242
NOTES AND QUERIES. uis.ni. APRIL 1,1911.
declared intentions of the founder, as expressed
in his last will. Sir Thos. Gresham finished the
Exchange in Cornhill many years before his
death, yet so far was he from sanctioning any
scheme for locating the Professors at the Ex-
change, even as a temporary expedient, that he
Sostponed the execution of his fondly cherished
esign till his mansion in Bishopsgate Street
should be ready for his lecturers and their
audience. Ill would it become the present
trustees to act in contravention of his manifest
intentions by following the precedent, so generally
reprobated, of the last 70 years.
Your early attention to the enclosed will oblige Yours ever affectionately,
M. H.
Gresham College was not brought back to the Royal Exchange ; still more to be regretted, it was not installed at Crosby Hall. Instead, George Smith designed a building in "the enriched Roman style of architecture," and it was erected by Baker & Son at a cost of 7,OOOZ., where Basinghall Street enters Gresham Street. Most readers will be familiar with the interior, and few will regret it's impending demolition. It has no charm of association, and my most vivid recollection of it will be the surprise and barely disguised indignation of the porter when I, as a singular member of the lecture- endowed public, entered the door to hear a discourse on algebra.
ALECK ABRAHAMS.
CASANOVA IN ENGLAND.
(See 10 S. viii. 443, 491 ; ix. 116 ; xi. 437 ; 11 S. ii. 386.)
IN addition to the paragraph describing his appearance before Sir John Fielding, which, according to Casanova, was printed in The St. James's Chronicle, circa January- February, 1764, the newspapers of the day should give us two further items of informa- tion about the adventurer.
The furnished house in Pall Mall which he rented for " 20 guineas a week " he dis- covered, soon after his arrival in London, through an advertisement in " the Adver- tiser." It consisted of
"a ground-floor and three stories; each story having two rooms in front, with a dressing-room, which in London goes without saying ; and two beds on each story. Everything in this house was in perfect order linen, furniture, carpets, glass, china, as well as bells and door-plates. A large cupboard contained all the necessary linen ; in another was the silver, and several services of china and earthenware. The kitchen was com-
pletely equipped with utensils, bright and in th&
best condition "'Memoires,' vi. 349 (Paris,
Gamier).
It may be possible to identify this house by a search through the advertisement columns of The Public Advertiser during the latter part of June, 1763.
Shortly afterwards, Casanova, feeling lonely, put up a card in his window :
"Second or third floor to let cheap, furnished, to- a young lady, alone and free, who speaks English and French, and who receives no visitors neither day nor night."
Two days afterwards a copy of the card with the following comment appeared in. The St. James's Chronicle :
" The owner of the second or third story probably occupies the first. He should be a man of pleasure and taste, for he wants a lodger, young, alone, and free; and since she may not receive any visitor, it is necessary that he should provide her with good company. We fear, however, that the owner may be deceived by his bargain, for it is possible that this pretty girl may not rent the rooms to sleep in, and that she may not occupy them more than once a week ; also she can refuse, if she wishes, to- receive the visits of her landlord." 'Memoires 7 (Paris, Gamier), vi. 389-90 ; * Memoires' (Brussels, Rozez), v. 446.
We are told, moreover, that " three or four parodies " of the incident appeared in " the Advertiser " ' Memoires ' (Paris), vi. 404, 433.
There is an interesting reference to the extradition of John Rice, the forger, at pp. 272-3, vol. vi. of Gamier' s edition ; but the case was not sub judice, as the memoirist suggests, for the fraudulent broker was hanged on 4 May, 1763, five weeks before Casanova arrived in England. The innumerable dis- crepancies in the various editions of the ' Memoires ' are due obviously to the vagaries of the editors, who have paraphrased the text as fancy has led them. There is much need for a new and complete edition, transcribed from the original MSS. without alteration or embellishment.
It is worthy of note that Casanova left London for Dover with " Pauline " on 10 August, 1763, and crossed with her to Calais, whence he set out for London on 12 August, since it fixes the date of many incidents that he describes. Thus his presentation to George III. at St. James's ; his visit to Lady Harrington, whose residence he indicates accurately ; the arrest of Therese Cornelys for debt ; and the fall from his horse when he was calling upon Miss Chudleigh at Kingston, are all described as having taken place before 1 August. Nevertheless, in the present condition of the published memoirs
