152 



NOTES AND QUERIES. 



[No. 225. 



(from the verb), state of perishing from cold or 

 hunger," is to be found, and thus defined, in "An 

 Appendix to Dr. Johnson's English Dictionary," 

 published along with the latter, by William Maver, 

 in. 2 vols. 8vo., Glasgow, 1809, now forty-five years 

 ago. In his preface to this Appendix he says : 



" In the compilation the editor is principally in- 

 debted to Mr. Mason, whose labours in supplying the 

 ^deficiencies of Dr. Johnson's Dictionary have so much 

 enriched the vocabulary of our language, that every 

 purchaser of the quarto edition should avail himself of 

 a copy of Mr. Mason's Supplement." 



Whether or not Mr. Maver drew the word 

 "starvation" from Mr. Mason's Supplement, I 

 cannot say; but from old date in the west of 

 Scotland it has been, and is still, popularly and 

 -extensively used in the exact senses given to it by 

 Mr. Maver as above. I think it much more likely 

 to be of Scottish than of American origin, and 

 that Mr. Webster may have picked it up from 

 some of our natives in this country. 



I may add, that in early life I often spoke with 

 Mr. Maver, who was a most intelligent literary 

 man. In 1809 he followed the business of a book- 

 seller in Glasgow, but from some cause was not 

 fortunate, and afterwards followed that of a book 

 auctioneer, and may be dead fully thirty years 

 ago. His edition of, and Appendix to, Johnson 

 were justly esteemed ; the latter " containing se- 

 veral thousand words omitted by Dr. Johnson, 

 •and such as have been introduced by good writers 

 since his time," with " the pronunciation accord- 

 ing to the present practice of the best orators and 

 orthoepists " of the whole language. G. N. 



This word was first introduced into the English 

 language by Mr. Dundas, in a debate in the House 

 of Commons on American affairs, in 1775. From 

 it he obtained the nick-name of " Starvation 

 Dundas." (Vide the Correspondence between Ho- 

 race Walpole and Mason, vol. ii. pp. 177. 310. 396., 

 edition 1851.) The word is of irregular formation, 

 the root starve being Old English, while the ter- 

 mination -ation is Latin. E. G. R. 



The word may perhaps be originally American ; 

 but if the following anecdote be correct, it was 

 introduced into this country long before Webster 

 compiled his Dictionary : 



" The word starvation was first introduced into the 

 English language by Mr. Dundas, in a speech in 1775 

 on an American debate, and hence applied to him as a 

 nickname, ' Starvation Dundas.' • I shall not,' said he, 

 1 wait for the advent of starvation from Edinburgh to 

 settle my judgment.' " — Letters of Horace Walpole and 

 Mason, vol. ii. p. 396. 



J. R. M., M. A. 



Throughout this part of the country, "starved" 

 always refers to cold, never to hunger. To express 

 the latter the word "hungered" is always used: 



thus, many were " like to have been hungered " in 

 the late severe weather and hard times. This is 

 clearly the scriptural phrase " an hungred." To 

 " starve " is to perish ; and it is a common ex- 

 pression in the south, " I am quite perished with 

 cold ;" which answers to our northern one, "I am 

 quite starved." H. T. G. 



Hull. 



I cannot ascertain the period of the adoption of 

 the unhappily common word " starvation " in our 

 language, but it is much older than your corre- 

 spondent Q. supposes. It occurs in the Rolliad: 



'Tis but to fire another Sykes, tt> plan 

 Some new starvation scheme for Hindostan." 



M. 



OSMOTIIERLEY IN YORKSHIRE. 



(Vol.viii., p. 617.) 



R. W. Carter gives an account of folk lore in 

 reference to Osmotherley, and expresses a desire 

 to know if his statement is authentic. I have en- 

 deavoured to make myself acquainted with York- 

 shire folk lore, and beg to inform Mr. Carter 

 that his statement approaches as near the truth as 

 possible. In my early days I frequently had re- 

 cited to me, by a respectable farmer Avho had been 

 educated on the borders of Roseberry (and who 

 obtained it from the rustics of the neighbour- 

 hood), a poetical legend, in which all the parti- 

 culars of this curious tradition are embodied. It 

 is as follows : 



" In Cleveland's vale a village stands, 

 Though no great prospect it commands ; 

 As pleasantly for situation 

 As any village in the nation. 

 Great Ayton it is call'd by name; 

 But though I am no man of fame, 

 Yet do not take me for a fool, 

 Because I live near to this town ; 

 But let us take a walk and see 

 This noted hill call'd Roseberry, 

 Compos'd of many a cragged stone, 

 Resembling all one solid cone, 

 Which, monumental-like, have stood 

 Ever since the days of Noah's flood. 

 Here cockles .... petrified, 

 As by the curious have been tried, 

 Have oft been found upon its top, 

 'Tis thought the Deluge had cast up. 

 'Tis mountains high (you may see that), 

 Though not compar'd with Ararat. 

 Yet oft at sea it doth appear, 

 To ships that northern climates 

 A land-mark, when the weather 

 If many ships at sea there be, 

 A charming prospect then you'll see ; 

 Don't think I fib, when this you're reading, 

 They look like sheep on mountains feeding. 



steer, > 

 r 's clear. J 



