FABIAN

[Ethel Snowden, Fabian socialist and suffragist.] Seven Typed Letters Signed and one Autograph Letter Signed, to Rev. A. H. Sayers, regarding a talk by her to the League of Nations Union, Monmouth; with one after her husband’s death.

Author: 
Ethel Snowden, Viscountess Snowden [née Ethel Annakin] (1881-1951), Fabian socialist, suffragist, temperance and peace campaigner, wife of first Labour Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Snowden
Publication details: 
The ALS and six of the TLsS from 1934, one TLS from 1937 and another undated (but from November 1934), All eight items from Eden Lodge, Tilford, with four on letterheads.
£280.00

She her entry, and that of her husband, in the Oxford DNB. Throughout her life she inspired a range of responses. The ‘Labour Leader’ described her as a ‘second Annie Besant’, while Manny Shinwell dismissed her as ‘the would-be Sarah Bernhardt of the party’; to Lord Reith, during her time as a BBC governor, she was ‘the Scarlet Woman’. The present eight items are in good condition, lightly aged, and all folded for postage. A total of eleven typed pages (4to, 12mo and 16mo) and one page in 4to autograph. All signed ‘Ethel Snowden’.

[Walter Crane, Arts and Crafts artist.] Autograph Letter Signed to J. Stanley Little, with thirteen examples of Crane's work, including invitation cards, handbills, letterheads.

Author: 
Walter Crane (1845-1915), English illustrator, designer and painter, associated with the Arts and Craft Society, Fabian Society and Art Workers' Guild [James Stanley Little (1856-1940)]
Publication details: 
13 Holland Street, Kensington, and other London addresses. 1886 to 1912.
£450.00

The fourteen items are laid down on three pages, on two leaves of grey paper, removed from an album, on the reverse of one leaf are two coloured coaching scenes by Randolph Caldecott, one featuring a highwayman. The overall condition is fair, with creasing and signs of age. The Autograph Letter Signed is from Crane to 'My dear Stanley Little'. 1p., landscape 8vo. With letterhead of Beaumont Lodge, Shepherd's Bush, featuring an illustration by Crane of a shepherd and sheep. 20 September 1892.

[‘Why don’t you ask me to do it for you?’: Sidney Webb, Fabian theorist.] Three Autograph Letters Signed to A. G. L. Rogers, one criticising a pamphlet he has a hand in, another declining to put himself forward for the Liberal candidacy in Stepney.

Author: 
Sidney Webb [Sidney JamesWebb, Baron Passfield] (1859-1947), Fabian Society theorist and socialist politician, literary collaborator with his wife Beatrice Webb (1858-1943) [A. G. L. Rogers]
Publication details: 
ONE: 22 September 1891; on letterhead of 4 Park Village East, N.W. TWO: 6 February 1892; 4 Park Village East, N.W. THREE: 8 June 1893; on letterhead of the London County Council, Spring Gardens, S.W.
£150.00

See Sidney Webb's entry in the Oxford DNB, now unaccountably placed within that of his wife. From the papers of Arthur George Liddon Rogers (1864-1944), son and editor of the economist Thorold Rogers [James Edwin Thorold Rogers] (1823-1890), for information regarding whom see his entry in the Oxford DNB. The three items in good condition, lightly aged. Each folded once. All three signed ‘Sidney Webb’; the first to ‘Sir’, the second to ‘My dear Rogers’, and the third to ‘Dear Rogers’. ONE: 22 September 1891. 4pp, 12mo.

[Graham Wallas, Fabian socialist thinker and a co-founder of the London School of Economics.] Autograph Signature to conclusion of Autograph Letter Signed [to A. G. L. Rogers].

Author: 
Graham Wallas (1858-1932), English socialist thinker, social psychologist, educationalist, a leader of the Fabian Society and a co-founder of the London School of Economics [A. G. L. Rogers]
Publication details: 
May 10 [no year]. 32 Great Ormond Street, W.C. [London.]
£28.00

See Wallas’s entry in the Oxford DNB. From the papers of Arthur George Liddon Rogers (1864-1944), son and editor of the economist Thorold Rogers [James Edwin Thorold Rogers] (1823-1890), for information regarding whom see his entry in the Oxford DNB. 1p, 12mo. On recto of first leaf of bifolium. In good condition, lightly aged. Folded once. The conclusion of the letter only. Reads: ‘[...] extracts enclosed - / Edgeworth says he will look out for materials for you. / Sincerely / Graham Wallas / 32 Great Ormond St / W. C. / May 10 -’.

[C. E. M. Joad, philosopher on 'The Brains Trust'.] Typed Letter Signed ('C E M Joad') to BBC producer Hugh Burnett, suggesting changes to the next in a series of talks he is giving.

Author: 
C. E. M. Joad [Cyril Edwin Mitchinson Joad] (1891-1953), philosopher on the BBC radio programme 'The Brains Trust' [Hugh Burnett (1924-2011), BBC producer]
Publication details: 
On letterhead of 4 East Heath Road, Hampstead, N.W.3. 14 August 1951.
£35.00

Joad's rise and fall are admirably described in Jason Tomes' entry on him in the Oxford DNB. The present letter was written after the disgrace which followed his 1948 conviction for fare-dodging. Not only was Joad dropped from the programme which had made him a nationwide celebrity, 'The Brains Trust', as a result, but his well-founded hopes of a peerage were dashed. It is interesting to note from the present letter that Joad continued to work for the BBC after his disgrace. The letter is 2pp, landscape 12mo. In fair condition, aged and creased, with two punch-holes at head.

[C. E. M. Joad, philosopher, member of 'The Brains Trust' BBC radio panel, and convicted railway fare dodger.] Typed Letter Signed to Collin Brooks, editor of the Sunday Dispatch, outlining a proposed article on 'Nazi rule in Germany'.

Author: 
C. E. M. Joad [Cyril Edwin Mitchinson Joad] (1891-1953), English philosopher and radio broadcaster, whose career ended in disgrace [Collin Brooks (1893-1959), ournalist and Fleet Street editor]
Publication details: 
On letterhead of 4 Easrt Heath Road, Hampstead, N.W.3. [London] 25 September 1939.
£50.00

1p., 4to. In good condition, lightly aged. Signed 'Cyril Joad'. Written in the same month as Britain and France had declared war, the letter begins: 'I don't know whether you are still running the Sunday Dispatch, but if you are, how about an article on the philosophy which underlies the Nazi rule in Germany?

[ Sir Robert Charles Kirkwood Ensor, journalist and historian. ] Autograph Letter Signed ('R. C. K. Ensor') to unnamed party, on Oxford University Fabian Society business, discussing the best time for a 'sober event'.

Author: 
R. C. K. Ensor [ Sir Robert Charles Kirkwood Ensor ] (1877-1958), journalist, historian, poet and liberal intellectual [ Oxford University Fabian Society ]
Publication details: 
10 Parks Road, Oxford. 23 April [ no year, but before his move to London in 1904 ]. At foot of letter: 'OU.F.S.', i.e. Oxford University Fabian Society
£45.00

1p., 12mo. In fair condition, on lightly-aged paper.Reads: 'Dear Sir | The 19th May is out of it; becase it falls in Eights Week, which is an impossible time for any sober event – college concerts & dances per evening, with a vista of importunate relatives behind. | Fir the rest, the 26th is very much our best evening, if you can possible manage it without putting yourself to too great inconvenience.' See Ensor's entry in the Oxford DNB.

[ Vera Dart, social worker and Labour Party politician. ] Duplicated Typescript of unpublished autobiography titled 'My Six Lives in a Changing World'.

Author: 
Vera Dart (1892-1984), social worker and Labour Party politician, born in Liverpool [ Women's Voluntary Service for Civil Defence; London County Council ]
Publication details: 
Place and date not stated. [ London, c. 1977. ]
£400.00

[3] + ii + 152pp., 4to. Perfect bound, with each page on a separate leaf. In fair condition, aged and a little dogeared. Title-page reinforced at fore-edge. Missing the last page or so of the 'Conclusion'.

[ Walter Crane, Arts and Crafts artist. ] Autograph Letter Signed to J. Stanley Little, with thirteen examples of Crane's work, including invitation cards, handbills, letterheads.

Author: 
Walter Crane (1845-1915), English illustrator, designer and painter, associated with the Arts and Craft Society, Fabian Society and Art Workers' Guild [ James Stanley Little (1856-1940) ]
Publication details: 
13 Holland Street, Kensington, and other London addresses. 1886 to 1912.
£450.00

The fourteen items are laid down on three pages, on two leaves of grey paper, removed from an album, on the reverse of one leaf are two coloured coaching scenes by Randolph Caldecott, one featuring a highwayman. The overall condition is fair, with creasing and signs of age. The Autograph Letter Signed is from Crane to 'My dear Stanley Little'. 1p., landscape 8vo. With letterhead of Beaumont Lodge, Shepherd's Bush, featuring an illustration by Crane of a shepherd and sheep. 20 September 1892.

Autograph Notebook by Frederick Leman Whelen, containing biographical matter, some on the Stage Society. Including lists of individuals (some Jewish) with whom Whelen was interned at Fort de Romainville and Drancy, Paris, during the Second World War.

Author: 
Frederick Leman Whelen (1867-1955), Fabian socialist author and founder of the Stage Society [Drancy Internment Camp; Nazi Germany; holocaust; concentration camps]
F.L. Whelen, Fabian author, founder of  Stage Society, Notebook
Publication details: 
1939 to circa 1941.
£400.00
F.L. Whelen, Fabian author, founder of  Stage Society, Notebook

Small 4to, 140 pp. Paginated by Whelen. Notebook of good laid paper, in boards covered in patterned paper, with the word 'BIOGRAPHICAL' in faded red manuscript at head of front cover. Text neatly written and clear and complete. Good: internally sound and tight on lightly-aged paper; in worn and chipped boards. The flyleaf is dated 1939, with Whelen's addresses given as the Royal Societies Club, St James's St, and 5 Place de la Taconnerie, Geneva.

Autograph account by Frederick Leman Whelan of a visit by him to the Soviet Union in 1936, as leader of 'the League of Nations Union party' of British 'useful idiots'; with other matter relating to the U.S.S.R.

Author: 
Frederick Leman Whelan (1867-1955), Fabian socialist author and founder of the Stage Society [the Soviet Union; USSR; Russian Revolution; League of Nations Union; useful idiots]
MS. Account a visit to the Soviet Union in 1936
Publication details: 
'To Leningrad & Moscow Intourist "S.S. Cooperazia". Sat. 27th June to Sunday 19th July 1936.' [First entry dated 22 June 1936.]
£850.00
MS. Account a visit to the Soviet Union in 1936

Small 4to, 61 pp, with the first four pages unpaginated and the last ones paginated 1-57. In notebook of good laid paper, in decorative boards. Text clear and complete. Very good, on lightly-aged paper; in worn and chipped wraps, with 'U.S.S.R.' on spine and front board. Various addresses by Whelan inside the front cover, with the date 1936 amended to 1945 and 1950. Pages of slogans and abbreviations are followed by the notebook itself. The volume intersperses notes on the visit (ending at p.31) with extracts of quotations, statistics and other matter about the Soviet Union.

Autograph Signature ('Beatrice Webb').

Author: 
Beatrice Webb (1858-1943) [Martha Beatrice Potter Webb], wife of Sydney Webb [The Fabian Society; Socialism]
Publication details: 
Without date or place.
£18.00

Good, bold signature on slip of laid paper (presumably cut from letter) roughly 3.5 x 11.5 cm. In good condition. Simply reads 'Beatrice Webb'.

Autograph Letter Signed ('W. H. Mallock') to 'Mrs Nesbit'.

Author: 
William Hurrell Mallock (1849-1923), English author [Edith Nesbit]
Publication details: 
10 October 1879; 15 Savile Row, London.
£35.00

12mo: 1 p. On discoloured paper with wear at head and traces of previous mount adhering to blank reverse. He sent the publishers Chatto & Windus her novel the previous Monday, 'begging them to write to you on the matter, and giving your work my best recommendation'. He has not heard anything from them himself, but expects it will 'take a week or two, before they can give an opinion'. The recipient may be Edith Nesbit, although this is unlikely as Nesbit was her maiden name. She became Edith Bland in 1880. None of her works appear to have been published by Chatto & Windus.

Fabian Society. Syllabus of a Series of Lectures to be given at Essex Hall, Essex St., Strand, London, on alternate Fridays, January to April, 1926, at 8 p.m.

Author: 
[The Fabian Society; H. St. J. B. Philby; Arthur Greenwood; Sidney Webb]
Publication details: 
London: The Fabian Society, 25, Tothill Street, Westminster, S.W.1. [1925 or 1926.] [The Garden City Press Ltd., Letchworth.]
£45.00

4to: 4 pp. Unbound bifolium. On lightly discoloured and spotted paper, lightly worn at extremities. Central horizontal fold. Gives details of eight lectures, by, successively, H. Finer ('Impressions of America'), Montague Fordham ('The Rural Problem'), R. B. Forrester ('Co-operative Marketing'), Professor R. Peers ('Can we educate the Community?'), Arthur Greenwood, M.P. ('The Present Position and Future Policy in regard to Housing'), C. S. Orwin ('Land Tenure'), Rt. Hon. [sic] Sidney Webb, M.P. ('Poor-Law Reform'), and (with the 'syllabus' covering an entire page) H. St. J. B.

Five Typed Notes Signed (all 'Fabian G Trollope') to G. K. Menzies, Secretary, Royal Society of Arts.

Author: 
Fabian George Trollope (1872-1960) of Trollope & Sons, 'Artists in Decoration since A.D. 1778. Branch of Trollope & Colls Ltd.' [London Architecture]
Publication details: 
20 March 1923, 4 November and 14 December 1927, and two of 18 June 1931; letter 1 on letterhead of Trollope & Colls, Ltd., letters 2 to 5 on letterhead of Trollope & Sons'.
£100.00

All items one page, quarto, and all very good. Two docketed and one bearing the Society's stamp. Letter 1: He will be pleased to attend a committee meeting. Letter 2: He has 'a long-standing engagement' and will be unable to attend 'the Architectural Decoration Committee'. Along with Godfrey Giles he has 'had a long discussion' with Mr. Grigsby 'with reference to the conditions of the Lewis Berger Scholarship'. Letter 3: He knows 'Professor Richardson very well, and this is just the information which I am requiring. I will send my man on to see the secretary as you suggest'.

Autograph Letter Signed to A. E. Lidgett.

Author: 
Harry {Henry] Snell, Baron Snell
Publication details: 
9 September 1942; on letterhead of the Athenaeum, Pall Mall, S.W.1.
£30.00

British Labour politician (1865-1944), leader of the Labour Party in the House of Lords, 1935-40. 1 page, 16mo. In good condition, although creased and a little worn at head. 'I am sorry that you found it difficult to reach me. I leave here fairly early on the days that the House is in session & I must be there practically all the time.

Autograph Letters Signed (x3 )and one Typed Letter Signed to C.H. Grinling, labour activist

Author: 
Edward R. Pease
Publication details: 
1891-1903.
£150.00

Founder-member of the Fabian Society (1857-1955). 12pp. total, 8vo (3) & 4to (1), (1891) He asks Grinling to work with Henry Snell (M.P. for Woolwich) on preparing a Fabian Tract, suggesting a draft could be shown to the S.E. Committee, outlining what they should say. He also wants a leaflet for "the Guardians Elections", and announces that Sidney Webb on Poor Law will be Tract 17. (1901) His opinion on the "Housing Loan question", a meeting on Boards of Guardians, and the disordered office.

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