MANUSCRIPT

All three items in good condition, with texts clear and complete, on lightly-aged paper. Letter One: 9 January 1913. Typed. 8vo, 3 pp. Bifolium. Twenty-eight lines. Sending florid congratulations on Ormsby-Gore's forthcoming marriage, and describing him as 'one who is bearing burdens bravely & buoyantly in the public service, & striving honestly to do his duty to God & man'. His bride-to-be, Beatrice Edith Mildred Gascoyne-Cecil, is described as 'a maiden like-minded'. Letter Two: 28 April 1913. Typed. 4to, 1 p. Fifteen lines typed and a short autograph postscript.

Around the size of a modern cheque. Fair, on lightly-aged paper. A nice item, considering Rogers' background. A printed cheque for £40 cash, written out to himself (as 'S R'). With a lattice of five lines over Rogers' signature ('Saml Rogers') indicating payment. Denominations to be paid indicated on back.

4to, 1 p. In reply to a request for an autograph, she feels 'flattered'. She has copied out seven lines from her poem 'Lines on Mr. Johnstone's Picture of the Covenanters' Marriage' (which was published in 'The New Monthly Belle Assemblée' of 1844).

12mo, 2 pp. Bifolium. Fair, on aged paper. He begins 'Print the farce', and gives two conditions, ending 'There that's definite'. He will have the farce published after it is performed in London, 'at a good theatre of course'. 'But get on with it and lets have the proofs.' He will 'most likely' play it himself 'at Manchester and somewhere else, when I will put all this stage business &c in'. Ends 'Toole wants to do it. | Yours Tooley - I mean Truly'. In one of two postscripts he hopes Lacy has 'a good supply of Billy Taylor. Hopewood & Crew publish it.'

12mo, 1 p. Ten lines. Clear and complete. Fair, on aged paper. Letterhead in red. Headed 'My Garden' (in 1907 Arrowsmith published 'My Garden and other Poems by John Gregory. With an appreciation by E. J. Watson'). He wonders whether the book is 'worth notice'. 'There is no mistake about Gregory being a working man [he was a cobbler]. His son is Prof. of astronomy and Assistant Editor of Nature'.

Landscape 12mo, 1 p. Text clear and complete. Good, on aged paper, with light traces of mount adhering to the blank reverse. Asking for a copy of his 'Sermons for Families & Villages' ['Sermons chiefly designed for family reading and village worship', 1842] to be given to an individual, and 'put to my Account'.

Landscape 8vo, 1 p. Text clear and complete. Fair on aged vellum. Engraving of royal crest in top left-hand corner. Printed in small type and completed in manuscript. Three witnesses, including 'Rich. Robinson' and 'Walt: Robins'. Red wax seal of head, and government stamp on blue. Brief modern notes accompanying the item state that the elder Shaw was born in 1685, the son of the headmaster of Lichfield Grammar School (Johnson's old school), who died in 1704. There is no record of anything published by the Shaws, who do not feature in BBTI.

12mo, 1 p. Nine lines. Text clear and complete. Begins 'Selfishly I can't help feeling sad at the announcement of your retirement', which means that he will see 'even less' of him. He rejoices at Senhouse's 'liberation' and sends him 'all love and blessings - not unmixed with envy'.

Folio, 3 pp. Bifolium. Printed on laid, watermarked paper. Around thirty-four lines to the page. Text clear and complete. Fair, on aged paper, with loss to one corner (not affecting text). Reverse of second leaf docketed, and with thin strip from mount adhering at fold. Written in a neat seventeenth-century hand, with a number of emendations (including a deletion of three lines) suggesting that this copy was made by the anonymous author himself.

Letter One: 12mo, 2 pp. Good on lightly-aged paper. The 'delightful drawing' she left for him is a 'wonderful surprise'. He has been 'trying some life drawing direct with the brush' and is surprised that she was able 'to put it down like that!' Letter Two: 4to, 2 pp. Fair, on lightly-aged and creased paper. He apologizes for the delay in answering her letter and thanking her for sending one on by 'Bloggins'. He is 'an abominable letter writer though that does not mean a change of feelings to one's old friends'. He has received a letter f'rom C. B. himself about the Academy'.

12mo, 2 pp. Bifolium. Twenty lines. Text clear and complete. Fair, on aged paper. Because of the 'Very great outlay attending the production of the work at the onset', asks for a year's advance subscription of £1 10s 0d. Gives the publication date, adding 'from the distinguished literary aid I have received I am sanguine enough to hope that it will mert your full approval'.

12mo, 8 pp. Fair, on aged laid paper. On four leaves removed from a pocket book, with two leaves numbered in manuscript '41' and '42'. Apparently a first-person draft of information for an appeal by the oldest surviving member (from the inception of the group) for a stipend. Begins 'Depuis le commencement de l'an 1760 que j'ai ete recu a la Musique du Roi, j'ai été en exercice jusqu'en 1792, avec 222. sujets qui s'y sous dont 40 vivant encore au 18 Janvier 1815. [...]'.

4to, 1 p. Text clear and complete. On aged and creased paper. He has been 'asked by the firm in Braunschweig' to give his opinion on two questions relating to 'Concave Sharps'. He puts the questions to Richter, adding that the Sharps are 'a special patent of Grotrian Steinweg', adding that Richter will 'see from the enclosed leaflet [not present] the reception they found in the musical circles in Berlin'. He asks Richter for his own opinion.

Folio, 1 p. Bifolium. Text on recto of first leaf; docketed on reverse of second leaf. Text clear and complete. Fair, on lightly-aged and worn paper. Headed 'Longhoughton | Northumberland'. Signed at foot by the Earl and Countess. Begins 'Licence is hereby Granted to Elizabeth Adams to Lett Lett or Assign over to Robert Adams All That Messuage or Tenement and the Lands thereto belonging with the Appurtenances Lying and being in Longhoughton held of us by Lease for Twenty One yeares from Ladyday One thousand Seven hundred forty and Nine'.

12mo, 2 pp. Bifolium, addressed on reverse of second leaf. Fair, on aged paper. He does not think he received 'Part II of Collectanea Topog. & Geneal.' 'As I believe that receipts are taken on delivery of that Work be so good as to send me any memorandum of the fact - if you do not possess it perhaps the Part may not have been left at my House'. Docketed, with details of the receipt, at head of first page.

12mo, 1 p. Fair, on lightly-aged paper, with minor traces of mount on blank reverse. He only has 'time for a single line before Post'. He is adopting the recipient's 'suggestion of putting my name among the Vicars | "47. John Raine. Presented November 1834', and is sending copy. The note concerns an entry on Raine in the following: 'Reports and Papers Read at the Meetings of the Architectural Societies of the Counties of Lincoln and Nottingham, County of York, Archdeaconries of Northampton and Oakham, County of Bedford, Diocese of Worcester, and County of Leicester', Vol. 15 (1879).

4to, 1 p. In bifolium, addressed on reverse of second leaf with circular 'RUSHYFORD' postmark in black ink. On aged and creased paper, with traces of mount adhering on second leaf. Giving details of the 'allowance to the Trade', which he admits is 'small', for volumes in large and small paper. 'Only 500 Copies being printed it is not worth my while to push the sale by a large allowance'.

Folio, 1 p. Good, on lightly-aged paper. Removed from an album, and with docketing on second leaf slightly obsucred by thin strip of paper in margin. Written while Huskisson was Secretary to the Treasury, and requiring Sweetland to provide to the Lords Commissioners 'an account of the Revenues of Gibraltar for the last three Years distinguishing the amount under each head of Revenue and also a Statement fo all Payments charged upon the said Revenue'. Despite his achievements, Huskisson is now best-remembered as the first railway fatality.

On piece of card, 4 x 7 cm. Aged and spotted. Reads 'Sir Chas Napier | Merchistoun', with the words centred as usual. Drawing or floor plan in pencil on reverse. From the Paterson papers.

12mo, 2 pp. Bifolium, with the reverse of the second leaf carrying the address ('J. Sykes Esqr: | 22 Arundel Street | Strand', with two postmarks and docketing by Sykes. Nineteen lines. Text clear and complete. On aged paper, with wear to second leaf. Sykes 'will not be surprized to hear' that on the previous day 'Poor Georgina [...] paid the Great Debt'. Colpoys has arranged for her funeral to be 'conducted - in a Decent Private manner', and for her to be buried 'in the Parish of Kensington where she Died - Mr.

8vo, 1 p. Typed and signed in light-blue, beneath green letterhead, and with 'CARL VAN VECHTEN' 'watermark' at centre of page. Text clear and complete. On lightly aged paper, worn and dogeared at extremities. He thanks her for the copy of 'the Academic Observer (Gertrude Stein number) which intererested me so much that I am writing to ask if I may have another copy for a friend of mine, Please.' Autograph note explains that the 'friend' is one 'who also collects Steiniana'. Docketed in pencil on reverse: 'Miss Mallory | Keep this until I call - someday I will. | [signed] M. Lucha'.

12mo, 3 pp, on separate loose leaves. Forty lines. Text clear and complete. Good, on browned paper. Laid out for printing, and with the page numbering 21 to 23 (from 12 to 14). Loosely inserted in a folder with 'Original Manuscript of Elbert Hubbard' printed on the front, which also carries two accession marks.

12mo, 3 pp. Bifolium. 28 lines. Text clear and complete. Good, on lightly-aged paper, with a trace of the mount adhering to the reverse of the second leaf, which is docketed by the recipient. The letter concerns her 'favourite old Clock', about which she expresses anxiety: 'the Man you now send to wind up the Clock is, I dare say, very clever in his Business, but as he almost constantly leaves it with somethig not right in Motion, striking &c I must therefore think that he is not accustomed to direct all the movements of such a Clock'.

4to, 1 p. Eleven lines. Text clear and complete. Good, on lightly-aged paper. He thanks him for having 'appriz'd' him 'of the proposed enclosure of Tooting Common, to which I am equally hostile with the Rector, & the other principal Gentlemen who have express'd their determination to oppose the Measure'. Lady Coventry joins him in sending 'kind remembrances' to Mrs Harrison and her family. The franked envelope is a sheet of folded paper, bearing Coventry's red wax armorial seal in good condition, and postmark. It is addressed 'Pershore Octr. Seventeen | 1817 | Thomas Harrison Esqr.

12mo, 2 pp, the autograph being on one side and Rickman's on the other. Fair, on aged paper, with traces of previous mounting on one side. Large bold signature 'J: Wolcot' with biographical note on one side, and the note, signed 'Clio Rickman', on the other: Written by the celebrated Peter Pindar, when entirely blind, on my calling on him the 3d of July 1809 my boy with me'.

4to, 1 p. 14 lines. Text clear, apart from damage to two words caused by the breaking open of the wafer. Fair, on lightly-aged paper, with traces of previous mount adhering to the reverse. Her recipient has corrected 'a personal defect' in one of Trimmer's books, calling for a 'trifling' alteration. She will make the alteration when a new edition is called for. 'I am happy to find any of my Books are now in the excellent institution in which you perform so important an office'.

4to, 1 p. 19 lines. Text clear and complete. On aged and lightly creased paper, with strip of sunning to left-hand margin. Neat signature: 'Nicolas Bentley'. The film and television rights to the book were all 'bought some years ago by Herbert Wilcox, who, as I understand it, still owns them'. Bentley has reports the opinion of 'Messrs A. P. Watt, my late father's agent', on the question of the radio rights. 'I control the stage rights', Bentley states, giving the conditions on which he would agree to a stage adaptation.

Both items on 'Bebe' letterheads, and both with signature 'Bebe' incorporating a drawing of a stick figure with hat. Letter One: 12mo, 1 p. Twelve lines. Good, on lightly-aged paper. With addressed envelope. She is sorry they missed one another 'at the station, especially after all the trouble you went through to get there'. Gives news of show: 'Boy, it will be good to get back to town again. | I have enjoyed the tour but as you know travelling nowadays isn't what it used to be, by a long shot.' Letter Two: 8vo, 1 p. 21 lines.

Text on 87 pp of a 8vo 1944 'Surrey Desk Diary' (Mitcham: Surrey Manufacturing Co.). Text clear and complete. Volume in good condition on aged paper. While the author's ownership signature at the front of the volume ('', ', '') is not decipherable, there are clues to his identity: his birthday is on 24 June, he states on 5 October that he is in the 23rd Armoured Brigade, and on 19 August he gives his Identity Card No. as 116941. He begins as a sergeant, and by 13 January is 'H.Q. Troop commander, which, out of action, no schemes, no censoring, doesn't amount to much'.

This small archive casts invaluable light on British labour relations at a local level during a turbulent economic period in postwar British history, with specific day-to-day information about persons and events. The two minute books, 1943-1980, are both 4to, with the first of around 200 pp and the second of around 150 pp. Both texts clear and complete, and some matter loosely inserted (including a letter from an individual pursuing a complaint against the branch). In worn bindings, with the boards of the second volume detached.