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Tuesday 21 July 2015

A Splendid gift from a Gentleman.

 So there I was up to my armpits in  sweaty work. Casting Aircraft and  trying as normal to do  eleventy -nine things at once to assuage the impatience of a vocal few...(Have you ever noticed Gentle readers how it is that the chaps who spend the least make the most row about it? ) Nevertheless I was pretty busy which is the point, when the postman handed me this anonymous cardboard box.
 "Curiouser and Curiouser" said Andy !
After a good five minutes hacking away at the wrapping I discovered Treasure !

3 light drakes or possibly minions.
 For Lo! and even Behold !  the box contained 5 rather splendid ECW artillery  pieces with crews and a limber and powder cart .
"What Ho!" thinks I "Where did these come from"
Further investigation revealed a letter from a gentleman called Jason. Now as it happens I could put a face to the name as we has spoken at some length at Partizan.  at the beginning of June. I'd known this chap at shows for some years as a customer and "face"  but until the last Partizan had not known a name.. Now over the years we had chatted of this and that- with more than a little emphasis on the Pike and Shot period of which Jason had an abiding interestand that we both had a mutual friend in Robbie Roddiss . Now this time I happened to mention my interest in the ECW and the ex-Gilder stuff I'd bought from  DC-  apropos on absolutely nothing- and a couple of weeks later this box turns up out of the blue.
The 2 heavy guns. .
The enclosed letter informed me that these were no use to Jason and were mine with his compliments ...
" Well Thank you Kind Sir " thinks I .
They had it appears been part of Duncan Macfarlanes collection and some at least painted by Phil Robinson. the letter merely signed Jason  However reading Robbie Roddiss blog this morning  he mentioned this Gentlemans full name- Jason Williams.
 So Mr Jason William many thanks for your splendid gift.
 A couple of the pieces can be seen in the Asquith /Gilder Naseby book of.1979 so in a sense they were coming home to join their old comrades.
  Now isn't that  lovely.

7 comments:

  1. There are without a doubt some genuine gentlemen (and ladies) in this hobby of ours...

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    1. Indeed. We are lucky enough to have some wonderful folk in our hobby :>)

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  2. They are splendid, Jason is really a gentleman!

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  3. Andy,
    Having sat down and talked with Jason a couple of times now, its clear he's a big collector and wargamer, he is also very kind. Those are lovely pieces you lucky so and so.

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    1. Robbie so he is - but then you knew this from your own good fortune !

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  4. Its occasions like this that one realises that our hobby is not all about the ultra competitive list building prats, and that true hobby comrades can emerge anywhere. As more veteran gamers our challenge is to convert more of the former into the latter.

    Nice sakers!

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