s family, who for
years retained possession of it.

About the year 1858 it became the property of M. Vuillaume, of Paris,
from whom it was purchased by M. Wilmotte, of Antwerp. Several years
later it passed to Mr. C. G. Meier, who had waited patiently for years
to become its owner. The loving care which this admirer of Cremonese
Violins bestowed upon it was such, that he would scarcely permit any
person to handle it. From Mr. Meier it passed into my possession in
the year 1878, which change of ownership brought forth the following
interesting particulars from the pen of the late Charles Reade, the
novelist and lover of Fiddles:--

"THE BETTS STRADIVARI.

"_To the Editor of the 'Globe.'_

"SIR,--As you have devoted a paragraph to this Violin, which it well
deserves, permit me to add a fact which may be interesting to
amateurs, and to Mr. George Hart, the late purchaser. M. Vuillaume,
who could not speak English, was always assisted in his London
purchases by the late John Lott, an excellent workman, and a good
judge of old Violins.[13] The day after this particular purchase, Lott
came to Vuillaume, by order, to open the Violin. He did so in the
sitting-room whilst Vuillaume was dressing. Lott's first words were,
'Why, it has never been opened!' His next, 'Here's the original
bass-bar.' Thereupon out went M. Vuillaume, half-dressed, and the pair
gloated over a rare sight, a Stradivari Violin, the interior of which
was intact from the maker's hands. Mr. Lott described the bass-bar to
me. It was very low and very short, and quite unequal to support the
tension of the strings at our concert pitch, so that the true tone of
this Violin can never have been heard in England before it fell into
Vuillaume's hands. I have known this Violin forty years. It is
wonderfully preserved. There is no wear on the belly except the
chin-mark; in the centre of the back a very little, just enough to
give light and shade. The corners appear long for the epoch, but only
because they have not been worn down. As far as the work goes, you may
know from this instrument how a brand-new Stradivari Violin looked.
Eight hundred guineas seems a long price for a dealer to give: but
after all, here is a Violin, a picture, and a miracle all in one; and
big diamonds increase in number; but these spoils of time are limited
for ever now, and, indeed, can only decrease by shipwreck, accident,
and the tooth of time.--I am, your obedient servant,

"CHARLES