"'Preston's Translation of Boethius,' 'The Consolations of Philosophy,'"
he said, coming back to his friend.
'"He looks as if he wanted all the consolations philosophy could give
him, poor boy!"
* * * * *
'When Mr. Norreys had bought the Horace, and given an address where to
send it, Harley (the second gentleman) asked the shopman if he knew the
young man who had been reading Boethius.
'"Only by sight. He has come here every day the last week, and spends
hours at the stall. When once he fastens on a book, he reads it
through."
'"And never buys?" said Mr. Norreys.
'"Sir," said the shopman, with a good-natured smile, "they who buy
seldom read. The poor boy pays me twopence a day to read as long as he
pleases. I would not take it, but he is proud."'
[202:A] It was in one of these alleys or tributaries that a lawyer's
clerk, returning from his office, carried home in triumph to Camden Town
a copy of Marlowe's 'Tragical History of Doctor Faustus,' 1663, which he
bought for 1s.
[217:A] Concerning the Hande and Starre, Fleet Street, and the renowned
Richard Tottell, 'printer by special Patentes of the bokes of the Common
Lawe in the several Reigns of King Edw. VI. and of the quenes Marye and
Elizabeth,' it may be pointed out that this house, 7, Fleet Street,
exists as before, the only modern addition being the half-brick front
which was placed there more than a hundred years ago. Jaggard, the
bookseller, lived there after Tottell, and from thence he issued the
first edition of Shakespeare's 'Romeo and Juliet,' actually printed in
the rear (now Dick's Coffee-house), and the possibility of Shakespeare
having often called to correct the proof-sheets is conjured up. The
house was in turn occupied by many eminent law publishers and
booksellers, and of late years by the late Mr. Henry Butterworth, who
became himself the Queen's law publisher.
[237:A] One of the reviewers of Nichols' 'Literary Anecdotes' says: 'How
often have we seen him standing betwixt these, bidding "his friends
good-morrow with a cheerful face," and pulling down his ruffles, already
too long, till they covered his fingers. Davies had, even while in
common conversation, as much of the old school of acting in his manner
as his friend Gibson had upon the stage; though he is said not to have
been so pompous as Berry, to whose parts he succeeded; and Berry, in
this respect, was thought to have declined from Bridgewater.'
[237:B] Now covered by Charing Cross Hospital. At the commencement of
the third quarter of the sixteenth century, Thomas Colwell, a
bookseller, had a shop at the sign of 'St. John the Evangelist,' in St.
Martin's parish, near Charing-Cross, and a shop with the same sign in
Fleet Street, near the Conduit. It must be remembered that at this
period Holborn and Charing Cross were quite suburban villages, the
former noteworthy as the thoroughfare from Newgate to Tyburn, and the
latter as a sort of halfway place of stoppage between the City and
Westminster.
[241:A] Not quite so unprecedented as Mr. Dibdin thought. The _Grub
Street Journal_ of February 3, 1731, contained an entire page devoted to
the books advertisement of Tom Osborne, a much more remarkable feat, all
things considered, than Thorpe's.
[Illustration]
WOMEN AS BOOK-COLLECTORS.
IT seems a curiously contradictory fact that, although Englishwomen are
on the whole greater readers than men, they are, as book-collectors or
bibliophiles, an almost unknown quantity. In France this is not the
case, and several books have been published there on the subject of _les
femmes bibliophiles_. An analysis of their book-possessions, however,
leads one to the conclusion that with them their sumptuously-bound
volumes partake more of the nature of bijouterie than anything else.
Many of the earlier of these bibliophiles were unendowed with any keen
appreciation for intellectual pursuits, and they collected pretty books
just as they would collect pretty articles of feminine decoration. They
therefore form a little community which can scarcely be included in the
higher category of intellectual book-collectors. It would be much easier
to assert that Englishwomen differ from Frenchwomen in this respect than
it would be to back up the assertion with material proof. Indeed, after
all that could possibly be said in favour of our own countrywomen as
book-collectors, we fear that it would not amount to very much. It is
certain that our history does not afford any name of the first
importance, certainly none which can be classed with Anne of Austria
(wife of Louis XIII.), the Duchesse de Berry, Catherine de Médicis,
Christina of Sweden, Diane de Poitiers, the Comtesse Du Barry, Marie
Antoinette, the Marquise de Pompadour, or of at least a dozen others
whose names immediately suggest themselves. The only English name, in
fact, worthy to be classed with the foregoing is that of Queen
Elizabeth, who, in addition to her passion for beautiful books, may also
be regarded as a genuine book-lover and reader.
There were, however, Englishwomen who collected books long before
Elizabeth's time. In the year 1355, Elizabeth de Burgh, Lady of
Clare--the foundress of Clare Hall, Cambridge--bequeathed to her
foundation 'Deux bons antiphoners chexun ove un grayel (Gradule) en
mesme le volum, 1 bone legende, 1 bone messale, bien note, 1 autre
messale coverte de blank quir, 1 bone bible coverte de noir quir, 1
hugueion [? Hugh de Voræillis on the Decretals], 1 legende sanctorum, 1
poire de decretals, 1 livre des questions, et xxii quaires d'un livre
appella, De causa Dei contra Pelagianos.'
About seventy years after Elizabeth de Burgh's bequest, we learn that in
1424 the Countess of Westmoreland presented a petition to the Privy
Council representing that the late King Henry had borrowed from her a
book containing the Chronicles of Jerusalem and the Expedition of
Godfrey of Boulogne, and praying that an order might be issued under the
Privy Seal for the restoration of the said book. With much formality the
petition was granted. But we might go back several hundred years prior
to either of these dates, for the Abbess Eadburga not only transcribed
books herself and kept several scholars for a similar purpose, but fed
the bibliomaniacal zeal of Boniface, the Saxon missionary, by presenting
him with a number of books. Appropriately enough, he presented the
Abbess on one occasion with a silver pen.
Two historic illuminated manuscripts, formerly the property of
distinguished women, were sold from the Fountaine Collection at
Christie's, in July, 1894. The more interesting item was Henry VIII.'s
own copy of the 'Psalmes or Prayers taken out of Holye Scripture,'
printed on vellum, by Thomas Berthelet, 1544. This book is of great
historic interest. Shortly before his death he gave it to his daughter,
Princess Mary (afterwards Queen Mary), who subsequently presented it to
Queen Catherine Parr, with the following inscription: 'Madame, I shall
desyer yor grace most humbly to accepte thys ritde hande and unworthy
whose harte and servyce unfaynedly you shall be seur of duryng my lyf
contynually. Your most humble dowghter and servant, Marye.' On the back
of the leaf containing the foregoing inscription is written: 'Mors est
ingressus quidam immortalis future quæ tamen est maxime horribilis carni
Catherina Regina K. P.' On a small piece of vellum inside the cover the
King has written: 'Myne owne good daughter I pray you remember me most
hartely wen you in your prayers do shew for grace, to be attayned
assurydly to yor lovyng fader. Henry R.' This book contains quite a
number of other inscriptions by Henry, Catherine, and others, and is, on
the whole, of peculiarly striking interest. It was purchased by Mr.
Quaritch for 610 guineas. A beautiful companion to the foregoing is a
manuscript 'Horæ' of the fifteenth century, on very pure vellum,
consisting of 176 leaves (8-1/2 inches by 6 inches). This manuscript
formerly belonged to Margaret, mother of King Henry VII., and has at the
end this inscription, in her handwriting, addressed to Lady Shyrley, to
whom she presented it:
'My good Lady Shyrley pray for
Me that gevythe you thys booke,
And hertely pray you (Margaret)
Modyr to the kynge.'
Margaret, Countess of Richmond and Derby, was the only daughter and heir
of John Beaufort, Duke of Somerset, and was not only distinguished for
her piety and charity, but was a great patron of Caxton, whose
successor, Wynkyn de Worde, styled himself 'Her printer.' This beautiful
manuscript was probably written and illuminated by her command in the
reign of her son, Henry VII. It realized £350.
[Illustration: _Queen Elizabeth's Golden Manual of Prayers._
Front Cover.]
For all practical purposes, Queen Elizabeth may be regarded as the first
distinguished _femme bibliophile_. Of this truculent and strong-minded
personage much has been written, and it is scarcely likely that there is
much unpublished material respecting her library. It is not necessary
nor desirable to enter exhaustively into even so fascinating a topic. A
few generalizations will not, however, be unwelcome. The books which she
possessed before she ascended the throne are excessively rare, and even
those owned by her after that event are by no means common. Elizabeth
herself embroidered several books with her own hands, the most beautiful
example of her work being a copy of the Epistles of St. Paul, now at the
Bodleian. The black silk binding is covered with devices embroidered by
the Princess during her sequestration at Woodstock, representing the
Judgment of Solomon and the Brazen Serpent, and these have been
reproduced by Dibdin in 'Bibliomania.' From an inventory published in
_Archæologia_ we learn that, in the sixteenth year of her reign, the
Queen possessed a book of the Evangelists, of which the covers were
decorated with a crucifix and with her arms in silver, weighing, with
the wood corners, 112 ounces. Among the books which the notorious Libri
'conveyed' were two which appear to have belonged to Elizabeth, first a
volume containing Fenestella's 'De Magistratibus Sacerdotusque
Romanorum' (1549), and another tract, which realized £5; and Jones's
'Arte and Science of Preserving Bodie and Soul in Healthe, Wisdome, and
Catholicke Religion' (1579), beautifully bound 'à petit fers,' which
realized close on £20.
[Illustration: _Queen Elizabeth's Golden Manual of Prayers._
Back Cover.]
The British Museum contains several books, including one or two very
beautiful ones, which were formerly the Queen's, and among these perhaps
the most notable is an imperfect copy of Coverdale's New Testament
(_circa_ 1538). Upon the inside of the cover is the following manuscript
note: 'This small book was once the property of Q. Elizabeth, and
actually presented by her to A. Poynts, who was her maid of Honor. In it
are a few lines of the Queen's own hand writing and signing. Likewise a
small drawing of King Edward the 6th when very young [of Windsor Castle]
and one of the Knights in his robes.' The 'few lines' of the Queen's are
as follows: 'Amonge good thinges | I prove and finde, the quiet | life
dothe muche abounde | and sure to the contentid | mynde, ther is no
riches | may be founde | your lovinge | mistress Elizabeth.' An
interesting point is raised in the _Library_ (ii. 65, 66), by Mr. W. G.
Hardy, relative to the books of the Earl of Essex, which were believed
to have become the property of Elizabeth after the unfortunate
favourite's execution in 1601. The finest as well as the best known of
the Queen's embroidered books, now in the British Museum, is Archbishop
Parker's 'De Antiquitate Ecclesiæ Britannicæ,' 1572, presented by the
author to Elizabeth, for whom also he had it specially bound. It is
covered in green velvet. We give facsimiles of the two sides of the
cover of the manual of prayers which the Queen is said to have carried
about with her, attached by a gold chain to her girdle. It is bound in
gold and enamelled, said to be the workmanship of George Heriot. The
prayers were printed by A. Barker, 1574. The front side of the cover
contains a representation of the raising of the serpent in the
wilderness; whilst on the back is represented the judgment of Solomon.
This book was for many years in the Duke of Sussex's collection; it was
sold with the rest of the collection of the late George Field, at
Christie's, June 13, 1893, for 1,220 guineas, to Mr. C. J. Wertheimer.
[Illustration: Elizabeth P.]
The Marquis of Salisbury's library at Hatfield contains a number of
books which belonged to two distinguished ladies of the Elizabethan
period. Lady M. Burghley's many book-treasures included a number of
learned works which we do not usually associate with the women of the
time. There were, for instance, Basil, 'Orationes,' 1556; Bodin, 'La
République,' 1580; Erasmus, 'De Copia Verborum,' 1573; Fernelius,
'Medecina,' 1554; Hemming, 'Commentarius in Ephesios,' 1574; Haddon,
'Contra Osorium,' 1557; Jasparus, 'Encomium,' 1546; Valerius, 'Tabulæ
Dialectices,' 1573; Velcurio, 'Commentarius in Aristotelis,' 1573;
Whitgift's 'Answer to Cartwright,' 1574, and several others. A few of
the books which were once possessed by Anne Cecil (sister of Sir Robert
Cecil), Countess of Oxford, are also at Hatfield, notably a 'Grammaire
Française,' 1559, and an edition of Cicero 'Epîtres Familières.'
[Illustration: _The Frontispiece to 'The Ladies' Library' of Steele._
Engraved by L. Du Guernier.]
During the eighteenth century, the taste for books was by no means
uncommon among women, although only a bold man would declare that that
period produced a genuine _femme bibliophile_. The idea of a lady's
library was first suggested by Addison in the _Spectator_, No. 37. In
No. 79 Steele takes up the thread of the subject, to which Addison
returns in No. 92, and Steele again in No. 140. These papers created a
want which Richard Steele, with a doubly benevolent object, essayed to
fill. 'The Ladies' Library,' ostensibly 'written by a lady,' and
'published by Mr. Steele,' was issued by Jacob Tonson in 1714. It was in
three volumes, each of which had a separate dedication; the first is
addressed to the Countess of Burlington, the second to Mrs. Bovey, a
learned and very beautiful widow, by some supposed to be identical with
Sir Roger de Coverley's obdurate _veuve_, whilst the third, in a strain
of loyal and affectionate eulogy, is to Steele's own wife, who may be
supposed to be depicted in Du Guernier's frontispiece in the first
volume. The 'Ladies' Library' and the _Spectator_ papers assist us
somewhat in forming an opinion as to the most popular books among the
ladies of the earlier part of the last century. The library of the lady
whom Addison visited is described as arranged in a very beautiful order.
'At the end of the folios (which were finely bound and gilt) were great
jars of china, placed one above the other, in a very noble piece of
architecture. The quartos were separated from the octavos by a pile of
smaller vessels, which rose in a delightful pyramid. The octavos were
bounded by tea dishes of all shapes, colours and sizes. . . . That part
of the library designed for the reception of plays and pamphlets was
inclosed in a kind of square, consisting of one of the prettiest
grotesque works that ever I saw, and made up of scaramouches, lions,
monkeys, and a thousand odd figures in chinaware. In the midst of the
room was a little Japan table, with a quire of gilt paper upon it, and
on the paper a silver snuff-box fashioned in the shape of a little
book.' On the upper shelves Addison noticed the presence of a number of
other counterfeit volumes, all the classic authors, and a set of the
Elzevir first editions in wood, only the titles meant to be read. Among
the books Addison mentions are Virgil, Juvenal, Sir Isaac Newton's
works, Locke on 'Human Understanding,' a spelling-book, a dictionary for
the explanation of hard words, Sherlock on 'Death,' 'The Fifteen
Comforts of Matrimony,' Father Malebranche's 'Search after Truth,' 'A
Book of Novels' [? Mrs. Behn's], 'The Academy of Compliments,' 'Clelia,'
'Advice to a Daughter,' 'The New Atalantis' (with key), a Prayer-book
(with a bottle of Hungary water by the side of it), Dr. Sacheverel's
speech, Fielding's Trial, Seneca's 'Morals,' Taylor's 'Holy Living and
Dying,' and La Ferte's 'Instruction for Country Dances,' etc.
[Illustration:
ELIZABETH PINDAR.
God's providence is mine
inheritance.
Elizabeth Pindar me jure
possidet.
Anno Dom.
1608]
The list is a quaint bit of Addisonian satire, almost worthy to rank by
the side of Sir Roger de Coverley. Addison had no very elevated opinion
of the intellectual gifts of his women contemporaries, as the
juxtaposition of the Prayer-book with the bottle of Hungary waters (a
popular stimulating perfume of the day) shows. The books above named
were at that time to be found in nearly every gentleman's library, and
that they should be found in the possession of women is not surprising.
Addison's 'intellectual lady' and her library are a fiction, but a
charming fiction withal. In spite of the literary glories of her reign,
'Glorious Anna' can scarcely be regarded as a book-collector. Queen
Caroline, the consort of George II., was an enthusiastic bibliophile.
Her library was preserved until recently in a building adjoining the
Green Park, called the Queen's Library, and subsequently the Duke of
York's. An interior view of the building is given in Pyne's 'Royal
Residences.' We give on page 267 a reproduction of one of the earliest
English bookplates engraved for a lady. It was discovered a few years
ago in a volume of title-pages collected by John Bagford, and now in the
British Museum. Of Elizabeth Pindar as a book-collector, or, indeed, as
anything else, we are without any record.
[Illustration: _The Eshton Hall Library._]
The present century has produced two of the most distinguished _femmes
bibliophiles_ which this country has ever known. The earlier collector,
Miss Richardson Currer (1785-1861), of Eshton Hall, in the Deanery of
Craven, York, was the owner of an exceedingly rich library of books. Of
these, two catalogues were printed. The first, in 1820, under the
superintendence of Robert Triphook, extended to 308 pages; the second
was drawn up by C. J. Stewart in 1833. That of the latter included four
steel engravings of her library. This library was especially strong in
British history, and it included a copy on vellum of the St. Albans
reprint of Caxton's 'Chronicle' (wanting only the last leaf), which
realized £365 at her sale; of Higden's 'Polychronicon,' printed by
Caxton, 1482 (not quite perfect); one of the most perfect copies of
Coverdale's Bible, 1535, which sold for £250; of Norden's 'Voyage
d'Egypte,' on large paper, and many other fine books. It was also rich
in natural science, topography, and antiquities. Dibdin describes her as
'at the head of all the female collectors of Europe.' Miss Currer, who
suffered from deafness, was an intimate friend of Richard Heber, and it
was rumoured at one time that this distinguished bibliomaniac was
engaged to be married to Miss Currer, but the event did not transpire.
Miss Currer's books were sold at Sotheby's in July and August, 1862, and
realized nearly £6,000, the 2,681 lots occupying ten days in selling.
Miss Currer was great-niece of Dr. Richardson, whose correspondence was
edited by Dawson Turner in 1835. Two of the views of Miss Currer's fine
library in Stewart's catalogue are reproduced by Dibdin in his 'Literary
Reminiscences.'
Before passing on to the second famous lady book-collector--Mrs. John
Rylands--a few more or less important names may be mentioned in
connection with the subject. In August, 1835, Evans sold the 'valuable'
library of the late Dowager Lady Elcho, but as her books were mixed with
other properties, it is not now possible to distinguish one from the
other. Lady Mark Sykes' musical library was sold at Puttick's in March,
1847, and eleven months later Sotheby sold some valuable books and books
of prints, the property of a Miss Hamlet. H.R.H. the Princess Elizabeth,
Landgravine of Hesse-Homburg, and daughter of George III., was a
confirmed book-collector, and her library, divided into 1,606 lots, came
under the hammer at Sotheby's in April, 1863. It occupied four days in
disposal, and realized £915 12s. 6d. The books, which were chiefly in
elegant bindings, were for the most part illustrated works, illuminated
manuscripts, and books dealing with a very wide variety of topics;
whilst many of them had an extraneous value from the fact that they
contained signatures and interesting notes of the Princess and other
members of the Royal Family. The libraries of the late Lady Francis
Vernon Harcourt (August, 1873); of the late Mrs. Ellis, of Bernard
Street, Russell Square (November, 1871); and of the late Miss Beckles
(December, 1868), have been dispersed at Sotheby's. Lady Morgan's
library, comprising the principal works in French, English, and Italian
literature, and many scarce and curious books relating to Irish
history--many of the books had the owner's autograph--was sold at the
same place in April, 1863, but the 396 lots only realized £70. The
library of another literary woman, Miss Agnes Strickland, the historian
of the Queens of England, was dispersed at the same place in May, 1876,
when a few hundred books realized £60. Some very choice books (many of
them enriched with the notes of H. T. Buckle) were included in the
portion of the library of the late Mrs. Benzon, of 10, Kensington Palace
Gardens, sold at Sotheby's on June 14, 1880, when 379 lots realized
over £775. Some books from Mrs. Jameson's library were sold at Puttick's
in October, 1882, the more important items being annotated or
extra-illustrated copies of her own books. The collection formed by Miss
Drummond, of Berkeley Square, Bristol, and sold at Sotheby's in May,
1862 (1,339 lots realizing £1,316 6s.), was a remarkably choice library,
the whole in elegant bindings, presenting a great variety of patterns,
tooled in gold, with appropriate devices and other decorations. There
were splendid 'Galleries,' and books of 'picturesque sceneries,'
magnificent volumes on natural history, some beautiful Persian
manuscripts, and the best works in standard literature. Mrs. Brassey, of
Lower Seymour Street, had some good books, which were sold by Bates on
December 23, 1814, and included 'The Golden Legend,' by Caxton, which
realized 93 guineas.