78
NOTES AND QUERIES. in s. i. JAN. 2-2, 1910.
of cultivation in Cashmere and other parts
of the East. They are common food, and
known under the name of Singhara nuts.
TOM JONES.
SCABLET PIMPERNEL (10 S. xii. 166). In Cumberland, Cheshire, Northamptonshire, Warwickshire, Hampshire, and Huntingdon, the common pimpernel, Anagallis arvensis, is known as the poor-man's weather-glass, or the shepherd's weather-glass, because of its delicate sense of perceiving the approach of rain, when it closes its flowers : Come, tell me, thou coy little flower,
Converging thy petals again, Who gave thee the magical power Of shutting thy cup on the rain ? While many a beautiful bow'r
Is drenched in nectareous dew, Seal'd up is your scarlet-tinged flower, And the rain peals in vain upon you.
- The Botanical Looker-out,' p. 168, quoted in
Friend's ' Flowers and Flower-Lore.'
It is also " good to prevent witchcraft, ' ? and while it is being gathered the following charm should be repeated : Herbe Pimpernell, I have thee found,
Growing upon Christ Jesus' ground : The same guift the Lord Jesus gave unto thee
When He shed His blood on the tree. Arise up, Pimpernell, and goe with me,
And God blesse me, And all that shall were thee. Amen.
If this be said twice a day for fifteen days in succession, fasting in the morning, and on a full stomach in the evening, " no one can predict how much good will follow n (Dyer's ' English Folk-lore, l quoted ibid.}.
From the pimpernel's habit, too, of closing its blossoms about two o'clock it has gained the name of shepherd's clock, a name applied also to the goats'-beard. Some call it John- go-to-bed-at-noon for the same reason.
J. HOLDEN MACMlCHAEL.
I can remember how the country people of
Derbyshire almost worshipped the pretty
little lowly-growing flower. Of it some
would say that it was the " prettiest low-
groundest flower that God ever made."
One old lady always said, when she met with
it in the garden : " Thou lowly, lovely
pimpernel ! " Whether she was quoting or
not I do not know ; but as she would sit
and make " lines, n probably the idea was
her own. I have heard it called " the
ground star " by a harvest man. But one
and all seem to love the beautiful littl*
flower which looked up at them from th<
ground, and which, though too small almos
to be gathered, could not be passed by.
THOS. RATCLIFFE,
CHRISTMAS QUARREL FIFTY YEARS AGO
10 S. xii. 508). On a recent evening one of
ny sons read out the incident of the dis-
urbance between the 24th Foot and the
?ower Hamlets Militia. My other son, with
he ' Recollections of a Humourist ' in his
land, said : "Why, I have just read an
account of this in this book. n A. W. a
Beckett, however, gives the sequel :
'The late Duke of Cambridge harangued the Regular battalion. 'If 1 had my way, I would
end you to ,' and he mentioned a place with
an exceptionally sultry climate. 'But as you can't go there just yet, you shall all go to Mauritius.' " P. 155.
R. J. FYNMORE. Sandgate.
THOMAS ELLIS OWEN (11 S. i. 30). [t may be of interest to G. F. R. B. to know that a Thomas Ellis Owen, J.P., architect and surveyor, was resident in Portsmouth previous to 1 Nov., 1843, on which date he was elected Town Councillor for the Ward of St. Paul, and also twice elected Mayor of the same borough (1847, 1862).
Although Southsea was in the early part of last century in its infancy as a watering-place, there being only a few houses called Croxton Town (which took its name from its builder, Thomas Croxton), Thomas Ellis Owen was known as the founder of Southsea, i.e., the more fashionable part, which sprang up a few years later. Mr. Owen was held in high esteem by all who knew him, and was much sought after for his professional abilities. He died 11 Dec., 1862, and was probably buried in the town here. Was he son of the Mr. Owen said to have died in 1814 ?
F. K. P.
Southsea.
CANNING ON "TOBY PHILPOT n (10 S. xii. 387, 470). In ' Actii Sinceri Sanna- zarii .... Opera .... ex secundis curis Jani Broukhusii. Accedunt Gabrielis Altilii, Danielis Cereti, & Fratrum Amaltheorum Carmina,' Amstelsedami, 1728, p. 366, the title of the epigram which I quoted at the latter reference is ' Horologium Pulvereum, Tumulus Alcippi.' The first line begins- " Perspicuo in vitro n instead of " Perspi- cuus vitro n ; and in the fourth line " cseco " appears instead of " subito."
There follows next (p. 367) : Idem, loin. Tumulus.
Horarum in vitro pulvis mine mensor, lolse Sunt cineres : urnam condidit acer Amor,
Ut, si quse extincto remanent in amore favillse, Nee jam tutus eat, nee requietus amet.
There are eight epigrams about Gall* pp. 370-72. ROBERT PIERPOINT.
