Febbttaby 25, 1899.
THE ESTATES GAZETTE
316
£13; and another, partly illegible, signed, “ Still in heart and honour, your friend, Beethoven,” £21.
The fantastic little booklets by Robert Louis Stevenson, privately printed by his stepson, S. L. Osborne, and issued to a few hotel and other friends, during the novelist’s short stay at Davos Platz, are quite the most valuable of Stevensoniana. They are very rarely seen in the auction-room, and it is believed that only two or three complete collections exist. It is not surprising, therefore, that at Messrs. Put-tick and Simpson’s, on the 15th instant, a set of seven realised the comparatively large sum of £51. They included “ Moral Emblems,” first and second collections, “ Black Canyon, or Wild Adventures in the Far West,” “ Hotel Belvedere,” two programmes, February 14 and April 4, 1882, and “ Notices of Publications of Black Canyon.”
A large (and, we may regretfully add, a noisy) audience assembled at Messrs. Debenham, Storr and Sons’ rooms in King-street, Covent-garden, on Wednesday, to witness their sale of war medals. There were several items of unusual interest, among which we may particularise the following :—A Naval General Service medal, with clasp, “ Phoebe,” March 28, 1814, £21; a group of three medals of the 40th Foot, comprising a Peninsular medal, with six bars, a Waterloo medal, and a medal for gallantry, £18 ; a gold medal for Coorg (believed to be unique), £18 ; a rare naval medal, with three bars, for boat service, July 21, 1801 (four engaged), “ St. Vincent,” June 1, 1794, £23; an officer’s Peninsular medal, with seven bars, awarded to Lieutenant Edward Hopper, 38th Foot, and the army of India medal, to the same officer, £28 ; and a Peninsular medal, with single clasp for Crystler’s Farm, 49th Foot, £20.
SALES OF THE WEEK.
Porcelain, Decorative Furniture, etc.
On the 16th inst., Messrs. Christie sold a collection of porcelain, objects of art, and decorative furniture. A few of the more important articles were as follows :■—Four Worcester plates, painted with bouquets of flowers in medallions, 40 guineas ; a set of four Battersea enamel table candlesticks, with figures in medallions, 52 guineas ; a circular panel of old Swiss glass, with the Imperial arms in border of arms of the various Principalities, dated 1611, 18in. diameter, 60 guineas ; an upright panel of glass, with St. George and the Dragon and a warrior in armour, dated 1551, 12jin. by 9in., 40 guineas; ten old English mahogany chairs, of Adams design, with reeded hacks with festoons of laurel in low relief, 45 guineas ; a Spanish inlaid cabinet, profusely inlaid with conventional lotos and other flowers in engraved ivory and boxwood, 36in. wide, 80 guineas ; and a Flemish carved oak cabinet of the 17th century, profusely carved in high relief with figures of cupids in oval panels, 50in. by 70in., 50 guineas.
Old French and English Decorative Furniture, etc.
A valuable collection of old French and English decorative furniture, porcelain, sculpture, and other works of art, formerly the ;׳xoperty of his Royal Highness the Duke of Sussex, was dispersed at Messrs. Christie’s on the 17th inst. The day’s sale of 110 lots realised upwards of £5,000. The sensation of the sale was :he bidding for the pair of small pierced ivory vases, with exquisite ormolu mounts, probably by Gouthiere. These very fine Louis XVI. vases were practically unknown, and may thus be compared with the medieval cup of mounted glass which appeared at Christie’s from some country house three or four years ago, and was bought at a very high price for the late Baron Ferdinand de Rothschild. In the present instance it was commonly supposed that the vases would bring £600 or £800, but at first there was a feigned unwillingness to bid, and it was only after a wait of some minutes that Mr. Duveen offered £50. The signal once given, the struggle proceeded merrily, and did not stop till the same bidder distanced all his competitors by an offer of 1,600 guineas, at which price the vases were knocked down to him. The other lots disposed of included a hexagonal Worcester vase and cover, painted with poppies, birds, etc., 15in. high, £62 ; a Louis XV. secretaire, decorated with marqueterie panels of trophies of musical instruments, flowers, etc., 30in. wide, £480 guineas ; Napoleon I., a white statuary marble bust, 23in. high, signed Chaudet, 1808, from Kensington Palace, £100 ; an oviform vase, with pierced neck and cover, of old Worcester porcelain, dark-blue scale pattern, finely painted with birds, etc., 17in. high, £125 ; a regulator, in Louis XIV. boule case, mounted with sphinxes, masks, etc., 150 guineas; a Renaissance upright oak cabinet, elaborately carved with masks, fruit, foliage, etc., in high relief, 86in. high, 60in. wide, 95 guineas; a Louis XVI. commode, of marqueterie and parqueterie, inlaid with a basket
country. It was perhaps not generally known that the City of London had at that period its own Courts quite independently to those of the King. Proceeding, the lecturer said that in the Tudor times the Templars were celebrated for the education they gave, and also for their banquets. During the reign of Henry VIII. there came a reformation, and another change occurred in the ownership of the Temple. But lawyers were nasty people to deal with when they were in possession (laughter), and so the King was well advised in letting them alone. They were allowed to stop there until the reign of James I. ; whether they remained in possession as tenants or by any other holding he really could not say (laughter). In the reign of Elizabeth they built that grand Middle Temple Hall, of which he, personally, was so very proud. It was built in 1570, and the great lawyer Bowden was elected treasurer for the first three years in succession. It had been stated that the wood of which the screen in the Middle Temple Hall was made had come from the wreck of the Spanish Armada, but as the hall was erected in 1570, and the Armada did not come into prominence until some 14 or 15 years later, he did not quite see how that could come about (laughter). There was another story to the effect that the screen was made of some of the wood from the ship used by Drake in his voyage round the world, but here again the dates did not fit one little bit (renewed laughter). Mr. Pitt-Lewis concluded a most interesting lecture with a few facts about the Temple in modern times.
At the close the lecturer was accorded a most hearty vote of thanks, proposed from the chair, and a most enjoyable evening was brought to a close with the toasts of “The Visitors" and “The President.”
A similar gathering will take place on Tuesday, the 28th proximo, when Mr. W. H. Warner (Messrs. Lofts and Warner) is expected to read a paper.
fBric-a-fBm.
[SPECIALLY CONTRIBUTED,]
We congratulate the British Museum on its acquisition of the highly important collection known as the Hardwicke Papers and Manuscripts, which was announced to׳ be sold at Messrs. Sotheby’s on Wednesday and three following days. The collection—which belonged to the Earl of Hardwicke:—was removed lately from the Deed Room of Wimpole Hall. It is stated that the purchase is one of the largest of its kind effected by the British Museum during the last few years. It is certainly difficult to exaggerate its historical value ; and we are glad that, in obtaining it for the nation, the trustees of the Museum have displayed a praiseworthy alacrity.
A rare opportunity was offered to musical enthusiasts at Messrs. Sotheby’s, on the 18ih instant, when a series of musical scores of Beethoven, Schubert, and other composers, were disposed of. The collection—which was formed by Mr. Alexander Thayer, the biographer of Beethoven—included the trombone parts, eight pages folio, of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony. This particular manuscript is described as having a threefold value as a relic. First, it is a fragment in the composer’s writing of his symphonic masterpiece ; second, it tells the story of the growth of the work; and third, it is a relic of the composer’s “ spiritual son and heir,” as a lead pencil memorandum in the handwriting of Mr. Thayer states that the manuscript came from the “Nachlass” of Franz Schubert. It realised the sum of £45.
Among the other musical MSS. were the sketch for the aria, “Ah, Perfido,” and another for a song, conceived for Goethe’s poem, “ Heidenröslein,” that was so charmingly set by Schubert, £24 : the original manuscript sketch of the song, “ Tyroler Lied,” presented to Mr. Thayer by A. Schinder, two pages folio, £14; a half-page folio for Op. 106, given to the collector by Artaria, of Vienna, £12; the sketch for song, “ Kennst du das Land,” two folio pages, £12 10s. ; and a more sentimentally interesting relic, the manuscript with Beethoven's autograph corrections of “ Der Lieg des Kreutzes ” (by J. C. Barnard), through the reading and revising of which it is said that he composed the famous Kreutzer Sonata, £16.
Schubert’s music of “ Der Alpenganger ” (four-pages folio), written in 1817, and commencing, “Wilt thou not watch the little stream, the little stream so warm and clear,” fell at £33 ; the original score of Lebenslied, dated the previous year, £22 ;the song, “To Mignon,” £26 ; and, by the same composer, “ The Moonlight Night,” with notes referring to poems on the moon, £21. Some of the autograph letters fetched nearly as much as the musical scores. A letter written by Beethoven, one p. quarto, date March, 1799, relating to friends on private matters, £20; another, in which lie says that yesterday he was not quite himself, “Ludwig,'' but the Devil, £17 10s. ; some others, £15 and
INSTITUTE OF ESTATE AND HOUSE AGENTS.
‘ THE
MR. PITT-LEWIS, Q.C., ON TEMPLE.”
Another of a series of social gatherings in connection with the above-named Institute was held at the Hotel de Florence, Rupert-street,
■ AV, on Wednesday evening, when, after an excellent dinner had been served, a most interost-| ing lecture on “ The Temple ” was delivered by Mr. Pitt-Lewis, Q.C. The chair was occupied by the President, Mr. W. Bennett Rogers, F.S.I., who was supported by the following members : —Messrs. G. W. Dixon (G. W. Dixon and Co., Sutton), W. Callingham, James Boyton (Elliott, Son and Boyton), Edward Chesterton (Chesterton and Sons), J. J. Bagshaw Mann and W. H. Mann (R. W. Mann and Son), Walter Simms (J. and R. Kemp and Co.), John Taylor (White, Berry and Taylor), David B. Bryett, Frank Oowtan and D. Cowtan (Cowtan and Sons, Limited), F. R. Lovegrove (Taylor, Lovegrove and Co.), George W. Potter (Hampstead), Frank Swain, J. Allen Taylor (Taylor, Lovegrove and Cb.), H. Mordaunt Rogers and Percy W. Rogers (Rogers, Chapman and Thomas), and the secretary, Mr. AVal-ter James Taylor. The attendance also included a large number of visitors.
The relation of the early history of the Temple by Mr. Pitt-Lewis -was greatly appreciated by all present, and there were frequent manifestations of applause. The learned lecturer, who addressed the company in an easy, conversational style, without the aid of a manuscript or notes, referred at the outset to the curious manner in which ancient properties in London retain for centuries their family connections and traditions. Nearly everybody, he said, was aware that the Temple was connected with the Knights Templars, who ceased to hold their property in England five and a half centuries ago. They were the outcome of the Crusade, and produced three orders of chivalry, and called themselves the fighting section. They were, said the lecturer, very superstitious, and their superstitions no doubt led them to erect the Temple. Their badge | was in the shape of a red cross upon a white ; ground, and until this day it remained the same. Another section, called the Knights ' Hospitallers, devoted themselves chiefly to the work of charity, and looking after the sick and wounded. Their badge was a white cross upon a dark ground. They came into this country soon after the foundation of the order and established themselves in Holborn, and he had been told that the excavations for the erection of the new London and Counties Bank, near Southampton-row, had brought to light the whole of the ground plan of the Knights’ Temple. The Knights Hospitallers established themselves in Clerkenwell about the same time, and there was a house in that neighbourhood which had always been connected with them. The Knights Templars flourished considerably in this country; they collected large sums of money. Many curious things had been said about the coat of arms obtained by the Knights Hospitallers. Until recently it was believed that it was the well-known lamb and flag, which was granted early in the 13th century, but a few months ago it was discovered that the lamb and flag was the badge of the English branch of the order. Referring to the Temple itself, the lecturer remarked that it remained perfectly rural for many a score of years. In the year 1340 it was used as a market garden, and produce was then so valuable that it brought into the coffers about £40 a year (laughter). It was, of course, known to many that during the War of the Roses the Temple ■was famous for its roses. It was in or about the year 1180 that the Templars made it their home, removing there from their old Temple in Holborn. As soon as they had established themselves there they did the very thing that was necessary to give full respectability to a family —they built a church (laughter), which had been allowed to remain until the present day (applause). They got the Patriarch of Jerusalem to come and consecrate it (laughter)— in these days, perhaps, they would have been contented with an archbishop (renewed laughter). The Templars flourished in the Temple for very many years, and their home was allowed to remain in the same state of rural simplicity in which they found it. But they did not remain longer than two centuries in possession of their riches. Their property was forfeited to the Crown somewhere about the reign of Edward I. ; it was subsequently given to the Knights Hospitallers, who, however, were not rich enough to maintain it as their own, and consequently let it to different people. Among the few Grown favourites in the Temple about this time was the Earl of .Lancaster, who, it would be remembered, was beheaded for the crime of treason. It was he who let in what was now known as the Honourable Society of the Inner Temple. Until about the reign of Edward III. the only lawyers in the country were the clerics. They, however, over-egged their pudding, for Englishmen insisted upon being governed by the laws of their own
BOOKS
PUBLISHED AT THE
ESTATES GAZETTE OFFICE
For Cash with Order any Volume will be forwarded post free.
Crown 8vo. Price, 2s. 6d
AGRICULTURAL RATES ACT, 1896, with Introduction and Notes, and the Agricultural Rates Order, 1896. A useful guide for Land Agents, Valuers and Agriculturists. By Sidney Wright, M.A.
Second Edition.	Crown 8vo.
Price 6s.; for cash, 5s. post free.
AUCTION LAW, A Handbook of.—An invaluable work of reference for Auctioneers. Revised and brought up to date. By W. ARCHBUTT POCOCK, of the Middle Temple, Barrister-at-Law.
New (fifth) Edition.	Demy 8vo.
Price 6s.; for cash 6s. post free.
THE AUCTIONEERS’ MANUAL, — A complete Guide to the Law and Practice of Auctioneers. Contains Scales of Professional Charges, Forms of Agreement, Specimen Title Pages, Conditions of Sale and Catalogues, Methods of Keeping Accounts of Sales &c., &c. An entirely new edition. Revised and brought up to date by W. F. Nokes.
Crown 8vo. Price 4s. 6d. ; for cash 8s. 6d. post free.
COMMISSION CASES, A Compendium of.—Contains a collection of all important cases as to Auctioneers’ and Estate Agents’ Commission. By G. St. Leger Daniels, LL.B.(Lond.), of the Middle Temple Barrister-at-Law.
Crown 8vo. Price 12s. 6d.; for cash 10s. 6d. post free.
COMPENSATION: Principles and Practice.—A
comprehensive work on this important subject. It treats of the history and principles of Compensation Cases, the parties and subject matter of Claims and the preparation of same. Asses°ments for Compensation, etc., together with precedents for use under the Lands Clauses Act; the text of important statutes, and an index reference to all Compensation claims, heard and disposed of since 1885. By H. C. Richards, Q.C., M.P., of Gray’s-inn, and the Middle Temple, Barrister-at-Law, and J. P. H. SOPER Esq״ B.A., LL.B., of Lincoln’s-inn, Barrister-at-Law .
Second Edition.	Crown 8i o.
Price 6s ; for cash, 6s. post free,
DILAPIDATIONS : The Law and Practice
of.—A valuable Guide and Handbook to this difficult subject. By A. T. MACER, P.A.S.I. The legal matter revised by Sidney Wright M.a of the Middle Temple, Barrister-at-Law. New Edition thoroughly revised and brought up to date.
Demy 8vo. Price 12s. 6d. ; for cash, 10s. 6d. post free. LANDED ESTATES, The Law relating to.--Land, Manor, Farm, Field, Crops, Stock, Labour, etc. 1 his work contains a resumé of the law upon the most important matters connected with the Sale Purchase and Possession of Landed Property ; with an Appendix containing the Customs of the Country and the most important statutes connected with the subject. By Sidney Wright, M.A., of the Middle 1 empie, Barrister at-Law.
Crown 8vo. Price 6s. ; for cash, 6s. post free. LEASES, Principles and Points.—A Handbook to the law of Leases: for Landlords. Tenants, and House A5??t8 ,v?7״G־rr,ST• leger DANIELS, LL.B. (Lond.), of the Middle Temple, Barrister-at-Law.
250pp. Crown Svo.	Price 6s.; for cash, 5&. post free.
LIGHT AND AIR, The Law of.—This is one of the best text books on the subject of Light and Air J.et published. The method of arrangement is so simple and complete asto make the present position of this difficult subject easy ot comprehension to both professional and lay minds. Illustrated by diagrams. By A. A. HUDSON, of the Inner Temple Barrister-at-Law ; and Arnold Inman, of the Inner Temple, Barrister-at-Law.
Crown 8vo. Price 6s. ; for cash. 5s post free
METROPOLITAN SANITATION, wiuh Appendix.
—Containing the Public Health Act, 1891; the Bye-Laws issued by L.C.C. and local authorities; aho the various Sanitary Regulations in force thiough-out the Metropolis. By W. HERBERT DAW, F.S.I.
Crown 8vo. Price 6s. ; for cash, 5s. post free.
POTTERY AND	PORCELAIN.—A practical
handbook and guide to the various Manufactuies of China, Faience and Enamels, both Engli h and Foreign ; with a concise explanation of the principal featuies of each. Illustrated by the marks of tbe best-known factories.
Crown 8vo, 600pp. Price 12s 6d.; for cash, 10s. 6d. post free RATING.—This work, which is written from a Surveyor’s standpoint, gives under thiee heads— Principles, Practice and Procedure—a clear and compi ehensive survey of all the matters appertaining to this difficult subject. In addition to the pages devoted to the rating of land and buildings, exhaustive chapters are devoted to the complex points arising out of the rating of Railways, Canals, Tramways, Gas and Water Companies, Docks, Harbours and Piers. By P. Michael FARADAY (Rating Surveyor), the Legal matter revised by STANLEY A. LATHAM, LL.B., of the Parliamentary Bar, A.I.C.A. F.R.S.S.
New (third) Edition. Crown 8vo. Price 4s. 6d. ; for cash.
8s. 6d. post free.
LAW OF DISTRESS.—A comprehensive Guide, containing the text of the Law of Distress Amendment Act and the New Rules thereunder ; carefully revised, with References and Cases brought up to date. BvG. St. Leger Daniels, I-t- B. (Lond.), oi the Middle Temple, Barrister-at-Law.
Second Edition. Crown 8vo. Price 6s.; jur cash, 5s. post free
THE LAW OF FIXTURES. —A concise manual on this important subject; with Appendix oi Statutes. Leading Cases, &c. By SIDNEY WLIGHT, M.A., of the Middle Temple, Barrister-at-Law, assisted by a Member of the Surveyors’Institution. New Edition carefully revised and brought up to date.
FRANK P. WILSON,
“ Estates Gazette,” 6, St. Bride Street. LONDON, E.O.