CAPE OF GOOD HOPE. MUNIFICENT DONATION BY SIR GEORGE GREY TO THE PUBLIC LIBRARY.

Wellington Independent, Volume XVII, Issue 1718, 22 April 1862, Page 5

CAPE OF GOOD HOPE. MUNIFICENT DONATION BY SIR GEORGE GREY TO THE PUBLIC LIBRARY.

(From the " Cape Argus," December 24.) The following letter, in which His Excellency Sir George Grey announces to Mr. Justice Watermeyer his intention of presenting to the South African Library, Cape Town, the whole of his valuable collection of books and manuscripts, will be read with great interest throughout the Colony : — "Government House, Auckland, October 21, 1861. "My dear Watermeyei,— -For thirty years one of the chief delights of my life has been to collect a library which I hoped would form the charm and recreation of my middle life and of my old age. Thus I have gone on indulging dreams of a tranquil and literary life, which was to be a compensation for the constant activity of my early years. A part of this plan was to publish from ancient manuscripts new editions of works which I regarded as being capable of great improvement. As my views extended, like a foolish man, I piepared fox the last years of one life more work than

several men could have accomplished in several long lives. At the same time, I have ever found that the period of rest and tranquility I i was to enjoy flies further and further from me as I advance in life. I have, in truth, become involved in duties from which I cannot escape, — what I had laid up fov myself I can neither use nor enjoy, yet it is selfish'y shut up from other men, who might -profitably use it and greatly enjoy it. I had hoped that after my death this library, being left to some new country, might prove to it a treasure uf great value, to some extent helping to form the the mind of each of its generations as they came following on. But I now feel it to be useless to wait for the period of my own death to render of use to my fellow men that which events have rendered of Httle or no use to me. Many circumstances attach me to the Cape, — to the beautiful public gardens of Cape Town, to the Public Library there, the site for which I chose, the first stone of which I laid, which a great Queen's son opened iv my presence — which I may yet perhaps be permitted to visit in my old age.. I believe South Africa will be a great country ; that Cape Town or its vicinity will, for many reasons, be the point of chief education for its young men. There can, therefore be no more fitting or worthy resting place for treasures which I have accumulated with so much care. I propose, therefore, by degrees to send my whole library to the South African Public Library at Cipe Town, there to be deposited, subject to the following conditions . — That 1 may at any time remove from the library, as long as I require them, any books or manuscripts for my own use; that I may give the like privilege to the occupaots of any insti. tutibn I may hereafter found in South Africa ; that during my lifetime all other persons shall be admitted under the rules and regulations of the library to use the books and manuscripts in the library, but that no person shall, without: my consent, be permitted fo remove any of them from the library. After my death, the trustees of my collection shall make such regulations on this last subject as they think proper, as I do uot wish to attempt to bind posterity by any unalterable rule. I propose that, for the purpose of seeing these conditions fulfilled, I should, in the first instance, appoint eight trustees, and that, when any vacancy occurs, the remaining trustees should from "time to time fill it up. The first eight trustees I should wish to be,— yeurself, the Hon. W. Poiter, Sir T. Maclear, Mr. J. de Whet, Mr. J. Fairburn, sen., Mr. O. A. Fail-bridge, Mr. W. Tasker Smith, aud Mr. Win. Hiddingh. Would you ask them if they would act for me ? I shall feel much obliged to you if you would do this. You <iie aware that nearly all my library is in England, and it will take some time to get it moved to the Cape. I have, however, with me here some very valuable books and manuscripts. These I send at once by the Cossack in two caseß. You will find what they are from the enclosed list. Tbe cases are addressed, ' South African Public Library, Cape Town.' Will you see that they are received, and look after them? 41 Very truly yours, "G. Grey." The "Argus" of December 31st says:— -"The Library Committee met yesterday at the Library to confer with tbe trustees of Sir George Grey's munificent gift. The Committee in the first instance, accepted the donation on the conditions imposed by Sir George, and, in compliance with the suggestion of the trustees, agreed that the collection should be kept distinct from the rest of the Library. The librarian offered to give up his claim to the librarian's quarters, in order that they may be devoted to the reception ofSirGeorge Grey's books. Messrs. Frere, Longmore, and R. Noble were appointed a sub committee to confer with the trustees on tbe means of maintaining the library, and preparing rooms to receive tbe collection. It was resolved that an appeal be made to the public for subscriptions to prepare the rooms for the reception of the books, for which purpose £1,000 or £1,200 will be required. Subscrip-tion-lists will be placed this afternoon at the Commercial Library, the Exchange, and the various city banks." The same paper, in another issue, says : — "It is difficult t.» convey a just idea of tbe value of this magnificent donation, worthy of a Sovereign. Our readers may form some notion of its magnitude wheu they learn that Sir George Grey's library is ths united collection of two very eminent wealthy bibliomaniacs, from whom he inherited them, formed without regard to cost, and considerably added to by himself. It comprises most of the rarest first editions, iv the very choicest condition, of all the early printers, both English and continental. There are tomes which at the present day, would, if put up to sale, be eagerly bought at their weight, literally in gold. No library out of Europe, and very few in it, possesses a nobler general collection of specimens of the presses of the fathers of printing; many specimens, indeed are unknown in the British and Imperial Museums of Paris and Vienna, Earl Spencer's famous collection at Althrope, and other celebrated libraries. The united libraries of the United States cannot match the rare volumes contained in this one collection. Sir George used to relate, with some humour, an anecdote of an American collector who had been for some years engaged in the vain task of endearouring to procuie for the United Stites a copy of the first folio of Shakspear's works. Only fourteen copies of this book, so precious to all families ot the Anglo-Saxon stock, are known. The American was informed that a gentleman recently returned from the .Cape of Good Hope was the possessor of one or these inestimable and unattainable volumes. Jonathan forthwith posted away called on Sir George, had a hearty good stare at him, and then took himself off, saying, " It was something, anyhow, if he could'nt get the Shakspeare, to see a gentleman who, though residing at the Cape, had been able to secure what all tbe States couldn't get." "But besides the printed books, Sir George Grey's library is rich in choice and rare in manuscripts, amongst them is the finest manuscript of Dante known, and recently acquired by Sir George at a price exceeding £500. " The present generation will scarcely appre ciate the extent of a donation which at once elevates the South African Public Library to the position of a first-class libvary ; but posterity will acknowledge with gratitude the value of the gift which will create a taste in South Africa for learning and literature to all future time. "In the meanwhile, however, we can at least understand that Sir George Grey has made an extraordinary sacrifice for the benefit of the colony with which his name has been so long associated. It will be a disgrace to the colonial Parliament if it should fail to acknowledge the gift iv the most suitable manner ; and this can only be done by completing the library building, and nutting both library and librarian upon a' proper footing. The unfinished state of the handsome structure that will henceforth house one of the noblest collections of literary treasures in tbe world has, for some time, been by no means to our credit ; and if, after so noble an example of private munificence, our legislators should decline to vote whatever sum may be

necessary for the suitable maintenance of a great national institution, they will make themselves contemptible by their narrow-minded parsimony. This is not a local matter, nor should local jealousies be allowed to check Parliamen tary action in regard to it. Although the libraly is situated in Cpae Town, the donation is for the benefit of Smith Afvic-i ; it is one for which I the colonists generally should be grateful, because it will make their library an institution of which they may, and with .sufficient reason be nobly proud. It will be something for this out of the way corner of the world to say — and say with truth — that its collection of books is superior to the collection of any ef the second rate powers in tbe world, and that in some respects it can claim to be on an equality with such public libraries as are only to be found in London, Paris, and Vienna.