Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1899-10-28
THE REBUs ANCIENT
ORIGIN DATES BACK TO THE BEGIN
MING or WRITTEN LANGUAGES.
The Word Said TO BE Survival of
the Title ssDe Rebus Quae Gerun-
tur" Series Of Lampoons on Current
Events Read BY Clerks at Bosche.

The rebus Is representation by
means of pictures. letters or figures
of some word, phrase or sentence. In
its origin 1t dates back to the begin
ming of written language. for the Chi
nese and Egyptian writings are COM
posed of images, and the records OF an
cient tombs may be looked upon as
series OF refuses, says the Antiquary.
Just as primitive efforts In speech
needed a great deal of accompanying
gestures. so early writing required
images for adequate definite express
sions of ideas. There is this differ
ence, however, between Chinese and
Egyptian picture writing and the med
aeval and modern rebus, viz, that
whereas In the former the intention Is
simpliflcation, In the latter II is most
~ mystification. The ancient Greeks.
made frequent use of the rebus on
coins of their cities and islands. Thus
the Greek colony of Selinus. in Sicily,
which derives its name from the wild
parsley growing there in profusion.
was represented on the coins by an
image of this plant In the same way
the coins of Rhodes bore rose, those
of Melos a pomegranate, those OF
phocae seal, and the city of Ancona
was represented by a bent arm, the
word ankon meaning bend. These
have been termed types parlants, or
canting devices. Two Greek architects
are said to have carved on their build
ings the images of frog and lizard,
these two words in Greek being re-
spectlvely identical with their names,
which they were forbidden to inscribe
In written language Julius Caesar, ac-
cording to Addison, used the image of
an elephant on his coins, because his
name happened in the Punic language
to stand for that animal. This is, how
ever, doubtful, as the elephant was
commonly used as an emblem on coins.
There are, nevertheless, und0ubted ex-
amples of the use of the rebus on RO
man coins, as, G. e., those of Quintus
Voconius Vitulus on which calf Is
represented, and those of l.. Aquillus
Florus.
1t Is in Picardy that the rebus more
especially has flourished In the past.
Sieur DIES Accords says that the rebus
was special product of that district,
Just ms bayonets were associated with
Bayonne and mustard with Dillon. The
people of Picardy were so much
pleased with this kind of wit that their
use of 1t became almost n madness,
and IL all their work of this kind could
have been collected ii would have been
enough, in the language of Des Ac-
cords, ''to load ten mules" He was
Judged of no account who did not take
part In this kind of exercise. In the
time of Edward III the English began
to admire these foreign fooleries in
painted Poesic.v as Camden says, 'and
they which lacked wit to express their
conceit in speech did use to depaint IL
out (as IL were) In pictures, which they
called Rebus by Latin name well fit
ting their device. These were so liked
by our English there. and sent over the
streight of Calico, with full sail, were
so entertained here although they
were mostly ridiculous) by all degrees,
by the learned aud unlearned, that "he
was no body that could not hammer
out of his name an invention by this
wit-craft. and picture it accordingly;
whereupon who did not busle his brain
to hammer his device out of this
| forge?' Some French authorities have
supposed that the word "rebus" orig
mated from the custom followed by
the clerks of the Basoceh of making
every year in the time Of the Carnival
n number of lampoons, which were en-
titled "De rebus quae geruntur,' or
Concerning things which are happen
ing" These were read by the clerks,
who were drawn through the streets In
cart According to Merango this
custom lasted ut Boulogne till about
1890. when 1t was stopped by the pc.
lice. The word "rebus" Is accounted
| for as being survival of this title,
DE rebus quae geruntur," the popular
mind being able only to remember a
portion of the expression. But it is
simpler and probably more correct to
understand the word as indicating the
representation of ideas "by things"