“‘Sir,—I received yours, and was much affected at its contents. I should have written sooner, but I wished first to see his uncle, who has informed me of the following particulars:—

“‘James Doe was born at Lambeth, in Surrey, of very respectable parents, and was educated in the same place. He served an apprenticeship at Lambeth to a painter in the china and earthenware line, and he painted in the biscuit before it was glazed. In this line he was esteemed a good workman; and, to my own knowledge, he worked some years at Mr. Wedgwood’s manufactory in Staffordshire. He was there very much respected by his employer, his fellow-workmen, and by all who knew him. He was fond of company, but I do not remember him to neglect business when urgent. Having a tolerably good education, he was fond of reading. He was particularly generous, and always first to relieve any of the trade out of employ or in sickness. He worked at Mr. Baddely’s, in Staffordshire, for six or seven years, and was, at that place, very much respected. In fact, I believe him to be generally beloved and respected wheresoever he worked. About three years ago he came to London, and finding little or no employment in the line in which he was brought up, he was obliged to leave town, and, being assisted by his friends, he embarked on board a ship for Newcastle, and from thence went on to Glasgow in Scotland, where he was a fellow-workman with one of my present journeymen, and supported an excellent character there. From this time, I believe, he met with many disappointments. He then went to Ireland, and, after stopping there a short time, he embarked on board a vessel bound for Swansea, in South Wales, where he worked some time, and then went on to the Worcestershire China Manufactory, which was, I believe, the last place he worked at.’”

The following is an extract from the letter alluded to:—

“‘London, Nov. 20, 1797.

“‘Sir,—

“‘You seem to be very anxious concerning the life of the unfortunate stranger found drowned in Sea-Mill Dock. You have a right to know it, for the kindness you have shown to his unfortunate remains. James Doe was born at Lambeth, about two miles from London, of honest parents, who brought him up in as creditable a manner as their circumstances would admit. At the age of fourteen years, or thereabouts, he was put as an apprentice to Mr. Griffiths, at the delft pottery, High Street, Lambeth. When he was out of his time, he continued working at his business until he became slack; and the queen’s ware meeting with great encouragement, he went into Staffordshire for employment, where he remained upwards of twenty years, working for different masters, and then came up to London, in want of employ, and got work at China-gilding for a few months. He was then invited into Staffordshire again, where he remained but a short time: and from that time he has been considered the wanderer of the trade. He was the most charitable man I ever knew; and he was often known to neglect himself when misfortunes came on his friends and acquaintances, to whose relief he contributed both time and money, as much as lay in his power. Believe me, Sir, you have bestowed your trouble on the remains of a very good-hearted man. The acquaintance he alluded to in his diary, and another person, were going to France, about thirteen years ago, with a view of carrying over and establishing there the queen’s-ware manufactory; some of the master potters heard of it, and had them confined in prison. As soon as James Doe heard of it, he went through the trade to gather money to support his friend, and to preserve him from want; and he, poor soul, contributed all he had, for that purpose. To be denied assistance by that man whom he had relieved in distress, was too great for his tender heart to bear. Sir, I do not pretend to hold my friend up to perfection, the last action of his life is against him; but, I believe, the denial of relief by that man whom he had served and relieved in distress was the sole cause of his committing the rash act of suicide. The language of the manuscript writing is nearly the same as his last conversation with me, as far as this friend is mentioned. I perfectly agree with you, that he was in his senses as much as he ever was in his life, when he committed the act of suicide. He was acquainted with a Mr. Greenwood in Staffordshire for some years, a man remarkable for fine knowledge; to that man the unfortunate Doe owed a great deal of his knowledge; and although Mr. Greenwood was a very sensible man, yet he held it just for a man to destroy himself, and, like my friend, in his perfect senses, actually made away with himself the day before he was to have been married to a person of credit and property. They are two of the strangest suicides I ever heard; and had James Doe written to his friends in London, he would have had money sent him; for his friends in London would have thought it a happiness to relieve him. He was a very useful man in the Staffordshire ware manufactory, as he had studied the chemical secrets of that business. He was fond of reading. I shall be happy to communicate any further particulars you may require; and am, Sir,

“‘Yours,’ &c. &c.”

In the possession of Mr. R. C. Ring is a mug painted by Doe—said to be his last work. It is signed “J. Doe, Sept., 1797;” and as he committed suicide on the 14th of that month, it would certainly be one of his last productions. Mr. Owen’s assertion that he committed suicide through a fear that that painting would injure the enameller’s trade is, from the above letters, &c., amply shown to be without foundation.

Coades.—Coade’s Artificial Stone Works, at Pedlar’s Acre, King’s Arms Stairs, Narrow Wall, Lambeth, opposite Whitehall Stairs or Ferry, were established about 1760 by Mrs. or the Misses Coade, under the name of “Coade’s Lithodipyra, Terra Cotta, or Artificial Stone Manufactory.” This material was intended to take the place of carved stone for vases, statues, and architectural enrichments. In 1769 the two Misses Coade took into partnership their cousin, a Mr. Sealy (the nephew of Mr. Coade), and by these the works were carried on. In 1811 the firm was still “Coades & Sealy.” At the death of Mr. Sealy, who survived the Misses Coade, a Mr. Croggan, who had for a long time been a clerk or manager attached to the business, became the proprietor of the works, which he continued for many years. He then disposed of the business to Messrs. Routledge, Greenwood, & Keene, who were succeeded by Messrs. Routledge & Lucas. These gentlemen, about 1840, dissolved partnership and sold off all their moulds, models, plant, &c., by auction, by Messrs. Rushworth & Jarvis, of Saville Row. Many of these moulds and models were bought by Mr. Blashfield[52] and by other manufacturers, among whom was Mr. H. M. Blanchard of Blackfriars Road[53] (which see), and who, being an apprentice with the Coades, and possessing many of their models, &c., claims to be their successor.

The Coades are said to have come from Lyme Regis, in Dorsetshire, and probably it was for the purpose of turning their native clay to good account in London that induced them to establish this manufactory. Bacon, Flaxman, Banks, Rossi, and Panzetta, the sculptors, were employed to model for these works, and many of the old mansions and public buildings in London and in the country, as well as abroad—including the bas-relief in the pediment over the western portico of Greenwich Hospital, representing the death of Nelson, designed by Benjamin West, and modelled by Bacon and Panzetta; and the rood-screen of St. George’s Chapel, Windsor; the statue of Britannia on the Nelson monument at Yarmouth, &c.—were executed at these works. The works principally produced at Coades were capitals of columns, statues, vases, bassi-relievi, monuments, coats of arms, keystones, angle rusticated blocks, balustrades, &c. They were of durable quality and excellent manufacture.