The Greek Tradition: Essays in the Reconstruction of Ancient Thought. By J. A. K. Thomson. (Allen & Unwin, 5s. net.)

NOTHING could be more unlike the intricate, carefully sustained cadences of Walter Pater's prose than Mr. J. A. K. Thomson's eager, jaunty sentences. Yet these studies in ancient modes of thought belong intrinsically to that group of which Marius the Epicurean might almost be called the progenitor. The scholars addicted to it look away from the grammar of language and from the grammar of abstract ideas to that aspect of Greek literature which reflects man's relation with the visible world, his daily life, his customs and beliefs. They read Herodotus, Pindar, Sophocles, with the intention of the original audience whom these addressed-for whom form was not divorced from meaning, rather existed only to interpret the meaning. Prof. Gilbert Murray writes a few paragraphs of introduction to these essays, and, drawing attention to this change of emphasis, commits himself to the use of the word "semantics." We confess has the poet that Prof. Gilbert Murray has we saw this with a shuddering surprise. What proved himself to be-sensitive, discriminating, alert to perceive how words throw back their shadow upon reality-to do with this ugly, pseudoscientific jargon ?

The nine essays which constitute the book are of very unequal value. On the whole, the more detailed they are the better. Where the writer launches out into generalities he is apt to make rash statements, which mean little, or could be only too effectively challenged. Such, for instance, is the dictum in the essay on Lucretius, to the effect that that poet "has the instinctive preference of the artist-and the religious-for moods rather than ideas." But where he stays by the actual data of Greek life and thought preserved for us in Greek literaturenot attempting to drag them into relation with other literatures-he is at once sound and truly imaginative. The essays on Greek Country Life,' On Alcestis and her Hero,' and ' On an Old Map' should be of real use both as interpretations and as accounts of facts and materials. The study of Heracles and of the Kuos in the second of these is particularly good and convincing; in fact, heavily as both have been commentated,

we do not remember to have come across any exposition of them more satisfactorily worked out than this. What Mr. Thomson has to say on Thucydides is also well worth attending to, though, in relation to the subject, it strikes one of the collection is a sketch in dialogue called as less adequate. A very interesting member 'Mother and Daughter'-Demeter's finding of Persephone. Here the author's close attention to all the descriptions of and hints concerning the peasantry and their ways stands him in admirable stead. The scene and the talk are packed with delightful detail, most skilfully interwoven, yet derived from chapter and verse, and not lacking altogether in vitality. The conclusion-albeit it rests upon the Greek perception тà Tа@nuarа μahμara in its profounder meaning is coloured

by later ideas, later human experiences than those which belong to the legend itself or even to Greek literature as a whole; but it is none the worse for that.

We are a little doubtful as to Mr. Thomson's view of the city versus the country in the Greek state. It seems hardly true that the old Greek civilization was more characteristically urban than our own." At any rate, we should be more

willing to say that Athens was the centre
-the meeting-point or focus-of Attica than that
Attica was a diffusion of Athens. But the latter
way of putting it would suit better the mode of
civilization, characteristically urban, familiar to
us in our great cities, which are neither metro-
politan centres of a state, nor formed by the
centripetal movement from limited districts.
We hope Mr. Thomson has many more books
of essays, and perhaps yet greater work than
essays, in store for us. He will, we fancy, always
provoke criticism and disagreement; yet we also
think that the prevailing notion of its being
difficult to realize Greek habits of thought other-
wise than as decorative tags upon our own system
of ideas proceeded chiefly from the lack at one
time of just such scholars as he-or men, that
is, who are not afraid to give imagination equal
play with memory in their reading of this, the
A Handbook to Kent Records. Compiled and
richest portion of our heritage from antiquity.
edited by I. J. Churchill. (Kent Archæological
Society.)

A SELECTION of official documents, charters,
writs, and other diplomatic instruments connected
with the county of Kent is here published under
the very competent editorship of Miss Churchill,
and should be of interest to students of historical
and institutional antiquities. Most of them are
here printed for the first time. It was no slight
task to disinter these documents, which may be
found scattered " anywhere from a public library
like the British Museum to the stable-loft of an
old country house." Their proverbial dryness
is sometimes relieved by a welcome touch
of quaint humour. A grant of land by
King Athelstan to his servant Ealdulf in the
year 939 is confirmed by these terrifying
"If any one-which Heaven forbid-
walking in the garb of pride, shall try to infringe
this our definition, let him suffer from the chill
winds of ice and from the winged army of
malignant spirits, unless with tearful groans of
penitence and sincere reformation he first make
best surrogate of the lawyer.
amends. The divine was in those days the

threats :

Notices to Correspondents.

and address of the sender, not necessarily for pub lication, but as a guarantee of good faith.

ON all communications must be written the name

We cannot undertake to answer queries privately, nor can we advise correspondents as to the value of old books and other objects or as to the means of disposing of them.

EDITORIAL Communications should be addressed

to "The Editor of Notes and Queries '"--Adverlishers" at the Office, Bream's Buildings, Chancery tisements and Business Letters to "The Pub

Lane, E.C.

MR. HORACE BLEACKLEY and G. W. E. R.Forwarded.

"When found, make a note of" CAPTAIN CUTTLE.

SATURDAY, JANUARY 8, 1916. {

LONDON, SATURDAY, JANUARY 8, 1916.

CONTENTS.- No. 2.

NOTES:-The Baddeley Cake at Drury Lane, 21-The
Tragedy of Mariam,' 22-Did Fielding write Shamela'?
24-Col. John Hayes St. Leger-Epitaphs of Finmore and
Willis at North Hinksey, 26-An Early Circulating
Library—“ Murray's Railway Reading," 27.
QUERIES:-Anglican Clerks in Non-Anglican Orders, 27-

Dublin Topography c. 1700-A Lost Love,' by Ashford
Owen-Thomas May, Recorder of Chichester, 28-M. Bel-
mayne, the French Schoolmaster-The Meteor, or
Monthly Censor-Arthur Hughes, the Pre-Raphaelite-
Authors Wanted-Village Pounds-Oil-Painting-Archer:
Bowman-Parish Registers-'L'Espion Anglois,' 29-
Regimental Nicknames - Nodding Mandarins-Sir George
Mouat Keith-John Whitfield, Actor-Passage of Funeral
through Church-Ann Cook-Glacé Kid Gloves, 30.
REPLIES:-The Society for Constitutional Information, 30
-Anastatic Printing-Enemies of Books, 32-Loath to
Depart-Letter-Books of Chester-Carol Wanted, 33-
Kennett, M.P.-Napoleon's Bequest to Cantillon-Vanish-
ing London: Baker's Chop-House-The Observant Babe
-Nelson Memorial Rings, 34-The Meaning of "Trent"
-Nathaniel Lee, the Dramatist, 35-Thunder Family-
-Comic
Duchesses who have married Commoners
Arundines Cami'- Undergraduates as Officers of the
Reserve Forces, 36-War and Money-Elder Folk-Lore
"Lyulph": Christmas Numbers-J. S. Brewer and E. C.
Brewer-Tigers' Whiskers, 37-Dr. Philip Doddridge
Song Wanted-Water of the Nile-Churches used for the
Election of Municipal Officers-T. Griffin Tarpley-Moira
Coals-Armorial Bearings Sought, 38.

NOTES ON BOOKS:-'A Bibliography of Unfinished
Books in the English Language'-Reviews and Magazines.
Notices to Correspondents.

Notes.

THE BADDELEY CAKE AT
DRURY LANE.

(See ante, p. 1.)

THE Drury Lane Twelfth Night cakecutting arises under the will of Robert Baddeley. The origin of the custom, which has been kept up for over one hundred years, has been stated to be as follows:

One year Baddeley went into the Green Room on Twelfth Night, and noticed all the company were dull and moping round the fire; so he immediately sent out for cake and punch, and said, as long as he could prevent it, such a thing should never occur again, meaning, of course, the depression of his brother and sister artists; for Twelfth Night in those days was always a night of festivity. Robert Baddeley was the last of the actors who availed himself of the privilege of wearing the Royal livery,

which all the company of Drury Lane are entitled to do now if they like, as His Majesty's servants.

Accordingly on Baddeley's death it was found that he bad generously left a fund I was in trust for a Twelfth Night cake. unable to find any authoritative account of Baddeley's will by which this trust was created. There is no copy at Drury Lane Theatre, the late James Fernandez had none, I have, neither has the present trustee. therefore, obtained the following information from the official records. The will is a very long one, over sixty folios, occuping upwards of six large folio pages. The following is an extract from it :

"Robert Baddeley of New Store Street Bedford Square in the County of Middlesex and of Drury Lane Theatre Comedian. . . I hereby direct that the sum of One hundred pounds Stock in the Three per Cent. Consolidated Bank Annuities may be purchased immediately after my decease if not found there at that time And if there found there to be continued until the said Stock shall or may be paid off And in that instance then to be placed out in some other Stock or Perpetuity or Fund to procure as nearly as possible the Annual Sum of Three Pounds which Annual Sum of Three Pounds I direct shall be applied and expended in the purchase of a twelfth Cake or Cakes and Wine or Punch or both of them which Cake and Wine or Punch it is my request the Ladies and Gentlemen Performers of Drury Lane Theatre (or wheresoever the performances lately Exhibited at that Theatre may be carried on) will do me the favour to accept on twelfth night in every Year in the Green Room or by whatever other Appellation may be known_what is now understood to be the Great Green Room the care of which bequest I leave to the Directors of the said last mentioned Theatre for the time being or whoever they shall appoint as Master of the Ceremonies on that Occasion who shall give at least three days' notice thereof to the Company at large." Dated April 23, 1792. Proved at London, 18 Dec., 1794, by Catherine StrickBrand and Richard land, spinster, Thomas Wroughton, Esquires, the Executors named in the Will."

..

66

It may be noticed that the wording is in legal style, with no punctuation; the conThe above text must be clear without any. Consols bequest is a fine piece of drafting; it clinches everything. There is no loophole as there was in the case of the Asylum devise. How could so skilful a lawyer as he who drew the will make such a failure of the devise of freehold house property at Moulsey (which Baddeley desired should be used as a home for decayed actors) that the devise was declared void under the Statute of Moitmain ? A large portion of the will is occupied by directions as to the carrying out of this trust, which was to be called "The Society for the relief of indigent

66

persons belonging to His Majesty's company always rest on his being the founder of 'Birch's " in Cornhill. The shop is still a of comedians of the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane," and for short, "Baddeley's Asylum." popular resort, and still has the iron front I fear this would have turned out as great (the first in London) which he put in, with Birch, Birch & Co." over it, as correctly a failure as some similar bequests, seeing Chambers's Book of Days,' that retired actors want congenial company. depicted in "Dramatic 1869, vol. i., under January. The original They declined to live at the College," because they did not like solitary kitchen in the basement is also still in use confinement, notwithstanding that they had with the oven, which extends underneath an uninterrupted view of green fields all and beyond the footway. round their " asylum," with the occasional delight of seeing trains pass.

as the sailor T. P. Cooke, celebrated "William in Jerrold's Black-Eyed Susan,' a part he acted 833 times between June, 1829, and his retirement from the stage in 1861, left what the late Joseph Knight in the 'D.N.B.' calls "the insufficient amount of 2,000l. to the "Dramatic College"; but the object for which he left it was such a failure that when the Royal Dramatic College was wound up the bequest was too (see 8 S. iv. 62, July 22, 1893).

men.

Robert Baddeley was for many years a member of the Drury Lane Company, and is said to have been an inferior actor of old men, but an excellent one of Jews and FrenchIn early life he spent some time in France, travelling as valet to a gentleman, and he made the best of his time while there, as he not only performed his ordinary duties, but became sufficiently expert to serve afterwards as cook to Samuel Foote, the celebrated comedian.

Baddeley made his first appearance as an actor at the Haymarket Theatre (then under Foote's management), June 28, 1760, as Sir William Wealthy in 'The Minor.' He was soon afterwards engaged at Drury Lane, where he was the original representative of Canton in' The Clandestine Marriage, and Moses in 'The School for Scandal.' While dressing for the last-named part on the night of Oct. 19, 1794, he was seized with illness, and conveyed to his house in Store Street, Bedford Square, where he died on the following day in his 61st year.

Both

Baddeley's wife predeceased him. he and his son (who died before his father) are buried at St. Paul's, Covent Garden.

It seems worth while to note that so great a dramatic critic as W. Clark Russell considered Baddeley and his wife to be representative actors of their day.

Your contributor MR. WILLIAM DOUGLAS has assisted me in identifying the characters in West's print, and generally in composing this article; in fact, without his professional knowledge of actors and the literature of the stage I could not have written it. He informs me that it was the custom to drink in solemn silence "To the memory of Baddeley's skull," but other toasts are now given. Of late years the managers of "Old Drury' have added to Baddeley's gift. Sir Augustus Harris was extremely generous in promoting the festivity of the annual celebration, contributing as much as hundred pounds. There were probably over one hundred guests. The Drury Lane Green Room no longer exists, having been converted to other purposes some years ago.

The late

RALPH THOMAS.

8

"THE TRAGEDY OF MARIAM." (Malone Society's Reprints, 1914.) are supplementary THE following notes to those given by the Malone Society's editors, Mr. A. C. Dunstan and Dr. W. W. Greg. In some cases they afford explanations which no doubt appeared to the editors to be obvious, but which perhaps would not be obvious at first sight to all their readers. In others they suggest emendations, in some cases different from those which the editors have proposed. It should be stated that the editors do not profess to emend their text, though as a matter of fact they have suggested many emendations, some of which are very happy and ingenious.

Line 46. Assent (= Ascent).-Cp. 1. 713. Line 70. To be punctuated "your admirer, and my Lord." Line 153. thinke.-Read "thanke." 66 read editors Line 187. leeke.-The say But seeke.'" "leeke is probably right. This form of "like" is found in the sixteenth and Alderman Birch, pastrycook and drama-seventeenth centuries according to the N.E.D.,' a quotation from T. Howell's tist, for many years till his death, was in which gives 'Deuises (1581): "Wante makes the Lyon the habit of supplementing Baddeley's gift. The stowte, a slender pray to leeke." Birch's most successful play was Adopted Child,' 1795, but I cannot find that it was ever printed. His fame must

Line 190. bare (=bar).—Cp. ll. 316 and 1020. Line 203. And part.-The editors' suggestion, "Apart," would hardly help the sense. For