In keeping with the theme of love in this February issue of the Lord Durham Report I am reminded of many of the 'great love stories' in history. Probably one of the most endearing and enduring is that of Lord Nelson and Emma Hamilton.

Nelson and War.

There can be little argument that Admiral Lord Nelson is one of if  

not the finest leader in the history of Britain.

 PRUDHOMME, (Sully) Ren� Fran�ois Armand [1839-1907]

Sully Prudhomme

Ahhhhhh, February. The month of romance, love, hearts, wine, chocolate and...poetry. Well there is also blizzards, cold, wet and rodents that think they can predict the future but we'll just leave that alone.

It is only fitting that our profile this month should be Ren� Fran�ois Armand (Sully) Prudhomme, French poet and essayist.

Ren� Fran�ois Armand Sully-Prudhomme was born in Paris in 1839. On the heels of the miserable period depicted in Victor Hugo's Les Miserables, life in Paris was a difficult at best. As the son of a shopkeeper who died when Sully was just two years old, life was a challenge.

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Daphne DuMaurier

When asked to write about my experience as a collector, I was immediately taken aback as I quite honestly had never considered myself to be a 'collector'.

My sweaters are not argyle nor are my jackets tweedy and neither are adorned with leather patches at the elbow. I do not immerse myself in volumes of catalogues and on- line auctions. I cannot be a collector as you won't find me hanging about fellow vendors' booths as they unpack trying to get the jump on the next guy for that illusive little goody for which I will negotiate like the proverbial market stall vendor. No, I am not a collector.