1775 Dr. Anthony Askew *, Dean Cowpert and Mr. Dowdeswell, Mr. Jekyll, Peter Templeman. 1776 Stanley and Bowman, Rev. Cæsar De Missy+, James I. and Charles I.; those of Towns and Corporations under the Commonwealth and Charles II.; and the Tin Farthings and Halfpence of Charles II. James II. and William and Mary, 1766." 4." Miscellaneous Views of the Coins struck by English Princes in France, Counterfeit Sterlings, Coins struck by the East India Company, those in the West India Colonies, and in the Isle of Man; also of Pattern Pieces for Gold and Silver Coins; and Gold Nobles struck abroad, in Imitation of English, 1769." 5. "A View of the Origin, Nature, and Use of Jettons, or Counters; especially of those known by the Name of Black Money, and Abbey Pieces; with a Sketch of the Manner of Reckoning with them, and its Affinity with that of the Roman Abacus, the Chinese Soan Pan, and the Russian Shtchota; 1769." 6. "Irish Coins in Silver and Copper, before and from the Conquest to the present Reign; being a Supplement (with great Additions) to Simon's Irish Coins." Mr. Snelling died May 2, 1773; and in the following year was published, 7. "A View of the Silver Coins and Coinage of Scotland, from Alexander the First to the Union of the Two Kingdoms. By the late Mr. Thomas Snelling. To which are added Four Plates of the Gold, Billon, and Copper Coins of the same Kingdom, 1774." All these Tracts were collected into a volume by Mr. Thane, who prefixed to them the title of " Snelling on the Coins of Great Britain, France, and Ireland;" and an excellent Portrait, a small oval, under which is, " Mr. Thomas Snelling, Author of the Views of the Coins and Coinage of England, &c. &c. &c. John Thane del. & sculp.” *See before, p. 496. + Of Exeter College, Oxford; M. A. 1734; B. and D. D. by diploma 1746; rector of Fordwich, Kent, and one of the Prebendaries of Canterbury, which he resigned in 1746, for the Deanry of Durham. He died in 1774, and was buried in that cathedral; with the following epitaph: "This marble is erected to the memory of the Honourable and Reverend youngest Son of William Earl Cowper, Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain in the Reign of Queen Anne and King George I. He was made Dean of this Cathedral in the year 1746; and, after a life spent in a steady uniform practice of unaffected Piety, Friendship, Humanity, and Charity, died at the Deanry, in the 62d year of his age, on the 25th day of March, 1774." Of whom see memoirs, p. 305. Dr. Dr. Campbell, Richard Blyke, esq. F. R. S. and F. S. A. John Ratcliffe *. * Having no knowledge whatever of this black-letter gentleman, I should have passed him over in silence, if Mr. Dibdin had not expected to find his name in my Index. That he may not be wholly disappointed in that respect, I shall borrow a few lines from his own ingenious work : "In 1776 died John Ratcliffe, esq. of Bermondsey, a bibliomaniac of a very peculiar character. If he had contented himself with his former occupation, and frequented the butter and cheese, instead of the book, market-if. he could have fancied himself in a brown peruke, and Russia apron, instead of an embroidered waistcoat, velvet breeches, and flowing periwig, he might, perhaps, have enjoyed greater longevity; but, infatuated by the Caxtons and Wynkyn de Wordes of the West and Fletewode collections, he fell into the snare; and the more he struggled to disentangle himself, the more certainly did he become a victim to the disease. The Catalogue was collected with great judgment and expense, during the last thirty years of his life: 'compre-hending a large and most choice collection of the rare old English black-letter, in fine preservation, and in elegant bindings. The sale took place on March 27, 1776; although the year is unaccountably omitted by that renowned auctioneer the late Mr. Christie, who disposed of them.-If ever there was a unique collection, this was one-the very essence of Old Divinity, Poetry, Romances, and Chronicles! The articles were only 1675 in number; but their intrinsic value amply compensated for their paucity. — Of some particulars of Mr. Ratcliffe's life, I had hoped to have found gleanings in Mr. Nichols's "Anecdotes of Bowyer;" but his name does not even appear in the Index; being probably reserved for the second forth-coming enlarged edition. Meanwhile, it may not be uninteresting to remark that, like Magliabechi, he imbibed his love of reading and collecting, from the accidental possession of scraps and leaves of books. The fact is, Mr. Ratcliffe first kept a chandler's shop in the Borough; and, as is the case with all retail traders, had great quantities of old books brought to him so be purchased at so much per pound! Hence arose his passion for collecting the black-letter, as well as Stilton cheeses; and hence, by unwearied assiduity, and attention to business, he amassed a sufficiency to retire, and live, for the remainder of his days, upon the luxury of old English Literature!" When this note was thus far printed, I was favoured with the following addition by an unknown correspondent: "Mr. Ratcliffe lived in East-lane, Bermondsey; was a very corpulent man, and his legs were remarkably thick, probably from an anasarcous complaint. The writer of this remembers him perfectly well; he was a very stately man, and, when he walked, literally went a snail's pace. He was a Dissenter; and 1777 Dr. Smith at Oxford, Mr. Ives. 1779 Edward Rowe - Mores *, Thomas - Mole Hodges, Thomas Ruddiman at Edinburgh. 1780 Rev. Philip Furneaux, D.D. Henry Justice. 1781 Hon. Topham Beauclerk. 1783 Drs. Wheeler, Merrick, Musgrave, Chapman, and Bevis, Sir Gregory Page. 1784 Francis Gulston, Sir Thomas Sewel, Dr. Wilson, John Upton, Yelverton library and MSS. Mr. Harte, Ralph Bigland, esq. Garter King at Arms, Dr. Johnson, Mr. Darker, Staunton and Ibbot, Duke of Argyle. every Sunday attended the meeting of Dr. Flaxman, in the Lower Road to Deptford. He generally wore a fine coat, either red or brown, with gold lace buttons, and a fine silk embroidered waistcoat, of scarlet, with gold lace, and a large and well-powdered wig. With his hat in one hand, and a gold-headed cane in the other, he marched royally along, and not unfrequently followed by a parcel of children, wondering who the stately man could be. A few years before his death, a fire happened in the neighbourhood where he lived; and it became necessary to remove part of his household furniture and books. He was incapable of assisting himself; but he stood in the street, lamenting and deploring the loss of his Caxtons, when a sailor who lived within a door or two of him attempted to console him: "Bless you, Sir, I have got them perfectly safe!" While Ratcliffe was expressing his thanks, the sailor produced two of his fine curled periwigs, which he had saved from the devouring element; and who had no idea that Ratcliffe could make such a fuss for a few books." Gent. Mag. vol. LXXXII. pp. 85. 114. * Of whom see memoirs, vol. V. p. 389. † At this sale I purchased his valuable MS History of Learning in the Sixteenth Century; which I still possess. Author of "An Essay on Toleration, with a particular View to the late Application of the Protestant Dissenting Ministers to Parliament, &c. 1773." See vol. V. pp. 53. 308. § After the sale of a few lots of the Yelverton MSS. the sale was stopped. They were so lotted it was impossible to have proceeded. To know where the remainder are now preserved would be useful information. They were all given by Lord Sussex to Lord Calthorpe, whose mother was of that family, and at his death had not been opened, nor perhaps since. Gough MS. John Darker, esq. an eminent Merchant in London, and Treasurer of St. Bartholomew's Hospital, F. R. S. and F. S. A. lord of the manor of Queneborow, in Leicestershire, and three times chosen one of the representatives in parliament for the borough 1795 Drs. Huck-Saunders and Petit, Professor Broc- *Of whom see before, p. 179. + See P. 151. Of whom see memoirs, vol. VI. p. 380. § Of whom see momoirs, vol. IV. p. 625. Dr. John Glen King was a native of Norfolk; admitted of Caius College, Cambridge; where he proceeded A. B. 1752, A. M. 1763; incorporated at Oxford March 19, 1771; B. and D. D. (of Christ Church) August 21, 1771. He was also F. R. S. and F. S. A.; and Chaplain to the English factory at St. Petersburg. In 1772, he published "The Rites and Ceremonies of the Greek Church in Russia, containing an account of its Doc trine, Worship, and Discipline," 4to. In 1778, "A Letter to the [late] Bishop of Durham, containing some Observations on the Climate of Russia, and the Northern Countries, with a View of the Flying Mountains at Zarsko Sello, near St. Petersburg," 4to. And in the VIIIth volume of "Archæologia," p. 307, "Observations on the Barberini Vase." He was engaged in medallic work, having been appointed medallist to the Empress of Russia. He was presented to the rectory of Wormley by Sir Abraham Hume, bart. in July 1783; and, on the death of the Rev. Wheatly Heald, in the summer of 1786, he purchased the chapelry of Spring Garden. He died in 1787, and was buried in the church-yard at Wormley, with the following epitaph : . "Here. 1777 Dr. Smith at Oxford, Mr. Ives. 1779 Edward Rowe - Mores *, Thomas - Mole Hodges, Thomas Ruddiman at Edinburgh. 1780 Rev. Philip Furneaux, D.D. Henry Justice. 1781 Hon. Topham Beauclerk. 1783 Drs. Wheeler, Merrick, Musgrave, Chapman, and Bevis, Sir Gregory Page. 1784 Francis Gulston, Sir Thomas Sewel, Dr. Wilson, John Upton, Yelverton library and MSS. § Mr. Harte, Ralph Bigland, esq. Garter King at Arms, Dr. Johnson, Mr. Darker, Staunton and Ibbot, Duke of Argyle. every Sunday attended the meeting of Dr. Flaxman, in the Lower Road to Deptford. He generally wore a fine coat, either red or brown, with gold lace buttons, and a fine silk embroidered waistcoat, of scarlet, with gold lace, and a large and well-powdered wig. With his hat in one hand, and a gold-headed cane in the other, he marched royally along, and not unfrequently followed by a parcel of children, wondering who the stately man could be. A few years before his death, a fire happened in the neighbourhood where he lived; and it became necessary to remove part of his household furniture and books. He was incapable of assisting himself; but he stood in the street, lamenting and deploring the loss of his Caxtons, when a sailor who lived within a door or two of him attempted to console him: "Bless you, Sir, I have got them perfectly safe!" While Ratcliffe was expressing his thanks, the sailor produced two of his fine curled periwigs, which he had saved from the devouring element; and who had no idea that Ratcliffe could make such a fuss for a few books." Gent. Mag. vol. LXXXII. pp. 85. 114. * Of whom see memoirs, vol. V. p. 389. † At this sale I purchased his valuable MS History of Learning in the Sixteenth Century; which I still possess. Author of " An Essay on Toleration, with a particular View to the late Application of the Protestant Dissenting Ministers to Parliament, &c. 1773." See vol. V. pp. 53. 308. § After the sale of a few lots of the Yelverton MSS. the sale was stopped. They were so lotted it was impossible to have proceeded. To know where the remainder are now preserved would be useful information. They were all given by Lord Sussex to Lord Calthorpe, whose mother was of that family, and at his death had not been opened, nor perhaps since. Gough MS. John Darker, esq. an eminent Merchant in London, and Treasurer of St. Bartholomew's Hospital, F. R. S. and F. S. A. lord of the manor of Queneborow, in Leicestershire, and three times chosen one of the representatives in parliament for the borough |