Dyer says of Bentham that "he was not eager after money in the way of business, but rather ambitious of printing Works that would do him credit. He had a great taste for Gardening and a turn for humour. He was an amiable man, as all the Benthams were; and was the only Bentham of the family that was not in orders. There were six brothers, who all used to assemble at the Prebendal-house in Ely at Christmas."[109] Joseph was an alderman of Cambridge and lived in a house adjoining the Press in Silver Street, the whole group of buildings forming "a sort of Quadrangle or Square." This house had belonged to Matthew Stokes, Registrary from 1558 to 1591, and Cole refers to the arms ("carved very handsomely and very large") over the chimneypiece in the parlour[110]. Of the books printed by Bentham the most sumptuous is _The History of Ely Cathedral_ by his brother, James Bentham, a large volume illustrated with many engravings and published in 1765. Other illustrated works of some interest are Zachary Grey's edition of Samuel Butler's _Hudibras_ (1774) with a "set of new cuts" by Hogarth and _Cantabrigia Depicta_ (1763)[111]. There may also be noted a Latin version of Pope's _Ode on St Cecilia's Day_ and a succession of Seatonian prize poems by Christopher Smart; a volume of _Odes_ (1756) by William Mason; Roger Long's _Astronomy_ (1744); Robert Masters's _History of the College of Corpus Christi_ (1752); a Latin version (anonymously published) of Gray's _Elegy_ by Christopher Anstey and W. H. Roberts, Provost of Eton: and many editions of the classics, including Squire's _Plutarch de Iside et Osiride_ (1744), Taylor's _Demosthenes_ (various years) and Richard Hurd's _Horace_ (1757). In 1715, when James Gibbs presented his design for "the Publick Building at Cambridge," his plans included provision for the printing-house above the Registrary's office in the southern wing; and it has been therefore inferred that the printing-house in Silver Street was not adequate to the needs of the university[112]. Only a portion of Gibbs's scheme (the Senate House) was carried out and in 1762 the Syndics of the Press, seeking fresh accommodation, purchased a house, called _The White Lion_, which probably stood on the south side of Silver Street, facing the old Press. This was the first step taken in the acquisition of the present site. * * * * * Bentham continued in office until 1766 and well maintained the typographical reputation of the Press, but a more famous name is that of John Baskerville. Originally a writing-master at Birmingham where, from 1733 to 1737, he was teaching at a school in the Bull Ring, he afterwards took up, with great success, the trade of japanning and in 1750 began his experiments in type-founding. He set his mind to the improvement of type, press, paper, and method of printing: