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Thick, tan, leather bound book with maroon leather, horizontal strip on upper spine with gold lettering: 'Dickinson's Guide to the Quarter Sessions'. Cover has no text and is stained. Foxing appears on inner cover and first and last few pages.
Belonged to Rowley Crozier Loftie.
A well-received work, Dickinson's Practical Guide went through six editions during and after Dickinson's lifetime (1756-1822) , the first in 1815 and the last in 1845.
A small, loose, lined piece of paper with perforations on upper edge inside the book has handwriting that reads: 'Sergeant at Law Thomas Noon Talford Book. Dickinson's Guide to the Quarter Sessions belonging to Rowley Crozier Loftie. Albany. Pract. 1860 to 1870s. Collected by Paul Nicholls. See walking stick.'
Rowley Crozier Loftie was born in Ireland in 1840 and was a Solicitor & Barrister between 1866 and 1872. He joined the Western Australian State Service in 1870, working as Registrar & Keeper of Court Records, and then in 1880, he was Police Magistrate in Perth. Lastly, he was appointed Government Resident at Albany in 1881 and, except for a brief period, held the position until 1899, when he retired, being succeeded by the late Hon. John Arthur Wright. Mr Loftie married a daughter of the late Thomas Brown, a one-time Government Resident at Geraldton. His only son, John Henry, entered the British Navy and was commissioned as Lieutenant on H.M.S. Vulcan in 1897 and Naval Commander in 1907. He retired from the active list in 1920. On retirement, Mr. R. C. Loftie went to live in Switzerland with his two daughters. He died there on 21 February 1915. His elder daughter, Grace, also died in Switzerland. His youngest daughter married in Switzerland. (Biography sourced from the Find A Grave memorial website)
Note: the Government Resident position was the local government administrator
Find A Grave webpage: Rowley Crozier Loftie
Former Judges and Master of the Court list, Supreme Court of Western Australia - Rowley Crozier Loftie's period in office as Master of the Court was 1870-1878
Lawbook Exchange webpage listing for original and subsequent editions of Dickinson's Practical Guide
