ENGLISH

4pp., 12mo. Bifolium. In fair condition, but with damage at head of outer sides caused by removal from grey paper mount. While Seammen worked for him he found him to be 'good tempered, obliging & trustworthy - He left me last year owing to an illness which, at the time, precluded his having the same efficient control over the Household that he had hitherto exercised'. He explains the reason for making 'a change', and is sending 'an excellent Character with him, of 14 years, from Lord Ravensworth'.

1p., 16mo. Bifolium. In fair condition, lightly aged and worn. Docketted on reverse of second leaf 'Sir H Bishop June 17th/46' (17 June 1846 was a Wednesday, so probably a mistake for the previous day). He is much obliged by her 'kind thought, in sending me a Ticket for you Concert', but it is uncertain whether he will be in London at that time, 'but I wish you, most sincerely, every success'.

In fair condition, aged and with traces of mounting on reverse. She is engaged on the afternoon of 15 June, but will hope to 'come in & see you some other time'. Postscript: 'It was delightful to meet & greet the other day!'

2pp., 4to. In good condition, lightly aged and worn. On two leaves stapled together. The letterhead, printed in red, is a cartoon portrait of the artist with palette and brush, pointing to the address on a blackboard. A long chatty letter, listing the titles and prices of an order Malcolm has made, describing his activities at a time when he is 'pushed like mad', arranging an 'interview for ERG', discribing the contents of the four albums of his stamp collecting ('I wouldn't call myself a philatelist . . . .

ONE (12 January 1975): 1p., 4to. In good condition. First page of letter only, and lacking signature. A generally positive review ('When I write, I suffer from excess, a disease which you and your contemporaries, Aldis, Brunner, Bulmer, etc long since cured yourselves of. [...] The story was, as I am sure you know, good.'), but with some caveats ('I also don't think that a female covered with body hairs would also have hair reaching down to her waist.'). TWO: 1p., 8vo. Signed in green ink. In fair condition, on aged paper with wear at head.

A black and white print, 24 x 19 cm. In good condition, lightly aged and worn. Shows Loder in top hat and nineteenth-century frock coat, with cane. Inscribed: 'To Mrs. Wright | With sincere good wishes | from | John Loder.' In pencil on reverse: 'Capt. William | Java Head | J. K. 67 | For Mrs Wright | Stills'. Stamped on reverse: 'CYRIL LEESTON | LONDON | TELEPHONE 3884 PADDINGTON'. This image is not in the National Portrait Gallery collection, nor is any other by Leeston.

The three items in good condition, on lightly aged and worn paper. ONE: 4 April 1858. 2pp., 12mo. Bifolium. Addressed to 'Mr. H Moore | Messrs. Gambert & Co.' Regarding the financial arrangement surrounding his engraving 'The Miller's Daughter'. On the subject of 'the two repayment bills', he would 'rather not part with £50.00 for some two or three months to come'. TWO: 11 December 1858. 1p., landscape 12mo. Directing the firm to give the bearer 'six (6) Artists Proofs of Millers Daughter -, which I long since promised to the owner of the Picture'. THREE: 24 December 1860. 2pp., 12mo.

4pp., 12mo. Bifolium. A long letter, closely and neatly written, with a number of emendations suggesting that it is a draft. After a short reference to the Count's kindness to him and his friend Joseph Neave, he devotes the rest of the letter to 'the heavy trial thou has had to pass through', discussing the nature of loss with 'knowledge from my own experience, that the loss of a child is a grief into whose full depths no stranger can enter, and that words, even well-meant, when uttered at an unfit moment, pain instead of helping'.

3pp., 4to. In good condition, on lightly aged and worn paper. And interesting and informative letter from a long-established couple of English settlers in Australia, to their kin in England. They have been prompted to write after viewing 'a Fox Short showing Bathing at Southend, Eastbourne, Bognor, Brighton and Blackpool taken during the Easter Holidays when you had a remarkable warm spell. To make it even we had a vicious little cold spell descend at the beginning of April [...]'.

1p., 12mo. In good condition, on lightly-aged paper. Docketed: '20 August 1835 | Lord Auckland to R L'. Reads 'Lord Auckland would be much obliged to Mr Lambert if he would call here tomorrow soon after two o'clock -'.

1p., 16mo. In good condition, lightly aged and spotted. Since she is going away, he considers it 'safer' to return the 'Oedipus', which has given him great pleasure. He hopes she will enjoy her 'Freshwater outing', and that 'we may remain above the horizon to welcome your return to town'. The Freshfields were a noted family of solicitors, with strong connections with the Bank of England.

1p., 12mo. In fair condition, on aged and lightly-worn paper. In regard to the recipient's 'Memo', he writes that it is 'difficult to define the exact scope of these <?> of Irish Legal Customs'. He cannot help him with 'anything brief', and 'details are of course out of the question'.

1p., 12mo. In fair condition, on aged paper, with negligible traces of mount adhering to the blank reverse of the leaf. Addressed to 'Dr Clarke | Harper St.' After explaining that the Commissioners of the Public Records want lists of the new plates for the first volume of 'Foeder', and another list of 'the old ones necessary to be re engraved', reminds him that he promised the latter list 'in September last'.

Both items in good condition, on lightly-aged paper. The letter is 2pp., 4to, and is written in a playful tone. Escaping the accompanying spoof Steward writes: 'Your remark that Glasgow was as alien to you as Mars got me thinking along the lines of the attached headline . . . . . It would be a good idea for a story if it hadnt been done about three thousand times already (See Robert Bloch (Report on Sol III) and others).

2pp., 12mo. Bifolium. In good condition, on lightly-aged paper. The letter, addressed to an unnamed recipient, begins: 'My dear Sir | Before I quitted Office I communicated to the Court of directors the Draft of an Insolvent Bill & some letters on the subject which I had received from the Judges in India, together with a request that they might be laid before you for your opinion & observations.' He should like the opportunity to talk over the subject with him, as he considers himself 'pledged to bring the measure forward [in the House of Commons]' with the approval of the present Board.

Good firm signature at foot of one side of 13.5 x 8.5cm card. The rest of the page is blank, and the reverse has printed text for a post card. In fair condition, aged and with negligible effect to signature from rectangle of slight browning on card perhaps caused by extended contact with newspaper cutting.

1p., 12mo. In good condition, lightly aged and creased. In envelope addressed by Smith to Owston-Booth at Beckenham in Kent. She thanks her, explaining: 'I very seldom contribute [to] symposiums, and it is not possible for me to do so at present as I am exceedingly busy and am just arranging to go to America'. For the same reason she cannot arrange to see her either.

Letter: 1p., 12mo. In good condition. Written in a difficult hand, regarding 'Tickets' for a 'really remarkable Show'. Photograph: 9 x 6 cm. Sepia. In good condition, laid down on paper removed from album. Depicts Burdett-Coutts, in Victorian finery with bustle and veil, seated at a table, with gloved right hand pressed to her cheek (not found on Google images)..

3pp., 12mo. Bifolium. In good condition, on lightly-aged paper, with negligible traces of mount on blank reverse of second leaf. Written in a somewhat difficult hand. The letter begins: 'My Votes are I am happy to say at liberty I enclose them'. She continues by expressing her 'distress' at the health of one of her sisters, who has been 'at St Leonards - she is I am thankful to say now out of danger'. She sends the best wishes of 'Mrs Burns', noting that 'the Election is in April'.

1p., 4to. In very good condition. He is glad that Malcolm enjoyed 'Billion Year Spree' (subtitled 'The True History of Science Fiction'), 'despite all the random scholarship floating around in every chapter', which was 'designed to silence if not impress all the hostile critics outside the field who seem to think that it is just a stamping ground for the juvenile or the insane'. A few 'family jokes' have been inserted, 'to keep the rest of us amused'.

Each letter 1p., 4to, Bickerstaffe-Drew's on reverse of Wood's. In fair condition, on aged leaf of paper with strip torn from head. The two letters cast an interesting light on English publishing practice in the late nineteenth century. Wood's letter, signed 'J. S. Wood', is written by a secretary, and addressed to 'The Right Rev Mgr Bickerstaff Drew'.

1p., 12mo. In good condition. In stamped envelope addressed by Dicksee to 'Shirley Slocombe Esq. | 27 Warwick Gardens | Kensington | W.14'. He apologises for his late reply to Slocombe's 'kind congratulations', explaining that he is 'faced by over 500 letters all needing answers'. Dicksee was knighted the following year.

1p., 12mo. In good condition, on lightly-aged paper. He acknowledges receipt of a cheque for 35 guineas, for 'the small drawing of Constantinople', adding that 'Prince Hohenlohe called and saw it here today, and liked it very much'. He ends with the news that he has engaged 'Heffer to call here for it, & pack & send it to its destination'.

1p., 8vo. In good condition, on lightly-aged paper. Headed 'Private'. He has 'sincere admiration for Mr. Chesterton as a writer, but he is avowedly a "Mediaevalist" & an opponent of Liberalism & the Liberal party, which he believes to be corrupt & hypocritical'. In consequence it 'puzzles' him that Chesterton 'should be nominated as a Liberal candidate, & with every respect for his zeal, honesty & ability, I really don't know what I could say about him from that point of view.'

12pp., 4to. On the twelve leaves of a ruled notebook, stitched into buff wraps. Internally in good condition, in heavily-worn wraps, with 'G Cruikshank' in the same hand on the front cover. The entries are arranged in eight sections: 1811-1821 (61 items); 'No Date' (36 items); 1826-1830 (23 items); 1831-1840 (51 items); 1841-1850 (45 items); 1851-1861 (33 items); 1862-[1867] (7 items); and a final section of eight items from between 1811 and 1824. The penultimate section is headed '1862 to [blank]', indicating that the catalogue was a work in progress, and the latest items are dated 1867.

3pp., 4to. In fair condition, on aged, worn and browned paper. Ada Chesterton worked with her brother-in-law while assistant editor of the 'New Witness'. Her admiration for his talents was fully reciprocated, G. K. Chesterton describing his sister-in-law as 'brilliant'. It begins: 'Very much has been written and said of G. K. C. the poet, the pamphleteer, the genius of paradox, who holds the attention of his listeners by his dazzling sleight of words. I am going to write of him from a different angle - G. K. C. the journalist as he is known and gauged in Fleet Street.

A total of 211pp., 8vo, paginated vii + xcviii + 105 + [1]. In red leather quarter-binding, with a coat of arms stamped in gilt on the green cloth front cover, and the title in gilt on the spine. Internally in fair condition, on lightly aged paper, in shaken and worn binding, with damage at head and tail of spine. Tastefully printed in a heavy style by Wyman and Sons. Day's 98-page introduction concludes by explaining thaht 'the documents now printed are in possession of Mr. Benett Stanford, the collateral descendant of Colonel Benett, and present member for Shaftesbury.

2pp., 12mo. In fair condition, lightly aged and worn. The menu is written out in faint pencil on one side, beneath the letterhead. On the other side, and headed with the date 4 June 1919 is the following playful address: 'Dear Jerrold, | "Carry on"! | This has no reference to the food we have just eaten. | You Walter [pun on 'ought to'] be here because you're a Jerrold [pun on 'dear old'] fellow. | And so say all of us.' Beneath this are nine signatures, two of which are undeciphered.

ONE (Knighton): 3 x 6 cm. In fair condition, aged and worn, laid down on a small piece of cream paper. A workmanlike production, within a wavy border. Reads: 'KNIGHTON's | Circulating Library, | DAWLISH.' BBTI records Knighton as active between 1828 and 1830. TWO (Crowther): 7 x 9.5 cm. In fair condition, lightly aged. Within decorative border, and reading: 'CIRCULATING LIBRARY, | DAWLISH. | CROWTHER, | BOOK-SELLER, | AND DEALER IN ALL KINDS OF | FANCY STATIONERY, | Toys, Berlin Patterns, German Wools. | Brushes, Fancy Turnery, Cutlery, Perfumery, &c.

Ford's first book of verse was 'Sung by the Way', published in Blackburn in 1905. She published several volumes of patriotic poetry: 'Poems of War and Peace' (1915), 'A Crown of Amaranth' (with Erskine Macdonald, 1915), 'Our Heroes' (1916); 'A Fight to a Finish' (1917). Other volumes include 'Lyric Leaves' (1912) and 'The England of my Dream' (1928). She edited the series of 'Little Books of Georgian Verse', 1915-1916. Her 'Lessons in Verse-Craft' was published in 1919 with a second edition in 1923. Her song 'In the Twilight' (1923) was set to music by Harry Brookes.