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An improper Custom reprehended.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE ORTHODOX CHURCHMAN'S

SIR,

MAGAZINE.

AMONG the many useful purposes which your mis

cellany is calculated to answer,I consider it not the least, that it affords an opportunity of noticing and correcting any little improprieties which may creep into our public service of religion, and which, if not noticed and corrected as they arise, may claim the sanction of authority. The impropriety, indeed, which I have now to notice, is not in the service itself, nor in those who conduct it; but in those who attend it. What I refer to is this:In churches, which are frequented by families, who have servants, and the servants happen to be in the church before the principal branches of the family arrive, I have frequently observed, that, notwithstanding divine service is begun, and advanced perhaps to some of its most solemn parts, one or more of the servants leave their devotions to attend their master or mistress, &c. to their pew, and to open the door for them. The impropriety of suffering a servant to break off from his worship of the Almighty, in which we at least ought to suppose him earnestly engaged, in order to perform such a ceremonial service to his earthly master, is so striking, that I need not endeavour, by reasoning, to make it appear more so. I am persuaded, that every well-disposed person will correct it the moment it is pointed out to him; and will tell his servants, that, under the circumstances I have stated, he is willing to dispense with their attention. If the pew door is to be unlocked, or set open, let it be done before the commencement of the service.

I am,
Sir,

Your obedient servant,

4

May 8, 1805.

Censor.

On

On the ANTIQUITY of the ENGLISH TONGUE.

A

To the Editors of the orthodox CHURCHMAN'S MAGAZINE.

GENTLEMEN,

I SEND you the following particulars relative to the antiquity of the ancient English tongue, which are to be met with in a work intitled, "Restitution of decayed Intelligence in Antiquities; concerning the most noble and renowned English Nation. By the study and travel of R.-U."

This book was written in the reign of James I. ann. 1605, stilo novo, by Richard Verstegan.-Fancying that the following "Conceits," may be, acceptable to many of your numerous readers, as they were to myself, and that they may, perhaps, be the ground of a useful disquisition on th Saxon tongue, I therefore trust that you will not refuse them a place in your valuable miscellany.

I have the honour to be,
Gentlemen,

Your admirer and well-wisher,

OBSCURUS.

MONG others that have had great speculation in A our ancient language, Joannes Goropius Becanus, a man very learned, and physician to Lady Mary, queen of Hungary, regent of the Netherlands, and sister unto the Emperor Charles the Fifth, fell into such a conceit, that be letted not to maintain it to be the first and most ancient language of the world; yea, the same that Adam spake in Paradise. Making it very doubtful that the Hebrew was the first language of the world, he, by the reasons ensuing, goes about to prove the Teutonick to be it. How doubtful soever it may be what language it was that Adam spake, yet have not the proper names of Adam," Eve, Cain, Abel, Seth, &c. been subject to change or mistaking; and most likely it is that God would give unto those, his first creatures, such names as were most fit and proper unto such persons as were themselves. Whereupon he brings into consideration, whether in the Hebrew, or any language else, those names do more properly betoken such persons as they were, than in the Teutonick tongue they do.

"As for example: Adam in this tongue signifieth living breath, the breath of man being therein so called,

which agreeth as well to be the name of him, that, being formed of clay, received life by the breathing thereon of Almighty God, as earthly, or red clay, as some out of the Hebrew interpret it.

"Eve is, in the Teutonick, as much to say as consimilis, EVEN THE SAME, for our word even, cometh from the Teutonick word' EVE, and likewise from their eveso cometh our even so; and she was even the same, as was Adam her husband.

Cain, written in old Teutonick orthography KAIN, (for that C and K are therein used indifferently), is otherwise written QUAIN, and signifieth wrathful, angry, or shrewd, and such was that unnatural wicked wretch unto his good brother Abel.

Able, signifieth one that is sufficient, an ABELMAN, for able in Teutonick is written ABEL, and in this first bearer of that name, rightly signifieth a man enabled unto the service of God; for so was indeed this proto-martyr of the world.

"Seth, in Teutonick, alwaies pronounced SET, is as much to say as positus, that is SET or placed in the room or steed of another, to wit, of his righteous brother Abel whom Cain slew.

"Henoch, albeit of some so written, yet it is pronounced ENOCH: E signifieth Law or Equity, Nocu is as much to say as YET AGAIN: So as in this name seemeth to be expressed and foretold a time of equity or justice which was yet to come. The bearer hereof walking (while he lived) in equity before God, was by him accordingly rewarded, by being extraordinarily taken away from this unrighteous world.

With respect to the "worthiness and property" of this ancient tongue, be goes on,

"The name of the Almighty Maker and Creater of all things, is generally, in all this great and spacious tongue, called GoD; and from the word Gop is derived the word GOOD. See now how aptly this accordeth, and how the signification of this word doth also shew the coberence thereof unto the chiefest GOOD, for that indeed all good cometh from God. But the like derivation and proper coherence is not found in the Latin between Deus and Bonus.

"In like sort, the malignant enemy of God, and all goodness, is in this tongue called DEVIL, (anciently DEOFEL) and whatsoever is of no vertue or GOODNESS IS

called

called EVIL, (anciently EOFEL). See now how Evit adhereth to DEVIL, who is, indeed, the chief substantive to which this adjective belongeth.

"The name of HEAVEN, albeit it was of our ancestors written HEOFEN, yet carried it like sense or signification as now it doth, being as much to say as HEAVEN or HEAVEDUP, to wit, the place that is elevated.

"HELL, being opposite and contrary thereunto, hath like apt appellation, as being HELLED OVER;, that is to say, hidden or covered in low obscurity.

"The name of MAN in Teutonick is, in Latin, homo, feir not being so general) the female of which creature we call WOMAN, and the Latins call her mulier; howbeit the name of mulier hath no dependence in sound with the name of homo, as our name of woman hath with man. It should, indeed, be written WOMB-MAN, for so it is of antiquity, and rightly, the b, for easiness and readiness of sound, being, in the pronunciation, left out: and how apt a composed word this is, is plainly seen. And as homo in Latin doth signify both man and woman, so in our tongue the feminine creature also hath, as we see, the name of man, but more aptly in that it is for due dis tinction composed with womb, she being that kind of man that is wombed, or hath the womb of conception, which the man of the male kinde hath not.

Additional Letters of Bishop Wren.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE ORTHODOX CHURCHMAN'S MAGAZINE.

SIR,

CCEDIT hodie Gemma ille Frisius; obscænis qui

A dem typis sed quos corrigere erit inter legendum.

Additur et fragmentum Euclidis, quia Græco-latinum est; Nolim enim puerum iis studiis (præsertim quoad ip sum textum, atque vocabula artis;) insuescere nisi Græce, Occurebat et P. Rami Arithmetica atque Geometria: neque volebam detinere (egregium utcunque in artibus et scientiis mangonem) quia Editor illius Schonerus in iis Facultatibus haud ignobilis habitus est. Separatim igitur recumbat, donec Gemmam atque Euclidem suos fecerit.

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Miserunt

Miserunt præterea Authorem unum atque alium in vario genere (ut inciderant) quos reliqua Bibliothecæ suæ adjungat puer, suo tempore percensendos. Actutum vero fedigantur in catalogum.

Inter alia, reperies et aliquot schedulas meas obsignatas, quarum clam subducendarum opportunitatem hanc omittere nolui; Nulla enim die non metuebam, iis a raptrice prædarum manu. Absolutis scilicet (O) in Evangelia, atque omnes Epistolas observatiunculis meis, ne turpi otio dein obtorpescerem, involabam in Siracidem; neque me quicquam nunc pænitet quidem. Tractatum semper esse censui plenum Pietatis et Sapientiæ; Verum tam divinis ingenii, atque eruditionis laticibus scatere haut credideram. Utriusque autem linguæ elegantiarum thesaurum esse locupletissimum senties, si excutias. Nondum absolvi quidem: sed reliqua 7 capitula alio post tempore ad te deferri malebam, quam hæc nunc non effugere confido enim non solum ea apud te salva futura, sed et calamo (seorsim in adversariis tuis) te notalurum, ubi calamus meus lapsus sit, atque ubi quid ėlapsum sit mihi incertius aut certè obscurius: Quâ in re quo majore parrhesiâ usus fueris, hôc magis placebis.

Deum precor, vobis nobisque incolumitatem eam usque præstet, quam et æternitatis velit jubeat esse prodromum. The above Letter is thus Indorsed.

Bishop Wren's account of his having wrote upon the Gospels, Epistles, and Ecclus which are not to be found among those Manuscripts he gave to Pembroke Hall.

Dixeram quidem me expectaturum a puero Epheme

ridem concessi itineris: Verum

Gratia ab officio quod mora tardat abest. Quid an tam vehemente excussore equo usus est, ut inde et memoria ei quassata, (si non susque deque versa) sit, adeoque jam non itineris, (nam illud jamdiu præterfluxit;) sed Reditus sui, et non Ephemeridem, sed annales moliatur? Esto vero modo aliquid sit tandem parebit inde quot horas somno litare amet, quot otio comburere strenuus musarum camillus. Pingue scilicet otium et (quod turpius est) foedam segnitiem ipsæ aliquot ejus hac septimana ad matrem (sed jejunæ impexæque) lineolæ plusquam spirant. Separatim enim suas venire ait (nec pudet) quia cum abirent cæseræ, paratæ non erant. At cui (vel obesæ navis) non subolet, molli lectulo, vel id diei, non exurrexisse: Paraturam certè aliam quam minimê olent. Vol. VIII. Churchm. Mag. May 1805.

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