BULLETIN OF

The John Rylands University Library of Manchester

Edited by Dr. F. Taylor, F.S.A. Published with the aid of the Francis NeiLFon Fund

VOL. 60 SPRING 1978 No. 2

NOTES AND NEWS

D URINC 1977, following successfuI negotiations begun in 1975 between the University and the Methodist

Conference, the Collection of the Methodist Archives and Research Centre was transferred from Epworth METHODIST

ARCHIVES House, London, to the John Rylands University AND

Library of Manchester. A ceremony to mark the m! occasion took place on Monday, 5 December 1977 in the Rylands Memorial Building in Deansgate, when the President of the Methodist Conference (the Rev. Arthur Shaw) and the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Manchester (Professor Sir Arthur Armitage) signed the legal agreement concerning the transfer and deposit.

The collection forms a rich storehouse of Methodist material. comprising over 26,000 printed books, a very large number of pamphlets, a manuscript section which occupies over 600 feet of - -

shelving, and much association material. The following survey has been prepared by Mr. David Riley, the Assistant Librarian now in charge of it :

" It is no less than fitting that the nucleus of the Collection should be formed by an outstanding number of the books and manuscripts of John Wesley himself. He was a prolific letter writer and an assiduous diarist, and his published works total more than 400. The largest single collection of his autograph letters and his only surviving diaries are here, and much of this material either remains unpublished or is in editions which now

270 THE JOHN RYLANDS UNIVERSITY LIBRARY require revision. Wesley's printed works are represented by some 1,300 eighteenth century items, including the majority of the editions listed by Green in the standard bibliography.

In addition to Wesley's own letters, the Methodist Archives are almost equally rich in the holdings of the correspondence of other members of the family. Furthermore, nearly every important Methodist is represented by some letters : Jabez Bunting, the formidable Conference President, John Fletcher of Madeley, considered before his death as likely to succeed Wesley in guiding the Methodist movement, and John Pawson, Conference Pre- sident, characterised by Tyerman as an inveterate gossip of prime importance to the historian-these are examples of leading Methodists of whom there are substantial groups of letters in the Archives.

Following the example of Wesley, many of the most prominent Methodists kept diaries and journals recording not only their spiritual progress but the immense distances they travelled both by land and sea to do their work. The collection of more than eighty diaries in the Archives includes those of Hugh Bourne and William Clowes, the founders of Primitive Methodism, and of Billy Bray who, having survived a misspent youth, became one of the most forceful characters in Cornish Methodism, leading the Bible Christian movement. John Bennet's diary is of par- ticular significance as it records Wesley's first Conference. Some of these diaries, like those of Wesley himself, are in short- hand and cipher which has yet to be deciphered.

Primary source material for the history of Methodism is to be found in the manuscript journals of the various Conferences which now form the Methodist Church. These are available here, under certain restrictions, up to the year of union, 1932. The Wesleyan Conference Journals commence with an attested copy of the Deed of Declaration of 1784, and the Minutes of the first seven Conferences are, of course, signed by John Wesley as President and Thomas Coke as Secretary. Other valuable series include the District Synod Minutes, going back to 1800, of the various Methodist denominations, the Minutes of the various connexional committees, notably the Book Committee from its inception and the committees which produced the 1904 and 1933

NOTES AND NEWS 271 hymn books, and account books relating to Woodhouse Grove and Kingswood Schools and to the Children's Fund.

Approximately 500 volumes can be identified as coming from the library of Charles Wesley and his family. Over 130 volumes from the library of John Fletcher of Madeley include a collection of pamphlets bound together in twelve volumes ; of particular interest is Fletcher's own manuscript index to them, which may prove to be an important source for identifying the authors of anonymous items.

1st move- The pamphlet literature generated by the Method' ment is extensive and often of a controversial nature. Green's bibliography of eighteenth century publications attacking Wesley indicates the vitriolic character of much of this material. Over 600 of these items are to be found in the Archives. In addition there is a collection of some 6,000 pamphlets arranged primarily in chronological order from 1562 to 1933, the majority, however, being printed in the nineteenth century and concerned with such subjects as the Leeds Organ controversy, the Warrenite case, the mid-nineteenth century Reform Movement and the Kilhamites.

Wesley's Large Minutes (Green 164), printed in 1753, is the first of a series still published today as the Minutes and Yearbook of the Methodist Conference, and there is not only a complete set of these volumes here but the Conference Minutes of other Methodist denominations, both in England and abroad, are also well represented. Much Methodist periodical literature has been published and about 5,000 volumes are to be found in the Archives ; these include The Watchman (1 835-84) and the Methodist Times (1 885-1 937), among the most important Methodist newspapers of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The major newspaper today is, of course, the Methodist Recorder, first published in 1861. When the Methodist Magazine ceased publication in 1969, a series ended which had been issued continuously, under changing titles, since 1778 when Wesley founded the Arrninian Magazine. A complete set of this periodical is to be found in the Archives, together with runs of the major denominational publications such as the Primitive Methodist Magazine (1819-1932) and the Bible Christian Magazine (1832-1907). It would be unrealistic to expect a complete set of every Methodist periodical ever published

272 THE JOHN RYLANDS UNIVERSITY LIBRARY to be here ; nevertheless the majority are represented by at least a partial set and often these may prove to be rare. Sometimes lacunae can be filled from the Library's own collection ; for example, there is no copy in the Archives of the Wesleyan Times, but we already had a set, acquired some years ago from another source.

The Archives contain over 3,000 hymn books, the nucleus formed by the Percy Collection. This is not limited to Methodist items, for about half are from the Church of England, Unitarian, Baptist and Congregational Churches. John Wesley's Collection of Psalms and Hymns (Green 6) includes some of his earliest translations of German hymns and was first published in America by Lewis Timothy at Charlestown in 1737. It is probably one of the rarest items in the Collection, as only one other imperfect copy is recorded.

Over the years the Methodist Archives have been fortunate in acquiring a number of important collections from individuals. Limitation of space prevents mention of all such acquisitions, but three, the Colman, Lamplough and Lawson Collections, should be described to indicate the variety of such material. The collection which the Norwich business man J. J. Colman formed is not extensive, but it is of great value as it contains twenty as yet unpublished volumes of Wesley's diaries, accounts and sermon registers covering the period 1725 to 1741. Edmund S. Lamplough, an underwriter and sometime chairman of Lloyds, founded a collection which contains a large number of autograph letters of John Wesley and other members of the family and some rare editions of various Wesley publications, including Augustus M. Toplady's personal copy, with his own annotations, of the Notes upon the New Testament (Green 172), together with a colledion of medallions and small items associated with the family and with other prominent personalities. This collection was received by Conference in 1942. Naturally, printed books and manuscripts form the major portion of the Methodist Archives, but the Sidney Lawson Collection, as well as containing a number of eighteenth century works, including a first edition in fine con- dition of Wesley's Primitive physid, 1747 (Green 10 l), also has numerous portraits and busts of Wesley, together with walking sticks and love feast cups.

NOTES AND NEWS 273 Two distinctive features of the Methodist movement are

class tickets and circuit plans, the former generally being issued quarterly by class leaders to the members of the societies, the latter indicating which preachers were to preach in which chapels. There are many class tickets in the Archives and the large col- lection of both manuscript and printed circuit plans dates from 1786 to the present day, a primary source for the activities of local preachers. Information is otherwise often difficult to obtain as obituary notices for them, unlike Methodist ministers, do not normally appear in Conference Minutes or Methodist periodicals.

While the opening of a new chapel may be reported in a periodical or newspaper, it is also not unusual for centenary brochures and souvenirs to be issued recording the history of a particular chapel or Sunday school. Many of these also are in the Archives, together with most of the printed works which treat of theMethodist history of larger areas. However, it should be remembered that the policy of all Connexional Archivists has been as far as possible to retain local records in the locality, and therefore there is little manuscript material here concerned with the local history of Methodism. In general, only District records are available in the Archives, not Circuit minutes or chapel records.

Prior to the transfer of these Archives, this Library already had an important Nonconformist collection. In 1903 Mrs. Rylands acquired a fine library of over 850 volumes consisting of eighteenth century editions of John Wesley's works and of pamphlets attacking Wesley and his movement. In 1973, when Hartley Victoria College closed, the library there was transferred to this University, and this includes the Hobill Collection which is particularly rich in nineteenth century pamphlet literature. In recent years we have attracted other special collections, both manuscript and printed, relating to the Unitarians, the Moravians and the Quakers. With the deposit of the Methodist Archives the Library has undoubtedly become the outstanding institution in the North of England for the study of all aspects of Non- conformity. Now, with the financial assistance of the Methodist Conference, it is hoped that catalogues and handlists of the

274 THE JOHN RYLANDS UNIVERSITY LIBRARY Archives will be published and that the work begun at Epworth House over twenty years ago will be brought to a successful conclusion.**

During recent work on our collections Dr. M. A. Pegg, Librarian of the University of Birmingham, has A

brought to light a Luther edition of which hitherto ~ T & - J Y no copy appears to have been located. Dr. Pegg LUTHER has kindly provided the following description of this EDITION volume :

"A tract-volume recently studied in the John Rylands University Library contains as its last item an edition of Luther's Das Taufbiichlein aufs neue zugerichtet printed at Erfurt, probably in 1526, by Johann Loersfeld. This edition is no. 2321 in Dr. Josef Benzing's Lutherbibliographie and is qualified by the note ' kein Exemplar bekannt ', the only source of infor- mation given being Weller's Repertorium typographicurn, entry no. 3533. Dr. Martin von Hase's Bibliographic der Erfurter Drude, 1501-1550 notes the edition (no. 754) with the mention ' Kein Exemplar auffindbar '.

Since it is, therefore, possible that the Manchester copy of this edition is the only one in existence, it is of interest to describe it in detail and to note its textual variants against the editions cited in the Weimar edition of Luther's works (vol. 19, pp. 532-6).

This edition is in-octavo, of one gathering of 8 leaves signed a. The title is enclosed within an architectural woodcut border (von Hase, Loersfelt titlepage 12) and is printed in red and black. Two main typefaces have been used-a large display type (10 lines = 70 mm.) in part of the title, the heading of the intro- duction, for the liturgical text, and for the colophon. A small text-type (20 lines = 67 mm.) is used also in the title, for the text of the introduction, for the directions and brief commentary in the main text, and for catchwords. A slightly larger type has also been used in the heading of the introduction. An orna- mental woodcut initial W in a square (24 mm.) frame appears on the verso of the titlepage, and at the end of the introduction the printer has placed a border ornament (14 ~ 6 4 mm.) depicting two putti on hands and knees. The type-area is 67 X 1 12 mm.

NOTES AND NEWS 275 The text shows the following variations from edition B of the

Weimar edition of the work. Differences in punctuation have been ignored. All spelling variants, including contractions, have, however, been noted :

Variations from WA Pol. 19, p. 537, 1.51 vnfleis vnnd 6 leichtfertickeyt heylige

7 Sacrament Tauffe 8 eyne 9 vnnd 10 alleyne noth 1 1 Vnnd dariib 12 deutsch vnnd 13 glawben vii vnnd 14 vleis 16 vii 18 vii 19 vnnd 20 eyn 21 fley8lich bitten eyn 23 eyn wider 24 alleyne v6 iageu [sic] 26 au8 27 Cot 28 alleyn gewallt 29 Vnnd 30 vbel [p. 538, 1.11 vii f i r 3 eusserliche 5 yii vnnd vnnd 6 vnnd bestreichen 7 anziehen yii vnnd 10 m d eyn 1 1 sein 13 vnnd 14 vnns 15 ~ i i 16 vmb gepet 17 lancksam patE kinden 18 nott 19 f i r 20 es eyn ernst seyn 22 Derhalk wolbillich vii m i t runck~ 24 versihe 25 damit 26 Sacrament Cott 27 vberschwencklichen vii gruntlosen reychtiib seyner 28 new heist 29 vii 30 vii e r b ~ 31/32 vnadsprechliche 32 vnnd eyniger 33 vii eyngang heyligen [p. 539, 1. l ] Taufiiichlin 2 Mar. Luth. 4 vnreyner geyst 5 Creutz 6 Stirn Brust 7 zeichE heylig~ beyde d' vnnd 8 beten 9 almechtiger ewiger Cot vaters Hernn 10 disen d e i n ~ deyner 1 1 vnnd gnad widder 12 ihn vii ihr nemen 13 ihr Klopfet aufgethan 14 . d' anklopfset [sic] 15 dises himelisch~ erlige reich 16 Christu Am5 18 sintflut 19 gestrEgen dy vngleubige verdiipt gleubigen 20 barmhertzikeit erhaltE. Vii 21 seinE rotE erseuft : vii 22 diss badt deyner zukfifiig 23 vii dy l i ek kinds h e m Iesu 24 vii 25 abwaschung vii Wir b i t t ~ 26 grfitlose barmhertzikeit wollest 27 glawk geist beselig~ heilsame 28 ihm vii ihm v6 29 vii gethi Vii auss [p. 540, 1.11 t rock~ vii briistig 2 yn hoflniig auf allE 3 gleubig~ deier verheisstig l e k s erligen 4 Iesfi christii 5 vnreiner geist dez vii 6 heiligen ausfarest diesem 7 Iesu 8 Sanct 9 anriiren 10 iiiger bed raw et^ Iesus 11 ihn vii ihn ihn den 13 gottis nimpt wirdt 14 vii dy 15 vii 16 Pater l7 vnnser geheiliget deyn 18 Zukome dein hymel vii d' 19 Vii 20 verlassE schuldigern Vii versuchiige Sader 21 erlose v6 Afi. 23 Priester 24 behute eingiig vii ausgig ewigE zeitE 26 las 27 werck~ 28 Vii 29

276 THE JOHN RYLANDS UNIVERSITY LIBRARY dii almechtig~ vii [p. 541,l. l] Iesum Crist son 2 vii Gleubest du 3 d' 4 fleyschs eyn 6 nehme 819 heyligen 9 geystes 10 das l I vnnd 15 heyligen geyst : vnnd dyr 16 mitt seyner [end p. 541, 1.1 71

Summary of confenfs

[red] Das tauff- I biichlin ver I deudscht, auffs I new zugericht, durch I [black] Mar. Lu. I [red] Wittemberg [titleborder] 8 leaves, sig. ae.

alv [red] Martinus Luther al- I len Christlichen lesern gnad vnd 1 frid ynn Christo vnserm I Herrn. a 2V[border ornament]. a y [red] Das Tauffbiichlin auff S 1 new zu gericht. I [black] Mar. Luth. I . . . asr [line 7] [red] Gedruckt zu Erffurd I [black] durch [red] Iohan Loersfelt I [black] zum [red] halben Radt [black] yn der 1 [red] Meymer [black] gassen. asv blank.

The tract-volume itself is noteworthy. It is R9812 in the Rylands Accession Register and is an octavo volume with pages trimmed to 100 X 150 mm. The binding consists of contem- porary oak boards covered with brown leather. The sides are panelled, blind-stamped with a floral design, and the borders decorated with small stamps-a scroll bearing the legend " I.H.S. Maria ", and a Tudor rose. The remains of two brass clasps are riveted to the upper and lower boards, but the fastenings are missing. The volume has been rebacked fairly recently.

On the front fly-leaf are pasted extracts from a German sale catalogue, almost certainly that of the Offenbach Collection sale of 1840. It lists the contents--editions of works by Luther, Bugenhagen and Rhegius from the period 1525-28-under six numbers : 1023a, 1024b, 1036c, 1037d and 1038e.l No mention is made of the imperfect tract (item 3 below). On the end fly-. leaf is pasted an extract from an English bookseller's catalogue offering the book for sale at S10 10s. It has been established that this is from Sotheran's catalogue no. 629 of 18 April 1903, where the volume is described under item no. 653. The John Rylands Library purchased the volume on 30 September 1903 l Welleis record of the present edition of the Tuzrjbiichlein (Repertorim,

no. 3533) notes " Gllection OfFenbach 1840, nr. 1038 ". The copy under discussion is undoubtedly that referred to by Weller.

NOTES AND NEWS 277 for S9 9s. The book is generally in fair condition, although some leaves are missing (including an important title page from item 3) and others are tom and have been mounted. Several leaves, particularly at the beginning and end, are stained and there is some worming, not affecting the text. Brief descriptions of the first six items in the volume are given below :

Item 1 Der Erbarn I Stadt Brunswig Christ- I like ordeninge, to

dEnste I dem hilgen Euangelio, I Christliker 12ue, tucht, frgde vn- I de eynicheit. Ock dar vnder vZle I Christlike lere vor de barge I te. Dorch Ioannem Bu I genhagen Pomerii I bescreuen. I *: 1 1.5.28.

[titleborder] 140 leaves, sig. A-R'S4. Aiv blank. Aiir preface. Aivv text [woodcut initial V] Sivr

[line 261 Cedruck to Wittenberch dorch I Ioseph Kluck. Sivv blank.

Borchling-Claussen 940 ; Geisenhof (Bugenhagen) 238. On the titlepage the signature of Thomas Atchison.

Item 2 Der recht weg I zum ewigen leben. 1 7 Vi1 nctzer heilsamer

leer vii spAch vnsers h e r r ~ Iesu christi I aus den vier Euangelien vnd I Episteln des heyligen Sanct I Pauli, kirzlich begriffen, vnd I aussgezogen, zu vnd'weysung I dem gemeinE leyE, daii da wer I den angetzeyget gar nach alle 1 gebot vnd leer Ihesu Christi, I die allen Christ~ mensch~ not I zu wissen sind. I * 1525. *

[titleborder] 36 leaves, sig. A-CB D4E8. AIv Aus Mattheo. I Capitul. iij. I . . . E7r [line 151 fi Cedruckt

zu E r h r d durch I o ~ I - I nem Loersfelt, zu der Sonnen I bey Sanct Michel. Im. M. I D. vnnd. xxv. I Iar. I [leaf] E7V. E8 blank.

Item 3 I0 leaves, sig. a'ba. Wanting the titlepage. a 2 Des Pomern beden I cken von der Messe. [Initial D]

278 THE JOHN RYLANDS UNIVERSITY LIBRARY a3r Magister Philippus I Melanchton bedencken von der I Mesz . . . [Initial W] aTV [Initial V] Wanting leaf a8. Text ends bp.

[M. Blum : Leipzig, 1525.1 Geisenhof (Bugenhagen) 153.

Item 4 Eyn erklerung der I zw6lff artickel christlichs glaw I bens,

vnd der leufiigen pun- 1 cten alles Christlichenn lebens, I mit antzeyg, WO sie ynn der ge- I schrifft gegrundet, einem yedem I Christen menschen tzu rechtem I verstandt der schrifi dienstlich / Durch Doctor Vrbanum Re- I gium. 1 f i New comgirt vnd gemert. 1 1525 1 Marci am .9.1 7 Magstu glawben? wer glaubt dem I seind alle ding miglich.

[titleborder] 74 leaves, sig. A-18 K4. Paginated 2[A2r]-74[K2r]. Alv Vorrede. A 4 v Die Zw6lff Artickel vnsers I Christlichen

glaubens . . . E3r Eyn kurtze erklerung I etlicher leufiiger puncten einem I yglichen Christen nitz vnd not, I . . . Text ends D. K4 blank.

[N. Schmidt : Leipzig,] 1525. Pegg (Bibliotheca Lindesiana) 1 755.

Item 5 Der Prophet I Iona aus- I gelegt 1 durch I Mar. Luther. [titleborder] 52 leaves, sig. A-E8F4G8. A l v Vorrede auff den Pro- I pheten Iona. I . . . Der

prophet Iona. I [woodcut illustration] C ~ V [line 231 Cedruckt zu Erhrd t , durch Iohan- I nem Loersfelt odder Pariser, I Im Iare. 1526. C8 blank.

Benzing 2280 ; Hase 753 ; WA 19, p. 173.

Item 6 Eyne Vnder- I richtunge WO sick de I Christen in Mosen 1

schicken schollen, I geprediget l dorch l Mar. Luth. I Wittemberch 1.5.26.

NOTES AND NEWS [titleborder] 16 leaves, sig. A-B". alv Eyrie vnderrichtinge I WO sick de Christen in Mosen

schilcken schollen . . . Wanting leaves b6, b7. bBV [line 191 Cedruckt tho Wittemberch dorch I Hans weyss. M.D. xxvi I [leaf].

Benzing 2370 ; Borchling-Claussen 880 ; WA 16, p. XIII."

We are indebted to Dr. J. T. D. Hall, one of our Assistant Librarians, for the following account of an interesting copy of Baif's Euvres en rime (1572-3) among our Q,tyFy*- 6 6

F collections, noted in the printed catalogue simply as ~ ~ ~ ~ F ' ~ ~

Presentation copy in the original gilt red morocco JUME

binding " : - " In sixteenth-centurv France. when the worldlv success of

men of letters more often than not depended on the goodwill and generosity of patrons, the presentation copy was used by

- ~

writers as a means of thanking patrons for services rendered. Elaborately illuminated manuscripts of collections of poetry paid hommage to a patron in a memorable way: and even illuminated copies of printed books could be sufficiently distinguished in order to thank influential courtiers or members of the royal family in an individual fashiom2 However, it is important to remember that printed works were sometimes distributed at court as a means of eliciting patronage on behalf of the writer,'

Jean Vatel prepared a copy of his Premier panegyrique sur la vertu du Roy for presentation at court to Charles IX in 1571. Cf. Bibl. Nat., Collection des M6lange.s de Colbert 68. The manuscript of Vatel's Suite des mores poetiques (Chantilly M S . 532) was also a presentation copy, and was produced for the secrt!taire d'dtat Nicolas de Neufville.

a After the entry of Charles IX into Paris in 1571, several copies of the official account were specially bound for presentation, and six were illuminated by F'leurent Le Pelletier, two of which are extant, those given to Catherine de Mkdicis and to Charles IX. Cf. V. E. Craharn and W. M. Johnson, The Paris entries of Charles IX rmd Elisabeth of Austria. 1571. With an analysis of Simon Bouquet's ' Bref et sommaire recueil ' (Toronto. 1974). p. 14.

Jean de More1 had copies of %vole de Sainte-Marthe's Hyrnne sur l'aoant- mariage du Roy (Paris, 1570) bound for distribution at court, " pour presenter A tous ces Seiieurs et Dames, lii oh nous avons pens6 qu'ilz pourroient les mieux estre receus . . .". Cf. P. de Nolhac, R o m r d et l'humanisrne (Paris, 1921). pp. 173-4.

280 THE JOHN RYLANDS UNIVERSITY LIBRARY although presentation copies only bearing a presentation in- scription somewhere in the book, and frequently on the titlepage, probably represent thanks for a specific service rendered and do not reflect a more general act of solicitation.' It is thus of some interest to record a presentation copy of Baif's Euvres en rime published in 1572-3 in the John Rylands University Library of Manchester, of which the significance has not been fully appre- ciated hitherto.'

Several presentation copies made by Baif are known already. In 1578 he offered as a New Year's Day gift to Nicolas Moreau a copy of Cicero's De oficiis (Mainz, 1466) and the poet wrote a Latin poem to Moreau on the penultimate leaf of the book.8 He gave a vellum copy of his Etrenes de poezie frmcogze (Paris, 1574) to Cuillaume Lusson, and another possibly to the MarCchal d'E~trCes.~ The poet perhaps sought fame in a wider, European context when he sent a copy of his Euores en rime (Paris, 1572-3) to the Emperor Maximilian in 1573.' However, he probably distributed several copies at the time of the publication of his works: and the copy extant in the John Rylands University Library of Manchester offered to Christophe de Thou, pre- mier pre'sident of the Paris parlement, is further evidence of the close relationship between men of letters and influential members of the Valois court attested by some of Baif's presentation copies.

The Manchester copy of Baif's Euvres en rime is a handsome volume, containing the four constituent books of the works in

' Ronsard's presentation copy of his collection of poetry Elqies. mascarades et bergerie (Paris, 1565) inscribed " Pour Monsieur de Fictes " is extant in the Bibliothhque Nationale, R6s. Ye 503.

Rylands, Spencer 4186. Bibl. Nat., V6lins 1838. This presentation copy is described by R. Brun,

" Un ' ex-dono ' de Baif A Nicolas Moreau ". Le. t rhrs des bibliothqm de France, v (1935). 11 1-14. See also J. B. B. van Praet, Catalogue des liores imprim& sur oilin de la Bibl io thh du Roi, 6 vols. (Paris, 1822-28). vi. 5354.

"f. Van Praet, op. ut. iv. 200-1. Osterreichische Nationalbibliothek 35.5.36, with the inscription

MAXIMILIANO IMPERATORI. IANUS ANTONIVS BAIFIUS LAZARI F.D.D. See also M. Aug6-Chiquet, La oie, les id& et l'oeuure de Jean-Antoine de BZf (Paris, 1909)' p. 143.

One was given to Catherine de M6dicis. Cf. Catalogue des livres rares et prkieux composant la bibliotheque de feu M. ].-C. Brunet (Paris, 1 868), no. 3 12.

NOTES AND NEWS 28 1 one? Bound in red morocco, it is tooled in gold in the centre and corner-piece style which came to typify Parisian binding in the second half of the sixteenth century, and must therefore represent its state at the time of its presentation? The binding cannot have been executed by the volume's recipient Christophe de Thou, since the presentation inscription is written in ink on the fore-edge by Baif himself, and this reads : ILLVSTRISSIMO DOCTISSIMO ATQVE INTEGERRIMO VIRO CRISTOPH. TVLLIO. MVSARVM PATRON0 OPT. SENATVS PARISIE. PRIM0 PIVESIDI. IAN ANTONIVS BAIFIVS.D.D.S. The back has been tooled at a later date, when the title of the work was also added. In addition, the volume is distinguished by an early library press-mark, written in full on the front pastedown endpaper and in .an abbreviated form at the top of the upper c o ~ e r . ~

Reputedly a friend of Crolier, Christophe de Thou was certainly a book-collector in his own right, and the presentation volume described would be a welcome addition to his library.4 On his death in November 1582, his books were probably incor- porated into the much more celebrated library of his son, the historian Jacques-Auguste de Thou, who was a keen bibliophile and collector at the end of the sixteenth century and the beginning

l For a description of the contents of Baif's Eu~res en rime, see A. Tchemerzine, Bibliographic d'difions originales et rares d'auteurs franvis des XVe. XVIe. XVIIe et XVIIIe sikles, 10 vols. (Paris, 1927-34). i. 268-79 ; Catalogue des livres cornposant la b ib l i o the de feu M. le baron Jmnes de Rothschild, ed. E. Picot. 5 vols. (Paris, 1884-1 920). i. 480-1.

On this style of binding see especially E. Kyriss, " Pariser Einbiinde der 2. Halfte des 16. Jahrhunderts ". Archiu f ir Gexhichte des B u c h ~ , X (1969). 837-64. One volume of Baif's presentation copy to the Emperor Maximilian a1 has this type of binding, although the designs differ. A tool very similar to that used for the centre medallion of the Manchester volume is seen on a binding reproduced in the Catalogue de reliures du XVe au XIXe si&, en vente d la Librairie Gmuchian G Cie (Paris, 1930). no. 109. See also Kyriss, op. cit. col. 851-2.

It has not been possible to identify the press-mark. 4 On Christophe de Thou and Crolier, see A. J. V. Le Roux de Lincy,

Recherdes sur Jean Grolier. sur sa vie et sa bibliothique (Paris, 1866). pp. 1 1-1 2. Other important libraries of De Thou's contemporaries include those of Prdsident Lzet and Caston Olivier. Cf. L. Douet &Arcq, " Pris& de la bibliothhue du Prksident Lizet en 1554 ". Biblioth- de I'Ecole des Chartes. m v i i (1876). 358-80 ; F. Lehoux, Gaston Olivier, awnhier du roi Henri II, 1552: biblioth* parisienne et mobilier du 16e sikle (Paris, 1957).

282 THE JOHN RYLANDS UNIVERSITY LIBRARY of the seventeenth? Books from his library are easily recognized by their armorial bindings, which were modified during his lifetime to reflect his mamages, first to Mane de Barbanson and secondly to Casparde de La Chastre? The fact that the pre- sentation volume of Baif's Euvres en rime does not bear such identification is not surprising, since the original decoration of the binding did not allow for the De Thou arms to be superimposed in the Gay it obviously has been with other volumes

The later history of the De Thou library after the death of Jacques-Auguste de Thou in 161 7 has already been described in some detail by Hamsse. It was inherited by his third son, also Jacques-Auguste, but his extravagant life produced colossal debts which forced the eventual sale of the library after his death. The sale catalogue of the library compiled by Quesnel was published in 1679, and this mentions Baif's Euores en rime,4 as do the manu- script catalogues of the library prepared earlier in the seventeenth century.' Jean-Jacques Charron, Marquis de Menars acquired the manuscript part of the collection in 1680, and the bulk of the books were also purchased by him after some had been sold on the open market. He subsequently sold his library to the Cardinal

l The history of the De Thou library and its catalogues has been described by H. Harrisse, Le PrMdent de Thou et ses descendants (Paris, 1905). See also S. Kinser. "An unknown manuscript catalogue of the library of J. A. de Thou ", T k Boot Collector. xvii (1 968). 168-76.

a See especially Hamsse, op. cit. pp. 197-21 1. 'The copy of Justinian, Corpusjuris civilis (Nuremberg, 1530) in the Biblio-

thkque Nationale, Rkserve Smith Lesouef 69, has a binding compatible with the date of publication of the work, but also bears the arms of Jacques-Auguste de Thou and of his second wife Casparde de La Chastre, and must have been added after 1603, the year of his second mamage. I am grateful to M. Jean Toulet, Consexvateur in the Rksexve des Imprimb of the Bibliothkque Nationale, Paris, for this information.

Cf. Catalogus Bibliothecae Thuanae . . . Editus d Iosepho Quesnel, Parisino 6. Bibliothecario. cum indice alphabetico a u t h o m , 2 vols. (Parisiis. 1679), ii. 306.

A copy of Baif's Euures m rime is recorded in the first manuscript catalogue of the library which represents its state soon after the historian's death (Bibl. Nat.. ms. latin 10389. fol. 439, as well as the later catalogue prepared in the mid- seventeenth century (Bibl. Nat., Collection Dupuy 879,fol. M). Onemanuscript catalogue, Bibl. Nat., mss. latins 17920-1. is interesting in that it makes reference to some of the bindings of the De Thou library, and in this a second copy of Baif's Ewres m rime is recorded. Cf. ms. latin 17920, fol. W, with the note " Exemplar alterum. Vellin vert ".

NOTES AND NEWS 283 de Rohan-Soubise in 1706, retaining only a few books to form a new library? Thus at the beginning of the eighteenth century the De Thou library was virtually intact ; it was eventually given pride of place in the H6tel de Rohan and was kept in the ground floor apartments? The Rohan-Soubise library was sold in 1789,8 the time when the second Earl Spencer began to collect books seriously, although it is likely that he purchased the Baif volume at a later date and not at the Rohan-Soubise sale.4 The volume came to this Library when Mrs. Rylands purchased the Althorp Library from Lord Spencer in 1892.

The presentation volume of Baif's Euores en rime is interesting in itself, but would clearly be more interesting if evidence of a closer tie between Baif and Christophe de Thou existed. Sur- prisingly, De Thou is not directly mentioned in Baif's poems, nor did the poet contribute to the elaborate tombeau which was composed after his death in 1582.' A lawyer by profession, De Thou made his career in the Bureau de la oille and in the Paris parlement, and he reached the height of his profession, becoming premier pre'sident of the parlement in 1562.6 He was

l This was later sold in 1720. Cf. B i b l i o t h h Menarsiana, ou catalogue de la Biblioth- de feu Messire Jean Jacques Charron, chevalier Marquis de Menars . . . dont la vente publique se fera par Abraham de Hondt, le 10. juin & suio. 1720 (The Hague, 1720). ' Cf. A. Franklin, Lcr ancimes bibliotheques de Paris: Jglises, monastires,

coll&es, etc., 3 vols. (Paris, 1867-73). iii. 176-9. Cf. Catalogue des liores imprim& et manuscrits, de la Biblioth- de feu

Monseigneur le Prince de Soubise, Marechal de France. dont la vente sera indiquk par a$& au mois de Janoier 1789 (Paris. 1788). The Baif volume is item no. 4979.

Several of the De Thou bindings in the Rylands do not appear in the manu- script Class catalogue of the books at Althorp, 1792 (Rylands Eng. MS. 65). However, the low Spencer accession number is probably an indication that Lord Spencer bought the volume early in his career as a collector. Cf. S. de Ricci, English collectors of books and manuscripts (1530-1930) and t k i r marks of oumership (Cambridge, 1930). p. 77.

V. ampliss. Christophori Thuani fumulus (Paris, 1583). Cf. F. Hch&vre, Bibliographic des recueils collectifs de po&ies drr XVIe sikle (Paris. 1922). p. 253. Ronsard was reputedly invited to contribute a poem, along with many other poets of the day, but he refused. Cf. M h i r e s de Jacques-Auguste de Thou a'epuis 1553jmqu'en 1601. in Collection wmplPte des mhoires relatifs ci l'histoire de France, ed. C. B. Petitot, 52 vols. (Paris, 1819-26). xxxvii. 346-7. ' On De Thou's career, see R. Filhol, Le premier prksident Christofle a'e Thou

et la re'formation des couhrmes (Paris, 1937), pp. 3 5 7 .

284 THE JOHN RYLANDS UNIVERSITY LIBRARY also the author of many important works on the revision of the customary laws of the provinces.' As premier pre'sident he occupied a difficult position, as he had to maintain the balance between crown and parlement ; yet he was a popular figure who received a host of dedications in contemporary works and authors considered him to be an illustrious and influential figure of the establishment. Nicolas Houel gives a typical appreciation of the esteem in which De Thou was held by writers of the day in his dedication of the Trait6 de la peste :

Me resentant bien heureux d'avoir trouv6 seure retraicte en vostre faveur & courtoysie, si le recepvez benignem~t selon que ieespere : qui sera un gage de l'amour & service 4 ie dois & presente B vostre grandeur. Tiit pour l'espoir que i'ay en vostre honorable authorit6, qui pourra garder ce mien labeur de tout deshcneur, Et du mespris des enrieux, 4 pour l '~tier respect que vous avez tousiours eu, & encore avez aux lettres & lettrez?

De Thou's encouragement of writers undoubtedly stemmed from his own keen interest in literature. He studied poetry in his youth,s was an avid reader throughout his life,4 and was himself the author of some Latin verse.' Christophe de Thou was thus one of the many cultivated lawyers of his day in whom writers found both an admirer and

The real motive for Baif's interest in Christophe de Thou probably lies in the troubled history of the foundation of the poet's Acade'mie de Pobie et de Musique in 1570.' In November 1570 Charles IX granted letters patent to Baif and Thibault de

Filhol, op. cit. p. xi. "A Messire Christophe de Thou. Chevalier, Seigneur de &ly, Conseiller

du Roy en son priv6 conseil, et premier president en sa court de prlernent h Paris ", Traitd de Ia peste (Paris, 1573). fols. 4"-5'.

Cf. P. Masson. Christophori et Augustini Thuanom elogia (Paris, 1595). p. 4. Cf. E. Pasquier, Oeuores, 2 vols. (Amsterdam, 1723). ii. 187; J. Prevost,

Oraison funebre es obseques de feu messire Christojle de Thou (Paris, 1583). p. 20. Cf. C. Aubert, A Monseigneur, Messire Christophle de Thou . . . hymne

(n.p., n.d.), p. 10. Examples of De Thou's poems can be found as liminaries to F. Connan. Corrunentariorum iuris cioilis libri X (Paris, 1558). fols. **P-**3'. and A. Tiraqueau, De nobilitate et iure primogeniorum (Lyons, 1559). fol. *51.

On the foundation of Baif's academy, see Aug6-Chiquet, op. cit. pp. 431- 49 ; F. A. Yates. Tk French &es of t k sixteenth untuy (London, 1947). pp. 19-27 ; E. Frhrny, Origines de l'Ac&ie fmwise . L'Acadkmie des demiers Valois: A&e de P&e et de Musique, 1570-1576, Acadkmie du Palais, 15761585, dd'apr& des documents no11Veau.r et inkdifs (Paris, 1887), pp. 46-54.

NOTES AND NEWS 285 Courville in answer to their request to start such an academy: but their application to the Paris parlement for the verification and registration of the letters patent which contained the statutes of the proposed academy met with opposition. Baif pleaded with the parlement to send a deputation, consisting of the premier prksident, at this time Christophe de Thou, the procureur ginbal, one of the atlocats ghhaux and one of the senior conseillers, to attend one of their meetings, so that they could all ensure that the laws of the land were not being infringed in any way? On 4 December 1570 Guy du Faur reported to the parlement, recommending acceptance of the statutes,' and although Du Faur and De Thou accepted the statutes in principle at the public discussion which took place on 15 December the pressure of the opposition was such that the matter had to be referred to the University.' In January and February 1571 further dis- cussion took place without any conclusive results. Aware of this opposition, Charles IX renewed his letters patent, forbidding further obstruction to the institution of which he was protec t~r .~

Christophe de Thou had not been able to establish Baif's academy himself. However, he obviously supported it and in his position of influence with the crown he may have urged Charles IX to take a firm stand in issuing letters patent for a second time. Christophe de Thou's encouragement of Baif's project could surely not have been better acknowledged than by a fine presentation copy of the Euores en rime when they were published in 1573. The first academy lapsed after the death of Charles IX in 1 574, but was resurrected in the reign of Henri I I I by Guy du Faur as the Acadeinie du Palais. Little is now known of the membership of these early academies. Given Christophe de Thou's learned interests and his support of the foundation

l Reprinted by Fr&my, op. cit. pp. 48-50, and AugC-Chiquet, op. cit. pp. 436-9. a Cf. FrCmy, op. cit. pp. 51-52 ; Aug6-Chiquet, op. cit. pp. 440-1.

Cf. Aug6-Chiquet, op. cit. pp. 439-40 ; M. Fdibien. Histoire de la oille de Paris, 5 vols. (Paris, 1725). iv. 832.

Cf. FrCmy, op. cit. pp. 52-53. Cf. FrCrny, op. cit. pp. 5354; Aug6-Chiquet, op. cit. pp. 444-5. Baif

mentions his difficulties in a poem addressed to Charles IX. Cf. " Au Roy ", Euures en rime. 4 vols. in l (Paris, 1572-3). i. 134V-5V. The poet also refers to his problems in a letter to Charles IX, quoted by Yates, op. cit. pp. 323-4.

286 THE JOHN RYLANDS UNIVERSITY LIBRARY of the Acadeinie de Poe'sie et de Musique, it is likely that he was a member not only of this first academy but also of the later Acadkmie du Palais ".

As described more fully in an article published below, an edition of the correspondence of Mrs. Hester Lynch (Thrale) Piozzi by Professor Lillian D. Bloom and Professor THECORRES-

Edward A. Bloom is in preparation. This, which PONDENCE OF HESTER

will be in three volumes, will comprise a compre- LYNCH

hensive selection of the letters she wrote between 23 July 1784, when she married for the second time, and 2 May 182 1, the date of her death.

The editors have already had access to almost all the known collections, both institutional and private. Chief among these are letters in the holdings of this Library and of Mrs. Donald F. Hyde of Somerville, New Jersey. Other important Piozzi letters occur in the Berg Collection in New York Public Library, in the Library of the Victoria and Albert Museum, and in Princeton University Library. In an effort to achieve as representative an edition as possible, the editors are requesting information about any other letters the locations of which are not generally known, and they would be grateful for any assistance. This will, of course, be fully acknowledged. Will any one who is able to help kindly write directly to Professor Edward A. Bloom at Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island, U.S.A.

The following is a list of recent Library publica- RECENT tions, consisting of reprints of articles and a Hand- LIBRARY

List of Library manuscripts which appeared in the ;Y:kgCA-

latest BULLETIN (Autumn 1977) : " The Alexander Romance in the East and West *l. By

John Andrew Boyle, M.A., Ph.D., Professor of Persian Studies in the University of Manchester. 8v0, pp. 15. Price 65p.

" Luke the Historian ". By C. J. Hemer, M.A., Ph.D., Lecturer in New Testament Studies in the University of Manchester. 8v0, pp. 24. Price SOp.

" Sir Charles Maccarthy (1 768-1 824), Soldier and Adminis- trator ". By A. P. Kup, M.A., Ph.D., Professor of History,

NOTES AND NEWS 287 Simon Fraser University, British Columbia. 8v0, pp. 43. Price 51 .30.

" Richard Cromwell's House of Commons ". By G. B. Nourse, M.A., formerly Senior Lecturer in History in the University of Cape Town. 8v0, pp. 19. Price 70p.

" Mrs. Piozzi's ' Scotch Journey ', 1789 ". By Richard R. Reynolds, Associate Professor of English in the University of Connecticut. 8v0, pp. 21. Price 70p.

" The Life and Miracles of St. Edmund : A Recently Dis- covered Manuscript ". By William Rothwell, M.A., D.U. (Paris), Professor of French Language and Medieval French Literature in the University of Manchester. 8v0, pp. 46. Price f 1.30.

" When Did the French ' Philosophes ' Become A Party? " By Robert Shackleton, M.A., D.Litt., F.B.A., Bodley's Lib- rarian, Oxford University. 8v0, pp. 19. Price 70p.

" Reflections on Politics in Seventeenth-Century France ". By F. E. Sutcliffe, M.A., Ph.D., Professor of Classical French Literature in the University of Manchester. 8v0, pp. 13. Price 60p.

" Hand-List of Additions to the Collection of English Manuscripts in the John Rylands University Library of Man- chester, 1952-1 970 ". By Frank Taylor, M.A., Ph.D., F.S.A., Deputy Director and Principal Keeper in the John Rylands University Library, and Glenis A. Matheson, B.A., Dip. Arch. Admin., Keeper of Manuscripts in the John Rylands University Library. With an Index of Names and Places. 8v0, pp. 55. Price f2.50.

In the second half of 1977 the following made valuable gifts to the Library and to them we offer our grateful cIm thanks :

Individual Donors

Maurice Aitcheson, Esq., Dr. R. C. Alston, C. K. Anker, Esq., Miss Q. Baronian, Eric Boyle, Esq., Mrs. W. H. Brackenbury, Dr. William Brockbank, Professor G. L. Brook, Mrs. M. Brown, Professor F. F. Bruce, E. L. Burney, Esq.,

288 THE JOHN RYLANDS UNIVERSITY LIBRARY C. J. Canner, Esq., Professor W. H. Chaloner, P. Christoph Clare, Esq., Dr. Lilian C. Clark, Dr. A. E. Comyns, Professor C. B. Cox, His Grace the Duke of Devonshire, Professor J. Diamond, Dott. Lamberto Donati, I. C. T. Duncan, Esq., R. Y. Ebied, Esq., Mrs. Edit Ehrhardt, Dr. Emrys Evans, Professor Conor Fahy, Mrs. B. Frosch, V. C. Funduklian, Esq., Dr. R. P. F. Cregory, Professor T. Cwynfor Criffith, Mrs. Robert Henrey, A. Howard, Esq., Mrs. E. Hutchinson, P. L. Jackson, Esq., J. C. James, Esq., Miss N. K. Jones, Dr. T. H. J$rgensen, Vernon Kinley, Esq., Miss M. Lampton, John M. Lloyd, Esq., M. W. McCorison, Esq., Professor D. M. McDowell, P. T. McEnery, Esq., Professor L. R. MacCuinniss, Dr. T. D. Mosconas, Dr. David E. Owen, Professor Otto Paecht, Professor Ronald Peacock, Mrs. E. Picton, Lt.-Col. A. N. Prestige, R.A., A. Rankin, Esq., Professor J. W. Rees, Dr. E. A. E. Repond, D. W. Riley, Esq., Professor Brian Rodgers, Professor J. Save- Sodeborg, J. Scott-Hopkins, Esq., W. R. Sessions, Esq., Mrs. M. Sharp, Rev. B. Arthur Shaw, Professor E. L. C. Stones, the Hon. Charles Strutt, Miss R. Swindell, Professor Vincent Tollers, H. Tout, Esq., Professor J. Turner, Norman Turner, Esq., Professor Eugkne Vinaver, C. T. H. Vine, Esq., Michael Walcot, Esq., Professor Ross D. Waller, Rev. C. S. Whitby, Mrs. N. Whitelock, J. Whitworth, Esq., A. A. Wykes, Esq.

Institutional Donors

Berkshire County Record Office ; Cheshire County Record Office; Clwyd County Record Office; Danish Embassy, London ; Derbyshire County Record Office ; Durham County Record Office ; English Literary Society of Japan, Tokyo ; Hunslet Engine Co. Ltd., Leeds ; Lymm and District Local History Society ; Manchester Museum ; Manchester Society of Architects ; New Zealand High Commissioner in London ; Newport, Rhode Island, Naval War College Foundation ; Oxfordshire County Record Office ; Scolar Press Ltd. ; Scottish Record Office ; Somersetshire County Record Office ; Stockport Public Library ; Suffolk Local History Council.