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)Y  CHARLOTTE 
SCHREIBERS 
JOURNALS 


i    OF  A    COLLECTOR   OF    CERAMICS 

L   '       '  TED  BY  MONTAGUE   GUEST 


Presented  to  the 
LIBRARY  of  the 

UNIVERSITY  OF  TORONTO 

by 

Mrs.  Stella  Langdon 


12 //0~ 


LADY  CHARLOTTE   SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS 


:  :  LADY  CHARLOTTE  I  : 
SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS 

CONFIDENCES  OF  A  COLLECTOR  OF 
CERAMICS  ftp  ANTIQUES  THROUGHOUT 
BRITAIN  FRANCE  HOLLAND  BELGIUM 
SPAIN  PORTUGAL  TURKEY  AUSTRIA  ftp 
GERMANY  FROM  THE  YEAR  1869  TO  1885 
EDITED  BY  HER  SON  MONTAGUE].  GUEST 
WITH  ANNOTATIONS  BY  EGAN  MEW 
ILLUSTRATED  BY  UPWARDS  OF  ONE 
HUNDRED  PLATES  INCLUDING  EIGHT 
IN  COLOUR  ftp  ONE  IN  PHOTOGRAVURE 
:  IN  TWO  VOLUMES  :  VOLUME  I  : 


LONDON    :  JOHN   LANE,  THE  BODLEY  HEAD 
NEW  YORK  :  JOHN  LANE  COMPANY  :  MCMXI 


PRINTED  BY 

BALLANTYNE  &  COMPANY  LTD 

AT  THE  BALLANTYNE  PRESS 

TAVISTOCK  STREET  COVENT  GARDEN 

LONDON 


PREFATORY   NOTE 

THE  diaries  which  Lady  Charlotte  Schreiber  wrote  during 
her  long,  energetic,  useful,  and  happy  life  were  being  edited 
by  her  third  son,  Mr.  Montague  Guest,  when  he  died  sud- 
denly on  a  visit  to  the  late  King  at  Sandringham.  Before 
his  death  I  had  undertaken  to  assist  him  in  dealing  with 
those  journals,  which  tell,  with  many  charming  and  intimate 
touches,  of  the  traffics  and  discoveries  which  his  mother  made 
with  her  second  husband,  Mr.  Charles  Schreiber,  M.P.,  in 
the  course  of  frequent  foreign  tours  in  search  of  Early  English 
porcelains  and  earthenwares.  How  completely  successful 
these  endeavours  proved  to  be  is  shown  by  the  valuable 
Schreiber  Collection  in  the  Victoria  and  Albert  Museum  at 
South  Kensington;  but  it  is  only  after  reading  these  journals 
that  one  can  realise  the  amount  of  skill  and  knowledge,  of 
patience  in  the  face  of  difficulties  and  excellent  taste  which 
was  required  to  bring  together  the  2000  pieces  presented  to 
the  nation  in  1885,  and  the,  perhaps,  even  greater  number  of 
objects  of  art  which  Lady  Charlotte  also  bought  from  time  to 
time.  Over  and  above  the  South  Kensington  collection,  very 
many  of  her  antiques  may  now  be  found,  partly  at  Canford, 
her  own  home  and  that  of  her  eldest  son,  Lord  Wimborne, 
partly  in  Lady  Bessborough's  charming  collection  at  17 
Cavendish  Square,  or  in  the  hands  of  Lady  Charlotte's  other- 
very  many  descendants. 


PREFATORY  NOTE 

In  selecting  the  objects  for  illustration  here,  permission  has 
been  freely  given  to  draw  upon  these  sources  of  interest,  and 
it  is  hoped  that  many  early  ceramic  and  other  valuable 
examples  of  art  not  generally  known  will  thus  be  presented 
to  the  reader. 

Lady  Charlotte  wrote  her  notes,  without  thought  of  publi- 
cation, rapidly,  as  she  passed  from  one  field  of  research  to 
new  pastures.  Thus  in  preparing  her  diaries  for  the  public 
a  good  many  small  points  of  confusion  have  arisen  which  it 
would  have  been  an  easy  and  affectionate  pleasure  for  Mr. 
Guest  to  dispel.  Failing  his  guiding  hand,  I  am  greatly 
indebted  to  Lady  Charlotte's  daughters,  the  Countess  of 
Bessborough  and  Lady  Layard,  and  also  to  Mr.  John  Lane, 
for  their  assistance  in  the  elucidation  of  some  references 
which  the  passage  of  time  had  rendered  a  little  obscure. 

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I 


INTRODUCTION 

LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER 

Born  1812.         Died  1895. 
Nee  Lady  Charlotte  Elizabeth  Bertie. 

M.   ist,  Sir  John  Guest,  Bart.,  1833.     (D.  1852.) 
M.  2nd,  Charles  Schreiber,  Esq.,  1855.     (D.  1884.) 

THE  rage  for  collecting  old  china  has,  in  the  present  day, 
assumed  such  proportions  and  so  many  books  have  been 
written  on  the  subject  that  it  may  be  of  interest  to  the  collect- 
ing and  reading  public  to  hear  something  of  the  bearer  of  a 
name  which  is  frequently  mentioned  in  many  of  these  works, 
when  referring  to  the  Collection  of  Pottery,  Porcelain,  and 
Battersea  Enamels  which  is  exhibited  in  the  Victoria  and 
Albert  Museum  under  the  name  of  "  The  Schreiber  Collec- 
tion." 

Lady  Charlotte  Schreiber,  my  mother,  was,  in  her  way, 
a  remarkable  woman.  She  was  the  only  daughter  of  the  Qth 
Earl  of  Lindsey,  a  General  in  the  Guards,  who,  at  the  age  of 
65,  had  in  the  year  1809,  married,  en  secondes  noces,  Miss 
Charlotte  Layard,  daughter  of  the  Dean  of  Bristol.  When 
my  mother  was  born  her  father  was  68,  and  he  died  in  1818 
when  she  was  six  years  old.  Three  years  after  his  death  his 
widow  married  her  first  cousin,  the  Rev.  Peter  Pegus,  conse- 
quently my  mother  was  then  barely  nine. 


vn 


INTRODUCTION 

Her  mother  was  a  kind,  easy-going,  gentle  lady,  not 
troubling  herself  very  much  about  her  daughter's  education, 
her  stepfather  was  not  by  any  means  sympathetic  to  her,  and 
she  had  but  two  brothers,  both  younger  than  herself.  Under 
these  circumstances  she  led  rather  a  lonely  life  and  was 
thrown  very  much  on  her  own  resources.  The  first  thing  she 
did  was  to  set  to  work  to  educate  herself.  She  was  a  vora- 
cious reader;  she  learnt,  and  was  proficient  in,  French, 
German,  and  Italian,  and,  with  the  aid  of  her  brother's  tutor, 
she  studied  Greek,  Latin,  Hebrew,  and  Persian,  for  all  things 
Oriental  appealed  strongly  to  her.  She  learnt  to  etch  on  the 
copper  plate,  and  her  productions  were  far  above  those  of  the 
ordinary  amateur.  She  loved  her  Chaucer,  and  to  the  day 
of  her  death  she  could  repeat  from  memory  whole  pages  of 
her  favourite  author. 

In  1833,  when  she  was  21  years  of  age,  she  married  my 
father,  Sir  John  Guest.  He  was  then  49,  and  a  widower,  and 
was  the  owner  of  one  of  the  largest  ironworks  in  the  kingdom, 
at  Dowlais,  near  Merthyr  Tydfil,  in  S.  Wales.  She  had  not 
long  been  married  before  she  attacked,  and  proceeded  to 
make  herself  proficient  in,  the  Welsh  language.  The  result 
of  her  studies  was  the  translation  and  publication  of  the  cele- 
brated "  Mabinogion,"  or  Tales  of  King  Arthur's  Round 
Table,  upon  which  was  founded  "  The  Idylls  of  the  King," 
by  Lord  Tennyson.  Some  years  after,  Lord  Tennyson  told 
one  of  my  sisters  that  it  was  the  first  book  he  read  after  his 
marriage,  and  that  he  was  so  struck  with  it  that  it  inspired 
him  to  write  his  poem.  He  was  anxious  to  make  my  mother's 
acquaintance,  which  at  a  later  time  he  accomplished.  He 
asked  her,  amongst  other  things,  what  was  the  proper  pro- 
nunciation of  the  vowel  E  in  Enid.  Should  it  be  short  or 
long?  In  one  of  the  passages  of  his  book  he  had  written 
"  Geraint  wedded  Enid,"  which  would  be  all  right  with  the 

viii 


GENERAL    ALBEMARLE    BERTIE,    QTH    EARL   OF    LINDSEY,    WHO    MARRIED,     SECONDLY, 

IN    ISOQ,    CHARLOTTE,    THE    DAUGHTER   OF   THE  VERY   REV.    C.    P.    LAYARD,    DEAN   OF 

BRISTOL,     AND     BECAME     THE     FATHER     OF     THE     IOTH    AND     IITH     EARLS     AND     OF 

LADY   CHARLOTTE  BERTIE.       THIS  LADY  FIRST   MARRIED    SIR   JOHN    GUEST,    BY   WHOM 

SHE     HAD     TEN     CHILDREN,      AND    SECONDLY     CHARLES    SCHREIBER,     ESQ.,     M.P.,     OF 

MELTON,    SUFFOLK.       SHE    DIED    IN    1895 

The  Countess  of  BcssborougK s  Collection 


INTRODUCTION 

long  E,  but  was  impossible,  he  said,  with  the  short  one. 
When  he  was  told  that  it  should  be  short,  he  at  once  altered 
the  word  to  "  Geraint  married  Enid."  It  is  the  custom  for 
ladies,  in  the  present  day,  who  have  christened  their 
daughters  Enid,  to  pronounce  it  as  with  the  long  E,  but 
in  this  they  are  undoubtedly  wrong. 

She  took,  as  was  natural  with  her,  the  keenest  interest  in 
her  husband's  large  ironworks,  and  under  his  guidance  she 
soon  mastered  all  the  details  of  them.  She  plunged  into 
"  double  entry  "  and  kept  the  most  accurate  accounts  of  the 
works,  which  she  balanced  at  the  end  of  each  year. 

Merthyr  Tydfil  having  been  enfranchised  by  the  Reform 
Bill  in  1832,  my  father  sat  in  the  House  of  Commons  as  its 
first  member,  she  had,  therefore,  to  come  to  London  with 
him  each  year  for  the  Parliamentary  season,  where  she 
assembled  at  her  house  many  of  the  notable  people  of  the 
day.  It  was  at  one  of  her  parties,  in  her  then  house,  8  Spring 
Gardens,  which  has  lately  been  pulled  down  to  make  the 
proposed  entrance  to  "  The  Mall/5  that  I  met  the  great  Duke 
of  Wellington,  and  with  my  two  younger  brothers  led  him 
down  to  supper ;  the  details  of  that  interesting  occasion,  and 
what  he  said  to  me,  are  vividly  fixed  in  my  memory.  Through 
all  the  excitements  of  this  London  life,  however,  she  never 
slackened  in  her  attention  to  her  more  serious  interests, 
studies,  and  pursuits. 

When  she  was  ten  years  old  she  began  to  keep  a  Journal, 
from  which  I  give  a  few  extracts,  as  it  may  be  of  interest  to 
hear  her  speak  for  herself. 

It  opens  with  the  following  entries  : 

:c  The  2nd  March,  1822.  I  went  with  Miss  Pegus  [her 
stepaunt]  to  see  an  amusing  play,  in  which  Miss  Fisher 
acted  Miss  Pickles." 

ix 


INTRODUCTION 

"Antoinette  Mary  Pegus,  born  1822,  April  30."  This 
was  her  half-sister,  who  became  in  after  life  the  Marchioness 
of  Huntly,  and  who,  inspired  later  by  my  mother,  made  a 
very  valuable  and  representative  collection  of  china. 

"  I  went  to  the  Play  and  sought  a  cure  for  the  heart-ache. 
'  The  Merry  Mariner/  in  which  Mr.  Knight  acted  Frank 
Oatknd,  and  Joey  I  liked  very  much." 

In  1824,  at  the  age  of  twelve,  she  accompanied  her  mother 
and  stepfather  on  her  first  visit  to  Paris. 

"  Aug.  2ist.  We  took  places  at  the  Haymarket,  and  we 
went  to  see  '  Sweethearts  and  Wives/  and  '  Married  and 
Single/  but  we  did  not  stay  for  the  latter.  The  Play  was 
excellent,  Listen  acted  beautifully,  and  Madame  Vestris  was 
covered  with  diamonds. 

"  24th.     We  left  London  at  5.30.  and  slept  at  Rochester/' 

"25th.  We  got  to  Dover  at  4  in  the  evening.  As  we 
came  into  Dover  we  had  a  beautiful  view  of  the  Castle.  We 
could  not  get  across  to  Boulogne  that  evening,  as  the  Steam 
Packet  went  every  morning  at  9  o'clock.  We  dwelt  and 
slept  at  the  Ship  Inn." 

"  26th.  The  next  morning  I  amused  myself,  while  Mamma 
was  sleeping,  with  looking  at  the  sailors  who  were  throwing 
their  nets  into  the  sea.  We  got  into  the  ship  at  9.30.  We 
were  very  much  disappointed  that  the  '  Sovereign/  in  which 
we  were  to  go  to  Boulogne,  was  hired  by  Lord  Ashburnham 
to  Calais,  and  we  were  obliged  to  go  there  too.  I  liked  the 
motion  of  the  vessel  very  much  at  first,  but  when  we  got  half 
way  I  felt  very  sick.  We  had  a  very  good  passage,  and 
arrived  at  Calais  at  i.  o'clock.  We  then  went  to  the  Customs 
house  to  show  our  Passport,  and  were  very  much  crushed  in 
getting  in.  We  went  to  Dessin's  Hotel,  where  we  were  shown 

x 


111 


•«."> 


•m 

m 


~*V 


1 


i 


I! 


INTRODUCTION 

into  a  neat  room  elegantly  fitted  up.  I  went  all  about  the 
town  with  Mr.  Pegus.  It  was  very  gay,  being  the  Fete  of 
St.  Louis.  We  left  Calais  at  6.30  in  the  evening,  and  got  to 
Boulogne  at  12." 

"  Sunday,  28th.  We  went  on  to  Chantilly.  Here  we  saw 
a  great  many  vineyards,  and  I  was  surprised  to  see  that  the 
people  worked  as  on  other  days.  There  were  crosses  erected 
on  each  side  of  the  road,  upon  which  were  fixed  weather- 
cocks. We  went  on  to  Paris  in  the  evening  and  arrived  there 
at  seven  o'clock.  From  the  windows  of  the  Hotel  de 
Londres,  Place  Vendome,  we  saw  a  Balloon  ascend  from  the 
'  Tivoli '.  We  were  opposite  to  the  great  Pillar,  built  of 
the  Cannon  taken  at  the  battles  gained  by  Bonaparte." 

"Sep.  1 3th.  There  was  a  report  that  the  King  was 
dead.35 

"  1 6th.  The  King  died  at  four  o'clock  in  the  morning." 
[Louis  XVIIL] 

"  23rd.  We  got  tickets  to  see  the  King.  We  found  it  very 
difficult  to  get  in,  and  after  all  I  did  not  think  it  a  grand  sight. 
However,  I  could  say  that  I  had  seen  the  coffin.  The  King 
went  to  St.  Denis.  The  procession  began  at  10.  o'clock,  and 
did  not  end  until  near  one.  The  car  in  which  the  coffin  went 
was  very  splendid,  but  the  rest  of  the  carriages  were  very 
shabby." 

"  27th.  We  went  to  Notre  Dame  to  see  the  King  enter. 
We  got  very  good  places,  and  saw  the  whole  perfectly. 
Mamma  and  Mr.  Pegus  were  in  the  gallery,  and  I  was  below 
with  Mr.  Maher.  We  saw  Marshal  Blancasse  and  Prince 
Talleyrand,  who  looked  very  old,  and,  notwithstanding  his 
lameness,  went  to  meet  the  King.  All  the  Court  were  there, 
and  when  the  King  arrived  the  great  bell  of  Notre  Dame 
sounded,  and  the  organ  and  music  played,  the  cannons  fired, 
and  the  people  cried  '  Vive  le  Roi ' — '  Vive  les  Bourbons.' 

xi 


INTRODUCTION 

The  procession  passed  close  to  us,  and  on  the  King's  return 
he  stopped  to  speak  to  the  Archbishop.  The  King  was  very 
handsome  but  looked  very  old.  M.  A.  de  Castre  attended  in 
quality  of  first  page  to  the  King." 

"29th.  I  went  to  the  French  Opera,  and  saw  'Aladdin 
with  the  Wonderful  Lamp'.  I  was  not  pleased  with  it  as 
the  story  was  quite  different  to  that  in  the  '  Arabian  Nights.' 
The  effect,  however,  was  very  grand,  and  the  dancing  beau- 
tiful." 

"  30th.  I  went  to  the  Revue  in  the  Champ  de  Mars :  I 
saw  a  procession  of  the  Royal  Family,  but  though  the  King 
was  there,  I  did  not  see  him.  The  little  Due  de  Bordeaux  (only 
four  years  old)  was  dressed  as  an  officer  in  the  Swiss 
Guards." 

"  Oct.  2nd.  I  went  to  dine  with  Miss  Ellis  and  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Morrier  at  the  '  Pere  de  Famille '.  In  the  evening 
after  dinner  all  the  gentlemen  disappeared,  and  they  told  me 
that  the  house  was  on  fire.  It  turned  out,  however,  that  it 
was  only  a  chimney ;  but  some  of  the  room  was  burnt,  and  the 
Sapeurs  Pompiers  were  called  in." 

"  Sunday,  3rd.  Mamma,  I,  and  Mr.  Empson  tried  to  get 
into  the  Chapel  of  the  Tuileries,  but  were  not  admitted  on 
account  of  our  wearing  '  Collerettes  blanches ',  which  was  not 
the  proper  mourning."  [King's  Lying  in  State.] 

"9th.  Mr.  Empson  called  and  told  me  that  Madame 
Pasta  sang  in  '  Romeo ',  but  that  as  I  was  going  to  Mrs. 
Maher's  box  in  the  third  tier,  I  should  not  see  anything.  I 
was  therefore  agreeably  surprised  at  seeing  the  whole  beauti- 
fully, and  certainly  the  last  scene  is  lovely." 

"  1 8th.     We  settled  to  go  to  England  the  next  day." 

"  1 9th.  We  set  off  at  eight  o'clock,  and  as  we  passed 
through  Rue  St.  Denis  went  to  see  the  dead  King.  Got  to 
Beauvais  at  1 1  o'clock." 

xii 


Birch,  Finxt. 

LADY   CHARLOTTE   BERTIE   AT   THE   AGE   OF   2   YEARS   2    MONTHS 

IX  1833  SHE    MARRIED   SIR  J.    JOHN    GUEST,  BART.,  M.P.,  AND  BECOMING  A  WIDOW 
IX  1852  SHE  MARRIED  IN  1855  CHARLES  SCHREIBER,   ESQ.,  M.P.,  WHO  ASSISTED  HER 
IN    THE   FORMATION    OF   HER   ENORMOUS   COLLECTION    OF   ANTIQUES 
The  Countess  of  Bessborough' s  Collection 


INTRODUCTION 

"  20th.  Started  at  7,  and  got  to  Montreuil  at  10.  Here  we 
had  a  quarrel  with  the  postillion,  who  was  very  impertinent." 

"  2 1  st.  Started  at  seven  and  got  to  Calais  all  right.  Had 
another  squabble  with  the  postboy :  and  (22nd)  went  in  the 
'  Spitfire  '  to  England.  I  was  very  sick  all  the  way — had  a 
passage  of  three  hours.  Went  on  to  Sittingbourne  after 
luncheon,  where  we  slept." 

"  23rd.  Left  Sittingbourne  at  half  past  eight,  and  reached 
London  .  .  .  ' 

There  is  a  great  deal  more  of  this  visit  to  Paris,  but  this 
ill  be  sufficient  to  show  what  kind  of  a  child  she  was  at 
reive  years  old. 

Her  description  of  the  rival  "  Operatic  Stars,"  Sontag 
id  Pasta,  written  in  1828,  when  she  was  16,  is  worthy  of 
'production. 

1  June  1 4th.  We  took  a  box  for  the  Opera  to-night— 
)ined  at  5  o'clock  at  Mrs.  Mathews'.  We  were  in  time  at 
the  Opera  to  hear  the  overture,  Don  Giovanni.  Sontag — 
Donna  Anna — Caradori — Allan — Zerlina — Zuchelli — Don 
Giovanni,  etc.  Sontag  did  not  disappoint  me — I  anticipated 
the  extent  of  her  merits — she  is  a  fine  looking  woman,  with 
beautiful  teeth,  feet,  arms  and  hands,  her  hair  long  and  good, 
only  that  it  is  light  German.  Her  voice  is  clear  and  good, 
she  has  much  power  over  it,  and  her  execution  is  wonderful, 
but  she  sings  without  expression  and  acts  without  animation. 
As  for  Caradori,  she  is  very  pretty,  exceedingly  elegant,  her 
voice  is  very  sweet  though  not  very  powerful — Zuchelli  was 
good.  I  never  knew  an  Opera  so  stupid — the  acting  was 
sans  interet" 

"  June  1 7th.  Mamma,  Jane,  Mr.  Pegus,  and  I  went  to  the 
Opera,  and  were  in  time  to  hear  the  overture  and  all.  Pasta 
was  delightful  in  the  '  Medea.5  I  had  never  had  a  greater 

xiii 


INTRODUCTION 

treat  in  my  life— she  looked  beauty's  self— her  grace  was 
inimitable — her  voice  wonderfully  improved — the  scene  with 
her  children  is  the  most  wonderful,  the  most  overpowering 
thing  I  ever  saw,  Mamma  says  she  even  surpasses  Mrs. 
Siddons.  She  was  called  for  after  the  performance  and 
made  her  obeisance  to  the  audience  followed  by  the  children 
with  the  utmost  grace  and  simplicity — I  never  saw  her  act  or 
look  so  well — she  is  too  charming,  but  it  is  useless  to 
expatiate,  I  only  confuse  my  own  ideas  by  striving  to  write  of 
them,  and  to-night's  impression  must  ever  remain,  without 
requiring  the  aid  of  my  journal  even  to  revive  it — we  had 
Curioni  as  Giasone,  and  dear  little  Caradori  in  high  voice  and 
beauty  as  Creusa.  Some  of  the  airs  she  sang  beautifully- 
such  as  Medea's  duet  with  Egas;  but  of  course  the 
scene  with  the  children  was  the  great  masterpiece,  the 
splendid  effort  of  genius  and  deep  study  combined,  which 
none  could  have  effected  save  Pasta.  Her  name  must  be 
immortal.  She  has  founded  a  new  era  on  the  Italian  Stage 
and  no  Sontag  can  ever  think  to  compete  with,  much  less  to 
eclipse  her.  The  house  was  full  to  excess,  and  the  applause 
was  unbounded,  and  most  satisfactory  to  '  La  Grande 
Tragedienne '." 

In  August  1828,  Lady  Charlotte  was  staying  with  her 
mother  at  Bulwick,  in  Northamptonshire,  the  seat  of  their 
neighbours,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Tryon,  and  there  were  there  to  meet 
them  Sir  Samuel  and  the  Misses  Fludyer.  In  the  account  of 
this  visit  she  gives  a  little  description  of  her  going  over  to  see 
Kirby  Hall,  and  finishes  with  a  dissertation  on  the  subject  of 
keeping  journals,  which  may  be  read  with  interest. 

"  Wednesday,  Aug.  2;th.  Mamma,  and  the  eldest  Miss 
Fludyer,  and  I  went  in  a  carriage  to  see  Kirby,  and  Sir 
Samuel  followed  us  in  a  gig.  The  Agent's  wife  and  daughter 

xiv 


INTRODUCTION 

showed  us  over  the  house  in  which  they  reside,  and  which  is 
a  most  beautiful  and  venerable  place.  The  most  remote  date 
is  somewhere  towards  the  middle  of  the  sixteenth  century  and 
the  latest  is  in  the  seventeenth.  (The  Court  is  the  most  striking 
point  of  view,  the  entrance  porch,  which  you  enter  from  the 
fine  lime  avenue,  is  very  picturesque,  covered  as  it  is  with 
mantling  ivy.  That  part  of  the  interior  of  the  house  which 
I  most  admired  is  the  long  gallery.  The  Hall  does  not 
appear  to  me  large  enough  in  proportion  to  the  size  of  the 
other  apartments.  We  saw  the  uninhabited  rooms,  of  which 
some  of  the  ceilings  are  very  finely  carved.  But  however 
gratified  we  were  by  the  sight  of  this  magnificent  mansion  we 
could  not  but  grieve  at  the  state  of  dilapidation  in  which  we 
found  it.  It  would  take  thousands  to  put  it  in  any  repair, 
and  I  fear  there  is  no  chance  of  the  present  possessor,  Lord 
Winchilsea,  having  it  in  his  power  to  do  so.  When  we 
returned  to  Bulwick,  Mamma  retired,  and  lay  down  till 
dinner.  I  employed  myself  most  enchantingly  the  while, 
indeed  I  never  remember  spending  a  more  pleasant  hour. 
The  room  I  occupied  opened  upon  the  leads  which  form  a 
roof  to  the  long  colonnade  by  which  the  house  is  approached. 
The  serenity  of  the  evening  tempted  me  to  render  this  place 
my  promenade,  and  I  sallied  forth  with  DTsraeli's  Literary 
Characters  (a  book  which  interests  me  very  much)  in  my  hand. 
In  consequence  of  Lord  Cardigan's  arrival,  the  bells  were 
ringing  at  Dean  Church,  of  which,  and  in  a  contrary  direction, 
of  Blatherwyke,  there  are  beautiful  views  from  this  spot. 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Tryon  who  were  walking  with  their  party  came 
under  the  colonnade  and  threw  me  up  peaches  and  nectarines 
which  were  gratefully  received,  as  the  heat,  especially  in  my 
exalted  position,  was  very  great.  Thus  was  I  at  once  bask- 
ing in  an  intense  sun,  regaling  myself  with  luxurious  fruit, 
reading  my  favourite  DTsraeli,  or  immersing  myself  in  a 
i  xv  b 


INTRODUCTION 

thousand  wayward  fancies  and  meditations  (for  I  was  away 
from  the  noisy  din  and  bustle  of  life  and  merriment,  in  soli- 
tude, which  I  love)  listening  to  distant  melancholy  bells, 
gazing  on  a  beautiful  prospect  over  which  the  evening  cast 
a  thousand  lights  and  which  comprehended  the  lovely  view 
of  Dean  and  Blatherwyke.  I  met  with,  to-day,  in  reading 
DJ Israeli's  interesting  work,  a  passage  in  favour  of  Journals, 
that  is,  of  the  Journals  of  persons  of  genius.  Now  in  the 
light  it  is  there  represented,  namely,  as  a  future  clue  to  past 
events,  a  Journal  must  be  equally  interesting  in  after  times 
to  its  author  whether  that  person  be  one  of  decided  genius  or 
of  none  whatever.  In  my  short  experience,  where  as  yet 
there  is  little  to  remember  and  little  to  forget,  and  that  little 
of  consequence  only  to  myself,  I  have  already  frequently 
found  pleasure  in  being  able  to  refer  to  remoter  periods. 
DJ Israeli  seems  more  to  advocate  a  Journal  of  sentiment 's, 
than  of  events  merely,  in  which  respect,  considering  the  class 
of  person  to  whose  journal-keeping  he  alludes,  he  is  certainly 
right.  He  would  wish  to  keep  the  remembrance  of  the 
thoughts  and  feelings,  as  well  as  the  changes  of  fortune  and 
occupations,  of  great  men.  With  ordinary  individuals  it  is 
different;  their  Journals  can  concern  only  themselves  and 
perhaps  their  very  intimate  friends  and  immediate  relations, 
and  it  is  therefore  of  little  consequence  whether  they  keep 
to  any  fixed  plan  on  this  subject,  or  whether  they  allow  them- 
selves to  be  guided  by  chance  or  circumstances.  The  history 
of  my  Journal  is  simply  this  :  from  a  little  child  I  have  always 
been  anxious  to  retain  the  recollection  of  events,  and  have 
had  a  singular  predilection  for  being  able  to  tell  what  I  was 
doing  on  such  a  day  a  year,  or  two  years  ago,  and  this  first 
put  it  into  my  head  to  make  some  memoranda  of  the  prin- 
cipal things  that  struck  my  mind,  and  I  have  now  in  my 
possession  some  pocket  books,  the  leaves  of  which  are 

xvi 


INTRODUCTION 

meagrely  interspersed  with  records  of  the  most  remarkable 
events  which  occurred  in  my  then  schoolroom  life.  Among 
such  events,  the  plays  I  went  to  ranked  foremost,  and  hence 
(the  limits  of  my  pocket  books  not  being  sufficiently  exten- 
sive) I  contracted  the  habit  of  preserving  the  bills  and  writing 
my  criticism  at  the  back  of  them.  To  this  collection  I  even 
now  recur  with  pleasure."  [It  is  now  in  Lord  Wimborne's 
possession  at  Canford,  some  of  the  most  interesting  of  the 
notes  were  made  when  Lady  Charlotte  was  seven  years  of 
age.]  "  It  shows  the  amazing  difference  which  I  feel  in 
myself,  from  what  I  was  then  to  what  I  am  now,  and  to 
the  present  moment  I  sometimes  add  to  the  old  stock. 
It  was  often  a  cause  of  regret  that  I  should  have  lost 
some  of  the  most  interesting  bills,  those  which  occurred 
while  my  theatrical  mania  was  at  the  crisis.  In  1826,  though 
my  pocket  book  was  one  of  larger  dimensions  than  I  had 
hitherto  encountered,  it  was  too  confined  for  the  momentous 
affairs  of  that  delightful  year,  and  I  adopted  the  system  of 
loose  sheets  of  paper,  and  finding  this  mode  inconvenient  and 
disagreeable,  in  the  beginning  of  the  succeeding  year,  1827, 
I  had  recourse  to  a  regular  book  which  I  became  soon  con- 
vinced was  the  only  method  of  proceeding.  At  first  I  did 
not  care,  so  that  the  records  were  made,  whether  it  was 
noted  immediately  or  at  a  considerable  distance  of  time,  but 
in  a  short  time  I  found  this  irregular  mode  perplexing,  and 
now  I  very,  very  seldom  miss  a  day.  Any  one  reading  this 
journal  would  not  find  that  it  contained  one  interesting  annal, 
but  to  myself  it  is  far  otherwise ;  it  is  my  delight.  I  ponder 
over  its  page  till  by  its, 

c  and  contemplation's  help  not  sought  in  vain, 
I  seem  to  have  lived  my  childhood  o'er  again.' 

Every  line  recalls  something  to  my  memory  which  is  very 

xvii 


INTRODUCTION 

tenacious  with  respect  to  those  little  nothings  which  constitute 
a  much  more  essential  part  of  remarkable  circumstances  than 
is  generally  imagined.  Often  a  word  here,  or  an  expression, 
conveys  to  my  mind  a  thousand  ideas  with  which  it  is  con- 
nected but  which  none  but  myself  could  possibly  understand. 
Events  I  never  suppress  here,  but  with  respect  to  feelings,  I 
am  more  particular.  These,  which  upon  many  subjects  have 
never  passed  my  lips,  I  feel  some  restraint  in  committing  even 
to  the  keeping  of  my  journal.  I  may  perhaps,  in  time,  be- 
come more  open  with  it.  I  can  account  for  my  reserve  in 
three  ways :  ist, — I  have  been  brought  up  alone,  and 
never  have  associated  with  children  or  young  persons  of  my 
own  age,  nor  had  I  any  one  to  share  my  early  joys  and  griefs, 
and  when  anything  annoys  or  delights  me  I  am  accustomed 
to  brood  over  it  in  the  inmost  recesses  of  my  own  bosom. 
Though  I  know  many  whom  I  love  and  esteem,  I  have  never 
found  a  kindred  soul  to  whom  the  whole  of  my  heart  may 
be  opened,  being  but  a  reflection  of  its  own;  2nd, — On  the 
impulse  of  the  moment  I  often  feel  inclined  to  write  volumes 
on  the  state  of  my  mind,  and  am  diffident  of  doing  so,  lest, 
in  a  cooler  moment,  I  might  regret  having  expressed  myself 
so  freely,  or  having  written  down  a  hasty  or  erroneous  opinion 
which  a  few  moments'  mature  reflection  has  completely 
changed ;  3rd, — There  are  many  things  which  I  consider  it 
dangerous  to  commit  to  paper  though  kept  under  lock  and 
key.  There  is  always  the  chance  of  the  future  disclosing 
more  than  necessary,  and  of  erroneous  notions  being  con- 
veyed by  the  careless  and  often  ambiguous  manner  in  which 
one  who  keeps  a  journal  of  thoughts  and  sentiments  must  be 
often  liable  to  express  himself.  However,  as  I  have  little  to 
conceal,  I  must  endeavour  here  to  break  through  my  reserve, 
which  I  believe  to  be  but  a  mere  habit.  One  thing  more  I 
must  observe  ere  quitting  a  subject  which  has  detained  me  so 

xviii 


INTRODUCTION 

much  longer  than  I  am  wont.  Many  circumstances  in  the 
transactions  of  the  day  I  note  down,  which  in  themselves  are 
insignificant  and  might  seem  to  tend  to  nothing,  but  they  are 
for  the  most  part  able  to  awaken  in  my  breast  a  host  of  recol- 
lections. I  usually  record  the  books  I  read,  with  some  slight 
remarks  upon  them  to  guide  my  memory  back,  and  by  this 
means  I  am  able  to  mark  what  advances  I  make  in  that  great 
object  which  divides  my  thoughts  and  attention  with  another, 
which,  though  perhaps  of  even  paramount  interest,  is  not  nearly 
so  satisfactory  to  contemplate.  Difficult  as  I  shall  find  it,  with 
the  most  unremitting  attention  and  the  utmost  efforts,  ever  to 
attain  a  degree  of  perfection  in  any  of  my  pursuits  worthy  the 
trouble  of  the  acquisition,  I  shall  find  it  far,  far  more  so  to 
accomplish  my  other  grand  project,  and  shall  most  likely 
have  to  abandon  it,  in  consequence  of  the  many  obstacles  and 
immense  opposition  it  meets  with,  and  is  still  certain  to  meet 
with,  only  increased  in  virulence,  long  ere  the  time  of  its  com- 
pletion/' 

[This  passage  is  thought  to  refer  to  a  youthful  romance 
such  as  may  beset  the  wisest  of  ladies  at  the  age  of  16.] 
*  *  #  *  * 

The  following  extract  is  of  the  year  1833,  written  in 
London,  when  she  was  21,  and  giving  an  account  of  her 
making  the  acquaintance  of  the  late  Lord  Beaconsfield  : 

"  May  xoth.  We  called  on  and  saw  old  Lady  Cork;  she 
was  sitting  in  her  beautiful  long  room  with  a  picture  of  her 
mother,  a  fine  miniature,  set  in  the  old  style,  like  a  swinging 
mirror,  before  her. 

"  1 8th.  A  note  from  Lady  Sykes  asking  me  to  go  to  the 
opera  with  her — I  only  saw  her  once  for  one  moment  at  Lady 
Cork's — so  I  thought  it  might  be  a  mistake  and  went  to  Lady 
Charlotte  Bertie  to  see  if  the  note  were  intended  for  her." 

xix 


INTRODUCTION 

[Her  own  name  was  Lady  Charlotte  Bertie,  the  other  lady 
being  the  daughter  of  the  5th  Earl  of  Abingdon.  She  died 
unmarried  in  1893.]  "  She  was  not  at  home,  so  I  concluded 
it  was  all  right,  and  though  astonished  I  accepted  the  invita- 
tion. At  8.30.  she  called  for  me,  her  civility  was  extreme. 
She  is  a  fine  woman  and  very  pleasant  and  good  natured. 
The  younger  Disraeli  was  in  the  box.  He  and  I  soon  got 
acquainted.  We  talked  about  several  things.  He  is  wild, 
enthusiastic,  and  very  poetical.  His  '  Contarini  Fleming ' 
was  written  in  Egypt — He  knew  Ibrahim  Pasha  and  gave  me 
anecdotes  of  him.  He  told  me  he  thought  Southey  the 
greatest  man  of  the  age.  He  was  really  a  great  man,  he  said. 
;The  brilliancy  of  my  companion  infected  me  and  we  ran  on 
about  poetry,  and  Venice,  and  Baghdad,  and  Damascus,  and 
my  eye  lit  up  and  my  cheek  burned,  and  in  the  pause  of  the 
beautiful  music  (Tancredi)  my  words  flowed  almost  as  rapidly 
as  his.  Once  he  talked  of  poverty  nipping  genius — I  thought 
upon  .  .  .  But  to  return  to  Disraeli — He  tells  me  that 
repose  is  the  great  thing  and  that  nothing  repays  exertion. 
Yet  noise  and  light  are  his  fondest  dreams,  and  nothing  could 
compensate  to  him  for  an  obscure  youth, — not  even  glorious 
old  age.  I  cannot  understand  his  trying  to  get  into  Parlia- 
ment. It  was  beautiful  to  hear  him  talk  of  Southey.  With 
all  his  enthusiasm  and  contradictions  he  pleased  me  and  we 
were  very  good  friends  I  think.33 

"  2oth.  After  2,  Lady  Sykes  and  Mr.  Disraeli  called  and 
my  brother  Lindsey  and  I  went  with  them  to  Mme.  Dulken's 
Concert — The  music  was  beautiful,  we  had  Pasta,  and  Tam- 
burini  '  Di  tanti  palpiti,3  Schroeder's  '  Erl  Koenig 3— 
De  Beriot's  violin  was  the  most  beautiful  thing  of  the  kind  I 
ever  heard;  I  never  liked  the  violin  before.  He  is  a  very 
graceful  person.  A  Miss  Smith  sang  '  Robin  Gray  3  very 
badly.  Mr.  Disraeli,  who  had  brought  me  flowers,  sat  by  me 

xx 


LADY    CHARLOTTE    GUEST 

Frosn  an  engraving  by  Win.  Walker  after  a  painting  by  Richard  Buckner,  since  destroyed  by  fire. 
This  portrait  was  painted  about  the  time  of  her  marriage  to  Sir  John  Guest 
The  Countess  of  Bessboroughs  Collection 


INTRODUCTION 

and  was  most  agreeable.  He  had  less  of  eccentricity  than 
on  Saturday.  Perhaps  he  then  thought,  by  his  brilliancy,  to 
take  my  imagination  by  storm.  I  liked  him  better  to-day— 
we  agree  on  very  many  points  and  his  details  interest  me.  If 
I  had  time  I  would  put  down  much  of  his  conversation — His 
admiration  for  Southey  and  Hallam,  both  of  whom  he  knows 
well  personally,  would  redeem  a  great  many  sins  He  is  a 
follower  of  Beethoven  in  taste,  though  not  musical.  I  learnt 
from  him  that  he  is  preparing  a  new  Oriental  story,  placed  in 
remote  times  and  in  Syria — though  little  is  done  to  it  in 
London,  and  it  is  not  to  come  out  till  next  year — After  that 
he  plans  a  Venetian  story  of  the  days  of  Mocenigo  and  Greek 
Conquests — I  could  not  but  suggest  Dandolo  and  Constan- 
tinople, which  combines  Venice  and  the  East  at  once.  Baron 
Steinberg  was  in  the  box — an  agreeable  German.  When  we 
left  the  Concert  Lady  Sykes  said,  '  It  is  quite  early  now, 
where  shall  we  go  ?  What  shall  we  do  ?  Is  there  nothing  to 
see  ? '  It  ended  in  our  driving  to  the  Exhibition  at  Somerset 
House.  I  had  Mr.  Disraeli's  arm  the  whole  time,  and  he 
discoursed  to  me  pleasantly  about  the  pictures.  There  were 
few  good  ones,  but  one  by  Etty  was  a  gem.  A  good  Irish 
picture,  and  some  Turners  and  Stanfields  of  Venice,  and 
Wilkins's  Confession — Two  or  three  small  landscapes — For 
traits  of  old  Dr.  Willis  and  La  Roche  might  be  remembered. 
As  we  drove  away,  fresh  plans  were  talked  of — Lady  Sykes 
took  me  over  her  house — Lent  me  prints  and  Disraeli's 
'  Alroy,'  etc.  After  putting  down  Mr.  Disraeli  we  drove 
through  the  Park,  and  she  left  me  at  home  at  8." 

"  28th.  At  'Court,  the  Drawing-room  was  extremely  full 
and  hot — yet  we  had  little  trouble.  The  King  stopped  me 
as  I  passed  him — and  said,  'And,  Ma'am,  how  old  is  your 
brother?'  I  fortunately  remembered  that  Lindsey  was 
1 8,  but  I  was  so  surprised  at  the  unexpected  notice  of  me 

xxi 


INTRODUCTION 

that  by  the  time  I  had  given  the  answer  and  made  the 
requisite  curtsy  I  began  to  doubt  whether  I  had  any  brother 
at  all." 

"  1 7th.  Dejeune  at  Mrs.  Wyndham  Lewis's  after  a 
Review.  Met  the  Duke  of  Orleans  returning  from  it.  First 
time  of  meeting  Mr.  Guest." 

^  #  *  *  # 

Lady  Charlotte  gives  in  one  of  her  Journals  an  account 
of  the  tragically  sudden  death  of  my  father's  partner,  Mr. 
Wyndham  Lewis.  News  came  that  her  husband  was  wanted 
at  Mr.  Lewis's  house — "  I  inquired  why,  and  they  said  Mr. 
Lewis  was  dead.  I  was  greatly  shocked,  but  the  carriage 
being  at  the  door,  I  did  not  hesitate  to  go  at  once  to  his  poor 
wife.  She  was  in  a  sad  state.  They  took  me  into  her  beau- 
tiful dressing  room  where  I  had  seen  so  many  a  gay  scene  of 
mirth,  and  there  upon  the  floor  where  he  had  fallen,  lay, 
covered  with  a  white  sheet,  the  remains  of  him  who  an  hour 
before  had  been  in  perfect  health,  the  happy  possessor  of  all 
this  magnificence.  It  was  the  most  distressing  sight  I  ever 
witnessed;  his  face  was  very  calm,  but  livid,  from  the  disease 
(of  the  heart)  which  had  caused  his  death,  and  there  was  a 
deep  gash  in  his  cheek  from  his  having  struck  the  sofa  as  he 
fell.  Poor  Mrs.  Lewis  was  with  him  at  the  moment  of  his 
decease.  He  was  writing  a  cheque  for  her,  and  on  her  looking 
round  to  see  if  he  had  completed  it  she  found  that  he  had 
fallen  without  a  struggle  and  was  quite  dead."  [1838.]  This 
lady  was  the  Mrs.  Wyndham  Lewis  who  afterwards  married 
M.r.  Disraeli,  and  became  Viscountess  Beaconsfield.  She 
told  me  often,  in  years  after,  as  a  curious  coincident,  that  she 
introduced  my  father  to  my  mother  at  a  party  she  was  giving, 
and  that  when  she  was  Mrs.  Disraeli,  at  a  party  at  her  house, 
my  brother  proposed  to,  and  was  accepted  by  his  present  wife, 
Lady  Wimborne.  .  .  .  Another  extract  from  the  Journal 

xxii 


SIR  J.    JOHN    <UTKST,    HART.,    .M.I'. 

h'roiii  an  engraving  by  \l~in.   \\~alker  after  a  painting  by   Richard  Buckner  which  was  destroyed  in 
one  of  several  fires  which  have  taken  place  at  Canford  Manor.     Sir  John  Guest  was  married  to  Lady 

Charlotte  Bertie  in  iSjj,  and  died  in  1852 

The  CoTintess  of"  Bessborough' s  Collection 


INTRODUCTION 

about  this  time,  as  showing  the  insight  she  had  obtained  into 
her  husband's  business,  and  the  confidence  he  placed  in  her, 
may  be  noted — "  One  day  last  week  Merthyr  [her  pet 
name  for  her  husband]  sent  me  to  meet  Mr.  Lucy  [of  Harf ord 
Davis  and  Co/s  firm]  on  the  subject  of  the  rails  for  the  Mid- 
land Counties  Railway.  He  was  going  out  on  other  business, 
and  left  word  with  me,  if  he  did  not  return  in  time,  to  meet 
Mr.  Lucy  on  the  subject.  Mr.  Lucy  was  going  to  Lough- 
borough  on  the  contract  and  was  to  tender  at  12.19.6 
delivered.  The  delivery  being  above  25/-  one  of  the  Staf- 
fordshire Houses  (to  whom  the  delivery  and  some  of  the 
stipulations  as  to  hammering, etc.,  in  the  manufacture  were  less 
costly  and  objectionable)  took  it  at  £12. — This  is  the  weigh 
tiest  piece  of  business  with  which  I  have  hitherto  been 
entrusted — and  Merthyr  was  satisfied  with  the  manner  in 
which  I  conducted  it.  M£.  Lucy,  a  very  agreeable  Quaker, 
seemed  at  first  rather  surprised  at  seeing  me,  but  we  soon 
began  discussing  questions  of  freight,  interest,  etc.,  as  com 
fortably  as  if  I  had  not  the  mortification  of  being  of  weaker 
sex  and  intellect  than  himself."  One  more  quotation  I  will 
give  here  as  showing  her  aspirations—  "  I  went  for  the  first 
time  to  see  the  new  Offices  in  the  City,  42,  Lothbury,  it  is  well 
situated  and  very  commodious.  They  have  paid  me  the 
compliment  of  fitting  up  a  room  for  me  there,  and  I  think  it 
is  a  retreat  that  I  shall  often  be  tempted  to  resort  to  from 
the  gaieties  and  interruptions  of  Grosvenor  Square  [her 
London  house  in  1839,  where  I  was  born].  I  have  so  schooled 
myself  into  habits  of  business  that  it  is  more  congenial  to  me 
to  calculate  the  advantage  of  half  per  cent,  commission  on  a 
cargo  of  iron  than  to  go  to  the  finest  ball  in  the  world.  But 
whatever  I  undertake  I  must  reach  an  eminence  in.  I  cannot 
endure  anything  in  a  second  grade.  I  am  happy  to  see  we 
are  at  the  head  of  the  iron  trade.  Otherwise  I  could  not  take 

xxiii 


INTRODUCTION 

pride  in  my  house  in  the  City,  and  my  works  at  Dowlais,  and 

glory  (playfully)  in  being   (in  some   sort)   a  tradeswoman. 

Then,  again,  if  I  go  into  society  it  must  be  the  very  best  and 

first.     I  can  brook  no  other.     If  I  occupy  myself  in  writing, 

my  book  must  be  splendidly  got  up  and  must  be  as  far,  at 

least,  as  decoration  and  typography  are  concerned,  at  the 

head  of  literature,  and  I  delight  in  the  contrast  of  the  musty 

antiquarian  researches,  and  the  brilliant  fetes  and  plodding 

counting  house,  from  all  of  which  I  seem  to  derive  almost 

equal  amusement.     And  then  I  can  sit   and   laugh    at   the 

gravest  of  them  all  as  vanities,  and  moralise  upon  the  thought 

of  how  soon  the  most  important  of  them  will  cease  to  be  of 

any  avail  or  interest  to  me.      Yet  while  they  last  and  while 

there  is  youth  and  health  to  enjoy  them,  surely  it  cannot  be 

wrong  to  take  pleasure  in  the  various  blessings  of  this  life. 

I  trust  to  God  that  I  may  not  be  purled  up  with  them.     For 

indeed  to  me  He  has  been  abundantly  merciful,  and  I  fully 

feel  my  entire  dependence  upon  His  mercy,  and   how   one 

breath  would  send  the  whole  fabric  of  my  pleasures  and  my 

happiness  to  the  earth,  and  leave  worse  than  a  blank  behind." 

*  *  *  *  * 

My  father  died  in  1852,  after  he  had  been  married  to  my 
mother  about  20  years,  leaving  behind  him  a  family  of  five 
sons  and  five  daughters.  After  his  death  she  took  charge  of, 
and  managed,  the  great  Dowlais  Ironworks,  and  continued  to 
do  so  for  two  or  three  years,  until  the  cares  and  responsibili- 
ties of  her  large  and  growing  family  necessitated  her  giving 
up  the  management  of  them  into  other  hands. 

About  three  years  later  she  married  her  second  husband, 
Mr.  Charles  Schreiber,  a  Fellow  of  Trinity  College,  Cam- 
bridge, eldest  son  of  Colonel  James  Alfred  Schreiber,  who 
lived  at  Melton,  in  Suffolk,  and  who  had  seen  service  under 
the  great  Wellington. 

xxiv 


INTRODUCTION 

For  another  ten  years  she  never  seemed  to  show  any  sign 
of  the  "  China  Mania,"  in  fact,  as  she  told  me  some  years 
afterwards,  when  on  one  occasion  two  services  were  sent  down 
to  Canford  for  my  brother  to  look  at,  one  a  large  service  of 
blue-scale  Worcester,  of  the  Dr.  Wall  period,  with  beautifully 
painted  flowers,  exotic  birds,  etc.,  from  Mr.  Frederick  Davis, 
who  then  lived  in  Pall  Mall,  and  the  other  a  large  dinner 
service  of  modern  Minton  china  from  Mortlock's  in  Oxford 
Street,  she  could  not  help  being  struck  with  the  far  greater 
beauty  of  the  Minton  to  the  Worcester.  She  lived,  however, 
to  take  a  very  different  view  of  these  things.  When  at  Can- 
ford,  where  she  spent  a  great  deal  of  her  time  before  my 
brother's  marriage,  she  was  generally  to  be  seen  busily  em- 
ployed setting  up  type,  or  reading  over  and  correcting  proofs 
at  my  brother's  private  Printing  Press,  for  in  those  days  "The 
Canford  Press"  very  seriously  occupied  the  attention  of 
several  of  the  members  of  my  family,  who  printed,  amongst 
other  things,  some  unpublished  poems  of  Lord  Tennyson 
which  he  sent  to  them  for  that  purpose,  notably  "  The  Loves 
of  the  Wrens,"  and  "  The  Victim,"  both  now  exceedingly  rare 
and  valuable,  or  else  she  would  be  found  poring  over,  and 
engrossed  in  her  "  tatting,"  as  she  was  then  working  a  deep 
flounce  of  that  very  fine  and  tedious  kind  of  work,  which  she 
eventually  finished  and  gave  to  my  brother's  wife  when  he 
married  in  1868. 

Her  enthusiasm  for  china  came  later.  It  may  have  been 
that  she  was  fired  with  the  spirit  of  collecting  from  seeing  my 
brother  and  me  returning  from  our  trips  abroad  laden  with 
china  and  curiosities  of  all  sorts.  But  she  had  always  had 
within  her  the  spirit  of  the  collector  and  connoisseur.  It  was 
not  before  she  was  well  past  the  age  of  fifty  that  she  began 
her  now  famous  collection,  and  threw  herself  into  her  pursuit 
with  her  characteristic  energy,  and  it,  from  henceforth, 

xxv 


INTRODUCTION 

became  the  passion  of  her  life.  She  hunted  high  and  low, 
through  England  and  abroad;  France,  Holland,  Germany, 
Spain,  Italy,  Turkey,  all  were  ransacked;  she  left  no  stone 
unturned,  no  difficulty,  discomfort,  fatigue,  or  hardship  of 
travel  daunted  her,  or  turned  her  from  her  purpose,  and  she 
would  come  back,  after  weeks  on  the  Continent,  to  Langham 
House,  in  Portland  Place,  where  she  lived,  rich  with  the  fruits 
of  her  expeditions.  Mr.  Duveen  (who  was  afterwards 
knighted)  told  me  a  curious  little  story  about  her  connection 
with  himself.  He  happened  to  be  over  in  Holland  searching 
for  "  objets  d'art "  when  he  heard  of  some  wonderful  pieces 
of  china  in  a  little  village  a  long  way  from  any  town  or  railway ; 
to  get  to  this  out-of-the-way  place  entailed  a  long  and  tedious 
journey  by  carriage.  He  started  off  on  his  expedition,  but  as 
he  was  nearing  his  destination  he  observed  a  fly  driving  out 
of  the  village  towards  him ;  he  looked  into  it  as  it  passed,  and 
he  saw  the  face  of  my  mother;  he  felt  at  once  that  he  had 
been  forestalled,  and  he  continued  his  journey,  only  to  find 
that  she  had  snatched  the  prize,  which  she  was  carrying  off 
with  her. 

The  accounts  of  her  china-hunting  expeditions  are  very 
fully  set  forth  in  her  journals,  giving  an  accurate  and  graphic 
description  of  the  places  she  went  to,  the  museums  and  private 
collections  she  visited,  the  dealers  and  amateurs  she  came  in 
contact  with,  the  treasures  she  came  across,  and  the  prices  she 
paid  for  those  which  she  acquired.  After  a  time  she  turned 
her  attention  to  collecting  Fans  and  Fan-leaves,  and  she 
made  a  large  and  representative  collection  of  these,  which 
she  presented  to  the  nation,  and  which  are  now  to  be  seen  at 
the  British  Museum.  Later  on  she  made  an  exhaustive  collec- 
tion of  Playing  Cards,  which  she  also  handed  to  the  British 
Museum  for  the  same  purpose.  Even  when,  about  1891,  she 
had  virtually  lost  her  sight,  and  could  no  longer  freely  move 

xxvi 


; 


INTRODUCTION 

about,  she  could  not  remain  idle.  Her  ringers  were  ever  at 
work,  and,  while  she  occupied  her  mind  in  the  matter  of  her 
collections  with  Mr.  Alfred  Whitman,  the  talented  author  of 
some  able  books  on  engravings,  who  used  to  come  to  her 
every  afternoon,  for  several  hours,  when  he  had  finished  his 
work  at  the  Print  Room  of  the  British  Museum,  she  was  all 
the  time  busily  plying  her  knitting  needles,  and  she  finished 
each  day  a  long  red  woollen  comforter,  which  she  periodically 
forwarded  in  bundles  to  the  Cabmen's  Shelters,  to  be  dis- 
tributed amongst  the  London  cabmen. 

Her  second  husband,  Mr.  Charles  Schreiber,  died  at 
Lisbon,  on  his  journey  home  from  South  Africa,  where  they 
had  been  in  the  hope  of  restoring  his  health.  It  was  to  per 
petuate  his  memory  that  she  gave  her  collection  of  English 
China  and  Battersea  Enamels  to  the  South  Kensington 
Museum. 

In  her  nature  she  was  a  woman  with  a  deep  sense  of  moral 
duty,  very  self-possessed  and  calm,  with  an  extraordinary 
control  over  her  feelings.  I  can  truly  say  that  I  never  saw 
her  angry  or  unduly  excited  in  my  life.  She  had  an  untiring 
energy,  and  was  endowed  with  unlimited  perseverance. 

When  she  began  to  collect  china,  which  may  be  put  down 
roughly  at  between  forty  and  fifty  years  ago,  it  was  an  easier 
matter  than  it  is  to-day;  I  myself  began  about  the  year  1860, 
and  I  know  from  experience  that,  amongst  the  ordinary  dealers, 
ignorance  was  the  prevailing  characteristic  of  the  period.  The 
names  of  Chelsea,  Bow,  Worcester,  Bristol,  Plymouth  and 
Derby  were  but  barely  known,and  if  some  of  the  marks  of  these 
factories  were  understood  it  was  about  all  one  expected  to  find, 
unless  indeed  they  happened  to  have  a  Marryat,  or  a  Chaffers 
(then  a  new  publication)  at  hand  to  refer  to,  which  was  not 
often  the  case,  while  if  a  specimen  was  unmarked  it  was 
totally  unrecognised.  Any  person  with  a  very  small  amount 

xxvii 


INTRODUCTION 

of  knowledge  could  go  round  the  old  shops  and  pick  up  the 
untold  treasures  of  to-day  for  the  most  trivial  sums ;  there  was 
an  enormous  supply,  and  very  little  demand,  in  consequence, 
the  "  fake  "  hardly  existed.  Then,  in  regard  to  English  fur- 
niture many  people  were  turning  out  their  fine  old  examples, 
which  were  not  appreciated,  or  in  many  cases  not  thought 
worth  repairing,  for  a  more  modern  kind,  and  the  old  brokers' 
shops  were  teeming  with  the  most  glorious  and  beautiful 
specimens  of  the  earlier  periods,  which  could  be  obtained  for 
almost  nothing.  The  name  of  Chippendale  was  hardly 
known,  while  those  of  Sheraton,  Hepplewhite,  Adam,  etc., 
which  to-day  are  upon  everybody's  tongue,  were  then  abso- 
lutely unknown.  As  a  proof  of  the  estimation  in  which  they 
were  held,  I  may  say  that,  in  1860,  I  bought  a  fine  copy  of 
Hepplewhite's  book  for  2s.  6d.  I  believe  it  now  realises  some- 
where about  /"i6.  As  for  engravings!  The  connoisseurs 
of  that  day  were  bidding  startling  sums  in  the  auction  rooms, 
which  were  being  duly  chronicled  in  the  daily  papers,  for  line 
engravings  of  the  Holy  Family,  and  works  of  that  class,  by 
such  men  as  Raphael  Morghen,  etc.,  while  in  the  " slums" 
one  was  turning  over  portfolio  after  portfolio,  bursting  with 
thousands  of  these  despised  engravings  of  the  English 
School,  which  nobody  wanted,  then  obtainable  for  shillings, 
whereas  to-day  they  are  fetching  their  hundreds  and  hundreds 
of  pounds,  and  have  risen  to  such  a  pitch  of  popularity  that 
to  supply  the  demand  the  whole  country  is  flooded  with  the 
vilest  copies  and  reprints  of  them.  If  you  had  mentioned 
such  names  as  Val.  Green,  Fisher,  Watson,  Dickinson,  John 
Jones,  Finlayson,  Wright  of  Derby,  J.  R.  Smith,  or  the 
Wards,  you  would  have  been  stared  at  in  the  blankest  amaze- 
ment. It  was  very  much  the  same  with  the  English  School  of 
painting,  and  miniature  painting,  while  in  regard  to  old  silver, 
my  brother  was  buying  rat-tail  spoons  and  three-pronged 

xxviii 


INTRODUCTION 

forks,  and  I  think  I  may  say  Old  English  Silver  generally, 
of  the  best  periods,  for  an  average  sum  of  about  55.  an  ounce. 
Nobody  wanted  Old  Sheffield  Plate,  Pinchbeck,  old  English 
jewellery,  needle-work  pictures,  old  English  glass,  pewter, 
Staffordshire  ware,  excluding  Wedgwood,  old  steel,  brass, 
etc.,  all  those  things  in  fact  about  which  every  man,  woman, 
and  child  seems  to  have  gone  mad  in  the  present  day. 

Such,  then,  being  the  state  of  the  antique  trade,  it  may 
easily  be  conceived  that  my  mother  was  able  to  pick  up  the 
finest  specimens  of  china  and  other  such  articles  for  quite  a 
moderate  outlay.     I  have  in  my  possession  her  priced  cata- 
logue of  the  collection  in  the  Victoria  and  Albert  Museum,  at 
South  Kensington;  the  amounts  she  paid  are  astounding  to 
the  present-day  ideas  and  notions  of  the  value  of  such  things. 
How  she  gained  her  knowledge,  and  her  judgment  in 
buying,  I  really  do  not  know,  but  I  think  she  depended  very 
much  upon  her  own  endeavours  and  was  guided  by  her  natural 
instincts.      She  studied  deeply  whatever  she  took  up,  and 
being  a  highly  educated  woman  with  a  good  knowledge   of 
history,  and  with  a  determination  to  get  to  the  bottom  of  any- 
thing she  undertook,  she  soon  got  to  appreciate  what  to  look 
for  and  what  to  obtain.     In  all  this  there  is  no  doubt   Mr. 
Schreiber  was  a  great  help  to  her,  but  in  reality  she  was  the 
leading  spirit,  she  was  the  fine   judge.     Mr.    Mortlock,    of 
Oxford  Street,  was  talking  to  me  a  short  time  since  about  her ; 
he  knew  her  well,  and  he  said  that  nearly  all  he  knew  about 
China  he  learnt  from  her.     A  marvellous    tribute,    indeed, 
from  the  professional  to  the  amateur.     I  asked  him  whether 
my  mother  or  Mr.  Schreiber  was  the  better  judge;  he  said 
that  there  was  not  a  shadow  of  doubt  about  it;  Mr.  Schreiber 
was,  he  said,  a  good  judge,  but  he  was  nowhere  by  the  side 
of  my  mother. 

She  loved  her  china-hunting  expeditions,  and  she  took 

xxix 


INTRODUCTION 

the  greatest  pride  and  interest  in  her  collections,  sparing  her- 
self no  pains  in  regard  to  them.  Mr.  George  Harding,  the 
distinguished  dealer  in  King  Street,  St.  James's,  who  was  at 
that  time  with  his  relative  Mr.  Wareham  in  Charing  Cross 
Road,  used  to  come  to  her  daily  for  a  considerable  time,  in 
the  matter  of  classifying,  describing,  and  cataloguing  her  col- 
lection, and  was  of  the  greatest  service  to  her,  as  his  duties 
were  performed  in  a  very  able  and  intelligent  manner.  She 
had  always  kept  her  "  Day  Book,"  in  which  she  entered,  num- 
bered, and  described  everything  she  bought,  at  the  time  she 
bought  it,  with  the  place  in  which  she  found  it,  the  person  she 
bought  it  of,  the  sum  she  paid  for  it,  and  the  date  of  purchase ; 
this  methodical  way  of  keeping  the  account  of  her  purchases 
proved  afterwards  of  very  great  use  to  her. 

She  received  a  great  deal  of  kind  advice  and  assistance 
from  the  leading  authorities  on  ceramic  art,  more  espe- 
cially after  Mr.  Schreiber's  death.  Amongst  others  there  was 
no  one  who  took  a  more  lively  interest  in  her  collections  than 
the  late  Sir  Wollaston  Franks,  of  the  British  Museum,  that 
profound  and  versatile  authority  on  every  branch  of  the 
antique.  He  was  a  constant  visitor  at  her  house,  and  it  was 
he  who  mainly  helped  her  to  make  her  catalogue  of  the  South 
Kensington  collection,  and  the  selection  of  the  specimens  to 
be  exhibited  there.  That  collection  was  intended  only  to 
comprise  and  demonstrate  the  English  school  of  Pottery  and 
Porcelain.  The  rest  of  her  large  and  varied  collection  of 
china  she  distributed  between  my  two  elder  brothers  and  my 
sister,  Lady  Bessborough. 

She  was,  indeed,  a  Collector  and  a  Connoisseur. 

MONTAGUE  GUEST 


XXX 


A  FAVOURITE  PORTRAIT  OF  THE  LATE  MR.  MONTAGUE  GUEST,  LADY  CHARLOTTE'S 

THIRD     SON,     WHOSE     EXCELLENT     PHOTOGRAPHY     WAS    ONE    AMONG     MANY    OF 

HIS   VARIED   ARTISTIC   PURSUITS 


CONTENTS 

NOTES  CERAMIC 

MAY  TO  SEPTEMBER  1869 

May  1869.  Amiens  :  Reims  :  Lausanne  :  Geneva  :  Baveno  :  Como  :  Milan  : 
Turin  :  Pisa  :  Florence  pp.  1-8 

June  1869.     Florence  :  Bologna  :  Ravenna  :  Ferrara  :  Venice  :  Murano 

pp.  8-24 

July  1869.  Verona  :  Trento  :  Innsbruck  :  Munich  :  Augsberg  :  Nuremberg  : 
Ratisbon  :  Carlsbad  pp.  24-29 

August  1869.  Annaberg  :  Dresden  :  Berlin  :  Hanover  :  Amsterdam  :  The 
Hague  pp.  29-36 

September  1869.     At  Home  :  Salisbury  :  Wardour  :  Exeter  :  Bristol 

pp.  36-40 

SEPTEMBER  TO  NOVEMBER   1869 

September  1869.     Antwerp  :  Bergen-op-Zoom  :  Breda  :  Tilburg 

pp. 41-42 

October  1869.  Bois-le-Duc  :  Utrecht  :  Vermendal  :  Amsterdam  :  Gouda  : 
Rotterdam  :  Delft  :  The  Hague  :  Rotterdam  :  Antwerp  :  Brussels  : 
Rouen  :  Orleans  :  Tours  :  Paris  :  London  pp.  42-58 

November  1869.  At  Home  :  Glasgow  :  Liverpool :  Shrewsbury  :  Worcester : 
London  pp.  58-63 

FEBRUARY  TO  APRIL  1870 
February  1870.     Ashford  :  Paris  :  Sevres  :  Dijon  :  Lyons  pp.  64-78 

March  1870.  Avignon  :  Nismes  :  Montpellier  :  Aries  :  Cette  :  Narbonne  : 
Perpignan  :  Gerona  :  Barcelona  :  Montserrat  :  Tarragona  :  Valencia  : 
Alicante  :  Madrid  pp.  79-96 

April  1870.  Seville  :  Cordova  :  Granada  :  Madrid  :  Burgos  :  Bordeaux  : 
Paris  pp.  96-109 

I  xxxi  c 


CONTENTS 

SEPTEMBER  5  to  24,  1870 

September  1870.  At  Home  :  Tatton  :  Riccarton  :  Pitfour  :  Elgin  : 
Hopetoun  pp.  no-iii 

APRIL  TO  JUNE  1871 

April  and  May  1871.  Bordeaux  :  Madrid  :  Cordova  :  Seville  :  Cadiz  : 
Gibraltar  :  Tangiers  :  Aranjuez  :  Avila  :  Valladolid  pp.  112-128 

June  1871.     Versailles  :  Paris  pp.  128-131 

MARCH  TO  MAY  1872 

March  1872.  Brussels  :  Rotterdam  :  The  Hague  :  Gouda  :  Amsterdam  : 
Paris  :  Bordeaux  :  Madrid  :  Seville  :  Cadiz  :  Jeres  pp.  132-148 

April  1872.  Seville  :  Cordova  :  Granada  :  Madrid  :  Bayonne  :  Pau  : 
Toulouse  pp.  148-162 

May  1872.     Montauban  :  Agen  :  Limoges  :  Orleans  :  Blois  :  Paris 

pp.  162-166 

OCTOBER  TO  NOVEMBER  1872 
October  1872.     Dover  :  Ostend  :  Antwerp  p.  167 

November  1872.  Rotterdam  :  The  Hague  :  Gouda  :  Utrecht :  Amsterdam  : 
Brussels  pp.  167-175 

MARCH  TO  MAY  1873 
March  1873.     Bruges  p.  176 

April  1873.  Bruges  :  Lille  :  Tournai  :  Ath  :  Brussels  :  Lierre  :  Antwerp  : 
Dordrecht  :  Gouda  :  Utrecht  :  The  Hague  :  Amsterdam  :  Paris  : 
Dijon  :  Geneva  :  Lausanne  :  Lyons  :  Marseilles  :  Avignon  :  Valence 

pp.  177-192 

May  1873.     Paris  :  Amiens  :  Boulogne  pp.  192-193 

AUGUST  TO  NOVEMBER  1873 
August  1873.     Ostend  :  Bruges  :  Ghent  pp.  194-203 

September  1873.  Brussels  :  Antwerp  :  Louvain  :  Tournai  :  Namur  : 
Florenville  :  Luxembourg  :  Metz  :  Gravelotte  :  Nancy  :  Strasbourg  : 
Baden-Baden  :  Carlsruhe  :  Durlach  :  Heidelberg  :  Frankfurt :  Maintz  : 
Coblentz  :  Treves  pp.  203-226 

October  1873.  Cologne  :  Liege  :  Maestricht  :  Brussels  :  The  Hague  : 
Gouda  :  Amsterdam  :  Utrecht  :  Rotterdam  :  Ghent  pp.  226-240 

November  1873.     Bruges  :  Ostend  :  and  Home  p.  240 

xxxii 


CONTENTS 

FEBRUARY  TO  APRIL   1874 
February  1874.     Ostend  :  Bruges  p.  241 

March  1874.  Bruges  :  Ypres  :  Courtrai  :  Brussels  :  Lille  :  Tournai  : 
Antwerp  :  The  Hague  :  Gouda  :  Utrecht  :  Amsterdam  :  Haarlem  : 
Ghent  :  Metz  :  Verdun  :  Nancy  pp.  241-266 

April  1874.     Besangon  :  Dole  :  Dijon  :  Lausanne  :  Geneva  :  Bourg  :  Paris  : 

pp.  266-274 
AUGUST  TO  OCTOBER  1874 

August  1874.  Boulogne  :  Amiens  :  Rouen  :  Dieppe  :  Geres  :  Jumieges  : 
Caudebec  :  Lillebonne  :  Tancarville  :  Etretat  :  Fecamp  :  Lisieux  : 
Caen  :  Honfleur  :  Trouville  :  Bernay  :  Bayeux  :  Coutances 

pp.  275-295 

September  1874.  Granville  :  Avranches  :  Mont-St.-Michel  :  Pontorson  : 
Dol  :  St.-Malo  :  Rennes  :  Guingamp  :  Morlaix  :  Brest  :  Folgoet  : 
Quimper  :  Auray  :  Carnac  :  Nantes  :  Angers  :  Fontevrault  :  Le 
Mans  :  Paris  :  Metz  :  Verdun  :  Nancy  pp.  295-317 

October  1874.     Paris  :  and  Home  pp.  317-318 

OCTOBER  TO  NOVEMBER  1874 

October  1874.  Ostend  :  Brussels  :  Antwerp  :  The  Hague  :  Rotterdam  : 
Amsterdam  :  Gouda  :  Utrecht  :  Kampen  :  Zwolle  :  Leeuwarden  : 
Harlingen  :  Groningen  :  Zutphen  :  Deventer  :  Arnhem  :  Delft 

PP.  319-335 

November  1874.  Amsterdam  :  Leyden  :  Utrecht  :  The  Hague  :  Rotterdam  : 
Lille  :  Antwerp  :  Tournai  :  Ghent  :  Brussels  :  and  Home 

PP-  335-347 
FEBRUARY  TO  MARCH  3,  1875 

February  1875.     Paris  PP-  348-362 

March  1875.     Brussels  :  and  Home  pp.  362-364 

OCTOBER  1875  TO  JANUARY  14,   1876 
October  1875.     Paris  :  Bordeaux  :  Voyage  to  Lisbon  pp.  365-377 

November  1875.  Lisbon  :  Mafra  :  Monserrate  :  Cintra  :  Oporto  :  Vianna  : 
Ponte  do  Lima  :  Valenga  :  Journey  to  Spain  :  Santiago 

PP-  377-4oo 

December  1875.  Vigo  :  Tuy  :  Mongao  :  Braga  :  Oporto  :  Coimbra  :  Luso : 
Vizeu  :  Leiria  :  Batalha  pp.  400-417 

January  1876.  Alcobaga  :  Caldas  :  Santarem  :  Lisbon  :  and  Home  via 
Southampton  to  Canford  pp.  417-422 

xxxiii 


CONTENTS 

APRIL  TO  AUGUST  4,  1876 
April  1876.     To  Blenheim  p.  423 

May  1876.  Ostend  :  Bruges  :  Ghent  :  Ypres  :  Brussels  :  Antwerp 
Tournai  :  The  Hague  :  Gouda  :  Rotterdam  ;  Leyden  :  Delft 
Utrecht  :  Amsterdam  pp.  424-436 

June  1876.  Amsterdam  :  Alkmaar  :  Helder  :  Hoorn  :  Enkhuizen 
Haarlem  :  Marken  :  Velzen  :  Rotterdam  :  Zealand  :  Middelburg 
Brussels  :  Tournai  :  Antwerp  pp.  436-456 

July  1876.  Antwerp  :  Brussels  :  Liege  :  Cologne  :  Bruhl  :  Bremen 
Hamburg  :  Lubeck  :  Stettin  :  Dantzig  :  Posen  :  Breslau  :  Dresden 
Frankfort  pp.  457-459 

August  1876.     Liege  :  Ostend  P-  475 

NOVEMBER  TO  DECEMBER  1876 

November  1876.     Bruges  :  Ghent   :  Brussels   :  Tournai  :  Antwerp  :  The 
Hague  :  Gouda  :  Delft  :  Rotterdam  :  Paris  pp.  476-494 

December  1876.     Paris  pp.  494-503 


XXX IV 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 


Toface 
page 

LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER  Frontispiece 

(In  the  Drawing-room  at  ij  Cavendish  Square} 

EXAMPLES  OF  DECORATED  BATTERSEA  AND  OTHER  ENAMELS  vii 

i.  German  Enamel  Snuff  Box  with  ornamentation  in  brilliant  and  heavy  gold  on 
a  turquoise  ground.  2.  Miniature  Gourd-shaped  Case  or  Bottle,  of  foreign 
enamel.  It  opens  at  base  on  a  hinge  ;  an  early  example;  probably  intended  to 
contain  poison.  3.  Cosmetic  Box  of  Berlin  Enamel,  with  delicate  design  in  gold. 
4.  Sevres  Enamel  and  Silver  Etui  of  turquoise  blue.  5.  Tea  Poy  or  Canister  of 
fine  Battersea  work,  with  delicate  vignette  landscapes  on  blue  ground.  6.  Gaming 
Tray  of  Battersea  Enamel.  (The  Countess  of  BessborougK  s  Collection.} 

GENERAL  ALBEMARLE  BERTIE,  QTH  EARL  OF  LINDSEY  viii 

He  married,  secondly,  in  1809,  Charlotte,  the  daughter  of  the  Very  Rev.  C.  P. 
Layard,  Dean  of  Bristol,  and  became  the  father  of  the  loth  and  nth  Earls  and  of 
Lady  Charlotte  Bertie.  This  lady  first  married  Sir  John  Guest,  by  whom  she  had 
ten  children,  and  secondly,  Charles  Schreiber,  Esq.,  M.P.,  of  Melton,  Suffolk. 
She  died  in  1895.  ( The  Countess  of  BessborougK s  Collection.} 

UFFINGTON,  BUILT  BY  THE  HONBLE.  CHARLES  BERTIE,  FINISHED  1688  x 

From  a  drawing  by  Lady  Charlotte  made  in  the  year  1856.  The  house  was  burnt 
down  some  few  years  after  her  death.  (From  a  print  in  the  Collection  of  the 
Countess  of  Bessborough. } 

LADY  CHARLOTTE  BERTIE  AT  THE  AGE  OF  2  YEARS  2  MONTHS  xii 

In  1833  she  married  Sir  J.  John  Guest,  Bart.,  M.P. ,  and  becoming  a  widow  in 
1852  she  married  in  1855  Charles  Schreiber,  Esq.,  M.P.,  who  assisted  her  in  the 
formation  of  her  enormous  collection  of  antiques.  (In  the  Countess  of  BessborougK  s 
Collection.} 

LADY  CHARLOTTE  GUEST  xx 

From  an  engraving  by  Wm.  Walker  after  a  painting  by  Richard  Buckner,  since 
destroyed  by  fire.  This  portrait  was  painted  about  the  time  of  her  marriage  to 
Sir  John  Guest.  ( The  Countess  of  BessborougK  s  Collection. } 

SIR  J.  JOHN  GUEST,  BART.,  M.P.  xxii 

From  an  engraving  by  Wm.  Walker  after  a  painting  by  Richard  Buckner,  which 
was  destroyed  in  one  of  several  fires  which  have  taken  place  at  Cauford  Manor. 
Sir  John  Guest  was  married  to  Lady  Charlotte  Bertie  in  1833,  and  died  in  1852. 
(The  Countess  of  BessborougK  s  Collection.} 

THE  LATE  MR.  MONTAGUE  GUEST  xxx 

A  favourite  portrait  of  Lady  Charlotte's  third  son,  whose  excellent  photography 
was  one  among  many  of  his  varied  artistic  pursuits. 

XXXV 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 

To  fate 
Page 

SOME  SPECIMENS  OF  OLD  BRISTOL  GLASS  i 

From  the  many  examples  collected  by  Lady  Charlotte  in  various  Continental 
Towns.  The  nozzles  of  the  spirally  twisted  Candlesticks  and  the  top  of  the 
Tea  Canister  are  of  Battersea  Enamel.  (From  the  Schrtiber  Collection.) 


The  Kitty  Ciive  and  Woodward  the  Actor  on  the  lowest  shelf,  and  the  two 
Sphinxes  on  the  middle  shelf,  appear  to  have  been  made  at  both  works.  In  the 
Schreiber  Collection  they  are  attributed  to  Chelsea.  ( The  Schreiber  Collection. ) 

A  MINIATURE  CABINET   ON    CHEST    FILLED   WITH   TOY   EXAMPLES    OF 

EARLY  XVIII  CENTURY  WARE  4 

(The  Countess  of  BessborougK s  Collection.} 

EXAMPLES  OF  JOSHUA  WEDGWOOD'S  POPULAR  QUEEN'S  WARE  6 

With  Painted  Decorations  and  Printed  Ornaments,  many  of  which  were  added 
later  by  the  famous  firm  of  Sadler  and  Green  of  Liverpool.  (The  Schreiber 
Collection. ) 

CHELSEA  FIGURES  OF  PEDLARS  8 

It  was  the  fashion  of  the  period,  as  is  shown  in  Henry  Morland's  Portraits  and 
elsewhere,  to  dress  refined  personages  in  the  costumes  of  peasants  and  the  like  ; 
both  the  man  and  woman  here  are  evidently  intended  to  be  persons  of  quality 
masked  as  common  people.  The  table  is  one  of  a  pair  in  tortoise-shell  and 
Ormolu  XVIII  Century  French,  discovered  by  Lady  Charlotte  abroad.  (Lord 
Wimborne's  Collection. ) 

A  LARGE  BROWN  TILE  PORTRAIT  OF  A  KING  OF  THE  FRENCH  HOUSE 

IN  XVII  CENTURY  FRAME  20 

(The  Countess  of  BessborougK  s  Collection.} 

EXAMPLES  OF  Bow  AND  CHELSEA  32 

Top. — Pair  of  Bow  Candlesticks  with  Canaries  and  Bullfinches  on  Flowering 
Trees  in  what  may  be  called  the  Meissen  manner.  Centre. — Outside  Figures: 
Chelsea  Candlestick  Groups  showing  a  Hussar  and  a  Girl  with  Mask  neatly 
arranged  in  Flowering  Arbors.  In  middle :  a  Chelsea  Figure  holding  a  Basket,  with 
Lambs  at  her  feet,  doubtless  one  of  a  Decorated  Pair.  The  lower  figures  show  a 
Chelsea  Boy  and  Girl  in  charming  dresses  ;  one  holds  a  Cock  and  one  a  Hen  ;  each 
is  surrounded  by  the  conventional  Bocage.  (Lord  Wimborne's  Collection. ) 

A  COLLECTION   OF  ENGLISH   CREAM-COLOURED  EARTHENWARE,  CHIEFLY 

LIVERPOOL,  TRANSFER  PRINTED  WITH  HISTORICAL  AND  OTHER  SUBJECTS      38 
The  left-hand  jug  on  the  top  shelf  had  an  especial  interest  for  Lady  Charlotte,  as 
it  is  a  scene  copied  from  Hogarth's  print  of  the  Cockpit,  in  which  the  blind  Lord 
Albemarle  Bertie  is  the  central  figure.     (The  Schreiber  Collection.) 

VARIOUS    EXAMPLES   OF   STAFFORDSHIRE    EARTHENWARE    BY   WHEILDON 

AND  OTHERS,  XVIII  CENTURY  4? 

(The  Schreiber  Collection.) 

PLYMOUTH  AND  BRISTOL  50 

Examples  of  the  First  Hard-paste  Porcelains  made  in  England,  some  fifty  years 
after  the  first  ware  of  the  kind  was  produced  in  Meissen  near  Dresden.  Bristol 
sometimes  used  the  cross-swords  of  Saxony  as  a  mark.  ( The  Schreiber  Collection.) 

HORSES  AND  ORIENTAL  GROOMS  IN  Bow  54 

The  lively  and  quaint  but  correct  drawing  of  these  Horses  and  Men  make  them 
distinctive  among  Bow  figures.  But,  like  so  much  Early  English  work  of  artistic 
character,  the  models  were  borrowed  from  Meissen.  (The  Schreiber  Collection.) 

xxxvi 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 

Toface 
page 

END    OF   ONE    OF   THE    DRAWING-ROOMS    AT    17    CAVENDISH    SQUARE  56 

Showing  the  fine  Vases  or  Ice  Urns  of  Venetian  Porcelain  which  Lady  Charlotte 
bought,  and  other  Objects  of  Art,  the  spoils  of  her  many  "  chasses." 

Two  OF  THE  VENETIAN  VASES  SHOWN  IN  THE  LAST  GROUP  58 

( The  Countess  of  BessborougK s  Collection. ) 

NINE  LIVERPOOL  DELFT  WALL  TILES  PRINTED  IN  BLACK,  EACH  REPRE- 
SENTING WELL-KNOWN  ACTORS  IN  CHARACTER  60 
i.  Macklin  as  Shylock.  2.  Mrs.  Yates  as  Jane  Shore.  3.  Garrick  as  Abel 
Drugger.  4.  Mrs.  Mattocks  as  Princess  Catherine.  5.  Moody  as  Teague. 
6.  Mrs.  Bulkley  as  Angelina.  7.  Lewis  as  Hippolitus.  8.  Mrs.  Gibber  as 
Monimia.  9.  Lewis  as  Douglas.  ( The  Schreiber  Collection. ) 

BRISTOL  STATUETTES  OF  THE  SEASONS  63 

(The  Schreiber  Collection.} 

A  TYPICAL    PAIR   OF  JARS   OF  25   INCHES   HIGH   WITH    COVERS,   OF  THE 

YUNG-CHENG  PERIOD  64 

The  Hens  and  Chickens,  the  Cock  and  Rockwork,  Insects,  Small  Birds,  Trees  and 
Hills  are  painted  in  the  brilliant  enamels  for  which  the  Artists  of  the  time  were  so 
greatly  famous.  (Lord  Wimborne s  Collection.} 

THREE  EXAMPLES  OF  EARLY  MING  ^PORCELAIN  70 

The  Sacred  Horse,  a  Priest  and  a  Kylin,  and  a  Horse  with  a  God  seated  thereon 
form  the  three  different  pieces,  which  all  show  the  somewhat  archaic  style  and 
the  brilliant  glaze  of  the  period.  (Lord  Wimborne" s  Collection.} 

A  PART  OF  THE  LARGE  HALL  AT  CANFORD  MANOR  80 

Showing  some  Fine  Blue  and  White  Porcelain  and  a  Statuette  of  Mr.  Montague 
Guest  by  Sir  Edgar  Boehm,  R.A.  (Lord  Wimborne' s  Collection.} 

GROUP  OF  GLASS  96 

Containing  an  Early  Pair  of  Candlesticks,  decorated  with  spiral  threads  of  blue, 
violet  and  opaque  white,  a  pair  of  Double  Knop  Glasses  with  light  opaque  lines 
in  stem  and  a  curious  Wineglass  with  Stand  formed  like  a  cocked-hat.  (The 
Countess  of  BessborougK  s  Collection.} 

CHELSEA-DERBY  GROUP  OF  LOVER  AND  SLEEPING  SHEPHERDESS  98 

(Lady  Layards  Collection. } 

BUEN  RETIRO  PORCELAIN  IMITATING  WEDGWOOD  108 

i.  Is  the  Virgin  of  the  Pillar  of  Saragossa  with  kneeling  figure  of  St.  James.  The 
other  two  specimens  also  possess  all  the  characteristics  of  Wedgwood's  work. 
{The  Countess  of  BessborougK  s  Collection.} 

LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER  124 

Portrait  of  Lady  Charlotte  Schreiber,  painted  by  Palmeroli  at  Madrid.  It  now 
hangs  in  Lord  Wimborne's  wriung-room  at  Canford  Manor. 

A  WHITE  DRESDEN  BISQUE  GROUP  OF  THE  Mio-XVIII  CENTURY  132 

The  design  is  no  doubt  suggested  by  a  French  painter ;  the  youthful  Lover,  the 
half-shy  Lady,  and  the  ever-busy  Cupid  being  found  together  in  both  the  prints 
and  porcelains  of  the  period.  (Lord  Wimborne's  Collection.} 

GLOBES    OF    MING    AND    CHIEN-LUNG    PORCELAIN    HONEYCOMBED    AND 

RICHLY  ENAMELLED  IN  COLOURS  148 

They  show  the  difference  in  the  methods  of  the  two  periods  to  great  advantage 
(Lord  Wimborne's  Collection. } 

xxxvii 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 

To  face 
page 

A  CHELSEA  GROUP  OF  A  LOVER  AND  HIS  LADY  157 

Showing  the  Bocage  at  one  time  so  popular  for  the  background  of  the  Statuettes 
made  in  this  early  factory.  (Lady  Layarcfs  Collection. ) 

A  PORTRAIT  OF  THOMAS  FRYE  FROM  A  MEZZOTINT  BY  HIMSELF  170 

A  Complete  Collection  of  this  branch  of  Frye's  work  was  made  by  Lady  Charlotte. 
He  was  the  Director  of  the  Bow  Works  for  many  years  as  well  as  famous  in  other 
branches  of  art.  (From  a  collection  of  engravings  connected  with  ceramic  matters 
given  by  Lady  Charlotte  to  the  South  Kensington  Museum,  and  now  exhibited  in 
the  Schreiber  Collection. ) 

A  BRISTOL  TEAPOT  FROM  THE  WELL-KNOWN  SERVICE  MADE  AS  A  WEDDING 

GIFT   FOR   THE   FAMOUS    STATESMAN,    EDMUND    BURKE  176 

(The  Schreiber  Collection!) 

XVII  AND  XVIII  CENTURY  GLASSES  180 

i.  Engraved  in  rich  gold  "J.R."  and  Crown,  probably  James  Rex.  2.  Early 
XVIII  Century,  the  glass  engraved  with  the  Arms  of  England.  3.  A  George  II 
glass  engraved  with  Arms  and  Monogram.  4.  Engraved  with  the  Arms  of 
England  for  Royal  use.  5.  Curious  early  engraved  glass  probably  Dutch 
XVIII  Century.  (The  Countess  of  Bessborough' s  Collection.) 

A  PAIR  OF  ESTE  FIGURES  isf  INCHES  IN  HEIGHT  186 

The  first  is  that  of  the  Holy  Virgin  ;  the  second  that  of  St  John.  Both  are  marked 
Este,  the  St.  John  having  the  date  1783.  ( The  Countess  of  Bessborough' s  Col- 
lection.) 

THREE  LARGE  EXAMPLES  OF  KANG-HE  POWDERED  BLUE  PORCELAIN  RICHLY 
DECORATED  OVER  THE  BLUE  WITH  GOLD  AND  ORNAMENTED  WITH 
DELICATE  DESIGNS  IN  THE  RESERVES  IQ4 

(Lord  IVimborne's  Collection.) 

FOUR  SMALL  FIGURES  OF  THE  SEASONS  IN  VENETIAN  GLASS  213 

These  were  considered  a  particularly  fortunate  find  by  Lady  Charlotte.  (The 
Countess  of  Bessborough' s  Collection.) 

THREE  UNUSUAL  PIECES  OF  OLD  STAFFORDSHIRE  SALT-GLAZE  WARE  228 

The  Large  Jug  marked  Thos.  Allsop  is  characteristic  of  an  XVIII  Century 
taste  for  modest  advertisement.  The  Jug  marked  P.C.  is  by  way  of  showing  a 
Portrait  of  the  Young  Pretender  in  a  Tartan  Dress.  (The  Schreiber  Collection.) 

TWO    DELICATELY  PAINTED    XVIII    CENTURY    FRENCH    FANS  240 

Found  by  Lady  Charlotte  while  forming  her  famous  Collection  of  Historical 
Examples  which  was  presented  to  the  British  Museum  for  the  benefit  of  the 
nation.  (The  Countess  of  Bessborough' s  Collection.) 

FOUR  EXAMPLES  OF  THE  FINE  ENAMEL-WORK  OF  THE  YUNG-CHENG  PERIOD     248 
Gay  Colours,  Rich  Scroll-work,  and  Lively  Drawings  of  Birds  and  Flowers  were 
greatly  employed.    (Lord  Wimborne's  Collection.) 

EXAMPLES  OF  LONGTON  HALL  AND  LIVERPOOL  WARE  266 

The  two  top  shelves  and  the  lowest  shelf  show  interesting  examples  of  Longton 
Hall  productions.  Some  examples  of  this  ware  were  considered  to  be,  and  bought 
by  Lady  Charlotte  as,  Bow,  but  later  scientific  research  attributes  them  to  the 
Longton  Hall  Works.  The  third  shelf  contains  some  extremely  interesting 
Liverpool  Porcelain.  ( The  Schreiber  Collection. ) 

Louis  XVI  CABINET  IN  EBONY  WITH  SEVRES  DECORATIONS,  SURMOUNTED 
BY  AN  ELABORATE  LoUIS  XV  SEVRES  AND  ENAMEL  TiME-PIECE  WITH 
SEVRES  PLAQUES  AND  GOUTHIERE  MOUNTS  274 

(The  Countess  of  Bessborough 's  Collection.) 

xxxviii 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 

To/ace 
page 

LARGE    XVIII    CENTURY   TORTOISE-SHELL    AND    STEEL   WRITING   CASE 

BOUGHT    BY    LADY    CHARLOTTE   ABROAD  3O2 

(The  Countess  of  BessborougK s  Collection.} 

FOUR    PLATES    OF    ORIENTAL    PORCELAIN    DECORATED  TO   PLEASE    THE 

EUROPEAN  TASTE  320 

(Lord  Wimborne's  Collection.') 

A  PAIR  OF  CHINESE  VASES  WITH  COVERS  336 

Decorated  with  a  pale  pink  ground  enamelled  with  Flowers  in  Panels  and  with 
Asters  at  various  points.  The  trellissed  borders  are  of  green.  Typical  pieces  of 
the  Yung-Cheng  period.  (Lord  Wimborne's  Collection.} 

BATTERSEA  ENAMELS  338 

Three  examples  of  the  famous  Battersea  Enamels  in  the  collection  of  which  Lady 
Charlotte  and  Mr.  Charles  Schrieber  appear  to  have  had  the  greatest  good 
fortune.  ( The  Schreiber  Collection. } 

LARGE  COLLECTION  OF  Bow  FIGURES  344 

Showing  many  that  have  been  made  famous  by  recent  enormous  prices.  The  fine 
seated  Britannia  with  a  medallion  of  George  II  in  her  hand  was  one  of  the  greatest 
successes  of  the  Bow  Works  ;  many  of  the  other  lively  figures  were  found  by  Lady 
Charlotte  in  foreign  tours.  ( The  Schreiber  Collection. } 

EXAMPLES  OF  EARLY  SALT-GLAZE  348 

in  which  department  of  ware  Lady  Charlotte's  Collection  is  particularly  rich.  The 
statuettes  are  of  an  actor  and  actress  in  Asiatic  costume  of  brilliant  colours.  The 
model  of  the  male  figure  also  appears  in  Bow  China.  The  Milk-Jug  and  Cover 
are  characteristic  early  examples.  The  Cornucopia  as  a  wall  vase  is  one  of  a  pair 
decorated  with  an  elaborate  landscape,  building,  and  animals.  The  design  was 
also  used  at  Bow.  (The  Schreiber  Collection.} 

FREDERIC  THE  GREAT  ON  HORSE-BACK  DURING  WAR  362 

This  Statuette  was  made  in  the  Royal  Factory  at  Berlin  in  the  Bisque  China  once 
so  popular  at  Sevres.  (Lord  Wimborne  s  Collection.} 

PART  OF  A  SET  OF  ANTIQUE  CHINESE  PORCELAIN  374 

Showing  Tea-poy,  Teapot,  and  Milk-jug ;  the  latter  vessel  places  the  set  in  the 
XVIII  Century,  when  milk  was  first  used  with  tea.  A  ruby  ground  is  richly 
decorated  with  scroll-shaped  reserves  on  which  are  painted  landscape  and  river 
scenes.  (Lord  Wimborne's  Collection.} 

BATTERSEA  ENAMELS  376 

i  and  2.  A  Pair  of  Circular  Salt-cellars  of  delicate  workmanship  and  decoration. 
3.  Metal  Mounted  Etui  of  Pink  Battersea  Enamel  with  landscapes  in  reserves. 
"4.  Telescope  and  Etui  combined,  beautifully  made  and  fitted.  Pink  Battersea 
Enamel  with  views  and  gold  decoration.  5.  Egg-shaped  Thimble-case  of  Pink 
Battersea  Enamel  with  floral  decorations.  (The  Countess  of  Bessborough's 
Collection.} 

A  CURIOUS  COLLECTION  OF  FIGURES  HOLDING  BOWLS,  ETC.  400 

Considered  by  Lady  Charlotte  to  be  of  early  Lambeth  Ware.  (The  Countess  of 
BessborougKs  Collection.} 

SPECIMENS  OF  CHINESE  PLATES  416 

Above.— A  beautifully  decorated  Egg-shell  Plate  :  the  design  in  Enamels  shows 
Ladies  and  Children  watching  Rabbits.  Below.— Part  of  a  Set  of  Enamelled 
Yung-Ch6ng  Plates  with  ruby  backs.  The  design  shows  a  Mandarin's  Palace  and 
Horses  and  Riders  in  the  foreground.  (Lord  Wimborne's  Collection.} 

i  xxxix  d 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 

To/ace 
page 
A     CURIOUS      AND       CHARACTERISTIC      EARLY     XVIII       CENTURY       SPANISH 

CABINET  OF  EBONY  INLAID  WITH  TORTOISE-SHELL  432 

Purchased  by  Lady  Charlotte  when  travelling  in  Spain,  now  filled  with  a 
collection  of  Salt-glaze  Ware,  also  from  her  Collection.  (  The  Countess  of  Bess- 
borough's  Collection. ) 

RARE  PRINTED  BATTERSEA  PORTRAIT  PLAQUE  IN  RED  OF  CHARLES  EDWARD 

STUART,  THE  YOUNG  PRETENDER  436 

On  the  back  is  a  note  in  the  hand  of  Beckford  to  the  effect  that  this  is  Prince 
Charles  in  the  dress  of  Betty  Burke,  a  maidservant  of  Flora  Macdonald,  in  which 
he  made  his  escape  after  Culloden,  1746.  There  is  another  example  in  the 
Museum  at  The  Hague  and  an  engraving  at  the  British  Museum.  ( The  Sckreiber 
Collection. ) 

OLD  WHITE  DRESDEN  (MEISSEN)  VASES  456 

Showing  Neo-Classic  Modelling  and  the  delicate  applied  Flower-work.  The 
cover  of  each  Vase  is  pierced,  suggesting  that  the  pieces  were  used  for  burning 
scented  preparations.  (Lord  Wimborne's  Collection.) 

EARLY  DRESDEN  FIGURE  AND  PAIR  OF  CANDLESTICKS  464 

The  latter  elaborately  mounted  in  Ormolu  of  the  time  of  Louis  XV.  The  figure 
is  an  uncommon  and  perfect  one.  ( The  Countess  of  Bessborough' s  Collection. ) 

CHOCOLATE  CUP  WITH  TWO  HANDLES,  ON  A  STAND  OF  A  PATTERN  SOME- 
TIMES CALLED  TREMBLEUSE  472 
The  decoration  is  painted  over  glaze  in  black,  there  is  also  some  gold  ornament. 
Various  authorities  have  considered  the  piece  to  be  either  Bristol  or  Worcester. 
The  Annotator  considers  it  to  be  Meissen  of  the  Middle  XVIII  Century.  (The 
Countess  of  Bessborough' s  Collection.} 

ONE  OF  A  PAIR  OF  KYLINS  FORMING  TEAPOTS  488 

Decorated  in  Famine  Verte  on  a  red  vermiculated  ground.  Early  Kang-he, 
1662-1722.  (Lord  Wimborne's  Collection.} 

AN  UNUSUAL  USE  OF  BOTH  WORCESTER  AND  CHELSEA  PORCELAINS  500 

The  Sweetmeat  Dishes  are  of  Worcester.  The  group  of  brilliantly  coloured 
negroes  and  negresses  are  of  Chelsea.  (Lord  Wimborne's  Collection.} 


xl 


LADY  CHARLOTTE   SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS 


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LADY    CHARLOTTE 

SCHREIBER'S    JOURNALS 

NOTES  CERAMIC 

MAY  TO  SEPTEMBER  1869 

AMIENS  :    REIMS  :    LAUSANNE :    GENEVA  :     BAVENO  :     COMO  : 

MILAN  :  TURIN  :   PISA  :   FLORENCE 
1869. 

MAY  4th.  We  left  by  the  tidal  service  from  London.  Start- 
ing at  I J  P.M.  -  Slept  at  Amiens. 

May  5th.  Visited  Cathedral.  Went  to  the  curiosity  shop, 
Passage  de  la  Come'die ;  nothing  but  faience  and  old  furniture. 
Figure  of  Locke  in  Staffordshire  ware.  No  other  shop,  no 
purchases.  Went  on  to  Laon  (by  Tergnier)  and  slept  there. 
Long  walk  till  after  dusk,  visiting  the  Cathedral,  St.  Martin, 
and  round  by  the  Boulevards,  very  charming. 

May  6th.  Before  breakfast  to  Reims ;  Cathedral,  and 
drive  round  the  town  to  St.  Remi,  and  the  Roman  Arch.  Only 
one  curiosity  shop  (C.  Nathan,  Rue  Talleyrand).  Nothing 
of  the  slightest  interest.  One  small  Derby  group,  exorbi- 
tantly dear.  No  purchases.  We  found  out  an  old  amateur, 
M.  Oudart,  a  dentist,  I  Rue  Colbert,  who  showed  us  a  good 
collection  of  old  watches.  He  had  a  Freemason's  box  of 
Battersea  enamel,  black  transfer-printing,  date  1764,  in  very 
id  condition.  He  would  have  parted  with  it,  but  it  was  too 
iuch  broken  for  us  to  buy.  Slept  at  Reims. 

May  7th.  Left  Reims  after  10.  Long  stay  at  Chaumont, 
rery  pretty  town,  fine  Cathedral,  or  Church,  and  delightful 
walk  round  the  promenades  publiques.  Slept  at  Gray. 

May  8th.  Left  the  small  but  picturesque  town  Gray  before 
I  i  A 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1869 
6,  by  Dole,  Mouchard,  Pontarlier  to  Neuchatel.  No  "  Anti- 
quities." To  Lausanne,  Hotel  Gibbon,  arriving  at  6.30  P.M. 

May  Qth.  Sunday.  English  Church.  Drive  to  the  Signal. 
Have  hopes  from  the  curiosity  shop. 

May  loth.  Early  visit  to  Mme.  Band,  very  good  shop. 
Found  6  coffee  cups,  salmon  scale  Worcester,  painted  in 
birds  ;  and  a  jug  with  mark,  painted  in  bouquets,  bistre, 
yellow  and  gold,  and  with  curious  mark  in  gold  over  a  mark 
in  blue.  Bought  these  for  £2.  and  £i.  12.  respectively. 
She  had  some  Staffordshire  cups  of  little  value  for  which  she 
asked  a  high  price,  and  a  little  Battersea  enamel,  imperfect  ; 
a  very  fine  service  of  Nyon,  dinner  and  dessert,  price  about 
£90,  and  other  good  things,  furniture  and  some  old  pictures. 
By  steamer  to  Geneva.  Visited  2  large  curiosity  shops  on 
the  Quay,  and  3  smaller  ones,  only  small  broken  Bow  figure, 
T°  on  one  of  them  for  which  they  asked  £i.  and  an 
unimportant  little  Worcester  milk  jug.  [«T°"  is  supposed 
to  have  been  the  mark  of  a  French  modeller,  who  produced 
some  charming  Bristol  figures ;  he  is  called  Tebo  by  most 
writers  on  ceramics.  Mr.  Solon,  however,  in  his  work  on 
porcelain,  doubts  his  identity  to  some  extent.] 

All  the  shops  very  badly  furnished  in  every  way ;  no 
purchases  ;  returned  by  rail. 

May  nth.  Called  at  Mme.  Band's  early,  bought  small 
green  Battersea  cup,  pretty  perfect,  5/-.  To  Berne  and  back, 
only  one  regular  curiosity  shop,  Woag,  full  of  modern  things, 
dear  and  bad.  One  or  two  pieces  of  Battersea  enamel,  £tui, 
pretty  good,  but  ridiculously  dear.  No  purchases.  Found  a 
small  "antiquaire  "  print  shop,  Mme.  Janitsch,  227  Rue  des 
Chaudronniers,  where  we  bought  13  coloured  engravings  of 
English  views,  published  by  Robert  Sayer,  2/6,  two  prints 
transferred  to  glass,  by  the  latter,  framed,  4/6,  and  a  cream- 
ware  basket- work  plate  marked  Neale,  I/-  Searched  2  other 

2 


i86g  NOTES  CERAMIC 

small  dealers,  no  results,  one  had  3  enamel  wardrobe 
pegs,  unimportant,  for  which  he  wanted  a  large  price.  Got 
back  to  Lausanne  at  10  o'clock.  Again  to  Mme.  Band's, 
gave  her  instructions  to  send  to  England  for  us  two  old  pic- 
tures in  good  frames,  price  £12.  While  with  her  Mr.  Band 
came  in,  showed  us  a  beautiful  green  Worcester  mug,  painted 
in  birds  and  gilt,  which  we  bought  at  £i.  12.  He  told  us  he 
expected  to  get  a  whole  tea-service  matching  the  6  cups  we 
bought  yesterday,  and  which  belonged  to  an  old  English  lady 
here,  viz.  12  tea-cups  and  saucers,  12  coffee,  6  chocolate,  tea- 
pot, plate,  bowl,  butter  stand,  and  sucrier.  He  promised  if  he 
got  it  to  give  us  the  refusal  of  it,  as  also  any  other  English 
china  he  might  obtain.  He  may  be  valuable  to  us,  as  an 
important  and  intelligent  man.  To  the  Hotel  at  midnight. 

May  I2th.  At  6,  by  train  to  Sierre,  beautiful  line,  by 
diligence  to  Brieg,  arriving  at  half-past  4.  One  antiquaire, 
"  Brindlen,  Pierre ",  nothing  but  old  arms  and  old  relics  of 
the  Canton  de  Valois,  no  purchases.  Slept  at  Brieg. 

May  I3th.  Up  at  3  o'clock.  By  Diligence  at  5  A.M.  Over 
the  Simplon,  glorious  weather.  No  antiquaires  at  Domo 
d'Ossola.  Reached  Baveno  about  7.  Slept  there.  Hotel 
Baveno. 

May  I4th.  Remained  at  Baveno.  On  the  Lake  to  the 
Islands.  Rowed  to  Pallanza  and  nearly  to  Intra.  No 
ceramics  hereabout.  Nothing  of  much  interest  inside  the 
Palazzo  Borromeo.  Saw  by  the  Times  that  Monty  [Guest] 
was  elected  for  Youghal. 

May  I5th.  Left  Baveno  by  steamboat  for  Luino,  intend- 
ing to  go  to  Lugano,  stopped  by  finding  that  a  bridge  had 
been  broken  down  on  the  way,  so  proceeded  by  vetturino  to 
Varese  (where  we  sought  in  vain  for  anything  old)  and  thence 
to  Como,  glorious  scenery.  Slept  at  Como. 

May  i6th.  Sunday*  Steamer  at  8,  bringing  us  to 

3 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1869 
Bellaggio  at  10.  o'clock.  English  service  there.  Afternoon 
rowed  on  the  Lake,  returned  at  4.30.  by  steamer  arriving  at 
Como  at  7. 

May  I7th.  Walk  in  and  about  Como  and  the  fine  Duomo. 
No  ceramics.  Came  on  in  the  afternoon  to  Milan.  Brus- 
chetti's  Hotel.  Jour  de  Fete,  no  shops  open.  Drove  on  Corso. 

May  i8th.  Had  a  regular  hunt  among  some  12  to  15  old 
shops,  first  on  foot  with  a  guide,  afterwards  with  a  carriage. 
Found  even  the  best  of  them  very  poorly  supplied  with  goods 
of  any  description.  They  were  chiefly  filled  with  faience,  and 
indifferent  furniture.  In  one  shop  (Corti,  Via  tre  Alberghi) 
was  a  small  Derby  statuette  of  Neptune  with  his  shell-work 
in  good  order.  He  asked  £8  and  would  not  go  below  £7. 
It  may  have  been  worth  £3,  of  course  we  left  it.  The  only 
other  place  where  we  saw  any  other  English  goods  was  at 
Gabrielli's,  Via  Larga.  There  we  found  7  cups,  8  saucers, 
milk  jug,  and  cover,  and  very  fine  coffee  pot  and  cover, 
Cream  ware,  printed  in  red  with  birds,  marked  Wedgwood. 
Altogether  very  good.  They  asked  near  £3.  In  the  after- 
noon visited  the  Brera,  and  fell  in  love  with  a  Luini,  Virgin 
and  Child,  with  trellis  of  flowers  in  the  background.  In  the 
evening  went  to  the  Cathedral,  then  drove  to  the  Corso,  the 
Arc  de  Triomphe,  and  military  parade  ground.  Back  at 
dusk.  (One  or  two  little  bits  of  enamel  we  saw  in  our  chasse 
in  the  morning  were  in  very  bad  order,  and  like  everything 
else,  frightfully  dear.  No  purchases.) 

May  igth.  By  intervention  of  Bruschetti,  acquired  the 
Wedgwood  we  had  seen  at  Gabrielli's  for  £2.  8.  Visited 
Cathedral.  (Fine  work  in  the  treasury  of  St.  Ambrogio 
there.)  Churches  of  St.  Ambrogio  and  Santa  Maria  delle 
Grazie.  In  one  of  the  side  chapels  to  the  right  on  entering 
(I  think  the  4th)  is  a  beautiful  pavement  composed  of 
tiles  which  appeared  to  be  a  combination  of  Terra  Cotta  with 

4 


A    MINIATURE    CABINET    ON    CHEST    FILLED    WITH    TOY    EXAMl'I.KS    OK 
EARLY   XVIIITH   CENTURY   WARE 

The  Countess  ofBessborouglis  Collection 


i869  NOTES  CERAMIC 

patterns  of  blue  enamel.  (Much  struck  with  the  Terra  Cotta 
ornamentation  of  houses  here,  especially  the  Palazzo  Gianni 
recently  done,  and  in  the  course  of  the  afternoon  went  to 
Boni's  Terra  Cotta  works,  8  Alle  Tre  Porte,  Fuori  P.  Gari- 
baldi). At  the  Maria  delle  Grazie  visited  Leonardo  da 
Vinci's  Cenacolo.  The  Roman  Columns  of  S.  Lorenzo. 
After  dinner  long  drive  from  the  Corso  round  the  Boulevards. 

May  2Oth.  Left  at  10.  Stopped  at  Vercelli  from  half-past 
12  to  7.  Not  one  shop  for  antiquities.  Met  with  a  cabinet 
maker,  "  Leblis  &  Levi",  who  took  pains  to  find  out  some 
china  for  us,  but  in  vain.  They  took  us  to  see  a  small  collec- 
tion belonging  to  the  Messrs.  Broglie,  lawyers  in  the  town. 
They  had  but  little,  very  polite,  would  have  sold  a  good 
service  of  old  Ginori,  but  put  too  high  a  price  on  it  (£40). 
It  had  views  and  was  of  the  mineral  date,  of  no  interest  to  us. 
Listened  to  the  soldiers  practise  in  the  Boulevards  near  their 
barracks.  Visited  San  Cristoforo  (fine  frescoes  of  Gau- 
denzio  Ferrari),  S.  Andrea,  and  the  Duomo,  over  which  we 
were  shown  by  an  old  man  who  joined  himself  to  us  in  the 
Boulevards  and  who  described  himself  as  having  kept  the  last 
curiosity  shop  in  the  place  which  he  gave  up  some  months 
ago.  Came  on  to  Turin.  Hotel  Trombetta. 

May  2ist.  Visited  8  or  9  curiosity  shops.  Very  little  to 
be  seen  in  any  of  them  and  that  little  extravagantly  dear. 
Samson,  Via  San  Filippo,  has  a  very  fine  pair  of  Battersea 
enamel  candlesticks,  large  size,  of  unusual  form,  and  in  good 
order,  but  he  asks  £20  for  them  which  is  absurd  !  Gherardo, 
Via  San  Teresa,  had  two  fine  (unmarked)  Wedgwood 
tureens,  ornamented  with  shells.  Queen's  ware  uncoloured. 
He  asked  about  £2,  and  they  were  worth  it,  but  were  too 
cumbrous  to  transport.  Gherardo  was  very  civil,  took  us  to 
other  shops,  and  sent  us  to  see  the  private  collection  of 
General  della  Chiesa,  No.  13  Piano  3°3O  Via  Providenza,  with 

5 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1869 

which  we  were  much  interested.  The  General  received  us 
very  courteously  and  showed  us  his  things  which  fill  two  or 
three  rooms,  and  are  very  well  arranged.  He  has  especially 
collected  specimens  of  Turin  china  (Vinovo)  of  which  he 
appears  to  have  resuscitated  the  recollection,  and  he  has  some 
very  good  pieces,  especially  the  figures.  This  Vinovo  fabric 
seems  the  great  ambition  of  the  Turin  antiquaires,  and  in  the 
shops  they  all  strive  to  show  some  of  it,  just  as  in  Switzer- 
land they  aspire  mainly  to  "  Nyon."  Neither  fabric  is  very 
rich  or  original,  but  rather  pretty  and  neat,  and  in  imitation 
of  Sevres.  In  Turin  they  do  not  scruple  to  put  on  marks 
in  a  very  superficial  manner.  Alloatti  (a  sort  of  private 
dealer,  who  seems  the  chief  man  ;  Via  Ficenza)  offered  us  a 
Vinovo  pedestal  with  the  correct  mark  in  blue,  but  beneath  it 
the  good  old  D.V.  of  Mennecy  stamped  in  the  paste,  which  had 
doubtless  escaped  the  observation  of  the  modern  who  had  put 
on  the  mark  of  Turin  !  At  Doctor  Michele's  the  Venice  anchor 
had  been  unscrupulously  painted  at  the  bottom  of  some  of 
his  goods.  We  saw  two  or  three  very  bad  and  imperfect 
specimens  of  enamel  in  one  or  two  shops,  at  ridiculous  prices. 
No  purchases.  Went  to  the  Museum  (Via  Gaudenzio 
Ferrari)  to  see  the  small  collection  of  Turin  china  kept 
there.  Some  of  the  pieces  I  should  doubt,  especially  as 
Alloatti  told  us  he  had  furnished  most  of  the  specimens 
arranged  there.  After  our  ceramic  chasse,  visited  the  Gallery 
of  pictures  and  drove  about. 

May  22nd.  Left  Turin  at  7,  and  reached  Genoa  soon  after 
12.  Only  7  or  8  shops  for  antiquities  and  they  are  very,  very 
bad.  Isaac  Tedesche  (a  furniture  shop  in  the  Via  Orefice) 
had  two  pretty  specimens  of  Battersea  enamel,  one  a  green 
etui,  the  other  a  snuff  box.  They  are  upwards  of  £3.  3. 
apiece.  Too  dear.  In  another  small  shop  we  saw  one  or  two 
Viennese  dishes.  No  purchases.  The  thing  in  our  line 

6 


EXAMPLES    OF  JOSHUA  WEDGWOOD'S    POPULAR    QUEEN'S  WARE  WITH    PAINTED 

DECORATIONS    AND     PRINTED    ORNAMENTS,     MANY    OF    WHICH    WERE     ADDED 

LATER    BY    THE    FAMOUS-  FIRM    OF    SAD1.EK    AND    GREEN    OF    LIVERPOOL 

The  Schreiber  Collection 


i869  NOTES  CERAMIC 

which  has  interested  me  most  here  is  a  magnificent  display  of 
old  blue  and  white  vases,  for  drugs,  of  the  old  Genoa  Ware, 
which  decorate  a  chemist's  shop  and  which  we  went  in  and 
examined.  The  address  is  "  Farmacia  De  Negri,  Genova  in 
Seziglia ".  The  owner  told  us  these  things  had  been  trans- 
mitted to  him  through  several  generations,  having  originally 
belonged  to  a  chemist  of  the  family  of  Papagrande,  the  tracery 
on  some  of  them  is  beautiful  and  the  whole  effect  extremely 
good.  As  in  Turin  "  Vinovo  ",  and  in  Switzerland  "  Nyon  ", 
so  in  Genoa  the  prevailing  would  seem  to  be  "  Savona  ".  At 
a  dilettante  shoemaker's  in  the  Via  Carlo  Felici,  Paladini  by 
name,  we  were  shown  some  Queen's  ware  cups  very  coarsely 
painted  in  red  landscapes.  On  two  of  these  the  name  of 
Jacques  Boselly  had  been  supplied,  and  we  were  assured 
they  were  specimens  of  "  Savona "  although  two  others 
of  the  set  had  the  name  "Wedgwood"  impressed  in 
the  glaze.  I  confess  the  English  name  was  rather  faint 
so  that  the  ingenious  foreigner  might  be  excused  from 
expecting  that  it  would  escape  ordinary  inspection,  but  the 
mark  was  quite  strong  enough  to  be  quite  clear  to  any  one 
initiated. 

May  24th.  Visited  Palazzi  Balbi,  Reale,  Durazzo,  Brig- 
nole,  Pisa.  Two  shops  at  Pisa,  but  nothing  in  them. 

May  27th.  Florence.  Corpus  Domini ;  no  shops  or 
museums  open.  Looked  at  Mr.  Spence's  collection  at 
Palazzo  Georgini,  then  went  to  his  Villa  at  Fiesole,  where  we 
dined  and  spent  the  evening.  [In  the  autobiography  of  Sir 
Henry  Layard  this  gentleman  is  mentioned  as  being  the  son 
of  Dr.  Spence,  the  author,  in  conjunction  with  Kirby,  of  a 
well-known  work  on  Entomology.] 

May  28th.  Went  out  with  Mr.  Spence.  Visited  a  great 
many  curiosity  shops.  Found  very  little  in  them  to  our  taste. 
A  great  quantity  of  earthenware  (qy.  if  to  be  trusted),  modern 

7 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1869 

Capo  di  Monte,  and  pictures.  Our  only  purchases  were, 
enamel  box  with  subject  printed  and  coloured,  i6/- ;  small 
printed  plaque,  good,  4/- ;  two  small  enamel  buttons 
painted  with  a  vase,  4/- ;  Elers  ware  teapot  with  effigies  of 
King  and  Queen,  in  relief  and  letters  G.R.  (qy.  George  I. 
or  II.),  8/-.  The  only  other  English  goods  we  saw  were 
some  indifferent  pieces  of  Wedgwood,  chiefly  modern,  and  a 
white  and  gold  dessert  basket,  Worcester  (matching  the  pair 
we  bought  of  Wharton  for  £2.  10.)  considered  by  Gagliardi  to 
be  Capo  di  Monte,  and  priced  by  him  at  £5.  Also  at  Ribli's 
shop  an  unimportant  little  Derby  group.  At  the  shop  of 
Capello  (San  Spirito)  saw  a  magnificent  work  of  Luca  della 
Robbia,  being  a  life  size  representation  of  Adam  and  Eve  and 
the  tempter,  forming  the  back  of  a  bed  or  sideboard.  It 
resembles  the  sculpture  in  marble  in  the  North  transept  at 
Pisa,  a  grand  work.  They  say  Colnaghi  bought  it  for  a 
£1000,  but  the  Government  prevented  it  being  sent  out  of 
the  country. 

May  ZQth.  More  shops  to-day,  without  result.  Mr.  Spence 
took  us  to  see  the  Art  collection  at  the  Bargello,  where  are 
some  pieces  of  furniture  of  his,  on  loan,  and  fine  Majolica,  &c. 
Found  Mr.  Sloane  at  his  Palace,  and  joined  him  in  the 
evening  at  his  Villa  Careggio,  formerly  belonging  to  the 
Medici.  Two  charming  hours.  [Mr.  Sloane  was  at  one 
time  tutor  to  the  family  of  Count  Bourtolin.  Later  in  life 
he  became  a  rich  man.  He  died  at  the  Medicean  Villa  about 

1875-] 

May  30th.  Not  out  till  evening.  To  Mr.  Spence's  Villa. 
Gordigiani  (painter),  Prati  (poet),  Holman  Hunt  and  others 
there. 

May  3ist.  Accompanied  Mr.  Spence  Junr.  to  several 
shops,  and  to  the  Uffizi. 


i86g  NOTES  CERAMIC 

JUNE  1869 

FLORENCE:  BOLOGNA:  RAVENNA:  FERRARA :  VENICE: 
MURANO 

June  1st.  Went  with  Mr.  Spence  and  his  son  to  see  the 
Demidoff  Villa.  Very  fine  Sevres  vases,  and  turquoise 
dessert  set  which  had  belonged  to  the  Prince  de  Rohan. 

June  2nd.  At  the  banker's.  To  the  Uffizi  and  the  Pitti. 
To  Palazzo  Gingini  to  meet  Mrs.  Spence.  Agreed  to  buy 
five  pictures  which  Mr.  Spence  had  had  left  with  him  for  sale, 
viz.  small  portrait  of  a  little  girl  by  Alessandri  di  Verona, 
£14.  8.  Portrait  of  Cosimo  the  3rd  of  Tuscany,  as  a  boy,  by 
Sustermans,  he  wears  the  cross  of  the  order  of  St.  Stephen, 
instituted  by  Cosimo  I.,  £10.  16.  Portrait  of  a  man  by 
Rubens,  painted  at  Genoa,  of  which  also  the  engraving, 
£27.  St.  Bruno,  by  Domenichino  (from  the  collection  of 
Cav.  Fineschi,  a  famous  collector,  connoisseur,  and  restorer 
of  pictures,  who  died  about  30  years  ago)  £63.  Total, 
£142.  4.  viz.  £158  less  10  per  cent.  To  this  is  to  be  added 
£7.  16.  for  which  sum  Mr.  Spence  undertakes  carriage  and  in- 
surance to  England.  Full  total,  £150.  Drove  with  Mrs.  Spence. 
Afterwards  we  called  on  Mrs.  Layard's  friend,  Mile.  Caroline 
Sorelli,  at  the  Bourtolin  Palace.  [Mrs.  H.  P.  J.  Layard,  nde 
Austin,  was  the  mother  of  Sir  Henry  Layard,  the  well-known 
diplomat  and  connoisseur,  and  discoverer  of  Nineveh,  who 
married  Lady  Charlotte  Schreiber's  third  daughter,  Enid.] 

June  3rd.  Went  to  the  Belle  Arti  Collection  of  Medi- 
seval  pictures  with  Mr.  Spence  and  his  son.  Afterwards, 
with  the  latter  to  Santa  Croce.  Left  Florence  at  4- 
During  our  short  stay  we  ransacked  all  the  shops  we  could 
find  for  English  china,  with  no  success,  with  the  small 
exceptions  above  mentioned.  We  bought  one  teapot  of  old 
Ginori  with  figures,  well  painted  in  lilac,  for  4/-.  We  tried 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1869 

to  find  a  pretty  present  for  Blanche  (Guest),  but  failed.  The 
national  jewellery,  of  which  Marchesini,  on  the  Ponte 
Vecchio,  had  much,  is  of  an  unsubstantial  flimsy  character, 
and  they  ask  large  prices  for  it.  Young  Spence  took  us  to 
see  one  or  two  private  collections  of  pictures  and  porcelain, 
for  sale.  Of  these  the  best  was  that  of  Dr.  Guasdella,  Piazza 
della  Independenza,  who  has  some  good  specimens  of  Italian 
china  and  earthenware.  Signer  Corsi,  Via  Valfondo,  has 
chiefly  pictures.  Dr.  Foresi,  who  discovered  the  Florentine 
(Duomo)  china,  was  unfortunately  from  home.  We  called 
twice  in  hopes  of  seeing  him.  His  wife  showed  us  a  piece  of 
the  china,  without  the  Duomo  mark,  but  with  the  word  PROVA 
underneath.  She  gave  me  his  pamphlet  on  the  subject.  Mr. 
Spence  had  a  notion  that  a  member  of  the  Guacciardini 
family  once  possessed  a  fan-shaped  toilet  box  made  of  Chelsea 
china,  with  smaller  boxes  inside,  we  failed  to  trace  its  exist- 
ence ;  but  from  what  I  can  make  out  I  think  it  must  be  one 
which  for  the  last  two  years  I  have  admired  in  Joseph's  shop 
in  Bond  Street.  English  china  seems  unknown  at  Florence. 
Yet  I  am  aware  that  five  fine  figures  (of  Apollo  and  the 
Muses)  with  pedestals  of  most  exquisite  Chelsea  came  from 
Florence  not  long  ago.  We  missed  them  last  year  at 
Solomon's,  in  Baker  Street,  whence  they  went  to  Nixon  and 
Rhodes,  who  asked  high  prices  for  them.  So  much  for  our 
ceramic  experience. 

June  4th.  Bologna.  Hunted  the  few  curiosity  shops  here, 
and  found  nothing.  Visited  Minghetti's  shop  or  Galerie,  as 
they  call  it,  where  we  saw  his  imitations  of  Majolica  and  all 
the  ancient  Faiences,  a  very  useful  lesson.  Went  to  the 
Palazzo  Hercolani,  which  is  to  be  sold.  There  was  nothing 
English,  some  fine  Oriental  vases,  and  some  Dresden,  prob- 
ably not  very  old.  The  way  the  sale  is  managed  is  as 
follows — A  catalogue  is  made  and  each  article  numbered. 

10 


i869  NOTES  CERAMIC 

On  a  certain  day  (the  first  of  July  in  this  case)  prices  are 
affixed  to  the  articles,  you  are  invited,  while  the  collection  is 
on  view,  to  bespeak  the  refusal  of  any  of  the  articles,  which 
you  thus  secure  at  the  price  assigned  to  them  on  the  day  of 
sale,  with  power  of  rejection  if  you  consider  the  price  too 
high.  We  signed  for  a  pair  of  very  fine  Oriental  vases,  3  feet 
high  (No.  182),  a  set  of  Buen  Retire  white  (moulded)  china, 
all  marked,  viz.  3  jugs  and  covers  with  finely  twisted  handles 
(one  cracked),  2  Moutardiers  and  covers  with  stands,  I  plain 
pot  and  cover,  with  flowers  embossed ;  this  lot  of  6  objects 
(No.  84).  Dresden  ecuelle,  cover  and  stand,  with  enamelled 
embossed  flowers  (No.  79).  Figure  of  a  man  in  white  porce- 
lain, "Wood  carrier",  badly  broken,  marked  Buen  Retiro 
(No.  86).  The  porter,  Bettramini  Pietro,  took  the  number 
of  the  lots,  and  is,  on  the  1st  of  July,  to  let  us  know  at  what 
figure  they  are  priced  in  the  list  of  sale,  awaiting  our  reply. 
There  was  a  fine  set  of  5  Oriental  vases,  enamelled  highly 
with  fine  red  borders.  But  we  thought  they  would  go  beyond 
our  limits,  besides  they  were  not  of  such  high  quality  as 
those  for  which  we  signed,  Lot  182. 

June  5th.  Up  at  4.  By  6  in  the  train  for  Ravenna.  We 
took  letters  to  curator  of  the  Mosaics  and  public  buildings 
there,  who  is  a  Mosaicist  himself.  Found  him  copying 
the  mosaic  of  the  Good  Shepherd  from  the  Mausoleum  of 
Galla  Placidia,  for  the  South  Kensington  Museum.  He 
took  us  to  all  the  chief  objects  of  interest,  viz.  S.  Apollinare 
Nuovo,  S.  Maria  in  Cosmedin,  San  Vitale,  the  Duomo  and  its 
Baptistery,  the  tomb  of  Galla  Placidia.  Thence,  passing  by 
the  house  formerly  resided  in  by  Lord  Byron,  and  the 
Church  where  Dante  is  buried,  to  the  Mausoleum  of 
Theodoric  outside  the  walls,  a  wonderful  spot,  with  a  beautiful 
grass  avenue  leading  to  it.  Water  standing  in  the  lower 
part  of  the  building.  After  luncheon  at  the  Hotel  San  Marco, 

11 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1869 

M.  Ribel  went  with  us  to  S.  Apollinare,  and  thence  to  the 
delicious  Pineta.  Theodoric's  Sarcophagus  was  removed 
from  his  tomb  and  is  now  built  into  the  wall  of  the  building 
which  goes  by  the  name  of  Theodoric's  Palace,  near  the 
Apollinare  Nuovo.  Nothing  in  the  way  of  china,  at 
Ravenna,  no  "  antiquaire  "  shops. 

June  6th.  Strolled  about,  visited  again  the  Academy.  In 
the  evening  went  to  the  Campo  Santo,  and  there  made  the 
tour  of  the  town  outside  the  gates.  While  at  Bologna,  bought 
for  Blanche  an  old  silver  cross  and  ornament,  of  Coltello,  Via 
del  Ospedale,  £5. 

June  7th.  Up  at  3  o'clock,  off  to  Ferrara  at  6,  arriving 
about  half-past  7.  Spent  there  above  4  hours.  Visited  the 
Castle  and  its  dungeons ;  Dosso  Dossi's  ceiling  in  the  Sala 
dei  Giganti  might,  with  many  modifications,  give  ideas  for 
decorating  the  ceiling  of  the  Canford  drawing-room  ;  Tasso's 
prison,  Ariosto's  house,  the  Cathedral,  one  curiosity  shop, 
"  Mello  "  in  the  Ghetto,  but  containing  nothing  of  our  sort. 
We  heard  there  was  china  in  the  Palazzo  Costabile,  and 
went  there,  but  after  waiting  some  time,  failed  to  get  into  the 
Gallery,  as  the  old  steward  could  not  manage  to  get  the  doors 
open.  It  was  from  this  Palace  that  Ivor  procured  some  of 
his  finest  pictures.  [This  is,  of  course,  the  first  Baron 
Wimborne,  the  eldest  son  of  Sir  John  Guest  and  Lady 
Charlotte.]  Left  Ferrara  about  12  ;  reached  Venice  after  4. 
Put  up  at  the  Pension  Suisse. 

June  I7th.  Have  been  in  Venice  ever  since  and  hope  to 
stay  another  10  days.  Spent  most  of  our  time  on  the 
water  and  in  hunting  the  curiosity  shops.  Most  of  these 
are  filled  with  fine  objects  (qy.  original)  but  out  of  our  line. 
We  have  made  on  the  whole  a  good  many  purchases, 
however ;  Guggenheim's  is  the  largest  shop.  With  him 
we  only  found  a  small  enamel  snuff  box  with  a  transfer 

12 


1869  NOTES  CERAMIC 

printing  of  a  girl,   in  black,    milking,  on  the    inside,  £i.  4. 
Richetti  is  the  next  largest  repository.     He  has  a  delightful 
service   of  Milanese   ware,    decorated   with   representations 
of  Harlequin  and  Columbine  :  for  the  whole  service  of  80  or 
90  pieces  he  asks  £60.     We  bought  5  dishes  of  the  service 
(2  of  them  marked)  for  £5.  5.     Oval  enamel,  with  Saviour 
on  the  Cross,   printed  in  black,   8/-.     Pink   enamel    double 
inkstand,  £1.     A  small  Persian  mug,  £i.  12.  and  a  pair  of 
fine    Venetian    soup  tureens   and    covers,    ornamented   with 
flowers    in    bold   relief  as   a   handle,    £7.       Of  all   this    lot 
amounting  to  £17,  only  the  2  objects  in  enamel  are  English. 
Next  in  order  of  importance  comes  the  shop  of  Favenza,  in 
course  of  moving  to  the  banks  of  the  Grand  Canal.     We 
found  some  fine  old  glass  with  him,  and  a  few  specimens  of 
fine  Venetian  china,  but  nothing  English,  except  3  enamels, 
and  here  again  we  have  been  tempted  out  of  our  line  to  the 
following   extent.       A   large   plaque   of   Smalto  glass,  with 
landscape    in    brown,    £8,    this    is   quite   equal    in   size   and 
decoration  to  the  framed  pieces  in  the  Correr  Collection.     It 
has  the  extra  merit  of  being  perfect,  whereas  two  out  of  the 
Correr  pieces  are  sadly  broken,  but  it  falls  short  of  them,  in 
that  the  Correr  pieces  are  decorated  with  views  in  Venice, 
and  ours  has  only  a  fancy  landscape,  but  very  good.     A  pair 
of  Smalto  glass  vases,    painted   with   amorini  in  pink,   £4. 
Also  resembling  a  vase  in  the  Correr,  though  of  a  different 
subject.     A  circular  plaque  in  Smalto  glass  with  representation 
of  San  Rocco,  done  in  red,  £l.  12.     A  pair  of  Trembleuses 
and  Stands,  ruby  glass,  with  white  Smalto  inside,  decorated 
with  red  and  gold  ornaments,  £7.     A  pair  of  Venetian  cups 
and  saucers  finely  painted  in  landscapes  and  figures,  £2.  8. 
Two  similar  cups  without  saucers,  £l.     Four  Venetian  cups, 
rude  painting,  four  of  them  marked,  £4. 10.     Eleven  plates  and 
12  soup  plates  Venetian,  marked,  with  wreathes  and  insects  in 

13 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS   1869 

centre,  £3.  14.  9.  Two  pictures  on  glass,  one  done  in  gold, 
the  other  in  silver,  signed  E.F.  one  has  the  arms  of  Cardinal 
Barberigo  upon  it,  £7.  A  small  unimportant  enamel  snuff 
box,  £i.  4.  A  snuff  box  in  the  form  of  a  bird,  £i.  10.  A 
small  female  head,  enamel,  black  transfer-printing,  1/3.  An 
Oriental  teapot,  gold  ground,  £i.  (matching  some  egg-shell 
cups  I  have  at  home).  This  completes  a  sum  of  £43.  All,  I 
believe,  well  spent.  As  to  the  glass,  we  got  Signer 
Montecchi,  the  Director  of  the  Salviati  Works,  to  come  and 
give  us  his  opinion  of  it.  He  considered  the  large  plaque 
very  fine  indeed,  as  also  the  Trembleuses,  which  are  of  a 
colour  very  difficult  to  execute  and  still  more  difficult  to  get 
to  stand.  He  pronounced  these  pieces  undoubtedly  old. 
About  the  Amorini  vases  he  seemed  rather  more  doubtful. 
It  ended  by  our  rejecting  Favenza's  2  glass  vases  with 
Amorini,  for  on  washing  them  we  found  the  colouring 
defective.  We  added,  however,  an  old'  metal  frame  and 
brought  the  lot,  in  settling  with  him,  down  to  £40.  We  also 
made  a  change  in  our  dealings  with  Ricchetti,  exchanging 
the  two  marked  Milan  dishes,  and  two  cups  and  saucers  for 
a  pair  of  Sucriers  and  stands  (the  latter  both  marked)  to 
which  we  added  a  Venetian  basket,  bringing  up  the  total 
paid  him  to  £19.  Another  dealer,  Rietti,  principally  sells 
figures  of  old  Faience  and  Majolica,  and  Luca  della  Robbia. 
He  has  secured  the  whole  make  of  the  Nove  works,  who 
turn  out  very  pretty  terraglia,  which  he  sells  as  old  Nove 
pottery,  and  he  has  a  quantity  of  Minghetti's  copies  of  the 
antique.  One  piece  of  very  fine  Nove  china  he  showed  us, 
viz.  :  an  Ecuelle,  cover  and  stand,  beautifully  painted  with 
subjects  in  panels.  He  wanted  400  francs  for  it.  I  think 
we  have  traced  that  it  must  have  come  direct  from  the 
proprietors  of  the  Nove  works;  it  is  marked  N.O.  in  the 
glaze.  At  Rietti's  we  found  a  number  of  old  knives  and 


i869  NOTES  CERAMIC 

forks.  Twisted  handles  of  turquoise  enamel,  and  silver, 
very  beautiful ;  but  of  the  lot  only  7  were  in  good  order. 
These  7  we  bought  for  £2.  2.  as  also  12  buttons  of  enamel 
with  hunting  subjects,  in  black  transfer-printing,  for  £i.  2t 
This  was  arranged  after  a  great  deal  of  bargaining,  more 
than  double  the  price  having  been  originally  asked  for  them. 
At  a  little  shop  on  the  Piazza  Sta.  Maria  dei  Frari,  we  found 
a  small  enamel  head,  1/6,  and  a  piece  of  Buen  Retiro 
exactly  matching  the  pot  and  cover  for  which  we  "signed" 
at  Bologna,  and  making  a  pair  with  it.  At  a  Librarian's 
named  Colbachini,  near  the  Belle  Arti,  we  got  a  pair  of  very 
good  Oriental  cups,  painted  with  cocks  for  io/-,  and  a  much 
broken  but  very  interesting  enamel  order  of  Frederic  the 
Great,  for  2/-.  There  is  an  officious,  meddling,  tiresome  old 
man  named  della  Rovere,  who  keeps  a  shop  with  very  little 
in  it  in  the  Palazzo  Berchtold,  from  him  we  got  4  printed 
Wedgwood  cups  and  saucers  like  the  Milan  set,  only  done  in 
black  transfer  instead  of  red,  i6/-  and  also  4  small  enamels 
of  seasons,  I2/-,  and  2  coloured  enamel  pegs,  4/-.  This  man 
took  us  over  the  part  of  the  Palace  in  which  Mme. 
Berchtold  herself  is  living.  She  is  a  natural  daughter  of 
old  Lord  Hertford's  by  Lady  Strachan.  It  is  a  tawdily 
furnished  uninteresting  house,  but  has  one  fine  hall  in  it  hung 
with  good  tapestry,  for  which  she  wants  some  £2000. 
Everything  in  the  house  is  for  sale,  but  the  prices  asked  are 
exorbitant.  He  also  sent  us  to  the  Palace  of  a  Count 
Albrizzi  where  also  what  little  remains  is  to  be  sold.  We 
looked  at  the  things  but  liked  nothing.  What  was  then  our 
surprise  when  the  Count's  servant  brought  all  his  china  to  us 
at  our  Hotel  in  the  evening  inviting  us  to  make  an  offer? 
Of  course  we  declined.  There  was  a  metal  cast  of  Briot's,  of 
a  large  dish.  This  we  rather  admired,  but  knowing  nothing 
of  this  branch  of  the  arts,  we  doubted  of  its  value.  To  our 

15 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS   1869 

disgust  della  Rovere  forthwith  wrote  off  to  Cortelazzo  at 
Vicenza  telling  him  we  wanted  to  consult  him  about  it,  and 
Cortelazzo  actually  came  to  Venice  to  see  us  on  the  l6th 
accordingly.  The  pertinacity  of  this  Count  Albrizzi,  who 
would  hardly  take  a  refusal  from  us,  was  very  amusing,  but 
we  did  not  buy  anything  from  him.  The  only  good  della 
Rovere  did  us  was  in  introducing  us  to  an  industrious  little 
dealer  called  Ruggieri,  living  near  the  Ponte  della  Piavola. 
We  paid  him  many  visits  and  got  a  few  things  from  him  on 
good  terms  for  us,  and  doubtless  for  him  also.  There  was  a 
small  Nove  milk  jug,  well  painted  with  buildings,  but 
imperfect,  8/-.  A  Nove  £cuelle,  cover  and  stand,  with  a  rose 
decorated  with  black  spots,  and  signed  with  the  star  in  gold, 
£2.  A  small  Venetian  vase,  purple  border,  and  bouquet  of 
flowers,  £l.  4.  A  pair  of  Nove  cups  and  saucers  (red  star) 
with  grotesque  figures,  I4/-.  One  of  the  oldest  established 
(I  should  think)  and  most  respectable  shops  in  Venice  is  kept 
by  an  old  man,  with  a  fine  venerable  countenance,  named  Len. 
He  is  giving  up  business  and  had  not  many  things  left.  It  is 
said  he  had  not  been  prosperous,  owing  to  his  having  refused 
to  fee  the  Laquais  de  Place,  but  this  is  hardly  credible.  From 
him  we  bought  a  dish,  matching  the  plates  we  got  from 
Favenza,  8/-,  and  a  pair  of  Battersea  enamel  candlesticks, 
exactly  like  those  we  saw  at  Samson's  at  Turin.  They  are  a 
good  bit  injured  in  the  sunk  part  near  the  base  (where,  how- 
ever, they  can  be  well  repaired  by  a  band  of  filigree  work)  and 
the  price  we  gave  for  them  was  only  £2.  Rather  a  different 
amount  from  that  asked  by  Samson !  but  his  were  perfect. 
An  amusing  incident  occurred  the  evening  before  we 
left  Venice.  Ruggieri  had  brought  us  some  broken  vases 
matching  the  one  we  bought  of  him,  and  a  very  good 
"Frederic  the  Great"  enamel  snuff  box  and  modern  enamel 
bracelet,  which  he  said  belonged  to  a  lady  in  distress  who 

16 


i869  NOTES  CERAMIC 

wanted  to  dispose  of  them.  The  price  he  wanted  for  the  snuff 
box  was  £6.  We  did  not  purchase,  but  in  hunting  about  the 
Spaderia,  on  the  evening  of  the  28th,  we  found  all  these 
things  at  the  shop  of  a  little  jeweller,  "Morchio",  Calle  Larga  S. 
Marco  659,  and  bought  the  Frederic  the  Great  box  for  £2. 16. 
On  the  same  occasion  we  found  a  small  teapot,  Venetian, 
imitating  Oriental,  in  a  rubbish  shop  in  the  Spaderia,  for 
which  we  paid  3/6.  This  exhausts  the  list  of  our  Venice 
purchases.  We  went  over  to  Murano  one  day  with  Signor 
Montecchi  to  see  the  glass  works  which  interested  us  much, 
and  took  the  opportunity  of  going  over  the  Museum  and 
temporary  Exhibition ;  the  former  of  which  contains  some 
fine  specimens  of  early  manufacture.  We  also  went  into  the 
Duomo,  now  undergoing  repair,  and  there  met  the  Cav. 
Abbate  Zanetti,  who  is  the  Director  of  the  Murano  Museum, 
and  with  whom  we  made  an  appointment  to  visit  the  Museum 
again  on  the  following  Monday,  the  2lst ;  on  that  occasion 
Zanetti  had  the  case  opened  for  us,  and  we  examined  carefully 
the  pieces  of  old  glass.  Next  morning  a  little  dealer,  into 
whose  shop  we  had  strolled  at  Murano,  came  over  to 
Venice  with  some  of  the  goods  we  had  looked  at.  They 
were  of  little  value,  but  more  from  charity  than  anything 
else  we  bought  of  him  4  old  Nove  ware  trays,  3/- ;  a  smaller 
one,  1/6,  and  an  earthenware  plate  with  blue  tracery,  2/6. 
On  a  later  day  he  came  over  again  bringing  2  glass 
bottles  with  the  arms  of  Murano  and  those  of  Miotto  done  in 
gold,  about  a  century  old.  These  we  bought  for  £i.  4.  In 
order  to  verify  this  "  Stemma  di  Miotti  "  he  showed  us  a 
circular  "seal"  of  Smalto  glass,  having  on  it  in  relief  the 
Miotto  insignia,  an  ape  holding  an  apple,  and  inscribed 
"Pusopo  Miotto,  Murano".  This,  he  said,  was  the  trade  mark 
put  by  the  Miotti  on  their  cases  of  manufactured  articles  when 
shipped.  He  was  very  unwilling  to  part  with  it,  and  for 

I  17  B 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1869 

a  long  time  refused  to  do  so,  saying  that  it  belonged  to  his 
brother  who  had  only  lent  it  to  him  to  show  us,  giving 
authority  for  the  decoration  of  the  bottles.  But  at  last  we 
persuaded  him  to  do  so,  mainly  by  telling  him  we  would  not 
buy  the  bottles  without  it,  and  so  we  ultimately  secured  it  for 
£l.  On  a  subsequent  visit  to  Murano  (25th)  we  showed  this 
seal  to  Zanetti,  who  was  quite  excited  at  our  having  obtained 
it,  considering  it  a  most  valuable  and  curious  specimen. 
There  is  a  similar  one  in  the  Murano  Museum  of  the  Barberis 
who  were  manufacturers  in  1793  at  the  Sign  of  "  Alle  Nave." 
This  seal  or  stamp  is  impressed,  "  F.B.  ALLA  NAVE 
BETTINA  "  (and  a  ship  with  2  masts  and  flag  at  the  stern.) 
The  date  of  our  Miotto  was  supposed  by  Zanetti  to  be  about 
1723-4.  I  have  now  enumerated  every  purchase.  As  I 
said  above,  our  object  was  rather  to  enjoy  and  benefit  by  the 
air  of  Venice  than  to  devote  ourselves  to  sight-seeing.  Let 
us  hope  to  become  better  acquainted  with  its  wondrous 
treasures  of  art  on  a  future  occasion.  Of  course  we  made 
frequent  visits  to  S.  Mark's  (where  I  think  I  got  some  ideas 
for  the  Canford  Hall)  and  to  the  Belle  Arti,  where  we  specially 
delighted  in  the  Older  Masters,  Bonifaccio,  Carpaccio,  Gentile 
Bellini.  Amusing  ourselves  by  the  study  of  the  room  containing 
the  pictures  of  the  two  latter,  C.S.  is  inclined  to  hope  that  the 
pictures  we  bought  of  Band  on  the  nth  of  May  may  turn  out 
to  be  one  or  the  other  of  them.  We  went  over  the  Ducal 
Palace,  saw  Sta.  Maria  della  Salute,  Sta.  Maria  dei  Frari,  Santi 
Giovanni  &  Paolo.  Some  delicious  pictures  of  the  legend  of 
St.  George  by  Carpaccio.  We  went  over  the  Pesaro  and 
Giovanelli  Palaces,  the  latter  done  up  in  gorgeous  modern 
taste,  and  paid  two  long  visits  to  the  Correr  Museum,  being 
on  the  second  occasion  (Wednesday,  June  25th)  accompanied 
by  one  of  the  Directors,  Sigr.  Urbani,  who  gave  us  much 
information,  and  caused  all  the  cases  to  be  opened  for  our 

18 


1869  NOTES  CERAMIC 

more  complete  examination  of  their  contents.  At  Venice  we 
became  acquainted  with  Sir  Robert  and  Lady  Arbuthnot, 
who  lent  us  Ruskin's  books,  and  took  us  to  see  some  glass  (a 
service,  not  very  old,  decorated  in  gold)  belonging  to  two  old 
bachelor  brothers,  the  Messrs  Malcolm,  who  have  been  in 
trade  many  years.  [Sir  Robert  was  the  2nd  Baronet,  born 
in  1801.  He  married  the  younger  daughter  of  Field  Marshal 
Sir  John  Forster  Fitzgerald.]  We  also  made  acquaintance 
with  Mr.  Rawdon  Brown,  who  is  a  resident  of  some  30  years 
and  has  made  deep  researches  into  matters  relating  to  the  Art 
and  Literature  of  Venice.  [He  worked  for  the  English  Rolls 
Office  in  the  Venetian  Archives  and  was  the  editor  of  the 
Venetian  State  papers  in  many  volumes.]  He  mainly  supplied 
the  materials  for  Mr.  Drake's  books  on  Venetian  China.  [This 
was  a  well-known  collector  and  member  of  a  firm  of  solicitors. 
He  was  knighted  as  Sir  William  Drake.]  Having  admired 
our  little  Nove  cups  and  saucers  (bought  of  Ruggieri)  we 
secured  a  similar  pair  to  give  to  him,  and  in  return  he  gave 
us  a  pretty  pair  of  Venetian  cups  and  saucers,  blue  fish  scale, 
Oriental  figures  in  panels,  probably  of  the  Cozzi  date.  On 
Friday,  25th,  we  went  over  to  Torcello,  taking  Murano  on 
our  way  and  again  visiting  Zanetti  and  the  Museum,  a 
delightful  excursion.  On  our  return  went  through  Burano. 
Inquired  there  about  lace,  and  found  one  old  woman  making 
a  little,  but  it  was  very  coarse  bad  stuff.  Our  inquiries  were 
first  made  in  a  respectable,  but  humble  dwelling  (glittering, 
however,  with  brazen  utensils)  which  we  found  to  belong  to 
the  village  tailor.  His  wife,  a  pretty  young  woman,  who  was 
tending  twins  in  two  cradles,  not  only  received  and  directed 
us  courteously,  but  insisted  on  our  returning  (after  seeing  the 
Church)  to  partake  of  coffee.  The  Burano  people  exhibit  a 
taste  I  have  not  seen  elsewhere,  arranging  their  gaily  coloured 
earthenware  plates  and  dishes  against  the  walls  of  their 

19 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1869 

houses  on  racks  which  are  constructed  in  pyramidical  form. 
All  the  Islands  seem  very  poor,  but  this  is  the  best  of  them. 
Amongst  the  interesting  sights  of  Venice  I  must  not  forget 
the  Scuole  of  San  Rocco,  San  Giovanni,  and  San  Marco, 
the  public  Gardens  (where  the  lime  flowers  were  just  going 
out  of  bloom)  and  the  Lido.  Also  numberless  excursions 
around  the  City,  the  Giudecca,  &c.  The  name  of  our 
Gondolier,  Luigi  Moloso,  No.  129.  Hotel,  Pension  Suisse. 
On  the  morning  of  Saturday  the  26th,  we  got  up  early  and  went 
for  the  day  to  Padua,  remaining  there  till  evening,  a  most 
charming  expedition.  We  spent  a  very  long  time  in  the 
Giotto  Chapel,  and  visited  the  Churches  of  S.  Antonio  (well 
remembered  for  the  Marble  Boys  supporting  the  Candelabra, 
in  1838)  and  of  Sta.  Giustina.  We  fell  in  with  a  little 
antiquaire,  Celin.  He  had  nothing  himself,  but  he  took  us 
to  others.  At  another  little  shop  we  bought  a  pair  of  striped 
cups  and  saucers,  Venetian,  4/-,  and  a  Persian  pot  and  cover, 
I2/-.  I  had  been  inquiring  for  lace  at  Venice  and  found  it 
awfully  dear.  La  Pompeia  has  the  best  selection.  Some  of 
it  is  very  fine,  but  extravagant.  For  a  flounce  like  one 
bought  last  year  by  Ivor  she  wanted  £200.  Of  course 
this  was  out  of  the  question.  Happening  to  mention  lace 
to  Celin,  he  took  us  to  a  draper's  shop,  the  master  of  which, 
Barzillai,  brought  out  a  series  of  bundles  to  show  us.  Among 
them  was  a  flounce  of  near  20  yards,  14  inches  deep  (very 
nearly  resembling  Ivor's,  for  which  he  had  given  £125).  To 
our  astonishment  we  were  only  asked  £32  for  it.  The 
flounce  was  not  to  be  resisted,  even  in  the  light  of  an 
investment,  at  that  price,  so  we  bought  it.  After  this  we 
went  to  the  house  of  "Giuseppe  Bassani,  San  Cassiano".  He 
had  some  very  fine  things  which  we  promised  to  visit  again  ; 
from  him  we  got  a  Venetian  fruit  basket  and  stand,  i6/-. 
From  Barzillai  4  Venetian  cups  and  saucers,  Japanese 

20 


A    LARGE    DROWN    TILE    PORTRAIT    OF    A    KING    OF   THE    FRENCH    HOUSE    IN 

XVIITH    CENTURY    FRAME 
'/'//f  Countess  of  Bessboroit^lf  s  Collection 


1869  NOTES  CERAMIC 

pattern,  8/-.  Small  pedestal  of  the  same  pattern  as  ours 
of  Bow  china,  4/-.  Four  glass  heads,  unimportant,  8/-.  A 
moulded  cream  ware  tray  (qy.  Treviso),  £i.  When  we 
had  completed  our  purchases,  the  jovial  Barzillai  asked  us 
to  stay  and  dine  with  him,  which  diverted  us  vastly.  The 
following  Monday,  Lady  Arbuthnot  came  to  see  our  lace  with 
Mme.  Usedom  and  Mr.  Trevelyan  (the  latter  a  great  judge) 
and  they  pronounced  it  wonderful,  both  as  to  quality  and  price. 
This  (Monday  28th)  was  our  last  day  at  Venice.  We  took  a 
sorrowful  farewell,  devoutly  hoping  ere  long  to  return  to  it. 

June  29th.  Up  at  3.  Left  Venice  at  6,  stopped  at  Padua, 
where  we  spent  4  hours  and  bought  of  Bassani  the  6  yards  of 
exquisite  lace  with  a  pearl  pattern  which  we  had  seen  and 
admired  on  Saturday.  To  this  we  were  encouraged  by  the 
opinion  expressed  on  our  first  purchase  which  led  us  to  trust 
to  our  judgment  again.  We  had  to  pay  £40  for  the  6  yards 
but  it  is  beyond  description  fine  and  uncommon.  At  Padua 
visited  the  Duomo  and  its  interesting  Baptistery.  The 
Palazzo  del  Ragione  and  the  municipal  collection  of  pictures 
and  the  Scuola  of  II  Carmine.  Went  on  to  Vicenza  where 
we  arrived  about  midday.  Cortelazzo  met  us  at  the  station. 
[The  famous  artist  in  metal  work  whom  Sir  Henry  Layard 
found  making  forgeries  to  sell  as  old  and  persuaded  him  to 
exhibit  under  his  own  name.  Lord  Wimborne,  Lady  Layard, 
and  Lady  Bessborough  have  fine  specimens  of  his  original 
work.]  We  got  a  carriage,  and  after  a  meal  started  at  once 
for  Nove.  Being  a  Giorno  di  Festa  the  town  of  Nove  was 
thronged  by  peasants  in  their  national  costume,  and  the 
work  at  the  Pottery  was  at  a  standstill.  However,  we 
found  at  home  the  proprietor  and  manager,  Sigr.  Francesco 
Antonibon,  who  showed  us  what  was  in  the  ware  rooms  and 
also  what  remained  to  him  of  the  old  (Porcelain)  manufacture. 
These  specimens,  chiefly  cups  and  saucers,  were  not  very 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1869 

important   or  fine.     We   learnt   that    the   proprietorship   of 
the  Works  had  never  been  out  of  the  Antonibon  family  from 
their  establishment  to  the  present  time,  but  that  from  1800 
to  1825  they  had  been  leased  to,  and  conducted  by,  a  Signor 
Baroni  ;  the  manufacture  of  Porcelain  commenced  at  Nove 
with  Pasquale  Antonibon  (1763),  that  it  reached  its  highest 
excellence  at  the  close  of  the  century,  that  under  Baroni  it 
declined  and  was  ultimately  leased.     That  during  the  whole 
of  the  period  Pottery  was  also  produced  there,  the  manu- 
facture of  which  is  still  continued,  and  consists,  partly,  in 
imitations   of  the   best   and   earliest   ware.     The    Venetian 
dealer,  Rietti,  has   the  monopoly  of  these   imitations.     No 
Porcelain  has  been  made  at  Nove  from  the  close  of  Baroni's 
lease   up  to  the   present    time    (1869).      Signor    Francesco 
Antonibon,  a  venerable  and  most  courteous  old  gentleman, 
received  us  most  kindly,  and  gave  us  a  note  to  his  brother, 
Signor  Gerolamo  Antonibon,   at    Bassano,   who   possessed, 
he  said,  some  fine  specimens  of  old  manufacture.     These 
two   are   grandsons   of  Pasquale    Antonibon,  of  whom   we 
read   in    Mr.    Drake's    book.      We   reached    Bassano   in   a 
magnificent  thunderstorm,   found  Sigr.   Gerolamo   at   home 
and  alone,  his  children  having  gone  over  to  Nove  for  the 
Festa.     A  kind  old  man  of  70,  less  refined  in  appearance 
than  his  brother,  Francesco  (who  it  seems  is  a  painter  and 
man  of  letters),  and   nearly  blind,   but  most  courteous  and 
gentlemanlike.     Alas !   the  fine  specimens  we  came   to  see 
had  been  sold  to  our  Venice  dealer,  Ruggieri,  and  from  him 
I  am  inclined  to  think  have  passed  into  the  hands  of  Mr. 
Reynolds.     Gerolamo  said  his  brother  Francesco  possessed 
pieces  as  fine  as  his  had  been,  but  these  have  probably  been 
also  sold,  for  we  saw  none  of  them  at  Nove.     It  occurs  to  me 
that  the  fine  pieces  that  we  saw  at  Rietti's  which  I  before 
noticed  may  have  come  from  Francesco's  collection,  especially 

22 


i869  NOTES  CERAMIC 

when  I  consider  Rietti's  connection  with  the  manufactory. 
The  Antonibons  seem  poor  and  to  be  surrounded  with  a 
very  numerous  family.  It  was  very  sad  to  me  to  see  those 
fine  old  men  parting  with  their  grand  old  family  productions. 
"  Me  ne  son  private ",  as  poor  old  Gerolamo  (//  Noblle 
Gerolamo,  as  his  brother  carefully  addressed  our  pencil  note 
of  introduction  to  him,  which  I  preserve)  pathetically  and 
graphically  expressed  it.  Gerolamo  presented  me  with  a 
pair  of  cups  and  saucers  of  the  old  make  and  of  unusual  shape, 
which  I  was  loth  to  take  from  the  old  man,  but  could  not 
refuse  without  offence.  He  directed  us  at  parting  to  the  house 
of  Signora  Antoinetta  Parolini  Agostinelli,  who  lived  higher 
up  the  town,  near  the  Palazzo  Rezzonico,  in  a  handsome 
house  with  a  most  beautiful  garden.  This  lady,  a  young  and 
pretty  woman,  with  her  husband  and  children,  entertained  us 
most  gracefully.  She  showed  us  some  very  beautiful  and  im- 
portant pieces  of  the  old  Nove  porcelain,  groups  and  figures, 
^cuelles,  and  gave  us  a  pair  of  small  cups  and  saucers  with 
purple  rim  and  gold  sprigs,  and  a  pair  of  cups,  brown 
exteriorly.  All  this  while  only  known  to  them  as  English 
travellers  interested  in  the  history  of  the  manufacture.  On 
further  conversation  I  found  she  was  acquainted,  at  least  by 
correspondence,  with  Henry  Layard,  and  her  sister  was  the 
wife  of  Mr.  John  Ball,  and  I  used  to  meet  her  in  London. 
But  all  this  was  unknown  to  the  Agostinellis,  to  whom,  as 
well  as  to  the  Antonibons,  we  came  as  perfect  strangers  when 
they  received  us  so  frankly  and  kindly.  How  much  these 
things  speak  for  Italian  heart  and  manners.  Mme.  A. 
Parolini  Agostinelli  was  of  the  family  of  the  Baroni  from  whom 
her  specimens  of  the  manufacture  came.  Her  father,  Sigr. 
Parolini,  was  a  great  botanist.  The  garden  showed  that  his 
daughter  had  inherited  and  followed  her  father's  pursuits. 
(N.B.  I  should  mention  that  Gerolamo  Antonibon  still 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS   1869 

possesses  one  or  two  specimens,  teapot,  cups,  of  the  finest 
old  Dresden,  which  had  evidently  been  had  for  models  at  the 
Works).  Having  dined  at  the  small  Inn  we  returned,  through 
the  most  curious  old  fortification  of  Marostica,  to  Vicenza, 
which  we  reached  about  midnight. 

June  30th.  Went  over  the  town  of  Vicenza  with  Cortelazzo. 
Walked  about  generally  and  only  entered  the  Church  of  Sta. 
Corona  (to  see  a  famous  Montagna)  and  the  Teatro  Olympico. 
There  is  only  one  antiquary's  shop  in  Vicenza,  which  is  kept 
by  Gasparoni.  It  did  not  contain  much,  but  we  bought 
there  2  small  Oriental  mugs  (Cock  pattern),  3/6.  Two  small 
female  figures,  Venetian  china,  8/-.  Two  Nove  sucriers  and 
covers,  4/6.  Also  4  curious  copper  plates  engraved  with 
representations  of  the  Piazza  dei  Signori  at  Vicenza  and  the 
annual  processions  and  diversions  held  there  for  the  Corpus 
Domini,  date  1680.  June  20.  is  on  one  of  the  plates 
dedicated  to  a  Giustiniani,  then  in  authority  at  Vicenza> 
15/3.  These  were  all  our  purchases  at  Vicenza. 

JULY  1869 

VERONA:  TRENTO  :  INNSBRUCK:  MUNICH:  AUGSBERG  : 
NUREMBERG:  RATISBON  :  CARLSBAD 

July  1st.  We  set  an  antiquaire  called  Avelino  to  hunt  for  us, 
especially  in  the  matter  of  lace,  but  he  found  us  nothing,  though 
he  sent  us  about  to  various  places,  and  at  the  last  moment 
tantalised  us  by  saying  he  had  heard  of  a  lace  handkerchief 
bearing  the  "  Stemma  dei  Scaligeri  ".  It  was  then  too  late  to 
see  it,  or  indeed  to  inquire  further.  We  made,  however, 
a  few  small  purchases  in  little  shops  of  which  we  did  not 
hear  the  names  and  which  were  too  inconsiderable  to  note. 
These  were  a  Venetian  teapot,  8/-.  Two  very  good  Smalto 
teacups  and  saucers  decorated  in  gold,  Venetian,  I2/-.  Two 
small  enamel  heads,  black  transfer-printing,  2/-.  In  a  little 

24 


i869  NOTES  CERAMIC 

rubbish  shop  under  an  arch  of  the  Arena,  we  found  another 
teapot  well  painted  with  cherries,  7/3,  and  at  the  house  of  a 
Doctor  Gregorio  Avesani,  in  the  Piazza.  Cavour,  we  got 
again  another  teapot,  marked,  for  io/-,  a  plate  with  flowers 
(doubtful),  and  a  foreign  enamel  watch  case,  io/-  (altogether 
£i.  4).  This  Doctor  Avesani  had  a  picture  of  S.  Sebastian, 
said  to  be  by  Carotto.  We  spent  a  long  day  amongst 
the  sights  of  Verona,  but  did  not  see  nearly  all  we  wished. 
It  is  one  of  the  most  interesting  cities  of  Italy.  Thanks  to  an 
intelligent  cab-driver,  we  got  from  point  to  point  without  any 
loss  of  time  and  saw  a  great  many  things  considering  the  short- 
ness  of  our  visit.  Sta.  Anastasia,  San  Zenone,  San  Fermo, 
the  Duomo,  Tombs  of  the  Scaligeri,  Pinacoteca  (Morandi's 
pictures,  and  Paul  Veronese's  full  length  of  Count  Guarienti), 
Gardens  of  the  Giusti  Palace,  with  their  fine  view  over  the 
town,  and  drove  about  generally.  In  the  evening,  with  the 
greatest  regret,  we  went  on  to  Trento,  and  quitted  Italy. 
Ruskin  was  at  Verona.  The  Arena  impressed  me  more  than 
anything  I  ever  saw,  even  to  tears. 

July  2nd.  Spent  the  morning  at  Trento.  Went  to  the 
Cathedral  and  out  as  far  as  the  Devil's  Bridge.  No 
shops,  our  only  purchase  a  pair  of  (very  good)  peasant's 
ear-rings,  i6/-,  at  the  shop  of  Luigi  Molini,  a  goldsmith,  bought 
to  give  to  one  of  the  girls.  Afternoon,  went  on  to  Bolzano, 
pretty  walks  and  interesting  Church  ;  in  the  only  little  shop 
we  could  discover,  we  found  a  good,  but  sadly  injured  enamel 
snuff  box,  black  transfer-printed,  3/-. 

July  3rd.  Left  at  6  for  Innsbruck,  where  we  dined.  Visited 
Maximilian's  Tomb  ;  and  Palace  with  the  golden  roof.  One 
or  two  shops,  but  unimportant ;  at  Steiner's  we  found  the 
remains  of  a  good  Chelsea  vase,  painted  in  birds,  sadly  muti- 
lated, but  worth  the  8/-  we  gave  for  it.  Went  on  to  Munich  in 
the  evening ;  all  our  luggage  left  at  the  Kuffstein  Station,  no 

25 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1869 

intimation  having  been  given  us  of  its  being  the  frontier 
town  and  requiring  examination.  Put  up  at  the  Bauerischer 
Hof. 

July  4th  &  5th.  At  Munich  we  visited  the  wonderfully  fine 
Picture  Gallery.  The  great  curiosity  shop  at  Munich  is  Drey's, 
which  has  very  good  things  but  is  very  dear  ;  we  made  several 
purchases  but  not  on  very  advantageous  terms.  A  pair  of  pink 
enamel  vases  with  landscapes  (reversible  and  forming  candle- 
sticks), but  (all  but)  perfect,  £20.  [These  are  now  in  the 
South  Kensington  Museum.]  Twelve  Wedgwood  dishes  of 
various  sizes,  printed  and  matching  the  cups,  bought  at 
Milan,  £6.  Two  Rudolstadt  jugs,  £i.  10.  A  small 
Nymphenburg  vase  mounted,  £i.  An  enamel  snuff  box, 
£3.  Cane  head,  £L.  Another  with  pouncet  box  in  lid,  £i. 
A  scent  bottle,  with  Venetian  glass  with  flowers,  £3.  A  tall 
Venetian  Coffee  pot,  £3.  And  an  enamel  cup  and  saucer 
with  figures,  £3.  Also  a  Lace  berthe,  matching  that  Brazilian 
flounce,  £5,  and  a  small  Austrian  eagle  brooch,  to  give 
away,  £l.  Besides  these  we  found  an  enamel  snuff  box, 
£i.  10.  A  small  circular  one  with  bird,  7/-.  A  Venetian  (?) 
cup  dated  in  gold  20  Dec.  1728.  G.  L.  30/-.  A  lappet, 
Venice  point,  £4.  4.  and  some  fine  Brussels  lace  trimming 
to  give  away,  £3.  6.  These  were  at  the  shop  of  Sigismund 
Helburg,  34  Theatiner  Strasse.  In  another  small  shop  we 
got  a  (damaged)  Derby  group,  boy  and  girl,  13/4. 

July  6th.  Left  at  6  for  Augsburg,  where  we  breakfasted  at 
the  Drei  Mohren.  Saw  the  room  where  Fiigger  entertained 
Charles  V.  there.  Also  the  Rathaus  with  its  Golden  Hall 
and  the  fine  stoves  in  the  Vier  Fiirsten  Zimmer,  the  Church  of 
St.  Anna  and  the  Picture  Gallery.  There  are  several  small 
curiosity  shops  and  we  ransacked  them  all,  but  only  found 
two  old  Dresden  cups  and  saucers,  painted  well,  en  camaieu, 
for  which  we  paid  2/6.  They  are  very  good.  Dined  at  the 

26 


1869  NOTES  CERAMIC 

Station  Cafe,  and  went  on  to  Nordlingen,  where  we  arrived 
early  in  the  afternoon. 

July  7th.  Spent  this,  and  most  of  the  following  day  at 
Nuremberg.  Visited  the  Churches  and  Picture  Gallery,  and 
in  the  evening  drove  round  the  town.  Pickert's  is  the 
great  curiosity  shop.  We  saw  there  nothing  English, 
except  a  few  enamels,  but  made  the  following  purchases — 
Battersea  etui  (purple)  printed  and  coloured  with  land- 
scapes, £2.  15.  Battersea  needlecase  with  birds  in  pink, 
£i.  Needlecase  with  Bambino  top,  £i.  A  Flacon,  £i. 
Battersea  box,  quilted  ground,  with  female  head  and  Mask, 
£2.  15.  A  Cane-head,  purple  with  landscapes,  £i.  16.  8. 
Nove  cup  and  saucer,  n/8.  China  basin,  Venetian,  not 
marked,  16/8.  Old  Dresden  china  basin  with  insects  etc.,  in 
gold,  £i.  6.  8.  Dresden  coffee  pot  with  roses  in  relief  but 
gilt,  and  decorated  with  a  painting  of  an  Emperor  on  horse- 
back, jfi.  13.  4.  Also  a  little  diamond  pin  with  the  letters 
C.E.  which  C.S.  gave  me,  £i.  6.  8.,  and  very  good  purple 
enamel  and  paste  shoe  buckles,  which  we  bought  for  Enid  ; 
but  the  most  amusing  and  delightful  place  was  the  open  market, 
where  we  got  the  following  articles  ridiculously  cheap.  Six 
Dresden  cups  and  saucers,  with  flowers  in  relief,  6/8.  Six 
Dresden  cups  and  saucers,  buff  outside,  blue  flowers  within, 
5/-.  5  printed  round  plates,  marked  Creil,  2  octagonal  plates, 
plain,  marked  Schamberg,  I  oval  dish,  printed  subject,  marked 
Tell  (8  pieces),  2/6.  Faience  beaker,  2/6,  and  two  very  fine 
and  tall  turquoise  blue  Nuremberg  tankards,  I5/-.  Pickert 
had  a  smaller  tankard  which  matched  with  these  and  as  we  had 
bought  much  of  him,  he  let  us  have  it  at  lo/-  to  complete  the 
set.  He  told  us  these  tankards  of  this  colour  were  rare  and 
much  esteemed.  We  could  not  trace  at  Nuremberg  that 
there  was  any  tradition  of  china  having  been  made.  Earthen- 
ware of  course  there  was.  The  dearest  purchases  we  have 

27 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1869 

made  in  all  our  travels  have  been  those  from  Drey  of  Munich, 
and  Pickert  of  Nuremberg.  Their  things  were  all  good,  and 
doubtless  worth  what  we  gave  for  them,  but  as  a  rule  we  have 
bought  at  about  half  the  English  market  value,  and  in  some 
cases  at  much  less. 

July  8th.  In  the  evening  went  on  to  Ratisbon ;  put  up 
at  the  Golden  Cross. 

July  Qth.  Visited  the  Cathedral,  the  Cloisters  and  adjoin- 
ing Chapels  of  the  Holy  Ghost  and  Alte  Dom.  The  Schotten 
Kirche,  the  Church  of  St.  Emmeran,  with  its  wonderful 
treasures  and  shrines,  and  the  gardens  joining  the  residence 
there  of  the  Prince  Thurn  and  Taxis.  (I  remember  seeing  the 
young  Prince,  then  quite  a  child,  in  the  Schotten  Kirche  in 
the  year  1837.)  C.S.  went  to  see  the  Rathaus  and  its 
tortures.  I  had  seen  enough  of  them  years  ago.  There  is 
only  one  Antiquary's  shop  at  Ratisbon,  a  little  place  in  the 
Dom  Platz  kept  by  a  man  called  Koch.  He  had  nothing 
whatever  himself,  but  took  us  to  the  house  of  a  ne*gociant,  a 
sort  of  private  dealer,  who  had  a  few  things,  but  of  whom  we 
made  no  purchases.  Saw  there  a  picture  done  on  glass  with 
landscape  and  figures  in  the  style  of  Watteau,  signed  "  N.  M. 
Spengler,  Pinct.  1759  ".  For  this  he  wanted  £2.  10.  For  an 
old  English  watch  case,  repousse"e  case,  gold,  £4.  4.,  but  we 
did  not  buy.  Our  only  "  art "  purchase  in  Ratisbon  was  a 
silver  and  silver  gilt  Bohemian  necklace  for  Blanche,  £r.  II.  8. 
Curious  scene  about  the  bric-a-brac  we  had  brought  from 
Nuremberg,  with  the  Custom  House  officials  at  Egger. 

July  loth.  Off  at  six  by  private  conveyance,  reached 
Carlsbad  about  I,  and  put  up  at  the  Hotel  Hanover,  where 
we  now  are.  No  vestige  of  "antiquities"  here.  In  the 
whole  of  our  stay  in  Carlsbad  we  only  made  3  small 
purchases,  viz  :  an  old  English  silver  watch,  with  a  tortoise 
pique"  case,  rude,  io/-.  We  found  this  at  a  little  shop.  A 

28 


1869  NOTES  CERAMIC 

pair  of  old  silver  buckles,  25/-.     A  Dresden  white  and  gold 

enamel  snuffbox,  !5/->  from  Egger  on  the  Wiese. 

AUGUST  1869 

ANNABERG  :    DRESDEN  :    BERLIN  :    HANOVER  :    AMSTERDAM : 
THE  HAGUE 

August  7th.  We  left  Carlsbad  by  Diligence  at  6  P.M. 
for  Annaberg,  where  we  dined.  Thence  by  train  to  Dresden  ; 
Hotel  Victoria.  Looked  in  at  the  Picture  Galleries  on 
Sunday.  Went  over  the  Japanische  Palace  on  Wednesday. 
The  Grline  Gewolbe  on  Thursday.  Numerous  purchases  at 
Dresden,  but  not  anything  fine,  and  one  or  two  mistakes 
were  made,  so  I  look  back  to  our  short  stay  with  anything 
but  pleasure.  I  have  to  enumerate  from  Wolfsohn's  a  fine 
old  gold  repeater  (English)  £6.  15.  Enamel  bodkin  case 
with  thimble,  £i.  16.  White  Dresden  china  plaque,  with 
portrait  of  Augustus  the  Strong,  I5/-.  Small  cup,  Dresden, 
red  and  white,  Augustus  the  Strong  pattern,  6/-.  Green  cup 
and  saucer,  imitating  "Empire"  Sevres,  signed  Davenport, 
Longport,  I2/-.  White  Dresden  basin,  roses  in  relief,  like 
one  we  possess  signed  x.,  £i.  10.  Mug  with  Chinese  figures 
and  gold  moulding,  in  style  and  shape  like  that  of  Helburg  of 
Munich  on  5th  July,  £i.  10.  Cup  and  saucer  with  moulded 
shells  outside,  pink  glaze  within,  I2/-.  Small  Chelsea  figure, 
9/-.  We  were  pleased  with  a  young  man  named  Salomons 
at  the  corner  of  Gallerie  Strasse  and  Frauen  Strasse.  When 
in  Dresden  two  years  ago  he  was  not  at  home,  and  we  did 
not  find  his  old  mother  and  sister  very  genial.  But  the  young 
man  is  intelligent,  and  has  an  eye  for  good  things.  We 
bought  of  him  a  yellow  enamel  etui,  £i.  15.  A  yellow  enamel 
card  case,  £l.  10.  An  old  Dresden  cup  and  saucer  painted 
in  figures,  5/6.  A  fine  old  Dresden  coffee  pot  and  cover, 
mounted,  with  good  figures  and  exquisite  pattern  in  gilding, 

29 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS   1869 

£3.  13.  6.  Another  coffee  pot  without  cover,  beautifully 
painted  with  a  classical  subject  and  arabesques,  the  fabrique 
we  are  uncertain  about.  It  may  be,  we  think,  Italian, 
£3.  13.  6.  A  finely  cut  Johann  Friedrich  Bottger  teapot, 
£L.  15.  Dresden  cup,  with  landscape  etched  in  red,  4/-. 
Pair  of  Wedgwood  and  Bentley  cameo  heads  in  black 
(Rousseau  and  Washington),  I2/-.  This  man  may  be 
useful  to  us  on  other  occasions.  We  went  rather  out 
of  our  line  in  buying  the  gold  watch  at  Wolfsohn's, 
still  more  did  we  do  so  at  a  little  shop  in  Waisenhaus 
Strasse,  Bergman's,  where  we  invested  in  another  English 
watch  with  a  silver  case,  for  £2.  5,  and  an  ivory  carving  for 
£3.  I  have  doubts  how  this  last  will  turn  out.  Moritz 
Meyer  priced  it  at  double  the  sum  we  gave  for  it,  but  I  think 
it  rather  hard.  It  is  undoubtedly  old.  There  is  a  nice  little 
shop  in  the  Bergerweisse,  Hoppreier's.  He  had  some  good 
odds  and  ends,  but  nothing  fine.  From  him  we  got  a  pretty 
silver  repousse"e  miniature  frame,  13/6.  An  etching  on  glass, 
3/-.  A  Byzantine  enamel,  10/6,  Of  these  the  frame  is  very 
good.  It  and  the  etching  were  from  General  Rossie's  collec- 
tion. The  last  time  we  were  at  Dresden  we  got  some  very 
good  Battersea  at  Weiss's.  This  time  he  had  none.  Speci- 
mens of  Smalto  with  the  name  of  Bertolini,  Alia  Regina  and 
Italia.  These  are  like  the  Miotto  piece  we  got  at  Venice. 
Weiss  had  a  great  many  of  them.  Those  we  took  were 
done,  one  on  common  bottle  glass  the  other  on  turquoise, 
smalto.  He  had  also  some  in  yellow.  The  Miotto  specimen 
we  got  in  Venice  was  on  the  white  smalto,  peculiar,  I  think, 
to  the  Miotti.  I  must  inquire  further  about  these.  We  paid 
a  good  deal,  g/-  for  these  two.  And  now  come  our  mistakes. 
Old  Wolf  had  many  showy  things,  not  much  in  our  style,  but 
we  found  a  good  enamel  flacon  with  a  portrait,  but  damaged, 
which  we  bought,  together  with  another  flacon  professing  to 

3° 


i86g  NOTES  CERAMIC 

be  Venetian,  but  which  we  afterwards  found  to  be  a  French 
forgery  ;  for  the  two  we  gave  £4.  10.  But  worse  than  that 
was  an  Augsberg  silver  copy  of  Luther's  wedding  ring,  for 
which  we  gave  £7.  10.  to  a  man  called  Thiene,  in  Victoria 
Strasse,  as  well  as  3/-  for  a  German  Cane  handle.  I  reckon 
these  mistakes  to  be  worth  £10,  but  they  are  the  only  ones, 
I  am  happy  to  say,  that  I  can  remember  our  having  ever  made. 
It  is  curious  that  they  should  have  occurred  when  we  have  had 
so  much  experience.  Dresden,  altogether,  is  very  disappoint- 
ing now  in  the  matter  of  art.  There  is  very  little  English  china 
there,  and  nearly  all  the  Dresden  is  modern.  Moritz  Meyer 
told  us  he  had  recently  had  a  very  fine  Chelsea  Dejeuner 
which  he  sold  for  £90  to  a  Russian  dealer  "  Akochinkok  ", 
and  at  Wolfsohn's  we  saw  a  pair  of  Chelsea  candlesticks 
(Negro  and  Negress)  which  the  same  dealer  had  bought  for 
£12.  These  are  extreme  prices.  They  told  me  this  man 
had  been  a  private  gentleman,  and  had  lost  all  his  money  at 
gaming  tables,  and  had  set  up  for  a  dealer,  having  acquired 
his  knowledge  previously  as  an  amateur.  There  was  also  a 
beautiful  Wedgwood  plaque  of  the  marriage  of  Cupid  and 
Psyche  at  Weiss's.  It  had  been  bought  at  a  high  price  by 
Marks  of  London.  These  specimens  and  the  two  tiny 
Chelsea  figures  we  bought  are  the  only  traces  of  English 
china  we  met  with  at  Dresden. 

Aug.  12.  Went  on  to  Berlin.  Hotel  de  Rom.  Here 
we  did  not  find  the  shops  much  better  supplied  than  at 
Dresden,  but  we  were  more  fortunate,  for  we  had  two 
excellent  "trouvailles ".  Fiocati,  Unter  den  Linden,  had  3 
pieces  of  English  china.  An  armless  biscuit  figure,  large,  for 
which  he  asked  a  large  sum,  a  very  faulty  Derby  group,  and 
an  imperfect  but  very  beautiful  "Dovecote"  of  Chelsea  or 
Bow.  This  is  like  one  in  the  possession  of  Mrs.  Haliburton 
which  she  bought  (after  we  had  refused  it)  of  old  Morgan, 

3* 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1869 

for  £16.  We  got  Fiocati's  less  perfect  but  of  better  quality 
for  £6.  15.  Our  other  find  was  a  printed  portrait,  on  enamel, 
of  Maria  Gunning,  Countess  of  Coventry,  the  companion 
to  ours  of  her  sister  the  Duchess  of  Argyll.  This  was 
at  old  Meyers'  of  the  Zeughaus.  We  gave  only  g/-  for  it. 
We  also  bought  of  him  a  small  pair  of  sleeve  links  with  faint 
enamel  of  heads,  3/-,  an  Elers  ware  coffee  pot  (good)  3/-. 
An  Elers  ware  teapot,  facsimile  of  the  one  bought  at 
Florence  on  the  28th  of  May,  6/-,  and  one  of  the  counters  of 
the  set  of  Kings  and  Queens  of  England,  viz  :  that  of  the 
head  of  James  I.  and  his  son,  I5/-.  Meyers  showed  us  2 
other  counters,  Elizabeth  and  Edward  II.,  but  we  left  them. 
A  set  complete  is  worth  much.  Octavius  Morgan  has  a  set, 
and  I  heard  of  one  to  be  sold  at  Colnaghi's  some  months 
ago,  the  price  of  which  was  some  10  to  20  guineas.  Other 
purchases  were,  a  German  enamel  snuff  box,  £2.  II.  At 
Bolzani's,  Gertranden  Strasse,  a  beautiful  enamel  etui  in  the 
form  of  a  book,  £3.  At  Arnould's,  Unter  den  Linden,  and 
a  few  things  at  Lewy's,  Dorothean  Strasse,  viz  :  small 
German  enamel  box,  £i.  3.  Black  Wedgwood  vase,  7/6. 
Enamel  cane  handle,  I5/-.  Mennecy  china  box,  io/-. 
Bottger  tankard  with  arms  done  in  gold,  £i.  4.  Lewy  had 
an  exquisite  Chelsea  smelling  bottle  but  he  wanted  £8.  for  it, 
so  with  regret  I  left  it.  This  and  the  two  pieces  at  Fiocati's, 
and  two  badly  broken  candlesticks  at  Meyers'  were  all  the 
English  china  we  discovered. 

Aug.  I3th.  On  Saturday  afternoon  we  drove  a  little  in 
the  Thier  Garten,  spite  of  rain,  and  after  Church,  on  Sunday 
(l5th),  looked  into  the  Picture  Gallery.  Were  unfortunately 
too  late  to  see  the  Hildesheim  silver.  Went  on  after  dinner 
to  Hanover,  arriving  there  late  at  night. 

Aug.  l6th.  Next  morning  took  a  long  walk  through  the 
town.  Seelig  has  moved  his  shop.  We  got  from  him  a 

32 


TOP. — PAIR  OK  HOW  CANDLESTICKS  WITH   CANARIES  AND  BULLFINCHES  ON   FLOWERING 

TREES  IN   WHAT  MAY  HE  CALLED  THE  MEISSEN   MANNER.    CENTRE. — OUTSIDE  FIC.URES  : 

CHELSEA    CANDLESTICK   GROUPS   SHOWING   A    HUSSAR   AND  A   GIRL  WITH   MASK   NEATLY 

ARRANGED    IN     FLOWERING     ARBORS.        IN     MIDDLE  :     A    CHELSEA     FIGURE    HOLDING    A 

BASKET,    WITH    LAMBS    AT    HER    FEET,     DOUBTLESS    ONE    OF    A    DECORATED    PAIR.       THE 

LOWER    FIGURES    SHOW  A  CHELSEA    BOY  AND   GIRL  IN  CHARMING   DRESSES;    ONE   HOLDS 

A    COCK    AND    ONE    HEN   ;    EACH    IS    SURROUNDED    BY    THE    CONVENTIONAL    BOCAGE 

Lord  n'hnbornc' 'r  Collection 


1869  NOTES  CERAMIC 

Dresden  cup,  etched,  but  not  signed,  by  Busch.  He  told  us 
he  had  just  sold  half  a  dozen  with  saucers  to  Marks,  as  well 
as  some  very  fine  Chelsea  vases.  We  went  to  Dux  in  the 
Schiller  Strasse ;  he  had  nothing.  Left  Hanover  (Hotel 
Royal)  about  2  ;  got  to  Rheine  where  we  slept,  at  Schulze's, 
a  quiet  little  village  Inn. 

Aug.  I7th.  In  the  train  before  6.  At  Amsterdam  about  II. 
Put  up  at  Brack's  Doelen.  Set  off  immediately  "en  chasse." 
First  to  Van  Houtum's  in  the  same  street.  Very  little  in  our 
way ;  one  or  two  Chelsea  cows,  sheep,  etc.,  at  high  prices. 
Our  purchases  of  him  in  the  course  of  our  stay  consisted  only 
of  a  small  purple  enamel  pot  and  cover,  io/-.  A  Chelsea 
Pug  (tail  replaced),  io/-.  Derby  biscuit  group  (arm  replaced), 
£l.  io.  Good  Chelsea-Derby  figure  of  youth  sacrificing  a 
goat  (head  replaced),  io/-.  Before  we  left  Van  Houtum's 
packed  up  all  we  had  gathered  together  since  leaving  Munich, 
whence  Drey  was  to  despatch  all  we  had  purchased  between 
Venice  and  that  place.  After  Van  Houtum's  we  had  a  grand 
"  Chasse  "  at  Ganz's,  and  rather  a  successful  one,  though  not 
to  be  compared  to  that  of  two  years  ago  when  we  pulled 
down  from  his  rafters  one  or  two  fine  Bristol  jugs.  (I  may 
here  remark  that  we  have  not  seen  a  scrap  of  English  hard 
paste  since  we  have  been  abroad.)  At  Ganz's  we  have  found 
two  excellent  Chelsea  jardinieres  painted  with  flowers,  which 
he  sold  us  as  old  Dresden,  for  £i.  15.  A  tall  Freemason's 
mug,  Worcester,  black  transfer-printed,  io/-.  Blue  and 
white  Worcester  teapot,  raised  ground,  2/6.  Milk  jug  do. 
I/IO.  Small  Worcester  vase  with  Acrobat,  5/-.  Our  next 
best  haul  was  with  Speyers,  St.  Anthony,  Breestraat ;  from 
him  we  made  several  purchases,  some  of  them  likely  to  prove 
good.  Two  groups  of  Derby-Chelsea  figures,  man  and  girl 
in  bocage  of  leaves,  good  condition,  only  two  fingers  wanting, 
"  Proposal  "  and  "Acceptance  "  (?),  £15.  Five  small  Chelsea 

1  33  c 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1869 
statuettes  of  which  two  were  already  imperfect,  i.e.,  had  had 
replacements  (and  one  of  which  two  had  the  misfortune  to 
drop  and  break  still  more),  £i.  15.  One  small  Mennecy 
figure  (marked),  and  a  white  Capo  ditto  (unmarked),  I5/-. 
An  Oriental  group  of  a  man  and  a  girl  dancing,  a  complete 
copy  and  imitation  of  a  Dresden  one  (Imp.),  £i.  Enamel 
box  top,  3/-.  Enamel  box  with  swan,  7/-.  Do.  with  bird, 
5/-.  Pair  of  white  salt-cellars  with  Bouquets,  25/-.  Small 
Bow  teapot,  io/-.  Five  knives  with  green  handles,  orna- 
mented with  silver,  £1.  At  Van  Galen's  we  got  two  very 
fine  but  imperfect  Chelsea-Derby  Statuettes,  £3.  At  Boas- 
berg's  a  beautiful  enamel  snuff  box,  £4.,  and  an  etui  with 
female  head  painted  on  it,  £3.  16.  8.  At  Soujet's  (Anthony 
Boeskoot)  a  pair  of  damaged  Worcester  baskets,  £i.  A 
teapot  and  milk  jug,  Oriental  blue  ground  (Imp.),  £i.  A 
drawing  of  Adam  and  Eve  in  Paradise  on  parchment,  after 
Breughel,  £i.  These  were  the  only  things  we  could  find  in 
Amsterdam,  and  they  were  scarcely  worth  the  trouble  of 
taking  away  (the  purchases  from  Ganz,  Boasberg,  and  Speyer's 
Derby-Chelsea  groups  always  excepted).  Visited  with  great 
delight  M.  Van  de  Gitta's  private  collection  of  china,  etc., 
also  M.  Sisa's  fine  pictures,  and  the  public  Gallery.  Pleasant 
drives  about  Amsterdam.  One  to  the  public  gardens  on 
Sunday  evening  (the  22nd)  when  we  went  nearly  all  round 
the  town.  On  one  of  the  days  of  this  week,  I  think  Friday 
the  20th,  we  went  over  to  The  Hague  for  the  day.  Found 
very  little.  But  at  Sarlino's  a  remarkable  enamel  etui,  the 
figures  (Cupids)  and  flowers  in  relief,  for  which  we  paid  £5. 
At  Block's  only  2  little  Bow  Cats,  13/4.  At  Van  Gelder's 
in  the  Achteroom  an  early  ware  teapot  in  form  of  a  house 
with  arms  of  England  on  one  side,  of  Holland  on  the  other, 
5/-.  Another  Jew  in  that  locality,  Schaak  by  name,  played 
us  a  very  dishonest  trick.  We  bought  of  him  an  enamel 

34 


1869  NOTES  CERAMIC 

snuff  box,  sage  green  ground,  and  with  superior  painting. 
Not  having  the  money  with  us  he  promised  to  deliver  it  in 
London  in  the  course  of  the  week,  as  he  was  going  there, 
and  we  were  then  to  pay  him  £5.  but  he  never  came !  (I  had 
almost  forgotten  that  we  bought  of  Munchen  at  The  Hague  a 
pretty  little  pink  box,  33/4.)  Schaak  did  us,  however,  one 
good  turn  for  he  told  us  of  a  dealer  at  Gouda,  whom  we 
forthwith  determined  to  visit. 

Aug.  23rd.  Finished  our  researches  among  The  Hague 
shops.  Saw  the  reception  of  the  Volunteers  who  had  been 
shooting  for  prizes  at  Utrecht;  we  went  on  to  Rotterdam  in 
the  afternoon.  There,  having  left  maid  and  luggage,  we 
started  off  at  once  for  Gouda  and  arrived  there  barely  in  time 
to  save  daylight  enough  to  ransack  the  old  dealer's  stock. 
From  amidst  a  quantity  of  Delft  and  Oriental  and  rubbish, 
we  extracted  a  Chelsea-Derby  jug  with  mask  and  flowers, 
painted  in  red  camaieu  a  la  Dresden,  3/4.  A  Bow  shell 
moulded  and  painted  a  la  Chinoise  in  flowers,  9/2.  A  ware 
milk  jug,  10  pence,  and  an  imperfect  Bow  figure  10  pence  also. 
It  was  a  very  pleasant  little  excursion.  We  got  back  to 
Rotterdam  very  late,  only  to  go  to  bed,  which  we  did  at  that 
wretched  old  Hotel  "  The  New  Bath "  and  were  up  again 
by  cockcrow  the  next  morning  (Tuesday).  Went  to  Van 
Minden's  and  made  several  purchases  of  him,  to  wit,  two 
Chelsea  pugs,  £i.  An  enamel  nutmeg  grater,  7/6.  A  transfer- 
printed  box,  7/6.  A  snuff  box,  I5/-.  A  Flacon,  the  sides  gilt 
and  imitating  basket  work,  I5/-.  A  Bow  milk  jug,  7/6.  A  white 
Dresden  teapot,  5/-.  An  old  wooden  snuff  box  with  curious 
legends  in  antique  English,  2/6.  None  of  these  things  either 
bargains  or  very  remarkable,  but  all  pretty  good.  After 
leaving  him  we  scoured  the  Oppert  with  no  results  and  then 
hurried  to  the  Quay  where  we  embarked  on  board  the 
Batavia  for  England.  After  a  most  lovely  passage,  the  sea 

35 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1869 
as  smooth  as  glass,  we  reached  our  home  at  9  o'clock  on  the 
morning  of  Wednesday,  the  25th,  and  so  ended  our  most 
enjoyable  tour. 

From  this  25th  to  the  following  Monday  (30th)  we 
remained  in  town,  and  with  great  delight  visited  all  the 
London  shops,  in  one  of  which  there  is  more  to  be  found 
than  with  all  the  antiquaries  on  the  Continent.  During  our 
stay  in  town  we  added  to  our  collection  only  a  small  Chelsea 
saucer  (raised  anchor),  Imp.  2/6,  from  Kerridge's  in  Great 
Portland  Street,  and  four  Bow  blue  and  white  open  work 
baskets  (£4)  from  Dalgleish's.  On  the  28th  Mr.  Emerson 
Norman  of  Norwich  came  to  see  our  things  and  went  with  us 
to  the  South  Kensington  Museum.  He  brought  up  with  him 
a  Chelsea  figure  of  a  dwarf,  in  a  large  hat  (marked  with  a 
raised  anchor)  and  a  female  figure  to  match  (marked  with  a 
red  anchor)  which  we  had  much  desired  to  have  of  him  in 
the  spring.  These  we  now  obtained  in  exchange  for  two 
Bow  vases  with  damaged  flowers  (for  which  wa  had  given 
£5),  a  Chelsea-Derby  cup  and  saucer  and  a  £5  note.  These 
figures  are  a  great  addition  to  our  collection. 
Aug.  30th.  Went  down  to  Canford. 

SEPTEMBER  1869 

AT  HOME  :  SALISBURY  :  WARDOUR  :  EXETER  :  BRISTOL 

Sept.  nth.  On  leaving,  Ivor  gave  us  a  small  beaker  or 
vase  with  transfer-printing  in  black  and  a  rustic  scene, 
woman  milking.  We  started  early  and  went  to  Salisbury. 
Ransacked  old  Mason's  stock  and  found  nothing,  but  went 
on  to  Targett's  in  the  High  Street,  which  is  of  better 
promise.  There  C.S.  discovered  a  coloured  group  of  Venus 
and  Cupid  not  very  decorative,  but  valuable  as  being 
Plymouth,  £2.  7.  And  a  clumsy  blue  and  white  jug,  handle 

36 


1869  NOTES  CERAMIC 

terminating  in  a  heart,  Bow,  (3/-).  We  then  visited  Mr. 
Nightingale's  collection  at  Wilton,  where  we  saw  some  very 
fine  things.  [This  Mr.  Nightingale  wrote  some  valuable 
notes  on  the  history  of  ceramics.]  Also  Mr.  Cother's  where 
there  was  but  little,  and  then  proceeded  to  Melbury  Abbas, 
where  we  stayed  with  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Glyn  till  Wednesday 
following. 

Sept.  I4th,  1869.  We  drove  to  Wardour  where  there  are 
many  treasures.  Some  Bleu  du  Roy  vases,  small,  painted  in 
birds,  a  pair  of  sceaux  of  the  same  colour  with  Boucher 
subjects,  very  fine.  A  Bow  figure  in  white  of  Woodward  in 
"  The  Fine  Gentleman."  It  was  a  treat  to  see  these,  and 
many  fine  Chelsea  figures.  Thence  to  call  at  Mr.  Gordon's 
at  Winchcombe,  where  there  are  a  few  English  specimens, 
very  good. 

Sept.  I5th.  Left  Melbury  on  Wednesday.  In  passing 
through  Salisbury  we  bought  a  couple  of  transfer-printed 
Wedgwood  plates,  of  old  Mason,  lo/-,  more  to  encourage  him 
than  anything  else,  and  a  lovely  little  fruit  picture  by  De 
Hiem,  at  Targett's,  £5.  10.  No  long  stay  at  Salisbury  but 
off  to  Lyme  to  visit  Mr.  Hodges'  collection.  He  is  the 
parson  there  and  has  a  bijou  house  with  some  lovely  things 
in  it.  A  Chelsea  tea  kettle  (I  should  think  unique),  painted 
in  birds,  and  a  large  Bristol  platter,  are  those  of  his 
possessions  that  I  most  covet.  We  spent  above  an  hour 
with  him. 

Sept.  i6th.  The  only  thing  the  small  shops  at  Exeter  pre- 
sented was  a  little  Spode  basket  at  Mrs.  Guerto's.  We  called 
on  old  Mr.  and  Mrs.  R.  Were  Fox  (the  relations  of  the 
Prideaux)  from  whom  we  had  bought  a  few  good  specimens 
of  Plymouth  china  on  our  way  back  from  Kingsbridge  last 
year.  The  Foxes  told  us  all  about  the  Prideaux  Sale,  which 
indeed  was  one  of  the  first  things  we  heard  about  on  our 

37 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS   1869 

return  to  England.     It  appears  that  the  poor  old  gentleman, 
Charles  Prideaux,  who  sold  us  his  fine  Plymouth  collection 
last  year,  died  this  summer.     There  was,  about  a  month  ago, 
a  sale  of  his  effects,  including  a  quantity  of  china.     All  the 
trade  and  all  the  Devonshire  neighbours  attended  it,   and 
everything  sold  very  well,  but  the  disappointment  was  great 
at  finding  all  the  gems  (viz  :  our  Plymouth  collection)  gone. 
We  went   over  to  Heavitree   after  our  visit  to  the  Foxes, 
to  see  Mr.  Crabbe,  whose  acquaintance  we  had  made  last 
year.     He  gave  me  his  ware  mug  of  the  "  Midnight  Con- 
versation ",  which  I  believe  to  be  Fulham  ware.     It  has  four 
curious  coats  of  arms,  one  of  which  is  the  Bertie  battering 
rams,  and  I  have  no  doubt  they  are  there  in  allusion  to  the 
blind  cock-fighting  sportsman,  Lord  Albemarle  Bertie,  who  is 
probably  one  of  the  revellers.     Two  of  the  other  coats  of 
arms  I  believe  are  Archer  and  Vane.    [Lord  Albemarle  Bertie 
was  the  second  son  of  Peregrine,  second  Duke  of  Ancaster. 
He  occupies  the  central  position  in  Hogarth's  "cockpit"  en- 
graving.    The  same  well-known  gambler  is  said  to  appear  in 
the  "  March  to  Finchley  "  as  an  attendant  at  a  boxing  match.] 
Mr.  Crabbe  is  to  have  something  good  from  us  in  exchange 
when  he  comes  to  see  us  next  year  in  town.     Hurried  away 
from  Exeter  sooner  than  I  had  wished  that  we  might  go  and 
see  Mrs.  Matcham  Marshall,  who  had  written  to  me  from 
Tiverton,  saying  she  had  a  large  collection  of  china  to  dispose 
of ;  on  reaching  her  house  we  found  her  to  be  a  trades  person 
who  had  accumulated  an  extraordinary  amount  of  rubbish  of 
which  she  thinks  to  make  a  great  profit.     She  bought  largely 
at  the  Prideaux  sale  and  fancies  the  Oriental   Pagods  she 
bought  there  are  fine  Plymouth.     She  bought  one  small  white 
Plymouth  figure  of  Winter  there  (which  we  had  left  behind 
because  we  had  it  already)  and  gave  a  large  price  for  it.     Of 
course  she  wanted  a  much  larger.     She  had,  however,  a  nice 

38 


g    g 


H   «    - 


55 


*  -  £ 

S  H  K 


h  , 

C >   Q 


i869  NOTES  CERAMIC 

little  coloured  Plymouth  figure,  of  the  same  model  as  one  in 
white  which  we  bought  of  Mrs.  Fox  last  year.  She  was 
quite  unaware  what  this  was.  We  bought  of  her  for  £2., 
which  was  quite  enough,  but  had  she  known  what  it  was  she 
would  have  asked  £10.  We  also  got  two  marked  Neale 
ware  figures  for  £i.,  too  dear,  but  she  would  not  sell  the 
Plymouth  one  without  them.  This  little  transaction  was  not 
carried  out  at  once.  They  are  tiresome  conceited  people, 
and  I  had  to  leave  them  for  the  time  and  write  for  the  articles 
afterwards.  Got  to  Bristol  at  night,  Hotel  on  College  Green, 
excellent. 

Sept.  I7th.  Called  and  saw  Mrs.  Becks,  her  husband 
absent.  I  coveted  a  small  transfer-printed  leaf,  signed  Rhodes, 
with  buds,  etc.,  upon  it,  but  they  wanted  £5.  which  was  an 
excessive  price  so  I  left  it.  Went  into  the  country  to  see 
Mr.  Pritchard's  collection.  It  is  small,  but  he  has  many 
pieces  which  are  very  good,  among  them  is  the  figure  of  the 
Marquis  of  Granby,  which  unluckily  we  did  not  buy  of 
Walker  two  years  ago,  the  set  of  4  white  Plymouth  figures, 
quarters  of  the  globe,  which  Truscott  sent  up  for  us  to  buy 
at  the  same  time,  but  which  we  felt  were  then  too  dear  for 
our  means.  It  was  interesting  to  see  among  his  things  our 
old  figure  of  Britannia,  which  we  bought  of  Van  Minden  in 
1867,  and  being  tired  of,  sent  down  to  a  sale  at  Bristol. 
Mr.  Pritchard  is  a  great  invalid  ;  all  the  family  seem  to  love 
china,  so  there  is  no  chance  of  his  things  coming  into  the 
market  at  any  time.  During  our  stay  at  Bristol,  where  we 
remained  till  Saturday  midday,  we  called  at  Thornton's,  at 
Edkins's,  and  at  the  house  of  another  dealer  in  the  Matcham 
Marshall  line,  by  name  Hodder,  who  being  a  chemist  and 
vendor  of  quack  medicines  has  bethought  him  that  in  the 
present  rage  for  the  fine  Arts  he  shall  make  his  fortune,  by 
buying  and  selling  china.  His  house  contained  a  most 

39 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1869 

miscellaneous  assortment,  almost  all  very  bad,  but  we  found 
a  pair  of  butter  boats,  stoneware,  with  richly  coloured  flowers 
in  high  relief,  which  we  believe  to  be  Fulham,  3O/-.  Thornton 
was  from  home.  We  bought  of  his  wife,  10  printed  tiles,  £3. 
And  a  transfer  printed  mug,  subject  "The  Fair",  also  £3. 
As  usual  our  visit  to  our  excellent  friends  Edkins  and  his  wife 
was  most  agreeable.  We  compared  notes  as  to  all  each  had 
done  during  the  summer,  and  we  looked  again  at  his  beau- 
tiful 'things.  Edkins  had  purchased  for  me  three  Tiles 
(two  imperfect),  of  Thornton,  during  our  absence  at  my 
request,  6/6. 


NOTES  CERAMIC 

SEPTEMBER  TO  NOVEMBER  1869 
ANTWERP  :  BERGAM  OP  ZOOM  :  BREDA  :  TILBURG 

Sept.  28th.  Determined  to  beat  up  Holland,  in  detail,  and 
find  if  any  English  china  was  to  be  met  with  there,  we  set  off 
on  Tuesday  the  28th  of  Sept.,  by  the  7.40  A.M.  train,  from 
Charing  Cross,  took  the  Steamer  from  Dover  to  Ostend 
(having  a  lovely,  calm,  hot  passage,  the  sea  as  smooth  as 
glass)  and  reached  Antwerp  at  5.  Put  up  at  the  Hotel  de 
1' Europe,  Place  Verte,  very  good. 

Wednesday,  2Qth.  Hunted  every  possible  part  of  Antwerp, 
but  found  nothing.  There  are  only  two  or  three  inconsider- 
able shops,  one  in  the  Rue  Tailleurs  de  Pierre,  two  in  the 
Marche"  au  Vendredi,  one  (Van  Herck's)  in  the  Grande  Place. 
They  were  all  quite  barren.  Spent  some  time  in  the  Museum 
and  the  Cathedral.  Drive  about  the  town.  Dined  and  left 
by  train  at  3.35.  Came  on  to  Bergam  op  Zoom,  celebrated 
in  the  Annals  of  my  Ancestor,  Lord  Willoughby,  in  Queen 
Elizabeth's  time.  The  fortifications  are  now  being  dis- 
mantled. Took  a  long  walk  till  after  dusk.  No  china. 
One  broker's  shop  with  a  few  bad  pieces  of  Japan,  nothing 
more.  H6tel  de  Hollande.  Went  into  two  more  brokers' 
shops,  but  found  nothing.  Visited  the  Protestant  Church, 
which  has  been  fine,  but  is  sadly  mutilated.  Left  Bergam 
at  10.30.  for  Breda.  Arrived  at  Breda  12.30.  Put  up 
at  the  Crown,  whence  they  directed  us  to  two  very  pro- 
mising dealers.  One  of  them,  Heymans,  Bosche  Poort,  is 

41 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1869 
a  railway  conductor.  The  other,  Du  Bois,  43  Ginneken- 
straat,  has  a  larger  apartment,  all  Oriental  except  one  or 
two  inconsiderable  pieces  of  blue  and  white  Worcester.  We 
got  there,  however,  a  curious  little  snuff  box,  ivory,  with  a 
mother-of-pearl  top,  which  is  well  engraved  with  a  parrot 
and  fruit,  and  signed  A.  Melort.  We  gave  8/4.  Breda  is 
a  charming  old  town  with  a  magnificent  Cathedral.  Grand 
Monument  to  a  Count  of  Nassau,  similar  in  conception  to 
that  of  Edward  the  Black  Prince  in  Westminster  Abbey. 
Left  Breda  at  3  for  Tilburg,  a  complete  manufacturing  town 
without  a  trace  of  any  antiquities  except  a  few  old  English 
silver  watches  with  repousse"e  backs,  much  worn,  in  which  we 
did  not  invest.  Note  a  remarkable  lime-tree  forming  a 
complete  arbour  and  pyramid  some  fifty  to  sixty  feet  high. 
Took  coffee  at  the  "  Golden  Swan ",  where  I  sat  writing 
surrounded  by  smokers. 

OCTOBER  1869 

BOIS  LE  DUG  :  UTRECHT  :  VEEMENDAL  :  AMSTERDAM  :  GOUDA  : 

ROTTERDAM  :  DELFT  :  THE  HAGUE  :  ROTTERDAM  :  ANTWERP  : 

BRUSSELS  :  ROUEN  :  ORLEANS  :  TOURS  :  PARIS  :  LONDON 

Oct.  1st.  Walked  with  a  guide  to  two  small  shops  at  Bois 
le  Due  where  there  were  scraps  of  china,  but  nothing  worthy  of 
notice  ;  in  one  of  them  was  a  Bow  figure  "  Smelling  "  but  so 
mutilated  it  was  not  fit  to  bring  away.  In  the  other  was  one 
Wheildon  Ware  plate  and  a  set  of  common  Wedgwood, 
blue  and  white.  While  in  the  latter  shop,  Tennyssen,  the 
Hague  dealer,  came  in,  and  showed  us  a  good  basket  of  old 
brass  work,  which  he  had  said  he  had  lately  brought  from 
a  Monastery.  Went  over  the  Cathedral,  which  is  very 
fine,  grand  and  simple,  with  fine  brass  font  or  baptistery. 
Went  over  the  Town  Hall,  where  the  most  interesting  thing 
was  a  picture  of  the  old  Town  Hall  as  it  was  in  1665- 

42 


a 

x 
>  * 

>•'•§ 

CO  ^ 


PP^ 


i869  NOTES  CERAMIC 

Town  altered  and  modernised  since  those  days.  Only  one  or 
two  houses  retain  the  old  decoration  ;  formerly  it  must  have 
been  as  quaint  as  Antwerp  or  Amsterdam.  Went  into  a  shop 
for  Church  decoration  and  saw  some  exquisitely  embroidered 
vestments.  Visited  the  Museum,  which  is  in  its  infancy; 
curious  finding  a  Token  of  "  John  Wilkinson,  Ironmaster  " 
(the  man  who  brought  John  Guest  from  Shropshire  and 
founded  the  Dowlais  Works)  [the  grandfather  of  Sir  J.  John 
Guest,  Bart.,  M.P.]  among  the  collection  of  coins  there.  An 
old  Colonel  or  General  Noor  was  at  dinner,  he  took  us  after- 
wards to  see  what  was  termed  his  collection.  An  assem- 
blage of  heterogeneous  and  rather  worthless  objects.  We 
heard  that  a  Baron  L.  V.  de  Bogaert,  living  at  the  Chateau 
de  Heedwyk  at  a  short  distance  from  the  town,  had  a  fine 
collection  which  is  shown  to  strangers.  We  did  not  know  of 
it  till  too  late  to  go  there.  Left  Bois  le  Due  at  five  in  the 
couple  of  the  Diligence,  crossed  two  rivers,  one  by  means  of 
a  floating  bridge,  and  joining  the  railway  reached  Utrecht  at 
9  while  the  fine  old  chimes  were  sounding. 

Oct.  2nd.  Explored  the  town.  None  of  the  Jew  shops 
open  to-day.  Van  Gorkum,  a  larger  kind  of  upholsterer,  has 
a  little  china,  but  nothing  good.  It  is  chiefly  Delft,  and 
white  and  blue  Oriental.  Bought  of  him  two  white 
Dresden  teapots,  with  raised  flowers,  and  a  red  Bottger 
one,  similar  to  that  which  we  saw  in  the  Japanische  Palace, 
with  vine  leaves  and  squirrels  in  relief  (6  florins).  Took  a  train 
at  TT  past  12  to  Veemendal.  The  station  is  about  two  miles 
from  the  town,  which  is  reached  by  omnibus.  The  object  of  our 
visit  to  this  place  was  to  see  the  Burgermeister,  who,  we  were 
informed  by  young  Schaakat  The  Hague,  possessed  a  beauti- 
ful collection.  We  had  a  very  agreeable  expedition  and  were 
interested  in  seeing  a  new  locality,  but  china  there  was  none. 
The  Burgermeister  very  politely  showed  us  all  he  had,  but  it 

43 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1869 

consisted  of  a  small  quantity  of  Oriental,  not  fine,  filling  a 
small  glass  case  in  his  dining-room.  Walked  back  from  the 
town  to  the  station  (very  hot)  in  time  for  the  J  past  3  train. 
Table  d'hote  at  Utrecht  at  4^.  Then  we  strolled  out  and 
found  Korter's  shop  open  in  Elizabeth  Straat — nothing  there. 
Oct.  3.  This  morning  looked  through  Hamburger's  stock, 
absolutely  nothing.  He  said  he  had  84  cases  packed  up  for 
Paris.  Almost  all  the  china  here  is  blue  and  white  Oriental. 
This  and  Delft  they  send  away  for  sales  in  Paris  and  London. 
One  or  two  insignificant  trifles,  not  worth  taking  away,  we 
asked  the  price  of,  and  found  them  absurdly  dear.  Saloman, 
also  in  Spreingway,  has  nothing.  Nor  Felder,  Haver  Straat. 
We  are  to  see  Sanders  to-morrow.  Drove  about  the  town^ 
which  is  very  pretty.  Went  into  the  Cathedral.  All  these 
Dutch  buildings  are  in  sad  repair,  and  what  little  is  done  to 
preserve  them  is  in  wretched  taste.  Wonderful  Avenue  of  6 
rows  of  lime-trees.  Venerable  even  in  the  time  of  Louis  XIV. 
who  caused  it  to  be  spared  in  the  War. 

Up  early  on  the  morning  of  the  4th  Oct.  and  off  by  the  8 
o'clock  train  to  Amsterdam  for  a  "chasse."  Arrived  just 
after  9.  Drove  first  to  Speyer's  and  went  with  him  to  his 
warehouses  which  we  thoroughly  overhauled,  but  with  little 
success.  All  we  brought  away  from  him  were  an  Elers  ware 
tea  kettle  with  fine  twisted  handle,  large,  and  marked,  I5/-,  a 
small  white  figure,  probably  Italian,  2/6,  a  bird  on  a  raised 
sort  of  foot,  possibly  hard  paste  English  2/6 ;  he  showed  us  a 
very  nice  piece  of  three  shells  very  perfect  and  well  painted 
inside,  but  late  Chelsea-Derby.  This  he  had  not  yet  bought 
but  if  he  purchased  it  he  was  to  let  us  have  the  refusal  at 
what  he  gave.  Charles  thought  the  art  too  late,  but  I  liked 
it ;  though  not  of  the  best  date  it  is  pure  of  its  kind.  From 
Speyer's  we  went  on  to  Van  Galen's.  He  himself  was  out  and 
his  locum  tenens  could  tell  us  nothingabout  prices,  but  there  was 

44 


i86g  NOTES  CERAMIC 

a  curious  old  earthenware  basket  which  we  take  to  be  English, 
probably  Fulham  ware,  with  trees,  suns,  and  flowers  in  relief, 
and  bouquets  in  enamel  colours.  We  left  an  inquiry  about  it. 
Next  to  Ganz's,  which  has  generally  been  our  best  covert. 
But  to-day  we  found  absolutely  nothing.  After  this  we  went 
to  Boasberg's  in  the  Calverstraat,  which  is  certainly  the  best 
shop  in  Holland  though,  generally  speaking,  very  dear.  We 
purchased,  however,  a  fine  Bow  candlestick  representing 
Winter,  in  thoroughly  good  order,  and  a  small  enamel  box, 
white,  for  £5.  5.  o.  which  we  consider  very  reasonable.  We  put 
the  figure  at  £4.  10.  and  the  box  at  I5/-.  Van  Houtum  and 
Soujet  had  nothing  at  all.  After  some  luncheon  at  Brack's 
Doelen,  we  returned  by  the  train  to  Utrecht,  which  we 
reached  at  half- past  3.  Went  by  appointment  to  the  Jew. 
He  had  no  great  show  of  things,  but  we  managed  to  buy 
two  small  Bow  female  figures,  £2,  a  bust  of  Pope,  soft 
paste,  £i,  and  a  pair  of  glass  pictures  of  seaside  life,  done  in 
gold  and  silver,  one  of  them  signed  Leuner,  £i.  II.  8. 
After  this  we  returned  to  our  Hotel.  After  dinner  went  out 
again  to  Koram's,  who  packed  up  our  purchases  for  us  in 
a  heavy  box  which  we  carried  back  with  our  own  hands. 
Utrecht.  When  this  was  written  (being  past  nine  o'clock) 
it  was  fair  to  think  the  day's  work  was  ended ;  but  our  friend 
Gorkum  arrived  with  a  fan  and  a  pair  of  miniatures  on  ivory, 
and  it  resulted  in  our  buying  them  all.  The  fan  is  in  good 
condition,  ivory  with  mother-of-pearl  medallions,  well  gilt,  and 
carved  and  painted,  £2.  10.  o.  The  miniatures,  a  man  and  a 
woman,  signed  G  on  the  face, — one  of  them  inscribed  on  the 
back,  also  £2.  io,  o. 

Oct.    5th.     Off  to    Gouda   by   9.      Ransacked   there   all 
Pavoordt's  Warehouses,  climbing  up  into  almost  impossible 

J lofts.     Nothing  but  blue  and  white  Oriental  and  Delft,  mostly 
very   bad.     Bought,    however,    three    printed   and    coloured 
" 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1869 

prints,  chiefly  on  account  of  the  frames,  5/-.  Went  on  by 
the  next  train  to  Rotterdam.  Nothing  in  the  Oppert.  Van 
Minden  has  just  started  off  for  Paris  to  attend  to  one  of  his 
sales  there,  and  had  certainly  left  nothing  behind  him.  Mme. 
Van  Minden  took  charge  of  our  few  purchases  until  we  should 
return  to  pack  them  for  England.  Thence  hurried  on  to  the 
little  steamer  plying  to  Delft  and  embarking  at  I.  arrived 
there  in  about  an  hour.  A  charming  trajet,  most  lovely 
weather.  Went  into  the  two  fine  Churches  at  Delft.  A  little 
Jew  silversmith  in  the  square  showed  us  a  good  old  silver  box 
bearing  the  arms  of  Schiedam,  and  a  nice  carved  picture 
frame,  neither  of  them  in  our  way.  There  is  not  any  attempt 
at  a  curiosity  shop  in  Delft.  We  had  to  race  for  our  train, 
and  it  was  very  hot,  but  we  caught  it  and  arrived  at  The 
Hague  in  time  for  the  5  o'clock  table  d'hote  at  the  Hotel 
Paulez. 

Oct.  6th.  Stayed  over  this  day  at  The  Hague.  Our  first 
visit  was  to  the  Jews'  quarter,  Lange  Gracht,  to  look  after 
young  Schaak,  who  had  sold  us  a  good  enamel  box  when  we 
were  last  at  The  Hague  and  was  to  have  delivered  it  in 
London  the  following  week  which  he  had  failed  to  do.  As  it 
was  not  paid  for  this  mattered  less,  but  we  wanted  the  box. 
Of  course  Schaak  was  out.  Went  into  another  little  shop 
there,  and  then  to  the  Achteroom.  Van  Gelder  (who  had 
spoken  to  us  at  Delft)  showed  us  two  Ormolu  mounted  vases 
of  a  fine  green  colour,  which  he  had  then  been  to  Delft  to 
buy.  We  liked  them,  but  hesitated.  They  were  old  French 
imitations  of  Oriental,  price  £11.  10.  Next  to  Sartin's, 
where  we  found  the  box  we  had  bought  of  Schaak,  the 
price  having  then  risen  from  £5.  to  £6.  Le  traitre !  It  was 
not  worth  the  money  so  we  left  it ;  at  Block's,  opposite,  we 
found  a  very  pretty  little  boy,  Bow,  but  with  a  broken  foot: 
for  this  and  a  ware  figure  of  a  boy  with  a  dog,  holding  a  rose 


i869  NOTES  CERAMIC 

(qy.  Fulham)  we  gave  Block  25/-«  At  Tennyssen's  we  found 
that  he  had  already  sold  the  casket  we  saw  at  Bois  le  Due 
on  the  1st.  He  himself  was  absent ;  in  his  two  windows  we 
saw  two  ware  figures  of  the  model  of  our  Bow  actor,  also  a 
companion  Lady.  The  bases  were  of  tortoise-shell  colour, 
the  draperies  very  brilliant  and  highly  glazed.  C.S.  thinks 
them  to  be  D wight's  Fulham  Quasi  Porcelain.  Ivor  had 
given  me  a  commission  for  Schwabe's  of  whom  he  had 
bought  his  Delft  collection  in  1862,  to  see  if  he  was  inclined 
to  buy  it  back  again,  so  we  went  there,  bought  of  him  two  fine 
miniatures  in  wax  of  George  II.  and  his  Queen,  marked  on 
the  back  by  Gossett  ?  Who  was  he  ?  £2.  Schwabe  had 
an  exquisite  enamel  plaque  representing  a  procession  in 
carriages,  with  sign  post  inscribed  "  De  Dantzic  a  Bar"  and  a 
temple,  "  Temple  de  la  Paix  "-—beautiful  distance  with  spires 
of  a  town.  The  piece  was  about  four  inches.  Signed  at  the 
back  "  Fromery  a  Berlin  "  and  "  Herold  fecit  ".  The  subject 
probably  alludes  to  one  of  Frederic  the  Great's  Victories.  I 
much  desired  this  piece,  but  it  was  not  to  be  had  under  £8  so 
I  must,  for  the  present,  content  myself  with  describing  it. 
Schwabe  had  also  a  marvellous  little  miniature  of  the  Princesse 
de  Lamballe,  on  pink  ground  surrounded  by  Cupids,  Sevres 
enamel.  The  whole  piece  not  larger  than  half  a  crown. 
For  this  he  said  Marks  had  offered  him  £25.  He  wanted 
£30.  Went  to  De  Maans,  19  Bierkase.  Bought  of  him  a 
fine  but  much  dilapidated  figure  of  a  Shepherd,  Chelsea, 
30/-.  On  an  introduction  from  Augustus  Lumley  we  called 
en  M.  and  Mme.  Bisschop,  the  painter  and  his  wife,  living 
in  a  picturesque  little  house,  full  of  old  things.  He  went 
with  us  to  look  at  Van  Gelder's  vases,  which  we  did  not  buy, 
and  he  took  us  to  see  some  others,  a  kind  of  porphyry  in  fine 
mountings,  but  not  of  our  sort.  De  Maan  had  taken  us  to 
see  some  good  Chelsea  candlesticks,  of  an  ordinary  model. 

47 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1869 
The  woman  to  whom  they  belonged  wanted  £20  for  them, 
far  too  much.  After  table  d'hote  we  went  out  again.  Bought 
Tennyssen's  3  Fulham  figures  for  30/-  and  then  went  again  to 
De  Maan's.  He  had  told  us  he  knew  of  some  things  at 
Arnhem,  so  we  settled  to  go  there  on  the  morrow,  his  son 
accompanying  us,  and  accordingly  we  were  in  the  train  before 
7  in  the  morning. 

Oct.  7th.  By  Rotterdam  and  Utrecht,  and  so  to  Arnhem. 
A  lovely  place  and  a  lovely  day,  so  we  enjoyed  the  excursion 
very  much  but  we  added  nothing  to  our  Ceramic  Collection. 
First  young  De  Maan  took  us  to  see  some  jewelled  Sevres 
vases,  palpable  imitations.  Then  to  a  house  where  he  said 
there  were  Chelsea  figures,  but  where  there  was  nothing. 
Then  to  a  Mme.  Braan's  in  the  Backerstraat  where  we  saw 
some  very  fine  tapestry  of  which  I  took  the  particulars  on  the 
chance  of  its  suiting  Ivor.  She  also  had,  in  the  same  room,  a 
fine  old  carved  looking  glass.  We  went  into  all  the  shops  in  the 
town,  which  were  small  and  insignificant,  and  found  nothing. 
But  in  passing  through  the  Overstraat,  we  saw  a  picture 
placed  near  a  window,  evidently  for  sale.  We  went  in  and 
looked  at  it,  found  it  was  a  Dutch  landscape  with  figures  of 
the  Flight  into  Egypt  introduced.  We  rather  liked  it,  and  as 
we  found  we  could  have  it  for  35  florins  (under  £3)  we 
brought  it  away  with  us.  Mile.  Smits,  the  daughter  of  the 
dealer,  said  it  was  by  Winkenboom.  Drove  on  from 
Arnhem,  through  pretty  villas  to  Billioen,  a  country  place 
belonging  to  Baron  Hardenbruck.  He,  poor  man,  is 
paralytic,  and  lives  in  Paris,  but  he  had  collected  some  good 
things  there.  Some  Delft,  and  silver  tankards,  etc.  The 
house  and  grounds  very  nice,  and  his  large  reception-rooms 
on  the  first  floor  beautifully  decorated  with  white  stucco 
ornaments  on  a  turquoise  ground,  charming  effect.  We  were 
very  glad  to  get  a  glimpse  of  a  Dutch  interior.  On  our  way 


i869  NOTES  CERAMIC 

back,  stopped  at  Utrecht.  De  Maan  showed  us  some  more 
tapestries,  of  the  quarters  of  the  globe,  signed  and  dated,  La 
Fortuna  1713.  I  did  not  like  them  nearly  so  well  as  those 
at  Arnhem.  Also  he  took  us  to  see  a  room  done  with  gold 
leather  at  Reuser's,  an  upholsterer's  (Achter  St.  Pietre  F. 
345).  It  has  birds  painted  on  it,  and  is  good,  but  not 
equal  to  that  Ivor  already  has.  However,  I  took  the 
dimensions  in  case  he  cared  to  have  it.  We  failed  to  see  a 
Worcester  service  belonging  to  Baron  Van  Heekeren,  but 
have  put  our  friend  Gorkam  on  the  scent  to  try  and  get  it 
for  us.  Parted  from  De  Maan  at  Utrecht,  and  after  taking 
coffee,  went  on  to  Rotterdam,  where  we  slept,  Hotel  Victoria. 

Friday  Oct.  8th.  Up  early,  went  to  Van  Minden's,  packed 
up  all  our  purchases  and  saw  them  on  board  the  English 
steamer.  Then  took  our  places  on  the  boat  for  Dordrecht, 
thence  by  train  to  Antwerp,  intended  to  go  on  to  Brussels  at 
night,  but  in  consequence  of  information  received  from  a 
bookseller,  Van  Mol,  in  the  Marche*  aux  Souliers,  we  changed 
our  plans,  and  went  instead  to  the  little  town  of  Lierre,  where 
we  slept  at  the  Faucon. 

Saturday,  Oct.  Qth.  Before  breakfast  explored  Lierre. 
The  principal  man,  Vouters,  was  away  and  his  wife  would 
not  let  us  see  anything.  We  found  another  little  dealer, 
Van  Venrooj  (10  Rue  des  Tilleuls),  who  had  an  assortment 
of  Delft  and  some  furniture,  but  nothing  in  our  line.  He 
took  us  to  a  tradesman's  who  had  a  small  collection,  rather 
pretty,  from  whom  we  bought  a  Chelsea-Derby  Harlequin 
for  £2.  with  which  we  were  delighted  till  we  examined  it  more 
carefully  at  home  and  found  the  head  had  been  off  and  skil- 
fully reinstated,  but  it  was  quite  worth  having,  for  all  that. 
Left  Lierre  before  10.  Got  to  Antwerp  in  a  few  minutes,  and 
to  Brussels  about  midday.  Stayed  there  till  early  Monday 
and  occupied  ourselves  in  exploring  all  the  shops  we  could 
i  49  & 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1869 

find.  We  must  have  gone  into  more  than  a  dozen.  Our 
purchases  were  as  follows.  At  Del  Hougue's,  84  Montagne 
de  la  Cour,  a  Bow  (sprigged)  sucrier  with  cover  and  acorn 
top,  I4/-.  A  lovely  Bow  cup  and  saucer,  io/-.  Small 
Venetian  glass  flacon,  from  the  collection  of  General  de  Rossi 
of  Dresden,  I2/-.  At  De  Badt's,  a  small  shop  also  in  the 
Montagne  de  la  Cour,  a  Chelsea  candlestick  with  fox  and 
bird  in  a  bocage  (the  latter  broken  and  badly  mended)  £i. 
An  enamel  snuffbox  delicately  painted  in  pink  12/6.  Enamel 
printed  portraits  (rude,  probably  Bilston)  of  Washington,  Dr. 
Franklin  and  Gen.  Reed,  7/6.  At  Slaes  de  Roy's,  4  Place  du 
Muse"e,  a  good  Chelsea  "Autumn"  in  fine  condition  but  not 
large,  £2.  8.  A  good  e"tui  with  female  head  painted  on  it, 
£2.  A  large  enamel  box,  £i.  At  Cools  Thyssens',  15  Rue 
des  Trois  Fetes,  a  small  purple  enamel  box  with  well  executed 
classical  subject,  £i.  16.  We  found  nothing  whatever  in 
any  of  the  other  shops,  but  the  following  are  likely  places 
for  another  visit.  George  Bradbee,  6  Rue  Parchemin. 
Huysmans,  44  Rue  de  la  Fourche.  Handelaar,  54  Rue  de 
1'Etuve  (who  has  also  a  warehouse  at  Amsterdam  and  lives 
at  the  Vesper  Straat).  Brussels  has  done  better  for  us  this 
time  than  we  could  have  expected.  But  it  has  been  due  to 
a  fatiguing  search. 

Sunday,  Oct.  loth.  Church,  Rue  de  B6liard ;  lovely 
summer's  day,  afternoon's  drive.  Called  on  Mr.  Lumley 
and  saw  him.  He  showed  me  what  he  was  doing  in 
furnishing  the  Embassy.  [This  was  the  diplomat  of  many 
experiences  who  had  been  on  a  mission  to  Saxony  in  1866- 
1867.  Swiss  Confederation,  etc.  Was  at  Brussels  from 
1868  to  1883  and  in  Italy  from  the  latter  time  to  1887. 
Became  Lord  Savile  of  Rufford  in  1888.]  From  our  Etienne 
Band  of  Lausanne  he  had  got  some  fine  ebony  furniture,  inlaid 
with  ivory,  some  of  the  plaques  signed  G.  Bertini,  Milano. 

50 


PLYMOUTH   AND   BRISTOL,   EXAMPLES   OF   THE   FIRST    HARD    PASTE    PORCELAINS 

MADE    IN     ENGLAND,     SOME     FIFTY    YEARS    AFTER    THE    FIRST    WARE    OF    THE 

KIND   WAS  PRODUCED  IN   MEISSEN   NEAR  DRESDEN.      BRISTOL    SOMETIMES    USED 

THE    CROSS-SWORDS    OF    SAXONY    AS    A    MARK 

The  Schreiber  Collection 


i869  NOTES  CERAMIC 

These  he  found  when  he  was  Minister  at  Berne.  Went 
through  the  grand  Market  place,  and  into  Ste.  Godule  ; 
wonderful  glass  windows.  Brussels.  Hotel  de  1'Europe. 

Octi  nth.  Left  at  9,  and  after  travelling  all  day,  got  to 
Rouen  before  10.  Smith's  Albion  Hotel ;  comfortable  but 
wretched  cooking.  Another  lovely  day  wasted  in  a  railway 
carriage.  Long  stop  at  Arras,  which  we  explored  in  1867, 
but  were  not  able  to  go  into  the  town. 

Out  by  10.  First  to  all  the  shops.  Bujon,  53  Rue  de 
I'lmp^ratrice,  had  nothing.  In  another  shop,  full  of  rubbisr^ 
we  saw  an  earthenware  fountain  which  we  liked,  but  the 
old  man  would  not  let  us  touch  it  to  examine  it,  so  we 
left  it.  Billiard's,  26  Rue  de  Gauterie,  is  a  pretty  good 
shop,  interspersed  with  modern  china  and  ware,  etc.  Two 
cups  like  the  Venetian  one  last  bought  at  Lichfield,  and  an 
Oriental  cup,  white  ivory  ground  with  figures  in  gold  relief. 
This  cup  proved  to  be  old  Sevres  of  the  finest !  The  loveliest 
thing  I  ever  saw,  but  the  prices  were  beyond  us.  Billiard  is 
the  man  employed  to  arrange  examples  at  the  Museum. 
He  was  absent  and  we  only  saw  an  old  woman  who  seemed 
to  ask  prices  at  random.  The  most  promising  place  we 
went  to  was  De  Francois'  in  a  wretched  Quartier  de  Robec, 
where  they  live  over  an  open  drain.  Here,  nevertheless, 
were  the  best  things.  The  man  was  absent  but  a  nice 
little  wife  was  at  home.  They  had  a  good  but  small  collec- 
tion of  Rouen  ware  in  a  private  room.  Here  we  bought  a 
specimen  of  St.  Clement  ware,  white,  highly  ornamented 
with  gold  sprigs,  £i.  4.  o.  In  all  these  shops  there  was  a 
profusion  of  Rouen  ware  or  what  pretended  to  be  such, 
which  proves  how  common  it  is.  Very  little  of  it  is  even 
pleasing,  it  is  very  heavy,  but  gay  in  colour  and  decorative. 
I  should  be  quite  content  with  one  very  good  specimen. 
Having  done  the  shops  we  went  to  the  Mus£e,  with  which 

51 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS   1869 

we  were  quite  delighted.  I  was  very  pleased  to  see  the 
celebrated  Delft  fiddle,  which  is  certainly  very  interesting. 
After  this  to  the  new  Church  au  Bon  Secours  (the  best  modern 
Church  I  ever  saw)  and  to  Fort  St.  Catherine,  for  the  views 
over  the  town  and  the  surrounding  country,  grand.  Visited 
the  Palais  de  Justice,  the  old  house  (with  bas  relief  of  the 
Cloth  of  Gold)  in  the  Place  de  la  Pucelle  d'Orleans,  the 
Cathedral,  the  St.  Ouen,  which  is  still  finer,  the  St.  Maclou,  with 
its  lace-like  fagade,  the  St.  Vincent  with  its  beautiful  windows, 
returning  through  the  Archway  of  the  old  Hotel  de  Ville, 
It  is  wonderful  that  so  many  objects  of  interest  should  have 
escaped  the  ravages  of  time  and  revolution.  They  are  doing 
much  now  in  the  way  of  restoring,  but  have  disfigured  the 
grand  Cathedral  by  the  addition  of  a  lofty  Iron  skeleton  Spire 
to  the  fine  tower  over  the  cross  of  the  transept.  Altogether 
a  most  enjoyable  day,  but  embittered  by  hearing  that  my 
sister  Lady  Huntly  had  lost  her  son  Bertrand.  [Lady 
Huntly  was  the  second  wife  of  the  10th  Marquis  and  the 
stepsister  of  Lady  Charlotte,  to  whom  she  was  greatly 
attached.  Before  marriage  she  was  Miss  Pegus,  the  daughter 
of  Lady  Charlotte's  mother,  the  widow  of  the  Earl  of  Lindsey, 
and  her  stepfather,  the  Rev.  P.  W.  Pegus,  who  played  a  con- 
siderable part  in  Lady  Charlotte's  early  days.] 

Oct.  I3th.  We  were  anxious  to  get  some  more  information 
about  the  Rouen  manufactures  and  the  specimens  in  the 
Museum,  and  made  more  than  one  attempt  to  find  the  director 
of  the  Ceramic  portion,  the  Abbe"  Colas,  but  without  success. 
Visited  the  Museum  again.  Called  to  pay  for  and  carry  away 
our  St.  Clement  6cuelle  at  De  Fra^ois'  (we  did  not  take  the 
medal)  and  there  fell  in  with  the  amateur  collector,  Mons. 
Gouellain,  who  politely  invited  us  to  go  and  see  his  collection; 
but  the  time  did  not  admit  of  our  doing  so.  Bought  Billiard's 
two  Venetian  coffee  cups  and  saucers  £i.  12,  Went  on  by 


i869  NOTES  CERAMIC 

2  P.M.  train  to  Paris,  where  we  arrived  soon  after  4*  and  had 
time  for  a  little  exploration  of  the  Quai  Voltaire  shops  before 
proceeding  to  the  Gare.  At  Mme.  Rouveyre's  (No.  7)  we 
heard  of  some  Chelsea  plates,  matching  our  fine  service, 
which  she  said  was  in  a  private  family  and  which  she  promised 
to  try  and  get  for  us  against  we  came  through  Paris  again. 
The  price  she  spoke  of  was  ridiculously  small,  and  altogether 
I  could  not  but  feel  "  it  was  too  good  to  be  true".  Bought 
of  her  a  charming  enamel  inkstand,  printed  in  pink  and 
slightly  painted  over  en  camaieu  £i.  8.  After  a  very  bad 
dinner  at  the  railway  restaurant,  went  on  by  train  before 
9  to  Orleans,  where  we  slept  at  an  old  fashioned  house,  the 
"  Boule  d'Or." 

Oct.  I4th.  Delighted  with  Orleans  and  all  its  associations. 
Two  excellent  Museums,  one  in  the  house  called  that  of  Diane 
de  Poitiers,  the  other  in  the  fine  old  Hotel  de  Ville.  In  the 
latter  we  were  charmed  with  four  ancient  costume  pictures  of 
fetes,  temp.  Louis  XIII.  by  Claude  Dernet,  and  fine  terre 
cuites  portraits  by  J.R.  Nini,  1770,  -80.  Interesting  portraits 
and  souvenirs  of  Jeanne  d'Arc.  Went  into  the  Cathedral, 
and  into  the  Mairie,  and  drove  past  Agnes  Sorrel's  house. 
Very  indifferent  curiosity  shops.  Picked  up  a  Sevres  painted 
earthenware  plate  at  Bonjour's,  Rue  Bourgogne,  I  franc,  and  a 
marked  &St.  Cloud  sceau  at  Bencoux's,  I  Rue  de  Gourville, 
8/-.  This  was  sold  to  us  for  Oriental !  The  principal  shop, 
Bataille's,  Rue  Jeanne  d'Arc,  had  only  modern  things,  but  he 
showed  us  a  set  of  12  French  Empire  Plates,  which  interested 
me  because  two  of  them  were  decorated  with  plans  of  Moscow 
and  St.  Petersburg,  with  references,  all  printed,  and  with 
the  inscription  "grave*  a  Paris  par  P.  F.  Tardieu,  Place  de 
1'Estrapade,  No.  I."  Left  Orleans  about  4.30,  and  went  on 
to  Tours,  where  we  dined  and  slept.  Hotel  de  1'Univers, 
very  good  hotel  indeed. 

53 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1869 

Oct.  I5th.  Drove  about  Tours,  went  into  the  Cathedral, 
and  visited  the  few  small  shops  the  town  boasts  of.  They  had 
nothing  in  them.  At  half-past  2.  retraced  our  steps  as  far  as 
Amboise,  then  took  a  carriage  and  drove  over  to  Chenonceau. 
Delighted  with  our  excursion.  The  old  place  is  being  restored 
and  done  well.  We  were  rather  disappointed  with  the  speci- 
mens of  furniture  and  decoration  remaining  in  the  Castle, 
as  we  had  heard  so  much  of  them,  but  the  building  itself  is 
delicious.  Old  Cur£  fishing  in  the  moat.  Only  got  back  to 
Amboise,  after  lunching  at  the  little  cabaret,  in  time  to  visit 
the  Chapel  at  the  Castle  (passing  Leonardo  da  Vinci's  grave), 
walking  down  from  the  height  by  the  interior  of  the  large 
Tower,  where  in  lieu  of  a  staircase  there  is  an  easy  descend- 
ing road  wide  enough  for  carriages  and  horses.  Fine  view 
over  the  country  from  the  Terrace  at  Amboise.  No  time  to  go 
to  the  Church  to  see  the  Babon  monument.  Back  to  Paris  at 
half-past  five,  dining  at  Orleans  en  route.  After  some  difficulty 
in  finding  quarters,  got  a  nice  little  entresol  at  the  Hotel  de 
Lille  et  d'Albion. 

Oct.  i6th.  Spent  the  day  in  ransacking  the  shops  where  we 
had  better  success  than  we  could  have  expected,  certainly  ^better 
than  when  we  were  in  Paris  this  time  two  years.  Of  course, 
as  I  predicted,  Mme.  Rouveyre  could  not  get  us  the  Chelsea 
plates,  the  owner  being  away  from  Paris.  We  bought  of  her 
a  pretty  gold  enamelled  bodkin  case,  sage  green  medallions 
printed  and  coloured,  8/-,  and  an  enamelled  mustard  pot,  white 
with  flowers,  simple  but  very  pure,  £l.  4.  At  De  la  Roche's 
of  Rue  Bonaparte,  we  got  two  exquisite  Chelsea  or  Chelsea- 
Derby  dishes  with  Cupids  en  camaieu  in  the  centre,  and  small 
medallions  of  roses  on  the  border,  and  the  richest  gilding,  one 
unfortunately  cracked  slightly,  £8.  8.  At  Leclerc's,  4  Rue 
Jacob,  a  pair  of  rose  du  Barri  salt-cellars,  with  landscapes,  £i. 
Small  head  of  Louis  XV.  in  enamel,  in  the  Rue  du  Dauphin, 

54 


« s 

_  a 
a  ?* 


§1 


1869  NOTES  CERAMIC 

4/-.  A  fine  turquoise  enamel  etui  at  Worms',  10  Rue  Royale, 
£2.  8.  This  I  remember  seeing  here  two  years  ago.  Worms 
showed  us  a  magnificent  Parure  of  old  Dresden.  A  centre 
piece  and  two  side  pieces,  on  which  were  statuettes  of  the 
Foili  horses,  treated  in  exactly  the  same  manner  as  those 
we  possess  in  Bow  china,  and  thus  showing  whence  the 
English  model  was  derived.  In  the  shop  on  the  Boulevard 
des  Capucines,  we  got  two  Worcester  plates,  white  ground 
but  finely  painted  with  birds,  guaranteed  as  Dresden !  £2. 
At  Topena's,  92  Rue  St.  Lazare,  a  gold  bodkin  case  with 
enamel  thimble,  lilac,  8/-,  and  cane  head,  lilac,  painted 
with  birds,  and  having  a  pouncet  box  at  the  top,  l6/-. 
These  are  better  prices  than  we  gave  for  similar  articles 
this  summer  at  Drex's,  Munich,  and  Wolfsohn's,  Dresden. 
Some  candlesticks  we  admired  two  years  ago  are  still  in  the 
Boulevard  Madeleine,  and  so  are  some  Worcester  baskets 
which  we  then  saw  in  the  Quai  Voltaire,  but  all  too 
dear.  Table  d'h6te  at  half-past  5.  Walked  out  to  try  and 
find  Mme.  Waddington.  [The  Waddingtons  are  frequently 
mentioned  by  Lady  Charlotte  and  were  early  friends.  M. 
Waddington  was  the  famous  diplomat  who  afterwards  be- 
came Ambassador  and  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs.  He  has 
been  greatly  praised  for  his  straightforward  conduct  under 
Napoleon  III.,  at  a  time  when  every  Minister's  conduct  was 
not  always  quite  candid.] 

Oct.  I7th.  Had  made  an  appointment  to  call  on  Mons. 
Jacquemart.  [The  author  and  connoisseur,  so  well  known  for  his 
works  on  the  decorative  arts.]  Found  him  in  a  pleasant  apartment 
au  cinquieme,  in  the  Rue  Pergolese.  He  has  not  many  things 
in  his  house,  the  principal  part  of  his  collection  being  on  Exhi- 
bition, but  he  gave  us  much  information  about  French  and 
Oriental  porcelain,  more  than  I  can  remember.  Walked  down  to 
our  Hotel  from  his  house,  taking  the  Exhibition  on  our  way,  to 

55 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1869 

see  the  collection  on  loan,  of  Oriental  productions,  which  is 
very  good. 

Oct.    l8th.      Cold    bright    day.       Drove    out   shopping. 
Fetched   away  our   fine    Chelsea-Derby  dishes   from  De  la 
Roche's.     Bought  at   Nonon's,   2  Rue  Blanche,  a  turquoise 
enamel  e"tui,  inlaid  with  silver  in  relief,  and  in  an  arabesque 
pattern.     I  should  think  Sevres  enamel  and  of  the  same  kind 
as  the  mauve  we  bought  of  Riette  in  June,  for  this  we  paid 
£i  ;  for  a  little  Bow  figure  of  Winter  at  the  same  place,  £l.  4. 
We  had  been  to  Mme.   Oppenheim's,  64  Rue  Aboukir,  on 
Saturday,  and  returned  there  to-day  to  look  at  her  stock  by 
daylight.     Salomons   had  directed  us  to  her   (Salomons  of 
Dresden),  to  see  a  fine  Venetian  set  which  they  had  bought 
in  partnership.     Besides  a  vast  number  of  other  pieces  this 
service  comprised  5  ice  pails  forming  vases  with  covers,  liners, 
etc.     They  are  well  painted  with  bouquets  and  have  wreaths 
of  well  moulded  flowers  on  them.     To  separate  them  from 
the  rest  of  the  service  they  wanted  £60.     We  have  made  an 
offer  of  £50.      Bought  a  turquoise  e"tui  at  Oppenheim's,  £2. 
This  was  the  extent  of  to-day's  purchases.     We  drove  about 
in   the    neighbourhood  of  the    Rue    Pigalle,    but  could  find 
nothing.     After  a  long  search  for  it,  we  accidentally  hit  upon 
the  shop  of  our  old  friend  Fournier,  59  Rue  Faubourg  Mont- 
martre.     They  had  nothing  in  our  line  (two  years  ago  we  got 
some  very  good  things  of  them)  but  we  had  great  pleasure  in 
again  looking  over  their  choice  private  collection.     Went  all 
through  the  shops  of  the  Boulevard  Beaumarchais,  without 
any  results,  and  later  through  those  of  the  Rue  St.  Roch. 
I    have    now   to    proceed   to    pack    up   as   we    leave    this 
very  early  for   England  to-morrow.     Just  as   I  had  written 
this  young  Oppenheim  came  in  to  say  they  accepted  our  offer 
of  £50.   for   the  five   Venetian  vases   [these  are  illustrated 
here]    and    accordingly   they    met    us    at    the    train    next 

56 


END  OF  ONE  OF  THE  DRAWING-ROOMS  AT  l*J  CAVENDISH  SQUARE,  SHOWING 
THE  FINE  VASES  OR  ICE  URNS  OF  VENETIAN  PORCELAIN  WHICH  LADY 
CHARLOTTE  BOUGHT,  AND  OTHER  OBJECTS  OF  [ART,  THE  SPOILS  OF  HER 
MANY  "  CH ASSES" 


i869  NOTES  CERAMIC 

morning  at  740.     Returned  to  England  in  a  raging   gale. 
Oct.  igth. 

Oct.  20th.     London.     Went  to  recover  our  box  of  China, 
etc.,  from  the  Custom  House,  which  we  had  despatched  from 
Rotterdam  on  the  8th.     Having  done  so  we  were  close  to 
Carter's,  the  Minories,  and  went  in  there.     Now,  curiously 
enough,  though  we  have  ransacked  the  Continent  for  months 
and  found  no  hard-paste  English,  the  first  thing  we  find  in 
England  is  the  coveted  article  !     Carter  had  a  fine  Plymouth 
figure  of  America  which  he  called  Chelsea,  and  which  we 
bought  for  £6,  got  a  raised  fruit  dish  for  25 /-  at  Dalgleish's, 
to  make  up  a  set  of  14  we  already  have.     At  Marks'  bought 
a  sucrier   and    cover,  and  a  pair  of  cups   and  saucers  with 
Busch's  decoration,  similar  to  that  we  bought  at  Hanover  on 
the  i6th  of  Aug.  last,  but  of  a  different  pattern,  £5.     [Canon 
Busch  of  Hildesheim  decorated  pieces  of  the  best  period  of 
Meissen  (Dresden)  porcelain  by  a  method  of  his  own.     He 
engraved   with   a   diamond    point    well-known    designs    in 
line  on  the  glaze,   and  then  filled  in  with    black  pigment.] 
From  Cavalle  we  got  a  turquoise  bordered  Worcester  plate  (£2) 
to  replace  an  imperfect  one  in  the  set  of  6  which  we  obtained 
from   Clements  last  year.     Also  a  good  Bristol  coffee  cup 
and  saucer,  I2/-.     These  were  all  our  transactions  on  our  way 
through  town.     Spent  the   evening  with    Henry  and    Enid 
Layard  just  returned  from  abroad.     He  is  appointed  Minister 
at  Madrid.       Left  town    again    for    Hopetoun   House,  near 
Edinburgh.     Lady  Hopetoun  took  us  into  Edinburgh  to  the 
shop  of  one  Butti  in  Queen  Street.     The  first  thing  that  met 
the  gaze  of  the  delighted  C.S.  was  a  Plymouth  bust  (with 
pedestal)  of  King  George  II.  exactly  the  same  as  that  which 
belonged  to  the  late    Dr.  Cookworthy  of  Plymouth,  which 
came  to  him  from  the  manufacturers  and  which  he  has  left  as 
an  heirloom  in  the  family.      Butti  (knowing  nothing  of  its 

57 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1869 
extreme  value)  sold  it  to  us  for  £5.  We  got  from  him  also  a 
Chelsea  plate,  l5/~>  small  white  ornament,  12/6,  Derby  tri- 
angular ornament  with  mark  in  red  and  also  the  impressed 
star,  of  value  only  for  the  mark,  IO/-.  A  Battersea  enamelled 
portrait  of  George  II.  in  bad  condition,  I5/-.  There  was 
another  shop,  where  there  was  a  curious  Delft  jug,  with  initials 
and  coin  inserted  in  the  metal  cover  (Tornatum  Captumi7il) 
which  interested  us,  but  we  did  not  purchase. 

Oct.  29th.  Again  went  into  Edinburgh.  Visited  both 
Museums.  In  that  on  the  Hill  we  saw  the  collection  of 
china  which  they  bought  of  Binns.  We  could  not  find  the 
enamels  he  sold  them.  At  Cameron's,  a  bookseller,  going 
down  the  Hill,  Lady  Hopetoun  purchased  one  or  two  pretty 
bits.  We  did  nothing  though  we  ransacked  the  low  parts  of 
the  town,  Cowgate,  Cannon  Street,  High  Street,  etc. 

NOVEMBER  1869 

AT    HOME  :    GLASGOW  :    LIVERPOOL  :    SHREWSBURY  :    WOR- 
CESTER:  LONDON 

Nov.  1st.  Left  Hopetoun  early  for  Glasgow.  Atn  went 
on  to  Helensburgh,  and  thence  to  West  Shandon,  Mr.  Napier 
having  sent  to  meet  us  at  the  station.  Had  luncheon  with 
him,  and  then  had  a  hasty  survey  of  his  wonderfully  exten- 
sive collection.  Many  fine  things,  but  the  visit  rather  lacked 
interest,  for  the  possessor  did  not  seem  to  enjoy  the  individual 
specimens  as  we  thought  he  would  have  done.  It  was  a  vast 
accumulation.  Back  at  Glasgow  by  5.  Maclean's  Hotel,  good- 

Nov.  2nd.  Found  a  sale  room  full  of  modern  rubbish,  pre- 
sided over  by  "  Big  Ben  "  (Benjamin,  Jew  dealer,  of  Glass- 
house Street,  London)  who  was  selling  "  by  private  contract." 
There  are  no  curiosity  shops  in  Glasgow  ;  went  on  to  Winder- 
mere,  where  we  slept.  Most  comfortable. 

Nov.  3rd.      Lovely  day  after  all  the  rain.    By  10  o'clock  we 

58 


1869  NOTES  CERAMIC 

were  at  Mr.  Stainforth's  at  Stores,  where  we  spent  a  most 
delightful  and  improving  day,  looking  over  and  examining 
and  thoroughly  going  over  with  him,  his  interesting  collection. 
Went  on  the  same  evening  to  Liverpool. 

Nov.  4th.     Called  first  on  Mr.   Mayer  (10  Lord  Street) 
the  old  jeweller,  who  had  made  the  munificent  donation  of  his 
collection  to  the  town  of   Liverpool.     We  saw  him  in  his 
shop,  and  he  gave  us  a  card  of  introduction  to  the  custodian 
of  the  Museum,  Mr.  Moore.    We  spent  3  hours  at  the  Museum 
and  were  extremely  interested.     Mr.  Smith,  whose  depart- 
ment was  the  china,  opened  all  the  cases  for  us,   and   we 
examined  everything  to  our  heart's  content.    There  are  some 
excellent  specimens,  of  painting  on  ware  and  on  enamels,  and 
a  large  collection  of  tiles.     I  think  only  two  of  them  signed 
"  Sadler."     To  our  surprise  we  found  another  Plymouth  bust 
of  George  II.,  but  without  its  original  pedestal.     Of  course 
they  did  not  know  what  it  was  till  we  told  them.     Saw  Mr. 
Gladstone's   collection,  which  is   there   on    loan.      [This    is 
thought  to  have  been  a  loan  collection  belonging  to  the  late 
Prime  Minister.     Lady  Charlotte  was  a  rather  severe  critic 
of  some  specimens    there   gathered    together.]     It  contains 
some  fine  Chelsea.    The  Capo  di  Monte  I  do  not  understand. 
There  are  no  "  dealers "  in  Liverpool,  but  we  went  to  the 
pawnbrokers.     One,    Gobson,    in    Moorgate    Road,  had   no 
china,  but  we  bought  of  him  an  old  portrait  of  an  elderly  male 
on  panel,  dated  1596,  for  £i.  5.     A  very  rude  miniature  of 
Charles  Edward  in  a  wooden  case  for  £i.  (said  to  be  one  of 
those  which  the  Jacobites  carried  about  with  them  to  their 
convivial    meetings,   to  be   produced  when   they  drank  his 
health  as  "the  King  over  the  water").     Also  a  mother-of- 
pearl  snuff-box  top,  5/-,  subject,  a  lady  and  gentleman  dancing, 
a  disconsolate  seeming  man  (said  to  be  the  husband)  looking 
on.     Another  pawnbroker,  Kidson,  Brownlow  Hill,  is  more 

59 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1869 
promising,  we  bought  from  him  a  small  Italian  figure,  30/-, 
Sevres,  I5/-,  3  Rockingham  cups  and  saucers  and  3  plates, 
25/-.  Dined,  and  afterwards  went  on  to  Chester. 

Nov.  5th.  Kidson  of  Liverpool  had  told  us  of  a  medical 
man,  Dr.  Thomas,  who  had  a  collection,  so  we  called  on  him 
the  next  morning.  He  showed  us  the  few  things  he  had 
(amongst  them  a  Liverpool  printed  mug  of  Gen.  Wolfe,  signed 
by  Sadler,  which  I  much,  but  hopelessly  covet)  and  was  very 
civil  in  accompanying  us  to  several  places  in  the  town,  in 
search  of  objects.  He  took  us  first  to  Mr.  Hollis,  an  artist, 
who  has  a  few  things,  an  eccentric  man  whom  we  found  busy 
at  his  easel,  very  kind  and  communicative.  His  best  posses- 
sions were  Oriental  enamel,  Cloisonne".  We  saw  a  few  very 
nice  bits  at  the  house  of  Mr.  Hughes,  the  bookseller ;  among 
these  were  two  Bow  plates  printed  in  red,  the  subject  being 
-#Lneas  carrying  his  father  out  of  Troy.  With  one  of  these, 
Mr.  Hughes,  whom  we  afterwards  saw  in  his  shop  in  the 
town,  presented  us.  Dr.  Thomas  then  took  us  to  a  shop,  but 
there  was  nothing.  Accompanied  by  Mr.  Hughes,  to  the 
house  of  a  Miss  Potts,  an  elderly  lady,  who  has  a  large  but 
very  indifferent  collection.  A  few  of  her  specimens  were 
good,  but  very  few.  We  were  amused  at  finding  among  her 
things,  as  well  as  in  all  other  collections  we  visited,  some 
pieces  which  had  once  belonged  to  us,  and  which,  not  being 
good  enough  for  us  we  had  sent  down  to  a  sale  at  Chester 
about  this  time  twelvemonths.  Went  to  Shrewsbury  where 
we  were  disappointed  to  find  no  regular  shops.  There  was 
an  old  broker  in  the  lower  part  of  the  town,  but  he  had 
absolutely  nothing  but  the  worst  rubbish  ;  at  an  upholsterer's, 
Blowers,  we  bought  an  Oriental  plate  (2/6)  and  he  sent  us 
to  see  a  collection  belonging  to  an  accountant  or  surveyor, 
Mr.  Humphreys.  His  best  specimen  was  a  fine  piece  of  Bow, 
blue  and  white  shell  work.  He  has  a  room  nicely  fitted  up 

(So 


MM-:  LIVERPOOL  DELFT  WALL  TILES  PRINTED  IN  BLACK,  EACH  REPRESENTING 
WELL-KNOWN  ACTORS  IN  CHARACTER.  I.  MACKLIN  AS  SHYLOCK.  2.  MRS.  YATES 
AS  JANE  SHORE.  3.  C.ARRICK  AS  ABEL  DRUGGER.  4.  MRS.  MATTOCKS  AS 
PRINCESS  CATHERINE.  5.  MOODY  AS  TEAGUE.  6.  MRS.  Bl'LKLEY  AS  ANGELINA. 
7.  LEWIS  AS  HIPPOI.I 'ITS.  8.  MRS.  CIBBER  AS  MO.NIMIA.  9.  LEWIS  AS  DOUGLAS 

The  Schreiber  Collection 


1869  NOTES  CERAMIC 

with  old  oak,  a  good  bed  in  it ;  he  told  us  of  a  collection 
belonging  to  an  Inspector  of  Schools,  owning  a  large  grocery 
business,  but  we  had  not  time  to  visit  it.  Went  on  to 
Worcester  and  slept  at  the  Star. 

Nov.  6th.  Out  very  early,  called  at  Williams',  Noakes', 
Nichols',  Bateman's,  all  barren.  Paid  a  short  but  very  in- 
teresting visit  to  Mr.  Binns  at  the  china  works.  [Mr.  Binns 
was  of  the  famous  family  of  Worcester  potters.  Mr.  More 
Binns,  another  member  of  the  family,  has  written  an  admirable 
work  on  the  First  Century  of  English  Porcelain.~\  He 
showed  me  the  celebrated  inkstand  "  Made  at  New  Canton  " 
(which  we  know  now,  by  the  books  we  possess,  to  mean  Bow) 
engraved  in  his  book  and  in  Chaffers.  Before  midday  went 
on  to  Bristol.  Visited  Thornton's,  bought  of  him  3  very  good 
(but  dear)  Liverpool  tiles,  5o/-,  bottle  with  sprigged  orna- 
ments, Fulham  ware  (?),  30/-.  Two  mugs,  both  imperfect, 
with  transfer-printed  portraits  of  George  III.  and  Pitt,  Lord 
Chatham,  5o/-.  He  has  the  debris  of  a  wonderful  old  Bristol 
case,  with  marks,  canary  colour.  Then  we  went  to  Edkins, 
with  whom  we  spent  the  rest  of  the  afternoon,  looking  at  his 
beautiful  things.  He  has  lately  acquired  some  wonderfully 
fine  specimens  of  Bristol,  3  cabaret  stands,  2  small  vases,  a 
cup  and  saucer,  with  delicious  cameos,  and  a  magnificent  set 
of  the  seasons,  "  Spring  "  being  of  the  same  model  as  the  little 
figure  we  bought  this  year  at  Lord  Ashburton's  sale.  The 
painting  of  the  cabaret  trays  is  equal  to  any  Sevres.  He 
had  also  got  a  Plymouth  Africa,  and  having  already  an  Asia 
and  Europe,  it  only  requires  one  of  our  Americas  to  perfect 
his  set  of  Four  Quarters.  He  has  some  good  Liverpool 
tiles  with  portraits  of  Actors  and  Actresses,  6  in  number. 
Returned  to  London  by  the  last  train  in  the  evening. 

Nov.  I3th.  Hunted  the  London  shops.  Found  at 
Libbi's  a  large  mug  with  curious  inscription,  earthenware, 

61 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1869 

Fulham  (?)  "  This  is  Thomas  Cox's  cup,  Come  my  friend  and 
drink  it  up  ".  We  have  taken  it  at  5o/-.  They  owed  us  6o/- 
on  a  table  we  paid  for  years  ago,  but  did  not  take  away. 
Also  at  Gale's  an  earthenware  mug  with  portrait  (evidently 
from  the  same  original  as  printed  on  the  mug  we  bought  of 
Thornton)  of  Lord  Chatham  (it  is  inscribed,  The  Right  Hon. 
W.  Pitt,  Esq.),  for  this  we  gave  £3.  3.  For  a  perfect  specimen 
of  the  figure  we  got  from  Thornton  (formerly  Gale's)  with 
the  date  1738  and  initials  S.I.  we  gave  £5.  5.  (N.B..  The 
imperfect  duplicate  must  be  sold.)  Mr.  Stainforth  has  a 
similar  figure,  but  with  date  1752,  bearing  the  Dresden  mark, 
so  we  know  to  what  manufacture  to  assign  it.  There  was 
a  sale  of  plate,  etc.,  belonging  to  Mr.  Hopkinson  at  Christie's 
on  Thursday  and  Friday.  On  the  latter  day  some  things 
were  sold,  at  the  close,  belonging  to  Martin  of  Cheltenham, 
and  amongst  them  was  a  very  good  box  of  large  size  with 
subjects  taken  from  Sayer's  engravings,  and  with  good  purple 
borders.  It  was  bought  in  at  £5.  10.  and  we  have  taken  it  at 
that  price.  When  we  were  at  Liverpool  we  saw  at  Kidson's 
a  large  Japanese  plate  or  shield,  27  inches  in  diameter, 
blue  and  white  with  peacock  pattern.  He  has  since  sent  it 
to  us  on  approval.  But  we  find  that,  although  fine,  it  is 
modern  and  of  no  intrinsic  value,  so  we  have  returned  it. 
We  have  sent  for  a  picture  of  the  Madonna  and  Child,  end 
of  the  I4th  or  beginning  of  the  I5th  century,  with  gold  haloes, 
angels,  etc.,  which  we  saw  lately  at  Williams'  at  Worcester. 
It  has  been  restored  in  the  background,  but  the  faces  and 
figures  are  fine.  The  price  £10.  Henry  Layard,  to  whom 
we  showed  it  on  Friday  evening  (the  I2th)  thinks  it  may  be 
by  Taddeo  Bartolo,  but  he  does  not  much  esteem  it.  We 
have,  however,  bought  it.  A  picture  by  Swanveldt,  sent  up 
by  Targett  of  Salisbury,  we  have  returned.  All  this  week  we 
have  diligently  explored  the  stock  of  the  London  dealers  and 

62 


BRISTOL    STATUETTKS    OK    TIIK    SKASOXS 
The  Schreil'er  Collection 


!869  NOTES  CERAMIC 

found  them  very  empty.  On  Tuesday  (Qth)  attended  Henry 
Layard's  Lecture  on  Pompeii  given  at  Spurgeon's  Tabernacle, 
very  good  and  enthusiastically  received.  He  took  leave 
feelingly  of  his  old  Constituents.  Pleasant  supper  at  Monty's 
afterwards.  He  has  two  grand  private  mugs  of  Shakespeare 
in  his  room.  On  Saturday  I  took  leave  of  my  dear  Enid, 
who  goes  to  Madrid  at  once  after  a  short  stay  at  Blackheath 
(her  husband's  mother)  and  at  Walmer  with  Lord  Granville. 
Then  we  went  down  to  Richmond  and  spent  2  pleasant  hours 
with  Mrs.  Haliburton.  [This  lady  was  the  widow  of  the  author 
of  Sam  Slick,  its  continuations,  under  various  names,  and 
many  more  serious,  if  still  popular,  books.  He  came  from 
Nova  Scotia  to  England  in  1858  ;  was  for  a  time  member  for 
Launceston  and  died  in  1865.  Mrs.  Haliburton  had  a  very 
fine  collection  of  old  English  China,  which  she  left  to  her  step- 
son, the  late  Lord  Haliburton.]  She  bought  2  or  3  magnificent 
Battersea  boxes  at  Brussels  this  year,  and  a  very  fine 
allegorical  female  figure  (Chelsea  or  Bow)  holding  a  portrait 
and  standing  on  a  pedestal,  which  is  painted  and  printed  with 
a  vignette  of  military  life,  a  camp  fire,  etc.  This  she  bought 
of  Dalgleish.  We  brought  away  with  us  her  set  of  Bristol 
seasons  each  bearing  some  of  the  Zodiacal  signs,  beautifully 
modelled  and  executed,  but  not  all  intact,  however  they  are 
most  precious  to  us.  Price  £28. 

Nov.  I4th.  Church.  Luncheon  with  my  daughter  Constance 
Eliot  at  her  new  house.  Charles  Eliot  is  appointed  Equerry 
to  Prince  Christian.  [The  Hon.  Charles  Eliot  was  the  son 
of  the  3rd  Earl  of  St.  Germans  of  Port  Eliot.  He  was 
Groom  of  the  Privy  Chamber  in  ordinary  to  the  late  Queen 
Victoria.  He  married  in  1865  Lady  Charlotte's  daughter 
Constance.] 


NOTES  CERAMIC 

FEBRUARY  TO  APRIL  1870 

ASHFORD  :  PARIS  :  SEVRES  :  DIJON  :  LYONS 

Feb.  loth.  On  Monday  we  went  to  see  Mr.  Furley's 
collection  at  Ashford.  He  has  only  a  scrap  or  two  of 
English,  but  some  Oriental  which  I  suppose  is  good,  but  of 
which  I  am  no  judge,  amongst  it  some  pieces  of  Imperial 
yellow.  [Lady  Charlotte  soon  became  an  expert  in  Chinese 
porcelain  and  often  bought  for  herself  and  her  eldest  son, 
then  Sir  Ivor  Guest,  Bart.,  of  Canford.]  At  Ashford  we  got 
a  small  blue  and  white  Bow  jug  (imperfect)  with  heart-shaped 
termination  to  the  handle  (3/-)  and  we  were  tempted  by  a 
corner  cupboard,  very  prettily  painted  a  la  Watteau,  but  not 
in  sufficiently  good  condition.  C.S.  walked  into  Tenterden 
on  the  Wednesday,  and  found  there  an  old  broker  who  said 
that  she  could  have  things  unpacked  in  the  course  of  a  week 
to  show  him,  but  that  all  her  china  was  now  stowed  away. 
To  encourage  her  he  bought  an  Oriental  cup  and  saucer  with 
a  pencilled  (Jesuit )  subject  for  1/6.  C.S.  went  early  in  the 
morning  to  West  Mailing,  joining  me  at  Ashford  by  a  train 
which  passed  through  there  at  half-past  2,  and  by  which  we 
reached  Folkestone  in  time  for  Tidal  Boat  at  J  to  4.  Bright 
clear  cold  day — a  roughish  passage,  but  not  a  long  one.  In 
Paris  by  J  past  II — and  in  bed  in  our  comfortable  little 
entresol  at  the  "  Lille  and  Albion  "  before  I. 

Feb.  nth.  Extreme  cold — C.S.  had  a  bad  headache — and 
we  did  not  get  out  till  late  in  the  afternoon.  Then  we  had  a 


A  TYPICAL   PAIR   OF  JARS  OF   25    INCHES  HIGH,  WITH   COVERS  ;   OF   THE  YUNG  CHENG 

PERIOD  :  THE  HENS  AND  CHICKENS,  THE  COCK  AND  ROCKWORK,  INSECTS,  SMALL  BIRDS, 

TREES  AND  HILLS  ARE  PAINTED  IN  THE  BRILLIANT  ENAMELS  FOR  WHICH  THE  ARTISTS 

OF    THE    TIME    WERE    SO    GREATLY    FAMOUS 

Lord  IViHibornes  Collection 


1870  NOTES  CERAMIC 

walk  across  the  bridge  to  the  Quai  Voltaire  and  went  into 
one  or  two  of  the  shops.     The  only  things  we  saw  worth 
noticing  were  a  pair  of  Marienberg  vases,  and  two  Staffordshire 
figures  of  Spaniards — the  former  very  good — the  latter  rather 
peculiar,  but  dear.     Called  upon  Mme.  Rouveyre  to  inquire 
about  the  Chelsea  plates  she  promised  to  get  for  us  when  we 
were  in  Paris  in  October.     She  now  says  the  lady  will  not 
part  with  them.     Probably  she  has  sold  them  to  some  one  else. 
Went  to  the   Poste   Restante  where    I  found  a  letter  from 
Merthyr.     Some  years  ago  he  gave  a  large  sum  of  money  for 
a  Sevres  dejeuner  service  which  Louis  Philippe  had  had  made 
as  a  present  to  the  King  of  Spain.     He  now  wants  to  part 
with    it   and    he   thinks    the    Sevres    Mus£e   might  become 
purchasers.     Accordingly,  to-day  we  set  out  for  Sevres  to  see 
if  we  could  do  anything  about  it  for  him,  but  we  found  that 
they  would  not  buy  anything  of  that  date,  and  indeed  were 
still  making  services  of  the  same  model.     His  specimen  is 
finer  than  those  we  saw.     But  I  do  not  care  for  the  art,  and 
the  combination  of  yellow  and  green  offends  my  taste.     I 
made  a  point  of  seeing  Riverina  and  seeing  if  anything  could 
be  done  for  Merthyr,  but  he  said  that  Sevres  of  the  Louis 
Philippe  period  was  utterly  valueless,  and  that  the  Fabrique 
had  never  been  so  badly  treated  by  the  government  (or  so 
little  encouraged)  as  during  that  reign.     But  to  return  ;  to  go 
to  Sevres  we  had  taken  Omnibus  at  the  Place  de  la  Concorde 
— three  horses,  going  on  rails — and  arrived  in  three-quarters 
of  an  hour  at  the  doors  of  the  manufactory,  which  is  a  very 
large  building,  almost  falling  into  ruins,  and  in  many  places 
held  together  by  external  props.     We  walked  through  the 
sale  department  first,  in  which  were  some  pretty  and  very 
expensive    objects,    but   scarcely   in   taste    which    we   could 
admire.     The  things  that  struck  us  most  were  the  magnificent 
plaques  or  rather  shields  of  enamel  on  copper,  and  one  or 
i  65  E 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1870 

two  rather  bizarre  vases  in  soft  paste.  Thence  to  the  Muse"e, 
which  is  most  interesting  but  which  does  not  contain  much  of 
the  fine  old  Sevres.  It  is  rather  a  collection  of  types  and  speci- 
mens of  universal  range.  England  is  very  badly  represented, 
and  would  have  scarcely  anything  to  show  had  it  not  been 
for  our  friend  Mr.  Binns  of  Worcester.  There  is  no  Bristol, 
no  Plymouth,  scarce  any  characteristic  Bow  ;  a  few  good  bits 
of  Chelsea,  Chelsea- Derby,  one  of  Rockingham  (very  good) 
and  Mr.  Binns's  Worcester  contribution.  We  found  amongst 
the  enamels  a  fine  Liverpool  printed  mug  (Masonic)  signed 
Sadler,  Liverpool — which  M.  Riocreux  forthwith  took  note 
of.  They  have  a  few  bits  of  printed  Worcester — none 
signed.  In  M.  Riocreux'  apartment  was  hanging  up  a  very 
fine  Battersea  enamel  plaque,  transfer  printed  in  red,  of  the 
Trojan  horse — he  told  us  it  had  been  given  to  him  as  the 
work  of  a  Frenchman  "  Le  Paroy" — but  this  was  a  mere 
tradition,  and  we  have  no  doubt  of  its  English  origin.  Also 
in  his  rooms  we  remarked  a  spirited  terra-cotta  medallion  in 
the  style  of  Nini — which  he  told  us  was  by  a  pupil  of  that 
artist  called  le  Petit  Nini.  They  have  a  few  very  good 
Ninis  in  the  Mus6e.  Of  course  there  were  many  things 
we  should  have  liked  to  have  studied  had  time  permitted. 
M.  Riocreux,  who  is  a  courteous  old  gentleman,  suffering 
from  bad  eyes,  sent  an  assistant  with  us,  bearing  the  keys 
with  instructions  to  let  us  see  everything.  We  were  par- 
ticularly interested  in  the  fine  specimens  (5  in  number)  of  the 
Frederica  porcelain — and  also  in  having  the  opportunity  of 
examining,  in  a  broken  piece,  the  fracture  and  construction  of 
the  Henri  Deux  Ware.  Altogether  we  enjoyed  our  morning 
very  much.  Left  again  at  3 — walked  into  the  town — took 
another  omnibus  back  to  the  Place  de  la  Concorde,  and  had 
time  to  call  in  at  one  or  two  shops  before  returning  to  table 
d'hote.  In  a  shop  near  the  Madeleine  we  were  tantalised  by 

66 


1870  NOTES  CERAMIC 

the  sight  of  two  beakers,  so  like  Bristol  that  it  really  required 
some  examination  to  convince  us  that  they  could  only  be 
French — however,  I  must  look  at  them  again.  Nothing 
to  be  met  with  anywhere. — Worms's,  Rue  Royale,  full  of 
modern  trash.  Christie's  fix  the  7th ;  and  Sotheby's  the 
1st,  for  our  few  weeded  goods.  Mrs.  Haliburton  writes 
that  she  omitted  to  send  in  some  of  her  lots  for  the  latter, 
which  occasioned  us  three  letters  to-night  to  rectify  her 
error. 

I4th.  Made  a  tour  of  the  shops  about  the  Rue  Jacob 
and  the  Rue  Bonaparte  back  to  the  Quai  Voltaire  — 
very  little  of  any  interest  in  any  of  them.  Merthyr  had 
given  me  a  commission  to  look  out  for  blue  enamel  orna- 
ments (Turquoise)  set  in  Marcasite,  and  I  made  due  search 
for  him  but  not  very  successfully ;  these  seem  to  be  rare 
things.  At  Evans's  there  were  one  or  two  pieces  of  enamel 
and  some  specimens  of  ware  which  pleased  us,  but  they  were 
so  frightfully  dear  that  we  must  give  them  up.  Mme.  de 
Rouveyre  told  us  that  she  had  again  tried  to  get  "  the  Lady  " 
to  part  with  her  Chelsea  plates,  but  without  success!  At 
Caillot's,  29  Quai  Voltaire,  we  concluded  the  purchase  of  the 
two  Marienberg  Vases  or  ornaments  which  we  had  seen  on 
Friday,  at  £3,  and  she  also  put  aside  for  us  an  Oriental  bottle 
(on  approval)  at  io/-,  or  12  francs.  We  left  these  things  (paid 
for)  at  the  shop,  to  be  called  for  on  our  way  back  from  our 
tour  as  we  did  not  wish  to  carry  them  all  the  Continent  over, 
with  us.  Went  to  Mrs.  Oppenheim's,  84  Rue  d'Aboukir. 
She  has  sold  the  fine  Venetian  set,  from  which  our  vases 
were  separated,  to  a  dealer.  She  has  little  but  what  is 
modern.  One  Derby  figure  of  a  Dwarf  (not  quite  perfect) 
which  we  shall  probably  buy. 

I5th.    Long  walk  among  the  shops  in  the  Faubourg  Mont- 
martre  quartier.  Visited  the  old  Fourniers,  in  the  Rue  Faubourg 

67 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1870 

Montmartre,  and  once  more  looked  over  their  small  but  fine 
private  collection,  and  were  very  much  tempted  by  four 
Sevres  cups  and  saucers  which  they  showed  us,  but  which  we 
are  to  think  over.  Nonon,  in  the  Rue  Blanche,  has  still  some 
lovely  silver  book  mountings  which  I,  all  but,  bought  in  the 
autumn,  and  which  I  am  still  inclining  to  invest  £2.  in.  We 
went,  by  chance,  into  a  large  miscellaneous  shop,  Duvenve's, 
58  Rue  de  Cardinal  Pesch,  where  we  saw  several  good  pieces 
of  Battersea  enamel ;  amongst  these  we  selected  a  very  fine 
oval  green  box,  4  inches  by  3,  the  subject  at  the  top  repre- 
senting a  lady  sending  her  son  to  school.  In  one  hand  she 
holds  his  hat,  in  the  other  the  brush  she  has  been  using  for 
it.  [This  design  is  from  a  picture  by  Chardin  called  La 
Gouvernante,  charmingly  engraved  by  Le"picie  with  some 
amusing  verses.  Lady  Charlotte  presented  one  of  these 
imprints  to  the  South  Kensington  Museum.]  There  are  four 
exquisite  medallions  on  the  lower  part ;  in  these  the  outline  has 
been  printed,  having  a  spirited  female  portrait  inside  the  lid  : 
3  x  2  J  :  and  also  another  box,  oval,  3  x  2|-,  with  a  rose  in 
high  relief  on  the  lid — not  perfect  in  some  part,  but  very 
good.  For  these  three  we  paid  £5.  12.  o.  These  were  all 
the  purchases  we  made.  We  went  into  one  or  two  other 
shops,  among  these  Topena  and  Duvaud,  in  the  Rue  St. 
Lazare,  and  Mme.  Jacobi's,  68  Rue  Caumartin.  There  we 
saw  an  Italian  Medicine  Vase  like  one  we  already  have, 
which  at  84/-  is  under  consideration.  We  have  several  other 
places  to  visit  another  day. 

i6th.  Received  news  that  Maria  had  another  daughter 
on  Saturday  last.  Sunday's  snow  still  remains  unmelted  in 
many  places  in  the  streets.  After  Poste  Restante,  walked  on 
to  Mrs.  Oppenheim's  ;  bought  her  Derby  Dwarf  for  £i.  12.  o. 
Called  at  Spitzer's,  where  we  saw  nothing  in  our  line  but  a 
very  fine  Terra  Cotta  Plaque,  by  Clodion,  3  to  4  feet  long. 

68 


1870  NOTES  CERAMIC 

After  this  we  went  on  to  the  Louvre,  and  spent  two  hours 
among  the  pictures  and  enamels.  Saw  a  Jewel  box  of  Anne 
of  Austria  (Louis  XIII. 's  Queen)  of  exquisite  silver  work  laid 
on  silk.  This  reminds  me  of  Henry  Layard's  description  of 
one  he  has  met  with  at  Madrid,  and  which  is  probably  some- 
thing of  the  same  kind.  There  is  a  Zurbaran  of  one  of  the 
female  Saints,  which  made  me  think  very  highly  of  the 
Zurbarans  at  Canford,  which  are  much  finer  than  this  one. 
On  leaving  the  Louvre  we  walked  on  to  Bourdaller's,  Rue 
Louis  le  Grand,  where  we  saw  a  mass  of  gaudy  modern 
furniture.  At  the  table  d'hote  happened  to  get  into  talk 
with  a  gentleman  just  come  back  from  Spain,  and  gained 
some  useful  hints  from  him. 

I7th.  Went  again  to  Sevres.  This  time  we  went  direct 
to  Mons.  Riocreux's  Room.  We  had  several  inquiries  to 
make  of  him.  One  was  as  to  the  dates  of  the  different 
decorators  and  gilders  at  the  Sevres  works.  He  showed  us 
that  this  was  an  investigation  on  which  he  was  at  this 
moment  engaged,  but  he  said  that  the  list  would  take  a  long 
time  to  complete.  He  showed  us  a  magnificent  Bleu  de  Roi 
^cuelle  and  stand  painted  in  marine  subjects  by  Morin.  It 
had  been  sent  to  him  to  dispose  of;  price  £200.  After  some 
varied  conversation,  he  sent  his  assistant  with  us  to  open  any 
of  the  cases  for  us  where  we  desired  to  examine  specimens, 
and  at  parting  he  presented  me  with  a  pamphlet  on  Doccia 
porcelain  in  which  I  made  him  write  his  name,  but  why  he 
dated  it  "  January  "  instead  of  "  February  "  17  I  cannot  tell. 
We  had  a  very  pleasant  hour  with  the  assistant  and  the  keys. 
Examined  various  specimens  of  old  Sevres,  etc.,  the  basin 
painted  with  a  view  of  the  old  Chateau  at  Vincennes, 
bouquets  of  flowers.  We  were  very  much  struck  with  a 
very  large  piece  of  faience,  painted  with  a  landscape,  and 
signed  at  the  back  with  the  representation  of  a  castle  with 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1870 
pointed  roofs.     This  was  made  at  the  Tour  d'Aigues,  and  it 
is  said  that  only  one  other  specimen  of  it  exists.     We  looked 
particularly  at  the  Marienberg  faience.     There  is  one  vase  in 
the  style  of  those  we  bought  on  Monday,  but  the  printing  is 
better  executed,  and  the  vase  itself  is  larger  than,  though  not 
so  characteristic  as  those  we  bought  on  Monday.     The  cream 
ware  of  Luneville   and   of  Pont   aux   Choux  attracted  our 
attention  as  being  so  like  Wedgwood's  Queen's  Ware.     The 
bust  of  Louis  XV.    on  a   pedestal  representing  a  lion  in- 
terested us  very  much.     A  duplicate  pedestal  was  offered  to 
us  by  Mme.  le  Clese  of  the  Rue  Jacob,  for  a  trifle  the  other 
day.     Now  that  we  know  that  it  is  either  Luneville  or  Pont 
au  Choux  (Mons.  Riocreux  says  the  former)  we  shall  buy  it 
if  still  to  be  had.     Note  also,   a  fine  plate   of  Salvignie's 
(Beauvais)  Ware,   in  bright  green    and    moulded,    like    the 
Nuremberg  productions.     We  tried  to  obtain  some  informa- 
tion about  artists  in  Terra  Cotta.     The  Sevres  Muse"e  is  not 
rich  in  specimens ;  it  has  no  Clodions,  but  we  took  down  the 
names    following    from    signed   pieces,    Pajou   (circa   1783), 
Roguier    (1784),     Renaud    (1780) ;     to    be    added  to    these 
names    are     those    of    Clodion,    Marin,    Lambert,    Claude 
Gautherot,  all  of  the  last  century.     Claude  Gautherot  was 
pupil  of  Nini  and  surnamed  le  petit  Nini ;    he  died  1702, 
aet.  73-     At  both  my  visits  to  Sevres,  I  was  scandalised  at 
the  bad  state  of  repair  of  the  manufactory.     To-day  I  was 
comforted  at  hearing  that  the  establishment  is  about  to  be 
removed  to  a   building  in  the  town  lately  prepared  for  it. 
The  models  have  already  been  taken  there.     I  shall  regret, 
however,  the  old  associations  connected  with  the  ancient  site. 
[The  old  building  still  retains  its  original  appearance,  but  is 
now  a  school  for  young  ladies.]     We  left  Sevres  at  3  o'clock 
and  had  to  walk  nearly  to  the  town  of  Versailles  before  the 
"Americaine"  overtook  us  and  conveyed  us  into  the  town. 

70 


2  a 
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J  a  s 

M^g'-S 

t/5    M    ^    u 


oj  :«        S 

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-*  9 

o  * 

x  s. 


i87o  NOTES  CERAMIC 

We  had  intended  to  go  and  look  at  the  skating,  but  the  time 
was  too  short,  and  we  confined  ourselves  to  the  shops.  At 
Mme.  Henry's,  close  by  the  omnibus  terminus,  we  found  a 
very  fine  Mennecy  basket  and  cover  with  coloured  flowers  in 
relief,  which  not  being  marked,  she  had  no  special  value  for, 
but  thought  it  might  be  Saxe,  so  we  were  only  asked  12 /- 
for  it,  which  we  gladly  paid.  She  sent  us  to  see  a  collection 
at  a  tobacconist's  but  it  was  all  trash.  Then  we  went  in  the 
Rue  Duplessis,  and  in  a  little  shop  found  three  coffee  cups, 
painted  with  female  miniatures  exactly  in  the  European  style, 
certainly  very  curious — io/-  for  the  three.  Then  we  had  to 
hasten  to  the  railway,  rive  droite,  starting  at  5,  by  which  we 
reached  our  hotel  soon  after  6,  walking  from  St.  Lazare.  At 
breakfast  and  dinner  saw  Lord  and  Lady  Exeter,  who  are 
stopping  here,  having  their  family  at  Versailles.  [This  would 
be  the  3rd  Marquis  of  Exeter,  who  married  Lady  Georgina 
Pakenham,  daughter  of  the  Earl  of  Longford,  some  of 
whose  seven  children  may  have  been  at  Versailles  at  this 
date.] 

i8th.  Walked  to  Oppenheim's  to  look  at  a  green  shell 
clock  case  we  had  admired  ;  they  are  to  clean  it  up  better 
before  we  decide  ;  then  walked  to  the  other  Oppenheim's 
at  the  Faubourg  St.  Martin,  a  small  unpretending  shop  full 
of  rubbish,  where,  however,  we  found  an  exquisite  pate 
tendre  St.  Cloud  group,  or  rather  a  figure  of  Astronomy 
attended  by  a  Cupid.  She  holds  a  sun  in  her  hand  like  the 
conventional  emblem  of  Louis  Quatorze,  which  was  also  the 
mark  of  the  St.  Cloud  china  :  price  £i.  8.  It  was  rather  heavy 
to  carry  home.  We  walked  up  as  far  as  the  Bastille,  looking 
at  the  shops  on  the  Boulevard  Beaumarchais  on  our  way 
without  results  ;  Crispin  still  possessed  the  Zurich  cups  we 
saw  there  two  years  ago.  From  the  Bastille  we  took  a  cab 
to  the  Basse  Rampart  (No.  2)  where  Mme.  Flaudin  tantalised 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1870 

us  by  telling  us  of  all  the  fine  Chelsea  pieces  she  had  recently 
sold ! !  Ransacked  the  Rue  de  la  Ferme  des  Maturins,  but 
found  nothing.  In  the  one  shop  of  the  Rue  de  la  Paix  (No. 
12)  there  was  a  lovely  box,  enamel,  in  the  form  of  a  piano, 
but  they  asked  an  outrageous  price,  between  £il  and  £12. 
Back  in  time  for  table  d'hote. 

iQth.  Went  to  the  Spanish  Embassy  and  found  a  pass- 
port was  not  necessary  for  Spain.  Walked  about  in  the 
Faubourg  St.  Germain,  Rue  de  1'Universite,  de  Bac.  No 
success.  Looked  again  at  Mme.  Leclerc's  Luneville  pedestal 
but  found  it  too  much  restored  to  buy.  Fetched  away  our 
Marienberg  Vases  from  Caillot's ;  bought  there  also  an 
Oriental  vase  with  stripes,  lo/-,  also  a  piece  of  Venetian  glass 
at  Lasonibe's,  54  Rue  Jacob,  for  which  we  gave  8/-.  These, 
together  with  all  our  other  Paris  acquisitions,  we  then  took  in 
a  cab  to  old  Mme.  Fournier's,  and  deposited  them  with  her, 
to  remain  in  her  charge  till  we  should  return  from  our  trip  to 
Spain  (or  elsewhere)  and  pass  through  Paris  again.  In  search 
of  Marcasites  she  recommended  Mme.  Brideau,  Rue  Lafitte, 
who  had  nothing  "  pour  le  moment,"  but  seems  a  worthy 
tradeswoman,  and  may  have  something  another  time.  Came 
back  through  Rue  Port  Mahon,  St.  Roche  :  we  went  into 
some  shops  but  found  nothing  of  any  kind. 

2Oth.  Not  being  in  time  for  morning  service  we  in- 
tended to  go  to  that  of  the  afternoon,  but  we  wandered  over  the 
river,  and  presently  found  ourselves  at  the  Luxembourg,  and 
went  in.  We  did  not  linger  in  the  collection  of  modern  French 
pictures,  which  are  generally  speaking  most  vile,  but  among 
which  we  found  Rosa  Bonheur's  "  Labourage  Nivenois  " — 
the  original  from  which  Ivor's  picture  is  a  replica.  We  went 
to  see  the  apartments  ;  the  Throne  Room  is  very  fine  in  its 
space  and  proportions,  and  I  was  interested  in  seeing  again 
the  Chamber  where  the  Senate  meets.  When  we  had  gone 

72 


1870  NOTES  CERAMIC 

the  usual  round,  our  guide  took  us  by  favour  to  the  apartment 
of  Marie  de'  Medici  (not  usually  shown  on  Sunday)  which  is 
quite  a  bijou.     By  the  time  we  left  the  Luxembourg  it  was 
past  the  time  of  our  English  service,  so  we  went  till  four  into 
the  Maison  de  Cluny,    which  is  always  a  very  great  treat. 
Observed   among  other    matters  of  interest  three   beautiful 
Ninis,  an  excellent  piece  of  Henry  II.  Ware,  and  the  Lune- 
ville  Lions,  marked.    Note — There  is  a  fine  Limoges  enamel 
of  Catherine  de'  Medici  at  her  devotions.     It  bears  the  cele- 
brated monogram,  which  proves  (if  proof  were  wanting)  that 
this  mark  had  nothing  to  do  with  Diane  de  Poitiers,  but  related 
to  Henry  and  Catherine  his  wife.     The  same  device  was  on 
a  portrait  of  Catherine  de'  Medici,  exhibited  at  the  Exhibition 
in  Paris  in  1867.     Being  so  near  Notre  Dame  we  strolled  in 
there  and  were  very  pleased  with  its  noble  simplicity.     It  is 
now  in  very  good  order,  but  the  restorations  of  the  carvings 
fall  far  short  of  the  originals  ;  they  are  poor,  clumsy,  spirit- 
less— essentially  modern  French.     This  place  revived  in  my 
mind  many  memories.     Note  the   ironwork   on  the    Gates. 
The  Sainte  Chapelle  was  closed  when  we  left  Notre  Dame. 
One  of  the  most  curious  sights  of  the  day  was  the  Fountain  of 
St.  Michel,  where  the  monsters  were  spouting  water  through 
two  immense  self-formed  jets  or  conduits  of  ice  with  the  most 
bizarre  and  beautiful  effect.     Since  table  d'hote  I  have  been 
with  Lane  to  M.  Waddington's,  and  find  after  all  that  he  has 
been  in  Paris  and  is  gone  again  !     However,  they  expect  him 
to  return  to-morrow. 

2ist.  Called  on  the  Fourniers,  who  admired  our  two  French 
pieces  immensely,  but  thought  our  Swedish  vases  modern 
forgeries,  and  told  us  of  places  where  we  could  find  similar 
ones.  We  made  the  search,  but  saw  nothing  in  the  least  like 
them.  Called  on  the  Lutheroths  who  were  not  at  home,  and 
found  M.  Waddington  had  been  here  in  our  absence.  Just 

73 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1870 

before  table  d'hote,  at  Tabut's,  bought  an  old  Staffordshire 
Ware  tea-jar  with  portrait  of  George  III.  in  relief  for  io/-,  a 
good  specimen. 

22nd.  I  walked  with  Lane  to  the  Rue  Jacob  about  some 
marcasites  for  Merthyr,  which,  however,  I  did  not  purchase. 
About  2,  we  went  out  for  our  daily  walk.  Stopped  a  long 
time  at  a  sale  of  the  Demidoff  pictures,  brought  from  San 
Donato,  near  Florence,  where  we  had  seen  them  all  last  spring. 
The  sale  was  going  on  at  26  Boulevard  des  Italiens.  Only 
modern  pictures  were  sold  to-day ;  I  did  not  care  for  any  of 
them,  but  it  was  a  curious  scene.  We  saw  the  Ary  Scheffer 
of  Francesca  da  Rimini  sold  for  £4000.  Roche's  Lady  Jane 
Grey  went  even  higher.  Yesterday  Lord  Hertford  bought 
the  Bonington,  "  Henry  IV.  playing  with  his  children."  [Now 
in  the  Wallace  Collection.]  From  the  sale  we  went  again  to  the 
Fourniers  to  deposit  our  purchase  of  the  George  III.  tea-jar  in 
their  case,  and  we  engaged  to  take  one  of  their  Sevres  cups 
and  saucers,  gros  bleu,  with  gold  decoration,  and  a  painting  of 
musical  instruments  as  a  trophy.  We  are  to  pay  £10.  It  is  an 
experiment  for  us  to  touch  Sevres,  but  this  seemed  tempting  at 
the  price,  and  the  Fourniers  are  such  pleasant  folk  and 
so  civil  to  us  that  we  wished  to  do  some  little  business 
with  them.  On  our  return  we  looked  into  one  or  two 
shops,  and  visited  the  Salles  des  Ventes  which  was  a  still 
more  curious  scene  than  that  we  had  been  at  in  the 
Boulevards.  Such  noise  !  such  bustle  !  Amidst  such  rubbish 
it  might  occasionally  happen  that  something  good  might  be 
found  here. 

23rd.  Up  rather  earlier  but  not  out  till  12.  Went 
to  the  Louvre  where  we  spent  till  after  2  ;  most  of  the  time 
in  the  Sauvagest  Collection,  and  amongst  the  relics  of 
the  old  French  Sovereigns  where  there  are  some  beautiful 
specimens  of  manufacture,  and  the  dear  old  throne  of 

74 


i87o  NOTES  CERAMIC 

Dagobert  which  I  have  so  often  drawn.  Thence  to  see 
the  Demidoff  Greuzes  and  Bouchers,  which  are  on  view  for 
the  sale  of  Friday.  At  Nonon's  in  the  Rue  Blanche  bought 
three  little  silver  plaques  with  scriptural  subjects  in  relief, 
which  have  been  intended  as  book  mounts,  but  which,  I 
think,  may  be  converted  into  the  top  of  a  box.  Called  at 
Fournier's  en  passant,  and  at  Mme.  Flaudin's,  where  we  got 
into  a  talk  with  a  collector  who  proved  later  to  be  Mons. 
Danvilliers ;  he,  by  his  account,  must  have  fine  things,  the 
result  of  20  years'  search.  We  must  try  and  see  it  on  our 
way  through  next  time. 

24th.  Started  to-day  from  Paris  by  the  express  leaving 
at  II.  A.M.  and  reaching  Dijon  walked  to  the  large  bric- 
a-brac  shop,  which  we  found  full  of  furniture  and  faience  and 
modern  things.  As  far  as  we  could  judge  in  the  dark  there 
was  nothing  in  our  way  at  all. 

Friday,  25th.  Joined  a  table  d'hote  dejeuner  a  la  fourchette 
soon  after  10,  which  amused  me  from  its  novelty  and  was  a  very 
good  repast ;  afterwards  walked  out.  Went  first  to  the  large 
curiosity  shop  where  we  really  saw  nothing  we  cared  for 
except  a  small  Persian  bottle  which  was,  however,  much  too 
dear.  Then  to  the  Museum  in  a  building,  part  of  which  was 
the  Palace  of  the  Dukes  of  Burgundy.  Much  pleased  with 
the  old  Tombs  of  the  Dukes  removed  from  the  Chartreuse, 
and  with  some  beautiful  wood  carvings  from  the  Cathedral. 
Again  sought  the  old  shops  and  found  several.  At  Hart- 
mann's,  Place  de  St.  Jean,  C.S.  spied  out  a  biscuit  plaque 
having  a  portrait  of  Louis  XV.,  marked  Crown  Derby  and 
very  good  ;  slightly  imperfect  in  the  frame  work,  4/-.  In 
another  shop,  Cazet's,  40  Rue  Chabot  Charin,  we  found  a 
Worcester  vase  with  Chinese  figures,  blue  and  white,  not 
curious  or  uncommon,  but  too  good  to  be  left  at  the  price, 
3/4.  Besides,  we  liked  old  Mons.  Cazet,  who  seemed  to 

75 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1870 
have  a  love  of  art,  and  with  whom  we  had  much  talk,  and  so 
we  were  glad  to  buy  a  trifle  of  him.  Having  finished  all  our 
researches,  we  took  a  cab  and  drove  to  the  Chartreuse  to  see 
the  Puits  de  Moi'se,  which  occupied  till  5  o'clock. 

26th.  Lyons.  Up  early  ;  long  day's  work  ;  only  2  pur- 
,  chases,  a  Lemon  in  Venetian  glass  at  Pingeon's,  i6/— ,  and 
a  faience  teapot  with  grotesque  figures  at  Vernier's,  8/-. 
Though  slightly  imperfect  as  to  the  flower,  I  was  glad  to 
obtain  the  Lemon  as  I  believe  they  are  curious,  though  not 
extremely  rare.  Lady  Hopetoun  has  one,  I  missed  one  at 
Water's  and  another  at  Sotheby's.  [This  was  the  wife  of 
the  6th  Earl  of  Hopetoun,  daughter  of  C.  T.  S.  Birch 
Reynardson,  Esq.,  of  Holywell  Hall,  Lincolnshire,  mother 
of  the  1st  Marquis  of  Linlithgow ;  she  died  in  1884.] 
Barker  has  one  on  exhibition  at  the  South  Kensington 
and  there  is  another  at  the  Sevres  Museum,  where  it 
is  labelled  as  being  of  the  fifteenth  century.  One  of  the 
dealers,  a  Mme.  Sicard,  took  us  to  her  private  house  to 
show  us  some  terre  cuites,  and  there  we  found  an  accom- 
plished intelligent  husband,  surrounded  by  his  own  paintings, 
and  music,  etc.  I  observed  to  her  on  his  accomplishments, 
and  she  seemed  very  pleased,  but  answered  with  a  melancholy 
smile,  "Ah,  il  sait  tout,  excepte"  de  se  faire  riche".  We 
were  rather  taken  with  a  Lancret  en  pastel,  which  he  showed 
us — but  refrained.  One  of  our  next  visits  led  to  rather  a 
painful  scene.  We  called  on  M.  Bock,  59  Rue  Bourbon. 
He  had  hardly  anything  to  show  us,  but  he  told  us  his  sad 
history,  to  the  effect  that  he  was  a  Russian  of  private  means, 
had  lived  many  years  in  England,  and,  in  the  course  of  his 
travels  had  made  a  very  fair  collection  ;  that  he  lost  every- 
thing in  the  failure  of  a  Bank  and  was  obliged  to  sell  it  all  ; 
and  then,  having  a  wife  and  seven  children,  turned  dealer. 
He  told  us  of  his  struggles,  but  said  he  never  lost  courage 


1870  NOTES  CERAMIC 

while  they  were  all  spared  to  him.  He  had  known  Mayer, 
Franks  [afterwards  Sir  Augustus  Wollaston  Franks  of  the 
British  Museum  to  which  he  gave  so  valuable  a  collection  of 
objects  of  art.  Long  an  intimate  friend  of  Lady  Charlotte 
and  of  great  service  to  her  in  regard  to  the  famous  catalogue 
of  the  South  Kensington  collection],  Panizzi  [Sir  Antonio 
Panizzi,  librarian  of  the  British  Museum  and  designer  of  the 
reading  room],  in  fact  all  our  finest  collectors.  If  true,  his 
tale  was  a  very  melancholy  one.  From  his  house  we  went  to 
see  the  Museum  in  the  Place  des  Terreaux,  where  are  some 
beautiful  Limoges  enamels,  and  other  things.  The  pictures 
are  not  shown  at  present ;  and  then  we  went  to  the  Mus£e 
Economique,  or  Industriel,  where  we  were  delighted  with 
many  things.  Being  now  four  o'clock,  we  took  a  carriage  to 
finish  the  shops — found  nothing  in  any  of  them,  but  were  very 
much  diverted  by  a  visit  we  paid  to  a  certain  couple  by  name 
Danomartin,  who  lived  at  the  top  of  the  steps  in  the  Rue 
Notre  Dame  de  Fourvieres.  They  had  two  or  three  rooms 
quite  crammed  with  objects  of  every  kind  ;  they  did  not  know 
what  they  were,  and  positively  refused  to  sell  any  of  them. 
They  said  they  had  'been  collecting  for  30  years,  and  were 
now  going  to  retire  and  arrange  their  collection.  I  asked 
them  how  they  carried  on  business,  and  they  said  they  lived 
by  the  sale  of  common  furniture.  It  was  getting  late  when 
we  left  them,  but  they  expressed  themselves  anxious  for  us  to 
call  again  that  they  might  show  us  all  their  possessions,  and 
they  were  very  polite.  Table  d'hote  at  half-past  5.  Went 
out  afterwards  to  the  Quai  de  I'Hopital  to  get  our  purchases. 

27th.  We  had  a  long  walk,  and  wrote  several  letters  in 
the  course  of  the  day ;  among  other  things  sent  inquiries  to 
Spain  to  know  if  it  was  safe  to  travel  thither  as  there  were 
alarms  of  Carlist  risings. 

28th.  We  prowled  and  had  a  long  walk.  Went  into 

77 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1870 
the  Church  St.  Nizier  and  then  across  the  Saone  to  the  other 
quartier,   and    found  ourselves  at   the  Cathedral,   which  we 
visited.      Passing  the  Archbishop's  Palace  we  saw  the  long 
queue  of  those  who  were  going  in  to  see  the  poor  old  man  lie 
in  state.     He  died  on  Saturday.     Recrossed  to  the  other  side 
by  a  bridge  which  took  us  to  the  fine  Cours  Napoleon,  along 
which  we  walked ;    thence  by  the  Quai  and  the  Rue  de  la 
Charite  to  the  Place  Louis  le  Grand.      On  our  way,  much 
tempted  by  a  watch  we  had  seen  at  a  small  shop.     Having 
taken    a    carriage   we   went    up    the    Hill     Mantauban    to 
10  Chemin  de  Greillon,  which  is  quite  a  steep  ascent  from  the 
town.     Here  we  knocked  at  a  very  humble  and  dilapidated 
gate,   and  after  some   delay  were   admitted   by  the  owner, 
M.  Garraud,  who  had  been  put  down  in  the  directories  as 
a  dealer,  but  whom  we   found  to   be  an    amateur  collector, 
possessing  some  of  the  finest  things  in  the  world,  which  he 
very  politely  showed  us.      I  cannot  describe  the  collection. 
It  was  entirely  Moyen  Age,  and  contained  some  pieces  of 
the   rarest  description.      Among  these   may   be   mentioned 
the  chess  or  draught  board  of  Philibert,  Duke  of  Savoy  ; 
the   sword   given  by   Henri  II.   to    the   chief  of  his  fools; 
and  an  ivory  scabbard   which    had    belonged   to   Rollo    of 
Normandy  (William  the  ist's  father)  and  inscribed  with  his 
name.     M.  Garraud  had  armour,  furniture,  domestic  articles 
and  heaps  of  things  too  numerous  to  mention,  all  of  the  finest 
quality.    He  told  us  that  he  was  about  to  move  into  the  heart 
of  Lyons,  and  certainly  any  change  would  be  for  the  better. 
I  never  saw  a  more  tumble-down  receptacle  for  cobwebs  than 
his  present  abode,  and  his  magnificent  possessions  require  a 
better  locale  to  exhibit  them.     We  were  most  gratified  by 
having  seen  them.     Left  Lyons  at  5. 


1870  NOTES  CERAMIC 

MARCH  1870 

AVIGNON  :    NISMES  :    MONTPELLIER  :    ARLES  :    CETTE  :    NAR- 

BONNE  :  PERPIGNAN  :  GERONA  :  BARCELONA  :  MONTSERRAT  : 

TARRAGONA  :  VALENCIA  :  ALICANTE  :  MADRID 

March  1st.  Lovely  spring  day.  Walked  all  about  Avignon. 
Visited  the  shops,  the  interesting  Museum,  where  I  gathered 
violets  at  the  foot  of  Laura's  monument ;  the  Doms,  the 
Gardens,  the  Papal  Palace.  We  are  charmed  with  Avignon, 
its  remarkable  site,  and  quaint  old  remains.  Delicious  turrets 
here  and  there,  but  most  squalid  streets.  Met  there  some 
English  people,  Mrs.  Cunliffe  Owen  and  others.  It  had 
always  been  one  of  my  dreams  to  visit  Avignon,  and  my 
expectations  were  more  than  realised. 

2nd.  Up  early,  but  did  not  get  off  till  ioj.  Took  an 
open  carriage  and  drove  from  Avignon  to  Nismes  by  way 
of  the  Pont  du  Gard.  Dull  morning,  but  soft  and  pleasant ; 
charming  drive,  and  charming  ramble  about  the  aqueduct. 
Luncheon  of  bread  and  wine  at  the  cicerone's  hut.  Reached 
Hotel  de  Luxembourg,  Nismes,  at  5,  in  time  for  dinner. 
Before  leaving  Avignon  we  purchased  at  a  small  dealer's, 
called  Gue"rin,  a  pair  of  yellow  wax  vases,  nicely  modelled, 
with  marks,  vine  leaves,  etc.,  price  40  francs. 

3rd.  Visited  the  three  (so  called)  antiquaries,  and  at 
the  shop  of  one  of  them  found  an  intelligent  youth  who 
volunteered  to  accompany  us  and  to  show  us  over  the  town. 
He  sometimes  picks  up  things  himself,  and  promised,  on  our 
giving  him  notice,  to  look  out  for  specimens  for  us  should  we 
come  to  Nismes  again.  His  name  and  address — "  M.  Suel 
Alfred,  Rue  St.  Paul  41."  First  we  went  to  the  Maison  Carree 
where  we  found  a  wretched  collection  of  modern  pictures 
desecrating  the  old  Roman  Temple.  Then  to  the  gardens, 
with  the  Baths  and  Temple  of  Diana,  and  up  to  the  Tour, 
which  is  a  most  inscrutable  building.  It  commands  a  fine 

79 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1870 

view ;  the  concierge  was  away  so  we  could  not  mount  it,  but 
its  site  gives  a  magnificent  prospect.  Lastly  to  the  Amphi- 
theatre which  is  very  perfect,  but  is  not  nearly  so  large  as 
that  at  Verona,  and  did  not  impress  me  nearly  so  much. 
We  looked  into  the  old  Cathedral,  the  interior  of  which  is 
wretchedly  spoilt,  but  which  has  some  beautiful  remains  in 
the  fagade.  Our  last  act  in  leaving  the  town  was  to  buy  a 
coffee  pot  of  the  tortoise-shell  Avignon  ware  at  a  broker's 
shop  at  the  corner  of  the  Rue  Guizot  in  the  Boulevard  Grand 
Cours,  by  name,  Banquiere,  price  l6/-.  We  left  Nismes  by 
a  train  at  J  past  2  and  in  about  an  hour  found  ourselves  at 
Montpellier  in  pouring  rain.  Hotel  Nevet.  Here  a  telegram 
met  us  from  the  English  Consul  at  Barcelona — "  Advise 

o 

delay,  will  write."  This  upset  all  our  plans,  which  had  been 
to  the  effect  that  we  should  go  on  to  Perpignan  to-morrow, 
and  reach  Barcelona  on  Saturday.  Went  to  two  antiquaries 
at  the  house  of  one  Daumas,  Rue  St.  Foy,  close  to  the 
Hotel,  we  bought  for  i6/-  a  good  Wedgwood  Coffee  Pot, 
transfer  printed  in  red  with  subject,  Minerva  and  emblems, 
and  legend  "  Let  wisdom  unite  us,"  birds,  stags,  and  other 
ornaments.  Also  two  Chelsea  stags  of  goodly  size  in  bocages, 
pretty  perfect.  These  are  the  only  things  we  saw  at  Mont- 
pellier. Excellent  table  d'hote.  Washed  up  our  china  and 
faience  in  the  evening. 

4th.  Went  to  a  curiosity  shop,  Rue  des  Canons — 
nothing.  To  the  Grande  Promenade  which  commands  the 
most  magnificent  view  I  ever  saw.  To  the  Musee.  Wrote 
letters  in  the  afternoon.  Since  table  d'hote  have  been  in  old 
Daumas's,  and  had  a  long  talk  with  him. 

5th.  Off  before  8.  Reached  Aries  at  10,  and  then 
had  breakfast  at  the  buffet.  Then  walked  into  the  town; 
looked  into  the  Arena,  the  Amphitheatre,  the  most  inter- 
esting Cathedral,  with  its  beautiful  Byzantine  fagade  and 

80 


1870  NOTES  CERAMIC 

cloisters ;  a  most  picturesque  town  is  Aries,  and  we  were 
very  glad  to  have  seen  it.  As  to  "  antiquities  "  there  were 
two  little  shops,  beneath  notice,  near  the  Arena,  and  in  the 
Rue  Royale  we  found  a  whole  Church  given  up  to  an  old  Jew 
who  had  made  his  dwelling  in  the  entrance,  and  had  filled 
the  rest  of  the  building  with  a  lot  of  rubbish,  furniture,  faience, 
etc.,  all  of  the  worst  description.  I  never  saw  such  a  desecra- 
tion of  a  sacred  edifice ;  it  was  worse  than  the  modern 
pictures  in  the  Maison  Carrie.  Returned  to  the  station  in 
time  for  a  one  o'clock  train  by  which  we  reached  Marseilles 
soon  after  three.  The  weather  was  magnificent.  Such  a 
sky  !  and  the  views  over  the  sea  quite  lovely.  After  our 
arrival  we  had  time  for  a  walk  up  the  Rue  Paradis  and  the 
Place  de  la  Prefecture,  in  search  of  curiosity  shops,  and  found 
four  or  five,  all  very  bad.  The  only  thing  we  coveted  was  an 
enamel  box,  black  transfer  printed,  very  good  indeed,  but  so 
dear  that  we  left  it.  Found  here  a  family  of  Sinclairs  whom 
we  had  before  met  at  Avignon  and  Nismes. 

6th.  Walked  to  Longchamps.  The  Fountain  and  new 
building  of  the  Muse"e  very  fine,  and  a  grand  view  from 
the  Gardens.  Both  this  and  last  evening  Mr.  Darlow,  who 
was  passing  through  Marseilles,  came  and  sat  and  talked 
to  us. 

7th.  After  breakfast  had  another  lounge  among  the 
shops  and  discovered  an  amateur  collector  (M.  Colombe, 
Rue  de  Pione"e,  64)  who  showed  us  all  his  things  many  of 
which  are  very  fine.  His  French  faience  is  especially  good 
and  he  possesses  a  pair  of  the  best  cabinets  I  ever  saw, 
inlaid  with  subjects  in  ivory  after  Rubens'  designs.  These 
once  belonged  to  a  King  of  Spain  and  must  be  priceless.  He 
sent  us  on  to  see  a  Juge  de  Paix  named  M.  Mostreil,  who 
had  a  good  quantity  of  faience,  but  not  so  many  fine  pieces  as 
himself.  We  had  some  sport  in  our  chasse  among  the  shops, 
i  81  F 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1870 
In  a  small  place  in  the  Boulevard  du  Muy,  kept  by  people  of 
the  name  of  Taillon,  we  found  a  very  large  (16  in.)  circular 
dish  marked  Wedgwood,  and  painted  with  a  landscape  and 
figures  in  black,  and  with  an  oak  leaf  border.  Also  a  milk 
jug  of  the  same  ware  (unmarked)  with  the  anti-Gallican  badge 
and  motto  "  for  our  country  "  printed  in  red.  [At  Canford 
there  is  now  a  tea  service  of  Oriental  pieces  with  this  once- 
popular  badge.  These  are  illustrated  here.]  For  these, 
in  addition  to  a  small  Worcester  or  Caughley  mustard  pot 
with  a  rather  pretty  handle,  they  took  i6/-.  A  man  named 
Esmien,  who  has  retired  from  a  shop  and  become  a  private 
dealer,  Rue  Paradis,  81,  sold  us  5  cups  and  four  saucers 
Venetian,  with  Maroon  scale  borders,  and  a  Wedgwood  and 
Bentley  plaque  of  Shakespeare,  black,  of  exactly  the  same 
form  and  mounting  as  those  of  Rousseau  and  Washington 
which  we  found  last  year  at  Dresden.  This  lot  was  not  very 
cheap.  We  had  to  give  £2.  8.  o.  for  it,  but  the  cups  are  of 
rare  colour.  Our  only  other  purchase  was  the  Battersea  box 
with  subjects  in  black  transfer  printing  which  we  had  admired 
at  Valli's,  Rue  Paradis,  on  Saturday,.  We  had  to  give  £2. 
for  it,  but  it  is  the  best  piece  of  the  kind  (almost)  that  I  ever 
saw.  Having  completed  our  rounds  we  hurried  to  the  station 
and  left  Marseilles  at  J  past  4.  By  Aries  to  Lunel  which  we 
reached  before  9,  and  where  the  train  stopped  for  supper. 
The  other  train,  however,  which  was  to  have  taken  us  on  a 
little  later,  came  to  grief  somewhere  or  other,  and  we  were 
kept  at  the  Lunel  Station  till  one  in  the  morning,  not  arriv- 
ing at  Montpellier  again  till  near  three. 

8th.  Left  Montpellier  before  noon.  Had  a  short  delay 
at  Cette  and  availed  ourselves  of  it  to  rush  into  the  town 
which  is  neither  pretty  nor  interesting,  and  to  visit  a  large 
private  Museum  there,  to  which,  on  stated  days,  access  is 
given  to  the  public.  At  Narbonne  we  had  only  "quarante 

82 


1870  NOTES  CERAMIC 

minutes  d'arret ",  but  by  walking  very  fast,  we  managed  to 

go  over  the  Cathedral  and  to  get  a  glimpse  of  the  curious  old 

buildings,  with  terraced  walk,  which  adjoin  it.      Narbonne 

is  most  picturesque,  with  several  Churches.     Through  lakes 

of  water  and  swamps  to  Perpignan,  arriving  before  7.     Hotel 

Bosch. 

Qth.  Left  by  diligence  at  10.  Grand  scenery  among  the 
Pyrenees,  though  tame  after  the  Alps.  Dry  clear  day,  and 
the  roads  no  longer  wet,  but  they  are  wretchedly  bad ;  more 
like  ill-ploughed  fields  with  occasional  pits  in  them  than  any- 
thing else.  In  about  an  hour  we  came  to  a  full  stop.  A 
pickaxe  was  applied  to  the  wheel  and  a  whip  to  the  horses, 
and  the  travellers  alighted.  Then  the  ponderous  diligence 
got  under  weigh  again  and  by  10  at  night  arrived  at  Gerona. 
Small  Inn,  but  good  supper.  Amusing  scene  at  frontier 
passing  luggage  with  my  china. 

10th.  Went  to  the  Cathedral  and  other  churches ;  the 
former  is  fine.  Tried  to  find  curiosity  shops  but  failed. 
Left  Gerona  about  12  by  railway  to  Barcelona,  and  passing 
through  a  rather  uninteresting  country  arrived  soon  after  4, 
but  not  in  time  to  do  anything  as  there  was  a  delay  in 
passing  our  luggage.  Fonda  Orientale  was  good.  We  had 
grand  apartments :  not  dear  and  very  clean.  Since  Perpignan, 
we  have  travelled  in  company  with  some  agreeable  people 
named  Adlam,  and  at  to-day's  table  d'hote  made  acquaintance 
with  Mr.  Black,  a  Scotch  Minister  who  is  in  Spain  connected 
with  the  movement  for  the  spread  of  Protestantism.  He  is 
stationed  at  Seville  where  he  is  bringing  up  Spanish  young 
men  for  the  Ministry. 

nth.  Called  on  the  English  Consul,  Mr.  Hannay,  who 
accompanied  us  to  the  Cathedral,  with  which  we  were 
delighted — especially  with  the  cloisters,  and  the  trade 
emblems  on  the  tombs  of  some  of  the  tailors,  shoemakers, 

83 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1870 
etc.  buried  there.  We  walked  about  generally,  and  went 
into  the  street  of  the  goldsmiths  ("  Plateria  ")  hoping  to  meet 
with  something  old  in  jewellery  or  other  articles,  but  un- 
successfully. There  is  one  rag  and  bottle  shop  in  a  street 
close  to  the  Liceo,  and  behind  the  Plateria  there  is  a  private 
house  with  a  few  articles  in  it,  but  the  husband  being  out, 
the  wife  could  tell  us  nothing,  and  there  did  not  seem  to  be 
any  objects  at  all  in  our  line  :  in  fact,  in  respect  of  collecting, 
Barcelona  may  be  recorded  as  a  blank.  It  is  a  most  bust- 
ling mercantile  town.  The  crowds  in  the  Rambla  are 
astounding. 

I2th.  A  very  early  move.  Went  accompanied  by  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Adlam  and  Mr.  Black  to  visit  Montserrat. 
Took  the  train  to  Monistrol  where  a  diligence  met  us  to 
convey  passengers  to  the  Convent.  We  engaged  places  in 
it,  but  as  the  diligence  stopped  some  20  minutes  at  the 
village  for  passengers  to  breakfast,  and,  as  the  morning  was 
quite  lovely,  I  set  off  to  walk  and  Mr.  Black  went  with  me. 
We  were  not  overtaken  by  the  diligence  till  we  reached  the 
Convent,  so  we  had  a  walk  of  some  two  or  three  hours 
arriving  at  I  P.M.  I  enjoyed  it  immensely,  for  the  scenery 
was  very  grand.  It  was  rather  a  peculiarity,  that,  while  hot 
with  the  baking  sun,  I  felt  at  every  breath  I  took  as  if  I  were 
swallowing  ice.  The  air  was  so  cold  that  the  brilliant  sun 
had  no  power  to  warm  it.  By  this  time  we  were  naturally 
hungry.  We  got  an  excellent  breakfast  at  the  Fonda  and 
then  went  into  the  Church,  and  were  introduced  to  the 
Black  Virgin  by  an  old  Prior,  whose  reverential  attitude 
while  we  made  our  visit  to  her  is  never  to  be  forgotten.  It 
was  altogether  an  impressive  scene.  I  admired  some  painted 
tiles  which  floored  part  of  the  edifice,  and  the  Prior  politely 
caused  two  to  be  given  to  me ;  they  are  not  of  any  antiquity. 
When  we  had  lingered  about  long  enough  to  enjoy  the 

84 


1 87o  NOTES  CERAMIC 

glorious  view  from  this  level,  we  scrambled  down  the 
mountain  by  a  short  path  and  took  up  our  diligence  again  at 
the  village  of  Monistrol ;  thence  to  the  station,  and  so  by 
rail  again  to  Barcelona,  arriving  about  9.  It  was  a  charming 
expedition.  We  had  been  told  it  would  take  three  days  to 
accomplish  it  properly.  But  there  was  a  German  gentleman 
who  went  in  the  diligence  with  us,  and  found  time  to  mount 
even  up  to  the  highest  peak  (which  we  were  not  ambitious  to 
do)  and  to  see  Monastery,  Virgin,  etc.,  between  the  arrival 
and  departure  of  the  diligence.  Most  of  our  party  were  very 
tired,  and  C.S.  had  a  bad  sick  headache,  but  we  sat  up  till 
midnight  dissecting  an  account  of  our  sale  at  Sotheby's 
on  the  1st  of  the  month,  which  we  found  at  the  Hotel 
awaiting  us.  It  was  a  fair  sale  but  nothing  splendid. 

I3th.  Barcelona  full  of  excitement  at  the  news  of  the 
fatal  Montpensier  duel,  We  went  to  the  principal  Club 
(called,  I  think,  the  Equestrian)  for  C.S.  to  see  the  papers, 
and  then  looked  into  the  Church  of  Santa  Maria  del  Mar. 
Took  lunch  at  the  Consul's  where  were  the  officers  of  an 
English  Ship  of  War,  stationed  off  the  coast.  We  had 
planned  to  take  a  drive  in  the  afternoon,  and  told  Balcon  the 
guide  to  come  to  us  with  a  carriage.  To  our  consternation  he 
appeared  in  time  with  a  regular  Court  conveyance — a  splendid 
open  barouche  decorated  with  blue  and  silver,  with  gorgeous 
lamps,  and  with  two  servants  in  State  liveries  to  correspond ! 
Too  absurd.  It  was  a  great  relief  when  we  found  that  this 
stupendous  vehicle  could  not  ascend  to  the  Fort ;  and  after 
some  delay  a  more  modest  equipage  was  procured.  While 
this  was  being  arranged  we  went  and  saw  a  private  collection 
belonging  to  a  dentist  just  opposite  to  our  Hotel,  which  was 
for  sale.  I  never  saw  so  much  hopeless  rubbish  in  my  whole 
life.  At  length  we  ascended  the  Castle,  and  a  more 
delightful  view  is  nowhere  to  be  found.  Walked  about 

85 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1870 
there  some  time,  returning  only  in  time  for  table  d'hote. 
We  had  been  told  that  this  excursion  would  occupy  a  whole 
afternoon,  whereas  we  might  easily  have  made  a  pleasant 
walk  of  it.  We  feel  an  additional  interest  in  Barcelona  by 
reason  of  the  curious  old  prints  we  have  of  the  siege  of  the 
place  by  Lord  Peterborough  in  1705,  which  we  had  so  much 
difficulty  in  verifying,  as  the  margins  had  been  destroyed 
and  there  was  no  text  to  inform  us  what  town  was  repre- 
sented. Letters  till  late  after  going  to  see  the  commence- 
ment of  a  play  on  the  life  of  Christ. 

I4th.  Left  Barcelona  at  6,  reached  Tarragona  by  9. 
C.S.  not  feeling  well,  slept  on  the  sofa  after  breakfast,  while 
I  wrote,  and  amused  myself  in  watching  the  soldiers  from  the 
opposite  Barracks,  who  were  going  through  a  sort  of  review 
in  the  street.  About  I.  we  walked  out.  The  Cathedral  was 
then  closed,  and  we  had  to  wait  till  two  to  get  it  open.  A 
very  fine  Cathedral ;  the  retablo  wonderful ;  cloisters  un- 
usually interesting ;  they  are  the  resting-place  of  many  brave 
English  soldiers,  whose  tombs  are  simply  designated  as  "6th. 
Company,"  "5th.  Company"  (query,  of  what  Regiment). 
Got  a  carriage  and  drove  to  the  environs  of  the  town,  and  as 
far  as  the  Roman  Aqueduct,  which  we  should  think  fine  had 
we  not  seen  Nismes.  Fine  view  over  the  plain  towards 
Rues.  The  Director  of  the  Museum,  Sefior  Hernandez, 
showed  us  all  over  the  antiquities  collected  there,  which  are 
most  interesting  and  most  beautifully  arranged.  No  vestige 
of  a  curiosity  shop  at  Tarragona.  Walked  in  the  Esplanade 
overlooking  the  sea. 

I5th.  Left  Tarragona  at  9.  Reached  Valencia  at 
about  8,  and  were  sorry  that  it  had  become  dark  before  we 
got  to  the  prettiest  part  of  the  road.  Put  up  at  the  Fonda 
del  Cid. 

l6th.     A    wretched    night.       C.S.    ill    with    cold    and 

86 


1870  NOTES  CERAMIC 

threatening  of  fever.  I  took  fright  and  suggested  returning 
home.  Got  up  tired  and  ill  myself,  and  went  off  to  the 
Consul,  Mr.  Dart,  from  whom  I  learnt  that  there  was  a 
steamer  going  the  following  day  to  Marseilles.  However, 
in  the  afternoon  C.S.  was  better,  and  Mr.  Dart  called  and 
took  us  out  to  drive  and  see  the  Alameda.  Troops  reviewed 
in  the  dry  bed  of  the  Turia.  Made  acquaintance  with  an 
English  gentleman,  Mr.  Gibson  Craig,  who  had  been  staying 
at  Madrid.  [It  is  not  quite  clear  who  this  may  have  been, 
but  probably  the  2nd  Bart,  the  Rt.  Hon.  Sir  Wm.  Gibson 
Craig  of  Ricardon,  who  married  a  daughter  of  J.  H.  Vivian, 
M.P.,  of  Singleton.] 

I7th.  C.S.  better:  determined  to  pursue  our  plans. 
Went  out  at  12  to  see  the  Water  Council,  an  assembly  of 
peasants  who  meet  to  confer  about  the  irrigation.  Visited  the 
Cathedral,  which  disappointed  me.  Fine  Chapter  House. 
Went  to  the  top  of  the  Tower  to  see  the  view,  accompanied 
by  Mr.  Black,  who  arrived  at  our  Hotel  the  night  before. 
Then  Mr.  Dart  joined  us  again,  and  took  us  to  see  the  image 
of  the  Virgen  de  los  Desamparados,  which  is  in  the  Church 
near,  and  is  laden  with  jewels.  Hunted  for  curiosity  shops. 
Found  one  in  the  Calle  S.  Vicente,  an  old  hatter,  a  nice 
old  man,  from  whom  I  bought  some  Moorish  dishes  for 
Enid  according  to  an  order  she  gave  me,  also  one  or  two 
trifles  to  give  away,  and,  for  ourselves,  two  pieces  of  faience  ; 
one  of  these  a  chocolate  stand,  which  will  make  an  inkstand, 
of  Alcora  fabrique,  2/6.  The  other,  a  dilapidated  Biberon 
of  Talavera  Ware,  2/6.  Mr.  Dart  took  us  to  the  house  of 
a  gentleman  who  had,  he  heard,  a  good  private  collection. 
With  him  we  found  a  few  things.  We  were  rather  surprised 
when  he  expressed  his  readiness  to  sell,  so  we  selected  a  few 
objects  for  which  he  promised  to  give  us  a  price.  The 
gentleman's  name  was  Jorge  Dies  Martinez,  and  his  house 

87 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1870 

at  40  Calle  larga  de  la  Seggiuola.  He  was  an  urbane  old 
man,  and  I  was  pleased  at  this  glimpse  at  a  Spanish  interior. 
Went  to  silk  shops  and  Manta  shops  where  we  ordered 
curtains  for  our  dining  room.  Mr.  Dart  came  to  us  after 
table  d'hote,  with  a  note  of  the  Spanish  Don's  prices.  He 
asked  £60  for  the  following  articles :  Top  of  a  table  inlaid 
with  the  arms  of  Spain  in  ivory  and  various  woods — £20.  A 
bowl,  cover,  and  dish  of  Alcora  China,  £20.  A  sceau  of 
Sevres  painted  in  birds,  £8.  A  small  bowl  of  blue  and  white 
Nankin,  £4.  A  cup  of  Buen  Retiro,  marked  but  not  fine,  8/-. 
A  chocolate  stand  of  Alcora  Ware,  in  form  of  a  dove,  i6/-. 
A  plate,  or  dish  of  Alcora  Ware,  white,  £4.  A  plate  of 
Marseilles  Ware,  i6/-.  A  dish  of  Talavera  Ware,  £2.  The 
nine  objects  £60.  We  sent  back  a  message  to  say  we  would 
call  next  day. 

i8th.  Went  to  the  Lonja,  with  fine  columns,  a  remarkable 
building.  The  streets  full  of  people,  being  the  Vigil  of  St. 
Joseph,  in  many  places  were  figures  as  large  as  life,  decorated 
and  dressed  to  represent  living  characters,  and  placed  in 
prominent  positions,  intended  to  be  burned  (like  Guy  Fawkes) 
at  night ;  a  very  curious  sight  altogether.  Pursued  our 
curiosity  hunting.  Went  to  the  house  of  the  Conde  Pascent, 
to  look  at  a  fine  carved  oak  cabinet,  for  which  they  asked  the 
enormous  sum  of  £300.  He  has  an  interesting  old  coach 
richly  decked  and  painted.  We  went  through  the  large,  now 
desolate  house  which  once  must  have  been  very  beautiful. 
Ballroom  floor  prettily  tiled.  Went  again  with  Mr.  Dart  to 
Sefior  Martinez,  where  it  ended  in  our  buying  7  out  of  the  9 
objects  (excluding  the  Talavera  dish  and  the  white  Alcora 
plate)  for  £15  ! !  These  had  amounted  to  near  £60  according 
to  this  poor  gentleman's  estimate !  The  only  other  scraps 
we  met  with  in  Valencia  were  three  plates  of  Alcora  Ware 
prettily  painted  in  landscape  with  representation  of  a  flaming 

88 


i87o  NOTES  CERAMIC 

sun,  6/-.  Two  small  Alcora  Coffee  cups  (china)  2/-.  One 
little  white  tray  imitating  basket  work,  gd.  These  were  in  a 
small  shop  in  the  Calle  de  Caballeros.  Mr.  Dart  took  me  to 
the  Bull-ring,  which  in  itself  is  a  sight,  but  where  to-day  a 
sort  of  gala  was  to  be  kept.  In  the  centre  of  it  has  been 
erected  a  kind  of  temple  in  which  stood  six  life-sized  mannikins 
dressed  as  dancers.  These  every  now  and  then  were  made 
to  move  round  at  a  very  solemn  pace  to  the  sound  of  military 
music,  which  was  very  good.  There  was  a  pretty  good 
attendance.  We  sat  some  time  listening  to  the  music ; 
between  whiles  a  man  played  on  a  sort  of  flute  or  pipe, 
resembling  in  sound  a  bagpipe,  accompanied  by  two  drums. 
He  elicited  the  most  enthusiastic  applause.  There  were 
arrangements  for  lighting  up  this  bull-ring  and  letting  off 
fireworks  in  it  preparatory  to  the  closing  acts  of  burning  the 
central  Temple.  I  wanted  to  see  this  finale,  so  we  took  a 
box  for  it,  and  hurried  back  to  dine.  Unluckily  no  one  knew 
the  exact  time  at  which  this  performance  was  to  take  place, 
and  so,  when  I  went  there  just  after  dark  with  Mr.  Dart, 
Mr.  Black,  Mr.  Adlam  and  Mr.  Gibson  Craig  we  found  it 
just  over,  and  only  the  smoking  remains  of  the  central  bon- 
fire were  to  be  seen.  Went  on  to  look  at  some  of  the  other 
effigies  in  the  streets,  which  were  crowded.  Got  into  a  polite 
barber's  to  see  a  grand  erection  representing  the  column  of 
the  Prado  in  Madrid,  which  appeared  to  be  falling,  and,  which 
effigies  of  Prim,  Serrano,  etc.  [Spanish  statesmen  of  the  day], 
seemed  to  be  vainly  attempting  to  support.  There  was  a 
balcony  full  of  musicians,  and  the  crowd  seemed  to  be  very 
happy  listening  to  an  extempore  performance  in  one  of  the 
houses  where  some  one  made  faces  by  the  shadows  of 
their  hands  against  the  window  blind !  so  easily  do  these 
Valencians  seem  to  be  amused !  We  could  not  wait  to  see 
the  final  bonfire  at  10,  for  there  was  so  much  to  be  done 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1870 
to  get  our  acquisitions  packed  and  sent  off  for  England 
by  the  kind  help  of  that  most  agreeable  of  Consuls,  Mr. 
Dart. 

IQth.  Off  by  a  6  o'clock  train ;  most  lovely  morning, 
and  most  lovely  scenery.  I  never  saw  anything  so  beautiful 
as  this  garden  of  Valencia,  with  its  oranges  in  full  bearing, 
Mie  peach  trees  in  full  blossom,  its  palms,  its  rice-fields,  its 
brilliant  green,  contrasting  with  the  brightest  sky  and  the 
bluest  sea.  It  was  really  a  Paradise.  Longed  to  stop  and 
explore  Xatifa.  Reached  Alicante  at  4.  Exquisite  moon- 
light in  the  evening.  Our  hotel  was  on  the  quay.  A  merry 
Italian  landlord,  who,  after  table  d'hote,  made  us  go  into  his 
private  apartments,  and  see  all  his  family,  and  hear  his 
daughter  play. 

2Oth.  Visit  while  at  breakfast  from  the  Consul,  Col. 
Barrie,  a  very  old  man,  who  brought  us  letters.  We  went 
over  to  Elche,  taking  a  little  omnibus  carriage  with  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Adlam,  the  landlord  accompanying  us  on  the  box. 
Perfect  weather.  Delightful  expedition.  We  were  charmed 
with  the  Palm  Forest  and  with  Elche  itself,  where  we  visited 
the  Cathedral  and  ascended  it  for  the  view.  Went  as  far  as 
the  bridge  over  the  now  waterless  river.  Called  to  see  an 
excellent  old  antiquary  who  spends  his  time  in  collecting  all 
the  Roman  remains  which  are  found  in  this  part  of  the 
country,  and  has  got  together  some  very  good  things.  His 
name  was  Aureliano  Ibarria  y  Manzoni.  A  good  piece  of 
tessellated  pavement  at  his  entrance.  He  gave  me  two 
pieces  of  the  embossed  tiles  from  Toledo. 

2ist.  Col.  Barrie's  daughter  called  and  took  C.S.  and 
me  in  her  carriage  to  a  little  suburb  where  the  principal 
people  of  Alicante  have  their  country  houses.  We  went  to 
see  a  house  where  it  was  thought  some  china,  etc.,  might  be 
to  be  seen,  but  there  was  nothing  ;  then  went  to  Col.  Barrie's 

90 


1870  NOTES  CERAMIC 

villa,  which  is  quite  one  of  the  prettiest  of  them,  and  where 
they  gathered  me  ripe  oranges  and  lemons  from  the  trees, 
and  sweet  flowers.  The  Consul  got  me  some  lace  to  look 
at,  and  some  little  bits  of  Oriental  china  of  no  account. 
Our  only  purchase  at  Alicante  was  some  black  Spanish  lace, 
from  an  old  Jew,  Miguel  Pierani,  who  keeps  the  sole  curiosity 
shop  in  the  place — 6  yards  of  broad,  five  of  narrower,  £2. 
At  4  left  Alicante  for  Madrid.  Travelled  all  night :  reached 
Madrid  about  8  next  morning.  Looked  at  the  Palace  of 
Aranjuez  from  the  station.  Madrid  very  pretty  as  we 
approached,  backed  by  its  snow  mountains,  in  the  morning 
light. 

22nd.  Henry  Layard  was  at  the  station  to  meet  us  with 
his  carriage,  and  we  were  shortly  at  the  Legation.  Found 
Enid  wonderfully  well.  I  must  make  a  short  resume"  of  our 
most  pleasant  stay  at  Madrid,  which  we  did  not  leave  again 
till  Thursday  the  3ist.  Having  dressed  and  breakfasted  I 
sat  talking  with  Enid  till  luncheon.  After  it  Henry  took  us 
to  one  or  two  little  curiosity  shops.  At  Vicenti's  I  found  a 
tortoise-shell  snuff  box  or  small  coffer,  studded  with  small 
silver  cockle-shells,  rather  pretty  ;  this,  from  emblems  of  the 
cypress  rudely  etched  upon  it,  I  was  afterwards  told  was  the 
work  of  Carthusian  monks ;  gave  for  it  8/4.  Late  in  the 
afternoon  we  drove  with  Enid  and  Henry  through  the 
grounds  at  Moncloa,  a  pretty  drive  with  views  of  the 
mountains.  The  name  is  associated  with  china,  but  in  its 
time  of  decadence. 

23rd.  We  had  a  hunt  among  the  curiosity  shops,  of 
which  there  are  not  very  many,  nor  are  they  good.  Some 
of  the  best  things  are  kept  by  the  landlord  of  the  Fonda  de 
Paris,  who  sells  them  through  a  kind  of  commission  agent 
attached  to  his  house,  named  Calvetti,  a  brother  of  the 
London  dealer,  and  an  Italian.  We  took  this  man  with  us 

91 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1870 
on  the  following  day  (Thursday)  and  went  with  him  into 
some  of  the  shops,  but  found  little.  Again  on  the  Friday 
we  had  a  ramble  with  Giovanni,  the  Major-domo  of  the 
Legation,  and  penetrated  as  far  as  the  Rastro,  to  which  again 
he  took  us  on  the  Sunday  morning  to  see  the  great  market, 
which  is  a  most  curious  sight.  Crowds  of  people  buying  all 
sorts  of  things — meat,  dress,  old  keys,  everything  laid  out  in 
stalls  or  on  the  pavement.  Sometimes,  they  say,  that  objects 
of  value  have  been  met  with  at  this  market,  but,  certainly, 
we  saw  nothing  but  heaps  of  rubbish.  Of  our  purchases 
during  our  stay  at  Madrid,  I  will  give  later  a  resume*.  Of  the 
sights,  I  may  say  that  one  of  the  most  interesting  was  the 
Armoury,  which  we  visited,  I  think,  on  the  Thursday  after- 
noon, and  where  there  are  some  wonderful  specimens  of 
workmanship.  One  of  the  employe's  at  the  Armoury,  an 
intelligent  little  man,  brings  curiosities  occasionally  to  show 
Henry  ;  we  hoped  to  have  got  something  by  his  intervention, 
but  have  not  done  so.  Twice  we  were  at  the  Museo, 
revelling  in  the  beauty  of  the  pictures.  The  afternoon  of 
Wednesday  was  spent  chiefly  in  visits.  We  went  to  see  M. 
Zuloaga,  an  artist  in  metal  of  great  merit,  and  who  possesses 
many  specimens  of  porcelain  and  faience.  Our  visit  to  him 
was  very  interesting,  but  not  so  much  so  as  one  we  paid 
afterwards  to  Mme.  Riafio,  a  daughter  of  the  author  M. 
Gayangos,  whose  rooms  are  beautifully  fitted  up  and  arranged, 
and  are  full  of  china  and  pottery  not  only  interesting  but 
extremely  decorative.  She  has  some  excellent  Buen  Retire 
figures,  and  many  things  I  should  like  to  carry  away.  Mme. 
Riafio  is  one  of  the  most  charming  people  I  have  met  in 
Madrid.  She  is  very  intimate  with  Enid.  She  has  lived  a 
great  deal  in  England  and  speaks  English  perfectly. 

Friday.     I  have  mentioned  our  long  morning's  ramble  ; 
in  the  afternoon  we  drove  about.      Among  other  pleasant 

92 


1870  NOTES  CERAMIC 

drives  we  went  one  day  over  the  bridge,  returning  by  the 

Toledo  road.     Several  times  we  drove  about  the  Prado. 

On  the  26th,  C.S.  and  I  went  over  the  Palace,  which 
is  a  fine  building,  fitted  up  in  the  worst  taste — the  very  worst 
of  all  being  in  Queen  Isabella's  private  rooms,  which  have  a 
melancholy  kind  of  interest — alas — poor  Spain  !  There  are 
four  fine  vases  of  Buen  Retiro  a  la  Wedgwood  (a  style, 
however,  that  I  do  not  admire).  There  is  a  lovely  little  room 
all  panelled  and  ceiled  and  decorated  throughout  with  Buen 
Retiro  ;  and  there  is  another  room  with  a  sort  of  Rococo 
ceiling  of  the  same  fabrique,  but  very  inferior.  On  the 
evening  of  Saturday  we  went  to  the  Opera,  and  heard  the 
Puritani,  not  very  well  done.  Tamberlik  is  their  best  singer. 
In  the  afternoon  Henry  had  taken  us  to  the  Cortes,  where  we 
saw  Prim.  [The  famous  Spanish  General  and  King-maker.] 

27th.  Up  very  early  to  go  to  the  Rastro  Market  at  8. 
The  weather,  which  had  been  delicious  up  to  to-day,  now 
suddenly  became  quite  cold,  indeed  a  few  flakes  of  snow 
fell  in  the  afternoon.  Service  at  the  Legation  in  the  morning. 
In  the  afternoon  we  went  to  the  Circus  to  hear  a  magnificent 
concert  of  classical  instrumental  music,  given  under  the 
direction  of  M.  Monasterio.  We  had  Nicolais'  overture  to  the 
"  Merry  Wives  of  Windsor."  All  Mendelssohn's  Midsummer 
Night's  Dream,  Beethoven's  Egmont,  Mozart's  Marche 
Turque.  All  admirably  performed.  The  only  drawback  was 
that  everybody  smoked,  which  made  an  unpleasant  atmo- 
sphere. After  the  concert,  Henry  took  us  to  see  M.  and 
Mme.  Bauer  (of  Rothschild's  House)  whose  residence  is  full 
of  fine  things,  especially  of  tapestry,  some  of  which  is  the 
finest  I  ever  saw  ;  six  pieces  of  the  Seasons — signed.  They 
possess  a  life-size  bust  of  the  Comte  d'Aranda  made  at  his 
own  Alcora  Works,  which  I  should  have  given  much  to  get, 
and  a  good  bust  in  Dresden  China  of  Augustus's  Jager, 

93 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1870 

with  a  mouse  in  his  mouth  and  others  running  about  him, 
the  tradition  being  that  some  of  his  companions  put  mice  in 
his  drinking  cup,  as  a  joke,  which  this  china  commemorates. 
Remember  a  fine  figure  in  wood  by  Alonzo  Cano.  The 
Blandfords  are  at  Madrid.  [The  Marquis  of  Blandford,  after- 
wards 8th  Duke  of  Marlborough,  and  his  wife  ;  the  brother  of 
Lady  Wimborne  and  Lord  Randolph  Churchill  and  the  Lady 
Georgina  Spencer  Churchill  here  mentioned.  This  last  lady 
was  married  some  years  later,  in  1883,  to  Viscount  Curzon,  then 
eldest  son  of  the  3rd  Earl  of  Howe.]  They  dined  here  on  Friday 
(to  meet  the  Attache's),  and  to-day,  as  Lord  Blandford  had  gone 
to  Toledo,  Lady  Blandford  and  her  sister  [-in-law],  Lady 
Georgina,  dined  here  again,  as  did  also  the  Italian  Minister, 
M.  Ceruti.  The  mode  of  Society  is  very  pleasant  at  Madrid. 
It  would  seem  that  people  are  left  alone  in  the  morning  to 
follow  their  own  pursuits.  In  the  afternoon  they  drive  ;  then 
at  the  Legation,  there  is  always  a  dinner  party  of  12  every 
Monday,  with  a  reception  after  it,  and  there  are  frequently 
people  at  dinner  besides.  We  have  met  some  very  pleasant 
people,  among  them,  Gayangos,  whom  I  like  very  much. 
Mr.  Ffrench  (a  clever  agreeable  person  with  great  love  of 
bric-a-brac),  Mr.  Ashburnham,  Mr.  Seymour,  and  Mr.  Hunt 
constitute  the  Legation.  The  last  has  a  nice  little  Spanish 
wife.  They  both  sing.  One  evening  we  had  some  very  nice 
Spanish  music.  Mme.  Esperanza  and  the  music  master 
(whose  name  I  forget)  played  Spanish  duets  charmingly  ; 
and  Mrs.  Hunt  sang,  and  then  danced,  and  it  was  very 
merry. 

28th.  In  the  morning  we  had  a  visit  from  M.  Zuloaga. 
We  were  anxious  to  obtain  from  him  all  the  informa- 
tion he  could  give  us  on  the  subject  of  Spanish  china  and 
faience ;  he  has  promised  to  draw  up  a  little  memoir  for 
me  on  this  matter.  He  appears  to  have  more  ceramic  infor- 

94 


1870  NOTES  CERAMIC 

mation  than  anybody  I  have  yet  met  with  in  the  country.  It 
appears  that  a  friend  of  his  possesses  a  mountain  which  they 
find  to  be  full  of  koalin  with  a  substratum  of  petuntse.  It  is 
somewhere  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Toledo,  and  he  talks  of 
setting  up  a  manufactory  on  the  spot.  The  afternoon  was 
spent  chiefly  at  the  Museo,  then  at  some  shops.  Enid  had 
one  of  her  dinners,  and  a  reception  after  it,  attended  by  most 
of  the  corps  diplomatique.  I  was  introduced  to  several  of 
them,  Mercier,  the  French  Minister,  Kanitzki,  the  Austrian, 
the  Swede,  Sickles  the  American,  and  others. 

29th.  C.S.  with  a  bad  inflammation  of  the  eyes, 
which  kept  him  in  the  house  for  the  rest  of  our  stay  in 
Madrid.  Went  with  Enid  and  Henry  to  the  Archaeological 
Museum  ;  a  charming  collection  of  all  sorts  of  things.  We 
spent  a  good  deal  of  time  among  the  Peruvian,  Oriental, 
Roman  and  Pompeian  antiquities,  which  are  too  deep  for  me 
to  understand.  The  Mediaeval  remains  below,  which  are  not 
yet  arranged,  were  more  in  my  way.  The  Museum  is  now 
located  in  a  very  pretty  spot  with  an  extensive  view,  it  was 
once  a  Casino  of  the  Royal  Family.  M.  Zarco  went  with  us, 
a  very  intelligent  man.  Enid,  after  this,  was  tired  and  went 
home.  I  then  went  with  Henry  to  Mme.  Riafio's,  who  had 
some  things  sent  to  her  house  to  show  us.  We  also  called  at 
my  old  friend  Mme.  Comines,  whom  we  saw,  and  at  Mr. 
Ffrench's  to  look  at  his  rooms,  which  he  has  fitted  up  very 
"tastely." 

30th.  Weather  still  cold.  Neither  C.S.  nor  Enid 
went  out,  but  Henry  and  I  were  at  some  curiosity  shops, 
and  at  one  of  them  he  made  some  rather  large  pur- 
chases of  furniture.  Among  them,  a  Marqueterie  table, 
inlaid  with  a  portrait  of  Charles  IV.  on  horseback,  Royal 
Arms,  etc.,  and  the  companion  with  portrait  of  his  Queen. 
These  from  a  woman  called  Jesusa,  who  has  some  good 

95 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1870 
things.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Hunt  dined,  and  sang  very  pleasantly 
in  the  evening. 

3lst.  At  3  went  with  Enid  to  the  Palace,  where  I 
wanted  to  see  the  celebrated  4  Buen  Retiro  vases  which  are  in 
the  rooms  inhabited  by  General  Serrano.  So  we  went  by  ap- 
pointment. The  Regent  received  us  in  the  ante-room  when 
we  arrived,  two  of  his  sons  being  with  him.  He  has  a 
nice  genial  face  with  a  charming  manner,  both  courteous  and 
cordial.  Mme.  Serrano  (or  rather  the  Duchesse  de  la  Torre) 
is  a  pretty  little  soubrette,  very  much  made  up,  good-natured 
but  dull,  and  with  but  very  little  conversation.  We  paid  a 
short  visit.  As  to  the  vases,  they  are  wonderful  in  size  and 
execution,  but  they  are  not  of  a  style  I  care  for.  Too  much 
mixture.  In  shape  like  immense  pitchers,  with  arabesques  in 
bands,  and  raised  cameo  work  intermixed.  I  should  think 
they  are  of  a  very  late  period.  There  was  a  fine  clock  in  the 
room,  with  china  figures,  of  which  I  only  just  got  a  glimpse 
as  we  were  leaving.  Enid  and  Henry  went  to  complete  the 
purchases  of  yesterday,  which  presently  began  to  be  sent  home. 
We  at  9.  P.M.  took  the  train  for  Seville.  Travelled  all  night. 

APRIL  1870 

SEVILLE:  CORDOVA:  GRANADA:  MADRID:  BURGOS: 
BORDEAUX:  PARIS 

April  I,  1870.  At  daybreak  found  the  carriage  windows 
covered  with  ice.  We  took  provisions  with  us,  so  made  our 
breakfast  in  the  train,  at  Menjibar — another  at  Cordova,  and 
found  ourselves  soon  after  5  in  the  afternoon  at  Seville. 
Mr.  Black  had  taken  rooms  for  us  at  the  Hotel  de  Londres, 
in  the  New  Square.  Capt.  Burnaby  at  table  d'hote,  who 
knows  the  place  thoroughly.  [This  was,  of  course,  the  famous 
soldier  and  author  of  The  Ride  to  Khiva.'] 

96 


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33 

«   H 


O  H 

a  ^ 


it 
f 


1 

u  I 

o  o 

a'B- 

<  ^ 

il 

a  ^ 


o  ~ 
»:  < 
o 


i 


1870  NOTES  CERAMIC 

2nd.  Mr.  Black  called,  and  with  him  we  made  a  long 
ramble ;  first  to  the  Casa  del  Ayuntamiento ;  exquisite 
Renaissance  with  date  1539  on  one  of  the  arabesque  pilasters. 
Then  round  the  outside  of  the  Cathedral,  to  the  Library  of 
Columbus,  the  Lonja,  and  finally  to  the  Alcazar,  with  which 
I  was  quite  enchanted.  I  seemed  as  if  taken  back  to  Moorish 
times.  In  the  afternoon  we  went  for  a  short  time  into  the 
Cathedral,  then  made  search  for  a  commissionaire  who  could 
show  us  curiosity  shops.  Found  one  with  whom  we  made  an 
appointment.  N.B.  Note  the  curious  Tile  pictures  in  the 
Chapel  made  by  Isabella  in  the  Alcazar.  The  subject  of  the 
principal  part  of  it  is  the  Salutation  of  Mary  by  her  cousin 
Elizabeth.  This  part  consists  of  eleven  rows  of  nine  tiles 
each.  The  surroundings  are  arabesques  with  SPQR,  etc., 
signed  NICVLOSO.  FRANCISCO.  ITALIANO.  ME. 
FECIT,  and  in  one  of  the  Arabesques  is  thedateCCCCCIIII. 
The  monogram  of  Isabella  and  Ferdinand  are  delicately 
rendered  in  the  lower  part  of  this  altar  piece.  In  the  garden 
there  is  an  alcove,  or  garden  house,  the  floor  of  which  is  tiled 
with  a  beautiful  formal  arabesque  pattern.  One  of  the. 
corners  in  the  design  bears  the  signature  IVAN.  H.  3. ; 
another  corner  has  the  date  1546.  These  tiles  are  em- 
bossed. 

Sunday,  3rd.  Went  to  English  service  conducted  by  the 
Chaplain,  Mr.  Tugwell ;  after  it  called  on  the  Consul,  Mr. 
Williams.  Then  drove  to  Cartuja,  where  an  Englishman, 
Mr.  Pickman,  established  a  pottery  some  35  years  ago.  He 
supplies  the  whole  of  Spain  with  his  wares,  which  are  of  the 
character  of  the  most  ordinary  English  productions  without 
the  slightest  pretension  to  taste.  The  son,  Richard  Pickman, 
has  a  feeling  for  Art  and  is  working  very  successfully  at 
reproductions  of  the  ancient  tiles.  He  has  also  a  small 
collection  of  interesting  specimens  of  various  descriptions  of 
i  97  G 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1870 
china.  We  were  delighted  with  the  old  Carthusian  Convent. 
Such  a  roof  in  the  Refectory !  Such  remains  of  grandeur  on 
all  sides !  Such  tiling  everywhere  !  In  one  part  of  the 
building  there  was  a  tiled  Arabesque  pattern,  one  of  the 
tiles  bearing  date  1607.  As  I  looked  on  this  I  beheld  on  the 
table  near  one  of  the  said  tiles,  which  Mr.  Pickman  kindly 
gave  me.  We  found  time  to  call  and  deliver  a  letter  to 
Sefior  Bueno,  a  friend  of  Mme.  Riano,  before  coming  in  to 
dinner ;  and  this  completed  our  day. 

4th.  Went  over  the  Cathedral  with  the  Consul  and  a 
party  of  his.  Senor  Bueno  also  accompanied  us.  Saw  all 
the  Treasure,  the  Vestments,  the  Lace  (which  is  good,  but 
did  not  comprise  any  specimens  of  old  Spanish  or  Venice 
Point),  the  silver  Benvenuto  Cellini  dish,  the  Relics,  every- 
thing, in  fact,  which  the  sacristy  contained.  Then  we  went 
into  the  Chapter  House,  where  we  sat  quietly  looking  at  the 
beautiful  building  and  its  decorations  for  some  time.  Next 
examined  the  High  Altar  and  its  retablo,  the  most  wonderful 
work  of  Art  I  ever  saw.  After  this  went  into  the  choir,  and 
while  we  sat  there,  delighted  with  distant  sounds  of  music 
which  reached  us  from  the  Sagrario.  We  lingered  long 
among  so  many  beauties  and  then  proceeded  to  the  University 
Library,  where  Bueno  has  charge  of  one  department.  Saw 
the  Chapel  there.  After  this  the  Consul  took  us  to  one  or 
two  shops.  It  was  the  Marquis  Sirra  and  his  wife  who  went 
with  us  to  the  Cathedral. 

5th.  A  long  day  with  the  Commissionaire,  Alfonse 
Laboisse,  visiting  curiosity  shops.  Our  only  purchases  were 
at  Mariano  Fernandez's,  17  Calle  de  Canteros,  a  little  Rosary 
with  gilt  filigree  (8/4).  Two  small  leaves  with  currants  in 
relief  of  either  Staffordshire  or  Fulham  Ware  (i5/-) ;  and  a 
pair  of  old  paste  bracelet  snaps  (12/6)  which  I  bought  for 
Enid,  who  collects  these  things.  At  a  little  shop,  Diego 

98 


CHELSEA-DERBY    GROUP    OF    LOVER    AND    SLEEPING    SHEPHERDESS 
Lady  Layarcf  s  Collection 


ANOTHER   EXAMPLE   OF   THE   SAME   GROUP  SLIGHTLY    DIFFERENTLY   TREATED.      THESE 
WERE   BOUGHT   BY   SIR    HENRY   AND    LADY   LAYARD    IN    MADRID,    AND   WERE   GREATLY 
ADMIRED    BY    LADY    CHARLOTTE    SCHREIBER 
Lady  Layards  Collection 


1870  NOTES  CERAMIC 

Astma's,  97  Almeda  de  Escale,  we  found  a  curious  collection, 
chiefly  of  broken  things.  Among  them  a  very  fine  Moustier 
Ware  dish,  most  delicately  painted  in  blue,  with  the  Rape  of 
Helen  in  the  centre,  and  Olympian  deities  and  Arabesques 
all  round  and  about  her.  Unfortunately  it  had  been  broken 
but  had  been  well  mended  ;  for  this  we  gave  £i.  10.  o.  At 
the  same  time  we  got  a  little  marked  Buen  Retiro  figure  of 
Africa,  one  arm  wanting,  the  head  also  having  been  off. 
Though  the  man  knew  nothing  of  what  it  really  was,  we  had 
to  give  a  sovereign  for  it.  Antiquities  are  dear  and  bad  at 
Seville !  We  looked  at  a  frame  with  a  small  man,  Cabriller, 
20  St.  Elay,  but  did  not  buy  it.  Called  at  an  Italian's, 
Vivaldis,  17  Mendez  Nufios,  who  had  some  extravagantly 
dear  cabinets,  and  also  a  few  good  pieces  of  French  ware, 
about  which  we  paused.  He  is  dear,  and  is  a  man  I  do  not 
like,  but  has  intelligence.  I  fancy  he  buys  all  poor  Diego 
Astma's  good  things  tfrom  the  small  miscellaneous  shop  and 
sells  them  at  great  profit.  Went  to  Don  Jose  Devera,  33 
Calle  Amor  de  Dios,  a  superior  kind  of  dealer,  who  has  fine 
and  high-priced  things.  To  Ignacio  Gallindo,  17  Calle  de 
Saragosa,  who  was  absent  at  Madrid,  so  that  we  saw 
nothing  with  him  (his  Madrid  address  is  Fonda  de  Paris,  or 
des  Princes).  Lastly,  to  a  very  original  character,  Don 
Manuel  Robles,  5  Calle  de  la  Cuna.  He  is  a  man  of  good 
means,  a  private  gentleman,  and  buys  and  sells  because  he 
says  it  is  his  amusement ;  certainly  he  was  our  amusement 
for  the  time — but  he  talks  too  much,  and  his  descriptions  in 
bad  French  are  interminable.  We  promised  to  see  him 
again.  We  were  told  to-night  that  there  were  disturbances 
at  Triana,  but  in  the  morning  all  was  reported  quiet.  How- 
ever, news  came  of  a  revolt  at  Barcelona.  To-day  the 
Consul  and  Mrs.  Williams  called  about  II  o'clock  to  go  out 
with  us.  We  went  first  to  the  house  of  the  Commissionaire, 

99 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1870 
Alfonse,  to  look  at  some  mantillas  but  they  were  not 
considered  good.  Then  Mrs.  Williams  left  us,  and  the 
Consul  took  us  to  the  Picture  Gallery,  where,  of  all  the 
Murillos  I  most  fell  in  love  with,  was  the  Sta.  Justina  and 
Ruffina,  standing  together  holding  a  representation  of  the 
Giralda,  with  the  palm  of  martyrdom  in  their  hands  and 
the  potters'  vessels  of  their  trade  lying  at  their  feet. 
Delighted  in  Zurbaran's  large  picture  at  the  end  of  the  room. 
After  parting  with  the  Consul  we  went  to  Don  Robles'. 
Bought  two  earthenware  vessels  with  the  inscription  "  S. 
Huronimo  de  Buena  Vista"  and  decorated  with  his  Lion. 
These  came  from  the  old  Convent  of  S.  Jerome,  price  4/2 
and  2/1.  A  Triana  earthenware  barrel  (worthless,  but  making 
up  a  sum  2/1 ),  and  a  good  old  dish  with  scalloped  edges, 
also  decorated  with  a  Lion,  but  said  to  have  come  from  San 
Clemente  (12/6).  Also  we  went  to  Bianchi's,  i  Calle 
Cardinal,  where  indeed  the  Consul  had  taken  us  before. 
There  we  bought  4  good  blue  and  white  Japanese  Cups  at 
I/I.  each.  Two  pieces  of  curious  old  embroidery  (7/6)  only 
useful  as  patterns,  and  some  Marcasite  ear-rings  and  bracelet 
snaps,  which  will  partly  fulfil  a  commission  of  Merthyr's, 
£2.  15.  o.  After  table  d'hote,  we  drove  in  the  beautiful 
gardens  near  the  River,  passing  the  Due  de  Montpensier's 
Palace.  Delicious  weather !  Lady  Ely  had  arrived  at 
Seville  the  previous  evening.  Spent  some  time  with  her  to- 
day. [The  widow  of  the  3rd  Marquis  of  Ely  ;  Lady  of  the 
Bedchamber  to  Queen  Victoria ;  she  was  the  daughter  of 
J.  J.  Hope-Vere  of  Craigie  and  Blackwood,  N.B.]  The 
accounts  from  Barcelona  alarming.  Great  doubts  thrown  on 
the  safety  of  even  going  to  Granada  ! 

7th.  Again  we  had  Alfonse  with  us.  We  had  been 
amused  yesterday  at  seeing  him  equipped  as  a  sportsman. 
He  had  been  out  shooting  with  some  gentleman,  and  after 

100 


1870  NOTES  CERAMIC 

14  hours'  riding  was  bringing  back  one  hare  and  3  or  4  small 
birds !  Went  to  San  Panta's  magnificent  facade  formed  of 
tiles  enclosing  7  Medallions,  a  la  Luca  della  Robbia. 
Pattern  Arabesque,  comprising  the  "  Tato  Moto "  emblem 
and  inscription,  the  Marriage  Yoke,  the  arrows,  the  S.P.— 
Q.R.  the  initials  of  Ferdinand  and  Isabella.  One  of  the 
tiles  bears  the  signature  of  "  Nicoloso  Francisco  Italiano  me 
fecit ",  and  another  has  the  word  "  Pisano  ".  After  this  to  the 
Church  of  St.  Clement,  where  there  is  a  great  deal  of  tile 
decoration,  the  subjects  being  Arabesque,  Saints  holding 
scrolls,  and  texts  from  Scripture  in  Latin.  The  date  of  these 
as  seen  on  one  or  more  of  the  tiles  is  1588.  Went  again  to 
old  Robles'  to  look  at  a  Terra  Cotta  head  of  John  Baptist, 
life  size  ;  dated  1591,  and  signed  by  "  Gasper  Nunez  del 
Cado,  en  Sevilla ".  The  price  named  for  it  was  about  £7., 
but  there  seemed  some  difficulty  about  its  being  sold,  and 
Robles  promised  to  let  us  hear  more  about  it.  Next,  to  the 
Caridad.  Then  ascended  the  Giralda  with  very  much 
pleasure.  We  had  gone  into  the  Casa  Pilatus,  a  fine  specimen 
of  various  tiling  and  altogether  beautiful  and  interesting. 
Bought  of  Vivaldi  a  soupiere  and  cover  of  Marseilles  ware, 
signed  V.P.  with  flowers  of  Vert  de  Savy  (£2.  5.  o.),  two 
Marseilles  plates  with  Chinese  figures  (i5/~)»  and  a  small 
Oriental  teapot  (6/8).  After  dinner  drove  to  the  Consul's. 
He  had  procured  for  us  a  Mantilla  of  black  lace,  for  which 
we  gave  £6.  6.  o,  and  a  Spanish  Cloak  of  white  lace  £4.  4.  0  ; 
also  a  dish  with  house  in  blue,  Triana,  io/-,  and  a  larger  one 
with  pastoral  subject  in  polychrome,  spared  to  us  by  Senor 
Bueno,  for  which  we  had  to  give  £i.  io.  o.  From  the 
Consul's  we  went  to  take  one  turn  in  the  beautiful  drive  by 
the  river  side.  Grand  packing  of  our  goods  for  Madrid 
at  night. 

8th.     Left  Seville  with  much  regret  at  io  for  Cordova, 

101 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1870 
arriving  at  about  2.  Fonda  Suiza.  Our  box  of  ware  had  to 
be  despatched  from  the  Cordova  Station  direct  to  Madrid, 
which  brought  us  acquainted  with  an  Englishman,  Mr.  John 
Rutledge,  who  has  some  authority  at  the  railway  [he  was 
Traffic  Manager  of  the  Spanish  Railway]  and  to  whom  the 
Consul  had  given  us  letters.  Went  to  the  wonderful  Cathe- 
dral, passing  to  it  by  the  Orange  Court,  and  were  perfectly 
enchanted.  Hunted  for  some  curiosity  shops  ;  found  a  little 
place  kept  by  one  of  the  firm  of  the  Astrua  at  Seville.  He 
had  nothing,  however  ;  but  inquiries  with  him  led  to  our 
finding  out  one  Sanz,  opposite  the  Capuchins.  We  called, 
but  he  was  out.  Went  again  to  the  Cathedral.  Back  for 
table  d'hote,  where  we  again  saw  Mr.  Rutledge,  a  very 
intelligent  man,  who  has  lived  here  so  many  years  that 
his  Spanish  is  better  than  his  English.  It  was  pleasant  to 
hear  him  speak  hopefully  of  Spain.  The  accounts  one  gets 
are  wonderfully  exaggerated  ;  for  instance,  we  were  told  the 
road  to  Granada  was  not  safe  ;  he  quite  laughed  at  the  idea. 
Went  out  again  in  the  evening,  found  Sanz  at  home.  He 
has  some  good  things  and  we  arranged  to  see  him  on  our  way 
back.  Bought  a  silver  ring  (i5/-),  and  a  pair  of  old-fashioned 
Cordova  ear-rings,  IO/-,  at  the  shop  of  one  Narvaez,  Esquina 
Cuesta  de  Lujan  2.  Our  guide  in  all  these  ramblings  was  a 
droll  little  gipsy  boy  about  14  years  old,  named  Pepe  Kevio, 
who  had  a  little  smattering  of  French  and  was  wonderfully 
intelligent.  He  told  us  he  attended  the  night  school  of  Mr. 
Duncan  Shaw,  a  gentleman  who  has  mines  in  this  neighbour- 
hood and  who,  I  should  think,  is  doing  much  good.  I  had 
almost  forgotten  that  we  got  a  paste  ring  of  old  form  from  the 
guide  at  Seville  for  12/6. 

Qth.  Called  at  2  in  the  morning ;  at  the  train  by  4. 
To  Granada ;  a  long  pleasant  summer's  day.  Just  before 
we  reached  the  Bridge  we  came  to  a  dead  stop,  which  was 

1 02 


1870  NOTES  CERAMIC 

occasioned,  we  found,  by  our  running  over  and  killing  a 
bullock,  and  a  little  farther  on  our  engine  broke  down.  But 
luckily  it  was  at  a  station  and  the  damage  was  soon  re- 
paired. Breakfasted  at  Bobadilla.  At  Archidona  took  the 
diligence  to  Loja,  where  we  joined  the  railway  again.  Alto- 
gether a  delightful  journey.  Arrived  before  5.  Difficulty  in 
getting  the  mules  up  the  hill  to  the  Alhambra.  Hotel 
Washington  Irving.  Found  letters  for  us  there.  Ivor 
writes  word  he  has  bought  Hamilton  House. 

loth.  Anniversary  of  our  Wedding-day.  Spent  it 
chiefly  in  the  Alhambra,  and  at  the  Generalife.  I  need 
give  no  description.  Suffice  it  that  the  Court  of  Lions 
(which  for  40  years  I  had  longed  to  see)  was  all  that  I  ex- 
pected it,  and  it  was  happiness  to  sit  and  look  at  it  and  listen 
to  the  hum  of  swarming  bees,  which  made  a  pleasant  sound 
now  that  the  fountain  is  silent. 

nth.  Walked  into  the  town.  Visited  the  Cathedral,  the 
Sacristy  and  its  treasures,  and  were  just  in  time  to  see  the 
Royal  Chapel  before  everything  was  covered  up  for  the 
ceremonies  of  the  Holy  Week.  Tombs  of  Ferdinand  and 
Isabella — Philip  and  Joan.  Went  into  the  Vault  to  look  at 
their  coffins.  Interesting  retablo,  with  representation  of  Boab- 
dil  giving  up  the  keys  of  the  Alhambra  to  Ferdinand  and 
Isabella.  Characteristically  the  Cardinal  (Mendoza)  takes 
them.  One  or  two  shops.  At  a  carpenter's,  Diego  Hernan- 
dez, Calle  de  la  Anima  4.  He  has  some  good  Cabinets 
(articles  which  abound  in  Andalusia)  but  very  dear.  Bought 
nothing.  Visited  the  Cartuja,  a  building  of  no  interest,  but 
where  there  are  some  fine  inlaid  doors,  and  some  beautiful 
inlaid  presses  for  vestments.  Called  on  Senor  Riafio,  brother 
of  the  husband  of  Gayangos's  daughter,  whose  letters  we 
bore  to  him.  He  then  took  us  in  charge  and  kindly  went 
about  with  us,  A  charming  intelligent  man,  speaking  French. 

103 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1870 

Went  with  him  to  the  Museo,  where  there  is  an  assemblage 
of  wretched  daubs  on  rags — but  one  fine  thing — a  group  of 
6  Limoges  enamels,  which  were  the  gift  of  the  Great  Chap- 
lain to  the  family  from  whom  they  were  obtained.  The 
Custos  of  the  Museo  had  for  sale  some  8  large  and  important 
pieces  of  Buen  Retiro.  They  were  of  a  bad  date,  and  were 
very  unprepossessing.  The  price  asked  quite  ridiculous. 
Went  to  a  little  shop  with  Senor  Riano,  where  we  bought  a 
Moorish  jug  for  10/6. 

I2th.  Spent  the  day  with  Senor  Riano.  Went  down  to 
his  house  early.  He  took  us  to  a  Colonel  of  Artillery,  Don 
Federico  Valera,  who  deals  in  curiosities.  He  had  nothing 
in  our  line  but  two  Limoges  enamels  done  en  camaieu, 
which  we  are  to  consider.  In  the  Palavicini  saw  the  sword 
of  poor  Boabdil,  and  a  wonderful  ceiling  with  portraits  in 
wood  of  the  Conquerors  of  Granada,  done  in  very  high  relief. 
Drove  to  the  Old  Moorish  Town  on  the  other  side  of  the 
Ravine,  whence  we  had  a  grand  view  of  the  Alhambra. 
Spent  part  of  the  afternoon  in  the  Alhambra  and  took 
leave  of  my  Court  of  Lions,  which  I  desire,  rather  than 
hope  to  see  again  at  some  future  time!  The  question 
of  the  tiles  seems  to  be  thus.  The  earliest  were  mosaic 
formed  of  small  pieces  moulded  and  baked  and  executed 
with  such  precision  that  the  letters  of  inscriptions  and 
the  groundwork  in  which  they  were  imbedded  seemed 
one  perfect  whole.  Of  course  there  were  many  varieties  of 
a  bolder  and  less  minute  description.  Next  came  the 
embossed  tile  of  which  the  Alhambra  is  also  full  of 
specimens.  On  some  of  these  are  Arabic  inscriptions,  show- 
ing that  they  were  made  at  the  time  of  the  Moors,  and  on 
others  are  the  initials  P.V.  (for  plus  ultra),  showing  that  they 
continued  to  be  made  after  the  conquest.  Thirdly  came  the 
flat  painted  tile  of  the  l6th  Century,  which  has  been  made 

104 


1870  NOTES  CERAMIC 

ever  since.  At  first  beautiful  with  Arabesque  designs  and 
sacred  pictures.  Afterwards  debased  to  the  most  ordinary 
and  inartistic  patterns.  This  subject  must  be  pursued.  I 
got  for  a  duro  a  small  specimen  of  the  embossed  tile,  with 
inscription  of  the  name  of  the  Deity,  in  Arabic.  Riano  told 
me  that  he  saved  the  enamels  in  the  Museo  from  being  sold 
to  a  stranger,  and  that  the  fine  furniture  of  the  Cartuja  was 
once  actually  sold  for  the  value  of  the  wood,  but  was  fortu- 
nately seen  in  the  streets  of  Granada  (laden  to  be  carried 
away)  by  an  Effendi,  who  applied  to  Government  and 
stopped  the  spoliation. 

I3th.  Left  Granada  at  10.  o'clock.  Took  a  last  view 
from  the  station  of  my  lovely  Alhambra — the  dream  of 
my  youth  and  of  so  many  successive  years.  Good  journey 
through  this  fine  country  ;  reached  Cordova  before  II  at 
night.  Crowds  going  to  see  the  procession  and  fair  at 
Seville,  where,  by  the  way,  the  Consul  writes  that  there  was 
a  small  emeute  on  the  night  we  left.  It  took  place  in  the 
Square  opposite  our  Hotel — 4  killed  8  wounded. 

I4th.  Went  out  early  accompanied  by  Mr.  Rutledge ; 
went  to  see  a  friend  of  his,  Don  Diego  Elias,  who  had  a  little 
Oriental  china  and  a  number  of  bad  pictures.  Then  went 
to  Sanz.  Looked  again  at  a  very  good  cabinet  he  has,  but 
we  thought  the  price  (£35)  too  much,  and  came  away  without 
buying  anything.  Went  again  to  the  beautiful  Mosque  ; 
looked  once  more  at  the  Mosaics,  which  are  the  finest  I  ever 
saw,  and  passed  through  the  Court  of  Oranges.  Left  Cordova 
soon  after  two  in  the  afternoon  ;  very  hot ;  travelled  all  night ; 
at  6  A.M.  were  at  Madrid. 

Good  Friday,  I5th.  Service  in  the  house.  General  Sir 
Fenwick  Williams  of  Kars  staying  at  the  Legation.  [At  that 
time  Governor  of  Gibraltar.]  Mr.  Cole  [afterwards  Sir  Henry] 
of  the  S.  Kensington,  his  son,  and  Mr.  Campbell,  of  Minton's 

105 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1870 

works,  were  at  Madrid,  and  constantly  with  us  during  the  re- 
mainder of  our  stay.  Walked  out  in  the  afternoon  to  see  a 
Church  where  we  were  told  there  were  some  fine  tapestries  dis- 
played ;  we  found  they  were  only  paintings  on  cloth,  and  very 
bad.  Went  on  to  call  on  Mme.  Riafio.  No  carriage  allowed  in 
th  es  treets  from  Thursday  morning  of  this  week  to  midday  on 
Saturday.  Went  on  the  afternoon  of  Saturday  with  Henry, 
Mr.  Cole,  etc.,  to  search  some  of  the  shops.  The  Hunts 
dined,  and  the  Rianos  came  in  the  evening.  Very  pleasant 
music,  and  Mrs.  Hunt  and  Senor  Riafio  showed  us  a  Spanish 
dance. 

Easter  Sunday,  I7th.  Service  at  the  Legation  and  Sacra- 
ment. In  the  afternoon  a  concert  of  fine  music  at  the  Circus. 
At  night  a  party  at  Countess  Montijo's,  where  two  little 
dramas  were  acted  by  some  of  her  friends.  [The  mother  of 
the  ex- Empress  of  the  French,  who  entertained  a  great 
deal  in  Madrid  at  this  time.]  The  hostess  is  nearly  blind, 
but  manages  to  find  out  every  one  of  her  guests  and  do 
civilities  to  them.  She  talked  to  me  for  a  few  minutes. 
The  house  is  furnished  in  bad  French  taste.  A  picture  of 
the  Empress  Eugenie  when  young  interested  me. 

i8th.  We  went  to  explore  the  shops  in  the  morning.  In 
the  afternoon  we  went  to  the  Bull-fight.  I  sat  to  see  three  Bulls 
killed  and  some  six  or  seven  horses  disembowelled,  and  a  man 
carried  off  for  dead !  I  had  made  up  my  mind  to  see  the 
worst,  and  did  so  ;  but  a  more  brutal,  disgusting  exhibition 
cannot  be  imagined,  and  it  must  have  a  demoralising  effect 
upon  the  spectators.  The  excitement  and  applause,  or  dis- 
pleasure they  evinced  were  very  revolting.  We  were  in 
Mme.  Bauer's  Box.  Enid  went,  but  left  the  ring  exactly  at 
the  moment  that  the  Bull  entered  it.  She  wanted  to  see  the 
coup  d'ceil,  which  was  certainly  magnificent.  Enid  had  a 
large  reception  in  the  evening,  which  was  very  pleasant. 

1 06 


1870  NOTES  CERAMIC 

Topete  was  among  the  visitors.  [This  was  the  important 
Spanish  Admiral  and  Minister,  who,  with  General  Prim,  made 
the  revolution  of  1569  and  became  Regent.] 

iQth.  A  great  hunt  among  the  shops,  for  the  last  time, 
as  we  then  thought,  but  it  did  not  prove  so.  Went  to  the 
Archaeological  Museum  again.  Got  from  the  station  our 
Seville  Box,  which  we  had  sent  off  from  Cordova  on  the  8th. 
C.S.  and  I  accompanied  Henry  Layard,  Sir  F.  Williams, 
Mr.  Cole,  his  son  and  Mr.  Campbell  to  Toledo,  where  we 
spent  4  or  5  delightful  hours.  Went  to  the  Cathedral 
first ;  then  to  the  various  Churches,  and  to  the  two  Syna- 
gogues ;  lastly,  to  the  Grand  Hall.  Just  as  we  were  coming 
away  we  found  to  our  disgust  that  there  were  two  or  three 
very  good  shops  which  we  might  have  visited  had  we  known 
it  sooner.  Got  back  about  10.  C.S.  had  a  bad  sore  throat, 
and  we  went  to  see  Dr.  Brehm  about  it  on  our  return.  He 
ordered  us  not  to  leave  Madrid  on  the  morrow  as  we 
had  intended  to  do,  so  I  got  another  happy  day  there  with 
Enid,  and  in  the  afternoon  walked  out  a  little  with  C.S., 
and  made  a  treaty  about  some  cabinets  with  Vicente. 
There  is  not  much  for  a  stranger  to  buy ;  for  the 
shops  are  ill  supplied.  But  for  a  resident,  who  is  known  to 
collect,  it  is  a  very  good  place,  as  many  of  the  Grandees  are 
selling  by  degrees,  and  the  dealers  come  and  announce  this 
when  there  is  anything  desirable  to  be  had,  and  make  the 
bargains  between  the  parties.  Henry  Layard  has  acquired 
several  fine  things  already,  and  will  doubtless  add  to  them 
very  shortly.  There  is  a  system  of  communication  now 
between  the  Master  of  the  Hotel  de  Paris  at  Madrid  and  the 
dealers  in  most  of  the  towns,  by  which  he  gets  a  great  many 
of  the  best  articles ;  and  in  the  provincial  towns  this  man, 
Fallula  by  name,  has  branch  hotels  who  all  work  for  him  in 
the  same  direction. 

107 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1870 

22nd.  With  deepest  regret  leave  Madrid.  Stopped  at 
the  Escurial.  My  maid  had  left  her  box  behind,  and  the 
delay  which  ensued  at  the  station  in  trying  to  telegraph  for 
it  rendered  us  late  for  the  omnibus,  and  we  toiled  up  the 
hill  on  foot  in  a  broiling  sun.  I  was  utterly  disgusted  with 
the  sombre,  prison-like  palace  we  had  come  to  see.  The 
rooms  with  the  Goya  tapestries  are  pretty  enough,  but  every- 
thing else  is  displeasing.  I  did  not  admire  the  Church,  but 
was  interested  in  the  tombs.  From  the  top  of  the  church  I 
cast  regretful  looks  towards  Madrid.  At  the  little  garden 
villa  we  saw  some  very  pretty  bits  of  biscuit  Buen  Retiro,  and 
the  walls  of  one  of  the  rooms  are  covered  with  lovely  Buen 
Retiro  plaques  in  imitation  of  Wedgwood,  something  in  the 
style  of  our  plaques  representing  the  Virgin  del  Pillar  of 
Saragosa.  These  were  a  lesson  to  us.  After  a  bad  but 
sufficient  dinner  at  the  station,  we  went  on  to  Burgos,  which 
we  reached  late  at  night. 

23rd.  Visited  the  magnificent  Cathedral,  the  Cartuja, 
the  H6tel  de  Ville  (where  the  bones  of  the  Cid  are 
shown)  and  drove  about  generally.  Found  no  china  in 
the  place,  but  invested  in  a  few  silver  trifles  in  the  shop 
"  Plateria  Venancia  Sta.  Maria ",  Calle  de  la  Paloma  12. 
Our  purchases  amounted  to  a  little  over  £2.  Bad  and 
expensive  Inn  at  Burgos.  Left  it  again  in  the  night,  or 
rather  at  2.  in  the  morning  of 

Sunday,  24th.  Made  an  excellent  journey  to  Bordeaux, 
which  we  reached  at  5  in  the  evening ;  put  up  at  a  small 
hotel  which  we  did  not  much  like.  Great  regret  in  passing 
the  Spanish  frontier. 

25th.  Reconnoitred  Bordeaux.  Delicious  weather  ;  charm- 
ing old  town. 

26th.  Visited  some  of  the  principal  Churches  and  did 
a  good  deal  of  shopping.  Left  Bordeaux  in  the  evening, 

1 08 


BUEN  RETIRO   PORCELAIN    IMITATING   WEDGWOOD.       I.    IS   THE  VIRGIN    DEL   PILLAR   OF   SARAGOSSA 

VITH    KNEELING     FIGURE     ST.    JAMES.       THE     OTHER     TWO     SPECIMENS     ALSO     POSSESS    ALL    THE 

CHARACTERISTICS   OF   WTEDGWOODJS   WORK 

The  Countess  of  Bessborough 's  Collection 


1870  NOTES  CERAMIC 

and   after   travelling  through  a  hot   night,   found  ourselves 

at  Paris  on 

Wednesday  morning,  27th.  Cold  and  wet.  Having 
breakfasted  we  commenced  our  researches,  and  found  a  few 
things  during  our  stay  in  Paris.  The  most  remarkable  were 
four  plaques  of  Buen  Retiro  a  la  Wedgwood,  which  we 
bought  of  Chapuis,  Rue  Dauphin,  for  the  moderate  sum  of 

£2. 

28th.  We  spent  chiefly  at  the  Louvre  and  the  Hotel 
Cluny.  Out  all  day,  and  again  after  table  d'hote.  Took 
our  recent  purchases  to  Fournier's,  who  packed  them  for 
us,  and  left  Paris  by  the  early  train  on  Friday,  laden  with 
spoil.  A  good  passage,  and  reached  Langham  House  in  the 
evening,  after  12  weeks'  absence — and  a  tour  of  very  great 
interest  and  enjoyment. 


109 


NOTES  CERAMIC 

SEPTEMBER  5  TO  24,  1870 

AT  HOME 

TATTON  :  RICCARTON  :  PITFOUR  :  ELGIN  :  HOPETOUN 

5th.  Visited  the  Fine  Art  Exhibition  at  Derby.  Many 
objects  of  interest,  but  we  thought  better  specimens  of  Derby 
manufacture  might  have  been  found  than  were  shown  there. 
Sir  H.  Crewe  exhibited  some  Bristol  under  the  title  of 
Dresden,  which  we  wished  to  try  to  get,  but  find  it  vain. 
Some  of  the  old  lace  shown  from  Chatsworth  very  fine. 
Made  acquaintance  with  the  secretary  Mr.  Bemrose,  who 
went  over  the  Museum  with  us  for  a  second  time,  and  in  the 
evening  took  us  to  his  house,  where  we  saw  a  book  he  is 
compiling  on  the  history  of  Derby  china.  Slept  at  Derby. 
[The  late  Mr.  William  Bemrose,  author  of  "  Life  of  Joseph 
Wright  of  Derby,"  and  a  work  on  "  Bow,  Chelsea,  and 
Derby  Porcelain."  His  collection  was  sold  in  1909  for  a 
large  sum.] 

6th.     Went  on  to  Tatton,  where  we  stayed  till 

loth.  The  only  thing  there  of  artistic  interest  to  us 
(except  curious  books  in  the  Library)  was  a  very  fine 
Chelsea  vase,  scroll  handles,  maroon  ground,  painted  in 
subjects,  23  inches  high,  quite  intact.  Went  on  towards 
Edinburgh.  Met  the  Gibson  Craigs,  who  took  us  to  their 
place,  Riccarton,  where  we  spent  the  Sunday. 

I2th.  Proceeded  to  Aboyne.  When  in  the  train  saw 
poor  Lewis  Gordon's  death  in  the  Captain,  which 

no 


1870  NOTES  CERAMIC 

shortened  and  darkened  our  visit.  We  remained  at  Aboyne 
till  the  i6th  and  then  went  to  the  Ferguson's  at  Pitfour.  On 
our  way  through  Aberdeen  we  scoured  the  town  but  found 
nothing.  Left  Pitfour  Monday,  igth.  Slept  at  Elgin  and 
visited  the  fine  ruins  of  the  Cathedral  before  going  on  to 
Dunkeld  next  morning. 

24th.  At  a  little  jeweller's  called  Christie,  bought  a 
little  box  for  counters  with  head  of  George  III.  for  I/-,  and 
two  glass  pictures  for  4/-.  Went  on  to  Linlithgow.  At  the 
Castle  saw  some  curious  old  encaustic  tiles,  the  pattern  on 
which  (J.M.  united  by  a  knot)  would  appear  to  show  that 
they  were  made  for  James  and  Mary  of  Guise ;  he  it  was 
whobuilt  the  latest  side  of  the  Palace,  forming  the  triangle. 
Went  on  to  Hopetoun  where  we  stayed  till  the  loth  of 
October. 


in 


NOTES  CERAMIC 

APRIL  TO  JUNE  1871 

SECOND  JOURNEY  TO  SPAIN 

BORDEAUX  :  MADRID  :  CORDOVA  :  SEVILLE  :  CADIZ  :  GIB- 
RALTAR :  TANGIERS  :  ARANJUEZ  :  AVILA  :  VALLADOLID 

nth.  Left  London  at  7.40.  from  Charing  Cross. 
Steamer  to  Calais.  Quick  passage  and  very  calm  and  bright, 
but  cold.  On  landing  thought  the  town  looked  sad,  and 
everything  chastened  by  recent  troubles ;  found  a  train  just 
starting  for  Amiens.  Paris  being  impassable  we  got  out  at 
Amiens,  which  we  found  occupied  by  Prussians,  and  after  a 
while  took  a  slow  train  to  Rouen,  which  we  reached  in  the 
course  of  the  evening.  At  Rouen  the  station  was  filled  by 
Prussian  troops  in  their  bright  helmets.  We  had  to  cross 
from  one  station  to  another.  It  was  pouring  with  rain. 
Luckily  we  got  a  little  carriage  at  Rouen ;  again  there  were 
delays,  but  we  got  off  soon  after  midnight,  and  in  two  hours 
reached  Mantes,  where  we  stayed  at  the  buffet  till  daylight. 

I2th.  A  lovely  morning.  Soon  after  5  A.M.  the  train 
appeared,  to  carry  us  on,  and  we  proceeded  without  change 
to  TAigle.  Rich  beautiful  country  apparently  in  full  cul- 
tivation, and  none  the  worse  for  the  war.  By  the  next 
train  we  reached  Le  Mans  in  the  afternoon.  This  was 
evidently  a  military  centre,  for  here  were  French  troops,  just 
returned  from  German  and  Swiss  imprisonment,  being  sent 
off  to  Versailles ;  others  despatched  to  Toulouse,  etc.  The 
various  cries  of  one  of  these  military  convoys  were  remarkable. 
Some  shouted  "  Vive  la  R^publique !  "  others  "  Vive  Paris !  " 

112 


i87i  NOTES  CERAMIC 

and  some  even  "Vive  la  Commune!"  All  looked  well  and 
hearty  after  their  captivity,  and  seemed  in  excellent  spirits. 
The  railway  bridge  at  Le  Mans  had  been  blown  up,  so  we 
went  over  a  sort  of  temporary  contrivance — very  slowly — at 
which  they  were  still  at  work.  We  were  an  hour  late  in 
leaving  Le  Mans  but  got  to  Tours  at  10.  Found  that  a 
number  of  French  troops  had  been  moved  in  the  same  train. 
Waited  many  hours  at  Tours  for  the  train  which  was  to  take 
us  on.  At  last  we  started  about  3,  and  reached  Bordeaux 
soon  after  10. 

I3th.  Lovely  Spring  morning.  Lilac  and  clematis  in 
flower ;  other  foliage  nearly  full.  Put  up  (as  last  time)  at 
the  Hotel  de  Londres.  After  breakfast  took  a  little  carriage 
and  went  to  all  the  old  shops  we  knew  of.  Found  all  much 
changed  since  last  year  :  nothing  but  very  bad  faience.  But 
at  Duelo's  we  bought  a  small  Medallion  plaque  in  white 
biscuit  of  Franklin  which  may  be  Sevres  or  Bristol ;  price  8/~. 
Returned  early  to  our  Hotel.  Wrote  letters,  dined,  and  now 
to  bed,  to  be  ready  for  a  start  at  cockcrow  to-morrow. 

I4th.  Left  Bordeaux  at  8  A.M.  Lovely  morning.  After 
the  dull  pine  forests  we  came  to  beautiful  scenery  which 
we  enjoyed  till  dusk.  Got  food  at  Miranda.  Good  view  of 
the  Escurial.  At  8  A.M.  were  at  the  Madrid  Station. 

I5th.  Enid  well.  The  house  wonderfully  improved. 
We  have  a  little  suite  of  apartments  on  a  floor  above  that 
which  we  occupied  last  year ;  very  nice.  Drove  with  Enid 
after  luncheon.  Mr.  Ffrench  at  dinner. 

iQth.  Church  in  the  Embassy;  then,  immediately  after 
luncheon  we  went  to  the  Cirque  for  a  concert.  The  per- 
formance was  as  good  as  last  year,  but  except  Mendelssohn's 
Midsummer  Night's  Dream,  and  one  piece  by  Haydn,  I 
did  not  like  the  selection  so  well.  The  King  and  Queen 
were  present,  and  had  Monasterio  up  into  their  Box  to 

i  113  H 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1871 

compliment  him  in  his  skill  in  directing.  Messrs.  Ashburn- 
ham,  Seymour,  Goschen  dined,  as  also  Mrs.  Warburton, 
whom  we  had  met  at  Tatton  and  introduced  to  Enid.  Mme. 
de  Martino  came  in  the  evening.  Walked  to  Palmeroli's.  We 
liked  his  pictures  very  much,  and  had  some  idea  of  his  doing  a 
painting  of  me.  Went  on  to  Prendina's.  Bought  at  Vicente's, 
IO  Moncloa  plates  with  Roman  views  (12/6)  and  two  odd-look- 
ing pieces  of  D.V  .  china  (2/9)  price  £z.  I.  8.  This  place  is 
looking  very  charming,  for  the  weather  is  temperate,  and  the 
sky  most  brilliant.  The  view  from  our  windows  at  half-past 
five  this  morning,  most  lovely.  The  Rianos  and  Kanitzes 
(he  is  Prussian  Minister)  and  some  men  dined  here.  There 
was  a  small  reception  in  the  evening.  Went  with  Henry 
Layard  to  see  an  artist's  collection,  Senor  Gato  de  Lema. 
He  has  some  few  fine  things  and  many  very  interesting 
ones.  We  also  went  to  the  house  of  another  artist,  Senor 
Braccio,  where  Henry  found  a  good  Chelsea- Derby  group, 
matching  one  he  already  has.  This  with  three  others  he 
was  fortunate  enough  to  find  on  very  reasonable  terms  at 
Madrid  some  short  time  ago. 

igth.  Walked  out  early ;  to  Prendina's  and  Braccio's 
again,  where  we  found  a  pair  of  figures  exact  facsimiles  of 
our  Pedlar  and  his  wife,  which  we  bought  for  two  guineas. 
This  is  cheap,  though  they  are  rather  imperfect  as  to  the  hands 
and  will  cost £2. 10.  o.  to  restore.  In  the  afternoon  when  driving 
with  Enid  we  met  in  Jesusa's  shop  a  great  collector  of  Buen 
Retiro,  Don  Juan  Conde  de  Valencia,  who  engaged  us  to  come 
and  see  his  things.  Found  a  little  piece  of  Castleford  Pottery, 
and  a  white  sucrier  and  cover  (St.  Cloud?)  at  Jesusa's. 

20th.  The  principal  event  of  Thursday  the  20th  was 
a  dinner  at  the  Duke  de  la  Torre's,  where  the  party  consisted 
of  12,  all  men  except  the  Duchess,  Enid  and  myself.  They 
took  us  round  the  fine  suites  of  apartments  after  dinner,  and 

114 


i87i  NOTES  CERAMIC 

then  a  reception  commenced.  A  man  played  some  pretty 
pieces  of  music  on  a  piano  and  then  a  few  people  stood  up 
and  danced  quadrilles  on  the  thickest  of  thick  carpets,  in  a 
very  promiscuous  manner,  to  music  which  did  not  pretend  to 
be  dance  music.  The  Duchess  looked  very  handsome,  and, 
as  usual,  was  very  well  dressed. 

2ist.  Went  to  visit  Conde  de  Valencia ;  he  has  some 
of  the  finest  things  I  ever  saw.  Magnificent  groups  of  Buen 
Retiro,  and  a  few  other  pretty  pieces,  but  the  Buen  Retiro 
unrivalled.  The  Rianos  have  two  very  fine  Buen  Retiro 
vases,  which  Mr.  Gayangos  got  in  a  very  romantic  way.  He 
was  returning  from  England  in  the  winter  and  met  with  ship- 
wreck at  Santander.  This  caused  him  to  be  delayed  at  that 
town,  and  during  his  stay  there  he  was  fortunate  enough  to 
meet  with  the  vases.  Nevertheless  his  adventure  did  not 
end  there.  The  railway  by  which  he  went  on  to  Madrid 
was  snowed  up  in  part  and  he  found  himself  obliged  to  leave 
his  carriage  and  proceed  for  some  distance  along  the  line  on 
foot,  which  he  did,  carrying  one  of  the  precious  vases  under 
each  arm.  He  was  at  great  risk,  scrambling,  as  he  did, 
among  rails  and  sleepers,  but  he  fortunately  landed  them  in 
safety  at  his  house.  They  are  very  fine,  with  subjects  from 
Don  Quixote  en  camaieu.  After  our  visit  to  Conde  de 
Valencia  we  walked  to  the  Buen  Retiro  Gardens.  The 
King  was  going  over  the  Museum  there  and  we  saw  him 
drive  away.  Then  we  went  up  to  the  part  near  the  Lake. 
The  view  to  the  mountains  and  over  the  town  quite  lovely. 

22nd.  Went  to  see  some  Dresden  China  and  Mar- 
seilles Ware  at  a  private  house,  whither  we  were  taken  by 
Conde  de  Valencia.  Prices  absurd.  To-day  I  had  a  first 
sitting,  for  my  picture,  to  Palmeroli.  He  has  painted  Enid  and 
Adeline  extremely  well.  [This  excellent  picture,  now  in  Lord 
Wimborne's  room  at  Canford,  is  reproduced  here.] 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1871 
24th.  Another  sitting.  Dined  to-night  at  the  Bauers'. 
Met  M.  and  Mme.  Bernar,  Ellin  and  others.  A  great 
pleasure  to  see  their  fine  tapestries  again.  They  have  also 
some  beautiful  pieces  of  Buen  Retire  and  a  fine  head  of  the 
Conde  d'Aranda,  life  size,  in  Alcora  china,  besides  their 
matchless  statuette  (or  Paso)  by  Alonzo  Cano.  Henry  has 
been  fortunate  enough  in  meeting  with  a  work  of  art  of  the 
same  kind. 

25th.  I  went  again  to  sit  for  a  short  time,  but  not  feel- 
ing well  came  away  presently.  Went  out  to  the  Banker's 
for  money.  Dined  early,  and  by  9  were  at  the  station  for 
Andalusia.  Henry  and  Enid  going  also.  Storm  of  thunder 
and  lightning.  We  made  Enid  a  bed  in  the  carriage  and  she 
slept  pretty  well.  I  can  always  sleep  in  travelling.  A  bridge 
had  been  broken  down  near  Vilches  and  was  still  in  a  state  of 
semi-repair.  The  engine  could  not  go  over  it,  and  our 
carriages  were  pulled  over  one  by  one.  This  made  us  an  hour 
late  arriving  at  Cordova,  about  half-past  two  o'clock.  Mr. 
Rutledge  met  us  at  the  station.  While  Enid  laid  down  and 
C.S.  dressed  (having  had  to  follow  his  box  and  get  it  from  the 
station)  Henry  and  I  went  to  the  Mosque.  They  have  found 
some  good  wall  decoration  since  we  were  there  last  year.  Sat 
a  while  in  the  Patio.  The  orange  blossoms,  palms,  and 
cypresses  charming,  and  the  groups  around  the  fountain,  as 
usual,  most  picturesque.  Table  d'hote.  Sickles,  the  American 
Minister,  with  his  old  mother  and  family  were  there,  and  came 
and  talked  in  the  evening. 

27th.  After  breakfast  went  again  to  the  Mosque, 
where  Mr.  Rutledge  met  us,  and  introduced  us  to  one  of  the 
Canons,  Raphael  Sierra,  who  showed  us  the  treasure.  There 
are  some  most  magnificent  works  of  Art  among  the  Plate. 
The  Custodia  is  remarkably  fine  ;  by  the  older  d'Arfe.  After 
this  called  in  at  some  of  the  Platerias  and  got  one  or  two 

116 


1871  NOTES  CERAMIC 

pieces  of  silver,  a  fan,  etc.  We  had  some  luncheon  after  12, 
and  hurried  to  the  railway  station  thinking  we  were  to  go  on 
to  Seville  soon  after  I.  But  the  train  had  been  delayed  at 
Vilches,  and  we  found  it  would  not  start  for  three  hours,  so 
C.S.,  Henry  and  I  went  back  into  the  town.  Visited  M. 
Sanz.  He  has  still  got  the  cabinet  we  so  admired  last  year, 
and  we  fell  a  victim  to  it.  But  his  price  now  is  £30.  Mr. 
Rutledge  will  see  about  its  being  sent  off  to  us.  Looked  at  a 
Buhl  table  which  Arthur  recommended  for  Ivor.  He  asks  no 
guineas.  I  am  no  judge  of  the  value,  but  on  returning  to  the 
station,  I  wrote  Ivor  a  long  description  of  it.  We  did  not  get 
off  from  Cordova  till  near  5.  A  most  lovely  journey ;  very 
hot,  but  charming.  Of  course  it  was  dark  when  we  got  to 
Seville,  where  rooms  were  taken  for  us  at  the  Fonda  Madrid. 

28th.  After  breakfast  went  to  the  Alcazar.  In  the 
afternoon  to  see  our  old  friend  Robles,  and  looked  into  some 
other  shops.  After  dinner  C.S.  and  I  walked  out  and  called 
at  the  Hotel  de  Londres,  where  we  were  so  comfortable  last 
year.  It  was  by  mistake  that  we  were  not  there  now.  The 
old  landlord  very  glad  to  see  us  again.  Gave  us  Chartreuse, 
etc.  The  weather  now  at  Seville  is  very  hot  indeed,  and  our 
rooms  were  stuffy  and  full  of  mosquitoes,  and  worse  insects. 

2Qth.  A  great  hunt  among  the  old  shops,  but,  gene- 
rally, they  are  worse  supplied  than  last  year.  Most  of  the 
things  were  sold  at  the  fair,  which  is  just  over.  Henry  went 
with  us  in  the  afternoon  to  Robles'.  Found  there  a  fine  old 
eagle  forming  a  reading  desk;  carved  (and  gilt)  in  wood,  of 
about  Charles  V.  period.  We  bought  it  for  Ivor  at  the  ridi- 
culous price  of  two  guineas  !  Got  one  or  two  interesting  bits 
of  old  English  Ware  from  Robles  ;  and  bought  a  very 
fine  Oriental  vase,  ground,  black  and  green,  from  an  amateur 
friend  of  Bueno's  for  £8.  8.  o. 

30th.     Museo    in    the   afternoon   with   Enid  and    Henry 

117 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1871 
Layard.  The  Director  came  there  to  meet  them.  We  then 
went  to  the  Chapel  of  the  University  to  see  the  Roelas  and 
the  beautiful  Genoese  monuments.  We  went  after  this  to  call 
on  an  old  French  lady  who  was  said  to  possess  some  china  ; 
but  she  had  none.  She  is  a  teacher,  and  gave  us  a  curious 
account  of  some  things  which  had  come  within  her  ken  since 
she  had  lived  here  :  how  she  had  been  robbed  and  so  forth. 
In  the  evening  after  dinner,  Sefior  Andrade,  who  was  long  an 
Attache"  in  England  and  speaks  English  perfectly,  took  us  out 
in  his  carriage  to  drive  in  the  Delicias,  which  was  most 
enjoyable.  It  was  hot  and  there  was  not  a  breath  of  air,  but 
a  fine  moon  with  a  glory  round  it. 

MAY  1871 

May  I.  Cathedral.  Lonja.  Ayuntamiento.  And  then 
through  the  Plateria,  where  we  got  a  little  reliquaire,  12/6, 
and  an  old  Caravaca  cross  (silver),  8/4.  Also  called  at 
Mariano  Fernandez's.  We  bought  several  things  during  our 
stay  both  of  him  and  of  Bianchi.  Went  in  the  afternoon  to 
Devera's  shop,  33  Amor  de  Dios.  Everything  very  dear, 
and  the  stock  very  much  the  same  as  we  saw  there  last  year. 
Here  met  Henry,  the  Consul,  and  others,  and  went  with 
them  to  the  Caridad.  I  should  like  to  have  the  two  little 
Murillos,  Infant  Saviour  and  St.  John. 

2nd.  Long  morning  of  packing.  The  Pickmans,  who 
have  been  most  kind  and  attentive,  sent  their  own  packer  to 
help  us,  and  we  filled  a  box  of  china,  for  England,  and  got 
Ivor's  eagle  packed  up  also.  In  the  afternoon  looked  in  at 
Robles'  and  elsewhere.  After  dinner  came  two  carriages 
from  Mr.  Pickman  to  take  us  to  the  Cartuja.  Williams  (the 
Consul)  with  his  wife  and  daughter  accompanied  us.  We 
were  first  of  all  shown  the  tiles  which  I  had  admired  last 


i87i  NOTES  CERAMIC 

year,  and  we  have  now  settled  to  have  a  table-top  of  them. 
Then  we  went  through  the  other  showrooms  and  into 
Richard  Pickman's  private  collection,  and,  lastly,  we  were 
conducted  through  the  gardens  (men  carrying  lighted  candles 
in  procession  to  show  us  the  way)  to  the  summer  house, 
where  a  pretty  little  supper  of  fruit  and  cakes  and  wine  was 
set  out  for  us,  and  where  we  found  Mrs.  Pickman's  four 
daughters  awaiting  us.  After  doing  justice  to  the  entertain- 
ment, we  returned  in  the  Pickmans'  carriages  to  Seville. 

3rd.  Our  last  morning.  We  made  the  best  of  it. 
Called  to  see  Mr.  Black,  our  Missionary  friend  of  last  Spring. 
I  fear  he  is  not  so  hopeful  about  the  Protestant  movement  as 
he  was  then.  Went  on  to  the  Sta.  Paula  to  take  another  look 
at  the  Azulejos.  Drove  across  to  Triana,  where  we  went 
into  the  pottery  shops  but  saw  nothing  so  good  as  the  pieces 
they  send  into  Seville  for  sale,  except  a  plaque  with  a  repre- 
sentation, en  camaieu,  of  Murillo's  Triana  Saints,  Justina 
and  Rufina.  I  did  not  buy  it  at  the  time,  but  must  write 
back  for  it ;  though  modern  it  is  so  characteristic.  Fine  view 
of  the  Cathedral  from  the  river  side.  We  had  made  all  our 
arrangements  to  leave  Seville  this  evening,  but  Mr.  Reade, 
the  Cadiz  Consul,  happened  to  call  in  this  morning  and  he 
got  some  erroneous  information  about  the  time  of  starting 
which  misled  us.  The  consequence  was,  that  we  only 
reached  the  station  in  time  to  see  the  train  move  off;  so  we 
had  to  go  back  to  our  hotel  to  sleep. 

4th.  Next  morning,  at  six,  we  were  at  the  station 
again.  This  time  we  had  taken  the  precaution  of  arriving 
an  hour  before  we  were  told  to  be  there,  and  it  was  fortunate 
for  us  that  we  did  so,  as  the  train  started  \  before  7  instead 
J  past  as  we  had  been  instructed.  It  was  a  lovely  fresh 
morning.  I  shall  never  forget  the  view  of  the  Cathedral 
from  the  open  space  in  front  of  the  station,  the  gardens 

119 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1871 

grouping  in  front  of  it.  Dos  Hemanas  pretty,  Jeres 
interesting.  Reached  Cadiz  at  12.  Fonda  de  Paris.  Mr. 
Reade  came  and  drove  with  us  about  the  town,  which  is  very 
bright  and  pretty,  lovely  colouring.  Went  to  look  at 
Murillo's  last  work  (which  caused  his  death)  and  his  St. 
Jerome,  at  the  Capuchins'.  At  the  silversmith's  found  a  pretty 
necklace  (coral  and  silver-gilt  Spanish  beads)  and  one  or  two 
other  things.  In  one  of  the  old  shops  was  a  fine  Oriental 
vase,  without  a  cover,  about  which  the  Consul  has  promised 
to  write  to  us  again.  He  says  there  are  fine  collections  at 
Jeres,  one  especially,  that  belongs  to  Mr.  Suter,  the  English 
Vice-Consul  there. 

5th.  Joined  the  steamer  before  7,  that  was  to  take 
us  to  Gibraltar.  A  bright  morning,  the  sea  like  glass,  but 
after  about  two  hours,  the  wind  got  up.  The  sky  looked 
dark,  the  sea  looked  angry,  and  it  was  quite  cold.  Still  there 
was  not  the  slightest  motion  of  the  vessel,  and  we  made  a 
quick  passage  to  the  Bay,  on  reaching  which  the  sky  and  sea 
were  all  serene  again.  We  were  at  Algeciras  (Chaucer's 
Algesir)  by  J  past  3,  and  were  transhipped  by  another  little 
steamer  to  Gibraltar,  where  Sir  Fenwick  WilHams's  people 
met  us,  and  brought  us  to  the  Government  House.  A  warm 
reception.  I  laid  down,  feeling  tired,  till  dinner.  Only  his 
aide-de-camp,  Captain  de  Winton  and  wife,  and  Sir  R. 
Walpole  at  dinner. 

6th.  Quiet  morning,  for  I  did  not  feel  quite  well  and 
lay  down.  After  luncheon  went  up  to  the  Race  Course,  which 
was  an  animated  scene,  notwithstanding  that  the  Cemetery 
lies  in  the  middle  of  it.  Two  little  boys  called  Llarios  ran  a 
race  on  ponies,  etc.  Came  back  to  write  letters,  and  later  in 
the  afternoon  went  back  to  the  Race  Course,  whence  Mrs. 
de  Winton  took  us  a  drive  to  the  Governor's  Cottage  at  the 
other  side  of  the  Rock.  Enchanted  with  the  views  both  near 

120 


i87i  NOTES  CERAMIC 

and  distant,  the  opposite  African  Coast  and  its  "  Ape's  Hill " 
standing  out  well.  Flowers  everywhere  in  profusion.  Such 
scarlet  geraniums !  Col.  and  Mrs.  Street  and  some  other 
people  came  to  dinner. 

7th.  Service  at  the  Chapel  at  II.  for  the  soldiers. 
Late  in  the  afternoon  Capt.  de  Winton  drove  us  in  a  pony 
carriage  to  the  Cottage  ;  we  walked  a  little  farther  on.  It 
was  a  pleasant  afternoon  and  we  enjoyed  the  drive  and  walk. 
C.S.  went  at  7.  to  service  at  the  Cathedral.  Col.  and  Mrs. 
Street,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Dempster,  Mr.  Kensal  and  some  other 
people  dined. 

8th.  We  were  to  have  gone  to  see  the  galleries,  and 
Col.  Jones  came  at  luncheon  time  to  take  us  there,  but  it 
came  on  to  rain,  so  we  gave  it  up.  C.S.  went  over  a  P.  &  O. 
boat  which  had  just  come  in.  Looked  into  some  so-called 
curiosity  shops  where  there  was  nothing  worth  a  glance. 
Capt.  and  Mrs.  Phillimore  (she  was  a  Fortescue),  the  Streets, 
Capt.  and  Mrs.  Orr,  Col.  McLeod  and  his  wife  and  others 
dined. 

9th.  We  got  up  early,  having  formed  a  party  with 
Capt.  and  Mrs.  de  Winton,  and  Mr.  Delancy  to  go  over  to 
Tangiers.  We  embarked  in  the  Spahi  (one  of  the  Messageries 
Impe'riales)  soon  after  8,  but  did  not  set  off  till  near  10.  It 
was  a  fine  day.  There  was  little  wind  and  no  sea,  but  the 
vessel  rolled  very  disagreeably.  However,  we  had  a  very 
good  passage,  and  I  was  quite  well.  Reached  Tangiers  soon 
after  2,  and  I  was  quite  delighted,  all  my  anticipations  of 
an  Oriental  town  being  completely  realised.  We  went  off 
to  the  shore  in  boats,  and  had  to  be  carried  through  the 
heavy  water  in  chairs.  Put  up  at  the  Victoria  Hotel,  which 
is  extremely  clean  and  comfortable,  a  contrast  to  all  I  have 
been  in  since  I  left  England.  It  is  kept  by  a  black  man 
called  Martin.  The  de  Wintons  know  the  English  Resident, 

121 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1871 
Sir  John  Drummond  Hay,  and  having  been  up  to  his  house 
to  tell  him  that  we  were  come,  took  us  also  to  see  him  and 
Lady  Hay  as  soon  as  we  had  refreshed  ourselves  by  a  capital 
luncheon,  to  which  the  only  drawback  was  a  regular  plague 
of  flies,  which  the  Jewish  waiter  tried  to  disperse  with  a  fly- 
whisk,  but  in  vain.  Sir  John  took  us  a  long  walk  all  about  and 
around  the  City.  The  first  Oriental  City  I  was  ever  in.  We 
went  through  the  street  with  the  shops,  the  Market,  a 
Caravanserai.  Went  to  see  the  Belgian  Minister's  house, 
which  was  fitted  up  prettily  enough  in  the  Moorish  style.  Note 
the  swing  of  13  laden  camels  coming  through  the  gate  ;  the 
Cemetery  near,  with  groups  of  females  mourning  at  the  tombs. 
The  domed  burial-place  of  the  presiding  Saint  of  the  place, 
which  is  also  a  refuge  for  criminals,  fleeing  from  justice.  The 
Jewish  women  on  the  flat  roofs  ;  the  shrouded  figures  of  the 
Mussulman  females  ;  the  picturesque  costumes  and  all  the 
other  characteristics  of  Oriental  life.  Sir  John  took  us  to 
call  on  the  native  Governor,  Seid  Abbas  Emkishet,  a  hand- 
some old  man,  who  received  us  courteously,  and  took  us 
ladies  through  the  female  portion  of  his  establishment.  We 
did  not  see  any  of  the  women  ;  they  had  evidently  hidden 
away  just  as  we  approached.  One  Patio  I  admired  very 
much,  ornamented  with  fine  columns,  and  with  divans  in  the 
recesses  opening  on  to  the  arched  colonnade  surrounding  it. 
After  leaving  the  Governor  we  sat  some  time  outside  his 
Castle  Gate  enjoying  the  picturesque,  and  to  me,  novel  land- 
scape. Dined  with  the  Hays. 

10th.     Left  Tangiers  and  returned  to  Gibraltar. 

I2th.  Went  to  see  the  Galleries  ;  St.  George's  Hall,  etc. 
I  rode  a  pony.  C.S.  walked  with  Capt.  de  Winton.  After 
luncheon  went  off  in  the  Governor's  boat  to  join  the  steamer 
by  which  we  were  to  go  to  Malaga.  We  were  on  board 
three  hours  before  it  started.  The  evening  lovely,  but  after 

122 


i87i  NOTES  CERAMIC 

we  got  well  away  from  land  we  had  much    lightning   and 

torrents  of  rain.     Very  smooth  passage. 

Saturday,  I3th.  Landed  at  Malaga  about  5.  Some  rain. 
Mr.  Dunn  (the  Consul's  locum  tenens,  in  his  absence)  came 
to  see  me.  I  went  out  with  him.  C.S.  had  a  headache  and 
laid  down.  Visited  all  the  Platerias,  found  the  silver  mount- 
ings for  a  frame,  which,  as  well  as  a  small  cross,  we  ultimately 
bought.  Mr.  Dunn  took  me  to  see  a  gentleman  with  a  very 
pretty  house,  and  a  nice  little  collection.  His  name  was  Mr. 
Crooke,  and  on  conversation  I  was  surprised  to  find  that  he  was 
brother  to  Sefior  Valencia  and  Mrs.  Comyn  at  Madrid. 

7th.  Up  early  ;  off  by  7,  for  Cordova,  which  we  reached 
soon  after  I.  The  scenery,  especially  during  the  first  part 
of  the  way,  most  beautiful.  Agreeable  Malaga  merchant  in 
the  carriage  with  us,  speaking  English  perfectly.  My  heart 
sank  when  we  passed  Bobadilla,  the  junction  for  Granada, 
not  to  be  visited  this  year.  Saw  Mr.  Rutledge  at  the 
station.  In  the  afternoon  he  took  us  a  charming  drive  up 
the  hill  opposite  Cordova  and  overlooking  it.  Went  into  a 
garden  belonging  to  a  friend  of  his.  Mr.  Cardwell  (whom  we 
had  met  at  Gibraltar)  was  at  the  table  d'hote.  Mathias  Sanz 
came  in  the  evening.  The  cabinet  we  bought  of  him  is 
sent  off. 

I5th.  Went  with  C.S.  and  Mr.  Cardwell  to  all  the 
Platerias  ;  found  nothing.  At  Sanz's  found  a  Cinquecento 
jewel.  Enamel.  Child  Christ,  surrounded  with  a  crown  of 
thorns,  and  a  Magdalen  cut  in  topaz ;  all  the  gold  work 
enriched  with  enamel.  He  let  me  take  it  away  to  Madrid 
on  approval.  Left  Cordova  in  the  afternoon  ;  travelled  all 
night. 

i6th.  Stopped  at  Aranjuez ;  rather  a  grey  morning. 
Drove  by  the  gardens.  Saw  the  Labrador,  a  paltry  little 
place  with  only  Empire  furniture.  Went  over  the  Palace, 

123 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1871 
which  is  also  fitted  up  in  vile  Empire  taste.  The  Buen 
Retire  Room  is  very  fine,  superior,  I  think,  to  that  in  the 
Palace  at  Madrid.  The  Aranjuez  were  awfully  dear  and  im- 
posing. Went  on  at  II.  to  Toledo.  Put  up  at  a  Casa  de 
Huespedes,  Senoras  Figueroa,  16  Calle  de  Sta.  Isabella.  A 
jeweller  with  the  Christian  name  of  Clovio  has  taste,  and, 
sometimes,  good  things. 

I7th.  Spent  most  of  the  morning  in  the  Cathedral. 
Then  went  to  the  Hospital  (Sta.  Crux).  To  the  Palace. 
To  the  two  transformed  Synagogues ;  the  Church  and 
Cloisters  of  Los  Reyos  Catolicos,  etc.  There  was  a  great 
excursion,  partly  of  natives  of  Lisbon,  looking  through  Toledo 
to-day,  which  helped  to  people  and  light  the,  now,  much 
neglected  streets.  Left  Toledo  about  J  past  5.  On  reach- 
ing the  Legation  (Madrid)  found  a  party,  the  Martinos, 
Rianos,  etc.,  dining  there. 

l8th.  Resumed  my  sittings  to  Palmeroli,  which  were 
now  repeated  every  day  until  I  left  Madrid.  Major  Holland, 
who  had  come  to  present  a  book  from  our  Government  to 
the  King,  and  Mr.  Twistleton  dined.  [The  Hon.  Edward 
Twistleton,  author  of  The  Tongue  not  Essential  to  Speech.~\ 
Long  and  interesting  talk  on  the  proofs  identifying  Sir  Philip 
Francis  with  Junius. 

igth.  Mr.  Twistleton  dined  again.  Afterwards  we  all 
went  to  the  Opera  at  the  Alhambra  Theatre,  where  a  Spanish 
piece  was  performed  in  which  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Hunt  sustained 
the  principal  parts.  Both  sang  well.  He  is  a  very  good 
actor.  The  piece  was  "  Don  Fernando  of  Emplazado  ",  the 
first  work  of  a  Spaniard,  D.  Valentin  Zubiaurre ;  rather 
commonplace,  but  better  in  the  3rd  act. 

20th.  Dinner  of  English  people  to  celebrate  our  Queen's 
birthday. 

2lst.     Church.     Short   sitting  to  Palmeroli  in  the  after- 

124 


PORTRAIT   OF   LADY   CHARLOTTE   SCHREIBER   PAINTED   BY    PALMEROLI    AT   MADRID. 
IT    NOW    HANGS    IN    LORD   WIMBORNE'S   WRITING-ROOM   AT   CANFORD   MANOR 


1871  NOTES  CERAMIC 

noon.     Then  drove.     The  Hunts,  Mr.  Twistleton  and  others 

dined. 

22nd.  To-day  they  had  one  of  their  pleasantest  dinners 
at  the  Embassy.  Count  Valencia,  Miral  del  Bosch,  Silvela, 
Esperanza,  Stuart  Mackenzie,  Mr.  Twistleton,  Mr.  Ffrench. 

23rd.  Mr.  Bernar  took  us  over  the  Duke  d'Ossuna's 
Library,  Armoury  and  Palace.  The  latter  contains  several 
portraits  (family  ones  chiefly)  which  looked  interesting,  but  is 
otherwise  fitted  up  in  ordinary  modern  taste.  The  view 
driving  down  to  it  very  lovely. 

24th.  After  luncheon  went  with  C.S.  to  call  on  the 
Rianos.  They  took  us  to  a  newly  established  curiosity 
shop,  15  Calle  de  Gorguera,  to  show  us  some  Buen  Retiro 
sceaux. 

25th.  Extremely  rainy  day.  C.S.  and  I  (after  usual 
Palmeroli  sitting)  took  a  cab  with  Giovanni  and  made  a  great 
round  of  the  Prenderias,  and  invested  rather  heavily.  Bought 
the  two  Buen  Retiro  sceaux  at  Lorenzo's,  £20.  Two  cabinets 
and  stands,  the  cabinets  inlaid  with  ivory,  at  Vicente's, 
25  gns.  and  some  smaller  purchases.  Sir  Charles  Murray 
(our  Lisbon  Minister)  and  his  wife  and  the  Rianos  dined. 
Duke  de  Fernan  Nunez,  Kanitz,  etc.,  came  in  the  evening. 

26th.  A  last  sitting  to  Palmeroli,  who  is  supposed  to 
have  succeeded  very  well  with  my  portrait.  After  a  short 
visit  to  the  Prenderias,  both  C.S.  and  I  drove  with  Enid  and 
Henry  to  the  Fuente  Castellana,  etc.  In  the  evening  to  a 
>mall  and  very  dull  diplomatic  party  at  Kanitz's.  Played  at 
"  Questions  and  Answers." 

27th.  Out  on  various  errands.  Called  on  the  Bauers 
and  Conde  de  Valencia,  and  was  busy  up  to  the  last  moment 
of  our  happy  visit  to  Madrid,  which  I  was  truly  sorry  to  leave. 
Henry  came  with  us  to  the  station  and  saw  us  off  for  Avila  at 
J  past  5.  While  I  yet  remember  I  must  carry  on  this  record 

125 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1871 
of  a  charming  journey,  though  only  in  skeleton,  for  the  notes 
were  not  made  on  the  spot.  We  slept  at  Avila,  at  the  Hotel 
of  one  Smith,  a  worthy  Englishman  who,  having  been  con- 
tractor on  the  railway,  had  settled  down  there,  and  made  a 
most  comfortable  resting-place  ;  his  married  daughter  waited 
on  us.  She  had  unfortunately  allied  herself  to  a  Spaniard 
who  left  her  and  her  children  to  the  charity  of  her  father,  but 
she  seemed  very  cheerful,  and  delighted  to  meet  with  English 
people.  The  next  day, 

28th,  we  spent  delightfully.  Smith  himself  acted  as 
our  cicerone  and  took  us  all  over  the  town.  It  far  exceeded 
all  our  expectations  :  the  walls  almost  perfect  and  the  Churches 
most  interesting.  On  one  of  the  old  deserted  Palaces  the 
following  motto  struck  me,  "  Donde  una  Pverta  se  ciera  otra 
se  abre,"  the  date  MDXL.  "  Petrus  Avila  et  Maria  Corduben- 
sis  vxor."  Left  Avila  again  by  the  train  at  10,  and  proceeded 
to  Valladolid.  We  arrived  about  I  or  2  in  the  morning,  and 
went  into  the  town  (from  the  station)  in  an  omnibus.  All  the 
Hotels  seemed  asleep  or  full,  and  those  that  C.S.  inspected 
were  so  dirty  and  so  dear  that  we  drove  back  to  the  station 
again  :  but  this  was  shut  up  when  we  got  there,  so  there  was 
nothing  for  it  but  to  remain  in  the  omnibus  all  night,  and 
that  night  I  shall  never  forget.  The  omnibus  was  put  in  a 
yard,  under  the  Porte  Cochere  of  which  the  driver  left  us. 
C.S.  went  to  sleep,  the  maid,  who  was  frightened,  fidgeted,  I 
remained  quite  still,  watching  events,  for  it  did  not  seem  to 
us  that  we  were  altogether  quite  safe.  Although  the  gates  were 
supposed  to  be  locked,  men  came  now  and  then  in  and  out  of 
them,  as  in  a  bad  dream,  and  sleep  seemed  to  be  impossible, 
from  the  stamping  and  neighing  of  horses  and  mules,  the 
crowing  and  cackling  of  cocks  and  hens,  and  above  all  the 
tinkling  of  a  bell  attached  to  a  very  playful  restless  goat.  At 
length  morning  dawned,  and  it  was  with  a  feeling  of  relief 

126 


i87i  NOTES  CERAMIC 

that  I  saw  people  from  the  neighbouring  house  come  down  to 
draw  water  at  the  well  in  the  Court.  At  six  our  driver 
came  to  our  omnibus,  put  in  his  mules  again,  and  told  us  that 
we  must  turn  out,  as  he  was  going  back  to  the  station  to  meet 
a  train.  We,  however,  preferred  to  accompany  him,  and  at 
the  buffet  got  a  good  breakfast,  after  which  we  sauntered 
back,  on  foot,  into  the  town.  First  of  all  we  visited  a 
curiosity,  or  rather  a  large  dealer's,  shop.  Then  we  went 
into  some  silversmiths'.  One  of  them  had  some  beautifully 
chased  ornaments,  for  book  mounts,  but  we  found  nothing  in 
our  line.  Then  we  betook  ourselves  to  visiting  the  Churches 
and  remains  of  the  interesting  buildings  with  which  the  place, 
associated  in  our  minds  with  the  Duke  de  Lerma,  abounds. 
They  are  not  of  the  best  time,  but  we  saw  some  excellent 
Berruguete  work.  All  this  time  we  toiled  on  foot,  the  weather 
very  hot,  and  with  the  red  bag  full  of  treasures  on  my  arm. 
No  carriage  was  to  be  had  because  of  a  f£te  to  the  Virgin, 
which  was  being  held  outside  the  town.  At  length,  after 
some  luncheon  at  a  restaurant  we  did  obtain  a  conveyance  to 
go  and  see  the  said  fete,  which  was  a  sort  of  fair  in  a  large 
open  space  in  front  of  a  Chapel  gaudily  decorated,  about  two 
miles  from  the  city ;  a  curious  sight  and  an  immense  crowd. 
Our  day  ended  at  the  station,  where  the  train  took  us  up 
again  in  the  middle  of  the  night,  and  carried  us  on  without 
further  adventure  to  Bordeaux. 

3Oth.     Remained  there  that  day. 

3ist.  After  well  ransacking  the  town  we  called  on  the 
Consul  to  get  information  as  to  our  best  route  to  England, 
Paris  being  still  closed  by  the  Commune.  He  advised  us  to 
go  to  Versailles,  and  assured  us  that  by  taking  tickets  to 
Juvigny  we  should  get  on  without  trouble,  as  there  were 
omnibuses,  etc.,  there  to  take  passengers  on  to  Versailles.  We 
adopted  his  suggestion  and  that  night  proceeded  on  our  way, 

127 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1871 
taking  the  late  express  train.  We  reached  Juvigny  at  six 
o'clock  that  morning. 

JUNE  1871 

VERSAILLES  :  PARIS 

June  1st.  By  means  of  great  promptitude  we  secured 
the  three  last  places  in  the  one  solitary  omnibus  which  waited 
at  the  station  ;  but  this  was  so  laden  already  with  the  goods 
of  passengers  that  had  been  waiting  to  go  by  it  for  some 
hours,  that  there  was  not  the  slightest  chance  of  its  accom- 
modating any  of  our  luggage.  Sooner  than  be  parted  from 
our  luggage  we  gave  up  our  places,  and  were  only  too 
delighted  to  find  a  small  market  cart  in  which  C.S.,  I  and 
the  maid  with  our  boxes  managed  to  stow  ourselves.  We 
had  a  sturdy  horse,  which  our  loquacious  driver  told  us  he 
had  bought  of  the  Prussians  when  they  vacated  that  neigh- 
bourhood, and  so  we  set  off.  It  was  a  lovely  morning  and  I 
shall  never  forget  that  1st  of  June.  We  were  in  high  spirits 
and  vastly  amused  with  our  conveyance.  The  driver  stopped 
half-way,  to  breakfast  at  a  little  auberge,  and  we  got  some 
bread  and  capital  gruyere  cheese,  and  a  bottle  of  vin  ordi- 
naire, on  which,  without  descending  from  our  cart,  we  break- 
fasted also.  We  did  not  get  on  very  fast,  so  it  was  almost 
afternoon  when  we  made  our  triumphal  entry,  in  the  cart, 
into  Versailles.  The  town  was  very  full,  the  Government, 
the  Chambers,  all  being  there,  and  at  the  Hotel  des  Reser- 
voirs they  told  us  that  there  was  scarce  a  room  to  be  had. 
However,  they  directed  us  to  a  house  where  they  thought 
it  possible  we  might  be  lodged,  and  there  we  found  one 
apartment  (small),  and  a  sort  of  cupboard  for  the  maid,  with 
which  we  were  only  too  glad  to  be  content.  What  was  our 
surprise  to  find  that  our  old  friend  M.  Waddington,  now  a 
Deputy,  the  only  acquaintance  we  have  in  France,  occupied 

128 


1871  NOTES  CERAMIC 

the  room  immediately  adjoining  ours.  He  was  looking  out 
of  the  window  when  we  arrived  and  was  greatly  entertained 
at  our  equipage.  The  Commune  was  by  this  time  over- 
thrown, and  people  were  beginning  to  go  into  Paris.  We 
were  very  anxious  to  do  so  too  and  to  see  the  state  in 
which  it  was  left.  We  called  on  Lord  Lyons  to  inquire  if  it 
would  be  safe,  and  he  told  us  there  would  be  no  difficulty, 
with  a  pass,  in  getting  in,  but  that  it  was  not  so  easy  to  get 
out  again,  as  the  Paris  Authorities  required  some  tiresome 
forms  to  be  gone  through  for  that  purpose.  He  thought  we 
might  be  detained.  This,  as  we  were  carrying  important 
despatches  for  Henry  Layard,  we  did  not  desire.  That 
afternoon  we  dined  at  the  table  d'hote,  and  did  no  more  that 
day. 

2nd.  We  took  a  carriage  and  drove  to  see  the  de- 
struction of  St.  Cloud — a  melancholy  sight  indeed !  Returning 
at  dusk  through  a  wood,  the  driver  lost  his  way,  and  said, 
"  Ma  foi,  je  ne  sais  ou  nous  aliens  tomber !  "  Pleasant  hear- 
ing, for  the  place  was  very  solitary  and  we  did  not  know  what 
evil  spirits  might  be  lurking.  We  heard  that  all  these  woods 
were  full  of  Communists,  escaped  from  Paris  and  hiding  from 
arrest — more  fearful  of  us  than  we  of  them — but  we  got  back 
all  right  to  our  table  d'hote.  We  had  intended  returning 
to  England  that  day  (by  cross-roads  to  St.  Denis  and  so 
on),  but  in  the  evening  we  heard  that  there  was  to  be  free 
ingress  and  egress  to  Paris  on  the  morrow,  so  we  changed 
our  plans. 

June  3rd.  I  walked  out  early.  Saw  workmen  bricking  up 
all  open  spaces  and  cellars  under  the  rez-de-chausse'e  of  the 
houses.  On  inquiry  I  was  told  it  was  a  precaution  against 
the  petroleuses,  as  information  had  been  received  that  they 
were  expected  at  Versailles.  I  should  mention  that  we  had 
more  than  once  walked  in  the  Gardens  and  had  seen  the 
i  129  i 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1871 
prisoners  in  the  Orangerie,  but  we  could  not  go  very  near. 
We  took  a  carnage  and  drove  into  Paris.  It  was  a  City  of 
the  Dead  ;  no  life  or  animation  ;  scarce  any  one  in  the  streets  ; 
not  a  conveyance  to  be  seen  ;  altogether  a  most  melancholy 
sight ;  the  Tuileries  and  other  public  buildings  still  smoking ; 
the  Venddme  Column  lying  in  pieces  on  the  ground.  We 
went  round  to  the  scene  of  the  principal  conflagrations. 
There  was  a  crowd  round  the  ruins  of  the  Hotel  de  Ville. 
We  called  at  the  "  Lille  et  d' Albion  ",  where  we  used  to  lodge, 
and  found  it  shut  up,  but  the  maid  in  charge  gave  us  sad 
accounts  of  alarms  that  had  been  suffered  all  round  from  the 
insurgents.  We  went  also  to  some  of  the  dealers  we  had 
been  used  to  buy  of — Mme.  Caillot,  Mme.  Oppenheim  had 
both  died  of  fright  or  anxiety.  Poor  old  Fournier  had  lost 
his  reason.  Mme.  Rouvier  told  us  that  the  mob  had  once 
given  her  notice  to  dismantle  her  house,  as  they  meant  to  set 
fire  to  it,  and  so  she  put  all  her  goods  in  the  cellar,  where 
they  probably  were  not  much  more  safe !  We  found  at 
Mme.  Flaudin's  some  dishes  matching  our  maroon  Chelsea 
set  which  we  bought  of  her,  and  she  was  overjoyed,  saying 
we  were  the  first  customers  she  had  seen  for  many  months, 
dating  from  the  beginning  of  the  siege.  While  we  were  with 
her  there  was  a  great  noise  in  the  street — a  brougham  was 
going  by.  We  found  it  contained  the  celebrated  Roussel, 
who  had  just  been  captured.  The  escort  had  difficulty  in 
protecting  him  from  the  fury  of  the  people.  As  we  returned 
along  the  deserted  Champs  Elysees  we  met  some  prisoners, 
bound  and  strongly  guarded,  with  a  little  crowd  hooting  and 
menacing  them.  The  whole  scene  was  impressive  and  very 
sad,  but  I  would  on  no  account  have  missed  it.  It  was 
very  late  when  we  got  back  to  Versailles,  but  joined  M. 
Waddington  before  dinner  was  quite  over. 

4th.     We  had  a  most  charming  walk  in  the  Gardens  and 

130 


i87i  NOTES  CERAMIC 

Park  of  Versailles,  and  enjoyed  a  most  agreeable  morning. 
In  the  afternoon  we  took  the  train  into  Paris.  Had  some 
difficulty  at  the  Station  St.  Lazare  to  get  a  conveyance  on  to 
the  Gare  du  Nord,  but  at  length  we  arrived  there,  and  so 
took  our  places  in  the  train  and  returned  to  England. 


NOTES  CERAMIC 

MARCH  TO  MAY  1872 

BRUSSELS  :  ROTTERDAM  :  THE  HAGUE  :  GOUDA  :  AMSTERDAM  : 
PARIS  :  BORDEAUX  :  MADRID  :  SEVILLE  :  CADIZ  :  JERES 

2nd.  Left  London  at  7.40.  A.M.  per  Dover,  and  steamer 
to  Ostend.  Beautiful  passage ;  sea  perfectly  calm,  but, 
for  about  an  hour,  thick  fog,  which  nearly  led  to  an  acci- 
dent by  collision.  Not  able  to  get  luggage]  examined,  etc., 
in  time  to  proceed  by  the  express  train,  and  so  had  to  wait 
about  three  hours  at  Ostend.  Proceeded  by  the  6  o'clock 
train  to  Brussels,  where  we  arrived  about  8.  Hotel  de 
1' Europe. 

3rd.  Up  late.  Drove  for  a  couple  of  hours  about 
the  town.  Lovely  weather ;  like  summer.  Small  shop  in 
Rue  de  1'Escalier,  where  we  found  several  little  pieces.  C.S. 
at  Church  at  3.  I  read,  and  wrote  letters.  Table  d'hote  at  5. 
Slept  a  little  ;  wrote  letters  and  read  till  bedtime. 

4th.  Another  lovely  day.  Up  earlier  and  out  by  10 
o'clock.  Then  went  the  round  of  all  the  shops,  amongst 
which  we  laid  out  about  £10.  very  much  to  our  own  satisfaction 
reckoning  that  we  had  secured  objects  worth  nearly  £40. 
Among  them  was  a  pair  of  partridges  on  their  nests  with 
stands  painted  in  bouquets — very  perfect  and  all  of  old  Bow. 
Also  a  curious  old  enamel  box,  transfer  printed,  with  Britannia 
holding  up  the  cap  of  Liberty,  and  crowning  the  British  Lion 
with  a  wreath  while  she  leans  on  a  scroll,  inscribed  No.  45  : 
an  interesting  memorial  of  Wilkes  and  the  North  Briton.  I 
walked  a  little  in  the  morning  and  drove  in  the  afternoon. 

132 


A    WHITE     DRESDEN    BISQUE    GROUP    OF    THE    MID    XVIIITH    CENTURY.       THE    DESIGN 
IS    NO    DOUBT    SUGGESTED    BY    A    FRENCH    PAINTER  ;    THE   YOUTHFUL    LOVER,    THE 
HALF-SHY     LADY    AND    THE    EVER-BUSY    CUPID    BEING     FOUND    TOGETHER    IN     BOTH 
THE    PRINTS    AND    PORCELAINS   OF   THE    PERIOD 

Lord  Wnnbornes  Collection 


1872  NOTES  CERAMIC 

Table  d'hote  at  5.     Since  that  washing  up  and  packing  our 

purchases. 

5th.  Called  at  6.  A  lovely  morning,  which  turned 
out  a  very  hot  day.  Left  Brussels  by  a  9.20.  train,  and 
passing  through  Antwerp  went  to  Moerdyk  where  we  took 
the  steamer  to  Rotterdam.  The  sun  was  very  hot  and  it  was 
very  pleasant  basking  in  it  on  the  deck  and  admiring  the 
pretty  villages,  avenues,  etc.,  on  the  banks  as  we  passed  along. 
I  always  do  enjoy  this  trajet.  Dined  on  board.  Reached 
Rotterdam  at  3,  and  having  taken  our  luggage  across  the 
town  to  The  Hague  station,  C.S.  and  I  started  to  explore  the 
shops.  Walked  a  little  way  :  then  got  an  open  carnage  and 
drove  about.  We  found  a  few  little  bits  of  good  English  Ware 
at  a  little  shop  in  the  Waajen  Strasse,  and  at  Van  Minden's 
Warehouse.  But  Rotterdam  is  not  such  a  good  hunting 
ground  as  Brussels.  Took  the  train  to  The  Hague  soon 
after  6,  and  arrived  before  7.  Altogether  a  charming  day, 
recalling  many  pleasant  ones  formerly  spent  in  Holland. 
The  weather  unaccountably  hot  for  the  time  of  year — like 
summer. 

6th.  Not  a  very  good  night,  but  up  in  good  time 
and  out  before  II.  A  long  and  pleasant  day,  driving  about 
The  Hague  and  visiting  all  the  old  shops,  which  we  did  to 
considerable  advantage,  as  we  found  several  curious  pieces  of 
marked  English  Ware.  Ended  by  a  visit  to  M.  and  Mme. 
Bisschop  (near  the  Greene  Weg),  who  have  many  pretty  things. 
Altogether  a  lovely  and  pleasant  day.  Sarlin  tried  to  impose 
upon  us  with  a  copy  of  a  Louis  Quinze  inkstand.  We  bought 
nothing  of  him,  or  Schwale  or  Munchen,  but  made  all  our 
purchases  at  the  little  shops. 

7th.  A  regular  holiday.  We  left  The  Hague  at  10, 
C.S.  and  I  alone,  without  maid  or  other  luggage  than  our 
sacs  de  nuit,  and  went  to  Gouda,  where  we  had  a  charming 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1872 

chasse.  We  had  scarcely  left  the  station  when  we  fell  upon  a 
curiosity  shop,  a  very  small  one,  but  containing  several  good 
marked  pieces.  Next  we  went  to  the  large  shop,  Pavoordt's. 
He  himself  was  very  busy  with  the  market  people  and  found 
it  very  difficult  to  attend  to  us,  but  we  ransacked  his  stores 
and  brought  a  goodly  lot  away  with  us.  We  then  tried  to 
find  something  in  another  antiquaire's,  but  when,  with  some 
difficulty,  we  discovered  the  house  he  lived  in,  he  had 
nothing ;  so  we  spent  the  remainder  of  our  time  at  Gouda  in 
walking  about  the  town,  admiring  the  quaint  old  square  with 
its  central  Town  Hall  of  16th-century  architecture,  and  visiting 
the  Church  with  its  wonderful  painted  windows.  While  wait- 
ing at  Pavoordt's  I  had  a  curious  insight  into  Dutch  life,  and 
it  was  very  amusing.  We  had  one  or  two  April  showers  in 
the  morning,  but  the  sun  was  hot  between  whiles,  and  alto- 
gether the  day  was  most  enjoyable.  At  2.33  we  proceeded 
to  Utrecht  and  reached  it  soon  after  3.  Took  our  room  at 
the  Belle  Vue  (the  same  we  had  in  1869),  and  then  went  on 
into  the  town.  Gorkum,  our  friend,  had  been  ill.  He  told  us 
he  still  had  his  eye  upon  the  Worcester  service  (Rochester 
he  called  it)  which  we  wanted  to  get  at  our  last  visit.  Returning 
through  the  Elizabeth  Strasse  we  made  one  or  two  purchases 
of  a  nice  little  shop  there  (Caste)  and  then  came  in  for  the 
table  d'hote,  4^  to  5  o'clock.  After  that  C.S.  went  out 
again.  He  found  a  good  pair  of  Battersea  salt  cellars  at 
Sanders's.  He  took  him  to  Hambrook's,  a  large  warehouse, 
where  he  saw  some  things  with  good  marks,  but  at  such 
absurd  prices  he  bought  nothing.  Since  his  return  he  has 
been  packing,  and  we  have  prepared  for  an  early  start 
to-morrow. 

8th.  We  were  called  at  6,  and  having  packed  and 
breakfasted,  got  off  by  the  train  before  9,  to  Amsterdam. 
Arrived  there  before  10.  Took  a  carriage  and  went  straight 

134 


1872  NOTES  CERAMIC 

to  Van  Houtum's  to  see  what  he  might  have.  Great  was  my 
delight  and  surprise  on  going  to  his  best  cupboard,  to  find  a 
Bristol  figure,  a  youth  holding  a  comb,  nearly  perfect !  I  was 
so  astonished  that  I  put  it  down  again,  hardly  believing  my 
own  eyes  at  so  great  a  find.  Of  course  he  had  not  an  idea 
what  it  was,  but  because  it  was  large  he  wanted  £7  for  it.  It 
ended  in  our  giving  him  £7  for  that  and  two  Bow  sauceboats 
in  red  camaieu.  We  had  brought  with  us  all  the  purchases 
we  had  made  since  we  left  home,  which  we  left  with  Van 
Houtum,  who  promised  to  have  them  packed  carefully  and 
forwarded  to  our  address  in  London.  This  is  a  great  relief, 
for  we  were  beginning  to  be  embarrassed  with  all  our  goods. 
From  Van  Houtum's  we  went  to  Sanz's,  which  used  to  be  one 
of  our  best  hunting  grounds,  but  now  he  had  absolutely 
nothing  of  our  kind.  Thence  to  Van  Galen's.  He  has  a 
number  of  figures — good  but  not  remarkable — which  he 
wishes  to  sell  in  one  collection.  Also  the  remains  of  a  fine 
Chelsea-Derby  vase,  without  lid,  which,  imperfect  as  it  is,  he 
asked  £$  for.  So  we  left  him  without  purchase.  Next  to 
Hope's  the  Banker's  to  get  some  money,  and  then  to  Speyer's. 
We  accompanied  him  into  his  various  warehouses,  and  found 
one  or  two  pretty  bits  of  English  Ware.  The  same  at  his 
neighbour  Soujet's.  After  this  we  went  to  Boasberg's.  He 
had  a  good  box  (slightly  damaged)  a  scent  case  and  an  £tui, 
Battersea  Enamel  ;  for  these  he  wanted  £28  !  a  price  so 
enormous  that  we  could  do  nothing.  An  infructuous  visit  to 
a  man  called  Blick  ended  our  search.  We  took  our  few 
purchases  to  Van  Houtum  to  be  packed  with  the  rest,  and, 
having  dined  at  the  Brack's  Doelen  table  d'hote,  we  joined 
the  train  at  6.30.  and  got  back  to  The  Hague  at  about  8  o'clock. 
The  Bristol  figure  amply  repays  all  the  trouble  and  fatigue  of 
the  7  hours'  drive  and  chasse,  but  otherwise  we  found  little  at 
Amsterdam. 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1872 

gth.  Up  at  5.  Left  The  Hague  by  train  at  7.45.  At 
Rotterdam  were  conveyed  across  by  omnibus  to  the  steamer 
by  which  we  proceeded  to  Moerdyk.  (I  lay  down  in  the 
cabin  and  read.)  Our  next  change  was  in  passing  the  Custom 
House  at  the  Belgian  frontier.  Then  at  Antwerp  we  had 
to  get  into  other  carriages  in  which  we  went  as  far  as  Brussels. 
Then,  again  an  omnibus  conveyed  across  the  town  to  another 
railway.  We  had  another  visitation  of  our  luggage,  and  a 
showing  of  passports  on  getting  into  France.  At  Tergnier 
we  dined,  and  finally  reached  Paris  about  9,  and  after  waiting 
some  little  time  got  a  small  omnibus  to  take  us  to  our  lodgings 
at  the  Hotel  S.  Romain,  Rue  du  Dauphin,  where  we  arrived 
about  10  o'clock.  Coffee  and  to  bed.  Found  a  letter 
from  Cornelia  saying  that  Ivor  was  suffering  from  pains  in 
the  face. 

loth.  Breakfast  at  10.  Then  we  strolled  out.  The 
sun  bright  and  the  sky  unclouded,  but  a  keen,  though  not  a 
strong  east  wind.  On  the  Quai  Voltaire  happened  to  go  into 
a  print  shop  and  to  find  a  fine  Frye  of  George  III.  on  which 
we  pounced  for  6/6.  In  another  we  got  a  lot  of  theatrical 
portraits,  chiefly  from  Bell's  British  Theatre ;  the  subjects 
are  the  same  as  on  the  Liverpool  Tiles. 

II th.  We  got  out  before  II  and  on  foot  ransacked 
the  whole  of  the  Quai  Voltaire.  The  shops  there  have  not 
only  improved  in  quality  but  have  increased  in  number.  The 
only  things,  however,  that  we  found  to  suit  us  were  an  enamel 
writing  box,  Rose  du  Barri,  and  a  pair  of  Chelsea  birds  at 
Leclerc's ;  the  former  costing  5o/-,  and  the  latter  32/-.  On 
our  way  there  we  had  met  with  a  curious  Octagon  Chelsea 
cup,  painted  with  insects,  and  marked  in  blue  with  the 
Dresden  swords,  I2/-,  this  was  at  Chapin's.  Having  gone 
through  the  whole  of  the  Quai  Voltaire  and  Quai  Malaquais 
shops  (including  print-shops)  we  took  a  cab  at  half-past  one, 

136 


1872  NOTES  CERAMIC 

and  went  on  exploring  for  the  next  five  hours.  We  stopped 
at  every  shop  we  saw,  besides  visiting  all  those  with  which 
we  were  acquainted.  We  went  to  Oppenheim's,  Rue 
d'Aboukir,  the  other  Oppenheim's,  Ambigu,  where  we  found 
a  very  good  e'cuelle  cover  and  stand  of  very  decorative 
Ware  ;  for  this  we  paid  i6/-.  We  went  on  to  Stein's,  Boule- 
vard du  Temple,  but  he  was  absent.  Then  we  visited  all 
the  shops  we  saw  or  knew  of  on  our  way  to  the  Fourniers'  ; 
but  we  found  nothing.  In  two  shops  there  were  Ninis,  but 
we  mistrusted  them,  and  they  were  also  very  dear.  Mme. 
Fournier  alone  was  at  home  when  we  got  to  their  shop.  She 
incited  us  to  hurry  off  to  the  sale  room  in  the  Rue  Drouot ; 
where  she  said  a  very  great  sale  was  going  on,  commanding 
wonderful  prices,  and  which  she  thought  would  amuse  us ; 
when  we  got  there  we  found  it  all  over,  and  we  met  the 
Fournier  pere  et  fils  coming  away  from  it.  We  went  back 
to  the  shop  with  them,  and  there  bought  two  figures  (Bow) 
of  Winter  (one  imperfect),  for  £6.  8.  o.  This  concluded  our  in- 
vestments for  the  day.  We  ended  by  calling  at  M.  Danvilliers', 
23  Chausse'e  d'Antin,  and  spending  a  couple  of  hours  most 
agreeably  with  him  and  Mme.  Danvilliers,  looking  over  his 
most  valuable  and  interesting  collection.  We  showed  him 
our  newly  purchased  faience  £cuelle,  and  he  pronounces  it 
Luneville.  Not  home  to  dinner  till  near  8  o'clock  :  have 
since  been  washing  and  mending  damaged  pieces,  and 
admiring  our  new  purchases. 

I2th.  Up  early.  Went  by  a  train  at  half-past  ten 
to  Versailles,  hoping  we  might  find  something  there  as  we 
had  done  on  several  other  occasions.  Visited  Hamile's,  Rue 
Vieux,  Versailles,  Masson,  Buiset,  and  another,  Rue  Duplessis, 
Henry  H.  Hoche — but  all  in  vain.  Returned  by  a  12.30  train 
to  Paris.  Went  to  Mallet's  for  some  money  ;  then  back  to 
our  hotel  for  letters.  I  found  one  from  Cornelia  giving  a 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1872 

very  indifferent  account  of  Ivor,  which  makes  me  most  uneasy. 
C.S.  took  me  to  Danvilliers  and  left  me  with  him  while  he  went 
to  see  the  sale  at  the  H6tel  Drouot.  All  the  great  English 
dealers  were  there,  but  C.S.  did  not  think  there  was  great 
excitement.  We  are  told  that  the  prices  of  all  objets  d'art 
have  increased  immensely  since  the  times  of  the  siege  and  the 
Commune  :  indeed,  in  our  small  way  we  found  everything 
very  dear.  I  spent  a  couple  of  hours  with  great  interest  at 
Danvilliers'  and  tried  to  add  to  my  information.  He  gave  me 
one  or  two  specimens  and  his  book.  On  our  way  back  to  our 
hotel,  we  found  a  pretty  little  Venetian  cup  and  saucer  (6/6) 
in  the  Rue  St.  Roch.  Dined  soon  after  5,  and  left  Paris  by 
8.15.  train  for  Bordeaux,  where  we  arrived  soon  after  7.  next 
morning. 

I3th.  Plenty  of  room  in  the  carriage  and  the  journey 
good.  But  I  was  very  poorly  and  on  reaching  Bordeaux 
laid  down  till  it  was  time  to  resume  our  journey.  Meanwhile 
C.S.  went  the  round  of  the  dealers.  At  Soyer's  he  found  a 
lovely  sage-green  Wedgwood  teapot  with  subjects  en 
camaieu ;  I2/-.  Most  of  the  other  dealers  were  away  and 
their  shops  empty,  they  having  taken  their  goods  to  the 
fair.  He  represents  it  as  a  curious  sight,  but  only  found 
two  teapots,  both  English,  but  without  lids. 

Came  on  by  the  2.50.  train  to  Bayonne,  arriving  after  8. 
A  most  lovely  afternoon.  We  put  up  at  the  Hotel  de  Nantes 
at  Bordeaux  and  thought  it  good,  the  Hotel  St.  Etienne 
here. 

I4th.  Took  a  two  hours'  drive  in  and  about  Bayonne 
before  leaving  it  again  by  the  express  at  12.40.  It  was 
a  lovely  morning  and  the  place  and  surrounding  scenery 
looked  well.  We  were  altogether  much  pleased  with 
Bayonne.  Long  journey  in  crowded  carriages,  but  I  was  not 
tired.  Reached  Madrid  about  8. 

138 


1872  NOTES  CERAMIC 

I5th.  There  were  beans  in  flower  at  Bayonne,  but 
near  the  Escurial  we  passed  through  snow  on  the  ground. 
Spent  the  morning  talking  with  Enid.  C.S.  went  the  round 
of  the  shops,  but  found  them  very  bare.  Drove  in  the  open 
carriage  in  the  afternoon  to  the  Fuente  Castellana,  etc.  The 
Rianos  came  to  call.  His  agreeable  brother  (see  April  nth, 
1870)  is  dead. 

l6th.  C.S.  purchased  a  small  white  leaf  with  the 
mark  of  "  Segovia"  in  the  Calle  de  Gongeva,  and  a  very 
pretty  Leeds  sucrier  and  cover  at  Soriano's.  The  Rianos 
and  the  Hunts  at  dinner,  some  music. 

I7th.  Service  in  the  Embassy.  Enid  now  plays  the 
harmonium  and  conducts  all  the  music,  which  is  rather 
an  exertion  for  her,  but  she  does  it  very  well.  A  good 
Concert  led  by  Monasterio  in  the  afternoon.  Again  Men- 
delssohn's Midsummer  Night's  Dream  ;  also  Chopin's 
Funeral  March.  This  last  I  do  not  like.  After  the  Concert, 
C.S.  and  I  went  to  see  Salamanca's  Palace.  It  is  a  fine 
structure.  I  am  told  the  pictures  are  worthless,  and  such 
works  of  art  as  we  understand  seemed  very  far  from  good — 
and  even  spurious.  The  tapestries  are  valuable.  It  is  a 
pity  that  the  fine  apartments  are  fitted  up  in  heavy  modern 
French  taste.  The  young  people  of  the  Embassy  at  dinner. 

i8th.  Quiet  morning  with  Enid  at  home.  Afternoon, 
went  to  the  Fonda  de  Paris,  and  to  Raphael's.  At  the 
latter  place  C.S.  saw  a  Bow  figure  of  Minerva,  which  he 
ultimately  bought  for  £5.  Raphael  has  some  chairs  like 
those  we  got  for  Ivor  last  year,  and  which  have  belonged 
to  the  Marquis  de  Pimental  and  Benevente.  Walked  a 
little  in  the  Buen  Retiro  Gardens  near  the  lake.  Passed 
the  King  riding  at  the  head  of  his  troops.  Again,  later  in 
the  day,  met  him  driving  with  the  Queen.  To-night  a  very 
pleasant  dinner  at  the  Embassy ;  the  Kanitz's,  Count  and 

139 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1872 
Countess  de  Valencia,  Pedrovena  and  his  wife,  Vale  del 
Zarko,  Mr.  Birch,  and  several  people  came  in  the  evening 
and  stayed  late. 

iQth.  Went  to  Ajera,  Calle  Hortolezza  40,  for  money 
for  our  journey,  and  then  joined  Henry  at  the  Museo.  It 
was  very  delightful  to  visit  it  again,  and  especially  to  look 
at  the  fine  portraits  of  all  the  people  we  have  lately  been 
reading  about  in  history.  Our  last  book  has  been  Dunlop's 
Philip  IV.  and  Charles  //.,  which  has  interested  us  very 
much.  After  luncheon  we  again  visited  M.  Gatto  di 
Lema's  collection  (see  April  18,  1871),  and  then  we  stayed  at 
home  the  rest  of  the  afternoon  as  it  was  very  warm.  C.S., 
however,  went  to  fetch  his  Minerva  from  Raphael's,  which  he 
esteems  very  highly.  M.  Kanitz  called,  etc.  Dined  at  7, 
after  which  C.S.  and  I  left  Madrid  at  9  for  Seville,  where  we 
arrived  before  six  this  afternoon. 

20th.  Slept  a  good  deal  in  the  night  and  had  a 
pleasant  journey.  Don  Juan  Rutledge  came  and  talked  to  us 
at  Cordova.  There  was  a  great  crowd  at  the  station  there. 
Castelar  the  Republican  had  been  expected,  but  he  was  not 
in  the  train.  There  was  also  a  great  crowd  at  another 
station  farther  down  the  line — men  hanging  in  clusters  on 
the  trees  to  get  a  glimpse  of  him.  Rutledge  does  not  give  a 
very  good  account  of  the  state  of  things,  and  a  Revolution 
may,  any  day,  be  expected.  Bands  of  lawless  people  are 
forming  in  preparation.  One  of  these  in  the  neighbourhood 
of  Vilches  and  Linares,  headed  by  a  woman  ;  great  precau- 
tions are  taken  for  the  safety  of  the  trains  in  those  localities, 
and  some  4000  troops  are  stationed  thereabouts.  We  found 
at  Seville  very  good  rooms  at  our  old  quarters  of  1870. 

2ist.  Our  first  care  was  to  explore  the  curiosity  shops, 
beginning  with  old  Robles,  from  him  we  went  to  Devera's, 
and  the  man  at  96  Column  of  Hercules;  to  Mariana 

140 


i872  NOTES  CERAMIC 

Fernandez,  to  Vivaldi's,  etc.  and  Bianchi's.  Concluded 
nothing  but  a  small  purchase,  with  which  I  was  much  discon- 
tented, at  Fernandez's.  It  was  a  most  lovely  day.  We  had 
a  small  open  carriage  and  drove  about,  enjoying  ourselves 
very  much  in  the  picturesque,  beautiful  old  town.  Before 
coming  in  for  table  d'hote  we  walked  through  the  Platerias, 
but  met  with  very  little  indeed.  A  sound  sleep  on  the  sofa 
after  dinner. 

22nd.  Again  with  Robles  and  concluded  some  pur- 
chases, the  principal  of  which  was  a  sort  of  Urna  or 
reliquaire  of  tortoise-shell,  in  form  similar  to  a  clock  case, 
for  which  we  gave  him  10  guineas.  It  is  not  quite  in  first- 
rate  order,  but  will  be  very  pretty  for  exhibiting  small 
objects,  such  as  enamels,  etc.  After  this  we  called  at  the 
Consul's,  and  there  found  a  letter  awaiting  me  from  Cornelia, 
by  which  I  regret  to  find  that  Ivor  is  still  suffering.  Mr. 
Williams  reminded  us  of  Dominguez's  shop  in  the  Alcazar. 
So  there  we  went.  He  was  employed  in  making  up  two 
Urnas  for  holding  china,  etc.,  which  we  were  inclined  to  buy. 
At  this  place  we  saw  a  good  old  English  clock  in  a  Japanese 
case,  red  and  gold,  belonging  to  Galinda.  An  old  Swiss 
clockmaker  there  (Victor  Villiez)  promised  to  overhaul  it  and 
let  us  know  in  the  evening  what  condition  the  works  were 
in.  This  he  did,  reporting  favourably,  but  we  thought  the 
price  (£13)  too  much.  Meanwhile,  before  table  d'hote,  we 
drove  over  to  the  Cartuja,  and  paid  a  visit  to  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Pickman. 

23rd.  As  we  were  going  out  this  morning  we  met  the 
Consul  coming  to  see  us.  He  walked  with  us  to  the 
Cathedral,  and  remained  with  us  the  rest  of  the  morning. 
With  him  we  went  to  Dominguez  again  and  offered  £25  for 
the  two  Urnas  (without  tables)  which  was  refused.  We 
then  went  in  next  door  to  the  apartments  of  Don  Manuel 

141 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1872 
Urzaiz  (a  charming  man,  half  amateur,  half  dealer),  with 
whom  we  had  made  acquaintance  the  previous  day.  He  has 
a  fine  Oriental  Vase  ("sintapedera"  ?)  and  we  were  rejoiced 
to  see  again  the  fine  terra-cotta  head  of  Caspar  Nunez  (see 
April  7th,  1870)  which,  it  appears,  has  passed  into  his 
possession.  On  the  present  occasion  he  was  not  at  home. 
Called  on  Robles  and  carried  away  our  reliquaire,  which  he 
had  packed  for  us.  Called  on  our  old  friend  Senor  Bueno. 
Veneva  in  the  same  street  (No.  4).  We  found  a  good  old 
English  china  clock  in  ebony  case,  of  which  our  Swiss 
horloger  gave  us  information,  which  we  bought  for  6  guineas, 
and  also  brought  away  with  us.  We  next  went  to  look  at  a 
cabinet  which  old  Robles'  carpenter  had  told  us  of.  It  was 
at  6  Matahacas.  We  found  it  to  be  a  most  beautiful  thing, 
inlaid  with  subjects  in  "  Ecaille  blonde  "  and  mounted  on  a 
good  table  of  dark  wood  ;  but  the  price  they  asked  (£100) 
put  it  out  of  the  question  for  us.  Made  a  small  purchase  at 
Bianchi's.  Looked  at  Colununa's  fans,  amongst  which  are 
some  good  ancient  ones,  and  came  back  for  dinner  at  4,  after 
which  we  left  Seville  for  Jeres.  The  train  was  late  and  we 
did  not  arrive  until  10  o'clock.  Very  good  rooms  at  the 
Fonda  de  Jeres. 

24th.  Up  late.  A  visit  from  the  Vice-Consul,  Mr.  Suter. 
In  the  afternoon  took  a  drive  of  two  hours,  in  and  about 
the  town ;  the  weather  much  colder,  First  went  up  to 
the  Depositaria  Aguas,  whence  the  view  is  magnificent,  over 
the  plains  and  to  the  mountain  (San  Cristobel)  whence  the 
supply  of  water  is  procured.  We  then  drove  about  by  the 
old  Moorish  Walls  and  the  Churches.  Went  to  the  Cathedral, 
which  is  late  and  poor,  and  into  San  Miguel,  now  under 
repair.  Some  of  its  columns  and  roof  groining  are  magnifi- 
cent. Table  d'h6te  at  5.30. 

25th.  Breakfast  at  8.  At  10.  by  the  train  to  Cadiz, 

142 


i872  NOTES  CERAMIC 

there  to  spend  the  day.  We  took  with  us  what  articles 
we  had  found  at  Seville,  and  left  them  with  the  Consul, 
Mr.  Reade,  to  be  packed  and  despatched  to  England. 
Mr.  Reade  took  us  to  the  few  curiosity  shops  of  which  the 
town  can  boast.  They  contained  nothing  good,  but  their 
prices  were  enormous.  However,  at  an  artist's,  Senor 
Biases,  we  found  a  very  nice  Battersea  Enamel  box,  painted 
a  la  Watteau,  which  he  called  porcelain  de  Sevres  and  which 
we  bought  for  £2.  10.  o.  It  was  proposed  that  we  should  call 
on  Mrs.  Brackenbury,  widow  of  the  late  Consul,  who  had 
once  been  the  possessor  of  the  fine  Oriental  Vase,  with  cocks 
in  enamel,  which  we  procured  last  year.  (See  May  4,  1871.) 
We  did  so  accordingly,  and  to  our  surprise  found  that  she 
still  retained  two  large  vases  exactly  like  those  we  bought 
from  Bueno's  friend  last  year.  (See  April  29,  1871.)  We 
asked  if  she  would  part  with  them,  which  she  said  she  was  not 
inclined  to  do,  so  there  we  considered  the  matter  ended  ;  but 
as  we  were  going  away,  she  said  all  of  a  sudden,  that  if  we 
wished  for  the  vases  we  should  have  them,  provided  we 
would  give  a  large  price  for  them — and  when  we  inquired 
what  that  sum  was  she  named  £25,  to  which  we  gladly  agreed, 
and  so  we  took  them  away  with  us  and  left  them  also  with 
the  Consul  to  be  sent  home.  The  poor  lady  was  left  in  bad 
circumstances  and  has  been  living  on  the  sale  of  the  fine 
things  in  her  late  husband's  collection,  which  from  all  accounts 
must  have  been  magnificent.  Mr.  Reade,  after  this,  took  us 
to  call  on  a  venerable  old  lady  of  82,  by  name  Mrs.  Burdon, 
who  lives  in  a  fine  house,  covered  with  pictures,  and  full  of 
(modern)  ornaments.  She  is  a  Spaniard  ;  widow  of  an 
English  wine-shipper  ;  very  rich,  a  charming,  stately, 
courtly  dame,  who  likes  to  have  all  English  visitors  brought 
to  be  introduced  to  her.  The  Platerias  were  all  closed  for  a 
fete  day.  We  had  to  go  to  the  station  in  the  course  of  the 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1872 

afternoon  to  reclaim  one  of  our  cases  of  curiosities,  and  while 
there,  we  were  surprised  by  one  of  the  most  violent  storms  of 
wind  and  rain  I  ever  saw — quite  a  hurricane.  We  dined  with 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Reade  (she  is  a  pretty  Spaniard,  speaking 
very  good  English)  and  at  8  o'clock  returned  to  Jeres. 
Walked  from  the  station  to  the  Hotel,  which  we  reached  just 
in  time  to  escape  an  avalanche  of  rain  which  fell  as  soon  as 
we  got  in,  followed  by  a  heavy  storm  of  thunder  and 
lightning. 

26th.  Early  to-day  we  were  fetched  by  Mr.  Frank 
Forester,  friend  of  Mr.  Suter,  who  came  to  show  us  some 
of  the  objects  of  interest.  He  took  us  first,  on  foot,  to 
the  bodega  of  Messrs.  Gonzalez,  which  was  a  curious  sight 
and  where  we  were  asked  to  taste  a  number  of  different 
kinds  of  wines.  Young  Mr.  Gonzalez  met  us  and  went  over 
the  establishment  with  us.  After  this  we  returned  to  the 
Hotel,  and  took  a  carriage  to  drive  out  of  the  town  to  a 
recreo  (or  villa)  of  M.  Jos6  Gordon.  Mr.  Suter  went  there 
also  with  us  and  left  us  there  to  look  over  their  valuable  col- 
lection of  farjs.  They  possess  nearly  loo,  all  of  the  first 
quality  and  in  excellent  order.  They  have  also  a  very  fine 
crucifix  of  wood  ;  and  many  other  things.  On  leaving  them 
we  went  to  see  the  Villa  Pemartin,  which  is  a  monument  of 
egregious  folly,  but  with  pretty  gardens.  Two  cabinets 
there  with  objects  painted  on  glass  were  for  sale  at  an  enor- 
mous price ;  I  did  not  care  for  them.  This  was  our  morn- 
ing's occupation.  At  6.30.  we  went  to  dine  at  Mr.  Suter's  in 
the  Casa  Riquelme.  Only  his  wife  and  daughter  and  Mr. 
Forester  were  at  dinner,  but  the  young  lady's  intended  came 
in  after  dinner.  We  had  a  pleasant  evening  talking  of 
Spanish  art,  etc.,  and  looking  over  their  cabinets,  china,  etc. 
They  happened  to  mention  that  coins  (both  Phoenician  and 
of  the  lower  Empire)  were  so  frequently  dug  up  in  this 

144 


1872  NOTES  CERAMIC 

neighbourhood  that  they  had  come  to  be  in  circulation.  Mr. 
Forester  said  he  was  in  the  habit  of  getting  a  friendly  grocer 
to  put  aside  for  him  all  the  old  copper  coins  he  took  in  change 
or  payment.  He  sent  over  to  him  on  the  spot,  to  know 
what  he  had  now  collected,  and  the  servant  brought  back  a 
tin  box  containing  several,  for  which,  out  of  curiosity,  we 
gave  a  douro  and  a  half  (6/3) :  all  copper  and  many  of  them 
much  defaced  ;  but  it  seemed  to  me  an  interesting  incident 
of  Spanish  life. 

27th.  Stayed  within,  reading  and  writing  during  the  morn- 
ing. Walked  out  in  the  afternoon.  Went  into  all  the 
Platerias,  but  could  find  nothing  old  or  good.  Happened  to 
turn  into  a  curious,  antique-looking  shop,  kept  by  one  Fran- 
cisco Pinto,  who  seemed  to  carry  on  a  varied  trade  in  prints, 
false  hair  and  other  incongruous  articles  ;  we  made  out  from 
him  that  he  had  nothing  old  himself,  but  that  he  knew  a  lady 
who  had,  La  Hermana  del  Abogado  Raimon  de  Torre,  Calle 
Guadalete.  To  her  accordingly  we  went,  taking  in  our 
way  the  church  of  S.  Dionisio  with  its  Moorish  windows 
and  the  Renaissance  Ayuntamiento.  We  were  surprised 
on  reaching  the  Dona  de  Torre  to  find  a  house  contain- 
ing 3  rooms  entirely  hung  with  pictures,  in  which  were  a 
few  unimportant  objets  d'art.  In  the  Patio  was  a  corner 
cupboard  with  a  little  china  in  it,  among  which,  quite  at 
the  back,  C.S.  espied  a  bowl  and  cover  of  the  "  famille 
verte  "  like  the  jars  we  acquired  at  Cadiz  and  very  fine. 
There  seemed  such  affluence  in  the  house  that  we  did 
not  venture  to  talk  of  buying ;  so  we  went  back  to  our 
friend  Pinto  to  consult  with  him  about  it,  but  he  was  not 
then  at  home. 

28th.     The    first    thing,    however,    after    breakfast    this 
morning   we   repeated   our   visit   and  then  found  him.     He 
presently  got  some  one  to  attend  to  his  shop,  and  went  with 
I  145  K 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS   1872 

us  to  the  old  lady's.  We  happened  to  ask  her  if  she  had  any 
English  prints,  so  we  had  to  look  through  four  immense  folios 
without  finding  anything  but  one  engraving  of  Charles  Edward 
the  Pretender  done  in  1748,  which  we  took.  Then  came  the 
question  of  the  china,  which  our  friend  Pinto  had  to  manage 
with  discretion — but  it  ended  in  our  carrying  off  the  bowl  for 
12/6.  We  are  enchanted  with  it,  and  should  be  still  more  so 
if  it  had  not  received  a  blow  and  been  slightly  cracked  at  one 
side.  It  is  of  the  same  colouring,  but  of  finer  description  than 
our  vases.  On  our  return  with  Pinto,  our  bowl  and  our  print, 
we  met  Mr.  Suter,  who  turned  and  walked  with  us,  and  thought 
very  highly  of  our  new  purchase.  He  gave  us  a  curious 
account  of  Pinto,  who  began  by  being  a  barber's  boy,  who 
taught  himself  to  dance,  after  which  he  became  a  dancing 
master,  and  who  now,  pursuing  the  calling  of  a  painter  !  and 
a  barber,  is  possessor  of  a  small  vineyard — a  worthy  man — 
the  Figaro  of  the  place  !  We  have  liked  our  stay  at  Jeres 
very  much.  To-morrow  we  go  to  Seville. 

Good  Friday,  2Qth.  Left  the  Hotel  very  early  (having  been 
called  at  four  o'clock  in  the  morning).  No  vehicles  being 
allowed  in  the  streets  we  walked  to  the  station,  and  our  luggage 
was  put  on  the  back  of  a  mule.  It  was  a  joyous  Spring  morn- 
ing and  we  had  a  pleasant  trajet  to  Seville.  At  Utrera  an 
Englishman  got  into  the  carriage,  and  amused  us  the  rest  of 
the  way  by  his  (mercantile)  experiences  of  Spain.  At  Seville 
Ricardo  Pickman  met  us  with  their  carriage,  and  before  going 
on  to  the  Hotel,  took  us  on  to  the  Cathedral,  where  we  found 
the  Monumento  still  lighted  up,  and  were  just  in  time  to  see 
the  procession  for  removing  the  Host  thence  to  the  High 
Altar.  Not  a  very  impressive  sight.  The  "  Fonda  de 
Londres  "  being  full,  they  had  taken  rooms  for  us  hard  by,  at 
37  Calle  Saragoza.  Unpacked,  dressed,  etc.,  and  went  for 
breakfast  to  the  Londres.  Came  back  to  rest  and  prepared  to 

146 


1872  NOTES  CERAMIC 

accompany  the  Pickmans  to  Scerpes,  where  they  had  engaged 
a  balcony  to  see  the  great  procession  (Paso)  at  5-3°-  A 
violent  rain,  however,  supervened,  so  the  procession  was 
given  up  and  we  remained  in  our  apartment  till  time  for  table 
d'hote  at  the  Londres.  Wrote  to  my  dear  Monty.  It  is  his 
birthday,  Good  Friday,  March  29,  1839.  Thirty-three  to-day. 

30th.  Storm  of  thunder  and  lightning  early,  frequent 
showers  in  the  day,  but  pleasant  atmosphere.  Walked 
and  drove  about.  C.S.  went  to  see  the  "  Rending  of  the 
Veil"  in  the  Cathedral  at  10.  We  called  (of  course)  at  Robles', 
and  went  also  to  our  friend  Bueno,  who  "  spared  to  us  an 
Oriental  jar,"  for  which  we  found  a  top  at  Bianchi's.  After 
table  d'hote  we  walked  to  one  of  the  Ballrooms  near  the 
Plaza  del  Duque  to  see  the  national  dances,  Spanish  and 
gipsy,  the  latter  very  solemn  and  interesting.  We  had  met 
Lady  Lilford  yesterday  in  the  Cathedral  and  sat  with  her 
again  to-night.  [This  lady  was  the  wife  of  the  4th  Baron  and 
mother  of  the  present.] 

3ist.  Ricardo  Pickman  with  a  cousin,  William  Ponce, 
came  to  fetch  us  in  their  carriage  at  I,  and  took  us  a 
drive  to  Italica.  It  was  a  lovely  day  and  a  most  charming 
expedition.  On  our  way  we  turned  aside  to  Castileja,  where 
we  found  a  village  f£te  and  procession  going  on.  It  was  a 
very  pretty  sight.  When  the  figures  had  been  restored  to  the 
church  we  went  to  see  the  house  where  Cortes  died,  prettily 
restored  and  fitted  up  by  the  Duke  de  Montpensier,  The 
view  over  Seville  and  its  plain  from  the  roof  is  charming. 
We  were  much  pleased  with  the  remains  of  Italica,  amongst 
which  I  scrambled  about  as  though  I  had  never  been  ill  :  on 
our  way  back  we  went  into  the  Convent  and  its  Church — 
burial-place  of  the  Guzmans.  Dined  at  the  Cartuja  with  the 
Pickmans,  who  sent  us  back  in  the  evening  to  Seville. 
Alarming  reports  of  the  train  having  been  stopped  by 

147 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1872 
brigands  between  Manzanarez  and  Madrid,  which  proved  on 
the  morrow  to  be  perfectly  true. 


APRIL  1872 

SEVILLE  :  CORDOVA  :  GRANADA  :  MADRID  :   BAYONNE  :  PAU  : 
TOULOUSE 

April  1st.  Went  to  see  the  Duke  de  Montpensier's  Palace, 
which  is  composed  of  fine  spaces,  but  contains  little  of  interest. 
Then  to  see  the  Due  de  Palomar's  Palace  in  the  Plaza  del 
Duque,  and  one  in  the  old  Moorish  style.  After  this  we  went 
to  the  Banker's  and  finished  with  a  drive  in  Las  Delicias. 

2nd.  While  at  breakfast  the  Duke  of  St.  Albans  [he  was 
the  loth  Duke]  came  to  us  to  get  information  about  the  state  of 
the  roads,  etc.  We  gave  him  particulars  about  the  curiosity 
shops,  and  later  in  the  day  met  him  again  at  Robles',  after  which 
we  visited  several  of  these  places  together.  Early  in  the  day 
we  had  paid  another  visit  to  our  friend  Urzaiz's,  and  he  had 
arranged  for  us  to  go  and  see  the  collection  of  his  neighbour 
Senor  Goyena  on  the  following  day. 

3rd.  This  accordingly  we  did  at  I.  o'clock.  We  were 
delighted  with  his  specimens  of  Azulejos  and  of  Musarabic 
dishes.  He  gave  me  two  very  good  tiles,  and  Urzaiz  pre- 
sented me  with  a  shell-shaped  Triana  dish,  dated  1784. 
Made  our  adieux  to  Robles  (with  whom  I  found  only  some 
unimportant  pearl  buttons)  and  then  drove  to  the  Cartuja  in 
the  Pickmans'  carriage,  which  they  had  sent  over  for  us.  We 
took  our  few  pieces  of  china  over  with  us,  which  they  got 
packed,  and  which  we,  next  day, 

4th,  delivered  on  board  the  Duke  of  St.  Albans'  yacht 
to  be  conveyed  to  England.  Happening  to  meet  Ricardo 
Pickman,  he  drove  about  with  us  and  showed  us  one  or 
two  Moorish  houses.  He  took  us  to  the  house  of  the 

148 


c  P 


8E 


1872  NOTES  CERAMIC 

Marquis  de  Montilla,  in  the  Calle  de  Cuna,  which  his 
family  have  inhabited  ever  since  his  ancestors  scaled  the 
Giralda  in  the  I3th  century.  The  Marquis  is  fitting  up  some 
apartments  with  tiles.  Of  these  the  best  came  from  Morocco, 
and  were  put  in  their  places  by  three  Moors  brought  over  for 
the  purpose.  Some  very  good  ones  came  from  Triana,  and 
some  from  Valencia.  All  these,  I  am  sorry  to  say,  eclipse 
those  made  by  the  Pickmans  at  Cartuja,  and  have  much 
more  of  the  old  artistic  feeling.  Went  into  the  Archbishop's 
Palace.  Being  the  time  of  the  siesta  we  could  not  see  the 
Hall  in  which  Disraeli  told  me  he  dined  with  the  then 
Archbishop  forty  years  ago  in  company  with  some  four 
hundred  people  and  described  by  him  as  a  fine  sight.  The 
present  Archbishop  is  a  friend  of  his.  We  did  not  see  him 
but  saw  one  of  the  lower  dignitaries,  Senor  Beck.  Parting 
from  Mr.  Pickman  we  went  to  the  Alcazar  and  spent  a 
delightful  couple  of  hours  in  the  Palace  and  its  lovely  gardens. 
In  the  Courtyard  we  found  a  man  repairing  old  frames. 
One  that  he  possessed  seemed  suitable  for  the  picture 
Palmeroli  painted  of  me  last  year  :  so  we  bought  it  and  went 
again  down  to  the  river  to  speak  about  the  conveyance  of  it 
to  the  Duke's  steam  yacht.  Lord  Ely  seeing  us  came  off  in 
his  boat,  and  took  us  on  board  his  yacht,  the  Zelia,  where  we 
stayed  talking  to  him  until  it  was  time  to  return  for  dinner.  He 
sent  us  up  in  his  boat  to  the  Torre  del  Oro.  The  river  lovely 
this  evening.  The  little  maid  at  the  lodgings,  whom  we  call 
(a  la  Dickens)  "the  Marchioness,"  brought  us  for  sale  a 
basket  and  stand  marked  "  Leeds  Pottery,"  which  belonged 
to  her  Aunt.  Curious  how  such  things  should  still  exist 
among  the  poor  of  Seville ! 

5th.  Left  Seville  at  10.  ;  reached  Cordova  after  2.  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Archdale  in  the  carriage  with  us.  Saw  Don 
Juan  at  the  station.  Rooms  ready  for  us  at  the  Hdtel 

149 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1872 

Suiza.  Soon  after  our  arrival  went  the  round  of  the  shops. 
Our  friend  Mathias  Sanz  had  nothing  to  our  taste.  At 
Diego  Asturias'  shop  we  got  a  pair  of  earthenware  fishes 
encrusted  with  insects,  etc.  (qy.  if  modern).  His  son  went 
with  us  the  round  of  the  Platerias.  We  found  -nothing, 
except  one  ornament,  or  spray,  in  gold  or  enamel  with  a  few 
stones ;  an  antique  and  curious  piece,  but  not  worth  £70 
which  the  man  asked  for  it.  From  him  I  got  the  names  of 
two  "  aficionados  "  of  whom  I  had  not  previously  heard. 

6th.  Don  Juan  went  with  us  to  an  old  acquaintance, 
Don  Diego  Elias,  and  left  us  there.  Don  Diego  had  nothing 
himself,  but  we  got  him  to  take  us  to  the  two  aficionados  of 
whom  I  had  got  the  names :  first  to  Senor  Molino,  where, 
after  waiting  a  long  time  for  him  to  come  in,  I  saw  a 
quantity,  some  60  to  70,  Musarabic  plates,  not  either  very 
good  or  very  perfect.  Then  (while  C.S.  went  to  post  a 
letter  at  the  station)  I  went  on  to  Senor  Victoriano  Rivera  at 
the  College,  and  saw  some  things  that  pleased  me.  So  after 
parting  with  Don  Diego,  on  C.S.'s  return,  I  took  him  to  see 
Rivera  and  his  collection,  and  we  brought  away  a  handsome 
silver  dish  for  £5. 14.  o.  After  this  we  went  to  the  Mosque,  and 
down  to  the  Bridge,  and  lounged  about  till  it  was  time  to 
return  for  dinner.  Charming  weather,  and  all  most  enjoyable. 
We  had  intended  going  to  Archena  for  me  to  take  the  Baths, 
but  what  we  have  heard  since  we  came  to  Cordova  has  induced 
us  to  give  up  this  plan  and  to  go  to  Granada  instead.  After 
dinner  Don  Juan  took  us  to  be  introduced  to  Duncan  Shaw, 
the  large  worker  of  mines,  etc.,  near  the  town. 

7th.  At  2.30  drove  in  a  brake  with  Don  Juan  to  the 
same  gardens  that  he  took  us  to  last  year.  (See  May  14, 
1871.)  Mrs.  Mirehouse  and  her  daughter  (with  whom  we 
had  made  acquaintance  at  Seville)  accompanied  us.  We  had 
an  unpleasant  interruption  in  the  gardens,  which  looked 


1872  NOTES  CERAMIC 

lovely  and  which  we  were  enjoying  very  much.  We  came 
upon  a  party  of  ill-looking  men,  some  of  whom  Don  Juan  said 
he  knew  to  be  desperate  characters  from  the  town,  and  so  he 
said  he  did  not  feel  safe  at  our  remaining  there  and  we  came 
soon  away,  but  we  gained  by  this,  as  we  found  time  to  drive 
out  of  the  town  again  by  Mala  Muerte  Tower,  and  so  make 
a  little  tour  outside  the  Walls.  It  was  lovely.  He  took  us 
to  see  some  curious  Moorish  decoration  in  the  house  of 
an  Architect,  Amadeo  Rodriguez.  Near  this  in  the  church 
Santiago  are  the  remains  of  a  fine  Rose  window.  We  dined  with 
Duncan  Shaw,  an  interesting  and  remarkable  man.  He  gave 
us  all  sorts  of  wine  to  taste,  some  of  which  he  sent  me  as  a 
present  the  next  day  !  His  wife,  his  nephew  (Mr.  Poole)  and 
his  wife  and  Don  Juan  formed  the  party.  He  told  me  he 
visited  no  one  in  Cordova,  and  he  kept  all  his  children  in 
England  to  be  brought  up  as  Protestants.  Rather  dull  for 
the  poor  uneducated  Roman  Catholic  wife !  But  I  quite 
sympathise  with  them  both. 

8th.  They  sent  to  tell  us  that  our  new  friend  Rivera  had 
found  out  the  two  tibores  we  had  heard  darkly  hinted  at  as 
being  in  Cordova,  so  we  went  to  his  rooms  to  look  at  them. 
They  were  not  of  a  kind  to  suit  us,  but  the  visit  led  to  our 
buying  Rivera's  Mudyar  Cabinet  for  £25.  Left  Cordova  this 
afternoon.  Mrs.  Mirehouse  went  with  us  as  far  as  Bobadilla, 
where  we  branched  off  from  the  Malaga  line  (see  May  14 
1871).  The  line  is  now  open  as  far  as  Salinas,  which  we 
reached  at  8  o'clock.  Then  we  took  our  places  (ordered 
three  days  previous)  in  the  omnibus  or  diligence,  which  by 
the  help  of  nine  horses  mastered  the  fearful  road  to  Loja  in 
about  2j  hours.  It  was,  of  course,  quite  dark,  and  after  the 
recent  alarms  of  brigands  it  was  not  so  pleasant  to  travel. 
But  I  slept  notwithstanding  that  and  the  wonderful  jolting 
we  underwent ;  and  by  two  o'clock  we  were  safe  in  the 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1872 

Alhambra,  at  the  Siete  Suelos.  Our  luggage,  however,  was 
not  allowed  to  be  delivered  to  us  till  the  following  morning. 

Qth.  We  have  charming  rooms  looking  over  the 
gardens  and  down  the  drive.  Curious  that  our  first  visit 
here  was  exactly  at  this  date.  After  a  late  breakfast  we 
walked  down  into  the  town  and  hunted  the  shops,  and  found, 
by  chance,  a  son  of  Washington  Irving's  old  guide,  who 
has  married  a  rich  wife  and  retired  from  business.  But 
I  think  he  will  be  of  use  to  us.  He  possesses  a  magnificent 
embroidered  quilt,  but  I  fear  he  will  want  too  much  for  it. 
We  lingered  till  past  six,  then  hastened  back  for  table 
d'hdte. 

loth.  Our  wedding-day.  C.S.  has  a  headache,  so, 
although  we  got  up  very  early,  we  are  only  now  able  to  go 
out.  The  weather  is  perfectly  delicious.  On  Monday  there 
was  a  high  cold  wind  here,  and  a  slight  shock  of  earthquake 
was  felt.  (2  P.M.)  This  delicious  afternoon  was  spent  quietly 
in  the  Alhambra,  and  we  were  very  happy.  The  Vase  has 
been  moved  into  an  upstairs  room  until  some  apartment  (I 
think  the  Hall  of  the  Abencerrages)  can  be  converted  into  a 
Museum.  I  was  glad  to  see  it  again.  The  bees  were 
humming  in  the  Court  of  Lions,  as  they  were  this  day  two 
years.  We  went  to  see  Mateo  Ximenes,  Washington 
Irving's  old  guide,  now  so  poor  and  old,  and  walked  about 
the  ruins.  The  Archdales  made  us  come  to  their  rooms  in 
the  evening,  where  we  met  Lord  Ely,  who  has  just  come  back 
from  Seville — but  I  was  early  in  bed. 

nth.  After  breakfast  (about  12)  we  walked  down 
into  the  town.  Sought  out  our  new  friend  Jose  Ximenes, 
and,  while  waiting  for  him  to  come  in,  went  to  call  on  the 
artist  Fortuny,  Plaza  de  Realejo.  Unluckily  for  us  he  was 
gone  to  the  Fair  at  Seville.  But  we  saw  his  celebrated 
Arabian  vase,  which  is  very  curious  and  of  extreme  interest 

152 


1872  NOTES  CERAMIC 

to  me.  Ximenes  took  us  into  the  Plaza  de  St.  Augustin, 
where  we  got  some  curious  old  Spanish  ware  vases  crowned 
with  fruits,  and  at  the  shop  where  we  purchased  our  Musarabic 
jug  before,  a  very  pretty  specimen  of  glass  either  Spanish  or 
Venetian.  We  went  to  the  bottom  of  the  town  to  secure  our 
places  for  Wednesday  next  for  Madrid,  and  made  an  ineffectual 
chasse  in  the  Alameda,  No.  33.  Returning  we  bought  a  little 
Bow  figure,  of  an  artist  in  the  Plaza  Nueva  (by  name  Morales 
Martin)  and,  calling  at  Tomas  Perez's  on  our  way  back,  got  to 
our  Hotel  in  good  time  for  dinner.  Perez  had  promised  us  a 
fine  piece  of  Arabian  antiquity  if  we  called  this  afternoon,  and 
behold  he  showed  us  a  gres  de  Flandres  jug  of  no  merit.  We 
have  also  made  acquaintance  with  a  Belgian  or  Austrian 
gentleman,  Count  O'Sullivan  de  Grays,  who  is  as  great  an 
enthusiast  as  ourselves,  but  appears  to  give  fabulous 
prices. 

I2th.  We  had  appointed  to  be  with  Ximenes  at  11.30. 
to-day  and  kept  our  time  accordingly.  He  took  us  up 
to  the  other  side  of  the  stream  to  the  house  of  a  priest  who  is 
Superior  of  the  Church  San  Juan  de  los  Reyes.  This  good 
man,  by  name  Don  Nicolas  Fernandez  Pane,  showed  us  a 
Vestment,  which  he  called  a  Casaca,  which  had  a  good  stripe 
of  embroidery  in  bullion  down  the  centre.  He  said  it  was  of 
the  date  of  Ferdinand  and  Isabella  and  had  been  worn  by 
Talavera  at  the  Mosque,  which  had  been  turned  into  a  Christian 
Church  on  the  very  day  that  Boabdil  gave  up  the  keys  of  the 
Alhambra.  Whatever  might  be  the  truth  of  this  story  the 
embroidery  was  very  good,  and  we  might  have  had  it  for  £15, 
which  was  the  sum  for  which  our  priest  said  he  could  buy  a 
new  one.  But  not  being  well  up  in  such  matters  we  thought 
it  more  prudent  to  wait  till  we  could  consult  Henry  about  it, 
and  the  priest  promises  to  give  us  time.  The  scene  at  his 
house  was  very  interesting.  He  showed  us  his  Library, 

153 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1872 

where  he  seemed  to  have  spent  a  great  deal  of  money  on 
worthless  modern  books,  and  he  played  to  us  the  chimes  of  a 
wonderful  Swiss  clock,  the  tunes  of  which  were  very  in- 
different and  greatly  out  of  order.  To  see  the  serious  way  in 
which  we  four,  the  priest,  the  guide  and  our  two  selves,  sat 
listening  before  the  said  clock,  would  have  disturbed  most 
people's  gravity.  He  took  us  to  see  the  church  of  St.  Paul 
and  Pietro,  where  the  old  roof  is  magnificent.  He  showed 
us  the  vestments,  which  were  gay  and  good  but  not  ancient. 
Then  we  went  into  San  Juan  delos  Reyes,  with  its  charming 
Moorish  Tower,  and  then  ascended  the  Hill  fora  fine  view  of 
the  Alhambra,  Granada  and  the  surrounding  mountains.  (See 
April  12,  1870.)  There  was  an  old  Moorish  house  with 
interesting  courtyards  near  there,  which  we  went  into. 
Returning  to  the  heart  of  the  City  we  went  into  the  Palais  de 
Justice,  where  there  are  fine  wooden  doors  with  heads  in  relief 
and  a  curious  staircase ;  then  lounged  down  to  the  shops  of 
the  Zacatin,  etc.  Took  a  carriage  in  the  Alameda  to  go  to 
old  Colonel  Valeras.  When  we  arrived  he  was  not  at  home, 
so  we  sat  and  talked  to  his  pretty  daughter.  She  had  some 
nice  marcasites  in  her  ears  and  showed  us  the  necklace,  etc., 
to  correspond.  When  the  old  Colonel  came  in,  it  ended  in 
our  buying  these  and  a  Spanish  fan,  a  Chelsea  snuff  box,  and 
a  silver-mounted  ivory  fan,  for  £5.  5.  Returned  for  dinner 
well  pleased  with  our  morning's  work.  It  had  been  very 
pleasant,  but  the  weather  had  been  less  bright  and,  con- 
sequently, less  warm  than  on  the  previous  days. 

I3th.  Not  out  quite  so  early.  Went  out  after  noon  and 
did  not  return  till  past  6.  We  did  not  take  the  guide  with 
us  to-day,  but  had  a  very  pleasant  lounge  by  ourselves, 
finding  out  numerous  picturesque  corners  as  we  went  along. 
Among  other  things,  went  again  to  look  at  the  fine  Enamel 
in  the  Liceo.  After  6,  we  went  into  the  Cathedral  and  saw 

154 


1872  NOTES  CERAMIC 

the  precious  relics  of  Isabella  in  the  Sacristy.  We  had  just 
got  into  the  Coro  when  an  "  Office"  began,  so  we  had  to 
remain  "perdu"  till  the  ceremony  was  over,  and,  hiding 
behind  the  tomb  of  los  Reyes  Catolicos  were  very  happy 
there,  studying  the  beautiful  execution  of  the  monuments  and 
of  the  Reja  until  the  priests  withdrew.  Then,  to  our  hearts' 
content,  we  gazed  at  the  good  old  Retablo,  with  its  many 
associations.  Went  into  many  nooks  and  corners,  and  on  our 
way  up,  bought  a  curious  old  book  with  prints  of  a  Masque, 
given  by  Barcelona  to  Charles  III.  We  got  it  through 
Perez,  who  lives  close  to  Charles  V.'s  gate,  and  gave  16/8  for 
it ;  a  small  silver  frame  in  the  Zacatin  for  6/3. 

I4th.  Quiet  morning  in  our  rooms,  where  the  view  of 
the  gardens,  and  the  sound  of  the  birds  and  the  fountains  are 
most  delicious.  At  2  we  went  down  into  the  town,  and  in 
the  Plaza  Nueva  found  Ximenes,  with  a  carriage  waiting  for 
us.  We  drove  to  the  pretty  little  village  of  Subia,  by  a  very 
good  road,  and  were  there  shown  an  arbour  which  is  all  that 
remains  of  a  wood  of  evergreen  oak  in  which  Isabella  is 
said  to  have  saved  herself  from  an  overpowering  force  of 
Moors  by  climbing  up  a  tree !  Ferdinand  built  a  Church 
near  the  spot ;  the  walls  are  said  to  be  the  same  as  in  his 
time,  but  the  interior  shows  no  traces  of  antiquity.  We 
walked  a  little  about  the  village  enjoying  the  lovely  views, 
and  the  interesting,  picturesque  groups  of  its  inhabitants,  all 
in  their  Sunday  best,  and  then  returned  to  the  Plaza  Nueva, 
whence  we  made  our  way  leisurely  back,  taking  the  upper 
path  overlooking  the  City.  Ximenes'  whole  family,  includ- 
ing his  wife,  his  father  and  his  father's  wife,  a  friend  and  a 
niece  and  her  husband  (only  married  yesterday)  had  gone  be- 
fore and  joined  company  with  us  at  Subia.  It  was  altogether 
very  amusing  and  very  Spanish.  Wrote  a  quantity  of  letters, 
and  am  now  going,  very  sleepy,  to  bed. 

155 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1872 

I5th.  Stayed  at  home  till  near  12.  when  we  went  to 
Perez's  to  see  some  jewellery  and  some  Oriental  vases,  which 
he  said  belonged  to  an  old  lady  of  80,  the  daughter  of  an 
officer,  now  a  pensioner  on  a  relation  at  Madrid,  who  has 
lately  discontinued  the  supplies.  However,  when  we  got 
there  we  found  that  there  was  nothing  to  be  seen  there  till 
to-morrow.  We  went  down  the  Zacatin  and  offered  Mar- 
selan  for  a  table  and  a  foot  of  a  cross  £25.  but  he  refused  it. 
Also  we  went  to  a  Casa  de  Prestamos  to  see  an  Urna,  but  it 
was  not  to  our  taste.  Then  we  got  a  carriage  and  drove  to 
the  Cartuja,  whence  the  view  is  exquisite,  and  where  we 
again  admired  the  execution  of  the  doors  and  the  armoires  in 
the  Sacritier.  Then  drove  to  the  Colonel's  to  conclude  our 
Friday's  purchase.  We  had  been  amused  in  the  early  part 
of  the  day  at  having  been  taken  to  a  Casa  de  Prestamos  to 
look  at  a  Concha  Urna  a  young  man  had  there,  in  pledge. 
It  was  of  no  value,  but  might  have  been  valuable.  Old 
Miguel  Torres,  who  had  been  out  two  days  looking  for 
antiquities,  had  nothing  but  an  old  sword  to  show  us.  He 
took  us  to  a  rubbish  store  in  his  neighbourhood,  from  which 
we  got  nothing  but  a  "  Davenport"  plate,  like  one  Ximenes' 
wife  had  presented  us  with  (2/1).  This  and  a  small 
piece  formed  of  a  double  eagle  (also  2/1)  completed  the 
day's  purchases.  Miguel  assured  us  that  the  Marquis  de 
Salar  possessed  "Tibores,"  so  we  went  on  an  ineffectual 
quest  after  the  Marquis  de  Salar,  and  found  that  Fortuny 
(who  bought  his  Arab  Vase)  now  inhabits  his  Palace.  It  so 
chanced  that  mentioning  his  name  before  the  driver  of  the 
carriage  that  took  us  to  the  Cartuja,  the  said  driver  volun- 
teered the  name  of  the  Marquis's  agent,  and  thence  again  we 
were  directed  to  some  other  party,  by  whose  wife  (he  not 
being  at  home)  we  were  informed  that  all  the  Marquis's  goods 
were  in  some  other  place,  but  that  perhaps  we  might  get 

156 


A  CHELSEA   GROUP  OF   A   LOVER   AND  HIS  LADY,  SHOWING   THE   BOCAGE  AT  ONE  TIME 
SO    POPULAR    FOR   THE   BACKGROUND    OF    THE    STATUETTES    MADE    AT   THIS    EARLY 

FACTORY 
Lady  Layard  s  Collection 


1872  NOTES  CERAMIC 

access  to  them  to-morrow,  and  with  this  vague  promise  we 
went  home,  arriving  just  in  time  for  table  d'hote.  A  woman 
with  a  guitar  and  children  singing  wild  Moorish  airs  on  the 
Hotel  steps  after  dinner. 

l6th.  Up  early  to  pursue  our  inquiries  in  the  City.  A 
lovely  morning  and  I  got  up  full  of  spirits,  which  were  dashed 
by  a  letter  from  Henry  Layard,  telling  me  that  a  cabinet  we 
had  particularly  wished  to  have  at  Madrid,  and  indeed  had 
thought  secured  to  us,  had  by  some  mistake  been  allowed  to 
escape  us,  which  was  very  vexatious.  By  10.  we  were  with 
Perez,  who  took  us  to  see  the  old  lady's  goods  in  the  Casa  de 
Prestamos.  The  vases  were  vile  modern  French  and  she 
had  nothing  of  any  value  to  us,  however  we  bought  a  small 
locket  with  the  X  and  Crown,  given  to  her  ancestor  at  the 
Coronation  of  Charles  III.  (18/6)  and  then  went  with  Perez 
into  one  or  two  other  places,  but  without  result.  We  tele- 
graphed to  Madrid  about  our  journey.  Paid  for  our  places, 
and  finally  went  to  our  Banker's  for  some  more  money,  having 
invested  in  Ximenes'  quilt  for  Ivor  at  a  cost  of  35  guineas. 
Then  we  came  back  and  rested  awhile,  and  then  went  to  the 
Alhambra  to  take  a  last  look.  The  fountain  was  playing  in 
the  Court  of  Lions  and  the  bees  humming  as  of  old.  The 
view  from  the  Hall  of  Ambassadors  most  lovely  in  the  de- 
clining light.  Stayed  out  as  late  as  we  could,  returning  for 
dinner  ;  since  when  packing  and  accounts.  There  has  been 
a  great  entertainment  in  the  Hotel  Gardens,  given  by  the 
Deputies  of  the  place,  who  are  said  to  be  Montpensierists. 
Speeches,  etc.,  very  animated.  We  leave  this  lovely  place 
to-morrow  at  daybreak. 

lytth  We  laid  down  for  a  few  hours,  but  did  not  go  to 
bed,  having  to  be  up  so  early  again.  Indeed,  we  were  stir- 
ring about  2.  At  4  went  down  to  breakfast.  At  4.30  got 
into  the  little  carriage  which  took  us  down  into  the  town. 

157 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1872 

Travelled  by  diligence  to  Menjibar.  Our  places  were  in 
the  Coupee,  level  with  the  roof,  where  we  were  sheltered 
from  sun  and  dust.  Two  of  the  Mirehouse's  party  sat  with 
us  (but  they  got  down  at  Jaen).  The  first  part  of  the  road, 
magnificent ;  all  interesting ;  Jaen  finely  situated.  We 
dined  at  the  buffet  at  Menjibar,  where  the  train  took  us  up, 
and  after  a  good  and  comfortable  journey  we  reached  Madrid 
without  accident  at  6  next  morning. 

i8th.  Found  all  well.  Henry  much  better  for  a  short 
holiday  they  had  taken  to  San  Sebastian  in  our  absence. 
Walked  with  Henry  in  the  afternoon  and  went  the  round  of 
the  shops. 

igth.  In  the  afternoon  drove  out  with  Enid  to  leave 
some  cards  and  call  to  see  the  Mirehouses,  who  were  at  the 
Fonda  de  Paris. 

20th.  The  weather  had  changed  from  being  very  fine  to 
becoming  cold  and  wet.  C.S.  and  I  went  with  Giovanni  to 
look  at  an  "  Urna  "  (cabinet)  in  the  Alcala,  which  did  not  suit. 
Then  to  Lorenzo's,  where  we  concluded  for  a  very  good  Urna 
and  Mesa  (table)  (1500  reals)  and  bought  some  other  trifles. 
We  also  got  a  miniature  and  some  D.V.  tea-jars  in  the 
Calle  del  Prado. 

Sunday,  2ist.  Service  in  the  Chapel.  A  violent  hurri- 
cane all  day  so  that  we  none  of  us  got  out.  Very  alarming 
accounts  of  Carlist  risings:  several  arrests  were  made  of 
Carlist  Deputies  and  leaders.  At  dinner  the  Hunts,  Mr. 
Ffrench,  Mr.  Goschen,  Mr.  Seymour,  and  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Phillimore. 

22nd.     Weather  still  very  rough.     C.S.    and  I  went   to 
see  Mme.   Riano  and  paid  her  a  long  visit.     In  the  after- 
noon called  upon  the  Valencias.     Mme.  Valencia  was  at  home 
then   we    went    to     some    shops — Vicente's,    etc.,    but    saw 
nothing  to  tempt.     Ivor  had  sent  me  a  commission  to  lay  out 

158 


1872  NOTES  CERAMIC 

£200  for  him,  but  I  cannot  find  objects  to  invest  half  that  sum. 
Commenced  our  packing  for  going  away.  There  was  a  dinner 
party  at  the  Embassy  ;  the  French  Minister  and  his  wife 
(M.  and  Mme.  de  Bouille),  M.  and  Mme.  Morelli  (he  was 
formerly  Minister  of  Finance),  Admiral  the  Marquis  de 
Montaignac  (a  charming  old  man  who  has  a  collection),  the 
Duchess  de  Fernan  Nunez,  etc.  In  the  evening  we  had  some 
good  music.  A  M.  Beck  played  the  piano  and  then  M. 
Romero  (an  amateur)  was  wonderful  with  the  clarionet. 
Long  talk  with  Russian  Minister  and  his  wife,  Comte  and 
Comtesse  Koudriaffski>  He  was  many  years  in  England,  and 
used  to  come  to  my  house  in  Spring  Gardens  where  he 
remembered  the  "  Fete  de  Roses,"  the  "  Rose  Ball."  They 
have  just  come  from  Lisbon,  which  they  liked  much. 

23rd.  The  day  fixed  for  our  departure.  All  the  reports 
about  the  Carlist  movements  were  very  unsatisfactory.  It 
appeared,  however,  that  the  road  was  still  open  to  the 
North,  and  Henry  thought  that  we  ought  not  to  delay  our 
journey,  as  it  was  impossible  to  say  how  soon  it  might  be 
stopped.  I  went  alone  to  see  the  Valencias  and  their  beau- 
tiful collection  of  Buen  Retire.  He  was  most  kind  and  gave 
me  Azulejos,  etc.,  and  promised  to  assist  my  collection  of  them. 
I  returned  to  the  Embassy  in  time  for  luncheon,  and  after, 
C.S.  and  I  went  together  to  call  on  the  Duchess  de  Fernan 
Nunez,  who  showed  us  all  over  her  Palace.  The  patios  are 
fine,  and  it  contains  a  few  good  things.  Four  magnificent 
Oriental  Vases,  bearing  the  Arms  of  Spain,  which  she  called 
Buen  Retire.  Took  a  final  glance  at  one  or  two  Platerias 
before  going  in.  Then  finished  packing  at  6,  and  left  Madrid. 
Henry  had  procured  a  carriage  for  us,  which  we  shared  with 
our  new  acquaintances  the  Mirehouses,  and  so  we  had  a  very 
comfortable  journey,  mercifully  without  any  interruption 
from  Carlists  or  anything  else.  All  that  we  remarked  on  the 

159 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1872 
road  as  usual,  was  the  number  of  soldiers  at  some  of  the 
stations  in  transit  from  one  place  to  another ;  while  we  saw 
others  scattered  about  in  various  directions  in  the  country. 
It  is  always  a  trouble  to  me  to  leave  Madrid,  and  now  that 
the  whole  population  seem  in  a  state  of  excitement  more  or 
less,  I  cannot  help  feeling  a  good  deal  of  anxiety  at  Enid  being 
there.  But  it  is  her  duty,  and  I  must  trust  that  God  will 
protect  her.  The  Mirehouses  got  out  at  San  Sebastian ;  we 
went  on  to  Bayonne,  where  we  arrive  before  2  next  day, 

24th,  and  having  settled  our  rooms,  etc.,  at  the  St.  Etienne 
we  were  soon  out  again,  having  taken  the  couple  of  an  omni- 
bus to  Biarritz.  It  was  a  pleasant  afternoon  ;  we  rambled  up 
and  down  the  cliffs  and  enjoyed  ourselves  very  much.  The 
view  to  the  Spanish  mountains  was  magnificent,  and  with 
pain  I  bid  them  a  last  adieu.  Returned  to  Bayonne  for  dinner. 

25th.  Before  II.  left  Bayonne  for  Pau.  A  beautiful 
journey  in  beautiful  weather.  Put  up  at  the  "  Beau  Sejour" 
— very  good,  our  rooms  commanding  a  grand  view.  In  the 
afternoon  we  walked  about  the  town.  Found  a  pretty  good 
curiosity  shop,  "  Cerf,  Rue  de  Servias  ",  and  bought  of  him  an 
old  metal  obelisk  mounted  with  coral ;  probably  Spanish  or 
Neapolitan  (£i.  16),  picturesque,  if  not  curious. 

26th.  Walked  about ;  visited  the  Castle,  with  which  we 
were  delighted,  especially  with  the  architectural  remains  and 
the  tapestries.  Walked  a  little  in  the  grounds,  then  took  a 
carriage  and  drove  to  see  the  Park,  etc. 

27th.  It  was  a  delicious  day.  In  the  afternoon  we  took 
a  most  charming  drive  into  the  country,  to  a  Chapel  called 
La  Pietad.  A  fine  view  over  the  valley  and  to  the  distant 
snow-clad  hills.  We  returned  by  another  route.  Bought  of 
Cerf  another  of  the  old  Spanish  silver  embossed  plates,  having 
a  portrait  in  the  centre,  which  is  rare  though  not  lovely.  We 
thought  Ivor  might  like  it  to  add  to  his  collection. 

160 


1872  NOTES  CERAMIC 

Sunday  29th.  An  excursion  to  see  the  Eaux  Bonnes  being 
determined  on,  we  got  up  very  early,  and  by  8.  were  on  our 
way.  We  were  in  the  little  open  carriage  which  we  had 
driven  in  on  the  previous  day.  It  was  light,  the  horses  good 
and  we  got  on  apace.  But  we  had  not  reached  our  first  rest- 
ing place  (the  Hotel  des  Pyrenees,  where  we  breakfasted) 
before  it  began  to  rain,  and  the  rest  of  the  day  was  provok- 
ingly  wet.  Of  course  we  could  see  no  distant  views  but  the 
country  we  passed  through  quite  repaid  our  visit.  We  stayed 
some  time  at  the  Hotel  at  the  Eaux  Bonnes  for  the  horses 
to  rest,  and  then  returned  in  a  pouring  rain.  Called  on  our 
way  back  upon  the  Mirehouses,  who  were  stopping  at  the 
Hotel  de  France.  It  was  curious,  at  the  Hotel  des  Pyrenees 
to  meet  with  a  literary  man  who  had  written  on  antiquities, 
Mr.  Caesar  Daly,  half  Irish,  half  French,  with  whom  we  had 
some  interesting  conversation. 

29th.  Left  there  ;  the  weather  still  cloudy  ;  some  of  the 
scenery  very  pretty.  Reached  Toulouse  at  night.  Was 
pleased  with  the  view  of  the  early  market  in  the  Place  below, 
which,  in  spite  of  beating  rain,  began  to  be  animated  at  that 
hour,  and  continued  to  increase  in  activity  for  many  hours 
after.  We  walked  out  after  breakfast.  At  an  antiquarian's 
(Faucher),  Place  Lafayette,  we  found  a  few  trifles ;  we  then 
ransacked  every  dealer's  in  the  town,  but  with  no  success. 
Angeli  had  a  fine  Henri  II.  Ebony  cabinet,  for  which  he 
wants  an  absurd  price ;  another  man  had  a  good  ivory  hunt- 
ing horn  ;  but  all  too  dear.  We  found  out  a  sort  of  amateur 
dealer,  M.  Pujol,  Rue  de  la  Colombette,  who  is  quite  a 
character.  He  has  whole  rooms  full  of  curiosities,  and  very 
little  of  it,  either  faience  or  porcelain,  valuable  in  my  eyes, 
but,  "  he  might  have  anything."  We  bought  of  him  a  large 
watch,  dated  Blois  Di.D.C,  signed  Bonbruict.  At  a  furniture 
shop,  La  Font,  Place  de  Salin,  we  bought  a  small  frame 

i  161  L 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1872 

He  had  some  cabinets  which  he  was  restoring,  but  though 
good,  I  did  not  think  them  very  effective.  Visited  the 
churches  of  St.  Sernin,  in  old  Byzantine  style,  very  interest- 
ing, and  the  Faur,  which  is  very  disappointing.  Drove  about 
the  town  and  to  the  banks  of  the  Garonne  before  returning 
to  dinner. 

MAY  1872 

MONTAUBAN  :  AGEN  :  LIMOGES  :  ORLEANS  :  BLOIS  :  PARIS 

May  1st.  Left  Toulouse.  Got  out  of  the  train  at 
Montauban,  and  went  into  the  town,  leaving  the  maid  and 
luggage  at  the  station.  There  was  one  solitary  dealer,  a 
little  man  with  small  knowledge,  and  probably  smaller  means, 
but  a  true  love  of  his  calling  :  Fraysse,  Rue  d'Auriol.  Of  him 
M  fr  /  we  £ot  a  ^ne  Tassie  °f  Minerva  (unluckily  slightly  imperfect) 
and  three  specimens  of  painted  French  Vases.  We  inquired 
of  him  if  there  were  any  collectors  in  the  town,  and  he 
directed  us  to  the  house  of  M.  Forestie,  Rue  des  Rendezvous, 
who  proved  to  be  a  newspaper  editor  and  a  great  amateur  of 
French  faience.  He  showed  us  a  number  of  specimens  of 
Montauban  pottery,  bought  from  the  late  manufacturer's 
descendants  (La  Pierre  by  name),  and  some  of  the  neigh- 
bouring fabrique  of  "  D'Ardus,"  two  of  which  were  marked 
"  D'Ardus  1739."  The  specimens  were  of  a  coarse  descrip- 
tion— not  equal  to  fine  Moustiers  or  Marseilles,  but  in  the 
style  of  both.  M.  Forestie  is  publishing  a  book  about  his 
native  wares.  He  has  all  the  account  books  and  their 
drawings,  etc.  He  took  me  to  see  a  more  miscellaneous 
collection  belonging  to  Abbe  Polier,  who,  besides  faience 
belonging  to  the  district,  has  enamels  and,  notably,  two  fine 
Chantilly  cachepots.  We  did  not  hear  of  the  Hall  of 
Edward  the  Black  Prince  and  the  Salle  de  Chandos  till  too 
late  to  visit  them.  Went  on  by  the  train  to  Agen,  where  M. 

162 


1872  NOTES  CERAMIC 

Forestie  promised  us  we  should  find  many  collectors  and 
several  shops.  We  arrived  about  5  o'clock,  and,  having 
taken  our  rooms  at  the  humble  and  not  very  inviting  Hotel 
St.  Jean,  we  started  off  on  our  quest.  Mayon's  shop 
was  near  the  Hotel  ;  he  had  nothing  but  rubbish  and  was 
insolent  and  apparently  mad.  Next  we  found  out  a  book- 
seller's shop  (Pozzi)  where  we  were  taught  to  expect  great 
things.  Pozzi  had  sold  all  his  collection,  and  all  the  other 
collectors  were  said  to  have  done  the  same  or  to  have  died  ; 
all  except  M.  Pavilare,  a  jeweller,  to  whom  we  directed  our 
steps.  We  found  a  fat  little  man  in  a  kind  of  wooden 
booth,  who  seemed  to  us  as  mad  as  Mayon,  but  in  another 
way.  He  had  nothing  to  show  us,  but  boasted  of  having 
executed  wonderful  works  of  Orfevrerie,  and  produced  papers 
from  the  Imperial  family,  etc.,  styling  him  "  the  Benvenuto 
Cellini  of  his  age."  He  spoke  of  having  these  productions 
stored  away  in  cases  and  told  us  their  inspection  would  take 
two  hours.  We  were  far  from  wishing  to  undertake  the  task, 
but  having  been  recommended  by  him  to  a  dealer,  called 
Gambraide,  we  set  out  in  search  of  this  individual.  It  was  a 
difficult  job,  and  we  should  never  have  found  him  but  for  the 
help  of  the  Concierge  of  the  Prefecture,  whom  we  happened 
to  accost,  and  who  appeared  the  maddest  of  all  the  mad 
inhabitants  of  Agen.  Nevertheless  we  discovered  M. 
Gambraide,  a  stupid  old  gentleman,  with  nothing  worth 
our  looking  at.  After  all  this  we  were  hungry  and  went  to 
the  railway  buffet,  but  found  it  closed,  and  so  betook  our- 
selves to  the  Hotel  Jasmin  opposite,  where  for  2|-  francs  each, 
we  got  one  of  the  best  dinners  I  ever  ate.  Got  back  to  our 
own  quarters  between  heavy  showers  of  rain. 

2nd.  Were  called  at  4  next  morning,  and  by  6  were  en 
route  again.  Agen  had  been  a  failure.  Stopped  at  Perigueux 
for  a  couple  of  hours.  Breakfasted  at  the  buffet,  then  walked 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1872 
into  the  town  ;  visited  the  curious  church  of  St.  Front,  the 
view  of  which  had  been  most  striking  from  the  railroad  ; 
disappointing  when  entered ;  but  the  Tower  most  interesting. 
Some  charming  old  buildings  scattered  about.  C.S.  also 
went  to  see  the  old  church  of  St.  Etienne,  while  I  waited 
with  the  omnibus  that  took  us  back  to  the  station,  and  that 
saved  us  from  a  serious  wetting,  as  a  sudden  thunderstorm 
supervened.  Went  on  to  Limoges,  where  we  arrived  about 
5.  Tried  to  put  up  at  the  Boule  d'Or,  but  found  it  so  bad 
that  we  went  on  to  the  Hotel  Richelieu  ;  also  very  bad  and 
dirty.  We  found  out  afterwards  that  we  ought  to  have  put 
up  at  the  Hotel  Caillot,  in  the  Place  Jourdan.  Insolence  of 
the  omnibus  driver  and  absurd  conclusion.  Dined  at  the 
railway  buffet,  after  attempts  to  find  some  curiosity  shop,  in 
vain. 

3rd.  Walked  all  about  the  town.  Went  into  the  Church 
of  St.  Pierre,  but  had  not  time  to  visit  the  Cathedral.  To 
both  Museums.  That  containing  the  Ceramic  specimens 
interested  us  very  much,  but  we  were  disappointed  that 
the  Director,  M.  Adrien  du  Bouche,  was  absent.  Our 
ceaseless  inquiries  led  us  at  last  to  find  out  a  collector 
who  possessed  Limoges  enamels.  This  was  one  M.  Taille- 
fer,  keeping  a  large  tailor's  shop.  We  found  an  en- 
thusiastic old  man,  full  of  his  subject,  and  possessing 
some  thirty  specimens,  which  he  took  great  delight  in 
showing  us.  Went  on  by  a  train  at  2,  and  reached  Orleans 
in  the  evening,  Hotel  de  1'Univers.  Our  only  fellow- 
traveller  in  the  train  was  an  engineer,  M.  de  Noir,  who 
gave  us  much  curious  information  about  the  beautiful  country 
we  travelled  through  and  other  matters.  It  had  been  a  hot 
summer's  day,  and  it  was  a  lovely  journey. 

4th.  Again  up  at  4,  and  by  a  train  to  Blois  at  6.  Break- 
fasted at  the  Hotel  d'Angleterre.  We  had  missed  Blois  on 

164 


i872  NOTES  CERAMIC 

our  1869  journey.  We  were  delighted  with  the  place,  though 
seen  under  difficulties,  for  rain  had  set  in  before  we  had 
finished  breakfast,  and  we  had  only  intervals  of  fine  weather 
during  the  whole  day.  Went  to  the  Castle,  where  we 
lingered  a  long  while.  Saw  the  Ninis,  etc.,  in  the  Musee. 
The  late  Director,  who  wrote  about  the  Ninis,  has  removed 
to  Lyons.  Bought  of  the  Custodian  an  iron  door  bolt  with 
chiffre  de  Fran9ois  Premier — the  crowned  F.  After  this  we 
drove  over  to  Chambord,  pouring  with  rain.  Went  all  over 
the  grand  old  Castle.  It  is  sad  to  see  it  so  entirely  stripped 
of  furniture.  The  wonderful  double  staircase !  Nothing  to 
be  found  in  the  two  Blois  antiquarian  shops  ;  but  we  learned 
the  name  and  address  of  a  retired  watchmaker  and  paid  him 
a  hurried  visit  to  inquire  if  he  could  tell  us  anything  about 
the  Blois  watch  we  had  bought  at  Toulouse.  The  old 

o 

gentleman  showed  us  an  MS.  list  (of  the  time)  of  the  47 
Horlogers  living  at  Blois  in  1639,  among  whom  we  found 
the  name  of  our  artist,  "  Bonbruict,"  which  was  very  satis- 
factory. Ruper's  family  had  been  300  years  clockmakers  at 
Blois.  We  had  just  time  to  go  through  the  beautiful  Church 
of  St.  Nicholas  on  our  way  to  Ruper's  and  the  train;  off  at 
6.15.  Stopped  at  Orleans  only  long  enough  to  fetch  our 
maid  and  luggage  and  get  something  to  eat.  Then  came 
on  to  Paris  and  reached  the  Hotel  St.  Romain  about 
midnight. 

6th.  Went  the  round  of  the  shops.  Found  nothing  in 
Quai  Voltaire.  At  Mme.  Flaudin's  took  two  plates  matching 
our  "  Hastings  "  Chelsea  set,  which  she  had  put  aside  for  us, 
and  from  Mme.  Rouveyre  got  the  address  of  Recappe  (13 
Passage  Ste.  Marie),  where  we  saw  a  great  many  fine  pieces 
of  furniture,  and  were  tempted  to  invest  in  an  inlaid  Italian 
table  at  £26.  Dined  at  the  table  d'hote  of  the  St.  James's 
Hotel,  and  there  fell  in  unexpectedly  with  the  Mirehouses. 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS   1872 

After  dinner  walked  out  and  went  to  the  Fourniers'.  In 
their  back  room  C.S.  discovered  a  pair  of  partridges  on  nests 
and  on  stands,  smaller  than,  but  exactly  similar  to,  those  we 
got  at  Brussels  on  the  4th  of  March  (£2.  16.). 

7th.  We  went  out  early,  and  on  Recappe"'s  introduction, 
went  to  see  M.  le  Roux  (43  Rue  Godot  de  Mauroi),  who  was 
said  to  be  the  best  judge  of  watches  in  Paris,  and  to  whom 
we  showed  ours,  which  he  approved  of.  He  has  a  beautiful 
collection  of  all  sorts  of  things,  and  seems  a  very  charming 
person.  Called  afterwards  on  Couvreur  (Rue  Le  Peletier), 
who  is  considered  an  authority,  but  he  did  not  give  us  quite 
so  good  an  account  of  the  watch ;  the  handles  and  rim  for  the 
glass  he  considers  modern,  or  at  least  "  du  temps  de  Louis 
Quatorze."  We  showed  him  also  our  miniature  bought  on 
the  2Oth  of  April.  He  thinks  it  to  be  by  Touron  or  Souaron, 
and  that  the  subject  of  it  is  De  la  Rive  (or  La  Rive),  acteur 
de  la  Comedie  Frangaise.  We  tried  later  to  identify  the 
portrait  at  the  following  great  print-shops,  but  failed  to  do  so  : 
Clement,  Rue  de  St.  Peres ;  and  Vigures,  II  Rue  de  la 
Monnaie. 


1 66 


NOTES  CERAMIC 

OCTOBER  TO  NOVEMBER  1872 

DOVER  :  OSTEND  :  ANTWERP  :  THE  HAGUE  :  GOUDA  :  UTRECHT  : 

AMSTERDAM  :  BRUSSELS 
Oct.  1872. 

30th.  Left  London  at  7.40.  On  arriving  at  Dover 
found  a  tremendous  storm  raging  so,  instead  of  embarking, 
went  to  the  Lord  Warden  Hotel,  where  we  remained  the  rest 
of  the  day,  reading,  writing.  C.S.  explored  the  town  ;  found 
two  curiosity  shops,  but  nothing  in  them. 

3lst.  The  weather  still  looked  unpromising,  but  we 
found  the  wind  had  abated,  so  we  went  on  board  the  Ostend 
boat.  It  was  rough  for  the  first  hour,  owing  to  the  previous 
day's  storm,  but  after  that  time  it  became  perfectly  calm,  and 
we  had  a  very  good  passage.  Lunched  at  the  Ostend  buffet ; 
then  came  on  by  train  to  Antwerp,  which  we  reached  about  6. 
(Hotel  St.  Antoine.)  Dined.  Then  C.S.  went  out  to  explore, 
and  I  sat  writing  letters  and  making  out  books  for  future 
visiting  in  Holland.  The  weather  is  very  hot  for  the  time  of 
year,  but  the  continuous  rain  is  a  very  great  drawback.  How- 
ever, the  excursion  is  most  enjoyable. 

NOVEMBER  1872 

ROTTERDAM 

Nov.  1st.  Called  at  5  :  by  8.30.  we  were  at  the  train. 
It  was  the  first  that  went  through  by  the  new  bridge  to 
Rotterdam,  avoiding  the  old  steamboat  trajet  which  I  used 
to  enjoy  so  much,  as  being  thoroughly  characteristic.  The 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1872 

new  Bridges,  or  rather  Viaducts,  are  truly  wonderful.     It  was 
a  lovely  day,  and  Breda  looked  its  best  as  we  passed  through 
it.     We  had  been  there  in  1869,  anc^  since  that  time  had  seen 
Velasquez's  picture,  which  now  gives  it  increased  interest  to 
us.     Nothing  could  be  more  beautiful   than  this  entry  into 
Rotterdam  with  all  the  vessels  shining  in  the  bright  sunlight. 
Reached  Rotterdam  about  half-past  II,  and  took  two  hours 
to  explore   the    shops  in  the  town.     First  we  went  to  Van 
Minden,  who  was  out.     His  shop  had  little  to  tempt  us,  and 
what  we  saw  was  horribly  dear.     We  went  on  to  the  Krysers* 
in    the  Waagen    Straat,    where  we    bought   six  Wedgwood 
plates  (with  Dutch  ships)  dated  1779  ;  two  enamel  boxes,  a 
small    transfer-printed  tea-jar,    and   a   most   curious    Dutch 
brick,  with  male  and  female  head  and  dated  1594 ;    for  all 
we  paid  £2.     Next  to  the  Oppert,  where,  at  a  shop  full  of 
Oriental  china  (Van  der  Pluyne),  we  found  some  charming 
Crown  Derby  custard  cups  and    covers    for  which  we  also 
paid  £2.     They  were  sold  to  us  as  "French  Flirstenberg  " ! 
These  were  a  great  find.     We  called  again  at  Van  Minden's 
on  our  way  to  the  railway,  and  he  accompanied  us  to  the 
warehouse,  but  he  had  absolutely  nothing  and  we  made  no 
purchases.     Soon  after  2.  o'clock  we  set  off  once  more  for 
Gouda,  where  we  stayed  till  6.  o'clock.     Mrs.  Cohen  had 
nothing  ;    Pavoordt   has    rearranged  his   shop  and  made   it 
very  grand  ;  we  did  not  find  with  him  quite  as  many  things  as 
usual  in  our  line,  but  we  brought  away  six  small  pieces  of 
"  Don  Pottery"  ;  a  pair  of  Ware  baskets  and  stands,  "  Hack- 
wood  "  ;  a  Bow  and  stone-ware  teapot,  both  without  tops,  and 
a  very  good  stone-ware  milk  jug  and  cover,   enamelled  in 
choice  figures,  all  for  £i.     After  this  we  saw  and  bought  an 
old  pocket-book,  with  silver  mounts,  16/8,  and,  I  regret,  a  silver 
toy  table,  which  I  left  behind.     The  glories  of  the  day  were 
over  before  we  left  Gouda,  and  a  pouring  rain  had  supervened, 

1 68 


i872  NOTES  CERAMIC 

which  since  has  become  quite  a  storm.  We  are  now 
comfortably  housed  at  the  Hotel  Paulez  at  The  Hague.  We 
have  dined.  C.S.  is  washing  up  and  appraising  (and  praising) 
our  purchases,  of  which  I  have  noted  the  particulars,  and  I  am 
now  going  to  bed.  I  should  have  noted  that  he  found  nothing 
but  bad  Delft  at  the  shops  he  visited  last  night  at  Antwerp, 
and  also  that  at  Gouda,  we  called  to-day  at  another  dealer's, 
Frejbit's  by  name,  but  found  nothing  at  his  place. 

2nd.  Up  early  and  out  before  II.  We  went  first  to 
Munchen's,  where  we  found  a  very  pretty  Battersea  box,  in 
form  of  a  watch  (better,  much,  than  that  we  bought  yester- 
day) ;  a  good  tortoise-shell  snuff  box,  with  portraits  of  a 
King  and  Queen  of  France  ;  and  a  small  pique*  plaque  on  tor- 
toise-shell, subject,  Harlequin  and  Columbine  inlaid  with  gold 
and  mother-of-pearl,  etc.,  £l.  18.  4.  I  think  highly  of  this 
piece — C.S.  does  not.  We  next  visited  two  shops  in  the  Spui. 
At  Jacot's  we  found  two  small  pieces  of  transfer-printed  Creil 
ware,  4/2,  but  at  Van  Gelder's,  nothing.  He  had  two  or 
three  pieces  of  Worcester,  but  too  dear  for  us  to  touch  them. 
From  his  shop  we  went  to  Tennyssen's  in  the  Papestraat.  At 
the  old  man's  we  got  a  small  stone-ware  milk  jug  (plain)  for 
1/8  ;  at  the  son's  we  took  a  fancy  to  a  satin-wood  cabinet 
inlaid  with  old  Lac  (200  Gr.)  and  a  Friesland  cradle  and 
sledge  (100  Gr.)  of  ancient  form  and  painted  in  subjects. 
After  paying  at  a  little  shop  1/8  for  two  "  Leeds  Pottery" 
dishes,  we  proceeded,  guided  by  young  Van  Gelder,  to  call  on 
M.  Bisschop  ;  we  found  him  at  home,  but  not  Mme.  Bisschop  ; 
he  very  kindly  offered  to  take  us  to  see  Mr.  Loudon's 
wonderful  collection  of  Delft  and  other  Dutch  objects.  Mr. 
Loudon  received  us  himself,  and  showed  us  his  beautiful 
things.  It  was  a  great  treat  as  well  as  a  great  lesson  to  see 
them.  C.S.  thinks  from  what  he  saw  there  that  our  new 
purchase  from  Tennyssen  must  be  an  old  Delft  Vase.  Mr. 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1872 
Loudon  seems  a  most  agreeable  as  well  as  a  most  polished 
man.  M.  Bisschop  is  going  to  look  at  the  furniture  we 
remarked  at  Tennyssen's,  and  give  us  his  opinion  of  it  on 
Monday.  After  parting  from  him  we  went  to  pick  up  our 
purchases  which  we  had  left  at  Van  Gelder's,  and  we  called  at 
Visser's,  2  Ramstraat,  to  inquire  if  he  had  any  Fryes.  He 
is  to  search  his  portfolios  by  Monday  next.  Table  d'hote  at 
5.  By  7.  we  were  at  Sarlin's  and  looked  through  his  stock 
with  him  and  his  son,  but  everything  was  too  dear  for  us.  I 
should  have  said  that  Sarlin  had  got  an  idea  about  Bristol 
china,  and  had  begun  to  look  out  for  it,  to  our  grief.  We  saw 
young  Schaak,  who  behaved  so  ill  about  the  box  we  bought 
from  him  three  years  ago.  He  persuaded  us  to  go  in  and 
look  at  some  things  he  had.  Among  them  were  two  baskets 
of  Cream  Ware  prettily  printed  with  flowers  and  butterflies 
in  red ;  they  were  unmarked,  and  to  our  surprise  and  disgust 
he  asked  three  pounds  for  them,  a  price  too  absurd  for  the 
dearest  London  dealer. 

4th.  We  were  up  at  6,  and  by  8  were  in  the  train  to 
Utrecht,  which  we  reached  soon  after  9  o'clock.  Walked  to 
and  from  the  station.  Indeed  we  were  on  foot  all  day.  In 
Elizabeth  Straat  (at  Casti's)  we  got  a  pretty  stone  jug  and 
cover  (unfortunately  it  had  had  repairs)  for  5/- ;  he  began  by 
asking  IO/- !  Gorkum,  our  old  friend  of  1869,  was  unluckily 
from  home,  but  C.S.  spied  out  among  his  miscellaneous 
stock  a  very  fine  apple  of  Chelsea  china  in  the  form  of  a  box 
and  cover,  which  Mme.  Gorkum  sold  to  us  for  2/6.  We 
went  from  there  to  the  Hamburgers,  who  showed  us  through 
their  warehouse,  but  there  was  nothing  in  it,  as  all  their 
stock  had  just  gone  over  to  London,  to  be  sold  on  Wednesday 
at  Jones  and  Bonham's.  Our  guide  to  Hamburgers'  (Van 
Goelen,  Springwey)  took  us  to  his  own  little  shop,  which 
contained  nothing  of  any  worth,  but  detained  us  so  long  that 

170 


A  PORTRAIT  OK  THOMAS  FRYE  FROM  A  MEZZOTINT  BY  HIMSELF.  A  COMPLETE 
COLLECTION  OF  THIS  BRANCH  OF  FRYE'.S  WORK  WAS  MADE  BY  LADY 
CHARLOTTE.  HE  WAS  THE  DIRECTOR  OF  THE  BOW  WORKS  FOR  MANY  YEARS 

AS    WELL   AS    FAMOUS    IN    OTHER    BRANCHES    OF   ART 

From  a  collection  of  engrav'ngs  connected  with  ceramic  matters  given  by  Lady  Charlotte 
to  the  South  Kensington  Museum,  and  now  exhibited  in  the  Schreiber  Collection 


1872  NOTES  CERAMIC 

we  missed  the  other  dealer,  Sanders,  for  whom  we  waited  as 
long  as  we  could,  but  he  did  not  return.  We  saw,  however, 
the  things  in  his  upper  room,  where  there  was  nothing  in  our 
way,  but  we  examined  his  plate  and  got  some  information 
about  the  marks  on  Dutch  silver.  Left  Utrecht  before  I.  and 
were  back  at  our  Hotel  at  The  Hague  soon  after  2.  Started 
again  at  once  on  foot.  Went  to  Block's,  who  has  nothing ; 
to  Van  Gelder's,  where  we  paid  £i.  for  a  blue  and  white 
Worcester  vase  and  beaker,  and  to  the  Bisschops'.  Found 
them  both  at  home  and  sat  some  time  with  them.  Mr. 
Bisschop  had  been  to  look  at  Tennyssen's  furniture  for  us,  and 
approved  of  it.  But  we  think  it  wiser  to  refrain  from  the 
purchase.  Visser  had  looked  through  his  portfolios  and  had 
found  a  fine  copy  of  George  III.  by  Pether  after  Frye,  price 
£1.5.,  and  a  female  portrait  unsigned  and  unlettered,  which  is 
included  amongst  the  British  Museum  series  of  Fryes,  but 
which  we  think  doubtful — 15/~-  Ended  our  walk  by  a  visit  to 
Schaab's  ;  he  had  a  large  stock,  chiefly  Delft,  very  dear,  but 
nothing  to  our  taste.  Since  table  d'hote,  at  5,  I  have  been 
writing  here,  and  to  my  poor  brother  Lindsey,  whose  birthday 
it  is — he  is  58.  [This  was  George,  the  loth  Earl  of  Lindsey, 
born  in  1814 ;  he  was  an  invalid,  and  died  unmarried  in 
1877.  The  country  seat  of  the  Bertie  family  is  Uffington, 
Stamford,  Lincoln,  of  which  Lady  Charlotte  often  speaks.] 

5th.  Again  up  by  6,  and  off  by  railway  to  Amsterdam 
at  8.  Got  to  Amsterdam  at  9.30.  and  drove  about  to  the 
various  dealers  till  4.  when  we  went  back  to  the  station,  and 
taking  the  4.30.  got  to  our  Hotel  at  The  Hague  soon  after  7. 
It  was  a  long  day's  work,  rather  wet,  but  very  warm,  and 
certainly  very  busy  and  amusing.  First  we  went  to  our  old 
friends  the  Speyers  ;  they  took  us  to  both  their  warehouses, 
which  we  looked  over  carefully,  but  could  find  nothing  worth 
our  taking  away.  Then  to  Ganz's,  which  is  quite  an  altered 

171 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1872 

place  since  we  knew  it.  However,  C.S.  managed  to  espy  a 
pair  of  Chelsea  dishes,  not  very  decorative,  which  they  gave 
us  for  £i.  We  went  thence  to  the  Van  Galens,  where  I 
have  little  to  remark,  except  a  stone-ware  jug  highly  deco- 
rated, English,  which  we  saw  there  last  spring.  As  Van 
Galen  was  out  we  could  do  no  business.  Thence  to  Boas- 
berg's.  (The  Wareham  of  Amsterdam.)  He  has  some  very 
fine  things,  but  very  little  English,  and  all  dear.  We  bought 
of  him  a  lovely  enamel  box,  printed  in  blue,  £2.  io.,vand  an 
e"tui  with  a  finely  painted  head  (like  one  we  already  have), 
the  ground,  Rose  du  Barri,  but  the  top  unluckily  imperfect, 
£4.  10. ;  also  a  pair  of  lovely  Oriental  plates,  which  I  could 
not  resist,  red  borders,  with  medallions  of  black  and  green 
and  flowers,  £5  (one  being  a  little  imperfect).  Next,  to  some 
print-shops,  in  which  we  were  to  hunt  for  Fryes  (un- 
successfully) and  to  get  some  views  for  poor  Lindsey.  On  to 
Kalb  and  Soujet's,  where  we  did  good  business  and  revived 
our  drooping  spirits,  for  at  all  the  places  we  had  visited 
before  we  have  heard  of  nothing  but  absurd  prices,  without 
seeing  anything  we  cared  to  have.  Now  we  are  able  to  buy 
a  pair  of  Chelsea  butter-boats,  covers  and  stands,  very  perfect 
and  unusual,  £3.  A  charming  locket  with  portraits  of 
William  and  Mary  in  mother-of-pearl,  enclosed  in  a  small 
silver  case  with  his  or  her  Royal  Arms  engraved  upon  it,  £i. 
And  a  little  silver  box  heart-shaped,  "  M.  Ouvrez  sans 
rompre  ",  io/- ;  and  a  Wedgwood  smelling  bottle  with  portrait, 
IO/- ;  all  these  we  highly  esteem.  We  only  found  three 
trifles  ajt  Van  Houtum's,  a  pair  of  Battersea  salts,  30/-.  One 
Rose  du  Barri  ditto,  17/6.  Two  darling  Mennecy  shoes,  17/6. 
But  we  got  our  things  re-packed  for  our  long  journey,  and 
he  told  us  of  another  dealer,  Blitz,  St.  Anthonies  Brestraat, 
where  we  bought  a  good  Battersea  tea-caddy  for  I5/-.  This 
was  our  last  call  on  our  way  to  the  station.  We  ^have  since 

172 


i872  NOTES  CERAMIC 

written  back  to  Soujet's  (with  a  cheque)  to  buy  six  fine 
Oriental  cups  and  saucers  which  he  offered  us  for  £2.  10. ; 
and  we  have  also  requested  M.  Bisschop  to  purchase  for  us 
Tennyssen's  satin-wood  Cabinet  for  200  gs.  All  the  evening 
I  have  been  writing,  while  C.S.  has  been  packing  for  an 
early  start  homewards  to-morrow. 

Wednesday,  6th.  Again  dressed  by  candlelight  in  order 
to  be  off  by  the  express  train  to  Brussels.  Our  first  contre- 
temps was  that  they  started  us  from  the  Hotel  Paulez  without 
our  luggage !  But  the  mistake  was  soon  found  out  and 
rectified,  and  we  got  to  the  station  long  before  the  appointed 
9.20.  Mme.  Kanitz  came  and  spoke  to  me  there ;  she  was 
travelling  back  to  Madrid,  where  we  last  met.  I  was  very 
glad  to  see  her,  but  her  being  in  the  train  proved  unfortunate 
for  us,  since  she  had  so  much  luggage  that  the  boat  across 
from  Rotterdam  to  Fine  Port  was  10.  minutes  late,  and  so  we 
missed  the  express  on  that  side,  and  instead  of  arriving  at 
Brussels  at  2,  we  did  not  get  in  (by  a  slow  train)  until  6.30. 
This  occasioned  a  stupid  delay  at  the  little  Fine  Port  station, 
where  I  sat  and  worked  patiently  for  about  2  hours,  and  also 
deprived  us  of  the  afternoon  at  Brussels,  which  we  had 
reckoned  on  for  visiting  a  great  many  of  the  shops :  for- 
tunately though  cloudy  there  was  not  much  rain,  so  that  on 
the  whole  we  did  the  journey  comfortably  enough,  though 
the  confusion  at  the  frontier  Custom  House  was  awful,  and 
travelling  with  three  hand  packages  full  of  china  makes  all 
locomotion  a  matter  of  anxiety.  We  reckoned  that  we  had 
16  changes  to-day  between  The  Hague  and  Brussels,  where 
we  now  are  (Hotel  de  1'Europe),  having  dined  and  C.S.  gone 
out  to  see  if  all  the  curiosity  shops  are  closed. 

7th.  One  of  the  most  heavenly  days  I  ever  remember, 
not  a  cloud,  the  sun  bright,  and  the  air  delightful.  We  were 
out  soon  after  10.  and  till  II.  visited  on  foot  the  curiosity 

173 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1872 

shops  in  the  Montagne  de  la  Cour  and  its  neighbourhood  ;  in 
this  round  we  found  nothing.  At  II.  we  took  a  little  open 
carriage  on  the  Place  and  drove  about  till  near  3.  ;  made  few 
purchases.  In  the  little  shop  in  the  Rue  de  1'Escalier  we  got 
a  printed  Ware  tea-jar  for  1/3.  At  Genie's,  Rue  de  1'Eveque, 
a  small  blue  and  white  Worcester  vase  and  lid,  6/-.  At 
Huysman's,  Rue  de  la  Fourche,  a  lilac  bodkin-case,  8/-.  We 
finished  with  Marynens,  Rue  des  Petits  Cannes,  where  we 
were  tempted  to  invest  in  a  Mazarin-blue  Oriental  tea-jar 
with  cocks  in  medallion,  35/~-  And  a  Battersea  box  in  form 
of  a  swan,  I5/-.  Just  as  we  were  coming  away  I  espied  some 
lovely  lace  lappets,  one  pair  of  old  Flanders,  the  other  of 
Lille,  which  I  bought  for  3  guineas ;  said  to  have  belonged 
to  a  lady  who  had  sent  them  there  for  sale.  I  know  but  little 
(  about  lace,  but  these  seem  to  me  very  cheap,  and  I  know  they 
are  very  good.  From  2  to  5  we  went  out  again  and  walked 
in  great  enjoyment.  Called  at  Henninck's,  126  Rue  Royale  ; 
found  nothing ;  and  at  Stoovbant's,  Boulevard  d'Anvers, 
where  there  were  many  fine  things,  but  very  dear,  and  we 
made  no  purchases.  We  continued  our  walk  through  the  old 
town  to  the  magnificent  Grande  Place,  with  the  Hotel  de 
Ville,  Egmont's  statue,  etc.,  and  by  St.  Gudule,  which  was, 
however,  closed.  On  our  way  back  we  got  a  lilac  Battersea 
salt-cellar,  I5/-,  and  also  a  box  with  figures  on  the  top,  I5/-, 
and  the  bottom  of  another  box,  blue  with  good  subject 
medallions,  io/-,at  Cools  Thyssen's  ;  and  at  Del  Hougue's  2 
teapots,  one  Worcester,  the  other  stone-ware,  8/-  each.  This 
was  the  amount  of  our  purchases  for  the  day.  Less  than  we 
had  hoped,  but  not  bad  on  the  whole.  We  had  visited  many 
other  shops  without  any  success,  viz.,  Daene,  De  Vries,  Mon- 
tagne  de  la  Cour ;  Slaes,  Leroy,  Polaquet,  Rue  de  Lombard  ; 
Miiller,  25  Rue  de  1' Etude ;  Weil,  Rue  de  Ruysbrook ; 
Lambracht,  22  Rue  de  la  Paille  ;  and  Handelaar,  54 

174 


1872  NOTES  CERAMIC 

de  1'Etude.  At  this  last  both  the  man  and  his  wife  were  out, 
so  we  promised  to  go  there  again  after  table  d'hote,  as  we 
had  seen  there  two  rather  pretty  little  figures.  I  hoped  to 
get  some  Fryes  at  Brussels,  and  we  went  into  Goupil's,  who 
promised  to  look  over  his  stock  against  we  called  again,  but 
on  our  doing  so  we  found  that  he  had  not  got  any.  Our 
morning's  work  of  7  hours  had  taken  us  into  not  less  than 
16  shops.  The  drive  and  the  afternoon's  walk  were  quite 
delightful,  and  when  the  sun  was  set  the  after-glow  was 
beautiful  and  most  remarkable.  After  table  d'hote  at  5,  we 
went  out  again,  first  to  the  Post  Office,  where  I  found  a  letter 
from  Blanche.  [Lady  Charlotte's  youngest  daughter,  who 
afterwards  married  Mr.  Edward  Ponsonby,  now  the  8th  Earl 
of  Bessborough.  This  lady  inherited  some  of  the  many 
objects  of  art  collected  by  her  mother,  many  of  which  are 
reproduced  here,  and  she  has  also  the  complete  collection 
of  mezzotints  by  Thomas  Frye,  in  search  of  which  Lady 
Charlotte  spent  many  happy  days.]  To  St.  Gudule,  where 
service  was  going  on  ;  the  grand  old  Cathedral  being  lighted 
up.  There  was  a  large  and  apparently  devout  congregation, 
and  the  whole  scene  was  most  impressive.  After  we  had 
been  there  a  few  minutes  a  priest  began  to  preach  about 
purgatory.  It  seemed  all  tautology  without  eloquence,  but 
we  had  no  time  to  stay.  On  going  again  to  Handeiaar's  we 
found  the  wife  at  home,  but  she  could  tell  us  nothing  about 
prices.  The  dealer  George  Bradbee,  whom  we  remember 
here  since  the  time  of  our  first  art  visit  in  1867,  has  failed. 
His  goods  were  sold  yesterday  and  to-day,  and  we  hear 
fetched  enormous  prices.  We  have  now  to  get  our  new 
acquisitions  packed  preparatory  to  an  early  start  homewards 
to-morrow. 


175 


NOTES  CERAMIC 

MARCH  TO  MAY  1873 

BRUGES 
March  1873. 

3ist.  Left  Charing  Cross  Station  at  7.40.  Thick 
fog  all  the  way  to  Dover :  embarked  in  Ostend  boat ;  after 
about  a  quarter  of  an  hour  of  very  thick  fog,  the  sun  suddenly 
burst  forth.  We  had  a  still  and  lovely  passage.  Read 
mostly.  Reached  Ostend  soon  after  2.  Ivor  had  gone  over 
the  previous  night,  and  was  waiting  for  us  at  our  landing ; 
after  a  hasty  luncheon  we  went  on  by  train  to  Bruges  :  very 
hot — put  up  at  Hotel  de  Flandres,  and  having  chosen  our 
rooms,  walked  out  all  about  the  charming  old  City.  Visited 
the  curiosity  shop  of  Renders,  with  whom  we  found  nothing. 
By  indications  which  had  reached  us,  wre  managed  to  make 
out  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Berrington,  from  whose  house  Walker  got 
the  celebrated  Bristol  set  of  china  made  for  Burke,  which 
realised  such  wonderful  prices  two  years  ago.  We  made 
bold  to  call  upon  them  and  they  received  us  very  kindly,  and 
have  promised  to  get  us  permission  to  see  some  old  collec- 
tions to-morrow.  This  completed  our  work  before  table 
d'hote :  a  slight  thunderstorm  with  rain,  whilst  we  dined,  but 
it  did  not  cool  the  air.  Since  dinner  Ivor  and  I  have  had  a 
long  ramble  amid  the  quaint  old  streets,  which  we  have 
enjoyed  very  much. 


i873  NOTES  CERAMIC 


APRIL  1873 

BRUGES   :    LILLE   :    TOURNAI    :    ATH   :     BRUSSELS    :    LIERRE  : 

ANTWERP  :   DORDRECHT  :    GOUDA  :   UTRECHT  :   THE  HAGUE  : 

AMSTERDAM  :  PARIS  :  DIJON  :  GENEVA  :  LAUSANNE  :  LYONS  : 

MARSEILLES  :  AVIGNON  :  VALENCE 

April  1st.  Visited  the  Tour  de  la  Halle,  the  Hotel  de 
Justice  with  its  marvellous  chimney-piece,  the  Chapels  in  the 
adjoining  buildings,  Saint  Sang,  where  the  Custodier  is 
wonderful.  After  this  we  went  again  to  the  Berringtons'. 
She  took  us  to  see  a  collection  belonging  to  Mme.  Thores, 
which  is  to  come  for  sale.  It  was  chiefly  Oriental  ;  not  of 
the  best,  and  did  not  interest  us. 

2nd.  Out  early.  Went  to  the  Cathedral,  where  some 
fine  brasses  are  set  up  in  the  wall ;  one,  richly  enamelled 
in  colours  set  in  the  floor  of  one  of  the  Chapels.  Then  to 
Notre  Dame  to  see  the  tombs  of  Mary  of  Burgundy  and  her 
father  :  soon  after  12.  we  went  on  to  Ghent.  Luncheon  and 
dinner  at  the  Hotel  in  the  Place  d'Armes.  Went  to  the 
Cathedral  to  see  the  Van  Eyck  pictures.  To  the  Town 
Hall,  when  we  went  through  the  large  desolate  rooms,  and 
to  some  shops  ;  very,  very  little  to  buy :  at  8  went  on  to 
Brussels  ;  Hotel  de  1'Europe. 

3rd.  A  long  day  among  the  shops,  but  very  little  to 
be  found  in  them  ;  we  found  that  they  had  just  been  swept 
by  Collins,  the  Bond  Street  dealer.  At  Slaes  Kochs  we  got 
a  fine  Chelsea  smelling-bottle  for  £6.,  and  a  beautiful  yellow 
£tui,  painted  in  Boucher  subjects  for  £4.  16.  Having  done 
all  the  shops  we  came  back  to  the  Hotel.  It  had  been  a 
lovely  day  but  began  to  rain  about  6.,  when  Ivor  and  I,  in  a 
cab,  drove  to  the  Post  for  his  letters. 

4th.  Up  early  and  off  to  see  Lille  ;  went  to  three  or 
four  shops,  but  did  not  make  any  purchases :  a  curious  old 

I  177  M 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1873 
man — Catteau — with  three  houses  full  of  china,  carvings, 
prints,  and  every  other  thing,  amazed  us  very  much.  He 
reminded  me  of  Smith  of  Abingdon.  Having  taken  some 
dinner  at  the  Hotel,  we  retraced  our  steps  as  far  as  Tournai, 
which  we  stopped  to  explore.  Found  only  one  dealer,  M. 
Detail,  Boulevard  Leopold.  Went  into  the  fine  Cathedral. 
The  Beffroi  is  under  repair.  From  Tournai  we  started  again 
before  7.  Ivor  went  with  us  as  far  as  Ath,  where  he  branched 
off  to  Mons  on  his  way  to  Paris,  while  we  went  back  to 
Brussels.  Thus  ended  our  pleasant  little  tour  together,  which 
had  no  contretemps  till  the  last  moment,  when  Ivor  found  his 
luggage  had  been  detained  and  locked  up  at  the  last  Douane 
we  had  gone  through,  and  he  had  to  proceed  without  it,  which 
was  most  annoying. 

5th.  Left  Brussels  before  10.  Went  to  Lierre,  where 
we  had  once  heard  of  good  things  ;  found  little  or  nothing. 
Visited  the  amateur  we  went  to  see  last  time,  M.  Krools  ; 
he  had  a  pretty  little  collection,  chiefly  Oriental.  Went 
on  to  Antwerp,  where,  our  train  being  late,  we  had 
barely  an  hour.  Went  to  Van  Herck's  ;  and  went  to  look  at 
a  "  View  "  of  things  to  be  sold  on  Monday  ;  all  modern  ;  in 
the  same  house  we  discovered  a  new  dealer,  Mile.  Eva  Krug, 
no  purchases.  Next,  to  Dortrecht,  where  we  spent  nearly  an 
hour.  The  only  shop  where  there  might  have  been  anything 
(Van  Kampen's)  we  could  not  see  because  the  master  was 
out.  Hurried  back  to  the  station  on  foot,  whence  to  The 
Hague  by  the  new  line.  It  had  been  a  bustling  and  fatiguing 
and  not  a  very  profitable  day. 

Sunday,  6th.  Quiet  rest.  Hotel  Paulez.  C.S.  not  very 
well. 

7th.  Bad  weather ;  frequent  showers,  yet  we  walked 
all  over  The  Hague  ;  found  less  than  usual ;  Munchen's  seems 
the  best  shop  now ;  we  saw  some  good  things  there,  which  we 


1873  NOTES  CERAMIC 

are  to  look  at  again.  Nothing  at  the  old  accustomed  little 
shops ;  a  few  purchases  at  Tennyssen's  ;  a  trifle  at  the  little 
stall  in  the  Gedempte  Gracht ;  four  prints  at  Visser's,  who 
showed  us  some  fine  Battersea  enamels,  very  dear,  which  are 
under  consideration.  Table  d'hote,  china  washing,  etc. 

8th.  Up  at  |-  past  5.  By  8.  at  the  railway  station  for 
Gouda.  Cohen  was  in  a  carriage  to  go  off  by  another  train, 
when  the  little  newsboy  at  the  station  found  him  for  us,  and 
he  went  back  with  us  ;  but  he  had  only  a  broken  Derby- 
Chelsea  Cup  and  saucer.  Pavoordt  had  a  few  things,  but  was 
just  off  en  voyage,  to  get  some  china  from  an  amateur's 
collection  at  Rotterdam.  We  promised  to  return  to  see  him 
to-morrow.  Went  on  to  Utrecht ;  uncertain  weather  with 
frequent  showers,  but  we  managed  without  getting  wet,  and 
walked  about  Utrecht  for  3  hours,  without  making  a  single 
purchase.  Costa  had  but  one  good  piece,  a  Chelsea  figure  of 
Milton,  which  he  had  bought  at  a  recent  big  sale  and  for  which 
he  asked  five  and  twenty  Pounds !  Gorkum  was  absent,  so 
also  were  the  Hamburgers ;  Sanders  had  nothing  :  with  some 
trouble  we  found  out  Reuser  (S.  Pieter  345),  who  still  has  the 
gold  ground  leather  we  found  there  some  years  ago.  I  had 
a  commission  from  Lady  Marian  Alford  to  inquire  about  it 
for  her.  Took  the  train  again  before  3.  and  at  four  were  at 
Rotterdam.  Van  Minden  very  wild ;  very  dear  about  his 
enamels  and  small  figures,  but  we  got  from  him  an  excellent 
Chelsea  bird  on  its  nest,  marked^  for  £3.  6.  8.  It  is  the  fellow 
to  one  in  the  possession  of  Munchen  at  The  Hague,  for  which 
he  says  he  paid  dear,  and  for  which  he  wants  £10.  Two 
purchases  completed  (having  been  negotiated  in  January)  with 
Kryser,  on  our  way  to  the  station.  Violent  rain.  Reached  The 
Hague  at  7.  Munchen  was  to  have  had  a  figure  to  show  us,  but 
it  was  not  there.  C.S.  ill  and  tired.  It  had  been  a  long  day 
of  12  hours  and  not  very  fructuous.  We  find  everywhere 

179 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1873 
that  Bernard  and  Duveen  of  Hull  have  been  before  us  making 
wonderful  purchases.  [Duveen  was  the  well-known  dealer 
and  father  of  dealers,  who  was  knighted  some  30  years  later.] 
9th.  Again  to  Gouda  to  see  what  Pavoordt  had  got  from 
Rotterdam.  There  was  nothing  in  our  line,  but  we  got  a  few 
pieces  of  blue  and  white  Worcester  and  were  back  at  The 
Hague  by  12.  o'clock.  Found  an  exciting  letter  from  Gorkum, 
saying  he  regretted  not  seeing  us  yesterday,  as  the  party  pos- 
sessing a  "  Rochester  "  service,  which  he  had  told  us  of  3  years 
ago,  was  now  willing  to  sell,  and  he  would  like  to  have  shown 
it  to  us.  We  forthwith  telegraphed  that  we  would  be  with  him 
on  the  morrow  ;  most  likely,  after  all  the  price  will  be  beyond  us 
us,  and  we  shall  come  away  disappointed.  But  the  "  Chasse  " 
is  interesting.  Visited  the  Muse'e.  Then  went  again  to  Mun- 
chen's,  where  we  thought  he  might  have  liked  our  partridge 
in  part  exchange  for  some  of  his  things,  but  no !  Then  to 
Schwaab's  ;  through  the  Spui,  and  on  to  Visser's  buying  some 
prints,  but  deferring  an  answer  about  his  enamels :  no  other 
purchases  but  some  trifling  cups  in  the  Gedempte  Gracht. 

loth.  Again  up  at  J  past  5.  and  to  the  station  at  8. 
A  bright  sun  lighting  up  everything  in  cheerful  Holland, 
and  so,  light-hearted  and  full  of  curiosity  as  to  what 
Gorkum  might  have  to  show  us,  we  arrived  at  Utrecht 
soon  after  9.  We  went  direct  to  Gorkum's  house.  He 
told  us  the  Service  (dessert)  belonged  to  two  maiden 
ladies.  The  name,  as  far  as  I  could  make  it  out,  was 
Daugenberg.  He  described  it  as  being  of  the  finest  purple 
Worcester,  painted  with  flowers,  and  consisting  of  dishes, 
baskets,  50  plates,  etc.,  in  all  70  pieces.  Accordingly  we 
went  to  see  it ;  we  found  it  quite  up  to  what  we  could  have 
expected,  but  the  ladies  would  not  name  a  price,  and  said 
they  had  refused  400  gns.  for  it.  We  tried  to  find  out  if  they 
would  dispose  of  four  very  fine  figures  of  the  Seasons  (in 

1 80 


•<   D 

<*   P 
O 


J  Z 

>•  K  a 

j  <:  o 

at  K 

<  O  K 

a  a:  H 

z*  2 


a  P 


ffi    2:    Cd 


E   ^   < 
p< 

«  <  O 


U  M 


pi  a  tn 


«  c  ^ 

O  _)  O 

^  O  ai 

K  O  U 


1873  NOTES  CERAMIC 

Chelsea),  making  up  a  sum  of  £500.  for  the  whole.  But  they 
declared  that  nothing  would  induce  them  to  part  with  the 
figures,  and  that  as  to  the  service  they  could  not  say  what 
they  would  take.  So  there,  perforce,  the  matter  ended. 
We  left  instructions  with  Gorkum  to  keep  his  eye  upon  the 
service,  in  case  of  their  changing  their  minds  ;  bought  a  little 
Mennecy  figure  of  him  before  returning  to  the  station,  and 
proceeding  at  11.40  to  Amsterdam.  We  had  with  us  all  our 
little  purchases,  which  we  took  to  Van  Houtum's  to  get 
packed  and  forwarded  to  England.  We  then  went  the 
rounds,  found  nothing  at  Blitz's,  Van  Galen's,  Ganz's. 
At  Van  Houtum's  only  a  small  wax  figure  of  Harlequin. 
But  at  Speyer's  we  lighted  on  a  service  of  49  pieces  of 
Worcester,  a  dessert  set  beautifully  painted  in  bouquets 
of  flowers,  but  on  a  white  ground.  As  it  was  unmarked 
they  did  not  know  what  to  call  it,  and  were  glad  to  offer 
it  to  us  for  £33.  15.,  which  we  were  glad  to  give.  They 
showed  us  a  large  and  very  fine  Screen  for  which  they  want 
£50.  (delivered  in  London),  gold  ground  ;  leather  wonderfully 
decorated  with  birds  in  the  Oriental  style.  Lady  Marian 
Alford  has  asked  me  to  look  out  for  such  an  one  for  her,  so  I 
wrote  to  her  about  it.  Having  completed  all  our  researches, 
we  dined  at  the  Brack's  Doelen  table  d'hote.  Called  in  again 
at  Speyer's  to  look  at  some  wonderful  Gouthiere  branches 
(price  £600),  and  bought  a  pair  of  Oriental  Ducks  for  £6. 
Then  proceeded  to  the  railway,  and  were  at  The  Hague  at  |- 
past  9  ;  slept  nearly  all  the  journey.  As  though  we  had  not 
worked  hard  enough,  we  still  went  to  Munchen's  to  complete 
our  purchase  with  him  of  a  Chelsea-Derby  figure,  a  finely 
engraved  goblet,  with  English  Arms,  and  two  little  bits  of 
enamel  (£10.),  then  went  on  to  Visser's  for  a  few  minutes. 

Good  Friday,  nth.     We  were  to  have  left  The  Hague 
to-day,  but  deferred  our  departure  for  a  little  rest,  after  all  the 

181 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1873 

previous  exertions  ;  C.S.  also  suffering  much  from  face-ache. 
The  morning  very  bright,  but  a  cold  wind.  Went  to  see  a 
celebrated  collection  of  pictures  belonging  to  M.  Steengracht. 
At  Schwaab's  I  secured  an  enamel  plaque  I  had  long  wished 
to  have  (the  subject  evidently  historical,  but  still  to  be 
explained.  We  have  since  made  this  out.  It  is  inscribed 
"  De  Dantzic  a  Barr  ",  and  alludes  to  the  flight  of  Stanislaus) 
signed  "  Fromery  a  Berlin",  "  Herold  fecit".  The  price  was 
£10.  but  he  took  £6.  in  money,  and  a  very  ugly  Feuner  glass 
picture,  for  which  C.S.  had  given  io/-  in  London.  Saw  Mr. 
Loudon  at  Schwaab's.  Came  in  at  4.  and  wrote  to  Enid 
while  C.S.  in  pain,  laid  down  for  an  hour  before  table  d'hote. 
Since  then  we  went  out  again  to  Visser's,  who  ended  by  per- 
suading us  to  buy  the  four  best  pieces  of  his  client's  Battersea 
enamels — but  at  a  great  price — above  £35.  Since  our  return 
have  packed  up  for  an  early  start  to-morrow. 

I2th.  The  Hague  to  Paris,  where  we  arrived  at  9.  Hotel 
St.  Romain.  Not  one  of  the  most  agreeable  journeys. 
Tried  a  2nd  class,  but  had  to  change. 

I3th.  Tired.  Up  late.  Took  a  carriage  and  drove  to 
the  Bois.  Then  walked  in  the  Tuileries  Gardens ;  hot  sun, 
cold  wind  ;  but  Paris  notwithstanding  its  ruins  looked  very 
beautiful ;  the  young  green  coming  out. 

I4th.  Went  to  the  Quai  Voltaire,  but  found  nothing  in 
any  of  the  shops.  Called  on  the  Duchess  [of  Marlborough] 
to  hear  about  Ivor.  Went  to  Longchamps.  I  had  never 
been  to  the  races  before ;  a  pretty  sight,  but  bereft  of  much 
of  its  ancient  glory.  The  day  was  perfectly  lovely — quite 
hot  with  no  wind,  and  only  air  enough  to  make  it  delicious. 
We  walked  about  a  little  on  the  course,  and  saw  two  races 
run.  The  crowd  of  carriages  and  pedestrians  in  the  Champs 
Elysees  on  our  return  was  a  curious  contrast  to  what  the  same 
place  exhibited  when  we  went  through  the  morning  after  the 

182 


1873  NOTES  CERAMIC 

Commune  (3rd  June  1871).     Then  it  was  a  desert.     Called 

to  see  the  Fourniers  before  going  to  dinner. 

I5th.  Out  all  day  visiting  shops.  Found  but  little,  and 
made  very  few  purchases,  but  enjoyed  the  drive.  In  the 
afternoon  called  at  Recappe's  and  tried  to  interest  him  in 
the  Needlework  Loan  Exhibition. 

i6th.  Various  shops  visited  in  the  morning,  with  no 
results.  Very  fine  old  Dresden  figures  at  Laurent's  in  the 
Palais  Royale ;  and  good  things  with  Bloche,  3  Rue  de 
H elder,  but  all  these  very  dear.  In  the  afternoon  we  had 
a  pleasant  excursion  to  Versailles.  Dined  at  the  Hotel 
des  Reservoirs  ;  only  purchase,  a  large  Dresden  dish,  at 
Henry's,  Rue  Hoche ;  but  the  shops  are  now  quite 
hopeless. 

I7th.  Went  early  to  Mine.  Rouveyre,  who  had  promised 
to  try  to  get  for  us  the  service  of  Maroon  Chelsea,  which  we 
have  so  long  heard  of  and  desired.  She  now  tells  us  that 
the  family  have  become  rich  and  will  not  sell.  At  I.  we  went 
to  see  the  collection  of  Madame  Beavan,  a  curious  character, 
a  German  married  to  an  Englishman,  parted  from  him,  etc., 
a  regular  dealer  with  very  fine  things,  but  calling  herself 
"  particuliere  ".  Found  two  bibelots,  and  a  pair  of  yellow 
birds  with  her — very  dear,  £13.  Walked  and  drove  till  late 
in  the  afternoon.  C.S.  very  tired.  Heard  that  Lady 
Hopetoun  [the  widow  of  the  6th  Earl  of  Hopetoun] 
was  in  Paris  ;  after  dinner  we  went  out  and  tried  to  find 
her ;  after  beginning  at  several  Hotels  we  discovered  her  at 
the  Hotel  Mirabeau,  on  her  way  to  England  to  bury  her 
poor  husband  next  week.  Pleased,  poor  thing,  to  see  us, 
in  her  great  grief;  we  spent  the  evening  with  her.  On 
passing  the  Boulevard  we  had  bought  a  Times.  In  it  we 
read  that  my  dear  Merthyr  had  had  a  very  serious  accident 
hunting — his  horse  falling  on  him  at  a  leap  and  breaking 

183 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1873 
bones  ;  this  is  a  dreadful  anxiety ;  we  had  fixed  to  leave  Paris 
on  the  morrow  on  an  excursion  southwards,  but  now  all  our 
plans  are  changed,  we  stay  and  telegraph  for  better  informa- 
tion before  deciding  what  to  do.  [The  second  son  of  Sir 
John  Guest  and  Lady  Charlotte  Schreiber,  of  Inwood  House, 
Blandford.  He  married  Lady  Theodora  Grosvenor,  youngest 
daughter  of  the  2nd  Marquess  of  Westminster.  He  was,  in 
the  future,  to  frighten  Lady  Charlotte  by  many  a  heavy  fall 
across  country.] 

i8th.  We  walked  a  good  deal  and  visited  a  good  many 
shops ;  all  along  the  Rue  de  Provence,  Rue  Laffitte, 
Lafayette,  Chateaudun,  St.  Lazare.  Bought  two  bits  of 
enamel  cheap,  some  Oriental  plates  and  Dresden  cups  and 
saucers.  Drove  out  later  and  found  at  Mme.  Flaudin's  a 
lovely  pair  of  Derby-Chelsea  figures  ;  Boy  with  dog,  and 
Girl  with  cat.  They  were  very  dear,  but  quite  irresistible  at 
£14.  Saw  Lady  Hopetoun  again  for  a  few  minutes  before 
dinner.  Oppenheim  has  been  inquiring  for  us  for  Chelsea 
groups  and  vases,  at  Vienna,  but  cannot  get  them  :  this  is 
the  third  great  chance  we  seem  to  have  had,  but  all  have 
come  to  nothing.  I  had  omitted  to  mention  a  hurried  visit 
to  M.  Danvilliers  on  Thursday  afternoon,  where  we  saw  Le 
Roux,  who  was  so  civil  to  us  last  year.  Danvilliers  showed  us 
some  beautiful  Buen  Retiro,  and  some  wonderful  tapestries, 
one  dated  1488.  Apropos  of  these  things  I  have  been 
trying  to  interest  some  of  the  dealers  here  in  our  Loan 
Exhibition.  Vail,  12  Rue  du  Petit  Thouan,  has  a  wonderful 
collection.  After  our  return  for  dinner  we  got  a  telegram 
from  Blanche  with  a  good  account  of  dear  Merthyr,  and 
another  came  from  Mrs.  Bertie  [now  Felicia,  Countess  of 
Lindsey,  widow  of  the  nth  Earl  of  Lihdsey,  Lady  Charlotte's 
younger  brother]  just  before  I  went  to  bed  saying  that  he  was 
going  on  well.  Thank  God  his  dear  life  is  spared  ! 

184 


i873  NOTES  CERAMIC 

igth.  We  went  out  early.  Tried  to  find  M.  Dupont 
at  home.  He  is  the  great  collector  of  needlework,  on 
which  he  is  preparing  a  work  :  unfortunately  he  is  not 
in  Paris.  Went  to  some  shops,  Rue  Blanche,  made  some 
small  purchases.  After  3,  walked  up  to  Lady  Hopetoun's  to 
amuse  her  with  some  of  our  little  bibelots.  Mrs.  Amcott 
came  in  while  we  were  with  her  ;  afterwards  drove  in  the 
Champs  Elysees,  for  a  rest.  Bought  two  little  figures  in  the 
Boulevard  Haussmann,  and  went  to  Nelson's,  Rue  Pasquier, 
(his  father,  an  Englishman  taken  in  war,  married  a  French 
woman  and  settled  in  Paris).  Since  dinner  a  telegram  with 
good  accounts  of  Merthyr. 

20th.  Letter  from  Blanche  with  more  particulars,  all 
going  on  well.  Was  dressed  for  Church,  but  felt  ill  and 
stayed  at  home.  Visit  from  M.  Danvilliers  in  the  afternoon;  he 
promises  to  help  us  about  our  Battersea  enamels.  When  he 
was  gone,  after  despatching  our  letters,  we  took  a  little  walk  ; 
the  weather  turned  very  cold.  Called  to  see  Lady  Hopetoun  ; 
her  sister  better ;  she  hopes  to  leave  Paris  to-morrow. 
Walked  about,  and  came  in  for  dinner  at  7.  o'clock. 

2ist.  Left  Paris  by  the  II.  o'clock  train  to  Dijon.  The 
last  portion  of  the  road  very  pretty,  and  the  whole  country 
gay  with  the  fresh  green  and  the  white  blossoms  on  the 
trees  :  arrived  after  5-  ;  dined  at  the  buffet.  Leaving  our 
luggage  at  the  Hotel  de  la  Cloche  (where  we  have  the  same 
rooms  as  3  years  ago),  we  walked  to  the  shops,  but  found 
nothing  but  a  soft-paste  cane-top  at  Cozet's,  and  an  old  work 
on  Embroidery. 

22nd.  C.S.  out  early  ;  took  me  after  breakfast  to  Tagini's, 
where  we  found  some  fine  furniture  and  where  we  were 
tempted  to  spend  £20  I  namely,  on  two  finely  modelled  white 
figures  of  the  Virgin  and  St.  John.  Both  figures  signed 
"  Este  "  and  one  dated  1783,  impressed  in  the  paste,  £10.,  and 

185 


f-LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1873 
a  snuffbox  with  medallion  portrait  of  Louis  XV.;  this  came 
from  the  family  of  the  Comte  de  Reuille,  and  some  smaller 
objects,  £10.  16.  The  Este  figures  I  like  much  and  think 
they  will  be  a  valuable  addition  to  the  collection.  Of  the 
box  must  hear  more  but  have  no  doubt  of  its  being  very 
good.  Went  into  the  Church  of  St.  Michael,  and  then  to 
the  Musee  to  look  again  at  the  tomb  of  the  Burgundian 
Dukes,  John  sans  Peur,  and  Philip  le  Hardi,  etc.  Went  on 
in  the  afternoon  to  Geneva,  which  we  reached  at  night, 
having  dined  at  Macon.  An  agreeable  Englishman  in  the 
train  with  us,  whom  we  found  afterwards  to  be  Mr.  Fell. 

23rd.  Sent  a  note  to  poor  old  Mr.  Flamank  [at  one  time  a 
tutor  in  the  Guest  family]  to  come  and  see  us,  then  went  out 
and  began  our  search  among  the  shops.  Went  to  one  or  two 
on  the  Place  de  Bergues  ;  at  Picard's  found  a  pretty  German 
Enamel  e*tui — pink  fish-scale  ground,  and  small  landscapes  in 
medallions,  cheap  at  £i.  They  gave  us  renseignements  to  see 
a  private  collection — that  of  M.  Revilliod  in  the  Upper  Town. 
On  our  way  to  his  house,  we  went  on  to  a  fine  terrace,  whence 
we  had  a  lovely  view  of  the  surrounding  country.  Found  a 
very  interesting  and  well-arranged  collection  at  M.  Revilliod's  ; 
his  servant  showed  us  over  it.  Promised  to  return  the  follow- 
ing day.  On  our  way  we  saw  two  good  English  prints  (one 
of  Garrick  after  Gainsborough)  at  the  door  of  a  small  shop. 
Bought  them  for  I2/-,  and  got,  later,  at  Fiorini's  two  small 
circular,  French,  coloured  prints  in  a  style  which  I  believe  is 
now  being  sought  after,  8/-.  When  we  got  back  to  our 
Hotel  we  found  Mr.  Flamank  awaiting  us  ;  we  had  planned 
to  go  by  steamer  to  Lausanne,  and  we  made  him  accompany 
us,  starting  at  |-  past  two.  It  was  beginning  to  be  cold,  and 
we  only  sat  a  short  time  on  deck,  during  which  we  invested 
poor  Mr.  Flamank  in  my  fur  jacket  (which  he  innocently 
believed  to  be  C.S.'s  coat!)  and  made  him  carry  off  that, 

1 86 


A    PAIR    OF    ESTE    FIGURES    I5f    INCHES    IN    HEIGHT.       THE    FIRST    IS    THAT    OF    THE 

HOLY   VIRGIN  ;    THE    SECOND   THAT    OF    ST.    JOHN.       BOTH    ARE    MARKED    ESTE,    THE 

ST.  JOHN    HAVING   THE   DATE    1783 

The  Countess  of  BessborougJi  s  Collection 


i873  NOTES  CERAMIC 

and  subsequently  our  fur  rug !  He  looked  pinched  and  frozen. 
Good  dinner  down  in  the  cabin,  which  we  hope  may  have 
cheered  him  up.  Reached  Lausanne  after  5.  It  had  been 
one  of  C.S.'s  most  treasured  schemes  to  go  there  to  visit 
Etienne  Baud,  from  whose  shop  in  1869  we  got  some  charm- 
ing English  china.  Bitterly,  however,  were  we  now  dis- 
appointed. Baud  had  moved  up  into  a  magnificent  house, 
with  fine,  flaring,  expensive  furniture,  and  much  modern 
imitative  porcelain.  He  is  no  longer  a  modest  useful  collector, 
but  a  swaggering,  overbearing  marchand,  possessing  nothing 
that  would  be  of  any  value  to  us,  so  we  came  away  disgusted. 
But  we  enjoyed  a  lovely  view  over  the  Lake  before  leaving 
the  town,  which  we  did  by  railway,  about  7  o'clock,  arriving 
after  9  at  night. 

24th.  Mr.  Flamank  came  to  breakfast ;  after  it  we  walked 
up  to  M.  Revilliod's,  and  found  that  gentleman  at  home.  He 
went  through  parts  of  the  collection  again  with  us,  and  gave 
me  a  book  of  which  he  was  the  author.  He  was  formerly 
Swiss  Minister  at  Constantinople,  and  is  a  polished  and  most 
agreeable  man.  To-day  it  was  really  cold ;  that  and  our 
long  walk  were,  I  fear,  too  much  for  our  poor  old  friend 
Flamank.  We  missed  him  part  of  the  time,  but  he  afterwards 
remained  with  us  until  we  left  Geneva.  I  was  very  glad  to 
have  seen  the  poor  old  gentleman  again.  He  is  much  altered, 
but  his  eye  is  as  bright,  and  his  conversation  as  brilliant,  with 
learning  and  quotations,  as  ever.  Found  a  small  ivory  por- 
trait on  a  box  and  some  Bartolozzis  at  Forini's ;  and  at  a  new 
shop,  Serez,  a  good  Chelsea-Derby  mug,  and  a  Nove, 
coloured,  double  group — 28/-.  Mme.  Serez  told  us  she  got 
the  mug  from  a  Mme.  Delapert,  a  lady  living  at  the  Campagne 
Artichauts,  Terrasse  Brillant,  who  possessed,  she  said,  much 
china,  and  would  certainly  show  it,  perhaps  part  with  some ; 
accordingly  we  drove  to  her  house,  but  found  the  family  in 

187 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1873 

trouble  at  the  illness  of  M.  Delapert,  so  that  we  could  not  be 
received,  or  have  anything  shown  to  us.  Left  Geneva  at 
J  past  3,  after  taking  luncheon  at  the  buffet,  opposite  the 
Gare.  Dined  at  Amberieu  ;  got  to  Lyons  between  9  and  IO. 
Grand  Hotel  de  Lyons. 

25th.  Very  cold,  a  shower  of  snow  before  we  left  our 
room.  Long  day  among  the  shops,  where  we  did  not  find 
very  much.  But  we  paid  a  very  pleasant  visit  to  M.  Currand, 
who  showed  us  the  fine  mediaeval  things  which  his  father  had 
collected,  and  which  we  saw  in  1870.  The  poor  old  gentle- 
man had  died  since  that  time.  He  then  lived  in  a  wretched 
tenement,  but  before  his  death  removed  the  collection  to 
2  Avenue  de  1'Archeveche",  where  they  now  are.  M.  Currand 
bought  the  James  I.  coat  (white  kid,  stitched  in  a  pattern  on  to 
red  satin)  which  I  admired  so  much  in  the  Meyrick  collec- 
tion, in  the  South  Kensington.  I  then  got  a  drawing  made 
for  me  of  the  design.  He  has  some  wonderful  things,  and 
the  visit  was  a  lesson.  Called  on  the  Dommartins,  a  curious 
old  couple  who  have  many  rooms  full  of  the  most  wretched 
rubbish  which  they  prize  highly,  and  not  one  bit  of  which 
will  they  part  with.  Drove  about  to  do  all  this  in  an  open 
carriage.  It  was  very  cold.  Dined  at  table  d'hote  at  6. 
After  dinner  packed  up  and  left  Lyons  that  night,  arriving  at 
Marseilles  between  6  and  7  in  the  morning. 

26th.  Daylight  before  we  reached  Avignon,  and  very 
bright  sunshine,  but  a  cold  wind,  which  on  reaching  Marseilles 
was  found  to  be  a  severe  visitation  of  the  much-dreaded  Mis- 
tral. As  soon  as  we  had  breakfasted,  notwithstanding  the 
cold  and  dust,  we  walked  out.  Had  a  long  ramble  among 
the  shops,  but  found  very  little  except  the  eternal  "  Faience  ", 
much  of  which  is  doubtless  "  contrefagon  ".  Indeed  we  got 
by  chance  into  the  establishment  of  a  clever  workman,  Ferdi- 
nand Gaidan,  43  Boulevard  du  Muy,  who  was  busy  making 

188 


1873  NOTES  CERAMIC 

all  kinds  of  reproductions,  which  he  showed  to  us  with  great 
pride,  some  of  them  (his  Satsuma,  his  Faience  Emaillee,  etc.) 
most  successful.  Many  of  his  original  pieces  also  very 
meritorious,  in  terra-cotta,  etc.  Our  largest  purchases  were  of 
engravings  with  an  old  M.  and  Mme.  Pimont,  Rue  des  Deux 
Arts.  While  these  were  proceeding,  I  happened  to  look 
around,  and  saw  high  up  on  the  wall  a  picture  of  the  subject 
of  one  of  our  favourite  Battersea  enamel  printed  plaques. 
Pimont  called  it  a  Watteau,  and  said  it  went  by  the  name  of 
"  Le  Calendrier  des  Vieillards  "  from  an  inscription  on  the 
wallet  of  one  of  the  figures.  The  interpretation  of  the  sub- 
ject has  always  been  a  mystery  to  us.  This  picture  increases 
it.  But  as  our  plaque  would  seem  to  authenticate  the  picture 
in  some  measure  as  being  old,  and  as  Pimont  only  wanted  55 
francs  for  it,  we  ended  by  becoming  the  purchasers.  The 
picture  is  evidently  of  some  antiquity  and  seems  to  be  pure ; 
in  some  places  it  has  been  slightly  injured  and  has  been  re- 
lined.  But  the  price  would  seem  to  militate  against  its  being 
of  any  value.  If,  indeed,  we  have  got  a  veritable  Watteau, 
or  the  work  of  even  a  creditable  contemporary,  for  £2.  4., 
I  shall  retract  what  I  had  said  after  a  long  day's  search,  that 
''there  is  nothing  at  Marseilles  worth  so  distant  a  journey"  ; 
we  shall  see  !  Part  of  our  work  we  did  on  foot,  but  it  became 
so  cold,  and  the  wind  became  so  high,  bowing  the  trees  and 
tearing  off  the  young  green  leaves,  that  we  did  the  concluding 
five  hours  by  help  of  a  shut  cab. 

28th.  Left  Marseilles  by  express  about  n.  Beautiful 
view  over  the  City  and  to  the  Mediterranean.  Got  out  at 
Avignon,  where  we  spent  a  couple  of  hours  ;  went  into  the 
town  and  had  a  hurried  look  at  the  shops,  which  are  very 
poorly  supplied.  Bought  a  couple  of  engravings.  Saw  one 
Vase  like  the  pair  we  brought  here  3  years  ago — not 
perfect,  price  £l.  Left  Avignon  after  3. ;  again  a  most  striking 

189 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1873 
and  delightful  view  of  the  town  on  leaving  it.  We  had  time 
to  go  out  on  the  Bridge  for  a  moment  through  the  Porte  de 
TOulle,  and  recalled  the  lovely  day  we  spent  at  Avignon, 
1st  of  March  1870.  Valence  in  time  for  dinner,  passing 
Orange,  which  we  saw  to  advantage  en  passant,  with  its  grand 
Roman  Arch  and  Amphitheatre  towering  over  all.  The 
valley  of  the  Rhone  very  beautiful  and  fertile,  with  its  pictur- 
esque high  grounds  and  ruined  Chateaux  at  intervals.  But  it 
was  sad  to  see  all  the  mulberry-trees  blighted  by  the  late  Mistral 
and  sharp  frosts.  The  vines  and  all  the  fruits  have  suffered 
severely  but  we  could  only  see  the  mischief  done  to  the 
mulberries,  which  all  have  their  leaves  destroyed,  most  of 
them  looking  yellow,  some  quite  black  and  denuded.  Slept 
at  Valence.  La  Poste. 

29th.  Witnessed  a  table  d'hote  breakfast.  We  break- 
fasted alone  ;  then  went  out  and  prowled  about  the  town  ; 
there  are  no  curiosity  shops,  but  we  were  attracted  by  the 
sight  of  some  fine  vases,  of  the  Avignon  description,  in  the 
window  of  a  chemist,  Bastier,  Porte  S.  F61ix,  and  he  told  us 
they  were  made  by  a  "  Mddecin  "  who  had  established  works 
at  Premiere  near  Dijon,  and  made  beautiful  things,  his  name 
Le  Docteur  Lavalle.  Visited  the  Maison  des  T£tes,  and  the 
house  with  the  curious  staircase.  The  lady  of  the  house, 
Mme.  Dupre*  la  Tour,  had  some  fine  looking-glasses  and 
furniture — curiously  enough  she  was  a  great  friend  of  Mr. 
Penrice  Bell,  who  was  returning  officer  when  C.S.  became 
Member  for  Cheltenham.  Hence  went  into  the  interesting 
Cathedral  :  stilted  arch  round  the  Choir,  and  curious  row  of 
arches  outside  the  building,  high  up.  The  Pendentif,  said 
to  be  the  burial-place  of  the  Mistral  family.  It  naturally 
occurred  to  us  as  a  pity  they  could  not  have  entombed  the  so- 
called  wind  with  them.  It  has  created  ravages  in  the  valley 
just  now.  In  the  Cathedral,  fell  in  with  an  old  mendicant 

190 


i873  NOTES  CERAMIC 

of  86,  who  interested  us  by  telling  us  a  good  deal  about  the 
Wars  under  Napoleon  ;  he  was  in  the  retreat  from  Moscow. 
By  dint  of  many  inquiries  we  found  out  that  there  was  one 
amateur  collector  at  Valence  in  the  person  of  the  Commandant 
d'Artillerie,  name  Hustain,  or  something  like  it.  We  called 
on  him,  but  unluckily  he  had  just  gone  out.  Lounged  on 
the  Bridge  and  went  back  to  the  Hotel  in  time  to  pack  up 
and  leave  Valence  at  J  past  4.  Curious  invalid  family,  whose 
Italian  Courier  was  in  the  carriage  with  us,  leaving  the  train 
at  Vienne.  Travelled  all  night  (dining  at  buffet  at  Lyons), 
and  reached  Paris  at  6  in  the  morning. 

30th.  Train  being  behind  time,  dressed  and  breakfasted. 
Young  Mr.  Cole  at  our  Hotel  (S.  Remain).  He  is  in  Paris, 
among  other  matters,  about  the  Embroidery  Exhibition,  in 
consequence  of  letters  I  had  written  him  on  my  way  through 
here  10  days  ago.  The  Committee  have  sent  him  over  to 
follow  up  the  researches  I  had  already  set  on  foot.  Long 
interview  with  him.  Afterwards  Mr.  Marsh  came  to  see  us 
and  took  us  to  some  print-shops  ;  we  then  went  about  to 
various  places,  partly  about  dress,  and  joined  Mr.  Marsh 
again  in  the  Avenue  Friedland  at  5.  We  went  with  him  to 
see  a  friend  of  his,  Mrs.  Jones,  who  had  been  collecting  in  <^jl 
Paris,  lived  in  a  very  pretty  apartment,  and  had  evidently 
been  a  victim  to  the  dealers  :  all  her  things  being  forgeries. 
It  was  now  getting  late.  C.S.  and  I  walked  home  from  the 
Barriere  de  1'Etoile  to  our  Hotel,  Rue  Dauphin,  a  pleasant 
walk,  not  quite  so  cold.  Dined  at  8. ;  after  I  was  so  sleepy  that 
I  did  nothing  but  sleep.  Our  purchase  to-day  a  small  white 
figure  and  a  plaque,  Battersea,  with  Misers  counting  money  ; 
£i.  16.,  at  Nelson's,  Rue  Pasquier.  Oppenheim  had  tele- 
graphed to  us  in  London  about  some  Chelsea  figures  he  had 
discovered  in  Germany — the  telegram  came  to  us  here,  and 
we  went  to  see  him,  but  the  price  asked  was  so  preposterous 

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LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1873 
that  we  could  make  no  offer — 13  figures  £450.  We  had 
visited  to-day  a  beautiful  collection,  chiefly  Oriental,  belonging 
to  Mme.  Florist,  2  Rue  Tronchet.  Her  things  are  wonder- 
ful, but  outrageously  dear. 

MAY  1873 

PARIS  :  AMIENS  :  BOULOGNE 

May  1st.  Drove  about  all  day  ;  went  to  several  shops, 
but  bought  very  little  ;  a  good  enamel  box  of  Mme.  Boiss, 
Quai  Voltaire  (Turquoise  and  gold),  some  combs  at  De  la 
Roche's  and  an  Arras  milk  pot ;  a  print  on  the  quai.  We 
found  that  our  picture  is  a  copy  of  Boucher's  "  Calendrier 
des  Vieillards  "  of  which  we  saw  a  print  at  Danlo's  and  De 
Lisle's.  We  have  left  a  commission  with  Lemiere  to  try  to  get 
a  copy  of  the  print  for  us.  Several  interviews  about  dress, 
bonnets,  etc.  Called  to  see  Constance  Reynardson  [sister  of 
Lady  Hopetoun] — her  sister  still  in  bed.  Then  we  remained 
out  the  whole  day  ;  when  I  came  in  I  found  myself  very  poorly 
with  a  cold,  but  I  slept  after  dinner,  while  C.S.  packed  up. 

2nd.  I  am  better,  though  not  well  this  morning,  Inter- 
view again  with  Mr.  Cole.  We  left  Paris  at  11.40.  Left 
the  train  at  Amiens,  and  went  about  the  town  for  some 
hours.  Visited  the  Bouvier  collection,  and  at  Pontentier's 
got  an  enamel  plaque,  etc.  Then  called  on  a  friend  of 
Mr.  Marsh — Mme.  Dupont — a  charming  old  lady,  who  sent 
us  on  a  wild  goose  chase  after  some  Limoges  Enamels.  We 
had  scarce  time  to  get  something  to  eat  before  going  on  by  a 
7.30.  train  to  Boulogne,  where  we  slept.  Hotel  des  Bains. 

3rd.     A  bright  clear  day,  but  cold,  and   I  fear  windy  for 
the  passage  home. 

Sunday,   4th.      Went    into   the  town.     Found  two   most 
curious  English  Ware  tea-pots,  with  inscription,  at  Delaunay's, 

192 


i873  NOTES  CERAMIC 

and  a  Marcasite  necklet,  Duchuchoir.  Then  went  to  the 
boat,  where  I  got  ensconced  in  a  comfortable  place  long 
before  we  started  at  2.30.  A  very  rough  passage,  but  I  was 
well,  and  read  nearly  all  the  day.  Got  home  at  J  past  7., 
which  was  an  hour  after  the  time  due. 


193  N 


NOTES  CERAMIC 

AUGUST  TO  NOVEMBER  1873 
OSTEND :  BRUGES  :  GHENT 

August  1873. 

i6th.  Left  London  by  the  7.40.  train  from  Charing  Cross. 
A  "  temps  couvert,"  which  on  our  getting  on  board  the 
steamer  turned  to  the  most  broiling  sunshine,  so  we  had  the 
smoothest,  hottest  passage  imaginable  to  Ostend.  The  boat 
was  very  heavily  laden  and  we  took  4^  hours  to  arrive. 
Many  of  the  passengers  were  going  to  attend  the  Iron  and 
Steel  Congress  at  Li£ge,  and  I  was  addressed  by  a  well- 
dressed  middle-aged  man,  who  introduced  himself  to  me  as  a 
former  Dowlais  schoolboy,  and  told  me  that  he  was  now 
partner  in  a  rolling-mill  near  Stockton-on-Tees.  He  said, 
having  been  a  poor  boy,  he  owed  all  his  success  in  life  to  his 
teaching  in  the  Dowlais  school,  and  remembered,  on  one 
occasion,  my  having  patted  him  on  the  head  and  told  him  to 
be  a  good  boy  !  (Oh  !  how  many  years  ago  ?)  He  seems  to 
have  well  obeyed  my  injunctions.  His  name,  he  said,  was 
Prosser.  I  shall  inquire  more  about  him.  He  introduced  me 
to  Mr.  Bell,  who  was  going,  also,  to  this  meeting  of  the 
Institute,  I  think,  as  President,  and  with  him  I  had  much 
talk.  Lay  down  some  time  in  the  cabin  and  slept,  for  I  was 
very,  very  weary  with  many  days'  previous  hard  work  and 
much  anxiety,  first  about  Maria's  health,  and  then  at  Enid's 
having  to  return  to  Spain,  now  in  so  dreadful  and  perilous  a 
state.  I  took  leave  of  her  on  Wednesday.  When  shall  we 

194 


i873  NOTES  CERAMIC 

ever  meet  again  ?  [In  February  1873  a  republic  held  rule  in 
Spain  until  the  restoration  of  the  monarchy  in  December 
1874.  At  that  time,  and  long  after,  Spain  was  a  dangerous 
country  in  which  to  act  for  any  foreign  Power.  Sir  Henry 
Layard's  ability  was  well  known,  but  for  a  time  no  one  was 
safe  under  the  anarchical  republic.]  At  Ostend  we  did  not 
hurry  but  let  all  the  passengers  go  on  by  the  train  before 
we  took  our  dinner  at  the  buffet.  After  that  we  sent  Dell  and 
the  luggage  to  the  Upper  station,  and  ourselves  took  a  stroll 
through  the  town,  which  is  neither  pretty  nor  striking,  and 
went  as  far  as  the  Kursaal  on  the  beach,  which  was  full  of 
smart  people,  and  presented  an  animated  appearance.  Looked 
in  a  china  shop,  all  Oriental  or  Delft,  as  also  was  a  collec- 
tion of  rubbish,  to  be  sold  on  Monday  at  the  Rooms  in  the 
Rue  Christine.  This  is  evidently  a  Dutch  "  Importation " 
sale  of  the  meanest  character.  Met  Francis  Gordon.  [A 
connection  of  the  Huntly  family,  son  of  Lord  Francis  Gordon.] 
Took  the  6.  o'clock  train  to  Bruges.  Hotel  de  Flandres; 
very  full,  but  we  got  small  comfortable  rooms  overlooking  the 
garden.  Heat  intense  ;  laid  down  and  slept  in  the  evening. 

I7th.  A  day  of  complete  rest,  which  indeed  I  needed. 
After  5.  o'clock  table  d'hote  we  strolled  out,  returning  at  8. ; 
a  most  delicious  evening.  Went  on  to  the  Boulevards  to  the 
east  of  the  town,  which  is  a  very  pretty  walk.  Some  of  the 
streets  leading  from  a  fine  old  gateway,  the  Ghent  gate,  in 
that  direction  were  decked  with  flags  and  strewed  with  rushes 
as  if  some  procession  had  passed,  which  had  a  gay  effect,  and 
all  the  population  seemed  to  be  out  of  doors  enjoying  the 
glorious  weather. 

i8th.  Up  very  early  and  ransacked  the  stores  of  Render 
and  of  Vandyck,  but  all  to  no  purpose ;  we  saw  nothing,  except 
.some  bricks,  of  the  date  and  with  the  insignia  of  Charles  V., 
which  were  at  the  latter  shop,  and  which  I  rather  coveted.  In 

195 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1873 

our  morning's  ramble  we  were  struck  by  a  specimen  of  repousse 
work  in  the  window  of  a  small  jeweller  ;  it  showed  great 
merit,  so  we  went  in  and  talked  to  the  artist ;  from  him 
we  got  the  address  of  the  man  who  had  been  making  the 
models  in  the  Notre  Dame  and  Hall  of  Justice  (M.  Pickery, 
Rue  des  Bouchers).  We  wanted  to  get  a  model  of  the 
celebrated  inkstands  there,  and  went  to  Pickery 's  on  the 
subject.  He  refers  us  to  a  man  at  Brussels,  Colinet,  28  Rue 
du  Commerce.  After  our  visit  to  Pickery,  who  showed  us 
some  bad  statues  of  his  execution,  we  came  in  and  I  rested, 
for  I  was  very  tired.  At  3.  we  set  out  again,  and  called  by 
appointment  on  Mrs.  Berrington,  who,  after  some  little  talk, 
took  us  to  the  house  of  a  Mr.  Weale,  whom  we  had  heard  of  in 
the  collecting  line.  [Mr.  W.  H.  James  Weale,  the  well- 
known  writer  on  art  and  at  one  time  Keeper  of  the  National 
Art  Library  at  South  Kensington.  His  many  books  on 
Flemish  painting  led  on  to  the  great  work  of  his  life,  Hubert 
and  John  Van  Eyck,  published  in  1907.  This  volume,  the 
result  of  forty  years'  research,  is  so  thorough  and  exhaustive 
that  it  can  never  be  superseded.  The  author,  who  interested 
Lady  Charlotte,  was  born  in  1832  and  has  long  been  one  of 
the  greatest  authorities  on  Belgian  and  Flemish  art.]  He 
was  not  at  home,  but  we  saw  his  wife,  and  appointed  to  go  to 
him  early  in  the  morning.  After  this  we  returned  to  our  Hotel 
and  I  read  Bulwer's  My  Novel. 

iQth.  On  foot  nearly  all  day ;  called  soon  after  IO.  on 
Mr.  Weale,  with  whom  we  were  charmed.  He  is  a  most 
interesting  person,  full  of  knowledge  and  research,  and  seems 
to  be  struggling  with  poverty  and  a  large  family  in  all  cheer- 
fulness. He  told  us  much  which  was  of  interest  to  us,  about 
manufactories  of  the  place,  etc.  He  promised  us  a  skeleton 
route,  C.S.  being  anxious  to  examine  Belgium  minutely. 
Visited  the  Academy,  and  Memling's  pictures  there ;  were 

196 


i873  NOTES  CERAMIC 

most  pleased  with  the  head  of  Van  Eyck's  wife,  which  Mr. 
Weale  told  us  was  found  in  the  Fish-market,  where  the  back 
of  it  was  used  for  cleaning  fish  upon.  Called  at  Kerkhove's 
(an  artist  of  whom  we  had  made  some  purchases  last  April), 
and  looked  over  all  his  prints,  but  found  nothing  at  all  in  our 
way.  Poor  man,  he  has  just  lost  an  only  son  ;  got  very  wet 
in  going  there  ;  a  short  but  heavy  shower.  Next  to  the 
Salle  de  Justice  ;  then  to  Notre  Dame,  all  which  occupied  us 
till  3.,  when  we  met  Mrs.  Berrington  by  appointment,  and 
went  with  her,  first,  to  see  some  unimportant  figures  at  a 
grocer's,  then,  to  the  collection  of  a  Mr.  Paterson,  in  the 
Rue  Espagnol.  It  was  indeed  a  most  extraordinary  sight, 
whole  rooms  full  of  basins,  cups,  plates,  etc.,  of  the  most 
mediocre  Oriental,  arranged  on  tables  ;  he  appears  to  collect 
English  also,  which  he  makes  over  to  some  man  in  London, 
doubtless  for  sale,  but  so  much  rubbish  I  never  saw  together. 
This  poor  Mr.  Paterson  seems  quite  mad ;  they  say  he  has 
property,  and  had  married  a  woman  with  money,  madder 
than  himself.  They  first  met  in  a  Lunatic  Asylum,  and  now 
she  is  suing  him  for  a  divorce,  and  is  putting  him  to  great 
expenses,  so  he  will  sell,  probably  ;  he  parted  with  a  lovely 
marcasite  watch  to  us  for  £3.  10.  and  persisted  on  our 
partaking  of  a  first-rate  bottle  of  port  wine,  which  he  opened 
in  our  honour.  On  our  way  from  Mr.  Paterson's,  we  called 
at  the  house  of  a  Mr.  Minne,  who  had  a  few  pretty  pieces  of 
Oriental  tastefully  arranged,  the  remains  of  a  fine  collection 
which  he  had  sold  some  years  ago.  It  was  nearly  6.  when  we 
got  back  to  the  Hotel  for  dinner.  I  read  and  rested  after  it. 
20th.  We  had  appointed  to  meet  Mrs.  Berrington  in  the 
Grand  Place  at  10.,  which  we  did  accordingly  ;  she  took  us 
through  the  Park  to  see  the  collection  of  a  M.  Piessens— all 
Oriental — and  chiefly  blue,  of  a  much  better  class  than  any 
we  had  yet  seen  in  Bruges,  but  it  contained  scarcely  anything 

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LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS   1873 

but  plates,  cups,  and  such  small  objects.  Returning  through 
the  "  Park",  which  is  a  pretty  little  piece  of  pleasure  ground, 
we  sat  down  and  rested,  and  talked  very  pleasantly  about 
Bruges,  its  manners  and  customs,  and  then  set  off  into  an 
historical  discussion.  I  do  not  know  how  long  we  stayed 
there.  We  afterwards  went  to  Mr.  Weale's  and  got  from 
him  his  guide-books  and  some  more  renseignements  for  Dur 
travels,  and  here  parted  from  Mrs.  Berrington.  A  visit  to 
the  Museum  in  the  Halle,  one  to  the  Hospital  of  St.  John 
and  its  Pharmacie,  and  another  to  the  Cathedral,  filled  up  the 
remainder  of  our  time  till  the  table  d'hote — immediately  after 
which  we  proceeded  to  the  station  and  came  on  to  Ghent ; 
arrived  at  8.  The  H6tel  Royal  was  full,  so  we  went  on  to  the 
Hotel  de  la  Poste,  where  we  are  very  comfortably  lodged. 

2lst.  A  pouring  wet  day — seemingly  hopeless.  Last 
night  I  read  to  C.S.  from  Weale's  book;  when  at  Bruges  I 
read  to  him  a  great  deal  ;  the  Life  of  Sir  Francis  Vere, 
from  Gleig's  book  Military  Commanders.  [George  Rupert 
Gleig,  who,  when  in  the  army,  had  served  in  Spain  in  1813 
with  the  Duke  of  Wellington  and  was  his  personal  friend. 
Later  he  took  orders  and  became  chaplain-general  of  the 
army.  He  wrote  largely  for  the  magazines,  as  well  as 
military  history  and  biography  and  novels.]  We  visited  De 
Buyser,  Veremer,  and  the  two  little  shops  in  the  Rue  Neuve 
S.  Jacques,  all  with  the  same  non-success  ;  so  much  rubbish  I 
could  hardly  have  imagined  it  worth  to  offer  for  sale.  In  the 
course  of  the  morning  we  called  at  M.  Omghena's  (a  jeweller 
in  the  Rue  des  Champs),  to  whom  Mr.  Weale  had  directed 
us,  and  there  we  saw  a  beautiful  collection  of  Mediaeval  and 
other  objects.  Tried  to  find  a  place  for  buying  old  prints,  in 
vain.  Table  d'hote  at  5.  Afterwards  drove  to  the  B^guinage 
and,  having  seen  it,  its  locality,  Museum  and  its  Church,  full 
of  Sisters,  in  their  peculiar  costume,  we  drove  back  to  our 

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i873  NOTES  CERAMIC 

Hotel,  and  then  finished  the  day's  wanderings  by  walking  to 
the  station  to  get  to-day's  Times.  Curious  old  Spanish 
building  on  the  Boulevards  not  far  from  the  Beguinage. 

22nd.  We  did  not  get  out  till  nearly  one,  and  intended 
to  go  and  visit  all  the  Churches,  but  we  were  drawn  aside  by 
a  notice  in  the  Conciergerie  setting  forth  that  there  was  a 
curiosity  shop  (of  which  we  had  not  already  heard)  in  the 
Rue  Digue  de  Brabant,  No.  15.  So  thither  we  walked  first. 
The  name  of  the  shop  was  L.  de  Lastre.  There  was  not 
much  in  it,  but  we  got  a  good,  though  slightly  imperfect, 
Turner  tea-pot  for  zj./-,  and  were  directed  to  go  a  few  doors 
farther,  where  we  came  to  the  shop  of  one  De  Clerc,  who 
had  a  large  collection  of  various  sorts,  and  took  us  up  to 
another  house  of  his  (Rue  Basses  des  Champs  83)  which 
was  a  place  quite  after  our  own  hearts,  and  full  from  top  to 
bottom  of  the  most  miscellaneous  goods  ;  it  ended  (notwith- 
standing all  our  good  economical  resolutions)  in  our  spending 
£5  with  him,  but  I  think  the  money  was  well  laid  out.  De 
Clerc  afterwards  took  us  to  two  other  dealers  in  the 
Boulevard  Frere-Orban  (Dumoulin  and  another),  and  passing 
the  house  of  M.  Lippens  (to  whom  Kerkhove  had  given  us  an 
introduction  in  April)  we  stopped  there  to  inquire  if  he  was 
at  home  ;  we  found  he  was  at  a  Cafe,  whereunto  we  followed 
him — and  he  good-naturedly  went  back  with  and  showed  us 
his  collection.  He  has  some  fine  glass,  some  good  Oriental 
and  other  things.  Altogether  we  were  much  interested, 
especially  with  the  manner  in  which  he  had  decorated  one  of 
his  ceilings  with  Japanese  plates.  His  best  object,  to  my 
mind,  was  the  frame  of  a  looking-glass  in  wrought  iron 
gilded,  a  most  beautiful  specimen  of  workmanship,  and  dated 
1686.  He  wanted  £160.  for  it.  I  have  taken  a  photograph  of 
it  to  send  to  Ivor  in  case  he  may  wish  to  be  the  possessor  of 
it.  All  this  brought  us  to  5.  o'clock ;  after  table  d'hote  we 

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took  a  little  drive.  First  went  round  the  Quartier  S.  Pierre  ; 
then  to  the  ruins  of  the  Abbey  of  S.  Bavon,  which  interested 
us  very  much  indeed,  especially  the  Baptistery,  of  which  the 
upper  chamber  is  laid  with  mediaeval  tiles  found  in  the 
enceinte  or  precincts. 

23rd.  Again  to  the  Beguinage,  where  at  the  Museum  we 
had  seen  some  Oriental  jars  we  admired  and  would  have 
bought.  The  proprietress  had  been  asked,  but  we  now  got 
her  answer  that  she  would  not  sell.  The  Academy  was 
closed,  so  we  could  not  go  in ;  rested  awhile  at  the  Hotel. 
At  \  past  3.  went  to  see  an  old  man  outside  the  gate  S. 
Lievien,  who  had^a  large  collection  of  mediocre  Oriental  and 
vile  modern  Dresden — M.  Cocquyt,  of  whom  we  made  no 
purchases.  Walked  back  to  the  Hotel.  Very  hot.  Table 
d'hote  at  8.  Left  Ghent  and  came  on  to  Brussels,  where  we 
arrived  soon  after  9,  and  have  good  quarters  at  the  Hotel 
Mengelle,  Rue  Royale. 

24th.  After  a  late  breakfast  we  went  down  to  the  post 
for  our  letters  ;  one  from  Blanche;  one  from  Mrs.  Haliburton, 
who  has  been  to  see  Canford  and  is  charmed.  Then  we  went 
and  sat  a  couple  of  hours  in  the  Park,  where  a  band  played 
very  agreeably.  It  was  a  very  pretty  sight.  Church  in  the 
Boulevard  de  1'Observatoire  at  J  past  3.  Since  table  d'hote 
I  have  been  busy  reading  and  writing. 

25th.  Took  a  walk  before  breakfast.  Went  to  some  of 
the  shops  (Del  Hougue,  Cools  Thyssen  and  Slaes  Kochs)  but 
found  nothing  in  them  ;  returned  by  the  Post  Office,  where 
there  were  no  letters.  After  breakfast  we  remained  at  home 
till  past  3.  The  heat  intense.  I  lay  down  and  tried  to  read 
but  soon  fell  asleep.  M.  Silvela,  whom  we  knew  in  Spain, 
was  in  the  Hotel  and  we  recognised  each  other.  He  tells  me 
the  Santander  Railway  is  now  cut  and  there  is  no  way  to 
Madrid  open.  But  I  cannot  hope  this  will  prevent  Enid 

200 


1873  NOTES  CERAMIC 

from  attempting  to  return.  After  3.  we  went  out ;  we  took  a 
carriage,  for  it  was  really  too  hot  to  walk.  At  Marynen's  we 
got  two  little  Staffordshire  ware  birds,  and  a  small  Worcester 
sucrier,  20/-.  At  Polonet's  a  gold  anchor  Chelsea  Pedestal 
and  a  little  Mennecy  mug,  36/-.  We  went  to  other  dealers 
and  found  nothing.  But  at  Andelaar's  we  met  a  great 
collector,  M.  Morren,  who  promised  to  show  us  his  china  the 
next  day.  After  table  d'hote  we  sauntered  down  to  the 
railway  station  to  try  to  get  Quentin  Durward  to  read,  but 
without  success. 

26th.  Rain  in  the  morning,  which  soon  cleared  off,  and 
we  had  a  beautiful  day,  very  hot,  but  fresher  than  the  two 
preceding  ones.  Before  breakfast,  we  went  again  to  Marynen's, 
who  expected  to  have  had  a  fresh  importation  of  goods.  En 
passant  we  got  a  copy  of  Quentin  Durward,  which  occupied 
all  our  time  till  breakfast,  soon  after  which,  Andelaar  came  to 
escort  us  to  M.  Morren's,  3  Rue  de  la  Loi.  It  is  a  collection 
of  choice  specimens  of  Oriental,  with  a  very  few  pieces  of  fine 
European  china.  Except  Mr.  Morrison's  it  is  the  most 
beautiful  thing  I  ever  saw.  Perhaps  M.  Morren  has  more 
wonderful  pieces,  but  the  whole  collection,  to  an  unpractised 
eye,  is  not  so  striking  as  the  collection  at  Fonthill.  After 
this  we  continued  to  walk,  visiting  other  shops,  and  did  not 
get  back  till  past  5.  The  only  purchases  we  made  were  a 
pair  of  Brussels  Jardinieres  at  Genie's,  £4,  and  some  few 
prints  at  Papillon's,  £i.  16.,  a  Frye  of  Queen  Charlotte  among 
them. 

27th.  Before  breakfast  to  the  Palais  Ducale  to  see  if  we 
could  get  any  information  about  the  Bruges  inkstands  ;  then 
to  some  shops ;  and  the  post.  In  the  afternoon  we  went  to 
Papillon's  to  pay  for  and  fetch  away  the  prints  we  had  bought 
the  day  before,  when,  oh  joy !  he  produced  seven  other 
Fryes,  most  brilliant  impressions,  though  unfortunately  the 

2OI 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1873 
margins  were  all  cut.  They  are  all  duplicates  of  some  we 
already  possess,  but  are  very  much  finer  examples,  and  we 
were  only  too  charmed  to  get  them  at  a  cost  of  £4.  and  we 
walked  away  with  them  in  high  glee.  Papillon  had 
remarked  our  purchase  of  the  Queen  Charlotte,  and 
remembering  that  there  were  other  heads  of  the  same  series 
where  he  had  got  that  from,  went  to  fetch  them  to  tempt 
us,  and  verily  we  were  delighted.  While  we  were  finishing 
table  d'hote  Sir  Digby  Wyatt  came  in,  being  on  his  way  to 
Vienna,  and  we  had  some  pleasant  talk  with  him.  [The 
well-known  architect,  who  was  secretary  for  the  1851 
Exhibition.] 

28th.  Before  breakfast  to  Marynen's  ;  his  cases  had  not 
yet  arrived.  C.S.  with  sore  throat ;  we  were  not  out  long  in 
the  afternoon.  Visited  the  Town  Hall,  and  called  at  Genie's  ; 
he  has  a  charming  old  Spanish  iron  box  like  one  we  saw 
at  Madrid  at  Raphael's.  He  wants  the  same  price  for 
it — £20.  \ 

2Qth.  After  table  d'hote  I  went  out  with  my  maid,  first, 
to  buy  myself  a  book  to  read,  and  then  to  get  my  letters  at 
the  Post  Office.  The  book  I  got  was  Sheridan's  Plays,  and 
I  eagerly  read  The  School  for  Scandal  and  The  Critic,  which 
I  had  recently  seen  acted  (the  first  very  well,  and  the  last 
very  badly,  Lord  Burleigh  omitted  !). 

30th.  Walked  about  I,  and  came  in  only  in  time  for  table 
d'hote  at  J  past  5.  Spent  a  couple  of  hours  at  the  Muse'e 
among  the  Pre-Raphaelite  pictures,  and  the  historical  and 
topographical  ones.  The  old  views  of  Brussels  are  very 
interesting.  We  have  made  out  the  little  terra-cotta  bust  by 
Nye,  which  we  bought  at  Ghent,  to  be  of  Prince  Charles 
Alexander  of  Lorraine,  who  was  Governor  of  the  Netherlands 
from  1741  to  1780.  The  date  of  the  bust  is  1759.  We  went 
to  one  or  two  shops,  but  bought  nothing  except  a  lovely 

202 


i873  NOTES  CERAMIC 

marcasite  brooch  with  turquoise  enamel,  which  we  found  in  a 
little  shop  which  happened  to  attract  our  notice  as  we  went 
through  the  Rue  de  la  Madeleine  ;  Hadog's,  No.  43. 

SEPTEMBER  1873 

BRUSSELS    :     ANTWERP    :     LOUVAIN     :     TOURNAI     :     NAMUR    : 

FLORENVILLE:  LUXEMBOURG:  METZ  :  GRAVELOTTE  :  NANCY: 

STRASBOURG    :     BADEN-BADEN    :     CARLSRUHE     :     DURLACH    : 

HEIDELBERG  :  FRANKFURT  :  MAINTZ  :  COBLENTZ  :  TREVES 

September  1st.  After  breakfast  walked  down  to  Polo- 
net's.  He  had  just  come  back  from  Spa,  but  brought 
nothing  with  him.  We  made  a  visit  to  S.  Gudule's,  where 
we  thoroughly  enjoyed  the  painted  windows. 

2nd.  Made  another  effort  to  see  the  Tour  de  Hal,  but  we 
did  not  set  off  early  and  were  delayed  by  showers  en  route, 
and  by  an  old  print-shop  in  the  Rue  de  Hmperatrice  (where 
however,  we  found  nothing)  until  it  was  too  late  to  make  it 
worth  our  while  to  go  on  to  the  Musee.  We  called  at  the 
Due  d'Arenberg's,  to  inquire  about  seeing  his  collection,  and 
went  into  the  Church  of  the  Grand  Sablon,  where  there  was 
little  to  see  beyond  the  natural  architecture  of  the  Church,  but 
where  we  were  interested  to  find  a  monument  to  a  "  de 
Berty  "  dated  1676 ;  I  doubt  if  he  could  be  any  connection 
of  our  family,  especially  as  he  appears  to  have  been  a  strong 
Roman  Catholic,  since  he  left  a  bequest  for  Masses  to  be  sung 
for  his  soul.  [Lady  Charlotte's  family  name  was,  of  course, 
Bertie,  that  of  the  Dukes  of  Ancaster  and  Earls  of  Lindsey.] 
Found  ourselves  near  the  Boulevard  de  Waterloo,  so  took  our 
places  in  one  of  the  American  omnibuses  and  went  to  the  Bois, 
which  is  very  pretty,  and  where  we  walked  about  some  time. 
3rd.  Went  out  before  breakfast.  Found  we  could  only 
see  the  pictures  and  Etruscan  vases  at  the  Due  d'Arenberg's, 
so  deferred  that  visit.  At  i.  went  to  the  Tour  de  Hal,  to 
which  we  at  length  accomplished  our  visit,  and  with  which 

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LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1873 
we  were  quite  delighted  ;  it  seemed  to  us  to  be  the  thing  the 
best  worth  seeing  in  Brussels.  Stayed  in  it  till  the  Musee 
closed  at  3,  then  walked  down  to  the  Station  du  Midi,  where 
we  found  an  American  omnibus  which  took  us,  for  a  few  sous, 
to  Laeken ;  we  had  scarcely  got  into  the  conveyance  when  a 
violent  shower  supervened,  but  it  stopped  ere  we  had  com- 
pleted our  short  trajet.  Walked  about  past  the  new  Church 
and  through  the  picturesque  Cemetery,  round  the  old  one. 
Then  went  up  to  the  palace,  which  we  could  approach  no 
nearer  than  the  grille  in  front.  We  sauntered  about  for  some 
time,  and  another  heavy  shower  came  on  as  we  walked  back, 
which  made  us  glad  to  keep  under  the  shelter  of  the  trees 
which  overhung  the  park  wall  ;  we  did  not  get  wet,  and  it 
soon  cleared  off  with  a  lovely  rainbow  ;  another  omnibus  took 
us  back  to  the  Gare  du  Nord.  Finished  Quentin  Durward, 
which  I  have  been  reading  over  again,  having  last  done  so 
when  it  first  came  out,  in  1821  or  1822. 

4th.  Up  early.  Went  by  9.16.  train  to  Antwerp,  which 
we  reached  soon  after  10.  Took  two  hours  to  go  through  the 
shops,  etc.  Found  a  charming  old  man,  M.  Haest,  in  the  Rue 
des  Sceurs  Noires,  who  has  old  prints,  but  none  in  our  line. 
He  has  promised  to  let  us  know  if  he  meets  with  any  to  suit 
us.  Long  visits  to  the  Picture  Gallery  and  the  Cathedral  filled 
up  the  time  till  3,  when  we  walked  to  the  station  again  and 
went  on  to  Malines  ;  got  some  bread  and  wine  at  the  buffet, 
and  then  drove  into  the  town.  The  only  china  shop  there 
was  as  empty  as  those  we  had  visited  at  Antwerp,  but  we 
went  to  a  curious  old  antiquaire,  M.  de  Bruyne,  who  sells  old 
furniture  and  makes  good  imitations  ;  he  has  been  sending 
some  of  his  work  in  the  shape  of  chimney-pieces  to  England 
for  Lord  Westminster.  After  this  we  went  to  the  three 
principal  Churches.  Saw  the  Vandyck  at  S.  Rumbold's, 
Rubens'  Adoration  of  the  Three  Kings  at  S.  Jean,  and  his 

204 


1873  NOTES  CERAMIC 

Miraculous  Draught  of  Fishes  (which  I  so  well  remember  in 
1844)  at  Notre  Dame.  We  came  in  for  a  little  bit  of  the 
service  in  each  Church,  and  I  was  more  struck  and  shocked 
than  ever  at  the  gross  superstition  we  witnessed ;  the  people 
crowding  to  kiss  dirty  relics,  etc.  I  cannot  understand  it  in 
any  persons  having  a  pretension  to  education  or  common 
sense  !  We  got  a  hasty  dinner  at  the  buffet  before  the  train 
came,  which  took  us  back  to  Brussels,  where  we  arrived  at  8. 

5th.  Again  up  early  and  off  by  ten  to  Louvain,  where  we 
spent  a  charming  day.  First  visited  the  Cathedral.  Very 
fine  tabernacle,  and  Altar  rail  in  marble  (by  Duguesnor)  ; 
grand  old  font.  Inquiring  of  the  Sacristan  he  told  us  of  a 
collection  of  china  to  be  seen  in  the  town,  and  directed  us  to  the 
shop  of  a  pork-butcher  hard  by.  The  collection  belonged  to 
his  brother,  also  a  butcher,  and  the  butcher's  boy  conducted  us 
to  the  house.  There  we  were  shown  into  a  very  prettily 
furnished  drawing-room  to  await  the  return  of  the  Collector 
from  the  shambles  ;  he  soon  came  in  ;  a  middle-aged,  wooden- 
legged  man,  in  a  blouse,  who  received  us  politely  and  un- 
locked a  large  room  to  which  he  introduced  us,  literally  full  of 
Oriental  china.  It  was  all  good  of  its  kind,  but  none  of  it 
remarkable.  He  said  he  was  willing  to  sell  it  all  in  one  lot, 
at  the  sum  of  £3200,  which  I,  for  one,  should  be  very  sorry 
to  give  him.  The  name  of  this  worthy  man  is  M.  Louis 
Goedseels,  15  Rue  des  Penitantes.  Returning  whence  we 
came  after  this  visit,  we  went  all  over  the  Town  Hall,  well 
remembered  by  me  of  old.  Then  to  the  University,  where 
we  lingered  long,  and  finally  to  S.  Gertrude,  where  we  saw  a 
beautiful  reliquaire  of  silver,  and  some  fine  vestments.  All 
this  took  us  so  much  time  that  we  were  obliged  to  relinquish 
an  intended  extension  of  our  tour  to  Aerschot.  Back  at 
Brussels  about  5. 

6th.  Not  up  early  ;  out  soon  after  II.  To  the  Banker's 

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LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1873 
and  some  shops.  Polonet  had  a  fine  large  china  fish  in  his 
window  ;  very  handsome,  made  by  Jean  Petit  (of  Paris),  from 
whose  daughter  he  had  just  bought  it.  Hard  paste  and  would 
not  have  suited  us.  We  got  to  the  Gare  du  Midi  on  foot  by 
J-  past  I,  and  by  2.  we  were  at  Hal.  A  curious  interesting  old 
Church,  where  we  had  hope  to  see  the  fine  old  Mediaeval 
plate,  but  it  was  all  put  away  in  readiness  for  the  Procession 
of  the  Miraculous  Black  Virgin,  whose  fete  was  to  be  on  the 
morrow.  However,  we  were  repaid  the  trouble  of  our  visit 
by  the  beautiful  triforium  (running  all  round  the  Church),  the 
marble  Reredos,  the  grand  old  font  and  cover  (at  Louvain 
the  cover  is  wanting),  the  Tomb  of  little  Joachim  (Dauphin 
and  son  of  Louis  XL),  and  the  ironwork  ornamenting  the 
Southern  doors.  The  old  Sacristan  took  us  to  see  the  richly 
bound  books  with  silver  mountings,  and  the  Vestments,  mostly 
new,  but  very  grand.  However,  he  was  not  intelligent.  I 
must  not  forget  the  beautiful  brass  Eagle  Lectern,  a  grand 
model  ;  the  Image  had  been  placed  above  the  High  Altar 
and  we  saw  the  Nuns  attiring  her  for  the  morrow's 'proces- 
sion ;  a  great  number  of  worshippers  were  already  assembled, 
and  pilgrims  were  kneeling  to  painted  figures  outside  the 
Church.  It  was  a  very  curious  insight  into  Belgian  life 
among  the  lower  orders.  We  walked  some  way  through 
the  town,  and  getting  into  talk  with  a  substantial-looking 
inhabitant,  he  directed  us  to  a  wine-seller  near  the  Church, 
called  Isidore  Vandenburgh,  where  he  said  there  was  a  collec- 
tion of  china.  This  was  readily  shown  to  us,  but  it  only 
consisted  of  some  old  cups  and  saucers  and  a  few  plates, 
which  were  brought  down  in  a  rubbish  basket  for  our  in- 
spection. 

8th.  Up  at  5.  Off  for  Tournai ;  a  desperately 
rainy  morning.  WTalked  to  the  Gare  du  Nord  in  search  of 
an  "  American  "  to  take  to  the  Gare  du  Midi.  Finding  none, 

206 


i873  NOTES  CERAMIC 

we  adopted  a  Vigilante ;  arriving  at  Tournai  we  were  rather 
dismayed  to  find  groups  and  crowds  of  people  at  the  station, 
and  all  the  town  alive  with  a  "pelerinage  "  and  procession, 
to  pray  for  the  deliverance  of  the  Pope !  We  thought  this 
would  impede  our  movements  and  prevent  our  seeing  and 
doing  all  that  we  had  come  to  Tournai  to  do  and  see !  But  it 
proved  far  otherwise  and  it  ended  in  our  spending  a  delightful 
and  most  interesting  day.  First  of  all  I  must  notice  the  gay 
appearance  of  the  town.  It  was  one  mass  of  flags  and 
decorations,  and  the  streets  were  almost  impassable  owing  to 
the  number  of  spectators,  notwithstanding  the  heavy  rain. 
We  walked  towards  the  Grande  Place,  and  when  we  were 
half-way  towards  it.  found  the  procession  coming  down,  and 
we  were  glad  to  avail  ourselves  of  the  invitation  of  a  polite 
shopkeeper  to  stand  within  his  door  to  look  at  it.  It  was  a 
very  pretty  sight,  brilliant  with  reliquaries,  and  music  and 
crowds  ;  when  it  had  passed  we  proceeded  to  the  house  of  a 
collector  to  whom  we  had  been  recommended  by  Mr.  Weale. 
This  was  a  dentist,  M.  Pourbaix,  Place  du  Pare,  whom  we 
found  at  home,  and  who  showed  us  all  his  things.  He  has  a 
very  large  apartment,  and  principally  prides  himself  upon  his 
Tournai.  It  was  good,  but  not  fine — one  Battersea  box  I 
should  have  liked  to  possess,  but  he  asked  £12.  for  it.  All 
his  prices  were  in  proportion,  so  it  is  needless  to  add  that  we 
made  no  purchases.  He  has  a  good  reliquaire,  mounted  in 
silver,  about  150  years  old,  for  which  he  wanted  £160.  From 
him  we  got  all  the  particulars  of  what  is  doing  in  the  Porcelain 
Works  of  Tournai  and  S.  Amand.  The  former  are  producing 
common  goods  with  blue  printing  under  the  glaze,  but  have 
no  gilders  or  painters  engaged.  The  latter,  under  the 
management  of  M.  Bettignie,  turns  out  a  quantity  of  white, 
pate  tendre  articles,  which  are  taken  to  Paris  to  be  painted, 
etc.,  and  then  are  sold  as  old  Sevres ;  much  of  this  comes  to 

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LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1873 

England ;    I    believe    the    forged    Worcester    has   a   similar 
origin.     From  M.  Pourbaix  we  went  to  Mme.  Detail  in  the 
Boulevard  Leopold  ;  she  was  out  at  Mass,  and  before  she 
got   back  we  had  gone  through  all  her    stock,   but    found 
nothing  to  buy.     While  there  a  most  violent  shower  super- 
vened,  after   which  the   rain    cleared    off  and   the    weather 
became  magnificent.     Looked  into  de   Dries'  window,   and 
then  made  our  way  to  the  Cathedral.     It  was  so  full  that  it 
was  difficult  to  circulate,  and  still  more  difficult  to  get  places 
whence  we  could  see  what  was  going  on,  but  we  eventually 
succeeded   in   doing   so.     The    Pope's    Nuncio,    Monsignor 
Cattani  (with  the  Bishop  of  the  Diocese  and  a  number  of 
grandly  attired  ecclesiastics)    was  celebrating   Mass.      We 
were  near  enough  to    watch  the  whole  proceeding.     The 
music  was  good ;   the  whole  ceremony  very  imposing ;   the 
enthusiasm  of  the  assembled  multitudes  very  great  indeed. 
As  soon  as  the  Nuncio  and  the  other  dignitaries  had  left  the 
Cathedral  we  made  a  great  struggle,  with  many  of  the  by- 
standers, to  get  upon  the  platform  on  which  a  temporary 
High   Altar   had   been   erected,    at    the    entrance    to    the 
Choir.     This  Altar  was  covered  with  the  most  magnificent 
Shrines   and    other    articles   of  Church    Plate,       It   was   a 
very  brilliant  display,  far  exceeding  anything  I  could  have 
imagined,    but    it     appears    that    all    the     treasures    from 
the    neighbouring   parishes  were  collected  there;   after    the 
first   pressure  of  the  crowd  we    were   admitted  behind  the 
display  and  so  we  were  able  to  examine  all  at  our  leisure, 
and    to   our   great   contentment.      Three    of    the   Chalices 
were   the   most    curious   and    beautiful    specimens    I    ever 
saw.     Altogether  we  were  delighted  with  our  good  fortune 
in  having  by  chance  come  to  see  all  this.     The  poor  people 
were  crowding  around  to  touch  the  reliquaries  with  their 
rosaries,  and  at  the  end  of  the  ceremonial  there  was  some 

208 


i873  NOTES  CERAMIC 

cheering  for  the  Pope.  The  grandeur  of  this  exquisite 
Cathedral,  and  the  sudden  brilliancy  of  the  weather  made 
the  whole  scene  perfect.  When  it  was  all  over  I  went  and 
sat  awhile  on  a  door-step  under  a  curious  old  arch  facing  the 
edifice,  and  we  took  counsel  what  next  to  do.  It  ended  in 
our  going  to  the  Hotel  de  Ville  to  see  the  insignificant  local 
collection  or  Musee.  It  stands  in  a  pretty  park ;  and  then 
we  walked  back  to  the  railway  by  which  we  reached 
Brussels  by  |-  past  5.  and  got  in  at  6. 

9th.  Made  visits  to  some  shops,  among  them  to  Ande- 
laar's ;  he  showed  us  some  of  his  fine  Oriental  china ;  then 
went  again  to  the  Musee  (Tour  de  Hal)  and  stayed  there  till 
it  closed  at  3.  Thence  again  to  the  Due  d'Arenberg's, 
where  we  saw  the  pictures.  The  de  Houghe  and  Jan  Steen 
seemed  to  strike  us  most. 

loth.  Up  early  and  off  by  9  from  Brussels  to  Namur, 
where  we  spent  a  delightful  day.  The  route  lay  through  a 
prettily  wooded  district.  I  had  not  been  to  Namur  since 
1844,  and  remembered  little  of  it.  Our  first  start  was  not 
propitious  ;  we  had  violent  bursts  of  rain  and  had  to  take 
refuge  under  archways ;  but  at  the  last  we  made  our  way  to 
the  Museum,  with  which  we  were  quite  delighted.  Our  next 
object  was  to  see  the  view  from  the  Castle,  and  while  C.S. 
went  to  get  a  ticket  of  admission,  I  sat  on  the  Bridge 
crossing  the  Sambre,  which  is  very  pretty.  The  weather 
had  then  cleared  and  it  was  fine  for  our  ascent  to  the 
Castle,  whence  we  thoroughly  enjoyed  the  prospect.  We 
had  made  a  visit  on  our  way  from  the  Mus£e  to  a  Directeur 
de  Ventes,  who  had  sent  us  to  see  the  one  marchand-collec- 
teur  in  the  town,  one  Rase,  a  butcher,  in  the  Rue  du  Pont. 
He  had  nothing  in  our  line  and  everything  he  had  was 
very  dear.  He  told  us  that  one  M.  Wolvaez,  at  Serveiz, 
had  a  fine  collection,  so  thither  we  wended  our  way  after 

I  209  o 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1873 
leaving  the  Castle.  It  was  a  long  walk,  and  we  were  kindly 
received,  but  were  not  rewarded  by  any  display  greater  than 
that  of  some  mediocre  Oriental,  chiefly  sets  of  plates.  On 
our  way  back  we  went  to  the  Cathedral  to  see  the  inscription 
to  the  revered  John  of  Austria.  It  was  too  late  to  be  shown 
the  treasure  at  the  Convent  of  the  Sceurs  de  Notre  Dame, 
so,  having  well  explored  the  town,  we  were  fain  to  be  content 
to  dine  (badly)  at  the  Hotel  de  Hollande,  and  then  to  go  to  the 
railway  station,  where  we  proceeded  in  due  course  to  Dinant. 
Took  up  our  quarters  at  the  Hotel  de  la  Poste.  Very 
comfortable  and  with  a  most  lovely  view. 

nth.  C.S.  out  early.  Some  little  rain,  but  not  enough 
to  prevent  my  going  with  him  into  the  town  after  breakfast. 
Most  curious  old  Cathedral  put  under  the  Rocks,  with  such 
magnificent  brass  Candlesticks,  "  Dinanderies  ",  signed  and 
dated  "  Nicholas  Bello,  ma  fai  1629  ">  on  *he  steps  of  the  High 
Altar.  No  other  antiquities  of  much  interest.  We  inquired 
for  old  things,  and  found  the  shop  of  one  Polome,  a  jeweller, 
where  there  might  have  been  anything,  but  the  man  himself 
was  out  fishing  or  shooting,  and  the  wife  advised  us  to  try 
and  see  the  collection  of  the  Surintendant  of  the  District, 
who,  on  application,  received  us  very  politely,  but  regretted 
that  he  had  nothing  to  show  us.  He  directed  us  to  the 
Burgomaster,  M.  Pierlot,  or  some  such  name,  and  there  we 
saw  several  good  specimens  of  "  Dinanderies  "  in  the  shape  of 
wine-coolers,  snuffer-trays,  busts,  etc.  The  Burgomaster 
and  his  wife  were  away  but  the  servant  readily  admitted 
us.  After  this  we  returned  to  our  Hotel,  and  took  the 
train  again  to  return  to  Namur  at  a  little  before  one.  I 
was  glad  to  see  the  lovely  scenery  of  the  Meuse  by  daylight. 
It  was  dark  when  we  passed  through  it  on  the  previous 
evening.  At  Namur,  our  only  object  was  now  to  see  the 
treasure  at  the  Convent,  which  was  shown  us  most  politely 

210 


i873  NOTES  CERAMIC 

by  a  charming  nun.  She  had  to  take  us  through  the  Church 
where  all  the  Sisters  were  at  their  devotions,  an  edifying 
sight,  for  they  all  seemed  most  attentive  and  earnest.  I 
need  not  say  how  delighted  we  were  with  the  reliquaries,  etc., 
which  we  had  this  opportunity  of  examining.  This  Nunnery 
is  an  Educational  establishment,  and  as  such  the  Nuns  have 
occupation,  and  may  therefore  be  happy.  Many  English 
women  are  with  them,  amongst  others,  they  said,  a  sister  of 
Lord  Stafford's,  Mrs.  Petre. 

I2th.  Again  up  early,  and  soon  after  8  went  off  in  a 
little  open  carriage  to  the  village  of  Han-sur-Lesse  to  see 
the  grotto  ;  a  long  wet  walk  through  the  long  grass  to  the 
entrance,  to  which  we  were  conducted  by  a  woman.  There 
the  guide  met  us,  and  we  had  an  hour's  walk  through  the 
grotto,  keeping  the  ligne  directe  and  not  diverging  into  the 
side  caves.  It  was  quite  enough,  though,  of  course,  very 
grand  and  curious.  Two  things  pleased  me,  the  bridge  over 
the  subterranean  Lesse,  and  the  exit  by  its  stream  in  a  boat ; 
the  effects  of  light,  beautiful,  as  you  emerge  into  the  open 
day.  Came  back  very  wet.  Had  just  time  to  change  and 
to  join  the  early  table  d'hote  dinner  at  the  Hotel  Biron  before 
getting  into  the  omnibus,  to  join  a  train  at  Jemelle  at  3.  As 
we  drove  out  of  the  town  the  Queen  of  the  Belgians  dashed 
into  it  in  a  little  pony  carriage  with  her  daughter,  attended 
by  one  servant,  driving  herself  regardless  of  the  heavy  rain 
in  the  little  open  vehicle.  We  left  the  train  again  at 
Longlier,  took  an  omnibus,  and  then  the  Poste  con- 
veyance to  Florenville.  Of  course  it  was  dark  long 
before  we  arrived.  An  Inn  still  more  rustic  than  that  at 
Rochefort.  Our  rooms  lay  through  that  of  the  master  of 
the  house,  who  was  called  up  at  4.  I  was  ill,  and  had 
a  bad  night,  and  hardly  felt  equal  to  getting  up  again  at 
6.  and  so  off.  But  I  w;as  glad  to  leave  the  noisy,  comfortless 

211 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1873 
hostelry,  where  everybody,  however,  had  done  their  best 
for  us. 

I3th.  We  took  a  private  carriage  ;  started  after  9  ;  went 
first  to  the  new  Church,  which  is  on  a  grand  plateau  com- 
manding a  most  extensive  view,  which,  however,  we  could 
only  see  imperfectly  by  reason  of  the  mist.  Visited  the 
immense  ruins  of  the  Abbaie  d'Orval,  destroyed  by  the 
French.  The  weather  was  fine  for  our  journey  and  we  had 
a  pleasant  drive  to  Virton,  where  we  arrived  in  time  to  join 
the  table  d'hote  dinner  before  2.  o'clock.  Then  on  by  rail- 
way, and  after  some  waiting  eventually  got  on  to  Arlon. 
We  had  hoped  to  have  been  at  Luxembourg  by  6.  But 
at  Arlon  station  there  occurred  a  contretemps  about  our 
luggage  so  we  were  detained  there  till  the  express  train, 
which  did  not  go  through  till  past  II.  Meanwhile  we  went 
up  into  the  town,  and  stayed  some  time  at  the  Hotel.  It 
seems  a  nice  thriving  place  and  very  prettily  situated  ;  but  it 
was  getting  too  dark  to  see  much  of  it.  A  good  deal  of 
thunder  and  lightning  but  the  storm  went  over.  Reached 
Luxembourg  at  midnight.  Very  tired  ;  but  a  good  night  at 
a  comfortable  Inn  (Hotel  de  Cologne)  set  me  all  to  rights 
after  the  long  fatiguing  day. 

I5th.  We  hoped  for  better  weather  on  Monday,  and  the 
morning  opened  with  better  promise,  so  after  breakfast  we 
sallied  forth.  First  of  all  we  went  to  our  Banker's  for  some 
money,  and  then  went  into  the  Cathedral,  just  opposite.  We 
were  fortunate  enough  to  fall  in  with  the  principal  Vicar,  M. 
Koppes,  who  showed  us  round  the  Church  very  politely,  and, 
on  my  inquiry,  took  us  to  see  the  Church  plate,  which  is  good 
(about  1600)  and  the  Vestments,  some  of  which  are  old  and 
very  magnificent.  The  Cathedral  has  some  Brussels  Lace 
which  they  are  willing  to  sell,  but  I  expect  they  want  a  large 
price  for  it.  Tomb  intended  for  John  of  Bohemia,  etc.  M. 

212 


1873  NOTES  CERAMIC 

Koppes  took  us  to  the  Musee,  which  contained  little  to  interest 
us.  By  the  time  we  had  left  it,  so  violent  a  storm  had  come 
on  that  we  concluded  it  would  be  of  little  use  to  linger  at 
Luxembourg  to  see  the  views.  Accordingly  we  decided  to 
go  by  the  1.20.  train  to  Metz.  Here  we  arrived  between  4. 
and  5.,  and  immediately  set  out  on  foot  to  explore.  We  went 
into  the  magnificent  Cathedral,  with  its  tall  slender  columns 
and  its  glorious  old  glass,  and  thence  proceeded  to  the  shop 
of  Dennery,  Rue  des  Jardins,  where  we  found  some  very  good 
specimens  of  Worcester,  and  four  small  figures  of  the  Seasons 
in  Venetian  glass.  We  hope  they  are  authentic,  but  we  have 
been  told,  since  we  bought  them,  that  such  things  were 
formerly  manufactured  at  S.  Louis,  a  small  fabrique  near 
Metz,  where  ordinary  crockery  is  still  produced.  Table  d;hote 
at  6.  Got  into  conversation  with  an  intelligent  man  who  sat 
opposite,  and  who  proved  to  be  Mr.  Forbes,  correspondent  to 
the  Daily  Telegraph. 

i6th.  Uncertain  showery  weather.  The  principal  inci- 
dent of  the  day  was  the  arrival  of  General  Manteufel  with 
his  suite,  and  the  rest  of  the  army  of  occupation,  having  this 
morning  passed  the  frontier  and  finally  vacated  the  French 
territory.  The  General  put  up  at  this  Hotel  (Hotel  de 
1'Europe)  and  we  witnessed  his  reception  in  the  Courtyard, 
which  was  a  pretty  sight,  a  large  circle  of  Officers  being 
collected,  the  band  playing,  etc.  Spent  the  afternoon  among 
the  curiosity  shops — Dennery 's  (in  the  Rue  Mayette),  Thomas 
Renard  (Rue  Nesirue),  a  charming  old  antiquaire  who  has 
fine  things  and  must  have  had  wonderful  things  in  his  time. 
We  got  of  him  an  ivory  medallion  of  Garrick,  etc.,  and  on 
going  to  Dennery's  (Rue  des  Jardins)  to  pick  up  our  glass 
figures,  which  he  was  to  pack  for  us,  we  were  tempted  to 
invest  in  Vienna  plates,  painted  with  heathen  deities.  After 
dinner,  Mr.  Forbes  told  us  that  General  Manteufel  was  going 

213 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1873 
to  rechristen  one  of  the  Forts  near  the  town  at  10.  next  morning, 
and  offered  to  procure  us  tickets  to  see  the  ceremony. 

I7th.  Accordingly  we  got  up  early  and,  by  9.  o'clock, 
were  en  route  for  Fort  S.  Julien.  Professor  Munro,  of  Trinity, 
who  was  stopping  at  the  Hotel,  joined  us — and  Sir  J.  Coode 
(the  engineer),  his  wife  and  daughter,  and  a  Mr.  Chamberlain 
were  of  the  same  party,  We  reached  the  Fort  soon  after  10. 
and  found  a  large  assemblage  of  Military  Officers  prepared 
to  receive  the  General,  who  arrived  in  about  half  an  hour, 
a  band  of  music  greeting  him  as  he  approached.  He  was  on 
foot  after  entering  the  precincts,  and  having  exchanged  salutes 
with  many  of  the  Officers  walked  up  at  once  to  the  Flagstaff. 
We  all  followed  immediately,  and  had  good  places  on  the 
small  platform,  close  to  where  he  stood,  The  space  was  very 
limited  and  we  stood  on  the  edge  of  an  abrupt  though  not  very 
steep  descent.  The  General  stepped  from  his  place,  just  as 
the  ceremony  was  to  commence,  and  cautioned  me  and  the 
other  ladies  not  to  fall,  for  which  I  thanked  him  with  a  curtsy. 
The  ceremony  was  short  but  impressive,  and  admirably  done. 
The  Commandant  made  a  speech  appropriate  to  the  occasion, 
then  filling  a  large  glass  goblet  with  wine,  he  presented  it  to 
Manteufel,  who,  having  drank  of  it,  signed  that  it  should  be 
handed  to  several  other  Officers,  who  drank  accordingly  ; 
There  was  a  great  deal  of  Military  saluting  and  some  shaking 
of  hands.  Then  Manteufel  took  the  bottle  and  poured  wine 
into  the  goblet  and  drank  a  goodly  draught,  emptying  what 
remained  upon  the  ground.  He  spoke  a  few  words,  a  cheer 
was  given  for  Germany,  the  band  struck  up  their  and  our 
national  Anthems  (God  save  the  Queen)  and  the  Fort  had 
changed  its  name  from  Fort  S.  Julien  to  Fort  Manteufel ;  all 
the  speaking  being  in  German,  I  could  only  gather  the  general 
meaning  of  what  was  said,  and  some  things  were  explained  by 
Mr.  Forbes.  He  and  a  friend  of  his,  together  with  our  party, 

214 


i873  NOTES  CERAMIC 

were  the  only  strangers  present.     The  view  at  the  point  we 
were  stationed  at  was  magnificent,  overlooking  the  scene  of 
the  battle  of  the  I4th  of  August.     Sir  James  Coode  came  to 
our  carnage,  and  explained  to  us  the  movements  of  the  troops 
as  far  as  Gravelotte,  where  we  got  out  to  rest  the  horses  and  to 
get  something  to  eat.    The  little  Inn  was  very  full  in  every  part. 
Many  Officers,  on  their  way  from  Verdun,  were  to  dine  there, 
and  the  place  swarmed  with  other  people  non-militaires.     It 
was  with  difficulty  that  a  cutlet  could  be  procured  for  those 
who  were  very  hungry  :  I  was  gladly  contented  with  some  good 
gruyere  cheese  and  bread  and  wine  ;  a  meal  which  reminded 
me  of  our  similar  breakfast  on  the  1st  of  June  1871  between 
Juvissy  and  Versailles.     At  Gravelotte  we  were  shown  the 
house  in  and  about  which  the  King  of  Prussia  was  during 
the    battle,  which  he  could  watch   from  the  back  windows. 
They  pointed  out  the  spot,  in  the  angle  of  the  wall,  where 
von  Moltke  stood  ;  Bismarck  also  had  been  there.     From  this 
cottage,  close  to  the  Church,  part  of  which  was  burning,  the 
scene  of  the  fiercest  part  of  the  action  and  the  fatal  ravine 
were  commanded.     Opposite  the  Hotel  we  went  into  a  smarter 
house,   where  we   saw   the  rooms    in    which    the    Emperor 
Napoleon  and  his  son  had  passed  the  night  of  the  I5th  of 
August.     It  was  a  pretty  apartment  with  two  alcoves  contain- 
ing beds.    The  Prince  Imperial  had  written  his  name  in  pencil, 
"  Napoleon  ",  on  the  door  of  the  alcove  he  occupied.     From 
Gravelotte  Sir  J.  Coode,  etc.,  went  to  see  the  scene  of  August 
l6th.    We  and  Mr.  Munro  continued  our  way  to  S.  Privat, 
through  S.  Marie- aux-Chenes.     I  think  we  quite  followed  all 
the  wonderful  movements  of  the  dreadful  i8th  of  August,  and 
I  had  no  idea  they  could  have  been  made  so  clear  to  unpro- 
fessional eyes ;  a  most  painfully  interesting  scenery ;  some  of  the 
views  over  Metz  were  magnificent ;  our  road  back  lay  through 
fine  and  picturesque  woods.     The  number  of  Germans  in  the 

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LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1873 
town  is  wonderful.  The  table  d'hote  is  mainly  filled  with 
them.  To-day  a  very  young  man  joined  it  ;  at  his  entrance 
all  the  officers  rose  with  great  respect ;  he  wore  a  cross  of 
honour  ;  they  told  us  he  was  a  Count,  and  a  nephew  of 
Bismarck. 

i8th.  Before  we  were  down  at  breakfast  this  morning, 
Manteufel  and  his  staff  had  departed.  We  went  out  soon 
after  II.  The  weather  was  dry,  and  we  kept  on  foot  till  6. 
o'clock.  First  went  to  "  Thomas  ",  Rue  des  Clercs,  who  had 
nothing  in  our  line,  nor  could  he  introduce  us  to  M.  Bertol, 
whom  we  found  to  be  the  great  Collector  in  the  town.  How- 
ever, he  sent  us  to  Mons.  Purton,  who  rejoices  in  the  posses- 
sion of  four  fine  Dresden  groups  of  the  four  quarters  of  the 
globe.  M.  Purton,  again,  recommended  us  to  his  brother-in- 
law,  M.  Aerty,  who  had,  however,  nothing  but  bronzes  and 
pictures,  and  a  few  prints.  By  him  we  were  encouraged  to 
call  on  M.  Bertol  and  to  try  and  see  his  collection,  but  be 
fore  going  there  we  went  to  the  Muse"e,  where  we  spent  a 
very  pleasant  half-hour :  on  our  way  through  the  Place  de 
la  Cath£drale  we  paused  to  hear  the  Prussian  Band  play 
Mendelssohn's  Wedding  March,  most  beautifully.  Arrived  at 
M.  Bertol's  we  found  he  was  too  poorly  to  see  us,  but  he 
desired  his  servant  to  show  us  everything,  and  we  went 
through  three  very  handsome  rooms,  lined  by  an  extensive 
and  admirably  chosen  collection.  It  was  the  very  largest 
assemblage  of  china  groups  (chiefly  Dresden  and  German) 
that  I  ever  saw  or  ever  imagined.  There  were  at  least  five 
large  cases,  on  the  shelves  of  which  the  figures  stood  two, 
and  even  three,  deep.  Among  them,  to  our  great  pleasure, 
we  found  three  Bristol  figures — repetitions  of  our  "  Earth  ", 
"  Water",  and  Fire",  all  marked  T°  very  distinctly.  They 
were  very  perfect  in  condition,  but  less  finished  than  ours 
and  without  any  gilding.  He  had  two  charming  large  groups 

216 


1873  NOTES  CERAMIC 

on  pedestals,  either  Capo,  or  Buen  Retiro  ;  and  some  extra- 
ordinary egg-shell  vases  with  landscapes  "a  1'Europe'enne ". 
Besides  the  figures  and  groups,  which  must  have  numbered 
thousands,  there  were  many  other  fine  things,  gilded  Delft, 
richly  coloured  Oriental,  etc.,  and  all  arranged  in  the  most 
effective,  and  at  the  same  time  most  harmonious  manner. 
On  leaving  M.  Bertol's  we  walked  on  the  Esplanade  which 
faces  his  house,  and  so,  enjoying  the  fine  view  (towards  S. 
Quentin,  etc.),  went  by  the  Boulevards  into  the  centre  of  the 
town  again.  Called  again  on  Renard,  who  accompanied  us 
again  to  the  Muse'e,  where  he  pointed  out  and  explained 
many  things  to  us.  Then  he  went  with  us  to  the  Cathedral 
to  see  the  Treasure.  An  "  Autel  Portativ"and  the  Corona- 
tion Stole  worn  by  Charlemagne  were  the  objects  which 
pleased  me  most :  the  latter  a  curious  and  well-preserved 
specimen  of  needlework.  We  afterwards  went  into  the  crypt 
to  see  the  foundations.  The  marble  chair  or  throne  of  S. 
Clement  reminded  me  of  that  of  Charlemagne  at  Aix-la- 
Chapelle.  After  dinner  we  left  Metz  by  railway.  Our  train 
left  a  little  before  9.,  and  arrived  soon  after  II.  at  Nancy.  A 
very  tiresome  douanier  en  route  insisted  on  unpacking  our 
glass  figures.  Hotel  de  France  :  rooms  au  troisieme,  but 
large  and  comfortable,  the  house  being  full. 

iQth.  Out  from  12.  to  6.  A  very  fine  and  enjoyable  day. 
We  first  ransacked  all  the  little  shops  round  the  Rue  des 
Fonts,  etc.,  but  without  any  success.  Then  we  went  to  Le 
Guay's  (Rue  Stanislas),  and  to  Dumont's,  Lazard- Levy's, 
and  Hammerduigue's  in  the  Rue  S.  Dizier  and  its  continua- 
tion. These  shops  seemed  full  of  things  all  of  very  mediocre 
quality,  and  very  dear.  Our  only  purchase  was  a  small  silver 
reliquaire  at  Lazard's,  a  Mennecy  pot  at  Dumont's,  each  6 
francs.  We  went  to  see  the  collection  of  pictures,  and 
lingered  there  some  time,  then  finished  our  round  of  the 

217 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1873 
dealers,  by  calling  at  a  frame-maker's,  Buquet's,  Rue  S. 
Catherine,  where  we  found  two  curious  little  miniatures  on 
vellum  of  Charles  I.  and  William  III.  of  England — 6  francs. 
Walked  into  the  Pepiniere,  and  through  it,  crossed  the  canal 
by  the  bridge  facing  the  Grille,  and  walked  along  the  banks, 
enjoying  a  charming  view  of  the  surrounding  country,  until 
we  came  to  another  bridge  which  brought  us  back  to  the 
town  by  the  ruins  of  the  grand  old  Castle,  and  of  the  Musee 
de  Lorraine.  The  old  Gates  of  the  former  very  imposing ; 
the  entrance  to  the  latter  most  rich  and  interesting.  The 
destruction  of  the  valuable  collection,  which  had  been 
amassed  there,  by  fire,  some  three  years  ago,  is  beyond  all 
measure  to  be  deplored.  I  know  not  where  I  have  made  so 
pleasant  a  walk ;  the  weather  perfect,  and  all  the  more  en- 
joyable after  the  wet  we  have  lately  suffered  from. 

20th.  We  were  up  early  and  out  by  ten.  First  we 
went  to  the  house  of  M.  Goudchoux  Picard,  just  outside  the 
Porte  S.  Nicholas,  to  whom  we  were  recommended  as  having 
a  fine  collection,  which  we  found  to  be  the  case.  He  has 
things  "  en  tout  genre  ",  but  especially  a  quantity  of  specimens 
of  the  faience  of  the  country,  and  biscuit  groups  signed  by 
Lemire-Pere,  Niderville,  and  Cyffle,  Luneville.  These  he 
told  us  were  very  rare.  But  it  appears  that  at  Luneville 
they  have  all  the  old  moulds,  and  are  now  reproducing 
Cyffle"'s  subjects  in  coloured  faiences.  This  is  the  country 
from  which  all  these  "  contrefa9ons "  come.  Guibal  is  the 
name  of  another  artist  modeller  ;  one  of  the  streets  of  Nancy 
bears  his  name  ;  another  that  of  Callot,  another  of  Dom 
Calmet,  and  there  is  a  Rue  Fai'encerie.  It  is  curious  that 
we  traced  our  little  glass  figures  (bought  on  the  I5th)  to  M. 
Picard's  collection.  He  had  parted  with  them  last  week  for 
little  less  than  we  gave  to  Dennery  because  he  had  other 
specimens,  which  he  showed  us.  This  sets  all  doubts  as  to 

218 


i8;3  NOTES  CERAMIC 

their  genuineness  at  rest.  From  M.  Picard's  we  walked 
along  the  long  Rue  S.  Dizier,  and  through  the  gate  of  the 
old  Castle  to  the  Faubourg  of  the  Trois  Maisons,  near  the 
Church  of  which  we  had  paid  a  visit  to  the  Cure,  M.  Barbier. 
He  has  a  very  pretty  apartment,  with  a  few  meubles,  all  in 
the  highest  taste,  and  a  room  full  of  pictures  which  I  am  un- 
able to  appreciate.  He  showed  us  specimens  of  carving  and 
terre  cuites  said  to  be  by  the  hands  of  Dagarre  and  Adam. 
He  has  a  very  pretty  mirror  with  the  frame  in  coloured  glass 
and  metal  work  (in  the  style  of  the  glass  room  in  Northum- 
berland House)  which  might  be  worth  importing.  M. 
Barbier  is  a  nice  genial  individual,  a  good  specimen  of  a 
refined  priest.  On  leaving  him  we  returned  to  the  town  by 
the  Porte  des  Isles  and  the  Cour  Leopold.  Visited  with 
great  pleasure  the  Church  of  the  Cordeliers.  Tomb  of  Rene" 
II.  (1508)  by  Mansuy,  very  grand.  Some  other  interesting 
old  monuments,  that  of  his  widow  Philippa  (i547)  by  Richter, 
and  a  curious  group  said  to  be  that  of  the  first  Due  de 
Lorraine  and  his  wife.  The  Mausoleum  is  fine,  dated  1608. 
Chassel,  of  Metz,  sculptured  the  dead  Christ  and  the  figures 
on  the  Altar.  The  young  woman  who  showed  us  over  the 
Church  took  us  to  her  father's  house,  where  we  hoped  to 
have  found  some  antiquities,  but  he  had  nothing.  To  the 
Muse'e,  where  were  many  matters  of  local  interest,  some  fine 
tapestries  said  to  have  been  taken  from  the  tent  of  Charles 
the  Bold ;  they  are  about  that  date  and  reminded  me  of  some 
I  have  seen  representing  Ferdinand  and  Isabella.  Went 
again  to  Buquet's  intending  to  buy  some  hall  chairs  we  had 
fancied,  but  he  was  honest  enough  to  show  us  that  they  were 
copies  done  some  40  years  ago,  and  is  to  look  out  for 
originals  for  us.  He  has  promised  to  let  us  know  of 
anything  fine  that  may  come  in  his  way.  He  took  us  to  an 
Architect's  house  to  see  a  large  Armoire,  but  it  would  not 

219 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1873 
have  suited  any  of  us,  though  very  good.  Bought  at  Lazard- 
Levy's  an  old  canister  of  white  metal,  dated  1695,  price  i6/-. 
Back  at  3.  Dined.  At  4  left  Nancy,  a  very  pretty  town,  in 
which  more  particularly  are  to  be  admired  the  grilles  and 
other  metal  work,  the  productions  of  Jean  1' Amour,  temp. 
Stanislaus  Leckzinski.  But  the  part  more  interesting  to  us  is 
the  Old  Gate,  and  the  old  Ducal  Palace  with  its  fine 
Cloister  ;  it  is  now  being  repaired. 

2ist.  Strasbourg.  A  fine  day,  but  not  so  gorgeous  as 
yesterday.  We  did  not  get  out  till  2.  o'clock,  when  we  went 
out  for  a  little  walk  and  came  in  for  a  long  one.  We  wanted 
to  see  the  Bridge  over  the  Rhine  leading  to  Kehl.  By 
many  detours  we  at  length  reached  the  Orangerie,  where 
again  we  lost  our  bearings.  However,  at  length  we  found 
ourselves  on  the  banks  of  the  "  Petit  Rhin  ",  and  taking  a 
small  boat  across  we  soon  came  to  the  banks  of  the  Rhine 
itself,  following  which  we  came  to  the  foot  of  the  Bridge ;  a 
large  Rhine  steamer  turned  into  the  Petit  Rhin  just  as  we 
reached  the  junction  :  crowds  of  people  were  walking  in  their 
holiday  costumes  both  towards  the  Orangerie  and  on  the 
road  between  Kehl  Bridge  and  Strasbourg.  It  was  a  very 
animated  scene :  the  little  wine-shops  and  dancing-houses 
near  Kehl  Bridge  seemed  full,  but  all  sober  and  well  behaved. 
We  stopped  some  time  to  see  the  waltzing  at  one  of  the  Salles 
de  danse,  looking  in  at  the  windows ;  most  of  the  male 
dancers  seemed  to  be  German  soldiers,  who  acquitted  them- 
selves admirably. 

22nd.  Found  ourselves  by  chance  in  the  Cathedral  just 
before  12.,  and  so  had  the  opportunity  of  seeing  the  clock 
perform  its  eccentric  evolutions  ;  the  Apostles  promenading ; 
the  figure  of  the  Saviour  giving  the  Benediction ;  the  Cock 
flapping  its  wings  and  crowing  savagely  three  times,  and  old 
Time  striking  the  hour.  We  then  went  all  over  the  Cathe- 

220 


i873  NOTES  CERAMIC 

dral,  but  did  not  make  any  of  the  perilous  ascents.  Many  of 
the  fine  old  glass  windows,  the  chandelier,  and  a  small  por- 
tion of  the  edifice,  suffered  in  the  siege,  but  less  damage 
occurred  than  might  have  been  expected.  The  only  other 
sight  we  went  to  was  S.  Thomas,  to  see  Pigalle's  Monument 
to  Marshal  Saxe  [a  son  of  the  famous  Augustus  the  Strong,  1st 
of  Poland  and  2nd  of  Saxony.  He  founded  the  factory  at  Meis- 
sen, the  porcelain  from  which  place  so  greatly  interested  Lady 
Charlotte  as  "best  Dresden"] — very  French  and  quite  out  of 
taste  ;  however,  the  execution  fine.  A  wonderful  old  tomb, 
coffer-shaped,  with  good  old  Romanesque  sculpture,  in  the 
Choir ;  I  believe  it  contains  the  remains  of  the  Bishop  who 
founded  the  old  Church,  only  portions  of  which  still  sur- 
vive. All  the  Jews'  shops  being  closed,  for  one  of  their  great 
festivals,  we  only  got  into  two  curiosity  shops,  that  of  Brion, 
on  the  Dom  Platz,  and  Eckart,  Place  du  Vieux  Marche  des 
Vins :  from  the  latter  we  got  a  glass  plaque  painted  with  a 
landscape,  and  signed  H.G.M.  1739,  which  we  think  may 
have  been  done  by  one  of  the  Hanungs  during  a  residence  at 
Meissen ;  also  a  Frankenthal  cup  and  saucer.  We  tried  to 
see  the  private  collection  of  M.  Keller,  Maison  Sauvage, 
Quai  de  S.  Nicholas,  but  he  was  out :  came  in  for  an  hour  or 
two  before  dinner,  finding  it  cold  and  raw.  After  dinner 
Brion  took  us  to  see  some  beautiful  Dresden  china,  belonging 
to  a  private  family,  whose  ancestor  being  Ambassador  from 
some  place  in  Italy  to  the  Court  of  Dresden  had  received 
this  china  as  a  present  from  the  King  of  Saxony.  Some 
of  it  was  really  fine,  such  as  plates  painted  a  la  Watteau, 
and  ornaments  formed  of  Dresden  flowers,  etc.  But  the 
price  asked  was  enormous.  Left  Strasbourg  at  9.  The 
Cathedral  is  magnificent ;  the  Tower  Spire  I  think  more 
wonderful  than  beautiful.  At  II.  got  to  Baden-Baden. 
Hotel,  Badischer  Hof. 

221 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1873 
23rd.  Out  at  II.  A  lovely  day ;  bright  sun,  but  with  a 
feeling  of  cold  in  the  crisp  air.  We  walked  to  the  only 
curiosity  shop,  Erfurth,  where  we  bought  a  trifle  and  so  pur- 
sued our  way  through  the  town  to  Ludwigsberg.  All  the 
scenery  charming.  Hills  covered  with  wood,  surmounted  by 
Castles  in  the  distance  ;  in  the  foreground,  the  loveliest  villa 
encircled  by  trees,  and  a  profusion  of  flowers  :  I  think  it  the 
prettiest  place  I  ever  saw.  We  left  it  again  at  2.  for  Carls- 
ruhe,  which  we  reached  at  3.  Took  an  open  carriage  and 
drove  to  Durlach.  C.S.'s  family  came  from  there  150  years 
ago,  so  we  were  interested  in  seeing  it.  The  road  from 
Carlsruhe  lies  through  a  most  magnificent  avenue  of  old 
poplars  some  two  miles  in  length.  The  town  of  Durlach  is  a 
small  but  bustling  little  place.  Its  very  ancient  Castle  stands 
a  conspicuous  ruin  on  an  abrupt  hill  overlooking  it.  A  statue 
of  one  of  its  old  Dukes,  dated  1567,  is  placed  about  the 
centre  of  where  its  more  modern  Palace  once  stood.  Part  of 
its  building  still  forms  an  excellent  Cavalry  Barracks,  near 
which  are  the  Schloss  gardens  in  which  we  took  a  short  walk. 
They  are  pretty  but  ill  kept.  After  rambling  about  for  some 
time  we  tried 'to  find  the  Protestant  Minister,  thinking  he 
might  help  us  by  the  registers,  etc.,  to  some  traces  of  the  old 
ancestors,  but  the  good  man  was  out  walking  with  his 
children.  Before  returning  to  Carlsruhe  we  looked  into  the 
Protestant  Church,  a  dismal,  undecorated,  inartistic  building. 
Worse  even  than  the  Churches  in  Holland.  Back  at  J 
past  5. 

24th.  We  walked  in  the  morning,  and  tried  to  find 
curiosity  shops  ;  only  made  out  one  ;  very  bad  ;  Eltheimer,  in 
the  Bahnhofstrasse.  Went  in  front  of  the  Palace,  and  stayed 
out  until  time  to  leave  Carlsruhe.  We  took  a  carriage  and 
drove  out  again  to  Durlach  to  see  the  clergyman  and  get  him 
to  prosecute  our  inquiries  about  the  former  Schreibers,  but 

222 


1873  NOTES  CERAMIC 

again  we  were  baffled,  and  now  found  that  he  was  away  on  a 
journey,  and  his  assistant  likewise  absent  for  the  day.  His  name 
is  Specht,  so  we  must  write  to  him.  We  had  left  our  luggage 
at  the  station,  and  so,  at  3,  we  went  on  by  train  to  Heidelberg, 
a  place  of  many  old  recollections.  Now  it  is  connected  in 
my  mind  with  very  sacred  memories,  my  dear  boy  Augustus 
having  stayed  there  so  many  happy  months.  It  was  a  trial 
to  go  there,  but  these  feelings  should  be  mastered,  at  all 
events  in  appearance !  Put  up  at  the  Prinz  Karl  Hotel.  It 
was  very  full  and  we  were  at  the  top  of  the  house.  Took 
a  little  stroll  before  dinner.  At  a  very  poor  curiosity  shop 
in  the  Platz  we  found  an  old  French  glass  flagon,  temp. 
Louis  XIV.,  in  form  of  a  Negro's  head,  very  ugly  but 
curious.  Charles  Alderson  and  Mr.  Coleridge  were  at  table 
d'hdte. 

25th.  After  breakfast,  visited  an  antiquaire's  near  the 
Hotel  Bourgeois,  where  we  saw  an  old  French  travelling- 
box  (like  those  we  bought  at  Bordeaux  in  1870),  full  of 
Louis  XV.  dresses,  mostly  in  good  order,  and  some  of  them 
very  fine.  He  wants  £200  for  the  whole,  box  and  all.  Then 
we  walked  up  to  the  Castle ;  it  was  a  lovely  autumn  day, 
with  a  cloudless  sky  and  a  warm  sun.  The  walk  and  the 
lounge  about  the  ruins,  and  their  gardens,  was  charming. 
The  Museum  in  the  Castle  is  a  curious  assortment  of  local 
objects,  mostly  worthless  as  works  of  art.  The  light  was 
perfect  for  the  view  from  the  Terrace  over  the  town,  the 
Neckar,  and  the  surrounding  hills.  Heidelberg  greatly 
surpasses  all  my  recollections  of  it,  the  weather  adding  greatly 
to  the  charm.  Left  soon  after  3.  Delighted  with  the  trajet 
from  Heidelberg  to  Frankfurt,  which  lay  through  the  richest 
and  most  smiling  valley,  bounded  by  hills,  mostly  clothed 
with  woods,  and  frequently  crowned  by  picturesque  ruins  of 
old  Castles.  I  had  forgotten  we  were  to  pass  through  the 

223 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1873 
Bergstrasse.  At  Frankfurt,  the  Hotel  de  Russie  was  full,  so 
we  went  to  the  Hotel  d'Angleterre,  and  were  very  comfort- 
able ;  got  in,  in  time  for  dinner ;  after  it,  walked  into  the 
Teil  and  looked  in  at  Lowenstein's,  where  we  saw  some 
beautiful  things,  but  very  dear  and  not  in  our  line. 

26th.  Busy  with  the  shops,  Goldschmidt's,  Seligmann's 
then  Backle,  Bamberger,  and  Aultmann  :  at  this  last  C.S.  dis- 
covered a  small  Chelsea  flacon,  very  good,  and  we  heard  of  a 
Chelsea  bibelot  (a  gardener  carrying  flowers),  which  Ault- 
mann fetched  from  a  private  house  to  show  us,  and  which  we 
eventually  bought,  though  at  nearly  £5  ;  also  we  got  a  Chelsea 
flacon  at  Lowenstein's,  thus  adding  three  to  our  number  of 
soft  paste  bibelots.  These  we  consider  a  great  find.  We 
made  one  or  two  other  purchases  but  they  were  trifling.  The 
Cathedral  was  closed  for  repairs  so  we  could  not  see  it,  but 
we  went  into  the  Hall  of  Electors  where  we  remained  some 
time.  We  had  made  quite  a  holiday  of  the  day,  which  was  very 
fine,  and  had  driven  about  enjoying  it.  We  ended  by  making 
a  little  tour  of  the  town,  which  contains  more  picturesque  old 
houses  than  I  had  imagined.  The  Terrace,  or  drive,  by  the 
side  of  the  Main  is  beautiful.  Dined  at  5-  In  the  evening 
went  on  to  Maintz.  Hotel  d'Angleterre. 

27th.  Another  most  lovely  day.  We  went  into  one 
curiosity  shop  on  the  Rheinstrasse,  bad  and  dear.  After 
breakfast  we  visited  the  Cathedral  :  magnificent  nave,  and 
fine  old  Romanesque  doors  :  Font  good,  etc.  Before  12. 
took  our  places  on  the  steamer  for  Coblentz  ;  a  clear  cloudless 
sky,  quite  brilliant,  with  a  slightly  cold  air  which  rather 
chilled  me  at  starting,  but  I  baked  myself  in  the  hot  sunshine, 
and  it  was  soon  all  right.  With  such  weather,  the  trip  could 
not  be  otherwise  than  most  beautiful.  Put  up  at  the  Hotel 
du  Geant,  arriving  before  6  ;  table  d'hote  being  over,  dined 
a  part. 

224 


i873  NOTES  CERAMIC 

28th.  Watched  the  sun  rise,  battling  through  a  thick 
mist,  which  has  not  yet  entirely  cleared  off.  We  embarked 
again  before  2.  o'clock  ;  the  train  had  been  a  little  late  because 
of  the  early  mist  ;  we  had,  however,  a  most  lovely  afternoon. 
It  was  warmer  than  yesterday,  not  so  bright,  but  with  more 
pleasing  alternations  of  light  and  shade,  for  the  lovely 
scenery,  which  brought  us  ere  nightfall  to  Cologne.  The 
lights  on  the  bridges  and  in  the  houses  formed  quite  an 
illumination  as  we  approached  the  town.  Hotel  Disch.  At 
first  we  disliked  our  quarters,  so  they  put  us  into  a  tapestried 
room  furnished  in  the  antique  style,  which  an  Emperor  of 
the  olden  time  might  have  occupied.  Mr.  Hamilton  here. 

29th.  A  long  walk  about  the  town.  We  took  a  guide 
and  went  first  to  Bourgeois  (the  father  of  the  man  at  Heidel- 
berg), who  has  no  prints  in  our  line  at  present,  but  has 
promised  to  look  out  for  us,  and  gave  us  some  good 
renseignements.  We  went  from  him  to  a  little  shop  in  the 
Stolk  Gasse,  where  we  saw  a  wonderful  piece  of  alabaster 
carving  set  in  old  Cinquecento  work.  It  has  just  been  sold 
to  a  neighbouring  proprietaire  for  £15  !  and  was  more  likely 
worth  £200 !  He  has  nothing  else ;  as  old  Fournier  used 
to  say,  "  il  faut  passer  le  premier  ".  Bourgeois  sent  us  to  the 
house  of  a  Mme.  Minderop  (162  S.  Severinstrasse),  where 
we  saw  a  very  good  collection  of  European  and  Oriental 
china.  Nothing  fine.  The  son  showed  us  some  good  prints. 
They  have  a  small  Chelsea  bottle,  or  flacon,  like  that  we 
bought  at  Altmann's  at  Frankfurt,  which  we  rather  coveted. 
The  only  shop  for  old  things  that  we  could  find  was  that  of 
Damen,  where  we  bought  some  trifles  six  years  ago.  We 
found  there  a  pretty  enamel  box,  and  a  small  Dresden  slipper 
(£2.  10.).  He  has  a  set  of  Carl  Theodore,  imbricated 
ground,  painted  in  birds,  and  were  like  Chelsea,  price  £15. 
We  were  tempted  but  resisted.  Spent  an  hour  in  the 

i  225  p 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1873 
Muse"e,  which  interests  us  very  much,  and  claims  another 
visit.  The  specimens  of  the  early  German  school  of  painting 
most  beautiful,  also  the  Roman  antiquities,  pavements,  etc. 

3Oth.  At  the  railway  before  9.  Off  to  Treves,  by  one 
of  the  loveliest  roads  I  ever  travelled.  We  came  at  a  great 
pace,  and  at  the  last  station  before  reaching  Treves  had  to 
move  our  places,  as  the  carriage  we  were  in  had  become 
hot  and  was  smoking !  The  country  towards  Treves  is 
beyond  praise.  We  arrived  soon  after  2.  and  set  out  shortly 
after  to  see  the  Roman  ruins,  Porta  Nigra,  the  finest,  the 
Basilica,  the  Baths.  The  different  styles  in  the  Cathedral, 
which  we  visited,  interested  us  very  much,  and  I  was  specially 
pleased  with  the  grand  old  Cloisters,  and  the  lantern  therein 
contained.  The  old  Sacristan  is  quite  one  of  the  greatest 
curiosities  of  the  place.  We  had  taken  a  guide  to  conduct  us 
through  all  this.  He  took  us  also  to  an  antiquaire  (Heffen's) 
where  there  was  not  much  to  take  our  fancy. 

OCTOBER  1873 

COLOGNE:  LIEGE:  MAESTRICHT :  BRUSSELS:  THE  HAGUE  : 
GOUDA  :  AMSTERDAM  :  UTRECHT  :  ROTTERDAM  :  GHENT  : 

GAND 

October  1st.  Not  early.  Again  a  most  lovely  day.  We 
walked  out  about  noon,  went  over  the  bridge,  and  thence 
along  the  side  of  the  Moselle  to  the  Ferry,  by  which  we  re- 
crossed  to  the  town.  Then  by  the  gardens  to  the  Porta 
Nigra  and  so  to  the  suburbs,  where  our  antiquaire  lived  ; 
bought  six  Choisy  plates.  He  showed  us  a  tempting  Louis 
XIV.  clock,  but  we  decided  that  it  was  not  genuine  and 
withstood  it.  Continued  our  walk  to  the  Amphitheatre,  and 
there  mounted  a  height  whence  we  had  a  good  view  over  the 
town  and  the  opposite  Hills.  The  Military  band  were 
practising  in  the  enceinte  of  the  Amphitheatre.  We  came 

226 


i873  NOTES  CERAMIC 

back  by  the  gardens  again  to  the  Porta  Nigra,  a  very  long 
circuit.  The  Dom  was  closed,  but  we  went  into  the  Lieb 
Frauen  Kirche  on  the  way  back  to  our  Hotel.  Most  perfect 
weather ;  quite  like  summer.  The  Strasbourg  dishes  are 
added  to  our  purchases  from  M.  Heffen's.  How  are  they  to 
travel  ?  The  weather  has  been  most  beautiful  for  many  days. 

2nd.  Called  at  4.  By  6  o'clock  we  were  on  board  the 
steamer,  which  started  immediately  down  the  Moselle.  We 
arrived  at  Coblentz  a  few  minutes  before  8,  only  just  in  time, 
by  a  great  effort,  to  walk  across  to  the  station  and  take 
the  train  to  Aix-la-Chapelle  (through  Cologne),  which  we 
reached  at  midnight.  No  conveyances  at  the  station,  and 
some  difficulty  to  get  our  luggage  conveyed  on  a  truck, 
besides  which  we  walked  to  our  Hotel,  Grand  Monarque. 
Some  of  the  scenes  on  board  the  steamer  had  been  very 
amusing  ;  among  them  that  of  a  loutish  young  German,  I 
should  think  a  sort  of  higher  class  peasant,  who  made  the 
acquaintance  of  all  the  young  men  he  could  get  to  talk  to 
him,  and  insisted  on  treating  them  to  wine,  of  which  a  number 
of  bottles  were  forthwith  consumed  at  the  table  near  which 
we  sat. 

3rd.  Out  about  |-  past  10.  Went  to  call  upon  our 
acquaintance,  the  Canon  Bock  ;  found  he  was  in  the  Cathe- 
dral and  followed  him  there.  Remark  the  Corona  Throne, 
etc.  Saw  again  the  treasure,  which  I  had  not  seen  for  many 
years  ;  it  surpassed  all  that  I  remembered.  The  Chasses 
were  much  finer  than  those  we  saw  at  Tournai ;  I  should 
think  they  are  the  finest  in  the  world.  Went  with  Dr. 
Bock  to  his  house,  which  is  furnished  in  the  ancient  style, 
with  many  good  old  objects  in  it.  He  showed  us  his 
magnificent  work  on  the  Imperial  Regalia,  etc.  We  had 
only  time,  after  leaving  him,  to  call  at  the  house  of  Fry,  the 
antiquaire,  Hoch  Strasse,  near  Jacobi's  print-shop,  but 

227 


LADY  CHARLOTTK  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1873 
we  found  nothing  there.  We  took  this  on  our  way  to  the 
railway  station.  Went  on  to  Lie'ge  about  £  past  I,  arriving, 
after  a  short  delay,  at  the  Verviers  Douane,  before  4  o'clock. 
Dinner-time  past  6.  Walked  out,  found  one  very  good 
curiosity  shop  near  the  Hotel  (Renard  Soubre*) ;  he  had 
nothing  in  our  line,  except  some  marcasites,  but  the  price 
was  beyond  us.  A  cheerful  little  woman,  with  two  pretty 
children,  who  had  travelled  with  us  in  the  railway,  gave  us 
some  renseignements,  but  I  fear  Lie'ge  will  yield  us  nothing  at 
present.  Before  coming  in  we  went  to  see  the  preparation  for 
the  Kermesse  on  the  Boulevard.  It  does  not  open  till  Sunday. 
We  arc  lodged  very  comfortably  at  tin*  Hotel  de  Suede. 

4th.  Up  early  and  off  to  Maestricht  by  a  beautiful  line 
of  railway  skirting  the  Maas.  A  lovely  day,  warm  and  sunny, 
everything  looking  bright.  Walked  into  the  town,  found  out 
one  or  two  dealers,  but  the  chief  one,  Schaepkens,  was  absent, 
and  the  next  best,  Beesman,  being  a  Jew,  had  his  shop  shut 
to-day.  We  took  dinner  at  the  table  d'hdte  of  the  Sevrier. 
Afterwards  went  to  see  the  very  interesting  old  Cathedral 
with  its  wonderful  South  Porch  and  door.  There  is  china  or 
pottery  still  made  at  Maestricht.  As  we  walked,  an  equipage 
came  dashing  down  the  street  with  four  horses  and  three  ser- 
vants ;  we  were  told  it  belonged  to  M.  Regan  of  the  porcelain 
works.  We  ate  off  some  of  his  productions  at  our  dinner.  They 
were  as  vile  as  Pickman's  of  Seville.  (N.B.  Pickman  is  now 
a  Marquis,  and  Regan  is  reported  very  rich !)  Maestricht  is  a 
very  interesting  old  place,  but,  unlike  other  Dutch  towns, 
very  dirty.  I  had  omitted  to  say  that  on  our  way  to  the 
station  this  morning  we  visited  the  Lie'ge  Cathedral.  We 
returned  to  Lie'ge  after  4.  and  got  back  in  time  to  take  the 
evening  train  to  Brussels,  when-  we  found  ourselves  again  at 
the  Hdtel  Mengelle,  before  II.  at  night. 

6th.     Went  the  round  of  the  shops  :  saw  a  picture  at  a 

228 


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I 


1873  NOTES  CERAMIC 

picture  cleaner's,  Le  Roy,  and  a  pair  of  Chinese  vases  that  I 
fancied.  Mr.  Triss  at  table  d'hote.  We  went  out  again  after 
dinner ;  it  was  a  lovely  warm  night.  First  went  to  buy  some 
more  volumes  of  Lord  Mahon's  History  of  England,  then 
sauntered  into  the  Montagne  de  la  Cour,  and  spent  till  IO. 
o'clock  in  the  curiosity  shops  there, 

yth.  Slaes  had  arranged  for  us  to  go  and  see  Mme.  Le 
Roy's  collection,  37  Rue  Ducale,  so  thither  we  went  at  noon. 
She  has  some  very  fine  Oriental,  not  such  a  large  collection 
as  Mons.  Morren,  but  well  chosen  and  admirably  arranged  ; 
seeing  that  she  had  some  which  she  highly  prized,  like  those 
I  fancied  yesterday,  we  determined  on  buying  the  latter, 
which,  with  a  visit  to  our  banker's,  we  had  just  time  to  do 
before  leaving  Brussels  by  the  2.30.  train.  We  hurried  much 
and  had  a  hot  walk,  C.S.  running  to  the  station.  Past  6. 
when  we  got  to  The  Hague.  We  had  bespoken  our  rooms 
at  the  Hotel  Paulez,  where  we  are  always  comfortable.  A 
new  First  Secretary,  or  Attache,  Comte  de  Kergoulay,  and 
his  wife,  had  come  over  at  the  same  time,  and  dined  at  our 
table  after  our  arrival. 

8th.  We  ransacked  all  The  Hague  shops  ;  found  in  them 
rather  less  than  usual  in  our  line,  some  good  salt-glaze 
stoneware  at  Van  Gelder's,  however,  and  in  a  shop  hitherto 
unknown  to  us,  Dirksen,  a  splendid  group  in  Derby  biscuit 
of  Cupid  killing  the  Hydra  (a  la  Hercules),  of  the  same 
model  as  the  coloured  Derby  china  group  we  already  possess  : 
this  and  a  pretty  good  French  fan  we  acquired  for  £5.  Went 
to  de  Visser's,  who  received  us  again  in  the  celebrated 
dressing-gown. 

Qth.  Went  to  Gouda.  It  was  market  day,  the  town  full 
and  gay  with  peasants  in  their  smart  costumes.  Very  little 
to  be  found  at  Van  Pavoordt's  or  Cohen's.  As  we  had 
time  to  spare  we  went  into  the  Market,  held  around  the 

229 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1873 
old  Town  Hall,  and  visited  the  Museum,  where  there  is  a 
wonderful  mediaeval  Chalice,  of  which  the  story  is  that  it 
was  lost  for  200  years,  and  lately  found  at  the  Town  House 
packed  away  among  some  archives.  Got  back  to  The  Hague 
about  3.  Went  by  appointment  to  look  over  de  Visser's 
mezzotints.  He  had  only  one  to  suit  us. 

loth.  Expedition  to  Amsterdam.  Walked  to  the  farther 
station.  Took  with  us  our  Chinese  vases  to  get  Speyer's 
opinion,  he  pronounced  them  very  good.  Bought  of  him 
four  Battersea  enamel  knife-handles,  the  only  ones  I  ever 
saw,  and  some  other  objects.  Went  to  Mossel's,  Ganz's,  and 
made  some  small  purchases,  returning  to  The  Hague  by 
i  past  4. 

Sunday,  I2th.  In  the  afternoon  we  went  to  see  the  Bis- 
schops.  They  were  out  when  we  reached  their  house,  but 
we  met  them,  and  turned  back  and  paid  them  a  short  visit. 
Went  to  them  again  to  make  some  inquiries  we  had  forgotten 
before. 

I3th.  To  Utrecht.  Gorkum  was  at  home.  We  had 
left  with  him  last  April  (the  loth)  a  bottle  of  Ware  which  he 
admired  and  called  Delft,  and  for  which,  he  said,  he  knew  a 
customer  who  would  give  £8.  or  .£10.  for  it.  To-day  we  found 
the  bottle  still  with  him.  We  had  not  cared  to  keep  it  in 
our  collection  and  hoped  he  might  have  parted  with  it.  But 
he  said  that  his  client,  having  bought  it  for  £8.,  had  returned 
it  to  him  saying  he  believed  it  not  to  be  Delft,  though  no 
one  could  say  what  it  was.  We  have  now  left  him  a  few  of 
our  Dutch  specimens,  etc.,  to  try  to  get  rid  of  for  us,  not  being 
suited  to  our  other  things.  We  could  not  buy  at  any  of  the 
Jews'  shops  because  it  was  one  of  their  festivals  :  but  Hamburg 
and  Frenkel,  whom  we  now  visited  for  the  first  time,  and 
Sanders  had  nothing,  and  Coote's  shop  was  quite  closed ; 
Gorkum,  himself,  had  nothing  for  us,  and  no  good  news 

230 


i8;3  NOTES  CERAMIC 

about  the  Worcester  set  belonging  to  the    two    old    ladies 
(see  April  10). 

1/j.th.  We  availed  ourselves  of  a  lovely  day  to  take  a 
walk  in  the  Bosch,  where  I  was  disappointed  in  the  display 
of  the  Queen's  china.  I  expected  to  have  seen  a  great  many 
fine  things,  but  only  found  comparatively  few.  The  Bosch 
is  quite  beautiful  and  we  enjoyed  our  walk  very  much 
indeed. 

I5th.  Holland  looking  its  best  and  brightest.  Walked 
to  the  Hollandisch  Railway  ;  left  by  a  train  soon  after  "9  for 
Rotterdam.  Went  to  Kryser's,  Pluyne's,  Van  Minden's  ;  at 
the  first  of  these  we  only  got  a  little  fan  and  small  Battersea 
enamel  box,  of  no  particular  importance ;  but  Pluyne's  had 
a  grand  Chelsea  figure  of  Autumn,  covered  with  grapes, 
wanting  a  hand,  which  we  hope  to  get  restored  in  china  for 
us  at  Minton's  Works,  and  for  which  we  had  to  give  £8.  ;  and 
Van  Minden  had  a  lovely  little  bibelot  of  Cupid  with  drums, 
also  £8.,  and  one  or  two  other  trifles.  On  the  whole  this  was  an 
expensive  day  for  us.  We  spent  above  £26.,  but  the  things 
are  good.  On  our  way  to  Rotterdam  we  had  stopped  for  a 
short  time  at  Delft,  where  we  had  a  pleasant  ramble  in  the 
bright  early  morning.  Went  into  both  the  Churches.  In  the 
old  Church  we  were  amused  by  a  manuscript  list  of  the  tombs 
written  in  English,  which  was  given  to  us  to  read.  It  was 
full  of  the  most  absurd  mistakes.  Among  other  things  the 
iron  railing  around  Van  Tromp's  monument  was  said  to  be 
"  very  estimable  by  the  knowers."  Remember  Lady  Morgan's 
tomb.  On  the  way  from  visiting  the  New  Church  and 
William  the  Silent's  tomb,  we  happened  to  find  a  Jeweller's 
shop  in  the  Market-place,  where  there  may  often  be 
trifles  ;  we  bought  a  little  enamel  snuff  box  in  the  form  of 
a  shoe  with  him.  Got  back  for  dinner  at  The  Hague.  A 
little  figure  we  had  bought  at  Van  Minden's,  we  found,  on 

231 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1873 
examination  as  we  travelled  home,  damaged  in  the  fingers, 
which  was  a  drawback  on  our  supposed  good  buying,  and 
rather  a  censure  on  our  circumspection. 

l6th.  Again  a  lovely  day,  and  again  away  by  an  early 
train.  This  time  we  went  to  Leyden,  a  charming  place. 
Walked  about  and  found  some  shops,  Duchatel's  and 
Lenreman's  ;  at  the  latter  was  some  fine  old  leather,  about 
which  I  have  written  to  Ivor.  Went  to  Van  Gelder's. 
Purchased  for  Ivor  a  fine  brass  chandelier  of  1600.  I  had 
written  to  him  about  it  but  the  answer  had  not  reached  me. 
However,  it  was  said  to  be  so  fine,  both  by  Mr.  Bisschop  and 
by  Andelaar,  whom  we  met  in  the  shop,  that  we  did  not  like 
to  run  the  risk  of  losing  it,  and  if  Ivor  does  not  wish  to  have 
it,  we  must  see  what  else  can  be  done  with  it.  We  have 
found  out  another  man  for  prints,  Van  Doorm,  Molen  Straat. 
He  promises  to  look  out  for  us.  After  dinner  Andelaar  came 
to  look  at  our  recent  purchases,  and  thought  highly  of  some 
of  them,  especially  our  Tournai  and  Oriental.  He  told  us 
there  was  to  be  a  great  public  sale  at  Amsterdam  on  the 
morrow,  and,  as  we  had  already  arranged  to  spend  the  day 
there,  we  determined  to  look  at  the  sale  first. 

I7th.  Accordingly  we  walked  briskly  to  the  early  train, 
by  which  we  reached  Amsterdam  at  II.  We  took  a  carriage, 
as  we  did  not  know  our  way,  but  we  could  not  make  our 
driver  understand  where  to  go,  and  it  was  some  time  before 
we  got  to  the  Heeren  Logements  Verkoop  Huys.  We  found 
a  large  room,  full  of  all  the  Jews  we  knew,  and  a  great  many 
more.  The  sale  was  the  contents  of  several  households,  but 
contained  nothing  to  attract  us  ;  however,  we  got  some  ren- 
seignments  there.  Went  to  the  Print  and  Book-seller  Muller, 
to  Kalb,  and  Soujet,  Speyer,  etc.  Soujet  took  us  to  see  a 
pair  of  indifferent  Chelsea  figures  at  a  friend's  house,  not 
worth  £10.,  but  for  which  the  "  friend  "  wanted  £25.  After- 

232 


1873  NOTES  CERAMIC 

wards  Soujet's  son  went  with  us  as  a  guide  to  a  picture 
dealer's  called  Gruiter,  where  we  got  two  or  three  good 
prints,  among  them  a  small  full  length  of  Frederic  of  Prussia, 
from  which,  evidently,  have  been  taken  the  decorations  on 
the  Worcester  plate  Mr.  Addington  gave  me  and  the  Enamel 
plaque  we  bought  at  Bailer's  sale  last  year.  The  picture  from 
which  the  mezzotint  is  done  is  by  Pesne,  and  said  to  be  "  in 
the  collection  of  the  Princess  Dowager,  at  Kew  ".  After  this 
we  walked  to  Van  Houtum's,  got  an  excellent  pink  enamel 
Battersea  jug,  "very  unique",  3O/-.  Dined  at  the  Brack's 
Doelen.  On  our  way  back  to  the  station,  called  at  Boasberg's  ; 
bought  two  good  enamel  boxes,  and  arranged  to  see  some 
prints  at  Buffa's  next  week. 

i8th.  Up  late.  Only  walked  as  far  as  the  Bisschops  in 
the  afternoon.  They  came  back  with  us  to  see  our  pur- 
chases, which  we  had  set  out  in  C.S.'s  dressing-room. 

iQth.  In  the  afternoon  we  walked  to  Scheveningen ; 
lingered  on  the  beach,  not  a  breath  of  wind,  the  sky  and  sea 
quite  cleared.  Clambered  up  on  to  the  Dunes  and  got  a  good 
view  over  The  Hague.  In  returning  struck  off  to  the  left, 
where  there  was  a  summer-house  on  a  mound,  but  the  view 
thence  was  not  very  extensive.  We  walked  some  four  hours 
and  got  back  just  in  time  for  dinner.  It  is  a  very  pretty  walk 
through  the  trees  to  Scheveningen,  and  it  looked  particularly 
well  in  this  golden  evening.  I  never  saw  such  wonderful 
weather  as  it  has  been  ever  since  Monday  night.  This  week 
my  mind  has  been  relieved  about  Enid  by  learning  she  had 
safely  reached  Madrid. 

20th.  Called  late,  and  had  rather  a  scramble  to  get  off  by 
the  Holland's  Spoorweg  to  Leyden.  We  always  walk  to  the 
station,  we  can  do  it  under  20  minutes,  but  it  is  the  top  of  my 
speed.  To-day  the  weather  had  quite  changed,  from  being 
bright  and  balmy  it  ^  had  become  boisterous.  In  Leyden  it 

233 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1873 
came  down  in  torrents ;  we  had  only  time  to  go  to  Du- 
chatel's  again  and  to  Reitberger's,  in  the  same  street,  and 
then  to  Byleveldt's,  a  new  dealer  whom  we  had  only  just 
found  out  in  the  Breestraat,  before  returning  to  the  station. 
We  looked,  en  passant,  at  the  outside  of  the  fine  Town  Hall, 
of  Gothic  taste,  and  got  a  card  to  view  the  pictures,  but  put 
off  that  visit  to  a  future  day.  We  made  small  purchases  at 
Duchatel's  and  Reitberger's,  and  saw  a  very  pretty  Oriental 
set  at  Byleveldt's,  which  we  are  taking  time  to  consider  about. 
At  12.  we  went  on  to  Haarlem.  First  we  went  to  see  the 
collection  of  Dr.  Willegen,  to  whom  Mliller  of  Amsterdam 
had  given  us  an  introduction.  He  himself,  poor  man,  was 
ill  in  bed,  but  his  wife  and  daughter  showed  us  his  things. 
The  Ceramics  are  chiefly  old  Delft,  and  not  much  of  the 
higher  class.  The  pictures  I  cannot  appreciate,  the  prints  I 
did  not  see.  All  are  to  be  sold  by  auction  next  spring.  We 
went  also  to  the  three  curiosity  shops,  Haujas,  Kouin,  and 
France,  but  found  nothing  in  any  of  them,  and  so,  walking 
back  to  the  station  by  the  Cathedral,  and  through  the  Place, 
we  returned  at  3.  to  The  Hague  and  got  to  our  H  tel  Paulez 
at  %  past  4. 

Wednesday,  22nd.  It  rained  so  hard  about  I.  o'clock 
that  C.S.  went  alone  to  Delft  (whither  we  had  planned  an 
expedition  together),  and  was  soon  back  again,  bringing  with 
him  a  small  enamelled  flacon  we  had  seen  the  other  day  at 
Tedeler's.  They  took  him  to  two  other  small  shops,  but  he 
found  nothing  in  them.  Since  dinner  we  have  been  out  to 
see  the  Bisschops,  looking  in  at  Van  Gelder's  by  the  way. 
He  had  a  quantity  of  old  Friesland  painted  furniture,  but  not 
in  our  line. 

23rd.  The  weather  better.  Off  soon  after  10.  to  Gouda, 
where  during  our  stay  of  one  hour  we  ransacked  Cohen's  and 
Van  Pavoordt's  stocks  ;  we  could  find  nothing  to  tempt  us, 

234 


1873  NOTES  CERAMIC 

but  the  latter  had  some  Delft  plates  which  seemed  to  us  very 
good,  and  which  we  have  since  mentioned  to  the  Bisschops. 
After  this  we  went  on  to  dear  old  Utrecht.  At  Coote's  we 
got  a  good  little  Chelsea  seal,  and  a  Worcester  butter  boat, 
curious  but  not  fine :  Van  Gorkum  was  out ;  Frenkel  in 
Paris  making  a  sale,  so  we  spent  the  remainder  of  our  time 
in  the  Museum,  with  which  we  were  very  much  pleased. 
The  display  of  Vestments  of  the  Middle  Ages  is  very  fine 
indeed.  We  left  Utrecht  again  soon  after  3.  Sir  George 
Hewitt  in  the  train  :  curious  introduction.  Since  dinner  we 
have  been  to  the  Bisschops  to  tell  them  of  Van  Pavoordt's 
Delft. 

24th.  Off  to  Amsterdam  by  the  early  train,  arriving  at 
J  past  10.  Went  to  Mossel's,  nothing ;  to  Van  Galen's, 
where  we  got  a  very  pretty  Bow  figure  (sold  to  us  for 
Dresden)  at  £5.  It  is  evidently  a  portion  of  a  larger  scheme, 
being  a  gallant  looking  up  and  kissing  his  hand.  Poor  Van 
Galen,  himself  ill  in  bed ;  thence  to  Thyssen,  an  old  man 
living  in  Vyssergracht,  whom  we  had  met  the  previous  week 
at  Van  Houtum's  and  who  had  promised  to  look  out  some 
mezzotints  for  us.  He  had  done  so,  but  we  only  found  about 
four  to  suit  us,  among  them  a  framed  print  by  Earlom  after 
ZofFany  of  George  III.  and  his  family.  We  got  some  other 
trifles  also  from  this  poor  old  man,  who  told  us  of  a  sick  wife 
and  monetary  losses,  but  who  interested  us  by  his  cheerful 
unrepining  spirit.  Doubtless  a  great  many  good  things  go 
through  his  hands,  and  we  were  very  sorry  not  to  have  known 
him  sooner.  To  Buffa  to  look  over  his  prints,  but  without 
success.  Then  to  Boasberg,  who  had  a  marvellous  fine  etui, 
with  which  we  allowed  ourselves  to  be  tempted,  notwithstand- 
ing the  enormous  price,  fy  I  Boasberg  went  with  us  to  M. 
Van  Gitta's  in  the  hope  of  getting  us  admission  to  see  his 
collection,  but  unluckily  his  family  were  all  out  and  we  could 

235 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1873 

not  get  admittance.  We  paid  a  long  visit  to  Fredk.  Miiller's, 
to  whom  we  showed  our  Fryes,  and  who  we  made  promise  to 
look  out  for  some  for  us.  It  was  now  near  5.  We  went 
back  to  Thyssen's  to  get  some  caricatures  on  the  American 
War,  which  we  had  seen  in  the  morning,  and  were  rather 
surprised  to  find  that  the  old  man  had  gone  to  bed.  He 
came  down  to  the  door  in  his  night-cap !  a  pendant  to  the 
dressing-gown  of  de  Visser ! !  The  whole  day,  from  the 
time  of  our  arriving  at  Amsterdam,  had  been  wet,  and  we 
were  obliged  to  drive  from  place  to  place — a  great  contrast  to 
the  weather  of  this  day  last  week.  Dined  at  the  Brack's 
Doelen  and  returned  to  The  Hague  by  the  7.30  train.  It 
rained  in  torrents  on  our  arrival,  so  again  we  had  to  drive. 
Stopped  at  Van  Gelder's  on  the  way  to  our  Hotel.  He  had 
a  fine  Biscuit  group  to  show  us.  Not  in  bed  till  12. 

25th.  Called  again  at  6  this  morning.  Permission  had 
been  got  for  us  to  see  the  collection  of  the  Baron  Van 
Heemstra,  an  old  Friesland  gentleman,  who  had  some  very 
interesting  old  National  and  family  relics,  among  them  a 
clock  given  to  his  ancestor  by  Charles  V.  The  letter  which 
accompanied  it,  he  said,  they  still  preserved.  We  were  with 
him  by  J  past  9.  From  M.  Van  Heemstra's  we  went  to  the 
Bisschops  and  they  walked  with  us.  Took  us  first  to 
an  old  jeweller,  whom  we  had  not  known  before,  but 
who  is  well  worth  cultivating.  Bought  there  two  wooden 
figures  for  lights  which  we  thought  would  suit  Ivor,  a  Ware 
vase,  and  chatelaine  for  ourselves.  Went  on  to  Dirksen's, 
bought  an  over-door,  also  Watteau,  for  Ivor.  Went  with  the 
Bisschops  to  see  Baron  de  Stuers,  who  has  a  lovely  collection 
which  he  showed  us  very  agreeably.  Then  to  our  Banker's 
to  get  some  money.  Then  to  Mme.  Wigkerlin,  who  had 
several  pretty  things,  especially  a  Chelsea  flacon  like  that  we 
bought  of  Slaes  in  the  Spring,  and  two  enamel  boxes,  one 

236 


i873  NOTES  CERAMIC 

Battersea,  one  the  finest  Dresden.  Mme.  Bisschop  having 
gone  home,  we  went  on  with  M.  Bisschop  to  look  at  some  fine 
tapestry  which  is  to  be  sold  shortly  at  a  private  house  in  the 
Prinz  Gracht.  It  is  all  of  Scriptural  subjects  ;  the  Golden 
Calf,  etc.,  so  it  would  not  suit  for  Canford,  and  will,  they  say, 
go  very  high.  This  visit  was  followed  by  calls  at  Rotterveel's, 
Dirksen's,  and  Van  Gelder's,  to  make  payments,  and  at  this 
last  place  we  concluded  the  purchase  of  the  Biscuit  group 
which  represents  War,  Commerce,  Navigation,  three  Cupids 
with  emblems,  very  good.  Got  back  by  J  past  5  to  dinner. 
A  very  busy  day. 

26th.  Not  out  till  the  afternoon.  Went  to  Service  at 
the  New  Church,  and  in  coming  back,  looked  in  at  the 
Bellevue,  where  there  is  a  fine  leather  screen  for  sale ;  gold 
ground  painted  in  Watteau  subjects ;  promised  to  call  again 
about  it  the  next  day.  Went  as  far  as  Van  Gelder's  to  get 
him  to  inquire  of  Pavoordt  about  some  of  the  Delft  plates 
mentioned  on  the  23rd. 

27th.  Up  early.  A  splendid  morning.  Off  to  Rotterdam 
by  a  train  that  left  at  9.20.  At  Rotterdam,  visited  Kryser's, 
Van  der  Pluyne's,  who  had  promised  to  try  and  get  us  some 
figures  at  Amsterdam,  but  had  not  succeeded  ;  Van  Minden's, 
where  we  found  the  two  English  Ware  squirrels  and  fine 
Chelsea  seals  ;  and  M.  Van  der  Beck,  a  new  acquaintance,  to 
whom  we  had  been  recommended  for  prints ;  the  only  one  he 
had  to  suit  our  purpose  was  one  by  Gunot  of  Queen  Mary, 
which  we  bought.  All  this  and  a  call  at  Eeltze's  did  not  take 
long,  and  though  we  did  it  all  on  foot,  we  were  back  in  The 
Hague  before  I  o'clock.  The  rest  of  the  day  was  very 
busily  employed.  We  went  again  about  the  screen,  on  the 
subject  of  which  we  had  three  walks  to  the  Bellevue ;  eventually 
we  bought  it  for  Ivor  at  400.  florins,  which  was  afterwards 
considered  very  cheap,  and  before  night  we  saw  it  at  Dirksen's 

237 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1873 
ready  to  be  packed  up.  Called  at,the  Bisschop's.  He  went 
with  us  to  look  at  the  screen,  and  afterwards  walked  with  us 
during  the  afternoon.  He  took  us  by  a  very  pretty  way, 
skirting  the  Bosch,  to  the  Boor's  Bazaar,  where  we  had 
to  execute  a  commission  for  Mrs.  Haliburton.  Called  at 
Schaak's  and  de  Maan's  (Voider  Gracht) ;  at  the  latter  place 
found  a  very  good  Berlin  plate.  Van  Gelder  went  for  us  to 
Pavoordt,  but  the  Delft  plates  were  sold.  Got  back  rather 
late  for  dinner,  and  as  soon  as  it  was  over,  we  were  out  again. 
To  the  Banker's  to  get  the  money  to  pay  for  Ivor's  screen, 
which  we  did  at  the  Bellevue.  Then  to  de  Visser's,  to  whom  we 
showed  our  portfolio  of  prints,  and  with  whom  (not  forgetting 
the  "  Commis  ")  we  spent  a  very  pleasant  hour.  After  all  that, 
to  the  Bisschops  to  say  good-bye,  and  so  back  to  our  Hotel, 
after  a  long  day's  walking,  at  J  past  10.  C.S.  packing  till 
late. 

28th.  Up  early  again  to-day.  I  am  now  sitting  ready 
packed  and  dressed  to  leave  The  Hague,  where  we  have  spent 
a  charming  three  weeks.  One  rather  tiresome  incident. 
Ganz  from  Amsterdam  called  yesterday  to  show  us  an  Enamel 
box  when  we  were  at  Rotterdam,  and  of  course  we  missed 
him.  Another,  Schaak,  had  told  us  of  three  boxes  he  had, 
which  we  neglected  to  call  about  till  they  were  gone :  but  as 
we  saw  none  of  these  it  is  far  from  certain  that  they  would 
have  suited.  We  had  a  most  lovely  journey  to  Brussels,  the 
day  quite  clear  and  the  sun  quite  hot.  On  the  little  steamer 
which  carried  us  across  from  Rotterdam  to  the  temporary 
Terminus,  we  stood  looking  at  the  receding  town  with  regret 
and  admiration.  We  have  had  many,  many  pleasant  days  in 
Holland  and  are  always  sorry  to  leave  it.  Reaching  the 
Hotel  Mengelle,  we  were  just  in  time  for  dinner,  after  which 
we  walked  out.  Went  to  old  Del  Hougue's,  bought  a  large 
comb  and  tortoise-shell  box,  and  went  to  look  at  some  prints 

238 


i873  NOTES  CERAMIC 

at  Papillon's.  A  telegram  from  Ivor  about  buying  for  him  a 
Louis  Treize  Console,  and  a  Buhl  writing  table  which  we  had 
seen  at  Dirksen's,  the  former  very  fine.  This  commission,  I 
hope,  in  our  absence,  Mme.  Bisschop  will  be  able  to  execute 
for  him.  Must  remark  that  we  passed  with  our  six  packages 
of  china  with  little  trouble  to-day.  When  I  said  they  were 
"  objets  d'art",  they  asked  "  Pour  collection?"  and  did  not 
offer  to  open  them. 

29th.  Walked  all  day.  Fetched  away  some  things  we 
had  left  for  security  at  Handelaar's.  Made  the  tour  of  the 
shops  and  a  few  purchases :  among  them  three  Chelsea  vases 
of  which  only  one  was  perfect,  the  other  two,  far  otherwise. 
For  these  we  gave  £5.  12.,  about  half  the  value  of  the 
perfect  one  !  This  from  old  Hanick. 

30th.  Again  a  long  day's  ramble  among  the  shops,  where 
we  paid  for  and  brought  away  our  yesterday's  purchases,  but 
found  little  new.  Packing  up  for  an  early  start  to  Ghent 
to-morrow.  We  have  so  many  boxes  and  baskets  full  of  china, 
etc.,  that  it  will  be  next  to  a  miracle  if  all  arrive  safe  in 
England.  I  am  specially  anxious  about  the  new  vases 
which  old  Hanick  has  packed  in  his  own  manner  and  are  to 
go  as  luggage ! 

3ist.  Left  by  the  8.14.  train  for  Gand.  Our  first  embarras 
about  luggage  was  that  they  would  not  let  us  take  our 
"chicken  "  baskets  with  us  in  the  carnage,  and  after  a  strong 
remonstrance,  they  had  to  be  consigned  to  the  luggage  !  We 
reached  Gand  about  10.  Left  maid  and  luggage  at  the 
station,  and  walked  about  the  town  for  three  hours,  visiting 
all  the  shops  and  looking  again  at  the  exterior  of  the  much- 
loved  old  buildings.  It  was  a  beautiful  day:  a  bright  sun- 
shine, but  rather  cold.  Made  but  few  purchases ;  there 
seemed  to  be  nothing  in  the  shops.  Came  on  to  Bruges  by 
a  1.15.  train,  triumphantly  carrying  the  baskets  with  us  ; 

239 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS   1873 

arriving  before  3.  The  wind  has  risen :  it  was  cold  and 
rained  a  little.  I  am  now  hating  the  thought  of  to-morrow's 
trajet.  We  walked  about  Bruges  for  two  hours  before  dinner 
at  5.  Went  to  Render,  Van  Dyck,  Seegur,  Omghena,  but 
bought  nothing.  Met  Colonel  Berrington  walking,  and  after 
dinner  sallied  out  to  call  upon  his  wife. 

NOVEMBER  1873 

BRUGES  :  OSTEND  :  AND  HOME 

November  1st.  Called  at  six.  A  wind  which  determined 
us  not  to  cross.  We  went  over  to  Ostend  early  in  the 
day,  and  remained  there  till  the  English  boat  came  in. 
They  had  had  a  rough  passage,  and  while  we  were  in  Ostend 
the  storm  was  violent,  and  the  rain  came  down  in  torrents, 
but  when  we  came  away  at  3,  the  wind  suddenly  fell  and 
the  rest  of  the  evening  was  lovely,  with  fine  sunset  lights. 
We  walked  about  in  Bruges  taking  leave  of  its  dear  old 
buildings,  which  were  illuminated  by  the  evening  glow,  and 
stood  beneath  the  Beffroi  to  listen  to  the  Carillon  at  5.  Then 
back  to  table  d'hote,  at  which  were  some  agreeable  young 
English  people,  I  think  named  Hall.  Mrs.  Berrington  came 
in  to  see  us  after  dinner  ;  since  that  I  have  been  reading,  and 
writing  to  little  Bee  Eliot.  [A  grand-daughter  of  Lady 
Charlotte  and  daughter  of  the  Hon.  Mrs.  Charles  Eliot  ; 
married,  May  1909,  Stephen  Eaton,  Esq.,  of  Tolethorpe  Hall, 
Stamford.] 

2nd.  Finer  morning ;  so  we'  left  Bruges  and  went  over 
by  the  steamer  from  Ostend.  I  was  very  grateful  to  be 
safe  back  in  England,  in  the  course  of  the  afternoon.  We 
had  all  our  purchased  treasures  with  us,  and  every  one  of  these 
arrived  intact,  which  is  quite  a  marvel.  So  ended  our  autumn 
tour. 

240 


TWO    DELICATELY    PAINTED    XVIII    FRENCH    FANS    FOUND    BY    LADY    CHARLOTTE 

WHILE  FORMING    HER    FAMOUS    COLLECTION    OF    HISTORICAL    EXAMPLES    WHICH 

WAS    PRESENTED   TO   THE   BRITISH    MUSEUM   FOR  THE   BENEFIT  OF   THE  NATION 

The  Countess  of  BessborougK  s  Collection 


NOTES  CERAMIC 

FEBRUARY  TO  APRIL  1874 

OSTEND : BRUGES 
Feb.  1874. 

Feb.  28th.  Left  London  by  the  train  from  Charing  Cross 
at  7.40.  ;  slight  frost  and  rather  a  mist,  but  by  the  time  we 
got  to  Dover  it  was  bright  sunny  weather.  The  sea  was 
like  a  mill-pond  and  we  had  a  wonderfully  quick  passage, 
reaching  Ostend  considerably  under  four  hours  :  just  at  the  last 
there  began  to  be  hazy  weather  and  we  had  the  fog  signals, 
but  we  got  in  before  it  became  at  all  disagreeable.  I  went 
down  below  because  it  was  rather  cold  on  deck,  and  worked 
and  read  all  the  time.  (Miss  Freer's  Jeanne  d? Albert.)  We 
have  brought  out  with  us  some  books  on  Architecture  to 
enliven  this  trip.  Went  on  at  3  from  Ostend  to  Bruges  and 
looked  over  all  the  things  at  Render's  and  Van  Dyck's  before 
coming  in  to  table  d'hote  at  5.  As  usual  we  put  up  at  the 
Hotel  de  Flandres. 


MARCH  1874 

BRUGES  :  YPRES  :  COURTRAI  :   BRUSSELS  :  LILLE  :  TOURNAI  : 

ANTWERP  :  THE  HAGUE  :   GOUDA  :   UTRECHT  :   AMSTERDAM  : 

HAARLEM  :  GHENT :  METZ :  VERDUN  :  NANCY 

March  1st.  A  most  lovely  morning.  Went  to  English 
Service  in  the  Rue  S.  Jacques,  arriving  there  late  by  reason 
of  our  having  been  misdirected  and  having  had  some  diffi- 
culty in  finding  the  place.  In  the  afternoon  called  on  Mrs. 
I  241  Q 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 
Berrington  ;  she  was  not  at  home  when  we  first  went  there,  so 
we  paid  a  visit  to  Mr.  Paterson,  who  amused  us  immensely. 
He  had  set  out  his  china  in  the  Porte  Cochere  and  another 
large  space  which  seemed  to  have  been  a  coach-house,  and 
told  us  he  was  about  to  open  it  as  an  exhibition,  on  the  pay- 
ment of  J  a  franc  a  head  for  the  benefit  of  the  poor.  He 
said  the  Exhibition  was  to  begin  at  the  end  of  this  week,  and 
that  we  were  admitted  as  the  first  visitors.  He  seemed  more 
mad  than  ever,  and  as  soon  as  we  entered  commenced  to  play 
on  a  grinding  organ  to  which  he  sang,  and  which  he  quitted 
as  abruptly,  without  explanation,  to  show  off  his  antiquities 
and  to  assure  us  (in  the  same  breath)  that  nothing  was  to  be 
sold,  and  to  press  us  to  make  purchases.  We  admired  some 
Oriental  ornaments,  and  are  to  go  again  to-morrow  to  look  at 
them.  After  this  we  returned  to  Mrs.  Berrington  and  sat 
awhile  with  her.  She  is  always  full  of  interest  in  antiques  and 
on  the  occasion  gave  me  a  pretty  little  Swiss  enamel.  She 
walked  with  us  to  Mr.  Weale's,  with  whom  we  had  an  hour's 
delightful  conversation.  Rather  late  for  table  d'hdte  There 
had  been  a  shower  during  our  visit  to  Mr.  Weale's.  The 
weather  has  been  very  mild.  Mr.  Weale  gave  me  two 
specimens,  fragments,  of  the  Gres  de  Flandres,  dug  up  at 
Siegburg  near  Bonn.  These  to  give  us  a  certainty  as  to  the 
colour  of  the  true  gres,  on  which  he  has  a  memoir  in  the 
Beffroi. 

2nd.  With  Mrs.  Berrington,  by  appointment,  on  the 
Place  at  10.  She  accompanied  us  to  Paterson's,  where  it 
ended  in  our  buying  two  pieces  of  Oriental  (red),  and  two 
Oriental  figures,  at  sufficiently  high  prices  (a  tea-pot  stand 
was  thrown  into  the  bargain,  as  a  cadeau  to  me).  It  remains 
to  see  whether  we  have  bought  genuine  articles — for  myself 
I  have  misgivings.  Went  on  to  Van  Dyck's,  and  there 
bought  a  frame,  ornamented  with  metal  work  (qy,  Louis 

242 


i874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

Treize),  and  an  imperfect  Oriental  coffee-pot  dated  1777. 
Curious.  Mrs.  Berrington  next  took  us  to  see  a  small  collec- 
tion belonging  to  a  M.  Vervisch  (Haut  de  Bruges).  He  had 
some  good  Orientals  and  Delft  and  Gres,  but  nothing  in  our 
line.  He  was  out ;  his  maid  showed  us  his  collection. 
Having  still  a  little  time  to  spare,  we  went  to  the  old 
publican  in  the  Rue  des  Dominicains,  where  we  bought 
two  tortoise-shell  plates,  and  then  taking  leave  of  Mrs. 
Berrington,  we  hurried  back  to  our  Hotel,  to  prepare  for  our 
departure.  Soon  after  12.  we  again  left  this  lovely  town  of 
Bruges  and  proceeded  to  Ypres.  We  had  intended  to  go 
to-day  to  Brussels,  but  Mr.  Weale  had  told  us  of  an  amateur 
who  had  a  collection  at  Ypres,  and  we  determined  accord- 
ingly to  go  and  see  it,  and  right  glad  we  were  that  we  made 
this  change  of  plan,  for  we  were  more  delighted  with  the 
town  of  Ypres  itself  than  with  any  town,  Bruges  excepted, 
that  we  had  seen  in  Belgium.  We  arrived  there  a  little  after 
3,  and  thinking  we  should  go  farther  that  night,  we  left  the 
maid  and  luggage  at  the  station  and  walked  into  the  town. 
After  admiring  the  Town  Hall,  we  went  all  over  the  Church 
(or  Cathedral)  of  S.  Martin,  noted  its  fine  Western  tower  of 
brick,  the  curious  roof  in  the  South  Chapel,  etc.,  and  then 
went  to  find  the  house  of  our  amateur.  His  name,  M. 
Maurice  Merghelynek,  and  his  abode  immediately  opposite 
"  La  Tour  de  S.  Martin ".  M.  Merghelynek  was  absent. 
His  servants  showed  us  his  collection,  which  was  most 
interesting,  some  fine  Oriental  and  Delft,  one  very  fine  piece 
of  Tournai,  and  some  fourteen  octagonal  Bow  plates,  matching 
those  we  bought  of  Mrs.  Hamlyn  at  Plymouth.  His  rooms 
were  prettily  set  out  with  these  things,  and  after  going 
through  them  the  servants  took  us  into  a  very  large  attic 
full  to  overflowing  of  goods  of  the  most  mediocre  description. 
(She  told  us  a  melancholy  story  of  the  accidental  poisoning 

243 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 
of  the  young  man's  father  and  mother.)  Having  a  letter  of 
introduction  to  M.  Arthur  Merghelynek,  a  cousin,  we  went 
on  to  him.  He  was  at  home  ;  had  no  collection.  Found 
him  an  agreeable  young  man,  who  very  politely  took  us  all 
about  the  town,  showed  us  the  interior  of  the  Halles,  the 
"  Belle"  Hospital,  etc.,  and  persuaded  us  to  remain  at  Ypres 
that  night,  in  order  that  we  might  see  the  collection  of  a 
M.  Bahm  the  next  morning ;  so  we  put  up  very  comfortably 
at  the  T£te  d'Or.  Brought  our  belongings  from  the  station, 
had  a  late  dinner  and  went  to  bed. 

3rd.  Out  by  10.  Went  to  M.  Bahm's,  where  young 
M.  Merghelynek  joined  us.  The  collection  is  enormous, 
and,  no  doubt,  valuable,  but  it  chiefly  consists  of  Gres  and 
Delft,  which  are  of  less  interest  to  us.  The  collection  will  be 
sold  by  auction,  unless  60,000  francs  can  be  obtained  for  it 
en  bloc.  Our  new  friend,  after  this,  took  us  to  see  the  town 
Library  and  the  Muse"e,  which  is  in  the  fine  old  Boucherie. 
Here  I  was  particularly  pleased  with  drawings  of  old  houses 
of  the  town,  many  of  which  no  longer  exist.  We  saw  several 
that  are  still  standing,  and  which  are  most  quaint.  We 
parted  with  M.  Merghelynek  at  the  shop  of  a  jeweller,  to 
whom  he  took  us,  and  with  whom  we  hoped  to  find  some- 
thing antique :  he  had  nothing,  but  he  sent  us  to  another 
amateur,  M.  Vandevywer,  Rue  de  1'Etoile,  who  showed  us 
a  small  but  pretty  collection.  He  possesses  a  wonderful 
Mennecy  group  of  three  figures,  for  which  he  says  Stroobant 
of  Brussels  offered  him  £32.,  but  he  will  not  sell  it,  as  it  has 
long  belonged  to  his  family.  There  seemed  to  be  two  small 
brokers'  shops  at  Ypres,  one  in  the  Rue  Capel,  the  other  in  a 
street  opposite  our  Hotel ;  at  the  latter  we  found  an  old 
Dutch  metal  snuff  box,  which  was  all  we  were  able  to 
obtain  in  the  town.  This  brought  us  to  I.  o'clock,  when  we 
found  table  d'hote  about  to  begin,  so  we  joined  it  and  got  an 

244 


i874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

excellent  dinner  at  2j  francs  a  head.  As  soon  as  it  was  over 
we  went  to  the  station.  Left  Ypres  about  3.  and  in  a  little 
more  than  an  hour  were  at  Courtrai.  Walked  into  the  town ; 
inquired  for  the  house  of  M.  Croquepue,  an  amateur  dealer 
and  architect,  to  whom  Mrs.  Berrington  had  directed  us.  We 
found  it  near  the  Porte  de  Gand,  but  the  master  was 
out.  His  maid  showed  us  his  things,  which  were  not  at  all 
desirable,  so  we  made  no  long  stay  there.  Walked  back 
to  the  Place.  A  fine  old  Beffroi,  but  the  Hdtel  de  Ville 
has  been  modernised  and  ruined  (very  possibly  by  the 
said  M.  Croquepue  or  some  such  local  worthy).  We 
walked  about  a  little,  but  did  not  attempt  any  more  sights, 
and  went  back  to  the  station,  where  we  sat  reading  and 
working  till  the  train  went  on  to  Brussels  at  J  to  7,  arriving 
soon  after  9. 

4th.  We  breakfasted  at  10.  and  went  out  directly  after- 
wards ;  made  the  round  of  the  shops,  Papillon's,  Genie's, 
Mliller's,  Andelaar's,  Craenen's,  Marynen's  ;  we  selected  a  few 
prints  to  look  over  again,  at  Papillon's,  and  did  the  same  with 
a  few  pieces  of  porcelain,  etc.,  at  Marynen's.  There  was 
absolutely  nothing  at  any  of  the  other  places.  After  this  we 
called  on  Mr.  Lumley  [afterwards  Lord  Savile],  who 
showed  us  all  over  his  house,  which  he  has  furnished  with 
most  admirable  taste.  We  had  been  told  that  the  Duke  and 
Duchess  of  Edinburgh,  who  are  to  arrive  to-morrow  at 
Brussels,  were  to  have  a  State  reception  at  the  railway, 
and  we  wished  to  see  it,  but  he  told  us  that  this  was  not  the 
case.  After  our  visit  to  him  we  went  on  our  prowl ;  called 
at  Del  Hougue's,  Cools  Thyssen's,  Slaes  Kochs',  Daene's, 
De  Vries',  Hartaz's,  Huysman's,  and  Manning's,  but  did  not 
see  a  single  thing  to  tempt  us.  Am  sorry  to  see  that  Ivor 
is  petitioning  against  Waring's  return  for  Poole,  which  will, 
I  fear,  lead  to  much  trouble  and  expense ;  also  that  Bilbao 

245 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 

has  fallen  into  the  hands  of  the  Carlists.  Spain  makes  me 
very  anxious,  especially  on  Enid  and  Henry's  account ! 

5th.  After  breakfast  we  took  to  Genie's  our  purchases 
made  of  Paterson,  to  ask  his  opinion.  He  condemned  them 
all  as  modern.  Then  we  went  on  with  them  to  Marynen's, 
who  gave  the  same  report  of  the  red  vase  ornaments,  but 
pronounced  the  little  Oriental  figures  to  be  very  good.  It 
ended  in  our  leaving  the  vases  with  him  to  try  and  dispose 
of  at  the  price  we  had  given  (£6.),  which  he  seemed  to  think 
a  fair  price  for  them.  We  also  bought  of  him  various  small 
matters  of  English  Ware  and  china  and  so  forth  to  the 
amount  of  £4.  We  had  two  contretemps  this  morning,  one 
was  that  the  wheel  came  off  the  cab  we  were  in,  conveying 
our  china ;  but  luckily  no  damage  ensued.  The  other  was 
that  C.S.  lost  a  Napoleon,  he  knew  not  how,  from  his  pocket. 
Went  first  up  towards  the  Bois,  thinking  the  Duke  and 
Duchess  of  Edinburgh  might  be  driving,  and  we  might  see 
them ;  there  did  not  seem  to  be  many  people  on  the 
promenade.  We  then  went  down  into  the  town  and  called 
at  Lambricht's,  at  the  old  print-shop,  Rue  de  I'lmpe'ratrice, 
again  at  Papillon's,  and  Genie's,  and  finally  at  Nanon's, 
getting  back  only  just  in  time  for  dinner.  We  found  nothing 
at  all.  Brussels  seems  quite  swept.  We  talk  of  going  on 
to  Lille  to-morrow,  though  with  little  hope  of  better  success. 

6th.  Up  early,  left  the  Hotel  at  7.  and  took  the  train  to 
Lille.  We  got  to  Lille  about  10.  when  the  weather  brightened 
a  little,  and  we  kept  on  foot  for  above  four  hours,  ransacking 
all  the  shops  we  knew  of :  Noterman,  Cateau,  Bellet,  Mailut, 
and  Blondel.  The  first  of  these  was  quite  the  worst,  and 
had  simply  nothing,  Cateau  had  amongst  his  enormous  stock 
a  few  good  marked  pieces  of  French,  for  which  he  wanted 
absurd  prices,  but  after  giving  him  all  the  trouble  of  turning 
over  his  portfolios  of  worthless  prints,  in  the  vain  hope  of 

246 


1874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

finding  something  good  enough  to  bring  away,  we  managed 
to  select  a  little  Mennecy  pot,  not  too  dear  at  £i.  At  Bellet's, 
Rue  de  Fives,  we  got  a  curious  little  German  enamel  snuff 
box  with  the  view  of  a  Chateau,  etc.,  upon  it,  and  inscriptions 
in  gold,  "Hubertsburg,  15  Feby.  1763",  "Germania  Peccata", 
evidently  made  in  commemoration  of  the  peace  signed  at 
that  place  and  date  between  Frederic  and  Maria  Theresa, 
I2/-,  and  a  little  coloured  plaque  with  portrait  of  a  soldier, 
8/~.  The  other  two  shops  had  nothing.  We  then  went 
on  to  Tournai,  where  we  got  some  three  hours.  Visited 
M.  Pourbaix  and  to  our  delight  found  that  his  enamel  box 
had  come  down  from  £12  to  below  £8,  so  we  secured  it, 
as  well  as  a  very  pretty  one  representing  a  dove,  and  some 
small  Oriental  coffee  cups,  well  decorated  in  white  pheasants 
— altogether  £12.  The  large  box  would  now  be  quite  worth 
that  whole  sum  in  England,  though  we  were  not  disposed  to 
give  it  him  when  we  admired  it  six  months  ago  (Sept.  8.). 
We  went  afterwards  to  Mme.  Detail's,  whose  shop  is 
improved,  but  not  in  our  line.  Dined  at  the  Hotel,  and  left 
by  train  at  7  for  Brussels. 

7th.  C.S.  has  gone  alone  to  see  if  anything  is  to  found  at 
Lierre.  I  met  Mr.  Lumley  and  he  told  me  of  a  great 
trouvaille  the  Duke  of  Edinburgh  made  while  here,  viz. 
the  model  of  a  ship  in  silver  with  arms  of  England, 
etc.,  which  had  evidently  belonged  to  Charles  I.  It  formed 
a  sort  of  centre-piece  for  a  table,  a  very  fine  thing. 
[The  Duke  afterwards  made  an  excellent  collection  of 
these  models  in  old  silver.  An  example  is  seen  on 
the  dining-table  in  Orchardson's  famous  picture,  "  The 
Young  Duke."  Many  copies  are  now  produced.]  He  got  it 
reasonably,  and  the  man  who  sold  it  was  furious  when  he 
found  out  who  had  been  the  purchaser.  Had  he  known,  no 
doubt  his  terms  would  have  been  exorbitant.  After  my  long 

247 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 
chat  with  Mr.  Lumley  I  walked  down  to  the  station  to  meet 
C.S.,  who  arrived  at  5.6  from  Lierre,  quite  empty-handed. 
He  had  visited  all  the  little  shops  there,  and  not  found  a 
vestige  of  any  good  thing.  But  he  found  time  to  visit  the 
Church,  with  which  he  was  quite  delighted.  We  strolled 
into  Stroobant's  shop  on  the  Boulevard  d'Anvers  before 
going  home  to  dinner.  He  is  so  dear  that  we  have  never 
been  able  to  buy  anything  of  him,  nor  expected  now  to  find 
anything  a  notre  port£e.  It  was  a  sort  of  forlorn  hope.  He 
showed  us  a  very  fine  Chelsea  figure  of  Justice,  15  inches 
high,  and  quite  perfect ;  we  asked  the  price — £20.  For  us 
this  was  out  of  the  question ;  there  was  nothing  else  in  our 
line  and  we  came  away.  Old  Stroobant  followed  us  into  the 
street — Would  we  make  an  offer  for  the  figure?  We 
declined  to  do  so  because,  we  said,  we  could  not  come 
anything  near  the  price  he  asked  and  therefore  it  would  be 
useless.  He  then  said  he  thought  we  might  have  the  figure 
for  £14 — a  vast  reduction !  We  said  we  would  consider  of  it 
and  call  again  in  the  evening.  When  we  did  so  he  was  out ; 
we  went  a  second  time  and  saw  Madame,  and  left  with  her  a 
note  saying  we  would  give  £12.  10.  and  would  call  on  Monday 
for  an  answer.  We  overhauled  the  figure  again  and  were 
satisfied  that  it  was  very  fine.  This  little  transaction 
occupied  most  of  the  evening. 

Qth.  Our  first  visit  on  going  out  this  morning  was  to 
Stroobant's.  He  was  absent,  but  had  left  word  with  his 
wife  that  as  we  were  old  customers  (we  never  bought  any- 
thing of  him  in  our  lives)  we  should  have  the  figure  at  the 
price  we  offered.  So  we  possessed  for  £12.  10.  what  he 
began  by  asking  us  £20.  for.  I  have  given  all  the  particulars 
of  this  little  episode,  because  I  think  it  most  characteristic  ! 
We  walked  on  to  Genie's,  Papillon's,  Craenen's,  Marynen's, 
etc.  Got  some  money  at  the  Banker's,  some  photographs 

248 


FOUR    EXAMPLES   OF   THE    FINE  ENAMEL   WORK  OF   THE   YUNG   CHENG   PERIOD,    WHEN 

GAY   COLOURS,    RICH    SCROLL   WORK    AND    LIVELY    DRAWINGS   OF   BIRDS   AND    FLOWERS 

WERE   GREATLY   EMPLOYED 

Lord  \\~iinborne  s  Collection 


i874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

in  the  Arcade.  Looked  into  a  Sale  Room  in  the  Petite  Rue 
de  1'Ecuyer,  where  we  saw  a  vast  assemblage  of  rubbish 
said  to  have  been  brought  there  by  a  gentleman  from  Havre. 
To  the  Bookseller's.  To  look  at  the  Maison  Flamande  in 
the  Rue  de  Gale  where  Bruyere  of  Malines  has  a  reposi- 
tory for  furniture,  made  to  imitate  the  ancient :  lastly,  called 
on  M.  Collonet,  to  inquire  into  the  possibility  of  getting  an 
inkstand  of  the  model  of  those  in  the  Hotel  de  Ville  of 
Bruges.  He  had  moulded  them,  and  promised  to  let  me 
know  at  what  price  a  brass  one  can  be  executed.  We  were 
fortunate  in  finding  Collonet  at  home.  He  is  a  lively 
energetic  man,  and  may  be  useful  to  us.  He  told  us  of  many 
things  we  ought  to  see  in  Belgium ;  with  him  was  the 
director  of  the  Academy,  whose  name  I  did  not  catch,  who 
seemed  an  interesting  intelligent  man.  Back  about  J  past  3. 
loth.  At  Antwerp  we  took  a  carriage  and  drove  to  the 
old  man  in  the  Rue  des  Sceurs  Noires,  Heest  by  name,  who 
had  promised  last  autumn  to  look  out  for  mezzotints  for  us. 
He  had  not  forgotten  us,  but  had  put  aside  for  us  some  good 
Bartolozzis  and  one  or  two  mezzotints,  altogether  amount- 
ing to  21  pieces,  for  which  we  paid  him  £2.  We  then  went 
first  to  Eva  Krug's ;  she  had  wonderfully  improved  her 
stock,  among  which  we  found  an  Oriental  tea-pot,  black  and 
green,  matching  exactly  with  the  tea-pot  stand  we  got  from 
Mr.  Paterson.  This  we  accordingly  bought,  price  (also) 
£2.  She  showed  us  the  goods  which  were  to  be  sold  by  the 
Terbruggens,  with  whom  she  lodged,  amongst  which  were 
several  nice  things,  but  nothing  in  our  line.  We  visited  Van 
Herck's,  where  we  found  only  a  small  Oriental  tea-jar,  which 
unluckily  we  subsequently  broke  in  getting  out  at  the 
Custom  House.  Moren's.  Called  on  a  silversmith  named 
Ryswick  in  the  Kydorp,  whom  Mr.  Weale  had  mentioned  to 
us  as  the  possessor  of  a  very  curious  tile  picture.  We  found 

249 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 
it  to  represent  the  Conversion  of  S.  Paul,  beautifully  executed 
and  in  vivid  colours.  Dated  1547.  ^n  style  and  ornamenta- 
tion of  the  border  it  greatly  resembles  the  tile  work  executed 
for  Ferdinand  and  Isabella  at  Seville  by  Nicolo  Pisano ; 
altogether  it  is  a  wonderful  piece  and  in  fair  preservation. 
By  dint  of  inquiry  we  at  length  discovered  a  dealer  in  old 
prints,  Tessaro,  in  the  Marche*  aux  Souliers,  and  to  our  disgust 
found  that  in  Sept.  last  he  parted  with  a  large  number  of 
English  mezzotints  after  Reynolds.  This  was  just  at  the 
time  we  were  at  Antwerp,  and  had  on  all  hands  been 
assured  that  no  old  print-shop  existed  in  the  town !  After 
we  got  back  to  the  station  we  had  time  for  some  dinner  at  a 
neighbouring  restaurant  before  proceeding  on  our  journey 
to  The  Hague  at  about  J  past  3.  The  Custom  House  was 
more  troublesome  than  usual.  They  wanted  to  tax  our 
china,  and  only  persuaded  themselves  that  it  was  really 
"  objets  d'art  "  when  they  found  that  some  pieces  were  want- 
ing handles,  etc.  etc.  Reached  The  Hague  after  8,  in  the 
snow. 

nth.  Snow  !  Such  an  uncomfortable  day  that  we  gave 
up  all  idea  of  making  excursions.  Took  a  carriage  and 
visited  all  the  shops  in  the  town.  Munchen  ;  with  whom  a 
small  purchase  of  a  mediocre  figure,  and  a  good  Battersea 
etui.  Schwaab  ;  with  whom  we  found  English  ware  busts  of 
Pope  and  Dryden.  Sarlin  ;  who  was  more  objectionable,  more 
violent,  and  more  exorbitant  than  ever.  Block,  Veuve 
Jacot,  Dirksen,  Van  Gelder,  Boor's  Bazaar,  Doorm,  and 
Tennyssen,  who  had  nothing.  We  got  an  unimportant 
printed  box  at  Isaacson's.  Called  on  de  Visser,  and  found 
him  in  the  accustomed  dressing-gown,  very  much  excited 
about  a  sale  he  had  just  been  conducting.  We  are  to  call 
and  see  him  again.  He  told  us  that  our  old  friend  Schaak, 
the  little  man  living  in  the  Gedempte  Gracht,  had  bought 

250 


1874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

some  things  (meubles),  and  we  went  on  to  see  him,  but  he 
had  nothing  in  our  line.  Having  still  a  few  minutes  to  spare 
before  dinner-time,  as  a  sort  of  idle  forlorn  hope,  we  called  at 
de  Maan's  in  the  Spui.  This  is  the  person  who,  then  quite  a 
lad,  accompanied  us  to  Arnhem  and  Utrecht.  He  has  now 
set  up  in  business  for  himself :  we  found  him  at  home,  and 
he  was  full  of  regrets  at  having,  the  very  day  before,  sold 
six  Chelsea  figures  at  Brussels,  which,  he  said,  would  have 
probably  suited  us.  He  promised  to  call  on  us  the  next 
night,  if  he  could  find  anything  in  our  line.  Thus  ended  our 
long  morning's  round  not  immediately  productive,  but  to 
bear  fruit. 

I2th.  It  snowed  while  we  were  at  breakfast,  but  was  fine 
when  we  walked  to  the  station  to  take  the  10.25.  tram  to 
Gouda.  During  the  rest  of  the  day  it  snowed.  At  Gouda 
Cohen  had  nothing,  but  we  found  a  few  small  pieces,  chiefly 
salt  glaze  stoneware,  at  Pavoordt's,  and  have  promised  to  call 
and  see  him  another  day.  One  large  stoneware  dish,  with 
pattern  in  relief  and  curious  perforation,  is  the  finest  specimen 
of  that  manufacture  I  ever  saw  ;  I  hope  we  may  get  it  safe  to 
England.  We  went  on  by  the  next  train  to  Rotterdam,  and 
walked  to  Van  Minden's.  He  had  returned  from  his  sale 
in  England,  and  with  him  we  got  a  very  good  Battersea  e*tui 
(embossed),  and  a  box  with  exactly  the  same  subject  and 
model  as  a  Chelsea  box  we  bought  at  Granada,  1872,  "Chasse 
des  Belles."  Van  Minden  took  us  to  the  house  of  a  merchant, 
M.  Casteel,  to  show  us  some  enamels  which  that  gentleman 
had  to  dispose  of,  having  been  sent  to  him  from  Japan  for 
that  purpose.  They  consisted  of  7  plaques  (4  large  and  3 
small)  of  the  finest  Battersea  ;  Rose  du  Barri  and  gold  in  the 
corners,  beautifully  painted  with  Watteau  subjects  in  the 
centre  of  the  field  :  they  are  of  unusual  shapes,  only  two 
corresponding  in  size,  and  it  is  difficult  to  imagine  what  they 

251 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 
could  have  been  for.  Now  they  could  only  be  hung  up  as 
small  pictures.  The  price  he  named  seemed  to  us  absurd 
(looo  florins  =  £80.),  but  he  did  not  seem  to  have  any  fixed 
idea  of  their  value  ;  so  we  authorised  Van  Minden  to  offer 
half  that  sum,  though  without  any  expectation  of  getting 
them.  It  appears  they  were  taken  from  the  Summer  Palace, 
and  bought  at  Yokohama.  M.  Casteel  has  himself  a  small 
collection  of  good  china,  etc.  We  had  to  visit  Beck  about 
prints,  and  Pluyne  about  china,  also  Kryser,  where  we  bought 
a  small  pot  and  cover  of  "M.O.L.",  so  this  visit  to  Mr. 
Casteel  disarranged  a  plan  we  had  formed  of  leaving  by  a 
train  early  enough  to  stop  at  Delft  on  our  way  back  to  The 
Hague.  Indeed  it  ended  in  our  being  so  late  that  after 
another  pause  at  Van  Minden's,  we  found  it  was  dinner-time, 
and  so  went  and  joined  a  table  d'hote  at  the  Bath  Hotel 
before  returning  by  the  6  o'clock  train.  It  had  been  wretched 
weather,  snowing  all  day,  which  was  unpleasant  for  walking. 
On  reaching  our  Hotel  we  found  that  we  had  just  missed  de 
Maan,  who  had  called  by  appointment.  He  came,  however, 
the  following  morning  before  I  was  out  of  my  room.  C.S. 
went  down  to  see  him,  and  presently  ran  joyfully  back  to  me 
bringing  what  de  Maan  was  offering  for  sale.  What  was  my 
astonishment  and  delight  when  he  displayed  before  my 
bewildered  eyes  no  less  than  5  beautiful  Bristol  figures !  viz. 
the  boy  with  hurdy-gurdy,  a  girl  dancing  with  triangle,  the 
girl  with  dog,  and  a  boy  and  girl  of  a  model  we  had  never 
seen  before,  he  holding  a  bird  and  she  some  flowers.  The 
price  was  not  very  small  for  Chelsea,  which  de  Maan 
considered  them  to  be,  but  it  was  little  enough  for  Bristol, 
which  they  really  were,  and  we  gladly  gave  him  the  £32.  to 
which,  after  a  little  parleying,  he  came.  Our  Bristol  figures 
now  surpass  every  collection.  We  have  every  known  type 
but  one  (the  female  companion  to  our  Shepherd  carrying  the 

252 


i8;4  NOTES  CERAMIC 

kid),  and  have  three  specimens  hitherto  unknown,  viz.  the 
two  bought  this  morning,  and  the  fine  double  group  purchased 
of  Jacob  some  years  ago.  After  this  little  transaction  we 
breakfasted,  and  by  10.25.  were  off  to  Utrecht  by  train.  The 
snow  then  was  deep,  and  it  was  very  pretty  to  see  the  Dutch 
landscape  in  its  perfect  white  dress,  recalling  many  an  old 
picture.  The  children  were  going  about  the  streets  in  the 
little  sleighs,  and  some  of  the  cars  were  moving  without  their 
wheels,  but  it  was  anything  but  pleasant  to  walk  about  the 
town,  and  C.S.  increased  a  severe  cold  which  he  had  caught 
yesterday.  We  went  first  to  Gorkum's,  who  has  done  little 
with  the  things  we  left  with  him.  We  took  away  what  was 
left  in  his  hands.  He  tried  to  get  us  another  view  of  the 
celebrated  service,  but  "the  ladies  could  not  receive  us." 
He  had  nothing  for  us  himself,  neither  had  Sanders,  nor  Costa, 
nor  Frenkel  ;  at  Hamburgers  we  saw  a  very  pretty  Chelsea 
bibelot,  and  3  lovely  Dresden  cups;  but  the  prices,  £7.  and 
£10.  respectively,  or  £16.  for  the  lot,  caused  us  to  pause.  We 
got  back  to  The  Hague  in  time  for  dinner.  Van  Gelder 
called  in  the  evening ;  he  had  found  nothing  in  our  line. 

I4th.  This  morning's  post  brought  a  letter  from  Van 
Minden  to  say  he  had  purchased  M.  Casteel's  Enamels  for 
us.  C.S.  was  too  poorly  to  go  out  all  day.  The  snow  had 
cleared  away  and  we  had  some  bright  sunshine.  I  walked 
out  alone,  first  to  Schwaab's  to  pay  for  the  two  ware  busts, 
and  thence  to  call  on  the  Bisschops.  I  found  them  full  of 
excitement  about  some  tableaux  which  the  Queen  was  to 
have  at  night,  and  which  were  being  prepared  under  M.  Bis- 
schop's  auspices.  One  of  the  Maids  of  Honour  came  in 
during  my  visit,  and  Mme.  Bisschop  asked  her  to  mention 
our  being  at  The  Hague,  as  it  seems  that  the  Queen  had 
expressed  to  her  a  wish  to  see  me  whenever  we  might  be 
here  again.  I  got  Bisschop  to  walk  with  me  to  look  at 

253 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 

Dirksen's  and  Tennyssen's  furniture,  some  of  which  I  thought 
might  suit  Ivor  and  Huntly.  I  am  writing  to  the  latter  about 
a  cabinet  (200.  fl.)  and  a  very  fine  Lac  screen,  bright  red  and 
gold  (600.  fl.)  at  Tennyssen's.  We  went  on  to  fetch  my  box 
from  Isaacson's,  and  wrote  down  our  names  at  the  Palace  on 
our  way  back.  When  I  came  in  I  found  our  invitation  for 
the  evening's  tableaux  already  arrived.  In  the  afternoon  I 
went  to  de  Visser's  to  look  again  over  his  portfolios,  but  he 
had  nothing  for  us.  De  Visser  had  just  given  his  conge  to 
the  "  commis "  and  was  alone,  and  was  out  of  spirits !  I 
forgot  to  say  that  I  began  my  day's  work  by  a  visit  with  de 
Maan  to  a  gentleman's  house  to  look  at  a  Chelsea-Derby 
figure,  10.  inches  high,  of  Diana,  but  it  would  not  do.  They 
wanted  £10.  for  it,  and  it  had  its  head  off.  At  J  past  8.  M. 
Bisschop  called  for  me  and  took  me  to  the  Palace.1  The 
Queen  received  me  very  kindly,  and  inquired  why  I  had 
never  been  to  see  her  in  my  former  frequent  visits  to  The 
Hague,  etc.  Again,  when  the  tableaux  were  over  she  came 
and  spoke  to  me  and  hoped  I  had  had  a  good  place  for  seeing 
them ;  and,  later  in  the  evening,  she  conversed  with  me  some 
time,  talking  about  our  Collection,  her  house  in  the  Bosch, 
and  expressing  great  annoyance  at  Prince  and  Princess  Chris- 
tian's visit  to  The  Hague  having  been  suddenly  given  up  last 
year.  It  was  a  gay  and  pretty  party,  with  very  little  form, 
the  Queen  going  about  and  speaking  to  every  one.  I  was 
introduced  to  a  great  many  people,  whose  names  I  did  not 
even  catch.  There  were  among  them  two  charming  little 
Maids  of  Honour  whom  I  hope  to  see  again.  The  tableaux 
were  excellent  and  did  Bisschop  great  credit.  The  Prince  of 
Orange,  and  his  poor  deformed  brother,  Prince  Alexander, 
acted  in  them.  The  best  was  the  "  Finding  of  Moses  "  ;  the 
female  being  represented  by  a  beautiful  Brazilian,  wife  of  the 
Minister,  M.  de  Thores,  and  Moses  done  by  a  real  baby,  who 

254 


1874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

lay  very  still  at  first,  but  raised  itself  and  looked  round  after 

awhile  to  the  great  amusement  of  the  audience. 

Monday,  i6th.  Up  early  and  off  by  9  train  to  Amster- 
dam ;  on  our  way  to  the  train  we  took  some  of  our  china 
to  be  packed.  We  stopped  at  Haarlem  for  an  hour  en 
route,  and  expected  de  Maan  to  meet  us  there  and  to  show 
us  some  china  in  a  private  house,  a  Worcester  tea  set,  and  a 
Dresden  ditto,  for  sale,  but  he  did  not  appear,  so  we  spent 
the  hour  we  had  to  wait  there  in  visiting  the  little  shops. 
Ronin  had  a  pretty  Worcester  service,  blue  and  white,  rather 
unusual,  but  too  dear  at  £4.  Hauja  was  out,  so  we  bought 
nothing.  We  had  to  do  all  this  in  a  carriage  ;  also  we  had  a 
carriage  all  day  on  reaching  Amsterdam,  the  weather  being 
cold  and  wet.  We  went  to  a  great  many  shops  ;  Soujet's, 
Speyer's,  at  both  of  which  we  saw  some  good  leather,  about 
which  we  have  written  to  Huntly;  Van  Galen's,  Ganz's,  Boas- 
berg's,  etc.  At  Soujet's  we  bought  a  pretty  Battersea  smell- 
ing bottle,  of  two  doves — very  much  a  la  Chelsea.  At 
Boasberg's  a  good  Chelsea-Derby  figure  (£8.  6.  8.),  some 
little  Wedgwood  busts,  £3.  6.  8.,  a  lovely  Chelsea  seal  with  a 
parrot,  £i.  o.  0.,  and,  to  C.S.'s  great  delight,  a  set  of  13  salt- 
glazed  stoneware  plates  with  representations  of  Frederic 
the  Great,  and  inscription,  "  Success  to  the  King  of  Prussia 
and  his  Forces/'.  These  we^consider  very  curious  indeed, 
and  worth  a  great  deal  more  than  we  were  asked  for  them  (8 
florins  apiece).  We  drove  about  all  day.  Found  no  prints, 
and  Thyssen,  who  was  to  have  sought  for  some  for  us,  was  not 
at  home.  We  dined  at  table  d'hote.  In  the  evening  Ganz 
(i.e.  Benjamin)  brought  us  a  very  pretty  Dresden  china  snuff 
box  to  look  at,  very  well  painted,  price  £25.,  not  dear,  but 
out  of  our  line. 

I7th.  Again  we  went  out  (having  slept  at  the  Brack's 
Doelen)  but  bought  nothing,  except  a  small  piece  of  Mennecy  at 

255 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 
Van  Houtum's.  Visited  some  small  shops,  and  left  Amster- 
dam by  a  train  at  2.50.  Our  purchases  had  been  very  good, 
but  we  did  not  enjoy  our  visit  as  much  as  usual.  The  weather 
had  been  very  unfavourable,  and  C.S.  seemed  to  have  in- 
creased his  cold.  We  took  our  tickets  to  Gouda,  thinking  to 
get  out  there  and  proceed  by  a  later  train,  but  it  came  on  to 
rain  again,  so  we  determined  to  go  straight  on  to  The  Hague. 
At  Gouda  the  guard  told  C.S.  he  must  get  fresh  tickets,  so  he 
left  the  carriage  to  do  so  and  forthwith  the  train  went  on  and 
left  him  behind.  He  followed  by  a  train  J  an  hour  later,  and  took 
the  opportunity  of  running  into  the  town  to  take  another  look  at 
Van  Pavoordt's  stock,  where  there  was  nothing  fresh.  I  waited 
for  him  at  den  Haag  station  and  we  came  on  together  to  the 
Paulez,  in  time  for  dinner.  It  is  to  be  noticed  how  much  civility 
I  met  with  in  my  little  embarras,  arriving  without  tickets  and 
alone,  and  how  strangers  came  up  to  explain  the  circumstances 
for  me.  On  reaching  the  Hotel,  we  found  a  letter  from  the 
Dame  d'Honneur  de  la  Reine,  asking  us  to  go  and  see  the 
Queen  at  4  o'clock  that  day ;  of  course  the  time  was  long 
past  when  we  got  the  summons.  In  the  evening  washed  up 
our  purchases,  and  amused  ourselves  in  changing  the  pedestals 
of  our  little  Wedgwood  busts,  till  late. 

i8th.  C.S.  very  poorly,  not  up  till  late.  I  went  down  to 
breakfast  alone,  and  while  there  got  another  note  from  the 
Dame  d'Honneur  appointing  us  to  go  that  afternoon  at  J 
past  3  to  the  Palace  to  see  the  Queen.  C.S.  had  meant  to 
have  stayed  indoors  all  day,  but  he  made  the  best  of  his 
indisposition  and  we  went  together.  The  Queen  received  us 
with  great  kindness,  and  kept  us  with  her  for  about  three- 
quarters  of  an  hour  talking  on  every  imaginable  subject, 
Politics,  Art,  Travels,  etc. ;  she  struck  us  as  being  very  well 
informed.  We  were  rather  at  a  loss  to  know  to  what  to  attribute 
the  distinction  thus  shown  us.  They  say  she  is  very  fond  of 

256 


i874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

English  people,  and  always  shows  them  all  the  attention  she 
can.  She  was  quite  alone,  dressed  very  simply  in  black  velvet. 
After  this  visit  we  called  on  Mme.  Bisschop  to  take  leave. 
We  were  to  have  left  The  Hague  in  the  morning,  but  C.S. 
did  not  feel  well  enough. 

iQth.  A  bright  morning  which  has  since  turned  to  a  cold 
rain.  Van  Minden  had  in  our  absence  on  Tuesday  been  here 
about  M.  Casteel's  Enamels.  It  appears  he  gave  350.  florins 
for  them,  which  is  50.  more  than  we  authorised,  but  he  was 
willing  if  we  disapproved  to  keep  them  himself.  We  tele- 
graphed to  him  to  bring  them  to-day,  and  he  has  just  been 
here,  and  given  us  a  long  and  almost  unintelligent  talk,  partly 
English,  French,  Dutch,  German,  etc. 

20th:  Very  cold  with  showers  of  rain  and  hail.  Out 
in  the  morning.  Called  at  Van  Gelder's,  Munchen's,  Sarlin's, 
de  Maan's,  etc.  Left  our  names  at  the  Palace  and  cards  for 
the  agreeable  Dames  d'Honneur,  the  Countesses  Limberg  and 
Stirum.  We  are  preparing  for  an  early  start  to-morrow.  We 
send  off  our  least  valuable  goods  by  sea,  and  we  carry  our 
treasures  with  us.  Long  letter  to-night  from  Henry  Layard. 

2ist.  Up  soon  after  5.  Left  The  Hague  by  the  8.30. 
train.  A  bright  morning  but  rather  cold.  We  had  written 
to  appoint  Van  Minden  to  meet  us  at  the  boat  that  carries 
passengers  across  from  Rotterdam  to  the  opposite  railway 
station.  We  were  to  have  paid  him  for  the  Enamels,  and  to 
have  seen  some  other  things  he  had  to  show  us.  However,  as 
he  did  not  appear,  I  suppose  our  letter  failed  to  reach  him. 
At  Antwerp  we  left  the  train  ;  there  was  an  interval  of  some 
two  hours  between  one  train  and  another.  Of  this  we  availed 
ourselves  to  go  into  the  town,  and  to  take  with  us  the  pieces 
rejected  from  our  Collection,  which  we  had  lately  withdrawn 
from  Utrecht,  and  put  them  in  the  hands  of  Eva  Krug,  who 
is  to  have  a  sale  at  Terbruggen's  at  the  end  of  the  month, 

i  257  R 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 
She  is  a  lively  energetic  woman  and  entered  readily  into  our 
views.  The  specimens  are  but  trifling,  only  some  £10.  worth, 
but  they  may  as  well  be  converted,  as  every  little  helps,  and 
the  expenses  of  collecting  are  great.  Having  taken  the  next 
train  to  Brussels,  we  arrived  there  soon  after  4.  C.S.  and  I 
walked  up  from  the  station,  paying  a  visit  on  our  way  to 
Mme.  Stroobant ;  she  had  not  met  with  anything  for  us  since 
we  were  there  last;  Found,  on  reaching  the  Hotel  Mengelle, 
a  note  from  Mr.  Lumley,  from  which,  to  our  dismay,  we 
gathered  that  he  had  expected  us  to  dine  with  him  last 
Wednesday. 

22nd.  A  very  curious  letter  (forwarded  to  us  from  home) 
written  by  Hamilton  of  Metz,  and  giving  an  account  of  old  M. 
Bertol,  the  amateur  in  whose  collection  we  had  discovered 
the  Bristol  figures.  He  writes  to  tell  us  that  the  old  man,  who 
was  thought  to  be  dying  when  we  were  at  Metz  in  September, 
has  quite  recovered  after  having  been  given  up  by  all  the 
physicians.  I  should  notice  that  the  said  "  Hamilton  "  was 
a  teacher  at  Metz,  whose  occupations  as  such  have  fallen  off 
since  the  war,  and  who  has  since  betaken  himself  to  acting  as 
guide  to  persons  visiting  the  battlefields.  We  had  begged 
him  to  keep  an  eye  on  M.  Bertol's  collection,  intending,  if  a 
sale  took  place,  on  his  death,  to  endeavour  to  secure  the 
Bristol  figures. 

23rd.  Walked  about  Brussels  and  visited  several  of  the 
shops.  Marynen  had  done  nothing  about  our  vases  (see 
March  5).  At  Papillon's  we  laid  out  £4.  on  prints.  We 
found  nothing  at  any  of  the  shops,  but  happening  to  call  at 
Polonet's  we  heard  that  a  sale  was  going  on  at  the  Rue 
de  Perse,  and  thither  we  went.  We  were  amused  at  the 
scene.  The  sale  consisted  entirely  of  dealers'  goods,  chiefly,  I 
believe,  Polonet's.  There  was  a  pretty  good  attendance,  but 
the  things  seemed  very  second  rate,  and  the  prices  wretched. 

258 


i8;4  NOTES  CERAMIC 

C.S.  espied  a  printed  Battersea  box,  very  handsome,  but  a 
little  imperfect ;  he  asked  to  look  at  it,  and  having  done  so 
inquired  when  it  would  come  to  be  sold.  They  told  us  there 
was  no  regular  order  of  proceeding,  that  anything  could  be 
put  up  at  once  if  any  of  the  company  wished  to  compete  for 
it,  and  accordingly,  at  our  request,  the  Battersea  box  was  at 
once  offered  up.  It  became  our  property  at  37 J  francs 
(30/")  including  the  10  per  cent,  which  here  falls  upon  the 
purchaser.  We  came  away  well  pleased  with  our  bargain. 
Wrote  letters  in  the  evening  to  Christie's,  W.  Smith  (about 
sales),  Van  Minden,  etc. 

24th.  M.  Pourbaix  called  in  while  we  were  at  breakfast ; 
we  had  telegraphed  to  him  to  say  we  would  go  over  to 
Tournai  to  see  him  to-morrow.  We  took  the  train  a  little 
before  12,  and  went  over  to  Ghent.  We  found  very  little  at 
the  shops.  At  Hulstart's  we  bought  an  Oriental  tea-pot,  so 
like  the  Worcester  that  one  must  have  been  copied  from  the 
other  (i2/-),  and  at  Laetre's  a  very  good  salt  glazed  stone- 
ware plate,  3/6.  We  went  on  to  de  Buyser's  in  the  Marche 
au  Beurre  to  look  at  a  Louis  XVI.  room  that  he  has  for  sale 
at  £2000.  There  are  tapestry  wall-hangings,  chairs,  sofas, 
carpets,  etc.,  very  pretty  but  rather  faded,  a  handsome  white 
marble  chimney-piece,  parquet  floors,  all  complete,  but  the 
price  seems  to  me  egregious.  All  the  dealers  were  thronging 
to  a  sale,  so  we  went  to  it.  In  a  large  and  dark  place, 
resembling  a  barn,  we  found  Massin,  the  auctioneer,  sur- 
rounded by  a  crowd  of  people,  eagerly  competing  for  some 
worthless  and  insignificant  bits  of  china.  We  could  not  get 
any  view  of  what  was  coming  on  for  sale.  It  appears  to  have 
been  the  property  of  an  amateur  dealer  called  De  Leu  (or 
some  such  name),  who  is  moving  to  Brussels.  We  stayed  but 
a  short  time  ;  it  was  a  curious  sight ;  out  of  doors,  on  a  large 
dresser,  were  arranged  the  different  Lots  as  they  were  sold, 

259 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 
the  names  of  the  buyers  being  chalked  where  they  stood. 
De  Clerc,  whose  shop  we  went  to,  was  out,  and  altogether, 
though  very  pleasant,  our  day  was  not  very  productive.  Got 
back  for  a  late  dinner,  which  we  took  very  agreeably  at  one 
of  the  little  round  tables  a  part.  Reading,  writing,  working, 
this  evening.  Sat  up  making  calculations  till  midnight. 

25th.  We  were  up  again  soon  after  5,  and  down  at  7, 
when  we  set  off  on  foot  for  the  Gare  du  Midi,  and,  by 
walking  extremely  fast  (almost  beyond  my  pace),  arrived  just 
in  time  to  take  the  express  to  Tournai  at  7.35*  On  arriving 
there  our  first  care  was  to  go  to  the  Inn  and  get  breakfast. 
Looked  into  one  of  the  fine  old  Churches  on  our  way.  After 
breakfast,  we  proceeded  by  appointment  to  our  friend, 
Pourbaix,  and  he,  as  beforehand  promised,  took  us  to  see  a 
friend  of  his,  M.  Charles  Vasseur,  an  artist  and  also  an 
"Amateur  Marchande",  who  lives  a  little  way  out  of  the 
town,  at  a  place  called  Froyennes.  We  had  a  charming  walk 
to  his  house,  passing  through  the  public  walks,  and  every 
now  and  then  stopping  to  look  back  at  the  fine  view  of 
Tournai,  and  its  Cathedral  with  five  spires.  M.  Vasseur  is  a 
modest  intelligent  man,  of  very  fine  taste.  He  had  a  great 
many  pretty  things  for  sale,  and  we  made  two  or  three  very 
acceptable  purchases  of  him.  When  we  left  his  house,  M. 
Pourbaix  took  us  to  see  the  old  Bridge,  and  we  returned  by 
the  Church  of  S.  Nicholas  and  S.  Brice.  M.  Pourbaix  insisted 
on  our  taking  some  wine  when  we  got  back  to  his  house,  and 
after  a  regular  hob-nobbing  with  him,  we  had  to  go  over  all 
his  collection  again.  We  managed  to  find  two  objects  to  suit 
us,  and  then  we  took  our  leave  of  him  after  spending  a  most 
agreeable  morning,  and  went  down  to  the  station  in  time  for 
the  3.50.  train  back  to  Brussels.  Walked  up  from  the  station 
to  the  Hotel,  going  into  the  Cathedral  on  our  way.  Found  a 
telegram  from  Huntly  asking  us  to  buy  for  him  the  screen  we 

260 


1874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

had  seen  at  The  Hague.  Also  a  letter  from  Van  Gorkum  to 
tell  us  the  ladies  declined  to  sell  their  Worcester  service  at 
all ;  he  mentioned  some  Chelsea  candlesticks  that  were  to  be 
sold  at  Utrecht,  but  of  course  his  letter  reached  us  too  late 
for  us  to  do  anything  about  them.  We  leave  this  part  of  the 
country  for  Metz.  I  must  not  leave  the  subject  of  Tournai 
without  quoting  a  couplet  from  a  patois  song  which  Pourbaix 
repeated  to  us,  "  Tournai  est  bade  sur  roc,  J'n'ai  nuc  quin(t) 
s'en  va  qui  ne  rattrotte",  which  is  to  be  interpreted  that  no 
one  that  has  ever  been  there  fails  to  return  to  it.  I  endorse 
the  sentiments. 

26th.  C.S.  went  out  after  breakfast  to  fetch  away  our 
vases  from  Marynen's,  and  to  call  and  see  Mr.  Lumley,  to 
whom  he  explained  the  mistake  about  our  dining  with  him. 
We  came  back  only  in  time  for  us  to  proceed  to  the  Luxem- 
bourg station,  where  we  took  the  12.25.  train  for  Metz. 
We  reached  Metz  about  10.  Put  up,  as  before,  at  the  Hotel 
de  1'Europe. 

27th.  Another  most  delightful  day.  We  were  out  from 
breakfast  till  dinner  at  six.  Went  first  to  Dennery's  ;  he  had 
got  into  the  train  where  we  were  the  day  before,  and  showed 
us  some  Hochst  figures  he  had  been  buying  at  Brussels.  We 
found  nothing  with  him,  but  at  Renard's  got  a  pair  of 
Dresden  cups  and  saucers,  dark  blue  ground,  Caduceus 
mark,  and  a  wonderful  bowl  and  ladle  of  S.  Clement  pottery, 
also  with  a  blue  ground  and  painted  with  birds.  We  also 
picked  up  one  or  two  prints  of  Boucher  in  the  town.  At 
about  one  o'clock  we  made  our  great  visit  to  M.  Bertol,  who 
was  at  home  and  politely  showed  us  over  his  collection.  We 
looked  again  wistfully  at  his  three  Bristol  figures,  but  see  no 
hope  of  our  ever  getting  them.  He  considers  them  Tournai, 
and  is  inclined  to  think  they  are  modern  !  Going  down  the 
Rue  Magelle  we  came  to  a  curious  old  Church  with  a  Norman 

261 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 

Tower,  the  Columns  without  Imposts,  and  the  Apse  very  fine. 
From  this  point  we  went  on  to  one  of  the  gates  and  took  a 
very  pleasant  ramble  outside  the  Walls,  returning  by  the 
German  Gate  with  its  interesting  Arcades  and  twin  towers. 
The  machinery  for  raising  the  portcullis  still  remains  there. 
Looked  into  the  Church  S.  Eucaire.  Early  and  very  good. 
After  dinner  C.S.  went  out  to  get  a  little  Battersea  writing- 
box,  which  we  had  seen  in  the  morning  at  the  Rue  de 
Magelle,  Dennery's. 

28th.  Breakfast  at  8.  Took  the  train  soon  after  9  for 
Verdun,  where  we  arrived  after  12.  and  spent  some  hours 
very  agreeably.  It  was  sad  to  see  all  the  graves  as  we  went 
through  the  battlefield  of  S.  Privat,  and  in  Verdun  itself  the 
first  thing  that  caught  our  attention  was  a  small  burying- 
place  full  of  those  who  had  fallen  in  the  war.  We  walked 
from  the  train  into  the  town.  Looked  at  the  remarkable 
view  from  the  upper  terrace  and  then  went  into  the  Cathedral, 
which  is  finely  placed  but  is  most  disappointing.  The  Towers 
are  comparatively  modern  and  in  vile  taste,  and  the  interior 
has  been  ruthlessly  spoilt.  There  are  some  beautiful  traces 
of  Romanesque  work  at  the  exterior  of  the  Apse.  Most 
part  of  Verdun  is  dirty  and  cramped,  but  there  are  some  good 
streets,  and  altogether  we  were  pleased  with  its  quaintness, 
though  but  little  that  is  antique  remains.  As  we  went  down 
the  principal  street,  I  happened  to  go  into  a  watchmaker 
and  silversmith's  shop  to  make  some  inquiries ;  he  confirmed 
what  I  had  already  heard,  that  Verdun  possessed  no  Mar- 
chand  d'Antiquites,  but  he  showed  me  a  locket  composed  of 
a  piece  of  crystal  de  roche,  cut  with  the  head  of  the  Saviour 
and  set  in  gold.  It  had  been  richly  enamelled,  but  that  is 
much  rubbed.  He  said  it  had  been  found  with  some  coins  in 
digging  at  tne  neighbouring  chateau  of  Monkairon,  and  it 
was  evidently  of  Cinquecento  origin  ;  we  gave  him  what  he 

262 


1874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

asked,  loo  francs,  and  believed  it  to  be  worth  much  more. 
This  was  a  curious  and  pleasant  chance  to  have  befallen  us. 
From  Boivin's  we  went  on  to  the  Trois  Maures,  and  ordered 
some  dinner  to  be  prepared  while  we  went  on  to  see  the 
collection  of  a  M.  Scevance,  to  which  we  had  been  directed. 
We  found  it  to  consist  entirely  of  French  faience,  and  some 
Chinoise,  all  of  a  very  mediocre  description.  He  had  one 
good  thing,  a  piece  of  Venetian  enamel,  which  he  said  he  got 
from  a  peasant  who  had  been  a  soldier  in  the  Russian  Cam- 
paign and  he  brought  it  home  with  him  thence.  He  would 
not  put  a  price  on  it  or  it  would  have  tempted  us,  though  one 
side  was  much  damaged.  Having  dined  very  comfortably, 
we  went  in  search  of  the  house  of  M.  Buvigny,  whose  collec- 
tion we  were  told  was  very  large  indeed  (he  had  inherited 
from  a  certain  Abbe"  Clouet,  who  died  some  two  years  ago). 
Near  the  house  we  met  Mme.  Buvigny,  who  was  pointed  out 
to  us  ;  she  said  her  husband  was  from  home,  that  it  was  she 
who  collected  china,  but  that  nothing  had  been  arranged  or 
unpacked  since  the  late  siege,  so  she  could  not  show  it  us, 
but  would  do  so  if  we  came  again.  We  were  near  the 
station,  where  we  waited  till  time  to  return  to  Metz,  4.25.,  a 
very  slow  tedious  train,  not  arriving  till  8.  The  Douane 
takes  an  immense  time  ;  we,  of  course  had  no  baggage  to 
trouble  us,  but  at  the  French  frontier  they  made  very  par- 
ticular inquiries  as  to  our  names,  etc.,  all  which  they  noted 
down.  Not  so  in  returning  through  the  German  Douane.  We 
have  now  fetched  away  all  our  new  purchases  from  Renard's, 
which  he  had  packed  for  us.  He  thinks  highly  of  our  Cinque- 
cento  ornament.  Letter  from  Ivor  to-day.  I  should  notice 
that  of  all  the  Detenus  sent  here  by  Napoleon  at  the  beginning 
of  the  century,  one  still  remains  alive,  a  certain  Mr.  Nichol, 
now  about  85,  who  married  a  French  woman  and  settled  at 
Verdun ;  he  now  resides  a  few  miles  from  the  town.  His 

263 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 
wife  was  a  relation  of  the  man  of  whom  we  bought  our 
Crystal  de  Roche. 

29th.  At  one,  by  appointment,  M.  Bertol  came  to  re- 
turn our  visit.  We  had  set  out  some  of  our  best  acquisitions 
to  show  him,  and  he  fell  in  love  with  the  two  Chelsea  figures, 
boy  and  girl  with  cock  and  hen,  which  we  had  seen  at  Marynen's 
last  October,  and  which  Genie  had  bought  for  us  during 
the  course  of  the  winter.  So  we  proposed  an  exchange  with 
him  for  his  Bristol  "  T°  "  figures,  which  he  persists  in  calling 
Tournai,  and  "  moderne  ".  To  this  he  acceded  after  making 
many  protestations  that  we  were  making  "  une  mauvaise 
affaire  ",  which  we  told  him  by  no  means  to  consider  as  we 
were  perfectly  content,  and  indeed  we  were  more  than  con- 
tent— we  were  surprised  and  delighted.  He  promised  to 
send  his  servant  with  the  said  figures  in  the  course  of  the 
afternoon  ;  we  concluded  that  he  meant  we  should  have  them 
all  three,  but  when  the  servant  came  he  brought  only  the  two 
male  figures,  Earth  and  Fire.  This  led  to  a  little  explanation, 
a  little  less  pleasant  but  very  courteous.  M.  Bertol  gave  us 
the  offer  of  breaking  off  the  bargain,  and  we  proposed  a  still 
further  exchange  for  the  third  figure,  but  he  said  he  wished  to 
keep  one  specimen  of  Tournai,  so  there  was  nothing  more  to 
be  said,  and  it  was  a  great  relief  to  us  when  the  servant  came 
back  in  the  last  place,  with  the  beautiful  figure  of  Water, 
saying  that  it  was  indifferent  to  M.  Bertol  which  two  we 
chose  out  of  the  lot,  so  that  he  kept  his  one  specimen,  so  it 
ended  in  Fire  and  Water  remaining  with  us,  which  we  carry 
off  with  no  small  delight,  and  we  hope  and  believe  that  M. 
Bertol  is  equally  pleased.  We  little  hoped  for  such  valuable 
acquisitions  when  we  saw  them  first  (Sept.  18.)  or  when 
we  came  here  two  days  ago.  I  was  not  out  all  day ;  there 
was  a  high  wind  and  it  was  cold.  Hamilton  called  in  the 
evening. 

264 


1874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

30th.  Again  up  early.  Left  Metz  soon  after  9.,  travelling 
through  a  beautiful  and  picturesque  country,  diversified  by 
Iron  Works  and  Roman  Aqueduct  remains,  along  the  valley 
of  the  Moselle,  forming  a  great  contrast  to  the  flat  ugly  plains 
we  had  traversed  between  Amanvillers  and  Verdun  two  days 
ago.  All  the  slopes  covered  with  vineyards  in  summer,  it 
must  be  quite  lovely.  Reached  Nancy  about  II.  Set  out  as 
soon  as  possible  to  visit  the  shops.  There  are  only  four  here 
worth  looking  into — Le  Quay's,  Dumont's,  Lazard-Levi,  and 
Hammerduigue.  They  had  very  little,  but  we  made  some 
small  purchases ;  we  went  once  again  to  look  at  Picard's 
Collection,  and  found  the  old  gentleman,  whom  we  met  near 
his  house,  and  who  turned  back  with  us,  very  surly,  but 
anxious  to  sell,  or,  as  he  termed  it,  to  ''exchange".  He 
had  one  solitary  Chelsea  group,  very  fine  in  quality  but 
with  one  arm  made  up ;  he  insisted  on  calling  it  Saxe ;  as  we 
had  nothing  to  exchange  with  him,  he  condescended  to  name 
100  francs  for  it ;  we  took  time  to  consider.  Visited  the 
small  shops,  purchased  a  fine,  but  imperfect,  white  Mennecy 
group  of  three  boys,  of  May,  Rue  Equitation  ;  called  at 
Buquet's  the  gilder  (see  Sept.  2Oth.),  who  had  nothing  for  us, 
and  returned  about  5  to  our  Hotel.  Table  d'hote  at  6.  After 
it  we  went  up  again  to  M.  Picard's  to  conclude  for  the  little 
Chelsea  figure,  a  girl  with  flowers  in  her  apron  and  a  lamb  at 
her  feet.  We  found  the  old  man  in  ecstasies  over  some 
Louis  XV.  candlesticks  he  had  just  bought  and  for  which  he 
was  bespeaking  the  admiration  of  his  son.  Letter  from 
Gorkum,  saying  the  Chelsea  candlesticks  (see  March  25)  had 
sold  for  some  400  to  5°°  florins  (some  £40),  which  seems  to 
us  almost  incredible,  but  these  "  objets  d'art "  are  rising  in 
value  everywhere !  The  French  douane  was  very  indulgent 
to  us  to-day  ;  it  wrote  down  our  names,  but  did  not  make  us 
unpack  any  of  our  antiquities. 

265 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 

3ist.     Left  Nancy  soon  after  9.     Dined  at  Vesoul,  where 

we    had   to  stop  an    hour   and   a   half ;    reached    Besangon 

about  8.     Hotel  du  Nord,  very  comfortable.     Took  a  stroll 

out  in  the  evening,  clear  moonlight  night. 

APRIL  1874 

BESANCON  :  DOLE  :  DIJON  :  LAUSANNE  :  GENEVA  :  BOURG  : 

PARIS 

April  ist.  First  of  all  we  sought  for  the  shops,  of  which 
we  found  one  or  two,  but  not  very  promising ;  culled  one  or 
two  small  pieces,  but  nothing  of  any  importance.  We  found 
some  ware  (a  turkey-cock,  man,  etc.)  at  Edouard's,  a  hair- 
dresser in  the  Rue  Moncet,  and  a  pretty  good  print-shop, 
Pelligaro,  in  the  Grande  Rue,  where  we  invested  in  one  or 
two  pieces  after  Boucher.  The  principal  shop  in  the  town  is 
Peauliet's  in  the  Market  Place.  He  had  a  fine  Strasbourg 
ware  vessel,  very  large,  painted  in  groups  of  flowers,  armorial 
bearings,  etc.,  lettered  "  Tabac  ",  for  which  he  wanted  £20. 
It  is  the  best  piece  of  this  ware  that  we  have  seen.  At  a 
little  shop,  Brandt's,  Rue  de  Clos,  we  got  a  small  enamel 
snuff  box ;  at  Peauliet's  a  little  Chelsea  cow,  but  I  should  say 
that  Besangon  was  a  very  hopeless  place  for  antiquities.  We 
went  to  see  an  amateur,  but  he  had  left  the  town,  and  his 
collection  was  not  in  our  line.  So  much  for  our  chasse !  But 
with  the  town  itself  we  were  perfectly  delighted.  We  walked 
about  till  4.,  looked  at  the  Palais  Granville,  visited  the  Musee, 
containing  pictures  of  Granville  by  Gaetano,  and  of  his  father. 
Went  into  a  very  curious  and  interesting  Cathedral,  passing 
the  find  Roman  Arch  and  the  other  Roman  remains  on  the 
way,  and  went  up  to  the  Citadel  in  hopes  of  a  more  extended 
view  than  we  obtained,  but  at  four  we  took  a  carriage  for  an 
hour,  and  drove  out  of  the  town  in  the  opposite  direction, 

266 


THE     TWO     TOP     SHELVES     AM)      THE     LOWEST     SHELF     SHOW     INTERESTING 

EXAMPLES     OF     LONGTON     HALL     PRODUCTIONS.        SOME     EXAMPLES     OF    THIS 

WARE    WERE    CONSIDERED    TO     BE     AND     BOUGHT     BY     LADY     CHARLOTTE     AS 

BOW,   BUT  LATER  SCIENTIFIC   RESEARCH   ATTRIBUTES  THEM  TO  THE  LONGTON 

HALL  WORKS.       THE  THIRD  SHELF  CONTAINS  SOME  EXTREMELY    INTERESTING 

LIVERPOOL    PORCELAIN 

The  Schreiber  Collection 


1874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

towards  the  railway  station,  whence  we  had  most  charming 
prospects. 

*  -  2nd.  Up  very  early  and  away  before  breakfast  to  Dole. 
Breakfasted  at  the  buffet,  where  we  left  Dell  with  the  luggage, 
etc.,  while  we  walked  into  the  town  ;  again  it  was  lovely 
weather,  very  warm.  We  went  in  search  of  an  antiquaire, 
named  Michel,  who  had  been  recommended  to  us,  and  being 
directed  to  a  house  a  little  way  out  of  the  town,  had  a  long 
walk  among  the  vineyards  and  gardens  and  by  the  side  of  the 
river  (the  Doubs)  before  we  found  it.  Michel  was  away,  but 
his  brother-in-law,  whose  name  proved  to  be  Du  Quesne,  and 
who  told  us  that  his  father  was  the  head  of  that  family,  took  us 
to  the  magasin  in  the  town,  where  we  saw  little  besides  some 
very  good  old  furniture.  Went  back  to  the  buffet  for  dinner  at 
2,  and  afterwards  went  on  to  Dijon,  where  we  arrived  about  J 
past  6.  We  employed  the  little  daylight  that  remained  in  a 
friendly  visit  to  Tagini's  ;  at  Cazet's  we  got  a  pretty  double 
group  in  Mennecy  biscuit,  marked  D.V. ;  nothing  at  the  other 
shops.  Poor  Mme.  Hartmann,  Place  S.  Jean,  told  us  a  sad 
story  of  her  husband  having  been  killed  in  the  War. 

3rd.  Again  this  morning  we  were  up  early,  and  leaving 
Dell  and  our  heavy  luggage  at  Dijon,  set  out  on  one  of  our 
little  explorations  by  a  train  starting  before  9  ;  stopped  at 
Macon.  A  Sergeant  de  Ville  directed  us  to  a  small  shop  in 
the  Rue  Josephine ;  here  we  heard  of  two  other  shops 
in  the  Rue  Rabuteau,  but  they  were  very  inferior.  One  of 
them,  Pillon,  gave  us  the  names  of  some  of  the  amateurs  in 
the  place.  We  visited  the  collection  of  Mdlle.  Ronot,  whose 
ouse  it  was  a  treat  to  see.  She  has  many  pictures,  of  which 
am  no  judge  [Lady  Charlotte  frequently  mentions  that  she 
does  not  understand  pictures,  but  she  bought  a  great  number 
of  old  works  after  her  first  marriage,  many  of  which  are 
excellent  and  now  supplement  the  fine  collection  which  Sir 

267 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 
Henry  Layard  made  for  the  galleries  and  reception-rooms 
at  Canford],  two  very  pretty  statuettes  of  Clodion,  which 
are  said  to  be  very  valuable  (terra-cotta),  and  a  good  deal 
of  French  faience,  everything  beautifully  arranged  ;  I  was 
pleased  to  have  this  glimpse  of  a  French  interior.  Another 
amateur,  M.  Muraed,  was  absent.  We  strolled  down 
towards  the  river  Saone,  and  on  our  way  went  into  the  Rue 
Dombey,  where  we  were  delighted  with  an  old  wooden  house 
with  most  quaint  decorations  ;  we  were  told  afterwards,  it  was 
said  to  have  belonged  to  Francis  I.,  which  is  likely,  from 
there  being  Salamanders  carved  among  other  monsters  on  the 
cornices.  Looked  at  the  ruined  towers  of  the  Cathedral, 
S.  Vincent,  destroyed  at  the  Revolution  :  then  we  called  upon 
another  amateur,  Capt.  Otton,  an  exporter  of  wines  ;  a  curious 
piece  of  Italian  faience,  decorated  with  my  initials,  C.E.S., 
took  our  fancy,  and  he  sold  it  to  us,  but  it  cost  us  £2.  We 
also  invested  in  a  lace  cover,  with  alternate  squares  of  lace 
and  linen,  which  are  said  to  be  used  in  cases  of  Baptisms. 
Capt.  Otton  exports  to  England,  and  knows  many  people  we 
know.  Mme.  Otton  paints  charmingly  on  china,  imitating 
the  various  styles  in  a  marvellous  manner.  This  reminds  me 
that  on  returning  to  our  Hotel  the  previous  evening,  we 
passed  a  shop  which  exhibited  some  magnificent  examples  of 
faience.  Some  of  them  immense  plates,  painted  with 
landscapes  in  a  fine  blue,  one  of  them  signed  Belin,  who,  it 
appears,  is  an  architect,  who  did  this  en  amateur.  The  faience 
itself  was  made  by  Mr.  Lavalle  (see  29  April  of  last  year). 
I  am  sorry  to  say  that  having  had  great  losses,  M.  Lavalle 
has  closed  the  works,  the  productions  of  which  are  most 
remarkable.  Each  of  the  large  plates  cost  £10.,  which  seems 
very  little,  for  they  are  miracles  of  potting  and  effective  in 
colour.  Capt.  Otton  insisted  on  going  back  to  the  station 
with  us,  where  we  dined,  and  then  went  on  by  a  "Train 

268 


1874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

directe  "  which  brought  us  to  Geneva  by  midnight.     Hotel 

de  la  Paix. 

4th.  Went  first  to  see  poor  old  Flamank,  whom  we  found 
in  bed  ;  he  has  been  suffering,  and  seemed  half  starved.  We 
promised  to  return  next  day ;  he  had  been  in  that  state  ever 
since  Christmas,  without  having  a  human  being  to  exchange  a 
word  of  kindness  with  him.  After  this  we  went  the  round  of 
the  shops,  but  made  no  purchases,  and,  soon  after  4  took  the 
train  to  Lausanne.  Visited  Baud's  shop,  which  is  now  quite 
one  of  the  best  that  exists  on  the  Continent.  He  himself  has 
improved  in  tone  since  we  saw  him  last  year  (April  23rd). 
Bought  a  fine  pair  of  Battersea  candlesticks,  a  lovely  milk 
pot  and  cover  of  Vienna  enamel,  and  a  small  Battersea  box 
(imperfect)  for  £5.  12.  We  had  intended  to  dine  at  the 
Hotel  Gibbon  and  to  return  to  Geneva  at  night,  but  to  our 
disgust  we  found  that  we  had  been  misinformed  about  the 
trains,  the  last  of  which  left  about  7.  o'clock,  then  long  past. 
We  had  no  sort  of  luggage,  so  we  had  to  manage  to  pass  the 
night  as  best  we  could.  Not  a  very  refreshing  sleep  ;  roused 
again  at  J  past  6.  and  off  before  8.  to  Geneva  again. 

Easter  Sunday,  5th.  Arrived  at  10.  Breakfasted.  The 
rain,  heavier  than  ever,  lasted  till  dinner-time,  5.30.  We 
went  to  try  to  search  out  some  better  quarters  for  poor  old 
Flamank.  Called  on  the  clergyman,  but  he  was  out. 
Then  went  and  sat  with  Mr.  Flamank  for  about  an  hour. 
Since  dinner  we  have  walked  up  to  the  clergyman's,  and 
were  lucky  enough  to  find  him.  He  seems  a  very  nice 
person,  his  name  Dr.  Quilter,  and  he  promises  his  assistance 
for  our  poor  friend.  We  are  very  glad  that  we  determined  on 
this  little  journey,  for  his  sake,  as  I  do  not  know  what  would 
have  become  of  him  if  we  had  not  intervened. 

6th.  Bought  a  pair  of  enamel  salt-cellars  of  Picard,  and 
hunted  about  generally.  Went  again  on  the  Rampe  de  la 

269 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 
Treille,  where  we  enjoyed  the  beautiful  view,  and  walked  about 
a  little  while.  Ended  by  a  farewell  visit  to  poor  Mr.  Flamank. 
We  have  put  him  under  the  charge  of  Dr.  Quilter,  who 
called  on  us  this  morning  and  with  whom  we  have  concerted 
measures  for  his  future.  After  3.  we  left  Geneva,  having 
taken  some  luncheon  at  the  buffet  opposite  the  Gare.  The 
country  very  pretty  and  mountainous  up  to  about  Amb^rieu, 
where  we  change  carriages  for  Bourg,  which  we  reached 
between  7.  and  8.  Hotel  de  1'Europe,  very  homely  and  very 
clean.  Amused  by  the  peasants  who  came  for  their  meals  in 
the  salle  a  manger  while  we  were  taking  our  very  indifferent 
supper. 

7th.     Called  at  6.30.     As  soon  as  breakfast  was  over  we 
went  out  to  explore.     Found  a  jeweller  who  has  evidently 
good  things  sometimes,   though  nothing  now.     At   a  rival 
jeweller's   we   got   a   very    pretty   little    modern    enamelled 
bonbonniere   of    the   local   manufacture   (Emaux    Brepans). 
Drew  blank  the  only  curiosity  shop  (Couvert,  Rue  Neuve), 
and  then  called  on  the  Receveur-G£n£ral,  M.  Quingran,  who 
very  politely  showed  us  his  small,  but  very  interesting  collec- 
tion, all  most  beautifully  arranged,  and  set   off  by  all  the 
surroundings.     It  is  a  great  treat  to  us  to  get  a  glimpse  of 
these  pretty  French  interiors.     This  visit  over,  we  walked  to 
la  Brou,  which  was  our  object  in  stopping  at  Bourg.     We 
were  perfectly  delighted  with  the  Church  and  the  monuments 
of  Margaret  of  Austria,  Philibert  of  Savoy,  and  his  mother. 
I   think  they  exceed  anything  I  have  ever  seen,    including 
Mary  of  Burgundy  and  Charles  T£m£raire  at  Bruges,  Philip 
and  Jean  Sans  Peur  at  Dijon,  the  Catholic  Kings  at  Granada, 
and  that  of  their  young  son  near  Burgos.     We  were  perfectly 
enchanted,   and  C.S.  has  been  studying  the  history  of  the 
Church  and  of  its  foundress  ever  since.     On  our  way  back 
looked  into  a  "  Poterie  "  where  they  are  making  terra-cotta 

270 


i874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

objects  in  the  vilest  taste.  Went  into  the  more  modern 
church  within  the  town — 1600.  The  Nave  good,  and  some 
grotesque  predella  in  the  Choir  very  original.  Left  Bourg  at 
midday.  Dijon  before  6.,  in  time  for  table  d'hote  at  the 
Hotel  de  la  Cloche. 

8th.  Went  into  the  town  a  little  after  breakfast.  Into 
the  Cathedral,  etc.  Left  Dijon  after  2.,  a  long  tedious 
journey  to  Paris,  dining  at  Tonnerre,  where  we  arrived  after 
II.  Hotel  Belard.  Hat  box  left  in  cab,  but  happily  restored 
next  morning. 

gth.  We  took  a  long  walk  through  the  town  ;  Rue  de 
Provence,  Fournier,  etc.  and  made  a  few  purchases.  Met 
M.  Danvilliers  at  Flaudin's. 

loth.  Wedding-day.  Went  early  to  see  M.  Pourbaix, 
who  had  called  the  day  preceding,  and  who  had  promised  to 
show  us  a  new  shop.  He  was  staying  at  his  uncle's,  also  a 
dentist,  M.  Leon,  a  nice  old  man,  who  looked  only  half  his 
70  years,  and  who  gave  us  some  interesting  particulars  of  the 
siege.  They  both  walked  with  us  to  the  promised  shop, 
which  turned  out  to  be  no  other  than  our  old  friend  Oppen- 
heim's,  Rue  Aboukir,  now  changed  to  No.  60.  We  got 
there  a  lovely  little  Chelsea  bibelot,  in  the  form  of  a  bodkin 
case,  surmounted  with  a  female  head,  and  very  richly  gilt. 
After  we  left  them  we  went  to  the  Quai  Voltaire,  where  we 
spent  a  long  afternoon  and  made  many  purchases,  but  had 
not  money  with  us  to  bring  them  away.  It  turned  to  heavy 
rain  and  was  not  pleasant  weather,  but  we  enjoyed  our  chasse 
very  much  nevertheless.  Vinot,  with  whom  we  found  a 
beautiful  Chelsea  bibelot  and  a  remarkable  Battersea  box, 
lent  us  an  umbrella,  and  so  we  went  on  till  dinner-time. 

nth.  Got  money  at  Arthur's  [then  a  well-known  banker 
in  Paris],  and  went  and  reclaimed  yesterday's  purchases,  to 
which  we  added  a  few  more  things.  Paris  never  seemed  to 

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LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 
have  so  much  for  us  ;  a  good  e"tui  at  Worms',  etc.,  a  few 
prints  in  various  places,  but  nothing  very  remarkable.  Dined 
to-night  with  the  Danvilliers,  and  had  a  most  delightful  evening 
with  them  looking  over  their  treasures.  An  old  Spanish 
woman  came  in  who  had  brought  over  some  things  for  sale. 

I2th.  Went  to  consult  Pourbaix  about  a  piece  of  Tournai, 
which  we  had  picked  up,  but  which  he  condemned  as  modern. 
Looked  in  at  the  Hotel  Drouot ;  nothing  for  us ;  saw  there 
old  Hockster,  the  courier-dealer,  and  had  a  long  talk  with 
him.  Afterwards  spent  an  hour  and  a  half  at  the  Louvre, 
till  it  closed  at  4.  :  all  the  time  in  the  Salle  d'Apollon,  amid 
the  gems  and  enamels — a  rich  treat.  Marquis  d'Azeglio 
there. 

Monday.  I3th.  After  writing  letters,  got  out  early,  and 
by  II.  were  with  old  Hockster  to  see  a  cup  and  saucer  which 
he  had  bought  for  Worcester,  but  which  we  found  to  be  very 
indifferent  and  modern  French.  We  went  on  to  a  number 
of  shops  in  the  Quartier  of  the  Rue  Lafayette,  etc.  Called 
to  see  Palmeroli,  but  only  found  his  wife  at  home ;  he  at  the 
Atelier.  Got  something  at  Topena's,  and  went  on  to  their 
neighbour  Durand's,  where  we  are  to  call  to  see  more  to- 
morrow. It  came  on  to  rain  so  hard  that  about  J  past  2.  we 
took  a  carriage  and  drove  for  the  next  4  hours,  Boulevard 
Beaumarchais,  etc.  Went  to  see  Mdme.  de  Boiss,  whom  we 
found  established  in  an  old  house  which  had  belonged  to 
Cardinal  Richelieu,  in  the  Rue  Bretonvilliers,  Isle  S.  Louis, 
very  handsomely  decorated.  Her  prices  are  magnificent  to 
correspond ;  and  we  need  never  trouble  her  with  another 
visit.  Thence  to  Mme.  Floriot's,  Rue  Tronchet,  who  is 
quite  as  exorbitant.  She  asked  us  £14.  for  a  pair  of  small 
Chelsea  figures,  one  of  which  is  duplicate  with  the  little  boy 
we  bought  in  Paris  on  the  I5th  of  April  last  year  for  I5/- ; 
and  nearly  £2.  for  one  of  the  Mennecy  custard  cups  which 

272 


i874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

we  are  in  the  habit  of  getting  for  5/-.  After  this  we 
called  at  Nelson's,  where  everything  is  dearer  than  last 
year ;  and  then  to  Tabouret's,  in  the  same  street,  Rue 
Pasquier,  where  we  got  three  charming  enamel  boxes  very 
reasonably.  This  completed  our  long  day's  work  and  we 
were  back  by  7. 

I4th.  After  breakfast,  went  to  the  Hotel  Bristol,  where 
Ivor  and  Cornelia  had  arrived  in  the  night,  to  be  present  at 
Randolph  Churchill's  wedding :  arranged  with  Ivor  for  our 
meeting  later  in  the  afternoon,  and  then  returned  to  our 
rooms  to  prepare  for  receiving  Mons.  and  Mme.  Danvilliers, 
who  came  punctually  at  I.  He  gave  high  praise  to  our 
purchases,  especially  our  faience  bowl,  and  our  fine  Battersea 
enamels.  We  brought  to  show  him  Ivor's  Limoges  enamels 
of  the  Passion,  which  he  proclaimed  to  be  perfectly  genuine, 
of  the  time  of  Francois  Premier,  and  worth  about  £240. 
They  were  with  us  about  ^  an  hour,  and  then  we  waited  till 
Ivor  came  about  3.  He  was,  I  think,  equally  pleased  with 
all  we  had  bought,  especially  with  the  7  Bristol  figures,  which 
were  duly  set  out  for  his  special  benefit.  They  are  wonder- 
ful !  While  we  were  looking  over  our  little  treasure  Mr. 
Marsh  came  in,  and  when  he  was  gone  Ivor  walked  out 
with  us.  Took  him  to  Oppenheim's,  and  to  Bellmot, 
Boulevard  des  Capucines.  Bourdelay's  was  shut.  All 
home  by  7.  Palmeroli  came  to  see  us  in  the  evening,  after 
which  we  went  to  a  dull  party  at  a  friend  of  Mr.  Marsh's,  Mr. 
Montgomery.  Miss  McGrouder  sang. 

I5th.  We  had  a  long  ramble  to-day  among  the  Paris 
shops ;  Taburet,  Nelson,  all  the  Boulevard  Haussmann,  and 
Mme.  Beavan.  We  bought  a  good  deal,  first  and  last, 
especially  from  Mme.  Beavan,  with  whom  we  laid  out  £34. 
We  went  back  with  our  hands  full  to  our  Hotel,  and  having 
taken  a  bit  of  bread  (during  which  interval  Cornelia  came  in 
i  273  s 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 
to  see  us)  we  set  out  again  among  the  shops  in  the  Rue  St. 
Lazare,  Fournier's,  etc.,  and  found  a  good  deal  more. 

i6th.  We  gave  up  this  day  to  Ivor,  and  I  drove  with 
him  from  II.  to  2.  Afterwards  we  dined  with  Ivor  and 
Cornelia,  Clemmy  [the  late  Marchioness  of  Camden,  mother 
of  present  Marquis]  and  Lord  George  Pratt  at  the  Palais 
Royale,  a  grand  bad  dinner,  and  very  expensive. 

I7th.  Our  last  day's  shopping,  and  packing  up.  Ivor 
dined  with  us  at  the  Hotel,  and  we  were  very  happy. 

i8th.  The  next  morning  we  were  off  early  ;  we  were 
anxious  to  be  back  by  this  date,  as  Edkins's  sale  of  his 
Bristol  china  came  on  on  the  2ist  and  following  day,  and 
we  should  have  been  sorry  to  miss  it. 


274 


LOUIS    XVI    CABINET    IN    KBONY    WITH    SEVRES    DECORATIONS,    SURMOUNTED    BY 
AN    ELABORATE    LOUIS    XV    SEVRES    AND    ENAMEL   TIME- PIECE   WITH   SEVRES 

PLACjUES    AND    GOUTHIERE    MOUNTS 
The  Countess  of  Bcssborouyti  s  Collection 


NOTES  CERAMIC 

AUGUST  TO  OCTOBER  1874 

BOULOGNE  :   AMIENS  :   ROUEN  :    DIEPPE  :    CLERES  :   JUMIEGES  : 

CAUDEBEC  :  LILLEBONNE  :  TANCARVILLE  :  ETRETAT  :  FECAMP  : 

LISIEUX  :  CAEN  :  HONFLEUR  :  TROUVILLE  :  BERNAY  :  BAYEUX  : 

COUTANCES 

August  1874. 

nth.  Left  London  by  the  Charing  Cross  Station  at  7. 
for  Folkestone,  where  we  embarked  at  9.10.  for  Boulogne.  A 
very  bright  sky  and  a  very  high  wind — unparalleled  for  the 
time  of  year — which  gave  us  an  exceedingly  rough  passage  of 
upwards  of  two  hours.  I  laid  down  below,  but  did  not  quite 
escape  malaise,  and  was  truly  grateful  when  we  were  safely 
landed.  We  were  nearly  two  hours  in  Boulogne,  and  had 
ample  time,  and  to  spare,  to  visit  Delaunay,  Veniet,  and 
Coste,  in  the  Rue  de  1'Eau,  but  they  had  nothing  to  suit 
the  least  fastidious.  At  |-  past  I.  we  went  on  to  Amiens, 
where  again  we  had  a  considerable  time  to  stop,  and  where 
we  walked  into  the  town  and  called  on  Potentier,  and  the 
shop  in  the  Passage  de  la  Com£die,  but  found  nothing.  We 
went  on  about  \  past  5.  and  reached  Rouen  about  9.  The 
Hotel  Albion  was  full,  which  I  was  not  sorry  for,  so  we 
went  to  the  Hotel  dAngleterre,  where  we  are  very  comfort- 
able though  we  have  four  flights  to  mount  to  our  rooms. 

I2th.  We  visited  with  much  pleasure,  and  some  profit, 
the  old  house  removed  to  the  vicinity  of  the  Tower  of  S. 
Andre,  and  the  Hotel  de  Bourgtheroude  (with  its  interesting 
Bas-reliefs  of  the  "  Champ  du  Drap  d'Or"),  the  Tour  de  la 

275 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 
Grosse  Horloge,  the  Palais  de  Justice,  which  we  went  over, 
and  the  Cathedral,  where  we  lingered  long.  As  we  returned 
to  the  Hotel  we  looked  at  the  exterior  of  St.  Ouen,  not 
having  time  to  stop,  and  spoke  to  M.  le  Francois  (Rue  de 
Robec),  whose  curiosity  shop,  like  that  of  Billian,  whom  C.S. 
called  on  this  morning,  seems  to  be  as  ill  provided  as  possible, 
having  nothing  but  French  faience  of  doubtful  antiquity. 

I3th.  Down  at  about  10.  o'clock.  Went  out.  Wind 
still  high,  but  the  weather  pleasant.  Delighted  at  finding  out 
the  old  Palais  of  the  Dukes  of  Normandy,  the  Haute  Vieille 
Tour.  On  each  side  of  the  entrance  are  long  Halls  or 
chambers,  supported  on  massive  round  columns,  now  used  for 
merchandise.  The  Palace  seems  to  have  been  built  round  a 
quadrangle  with  these  vast  chambers  on  the  four  sides.  It  is 
said  that  the  name  of  Rollo  is  still  to  be  seen  inscribed  in  one 
of  them.  Tradition  assigns  this  building  as  the  spot  in  which 
King  John  murdered  his  nephew  Arthur.  When  we  had 
roamed  about  this  building  for  some  time,  we  went  to  St. 
Ouen,  entered  it  and  admired  its  unmixed  architecture,  and 
still  more  admired  the  Norman  Tower  attached  to  its  North 
transept,  which  is  seen  from  the  gardens  of  the  Hotel  de 
Ville.  Then  we  went  to  the  Museum  of  Antiquities,  which  is 
very  fine,  but  where  we  were  made  unhappy  by  seeing  some 
pieces  of  faience  in  the  Italian  style,  attributed  to  Denys 
Dorio  in  Pottier's  book,  and  reminded  us  so  much  of  a  certain 
bottle,  which  C.S.  bought  at  Rotterdam  and  we  have  since 
discarded,  that  we  became  certain  we  had  made  a  great 
mistake  and  sacrificed  something  very  valuable.  These 
things  will  happen  to  the  best  regulated  collectors,  but,  Alas ! 
[The  full  and  happy  story  of  this  bottle  is  told  at  the  end  of 
the  2nd  volume.]  Billian's  shop,  where  we  also  called,  is 
another  source  of  regret  to  us,  as  we  overlooked  there,  five 
years  ago,  a  Vincennes  cup  all  but  unique,  of  which  we  did  not 

275 


i874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

then  know  the  value ;  again,  Alas !  We  returned  to  our 
Hotel  about  3.  Found  that  young  Richard  Glyn  had  come 
there.  He  is  to  be  with  us  for  a  short  time  as  he  is  taking 
his  holiday.  He  arrived  at  Havre  this  morning,  and  came  to 
join  us  here.  After  he  had  lunched,  he  went  out  with  us. 
We  went  to  S.  Maclou.  Beautiful  stair  to  Organ  loft.  Then 
to  the  Cathedral,  where  we  spent  nearly  the  rest  of  the  after- 
noon. Remarkable  stairs  to  Library.  Tombs  of  the  husband  of 
Anne  de  Poitiers,  Louis  II.  de  Bre'ze',  and  of  the  two  Cardinals 
Amboise,  which  one  can  never  be  tired  of  looking  at.  Effigies 
of  Richard  Cceur  de  Lion  and  his  brother  Henry,  etc. 

I4th.  Left  Rouen  for  the  day  by  a  train  that  should  have 
started  before  noon,  but  did  not  get  off  till  J  an  hour  later, 
and  did  not  reach  Dieppe  till  \  past  I.  We  walked  along 
the  Grande  Rue,  and  went  into  one  or  two  very  uninteresting 
curiosity  shops,  where  it  would  not  seem  as  if  they  could  ever 
have  anything.  At  J  past  2  we  got  a  carriage  and  drove  to  see 
Lord  Salisbury  at  Puy.  He  has  built  a  grand  Chateau  there, 
beautifully  situated  for  the  sea-bathing  and  very  picturesque. 
Fortunately  we  found  Lady  Salisbury  at  home  and  I  saw  my 
little  grandson,  Augustus  Alderson,  who  is  staying  with  them. 
Lady  Salisbury  gave  us  luncheon,  and,  what  was  more 
acceptable,  a  great  deal  of  advice  as  to  our  future  movements. 
On  leaving  her  we  drove  to  Arques,  where  we  were  delighted 
with  the  remains  of  the  old  Castle,  and  all  its  associations ; 
Henri  Quatre  and  his  struggle  for  the  Crown.  We  lingered 
there  so  late  that  we  had  only  just  time,  in  driving  back  to 
Dieppe,  to  catch  the  7.30.  train  for  Rouen.  Reached  our 

Festination  after  9.,  took  some  coffee  at  the  buffet,  and  then  re- 
irned  to  our  Hotel,  as  we  had  left  it  in  the  morning,  on  foot. 
Saturday,  I5th.     Arranged  to  go  to  Cleres,  according  to 
le  recommendation  of  Lady  Salisbury,  and  so  we  made  for 
midday  train.     On  our  way  we  went  to  St.  Ouen.     The 
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LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 

Service  was  going  on  for  the  Assumption  ;  the  church  quite 
full,  and  the  music  magnificent.  We  had  not  much  time  to 
stay,  but  went  on  to  the  station,  where  the  crowd  was  won- 
derful, but  we  got  off  in  due  time.  Went  through  all  that 
pretty  scenery  again  to  get  to  Cleres,  on  reaching  which  we 
got  to  the  Chdteau ;  the  concierge  at  the  Lodge  gave  us  no 
hope  of  gaining  admission,  but  we  met  a  domestic  who  took 
in  our  cards,  and  a  civil  message  to  the  lady  of  the  house,  and 
so  we  were  permitted  to  see  everything.  We  spent  a  very 
pleasant  hour  at  Cleres.  It  belongs  to  the  family  of  B£arn, 
descendants  (?)  of  Henri  IV.,  and  possesses  several  souvenirs 
of  him.  Monograms  in  the  walls,  etc.  The  old  part  was 
very  good  and  interesting.  A  modern  salle,  built  by  the  last 
Count,  was  so  badly  constructed  that  it  is  already,  at  the  end 
of  some  half-dozen  years,  pronounced  unsafe,  and  is  to  be 
taken  down.  Some  tiles,  resembling  tiles  on  the  floor  of 
the  Chateau  d'Arques,  caught  my  attention.  I  should  be  glad 
to  interpret  them.  C.S.  went  round  the  old  ruin  of  the 
fortress,  which  stands  picturesquely  hard  by,  and  walking  a 
little  way  in  the  Park,  we  went  back  to  the  village,  looked 
into  the  rude  church,  and  then  returned  to  the  railway,  by 
which  we  got  back  betimes  to  Rouen.  (I  should  have  men- 
tioned that  in  the  dining-room  at  Cleres  there  is  a  buffet  with 
odds  and  ends  of  china,  and  among  them  a  fine  Palissy  dish, 
ornamented  with  Fleurs-de-lis.)  On  our  way  back  to  our 
Hotel  we  made  a  detour  to  the  Church  of  S.  Gervais ;  we 
found  it  overflowing,  as  there  had  been  a  ceremony,  and 
evidently  a  very  splendid  one  for  the  feast  of  the  Assumption. 
We  came  in  just  for  the  closing  scene,  which  was  very  bril- 
liant, with  priests,  and  vestments,  and  music,  and  hundreds 
of  candles,  which,  in  a  few  minutes,  we  had  the  satisfaction 
of  seeing  fanned  out,  and  then  we  preferred  our  request  to 
be  shown  the  famous  crypt,  in  which  the  early  Christians 


i874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

worshipped,    a  great  contrast  to  the  magnificence  we  had 

just  witnessed  above. 

i6th.  Early  breakfast,  after  which  we  drove  across  the 
water,  through  St.  Sever  to  Sotteville,  where  in  a  rude 
building  attached  to  the  railway  works  we  attended  Divine 
Sen-ice.  There  was  a  congregation  of  about  a  dozen  people. 
An  Irish  clergyman  officiated  ;  I  think  his  name  was  Briscoe. 
A  Fair  was  going  on  in  the  streets  of  Sotteville,  reminding 
me  of  the  "  Feasts  "  held  in  most  parts  of  Lincolnshire  on 
the  Sundays  following  the  day  of  the  Patron  Saint  of  the 
Church.  Ours  at  Uffington  used  to  be  after  the  feast  of  S. 
Michael.  We  luckily  found  an  omnibus  which  took  us  back 
to  Rouen,  for  it  was  very  hot  walking. 

ijth.  Up  very  early.  Walked  across  the  bridge,  and 
took  the  railway,  Rive  Gauche,  at  9.10.  By  this  we 
reached  in  due  time  the  Station  S.  Pierre,  where  an  omnibus 
waited  to  take  us  on  to  the  Petit  Andelys.  I  went  inside, 
and  found  it  hot  and  crowded,  and  generally  disagreeable. 
C.S.  and  Richard  outside.  The  bridge  crossing  the  Seine 
was  in  course  of  reconstruction  (not  having  been  fully 
restored  since  it  was  broken  down  on  the  approach  of  the 
Prussians)  and  we  had  to  proceed  at  a  foot's  pace.  The 
country  beautiful,  steep  rocks  on  our  left  and  fertile  valleys  on 
our  right.  We  looked  into  the  Church  of  Petit  Andelys, 
interesting  as  all  these  Norman  Churches  are,  and  then  we 
clambered  up  the  Chateau  Gaillard,  of  many  memories. 
Looked  into  a  shop  of  wooden  sabots,  where  a  woman  showed 
us  a  curious  old  key.  Tried  two  jewellers'  shops  and  an  old 
broker's  in  a  vain  search  for  something  old  and  curios.  The 
most  remarkable  thing  we  met  with  was  the  Hotel  (Grand 
Cerf)  to  which  we  went  to  dinner.  Here  the  innkeeper  had 
devoted  his  life  to  collecting  objects  of  antiquity,  good  and 
bad  ;  and  the  house  was  a  complete  Museum.  I  envied  some 

279 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 
Renaissance  tiles,  let  into  the  floor,  but  there  was  little  in  our 
line  of  research.  A  quantity  of  Rouen  Pottery  on  the  walls, 
and  furniture,  but  most  of  them  very  poor.  The  Innkeeper 
is  dead,  his  widow  talks  of  selling  everything,  even  the 
house,  which  is  a  charming  specimen  of  the  domestic  archi- 
tecture of  the  Renaissance  period.  The  large  fireplace 
very  fine.  We  went  into  the  Church  while  our  dinner  was 
preparing,  and  were  much  pleased  with  it.  There  is  the  best 
group  of  the  Entombment  that  I  ever  saw.  A  curious  rude 
representation  of  the  Chateau  Gaillard  in  a  single  block  of 
stone,  and  a  fine  receptacle  for  Holy  Water,  like  a  highly 
enriched  turret.  We  returned  to  an  indifferent  dinner,  and 
then  went  on  by  omnibus  to  Gaillon.  This  time  I  went  with 
C.S.  on  the  banquette,  and  enjoyed  the  fine  views.  The 
bridge  being  broken  down,  our  omnibus  was  driven  straight 
into  the  boat  at  the  Ferry,  and  so,  with  no  sort  of  rail  or 
protection,  to  prevent  our  horses  stepping  in  the  Seine,  we 
got  across  to  the  station  of  Gaillon. 

i8th.  We  set  off  for  a  little  excursion  in  the  Haute 
Normandie,  which  took  three  days.  We  took  with  us  as 
little  luggage  as  possible,  leaving  our  heavy  luggage  and 
the  maid  at  Rouen.  We  made  rather  a  grand  start  in  an 
open  landau  with  a  pair  of  horses,  and  before  leaving  the 
town  armed  ourselves  with  Hachette's  Normandy ',  which  we 
found  very  useful.  We  left  the  Hotel  at  10.  o'clock.  The 
weather  perfect,  neither  too  hot  nor  too  cold.  The  view  as  we 
ascended  the  hill  overlooking  Rouen  most  magnificent.  Our 
first  point  was  S.  Georges  de  Boscherville,  in  wonderful 
preservation,  where  we  were  much  interested  by  the  adjoining 
Chapter-house,  in  which  they  were  putting  windows  when  we 
arrived,  by  the  order  of  Abbe"  Cocher,  Director  of  the  Museum, 
of  whom  we  have  heard  so  much.  A  large  house,  near  the 
Church,  was  inhabited,  they  said,  by  three  families,  a  rentier, 

280 


i874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

a  douanier,  and  another.  The  wife  of  the  latter  was  to  be 
buried  to-day ;  we  had  seen  the  black  vestments  preparing. 
They  said  he  had  broken  her  heart  by  spending  all  their 
money  at  billiards  and  dominoes.  Passing  through  the 
village  of  Duclaire  we  came  to  the  beautiful  ruin  of  Jumieges. 
Here  our  horses  rested  while  we  went  into  the  Abbey  ;  it 
must  have  been  fine  indeed!  The  remains  are  well  cared 
for  by  the  proprietor,  who  has  turned  part  of  the  gatehouse 
into  a  pretty  dwelling  for  himself ;  there  is  the  slab  which  once 
covered  the  heart  of  Agnes  Sorel,  also  the  monument  of  "  Les 
Enerve"s  ",  sons  of  Clovis  II.  and  Bathilde.  From  Jumieges 
we  drove  on  to  Caudebec  ;  dined  at  the  Hotel  de  la  Marine, 
which  is  near  the  water ;  while  our  dinner,  which  was  not  a 
very  charming  one,  was  preparing,  we  went  to  the  Church, 
which  has  some  fine  points,  but  could  not  excite  our  admira- 
tion much,  after  the  grand  old  Norman  and  ;  Early  Gothic 
we  had  been  revelling  in  during  the  morning.  The  Tower 
is  the  grandest  feature  with  its  border  of  fleurs-de-lis,  and  is 
very  remarkable  considering  the  later  date  at  which  the  whole 
Church  was  built — but  we  were  most  delighted  with  the 
Renaissance  glass.  Some  of  the  windows  are  most  admirable, 
one  of  them,  The  Woman  taken  in  Adultery,  is  dated  1532. 
Three  others,  the  Israelites  crossing  the  Red  Sea,  the 
Shower  of  Manna,  and  the  Golden  Calf — 1534.  It  must 
not  be  forgotten  that  the  sea  is  represented  as  perfectly 
scarlet,  and  the  horses  are  floundering  about  in  it  beautifully. 
We  had  been  recommended  to  sleep  at  Caudebec,  but  the 
Hotel  was  not  inviting,  so  we  managed  to  get  a  nice  little 
open  phaeton  in  which  we  got  on  to  Lillebonne,  and  a  delicious 
drive  we  had.  It  was  getting  late  when  we  reached  Lille- 
bonne,  so  we  set  off  to  explore  immediately.  Went  up  to  the 
old  Castle,  in  the  enceinte  of  which  the  present  proprietor,  a 
merchant,  has  built  himself  a  very  pretty  modern  chateau. 

281 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 
He  allows  strangers  to  see  everything  and  all  seems  well 
kept  and  preserved.  We  had  gone  into  the  Church  on 
our  first  arrival ;  it  has  nothing  remarkable  but  its  fine 
spire.  The  Roman  Theatre  is  well  seen  from  the  road ; 
we  could  not  go  into  it,  but  we  were  very  happy  at 
Lillebonne,  so  much  so,  that  we  determined  to  pass  the 
night  there,  instead  of  going  on  to  Bolbec,  though  the 
Inn  did  not  look  very  grand.  So  we  sat  awhile  on  the 
bench  outside,  enjoying  the  evening  air  and  watching  the 
village  children  at  play.  Then  we  went  in  and  took  our 
coffee,  and  went  early  to  bed.  The  rooms  though  small 
were  very  comfortable,  the  only  drawback  was  that  they  were 
close  to  the  Church,  where  bells  were  rung  at  inconvenient 
hours,  but  we  were  glad  when  they  roused  the  household  at 
6,  as  we  had  to  be  off  at  8  for  a  visit  to  Tancarville. 

igth.  A  charming  market  cart,  with  a  good  sturdy  horse, 
and  a  cheerful  loquacious  driver,  had  been  provided  for  our 
trip.  We  went  by  a  new  road  under  the  wooded  hill,  a  very 
pretty  drive.  At  the  little  Inn  (Duttaire)  we  got  the  keys  of 
the  Castle,  a  little  girl  was  our  conductress,  but  she  only 
opened  the  gate  for  us  and  left  us  to  roam  about  by  ourselves, 
as  she  knew  nothing  about  the  antiquities.  We  rambled 
about  for  some  time,  walked  on  the  Terrace,  scrambled  into 
the  Towers,  where  are  still  the  remains  of  fireplaces  in  some, 
in  others  of  prisons,  and  made  out  what  we  could  of  the  plan 
of  the  building ;  but  we  were  disappointed  at  not  being 
allowed  to  go  into  the  Tower,  to  which  access  was  only  to  be 
had  through  the  more  recent  Chateau,  which  is  itself  falling 
rapidly  into  decay.  This  last  was  said  to  be  full  of  dogs— 
and  we  could  see  some  of  them  through  the  crevices  of  the 
boarded-up  windows.  They  howled  fiercely  as  we  passed. 
After  spending  an  hour  at  the  ruins  we  returned  to  the  little 
Inn,  were  amused  with  a  game,  new  to  us,  called  Toupie,  a 

282 


i874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

sort  of  indoor  Ninepins,  while  our  horse,  now  rested,  was 
being  got  ready.  Then  we  toiled  up  a  steep  hill,  richly  wooded, 
and  had  nearly  reached  the  summit,  when  we  discovered  that 
Richard  had  left  his  umbrella  behind.  So  we  had  to  get 
back  and  found  that  he  had  put  it  down  while  trying  the 
"  Toupie  ",  and  so  it  had  been  forgotten.  This  was  not  our 
only  contretemps,  and  it  was  lucky  we  had  started  in  good 
time  in  the  morning.  In  coming  down  the  hill  again, 
approaching  Bolbec,  our  harness  gave  way,  which  caused 
another  delay.  We  rested  a  few  minutes  at  Bolbec,  the  view 
of  which  is  lovely,  and  again,  as  we  left  it,  another  harness 
accident  happened.  However,  we  eventually  reached  the 
station  of  Beuzeville  in  safety,  and  in  good  time  for  our  train. 
The  drive  had  been  a  most  delicious  one,  the  weather  perfect. 
From  Beuzeville  we  went  on  by  a  train  at  about  j-  past  12, 
to  a  station  some  way  on  called  Les  Ifs,  and  then  we  joined 
an  omnibus  by  which  we  went  on  to  Etretat.  I  climbed  once 
more  on  the  banquette,  and  had  a  most  pleasant  drive.  It 
is  much  the  best  way  of  seeing  the  country,  though  not  so 
grand  as  the  landau  in  which  we  had  started.  Etretat  is 
such  a  pretty  little  watering-place,  with  such  bright  little 
villas  and  sweet-smelling  gardens !  The  rocks  at  each 
entrance  to  the  bay  are  grand,  but  I  could  not  delight  in  the 
beach,  which  is  all  over  rough  shingle  without  any  sand. 
We  walked  about  a  little  and  examined  the  sole  curiosity 
shop,  and  then  dined  in  a  sort  of  auxiliary  building  at  the 
back  of  the  Inn,  open  to  the  court-yard;  beautiful  fruit; 
indeed  I  never  saw  anything  like  the  fruit  everywhere.  After 
dinner  we  went  on  to  the  beach,  and  amused  ourselves  in 
watching  the  bathers,  male  and  female.  Then  we  went,  for 
an  hour,  to  the  Casino,  where  C.S.  was  lucky  in  meeting 
with  the  Times,  and  where  I  sat  and  worked  while  he  read 
it.  It  was  about  6  o'clock  when  we  left  Etretat  again  for 

283 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 
Fecamp.  This  time  we  got  a  sort  of  coup6  of  the  omnibus, 
just  behind  the  driver,  which  was  very  snug,  and  held  us 
three  very  comfortably.  The  road  was  not  very  interesting, 
and  before  we  got  to  Fecamp  (about  9)  it  was  nearly  dark, 
and  we  had  all  been  asleep.  The  name  of  the  Inn  that  had 
been  indicated  to  us  was  the  Chariot  d'Or,  and  we  laughed 
at  the  idea  of  our  making  so  grand  a  termination  to  the  day 
we  had  commenced  in  a  market  cart,  but  such  promotion  was 
not  accorded  us.  The  Chariot  d'Or  was  nearly  full,  and  the 
hostess  wanted  us  to  be  content  with  rooms  that  were  simply 
impossible.  At  last  she  was  very  rude  and  would  not  let  her 
faquin  carry  our  luggage  for  us  to  the  other  Inn,  so  off  we 
trudged  laden,  though  not  very  heavily,  with  our  own  pack- 
ages, and  betook  ourselves  to  the  Hotel  de  France,  where 
we  met  with  a  very  different  reception.  The  landlady  is  a 
charming,  jovial  old  lady ;  she  made  no  difficulties.  Her 
house  was  nearly  full,  but  she  had  one  double-bedded  room, 
and  that  would  do  for  us  all  three.  We  demurred,  and  then 
she  was  so  funny,  that  we  all  went  into  fits  of  laughter.  Then 
she  said  her  son  would  give  up  his  room,  but  meanwhile  a 
traveller  had  departed,  and  so,  by  degrees,  everything  was 
happily  arranged  to  the  satisfaction  of  all  parties.  We  took 
our  coffee,  and  went  to  bed. 

20th.  Not  up  very  early.  Our  first  move  was  to  a 
curiosity,  or  rather  an  old  furniture,  shop,  hard  by,  where  we 
found  some  very  grand  and  some  very  cheap  wardrobes,  and 
after  a  great  deal  of  talk  invested  in  three  of  them  on  our 
own  account,  at  £13.,  and  got  two  larger  ones  reserved  for  a 
few  days  (at  £22.)  to  enable  us  to  communicate  with  Ivor 
about  them.  All  this  took  time  ;  we  then  went  to  the  Church  ; 
we  were  charmed  with  the  Renaissance  stone  screens  to  the 
Chapels,  which  are  of  most  delicate  execution.  Note  also  a 
most  interesting  bas-relief  in  one  of  the  Chapels  representing 

284 


i874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

the  Nativity,  etc.,  nth  century  work.  We  went  from  the 
Church  to  the  Museum  of  M.  Lefrand,  who  is  a  manufacturer 
of  a  Liqueur  called  here  "  Benedictine".  He  has  collected 
some  curious  things  from  the  old  Abbey  and  the  neighbour- 
hood— things  which  would  have  been  lost  but  for  his  inter- 
vention. We  were  told  of  another  amateur  in  the  town, 
M.  Martin,  who  lived  Sous  le  Bois,  and  we  went  to  his  house, 
which  was  a  very  considerable  Chateau.  Unfortunately, 
however,  both  M.  Martin  and  his  wife  were  out.  His  collec- 
tion, I  believe,  is  of  Faience.  After  a  conference  with  the 
Banker,  M.  le  Gros,  about  the  payment  for  our  Armoires,  for 
which  we  placed  the  money  in  his  hands,  we  went  back  to 
dinner.  It  was  very  good,  and  the  old  landlady,  at  the  con- 
clusion of  it,  brought  us  peaches  which  she  said  would  "faire 
plaisir  ",  and  so  we  took  our  leave  of  her  with  much  merri- 
ment and  shaking  of  hands,  and  her  son  took  us  down  to  the 
railway  station,  by  which  we  returned  to  Rouen,  and  arrived 
there  in  good  time,  say  10.  o'clock,  rive  droite.  C.S.  and 
I  walked  down  from  the  station.  The  trip  to  Haute 
Normandie  was  over !  It  had  been  very  delightful. 

2ist.  Left  Rouen  by  the  9.10.  train  for  Louviers. 
Between  trains,  leaving  Dell  and  the  luggage  at  the  station, 
we  had  time  to  go  into  the  town  and  look  at  the  Church. 
Very  richly  ornamented  South  door,  flamboyant,  with  curious 
terminations  (ship  shape)  to  some  of  the  arches  of  the  Porch  : 
and  charming  Gargoyles^ — some  double — the  monsters  riding 
on  each  other's  shoulders.  In  the  North  Aisle — interior — an 
unusual  interlacing  of  arches  where  they  spring  from  their 
course.  We  went  on  from  Louviers  to  Evreux,  where  we 
remained  some  hours.  On  our  way  through  the  town  we 
stopped  at  an  old  furniture  shop,  and  were  there  addressed 
by  an  old  gentleman  who  told  us  he  had  been  many  years  a 
collector,  and  so  he  took  us  to  his  house  and  showed  us  his 

285 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 

pictures,  of  which  I  do  not  profess  to  be  any  judge.  One 
was  called  a  replica  by  Leonardo  da  Vinci  of  his  Monna  Lisa, 
another  the  Duchesse  de  Nevers  by  Caspar  Netzcher,  dated 
1672.  He  told  us  he  was  on  the  look-out  for  a  visit  which 
Davis  the  dealer  had  advertised  that  he  was  about  to  make 
to  Evreux,  as  he  wanted  to  sell  all  his  things.  The  old 
gentleman's  name  was  Le  Doulx  de  Basquepins.  He  was  a 
loquacious  old  gentleman,  and  told  us  all  the  story  of  his 
romantic  and  early  marriage.  It  so  nearly  resembled  that  of 
Emilie  in  the  Knight's  Tale  that  one  might  have  been 
tempted  to  think  that  M.  Basquepins  had  read  Chaucer  and 
dreamed.  He  took  us  to  the  curiosity  shop  of  the  place, 
Mme.  Laurent,  Rue  de  la  Petite  Cite*.  She  had  a  great 
many  things,  chiefly  faience,  and  might  have  had  anything. 
We  were  rather  tempted  by  a  piece  of  rock-work  which 
seemed  to  be  a  Chantilly  copy  of  Worcester,  but  100  francs 
appeared  too  much  for  it,  and  we  did  not  buy  anything. 
Next  we  went  to  the  Cathedral,  where  we  found  a  party  of 
40  English  Architects,  who  had  come  out  under  the  direction 
of  Mr.  Sharp,  drawing  and  measuring  in  all  directions.  We 
were  very  much  pleased  with  the  Cathedral ;  but  I  was  sur- 
prised, when  there  seemed  to  be  so  many  other  finer  things, 
to  see  so  many  of  the  Architects  intent  on  an  Arcade  in  the 
North  Aisle,  which  /  should  have  called  "  Decorated  ",  but 
one  of  them  said  was  "Transition".  I  did  not  think  it  very 
elegant,  but  that  date  is  not  common  in  Norman  Churches, 
so  perhaps  that  was  the  attraction.  In  the  Cathedral  a 
venerable  priest  spoke  to  me.  I  recognised  having  seen  him 
in  the  Church  at  Louviers.  He  offered  to  show  some  curious 
things  he  possessed  to  this  party  of  Antiquaries,  and  asked 
me  to  interpret,  for  they  did  not  seem  to  have  many  French 
scholars  among  them.  The  Architects  were  just  leaving  by 
train,  and  had  not  time,  but  we  gladly  availed  ourselves  of 

286 


1874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

his  invitation  and  were  well  repaid.  He  took  us  to  his 
apartments,  fitted  up  in  the  most  charming  taste,  old  furni- 
ture, faience,  numerous  relics  of  olden  time,  all  admirably 
disposed.  Himself,  Abbe  Touen,  a  delightful  old  man  of 
85 — a  true  amateur.  He  had  surrounded  himself  with 
objets  d'art  of  great  interest  and  it  was  a  real  treat  to  have 
been  admitted  to  his  house.  Among  the  valuable  pieces  of 
faience,  I  must  mention  a  large  plaque,  "  a  personnages  "  with 
a  procession,  said  to  have  been  made  at  Rouen  for  presenta- 
tion by  that  town  to  the  Due  de  Montmorency  Luxembourg 
in  1728.  After  this  visit  we  had  only  time  to  look  at  the 
Bishop's  Palace,  and  the  Church  of  S.  Taurin,  where  we  saw 
his  beautiful  chasse — I3th  century  work.  Note,  the  mar- 
queterie  of  blue  and  red  carreaux  on  the  exterior  walls — very 
pretty  and  unusual.  After  all  this,  we  had,  unluckily,  no  time 
to  go  to  the  Muse"e,  but  took  a  hurried  meal  and  went  to 
Lisieux,  where  we  put  up  at  the  Hotel  de  France.  The  open- 
work wooden  spires  of  Evreux  to  be  remembered. 

22nd.  Spent  the  morning  in  walking  about  Lisieux  ; 
through  the  Terrace  of  the  public  gardens  to  the  Cathedral, 
where  we  lingered  long.  Note,  the  window  in  the  South  Aisle 
with  representation  of  Henri  II.'s  marriage  with  Eleanor  of 
Guienne.  Went  on  a  quest  for  a  curiosity  shop,  and  found 
one  in  the  Rue  du  Caen,  in  the  Quartier  S.  Desir.  The 
owner  had  nothing  but  rubbish,  with  the  exception  of  one  tile, 
Frangois  Premier,  exactly  like  those  in  the  Grand  Cerfs, 
Grand  Andelys  ;  but  he  wanted  30  fr.  for  it.  Looked  at  the 
old  house,  Rue  aux  Feves,  and  walked  about  till  late  in  the 
afternoon.  It  was  market  day,  and  the  scene  at  S.  Pierre 
was  of  the  most  picturesque  and  animated  description. 
Dined  early,  then  took  the  train  to  Caen  (only  ourselves, 
leaving  maid  and  luggage  at  Lisieux),  arrived  after  dark  ; 
Hotel  d'Angleterre. 

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LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 
23rd.  To  S.  Pierre,  of  which  the  tower  is,  I  think,  the 
most  beautiful  I  ever  saw.  To  the  Abbaye  aux  Dames,  very 
delighted  with  its  moulding  of  " embattled  frets"  round  the 
arches  of  the  nave.  We  went  into  the  adjacent  Hospital, 
and  they  took  us  into  the  transept  of  the  Church,  which  is 
partitioned  off  from  the  nave,  and  we  looked  through  a 
railing  into  the  Choir,  which  is  still  more  divided  for  the  use 
of  the  Nuns.  After  this,  passing  by  the  disused  Church  of 
S.  Gilles,  we  proceeded  to  the  Abbaye  aux  Hommes,  but  had 
not  time  to  stop  there  long.  Coming  back  to  the  Hotel,  C.S. 
and  Richard  went  to  afternoon  service  at  the  "  Temple  Pro- 
testant ".  It  was  very  hot  and  I  did  not  go  out  again,  but 
read  and  wrote  at  home.  We  required  to  dine  early,  and 
"en  particulier",  as  we  were  going  back  to  Lisieux  after 
dinner,  but  the  people  of  the  Hotel  were  so  uncivil  that  we 
adjourned  to  the  Hdtel  d'Espagne,  whence,  having  had  a 
good  meal,  we  departed  in  due  course. 

24th.  An  early  start  again  from  Lisieux,  but  only  for  the 
day.  We  took  the  9.10.  train,  and  went  to  Honfleur  ;  a  lovely 
hot  morning.  We  were  charmed  with  Honfleur,  its  quaint  old 
streets,  and  the  lovely  views  about  it ;  an  old  Gate-house  near 
the  Hotel.  We  walked  up  the  rugged  steep  of  the  Hill,  on 
which  stands  the  Chapel  of  Notre  Dame  de  Grace.  The 
prospect  delicious.  While  looking  about  we  were  attracted 
to  the  little  Chapel  by  the  sound  of  music,  and  found  a  large 
number  of  girls  attending  Mass,  who,  at  the  conclusion  of  the 
ceremomy,  were  singing  some  beautiful  hymns  in  chorus. 
We  listened  with  great  pleasure  and  when  they  came  out, 
spoke  to  one  of  the  religieuses  in  charge  of  them.  She  told 
me  they  were  "orphelines  "  from  Havre,  brought  up  by  the 
Sisters  of  S.  Vincent  de  Paul ;  that  this  was  one  of  their 
holidays  and  that  they  had  come  over  from  Havre  to  spend 
the  day  in  this  charming  spot.  She  gave  me  the  title  of  their 

288 


i874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

music,  by  Giely.  Altogether  it  was  a  touching  and  impressive 
sight,  and  well  repaid  our  steep  ascent.  We  descended  by 
another  route,  overlooking  Les  Fonts,  all  very  pretty.  There 
are  3  small  curiosity  shops,  2  on  the  hill  and  I  at  the  foot  of 
it.  In  the  last  we  found  a  little  piece  of  English  faience,  and 
a  pretty  English  glass  mug  with  inscription,  "Summer",  but 
the  shops  are  not  much.  Stopped  to  draw  some  stone  orna- 
ments in  a  house,  descending  back  to  the  town,  dated  1637, 
while  C.S.,  taking  the  wooden  Church  on  his  way,  went  to 
fetch  the  carriage  which  we  had  engaged  to  take  us  on  to 
Trouville.  A  most  lovely  drive,  but  Trouville  itself  seemed  to 
be  detestable.  We  tried  the  Hotel  our  driver  stopped  at, 
but  it  was  so  dirty  that  we  adjourned  to  the  Bellevue,  where 
we  got  an  indifferent  dinner.  Walked  about,  looked  at  the 
shops,  which  are  all  importations  from  Paris,  with  things  which 
remained  unsold  from  last  year's  "Season".  Achille  Leclerc, 
Vinot,  Taburet,  and  a  host  of  little  dealers  from  the  Rue 
Chateaudun  ;  made  no  purchases.  The  beach  is  better  than 
Etretat,  as  there  are  sands  instead  of  shingle,  but  it  is  not 
nearly  so  pretty.  I  was  very  glad  when  it  was  time  to  go 
back  to  Lisieux. 

25th.  Left  Lisieux  again  by  the  9.10.  This  time  we 
took  our  tickets  to  Quetteville,  which  is  a  station  beyond 
Pont  1'Eveque.  There  we  found  a  diligence,  en  correspond- 
ance,  going  to  Pont  Audemer,  and  were  fortunate  in  getting 
the  coupe.  It  is  astonishing  what  trouble  we  had  had  to  find 
out  our  direct  route  to  this  Pont  Audemer,  nobody  seemed  to 
know  it,  and  after  all,  it  was  the  simplest  thing  in  the  world, 
only  a  two  hours'  journey  from  Lisieux.  But  this  ignorance 
of  even  the  nearest  places  is  characteristic  of  Normandy. 
We  found  the  people  of  the  Inn  when  the  diligence  stopped 
(the  Lion  d'Or)  just  going  to  take  their  ddjeuner,  so  we  joined 
them  and  made  a  very  good  meal.  Then  we  went  to  look  at 

i  289  T 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 
the  principal  Church,  which  is  very  late  and  much  dilapidated, 
but  handsome  withal,  We  happened  to  go  into  the  shop  of 
an  upholsterer,  who  had  one  or  two  bits  of  old  furniture,  one 
M.  Picot.  He  told  us  of  an  amateur,  an  architect,  whose 
name  sounded  like  Cherusse.  He  said  this  gentleman  had 
a  fine  collection,  and  took  us  to  his  house,  but  the  amateur 
was  out.  We  therefore  only  profited  insomuch  that  we  had  a 
very  pretty  walk  and  saw  more  of  the  town  than  we  should 
otherwise  have  done.  At  a  watchmaker's  saw  a  fine  Renais- 
sance watch,  sent  there  for  repair.  They  told  us  that  all  this 
part  of  the  country  is  closely  hunted  by  dealers  from  Paris, 
and,  more  specially,  Rouen.  Two  little  girls  wreathed  about 
in  tendrils  and  leaves  of  convolvulus,  playing  about  in  the 
streets  are  not  to  be  forgotten.  The  elder  one,  a  pretty 
mischievous-looking  child,  about  five  years  old,  had  evidently 
arranged  the  parure,  and  was  dancing  gracefully  along.  She 
put  me  in  mind  of  what  one  has  read  of  Lady  Hamilton  and 
her  artistic  poses.  Their  fates  will  probably  be  similar, 
though  not  on  equally  magnificent  stages. 

26th.  Paid  a  two  hours'  visit  to  Bernay,  and  had  just  time 
to  look  into  the  old  Abbey,  now  used  as  a  grain  depot,  with 
its  square  piers.  Visit  to  the  Museum,  with  which  we  were 
much  pleased,  and  to  call  on  the  old  antiquaire,  M.  Ape- 
gond.  It  was  the  purchase  of  M.  Apegond's  collection  which 
made  the  Musee  as  rich  as  it  is.  He,  poor  man,  had  nothing 
left  but  one  Rouen  dish,  a  personnages,  representing  a  wedding 
procession,  and  very  fine.  We  got  back  to  Lisieux  early  in 
the  afternoon  and  enjoyed  a  long  walk  about  the  town.  Went 
again  for  some  time  into  the  fine  Cathedral.  Walked  about 
and  looked  again  at  the  house  in  the  Rue  de  Sevres,  and 
made  a  vain  attempt  to  find  a  gentleman  who  lived  in  the 
Place  de  Navarin  and  was  said  to  have  a  fine  collection.  His 
name,  M.  Gourelles.  We  had  a  most  delightful  ramble  after 

290 


1874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

this ;  we  climbed  up  into  an  orchard  just  outside  the  town, 
whence  we  had  a  most  beautiful  view ;  amused  ourselves  by 
seeing  the  cows  milked,  and  then  came  back  by  another 
route.  Found  two  tiles  in  a  small  shop  on  our  way  back  to  j 
our  Hotel.  After  table  d'hote  we  again  tried  to  find  M. 
Gourelles,  but  were  again  unsuccessful. 

27th.  The  following  morning,  however,  after  we  had 
breakfasted  and  packed  up,  and  made  ourseives  ready  for 
the  start,  we  called  on  him  once  more,  and  this  time  were 
fortunate.  He  has  some  beautiful  things  in  furniture,  and 
tapestry,  and  faience,  and  bindings  of  books.  He  is  a  quaint 
little  man,  and  at  first  seemed  very  suspicious  of  us,  but  he 
warmed  immensely  as  we  went  on  and  he  found  we  were  not 
dealers,  but  really  came  to  see  him  for  the  love  of  seeing  fine 
objects.  By  the  time  we  got  back  it  was  time  to  go  to  the 
railway  station,  and  so  we  took  leave  of  Lisieux  after  a 
most  pleasant  visit.  The  house  is  very  comfortable,  but 
everything  depends  upon  the  exertions  of  the  waiter,  Louis 
Dehail,  a  man  prematurely  old  from  hard  work,  but  who  toils 
on  in  the  hope,  he  told  us,  of  being,  some  fifteen  years  hence, 
able  to  retire  to  his  own  country  near  Argentan.  He  is 
too  good  to  remain  the  drudge  of  a  provincial  Hotel.  Our 
first  point  was  to  Mezidon,  and  here  at  the  station  we  left 
Dell  and  the  luggage,  while  we  went  on  by  embranchement 
to  Falaise.  We  had  a  most  surly  guide  ;  I  think  he  was  half 
tipsy.  Returning  to  Mezidon  we  had  to  wait  a  short  time 
there,  and  then  we  came  on  to  Caen  (Hotel  d'Espagne), 
where  we  arrived  in  time  for  the  table  d'hote. 

28th.  We  spent  a  quiet  day  at  Caen,  seeking  curiosity 
shops,  of  which  we  found  one  or  two,  but  not  of  any  great 
account.  The  best  is  Missius,  where  we  got  a  first-rate 
Battersea  box,  which  will  make  an  admirable  pendant  to  that 
which  we  bought  at  Cadiz,  price  £2.  16.,  worth  at  least  £5. 

291 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 
to  £6.  At  a  little  shop  kept  by  a  man  called  Jean,  where 
we  bought  a  good  Oriental  basin,  purple  ground,  we  heard 
of  a  collection,  about  which  the  said  Jean  was  very  mysterious. 
But  at  length  he  promised  to  take  us  to  see  it,  for  the  con- 
sideration of  10  francs,  and  so  at  4  o'clock,  the  time  ap- 
pointed, we  set  out.  The  house  in  question  was  hard  by,  in 
the  Rue  Puits  aux  Bottes,  and  the  possessor  of  it  proved  to 
be  a  M.  Druys,  son  of  an  old  dealer,  now  retired,  in  the 
town.  He  seemed  a  curious  churlish  individual,  who  refused 
to  sell  anything,  and  yet,  every  now  and  then,  expatiated 
on  the  things  he  had  parted  with.  It  was,  however,  a  great 
pleasure  to  have  seen  both  him  and  his  collection.  He 
had  nothing  particularly  in  our  line,  though  we  should  have 
liked  one  Tournai  plate,  gold  marked.  He  had  only  a  little 
bit  of  English,  Chelsea,  but  very  imperfect,  and  he  did  not 
know  what  it  was.  Our  only  other  purchase  to-day  was  a 
piece  of  Malines  lace,  and  a  small  jug  of  purple  glass  (French) 
in  the  Rue  Froide.  A  woman,  whom  we  discovered  with  some 
trouble  in  the  Rue  des  Ecuyeres,  had  not  got  her  keys,  so  we 
could  see  nothing. 

2Qth.  Up  at  6.  to  write  to  Ivor,  whose  birthday  it  was. 
After  breakfast  walked  down  to  the  station,  and  took  a  10.20. 
train  to  Bayeux.  Good  view  of  Caen  as  we  left  it.  Went 
through  a  pretty  country.  Passed  the  rival  spires  of  Norrey 
and  Bretteville.  Grand  view  of  Bayeux  on  approaching  it. 
Of  Bayeux  I  cannot  say  enough,  so  I  will  say  nothing,  but 
that  it  is  the  most  magnificent  thing  I  ever  saw,  or  ever 
imagined.  An  old  man,  who  said  he  had  shown  the  Cathedral 
for  52  years,  and  in  his  enthusiasm  reminded  me  of  our  old 
friend  at  Treves  (see  Sept.  30.  of  last  year),  took  us  into  the 
Sacristy  and  showed  us  all  the  few  remaining  treasures  there 
Note.  A  folding  iron  chair,  said  to  have  been  of  the  I3th  cen- 
tury. In  the  Crypt  is  an  ancient  fresco  ;  the  Virgin's  robe  seme 

292 


1874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

with  Fleurs-de-lis,  and  the  background  of  Tudor  roses.  Next 
we  went  to  the  Musee  and  studied  the  Bayeux  tapestry,  from 
which  I  thought  we  never  should  have  torn  ouselves  away. 
No  needlework  was  ever  like  it  for  spirit  of  design  and  execu- 
tion, rude  as  the  stitches  often  are.  I  wish  our  School  of  Art 
may  ever  produce  anything  half  as  good.  On  our  way  back 
to  the  station  we  called  at  the  Fabrique  de  Porcelaine,  which 
produces  wretched  objects,  also  at  the  Hospital,  where  the 
Nuns  showed  us  all  through  the  sick  Wards  and  into  the 
Pharmacie  and  Chirurgie,  where  there  are  many  faience 
vessels,  but  none  of  them  very  remarkable.  Passing  an  old 
shop  we  bought  a  little  biscuit  Medallion  done  from  a  model 
of  1638,  and  marked  at  the  back  "  Bayeux "  with  a  "  G  " 
over  the  word,  the  letters  impressed  in  the  paste.  They  told 
us  the  Works  formerly  belonged  to  a  family  called  1'Anglois, 
all  now  dead.  The  same  people  showed  us  Bayeux  Lace. 
It  is  like  Buckinghamshire  Pillow  Lace  of  recent  times,  and 
is  evidently  of  no  great  antiquity.  Only  got  back  to  Caen 
just  in  time  for  dinner.  After  it  C.S.  went  out  and  made 
another  attempt  for  Druys'  Tournai  plate,  but  without 
success. 

30th.  Again  up  at  6  to  write  here,  these  notes  having 
fallen  much  in  arrear.  We  had  a  nice  long  walk  from  12.  to 
2.30.  Went  first  to  the  Abbaye  aux  Hommes,  where  we 
waited  awhile  to  see  a  Mass.  It  consisted  in  a  Priest  stand- 
ing alone  at  the  Altar,  with  his  back  to  us  all,  and  now  and 
then  making  genuflexions,  a  little  boy  ringing  a  bell.  There 
was  no  sound,  no  music,  except  that  an  old  man  paraded 
among  the  congregation  bearing  a  plate,  and  preceded  by 
another  old  man  who  shouted  out  at  intervals  "  Pour  les 
Pauvres",  to  which  appeal  the  responses  did  not  seem  numerous. 
To  the  Castle,  finely  situated  and  very  interesting  for  the 
remains  of  Norman  work  on  two  Chapels  within  its  precincts, 

293 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 

now  turned  to  other  uses.     We  got  upon  the  Ramparts  and 
had  some  views  over  the  town,  which  made  us  feel  to  know 
it  and  its  public  buildings  perfectly.     After  this  we  went  and 
sat  on  a  bench  in  the  Boulevard  S.  Martin,  till  it  was  time  for 
our  English  Protestant  Service,  which  was  well,  but  rather  too 
hurriedly  performed.     The  Organist  began  with  one  of  Beet- 
hoven's best  slow  movements,  and  played  it  well.     I  should 
note    that    in    the    course  of  the  morning  we   had   looked 
into  the  Churches  of  St.  Julien  and  of  St.  Sauveur,  with  its 
immense  uncouth  Arch.    The  other  day  we  went  into  another 
Church  now  converted  into  a  Corn  Market  and  called,  I  think, 
1'Ancienne  S.  Sauveur.     The  old  houses  one  comes  upon  un- 
expectedly are  very  delightful,  amongst  others  the  Hotel  de 
Than.    Altogether  our  stay  at  Caen  has  been  most  agreeable. 
3lst.     Called  at  5.,  but  I  had  been  looking  at  my  watch  half 
an  hour  before,  and  so  we  were  up  and  off  from  Caen  Hotel 
by  7.  o'clock,  having  breakfasted.     We  went  over  the  same 
ground  as  on  Saturday  as  far  as  Bayeux,  which  looks  magni- 
ficent from  the  railway.     It  was  a  slow  but  very  pretty  journey 
to  St.  L6.     Here  there  was  a  delay  of  more  than  one  hour,  so 
we  scaled  the  heights  and  came  upon  the  Plateau  overlooking 
the  Vire,  etc.     The  Cathedral  stands  upon  this  plateau,  and 
we  duly  visited  it  before  going  back  to   the   station,  from 
which  the  diligence  started  at  12  o'clock.     Our  places  had 
been  bespoken  but  we  could  not  get  quite  what  we  wanted. 
I  went  with  Dell  in  the  coupe,  a  French  gentleman  occupied 
the  other  seat.     All  the  country  is  rich  and  beautiful  between 
St.  L6  and  Coutances,  and  in  some  parts  we  overlooked  a 
wonderful  expanse  of  country.     Got  to  Coutances  between  3. 
and  4.  o'clock.     Hotel  de  France.     Went  at  once  to  see  the 
town.     Saw  St.  Pierre  and  visited  the  only  curiosity  dealer  we 
could  hear  of  in  the  town.     We  were  very  much  amused 
when  he  (M.  Clerc)  showed  us  the  whole  of  his  collection, 

294 


1874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

which  consisted  in  four  broken  pieces  of  faience  standing 
inside  his  chimney  in  which  there  was  no  grate.  Never  saw 
so  original  a  china  closet  before.  He  took  us  up  to  his  room 
by  a  narrow  winding  staircase,  but  he  had  only  one  or  two 
insignificant  silver  ornaments,  and  though  we  tried  hard,  we 
could  not  find  anything  to  buy.  We  ended  our  ramble  by 
going  into  and  studying  the  Cathedral,  which  is  most 
beautiful. 


SEPTEMBER  1874 

GRANVILLE  :  AVRANCHES  :  MONT    ST.    MICHEL  :    PONTORSON  : 

DOL  :    ST.    MALO  :    RENNES  :    GUINGAMP  :    MORLAIX  :    BREST: 

FOLGOET:    QUIMPER :    AURAY :    CARNAC :    NANTES:    ANGERS: 

FONTEVRAULT :  LE  MANS  :  PARIS  :  METZ  :  VERDUN  :  NANCY 

September  1st.  Up  early  in  the  morning  ;  we  had  time 
to  visit  the  public  gardens,  with  their  beautiful  view,  including 
the  ruined  arches  of  the  Aqueduct,  before  going  on  by  the 
diligence  to  Granville.  We  all  had  places  inside,  but  being 
near  the  door  of  the  carriage,  we  got  beautiful  views  of 
Coutances  as  we  left  it.  At  Granville  we  had  time  for  a  nice 
ramble  about  the  town,  and  on  the  rock  overlooking  the  sea, 
commanding  a  most  extensive  view — Chausey,  etc.  At  one 
of  the  little  jewellers'  bought  a  "  Saint  Esprit  "  for  Blanche, 
which  after  careful  examination  we  believed  to  be  old.  We 
mistrusted  all  that  were  shown  to  us  at  Caen.  Went  on  by 
the  diligence  to  Avranches.  We  had  the  banquette  all  to 
ourselves.  Drove  round  by  St.  Pair  (a  pretty  little  de"tour) 
to  take  up  a  passenger.  I  shall  never  forget  the  charm  of 
that  drive  ;  but  it  came  to  a  sudden  conclusion.  We  had 
just  put  on  a  "cheval  de  renfort "  and  were  descend- 
ing the  last  hill  before  scaling  the  eminence  on  which 
Avranches  stands,  when  the  said  cheval  de  renfort  came 
down,  the  other,  horses  fell  over  him,  and  the  boy  who  was 

295 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 
riding  him  got  under  their  feet.  For  a  few  moments  we  were 
in  the  greatest  suspense  as  to  the  fate  that  had  befallen  the 
boy,  and  the  fate  that  awaited  us.  The  Frenchmen  who  were 
inside  the  omnibus  got  out,  and  danced  in  front  of  the  horses, 
but  could  not  be  prevailed  upon  to  render  any  assistance.  As 
soon  as  he  could  free  himself,  C.S.  got  down  and  went  to  the 
horses'  heads,  and  in  due  time  the  horses  righted  themselves, 
the  boy  having  miraculously  escaped  with  a  few  bruises  and 
only  2  out  of  3  horses  having  broken  their  knees  ;  and  so  at 
length  we  arrived  safely  at  the  Hotel  de  France  at  Avranches. 
We  had  been  advised  to  go  to  the  Hotel  de  Londres,  but  our 
accident  had  made  us  so  late  that  we  thought  it  best  to  put  up 
where  the  diligence  stopped.  It  was  but  a  homely  place. 
However,  we  got  good  beds. 

2nd.  Went  out  early  next  morning  and  explored  Av- 
ranches. The  view  from  the  walks  around  the  town  are  quite 
the  loveliest  I  ever  saw,  extending  over  an  immense  tract  of  the 
richest  and  most  diversified  country ;  Mont  St.  Michel  in  the 
distance.  We  went  into  the  Muse"e,  where  the  only  thing  that 
interested  us  was  an  old  view  of  Avranches,  done  by  Papillon, 
1649,  showing  the  appearance  of  the  town  before  the  fine 
old  Cathedral  fell.  We  visited  the  stone  on  which  our 
Henry  II.  made  his  submission  before  an  arrogant  Priest,  and 
condescended  to  receive  pardon  from  him  after  his  knights  had 
foully  murdered  Thomas  a  Becket.  There  were  two  curiosity 
shops  at  Avranches,  kept  by  two  sisters.  One,  Mme.  Poulain, 
had  a  good  little  Dresden  figure  of  Autumn  which  we  bought 
for  24/-.  The  other  sister  was  chiefly  occupied  in  work  of 
ecclesiastical  embroidery,  and  lived  near  the  New  Cathedral. 
We  were  to  have  proceeded  on  our  travels  soon  after  noon, 
but  the  employe"  of  the  Diligence  Department  got  into  an 
altercation  with  some  of  the  passengers  of  another  diligence, 
so  ours  did  not  start  for  an  hour  after  its  time.  At  length  we 

296 


1874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

got  off  for  Pontorson,  through  a  fine  rich  country,  C.S.  out- 
side, but  I  inside.  As  soon  as  we  reached  Pontorson  we  had 
to  make  a  complete  change.  There  we  left  our  heavy 
luggage,  and  then  we  took  our  places  in  a  light  omnibus 
which  was  in  waiting  for  us,  and  in  which  we  drove  to  Mont 
St.  Michel.  A  guide  walked  before  us  during  that  part  of 
the  drive.  It  was  a  long  and  not  very  amusing  process,  but 
we  arrived  safely  at  Mont  St.  Michel.  The  Hotel  Lion  d'Or 
was  full,  so  they  put  us  "  en  succursale  "  in  a  very  comfortable, 
house  half-way  up  the  street  on  the  left  hand.  As  soon  as  we 
had  settled  all  this,  we  went  up  to  the  Abbaye  to  see  the 
wonderful  building  remaining  there  for  so  many  ages.  It  is 
all  very  grand,  but  the  two  things  I  admired  most  were  the 
Cloisters  with  their  elegant  execution,  and  the  noble  hall 
"des  Chevaliers".  There  was  to  have  been  the  celebrated 
torchlight  procession  in  the  old  Church  and  its  Crypt  that 
evening,  but  we  were  not  able  to  attend  it.  As  we  came 
down  .from  the  Abbaye  we  stopped  to  look  at  a  very  re- 
markable sunset.  The  sun  went  down  quite  unobscured,  with 
long  rays  darting  up,  far  into  the  sky.  Some  sailors  were 
standing  near  us  and  they  immediately  predicted  "  heavy 
rain  "  and  "  wind  ".  We  lingered  in  and  about  the  Abbaye 
as  long  as  we  could.  Table  d'hote  was  at  7.,  at  the  Lion 
d'Or,  and  as  soon  as  it  was  over  we  adjourned  to  our 
quarters  for  the  night. 

3rd.  About  5-  I  was  waked  by  a  heavy  downpour  of  rain, 
which  came  in  a  kind  of  avalanche,  without  a  breath  of  air, 
but  it  had  cleared  off  by  7.  o'clock  when  we  proceeded  to  join 
our  diligence  at  the  Gates,  and  took  our  places  to  return  to 
Pontorson.  It  is  rather  a  perilous  operation  to  drive  through 
these  said  gates,  and  we  were  not  allowed  to  get  in  until  the 
vehicle  was  safe  outside  them.  At  Pontorson  we  breakfasted. 
We  did  not  then  know  that  this  place  had  been  the  residence 

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LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 

of  Du  Guesclin,  but  no  remains  of  his  Castle  exist.  There 
was  great  delay  once  more  before  we  got  forward.  The 
diligence  from  Avranches  was  late,  and,  moreover,  quite  full, 
so  we  were  sent  on  in  a  "  voiture  de  supplement".  I  went 
outside  ;  a  young  Englishman  and  his  sister  were  among  our 
fellow-travellers.  He  told  me  he  was  learning  brewing  under 
Mr.  Willett,  the  great  china  collector  of  Brighton,  and  he  knew 
several  people  we  knew.  [Mr.  Henry  Willett ;  he  died  at 
a  great  age  two  or  three  years  ago.  He  was  a  most  fortunate 
and  agreeable  collector  not  only  of  china,  but  of  pictures, 
furniture,  and  many  other  interesting  and  early  objects  of  art ; 
his  sons,  I  believe,  are  equally  interested  in  these  subjects. 
He  left  an  enormous  collection  of  English  historical  pottery 
and  porcelain  to  the  now  excellently  arranged  Brighton 
Museum.]  We  had  all  of  us  to  walk  up  the  hills,  for  we 
had  shamefully  tired  horses,  but  it  was  nice  weather,  and 
the  walk  was  very  pleasant  in  this  lovely  country.  We 
got  to  Dol  about  I.  o'clock,  and,  instead  of  going  on  by 
the  train  that  was  starting  immediately,  determined  to 
stay  at  Dol  till  the  5.  o'clock  train  ;  so,  leaving  Dell  at 
the  Inn  to  get  her  dinner,  we  went  into  the  town,  the  quaint 
old  streets  of  which  delighted  us.  Many  of  the  houses 
have  Norman  columns  in  front  of  them,  forming  arches  to 
their  lower  story.  We  went  to  the  Cathedral,  which  we  had 
heard  much  praised.  There  is  nothing  very  beautiful  about 
it.  The  disengaged  Columns  of  the  Nave  are  curious,  and 
there  are  several  fine  old  fonts  of  various  dates.  The  only 
monument  remaining  is  that  of  Bishop  James,  dated  1507. 
It  is  of  very  good  Renaissance  work,  but  has  been  sadly 
mutilated.  As  usual  we  sought  here  for  antiquities.  Inter- 
view with  a  pompous  jeweller,  asking  high  prices,  but  having 
nothing  to  show.  He  said  he  possessed  china  and  faience, 
but  was  so  busy  with  avocats  and  other  friends  from  Paris, 

298 


1874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

that  he  could  not  spare  the  time  to  show  them  to  us.  While 
we  were  actually  visiting  the  Cathedral,  a  most  violent  storm 
of  wind  arose.  Slates  began  to  fall,  and  a  gentleman  walking 
down  the  street  we  werq  in,  was  struck  by  a  flower  pot  that 
was  dislodged  from  a  window.  Notwithstanding  this  we 
persevered  in  our  attempt  to  walk  into  the  fields  to  see  the 
famous  Menhir  in  the  neighbourhood.  Talking  with  a  man 
repairing  old  furniture,  whose  shop  we  passed  en  route,  we 
were  told  the  Menhir  was  ten  minutes  walk  from  the  town, 
but  we  found  it  much  farther  than  we  expected ;  luckily  we 
got  an  intelligent  little  boy  as  our  guide,  or  we  should  never 
have  discovered  it.  The  storm  was  raging  fearfully,  and  the 
trees  were  being  torn  down  in  all  directions.  It  was  a  service 
of  danger  to  walk  among  them,  and  every  minute  it  got 
worse,  but  we  struggled  on  and  saw  the  Menhir  to  our  heart's 
content.  A  very  curious  monument  it  is.  As  we  were 
leaving  it,  an  old  woman  came  up  to  us  and  began  a  torrent 
of  abuse,  wherefore  we  could  not  make  out.  She  suddenly 
seized  me  and  gave  me  a  good  shaking,  vociferating  in  the 
most  incoherent  manner.  We  pushed  her  aside,  and  went 
on  as  fast  as  we  could,  for  we  then  thought  she  was  insane,  but 
she  followed  us  some  way  pelting  us  with  invectives  and  stones. 
All  this  rather  retarded  our  progress,  and  we  were  already 
late,  but  our  little  guide  knew  a  short  cut  back  to  the  railway 
station,  so  we  got  back  in  good  time.  C.S.  went  to  fetch 
Dell  from  the  Inn,  while  I  took  the  tickets,  etc.,  so  we  got 
off  by  the  5.  train  and  reached  St.  Malo  soon  after  6.  Here 
fresh  difficulties  awaited  us.  All  the  omnibuses  were  full  and 
there  were  no  cabs.  We  got  our  luggage  taken  on  into  the 
town,  but  we  ourselves  had  to  walk,  a  task  which  we  accom- 
plished with  difficulty,  for  the  storm  raged  worse  than  ever, 
and  we  were  almost  blinded  with  dust  and  small  stones.  At 
length  arrived  at  the  Hotel  Franklin,  we  found  they  had  no 

299 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 

room.  The  omnibus  man  put  our  luggage  down  in  the  middle 
of  the  street,  so  there  I  had  to  remain  with  my  maid  in 
charge,  while  C.S.  went  all  over  the  town  to  look  for  rooms, 
the  slates  tumbling  about  around  us.  It  was  nearly  an  hour 
before  he  came  back.  He  had  been  at  six  Hotels,  and  at 
length  had  got  us  lodgings  at  the  Hotel  de  Londres.  In  all 
my  travels  I  had  never  had  so  eventful  a  day.  Our  Hotel 
was  not  very  splendid,  but  we  were  glad  of  supper  after  our 
long  fasting — since  the  morning — and  got  a  good  night's  rest 
after  all  our  fatigues. 

4th.  We  were  none  the  worse  the  next  morning.  By 
that  time  the  hurricane  had  subsided.  They  say  nothing 
like  it  has  been  known  for  many  years.  Richard  Glyn  went 
back  to  Southampton  by  the  midday  boat,  the  weather 
having  become,  by  that  time,  quite  fine  again.  We  saw  him 
on  board,  and  then  walked  on  the  pier  to  see  the  vessel  steam 
out  of  the  harbour,  and  went  on  the  Ramparts  afterwards. 
The  sea  view  is  quite  the  finest  I  ever  saw,  and  I  was  pleased 
to  have  seen  it,  but  St.  Malo  is  a  wretched  dirty  place,  and  we 
were  glad  to  get  away  from  it  as  soon  as  we  could.  Got  an 
enamel  mustard-pot ;  bought  magnificent  figs  in  the  market 
(the  fruit  all  through  Normandy  has  been  wonderful,  and  so 
have  the  flowers).  At  5.  we  left  St.  Malo,  and  took  the  train 
to  Rennes.  Put  up  at  the  Hotel  Julien,  most  comfortable, 
where  we  were  glad  of  two  days'  rest  after  much  commotion. 

5th.  We  were  out  exploring  the  town  for  several  hours. 
Found  3  curiosity  shops ;  at  the  first,  Mme.  Th^buge,  Rue 
Louis  Phillipe,  we  got  a  very  fine  Battersea  Enamel  printed 
plaque,  Paris  giving  the  apple  to  Hibernia  ;  we  next  found 
out  the  Commissaire  Priseur,  M.  Hersaut,  who  showed  us 
the  very  best  collection  de  tout  genres  that  we  have  seen 
anywhere  out  of  Paris.  He  had  many  things  we  should  have 
liked  to  have  bought,  but  all  very  dear,  and  the  only  pieces 

300 


i874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

that  really  concerned  our  Collection  were  4  small  Wedgwood 
portraits  in  their  original  frames,  for  which,  however,  he 
asked  £8.,  which  was  preposterous.  The  only  other  shop  in 
the  town  was  that  of  an  original  old  Breton,  with  long  hair, 
quite  a  character  in  his  way,  who  had  nothing  worth  looking 
at,  but  inveighed  loudly  against  M.  Hersaut  for  buying 
everything  at  the  sales  for  himself.  Poor  old  Glaasland! 
We  spent  a  long  time  at  the  Muse"e,  which  is  most  in- 
teresting. There  is  a  large  collection  of  original  draw- 
ings among  the  pictures  ;  an  original  one  of  the  Court  of 
Henri  III.  of  France,  very  characteristic,  reminding  us 
of  one  in  the  Musee  at  Bayeux,  of  which  the  subject  was 
a  Masquerade  at  the  Court  of  the  same  Henri  III.  with 
representations  of  him  and  all  his  family.  Bought  a  Revo- 
lutionary fan  of  the  Concierge. 

Sunday,  6th.  Went  to  the  French  Protestant  service, 
which  is  in  a  little  building  on  the  other  side  of  the  Canal. 
It  was  well  and  devoutly  performed  by  an  old  clergyman,  with 
whom  we  talked  a  little  when  it  was  over.  We  had  some 
trouble  in  finding  the  place,  and  arrived  late,  but  were  in  time 
to  hear  two  chapters  read,  also  an  extemporary  prayer,  and 
an  excellent  sermon.  They  stand  to  pray  and  sit  to  sing. 
The  congregation  was  small  ;  he  spoke  of  there  being  only 
about  200  Protestants  in  the  town.  To  an  offer  made  to 
M.  Hersaut  by  letter,  of  125  francs  for  the  four  Wedgwood 
plaques,  an  immediate  answer  was  returned  in  the  shape  of  the 
plaques  themselves  !  We  dined  and  slept  again  to-night  at 
this  pleasant  Hotel  of  Rennes,  and, 

Monday  morning,  7th,  left  it  again  early  for  St.  Malo  by 
train.  We  arrived  there  about  midday,  and  had  to  wait 
about  an  hour  before  it  was  time  for  the  boat  to  start  for 
Dinan.  I  sat  on  some  timber  on  the  Quay  and  read,  while 
C.S.  took  a  ramble  through  the  town.  The  morning  had 

301 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS   1874 

been  overcast,  but  it  cleared  and  became  quite  hot,  so  we  had 
a  lovely  excursion  up  the  Ranee,  the  only  drawback  being 
that  the  steamer  was  very  much  crowded.  Put  up  at  the 
Hotel  du  Commerce,  a  wretched  little  Inn  which  we  were 
forced  to  endure  for  two  nights.  As  soon  as  we  landed  we 
set  out  to  explore  the  town,  which  is  composed  of  old  (but 
not  beautiful)  houses  in  dirty  narrow  streets.  We  were  told 
that  a  great  many  English  lived  at  Dinan,  which  it  was  hard 
to  believe.  We  went  into  the  Church  of  St.  Malo,  a  very 
recent  edifice.  Looked  into  the  School  which  occupies  an  old 
cloistered  building,  and  then,  issuing  by  the  Brest  Gate, 
which  is  fine,  got  on  to  the  Promenade,  which  is  pleasantly 
planted  with  trees  and  overlooks  the  surrounding  country. 
A  bad,  but  very  abundant  table  d'hote. 

8th.  Went  to  see  the  Beaumanoir  Monuments  in  the 
Musee,  also  went  into  St.  Sauveur,  of  which  the  Western 
Norman  Fagade  is  remarkable.  There  is  an  inscription  in 
the  transept  to  the  effect  that  Du  Guesclin's  heart  was  buried 
there.  From  the  gardens  at  the  back  of  St.  Sauveur  there  is 
a  fine  view  over  the  river.  We  took  a  little  carriage  and 
drove,  first  to  the  old  Abbaye  and  Castle  of  Lehon,  both  in 
ruins.  From  the  castle  mound  the  view  is  very  good. 
Then  to  the  Fontaine,  which  is  simply  a  Mineral  spring 
situated  in  a  pretty  valley.  Then  to  the  ruins  of  the  Chateau 
de  la  Garaye,  where,  in  the  last  century,  the  Lord  and  Lady 
of  the  place  devoted  themselves  to  acts  of  charity,  neverthe- 
less the  Revolution  destroyed  everything  they  had  left  behind 
them,  hospitals,  etc.  We  watched  a  process  of  cider-making 
at  the  farm-house  ;  coming  back  we  had  heavy  rain.  In  the 
course  of  the  afternoon  we  had  called  to  get  some  money  at 
the  Banker's,  M.  Bazin  de  Jessey.  He  told  us  he  had  a 
collection  and  took  us  to  see  it.  It  was  of  the  humblest 
description,  consisting  only  of  a  few  indifferent  faience 

302 


1874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

plates,  ostentatiously  hung  against  the  wall,  and  one  or  two 

meubles. 

gth.  We  were  right  glad  at  9.  o'clock  this  morning  to 
leave  this  town  and  its  wretched  Inn.  The  environs  are 
richly  wooded  and  very  pretty,  but  there  is  nothing  else  to 
recommend  it.  We  went  by  diligence  to  Caulnes,  travelling 
at  the  rate  of  five  miles  an  hour.  C.S.  and  I  had  the 
banquette  to  ourselves,  and  it  was  very  pleasant.  The 
country  is  rather  bleak  after  we  leave  the  immediate  environs 
of  Dinan.  We  were  threatened  with  rain,  but  it  held  off. 
By  train  from  Caulnes,  through  St.  Brieuc,  where  we  did  not 
stop,  to  Guingamp.  There  we  found  a  very  good  Inn,  the 
Hotel  de  France.  C.S.  and  I  walked  into  the  town,  and, 
having  ordered  Dell  her  dinner  and  having  made  our  arrange- 
ments for  going  forward  later  in  the  day,  we  set  out  for  a  long 
walk.  Bought  a  small  Saint  Esprit  at  a  jeweller's  opposite 
the  quaint  old  Fountain,  which  I  believe  is  a  copy  of  the 
Renaissance  one  which  stood  there  before.  Went  into  the 
Church,  which  is  a  mixture  of  some  Renaissance  and  some 
very  good  early  architecture.  In  a  Chapel  (entered  inde- 
pendently) is  an  ugly  image  of  the  Virgin,  which  is  said  to  be 
greatly  venerated,  and  to  which  pilgrimages  are  made.  We 
struck  out  of  the  town  to  the  north,  and,  passing  by  the 
aqueduct,  we  ascended  the  hill,  gaining  one  of  the  most 
beautiful  prospects  I  ever  saw,  of  vast  extent,  diversified  by 
wood  and  water,  Guingamp  lying  at  our  feet,  and  the  spire 
of  La  Grace  and  other  edifices  rising  from  the  trees  in  the 
distance.  We  came  back  by  the  little  disused  Chapel  of  St. 
Leonard,  in  front  of  which  is  a  platform  overlooking  the 
river.  After  we  came  back  to  our  Inn,  Mme.  Florissant,  the 
landlady,  begged  us  to  go  and  see  her  garden.  The  cathe- 
dral looks  well  from  this  point ;  a  sudden  shower  had  just 
passed  over  and  left  a  vivid  double  rainbow,  again  reflected 

303 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 
in  the  stream  beside  which  her  garden  stood — a  singular 
effect.  After  an  excellent  table  d'hote  dinner,  we  went 
back  to  the  station  and  proceeded  to  Morlaix,  Hotel  de 
T Europe,  kept  by  Florissant's  brother,  good,  but  not  equal 
to  the  Inn  at  Guingamp. 

loth.  After  breakfast  went  out  to  walk  about  the  town. 
Went  by  the  side  of  the  river,  passing  under  the  wonderful 
railway  viaduct  to  the  Fontaine  des  Anglais.  We  pursued  our 
way  under  a  beautiful  avenue,  which  continued  for  some 
way  out  of  the  town,  and,  led  on  by  the  beauty  of  the 
scenery,  we  continued  for  some  miles  along  the  river's 
bank.  Fell  in  with  a  most  courteous  Breton  gentle- 
man, with  whom  we  had  much  talk.  He  directed  us 
to  find  a  property  of  his  where  he  said  we  should 
find  some  interesting  views,  among  them,  one  of  S.  Pol  de 
Leon.  Following  his  instructions  we  got  into  a  most  charm- 
ing wood,  laid  out  in  drives,  and  from  an  elevated  point  at 
the  end  of  one  of  these  we  had  a  magnificent  view  of  the 
entrance  of  the  river  and  the  forts  protecting  it.  We  went 
to  the  house  of  the  "  Gardien  ",  to  leave  our  cards  and  thanks 
for  the  treat  we  had  had.  The  man  could  speak  nothing  but 
Breton  ;  his  cottage  was  very  neat ;  near  the  door  was  one  of 
those  shut-up  beds  which  I  have  read  of  as  being  peculiar  to 
this  country.  M.  le  Sausse,  that  was  the  gentleman's  name, 
seems  to  be  preparing  to  build  on  this  most  favoured  spot. 
We  walked  back  swiftly  to  Morlaix,  a  distance  of  some 
four  miles,  C.S.  amusing  himself  by  watching  the  boats 
coming  up  the  river  with  sand  for  manuring  the  land. 
Looked  in  the  Church  of  St.  M^lanie — not  remarkable.  In 
the  Grande  Rue  and  the  Rue  des  Nobles  are  many  most  in- 
teresting old  houses,  with  carvings  of  Saints,  etc.,  decorating 
their  fronts.  In  two  of  them  are  very  fine  staircases,  remind- 
ing us  of  the  house  we  had  seen  at  Valence  (see  April  29, 

304 


1874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

1873).  After  this  we  had  still  time  to  climb  up  to  the  old  Castle 
Mound,  for  the  view  over  the  town,  before  going  to  the 
railway,  by  which  we  left  Morlaix  about  J  past  4  P.M.  ;  it  had 
been  a  delightful  morning.  Reached  Brest  before  dark,  and 
got  a  good  view  of  the  Rade  as  we  approached.  Grand 
Hotel,  very  luxurious  after  some  of  our  experiences,  but  the 
cooking  not  so  good  as  Guingamp.  They  said  the  Poste 
Restante  was  closed,  but  we  got  out  our  letters  by  the  favour 
of  the  Postmaster.  All  well  at  home.  Enid  is  in  England, 
but  soon,  I  fear,  to  leave  for  Spain,  where  the  Carlists  have 
been  firing  upon  the  train  supposed  to  contain  the  German 
and  Austrian  Ambassadors.  All  this  makes  me  very  anxious, 
our  future  plans  very  much  depend  upon  her. 

nth.  We  went  into  the  town  in  search  of  curiosity  shops, 
but  found  only  one  miserable  place,  nothing  to  be  bought,  or 
even  seen.  We  intended  an  expedition  to  Plougastel  to  see 
the  celebrated  calvaire  there,  so  we  took  the  train  to  Ker- 
huon,  which  is  only  a  quarter  of  an  hour  out  of  Brest.  The 
wind  was  blowing  very  much  ;  however  we  walked  down  to 
"  Le  Passage  "  at  which  we  were  to  have  taken  boat  to  go 
across  the  Rade.  We  found,  however,  the  water  so  rough 
that  we  would  not  pursue  our  journey ;  got  back  to  the 
station  in  little  more  than  half  an  hour,  just  in  time,  luckily, 
for  a  train  back  to  Brest,  where  we  walked  about  the  town 
and  visited  the  Castle,  where  there  are  some  curious  remains, 
mt  much  obscured  by  Vauban's  alterations.  The  most 
interesting  was  Queen  Anne's  Tower,  showing  her  kitchen, 
irlour,  chapel,  etc.,  in  the  latter  a  private  seat  in  which  she 
could  see  the  service,  without  being  seen.  They  told  us  of 
the  same  thing  at  the  Castle  at  Dinan,  which  we  did  not  visit. 
Came  back  before  3  and  read  and  wrote  all  the  afternoon. 
(A  day  of  old  memories.) 

I2th.     We  were  up  very  early  to  go  and  see  Folgoet. 
i  305  u 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 

Our  train  was  to  leave  at  J  to  8,  and  we  had  ordered 
breakfast  overnight,  but  somehow  it  was  forgotten,  and 
we  had  to  start  without  it.  The  omnibus  had  gone  too 
when  we  inquired  for  it,  but  we  walked  to  the  train  in  five 
minutes,  and  on  reaching  it,  found  we  had  twenty  minutes 
to  wait!  Such  are  the  confusions  of  French  travel.  In  due 
time  we  reached  Landerneau,  where  we  got  some  bread,  and 
then  took  our  places  in  the  little  omnibus  to  Lesneven.  It 
was  a  pleasant  drive.  After  breakfasting  comfortably  at  the 
little  Hotel  de  France,  we  walked  over  to  Folgoet,  and  there 
thoroughly  examined  the  Church.  It  is  altogether  a  very 
curious  building,  and  when  associated  with  the  tradition  of 
the  poor  idiot  youth,  very  interesting.  We  had  beautiful 
weather,  though  with  occasional  threatenings  of  rain.  On 
our  return  from  Folgoet  we  waited  at  the  Inn,  read  and 
dined,  until  it  was  time  to  go  back  as  we  had  come,  in  the 
omnibus.  On  reaching  the  railway  again  we  were  disap- 
pointed to  find  the  train  late  by  more  than  an  hour,  so  we 
we're  forced  to  give  up  our  intention  of  going  on  to  Quimper 
to-night,  which  is  a  great  disarrangement  of  our  plans.  We 
did  not  get  back  till  |-  past  7,  and  the  train  was  then  just 
starting,  so,  as  we  had  to  fetch  our  luggage  from  the  Hotel, 
the  thing  was  impossible — but  no  matter.  I  did  not  say  half 
enough  of  this  Folgoet  expedition.  I  ought  to  have  noted 
the  Church  Towers  of  Ploudaniel  and  S.  Eloi,  as  we  went 
along,  of  a  form  peculiar  to  Brittany.  Then  again,  the 
curious  menage  at  the  Inn,  where  the  women  servants  sleep 
in  berths,  like  those  on  board  ship,  in  the  kitchen.  Then 
again  the  beautiful  lobster,  and  last,  not  least,  the  very 
moderate  charges. 

I3th.  After  all,  it  was  for  the  best  that  we  did  not  travel 
on  last  night,  for  we  should  have  missed  seeing  a  very 
beautiful  country.  This  morning  we  left  by  the  first  train 

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i874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

before  8.  and  were  at  Quimper  by  II.  A  very  nice  Inn  (a 
1'Epee).  We  found  the  early  meal  (dejeuner)  going  on  and 
joined  it.  Did  not  go  out  till  the  afternoon,  C.S.  rather 
tired  and  so  I  first  sallied  out  alone  ;  went  into  the  Cathedral, 
etc.  When  we  walked  together  later  we  went  first  to  the 
Musee,  where  there  is  an  assemblage  of  very  bad  pictures, 
and  some  interesting  objects  found  in  Celtic  and  Roman 
ruins.  Then  we  walked  by  the  water  side  and  into  the 
woods  overlooking  the  town,  whence  the  view  of  the  beauti- 
ful spires  of  the  Cathedral  and  of  all  the  surrounding  country 
is  very  fine.  It  was  a  delightful  walk,  the  weather  once  more 
perfect,  a  bright  warm  sun,  and  almost  cloudless  sky. 

I4th.  Left  Quimper  about  10.  and  in  about  an  hour  were 
at  Quimperle.  Here  we  stopped  till  the  next  train  came 
through,  and,  leaving  luggage,  etc.,  at  the  station,  walked 
into  the  town,  which  is  very  picturesquely  situated.  We  were 
much  pleased  with  the  Church,  a  fine  old  tower,  and  two 
charming  porches  (reminding  us  of  that  of  Folgoet).  We 
had  about  an  hour  to  spend  on  our  walk,  which  was  very 
agreeable,  and  then  we  went  on  to  Auray.  Arrived  early 
enough  to  take  a  drive  in  the  neighbourhood.  Went  to  the 
S.  Anne,  where  a  grand  new  Church  is  in  course  of  con- 
struction. A  Jesuit  edifice  in  the  pseudo-classical  style,  and 
breathing  the  extreme  of  superstition — "Tout  1'Espoir  de  la 
Bretagne  est  en  toi,  S.  Anne  ",  and  similar  inscriptions.  This 
is  a  great  place  of  pilgrimage.  The  late  Napoleon  and 
Eugenie  came  here,  as  is  commemorated  on  the  glass  of  the 
windows  ;  Marechal  MacMahon  came  a  few  days  ago.  We 
looked  at  the  Santa  Scala,  as  it  is  called,  and  then  drove  on 
by  the  Place  des  Martyrs,  passing  the  spot  where  their 
battle  was  fought,  as  well  as  the  more  decisive  one  that  placed 
the  De  Montforts  on  the  throne  of  Britanny — 1364.  We 
went  on  to  the  chapel  where  Quiberon  victims  were  buried, 

307 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  ^1874 

and  were  shown  their  bones  at  the  bottom  of  the  vault,  by 
means  of  a  lamp  lowered  into  it.  An  Institution  for  the 
Deaf  and  Dumb  exists  here.  A  number  of  Nuns  were  at 
prayers  at  Stations  in  the  Chapel  adjoining  the  Mausoleum. 
When  we  got  back  to  our  Hotel  the  landlady  advised  us  to 
go  and  see  the  view  from  "  the  Loc."  On  our  way  thither, 
however,  we  turned  aside,  for  C.S.  thought  he  had  seen  some- 
thing like  "  Antiquities  "  in  the  window  of  a  furniture  dealer, 
Mme.  Lahouse  ;  she  had  nothing,  but  a  young  man  in  her 
shop  told  us  he  had  got  a  ring,  and  while  we  made  fruitless 
visits  to  the  little  jewellers  he  went  to  fetch  it.  Our  surprise 
was  great  when  we  saw  it.  The  ring  was  of  silver,  the  orna- 
mental part  silver-gilt.  It  was  of  enormous  size,  and  might 
have  been  made  for  a  giant.  It  bore  an  inscription,  "  Janne 
C.  Dan  "  in  letters  scratched  only,  around  it.  We  had  never 
seen  anything  like  it,  and  supposed  it  might  be  of  the  i/J-th 
or  15 th  century,  but  we  have  yet  to  learn  its  date.  It  is 
needless  to  add  that  we  at  once  became  possessed  of  it,  at 
the  very  moderate  sum  asked,  15.  francs.  The  young  man 
(Lavenac  by  name)  told  us  he  bought  it  at  the  sale  of  a  local 
antiquary  and  doctor,  M.  Denys,  some  short  time  back.  It 
so  happened  that  a  brother  of  M.  Denys  came  in  while  we 
were  dining.  Our  landlord  (Heban),  to  whom  we  had  shown 
the  ring,  pointed  him  out  to  us — he  immediately  recognised 
it  as  having  been  in  his  late  brother's  collection,  but  could 
give  us  no  account  as  to  where  it  was  obtained.  He  said 
that  his  brother  often  got  things  from  the  peasants  and  others 
whom  he  visited  professionally  in  the  neighbourhood  ;  he 
thought  the  widow  might  know  more  about  it. 

I5th.  This  was  our  day  of  Celtic  researches.  We  got 
up  very  early  and  drove  in  a  little  open  carriage  over  to 
Carnac ;  a  little  bare-footed  girl,  speaking  nothing  but 
Breton,  was  our  guide  from  the  road  across  the  heath,  to  the 

308 


i8;4  NOTES  CERAMIC 

stones — from  there  we  went  up  to  Mont  S.  Michel,  whence 
an  extensive  view  over  the  Morbihan.  It  was  one  of  those 
glorious,  hot,  cloudless  September  mornings,  which  are  so 
rare  and  so  beautiful,  not  a  breath  of  wind  ;  we  thoroughly 
enjoyed  it.  The  way  had  not  been  very  pretty,  but  it  was 
lighted  up  by  the  golden  furze  in  fullest  glory  and  smelling 
deliciously.  I  gathered  some  of  the  pretty  little  purple 
gentians  on  the  heath,  reminding  me  of  Wales,  and  rides  on 
the  mountains  there,  I  think  in  1840.  There  is  a  curious  old 
cross  opposite  the  Church  on  Mont  S.  Michel,  with  Pope 
on  the  East  side,  Bishop  on  the  West,  Crucifixion  on  the 
South,  Entombment,  North.  In  return  ing  we  passed  through 
Plouharnel.  Saw  the  two  Dolmens  near  there,  and  at  the" 
little  Inn  were  shown  the  little  objects  found  in  them  by  the 
late  landlord,  M.  le  Bail.  There  is  a  curious  gold  collar  or 
necklace,  also  gold  bracelets  and  ring,  many  beads  of 
polished  stones,  and  some  curiously  cut  crystal  beads,  which 
would  seem  to  be  of  much  later  date  than  the  others,  being 
cut  in  facets  and  spiral  ornamentation.  The  two  Dolmens 
would  seem  to  have  been  family  burial-places,  having 
passages  leading  into  them,  and  may  have  been  used  for 
many  generations.  About  midday  we  got  back  to  our 
Hotel,  and  went  to  see  Mme.  Denys,  at  the  Hospice  des 
Sceurs,  to  see  if  she  could  tell  us  anything  about  our  ring, 
but  she  could  not ;  she  only  said  that  she  remembered  it,  and 
that  in  her  husband's  time  it  was  very  dirty,  and  she  thought 
it  to  be  brass.  After  this  we  took  our  carriage  away  with 
fresh  horses,  and  drove  over  to  Locmariaquer,  stopping  by 
the  way  to  go  and  look  at  the  view  from  the  tower  in  the 
Promenade  of  the  town,  which  is  extensive.  We  took  boat 
and  rowed  across  to  Gavr  Innis,  where  we  duly  visited  the 
Tumulus  and  its  Grotto.  It  was  slow  work  coming  back, 
the  currents  being  very  strong ;  one  of  our  boatmen  had  to 

309 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 
land  on  one  of  the  Islands  and  tow  us  along  with  a  rope, 
while  the  master  (Lubin)  pushed  us  along  with  a  boat-hook 
and  C.S.  steered.  We  were  very  glad  of  such  unruffled 
weather,  it  would  not  have  been  pleasant  if  the  water  had 
been  rough.  On  landing  we  went  to  look  at  the  fallen 
Menhir,  broken  in  several  pieces,  called  the  Fairies'  stone, 
and  at  the  Dol  Marchandar ;  then  we  left  Locmariaquer  and 
drove  back  to  Auray,  arriving  at  7.  to  a  late  dinner. 

l6th.  Left  Auray  at  9.  this  morning  and  were  soon  at 
Vannes,  where  we  remained  till  the  2.40.  train.  We  had 
a  good  four  hours  for  exploring  the  town,  which  is  dirty  and 
not  pretty,  Cathedral  uninteresting,  but  I  remarked  one  of 
those  very  large  baptismal  basins,  which  must  have  been 
required  for  adult  baptism  :  I  saw  one  somewhere  else  ;  was 
it  at  Quimperle*  ?  We  went  straight  to  the  Musee,  where 
were  many  interesting  things.  In  an  upper  chamber  were 
very  numerous  objects  found  in  the  "fouilles  Celtiques ". 
The  Muse"e  is  in  the  old  Tour  du  Connetable,  in  which 
Clisson  was  imprisoned.  From  the  top  we  got  some  view  of 
the  town,  its  ancient  walls  and  promenades,  in  one  of  which 
the  Martyrs  du  Quiberon  were  shot.  We  went  from  the 
Muse'e  to  the  house  of  M.  de  Cusse,  the  Director  thereof,  and 
finding  him  at  home  had  a  long  talk  with  him  about  the  local 
Celtic  remains.  We  showed  him  our  ring,  but  he  could  throw 
no  lighten  its  origin.  He  said  Le  Dann  was  a  Breton  name. 
After  this,  in  rambling  about  we  went  into  the  shop  of  a 
jeweller,  Rollet,  and  saw  a  coin  with  arms  of  England  and 
France,  which  he  tempted  us  to  buy  ;  he  told  us  that  he  had 
lately  sold  many  curious  things  to  a  Jew,  who  goes  the  rounds 
for  the  Paris  shops,  and  whose  name,  he  said,  was  Wafler  ;  we 
must  inquire  for  him  in  Paris.  Another  jeweller  told  us  of  a 
similar  individual  living  at  Rennes,  called  Da  Costa,  I  Quai 
d'Orle"ans.  None  of  the  other  jewellers  had  anything,  and  the 

310 


1874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

brocanteurs  were  not  worth  even  mentioning.  Rollet  told  us 
that  an  Abbe,  Monsieur  Chauffier,  was  a  collector  of  antiquities, 
and  advised  our  calling  on  him.  He  was  out,  but  we  followed 
him  to  the  Eveche  (curious  old  house  with  inscription  on  the 
wooden  beams,  and  dated  1556).  Monsieur  Chauffier  told  us 
that  our  coin  was  a  salut  of  Henry  V.  or  VI.,  and  admired 
our  ring,  but  could  give  us  no  information  about  it.  He 
took  us  to  his  house  and  showed  us  his  own  collection  of 
coins  and  medals,  all  having  reference  to  Brittany.  He  is 
quite  a  young  man,  well  looking,  gentle,  and  most  courteous. 
Went  on  to  Nantes ;  no  room  in  the  omnibus  ;  we  shared  a 
caleche  with  General  L'Allemande  to  the  station.  He  had 
been  manoeuvring  troops  in  the  neighbourhood,  and  there 
were  numbers  of  soldiers  in  the  train.  At  Nantes  we  got  out 
at  the  little  station,  and  walked  to  the  Hotel  de  France,  send- 
ing back  our  luggage,  which  had  gone  on  to  the  Grande 
Gare.  Next  we  dined,  having  fasted  since  8.,  then  we  went 
to  the  Poste  Restante  and 'got  a  heap  of  letters.  Enid  is 
to  be  in  Paris  on  Tuesday  next,  and  we  propose  to  meet 
her  there. 

I7th.  A  long  day's  exploring  in  the  town  of  Nantes,  Got 
to  the  Cours  St.  Pierre,  where  is  situated  the  Musee  Archeo- 
logique.  It  was  less  interesting  than  most  provincial  Musees. 
From  it  we  went  on  to  the  Cathedral,  which,  again,  interested 
us  less  than  usual,  being  so  incomplete  (terminating  with  a 
choir).  Some  works  were  going  on,  in  consequence  of  which 
the  tomb  of  Anne  de  Bretagne's  father  and  mother  were  care- 
fully boarded  up,  and  excluded  from  view.  I  was  sorry  then 
that  I  had  not  paid  more  attention  to  the  facsimile  of  the 
recumbent  statues  which  exist  in  the  Musee,  but  I  expected  to 
study  them  with  all  their  adjuncts  at  the  Cathedral  itself. 
With  the  Renaissance  carvings  in  stone,  within  the  Western 
entrance,  portraying  scenes  from  the  Old  Testament — lives 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 
of  Isaac,  Jacob,  etc. — we  were  delighted.  From  the  Cathedral 
we  went  into  the  Castle,  a  charming  specimen  of  domestic 
architecture  of  Anne  de  Bretagne's  time :  note  the  old  well. 
We  went  up  to  the  top  of  the  Castle  for  the  fine  view  over 
Nantes,  its  river,  its  bridges,  and  the  surrounding  country. 
A  jeweller  called  Rochard  gave  us  the  names  of  a  great  many 
curiosity  shops  in  the  neighbourhood.  We  visited  them  all, 
but  without  finding  one  single  object  worth  our  buying. 
Went  to  see  a  small  private  collection,  containing  many 
pretty  things,  but  nothing  of  great  value.  It  gave  us  the 
opportunity  of  looking  at  a  nice  little  manage  of  budding 
amateurs.  Their  name — M.  and  Mme.  Endel. 

igth.  Before  leaving  Nantes  we  had  occasion  to  go  to 
our  Banker's,  and  this  led  us  to  the  Promenade  at  the  back 
of  our  Hotel,  which  is  very  pretty,  and  conspicuous  for  its 
standard  magnolias.  We  got  to  Angers  early  in  the  day,  and 
in  time  for  some  two  or  three  hours'  walk  about  the  town 
before  dinner,  with  which  we  were  quite  delighted.  Lovely 
and  most  interesting  Plantagenet  Cathedral,  with  twin  spires, 
fine  West  Porch,  domical  roof,  etc.,  no  aisles — the  walls  hung 
with  the  most  quaint  Renaissance  (or  late  Gothic)  tapestries 
representing  the  Apocalypse.  It  is  done  in  large  squares, 
the  ground  of  which  is  alternate  red  and  blue.  It  is  probably 
in  this  manner  that  the  Bayeux  tapestry  used  to  be  hung  in 
the  Cathedral  of  that  town.  We  found  workmen  busy  at  the 
restoration  of  the  Eveche".  Then  walked  about,  hunting  up 
all  the  little  brocanteurs  without  finding  anything.  The  old 
Castle  a  wonderful  relic  with  its  many  massive  towers. 
Altogether  Angers  is  charming. 

20th.  After  some  trouble,  found  the  magnificent  Hall  of 
S.  Jean,  built  by  our  Henry  II.,  quite  the  most  graceful  and 
grand  building  I  ever  saw.  We  returned  to  our  Hotel,  the 
Cheval  Blanc,  by  another  bridge,  taking  St.  Serge  on  our 

312 


i874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

way ;  another  beautiful  Plantagenet  Church.  Witnessed 
there  the  baptism  of  a  three  days  old  baby,  a  very 
slovenly,  hurried,  and  unimpressive  performance.  Some  girls 
practising  some  choruses  in  one  of  the  transepts  with  very 
pretty  effect.  Came  back  by  the  Boulevard  des  Lices,  and 
looked  into  the  Avenue  du  Mail,  also  beautiful.  Part  of 
the  Boulevard  planted  with  rows  of  fine  standard  magnolias, 
of  which  we  saw  large  specimens  in  most  of  the  gardens. 
The  Musee  was  closed  as  we  passed  it. 

2ist.  Went  out  early.  Looked  at  the  marvellous  Norman 
cloister,  at  the  Prefecture,  at  the  interesting  Renaissance 
Hotel  de  Prince,  and  again  tried,  but  without  success,  to  get 
into  the  Musee.  They  were  cleaning,  so  we  could  not  see 
the  water-pot  used  at  the  marriage  of  Cana  of  Galilee.  The 
view  from  the  Terrace  of  the  Castle,  very  good.  One  more 
peep  into  the  grand  Cathedral,  and  then  we  walked  to  the 
train,  by  which,  soon  after  II.,  we  proceeded  to  Saumur. 
Here  we  got  a  little  open  carriage,  and  drove  over  to  Fonitev- 
rault,  to  see  the  tomb  of  Richard  Cceur  de  Lion,  Henry  II.  and 
his  Queen,  and  the  widow  of  King  John.  They  lie  in  a 
Chapel  at  the  East  end  of  the  glorious  old  Church,  which  is 
now  turned  into  a  prison  for  some  1800  convicts.  There  was 
great  ceremony  and  mystery  about  letting  us  into  it ;  we  were 
hurried  in  and  out  of  the  Chapel,  then,  for  a  moment,  into  the 
Renaissance  Chapter  House,  and  we  only  got  a  chance 
glimpse,  en  passant,  through  the  open  door,  of  the  Cloisters. 
Some  prisoners  arrived  while  we  were  there,  and  some  one  in 
authority  was  showing  off  the  lions  to  a  party  of  ladies. 
Our  guide  seemed  in  great  dread  of  meeting  him  ;  the  curious 
kitchen,  somewhat  like,  but  not  nearly  so  picturesque  as  that 
of  Glastonbury.  Went  into  the  old  Church  in  the  village, 
now  used  for  service,  and  a  curious  circular  Chapel  standing 
near  it,  with  a  Louvre  or  Belfry  in  the  roof,  now  used  as  a 

313 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 

store-room  by  some  poor  people,  finely  vaulted  and  worth 
preservation.  On  our  way  back  we  went  to  Candes  to  see 
the  magnificent  north  porch  and  entrance  with  its  lines  of 
statues — most  beautiful.  The  West  door  also  good,  and  the 
whole  Church  very  interesting.  It  contains  the  tomb  and 
effigy  of  St.  Martin  of  Tours.  Note  the  dwellings  in  the  rock 
all  along  this  side  of  the  Loire,  reminding  of  the  Caves  of 
Albacin.  We  got  back  just  in  time  for  an  excellent  table 
d'hote  at  Budeaux's  and  then  walked  across  the  bridge  to  the 
train,  by  which  we  returned  to  Angers.  A  most  charming 
excursion  altogether,  making  us  regret  not  having  time  to  see 
more  of  the  Loire  country. 

22nd.  Up  early  and  travelled  by  express  to  Le  Mans, 
where  we  spent  several  hours.  Left  Dell  and  the  luggage  at 
the  station  and  walked  into  the  town.  We  first  went  into  the 
Church  of  Notre  Dame  de  la  Couture,  which  disappointed  me 
externally,  but  is  fine  inside.  Interesting  choir  and  chapel 
beneath  it.  Next,  to  the  Muse*e  in  the  adjoining  Prefecture, 
where  the  only  object  deserving  attention  is  the  most  curious 
enamel  on  copper  (champ-lev^)  of  Geoffry,  Count  of  Anjou, 
father  of  Henry  II.  It  is  a  small  full  length  in  colours,  of 
beautiful  workmanship,  and  was  formerly  on  his  tomb  in  the 
Cathedral.  We  went  through  a  great  part  of  the  town,  and 
made  various  inquiries  for  curiosities,  but  though  we  found  a 
number  of  little  shops  in  the  Rue  Grande,  there  was  nothing 
in  them.  We  saw  there,  however,  some  curious  old  houses 
with  decorated  fronts.  Last  of  all  we  went  into  the  Cathe- 
dral, which  is  a  crowning  glory  to  our  Western  wanderings. 
I  never  saw  anything,  I  think,  so  fine:  especially  admired 
the  choir  both  inside  and  out.  Tomb  of  Berengaria,  wife  of 
Cceur  de  Lion.  Went  through  the  public  grounds  on  our 
way  back  to  the  station,  where  we  got  some  food  at  the 
buffet,  before  going  on  to  Paris,  where  we  arrived  after 


i874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

10.  o'clock.  We  should  have  liked  to  have  had  a  day  for 
Chartres,  but  as  it  is  so  near  Paris,  we  determined  to  reserve 
it  for  a  special  visit  thence.  We  were  hurrying  to  meet 
Henry  and  Enid,  who  arrived  about  an  hour  after  us 
from  England.  Belard  could  not  take  us  in,  so  we  put  up 
at  the  Hotel  du  Dauphin,  opposite,  where  we  were  very 
comfortable. 

23rd.  Breakfasted  and  dined  at  Belard's  with  the 
Layards.  C.S.  and  I  made  some  explorations,  but  found 
very  little.  In  the  evening  we  all  went  to  the  Gaiete  to  see 
Orf<*e  aux  Enfers,  with  which  I  was  utterly  disgusted  :  what 
is  to  become  of  a  people  who  admit  of  such  horrid  exhibitions  ! 
I  fear  their  example  is  contaminating  our  English  stage.  It 
is  a  large  question.  Would  that  some  powerful  mind  would 
take  it  up ! 

26th.  Went  to  complete  one  or  two  purchases.  The 
weather  has  been  magnificent  these  three  days,  and 
though  we  have  done  miich  on  foot,  we  have  been  glad  to 
take  a  carriage  part  of  the  afternoons.  Driving  about  has 
been  most  delicious.  I  never  saw  Paris  looking  so  beautiful. 
One  day  we  went  and  found  out  Mme.  Beavan  in  a 
Chateau  in  a  large  pleasure  ground,  almost  a  park,  at  the 
Ternes,  just  outside  the  Arc  de  Triomphe.  She  was  just 
moving  into  this  new  house,  so  we  did  not  see  many  things, 
and  made  no  purchases  ;  Paris,  indeed,  has  been  singularly 
infructuous  for  us  this  time.  The  "  world"  is  absent,  so  the 
shops  have  not  laid  in  their  new  stock,  and,  for  the  most 
part,  have  only  goods  remaining  from  last  season.  We  made 
one  acquisition,  however,  which  I  value  much,  viz.  a  watch  in 
an  enamel  case,  gold  figures  on  a  white  ground,  signed  D. 
Cochin.  We  saw  it  in  a  little  shop  (Grisard's)  in  the  Rue  de 
1'Universite,  and  got  it  for  £8.  8.,  which  I  did  not  think  too 
dear ;  it  is  very  beautiful  and  in  perfect  preservation.  It 

315 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 
came  from  the  sale  of  old  Bouvier  of  Amiens,  and  I  have 
often  seen  and  admired  it  in  his  collection.  Bouvier  used  to 
tell  us  that  Cochin  was  enameller  to  Louis  XIV.,  that  his 
pupil's  name  was  Bouvier  (by  whom  we  also  have  a  watch- 
case  signed),  that  the  master  and  pupil  contended  as  to  which 
could  produce  the  finest  work,  and  that  they  both  made  a 
watch  which  they  submitted  to  the  King  for  his  decision  as 
to  their  merits.  He  gave  his  opinion  in  favour  of  Cochin. 
To-day  we  dined  very  luxuriously  at  Champeaux'.  Henry 
and  Enid  dined  with  Lord  Lytton. 

27th.  Up  very  early.  Went  across  to  Belard's,  and 
stayed  with  Henry  and  Enid  till  they  started,  between 
nine  and  ten,  for  Spain.  The  "Fly"  Government  steamer 
was  to  meet  them  at  Bayonne,  to  take  them  to  Santander. 
I  saw  them  depart  with  a  heavy  heart,  dreading  for  them  the 
dangers  of  the  journey,  though,  they  say,  every  precaution  is 
to  be  taken  against  the  interruptions  of  the  Carlists.  Went  for 
a  few  moments,  before  it  closed  at  4,  to  the  Maison  Cluny,  where 
we  found  a  ring  very  nearly  the  duplicate  to  that  we  bought 
at  Auray,  only  not  so  large  and  handsome.  It  is  not  included 
in  the  index,  so  we  could  get  no  account  of  it,  except  that  it 
was  presented  by  some  M.  Labouchere.  Dined  again  at 
Champeaux',  and  went  back  early  to  our  Hotel.  Must  not 
forget  the  pleasure  I  had  in  visiting  the  Exhibition  of 
Costumes,  etc.,  which  was  open  at  the  Palais  de  1' Industrie  ; 
some  of  the  tapestries  wonderful,  and  the  whole  thing  most 
interesting  and  instructive. 

28th.  Left  Paris.  C.S.  and  I  alone  together,  with 
little  luggage.  Through  a  most  interesting  country — 
Epernay,  Chalons  (see  1869),  Commercy,  Bar-le-Duc,  etc.,  to 
Metz,  where  we  arrived  in  the  evening.  Dined  and  went 
to  bed. 

29th.     Spent  the   day  in  lounging  about  Metz,  visiting 

316 


1874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

the  Cathedral,  the  public  gardens,  the  shops,  etc.  Walked 
out  of  the  town  as  on  the  27th  of  March,  returning,  as  then, 
by  the  German  Gate,  etc.,  found  nothing  to  buy.  Table 
d'hote.  The  Hotel  de  1'Europe  is  very  much  deteriorating. 
Since  we  were  there  last  it  has  very  much  changed.  A 
German  waiter  dominates  over  everything,  and  the  French 
landlord  quails  before  him. 

3<Dth.  Early  to  Verdun.  Lounged  pleasantly  through 
the  town,  and  were  amused  by  meeting  two  Italians  leading  a 
bear,  a  camel,  and  a  monkey.  They  made  the  bear  dance, 
and  the  camel  kneel  down.  As  for  the  monkey,  he  performed 
his  antics  spontaneously !  Visited  our  old  friend  Boivin ; 
and  the  collector  M.  Chevance,  but  this  time  we  came  quite 
empty  away.  Mme.  de  Buvigny  was  too  busy  with  her  ven- 
dange  to  show  us  her  porcelain  collection.  By  the  way,  we 
saw  a  very  pretty  vintage  scene  in  the  morning  just  after  we 
left  Metz.  Dined  again  at  the  Trois  Maures,  and  left  Verdun 
by  the  4.30  train  ;  we  had  left  our  little  luggage  at  the  Metz 
station,  where  we  had  time,  and  to  spare,  for  reclaiming  it  and 
for  getting  our  tickets  on  to  Nancy,  at  which  place  we  arrived 
in  the  course  of  the  evening.  Put  up  at  the  Hotel  de  France 
as  before  ;  very  comfortable  house.  We  returned  to  Paris. 

OCTOBER  1874 

PARIS  :  AND  HOME 

October  1st.  After  breakfast  went  to  the  shops.  Called 
on  M.  Goudchaux  Picardy,  and  visited  the  shops.  Found 
only  an  old  French  faience  plaque,  tortoise-shell  ground  with 
green  figure  of  Louis  XIV.  in  high  relief.  We  had  admired 
it  in  the  spring,  and  now  bought  it  (£34.). 

2nd.  Pouring  rain  most  of  the  day.  Went  to  some  shops  ; 
got  a  chatelaine  which  we  had  bought  last  week.  Found  some 

317 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 

enamels  in  the  Rue  de  1'Universite,  and  in  the  Passage  des 
Panoramas,  and  stayed  out  till  dinner-time.  Left  Paris  again 
the  next  morning. 

3rd.  It  was  bright  and  fine  but  a  strong  wind  blew.  At  the 
station  C.S.  got  a  copy  of  the  Times,  and  as  our  train  started 
I  read  the  welcome  news  that  Henry  and  Enid  had  reached 
Madrid  in  safety.  We  travelled  by  the  tidal  service,  taking 
boat  at  Boulogne  for  Folkestone.  We  had  a  tremendously 
rough  passage,  and  the  boat  was  so  full  that  we  had  hardly 
room  to  sit,  much  less  to  lie  down.  C.S.  indeed  had  to  stand 
the  whole  two  hours.  There  was  but  one  comfort,  which  was 
that  the  deck  was  bridged  over,  so  that  we  did  not  get  wet 
from  the  waves  that  dashed  over  the  vessel.  What  with  one 
delay  and  another  it  was  8.  o'clock  before  we  reached  our 
home.  Here  we  have  now  been  above  a  week,  writing 
letters,  paying  bills,  and  settling  matters  generally.  We  have 
gone  the  round  of  the  shops  of  London  and  found  them  to 
contain  very  little.  However,  we  have  picked  up  one  good 
enamel  box,  one  fine  Tassie  head,  of  Dr.  Isaac  Gosset,  one 
curious  old  flower  pot  of  Fulham  Ware,  and  one  small 
Chelsea  seal  of  a  peacock ;  very  good  chasse  for  one  week. 


318 


NOTES  CERAMIC 

OCTOBER  TO  NOVEMBER  1874 

OSTEND  :  BRUSSELS  :  ANTWERP  :  THE  HAGUE  :  ROTTERDAM  : 
AMSTERDAM  :  GOUDA :  UTRECHT:  KAMPEN  :  ZWOLLE  :  LEEU- 
WARDEN  :  HARLINGEN  :  GRONINGEN  :  ZUTPHEN  :  DEVENTER  : 

ARNHEM:  DELFT 
I874. 

Tuesday,  I3th.  Left  London  from  the  Charing  Cross 
station  at  7.40.  for  Dover,  Travelled  in  company  with  Sir 
Tatton  and  Lady  Sykes  (Jessica),  who  delighted  me  with  an 
account  of  the  ceramic  and  other  treasures  she  had  found  (care- 
fully packed  away)  in  her  new  home  ;  suites  of  nine  Worcester 
vases,  Chelsea  inkstands,  Wedgwood  lamps,  whole  "collec- 
tions of  coins  wrapped  up  in  newspapers  of  1792,  and 
many  other  things ;  they  had  never  been  disturbed  since 
that  date.  Immediately  on  reaching  Dover  our  boat  started 
for  Ostend,  and  I  had  a  little  alarm,  though  only  momen- 
tary, the  maid  having  managed  to  be  missing  for  an  instant, 
and  C.S.  having  been  nearly  left  behind  in  his  search  for  her. 
But  the  engine  was  stopped  for  a  second  and  his  activity 
averted  the  mischance,  otherwise  it  would  have  been  a  bad 
start.  As  it  was,  nothing  could  be  more  propitious  than  the 
day.  We  had  the  most  glorious  weather ;  the  sea  was  as 
glass,  and  the  sun  so  hot  that  I  was  glad  to  go  below  for 
awhile  to  be  sheltered  from  it.  This  after  the  rain  and  wind 
and  storms  of  the  past  week  in  London  was  all  the  more 
delightful.  I  read  Freeman's  Normandy  and  dropped  asleep 
for  a  short  time,  for  I  had  been  up  early  and  had  not  had 
many  hours'  rest  the  preceding  night.  When  we  neared  the 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 

land  C.S.  called  me  and  we  went  up  and  sat  on  the  bridge  of 
the  steamer,  and  watched  our  entrance  into  Ostend.  All  the 
coast  though  not  bold  is  very  interesting,  and  full  of  associa- 
tions. We  had,  as  usual,  to  wait  nearly  an  hour  at  Ostend, 
and  then  we  took  our  places  in  the  railway  and  went  on  to 
Brussels,  passing  through  Bruges  and  Ghent,  all  the  country 
looking  lovely  on  that  lovely  afternoon.  We  arrived  in  good 
time  for  dinner — Hotel  Mengelle,  where  we  have  the  old 
apartment  of  August  twelvemonth.  I  should  have  noted  that 
in  going  through  Ashford  we  saw  the  station,  etc.,  decked  with 
flags  and  flowers  in  expectation  of  the  Duke  and  Duchess  of 
Edinburgh's  arrival. 

I4th.  A  long  round  among  the  Brussels  shops.  We  had 
commenced  operations  the  previous  evening  by  walking  out 
after  dinner  and  calling  at  Papillon's,  where,  however,  we 
found  no  mezzotints  awaiting  us.  As  we  passed  down  the 
Montaigne  de  la  Cour  we  found  the  Slaes  Brothers  catalogu- 
ing the  stock  of  old  Del  Hougue,  who  is  going  out  of  business. 
Slaes  showed  us,  at  his  own  place,  an  enamel  plaque,  subject 
Edwin  and  Angelina,  signed  Birch,  1783,  in  bad  style  and  to 
us  of  no  value,  price  £60 !  This  (Wednesday)  morning  we 
began  our  chasse  at  Marynen's,  where  we  were  tempted  to 
invest  in  some  Oriental  plates,  with  humorous  figures  and 
inscriptions  in  Dutch.  C.S.  thinks  more  highly  of  them  than 
I  do.  They  are  doubtless  curious  and  might  be  cared  for  in 
Holland,  but  they  have  no  art  value,  and  do  not  harmonise 
much  with  our  Collection.  This  was  C.S.'s  purchase. 
[These  are  illustrated  here.]  I  plead  guilty  to  finding 
out  an  old  Vernis  decorated  clock  and  bracket,  for  which 
we  paid  an  equal  sum  (£6.  8.)  and  which  I  hope  will  prove 
an  ornament  to  our  dining-room  when  Chance  has  had 
it  under  his  hands.  Beyond  this  we  only  found  a  white 
Tournai  group,  good  but  imperfect.  Next  at  old  Craenen's, 

320 


FOUR   PLATES   OF  ORIENTAL   PORCELAIN  DECORATED   TO    PLEASE  THE  EUROPEAN  TASTE 
Lord  irimbornes  Collection 


1874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

which  is  becoming  more  a  rubbish-shop  than  ever,  a  small 
b^nitier  in  blue  and  white,  remarkable  because  it  is  made  of 
English  Ware.  Next  to  Handelaar's,  who  showed  us  some 
sets  of  Oriental  vases  very,  very  fine,  but  of  course  expensive  : 
he  had  a  pair  of  very  fine  Chelsea  figures  also,  of  the  model 
which  is  generally  considered  to  represent  King  Lear.  The 
price  he  asked  was  £40,  and  not  being  perfect,  we  thought 
them  much  too  dear,  but  he  had  a  small  Chelsea-Derby  figure 
of  Winter  (the  boy  carrying  sticks)  of  beautiful  quality,  which 
we  bought  for  £7.  From  Handelaar's  we  went  on  to  Polonet's, 
who  has  changed  his  shop  from  Rue  des  Lombards  to  the  Rue 
Gre"ty.  The  shop  was  very  smart,  full  of  showy  things  at 
grand  prices,  but  nothing  to  our  taste,  and  after  examining 
(as  we  thought)  everything,  we  were  just  leaving  it  with  civil 
speeches  and  [no  purchases,  when  I  happened  to  look  up 
at  a  high  shelf  and  there  I  spied  the  lost  and  much-lamented 
Rouen  gourd-shaped  bottle,  whose  very  history  is  a  romance, 
and  must  be  written  here  at  full  length  some  other  day<  Our 
delight  knew  no  bounds,  and  so  we  gave  him  nearly  all  he  asked 
—40.  francs — and  carried  it  triumphantly  away.  Polonet  told 
us  it  was  some  German  Ware  !  We  went  on  from  here  to 
our  old  friend  Genie  in  his  cellar  in  the  Rue  1'Eveque.  He 
showed  us  a  broken  Palissy  dish  for  £80,  but,  had  nothing 
very  tempting  in  our  line ;  more  to  compliment  the  old  man 
than  anything  else,  however,  we  took  two  pieces  of  English 
Ware,  decorated  in  Holland,  which  cost  us  14  francs.  It 
happened  that  an  amateur  was  sitting  by  at  the  time,  and  he 
remarked  that  the  decoration  was  by  Turner,  brother  of  the 
English  potter,  who  settled  at  Delft,  and  imported  much  of 
the  English  Ware  to  sell  and  ornament.  On  further  conversa- 
tion we  found  that  this  gentleman  was  a  large  collector.  He 
gave  us  his  name  as  Baron  de  Wykerslooth,  73  Rue  de  la 
Loi,  and  promised  to  show  us  his  collection  on  our  return  to 
i  321  x 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 
Brussels.  C.S.  then  showed  him  our  bottle,  which  he  at  once 
exclaimed  to  be  by  the  celebrated  Italian  decorator  of  Rouen 
Ware,  Denys  Dorio.  He  congratulated  us  on  the  acquisition, 
telling  us  the  only  specimens  of  the  kind  he  had  ever  seen 
were  those  in  the  Mus^eat  Rouen.  Our  only  other  visit  was 
to  Stroobant's,  who  had  no  Chelsea  figures  for  us  this  time, 
but  we  bought  a  pretty,  small  Tassie  head  of  Frederic  the 
Great,  which  is  an  addition  to  the  gems  we  already  possess. 
Cools  Thyssen  had  nothing.  After  dinner  we  went  out 
again  ;  paid  for  our  purchases  at  Marynen's  and  Handelaar's. 
I5th.  The  weather  yesterday  had  been  glorious.  This 
morning  there  was  a  little  rain,  but  it  had  cleared  off  by  the 
time  we  got  to  Antwerp,  for  which  place  we  had  started  soon 
after  9.  Left  maid  and  luggage  at  the  station  and  drove 
into  the  town.  We  hoped  that  Tessaro  might  have  had  some 
mezzotints  for  us,  but  we  were  disappointed ;  nor  was  there 
anything  at  the  china  shops,  Van  Herck's  and  Moxen's.  We 
went  on  to  Terbruggen's  in  search  of  Eva  Krug.  They 
have  changed  their  abode  from  Rue  des  Sceurs  Noires  to  the 
Rue  Durlet,  not  very  far  from  the  station.  Eva  had  just 
arranged  her  stores;  we  did  not  buy  anything  but  settled 
accounts  with  her  satisfactorily,  and  left  her  a  few  of  our 
weedings,  things  which  find  no  resting-place  in  our  Collec- 
tion, for  her  to  dispose  of.  We  walked  back  to  the  town  to 
try  and  see  old  Haert,  but  he  was  not  at  home.  It  was  a 
brisk  pleasant  walk,  the  weather  very  hot.  Returning,  we 
passed  through  the  Bourse,  a  busy  scene  in  a  fine  building ; 
modern.  We  dined  at  the  little  Restaurant  near  the  station, 
and  at  3.40.  went  on  to  The  Hague.  Again  a  most  beautiful 
journey.  Such  a  sunlight  over  Breda,  and  all  the  landscapes, 
and  the  young  moon  with  one  bright  star  shining,  as  we  went 
over  the  wonderful  Mordyke  Bridge.  All  most  lovely.  Got 
to  the  Hotel  Paulez  before  9. 

322 


1874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

i6th.     We  had  written  to  say  we  should  be  at  Rotterdam 
to-day,  so  we  got  up  very  early  and  were  at  the  Rhin  Spoor 
station  by  9.    We  spent  an  hour,  en  route,  at  Gouda;  bought 
a  small  image  of  a  dog  in  ware  at  Cohen's,  but  could  do 
nothing  at  Pavoordt's,  because  the  old  man  was  out,  and  the 
son  knew  none  of  the  prices,  and,  moreover,  had  not  the  key 
to  show  us  into    the  best  Ware  room.     Walked  from  the 
station  to  the  Hang.      Van   Minden  was  at  his  warehouse 
(Packhouse)  so  we  followed  him  there,  and  having  brought 
away  a  shell  tea-pot,  we  returned  with  him  to  the  shop.     He 
had  put  aside  for  us  since  the  summer,  two  Oriental  plates, 
painted  with  a  figure  of  George  II.  on  horseback,  brandishing 
his  sword  over  a  prostrate  wounded  foe.     They  are  inscribed 
with  his  name,  are  highly  gilt  and  enamelled,  and  are  very 
curious  and  effective.     We  bought  one  of  them,  for  which  we 
paid  dear,  £7.  7.     He  had  obtained  this  from  a  "  Prediger" 
of  whom  he  could  not  recall  the  name,  and  at  the  same  time 
he  got  of  him  a  gold  watch  which  he  showed  us  and  which 
took  m}r  fancy  very  much,  far  more  than  did  the  Oriental 
plate.     The  work  of  the  watch  in  the  inner  part  of  the  case, 
in  the  inner  case,  was  exquisite ;  covering  the  works  was  a 
sort  of  movable  cap,  on  which  were  engraved  the  Arms  of 
England,  quartering  the   Fleurs-de-lys,  and  surmounted  by 
the  Crown.     Evidently  the  watch  had  been  a  Royal  present, 
the  maker's  name,    "  Godfrey,    London ".     The  whole   was 
enclosed  in  a  shagreen  outer  case,  the  back  of  which  had 
gold    let   in  to  show  the  beauty  of  the   goldsmith's   work 
beneath.     Taking  it  with  other  things,  we  got  it  for  £16.  16., 
which  was  a  great  sum,   but   I    believe  much  less  than  its 
worth.     A  Chelsea-Derby  figure,  an  enamel    flacon,   and  a 
small  seal  completed  our  purchases.     We  came  away  feeling 
rather  ruined,  but  content.     Called  at  Van  der  Pluyne's.     He 
is  to  try  and  get  us  figures  from  Amsterdam,  but  has  nothing 

323 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 

at  present.  At  Kryser's  we  saw  some  horn  boxes  that  we 
fancied,  but  he  was  out,  and  his  wife  knew  nothing  about  the 
business.  We  took  a  train  back  to  The  Hague  at  2. 15-,  called 
at  de  Maan's,  in  the  Spui,  at  Dirksen's,  at  Van  Gelder's ;  the 
latter  has  a  large  Tiger  Ware  Cruche,  with  Arms  of  England, 
and  date  1604.,  which  we  are  contemplating  the  possession 
of.  We  believe  it  genuine,  but  first  want  a  better  opinion. 
Through  the  Gedempte  Gracht,  where  the  Jews  swarm. 
Schaak  was  out,  but  we  met  de  Maan,  who  promised  to  bring 
something  to  show  us  to-morrow  morning. 

I7th.  Accordingly  he  appeared  while  we  were  at  break- 
fast, bringing  with  him  a  large  and  very  perfect  Chelsea- 
Derby  figure  of  Time  clipping  Love's  wings ;  the  colour 
rather  weak,  but  the  modelling  very  good.  It  belonged  to  a 
lady  who  was  said  to  be  willing,  though  not  anxious  to  sell. 
She  asked  £80.  for  the  figure,  or  £100.  for  it  and  a  small 
double  group  of  Armida  in  Derby-Chelsea.  We  had  only  to 
express  our  thanks  and  decline.  Went  out  to  hunt ;  Munchen 
was  out.  We  looked  all  over  Dirksen's  stock.  He  has  only 
one  etui,  turquoise  enamel,  which  may  suit  us.  Then  to  the 
Bisschop's  whom  we  found  at  home,  and  with  whom  we  sat 
a  very  long  time.  They  had  recently  been  in  Friesland,  and 
have  brought  home  many  pretty  and  curious  things.  Arranged 
to  go  with  them  to  Rotterdam  on  Monday,  to  look  at  a 
picture  which  we  saw  Kryser  carrying  through  the  streets 
when  we  got  back  to  The  Hague  on  the  previous  day,  and 
which  seemed  to  us  worth  inquiring  about.  Called  at  old  de 
Maan's  to  see  some  things  he  had  lately  brought  from  the 
country.  There  were  only  two  sauce  boats,  and  a  small 
ornament  in  Dresden  china,  for  which  he  had  the  conscience 
to  ask  above  £100.,  but  the  ideas  the  Dutch  have  formed  now 
of  prices  is  ridiculous.  We  hear  that  the  celebrated  Worcester 
service  at  Utrecht,  which  we  saw  two  years  ago,  consisting  of 

32,4 


1874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

75  pieces,  is  now  valued  by  the  "  deux  demoiselles  "  to  whom 
it  belongs  at  £1250 !  They  are  not  likely  to  get  any  such 
sum.  We  would  rather  have  their  four  Chelsea  figures  of  the 
Seasons  ;  but  of  that  I  fear  there  is  not  any  chance  ;  however, 
de  Maan  is  to  inquire.  We  called  to-day  at  de  Visser's.  We 
were  received  by  him,  as  usual,  in  the  dressing-gown,  and  were 
right  glad  to  find  the  little  "  Commis "  reinstalled.  De 
Visser  was  full  of  the  successful  sales  he  had  made  for  Dr. 
Van  der  Willigen  at  Haarlem  of  prints,  drawings,  Delft,  etc., 
and  he  had  no  mezzotints  for  us.  Wrote  our  names  down  in 
the  Queen's  book  at  the  Palace  (she  is  just  starting  for 
Switzerland),  and  called  in  at  the  little  Jew's  in  the  Zee 
Straat,  and  at  Tennyssen's,  but  bought  nothing.  Back  for 
dinner  rather  late,  but  the  weather  was  so  charming  that  we 
forgot  our  table  d'hote  was  at  5. 

l8th.  Called  on  Mr.  Kanitz,  who  is  not  yet  in  town,  then 
walked  for  about  an  hour  in  the  Bosch.  To  Church  at  3, 
after  which  we  rambled  about  the  town  till  dinner-time: 
We  bought  Bulwer's  Harold^  in  the  Tauchnitz  Edition,  at 
Brussels,  and  I  am  reading  it  with  great  pleasure.  It 
harmonises  well  with  our  study  of  Freeman's  Normandy. 

igth.  Out  early  and  took  a  long  walk  all  about  The  Hague 
finishing  our  visits  to  the  shops.  We  did  not  find  many 
things,  but  at  Dirksen's  we  bought  a  turquoise  enamel  £tui, 
very  good  (£4.) ;  at  Van  Gelder's  a  grand  old  cruche  of  Tiger 
Ware,  with  Royal  Arms  of  England,  and  date  1604,  which 
M.  Bisschop  pronounced  to  be  perfectly  genuine.  At  Mun- 
chen's  a  little  transfer-printed  box,  and  one  or  two  trifles  at 
Isaacson's.  The  weather  was  not  good ;  we  had  frequent 
little  showers,  and  in  the  afternoon  it  grew  worse.  We  had 
an  engagement  to  go  to  Rotterdam  with  M.  Bisschop  to  look 
at  a  picture  which  we  had  seen  Kryser  carrying  about  the 
streets  when  we  returned  to  The  Hague  on  Friday  afternoon. 

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LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 
It  seemed  to  us  very  good  and  we  wanted  to  have  another 
look  at  it.  We  took  a  train  together  at  4,  and  returned  before 
7,  but  were  disappointed  of  our  errand  as  Kryser  was  not  at 
home.  However,  we  were  consoled  by  a  nice  little  purchase 
of  three  Chelsea- Derby  figures  at  Van  Minden's  for  £10.  We 
also  got  at  Kryser's  two  horn  boxes  with  moulded  subjects, 
one  of  them  signed  lA.Col.  We  stopped  on  our  way  from 
the  station  to  call  at  M.  Bisschop's,  and  dined  on  our  return 
at  the  Hotel. 

20th.  Up  early.  Walked  to  the  Hollandische  station 
and  so,  soon  after  9,  to  Amsterdam.  Amsterdam  looked 
quite  its  best.  We  went  to  all  the  old  appointed  shops,  and 
did  our  long  day's  work  very  comfortably,  dining  at  the 
Brack's  Doelen,  and  returning  by  9.  to  our  Hotel.  All  this 
was  very  charming,  but  we  spent  a  lot  of  money,  some  of  the 
pieces  being  very  fine !  Ganz,  Van  Galen,  Moesel,  Hyman, 
had  nothing  for  us  (except  at  Ganz's  a  very  small  enamel  box). 
Blitz  had  a  lovely  snuff  box,  but  wanted  £5  for  it.  Nothing 
at  Buffa's,  or  the  old  man  near  the  Vysselgracht.  Our  chief 
purchases  were  with  the  Speyers  and  Boasberg.  At  Speyer's 
two  little  figures  and  an  enamel,  etc.  At  Boasberg's  three 
fine  pieces  of  enamel,  and  Chelsea  smelling  bottle,  and  a  seal. 
We  also  got  a  trifle  at  Van  Houtum's,  and  a  bonbonniere 
imitating  a  watch  at  Kalb  and  Soujet's.  Everything  is  tre- 
mendously dear,  but  for  enamels  there  is  no  place  like 
Holland ;  one  finds  the  most  unusual  types  and  in  the  most 
exquisite  condition. 

2lst.  We  set  out  this  morning  for  North  Holland — a 
journey  we  planned  to  take  last  year  when  the  weather  pre- 
vented us.  This  time  we  were  not  much  more  fortunate,  for 
it  rained  before  we  got  as  far  as  Gouda.  There  we  stopped 
nearly  two  hours  and  bought  a  few  things  of  old  Pavoordt  ; 
then  we  went  on  to  Utrecht,  remaining  there  till  a  quarter  to 

326 


1874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

six.  The  weather  now  became  dreadful.  Found  but  little  to 
buy;  nothing  at  Van  Gorkum's,  but  he  settled  our  old 
account.  At  a  little  shop,  Costa's,  we  got  a  curious 
printed  fan  with  lines  on  the  death  (supposed)  of  the 
Duke  of  Marlborough,  and  a  bad  miniature  of  De  Witt. 
At  the  other  Costa's,  in  Elizabeth  Straat,  a  little  metal 
writing-box  of  the  last  century,  pretty  but  dear  at  £2., 
and  this  man  then  took  us  upstairs  and  showed  us  in 
strict  confidence,  three  beautiful  figures  of  females  holding 
shells,  one  of  them  curiously  marked  with  a  crescent  in 
blue,  which  we  assumed  to  be  Worcester.  He  said  that 
he  got  them  from  a  noble  family  for  a  "bagatelle"  and 
now  asks  £100.  for  them.  The  Dutch  have  gone  mad  in 
their  estimate  of  English  figures.  After  all  our  chasse  we 
went  to  the  Bellevue  and  got  our  dinner  at  the  4.30.  table 
d'hote,  before  proceeding  by  the  train  to  Zwolle.  We  are 
very  comfortably  installed  at  the  Keyser's  Kroon.  C.S.  has 
been  washing  up  this  morning's  purchases,  which  I  am  less 
pleased  with  than  I  expected  to  be. 

22nd.  We  went  off  this  morning  by  train  to  Kampen,  at 
the  distance  of  half  an  hour  from  Zwolle  ;  a  delightful  old 
town  standing  on  the  edge  of  the  water.  We  had  not  much 
more  than  an  hour  to  stop  there  before  the  train  returned  to 
Zwolle,  but  we  made  the  most  of  our  time.  We  ran  across 
the  bridge  which  connects  the  railway  with  the  town,  and 
soon  found  ourselves  at  the  curious  old  Staathuis,  which  we 
went  over ;  the  principal  room  has  an  ancient  fireplace  and 
some  finely  carved  stalls  for  the  officials  (Renaissance).  We 
were  shown  some  last  century  (1767)  Oriental  china,  and 
some  finely  modelled  chalices,  with  "Wassen"  of  Kampen. 
Reaching  Zwolle  again  after  this  charming  little  excursion, 
we  walked  back  from  the  railway  to  the  town,  and  explored 
such  curiosity  shops  as  had  been  mentioned  to  us  without 

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LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 

finding  anything.  Went  into  the  Church,  where  there  is  a 
good  Chancel  Screen,  a  fine  Organ,  and  a  beautiful  pulpit, 
carved  in  oak  by  Adam  Straes,  1620.  While  there  a  storm 
of  thunder  and  lightning  came  on,  and  we  had  to  wait  some 
time  before  we  could  leave  the  Church,  to  inquire  something 
about  a  most  interesting  old  house,  with  an  effigy  of  a  Moor's, 
or  Barbary,head !  [The  Lindsey  arms;  hence  Lady  Charlotte's 
interest  in  the  matter.]  I  should  have  liked  to  have  seen  more 
of  Zwolle.  Its  situation  on  the  Black  Water  is  very  pretty,  but 
the  weather  now  forbade  further  researches.  The  gateway 
one  passes  on  the  way  to  the  railway  station  is  old  and  very 
picturesque.  We  dined  about  8.  o'clock,  went  on  (changing 
at  Meppel)  to  Leeuwarden,  which  we  reached  about  10. 
o'clock.  Doelen  Hotel. 

23rd.  Very  comfortable  apartments  on  the  ground  floor. 
Before  I  was  up  I  was  startled  with  a  discharge  of  water 
against  my  windows,  and  looking  out  saw  two  beings  in 
bright  metal  helmets  superintending  the  operation.  It  might 
have  been  a  conflagration  which  firemen  were  extinguishing, 
but  it  was  only  the  washing  of  the  Hotel  by  means  of  a  squirt, 
directed  by  the  female  servants  in  their  golden  head-dresses  ! 
After  breakfast  we  went  out  with  a  guide  to  see  the  town. 
Being  Market  day,  the  place  was  very  busy  and  the  female 
part  of  the  population  appeared  in  all  their  provincial  jewellery. 
We  went  through  all  the  markets,  including  the  new  beast 
market,  which  is  on  a  very  large  scale.  Numbers  of  cattle, 
butter,  etc.,  are  sent  from  this  place  to  England.  It  was 
altogether  a  very  busy  scene.  The  curiosity  shops  were  not 
productive.  We  got  one  little  stoneware  tea-pot,  very 
imperfect,  at  Huisinga's.  With  some  difficulty  we  got 
admission  to  the  Muse"e  :  we  had  to  go  to  the  Library  for 
permission,  as  it  was  not  a  public  day.  The  Librarian  very 
kindly  went  back  with  us  to  the  Mus£e,  and  took  us  in  and 

328 


1874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

showed  us  everything,  which  was  not  very  much.  One  of  the 
most  interesting  things  that  I  saw  there  was  a  rude  cart- 
wheel, dug  up  seven  feet  below  the  surface.  It  had  been  put 
together  with  the  bark  on  the  wood,  a  portion  of  which  still 
adhered  to  it.  This,  and  a  sculpture  of  the  Trinity,  of 
Byzantine  work,  built  into  the  outer  wall  of  the  East  end  of 
the  Church  at  Zwolle,  are  two  of  the  most  ancient  things  I 
have  observed  in  Holland. 

24th.  Went  by  train  to  Harlingen,  where  we  got  two 
hours  and  a  half  to  see  the  town.  Going  into  a  jeweller's 
shop  to  buy  a  small  instrument  for  knitting-pins,  we  were 
accosted  by  a  boy  who  spoke  very  respectable  English.  He 
acted  as  our  interpreter,  and  volunteered  to  show  us  about  the 
town.  He  showed  us  the  new  pier  and  harbour,  and  we 
walked  along  Robles'  dyke,  to  the  James-like  monument 
which  the  people  of  the  place  put  up  in  his  garden,  which  is 
an  eminence  quite  remarkable  for  Holland.  On  our  way 
back  to  the  railway  station,  our  young  guide  took  us  to 
show  us  his  father,  a  worthy  dealer  in  clothes  named 
Leeksma,  who  politely  offered  to  treat  us  to  some  gin,  which 
we,  as  politely,  declined.  The  only  antiquaire  in  the  town  was 
a  Jew  named  De  Jonge,  but  being  Saturday,  he  would  not 
even  allow  us  to  look  at  his  stock.  Parting  from  our  intelligent 
young  conductor,  we  went  on  by  a  train  at  1.30.  to  Franeker, 
where  we  spent  some  4  hours.  In  the  town  we  visited  the 
most  curious  and  picturesque  Town  Hall  (end  of  the  i6th 
century,  and  very  good).  The  Maria  Schurman  Collection  is, 
to  me,  rather  a  mystery ;  I  have  yet  to  learn  who  she  was  and 
what  she  did.  We  went  also  into  the  Planetarium.  Then  we 
walked  all  about  the  town,  remarked  an  old  building  with 
a  curious  painted  effigy,  and  took  a  long  stroll  on  the 
Boulevards  which  are  prettily  planted  with  trees.  It  was  a 
very  pleasant  day,  warmer  and  calm,  not  a  breath  of  wind,  but 

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LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 
rather  a  leaden  sky.  We  knew  that  the  storm  had  raged  very 
furiously  in  these  parts  on  Wednesday,  some  part  of  the  pier 
at  Harlingen  having  been  damaged  by  it.  We  had  finished 
our  survey  of  Franeker  for  an  hour  before  the  train  started  to 
take  us  back  to  Leeuwarden,  so  we  waited  in  the  station.  Got 
back  about  six.  Dined  at  a  little  table  (table  d'hote  being 
over)  and  in  the  evening  went  to  Groningen,  where  we 
arrived  about  II.  Doelen  Hotel.  Some  difficulty  about 
accommodation,  but  we  managed  at  last. 

25th.  Spent  the  whole  day  at  Groningen,  a  most  charm- 
ing old  town,  of  which  the  earthworks  of  the  fortifications 
still  remain  intact.  We  took  a  very  long  walk  outside  the 
town,  and  in  fact  made  the  whole  circuit  of  it,  outside  the 
walls.  Some  part  of  our  walk  was  through  the  meadows  and 
we  had  hurdles,  gates,  and  planks  across  watercourses  to 
encounter,  but  we  surmounted  all,  and  enjoyed  the  excursion 
immensely.  In  one  point,  where  the  river  enters,  we  had  to 
go  back  into  the  town  to  find  a  bridge,  but  having  accomplished 
this  we  returned  to  our  course,  and  walked  on  till  we  came 
to  the  point  leading  to  the  Steerebosche,  which  we  visited. 
It  is  a  beautiful  wood  artificially  planted  and  laid  out  with 
great  taste. 

26th.  Went  into  the  old  Church,  and  to  the  two  curiosity 
shops,  where  we  made  some  small  purchases,  and  by  2.30. 
went  on  by  train  to  Zutphen.  The  first  part  of  the  route 
rather  barren  and  swampy,  better  as  we  advanced.  We  did 
not  get  to  Zutphen  till  near  7.  We  put  up  at  the  Keyser's 
Kroon,  where  we  had  a  charming  apartment  (two  bedrooms 
opening  on  to  a  large  salon,  like  the  scene  in  Fra  Diavold) 
but  unfortunately  a  very  meagre  dinner,  for  the  table  d'hote 
had  been  long  since  over,  and  there  appeared  to  be  little  to 
eat  left  in  the  Hotel.  However,  we  slept  soundly  after  it, 
notwithstanding  the  beautiful  chimes  which  sounded  every 

330 


i874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

half-hour.  At  the  half-hour  they  play  a  tune  with  which  I 
am  very  familiar,  and  which  they  tell  me  is  called  "  Blau  sind 
die  Bliimlein  ".  The  chimes  in  several  places  have  given  me 
pleasure,  even  though  they  are  not  in  the  best  order,  but 
these  of  Zutphen  have  pleased  me  most. 

27th.  Our  landlord,  speaking  a  little  English  and  being 
a  very  accommodating  man,  took  us  himself  to  show  us  the 
town.  We  went  first  to  a  neighbouring  Jew  (Vredenberg) 
who  had  a  little  very  bad  china.  While  we  were  with  him  a 
truck  came  up  to  his  door,  bearing  a  last  century  meuble, 
covered  with  some  very  effective  mounts — C.S.  says  the 
scene  was  very  amusing  when  he  came  out  of  the  shop,  and 
found  me  in  the  street  examining  the  meuble  and  surrounded 
by  a  group  of  inquisitive  little  boys,  a  tall  policeman  superin- 
tending us  all.  It  ended  in  the  Jew  asking  30  gulden  for 
the  mounts,  and  our  making  a  counter  offer  which  he  refused, 
but  before  we  left  the  town  he  brought  them  to  the  Hotel, 
and  we  gave  him  20  gulden  for  them.  They  seem  to  me  very 
good,  but  I  have  yet  to  get  knowledge  on  this  branch  of  art ; 
at  all  events,  they  are  pretty.  But,  to  return  to  our  walk. 
We  went  to  see  the  Church  but  failed  to  gain  admittance. 
The  custodian  was  away,  so  we  contented  ourselves  with 
looking  at  the  outside,  which  has  striking  points.  We  then 
went  to  the  building  with  the  chimes,  where  the  archives  are 
kept.  There  are  some  curious  things  in  it.  Letters  with 
paintings  in  them,  representing  their  purport ;  some  old  silver 
maces,  or  wands  of  office,  etc.  ;  in  a  corner  I  saw,  with 
dismay,  a  common  deal  box  with  no  lid,  and  a  large  rubbish 
basket  full  of  old  parchment  deeds,  with  grand  old  seals 
affixed.  Of  course  I  could  be  no  judge  of  what  they  were, 
or  of  what  value,  but  I  am  sure  they  are  worthy  of  better 
treatment  than  they  receive,  and  I  should  be  curious  to 
inquire  more  about  them  if  I  could  make  acquaintance  with 

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some  learned  man  on  returning  to  The  Hague.  We  concluded 
our  ramble  by  a  hurried  walk  along  the  ramparts,  commanding 
charming  views  into,  and  about,  the  town,  and  passing  a 
delicious  old  octagonal  brick  tower,  and  some  remains  of  the 
old  walls.  The  trees  and  avenues  most  beautiful ;  and 
Zutphen  altogether,  one  of  the  places  we  have  been  most 
pleased  with  in  all  our  travels.  The  day  was  very  fine. 
At  12.30.  we  took  a  train  back  to  Deventer,  which  we  had 
passed  through  the  previous  evening,  and  spent  there  above 
a  couple  of  hours  with  great  pleasure.  We  walked  into  the 
town.  There  is,  in  the  principal  place,  a  gateway  (i7th 
century)  to  an  ancient  cloister,  and  in  the  middle  of  it  a 
remarkable  building,  dated  1528  in  one  part,  the  portico  and 
stair  of  approach,  1643.  It  is  undergoing  repair :  near  this 
is  the  house  of  the  Three  Golden  Herrings,  so  named  in  the 
inscription,  which  is  dated  1575,  and  on  which  we  see  the 
three  golden  herrings  duly  sculptured.  There  are  several 
other  old  houses  about  the  town,  chiefly  of  the  end  of  the  I7th 
century,  and  we  discovered  an  old  round  tower  of  brick,  and 
another  plastered  over  and  disguised  in  the  old  wall  (now 
built  into  houses)  near  the  river — the  Yssel.  We  went  into 
the  Church,  which  is  the  finest  we  have  seen  in  Holland.  It 
is  very  fine  indeed,  but,  as  usual,  sadly  disfigured  with  white- 
wash. The  crypt  has  six  old  circular  columns,  four  with 
spiral,  and  two  with  floral  decorations,  the  latter  imitating 
the  bark  of  a  date-palm,  I  think.  The  vaulting  is  early 
(what  we  should  call  Norman)  nth  century.  Opposite  the 
Church  is  the  Town  Hall,  where  we  saw  a  large  picture  of 
Terburg's  with  portraits  of  the  Burgomasters  of  the  time  : 
good  I7th  century  doors,  the  Library,  etc.  The  building 
itself  is  large  and  ugly.  Walked  back  to  the  train,  having 
also  looked  in  at  the  two  curiosity  shops,  which  are  very 
bad,  and  got  to  Arnhem  at  6  o'clock  Hotel  De  Zon, 

332 


i874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

which  we  have  all  to  ourselves,  the  season  being  over :  very 
comfortable. 

28th.  The  very  loveliest  autumn  day  I  ever  remember ; 
a  cloudless  sky  and  a  warm  brilliant  sun,  without  a  breath  of 
wind ;  we  thoroughly  enjoyed  it.  Went  out  at  II.,  walked 
about  till  2.30.  Tried  to  find  curiosity  shops.  Abercrombie 
(a  sort  of  Howell  and  James)  is  a  humbug  with  a  host  of 
contrefagons.  The  three  Cohens  are  little  dealers  of  the 
lowest  grade,  so  we  found  nothing.  We  were  told  that  a 
Mme.  du  Tousse  had  a  Collection  which  was  shown  to  the 
public,  so  we  walked  on  with  a  guide  to  her  house,  which  is 
in  the  pretty  suburb  of  Velp.  She  is,  I  believe,  sister  and 
successor  of  Count  Hardenbruck,  now  in  a  madhouse,  whose 
chateau  and  collection  we  went  to  see  some  five  years  ago. 
The  chateau  is  now  sold,  and  of  the  things  she  has  preserved, 
only  the  pictures  seemed  to  us  of  any  account ;  they  are 
French  family  portraits  of  the  time  of  Louis  XIV.  The 
china  is  rubbish,  but  we  did  not  see  it  all.  We  returned  to 
our  Hotel,  passing  the  Chateau  of  Count  Von  Pahland.  All 
very  pretty.  Then  we  got  an  open  carriage,  and  from  3.  to 
4.30.  drove  about  the  neighbourhood,  and  getting  the  most 
charming  views  over  the  town,  the  Rhine,  the  meadows, 
woods,  etc.  It  was  very  delightful,  this  lovely  and  peaceful 
day  at  Arnhem.  We  had  written  to  de  Maan  to  meet  us 
here,  as  he  told  us  that  he  knew  of  a  lady  here  who  wanted 
to  sell  some  Chelsea  figures  ;  but  he  never  appeared.  Table 
d'hote  at  4.30.  at  which  we  were  alone. 

2Qth.  We  took  a  10.40.  train,  and  before  we  got  to 
Utrecht  the  sun  had  come  out,  and  we  had,  if  possible,  a 
more  lovely  day  than  yesterday.  We  left  our  parcels  at  the 
station,  and  went  into  the  town,  which  we  reached  at  mid- 
day. First  of  all  we  visited  the  shops,  with  small  results,  and 
that  profitless  but  necessary  duty  fulfilled,  we  took  the  rest  of 

333 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 

the  day  to  enjoy  ourselves.  I  always  loved  Utrecht  with  its 
grand  old  tower  and  clustering  trees,  but  I  never  before  knew 
how  truly  beautiful  it  was.  We  walked  all  round  the  Boule- 
vards, commencing  with  the  picturesque  Spaniards'  Oort.  The 
gardens  and  walks  are  charmingly  laid  out  beside  the  river 
(or  canal),  and  in  the  golden  autumn  sunshine  the  trees  bore 
their  mellowest  tints.  We  had  lovely  little  peeps  of  swans  and 
boats  on  the  water,  trim  villas  on  the  banks,  and  crowning  all, 
the  majestic  Maliebaan  with  its  six  rows  of  historic  limes. 
After  walking  down  the  Avenue  and  back  again  we  sat  for 
some  time  at  the  entrance  to  it,  sunning  ourselves  and 
thoroughly  enjoying  the  scene  and  its  associations,  till  the 
dear  old  chimes  reminded  us  that  we  had  other  pleasures  in 
prospect  and  we  went  and  spent  the  rest  of  the  daylight  in 
the  Archbishop's  Museum  in  the  Nieuwe  Gracht  (where  we 
were  this  time  last  year,  Oct.  23),  full  of  objects  of  great 
artistic  interest.  It  was  a  very  happy  day.  Having  got  an 
indifferent  dinner  at  our  old  quarters,  the  Bellevue,  we  took 
the  train  back  to  The  Hague,  arriving  there  somewhere  about 
8.  o'clock. 

30th.  Went  to  call  on  the  Bisschops  to  give  an  account 
of  our  journey,  and  of  the  little  commission  I  had  undertaken. 
We  went  on  from  their  house  to  the  train,  and  made 
an  excursion  to  Delft,  getting  back  by  8.  o'clock  for  table 
d'hote.  The  Jedeloos,  where  we  used  to  find  things  last  year, 
have  nothing  now.  Young  Jedeloo  went  about  the  town  with 
us,  and  got  us  permission  to  see  a  room  hung  with  good  tapestry, 
having  a  mantelpiece  with  a  marble  panel  carved  in  figures, 
and  a  plafond  and  boiserie  of  doors  and  fittings,  all  en  suite. 
The  master  of  the  house  is  M.  Van  der  Goos,  who  was  very 
polite  in  showing  it  to  us,  but  surprised  that  it  had  obtained 
any  notoriety.  He  seems  to  be  a  collector.  He  has  some 
Delft  and  some  good  Oriental  (not  a  great  deal),  but  the  only 

334 


1874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

thing  of  his  that  I  coveted  was  a  little  Chelsea  seal  which 
I  spied  in  a  cabinet  among  very  uncongenial  companions. 
Jedeloo  took  us  to  another  dealer  but  he  was  out.  So  we 
spent  the  rest  of  our  time  at  the  old  Church,  and  we  persuaded 
the  custodian  to  lend  us  their  MS.  description  of  the  tombs 
therein,  which  is  written  in  the  most  absurd  and  original 
English,  and  of  which  I  have  taken  a  copy.  Certainly  Delft 
has  some  very  striking  buildings,  its  two  Churches,  with 
characteristic  towers,  its  market  square,  with  the  large 
edifice  facing  the  Church,  and  several  curious  old  houses. 
We  went  to  see  the  spot  where  William  the  Silent  was 
murdered. 

3ist.  Spent  the  day  in  lounging  about  The  Hague.  Went 
to  the  Library,  which  we  saw  for  the  first  time,  and  tried  in 
vain  to  find  out  something  about  the  Denys  Dorio  who 
worked  at  Delft,  and  who,  on  his  way  to  Holland,  decorated 
our  Rouen  bottle  (see  Oct.  14)  and  a  very  few  other  Rouen 
specimens. 

NOVEMBER  1874 

AMSTERDAM  :  LEYDEN :  UTRECHT :  THE  HAGUE :  ROTTERDAM : 
LILLE  :  ANTWERP  :  TOURNAI  :  GHENT  :  BRUSSELS  :  AND  HOME 

November  2nd.  Up  soon  after  6.  and  off  by  the  9.8  train  to 
Amsterdam,  returning  by  the  4.  train  in  the  evening,  and  walk- 
ing to  and  from  the  station.  C.S.  took  the  George  II.  plate 
(see  Oct.  16)  and  the  Oriental  plates  bought  in  Brussels  (see 
Oct.  14)  for  Speyer's  opinion  of  them.  After  much  cogitating 
over  them  Speyer  gave  the  opinion  that  the  George  II.  plate 
was  painted  after  a  print  in  Holland.  He  was  inclined  to 
think  the  same  of  the  others  ;  some  of  these  last  seem  to  have 
a  sort  of  historical  allusion.  Two  of  these  having  reference 
to  the  losses  and  gains  during  the  famous  John  Law's  bubbles, 
from  which  Amsterdam  is  said  to  have  suffered  very  severely. 

335 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 
But  wherever  done,  he  considered  them  all  very  curious. 
He  told  us  there  was  a  man  (a  Frenchman)  named  Pierot, 
who  lived  in  Holland  some  60  or  more  years  ago,  whose 
occupation  it  was  to  redecorate  the  white,  and  blue  and  white, 
Oriental  china  which  came  over  there  ;  and  he  said  that 
quantities  of  Oriental  china  came  to  Holland  as  ballast. 
Our  George  II.  is  done  upon  an  Oriental  blue  and  white 
plate,  but  when,  or  where,  or  by  whom,  the  figure  was  put  on 
we  have  no  means  of  knowing.  The  presumption  is  that  it 
was  done  in  George  II.'s  lifetime,  as  after  that  time  his  portrait 
would  not  have  been  one  of  any  popular  interest.  Add  to 
this,  that  this  plate  came  from  the  same  family  (that  of  a 
Scotch  clergyman  named  Macfield)  that  possessed  the  gold 
watch,  probably  a  Royal  present,  engraved  with  the  Royal 
Arms  of  England,  of  a  date  quartering  the  Fleurs-de-lys  of 
France.  In  M.  Van  de  Gitta's  collection,  which  we  visited 
directly  afterwards,  we  found  two  Oriental  egg-shell  plates 
decorated  much  in  a  similar  manner,  with  a  portrait  of  the, 
then,  Prince  of  Orange,  and  dated  1747.  Our  George  II. 
may  have  been  of  the  same  period,  and  the  prostrate  foe  he 
has  overcome  may  have  been  the  Pretender,  Charles  Edward. 
I  am  inclined  to  think  that  this  plate  and  the  watch  had  been 
the  property  of  George  II.'s  daughter  Anne,  who  married  the 
Prince  of  Orange,  and  that  they  came  into  this  "  Prediger  " 
Macfield's  farnily  through  her.  C.S.  thinks  all  these  7  plates 
were  done  in  China,  from  European  prints.  Boasberg  went 
with  us  to  the  Van  de  Gitta  Collection.  It  is  very  remarkable. 
The  Oriental  magnificent.  The  European  porcelain,  only 
mediocre.  The  bibelots,  snuff  boxes  and  other  small  objects, 
most  beautiful.  He  has  upwards  of  20  Chelsea  flacons,  bon- 
bonnieres,  etc.,  and  all  of  the  highest  quality.  The  collection 
contains  many  things  which  we  do  not  understand,  such  as 
Ivories,  Woodcarvings,  Venetian  glass  ;  this  last  did  not  seem 

336 


A  PAIR  OF  CHINESE  VASES  WITH  COVERS,  DECORATED  WITH  A  PALE  PINK  GROUND 
ENAMELLED  WITH  FLOWERS  IN  PANELS  AND  WITH  ASTERS  AT  VARIOUS  POINTS. 
THE  TRELLISEI)  BORDERS  ARE  OF  GREEN.  TYPICAL  PIECES  OF  THE  YUNG  CHIEN 

PERIOD 
Lord  \\~intborne  s  Collection 


1874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

to  us  of  any  particular  merit.  1 1  was  a  great  treat  to  see  this 
Collection.  We  afterwards  went  to  see  M.  Saxe's  celebrated 
pictures,  which  I  have  seen  more  than  once  before.  There 
are  also  some  fine  bedsteads,  and  a  great  deal  of  Delft,  but 
nothing  that  I  coveted,  though  I  believe,  in  the  present  rage 
for  Delft,  it  is  very  valuable.  It  is  not  to  be  compared  to 
Mr.  Loudon's  at  The  Hague.  We  went  after  this  to  Van 
Houtum's,  and  to  Kalb  and  Soujet,  and  bought  a  small  piece 
of  Battersea  at  each.  Late  dinner  on  our  return.  In  the 
evening  Van  Gorkum  looked  in. 

3rd.  We  have  stayed  at  home,  writing  and  washing  up. 
Our  only  incident,  another  visit  from  Van  Gorkum.  Just 
after  writing  this,  we  received  a  telegram  by  the  hands  of 
M.  Bisschop,  appointing  us  to  meet  M.  Van  Huckelm  at 
Utrecht  on  the  following  day.  This  gentlemen  is  the  founder 
of  the  Utrecht  Museum,  and  we  expressed  a  wish  to  see  him, 
and  to  go  through  the  Museum  with  him,  which  M.  Bisschop 
had  accordingly  arranged  for  us.  So  we  were  off  early  the 
next  morning. 

4th.  We  found  M.  Van  Huckelm  awaiting  us  at  the 
Museum,  and  we  spent  there  between  two  and  three  hours 
with  him  very  agreeably.  He  is  a  most  well-informed  and 
agreeable  man.  What  he  has  done  in  making  this  collection 
is  quite  wonderful.  We  were  so  long  at  the  Museum  that 
we  could  not  get  back  to  The  Hague  till  the  6.40.  train.  So 
we  had  to  dine  at  the  Bellevue,  where  we  had,  as  usual,  a  very 
indifferent  dinner,  but  that  is  a  trifle.  At  Van  Gorkum's 
we  got  a  very  pretty  silver  box,  commemorating  the  peace  of 
Ryswyck,  1692. 

5th.     Called  on  the  Bisschops,  and  looked  into  some  of 
the  shops.     A   brilliant  morning  and  as  warm  as  summer. 
We  went  in  the  afternoon  to  Leyden,  but  before  we  arrived 
there,  the  mists  had  come  over  the  scene  again,  which  was  a 
i  337  Y 


LA"  Y  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 

pity.  At  Leyden.  we  went  to  Duchatel's,  Leureman's,  Van 
Dyck's,  and  the  old  amateur,  Byleveldt.  Nothing  in  the 
shops.  We  climbed  the  mound  attributed  to  Hengist !  and 
went  through  the  uninteresting  rooms  of  the  Town  Hall,  the 
exterior  of  which  is  rather  fine,  and  is  associated  by  date  with 
the  conclusion  of  the  celebrated  siege,  1574. 

6th.  Our  last  day  at  The  Hague.  On  our  way  to  say 
good-bye  to  the  kind  Bisschops  we  looked  in  at  Sarlin's 
ruinously  expensive  shop,  and  were  tempted  to  an  outlay  of 
£l2.  10.  chiefly  in  Battersea  enamels.  One  of  these,  a  snuff- 
box, Rose  du  Barry,  with  large  portrait  of  Frederic  the 
Great  on  the  lid  is  a  great  addition  to  our  collection.  In  the 
afternoon  we  went  over  to  Rotterdam,  to  look  at  some  figures 
which  the  Van  der  Pluynes  had  sent  to  tell  us  of.  They 
were  very  inferior  and  the  poor  woman  had  given  a  large 
price  for  them,  making  sure  we  should  buy  them,  which  we 
were  sorry  for,  but  they  were  quite  out  of  the  question  for  us. 
On  our  return,  we  called  at  Mr.  London's.  He  was  out,  but 
had  left  word  for  us  to  go  in,  so  we  took  a  hasty  glance  at  his 
collection  of  Delft,  which  seemed  to  us  more  wonderful  than 
ever.  It  is  admirably  arranged,  and  with  the  greatest  taste. 
After  table  d'hote  we  were  out  again.  Went  to  see  a  M. 
Moysel,  28  Java  Straat,  an  "  amateur  qui  vend."  He  was 
the  purchaser  of  the  Chelsea  figure  of  Milton,  which  we  saw 
at  Coster's  last  year.  He  now  wants  to  sell  it  again.  But 
his  price  is  too  high,  £25.  It  would  have  made  a  good  match 
for  our  Shakespeare  and  at  half  that  sum  would  have  done 
very  well.  After  that  we  went  to  Dirksen's.  They  had  a 
I5th  century  chalice  which  they  have  just  bought  out  of  a 
Church  near  Hertogenbosch.  We  were  tempted  by  it,  but 
finally  decided  against  it,  though  the  price  was  small,  about 
£9.,  because  we  considered  the  foot  to  be  of  later  art  than 
the  rest  of  the  piece.  And  thus  ended  our  chasse  in  Holland. 

338 


>  - 

fa  5-   8 

o  £-s 

IN 


S  O 

<  H 


1874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

We  went  back  and  packed  up  the  few  th  ,s  we  have  collected, 
and  were  in  bed  by  II.  I  do  not  think  we  have  done  nearly 
so  well  this  journey  as  usual.  Things  are  dearer  and  scarcer. 
We  have  found  very  little  that  we  consider  great  additions  to 
our  collection,  and  what  we  have  got  cost  us  a  large  sum — 
indeed  too  much,  but  ours^jour  of  three  weeks  and  two  days 
has  been  a  very  pleasant  one. 

7th.  Again  a  most  lovely  day,  quite  second  summer.  It 
seemed  quite  a  pity  to  leave  Holland  in  such  brilliant  weather. 
We  meant  to  have  gone  by  the  express,  and  to  have  spent  a 
couple  of  hours  or  so  at  Antwerp  on  our  way  ;  but  we  mistook 
the  hour  of  the  train  and  leaving  at  9.20.  had  above  two  hours' 
delay  at  Rotterdam.  Went  to  see  the  Van  Mindens.  He  is  in 
Brussels,  busy  about  a  sale  which  he  makes  there  on  Monday. 
We  looked  over  their  things,  but  saw  nothing  fresh.  We 
have  now  ascertained,  without  doubt,  that  the  George  II.  plate 
was  decorated  in  Holland.  They  say  that  the  Mol  factory 
did  much  in  this  way  in  former  times.  After  this  visit  I  sat 
in  the  waiting-room  at  work,  till  it  was  time  to  go  to  the 
opposite  railway.  We  sat  on  the  upper  deck.  Rotterdam 
and  its  good  old  Avenue  looked  very  pretty  as  we  left  it. 
The  season  is  a  very  late  one.  In  many  places  the  leaves 
have  not  nearly  left  the  trees,  and  the  autumn  tints  have  been 
very  fine.  We  had  a  long  journey  to  Brussels,  which  we 
reached  about  6,  a  good  deal  cumbered  with  our  packages,  but 
all  came  well,  except  one  Delft  dish,  and  at  the  Hotel  Mengelle 
we  found  our  comfortable  room  ready,  and  a  good  dinner, 
and  slept  well  after  all  the  exertions  of  the  journey,  which  I 
thought  less  pleasant  than  usual. 

gth.  Another  cold  and  foggy  day.  Nevertheless  we 
were  out  from  II.  o'clock.  Called  on  Baron  Wykerslooth 
twice,  but  failed  to  find  him  at  home  (see  Oct.  14) ;  we  saw 
him,  however,  later  in  the  day  at  old  Genie's  and  made  an 

339 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS   1874 

appointment  for  to-morrow.  We  went  into  a  great  many 
shops,  Marynen's,  Moru's,  Slaes  Kochs',  Cools',  Daene's,  De 
Vries',  Polonet's,  Craenen's,  Miiller's,  Huysmans',  Genie's.  All 
seemed  very  ill  supplied  except  the  last,  where  we  found  some 
Mennecy  custard  cups,  and  some  mediocre  enamels.  We  also 
found  a  curious  enamel  box  at  Cools',  having  a  map  of  parts 
of  Germany  and  Bohemia,  and  marking  the  site  of  some  of 
the  last  century  battles.  A  good  enamel  box  lid  at  Polonet's, 
but  too  dear.  We  also  looked  in  at  Van  Minden's  sale,  but 
for  a  moment  only,  just  to  see  the  sort  of  thing.  The  goods 
are  mostly  second-rate  Oriental  and  Delft,  and  not  at  all  suit- 
able to  our  collection. 

loth.  At  II.  this  morning  we  went,  by  appointment,  to 
see  the  collection  of  the  Baron  de  Wykerslooth.  He  has 
some  very  fine  specimens  of  Delft,  and  of  various  French 
faiences.  He  gave  us  introductions  to  other  amateurs,  and 
we  availed  ourselves  of  one  of  them  to  call  upon  the  Comte 
de  Monceau,  who  showed  us  some  magnificent  coloured 
groups,  which  he  considers  Chelsea,  but  which  we  take  to  be 
Tournai  (or  possibly  Mennecy  ? ).  He  has  also  some  fine 
old  silver.  We  found,  in  conversation,  that  he  knew  my 
boys  at  Cowes.  He  brought  in  his  wife  to  introduce  to  us, 
a  pretty  little  woman,  speaking  English  beautifully.  After 
these  visits  we  went  to  the  shops.  Bought  Cools  Thyssen's 
enamel  box  with  the  maps,  which  has,  evidently,  reference  to 
the  Seven  Years  War ;  also  the  box  lid  which  we  saw  at 
Polonet's,  for  60.  francs,  very  dear,  but  in  washing  it,  it 
came  out  beautifully  and  we  were  very  pleased  with  it. 
After  all  this,  we  sat  a  little  while  at  old  Genie's,  and  rain 
then  prevented  our  going  farther,  but  on  our  way  back  we 
looked  in  at  Van  Minden's  sale,  which  amused  us  much.  We 
saw  sold  a  fine  leather  screen,  8  leaves,  gold  ground,  Watteau 
subjects,  like  that  we  got  for  Ivor  last  year,  but  in  rather 

340 


1874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

brighter  condition ;  it  fetched  about  £$8.  [The  screen 
bought  for  Lord  Wimborne,  then  Sir  Ivor  Guest,  is  now 
at  Canford.]  Also  we  saw  sold  a  George  II.  plate,  like 
ours,  but  not  so  fine,  for  £6.  10.  to  Stroobant,  a  dealer  who 
knows  good  things  and  would  not  have  bought  it  if  he  had 
not  thought  well  of  it.  At  table  d'hdte  Lady  Westbury,  with 
whom  I  got  a  little  conversation.  Working,  writing,  reading 
in  the  evening.  An  invitation  for  dinner  to-morrow  has  just 
come  from  Comte  de  Monceau. 

nth.  On  first  going  out  we  called  on  M.  Yvenpool's. 
16  Rue  ^Royale,  and  he  showed  us  his  magnificent  collection 
of  Delft ;  many  of  them  unique  pieces,  with  hitherto  unknown 
marks.  He  is  the  possessor  of  the  fine  plaque  marked  with 
the  Cock  and  inscribed  "  Arnhems  Fabrique"  which  I  used 
to  admire  at  Munchen's.  I  took  down  several  marks  from 
his  pieces.  From  him  we  went  on  to  the  Comte  de  Chartil's, 
but  he  was  out,  so  we  persevered  to  the  next  antiquary  on 
our  list,  M.  Fetis,  16  Rue  de  1'Arbre  B6nit,  where  we  were 
more  fortunate.  M.  Fetis  not  only  showed  us  all  his  things 
but  taught  us  a  great  deal  about  faience,  which  we  knew 
nothing  of  previously.  He  seemed  to  have  more  solid  in- 
formation on  these  subjects  than  any  one  we  have  yet  fallen 
in  with.  His  collection  is  less  showy  than  M.  Yvenpool's, 
which  is,  again,  less  showy  than  M.  Loudon's,  at  The  Hague, 
but  I  fancy  they  both  have  objects  of  great  curiosity,  though 
not  so  attractive  or  so  splendidly  arranged  as  M.  Loudon's. 
I  think  we  must  have  spent  nearly  three  hours  with  M.  Fetis. 
We  afterwards  went  down  into  town  to  pay  for  our  recent 
purchases  and  as  we  came  back  we  looked  in  at  the  Van 
Minden's  sale.  A  very  fine  evening  but  rather  cold.  Dined 
with  Comte  and  Comtesse  de  Monceau.  A  family  party  ; 
besides  ourselves  only  Comte  and  Comtesse  Fetis,  and  Baron 
de  Wykerslooth.  A  pleasant  evening. 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 
I2th.  We  had  fixed  to-day  for  our  journey  to  Antwerp. 
The  morning  looked  bright,  but  before  we  had  done  break- 
fast it  began  to  snow,  and  we  walked  down  to  the  station  in 
a  snowstorm.  However,  before  we  reached  Antwerp  it  had 
cleared  off  and  we  had  a  bright  and  sunny  day,  with  a  still 
frosty  air,  which  would  have  been  much  more  enjoyable  if 
the  streets  had  not  been  one  mass  of  mud,  causing  cold  and 
damp  feet.  Notwithstanding,  we  walked  about  for  some 
hours.  Went  to  Eva  Krug,  left  her  some  more  things  we 
did  not  care  for,  and  find  she  has  been  doing  well  for  us. 
Haert  and  Tessaro  had  no  prints  for  us  :  we  found  one  or 
two  trifles  in  the  little  shops  of  the  Grand  Place.  Went  into 
the  Town  Hall,  where  we  were  shown  the  large  room  newly 
decorated.  Of  those  containing  anything,  antique  or  curious, 
we  could  only  see  the  room  occupied,  I  think  they  said,  as  a 
Police  Court,  where  there  is  a  massive  Renaissance  mantel- 
piece, and  some  carved  benches,  with  high  backs,  in  the  same 
style.  Got  back  to  Brussels  late  in  the  afternoon. 

I3th.  Wrote  letters  in  the  morning.  Handelaar  brought 
us  home  a  very  pretty  box,  tortoise-shell  inlaid  with  figures 
(in  silver  relief)  of  Columbine,  Pantaloon,  and  Harlequin. 
We  had  commissioned  him  to  buy  it  for  us  at  Van  Minden's 
sale.  The  only  thing  we  cared  for  there,  and  we  think  we 
did  not  pay  too  dear  for  it,  about  2  guineas.  When  we  went 
out  we  went  to  Handelaar's  to  look  at  some  (so-called) 
Tournai  plates,  which  were  anything  but  good,  though  pretty 
and  showy,  nouveau  decor.  About  one  we  went  to  the  De 
Monceaus,  who  had  appointed  to  take  us  to  see  Stein's  things. 
He  had  some  large  Oriental  Vases,  some  silver,  and  some 
indifferent  Saxe  ;  nothing  good,  and  nothing  in  our  line.  On 
leaving  M.  and  Mme.  de  Monceau,  we  went  to  a  shop  hitherto 
unknown  to  us,  Janssen's,  in  the  Rue  du  Parchemin,  who,  we 
heard,  had  a  lot  of  Mennecy.  But  it  turned  out  that  the  set 

342 


i874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

was  in  private  hands,  and  not  to  be  had  on  any  terms.  We 
found  with  him  two  white  house  teapots,  rather  dilapi- 
dated but  very  cheap.  Walked  to  Stroobant's,  and  so  wound 
up  our  promenade. 

I4th.  A  long  visit  from  M.  Fetis,  who  came  to  see  our 
Rouen  vase,  and  expressed  himself  greatly  pleased  with  it. 
He  is  a  man  of  great  intelligence,  and  one  learns  much  by 
conversing  with  him.  It  was  accordingly  past  12.,  nearly 
I.,  when  we  got  out.  We  went  first  to  the  Porte  de  Hal, 
but  were  disappointed  to  find  that  Saturday,  as  well  as 
Monday,  is  a  closed  day.  So  we  went  to  some  shops  instead 
and  had  a  long  walk  to  find  the  shop  of  one  Volant,  in  the 
Chausse"e  d'Etterbeek,  No.  67.  He  had  a  large  assortment 
of  things,  but  we  only  found  one  or  two  pieces  to  buy,  not  of 
any  consideration.  It  was  a  bright  cold  day,  the  streets  very 
dirty  still,  and  the  Chausse"e  d'Etterbeek  a  wretched  quarter 
for  walking  in. 

i6th.  Up  soon  after  5.  to  go  to  Tournai,  but  having 
missed  our  express,  we  changed  our  tactics,  and  went  first  to 
Lille,  which  we  reached  at  about  II.  There  we  spent  above 
two  hours  ;  we  drove  to  the  shops  to  save  time,  but  found  very 
little  to  repay  the  trouble  of  the  journey.  Having  got  some- 
thing to  eat  at  the  station,  we  went  back  by  the  next  train  to 
Tournai.  Drove  to  Pourbaix,  got  him  to  accompany  us  to 
Froyenne.  Vassen  was  out,  but  we  found  a  little  Mennecy 
box  at  his  house,  which  we  bought.  Then  we  returned  to 
look  at  Pourbaix's  stock,  but  made  no  purchases.  Dined  at 
the  Hotel  de  I'lmp^ratrice  (improved  since  our  last  visit),  and 
came  on  by  train,  which  was  an  hour  behind  time.  We 
walked  up  through  a  steady  rain,  and  did  not  get  back  to  our 
Hotel  till  II.  o'clock. 

I7th.  At  noon  we  went  to  the  collection  of  the  Comte 
Camille  de  Chartil.  He  has  some  very  pretty  European 

343 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 

china,  groups,  etc.,  and  some  very  fine  pieces  of  Oriental;  a 
very  large  assortment  of  Capucin,  entirely  decorating  one  of 
the  rooms.  On  leaving  him  we  went  to  the  Porte  de  Hal, 
where  we  spent  an  hour  and  a  half,  till  its  closing  at  3.  Then 
we  sauntered  about,  notwithstanding  the  heavy  rain.  Went 
to  Genie's.  At  Craenen's  found  a  bust  of  Voltaire. 

l8th.  A  very  pleasant  day  at  Ghent,  although  it  rained 
all  the  time.  We  got  there  about  10.,  and  came  away  about 
4.  Went  to  all  the  shops  and  made  several  small  purchases, 
among  them  an  iron  box,  the  top  in  brass,  engraved  with  the 
double  eagle  and  Imperial  crown,  surrounded  with  arabesques, 
evidently  of  the  time  of  Charles  V.,  perhaps  his  property! 
We  got  this  at  the  shop  of  a  curious  wild  creature,  Demoulin, 
who  spends  half  his  time  in  a  yacht,  but  seems  to  have  a 
feeling  for  art,  and  told  us  that  he  collects  for  the  Achille 
Jubinals.  He  is  quite  a  character.  De  Clerc  had  one  or 
two  bits  of  Battersea  enamel,  among  them  a  thimble,  which 
I  secured  with  delight,  as  very  rare,  but  he  told  me  I  must 
pay  a  high  price  for  it,  as  he  had  bought  it  dear,  and  then 
asked  me  half  a  crown !  One  other  thing  we  got  which  I 
value,  viz  : — a  painted  fan  of  the  time  of  the  Reign  of  Terror, 
admirable  as  to  costume.  This  is  the  third  painted  fan  I  met 
with  on  the  journey.  One,  with  portrait  and  last  Testament 
of  Louis  XVI.  at  Van  Gelder's  ;  another  of  the  death  of 
Marlborough,  at  Utrecht.  They  are  interesting  as  showing 
what  was  in  common  use  at  the  time  they  were  made,  and 
are  rare,  because  things  of  so  little  intrinsic  value  very 
seldom  escape  being  destroyed.  We  paid  a  long  visit  to 
Omghena's  very  fine  collection,  and  altogether  enjoyed 
ourselves  thoroughly. 

igth.  By  train  to  Malines,'  starting  before  II.  and 
getting  back  to  Brussels  soon  after  2.  We  went  then  to  see 
the  collection  of  M.  Bovie,  which  had  been  mentioned  to  us 

344 


i874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

by  the  de  Chartils.  He  lives  in  a  very  pretty  house,  and 
has  a  large  picture  gallery.  He  showed  us  his  pictures  (of 
which  I  am  no  judge,  but  they  seemed  very  pleasing),  and 
then  he  took  us  down  stairs  where  was  a  glass  case  occupying 
one  side  of  a  room  and  fitted  with  china  groups  and  figures. 
Some  of  his  Tournai,  both  biscuit  and  coloured,  seem  very 
good  (we  could  not  examine  them  as  we  could  not  get  the 
key  to  open  the  case),  and  among  the^number  were  four  Bow 
figures  which  we  rather  coveted.  Looked  in  at  de  Bruyer's 
and  Huysmans'  on  our  way  back  to  the  station.  We  enjoyed 
our  ramble  about  the  charming  old  town  and  were  sorry  we 
had  not  time  to  stay  longer  to  explore  it  and  to  go  into  the 
Museum ;  but  we  were  obliged  to  return  as  we  had  an 
appointment  to  call  on  the  de  Monceaus  about  3.  o'clock. 
We  had  been  the  previous  day  to  look  at  M.  de  Lippen's 
fine  wrought-iron  frame  which  we  had  so  much  admired, 
Aug.  1873,  and  which  is  still  there.  M.  de  Monceau,  to 
whom  we  had  mentioned  it,  wished  to  make  some  inquiries 
about  it. 

2Oth.  After  violent  rain  in  the  morning,  we  had  a  bright 
sunny  day,  with  only  occasional  showers.  At  II.  we  went  to 
M.  Fetis  to  see  some  fine  plaques  of  faience,  one  signed  by 
Soliva,  and  spent  some  time  talking  with  him.  After  we  left 
him  we  kept  on  foot  all  day.  Went  to  Genie's,  who  is 
disappointed  (for  the  present)  of  a  Chelsea  service  he  had  in 
view  for  us.  Then  to  Papillon's,  where  we  found  a  most 
curious  and  interesting  book  of  patterns  of  100  years  ago, 
containing  designs  for  furniture  mounts,  branches,  watch- 
stands,  and  every  kind  of  hardware.  It  had  evidently  been 
a  commercial  traveller's  book,  for  it  had  on  it  the  prices  at 
which  the  various  articles  could  be  supplied,  and  the  memo- 
randa upon  it  being  in  English  establishes  the  nationality  of 
the  mounts  we  bought  on  the  27th  ulto.  at  Zutphen,  engravings 

345 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1874 

of  which,  by  a  happy  coincidence,  figure  in  this  work. 
We  are  delighted  with  our  new  acquisition.  We  found  out 
to-day  a  good  china-mender,  Jambert,  Rue  de  la  Caserne. 
Went  to  Marynen's  to  look  after  the  packing  of  the  clock  we 
bought  of  him,  with  which  some  other  things  are  being  stowed 
away.  Called  on  Mrs.  Kemeys  Tynte,  who  was  out,  and 
concluded  our  walk  by  going  down  to  S.  Gudule's,  where  we 
found  a  small  service  going  on  at  the  side  Chapel  in  the 
aisle.  The  Cathedral  was  but  dimly  lighted ;  however,  we 
could  see  well  enough  to  admire  again  the  fine  ironwork 
of  some  of  the  gates  and  grilles.  It  was  a  lovely  golden 
evening. 

2ist.  Up  at  5.  the  next  morning.  A  fine  morning,  which 
was  the  more  fortunate  as  they  had  only  ordered  one  carriage, 
so  C.S.  and  I  went  on  foot  to  the  station,  sending  the  maid  on 
in  charge  of  the  luggage.  There  was  a  fuss  in  getting  off, 
but  eventually  all  went  well.  On  reaching  the  steamer  I  went 
into  the  ladies'  cabin  and  lay  down  comfortably  near  the 
fire ;  at  needlework  nearly  all  the  way  and  sleeping  a  little. 
It  was  rather  rough  at  first,  but  before  we  reached  Dover  it 
became  perfectly  calm,  the  sea  was  like  a  lake,  and  a  fog 
seemed  to  be  rising  over  the  waters  after  we  disembarked. 
It  was  altogether  a  most  excellent  voyage.  I  was  quite  well 
all  along,  and  was  very  grateful  when  I  landed  safely  on  my 
native  shores,  with  the  treasured  cruche  (of  Oct.  19)  in 
one  hand,  a  basket  of  brittle  ware  in  the  other,  and  the  cele- 
brated red  velvet  bag  laden  with  all  the  enamels  on  my  arm. 
Mr.  Martin  of  Dowlais  was  in  the  train  with  us  going  to 
London,  having  just  returned  from  the  Iron  Mines  near 
Bilbao  in  Spain.  On  reaching  London  we  found  everything 
enveloped  in  a  dense  fog.  Wre  came  over  just  at  the 
right  moment.  Spent  the  evening  in  unpacking,  and 
arranging,  our  purchases. 

346 


1874  NOTES  CERAMIC 

Sunday,  22nd.  Ivor,  Blanche  (who  is  spending  two  days 
with  him),  Monty,  and  Charlie  Glyn  came  to  luncheon  and 
made  a  visit  of  inspection.  Ivor  spent  the  afternoon  with  me, 
and  we  were  very  happy.  We  dined  with  him  and  Blanche 
at  Hamilton  House  in  the  evening. 


347 


NOTES   CERAMIC 

FEBRUARY  TO  MARCH  3,  1875 

PARIS 
Feb.  1875. 

8th.  Left  London  by  the  Tidal  train  starting  from 
Charing  Cross  at  8.30.  A  most  lovely  day ;  bright  and 
sunny  in  the  extreme,  which  after  the  recent  dull  cheerless 
weather  was  very  acceptable,  but  bitterly  cold !  Granville 
Gordon,  who  is  going  to  France  to  study  languages,  with  a 
view  to  a  diplomatic  career,  was  at  the  station  awaiting  us, 
and  we  went  on  in  company.  [This  was  Lord  Granville 
Gordon,  the  son  of  the  loth  Marquis  of  Huntly  and  Lady 
Huntly,  the  stepsister  of  Lady  Charlotte.]  In  the  same 
carriage  with  us  was  Lord  E.  Russell,  whom  I  had  not  met 
for  30  years,  and  who  reintroduced  himself  to  me  with 
reminiscences  of  our  having  acted  together  at  the  private 
theatricals  at  Woburn,  so  we  had  an  agreeable  journey  to 
Folkestone,  where  we  took  ship.  [This  would  be  Lord 
Edward  Russell,  son  of  the  7th  Duke  of  Bedford.  He  was 
born  in  1805  and  died  in  1887.]  There  was  no  wind  and 
the  sea  was  perfectly  calm.  Everything  looked  bright 
and  I  would  fain  have  stayed  on  deck,  but  I  was  driven 
below  by  the  intense  cold.  So  I  lay  down  and  read, 
with  great  interest,  my  friend  Charles  Kingsley's  Hereward. 
The  subject  is  laid  in  my  own  Lincolnshire,  and  I  know 
all  the  scenery  he  describes  o'er  well.  Val  Hambro  and 
his  bride  were  in  the  boat,  and  I  was  introduced  to  her 

348 


EXAMPLES  OF  EARLY  SALT  GLAZE  IN  WHICH  DEPARTMENT  OF  WARE  LADY  CHARLOTTE'S 
COLLECTION  IS  PARTICULARLY  RICH.  THE  STATUETTES  ARE  OF  AN  ACTOR  AND  ACTRESS 
IN  ASIATIC  COSTUME  OF  BRILLIANT  COLOURS.  THE  MODEL  OF  THE  MALE  FIGURE  ALSO 
APPEARS  IN  BOW  CHINA.  THE  MILK-JUG  AND  COVER  ARE  CHARACTERISTIC  EARLY 
EXAMPLES.  THE  CORNUCOPIA  AS  A  WALL  VASE  IS  ONE  OF  A  PAIR  DECORATED  WITH 
AN  ELABORATE  LANDSCAPE,  BUILDING  AND  ANIMALS.  THE  DESIGN  WAS  ALSO  USED 

AT    BOW 
The  Schreiber  Collection 


i8;5  NOTES  CERAMIC 

at  Amiens,  where  we  went  into  the  buffet  to  get  some 
soup.  Lord  E.  Russell  was  in  our  carriage  all  the  way  to 
Paris,  and  we  had  a  quiet  comfortable  journey,  reading  and 
sleeping  alternately  all  the  way,  for  I  was  tired  with  having 
much  to  do  before  leaving  home,  in  dismantling  part  of 
our  house,  which  was  to  be  redecorated,  etc.  Reached 
Paris  at  6.30.  Found  rooms  ready  for  us  at  the  Hotel  S. 
Romain. 

9th.  Breakfasted  at  10.  After  writing  letters  went  out 
on  foot,  Granville  with  us.  Walked  till  near  dinner-time  at 
7.  A  cold  day,  not  brighter  than  London,  and  a  great  change 
from  yesterday.  Called  at  the  Oppenheims  and  several  other 
shops,  but  found  very  little  to  tempt  us  to  purchase.  We 
went  and  made  the  acquaintance  of  M.  Fulgence,  the  expert, 
to  whom  we  had  an  introduction  from  M.  Fetis  of  Brussels. 
He  is  a  great  enthusiast,  and  promises  to  help  us.  Found 
one  or  two  good  things  at  the  Fourniers,  and  so  sauntered 
about  till  after  dark,  but  without  any  great  results.  There  is 
a  great  sale  going  on  at  the  Hotel  Drouot,  that  of  a  Baron 
Thibon,  and  all  the  chief  dealers  have  come  over  to  it ;  we 
were  too  late  for  the  view.  The  first  day's  sale  (the  pictures) 
was  going  on  when  we  reached  the  place. 

loth.  To-day  Granville  went  out  alone  to  make  some 
calls,  and  C.S.  and  I  pursued  our  "chasse"  most  diligently. 
Called  at  the  "  Vieux  Paris  ",  where  the  things  are  pretty  but 
too  dear.  Again  tried,  but  without  success,  to  see  something 
of  Baron  Thibon's  Collection  at  the  Drouot.  Then  we 
continued  our  quiet  "  chasse,"  finding  very  little,  till  we  got 
into  the  Boulevard  Haussmann.  There,  at  Mme.  Veyrat's,  I 
discovered  a  lovely  Mennecy  saucer  (would  there  had  been 
a  cup)  painted  in  figures  in  colours,  which  is  very  rare  ;  and 
farther  on  we  were  rejoiced  by  the  sight  of  a  wonderful  e"tui 
of  Battersea  enamel,  with  portrait  and  flowers,  in  perfect 

349 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1875 
condition,  and  fully  fitted.  This  we  acquired  at  the  small 
price  of  £3.  Another,  quilted  box,  with  a  portrait,  costing 
us  28/-.  This  was  a  success.  Being  so  near  to  the  Barriere 
de  1'Etoile  we  went  up  thither  and  pursued  our  way  all  along 
the  Champs  Elysees  till  we  came  to  the  Exposition,  where 
we  turned  off,  crossed  the  Seine,  passed  in  front  of  the 
Invalides,  and  so  struck  into  the  Rue  de  I'Universite' ; 
picked  up  some  trifles  there,  and  on  our  way  home  by 
the  Quai  Voltaire  were  fortunate  enough  to  meet  with 
two  excellent  old  Bow  bottles  at  Mme.  Rouveyre's  for  20. 
francs. 

nth.  There  had  been  sunshine  yesterday,  notwithstanding 
the  cold,  but  there  was  but  little  to-day.  We  walked,  as  usual, 
after  breakfast,  first  going  across  the  water  and  making  a 
long  tour,  but  to  little  purpose  ;  however,  in  a  little  shop  in 
the  Rue  du  Dragon  we  came  upon  a  cup,  matching  the 
saucer  we  bought  last  autumn  at  Rennes,  and,  curiously 
enough,  also  marked  CAEN,  which  we  hear  is  somewhat 
rare.  At  the  same  place  we  found  a  very  small  Bow  figure, 
rather  pretty  and  cheap.  We  had  had  a  visit  from  M. 
Fulgence  in  the  morning,  and  went  to  him  in  the  afternoon 
to  look  at  a  little  Chantilly  vase  he  had  with  raised  figures 
outside.  Granville,  who  walked  with  us,  thinks  that  Esm6 
wants  to  invest  in  a  little  china,  so  we  had  this  put  aside  for 
him,  as  we  had  done  with  a  magnificent  Doccia  piece  at 
Fournier's  on  Tuesday.  [This  was  Lord  Esm6  Gordon,  an 
elder  brother  of  Granville  Gordon.]  After  a  time  Granville 
went  home,  and  we  walked  on  alone.  Struck  a  new  vein  in 
the  Rue  Fernandes  Marturies,  where  we  invested  in  a  Chelsea 
pedestal  matching  that  we  bought  at  Brussels  last  year  (£i.  3.), 
and  some  lovely  Nove  cups.  As  we  passed  Ldandier's  in  the 
Rue  de  Seize,  I  was  attracted  by  a  glorious  Tournai  teapot, 
with  purple  and  gold  border,  and  medallions  of  birds.  To  our 

350 


i875  NOTES  CERAMIC 

surprise  they  only  asked  £4.  for  it  and  its  accompanying  milk 
jug,  so  we  secured  them  at  once.  Our  hands  being  full  with 
various  purchases,  we  went  home  to  deposit  our  treasures, 
and  then  went  on  to  Oppenheim's  to  see  what  the  travelling 
brother  had  brought  home  from  Germany,  whence  he  arrived 
the  previous  night.  He  had  many  pretty  and  good  things, 
some  of  which  are  put  aside  for  our  future  inspection  ;  but  we 
at  once  seized  upon  and  carried  away  an  exquisite  Chelsea 
smelling-bottle,  formed  as  a  girl  smelling  at  a  flower  and 
holding  roses,  cheap  at  £j.  12.  C.S.  and  Granville  went 
to  dine  to-night  at  the  Grand  Hotel.  I  filled  up  the  evening 
alone,  in  writing  and  washing  up  our  recent  purchases.  This 
had  been  a  day  of  trouvailles. 

I2th.  Granville  left  us  to  go  to  his  tutor's  at  Provins. 
C.S.  and  I  went  out  about  I.  Called  at  Worms',  Nelson's,  at 
Tousson's  to  pay  a  balance  due,  and  there  found  a  small 
Mennecy  box,  pendant  to  one  we  bought  at  Bruges,  8  years 
ago,  from  Omghena  (12/6).  Then  we  struck  across  from 
the  Avenue  Friedland  to  the  Faubourg  S.  Germain.  Swept 
the  Quai  Voltaire,  but  only  bought  one  enamel  box,  a  lion's 
head,  at  Le  Clerc's.  In  the  Rue  Cherche  Midi,  No.  67,  we 
found  out  the  domicile  of  the  printseller  La  Croix,  with 
whom  Haert  of  Antwerp  had  put  us  in  communication.  But 
La  Croix  was  absent,  so  we  settled  to  call  again  to-morrow 
morning ;  looked  in  at  another  shop  in  that  street  (No.  23), 
where  we  saw  nothing,  and  on  our  way  through  the  Rue  de 
Grenelle  were  attracted  by  some  biscuit  figures  which  we  are 
also  to  reinspect  to-morrow  morning,  for  it  was  dark  before 
we  had  got  thus  far.  It  was  nearly  7.  before  we  got  back,  the 
weather  having  been  all  day  wet  and  disagreeable. 

I3th.  Directly  after  breakfast  we  went  out.  Took  our 
(Delft  ?)  plaques,  which  we  had  brought  from  England  for  an 
opinion,  to  La  Combe,  but  could  get  nothing  satisfactory 

351 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS   1875 

from  him.  Went  on  to  La  Croix.  We  did  not  find  anything 
to  tempt  us  with  him.  Not  long  ago  he  had  sold  all  his 
English  mezzotints  to  a  German  dealer ;  but  he  still  has  some 
Hollars,  which,  inspired  by  the  Exhibition  still  open  at  the 
Burlington  Club,  I  hope  to  take  away  with  me.  We  are  to 
go  again  to  him  this  day  week.  On  our  way  back  we  bought 
a  group  of  pate  tendre  Sevres  biscuit,  Le  Sabot  casse,  in  the 
Rue  de  Crenelle.  It  is  signed  "  F.  99 "  (Falconet  ?)  and 
seems  to  us  very  good.  A  print  or  two  in  the  Rue  Malaquais. 
Having  touched  at  our  Hotel  to  deposit  our  purchases,  we 
went  out  again  shortly.  Called  on  the  Val  Hambros,  whom 
we  found  at  home.  Then  went  on  looking  into  shops,  etc., 
till  time  to  return  for  dinner.  At  De  Veuve's  we  saw  a  most 
interesting  Vienna  tea  service  (21  pieces)  with  charming 
little  landscapes  and  heads  in  medallions,  for  which  he  only 
asks  .£18.  It  would  hardly  suit  our  collection,  but  if  Esm6 
really  wants  to  buy  some  china  he  could  not  do  better  than 
invest  in  this.  We  have  the  refusal  of  it  for  a  week,  and 
intend  to  write  to  him  about  it.  Went  through  the  Passage 
des  Panoramas  and  ended  our  walk  with  a  visit  to  the 
Fourniers,  with  whom  we  found  a  very  pretty  Chantilly 
marked  cup,  with  good  coloured  flowers  in  relief  (24  frs.). 
From  their  account  it  would  seem  we  did  well  in  buying  the 
Sabot  casse  this  morning. 

I4th.  We  went  to  Church  in  the  Rue  d'Aguesseau.  To 
our  surprise,  who  should  come  and  sit  on  the  very  same  bench 
but  our  dear  old  friend  Waddington  and  his  new  wife,  but 
he  did  not  see  us  till  the  service  was  over,  and  we  had  got 
outside  the  Church,  when  we  hailed  him  and  were  heartily 
welcomed,  and  were  introduced  to  the  nouvelle  mariee.  The 
rencontre  with  him  was  of  a  piece  with,  though  perhaps  less 
curious  than,  that  of  June  I,  1871,  at  Versailles,  where  we 
found  ourselves  in  the  room  immediately  adjoining  him ! 

352 


i875  NOTES  CERAMIC 

He  looks  well,  unchanged,  but  has  now  become  important  in 
the  politics  of  France,  and  has  some  weighty  "  Constitutional  " 
measure  coming  on  in  the  Chamber  next  week.  We  arranged 
to  call  and  see  them  both  late  in  the  afternoon,  and  mean- 
while hurried  back  to  see  Val  Hambro  and  his  wife,  who  had 
promised  to  come  and  see  our  small  purchases.  While  they 
were  with  us,  Danvilliers  came  and  paid  us  a  nice,  long,  chatty 
visit.  We  had  out  our  Delft  (?)  plaques  to  show  him,  but 
he  could  give  us  no  true  opinion  as  to  their  origin.  After 
an  hour's  quiet  rest  we  set  out,  as  we  had  promised  to 
see  the  Waddingtons,  who  live  near  the  Barriere  de 
TEtoile,  Rue  Dumont  d'Urville,  II  bis.  Found  them  at  tea 
and  spent  an  hour  with  them  ;  a  long  cold  walk  there  and 
back.  As  soon  as  we  got  home  we  prepared  to  go  out 
again,  having  promised  to  dine  with  the  Hambros,  in  their 
rooms  at  the  Hdtel  Westminster,  where  we  spent  a  pleasant 
evening. 

15 th.  Spent  the  morning  in  writing  letters,  and  did  not 
go  out  until  half-past  3.  Then  we  took  a  three  hours'  stroll, 
visiting  several  shops,  and  exploring,  without  any  results,  the 
Quarter  near  the  Rue  Blanche.  Our  only  purchase  to-day  was 
a  good,  but  not  very  perfect,  Chelsea  figure,  of  Giershoffer, 
42  Rue  Richer. 

i6th.  Went  out  early  to  see  the  Oppenheims,  who  had 
expected  to  receive  all  that  they  had  bought  on  a  recent 
journey,  but  nothing  had  come.  We  bought  only  a  lady's 
workcase  of  velvet  and  with  instruments,  very  pretty  ;  came 
back  in  time  for  M.  Danvilliers,  who  called  for  us  at  one,  to 
take  us  to  the  collection  of  M.  Double,  Rue  Louis  le  Grand, 
which  is  quite  one  of  the  most  beautiful  and  complete  we  ever 
visited.  Everything  in  the  house  is  so  perfectly  in  character, 
the  furniture,  the  tapestries,  porcelains,  etc.  I  admired  the 
meubles,  fireplace,  bronzes,  etc.,  more  than  the  china,  but  his 
*  353  z 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1875 
Sevres  is  very  fine.  He  is  a  charming  old  gentleman  himself, 
and  I  was  sorry  to  hear  that  neither  his  wife  nor  his  son 
sympathise  in  his  tastes  and  pursuits.  From  M.  Double's 
we  went  on  to  M.  Danvilliers',  where  he  showed  us  many 
interesting  things.  After  this  we  went  into  one  or  two  other 
shops,  and,  in  the  Palais  Royal,  at  Laurent's,  saw  a  little 
vase,  the  origin  of  which  puzzled  us  very  much,  and  which  is 
under  consideration.  I  was  rather  tired  to-day,  the  weather 
was  ungenial,  rather  a  sleepless  night  after  it,  when  I  amused 
myself  in  thinking  over  the  enigmatical  vase,  and  planning  a 
case  for  a  central  table  to  show  off  some  of  our  bibelots. 

I7th.  Called  again  at  Laurent's  but  cannot  yet  come  to 
any  conclusion  about  his  doubtful  piece  of  china.  He  has  a 
suite  of  most  magnificent  Dresden  vases,  seven  in  number ; 
purple  ground,  with  medallions  painted  a  la  Chinoise.  Went 
on  to  Bihn's  to  look  over  prints,  then  walked  up  the  Rue  de 
Clichy,  calling  at  all  the  little  shops  on  the  way,  where  there 
was  nothing  for  us,  and  so  to  Montmartre.  After  some 
trouble  we  found  the  shop  of  Osmont,  Passage  des  Beaux 
Arts,  who  has  a  great  deal  of  furniture,  new  and  old,  very 
good  things — a  little  china,  and  some  jewels,  among  them  a 
Spanish  jewel  of  the  style  of  that  we  bought  at  Cordova,  but 
not  nearly  so  good — price  £32.,  we  gave  £13.  for  ours. 
Osmont  is  dear,  but  his  shop  is  worth  knowing  ;  he  gave  us 
some  other  renseignements.  Returning  into  the  Rue  de 
Clichy  we  took  an  omnibus  to  the  Ternes,  and  then  walked 
on  to  the  Rue  Dentours.  Found  Mme.  Beavan  at  home 
but  ill.  We  looked  over  all  her  things,  but  only  bought  one 
Battersea  enamel  box,  representing  an  eagle  carrying  off  a 
leopard,  large  and  fine  (£4).  Walked  back  by  the  Arc  de 
Triomphe  to  our  Hotel,  not  arriving  till  7.30.  It  had  been  an 
amusing  afternoon,  and  in  a  quarter  hitherto  little  known 
to  us. 

354 


1875  NOTES  CERAMIC 

i8th.  The  first  thing  after  breakfast  we  went  out  to  take 
Danvilliers  photographs  of  our  Este  figures,  which  we  received 
yesterday  from  England.  He  read  us  an  interesting  letter  of 
Girolamo  Franchini,  dated  1867,  the  then  proprietor  of  the 
Este  fabrique.  The  said  Girolamo  wrote  that  he  was  81  years 
of  age,  that  the  works  had  been  established  by  an  ancestor  of 
his,  also  called  Girolamo  Franchini,  184  years  previous  to 
the  date  of  his  letter  "  in  the  English  manner  ",  with  other 
particulars.  On  our  way  through  the  Rue  Louis  le  Grand  we 
had  picked  up  a  cheap  little  Battersea  box.  From  M.  Dan- 
villiers we  went  up  the  Rue  de  Clichy  to  visit  the  shop  of  one 
Jamarin,  whom  Osmont  had  mentioned  to  us,  but  we  found 
he  had  only  furniture  ;  very  good  things.  We  "  persevered  " 
up  the  Boulevard  and  so  by  that  of  Batignolles  to  look  at  one 
or  two  shops,  and  thence  through  the  Boulevard  Haussmann 
to  the  Rue  Pasquier,  where  we  got  a  pink  enamel  box,  with 
indifferent  gilt  figures,  but  a  beautiful  silver  mount.  I  had 
had  an  eye  upon  it  for  more  than  a  year,  and  was  glad 
to  secure  it.  After  this  we  looked  over  Mme.  Fleuriot's 
stock  ;  called  in  the  Rue  Ferme  des  Mathurins,  and  went  on 
to  Wetterhaus'.  We  found  him  a  most  intelligent  man,  with 
articles  only  of  the  highest  class,  though  nothing  in  our  line, 
but  it  was  a  treat  to  see  his  fine  things.  (Remember  a  dish 
of  unique  Cinquecento  work,  silver  gilt,  with  representations 
of  the  taking  of  Jerusalem,  Colosseum,  Triumph,  Sacrifice,  etc., 
magnificent).  After  this  we  finished  our  day  by  walking  up 
to  the  Boulevard  Beaumarchais.  There  were  two  very  good 
figures  of  Seasons  at  Crispin's,  but  he  asked  too  much  for  them 
so  we  left  them.  Returned  by  the  Rue  St.  Antoine  and  Rue 
de  Rivoli,  and  got  back  from  our  long  walk  at  6.30.  Since 
dinner  I  have  been  polishing  up  some  of  the  mounts  of  some 
of  our  boxes,  especially  the  silver  mounts. 

The  first  thing  after  breakfast  was  the  engaging  of 
355 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1875 
a  French  cook  for  the  season.  Then  I  wrote  Ivor,  and  at 
12.30.  we  started  for  M.  Danvilliers'.  He  had  promised  to 
accompany  us  to  Laurent's  to  look  at  the  vase  which  had 
puzzled  us  on  the  i6th.  This  accordingly  he  did,  and,  at 
once,  he  pronounced  it  modern,  which  coincided  with  our 
ultimate  judgment.  He  admired  the  parure  of  Dresden 
vases  very  much.  After  this  he  took  us  to  Stetinen,  5  Rue 
Chabannais,  where  we  saw  some  fine  Dresden  figures,  but 
nothing  in  our  way.  Stetinen  has  a  house  in  London  also, 
and  he  buys  up  all  the  English  things  he  can  find  in  Paris  to 
send  there.  After  parting  with  Danvilliers  we  came  back  and 
fetched  our  Delft  plaques.  Wetterhaus  had  told  us  that  he 
could  get  a  first-rate  opinion  on  them  from  Weinberg,  in  the 
Rue  de  Provence.  Thither  we  took  them,  but  Weinberg 
being  out  we  left  them  there  for  the  present.  Went  next  to 
Arthur's  to  cash  a  cheque ;  then  through  the  Tuileries 
Gardens,  across  to  the  Quai  Voltaire  ;  made  a  general  review 
of  all  the  shops,  especially  the  print-shops,  but  found  nothing. 
Then  we  recrossed  the  river  and  went  along  the  Rue  de 
Rivoli  till  we  came  to  the  curious  and  interesting  Place  des 
Vosges,  which  they  told  us  had  once  been  the  Court  of 
Louis  XII I. 's  Palace,  and  so  on  to  the  Boulevard  Beau- 
marchais  to  see  Crispin  again.  We  now  offered  him  £8.  for 
his  two  Bow  figures,  which  he  accepted,  and  I  walked  away 
with  them,  highly  delighted  at  one  of  the  best  investments  we 
have  made  since  we  came  this  time  to  Paris.  On  our  way 
back  along  the  Boulevards,  we  called  again  in  the  Passage 
des  Panoramas,  and  bought  a  piece  of  Battersea  I  had  long 
been  intending  to  have,  for  £2.  8.  Thence  to  Weinberg's 
again,  to  fetch  away  our  plaques.  He  was  not  in,  but  he  had 
left  word  with  his  wife  that  they  were  modern  and  worthless, 
which  we  do  not  believe  !  We  got  home  a  little  before  7, 
having  had  a  long  and  active  day. 

356 


i875  NOTES  CERAMIC 

2Oth.  After  breakfast  to-day  we  went  by  appointment  to 
La  Croix,  the  old  printseller  in  the  Rue  du  Cherche  Midi. 
We  bought  one  or  two  good  mezzotints  from  him.  On  the 
way  back  we  looked  in  at  the  clock-shop,  Polinel's,  Rue 
de  Crenelle,  where  we  bought  our  biscuit  de  Sevres  group 
(Feb.  13).  They  have  one  or  two  clocks  which  we  thought 
worth  notice.  Passing  Duvauchel's  we  bought  a  little 
Dresden  milk  jug,  and  there  ended  our  mercantile  transactions 
for  the  day.  We  came  home  at  3.  to  write  letters,  C.S. 
having  some  important  communications  about  the  Glyn 
affairs  ;  and  at  4.  we  were  out  again.  Went  to  the  Hotel 
Drouot,  to  the  private  view  of  the  Vente  S^chan.  We  saw 
very  fine  things,  almost  all  in  the  Oriental  taste.  The 
Persian  Ware  and  the  Moorish  plates  were  very  remarkable. 

There  were  but  few  pieces  of  European  china,  and  hardly 
any  soft  paste.  Altogether  it  was  a  magnificent  collection. 
Called  afterwards  at  Fournier's  and  tried  in  vain  to  get 
in  ;  in  the  Rue  d'Aboukir  on  our  way  home  we  looked  in  at 
Oppenheim's,  but  they  had  nothing  fresh.  On  reaching 
home  at  7.  we  found  Granville  arrived,  who  had  come  to 
spend  Sunday  with  us. 

Sunday,  2ist.  At  breakfast  this  morning,  I  received 
three  letters,  one  from  Cornelia,  one  from  Blanche,  and  one 
from  Edward  Ponsonby.  They  were  all  to  announce  that 
Blanche  had  accepted  Edward  Ponsonby,  and  so  the  last  of 
ten  is  about  to  leave  the  parent  roof!  [The  Hon.  Edward 
Ponsonby,  son  of  the  7th  Earl  of  Bessborough  and  now 
the  8th  Earl.  He  sits  in  the  House  of  Peers  as  Baron 
Ponsonby.  He  was  in  the  Navy,  at  the  Bar,  Secretary  to 
the  Speaker  of  the  House  of  Commons,  Lord  Peel,  and  is 
Chairman  of  the  L.B.  &  S.C.  Railway.]  It  is  what  I  had  long 
expected,  but  it  seemed  to  come  suddenly  at  last,  and  the 
feeling  is  a  strange  one.  I  can  hardly  yet  realise  it,  but  I 

357, 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1875 
approve  the  event,  and  pray  God  to  bless  the  children.  We 
went  to  Church,  It  was  very  cold,  snowing  a  little.  After- 
wards C.S.  and  I  came  in  and  wrote  letters.  Granville 
joined  us  a  little  before  5,  and  we  took  him  with  us  to  have 
tea  with  the  Waddingtons.  M.  Waddington  had  been  very 
much  occupied,  and  is  still,  in  a  scheme  for  the  Election  of  a 
Senate,  and  has  earned  himself  a  name  in  French  history. 
He  is  charming  and  genial  as  ever.  C.S.  and  Granville 
dined  at  the  Grand  Hotel,  and  I,  alone  in  our  rooms,  shiver- 
ing with  the  cold. 

22nd.  I  got  up  feeling  ill,  and  suffering  from  a  thorough 
chill.  So  far  from  going  out,  and  walking  as  usual,  I  spent 
the  day  by  the  fire,  or  dozing  on  the  bed.  Granville  went 
back  to  Provins  about  noon.  C.S.  walked  out,  and  among 
other  things  went  to  see  Fulgence,  and  brought  back  from 
him  a  lovely  bell  of  Venetian  Porcelain,  at  a  very  moderate 
price,  50  francs.  He  tried  to  see  something  of  the  Vente 
S^chan,  but  arrived  just  too  late  to  witness  the  sale  of  a  sword 
which  fetched  £2000  !  Letters  from  Ivor  and  my  sister  in  the 
evening. 

23rd.  After  a  good  night  I  got  up  much  better,  but  I 
have  not  ventured  to  go  out,  for  it  continues  very  cold.  Before 
breakfast  was  quite  over,  Lacroix  appeared  with  some  prints 
and  we  have  invested  in  a  few  of  them,  how  wisely  remains 
to  be  seen !  While  he  was  still  with  us,  Fulgence  came  in. 
The  two  artistic  dealers  fraternised  and  it  was  amusing. 
Fulgence  looked  at  our  acquisitions  with  the  view  of  learning 
what  sort  of  objects  to  collect  for  us.  This  morning's  post 
brought  a  letter  from  Cornelia,  who  thinks  of  coming  over  to 
Paris,  and  wants  us  to  arrange  to  be  here  at  the  same  time  ; 
we  shall  try  to  manage  it.  Wrote  many  letters.  C.S.  has 
been  out  most  of  the  afternoon,  and  I  have  been  reading 
Freeman's  essays  on  the  two  Emperors  Frederick.  It  is  still 

358 


i875  NOTES  CERAMIC 

very  cold,  though  bright.  We  have  decided  on  going  to-morrow 
to  Brussels,  which  plan  I  hope  I  may  be  well  enough  to  carry 
out,  but  I  am  still  far  from  well  and  do  not  feel  certain  of 
myself. 

24th.  The  following  morning  I  felt  better,  and  as  there 
was  some  rain  falling,  we  hoped  for  milder  weather ;  so  we 
spent  our  morning  in  packing  up,  and  in  the  afternoon  left 
Paris  by  a  3.40.  train.  We  had  a  very  comfortable  journey 
to  Brussels.  A  railway  journey  always  does  me  good,  but  as  we 
advanced  along  the  line,  we  found  snow  lying  about  in  various 
places.  Our  train  was  somewhat  late,  and  when  we  reached 
the  Gare  du  Midi,  behold  there  were  no  cabs  to  be  had ! 
They  told  us  that  a  heavy  snowstorm  had  supervened  that 
afternoon,  and  that  the  streets  were  so  slippery  that  cab- 
drivers  would  not  come  out.  Que  faire  ?  After  some  de- 
liberation, we  got  two  porters  to  wheel  our  luggage  up  for  us  on 
a  truck,  and  we  set  out  valiantly  to  walk.  We  had  not  got  very 
far  before  the  two  porters  showed  unmistakable  signs  of  being 
tipsy  and  very  faint-hearted  besides.  They  complained  loudly 
of  the  weight  of  the  load,  and  it  was  only  by  a  mixture  of 
scolding  and  coaxing  that  we  could  get  them  to  proceed.  As 
it  was  they  insisted  on  stopping  at  every  cabaret  to  take 
another  "petite  goutte  pour  se  donner  du  courage".  C.S. 
gave  them  a  helping  hand  in  the  steepest  part,  slipped  in  the 
attempt,  but  to  no  injury,  and  at  length,  passing  S.  Gudule  as 
11.30.  struck,  we  reached  the  H6tel  Mengelle,  and  were  soon 
in  bed  and  asleep. 

25th.  Letters  from  London  ;  an  account  of  our  sale  ;  not 
quite  so  successful  as  I  could  have  hoped,  though  many  things 
did  marvellously  well.  Walked  after  breakfast  till  5.30.  To 
Marynen's,  where  we  got  a  very  good,  white,  old  Tournai 
group ;  Moen,  Craenen,  Handelaar,  Mliller,  Huysmans, 
Genie,  Polonet,  Papillon,  Stroobant.  At  Handelaar 's  we  were 

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LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1875 
persuaded  to  invest  in  a  couple  of  figures,  by  which  we  have 
been  much  exercised  ever  since.  We  cannot  quite  make  up 
our  minds  whether  they  are  genuine  or  not.  They  are  very 
pretty,  in  any  case,  and  bear  a  red  anchor,  but  they  are  clearly 
not  Chelsea,  The  most  probable  supposition  is  that  they  are 
Rockingham  imitations  of  that  manufacture  ?  Old  Genie, 
who  had  promised  so  much  when  we  saw  him  last,  was  not 
only  without  anything,  but  seemed  almost  out  of  his  mind. 
He  complained  of  having  more  than  he  could  do,  and  enter- 
tained us  for  the  whole  of  our  visit  with  invectives  against 
the  Jews  !  There  was  nothing  in  any  of  the  other  shops  to 
tempt  us.  Polonet  had  some  pieces  of  German  china  marked 
R — n  (qy.  Raunstein)  which  we  are  to  look  at  again,  and  there 
was  a  very  good  Tournai  group  at  Moen's,  which  we  went 
and  bought  early  the  following  morning. 

26th.  Besides  this  visit  to  Moen's  we  visited  the  shops 
in  the  Montaigne  de  la  Cour,  Slaes'  and  Cools',  but  they  had 
nothing  at  all  in  our  way.  Then  we  had  a  very  hurried  walk 
down  to  the  station  to  catch  the  11.50.  train  going  to  Ghent. 
Went  first  to  the  shops  in  the  Boulevard  Frere  Orban.  At 
Dumoulin's  were  some  very  pretty  Zurich  ^cuelles  and  some 
enamel  labels,  very  cheap,  which  we  bought.  We  failed  to 
find  De  Clerc  at  either  of  his  houses.  Called  on  old 
Omghena  and  had  another  look  at  his  wonderful  collection. 
We  tried  again  to  get  him  to  part  with  his  Tournai  6cuelle, 
but  in  vain  ;  however,  he  promised  if  ever  he  changed  his 
mind,  that  I  should  have  the  refusal.  Looked  in  at  the  shops 
in  the  Place  Vendrediand  Rue  S.  Jacques,  and  got  an  enamel 
box  at  Costa's.  On  going  back  to  pick  up  our  purchases  at 
Dumoulin's  (C.S.  was  making  another  attempt  to  find  De 
Clerc)  I  found  the  man  of  the  house  just  preparing  to  start 
for  Brussels  with  some  things  to  sell,  and  he  unpacked  some 
of  them  to  show  me  a  beautiful  pedestal,  with  a  figure  of  the 

360 


i875  NOTES  CERAMIC 

Virgin,  exquisitely  modelled,  the  Fulda  cross  being  on  the 
pedestal.  It  was  a  fine  work  of  art  altogether,  and  I  made 
him  bring  it  to  the  station,  where  C.S.  met  me.  The 
price  was  only  £13.  It  had  recently  come  from  a  sale  in 
Switzerland.  It  ended  in  our  bringing  it  away  with  us. 
I  consider  it  quite  one  of  the  gems  of  our  collection.  We 
got  home  at  6.30. 

27th.  At  Moen's  shop  yesterday,  we  made  the  acquaint- 
ance of  a  new  dealer,  Reubens  in  the  Rue  Royale,  S.  Marie, 
so  we  went  to  him  this  morning  after  breakfast.  He  had  a 
charming  Chelsea-Derby  jug,  which  he  sold  us  very  cheaply, 
telling  us  it  was  of  some  German  manufacture.  We  also  got  a 
Worcester  salad  bowl,  etc.,  and  think  it  likely  we  may  have 
future  trouvailles  with  him.  Thence  to  Vaillant's,  where  we 
bought  some  white  Bow  figures,  a  small  Chelsea  one,  etc.,  and 
then  we  paid  a  short  visit  to  M.  Fetis,  for  whom  we  had 
been  entrusted  with  a  plate  by  Fulgence.  We  looked  well 
at  his  collection  to  see  if  any  of  his  Delft  at  all  resembled  the 
blue  and  white  plaques  we  were  to  consign,  that  very  morn- 
ing, to  Eva  Krug  for  her  to  dispose  of  for  us.  But  we  could 
not  trace  any  great  similarity.  All  these  visits  we  were 
forced  to  do  on  wheels  as  the  distances  were  great,  and  we 
had  settled  to  go  to  Antwerp  at  12.40.  As  it  was,  we  only 
just  managed  to  be  in  time.  From  the  station  at  Antwerp 
we  walked  to  Eva  Krug's,  left  her  the  plaques,  settled  affairs 
with  her,  and  bought  of  her  a  lovely  little  Venetian  cup  and 
saucer,  and  a  figure  with  a  large  N  impressed  in  the  paste, 
I  suppose  Capo  de  Monte  ;  then  we  took  a  cab,  having  only  an 
hour  to  remain  in  Antwerp.  Found  some  prints  at  Tessaro's, 
and  a  good  biscuit  figure  (Derby)  of  Earth,  at  Van  Herck's. 
Then  we  went  back  to  Brussels,  reaching  our  Hotel  at  6.30. 
After  dinner  we  busied  ourselves  with  arrangements  for  C.S. 
to  go  to  Holland.  Being  so  near,  he  thought  it  a  pity  not  to 

361 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1875 
go  on  there  and  see  if  anything  was  to  be  acquired,  and  it 
occurred  to  us  that  he  could  get  over  the  ground  alone,  much 
quicker  and  at  less  cost,  than  if  I  went  with  him.  We  were 
anxious  to  get  back  as  soon  as  possible  to  Paris,  Cornelia 
having  written  that  they  had  engaged  rooms  there  for  next 
Wednesday,  the  3rd.  Another  reason  that  made  it  desirable 
that  I  should  not  go  with  him,  was  the  extreme  cold,  which  I 
rather  dreaded  after  my  recent  attack.  So  we  went  on  with  all 
the  necessary  preparations  until  bedtime,  and  again  after 
breakfast  this  morning, 

28th.  At  2.  he  started,  taking  with  him  as  many  of 
our  purchases  as  hand-box  and  bonnet-box  would  carry, 
that  he  might  leave  them  with  the  Speyers  to  be  sent  off  by 
them  from  Rotterdam.  Read  upstairs  and  tried  to  under- 
stand Carlyle's  Frederick  the  Great  and  to  jot  down  some 
Hohenzollern  pedigrees,  when,  behold,  I  was  startled  by  a 
telegram  from  Ivor,  saying  that  they  would  be  in  Paris  on 
the  23rd.,  which  is  a  total  change  of  plan,  and  releases  us 
from  all  obligation  of  returning  there.  I  have  written  to  ask 
him  for  explanation  by  letter,  as  telegrams  are  often  wrong ; 
and  I  have  written  to  C.S.  telling  him  he  need  not  unduly 
hurry  through  his  Holland  trip,  as  our  time  is  now  more 
at  our  own  disposal.  Nevertheless,  I  shall  be  very  grateful 
to  have  him  back  again.  What  marvels !  I  had  scarce  written 
the  above,  when  a  second  telegram  arrived  from  Ivor,  saying 
they  adhered  to  their  plan  of  being  in  Paris  on  the  3rd. 

MARCH  1875 

BRUSSELS  :  AND  HOME 

March  1st.  In  the  afternoon,  taking  Dell  with  me,  I 
walked  till  dinner-time.  Went  to  Janssen's.  He  has  one 
or  two  good  things,  but  beyond  our  prices ;  for  instance, 

362 


FREDERIC  THE  GREAT  ON   HORSE-BACK   DURING  WAR.       THE  STATUETTE  \VAS   MADE   IN 

THE  ROYAL   FACTORY  AT  BERLIN    IN    THE    BISQUE   CHINA   ONCE  SO    POPULAR   AT   SEVRES 

Lord  \\~iinbornc  s  Collection 


i8;5  NOTES  CERAMIC 

he  has  a  white  group,  Vieux  Tournai,  precisely  like  that 
we  bought  of  Moen  for  75  francs  and  he  asks  the  double, 
150  francs.  So  with  his  Mennecy,  the  prices  range 
as  high  as  in  London.  At  Polonet's  I  bought  a  pair  of 
R — n  (qy.  Raunstein)  candlesticks,  as  arranged  beforehand 
with  C.S.  Genie  had  nothing  new.  I  went  to  Papillon's 
and  sorted  out  one  or  two  prints  for  C.S.  to  choose  from  if  he 
had  time  on  his  return.  Among  Papillon's  prints  was  one  of 
Antwerp  Town  Hall  by  Hollar  (grande  marge)  which  I  could 
not  leave  behind,  even  till  Thursday,  and  so  brought  away  at 
the  price  of  6  francs,  to  me  a  charming  acquisition.  Having 
still  time  to  spare,  I  persevered  to  Manon's  in  the  Avenue  du 
Midi.  They  were  in  the  course  of  deme'nagement,  going  to 
Spa,  and  had  nothing  to  show,  but  I  bought  a  fine,  though 
imperfect,  sucrier  of  Vieux  Tournai,  blue  and  white,  which 
she  sold  to  me  as  Gaze,  pate  tendre,  for  6/4.  In  the  evening 
I  read  a  little,  and  then  amused  myself  with  drawing  up  an 
account  of  the  adventures  of  our  celebrated  Rouen  Bottle,  and 
all  the  chances  we  ran  of  losing  it. 

2nd.  A  brighter-looking  day.  Letters  from  home ; 
among  them  one  from  Ivor  about  Blanche's  wedding,  which  I 
have  answered  to  Paris,  where  I  suppose  he  will  be  to-night. 
I  fear  some  complications,  but  must  hope.  After  Dell's 
dinner  I  walked  out.  It  was  then  1.30.  and  I  stayed  out  till 
5.30.  She,  poor  girl,  got  tired  and  I  sent  her  home  long 
before,  but  with  all  my  walking,  I  did  no  good.  First  I  went 
to  Vaillant's,  who  was  away  ;  then  to  Reubens',  to  Marynen, 
Moen's,  Polonet's,  Le  Roy,  and,  at  his  recommendation,  to 
Gliver's,  Rue  Paroissiens,  where  I  found  a  firm  selling  curious, 
illustrated  books,  and  preparing  for  sales  of  prints,  but  not 
keeping  prints  themselves  for  sale.  In  fact  I  walked  for  many 
hours,  to  no  purpose,  except  to  satisfy  myself  that  there  was 
nothing  to  be  found.  As  I  left  dinner  they  told  me  that 

363 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1875 
Dumoulin  wanted  to  see  me.  He  had  brought  me  the 
metal  crown,  etc.,  belonging  to  the  figure  we  bought  of  him 
on  Friday,  also  a  catalogue  to  show  where  the  figure  came 
from.  He  was  wilder  than  ever,  and  I  was  glad  to  be  rid  of 
him.  Later  in  the  evening  I  got  a  letter  from  C.S.,  saying 
that  he  was  meeting  with  great  successes  in  Holland  but 
should  not  be  back  with  me,  as  he  first  intended,  on  the 
morrow.  I  am  not  sorry  he  is  taking  more  leisure  about  it, 
and  not  allowing  himself  to  be  so  hurried,  more  especially  was 
I  so  when  this  (Wednesday)  morning's  post  brought  me  word 
from  Ivor  that,  owing  to  the  inclement  weather,  they  had  given 
up  all  idea  of  going  to  Paris,  where  we  were  to  have  met  them. 
So  now  we  shall  go  home  quietly  to  England  instead,  which  I 
much  prefer.  This  new  phase  cost  more  letter-writing,  which, 
with  other  things,  kept  me  at  home  till  after  Dell's  dinner, 
when  I  walked  to  the  Tour  de  Hal,  remaining  there  till  it 
closed.  Then  I  searched  vainly  for  a  print-shop  I  knew  last 
year  in  the  Rue  de  1'Imperatrice,  but  which  is  now  closed, 
and  on  my  way  back  to  the  upper  town  strolled  into  St. 
Gudule's,  where  a  child's  funeral  was  going  on,  and  gazed 
once  more  at  the  wonderful  windows  of  the  choir.  It  had 
been  a  bright  clear  day,  but  with  rather  a  cold  wind.  To-day 
the  Woodward  and  Kitty  Clive,  which  we  saw  last  year  at 
Newbury,  were  to  be  sold  at  Christie's.  We  have  empowered 
them  to  bid  30.  guineas  for  them  for  us,  but  have  no  hope  of 
getting  them  at  that  price.  C.S.  joined  me,  and  then 
we  went  home,  and  so  ended  this  pleasant  little  trip.  [The 
statuettes  of  Woodward  and  Kitty  Clive  form  part  of  the 
collection  of  Chelsea  now  at  South  Kensington,  so  possibly 
the  30  guineas  bought  these  much-sought-after  figures  of 
Garrick's  actors.] 


364 


NOTES  CERAMIC 

OCTOBER  1875  TO  JANUARY  14,  1876 

PARIS  :  BORDEAUX  :  VOYAGE  TO  LISBON 

Oct.  1875. 

1 6th.  Left  London  by  train  at  9  A.M.  from  Charing  Cross. 
It  was  a  dull  still  morning  with  something  like  a  fog  when  we 
started.  I  felt  dull  too,  for,  after  being  kept  two  months  in 
England  beyond  our  reckoning,  we  at  length  made  up  our  minds 
to  go  as  far  as  Portugal,  to  make  a  long  sea  voyage  (which  is 
a  thing  I  always  dread)  and  to  be  away  six  months  (which  is 
not  without  anxiety  when  one  leaves  so  many  dear  ones  behind). 
Accordingly  I  was  dull  and  out  of  spirits  all  the  day.  Since  I 
wrote  here  last  my  Blanche  is  married — I  have  no  ties  at  home, 
and  my  dear  husband  and  I  are  free  to  roam  as  we  will.  So 
we  had  settled  to  spend  some  six  weeks  in  Normandy,  where 
we  were  so  happy  last  year,  which  trip  was  to  have  commenced 
on  the  last  25th  of  August.  But  then  Enid  and  Henry's 
yearly  visit  was  not  yet  over,  and  C.S.  had  family  business 
which  kept  him  engaged,  and  I  was  still  busy  in  bringing  into 
a  little  order  the  affairs  of  the  Needlework  School.  All  these 
things  put  together  led  us  to  defer  our  journey  and  we  worked 
on  in  London  till  the  date  above  given,  when  at  length  we 
started  on  our  travels.  The  railway  people  had  just  opened 
a  quicker  route.  We  were  to  be  in  Paris  in  9  hours  but  an 
accident  to  our  steamer  in  mid-channel  rather  delayed  us. 
One  of  the  floats  of  a  paddle-wheel  got  loose  and  had  to  be 
removed,  which  retarded  our  movements.  The  sea  was  as 
smooth  as  glass  and  we  had  a  beautiful  passage.  I  went 

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LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1875 
below,  for  I  was  weary  with  excess  of  work  on  the  days 
immediately  preceding  our  setting  out,  and  was  glad  to  get  a 
little  sleep,  which  would  have  been  less  interrupted  had  not  an 
elderly  gentleman  caused  a  chair  of  peculiar  construction  to  be 
placed  in  the  ladies'  cabin,  which  was  to  prevent  all  sea- 
sickness, and  which  he  came  down  every  now  and  then  to 
expatiate  upon.  We  had  scarcely  landed  on  French  soil  when 
the  sun  came  out  to  greet  us,  and  we  had  a  glorious  afternoon, 
all  the  more  appreciated  after  the  stormy  weather  we  had 
lately  had  in  England.  We  had  agreeable  companions,  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Wollarton  in  the  railway  carriage,  and  reached 
Belard's  soon  after  7.,  where  we  found  a  good  dinner  awaiting 
us.  [The  proprietor  of  the  little  Hotel  S.  Romain,  Rue  S. 
Roch,  where  Lady  Charlotte  and  other  members  of  her  family 
always  stayed  in  Paris.  Belard  and  his  wife,  kind  homely 
people,  are  now  dead,  but  the  son  keeps  on  the  hotel.] 

Sunday,  1 7th.  We  were  not  up  very  early,  but  strolled  out 
after  breakfast  and  enjoyed  some  7  hours'  walking.  We  went 
first  through  the  Tuileries  Gardens  across  to  the  Quai,  from 
which  to  see  the  Sainte  Chapelle,  which  I  had  not  seen  for 
years,  and  which  is  not  yet  quite  completed.  Then  to  the 
Notre  Dame,  which  we  surveyed  within  and  without,  and  the 
completeness  and  simple  grandeur  of  which  we  admired  more 
than  ever.  Then  to  the  Maison  Cluny,  where  we  spent  above 
two  hours  most  satisfactorily ;  and  lastly  to  the  Gardens  of 
the  Luxembourg,  where  we  walked  a  long  time,  and  where 
thousands  were  enjoying  the  sunny  afternoon  among  the 
flowers,  listening  to  music  beneath  the  avenues,  innocently 
happy  1  It  was  all  as  charming  as  possible,  and  a  great  repose 
to  me  after  my  late  hard  work.  We  got  back  between  six  and 
seven.  To-morrow  we  begin  our  "  chasse  ". 

1 8th.  We  got  out  about  n.,  and  taking  the  Rue  S.  Roch 
on  our  way,  went  on  to  the  Oppenheims  in  the  Rue  d'Aboukir. 

366 


1875  NOTES  CERAMIC 

The  men  were  out,  but  young  Mme.  Oppenheim  attended  us, 
and  we  fairly  rummaged  the  shop  before  the  brothers  came 
back.  We  bought  a  curious  Dresden  figure  of  a  Chinese 
Saint,  imitating  the  Oriental,  and  fell  in  love  with  a  pair  of 
Dresden  Cocks,  of  gorgeous  plumage,  bearing  the  much- 
esteemed  ^sculapius  mark.  C.S.,  however,  turned  away 
from  them  because  all  their  feathers  were  not  quite  intact,  and 
so  we  walked  on  to  the  Fourniers.  They  are  full  of  good 
though  not  very  rare  Oriental.  We  bought  with  them  a  fine 
old  Vienna  vase  with  "  Mosaic "  borders,  and  decorated  with 
bouquets  "  heightened "  with  gold,  C.S.  also  discovered  a 
fish  of  turquoise  and  gold,  which  would  seem  to  be  Chelsea, 
and  which,  in  any  case,  at  the  price,  25  frs.,  would  be  a 
trouvaille.  We  called  on  Fulgence,  made  an  appointment  for 
Wednesday,  looked  in  at  Giershoffer's,  where  we  saw  some 
lovely  lace  and  embroideries,  but  no  china  to  tempt  us.  After 
this  we  took  a  carriage  to  the  Avenue  Friedland  to  call  on 
Mendez  Leal,  a  Portuguese  gentleman  living  in  Paris,  to 
whom  Enid  was  by  way  of  introducing  us,  that  we  might 
gain  some  information  for  our  guidance  in  Portugal.  He 
was,  however,  in  Lisbon,  so  we  occupied  ourselves  with 
the  neighbouring  shops ;  at  Tousson's  we  got  two  Chinese 
plates,  and  a  Masonic  box  done  in  boxwood.  At  Nelson's  we 
got  a  curious  Oriental  dish.  Called  on  Mme.  Flaudin,  still  en 
voyage.  At  Liandier's,  where  we  found  nothing.  After  this  we 
went  back  to  the  Oppenheims,  and,  asking  them  to  take  charge 
of  our  purchases  for  us  and  either  bring  them  to  England  with 
them,  or  lock  them  up  in  their  cupboards  till  our  return,  we 
summoned  courage  to  invest  in  the  beautiful  cocks  we  had  so 
admired  in  the  morning.  They  had  bought  them  in  St. 
Petersburg,  and  proud  am  I  to  add  them  to  my  Collection. 
Got  back  to  our  Hotel  about  7.,  after  a  pleasant  and  busy  day. 
1 9th.  One  of  the  happy  and  fortunate  days  of  life.  We 

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LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1875 
were  up  early.     Walked  out  after  breakfast,  and  took  a  cab  in 
the  Rue  St.  Honore  and  so  to  the  Station  St.  Lazare,  and  so  to 
Rouen.     There  was  a  mist  over  the  valley  of  the  Seine ;  it  was 
only  partially  lifted  when  we  got  to  Poissy  (with  its  beautiful 
Church)  and  was  only  just  dispersing  as  we  got  to  Nantes  (of 
many  memories).     On  through  Vernon  and  Gaillon,  reviving 
recollections  of  last  year's  happy  ramble  to  Chateau  Gaillard, 
the  Grand  Andelys,  etc.,  all  very  delightful.     I  worked  all  the 
day  but  enjoyed  glimpses  of  the  scenery  all  through  the  route. 
As  we  neared  Rouen  I  asked  a  fellow-traveller  if  he  knew  the 
address  of  M.  Gouellain,  Amateur  en  Faience;  he  did  not,  but 
the  word  faience  caused  him  to  remark  that  M.  de  Boulay,  a 
great  Collector,  and  Directeur  of  the  Rouen  Muse"e,  was  just 
then  getting  into  the  train.     When  we  arrived  at  the  terminus, 
we  got  him  to  point  him  out  to  us,  and  then  commenced  our 
attack.     M.  de  Boulay  showed  us  the  way  to  M.  Gouellain's 
house,  where  we  were  fortunate  in  finding  that  gentleman  at 
home.     He   is   a   charming    man   and    we    fraternised    most 
sincerely.     In  the  old  collecting  basket,  we  had  with  us  the  cele- 
brated piece  of  Oct.  14.  1874,  and  another  example  which  C.S. 
had  found  at  Marks's,  which  I  had  singled  out  six  years  ago,  but 
was  now  considered  worthy  of  notice  at  last.     M.  Gouellain 
went  into  ecstasies  over  both  specimens,  which  he  pronounced 
to  be  undoubted  "  Denys  Dorio  ".     They  make  up  the  number 
of  9  known  pieces  of  this  description.     Five  are  in  the  Mus6e, 
two  in  M.  Gouellain's  collection,  two  in  ours.     M.  Gouellain 
was  in  the  greatest  excitement.     He  had  heard  of  our  trouvaille 
from  M.   Fetis  of  Brussels,  who  passed  through  Rouen  the 
other  day.     He  sent  for  his  old  father  to  look  at  the  specimens 
and  was  overwhelmed  with  enthusiasm.     When  he  calmed  a 
little  he  showed  us  his  own  collection,  small,  but  very  good, 
Rouen   faience,    Mennecy,  and   St.    Cloud.     He   gave   us   an 
introduction  to  M.   Belsegarde,   who  has  a   good  old  house 

368 


i875  NOTES  CERAMIC 

(Louis  XV.)  and  some  very  good  faience  and  Oriental  china. 
On  leaving  him  we  went  to  the  Mus6e,  where  M.  de  Boulay 
presently  found  us.  We  compared  our  Denys  Doric  specimens 
with  those  in  the  Muse*e,  and  had  some  pleasant  talk  with  him. 
On  leaving  the  Musee  we  accompanied  him  to  look  at  a  vase 
which  a  dealer  from  Lyons,  whom  we  fell  in  with,  had  bought 
at  a  public  sale.  It  was  white,  aspiring  to  Arabian  decoration, 
large  and  striking,  marked  I.D.  It  is  evidently  of  very  recent 
date  and  might,  I  should  think,  have  been  manufactured  for 
the  Exhibition  of  1857  by  Deck.  After  parting  with  M.  de 
Boulay,  we  looked  through  the  shops.  Billiard  and  Fra^ois 
had  nothing  for  us.  The  latter  showed  us  a  good  private 
collection  of  his  own.  After  this  we  strolled,  with  great 
pleasure,  to  the  Salle  de  Justice ;  then  took  an  open  carriage, 
revisited  the  Cathedral,  St.  Martin's  and  St.  Ouen's,  ending 
by  another  call  at  M.  Gouellain's  to  fetch  some  wraps  we  left 
there,  where  we  saw  a  St.  Cloud  Vase  which  he  had  lately 
bought.  The  day  ended  by  our  joining  the  table  d'hote  at  the 
Hotel  de  France  at  6,  and  returning  to  Paris  by  the  8.50. 

20th.  A  long  day's  shopping  in  Paris.  Went  first  to 
Arthur's  to  get  some  money.  Bought  an  enamel  box  of 
Wanitz,  then  took  a  carriage  and  drove  about  till  7  ;  frequent 
and  violent  showers.  First  across  the  water  to  Lacroix.  He 
had  no  prints  for  us  ;  bought  a  Wedgwood  bowl  at  a  neigh- 
bouring shop ;  on  our  way  thence  we  stopped  at  PallinePs,  Rue 
de  Crenelle,  where  we  found  the  remains  of  an  exquisite  Wedg- 
wood plate.  Then  to  Duvauchel's.  Invested  in  a  pair  of  lovely 
Oriental  vases  with  rose  borders  like  those  we  bought  of  Le 
Roy  of  Brussels.  Among  other  things  there  we  discovered  a 
pair  of  showy  vases,  black  and  green  ground,  etc,  which 
tempted  us  by  their  fair  show  and  moderate  price  (^25).  We 
left  them  to  be  washed  up  while  we  went  across  the  River 
again.  Called  on  Fulgence ;  went  through  the  Rue  de  Provence ; 
i  369  2  A 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1875 

bought  the  beau  restes  of  another  old  ^Esculapius  marked 
Cock  for  a  pound,  and  got  back  to  Duvauchel's  as  a  late  sun- 
beam succeeded  the  rain  and  lighted  up  the  vases  we  returned 
to  inspect,  and  which  we  pronounced  to  be  "nouveau  decor". 
As  we  passed  again  by  the  Quai  Voltaire  we  got  some  pretty 
Oriental  cups  and  stands,  but  fell  into  a  snare  at  another 
shop.  Went,  en  dernier  lieu,  to  Fournier's  to  pick  up  the 
pieces  bought  there  on  Monday,  and  then  to  Oppenheim's  to 
deposit  all  our  recent  purchases,  which  had  run  into  a  lot  of 
money.  I  care  but  little  for  the  two  Dresden  Cocks  and  figure, 
the  two  Rose-bordered  Oriental  vases,  and  the  broken  Wedg- 
wood plate.  After  dinner  a  good  deal  of  letter- writing,  and 
to  bed. 

2 1  st.  Up  early.  Letters  before  and  after  breakfast. 
Left  Paris  at  10.45.  travelling  through  that  most  interesting 
Loire  country  to  Bordeaux.  Working  most  of  the  day. 
Through  Juvisy  (which  reminded  us  of  the  adventures  of 
June  i,  1871),  Blois,  Amboise  (view  of  Chateau  de  Chaumont), 
Tours,  Chatellerault,  which  (after  showers)  was  lighted  up  by 
one  of  those  wonderful  golden  sunsets  which  one  sees  but 
seldom  in  a  lifetime  (this  one  resembling  the  colouring  of 
22  Aug.  1856,  when  my  Ivor  reached  his  majority),  Poitiers, 
which  seemed  to  us  one  of  the  most  beautiful  and  interesting 
places  we  had  ever  seen,  and  which  we  determined,  God 
willing,  to  visit  on  the  first  opportunity.  After  this  daylight 
failed.  The  train  stopped  to  dine  at  Angouleme,  but  we  could 
see  nothing  of  it.  We  got  to  Bordeaux  and  to  our  Inn  there 
(Hotel  de  France)  by  about  n.  A  very  comfortable  Hotel, 
which  we  were  glad  to  have  found  out,  but  the  servants 
uncivil. 

22nd.  C.S.  took  a  little  turn  before  I  came  down  to  break- 
fast, and  returned  to  tell  me  that  the  Fair  was  going  on.  We 
had  fallen  in  with  it  once  before  (March  1872)  but  then  I  was 

370 


i875  NOTES  CERAMIC 

not  able  to  go  and  see  it.  To-day  our  first  care  was  to  go  and 
see  Mr.  Davis,  the  agent  of  the  vessel  in  which  we  had  taken 
our  places  for  to-morrow,  en  route  towards  Lisbon.  After  our 
visit  to  him,  we  returned  to  the  Fair,  which  is  a  most  amusing 
sight.  Bought  a  small  Mennecy  jug,  then  walked  about  the 
town.  The  Sayers  have  not  nearly  such  a  good  stock  as  they 
had  previously,  but  we  found  a  little  Battersea  etui  with  them, 
and  two  very  curious  Worcester  cups,  bearing  a  forged  Sevres 
mark,  and  (in  gold)  the  date  1782.  One  or  two  trifling  pur- 
chases in  the  course  of  our  ramble,  which  ended  by  a  visit  to 
the  Cathedral.  All  this  on  foot.  At  3.  we  came  in  to  get 
some  bread  and  butter  and  to  review  our  plans  and  we  did  not 
go  out  again  till  5,  when  it  was  growing  dark,  and  the  people 
were  beginning  to  close  their  stalls.  We  bought,  however,  two 
(not  quite  perfect)  fire-backs ;  one  with  Insignia,  etc.,  of  Louis 
XIV.  dated  1690,  the  other  with  Royal  Arms  of  England  and 
initials  I.R.,  having  undoubtedly  belonged  to  James  II.  or  his 
unlucky  son.  Both,  they  said,  had  come  out  of  the  same  house, 
in  demolition  at  Bordeaux.  We  are  going  to  send  these  home 
by  sea.  We  had  a  great  hunt  for  another  shop  in  the  Fair, 
where  we  had,  in  the  morning,  seen  a  very  pretty  marcasite 
watch;  but  we  failed  to  find  it,  which  I  the  less  regretted  as 
the  price  asked  for  it  (£12)  was  exorbitant,  and  there  seemed 
little  chance  of  obtaining- it  at  much  reduction,  if  any. 

25th.  I  must  begin  and  make  some  memoranda  here,  or 
all  the  last  10  days  will  be  forgotten  Well,  before  9  o'clock 
on  Saturday  morning  we  were  astir,  and  the  commissionaire 
had  come  to  take  our  luggage  to  the  boat.  There  was  a 
drizzling  rain  and  it  was  rather  cheerless.  We  were  amongst 
the  first  to  go  on  board,  and  there  we  sat  for  more  than  an 
hour  crouching  under  the  scanty  awning,  before  we  got  under 
weigh.  /  At  length  we  started.  The  rain  continued,  and  nobody 
hurried  themselves,  and  it  was  between  3  and  4  o'clock  before 

371 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1875 
our  "tender"  reached  the  steamer,  the  "Acongagua,"  by 
which  we  were  to  pursue  our  journey  to  Lisbon.  There  we 
had  another  conference  with  the  agent,  Mr.  Davis,  by  favour 
of  whom  we  got  berths  in  a  cabin  all  to  ourselves,  which  was  a 
great  mercy,  and  where  we  made  ourselves  very  comfortable. 
Very  soon  we  were  told  that  one  thing  and  another  had  so 
retarded  the  steamer  that  she  did  not  propose  to  go  farther 
that  afternoon.  We  were  a  little  way  off  the  town  of  Pauillac. 
All  the  shores  of  the  Gironde  had  been  pretty  and  interesting, 
though  not  fine  or  romantic.  Now  we  were  not  sorry  to  hear 
that  we  were  to  pass  a  night  in  peace  before  leaving  her  quiet 
waters.  We  dined,  and  then  I  got  my  work  and  sat  in  a  quiet 
corner  of  the  saloon,  talking  to  an  agreeable  lady  (Mdlle.  Eny 
Piderit)  and  to  a  poor  lame  English  gentleman,  whose  name  I 
did  not  hear,  who,  having  studied  some  time  at  the  Heidelberg 
University,  was  now  going  to  finish  his  education  at  Valladolid 
for  the  sake  of  learning  Spanish.  Before  1 1 .  I  went  to  our 
berth,  undressed  and  went  to  bed. 

24th.  Next  morning  we  were  up  betimes.  The  rain  had 
ceased,  the  sky  had  cleared  and  we  had  one  of  the  loveliest 
days  that  ever  came  out  of  the  heavens.  After  breakfast  we 
went  on  deck,  where  we  sat  most  of  the  day,  watching  our 
passage  over  the  bar,  and  through  a  large  portion  of  the  Bay 
of  Biscay.  At  length  night  came.  I  lay  down  in  my  berth 
with  my  clothes  on  and  got  some  sleep,  but  not  comfortably  as 
I  got  a  good  deal  cramped  and  the  vessel  rocked  very  little. 
All  of  a  sudden  we  found  we  had  stopped,  so  C.S.  and  I  rose 
from  our  couches  (we  had  not  undressed)  and  walked  up  and 
down  the  deck.  We  were  off  Santander.  The  stars  were  very 
bright,  and  the  sea  was  lighted  with  phosphorescent  light, 
but  it  was  long  ere  we  could  see  anything  of  the  shore.  We 
watched  for  the  first  streak  of  dawn,  and  by  degrees  the  hills 
behind  the  town  and  their  snows  became  crimson. 

372 


1875  NOTES  CERAMIC 

25th.     Soon   after   the   sun   topped   the    horizon   and   we 
had   one   of  the  most  beautiful  effects   I  ever  saw — and  so, 
this  was  Santander  of  which  I  had  lately  heard  so  much !     A 
Queen's  Messenger  went  off  from  here  taking  despatches  with 
him  to  Madrid,  and  the  Vice-Consul,  M.  St.  Martin,  came  on 
board  on  the  ship's  business  and  bringing  me  a  letter  from 
Henry  Layard,  praying  us  to  disembark  there  and  go  by  train 
to  Madrid,  thence  to  pursue  our  journey  to  Lisbon  by  land. 
Having,  however,  made  up  our  minds  to  proceed  thither  in  our 
steamer,  we  wrote  him  a  note  to  that  effect,  which  the  Vice- 
Consul  promised  to  transmit.      In  the  meantime  the  Captain 
of  the  "Lively"  (Hiller's  ship)  came,  and  having  notice  from 
Henry  that  we  should  be  here,  very  kindly  offered  to  place  his 
boat  at  our  disposal  if  we  were  inclined  to  go  ashore  and 
explore   the   town.     Time,    however,    did   not   admit   of   our 
accepting  his  kind  offer.     It  had  been  arranged,  had  we  gone 
to  Madrid  from  this  point,  that  we  should  sleep  on  the  "Lively" 
on   our   way,    as   the   railway  would   not  go  on  till  the  next 
morning.     All  this,  however,  with  many  thanks,  we  declined. 
I  am  sorry  not  to  have  seen  the  Captain  (Captain  Palliser),  who 
is  the  son  of  our  old  friend  of  ceramic  repute,  but  just  as  he 
arrived  I  was  performing  a  hasty  toilette,  and  before  I  could 
get  on  deck  again,  he  was  gone.     We  breakfasted  off  Santander, 
Soon   after    10.    we   were   off  again.     The   first   part   of  our 
voyage  was  most  propitious ;  the  brightest  sun ;  the  smoothest 
sea.     I  sat  on  deck  till  the  afternoon.    Then  the  sky  became 
cloudy  and  there  were  slight  showers  and  I  went  to  the  cabin 
and  lay  down  and  read.     When  night  came  on  I  tried  to  sleep, 
but  did  not  undress.     There  was  slightly  more  rolling  than  the 
previous  night,  and  the  deck  was  wet  with  showers  when  we 
went  up  in  the  morning  to  see  the  entrance  into  Corunna. 
They  pointed  out  to  me  the  burial-place  of  Sir  John  Moore,  in 
which  I  could  not  but  feel  the  greatest  interest  ever  since  I  read 

373 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1875 

of  his  sad  fate  some  fifty  years  ago,  in  Southey's  graphic  page. 

I  stayed  on  deck  watching  the  boats  from  the  shore  with  their 

curious  freight  of  musicians,  fruit-sellers,  etc.,  all  so  Spanish. 

Then  came  breakfast,  and  before  that  was  quite  over  we  were 

off  again.     I  saw  that  the  weather  was  less  propitious  than  it 

had  been  on  other  days,  so  I  went  down  early  to  our  cabin,  and 

placed  myself  comfortably  on  the  sofa,  where  I  remained  for 

the  next  24  hours,  and  more.     The  passage  was  pretty  calm 

till   we   came   near   Cape  Finisterre ;  then  it  became  rough. 

There  was  no  wind.     Towards  evening  the  sun  came  out,  and 

the  night  was  clear  and  starlight;  but  the  rolling  of  the  ship 

was   most   unpleasant,    owing,    they   said,    to   gales    in    some 

distant   quarter,   which   disturbed   the   sea,  and  subjected  us 

every  now  and  then  to  a  serious  lurch.     I  had  eaten  very  little 

during  the  voyage  and  slept  even  less,  but  now  I  was  so  tired 

that  I  found  myself,  more  than  once,  dropping  asleep,  though 

holding  tight  to  some  of  the  adjacent  fittings.     The  hours  were 

very,  very  long,  and,  though  they  said  we  got  on  very  fast,  it 

was  late  in  the  afternoon  before  we  got  into  the  Tagus.     Then 

I  went  on  deck.     From  that  moment  the  weather  was  perfect, 

and  the  scene  magnificent.     It  was  certainly  worth  while  to  go 

through  something  to  enter  Lisbon  for  the  first  time  by  sea. 

The  sun  had  set  before  we  came  to  anchor.     Then,  of  course, 

there  was   the   usual  confusion  about  landing,  so   we  stayed 

quietly  on  board  and  dined  before  we  went  on  shore.     It  was 

8.  o'clock  before  we  did  so.      One  of  our  fellow-passengers, 

Col.  Williams,  who  has  some  employment  with  the  Portuguese 

army,  had  a  boat  awaiting  him  and  took  us  in  it  with  him. 

He  recommended  us  to  go  to  Street's  Hotel,  but  that  being 

full,  we  went  on  to  the  Braganza,  where  we  found  comfortable 

rooms,  in  which,  in  the  space  of  an  hour,  we  went  to  bed.     I 

was  tired  from  fasting  and  sleeplessness,  but   I   had  escaped 

being  ill  during  all  the  voyage,  which  was  the  case  with  hardly 

374 


1875  NOTES  CERAMIC 

any  one  else.     So  I  ought  to  be  thankful — still  more  so  that  we 
were  permitted  to  land  here  in  all  safety. 

28th.  We  had  not  been  allowed  to  bring  more  than  a 
carpet  bag  through  the  Custom  House  last  evening,  so  as  soon 
as  breakfast  was  over  to-day,  C.S.  went  out,  with  Col.  Williams' 
boatman,  to  clear  our  luggage.  Meanwhile  we  had  discovered 
that  the  room  next  to  ours  commanded  a  most  lovely  view, 
looking  west  as  well  as  south,  so  we  obtained  leave  to  change 
one  of  our  apartments  for  it,  and  while  he  was  out  I  occupied 
myself  in  effecting  this.  It  makes  us  a  charming  and  most 
cheerful  sitting-room.  Colonel  Williams  had  promised  to  call 
at  2.  o'clock,  but  as  he  had  not  come  by  4.,  we  then  walked  out 
to  take  a  stroll,  went  no  farther  than  the  Chiado,  the  Rua 
Aurea,  the  Pra^a  do  Comme^io,  which  is  really  grand,  and 
the  Rua  Augusta,  where  we  found  a  large  curiosity  shop,  but 
with  nothing  good  in  it.  There  was  nobody  at  the  table  d'hote, 
but  one  of  our  fellow-passengers,  Col.  St.  George,  a  director  of 
the  Monches  Iron  Mines,  worked  by  an  English  Company;  I 
had  some  interesting  conversation  with  him  while  on  board. 
We  find  him  a  very  agreeable  man.  After  dinner  Col. 
Williams  came  to  see  us ;  he  had  been  detained  in  the  morning 
trying  to  trace  a  robbery,  which  had  taken  place  in  the  packet. 
He  promised  to  return  the  next  morning  to  take  us  to  some  of 
the  curiosity  dealers;  however,  when  the  appointed  time,  n. 
o'clock,  came,  he  sent  us  word  that  he  was  summoned  to  the 
War  Office  instead. 

Friday,  29th.  Accordingly  we  sallied  out  alone,  and  walked 
about  some  hours.  First  we  went  to  two  large  shops  in  the 
Rua  Alecrim.  In  the  first  we  found  nothing;  the  second,  a 
Bazaar  at  the  bottom  of  the  street,  was  more  pretentious,  but 
had  only  second-rate  goods  at  exorbitant  prices.  We  went  into 
the  Rua  Aurea  and  amused  ourselves  in  the  numerous  gold- 
smiths' shops.  Then  we  went  to  the  Rua  de  Plata,  where  we 

375 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1875 
made  a  discovery  with  which  we  were  perfectly  enchanted.  It 
appears  that  at  the  time  the  Pra$a  do  Comme^io  was  built, 
after  the  Earthquake,  and  King  Jose  I.'s  statue  was  erected 
there,  General  Bartholomew  da  Costa,  superintending  the 
Works,  discovered  the  art  of  making  a  beautiful  biscuit  porce- 
lain, and  plaques  and  medallions  a  la  Wedgwood.  Of  all  this 
we  had  never  heard  before ;  none  of  the  Ceramic  books  men- 
tion it.  We  were  now  fortunate  enough  to  find  a  biscuit 
plaque,  representing  the  lowering  of  the  Royal  Statue  into  its 
present  position,  with  a  long  inscription  at  the  back,  giving  the 
artist's  name,  the  date  (1775)  and  place,  etc.  Also  in  the 
same  shop,  a  medallion,  also  signed  and  dated,  with  the  eques- 
trian statue  in  situ.  Farther  on  we  met  with  a  smaller  piece, 
a  cameo  a  la  Wedgwood,  with  portrait  of  (qy.)  Jose  I.  or  his 
successor,  dated  1783.  This  last  had  been  mounted  as  a  pin, 
but  the  shopman  took  the  cameo  from  its  setting  for  us.  It 
had  been  a  very  gay  day  in  Lisbon,  being  Dom  Fernando's 
birthday.  All  the  ships  in  the  river  were  dressed  in  colours, 
and  guns  fired  and  bells  rang.  All  this  time  the  weather  most 
exquisite,  like  midsummer  in  England. 

3Oth.  We  had  been  directed  to  another  curiosity  shop,  1 3 
Rua  Annunciata,  Coelho's.  It  was  the  best  we  had  seen,  but 
everything  very  dear ;  we  got,  however,  two  pieces  of  Battersea 
enamel,  and  two  Mennecy  boxes;  one  of  the  most  excellent 
being  formed  as  a  female  head  and  bust,  coloured.  We  had, 
however,  to  pay  well  for  them.  After  this  we  rambled  to  the 
Pra^a  de  Santa  Anna,  and  on  to  the  Barrier  of  the  Arrogas. 
On  our  way  we  were  attracted  by  seeing  the  English  Arms 
quartered  with  those  of  Portugal  on  a  large  building ;  we  found 
out  afterwards  that  it  had  been  a  Palace  built  by  Catherine  of 
Braganza,  Queen  of  Charles  II.  (now  used  as  a  school,  called 
Bemposta).  Just  at  the  Barrier,  and  where  fields  with  aloe 
hedges  were  beginning  to  appear,  we  came  to  the  remains  of 

376 


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"  I 


1875  NOTES  CERAMIC 

an  old  fort,  where  we  got  a  fine  view  towards  the  mountains. 
Returning  to  the  town  we  stood  awhile  to  listen  to  some  chimes 
at  the  Church  of  Sta.  Cruz,  which  we  afterwards  looked  into, 
and  while  thus  employed  were  passed  by  a  most  picturesque 
funeral,  the  coffin  borne  on  a  sort  of  triumphal  car,  drawn  by 
horses  and  mounted  postillions,  and  followed  by  a  tremendous 
cortege  of  carnages.  I  must  not  forget  the  shop  of  a  potter, 
whose  front  was  decorated  with  tiles  from  top  to  bottom  form- 
ing a  series  of  very  effective  pictures.  Before  returning  to  our 
Inn,  we  went  to  see  the  Cathedral,  of  which  but  little  of  interest 
remains.  The  West  Porch  is  good,  but  scarcely  anything 
escaped  the  earthquake.  To-day  was  the  birthday  of  the 
(actual)  King,  so  there  was  more  firing  and  bell-ringing  and 
dressing  of  ships. 

3 1  st.  Col.  Williams  accompanied  us  in  our  walk  this  after- 
noon, and  showed  us  the  way  to  the  Estrella  Gardens,  where 
they  keep  a  caged  lion.  We  called  at  the  Embassy  but  found 
that  the  Lyttons  were  not  there.  [The  late  Earl  of  Lytton,  who 
was  H.B.M.  Minister  at  Lisbon  from  1874  to  1876,  before 
going  as  Viceroy  to  India.] 


NOVEMBER  1875 

LISBON  :   MAFRA  :   MONSERRATE  :   CINTRA  :   OPORTO  :   VIANNA  : 
PONTE  DO  LIMA  :  VALENCA  :  JOURNEY   TO   SPAIN  :  SANTIAGO 

November  ist.  Col.  Williams  came  to  fetch  us  and  took 
us  to  a  Jew  named  Blumberg,  who  is  to  find  curiosities  for 
us.  The  Jew  was  out  however,  to-day  being  All  Saints'  Day, 
and  a  holiday.  We  went  to  the  Carmo,  saw  the  interesting 
collection  of  antiquities  in  that  fine  ruin,  then  tried  to  get  into 
St.  Roque,  where  the  Chapel  of  Joan  V.  is  shown,  but  it  was 
shut.  Next,  to  the  gardens  at  the  top  of  the  hill  called,  I  think, 
"  S.  Pedro".  The  view  of  the  opposite  hills,  St.  George,  etc. 

577. 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1875 

magnificent.  While  here  we  heard  music  below  and  so  we 
descended  to  the  Passeio  Publico,  where,  being  All  Saints'  Day, 
the  Band  was  playing  to  a  crowded  audience.  Met  Col.  St. 
George,  who  introduced  us  to  friends  of  his,  Count  and 
Countess  Menezes.  To-day  was  the  anniversary  of  the  dreadful 
earthquake,  1753. 

2nd.  Walked  about  generally.  Found  two  more  of  the 
Lisbon  cameos,  both  being  of  Maria  I.  and  both  being  signed 
by  Figuerado  and  dated  1783 ;  also  at  Raphael's,  Rua  Augusta, 
we  got  a  good  Derby  plate.  Walked  along  the  promenade  by 
the  beach.  Glorious  sunset. 

3rd.  We  expected  to  have  made  an  excursion  in  search  of 
curiosities  to-day  with  Blumberg,  but  he  was  prevented  from 
coming  with  us.  C.S.  fetched  from  a  shop  another  Derby 
plate,  matching  that  we  had  bought  the  previous  day.  In  the 
afternoon  we  visited  the  collection  of  Baron  Laxman,  the 
Russian  Consul,  whose  acquaintance  we  had  previously  made 
in  the  curiosity  shops  last  Friday.  He  has  a  few  good  things, 
and  a  quantity  of  pictures.  We  would  like  to  have  two  Wedg- 
wood and  Bentley  plaques  of  his,  but  he  will  not  "  ceder ". 

4th.  Drove  over  to  Cintra,  leaving  our  Hotel  soon  after 
noon,  in  a  nice  little  open  carriage.  Most  enjoyable,  weather 
perfect.  Put  up  at  Mrs.  Laurence's,  an  excellent  old  Welsh 
woman  from  Glamorgan,  who  makes  her  small  hostelry  most 
comfortable.  We  took  a  charming  walk  before  dinner  towards 
S.  Bento. 

5th.  First  to  the  Moorish  Palace,  with  which  we  were 
quite  delighted.  The  ceilings  all  fine,  especially  that  in  the 
Salle  des  Armes.  I  was  charmed  with  the  tiles  lining  every 
wall.  Alfonso  VI. 's  prison,  the  Baths,  where  our  guide 
indulged  in  a  little  " espieglerie "  and  nearly  gave  us  a  wetting; 
lastly,  the  kitchen  with  its  stately  and  picturesque  chimneys :  I 
had  expected  little,  and  was  all  the  better  pleased  with  what  I 

378 


i875  NOTES  CERAMIC 

saw.  After  this  we  scaled  the  hill  to  the  Pena,  Dom  Fer- 
nando's  mountain  Palace.  Words  cannot  express  the  beauty  of 
the  house :  we  saw  only  the  Chapel  and  the  dining-room.  We 
walked  through  the  grounds  up  to  the  Moorish  Castle  with  its 
remains  of  Mosque  and  Baths.  All  the  views  magnificent,  and 
the  weather  most  propitious ;  hot  with  a  slight  breeze. 

6th.  Took  a  carriage  at  9,  and  drove  over  to  Mafra. 
The  weather  at  first  seemed  threatening,  but  we  had  a  lovely 
afternoon,  only,  as  we  returned,  the  Pena  seemed  enveloped  in 
mist.  The  drive  there  and  back  was  most  agreeable.  Mafra, 
grand  as  it  is,  is  certainly  very  depressing.  It  slightly  re- 
minded me  of  Blenheim,  which,  though  not  so  large,  is  much 
more  beautiful.  Of  course,  the  Church  is  as  fine  as  the  style 
of  architecture  of  that  date  permitted.  I  never  like  a  Grecian 
Temple  for  Christian  worship.  The  vistas,  too,  through  the 
rooms  are  impressive;  but  the  rooms  are  small  and  uninterest- 
ing. We  went  on  to  the  roof  but  not  into  the  Bell  Tower ; 
we  heard  the  chimes,  however,  after  we  got  back  to  the  Hotel, 
where  we  had  to  wait  more  than  an  hour  before  our  horses 
were  sufficiently  rested  for  us  to  return.  I  shall  never  forget 
the  pace  at  which  they  tore  down  the  hills,  and  such  steep  hills 
too,  without  any  drag !  Desolate  Mafra,  monument  of  human 
pride  and  folly — I  was  very  glad  to  leave  it. 

7th.  Took  a  guide  and  walked  to  Monserrate.  We  had 
an  order  to  see  the  gardens,  and  at  the  house  we  found  the 
gardener,  an  Englishman,  named  Brittain,  who  is  a  new-comer, 
most  polite;  had  everything  in  the  building  shown  to  us,  and 
then  went  through  the  grounds  with  us  himself,  pointing  out 
whatever  was  rare  or  curious.  A  beautiful  group  of  five 
flowering  aloes  should  never  be  forgotten,  nor  the  glorious 
scarlet  passion  flowers.  The  house  is  done  in  excellent  taste. 
The  stucco  work,  a  la  Alhambra,  was  Beckford's  fancy  and  is 
most  appropriate  to  the  site,  but  it  had  all  fallen  to  decay 

379 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1875 
before  Mr.  Cook  bought  the  place.  The  furniture  and  decorations 
and  objects  of  art  are  all  in  good  keeping.  On  leaving 
Monserrate  we  struck  across  the  hill  and  climbed  up  the  hill  to 
the  Convente  da  Cortica,  a  most  curious  old  place,  well  worth 
the  exertion,  though  under  a  broiling  sun.  From  it  we  con- 
tinued our  walk  to  Colares  ;  all  the  views  magnificent.  Then 
our  guide  took  us  into  the  cellar  of  a  little  Inn,  where  they  drew 
us  from  the  wood  a  good  bottle  of  the  native  wine.  We  sat 
down  there  and  refreshed  ourselves  for  a  few  minutes,  and 
then  walked  back  to  Cintra,  arriving  in  good  time  for  dinner. 
It  had  been  very  hot  and  the  distance  we  had  traversed  had 
been  some  1 5  miles ;  it  is  usually  done  on  donkeys,  but  I  was 
not  at  all  tired.  We  had  a  large  party  at  the  table  d'hote, 
some  noisy  and  disagreeable,  some  intelligent,  offering  us 
information  for  our  intended  trip  to  Oporto. 

8th.  With  regret  we  left  Cintra  at  noon.  We  agree  that  it 
is  as  near  our  ideas  of  Paradise  as  anything  can  be,  and  we 
hope  to  go  there  again  before  we  leave  the  country.  We  had 
the  same  merry  driver  as  on  Saturday.  Came  in  for  part  of 
the  sham  fight  which  was  being  enacted  some  little  way  out 
of  Lisbon,  a  most  picturesque  sight,  and  passed  the  King 
riding  slowly  home.  In  the  evening  finished  the  dress  I  have 
been  working  at  for  Blanche. 

9th.  We  were  to  have  gone  out  exploring  with  old 
Blumberg,  but  again  were  disappointed,  as  he  was  ill.  We 
went  to  see  the  old  man,  and  he  sent  his  daughter  with  us  to 
see  a  collection  ;  that  of  a  certain  Conselhiro  Almedas,  near 
the  Necessidades  Palace.  We  thought  we  might  have  seen 
something  there  worth  purchasing,  but  no !  He  has  two  fine 
armoires  (French)  and  some  Portuguese  furniture;  nothing 
else  of  interest  to  us.  Went  on  to  the  Embassy;  called  on 
and  saw  Lady  Lytton  [the  mother  of  the  second  Earl,  2nd 
daughter  of  the  Hon.  Edward  Villiers];  then  went  to  the 


i875  NOTES  CERAMIC 

Palace  "  Penafiel " ;  the  possessor  is  ruined  by  gambling,  and 
everything  is  to  be  sold.  A  large,  well-furnished  place,  but 
in  bad  modern  taste,  very  grand  but  not  beautiful.  No  china 
or  other  objects  to  attract  us,  save  two  or  three  Oriental 
circular  dishes.  Everything,  even  the  servants'  liveries,  was 
exposed  for  sale.  Having  parted  from  our  little  Jewish  guide 
(who  came  out,  to  our  surprise  a  pattern  of  neatness  and  even 
fashion),  we  drove  up  to  the  Fair  at  S.  Anna,  which  was  a 
very  amusing  sight,  and  where  we  found  several  small  matters 
to  our  taste.  Called  for  money  at  the  Banker's.  Received  a 
visit  from  M.  Mendez  Leal  before  dinner. 

loth.  We  have  been  at  home  all  day  and  have  just  had 
a  long  visit  from  the  Count  and  Countess  Menezes  and  their 
daughter.  We  are  now  prepared  for  a  long  journey  to  Oporto. 
Having  dined  we  set  out  for  the  train  which  left  at  8.  We 
had  been  told  that  the  journey  was  a  very  fatiguing  one,  but  we 
did  not  find  it  so.  We  had  a  comfortable  carriage,  not  over- 
crowded, and  arrived  in  Oporto  in  less  than  1 2  hours. 

nth.  The  terminus  is  at  some  distance  from  the  town. 
We  tried  for  rooms  at  the  Peninsular  and  Castro's  Hotel,  but 
at  length  found  some  which  suit  us  very  well,  at  the  Hotel  du 
Louvre.  Having  breakfasted,  we  walked  out  and  did  not 
return  till  dinner-time  at  5.  The  dealer  to  whom  Blumberg 
has  given  us  a  letter  (Vieira  de  Castro)  was  not  at  home,  so  we 
went  on  a  voyage  of  discovery  alone.  Called  in  at  every  shop 
in  the  Rua  das  Flores,  in  search  of  old  jewellery,  and  found 
several  very  pretty  things  (a  pair  of  combs  enamelled  in  flowers, 
on  silver,  among  the  rest),  and  spent  some  £10.  In  another 
part  of  the  town  we  got  a  very  nice  old  chatelaine  in  a 
curiosity  shop.  On  our  way  stopped  to  see  the  performance  of 
some  vagrant  dancers  and  acrobats.  They  performed  very 
cleverly,  but  it  went  to  my  heart  to  see  the  feats  which  the 
poor  little  children  had  to  go  through :  however,  they  seemed 

381 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1875 
very  happy.  One  great  feature  of  the  place  is  the  immense 
traffic  by  oxen,  drawing  heavy  loads,  with  richly  carved  and 
decorated  yokes,  and  mostly  guided  by  little  boys.  The  girls 
and  women  carry  everything  on  their  heads — I  was  amused  to 
see  a  child  sitting  comfortably  in  the  basket  borne  by  one  of 
them,  who  walked  on  as  firmly  and  unconcernedly  as  if  she 
had  been  carrying  only  a  quantity  of  fish.  The  buildings  on  the 
heights  stood  out  grandly  against  the  clearest  of  skies.  Two 
intelligent  Englishmen  at  dinner,  from  whom  we  got  some  useful 
information  about  the  country. 

1 2th.      A  man  had  come  to  inquire  for  us  the  previous 

night,  hearing  that  we  had  been  buying  in  the  Rua  das  Flores 

and  saying  that  he  had  some  things  to  sell ;  he  called  again 

this  morning,  and  we  went  out  with  him  as  soon  as  our  breakfast 

was  over.     He  took  us  to  a  house  a  long  way  off,  31  Rua  de 

St.  Lazaro,  where  he  had  some  pieces  of  silver,  one  of  them,  to 

my  eyes,  very  fine,  but  for  which  he  wanted  a  great  price.     He 

then  took  us  to  the  house  of  a  man  (Henriques  Nunes  Teadira) 

who  proved  to  be  the  great  amateur  dealer  of  Oporto.     There 

we  saw  a  great  many  things,  all  outrageously  dear.     He  had  a 

magnificent    carving   representing    a    procession    with    many 

figures,   in   wood,    of  an    Oriental  sovereign  with  attendants, 

mounted  and  on  foot.     C.S.  suggested  that  it  might  represent 

the  exit  of  Boabdil  from  Granada.     It  is  a  very  fine  thing.     He 

wants  £500.  for  it.     We  fancied  a  little  Bow  figure  of  a  woman 

seated,  holding  a  shell,  but  he  asked  £5,  so  we  left  him.     From 

this  place,  Rua  de  Concato  Christovan  160,  which  is  almost 

out  of  the  town,  but  commands  a  fine  view,  we  returned  to  our 

Hotel,  where  our  guide,  Luis  Maria  e  Silva,  left  us.     We  then 

set  out  again ;  went  once  more  to  de  Castro's ;  he  was  absent ; 

they  said  he  was  employed  by  the  American  Tramroad  Co., 

so  we  set  off  to  their  office.     It  was  a  long  walk  along  the  Rua 

Boa  Vista,  but  again  we  had  the  benefit  of  a  fine  prospect,     De 

382 


1875  NOTES  CERAMIC 

Castro  could  not  come  with  us  or  do  more  than  refer  us  to  the 
dealer  with  whom  we  had  already  been,  but  promised  to  see  us 
to-morrow.  On  our  return  to  the  town  we  bought  two  more 
chatelaines  where  we  got  a  fine  one  yesterday,  and  then  laid 
out  some  more  money  on  pretty,  last  century  jewellery  in  the  Rua 
das  Flores.  I  am  charmed  with  the  rush  or  basket  work  cloaks 
in  which  the  peasants  thatch  themselves  in  wet  weather.  I  must 
try  to  take  some  back  to  England. 

1 3th.  The  Portuguese  climate  and  atmosphere  are  simply 
wonderful.  We  went  after  breakfast  to  the  "  Crystal  Palace  "? 
which  commands  a  most  extensive  view  on  all  sides.  Watched 
a  vessel  being  towed  through  the  narrow  opening  of  the  Bar. 
It  was  very  hot  so  we  indulged  in  a  carriage  instead  of  walking 
as  usual,  and  I  am  very  glad  we  did  as  it  enabled  us  to  see  a 
great  deal  of  the  town.  A  procession  was  coming  out  of  the 
Church  above  the  Torre  dos  Clerigos.  Amongst  the  children 
was  one  little  girl  in  a  tawdry  dress  to  represent  the  Virgin ! 
Our  first  point  was  the  Cathedral,  which  has  indeed  been  sadly 
disfigured,  but  the  fine  cloisters  remain.  We  were  shown  the 
silver  altar,  very  gorgeous  but  not  of  the  best  date.  Remember 
the  Monster  terminating  the  balustrade  of  the  steps  at  the 
West  end ;  barbaric  and  interesting.  We  had  an  appointment 
with  a  gentleman  whom  we  had  met  at  the  Hotel,  Mr.  Benjamin 
Franklyn,  who  met  us  at  the  "Borsa"  to  put  C.S.'sname  down 
for  the  reading-room.  He  took  us  all  over  the  building,  which 
is  immense  and  overladen  with  ornament,  especially  the 
ceilings,  but  all  in  bad  rococo  taste,  except  the  large  room, 
which  is  in  course  of  being  decorated  in  the  Moorish  style,  and 
which  will  be,  when  finished  (if  it  ever  is),  very  beautiful. 
Mr.  Franklyn  took  us  to  a  china  shop  to  inquire  about  "Vista 
Allegre  ".  It  appears  that  the  manufacture  is  still  carried  on, 
but  on  a  small  scale,  and  only  for  ordinary  domestic  articles.  I 
cannot  hear  of  any  specimen  of  the  old  fabrique  in  the  town. 

383 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1875 
We  also  went  to  see  a  repository  of  the  terra-cotta  figures  made 
here  of  the  peasants'  costumes.  Taking  leave  of  our  polite 
acquaintance  we  now  drove  to  the  Church  of  the  Sao  Martinho 
de  Cedofeita,  a  loth  century  building  with  three  good 
romanesque  porches,  a  good  window  over  that  to  the  West, 
and  original  internal  columns.  Even  in  the  last  few  years  the 
greatest  pains  has  been  taken  to  spoil  it  by  the  addition  of 
modern  rubbish.  It  would  seem  that  for  the  last  three  hundred 
years  at  least,  the  Portuguese  have  taken  delight  in  destroying 
(as  they  thought,  beautifying)  every  edifice  of  interest  that 
they  possessed;  even  their  Renaissance  is  less  pure  than  in 
other  countries.  Certainly  they  are  devoid  of  architectural 
taste.  Their  furniture  is  equally  clumsy  and  unrefined.  Called 
at  the  house  of  the  Consul,  Mr.  Crauford,  who  was  too  ill  to  see 
us.  Then  to  the  dealer,  Nunes,  of  whom  we  bought  the  seated 
Bow  figure  for  £3.  We  next  took  a  drive  along  the  beautiful 
river,  passing  the  most  picturesque  rows  of  houses,  with  arcades 
in  front  of  them.  Returned  by  an  upper  road,  and  went  to  a 
shop  in  the  Rua  das  Flores,  where  we  were  promised  to  see 
some  china.  We  had  called  there  twice  before  in  the  course  of 
the  day,  and  now  that  we  found  the  dealer  at  home,  the  china 
he  had  to  offer  (Oriental  plates)  was  far  from  desirable.  This 
ended  our  day's  peregrinations,  which  had  been  most  enjoyable, 
but  I  must  not  forget  to  mention  that  in  the  morning,  as  we  came 
down  the  hill,  C.S.  spied  out  in  an  old  broker's  shop  in  the 
midst  of  a  heap  of  Cosa  Santa  horrors,  a  very  pretty  little 
picture  a  la  Watteau,  which  he  secured  for  100  Reis  (4/-).  A 
quiet  evening  at  needlework.  I  had  not  been  very  well  the 
previous  night,  but  now  had  some  good  sleep  and  got  up  quite 
well  this  morning. 

Sunday,  I4th.  Another  cloudless  and  most  delicious  day. 
We  went  to  Church,  a  good  and  spacious  edifice,  situated  in  a 
large  enclosure  with  immense  camellia-trees  in  full  flower  all 

384 


i875  NOTES  CERAMIC 

around ;  the  Service  well  and  quietly  done  to  a  large  congrega- 
tion. We  walked  about  in  the  Churchyard  at  the  back,  full  of 
tombstones  of  departed  English,  one  of  them  with  a  very  drolj 
inscription,  which  we  copied.  Since  the  service  C.S.  has  been 
to  the  Borsa  to  read  the  papers.  3  P.M.  Went  to  Fozuin  by  one 
of  the  "Americanos",  taking  the  upper  road.  We  spent  some 
time  on  the  beach  of  the  village  watching  the  breakers.  A 
most  magnificent  sea  view.  Walked  back  to  the  mouth  of  the 
harbour,  within  the  breakwater,  and  there  stood  to  see  the 
sun  sink  into  the  broad  Atlantic,  which  it  did  in  unclouded 
majesty;  a  grand  sight  not  to  be  forgotten.  Then  we  took 
another  "  Americano  "  and  returned  by  the  lower  road  to  the 
town  and  our  Hotel. 

1 5th,  morning.  The  mosquitoes  were  trying  at  Lisbon, 
but  much  worse  at  Porto.  Though  we  got  up  at  6.  we  found 
it  difficult  to  get  off  from  our  Hotel  in  time  to  catch  the  9.30. 
train  for  Braga ;  we  had  to  wait  a  long  time  for  a  carriage,  but 
when  at  length  we  reached  the  station  we  had  again  to  wait 
some  half-hour  before  we  were  in  motion.  At  length  we 
started  and  had  a  most  agreeable  journey  to  Braga  through 
beautiful  scenery,  and  we  were  fortunate  in  finding  ourselves  in 
the  same  carriage  with  an  intelligent  Englishman,  who  spoke 
with  a  Northumbrian  accent,  and  in  other  ways  reminded  us  of 
our  friend  Don  Juan  Rutledge  of  Cordova.  He  gave  us  much 
useful  information  about  the  country  and  people.  By  his 
advice  we  put  up  at  the  H6tel  Real,  where  he  left  us.  He 
proved  to  be  a  civil  engineer  residing  at  Porto,  named  Thomas 
Smith.  One  of  those  stalwart,  honest,  straightforward  men 
who  are  sure  to  make  themselves  of  marque  wherever  they  go, 
and  whom  one  is  proud  to  recognise  as  countrymen.  There 
was  an  old  Brazilian  lady  in  the  carriage  also  to  whom  we 
showed  our  trifles.  She  had  got  on  a  brooch  with  a  Maria 
Primeira  china  cameo,  like  those  we  found  at  Lisbon.  It  so 
i  385  2B 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1875 

happened  that  on  the  steps  of  the  Hotel  we  met  with  another 
Englishman  (of  a  somewhat  different  type  from  the  worthy 
Thomas  Smith,  but  doubtless  worthy  also  in  his  way),  who 
immediately  fraternised,  saying  he  had  not  heard  the  sound  of 
his  native  tongue  for  three  months ;  so  he  volunteered  to  walk 
about  and  show  us  the  town,  which  office  we  accepted  and  we 
set  off  forthwith.  First  we  went  to  the  Se*.  The  South  and 
Western  porches  of  the  finest  early  style,  such  as  we  should  call 
Romanesque  or  Byzantine;  the  interior,  as  usual,  has  been 
ruined,  but  there  were  still  the  tombs  of  Don  Henriques  and 
his  Queen,  D.  Tereja,  daughter  of  a  King  of  Leon;  a  fine 
Baptismal  Font,  the  mummified  remains  of  the  warrior  Arch- 
bishop Louren9O,  to  whose  courage  the  victory  of  Aljubarrota 
was  mainly  due,  and  on  whose  remains  I  looked  with  reverence. 
Also  in  the  Sacristy,  some  rich  vestments,  and  among  other 
plate,  two  very  remarkable  pieces,  one  of  them  a  Chalice  of  the 
finest  Cinquecento  work  and  dated  1 509 ;  and  the  other,  in  the 
form  of  a  small  cup,  of  a  much  earlier  period,  probably 
Romanesque,  with  grotesque  enrichments.  The  choir  is,  I 
suppose,  Manoelino :  it  is  very  elaborate  in  carving  and  most 
richly  gilded.  It  is  very  heavy,  and  to  me  uninteresting,  but  it 
is  very  remarkable.  With  its  two  large  organs  it  occupies  an 
upper  floor  at  the  West  end.  We  went  into  the  Church  of  Sta. 
Cruz  (of  1600)  which  has  nothing  remarkable.  Also  into  a 
Chapel  dedicated  to  the  Virgin  in  1520,  by  a  Cardinal,  whose 
Arms  still  remain  on  the  picturesque  windows  of  a  house 
opposite  it.  Then  we  walked  about  the  town,  which  is  beauti- 
fully embosomed  in  [hills,  and  looked  into  the  little  jewellers' 
shops,  where  we  could  find  nothing  old,  but  one  watch,  not  very 
good,  for  which  we  gave  13/6.  We  were  shown  a  handsome 
quilt,  but  they  asked  ^15.,  which  was  double  its  value.  The 
table  d'h6te  dinner  is  generally  three  o'clock,  but  to  accommo- 
date us  it  was  delayed  till  4.  to-day.  Our  new  acquaintance 

386 


i875  NOTES  CERAMIC 

was  the  only  person  at  it.  We  found  out  that  he  had  been  a 
merchant  in  the  Brazils,  at  Para,  etc.,  and  had  just  given  up  a 
situation  as  manager  of  a  Bank  at  this  place.  He  had  seen 
much  but  not  to  any  great  profit. 

1 6th.  A  brilliant  morning,  again  a  cloudless  sky.  We  got 
an  open  carriage  and,  at  1 1 .,  set  off  to  visit  the  Dom  Jesus. 
The  Englishman,  whose  name  we  had  not  yet  ascertained, 
volunteered  to  accompany  us,  so  we  had  no  choice.  He  is  a 
curious  old  man,  very  original,  and  rather  amusing  by  his  out- 
of-the-way  remarks,  but  we  had  rather  have  had  our  morning 
to  ourselves.  However,  he  acted  as  interpreter,  and  was  very 
good-natured,  so  we  made  the  best  of  it.  We  drove  up  to  the 
summit;  then  visited  the  Church  and  neighbouring  Chapels. 
The  group  at  the  East  end  of  the  Church  itself  is  well  done  and 
effective  (the  principle  figure  was  hidden  by  a  curtain);  but 
those  in  the  Chapels  are  rudely  done  and  even  grotesque; 
altogether  rather  revolting  to  a  Protestant  eye,  almost  blas- 
phemous in  their  coarse  familiarity  with  such  sacred  subjects. 
The  weather  was  everything  we  could  desire,  and  we  greatly 
enjoyed  the  magnificent  views  which  met  our  gaze  on  every 
side.  We  walked  down  the  flight  of  steps,  our  carriage  await- 
ing us  at  the  bottom,  and  got  back  by  three  o'clock.  The 
leaves  are  not  yet  off  the  trees  here ;  when  the  grapes  are  on 
the  vines  the  effect  must  be  lovely.  The  vines  are  here  allowed 
to  climb  as  they  will  from  tree  to  tree.  No  description  can 
give  an  idea  of  the  grandeur  of  the  scenery  here.  It  was  very 
hot  to-day. 

i  ;th.  We  went  out  after  breakfast  for  a  long  stroll.  We 
walked  along  the  Bacrellos  road  to  some  distance  and,  after 
crossing  the  railway,  struck  into  a  very  primitive  pathway  by 
which  we  returned  to  Braga.  It  was  very  hot  but  very  amusing, 
the  scenery  lovely.  We  went  into  the  gardens,  Campo  Santa 
Anna.  Tried  to  buy  an  old  Cosa  Santa,  a  carved  reliquaire 

387 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS   1875 

formed  as  a  ship,  in  a  painter's  shop,  but  found  his  price 
excessive,  £6  \  An  intelligent  Portuguese  fellow-traveller  had 
given  us  some  information  as  to  our  progress  to  Vianna  do 
Castello,  and  we  intended  to  travel  in  the  same  diligence  with 
him.  C.S.  went  out  after  dinner  to  secure  our  places.  He  got 
them  in  another  carriage  by  mistake,  but  it  turned  out  to  our 
advantage,  as  our  carriage  started  so  much  earlier  that  we  were 
enabled  to  reach  our  destination  by  daylight,  and  so  to  enjoy 
the  whole  of  the  beautiful  scenery. 

1 8th.  By  8  o'clock  we  were  at  the  diligence.  We  had 
taken  outside  places  (the  interior  being  probably  impossible) 
and  I  was  specially  favoured  with  a  seat  next  the  coachman,  my 
maid  beside  me,  C.S.  above.  At  first  it  seemed  a  precarious 
eminence,  but  I  soon  got  accustomed  to  the  position,  and 
enjoyed  the  journey  immensely.  The  weather  was  splendid  ; 
again  a  cloudless  sky,  if  anything  it  was  a  trifle  too  hot  at 
times.  I  wish  I  could  detail  all  the  amusing  little  incidents, 
but  they  would  be  nothing  on  paper,  though  at  the  time  they 
were  most  diverting — how  one  man  sat  on  our  feet  on  the  foot- 
board— how  an  unkempt  youth  placed  himself  on  the  top  of  the 
luggage  on  the  roof  and  sang — how  by  degrees  he  crept  down 
to  a  more  convenient  seat,  where  I  made  him  sing  to  me  again 
and  again,  and  his  songs  were  a  kind  of  wild,  wailing  Moorish 
chant  that  I  shall  never  forget — how  the  horses,  where  they 
baited,  were  fed  out  of  a  movable  trough  with  corn  and  bread 
and  wine — how  the  conveyance  stopped  when  any  passenger  saw 
any  friend  on  the  road  that  kind  converse  might  ensue — how 
the  driver  whipped  his  three  horses  (or  rather  rats)  and  how  I 
came  in  for  some  of  the  blows — how  everything  was  quite 
quaint,  novel,  and  delightful,  and  the  whole  journey  like  one 
long  summer's  holiday ! !  We  dashed  at  full  speed  into  Ponte 
do  Lima,  of  which  we  had  a  lovely  view  some  way  before 
reaching  the  town.  The  road  was  there  so  rough  that  we  were 

388 


= 


i875  NOTES  CERAMIC 

nearly  jolted  from  our  seats.  We  were  suffered  to  have  a 
"descenso"  of  half  an  hour  at  this  place,  so  C.S.  and  I  walked 
on  till  the  diligence  overtook  us.  The  scenery,  at  this  point, 
is  beyond  anything  I  could  have  imagined  in  beauty.  I  was 
not  surprised  to  find  afterwards  that  it  was  the  Elysian  Fields 
(the  Lotus  land)  of  the  ancients,  and  that  Lima  was  their 
Lethe.  Of  all  the  exquisite  spots  I  have  ever  visited  in  my 
many  wanderings  this  is  by  far  the  most  exquisite.  I  wish  I 
could  stereotype  every  feature  of  it  on  my  memory.  The 
remains  of  the  ancient  fortifications  are  interesting.  On  the 
other  side  of  the  magnificent  bridge  we  came  on  a  small 
mediaeval  Chapel,  or  rather  the  remains  of  one.  There  were 
the  peasants  washing  in  the  stream,  the  fishermen  with  their 
nets,  all  the  picturesque  incidents  of  a  southern  landscape. 
Only  one  drawback — the  sad,  disgraceful  prisons,  which  are 
universal  in  Portugal,  with  their  wretched  inmates  thrusting 
their  heads  and  their  hands  through  the  barred  windows, 
holding  converse  with  their  friends,  or  beseeching  alms  of  the 
passers-by.  The  diligence  took  us  up,  just  outside  this  en- 
chanted town.  We  had  a  beautiful  drive  into  Vianna,  and 
arrived  there  about  4.  We  had  been  advised  to  put  up  at  the 
Aguia  d'Ouro.  Our  driver,  however,  set  us  down  at  another 
Inn,  which  pretended  to  be  the  one  we  inquired  for.  We  saw 
rooms  that  we  persuaded  ourselves  that  we  must  make  the 
best  of,  and  prepared  ourselves  for  a  stay  at  Vianna  of  not  the 
ost  agreeable  kind.  Fortunately  we  went  out  for  a  stroll 
upon  the  beach,  and  had  scarcely  reached  it  when  we  saw  the 
name  of  the  "  Aguia  d'Ouro  "  emblazoned  in  large  golden  letters 
on  a  very  different-looking  house.  We  immediately  revendi- 
cated  our  luggage  from  the  fraudulent  hotel,  and,  carrying  it 
away  in  our  hands  took  refuge  with  the  hospitable  "  Eagle  ", 
where  we  were  soon  ensconced  in  light  and  airy  apartments  com- 
manding a  beautiful  view  of  the  Lima  and  the  opposite  shore. 

389 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1875 

We  found  it  so  pleasant  that  we  stayed  there  for  the  next  two 
days.  First  of  all  came  dinner.  A  large  party  seemed  to 
have  been  dining  at  the  "  mesa  redonda ".  They  kept  it  up 
long  after  we  had  gone  to  bed.  They  were  all  very  civil. 
One  of  the  party,  a  Spaniard  employed  on  the  railway  works, 
helped  us  as  interpreter  and  we  became  great  allies. 

iQth.  A  most  lovely  sunrise.  We  walked  out  after  break- 
fast, and  stayed  out  till  our  dinner-time,  5  o'clock.  We  walked 
along  the  Fort  and  along  the  Beach,  and  on  to  the  Breakwater, 
where  we  stayed  a  long  time  watching  the  little  vessels  as  they 
made  their  way  through  the  narrow  entrance  to  the  harbour 
through  the  Bar.  They  were  all  bringing  in  fish,  and  we  went  to 
see  them  land  it,  the  women  piling  it  in  baskets  and  carrying  it 
away.  We  went  to  the  Church  of  St.  Domingo,  of  which  the 
interior  decoration  is  better  than  I  expected,  date  late  i6th 
century.  Also  to  the  Se.  The  west  door  very  fine  Romanesque  ; 
two  good  flanking  towers ;  curious  figure  of  a  gigantic  priest, 
in  dress  of  a  parish  beadle,  collar,  ruffles,  etc.,  with  a  glory  round 
the  head.  Sent  a  telegram  to  Ireland  by  the  assistance  of  the 
employ^  of  some  English  merchants,  Teages  and  Co.,  who 
have  a  large  establishment  here. 

2oth.  Called  on  the  Consul,  saw  some  fine  Oriental  dishes  at 
his  house,  got  from  him  various  renseignements.  Engaged  a 
carriage  for  the  morrow  and  then  ascended  the  mountain  over- 
looking the  town,  from  which  the  view  is  very  grand  in  every 
direction.  A  //the  town  ofVianna  is  full  of  curious  old  houses, 
with  traces  in  their  architecture  of  ancient  times.  We  were 
delighted  with  them.  As  we  came  down  from  the  mountain 
we  turned  into  the  old  Convent  of  Sta.  Anna,  with  a  curious 
tower.  After  that  we  went  to  the  house  of  Don  Antonio 
Pereira  Cyrne  da  Silva  Begerra  Fagundes,  in  the  Rua  da 
Bandiera  215,  to  whom  we  had  an  introduction  from  the 
Consul.  He  told  us  that  we  should  see  there  some  good  china, 

390 


i875  NOTES  CERAMIC 

but  that  there  remained  nothing  to  be  bought  in  Vianna.  We 
were  much  amused  at  the  ceremony  which  attended  the  display 
of  Don  Fagundes'  collection.  He  received  us^politely  and  kept 
us  in  conversation  in  one  room  while  an  old  male  and  an  old 
female  servant  set  out  the  articles  in  the  room  adjoining.  By 
this  we  were  little  prepared  for  what  was  coming.  The 
collection  consisted  of  little  more  than  a  dozen  pieces,  but  all 
of  the  rarest  kind;  among  them  two  Chinese  figures  on 
pedestals,  decorated  in  black  and  green  and  every  imaginable 
colour,  about  3^  feet  high  !  truly  marvellous.  It  appears  the 
Rothschilds  had  tried  to  buy  them,  but  without  success.  They 
were  "  pieces  de  famille".  Vianna  and  its  Lima  are  truly  the 
Elysian  Fields !  I  must  mention  that  in  passing  a  chemist's  shop 
this  morning  (22  Rua  Sta.  Anna)  we  were  attracted  by  a  curious 
wooden  figure,  and  went  in ;  there  we  saw  two  earthen  vessels, 
a  jar  and  a  kind  of  cornet,  blue  and  white  decorated  with  a 
crown,  etc.,  and  lettered  at  the  back,  Vianna,  in  large  letters. 
The  owner  would  not  part  with  either  of  them.  He  said  there 
had  been  a  fabrique  some  years  ago  at  Vianna,  long  since 
discontinued. 

2 1  st.  Up  soon  after  5  this  morning ;  at  8  we  left  Vianna, 
where  we  have  been  very  happy.  I  wish  I  could  describe 
all  the  amusing  scenes  we  witnessed  there — how  everybody 
ate  together — how  all  the  four  sisters  talked  at  once — how 
the  railway  employes  (excellent  Spanish  gentlemen  from 
Seville)  helped  us  to  interpret  our  requirements — how  the 
waiter  seemed  to  be  the  prime  manager,  and  how  our  worthy 
host,  Don  Lopez,  presided  over  the  whole.  We  must  visit 
Vianna  once  more.  It  is  full  of  pleasant  memories.  We  had 
a  most  pleasant  drive  to  Valencia.  It  was  a  colder  day,  but 
more  like  the  freshness  of  early  autumn  weather,  and  very 
bright.  Our  horses  had  a  "descenso"  of  two  hours  at 
Caminha,  during  which  we  explored  the  town.  Its  principal 

391 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS   1875 

Church  is  quite  the  best  we  have  seen  in  Portugal,  Manoelino, 
in  very  good  order,  and  unspoiled.  A  funeral  service,  with  an 
orchestra  of  fiddles,  was  going  on  when  we  looked  in.  My 
maid  went  to  her  service  in  another  church,  near  the  Arch, 
which  was  crowded.  A  great  number  of  men  stood  round  the 
entrance  while  the  service  was  going  on.  It  seemed  to  them  a 
sort  of  lounge,  but  there  were  many  others  attending  most 
devoutly,  kneeling,  even  beyond  the  doors,  and  it  was  a  very 
interesting  sight.  We  reached  Valencia  a  little  before  sunset, 
and  hurried  down  to  the  Ferry  so  as  to  be  in  time  to  cross 
over  to  Tuy.  The  first  sight  of  that  fortress  as  it  bursts  upon 
you  is  magnificent.  Equally  so  is  the  view  of  Valencia  as  seen 
from  the  other  side.  We  crossed  to  Tuy,  and  after  walking 
through  some  dirty  streets  were  agreeably  surprised  to  find  a 
most  comfortable  Hotel,  where,  after  telling  us  that  they  had 
nothing  in  the  house,  they  gave  us  an  excellent  dinner  of 
omelets  and  chickens  and  fish  and  cheese  and  sweetmeats, 
the  best  I  have  had  since  I  have  been  in  the  Peninsula,  and 
so  here  we  are  now,  once  more  in  Spain. 

22nd.  After  breakfast  we  walked  out  to  explore  the  town. 
Found  the  Cathedral  most  beautiful  and  interesting.  A  grand 
Romanesque  West  door  and  porch,  such  as  I  have  not  seen  in 
the  whole  Peninsula.  The  interior  is  not  spoilt  by  restorations, 
but  it  has  been  found  necessary  to  strengthen  it  with  some 
unsightly  props  and  cross-beams.  We  went  into  the  cloisters, 
which  are  very  good,  and  a  youth,  belonging  to  the  College  for 
Priests,  came  thence  to  show  us  the  Sacristy,  in  which  there  is 
a  series  of  beautiful  carvings  in  wood  of  the  i6th  or  iyth 
century.  He  showed  us  also  their  crosses  and  Candlesticks  of 
the  last  century,  very  good,  but  still  better,  we  espied  a  mediceval 
silver  processional  cross  which,  to  our  eyes,  was  worth  all  the 
rest,  but  on  which  they  did  not  seem  to  set  much  store.  The 
Alto  Coro,  at  the  West  end,  has  also  a  good  carved  silleria. 

392 


i875  NOTES  CERAMIC 

Altogether  we  were  delighted  with  Tuy,  and  all  the  more  so 
from  its  beauties  having  been  altogether  unexpected.  The 
views  all  around,  and  towards  the  opposite  frontier  fortress  of 
Valenga,  very  grand  indeed.  .  .  .  We  sought  vainly  for 
antiquities.  In  a  silversmith's  shop  we  saw  a  small  silver 
quadrant,  which  we  thought  we  had  bought,  when  the  master 
of  the  shop  came  in  and  insisted  it  was  not  his,  and  that  he  only 
got  it  to  repair,  so  we  had  to  relinquish  it.  Finding  ourselves 
so  near  to  Vig°>  we  could  not  resist  the  pleasure  of  going  to  see 
a  town  of  which  we  had  read  so  much.  Accordingly  we  took 
places  on  the  outside  of  the  diligence,  which  started  at  two,  and 
here  we  were  perched  on  high  in  a  very  precarious  position  ;  I 
expected  every  moment  to  be  jolted  off  and  on  to  the  horses' 
backs,  but  after  going  a  little  way  in  great  jeopardy,  I  persuaded 
an  excellent  traveller  to  change  places  with  me  and  to  let  me 
take  his  seat  between  the  two  coachmen,  where  I  made  the  rest 
of  the  journey  most  comfortably.  The  scenery  was  wonderful 
and  I  enjoyed  the  drive  immensely.  The  first  view  of  Vigo  and 
the  Bay  not  to  be  forgotten.  Arrived  in  good  time  time  before 
dark.  Put  up  at  the  Hotel  "  Fonda  del  Comercio  ",  very  clean 
and  comfortable.  The  hostess  cooks,  and  very  well ;  the  land- 
lord waits,  assisted  by  his  son  of  eight  years  old;  and  his 
daughter  of  ten  years  old  does  the  honours  with  the  baby  of  1 1 
months  generally  in  her  arms.  They  all  do  their  best  to  make  you 
happy  and  it  is  your  own  fault  if  you  are  not  so. 

23rd.  Our  first  move  was  to  call  upon  the  Consul, 
S.  D.  Barcena,  a  Spaniard  speaking  excellent  English.  He 
advised  us,  being  so  far,  by  all  means  to  go  and  see  Santiago. 
We  found  that  the  English  steamer  by  which  C.S.  expected 
his  brother  to  arrive  in  Portugal  should  touch  at  Carril  on 
Saturday,  so  we  determined  to  try  and  intercept  him  there, 
which  would  be  much  more  agreeable  for  us  than  having 
to  hurry  back  to  Lisbon  to  meet  him,  leaving  unseen  all 

393 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS   1875 

there  is  to  interest  us  in  the  North.  [This  was  Mr.  Charles 
Schreiber's  younger  brother,  William,  who  died  in  Ireland 
within  a  few  months.]  After  our  conference  with  him  we 
walked  about  the  town,  vainly  seeking  for  any  curiosities, 
and  afterwards  climbed  up  to  the  fort,  where  a  soldier  politely 
gave  us  permission  to  enter.  The  view  all  round  is  magnificent. 
We  were  amused  by  the  fact  that  the  Governor  was  out  shooting 
just  below  the  "  Castle",  and  on  the  report  of  his  gun,  the  word 
was  passed  from  soldier  to  sentinel  "un  otro  pajaros  esta 
matao"  ("another  sparrow  is  slain").  Our  English  ship  of 
war,  the  "Sultan",  lay  in  the  Harbour.  We  went  to  the 
landing-point  where  was  one  of  her  boats  loading  provisions. 
Got  into  conversation  with  the  young  officer  in  command,  Mr. 
Messum,  who  had  served  in  the  "Sultan"  with  Edward 
Ponsonby.  He  told  us  they  had  encountered  fearful  weather  in 
coming  out.  With  us  it  has  been  glorious. 

24th.  Again  most  glorious  weather,  but  a  little  crisp  in 
the  mornings;  not  a  breath  of  air,  or  a  cloud  on  the  bright 
blue  sky.  The  Consul  sent  his  little  open  carriage  to  take  us 
a  drive  to  Bayona  and  soon  after  n.  we  started;  but  we  had 
not  gone  5  miles  before  one  of  the  wheels  stuck  and  refused  to 
move.  One  of  the  clerks  was  driving  us ;  he  showed  infinite 
resource  but  could  not  overcome  the  difficulty ;  then  he  rode  to 
a  neighbouring  village  for  a  blacksmith,  but  all  in  vain.  We 
spent  about  three  hours  in  useless  efforts  to  mend  matters — 
took  off  the  wheel,  etc.;  at  length  C.S.  and  I  turned  to 
walk  home,  and  before  we  reached  Vigo  the  trap  overtook  us 
in  a  patched-up  condition.  We  were  sorry  to  have  missed  the 
drive,  which  is  said  to  be  very  beautiful,  but  we  enjoyed  what 
we  did  see  of  the  country.  While  we  waited  beside  the  recreant 
car,  we  saw  the  English  ship  "  Resistance  "  enter  the  Harbour. 
Back  before  4.  We  are  to  be  off" before  6.  to-morrow  morning. 

25th.  We  had  a  very  bad  night,  for  C.S.  is  so  martyred  by 

394 


i875  NOTES  CERAMIC 

the  insects  (fleas)  that  in  two  hours  he  was  awake  and  neither 
of  us  had  much  sleep.  Soon  after  4.  we  were  up  again,  and 
before  daylight  had  had  our  cup  of  coffee  and  had  groped  our 
way  to  where  the  diligence  was  awaiting  us.  It  started  at 
or  about  6.  (alarm  that  the  maid  had  left  the  keys  behind,  but 
no).  We  were  very  glad  to  be  inside  the  coach  this  time. 
The  road  was  rough  and  it  was  rather  cold ;  there  was  a  sharp 
frost  on  the  ground,  but  soon  after  the  sun  got  up  and  this 
disappeared.  Nothing  could  be  more  lovely  than  the  morning 
lights  as  they  illuminated  the  distant  hills.  Our  route  lay  all 
round  the  head  of  the  Bay,  which  is  certainly  one  of  the  most 
beautiful  things  to  be  seen  on  this  earth.  The  diligence  was 
almost  empty,  and  we  had  the  end  seats  to  ourselves,  so  that 
we  could  command  all  the  scenery  and  it  was  magnificent.  I 
never  enjoyed  anything  more.  Redondela,  through  which  we 
passed,  is  a  picturesque  old  town.  The  projected  railway  has 
finished  its  viaduct  at  this  point,  also  a  little  higher  up.  It  is 
a  very  fine  construction.  At  Pontevedra  we  stopped  to  break- 
fast, and  while  the  food  was  getting  ready  we  ran  off  to  see  the 
Cathedral,  with  which  we  were  delighted.  It  is  of  the  best 
Romanesque  time  and  quite  unspoiled.  A  funeral  service  was 
going  on  when  we  went  into  it.  Pontevedra  is  a  busy  place 
and  seems  improving.  A  very  good  breakfast  at  the  "  Postas  ", 
then  on  to  Carril.  We  had  stopped  from  10  to  n.  The  rest 
of  our  journey  occupied  two  hours  more.  This  part  of  it  was 
wilder  and  less  interesting,  and  we  were  not  so  impressed  by 
the  entrance  to  Carril  as  we  had  been  by  that  to  Vigo.  The 
train  from  Carril  to  Santiago  did  not  start  for  another  hour,  so 
C.S.  went  into  the  town  to  try  for  some  authentic  information 
about  the  English  boat  which  is  to  come  in  on  Saturday.  As 
we  left  Carril  we  found  the  Bay  prettier  than  we  expected  from 
the  first  view  of  it,  but  after  Vigo  everything  must  be  tame. 
The  scenery  to  Santiago  is  not  so  attractive  as  that  on  the 

395 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1875 
Mi  no,  but  it  has  a  wild  beauty  of  its  own.  We  arrived  at  5. 
and  got  a  little  boy  to  direct  us  to  Casa  de  Huespedes,  to 
which  we  had  been  recommended  (Casa  de  Rey,  opposite  the 
University),  where  we  got  very  comfortable  quarters.  How 
many  little  incidents  I  omit  to  mention  in  this  hurried  journal, 
but  some  I  cannot  forget,  be  they  or  be  they  not  recorded — for 
instance,  the  parting  of  the  young  sailor  of  the  "  Esperanza  " 
with  his  young  wife  and  aged  mother,  as  he  took  his  place  on 
our  diligence  at  Pontevedra. 

26th.  After  breakfast  we  went  out  and  strove  vainly  to 
find  curiosity  shops,  and  "  antiquities  "  to  buy.  Having  hunted 
through  the  principal  streets  we  gave  up  the  quest  and  de- 
lighted ourselves  with  the  real  beauties  of  this  wonderful  place. 
First  the  Hospital,  where  we  spent  a  long  time  studying  the 
entrance,  the  corbel  table  under  the  balcony,  the  string-course 
under  the  roof  with  its  many  mouldings.  Then  we  went  into 
the  four  Courts,  all  most  interesting.  In  the  Entrance  Chapel 
are  pictures  of  the  founders,  Ferdinand  and  Isabella,  which, 
although  they  cannot  be  contemporary,  must  be  of  some 
antiquity.  We  then  went  into  the  Cathedral.  On  the 
South  side  of  the  Cathedral  we  found  some  Platerias, 
with  pretty  jewellery,  not  very  old,  which  we  are  to  visit  again. 
We  took  a  letter  of  introduction  to  Don  Barcena's  brother- 
in-law  here,  and  made  arrangements  with  him  for  further 
excursions.  Looked  at  some  brass  work  in  the  Calle  de  Preg- 
guntorio.  Then  came  back  to  our  Hotel,  where  C.S.  took  up 
his  luggage  and  went  off  to  the  railway  for  Carril,  where  we 
expect  to  find  the  English  Mail  boat  to-morrow,  by  which  his 
brother  is  to  arrive.  I  walked  with  C.S.  to  the  station,  taking 
with  me  my  maid,  with  whom  I  came  back.  Visited  the 
public  gardens,  whence  we  saw  the  sun  sink  behind  the  hills, 
and,  again,  the  hospital.  It  is  curious  to  see  what  an  excite- 
ment the  sight  of  strangers  produces  here.  We  are  followed 

396 


i8;5  NOTES  CERAMIC 

by  crowds  of  children,  and  I  must  say  that  even  the  well- 
dressed  are  anything  but  polite.  As  I  left  dinner,  I  heard 
solemn  music  under  the  windows,  and  saw  a  procession  with 
lighted  torches  winding  its  way  to  the  Cemetery.  It  was 
the  funeral  of  a  young  student  of  19,  who  had  died  of  typhoid 
fever.  This  is  always  a  day  of  sad  memories  for  me,  and 
to-day  there  have  seemed  several  melancholy  incidents.  Besides 
the  above,  we  were  told  at  Don  Ramon's  that  one  of  the 
children  of  the  family  had  died  at  their  house  only  that  very 
morning.  How  strange  it  seems  to  me,  being  here  all  alone  in 
this  distant  Spanish  town!  and  what  curious  little  episodes 
occur.  Just  now,  as  I  sat  at  work  in  my  bedroom,  young 
Ramon  was  ushered  in,  having  come  to  inquire  if  he  could  be 
of  any  service  to  me,  and  renewing  his  promise  to  come  and 
take  us  to  explore  at  1 1 .  to-morrow. 

27th.  It  was  nearly  12.  before  the  Spaniard  appeared,  but 
he  brought  with  him  our  Vice-Consul,  Don  Uriosti,  who  speaks 
English  very  well,  which  was  a  great  comfort.  However,  his 
appearance  puzzled  me,  for  we  had  been  told  that  his  presence 
was  necessary  at  the  arrival  of  the  English  Mail  Steamer  at 
Carril,  advertised  for  to-day,  but  he  explained  that  his  clerk 
was  to  do  the  needful  for  him  there,  and  further,  he  told  me  to 
my  dismay  that  the  steamer  was  not  expected  till  the  morrow, 
so  that  C.S.  will  have  a  long  detention  there,  which  is  most 
provoking  for  him.  I  walked  out  with  my  two  Spanish  friends 
till  two  o'clock,  which  I  found  out  was  their  dinner-time. 
Bought  an  old  metal  cross  I  had  seen  with  C.S.  the  day 
before.  Then  went  to  the  Cathedral.  After  dinner  I  had  a  very 
agreeable  visit  from  Don  Uriosti,  who  gave  me  a  great  deal  of 
information,  and  also  brought  me  a  Spanish  book  containing 
an  account  of  the  Cathedral.  A  telegram  from  C.S.  saying 
that  the  steamer  had  not  arrived  and  that  he  must  remain 
another  night  at  Carril. 

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LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1875 

28th.  To-day  it  is  cold.  There  are  no  means  of  having 
fires  at  Santiago,  so  when  winter  sets  in  it  must  be  very 
trying.  I  was  not  up  very  early.  I  have  read  a  great  deal 
of  the  book  about  the  Cathedral  and  think  I  have  mastered 
the  principal  facts.  How  I  hope  C.S.  will  get  back  to-day, 
but  I  must  not  reckon  on  it.  Thank  God  he  did  return. 
The  Consul  came  to  fetch  me  at  4.30,  and  I  walked  with 
him  down  to  the  station.  The  rain  had  then  ceased,  but 
before  we  arrived  it  had  increased  tremendously,  and  it  poured 
before  we  got  back  to  the  Hotel.  C.S.  had  spent  two  wretched 
days  at  Carril,  in  a  kind  of  pot-house,  but  he  was  fortunate  in 
meeting  his  brother  there  when  at  length  the  steamer  arrived 
this  very  morning,  and  thus  we  were  saved  the  hurried  journey 
back  to  Lisbon  to  meet  him,  and  were  enabled  to  prolong  our 
stay  in  the  North,  where  there  is  still  so  much  of  interest  to  be 
seen. 

29th.  The  Consul,  Don  Uriosti,  came  to  us  at  n.,  accom- 
panied by  a  learned  man,  Don  Manuel  Murquia,  who  has 
written  a  history  of  Gallicia  and  is  supposed  to  know  every- 
thing about  the  local  antiquities,  especially  as  he  was  the 
Director  of  the  Public  Works.  With  them  we  took  a  most 
delightful  walk.  We  went  first  to  the  Cathedral,  looked  over 
it  generally  and  got  one  of  the  attendants  to  take  us  into  the 
Capella  Mayor,  where  we  went  up  to  the  figure  of  the  Saint, 
and  afterwards  looked  at  the  top  of  the  sarcophagus  which  lies 
immediately  below  the  High  Altar.  We  also  visited  the 
Hospital  and  its  beautiful  Chapel,  which  is  so  contrived  that 
three  wards  can  hear  the  Mass  from  their  beds.  The  carvings 
of  the  columns  minute  and  artistic  to  a  degree.  Went  to  the 
Archbishopric,  where  there  exists  a  curious  hall  of  audience, 
which  is  now  being  converted  into  a  Chapel  by  the  present 
dignitary.  In  the  course  of  the  operation  he  has  managed 
to  destroy  one  of  the  oldest  and  finest  of  its  doorways,  to 

398 


i875  NOTES  CERAMIC 

Murquia's  intense  horror.  The  architecture  of  this  place  is 
quite  Romanesque.  After  parting  with  our  fine  guides,  C.S. 
and  I  went  again  to  the  Plateria,  which  we  had  visited  together 
last  Friday,  and  bought  one  or  two  small  ornaments,  among 
them  a  badge  of  Santiago,  mounted  with  the  double  eagle, 
which  seems  out  of  the  common.  The  Consul  promised  to 
return  for  us  again  after  dinner  (they  dine  here  at  2)  but  such 
violent  rain  supervened  that  it  was  impossible  for  us  to 
prosecute  any  further  researches  that  evening.  The  following 
day,  however, 

30th,  the  Consul  and  M.  Murquia  came  at  9;  we  had 
got  up  early  to  be  ready  for  them.  We  went  to  the  Cathedral 
and  were  shown  the  treasure.  There  are  several  specimens  of 
the  finest  silver  work  (of  course  the  French  when  they  were 
here  stole  all  they  could  lay  their  hands  on),  among  these  is  a 
magnificent  Custodia  by  Antonio  d'Arfe,  dated  1556.  I  was 
particularly  interested  in  the  Royal  Tombs,  placed  in  the 
Chapel  of  the  Treasury.  We  found  an  old  broker's  shop, 
where  there  were  some  pictures,  one  of  them  rather  good, 
but  the  prices  absurd.  We  heard  that  there  was  a  certain 
Dr.  Andre  who  was  the  purchaser  of  everything  old  that 
was  to  be  bought  in  the  town.  Had  we  known  this  sooner 
we  might  have  seen  his  collection,  which  would  have  been  of 
the  greatest  interest  for  us.  The  Consul  went  to  find  him  for 
us,  and  he  was  very  willing  to  show  us  what  he  had,  but  as  he 
kept  it  in  a  house  in  the  country  it  was  too  late  for  us  to  go  and 
see  it.  Don  Murquia  was  so  charmed  with  the  cross  we  had 
bought  here,  and  which  he  pronounced  to  be  of  the  i2th 
century,  that  he  brought  his  daughter  to  our  rooms  this 
afternoon  to  make  a  drawing  of  it.  I  must  not  forget  that  we 
went  to  see  the  Library  of  the  University,  which  is  a  very  fine 
room,  also  the  Palace,  which  was  formerly  occupied  by  the 
Cardinal  Fonseca  (who  built  the  Cathedral  Cloisters),  where, 

399 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1875 

besides  a  fine  old  Patio,  there  is  a  staircase  with  an  Atecionada 
ceiling  of  the  period. 

DECEMBER  1875 

VIGO  :  TUY  :  MONCAO  :  BRAGA  :  OPORTO  :  COIMBRA  :  LUSO  : 
VIZEU  :  LEIRIA  :  BATALHA 

December  ist.  Up  very  early  and  off  to  the  train,  having 
very  much  enjoyed  our  visit  to  Santiago.  We  had  a  brisk  walk 
to  the  station  and  on  arriving  there  found  the  train  was  not  to 
start  till  8.30.  In  effect  it  did  not  go  so  soon.  The  Consul  went 
with  us  as  far  as  Padron.  A  gentleman  named  Mould, 
interested  in  the  railway,  lives  there.  He  had  sent  us  a 
message  to  invite  us  to  go  and  stay  with  him  that  we  might  see 
the  Mother  Church  of  Iria,  but  time  did  not  admit  of  our 
accepting  his  invitation.  Joined  the  Correio  at  Carril.  The  first 
part  of  the  way  we  travelled  in  the  inside,  but  from  Pontevedra 
we  went  in  the  Coup6  (or  Berlina)  and  the  views  of  Vigo  and  its 
Bay,  in  the  evening  light,  were  charming.  It  was  almost  dark 
when  we  arrived.  Put  up  again  at  the  Fonda  de  Comercio, 
where  our  landlord  did  not  behave  quite  so  honestly  as  he  did 
before ;  however,  it  is  not  a  bad  Hotel.  Great  Fair  at  Pontevedra 
as  we  went  through ;  a  pretty  sight. 

2nd.  I  was  writing  letters  after  breakfast,  when  C.S.  ran 
to  fetch  me  to  go  out,  as  the  English  Squadron  was  just 
entering  the  Bay.  We  went  accordingly  upon  the  heights  to 
see  this  beautiful  sight,  and  after  they  had  anchored,  came  down 
to  look  at  it  from  the  Quay ;  salute  from  the  Fort ;  music  from 
the  Admiral's  ship.  We  had  places  in  one  of  the  diligences 
which  started  at  2.,  and  which  professed  to  reach  Tuy  at  6., 
but  we  were  drawn  by  three  wretched  mules,  which  only  rested 
some  half-hour  on  the  road,  and  did  not  arrive  till  8. 

3rd.  At  ii.,  we  crossed  the  Ferry  to  Valen9a,  having  taken 
places  in  a  diligence  by  which  we  were  promised  to  proceed  to 

400 


~ 


1875  NOTES  CERAMIC 

Mon^ao  at  12.  When  we  landed,  however,  the  entrepreneur 
from  whom  we  got  our  tickets  tried  to  persuade  us  that  we  were 
to  go  by  a  heavy  coach  which  did  not  start  till  2.  Fortunately 
we  discovered  his  fraud  betimes,  and  went  on  by  the  appointed 
conveyance,  which  was  a  very  smart  one.  The  road,  as  usual,  a 
very  good  one  and  we  travelled  at  a  good  pace,  our  only  draw- 
back being  a  mist  over  the  grand  scenery,  which  at  last  turned 
to  a  heavy  shower.  However,  this  presently  cleared  off,  and 
then,  all  of  a  sudden,  we  found  ourselves  on  a  part  of  the  road 
which  was  almost  impracticable,  and  would  have  proved  quite 
so,  had  we  not  met  a  cart  drawn  by  two  strong  horses,  whom 
our  driver  pressed  into  the  service  to  assist  the  efforts  of  our 
three  poor  mules.  The  fact  is  that  this  part  of  the  road  is  still 
in  its  ancient  form  and  gives  one  an  idea  of  what  the  roads  in 
Portugal  must  have  been  up  to  a  recent  period ;  the  portion 
which  is  completed  is  most  admirable.  We  arrived  at  Mongao 
at  3,  Hotel  Central.  We  had  an  introduction  to  go  and  see  the 
Chateau  of  a  nobleman,  Don  Simon  Perreira,  who  lives  at 
Berjoeira,  about  two  leagues  from  the  town,  so  we  got  one  of  the 
vacant  omnibuses  and  drove  over  there.  The  owner  was  not 
at  home,  and  it  was  some  time  before  we  could  gain  admittance 
to  the  house,  but  at  length  the  old  housekeeper  came  out,  and 
showed  us  over  it.  We  saw  no  fine  things,  no  collection  of 
meubles  or  china,  as  we  had  hoped,  but  there  is  a  large  suite  of 
rooms,  all  in  the  vilest  Empire  taste,  but  as  good  as  could  be 
expected  of  the  date.  The  view  over  the  garden  and 
surrounding  scenery  must  be  grand.  It  was  getting  late,  and 
there  was  a  mist  over  the  river,  so  we  could  only  imagine  it. 
Primitive  dinner,  two  waitresses  attending  and  inspecting  every- 
thing we  did.  We  had  been  misled  about  the  Correio  for  our 
further  journey,  but  found  a  diligence  which  was  to  leave  Mon9ao 
at  5.  and  in  this  we  secured  places.  As  we  were  to  be  up  and 
packed  so  early  I  did  not  go  to  bed,  but  only  lay  down  and  got 
i  401  2  c 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1875 

about  three  hours'  sleep.  I  regret  that  the  rascality  of  the 
landlord  made  me  lose  my  temper,  and  that  I  took  my  revenge 
on  the  two  little  innocent  waiting  girls.  I  am  ashamed  of  it  and 
hope  not  to  be  betrayed  into  such  unworthy  conduct  again.  It 
was  dark  during  the  first  part  of  our  journey  but  presently  the 
stars  disappeared  and  the  dawn  broke.  There  was  a  sharp 
white  frost,  snow  on  several  of  the  surrounding  hills,  not  a 
breath  of  wind,  but  the  air  was  cold,  the  sun  hot  and  brilliant. 
Our  journey  lay  through  the  most  glorious  scenery.  At  Dos 
Arcos  tried  to  get  some  breakfast ;  with  difficulty  obtained  some 
bread  and  wine  and  hot  chestnuts  which  a  woman  was  roasting 
in  the  street.  At  the  bridge  they  made  us  all  get  out  and  walk 
over  to  save  the  mules.  We  reached  Braga  at  3.  after  a  most 
prosperous  journey.  Large  fair  of  cattle,  etc.,  being  held  at  a 
little  village  on  our  route.  Arrived  in  time  for  dinner,  of  which 
we  were  glad.  Early  to  bed  ;  a  long  night,  and  got  up  much 
refreshed. 

5th.  Weather  very  cold  but  bright.  We  were  out  from 
12.30.  till  4.  Arranged  about  a  carriage  for  to-morrow's 
journey.  Went  into  the  public  gardens,  where  a  military  band 
was  playing.  The  Englishman  we  had  met  here  before  (Mr. 
Daniel)  showed  us  the  way  to  the  gardens  where  the  Columns 
with  the  Roman  inscriptions  are  preserved.  They  are  very 
curious  and  interested  us  much.  C.S.  made  out  several  of 
them.  After  this  we  walked  to  that  part  of  the  town  (Pra9a 
Nova)  by  which  we  arrived  yesterday — came  to  a  very  pretty 
bridge;  a  lovely  evening  and  charming  views.  Adieu  "Bra- 
cava  Augusta,  Fidelis  et  Antiqua"  as  the  Roman  slab  ex- 
pressed it.  We  have  greatly  enjoyed  our  short  sojourn  here. 
Early  dinner,  since  which  I  have  written  a  long  journal  and 
despatched  a  letter  to  Ivor.  They  say  the  cold  here  is  quite 
exceptional ;  the  poor  camellias  have  suffered  for  it ;  they  were 
in  full  flower  last  week  and  their  blossoms  are  now  almost  all 

402 


1875  NOTES  CERAMIC 

nipped  by  the  frost.  I  must  not  forget  the  beautiful  chimes  at 
Braga,  the  best  I  have  heard  in  Portugal,  Mafra  hardly  ex- 
cepted.  The  Church  bells,  which  continued  all  day  at  intervals, 
greatly  added  to  the  charm  of  our  Sunday's  walk. 

6th.  Called  at  6. ;  a  brilliant  morning,  and  delightful  ex- 
pectations of  our  day's  expedition !  A  commodious  brake 
with  two  stout  horses  came  to  the  door  at  8.30.  We  were  all 
prepared  and  started  immediately.  All  went  well  till  we  got 
nearly  half-way  to  Guimaraens.  The  scenery  magnificent, 
especially  that  over  Braga  as  we  left  it.  Suddenly  William 
Schreiber  missed  his  bag  from  the  carriage,  which  led  to 
all  sorts  of  complications,  as  he  started  back  some  way  to 
look  for  it,  and  thus  we  lost  what  was  very  valuable  to  us,  an 
hour.  However,  we  managed  to  see  the  principal  points  of 
interest  in  this  most  interesting  place ;  the  remains  of  Alfonso 
Henrique's  Palace  with  its  four  tall  cylindrical  brick  chimneys ; 
the  Castle,  of  which  we  ascended  the  Central  Tower  to  gain 
the  extensive  view;  the  Cloisters  of  S.  Domingo,  of  which 
only  the  inner  arches  remain  (but  they  are  splendid);  and  lastly 
the  Cathedral,  the  interior  of  which  has  been  utterly  ruined, 
but  where  the  Romanesque  Cloisters  are  intact,  and  where  we 
peeped  through  a  grating  of  the  old  Fort;  where  Alfonso 
Henrique  was  baptized ;  and  the  tomb  of  the  founder  of  the 
tower.  The  hour  we  had  lost  prevented  our  seeing  the  treasure, 
as  the  Sacristan  was  not  to  be  found  in  the  afternoon.  The 
building  in  front  of  the  Cathedral  (westward),  apparently  to 
receive  a  cross  or  image,  not  to  be  forgotten.  We  were  fortu- 
nate in  picking  up  one  or  two  little  trifles  from  the  numerous 
jewellers'  shops,  a  chatelaine,  a  Minas  novus  ornament,  and 
two  remarkable  crosses  in  black  and  white  enamel.  Altogether 
our  day  was  most  enjoyable.  The  journey  takes  about  2^ 
hours  to  Guimaraens  and  about  an  equal  time  to  the  Fama^ao 
station,  where  we  joined  the  railway  before  5.  o'clock  and  had 

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LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1875 

to  wait  nearly  an  hour.  We  got  to  our  Hotel  at  Oporto  by  8. 
o'clock. 

7th.  Our  first  point  was  to  call  at  the  Consul's  to  get  our 
letters.  One  from  Blanche.  All  seem  well  except  Merthyr, 
who  to  my  grief  has  had  another  bad  fall  out  hunting ;  I  shall 
be  anxious  for  further  news.  Mrs.  Crauford  was  at  home. 
An  agreeable  sensible  woman.  Their  house  full  of  pretty 
things  (some  of  them  very  good)  and  set  out  with  good  taste. 
After  this  we  tried  the  antiquities  dealers  and  the  jewellers  in 
the  Rua  das  Flores  and  ended  our  walk  by  going  to  Coutts' 
agent  for  the  replenishing  of  our  finances.  Another  bright 
sunny  day  but  cold  out  of  the  sun.  They  say  such  cold  weather 
has  not  been  known  here  for  years,  but  elsewhere  it  is  much 
worse. 

8th.  It  was  a  Fete  day  so  no  shops  were  open,  but  there 
were  a  great  many  religious  ceremonies  and  much  ringing  of 
bells.  We  went  to  the  Post  Office  and  found  a  large  packet 
awaiting  us  there  and  containing  no  fewer  than  46  letters! 
Some  of  them  from  the  children.  We  sat  down  in  the  outer 
court  and  read  them  all  before  going  farther.  Called  to  see  the 
amateur  dealer  Nunes;  then  paid  a  visit  to  Senor  Rozas,  a 
gentleman  we  met  at  Tuy  and  whom  we  hoped  (in  vain)  to  get 
some  useful  information  from,  especially  about  Guimaraens.  In 
the  afternoon  we  found  out  the  worthy  English  engineer,  Mr. 
Thomas  Smith  (see  Nov.  15),  and  called  upon  him  to  thank 
him  for  his  previous  civilities. 

9th.  Walked  about  generally,  bought  another  pair  of 
ear-rings  in  the  Rua  das  Flores,  and  went  to  see  the  curious 
old  picture  at  the  Misericordia,  with  the  portraits  of  King 
Manuel,  his  Queen  and  family.  It  is  in  a  bad  light,  and  is  not 
in  good  order. 

loth.  Went  to  take  lunch  with  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Crauford,  and 
spent  a  most  agreeable  afternoon  with  them,  returning  only  in 

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i875  NOTES  CERAMIC 

time  for  dinner.  We  had  many  subjects  in  common  and  dis- 
cussed many  things.  Mr.  Crauford  is  full  of  information.  He 
gave  us  some  advice  about  some  silver  offered  to  us  by  the 
dealer  Luis,  the  result  of  which  was  that  on  the  following  day 
(Saturday)  we  made  the  purchase  of  one  of  the  objects  he  had 
offered  to  us,  viz.  a  silver-gilt  casket  or  reliquaire  of  quaint, 
but  not  fine  workmanship,  which  may  be  about  200  years  old. 
We  had  various  small  commissions  to  execute  in  the  town,  to 
go  to  the  Banker's  for  money,  and  to  fetch  William's  lost  bag, 
which  by  some  miraculous  means  had  been  recovered  for  him 
by  Mr.  Daniel  at  Braga.  Unfortunately  the  Hotel  is  not 
furnished  with  fires  (hitherto)  so  that  the  evenings  are  rather 
trying.  This  is  the  only  drawback  to  residing  at  Oporto. 

i  ith.  Called  on  M.  Rozas  to  know  if  he  had  any  informa- 
tion for  us  about  Guimaraens,  where  we  thought  of  going 
to-morrow,  but  he  does  not  respond.  In  the  afternoon  we 
drove  over  to  Le^a  do  Balio.  Delighted  with  the  old  fortress 
tower  of  the  military  Knights,  and  with  the  stately  Church 
dated  1330  to  1336,  curious  Manoelino  font  and  cross  of  the 
same  date  in  the  village.  There  are  remains  of  very  ancient 
Cloisters  with  some  very  fine  bits  now  enclosed  in  the  Court- 
yard of  a  Brazilian  proprietor,  whose  wife  or  daughter  showed 
us  round  very  civilly  and  took  us  down  to  the  banks  of  the 
Le$a,  by  some  considered  the  Lethe  of  old,  as  I  have  said.  We 
had  left  our  carriage  in  the  highway  and  walked  to  the  Church 
by  an  ox-road.  We  returned  by  a  pleasant  ramble  through  the 
fields. 

1 3th.  Called  at  4. 30.  We  were  out  by  6.,  and  after  drinking 
one  hasty  cup  of  coffee,  set  out  to  try  and  catch  the  6.40.  for 
Famalic.ao  on  our  way  to  Guimaraens.  We  tried  to  get  a 
carriage  at  the  stables  opposite,  but  failed,  so  we  attempted, 
rather  hopelessly,  to  walk.  There  was  bright  moonlight  as  we 
hurried  along.  Fortunately  in  the  Pla9a  Don  Pedro  we  spied 

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one  solitary  cab,  and  so  our  difficulties  were  at  an  end.  We 
found  a  diligence  awaiting  the  arrival  of  the  train,  and  in  it 
proceeded  to  Guimaraens.  We  went  straight  to  the  Cathedral  on 
arriving,  hoping  to  see  the  treasure,  but  the  priest  who  was  in 
charge  of  it  was  not  in  the  town.  The  Custodian,  however, 
showed  us  the  processional  crosses,  and  some  good  1 5th  century 
vestments,  also  the  Font,  the  tombs  of  the  founders  of  the  tower, 
etc.  It  was  very  provoking  to  have  thus  missed  the  treasure  a 
second  time.  The  celebrated  Olive-tree  is  taken  up.  Bought 
three  more  crosses  like  those  we  got  last  week.  While  looking 
into  a  jeweller's  shop  in  the  town,  a  pedlar  accosted  us  and 
took  us  to  his  lodgings  in  the  Rua  St.  Antonio,  where  amid  a 
heap  of  rubbish  we  picked  out  a  pair  of  shoe  buckles.  Discovered 
a  fine  Western  door  at  the  Church  of  St.  Francisco.  Some 
beautiful  chimes  at  a  neighbouring  Church.  At  2.  we  resumed 
the  diligence,  and  again  had  to  wait  an  hour  before  the  train 
started.  A  friendly  "  Americano  "  took  us  from  the  terminus 
to  the  Plaga  Don  Pedro,  whence  we  walked  to  our  Hotel — 
quite  ready  for  dinner  at  8.,  having  had  nothing  all  day  but  a 
roll  and  a  bowl  of  coffee  with  good  goat's  milk  as  we  went 
through  Familigao  in  the  morning. 

1 4th.  Called  on  the  Craufords  and  returned  them  his 
book  of  Portuguese  travels  (written  under  the  name  of 
Latouche)  which  he  had  lent  us,  and  with  which  we  were 
greatly  pleased.  In  the  afternoon  we  took  a  carriage  and 
drove  across  the  river  to  the  Convent  of  the  Serra — reached  it 
just  in  time  for  a  fine  sunset  and  beautiful  evening  lights  upon 
the  mountains,  the  city,  the  river,  etc.,  a  most  grand  scene. 
We  were  enchanted;  we  were  near  leaving  Oporto  without 
seeing  this.  It  would  have  been  indeed  a  loss.  All  the 
historical  associations — Wellington,  etc. — rendering  it  doubly 
interesting.  Laid  awake  late  to-night  reading  Mr.  Crauford's 
article  in  the  New  Quarterly  on  Affonzo  Henriquez,  full  of 

406 


i875  NOTES  CERAMIC 

information  valuable  to  us.     Also  another  article  of  his  on  old 

china,  which  I  like  less. 

1 5th.  Remained  at  Oporto  yet  another  day  in  order  that 
we  might  take  another  look  at  the  picture  in  the  Misericordia, 
which  is  no  doubt  by  a  Belgian  artist.  Went  into  the  Church 
of  San  Francisco,  which  would  seem  to  be  of  the  same  date  as 
that  of  Le$a  do  Balio,  but  has  been  sadly  disfigured  by  the 
gilded  rubbish  of  the  monks.  Had  a  long  walk  in  search  of  a 
certain  Arcenio  de  Pinutaleite  (a  dealer),  who  was  not  to  be 
found,  and  on  our  way  back  picked  up  two  little  papier  mach6 
snuff  boxes,  with  French  engravings  on  the  subject  of  the 
American  War  of  Independence.  The  weather  has  become 
much  nicer,  accordingly  they  have  begun  to  light  a  fire  in  the 
evening  in  the  salle  a  manger  of  the  Hotel!  I  have  been 
interested  in  the  history  and  adventures  of  a  little  Contralto 
belonging  to  the  Italian  Opera  Company,  named  Enrichetta 
Bernadoni.  She  is  staying  here,  a  well-educated,  well-read 
young  woman — I  may  hear  of  her  again.  To  my  surprise  she 
told  me  that  she  was  a  Protestant. 

1 6th.  At  length  we  are  to  leave  Oporto.  I  am  in  course  of 
packing  up.  C.S.  and  his  brother  have  gone  over  to  see  Foz. 
Dinner  ordered  at  3.  In  due  time  we  dined  and  took  a 
carriage  to  the  station,  admiring  as  we  went  the  view  over 
the  town.  After  waiting  about  half  an  hour  the  train  started 
and  we  got  to  Coimbra  soon  after  9.  o'clock.  We  had  been 
told  to  go  to  the  Hdtel  Central,  which  is  in  the  middle  of  the 
town,  near  the  Santa  Cruz,  and  a  wretched  night  we  had !  It 
is  the  first  time  we  have  not  found  our  quarters  comfortable. 

1 7th.  Went  into  Sta.  Cruz.  The  fine  Cinquecento  pulpit, 
the  grand  old  tombs  of  Affonzo  Henriquez  and  Sancho  I.,  then 
through  the  Sacristy  to  the  Manoelino  Cloisters,  very  good. 
They  showed  us  the  chamber  where  the  relics  are  kept  (of  no 
interest  to  us).  Then  the  Coro  Alto,  charming,  with  carved 

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LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1875 
representations  of  chained  Moorish  Kings  on  the  Stalls. 
Went  thence  to  the  Hotel  Mondego  and  engaged  other  rooms 
(to  which  we  removed  in  the  evening),  and  then  we  walked  up 
the  hill,  and  after  passing  the  front  of  the  Se  Velha,  found 
ourselves  presently  in  the  Square  of  the  University.  From  its 
Terrace  we  had  a  view  of  a  most  magnificent  sunset.  In  the 
course  of  the  day  we  had  investigated  the  jewellers'  shops. 
One  of  them,  Abilio  Martius,  possesses  some  Cinquecento 
silver  dishes,  of  which  he  showed  us  photographs,  the  originals 
being  with  a  friend  of  his  in  Paris,  Philip  Schoss,  26  Rue 
d'Hauteville. 

1 8th.  Greatly  pleased  with  our  new  abode,  which  looks 
over  the  Mondego.  The  river  now  is  low,  but  all  the  views  are 
delightful,  and  the  orange-trees  are  in  full  bearing.  Went 
across  the  bridge,  first  to  the  ruined  Church  of  Sta.  Clara, 
which  is  now  used  as  a  barn  and  stable — circular  arched 
entrances  both  East  and  West,  and  a  good  South  Rose  window. 
In  two  Chapels  to  the  South  are  well-carved  altar-pieces  of  late 
Renaissance.  The  farmer  showed  us  over  it.  Then  to  the 
Fonte  dos  Amores  through  the  pretty  Quinta  das  Lagrimas, 
the  garden  better  kept  than  is  usual  in  Portugal.  It  all  belongs 
to  a  rich  descendant  of  poor  Inez  de  Castro's  family.  Up  the 
hill  to  the  more  modern  Convent  of  Sta.  Clara,  in  the  Church  of 
which  are  some  life-sized  representations  of  scenes  of  Portuguese 
history  (Sta.  Isabel's  Roses,  etc.),  not  bad,  and  what  they  told 
us  was  Isabel's  tomb.  The  chain  still  seen  at  the  gate. 
After  scaling  to  the  highest  point  for  the  view,  we  went  down 
to  the  Monastery  of  S.  Francisco,  which  is  now  being  converted 
into  a  wine  store  and  linen  manufactory  and  is  in  the  hands  of 
a  company,  a  great  improvement  on  the  lazy  monks.  In  making 
the  alterations  they  found  a  subterranean  communication  between 
the  Monastery  and  the  Convent  of  Sta.  Clara  above.  There  is 
nothing  to  admire  at  S.  Francisco — the  date  1602-1607 — but  in 

408 


i875  NOTES  CERAMIC 

the  Patio  we  found  four  trees  planted  in  the  angles  on  mounds 
enclosed  by  fine  old  Azulejos,  which  were  of  older  date  than  the 
building  itself,  and  had  evidently  been  brought  there  from  else- 
where. We  are  trying  to  get  these.  When  we  left  the  hill,  went 
again  to  the  University  on  the  other  side,  and  so  to  the  Aque- 
duct, where  we  fell  in  with  a  respectable  old  beggar,  who  took 
us  under  his  venerable  protection  and  showed  us  the  Botanical 
Gardens,  and  insisted  upon  our  going  to  see  a  view  up  the 
Mondego,  which  quite  rewarded  us  for  the  walk.  Bought  a 
small  silver-gilt  reliquaire  of  good  old  work. 

iQth.  Being  anxious  to  know  more  about  the  history  of 
Coimbra  than  we  could  glean  from  the  unenlightened  natives, 
we  inquired  if  there  was  any  savant  at  the  University  to  whom 
we  might  address  ourselves.  By  the  intervention  of  one  of  the 
waiters  we  thereupon  became  acquainted  with  the  German 
Professor  Herr  Hermann  Christian  Duhrssen.  This  gentleman 
answered  to  our  polite  messages  by  meeting  us  in  the  University 
Square  on  Sunday  morning.  He  took  us  into  the  Library, 
which  is  very  fine  for  its  date  and  in  excellent  keeping.  He 
then  turned  us  over  to  an  official,  who  showed  us  the  large 
Hall,  which  preserves  the  original  ceiling.  It  is  set  round  with 
wretched  full-lengths  of  the  Portuguese  Monarchs.  We  went 
into  other  rooms  above,  one  with  equally  horrid  pictures  of  the 
heads  of  the  University.  On  the  floor  of  a  gallery  lay  a  number 
of  Flemish  pictures  perishing,  of  no  merit  perhaps,  but  curious 
for  costume,  architecture,  etc.  View  from  the  parapet  of  the 
building.  After  this  we  went  on  to  see  other  things,  the  Church 
of  San  Salvador — fine  Romanesque  West  entrance ;  one  good 
pointed  Chapel  within,  on  the  South  side  ;  tall  slender  columns 
with  early  capitals  in  the  nave ;  altogether  interesting.  To  the 
S6  Velha,  where  we  were  surprised  with  the  extreme  beauty  of 
the  Renaissance  Chapels  terminating  the  two  arches,  especially 
that  of  the  South  side,  dating  1336,  with  figures,  almost  life- 

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LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1875 
sized,  of  the  Saviour  and  Apostles — also  the  grand  I5th  cent. 
Retablo.  The  columns  are  encased  in  Azulejos  ;  at  the  West 
entrance  is  an  Atecionada  ceiling.  Note  in  the  North  transept 
a  Bishop's  tomb,  and  that  of  Sta.  Isabella's  "Lady"  Bata$a 
next  to  St.  Jago.  The  West  end  doors  are  intact  and  grand, 
Romanesque.  The  interior  is  entirely  modernised  and  spoilt. 
Through  all  these  "  sights  "  we  were  escorted  by  the  waiter  and 
the  good  old  beggar.  When  the  Professor  was  with  us  we  must 
have  formed  a  curious  procession.  It  was  all  done  by  4.  o'clock, 
and  then  C.S.  and  I  set  off  alone,  and  went  by  the  walk  on  the 
river  side  up  the  Mondego,  which  seems  to  be  a  sort  of  Alameda, 
and  where  the  dlite  of  the  town,  the  estudiantes,  etc.,  were  taking 
their  evening  walk.  We  "  persevered  "  up  to  the  top  of  the 
hill,  and  having  enjoyed  the  glorious  view,  returned  in  time  for 
dinner.  The  Professor  called  to  see  us  afterwards  and  we  had 
an  agreeable  and  instructive  talk.  He  is  a  man  of  much 
cultivation,  well  skilled  in  many  languages. 

2oth.  Met  our  Professor  by  appointment  in  the  Botanical 
Gardens  at  n.;  went  into  the  hothouses.  Thence  to  the 
Museum,  a  large  building  where  there  are  large  collections  of 
natural  history,  fossils,  minerals,  etc.,  and  where  the  anatomical 
and  other  scientific  lectures  are  given.  Thence  again  to  that 
delightful  retreat,  the  Quinta  de  Sta.  Cruz.  It  belonged  to 
the  monks  of  that  name.  At  their  dissolution  the  whole 
property  was  sold  for  ^"100.  What  would  it  now  be  worth? 
As  we  passed  the  Se  Velha  we  stopped  to  look  at  an  Arabic 
inscription  which  is  imbedded  in  its  walls.  Then  we  went 
across  the  river  to  the  St.  Francisco,  where  we  explained  to  the 
Professor  our  wishes  with  regard  to  the  Azulejos  there,  about 
which  he  promised  to  exert  himself  on  our  behalf.  After  parting 
with  him,  C.S.  and  I  walked  a  little  on  the  banks  of  the  river, 
and  he  espied  a  curious  old  Moorish-looking  building  on  the 
hill.  We  were  told  it  was  "  Las  Ripas  ",  where  Maria  Fellez 

410 


i875  NOTES  CERAMIC 

was  killed  by  her  husband,  the  son  of  Inez  de  Castro.     Next 

morning, 

2ist,  accordingly  we  climbed  to  the  spot.  It  is  an  old 
Moorish  tower  communicating  by  a  curtain  wall  with  another 
ancient  building  in  which  several  Manoelino  doors  and 
windows  had  been  introduced.  This  portion  had,  we  were 
told,  belonged  to  the  unfortunate  house  of  Aveiro.  Some  of 
the  Manoelino  carvings,  indoors,  etc.,  of  the  Aveiro  buildings 
are  very  picturesque.  The  Arms  everywhere  defaced.  But  I 
since  hear  that  in  one  place  in  the  town  they  have  escaped  and 
are  still  to  be  seen.  This  morning  we  went  again  into  Sta. 
Cruz,  which  I  should  never  tire  of  looking  at,  the  tombs,  the 
beautiful  cloisters,  the  Pulpit.  After  a  pleasant  round  and 
leave-taking  with  our  Professor,  we  went  back  to  our  Hotel  to 
prepare  for  our  journey  to  Luso.  Of  course  we  were  at  the 
station  about  an  hour  too  soon,  but  that  mattered  not.  An 
hour  by  train  brought  us  to  Mealhada,  and  there  we  cast  about 
for  a  carriage  to  take  us  forward.  C.S.  presently  found  and 
engaged  a  comfortable  little  caleche.  We  got  some  bread  and 
wine  at  a  little  Inn  and  then  set  off  for  Luso.  It  was  6.  o'clock, 
a  lovely  evening  without  a  breath  of  air,  and  with  brightest 
starlight.  The  H6tel  de  Serva  did  not  seem  promising  when 
we  arrived.  It  looked  like  a  long  series  of  tenantless  huts, 
but  when  the  door  was  opened  and  we  were  admitted  we  found 
very  clean  and  comfortable  quarters.  Got  an  indifferent  dinner 
and  went  early  to  bed.  I  must  not  forget  a  curious  ceremony 
we  witnessed  on  Saturday  in  the  New  Cathedral,  St.  Joao.  A 
corpse  was  there  laid  out ;  a  number  of  priests  stood  round  the 
bier  and  chanted  awhile,  after  which  they  carried  out  the  dead 
woman,  proceeding  with  her,  unveiled,  in  procession  down  the 
streets. 

22nd.     C.S.  and  I  went  to  explore  the  mountains.     Walked 
up  to  Cruz  Alta,  enjoying  the  various  magnificent  views  as  we 

411 


^  LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1875 
passed  the  various  stations.  We  came  back  through  the 
forest,  to  the  Obelisk  marking  the  battlefield  of  Busaco.  C.S. 
read  the  account  of  the  fight,  which  it  was  easy,  on  the  spot,  to 
understand.  Returned  through  the  beautiful  grounds  to  the 
Convent,  and  so  back  to  the  Hotel.  It  was  the  loveliest  of 
lovely  days,  perfectly  warm,  in  the  sun  almost  too  hot,  and  the 
sky  cloudless.  I  sat  out  of  doors,  working,  till  sunset,  C.S. 
reading  to  me  our  Portuguese  history.  This  was  indeed  a  day 
to  be  remembered.  On  the  hill  we  had  seen  "Admiral" 
butterflies  flitting  about,  and  I  had  gathered  wild,  sweet- 
scented  primroses.  Our  Hotel  being  now  prepared  for  visitors, 
who  are  not  frequent  at  this  time  of  year,  we  had  an  excellent 
dinner,  and  an  amusing  interview  with  our  cook,  a  Spaniard. 

23rd.  We  had  intended  to  proceed  to-day  to  Vizeu,  but  we 
failed  to  get  places  in  the  diligence,  the  Coimbra  Estudiantes 
having  secured  every  nook  and  corner,  and  having  chartered 
five  coaches  in  addition,  to  take  them  home  for  their  holidays. 
So  perforce  we  had  to  stay  on  here,  and  were  not  sorry,  as  it 
is  a  very  pleasant  and  comfortable  place.  Wrote  a  little 
in  the  morning.  At  about  i.  we  started  up  to  the  battlefield 
and  returned  by  the  Convent  and  forest. 

24th.  We  did  not  go  out  very  early  (a  lovely  day,  a  bright 
sun  and  blue  sky),  but  at  i.  we  started  for  a  lounge,  which 
ended  in  this,  that  C.S.  and  I  walked  over  to  Mealhada,  some 
five  miles  distant,  and  back,  returning  in  time  for  our  5.  o'clock 
dinner.  It  was  a  delicious  and  amusing  walk,  full  of  little 
homely  incidents,  among  which  most  conspicuous  was  the  olive- 
gathering  just  outside  Mealhada.  The  men  were  mounted  in 
the  trees  throwing  down  the  fruit,  which  the  women  were 
collecting  below.  We  went  to  the  diligence  office  to  get  our 
tickets  for  the  morrow,  and  then  walked  up  to  the  Church  of 
Sta.  Anna,  which  is  a  barnlike  building  of  no  particular  interest. 

25th.  I  had  slept  but  little  in  the  night :  our  tickets  were 

412 


1875  NOTES  CERAMIC 

taken  for  the  diligence  which  was  to  pick  us  up  at  six  in  the 
morning,  and  we  had  to  be  up  betimes  to  meet  it  on  the  road  in 
front  of  our  Hotel,  so  before  4.  we  were  astir,  the  stars  quite 
bright  and  the  air  quite  warm.  We  could  see  the  light  of  the 
diligence  some  time  before  it  arrived  at  Luzo,  and  I  stood  at 
the  open  window  watching  it,  and  thinking  of  all  the  dear  ones 
at  home  on  this  Christmas  morning.  At  length  it  came. 
Senor  Lopes  (pronounced  Lopps)  the  Waiter,  and  Maestro 
Rodriguez,  the  smoke-dried  old  Spanish  Cook,  came  with 
lanterns  to  see  us  off.  We  took  our  places  hastily,  but  we  had 
difficulty  about  our  luggage,  little  as  there  was  of  it.  Luckily 
we  had  only  small  hand  packages  which  we  were  able  to 
stow  away,  and  luckily  we  had  also  accommodating  fellow- 
passengers,  a  doctor-professor  of  Coimbra  and  his  friend,  so 
that  we  had  every  assistance  to  make  us  comfortable.  At  10. 
we  stopped  at  a  kind  of  pot-house  for  breakfast,  and  fared  well. 
After  this  we  did  not  leave  the  carriage  till  we  reached  Vizeu. 
It  was  long  before  we  lost  sight  of  Busaco.  Our  route  lay 
over  mountains,  chiefly  bordered  by  fir  plantations,  and  with 
the  snow-crowned  Estrella  generally  in  view.  As  there  was 
much  daylight  still,  when  we  reached  Vizeu,  we  went  out  for  a 
little  walk  while  dinner  was  preparing. 

26th.  Went  out  at  midday.  First  to  the  Cathedral  where 
we  looked  again  at  the  pictures.  They  have  in  the  Sacristy  a 
fine  old  Pontifical  garment,  which  they  say  is  the  same  as  that 
represented  in  their  grand  picture  of  St.  Peter:  after  the  pictures 
in  the  Sacristy  we  studied  that  of  the  Calvario.  Then  we  went 
and  found  out  the  artist  of  the  place,  Don  Antonio  Jos6  Per- 
reira.  We  introduced  ourselves  and  found  him  to  be  an  intelli- 
gent agreeable  old  gentleman.  He  went  fully  into  the  "  Gran 
Vasco"  controversy,  which  I  am  unable  to  approach,  either  here 
or  elsewhere,  and  after  talking  some  time  he  proposed  to  accom- 
pany us  in  our  walk.  First  we  went  back  to  the  Cathedral ; 

413 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1875 

saw  the  Alto  Coro ;  again  the  Calvario  and  the  pictures 
in  the  Sacristy.  Went  also  into  the  Sala  do  Cabido,  where 
there  are  14  other  pictures  which  seemed  very  curious,  but  are 
put  up  too  high  to  allow  of  examination.  From  the  Cathe- 
dral our  companion  took  us  to  look  at  the  staircase  of  the 
Seminario,  an  ugly  modern  building,  and  then  to  the  Hospital, 
which  he  told  us  was  the  finest  thing  in  Vizeu.  When  we 
got  there  we  found  that  we  had  been  brought  there  to  look 
at  the  wretched  daubs  which  the  said  A.  J.  Perreira  had  painted 
of  the  benefactors  of  the  Institution.  In  the  course  of  our 
morning's  walk  with  him  we  had  visited  the  earthworks  said 
to  have  been  thrown  up  by  Viriatus  in  the  conflict  between 
the  Portuguese  and  the  Roman  Invaders.  After  parting  with 
our  new  friend  we  walked  to  the  Church  of  St.  Michael,  which 
with  a  little  trouble  and  some  delay  we  had  opened  for  us. 
Roderic's  tomb  is  there,  but  it  is  supposed  that  he  was  really 
buried  on  the  mountain,  where  some  remains  were  found  not 
long  ago  in  making  a  road. 

2;th.  Up  very  early.  We  were  at  the  diligence  office 
long  before  the  coach  started.  The  painter,  Perreira,  politely 
came  to  see  us  off,  and  by  half-past  nine  we  were  en  route.  At 
first  we  had  all  the  interior  to  ourselves,  but  as  we  proceeded, 
other  passengers  came  in.  The  morning  was  lovely;  I  sat 
looking  towards  the  Estrella  range  (which  was  at  my  back  on 
Saturday)  and  thoroughly  enjoyed  all  the  varieties  of  the 
mountain  scenery,  especially  at  Santa  Comba,  where  we  stopped 
to  dine.  The  young  Coimbran  student  who  was  brought  up  in 
an  English  College  was  travelling  with  us.  Took  the  train  at 
Mealhada,  and  got  back  to  our  comfortable  quarters  at  Coimbra 
before  10.  o'clock. 

28th.  Our  first  care  was  to  get  our  letters  from  the  Post 
Office.  The  only  letter  that  interested  me  was  one  from  Enid. 
In  it  she  mentions  that  Merthyr  had  recovered  from  his  fall, 

414 


i875  NOTES  CERAMIC 

which  was  a  great  relief  to  me,  as  I  had  been  very  anxious 

about  him.     We  rambled  about  Coimbra  very  agreeably. 

29th.  Went  out  early  to  make  another  attempt  to  see 
Senor  Neves,  but  he  was  not  at  home.  On  our  way  to  meet 
him  at  San  Francisco's  we  found  out  the  old  H6tel  de  Ville ; 
went  into  it  and  went  to  the  summit,  which  is  in  a  very  ruinous 
condition,  to  see  the  view.  Senor  Neves  was  at  the  Convent 
when  we  got  there.  We  found  him  a  very  gentlemanly  young 
man,  speaking  French  perfectly.  We  agreed  about  the 
Azulejos,  which  were  to  be  displaced  and  then  left  for  our 
selection.  After  this  we  walked  about  the  town  for  a  couple  of 
hours,  and  then  went  to  see  how  the  Azulejos  were  getting  on. 
We  stayed  there  most  part  of  the  afternoon  to  watch  the 
operations.  To  our  great  disappointment  we  found  that  they 
were  so  firmly  embedded  in  the  cement  which  fixed  them  that 
it  was  quite  impossible  to  get  them  out  without  breaking,  so 
with  much  regret  we  gave  them  up. 

3Oth.  The  morning  was  occupied  by  a  ramble  about  the 
good  old  town,  and  a  visit  to  an  individual  who  was  appointed 
by  the  Lisbon  banker  to  give  us  the  requisite  funds  for  our 
forward  journey.  We  found  him  to  be  a  stupid  old  man,  in  a 
shop  as  general  dealer,  and  selling  bars  of  iron  to  people  who 
paid  him  in  heavy  patacas  (  I  never  heard  of  iron  being  so 
sold  before).  It  was  more  than  an  hour  before  we  could  make 
him  understand  the  transaction  and  hand  us  over  our  small 
remittance  (only  ^25).  After  this  we  lingered  about  the 
Quebra  Costas  and  other  steep  streets  of  Coimbra,  and  then 
took  a  carnage  to  see  the  remains  of  Condeixa.  As  the  said 
carriage  happened  to  be  a  closed  one,  we  had  to  wait  till  it 
could  be  opened  for  us,  and  in  consequence  of  this  process,  it 
was  2.30.  before  we  got  fairly  en  route.  The  drive  was  longer 
than  we  expected.  However,  we  persevered,  and  on  reaching 
Condeixa,  set  out  on  foot  to  see  the  ancient  Roman  remains. 

415 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1875 
3 1  st.  Our  train  left  betimes,  and  we  quitted  Coimbra 
with  much  regret.  A  grand  old  hill,  crowned  by  ruins  of 
Castles,  fixed  our  attention  as  the  train  went  on,  and  we 
found  that  it  was  Montemor  Velho,  a  place  which  till 
then  we  had  never  heard  of,  and  which  it  would  have 
been  well  worth  while  to  explore  had  we  known  of  it 
sooner.  At  length  we  got  to  Pombal,  a  melancholy  residence 
for  so  great  a  man  as  the  celebrated  Marquis  when  his  reign 
was  over.  Here  we  found  a  diligence  with  three  wretched 
overtired  mules,  in  which  it  was  our  fate  to  perform  the  dis- 
tance to  Leiria.  The  country  hilly  and  much  planted  with  firs- 
A  fine  view  of  the  Castle  on  approaching  the  town  of  Leiria. 
It  was  a  tedious  journey  because  the  poor  mules  were  so  over- 
taxed, otherwise  it  would  have  been  pleasant  enough.  It  was 
amusing  to  see  how  the  passengers,  getting  out  at  every 
inequality  of  the  road,  had  actually  to  walk  above  half  the 
way.  Some  difficulty  about  rooms  at  Leiria.  The  Hotel  bad, 
but  the  New  Year  was  ushered  in  by  bright  sunshine,  and  on 
the  ist  of  January  we  forgot  all  little  inconveniences  in  the 
pleasure  it  gave  us  to  explore  the  town.  Up  to  the  old  ruins 
of  the  Castle,  over  which  we  were  shown  by  a  soldier  from  the 
Barracks  below.  At  the  Bishop's  Palace  we  tried  to  see  the 
picture  attributed  to  Gran  Vasco,  but  his  Lordship  was  ill, 
so  we  were  denied  admission.  We  went  into  the  Concio 
to  post  a  letter.  C.S.  asked  the  Postmaster  if  he  knew  of 
any  antiquities,  and  he  produced  some  good  Oriental 
plates;  we  invested  in  five.  I  should  not  forget  that  we 
breakfasted  in  a  kind  of  glazed  verandah,  and  the  sun  was  so 
hot  that  we  were  obliged  to  open  the  windows  and  choose 
such  seats  as  were  not  under  its  rays.  We  had  a  special 
carriage  at  2  by  which  we  proceeded  to  Batalha,  arriving  there 
in  good  time  to  spend  an  hour  at  the  Church  before  dark. 
The  views  of  the  Castle  of  Leiria  on  departing,  and  of  Batalha 

416 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

on  arriving,  very  fine.  A  very  rude  uncivilised  Inn,  where 
they  could  only  just  manage  to  take  in  our  small  party,  where 
they  were  very  civil  and  did  their  best,  but  where,  on  the  other 
hand,  they  charged  very  long  prices.  We  were  greeted  as  we 
reached  the  town  by  a  party  of  musicians  (a  drum  and  bagpipes) 
accompanying  a  man  with  a  banner,  soliciting  contributions  for 
some  Saint — the  bagpipes  exactly  like,  in  shape  and  sound,  to 
those  of  the  Scotch  Highlands. 

JANUARY  1876 

ALCOBACA  :  CALDAS  :  SANTAREM  :  LISBON  :  AND  HOME 
'      VIA  SOUTHAMPTON  TO  CANFORD 

2nd.  Breakfast  over,  we  spent  the  rest  of  the  day  in 
and  about  the  Church.  Its  date  puzzles  us,  as  the  architecture 
seems  to  us  much  later  than  the  time  of  Joao  I.,  in  fact  all 
but  Flamboyant.  The  West  window  is  undoubtedly  so — very 
fine  with  good  old  glass.  The  West  door  most  remarkable. 
In  the  Chapel,  tombs  of  Joao  I.,  his  Queen,  Philippa,  and  four 
of  their  sons,  viz  : — Pedro,  Henrique,  John,  Fernando.  Their 
eldest  son,  Duarte,  and  his  Queen  have  tombs  at  the  High 
Altar.  It  is  curious  how  in  this  country  they  bring  all  their 
children  and  grandchildren  to  swarm  about  one  at  one's  meals. 
We  had  written  over  to  Leiria  for  the  same  carriage  as  we  had 
used  the  day  before,  to  take  us  on  to  Alcobasa. 

3rd.  It  came  accordingly  and  we  set  out  before  n,  a 
pleasant  but  not  very  picturesque  road.  In  the  immediate 
vicinity  of  Alcobasa  the  village  appeared  to  be  of  a  better  kind, 
as  if  retaining  some  traditions  of  the  monkish  rule.  We  put 
up  at  the  Inn  facing  the  Church,  and  had  tolerable  accommo- 
dation and  most  willing  service.  Spent  the  afternoon  at  the 
Church.  Tombs  of  Pedro  I.  and  Inez  de  Castro  most  elaborate 
and  fine.  The  tomb  of  D.  Beatrix,  wife  of  Alfonso  III.,  looks 
Romanesque  of  a  much  earlier  period,  and  so  do  the  tombs 
i  417  2  D 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 
said  to  contain  the  remains  of  Constance,  Pedro's  first  wife,  and 
Inez's  two  sons.  The  Library  would  seem  to  be  but  very  little 
altered  since  the  end  of  the  last  century,  its  decoration,  not 
either  very  good  or  very  bad,  remaining.  We  had  some  trouble 
to  get  them  to  show  us  the  kitchen,  which  gives  a  perfect  idea 
of  what  it  was  when  Beckford  saw  it.  Then  we  were  told 
that  it  was  perfectly  impossible  to  see  the  Refectory,  when, 
behold,  on  going  through  the  beautiful  Cloisters,  we  found 
the  door  of  it  open.  The  centre  is  occupied  by  a  theatre,  but 
we  could  see  enough  of  it  to  understand  how  grand  it  must 
have  been  with  its  double  row  of  Columns  forming  three 
arcades.  Took  a  little  walk  towards  the  entrance  of  the 
town. 

4th.  Scaled  the  hill  to  the  Moorish  Castle,  whence  a  good 
view.  Then  C.S.  and  I  spent  the  remaining  time  in  the  Church, 
whose  bold,  severe  architecture  we  cannot  sufficiently  admire. 
Again  at  the  tombs,  and  in  the  Cloisters.  I  forgot  to  enumerate 
among  the  curiosities  of  the  place  the  Cauldron  taken  from  the 
Spaniards  at  the  battle  of  Aljubarrota,  which  is  still  shown  in  a 
sort  of  Chapter-house  near  the  West  Entrance.  The  helmet 
said  to  have  been  worn  by  Joao  I.  on  that  occasion  is  one  of 
the  marvels  that  we  were  shown  in  the  Sacristy  at  Batalha.  It 
was  about  2.  o'clock  when  the  diligence  started,  and  we  left  in 
it  for  Caldas  de  Rainha.  A  comfortable  little  conveyance, 
which  we  had  mostly  to  ourselves ;  good  views  of  the  sea,  the 
Berlengas,  etc.  Some  trouble  in  finding  an  Hotel,  the  diligence 
people  wanting  us  to  put  up  where  the  conveyance  stopped, 
which  would  have  been  simply  impossible.  At  length  we  got 
quarters  at  the  Hotel  Ricciardi,  which  was  about  the  best  we 
have  met  with  in  our  journey,  and  the  people  most  civil  and 
treating  us  well.  Moonlight  walk  about  the  town  while  waiting 
for  dinner.  We  had  thought  of  driving  over  to  Pederneira 
from  Alcoba^a,  but  the  weather  looked  threatening  so  we  gave 

418 


i8;6  NOTES  CERAMIC 

it  up.  However,  all  show  of  rain  soon  cleared  off  and  the 
weather  continued  lovely. 

5th.  This  morning  it  was  specially  so.  We  were  taken 
over  the  Hospital  of  the  Baths  by  our  attentive  landlord,  who 
afterwards  walked  with  us  all  the  way  to  Obidos.  That  was, 
indeed,  a  pleasant  day.  We  thoroughly  explored  the  town, 
entering  by  the  gate  nearest  to  the  picturesque  Aqueduct  and 
threading  its  narrow  street  till  we  came  to  the  Castle,  whence 
the  views  are  very  fine.  In  the  Church  nearest  the  castle  we 
found  a  beautiful  Cinquecento  tomb  to  one  of  the  Norinhas ; 
about  the  purest  specimen  of  the  style  that  we  have  seen  in 
Portugal.  Having  refreshed  our  party  by  a  draught  of  very 
tolerable  wine  at  an  Atmascen,  we  walked  back  again,  returning 
by  another  road  to  Caldas,  where  we  made  a  fruitless  search 
for  a  goldsmith.  This  deviation  from  our  morning's  road  gave 
us  the  opportunity  of  seeing  the  architecture  of  the  Chapel 
attached  to  the  Hospital,  the  tower  of  which  is  very  good 
Manoelino.  Looked  into  the  depot  of  the  Caldas  Pottery  Works, 
which  presented  a  vast  assemblage  of  the  vilest  and  most  vulgar 
productions  I  ever  saw,  many  of  them  being  coarse  imitations 
of  Palissy.  Got  home  from  our  delightful  walk  in  good  time 
for  dinner. 

6th.  Left  Caldas  at  9,  having  chartered  a  little  open  char- 
a-banc  and  three  mules.  And  here  my  Portuguese  notes  too 
abruptly  ended.  I  must  first  dot  down  one  or  two  dates  to 
account  for  myself  from  the  6th  of  January  to  my  arrival  in 
England.  But  I  do  so  at  an  interval  of  some  months,  and 
cannot  attempt  any  description  or  minutiae.  We  had  indeed 
a  most  delightful  drive.  I  was  outside  the  carriage  most  of 
the  way  and  enjoyed  it  extremely.  Got  to  the  station  where 
we  joined  the  railway  an  hour  before  the  train  started,  so  we 
walked  to  a  little  wayside  Inn  and  got  dinner  there.  Reached 
Santarem  at  night.  The  Inn  to  which  we  were  directed  there 

419 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 

was  full,  but  we  got  very  comfortable  rooms  at  another,  and 
very  good  treatment  also.  Santarem  was  charming.  An 
agreeable  Portuguese  gentleman,  stopping  at  the  house,  very 
kindly  undertook  to  lionise  us.  He  showed  us  everything. 
The  grand  views  from  the  old  walls,  the  spot  where,  till  lately, 
stood  the  gate  by  which  Affonzo  Henriquez  forced  his  way 
into  the  City,  the  Churches,  in  one  of  which,  now  included  in 
a  barrack,  there  exist  some  magnificent  tombs,  etc.  Nothing 
could  be  more  perfect  than  our  day's  walk,  not  to  forget  our 
kind  guide's  ascent  of  a  ruined  tower  from  the  parapet,  from 
which  he  brought  us  flowers.  The  next  day, 

8th,  we  had  thought  of  going  on  to  Abrantes  and  other 
places,  but  our  expected  remittance  had  not  come  from  Lisbon, 
so  we  were  delayed.  In  the  afternoon  C.S.  and  I  walked  to 
the  old  town  of  Almeirim,  on  the  other  side  of  the  river, 
having  taken  the  ferry-boat  across  the  Tagus,  where  we  had 
amusing  scenes  with  the  peasants,  the  pigs,  etc.  It  was  a  nice 
walk  of  some  three  or  four  miles.  The  place  utterly  ruined, 
the  old  Palace  nearly  all  pulled  down,  but  interesting  from 
association. 

Sunday,  Qth.  The  morning  was  ushered  in  by  pouring  rain, 
but  we  went  out,  and  having  received  information  where  we 
could  get  our  letter  of  credit  honoured  we  set  out  in  the 
afternoon  to  get  some  money.  It  was  a  nice  walk  down  the 
hill,  to  a  general  dealer's  living  near  the  railway  station. 
On  our  return  we  found  a  telegram  awaiting  us  from 
old  Lambert  of  the  H6tel  Braganza,  Lisbon,  telling  us  that 
a  telegram  and  letters  awaited  us  at  his  house.  This 
news  rilled  us  both  with  alarm.  We  knew  nobody  that  would 
telegraph  to  us  unless  there  was  something  urgent,  and  we 
feared  bad  news.  Accordingly,  giving  up  all  schemes  of  ex- 
tending our  researches  in  the  direction  of  Abrantes,  etc.,  we 
determined  to  return  to  Lisbon  at  once  to  learn  what  had 

420 


i876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

occurred.  We  took,  therefore,  the  train  which  left  at  2.  in  the 
morning  and  arrived  at  Lisbon  between  6.  and  7.  It  was  an 
anxious  night.  From  the  station  I  and  my  maid  went  in  one 
carriage,  C.S.  and  William  in  another.  We  both  had  our 
adventures.  Mine  was,  that  the  horse  would  not  face  the  hill 
and  we  had  to  change  carriages  en  route.  My  impatience  for 
news  from  home  was  naturally  great,  but  we  could  not  get  our 
letters,  etc.,  till  old  Lambert  was  up.  At  last  we  had  the 
telegram  and  found  that  it  was  from  Ivor  to  say  that  there  was 
a  vacancy  in  the  representation  of  East  Suffolk,  and  that  the 
Conservative  party  offered  C.S.  to  become  their  Candidate. 
A  great  compliment.  His  native  county.  A  sure  seat.  It 
was  a  great  relief  to  find  that  there  was  nothing  amiss  at  home. 
So  far,  so  good,  but  there  came  a  responsibility  as  to  a  decision. 
One  thing  we  did  decide  upon,  which  was  to  return  to  England 
at  once.  A  steamer  was  to  leave  Lisbon  direct  for  Southampton 
at  1 1.  o'clock.  We  made  superhuman  efforts  to  get  our  papers 
ready,  our  luggage,  etc.,  on  board,  and  we  joined  it.  We  were 
four  days  and  four  nights  on  the  sea,  and  reached  Southampton, 
and  thence  Canford,  on  Friday  evening.  We  had  rough 
weather,  but  I  lay  quite  still  all  the  time  and  was  not  ill.  C.S. 
did  not  stand  for  East  Suffolk  after  all.  I  dare  say  he  was 
right  arid  that  it  was  for  the  best.  He  acted  on  principle,  so  it 
could  not  be  wrong.  For  myself,  I  know  that  /  am  happier  to 
have  him  out  of  Parliament,  by  which  I  get  him  so  much  more 
with  me,  and  we  are  so  happy  together.  But  is  it  best  for 
him,  with  his  talent  and  energy,  that  it  should  be  thus  ?  This 
year  our  course  has  been  very  different  from  a  London  Season 
and  Parliamentary  Session.  From  May  to  August  we  have 
enjoyed  a  most  delightful  tour  abroad,  as  a  subsequent  journal 
will  show,  and  we  are  now  meditating  another,  an  autumn 
trip.  I  write  these  two  pages  under  very  different  circum- 
stances from  those  in  which  I  finished  the  record  on  the  night 

421 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 
of  the  6th  of  January  at  Santarem,  when  I  still  hoped  we 
might  carry  out  our  intention  of  seeing,  not  only  all  the  sights 
of  Lisbon,  including  all  Don  Fernando's  treasures,  but  the 
principal  towns  in  the  South  of  Portugal,  finishing  up  a  tour 
with  Seville,  Granada,  Cordova,  and  perhaps  a  little  bit  of 
Italy.  I  am  now  spending  a  few  quiet  days  with  Maria  at  the 
seaside,  my  dear  husband  having  been  summoned  to  Ireland 
for  the  funeral  of  his  poor  brother  William,  who  joined  us  in 
part  of  this  Portuguese  journey,  and  who  died  somewhat 
suddenly  on  the  fourth  of  this  present  month. 


422 


NOTES  CERAMIC 

AP.RIL  TO  AUGUST  4,  1876 
TO  BLENHEIM 

1876. 

1 9th.  Left  Langham  House.  Went  to  Usher's  Hotel  in 
Suffolk  Street,  expecting  to  set  forth  on  our  travels  on  the 
following  Saturday :  but  so  many  things  remained  to  be  done, 
that  we  found  ourselves  obliged  to  delay  our  departure.  This 
enabled  me  on  the  Saturday  to  drive  down  to  Roehampton  to 
see  Maria,  and  on  the  Sunday  C.S.  went  to  Newbury  to  spend 
the  day  with  his  brother  Brymer.  Then  we  made  ready  to 
depart  on  Wednesday,  26th.  But  on  the  previous  day  we  heard 
from  Constance  that  Ivor  and  Cornelia  were  to  return  that 
evening  from  Paris,  and  so  we  determined  to  stay  and  see  them. 
Meanwhile,  the  Duchess  of  Marlborough,  who  had  just  come  back 
pressed  us  to  go  down  to  Blenheim  to  see  how  she  had  carried 
out  our  suggestions  of  last  autumn  in  the  arrangement  of  her 
china,  and  to  help  her  further  in  the  disposition  of  some  that  was 
still  unplaced.  So  it  ended  that  we  again  put  off  our  departure 
We  went  to  the  station  to  meet  Ivor  and  Cornelia,  having 
earlier  in  the  afternoon  paid  a  farewell  visit  to  Mrs.  Layard  at 
Blackheath.  The  following  day  was  spent  almost  altogether 
with  Ivor  (who  proceeded  in  the  evening  to  Scotland),  and  on 
Friday  we  went  to  Blenheim. 

Saturday,  29th,  was  taken  up  with  china  conferences,  and  a 
drive  to  see  the  neighbouring  Churches  of  Islip. 

Sunday,  3Oth.     Went  to  Church  at  Woodstock. 

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LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 

MAY  1876 

OSTEND  :  BRUGES  :  GHENT  :  YPRES  :  BRUSSELS  :  ANTWERP  : 

TOURNAI    :   THE  HAGUE    :    GOUDA   :    ROTTERDAM   :    LEYDEN  : 

DELFT  :  UTRECHT  :  AMSTERDAM  , 

Monday.  May  ist.  Returned  to  Town  (where  we  stayed 
at  Hamilton  House),  taking  Oxford  on  our  way,  where  we  found 
an  admirable  table  of  the  last  century,  painted  with  flowers,  and 
a  Cipriani  subject,  which  we  bought.  Arriving  in  town  we 
called  to  see  Constance,  two  of  whose  children  have  scarlatina. 

2nd.  Cornelia  came  up  from  Blenheim,  and  her  children 
from  the  country.  We  met  the  boys  at  the  station.  The 
weather  very  cold  and  draughty :  so,  although  we  had  intended 
starting  on  Wednesday,  we  again  lingered,  and  spent  the  time 
very  pleasantly  till  the  end  of  the  week.  We  had  various 
transactions  with  Mortlock,  who  took  our  superfluous  Bow 
knife-handles  and  other  things :  and  on 

Friday,  5th,  we  had  lunch  with  Lady  Sykes,  who  is  now 
installed  in  our  house  for  the  twelve  months.  She  has  greatly 
altered  our  arrangements  in  the  rooms,  etc.,  to  her  taste.  I 
cannot  say  I  think  she  has  improved  it.  That  night  I  sat 
up  writing  till  half-past  two,  and  before  five  I  was  alert  again. 
I  can  hardly  say  I  slept. 

6th.  At  length  that  morning  we  got  off,  taking  the  train 
from  Charing  Cross  at  7.40.  I  lay  down,  and  worked,  and 
slept,  and  in  three  hours  and  three-quarters  we  landed  at  Ostend. 
Went  on  to  Bruges — H6tel  de  Flandres,  as  usual.  Before 
dinner  we  looked  at  Render's  and  Vandyck's  stock.  The  former 
is  altering  his  house.  After  dinner  we  called  on  Mrs.  Berrington, 
and  made  appointments  for  to-morrow. 

7th.  We  were  to  have  met  under  the  chestnut-trees 
opposite  the  Hotel  de  Ville,  but  we  missed :  so  C.S.  left  me 
there,  pacing  up  and  down,  while  he  went  in  search  for  her  at 

424 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

her  house,  and,  when  he  rejoined  me  with  her,  we  went  together 
to  call  on  Monsignor  de  Bethune,  to  whom  she  introduced  us ; 
a  most  charming  gentleman.  I  was  never  more  pleased  with  a 
visit.  His  house  is  that  inhabited  formerly  by  Vasquez, 
secretary  to  Isabella  of  Portugal,  wife  of  one  of  the  Counts  of 
Flanders.  It  is  beautifully  restored.  He  has  much  good 
china,  most  of  it  in  daily  use,  and  some  few  pieces  kept  as 
ornament.  Also  he  has  collections  of  coins,  Roman  sepulchral 
antiquities,  pottery,  etc.  Among  his  treasures,  we  saw  one  of 
the  so-called  Lambeth  Wine-jugs  of  the  iyth  century,  inscribed 
"Whit-Wine  1641  ".  He  told  us  it  was  found  under  water,  in 
one  of  the  canals,  or  on  the  beach.  We  admired  it,  and  he 
most  graciously  presented  it  to  me.  I  shall  ever  esteem  it  very 
highly,  and  hope  it  may  reach  England  in  safety.  After  we 
left  the  Canon,  we  accompanied  Mrs.  Berrington  to  hear  the 
"  Benediction "  sung  by  the  "  Dames  Anglaises "  at  their 
Convent.  It  was  not  particularly  well  executed.  Then  she 
took  us  to  see  the  Hall  of  the  Archers'  Guild,  which  exhibits  a 
portrait  of  Charles  II.,  one  of  their  patrons,  over  the  mantel- 
piece. Thence  to  the  neighbouring  ramparts,  and  thence  to  the 
gate  of  S.  Croix,  by  which  we  re-entered  the  town,  returning  to 
the  Hotel  for  table  d'hdte. 

8th.  A  great  procession  of  the  Saint  Sang,  which  we  saw 
from  the  Hotel  windows,  very  long,  very  tawdry,  but  attract- 
ing an  enormous  crowd  of  spectators;  numbers  of  children 
walked  in  it  in  various  costumes;  one  group  of  boys  was 
dressed  in  the  manner  of  the  mediaeval  worthies  who  brought 
this  supposed  relic  to  Bruges.  But  it  was  all  most  absurd; 
one  could  hardly  understand  grown-up  people  lending  them- 
selves to  such  ridiculous  exhibitions.  But  then,  it  is  a  system 
of  the  Church  to  foster  such  superstitions,  for  the  advancement 
of  their  power.  When  the  procession  had  cleared  away,  and 
the  crowds  dispersed  a  little,  we  went  with  Mrs.  Berrington, 

425 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 
who  came  to  fetch  us,  to  call  on  Mr.  Paterson,  who  is  now 
in  a  fine  large  house,  even  larger  than  that  in  which  we  first 
knew  him.  We  spent  a  long  time  with  him,  and  some  £10 
worth  was  selected  from  his  stock,  whether  to  any  good  effect 
remains  to  be  seen.  We  afterwards  went  to  Mr.  Kerkhove's, 
where  we  also  made  some  purchases,  and  in  the  evening  bought 
one  or  two  things  at  Omghena's. 

9th.  Having  fetched  our  things  from  Paterson's,  and 
stowed  them  in  safety  in  a  nice  little  cupboard  in  C.S.'s 
dressing-room,  we  set  out  for  Ghent.  First  called  in  the 
Boulevard  Freres  Orban.  Sorry  to  find  that  wild,  excitable, 
but  useful  creature  Dumoulin  now  a  bankrupt.  Followed  de 
Clerc  from  his  new  house  in  the  Rue  des  Digues  de  Brabant 
to  his  warehouse  in  the  Rue  Basse  des  Champs,  where  we 
luckily  found  him;  rewarded  by  two  fine  large  shield  dishes, 
etc.  Called  at  Omghena's,  where  it  is  always  a  pleasure  to  see 
his  fine  collection  and  have  some  agreeable  talk  with  him. 
Vermeer  next — not  at  home.  To  Rogier,  Costa,  and  so  once 
more  to  de  Clerc's  on  our  way  to  the  station,  where  we  dined 
very  comfortably  at  the  buffet,  before  returning  to  Bruges. 
There  had  been  a  public  sale  at  Ghent  this  morning,  where  we 
heard  of  enormous  prices  (only  7  francs  per  piece)  being  given 
for  china  knife-handles,  which  happen  to  be  things  we  are 
specially  in  search  of  just  now. 

loth.  We  made  a  very  nice  little  excursion  to  Ypres 
to-day :  it  is  such  a  lovely  old  town,  we  should  never  be  tired 
of  looking  at  its  Halles.  Went  to  the  Church  of  St.  Martin, 
with  which  we  were  even  more  delighted  than  when  we  were 
there  some  three  years  since.  Called  at  Mr.  Bahm's,  the  man 
who  had  the  china  when  we  were  last  at  Ypres,  and  has  since 
made  a  sale  of  it.  Found  a  trifle  still  with  him ;  also  some- 
thing at  a  little  shop  not  far  from  our  Hotel,  the  "Tete  d'Or", 
where  we  dined.  There  is  now  a  new  shop,  a  grocer's.  He 

426 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

had  a  magnificent  Oriental  dish  for  about  £6,  but  we  thought 
it  scarcely  sufficiently  covered.  Returned  to  Bruges  in  the 
evening. 

i  ith.  Mrs.  Berrington  took  us  to  make  the  acquaintance  of 
the  Comte  and  Comtesse  de  Bruce,  French  people,  whose  pro- 
perty near  Sedan  was  devastated  in  the  late  war,  who  claim 
descent  from  the  Scottish  Heroes,  and  sport  the  Arms  and 
motto  (Fuimus)  of  the  Bruce.  They  have  a  great,  ill-sorted 
collection,  which  was  wearisome  to  go  through.  But  they 
were  very  kind,  and  it  always  interests  me  to  see  foreign 
interiors.  The  polite  Comte  thought  it  necessary  to  make  me 
a  present  at  parting,  which  consisted  of  a  cracked  cup  and 
saucer,  which  I  dared  not  refuse.  Mrs.  Berrington  was  also 
complimented  with  a  cadeau  of  a  Delft  dish.  C.S.  went  over 
to  Ghent  in  the  afternoon.  We  had  seen  a  very  fine  bowl  at 
Costa's,  and  he  thought  it  might  be  worth  buying.  However, 
on  examination,  he  found  it  was  sadly  imperfect;  so  he  gave  it 
up,  of  course,  but  brought  home  with  him  a  set  of  little  black 
Oriental  vases — a  slight  accident  to  one  of  which  made  me  for 
awhile  rather  unhappy. 

1 2th.  A  pleasant  lounging  day  about  Bruges,  which  really 
is  more  charming  than  ever.  We  have  had  bright  weather 
since  we  came,  but  though  the  sun  has  been  hot,  there  has  been 
a  strong  east  wind,  with  tourbillons  of  dust,  which  have  been 
sometimes  trying.  Small  purchases  at  Seegur's,  and  a  lovely 
blue  and  white  teapot  at  Render's.  This  man  is  getting  up  a 
large  collection,  but  we  could  not  see  much  of  it,  owing  to  his 
house  being  in  a  state  of  alteration,  rather,  I  should  say,  for  the 
worse.  After  table  d'hdte  we  went  to  Omghena's,  where  C.S. 
stood  to  see  some  of  our  purchases  packed.  I  retired  to  their 
front  room,  where  I  fell  fast  asleep  in  a  chair  till  the  ceremony 
was  concluded.  The  case  when  packed  we  followed  to  Dumont's, 
the  wood-carver's  (a  friend  of  Buckley's),  who  promised  to  see 

427 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 
it  despatched,  through  an  agent,  by  the  Ostend  Boat  to  England. 
All  this  took  time,  but  C.S.  hoped  that  it  was  all  well  done,  and 
so  we  were  content. 

1 3th.  A  delightful  visit  to  the  Cathedral.  The  Sacristan 
is  an  intelligent  man,  and  is  very  proud  of  the  building, 
and  all  that  pertains  to  it.  He  showed  us  everything  with  the 
greatest  enthusiasm,  the  Brasses,  the  Chapel  founded  by  Philip 
le  Bel,  whose  Secretary  is  buried  there,  etc.,  Vasquez's  Inscrip- 
tion, and  the  relics  in  the  Sacristy,  of  which  the  most  interesting 
is  the  inscription  on  brass,  which  was  formerly  on  the  tomb  of 
Gunehilda,  daughter  of  Edil  Godwin,  and  which  was  found 
among  some  rubbish.  The  fine  tapestries  from  Ivan  Orley's 
designs  were  hung  up  in  the  chancel,  so  we  had  a  good 
opportunity  of  looking  at  them.  They  were  wrought  at 
Oudenarde,  1725,  and  are  signed  L,  V,  D,  Borcht.  From  the 
Cathedral  we  tried  to  get  into  Notre  Dame,  but  it  was  closed. 
Then  called  at  Doblaere's,  an  artist  in  glass  and  tiles.  He  was 
out,  but  his  wife  showed  us  the  fine  room  in  their  house,  circa 
1 500,  all  in  character  and  very  curious.  Called  to  see  Mrs. 
Berrington  and  to  take  leave.  Soon  after  12.  we  left  Bruges. 
All  this  week  the  town  has  been  in  a  kind  of  commotion  on 
account  of  the  Fair.  The  place  opposite  the  Beffroi  all  occupied 
with  booths,  strolling  pla>  ers,  merry-go-rounds,  etc.,  picturesque 
and  delicious  to  behold.  At  Ghent  we  stopped  a  short  time, 
went  into  the  town,  found  a  trifle  at  de  Clerc's,  dined  at  the 
buffet,  and  then  went  on  to  Brussels,  where  we  found  ourselves 
at  the  Hotel  Mengelle  before  10.  o'clock. 

1 5th.  Up  early  ;  out  before  10. ;  had  visited  every  curiosity 
shop  on  foot  in  Brussels  in  eight  hours,  and  made  a  few 
purchases.  The  Marynens  are  gone,  he  having  died,  but  the 
shop  is  held  by  de  Roy,  who  has  some  of  the  best  things  we 
have  yet  seen,  and  some  of  which  were  quite  a  temptation.  At 
old  Genie's  met  the  Comte  Duchatel. 

428 


VV  J 

A 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

1 6th.  To  Antwerp.  A  very  satisfactory  visit  to  Eva  Krug. 
Her  friend  and  patron,  poor  Terbruggen  is  dead,  and  she 
seems  now  to  be  managing  the  business.  Left  with  her  some 
things  to  be  packed,  and  made  one  or  two  purchases  with  her, 
and  with  Van  Herck.  Dined  at  the  St.  Pierre  Restaurant, 
and  got  a  wretched  dinner,  after  which  we  returned  to  Brussels. 

1 7th.  A  bright  May  morning.  Up  betimes,  and  soon 
after  7.  driving  away  to  the  Gare,  whence  we  made  an 
expedition  by  train  to  Tournai.  Breakfasted  at  the  "  Impera- 
trice"  ;  got  some  good  Oriental  plates  at  Mme.  Detail's;  found 
that  she  was  the  purchaser  of  the  expensive  knives  at  Ghent 
(see  May  9)  :  but  that  she  now  wanted  20,  francs  per  piece  for 
what  had  sold  at  7.  They  were  very  pretty,  but  too  dear  for  us. 
Old  Pourbaix  had  written  us  word  that  he  knew  a  number  of 
knife-handles  to  be  disposed  of,  so  we  went  to  him  with  high 
hopes,  which  he  soon  dashed  by  telling  us  that  the  owner 
declined  to  sell.  We  found  out  a  nice  little  dealer,  Depret, 
Rue  de  France,  and  here  again  we  had  a  disappointment.  He 
had  possessed  a  large  number  of  Tournai  knife-handles,  and 
only  last  week,  sold  them  all  to  an  amateur  from  Lille.  Spent 
some  time  in  the  grand  Cathedral.  Returned  to  Brussels  in 
time  for  table  d'hote,  walking  up  from  the  station  to  our 
Hotel. 

;i8th.  All  sorts  of  contretemps  about  the  box  we  had 
spatched  by  Ostend  to  London.  C.S.  expected  to  have  to 
and  look  after  it,  but  this,  fortunately,  proved  unnecessary, 
ent  to  see  old  Genie's  private  collection  in  the  Rue  de  la 
mite,  chiefly  consisting  of  a  large  number  of  Gres  de  Flandres, 
which  I  doubt  not  are  very  fine,  but  which  I  do  not  understand, 
t  Volant's  found  a  good  Oriental  Basin.  Walked  about 
Brussels,  etc.  At  table  d'hote  met  Col.  and  Mrs.  Leith  Hay; 
with  them  were  Col.  and  Mrs.  Blackett,  who  are  living  near 
Uffington. 

429 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 
1 9th.  Left  Brussels  about  3.  o'clock,  but  before  starting 
went  down  to  old  Genie's  to  look  at  some  tiles  which  we  thought 
might  suit  Ivor,  but  they  would  not  do.  Also  to  Le  Roy's. 
A  very  high  wind,  cold  and  cutting,  with  a  hot  sun ;  we  both 
of  us  have  colds.  Only  just  in  time  to  catch  our  train  to 
Antwerp.  We  went  first  to  Eva  Krug's,  where  C.S.  packed 
up  this  second  box  of  china,  which  we  saw  taken  to  the 
steamer.  Put  up  at  the  Hotel  St.  Antoine.  My  birthday. 
C.S.  has  written  to  consult  with  Ivor  about  the  Japanese 
dishes;  and  I  wrote  back  next  morning  to  Le  Roy's  to 
purchase  a  set  of  five  fine  purple  vases,  which  I  took  a  fancy 
to  at  1 8.  fr.  Having  accompanied  C.S.  to  get  the  bill  of 
lading  for  our  box,  I  came  in  and  sent  it  off  to  Rodrigues. 
Meanwhile  the  Blacketts  had  come  from  Brussels,  and  we  went 
with  them  to  the  Cathedral  to  see  the  Rubens,  and  then  to 
the  Gallery,  where  I  was  particularly  struck  with  Quentin 
Matsys'  Entombment,  Herodias'  Daughter,  etc.  Mrs.  Leith 
Hay  had  not  accompanied  her  friends,  which  I  was  sorry 
for.  Before  2,  we  came  back  to  the  Inn,  took  some  luncheon 
and  went  to  the  train.  Left  Antwerp  at  3.40.  and  had  a 
most  lovely  journey  to  The  Hague.  It  was  rather  hot,  and 
there  was  much  dust  at  starting,  but  altogether  it  was  most 
enjoyable,  and  I  was  delighted  to  be  in  dear  Holland  again. 
Reached  The  Hague  before  half-past  eight.  Hotel  Paulez 
as  usual. 

2 1 st.  A  letter  from  Rodrigues  the  first  thing  this  morning, 
announcing  the  arrival  of  the  box  from  Ostend,  but  in  "very 
bad  condition,"  vases  broken,  etc.,  which  is  most  vexatious. 
Wrote  him  for  other  particulars.  In  the  afternoon  we  walked 
out.  The  wind  moderated  and  the  weather  very  fine.  Called 
on  the  Bisschops,  and  found  them  absent  in  London.  Then  to 
Church.  Walked  home  through  the  Bosch  in  time  for  table 
d'hote  at  five.  Mr.  Schuster  there. 

430 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

22nd.     Went  out  directly  after  breakfast,  and  remained  till 
dinner,  visiting  all  the  shops.     There  is  a  new  one  in  the  Spui, 
opened  by  Hauja  of  Haarlem.     He  had  only  one  little  plate  for 
us.     At  Dirksen's  we  spent  a  long  time,  looking  over  his  large 
stock,   especially  his  prints.     He  showed  us  some  wonderful 
table  linen  with  all  the  Duke  of  Maryborough's  battles  com- 
memorated on  it,  arms,  names  of  victories,  combatants  in  costume 
of  the  time,  etc. — very  curious ;  also  we  found  the  pendant  to 
a  table  we  purchased  there  for  Ivor  two  or  three  years  ago. 
We  thought  these  two  objects  ought  not  to  be  missed  by  him, 
so  we  authorised  Dirksen  to  send  them  over  to  him.     If  he 
disapproves,  they  must  be  turned  back  on  our  hands,  price  of 
the  damask,  £20.,  of  the  table,  ^45,  but  I  hope  and  believe 
he  will  like  them.     There  are  so  many  London  dealers  flitting 
about  that  it  seemed  a  pity  to  risk  losing  them.     Old  Marks  is 
staying  at  the  Paulez  where  we  are,  and  in  the  evening  we  fell 
in  with  Enthoven,  who  took  us  to  look  at  some  candlesticks  at 
his  father's  house,  and  insisted  also  on  our  seeing  his  father,  an 
old  man  of  92,  who  was  placidly  seated  at  cards  in  an  adjoining 
room,  and  of  whom  he  seems  as  proud  as  of  his  Wedgwood 
candlesticks.     We  went  in  the  morning  also  to  Sarlin's,  where 
we  made  several  small  investments  (knife-handles  included), 
and  bought  a  magnificent  mezzotint  by  Valentine  Green  of  the 
Antwerp  Rubens,  in  a  frame  of  the  time.     Small  purchases  at 
Tennyssen's  and  at  Isaacson's,  the  former  completed  in  a  stroll 
after  dinner;  altogether  a  busy  day.     A  telegram  from  Ivor 
deciding   us   against    the    Japanese    dishes    at   Le    Roy's    of 
Brussels.     He  finds  them  less  esteemed  in  London  than  C.S. 
had  expected. 

23rd.  By  the  9.50.  train  to  Gouda.  Old  Pavoordt  was  out, 
and  there  seems  scarce  anything  in  his  large  premises.  At 
Cohen's  we  got  a  plate.  Trijbits  has  absolutely  nothing.  Went 
on  at  12.30.  to  Rotterdam,  where  we  obtained  a  magnificent 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 

large  rabbit  of  old  red  anchor  Chelsea  at  Van  Minden's, 
very  cheap.  Would  only  that  it  had  been  perfect !  But,  alas ! 
it  had  suffered  much.  Still  it  is  a  noble  piece.  He  only  asked 
^5.  for  it  and  took  ^4.  At  Kryser's  a  fine  Battersea  box,  3o/-. 
Nothing  at  Pluyne's.  We  got  back  to  The  Hague  soon  after  4, 
and  on  our  way  to  our  Hotel  called  at  Rolleveel's,  Hauja's,  and 
Munchen's  ;  found  nothing.  At  dinner  Col.  Gordon,  an  agree- 
able man,  who  knows  this  country  well. 

24th.  An  earlier  start  to-day.  Took  a  cab  to  the  Hol- 
landsche  Spoor,  by  which  we  started  at  9.  o'clock ;  a  great 
assembly  at  the  station,  all  going  different  ways  in  quest  of 
prey :  I  never  saw  such  activity  amongst  them  all  as  there  is 
now.  It  is  owing  to  the  craze  for  "  blue  and  white  ",  now  so 
prevalent  in  England.  [Lady  Charlotte  became  more  appre- 
ciative of  the  beautiful  porcelains  of  Kang-he  a  little  later  on.] 
Whatever  they  may  have  found,  we  had  no  cause  to  complain. 
Leyden  was  our  first  point.  It  is  a  lovely  town,  and  never 
looked  better  than  to-day,  with  the  young  green  of  the  avenues 
bordering  the  canals,  and  the  profuse  horse-chestnut  blossoms. 
We  went  to  5  various  shops,  and  found  great  spoil  in  each  :  two 
charming  Battersea  enamel,  turquoise  tea-caddies,  and  a  silver- 
inlaid  snuff-box  at  DuchateFs,  and  various  trifles  at  other  places. 
From  Leyden  we  went  back,  through  The  Hague,  to  Delft.  We 
tried  hard  to  find  something  with  our  old  friend,  Jedeloo,  the 
jeweller  in  the  Place.  It  was  difficult,  but  I  got  at  last  a  rather 
quaint  set  of  silver  buttons.  Then  his  boy  took  us  to  an  old 
rag-shop  in  the  Flaming  Straat  (Van  de  Velden),  where  C.S. 
fell  in  love  with  twelve  ware  plates,  horrible,  to  my  eyes,  with 
transfer-printed  portraits  of  the  hideous  Prince  of  Orange,  and 
so  they  were  brought  home  to  add  to  our  "  trouvailles".  Got 
back  in  good  time  to  table  d'hote.  Found  many  letters, 
amongst  others  from  Rodrigues  and  Phillips,  from  which  we 
find  that  the  two  best  vases  sent  over  in  the  box  from  Ostend 

432 


A    CURIOUS    AND    CHARACTERISTIC    EARLY    XVIIITH    CENTURY    SPANISH    CABINET 

OF     EBONY      INLAID     WITH     TORTOISESHELL,      PURCHASED    BY     LADY    CHARLOTTE 

WHEN     TRAVELLING     IN     SPAIN,      NOW      FILLED      WITH     A     COLLECTION    OF    SALT 

GLAZE    WARE,    ALSO    FROM    HER    COLLECTION 

The  Countess  of  Kessl'orougli  s  Collection 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

were  those  that   were  broken  in   the   transit,    which   is   very 
provoking,  and  a  great  loss. 

25th.  By  9.50  train  to  Gouda,  where  old  Pavoordt  showed 
us  all  his  recent  acquisitions,  but  we  only  brought  away  two 
small  objects,  which  we  had  selected  on  Tuesday.  We  spent 
one  hour  in  Gouda,  and  then  took  the  train  on  to  Utrecht, 
where  we  arrived  at  half-past  12.  It  had  begun  to  rain,  and 
soon,  from  a  shower,  it  went  on  to  a  torrent,  so  it  was  not 
pleasing  to  walk  about,  and  dear  old  Utrecht  did  not  look  its 
best.  However,  some  three  hours  passed  there  very  pleasantly, 
though  we  found  nothing  to  buy  but  a  little  cane  head  at 
Costa's.  Gorkum,  to  whom  we  early  bent  our  steps,  had 
actually  nothing  in  our  line,  neither  had  Frenkel.  We  spent 
some  time  at  Hamburgers.  They  have  changed  their  house  to 
the  side  of  the  Gracht,  and  near  it  have  a  pack-house,  where 
they  showed  us  some  wonderfully  fine  Oriental,  but  all  too  dear 
for  us.  It  was  a  treat  to  have  seen  it.  There  was  one  pair  of 
straight-sided  vases  I  should  like  to  have  had,  of  a  peculiar 
white  ground,  and  large  chrysanthemum-shaped  flowers,  like 
some  at  Blenheim,  but  the  price  was  ^30.  Old  Gorkum  could 
only  see  us  for  about  half  an  hour,  he  said,  because,  being  the 
Ascension,  it  was  a  fete  day,  and  some  few  of  the  shops  were 
shut. 

26th.  Made  our  expedition  to  Amsterdam,  laden  with 
china,  etc.,  which  we  took  thither  to  be  packed.  Our  first 
point  was  to  Van  Houtum's  to  deposit  these  things;  with  him 
we  found  a  few  more  knife-handles.  After  this  we  proceeded 
to  Speyer's,  where  we  spent  a  long  time,  and  some  money. 
Besides  a  few  trifles,  he  sold  us  a  wonderful  set  for  dinner  and 
dessert  of  old  Wedgwood  Ware — cream  colour  with  decoration  \ 
of  blue  daisies  ;  of  the  dinner  service  155  pieces,  of  the  dessert 
service  84;  the  whole  costing  only  £1$.  At  Ganz's  we  got 
nothing  except  a  few  cane  heads.  He  had  some  lovely  blue 
I  433  2  E 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 

and  white  knives  in  their  old  cases,  but  all  too  dear.  Thence 
we  went  to  Van  Galen's,  now  established  in  a  new  smart  shop. 
He  was  not  at  home,  but  we  looked  through  his  stock,  some  of 
which  is  magnificent.  I  especially  coveted  one  vase  with  a 
black  ground.  At  a  little  shop,  Moesel's,  in  the  Koning  Straat, 
we  got  a  pretty  little  bit  of  Wedgwood,  after  which  we  had 
only  time  for  a  visit  to  Kalb  and  Soujet  before  going  to  dinner, 
at  five,  at  the  old  Brack's  Doelen.  Everybody  is  still  wild 
about  "  blue  and  white  ",  and  there  were  dealers  buying  it  up  at 
Kalb's  when  we  went  in.  But  we  got  what  I  like  much  better, 
viz.  a  glorious  Worcester  salad-bowl,  coloured  in  the  manner 
of  Capo  di  Monte,  with  a  slight  fire  flaw,  and  a  very  good 
Battersea  plaque,  printed  in  red,  of  the  Fortune-teller.  The 
group  of  little  Kalbs,  swarming  about  us,  speaking  broken 
English,  and  expressing  themselves  as  "  very  fond  to  sell  us 
something",  was  amusing.  We  walked  to  Boasberg's  after 
dinner,  but  he  was  closed  for  his  Sabbath,  as  so  pious  a  Jew 
should  do ;  and  we  did  not  see  much  of  him  or  Blitz,  on  whom 
we  also  called.  At  a  J  before  9  we  took  the  train  again  and 
were  home  and  in  bed  before  1 1 . 

27th.  Long  letters  to  Mortlock.  We  had  already  told  him 
about  baskets,  thinking  we  could  get  him  some  here.  He 
telegraphed  to  say  that  his  limit  was  from  i6/-  to  2O/-  apiece. 
C.S.  in  the  evening  called  upon  Sarlin  and  asked  what  he 
would  take  for  forty  which  he  possessed,  and  he  talked  about 
£2  apiece,  which  is  absurd. 

28th.  I  had  nice  letters  from  Ivor  and  Maria.  The 
former  seems  pleased  that  we  got  the  table  for  him  (see 
22nd  May).  He  doubts  whether  he  will  care  for  the  damasked 
linen,  but  it  ought  to  be  Marlborough  property.  Besides 
Col.  Gordon  there  was  at  table  d'hote  to-day  Admiral  Van 
Capellan,  who  gave  us  a  very  charming  and  very  tempting 
account  of  Zeeland.  It  makes  me  quite  anxious  to  go  there, 

434 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

and  especially  to  see  (Chaucer's)  Middleborough,  which  he 
says  is  a  very  fine  town,  though  now  little  inhabited.  Curious 
account  of  the  stealing  of  the  fine  Gainsborough  (said  to  be  of 
the  Duchess  of  Devonshire),  in  the  English  papers,  which  we 
saw  just  before  leaving  town  and  which  was  sold  to  Agnew  at 
Christie's  on  the  8th  of  this  month  for  ,£10,000. 

29th.  We  went  out  and  walked  from  12.  to  4.;  went 
again  into  several  of  the  shops,  making  sure  that  we  left 
nothing  desirable  for  us  in  any  of  them.  Tennyssen's,  Dirk- 
sen's,  Isaacson's,  Boor's  Bazaar.  Met  an  English  dealer, 
Mr.  Tooth,  who  had  just  given  ^25.  for  a  small  pair  of  blue 
and  white  bottles,  on  which  he  said  he  expected  to  make  a 
profit  of  about  ^10.  on  his  return  to  England;  the  rage  for 
everything  "blue  and  white"  is  truly  ridiculous.  The  dealers 
own  it  to  be  so,  but  are  not  to  be  blamed  for  profiting  by  the 
madness  of  the  hour. 

May  3Oth.  Again  to-day  we  sauntered  about  The  Hague, 
enjoying,  for  the  first  time,  a  feeling  of  summer.  We  visited 
the  pictures  and  the  Museum  of  Antiquities  on  the  Vyverberg 
(No.  1 5),  where  there  is  some  fine  Oriental  china.  Among  the 
miniatures  I  was  interested  in  seeing  a  Battersea  enamel  oval 
plaque,  transfer-printed  in  black,  of,  apparently,  a  young  man  in 
female  attire.  It  was  described  as  a  portrait  of  Charles  Edward 
(the  Chevalier  of  St.  George),  and  the  features  much  resembled 
his.  Probably  it  was  intended  to  represent  him  in  the  female 
guise  he  wore  when  escaping  under  the  care  of  Flora  Macdonald. 
It  was  in  the  little  old  metal  frame.  [An  example  is  now  in 
South  Kensington  and  is  illustrated  here.]  This  day  was 
altogether  one  of  some  disappointment.  The  first  thing  was  a 
letter  from  Pinti  saying  he  had  not  been  able  to  do  anything 
with  our  pictures ;  then  when  we  came  in  from  our  walk  in  the 
afternoon  a  letter  from  Phillips,  telling  us  that  our  yesterday's 
sale  was  an  utter  failure — only  9  lots  sold  out  of  49,  and  those 

435 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 
at  very  indifferent  prices;  thirdly,  no  answers  came  from  Mort- 
lock  to  our  Saturday's  despatches.  It  was  altogether  dis- 
couraging; but  these  things  will  happen. 

3 1  st.  We  walked  out,  found  some  tempting  prints  at 
Dirksen's,  looked  in  at  Sarlin's,  Schwaab's  (a  new  shop  in  the 
Amsterdam  Gracht),  Block's,  etc. ;  and  came  home  to  be 
again  disappointed  of  letters. 

JUNE  1876 

AMSTERDAM  :    ALKMAAR  :    HELDER  :    HOORN  :    ENKHUIZEN  : 

HAARLEM    :  MARKEN    :    VELZEN   :    ROTTERDAM   :    ZEALAND    : 

MIDDELBURG  :  BRUSSELS  :  TOURNAI :  ANTWERP 

June  i  st.  A  bright  morning.  We  were  doubtful  as  to  our 
movements,  being  anxious  to  go  and  see  some  of  the  North 
Holland  towns,  yet  not  liking  to  be  out  of  letters.  However, 
the  early  post  brought  us  a  packet,  and  so  we  determined  to 
set  out.  Luff  wrote  to-day  he  had  been  unsuccessful  about 
our  screen,  etc.,  but  we  had  a  very  satisfactory  letter  from 
Mortlock.  [John  W.  Luff,  formerly  Steward  and  Agent  to 
Lady  Charlotte's  eldest  son,  Lord  Wimborne.  He  began  life 
in  quite  a  humble  capacity  in  Sir  John  and  Lady  Charlotte's 
household,  and  through  self-education  and  great  ability  rose  to 
the  above  position  and  became  twice  Mayor  of  Blandford 
and  a  great  friend  of  the  Corbet  family.]  We  have  now 
other  letters  to  write,  which  occupied  us  all  the  morning; 
but  by  dint  of  hard  work  we  got  off  in  time  to  go  by  the 
3  o'clock  train  to  Amsterdam;  a  pleasant,  sunny  journey. 
They  were  too  full  at  the  Brack's  Doelen  to  be  able  to  take  us 
in,  so  we  went  to  the  Bible  Hotel,  where  we  had  charming 
rooms,  but  the  table  d'hdte  was  bad.  As  soon  as  it  was  over, 
we  walked  out.  Went  to  Fokking's  to  taste  the  Curagoa ;  then 
walked  about  for  some  two  hours ;  Van  Houtum's  was  shut ; 
called  at  Ganz's  about  his  knife-handles.  Then  at  Heeman's, 

436 


RARE  PRINTED  BATTERSEA  PORTRAIT  PLAQUE  IN  RED  OF 
CHARLES  EDWARD  STUART,  THE  YOUNG  PRETENDER.  ON 
THE  BACK  IS  A  NOTE  IN  THE  HAND  OF  BECKFORD  TO 
THE  EFFECT  THAT  THIS  IS  PRINCE  CHARLES  IN  THE 
DRESS  OF  BETTY  BURKE,  A  MAIDSERVANT  OF  FLORA 
MCDONALD,  IN  WHICH  HE  MADE  HIS  ESCAPE  AFTER 
CULOUDEN,  1746.  THERE  IS  ANOTHER  EXAMPLE  IN  THE 
MUSEUM  AT  THE  HAGUE  AND  AN  ENGRAVING  AT  THE 

BRITISH    MUSEUM 
The  Schreiber  Collection 


i8;6  NOTES  CERAMIC 

Blitz's  (who  has  a  lovely  Battersea  box,  but  dear,  ^"3.10.), 
and  Speyer's,  and  so  back  to  our  Hotel  by  9.  The  City  look- 
ing very  beautiful  in  the  evening  light.  There  is  a  young 
moon.  Altogether  a  very  pleasant  walk.  This  day  five  years  ! 
This  day  45  years,  and  its  white  roses ! 

2nd.  Went  out  after  breakfast.  Walked  to  the  shops — 
Ganz's,  Blitz's,  Speyer's.  Bought  a  few  more  knife-handles, 
etc.,  and  arranged  with  Speyer  for  them  to  be  despatched  by 
the  next  boat  to  England.  Then  in  a  little  open  carriage,  went 
to  a  large  shop  kept  by  one  Jacobs,  103  Nieuwe  Heeren  Gracht, 
which  was  chiefly  full  of  modern  objects,  the  old  ones  being 
very  indifferent.  Then  a  short  visit  to  Boasberg's,  who  has 
some  beautiful  pieces,  chiefly  Oriental,  but  mostly  far  above 
our  mark.  Back  to  the  Hotel  to  dinner;  since  which  we  have 
been  writing  out  lists,  and  a  letter  to  Mortlock.  The  cele- 
brated Capt.  Boynton  [who  invented  a  famous  safety  boat 
and  other  ingenious  contrivances]  was  at  the  table  d'hote 
to-day. 

3rd.  Without  regret  we  left  the  Bible  Hotel  at  noon.  It 
is  a  very  second-rate  house,  with  all  the  airs  and  charges 
of  a  superior  one.  We  took  the  train  to  Alkmaar,  arriving 
there  somewhere  about  2.  o'clock.  It  was  a  most  lovely  after- 
noon, not  very  warm,  but  feeling  like  spring.  From  the 
station  we  walked  into  the  town,  making  our  way  through 
the  pretty  woods  and  pleasure  grounds  which  surround  it,  and 
where  the  shrubs,  especially  the  lilacs  (now  in  full  bloom) 
sent  forth  a  delicious  scent.  We  wandered  about  for  some 
little  time,  and  at  length  stopped  to  inquire  if  the  town 
boasted  a  curiosity  shop.  Fortunately,  the  person  we  spoke  to 
appealed  to  an  intelligent  young  man,  speaking  very  fair  French 
and  English,  who  came  down  from  an  upper  chamber,  and  most 
complacently  accompanied  us  during  our  subsequent  researches 
in  the  town.  He  first  took  us  to  the  Museum,  which,  though 

437 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 

not  very  well  filled,  possessed  several  objects  of  interest,  especially 
some  old  pictures  of  the  i6th  century,  representing  the  siege 
of  Alkmaar  by  the  Spaniards,  and  rich  in  portraiture  of  the 
costumes  and  manners  of  the  time.  We  came  out  of  the 
Museum  through  the  grand  old  Town  Hall,  with  its  elegant 
Campanile.  Then  we  wandered  about  till  we  came  to  the 
Botermarkt.  We  stopped  opposite  the  quaint  old  Market 
House,  and,  as  it  was  just  then  4.  o'clock,  waited  to  see  the 
mounted  figures  appear  and  disappear  four  times  as  the  hour 
sounded.  Our  pursuit  of  antiquities  for  sale  had  not  been 
very  successful,  but  at  length  we  found  the  Jews'  quarter,  and 
there,  although  it  was  Saturday,  Mons.  Emmering  condescended 
to  sell  us  a  little  plate  with  a  ship  upon  it,  dated  1745,  which 
might  be  Bristol  ware,  and  a  little  piece  of  mediaeval  ivory, 
carved  with  the  Flagellation.  As  we  left  this  place,  and  in  the 
street  leading  to  the  Cathedral,  our  guide  pointed  out  to  us  a 
stork  on  her  nest  at  the  top  of  a  chimney,  a  sight  which,  often 
as  I  have  been  in  Holland,  I  never  saw  before.  We  watched 
her  for  some  time  feeding  her  young.  The  house  (on  which  a 
nest  has  existed  for  years)  was  not  shut  up.  It  used  to  be 
inhabited  by  a  dealer  in  antiquities,  but  he  is  dead  and  all  his 
stock  was  sold  at  Rotterdam.  Our  last  visit  was  to  the 
Cathedral,  a  magnificent  structure  of,  probably,  the  early  I3th 
century — of  fine  proportions,  with  grand  columns  and  arches, 
which  we  should  call  Early  English,  all  in  excellent  preservation, 
and  with  no  admixture  of  style — all  extraneous  ornament,  of 
course,  swept  carefully  away.  Here  we  parted  from  our  polite 
guide,  who  told  us  that  he  was  an  employe  at  the  railway. 
We  walked  through  the  pleasant  gardens,  and  -  returned  to  the 
station  to  await  the  5.30.  train,  by  which  we  went  on  to  Helder. 
The  first  part  of  our  journey  much  like  the  rest  of  Holland,  but 
the  district  about  Anna  Paulowna  barren  and  desolate  indeed. 
At  Helder  we  had  a  long  walk  to  get  to  our  Hotel,  Den  Burg, 

438 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

small,  but  comfortable — regular  provincial  life  which  I  enjoy. 
The  Kellner  described  in  Havard's  Dead  Cities  of  the  Zuyder 
Zee  is  now  the  landlord,  and  we  have  found  him  very  useful 
and  attentive.  We  had  not  the  best  supper  in  the  world,  having 
fasted  since  our  breakfast,  but  it  was  late,  and  we  had  excellent 
beds,  and  slept  perfectly. 

4th.  Our  landlord,  De  Bruin,  recommended  a  drive  to  see 
"  everything,"  so  he  produced  an  open  carriage,  and  we  went. 
C.S.  found  us  in  danger  of  being  put  into  a  stately  apparatus 
something  after  the  fashion  of  the  courtly  equipage  we  escaped 
at  Barcelona  six  years  ago,  but  he  stipulated  for  something  less 
pretentious,  and  a  most  charming  drive  we  had.  First  we 
went  through  the  long  street  of  this  portion  of  the  town,  the 
Nieuwe  Diep,  into  the  older  "Helder".  One  of  the  first 
events  of  the  morning  was  being  summoned  to  the  window  by 
a  band  of  military  music,  to  the  sound  of  which  the  young 
cadets  were  marching  to  a  church.  The  table  d'hote  was 
rather  early,  half-past  4.  A  young  Englishman  called  Phillips, 
connected  with  the  shipping  trade,  was  there,  and  we  had  some 
instructive  talk  with  a  German,  now  resident  in  this  place,  from 
whom  I  learn  with  regret  that  the  coal  trade  is  threatened  with 
serious  competition  in  these  localities  from  the  coalfields  of 
Westphalia.  We  saw  several  steam  colliers  from  England  this 
afternoon.  We  have  been  greatly  favoured  by  the  weather ; 
though  fresh  it  has  been  very  bright  and  pleasant,  the  sea 
smooth  and  lovely.  Now  from  my  window  the  moon  is  reflected 
upon  it  in  all  glory.  Helder  is  ever  to  be  remembered  with 
pleasure.  Since  dinner  C.S.  has  been  out  with  the  landlord  to 
see  a  fine  old  Oriental  service  of  china,  decorated  with 
"Waapen"  (Coats  of  Arms),  but  the  owner  wants  £100  for  it. 
To-morrow  we  are  to  be  off  again  at  cockcrow,  so  I  must  shut 
up  this  book  for  to-night. 

5th.     Before  5.  we  turned  out  of  the  little  box-like  beds  of 

439 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 
the  Hotel  Den  Burg,  very  comfortable  though  they  were,  for  by 
7  we  had  to  be  on  board  the  steamer  on  the  North  Holland 
Canal.  It  was  a  bright,  lovely,  June  morning,  the  sun  shining 
in  all  splendour,  but  there  was  rather  a  high  wind  which  made 
it  a  little  less  pleasant  than  it  would  otherwise  have  been. 
However,  I  enjoyed  the  trip  very  much.  The  boat  was  crowded 
with  smart  peasants  making  holiday.  I  wish  they  would  not 
wear  those  detestable  French  hats  and  bonnets  over  their 
national  head-dress  !  Near  Alkmaar  we  came  to  pretty,  neat 
houses,  standing  in  their  own  little  gardens,  and  extending  for 
more  than  a  mile.  They  looked  like  villas,  but  I  believe  they 
are  lived  in  by  the  labouring  farmers.  At  Alkmaar  we  landed, 
got  a  truck  for  our  luggage,  and  walked  to  the  spot  where  the 
diligence  was  to  start  from.  But  the  diligence  was  not  to  start 
till  half-past  four,  so,  as  it  was  then  not  eleven,  we  preferred  to 
take  a  carriage  and  drive  over  to  Hoorn.  Road  not  very  in- 
teresting. Wind  now  very  high  indeed,  to  the  maid's  great 
discomfort,  which  I  was  sorry  for.  When  we  got  to  Hoorn, 
we  walked  about  the  town  for  a  couple  of  hours.  It  is  a  nice 
old  place,  less  deserted,  I  should  say,  than  the  book  represents 
it.  It  is  not  so  striking  as  Alkmaar,  nor  so  picturesque ;  nor 
are  the  public  buildings  of  any  great  antiquity.  The  gardens 
round  it  are  pretty  but  not  remarkable.  Many  of  the  houses 
have  little  pieces  of  sculpture,  mostly  rude  and  quaint,  let  into 
them ;  I  suppose  they  have  been  used  as  signs  or  emblems. 
On  one  of  them  was  a  representation  of  James  I.  of  England 
and  Anne  his  Queen,  surrounded  by  a  long  Latin  inscription. 
This  house  stood  at  the  corner  of  a  street  and  on  its  other  front 
was  a  rude  representation  of  Mary,  Queen  of  Scots,  and 
Darnley,  with  an  inscription  in  English  to  that  effect.  I  pre- 
sume that  the  house  belonged  to  some  Englishman  or  Scotchman, 
who  adopted  this  decoration  in  compliment  to  his  country.  We 
looked  into  one  or  two  old  curiosity  shops,  but  they  had  in 

440 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

them  nothing  but  broken  rubbish.  I  fancy  everything  decent 
goes  to  Amsterdam  at  once.  The  table  d'hote  dinner,  which 
we  joined  at  the  Hotel  Igusz,  was  at  half-past  3.  It  was  very 
tolerable.  After  this  I  should  have  liked  to  go  out  to  explore 
a  little  more  of  Hoorn,  but  the  wind  had  turned  to  heavy  rain, 
so  I  let  C.S.  go  alone,  and  sat  working  in  the  Salle  till  he  came 
back.  He  had  been  as  far  as  the  Ooster  Port,  but  was  not  so 
much  struck  as  he  expected  to  be,  and  walked  through  other 
parts  of  the  town.  Our  diligence,  leaving  Hoorn,  was  to  start 
at  seven,  so  we  went  to  the  Kantoor  to  be  ready  for  it.  There 
was  a  large  Salle  attached  to  this  Kantoor,  and  there  was 
drinking  and  smoking  and  singing.  It  might  have  been 
described  as  one  of  old  Heemskirk's  pictures,  scene  of  "  Dutch 
Boors  Carousing".  It  was  8  o'clock  before  the  diligence  from 
Alkmaar  "en  correspondance "  arrived,  and  then  we  were 
started  in  a  supplementary  conveyance,  the  parent  being  full. 
There  was  but  little  rain  and  it  was  a  singularly  light  evening. 
We  got  most  comfortable  seats  in  the  unwieldy  institution, 
which,  professing  to  hold  1 2  persons  (on  four  benches),  actually 
accommodated  15 — most  of  them  smoked;  nevertheless,  I  en- 
joyed my  three  hours'  journey  very  much,  and  was,  moreover, 
very  much  diverted  by  it.  The  whole  road  was  lined  by  those 
substantial  villa-like  houses  that  we  saw  in  the  neighbourhood 
of  Alkmaar.  The  curious  way  in  which  their  paths  and  palings, 
and  even  the  trunks  of  the  trees,  were  painted  in  many  colours 
was  truly  amusing;  at  the  same  time  everything  betokened 
affluence  and  comfort.  At  1 1 .  o'clock  we  reached  Enkhuizen. 
We  put  up  at  the  hostelry  kept  by  one  Botman,  who  did  his 
best  to  make  us  comfortable,  and  succeeded.  We  had  to  ascend 
by  something  like  a  ladder  to  our  bedrooms,  in  which  the  beds 
are  stowed  away  in  little  boxes,  and  resemble  in  their  arrange- 
ments the  berths  on  board  ship.  The  lower  part  of  the  bedding 
consisted  of  straw  well  laid  out,  over  which  was  everything  to 

441 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 

make  it  soft  and  downy.     I  was  sleepy,  and  never  woke  or 
moved  till  time  to  get  up. 

6th.  Our  breakfast  was'excellent ;  we  had  ordered  it  over- 
night, and  eggs  being  among  the  edibles  bespoken,  our  good 
host  took  care  to  have  them  for  us,  hard  boiled  and  quite 
cold.  He  had  taken  C.S.  on  a  little  preliminary  walk  before 
breakfast.  After  it  we  set  out  under  the  guidance  of  his  young 
son  to  see  the  town.  We  walked  all  along  the  old  ramparts 
and  by  the  sea  wall,  and  then  into  the  town  itself.  It  is  quite 
the  most  curious  and  interesting  place  I  have  yet  seen  in 
Holland,  possessing  many  quaint  old  houses.  We  went  into 
the  Westerkerk,  which  is  a  fine  building  of  Transition,  or,  as 
we  should  say,  Early  English  date,  the  transepts  abolished,  the 
aisle  Perpendicular.  The  choir  screen  is  of  the  finest  oak 
carving  of  the  Renaissance  period,  and  bears  the  date  1542; 
the  pulpit,  also  very  fine,  is  later.  We  passed  in  front  of  the 
Orphanage  with  its  fanciful  entrances,  embellished  with  figures 
of  the  children  in  costumes  of  the  last  and  of  the  I7th 
century.  Looked  into  the  shop  of  one  curiosity  dealer  of 
the  humblest  description,  and  hesitated  to  go  to  the  Church 
of  the  old  Catholics  because  it  was  manifestly  such  a 
modern  building.  Luckily,  however,  we  did  go  to  it,  and 
were  richly  rewarded.  The  priest  showed  us  the  treasures  of 
the  place,  which  consisted  of  some  very  fine  Cinquecento 
vestments,  and  some  still  finer  Cinquecento  plate.  The  latter 
was  displayed  on  the  Altar,  in  celebration  of  the  Pentecost. 
It  comprised  two  very  fine  silver  figures,  one  of  the  Virgin, 
the  other  of  the  Patron  Saint  of  Enkhuizen,  both  on  chased 
pedestals — and  the  latter  on  a  pedestal  enriched  with  subjects, 
representing  the  miracles  of  the  Saint,  such  as  his  cutting 
down  a  tree,  then  binding  up  the  parts,  and  making  it 
grow  again,  etc.  There  were  Altar  Candlesticks,  and  above 
all  there  was  a  divine  little  bell  of  most  unusual  make,  which 

442 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

I  would  gladly  have  bought — or  stolen.  Returning  to  our 
Inn,  we  made  ready  to  depart,  and  taking  the  Harlingen 
steamer  at  2.  o'clock,  found  ourselves  at  Amsterdam  at  5. 
Unfortunately  it  came  on  to  rain  heavily,  so  I  was  obliged  to 
go  below,  where,  however,  I  passed  the  time  very  pleasantly, 
reading  the  Life  of  Macaulay.  We  were  lucky  this  time  in 
getting  rooms  at  Brack's  Doelen. 

7th.  For  the  day  we  visited  Haarlem.  The  dear  old 
town  looked  its  best,  and  we  found  a  few  scraps  of  china 
to  crown  our  expedition.  The  laburnums  are  now  in  fullest 
flower,  and  very  brilliant.  In  many  places  the  tulips  seem  to 
have  faded  only  very  lately.  This  has  been  a  very  backward 
season ;  the  May  flowers  are  only  now  coming  out ;  I  have 
passed  one  garden  of  fragrant  beans.  After  table  d'hote  we 
strolled  out.  Bought  some  silver  salt-cellars  of  an  old  Jew, 
Morpurgo,  against  whom  we  have  been  lately  warned.  Found  / 
at  Van  Houtum's  a  lovely  Wedgwood  bust,  in  white  ware 
upon  a  black  pedestal.  Small  ice-plates  have  now  become  the 
object  of  our  pursuit,  and  we  have  got  some  very  pretty  ones. 
Returned  to  Amsterdam  at  3.30. 

8th.  When  just  setting  out  for  our  day's  ramble,  we  fell  in 
with  Ion  Hamilton  [afterwards  ist  Baron  Holm- Patrick,  father 
of  present  Peer;  he  was  M.P.  for  County  Dublin  from  1863  to 
1885,  and  Lieutenant  of  the  city  and  county.  He  married 
Lady  Victoria  Wellesley,  sister  of  the  3rd  and  4th  Dukes  of 
Wellington,  in  1877;  he  died  in  1898]  and  Mr.  Clifton.  They 
accompanied  us  to  Morpurgo's  and  Speyer's.  At  the  former  place 
we  got  a  curious  engraved  silver  plate,  with  inscription  and 
date,  and  signed  "Svavivs";  it  appears  to  be  commemorative 
of  some  peace.  After  awhile  we  took  a  carriage  for  some  three 
hours,  2.  to  5.  Delicious  weather,  and  most  pleasant.  Visited 
a  number  of  little  shops,  which  have  not  much  to  boast  of.  Got 
some  good  ice-plates,  and  another  glass-shaped  object  at  Ganz's, 

443 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 

and  called  at  Mtiller's.  After  table  d'hote  we  made  some 
purchases  at  Roller's,  a  little  shop  new  to  us  in  Halvemaanstug, 
and  called  again  at  Muller's,  where  we  saw  a  number  of  very 
interesting  caricatures,  but  only  bought  two  little  prints.  Vexa. 
tious  letter  from  Mortlock,  that  our  box,  despatched  on  the  26th 
of  May,  had  not  yet  arrived. 

9th.  Looked  over  Van  Galen's  fine  stock,  and  called  at 
Speyer's,  where  we  bought  a  delicious  double  gourd-shaped 
bottle,  blue  and  white,  with  a  Capuchin  neck. 

loth.  I  do  not  know  why  I  woke  at  half-past  two,  and  lay 
waiting  for  four  o'clock,  when  it  was  light  enough  to  read  (for 
it  was  a  dull  morning) ;  then  I  revelled  in  that  pleasant  Life  of 
Macaulay  for  more  than  an  hour,  and  slept  again  till  seven. 
After  breakfast  we  went  to  Van  Houtum's  to  make  more 
purchases,  and  then  to  the  "  Tentoonstelling ",  i.e.  the  Exhi- 
bition of  various  objects  relating  to  the  town  of  Amsterdam,  in 
which  were  many  things  curious  and  interesting  to  behold, 
especially  some  bronze  figures  of  the  old  sovereigns  in  their 
middle-age  costumes,  which  had  been  in  the  former  Stadthuis. 
The  art  value  of  the  various  objects  is  not,  generally  speaking, 
of  much  account,  but  locally  nothing  can  be  more  valuable.  We 
were  greatly  pleased  with  all  the  plans  of  the  town,  showing  its 
vast  expansion.  At  four  we  took  a  cab  and  drove  to  old 
Thyssen's  and  Geniter's,  in  search  of  prints,  but  they  had  neither 
of  them  anything.  Since  table  d'hote  we  have  been  out  again ; 
a  cold,  ungenial  evening.  Went  to  Boasberg's  to  look  at  some 
cards  he  has  of  the  South  Sea  Bubble,  for  which  he  wants  an 
enormous  price.  Then  walked  round  the  Quays,  tracing  the 
direction  of  the  ancient  walls  by  the  situation  of  the  Towers, 
parts  of  which  still  remain ;  the  Outer  Port,  St.  Antoine's  Port, 
then  another  tower,  then  that  which  contains  the  Brack's  Doelen 
Hotel,  then  the  site  of  the  Rondeel,  etc.,  all  as  shown  in  the 
maps  we  had  studied  this  morning. 

444 


i8;6  NOTES  CERAMIC 

i  ith.  We  were  called  at  six,  and  got  up  early,  thinking  to 
make  a  trip  over  to  Marken,  for  which  we  had  provided.  But 
the  weather  was  so  unfavourable  that,  by  the  advice  of  the 
people  of  the  Hotel,  we  gave  it  up;  indeed,  they  said  it  was 
not  practicable.  And  so  I  have  stayed  within  doors  all  the 
day,  reading  and  writing.  C.S.  has  strolled  out  now.  This  is 
a  month  I  always  love,  though  some  of  its  memories  are 
sad,  and  when  June  is  over,  I  always  feel  as  if  the  year  was 
declining. 

1 2th.  Took  some  of  our  things  to  Van  Houtum's  to  be 
packed  and  sent  off  to  England.  I  hope  this  box  may  arrive 
more  punctually  than  the  others ;  we  have  not  yet  heard  of  the 
arrival  of  that  sent  off  on  the  26th  May !  Went  to  the  offices 
of  the  North  Sea  Canal  to  get  permission  to  go  and  see  the 
works  which  are  now  in  progress  beyond  Felsen.  Got  there 
some  useful  information,  and  arranged  to  go  there  again  on 
the  morrow.  Having  heard  that  there  was  to  be  a  balloon 
ascent  from  the  grounds  of  the  Crystal  Palace,  we  went  there ; 
watched  the  process  of  inflation  and  the  ascent.  The  Aeronaut, 
a  Frenchman,  took  his  daughter  with  him ;  it  was  an  exciting 
scene ;  there  were  a  good  many  people  in  the  enclosure  to  see 
it  and  on  the  housetops,  and  on  the  masts  of  the  boats,  etc., 
and  the  crowd  without  was  enormous.  Got  back  a  little  late 
for  dinner.  Found  letter  and  telegram  from  Ivor  saying  that 
they  were  on  their  way,  and  expected  to  be  with  us  here  on 
Thursday  next  (they  have  been  staying  at  Aachen).  It  will  be 
delightful  if  they  carry  out  this  plan.  We  went  to  the  tele- 
graph office  as  soon  as  our  dinner  was  over,  to  let  them  know 
they  would  still  find  us  here,  and  we  have  changed  all  our 
arrangements  in  accordance  with  theirs.  Passing  by  the 
Speyers,  the  eldest  brother  had  some  talk  with  us,  and  told  us 
that  the  "  peoples'  concert "  was  then  going  on  in  "  the  Park  ". 
So  we  went  up  there,  arriving  about  nine,  stayed  an  hour,  were 

445 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 

very  pleased.  "  The  Park  "  was  well  illuminated  with  wreaths 
of  lights,  etc.  The  music  was  very  good.  First  we  had  the 
Overture  to  William  Tell,  then  Madralena,  which  was  enthusi- 
astically encored ;  then  a  selection,  which  I  liked  less.  After 
this  we  came  away.  The  audience  was  large,  very  quiet, 
respectable,  and  well  dressed.  They  seemed  thoroughly  to 
enjoy  themselves.  Most  of  them  sat  at  the  little  tables  sur- 
rounding the  Orchestra,  a  few  of  them  taking  some  light 
refreshment;  others  walked  about,  but  all  was  done  decently 
and  in  order.  It  had  been  a  most  lovely  day,  with  a  blue 
sky  and  bright  sun,  quite  summer  at  last,  and  I  enjoyed  it  all 
immensely. 

1 3th.  Went  again  to  the  Canal  Office.  Mr.  Watson,  the 
Chief  Manager,  came  there  while  we  were  there,  and  promised 
to  arrange  that  we  should  see  all  the  Works,  and  have  every- 
thing explained  to  us.  We  fixed  Saturday  for  the  expedition, 
hoping  Ivor  may  be  with  us  then.  Found  that  Mr.  Watson  is 
son  of  Mr.  Watson  of  Cardiff,  an  old  friend  of  former  years. 
Took  the  12.45.  train  to  Haarlem,  where  we  had  seen  a  G.R. 
cruche  last  time  we  visited  the  town.  Bought  our  cruche,  and 
one  or  two  trifles,  ransacked  the  other  shops,  but  found 
nothing.  Got  back  to  Amsterdam  at  four,  and  walked  to  our 
Hotel — very  hot.  At  Haarlem  saw  the  two  young  De  Maans, 
carrying  away  sets  of  blue  and  white,  which  they  had  been 
buying  there.  Began  Miss  Austen's  Pride  and  Prejudice. 
Since  table  d'hote  have  been  out  again,  and  spent  some  time  at 
Ganz's,  where  we  bought  two  very  good  beakers. 

1 4th.  So  much  to  write!  So  little  time  to  write  it !  And 
now  scarce  a  hope  of  recovering  even  an  outline.  It  is  almost 
a  fortnight  since  I  have  made  any  notes  here.  We  carried 
out  our  long-intended  expedition  to  Marken,  and  were  well 
pleased.  Rose  early  and  left  the  Hotel  at  half-past  nine  in  a 
kind  of  state  coach,  which  the  said  Hotel  provided  at  stately 

446 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

prices,  and  accompanied  by  the  Hotel  Commissionaire,  who 
was  to  lionise  us  about  it.  We  are  not  much  accustomed  to 
all  this  display,  but  on  the  present  occasion  it  seemed  inevit- 
able, and  all  went  well.  We  crossed  the  Ferry,  carriage  and 
all,  enjoying  a  fine  view  of  Amsterdam,  and  on  reaching  the 
other  side  drove  on  to  Brook.  There  we  stopped  at  the  old 
woman's  curiosity  house,  bought  a  trifle  of  her,  and  then  went 
on  to  Monnikendam.  Here  we  left  the  carriage  at  the  water's 
edge.  A  boat  had  been  telegraphed  for  to  meet  us.  We 
had  expected  a  tedious  sail  across,  but  the  day  was  so  still 
that  sails  would  not  have  availed,  and  so  we  were  rowed 
across  by  three  sturdy  boatmen.  It  took  about  an  hour  and 
a  half.  Marken  is  indeed  a  curious  place;  all  the  houses, 
with  one  or  two  exceptions,  built  of  wood,  and  on  piles, 
standing  high  above  the  ground,  to  let  the  water  pass  below 
them  when  floods  arise.  It  has  two  or  three  separate  villages, 
to  the  principal  one  of  which  we  walked — not  a  tree  to  be 
seen.  We  went  into  three  of  the  houses.  The  walls  are 
covered  with  crockery,  and  everything  of  bright-coloured 
ornament,  in  the  way  of  painted  wood,  boxes,  etc.,  but  nothing 
of  the  slightest  value  or  antiquity.  In  one  of  the  houses 
were  some  very  good  old  carved  cabinets,  the  only  really 
valuable  things  we  saw.  This  was  at  the  grocer's  shop,  which 
they  told  us  the  Queen  had  been  to  look  at  last  year.  In 
the  third  house  we  went  into  there  was  no  chimney.  The 
women  were  still  cooking  at  the  stove,  which  was  near  the 
open  window,  and  there  was  an  opening  in  the  high  roof,  to 
carry  off  the  smoke.  I  suppose  it  keeps  them  dry  in  this 
damp  climate.  All  the  men  are  fishermen,  and  we  saw  hardly 
any  of  them,  as  they  go  out  for  a  week  at  a  time.  The 
dresses  of  the  women  and  children  are  the  prettiest,  gaudiest 
things  I  ever  saw,  and  some  of  the  children  are  quite  good- 
looking.  We  went  into  the  Church,  which  is,  of  course,  quite 

447 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 
undecorated,  but  the  pulpit  is  good,  well  carved  and  old. 
Having  stayed  about  an  hour  on  the  Island,  we  re-embarked, 
and  two  of  the  boatmen  rowed  us  back  again.  It  took  us 
rather  longer  to  return,  as  what  little  wind  there  was,  was 
against  us.  At  Monnikendam  we  went  into  the  fine  old 
Church,  now,  as  usual,  merely  a  skeleton.  In  one  corner  was 
a  fine  old  Font,  Byzantine — broken  and  disused.  The  large 
piece  that  was  broken  from  it,  lay  beside  it.  It  is  a  sin  that 
it  should  not  be  repaired.  Walked  round  and  about  the 
little  town — lovely  views  of  the  Church  tower  from  one  of  the 
bridges.  Discovered  a  little  jeweller  in  the  main  street,  from 
whom  we  made  a  small  purchase,  then  remounted  our  carriage 
and  drove  away  towards  the  rich  dairy  country  of  the  Beemster. 
We  went  into  one  of  the  farm-houses  to  see  the  style  of  living. 
The  young  farmer's  wife  was  sitting  in  a  small  room  forming 
part  of  the  large  cowshed.  All  the  cows  were  now  in  the 
fields.  This  long  building  was  at  the  back  of  the  house ;  the 
dwelling-rooms  were  to  the  front,  neatly  but  rather  scantily 
furnished.  Note  1  The  people  at  Marken  leave  their  shoes — 
wooden  ones — at  the  door  on  entering  a  house.  The  loose 
dress  of  the  men  has  also  a  very  Eastern  effect.  I  need  not  say 
we  were  well  pleased  with  the  success  of  our  little  expedition. 
Returned  to  Amsterdam. 

1 5th.  To  the  Canal  Office  again  about  our  contemplated 
trip  on  Saturday.  Then  we  busied  ourselves  with  providing 
materials  to  construct  me  a  bonnet,  in  honour  of  Cornelia's 
expected  arrival,  and  not  before  it  was  urgently  needed.  Sent 
my  maid  home  to  "  confectionner "  it,  and  then  we  ourselves 
walked  on  to  see  the  Portuguese  Synagogue.  Most  of  their 
fine  plate  is  now  on  view  at  the  "  Tentoonstelling ".  It  was 
curious  to  hear  the  man  who  showed  us  over  the  building 
still  speaking  a  kind  of  patois,  Portuguese  and  Spanish.  Went 
on  to  the  Zoological  Gardens — pretty  arrangment  of  an  avenue 

448 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

of  parrots  on  their  perches.  In  the  Japanese  section  there  was 
nothing  that  interested  us.  C.S.  lingered  before  the  dens  of  the 
wild  beasts  till  it  was  time  to  walk  to  the  railway  station — the 
Rhijnspoor.  We  waited  to  see  the  young  people,  but  they  did 
not  come  by  the  afternoon  train.  After  table  d'h6te  we  again 
walked  to  the  station,  and  this  time  had  the  pleasure  of 
welcoming  them.  A  carriage  was  there  for  their  servants  and 
lugga£e>  but  they  preferred  to  walk  with  us  to  the  Hotel,  where 
we  had  secured  them  delightful  rooms.  They  dined,  and  then 
we  came  and  sat  with  them  till  eleven.  They  had  been  making 
the  beautiful  trip  from  Aachen  by  Cologne  and  Duren  to  Trier 
(Treves),  and  so  back  by  the  Moselle,  as  we  had  done  three 
years  ago. 

1 6th.  After  an  early  breakfast,  Ivor  walked  with  us  to  the 
curiosity  shops — Van  Houtum's,  Speyer's,  Ganz's.  Then  we 
came  back  for  Cornelia,  and  got  a  carriage,  and  she  went  with 
us  also  to  Van  Galen's,  etc.  Ivor  made  several  large  and 
very  good  purchases.  Came  back  to  luncheon  at  or  about  2, 
and  after  it  drove  out  again  to  show  Cornelia  something  of 
the  town.  Went  into  the  Zoological  Gardens,  and  saw  the 
pictures  of  the  Trippenhuis. 

1 7th.  Left  Amsterdam  by  a  train  at  9.40.  to  Velzen  (the 
servants  were  sent  with  the  luggage  direct  to  The  Hague). 
Here  we  were  met  by  Mr.  Sawyer,  who  is  in  charge  of  part  of 
the  Works  of  the  Great  North  Canal.  The  Company's  little 
steamer  was  there  awaiting  us,  and  we  went  in  it  towards  the 
entrance  to  the  new  harbour.  Cornelia  and  I  sat  in  one  of  the 
offices,  while  C.S.  and  Ivor  walked  to  the  end  of  the  pier.  It 
was  rather  blowing  and  the  sand  was  deep,  so  we  preferred  to 
wait  for  their  return.  We  then  were  put  into  a  little  open 
waggon  on  the  tramway,  and  taken  back  to  where  the  steamer 
awaited  us  on  the  inner  side  of  the  stupendous  lock.  We  now 
employed  the  time  in  eating  on  board  the  luncheon  which  we 
i  449  2  F 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS   1876 

had  brought  with  us.  Landed  at  Felzen  again,  where  C.S.  and 
Ivor  went  to  see  the  process  of  making  the  concrete.  Cornelia 
and  I  went  across  the  bridge  into  the  little  town,  and  waited 
there  till  they  joined  us.  A  little  open  carriage  was  then 
procured  for  us ;  we  took  leave  of  Mr.  Sawyer  and  drove  on  to 
Haarlem,  but  not  till  C.S.  and  I  had  walked  about  Felzen  a 
little  and  had  seen  the  interesting  old  Byzantine  Church.  Our 
expedition  had  been  most  interesting  and  instructive.  Ivor 
could  not  fail  to  be  pleased  with  it,  and  I  hope  he  will  have 
gained  information  that  will  turn  to  good  account,  whenever 
anything  is  seriously  undertaken  for  making  Poole  (as  it  ought 
to  be)  a  first-rate  harbour.  Now  for  our  drive  to  Haarlem. 
It  was  perfectly  delicious.  The  weather  was  quite  charming, 
and  we  were  delighted  with  the  country  we  went  through.  The 
whole  way  lined  with  pretty  villas  and  their  well-kept  gardens. 
As  we  approached  the  town,  these  gardens  were  bright  with 
patches  of  anemones  and  ranunculuses,  glowing  with  every 
shade  of  colour.  The  season  is  a  late  one.  The  pink  and 
white  May  is  still  in  flower,  also  the  laburnum — the  lilacs  and 
horse-chestnuts  are  over ;'  tulips  I  have  never  seen  in  Holland, 
though  I  have  been  there  so  often,  nor  skating.  We  drove  to 
the  H6tel  Funckler,  and  ordered  dinner.  While  it  was  in 
course  of  preparing,  we  walked  about  the  town.  Looked  at 
Hauja's  musical  clock,  went  to  both  the  Churches  (meeting 
with  a  very  uncivil  reception  at  the  large  one,  where  the  organ 
was  being  played — the  first  uncourteous  words  I  ever  met  with 
in  Holland),  and  walked  about  the  town  generally,  admiring 
especially  the  public  buildings  of  1603  and  1630,  and  the  metal 
Jube"  in  the  big  Church.  We  got  an  excellent  dinner,  and 
went  on  in  the  evening  to  The  Hague,  where,  owing  to  the  f£te 
of  the  Queen's  birthday,  our  friends  were  not  so  well  accommo- 
dated as  I  should  have  wished.  However,  all  was  set  right 
the  next  morning.  The  town  was  full  of  flags,  and  after  the 

450 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

fireworks  in  the  Bosch  it  was  curious  to  see  the  swarms  of 
people  passing  our  hotel,  on  their  way  home, 

1 8th.  To  Church  in  the  morning,  then  we  wrote  letters, 
having  visited  the  Museums,  that  for  the  pictures,  and  that  for 
the  fine  china,  on  our  way  home  from  Church.  At  4.  we 
drove ;  the  weather  was  fine  but  not  hot.  First  took  Cornelia  to 
see  the  Huis  ten  Bosch,  then  drove  through  the  most  interesting 
parts  of  the  old  town,  and  then  went  on  to  Scheveningen. 
There  we  walked  about  till  it  was  time  for  the  band  to  play,  to 
which  we  sat  and  listened  for  some  time  before  returning  for 
dinner.  As  we  walked  on  the  beach,  we  had  a  long  talk  with 
one  of  the  sailors  belonging  to  a  herring  vessel,  numbers  of 
which  were  ranged  upon  the  beach,  ready  to  set  out  upon  their 
summer's  cruise.  This  man  had  his  wife  with  him,  and  some 
little  ones  playing  round  them.  We  asked  what  family  they 
had,  and  he  told  us  they  had  those  two,  and  that  one  "was 
asleep  " — it  was  very  touching ! 

1 9th.  Ivor  breakfasted  early  with  us  two,  and  then  went 
the  round  of  the  shops  with  us,  without,  however,  finding  any- 
thing to  tempt  him.  At  10.  we  returned  to  the  Hotel,  to  pick 
up  Cornelia,  and  then  we  joined  the  train  which  took  us  to  the 
dearly  beloved  Utrecht.  Put  up  at  the  "Pays-Bas",  whichjis 
much  better  than  the  old  "  Bellevue  ",  but  very  dear.  Here  we 
had  luncheon  after  going  the  rounds  of  the  shops.  Hamburger 
has  some  fine  things,  and  Ivor  bought  the  vases  we  had  so  much 
admired  on  the  25th  of  last  month.  He  got  the  two  perfect 
ones  and  an  imperfect  one  into  the  bargain  for  ^30.  Van 
Gorkum,  who  was  not  at  home,  and  Costa  had  nothing.  Later 
in  the  afternoon  we  drove  about,  looked  into  the  Church,  went 
through  Maliebaan,  and  made  the  circuit  of  the  town  through 
its  pretty  gardens  on  the  Boulevards.  Soon  after  4.  we  took 
the  train  again  for  Rotterdam,  where  we  accompanied  Ivor  and 
Cornelia  on  board  the  steamer,  which  was  to  take  them  across 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 
the  river  on  their  way  homewards.  Here  their  servants  joined 
them  from  The  Hague.  It  was  now  four  days — not  quite  100 
hours — since  they  came  to  us  at  Amsterdam;  it  is  incredible 
how  much  they  have  seen  within  that  short  time ;  to  us  it  has 
been  a  charming  little  incident.  Having  watched  them  for 
some  little  time,  we  turned  back  to  the  station,  and  found  a 
train  just  starting  for  Gouda;  we  had  barely  time  to  get  into 
it,  but  were  glad  to  get  back  there  and  spend  two  quiet  hours  in 
the  good  old  town.  Bought  some  trifles  at  old  Van  Pavoordt's, 
and  got  back  to  The  Hague  about  bedtime. 

2Oth.  Called  at  Sarlin's,  where  we  yesterday  saw  some 
more  knife-handles,  and  then  joined  the  train  to  Leyden,  where 
we  also  expect  to  find  something  good,  and  where  we  now  met 
with  a  very  good  set  of  vases  (blue  and  white)  for  a  very 
moderate  sum  at  Duchatel's.  After  table  d'hote  we  went  back 
to  Sarlin's  and  bought  the  knife-handles,  etc. 

2 1 st.  It  has  only  just  begun  to  be  summer  weather,  but 
now  it  is  hot  indeed!  In  the  morning  got  a  nice  little  open 
carriage,  and  drove  over  to  Scheveningen  in  the  vain  hope  of 
getting  something  in  the  shops  there,  but  we  enjoyed  a  delicious 
breeze  instead.  Later,  we  finished  off  the  Hague  shops,  and 
prepared  for  an  early  move  on  the  morrow. 

22nd.  Left  by  the  eight  o'clock  train  for  Roosendael,  where 
we  branched  off  for  Zealand,  reaching  Goes  early  in  the  after- 
noon. It  was  very  hot,  and  the  railway  dusty.  Yesterday 
we  had  seen  in  the  paper  an  announcement  of  the  death  of  our 
old  friend  Mr.  Talbot,  the  Member  for  Glamorgan :  to-day  we 
see  the  contradiction  of  this  news ;  it  is  his  son  Theodore  who 
has  died.  Had  it  been  the  father,  I  fear  the  Tories  would  have 
tried  to  get  Ivor  to  stand  again  for  the  county,  and  I  con- 
gratulate myself  at  his  escape.  How  much,  however,  I  feel 
for  our  poor  friend's  sorrow,  I  cannot  express — his  only  son 
"  asleep " !  We  spent  a  few  hours  at  Goes,  where  the  Inn  is 

452 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

clean  but  unattractive,  and  the  table  d'hote  most  mediocre. 
Walked  about  the  town,  visited  the  Church,  which  has  been 
fine,  and  admired  the  remains  of  the  old  Stadthuis.  We  were 
taken  to  see  the  decrepit  mulberry-tree,  which  dates  from  the 
time  of  Jacqueline,  but  was  still  full  of  fruit.  Tried  vainly  to 
hunt  out  some  antiquities,  and  fell  in  with  a  Middelburg  man, 
who  promised  to  call  on  us  the  next  day,  and  take  us  to  all  the 
shops  in  that  place.  To  Middelburg  we  proceeded  by  a  later 
train,  and  took  up  our  quarters  at  the  Logement  of  the  Abdij, 
where  we  were  very  comfortable.  Before  dark  C.S.  and  I  took 
a  little  walk  about  the  town ;  were  delighted  with  what  little 
remained  of  the  ancient  Abbey,  and  perfectly  astonished  with 
the  splendour  of  the  i5th  century  Stadthuis — it  is  quite  the 
finest  thing  we  have  seen  in  Holland. 

23rd.  Our  acquaintance  of  yesterday  came  after  breakfast, 
and  we  went  out  with  him.  He  took  us  to  several  shops.  At 
the  jeweller's,  Meyer,  we  bought  a  curious  repeater,  and  some 
buttons,  and  were  just  coming  away,  when  the  dealer  produced 
a  case  for  a  knife  and  fork,  carved  with  minute  scriptural  sub- 
jects, and  bearing  date  1552.  We  clutched  it  eagerly  at  the 
price,  £2.  3.  4.  Found  a  few  other  things  in  the  town,  but 
could  not  see  the  great  shop  because  the  owner,  Bal,  was  out 
"en  voyage".  Went  into  the  Town  Hall  to  see  the  Museum 
there.  After  the  early  table  d'hote  visited  the  other  Museum 
in  the  Latinische  Schoolstraat,  where  there  is  an  interesting 
collection  of  coins.  All  these  local  collections  have  a  charm 
of  their  own,  and  that  in  the  Town  Hall  pleased  us  very  much. 
Our  guide  was  to  have  returned  for  us  after  dinner,  but  he 
failed  to  do  so.  We  walked  about  a  little  alone,  but  saw 
nothing  fresh,  and  were  at  length  driven  in  by  the  rain.  At 
seven  o'clock  we  took  the  boat  to  Vlissingen  (Flushing).  This 
visit  to  Middelburg  has  been  a  great  delight  to  me.  I  have  often 
wondered  what  sort  of  place  it  was,  since  nearly  half  a  century 

453 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 
ago  I  found  it  commemorated  in  that  line  of  Chaucer's.  But 
we  could  discover  nothing  that  could  have  met  his  "Mar- 
chaunt's  "  eyes,  except  one  massive  Romanesque  column,  built 
into  one  of  the  gateways  of  the  -more  recent  Abbey.  Heavy 
rain  during  our  short  journey  from  Middelburg  to  Vlissingen. 
The  Hotel  to  which  we  were  there  directed  was  a  decent  public- 
house  called  the  "  Duke  of  Wellington  ",  kept  by  a  worthy  old 
tar,  who  spoke  excellent  English,  and  whose  only  crotchet 
seemed  to  be  his  objection  to  my  removing  his  ponderous 
feather  beds  and  sleeping  on  the  mattress.  After  we  had  had 
a  little  amicable  combat  on  the  subject,  I  gave  way,  but  took 
care  to  arrange  the  beds  to  my  own  liking,  when  he  was  gone, 
and  before  we  got  into  them.  In  the  evening  the  rain  had 
ceased,  and  we  walked  about  the  town.  It  has  nothing  to  call 
for  remark,  except  as  to  the  docks  and  harbours,  which  are,  I 
believe,  considered  most  wonderful  works. 

24th.  Up  early ;  before  seven  o'clock  a  carriage  came  to 
take  us  and  our  luggage  to  the  steamer,  which  was  at  some 
distance  from  our  cabaret.  It  was  a  lovely  morning,  and  C.S., 
who  likes  the  water,  enjoyed  the  trip  to  Terneuzen.  Certainly 
we  could  not  have  had  more  favourable  weather.  Terneuzen 
appears  to  be  only  a  large  village.  At  the  frontier,  Selzaete, 
we  underwent  rather  a  rigorous  examination,  and  the  young 
man  who  overhauled  our  "collecting  basket"  pronounced — to 
my  great  amusement — that  all  our  carefully  selected  old  "blue 
and  white  "  was  modern,  and  must  pay  duty.  He  insisted  that 
he  was  a  great  judge,  that  he  knew  it  was  "style  ancien",  but 
that  nevertheless  the  articles  were  modern,  and  that  if  we  had 
bought  them  for  old,  we  had  been  "trompds".  He  called  the 
"  chef  de  douane "  to  his  aid,  who  said  the  quantity  was  too 
small  to  call  for  any  remark  (fortunately  he  did  not  open  the 
hand-box  or  my  red  bag),  and  so  we  were  spared  the  trouble 
and  vexation  of  any  more  unpacking,  and  proceeded  to  Ghent 

454 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

without  any  further  adventure.  Here,  leaving  the  maid  and 
lug-gage  at  the  station,  we  walked  into  the  town.  Fortunately 
found  de  Clerc  at  home,  and  invested  with  him,  as  also  with 
Rogier.  We  called  also  on  Omghena,  and  showed  the  good  old 
man  the  few  treasures  we  had  collected  since  our  last  visit  to 
him.  He  thought  highly  of  our  knife-case,  and  of  our  repeater, 
but  was  more  especially  delighted  with  the  silver  plate,  signed 
by  "SVAVIVS",  and  dated  1559,  and  with  the  stamp  for 
ornamental  book-binding,  which  we  had  bought  of  Leureman,  at 
Leyden,  on  the  24th  ulto.  These  two  pieces  he  has  retained 
to  take  impressions  of.  All  this  gratified  us  very  much.  Soon 
after  4.  we  took  the  train  to  Brussels,  where  we  arrived  about  6, 
in  time  for  dinner.  The  day  had  been  hot,  and  we  were  not 
sorry  to  rest  after  our  journey.  Passed  to-day  through  Dender- 
monde,  and  its  grass-grown  remains  of  fortifications.  Hotel 
Mengelle.  Found  letters  awaiting  us.  All  well,  thank  God ! 

26th.  Though  very  hot,  we  went  through  all  the  Brussels 
shops,  and  were  about  six  hours  on  foot.  Found  a  few  things 
at  Volant's,  Cools',  and  Genie's,  and  some  more  ice-plates  at 
Le  Roy's,  where  we  claimed  our  set  of  purple  vases  and 
beakers,  with  buds  in  the  panels.  They  are  very  fine,  and 
though  expensive  (^18),  are  not  dear. 

28th.  Made  some  more  additions  to  the  "blue  and  white", 
which  we  are  sending  off,  both  at  Genie's  and  Volant's.  Looked 
in  at  Stroobant's,  who  is  too  dear,  and  had,  moreover,  nothing 
to  tempt  us.  There  met  Mr.  Morren,  whose  collection  we  hope 
again  to  see  before  leaving  Brussels. 

29th.  Up  at  5.  Caught  the  7.30.  express  at  the  Gare  du 
Midi,  and  were  at  Tournai  in  good  time  for  breakfast  at 
"  LTmperatrice."  However,  while  it  was  getting  ready,  we 
walked  up  to  old  Detail's,  where  we  got  two  good  blue  and 
white  vases.  After  breakfast  we  went  on  to  Depret's,  but  he 
had  nothing  at  all.  Then  to  M.  Pourbaix.  He  was  more 

455 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 

energetic  than  ever;  made  a  purchase  or  two  of  him.  Then 
went  to  the  railway  station,  and  sat  there  and  read  till  the 
Calais  express  came  in,  late,  to  take  us  back  to  Brussels  for 
dinner.  Went  up  to  Le  Roy's  to  look  after  some  Famille 
Verte  beakers,  which  I  wanted,  but  he  was  shut  up. 

3Oth.  By  9.15  train  to  Antwerp.  Eva  Krug  had  pre- 
pared boxes  for  us,  and  in  the  course  of  the  morning  the  goods 
were  packed  off  for  the  journey,  and  C.S.  went  with  them  to 
the  Quai,  and  saw  them  on  board  the  steamer  for  England. 
Unfortunately  the  proper  authority  was  not  there  to  counter- 
sign the  Bills  of  Lading,  so  that  another  journey  to  Antwerp 
on  the  morrow  was  necessary.  In  the  meantime  we  went  about 
the  town,  finding  nothing  to  add  to  the  boxes,  but  a  trifle  at 
Eva's  and  a  mug  at  Aren's.  Went  to  the  Chauss6e  des  Malines 
to  look  at  a  collection  there  to  be  sold,  which  had  been  brought 
from  Louvain.  I  believe  it  is  part  of  that  belonging  to  the 
Charentier,  which  we  had  seen  there  some  three  years  ago. 
We  did  not  get  away  from  Antwerp  till  late,  nor  did  we  dine 
till  near  nine  o'clock. 

JULY  1876 

ANTWERP:   BRUSSELS:   LIEGE:   COLOGNE:   BRUHL :   BREMEN: 

HAMBURG  :  LUBECK  :  STETTIN  :  DANTZIG  :  POSEN  :  BRESLAU  : 

DRESDEN :  FRANKFORT 

July  ist.  Again  up  at  6.  C.S.  went  by  the  express  to 
Antwerp,  to  get  his  Bills  of  Lading  signed,  and  returned  about 
two.  I  remained  at  home,  writing,  etc.  Have  had  the  comfort 
of  hearing  of  Blanche's  safe  arrival  in  England.  A  little  walk 
in  the  town  with  C.S.  after  his  return  from  Antwerp  filled  up 
the  afternoon  till  dinner-time.  I  have  been  studiously  reading 
four  of  Miss  Austen's  novels,  incited  thereto  by  Macaulay's 
praise — Pride  and  Prejudice ',  Northanger  Abbey,  Persuasion, 
Mansfield  Park.  I  like  the  first  least  of  all;  I  think 
I  like  the  last  best.  But  I  cannot  quite  make  up  my  mind 

456 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

whether  I  am  alive  to  their  very  great  merit.  For  the 
epoch  at  which  they  appeared,  some  sixty  years  ago,  they 
are  very  remarkable.  My  Enid's  birthday  (1843).  I  wrote 
to  her. 

2nd.  Wrote  letters  in  the  morning,  and  made  out  lists 
of  the  goods  sent  off  the  previous  day  to  England.  I  only 
went  out  to  attend  afternoon  Service.  C.S.  ran  down  to 
the  post  with  our  letters  before  dinner,  after  which  I 
read  and  slept.  After  I  went  to  bed  I  read  over  that 
wonderful  part  of  Macaulay's  history  the  death  of 
Charles  II.  and  was  quite  excited  by  it,  when  I  dropped 
asleep  about  i  A.M. 

3rd.  Again  we  read  and  wrote  letters  in  the  morning, 
which  was  rather  rainy,  though  still  hot  and  oppressive. 
Walked  a  little  in  the  afternoon.  Bought  the  two  Famille 
Verte  beakers  at  Le  Roy's  (see  2Qth  ulto.)  for  £9.  Posted 
our  letters.  Since  dinner  C.S.  has  been  reading  to  me  again 
Macaulay's  account  of  Charles  II.'s  death-bed.  A  cheerful 
letter  from  Ivor  to-night. 

4th.  Maria's  birthday,  born  1834.  Went  out  at  i.  to  see 
M.  Morren,  who  had  asked  us  to  come  and  view  his  collection. 
He  was  out,  which  troubled  me,  as  I  feared  it  would  be  our 
only  opportunity  of  seeing  him.  As  we  walked  away,  how- 
ever, from  his  house,  we  met  him,  and  he  appointed  us  to  call 
again  at  four.  Meanwhile  we  went  to  the  Tour  de  Hal, 
where  we  spent  a  couple  hours,  as  usual,  very  agreeably.  On 
our  way  thence  we  turned  into  the  Hotel  Windsor  for  some 
refreshment,  and  there  saw  on  the  mantelpiece  two  very  good 
blue  and  white  bottles  (one  of  them  rase).  The  old  landlady 
said  she  wished  to  sell  them,  but  we  did  not  come  to  any 
conclusion  with  her.  Went  to  M.  Morren's,  where  we  had  a 
real  treat.  His  Oriental  vases  are  no  less  wonderful  than 
beautiful.  He  lent  me  a  number  of  the  Revue  des  deux 

457. 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS   1876 

Mondes  containing  an  article  on  M.  Luce's  Life  of  Bertrand 
du  Guesclin,  which  has  amused  me  a  great  deal. 

5th.  Our  first  visit  on  going  out  this  morning  was  to  the 
Hotel  Windsor,  where  we  gave  the  old  landlady  what  she 
had  asked  for  her  bottles — 20  francs.  Left  them  in  charge  of 
Le  Roy,  who  keeps  for  us  the  beakers  we  have  bought  of  him. 
We  then  went  down  to  old  Genie's,  and  walked  about  till 
dinner-time.  Ivor's  Ball  fixed  for  to-night. 

6th.  Up  at  6.  C.S.  and  I  set  off  on  a  little  expedition  to 
Middelburg,  which  we  reached  by  an  express  train,  without 
other  adventure,  about  2  o'clock,  just  in  time  to  join  the 
table  d'hote  at  the  "  Abdij  ".  The  weather  was  extremely  hot, 
and  C.S.  suffered  from  hay-fever;  yet  we  agreed  that  our  trip 
was  a  most  agreeable  one.  While  we  dined  we  caused  the 
Commissionaire,  Blum,  to  be  summoned,  and  went  the  round 
of  the  shops,  great  and  small,  with  him.  Bal,  the  great  dealer, 
was  now  at  home,  having  returned  from  his  "voyage,"  which 
proves  to  have  been  a  first  visit  to  Paris,  in  company  with  our 
old  friend  Cools.  But  this  "great  dealer"  had  a  very  small 
stock,  and  really  nothing  of  value  or  interest  in  it :  nor  would 
he  be  termed  "great"  anywhere  but  in  good  old  Middelburg. 
We  found  only  a  trifle  with  him ;  the  remains  of  a  splendid  old 
Wedgwood  Basket  at  a  very  small  shop,  and,  at  the  jeweller's 
(Meyer),  where  we  got  so  much  last  time,  nothing.  Before 
returning  to  our  Inn  for  the  evening,  we  looked  into  the 
Church.  It  is  comparatively  modern,  and  the  only  things 
worth  noticing  in  it  are  the  lyth  century  brass  lecterns,  the 
reading-desk  and  the  pulpit.  The  "Abdij"  happened  to  be 
very  full,  so  we  were  not  magnificently  lodged.  I  read  and 
worked  till  nine,  soon  after  which  we  went  to  bed,  rising  at 
six  again  the  following  morning. 

7th.  Took  the  early  express,  9.40.,  and  after  many  delays 
(changing  at  Roosendael  and  douane  at  the  Belgian  station) 

458 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

reached  Antwerp  about  i.  An  intelligent  man  in  the  carrying 
trade  in  the  carriage  with  us ;  and  we  fell  in  with  an  honest 
north-country  Englishman,  who  had  come  over  to  look  after 
some  horses,  with  whom  we  had  a  good  deal  of  agricultural 
talk,  and  whom  we  did  our  best  to  speed  on  his  way.  The 
three  hours  and  a  half  that  we  spent  at  Antwerp  were  spent  in 
looking  over  some  prints  at  Eva  Krug's,  and  in  calling  at  other 
shops.  Tessaro  had  promised  engravings  but  had  found  none, 
nor  was  there  anything  to  buy  elsewhere,  so  we  took  the  express 
train  back  to  Brussels  at  4.40.  and  arrived  there  for  dinner, 
after  which,  very  sleepy  and  rather  warm,  I  lay  down  and 
slept.  Before  leaving  the  subject  of  Middelburg,  which  I  may 
never  see  again,  I  must  note  a  very  curious  old  house  on  the 
Quay  near  the  Dry  Dock,  dated  1 590.  There  are  some  others 
in  the  Langedelft,  etc.,  but  none  so  handsome  as  this.  Also  I 
must  remark  on  the  fragrant  lime-trees,  now  in  full  blossom. 
Some  of  these  flourish  in  the  enclosure  of  the  Abdij,  but  the  largest 
and  finest  of  them  is  the  centre  of  the  Botermarkt — a  noble  tree. 

8th.  A  pleasant  and  quiet  morning  at  needlework  which  I 
am  doing  for  Ivor's  youngest  boy.  We  had  a  short  but  heavy 
thunderstorm  early  in  the  afternoon.  When  it  had  cleared  off, 
we  walked  a  little,  but  only  to  Le  Roy's,  to  deposit  with  him 
our  small  Middelburg  purchases,  till  our  return ;  and  then  on 
to  Genie's — a  sort  of  leave-taking  of  the  old  man.  After 
dinner  I  worked  and  read.  Am  just  finishing  the  first  volume 
of  Macaulay's  History — a  wonderful  book.  I  owe  Edinburgh 
a  grudge  for  having  tempted  him  back  to  politics,  and  so  having 
robbed  us  of  the  completion  of  his  task — the  reign  of  Queen 
Anne. 

i oth.  Left  Brussels  at  10.  for  Lidge,  where  we  spent  some 
two  hours  or  more.  Much  struck  with  Liege  itself,  its 
situation,  and  grand  overhanging  buildings,  and  picturesque 
neighbourhood.  Though  I  had  known  it  before,  I  did  not 

459 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS   1876 

admire  it  so  much  as  now.  Walked  into  the  town,  leaving  maid 
and  luggage  at  the  station.  Found  one  or  two  things  at 
Renard's,  nothing  at  the  other  places;  but  discovered  a  new 
shop — Bougaart's — which  gives  promise  for  the  future,  and 
where  we  bought  a  good  piece  of  cream  ware.  We  had  taken 
a  carriage  to  explore  this  part  of  the  town,  and  so  drove  back 
to  the  station.  Left  Liege  at  3.30.  and,  passing  through 
Aachen  (Aix-la-Chapelle),  duly  arrived  at  Cologne — Hotel 
Disch — where  we  had  a  late  dinner. 

nth.  We  had  thought  to  proceed  on  our  journey  to-day 
and  make  our  Cologne  researches  on  our  way  back.  Finding, 
however,  that  the  Exhibition  of  Art  Treasures  was  already 
open,  we  determined  to  stay  till  to-morrow.  We  were  well  re- 
paid. Went  to  the  Exhibition  after  breakfast.  Disch,  who 
is  one  of  the  greatest  collectors  in  the  town  and  an  exhibitor, 
went  with  us,  and  pointed  out  some  of  the  objects  of  greatest 
interest.  The  Church  plate  is  wonderful ;  also  the  Gres ;  and 
many  other  things  which  it  was  a  great  treat  and  a  great 
lesson  to  see.  After  the  Exhibition  we  went  to  the  shops. 
Since  we  were  last  here  a  family,  Bourgeois,  have  set  up  shops 
at  Cologne ;  they  have  very  fine  things,  but  outrageously  dear. 
Our  old  friend  Dahmen  had  a  quainter  store  than  ever.  We 
saw  with  him  several  things  we  might  have  desired,  but  more 
especially  a  clock  with  a  silver  repousse  face  of  the  i6th 
century,  with  hour-glasses  in  front,  which  revolve  at  intervals 
— the  maker's  name,  Artvig,  London.  It  came  from  a  Con- 
vent at  Fulda.  He  began  by  asking  ^38  for  it.  We  had  got 
a  carriage,  and  we  now  drove  to  some  of  the  principal  Churches, 
etc.  First  to  the  old  Kaufhaus,  with  its  wonderful  Hall 
and  two  good  fireplaces;  a  fine  old  building  (now  used  for 
balls,  etc.)  and  newly  decorated.  Then  to  Sta.  Maria  in 
Capitolio,  where,  besides  all  the  Romanesque  work,  we  espe- 
cially admired  the  Cinquecento  gallery  in  the  Western  entrance, 

460 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

and  the  wooden  doors,  north  transept.  The  Cloisters  have 
been  restored,  and  the  whole  building  is  under  repair.  Passed 
by  the  Rubens  house,  where  Marie  de'  Medici  died,  to  St. 
Peter's  Church,  to  see  the  picture  he  painted  for  it.  The 
Custos  was  absent  so  we  could  get  no  farther  than  the  thres- 
hold, but  near  enough  to  admire  the  font  and  its  grand  old 
cover,  recalling  those  of  Hal  and  Louvain.  Next  to  the 
Apostles'  Church,  past  the  house  with  the  two  horses  looking 
out  of  the  window,  and  romantic  legend  of  the  buried,  living 
lady,  returned  from  the  grave.  So,  by  the  Roman  tower  to 
St.  Gereon's.  All  three  most  interesting  monuments  of  ancient 
times,  and  each  deserving  a  separate  study.  These  Byzantine 
or  Romanesque  churches  are  only  too  beautiful.  I  never 
realised  the  charms  of  Cologne  as  I  did  to-day.  There  re- 
mains a  very  great  deal  to  be  seen — I  hope — at  some  future 
time. 

1 2th.  Up  early.  Old  Dahmen  had  confidently  asserted 
that  a  baker  at  Bruhl  possessed  a  set  of  knife-handles,  so  we 
took  a  train  at  half-past  nine  to  go  and  visit  him.  Spent  some 
time  in  the  Cathedral  on  our  way  to  the  station.  Bruhl  is  out 
half  an  hour's  distance.  On  arriving,  we  walked  into  the 
village,  discovered  our  baker,  and  found  that,  indeed,  he  had 
knives,  and  in  their  old  cases  too,  "  parseme  "  with  fleurs,  etc., 
but  they  were  mounted  in  mother-of-pearl  instead  of  china,  and 
he  wanted  an  enormous  price — ^"15  for  eleven.  So  we  left  him 
and  bent  our  steps  to  the  Chateau  (temp.  Louis  XIV.),  where 
we  spent  some  time  in  the  charming  ground  till  it  was  time  to 
return  to  Cologne.  Although  disappointed  in  the  object  of  our 
visit,  we  were  fully  compensated  by  the  charms  of  the  Chateau, 
its  gardens,  and  allees  ;  the  limes  nearly  over,  but  still  sweet ; 
the  orange  flowers  on  the  terrace  delicious.  By  midday  we 
were  back  at  Cologne.  Went  again  to  old  Dahmen's,  where 
we  purchased  the  coveted  clock  for  30  guineas.  We  paid 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS   1876 

a  deposit  upon  it,  and  are  to  call  for  it  on  our  return  from  our 
more  extended  tour.  Came  back  for  table  d'hote  at  one,  after 
which  we  remained  some  time  within,  and  then  paid  another 
visit  to  the  Exhibition.  Left  Cologne  at  eight  for  Bremen, 
which  we  reached  about  three  in  the  morning.  Hotel  du  Nord 
— very  comfortable.  Got  to  bed  by  4.  and  were  up  again,  well 
rested,  by  ten — charmed  with  Bremen.  All  its  fine  antiquities 
lie  in  a  small  space,  but  they  are  most  remarkable.  Its  Dom, 
with  its  mummy  bodies,  contains  many  interesting  remains, 
especially  a  Romanesque  Font.  We  walked  thence  into  the 
Kunstlerverein,  with  its  extensive  cloisters,  which  have  been 
evidently  part  of  a  Monastery  attached  to  the  Dom.  Delighted 
with  the  Rathhaus — principal  front  1612 — very  fine  indeed — 
grand  old  Hall  above,  with  quaint  pictures  of  the  olden  time, 
and  richly  carved  gallery  and  staircases — grand  old  cellars 
underneath  a  grand  old  Rolandsaule  in  front  of  it.  Having 
explored  all  these  things,  we  went  in  search  of  antiquaries,  and 
with  great  trouble  found  one,  Gries  Meyer,  living  in  Karlstrasse. 
He  had  really  nothing.  We  managed  to  buy  a  print  or  two  from 
him,  but  he  was  a  genial  old  man,  and  we  got  him  to  go  with  us  in 
a  carriage,  and  to  show  us  where  the  other  two  little  dealers  lived. 
Then  we  drove  round  the  town,  the  suburbs  of  which  are  rich 
in  little  detached  houses  and  smiling  gardens.  The  walks  and 
plantations  on  the  old  boulevards  are  lovely.  Bremen  is  a 
very  pretty  town.  We  left  it  at  a  quarter  past  five,  and  in 
about  two  hours  were  in  Hamburg.  Some  German-Americans 
were  in  the  carriage  with  us,  and  it  was  curious  to  hear 
their  impressions  on  returning  to  their  native  country.  Some 
of  them  gloried  in  the  beautiful  things  that  Germany  still 
possesses,  and  in  the  advance  in  prosperity  she  has  made. 
One  of  them,  who  seemed  utterly  disorganised  by  a  long  resi- 
dence in  Texas,  could  tolerate  nothing  that  was  not  strictly 
for  "use",  and  the  Almighty  Dollar.  One  of  them  was 

462 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

quitting  America  after  a  long  residence,  in  disgust  of  his 
public  men.  We  put  up  at  the  Hotel  de  1' Europe,  but  before 
we  ate,  we  went  to  the  Post  Office,  where  I  found  a  nice  letter 
from  Ivor,  and  to  Froeschel's  shop,  where  we  discovered  six 
very  good  Wedgwood  cups  and  saucers. 

1 4th.  Spent  all  the  morning  in  visiting  the  various  curi- 
osity shops,  some  14  in  number.  Considering  how  many  there 
were,  we  did  not  get  very  much — from  Froeschel's  two  Delft 
bottles;  some  cream-ware  baskets,  etc.,  at  Burgman's;  and  a 
silver  money  box  at  Holtzman's.  After  table  d'hdte  (at  four) 
we  went  out  again.  Called  at  Stern's,  where  we  got  three 
very  good  "  Adam  "  pedestals,  and  then  went  for  a  long  and 
most  beautiful  drive  all  round  the  Alstars.  This  gave  us  an 
idea  of  the  wealth  and  comfort  of  the  Hamburg  merchant. 

1 5th.  Took  the  few  articles  we  have  collected  since 
leaving  Brussels  to  Froeschel's  for  him  to  pack  and  send  off, 
addressed  to  Mortlock.  He  promises  that  they  shall  go  by 
Tuesday's  boat.  Then  we  finished  the  shops  we  had  not  yet 
visited.  One  of  them,  Lehmann's,  Kerweide  St.,  is  to  be 
specially  remembered.  It  is  quite  an  old  rag-shop,  but  it 
might  contain  anything.  I  got  there  two  very  good  old  printed 
fans,  one  of  them  commemorating  the  invention  of  the  balloon. 
Left  Hamburg  a  little  before  five,  and  in  two  hours  reached 
Lubeck.  But  our  train  was  a  long  one  and  unusually  detained 
by  a  crush  of  passengers.  Duffeke's  Hotel.  Delighted  with 
the  entrance  to  the  town ;  the  fine  gate  with  its  towers  near  the 
railway  station,  the  curious  buildings  we  passed  going  through 
the  streets.  Walked  about  a  little  in  vain  search  of  something 
like  a  curiosity  shop. 

Sunday,  i6th.  Got  up  to  find  the  town  in  a  high  state  of 
excitement.  There'  was  to  be  a  rifle  competition  outside  of  the 
town,  and  a  procession  of  the  trades  was  to  inaugurate  it.  We 
first  went  to  see  them  assemble  in  the  market-place,  and  then 

463 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 
returned  to  our  Hotel,  from  the  windows  of  which  we  saw  them 
march  past.  In  the  course  of  the  morning  we  spent  some  time 
in  the  Marien  Kirche,  which  possesses  many  objects  of  the 
rarest  interest — a  dance  of  death  (1742) — a  mediaeval  brass 
font — a  sacrament  house — a  magnificent  organ — in  fact  trea- 
sures too  numerous  to  particularise.  There  is  one  of  those 
clocks  with  moving  figures,  in  the  manner  of  those  of  Stras- 
bourg and  of  Alkmaar,  which  I  care  less  about.  The  table 
d'hote  dinner  was  very  early — at  one.  After  it  we  rested 
awhile,  and  then  tried  to  get  a  carriage  that  we  might  drive 
about  and  see  the  environs  of  the  town,  but  we  could  not 
engage  one;  they  would  confine  themselves  to  the  profitable 
occupation  of  taking  parties  to  and  from  the  shooting.  So 
we  walked,  by  which  we  were  the  gainers,  for  we  saw  many 
things  we  should  not  have  seen  else.  Walked  along  the  Brexe- 
strasse,  looked  into  the  very  curious  Church  which  forms  an 
entrance  to  the  Hospice  of  the  Heiligen  Geist;  then  passed 
through  the  grand  old  gateway  to  the  country  beyond. 
Thousands  were  hurrying,  gathered  from  all  parts  of  the 
neighbourhood,  in  the  same  direction,  and  we  soon  found  our- 
selves in  an  enormous  Fair — booths,  cafe^s,  shows,  etc.,  in 
profusion,  an  animated  sight,  which  crowds  of  people  seemed 
to  be  thoroughly  enjoying.  After  leaving  the  Fair,  we  went 
to  look  on  for  a  short  time  at  the  rifle  shooting,  and  then 
walked  for  a  very  long  way — probably  a  couple  of  miles — 
along  the  beautiful  lime  avenue,  now  in  fullest  flower,  leading 
to  Travemunde. 

1 7th.  Up  soon  after  six,  and  writing  here.  After  break- 
fast went  to  see  an  amateur,  who  lives  nearly  opposite  the 
Hotel — a  banker  called  Cohn.  He  has  not  many  things,  but 
seems  an  enthusiast  in  his  line.  He  showed  me  what  interested 
me  very  much — some  tiles  which  he  had  made  from  Cinque- 
cento  Matrices  in  his  possession,  which  had  been  found  in 

464 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

making  excavations  in  the  town.  He  took  us  to  the  local 
Museum  of  antiquities.  Then  we  paid  a  visit  to  the  Schiffer- 
Gesellschaft,  which  is  now  used  as  a  Restaurant,  and  retains  all 
its  ancient  carvings,  seats,  and  ornaments.  Very  near  it  is  the 
Kaufleute's  Building,  with  its  beautiful  rooms,  still  fitted  up  as 
in  1550  and  1600 — it  is  needless  to  say  that  I  was  delighted. 
Dinner  at  one — walked  into  the  town — at  Metz's,  Marlitz 
Grube,  met  with  a  nice  old  Cinquecento  box  which  will  clean 
up  beautifully  when  we  get  it  to  England.  Showed  Mr.  Cohn 
a  few  of  the  trifles  we  happened  to  have  with  us,  then  managed 
with  difficulty  to  get  a  carriage,  intending  to  have  a  long  drive, 
for  the  weather  was  very  hot,  but  our  driver,  before  long? 
pleaded  indisposition,  so  we  were  forced  to  walk  instead. 
Went  over  the  Dom  brasses — one,  of  two  Bishops,  another  in 
highest  relief  (life  size),  the  finest  thing  of  the  kind  I  ever  saw. 
Then  there  is  the  Font,  the  enormous  Rood  with  accompanying 
figures,  and,  lastly,  the  celebrated  Memling  picture.  We  spent 
about  an  hour  at  the  Dom,  and  then  took  our  Macaulay,  and, 
each  armed  with  a  volume,  went  and  sat  among  the  fragrant 
limes  on  the  mounds  beyond  the  railway.  Walked  home  by 
the  side  of  the  town  beyond  the  Dom,  through  the  grand 
avenue  and  woods  that  encircle  this  most  lovely  spot.  Lubeck 
exceeds  in  beauty  and  interest  anything  of  which  I  could  have 
formed  any  notion.  Besides  the  "  Lions  "  of  the  place,  it  is 
full  of  relics  of  the  Middle  Ages — Cinquecento  facades,  stepped 
gables,  and  all  the  most  picturesque  combinations  imaginable — 
very  different  from  Hamburg.  There  everything  that  pretends 
to  be  good  is  new ;  the  only  portions  which  the  conflagration 
spared  are  ugly  and  squalid,  and  look  like  the  receptacles  of 
dirt,  disease,  and  demoralisation.  I  should  add  one  criticism : 
Lubeck  is  built  almost  entirely  of  brick,  which  is  a  material  ill 
adapted  to  ecclesiastical  architecture ;  the  immense  height  of 
their  churches,  without  light  and  shade,  gives  them  rather  a 
I  465  2  G 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 

paste-boardy  effect — they  seem  to  want  solidity.  Nothing  can 
be  more  fitting  for  secular  buildings  than  good,  rich,  well- 
moulded  brick,  with  all  its  ornaments  of  arabesque,  etc.,  but 
for  large,  severe  edifices  it  is  certainly  out  of  place.  Yet  what 
could  the  poor  Lubeck  people  do  if  they  had  no  other  material  ? 
I  should  answer  that  they  should  have  been  less  ambitious  as 
to  size,  and  have  bestowed  more  care  on  symmetry  and  orna- 
mentation. But  I  am  very  bold  in  my  ignorance. 

1 8th.  Up  very  early,  and  at  the  railway  station  a  good 
half-hour  before  the  train  started ;  so  I  sat  there  and  worked. 
We  came  on  to  Stettin ;  had  a  good  journey,  but  through  an 
uninteresting  country.  Arrived  before  five — Hotel  Drei 
Kronen — walked  about  for  an  hour,  went  on  to  the  Quai, 
and  made  fruitless  researches  for  curiosity  shops.  Dined  in 
an  arbour  after  six,  then  came  up  to  our  room,  and  sat  at  an 
open  window,  working,  till  dark — half-past  eight. 

1 9th.  Breakfasted  again  in  our  arbour,  and  C.S.  made  an 
attempt  to  get  into  the  Dom,  where  we  heard  that  there  were  to 
be  seen  the  tombs  of  some  Dukes  of  Pomerania.  He  did  not 
succeed,  not  being  able  to  find  the  Sacristan.  It  rained  then, 
and  continued  to  rain  all  day,  till  at  last,  when  we  reached 
Dantzig,  there  was  a  regular  torrent.  We  had  a  very  com- 
fortable journey,  in  an  airy,  quiet  carriage,  and  we  read  a  great 
deal.  But  the  country  was  not  amusing  until  we  got  near  to 
the  City,  when  we  had  some  peeps  of  the  Baltic.  The  time  it 
occupied  was  about  nine  hours.  Put  up  at  the  Englisches  Haus, 
where  we  had  good  apartments,  but  high  up,  as  they  were  very 
full. 

2oth.  Waking  at  4.,  I  read  for  a  long  time,  which  I  always 
enjoy  in  the  summer  early  light.  But  this  is  not  conducive  to 
activity,  as  I  generally  fall  asleep  again  when  I  ought  to  be 
getting  up.  The  weather  cleared  a  little  about  noon,  and 
presently  we  went  out.  Took  a  closed  carnage  and  called  upon 

466 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

a  "  Commission  Dealer  "  called  Cohn,  to  whom  the  intelligent 
porter  directed  us.  We  found  a  few  unimportant  specimens  of 
English  ware,  etc.,  with  him  and  at  a  small  shop  he  took  us  to. 
He  afterwards  accompanied  us  about  the  town  and  showed  us 
some  of  the  relics  of  antiquity,  rooms  fitted  up  with  Cinque- 
cento  panels,  old  doorways  and  doors,  in  fact  several  things  in 
private  houses,  which  we  should  not  have  suspected  without  his 
aid.  We  also  went  into  the  Stadthaus,  a  most  quaint  old 
building,  i6th  cent. — its  old  fittings  remaining,  good  fireplace, 
charming  old  winding  staircase,  reminding  us  somewhat  of  that 
to  the  Gallery  of  the  Bremen  Rathhaus.  More  interesting  was 
the  Artus-Hof — costume  pictures  of  the  period  on  the  walls — 
wonderful  group  of  painted  statuary,  life  size,  representing 
Acteon,  etc. — most  particularly  the  stove,  formed  of  coloured 
tiles,  many  of  them  heads,  the  finest  thing  of  the  kind  I  ever 
saw,  and  even  exceeding  in  rarity  the  green-tiled  stove  of  the 
Kaufleute-Haus  at  Lubeck,  with  which  I  had  been  so  much 
pleased.  By  this  time  the  rain  had  entirely  ceased  and  the 
afternoon  was  lovely.  We  parted  from  Mr.  Cohn;  got  an 
open  carriage  and  drove  about  the  town,  and  in  and  out  of  the 
gates,  so  as  to  get  a  complete  idea  of  the  locality.  The  group- 
ing of  the  fine  old  buildings  and  spires  from  some  of  the  points 
of  view,  rising  above  the  ramparts,  most  striking,  reminding 
us  of  our  little  Berlin  enamel  of  the  flight  of  Stanislaus  "  De 
Dantzig  a  Bar".  After  a  most  delightful  drive  of  two  hours, 
which  we  terminated  by  going  through  the  quartier  of  grand 
old  warehouses,  we  returned  to  a  late  dinner. 

2 1 st.  Old  Cohn  presented  himself  again  at  an  early  hour; 
he  is  a  worthy  creature,  but  not  bright.  He  took  us  to  see  an 
amateur  "  qui  vend ".  I  think  the  name  was  Koemarin. 
This  gentleman  had  but  few  things.  We  fancied  a  Delft  vase 
but  his  price  was  absurd.  We  had  to  make  arrangements  for 
sending  away  to  England  the  few  pieces  we  had  bought  at 

467 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 
Dantzig,  so  we  went  to  the  office  of  the  Steam  Packet,  and 
finding  that  a  boat  was  to  sail  on  the  morrow,  fixed  to  send 
our  box  by  that  opportunity.  We  had  to  go  to  meet  the 
captain  of  the  steamer  on  Change  at  half-past  twelve,  so  I 
had  an  opportunity  of  seeing  the  dear  old  Artus-Hof  again. 
Visited  the  town  Museum,  where  many  fragments  of  the  Cinque- 
cento  houses  of  the  Langestrasse  have  been  treasured.  Of 
course  they  are  interesting  and  more  deserving  of  being 
stored  and  preserved,  but  an  old  picture  of  Dantzig  itself,  as 
it  was  300  years  ago,  pleased  us  most  of  all  we  saw.  Went 
to  the  Dom — wonderful  assortment  of  old  ecclesiastical  gar- 
ments, etc. — some  woven — some  of  needlework — some  of  them 
decorated  with  woven  inscriptions  in  Oriental  characters.  The 
great  Lion  is  the  Memling  picture,  which  I  like  less  than  that 
at  the  Dom  at  Lubeck.  The  "Retablo"  over  the  High  Altar 
(the  surrounding  fittings  are  modern)  is  magnificent — surpasses 
anything  of  the  kind  I  ever  saw.  We  drove  to  the  Chateau, 
now  inhabited  by  a  Princess  of  the  Hohenzollern  family.  The 
gardens  are  open  to  the  public,  and  we  walked  about  them 
for  some  time.  They  are  very  pretty,  but  there  is  so  much 
water  introduced  into  them  that  they  have  the  effect  of  being 
damp.  One  thing  was  very  beautiful.  A  broad  band  of 
water,  lined  on  each  side  by  bocages  of  trees,  and  terminating 
in  a  view  of  the  Baltic.  When  we  left  the  garden  we  went 
into  the  Church,  which  is  Early,  of  Cistercian  date,  very  large, 
but  has  been  cruelly  spoilt  by  "  improvements".  While  there 
the  clock  struck  eight,  and  warned  us  to  return.  We  had  a 
beautiful  drive  back  under  the  limes,  but  did  not  arrive  till 
after  nine.  As  for  the  limes  of  Dantzig,  they  are  not  so  fine 
as  those  about  Lubeck,  but  are  evidently  of  a  later  growth, 
those  near  the  town  especially. 

22nd.    Up  at  six.    Old  Cohn  had  promised  us  to  see  another 
amateur  before   we    left   Dantzig.      However,   the    amateur 

468 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

proved  to  be  out  of  town,  but  we  were  well  repaid  for  our  early 
rising  by  a  little  walk  on  the  quay,  which,  with  its  markets, 
was  all  bustle  and  activity.  We  got  a  sufficient  idea,  having 
seen  it  from  this  side,  of  the  scheme  of  the  city.  Its  fortifica- 
tions are  wonderful,  its  public  buildings  most  remarkable,  and 
its  streets  full  of  houses  bearing  traces  of  the  Cinquecento 
period.  Jewelled  Gothic,  as  we  should  call  it,  seems  to  have 
come  in  very  early  here,  say  at  the  latter  half  of  the  i6th 
century,  and  mingles  largely  with  German  Renaissance,  which 
is  less  pure  than  in  France  and  Italy.  Left  Dantzig  with  a 
lingering  feeling  of  regret;  I  think  I  should  have  liked  to 
explore  it  further.  I  have  desired  to  see  it  for  many  years, 
and  find  it  grander  even  than  I  expected;  moreover,  it  is  a 
place  which  grows  upon  one,  as  one  becomes  acquainted  with 
its  details.  Train  started  a  little  before  1 1.  Changed  carriages 
at  Dirschau,  where  there  is  a  wonderful  bridge  over  the  Vistula, 
which  I  have  already  crossed  twice  (and  certainly  never  expected 
to  see  again)  in  going  to  and  from  Konigsberg  to  nurse  Ivor 
with  scarlet  fever  in  1862.  All  the  sorrow  that  followed  that 
journey  returned  vividly  to  my  mind.  [Lady  Charlotte  alludes 
here  to  the  death  of  her  fourth  son,  Augustus  F.  Guest,  who 
died  at  Canford  soon  after  leaving  Cambridge,  at  the  early 
age  of  21.]  We  dined  at  Kreuz  and  afterwards  went  on  to 
Posen.  All  the  other  trains  between  Kreuz  and  Posen  take 
two  hours,  but  the  one  we  travelled  by  took  four,  and 
we  did  not  arrive  till  half-past  nine,  but  it  was  a  quiet  pleasant 
journey,  through  a  flat,  dull  country.  Hotel  de  Rome  very 
good. 

23rd.  A  two  hours'  drive  from  half-past  eleven  to  half- 
past  one.  Went  into  the  Cinquecento  Stadthaus,  where  are 
two  very  fine  original  ceilings  about  1550.  Then  to  the  Dom, 
a  modernised  building,  but  containing  some  of  the  finest  brasses 
(end  of  1 5th  century),  and  grandest  old  sculptured  tombs  of 

469 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 

Bishops,  etc.  (the  best  are  of  the  i6th  century),  that  we  have 
seen  anywhere.  One  of  these  recumbent  prelates  (Adam 
Kornaski  of  Korilino)  boasts  on  his  monument  of  having 
fetched  in  Henry  III.  to  reign  over  Poland.  Posen  is  even 
worse  off  than  Dantzig  in  respect  to  "antiquars".  But  what 
treasures  Dantzig  must  have  had  for  a  collector,  and  must 
have  still,  if  one  had  but  time  to  reside  awhile  and  follow  it 
up.  Left  Posen  by  a  four  o'clock  train,  the  sun  very  hot,  the 
carriages  rather  crowded,  the  country  we  passed  through  flat 
and  uninteresting;  but  the  journey  was  far  from  being  un- 
pleasant, beguiled  as  it  was  by  Macaulay's  Siege  of  Londonderry ; 
besides  I  like  the  heat  and  enjoy  a  railway !  As  we  neared 
Breslau,  I  spied  a  mountain  in  the  far  distance  across  the  level 
plain — a  young  moon  rising.  Before  nine  we  were  comfortably 
installed  in  the  "  Goldene  Ganz  ",  at  Breslau,  which  gave  me 
an  opportunity  of  doing  some  writing  here  before  going  to 
bed ;  and  I  have  been  up  writing  since  six  this  morning. 

24th.  This  has  been  a  busy  day.  Up  writing  at  six,  and 
out  before  1 1 .  First  we  went  on  foot,  and  tried  to  make  out 
the  curiosity  shops.  There  is  only  one  good  one — Altmann's, 
where  we  got  one  or  two  things :  but  at  Mackauer's  we  chanced 
to  find  some  little  Wedgwood  cups  and  saucers,  with  traces  of 
their  gilding  remaining  on  them,  and,  what  was  rarer,  a  marked 
Wedgwood  spoon  in  each.  We  returned  to  our  Inn  for  dinner 
at  half-past  one,  and  then  went  out  again  into  the  Elizabeth 
Church,  where  I  saw  a  fine  Sacrament  house,  the  third  I  have 
met  with ;  the  others  being  at  the  Dom,  Lubeck,  and  the  Dom 
Dantzig.  At  four  we  took  an  open  carriage;  went  to  the 
Dom,  where  a  sprightly  young  verger  in  a  scarlet  robe  showed 
us  everything  very  intelligently.  Luckily  he  had  the  keys  of 
the  Altar  picture,  which  he  was  able  to  open,  so  as  to  show  us 
the  silver  figures  that  it  concealed.  The  Dom  possesses  fine 
tombs  and  beautiful  brasses;  indeed,  the  brasses,  in  highest 

470 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

relief,  of  Breslau  and  Posen  are  beyond  all  praise  (that  of  the 
Bishop  here  is  by  Peter  Vischer,  1496).  It  boasts  also  a 
picture  by  Lucas  Cranach.  We  next  went  to  the  Kreuzkirche 
— more  brasses,  and  a  life-sized  effigy  of  the  founder,  coloured ; 
and  a  mediaeval  font.  Both  the  Dom  and  the  Kreuzkirche 
have  been  barbarously  treated  from  time  to  time,  but  are 
interesting.  The  Church  "on  the  Sand"  is  much  later,  almost 
flamboyant,  and  I  cared  little  for  it.  We  went  on  to  the 
Rathhaus,  where  first  we  visited  the  cellars,  and  then  went 
into  the  Flirstensaal.  One  door  leading  from  it  to  the  Gericht 
Chamber  (where  judgment  was  wont  to  be  pronounced)  charmed 
me,  surmounted,  in  rich  colours,  with  the  arms  of  the  town» 
the  district,  etc.  In  the  Furstensaal  is  a  clock  with  moving 
hour-glasses,  something  in  the  manner  of  that  we  have  bought 
at  Cologne.  This  Rathhaus  is  externally  most  quaint  and 
beautiful,  and  all  the  "Ring"  surrounding  it  is  embellished 
with  curious  old  houses,  one  of  them  painted  all  over  with  full- 
lengths  of  Kings  and  Emperors,  and  other  devices.  Altogether 
this  is  a  most  remarkable  spot,  and  full  of  historical  interest. 
We  drove  about,  round  the  town  by  the  boulevards,  past  the 
University,  etc.,  and  returned  about  eight.  It  was  no  easy 
matter  to  get  a  very  stupid  driver  to  understand  that  we  did 
not  want  to  keep  within  the  narrow  streets,  which  was  his  idea 
of  showing  us  the  town. 

25th.  Before  leaving  Breslau  to-day,  we  walked  back  to 
Altmann's  to  get  a  little  Cinquecento  enamelled  flacon  I  had 
seen  there  and  coveted.  I  fancy  it  is  one  of  those  with  a 
double  side,  which  was  in  those  days  used  for  poisonous 
scents.  We  also  went  to  the  bookseller's,  and  laid  in  a  stock 
of  Tauchnitzes,  which  came  much  into  request  during  the  day's 
journey.  Our  train  started  at  12.45.  The  first  part  of  the  way 
was  monotonous  enough,  but  we  had  to  change  carriages  at 
Kohlfurt,  and  again  at  Gorlitz;  from  this  latter  point  the 

471 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 
country  became  very  beautiful.  It  was  a  relief  to  be  once 
more  in  an  undulating  tract,  and  in  a  stone  district.  I  am 
tired  of  the  endless  sandy  places  with  their  dust,  and  the  flat 
brick  edifices,  which,  when  large,  lack  expression.  It  was  such 
a  hot  and  lovely  afternoon.  The  journey  was  delightful,  and 
we  both  read  a  great  deal  of  Macaulay.  Reached  Dresden 
between  eight  and  nine:  tried  to  get  rooms  at  the  "  Bellevue", 
whither  we  had  been  strongly  recommended,  but  were  not 
sorry  when  we  found  that  it  was  too  full  to  accommodate  us 
comfortably.  So  we  were  obliged  to  have  recourse  to  our  old 
friend  the  "Victoria",  where  we  are,  as  we  always  have  been, 
as  well  off  as  possible. 

26th.  Breakfasted,  as  in  the  old  times,  in  the  garden;  I 
could  hardly  believe  that  it  is  seven  years  since  I  was  in 
Dresden  last.  Went  to  the  shops — found  very  little  indeed— 
I  might  say,  nothing.  Froeschel,  of  Hamburg,  was  there 
buying  right  and  left.  One  or  two  trifling  bits  of  Wedgwood, 
and  a  few  Delft  knife-handles  were  the  only  rewards  we  met 
with  for  a  long  walk  and  drive.  Table  d'hote  at  half-past 
four.  In  the  evening  we  took  a  long  drive.  First,  over  the 
bridge  to  the  Neuestadt,  and  so  up  the  hill  through  villas 
and  trees,  passing  the  spot  of  that  in  which  Schiller  lived 
when  he  wrote  his  Don  Carlos. 

27th.  Up  early.  Froeschel  came  to  see  us,  but  brought 
no  goods.  Also  came  old  Moritz  Meyer,  looking  exactly  as  he 
did  seven  years  since;  he  has  now  few  things  to  sell,  and 
nothing  good.  Went  to  the  "  Grime  Gewolbe  ",  where  we  spent 
a  pleasant  hour,  more  than  ever  impressed  with  the  beauty 
of  all  the  fine  workmanship  we  saw.  Then  to  the  Picture 
Gallery.  The  heat  to-day  has  been  intense.  We  sauntered 
out  after  dinner,  looked  again  over  Mile.  Elf's  and  Salomons' 
stocks,  and  then  went  on  to  the  Briihl  Terrace.  [The  name 
of  the  curious  Minister  of  Augustus  III.  of  Saxony,  who  was 

472 


CHOCOLATE    CUP    WITH    TWO    HANDLES,    OX    A  STAND    OF    A    PATTERN    SOMETIMES    CALLED   TREMBLEUSE. 

THE     DECORATION      IS     PAINTED     OVER     GLAZE     IN      BLACK,     THERE     IS    ALSO    SOME     GOLD     ORNAMENT. 

VARIOUS    AUTHORITIES    HAVE    CONSIDERED    THE    PIECE    TO    BE    EITHER    BRISTOL    OR    WORCESTER.       THE 

ANNOTATOR    CONSIDERS    IT   TO    BE    MEISSEN    OF   THE    MIDDLE    XVIII    CENTURY 

The  Countess  of  Bcssborougli  s  Collection 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

famous,  among  other  things,  for  his  directorship  of  the  factory 
of  Meissen  porcelain.  His  family  still  holds  hundreds  of  fine 
samples  of  his  period.]  We  sat  awhile  on  the  Terrace;  a 
band  of  music  was  playing  in  one  of  the  gardens  on  the  oppo- 
site side  of  the  river;  nothing  could  be  more  enjoyable.  We 
lingered  there  a  long  time,  watching  the  boats  and  the  rafts. 
Presently  a  little  hot  rain  fell  and  we  were  moving  homewards, 
when  we  were  accosted  by  the  Sterns  of  Hamburg,  who  kept 
us  talking  about  curiosities  and  their  trade  some  time  longer. 
It  was  past  nine  when  we  got  back. 

28th.  Stern  (the  one  who  lives  in  Schwerin)  came  to  see 
us  while  we  were  at  breakfast.  He  told  us  that  he  had  bought 
part  of  the  interior  fittings  of  the  Church  at  Meissen,  which  he 
now  wanted  to  sell.  He  told  us  that  it  was  in  course  of  being 
erected  in  the  Museum  of  the  Grosser  Garten,  so  we  promised 
to  meet  him  there  to  look  at  it,  after  1 2.  o'clock.  In  the  mean- 
time we  went  out  to  some  shops.  At  Salomons'  we  bought  a 
charming  Battersea  enamel  box,  formed  as  a  parrot  sitting 
among  fruit.  It  cost  ^6,  which  is  a  good  deal  of  money  to 
spend,  but  would  not  Boasberg  have  made  us  pay  more  than 
double  for  it?  We  tried  to  make  out  some  other  shops,  the 
names  of  which  were  in  the  "Livre  d'adresses",  but  failed. 
Then  off  to  the  Grosser  Garten,  which  looked  very  bright  with 
its  beds  of  varied  flowers.  Stern  was  there,  ready  to  receive 
us,  and  showed  us  his  property.  It  consisted  of  an  Altar  of 
the  1 7th  cent,  in  bad  taste  and  of  a  bad  period — accompanied 
by  various  figures  of  Saints,  carved  in  wood.  We  did  not 
like  it  at  all,  but  were  glad  of  the  introduction  it  had  afforded 
us  to  this  Museum,  with  which  we  were  previously  unac- 
quainted, and  where  we  saw  some  most  interesting  relics — 
chiefly  ecclesiastical — of  former  times.  Returning  to  town,  we 
called  at  Mile.  Elf's.  We  bought  of  her  a  pipe  of  Wedgwood's 
black  basalt  formed  as  a  classical  head — very  fine  and  rare ; 

473 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 

also  some  Wedgwood  plates  with  gilded  edges,  etc.  We  tried 
to  find  some  English  mezzotints  at  Geller's  print-shop,  but  in 
vain.  Came  in  and  packed  up  before  the  four  o'clock  dinner, 
immediately  after  which  we  set  out  to  the  railway  and  so  left 
Dresden.  Travelled  all  next  night  from  six  in  the  evening  to 
eight  in  the  morning,  including,  however,  a  stop  of  two  hours 
at  Leipsic,  which  was  provoking.  The  bridge  over  the  Elbe 
at  Riesa  having  been  broken  down  by  the  snow  last  winter, 
and  not  yet  repaired,  we  had  to  cross  in  steamers,  which  caused 
another  delay.  Reached  Frankfort. 

2 Qth.  The  New  Hotel  was  quite  full,  so  we  put  up  for  the 
day  at  the  Hotel  du  Nord,  which  seems  good.  After  getting 
some  breakfast  we  went  out.  Being  Saturday,  some  of  the 
Frankfort  shops  were  closed,  and  the  others  were  but  ill  pro- 
vided. Lowenstein  has  moved  into  grand  quarters,  and  has 
grand-looking  objects,  but  nothing  that  I  desired  or  thought 
good,  except  some  Chelsea  seals,  the  price  of  which  was 
exorbitant — he  asked  ^4.  10.  for  one!  We  dined  and  then 
set  out  again,  my  only  gratification  in  Frankfort  being  that  of 
seeing  the  fine  old  Eschenheimer  Tower  again.  We  had  been 
misinformed  by  the  porter  of  the  Hotel  about  the  time  of  the 
train  starting,  so  again  we  had  to  wait  more  than  hour  at  the 
station ;  however,  we  reached  Maintz,  and  I  was  in  bed  at  the 
Rheinischer  Hof  by  10.  o'clock. 

3Oth.  Took  the  Rhine  steamer  at  nine — the  weat 
glorious.  The  sky  was  so  clear  that  we  could  see  the  Drachen- 
fels  perfectly  from  Cologne.  I  now  understand  that  it  was 
those  mountains  that  we  saw  from  Brlihl  on  the  I2th.  Some 
pleasant  people,  natives  of  Leeuwarden  and  cousins  of  Alma 
Tadema,  on  board  the  steamer,  with  whom  we  talked  about 
Holland.  Dined  on  board  just  after  leaving  Coblentz. 
Deposited  our  luggage  at  Disch's  H6tel  at  Cologne,  and  read 
the  papers  in  the  garden.  Later  we  strolled  out  by  the  water 

474 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

side.  As  we  returned,  near  the  bridge,  we  saw  the  Crown 
Prince  and  Princess  drive  by.  [The  late  Emperor  and  Empress 
Frederick.]  They  had  been  on  the  other  side,  I  suppose  to 
the  rifle  shooting.  All  Germany  seems  full  of  these  exhibi- 
tions. There  was  one  at  Cologne  to-day,  and  one  at  Maintz, 
for  which  the  latter  town  was  all  dressed  out  with  flags. 

3 1 st.  Went  to  the  "Exposition",  and  to  old  Dahmen's  to 
claim  and  pay  for  our  clock  (see  the  nth).  Went  on  in  the 
afternoon  to  Aachen,  where  we  arrived  late,  and  slept. 

AUGUST  1876 

LIEGE  :  OSTEND 

August  ist.  Saw  all  the  treasures  and  enjoyed  the  Cathe- 
dral immensely.  Also  went  to  the  Town  Hall,  and  drove 
about  generally.  Found  an  old  Banker,  Mr.  Florsheim,  who 
had  a  charming  assortment  of  odds  and  ends.  We  bought 
several  things  from  him.  In  the  afternoon  went  on  to  Liege. 

2nd.  A  great  hunt  among  the  shops  in  the  morning,  and 
went  to  see  a  fine  collection,  belonging  to  M.  Thermes,  a  true 
amateur.  In  the  evening  to  Brussels,  where  we  spent  all  the 
next  day. 

3rd.  Got  the  china  we  had  left  with  Le  Roy,  gave  a  last 
look  through  all  the  shops,  and  at  Slaes'  indulged  ourselves 
in  the  purchase  of  a  magnificent  cruche,  with  the  Arms,  etc.,  of 
Queen  Elizabeth,  and  date  1594. 

Friday  4th.  With  this  and  other  treasures,  we  set  out  home- 
wards, on  Friday  morning,  and  reached  London,  via  Ostend, 
about  six  o'clock.  The  weather  had  suddenly  changed,  and  the 
passage  was  not  quite  smooth;  but  I  was  well.  Put  up  at 
Garland's  Hotel,  our  own  house  being  still  occupied  by 
tenants. 


475 


NOTES  CERAMIC 

NOVEMBER  TO  DECEMBER  1876 
BRUGES  :  GHENT  :  BRUSSELS  :  TOURNAI  :  ANTWERP  :  THE 

HAGUE  :  GOUDA  :  DELFT  :  ROTTERDAM  :  PARIS 

November  1876. 

Thursday,  2nd.  Left  London  by  the  7.40  train  from  Charing 
Cross.  It  was  rather  a  scramble  at  last  to  get  away.  We  had 
returned  to  England  from  our  summer  tour  on  the  4th  of 
August,  and  had  contemplated  setting  off  again  for  the  Conti- 
nent in  the  course  of  a  month  or  six  weeks,  but  one  thing  after 
another  detained  us  from  day  to  day.  At  length  every  arrange- 
ment having  been  made,  and  Ivor  having  come,  the  preceding 
evening,  to  our  Hotel,  to  gladden  C.S.'s  mind  about  the  Muni- 
cipal Elections,  there  seemed  no  reason  why  we  should  not 
depart  comfortably.  But  it  so  happened  that  we  were  not 
called  in  the  morning,  and  that  I  did  not  wake  till  the 
Westminster  clock  was  striking  6.  However,  we  made 
an  effort  and  succeeded.  The  weather,  as  we  reached 
Dover,  looked  lovely.  We  had  a  good  passage  to  Ostend, 
though  the  sea  was  not  so  calm  as  we  expected,  owing 
to  a  gale  of  the  previous  day.  I  lay  down  very  quiet  and 
comfortable  till,  in  four  hours,  we  landed.  At  3.  the  train 
brought  us  on  to  Bruges.  Most  of  the  day  the  sun  had  been 
brilliant,  but  as  we  neared  the  Belgian  coast  the  weather  be- 
came darker,  and  the  sky  was  as  leaden  as  if  we  had  been  in 
our  own  country.  We  took  a  little  walk  about  the  town  to 
warm  ourselves  (for  it  was  very  cold)  before  dinner.  Bruges 

476 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

did  not  look  its  best  in  this  grey  atmosphere,  and  we  both 
seemed  depressed,  probably  from  the  hurry  and  fatigue  of  the 
preparations,  the  journey  itself  having  been  as  easy  as  possible. 
Looked  in  upon  the  Renders.  Their  prices  are  beyond  those 
of  England,  and  they  have  nothing  very  good.  But  we  bought 
an  English  candlestick  of  rather  a  pretty  model.  An  agreeable 
American  and  his  wife  at  the  table  d'hote,  who  had  been 
travelling  through  Russia,  Holland,  etc.  I  should  like  here  to 
record  the  various  engagements  which  kept  us  in  England  so 
much  longer  than  we  expected.  First  of  all,  having  landed  on 
the  4th  (August),  we  found  that  we  could  not  execute  all  our 
little  shoppings,  and  other  commissions  in  town  until  the 
following  Tuesday  (the  8th),  ist,  because  the  Saturday  is  but 
a  half-day ;  2nd,  because  the  Monday  was  the  National  Holiday 
and  every  shop  was  closed.  C.S.  took  advantage  of  it  to  go 
and  see  his  brother  Brymer  at  Aldershot.  It  ended  in  our 
remaining  in  town  till  the  Qth  (Wednesday).  Then  we  went  to 
Canford.  The  Conservative  Fete  took  place  on  the  lyth 
(Thursday).  We  did  not  return  to  town  till  Saturday,  26th, 
but  intended  to  leave  again  for  the  Continent  as  soon  as 
Blanche  was  convalescent.  But  her  confinement  did  not  take 
place  till  Saturday,  September  9th,  all  which  time  we  stayed  in 
London  with  only  the  break  of  our  little  trip  to  Oxford  and 
back  on  2nd  of  September,  which  was  very  agreeable.  We 
found  there  three  good  specimens  of  printed  ware  to  add  to 
the  collection,  and  on  our  way  back  bought  a  charming 
Chelsea  glass  flacon  at  Kara's.  Meanwhile,  on  Wednesday  or 
Thursday  the  6th  or  yth,  I  was  seized  with  a  sudden  illness,  a 
kind  of  chill,  which  laid  me  up  for  some  days,  and  left  me  very 
weak.  Still,  by  the  end  of  the  month  we  thought  to  get  away, 
when,  behold,  there  came  a  letter  from  Cornelia,  saying  that 
the  Poole  Conservative  dinner  was  to  take  place  about  the  i  Qth 
of  October,  and  praying  C.S.  to  stay  for  it.  Here  therefore 

477 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS   1876 

was  another  occasion  for  delay.  We  did  not  set  out  on  our 
journey,  but  C.S.  was  prevented  from  attending  the  dinner  by 
the  sudden  death  of  his  brother  William,  which  took  place,  and 
was  announced  to  him  by  telegram,  on  Wednesday  Oct.  4th. 
This  took  him  over  to  Ireland  the  same  night,  and  there  he 
stayed  ten  days,  stopping  to  look  through  the  Dublin  shops 
on  his  way  back,  but  finding  them  very  dear  and  unprofitable. 
In  the  meantime  I  joined  Maria  at  Bournemouth  for  a  little 
change  after  my  illness  on  Saturday  the  7th;  and  on  the 
following  Friday,  I3th,  went  to  see  Merthyr  at  Fifehead,  and 
remained  with  him  till  Tuesday,  i  7th.  In  the  interval  between 
my  illness  and  C.S.'s  journey  to  Ireland,  we  had  a  fortnight's 
visit  from  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Glyn,  and  we  had  read  over  the 
Mabinogion  [Lady  C.S.'s  translation  of  Morte  Arthur  from  the 
Welsh],  and  revised  it  for  a  second  edition.  Although  C.S.  did 
not  go  to  the  dinner  he  was  very  much  occupied,  and  we  stayed 
on  to  see  Ivor  on  his  way  to  it  from  Scotland  on  the  2oth  and 
2 1  st.  He  was  in  town  again  on  the  following  Tuesday,  all 
having  passed  off  to  his  satisfaction :  and  now  we  prepared  to 
wind  up  some  ceramic  transactions  for  ourselves  and  for  him, 
and  to  start  at  the  end  of  the  week.  But  we  were  pressed  to 
go  and  meet  him  and  Cornelia  at  Blenheim,  and  as  more 
important  business  seemed  then  in  view,  we  once  more  put  off 
our  tour,  and  went  down  to  Blenheim  on  Saturday  the  28th. 
All  the  china  is  now  arranged  there,  and  it  looks  magnificent ; 
the  place  itself  was  glorious  in  the  autumn  colouring.  They 
go  to  Ireland  (the  Duke  having  accepted  the  Viceroyalty) 
[George  Charles,  the  8th  Duke  of  Marlborough,  the  grand- 
father of  the  present  duke]  at  the  beginning  of  the  year,  and 
I  shall  probably  never  see  it  again.  This  last  impression  of 
it  was  very  grand,  but,  under  all  the  family  circumstances, 
very  melancholy.  We  returned  to  town  on  Tuesday  the  2ist. 
I  should  have  liked  to  start  off  on  our  foreign  journey  the  very 

478 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

next  day,  but  besides  that  there  were  some  matters  still  to 
finish  in  town,  the  Poole  Municipal  Election  was  still  pending, 
and  C.S.  could  not  go  till  he  knew  the  result.  Fortunately, 
on  Wednesday  evening,  Ivor  was  able  to  come  and  tell  him  that 
it  had  resulted  as  we  desired,  and  so  there  seemed  no  further 
impediment  to  our  departure,  which  we  duly  achieved  on  the 
following  (Thursday)  morning,  though  our  efforts  were  nearly 
frustrated  at  the  last  moment,  as  above  related.  After  all  it 
was  fortunate  we  did  not  start  on  the  previous  day,  as  we 
thereby  escaped  a  gale  in  the  Channel. 

3rd.  But  to  resume.  C.S.  wrote  letters  in  the  morning, 
so  we  did  not  go  out  early.  Went  for  the  afternoon  to  Ypres, 
taking  train  at  a  quarter  before  one,  and  returning  to  Bruges 
by  half-past  eight.  It  was  a  very  pleasant  little  excursion, 
though  the  weather  was  rather  cold  and  not  bright.  On 
arriving  at  Ypres,  we  walked  first  to  the  "T£te  d'Or",  and 
ordered  our  dinner  of  M.  Thibaut  for  half-past  five.  Then  we 
went  the  round  of  the  shops,  but  found  nothing  to  buy  in  any 
of  them.  Then  we  called  on  old  Mr.  Boehm,  who,  as  usual, 
announced  that  he  was  going  to  have  a  sale,  and  would  not  sell 
single  articles.  However,  we  got  from  him  a  fine  pair  of 
French,  plated  candlesticks,  a  curiously  inlaid  old  brush,  and 
a  cornucopia  of  a  sort  of  tortoise-shell  ware,  that  puzzles  me. 
It  was  a  great  pleasure  to  see  the  dear  old  Halles  and  St. 
Martin's  Church  again.  How  grand  they  are,  and  how  in- 
teresting the  old  houses ! 

4th.  Letters  in  the  morning.  We  did  not  go  out  till  near 
two  o'clock.  Went  through  the  shops,  Rafter  visiting  old 
Paterson,  who  was  more  mad  than  ever,  but  from  whom  we 
escaped  without  making  any  purchases.  We  did  not  complete 
our  rounds  till  after  table  d'hote,  when  we  went  out  again  to 
old  Seegur's  and  to  Render's.  A  beautiful  night,  with  bright 
moon  and  stars.  Bruges  looked  its  own  lovely  self  to-day.  I 

479 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 

have  just  been  writing  to  My  Lord,  whose  birthday  it  is 
[Lady  Charlotte's  eldest  brother,  the  loth  Earl  of  Lindsey, 
who  died  in  1877],  and  C.S.  has  been  washing  up  our  pur- 
chases. We  find  everything  dear,  and  are  beginning  to  be 
disheartened  with  the  "chasse". 

5th.  To  Church.  The  service  very  nicely  conducted,  the 
singing  good  and  plain — no  sermon.  At  the  Saint  Sang  it  in- 
terested us  much  to  see  the  Chasse,  which  is,  as  nearly  as 
possible,  in  decoration,  like  that  which  we  bought  last  year  in 
Portugal.  The  form,  at  the  sides,  is  rather  different,  but  the 
engraving  is  the  same,  as  well  as  the  cherubs'  heads,  on  which 
it  is  supported — the  two  might  have  been  the  work  of  the 
same  artist.  That  at  the  Saint  Sang  is  said  to  have  been 
executed  by  John  Crabbe  in  1617.  Went  after  this  (passing 
over  what  we  call  Ivor's  bridge — see  March  31,  1873)  to  call 
on  Mrs.  Berrington.  Found  her  and  the  Colonel  at  home ;  sat 
some  time  with  them,  then  went  to  the  Weale's.  He  is  in 
England — we  saw  his  wife.  Walked  round  the  "Basin",  a 
part  of  the  town  previously  unknown  to  us,  and  so  back  to 
the  Hotel,  arriving  just  in  time  for  table  d'hdte. 

6th.  We  were  up  betimes,  and  quitted  dear  old  Bruges 
at  9.40.  Before  n.  we  had  reached  Ghent.  Leaving  our 
luggage  and  parcels  at  the  station,  we  walked  into  the  town. 
De  Clerc  was  not  at  his  new  house,  but  we  met  him  on  our 
way,  and  made  him  go  back  there  with  us.  We  found  with 
him  a  few  pieces  of  blue  and  white,  which  we  purchased.  On 
leaving  him  we  visited  the  shops  in  the  Rue  St.  Jacques 
without  result.  Admired,  as  usual,  the  towers  and  west  door 
of  that  Church,  but  on  looking  in  were  disappointed  with  the 
interior.  At  Vermeer's,  in  the  Marche  de  Vendredi,  we  were 
astonished  to  see  three  excellent  Mennecy  pedestals  in  the 
window.  We  always  call  at  the  shop,  almost  as  a  matter  of 
form,  but  very  rarely  find  anything:  now,  in  addition  to  the 

480 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

pedestals,  we  got  a  very  good  glass  bell,  two  French,  printed 
fans  (engravings  with  mythological  subjects),  and  a  charming 
"Moulin  a  Vent"  in  Dutch  silver,  which  though  dear  we  were 
very  glad  to  possess,  as  we  know  that  these  toys  are  becom- 
ing rare.  From  Vermeer's  we  went  on  to  our  old  friend 
Omghena's,  who  admired  our  "  Moulin  a  Vent "  and  our  glass 
bell,  but  went  into  an  ecstasy  over  our  inlaid  brush  of  last 
Friday ;  the  pique" ,  it  appears,  is  in  gold.  Omghena  pronounced 
it  to  be  of  a  date  between  1500  and  1600,  and  considered  it  to 
be  desirable  for  any  collection.  After  a  pleasant  talk  with  the 
worthy  old  man,  who  has,  also,  picked  up  one  or  two  more 
treasures  lately,  we  proceeded  to  de  Clerc's  old  abode,  where 
we  took  up  our  new  purchases,  and  whence  we  returned  to  the 
station  to  await  the  4.28.  to  Brussels:  by  this  train  we  went 
on — laden,  as  usual,  almost  to  inconvenience,  arriving  after 
six,  happily,  all  safe. 

We  are  now  comfortably  installed  in  the  Hotel  Mengelle, 
have  got  the  letters  which  awaited  us  (among  them  one  from 
Ivor),  and  having  dined  are  going  soon  to  bed.  It  has  been  a 
pleasant  as  well  as  a  busy  day,  and  I  am  sleepy. 

7th.  We  went  all  the  rounds  of  the  shops — to  Volant, 
Le  Roy,  Moen,  Slaes,  Cools,  Craenen,  Polonet,  Huysmans, 
Muller,  Papillon,  and  Genie.  We  got  a  few  good  pieces, 
as  models,  etc.,  but  nothing  for  the  collection.  The  shops 
were  never  so  ill  supplied  with  fine  things,  and  what  little 
they  have  is  very  dear.  The  Duchess  [of  Marlborough]  had 
asked  me,  at  Blenheim,  to  look  out  for  some  lace  for  her. 
I  saw  a  very  beautiful  and  cheap  flounce  at  Genie's,  and  have 
written  to  tell  her  about  it. 

8th.     Examination  this  morning  proved  that  the  flounce 

would  not  do,  so  there  is  an  end  to  that.     I  did  not  go  out 

this  morning.     C.S.  went  without  me  to  see  old  Fetis,  and  to 

show  him  the  cornucopia  of  the  3rd.      He  could  not  throw  any 

I  481  2  H 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 
light  upon  it,  but  does  not  much  esteem  it.  We  have  now 
come  to  the  conclusion  that  it  is  Nuremberg.  Before  C.S. 
went  out  he  brought  me  my  letters,  one  of  which  was  from 
Merthyr,  of  Monday's  date,  announcing  that  he  was  engaged 
to  Theodora  Grosvenor.  [The  youngest  daughter  of  Richard, 
the  2nd  Marquess  of  Westminster,  and  Elizabeth  Mary, 
daughter  of  the  ist  Duke  of  Sutherland.  She  was  sister  to 
Hugh  Lupus,  the  ist  Duke  of  Westminster.]  This  caused  me 
the  liveliest  pleasure.  I  went  with  him  to  Motcombe  when  I 
was  last  at  Fifehead,  and  was  quite  delighted  with  her.  I 
cannot  be  sufficiently  thankful  to  God  for  such  a  blessing.  In 
the  afternoon  we  had  a  long  walk  about  the  town  till  dinner- 
time, the  only  event  was  the  purchase  of  an  old  Dutch  glass 
goblet  at  Huysmans'.  The  weather  very  still  and  bright,  but 
cold.  Since  dinner  I  have  heard  from  Ivor  about  Merthyr's 
engagement,  and  have  been  replying  to  him. 

9th.  We  planned  to  go  down  to  Tournai  to-day,  and  gave 
orders  to  be  called  at  six.  Nobody,  however,  did  call  us,  and 
it  was  only  the  chance  of  my  waking,  after  a  somewhat  restless 
night,  that  enabled  us  to  be  down  in  time  for  the  expedition. 
It  did  not  take  place  nevertheless ;  for  when  we  got  down  to 
breakfast,  we  found  old  Pourbaix  awaiting  us,  to  say  that  he 
could  not  receive  us  to-day,  as  he  had  professional  business  at 
Brussels.  We  changed  our  plans  accordingly,  and  went  by  the 
10.45.  train  to  Antwerp,  taking  with  us  our  recent  purchases 
to  be  packed  ready  for  shipment.  Leaving  our  goods  with 
Eva  Krug,  we  went  into  the  town,  and  made  some  small 
purchases  with  Aren  and  Morren  in  the  Place  de  Vendredi. 
Then  we  returned  to  Eva  Krug,  under  whose  superintendence 
everything  was  packed,  including  a  few  trifles  bought  of  her, 
and  we  left  Antwerp  by  the  train  leaving  at  4.45.  We  did 
not  get  back  to  Brussels,  owing  to  a  delay  on  the  railroad,  till 
table  d'hote  was  nearly  over;  so  we  dined  "a  part".  It  had 

482 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

been  a  bustling  pleasant  day ;  the  exertions  of  it  and  the  frost 
have  left  me  very  sleepy. 

xoth.  Not  up  very  early;  wrote  out  lists  of  our  present 
shipments — a  letter  to  Merthyr,  etc.  Did  not  go  out  till  past 
three;  then  to  old  Genie's,  where  we  got  two  more  baskets, 
and  an  old  leather  case  for  a  spoon.  On  our  way  back  from 
the  old  town,  we  called  at  a  little  shop  (Rue  de  la  Faille), 
where  there  might  be  something  another  day.  Then  went  to 
pay  a  visit  to  Mrs.  Frederick  Layard,  and  were  some  time 
before  we  could  find  her  house.  Scarce  got  back  in  time  for 
table  d'hote.  A  bright  cold  day,  but  without  a  breath  of  wind, 
therefore  very  pleasant.  We  are  now  preparing  for  an  early 
move  to-morrow ;  I  only  hope  the  cold  may  not  be  too  intense 
in  Holland. 

Saturday,  i  ith.  Left  Brussels  at  9.16. — a  bright  cold  day. 
Left  the  maid  and  luggage  at  the  Antwerp  station,  and  went 
into  the  town.  C.S.  fetched  from  Eva  Krug's  the  three  boxes 
packed  there  on  Thursday,  and  after  some  difficulty  and  adventure 
got  them  shipped  for  England,  by  a  steamer  to  leave  the  next 
day.  Meanwhile  I  remained  at  Eva's  and  amused  myself  by 
looking  over  her  stock,  where  I  found  four  more  pieces  which 
I  had  not  noticed  before,  and  which  we  bought.  Tried  to  see 
the  collection  of  M.  David  Verbeist,  but  could  not  gain 
permission.  In  due  time  returned  to  the  station,  where  we 
stayed  while  we  sent  the  maid  to  get  her  dinner  at  a  neighbour- 
ing restaurant.  At  a  quarter  to  four  we  left  Antwerp  again 
for  Holland,  and  only  arrived  at  Paulez's  Hotel  (The  Hague) 
by  10  o'clock.  It  was  the  longest  journey  I  ever  made  from 
Antwerp  to  The  Hague,  partly  owing  to  delays  on  the  road,  and 
partly  owing  to  a  bridge  having  broken  down  just  outside  the 
town  of  Antwerp,  which  obliged  us  to  leave  our  carriage  and 
cross  the  place  on  foot  by  a  temporary  expedient.  The  bridge 
through  Rotterdam  is  not  yet  completed,  so  we  still  have  to 

483 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 

make  the  little  "  trajet "  there  in  a  steamer.  These  things  and 
the  Douane,  where  I  was  glad  to  get  a  "  butterbrod  ",  caused  a 
great  many  changes,  and  it  was  fortunate  for  us  that  it  was 
fine,  especially  as  we  were  somewhat  laden  with  hand  packages. 
Very  glad  to  be  in  Holland  again. 

1 3th.  We  went  out  about  midday  and  made  the  round  of 
the  shops.  Old  Sarlin  had  put  up  some  Worcester  plates  for 
us,  which  suit  very  well.  We  had  a  curious  scene  with  him 
over  some  baskets  which  we  wanted  to  buy,  but  for  which  he 
wanted  too  large  a  price.  He  tried  to  make  a  lot  for  us 
including  an  old  and  curious  belt,  which  we  admired,  but  did 
care  to  invest  in  at  the  price  of  £10.  Old  Sarlin  (whom  we 
have  considered  old  since  we  first  met  him  some  10  years  ago) 
confided  to  us  that  he  had  to-day  completed  his  55th  year,  and 
in  consequence  of  its  being  his  birthday,  was  very  anxious  to 
make  sales.  Sometimes  he  offered  me  presents,  sometimes  he 
named  one  price,  then  another,  with  a  change  of  articles,  until 
it  ended  in  our  being  content  with  the  plates,  and  promising  to 
consider  of  the  baskets,  etc.,  against  another  day.  We  went  on 
to  the  other  shops,  but  our  only  purchases  were  of  some  lovely 
Creil  baskets,  and  a  Neale  Candlestick  in  the  Achteroom,  and 
a  pair  of  baskets  at  Hauja's.  We  saw  a  few  things  at  Van 
Gelder's,  but  rather  dear — at  Dirksen's  nothing  to  tempt  us ; 
but  he  has  a  magnificent  pair  of  candlesticks,  which  we  all 
considered  to  be  French  plate  of  the  time  of  Louis  XVI.  By 
looking  over  our  Chaffers,  however,  this  evening,  we  find  the 
mark  to  be  that  of  Sheffield,  date  1783.  Having  gone  our 
rounds  we  got  back  to  the  Hotel  exactly  at  five,  and  had  only 
just  finished  table  d'hote  when  old  Sarlin  was  announced, 
accompanied  by  his  son.  He  had  come  ostensibly  to  deliver 
the  10  Worcester  plates,  but  in  reality  to  see  what  he  could  do 
with  us  about  the  belt  and  the  baskets.  It  ended  in  our 
consenting  to  give  ^20  for  a  set  of  12  of  the  latter,  not  very 

484 


876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

large,  but  the  most  complete  and  effective  that  I  have  yet  seen. 
Thus  ends  our  first  day's  operation  in  this  winter's  journey  in 
Holland. 

1 4th.  Up  tolerably  early,  and  at  Rijn  Spoor  by  9.50.,  which 
landed  us  at  Gouda  in  some  20  minutes.  Arrived  there, 
we  paid  a  little  visit  to  Cohen,  of  whom  we  bought  some 
plates,  and  then  hurried  on  to  Pavoordt's,  where  we  set 
aside  some  ware  baskets  to  be  called  for  and  paid  for 
another  day.  Our  time  in  Gouda  was  short  indeed.  We 
had  but  time  to  settle  all  this,  and  then  to  return  to  the 
station.  In  a  few  minutes  we  were  whisking  off  again  to 
Rotterdam,  which  we  reached  at  half-past  eleven.  It  was 
quite  hot,  and  I  found  my  winter  garments  all  too  warm 
for  walking  at  our  accustomed  pace  through  the  crowded 
streets.  Rotterdam  was  full  of  movement;  I  never  saw 
it  look  so  busy  or  so  gay,  and  this  wonderful  and  sudden 
change  in  the  weather  lent  an  enchantment  to  everything. 
We  found  old  Van  Minden  in  full  force,  also  his  wife 
and  daughter.  He  had  some  plated  candlesticks,  to  which 
we  fell  victims,  and  in  his  pack-house  we  found  a  few  other 
things.  Before  we  left  him  he  insisted  in  regaling  us  with 
port  wine  and  cake  to  drink  his  health,  as  he  told  us  that  he 
was  70  yesterday.  We  went  from  him  to  Kryser's ;  bought  a 
pair  of  blue  and  white  bottles,  and  arranged  to  come  and  look 
at  his  Leeds  ware  next  week.  Then  proceeded  to  Van  der 
Pluyne's,  where  we  also  picked  up  one  or  two  trifles.  We  had 
then  to  hasten  very  much,  in  order  to  catch  the  Hollandsche  Spoor 
train  at  1.55  for  Delft.  There  was  little  to  be  bought  at  Jede- 
loo's  ;  he  sent  his  boy  to  show  us  some  other  little  shops.  The 
old  lady  in  Flamingstraat,  of  whom  we  made  purchases  last 
spring,  had  nothing  now ;  but  we  got  some  baskets,  and  a  good 
set  of  Wedgwood,  husk  pattern,  plates  at  another  little  shop  in 
the  Vrou  Juttenlond.  Laden  with  these  and  our  other  spoils, 

485 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 
we  took  the  train  again,  reaching  The  Hague,  after  a  very  busy 
morning's  work,  a  few  minutes  after  four.  I  have  seldom 
done  so  much  locomotion  and  business  combined  in  six  hours. 
Stopped  to  tell  Dirksen  what  we  had  found  out  about  the  mark 
on  his  silver  candlesticks  as  we  drove  from  the  station  to  the 
Hotel. 

1 5th.  We  made  another  expedition  into  the  country  in 
search  of  objects,  and  with  some  success.  Up  at  six,  we 
walked  to  the  Hollandsche  Spoor  Station,  and  left  it,  at  nine, 
by  the  train  for  Leyden.  While  at  Leyden  a  few  drops  of  rain 
fell,  and  I  feared  the  weather  was  going  to  change ;  but  the 
clouds  soon  dispersed,  and  the  rest  of  the  day  was  one  of  un- 
interrupted beauty ;  the  sun  shone,  there  was  not  a  breath  of 
wind,  and  the  air  was  perfectly  warm.  Indeed  when  we  had 
to  walk  fast  to  catch  a  train,  it  was  almost  too  hot — such  a 
change  since  Sunday  is  indeed  wonderful;  Holland  always 
looks  charming  under  such  circumstances — we  are  truly  enjoy- 
ing the  "petit  ete  de  St.  Martin".  There  is  not  much  to  be 
said  about  the  chasse  at  Leyden.  Leureman  has  moved  into 
Haarlemer  Straat.  We  found  a  few  small  matters  with  him 
and  some  other  little  dealers.  Duchatel  had  nothing,  which 
was  rather  a  disappointment.  Having  gone  rapidly  through 
the  shops,  we  returned  to  the  station,  and  sat  there  and  read 
till  it  was  time  to  go  on  to  Haarlem.  There  we  made  some 
purchases  at  Franse's  and  Kouin's.  The  weather  was  more 
than  delightful,  more  like  early  summer  than  winter,  and  this 
pleasant  walk  in  beautiful  Haarlem  ought  ever  to  be  re- 
membered. We  got  back  to  The  Hague  in  good  time  for 
dinner,  having  stopped  at  Hauja's  on  our  way  through  the 
Spui,  and  bought  two  good  Oriental  teapots,  red  and  yellow. 

1 6th.  Made  an  expedition  to  Utrecht.  Again  most  lovely 
weather.  Called  first  at  Costa's  in  the  Elizabeth  Straat,  where 
we  found  some  baskets  and  one  or  two  other  things;  then 

486 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

called  at  Van  Gorkum's.  He  was  not  at  home  so  we  did  no 
business  there.  The  Hamburgers  were  away  in  Paris,  where 
they  are  going  to  make  an  eight  days'  sale,  and  all  their  fine 
things  were  gone.  So  we  made  no  purchases  beside  those  at 
Costa's,  which  we  picked  up  on  our  back  to  the  station.  It 
was  but  a  hurried  visit  to  Utrecht,  but  I  had  the  pleasure  of 
looking  again  at  the  dear  old  tower  (from  one  of  the  bridges) 
and  of  listening  to  the  chimes.  On  our  way  back  we  spent 
upwards  of  two  hours  at  busy  Gouda.  For  the  first  time  in 
our  lives  we  found  Trijbits  at  home,  and  he .  took  us  to  his 
Pack-house.  Bought  Wedgwood  plates  and  some  finely  moulded 
backets,  or  rather  platters. 

1 7th.  An  early  move  to  Amsterdam,  taking  with  us  some 
of  the  things  which  Van  Houtum  is  to  pack  for  us,  and  send  to 
England  ;  including  some  dozen  pieces  bought  at  Amsterdam, 
this  instalment  amounts  to  91  pieces.  After  depositing  his 
boxes  at  our  house,  we  went  to  the  different  shops.  First  to 
Ganz,  who  has  become  very  dear,  but  nothing  to  suit  us. 
Speyer  had  a  quantity  of  things  for  our  quest.  We  set  apart 
some  £30.  worth,  to  be  looked  over  and  decided  on  at  our  next 
visit.  Brought  away  a  pretty  silver  chatelaine  and  a  charming 
old  box  for  card  counters  and  markers  of  the  time  of  Louis 
XV.  ornamented  with  portraits,  in  tinsel,  of  the  Dauphin  and 
his  wife,  decorated  with  dolphins  and  profusely  enriched  with 
"Fleurs-de-lis".  From  Speyer's  we  went  to  their  neighbours, 
Kalb  and  Soujet.  At  first  the  chasse  seemed  hopeless,  but  by 
degrees  they  brought  their  things,  among  them  a  curious  silver- 
gilt  ring  of  old  workmanship,  said  to  have  belonged  to  Pope 
Pius  II.,  and  to  have  been  found  in  his  tomb.  For  this  we 
gave  £6.  Whether  authentic  or  not,  this  is  cheap.  Then  we 
got  a  beautifully  chased  metal  gilt  e*tui  and  scissor  case,  temp. 
Louis  XV.,  and  two  medals,  a  la  Tassie,  of  Gustavus  III.  of 
Sweden.  These  made  up  the  sum  of  £10.,  and  we  came  away 

487 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 
well  pleased.  Next  we  went  to  Van  Galen's.  Bought  of  him 
a  pretty  china  milk  jug,  and  some  perforated  Leeds  dishes. 
After  this  once  more  to  Van  Houtum's  to  make  lists  of  what 
he  has  to  pack  for  us.  Then  to  Roller's,  who  may  be  struck 
off  the  list,  and  lastly  to  Moesel's.  Found  there  some  of  the 
much-desired  Worcester  baskets  (of  which  we  had  previously 
secured  some  at  Speyer's  and  at  Van  Houtum's),  and  bought 
them  after  an  amusing  little  scene  with  the  woman  of  the  shop, 
with  whom  I  exchanged  compliments  on  the  score  of  business 
qualities.  We  could  not  carry  these  away,  so  we  paid  a  deposit 
and  left  them  to  be  fetched  at  our  next  visit.  After  this  we 
went  to  the  Brack's  Doelen  to  dine,  and  returned  to  The  Hague 
by  a  train  at  7.15.  Walked  to  the  Hotel  from  the  station — a 
fine  starlight  night,  and  got  back  before  10,  well  satisfied  with 
our  day's  work. 

1 8th.  After  these  five  successive  days  of  hard  work,  we 
were  glad  of  some  rest,  and  were  not  up  very  early.  Got  out 
about  midday.  The  weather  still  fine  but  not  so  bright. 
Called  at  Hauja's,  Tennyssen's,  Dirksen's,  etc.  With  this  last 
we  spent  £$  on  Prints  in  which  I  have  not  much  faith,  but  I 
hope  they  may  turn  out  well.  Ended  the  afternoon  with  a  visit 
to  the  Bisschops,  who,  as  usual,  had  a  number  of  pretty  new 
acquisitions  to  show  us.  Returned  to  the  hotel  at  five.  Since 
dinner  have  been  writing  lists,  etc.  Very  warlike  news  to-day 
which  makes  every  one  sad. 

1 9th.  Called  on  the  Bisschops  with  one  or  two  of  our  late 
investments.  [M.  Bisschop  was  a  well-known  Dutch  painter 
of  the  period.]  They  were  very  well  pleased  with  our  silver 
Windmill,  but  doubt  the  authenticity  of  our  "  Pope's  "  ring, 
wherein  they  are  probably  right.  But  at  the  price  we  gave  we 
are  glad  to  have  it  under  any  circumstances.  We  stayed 
with  them  so  long  that  we  were  too  late  for  our  Church. 
Tried  to  find  Mr.  Watson,  of  the  North  Sea  Canal,  but 

488 


ONE  OF   A  PAIR   OF  KYLINS  FORMING   TEA-POTS.       DECORATED    IN    FAMILLE  VERTE  ON 
A    RED   VERMICULATEI)   GROUND.       EARLY   KANG-HE,    1662-1722 

Lord  Wimborne  s  Collection 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

failed  to  do  so  after  a  long  walk  on  the  outskirts  of  the 
Park. 

20th.  We  were  yet  at  breakfast  when  old  Sarlin  appeared, 
having  come  to  ask  us  when  we  would  call  with  the  articles  he 
had  promised  to  pack  for  us,  with  the  baskets  we  had  bought 
of  him  the  other  day.  We  arranged  to  be  with  him  at  i .  o'clock, 
and  having  put  our  various  objects  into  our  travelling  cases, 
we  kept  this  appointment.  He  approved  of  some  of  our 
purchases  very  much,  and  it  ended  in  our  buying  of  him  eleven 
more  Worcester  baskets  to  add  to  our  previous  quantity. 
Called  at  Van  Gelder's,  Hauja's,  Munchen's  ;  saw  some  rather 
good  Delft  vases  with  this  last,  which  we  are  to  look  at  again. 
Then  we  went  back  to  Sarlin's  to  meet  the  Bisschops,  who 
brought  Mr.  Howard  with  them  (one  of  our  English  Legation). 
We  lounged  about  over  Sarlin's  stock  very  agreeably  for  some 
time,  and  then  went  with  them  to  Dirksen's  to  look  at  two 
mirrors  for  lights,  which  I  thought  might  suit  the  new  boudoir 
at  Canford.  Looked  in  at  Tennyssen's  for  a  moment,  and  then 
came  in  to  dinner.  The  table  d'hote  very  full  on  account  of  the 
assembling  of  the  Second  Chamber.  We  have  had  another 
fine  and  genial  day,  which  was  rather  unexpected,  by  the  look 
of  the  morning.  At  half-past  six  there  was  one  of  the  heaviest 
storms  of  rain  and  hail  that  I  ever  heard,  and  it  was  wet  for 
some  time,  but  about  noon  it  cleared,  and  we  had  again  lovely 
weather. 

Tuesday,  2ist.  Set  off  after  breakfast  for  Gouda.  We 
had  seen  some  good  and  cheap  ware  baskets  there  at  Trijbits', 
when  we  called  on  Thursday,  and  we  now  thought  we  would 
buy  them.  There  was  a  great  sale  going  on  at  the  Zaandam ; 
we  had  written  to  Trijbits  to  say  we  were  coming,  but  when  we 
arrived  he  was  out — probably  he  was  gone  to  it.  It  resulted 
in  our  adjourning  to  Pavoordt's,  where  we  made  rather  a  large 
purchase,  to  be  sent  to  The  Hague  after  us,  and  then  we  went 

489 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS   1876 

on  to  Rotterdam.  Found  old  Van  Minden  in  great  trouble 
about  a  dispute  he  had  with  Enthoven.  He  insisted  on  our 
giving  him  the  name  of  a  London  lawyer,  so  we  referred  him 
to  Richard  Du  Cane.  [Married  to  Lady  C.  S.'s  eldest  daughter.] 
Purchased  some  fine  Leeds  ware  dishes  at  Kryser's,  and  then 
hurried  off  to  catch  a  train  which  landed  us  at  The  Hague  early 
enough  to  enable  us  to  call  at  Munchen's  on  our  way  back  to 
our  Hotel  for  dinner.  Bought  his  Delft  vases. 

22nd.  Up  early  and  off  to  Amsterdam,  taking  with  us  the 
hamperful  we  had  received  last  night  from  Pavoordt,  and  all 
our  small  boxes  full  of  the  things  to  be  packed  for  England  by 
Van  Houtum.  Having  picked  up  the  baskets  we  bought  last 
Friday  of  Mrs.  Moesel,  we  went  on  with  our  cargo  to  him. 
Then  called  at  Speyer's  and  concluded  for  the  purchase  of  the 
objects  we  had  seen  when  last  with  him.  Next  to  Boasberg's, 
where  I  fell  a  victim  to  the  South  Sea  Bubble  cards  of 
June  loth  last.  We  had  a  carriage  to  this  point,  after  which 
we  walked.  Bought  some  trifling  pieces  of  silver  at  Mor- 
purgo's,  and  as  we  walked  back  to  dine  at  the  Brack's  Doelen 
found  a  smart  shop  newly  opened  by  Blitz.  He  had  a  few  blue 
and  white  knife-handles,  and  after  dinner  C.S.  went  back  to 
the  shop,  and  bought  a  very  good  transfer-printed  Battersea 
box,  which  he  had  seen  there.  Returned  to  The  Hague  at 
night.  The  Bisschops  had  told  us  that  a  dealer  at  Leeuwarden 
possessed  a  very  curious  piece  of  Cinquecento  enamel,  so  we 
determined  to  go  there  to  look  after  it.  Accordingly  C.S.  and 
I  started  from  the  Rhijnspoor  station  at  4.10.  and  after  a 
number  of  changes  reached  Leeuwarden  between  10  and  n. 
Not  having  found  time  to  dine  anywhere,  we  were  very  glad 
to  refresh  ourselves  with  "butterbrod"  at  Zwolle,  where  we 
stopped  some  time.  The  weather  had  become  very  cold,  and 
the  little  bedroom  where  we  were  [shown  into  at  the  Nieuwe 
Doelen  felt  like  an  ice-house,  so  I  determined  not  to  undress, 

490 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

and  lay  down  in  all  my  travelling  things  (muff  included), 
huddling  some  thick  blankets  over  me  on  the  sofa,  where  I 
managed  to  get  a  little  sleep,  and  to  keep  from  freezing.  C.S. 
went  to  bed. 

24th.  At  an  early  hour  we  were  "  en  mouvement "  again. 
I  left  my  sofa,  shook  myself,  and,  all  refreshed,  went  down  to 
breakfast.  After  the  meal  we  set  off  on  our  voyage  of  dis- 
covery, with  a  little  boy  as  our  guide.  He  took  us  first  to 
De  Vries',  where  we  got  several  good  pieces  of  ware,  and 
some  nice  little  bits  of  silver  as  book  mounts.  Then  to 
Huisinga's.  He  is  very  dear  but  has  some  good  things.  We 
asked  him  about  the  enamel  the  Bisschops  had  told  us  he 
possessed.  It  was  some  minutes  before  he  could  call  to  mind 
that  he  had  such  a  thing;  but  at  length  he  produced  it,  and  we 
found  it  quite  to  answer  to  the  description  they  had  given  us 
of  it.  I  need  not  add  that  we  bought  it  forthwith  for  the  very 
small  price  of  100  florins.  It  consists  of  a  small  circular 
plaque  with  the  figure  of  Charles  V.  standing  on  a  globe,  which 
is  supported  by  a  tall  figure  (probably  Sternsee)  on  one  side, 
while  "  Death  "  seems  to  be  pulling  at  it  on  the  other.  Beneath 
the  globe  is  the  devil,  prostrate.  Charles  has  his  hands 
extended  towards  the  skies,  and  the  inscription  is  "  Carolus  V. 
Sternsee.  In  te  Domine  speravi ".  The  idea  is  that  Sternsee 
was  one  of  his  generals  or  admirals  (whose  house  is  said  to 
exist  at  Harlingen  to  this  day,  with  his  Waapen  on  the  out- 
side), and  that  the  enamel  was  a  present  to  him  from  Charles. 
It  came  to  Huisinga  from  a  member  of  Sternsee's  family,  but 
they  could  give  no  account  of  it,  nor  of  him.  We  must  make 
further  inquiries.  It  is  probable  that  the  object  depicted  on 
the  enamel  and  the  inscription  had  allusion  to  some  of  the 
religious  troubles  of  the  times.  I  consider  this  piece  the 
greatest  "trouvaille"  we  ever  made.  Went  to  the  other  shops, 
of  which  there  are  several  in  the  town.  At  Heinrich's  got  a 

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LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 
nice  lot  of  blue  and  white  Worcester  baskets  and  plates. 
Friday  being  market  day  the  town  was  very  gay,  full  of 
country  people,  the  women  in  their  showy  dresses  glittering 
with  their  golden  ornaments.  It  was  a  very  pretty  sight. 
Having  made  all  our  purchases  we  returned  to  the  Hotel,  and 
got  a  hasty  dinner  before  going  to  the  train,  at  2.45.,  by  which 
we  returned  to  The  Hague,  arriving  there  before  1 1 .  at  night, 
and  having  had  a  most  delightful  and  successful  trip.  A  letter 
from  Mortlock,  begging  for  blue  and  white  Oriental  and  Delft, 
which  comes  a  little  late  as  we  are  so  soon  to  leave  The  Hague. 
We  set  to  work,  however,  next  morning, 

25th,  to  see  what  could  be  done.  The  weather  milder. 
Paid  a  long  visit  to  the  Bisschops,  giving  them  an  account  of 
our  Leeuwarden  expedition.  Also  called  on  Mr.  Watson,  on 
Ivor's  behalf,  to  make  inquiries  about  the  dredgers  that  were 
used  in  the  North  Sea  Canal,  as  it  was  thought  that  something 
of  the  sort  would  be  useful  in  Poole  Harbour.  Went  to  the 
shops,  such,  at  least,  as  were  open,  those  of  the  Jews  being 
closed  till  evening,  and  after  dinner  started  out  again.  Mr. 
Bisschop  went  with  us  to  Woolf's  in  the  Achteroom  to  look 
at  a  copper  vessel  purporting  to  be  of  the  time  of  Philip  II., 
but  he  at  once  pronounced  it  modern.  Bought  a  fine  old 
engraved  silver-backed  brush  at  Van  Gelder's,  and  looked 
in  at  Sarlin's,  who  is  packing  up  a  box  to  send  off  for  us 
to  England. 

Sunday,  26th.  Not  out  till  the  afternoon,  when  we  went 
to  Church.  Afterwards  had  a  brisk  walk  outside  the  Bosch. 
At  half-past  six  went  to  dine  with  the  Watsons,  meeting  there 
only  his  brother  and  his  daughter,  Baroness  de  Tuyl  and  her 
husband.  We  had  an  agreeable  evening,  with  much  talk  about 
the  manners,  customs,  and  peculiarities  of  this  dear  little 
Holland.  Mr.  Watson  gave  me  a  perfect  specimen  of  a 
Jacoba  Kannetje,  which  was  found  in  excavating  the  founda- 

492 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

tions  of  the  Orange  Locks,  near  Amsterdam  (June  1870),  at 
about  twenty  feet  below  the  water  surface. 

Monday,  27th.  Made  an  excursion  to  Rotterdam  in  search 
of  some  more  "blue  and  white",  and  on  our  way  to  the  station 
took  our  various  objects  to  Dirksen  for  packing,  and  called  at 
Van  Gelder's  to  see  some  Worcester  baskets  he  has  just  got, 
and  which  we  bought  of  him.  Our  visit  to  Rotterdam  was  a 
very  short  one.  We  found  a  very  good  set  of  Delft,  and 
another  of  Oriental  vases,  at  Van  der  Pluyne's,  after  which  we 
returned  by  the  next  train,  well  content.  Made  some  more 
purchases  at  Hauja's  when  we  got  back  to  The  Hague.  After 
dinner  we  went  out  again,  and  called  on  Sarlin's,  as  I  had 
promised  to  show  our  newly  acquired  enamel.  He  went  into 
ecstasy  over  it,  and  did  all  he  could  to  persuade  us  to  let  him 
have  it — of  course  in  vain.  He  offered  freely  £100.  and  would 
have  given  much  more.  Indeed,  when  he  found  there  was  no 
chance  of  its  being  sold,  he  told  us  that  he  considered  it 
worth  ^250. 

28th.  At  length  this  morning  we  left  The  Hague  about  1 1. 
o'clock.  A  very  good  journey.  Commenced  with  rain,  but  as 
we  left  Rotterdam  we  had  bright  sunshine  for  our  parting  view, 
and  as  we  neared  the  frontier  there  was  one  of  those  wild  and 
beautiful  evening  sunlights,  which  are  so  seldom  seen,  and 
should  never  be  forgotten :  and  so  we  left  dear  Holland,  and 
reached  Antwerp  only  just  in  time  to  catch  the  express  to 
Brussels.  Arrived  about  six. 

2 Qth.  Went  the  round  of  the  shops,  but  found  scarcely 
anything.  Made  acquaintance  at  the  Hotel  with  some  agree- 
able English  people,  Mr.  Thryssen  and  his  daughter,  Mrs. 
Cripps,  who  gave  us  some  useful  "  renseignements "  as  to 
literary  men  in  Holland,  by  which  we  hope  to  trace  something 
of  the  origin  of  our  enamel  and  its  history. 

30th.     As  we  did  not  leave  Brussels  till  after  two,  we  had 

493 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS   1876 

a  little  time  to  walk  out  in  the  morning.  Went  on  a  fruitless 
search  after  lace  for  the  Duchess  [of  Marlborough]  and 
called  in  the  Rue  de  PEscalier,  but  made  no  purchases.  Had  a 
good  journey,  dining  at  Tergnier,  and  reached  Paris  before  10. 
A  Belgian,  engaged  in  trade,  who  had  lived  in  America,  and 
had  travelled  all  over  the  world,  was  in  the  carriage  with  us, 
and  sported  very  revolutionary  sentiments. 

DECEMBER  1876 

PARIS 

December  ist.  A  lovely  day,  bright  and  warm.  We  set 
out  on  our  round  of  shops,  commencing  with  Oppenheim,  in 
whose  charge  we  had  left  our  purchases  last  autumn.  He  had 
a  few  very  fine  things,  among  which  we  selected  a  lovely  watch 
enamelled  by  Bouvier  and  signed  G.B.,  a  gold  chatelaine  (very 
cheap  at  £12  the  two),  and  Chelsea  bibelot  (not  perfect)  of  a 
Cupid  with  doves,  which  was  not  dear  at  £9.  From  him  we 
went  to  Fournier's,  and  so  on,  dining  at  our  Hotel. 

2nd.  Out  soon  after  midday,  and  hunted  the  Quai  Vol- 
taire, and  the  shops  over  the  water.  We  did  not  buy  much, 
but  had  put  aside  for  us  an  exquisite  pomme  de  canne  (£7), 
of  old  Vincennes,  an  enamel  bonbonniere  in  form  of  a  cocked 
hat,  and  two  Mennecy  cups  and  one  saucer  painted  with  Cupids 
en  camaieu  rose. 

3rd.  Not  out  till  time  for  second  service.  Uncertain, 
showery  weather,  and  while  we  were  in  church,  one  of  the  most 
violent  storms  of  rain  I  ever  heard.  Dined  at  a  neighbouring 
Cafe,  which  Blanche  had  told  us  of — excellent,  and  absurdly 
cheap. 

4th.  Having  a  commission  for  more  blue  and  white 
Oriental  and  Delft,  which  is  such  a  ridiculous  rage  now  in 
England,  we  set  out  on  the  quest  this  afternoon.  Got  some 

494 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

things  at  DuvauchePs,  which  is  a  very  good  shop ;  but  even 
there  it  is  difficult  to  find  anything  perfect,  and  after  all  our 
care  we  had  to  take  some  of  the  pieces  back  again,  as  being 
faulty.  At  Caillot's  we  met  with  a  very  fine  pedestal  (Chelsea) 
for  3  gns.,  which  he  sold  to  us  as  "Saxe". 

5th.  Our  chasse  to-day  was  entirely  on  this  side  of  the 
water.  We  made  some  good  purchases  with  that  charming 
little  M.  Chaumont  in  the  Rue  Ferme  des  Maturins;  and 
bought  some  knife-handles  of  Taburet  in  the  Rue  Pasquier. 
This,  and  a  long  walk  in  the  Boulevard  Haussmann,  and  to  the 
top  of  the  Avenue  Friedland,  completed  our  day's  work. 

6th.  Our  first  visit  was  on  the  other  side  of  the  water,  whence 
we  took  a  cab  up  to  the  Barriere  de  1'Etoile  to  save  time,  and 
so  walked  back  down  the  Boulevard  Haussmann  to  Nelson's 
shop  (Rue  Pasquier),  where  we  had  seen  yesterday  some  fine 
pieces  of  Oriental,  which  we  now  bought.  While  in  this  shop, 
we  got  into  conversation  with  a  French  lady,  Mme.  de  Mont- 
brisson,  who  told  us  she  had  a  collection,  and  pressed  us  to  go 
and  see  it.  Next  morning  accordingly,  after  a  little  excursion 
to  the  Quai,  we  went  there.  She  has  a  few  pretty  things  as  far 
as  we  could  see  them,  but  it  suddenly  became  so  dark  that  it 
was  difficult  to  distinguish  anything,  and  while  we  were  at  the 
house  a  violent  storm  supervened,  which  detained  us  there 
some  time.  The  rest  of  the  afternoon  it  was  fine  enough  to 
walk  about,  though  with  occasional  showers.  The  morning 
had  been  so  lovely !  As  we  returned  from  our  walk,  late  in  the 
afternoon,  we  had  the  good  fortune  to  find  four  Worcester 
baskets  at  Begaud's  for  24/-  each.  We  had  secured  one  at 
Chaumont's  the  previous  day. 

8th.  Mme.  de  Montbrisson  called  before  we  had  done  break- 
fast, and  sat  talking  a  long  time.  She  speaks  perfect  English. 
After  that,  Oppenheim  came,  bringing  us  a  set  of  knives.  We 
went  out  in  the  afternoon.  Explored  the  Rue  Chateaudun,  as 

495 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 
on  Wednesday  we  had  done  the  Rue  de  Provence.  Our 
principal  finds  were  some  Mennecy  custard  cups  at  de  Veuve's, 
and  some  lovely,  soft  paste,  coloured  knife-handles  at  Fournier's. 

9th.  I  had  a  little  cold,  so  C.S.  went  out  first  alone,  while 
I  wrote  letters.  In  the  afternoon  we  walked  together.  Mme. 
Flaudin  had  just  returned  from  Italy,  and  had  brought  with 
her  three  Wedgwood  heads,  two  of  them,  Queen  Charlotte 
and  Catherine  of  Russia,  most  beautiful.  The  third  was  an 
"  Emperor  of  Germany  ".  They  were  irresistible,  and  we  had 
to  have  them  for  ^16.  Leaving  her,  we  went  to  the  Rue  St. 
Lazare,  where  at  Topena's  and  Durand's  we  always  meet  with 
something  good.  Of  the  former  we  bought  a  Delft  vase, 
imitating  the  Oriental,  of  wonderful  colour  and  glaze,  and  two 
remarkable  Tournai  plates ;  of  the  latter  some  nice  and  cheap 
pieces  of  Mennecy — amongst  them  two  cups  painted  with  buds. 
We  looked  into  the  Founders',  and  made  one  or  two  other 
visits;  and  ended  by  calling  on  M.  Chaumont  to  see  some 
Wedgwood  that  Mme.  Montbrisson  had  to  dispose  of.  It  was 
then  getting  dark  so  we  settled  to  go  and  look  at  it  again  on 
Monday.  And  so  has  ended  our  hard  week's  work  and  much 
walking.  Every  evening  since  last  Sunday  we  have  dined  at 
the  Cafe. 

loth.  We  went  out  between  12.  and  i.,  and  called  on  M. 
Danvilliers,  who  has  changed  his  house.  He  was  not  at  home. 
Then  we  looked  in  at  the  Salle  des  Ventes,  where  there  are  to 
be  some  good  sales  to-morrow.  Then,  at  half-past  three  we 
went  to  Church.  This,  and  walking  about  between  whiles, 
filled  up  the  afternoon.  We  dined  at  our  Cafe  very  early,  and 
are  now  (6  o'clock)  home  for  the  evening.  Had  written  some 
letters  before  I  went  out  this  morning.  One,  the  first  to  my 
newly  promised  daughter-in-law,  Theodora,  who  had  sent  me  a 
few  lines,  in  a  joint  letter  I  received  some  days  ago  from  her 
and  Merthyr.  I  am  so  grateful  for  this  event;  I  went  to 

496 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

church  with  my  heart  full  of  them.  May  God  bless  them! 
Merthyr  writes  in  such  a  proper  spirit.  They  sang  one  of  my 
favourite  hymns  at  church  to-day. 

nth.  We  proposed  to  start  off  very  early  this  morning, 
but  Mme.  Montbrisson  called,  and  sat  with  us  above  an  hour, 
so  that  our  plans  were  somewhat  thrown  out.  Took  some  of 
our  purchases  to  the  Oppenheims,  for  them  to  pack  for  us; 
then  went  to  Chaumont's  to  see  four  little  pieces  of  blue  and 
white  which  Mme.  Montbrisson  had  sent  to  Mme.  Chaumont's 
for  sale.  They  accorded  well  with  the  example  we  bought  of 
her  last  autumn,  so  it  ended  in  our  taking  them.  After  this 
we  went  across  to  the  Quai,  where  we  had  promised  to  see 
some  English  china,  but  found  nothing.  Picked  up  the  plaques 
we  had  bought  of  Flaudin,  and  the  Mennecy  bought  of 
Durand  on  Saturday.  Also  a  pretty  little  silver  compass 
from  Mile.  Caillot's  (Rue  St.  Roch),  like  the  one  we  missed  at 
Tuy  last  year — very  pretty,  and  in  its  old  case,  compensating 
us  for  the  disappointment  we  had  then.  After  all  this,  and  a 
talk  with  the  Fourniers,  we  went  to  dinner  between  7.  and  8. 

1 2th.  This  has  been  a  most  agreeable  day.  We  went  out 
about  12.,  and  first  took  some  more  pieces  to  Oppenheim  to 
pack ;  this  in  a  cab.  Then  we  walked  to  the  Danvilliers,  whom 
we  had  the  good  fortune  to  find  at  home.  They  were  in  their 
new  house,  18  Rue  Pigalle,  where,  however,  they  are  not  yet 
furnished  or  settled,  but  they  showed  us  some  of  their  fine 
things.  The  most  beautiful  were  some  Cinquecento  enamels, 
and  among  them  a  wonderful  purchase  M.  Danvilliers  had  lately 
made,  no  less  than  the  celebrated  pomegranate  of  the  Nostra 
Sefiora  del  Pilar  at  Saragossa,  for  which  he  gave  £1200.  He 
has  but  recently  acquired  it,  and  a  most  exquisite  piece  it  is, 
of  the  same  family  as  our  Charles  V.  Jewel,  but  of  course 
much  more  remarkable  in  every  way,  though  not  more  interest- 
ing. After  our  pleasant  visit  to  them,  we  lounged  about  in 
I  497  21 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 
that  neighbourhood,  and  made  some  small  purchases,  in  the 
midst  of  which  we  were  overtaken  by  a  heavy  rain,  and 
esteemed  ourselves  lucky  when  we  found  a  cab.  Went  to 
Oppenheim's  to  fetch  our  Bouvier  watch,  etc.,  and  then  on  to 
the  Cafe,  where  we  dined  earlier  than  usual. 

1 3th.  We  had  an  early  visit  from  M.  Danvilliers,  to  look  at 
our  purchases.  He  approved  of  all,  especially  of  the  Charles  V. 
enamel,  with  the  exception  of  the  Papal  ring  (see  Nov.  17), 
and  a  wax  head  of  Marie  de'  Medici,  which  we  bought  of  Van 
Gelder  on  27th  of  Nov.  These  two  pieces  he  pronounces  to 
be  forgeries,  so  they  cannot  be  admitted  into  the  collection, 
but  must  take  their  chance  at  Christie's.  In  the  afternoon  we 
went  out.  It  was  rather  cold,  and  very  dull  weather.  First 
to  the  Jeu  de  Paume  to  try  and  get  Ivor's  name  down  for  the 
Court  at  Easter,  then  we  made  a  long  stretch  to  Montmartre, 
and  after  some  seeking  found  M.  Osmont's  shop  in  the  Passage 
de  PElysde  des  Beaux- Arts  1  What  a  fine  name  for  a  squalid 
neighbourhood!  M.  Osmont  is,  however,  delightful.  We 
had  first  made  his  acquaintance  in  the  October  of  last  year, 
when,  we  remembered,  we  saw  him  with  a  Spanish  enamel. 
We  now  asked  him  if  he  still  possessed  it  and  he  forthwith 
produced  it.  It  consists  of  a  beautiful  little  figure  of  the 
Virgin,  with  a  spangled  robe  of  red  and  blue,  with  palm  leaves 
on  each  side,  and  surrounded  by  a  circle  of  fleurs-de-lys,  etc. 
The  price  he  asked  for  it  was  £12.  Old  Osmont  very  liberally 
asked  us  to  take  it  with  us  to  verify  its  genuineness,  though 
we  were  but  strangers  to  him.  We  did  take  it  accordingly,  but 
deposited  two-thirds  of  its  price,  which  was  nearly  all  we  had 
got  with  us.  We  have,  however,  no  doubt  of  its  being  genuine, 
since  we  have  had  it  home  and  washed  it  and  examined  it; 
indeed  it  is  a  great  "trouvaille".  On  our  way  back  we 
happened  to  pass  through  a  little  street — Rue  Frochot — where 

outside  a  shop  C.S.  discovered  a  transfer-printed  Wedgwood 

498 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

plate,  and  one  of  Chelsea-Derby  (imperfect)  exposed  for  sale. 
We  went  in  and  found  more  of  them,  and  were  surprised  as 
well  as  pleased  at  being  only  asked  2  francs  apiece  for  them. 
Such  are  one's  chances  in  Paris !  We  came  back  well  pleased 
with  our  day's  chasse,  taking  Chaumont's  on  the  way. 
Got  to  dinner  late;  have  since  been  writing  variously.  A 
very  pretty  letter  to-night  from  Theodora.  We  are  in  some 
anxiety  about  our  shipments  from  Holland,  having  only  heard 
of  the  arrival  of  the  boxes  packed  by  Van  Houtum.  Any  loss 
would  be  serious  for  us. 

1 4th.  This  morning's  post  brought  us  news  of  the  safe 
arrival  of  the  box  from  Speyer's,  but  we  are  uneasy  about  that 
despatched  by  Sarlin.  While  still  at  breakfast  Mme.  Mont- 
brisson  came  in,  and,  as  usual,  sat  some  time.  We  had  barely 
time  to  finish  our  letters  sending  off  to  Mortlock  the  invoice 
for  Speyer's  box,  when  we  had  to  start  on  a  little  expedition  to 
visit  the  house  of  Mme.  Daulay,  29  Rue  Marignan,  where  Mme. 
Montbrisson  had  told  us  we  should  get  a  great  quantity  of 
china — to  be  sold.  Mme.  Chaumont  met  us  there  soon  after  12. 
We  were  introduced  into  a  most  elegant  apartment,  furnished 
in  the  prettiest  and  most  luxurious  taste.  We  looked  all  over 
the  curiosities  (of  which  every  room  was  full),  and  then  fixed 
on  a  few  of  them,  of  which  Mme.  Chaumont  inquired  for  us  the 
price.  The  owner  asked  large  prices — beyond  what  we  were 
disposed  to  give  except  in  the  case  of  a  pair  of  vases,  Delft 
with  figures  "  a  la  Chinoise  ",  and  black  panels.  These  were 
put  at  £12.,  so  we  agreed  to  take  them.  Mme.  Chaumont 
brought  these  to  our  Hotel,  and  we  paid  for  them.  Soon 
after  this  we  sallied  out  again.  Visited  a  little  shop  in  the 
Place  Beauvau,  where  we  got  a  few  trifles,  and  bethought 
us  to  take  one  of  our  newly  acquired  vases  to  show  to 
Fournier.  To  our  dismay  he  threw  a  doubt  on  their  genuine- 
ness. We  left  it  with  him,  however,  to  be  looked  at  in  broad 

499 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 
daylight,  as  it  was  then  getting  late,  and  we  had  to  hurry  home 
to  prepare  for  dining  with  the  Danvilliers.  Thither  we  went 
about  half-past  six  o'clock.  We  had  a  most  delightful  evening. 
After  dinner  M.  Danvilliers  brought  all  his  jewels  to  show  us, 
including  the  pomegranate  of  Saragossa,  and  we  had  much 
agreeable  art  talk.  This  day  50  years,  what  memories  1 

1 5th.  Rose  tired  after  not  a  very  good  night,  also  a  little 
footsore ;  so  we  got  a  carriage  for  the  first  three  hours  of  our 
"  courses  ".  Indeed  we  had  so  many  places  to  go  to  that  we 
could  not  otherwise  have  got  through  all  our  work.  First  we 
went  to  Wanitz  in  the  Rue  Castiglione  to  buy  a  Neapolitan  ink- 
stand— silver  with  coral  ornaments — for  Ivor,  who  had  written 
to  say  he  would  take  it  from  our  description.  Then  to  Mont- 
martre  to  pay  Osmont  what  was  still  due  on  the  Spanish 
enamel,  and  to  make  him  promise  to  keep  for  us  anything  of 
the  kind  he  might  in  future  meet  with;  I  wore  it  at  Mons. 
Danvilliers'  last  night  and  he  pronounced  it  very  fine,  and  valued 
it  at  £60.  Next  to  the  Founders',  who  told  us  definitely  that 
the  two  Delft  vases  of  yesterday  were  modern  imitations. 
Then  to  Mme.  Chaumont's  to  consult  what  steps  were  to  be 
taken  in  the  matter.  By  her  advice  we  took  the  vases  to 
Mannheim,  the  expert,  for  his  written  judgment.  He  was  out, 
but  we  are  to  call  and  see  him  to-morrow.  Lastly,  we  took 
Oppenheim  some  more  of  our  things  to  pack ;  and  then,  com- 
missions being  for  the  present  finished,  we  presented  ourselves 
at  the  Danvilliers'  soon  after  two,  and  they  went  with  us  to  visit 
M.  Basilewski's  collection,  celebrated  for  its  wonderful  medi- 
aeval treasures,  and  where  we  had  the  pleasure  of  seeing  poor 
Fortuny's  renowned  Hispano-Moresque  vase.  When  we  left  the 
collection  M.  Danvilliers  accompanied  us  to  Taburet's.  When 
there  on  the  5th  we  had  seen  an  interesting  gold  watch,  by  an 
English  maker,  Richard  Style,  bearing  the  date-letter  of  the 
year  1762,  and  engraved  with  the  Prince  of  Wales's  feathers, 

500 


li 


O  O 

M    & 
O 

o  a 

M   £ 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

and  the  initials  C.P.  It  was  enclosed  in  an  outer  case  of  the 
same  date,  decorated  with  figures  in  purple  enamel  on 
the  gold,  and  attached  to  a  fine  chatelaine  to  correspond. 
The  whole  was  enclosed  in  its  original  case  with  a  curious 
"  chiffre "  that  we  could  not  well  make  out.  This  watch  and 
its  accompaniments  had  evidently  belonged  to  Charles  Edward. 
We  thought  it  would  be  of  interest  to  some  of  our  Royal 
Family,  so  we  wrote  to  tell  Mr.  Holmes  about  it,  and  this 
morning  we  got  a  letter  from  him,  asking  us  to  buy  it,  if  we 
could  get  it  for  ^80  (the  price  asked  being  ^100).  [Mr., 
afterwards  Sir  Richard,  Holmes  was  the  librarian  at  Windsor 
Castle,  and  held  many  other  important  offices ;  he  has 
written  the  official  biographies  of  Queen  Victoria  and  of 
Edward  VII.]  This  was  accordingly  the  object  of  our  visit 
to  Taburet's  shop.  There  seemed  a  doubt  whether  he  still 
had  it ;  but  at  length  it  was  produced,  and  he  acceded  to  the 
terms.  It  was  a  satisfaction  to  us  that  Mons.  Danvilliers, 
who  is  so  good  a  judge,  assured  us  that  we  got  it  at  the 
price  it  would  command  in  the  French  market,  irrespective 
to  any  value  that  attaches  to  it  for  its  historical  associations. 
We  are  to  take  it  back  to  England  with  us.  Looked  in 
at  Baur's  in  the  Rue  Daubin  on  our  way  from  Taburet's 
to  our  Cafd.  After  dinner  we  lounged  in  the  Palais  Royal, 
and  executed  a  little  commission  with  which  Merthyr  has 
charged  us. 

1 6th.  Up  very  early,  and  off  to  Mannheim's  by  nine.  He 
condemns  the  black  Delft  vases,  so  we  took  them  to  Mme. 
Chaumont  to  see  what  she  could  do  in  the  matter.  Came  back 
to  breakfast  at  ten,  and  then  walked  out  again.  After  some 
little  matters  we  had  to  do  on  the  other  side  of  the  water,  we 
took  an  Americaine  and  went  to  Sevres.  All  the  collection  is 
now  moved  into  the  new  building.  [The  old  house,  with  its 
many  memories  of  Louis  XV.,  the  Pompadour  and  later  patrons, 

501 


LADY  CHARLOTTE  SCHREIBER'S  JOURNALS  1876 
is  now  a  school  for  young  ladies.]  It  is  for  the  present  closed 
to  the  public,  but  we  had  an  order  of  admittance  from  Mons. 
Champfleury,  so  we  went  in  and  had  the  Mus6e  all  to  ourselves 
for  above  an  hour.  It  was  to  me  a  most  interesting  visit, 
though  less  so  than  our  previous  one  at  the  old  place  in  the 
days  of  Mons.  Riocreux,  when  he  sent  some  one  round  with  us 
to  point  out  anything  particularly  curious  and  instructive.  The 
new  arrangement  shows  all  to  good  advantage.  It  was  a  damp 
dull  day.  We  once  thought  of  going  on  to  Versailles,  but 
time  did  not  admit,  so  we  returned  to  Paris  and  hunted  a  few 
more  shops.  Mme.  Chaumont  had  seen  Mme.  Daulay,  who  con- 
sented to  take  back  the  spurious  Delft  vases ;  so  this  disagree- 
able affair  ended  better  than  I  could  have  hoped,  and  no  great 
harm  done.  Dined  late  at  our  Cafe.  Wrote  letters,  etc.,  in 
the  evening.  One  to  Mr.  Holmes  about  Charles  Edward's 
watch  and  chatelaine,  which  we  are  taking  home  with  us. 
Our  pleasant  trip  is  now  approaching  its  close  :  we  purpose  to 
return  to  town  to-morrow. 

Sunday,  17th.  Took  a  walk  in  the  morning.  Looked  in 
at  the  Hotel  Drouot,  where  there  is  an  exposition  of  things 
Boasberg  is  to  sell  there  in  the  week.  To  Church  at  half- 
past  3,  and  after  another  little  walk  outside  the  Tuileries 
Gardens,  went  home  early  and  dined  at  our  Hotel.  The 
evening  spent  in  busy  preparations.  We  have  acquired  a  lovely 
pair  of  shoe-buckles  in  white  china  with  blue  pattern  and  gold 
— unique — C.S.  thinks  them  Derby-Chelsea. 

1 8th.  Left  Paris  by  the  Tidal  Service  at  half-past  nine, 
reaching  London  before  7.  A  dull  still  day,  but  there  was 
more  movement  on  the  water  than  I  expected.  However,  I 
was  not  ill.  I  lay  down  on  the  floor  of  the  cabin  and  tried  to 
sleep,  for  I  had  had  a  wakeful  night.  I  am  reading  again, 
with  great  delight,  Thackeray's  Esmond.  Since  I  left  England 
I  have  read  Dickens's  Tale  of  Two  Cities,  Smollett's  Peregrine 

502 


1876  NOTES  CERAMIC 

Pickle,  and  Mrs.  Elliot's  Old  Court  Life  in  France — very 
various  in  style — all,  in  their  way,  of  much  interest  to  me. 
Our  little  trip  has  been  a  most  agreeable  and  busy  one. 

Tuesday,  iQth.  Mr.  Nattali,  assistant  to  Mr.  Holmes, 
called  this  morning  to  fetch  away  the  Charles  Edward  watch. 
I  find  it  was  the  Queen  for  whom  we  had  purchased  it,  and  I 
hope  she  will  be  pleased  with  her  acquisition.  Out  shopping 
all  the  rest  of  the  day,  and  bought  a  magnificent  Buhl  clock 
and  bracket,  as  a  wedding  present  for  Merthyr. 

[About  this  time  Lady  Charlotte  paid  some  social  visits 
with  members  of  her  family.  Some  of  these  had  no  connection 
with  her  interest  in  antiques,  but  one,  to  the  Herberts  of  Great 
Missenden  in  Buckinghamshire,  was  intimately  connected  with 
the  subject.  Mr.  Herbert  was  an  enthusiastic  connoisseur  in 
old  china,  furniture,  prints  and  books.  He  died  on  October  12, 
1882,  leaving  his  collections  to  his  family,  and  on  July  10,  1905, 
his  widow  sold  at  Sotheby's  the  fourth  quarto  edition  (1605)  °f 
Shakespeare's  The  Tragedy  of  King  Richard  III.  for  the  sum 
of  ^1750,  a  record  price.  It  had  the  autograph  in  five  places 
of  Admiral  Sir  William  Penn,  the  father  of  the  founder  of 
Pennsylvania.  It  may  be  interesting  to  know  that  the  late  Mr. 
William  Lowndes  of  Chesham,  writing  to  Miss  Herbert  under 
date  of  August  i,  1905,  says:  "I  quite  well  remember  Mr. 
Herbert  in  1882  showing  me  the  volume  and  telling  me  that  he 
originally  purchased  it  for  Lady  Charlotte  Schreiber,  though 
later  he  decided  to  keep  it  himself".] 


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