A COLLECTOR AND HIS HOBBIES.

Sun (Christchurch), Volume I, Issue 61, 18 April 1914, Page 3

A COLLECTOR AND HIS HOBBIES.

Sir James Yoxall, M.P., is an assiduous "collector" whose tastes are delightfully eclectic, and who writes upon his hobbies in a light and entertaining Style, while conveying at the same time much interesting and valuable information on the subject with which k<; deals. A few years ago he published a volume entitled "The A.B.C. of Collecting," which is now succeeded by another work of somewhat similar character. '' More About Collecting" (Stanley Paul and Co.). It-is an excellent thing to have a hobby of some sort, and at one period or other in life most of us get stricken by the collecting mania. Some of us begin with postage stamps, and stop there. To others, in later life, there comes an irresistible desire to amass old prints and engravings. The special pleasure of a certain Christchurch friend of

mine is to get together as many curious old snuff-boxes, seals, and signet rings as he can. Old china is sought after by quite a' number of Wellingtonians. A busy Civil Servant of my acquaintance devotes all his spare time to collecting rare beetles and various other creeping things; "Liber/"'himself, has for years been spending ■much leisure time, and not a little spare cash, in collecting anything and everything, in print and picture, which has reference to the works and personality of Charles Dickens. As for collectors of old Maori curios, their name is, relatively speaking, legion. I met a gentleman the.other day whose amiable to collect theatre programmes, and have been assured of his undying regard by presenting him with an old Theatre Royal bili (with Hoskins and Ada Colville in the cast) of the j earlier eighties. Many of the objects which are specially prized and so fully described by Sir James Yoxall are, I am afraid, introuvables, so far as New Zealand is con eerned, but it is surprising, if one only "noses about," as an old chins- collecting friend puts it. in the pawn brokers' and second-hand shops of the larger centres, how many-good finds can be secured. Sir dames Yoxall's chapters will make a ' colonial collector's eyes '"bugright open," as American slang has it. I am afraid, too, that a perusal of his entertaining chapters may tend to breaches of the Tenth Commandment, for he tells of so many curious articles of "bigotry and virtue''' which he-has brought to light and secured for nig, collection, articles which, alas, the New Zealand collector would, 1 arn afraid, never find in this country, were he to search for them for a good half-century. Sir James is specially interesting in his gossip on old furniture, pictures, and .miniatures, on earthenware, glass, and porcelain. With the chapters on books, prints, and autographs, I confess to some little disappointment, for the information given is rather scrappy and of doubtful accuracy —so far, at least, as books are concerned. But it is astonishing what a wealth, of curious and interesting, and, in its own wav, valuably' instructive information may be got out of his book. The illustrations, which are very numerous, constitute' a very attractive feature of a volume ■which makes uncommonly good reading, and is quite remarkably cheap at is price of five shillings. To English readers the book should prove specially useful for the nianv warnings "it contains against facsimiles and forgeries. Alas, in New Zealand, wo rarely see even the forgeries, although some four or live years ago a large number of forged Morlauds, Iloppners, and other rare and valuable prints were on sale in a certain auction Zoom.