1894. 2 vols. 8vo. Washington, 1895.6.
320 ,
Greenwich Observatory. Results of the Spec-'^
troscopic and Photographic Observations
made m 1894. 4to. Lond. 1897
Astronomical and Magneticaland Metcro-
logical Observations made in 1894, 410.
Lond. 1897 J
The Gospel of S. John. Translated into the]
Yahgan Language by Rev. Tbos. Bridges. LRcv. A. W« Greenup.
120 Lond. i8iS6. 9.11.89 )
•Quevedo (S. A. Lafone). Idiotta Ablp6a.\
8vo. Buenos Aires, 1897 |
Los Indios Cbanases y su '■ Lcngua con I
Apuntes sobre los QueraiKtieSv Ya*^,
Boanes, Giienoas 6 Minnanesy nn Mapa Is. A. Lafone Qoevedo, Esq.,
Etnico. 8vo. Buenos Aires, 1897 f" M.A.
PeUeschi (Juan). Los Indios Matacos y su
Lengua. Con una Introducc-ion por S. A.
Lafone Quevedo/ 8vo. Buenos Aires,
1897 /
Lasa (T. von der). Znr Greschtchtc und^
Literatur des Schachspiels. 8vo. Leipzig,
1897. 10.12.38
Canchy(A.). CEuvres. ire S£rie : TomeX.
iie S6rie : Tome III. 4to. Paris, 1897.
3-4"
Prantl (Dr. C). Aristoteles uber die Farben.
Erli&utert durch eine Ucbersicht der Far-
benlehre der Alten. 8vo. Miinchen, 1849
Sfortunati (Giov.). Nuovo Lume, Libro
di Arithmetica. 4to. Venetia, 1561.
Ff.11.49
Thibaut(G.). The Sulvasdtras. (Reprinted
from Jour. Asiatic Soc. of Bengal, 1875). I
8vo, Calcutta, 1875. 4.42*.50 )Mr. Pendlebuvy.
Hymns of the Eastern Church, translated, with /
Notes and an Introduction by the Rev
J. M. Neale. 4th Edition, with Music by
the Rev S. G. Hatherly. 410. Lond.
1882. 11.15.29
Bird (H. E.). Modem Chess and Chess
Masterpieces. Roy. 8vo. Lond. n.d.
10.13-42
Rawnsley (li. D.). A Reminiscence of Words-
worth Day, Cockermouth. April 7, 1896.
With Notes on Cockermouth by the Rev
H. J. Palmer, and an Essay on Wordsworth
by the Rev J. L. Davies. 120 Cocker-
mouth, 1896. 11.28.35 ,
The Middlesex Hospital Journal. Vol.
No. 4. October, 1897
^^* ^*l C. Reissmmn, Esq., B.A.
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United' States Bureau of Edacation. Report'
of the Commissioner of £<lucation for
1895—96. Vol. 1. 8vo, Waikhington,
1897. ii.4"-32
•Horton-Smilh (L.)- Two Papers on the
Oscan Word Anasaket. 8vo. Lond. 1897
Willis (William) The Socieiy and Fellow-
ship of Ihe Inner Temple. An Aildresb
delivered May 24, 1897. 410. Loud. 1897
Bureau of Education.
The Author.
The Sub-Treasurer of the
Inner Temple.
Additions.
Bacchylides. Poems. From a Papyrus in the British Museum. Edited by
F. G. Ken>on. 8vo Lond. 1897. 7.16.63.
Bentham (Jeremy). A Fragment on Goverament. Edited with an Intro-
duction by F. C. Montague. 8vo. Oxford, 1891. 1.34. 16.
Cambiid^se Natural History Series. Worms, Rotifers, Polyzoa : Flat worms
ai d Ncsozoa, by F. W. Gamble ; Nemertines, by Miss L. Sh^Mon ;
Thread- Worms and Sa^tta, by A. E. Shipley; Rotifers, by Mircus
Hiirtoi;; Polychaet Worms, by W. B. Benham; Earthworms and
Leeches, by F. E. Beddard ; Gephyrea and Phoronis, by A. E. Shipley ;
Polyzoa, by S. F. Harmer. 8vo. Lond. 1896. 3.26.39.
Peripatus, by Adam Sedgwick ; Myriapods, by F. G. Sinclair ; Insects,
Part I., by David Sharp. 8vo. Lond. 1895. 3.26.40.
Camden Society. The Nicholas Papers. Correspondence of Sir Edward
Nicholas. Edited by G. F. Warner. Vol. III. July 1655— Dec. 1656.
Sm. 4to. Lond. 1897. 5- 1 7- 163.
Corpus Scriptorum Ecclesiasticorum Latinorura. Vol. XXXII. S. Ambrosii
Opera. Pars i. Fasc. 2. Ex recens. C. Schenkl. 8vo. Vindobonae,
1897.
Vol. XXXVII. Flavii Josephi Opera ex Versione Latine. Edidit C.
Box sen. Pars vi. 8vo Vindobonae, 1898.
Dictionary of National Biography. Edited by Sidney Lee. Vol. LII.
(Shearman — Smirke). 8vo. Lond. 1897. 7.4.52.
Dictionary (New English) on Hbtorical Principles. Edited by Dr J. A. H.
Murray (Ftiisty^Frankish). 4to. Oxford, 1897.
English Dialect Dictionary. Edited by Joseph Wright. Part iv. (Caddie —
Chuck). 4to. Oxford, 1897.
Gardiner (S. R.). History of the Commonwealth and Protectorate 1649-1660.
Vol. II. 1651.1654. 8vo. Lond. 1897. 5-37>54'
HalHwell (J. O.). The Jokes of the Cambridge Coffee-Houses in the 17th
Century. i2mo. Cambridge, 1 84 1. AA.3.60.
Herminjard (A. L.). Correspond ance des R^formateurs dans les Pays de
Langue Fran^aise. Tome IX. (1543 4 1544). 8vo. BAle, 1897. 9.35.68.
Historical MSS. Commission. The MSS. of the Right Hon. F. J. Savile
Foljamhe, of Osberton. 8 vo. Lond. 1 897.
Luard Memorial Series I. Grace Book A: containing the Proctors* Accounts
and other Records of the University of Cambridge for the years 1454-1488.
Edited for the Cambridge Antiquarian Society by S. M. Leathes. 8vo.
"^ Camb.^1897. 5.27.18.
Mathematical Questions and Solutions from the << Educational Times."
Edited by W. J. C. Miller and D. Biddle. Vol. LXVH. 8vo. Lond.
1897.^6.11.117.
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mcole (Jales). Le Laboureur de M^nandre. Fragments in^dits sur Papvnis
d'Egypte, d£chiffr£s, traduits et coininent6s. 8vo. B41e et Gendve, 1898.
Paris University. Auctariam Chartulaiii Universitatis Parisiensis. Edidenint
H. Denifle et A. Chatelain. Tom. II: Liber Procuratorum Nationis
Anglicanae (Aleroanoiae) ab 1406-1466. 4to. Paris, 1897. 5.39.
— — Chartularium Universitatis Parisiensis. Tom. IV. 1394-1452. 4to.
Paris, 1897. 5.39.
Repton School Register, 1620- 1894. Edited by F. C. Hipkins. 8vo. Lend.
1895. 5.28.64.
Rolls Series. Calendar of State Papers (Domestic) of the Reign of Charles I.
Addenda: March 1625 to January 1649. Edited by the late W. I>.
Hamilton and S. C. Lomas. 8vo. "Lond. 1897. 5.3.
Calendar of State Papers, Domestic Series, December 167 1 to May I7tli
1672. Edited by F. H. B. Daniell. 8vo. Lond. 1897. 5.3.
Sedbergh School Register, 1546- 1 895. Privately Printed, 8yo. Leeds,
1895. 5.28.63.
Thesaurus Syriacus. Edidit R. Payne Smith. Fasc. X. Pars i. foL
Oxonii, 1897,
Whitaker's Almanack for 1898. Reference Table,
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CONTENTS.
PAOK
The Amateur Antiqaary . 261
An Idyll Tale . . . .278
Sonnet ...... 280
Notes from the College Records (continued) . .281
College Fiction ..... 301
To Amanda ...... 305
Boadicea ...... 306
The Commemoration Sermon . .310
Demeter of the Fair Tresses 317
Horace ....... 323
A May- Week Mature ..... 325
The Johnian Dinner 1898 . . 335
Correspondence ..... 336
Obituary :
John Bradbury' Turner Mus.Bac. . . . -337
Rev Henry Gladwyn Jebb M.A. 338
The Rev WiUiam Willoughby Duuglas M.A. 339
Our Chronicle ..... 340
The Library . . -365
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Eaikt Tetttt,
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THE AMATEUR ANTIQUARY.
IV.
'' Phantom sound of blows descending, moan of an enemy massacred,
Phantom waiil of women and children, multitudinous agonies.*'
Tennyson*
JROM the gateivay of Cilurnum we ride away
southward; for time presses, and this route
is somewhat easier than the road which
follows the course of the Wall over the great
basalt hills to the west. At first we cross the fertile,
undulating strip of land which lies between the river
and the western slope of the valley ; just beyond the
suburbs a few tombs stand by the wayside, and then the
road passes between fields and gardens, which nestle
snugly in this sheltered basin; for to the south the
valley is narrowed almost to a gorge, where the North
Tyne chafes and frets his way over stubborn boulders
and jutting ledges of rock, towards the wide haugha
where he and his fellow river are presently to join their
waters.
Soon the road takes a sharp turn to the right, and
climbs to the neck which joins the great wooded hill of
Warden to the higher ground of the north: a few
minutes later we find ourselves at the brow of the
VOL. XX. LI^
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further slope, and make our survey of that portion of
South Tynedale which lies below us — a great curve of
the valley, embaying a pleasant nook of cultivated
land, through which the road is to lead us. Close by
the river's bank there is a low bluff, and then the
ground rises gently towards the half circle of moorland
hills, which shelter it from the biting winds of the north
and east. In the centre of this natural theatre is a large
camp and a straggling village ; for the place is used as
a sanatorium and has some strategic value as a
supporting station. Westward from Cilurnum the Wall
forms a great curve, and here is its focus ; from this
spot supports may in a short time reach Cilurnum,
Procolitia, or Borcovicum ; and even Hunnum and
Aesica are not too far distant to send hither for assist-
ance.
But there is nothing of such special interest as to
detain us here : we ride past the southern rampart of
the camp, and set our horses to the long slope, by
which the road mounts to the higher levels of the moor.
To beguile the monotony of the ascent, we tempt our
friend the Decurion into conversation, and he is ready
enough to regale us with all manner of strange
histories, drawn from his own experience or from the
traditions of the regiment.
There is no lack of excitement in some of his stories,
as, for instance, when he relates how only three months
ago Marcus and Quintus, the Prefect's sons, ran away
from home to seek adventures up the North Tyne
valley. Marcus and Quintus, we learn, are the real,
though unofl&cial, commanders of the Second Asturians,
and, notwithstanding the claims of one Titus Aelius
Hadrianus Antoninus Augustus Pius etc., the complete
autocrats of Cilurnum : in fact, there is scarcely a man
in the fortress, civil or military, who is not ready to
neglect his duties, if Marcus' bow requires mending, or
leave private business undone, if Quintus demands a
stock of pebbles for his sling.
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The Amateur Antiquary. 263
The Decurion grows eloquent, as he describes the
commotion which arose when the lads were missed, the
fiery haste with which the Prefect and every available
trooper rode northward, as soon as their trail was
discovered, the grim silence or fierce oaths of the men,
when they saw the small footprints suddenly surrounded
by the marks of a hundred naked feet, and the awful
havoc which they worked in the moorland stronghold^
where they found the boys at last, standing, as they
had stood through a long hour of terrible suspense, pale
but defiant, while their captors quarrelled over their
fate, the politic wishing to hold them to ransom, and
the fiercer spirits, who had lost sons or brothers by the
Roman arms, clamouring for cruelty and revenge.
" But we left them little time to decide," says our
friend. " We made almost as clean a sweep of them as
our men made of the crag village years ago."
This is an old story, which he himself had learnt
from the lips of a veteran who took part in the ghastly
deed. There was a certain clan, he tells us, that dwelt
in a village on a craggy hill, and trusting in the
security of their fortress, broke the Roman peace and
raided the valley; but at dawn one morning came a
stern, resistless column of Roman troops, who climbed
steadily up the one practicable path to the village gate,
burst through every obstruction, and then, spreading
out into line, drove all before them till they came to the
cliff at the further side, and looked down upon ihe
awful heap of dead and dying that lay a hundred feet
below.
The Decurion sees by our faces that the story is not
altogether palatable, and brings out a pleasanter tale to
remove the taste — a. story of days yet more distant,
when the Wall was slowly rising, and the neighbouring
Otadenes were pressed to serve as labourers, and carry
the stones from the quarries to the Wall ; a touching
story of an Otadene woman, who took her husband's
place in the gang, and bore his burdens, when pain and
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sickness had robbed him of his strength, till a brutal
centurion would have lashed the weary sufferer back to
work : but the woman shielded him with her own body,
and the sight drove weakness from her husband's limbs,
nerving him with the fierce strength of passion, as he
leapt from the ground, and thrashed the bully with his
own rod, while the rest of the soldiers looked on and
laughed, as the cur howled for help or whined for
mercy ; and then a stem, quiet voice sounded behind
the throng, making every man start back trembling,
and open a passage for Hadrian himself.
The Decurion tells his tale with no attempt at word*
painting, but we can picture the crisis of the little
drama for ourselves — the soldiers standing stiffly at
attention, and the bully picking himself up from the
ground and glancing furtively at the Emperor's face, to
see whether it be safe to attempt an explanation or
lodge a complaint : Hadrian himself looks sternly round
the ring of iron faces for a few moments of silence ; the
chastiser is already trembling with the reaction of
weakness, and yet holds himself proudly, erect to face
the death which he does not hope to escape ; and the
woman clings to his hand in despair, her sobs choking
the plea for mercy which she strives to utter.
We can guess how the story ends, before more words
are spoken 1 the bully is rebuked and punished, and the
faithful couple are released from labour and rewarded
by the Emperor's bounty. But we can go further than
the tale, and see a pathos in it which is hidden from the
narrator. It is a strange contrast, if the story be true ;
for we cannot doubt that the lord of thirty legions turns
away with a sigh, envying the humble Otadene, who is
poor, weak, ignorant, and beloved.
"Ah! Sabina!" we can almost hear him murmur,
•*you won me the purple, — and you take care I don't
forget the fact — but I wonder whether you would ever
interpose your august person to save me from a
thrashing."
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The Amateur Anfiqiiary. 265
We wake from our revery to find ourselves riding
down into a broad shallow basin of moorland ; and
yonder in front of us is Borcovicum, perched on a great
hummock of rising ground between two higher basalt
hills. The sun is almost touching the western heights,
and the whole scene is flooded with golden radiance
and thrown into high relief by the slanting rays. The
southern half of the fortress slopes towards us ; towers,
temples, halls, granaries, and a hundred other closely
packed buildings are picked out in glare and shadow.
The broad slope, which falls away from the southern
wall, is cut into terraces and dotted with suburban
houses ; but at either end, and fringing the level land
below, are gardens and orchards, glorious with autumnal
colours. The flanks of the great hills show the buff of
withered grass, varied here and there by streaks and
patches of green, where the moister spots still keep
something of their summer dress; and there on the
hill-tops we see the Wall once more, stretching from
height to height, and never shirking the steepest slope,
except in a few places, where it crosses a deep gap in
the line of hills, and is drawn cunningly back to form
a death-trap for the rash assailant.
We cross the rich level of newly-drained marsh,
which lies below the town, and ride up the steep road
to the southern entrance of the fort : the gateway is of
much the same size and appearance as those which we
have already seen at Cilurnum ; and though a sentry is
posted under either arch, there is free passage while
the daylight lasts, and we enter the fortress by the
broad street which runs steeply upward from the gate.
A few moments later we have reached the prae-
torium, and are introducing ourselves to Quintus Verius
Superstis, Prefect of the First Cohort of Tungrians and
commandant of Borcovicum, and, after the manner of
distinguished travellers, we take informal possession of
him and his house. Verius is a small man of hardy
appearance; his dark hair and beard are just tinged
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with grey, and his eyes are quick and intelligent. He
is a person of some importance too; for Borcovicum
commands a difficult stretch of country, and the cohort
which forms its garrison is a thousand strong; but
notwithstanding the dignity of his position and the '
press of official business he gives us a hearty welcome.
Visitors are rare at Borcovicum, and society is limited ;
Petronius, the commander at Vindolana, is a dull
neighbour, and Verius' wife is not on the best of terms
with the good lady of Marcellus at Procolitia. Even
hunting grows monotonous after a time; and we are
therefore doubly welcome, as being a new source of
occupation.
Of our lodging and entertainment we need only
state that, although the praetorium is necessarily some-
what cramped, we fare sumptuously and sleep well.
Let us therefore turn the page of our diary, and pass on
to the next morning ; for at an early hour the energetic
Verius is ready to show us the sights of Borcovicum.
The fortress covers a space of about five acres, and
is closely packed with buildings. Our host, however,
is an enthusiastic soldier, and it is to the purely military
features of the place that he draws our particular atten-
tion. The walls are of the same height, and of almost
the same strength, as the Great Wall itself, which is
bonded into them at the two northernmost corners;
and at certain commanding points square masonry
towers are built against the inner face, — ^ballistaria
Verius calls them, for on the high platform of each
stands a powerful ballista.
This is a form of artillery which we are eager to
examine, and accordingly Verius leads us up the ladder
to the top of the tower at the north-east angle of the
fort, whence we look down a steep slope into a marshy
hollow below. The stout coverings of hide have already
been removed from the machine; for our thoughtful
entertainer has ordered out a ballista-team (if we may
so describe it), and we are to see them at practice.
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The weapon is somethinjgf like a gigantic cross-bow ;
a long beam is hinged near the centre to the top of
a pivoted pedestal, and carries a heavy square frame of
wood at the fore end. The propulsive force, however,
is not derived from the spring of stubborn wood ; for the
two arms of the bow are separate staves, and their
power conies from great tourniquets of tightly-twisted
ropes, which are fastened to the wooden frame. The
upper surface of the beam is hollowed into a deep
trough, along which slides a heavy block of iron,
guided by flanges which move in long slots cut^ through
the sides of the trough : either flange projects beyond
the sides of the beam, and terminates in a ring or
eyelet, to which are fastened the stout cords which
connect the iron block with the arms of the bow ; and
at the hinder end or butt of the beam is a winch, the
cord of which is attached by a slip-hook to a ring at the
end of the block. To the lower side of the beam, about
midway between the butt and the centre, is hinged a
spar or leg of wood, the lower end of which fits into
various notches or sockets in the cone-shaped base of
the pedestal, so that the main beam may be set at any
angle that may be required. On either side of the
weapon is a neat pile of round stone shot, each stone
being between thirty and forty pounds in weight;
and near them is a tub of wet clay, the use of which
perplexes us for a time.
Verius explains the mechanism, and then the ballista-
drill begins. We fail to catch the exact terms of the
various orders, since they are given with that semi-articu-
late abruptness which military convention demands ; but
we can understand the process without them. Two men
are stationed at the winch handles, and these wind
back the iron block till the bow is fully strained ; then
a stone is placed in the trough, touching the block ; the
captain of the team adjusts his aim ; and since this is to
be a long range shot, the butt is lowered by placing the
supporting spar in one of the lowest notches of the base.
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268 The Amateur Antiquary.
When this is done to his satisfaction, he pulls the lan-
yard and releases the slip-hook ; the arms of the bow
fly forward and strike with a sharp report against the
wooden frame, and we hear a dull, whirring noise in the
air, followed in a few moments by a faint thud as the
shot buries itself in the ground almost three hundred
yards away, sending up a spurt of peaty soil, as it
strikes the bare brown patch of hill-side, at which it
was aimed.
But the tub of clay is still perplexing us, and
accordingly we ask Verius to explain its purpose:
Verius replies that we shall see in a moment, and
orders that the next shot shall be discharged at an
imaginary enemy who is threatening the Wall in the
deep hollow below. Once more the shot is placed in
position ; but this time the weapon is to be depressed,
and the stone is kept in contact with the block by
a handful of clay, which prevents it from rolling out of
the trough. Then the same operations of aiming and
discharging are repeated; and when at last the shot
is driven with a splash deep into the marshy ground
below us, we cannot help feeling particularly glad that
we are Verius' friends and visitors, and not the company
of truculent Caledonians, whom our fancy lately posted
on that very spot.
From the ballistarium we move on to the eastern
barrack-yard — a long, paved court with a narrow
portico at either side shading the doorways, which
open into the sleeping-quarters of the men : these are
bare, comfortless kennels, as we think when we come
to inspect them ; but Verius' Tungrians are no Sybarites,
and most of them have known worse lodging before they
enlisted. Our visit is informal and unexpected, and as
we stand in the gateway of the yard, we can observe
something of the every-day life and natural manners of
the men, before our presence is noticed. Some are
cleaning their arms and armour, and humming snatches
of weird Teutonic songs over their work; some are
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The Amateur Antiquary. 269
anxiously watching the cooking-pots, which stand in the
embers of the fire at the further end of the yard, stewing
a coarse porridge of bruised wheat for the morning
meal; a few are playing some unintelligible barrack-