Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-02-11
PLACED in LIBRARY
Valuable Gift by Mrs. John
Chandler Bancroft Davis.
COLLECTION A UNIQUE ONE
Contains Books and Papers Of Great
Historical Interest.
GIFTS FROM NOTABLE MEN
Collection Had Been Made by Hus-
band of Diva Who Had a Dis
tinguished Career.
GIFTS FROM NOTABLE MEN
BY WILLIAM T.. CURTIS.

BY WILLIAM T.. CURTIS.
Written for The Star and the Chicago Record
Herald.
The Library of Congress has recently
received an Accession of unusual inter
est because of the intrinsic value of the
objects, their rare beauty, their unique
character and personal associations. The
gift comes from Mrs. John Chandler Ban
croft Davis of Washington, in behalf of
herself and her deceased husband, the
eminent diplomatist and jurist, for many
years reporter of the Supreme Court of
the United States.
Five of the objects are books and the
sixth is an autograph letter and sketch
by Richard Doyle. the famous caricaturist
of Punch. Each has a distinct individ-
uality, and is. in it's way, unique, but
the greatest importance and interest of
the collection is derived from the fact
that it brings into association different
periods of history and distinguished per-
sonages of several nations: Bancroft
Davis. the diplomatist: George Bancroft,
the historian; Henry Stevens, one of the
greatest of modern bibl.ophiles: Voltaire,
Christopher Columbus, Matthew Prior,
the poet; Doyle, the caricaturist; Lameth.
the soldier: the Marquis de Lafayette,
William Makepeace Thackeray and others.
Il
extensive acquaintance in Europe and
America. He was a native of Worcester,
a graduate of Harvard, lawyer in New
York, American correspondent of the
London Times, secretary of the Ameri-
can legation in London, assistant secre-
tary of state, agent of the United States
at the Geneva court OF arbitration, secre-
tary of the commission which concluded
the treaty of Washington, minister to
Germany, justice of tie United States
Court of Claims, reporter OF the United
States Supreme Court and author of sew
eral important legal and diplomatic works.
Prominent in Washington.
For many years he was prominent
figure in the social life Of Washington,
and his widow still lives in the mansion
he occupied SO long, adjoining that of his
uncle, George Bancroft, the great his
torian
Mr.. Davis was active in the charitable
and religious life OF Washington, and
Johns Episcopal Church. A large folio
volume. sumptuously bound in full
pebbled levant, with elaborate but digni-
fled tooling. is a memento of that part
of his activity, and has a greater local
interest than the other gifts. because it
contains a collection of hand-colored
plates representing the stained glass
windows in st. Johns Church. These
windows were arranged for In behalf OF
the church in 1888 by Mr.. Davis, and
executed at Charities by the firm of
Lorin. Desiring to have in his possession
d permanent memorial of the work. Mr..
Davis asked Nine. Lorin If her artists
would make for him water color rawlings
of all the designs. To this she agreed
and the water colors were subsequently
made and reached him at London. He
there prepared a letter-press embody
ing a description of each window, which
no ha1 atcI OF no. irk Y,raS nd
bound at Whittingham's. Only two cop
les were struck off, one of which he pre-
sented to the rector. DIR. Leonard, now
Bishop of Ohio. But the water colors
themselves are unique.
A second volume, also In superb dress
Of full blue crushed levant richly fooled.
is presentation copy from Henry Ste
vens, of the facsimile reprint edited by
him and Lucas of the original Spanish
edition of the first code Of laws affecting
America, called THE New Laws OF the
Indies 1.42-43), several of which were
proclaimed during the life Of Christopher
Columbus. and the rest during the adj
ministration Of Diego. his son.
Notable for Inscription.
This is superb piece of scholarly
book work, privately printed at the
Chiswick press, and it's especial associa-
ton interest consists in a quaint in
scription in the handwriting OF Mr.. Ste
vens, in both original script and in type,
which reads as follows:
TO JOHN CHANDLER BANCROFT DAVIS.
My Valued Friend of Nearly Forty Years,
This Volume is
INSCRIBED
AS Memorial of Our Joint Investigations into
the Rights and Liberties of the Aborigines
of America
And of our joint participation i'm that
TONTINE OF FRIENDSHIP
Formed when lived together at Moreleys in
London about the Middle Of the
Nineteenth Century,
Shared by a Score and More OF Congenal
Friends, English Foreign and American
AMONG; whom the learned DIR. Reinhold
PAUL. and the earnest Arthur Phelps, Judge
Ba rton OF Worcester and Theodore Winthrop the
Novelist; Richard Doyle and Tom Taylor, with
the wittiest of pencils and pens; Joshua Bates
and George Peabody, princes Of hospitality and
good fellowship; Taxing Master Joseph Parks and
that Ancient Briton Vaux, Master Of Coins,
with Parker of Frazier's and Falstaf Hacket.
Then there were Fairholt. with his antiquarian
Art quiddites, and Leslie, the Royal Academi-
clan: Bigelow Lawrence and Arson Burlingame;
Curtis I.ampson. formerly Of Vermont. and the
cosmopolitan George Summer; never to omit or
forget Abbot Lawrence, the popular Minister OF
the United States near st. James, nor Master
Makepeace Thacker8y of Pendennis, read of all
the world and loved most by those who knew
him best.
And last, not least, dear old scientific
Admiral Smythe.
ALL GONE ON