HOUSMAN

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. The postcard, with stamp printed on it, has the typed address: ‘The Rev. A. H. Sayers, / Orchard Close, / Monmouth’. Aged and worn, with a dog-eared corner and minor rust spotting from a paperclip. Stylised signature. Reads: ‘Many thanks for your offer to send a car to meet me at Severn Tunnel Junction, on November 20th. I will look out for it. / Yours / L Housman’. From the Sayers papers, with other material indicating that Housman was giving a talk for the Union. See image.

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. All three letters 1p, 8vo. The third letter in good condition, lightly aged; the first two in fair condition, on creased and chipping cartridge paper, with a few spots of rust from a paperclip. All three folded for postage. All three signed ‘Laurence Housman’. ONE (3 November 1936): Begins: ‘Dear Mr. Sayers, / I am rather perturbed to find that the meeting I am asked to speak at is the Annual of the League of Nations Union. The request for me to speak came from the Peace Pledge Union, and no indication was given that it was not a Peace Pledge meeting.

Pp. [vi]+40 (last colophon), the title page printed in green & black; cr. 4to; green cloth with printed paper title label (slightly soiled) on spine and spare label tipped-in at end, the cloth stained with printing ink?? (see image), spine and upper board faded, bottom fore-corners bruised; endpapers heavily foxed. But, despite condition, an interesting Association Copy to which Housman has added the following inscription to his formal signature beneath the colophon: To Reg Reynolds | (retrospectively, for the occasion of his marriage, wishing him all happiness) | With the Author's love.

2pp., on bifolium with leaf dimensions 36.5 x 28 cm. On thick wove paper. In good condition, lightly-aged. The attractive calligraphic testimonial is on the recto of the first leaf, and is laid out in a sort of modified Gothic script, with initial capitals in red and gold. It is headed in large script 'To Ralph Griffin, Esq., F.S.A., | Registrar of Designs and Trade Marks.', with the date at the foot.

Octavo: 8 pp. Unbound, stapled pamphlet of six leaves. Dogeared, with rusted staples and with horizontal band of discoloration and two vertical closed tears (2 cm and 1 cm) at head.

One one side of a piece of laid paper, 26.5 x 21 cms. Aged and creased, with chipping to extremities and staining on reverse from repair to one of two closed tears. Thirty-six lines, with facsimile of Housman's signature at foot. An appeal for 'money for the Library - your Library'. Somewhat poignant, considering the present neglected state of the British library service. '[...] The question is - do you want to give money to your Library? [...] But, for my own part, I ask - why, why Libraries? What are they for? What there do you read?