By the Rev. W. C. Plenderleath. 319 



Dudley, where, under date of 1539 we are informed that Samuell, 

 son of William Smithe, Clarke, Vicare of Duddly, was born on 

 Friday morning at 4 of the clock, being the xxviij day of February. 

 The sign of that day was the middle of Aquarius ^, the sign of 

 the month K , the plenet of the day ? , plenet of the same ower 5 

 and the morrow day. Whose name hath continued in Duddly from 

 the conqueste." 



To the same valuable and scarce work I am indebted for the fact 

 (on which the author is a good authority, he having been in the 

 office of the Registrar-General), that the best preserved of the register 

 books of the kingdom are those of marriage ; next, those of burial ; 

 and worst, those of baptism (pp. 100, 144). And furthermore for 

 the following curious saying, which he states to be an old English 

 proverb : " The marriage of a young woman and a young man is of 

 God^s making, as Adam and Eve : of an old man and a young 

 ' woman of our Lady's making, as Mary and Joseph : but of an old 

 i woman and a young man by the Author of Evil " (p. 165.) 



The handwriting in these old books is remarkably good and careful 

 — much better than what I find a century later. It is curious to 

 see the German form of the letter e gradually passing through the 

 j form (very similar to an o) which held its ground for so long a time 

 I into that in which it appears in modern manuscript. The two latter 

 forms are not uncommonly found together in the same word. And 

 in the same way I see an instance of the German and the modem 

 English r occurring together in the name of Elizabeth Preter, in 

 172|. The gradual transformation of the ff into i'' may also be 

 traced, the second stroke getting smaller and smaller until it dis- 

 appears in the detached central stroke which is at present used. 

 These two forms also coexist in the case of the same name, borne by 

 the same person ; whence it has come, no doubt, that some families 

 have retained the one form as Ff and others of cognate origin have 

 been content with P. In a like way I trace the manner in which 

 names now widely different have been derived one from the other. 

 Maskelyne becomes Masklyne ; then a little later Maskling ; then 

 j Masling ; and then the now not uncommon form of Maslen. So 

 I Talbot becomes Tolbit — then Tobit ; in which form it would no 



