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give us full assurance that they will endeavour the total abrogation of the penal laws and test.""

"For a little more west country meetings, let us take the loyal city of Exeter; and here you have them telling their popish monarch of their thanking God for the universal blessing of his reign;' of his most gracious and merciful government;' of his actions having surpassed any thing that history could afford;' and to sum up all, that his declaration of indulgence (to popery as well as dissenters) hath come up to the agreeableness of Divinity itself;' that is, they made him a God. Then they tell him of his eternal honour and glory,' and the generation having great cause to bless God for him,' and the like monstrous stuff."

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The author of this little pamphlet then proceeds to show that in all this the addressers had no meaning; and that, in fact, addresses are mere things of course, and of no value whatever. That there is much truth in this, history fully confirms. The subject has been already alluded to in this volume; and we cannot, perhaps, close it better than by a very characteristic anecdote relating to Richard Cromwell. After the Restoration, Richard retired to live at Cheshunt, where no persons were permitted to visit him but such as had strong recommendations from some of his old acquaintances. Among those was the Rev. George North, vicar of Codicot, near Welwyn, in Hertfordshire. At one of his visits, after an hour spent in conversation and drinking, Richard started up, took the candle, and the rest of the company (who all knew, except the last admitted man, what was going forward) took up the bottle and the glasses, and followed the ex-protector up stairs to a dirty garret, in which was nothing but a little round hair trunk. Mr. Cromwell pulled it out into the middle of the room, seated himslf across it, and calling for a bumper of wine, gave "Prosperity to old England." All the company followed his example; and when the new member was called on to do so, Mr. Cromwell told him to take care, and sit light; for he had no less than the lives and fortunes of all the good people of England under him. The trunk was then opened, and the original addresses shewn to him; in which the inhabitants of all the principal cities and towns in England had pledged their lives and fortunes to support Richard in succeeding his father as Protector. This was the way he initiated a new acquaintance.

SINGULAR SURNAMES.

MR. COLE, the antiquary, was very industrious in collecting names; and, in one of his volumes of manuscripts, he says he had the intention, some time or other, of making, a list of such as were more particularly striking and odd, in order to form the foundation of an essay on the subject. A friend of the present writer has gone much further than Mr. Cole, and has collected several thousand rare names, which he has partly classified. One list consists of names of trades and occupations, such as Baker, Butcher, &c.; a second, of things as Buckle, Boot, Chalk; a third, of animals-as Hog, Fox, Lamb; a fourth, of birds-as Duck, Goose, Partridge; a fifth, of fish-as Salmon, Roach; a sixth, of fruits and flowers as Cabbage, Rose; seventh, of colours-as Black, Brown, &c. Among other classes, there is one of compound names; some of which 'pass all human understanding. That Mr. Thoroughgood and Mr. Goodenough were originally both very respectable personages, there can be no doubt; that Mr. Merryweather and Mr. Fairweather were farmers when they got their titles, is almost as certain as that Mr. Gotobed was a man of very regular habits, and Mr. Gatherall a great economist. Mr. Lightfoot and Mr. Heavyside, probably, presented as striking a contrast in their persons as Mr. Gathergood and Mr. Scattergood did in their habits. Mr. Longears, it is reasonable to suppose, was a great listener. Messrs. Hogsflesh and Pigfat could be nothing else than porkbutchers. Mr. Strangeways was, no doubt, an eccentric ; and Mr. Bird-whistle, a bird-fancier. Mr. Drinkwater and Mr. Drinkmilk were evidently two very abstemious gentlemen; while Drinkdregs was most likely a hanger-on at some taproom. There are a thousand others, all rational enough; but what are we to make of Twelvetrees, Tradescant, Thickbroom, Leatherbarrow; and not to attempt to enumerate what are really innumerable, what shall we say to such a name as Scaredevil? Yet all these are real names, and we could make the line" stretch to the crack o'doom."

That many of these names are nicknames there can be no doubt; as much so as that of Mary Cut-and-come-again, who was tried at the Old Bailey sessions, in April, 1745, and sentenced to death in that name.

Names sometimes form a singular association or contrast; thus the duke of Wellington, in a visit to some place in the country, (though we forget the name of the town,) was conducted by a Mr. Coward. In partnerships we often discover a singular junction of names; for instance, Bowyer and

Fletcher (from the French flechier, an arrow), Carpenter and Wood, Spinage and Lamb, Sage and Gosling, Rumfit and Cutwell (tailors), Long and Short, Lord and King, &c. The occupation sometimes associates very peculiarly with the name: we have known apothecaries and surgeons of the names of Littlefear, Butcher, Death, and Coffin; Pie, a pastrycook; Rideout, a stable-keeper; Tugwell, a dentist; Lightfoot, a dancing-master; Mixwell, a publican; and two hosiers of the names of Foot and Stocking. We also recollect a sign, with "Write, late Read and Write" inscribed on it.

Hymen, too, plays sad vagaries with names. We have seen Mr. Good married to Miss Evil, Mr. Bacon to Miss Pease, Mr. Brass to Miss Mould, and Mr. Gladdish to Miss Cleverly. Names like these are sure to produce an epigram in some of the daily papers, and of such epigrams our friend has made a large collection; but as we have already extended the limits we originally assigned to this article, we shall conclude with two or three anecdotes connected with surnames.

The emperor of Germany, Joseph II., in his visit to Rome, went to see the princess Santacroce, a young lady of singular beauty, who had an evening conversazione. This circumstance gave birth to the following pasquinade, which appeared the next morning. Pasquin asks Marforio-'What is the emperor Joseph come to Rome for?" Marforio answersAbaciar la Santa Croce"-to kiss the Holy Cross.

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A more fatal equivoque was, perhaps, never produced by surnames than the following:-Count Valavoir was a general in the French service, and distinguished himself under the great Turenne. It happened, that while they were lying encamped before the enemy, the Count one evening attempted to pass one of the sentinels after sun-set. The sentinel immediately challenged him, and the Count answered “ Va-la-voir,” which literally signifies "Go and see." The soldier, who took the words in this sense, indignantly repeated the challenge, and was answered in the same manner, when he fired; and the unfortunate Count fell dead upon the spot-a victim to the whimsicality of his surname.

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