365. _Rural and Urban Deans._--The name and office of _rural dean_ is familiar to every one; but may I ask your clerical readers in London, or in any other of the large towns of England, whether the office of dean is still existing among them; or have the _urban deans_ altogether ceased to be chosen and to act? W. FRASER. 366. _Ducks and Drakes._--When a man squanders his fortune, he is said in vulgar parlance to "make ducks and drakes of his money." Does this odd expression allude to the thoughtless school-boy practice of throwing stones as nearly as possible on a parallel with the surface of the water, whose elastic quality causes them frequently to rebound before they sink? In my younger days this amusement (so to speak) was called "ducks and drakes." M. W. B. Bruges. 367. _Vincent Kidder._--I shall be much obliged by any information respecting the descent of Vincent Kidder of Aghaboe in the Queen's County, Ireland, who held a commission as major in Cromwell's army. He married Ellen Loftus, the granddaughter of Sir Thos. Loftus of Killyan, one of the sons of Adam Loftus, Archbishop of Dublin; and, in 1670, had a grant of forfeited lands in the county of Kilkenny. I have reason to believe that he sprang from a family of that name in Sussex. His son, also named Vincent, was a lieutenant in Cottingham's regiment at the battle of the Boyne, Master of the Goldsmith's Company in Dublin in 1696, and High Sheriff of Dublin in 1718. He married Elizabeth, the daughter of ---- Proudfoot, and left issue. I shall be glad of any information as to the marriage of the last-named Vincent, and as to the family of Proudfoot. C. (Streatham.) 368. _House at Welling._--Every one who has travelled on the carriage-road between London and Erith must have noticed at the end of the village of Welling an old-looking house, with high garden walls, and a _yew_ hedge about thrice the height of the walls. It is said that one of our English poets once inhabited this house; but _who_? is a Query to which no one seems able to give an answer. Perhaps some of your numerous correspondents may have a Note on the subject, and would kindly furnish it. It is said by some to have been Young, the author of the _Night Thoughts_; but this again is denied by others. B. 369. _Shropshire, Price of Land._--What was the average number of years' purchase at which land sold in Shropshire and Montgomery between 1770 and '80? Is there any book where information on this subject can be found? B. R. I.