Notes and Queries, Number 21, March 23, 1850

In Short

Published in March 1850, this weekly journal serves as a collective clearinghouse for Victorian scholars, antiquarians, and curious readers to exchange historical discoveries, linguistic inquiries, and literary corrections. Contributors from across Britain submit short notes, pose obscure questions, and offer erudite replies on subjects ranging from parish birth registers and ancient proverbs to Renaissance portraits and early printing oddities. The publication has endured as a charming, invaluable repository of nineteenth-century intellectual life, capturing the rigorous curiosity and collaborative spirit of amateur and professional scholarship during the early Victorian era.

The Story

The volume opens with statistical inquiries into early parish registers in Kent, proposing that the upheavals of the Great Rebellion severely depressed local population growth. This leads directly into an etymological investigation tracing the classic proverb Bis dat qui citò dat back through Renaissance emblems to Publius Syrus and classical comedy. The discussion then bridges familiar literary landmarks, linking Shakespearean lines to medieval pilgrim records of an Italian knight, before offering essential cautions regarding the direct and indirect etymology of English words borrowed from Latin. Critical editorial voices emerge to correct persistent textual errors in Pope's translation of Homer's Odyssey and to trace the tangled ancestry of famous classical and Renaissance adages.

The inquiry section deepens the scholarly pursuit by examining rare sixteenth-century theological tracts. Contributors question the true authorship of a 1533 treatise on the Lord's Supper attributed to Robert Crowley, interrogate the mysterious multi-volume composition of the Turkish Spy, and seek the origins of anonymous sermons and Bristol family heraldry. Legal traditions surrounding the Inns of Court come under scrutiny, particularly whether Chaucer's famous description specifically designates the London Temple or refers to a general legal house. Further curiosities examine the vernacular origins of idioms like paying through the nose.

As the issue unfolds into its reply section, correspondents provide rich historical context on diverse subjects. Debates clarify the historical iconography and portraits of reformer Ulrich of Hutten and his noble ally Franz von Sickingen. Legal precedents regarding surnames establish that individuals may freely adopt new names without parliamentary acts, while linguistic analyses compare nautical terms like the Spanish grumete with the English younker. Antiquarians trace the surprisingly ancient pedigree of beaver hats back to medieval and Carolingian records, locate specific Dante manuscripts in Oxford libraries, document Oliver Cromwell's grants of Welsh seignories, and debate the true mineralogical composition and etymological roots of ancient emeralds alongside discussions of ancient table mottoes and barnacles.

Miscellaneous notes introduce a Latin verse translation by Vincent Bourne celebrating Isaac Newton's early mathematical foundations, correct historical attributions concerning Roman Senate votes cited in Gibbon, and clarify the proper nomenclature of the Jew's harp. The volume draws to a close with practical publishing announcements, notices of upcoming book sales from London booksellers, and detailed advertisements for historical atlases, architectural charts, and foundational antiquarian handbooks.

How It Unfolds

Statistical echoes of rebellion The journal opens with an examination of early parish registers in Kent, suggesting that seventeenth-century civil conflicts noticeably retarded local population growth. This quantitative puzzle flows directly into an etymological search for the true classical origins and ancient sources of familiar household proverbs.

Textual corrections and classical roots Contributors compare parallel literary passages across centuries, linking famous Shakespearean verse to medieval pilgrim records while exposing persistent historical errors in Pope's translation of Homer. They urge careful methodological attention to direct and indirect etymologies when studying English vocabulary derived from Latin roots.

Polemical queries and legal puzzles Scholars debate the genuine authorship of a rare 1533 theological tract on the Lord's Supper and investigate who truly penned the multi-volume Turkish Spy. Discussions also question whether Chaucer literally meant the London Temple or used the phrase in a more general sense.

Portraits, hats, and nomenclature Correspondents offer detailed descriptions of rare sixteenth-century woodcut portraits depicting reformer Ulrich of Hutten and trace the surprisingly early history of beaver hats back to Carolingian times. They also clarify legal precedents regarding the freedom of individuals to change surnames without requiring parliamentary sanction.

Manuscripts, minerals, and final notices The issue investigates specific Dante manuscripts housed in Oxford libraries, evaluates the true mineralogical composition of ancient emeralds, and reviews historical miscellanies concerning Isaac Newton's early education. It concludes with comprehensive trade catalogues, upcoming book auction notices, and publisher advertisements for architectural charts and antiquarian handbooks.

The People

Although this periodical features no fictional narrative, it is populated by an active community of historical figures, scholars, and editors whose ideas drive the intellectual exchanges. E.R.J.H. initiates the statistical debate through parish register examinations in Kent, while S.H. traces proverbial wisdom back to Publius Syrus. F.C.B. emerges as a tireless textual scholar, correcting Pope's Homer and locating obscure references to medieval knights and Dante manuscripts. Edward F. Rimbault and C.H. untangle complex literary mysteries concerning the Turkish Spy and Robert Crowley's controversial 1533 theological treatise. Edward Foss investigates medieval legal history surrounding Chaucer and the Inns of Court, and O.C. presents heraldic puzzles concerning Bristol families. Bolton Corney contributes erudite analyses of nautical ratings and beaver hats, engaging with seventeenth-century authorities like Captain Smith. Historical personages such as reformer Ulrich of Hutten and his noble protector Franz von Sickingen are vividly brought to life through discussions of rare Renaissance woodcuts and medals. Legal authorities like Sir Joseph Jekyll and Lord Eldon are cited regarding the historical precedents of changing surnames, while literary giants like Dryden, Pope, and Vincent Bourne populate the critical margins. Together, these contributors and historical subjects form a collaborative network dedicated to preserving and clarifying the fractured records of the past for an inquisitive Victorian readership.

In Its Own Voice

Reflecting on the turbulent historical forces that shaped early modern records, one contributor notes how parish data illuminates broader national conflicts:

Perhaps some one of your numerous readers will be good enough to inform me whether any general statistical returns, compiled from our early parish registers, have ever been published.

Analyzing the linguistic precision required in historical etymology, a scholar cautions literary archæologists about orthographic shifts:

In the orthography of English words derived from the Latin, one great and leading principle must be kept in view.

Examining the long-standing tradition of academic inquiry into rare texts, a correspondent highlights the collaborative nature of the journal:

It is pleasant to see that an answer to a query can sometimes do more than satisfy a doubt, by accidentally touching an accordant note which awakens a responsive feeling.

What It's Really About

At its core, this volume explores how collective memory is preserved, corrected, and transmitted across generations through shared textual scholarship. It investigates the hidden mechanisms of language, examining how proverbs evolve from classical comedy, how idioms emerge from vernacular speech, and how spelling preserves the pedigree of borrowed words. Beneath the specific queries lies a profound meditation on historical continuity: the desire to anchor floating traditions—whether the true site of Chaucer's Temple, the authorship of anonymous polemics, or the lineage of ancient hats—in verifiable evidence. Ultimately, the work champions intellectual community, demonstrating that historical truth is not discovered by solitary geniuses, but built through the patient, cumulative correspondence of inquiring minds.

Why Read It Today

Readers who cherish the quiet thrill of archival discovery, antiquarian footnotes, and nineteenth-century intellectual culture will find this periodical endlessly captivating. To read it is to step into a bustling nineteenth-century study filled with dusty parish registers, rare sixteenth-century tracts, and spirited scholarly debates conducted with immense erudition and civility. Modern readers must navigate period difficulties, including dense classical citations, archaic spelling, specialized theological controversies, and Victorian antiquarian obsessions that can occasionally feel remote from contemporary concerns. Yet those who persist are rewarded with an intimate glimpse into how intellectual communities once functioned before the digital age, relying on post offices, shared book catalogues, and published correspondence to piece together the puzzle of human history. What stays with the reader is the infectious, generous spirit of curiosity—the comforting realization that generations have always delighted in sharing obscure knowledge, solving linguistic riddles, and connecting across time over the smallest details of the shared human past.