urposes of the Act, namely,
the purchase of the Sloane and Harleian Collections; the providing of a
Repository; and the creation of an annual income for future
maintenance.'[59] Sir Hans Sloane's principal work was the _Natural
History of Jamaica_, 2 vols., London, 1707-25, which occupied him for no
less than thirty-eight years.

FOOTNOTES:

[Footnote 56: Edwards, _Lives of Founders of the British Museum_, p.
274.]

[Footnote 57: There are 4100 volumes of Sloane MSS. in the British
Museum. A catalogue of them, compiled by the Rev. S. Ayscough, was
printed in 1782.]

[Footnote 58: Sims, _Handbook to the Library of the British Museum_, p.
2.]

PETER LE NEVE, 1661-1729

Peter Le Neve was the son of Francis Neve (the _Le_ had been dropped for
several generations, when Peter resumed the ancient form of his name), a
citizen and draper of London. He was born in London in 1661, and was
educated at Merchant Taylors' School. From an early age he displayed a
great love of antiquarian pursuits, and in 1707, when the Society of
Antiquaries was reconstituted, he was chosen the first President, which
office he held until 1724. He was also a Fellow of the Royal Society. On
the 17th of January 1690, Le Neve was appointed Rouge-Croix Pursuivant;
on April the 5th 1704, Richmond Herald; and on the 25th of the
succeeding month Norroy King-at-Arms. He died on the 24th of September
1729, and was buried in the chancel of Great Witchingham Church,
Norfolk. Oldys states that Le Neve had 'a vast treasure of Historical
Antiquities, consisting of about 2000 printed books and above 1200 MSS.,
interspersed with many notes of his own.' Oldys also mentions that 'it
is said that he had some pique with the Heralds' Office a little before
his death, so cut them off with a single book, otherwise he had left
them the whole of his library.'[60]

'Honest Tom Martin of Palgrave,' the antiquary, who was Le Neve's
executor, and who married his widow, appears to have succeeded to the
bulk of Le Neve's collections. They were sold by auction in 1731. The
title-page of the sale catalogue reads:--'A Catalogue of the valuable
library collected by that truly Laborious Antiquary, Peter Le Neve,
Esq.; Norroy King of Arms (lately deceas'd), containing most of the
Books relating to the History and Antiquities of Great Britain and
Ireland, and many other nations. With more than a thousand Manuscripts
of Abstracts of Records, etc., Heraldry, and other Scien