Page:Notes and Queries - Series 11 - Volume 2.djvu/166

 160

NOTES AND QUERIES. [11 s. vm. AUG. 23, 1913.

Barrow treats of ' Birmingham Markets and Fairs.' Mr. Barrow points out that the grant of a market charter "was the first step in that long chain of events which have gradually raised Birmingham from the little hamlet of herdsmen on the fertile banks of the rippling Rea to one of the foremost cities of the British Empire." Copies of the original charters are given. Mr. Francis B. Andrews contributes a paper on 'Town Houses of Timber Structure in Worcestershire.' Among those referred to is the house in which Charles is said to have rested on the eve of the Battle of Worcester. Another illustration is that of the
 * 'Hop Pole."

The excursions of the year included Westwood and Hampton Lovatt, Merivale Abbey, Shaftes- bury, Tenbury, Whitton Court, Burford Parish Church (Salop), and the Cornewall Monuments. We are glad to see that ladies were among the excursionists. The volume contains many illus- trations, and is an excellent specimen of printing.

The Fifty -First Annual Report of the Birmingham Free Libraries Committee, April 1st, 1912-March .31st, 1913, shows that the large number of 2.217,583 volumes were issued during that period. The Shakespeare Memorial Library contains 14,841 volumes : of these, 910 readers took advantage, the books borrowed being in English, French, Dutch, ^German, Italian, Russian, and Spanish.

BOOKSELLERS' CATALOGUES. AUGUST.

MR. WALTER V. DANIELL'S Catalogue 11 (New Series) is devoted to British Topography. Like all his catalogues, it is well arranged. There are 3,480 items, so that a large number of writers on topography are represented. We note a few. A handsome copy of Ay ton's ' Voyage round Great Britain,' oblong folio, crimson morocco, is 121. 12s. ; and a complete set of Britton's ' Cathe- dral Antiquities,' 7 vols., 4to, half russia, 1821-35, 4Z. 12s. 6d. Under Kip is a copy of ' Nouveau Theatre de la Grande Bretagne,' with early impressions of the engravings, 2 vols., royal folio, original Spanish calf, 1708-13, 121. A fine set of Lysons's histories, 8 vols., thick 4to, half russia, 1806-22, is 5Z. 5s. Under Surrey is Manning and Bray's history, 3 vols., folio, whole russia, 1804-14, 12Z. 10s. Of special interest at the present time are engravings of the Crystal Palace for the small sum of Is. Qd. Under Sussex is Bowlandson's ' Excursion to Brighthelmstone,' a tall copy of this rare book, 1790, 151. 15s. We must not, however, linger longer on this fascinating list.

MURRAY'S Leicester Catalogue 67 contains works under America, Architecture, Art, and Australia. A copy of * The Early Years of the Prince Consort,' with Queen Victoria's inscrip- tion, is 21. 10s. Bibliography includes Fry's description of New Testament editions, II. 10s. A copy of ' The Children's Encyclopaedia, by Arthur Mee, 8 vols., is 3Z. 3s. A fine set of Dug- dale's * Monasticon,' 8 vols., large folio, full morocco gilt, is priced 25L From the Battle Abbey sales is the first edition of the first English translation of Lucan's ' Pharsalia,' 1614, in old smooth calf, 11. 10s. There is a complete set of the Parish Register Society, 49 vols., 91. 10s.

MR. WILFRID M. VOYNICH'S Catalogue 31 (Incunabula), with its close and detailed letter- press descriptions, and its abundant illustrations, offers some little compensation in itself to the bibliophile who cannot find in his purse a suffi- cient number of spare sovereigns for the acquisi- tion of any of the treasures it offers. We must content ourselves with mentioning but a few of them. One of the outstanding items is a copy of that ^Bsop ' Vita et Fabulae ' which was printed in 1485 at Naples, by printers who called themselves " Germani fidelissimi," for Francisco del Tuppo. It is exceedingly rare, only about a dozen copies being known, including those in European libraries, and (as collectors are aware) its elaborate woodcuts and rich borders are among the finest achievements of early printing in Italy, 800L Two other fine examples of Italian printing are the St. Bonaventura's ' Meditazioni sopra la Passione,' adorned with 12 woodcuts, brought out at Florence during the closing years of the fifteenth century by Morgiani & Pietri, in a sixteenth-century binding, bearing the arms of Benoit Le Court, 140Z. ; and the St. Jerome, ' Vita Epistole,' printed at Ferrara in 1497 by Lorenzo Rossi, 160Z.

Mr. Voynich has also Wendelin of Speier's ' Tacitus,' the first book by this printer, Venice, 1470, 150Z. ; and several excellent specimens of the work of Sweynheym & Pannartz, of which we have space to mention only the Bessarion, ' Adversus calumniatorem Platonis,' editio prin- ceps (1469), offered for 140Z., and the Lactantius ' Opera,' a third edition (1470), offered for 120Z. Of the German works it must suffice to say that we noticed a fine Breydenbach the ' Reise ins heilige Land ' a first edition, possibly Schoffer, Mainz, 1486, which is to be had for 150L From French presses come a large number of important works, among the most interesting of which is a ' Confessio Brevis,' by Guillaume Le Roy, printer of Lyons, which appears to be at present unique, and, upon examination of the type, has been confidently assigned to a date earlier than that of the first book hitherto known to have been printed in that city, 1473, 140Z. Another good piece of French work is Mayer's edition of Versor's ' Aristoteles,' the first book from Mayer's press, 1484, 120Z. The most valuable of the Spanish works is the ' Los trabajps de Hercules ' of Henriquez de Aragon, which is the third book that emanated from the press of Zamora, Centenera being the printer, 1483, 550Z.

[Notices of other Catalogues held over.]

to

EDITORIAL communications should be addressed to "The Editor of 'Notes and Queries'" Adver- tisements and Business Letters to " The Pub- lishers "at the Office, Bream's Buildings, Chancery Lane, E.C.

MR. J. LANDFEAR LUCAS. The lines "Tender- hearted (bender-handed) stroke a nettle," &c., are by Aaron Hill. The second stanza should run :

'Tis the same with common natures :

Use 'em kindly, they rebel ;

But be rough as nutmeg graters,

And the rog ues obey you well.