Page:Notes and Queries - Series 12 - Volume 9.djvu/213

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12 s. ix. AUG. 27, i92i.] NOTES AND QUERIES. 171 fceplte*. CAPTAIN JONES. (12 S. ix. 90.) Is not the reference to David Lloyd's bur- lesque, ' The Legend ot Captaine Jones,' the first part of which appeared in 1631 ? There is a Life of the author (1597-1663) in the ' D.N.B.' He was a Fellow of All Souls and Canon of Chester. Messrs. Pickering and Chatto's large 'Illustrated Catalogue' (4to, pp.712), issued, I think, about fifteen years ago, devotes half a page to a description of this work, No. 2626, and gives, in addition, a reproduction of Marshall's engraved frontis- piece to the edition of 1648, the first to contain both parts : The legend or ballad, which opens with ' I sing thy arms (Bellona) and the man's Whose mighty deeds outdid great Tamerlan's," is a genial, if somewhat coarse burlesque upon the extravagant adventures of a sea-rover named Jones, who, says Wood, " lived in the reign of Queen Elizabeth, and was in great renown for his exploits." The poem relates how with his good sword, Kyl-za-dog, Jones slew the mighty giant Asdriasdust ; how eleven fierce kings made a brave but futile attempt to stay his trium- phant progress ; and, how, at last, he was captured by the Spanish King at the expense of six thousand warriors, but at once ransomed by his country- men, anxious to recover him on any terms. Else- where Wood says that the " Legend " was a burlesque upon a Welsh poem entitled ' Awdl Richard John Greulon,' but the view that Jones was not an altogether mythical person seems to derive support from the fact that in his ' Rehearsal Transprosed,' Andrew Marvell says, a propos of the " Legend," " I have heard that there was indeed such a captain, an honest, brave fellow ; but a wag that had a mind to be merry with him, hath quite spoiled his history." To the above may be added that there are references to " Captain Jones" in Edmund Gayton's ' Festivous Notes upon Don Quixot ' (1654):

  • P. 21 : Captaine Jones, the only unparallell

Romancy, and fit to be the Legend of all Countries, and to be translated by forreign Nations. P. 276 : And Captaine Jones in all his dreadfulle dresse, Had ne'r been known i' th' crowd, but for the Presse. In the laudatory verses at the beginning of Gayton's book, signed Chirosophus " ( ? == John Bulwer, author of ' Anthropo- metamorphosis ') there is this couplet : O that some pleasant Beames would shine like these Upon her Co/en, the Welsh Hercules ! To this last expression is the marginal note, " Cap. Jones." EDWARD BENSLY. Much Hadham, Herts. KINDS OF BREAD (12 S. ix. 70, 117). In Holinshed's * Chronicles,' vol. ii., 1568 (reprint 1807, p. 287), is given the assise of bread proclaimed by King John c. 1203. Mention is made of manchet and cheat, e.g., " When wheat is sold for foure shillings, manchet shall wey 36 shillings, and cheat 46 shillings." In ; The Customs of London, otherwise called Arnold's Chronicle ' (c. 1521), re- print 1811, pp. 49-56, is 'The Ordinaunce for the Assise and Weight of Bred in the Cite of London.' No date is given. The Assise begins with wheat at 3 shillings a quarter, and advancing by 6 pence ends with 20 shillings a quarter. The sorts of bread given are " symnell,'

' white loff coket," "white loff," " whete

loff," " lof of all graeynis." Example : The q't' whete at iiij. s. yi. d'. The q' symnell xi. vuncis q't' and ij. d'. the q' whyt loof coket xiij. vuncis di. and iij. the ob' white loff the ob' whete loof the peny whete loff q't'. xxvij. vuncis and half, xli. vuncis and a q't'. Ixxxij. vuncis and half. ye ob' loof of all graeynis Iv. vuncis. The word " poise " which appears in the first list is understood before each weight. There are various spellings, such as "loof," " loff," " greynes," " graeynis," " grenys." There is the following note at the end : Item the half peny loffe whyte of Stratford muste weye ij. vuncis more thane the half peny whit lof of Londo. Item the half peny whete loff of Stratford muste weye iij. vuncis more thanne the half peny whete loof of London. Item the peny whete lof of Stratford muste weye vi. vuncis more thane ye peny whete loof of London. Item iij. half peny white lofes of Stratford muste wey as myche as the peny whete loof. Item the loof of all greynes that is to saye, the whete loof muste wey as miche as the peny whete loof. And the half peny whyte looffe. The last item is, I think, unintelligible. The " loof of all greynes " appears to be confused with the " whete loof." Probably the full stop before " And " is an error. In William Harrison's ' Description of England' (Holinshed's 'Chronicles,' 1807-8 reprint, vol. i., p. 283) the qualities of bread are in the following order : Mainchet, the first and most excellent, which we commonlie call white bread.