170 NOTES AND QUERIES. [12 s. x. MAR. 4 , 1022.
Colonel Montresor of Belmont, Co. Kent.—Colonel Montresor gave the bells to Throwley Church, Kent, in 1781, where he intended to be buried. He died, however, in Maidstone Gaol and was buried apparently in Maidstone Church, June 9, 1799. The Kentish Gazette states he was then "proved innocent," but does not say with what crime or misdemeanour he had been charged. What was his supposed offence? Belmont was sold and the sheriff was in possession for 1800 and 1801. Why? Percy Hulburd.
[The 'D.N.B.' states that he died about 1788.]
USE OF " AT " OR " IN " WITH PLACE-
NAMES. What governs the preposition " in "
or " at " in reference to a city or town ?
We always say " in London," never " at
London." We say " at Leamington," not
'* in Leamington." Where is the distinc-
tion ? RAVEN.
' THE COMPLEAT COLLIER.' Perhaps some
Northumbrian reader could kindly help
me to find
- The Compleat Collier ; or, The whole art of
sinking, getting, and working the Coal Mines &c., as is now used in the Northern Parts, es- pecially about Sunderland and Newcastle.' By F. C. Printed at London for G. Conyers, at the Ring in Little Brittain, 1708. A reprint was issued by M. A. Richardson, Newcastle, in 1846. I cannot find either the original or the reprint in the British Museum catalogue and suspect that the reierence is wrong. L. L. K. DEVONSHIRE MSS. I should feel obliged to any correspondent who could point out the present whereabouts of the original manuscripts of Risdon's ' History of Devon, ' Westcott's ' Survey of Devon,' ; Bishop Ward's Papers, and Dr. Plot's ' Natural History of Devon.' -W. S. B. H. BRETEL. What is the meaning of this forename ? There is a Bretel in Domesday Book, who has large and numerous holdings from the Count of Mortain, in Somerset, Devon and Dorset. One of his properties, Ash, in Somerset, is now known as Ash- brittle. The name appears again in the Pipe Roll of 1130, under " Bretellus de Am- berer," who has notices in Hampshire, Warwick and Devon. Does the name derive from Berthold or Bartholomew ? Surely it can hardly be a diminutive of " Brito." Solution of the origin of the name will be appreciated. INA CRISTAL. EPITAPH IN TETBURY CHURCH, GLOS. Over one of the inner doors of this church is a large marble tablet with this inscription (it is quoted from memory, but is substan- tially accurate) : In this vault are interred several Saunderses of this parish. Particulars the last day will disclose. Amen. Is any story attached to this unusual epitaph ? M. N. O. 1,000 IN 1653 : PRESENT - DAY EQUI- VALENT. Sir Marmaduke Constable had his whole estate sequestered for ten years, which, being put to sale, he was forced to purchase it of the Commonwealth for the sum of 1,000, April, 1653, 5 Car. II. What would be to-day's value ? CLIFFORD C. WOOLLARD. 68, St. Michaels Road, Aldershot, Hants. AUTHOR WANTED. Whence comes the follow- ing sentence, which appeared in the " In Memo- riam " list, The Times, Feb. 6 : " Sorrow is, then, a part of love, and love does not seek to throw it off." S. C. DE KEMPELEN'S AUTOMATON CHESS-PLAYER. (12 S. x. 72, 113, 155.) VON KEMPELEN'S chess-player has been often described, with details of its working. Briefly, it depended on the skill of an expert chess- player concealed partly in the figure and partly in the large box on which the figure was seated. After its invention in 1 769 it had a great career in various ownerships until 1838, when it was exhibited in public for the last time in Philadelphia, and in 1854 was destroyed in the fire which demolished the Chinese Museum of that city. An account of the figure will be found in Bogue's ' Boy's Own Book,' 1855, but the automaton possesses little interest now, as it has been entirely superseded by later and cleverer inventions. The figure which MR. ACKERMANN saw in South Africa 35 years ago, and which he so accurately remembers, was, no doubt, a copy of Mr. J. N. Maskelyne's whist -player " Psycho," and it is quite likely that I have handled some parts of this identical figure. About 1880 1 numbered amongst my friends a professional conjuror, Mr. Edward Le Mare of Manchester, who had a genius for mecha- nical construction and who was one of the very few makers of automata and appa- ratus for professional illusionists. Maske- lyne's ingeniously conceived whist -player ' j
