Notes and Queries, Number 44, August 31, 1850 | Page 5

BELONGING TO QUEEN KATHERINE PARR.
In your Number for August 10th, I observe an inquiry regarding a MS. book of prayers said to have belonged to Queen Katherine Parr. Of the book in question I know nothing, but there has lately come into my possession a volume of early English printed devotional works, which undoubtedly has belonged to this Queen. The volume is a small duodecimo, bound red velvet, with gilt leaves, and it has had ornamental borders and clasps of some metal, as the impressions of these are still distinctly visible upon the velvet covering. The contents of this volume are as follows:
1. "A sermon of Saint Chrysostome, wherein besyde that it is furnysshed with heuenly wisedome and teachinge, he wonderfully proueth that No man is hurted but of hym-selfe: translated into Englishe by the floure of lerned menne in his tyme, Thomas Lupsete, Londoner, 1534."
At the bottom of this title-page is written, in the well-known bold hand of Katherine Parr,--"Kateryn the Quene, K.P.," with the equally well-known flourish beneath.
2. "A svvete and devovte sermon of Holy Saynet Ciprian of mortalitie of man. The rules of a Christian life made by Picus, erle of Mirandula, both translated into Englyshe by Syr Thomas Elyot, Knyght. Londini, Anno verbi incarnati MDXXXIX.
3. "An exhortation to yonge men, &c., by Thomas Lupsete, Londener, 1534.
4. "A treatise of charitie, 1534.
5. "Here be the Gathered Counsales of Sainete Isidorie, &c., 1539.
6. "A compendious and a very fruitful treatise teaching the waye of dyenge well, written to a frende by the floure of lerned men of his tyme, Thomas Lupsete, Londoner, late deceassed, on whose sowle Jesu have mercy. 1541."
Almost all these treatises are printed by Thomas Berthelet. I know not if any of these treatises are now scarce. On the fly-leaf opposite the first page we find the following scriptural sentences, which are, in my opinion, and in that of others to whom I have shown the book, evidently written by the hand of the queen.
It will be only necessary to give the first and last of these sentences:
"Delyte not in Te multytude of ungodly men, and haue no pleasure in Tem, for they feare not God.
"Refuse not Te prayer of one yt is in trouble, and turne not away thy face from the nedye."
We need not quote more; but on the opposite side of the fly-leaf are some verses of a different character, and which I suspect to be from the royal pen of Henry VIII. The writing is uncommonly difficult to decypher, but it bears a strong resemblance to all that I have seen of Henry's handwriting. A portion of the verses, as far as I can make them out, are here subjoined:
Respect.
"Blush not, fayre nimphe, tho (nee?) of nobell blod, I fain avoutch it, and of manners good, Spottles in lyf, of mynd sencere and sound, In whoam a world of vertues doth abowend, And sith besyd yt ye lycens giv withall Set doughts asyd and to some sporting fall, Therefoor, suspysion, I do banyshe thee"
Then follows a line I cannot decypher, and at the bottom of the page is
"You will be clear of my suspysion."
Are these verses from some old poet, or are they composed as well as written by the royal tyrant? for no other would, I think, have addressed such lines to "Kateryn the Quene."
I have only to add that the volume was given me by the sister of the late President of the English college at Valladolid, and that he obtained it during his residence in Spain. It is not unlikely it may have been carried thither by some of the English Catholics, who resorted to that country for education. In 1625 it seems to have belonged to John Sherrott.
I should be glad of any information about the verses.
E. Charlton, M.D.
Newcastle-upon-Tyne, August 18. 1850.
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SUGGESTIONS FOR CHEAP BOOKS OF REFERENCE.
Although your space is generally devoted to the higher and more curious inquiries respecting antiquities and literature, I am sure you will not grudge a little room for facilitating and improving the means of popular information and instruction.
For every man, almost in any station in society, I submit that the followings works for reference are indispensable, in the most convenient corner or shelf of his library:--1. A Biographical Dictionary. 2. A Gazetteer. 3. A Statistical or Commercial Dictionary. With works of that description the public have been very indifferently supplied during the last thirty years: at least, at the moderate prices calculated to bring them within the reach of students in humbler life, forming the great mass of readers. Mr. Constable, of Edinburgh, published in 1817 an abridged Gazetteer, price 18s., but there has been no such work since. Mr. A.K. Johnston's _Geographical Dictionary_, at 36s., lately published, supplies to a certain class of readers one