belonging to the cross. In this instance there being the figure of a dead body on the cross, the cyprus was designed as a shroud. Sc. 5. p. 88. MAL. By my life, this is my lady's hand: these be her very C's, her U's, and her T's, and thus makes she her great P's. Mr. Ritson having with great probability supplied the whole direction of the letter, there seems to be no foundation left for Blackstone's conjecture. Malvolio had no motive for any coarse allusion. With respect to the instance of the letter in All's well that ends well not being recited literally by Helen, it must be recollected that there was no reason for making her do so, as she talks in blank verse; and it would therefore have been improper that she should have given more than the substance of the letter. MAL. Sc. 5. p. 93. and wish'd to see thee cross-gartered: Of this fashion but few vestiges remain; a circumstance the more remarkable, as it must have been at one time extremely common among the beaux in Elizabeth's reign. In the English edition of Junius's Nomenclator, 1585, 12mo, mention is made of "hose garters, going acrosse, or overthwart, both above and below the knee." In the old comedy of The two angrie women of Abingdon, 1599, 4to, a serving-man is thus described: hee's a fine neate fellow, A spruce slave, I warrant ye, he'ele have Sc. 5. p. 94. MAL. I will be point-de-vice [device] As the instances of this expression are of rare occurrence, those which follow are offered as likely to be useful to the author of any future work that may resemble the well-planned, but unfinished glossary of obsolete and provincial words by the late Dr. Boucher. In the interlude of The nature of the four elements, Sensuality, one of the dramatis persona, promises a banquet "Of metys that be most delycate, Which shall be in a chamber feyre In Newes from the north, 1579, 4to, mention is made of "costly banqueting houses, galleries, bowling-allees, straunge toies of point-devise and woorkmanship," sign. G. In an old and very rare satirical poem against married ladies, entitled The proude wyves paternoster that wold go gaye, and undyd her husbande and went her waye, 1560, 4to, one of the gossips recommends her companion to wear "Rybandes of sylke that be full longe and large, Some further account of this piece may not be unacceptable. It is described in Laneham's Letter from Killingworth as forming part of Captain Cox the mason's curious library. In the appendix to Baker's Biographia dramatica, p. 433, a play under the same title is mentioned as entered on the Stationers' books in 1559; but from the correspondence in the date, it was, most likely, the present work, which cannot be regarded as a dramatic one. It describes the hypocritical behaviour of women at church, who, instead of attending to their devotions, are more anxious to shew their gay apparel. One of these, observing a neighbour much better clothed than herself, begins her paternoster, wherein she complains of her husband's restrictions, and prays that she may be enabled to dress as gaily as the rest of her acquaintance. She afterwards enters into conversation with a female gossip, by whose mischievous instigation she is seduced to rebel against her husband's authority. In consequence of this the poor man is first entreated, next threatened, and finally ruined. The author of this poem is not the first who has irreligiously made use of the present vehicle of his satire. One of the old Norman minstrels had preceded him in The usurer's pater-noster, which Mons. Le Grand has inserted among his entertaining fabliaux, and at the same time described some other similar compositions. But to return to point-device :-There was no occasion for separating the two last syllables of this term, as in the quotation from Mr. Steevens's text, nor is it done when it occurs elsewhere in his edition. It has been properly stated that point-device signifies exact, nicely finical; but nothing has been offered concerning the etymology, except that we got the expression from the French. It has in fact been supplied from the labours of the needle. Poinct in the French language denotes a stitch; devise any thing invented, disposed or arranged. Point-devisé was therefore a particular sort of patterned lace worked with the needle; and the term point-lace is still familiar to every female. They had likewise their point-coupé, point-compté, dentelle au point devant l'aiguille, &c. &c. The various kinds of needle-work practised by our indefati gable grandmothers, if enumerated, would astonish even the most industrious of our modern ladies. Many curious books of patterns for lace and all sorts of needle-work were formerly published, some of which are worth pointing out to the curious collector. The earliest on the list is an Italian book under the title of Esemplario di lavori: dove le tenere fanciulle & altre donne nobile potranno facilmente imparare il modo & ordine di lavorare, cusire, raccamare, & finalmente far tutte quelle gentillezze & lodevili opere, le quali pò fare una donna virtuosa con laco in mano, con li suoi compasse & misure. Vinegia, per Nicolo D'Aristotile detto Zoppino, MDXXIX. 8vo. The next that occurs was likewise set forth by an Italian, and entitled, Les singuliers et nouveaux pourtraicts du seigneur Federic de Vinciolo Venitien, pour toutes sortes d'ouvrages de lingerie. Paris, 1588, 4to. It is dedicated to the queen of France, and had been already twice published. In 1599 a second part came out, |