Nice work maeve.

I did have a look in all the usual places for "baby's chair" (with and without auctioneer) a few days ago - without success.

Foss' poem seems to have originated in 1892 in the author's Back Country Poems (poem here: The Auctioneer's Gift, with illustration). There's also a picture of the author near the front of the book.

The book starts with a poem called The Volunteer Organist, which is not the song written by William B. Gray & H. Lamb in 1893, but seems to have a very similar story line. I wonder if Gray had seen Foss' poem or if the story was going the rounds at the time. (I've just done a search on that and Malcolm Douglas noted this poem in a local thread on Lyr Req: The Volunteer Organist (Gray/Spaulding)).

I've had a quick look at some sources and can't find a setting version of The Auctioneer's Gift. (search on auctioneer's gift at Roud, BL, LOC, NLA, Bodleian, Duke, Indiana, Mississipi and Farne)




Mick