his best officers and men daily swept off by an outrageous distemper, and his ships exposed to inevitable destruction, is said to have died of a broken heart; while the people of England loudly clamoured against this unfortunate expedition, in which so many lives were thrown away, and so much money expended without the least advantage to the nation."

Glover, the ingenious author of the poem of "Leonidas," wrote these well-conceived verses-" Admiral Hosier's Ghost" -on the occasion of the taking of Porto Bello by Admiral Vernon, Nov. 22, 1739. He supposes the victorious fleet of Vernon as lying at anchor, and the shades of the lamented Hosier, and of his brave officers, and crews, as "rising from their wat❜ry grave.”

The ghost of Hosier then calls on, and addresses, Vernon in strains of lamentable woe—he finely contrasts their varied fortunes, and adjures him to remind his country of their wrongs in language so plaintive, that it cannot fail to reach the heart, and excite the feeling of deep commiseration.

NOTE 24-(p. 275.)

"The word shoon is the plural number of the Anglo-Saxon Word schoo."

The reliques of the olden language, and manners, and customs, are by far more often to be found amongst the lowerindeed, I may say the lowest grade of society, and hence it is no disparagement to the philologist-to the inquirer into ancient lore-here to exercise his critical acumen in the developement of the vestigia of those early æras, which are altogether lost amongst the changeful fashions of the higher classes. In the language of the commonalty, the Saxon Plural ending in en, or n, not unfrequently meets the ear, e'en as it did in Shakspeare's time. Thus shoes are still vulgarly called shoon, as houses are, in a similar manner, denominated housen. The erudite, and discriminating, Lowth, in his "Introduction to English Grammar," observes, that the ancient plurals sowen, and cowen, are now abbreviated into swine, and kine.

NOTE 25-(p. 279.)

"The statute passed in the first year of Richard, the Third, for the purpose of restricting the importation of many articles.”

The statute, here referred to, is the 12th of the first year of the above Sovereign, and is thus entitled in Pickering's edition of the "Statutes at Large:" "Certain merchandizes prohibited to be brought into this realm ready wrought." It presents a curious feature in the history of the times, and amply demonstrates the sad, and degrading, effects of intestine wars-wars, which may well be said to prey upon the bowels of the country. The disputes of the two Houses of York and Lancaster were, at this time, apparently settled down into peace. Men began to reflect to look about them-to see the end of things, and to curse themselves for fools in permitting foreigners to run away with their cash, whilst they were dealing hard blows on each other to the impoverishment of themselves, and their families. The arts had declined, and trade sadly languished, Under these circumstances the nation became aroused, and petitions were forwarded to the Legislature from all quarters, and all classes, seeking that restraint upon importation, which might revive the arts, and enrich themselves. This important statute has been previously referred to in pp. 115 and 219 of this vol. It was as followeth : "Item, it was shewed to the same parliament by the artificers of the said realm of England as well of the City of London as of other cities, towns, boroughs, and villages of the same realm, that is to say, girdlers, point-makers, pinners, pursers," glovers, cutlers, bladesmiths, blacksmiths, spurriers,* goldbeaters,* painters,* sadlers,* loriners,* founders, card-makers, hurers, wyremongers, weavers,* horners, bottlemakers, and copper-smiths, that whereas they were wont in times past to be greatly set awork, and occupied in the said crafts for the sustenance of themselves, their wives, children, apprentices, and servants, and many other of the King's subjects, now so it is, that by merchant strangers, denizens, and other, there is brought into these parts from beyond the seas to be sold "The several trades thus marked have added to the nomenclature of The trade of loriner (or more properly lorimer) from the French word lormier, denoted the maker of bits for bridles-mayhap, he was the maker of bridles as distinct from the saddler. The name of Lorimer, as pertaining to man, has been abbreviated to that of Lomer.

man.

within the realm of England, as much wares as may be wrought, and made by the artificers above rehearsed, that by reason thereof the people of strange countries, where the said wares be made, be greatly occupied, and increased, and the said artificers of this realm greatly impoverished, and without the King's grace shewed to them in this behalf are like to be undone for lack of occupation.

"Our said sovereign lord, the King, considering the premises by the advice and assent of the lords spiritual and temporal, and at the prayer of his commons in the said parliament assembled, and by authority of the same, hath ordained and provided, That no merchant stranger after the feast of Easter next coming, shall bring into this realm of England to be sold any manner of girdles, nor harness wrought for girdles, points, laces, leather, purses, pouches, pins, gloves, knives, hangers, taylors' shears, scissors, andyrons, cup-boards, tongs, fire-forks, gridyrons, stocklocks, keys, hinges, and garnets, spurrs, painted glasses, painted papers, painted forcers, painted images, painted cloths, beaten gold, or beaten silver wrought in papers for painters, saddles, saddle-trees, horse-harness, boots, bits, stirrups, buckles, chains, lathe-nails with iron shanks, turnets, standing candlesticks, hanging candlesticks, holy water stops, chaffen-dishes, hanging lavers, curtain-rings, cards for wool (except Roan Cards,) clasps for gowns, buckles for shoes, broches, bells (except hawks' bells,) tin and leaden spoons, ware of latten and iron, iron candlesticks, grates, horns for lanthorns, or any of the said wares made and wrought pertaining to the crafts above specified, or any of them, upon pain to forfeit all the said wares so brought into this realm contrary to this act, or the value of the same, in whose hands they or any of them shall be found; the one half of such fines and forfeitures to be to the King, and the other half to him or them, that shall seize or pursue for the same by action of debt," &c.

This interesting statute opens by far too wide a field for me fully to traverse. Nevertheless, as it developes the state of the arts and the manners of the times, I cannot refrain from some remarks, in which I shall be as brief as possible. I shall, first, turn my attention to the trades here spoken of. We have, then, that of" bladesmiths" mentioned as well as "cutlers," and this fact does, I think, denote a then division of the trade of the "cutler," which now no longer exists. Spurriers" were, we

may doubt not, the makers of spurs, which were then, probably, of iron. The spur, in its earliest date, ended in the single iron point. As the "bladesmiths" (in this enumeration of trades) are placed in succession to the "cutlers," so does the mention of "spurriers" follow that of "blacksmiths," and that these trades, here separated, were sometime connected, we may presume from the recorded circumstance, that the blacksmiths and the spurriers were incorporated, as one of the London Companies, in the 20th year of Queen Elizabeth. The loriners (or lorimers) were the makers of bits for bridles. They existed, nominally, as a Company, at the period of this statute, but were not really incorporated previously to the 10th year of Queen Anne. I know not how to explain the trade of hurers. Bailey, in his useful, and valuable," English Dictionary," has "Hurriers,” an old word, as he states, for "cappers and hatters,” and this trade may likely here be meant, although there does not appear in any of the enumerated articles any thing, which demonstrates the truth of this suggestion; yet, again, that trade may have joined in the petition, and their prayer have been negatived by the omission of the peculiar article of their manufacture.

It now only remains to speak of the trade of the coppersmiths. Copper is a more general product than tin, and was, formerly, much more proportionably used, as is probable, than at present. The late Sir Christopher Hawkins, Bart., in his "Observations on the Tin Trade of the Ancients in Cornwall,” does, I think, adduce credible proof, that the early Phœnicians did trade to this country for tin; (and copper;) and, through their medium, it was, probably, conveyed to the Greeks, as Herodotus speaks of it, although he was ignorant from whence it came. I must again remark, that, in early ages, the use of copper was, we may fairly presume, much the greater; and, therefore, the workman (possibly engaged alike on both the metals of copper and tin) bore, in preference, the appellative of copper-smith. In the second epistle of St. Paul to Timothy, (ch. iv. 14,) then dwelling at Ephesus, he exhorted him to beware of Alexander, the copper-smith, for thus says he: "Aλígardeos xaλxsùç modrá Αλέξανδρος ὁ χαλκεὺς πολλά μοι κακὰ ἐνεδείξατο· ἀποδῴη αὐτῷ ὁ Κύριος κατὰ τὰ ἔργα αὐτῷ”—that is, "Alexander, the coppersmith, hath done me much evil: the Lord requite him according to his works." We may well presume, that, in ages past, the worker in copper was, likewise, the worker in tin, as the tinman of the present day includes, also,

the coppersmith. That tin, subsequently, came into more general use we may infer from the fact, that the workers in that metal were incorporated in the reign of Charles, the Second, 1670, under the united title of tin-plate-workers, and wireworkers, although we see, that, by this statute of Richard, the Third, the wyre-mongers were then of a distinct trade.

Having passed these few observations on the enumerated trades, it now becomes my duty to remark, briefly, on some of the prohibited articles. Girdles were so universally worn, that the making of them became a distinct trade. The "Company of Girdlers" was incorporated in the 27th year of Henry, the Sixth, 1449. The harness wrought for girdles means accoutrements, or ornaments, prepared for them, such as cut precious stones, embroidery, &c. Knives are here mentioned, but not forks those were not yet invented !* Andyrons:† these were articles, as well as the broche, or spit, of great estimation in the early ages. They were used on the hearth for burning wood, (which, in the houses of the nobility and gentry, was the common fuel in the more early ages,) and were often highly ornamented. They, as well as the broche, or spit, (for, in days of yore, good fare was held in deserved, and special regard,) were oft the objects of testamentary bequest. Chrystian, the daughter of John Halle, and the widow of Sir Thomas Hungerford, of Down Ampney, Knt., (in her will dated "on the feast of St. James, the Apostle, in the year of our Lord God, 1504,") leaves to her son Antony her "best andyrons." Shakspeare seems to have been well acquainted with the fact, that andyrons did often form a valuable part of the furniture of the chambers of the Great. When the base Iachimo undertakes to describe the chamber of Imogen, the daughter of Cymbeline, the King of Britain, to her husband Posthumus, he makes him, in the course of that description, to say,

"The roof o' the chamber

With golden cherubims is fretted: Her andyrons
(I had forgot them) were two winking Cupids
Of silver, each on one foot standing, nicely
Depending on their brands."

There is some doubt amongst Commentators on Shakspeare as to the meaning of this word brands. I agree with Steevens and Douce, that the reference is intended to be, not to the iron Cymbeline, Act ii. sc. 4.

. P. 218. + Not uncommonly called dogs.