262 



NOTES AND QUERIES. 



[No. 47. 



able to trace whether giving of the hand had any 

 symhoUc lueaninjr. I think the astrologists con- 

 sider the right as the nobler jiart of the body ; if 

 so, giving of the left in this ease is not wilhout 

 symbolic significance. It must be remembered 

 how much symbolism prevailed among the tribes 

 which swept Europe on the fall of the Koman em- 

 pire, and their Eastern origin. 



The r»Iorgengabe, according to Cancianus {Leges 

 Barharoi'um, torn. iv. p. 24.), was at first a free 

 gift made by the husband after tlie first marriage 

 night. This was carried to such excess, that 

 Liutprand ordained 



" Tamen ipsum JMorgengahe volumus, vit non sit 

 amplius nisi quaita pars ejus substantia, qui ipsum 

 Morgengabe dedit." 



This became subsequently converted into a rigid 

 termed jmtitia. 



Upon this extract from a charter, — 



" Manifesta causa est mihi, quoniam die illo quando 

 te sposavi, promiserain tibi dare justiliam tuani se- 

 cunduui legfwi mciim [qr. uiy Lomburd law in opposition 

 to the Roman, which be had a light to choose,] in 

 Morgencap ; id est, qu:irtam portioiiem omnium reium 

 niobilium et imuiobilium," &c. 



Cancianus thus comments: — 



" Animadverte, qitain recta charta ha?c cum supra 

 alligatk formulis conveiii.it. S))onsus piomiserat Mor- 

 gencap, quando feminam desponsaveivat, iiide vero 

 ante collj^lglum chartam conscribit : ct quod et Liut- 

 prandi lege, et ex antiquis inoribus Doiium fuit mere 

 gratuitum, hie nppeUatur Juslitia secundum legem 

 Laiigobardorum." 



The Morgencap here assumes, I apprehend, 

 somewhat the form of dower. That it was so, is 

 very doubtful. (Grimm, vol. ii. p. 441. " Mor- 

 gengabe.") 



" An demselben IMergcn cmpfiingt die Jungfrau von 

 ihrem Geniahl ein ansehnlic^hes Gesclienk, welclies Mor- 

 gengabe heisst. Scboa in dcr Pactio Guiithcrammi et 

 Cliildeberli, werden Dos und Morganagiba unter- 

 sihkden, ebenso Ley. Rip. 37. 2. Alaman. 5G. 1, 2. 

 Dos und Morgangeba ; Lex Burgend. 42. 2. JMorgan- 

 gcba und diis ' pretium nuptiale;' bei den Langobar- 

 den, 'Meta uud Morgengab.'" 



I do not say this answers the question of your 

 correspondent G., which is, what is the dericat'on 

 of the word ? 



Its actual signification, I think, means left.^ 

 handed; but to think is not to resolve, and the 

 question is open to the charitable contributions of 

 your learned and able supporters. 



As regards the Fairy Morgana, who was mar- 

 ried to a mortal, I confess, with your kind per- 

 mission, I had rather not accept her as a satisfactory 

 reply. It is as though you would accept " once 

 upon a time " as a chronological date! She was 

 viari-ied to a mortal — true; but morganatically, I 

 doubt it. If morganatic came from this, it should 



appear the Fah-y Morgana was i\\Q first lady who so 

 underwent the ceremony. Do not forget Lurline, 

 who married also a mortal, of whom the poet so 

 prettily sings : 



" Luillne hung her head, 

 Turned pale, and then red; 

 And declared his abruptness in popping the question 

 So soon after dinner liad spoilt her digestion." 



This lady's marriage resembled the other in all 

 respects, and I leave you to decide, and no man is 

 more competent, from your extensive knowledge 

 of the mythology of Medieval Europe, whether 

 Morgana, beyond the mere accident of her name, 

 was more likely than Lurline to have added a 

 word with a puzzling etymology to the languages 

 of Euro]]e. The word will, 1 think, be found of 

 Eastern origin, clothed in a Teutonic form. 



After all, Jacob Grimm and Cancianus may 

 interest your readers, and so I send the Kote. S. 11. 



Atheii£Bum, Sept. 6. 1850. 



Alderman Heckford. — Gilford {3en Jonson., 

 vol. vi. J). 481.) has the following note : — 



" The giants of Guildhall, tliank heaven, yet defend 

 their charge : it only remains to wish that the citizens 

 may take example by tlic fate of Hulmebv, and not 

 expose them to an attack to which they will assuredly 

 be found unequal. It is not altogether owing to their 

 wisdom that this has not already taken place. For 

 twenty years they were chained to the car of a pro- 

 fligate buffoon, who dragged them through every spe- 

 cies of ignominy to the verge of rebellion ; and their 

 hall is even yet disgraced with the statue of a worthless 

 negrO' monger, in the act of insulting their sovereign 

 with a speech, of whieli (factious and brutal as he was) 

 he never uttered one syllable." . . . '■ By my troth, captain, 

 these are very bitter words." 



But GifTord was generally coiTect in his asser- 

 tions ; and twenty-two years after /(is note, I made 

 the ibllowing one : — 



" It is a curious fact, but a true one, that Beckford 

 did nut utter uvc syllable of this spceeh. It was penned 

 by Home Tooke, and by his art put on the records of 

 the city and on Bcckford's statue, as he told me, Mr. 

 Braithwaite, Mr. Seyers, &c., at the Athenian Club. 



" Isaac Kscu. 



" See the Times of July 23. 183S, p. 6." 



The worshipful Company of Ironmongers have 

 relegated their statue ti'om their hall to a lower 

 position : but it still disgraces the Giuldhall, and 

 will continue to do so, as long as any factious de- 

 magogue is permitted to have a ]ilace among its 

 members. L. S. 



T/ie Frozen //lirM.— Perhaps it is not generally 

 known that the writer of Munchauscits Travels 

 borrowed this amusing incident from Ileylin's 



