Hawkes Empire 1/2 size Eb tuba

[Alex F]

Does anyone have information about this small Eb made by Hawkes & Sons. It's an Empire model given as 1/2 size.
top valves, .655 bore, 14" bell, about 30" high. This and some similar models (Boosey, B&H) come up on Ebay from time to time. They are not real expensive but look a bit rough (of course some of them are 75-80 years old). Leisure Time music, in Indiana, has these for sale regularly.

I checked the old and new archives. Nothing specific about this horn other than a minor reference to someone who was going to look at one a few months back (probably the same horn).

What should one look in evaluating one of these.