328 



NOTES AND QUERIES. 



[S-^i S. VI. 147., Oct. 23. 'o8. 



Forty Days' Rain after certain Saints' Days. — 

 The well-known saying that if it rains on St. 

 Swithin's Day it will rain for forty days after, is 

 believed in France of St. Medard's day. In Tus- 

 cany the same thing is said of St. Gallo's day; and 

 in Rome of a saint whose name I could not learn. 

 Can any of your readers supply me with the name, 

 and the date of his festival ? A. A. 



Napier's Bones. — Did this ingenious contriv- 

 ance ever come into frequent use, or was it super- 

 seded at once by logarithms — the other splendid 

 discovery of Napier ? I think I once saw a box 

 of them many yeai's ago, when I neither knew 

 their name nor use, on a lumberer's stall. Can 

 they be purchased now anywhere ? The only al- 

 lusions to them that I have ever seen are in Hu- 

 dibras, who despoils Sidrophel of them and other 

 plunder ; and in one of Walter Scott's novels, 

 where one of the characters swears " by the bones 

 of the immortal Napier." "Was Napier Baron or 

 only Laird of Merchistoun ? AVhat did he con- 

 trive to fill his Rabdologia with, the explanation 

 of the use of the " bones," or " rods," being so 

 simple ? E. G. K. 



Cranmers Life Abridged. — 



" The Abridgment of the Life of the most Reverend 

 Father in God, Thomas Cranmer, Sometime Lord Arch- 

 Bishop of Canterbury, composed by John Strype, CD., 

 and containing the History of the Church of England, 

 and the Reformation of it during the Primacv of the said 

 Arch -Bishop. Done bj' John Conrad Stephen Hdlling, 

 Superintendent of the Churches in the County of Del- 

 menkorst, and First Minister of the Gospel iu the chief 

 Citj' thereof. Hanover, Printed for Nicholas Forster, 

 Bookseller to His Majesty, 1725." 



This small octavo of 202 pages is dedicated to 

 His Highness Prince Frederick. Is it in any way 

 remarkable ? S. F. Creswell. 



Cardinal Pole. — I lately acquired a beautiful 

 copy of a little work, of which the following is the 

 title : — 



" Epistolie Duse Duorum Amicorum, ex quibus vaua, 

 flagisiosaque Pontiflcum Pauli Tertii et Julii Tertii, et 

 Cardinalis Poli, et Stephani Gardineri Pseudo-episcopi 

 Vuintoniensis Angli, eorumque adulatorum sectatorumque 

 ratio, magna ex parte potest intellige. Apocalypsis Cap. 

 18. Cum papcE priuilegio, ad momentum horas." 



It is not paged. At the end is an article " de 

 Studio et Zelo Pietatis Cardinalis Poli," consist-'ng 

 of four leaves. 



Can you give me any information in relation to 

 this small, and, I suspect, rare little volume. 



J. M. 



Airish or Arish. — In Cornwall, and I believe 

 also in Devonshire, a field from which corn has 

 been cut, a stubble field, is so called. Can any 

 of the readers of " N. & Q." say whence the word 

 is derived ? John M.4clean. 



Hammersmith. 



Penhill. — Penhill is a hill at the commencement 

 of Wensleydale in Yorkshire. What is the deri- 

 vation of this name ? And what the correct story 

 attached to it ? T. S. V. C. 



Frederick VII., King of Denmark. — Is the King 

 of Denmark descended from Frederic, Prince of 

 Wales, father of George III., and if so, how ? 

 Who is his heir ? • A. M. W. 



Boohs that never existed. — A ten days' sale of a 

 superb collection of ancient and modern books, 

 among which is an early Luther's Bible printed 

 on vellum, is advertised by Heussuer, of Brussels, 

 to commence Nov. 3. 1858. In it is the following 

 curious volume : — 



"Lot 1003. Cat.ilogue d'une tres-ricbe mais peu nom- 

 breuse collection de livres de feu M. le Comte J. N. A. de 

 Fortoas. Mons, s. d. in-8" d. maroq. vert. [Saturdav, 

 Nov. 13.] 



" Tir^ a petit nombre d'exeraplaires, ce catalogue rcs- 

 tera toujours recherch^ comrae souvenir d'une farce de 

 bibliophile fort bien jouee. On salt que la bibUothfeque et 

 les livres en question u'ont jamais existe." 



Mr. Heussner is a bookseller of the highest re- 

 spectability, son-in-law and successor to Heberle 

 of Cologne, formerly a very extensive collector of 

 curiosities and ancient books : he would not use 

 the words " on sait " without good authority. Do 

 any of your readers recollect any other list or 

 catalogue of imaginary books ? 



George Offoe. 



Hackney. 



^tnor CBucvtciS tottlj ^n^tocriS. 



Dr. John Thomas. — It appears there were two 

 persons of the name of Dr. John Thomas, not 

 easily to be distinguished ; for somebody, says 

 Bishop Newton, was speaking of Dr. Thomas, 

 when it was asked, " Which Dr. Thomas do you 

 mean ? " " Dr. John Thomas." " They are both 

 named John." "Dr. Thomas who has a living in 

 the city." " They have both livings in the city." 

 " Dr. Thomas who is chaplain to the king." 

 "They are both chaplains to the king." "Dr. 

 Thomas who is known to be a very good preacher." 

 " They are both known to be very good preachers." 

 " Then the Dr. Thomas who squints." " They 

 both squint." It is said that they were, after- 

 wards, both bishops. AVanted particulars of these 

 different, identical, clergymen by 



A Puzzled One. 



[During the last century there were three bishops 

 connected with the Church of England bearing the same 

 name, that of Dr. John Thomas, which has occasioned 

 some confusion in the various notices of them. Even the 

 careful Mr. Perceval, in the first edition of his valuable 

 list of the English Episcopate has confounded two of 

 them. We will notice each in the order of his conse- 

 cration. 



1. Dr. John Thomas of the Merchant Taylors' School ; 

 afterwards of Catharine Hall, Cambridge, B.A. 1713 ; 



