"Manduessedum Romanorum: being the His tory and Antiquities of the Parish of Manceter [including the Hamlets of Hartshill, Oldbury, and Atherstone], and also of the adjacent Parish of Ansley, in the County of Warwick. By the late Benjamin Bartlett*, Esq. F. A. S. Enlarged and corrected under the Inspection of several Gentlemen resident upon the spot," 4to. Pulle de Pulle, the head of the Cheshire branch, and from Mau ritius de Pola, or De la Pole, Knight, of Devonshire; and that he was the lineal ancestor, in the seventh degree, of the present Baronet, who, by sign Manual, 1789, resumed the antient name of De la Pole." * Mr. Benjamin Bartlett had been an eminent Apothe cary at Bradford, in Yorkshire, where he succeeded his fa ther, who had for his apprentice the afterwards celebrated Dr. Fothergill. The Doctor introduced his son to London; but Mr. Bartlett, on his health declining, resigned his business to a partner, Mr. French, of Red Lion Street. He was elected F. A. S. 1764; and his knowledge of the antient coinage of this kingdom was equal to the valuable collections he had formed in its several departments, from the Saxon to the present time, besides a variety of curious Seals, Celts, and other antique articles; which, by the fatality so common to the collectors of the present time, came under Mr. Gerrard's hammer. In a Letter dated Nov. 14, 1779, in answer to an inquiry respecting Abp. Sharp's " Observations on the Coinage of Eng land," (the MS. of which had been purchased in 1764 by Mr. Gough at the sale of Mr. Thoresby's Museum, and which afterwards formed the XXXVth Number of the " Bibliotheca Topographica Britannica") Mr. Bartlett says, "It certainly was the first attempt of the kind, and was of great use to the late Mr. Thoresby, and indeed to the immediate succeeding writers on that subject, Mr. Leake and Mr. Folkes; the latter of whom has given us all that is valuable in it, and has avoided some mistakes which the Archbishop had made. Indeed I wonder there are so few, in a work where he had so dark a road to travel in.-Several of Simon's Medals are in Dr. Hunter's Museum, and bad impressions, or rather casts, of two of the Seals in mine.—I am much obliged to you for your good wishes; but I always remove my Coins into a place of safety when I go into the country. 1 am, with the tenders of best respects, yours, B. BARTLETT." All that he ever published was a Memoir "On the Episcopal Coins of Durham, and the Monastic Coins of Reading, minted during the Reigns of Edward I. H. and III. appropriated to their respective Owners." Archæologia, vol. V. p. 335. He died, of a confirmed dropsy, at Hertford, March 2, 1787, in VOL. IX. H bis "The History of Derby*; from the remote Ages of Antiquity, to the Year MDCCXCI. Describ his 73d year; and was buried in the Quakers' burying-ground at Hartshill in Warwickshire. Mr. Bartlett had lost his wife Jan. 1, 1785; and his only son, Benjamin Newton Bartlett, who survived him but seven months, came to a melancholy end, Oct. 20, 1787.-After the death of Mr. Bartlett, the MS. of this little History became the property of Dr. Charles Combe; who, in compliance with the original intention of Mr. Bartlett, presented the copy to Mr. Nichols; and it was published as the First Number of a new Series of Topographical Antiquities.-The substance of it, with additions by John Newdigate-Ludford, Esq. of Ansley Hall, Warwickshire, has since been incorporated in the Fourth Volume of the " History of Leicestershire;" and an Edition in Folio, of only Eighty copies, has been printed separately. * In a Dedication to Francis Ashby, Esq. at that time Mayor of Derby, Mr. Hutton characteristically says, "It is not from personal acquaintance that I address you, for I never had the pleasure of seeing you ;-nor from a lucrative return; I neither wish or want any :-but because you are the Chief Magistrate of an antient Borough which gave birth to those affections which it now possesses. When I departed from the place, I did not depart from my esteem. Whenever I gain a sight of those turrets over which you preside, it diffuses a sensation through the mind, like the discovery of an old acquaintance, in whose success I have been long and warmly interested. If asked why, in this Address, I do not comprehend the whole Corporate Body? I answer, I cannot take the Head, without including the Members." In the Preface he observes, "I took up the pen at that period in which most Writers lay it down: I may be said to have set off upon my historical pursuits from the vale of years, at a time when every declining year, like every minute of a declining sun, tells five." Afterwards, speaking of the Rev. James Pilkington's "Present State of Derbyshire," he adds, "I embrace this public mode of conveying my gratitude for the information he has given, and the trouble he has saved me. Had not he examined dusty charters and mouldy records, I must. A part of my knowledge is grafted upon his assiduity. Had his productions seen the light a little sooner, mine would for ever have been hid, But when I first heard of his, this work was too far advanced for the pride of an Author to give up to destruction. Unknown in Derby, I stand clear of prejudice. When I silently wander from the extremity of St. Mary's Bridge to that of St. Peter's parish, without meeting one face that I know, I consider myself a stranger at home; but, though forgotten, I cannot forget. I beheld with concern the buildings altered with time; and reflect, with a sigh, that every house has changed its inhabitants; and that I have to mourn a whole generation, who are swept into the grave." The ing its Situation, Air, Soil, Water, Streets, Buildings, and Government. With the illustrious Families that have inherited its Honours. Also the Ecclesiastical History, the Trade, Amusements, Remarkable Occurrences, the Eminent Men, with the adjacent Seats of the Gentry. Illustrated with Plates. By William Hutton *, F. A. S.S." 8vo. The copy-right of the "History of Derby" he presented to me soon after the following previous intimation: "SIR, Birmingham, Oct. 3, 1789. "I am much inclined to write a History of Derby, as I am a native, and resided many years in the place. I am possessed of various materials, and can have more. The work might be comprised in one volume octavo. Would it suit you, Sir, to become the proprietor, or be concerned in such a work? As I am totally out of the business, it would not suit me to be the publisher. You will know the exact measure of my abilities, or rather the tools with which I work, by dipping into the History of Birmingham, the Court of Requests, &c. &c. Mr. Rollason bought all my productions, and upon his own terms, for as I did not write for bread, I was not solicitous about the price; the same intercourse would have continued had not death prevented it. I am your humble servant, W. HUTTON." * This respectable Veteran, who has literally been the artificer of his own ample fortune, was born Sept 30, 1723, in Full-street, Derby. He was sent, before he was five years old, to a poor dayschool in that town; and when he had attained his seventh year, was placed in the silk-mills, where he passed a miserable period of seven years. Having lost his mother, and been cruelly treated by his master, he formed the resolution of seeking his fortune. Passing, not without some distress, through Burton, Lichfield, Walsall, Birmingham, Coventry, Nun-Eaton, and Hinckley, in search of work, but in vain, he returned to Derby, and to his accustomed labours. He had now acquired an inclination for reading; and, having met with three volumes of the Gentleman's Magazine, contrived, in an awkward manner, to bind them himself-a profession to which he afterwards applied himself with some success. He opened a shop at Southwell, at the rent of 20s. a year, with about twenty-shillings-worth of books; and commenced business at Birmingham, in 1750, in halfashop, for which he paid a shilling a week. He soon after purchased the refuse of a Dissenting Minister's Library; and from that period his affairs began to wear a pleasant and promising aspect. At the end of the year, he had saved 20 pounds; and, being persuaded to take a house of Sl. a year, he soon carried on business on a larger scale; and secured many valuable and intimate friendships. In 1756, be married Sarah Cock, the niece of a neighbour (Mr. Grace); A Second Edition of " A Charge delivered to the by whom he had several children; and two of them, a son and a daughter, are still living, the comforts of his declining years. Mr. Hutton soon after opened a paper-warehouse, the first ever seen in Birmingham; and, from a small beginning, following the business 40 years, and having realized a considerable fortune, he resigned the house, in 1793, to his son; and shortly after sustained a loss, which, at the distance of eight years, he thus feelingly lamented: To the Memory of the dear Girl, once named SARAh Cock, who died Jan. 23, 1796. Sally, when thou first came over, Not a smile upon me came; I assum'd the faithful lover, Two hearts united in one flame, During forty years possessing, Pity was to love united When came seventeen years of pain; O, I mourn the day I lost thee, As the year winds round its way, Gentle Spirit! can I find thee, When the lamp of life shall cease; Where thou long possess'd a place." Mr. Hutton took up the pen late in life; and his first publication was, "An History of Birmingham, to the End of the Year 1780," Svo, published in 1782; and again, with considerable Additions, in 1783; a Third Edition, much augmented, and with new Engravings of the Public Buildings, 1795; and a Fourth, with many embellishments, is now in contemplation. In 1786 he published, "A Journey from Birmingham to London," 12mo; and in the following year, "Courts of Requests: their Nature, Utility, and Powers described; with a Variety of Cases determined in that of Birmingham," Svo; in which he is a strenuous advocate for the Courts. In 1788 Mr. Hutton published "The Battle of Bosworth Clergy of the Diocese of Sarum, at the Primary Field, between Richard the Third and Henry Earl of Richmond, August 22, 1485; wherein is described the Approach of both Armies, with Plans of the Battle, its Consequences, the Fall, Treatment, and Character of Richard. To which is prefixed, by way of Introduction, a History of his Life till he assumed the Regal Powers, 1788," 8vo; re-published in 1813, with corrections by the Author; and "Additional Particulars of the Battle of Bosworth Field," illustrated with several Plates, by Mr. Nichols. He published "A Dissertation on Juries, with a Description of the Hundred Court, 1789," Svo.; "A Description of Blackpool in Lancashire, frequented for Sea-bathing, 1789 (reprinted in 1804);" and, after appearing as the Historiographer of the town of his residence, performed the same literary office to the town of his nativity, by publishing, in 1791, “The History of Derby," 8vo (see p. 98). The familiar but intelligent manner, peculiar to Mr. Hutton, is the distinguishing feature of both his Histories. Continuing his literary labours, Mr. Hutton next meditated a History of antient Verulam, which he had more than once attentively explored; and it is to be regretted that his exertions on that subject proved abortive. The progress he had made in it, and the recovery of a fine copy of "Chauncy's Hertfordshire," which I had lent him for that purpose, he thus describes : "DEAR SIR, Birmingham, May 5, 1792. "Among about a thousand-pounds-worth of Books which I lost at the Riots, was the Second Volume of Gough's Camden. Is it in your power to favour me with that Volume? The late unhappy affair has thrown me off every bias. I had made a considerable progress in the Antiquities of Verulam, and with great pleasure to myself. But the Manuscript was destroyed; and, till matters are settled, I am not certain whether I dare resume it. I long for that tranquil life which I have lost; a life of still pursuit, that neither injures, nor is injured. Your " Hertfordshire" fell in the common wreck-was recovered with about three thousand-pounds-worth of property; and, as I had lost both my houses, troubled my friends for a repository. I never saw it till two days ago: it has not suffered, but I could scarcely handle it without a tear. By your leave I will not return it just yet. W.H." In 1793 he published "The Barbers; or, the Road to Riches," which was thus introduced to my notice : "Dear Sir, April 19, 1793. "I inclose a small Poem, which you may dispose of as you please. The highest price I shall ask is, to give me 20 or 30 copies, to oblige my friends, if it takes. If it does not, I most assuredly will pay for them. I should have returned “Hertfordshire," which sleeps in a drawer; but I wait for 7000l. from the Hundred, to enable me to go to London, and recruit a ruined Library; in which case I shall have the pleasure of bringing it. I also long for another view of that enchanted ground Verulam. W. H." |