Richardson or Murphy.—I have in my collection a portrait, purporting to be that of "Joseph Richardson, Esq., Barrister, and Member for Newport in Cornwall," engraved in line by W. J. Newton, from a picture by the late president, M. A. Shee, Esq., R.A.; and another impression, from the same plate, inscribed "James Murphy, Esq., Architect." Will any of your readers be good enough to inform me which of those gentlemen was the real Simon Pure, and what induced the alteration of name, &c.?

I could cite numerous instances of the same kind of trick having been practised, and may trouble you with further inquiries on a future occasion. At present I am anxious to ascertain whether I have got a genuine or spurious portrait in my portfolio of artists.

J. Burton.

38. Avenham Lane, Preston.

Legend attached to Creeper in the Samoan Isles.—Walpole, in his Four Years in the Pacific, mentions a creeper of most singular toughness, to which the natives attach a legend, which makes it the material employed by some fabulous ancestor to bind the sun, and which they term facehere, or Itu's cord, affirming that it cannot be broken "even by the white man, clever as he is." Mr. Walpole certainly failed in his attempts to clear a way through it. Will any of your botanical readers give me the proper name of the plant? and also of the "Giant Arum," which the same people call the king or chief of plants?

Seleucus.

Shearman Family.—Is there a family named either Shearman or Spearman in Yorkshire or in Wales? What are their arms? Is there any record of a member of this family settling in Ireland, county of Kilkenny, about the middle of the seventeenth century; his name, &c.? Are there any genealogical records concerning them?

James Graves.

Kilkenny.

American Fisheries.—Almost from the first settlement of the colony of Massachusetts Bay, this has been a troublesome question; and now that it is under the consideration of the English and American governments, it is to be hoped that it may be finally settled.

In June, 1623, a vessel arrived at Plymouth, Cape Cod, commanded by Admiral West, who had been sent from England for the sole purpose of preventing all persons, whether subjects of Great Britain or foreigners, from fishing on the coast, unless they had previously obtained permission for that purpose from the Council of New England. The admiral meeting with much opposition, and finding he could not settle the question in an amicable manner, left Plymouth in disgust, and sailed for southern Virginia. The colonists then appealed to Parliament, and an act was passed that the fisheries should be free.

Query, In what year was this act passed, and has the permission then granted ever been annulled?

W. W.

Malta.

Grindle.—What is the true meaning of this word, and are any other parts of the kingdom called thus? The one I allude to is still called "The Grindle," close adjoining the town of Bury St. Edmund's; and consists of an encampment and earthworks, very similar to several mentioned before in "N. & Q." under the articles "Grimsdyke" (Vol. iv., pp. 152. 331. 454.; Vol. v., p. 43. &c.). A local guide to the town (Gillingwater, p. 5.) gives the word Grim, a fortress=Grinneal, depths in the ground.

Can any reader of your valuable Notes give any further explanation of the word, or of its origin at Bury?

C. G.

A Gentleman executed for whipping a Slave to Death.—In the first volume of Eastern Europe, published in London by T. C. Newby, in 1846, it is thus recorded:

"During the administration of Spencer Perceval, on the 8th of May, 1811, the Honourable A. W. Hodge, a member of his Britannic Majesty's council at Tortola, was executed for the murder of one of his negroes by excessive flogging."

Might I ask if there is any other instance known of a gentleman's having suffered similar punishment for the same crime, during the period the West India islands were held as slave colonies of England?

W. W.

Malta.

Brydone.—A. J. C. would be glad to be informed of the birthplace of Mr. Brydone, the tourist and author. The biographies state that he was the son of a clergyman, and born in Scotland; but do not give the exact locus in quo.

"Clear the Decks for Bognie's Carriage."—The announcement, in Punch, that the Lords of the Admiralty had ordered a large supply of arm-chairs (of course on castors) for the use of our veteran commanders, has recalled to my recollection the above, which used to pass current in Banffshire, as a call for a clear stage. Can any of your readers tell us who was "Bognie;" what was his "carriage," and what the connexion between it and "decks?"

From the Neighbourhood of Bognie Brae.

London Queries.—Answers to the following Queries would very much oblige me.

The date when chains and bars were first erected for levying toll into the City of London.

The date of the erection of the first Temple Bar, its architect's name, and when pulled down or destroyed, and if burnt during the Great Fire.

The authority for the present gate having been built after designs of Sir Christopher Wren.

J. N. G. G.

Scarf worn by Clergymen.—By what authority do clergymen, who are neither chaplains to any member of the royal family, or to any peer or peeress, or have not taken the degree of D.D., wear a scarf either over the surplice or the black gown?

C— J. T. P.

W—— Rectory.

Life of Queen Anne.—Who is the author of

"The History of the Life and Reign of her late Majesty Queen Anne: wherein all the Transactions of that Memorable Reign are faithfully compiled from the best authorities, and impartially related. Illustrated with a regular Series of all the Medals that were struck to commemorate the great Events of this Reign; with a Variety of other useful and ornamental Plates. London, printed and sold by the Booksellers in Town and Country. 1740."

The size is small folio.

E. S. Jackson.

Erasmus Smith.—The undersigned is much interested in learning something of the life and history of Erasmus Smith, the founder of the numerous schools in Ireland that still go under his name, and are governed by a chartered incorporation. If it was a great act to found and endow so many schools, assuredly Erasmus Smith gives additional authority to the dictum, that "The world knows nothing of its greatest men."

D. C. L.

Croxton or Crostin of Lancashire.—Can any of the readers of "N. & Q." furnish me with any particulars of this family; whether they bore arms, and what they were? They are, I believe, of Lancashire origin,—the name frequently occurring in the history of that county. Where is also the ancient (and formerly very extensive) parish of Crostin?

W. H. Colles.

Grub Street Journal.—Can any of your readers give me information as to the parties by whom this journal was conducted; or who formed the Grub Street Society, shortly before, and for a few years after 1730; or what this society was: or refer me to the best sources of information on the subject? My reason for asking the question is, that I have lately found a manuscript book—a common thickish square account-book in a vellum back—containing at one end, as it seems, the minutes of the meetings of the Grub Street Society, signed by the members at each meeting: at the other end, the accounts of the funds of the association. If it should prove that the entries are genuine, and they should prove to be of any interest, I should send you some extracts from the book.

Reginensis.

Chaplain to the Princess Elizabeth.—What was the surname of the person who officiated as chaplain to the Princess Elizabeth during her imprisonment at Woodstock in 1554? His Christian name was William.

C. R. M.

"The Snow-flake."—In a comparatively obscure poem, The Snow-flake, not very long published, occurs the line:

"When Kola's mild blue eyes shall weep."