Anglo-Jewish Notaries and Scriveners

<plain_text><page sequence="1">Anglo-Jewish Notaries and Scriveners1 By Edgar Roy Samuel IHIS paper is intended as a contribution?albeit a minute one?towards the social history of the Jewish Community in England. It deals with the second of the liberal professions (medicine being the first) to which Jews in this country gained entry, and is concerned with the individual lives and place in the community of some forty-five persons who were granted notarial faculties or admitted as freemen of the Worshipful Company of Scriveners during a period extending from the latter portion of the reign of King George II to the early years of Queen Victoria. Jews were attracted to the notarial profession in all probability firstly because it afforded them unique opportunities to capitalise their knowledge of foreign languages and utilise their legal talents, and secondly because it was one of the few callings in which it was possible for them to establish themselves in independence without first subscribing to a Christological declaration or a religious test. Those Jews who found occasion to qualify as notaries seem to have come from every section of the Community and to have varied considerably in regard to education, prosperity and antecedents. A glance at some facts relating to those about whose careers I have been able to gather some information might serve to illustrate this, and perhaps to confirm my impression that these forty-five men who lived at various times during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, although confined to a single profession, can be considered as a representative sample from at any rate the longer established portion of the Jewish Community of their time. Sixty-five per cent, of them were Sephardim, thirty-five per cent. Ashkenazim. Only about a tenth of their number were the English born sons of English-born parents, half the remainder being foreign born and half the sons of foreign parents. Two or three were bachelors but the majority were married. About a third married out of the Jewish faith. They included two or three wealthy men and a number who might be gauged as "prosperous," but the majority of Jewish notaries seem to have been of modest means. Before discussing the place of Jews in the notarial profession, I think it would be as well to explain the background and functions of this profession. Little has been published on the subject and few people are familiar with its history and purposes. Perhaps one of the more satisfactory definitions of a notary and his functions is that appended to the lists of notaries in the London directories of the last quarter of the eighteenth century, which I have extracted from the British Directory of 1797. A Notary, according to the original acceptation, is a person (usually a scrivener), who takes notes, or makes short drafts of contracts, obligations or other instruments (Stat. 27. Edw. 3 c.l.). At this time we understand by a Notary Public a person whose office it is to attest deeds or writings, to make them authentic in another country, but principally in business relating to merchants. Thence, it is their official department to make 'protests' of bills of exchange etc. . . . Notaries were most in demand in trading centres, and since the seventeenth century, London notaries have practised principally in the vicinity of the Royal Exchange. A tradition peculiar to notaries was their manner of adorning their attesting signa? tures. In mediaeval times a notary would attest a document with his signature and 1 Paper read before the Jewish Historical Society of England on 20th December, 1949. 113</page><page sequence="2">114 ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS supplement this with an elaborate notarial mark, usually in the form of a cross and decorated with his initials. In time (following the general caligraphic habits of the age) it became customary to add an additional complicated flourish to the signature, and this latter has been termed variously a "ruck",1 a "paraph," and a "rubric".1 The rubrics of the London scriveners and notaries came to conform to a distinct pattern. They first appear in the register of the Scriveners' Company in 1450,2 and although the conventions altered, and English notaries discarded their involved notarial marks, notarial rubrics remained in use until the end of the eighteenth century. It can be readily seen by comparing the rubrics of various eighteenth century notaries that they are all similar and yet differ from the varied flourishes which merchants and others appended to their signatures. The third distinctive feature of a notarial signature is the notarial motto which, unlike the mark and the rubric, is in general use among English notaries today. This is usually a Latin phrase which precedes the attesting signature, the most usual being "Quod attestor." The process of becoming a notary during the eighteenth century appears to have been as follows. The candidate would serve an apprenticeship to a qualified notary, this probably lasting for five or seven years and would submit himself for examination to the Master of Faculties, after his articles had expired. On satisfying the Faculty Office of his qualifications he would pay a fee and subscribe to the Oaths of Allegiance and Supremacy (as laid down in the Bill of Rights)3 together with another oath promising to observe the decencies of notarial practice. These oaths, as has been already observed, did not involve any declaration of Christianity and were quite consistent with Jewish scruples.4 The Oath of Abjuration which terminated in the words "Upon the true faith of a Christian" was also obligatory for all notaries (inter alia) until the passing of the annual Indemnity Acts from 1727 onwards exempted them from this obligation.5 It is true that the Scriveners Company to which many Jews belonged demanded an oath upon the "Holy Evangelists" from its entrants. But it was very short of members and the Court of Assistants may well have been flexible in its requirements. After all the Barber Surgeons Company in similar circumstances admitted Abraham Dias Delgado in 1736 and allowed him to swear upon the Pentateuch.6 The functions of notaries were not clarified or codified in English statute law, until late in George Ill's reign and notaries were consequently not restricted to any particular activity. Indeed Dublin notaries, during the eighteenth century dealt in lottery tickets and acted as brokers and even money-lenders. In general, however, notaries appear to have been mainly engaged in translating, conveyancing, drafting and attesting documents. The office of notary is said to be directly descended from the ancient Roman office of Tabellius, the duties of which were similar to those of later notaries. It is certainly very old, and throughout the Middle Ages, public notaries were in practice, copying, authenticating and attesting documents, deeds and treaties. The mediaeval notaries 1 Bishop G. F. Brown, "Echt-Forbes Family Charters 1345-1727." (W. and R. Chambers Ltd. 1923). pp. 926 et seq. 2 Archaeologia (Soc. of Antiquaries 1895). 3 See Appendix II. 4 H. S. Q. Henriques, "Jews and the English Law." pp. 225-6. 6 H. S. Q. Henriques, op. cit. pp.202-3. 6 Youngj "History of the Barber Surgeons Company."</page><page sequence="3">ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS 115 were appointed by two separate authorities, the Pope and the Emperor, and their appount ment by these two international authorities meant that their status and their acts were recognised throughout Christendom. Although the Emperors in the course of time delegated the appointment of notaries to their vassal nobles and the spread of the Reform? ation restricted the sway of the Popes, this international recognition has continued and has justified and enabled the survival of this office. In mediaeval England, too, both papal and imperial notaries practised until Edward IPs reign when the recognition of Imperial faculties was ended.1 Then in 1534, under Henry VIII, Parliament passed the Peter's Pence Act, transferring all Papal powers to the Archbishop of Canterbury. This legislation declared that Notarial Faculties (i.e. ecclesiastical dispensations permitting practice as a notary), would in future be issued by the Archbishop of Canterbury, and that anyone applying to Rome for a faculty would be subject to the penalties specified in the Act of Provisions and Praemunire of 1390. From that day to this, public notaries have been appointed, subject to the approval of the Crown, by the Archbishop's Court of Faculties.2 In 1617 the Worshipful Company of Scriveners, also known as the "Fraternity of Scriveners or Writers of the Court Letter of the City of London," which had existed since Edward Ill's time, was incorporated by charter, but in the course of the seventeenth century the company so declined in numerical and financial strength that in 1631 it was obliged to sell its hall to the Coach Harness Makers. In 1749 a committee appointed by their Court of Assistants drew up a report which was printed ("The Case of the Free Scriveners of London"), and showed that one reason for the Company's decline was that many persons who were not free of the Company were practising as scriveners. In 1752, at the Company's instance, an Act of the Common Council of the City of London was passed, obliging all such persons to take up the freedom of the Company. This act was construed to apply to public notaries. Warnings were printed and sent to the more prominent ones,3 who stampeded into the Company and greatly increased its size and importance. When in 1801 an Act of Parliament was passed for regulating notarial practice, the freedom of the Scriveners Company was made a prerequisite of practice within three miles of the Royal Exchange. In 1833 another Public Notaries Act was passed to enable country solicitors to become notaries and to oblige all notaries to serve an apprenticeship before receiving a faculty.4 In the course of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, many Jews were admitted to the freedom of the Scriveners' Company. It should be pointed out, however, that none of these, so far as has been 1 Soc. Antiq. Proceedings, VII 1876, quoting Foedera Vol. II. p. 4231 (new edit.) 2 See Appendix III. 3 One of these notices sent to Jacob De Pinna in 1775 and now in the possession of Messrs. H. De Pinna and John Venn reads :? "Mr. Jacob De Pinna, Pursuant to an Act of Common Council of the City of London, made the Sixth Day of May, in the twenty-fifth year of the Reign of King George the Second, entitled, An Act for Regulating the Company of SCRIVENERS, London, you are hereby required Personally to be and appear before the Master and Wardens of the said Company on Wednesday the First Day of ffebruary, by two of the clock in the afternoon, the Antwerp Tavern, situate in Threadneedle Street in the Parish of London, then and there to take upon yourself the Freedom of and be made a Freeman of the said Company, as you will answer the contrary at your Peril. Dated the 28th Day of January 1775." 4 Other acts dealing with notaries have been passed in 1843, 1891, 1914, 1919, 1932, 1934 and 1949 ("Chronological Table and Index of Statutes," H.M. Stationery Office). M</page><page sequence="4">116 ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS discovered, were admitted to the freedom of the City1 for which Jews were not officially eligible. The principal duties of a Scrivener seem to have been conveyancing and the drafting of wills, contracts and agreements, all of which were common to notaries, and whence the two designations were often confused especially as the same person frequently combined the two offices. A notary, however, had, by virtue of his appointment inter? national recognition, whereas the status of a mere scrivener was more Umited, and he was not empowered to present evidence in Ecclesiastical Courts, to note and protest bills of exchange or to certify translations. A class of scriveners known as "money scriveners" also existed and seems to have indulged in a different sphere of activity. A "money scrivener" was, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, "One who received money to place out at interest and who supplies those who wanted to raise money at interest." It appears that these flourished most during the seventeenth century, and in the eighteenth century that the bill broker largely fulfilled this function.2 The only Jewish money scrivener to whom I have found reference was Moses Delmonte whose bankruptcy was reported in the London Magazine of 1778 (p. 285) and he was neither a member of the Scriveners' Company, nor a notary. Towards the end of the eighteenth century the Wardens of the Scriveners' Company sued a member of the Society of Gentleman Practitioners (later the Law Society) for practising as a conveyancer within the City limits without being free of their company. The decision of the court confirmed that any solicitor was entitled to practise conveyanc? ing, thus emphasizing that an important and lucrative facet of notarial practise was open to a much larger class of persons. In general the scope of practice of the eighteenth century "Notary Publick and Scrivener" has been much reduced and circumscribed. Not only is conveyancing done by solicitors and barristers ; brokerage is regulated and restricted ; and consuls and Commissioners for Oaths are now able to attest affidavits. There are at present only twenty-three notaries in the country, who are not also solicitors,3 and all these practise with some half dozen firms in London. Whereas there were once as many as ten Jews practising simultaneously in the profession, there are, so far as I know, none today, though one firm is partly of Jewish origin. I propose now to present a few biographical notes relating to those Jews to whom notarial faculties were granted by the Archbishop of Canterbury through his Court of Faculties. The data have been obtained from the archives in Lambeth Palace of the Faculty Office and from the Crown Office copies of some of the registers in the Public Record Office. I do not believe that any Jew is likely to have been appointed a notary prior to 1700, because the notaries to whom Jews had recourse before the 1730's were men like Thomas Booking and Anthony Wright,4 moreover both the Jews and the Church were under constant surveillance and the former lay under many disabilities. The earliest Jewish notary public practising in England was John (alias Jacob) da Costa, who was born in Spain circa 1692, and to whom a faculty was granted in 1731. He was endenized with eight other Jews on 30th June 1735 as a result of the efforts 1 Solomon da Costa (infrae) is a possible exception. 2 It was not then the general custom for bill brokers to guarantee the bills which they discounted with financiers, but merely for them to act as intermediaries (Walter Bagehot, "Lombard Street," London, 1873). 8 The Lord Chancellor, H. of L. debate on Solicitors and Public Notaries Bill, Jan. 1949. 4 Cortissos Papers in Jewish Museum; Da Costa breach of promise case, 1734; M. Gaster? "Kethuboth of Bevis Marks," Jew. Hist. Soc. Misc. II.</page><page sequence="5">ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS 117 of Philip Carteret Webb, the attorney of the Portuguese Synagogue.1 In the same year, the ledger of the Gresham Trust2 shows that he had taken the lease of a shop in Castle Alley in the West side of the Royal Exchange (at a rent of ?16. 0. 0 a year). In 1749 he officially changed his name to "John Bared."3 The reason for this is quite obscure. On the 3rd June, 1752, the year in which the City of London Common Council passed the Scriveners' Act, "John Da Costa alias Bared" was amongst the notarial recruits to the Company, and was admitted by redemption to its freedom. The Director? ies show that from 1752 onwards he acted not only as a notary but also as a merchant. He appears to have prospered, for he was able to invest ?2,644. 11. 9d. in a landed estate at Hammersmith,4 three years after that date. In 1753 also, his wife Judith died and was buried in the Portuguese Jews cemetery at Mile End.5 They had married at some date before 1726, and she had borne him a son, later called William Bared (1727-1796), and a daughter, Hannah. It is noticeable that after his change of name John Da Costa used the name of "Bared" for all ordinary mercantile and social purposes but continued to use the name of "da Costa," in which his faculty was made out, for his practice as a notary. Thus he purchased his Hammersmith estate,6 made his will and paid his rates7 as John Bared and attested affidavits8 as John da Costa, appearing in the direc? tories under the one name as a merchant and under the other as a notary, compromise being reached in 1765 when he is shown as "John Da Costa Bared, merchant, Mark Lane." His notarial practise flourished from the first. It is evident that he attested many wills and did many translations. He was constrained to take apprentices. In 1735 "Isaac son of Solomon Da Costa citizen and merchant" (of whom more later) was apprenticed to "John Da Costa citizen and notary publick" for two considerations of ?200 and ?50 respectively9 and in 1748, Joseph Shank was similarly apprenticed for ?100.10 The shop in the Royal Exchange, which he leased, stood in his name (Da Costa, Da Costa Bared and Bared successively) for sixty-two years, until 1797, the year after his son, William's, death, but he is shown in the directories at other addresses11 and may well have sub-let it to another person. In October, 1754, John Bared married a Christian wife, one Mary Matthews, at St. Bartholemew the Great and severed his connection with the Synagogue. He died in 1772 probably at his house in Basinghall Street and was buried in the Parish Church, 1 P.C. Webb?"Question Whether a Jew born within the British Dominions was . . . capable by law to purchase and hold lands etc.?by a Gentleman of Lincolns Inn." (London 1753). Appendix p. 19. 2 MS. Guildhall Records Office, Moorgate. 3 London Gazette : 22-5 April 1749. I am indebted to Mr. Cecil Roth for his reference. 4 Public Record Office Close Roll 5954/23. 5 Row 16 No. 9. The epitaph is conventional; "Sa (Sepultura) Da Bemaventurada Judith mulher que foy de Jacob da Costa Bared .. . (? falaceu) em 3 de Tebet 5514 que corresponde a 29 de Decembro 1753 de Ydade de 48 annos. S.A.G.D.E.G. (Sua Alma Goze Da Eterna Gloria)," 6 Public Record Office. Close Roll 5954/23. 7 Guildhall Library MS. Rate Assessment for Parish of St. Christopher le Stocks. 8 P.R.O. Town Depositions, C. 24./1713.13, and C. 24/1728/6, where his approximate age is given. 9 P.R.O. LR. 1 Book 14/10 and 14. 10P.R.O. LR. 1 Book 18/126. 11 John Da Costa 17 Batson's (later Will's) Coffee House, Castle Alley 1770-76. John Da Costa Bared, merchant, Mark Lane?1763. John and William Bared, merchants, 18 Mark Lane?1765-70. John and William Bared, merchants, 21 Basinghall St.?1772.</page><page sequence="6">118 ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS St. Michael Bassishaw. From his will (P.C.C. 1773) it appears that he was moderately affluent. There is no indication of any Jewish affiliations. However a curious detail is found in the will of his son, William Bared,1 whom the directories show trading as a wine merchant in 1774. After declaring his desire to be buried next to his father in St. Michaels Bassishaw and making a number of bequests he left a small legacy to Jacob Ergas and bequeathed the reversion of his landed estates (subject to a life interest) to Abraham Ergas of Prescott Street, Goodman's Fields. Abraham and Jacob Ergas were both Jews and members of the Scriveners' Company. Perhaps they were business associates or near relations. Another curious fact concerning John da Costa is the appearance of his name (da Costa) as a notary public practising in Bell Yard, Castle Alley, in the directories of 1793 and 1797, more than twenty years after his death, from which it might appear that someone else was making use of his faculty.2 On June 24th, 1737, a notarial faculty (from which the words "in Christ" were erased), was granted to Ralph Sch?mberg3 described as "a literate person born in Germany." He is, of course, a very well known character. He was the eldest son of Dr. Meyer Loew Sch?mberg, F.R.S., who commenced practise in London as the physician of the Great Synagogue, acquired first of all a fashionable reputation amongst the Sephardi Jews (presumably at the expense of Dr. Jacob de Castro Sarmento) and then in Society at large securing the most lucrative practise in the country,4 and drifting ultimately from Judaism. Ralph Sch?mberg was the twin brother of Dr. Isaac Sch?mberg, he was born on August 14th, 1714, at Schweinberg and came to London with his father circa 1720. When he had attained the age of twelve, he was sent, together with his brother Isaac, to Merchant Taylor's School, which was singular among Public Schools of the time in that it accepted Jewish boys, and included Hebrew, in addition to Latin and Greek, in the curriculum. The Sch?mbergs remained at the school until 1731. In that year the head-mastership of the school passed to John Criche, a High Tory, Non-juror and Jacobite, and the Court of Assistants soon found occasion to declare that no Jews should in future be admitted to the school.5 Whether this move was deferred until the Sch?m? bergs had departed or whether it was intended to hasten that step is not clear. It seems likely, that on leaving school Ralph Sch?mberg was articled to a notary, for his faculty was granted but six years afterwards and in 1738 Meyer Loew Sch?mberg set him up in a shop on the West side of the Royal Exchange.6 In 1740 his younger brother Solomon received a faculty and joined him. Solomon da Costa (Athias) seems to have entered the partnership at some date before 1742 in which year Ralph Sch?mberg married a Christian lady of wealth,7 and abandoned the notarial profession for that of medicine. He studied at Rotterdam and also secured a medical degree in April 1745 1 P.C.C. 1797. Gents. Mag. 16th Jan. 1796. "At his seat at Beecham Grove, Watford, Wm. Bared, Esq., aged 69." * John da Costa was a common name. There were at least three London Jewish contemporaries of John Bared who bore it. Alvaro da Costa's son John (alias Benjamin) Da Costa, Philip Mendes Da Costa's son John (alias Abraham) Mendes Da Costa and John (alias Joseph) Mendes Da Costa who married Alvaro's daughter Beatrice Da Costa. * See D.N.B. 4 Boswell observed "Fothergill, a Quaker, and Sch?mberg, a Jew, had the greatest practise of any two physicians of their time"?footnote to the "Life of Johnson." 6 Merchant Taylor's School Register, 1561-1934 by E. P. Hart. * Gresham Ledger, Guildhall Records Office, MSS. 7 Elizabeth Croucher, the heiress of Joseph Croucher, Citizen and Vintner of London. Their ten children were all baptized at birth.</page><page sequence="7">ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS 119 from the University of Aberdeen, and practised medicine in Yarmouth until 1761, when he moved to Bath.1 Ralph Sch?mberg later retired, first to Pangbourne and then to Reading, and devoted himself to literary piracy.2 Of his children, one Meyer, who died young, was sent to Merchant Taylor's (1761) and to University College, Oxford (1769). Another, Isaac (1753-1813) became a distinguished naval officer and a third Ralph Croucher Sch?mberg, entered the Church and achieved some fame as a man of letters. When in 1761 his father died, Ralph, with his brothers Solomon, Moses and Henry, was cut off with one shilling, his father's considerable estate being divided equally between his two baptised brothers, Isaac and Sir Alexander.3 He did, however, inherit his twin brother's medical library on the latter's death in 1780.3 On his own death in 1792, Ralph was buried in St. George's in the East, Wapping,2 and although no evidence of his having previously adopted Christianity has come to light, it is quite conceivable that he did so. Solomon Sch?mberg, Ralph's half-brother, was born in London circa 17244 and was granted a notarial faculty on 2nd April, 1749, as the age of sixteen. Unlike his brother, he was not granted what I will call a "Jewish form of faculty," but was addressed in it as "our beloved in Christ." He seems to have been used by Solomon da Costa to enable the older man to practise as a notary, before he could obtain a faculty on his own behalf. For instance, in 1742, Sch?mberg attested the statement of Dr. Jacob de Castro Sarmento's case (against the Wardens of St. Catherine Cree Church who had distrained on him for rates), which was prepared for the Portuguese Govermnent. It appears from this document that Solomon da Costa had done the necessary investi? gation and interviewing while Solomon Sch?mberg had merely vouched for tie latter's trustworthiness. It almost seemed that Dr. Jacob de Castro Sarmento employed Solomon da Costa in the belief that he held a notarial qualification.5 In 1744 the Directory shows the existence of the firm of "Solomon da Costa and Sch?mberg" in Castle Alley, Cornhill. Da Costa did not receive a notarial faculty himself until 1749, after which the need for a qualified junior partner must have diminished. At any rate, in 1750 da Costa took over the lease of the shop in Castle Alley, Schomberg's name disappears from the Directories, and the firm is described simply (1749) as "Solomon In 1761 after a lapse of some fifteen years, Ralph Sch?mberg, then living in Bath, renewed his acquaintance with Emanuel Mendes da Costa, with the object of persuading the latter to press the election of a Dr. Bernard of Amsterdam as an honorary fellow of the Society of Antiquaries (of which they were both fellows). At first the correspondence between them (see Nichols' "Illustrations of Literature") was slightly frigid and formal. Then as friendly answers were received it ripened into something more friendly and intimate, Mendes da Costa getting fossils sent to him from Bath and even paying a visit to the Ralph Sch?mbergs. A typical letter from Ralph Sch?mberg at Bath, dated Oct. 12th 1761, concludes : "My wife and children return you their compliments and wish you many happy years, in which I most cordially join. When you see my dear friend Mr. Salvador (i.e. Joseph Salvador, F.R.S., F.S.A.), please to assure him of my most sincere esteem. I shall deliver your letter to Mr. Havilland. I desire I may hear from you as often as your leisure will permit. Bath is at present very full and brilliant to which the presence of His Royal Highness the Duke of York does not a little contribute. I am not idle. We have a good many 5tnt? '33 here. I am, dear Manny, Yours affectionately, R. Sch?mberg." ? Emden, "Jews of Britain"; D.N.B. 8 P.C.C. 1780. 4 P. Emden, "The Jews of Britain." This corresponds with his age given in a deposition in 1762?P.R.O. C. 24r-1721/ll. The birth dates 1720 and 1728 implied by depositions in C. 24?1588 (in 1745) andC. 24?1749/11 and 23 are less plausible, since the former suggest his being older than his foreign-born brother, Moses and the latter that he received a faculty at the age of twelve. 6 See Appendix I.</page><page sequence="8">120 ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS da Costa, Notary Publick, Castle Alley, Cornhill." In 1755 Solomon Sch?mberg appeared independently in a shop in the Royal Exchange,1 where he must have remained until 1759.2 In 1761 he moved to new premises in Threadneedle Street,3 where his office remained for over twenty-eight years.4 The Directories also show Solomon Sch?mberg at other addresses where he either maintained a second notary's office or resided.5 Little has been found concerning Solomon Schomberg's life, we do not even know whether or not he married. In 1745, while in partnership with Solomon Da Costa, he had occasion to depose that he was well versed in "the Jewish language,"6 and again in 1762 he declared himself to be "conversant in the Hebrew and Rabbinical Languages,"7 when employed together with his brother Moses (then practising with Solomon da Costa and Netto) in a Chancery case in which all the litigants were Jews. It seems likely that Solomon Sch?mberg adopted Christianity (possibly at the same time as he left Solomon da Costa's employ, for in 1758, he was admitted to the Middle Temple8, and in 1770 he was sworn in as a member of the Irish Privy Council,9 the fourth Viscount (later the first Marquess) Townshend (1729-1809) who was also the patron of his brother, Captain Sir Alexander Sch?mberg, R.N., then being Lord Lieutenant. The Townshend Papers10 include a letter from him to Townshend. It is dated Sept. 11th, 1771, from Whalebone Court, Lothbury, and commences as follows :? Allowing for human infirmities my conduct in a period of upwards of three very expensive years in Your Excellency's service has (unless indigence is criminal), been strictly irreproach? able y What debts I have contracted were created by Necessity, unavoidably incurr'd by my situation, by illness and other adventitious circumstances and not through choice or extravagence . . . He continues to appear in the Directories spasmodically as a notary however, being shown finally in 1793, possibly after his death, as practising from Middle Temple Lane. The latest reference to him during his life which I have found, is dated 1784 when one Abraham Wagg, petitioning the Government for pecuniary assistance in view of hardships suffered by him during the American Revolution, gives Schomberg's name, as a reference11 Solomon da Costa, otherwise da Costa Athias, who is next on my list, was the son of Isaac da Costa Athias of Amsterdam, where he was born in 1696. He was adopted as a child by his uncle Sampson da Costa Athias by whom he was brought to London in 1705, educated and, in 1717, married to Abigail, daughter of Samuel da Costa Alvarenga12 1 Rate Assessment, St. Bartholomews, by the Exchange, Guildhall Library MSS. 1765-89. 2 Guildhall Library MSS. 2 St. Bartholomews Rate Book Guildhall Lib. MSS. 1758-April 1759, Directories 1759-60. 3 Guildhall Library MSS. St. Christopher le Stocks precinct accounts, inhabitants list, 1761. 4 Guildhall Library St. Christopher-le-Stocks precinct rate MS. 4428 from 1765-1789. 5 Ludgate Hill?1765 and 60 Old Bailey?1768, also at Whalebone Court. 6 P.R.O. C. 24?1558 (Town Depositions). 7 P.R.O. C. 24?1749/11. 8 "Solomon Sch?mberg, third son of Meyer Sch?mberg, of the City of London, Doctor of Medicine" was admitted to the Middle Temple on April 27th 1758. (Reg. of Admissions to the Middle Temple, Vol. 1, p. 353). 9 Freeman's Journal, 29th March 1770. I am indebted to Mr. N. L. Hyman of Haifa for this information. 10 Hist. MSS. Commission. 11 Publ. Amer. J. Hist. Soc. Vol. 31, p. 58. 12 Will of Simson da Costa Athias P.C.C. 1721 (Buckingham 82).</page><page sequence="9">ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS 121 (On the occasion of his wedding, a secular marriage contract was drawn by Mark Holman, notary public, supplementing the Hebrew Ketuba).1 Solomon da Costa traded as a merchant from his house in Cooks Court, Bishopsgate. In the course of time his business expanded, helped no doubt by the considerable estate of his uncle, which passed to him after the death of the latter and his wife. In 1728 Solomon da Costa took the opportunity afforded by the death of Isaac de Faro to buy a place among the twelve Jewish sworn brokers on 'Change.2 He displayed great ability, acquired a wide knowledge of monetary developments, and was able to acquire a large fortune. In the course of his affairs he seems to have had frequent occasion to resort to notaries and in 1735 he apprenticed his son Isaac to John da Costa3 for a consideration of ?250. Isaac apparently died before receiving his faculty. It would seem that Solomon da Costa entered into partnership with Dr. Meyer Loew Sch?mberg4 and his sons, possibly, sub-leasing the shop in Castle Alley from them. In 1742 he had moved his residence and counting-house to 8 Devonshire Square,5 a large Queen Anne house, and the 1744 Directory not only shows him at this address, but shows that he was also sponsoring the notarial office in the Royal Exchange in Castle Alley, Cornhill, under the name of "Solomon Da Costa and Sch?mberg, Notaries Public." That his position in the firm was unusual is shown by the fact that although he was quite unqualified, his name precedes that of Solomon Sch?mberg in the directory and the latter's name disappears after 1747 when da Costa obtained his faculty. This seems to imply that Sch?mberg had been relegated to an inferior position in the firm, but it might signify that he had founded the independent practise of which we first find evidence in 1755. In the year 1750 the lease of the premises had been transferred to Solomon da Costa by Dr. Meyer Loew Sch?mberg.6 At any rate Solomon da Costa's two businesses (the merchant's in Devonshire Square and the notary's in Castle Alley), both appeared annually in his own name until, in 1753, it became apparent that he had amalgamated with Isaac Netto, the Haham (see infra), who had been practising in Pope's Head Alley. The firm was then shown as "Solomon Da Costa and Netto, Notaries, Castle Alley, Cornhill". Notwithstanding the fact that Netto had become Ab Beth Din in 1751 and remained as such until the dispute of 1757, he continued to practise as a notary, with Solomon da Costa, until the latter's death. On June 10th, 1752, Solomon da Costa was admitted to the Scriveners' Company by redemption and a week later one Moses Sch?mberg was similarly admitted. The firm changed its name once more, this time to "Solomon da Costa, Netto and Sch?mberg," Moses Sch?mberg, Solomon Schomberg's younger half-brother (to whom a notarial faculty had been granted in 1749) having become a partner.7 Under this name it continued until da Costa's death in 1769, after which it became "Netto and Sch?mberg." The firm appears to have continued until Haham Netto's death in 1773, when it ceases to appear in the directories. Moses Sch?mberg continued to 1 Gaster, "Hist, of the Ancient Synagogue." (London 1901), p. 110, where however Holman's name is given as "Ullman." 2 Jew. Hist. Soc. E. Misc. 3. 3 Society of Genealogists Index of Masters in P.R.O. Apprenticeship books (P.R.O. Book 14, folios 10 and 14). 4 See Appendix I. 5 Guildhall Library MSS. St. Bartholomew by the Exchange Rate Assessments and 1769 Map of Devonshire Square in the Bishopsgate Institute Library scrap book. 6 Gresham Trust ledger, Guildhall Records Office. 7 St. Christopher le Stocks rate assessment, 1756 (Guild. Lib. MS. 4428), gives the three partners' names in full, leaving no doubt as to the membership of the firm.</page><page sequence="10">122 ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS practise until his own demise (in 1779) probably in partnership with Isaac Netto's son, Phineas. The premises in Castle Alley were still leased in the name of "Netto and Co." in 1792. The reason which brought Solomon da Costa, the Sch?mbergs and the Nettos into partnership is quite apparent, for while da Costa had a thorough grasp of Dutch, English and Portuguese, Isaac Netto was a master of Spanish, English and Italian, and the Sch?mbergs were familiar with German and possibly French.1 This linguistic combination without doubt stood the firm in good stead. In addition to being an important broker and merchant and a notary public, Solomon da Costa was a Hebrew scholar, scribe, talmudist and communal magnate. In 1716 he produced a beautiful manuscript copy of "Boker Abraham," a cabbalistic work by Abraham Cardozo (denounced as heretical by Haham David Nieto). In 1717 he had copied some Hebrew verses by Rabbi Joseph Ibn Danon (who had spent some time in London, and had also incurred the disapproval of Haham David Nieto), and wrote two volumes of miscellaneous Hebrew elegies and verses.2 It is therefore not surprising to find him described in his Ketuba (Marriage Contract) as "Ha Maskil ve-Nabon" ?"the Enlightened and Discerning Person," which title was conferred upon learned laymen, only with the sanction of the Mohamad (Wardens). In 1759 da Costa presented a large (and costly) collection of Hebrew books and manuscripts to the recently opened British Museum, and accompanied it with an elaborate Hebrew letter of presentation.3 He died on October 31st, 1769, and was buried in the Portuguese Jews' cemetery (Row 8, No. 6). He left a large fortune, safely invested in Government stock and Annuities. His will4 is long, elaborate and carefully drafted (presumably by himself), and in addition to bequests to his family, he left a guinea each to Isaac Netto and Moses Sch?mberg, his partners, to buy mourning rings. The London Magazine reported the death of "Mr. Solomon da Costa,5 an eminent Notary Publick," but the Gentlemen's Magazine had printed a eulogy during his lifetime which we may read as his obituary. Thomas Hollis, F.R.S., wrote, in 1759,6 This Solomon da Costa is no other than a broker \ but a man of knowledge and virtue ; and of such rare ability in his own profession that he has acquired by it, during the course of his life, one hundred thousand pounds; and this without public scandal or private fraud or meanness. Much of this has been nobly scattered, from time to time, in deeds of piety and beneficence, as well to his own straggled beggar nation as to ours. For many years he has spent annually among the latter, of my own knowledge in the counties of Surrey and Kent alone, above one thousand pounds. This has been done in a district of about thirty contiguous parishes, to which he rode and rides by weekly : and where he relieves the aged and disabled poor with clothes and food and money; and causes the industrious but necessitous young to be clothed, instructed and placed out with farmers and such-like laborious honest men. To which ought not to be forgotten that the whole is conducted without bustle or affectation. He continued, To this same gentleman several of our leaders in the House of Commons have been in 1 This can be seen from inspecting the wills translated by the partners at Somerset House, and Isaac Netto's various publications. * Catalogue of the Jewish Historical Exhibition (London 1887). 8 C. Roth, "Anglo-Jewish Letters" (London 1938), where is also another of his letters. 4 P.C.C. 1769. 5 A. M. Hyamson "Anglo-Jewish Notabilities" (J.H.S.E. 1949). 6 A. M. Hyamson "Gaster Anniversary Volume" (1936).</page><page sequence="11">The Attesting Signatures of London Jewish Notaries Shewing their Notarial Rubrics</page><page sequence="12"></page><page sequence="13">ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS 123 no small degree indebted for their fame there, in funds and money matters, which no one understands more clearly, deeply than himself, nor probably so well, and by his credit with them he has been able to effect at times even national good offices.1 Isaac Nieto or Netto was born at Leghorn on September 15th 1687. He was the son of Rabbi David Nieto who came to England on his appointment as Haham (i.e. Chief Rabbi of the Portuguese Jewish Community) in 1701, and of Sarah Nieto. He was appointed to his father's office on the latter's death in 1728. About his early life nothing is known beyond the fact that he acquired a rabbinical Semicha and was well versed in Jewish Law, and while still a boy gave a rabbinical oration in 1703 to the Yeshiba Shangare Ova in London.2 In the year of his father's death he married Rebecca Carriao de Paiba, a sister of Isaac de Paiba, and daughter of Abraham, who was an aunt of Solomon da Costa's future son-in-law, and a sister of Sampson Gideon's brother in-law.3 Isaac Netto was appointed Haham in 1732 and resigned from office in 1741,4 and went abroad. In 1747 on the 15th Shebat (Jan./Feb,) the London Magazine reported the marriage of "Mr. Netto, a Jew merchant to the Widow Spinoza" (sic), and the parish Rate Book showed on the ensuing Lady Day that the house in Poor Jewry Lane, owned by "Judith (sic) Supino" now belonged to "David (sic) Netto." Actually he had married Leah Sarah, daughter of Solomon Supino (and widow of Haim, son of Judah Supino, the Italian merchant), by whom he had no issue. She had children of her own and some property. On the 1st August he was able to secure a notarial faculty, probably using the new-found capital of his wife's dowry to pay the fees. I have found an abbreviated copy of this typical though rather intriguing document in the Chancery copy of the relevant Ecclesiastical Dispensation Rolls (P.R.O. C. 58 Roll 62). It reads as follows :? John, by Divine Providence, Archbishop of Canterbury, Primate of England and Metro? politan by authority of Parliament, Lawfully Empowered for the purpose herein written? To our beloved in Christ5 [erased] Isaac Netto, a literate person born at Leghorn, Health and Grace. We being willing by reason of your merits to confer on you a suitable title of promotion do create you a Publick Notary, previous examination and the other requisites herein to be observed having been had, and do out of our favour towards you, admit you, into the Number and Society of other notaries, to the end that you may henceforward, in all places, exercise such offices of Notary, hereby decreeing, that full faith ought to be given, None of Solomon da Costa's children survived him. Those whose marriages are recorded at Bevis Marks are as follows : (a) Samuel married Rebecca daughter of Gabriel Lopes de Britto in 1748, (Bevis Marks Records II) and moved into No. 7 Devonshire Square (St. Botolph, Bish., Rate assessment). He died in 1731 and his widow married Isaac Ximenes Cardozo to whom the lease of the house passed ; (b) Leah married her maternal cousin Abraham a son of Isaac Carriao de Paiba, in 1742 (Lucien Wolf "The Treves Family"); (c) Rebecca married David Ximenes Cardozo, "an opulent Spanish merchant" in 1752, and died after giving birth to a daughter Rebecca; (d) Rachel became the first wife of Joseph Treves (in 1754) to whom she bore three children, Rachel, Isaac and Rebecca, and died in 1758. The only descendants of Solomon da Costa who survived him were Rebecca Ximenes and Rebecca Treves, his grand-daughters. As Rebecca Treves had inherited a fortune from her father, Rebecca Ximenes was made his principal heiress. She married Emanuel, son of Jacob Baruch Lousada in 1770. 1 Gaster, op. cit. p. 102. 3 She bore him two sons, Abraham and Phineas (born in 1729 and 1739 respectively), and died in 1741, being buried in the Portuguese Jews' Cemetery on 10th EUul 5501. 4 This is corroborated by the Rate Book for St. Catherine Cree Church, which shows a "David (sic) Netto" living next door to the Synagogue until 1741 when "Moses Muscato" replaces him. 6 The words "beloved in Christ" were erased.</page><page sequence="14">124 ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS as well in Judgement as thereout to the Instruments to be from this time made by you. The oath hereunder written, being by us, or our master of the ffacultyes first required of you, and by you sworn,?I, Henry Dodson1 etc. (The oaths of allegiance and supremacy would follow here) Provided nevertheless that these presents do not avail you anything, unless registered and subscribed by the Clerk of His Majesty for ffacultyes in Chancery. Given under the Seal of our office of ffacultyes this 1st Day of August 1747 in the 11th year of our Translation. G. Pail. Regr. Registered by Wm. Talbot, Clerk of his maty for ffacultyes in Chancery.2 Although he received his faculty in the same year as Solomon da Costa, I think he must have practised independently at first, for he is shown with a separate establish? ment in Pope's Head Alley in the 1752 directory. He apparently prospered, for in 1748 he was a Parnas (Warden) of the Beth Holim (the Portuguese Jews' Hospital) and consequently figures in the "Jerusalem Infirmary."3 as "A well said Rabbi Notary Publick and Soldier residing in P..r J..ry Lane." The puzzling reference to him as a soldier may have meant, as has been suggested, that he volunteered for the City con? tingent raised to fight the Jacobites in 1745. However the evidence is inconclusive. The 1753 directory shows that he had joined partnership with Solomon da Costa. He continued in partnership with him and later with Moses Sch?mberg until his own death in 1773 at the age of eighty-six. Isaac Netto seems to have had a big Portuguese Jewish practice as a notary, and to have drafted and translated many Jewish wills and marriage contracts. He became Ab Beth Din or acting Haham of the Portuguese Jewish Community in 1751 on the death of Haham Moses Gomes de Mesquita, but resigned the position again in 1757 in protest against the appointment of Moses Cohen d'Azevedo to the Beth Din. He participated vigorously in the Sheckita dispute which continued from 1761 to 1786 and attacked the Beth Din so vehemently that the Mohamad ordered that his verdict on points of Jewish law should neither be sought nor regarded. Isaac Netto published many works,4 and is principally remembered for a fine translation into Spanish of the Sephardi prayer-book, and for his Jewish alamanacks. He was survived by his second wife and his son Phineas.5 Phineas Netto (infra) became a notary and Hebrew teacher, and Leah Sarah, the Haham's widow, died two years after her husband, leaving some property and bequeath? ing (inter alia) ?20 to Phineas and a Sepher Torah with Rimmonim to her grand-daughter, Rebecca Capadose, enjoining her "never to sell it but to let it remain for the use of the Synagogue." When Haham Isaac Netto died on 26th January, 1773, he was laid to rest in the Portuguese Jews' Cemetery in the first grave6 of the eighth row, next to his first wife and some five places from the tomb of his former partner Solomon Da Costa. 1 "Henry Dodson" was the next name on the roll. 2 See Appendix II for a full Notarial Faculty. 3 A scurrilous pamphlet accompanied by an engraving which was produced in 1749, to ridicule that institution. 4 Trans. Jew. Hist. Soc. E., Vol. XII. 5 Abraham Netto, who had married Esther Supino (his stepmother's daughter by her first husband), had died in 1761 at the age of 32 leaving several young children, one of whom, Rebecca Netto, later became the second wife of Joseph de Jacob Capadose. Esther Netto had died two years after her husband, leaving the care of her children to Haham Isaac. ? By custom reserved for the Haham.</page><page sequence="15">ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS 125 The Gentleman's Magazine reported the death of "Isaac Netto, Notary Publick, and once archsinagogus of the Jews' Synagogue." Moses Sch?mberg, son of Dr. Meyer Loew Sch?mberg, by his first wife, and a younger brother of Ralph Sch?mberg, was born (according to his faculty), in the city of Lemburg in Treves, about 1720,1 and, according to Paul Emden's "Jews in Britain," was at one time a medical student at Leyden University. In 1749 he was granted a notarial faculty and he presumably entered the firm of Solomon da Costa and Netto for in 1756 he appears in the Rate Assessment of the precinct of St. Christopher le Stocks as a partner in the firm, and by 1765 the Castle Alley firm is shown in the directory as "Solomon Da Costa, Netto and Sch?mberg." The "Sch?mberg" was undoubtedly Moses, since his younger brother Solomon is shown as an independent practitioner in Ludgate in the directory. Unlike his brothers, Moses Sch?mberg appears to have remained a member of the Jewish Community and this is particularly borne out by his partnership with da Costa and the ex-Haham and by the evidence called in the Chancery case of "Heyman v. Solomon otherwise Norden" in 1762 :? Moses Sch?mberg of Castle Ally Cornhill in the City of London, Notary Publick, aged 40 years . . . deposeth and saith "that he was the person who translated the 'paper writing' submitted, from the Hebrew into the English language, and that it is a true and faithful trans? lation." When called as a witness2 he said that, "he doth know all the parties complainants and defendants . . . and hath known them some years, and saith all the said parties are of the Nation of German Jews and profess the German Jewish Religion." After da Costa's death, Moses Sch?mberg appears to have continued to practise in partnership with Haham Isaac Netto, until the latter's death. He probably practised in partnership with Phineas Netto, Haham Isaac's son, for the remaining six years of his life, for the Rate Assessment3 shows that he still occupied the Castle Alley premises, while the lease was in the name of "Netto and Co." Moses Sch?mberg died a bachelor, left no will and his brother Isaac Sch?mberg, the physician, was granted administration of his estate in 1779. Abraham Mercado was born on 11th November, 1719, in London. He was the eldest son of David Mercado de Castro and Sarah de Abraham Lopes Brito and was initiated into the Abrahamic Covenant eight days after his birth by Isaac Carriao de Paiba,4 his father and maternal grandparents acting as godparents. In 1736 Abraham and Isaac, the sons of David Mercado were apprenticed (each for a consideration of ?34), to Isaac Henriques, a Whitechapel diamond cutter.5 Abraham, however, must have abandoned this trade, for in 1754 he was granted a notarial faculty. The Rate Assessment book for St. Bartholomew-by-the-Exchange6 shows that in 1755 Anthony Weldon and Abraham Mercado leased one of the "shops in, upon and about the Royal Exchange." Weldon, who was also a notary was, in addition, a freeman of the Scriveners' Company. From 1758 to 1760 the firm of "Weldon and Mercado, Publick Notaries, 1 P.R.O. C. 24. 1721/11. 2 P.R.O. C. 24 1722/27. 3 Guildhall Library MS. 4428. 4 Bevis Marks Synagogue MS.?Circumcision Register. There is only one Abraham Mercado in the register, whence the assumption that he was the London-born notary. 5 Society of Genealogists?Apprenticeship Index (P.R.O. Book 14/162). 6 Guildhall Library MS.</page><page sequence="16">126 ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS Castle Alley, CornhiU"1 appears in the directories, and from 1770 to 1773 Mercado is shown alone. On Monday, 27th Tebeth, 5537 (Dec/Jan. 1777), Abraham de Crasto Mercado, then aged fifty-eight, was interred in the Portuguese Jews' Cemetery. Joseph Cortissos was the eldest son of Abraham de Joseph Cortissos,2 a merchant and army contractor during the War of the Austrian Succession, and Sirnha, daughter of Samuel Cohen Farro. He was the grandson of Joseph Cortissos, the wealthy Amster? dam army contractor who had largely financed the Allies' campaign during the Spanish Succession Wars and had setded in London. T he family had lost most of their capital through misfortune, bad investment and litigation, and whereas Joseph Cortissos' grandfather had paid as much as ?12. 0. 0 Imposta (yearly synagogue tax), he himself was seldom assessed at more than 5/-. He was born in London on 17th June, 1731, and at the age of twenty-six was granted a notarial faculty. In 1760 he married his second cousin, Esther, the daughter of Abraham de Isaac Semah Cortissos, who died without issue. The directory of 1763 shows him practising independently as a notary in Finch Lane, Cornhill, in the next year he paid an imposta of 4/2d. and then in 1767 he married Sarah, daughter of Daniel Nunes Lumbrozo, who bore him eleven children. The 1768 directory shows liim practising from 38 Abchurch Lane, near the Royal Exchange. His cousin Jacob de Pinna was granted a notarial faculty in 1772 and presumably joined him then in practice, adding his knowledge of Dutch to Cortissos's Italian, Spanish and Portuguese.3 The Cortissos practice, which incidentally is the only eighteenth century Jewish notarial practice to have survived to the present day, seems to have gained a considerable Sephardi clientele; many Ketuboth (marriage contracts) were redrawn by Joseph Cortissos in a form appropriate to English legal requirements,4 and many Portuguese wills were translated by him. Nevertheless he seems to have had a struggle, and in May, 1773, the Gentleman's Magazine reported the bankruptcy of "Joseph Cortissos, scrivener in Abchurch Lane." His name did not appear again in the directories after his bankruptcy, at any rate during his lifetime, though he con? tinued to practise as a notary. He moved to 8 St. Michael's Alley, Comhill, where he lived and practised. He went into partnership at some stage with his cousin, Jacob de Pinna, and consequently the name of his firm, "Cortissos and de Pinna" figured in the directories for some eight years after his death.5 He died in 1788, leaving six children, and was buried on the 3rd November. In his will, which was witnessed by Jacob de Pinna and Joseph Schabracq, he made his wife his sole executor. This very human document6 reads as follows :? This is the last will and testament of Joseph Cortissos of St. Michael's Alley, Cornhill, Notary Public. 1 From the ledger of the Gresham Trust (Guildhall Records Office), it appears that in 1755 Abraham Mercado and Anthony Weldon took a lease of one of the shops in the Royal Exchange facing Castle Abbey at a rent of ?12 p.a. In 1757 they disappear from the ledger with two years rent in arrears, but reappear (perhaps through an error) as "Abraham Mercado and Anne Weldon" in 1765. 2 Born in Barcelona in 1710 during the siege and died in London in 1754. 3 See the wills of Jacob de Paz 1781, Mordecai de la Penja, 1786, and Abraham (Pedro) Vas de Silva, 1772. P.C.C. 4 M. Gaster, "History of the Ancient Synagogue" (London, 1901). 5 Guildhall Records MSS. The 1788 Cornhill Ward Orphans' Tax assessment books show Joseph Cortissos and Co. paying a rate of 3/-, and then the 1789-91 rates show that by then the property belonged to Sarah Cortissos, Widow. 6 Cortissos Papers, Jewish Museum and P.C.C. 1784.</page><page sequence="17">ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS 127 As to my soul, I have always endeavoured to do harm to no one, to render justice to mankind, as far as in my power and, without hypocrisy, to praise my Creator, and to conform to His will, in all stations. In that consideration I find myself always prepared for death, trusting that whatever happiness there is in a future state, my soul will partake of it, through the infinite mercy of God, of whom I implore forgiveness for my sins. And with respect to my body, as I neither wish to grope underground, nor to be dissected after I am dead, especially as it has become a practice to steal the dead from the Jews' burial ground, it is my will and desire not to have my corpse buried until such time as putrefaction shall clearly appear, and that my corpse will not hold any longer. I desire that a high dry alcaly (sic) of pearl ashes dried on the fire be put in my coffin and spread over my body before I am buried, as an assistance to consume the flesh; that a sack of quick lime be put in my coffin and spread over my body before I am buried as an assistant (sic) to consume the flesh, that a sack of quick-lime be laid under my coffin in my grave and another sack of quick lime poured on my corpse (which may easily be complied with by taking off the lid before my coffin is put in the ground); which done, that the coffin lid be laid on the lime and the earth over that; that then, the new-invented grave stone to prevent the stealing of the corpse, be sunk in my grave, where I hope my remains will be undisturbed.1 And, with respect to my worldly resources, as what I leave is too trifling to direct a dis? tribution of them, I give and bequeath all and singular of my estate and effects to my beloved wife Sarah Cortissos in which gift and bequest I comprise all my dictionaries, books, writings and precedents, and the whole register and records of my business, and recommend she give my papers, books and dictionaries to my sons Abraham and Josiah whenever they can make a proper use of them if they take up my business, or to such of them as shall take up my business. Otherwise, to dispose of them as she shall think proper. I give and bequeath unto my children, namely Esther, Sarah, Rachel, Abraham, Leah, Josiah and Hannah Cortissos, the sum of five guineas. Each of them to purchase a mourning ring or anything as a token and remembrance of a most tender father, whose only grief is that of not having been able to make a provision for them whilst living; trusting that their obedience to their mother, brotherly and sisterly love, uprightness to mankind, upright and honest deportment and fear of God, will supply that which I have not been able to do for them, and that industry will carry them through life, with decency and honour. I desire to have a common crape shroud, a plain deal coffin and four mourning coaches to my burial, and if more coaches are wanting, that they be hackney coaches ; if my wife should choose to have a tombstone laid on my grave, let it be Portland stone with this inscription : "Here lays all that remains of Joseph Cortissos." I desire my wife to provide decent mourning for herself and all my children, out of what effects I leave her. I direct her to pay my just debts, but that is, of course, as the Law directs. I desire my wife to apply to the wardens of the Synagogue to take back the grave I purchased of them at the side of my first wife, and that I may be buried in the line of graves in course at the time of my decease, and that my wife purchase a grave next to me. It being reasonable for her and my children that she and I lay next each other, I having no issue by my first wife. I nominate and appoint my said wife, Sarah Cortissos, sole executrix of this my will, and, revoking all former wills and codicils by me heretofore made, declare and publish this, contained in the three foregoing pages, and this page, all of my handwriting, to be my true and last will and testament, to be good and valid, notwithstanding what interlineations and obliteration of sentences or words shall be found therein, this being only the rough draft which I intend copying when opportunity offers and that I find leisure and time to do the same. In witness whereof I have signed these presents on this seventeenth day of June i c.f. the will of Nathan Basevi. P.C.C. Ely 274.</page><page sequence="18">cd ? *-&lt; u&lt; S? cd 00 e: s So 's .9 43 ^2 cd O 13 'S &lt;d . +-&gt; ed cd Ih *?; JS2 2 o - B &lt;&amp; 43 ja ^ cd 43 -u TS? a ? co cd N .2 *Cd ?a CO cd -a 4) _43 fl? ea h-&gt;co ? x o cd goo 8 ? w CO o w ? - ?i cd co cd -M ? aco kH cm &lt; . cd co ? R &lt;d PQg ? oS 00 a 5 s ^ ?3^ 43 ^ co ^ 5i O &lt;?&gt; o&gt; bo . ? O fa? a 43 CD -?ST * ^4i gSl ^ a. 3 o ; 43 tuO&lt;+ s 6 g ? a OfL Wco w w u cd X 9 9 O . &lt;J ? l&gt; co .S pqwe: a S &lt; n co ^ ^ &lt; h h 2&amp; ft ?? cd cd ?'S 3 *?1 ^ ? ?5 ?? "S ?&gt; 43 ^ S O tn</page><page sequence="19">ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS 129 after Sabbath being my birthday when I enter my fifty-sixth year. I say this seventeenth day of June, one thousand seven hundred and eighty-six. JOSEPH CORTISSOS. 1786. I declare the contents to be the sentiments of my mind.) 17th Nov* 1788. ? I give and bequeath to my dear and beloved wife all^ the rest, residue and remainder of my estate. I dis? charge my wife, from the trouble, from having the high dried alcolina being thrown into my coffin also of quick lime one at the bottom and the other on the top as I will not have any of that stuff. JOSEPH CORTISSOS1 We sign as witnesses at the testator's request and in his presence. JOSH. SCHABRACQ. JB. DE PINNA. 3rd Dec* 1788. The only evidence that Moses Moravia was a notary public comes from the "Report and Catalogue of the Archives of the United Synagogue" (London 1930), where Mr. Cecil Roth records the existence of a release by "Moses Moravia, notary" to the wardens of the New Synagogue for ?15. 15. Od. in setdement of his claims for his services in negotiating the lease of Bricklayers Hall in 1761 on their behalf. It does not seem that Moses Moravia was qualified to act as a notary in England, unless perhaps he had obtained a faculty from Dublin Castle, nor do the directories show that he practised as such. He was probably a brother of Isaac Moravia and like him came to England from Venice with his parents in 1728. He was evidentiy a shipowner, for from the Newgate Calendar we learn that Moses Moravia and another Jew were found guilty of conspiring with Captain Mission to sink their ship the "Elizabeth and Martha," (presumably named after their respective wives), having first secretly removed her cargo, in order to defraud the underwriters. They were tried at the Old Bailey and sentenced on June 27th, 1752, to a year's imprisonment, a fine of ?20 each, ordered to stand in the pillory, first at Tower Hill and then at the Royal Exchange (presumably the latter was included to give the underwriters an opportunity for revenge), and were to be bound over for five years in ?200 each to be of good behaviour. Samuel Wilson, also charged, died before the trial and Solomon Carolina another person charged, was acquitted. From litigation in Chancery in which Moravia was concerned it would appear that in 1750 he dealt in sponges,2 that a commission of bankruptcy had been 1 Joseph Cortissos's eldest daughter, Esther, was born before 1768 and died a spinster; his other children, about whom little more has been discovered, were Sarah, born on June 26th, 1768, married Abraham Cengali and settled in Hamburg where her husband died, being buried in the Altona Sephardi cemetery in 1809. (In 1816 three of her daughters, Esther, Sarah and Syntha (sic) were living;) Rachel, born on March 23rd, 1770, married Jacob de Pinna's brother Eliezer Sarfaty in 1802 at Bevis Marks ; Rebecca, born 19th May, 1771, died young; Abraham, born in Southwark on April 30th, 1773, became a notary and will be considered more fully below; Daniel, born 1775, died young; Leah, born on June 1st, 1777, a spinster, living in Hamburg in 1815; Josiah (Joseph in the Synagogue register), was born on July 10th, 1779, married Esther (Sarfaty) de Pinna in 1816 and had issue. (Joseph, his eldest son being born on July 13th, 1817; Joseph and Clara a twin, born on 21st May, 1780, but died young; Hannah, Joseph Cortissos's youngest daughter, was born on Dec. 21st, 1781, did not marry and was living in Fulham in 1815. 2 P.R.O. C. 11 595/44.</page><page sequence="20">130 ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS issued against him by 17541 and that he was acting the part of a bill broker (it is said a dishonest one) in 1761.2 Moses Moravia died in 1767 and was buried in the Portuguese Jews' Cemetery in Mile End (on 11th Shebat 5527). Later in the year his widow, Martha Moravia (formerly Lazarus), took out letters of administration of his estate. She emigrated to America later, for we find that she was granted charitable assistance by the Synagogue of Newport, Rhode Island, from 1780 until her death there on 12th July, 1787.3 Moses Moravia had a nephew of the same name who married Rebecca de Moses Baruh in 1773 and died in 1792. There is a possibility that it was he who was the "notary" concerned in the New Synagogue transaction in 1761. Emanuel Mendes da Costa was the second surviving son of John (Abraham) Mendes da Costa,4 a merchant, and of Joanna (alias Esther) da Costa.5 He was born on the 5th June, 1717, at his father's house in Winchester Street in the Parish of St. Peter-le-Poer, London. His father, though at one time wealthy and able to give his children a liberal education, lost his fortune (through imprudence or ill-luck), in trade, and the family stability was further impaired by the unsatisfactory behaviour of his three sons. Philip (Jacob) designed to elope with his wealthy widowed cousin, Catherine da Costa Villareal, but instead of retiring with good grace when his plans were frustrated, he sued her, without success and at considerable expense, for breach of promise; David, to his father's mortification, capped a not very successful career as agent to an army contractor by spending ?12,000 entrusted to him for investment by his sister ;6 Emanuel, failing to make an adequate living as a literary dilettante, procured the post of Clerk to the Royal Society and helped himself to their funds. Although quite untrustworthy in money matters, Emanuel Mendes da Costa had a fine career as a scientist and scholar. From his youth he evinced a keen interest in conchology and mineralogy, on which subjects he became, in time, the country's leading authority. He also showed an interest in mediaeval and Celtic history. In 1747 Emanuel Mendes da Costa was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society and from that date onward he made frequent and useful contributions to the Society's Philosophical Transactions. He corresponded with many eminent men of science and accummulated a considerable collection of shells and fossils, but both his correspondence and his col? lections were impounded or taken in satisfaction of debts which he incurred at various times. In 1754 he was imprisoned for debt, but on his release in the next year he managed to recoup himself by collecting subscriptions for a "Natural History of Fossils" which he proposed to write. However, some two years passed before the first volume appeared and when it did it was not generally accepted as a very satisfactory work. The later volumes, though promised, never appeared. In 1762 Emanuel Mendes da Costa received a notarial faculty and in the same year 1 P.R.O. C. 12 801/22. 2 P.R.O. C 24 1713/13. 3 Bible of Moses Seixas of Newport. "Lyons Collection" Vol. I. p. 350. (Amer. Jew. Hist. Society). 4 J. J. Howard. "Misc. Genealogies at Heraldica" (London 1900), quotes the Herald's College Register recording his birth. Eldest son of Philip (Moses) Mendes da Costa of Portugal and Rouen, who settled in London, and of a sister of Dr. Fernando Mendes. (Gentleman's Magazine, 1812, pp. 22/4). 5 Third daughter of Alvaro (Jacob) da Costa of Portugal who settled in London c. 1660, and of Leonora Mendes Gutteres, a sister of Dr. Fernando Mendes. (op. cit.) 6 P.C.C. Caesar 140. 1763.</page><page sequence="21">ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS 131 he was admitted by redemption to the freedom of the Scriveners' Company, having served his articles at some earlier date.1 In the following year he was appointed Clerk of the Royal Society, and held the position for some years, until, in 1767, being detected in various acts of dishonesty, he was dismissed, prosecuted at the suit of the Society and consigned to the King's Bench Prison. His library and collection were seized and sold at auction to satisfy his creditors. When he was released in 1772, Emanuel Mendes da Costa supported himself by writing and lecturing and was helped at this and other times by the great Quaker physician, John Fothergill. Dr. Richard Pulteney also assisted him materially. In 1774 he petitioned to be allowed to read a course of lectures in fossilology at Oxford, but in view of his reputation his request was understandably not granted. He published two useful volumes, "Elements of Conchology" and "British Conchology" in 1776 and 1778 respectively, and both were favourably received. He passed the rest of his life apparently on the edge of debt until his death, at the age of seventy-four, in 1791. In 1750 Emanuel da Costa had married his cousin Leah del Prado (sister to Abraham del Prado, the wealthy army contractor), who died without issue in 1763. Notwith? standing the fact that his second wife, Elizabeth Skillman, whom he married in 1766,2 was not a Jewess, he was granted burial in the Portuguese Jews' Cemetery on his death. He was survived by one daughter. I have found no evidence that Emanuel Mendes da Costa engaged in practice as a notary, but doubtless he did so. Indeed, when he drew his will shortly before his death he still described himself as such. His voluminous correspondence containing, incidentally, many items of Jewish interest, passed into many hands. A large part of it has gravitated to the British Museum, and some of his letters were printed in Nichol's "Literary Anecdotes." It was among his papers that the informers' lists, outlining the London Jewish Community of 1660 were found, and from the same source was derived the extensive pedigree of his family which the Gentle? man's Magazine printed in 1812.3 Abraham Abrahams, whose parentage is not known, was born in London and received, in 1764, a notarial faculty, which omitted the customary "our beloved in Christ," whence it seems reasonable to assume that he was a Jew. Shortly afterwards, on the 6th October, 1764, he was admitted by redemption to the freedom of the Scriveners' Company, though not to that of the City. In the same year, it would seem, he took his son Alexander as an apprentice and on the 29th December, 1763, one Joseph Abrahams (described as son of an Abraham Abrahams), was articled to George Ellis of Dean Street, Fetter Lane, as attorney in the Court of King's Bench. In 1765 the directory shows Abraham Abrahams practising as a "notary publick and scrivener" in Threadneedle Street. Then in 1769, five years after his father had received his faculty, another was granted to Alexander Abrahams, describing as having been "born in the diocese of London." On July 18th of the same year, Joseph Abrahams was "assigned over by articles" to Robert Gill, an Attorney in'Common Pleas, and in 1770, having served his articles, he was admitted first as an attorney of King's Bench and then as a solicitor in Chancery, being the first professing Jew to be so admitted. Later a reference in the draft minutes of the Society of Gentlemen Practitioners (afterwards the Law Society), records the admission of "Abraham Abrahams"4 in 1 D.N.B. An incorrect reference is given, however, for this statement. 2 D.N.B. 3 Trans. Jew. Hist, of Eng. V. pp. 6-7. 4 H. S. Q. Henriques, "Jews and the English Law," pp. 205-6. N</page><page sequence="22">132 ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS June, 1770, but this is plainly an error for "Joseph Abrahams." Abraham Abrahams himself was articled first in 1770 to James Merry weather of Billiter Lane, London, Attorney,1 and secondly in 1775 to his son Joseph.2 He appears once more in the directories and it is evident that he practised as a notary at 8 Bartholomew Lane, both then and in 1768. Abraham Abrahams' name does not appear after this year in the directories, and he evidently died in or before 1774, when the administration of his estate was granted to his son Alexander, "his relict Judith Abrahams consenting." He is mentioned as "of the parish of St. Catherine Cree Church," and perhaps the "Widow Abrahams" whom the Rate Assessment Books3 show living at 11 Aldgate Street from 1780 to 1790, was his widow. The absence of the earlier Assessment Books makes it difficult to ascertain. Isaac Mendes Furtado, a son of Gaspar Mendes Furtado, a merchant of Belmonte, and Clara (alias Abigail) Henriques Lara, was born, circ. 1729, in Covilhao in Portugal, and brought to London by his mother after the death of his father from the after-effects of Inquisitional imprisonment for Judaising.4 He was brought up in London, on the 5th April, 1759, was admitted to the Scriveners' Company by redemption, and in 1760 articled to Thomas Constable of Abchurch Lane, a London Attorney, for a consideration of ?70, having presumably already become apprenticed as a notary.5 In 1762 Isaac married his niece, Sarah, daughter of his sister Judith and of Jacob Fernandes da Silva. We can gauge that he was moderately prosperous in that year from the finta (synagogue tax) list. He was assessed at ?1. 6. 8d.6 In 1764 he was granted a "Jewish" form of faculty, which described him as "a literate person born at Corvilhao in the Kingdom of Portugal and residing in the Parish of St. Michael's, Cornhill." I suppose that this address in a district in which notaries abounded might mean that he was primarily a notary.7 In the 1775 directory, however, he is described as an Annuity Broker, which may account for his being more prosperous than most notaries. His brother, Abraham, was by this time among the more prominent Marine Insurers8 and we can conjecture that Isaac built up a practice in marine work, drawing and attesting insurance policies and bottomry bills. His brother Jacob and Jacob's brother-in-law, Aaron Lara, both joined the Scriveners' Company in 1763 and 1777 respectively, and were therefore probably in partnership with him. In June, 1771, Isaac Mendes Furtado obtained endenization and eleven years later he attracts our attention by his unusual behaviour in a synagogue dispute. From his letters he appears to have been a person with an inflated sense of his own dignity, but one wonders whether his attitude was aggravated by personal animosity to one or more of the members of the Mohamad. In 1782 the congregational finta was reassessed, 1 Society of Genealogists Libr. MSS. Abstract of Apprentices lists in the P.R.O. (unpublished) 1763-1774. Book 26/152. 2 P.R.O. Apprenticeship Books (I.R.I). Jan,-Dec. 1775. Vol. 28. 8 Guildhall Library MSS. 4 The English portion of his mother's epitaph is not without interest:?"The Sepulchre of Abigail, wife of Gaspar Mendes Furtado of Portugal, who after suffering the tortures of the Inquisition, fled for protection to England with her children since named Rachel, Rebecca, Judith, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, whom she educated in the Jewish Faith and established all in marriage." I am indebted to the Rev. D. Bueno de Mesquita for this reference. 6 Society of Genealogists, Abstract from P.R.O. List of Apprentices 1763-74. 6 Gaster, op. cit. p. 147. 7 In 1775, he is shown at 8 Cowper's C,ourt, Cornhill. 8 Lucy Sutherland, "A London Merchant" London (1933).</page><page sequence="23">ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS 133 and Isaac Mendes Furtado's assessment was raised from ?3. 6. 8d. to ?10. He was most indignant about this and wrote as follows to the Mohamad:? Gentlemen, Your wish to rank me among the very respectable members of the congregation is a greater merit than I deserve and from you only I take it kind. To announce a man either rich or Poor are ways to show spleen by some individuals, when to be trusted he is poor, when to be saved he is Rich. The misrepresentation of my great wealth to you by somebody, I suspect, forces me to put you to the trouble and me to the blush to require an abatement in the ?10 a year which I am informed the new ensuing Finta allots me to pay and on so disproportioned a rise of 200% viz. from ?3. 6. 8d. to ?10, I trust will plead in my excuse, particularly in these warrs which hurt property in general when most of the members sollicit against Impositions. Men have their singular devotions, some for Public, some for Private Charities, and were I to pay my might in the former, the latter will go neglected, tho' I do little, but even that goes in aid to the greater assistance you lend to the Poor, I have discovered no Golden Mines nor yet have I come to any large inheritance and my being considered so precipitately Rich will rather lend to my discredit than honour and with yr permission will pay four pounds a year, this puts me upon a more equitable and equal footing. Sir, Your very Humble Servt, ISAAC M. FURTADO. Moorfields,1 4 Sept 1782. To which is appended in the Mahamad minute book, eO quel ehe foy concedido.' Shortly before the ensuing Festival of Purim the Mahamad2 issued a proclamation declaring that the indecorous custom of creating a disturbance during the reading of the Book of Esther when Haman's name was read would not be countenanced in future. To the surprise of the congregation, when a large number of Yehidim (subscribing congregants) ignored the ruling, constables, obtained from the City Marshal, appeared and removed the offenders.3 These latter were summoned to appear before the Mahamad and explain themselves and all except Isaac Furtado's son Abraham did so, and apolo? gised. Before his case could be considered the Elders received an irate letter from his father, who wrote as follows :? Gentn, The insult and affront put on me and others at the Synagogue last Monday night by introducing of Constables, disturbing me in my Devotions and in the distribution of my Charities to the poor, is very insolent. This Act of Violence, committed in breach of the Peace, and to obstruct a Religious Ceremony, for some thousands of years established, put the congregation into confusion. I meant to prefer the inclosed as a Complaint before you, but as you have given sanction to this unwarrantable Act, and you having in council come to a resolution to countenance and supported (sic), grants me no hopes of Satisfaction. The 1 He is shown at 13 Middle Moorfields in later directories which was evidently both his home and his counting house. 2 Benjamin Nunes Lara, Isaac Nunes, Jacob Aboab Osorio, Ephraim Lopes Pereira (2nd Baron d'Aguilar), and David Alves Rebello. 3 Moses Benelack, Isaac Israel Bernal, Moses Coronet, Benjamin Mendes da Costa, Abraham de Isaac Mendes Furtado, Abraham Cohen de Lara, Joshua Nunes Lara, Haim de Leon, Solomon de Leon, Joshua Montefiore, Benjamin Nunes, Abraham Israel Nunes, Isaac Ventura and Moses Ximenes.</page><page sequence="24">134 ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS addition to the number of Constables on the next morning was merely pre-meditated to act with greater violence, and I were one of the two persons marked out by some of the Vestry to be charged in custody if convicted at Knocking of Haman. 'Tis a fortunate circumstance that I did not attend that morning, for some fatal Consequence would certainly have ensued on these considerations. I do therefore abhor and detest your measures and resolutions, and despise you as a body, and hold your power in the greater contempt. For what man can return safe to his own home from the Congregation ? I do renounce your Judaism and the inherent principals and sentiments and inheritance of your Land to come, and therefore have sent you the Key of my Draw in it, to dismember myself from so irreligious a society. Preponderate on your little consequence. That though many Levites, Jebusites and Emorites are among you, yet the King put a greater trust in a watchman than in your whole body to? gether. A petit constable may take your president and your whole council in custody before a common magistrate. The mark of a footstep of a Jew is not even permitted in many King? doms and large Empires. Your little importance must, on deliberation, hurt you in your private thoughts, for the more you conceit and swell yourself in consequence, the lower you reduce your value?"A Jew At Last." You are Dropsical with Pride. The Rod of Justice, equal to scarifying will be equal to your disease. The small respect you bear, that you have abused by a mean action in non-compliance to the usual Tax of Submission to the Lord Mayor.1 If the finances of the Synagogue were bad, you were not forced, by any Act of Parlement, to defray it out of the Fund of the Poor, but you among yourselves?as the high senators of the Synagogue?might have had the generosity to contribute two guineas each, and kept up that long established and well adopted custom. The Lord Mayor has great goodness, and a great part of his time may be taken up by your impertinent summons and applications. You are yet in time, at five guinease a piece, to subscribe for a great tax of acknowledgement to compliment his Lordship to pardon your troublesome attendance. When I reflect on the many circumstances attending your government; that you starve your poor, that by your arbitrary powers and threats to excommunicate and grant no burials, to screw them down with two shillings a month; that your hospital holds six, and a seventh cannot be admitted; that your sick is attended by an apothecary's apprentice; that in the Passover time, you give the Poor Unleavened bread and do not provide meat and drink for them, as if a few handfuls of flower would suffice. Consider then, these your petit charities, as they truly be. These poor wretches, who could be useful to Society, and to the Kingdom at large, are now become prisoners to your bye-laws. Great encouragement indeed to stay amongst you. You have no charters for making bye-laws to enforce, and every bye-law made, or ever any meeting held by you, which upon proof is repugnant to the peace of the poor, or any of your members, is reprehensible, and any of your members, and even a Christian may thereupon apply for a warrant to take you in charge as confederates?"You may do good, but no evil." I trust particularly at this time when the King wishes to keep the People at home and not to emigrate, to procure a Bill to be brought in Parliament to consolidate all your funds with the funds of the other Synagogues, and to make them all one general fund, and to appoint some of the King's officers to be your rulers, to support the poor, to correct your manners form regulations and to curb your disposition not to force any of the people out of this Country in despair; for the Law knows no distinction between the Portuguese or Dutch Jew. The King has a right to the legacies of Mrs. Luna Mendes2 and others, to your Synagogue. My wife also wishes to dismember herself from your Society, and as she and some of her children do purpose to become members of the Dutch Synagogue, I will not hinder them in their devotions. I hope that many of your members will follow their example. She signs her name to testify her disapprobation of your measures. I direct to your whole Council 1 c.f. W. S. Samuel, Jew. Hist. Soc. Misc. Ill, p. 99. "Notes on 17th Century London Jews." The London Jews' yearly gift to the Lord Mayor. a P.C.C. Paul 51 (1755).</page><page sequence="25">ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS 135 or body of Senators and disregard you as a body and fear no insult from any individual amongst you. Yet I must confess to have very great friendships and esteem for a few individuals in your company and do lament they sit in your obnoxious council. The forcing of Mr. Lyon, the youth, before the Lord Mayor,1 (whose parents are abroad), publicly evinces the unkindness and danger of your Society. Yours offended, ISAAC M. FURTADO. SARAH MENDES FURTADO. After leaving the Synagogue, Isaac Mendes Furtado erected some tenements in xMile End and named them Purim Place2 in commemoration of the incident. His wife pre-deceased him and was buried on 21st November, 1798, surprisingly enough in the Portuguese Jews' Cemetery. He himself lived until 1803, when the Gentleman's Mag? azine reported the death at Stoke Newington of:? Mr. Isaac Furtado, a Jew merchant, who was buried in the Church-yard, in a grave dug North and South, instead of East and West, according to the usual custom. His son and two daughters were baptised and confirmed in the Church of England in March 1799, and their conversion was announced to the public in a printed letter addressed to them by the late Rev. Wm. Jones.3 From his will we find that he was survived by two sons and three daughters, and his estate appears to have amounted to some five or six thousand pounds, invested in Swedish Annuities, real estate and Irish debentures.4 Abraham, who figured in the Purim dispute, was born in February 2nd, 1765, and named after his uncle Abraham Mendes Furtado, the Lloyds' underwriter, who acted as godfather at his initiation. He became a composer and popular song-writer, calling himself Charles Furtado. A caricature of him at the age of nineteen, published a year after the Purim affair, shows him as a fashionable and affected young "buck". His daughter, Theresa Furtado, was afterwards a well-known singer.5 He died in 1821. Jacob Mendes Furtado, Isaac's youngest son, was born on the 27th May, 1781. Like his brother he became known as a musician, and he called himself John Furtado.6 He died in 1830. Haim (Rodrigues) Moreira, a son of Jacob Rodrigues Moreira, whom Kayserling describes as a teacher,7 was born in London, though since his name does not occur in the Portuguese Synagogue's Circumcisional Registers, one cannot give the date. In 1766 he was granted a "Jewish" form of notarial faculty, and from 1768 to 1772 his name appears fairly frequently in the directories as "H. Morlira (sic) not. pub. 45 Threadneedle St." In 1773, a trilingual vocabulary in Hebrew, Spanish and English, 1 This reference has not yet been investigated. 2 Picciotto, "Sketches of Anglo-Jewish History" (London 1875), p. 206. 8 Rev. W. Jones, "Letter to Three Converted Jews lately Baptized and Confirmed in the Church of England." (London 1799). 4 P.C.C. Gostling 17. 5 L. Wolf, "Essays in Jewish History" (London 1934). 6 Other children of Isaac Mendes Furtado whose names are recorded in the birth register of the Spanish and Portuguese Synagogue were :?Abigail, born 18th March, 1769 (m. a Mr. Leager), Sampson born 20th March, 1770 (d. young), and Matthew (Matatyahu) born 17th May, 1771 (d. young). Two daughters, evidently born before 1768, (when the register commences), Judith and Esther are mentioned in his will. (P.C.C. Gostling 17). 7 M. Kayserling, "Bibioteca Espanola?Portugueza?Judaica" (Strasbourg 1890).</page><page sequence="26">136 ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS "Kehilath Jahacob" by Jacob Rodrigues Moreira was published, and in the intro? duction, he says :? The English of this ARDUOUS WORK, is of the composition of my BELOVED son Haim Moreira, Notary Public, whose panegyric I shall waive, as it would not become ME his FATHER, to sound his praise, I leave that to others, pursuing herein the maxim of the wisest of Mankind, 'Let another man praise thee and not thy own Mouth, a stranger and not thine own Lips.' (Prov. II. 72). The book is not arranged alphabetically but, like Roget's Thesaurus, under subjects and ideas. The English part of it is of fine quality and shows Haim Moreira to have been a man of education. In 1780, two years after his father's demise, Haim Moreira died and was buried on Iyar 7th (in April) in the Portuguese Jews' Cemetery. On December 24th, 1766, a notarial faculty was granted to Eliezer Levy, who was said to have been born in the diocese of London. It is obvious that he was a Jew for besides his distinctive name the words "beloved in Christ" are erased from the Faculty Office copy of his notarial faculty. I have not, however, identified him or found reference to him in a directory. Alexander Abrahams, the son of Abraham and Judith Abrahams, was born in London and was granted a notarial faculty in 1769, five years after his father had received one. He probably served his father as an apprentice during those five years. His name does not appear in the directories as a notary and nothing can be said of his later life, other than the fact that he was granted administration of his father's estate in 1779 on the latter's death, and that he rented a house in Kew Foot Lane, Richmond for ?20 in 1780.1 Isaac Mendes Belisario was the son of Aaron de Jacob Mendes Belisario, who was appointed as Ruby or congregational teacher in 1716, and of Rebecca de Jacob Nunes Nabarro. He was born in London on 13th Nov., 1717, and circumcised by Isaac Carriao de Paiba eight days later. He became a rabbi and followed his father as a teacher in the Congregational Schools of which he had become the head by 1760. In 1751 he preached a funeral sermon in Spanish, on Haham Moses Gomes de Mesquita, which was published in London in 1755.2 In 1754 (Tammuz 15th 5514) he married Sarah Miranda, and after her death Leah de Solomon Ha-Cohen in 1762 (14th Tishri 5523). In 1756 Jacob Kimhi, who was dissatisfied with the Shechita of the Portuguese Community, addressed, to Belisario, a reasoned statement in Hebrew of the faults of the Sephardi shechita. Isaac Mendes Belisario replied with a scholarly refutation in Spanish of Kimhi's arguments, which annoyed Jacob Kimhi since this was a language he did not understand.3 Isaac Mendes Belisario seems to have been a regular preacher at Bevis Marks, for a sermon preached by him in Spanish in 1758 on the special day of prayer ordered by the King, and another in 1760, on the death of George II were published, the latter also appearing in English translation. That he was a scholar is 1 This is the only surviving rate book between 1772 and 1789. I am indebted to Mrs. R. Daiches Dubens for this information. 2 J. S. da Silva Rosa, "Die Spanischen und Portugiesischen Gedruckten . . . des Seminas. *Ets Haim' in Amsterdam." (Amsterdam, 1933). 3 Dr. Duschinsky asserts that Isaac Mendes Belisario was a member of the Sephardi Beth Din at this time, though it consisted of Moses Cohen d'Azevedo, Benjamin Lorenzo and David de Castro.</page><page sequence="27">ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS 137 further evidenced by the following letter of introduction to Charles Morton, the Librarian of the British Museum, which Emanuel Mendes da Costa gave him :? Bearlinder Lane, June 4 1759. Dear Sir, The bearer hereof is my esteemed friend Mr. Isaac Mendes Belisario, the gentleman whom I intimated to you was greatly desirous of persuing the Hebrew, Chaldaic and Rabbinical MSS in the British Museum. Mr. Belisario will have the honour of inform you more fully of his design, therefore I shall only add, in justice to his character, that I assure you his learning and judgment in these studies deserve esteem. I am with very great respect, sir, Your very humble servant, E. M. DA COSTA.1 His economic status can be gauged from the finta list of 1764 in which he is assessed at 3/4, though a Yahid, obviously not a very prosperous one. He was appointed to a position in Bordeaux soon afterwards, for in 1766 another Spanish sermon preached by him in the Bordeaux Synagogue on Shdbbat Teshubah in 1765 was published in Amsterdam.2 In 1770 Mendes Belisario received a "Jewish" form of notarial faculty, being fifty two years of age at the time, but his name does not appear in the directories until 1778. Although the Muniment Book3 has the word "Exchange" in parentheses against his name, he evidently could not afford to maintain an office in the vicinity of the Royal Exchange and practised from his home at 69 Prescott St., Goodman's Fields, his name being given in the directory as "Mendes Belisario" under "M." He only appears twice in the directory, in 1778 and 1779. His practice is therefore unlikely to have been a large one. In 1791 he died, being buried at Mile End in the Sephardi cemetery on December 18th. The following interesting but inaccurate account of the ceremony appeared in the Gentlemen's Magazine obituary column :? Aged 71, Rev. D. S. (sic) Belisario, high priest of the Great Synagogue in Dukes Place (sic). On the 20th he was interred in the burial ground at Whitechapel (sic) belonging to that people. A procession was formed of 140 coaches, part of which were mourning coaches, and the rest hackney and private carriages. An immense concourse of people attended this solemnity, which was performed with much funeral pomp, agreeably to the Mosaic custom. His children included Solomon, who married Clara de David Haim Supino, (one of the second Mrs. Isaac Netto's grand-daughters), in 1792; Jacob, who married first Gracia de Elias Lindo in 1793, and then Judith de Jacob Mendes da Costa in 1815; Abraham Haim, who was born on Feb. Uth, 1768, and married Hannah de Aaron Nunes Lara, the sister of Aaron Lara the scrivener.4 Aaron Franco Drago was a son of Isaac Franco Drago of Amsterdam and was born in that city. He came of a well established merchant family and by 1764 had settled 1 Nichols. "Literary Anecdotes." 2 J. S. da Silva Rosa op. cit. 3 i.e. Faculty Office volume containing a copy of the faculties and dispensations granted by the Archbishop of Canterbury. 4 Others of his children whose births are recorded in the Be vis Marks register were : Moses, born on 19th August, 1773 ; Daniel, born on 24th June, 1775 and Clara, born on 26th May, 1784. Isaac Mendes Belisario the painter who did the well-known engraving of the Bevis Marks Synagogue and Miriam Mendes Belisario the authoress and school teacher, were probably grandchildren,</page><page sequence="28">138 ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS in London. In that year he married Esther, daughter of David de Abraham Lopes Fernandes, India merchant, and of Deborah de Jacob de Leon. She had received a legacy under the will of her father who had died five years previously in Madras, and Aaron Franco Drago's finta assessment later in the year 1764 of ?1. 13. 0 indicates that he was moderately prosperous, thus in 1765 he was able to secure endenization. He is described in the patent of endenization as "of Creechurch Lane," and in 1768 he appears from the directories to have been living at 18 Bury Street. By 1770 the direc? tories show that he had moved to Camden Row, Bethnal Green, and that he could also be found at the Rainbow Coffee House in Cornhill. The 1772 directory also gives these addresses. In 1771 Aaron Franco Drago was granted a notarial faculty describing him as "our beloved in Christ," and on June 1st, 1775, he was admitted to the Scriveners' Company by redemption. The rate book of St. Bartholomew-by-the-Exchange shows that in 1774 and 1775 one "Drago" occupied one of the "shops in, upon and about the Royal Exchange." He traded as a merchant and his notarial activities seem to have become but secondary when he moved, first to 55 Skinner Street (later Pindar St.)1 and then to Stones End, Southwark,2 where be was probably living at the time of his death in 1790. He was buried in the Sephardi cemetery (Row 37, No. 56) on June 7th, 1790. His widow who survived him and died in 1826 (buried on 1st January, 1827), was granted letters of administration, in which he was said to be "late of St. Mary Newington, Surrey."3 On the 8th May, 1772, a notarial faculty was issued to "Napthaly Hart, a literate person, born in the Province of Rhode Island in America." There was a small Jewish community in Newport, R.I., during the earlier half of the eighteenth century, but although in 1760 it only numbered some fifteen families4 it included two Napthali Harts, each of whom we must consider in turn. Napthali Hart (senior) was the son of Moses Hart5 and was born in 1716. By 1739 he was an established merchant and traded in partnership with his (?) brother Samuel Hart.6 He joined the Portuguese (and only) Synagogue in New York City and made frequent offerings and donations towards its funds from 1737 to 1750.7 However, despite their loyalty to the New York community, it would seem that the Harts lived in Newport, R.I.,for when in 1759 the Jews of Newport set about establishing a synagogue, Napthaly Hart was elected their first Parnas (President) and wrote to the New York Community on their behalf for assistance with this project. To have held this prominent position in the flourishing little Jewish community of Newport would 1 1778 Directory. 2 1779 Directory. 3 Those of his children whose names are recorded are : Isaac, b. 18th May, 1766, Sarah, b. 2nd Sept., 1768, David, b. 6Ji Feb., 1770, Joseph, b. 14th March, 1773, Abraham, who died young, b. 21st Nov., 1774, Jacob, b. 7th Nov., 1779, Moses, b. 30th April, 1785, and Abigail, b. 14th March, 1773. Another un-named child was born in Nov., 1781. Deborah Franco Drago, another daughter, survived him and died unmarried in Feb., 1819, and was buried in the Portuguese Jews' Cemetery. Of his sons, David, Joseph and Abraham were circum? cised by their father, Abraham Gomes performing the operation in the case of Jacob and Moses, and Abraham de Paiba in that of Isaac. I have found no other references to any of his children and suppose consequently that they did not survive long. 4 Fubl. Amer. Jew. Hist. Soc, Vol. 8, p. 123. 5 M. A. Gutstein, "Story of the Jews of Newport" (New York, 1936), p. 92. Possibly the Moses Hart who subscribed to the New York Communal funds in 1728. (Amer. Jew. Hist. Soc. Lyons Collection I, p. 8. et. seq.) 6 "Gomez Ledger" Amer. Jew. Hist. Soc, Lyons Collection II. 7 Op. cit. Vol. I. p. 79 et seq.</page><page sequence="29">ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS 139 in itself seem indicative of prosperity, and that Hart was prosperous is further shown by the inclusion of Naph. Hart and Co., in which Samuel, Abraham and Isaac Hart were junior partners, among the contributors to the "Spermaceti Candle Agreement" signed in 1761 by the principal participants in Newport's chief industry.1 It also seems reasonable to suppose that he was the "Air. Hart" of Newport Jewry of 1762 whom Ezra Stiles mentions as the owner of "one ship and two brigs."2 The death of Napthali Hart (senior) is recorded in the family bible of Moses Seixas of Newport as having occurred on Tuesday, 22nd August, 1786, he then being seventy years of age.3 The first mention of Napthali Hart (junior), which has been found is as one of the foundation members of the club established by nine Newport Jews in 1761 (Napthali Hart, senior, was similarly included), which used to meet every Wednesday night during the winter season for social diversion, discussion of synagogual affairs being, incidentally, forbidden and punishable by a fine of four bottles of good wine.4 In 1768 Abraham I. Abrahams of New York journeyed to Newport, R.I., and circumcised "Nap. Hart Jun, his son Nathan"5 after which date I have not found any references to him in con? nection with Newport. Rhode Island at this time had become one of the centres of discontent and revolt against the repressive measures of George Ill's government. In 1764, a British schooner enforcing the navigation laws had been fired upon in Rhode Island waters, and in 1769 the sloop "Liberty," similarly employed, was seized and burnt in Newport harbour. When the Revolution eventually came, most of the Newport Jews6 sided with the Revolu? tionaries, the Hart family, however, was among the Loyalist minority which remained in the town7 when it was occupied by British troops and suffered in consequence. Isaac Hart was assaulted by some Colonial soldiers and died of his wounds after being shot in fifteen places. It may well be that the impending storm led one of the two Napthali Harts to settle in London and after due apprenticeship to obtain a notarial faculty in 1772. That he was then in London may be surmised from the word "Exchange" which appears against his name in the Faculty Office Muniment Book, and this is confirmed by Kent's Directory of 1776, which shows him in practice as a notary public at 3 Adams Court, Broad Street. From his will (1834 P.C.C.), it appears that the younger Napthali Hart ended his days with a considerable fortune, a moderate family,8 and a residence in South Street, Finsbury Square, being also a congregant of the Westminster (or Western) Synagogue to which he bequeathed ?10. Indeed, it seems probable that the notary was Napthali Hart, junior, for there is little evidence of Jews settled in Newport at the time of his namesake's birth and it is more likely that the younger man would have embarked upon this new 1 M. A. Gutstein, op. cit. p. 158. 2 Amer. Jew. Hist. Soc. Trans. Vol. ?. p. 124. 3 Amer. Jew. Hist. Soc. Lyons Collection, Vol. II. p. 350. 4 Op. cit. p. 179 et seq 6 Op. cit. p. 154. 6 Op. cit. The families of Lopez, Gomez and Rivera. 7 Op. cit., p. 448. "Isaac Hart, Sam. Hart, Moses Hart and Sam. Hart, Jun., all merchants and late of Newport" were included in the State Legislatures Act of 1780 to exclude those who had joined "the enemy" from residence within the State. Napthali Hart's son, John Napthali Hart, was in partnership with him and had a daughter Eliza Hart. Naphtali Hart's daughters were : Eliza Tobias, widow of New York, who had a son Frederick Hart Tobias; Louisa, wife of James Walter Lyon of Edinburgh, wife of Samuel Isaac of New York, and Henrietta Hart, spinster.</page><page sequence="30">140 ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS profession than that a substantial merchant of fifty-six years would do so. However, further evidence is needed to settle the question. Joseph Schabracq, who was born in Amsterdam, came of a Dutch Ashkenasi family1 and according to the account of the Cortissos family written by Joseph Cortissos for his children,2 he was related to Clara Levy (alias Meyers), Joseph Cortissos' paternal grandmother and connected with the family of Ury Levy, the sixteenth century Rabbi who had welcomed the first Sephardi immigrants to Holland. It therefore seems likely that Joseph Schabracq was also a relative of Abraham and Benjamin Goldsmid, the great financiers, who similarly claimed descent from Ury Levy.3 In 1772 Joseph Schabracq was granted a notarial faculty and on 14th December, 1774, he was admitted to the freedom of the Scriveners' Company.4 He seems to have enjoyed a fairly large practice. His name appears frequently on the wills in the Principal Probate Registry, more especially on those of Ashkenasi Jews. One of these, the will of Henry Abraham (proved in 1779), is particularly interesting, for Schabracq translated it from the Hebrew. He seems to have also been a friend of Joseph Cortissos, for in 1788 he witnessed the latter's will. On the 31st March, 1784, Joseph Schabracq was married to Frances Ling, of the parish of St. Michael, Cornhill, by licence at the Parish Church.5 This step evidently led to the estrangement of his family, who were probably also living in London at this time. The 1785 directory shows another change in his life. He had amalgamated with William Scott, a London notary, who was not a member of the Scriveners' Company, and the partners had taken premises ar 12 George Yard, Lombard St. The partnership cannot have been a happy one for although the d irectory of 1786 shows them working together, by 1788 William Scott had moved out to 7 Castle Alley, and Joseph Schabracq was left by himself at 12 George Yard. By 1793 he had moved to 12 Castle Alley, Cornhill, a corner site, where he is shown until the time of his death in 1799. From his will it appears that while this was his office, he had also a house, where he lived, in Lothbury. In 1797 there had been a run on the Bank of England, and the firm of Aaron Gold? smid, Sons, and Daniel Eliason, the principal partners of which were Abraham and Benjamin Goldsmid, had felt the pressure. Daniel Eliasson and one of the Golsdmids had rushed to Hamburg to buy bullion.6 Two years later when the London money market had recovered stability, Hamburg merchants found need to buy gold in London. Late in 1799, the Goldsmids summoned Joseph Schabracq,7 who appears to have regul? arly acted for their firm, and commissioned him to go immediately to Hamburg in their interest. He embarked on the frigate "La Lutine" at Yarmouth, probably in charge of bullion which they were sending to Hamburg. This is what the Annual Register says of the ensuing misfortune.8 1 An "E. Schabracq" was one of the members of a Jewish pro-Napoleon Society in Amsterdam in 1795?H. I. Bloom, "Economic Activities of the Jews of Amsterdam," p. 128. (Williams port, Penn. 1937). 2 Cortissos Papers, Jewish Museum. 3 Lucien Wolf, "Old Anglo-Jewish Families" in "Essays in Jewish History" (Jew. Hist. Soc. England. London 1934). 4 Directories 1777, 1780-1, "Joseph Schabracq, 2 Spread Eagle Court, Finch Lane." 5 I am indebted to Mr. Brian Brooks for this information. 6 Paul Emden, Trans. J.H.S.E. XIV. p. 240. 7 Thomas Bedford, a neighbour of Schabracq, included this information in the affidavit which is appended to Schabracq's will. P.C.C. Adderly 253. 8 Annual Register 1799. p. 313.</page><page sequence="31">ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS 141 About the middle of October, the frigate 'La Lutine' was totally lost on the coast of New Holland on its passage from Yarmouth to Hamburgh, with a number of passengers and about 200,000 1. for supporting the credit of the merchants of Hamburgh. Joseph Schabracq was drowned. Incidentally, the bullion was recovered sixty years later and since the identity of the Underwriters to whom the principal share rightly belonged could not be determined, it was given to the Corporation of Lloyds, together with the "Lutine's" famous bell.1 Joseph Schabracq's will which was proved in March, 1800, by his wife, is dated 12th Jan., 1788, and is an odd document. After some preliminary remarks, he wrote :? First, let me die where I will or fate should order. It is my desire to lay my dead body underground. Second, I will and order that my present beloved wife and only dear friend I have in the world, by maiden name Frances Ling, alias Fanny Schabracq, to enjoy, possess, and hold all and whatever I may leave behind ... debarring every mother, sister, consanguinity, or relation whatsoever or whosoever it may be, from all, every or any claim, demand or pre tention whatsoever. Hoping and desiring that if anyone should pretend thereto, the Law this noble Land will protect my unhappy wife aforesaid. He then appointed his wife, together with "my only worthy friends, Messrs. Benjamin and Abraham Goldsmid of London, Merchants" as his executors. Desiring and begging them to have compassion of (sic) my poor unhappy, though worthy wife, and as men of humanity and fortune, not to suffer my aforesaid worthy and good wife to become a victim to the same tempests I lingered my days away in, and that, though she is a Christian, lay the blame on their deceased friend, and pity her. Jacob (Sarfaty) de Pinna, son of Joshua Sarfaty de Pinna and Esther Cohen Farro, was born in Amsterdam, and was a first cousin of Joseph Cortissos. There is a tradition in the notarial firm in which he was a partner2 that he came to this country to take part in diplomatic negotiations for a foreign loan and as the business detained him longer than he could afford, he secured government permission and assistance in obtaining a notarial faculty and went into partnership with his cousin. At any rate he was granted a notarial faculty in 1772, entered into partnership with his cousin, and on the 3rd May, 1775, was admitted to the Scriveners' Company by redemption, together with Joseph Cortissos. In 1782 (Kislev 4th) de Pinna married his cousin Luna, daughter of David Sarfaty by whom he had seven children.3 After the death of Joseph Cortissos, Jacob de Pinna continued the practice from the former's house and the directories show the firm variously as "Jacob de Pinna" and "Cortissos and de Pinna," practising at 8 St. Michael's Alley, Cornhill, from 1790 to 1811. Jacob de Pinna probably assisted Sarah Cortissos in the difficulties which the smallness of her husband's estate and the size of her family must have occasioned. When in 1795 Abraham, Joseph Cortissos' eldest son, reached the age of twenty-two, he was granted a notarial faculty and the directories indicate by showing the firm as "De Pinna and Cortissos" that he was taken into partnership. The practice flourished, still doing a great deal of probate work as in Joseph Cortissos' day, and further premises 1 C. Wright and G. E. Foyle, "History of Lloyds," (London 1928). pp. 387-9. 2 Messrs. H. De Pinna and John Venn. 3 David, born 2nd November, 1785, Josiah, born 14th March, 1790, Abraham, born 19th December 1793, Joseph, born 9th May, 1798, Caroline, born 1st December, 1800, Isaac, born 28th February, 1802, and a daughter Esther, who married Joseph Cortissos' son Josiah in 1817.</page><page sequence="32">142 ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS were acquired at 8 Sun Court, Cornhill. Later this second office was moved to 7 Cornhill (1814), then to Sweeting's Alley, Cornhill (1817). In 1811 Abraham Cortissos died and from 1813 onwards his name is omitted by the directories from that of the firm. It is to be presumed that Jacob de Pinna's son Abraham soon started to work for his father, and in 1808 he was articled to him, but it was not until one month before the latter's death that he secured a faculty, being thirty-four years of age at the time. In 1827 Jacob Sarfaty de Pinna died, and on the 16th December he was buried in the Portuguese Jews' Cemetery. Phineas Netto was a son of Haham Isaac Netto and Rebecca Carriao de Paiba. He was born in London on 27th April, 1739, presumably being given the name Phineas in memory of his great-grandfather, Haham David Nieto's father. Nothing is known of the first thirty-four years of his life, but we can conjecture that he spent some part of them in working as a clerk in his father's practice. At any rate he appears to have made use of his share of his father's estate to pay the requisite fees for the notarial faculty which was granted to him on the 23rd April, 1773, four months after the death of Isaac Netto, and early in the succeeding year he was able to marry Rebeccah de Jacob de Pas. Though he is not mentioned in the London directories, that he did practice is shown by his translation of Dr. Joseph Vas da Silva's will in 1779, and implied by the fact that the lease of No. 2 Castle Alley was held in the name of Netto and Co. from 1772 until 1792. However, it seems likely that Joseph Cortissos inherited a larger part of his father's probate practice than did Phineas, for the latter's name does not occur frequently at Somerset House. Perhaps this is because he had been engaged as a teacher in the Congregational Schools. In the Mohamad Minutes of 17841 Phineas is referred to as one of the "Rubissim" (teachers). His name appears among the subscribers to Isaac Delgado's English Pentateuch in 1789 and in 1791 he revived a family tradition by publishing a Jewish Almanack covering thirty years, his father's having by this time expired. In 1806 he died and was interred at the Beth Ahaim Novo on 13th March. His widow survived him by six years.2 Daniel (Jessurun) Lobo was the son of Abraham de Daniel Jessurun Lobo and of Rachel, the daughter and widow respectively of two different persons named Jacob Baruch Alvares, who were married in 1718.3 He was born in London, but his name is not recorded in the circumcision register. He was married to a lady named Sipporah at some date prior to 1768, probably abroad, for his Ketubah (marriage contract) is also not recorded at the Bevis Marks Synagogue. In 1775 he was granted a notarial faculty and in 1777 his name appeared in the directory as a merchant at 26 Poor Jewry Lane (Aldgate). In 1776 the following work appeared :? A nomenclature or Dictionary, in English, French, Spanish and German of the Principal Articles manufactured in the kingdom, more particularly those in the Hardware and Cutlery trades, the goods imported and exported, and nautical terms Interspersed with phrases peculiar to trade and commerce in general etc. Printed for the Author, London 1776 by Daniel Lobo, Notary Publick. Few copies could have been printed for it is now a very rare book, the British 1 Bevis Marks MSS. 106. 2 His children included : Jacob (m. Leah de Moses Israel, 1802), who was also a congregational teacher and was the father of the Rev. Abraham Haim Nieto (d. Jamaica 1931); and Susanna, who married Judah de Mordecai Hassan in 1828. 3 L, D. Barnett, "Bevis Marks Records II" (London 1949).</page><page sequence="33">ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS 143 Museum has no copy. One did, however, appear recently in the catalogue of an Oxford bookseller.1 Daniel Lobo does not seem to have enjoyed a very prosperous practice, for in 1779 his imposta assessment was for the minimum sum of 2/6 and three years afterwards his name had to be publicly posted outside the synagogue for failure to pay this imposta and for neglecting to present an excuse for the omission.2 This incident is, however, explained by the Birmingham directories which show that by 1779 Daniel Lobo had set himself up in Catherine Street as the sole notary public in that city.3 In 1784 the Mahamad granted his wife money4 to move to Birmingham with her family.5 Henry Salamons, to whom a notarial faculty was granted in 1783, is an individual about whose identity I feel uncertain. Joseph Salamons, a wealthy Ashkenasi merchant and shipowner, had a son by his wife Hannah whom he mentions in his will (1763) as Henry Salamons Junior (which does, however, imply the simultaneous existence of a Henry Salamons Senior). This Henry Salamons Junior lived in Gould Square, Crutched Friars, and in 1765 be bought a place among the twelve Jewish Sworn Brokers, and must therefore have been a man of substance. In the 1793 directory "Henry Salamons, notary public" is shown to have been practising from 18 Coventry Street, and therefore to have been one of the earlier notaries to have started a West End practice. Possibly he did so to avoid prosecution by the Scriveners' Company of which he was never a member. Joshua Montefiore was the sixth son of Moses Vita Montefiore, formerly of Leghorn, and of Hannah de Masahod Racah. He was born in London on the 10th August, 1762. In 1780 he was articled to James Cross, attorney and solicitor, and in 1784 was admitted in turn as a solicitor in Chancery and as an attorney of the King's Bench. In the ensuing year he received a notarial faculty in the customary "Christian form" and married Esther Supino (a grand-daughter of the second Mrs. Isaac Netto). In January, 1787, two years later, his young wife died and Joshua Montefiore migrated to Jamaica.6 He applied for admission as an attorney on the Island, but was opposed by sixty local attorneys, who held that as a Jew he was incapable of practising as one. Although he did show that some Jews were in practice in London (including Joseph Abrahams), he had no proof that they had been admitted after taking a Jewish form of oath and as he was not able to challenge the statement made (I believe quite untruthfully),7 that Abrahams was admitted as a Christian, and had changed his name to Willet, and as, furthermore, an Act of the local Legislature already precluded Jews from admission, he was not able to gain his case. When Montefiore produced his notarial faculty, it was conceded that Jews frequently acted as notaries in London, but objected that his 1 A. Rosenthal Ltd., Cat. XI. 1948. * Bevis Marks MSS. 106. p. 12. 3 I am indebted to Mr. Cecil Roth for drawing my attention to this. 4 Bevis Marks MSS. 106. 5 The births of his children are recorded in the Bevis Marks Registers and are as follows : Benj amin b. 18th Feb., 1769, Abraham Haim, b. 5th March, 17?? who apparently died young, Abraham and Hannah, twins, b. 8th May, 1772, Moses, b. 22nd August, 1776, Jacob, b. 20th Nov.. 1782; a daughter Miriam was married to Solomon de Joseph de Piza in 1801 at Bevis Marks, 6 Amer. Jew. Hist. Soc. Publ. No. 19. (New York 1910). 7 H. S. Q. Henriques quotes a statement: "The Deputy Clerk of ye Petty Bagg informed me Abrahams was sworn on the Bible. 10th Geo. 1 st cap. 4. Subjects professing ye Jewish Religio n presenting themselves to take ye Oath of Abjuration (the words 'upon the true faith of a Christian' to be omitted) and deemed a sufft. taking of the Abjuration Oath."?"Records of the Soc, of Gentlemen Practisers" quoted "Jews and the English Law," p. 266.</page><page sequence="34">144 ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS faculty was invalid as no seal was affixed to it and the wording had been tampered with, (in that he had erased the word "Christ" and substituted "God"). In face of the heavy opposition he withdrew his application and returned to London. In this same year, 1787, his name appeared in a London directory, showing that he had set up in practice before embarking for Jamaica. His address is given as "Castle Alley, Royal Exchange," a street in which notaries abounded, but attorneys were more rare. One of the difficulties of writing Joshua Montefiore's biography is that in his later life, enjoying the role of a popular uncle, he regaled his nephews and nieces with the most colourful accounts of his career, and it is not easy to weed out the fictional episodes from the accounts of Lucien Wolf and others who relied on the remininscences of his nephew Sir Moses Montefiore. He certainly was a man of turbulent spirit. As early as 1783, when he was only twenty-one, we find him in the list of those arrested during the Purim Riot, though unlike Isaac Mendes Furtado, he pleaded that he had not heard the original proclamation banning "Haman knocking" and offered his profuse apologies for the disturbance.1 In 1792, evidently tiring of the relatively humdrum life of a London attorney, he invested ?30 in the Bulama Association and set out on the 24th April, together with three other young Sephardi Jews, with an expedition for establishing a British colony on the Island of Bulama, off the coast of what is now Portuguese West Africa. Joshua Montefiore afterwards claimed to have commanded the military side of the expedition and to have been the person who first hoisted the Union Jack2 on the Island. The colonists maintained themselves nearly a year and a half3 until forced by privations and the hostility of the natives to leave the island. Joshua Montefiore, however, fell ill and was discharged at his own request in the fourth month of the ex? pedition. After visiting native chiefs in Sierra Leone4 he returned to England, where, according to the tale told to his nephew, Lord Boston presented him to King George III, at His Majesty's special request and the King then offered him a knighthood, which, however, he declined. At any rate, in 1794 he published "An Authentic Account of the Late Expedition into Bulam." Montefiore resumed his legal and notarial practice, for he reappears as a notary in the directories of 1804 and 1805 at 25 Finch Lane, the address from which his brother Joseph (the father of Sir Moses) traded, and I suspect that he was also the "George Montefiore, notary" at 32 Camomile St., who appears in the list of notaries in the 1800 directory.5 According to Lucien Wolf's account he was commissioned in the York Light Infantry and took part in the capture of Martinique and Guadaloupe in 1809, being the first professing Jew to hold a commission. The London Gazette of August, 1807, certainly proclaims that Joshua Montefiore Esq. had been commissioned in the York Light Infantry Volunteers as Paymaster. After resigning his commission in 1812,? Montefiore settled in the United States where he published a weekly political journal, 1 Bevis Marks MS. 106, pp. 194-8. 2 Lucien Wolf, "Sir Moses Montefiore" (London 1884). 3 Emden, "Jews of Britain." (London, 1943). 4 Lucien Wolf, "Sir Moses Montefiore" (London 1884). 5 In 1802 his "Law of Copyright" was published, followed in 1803 by the "Commercial Dictionary : containing the present state of mercantile law, practice and custom, intended for the use of the cabinet, counting house and the library"; by the "Trader's and Manufacturer's Compendium" in 1804; and by "Commercial and Notarial Precedents," which quickly ran through three English and two American editions and also appeared in 1804. See Roth, "Magna. Bibl. Ang. Jud. "(J.H.S.E. 1937). 6 P. Emden, "Jews of Britain" (London 1943) p. 153.</page><page sequence="35">ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS 145 "Men and Matters," which was subsidised by the British Government.1 He resumed the practice of the law and published two more legal text books in 1830 and 1831.2 At the age of seventy-two he married a Christian wife, and at the age of eighty-one he died, leaving issue by his second marriage, seven children. On his death bed he called his eldest daughter to his side and wrote out from memory an English translation of the Hebrew burial service which he enjoined her to read aloud at his funeral. He was buried on his estate at St. Albans, Vermont, on June 26th, 1843.3 On the 31st January, 1789, a notarial faculty was granted to Bernard Van Sandau, said to have been "born at Homburg in the dominions of his Prussian Majesty." In 1797 he first appears in the Gresham Trust's Ledger4 as the lessee of a shop on the North side of the Royal Exchange (Threadneedle St.) at a rent of ?14. 0. 0. a year ; it appears that he also had premises in Winchester St. In each instance, other than on his faculty, his name is given as "Barnard Van Sandau." In 1813 and 1815 directories show him at 68 Threadneedle Street and 8 North Side of the Royal Exchange. Several nineteenth century London notaries were trained in his office.5 The 1816 directory shows that he had taken William Powell, who had been articled to him and had just qualified, into partnership, though in the same year "Powell and Ireland" are shown as an independent firm in Cornhill. In the next year and in 1819, Van Sandau and Edward Webb Wilson, another of his former articled clerks, appear to have practised from 7 Pope's Head Alley. According to the Gentleman's Magazine, which describes him as "Barnard Van Sandau of Pentonville, formerly of Royal Exchange, Notary Public," he died at the age of eighty nine on the 13th December, 1848. The evidence as to Van Sandau's having been a Jew is, I concede, circumstantial. In 1815 he subscribed for three copies of S. J. Cohen's "Elements of Faith for the Use of Jewish Youth of Both Sexes" (London, 1815), and then there is evidence supplied by the will of Eliezer Levy (P.C.C. Collingwood 257), which was proved in 1810. Levy was an orthodox foreign Jew, living in London, and it is not surprising that when he wished to write his will in 1808, he sought the assistance of Judah Uzielli, a Jewish notary, who together with one, Samuel Cohen, drew and witnessed it. But when in 1810 Levy wished to amend his will, he wrote out the codicils himself and took them to Van Sandau who translated them "from the Vulgar Hebrew." The change of notaries was doubtless due to the fact that, in the meanwhile, Judah Uzielli had left the Jewish faith. The fact that Levy went to Van Sandau rather than to Jacob de Pinna or Napthali Hart, the only other Jewish notaries in practice at the time, and that the latter had facilities for translating from the "Vulgar Hebrew" (i.e. Yiddish) are strong indications that Van Sandau was a Jew. Van Sandau died at the age of 89 on the 13th December, 1848 and was buried at St. James's Church, Pentonville. Presumably he had married out of the Jewish faith, for his son Lewis had been baptized at St. Michael's, Bassishaw on the 29th September, 1793. We know of two sons, Andrew who became a City attorney and founded a firm which has survived into this century (his son, Andrew Barnard van Sandau, b. 1838, 1 Jewish Encycl., "Joshua Montefiore" (New York 1903) and Lucien Wolf op. cit. 2 "Synopsis of Mercantile Law" 1830, and "Law and Treatise on Book-keeping" 1831. 3 Lucien Wolf, op. cit. and also see L. M. Friedman, Public. Amer. Jew. Hist. Soc, Vol. XL, pp. 119-34. 4 Guildhall Records MS. 5 The faculties of the following show that they were articled to Van Sandau : Hugh Bourke 1807, Richard Ireland 1813, William Powell 1816, Edward Webb Wilson 1816.</page><page sequence="36">146 ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS attended Merchant Taylors' School, 1846-7.), and the above-mentioned Lewis who after leaving Merchant Taylors' entered the East India Company's army in 1813 as a cadet, served in the Burma War and was accidentally killed in 1827, at Bishnath, Assam by a sepoy sentry "who seeing him in the dark, took him for a ghost." 1 In 1790 a notarial faculty was granted to Joseph Moss Bloomfield, a native of Amsterdam. I cannot be sure as to whether he was a Jew or not. At any rate the directories show that he practised from 12 New Square, Minories, in 1793, from 5 St. Clement's Lane in 1797, from 4 Smith's Buildings, Leadenhall Street in 1800, and from Mansell Street in 1805.2 Abraham Cortissos, the eldest son of Joseph Cortissos and Sarah Nunes Lumbrozo, was born in Southwark on the 30th April, 1773. His father died when he was sixteen and he probably served his articles with Jacob de Pinna, his father's partner and cousin. On the 29th April, 1795, he was granted a notarial faculty. From 1805 to 1812 the name of the Castle Alley firm is shown in the directories as De Pinna and Cortissos, Notaries, indicating that he had become a junior partner of Jacob de Pinna. The registers of St. Michael's, Cornhill, show that he married "Charlotte Hume, Spinster, of Stanmore" on 8th October, 1806, by special licence, the ceremony being witnessed by his cousin, Samuel Cortissos, and the latter's wife Martha (nee Hawkins).3 His children were all baptised at birth in the same church.4 Although his family probably disapproved of this marriage he seems to have retained his position in the de Pinna firm and when, after his death, his mother made her will, she left small bequests to his widow, Charlotte, and to his daughter, Ellen. Abraham Cortissos himself died in 1811, possibly from an epidemic, and was buried on the same day as his youngest daughter at St. Michael's, Cornhill. In 1796 a notarial faculty was issued to Michael Moses, "a literate person, born in the diocese of Canterbury." This faculty is particularly interesting, for it includes an oath of allegiance specially phrased to satisfy Jewish scruples. This reads as follows :? i, Michael Moses do swear that i am a dissenter from the Church of England and of the Jewish Persuasion, and do sincerely promise and swear that i will be faithful and bear true loyalty to His Majesty King George, So Help Me God. After which followed the customary oath of allegiance and supremacy. John Hart to whom a notarial faculty was granted on the 14th May, 1796, was probably not a Jew, though there is a possibility, on the strength of which I include his name. He was born in the diocese of Winchester.5 Judah Uzielli was born in Modena and came to London with his father Moses Uzielli, who died in 1788 and was buried in the Portuguese Jews' Cemetery at Mile End on the 15th December ofthat year. In 1799 he received a notarial faculty. In 1802, Moses (later Sir Morris), Ximenes wrote a polite letter to the Elders of the Portu? guese Synagogue, resigning his membership, preparatory to changing his religion, and 1 I am indebted to Mr. Brian Brooks for this information. 2 I am indebted to Mr. Brian Brooks for this information. 3 I am indebted to Mr. Brian Brooks for this information. 4 Ellen Cortissos was born on the 25th Aug. 1806, lived to the age of seven, and was buried in the church on the 10th April 1816 ; Charlotte Hume Cortissos, b. 21st Jan. 1804, was buried on 21st March, 1810; and Charlotte Cortissos was buried unbaptized on 20th Dec. 1811, at the age of three months. 5 Perhaps in the Isle of Wight, c.f. Reuben Hart.</page><page sequence="37">ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS 147 charged its delivery to Judah Uzielli,1 who, he said, would pay his arrears of subscriptions and the further contributions which he wished to make to the Synagogue. Three years later Judah Uzielli married Esther, daughter of Jacob de Abraham Henriques de Souza. The Bevis Marks Registers record the birth of a son, Mattityah (Matthew) in the follow? ing year (26th Jan., 1806) and of a daughter, Hannah, on the 24th August, 1807. Then something rather surprising occurs. In 1809 Judah Uzielli was appointed foreign secretary of the London Society for promoting Christianity among the Jews, founded by tbe Rev. J. S. C. Frey in that year. The official history of the Society says that he held this post until 1812 when it was abolished. All the propaganda and pamphlets printed by the conversionist society during this period include Uzielli's name among their staff and give his address as 14 Sun Street. This additional patronage may have assisted the notarial practice for in 1810, eleven years after the receipt of his faculty, Judah Uzielli appears in the directory for the first time. He appears subsequently until 1827 at various addresses2 and is described as a "translator of languages and Notary Public." The obituary of his son, Matthew Uzielli, in the Gentleman's Magazine of 1860, indicates that his father was far from wealthy. At Ostend, after a short illness, aged 55, Matthew Uzielli Esq., of Hanover Lodge, Regent's Park. The deceased was of very humble origin, but his financial talent was soon discovered in the French house of De Vaux and Co. of London, which he entered in early life as a clerk, so that he became in due time a partner in the firm. He was also a director in the South Western, in the Luxembourg, and in several other railways. Elias Buzaglo was born in London in 1733 (Ellul 5493). He was the son of Jacob Buzaglo and Elizabeth, daughter of Jacob de Paz. He was named in honour of his maternal great uncle, Elias de Paz, whose wife acted as his godmother. He seems to have assisted his father when the latter served as a continental agent of the syndicate of Abraham del Prado, the army contractor, during the Seven Years War (1756-1763).3 In 1774 the London Magazine reported (p. 49) the bankruptcy of "Jacob Buzaglo, Merchant, of Gravel Lane, Houndsditch." About the career of his son, however, we hear nothing until in 1801 Elias Buzaglo, then aged sixty-eight, was granted a notarial faculty, in which he is said to have been "residing in Hackney Road in the County of Middlesex." His name did not appear in the directories until 1805, and in that year and the two suceeding ones he is described as a notary public at Cowper's Court, Cornhill. He did not, however, reap the benefit of this belated publicity for in 1805 he had died and been buried in the Portuguese Jews' Cemetery at Mile End. In his will (P.C.C. Nelson 574) he wrote :? "I leave my furniture and every other thing to my dear wife Anne Buzaglo" and further, "I declare that my son Isaac Buzaglo shall have no part therein, I only leave him my clothes and linen, being all I have to leave him." From which it would seem that the practice he enjoyed was neither large nor lucrative. There is at Bevis Marks Synagogue a book of duplicates of applications to the Aliens' Office for licences to reside in England, and one of these forms, dated 1805, 1 c.f. the case of Sampson Gideon whose letter of resignation to the Elders of the Synagogue was delivered by Benjamin Bonnet, the prominent Huguenot notary. * 1816?14 Sun St., Finsbury Square; 1816?18 Clifton St., Finsbury Square; 1820-7?13 South St., Finsbury Market. 3 Diary of David Mendes da Costa, B.M. Eg. MS. 2227 and Cecil Roth "Anglo-Jewish Letters" pp. 136-7. Q</page><page sequence="38">148 ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS is made out in the name of David Meldola Abrahamson, who states that he is a notary public, came to London from Hamburg to accompany a friend, and is staying in Bury Street, St. Mary Axe. This David Meldola,1 a cousin of Haham Raphael Meldola, was born in Hamburg in 1782 where his father was a Rabbi, Hebrew teacher, and also an imperial notary public. In 1803, David Meldola had married Angela, daughter of Michael Namias and his son Abraham2 had been born in the following year. The probability is that David Meldola was, like his father, an imperial notary and neither received an English faculty, nor practised here as a notary. Lewis Goldsmith,3 who was born (circ. 1763) in London, is described by Picciotto as an "ambitious notary" who was brought up a Jew, but discarded Judaism. I have not discovered who his parents were, and think that, although I rely on that work for other information about him, the Dictionary of National Biography is unlikely to be correct in asserting that he was of Portuguese Jewish extraction. Goldsmith was a good social mixer and seems to have been primarily a journalist. He wrote a great deal and his productions are of a dramatic and startling character. He is said to have been trained in a solicitor's office in London and to have left for France without qualifying, out of sympathy for the Revolution, and there he claimed to have been introduced to Napoleon by Talleyrand in 1802. His publication of "The Crimes of Cabinets . . ." an attack on Pitt in 1801, made him unpopular in England and may have precipitated this move. He published The Argus, an English tri-weekly in Paris until February, 1803, when, according to himself, he was arrested for refusing to villify the British Royal Family, when ordered by Talleyrand to do so. When the French found that he could not be exchanged for an important French prisoner in British hands, he was sent, so he alleged, on a secret mission to bribe German statesmen and to place Louis XVIII on the Polish throne. After many other adventures involving plots, secret conferences and Napoleon's displeasure, he left France in 1809 on a ship bound for America which deposited him at Dover. He was imprisoned for a short time and then released. He published an "Exposition of the Conduct of France towards America" in the same year and in 1811 he founded The Anti-Gallican Monitor and Anti-Corsican Chronicle, which was evidently a financial success, for it lasted, under the name of the British Monitor, until 1825. On the 7th January, 1810, Lewis Goldsmith received a notarial faculty. The Act of 1801 had brought some modification in the wording and information given on notarial faculties, besides making membership of the Scriveners' Company a pre-requisite for a faculty to practise in London. Lewis Goldsmith had been admitted to the freedom of the Company by redemption on the 9th November, 1809, and his faculty also informs us that he had been "articled to Martin Reynolds, deceased, to be an Attorney-at-Law and a Notary Public," and was living in Blackfriars Road, Surrey. At about the same time as his faculty was issued he apparently secured admission as an attorney. In 1811 he suggested that a public subscription be raised, to put a price on the head of Napoleon, and published "Secret History of the Cabinet of Bonaparte," followed in the next year by a "Secret History of Bonaparte's Diplomacy." 1 "Meldola"?Jew. Encyclopedia. 2 Abraham Meldola combined notarial practice with rabbinical office in Hamburg (as did Isaac M. Belisario and Haham Isaac Netto in London), published "Traduccion de las Cartas mercantiles y manuales" (Hamburg 1874), "Nova Grammatica Portugueza" (Leipzig 1785) and a number of sermons. (Kayserling "Bibl. Esp. Port. Jud." (Strassburg, 1890) and M. Grunwald, "Portugiesengraber auf Deutscher Erde"), Hamburg, 1906). 8 P. Emden, "Jews of Britain."</page><page sequence="39">ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS 149 He alleged that Napoleon offered him ?200,000 to discontinue his attacks. In 1815 he published "An Appeal to the Governments of Europe on the Necessity of bringing Napoleon Bonaparte to Public Trial." In 1818 and 1819 Lewis Goldsmith paid visits to Paris and in 1825 the British Monitor ceased publication and he settled in Paris, where he acted as translator for the French Tribunal and solicitor for the British Embassy. In 1832 he published "Statis? tics of France." When in 1842 Disraeli was in Paris, Goldsmith gave him a "grand banquet" and introduced him to the French political world.1 On the 6th January, 1846, Goldsmith died in Paris. He was survived by two daughters, Georgina, who had become the second wife of Lord Lyndhurst in 1837, and Eliza, the wife of Frederick Doveton Orme.2 Among his serious publications was a French translation of Black stone's "Legal Commentaries." On the 8th December, 1812, a notarial faculty was issued to Henry Joseph of Gibraltar, licensing him to practise as a notary public in Gibraltar and "His Majesty's Foreign Dominions." Henry Joseph was the eldest son of Joseph Joseph and Edel Hart, and was born in Plymouth in 1790. His grandfather, Abraham Joseph, had been the Duke of Clarence's slop-seller (i.e. a supplier of nautical equipment and clothing), and his father Joseph Joseph took advantage of this connection as soon as the Duke came to the throne as King William IV. The two following letters of 18323 are of interest :? Marlborough House. June 8th. Sir, I am honoured by the commands of Queen Adelaide to inform you that when at Gibraltar, Her Majesty did not lose the opportunity of strongly recommending your son to the kindness of Sir Alexander Woodford. Her Majesty also named him strongly to the Chief Justice of the Colony whose name I forget at this moment. It would give Her Majesty much satisfaction to learn that she could have assisted Mr. Joseph's views. I have the honour to be Your Able Servant, (Signed) HOWE. J. Joseph Esq. Windsor Castle, 29th August 1832. Dear Sir, It affords me a very sincere pleasure to learn by your letter of the 26th Inst. that something ahs at length been affected for your son at Gibraltar. I have laid your grateful thanks at the feet of His Majesty, who expressed a pleasing satisfaction upon the occasion. I am dr. Sir, Sincerely Yours, (Signed) I. BARTON. Treasurer to King William IV. 1 W. F. Monypenny, "Life of Benjamin Disraeli" (London 1912), Vol. II. p. 147. a Probate Registry P.C.C. 1846. The Dictionary of National Biography is incorrect in stating that Lady Lyndhurst was his only child. 3 By courtesy of Mr. Wilfred Jessop of Chicago per the Jewish Museum of London. o*</page><page sequence="40">150 ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS Twenty-one years after these incidents, Henry Joseph became the Gibraltar corres? pondent of the London Jewish Weekly, The Voice of Jacob. He wrote a letter to the editor, explaining his position, on the back of the 1845 "Gibraltar Almanack,"1 a local broadsheet directory. To the Editor of "The Voice of Jacob," 27, Camomile Street, London. This gentleman, we believe, is a native of Plymouth. In 1812 he commenced practice as a Solicitor and Notary Public. In 1830 he was regularly admitted with the other professional gentlemen of this place to practise as an advocate, Barrister, Attorney, Solicitor and proctor in the several courts of this place. In 1832, under the patronage of his late Majesty, William the 4th, (who for very many years previous had condescended to bestow such his patronage on his family), and on the recommendation of Baron Field Esquire, the then Judge, (whose generous and liberal sentiments will be long remembered here), he was appointed Registrar of the Court of Requests and Clerk to the sitting magistrate. In 1834, a vacancy occurring in the Bankrupt Court, he was under similar recommendation nominated to the then vacant office of Commissioner. Henry Joseph appears to have acted as the lay head of Gibraltar Jewry, and when in 1849, the Governor, Sir Richard Gardiner, chose to pick a quarrel with the Jewish Community, it was to Joseph that he conveyed the message that the erection of booths for the Feast of Succot would henceforth not be permitted.2 On the 31st December, 1812, a notarial faculty permitting practice in England and the Colonies but not in London, was granted to Reuben Hart, born in the diocese of Southampton and residing in Portsmouth, he having served John Hart of West Cowes, in the Isle of Wight, as an articled clerk. It is possible that this Reuben Hart was a Jew, but I have not any biographical information about him. On the 18th January, 1814, a notarial faculty, the Faculty Office copy of which is headed "Jacob Bernal?Jew. Foreign Dominions," was granted to Jacob Bernal, born in London and then resident in Gibraltar. The Jacob Bernal, in question, was probably the son of Benjamin de Isaac Bernal and his wife Hannah, daughter of Jacob ben Aaron, whose birth on the 8th October, 1794, is recorded in the Portuguese Synagogue Register. Abraham de Pinna, the eldest surviving son of Jacob Sarfaty de Pinna and Luna Sarfaty was born on the 19th December, 1793, and articled to his father as a notary on the 9th May, 1808. Shortly before his father's death in 1827 he was granted a notarial faculty and was admitted to the Scriveners' Company by redemption in the same year. He carried on his father's practice until the latter's death, specializing in Spanish and Portuguese legal matters and translations. He maintained a friendship with the Cortissos family and assisted them at various times in conducting their campaign for the repayment of loans which their ancestor Joseph Cortissos had made to the Portuguese Government during the War of the Spanish Succession.3 His practice appears to have been large and prosperous and he was appointed official translator to the Admiralty Court. In 1853, Abraham de Pinna, then living at Norwood, married Elizabeth Rainbird, and went to live at Erith, Kent. He was at this time sixty years of age and his bride was twenty-one. She bore him a son, Horatio Arthur Erith de 1 In the possession of Mr. Eric N. Nabarro. 2 A. B. M. Sarfaty, "The Jews of Gibraltar" (Gibraltar 1933). 3 See the Cortissos Papers in the Jewish Museum.</page><page sequence="41">ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS 151 Pinna in 1854 and a daughter in 1856, who died at the age of six. During the latter part of his life, though no longer connected with the Portuguese Synagogue, Abraham de Pinna invariably spelt his name in the Portuguese fashion, and when he died at the age of eighty-five, and was buried on the 18th October, 1879, in Erith Parish churchyard, it is curious to note that his name was recorded in the parish registers as "Abrao De Pinna."1 Abraham de Pinna's descendants were not brought up as Jews, and therefore come outside the scope of this study, but it is interesting to see that they continued in the notarial profession. At the time of Abraham de Pinna's death, his son had not become a notary, and he therefore apprenticed himself to a friendly competitor and in 1884 was able to qualify and restart the family practice. Early in the present century he joined John Dalton Venn, and the firm has since been known as "H. de Pinna and John Venn." H. A. E. de Pinna's only son, Horatio Cortissos de Pinna, became a notary public and scrivener in 1910, and joined the practice, being of the fourth generation of the family to do so. He was killed on active service at Gallipoli in 1916. There are now no living descendants in the male line. I think it unlikely that Charles Bethel Lyons of Nelson Square, Blackfriars Road, Surrey, who was granted a notarial faculty to practise in Van Dieman's Land (Tasmania) on the 28th June, 1828, was a Jew, but I am including his name in this list as there is that possibility. Lewis Gideon was granted a "Foreign Dominions" notarial faculty for St. Helena on 17th August, 1831, He was connected with the well-known Solomon family of that island, (see next paragraph). On the 1st February, 1833, a restricted notarial faculty ("Foreign Dominions") was issued to Benjamin Solomon of St. Helena and Devonshire St., Devonshire Square, in the City of London. Twelve years later another was granted (on 22nd September, 1845) to his elder brother Saul Solomon2 of 14 Albert Lodge, Kensington, Middlesex, and of the Island of St. Helena, who was described as "the Consul for France, Holland, Hamburg and L?beck in the Island of St. Helena." These brothers were the sons of Nathaniel Solomon and Phoebe de Metz of Canter? bury.3 Saul, the eldest son, was born in Canterbury in 1776 and at the age of twenty embarked for India in an East Indiaman. He fell dangerously ill on board ship and was consequently landed on the island of St. Helena. When he had recovered, he determined to settle on the island and make his living by trade there. He prospered greatly and brought other members of the family out to join him, his brothers Joseph and Benjamin among them. In the course of time, Saul Solomon acquired a large proportion of the island's land and a virtual monopoly of the wholesale and shipping trades. He became the most prominent settler on the island. Doubtless the many activities of his business led, first his brother Benjamin, and then himself to acquire legal qualifications to facilitate its transactions. Saul Solomon remained in St. Helena until he died in England in 1852.4 His brother Benjamin, however, who was born at Margate in 1786 and came to St. Helena as a youth, had moved to the Cape in 1806. Benjamin Solomon married Johanna Petronella du Plessis of Paarl in 1809 and most 1 I am indebted to the Vicar of Erith, Rev. G. L. Bennett, for allowing me to make a full use of the Parish Registers. 2 Louis Herrman : "A History of the Jews in South Africa." 8 And incidentally cousins of Sir David Salomons. 4 Dec. 6. at the residence of his son-in-law, J. M. Hunter Esq., Eastwood, Portishead, near Bristol, aged 76, Saul Solomon Esq., of St. Helena." (Gents. Mag., MS. Vol. XXXIX, p. 110).</page><page sequence="42">152 ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS of his children also married into Dutch families. He is believed to be the first Jew to have settled in Cape Colony after the British occupation. He presumably was in close contact with his brother Saul, and may have returned to the island temporarily, since his faculty describes him as "of St. Helena." He acted for some time as the Usher of the Court in Capetown.1 SCRIVENERS Jacob Mendes Furtado, born in Portugal, was a son of Gaspar Mendes Furtado and Clara (Abigail) Henriques Lara.2 While still a child he was brought to England in 1730 by his mother together with Isaac Mendes Furtado and other brothers and sisters. On Nisan 6th, 1763 he married his niece Clara, daughter of Aaron Nunes Lara. On the 1st of April in the same year he was admitted to the freedom of the Scriveners' Company by redemption. He was probably in partnership with his brother Isaac. In 1772 Jacob Mendes Furtado and his wife assisted her brother Joshua Lara to elope to Paris with Sarah, daughter of Isaac Ximenes, a young lady of fortune, against her father's wishes. In the dispute which ensued, Jacob Mendes Furtado and his wife were both excommunicated, as were the Joshua Lara's. The matter, was, however, settled later. Unlike his brother Isaac, Jacob Mendes Furtado seems to have remained a sincere Jew until his death in 1799. He was buried in the Sephardi Cemetery at Mile End on the 28th October in that year, and his widow was buried there on the 28th January, 1813. In his will Jacob Mendes Furtado bequeathed his estate (some three or four thousand pounds invested in stocks), to his widow and two surviving daughters, Clara, the wife of Andrew Leway de Haes, a prominent Ashkenasi sworn broker, and Sarah, who subsequently married Phineas Joseph Nunes Lara, her uncle. Joseph (Nunes) D'Almeida, came of a Bordeaux Sephardi family and, living in London, traded as a wine merchant. In 1760 his address is given as Garroway's Coffee House, Exchange Alley. In 1754 he bought a place among the Jewish Sworn Brokers on the Royal Exchange, but resigned his medal in 1765.3 In 1765 he was trading from Tookes Court, Chancery Lane, and in 1769 the London Magazine reported the bankruptcy of "Joseph D'Almeida of Cowper's Row, Crutchet Friars, Wine Merchant."4 Later he changed his profession for in 1773 he was admitted by redemption to the Scriveners' Company. In later years Joseph d'Almeida regained his prosperity. In 1779 he presented Bevis Marks Synagogue with a set of portable steps (which is still in use) in order to enable small boys to read the Haftarah comfortably, from the reading desk. Joseph d'Almeida was also somewhat of a patron of the arts, for he entertained Mozart when he came to London5 as a boy, and in 1779 introduced Jacob de Castro, the comedian, to the Manager of Covent Garden in the hope of assisting him in his career.6 In 1783, his portrait was engraved, presumably for distribution to his friends. He died at Watford on 25th May, 1788, and was buried in the Portuguese Jews' Cemetery at Mile End.7 1 One of his many children, Charles Benjamin Solomon, achieved prominence as an architect. 2 See page 132. 8 "Jew Brokers of the City of London", Misc. Jew. Hist. Soc. III. 4 Op. cit. p. 651. 5 In 1764. 6 "Memoirs of J. de Castro" (London 1824). 7 A. Rubens, "Anglo-Jewish Portraits" (London 1935),</page><page sequence="43">ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS 153 Aaron (Nunes) Lara was a son of Aaron (Nunes) Lara, a London Sworn Broker, born in Portugal, who, according to Lucien Wolf,1 also went by the name of Francisco (Nunes) Lara, In 1771 Aaron Lara, the younger, married Rachel dTsraeli,2 and on the 21st March, 1777, he obtained admission to the Scriveners' Company. On the 1788 membership roll, the word 'dead' appears against his deleted name, which does not occur in the subsequent lists. His wife remarried one Mordecai Tedesco3 in 1792, by whom she had four daughters. Fifteen years after her first husband's death, letters of administration of his goods and credits, then said to amount to a mere ?300, were granted to "Rachel Tedeschi." From these it appears that Aaron Lara died in Plymouth, where he perhaps lived. In 1827 re-administration was granted to his brother Phineas Lara, the estate then consisting of less than ?200. Abraham and Jacob Ergas, who were both admitted to the Scriveners' Company on the 19th October, 1785, were sons of Moses Ergas and of Leah, daughter of Abraham Lopes Pereira and the widow of Isaac Carvalho. They were probably born in London after 1749. In 1773 Jacob Ergas, then living in Prescot Street, Goodman's Fields, described as a "merchant," was reported bankrupt in the London Magazine.4" This failure may well have been connected with that of Aaron Goldsmid and Son,5 a prominent bill broking firm. Jacob Ergas evidently recovered his financial stability (as did also the Goldsmids), and in 1788 he married Rachel, daughter of Abraham Lindo. Jacob Ergas died in 1824, and was buried in the Portuguese Jews' Cemetery at Mile End on the 5th December, his wife, who pre-deceased him, having been buried there on the 18th December, 1816. Abraham Ergas does not seem to have been implicated in his brother's failure. On the 16th December, 1785, he married Reyna,6 daughter of Moses Haim Montefiore,7 a prosperous merchant, formerly of Leghorn, whence his own grandfather had come.8 Abraham Ergas died in 1805 and was buried in the Mile End Cemetery on July 8th. His widow was buried in the same cemetery on the 6th November 1815. Edward Cohen, who was born in 1786, was a ship broker. He became an Under? writing Member of Lloyds in 1815 and was admitted to the Scriveners' Company by redemption on the 26th February in the following year. In 1817, when his son Edward was born, he was living in Suffolk Place, Islington. He died at Saffron Waiden, Essex, on the 9th November, 1835, and was buried in the Parish Churchyard. His widow, Mary Anne Cohen, took out letters of administration in the same year. His estate amounted to ?300, and he was described as "of Fawkes Building in the Parish of St. Dunstan's in the East." This concludes my study of eighteenth century notaries and scriveners. I have not searched for any faculties of a later date than 1847. It is not easy to distinguish Jews during the nineteenth century merely by their names and I feel that I may conse? quently have made omissions during the later years under consideration. These names have been extracted from very long lists, and it is quite possible that some Jewish ones 1 Luden Wolf, "Essays in Jewish History" (London 1934). 2 The daughter of Benjamin d'Israeli by his first wife, Rebecca Mendes Furtado (she was Rachel Lara's sister and an aunt of Lord Beaconsfield). 8 L. D. Barnett, "Bevis Marks Records IF (London 1949). 4 idem. p. 466. 6 London Magazine 1773. 6 Lady Battersea, "Reminiscences." (MacMillan : London, 1922, appendix). 7 The grandfather of Sir Moses Montefiore, Bart. 8 In 1795 he is shown as a stockbroker at 27 'Change Alley, Cornhill.</page><page sequence="44">154 ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS have inadvertently been omitted. Since, however, the membership rolls of the Scriveners' Company are less copious and more accessible than the records of the Faculty Office, I do not think that I have overlooked any obvious Jewish names on these. I should like to record my appreciation of the assistance which I have had in the compilation of this study from a great many people. In particular, I should like to thank Mr. Brian Brooks, Notary Public, who is engaged on a study of the history of London notaries and has assisted me on a great many points, Mr. A. M. Hyamson and Dr. L. D. Barnett for permitting me to make advance use of the manuscripts of "Anglo Jewish Notabilities" and "Bevis Marks Records II," Mr. A. A. Pitcairn, the Clerk of the Scriveners' Company, for permitting me to have full use of the Company's archives and for his helpful and courteous assistance, Mr. Cecil Roth, Mr. Charles Rubens, Mr. R. J. d'Arcy Hart, the staff of the Guildhall Library, and Mr. M. J. Chandler, of the City Records Office, for their help and many suggestions, and finally my father, Mr. W. S. Samuel, for his persistent interest and encouragement and continual guidance. The London Directories referred to in this paper are those in the libraries of Guild? hall and the Bishopsgate Institute (c./. C. W. F. Goss?"London Directories 1677-1855" (London, 1932). Jewish wills in the registry of the Prerogative Court of Canterbury at Somerset House are more fully referred to in "Anglo-Jewish Notabilities" (Jew. Hist. Soc. E., London 1949), as are the Sephardi Marriages in "Bevis Marks Records II" (Oxford, 1949). For the general background of the subject, I have utilised the articles in Earl Halsbury's "Laws of England" on "Ecclesiastical Law" and "Dispen? sations" ; the article on "Notary" in the Encyclopaedia Britannica; the initial chapters of Brooke's "The Office and Practise of Notary"; and various articles on notarial marks referred to in the text or footnotes. APPENDIX I. The following document,1 which was drawn up for the Portuguese Ambassador (Pombal) to send to Lisbon, is fairly typical of an eigthteenth century notarial act. It throws some light on the relationship between Solomon Da Costa, not yet admitted as a notary, and his junior partner, Solomon Sch?mberg, then aged eighteen, who was at this time a notary of two years' standing. On the 27th day of August in the year one thousand seven hundred and forty-two. Before me, Solomon Sch?mberg, Notary and Tabellion2 Publick by Royal Authority, admitted3 and sworn and in the presence of the witnesses subscribed, all dwelling in this City of London. Personally appeared Mr. Solomon Da Costa of this said City, Merchant, to me Notary, well known as such, and worthy of Credit and declared that he thus appeared being informed by Jacob de Castro Sarmento, Doctor in Physick, also residing in London aforesaid, that the trustees for putting in Execution the late Act of Parliament for building the Parish Church of Saint Catherine Coleman in Fenchurch Street in the said City, had been at the house of the said Doctor and seized upon his goods for his refusing payment of Two Years assessed upon him at His House, situate and being in the Parish aforesaid for, or towards rebuilding the said church. He the appearer, on the 23rd Day of this Instant Month, went with the said Doctor, at his request, to the house of Mr. William Pond, one of the said trustees and represented to him that the said Doctor being a Portuguese and also Phisician in Ordinary to the Portugal Envoy, and under his Protection, What the said Trustees had done was against the Law of Nations and consequently unwarrantable and therefore as a Friend advised him A B. M. Add. MSS. 20,799. fol. 92-7. 2 An alternative term for 'Notary,' derived from the Latin *Tabellius.' 3 The Archbishop of Canterbuty is empowered by Royal Authority to create notaries,</page><page sequence="45">ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS 155 to endeavour to prevail upon the rest of the said Trustees to restore the said Doctor his Goods and avoid the like Practise for the future; and that in future thereof the said Doctor would be Obliged to lay the whole affair before the said Envoy; which might be attended with very ill consequences, in relation to the British Subjects residing in the Dominions of the King of Portugal, who enjoy greater privileges than even the Portuguese themselves. Whereupon the said William Pond gave this Appearance for Answer. That he as well as the rest of the Trustees well know that the said Doctor was under the said Envoy's Protection, He having airways pleaded that as his excuse for refusing to pay what was assessed upon him. That they had laid this case before Mr. Noel an Emminent Councell, learned in the Law, and also before Doctor Lee, an Emminent Civillian of Doctors Commons; And that both the said learned Gentlemen had given it as their Opinion That Persons protected by Ambassadors &amp;ca are free and exempted by the Law of Nations from being seized or molested, yet their goods &amp; Effects are not and therefore may be seized for non-payment of such dues &amp;ca. But that the said Doctor Lee had nevertheless recommended to them, that, out of Respect to the said Envoy they should goe to him and acquaint him therewith to the end that He might direct the said Doctor Castro to pay the above dues, and prevent the thing coming to the present Extremity. That some of the said Commissioners had accordingly attended the said Envoy insisting that the Persons under his Protection should not pay that, or any other Assessment, as not being liable thereunto : and that upon such Answer, it was, that they had proceeded to make the said seizures, as they apprehend they are impowered by the said Act of Parliament to do. All which, having been read over by the said Appearer, he insisted upon to be true in every Particular, and as such he has sett and subscribed his name to these presents : and declared himself ready at all times to corroborate the same with his Corporeal oath, whenever he shall be hereunto required. Whereof an Act having been required of me, Notary, I have granted these presents under my Notarial Firm and Seal of my Office to serve and avail as Occasion shall require. SOLOMON DA COSTA. Witness JACOB TORRES MOSES LINDO In testimonium veritatis. Sigil S. Sch?mberg Notor. Publ. SOLn. SCH?MBERG, Not. Pub. 1742 Londin. APPENDIX II. Jacob de Pinna's notarial faculty, which is in the possession of Messrs. H. de Pinna &amp; J. Venn, is typical of those issued by the Archbishop of Canterbury prior to the year 1801. FREDERICK, by Divine Providence, Archbishop of Canterbury, Primate of all England and Metropolitan by authority of Parliament lawfully empowered, for the purposes herein written. TO our Beloved in Christ, JACOB DE PINNA, a literate person, born in the City of Amsterdam, Health and Grace. WE being willing by reason of your merits to confer on you a suitable title of promotion DO create you a Publick Notary, previous examination and the other requisites herein to be observed having been had, and do, out of our favour towards you, admit you into the number and Society of other Notaries, to the end that you may henceforward in all places exercise such Office of Notary, hereby decreeing that full faith ought to be given, as well in Judgement as thereout, to the Instruments to be from this time made by you; the oaths hereunder written having been by us or our Master of the ffaculties first required of you, and by you taken. I, JACOB DE PINNA do sincerely promise and swear that I will be faithfull and bear true allegiance to his Majesty King Goerge. SO HELP ME GOD. I, JACOB DE PINNA do swear that I do from my heart abhor, detest and abjure as</page><page sequence="46">156 ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS impious and heretical, that Damnable Doctrine and Position, that princes excommunicated or deprived by the Pope, or any Authority of the See of Rome, may be deposed or murthered by their subjects or any other whatsoever, and I do declare, that no fforeign prince, person, prelate, state or potentate hath or ought to have any Power, Jurisdiction, Superiority, Pre? eminence or Authority, Ecclesiastical or Spiritual within this Realm. SO HELP ME GOD. I, JACOB DE PINNA, do swear that I will faithfully exercise the Office of a Notary Publick. I will faithfully make contracts wherein the consent of parties is required by adding of diminishing nothing, without the will of such parties, that may alter the Substance of the ffact. But if in making any instrument, wherein the will of one party alone is required, this I will also do, to wit, I will add or diminish nothing that may alter the substance of the ffact and against the will of the party himself. I w?l not make Instrument of any Contract in which I shall know there is violence or ffraud. I will reduce Contracts into an Instrument or Register and after I shall have so reduced the same, I will not maliciously delay to make a publick Instrument thereupon, against the will of him or them on whose behalf such Contract is to be so drawn, saving to myself my just and accustomed fee. SO HELP ME GOD. PROVIDED alway that these presents do not avail you anything unless duly registered, and subscribed by the Clerk of his Majesty for ffaculities in Chancery.1 GIVEN under the seal of our office of FACULTIES on this Seventeenth Day of July in the year of Our Lord, one thousand seven hundred and seventy-two and in the fourth year of our TRANSLATION. ROB. TUBB. Register. The 18th day of July 1772 Registered by. Willxn. Talbot, Clerk of his Majesty for Faculties in Chancery. APPENDIX III. LIST OF JEWISH NOTARIES (In Date-Order of Faculties) Name as on Faculty Place of Birth as on Faculty Mode of Address in Faculty D. of Birth and Death Date of Fac? ulty Date of Admis? sion by Redemp? tion to Scriven? ers' Cpy. John da Costa2 Kingdom of Spain Germany Ralph Sch?mberg Solomon Sch?mberg Diocese of London to our beloved 1692- 1731 in Christ 1772 to our beloved 1714- 24/6/ [in Christ (erased)] 92 1737 to our beloved 1724- 8/12/ in Christ 1740 3rd June 1752 1 "Clerk of the Dispensations and Faculties :?The duties of the Dispensations Office in Chancery were to make out and register confirmations of bishops' commendams and of dispensations and doctors' degrees granted by the Archbishop of Canterbury, and also to register Master of Arts degrees and notarial faculties granted by the Archbishop of Canterbury. These confirmations were then passed under the Great Seal and enrolled." M. S. Giuseppi : "Guide to the Public Record Office I." 2 Faculty in Latin.</page><page sequence="47">ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS 157 Name as on Faculty Place of Birth as on Faculty Mode of Address as on Faculty D. of Date Birth of and Fac Death ulty Date of Admis? sion by Redemp? tion to Scriven? ers' Cpy. Solomon da Costa Isaac Netto Moses Sch?mberg Abraham Mercado Joseph Cortissos1 Emanuel Mendes da Costa Moses Moravia Abraham Abrahams1 Isaac Mendes Furtado Haim Moreira1 Eliezer Levy Alexander Abrahams Isaac Mendes Belisario Aaron Franco Drago Napthaly Hart2 Joseph Schabracq Jacob de Pinna Phineas Netto2 Daniel Lobo Henry Salomons City of Amsterdam Leghorn City of Lemberg in Treves Diocese of London to our beloved 1690- 2/4/ 1769 1741 to our beloved 1687- 1/8/ [in Christ (erased)] 1773 1747 1721- 1749 1779 1719- 1754 77 1731-88 1757 to to our beloved in Christ to our beloved to 1717-91 1762 Diocese of London (No faculty recorded) -1767 -1799 Covilhao in the Kingdom of Port? ugal Diocese of London City of Amsterdam Province of Rhode Island, America City of Amsterdam Diocese of London to to our beloved in Christ to to our beloved [in Christ (erased)] to our beloved in Christ to our beloved [in Christ (erased)] to our beloved in Christ to our beloved in Christ 1729? -1803 -1780 1717 91 -1790 -1799 -1827 1739 1806 1720 84 1764 1764 1766 24/12/ 1766 1769 1770 1771 8 May 1772 1772 1772 23/4/ 1733 1775 12/6/ 1783 10 June 1752 17 June 1752 3rd May 1775 2nd Nov. 1762 6th Oct. 1764 5 April 1759 1st June 1775 14 Dec. 1774 3 May 1775 1 The word 'exchange* is written against these names, indicating practice in the vicinity of the Royal Exchange, as opposed to 'Doctors Commons/ which is written on the faculties of Surrogates and Registrars of the Ecclesiastical Courts, who became Notaries by virtue of their offices. a The word 'exchange* is written against these names indicating practice in the vicinity of the Royal ^Exchange, as opposed to Doctors Commons.</page><page sequence="48">158 anglo-jewish notaries and scriveners Date of Admis D. of Date sion by Birth of Redemp Name Place of Birth Mode of Address and Fac- tion to Death ulty Scriven? ers' Cpy. Joshua Montefiore Bernard Van Sandau Joseph Moss Bloomfield1 Abraham Cortissos Michael Moses John Hart1 Judah Uzielli Elias Buzaglo Lewis Goldsmith Henry Joseph2 Reuben Hart1 Jacob Bernal Abraham de Pinna Charles Bethel Lyons12 Lewis Gideon8 Benjamin Solomon3 Saul Solomon3 Diocese of London Homburg in the Dominions of His Prussian Majesty City of Amsterdam Borough of South wark Diocese of Canter? bury Diocese of Win? chester District of Modena Diocese of London Diocese of Exeter Diocese of South? ampton Diocese of London to our beloved in Christ to our beloved in Christ to our beloved to our beloved in Christ to to our beloved in Christ [to our beloved (erased)] to our beloved in Christ to our beloved in Christ 1762 1843 1759 1848 1773 1811 1788 1827 1733 1805 1763? -1846 1790 1794 1793 1879 1786 1877 1776 1852 1785 1789 1790 29/4/ 1795 1796 14/5/ 1796 1799 1801 7/1/ 1810 8/12/ 1812 31/12/ 1812 17/2/ 1814 23/11/ 1827 28/6/ 1828 17/8/ 1831 1/2/ 1833 22/9/ 1845 9 Nov. 1809 14 Feb. 1821 David de Abraham Meldola Impbrial Notaries 1782 1805 1 Possibly not Jews. 2 Restricted Faculty. 8 Restricted Faculty.</page><page sequence="49">ANGLO-JEWISH NOTARIES AND SCRIVENERS 159 APPENDIX IV. LIST OF JEWISH SCRIVENERS (who were not Notaries). In Date-Order of Admission to the Scriveners9 Company. Date of Admission Dates of Birth by Redemption Name and Death to Scriveners' Cpy. Jacob Mendes Furtado -1799 1st April 1763 Joseph d'Almeida -1788 7th Dec. 1773 Aaron Lara -1788 21st Mar. 1777 Jacob Ergas -1824 19th Oct. 1785 Abraham Ergas 1753-1805 19th Oct. 1785 Edward Cohen -1835 26th Feb. 1816</page></plain_text>