EL—22

9

far unpublished) (German) ; Lutheran Mission, New Guinea, eleven volumes printed by them in various New Guinea dialects; Dr. F. A. Bett, sixty photo copies of original sketches by J. W. Barniooat, dating from 1842, chiefly Nelson, Dunedin, and Westland; Mrs. C. A. Ewen, water-colour drawing of Customhouse Quay in the " fifties " ; Russell Duncan, 106 mounted photos of places in New Zealand of historic interest; Miss Davies, seven volumes of pressed ferns, mostly of New Zealand and the Pacific ; The Right Hon. W. F. Massey, letter dated Bay of Islands, 7th September, 1839, giving details of cannibal feast; John Rylans library, Manchester, " Shakespeare Tercentenary," and Greppy's " Life and Times of Shakespeare " ; Maggs Bros., London, five volumes of their catalogues for 1922, bound in half-morocco, also " Livre d'heures pcintpar Jean Foucquet " ; Mrs. Hamelieus (Dora Wilcox), New Zealand flag made by her and flown at Liege during the German evacuation ; Mrs. Osborne, electrotype copy of the hitherto unknown portrait of Keats by C. A. Browne, found in New Zealand (noted last year) ; Venerable Archdeacon Williams, original MS. corrected editions of Williams's " First Lessons in Maori," .1862, .1872, 1882, 1894, 1904 ; H. Hamilton, a large Persian manuscript volume, dating about 1800, being a copy of the poem Iskander-namah, by Nizami, dealing with the legendary career of Alexander the Great, also several, other minor volumes, pictures, &c. ; Mrs. Wilford, facsimile (1879) of panorama of London before the Great Fire ; A. Bonnin, Newcastle-on-Tyne, address, dated October, .1853, by passengers to Captain J. M. Cawkitt of the "John Taylor," emigrant-ship to Canterbury ; G. H. McClure, set of field war maps of the western front, in plancase made from downpipe of one of the occupied dwellings ; R. D. D. McLean, " Old New Zealand," 1922 ; E. Wakefield, London, autograph copy of his " Life of Sir E. W. Stafford " ; E. McCarthy, Algarotti's " Works," eight volumes (Italian) ; H. S. Dettman, " Aneodotique du Louis XVI," and " La Rcgence." Besides the above, donations of various volumes and pamphlets have been made by the Hon. W. H. Triggs, W. H. Skinner, I). C. Bates, D. Neild, H. Hamilton, J. J. Wilson, War Relief Association, W. Quinn, U. Tewsley, Mrs. Moreton, J. Stewart, W. G. Watson, G. Graham Mrs. Ballantyne, C. Hanes, and. others. To all these the thanks of the Government are due. Besides these donations there have been left on deposit various volumes, drawings, &c, which must remain unspecified, but which may eventually pass into the permanent keeping of the library. Again, a very valuable collection of letters of the late S. Revans, written to the father of the Hon. Sir F. R. Chapman, was left by the latter for copying. The copies occupy about 350 typed pages foolscap, and. deal with the early social and journalistic life of Wellington, being dated from 1839 onwards. Copies have also been made of J. Wade's letters, 1842-43 ; and as Wade, after whom Wadestown was named, was a merchant of wide activities the letters are of historical interest, especially as they deal with early whaling-stations from Cook Strait down to Banks Peninsula. Copies have also been obtained of notes made during Hector's explorations in and about Milford Sound in .1863, and the artist Moreton's explorations in the same district twenty to thirty years later. Attention might particularly be drawn to the donation of the, 106 photographs by Mr. Russell Duncan. The individual photos are annotated by Mr. Duncan and a note made of the date the photo was taken, so that they are of real historic value. They include sites of famous Maori pa, scenes of Captain Cook's activities, &c. The volumes of Swinburne presented by Mr. Dinwiddie are editions not already included in the extensive set now in the library. It is pleasing to note that books and ethnological writings are still being sent by J. Flierl and the Lutheran Mission of New Guinea. The value of other of the donations might be emphasized, but there is probably no need for its being done ; all are, fully appreciated. There has been deposited in the library the inkstand made from teak and metal of the late IT.M.S. " Now Zealand," presented to the New Zealand Government by the Rosyth Ship-breaking Company (Limited). The ship's book of the " New Zealand," also the chart of the various cruises in the North Sea have been deposited in the library, which consequently houses some vital remains of the ship that, completed in November, 1912, served its end, and was broken up in 1923. It might be noted that before the death of the late Captain Mair negotiations had boon entered into with him for the acquisition of papers in his possession. Negotiations are still pending with his executors ; a certain amount of the papers is now in the library, but a full report is deferred until the whole have been received. Other Acquisitions. —A set of over five hundred photographs of actors, actresses, musicians, &c, who have visited Now Zealand during the last thirty to forty years was secured by purchase. These will supplement and make valuable another donation which was otherwise a puzzling one to deal with —a set of theatre and concert programmes covering about the same period. By purchase was also secured a set of the Zoological Record from 1869 ; a set (almost complete) of the China Review, now ceased publication; a copy of the " Niue Grammar and Vocabulary," by Tregear and Smith, annotated fully by W. G. Lawes, from whose notes the work was originally compiled. By purchase was also secured a collection of photos and other pictures of ships of all kinds that have traded in the South Seas. This is an exceptionally fine collection, and comprises over two thousand pictures, also nineteen books dealing with ships and shipping. A presentation writing-desk, brought to New Zealand over a hundred years ago by one of the leading missionaries, was acquired ; also two fine pencil drawings, by Lindauer, of Patuone, and Erani (wife of Haera Tupaca). War Literature. —Through the aotion of the High Commissioner about thirty further volumes of histories published by various regiments have been received, also photos of memorials, &c.

2—H. 22.