LORD

[John Morley, Viscount Morley of Blackburn, Liberal politician and writer.] Two Autograph Letters Signed and an Autograph Note Signed to Lady Ilbert, wife of Sir Courtney Ilbert, Clerk of the Commons, regarding dinner arrangements.

Author: 
John Morley (1838-1923), Viscount Morley of Blackburn, Liberal politician and writer [Lady Jessie Ilbert [née Bradley] (1850-1924), wife of Sir Courtenay Ilbert (1841-1924), Clerk of the Commons
Publication details: 
ALS ONE: 19 December 1910; on embossed letterhead of United Service Club, Pall Mall. ALS TWO: 2 July 1911; on letterhead of Flowermead, Wimbledon Park, S.W. ANS: 5 July 1911; on letterhead of the Privy Council Office, Whitehall, S.W.
£60.00

See his entry, and that of Lady Ilbert’s husband, in the Oxford DNB. The three items in good condition, lightly aged, and folded for postage. ALS ONE (19 December 1910): 1p, 12mo. ‘I am sorry you have had domestic anxieties. They are the most poignant.’ He continues: ‘It would delight me to have a peaceful hour with you and Ilbert, without prejudice to Fisher and his wife.’ Signed ‘M.’ ALS TWO (2 July 1911): 2pp, 12mo.

[Lord Bryce (James Bryce), Liberal politician, jurist and British Ambassador to United States.] Autograph Letter Signed to William Sheowring declining to address tye South Place Ethical Society.

Author: 
Lord Bryce [James Bryce, 1st Viscount Bryce] (1838-1922), Ulster-born Liberal politician, jurist, British Ambassador to United States [The South Place Ethical Society, London; Conway Hall]
Publication details: 
9 August 1898. On embossed letterhead of the House of Commons.
£40.00

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 1p, 12mo. In good condition, lightly aged. Folded twice for postage. Signed ‘James Bryce’. Addressed to ‘W. S[?]ing Esq.’, presumably the secretary of the South Place Ethical Society. His ‘time is already so fully occupied with public & private work & engagements of many kinds’ that he ‘cannot hope to comply’ with the recipient’s request that he ‘should give an address for the South Place Ethical Society’.

[Lord Lister [Joseph Lister, 1st Baron Lister], distinguished medical pioneer.] Autograph Note Signed to ‘Reynolds’, accepting an invitation.

Author: 
Lord Lister [Joseph Lister (1827-1912), 1st Baron Lister], distinguished British doctor, medical scientist, pioneer of antiseptic surgery, President of the Royal Society
Lister
Publication details: 
30 June 1883. On letterhead of 12 Park Crescent, Portland Place [London].
£150.00
Lister

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 1p, 16mo. In good condition, lightly aged, with minor traces of mount on reverse. Folded once for postage. Good bold signature. Reads ‘My dear Reynolds, / I accept with much pleasure your kind invitation for Friday, July 6th., at 8 o’clock. / Yours very truly, / Joseph Lister’. On reverse, in a contemporary hand: ‘Distinguished surgeon from Edinburgh [sic]’. See Image.

[Sir Herbert James Read, Governor of Mauritius, and his wife Lady Violet.] Six items including autograph speech by him for members of Second Colonial Office Conference to British Empire League, and other speech, and commonplace book by Lady Read.

Author: 
Sir Herbert James Read (1863-1949), Governor of Mauritius, and his wife Lady Violet Kate Read [n?e Maclachlan] (d.1951) [Second Colonial Office Conference, 1930]
Publication details: 
Second Colonial Office Conference speech from 1930, on letterhead of Government House, Mauritius. Lady Read's commonplace book dated March 1924. Another item from 1934.
£350.00

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. Six items. Items Two and Five in fair condition, somewhat creases; the other four items in good condition, lightly aged and worn. ONE: Autograph fair copy of speech by Read on behalf of his ?fellow-members on the [Second] Colonial Office Conference? [1930] to the British Empire League and the British Empire Club. Apparently unpublished. Unsigned. 5pp, 12mo. On bifolium and single leaf, both with letterhead of Government House, Mauritius.

[Lord Erskine [Thomas Erskine], judge and Whig politician, Lord Chancellor in the Ministry of All the Talents.] Autograph Letter Signed [to Hon. Theresa Villiers?] on the background to his pamphlet on 'The Present War with France'.

Author: 
Lord Erskine [Thomas Erskine (1750-1823)], Scottish judge and Whig politician, Lord Chancellor in the Ministry of All the Talents
Publication details: 
21 February 1808. No place.
£280.00

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. The item is from the Villiers papers, and the recipient is presumably the Theresa, wife of the Hon. George Villiers (1759-1827), daughter of Lord Boringdon and sister of the Earl of Morley. (See the entry on her son Thomas Hyde Villiers (1801-1832) in the History of Parliament.) 2pp, 4to. Bifolium. In good condition, folded once. Signed ‘Erskine’.

[John Baseley Tooke of Thompson, Norfolk.] Manuscript ‘Inventory and Valuation [by Samuel Elcock] of [...] the property [...] at his late Residence Southampton Row Bloomsbury Square London and at his late Chambers Mitre Court Buildings Temple.'

Author: 
John Baseley Tooke (1779-1841), solicitor of the Inner Temple, Lord of the Manor of Thompson, Norfolk [Samuel Elcock, London appraiser]
Publication details: 
'taken December 3rd. 1841’
£120.00

Biographical information relating to the deceased is to be found in Rev. George Crabbe, ‘Some Materials for a History of the Parish of Thompson in the County of Norfolk’ (Norwich, 1892): ‘John Baseley Tooke of Thompson, Esq., only son [of John Greene Basely [sic], sometime Mayor of Norwich’], an acting magistrate for Norf., assumed the additional surname of Tooke by royal lic. in Oct. 1802, pursuant to the will of Wm. Tooke, Esq., his great-uncle; b. 15th Mar. 1779; d. unmar. 12th Nov. 1841; bur.

[Duc de Vincence [General Armand-Augustin Louis, 5th Marquis de Caulaincourt.] Autograph Letter Signed, in French, following the Congress of Châtillon and Treaty of Fontainebleau, asking Lord Aberdeen to deliver a letter to Viscount Castlereagh.

Author: 
Duc de Vincence [General Armand-Augustin Louis, 5th Marquis de Caulaincourt] (1773-1827), Napoleon’s head diplomat, Ambassador to Russia [Lord Aberdeen; Viscount Castlereagh; Treaty of Fontainebleau]
Vincennes
Publication details: 
‘Chatillon sur Seine / le 7. Mai 1814.’
£450.00
Vincennes

Something of an historic document. In February and March of 1814 Vincence had led the French delegation at the Congress of Châtillon peace conference, at which his counterpart was Lord Aberdeen, with the British Home Secretary Lord Castlereagh arriving partway through. On behalf of Napoleon, Vincence had led, with little success the subsequent negotiations with Russia, Prussia and Austria which resulted in Napoleon’s abdication and exile to Elba, by the signing of the Treaty of Fontainbleau, a month before the present letter, on 11 April 1814, which was ratified by Vincence.

[George IV as Prince Regent, and former Prime Minister Lord Sidmouth as Home Secretary.] Warrant Signed by 'George P R.' and 'Sidmouth', directing that Matthias Maher be removed from the Lunatic Asylum in St George's Fields to Newgate Prison.

Author: 
George IV as Prince Regent; Lord Sidmouth [Henry Addington, 1st Viscount Sidmouth] (1757-1844), Prime Minister; William Erasmus Hardy of Newgate Prison; Matthias Maher [Transportation; Australia]
George IV as Prince Regent
Publication details: 
'Given at Our Court at Carlton House the Thirty first day of July 1819, in the Fifty ninth Year of Our Reign.'
£450.00
George IV as Prince Regent

This document, signed by George IV as Prince Regent, and by the former Prime Minister Lord Sidmouth as Home Secretary, relates to Matthias Maher (1798-1865), a Royal Navy officer who was twice tried at the Old Bailey on a charge of forgery. On the first occasion, 6 May 1818, he was found not guilty by reason of insanity; and removed to the criminal asylum in St George's Fields. Maher was found sound of mind – as the present document reveals by Sir George Leman Tuthill (1772–1835) and Edward Wright (c.1788-1859), the latter to die of disgrace in Australia.

[Lord Mansfield, Scottish jurist whose judgments reformed English law on slavery.] Autograph Letter Signed ('Mansfield') [to the Earl of Liverpool] regarding his recovery from ill health and recuperation at Mount Ephraim.

Author: 
Lord Mansfield [William Murray, 1st Earl of Mansfield (1705-1793)], distinguished Scottish jurist whose judgments reformed English law on slavery [Charles Jenkinson, 1st Earl of Liverpool (1729-1808)]
Publication details: 
'Mount Ephraim [near Tunbridge Wells, Kent] 2d Septr. 1784'.
£220.00

1p, 8vo. In good condition, lightly aged, with thin strip of paper from mount adhering to blank reverse. Folded once.. A neatly-written letter of fourteen lines. The recipient is not named, but is Charles Jenkinson, 1st Earl of Liverpool (1729-1808), whose country seat was Addiscombe Park in Surrey. Mansfield served in the First Pitt Ministry with Liverpool (then Lord Hawkesbury), the former as Lord President of the Council, and the latter as President of the Board of Trade.

[Augustus Frederick, Duke of Sussex, son of George III.] Autograph Letter Signed ('Augustus Frederick') [to Earl St Vincent], attacking the Prime Minister Lord Liverpool while discussing his election as President of the Royal Society of Arts.

Author: 
Augustus Frederick, Duke of Sussex (1773-1843), sixth son of George III, bibliophile [John Jervis, 1st Earl of St Vincent (1735-1823), naval hero; Ellis Cornelia Knight (1757-1837); Lord Liverpool]
Publication details: 
Kensington Palace; 3 February 1816.
£350.00

An interesting letter, attacking the serving Tory Prime Minister Robert Banks Jenkinson, 2nd Earl of Liverpool (1770-1828), who had stood against the Duke of Sussex (noted for his liberal sympathies) in the election for President of the Royal Society of Arts. 3pp, 12mo. Bifolium. In good condition, lightly aged and worn. Folded three times. The recipient is not named, but is identified in an endorsement on the reverse of the second leaf as 'Earl St Vincent'. Written in a hurried, untidy hand.

[Sir Henry Bulwer, diplomat and brother of the novelist Lord Lytton.] Autograph Letter Signed to Lady Theresa Lewis, explaining that he may find it difficult to attend her party, as he is dining at Buckingham Palace that night.

Author: 
Sir Henry Bulwer [William Henry Lytton Earle Bulwer, 1st Baron Dalling and Bulwer] (1801-1872), Liberal politician and British Ambassador to Spain, United States and Ottoman Empire [Lady Theresa Lewis
Publication details: 
No date. 36 Hertford Street [London].
£56.00

See his entry and hers in the Oxford DNB. 1p, 12mo. In good condition, lightly aged, and folded for postage. Written in a not entirely straightforward hand (although very much much better than that of his brother the novelist Lord Lytton). Reads: ‘My dear Lady Theresa, / I am very much obliged by your kind remembrance of me and the very agreeable party to wh. you are so good as to invite me. / Very much indeed do I regret dining at Buckingham palace since I fear, [?], that I shall not be away in time to reach you at a decent time. If I can do so however you may quite see that I will. / Yrs.

[Joseph D'Arcy Sirr, Irish antiquary.] Autograph Letter Signed to 'Sir Henry', discussing antiquarian information relating to his living of Yoxford in Suffolk.

Author: 
Joseph D’Arcy Sirr (1794-1868), Irish antiquary, vicar of Yoxford in Suffolk, son of Henry Charles Sirr (c.1764-1841), Mayor of Dublin who killed Lord Edward Fitzgerald during the 1798 Irish rebellion
Publication details: 
1 August 1845. Yoxford [Suffolk].
£120.00

See his entry in the Dictionary of Irish Biography, and his father’s entry in the Oxford DNB. 4pp, 12mo. Bifolium. 72 lines, closely written. In good condition, lightly aged and folded for postage. Addressed to ‘My dear Sir Henry’ and signed ‘Joseph D’Arcy Sirr’. In response to an invitation to write, there are ‘two or three points’ on which Sirr would seek information. These relate to what appears to be a mistake by ‘Mr Davy’ on publishing a manuscript regarding ‘Lady C. Grey’ who is buried at Yoxford. He is also ‘enclosing [not present] a curious copy of a MS made for me, but wh.

[Thomas Hughes, author of ‘Tom Brown’s Schooldays’.] Autograph Letter Signed to Sir Spencer Ponsonby of the Lord Chamberlain's Office, introducing ‘Mr. Selway’, whom he advises him to consult about proposals for a theatre in Surrey Gardens.

Author: 
Thomas Hughes (1822-1896), author of the Victorian classic children's book 'Tom Brown's Schooldays', Liberal MP for Lambeth [Sir Spencer Cecil Brabazon Ponsonby-Fane of the Lord Chamberlain's Office]
Publication details: 
19 March 1872. No place.
£220.00

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. In good condition, lightly aged. On first leaf of a bifolium of wove paper. Folded for postage. Signed ‘Tho. Hughes’. Begins: ‘My dear Ponsonby / Let me introduce the bearer, Mr. Selway, [i.e. William Robbins Selway (c.1822-1893) of Walworth] who was vice Chairman of my Committee in Lambeth, & is one of the most influential & trustworthy men in the South of London’. Selway wishes to see Ponsonby ‘about a building in the Surrey Gardens which certain persons are proposing to convert into a Theatre’.

[J. T. Delane [John Thadeus Delane, distinguished editor of The Times.] Autograph Letter Signed to the Earl of Clarendon, introducing Wimpore Cooke, who is going out to China as Times special correspondent, and asks what 'course' should be 'pursued'.

Author: 
J. T. Delane [John Thadeus Delane (1817-1879)], editor of The Times, 1841-1877 [Lord Clarendon [George William Frederick Villiers (1800-1870), 4th Earl of Clarendon, Liberal Foreign Secretary]
Publication details: 
6 April [1859]. No place.
£75.00

See the two men’s entries in the Oxford DNB. 2pp, 12mo. On first leaf of a bifolium, the second docketed ‘Mr. Delane / April 6/59 / Introd. Mr Wimpore Cooke - Times Correspt in China -’. In good condition, lightly aged and folded for postage. Addressed to ‘The Earl of Clarendon’ and signed ‘John T. Delane’. Reads: ‘My dear Lord, / I should be much obliged if you would receive the bearer, Mr.

[Napier of Merchistoun: William John Napier, 9th Lord Napier of Merchistoun.] Long Autograph Letter Signed ‘To Colonel Napier / Royal Artillery’ [Charles Napier?], regarding genealogical matters, and with a Royal Navy reminiscence.

Author: 
Lord Napier of Merchistoun [William John Napier, 9th Lord Napier (1786-1834), Royal Navy officer and Chief Superintendant of Trade in China [Col. Charles Napier (d.1849), Royal Artillery?]
Publication details: 
‘Thirlestane - Selkirk Decr 19 / 1831’.
£220.00

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. The recipient is presumably the Captain Charles Napier (d.1849) of the Royal Artillery who ‘received eight wounds from the bursting of a shrapnel shell’ at Waterloo (see Dalton’s ‘Waterloo Roll Call’, p.194). 8pp, 4to. Closely and neatly written on two bifoliums. In good condition, lightly aged, but folded three times into a packet, and with some closed tears to the creases. Addressed ‘To Colonel Napier / Royal Artillery’ and with the valediction ‘I will now bid you adieu & subscribe myself / Yr very faithful Kinsman / Napier’.

[Lord Nuffield [William Richard Morris, 1st Viscount Nuffield], motor manufacturer and philanthropist.] Typed Letter Signed, thanking the Provost of Oriel College, Oxford [Sir David Ross], for his co-operation with regard to Nuffield's trusts.

Author: 
Lord Nuffield [William Richard Morris, 1st Viscount Nuffield] (1877-1963), motor manufacturer and philanthropist, proprietor of Morris Motors [Sir David Ross [W. D. Ross], Vice-Chancellor of Oxford]
Publication details: 
16 October 1944. On letterhead of Cowley, Oxford.
£60.00

See his entry, and that of Ross, in the Oxford DNB. 1p, 12mo. In good condition, lightly aged. On blue paper. Folded twice for postage. Ross is not named, the letter being addressed to him as ‘The Provost, / Oriel College, / Oxford.’ Bold signature: ‘Nuffield’.

[Lord John Russell, Whig and Liberal statesman, twice Prime Minister.] Autograph Signature to part of letter to Rear-Admiral Sir Henry Dillon, regarding his joining the royal household.

Author: 
Lord John Russell [John Russell, 1st Earl Russell] (1792-1878), Whig and Liberal statesman, twice Prime Minister, grandfather of Bertrand Russell [Rear-Admiral Sir William Dillon]
Lord John Russell
Publication details: 
No date or place.
£35.00
Lord John Russell

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. On both sides of 10.5 x 8 cm piece of paper, cut from a letter for an autograph hunter. On one side, in a larger than usual hand: ‘Your Obed Servt / J Russell’. Beneath the signature, in a tiny contemporary hand: 'Prime Minister'. At the foot is the name of the recipient: ‘Rr. Admiral / Sir Henry Dillon Kt.’ A fragment of the letter is on the reverse: ‘[...] Albert have any [wish?] on the subject of your being in the Queen’s Household, I shall no doubt hear from His Royal Highnesss. But untill [sic] I do so, I [...]'. See Image.

[Napier of Merchistoun: William John Napier, 9th Lord Napier of Merchistoun.] Long Autograph Letter Signed ‘To Colonel Napier / Royal Artillery’ [Charles Napier?], regarding genealogical matters, and with a Royal Navy reminiscence.

Author: 
Lord Napier of Merchistoun [William John Napier, 9th Lord Napier (1786-1834), Royal Navy officer and Chief Superintendant of Trade in China [Col. Charles Napier (d.1849), Royal Artillery?]
Publication details: 
‘Thirlestane - Selkirk Decr 19 / 1831’.
£220.00

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. The recipient is presumably the Captain Charles Napier (d.1849) of the Royal Artillery who ‘received eight wounds from the bursting of a shrapnel shell’ at Waterloo (see Dalton’s ‘Waterloo Roll Call’, p.194). 8pp, 4to. Closely and neatly written on two bifoliums. In good condition, lightly aged, but folded three times into a packet, and with some closed tears to the creases. Addressed ‘To Colonel Napier / Royal Artillery’ and with the valediction ‘I will now bid you adieu & subscribe myself / Yr very faithful Kinsman / Napier’.

[‘the lover of words (as I am)’: Lord Birkett, judge, British representative at the Nuremberg Trials.] Two Typed Letters Signed, one with long Autograph Postscript, and Typed Note Signed, all to V. H. Collins, defending his use of language.

Author: 
Lord Birkett [William Norman Birkett, 1st Baron Birkett] (1883-1962), judge, a British representative at the Nuremberg Trials, Lord Justice of Appeal, Liberal Member of Parliament [Vere Henry Collins]
Publication details: 
LETTERS: 9 July 1953 and 11 May 1954. NOTE: 14 July 1953. All three items on letterheads of the Royal Courts of Justice, Strand, London, WC2.
£180.00

The third letter gives an excellent indication of Birkett’s pride in his use of language. See his entry in the Oxford DNB. The recipient Vere Henry Collins (1872-1966), was an author and grammatical stickler. All three signed ‘Norman Birkett’. In fair condition, lightly aged and little grubby. The first letter with a small hole to one corner, and the two leaves of the last letter held together with a pin. ONE: ALS, 9 July 1953. 1pp, 4to. He is adding Collins’s book to his ‘select library on “words”’.

[Lord Buxton, Governor-General of South Africa [Sydney Charles Buxton, 1st Earl Buxton), Liberal politician].] Autograph Letter Signed, thanking Bernard Piffard for copies of the ‘West Herts Radical’, which he hopes will prove effective.

Author: 
Lord Buxton, Governor-General of South Africa during the Great War [Sydney Charles Buxton, 1st Earl Buxton (1853-1934), Liberal politician] [Bernard Piffard (1833-1916), microscopist and entomologist]
Publication details: 
1 April 1890; on embossed letterhead of 14 Eaton Place, S.W. [London]
£65.00

Buxton was a popular Governor-General who formed an effective partnership with Botha. 2pp, 12mo. Bifolium. In good condition, lightly aged. Folded once for postage. Addressed to ‘B Piffard Esq’ and signed ‘Sydney Buxton’. He is obliged for the ‘copies of the “West Herts Radical”’, and is glad to hear that Piffard is ‘able to circulate such a large number in your Division’. He hopes it will have ‘a satisfactory effect on the next Election’.

[‘I take a great interest in the small points of style’: Lord David Cecil, author and scholar.] Typed Letter Signed, responding to linguistic ‘strictures’ by V. H. Collins, who annotates the letter.

Author: 
Lord David Cecil [Lord Edward Christian David Gascoyne-Cecil] (1902-1986), author, biographer and scholar [Vere Henry Collins, author]
Publication details: 
24 May 1954. On letterhead of 7 Linton Road, Oxford.
£90.00

An interesting letter, revealing some of Cecil's views on the art of writing. See his entry in the Oxford DNB. The recipient Vere Henry Collins (1872-1966), was an author and grammatical stickler, and Cecil has clearly been on the receiving end of a ticking off. 2pp, 4to. On grey paper. In fair condition, lightly aged, with creasing and a short closed cut at the foot. He begins by stating that he found Collins’s letter ‘very interesting’: ‘I take a great interest in the small points of style.’ He agrees with some of Collins’s ‘strictures’, ‘in particular that about the exclamation mark.

[The Birth of the Scout Movement?: R. B. Haldane and Baden-Powell’s ‘scheme’.] Typed Note with cyclostyled sigature from the future Lord Chancellor Richard Burdon Haldane to ‘General Baden-Powell’, regarding a meeting with Sir Edward Ward.

Author: 
[The Birth of the Scout Movement? R. B. Haldane [Richard Burdon Haldane (1856-1928), 1st Viscount Haldane, Lord Chancellor] [Lord Baden-Powell [Sir Robert Baden-Powell (1857-1941)]; the Boy Scouts]
Publication details: 
23 May 1906. On embossed War Office letterhead.
£280.00

‘Scouting for Boys’ did not begin its serialized publication until January 1908, but Baden-Powell’s entry in the Oxford DNB states that it was Haldane, as Secretary for War, who ‘persuaded him that character training should be at the centre of any scheme of boy instruction’, following a ‘major inspection’ of the Boys’ Brigade by him as Vice-President at Glasgow in April 1904. 1p, 4to. In fair condition, lightly aged, with slight creasing and a short closed tear to one edge. Reads: ‘Dictated. / 23rd. May 1906. / Dear General Baden-Powell, / Thank you for your letter.

[Lord Robson [William Snowden Robson, Baron Robson], English judge and Liberal MP, Solicitor General and Attorney General.] Two Autograph Letters Signed to 'B Piffard Esq', regarding his possible candidacy in the coming general election.

Author: 
Lord Robson [William Snowden Robson, Baron Robson] (1852-1918), English judge, Liberal MP, Solicitor General and Attorney General [Bernard Piffard (1833-1916), microscopist and entomologist]
Publication details: 
ONE: 26 May 1885. On letterhead of 45, Curzon Street, Mayfair. W. [London] TWO: 15 June 1885. On letterhead of 3, Plowden Buildings, Temple. E.C. [London]
£60.00

Interesting items, casting light on the nitty-gritty of Victorian constituency politics. Both are signed 'W. S. Robson' and addressed to 'B. Piffard Esq'. Both in good condition, lightly aged, with the second a little spotted. Each on a bifolium. ONE (26 May 1885): 3pp, 12mo. He has been informed 'that it is now the wish of the Watford (or Divisional) Association that I should visit the Division & address meetings there.

[Lord Simon [John Allsebrook Simon, 1st Viscount Simon], Liberal Chancellor of the Exchequer and Lord Chancellor.] Two Typed Letters Signed to the future Sir W. D. Ross, regarding university settlements and the foundation of Barnett House, Oxford.

Author: 
Lord Simon [John Allsebrook Simon, 1st Viscount Simon] (1873-1954), Liberal Home Secretary, Foreign Secretary, Chancellor of the Exchequer and Lord Chancellor [Sir W. D. Ross; Barnett House, Oxford]
Publication details: 
2 May 1911 and 14 November 1914. Both on letterhead of 57 Kensington Court, W. [London]
£90.00

See the entries on Simon and Ross in the Oxford DNB. At the time of writing Ross was a Fellow of Oriel College. Barnett House in Oxford was established in 1914 as a result of an appeal to academic and political figures, mainly through the actions of another Oriel fellow, Sidney Ball (1857-1918). It was named after Canon Barnett, founder of the university settlement Toynbee Hall. Barnett House was intended as a ‘citizens’ house’ - a centre for economic and social enquiry, and between 1957 and 2004, as a department of the university, was a centre for the training of social workers. See G.

[Sir Edward Fry, judge and zoologist.] Autograph Letter in the third person, asking Bernard Piffard, microscopist etc, to send him a 'Micro-slide'.

Author: 
Sir Edward Fry (1827-1918), judge and zoologist, Lord Justice of Appeal [Bernard Piffard (1833-1916), entomologist and microscopist]
Publication details: 
14 November 1885. On letterhead of 5 The Grove, Highgate [London].
£45.00

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. From the Piffard papers. 1p, 12mo. On first leaf of bifolium. In good condition, lightly aged. Folded twice. Reads: 'Lord Justice Fry would be obliged if Mr Piffard would send him a Micro-slide of Conidia bearing Hyphae of Eurotium repens, isolated & stained by a new application of Iodine Vapour. He encloses 2/- in stamps.'

[Louis Alexander Mountbatten [formerly Prince Louis Alexander of Battenberg], 1st Marquess of Milford Haven.] Autograph ‘Note for Secretary’, with monogram Signature ‘LB’, regarding to the ‘relative positions of “Iris” & “Phoebe”’.

Author: 
Louis Alexander Mountbatten [formerly Prince Louis Alexander of Battenberg], 1st Marquess of Milford Haven (1854-1921), First Sea Lord, German prince related by marriage to the British royal family
Publication details: 
No date or place.
£56.00

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 1p, 12mo. With mourning border. In fair condition, aged and worn, with remains of white 'star' wafer mounts adhering to the four corners. Beneath the underlined heading 'Note for Secretary' reads: 'The relative positions of Iris & Phoebe do not appear to agree in papers marked (2) and (4) in my letter. Please let me know which is right. / LB.' Presumably Iris and Phoebe were ships.

[Lord Bryce (James Bryce), Liberal politician, jurist and British Ambassador to United States.] Three Autograph Letters Signed to 'Ross' (the future Sir W. D. Ross), on East End philanthropy, Oxford, and the war.

Author: 
Lord Bryce [James Bryce, 1st Viscount Bryce] (1838-1922), Ulster-born Liberal politician, jurist, British Ambassador to United States [Sir William David Ross (1877-1981), Oxford Vice-Chancellor]
Publication details: 
1914, 1915 and 1917. The second on letterhead of Hindleap, Forest Row, Sussex; the third on embossed letterhead of the House of Lords.
£150.00

See the two men's entries in the Oxford DNB. The three items are in good condition, lightly aged and worn; the second is lightly spotted. Each is folded once. All three signed 'Bryce'. ONE: 13 February 1914. No place. 3pp, 12mo. On bifolium. Begins: 'My dear Ross / I should like [to] help in so good a cause, but cannot possibly venture to make any promise for a date so distant as Nov. next. It would be a tempting of Providence as we say in Scotland.' He is not even certain whether he will be in England then, 'and there is nothing one has more to avoid than the breaking of promises'.

[Lord Haldane [Richard Burdon Haldane, 1st Viscount Haldane], Lord Chancellor.] Autograph Letter Signed to 'Mr Hurd' (i.e. the future Sir Archibald Hurd), regarding his essay on defence against German invasion, and Sir Arthur Wilson.

Author: 
Lord Haldane [Richard Burdon Haldane, 1st Viscount Haldane] (1856-1928), Scottish Liberal and Labour politician, philosopher, and Lord Chancellor [Sir Archibald Hurd (1869-1959), naval strategist]
Publication details: 
9 January 1911. On letterhead of Cloan, Auchterarder, N. B. [North Brition, i.e. Scotland]
£80.00

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 2pp, 12mo. On first leaf of a bifolium. In good condition, lightly aged, with the blank second leaf carrying some traces of pink paper mount. Written a couple of months before Haldane’s acceptance of a peerage, so that he could become leader of the Liberals in the House of Lords, and in response to Hurd’s essay ‘The New Policy of Imperial and Home Defence’, published in the January 1911 number of ‘The Nineteenth Century and After’.

[Lord Milner [Alfred, Viscount Milner], Liberal politician.] Autograph Letter Signed to 'Mr Ross' [the future Sir W. D. Ross], regarding the future of the philanthropic 'settlement' Toynbee Hall in Whitechapel.

Author: 
Lord Milner [Alfred Milner (1854-1925), 1st Viscount Milner], Liberal politician, Governor of the Cape Colony and first Governor of the Transvaal [Sir W. D. Ross (1877-1971), Oxford Vice-Chancellor]
Publication details: 
14 October 1913. 47 Duke Street, S.W. [London]
£56.00

See the entries for Milner and Ross in the Oxford DNB. 2pp, 12mo. In good condition, lightly aged. Folded once for postage. Addressed to 'Dear Mr Ross' and with good bold signature 'Milner'. The subject of the letter is the philanthropic ‘settlement’ Toynbee Hall in Whitechapel, founded in 1884 by Canon Barnett and Henrietta (DBE), his wife.

[Jesse Collings, Liberal politician, advocate of free education and land reform.] Five Autograph Letters Signed to Bernard Piffard, regarding opposition to Lords of the Manor over enclosures, and 'Allotments and Small Holdings Associations'.

Author: 
Jesse Collings (1831-1920) of Birmingham, Liberal and Liberal Unionist politician, advocate of free education and land reform [Bernard Piffard (1833-1916), entomologist]
Publication details: 
Between 27 July 1885 and 22 March 1886. All from Edgbaston, Birmingham (the second a letterhead).
£150.00

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. From the Piffard papers. A total of 9pp, 12mo. The recipient is 'B. Piffard Esq.' and the letters are all signed 'Jesse Collings'. ONE: 27 July 1885. 2pp, 12mo. He apologises for the delay in replying: 'I have been so over-pressed with Parliamentary and other work.' He will go into the matter of Piffard's letter at the 'Committee meeting of our Allotments & Small Holdings Association' that very day.

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