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"Satire on the Heads of Houses; or, Never a Barrel the Better Herring"

    • Archive Work ID: poems.sahh
    • Uniform Title: "Satire on the Heads of Houses; or, Never a Barrel the Better Herring" [e-text]
    • First Line: O Cambridge, attend
    • Language: English
    • First Published: 1884
    • References: Starr/Hendrickson (eds.), Complete Poems (1966), 76-77; Lonsdale (ed.), Poems (1969), 280-282
    • Summary: According to Starr/Hendrickson, possibly written in the late 1740s or early 1750s when Gray's criticism of the University authorities was particularly severe. First published in Gosse (ed.), Works (1884), vol. I, 134-135, where the poem is dated "about 1765".

    3 Manuscripts:

      • Archive MS ID: mss.0145 (Source: EAD/XML)
      • Title: "Satire on the Heads of Houses; or, Never a Barrel the Better Herring"
      • Date: [between 1747 and 1765]
      • Physical Description: [?] pages; autograph
      • Language: English
      • Location: [privately owned]
      • References: Smith (ed.), Index (1989), item GrT 120, 91; Munby (ed.), Sale Catalogues (1971), Evans sale (27-29 November 1845), lot 615(?), 10, Sotheby's sale (28 August 1851), lot 53(?), 42, Sotheby's sale (4 August 1854), lot 229(?), 70; W[right]., Catalogue (1851), [lot 53?,] 10
      • Contents: Autograph, owned (1884) by Lord Houghton.

      • Archive MS ID: mss.0146 (Source: EAD/XML)
      • Title: "Lines on the Heads of Houses. Never a barrell better Herring"
      • Date: [between 1845 and 1856]
      • Physical Description: 2 pages, 180 mm x 115 mm; transcript in the hand of John Mitford
      • Language: English
      • Location: Add. MS 32561, ff. 186-187, Manuscripts Collection, British Library, London, UK <http://www.bl.uk/reshelp/bldept/manuscr/>
      • References: Smith (ed.), Index (1989), item GrT 121, 91; Sutton (ed.), Location Register (1995), 414
      • Contents: Transcript in the hand of John Mitford, here entitled "Lines on the Heads of Houses. Never a barrell better Herring" and beginning "Oh! Cambridge attend", in John Mitford, Note-Books, vol. III "Mitford. Extracts from Mr Grays Common-place books", ff. 186-187.

      • Archive MS ID: mss.0144 (Source: EAD/XML)
      • Title: "Lines on the Heads of Houses. Never barrell a better Herring"
      • Date: [between 1845 and 1856]
      • Physical Description: 2 pages, 180 mm x 110 mm; transcript in the hand of John Mitford
      • Language: English
      • Location: Add. MS 32562, ff. 30r, 31r, Manuscripts Collection, British Library, London, UK <http://www.bl.uk/reshelp/bldept/manuscr/>
      • References: Smith (ed.), Index (1989), 91; Sutton (ed.), Location Register (1995), 414
      • Contents: Transcript, entitled "Lines on the Heads of Houses. Never barrell a better Herring", in the hand of John Mitford, in John Mitford, Note-Books, vol. IV, ff. 30r, 31r.

Contents

Manuscripts