Page:Notes and Queries - Series 11 - Volume 5.djvu/145

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n s. v. FKB. 10, 1912.] NOTES AND QUERIES


117


of Gloucester. On 14 Oct., 1690, Anne gave birth to a daughter, who was christened Mary and lived but two hours. On 17 April, 1692, she gave birth to the youngest of her children, Prince George, who lived only long enough to be baptized.

A. R. BAYLEY.

MONEY-BOX (11 S v. 50). I find much information, on many subjects, in my

  • Etymological Dictionary.' Referring to

box (2), I see that the original Christmas- box was an actual box of earthenware, &c., with a reference to Brand's ' Popular An- tiquities,' i. 494. Then I refer to Brand, and find that he gives two good quotations : one dated 1642, about " Christmas earthen boxes of apprentices," and one dated 1621, about " an apprentice's box of earth." See my ' Dictionary ' and see Brand.

WALTER W. SKEAT.

The league, or money-box, of the Anglo- Saxons, was under the care of the \vife, as among the Greeks. It is the cassia of Du Cange. The ' N.E.D.' quotes Higins, tr. Junius's ' Nomencl.' (1585), 249: " Capsella fictilis, a mony box made of potters clay, wherein boyes put their mony to keepe, such as they hang in shops, &c., towards Christmas." Cotgrave (1611) has " Cache- maille, a money box." TOM JONES.

Some useful information can be obtained by reference to the ' N.E.D..' as follows : Under ' Box,' vol. i. 1037, col. 1 ; ' Butler.' vol. i. 1215, col. 1 ; ' Christmas-box,' vol. ii. 392, col. 3 ; ' Money-box,' vol. vi. pt. ii. 605, col. 1. W. C. B.

JONES AND BLUNKETT (11 S. v. 29). Does MRS. HUGH SMITH know of the Blun- kett altar-tomb in Camberwell Parish Churchyard ? The inscription is a lengthy one, and from a genealogical point of view is of more than usual interest. The dates range from 1733 to 1810. There are no fewer than six surnames referred to, and particulars are given which include three generations of three different namas, viz., Jones, Seale, and Smith. 1 copied the inscription in October, 1903, and shall be happy to send a copy of it to MRS. SMITH on her writing to me.

Is it not a mistake to say that Ann Blunkett married Robert. Jones ? Ann Blunkett died a spinster, aged 31. Accord- ing to my information, it was Jane Blunkett (ob. 1752, cet. 46) who married Robert Jones. CHAS. HALL CROUCH.

62, Nelson Road, Stroud Green, N-


SIR JOHN GILBERT : THOMAS GILKS, ENGRAVER (US. iv. 521). Gilks wrote a ' Sketch of the Origin and Progress of the Art of Wood-Engraving ' (1868), and also a practical handbook on the same subject. His ' Sketch ' is of little or no historical value ; it contains portraits of himself and William Harvey, a pupil of Bewick and an accomplished engraver. W. ROBERTS.

" DE LA " IN ENGLISH SURNAMES : SUR- VIVAL OF THE PREFIX (11 S. iv. 127, 174). Since the publication of the query and note anent this matter in 11 S. iv. 127, and of the interesting replies, an exact study of the records relating to the name Delafield has been made. Such of the items as have a bearing on our problem are briefly as follows.

In 1201 in Dublin appears Richard " de Felda " ; the same man is mentioned a number of times before 1221, his name always being spelt as above, except in documents dated 1220, in which it is spelt " de la Feld." Nicholas, the son of the above Richard, is named a number of times before 1240 ; his name is generally spelt " de Felda " before 1220, and " de la Feld " after that date ; Simon, apparently another son, appears about 1225 as Simon " de Felda," and subsequently always as Simon " de la Felde " ; and Roger, a clerk, and probably brother of Richard, is named four or five times before 1220, his name always being spelt " de Felda." This family in- creased in Ireland ; the name is frequently mentioned, and, after the dates above noted, was always spelt " de la Felde," " de la Feld," or " de la Feeld," until about the year 1400, when some of the branches began to drop the prefixes from the name, which thus became " Feld," and subsequently " Field."

Meanwhile, and before 1377, one of this family had emigrated to Bucks, and in an Inquisition Post Mortem of that year his name is spelt " de la Felde," but the next year it appears as " Dallifeld." This phonetic spelling shows that the Frencli origin and meaning of the words were already being forgotten. However, all the other 1 mentions of this man, including the last his denization papers to live in England, dated 1395 show his name correctly spelt " de la Felde." His son Robert appears in 1404 as " Delafeld," and about 1434 as " Dalafeld," also as " Dalafeeld " and " Dala- fyld." After about the year 1400 the spelling of the name in this family seems always to have been in one word, indicating