Dec. 7. 1850.] 



NOTES AND QUERIES. 



469 



Pursuit of Knowledge under Difficidties, London, 

 1831," (art. Barry, p. 159.) it is stated that: 



"The picture was painted in his twentieth or twenty- 

 first year, on the baptism by St. Patrick, of one of the 

 kings of Cashel, who stands unmuved while the ceremony 

 is performed, amidst a crowd of wondering spectators ; 

 although the saint, in setting down his crosier, has, with- 

 out perceiving it, struck its iron point through the 

 royal foot." 



EsTE. 



Bechet (Vol. ii., pp. 106. 270. 364.). — It so hap- 

 pens that, before seeing Mr. Venables' communi- 

 cation, with his quotations from the Monasticon 

 (Vol. ii., p. 364 ), I had taken an opportunity of 

 looking into a friend's copy of that work, and had 

 there found what seems to be a key to the origin 

 of the designation "<SV. Thomas of Aeon or Acres." 

 It is stated, in a quotation from Bp. Tanner, that 



" The hospital [in Clieapside] consisted of a master 

 and several brethren, professing the ride of St. .■\ustin, 

 but were of a particular order, which was ahout this time 

 instituted in the Holy Land, viz. Militiie Hospitales 

 S. Thonice MnHyris Caiituariensis de Aeon, being a 

 branch of the Templars." — Munast. vi. 646. 



and the same title occurs in the charter of 

 Edward III. (ibid.) Now it appears to me that 

 the words de Aeon here relate, not to the saint, but 

 to the order which took its name from him ; and 

 this view is contirmed by the passage which Mr. 

 Venables quotes from Matthew of Westminster, 

 as to the foundation of a chapel in honour of St. 

 Thomas, at Acre, in Syria, a.d. 1190. It is easy 

 to suppose that in course of time, especially when 

 the origin of the designation had been cast into 

 the shade by the cessation of the Crusades, and 

 the ruin of the great order to which the brethren 

 of St. Thomas were at first attached, the patron 

 himself may have come to be styled de Acoti or 

 of Acres : and this seems to be the case in the Act 

 of 23 Hen. VI. (Munast. vi. 247.) 



Allow me to ask a question as to another point 

 in the history of Becket. Among his prefi;rnients 

 is said to have been the ])a!ush of " St. Mary 

 Littory or ad Litters," whicli is commonly suppo.sed 

 to mean St. Mary-le-Straiid.* My friend Mr. 

 Foss, in his elaborate work on The Judges of Eng- 

 land, contradicts this, on the ground that there 

 was tlieii no parish of that name ; and he supposes 

 St. Mary-at-Iiill to be intended. Now the words 

 tul Litters would be alike applicable as a descrip- 

 tion in cither case ; but it ap[)ears to me tliat, if the 

 city chur(;li wei'e meant, it would be styled, as it 

 usually is, ad Moutem, and that ad Litters is Latin 

 for le Strand. Was tliere not then an ancient 

 church so called, until the demolitions of Protec- 



[* We have in the name of tills church an answer 

 to A. K. lJ.'.s Query, Vol. ii., p. 396., as to wlutlior 

 the Str:uid was ever known as Lt SiranU, — the Church 

 of St. Mary-le-Strand. — Kit.] 



tor Somerset in that quarter ? And is not the 

 common belief as to Becket's parish correct ? I 

 ask in great ignorance, but not without having 

 vainly searched some books from which informa- 

 tion might have been expected. J. C. 11. 



Aerostation (Vol. ii., pp. 199. 317. 380.). — I 

 happen to remember a few odd verses of a squib 

 on Lunardi, which may be enough seasoned with 

 the dust of oblivion to interest some of your 

 readers. 



" Good folk's, can you believe your eyes? 

 Vincenzo di Lunardi 

 Has made a voyage to the skies. 

 That foreigner foolhardy I 



" He went up in a round baloon, 

 (For moon is luna, Latin), 

 To pay a visit to the moou ; 

 A basket-boat he sat in. 



" And side by side the moon, he cried, 

 ' How do, fuir cousin moon ? eh ! ' 

 Through telescopes they were espied, 

 Baloon — Lunardi — Luna. 



* * * * if 



" When weary on the wing, to perch 

 Once more, and air abandon. 

 Quite apropos he swooped in search 

 Of solid earth to ' Stand-on.'* 



" Now after all remains to tell 

 How learned Mr. Uaker, 

 Set up a moonstone where he fell. 

 And called the field ' wise-acre.' 



Perhaps some of your correspondents could supply 

 the remaining stanzas. I fancy there were several 

 more. As fixr as I can remember, they chiefly re- 

 lated to M. Lunardi's conversation with the moon, 

 which, involving some political allusions, did not 

 so much hit my youthful imagination at the time. 

 When a boy, I have frequently heard my father 

 repeat the lines. C. J. F. 



Aerostation, Works on (Vol. ii., pp. 317. 380.). 

 — If your correspondent who inquires respecting 

 works on aerostation will look into the Jlevue des 

 Deux Mondes for October 15, he will find an 

 article on that subject, detailing the various at- 

 tem[)ts made from the time of Montgolfier down 

 to a very recent period. 



A still later communication has been made to 

 the world in the French newspaper, La Presse, of 

 yesterday's date (Nov. 7th), relating, in term.s of 

 exultation, a successful experiment nuiU." in Paris 

 by Messrs. Julien and Arnault to steer a ma- 

 cliine against the wind, in which hitherto impracti- 

 cable attempt they are said to have coni])letcly 

 succeeded at repeated times, and the mechanical 



Standon, Herts, where he alighted. 



