volume of the collections of the Sussex Archæological Society.

1. Who was Pharamuse of Boulogne, father of Sybil de Tingry? He is called the nephew of Maud, King Stephen's wife; but I believe there is no doubt that she was the only child and sole heir of Eustace Earl of Boulogne, brother of Godfrey, King of Jerusalem. Where is Tingry, of which place he was lord? Is there any place in the North of France bearing that name now?

2. Will any one well skilled in the interpretation of ancient legal documents furnish some explanation of the following extracts from the Rotul. de Fin. (Hardy, i. 19.):—

"1199. William de Warburton and Ingelram de Monceux give 500 marks to the king for having the inheritance of Juliana, wife of William, son of Aymer, whose next of kin they say they are."

Yet six years later, 1205 (Hardy, i. 310 )—

"Waleran de Monceux gives 100 marks for having the reasonable (rationabilis) part of the inheritance of Juliana, as regards (versus) Wm. de Warburton, William and Waleran being her next of kin."

This Waleran was son of Idonea de Herst (now Herst Monceux), and appears in other documents as "Waleran de Herst." The land in question was in Compton (afterwards Compton Monceux), Hants.

Now how are we to reconcile the two above-quoted documents? What was the connexion

between Ingelram and Waleran? And how is Waleran's double appellation to be explained? I see a reference to a family named de Mounceaux in the last number of the Archæological Journal, p. 300., holding a manor near Hawbridge, Somerset Were they of the same stock?

3. The magnificent monument in Herstmonceux church to Thomas Lord Dacre (who died 1534), and his eldest son, is embellished with a considerable number of coats of arms, several of which I am unable to identity with any connexions of the family. These are,—(1.) Sable, a cross or; (2.) Barry of six, ar. and az., a bend gules; (3.) Arg. a fesse gules; (4.) Quarterly or, and gules, an escarbuncle sable; (5.) Barry of six, arg. and gules; (6.) Azure, an orle of martlets or, on an inescutcheon arg. three bass gules.

Can any of your readers, acquainted with the Dacre and Fienes pedigrees, appropriate any of these coats?

4. A suite of small bed-rooms, and the gallery from which they opened, in Herstmonceux Castle, were called respectively the Bethlem Chambers and Bethlem Gallery: is any instance of a similar denomination of apartments known, and can the reason be assigned?

5. Sir Roger Fienes, the builder of Herstmonceux Castle, accompanied Henry V. to Agincourt. Are any references to him to be found in Sir H. Nicolas' Battle of Azincourt, or elsewhere?

6. Francis Lord Dacre was one of the noble twelve who had the courage to appear in their places in the House of Lords and reject the ordinance for the trial of Charles I. His son Thomas, who married the daughter of Charles II. by the Duchess of Cleveland, and was created Earl of Sussex, was compelled through his extravagance to alienate the castle and manor of Herstmonceux. Are there any references to either of these peers, who played a not inconspicuous part in the events of their times, in any of the contemporary memoirs? Any information on any of the above points would greatly oblige

E.V.

Herstmonceux, Nov. 18.

MINOR QUERIES

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Yorkshire Ballads.—Any of your readers would confer a great favour by referring me to any early Yorkshire ballads, or ballads relating to places in Yorkshire, not reprinted in the ordinary collections, such as Percy, Evans, &c. I am of course acquainted with those in the Roxburghe collection.

H.

Ringing a Handbell before a Corpse.—Is it true that whenever an interment takes place in Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford, the corpse is preceded on its way to the grave by a person who rings a small handbell at intervals, each time giving a few tinkling strokes? My informant on this subject was an Oxford undergraduate, who said that he had recently witnessed the burials both of Mr. ——, a late student of Christ Church, and of Miss ——, daughter of a living bishop: and he assured me that in both cases this ceremony was observed. Certainly it is possible to go through the academical course at Oxford without either hearing the bell, or knowing of its use on such occasions: but I should now be glad to receive some explanation of this singular custom.

A.G.

Ecclesfield.

Church of St. Saviour, Canterbury.—Tradition, I believe, has uniformly represented that an edifice more ancient, but upon the present site of St. Martin's, Canterbury, was used by St. Augustine and his followers in the earliest age of Christianity in this country. St. Martin's has, on that account, been often spoken of as the mother-church of England. Lately, however, in perusing the fourth volume of Mr. Kemble's Codex Diplomaticus, p. 1. I find a charter of King Canute, of the year 1018, which states the church of ST. SAVIOUR, Canterbury, to be the mother-church of England:

"Æcclesia Salvatoris in Dorobernia sita, omnium Æcclesiarum regni Angligeni mater et domina."

In none of the histories of Kent or of Canterbury can I find any mention of a church dedicated to St. Saviour. May I beg the favour of you to insert this among your Notes?

HENRY ELLIS.

Mock Beggar's Hall.—What is the origin of this name as applied to some old mansions? One at Wallasey, in Cheshire, was so named, and another near Ipswich, in Suffolk. And what is the earliest instance of the title?

BURIENSIS.

Beatrix Lady Talbot.—Since the publication of Sir Harris Nicolas' able contribution to the Collectanea Topographica et Genealogica (vol. i. pp. 80-90.) no one may be excused for confounding, as Dugdale and his followers had done, Beatrix Lady Talbot with Donna Beatrix, daughter of John, King of Portugal, to whom Thomas FitzAlan, Earl of Arundel, was married, 26th Nov., 1405. What I now wish to learn is, whether anything has since been discovered to elucidate further the pedigree of Lady Talbot? It is evident that she was of Portuguese origin; and it may be inferred from the quarterings on her seal, as shown in a manuscript in the British Museum (1st and 4th arg., five escutcheons in cross az., each charged with five plates in saltire, for Portugal; and 2nd and 3rd az., five crescents in saltire, or), that she was a member of the Portuguese family of Pinto, which is the only house in Portugal that bears the five crescents in saltire, as displayed on the seal.

SCOTUS.

English Prize Essays.—Is there at present, in either of the universities, or elsewhere, any prize, medal, or premium given for English essays, for which all England could compete, irrespective of birth, place of education, &c.; and, if so, particulars as to where such could be obtained, would greatly oblige

MODEST AMBITION.

Rev. Joseph Blanco White.—History of the Inquisition.—In the Rev. J.H. Thom's Life of the Rev. Joseph Blanco White it is stated that he had made a collection for a history of the Inquisition which he intended to publish; and in a batch of advertisements preceding the first volume of Smedley's Reformed Religion in France, published in 1832 by Rivingtons, as part of their Theological Library. I find an announcement of other works to be included in the series, and amongst others, already in preparation, The Origin and Growth of the Roman Catholic Inquisition against Heresy and Apostacy; by