Notes on an Unique Copy

N OT ES O N A % (uniq u e Glow A A A T T ’ D R . I S C W S S 11 Eivine 50 95, LATELY % N T H E P O S S ES S I O N J A M E W A R D S , I M NOTT N G H A . N OTTI N G HAM P R INTE D F O R P R I V ATE C I RC ULATION “ ” AT R R THE THO OTON P ESS . Sllu strations. P r t ra it o f R v . I sa . fr m n ra v in o e a c Wa t t D . D o a n s , , e g g o r V e r t u 1 7 42 . P r in f r J a m B r a kst o n by G e ge e , t e d o e s c e ” t l in r n M % I a t he G o be Co hill DCC LI . ’ Pho t o gra ph o f fro n t co v e r o f t he co py o f Wa t t s s D n e o n s 1 7 15 r e se n t e d b t he a u t ho r t o Miss ivi S g , , p y n Eliza be t h Ab e y . ’ Fa cs imile o f t he t it le pa ge o f t he co py o f Wa t t s s ” n r e fe r r e d t o he r e in . Div in e So g s , ’ r Wa t t a u to r a h i n t he s a me bo k . Fa csimile o f D . s s g p o tr a ti n a r e the exa ct si ze o the o r i i n a l The a bo ve illu s o s f g s . Motes on a % (uniqu e Gl ow of a 1Rare JBook. S a book collect or it has been my custom t o call at the stalls of the second - hand booksellers in Nottingham Market Place every Wednesday and Saturday to see their books , and ascertain if they have purchased anything that - would suit me . On the particular market day on “ which I first saw Th e D I V I N E SO N G S of Isaac I . G Watts , said , as usual , to Mr eorge Bryan , Well , ? ” have you anything fresh this morning He answered , ” I a t Yes , have this , the same time pulling out of his pocket a small book wrapped in white tissue “ . I paper looked at it , and said Yes , it is very nice , how much do you want for it He answered Twenty - fi v e ” ” s . O . O I pound h , that is too much f course , did not know the book , nor understand its value , and therefore i . t I u . left called as sual again , and found that Mr Bryan “ still had the book . He remarked , It is a very rare I I book , and am sure it is worth a lot of money . left it - I that day , and on the following market day called again an . d found that Mr Bryan still possessed the book . At e I . T . the same tim happened to meet Mr Henry Wake , D - of Fritchley , near erby , a well known antiquary and 2 NOTES ON A UNIQ UE CO PY ’ u . s dealer in c rios He said , Have you seen the Watt ? ” O f Hymns n answering in the a firmative , he said it w a s was a very valuable book , and was also sure there not a copy in the British Museu m . I asked Mr . Wake if it was worth the sum Mr . Bryan asked . He said Yes , I am sure it is val u able . I then asked Mr . Wake why “ “ he . I did not buy it Well , he said , you know cannot I . I . a n d buy everything see then went to Mr Bryan , I said Look here , Bryan , will give you a cheque for u a n d twenty pounds , and ten po nds worth of books pictures o u t of my collection which I do not want . N d V . zu ery well , said Mr Bryan , and so , on ovember , 1 0 1 . e 9 , ended the transaction with him At the same tim h e Mr . Bryan informed me that he had purchased t u r vol me from a lady near Mansfield , with several othe - t fi v e . books , for wenty shillings I t he then wrote to the Librarian of British Museum , r l offering him t he book for fifty pounds . In e p y I was informed that the Trustees did not care to e n t e r t a I n t h e I offer . Some months later was arranging to dispose of a portion of my collection of Manuscripts at Messrs . o D V E Sothebys , in L ndon , and decided to send the I IN SON G S up for sale at the same time . In the meantime the news spread that I had found and secured a copy (which proved t o be unique) of this T th e rare lit tle book . his may be gathered from following extracts selected from various n ewspapers published throughout the country , many of the notices d being merely copies from other papers , probably obtaine through news - cutting agencies T here has recently been purchased in the Notting - t he ham Market place a copy of that extremely rare book , ’ D W 1 1 . The ivine Songs of Isaac atts , published in 7 5 ’ a n d first children s hymn book , afterwards enlarged r E o A RAR BOO% . 3 ‘ ’ t e - D named ivine and Moral Songs , ran through a f T hundred editions before the middle o the century . he particular volume secured by Mr . James Ward has a r . histo y of its own , which much enhances its value It was presented by Isaac Watts with his autograph and a special dedication (suggesting t hat the book in this e r spect is unique) to one of the Misses Abney , and is bound in full red morocco , with gilt edges and gilt D r . T tooling . Watts paid a visit to Sir homas and Lady n T 1 1 2 Ab ey at heobalds in 7 , which led to a proposal that d he shoul reside permanently in their house , and his remaining days were spent under their roof, either at T N heobalds or Stoke ewington , to which Lady Abney T removed after the deat h of Sir homas in 1 7 2 2 . This ‘ D ’ copy of ivine Songs , along with several other of ’ M Wa t t s s . works , have been sent up to essrs Sotheby and Co . A , London , to be sold during the spring copy of ’ ’ Wa tt s s 1 6 Hymns recently fetched 4 , and the British Museum is without a specimen of an earlier date than 6 1 7 1 . It will be int eresting to see what this rare book n i n will realise at auctio . It changed hands Nottingham at a figure only represen ti n g about a fifth of the price obtained for the last copy sold in London . Such is the % T e romance of old book buying . h N otti ngha m D a i ly i a n 1 h G u a r d 1 t 1 0 2 . , February , 9 I SAAC TT T O G AN D WA S , H MAS RAY , O V G O D T LI ER L SM I H . A few days ago in these columns there was recorded the find in the Nottingham Market - place of a ’ D ’ copy of Isaac Watts ivine Songs , uniquely attractive by reason of his autograph inscription and dedication . ’ In the dispersa l under notice there occurs the edi ti o ’ pr i nceps of the same author s Hymns a n d Spiritual 4 NOTES O N A UN I QUE COPY ’ 1 0 t Songs , 7 7 , whose several shaved headlines will milita e ’ against last season s price of 1 40 . At least two ot he r 1 8 items belonging to the th century call for mention . I n the spring of 1 897 Messrs . Pickering bought for abo u t T n two guineas a folio volume of racts , containing amo g ’ other items , An Elegy Wrote in a Country Churchyard , ’ t he without place , printer s name , or date , on sub%ect of which Mr . Edmund G osse contributed a long letter to t he - A then aeu m. Mr . G osse contends that w e have here an G extremely early piracy of the celebrated poem by ray , probably struck o ff within a few days of the publication o f - the first 4to . We understand , however , that when the tract was submitted to the notice of the late Colonel i G . U rant and of Mr F Jenk nson , the niversity librarian ff O . i at Cambridge , they formed a di erent pinion As s t o well known , Walpole handed round friends severa l ‘ ’ . i M S copies of the Elegy prior to publication , and t u may be , that in this folio we have the poem set p provisionally by him when the manuscripts ran short .

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