New-York tribune., 1890-01-26
SHAKESPEAREANA.
rHE HALLIwELLPHILLIPPS COLLECIloN
LOST TO BIRMINGHAM

LOST TO BIRMINGHAM
occ.s,ox.1 CORRESPONDENT THE TRIBUNE
London January ! 6
The fact that il is now year since ule "'","
# Mr. J. O. Hallwell- Phillips is OF conslderaoie
interest 10 students of Shakespeare the worlu Over
For il will be remembered that that cnneh'
scholar and collector provided IN his VIII end' ioi
o.. srooo of ono wear following his death the Cor
-, 90 birmingham should have the sole
ontion of purchasing for stated sum ms unli
vailed treasury of Shakespeare relics blI niis-
ham was thus favored by him because IL Is 'ne
chief town of Shakespeares nauVe county a"N
would be therefore, an appropriate apluihe pia|'
70, this creat collection. Some time ago the
Free Libraries Committee of Blrmlngha" S'i'h
uouslv nrred upon the Town Council the desna
,.. = ooonting the offer But the Council
domnrred They were spending much money lor
&C. libraries in the various wards of Birmingham
,rbicb thou regarded as literary necesslues' anu
Id No means left for acquiring what they heiu
- ho literary Injuries. The offer was uhere
fore declined and. now that the year has eidpSe"'
tho collection lies open to the competluoh VI 'N
world ~ ,rircinal
Tbis oreat collection consists OF four prinoip"
narts which comprise, first, early ehsl"''U f
traits of Shakespeare; second, autheh'i0 : I'ic
IL. +bird documentary evidence respecting iS
.s.a.os ord nersons connected with his biography
and fourth. artistic illustrations ol pi"o' IT,
r;ouslv connected with his personal hiS'oS =;
49,, g.. tho ;tcm Of the greatest Importance Is
the most authentic likeness OF the gle"o 49, go,
a. exietcnce the Droeshout portrait III 10
,;o1 nroof state before it was altered pN al
:-t.rior hand into the vitiated form IN wihci. ~
-, hoor ca long familiar TO the pupllo' N
uauireuPbillipps had an offer of So,ooo lor '"i'
,;o,o nortrait In the second part 'heIo n"S
h. esneciallv mentioned four lndchuuIeS VIM"
form, the title-deeds to New Place, Stra'loIu- "po
Avon upon it's purchase by Shakespe"io III
,,;ol net Of necessity have been IN his ha'us'
for this property not mortGageo' anu =.
,roro NOT intrusted to the care OF soll0i'o
those davs Also of very particular HUG - Wv
-;~;na, CONVEYANCE of the Blacllfrlars House.
purchased by Shakespeare IN lol'' "Hion 49,,
,,ro ;s made between Henry Walker, Citlzeih anu
.-m ",' - 80 1ordon and William Shakespeare
of Stratford-upon-Avon, in the couh'e ., "
;o,- co,t1eman" This deed is In a nO'aoIS Soo"
stoto of nreseryation There may also ne ner
,io,od an indenture of 1917, Transferring 'e l'7"'
estate Of this same Blackfriars House IN ,'uS' ~
follow the directions of Shakespeare ; Will Inv"
are in all twenty deeds all OF great in'oi'
for instance an indenture having the rare sigma
,rc Of Thomas Coombe the gentleman 10 WHOM
SbaEespcare beQueathed his sword alo'Hoi '
of 1911 with the signature ol Joni
whom the latest recorded words ol ohah''P'"-'
were addressed: another of 1908, WIN 'no ""'o-
rraph of Francis CollynS, one OF tne WINES
of Shakespeare will and the poet SoilclVoI '''
another of 1861. signed and sealed oS OH
Juc, of CharIecote the Justice Shallow VI
Tho dramatist: a large number of records ol 'io
Hathaway family; the CaptOn CartuIarS' oo
piled during the reign of Henry WILL Ill "nA0i
is fonnd the earliest discovered notice ol any
part of Shalespeare's property, and deeu cl
5o6 witnessed by John Shakespeare, the poeV
father ..,io
1-bore are No less than twenty-five giant follo
volupcs of artistic illustrations. Every one VI
them is rare and valuable, and many are eh'lieN
unioue and taken together they form an ui
rivaled collection of views associated with SHAKE
sneare and an unmatched series oil hlIsIid.lGHS S
ri the poets birthplace. Some views OI ~ Lo"I ,.
as known by Shakespeare may pt 6;Jra ieLrli Iro7
Norden's engraving of London Brluge' io''
Drauns plan of the city, 1874, IN the oIIeIiHI
state of the plate before the Royal ENcnahse a Tas
introduced and Visschers plan, o1 whlch ho o%noi
COPY is known. ,a - NOT
The printed Shakespeareana are hard II Hou
impossible 10 summarize but among lhe az az G,
in this division may he mentioned uHs Il, aid
UNIQUE surreptitiOus edition OF fleICe enc " !.
Iro5 i'm which there is the earliest aluslOh 10 any
of the works of Shakespeare that mas Net @ pecl
discovered the drama of PTomos anu N%ISa' NI~a
a. tho fountain play of Measure for Meas
ure 157s: the Destruction of Troy, partlallv
used by Shakespeare IN the c%onStTuGp,dDn constr pno VI f
"Troilus and CTcssda. l296; ne hdW 80
Iucrece- 1924: Loves Labor Lost l3"9
THE History OF Tom Drum. l59S. alluded 10 III III
AlI,s Well That Ends Well and a unique woih
nv Morley 1900. To these may ne added lhe
un;oue I 56s immersion of LllNS Shorle lhtIo;
5nnt;on Ia Grammar" book used at StratioTG
School: also numerous Shakespeare quaitoS' ana
otber rare books such as few bibhophlles nave
,ven seen, much less possessed