2-i S. VI. 141., Sept. U. '58.] NOTES AND QUERIES. 



207 



information respecting notices of plants or flowers 

 by our earlier British poets to the time of Shak- 

 speare included ? H. H. H. 



Boaden on ShaJtspeare Portraits. — What is the 

 standing of the work, A}i Enqxdry into the Authen- 

 ticity of Portraits of Wm. Shakspeare, by James 

 Boaden. 1825. Edwd. Y. Lowne. 



Farmers Irish Almanac. — William Farmer, 

 chirurgeon, " writ," says Harris, in a slip added 

 to some copies of his Writers of Ireland, p. 363., 

 "an almanack for Ireland, Dublin, 4to., 1587, 

 which I mention as being perhaps the earliest 

 almanack ever published in or for that country." 

 Where may I find a copy of this publication ? 



Abhba. 



"Adieu to London." — Can you give me any in- 

 formation regarding the authorship of The Trou- 

 badotir, a Collection of Original Poems, 1823 ? I 

 wish to ascertain the author of a poem entitled 

 "Adieu to London, by W. S.,* p. 202. in this 

 collection. K. Isgus. 



Casting out Devils. — Will some one be good 

 enough to corroborate the following : — 



" On the 13th June, 1788, George Luken was dispos- 

 sessed of seven devils by seven clergymen in the Temple 

 Church at Bristol." 



Surely it must be the latest instance of any one 

 undergoing this operation. R. W. Hackwood. 



Ancient Medal. — I have lately purchased a kind 

 of medal, about which I should like to have some 

 information from the readers of "N. & Q." who 

 are learned in such matters. The metal of which 

 it is composed is, I believe, lead. It is in a most 

 perfect state of preservation, except a slight muti- 

 lation from the spade of the finder. The shape is 

 round, and almost the size of a penny, with rough 

 edges, as usual with coins, &c. of early date. On 

 both sides, near the edge, is a beaded border. On 

 one side there are two venerable bearded heads 

 surrounded also with a beaded line. The beard of 

 one figure is long and pointed, and the other is 

 short and round. Between the heads is a cross, 

 and over all, the letters "*P A^t^P E" in an- 

 tique characters. This may refer to St. Peter and 

 St. Paul. On the other side the letters — 



"CLGMeNS. P"P VI." 

 This evidently refers to Pope Clement VI., who 

 was pope, I believe, a.d. 1342. I ought to have 

 said that this medal, or whatever it is, was found 

 within the precincts of the old Priory of St. John, 

 in Wells, founded a.d. 1206. Ina. 



The Mayhevo Family. — Thomas Mayhew, go- 

 vernor and patentee of Martha's Vineyard, Nan- 



[• It is signed " Valtara." — Kd.] 



tucket and Elizabeth's Island, Xorth America, 

 emigrated from England in the early part of the 

 seventeenth century, and settled at Edgarstown, 

 Martha's Vineyard, a.d. 1642. The family were 

 settled in Suffolk and Norfolk, and have lor their 

 arms, gules, a chevron vaire between three crowns, 

 or. Crest, a unicorn's head, erased gules, armed 

 and maned, or, charged on the neck with a chevron, 

 vaire. Can any reader of " N. & Q." give a copy 

 of any of the Mayhew pedigrees, or other genea- 

 logical particulars of the family ? It is said that 

 the Davy MSS. in the British Museum contain 

 notes of the pedigrees. Ina. 



Irish Estates. — In the reign of James I. the 

 Corporation of London bought some forfeited es- 

 tates of that monarch. Can any of your corre- 

 spondents acquaint me with the amount paid ? 

 how the money was raised ? the present receipts ? 

 the expenses of management ? the number of 

 companies holding shares, and the amount which 

 each receive ? Should these questions be too 

 extensive, I shall be very thankful for an instal- 

 ment. B. S. 



Female Ambassador. — Was there during the 

 reign of Queen Anne an ambassador sent from 

 England to some foreign court who wore female 

 attire, as the representative of a female sovereign. 

 If so, can you tell me the name of the ambassador, 

 and the court, and the date of the embassy ? * 



F. G. 



The Ahulci. — Who were the people thus 

 called ? They are mentioned, as fixr as I can 

 learn, only by Zosimus (lib. ii. cap. li.), and, 

 which is the most important to Englishmen, in 

 an inscription relating to Pevensey (Anderida). 

 In the war between Constantius and Magnentiu^, 

 Zosimus speaks of a body of Abulci under a 

 leader called Arcadius : and a grand battle which 

 took place on the Rhine in Dauphiny. Now the 

 French critics, finding a town called Chabeuil 

 near this spot, have supposed the word to be a 

 corruption of Chabilei, but this derivation seems 

 far-fetched, and no such word occurs in any early 

 author. Besides, both armies had come from a 

 distance, and it is unlikely to suppose a body of 

 troops from the neighbourhood to have distin- 

 guished themselves more than the invaders ; or 

 rather it is to suppose, because the Connaught 

 Rangers distinguished themselves in a certain 

 battle, that the fight took place at Connaught 

 instead of at Waterloo. Is it possible that tliey 

 were the Obulei, a people of Obuleo in Spain, 

 near Corduba, mentioned by Strabo, iii. 141. 160. ; 

 by Stephanus Byzantinus, sub voce ; by Pliny, iii. 

 1. 3., and by others ? It was an important town, 

 as it had the privilege of a mint. If any of your 

 readers could throw light on this matter they 



[• See « N. & Q." 1" J*, xii. 360.] 



