108
NOTES AND QUERIES. tn s. v. FEB. 10, 1912.
AUTHORS OF QUOTATIONS WANTED.
Among transcripts of MSS. by John Byrom
in the Chetham Library, Manchester, I find
two sets of verses of which I cannot identify
the sources. Can any of your readers help
me ?
1. The following is said to be " a thought stolen from Cato " :
Vice may give pleasure, Virtue may give pain. True ; but how long will such a Truth remain ?
2. A translation or paraphrase (too long to repeat in full) is given of a Latin epigram beginning " Ess-a hominem tantum," and cc nveying the lesson that believers in the Man Jesus have but to imitate Him, and believers in the Divine Jesus but to worship Him in faith, in order that His twofold nature may be satisfactorily proved.
A. W. W. Pcterhouse, Cambridge.
WALKER OF LONDONDERRY : FAMILY BIBLE. I am desirous of ascertaining the whereabouts of the family Bible of George Walker of Londonderry, the Governor of the town during the siege in 1689. I have been told by a family of Walkers that it was sold by the widow of Dr. Arthur Walker, who practised in Liverpool or Dublin, and who died in Dublin about June, 1839. Some time between 1875 and. 1885 the widow of Dr. Walker carried on negotiations with another branch of the family w r ith the idea of selling it to them. This came to nothing, and I understand that the lady then wrote to members of the family saying she had received an offer from a museum which she should accept. I have written to nearly every important museum and library in Dublin and Belfast without success. It is still possible, however, that it is in some museum elsewhere in Ireland, or it may have been sold to an English or Scotch museum. B. A. WALKER.
7. Hanover Terrace, Holland Park, W.
ARITHMETIC AMONG THE ROMANS. How did the Romans do their elementary arith- metic without the use of Arabic numerals ? I am told it was by aid of an " abacus." What is this system of calculation ? The Chinese use it now, so they say, and can add, subtract, multiply, or divide as quickly as we can by the use of Arabic numerals. It will be interesting to note what is the system.
SEAVIEW.
CURIOUS LAND CUSTOMS. I am informed that in certain parts of Wales the follow- ing custom exists. If a member of the mining population takes a piece of mountain
land and erects thereon a building in such
a manner that the four walls are put up,
the roof on, and smoke coming out of the
ihimney, all being accomplished between
lunset and sunrise, the freehold of the land
Decomes his property.
I have been shown a house near Llangollen, the site of which I was informed had been acquired in this manner, and I shall be glad to know whether your readers can confirm or correct this statement; and I should also like to receive information of any other curious custom of this kind affecting the acquisition of land. J. GEO. HEAD.
[See the instances cited at 10 S. vi. 396, 487.]
THE ODD CHAIR : PETER THE GREAT. About 1878 I was visited in my place of business by a well-known London dealer in antiques named George Watson. His first remark to me was, " Bless me ! you have got the ' Odd Chair.' ' I replied, " Certainly it is an odd chair. But why the odd chair ? " He said that thirty or forty years earlier the chair was sold at Christie's, and from some- thing connected with its sale, which he told me at the time, but which I have forgotten, it was for some time spoken of among dealers as "the Odd Chair." He went on to tell me that it was teak, not oak; that with other pieces of furniture it was made by Peter the Great, when living at Sayes Court, near Deptford, from the timbers of an old wreck. The chair in question is an armchair, with solid back, on which is carved the Russian eagle. The front legs, which also form the rests for the arms, are evidently balustrades, probably from a ship's companion-ladder, and are declared by an expert in furniture to be of the time of James I., while the style of the chair is Queen Anne. The chair has a considerable value as a chair, but if Peter the Great's connexion with it is established it becomes almost a relic. Christie's tell me that i it was a picture it could be easily traced through their books, but as a bit of f urniture it would be difficult to find it in their cata- logues, especially as the date of sale is not known to ten years. As a last ^resource \ ask the friendly help of 'N. & Q.'
GEORGE MACKEY.
Stratford House, Highgate, Birmingham.
ST. CYR COCQUARD. I shall be much obliged for any information relating to St. Cyr Cocq^ard, who in the year 1803 wished to adopt Mr. Charles Fenton Mercer, then on a visit to England and France. From Mercer's letters it is evident that Cocquard was a man of means and of considerable
