Miscellanies Upon Various Subjects by John Aubrey
page 17 of 195 (08%)
page 17 of 195 (08%)
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Sir Humphrey Davenport was born the 7th of July; and on that day
anniversary, his father and mother died, within a quarter of an hour one of another. Same memoirs. I have seen an old Romish MSS. prayer-book, (and shewed the same to that general scholar, and great astrologer, Elias Ashmole, Esq.;) at the beginning whereof was a Calendar wherein were inserted the unlucky days of each month, set out in verse. I will recite them just as they are, sometimes infringing the rule of grammar, sometimes of Prosodia; a matter of which the old monkish rhymers were no way scrupulous. It was as ancient as Henry the sixth, or Edward the fourth's time. January "Prima dies mensis, & septima truncat ut ensis". February "Quarta subit mortem, prostemit tertia fortem." March. "Primus mandentem, disrumpit quarto, bibentem". April "Denus & undenus est mortis vulnere plenus". May "Tertius occidit, & Septimus ora relidit".* June "Denus pallescit, quindenus feeders nescit". July. "Ter-decimus mactat, Julij denus labefactat." August. "Prima necat fortem, prostemit secunda cohortem". September "Tertia Septembris & denus fert mala membris". October. "Tertius & denus est, sicut, mors alienus". November. "Scorpius est quintus, & tertius e nece cinctus". December. "Septimus exanguis, virosus denus & anguis". * Ex re & ledo. The tenth verse is intolerable, and might be mended thus. "Tertia cum dena sit sicut mors aliena". |
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