AUTOGRAPH

Engraving titled 'A Curious Piece of Antiquity, On the Crucifixion of Our Saviour and the Two Thieves.' Consisting of a piece of pattern poetry around three crucifixes.

Author: 
John Fenley, Bristol bookseller [pattern poetry]
Publication details: 
'Bristol: Printed for and Sold by J. Fenley, 20, Broad-Mead. (Typ. Brookman.)' No date.
£85.00

Printed on one side of a piece of unwatermarked wove paper, 18 x 20cm. Aged and worn, with a number of closed tears. The poem crosses horizontally and verically through three crucifxes, beginning: 'Behold, O God! INRI vers of my Tears'. The poem was first published around 1765 by W. Bailey, 28 Great Tower-street, London, and was reprinted by several other publishers, with an American version as late as the 1850s. No copy of this edition is present on COPAC. According to BBTI John Fenley was active in Bristol from around 1785 to 1811.

Autograph Letter Signed ('W. Trollope') from Rev. William Trollope, classics master at Christ's Hospital, offering the London publishers Cadell & Davies his 'Analecta Theologica'. Together with the a statement of account by Cadell & Davies.

Author: 
Rev. William Trollope (1798-1863), MA, Pembroke College, Cambridge, one of the masters of Christ's Hospital [Cadell & Davies, London publishers; Thomas Cadell (1773-1836); William Davies]
Publication details: 
Trollope's letter: Christs Hospital. 12 September 1827. The statement of account at 28 December 1829 (volume 1) and August 1835 (volume 2).
£166.00

Trollope's letter: 3pp., 12mo. 48 lines. Bifolium. In fair condition, on aged paper. Addressed, with postmarks, on reverse of second leaf, to 'Messrs. Cadell & Co. | Booksellers | Strand.' Trollope begins by announcing that he has 'a work nearly ready for the Press, wh. may probably be worth your attention [...] It is designed as companion to Mr Horne's work on the Scriptures, of wh. as you are the publishers, you may perhaps have no objection to engage in another, wh.

Five items from the papers of Robert French Helm, relating to his post-war career at the International Civil Aviation Authority, including a report and plans on the 'Zambianization of the Air Traffic Services Division', and two chapters of memoirs.

Author: 
Robert French Helm (1913-1995), of the International Civil Aviation Authority, a Royal Air Force Flying Officer in the Second World War [Institute of Navigation, Royal Geographical Society]
Publication details: 
Undated [relating to events in the 1950s and 1960s], apart from the certificate, which is from 1971.
£220.00

ONE: Mimeographed typed document titled 'Zambianization of the Air Traffic Services Division of the Department of Civil Aviation'. 7pp., foolscap 8vo, with eighth page carrying table of contents. Undated [mid 1960s]. Given that the plans accompanying this item are initialed by Helm, it seems reasonable to assume that this report is also his work.

Signed autograph itemised receipt by William Croslie [wine and spirit merchant, Castle Douglas?], for food and drink provided to 'Fanny Wilson for fathers funeral' in Scotland.

Author: 
William Crosbie, wine and spirit merchant, Castle Douglas [Fanny Wilson; funerals in Scotland]
Publication details: 
1 October 1810.
£56.00

Possibly submitted by the 'Mr William Crosbie, wine and spirit merchant', whose death at Castle Douglas on 15 March 1821 is recorded in Blackwood's Magazine, April 1821. 1p., 8vo. Neatly written out on watermarked laid paper. Headed 'Fanny Wilson for fathers funeral | To William Crosbie | 1810'. Eleven entries for the funeral on 1 October 1812, including two plum cakes, '11 Cakes Short Bread'; '2 Gallons <?> Rum' and '2 1/4 ditto Whisky'; '6 Bottles Old Port' and '6 ditto Sherry'. Receipt of payment on 5 November at foot, signed by Crosbie.

Autograph Signature of the actor Charles Kean, brother of Edmund Kean.

Author: 
Charles Kean [Charles John Kean] (1811-1868), Irish actor, brother of Edmund Kean (1787-1833)
Publication details: 
Aster House [New York]. 9 June 1846.
£23.00

A good, firm signature, written on one side of a rectangle torn from the base of a letter, roughly 15 x 20cm. Aged and little creased. Written while Kean was on an American theatrical tour, the fragment reads 'I remain, | Yours truly | [signed] Charles Kean | Aster House | 9th. June | 1846.' In pencil on the reverse: 'Presented by A. Bassler'.

Typed Letter Signed from the Anglo-Jewish novelist Emanuel Litvinoff, thanking Derek Stanford for a review, and discussing the novelist Angus Wilson ('one of the few writers to whom I've written a fan letter') and short story writing.

Author: 
Emanuel Litvinoff (19150-2011), Anglo-Jewish novelist [Derek Stanford (1918-2008), Anglo-Jewish author and critic; Angus Wilson (1913-1991), English novelist]
Publication details: 
36 Byron Court, Mecklenburgh Square, London. 2 July 1973.
£165.00

1p., 4to. He thanks Stanford for sending 'the carbon' of his 'warm review' of Litvinoff's novel ('A Death out of Season'). He missed the article and the note Stanford wrote 'about my autobiographical sequence' in the Scotsman, but is now iinterested to see from the review that Stanford is 'nursing the idea of a 'Forties memoir. Amazingly, few of us have written about the decade. I shall be getting around to it one day also, I hope.

Autograph Letter Signed ('Georg Henschel') from Sir George Henschel, the baritone and pianist, to Lady Thompson, asking her to extend the hospitality to 'Mr. and Mrs. Koecher (and the Misses Koecher)'.

Author: 
Sir George Henschel [born Isidor Georg Henschel] (1850-1934), German-born British baritone, pianist, conductor and composer
Publication details: 
25 Gloucester Road, Regents Park, NW [London]. 15 June 1881.
£40.00

2pp., 12mo. On bifolium. Fair, on lightly-aged paper, with strip of tape from previous mounting adhering at the foot of the recto of the second leaf. He asks her to send 'cards for your afternoon Friday' to 'our dear friends Mr. and Mrs. Koecher (and the Misses Koecher)', who would 'enjoy every minute'. He gives the Koecher's address as de Keyser's Royal Hotel, Blackfriars, and ends by conveying his wife's love.

Autograph Signature of the Irish politician and traveller, John Talbot Dillon, Baron Dillon.

Author: 
Sir John Talbot Dillon (1739-1805), 1st Baronet, Baron Dillon, Irish politician, traveller and author
Publication details: 
Madrid. 1 July 1777.
£120.00

1p., 12mo. An autograph note, apparently written at the head of the detached fly-leaf of a book. Fair, on aged paper, laid down on a torn page from an autograph album. Reads: 'This is a Curious & very Scarce Book. - | Madrid 1st. July 1777. | [signed] John Talbot Dillon | Knt. & Baron of the S. R. Empire.' The abbreviation stands for 'Sacred Roman Empire'.

Autograph Card Signed ('Geo R Sims') from the dramatist George R. Sims thanking Thomas Hutchinson for a letter, with reference to a visit to Liverpool.

Author: 
George R. Sims [George Robert Sims] (1847-1922), English dramatist and author [Thomas Hutchinson]
Publication details: 
On letterhead of 12 Clarence Terrace, Regent's Park, NW [London]. 7 September 1900.
£30.00

The letterhead includes a facsimile of Sims's signature. Six lines, on one side of the card. Addressed at foot to 'Thos Hutchinson Esq.' Fair, on aged paper, with strip of gummed paper from mount at head of blank reverse. He sends 'a thousand thanks' for Hutchinson's 'kind letter on Sep 2', which he would have answered earlier, had he not been 'away at Liverpool'. He concludes: 'Your good wishes lay upon my table to welcome me home.'

Autograph Letter Signed ('J. R. Planché') from the dramatist and herald James Robinson Planché, thanking 'Mr. Barnett' for procuring the freedom of Her Majesty's Theatre, Haymarket, for him,with reference to its manager Benjamin Lumley.

Author: 
James Robinson Planché [J. R. Planché] (1796-1880), dramatist, antiquary and Somerset Herald [Benjamin Lumley (1811-1875), manager of Her Majesty's Theatre, Haymarket]
Publication details: 
Garrick Club. 24 April [no year].
£40.00

1p., 12mo. Fair, on aged paper and worn paper. He is 'exceedingly obliged' to Barnett for 'procuring for me the freedom of Her Majesty's Theatre'. He asks if he will 'receive an official commemoration from Mr. Lumley', or whether he should write and thank Lumley on the strength of Barnett's note.

Autograph Letter Signed from the Scottish genealogist John Stuart to 'Miss Yonge' [the novelist Charlotte M. Yonge], concerning 'a Letter of the Great Marquis [of Montrose] recently brought to light, with reference to the historian Mark Napier.

Author: 
John Stuart (1813-1877), Scottish genealogist [Charlotte M. Yonge (1823-1901), novelist; Mark Napier (1798-1879), Scottish antiquary]
Publication details: 
General Register House, Edinburgh; on embossed letterhyead of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland. 31 December 1872.
£56.00

3pp., 12mo. Bifolium. Very good.

Two Autograph Letters Signed (both 'Julian Pauncefote') from Sir Julian Pauncefote, Ambassador to the United States, to Lord Aberdeen, Governor General of Canada, regarding tours of Canada by Justice Harlan and French Ambassador Jules-Martin Cambon.

Author: 
Julian Pauncefote (1828-1902), 1st Baron Pauncefote, the first British Ambassador to the United States, 1893-1902 [John Campbell Hamilton-Gordon (1847-1934), 1st Marquess of Aberdeen and Temair]
Publication details: 
Both on letterheads of the British Embassy, Washington, but with the location changed in manuscript in second letter to 'New London' [Prince Edward Island, Canada]. 21 June 1897 and 27 August 1898.
£150.00

Both items 4pp., 12mo, and bifoliums. Both in fair condition, on aged paper; the first with slight wear to one corner. In the first letter Pauncefote informs Aberdeen that Justice John Marshall Harlan (1833-1911), who has just visited him, is planning a summer holiday 'at Murray Bay in your Dominion'.

Autograph Letter Signed ('Louisa Parr') from the Victorian novelist Mrs Louisa Sarah Ann Parr (pseudonym 'Mrs. Olinthus Lobb'), regarding the translation into French by the neice of the unnamed female recipient of her novel 'Dorothy Fox'.

Author: 
Louisa Sarah Ann Parr [née Taylor] (c.1848-1903), Victorian novelist under the pseudonym 'Mrs. Olinthus Lobb'
Publication details: 
18 Upper Phillimore Place, Kensington. 27 July 1872.
£40.00

4pp., 12mo. Bifolium, with leaf dimensions 18 x 11cm. The letter appears complete, in good condition on lightly-aged paper, but a rectangle of about 5.5 x 11cm. (perhaps carrying the recipient's name) has been torn from the bottom of the second leaf.

Autograph Letter Signed from the Rev. Charles Rogers, LLD, to the autograph hunter J. T. Baron of Blackburn, discussing the availability of his 'Boswelliana' and 'Century of Scottish Life'.

Author: 
Rev. Charles Rogers, LLD (1825–1890), Church of Scotland minister and historian [John T. Baron of Blackburn, autograph hunter]
Publication details: 
On letterhead of 3 Brandon Street, Edinburgh. 15 March1882.
£60.00

3pp., 12mo. Bifolium. In good condition, on lightly-aged paper. With remains of envelope, addressed by Rogers. He states that his 'Boswelliana', which was 'published at a guinea can be got for twelve shillings', and that 'a bookseller has undertaken to hunt for 'A Century of Scottish Life' which has long been sold off; it will cost you six shillings - six was the original price.' After forwarding the address of Sabine Baring-Gould he states that he is 'now living in Edinburgh at the above address'.

Manuscript receipt, signed ('Arch Forbes') by the war correspondent Archibald Forbes, for £50 from the London publishers Henry S. King & Co., for the right to publish an edition of 1000 copies of his 'Soldiering and Scribbling'.

Author: 
Archibald Forbes (1838-1900), British war correspondent, born in Scotland [Henry S. King & Co., 65 Cornhill, London publishers]
Publication details: 
Place not stated. 27 June 1872.
£56.00

1p., landscape 12mo. In good condition, on aged paper. Signed by Forbes over a purple one penny Inland Revenue stamp. Reads: '£50 : 0 : 0 | 27th. June 1872. | Received of Messrs: Henry S. King & Co. of 65 Cornhill London, the sum of Fifty Pounds in payment for the right to publish an edition of 1000 copies of "Soldiering and Scribbling" | [signed] Arch Forbes'. The book was published by the firm in the same year as the receipt.

Autograph Letter Signed ('Chauncey B. Tinker') from the Boswell scholar Chauncey Brewster Tinker, Professor of English Literature at Yale University, concerning the proposed presentation of a manuscript by Charles McCamie of West Virginia.

Author: 
Chauncey Brewster Tinker (1876-1963), Professor of English Literature at Yale University, and authority on James Boswell and Doctor Samuel Johnson
Publication details: 
On letterhead of the Yale College Department of English. 8 October 1924.
£80.00

2pp., 12mo. With stamped and postmarked envelope, addressed by Tinker to 'Chas. Mc.Carnie, Esqr., | Natl. Bank of W. V. Bldg, | Wheeling, W. V.' Tinker considers that 'The MSS.

Autograph Letter Signed ('Ellenborough') from Lord Ellenborough to John Forbes Royle, commending his 'Essay on the Productive Resource of India'.

Author: 
Edward Law (1790-1871), 1st Earl of Ellenborough, Tory politician and Governor-General of India between 1842 and 1844 [John Forbes Royle (1799-1858), English botanist, born in India]
Publication details: 
Grosvenor Place, London. 1 January 1841.
£56.00

2pp., 12mo. Fair, on lightly-aged paper. He begins: 'I have just received your work on the productive resources of India for which I beg to offer you my best thanks.' The subject has always been to him 'one of the deepest interest', and he rejoices that 'a gentleman of your knowledge has directed his attention to it'.

Typescript titled 'The Last Month', signed 'Ernie Wilmott', describing the author's experiences during the last days of World War Two at Gaschwitz POW camp near Leipzig. With covering ALS from J. L. H. Batt ('Jack') and TLS to Batt from Charles

Author: 
Ernie Wilmott [J. L. H. Batt [Jack Lynden Batt] (b.1922), of 155th Battery, 172nd Field Regiment, Royal Artillery]
Publication details: 
Without place and date (1960s?). The account describes events in April and May 1945.
£300.00

13pp., foolscap 8vo. Paginated 1 to 13 and signed at the end 'Ernie Wilmott'. On seven leaves stapled into grey covers, with the title 'The Last Month' typed on the front cover. In good condition, in worn wraps. The account commences: 'There had been gun fire from the west and the south for the last three days. Friday the 13th April 1945 the usual officials did not come to fetch the men, but a little later than usual the Gaschwyz [sic] column was called, so we assembled and left for work, about 20 of us.

Autograph Letter Signed from the American critic and biographer Eugene Parsons to C. J. Caswell,

Author: 
Eugene Parsons (1855-1933), American author and critic, biographer of George Washington and editor of Alfred, Lord Tennyson
Publication details: 
3612 Stanton Avenue, Chicago. 21 November 189<2>.
£120.00

4pp., 12mo. Worn and stained on four leaves with wear to extremities resulting in slight loss of text, and with at least one leaf lacking. Parsons begins by informing Caswell that he is sending him a copy of the Examiner containing his article on 'Tennyson's Literary Career': 'It was sent to the Editor only a few days after the poet's death when I knew nothing about the title or contents of the new book of poems.' He discusses his plans to insert the article when he republishes his pamphlet (Parsons' 'Tennyson's Life and Poetry' appeared in 1892, with a revised edition the following year).

Autograph Album of Agnes Rothsay, daughter of Frank Rothsay, Actor-Manager of the Borough Theatre, Stratford, containing signatures, messages and drawings mostly by individuals connected to the stage, many in the company of 'The Prince of Pilser.

Author: 
Frank Rothsay, Actor-Manager of the Borough Theatre, Stratford, and his daughter Agnes Rothsay
Publication details: 
Compiled while the Rothsays lived in West Ham, between 1906 and 1909.
£300.00

Landscape 8vo album with 82pp. on 73 leaves of different coloured paper in original cloth. Aged and loose, in worn binding. The autographs are mainly theatrical, and although lacking any first-rate actors, provide a tantalising glimpse into a lost world. Laid down are signed postcards from.Stella Gastelle, Ethel Ward and Ben Albert ('To Miss Rothsay | Best Wishes from her Dad's Pal Ben').

Manuscript letter from 'the undersigned ladies and gentlemen of the "Delia" company', at the Tyne Theatre, Newcastle upon Tyne, to Frank Rothsay, signed by sixteen individuals on presenting him with a token of appreciation of his management.

Author: 
Frank Rothsay, Victorian actor-manager of the Tyne Theatre, Newcastle upon Tyne, and the Borough Theatre, Stratford
Publication details: 
Tyne Theatre, Newcastle upon Tyne. 5 October 1889.
£80.00

1p., foolscap 8vo. Stained, worn and creased, but a unique memento of a Newcastle institution and Grade I listed building, founded in 1867 as the Tyne Theatre and Opera House, and now bearing the euphonious name of the Mill Volvo Tyne Theatre.

Four Autograph Drafts by George Sholto Douglas, 17th Earl of Morton, of letters by him soliciting the votes of his fellow Scottish peers in elections of Scottish Representative Peers in the House of Lords in 1828, 1841 and 1852. Two signed 'Morton'.

Author: 
George Sholto Douglas (1789-1858), 17th Earl of Morton [Representative Peers of Scotland in the House of Lords, Westminster]
Publication details: 
All three from Dalmahoy House, near Edinburgh. Dated 3 March 1828, June 1841 and June 1852.
£220.00

1828: 2pp., 4to. 'Dalmahoy nr Edinburgh | March 3d 1828'. Signed 'Morton'. In fair condition, lightly-aged and with a short closed tear along one fold.

'Premiere edition' of mimeographed English school magazine by 'les garcons de 3R', all in French, titled 'EPATANT!'

Author: 
'Les Redacteurs (A.M.P., W.R.W., P.E.R.)' and 'les garcons de 3R'
Publication details: 
July 1960.
£30.00

2pp., foolscap 8vo. Good on two leaves of lightly-aged paper attached with rusty staple. Opening note reads 'Voici la première édition de ce journal. Là-dedans les garçons de 3R ont écrit pour vous beaucoup de choses interessantes. Le titre EPATANT! signifie "smashing"! Esperons que vous le trouverez vraiment épatant!' Crossword and short articles by M. Adams, P. Robinson and W. Winfield.

Manuscript Memorandum of Agreement between J. Hain Friswell and the London publisher Henry S. King, setting out the terms of publication of Friswell's 'The Better Self'. Signed 'J. Hain Friswell'.

Author: 
James Hain Friswell (1825-1878), English essayist and novelist [Henry S. King & Co., publishers, 65 Cornhill, London]
Publication details: 
22 October 1874.
£56.00

1p., foolscap 8vo. On laid paper, with red embossed tax stamp in top left-hand corner. In fair condition, lightly-aged. The memorandum is seventeen lines long, and begins: 'Memorandum of an Agreement made this twenty second day of October One thousand eight hundred and seventy four. Between Mr J. Hain Friswell of Fair House, Bexley Heath, Kent, of the one part and Messrs. Henry S. King & Co. of 65 Cornhill London publishers of the other part. | The said Mr J. Hain Friswell has written a Work entitled "The better self" which he herby assigns to Messrs. Henry S.

Autograph Letter Signed from the London publisher John Murray the sixth ('John Grey Murray') to the diplomat Ernest Frederick Gye ['Dear Ernest Gye'], congratulating him on his posting to Tangier.

Author: 
John Murray the sixth [John Grey Murray; Jock Murray; John Arnaud Robin Grey Murray] (1909-1993), London publisher [Ernest Frederick Gye (1879-1955), diplomat, son of Ernest Gye and Dame Emma Albani]
Publication details: 
On letterhead of John Murray, 50 Albemarle Street, London. 9 January 1933.
£22.00

1p., 4to. Fair, on aged paper. He offers Gye his 'very best wishes' on his 'new appointment', adding: 'of course do not trouble to answer for this deserves none'.

Nine items relating to the film 'Antonio Gaudi, The Unfinished Vision', from the estate of its producer Michael J. Cooper, including a treatment by Cooper, a story outline with covering artwork, a signed contract, a legal letter and five receipts.

Author: 
Michael J. Cooper [Prof. Juan Bassegoda Nonell; Hedger Wallace; Mark Wenborn; John Alaimo; Fernando Rey]
Publication details: 
Mostly from Cooper's company: Michelangelo Productions Ltd., 50 Gray's Inn Road, London. 1973 and 1974.
£320.00

Regarded as lost for 35 years this drama documentary, directed by John Alaimo, was discovered in a Barcelona bank vault in 2009, and has recently been released on DVD. The nine items are in good condition, on lightly-aged paper. One: 'Gaudi | Treatment by Michael J. Cooper | April 1974'. [i] + 4pp., foolscap 8vo, in plastic folder. Two: 'Story Outline' for 'Antonio Gaudi | The Unfinished Vision | A Special Television Film Production'.

Autograph Letter Signed from the novelist Michael Sadleir to the diplomat Ernest Frederick Gye, congratulating him on his posting to Tangier.

Author: 
Michael Sadleir [born Michael Sadler] (1888-1957), English novelist and director of the publishers Constable & Co. [Ernest Frederick Gye (1879-1955), diplomat, son of Ernest Gye and Dame Emma Albani]
Publication details: 
On letterhead of [the offices of the publishers Constable & Co.,] 10-12 Orange St, London. 1 March 1933.
£32.00

1p., 4to. Good, on lightly-aged paper. Addressed to 'dear Ernest'. Marked by Gye 'Ansd.' He is sending Gye 'a word of congratulations on the august appointment to Tangier'. He apologises that he cannot be 'part of the celebration on March 23'. He concludes: 'I hope you are pleased and that everything will prosper. | No answer required of course'.

Autograph draft by Thomas George Baring, 1st Earl Northbrook, of a speech delivered by him, as First Lord of the Admiralty at the Lord Mayor's Banquet, Guildhall, 1883.

Author: 
Thomas George Baring (1826-1904), 1st Earl of Northbrook, Liberal politician; Viceroy of India, 1872-1876; First Lord of the Admiralty, 1880-1885
Publication details: 
On embossed Admiralty letterhead. [1883.]
£90.00

2pp., 12mo. Bifolium. In pencil. Lightly-aged and worn. In pencil, with deletions and emendations. Docketed in another hand on reverse of second leaf: 'MS. speech delivered at Guildhall Banquet by Lord Northbrook, First Lord of Admiralty - 9th Novr. 1883.' And with the following in the second hand at the head of the first page: 'Lord Northbrook's Speech - Nov. 9. 1883 at Guildhall'. A very short speech, well reported in The Times of 10 November 1883.

Autograph Letter Signed ('W. Huskisson') from the Tory politician William Huskisson, Member of Parliament for Chichester, to 'My dear Morley', as First Commissioner of the Woods and Forests, regarding hares and rabbits in Delamere Forest., Cheshire

Author: 
William Huskisson (1770-1830), Tory politician, Member of Parliament (for boroughs including Chichester, 1812-23; Liverpool, 1823-30); early railway casualty, struck by George Stephenson's Rocket
Publication details: 
Whitehall Place [London]; 3 February 1817.
£95.00

3pp., 12mo. 27 lines. Fair, on aged paper, with some closed tears along crease lines.

Autograph Note, Third Person to [The People of Scotland]

Author: 
John Francis Miller Erskine, 26th Earl of Mar
Publication details: 
Alloa, 10 Oct. 1847
£165.00

Five lines [one page], 12mo, tipped on to backing paper [bifolium]. letter creased but text clear and complete: "Place and date] | The Earl of Mar has been, & is daily, so ill behaved to by the people in Scotland that he is obliged to decline subscribing to them.-" See scan on my website.

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