MANUSCRIPT

2pp., foolscap 8vo. On aged and worn paper, with slight loss to one edge from disbinding. On mourning paper (for King William IV).

Both 1p., foolscap 8vo, and disbound. Both in good condition, on aged paper, with loss at edge from disbinding, causing slight loss of text in second letter. Letter One: Docketed on reverse of second leaf 'James Smith | July 25 1837 | Report on City Improvements.' The document begins: 'Having carefully examined the state No. IV. made up by the Improvement Commissioners, and submitted to the Bank of Scotland &c, and also, inspected the works with Mr Geo. Smith Architect for the Commissioners, I take leave to submit the following observations thereon'.

1p., 4to. 26 lines, closely and neatly written. Good, on disbound leaf of aged and worn paper.

4pp., foolscap 8vo, on two bifoliums. On aged and worn paper, with slight bloom at head and a little loss to spine from disbinding.

66pp., 12mo. In very good condition, on lightly-aged paper, each of the letters kept together with rusty staples. All the letters are signed 'David' and addressed to 'My Dear All'. Accompanying them is an envelope addressed in another hand to S. W. J. Tennant, Beechcote, Brands Hill Avenue, High Wycombe, and this may provide a clue to the identity of the recipients, to whom 'David' makes it clear on a couple of occasions that he is not related, signing off one letter 'from your muddle-headed friend'.

Letter: 2pp., 8vo. In very good condition, on lightly-aged paper. Addressing his letter to 'Dear Sir Albert', Petingale thanks Richardson for his letter 'arising out of your visit to the Ealing Arts and Crafts Exhibition', which has encouraged Petingale to send him 'the latest number of "Miscellany", which is the contribution of the Literature Group to the Ealing Arts Club, and which my wife and myself have been editing for the last nine years'. He discusses a visit to Holy Cross Church, designed by Richardson.

1p., 4to. Good, on lightly aged and creased paper. Raglan signs and addresses Bickerstaff at the foot of the letter, otherwise it is in a secretarial hand. It reads: 'Horse Guards | 18 November 1846 | Sir, | I am directed by The Commander in Chief [the Duke of Wellington] to acquaint you, that, on your lodging the Sum of £250 - in the hands of Messrs. Cox & Co of Craigs Court His Grace will submit your name to Her Majesty for the purchase of a Lieutenancy in the 64th Foot - | I have the honor to be, | Sir, | Your humble Servant, | Fitzroy Somerset | Ensign Bickerstaff | 64th Foot'.

4pp., 12mo. Bifolium on mourning paper. In good condition, on lightly-aged paper. 'It was indeed a great happiness to see those young choristers finding part of their Christmas happiness in ministering to the invalid little ones.

1p., 12mo. Very good, on lightly-aged paper. Reads 'My Dear Mrs. Buchanan, | Many thanks for kindest New Year's greetings: - | A Happy New Year to you and yours | Faithfully yours | Erasmus Wilson'.

3pp., 12mo. Bifolium. Very good, on lightly-aged paper. The recipient presumably held a living near Leigh's Warwickshire mansion Stoneleigh Abbey (said to be the model for Sotherton Court in his cousin Jane Austen's 'Mansfield Park'). Leigh apologises troubling Brodie 'with the enclosed rather singular letter which I have received from one of your Parishioners'.

The material is loosely inserted in a copy of 'Passionate Nomad. The Life of Freya Stark' by Jane Fletcher Geniesse (New York: Random House, 1999). xxvi + 402 + [2]pp., 8vo. Very good, in like price-clipped dustwrapper, and inscribed to Drower by her daughter. Drower is described on p.296 as 'daughter of Freya's old Baghdad friend Lady Drower, [who] followed Pam Hore-Ruthven as her assistant and spent two years trying to get repaid for the cost, not to mention the enormous effort, of packing up Freya's belongings and sending them to Asolo after the war'.

14pp., 4to. In exercise book with green printed wraps. Good, on lightly-aged and worn paper. The first page carries the title 'The Element', with the words 'Peter Levi S.J. | Nov. '57-Jan. '58' in the top right-hand corner. With occasional light corrections. The second poem ('Out of shaking') has the directions: 'No title & no commas', and the last but one ('Unfinished Elegy'), which is the longest at 4pp., is annotated: 'There ought to be three parts or possibly four.

2pp., foolscap 8vo. In fair condition, on lightly aged and worn paper. A fair copy of a twenty-eight line poem, arranged in seven four-line stanzas. Signed at end 'P. L. | December 1960.' The first stanza reads 'Rain-threaded gull-wheeling bell-clamorous air, | by wind shifted, by smoke lightly weighted, | in which sirens beautifully despair, | no monumnet crumbles uncelebrated,'. The poem ends with a simile of 'Adam when he woke: | stood for a moment as if he had been blind, | and bent suddenly over Eve, and spoke.' There is no indication that the poem has been published.

The three items in good condition, with light age and wear. CARD: He has been told about Korn by 'Barbara and Cyril Connolly': 'Maybe we might meet, though I shall now be leaving England for a time. Do you ever have a catalogue? If so please put me on your list. I chiefly want classics & archaeology & (old) travels in Greece & Central Asia, but sometimes modern poetry. I am always at or c/o this address. Peter Levi.' THREE POEMS: Landscape 8vo, folded twice to make three panels. Printed in blue. The first poem is titled 'Riddle' and the other two are untitled.

4pp., foolscap 8vo. Bifolium. In fair condition, on aged paper. First page headed: 'The Edgware Road Fire | The proprietor of "The Daily Telegraph" have as hitherto on similar occasions opened a Subscription list for the Sufferers and it is estimated that £3,000 will be required to meeet the urgent claims for relief which are already too well known | I shall be glad to receive any donations you may be pleased to give on their behalf | (JNER.)'. Arranged in eight columns, two to a page, with running totals and a grand total of £16 1s 0d. The first donation is for 10s 6d from 'Mr.

The documents include a printed 'Certificate of Thanks' from the RLSS, with facsimile signature of Earl Mountbatten of Burma, made out to 'Captain G. P. Rimington | Nyeri', and dated 1963; 1p., foolscap 8vo. Also present are five Typed Letters Signed from Alwyn E. Biscoe, Chief Secretary, to Rimington in Kenya. All on RLSS London letterhead, 2 May and 21 July 1950, and 16 February, 4 May and 19 June 1951. All 1p., 4to. The first two discussing 'the appointment of Mr. Tattersall as Hon. Representative for the Kisumu district' and Rimington's resignation as 'Hon.

1p., 12mo. On aged and worn wove paper. Headed with the royal crest and title 'The Patriot's Hymn.' Twenty-one lines arranged in three verses, numbered I to III. Printer's slug beneath swelled short rule at foot of page. The printer is possibly the Edward Bayley stated by BBTI to have been active in Macclesfield between 1788 and 1825. The absence of the long s, and the use of wove paper, suggest nineteenth-century publication before 1830, and probably during the Regency period.

1p., 12mo. In fair condition, on aged and creased paper. After thanking him for his assistant Stuart informs Moore that he is 'delaying a further approach to the Council until you tell me that the new Provost has been appointed and you have been able to make unofficial approaches to him about a Deputation meeting me in Edinburgh'. Annotated in pencil by Moore.

The circular on 1p., 4to, on recto of first leaf of bifolium. In good condition, on lightly-aged paper. It reads: 'MY LORD, | The House-Committee and Stewards for conducting the Anniversary Dinner of the Governors of this Charity, present their compliments with the enclosed Card of Invitation for THURSDAY, the 22nd of APRIL, and request to be favored with your Lordship's [corrected in manuscript to 'Grace's'] Company on that day.

2pp., 12mo. In good condition, on aged paper, with a nineteenth-century repair to short closed tears. The letter reads: 'The Duke of Wellington presents his Compliments to Quarter Master Jones and begs leave to inform him in answer to His Letter of the 3d Inst, thaht He must apply to the General Comm[andin]g. the Army in Chief; the Duke has nothing whatever to say to the Details of the Army or to the Selection of Gentlemen to be removed from half to full pay. | London Feb. 8. 1829'.

Text: 2pp., foolscap 8vo (35 x 20.5cm.). Engraving: 12 x 16cm with corners clipped. Both items in fair condition, on aged paper. The text is cropped at the head, through a royal crest, and has rounded corners at the head and trimmed corners at the foot. The engraving has traces of grey paper mount on reverse. The text has lithograph illustrations of two side-views of four-wheel carriages with the drag applied, beneath the cropped crest and above the title 'WRIGHT'S PATENT DRAG.' Text consists of around 60 lines in copperplate.

The three items derive from the Bilainkin papers. Each is separately paginated and stapled, with the text on one side only of the leaves. All three in good condition, on lightly-aged and creased paper, with rusty staples. Item One: Titled 'ADD 1960 DIARY. Saturday, July 23.' 7pp., foolscap 8vo. With carbon copy of the same.

192pp., 8vo., on 188 letterheads of the Village of Scarsdale, Westchester County, New York. In good condition, on lightly-aged paper. Irregularly paginated to 179d. Six pages (6, 8, 9, 10, 13, 17) are lacking, but the missing text is supplied in an accompanying typescript, with two carbon copies, of the first 31pp. of the manuscript, each of the three copies being 11pp., 8vo. The author of this memoir, Arthur Gilbert Bedell (b.c.1851), was printer and proprietor, with his brothers Edwin Bedell and George Canfield Bedell, of the Westchester Times.

The Oxford DNB entry on Sir Walter Besant states that, 'Concerned to cultivate better understanding with North America, Besant worked in the last two years of his life for the Atlantic Union.' In fact it was Besant who founded the club in 1900, with Conan Doyle and others, with the object, according to The Times, 22 February 1900, 'of drawing together the various English-speaking peoples and strengthening the bonds of union by the formation of ties of personal friendship among individual members'.

Both items in fair condition, on aged and worn paper. Letter One: 4pp., 12mo. Harvey begins: 'Of course I well remember the too short time when I had the pleasure of being your colleague at the British Museum.' He would like to see Aldrich's 'old Dutch masters' but may not be able to visit him at Bowes Park before 'returning to reconstruction work in France in which I am interested'. He suggests a meeting in the new year, before enquiring whether Aldrich has 'got Sir Sidney Colvin's opinion of your Old masters. He is very interested in these things.' Letter Two: 2pp., 4to.

1p., 12mo. Good, on lightly-aged paper, with slight traces of glue from mount on reverse, which is docketed 'Phillips the Portrait Painter'. The note reads: 'Dear Sir | Your Picture is now varnished & ready to be sent away. Pray be so good as to favour me with the Direction for the Case'.

1p., 12mo. Good, on aged paper, with traces of grey paper mount adhering to the reverse. Reads: 'Gentlemen | I shall be much obliged by your forwarding the wine to me immediately with an account of your expences - | Your obedt servt | Tho Denman | 50 Russell Square | March 17. 1831'.

2pp., 12mo. Bifolium. Good, on lightly-aged paper. Addressed to 'A. S. Gatty'. Matthews has asked Ruggles Brise to acknowledge Gatty's letter, and to say 'that he will be happy to bear your brother's name in mind: but Bradford have not applied for the appointment of a fresh Stipendiary'. Sir Alfred Scott-Gatty was one of the sons of Rev. Alfred Gatty (1813-1903); another son was Sir Stephen Herbert Gatty (1849-1922), later Chief Justice of Gibraltar, who is the subject of this letter. The author Juliana Horatia Ewing (1841-1885) was a daughter.

2pp., 12mo. In fair condition, on aged and worn paper. Headed 'To the Independent Electors of the Borough of King's Lynn' and beginning: 'Gentlemen, | I have canvassed the constituency of your Town as an Independent candidate who as your representative supported in the last Parliament the measures of Sir Robert Peel's administration.' He thanks 'the Electors at large' for 'the courtesy with which I have been invariably received' and also 'that overwhelming majority of their body who have honored me with promises of support'.

2pp., 12mo. In envelope addressed by Stirling to 'C Lonsdale Esqre. | Bond Street'. In fair condition, on aged and worn paper. 'Mrs. Stirling does not know how to thank Mr. Londsdale for his great kindness - not only now but always shewn to her by him. Mrs. Stirling remembers that she has the full store of the Midsummer Nights' [sic] Dream belonging to Mr. Lonsdale but she is warned by Mr. Lonsdale's Messenger that she must not now stop to thank Mr. Lonsdale fully, as she would wish.'