FLEET

1p., 12mo. In good condition, on lightly-aged paper. Reads: 'Dear Mr. Fisher | I am so sorry I cannot attend the meeting. Unfortunately, I am absolutely obliged to attend to my newspapers all day long. | Yours faithfully | Alfred Harmsworth'. The Daily Mail was little more than two years old at the time of this note.

On piece of 6 x 12 cm laid and watermarked paper, cut from an order. In fair condition, aged and worn. Above the good firm signature, in another hand, is: 'Given onboard [sic] the Caledonia in Basque Roads 17 April 1809'. At foot, in a nineteenth-century hand: 'Gambier's autograph'. Gambier's actions during the battle, the victory in which was credited to him rather than Lord Cochrane, led to a Court Martial. Gambier was exonerated, and Cochrane's naval career ended.

4pp., 12mo. On aged and lightly-creased paper. Originally a bifolium, but with the two leaves separated, and evidence of previous stitching into a binding. Regarding his new book 'Cruel London', he asks him if he can send six copies of what is not only 'a kindly notice, but excellently well written. All the more gratifying. The Spectator is always my enemy just as the Saturday was Thackerays, to compare a big man with a small one.' He refers to a notice in the Sunday Times by Joseph Knight, who 'also sent me a charming letter of congratulation'.

3pp., 12mo. Bifolium. In good condition, on lightly-aged paper. Written in pencil. A long and interesting complaint, casting an interesting light on the journalistic practices of the period. Hurd begins without preamble, pointing out, with reference to a previous letter, that he 'never promised 35000 words', and stating that the publisher 'would doubtless be able to put in a few extra illustrations to fill it out'.

2pp., 12mo. 33 lines of text in blue ink. In good condition, lightly-aged. He writes that his family have 'all been listening to your third broadcast on Gandhi with pleasure and admiration'. He cannot imagine 'a better treatment of the subject', and is 'lost in admiration for the skill with which you pieced all these fragments together, and wove out of them a thrilling and convincing narrative [...] The old charwoman at Bow was a delight, and how sympathetic & interesting was Lord Templewood! But there wasn't a "dud" among all your many contributors, both the Indians & the English.

6pp., 12mo. Bifolium and single leaf. On aged and worn paper, with 4 cm closed tear to all three leaves. A highly interesting letter, illuminating Victorian Fleet Street and City of London practices. The author's signature is frustratingly illegible, but may well be that of sports journalist Charles William Alcock (1842-1907). The recipient is possibly James Clarke (d.1888), editor of The Christian World. The author opens the letter with the 'conclusions' he has arrived at regarding the 'various schemes' which he 'maturely reflected upon' in a discussion with Clarke the previous week.

The pedigree is written out by Crisp on one side of a 37 x 95 cm piece of paper, folded twice into a 37 x 23.5 cm packet, printed on the front of which is: 'Visitation of England and Wales. | DRAFT PEDIGREE. | Please return to Frederick Arthur Crisp, F.S.A., "Grove Park Press," 270 Walworth Road, London, S.E.' The same address is embossed at the head. In good condition, on lightly-aged paper. In top right hand corner of cover is a manuscript label with 'JELLICOE.' underlined in red. The pedigree, descending from 'Capt.

Heavily influenced by its author's own journalistic career, 'The Pen and the Sword' is not only of great significance in the development of Michael Foot's thinking, but is also an important work in the study of Jonathan Swift. The book was a firm success, going through four printings between 1957 and 2008. It was first published in London by Macgibbon and Kee, with the subtitle 'A Year in the Life of Jonathan Swift' (the year in question being 1710).

1p., small 4to. He refers to 'lunch with the Bells' and 'Tattie', and apologizes for keeping the books for so long: 'They were a great help, especially Rory Fitzpatrick's God's Frontiersmen'. He ends with the news that he is revising his manuscript, 'and would like to send you a copy when it is eventually published'. The book Heren was working on does not appear to have been published.

21pp., fourteen of them in 4to, and the other seven pages cut down. In fair condition, on aged and worn paper. Stapled together, with the first leaf detached. The article is complete but untitled. It is unattributed, but comes from the J. R. Gordon papers. A well-written and incisive piece, written from an insider's point of view. Gordon lays out his stall at the very start: 'Few people of our generation have influenced the life of it so profoundly as Lord Northcliffe. He was the incomparable journalist of our age.

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.

On 7 January 1911 Beckles Willson, Honorary Secretary of the Charles Dickens Testimonial, explained the scheme to the readers of the Spectator. Three members of Dickens's family were, Willson explained, 'drawing a niggardly pension of £25 per annum from the British Government', and that 'no volume recently published of Dickens has returned any copyright fee, save those which bear the Dickens copyright stamp'. The stamp was 'on sale for one penny each-in sheets of twelve-at every bookseller's in the land, and at all Messrs. W. H. Smith's and Wyman's news-stalls.

For more information about the periodical, see the entry in Brake and Demoor's 'Dictionary of Nineteenth Century Journalism in Great Britain and Ireland' (2009), which stresses the its independence: 'the Musical Standard was rare among nineteenth-century music journals in that it was not produced by a music publisher or other music issuing body'. The present item consists of around 175 items laid down in file copies of eleven issues, four of them from 1888: 21 April, 26 May and 16 and 30 June; and seven from 1891: 3 January, and 7, 14, 21, 28 February, and 7 and 21 March.

2pp., 12mo. Bifolium. In fair condition, on aged paper. Written in a difficult hand. 'The negatives are with Mr P, Solicitor, 50 Leinster Square, who, while I was away, received them from the W Printing Company. I will ask him to leave them out for you. I will call to-morrow or the nexxt day and give you an order for this delivery.'

32pp., 8vo. Disbound. On aged and worn paper, with title leaf detached. Hargreaves begins the pamphlet by stating his case: 'The real issue involved is, not whether the "impersonality" of the Press, as illustrated by the management of the Times, is fair and acceptable to a few prominent politicians, but whether it is useful and beneficial to the community at large.

For the context of this item see Parnell's entry in the Oxford DNB, and T. W. Moody's study 'The Times versus Parnell and Co., 1887-90' (in 'Historical Studies VI', ed. Moody; London: RKP, 1968). Moody notes that the first three Times articles (7, 10 and 14 March) 'were quickly reprinted in pamphlet form (price one penny)', but makes no mention of the present item. On both sides of single 60.5 x 47.5 cm leaf (on wove paper with 1887 watermark of 'The Times Taverham Mill'). Folded four times to make a packet with 15 x 12 cm title, which reads in full: 'Parnellism and Crime.

1p., 8vo. In good condition, lightly aged and folded twice. The letter begins: 'Dear Sir | For my book - "Poems with Fables in Prose" (2 vols. Constable) I confess I particularly aspire to the honour of a review in the Daily News. He gives a list of themes which the volumes contain, 'Inter alia', including 'new philosophical iteas'. In black pencil at the head of the page (probably by Gardiner) is 'Mr Lynd', i.e. a direction for the letter to be forwarded to columnist Robert Lynd.

4pp., 12mo. Bifolium. A long and detailed letter, beginning: 'The situation is not quite as we thought it. Yesterday I saw Mr. Higgs at Downing Street and he explained to me all the circumstances concerning the consideration of Mrs. Latey's petitions. | The suggestion emanating from him, with the Prime Minister's concurrence, is as follows.' The plan outlined, as Mrs Latey is not eligible for the pension, is for a fund to be established for her, to which 'the Prime Minister would add [...] a sum from Royal Bounty - the whole to be sunk in an annuity for her.

1p., 4to. In good condition, on lightly-aged paper. She thanks Lynd for 'one of the nicest novel articles we have had in Gerald's absence', and asks her to 'be an angel, and do something else for Viola, who is vanishing tomorrow for four or five weeks', in reviewing 'the Somerset Maugham book you wanted [...] I really think he is worth a long article to himself - 1500 words, and, if you care to, you can put in a word for Heinemann's edition of the Collected Works, which we send alongside. Mr.

1p., 8vo. Addressed on reverse to 'Mr Keene | Furnivals Inn'. In fair condition, aged and worn, with slight damage caused by black powder seal. The letter reads: 'Sir | On consulting with Mr Greening, I find it will be most adviseable <?> Mr Greening go to the Fleet - I wish therefore you could send over Mr Watson this Afternoon, when I will pay him the Money requisite for the Habeas <?>. | Sir | Your hble Servt | Robt Huish'.

From the papers of The Sun's receiver, Charles Fox of 11 Old Jewry, London. The ten items in good condition, on lightly-aged paper. According to Bottomley's entry in the Oxford DNB, ' In 1902 he bought a moribund evening newspaper, The Sun.

12mo (dimensions of leaf 18 x 8 cm): [iii] + 16 + 34 pp. No title leaf and publisher not stated. Printed on the versos only of 53 leaves. Unbound. In contemporary marbled-paper and cloth-spine wraps. Text clear and entire, on aged and lightly stained paper. Loss and staining to rear wrap. A few annotations in pen and pencil in contemporary hands (for example 'Horatio Nelson' is marked out as 'Lord Nelson'). Ownership inscription of Jane Hume. From the papers of her relative, Charles William Paterson, Admiral of the White.

All three items in good condition, on lightly-aged paper. All signed 'Ralph Straus'. ONE: TLS. 6 January 1939. 1p., 8vo. After expressing his willingness to have 'the programme of Wat Tyler and the Bil of Madame Sala for 1827', he expresses his desire to acquire playbills 'of Sala's grandfather, in a King's Theatre ballet 1776 onwards - particularly if it gives his Christian name of Claudio. I know of one in Jan. 1788.

1p., 12mo. In good condition, on lightly-aged paper. Addressed to 'E. Draper Esq'. He asks him to send 'the page of Freeman's [altered from 'Freemason's'] Journal mentioned in your Note to the Editor', and undertakes to return it safely, 'after inspection of the contents'.

1p., landscape 12mo. In fair condition, on aged and lightly-worn paper. Strachey has written 'Mrs. Shorter' in the bottom left-hand corner, but the note is addressed to 'Dear Sir', and corrected by him to 'Madam'. It reads: 'I enclose with many thanks cheque [sic] for your contributions during the past month'.

1p., 4to. On creased and lightly-aged paper, with wear and chipping to edges. She thanks him for his letter 'and for your offer of original potrait drawings by yourself', in which she was 'greatly interested'. She explains that there is a limitation of space, 'and as a general rule we are exhibiting portraits only when we can associate with them some other relic or possession of the writer concerned'. In response to 'our appeal' she has received 'souvenirs of past writers, and I am concentrating on these. This being so, I feel I must very reluctantly decline your interesting offer'.

Letter: 1p., 12mo. In good condition, on lightly-aged paper. He begins by suggesting that Baron write to 'Mr Payn' (the novelist and editor James Payn) via the Reform Club, Pall Mall. (Baron's method involved asking one celebrity how to contact another.) He next discusses two of his works: '"The Memorial Windows" appeared in the Gentleman's & was published in Pippins & Cheese (Bradbury & Evans) - "The Valley" you will see in enclosed list'. He concludes by thanking Baron for his 'complimentary note'. With envelope addressed to 'J. T.

1p., 8vo, on the verso of the second leaf of a bifolium, with the Autograph Note by Bentley on the recto of the first leaf. Good, on lightly-aged paper. Smith's letter headed by him 'Private'.

8pp., 12mo. Stapled. Printed in blue on shiny art paper, in cream card wraps, also printed in blue, and tied with blue and white ribbon. On aged and worn paper. With illustrations in text, including a half-page image of the 'Pip, Squeak & Wilfred Jig-Saw Puzzle'. The first page carries a message to 'My Dear Boys and Girls' from 'Uncle Bill', including: 'To-day's Gugnunc Party - our third - is particularly interesting as it is also a birthday party.

2pp., 4to. In fair condition, on aged and lightly-worn paper. An attractive production, printed on a leaf of parchment paper, with illuminations and decorative designs in red, blue, green and gold, in the Gothic style of the period. At the end of the second page, above the printer's slug, and illuminated: 'Auction Rooms 22 Fleet Street London | Established 1823'.