-May 4. 1850.] 
NOTES AND QUERIES. 
44] 
Christian Captives.—Where can any informa- 
tion be obtained respecting the Christian captives 
taken by the Barbary pirates — the subscriptions 
raised for their relief, by briefs, &c., and what 
became of the funds ? R. W. B. 
Ancient Churchyard Customs.—In an article 
in The Ecclesiologist on churchyards and church- 
yard crosses, —but not having the volume by me, 
I am unable to give an exact reference,— it is 
stated, 
« In them (churchyards) prayers are not now com. 
monly poured forth to God, nor are doles distributed 
to His poor; the epitaphium is no longer delivered 
from the steps of the churchyard cross, nor does the 
solemn lamprophoria symbolize the life of the de- 
ceased,” 
I shall be much obliged for a fuller account of 
these ancient customs, more particularly of the 
last two, and for notes of any allusions to them in 
old books. Imay say the same with reference to 
the following extract from the Handbook of En- 
glish Ecclesiology, p. 190.:— 
“ Under this head may also be mentioned the Funal | 
or Deadlight, which was lighted in some churchyards 
at night.” 
SToKr. 
“ Rotten Row” and “ Stockwell” Street—R. R.,” 
of Glasgow, inquires the etymology of these names, 
which, occurring both in Scotland and in England, 
and at a time when the countries were almost 
always at war, would scarcely have been copied 
by the one from the other. He rejects, as of 
course, the etymology of the former from its pass- 
ing by buildings which were old and “rotten;” 
neither does he favour the belief that the original 
word was “Routine” Row, so called from the 
processions of the church passing in that direction. 
REPLIES, 
EARLY STATISTICS. — CHART, KENT. 
(No, 21. p. 329.) 
The Registrar-General, in his Eighth Report, 
enters at length into the causes which have 
brought about the variations in the number of 
marriages, and consequently, as I need scarcely 
say, of births. In comparing the marriage returns 
since 1754, which are given in the report, with 
the history of events since that period, he cer- 
tainly makes it clear, to use his own words, that 
“The marriage returns in England point out periods 
of prosperity little less distinctly than the funds mea- 
sure the hopes and fears of the money-market.” (p. 26. 
8vo. edit. ) 
And that — 
“The great fluctuations in the marriages of England 
are the results of peace after war, abundance after 
, did most materially retard the numerical increase 
and the substitution during the protectorate of 
| John Vaux, our minister, was suspended ... 
dearth, high wages after want of employment, specula- 
tion after languid enterprise, confidence after distrust, 
national triumphs after national disasters.” (p. 274) 
During the civil wars, the diminishing influences 
indicated in the reverse of this statement were at | 
work with an intensity unequalled in any other 
period of our modern history, so that there can 
be no doubt that our then “unhappy divisions” 
of the population, as well as the progress of science 
and the useful arts. Such is the inevitable con- 
sequence of war: of civil war in a tenfold degree. 
And our parish register books, all of which I 
doubt not show similar facts, place this in the most 
unfavourable light; for, through the spread of 
nonconformity, the unsettled state of the times, 
the registration of births which might or might 
not be communicated to the elected parish register, 
for that of baptisms which the parish priest would | | 
both celebrate and register, the names of very || 
many of those born iato the world would be alto- | | 
gether omitted from these records. It may be 
interesting to show the effects of some of these 
causes by the subjoined extracts from the registers 
themselves, which I transcribe from the Chronicon 
Mirabile of the late Sir Cuthbert Sharpe. — (Vide 
pp- 17, 18. 22, 23. 70. 121. and 156.) 
Staindrop, Durham.— “1644. From this time to 1 646, 
through want of a Minister, and carelessness of Ve 
Cleark, during y* wars, much of y° Register is lost, 
only bere and there a name registered.” 
“1652. June 14. Mem. From this time till August 
there was noe Minister, soe that y® children were car- 
ried to other parishes to be baptized.” 
St. Helen’s Ankland, Durham, a.v. 1633:—« Mr. 
Mr. Robert Cowper, of Durham, served in his place, 
and left out divers christenings unrecorded, and re- 
gestered others disorderly.” 
Gainford, Durham.—“ Courteous Reader, this is to 
let thee understand that many children were left unre- 
corded or redgestered, but the reason and cause was 
this; some would and some would not, being of a 
fickle condition, as the time was then; this being their 
end and aim, to save a groate from the poor Clarke, so 
they would rather have them unredgestered —but now 
. it is their design to have them redgestered,” 
Lowestoft, Suffolk, 1644........ “For some time 
following there was in this Town neither Minister nor 
Clarke, but the inhabitants were inforced to procure 
now one and then another to baptize their children, 
by which means there was no Register kept, only those 
few hereafter mentioned weare by myself baptized in 
those intervalls when I enjoyed my freedom.” 
Hexham, Northumberland, ¢. 1655.—*« Note yt Mr. 
Will. Lister, Minister of St. John Lees in those dis- 
tracted times, did both marry and baptize all that made 
ther application to him, for we he was sometimes se- 
verely threatened by ye souldiers, and had once a cockt 
pistoll held to his breest, &c., so y® its no wond® yt ell 
