BIB_ID
408194
Accession number
MA 35.50
Creator
Arblay, Alexandre Jean Baptiste Piochard, comte d', 1754-1818.
Display Date
1803 March 5.
Credit line
Purchased by Pierpont Morgan, 1905.
Description
1 item (4 pages, with address) ; 21 x 16.6 cm
Notes
Most of the letter is written by M.d'A, but FBA adds a postscript at the end.
M.d'A gives the place of writing as "Passy," a neighborhood in Paris. M.d'A and FBA owned a house at 54, rue Basse, during this period. See the published correspondence, cited below, for additional information.
Address panel with postmarks: "Capt James Burney / of the R[oy]al Navy / no. 72 Margaret Street / Cavendish Square / London."
M.d'A gives the place of writing as "Passy," a neighborhood in Paris. M.d'A and FBA owned a house at 54, rue Basse, during this period. See the published correspondence, cited below, for additional information.
Address panel with postmarks: "Capt James Burney / of the R[oy]al Navy / no. 72 Margaret Street / Cavendish Square / London."
Provenance
Purchased by Pierpont Morgan from the London dealer Quaritch in July 1905 as part of a collection of Burney's correspondence and fragments of manuscripts, bound in three volumes. Disbound in 1925.
Summary
[M.d'A]: Regarding his translation of the first volume of James's Chronological History of the Discoveries in the South Sea: telling him that he has received the gatherings lettered E-K of the page proofs (which were sent via Monsieur Coquebert to Monsieur d'Arblay's friend Louis-Joseph d'Hermand), but not the first five gatherings; writing that he needs more information about the book before he can propose making certain arrangements with the "ministre de la Marine" (Denis Decrès); adding that he is afraid the initial gatherings must have been lost and asking James to send them again; mentioning that he does not know who this "Fernando de Magalhanes" is and he has been unable to find the French translation that James refers to; asking him what the Ambrosian Manuscript is (an account of Magellan's voyage, held at the Ambrosian Library in Milan); telling him that he stopped writing this letter to review the five gatherings that did arrive and he was surprised to realize that James was referring to "le fameux Magellan"; writing that he is sure the work will find both "honneur et profit" in England, and while the former is assured in France, the latter is less likely, since the French Navy is currently too small to furnish a proper market for the book; adding that they should make arrangements with Decrès for the Ministry to purchase a number of copies in advance to offset expenses; mentioning again (see MA 35.49) that the geographer James Rennell is very highly respected in France and he hopes that James mentions him; [FBA]: commenting "How provoking your first paquet missing, my dear James -- what can be become of it?"
Catalog link
Department