384
NOTES AND QUERIES. [io s. xn. NOV. 13, im
is no really general work on the subject, so
far as I am aware, and I am sure that all
those who have made the MS. accounts of
any particular parish or parishes their
special study will agree that one is much
wanted.
To make the suggested volume as useful as possible, I regard it as imperative that it should contain among its appendixes the following : an alphabetical list of wardens' accounts printed or abstracted to the date of publication ; a chronological list (as complete as possible) of all parishes in England possessing accounts antedating 1500 ; and a glossary of difficult words and terms to be met with in this class of record. WILLIAM MCMURRAY.
" MILLET." In a leading article in The Times of 26 October on the present con- dition of Turkey reference is made to " the Greek, Armenian, and other millets which have been allowed to form States within the State." From the context it is evident that the word millet is used in the sense of a religious community. What is the history of this term ? To what language does it belong ? It must be a word of rare occurrence in English books, as it finds no place in the great Oxford Dictionary. I suppose it is the same word as the Arabic millah, which occurs in the Koran fifteen times, and is generally used for the " Religion of Abraham," but in one passage for the religion of Jews and Christians. Emanuel Deutsch in his famous article on Islam, which appeared in The Quarterly Review for October, 1869, makes some interesting re- marks on this important word. He says :
" We have to turn to one of those indigestible morsels, one of the many cruces of the exegetes of Orient and Occident. The word used in the Koran for the ' Religion of Abraham " is generally Millah. JSprenger, after ridiculing the indeed absurd attempts made to derive it from an Arabic root, concludes that it must be a foreign word, introduced by the teachers of the 'Religion of Abraham' into the Hcjaz. He is perfectly right. Millah=Memra= Loyos are identical: being the Hebrew, Chaldee, and Greek terms respectively for ' Word' that surrogate for the Divine Name used by the Targum, byPhilo, by St. John."
It is interesting to note that the Hebrew millah (word) belongs to the language of poetry, and occurs especially in Job.
A. L. MAYHEW.
Oxford.
MESSBS. LARES & PENATES. Londoners ^re accustomed to view in the streets of their great city many an ingenious device for attracting custom. Here is yet another
example worthy of recognition on the score
of originality. Over a shop-front in Baker
Street, Marylebone, is inscribed " Lares
et Penates, decorators and dealers in
antiques." Truly a fanciful method of
veiling the identity of business principals !
How, one is tempted to ask, is access in the
flesh to be gained to the partners in so
figurative a concern ? CECIL CLARKE.
ADAM SMITH'S STATUS AT OXFORD. Some misapprehension exists as to the position occupied by the author of ' The Wealth of Nations ' during his residence at Balliol College, Oxford. He held a Warner Exhibition of 51. quarterly. He was also one of the six Snell Exhibitioners sent from Glas- gow University, the five senior of w r hom re- ceived 10Z. for each quarter of thirteen weeks, diminished by a proportionate amount (2. 2Jd.) for each day's absence from Oxford without the Master's leave. These exhibi- tions were not recognized as College places, and the holders of them were in no way distinguished from the Commoners of the College. In September, 1743, Adam Smith is found among the eight fourth-year men who are at the top of the list of Undergraduate Commoners. In September, 1744, six of these (Smith included) are found in the next higher division, the members of which are marked " D s ", i.e. Dominus, the recognized title of a B.A. " From the title Dominus given to him in the buttery books " I quote from W. Innes Addison's admirable account of ' The Snell Exhibitions ' (Glasgow, 1901) " it has been conjectured by some writers that he did take the B.A. degree, in 1744." This is, however, an error. What Adam Smith did was to pay the fees, and to go through the formalities, in virtue of which he was enrolled as a student of civil law. This step was frequently taken by wealthier students in preference to graduating in Arts. The Jurista, J.C.S. (Juris Civilis Studiosus), as he was then called S.C.L. (Student of Civil Law) at a later period was on ari equality with the Bachelor of Arts ; received the academic title Dominus ; and wore a hood of the same blue silk as the B.C.L., but without the white fur trimming.
Adam Smith must have taken this step in March, April, or May, 1744, since the man who precedes him in the Dominus list took B.A. 29 Feb., 1743/4, and the man who follows took B.A. 28 May, 1744. In Sep- tember, 1748, Smith's name is third on the list of Domini; he took his name off 4 Feb., 1748/9. ANDREW CLARK.
Great Leighs Rectory, Chelmsford.
