Histories of the Kings of Britain Book 8 Chapter 10. For this purpose he summoned together several carpenters and masons, and commanded them to employ the utmost of their art, in contriving some new structure, for a lasting monument to those great men. But they, in diffidence of their own skill, refusing to undertake it, Tremounus, archbishop of the City of Legions, went to the king, and said, "If any one living is able to execute your commands, Merlin, the prophet of Vortigern, is the man. In my opinion there is not in all your kingdom a person of a brighter genius, either in predicting future events, or in mechanical contrivances. Order him to come to you, and exercise his skill in the work which you design." Whereupon Aurelius, after he had asked a great many questions concerning him, despatched several messengers into the country to find him out, and bring him to him. After passing through several provinces, they found him in the country of the Gewisseans, at the fountain of Galabes, which he frequently resorted to. As soon as they had delivered their message to him, they conducted him to the king, who received him with joy, and, being curious to hear some of his wonderful speeches, commanded him to prophesy. Merlin made answer: "Mysteries of this kind are not to be revealed but when there is the greatest necessity for it. If I should pretend to utter them for ostentation or diversion, the spirit that instructs me would be silent, and would leave me when I should have occasion for it." When he had made the same refusal to all the rest present, the king would not urge him any longer about his predictions, but spoke to him concerning the monument which he designed. "If you are desirous," said Merlin, "to honour the burying-place of these men with an everlasting monument [Historic Stonehenge], send for the Giant's Dance, which is in Killaraus, a mountain in Ireland. For there is a structure of stones there, which none of this age could raise, wthout a profound knowledge of the mechanical arts. They are stones of a vast magnitude and wonderful quality; and if they can be placed here, as they are there, round this spot of ground, they will stand for ever."

The Seven Wonders of the World by Philip Sidney (age 25).

I.

Near Wilton sweet, huge heaps of stones are found,

But so confused, that neither any eye

Can count them just, nor Reason reason try,

What force brought them to so unlikely ground.

To stranger weights my mind’s waste soil is bound,

Of passion-hills, reaching to Reason’s sky,

From Fancy’s earth, passing all number’s bound,

Passing all guess, whence into me should fly

So mazed a mass; or, if in me it grows,

A simple soul should breed so mixéd woes.

Written at Stonehenge by Thomas Wharton.

“Thou noblest monument [Historic Stonehenge] of Albion’s isle!

Whether by Merlin’s aid from Scythia’s shore

To Amber’s fatal plain Pendragon bore,

Huge frame of giant hands, the mighty pile,

To entomb his Britain’s slain by Hengist’s guile;

Or Druid priests, sprinkled with human gore,

Taught ’mid thy massy maze their mystic lore;

Or Danish chiefs, enriched with savage spoil,

To victory’s idle vast, an unhewn shrine,

Reared the rude heap; or in thy hallowed round

Repose the kings of Brutus’ genuine line;

Or here those kings in solemn state were crowned

Studious to trace thy wondrous origin,

We muse on many an ancient tale renowned.”

Stonehenge Edward Duke. Letter Relative to Stonehenge by the Reverend Edward Duke (age 71). 1851.

To The Secretary Of The Archaeolological Institute.

My dear Sir,

From the time that I heard of the archæological meeting in this neighbourhood, it had been my wish and hope to have offered to its members a paper on Stonehenge, to which I have given my attention for some years. As the time draws near, however, I find myself compelled, although reluctantly, to decline the more elaborate essay I had purposed. My health, broken by repeated and very severe attacks of illness, will not allow the application of mind to a subject for any length of time without injury.

If, however, you will permit me to do so, I shall venture to offer to your consideration, and submit to your judgment, some points which would have found a place in the contemplated essay, had I been able to complete it.

I think you may be aware that, about three years since, I put through the press a small volume bearing the title of the Druidical Temples of Wilts. In that work Stonehenge was considered as forming part of a planetarium, in connexion with Abury, in the more northern part of the county, and with a series of remains to be traced on the face of the intervening country, the gigantic proportions of which were such that its meridional line was extended no less than two-and-thirty miles. It was while my mind was engaged on this subject, subsequently however to the publication of the book, that the theory of the construction of Stonehenge was gradually presented to it, both with a more distinct outline and in fuller detail. I have not, indeed, found occasion to reject or displace any of the opinions I have formerly expressed: my later occupation has been to add to, and complete my view on this portion of my former subject.

I now, therefore, separate Stonehenge from Abury and the other sacred stations with which, for certain purposes, it was conjoined, and proceed to regard it (as, of course, it may be regarded) in the light of a temple standing alone, entire and perfect in itself, totus in se, teres, atque rotundus.

In approaching Stonehenge, it may be advisable for a stranger, who is making his inspection for the first time, to forbear entering the sacred precincts from that side by which he would naturally arrive on his road from Salisbury; and to diverge from the path, till he come to the Gnomon, or index-stone, on the north-east side. He will walk from thence beneath the centre arch of the three imposts in front, and so proceed up the temple. In this way, with ordinary attention and intelligence, its plan will become evident at once, which otherwise must appear to the observer involved in a chaotic confusion.

We will suppose our Archaeologist arrived, for the first time in his life, at the outer circle of this venerable monument.

This consisted originally of thirty upright stones, joined together at the top by a continued corona of the same number of imposts: their substance being a silicious grit, permeated here and there with a thin vein of quartz; and therefore bearing intrinsic evidence that they are Nature's handiwork, and not, as some have supposed — the great Camden among them — from the manufactories of man.

Their height is sixteen feet; their sides shaped into regular parallelograms by the chisel, and their inner surfaces bevelled, from the bottom upwards, for the greater firmness and security of the mass; a hint which our Norman forefathers did not neglect to observe and follow in the churches which their piety reared in the neighbouring bournes.

These stones, when first set up, were evidently located with great art; externally they must have presented a gentle curve, and internally have shewn a polygon of thirty sides. We have here, then, thirty stones with their thirty intervals, each distinct by itself, and yet all linked together, and united into one, by the one superincumbent and encircling corona. In this, therefore, we behold, in their several and joint characters, the thirty days and thirty nights into which, anciently, each of the twelve months of the year was equally divided, — the perpetual, standing calendar of the Druids for that space of time; or, when multiplied by twelve, their almanac for the year.

A simple arrangement truly, and befitting a simple and unsophisticated people, but not to be denied a higher praise also; for it has been held truly that works of genius are to be known by the most perfect adaptation to their end, combined with the greatest possible simplicity. Of the arrangement of their ecclesiastical year we have, it is true, but little knowledge. Fasts, we may presume, were to them unknown. Of festival days, days of high rejoicing and holy observation, we may not doubt that they had their proper allowance. They were those probably pointed out by nature, or received from earliest primeval tradition — the equinoxes, the solstices, the new moons, and the sabbath-days. Thus, in each monthly revolution, the progress of the month upon any given day would be marked by the stone at which they might then have arrived; and by this calendar, — for the integrity of which its publicity and the consciences of the priesthood were the vouchers, — the possibility of a national doubt, or of conflicting calculations in any two different parts of the nation, as to precise timet whether in regard to the celebration of sacred feasts or to the fulfilment of civil contracts was averted; for a reference was always feasible to the great national calendar at Stonehenge, whose fiat would be at once decisive of the doubt or controversy. It was, in fact, the authority of that day, from whose voice there was no appeal.

Proceeding inwards, from the circumference to the centre of the temple, we shall come next to the remains of a circle of smaller stones, of granite, porphyry, &c., concentric with the outer circle. On the number of the stones composing this interior circle much diversity of opinion exists among antiquaries. Upon this question I shall not now enter, but assume that the opinion in which Stukeley and Sir R. C. Hoare concur is the correct one, namely, that it consisted of neither more nor less than forty. I shall take leave, however, to disagree with Sir Richard, and also Mr. Cunnington, as to their decision upon another point. They have advanced an opinion that the larger stones at Stonehenge were erected, in point of time, previously to the smaller ones, which last they think to have been subsequently inserted among them.

Tess of the d'Urbervilles Chapter 58. They had proceeded thus gropingly two or three miles further when on a sudden Clare became conscious of some vast erection close in his front, rising sheer from the grass. They had almost struck themselves against it.

“What monstrous place is this?” said Angel.

“It hums,” said she. “Hearken!”

He listened. The wind, playing upon the edifice, produced a booming tune, like the note of some gigantic one-stringed harp. No other sound came from it, and lifting his hand and advancing a step or two, Clare felt the vertical surface of the structure. It seemed to be of solid stone, without joint or moulding. Carrying his fingers onward he found that what he had come in contact with was a colossal rectangular pillar; by stretching out his left hand he could feel a similar one adjoining. At an indefinite height overhead something made the black sky blacker, which had the semblance of a vast architrave uniting the pillars horizontally. They carefully entered beneath and between; the surfaces echoed their soft rustle; but they seemed to be still out of doors. The place was roofless. Tess drew her breath fearfully, and Angel, perplexed, said—

“What can it be?”

Feeling sideways they encountered another tower-like pillar, square and uncompromising as the first; beyond it another and another. The place was all doors and pillars, some connected above by continuous architraves.

“A very Temple of the Winds,” he said.

The next pillar was isolated; others composed a trilithon; others were prostrate, their flanks forming a causeway wide enough for a carriage; and it was soon obvious that they made up a forest of monoliths grouped upon the grassy expanse of the plain. The couple advanced further into this pavilion of the night till they stood in its midst.

“It is Stonehenge!” said Clare.

“The heathen temple, you mean?”

“Yes. Older than the centuries; older than the d’Urbervilles! Well, what shall we do, darling? We may find shelter further on.”

But Tess, really tired by this time, flung herself upon an oblong slab that lay close at hand, and was sheltered from the wind by a pillar. Owing to the action of the sun during the preceding day, the stone was warm and dry, in comforting contrast to the rough and chill grass around, which had damped her skirts and shoes.

“I don’t want to go any further, Angel,” she said, stretching out her hand for his. “Can’t we bide here?”

“I fear not. This spot is visible for miles by day, although it does not seem so now.”

“One of my mother’s people was a shepherd hereabouts, now I think of it. And you used to say at Talbothays that I was a heathen. So now I am at home.”

He knelt down beside her outstretched form, and put his lips upon hers.

“Sleepy are you, dear? I think you are lying on an altar.”

“I like very much to be here,” she murmured. “It is so solemn and lonely—after my great happiness—with nothing but the sky above my face. It seems as if there were no folk in the world but we two; and I wish there were not—except ’Liza-Lu.”

Clare thought she might as well rest here till it should get a little lighter, and he flung his overcoat upon her, and sat down by her side.

“Angel, if anything happens to me, will you watch over ’Liza-Lu for my sake?” she asked, when they had listened a long time to the wind among the pillars.

“I will.”

“She is so good and simple and pure. O, Angel—I wish you would marry her if you lose me, as you will do shortly. O, if you would!”

“If I lose you I lose all! And she is my sister-in-law.”

“That’s nothing, dearest. People marry sister-laws continually about Marlott; and ’Liza-Lu is so gentle and sweet, and she is growing so beautiful. O, I could share you with her willingly when we are spirits! If you would train her and teach her, Angel, and bring her up for your own self!... She had all the best of me without the bad of me; and if she were to become yours it would almost seem as if death had not divided us... Well, I have said it. I won’t mention it again.”

She ceased, and he fell into thought. In the far north-east sky he could see between the pillars a level streak of light. The uniform concavity of black cloud was lifting bodily like the lid of a pot, letting in at the earth’s edge the coming day, against which the towering monoliths and trilithons began to be blackly defined.

“Did they sacrifice to God here?” asked she.

“No,” said he.

“Who to?”

“I believe to the sun. That lofty stone set away by itself is in the direction of the sun, which will presently rise behind it.”

“This reminds me, dear,” she said. “You remember you never would interfere with any belief of mine before we were married? But I knew your mind all the same, and I thought as you thought—not from any reasons of my own, but because you thought so. Tell me now, Angel, do you think we shall meet again after we are dead? I want to know.”

He kissed her to avoid a reply at such a time.

“O, Angel—I fear that means no!” said she, with a suppressed sob. “And I wanted so to see you again—so much, so much! What—not even you and I, Angel, who love each other so well?”

Like a greater than himself, to the critical question at the critical time he did not answer; and they were again silent. In a minute or two her breathing became more regular, her clasp of his hand relaxed, and she fell asleep. The band of silver paleness along the east horizon made even the distant parts of the Great Plain appear dark and near; and the whole enormous landscape bore that impress of reserve, taciturnity, and hesitation which is usual just before day. The eastward pillars and their architraves stood up blackly against the light, and the great flame-shaped Sun-stone beyond them; and the Stone of Sacrifice midway. Presently the night wind died out, and the quivering little pools in the cup-like hollows of the stones lay still. At the same time something seemed to move on the verge of the dip eastward—a mere dot. It was the head of a man approaching them from the hollow beyond the Sun-stone. Clare wished they had gone onward, but in the circumstances decided to remain quiet. The figure came straight towards the circle of pillars in which they were.

He heard something behind him, the brush of feet. Turning, he saw over the prostrate columns another figure; then before he was aware, another was at hand on the right, under a trilithon, and another on the left. The dawn shone full on the front of the man westward, and Clare could discern from this that he was tall, and walked as if trained. They all closed in with evident purpose. Her story then was true! Springing to his feet, he looked around for a weapon, loose stone, means of escape, anything. By this time the nearest man was upon him.

“It is no use, sir,” he said. “There are sixteen of us on the Plain, and the whole country is reared.”

“Let her finish her sleep!” he implored in a whisper of the men as they gathered round.

When they saw where she lay, which they had not done till then, they showed no objection, and stood watching her, as still as the pillars around. He went to the stone and bent over her, holding one poor little hand; her breathing now was quick and small, like that of a lesser creature than a woman. All waited in the growing light, their faces and hands as if they were silvered, the remainder of their figures dark, the stones glistening green-gray, the Plain still a mass of shade. Soon the light was strong, and a ray shone upon her unconscious form, peering under her eyelids and waking her.

“What is it, Angel?” she said, starting up. “Have they come for me?”

“Yes, dearest,” he said. “They have come.”

“It is as it should be,” she murmured. “Angel, I am almost glad—yes, glad! This happiness could not have lasted. It was too much. I have had enough; and now I shall not live for you to despise me!”

She stood up, shook herself, and went forward, neither of the men having moved.

“I am ready,” she said quietly.

The Times. 13 Feb 1915. Death of Sir Edward Antrobus (deceased)

Owner and Guardian of Stonehenge.

Colonel Sir Edward Antrobus, Bt., died at Amesbury Abbey [Map], on Thursday afternoon at the age of 67. He is succeeded by his only remaining brother, Mr. Cosmo Gordon Antrobus (age 56). His only son [Edmund Antrobus], who was a Lieutenant in the Grenadier Guards, was killed in action on October 24 last.

Sir Edmund Antrobus will be remembered as the owner of the famous Stonehenge, on Salisbury Plain, which was included in the Amesbury Abbey estate of about 8000 acres. After consulting with the Society of Antiquaries, the Society of Ancient Monuments, and the Wilts Archaeological Society, Sir Edmund determined to enclose the monument by wire fencing, and the action led to litigation in the High Court. In April, 1905, the Solicitor-General claimed an order against the owner to remove the fencing, and an injunction to restrain him from erecting such fencing. The claim was based on two grounds - (1) That Stonehenge was a national monument of great interest, and was subject to trust for its freer use by the public: and (2) that there were public roads running up to and through Stonehenge, and that those roads had been blocked by the defendant's fencing. Sir Edmund produced title deeds showing the purchase in fee by this great-great-uncle from the trustees of the Duke of Queensbury, some seventy years before, and an absolute fee simple title in himself. Mr. Justice Farwell, in giving judgement for Sir Edmund, observed that it was only fair to the defendant to say that he was not acting capriciously, but on expert advice, the preservation of the stones.

Sir Edmund, who was the fourth baromet, took a large share in local administration. He was an alderman of the Wilts County Council, a justice of the peace, a member of the Amesbury Rural District Council, and served on many local committees. A few years ago his intention of selling the Amesbury Abbey estate was announced, but the sale was never effected.

Sir Edmund Antrotus was formerly colonel of the 3rd Battalion of the Grenadier Guards, and served in the Suakin Expedition of 1885. He married, in 1886, Florence (age 59), daughter of the late Mr. J. A. Sartoris, of Hopsford Hall, Coventry.

Cosmo Gordon Antrobus 5th Baronet: In 1859 he was born to Edmund Antrobus 3rd Baronet and Marianne Georgiana Dashwood Lady Antrobus. On 11 Feb 1915 Edmund Antrobus 4th Baronet died at his home Amesbury Abbey, Wiltshire. His brother Cosmo Gordon Antrobus 5th Baronet succeeded 5th Baronet Antrobus of Antrobus in Cheshire, and inherited the Amesbury Abbey, Wiltshire estate including Stonehenge. On 21 Sep 1915 Cosmo Gordon Antrobus 5th Baronet sold Stonehenge at auction. It was bought by Cecil Herbert Edward Chubb 1st Baronet; see Archaeologia Cambrensis Series 6 Volume 15 1905 Stonehenge. In 1939 Cosmo Gordon Antrobus 5th Baronet died. His first cousin Philip Humphrey Antrobus 6th Baronet succeeded 6th Baronet Antrobus of Antrobus in Cheshire.

Archaeologia Cambrensis Series 6 Volume 15 1905 Stonehenge. 22 Sep 1915. Sale of Stonehenge. — Great public interest was shown in the sale by auction at Salisbury yesterday [September 21st] of the Amesbury Abbey estate, including Stonehenge. Sir Howard Frank, of Messrs. Knight, Frank and Rutley, conducted the sale, and explained that the estate came into the market in consequence of the deaths of Sir Edmund Antrobus and of his only son [Edmund Antrobus], who was killed in action last October. The estate, which has many historical associations, comprises 6,420 acres, and has an estimated rental of £5,359. It was first submitted as a whole, but as no purchaser was forthcoming it was offered in lots, of which Amesbury Abbey and grounds formed the first. This was unsold. Farms and buildings in the town of Amesbury, however, sold at good prices, and most of the property changed hands. When Stonehenge was put up for sale Sir Howard Frank asked for an opening bid of £5,000. A bid for that amount was made at once, quickly followed by an advance of £100, and £6,000 was readied within a minute. Then there was a lull. The auctioneer said the price was a poor one for Stonehenge, which could not be valued, but if there were no further offers he would accept it. Bidding recommenced and mounted to £6,600, at which the property fell to a local landowner, Mr. C. H. E. Chubb (age 39), of Bemerton Lodge, Salisbury. After the sale Mr. Chubb said that when he went into the sale room he had no intention whatever of buying the monument. "While I was there," he added, I thought a Salisbury man ought to buy it, and that is how it was done." Asked if he had any plans for the future of Stonehenge, Mr. Chubb said that, while he intended to preserve the monument, he would do nothing for some little time, as he had to consider the position. — Times, September 22nd, 1915.

Profits Of Stonehenge. — -Mr. Chubb, the new owner of Stonehenge, will not be given legal possession for some months. Meanwhile he has formulated no plan for the future, except that he is determined to take every step to see that the stones are preserved as heretofore.

The opinion expressed locally is that Mr. Chubb has made an excellent bargain, quite apart from the historic interest attaching to Stonehenge. As the purchase price was £6,600, and the net receipts from fees paid by visitors to the enclosure average £360 per annum, the transaction, regarded in a cold commercial light, represents an investment of over 5 per cent.Times, September 23rd, 1915.

Stonehenge: Its Recent Sale And Price.- The following letter appeared in "The Times of October 6th, 1915:— Sir, — The sale by auction a few days ago of Stonehenge for the comparatively small sum of £6600 will, I think, cause regret in many quarters that the opportunity was lost of vesting this most important national monument in some public body, and of restoring to the public the access to it, free of charge, which had been enjoyed for countless centuries. It will be recollected that fourteen years ago litigation was undertaken with this object. The claim was made that two well-worn ways leading up to, and through, the outer circle of stones were obstructed by the inclosure, which was erected partly with the object of guarding the stones, but mainly for the purpose of enforcing a charge of admission of Is. a head. Those of us who were engaged in this attempt were worsted in the suit and were heavily mulcted in costs. It was not generally known, however, and could not be stated at the hearing of the suit, that at an early stage of the proceedings we offered to purchase the monument and a few acres of Down land surrounding it for the sum of £10,000, with the purpose of placing the monument under the full protection of the Ancient Monuments Act. The effect of this would be that the Government would be charged with the duty and cost of guarding and preserving the stones, and that access of the public to them would be secured, free of charge, for ever. The then owner of the property did not object to a sale, but he said that his price was £50,000. For this sum he had already offered the monument to the Government, and when it was rejected, on the ground that it was altogether exorbitant, he threatened to sell the stones to an American millionaire, who would ship them across the Atlantic. The then Chancellor of the Exchequer, to whom the offer and threat were verbally made, very properly replied that if an attempt was made to remove the monument he would send a regiment from the camp on Salisbury Plain to prevent it. In spite of this rebuff, the excessive price was insisted upon, with the result that the suit was proceeded with. Since then the admission fees have been maintained, and I am informed that the visitors to Stonehenge have been only one-fourth in number of what they used to be. The net produce from the charge for admission has averaged the last three years £320, after deducting the cost of guarding and preserving it. The fees for admission during the last half-year have been greatly reduced in consequence of the war.

"When, a few weeks ago, the intended sale of the monument was announced, I would gladly have made an effort to raise a sum for its purchase, with the object of undoing the wrong which had been done in 1901. But I found that, in view of the many claims arising out of the war, it was impossible to raise by subscription even the moderate sum which appeared to be the full commercial value of the monument, based on the admission fees.

"There remained, however, the possibility that the monument might be purchased by some public body, such as the National Trust, who would maintain the charge for admission to it until more favourable times, when it would be possible to reduce or abolish that charge. In this view, the National Trust, at my suggestion, entered into a correspondence with Messrs. Knight, Frank and Rutley, the agents for the sale of the Amesbury estate. The society had no funds at its immediate disposal for such a purpose, but among its generous supporters there would probably have been found those who would advance the purchase-money on loan on the security of the admission fees. It was necessary, however, before applying to any such friends, to know the price demanded for the monument. The society was informed by the agents that the owner could not name a price, but was prepared to entertain any offer from the National Trust above the sum of £10,000 — a price evidently based upon the offer made for it fourteen years ago. The society replied to this that, after careful consideration, they had come to the conclusion that the minimum price named by the owner was altogether excessive, particularly in view of the exceptional conditions consequent on the war, and that they were unable to make an offer of that amount or above it.

"The reply of the agents to this, on September 17th, was 'that the vendor, who is a tenant for life of the property, would not be justified in selling Stonehenge previous to the auction except at a price which was considered by us (Messrs. Knight, Frank and Rutley) to be high.' They added — 'The reserve at the auction, however, is a low one, in our view, and is thousands of pounds below the amount mentioned in our previous letter,' namely, £10,000. They suggested that the National Trust should be represented at the auction. It was thus practically admitted that the price named by the owner in the previous letter was, in the opinion of the experienced agents who advised him, too high by some thousands. The letter was received by the National Trust on Saturday, September 18th, three days before the sale by auction. It was impossible, in this short interval, to make arrangements for finding the possible purchase-money. The society, therefore, was not represented at the auction, and made no bid. The monument was bought for S6600 by a gentleman resident in the neighbourhood, who has stated that he has bought it as an investment, but with the full intention of doing his best to preserve it a promise which I doubt not he will fulfil. Not the less, however, it is to be regretted that the monument has not become the property of some public body, with the prospect of the reduction or remission of the entrance fees. I may be permitted also to point out that the price obtained at the auction, while it confirms the opinion of the agents who conducted the sale, is also striking proof that the sum offered for the monument in 1901 was most generous, and such as, in the interest of the entailed estate and of the public, should have been accepted.

I am yours faithfully,

Eversley.

Abbotsworthy House, Winchester,

October 1st.

In 1918 Cecil Chubb (age 41) wrote a letter to Sir Alfred Mond, the holder of the office of "First Commissioner of Works" in Government and the man in charge of all things to do with Ancient Monuments under the 1913 Act:

Bemerton Lodge, Salisbury, 15th September 1918

Dear Sir,

Stonehenge is perhaps our best known and the most interesting of our national monuments, and has always appealed strongly to the British imagination. To me, who was born close to it and during my boyhood and youth visited it at all hours of the day and night, under every conceivable condition of weather – in driving tempests of hail, rain and snow, fierce thunderstorms, glorious moonlight, and beautiful sunshine, it always has had an inexpressible charm.

I became the owner of it with a deep sense of pleasure, and had contemplated that it might remain a cherished possession of my family for years to come. It has, however, been pressed upon me that the nation would like to have it for its own and would prize it most highly. I, therefore, have decided to give up this unique possession and offer it to you, his Majesty’s First Commissioner of Works, as a gift to be held for the nation.

It brings in a revenue, and its possession would be far from an expense. If my wife and I may express a wish, though far from making it a condition of the gift, we should be glad if during the continuance of the war the income could be handed to the Red Cross Society, whose work at the present time is of such great national value. This point, however, must be entirely within your discretion.

I have the honour to be

Yours faithfully

C.H.E Chubb