128
NOTES AND QUERIES. [io' s. in. FEB. is, 1905.
seems not unlikely that many, if not most,
of the copies were destroyed in the Great
Fire, and that it is therefore scaice. I shall
be glad to learn if other copies are known
to your readers. WM. NORMAN.
6, St. James's Place, Plumstead.
"MOST MOVING FIRST LIKE IN ENGLISH
POETRY." In an article headed ' Cowper and Castaway ' in The Saturday Eevieiv of 7 January, based on Mr. T. Wright's recent edition of the poet's 'Letters,' pre-eminence is claimed for Cowper as " writer of the most moving first line in English poetry :
O that those lips had language ! Life has passed With me but roughly since 1 heard thee last.
In his poetry Cowper does not," the writer remarks, " wave the flag like Campbell ; rather he spreads the pall at least in those noble lines on Kempenfeldt that have the crystal simplicity, the obviousness which is the privilege of genius" an unusual and pleasing tribute, in such a place and at the present time, to the bard of Olney. Are the great English poets, it might be asked, becoming less read than formerly? The replies of experts publishers or booksellers would be of special interest. J. GRIGOR.
AUTHORS OF QUOTATIONS WANTED.
Amice, quisquis es, dummodo honestum, vitse tsedet.
Is the quotation correctly given? As it stands, it would seem to mean " O friend, whosoever thou art, I am weary (if I may say so honourably) of my life." B. A.
Truth for ever on the scaffold, Wrong for ever on
the throne ; Yet that scaffold sways the future, and behind the
dim unknown
Standeth God within the shadow, keeping watch above His own.
KOM OMBO. [ J. R. Lowell, ' The Present Crisis.']
ANCHORITES' DENS. Have any books on these somewhat uncomfortable dwellings been published 1 or has any attempt been made to compile a list of these dens in England ? I am, of course, aware of the existence of the 'Ancren Riwle.' Q. W. V.
'MOSER'S VESTIGES.' The following passage is in ' Lincoln's Inn Fields,' by C. W. Hecke- thorn, 1896, p. 60, and, slightly altered, is repeated in ' London Souvenirs,' 1899, by the same writer, p. 29 :
"In 'Moser's Vestiges,' Will's is thus referred to : 'All the beaux that used to breakfast in the coffee- houses and taverns appendant to the inns of court struck their morning strokes in an elegant deshabille, which was carelessly confined by a sash of yellow,
red, blue, green, &c., according to the taste of the
wearrr and were [sic] of the celebrated Doiley manu-
facture. The idle fashion was not quite worn out iu
1765. We can remember having seen some of these
early loungers in their nightgowns, caps, &c.' "
What is ' Moser's Vestiges ' ?
W. P. COURTNEY.
DELAFOSSE, WINCHESTER COMMONER. In Long Half, 1839, one of the sons of the Rev. Daniel Charles Delafosse, vicar of Wands worth, became a Commoner at Winchester, but left after ten days. Was he the third son, Robert M. D. Delafosse, ensign 26th Bombay N.I., who died at Mhow, 22 April, 1844, aged twenty-three 1 More probably, perhaps, a younger brother. JOHN B. WAINEWRIGHT.
THE FORTE FRIGATE.' Can any one give, or direct me to, the complete song of which the following is the first verse 1 There was a fine frigate, the Forte was her name, And in the West Indies she bore a great fame For cruel hard usage of every degree ; Like slaves on a galley we ploughed the salt sea.
The rest of the verses, I am told, gave a systematic account of a sailor's work from waking to sleeping ; but the point of view was such that on one occasion a man caught singing it received " four dozen." It was a widely known Royal Navy song about 1845, and the reputation of the Forte frigate was consistent with the tenor of the song.
H. K. ST. J. S.
SMALL PARISHES. The following paragraph is taken from the ' Church News ' column of the Daily Mail, 29 October, 1904 :
" Which is the smallest or the least populated of all the parishes in England ? The death of the Rev. D. T. Barry, late rector of Fishley, raises the question, for Fishley (which is near Yarmouth) is returned as containing only fifteen persons. It ia probable that there are parishes even smaller than this there is a record of a parish with one house and it would be interesting if a list could be made."
Perhaps some correspondents may be able to supply particulars of other small parishes in England. H. W. UNDERDOWN.
[See 8 th S. xi. 25, 78.]
'REBECCA,' A NOVEL. I bought on the quais at Paris for ten centimes, on 24 March, 1904, the first two volumes of a book entitled "Rebecca; or, the Victim of Duplicity; a Novel in Three Volumes. Uttoxeter, printed by R. Richards ; sold by Lackington, Allen & Co., London, 1808." Will one of the learned readers of ' N. & Q.' be so good as to say by whom this book was written, in what printed catalogue or bibliography one can find a description of it, and where the third volume is to be seen ? Tastes differ about all things ; but to some people the book is interesting
