MR. BENTINCKsaid, he would beg to ask the right hon. Member for the University of Cambridge, Whether the Trustees of the British Museum are aware that an important sale of engravings by Marco Antonio is about to take 327 place at Frankfort on the 17th instant, and whether they have applied, or are about to apply, to the Treasury for authority to purchase at the market value such examples as are not contained in the National Collection, and are proper to be added thereto? He would beg to add that, as far as he was advised, £1,000 would be necessary for the purpose. He therefore asked whether, if the Trustees thought £1,000 too much, they would limit their demand to a smaller sum, having regard to the fact that this opportunity might not again occur for a considerable period?
§ MR. SPENCER WALPOLEsaid, in reply, that he was not aware of this sale until his hon. Friend spoke to him about it yesterday evening. On inquiry to-day he found that an application had been made to the First Lord of the Treasury, and a reply forwarded to the British Museum yesterday. He (Mr. Walpole) had made such inquiries as he had been enabled to do in the course of the day as to the nature of the collection. It was a remarkably fine collection; and as the sale took place, not on the 17th, as the hon. Gentleman supposed, but on the 16th, a special meeting of the trustees had been convened for Tuesday next, in order to take the matter into consideration.