author quotes in proof, a passage which would certainly raise a smile at the Horse Guards. "When our General Assembly was set in the ordinary time and place, Lieut. Col. Cottrell beset the church with some rattes of musqueteers and a troop of horse." An English farmer is equally struck with the apparently intolerable misnomer of hog for a young sheep before it has lost its first fleece: and should he meet with the line quoted by our linguist, Ane calf, ane hog, ane fute-braid sawin, he would, surely, consider the hog as closely related to the swine: and to tell him of "leading out the hogs to shearing," would remind him of the proverb 66 great cry; but little wool." Nor would an English jockey be less surprized to hear a Scottish brother of the whip expatiate with rapture on the form, beauty, blood, pedigree, and swiftness, of a frog-but when it was explained to him that this term in the north signifies " a horse more than one year old, but not two years," his wonderment might yield to his envy. words which are well explained by reference to the use of the same term in Scotland: and there are also many Scottish words that might have been advantageously illustrated by considering the connection in which they stand among our elder writers. They would often have suggested the root of a word, which might be traced with little ambiguity under sundry significations. To explain our meaning, we instance in the word rede, which Chaucer and other English writers use, as importing natural talent, understanding so Chatterton, rightly, though his idea be borrowed from Hudibras, To stir his rede up, shakes his head. Under several articles, Dr. J. gives it the sense of sult of understanding. this also imports knowledge of the cause, To explain, or unfold: especially an enigmatical saying:which implies the effect of natural capacity, understanding, directed to this particular object. : The voice by which the understand ing manifests itself to others. A simple southron invited at the jovial board to drink constable, or swallow a sheriff, might tremble at To discourse, to speak at large-cer finding himself in a company of anthro-tainly this should be according to the dic pophagi; like the Highlander who thinks tates of understanding; by understanding hardly of "poke-pudding" institutions, rendered vocal. because he believes that the parish overseers eat all the bastard children that happen in London. Dr. J. however,, will terminate his terrors, by, stating that a constable or a sheriff, in the language of Scottish wine-bibbers who do not adopt the moderation of Ahasuerus, is equivalent to a brimmer, or a bumper, among their claret-complexioned rivals in the south. O most happy and ingenious Scotland! where the drinking off of a constable is held out in terrorem to the sober inhabitants!-where the supply of the national cavalry is dependant on the breeding of frogs!-where hogs yield a fleece in support of the broad-cloth manufacturesand where the metropolis itself entrusts its security to the honour and vigilance of its ratles! However extensive Dr. J's. acquaintance may be, as it evidently is, with northern poetry, we could have wished that he had been more familiar with our old English bards. There are many English To which we may add, divination, derstanding in the party professing it. which supposed a superior degree of un standing, or wisdom, were adopted as It appears, therefore, that if underthe root of the word rede, and the other senses were deduced from it, as external acts, or emanations from the understanding, their relative connection would be much clearer than it is as presented by Dr. J. and their different, yet not wholly dissimilar, import, would have been more manifest, and therefore more satisfactory. When writing the article Bour, Boure, concealment, had suggested itself to our we wish the idea of privacy, seclusion, author. Rosamond's Bower, at Woodstock, was not only a house, a chamber, but if tradition may be credited, a retirement, for the purpose of concealment, and safety. A bower, or arbour, in a garden is a concealment. With the inner chamber of a house; a sleeping apart ment; a young lady's bower :-the idea of privacy certainly connects itself. The following is Dr. J.'s article: BOUR, BOURE, S. A chamber; sometimes a retired apartment, such as ladies were wont to possess in ancient times. 'Wyth pompus feyst and ioyous myrth oùer all, As what we now call a bower, is generally made of the branches of trees entwined, some more modern writers seem to use bour as if it conveyed the same idea. There is indeed every reason to believe, that bower, now used to denote an arbour, and derived by Dr. Johnson from bough, a branch, is originally the same word. Thus it is viewed by Som ner; A. S. bur, boure, conclave," an inner chamber, a parlour, a bower." Lye adopts the same idea, giving the further sense of tabernaculum, tugurium. Teut. buer, id. Dan. buur, conclave. Su. G. Isl. bur. habitaculum. Boor, Cumb. is still used to denote "the parlour, bed-chamber, or inner room;" Gl. Grose. None of these words have relation to boughs. The root is found in Su. G. bu-a, to inhabit, whence fhre derives bur. Hence also suefurbur, cubiculum, i. e. a sleeping apartment, Verel. mentions Isl. Jungfrubur, which is rendered gynaceum, ubi olim filiæ familias habitabant: literally the young lady's bour. Hence bour-lourding, jesting in a lady's chamber. Pink. Having offered these instances in explanation of our meaning, and from no other motive, we proceed to observe, that many English words meet with explanation in the Scottish dialect. Our old acquaintance, the heroic ancient Pistol, procured certain goods, it is said, by purchase. We conceive, that Dr. J. has well explained the origin of this word, though he has ill expressed its import. PURCHES, s. A term used in 'relation to bastardy. And first has slane the big Antiphates,- i. e. begotten in bastardy. "Thus we say Scot. He lives upon his purchase, as well as others on their set rent. Prov. applied commonly to the same purpose," Rudd. This Prov. in its literal sense at least, has been borrowed from Fr. Ses pourcha's lui valent mieux que ses rentes. We still say, He lives on his purchase, of one who has no visible or fixed means of sustenance, S. The idea is evidently borrowed from one liv ing in the woods by the chace, Fr. pourchasse; hence applied to any thing that is acquired by industry or eager pursuit. That this term is derived from the woods and the chase, we admit : but, we doubt not its having included, besides the idea of what was presented by chance, that of unlawful industry and eager pursuit." Our poachers are a case in point: and we believe, that a term derived from them when used in relation to illicit commerce with the sex, will be generally understood: so when we say a chance child," the idea is connected with that of stolen embraces in short, like our friend Pistol's goods, not over honestly come by, though Now, surely, our men of learning, for want of ascertaining the proper root of this word, have "committed false report," to a degree scarcely credible: the bed-chamber, or inner room, is the least cessible part of a house; the parlour is the most accessible part, and where all comers are spoken to a moment's reflection, therefore, is sufficient to perceive the glaring contradiction of their explanation. They had no fixed root in their contemplation. The jung-fru-bour, the young lass's (or girl's) bower, is much nearer to the truth: and if, instead If we rightly recollect, Chatterton's of gynaceum, the womens apartment, the writer had said partheneon, the maid-use of the term chevisance was a stumbling block to our black-letter disputants near-i ens' apartment, he would have been perly forty years ago: it is explained by Dr. fectly correct as this descriptive appellation is derived by Potter from παραθείναι to lay aside, to set apart, and allades to the retired life of virgins in Greece: which is completely analogous to our proposed root of privacy, seclusion, conceal ment. acquired by industry and eager pursuit." Shakespeare himself was a purchaser of Sir Thomas Lucy's deer from his park, if report have not done him injustice. J. under the article CHEWYSS, CHEWY SANCE, as meaning provision, means of sustenance," or "bounty." This is not far from the sense in which it is used -- by that ingenious profligate. To FEWTER, FUTER, v. a. To bring close or lock together...... Doug. Virgil, 328, particulars in which the worthy Dr. has distinguished himself from former lexico 41. They fewter [Futer MS.] fute to fute, and mangraphers. The first of these, in order, to man. Haeret pede pes, densusque viro vir. According to Rudd:" their feet are intangled or faltered [feltred] together, from Fr. feutre, a felt." Ish. fodr-u, subnectere, consuere. But I suppose that is is rather allied to fiatr-a compedibus constringere ; fiotur shackles for the feet: 9. They fetter foot to foot." The Dr. is perfectly right: and it may serve to support his opinion, that, FetterLane in London is, in the old deeds which relate to it, called Fewter's, otherwise Fewterer's Lane; of which Fetter is a variation not a corruption, As to the struggle of foot to foot, we believe that when the feet of wrestlers overstep each other, as they are said to lock in: and when the feet of the rear rank of soldiers step extremely close to that which precedes it in a march, they are said to lock up, both which terms have some analogy to the term felter. On the word "KINKHOST, the hooping-cough," Dr. J. observes : The change of this word into chin-cough, E. is quite absurd, as it obscures both the sense and the origin [derivation]. It is evidently the same with Belg. kink hoest. This term contains a description of the disease: being composed of Teut. kinck-en difficulter spirare, and hoest tussis; as the patient labours for breath in the fits of coughing. : This instance shews the importance of maintaining a correct pronunciation of language in the present case we recommend it to the attention of our medical friends, especially; and moreover, we advise Dr. J. the next time he writes this word, to prefix the w and write whooping-cough as a whoop conveys, to a critic, a very different idea from a hoop. Our author is of opinion, and he supports it with arguments of no little cogency, that the English and Scottish languages are branches from the same parent stock, and not derived one from the other by intromission. We leave him at present to settle this question with Mr. Chalmers, who, in his Caledonia, has adopted a directly opposite view of the matter. From the space to which this article will extend, we doubt whether we shall be able to consider the subject. But we turn to some of those striking is the "BELTANE, BELIFIN, S. The name of a sort of festival observed on the first day of May, O. S. hence used to denote the term of Whitsunday. "At Bellane, quhen ilk bodie bownis To heir the singin and the soundis, Be firth and forrest furth thy found; Peblis to the Play, st. 1. "On Beltane day, in the yeir nixt followyng, callit the Inuentioun of the haly croce, James Stewart the third son of Duke Mordo, mouit with gret ire, that his fader and brethir war haldin in captiuite, come with ane gret power to Dunbritane, and brint it, efter that he had slane Johne Stewart of Dundonald, with xxxii. men in it. Bellend. Cron. B. xvii. c. 2. "And quhair it be taintit that thay [ruikis] big, and the birdis be flowin, and the nest be foundin in the treis at Beltane, the treis sal be foirfaltit to the King." Acts Ja. I. 1424. c. 21. Edit, 1566. "On the first of May, Q. S. a festival called Beltan is annually held here. It is chiefly celebrated by the cow-herds, who as semble by scores in the fields, to dress a din ner for themselves, of boiled milk and eggs, These dishes they eat with a sort of cakes baked for the occasion, and having small lumps in the form of nipples, raised all over the surface. The cake might perhaps be an offering to some deity in the days of Druidism." P. Logierait, Perths. Statist. Acc. v. 84. "A town in Perthshire, on the borders of the Highlands, is called Tillie- (or Tullie-) bellane, i. e. the eminence, or rising ground, is a druidical temple of eight upright stones, of the fire of Baal. In the neighbourhood At some distance from this is another temple where it is supposed the fire was kindled. of the same kind, but smaller, and near it a well still held in great veneration. On Beltane morning, superstitious people go to this well, and drink of it; then they make a procession round it, as I am informed, nine times. After this they in like manner go round the temple. So deep rooted is this heathenish superstition in the minds of many who reckon themselves good protestants, that they will not neglect these rites, even when Beltane falls on Sabbath. "The custom still remains [in the West of S.] amongst the herds and young people te kindle fires in the high grounds, in honour of Beltan. Beltan, which in Gaelic signifi Baal or Bel's fire, was anciently the time of this solemnity. It is now kept on St. Peter's day." P. Loudoun, Statist. Acc. iii. 105. "But the most particular and distinct narration of the superstitious rites observed at this period, which I have met with, is in the Statist. Acc. of the P. of Callander, Perths. having the figure of the moon and stars cut out on them, and are probably the rude remains of pagan superstition. The corn-field where these stones stand is called the Moonhade [I. shed] to this day." Statist. Acc. xiii. 536, 537, N. "It would appear that some peculiar sanctity was also ascribed to the eighth day of May, from the old S. Prov. "You have skill of man and beast, you was born between the Beltans;" i. e. "the first and : "The people of this district have two cus-eighth of May." Kelly, p. 376. toms, which are fast wearing out, not only Mr. Pennant gives a similar account, here, but all over the Highlands, and there- and with the addition of some other circumfore ought to be taken notice of, while they stances. "On the first of May" he says, remain. Upon the first day of May, which "the herdsmen of every village hold their is called Beltan, or Bal-tein day, all the Bel-tein, à rural sacrifice. They cut a boys in a township or hamlet meet in the square trench on the ground, leaving the moors Thy cut a table in the green sod, turf in the middle; on that they make a of a round figure, by casting a trench in the fire of wood, on which they dress a large ground, of such circumference as to hold the caudle of eggs, butter, oathical, and milk, whole company. They kindle a fire, and and bring, besides the ingredients of the dress a repast of eggs and milk in the consis- caudle, plenty of beer and whiskey; for tence of a custard. They knead a cake of each of the company must contribute someoatmeal, which is toasted at the embers thing. The rites begin with spilling some of against a stone, After the custard is eaten the caudle on the ground, by way of libaup, they divide the cake into so many por- tion on that every one takes a cake of tions, as similar as possible to one another in oatmeal, upon which are raised nine square size and shape, as there are persons in the knobs, each dedicated to some particular becompany. They daub one of these portions ing, the supposed preserver of their flocks all over with charcoal, until it be perfectly and herds, or to some particular animal, the black. They put all the bits of cake into a real destroyer of them: each person then bonnet. Every one, blindfold, draws out a turns his face to the fire, breaks off a knob, partion. He who holds the bonnet is enti- and flinging it over his shoulders, says, this tled to the last bit. Whoever draws the I give to thee, preserve thou my horses; this black bit, is the devoted person who is to be to thee, preserve thou my sheep; and so on. sacrificed to Baal, whose favour they mean After that, they use the same ceremony to to implore, in rendering the year productive the noxious animals: this I give to thee, of the sustenance of man and beast. There O fox! spare thou my lambs; this to thee is little doubt of these inhuman sacrifices ha-O hooded crow! this to thee O eagle! ving been once offered in this country; as well as in the east, although they now pass from the act of sacrificing, and only compel the devoted person to leap three times through the flames; with which the ceremonies of this festival are closed. "Bal-tein signifies the fire of Baal. Baal, or Ball, is the only word in Gaelic for a globe. This festival was probably in honour of the sun, whose return, in his apparent annual course, they celebrated on account of his having such a visible influence, by his genial warmth on the productions of the earth. That the Caledonians paid a superstitious respect to the sun, as was the practice among other nations, is evident, not only by the sacrifice at Baltein, but upon many other occasions, Statist. Acc. xi. 621. V. WIDDERSHINS. "A curious monument of the worship of the heavenly bodies still remains in the parish of Cargill, Perths. Near the village of Cargill may be seen some erect stones of considerable magnitude, "When the ceremony is over, they dine on the caudle and after the feast is finished, what is left is hid by two persons deputed for that purpose; but on the next Sunday they re-assemble, and finish the reliques of the first entertainment." Tour in Scotland, 1769. p. 110, 111. 4to. edit. The resemblance between the rites of different heathen nations is surprising, even where there is no evidence that these rites had the same origin. It is not so strange, that the same objects should excite their love or their fear, because men in general are actuated by common principles. But, it cannot easily be accounted for, that, when the expressions of these are entirely arbitrary, there should be an identity, or a striking similarity. "The Lemura was a feast observed by the ancient Romans, during the nones of May, in order to pacify the spirits or ghosts that excited their apprehensions by night, These hobgoblins they called Lemures. Some of the Roman writers pretend, that this feast was called Lemuria, quasi Remuria, from Remus, who was slain by his brother Romulus; that it was instituted for making atonement to his ghost, which used to disturb the murderer; and that the word was gradually softened into Lemuria. It seems pretty certain, that the institution of the Lemuria was previous to that of the Ferialia. According to Ovid, he who observed these gloomy rites, rose during the profound silence of night. To prevent his meeting with any of those nocturnal spirits, he clapped his fingers close together, with the thumb in the middle; and thrice washed his hands in spring-water. Then turning round, he put some black beans in his mouth, which he threw backward, and said, while throwing them, these I send; by these beans I redeem both myself and mine. This he repeated nine times, without looking over his shoulder. For he believed that the ghost followed him, and gathered up the beans, while unseen by him. Then he poured water on a certain kind of brass, and made it ring, requiring the ghost to depart from his dwelling. Having said nine times, depart, ye ghosts of my fathers! he ventured to look behind him, being persuaded that he had strictly performed all the sacred ceremonies. Fast. Lib. 5. "The Romans had also a beverage somewhat resembling our caudle; for they were to drink milk and the purple sapa, which, according to Pliny,. is. new wine boiled till only a third part remain. "Tum licet, apposita veluti cratere camella.. Lac niveum potes, purpureamque sapam. Ibid. "The prayer addressed to Pales is very similar to that idolatrously used in our own country: "Thee, goddess, Ó let me propitious find, May all my rams the ewes with vigour press, Fasti, Transl. by Massey, B. 4. "Eggs always forming a part of the rural feast of Beltein, it is not improbable that this rite is as ancient as the heathenish institution of the festival. As it appears that the Gauls call the sun Bel or Belus, in consequence of their communication with the Phenicians, the symbol of the egg might also be borrowed from them. It is well known, that they represented the heavenly bodies as oviform; and worshipped an egg in the orgies of Bacchus, as an image of the world. Plut. in Sympos. Univers. Hist. vol. i. Cosmog. p. 34. "Nine seems to have been a sacred number with the heathens. The Bel-tein cakes have nine knobs; and the person, who placated the nocturnal spirits, repeated his address to them nine times. The throwing of the beans backward is similar to the custom of throwing the knobs over the shoulder, the address to the names, these I send; by these I redeem, &c. to the language used at Bel-tein in devoting the knobs, this I give to thee, &c. As the Romans believed that the spirit kept behind the person who The Egyptians also represented Cneph, performed the ceremonies already men. the architect of the world, with an egg comtioned, something of the same kind is stilling out of his mouth. In the hymnus ascribed believed by the superstitious of our own country. For he who sous hemp-seed at Hallow-een, believes that, by looking over his shoulder, he will see the apparition of his future wife. 66 to Orpheus, Phanes, the first-born god, is said to be produced from an egg. On these principles the story of the serpentine egg, to which the Druids ascribed such virtues, may be explained. As they were greatly attached to mystery, they most probably meant the egg as a symbol of fecundity, and in this respect might consecrate it to the worship of the sun, whom they acknowledged, in their external rites at least, as the universal parent. "In some circumstances, however, the rites observed on Beltein day bear fully as much resemblance to those peculiar to the Palilie, a feast celebrated by the ancient Romans, on the 21st of April, in honour of Pales the goddess of shepherds. The design of both seems to have been the same;-to obtain protection for shepherds and their flocks.. As the herdsmen kindle a fire on Beltein day, we learn from Ovid that fires were laid in order, which were leaped over by those who A rite, allied to these, is still pretty geobserved the Palilia. nerally observed throughout Scotland, by the "Certè ego transilui positas ter in ordine flammas. superstitous, or by young people merely as a Fast. Lib. 4. frolic; although nothing can be accounted To the same source, perhaps, may we trace the custom so general among children in this country of having eggs dyed of different colours at the time of Peace, as they term it, that is, Pasch or Easter. |