MANUSCRIPT

See his entry in Encyclopaedia Britannica. The programme is 12mo, and consists of eight printed pages, stapled into covers printed in black on shiny paper, with a lion rampant on the front printed in red. The sprawling signature 'Bruno Walter' is written diagonally in the top-left quarter of the front cover. In good condition, lightly aged, but with the back cover damaged by removal from mount. Central vertical fold.

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. Both letters signed ‘B Jowett’. ONE: Autograph Letter Signed to ‘My dear Bramston’. 2pp, 12mo. On bifolium. In good condition, lightly aged, but with discoloration (probably deliberate, since he is writing from Scotland) to letterhead. Strip of paper from mount adhering to blank reverse of second leaf. Folded for postage. Begins by asking for his thanks, and those of ‘Lord Kerry’ (his student, see Abbott’s ‘Life and Letters’), to be sent to ‘Captain Egerton for his kind and hospitable invitation’.

Chenevix-Trench’s entry in the Oxford DNB discusses his achievements, as well as his ‘unhealthy addiction to corporal punishment, a trait later exposed by one of his former pupils, Paul Foot, in the satirical magazine Private Eye’. At least one of his former pupils (Nicholas Fraser) alleges that he was abused by him. The recipient Philip Dosse was the proprietor of Books and Bookmen and other magazines devoted to the arts. 1p, 8vo. Signed ‘Anthony Chenevix Trench [no hyphen] / M.A. J.P.

The three items are in good condition, lightly aged and discoloured. Slight traces of glue from mount to the blank last page of the second item. Each with neat creases from folding. ONE: ‘St Giles’ Cathedral / Solemn Thanksgiving to Almighty God / for / Victory in Europe / WEDNESDAY, 16th MAY 1945 / This is the Lord’s doing; it is marvellous in our eyes.’ (‘ORDER OF DIVINE SERVICE’.) [4]pp, 12mo. Bifolium.

See Astley's entry in the History of Parliament (he was created a baronet at the end of the year in which this letter was written). The ‘Lavender’ mentioned in the letter is Bow Street Runner Stephen Lavender (fictionalized in a series of books by Karen Charlton), who was leaving to take up the position of Deputy Chief Constable at Manchester.1p, 4to. On recto of first leaf of bifolium. Verso of second docketed: ‘Chas. Humphreys / recomn to be an Officer’ and in another hand ‘Dugdale Asteley [sic]’. In good condition, lightly aged, with reverse of second leaf slightly grubby.

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. On a 17.5 x 12 cm piece of ruled paper, laid down on a piece of card. The high-acidity paper is browned, otherwise in good condition, with small nick to one edge. The signature ‘W. H. Hudson / June 27. ’20’ is beneath two lines written in a foreign language, a tentative reading of which is ‘Te semiron mulei moy / To dariau tis viden’. See Image.

A successful member of an English artistic family. See the Oxford DNB entries on his father Joseph Severn (who nursed John Keats in Rome in his final illness) and sister Mary Newton. 1p, 12mo. In good condition, lightly aged, with thin strip of glue from mount to inner margin, and details typed at head. Folded once. Reads: ‘Dear Mrs FitzSimon / I have much pleasure in sending an autograph of my dear friend Sir F. Leighton. I send also the portrait of Keats. It is photogravure by Hollyer from one of my father’s pictures / Yours sincerely / Walter Severn’.

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 1p, 12mo. In good condition, lightly aged, torn along the inner edge on removal from mount. Addressed to ‘Chas. Fowler Esqr:’ (a vice-president of the Artists’ General Benevolent Institution) and signed ‘Rob. Smirke.’ Reads: ‘Dear Sir / May I request you will have the goodness to add the amount of the enclosed cheque for me to the collection recently made for the Artists Genl. Benevolent Institution.’

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 2pp, 12mo. In good condition, lightly aged. Folded for postage. Smiles names the recipient as ‘P. V. de Montgomery Esq’ and signs the letter ‘S Smiles’. He thanks him for ‘the shawl, which has duly come to hand’, continuing, ‘We reached town last night, after a very pleasant ten days trip, not the least pleasant part of which was our very delightful visit to Rydal Mount’. He is sending a copy of ‘the last Edition of Stephenson [his biography of Robert Stephenson] for Mrs Montgomery. It is not a lady’s book, yet she may possibly be interested by it’.

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 1p, 12mo. On recto of first leaf of bifolium, the verso of the second leaf addressed, with two postmarks, to 'Mrs. William Smith / Park Street / Westminster'. In fair condition, lightly aged and worn. Annotations in pencil in a modern hand. He begins by apologising for not being able to 'come to your party on Monday', as he was 'forced to go to Bed[.] I always knock up the 2d or 3d Week of London - There is nothing in this World so fatiguing, and horrible as pleasure -'.

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. On 9 x 11 cm piece of Whatman wove paper. Somewhat worn and creased, with a small nick to one edge, and slight damage from erasure of note on reverse. Folded. Reads ‘Dear Sr / many thanks / yours truly / Sydney Smith / May 11 1844.’

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 2pp, 12mo. On first leaf of bifolium. In good condition, lightly aged. Folded once. Addressed to ‘A. [?]. King Esqr.’ and signed ‘Gambier Parry’. After thanking him for his note he assures him that he ‘had no thought one way or other about the immediate pub[licatio]n: or delay of the Pamphlet or Spirit Fresco.’ He thinks ‘it might be well to give one last look at it before it is actually published -’ (last two words both underlined twice).

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. All four items are signed ‘Edward J. Poynter’. The first is somewhat discoloured, with cut corners (not affecting text), the others are in good condition, lightly aged. ONE: ALS to ‘My dear Robin’, 11 July 1874. 1p, 12mo. He has received ‘the four £10 notes’ and reports ‘the most tremendous thunderstorms’. TWO: ACS to ‘Mr. Gilkes’, 30 July 1890. He apologises for being unable to ‘attend the distributions of the School prizes’ that day. THREE: ALS to ‘Waterlow’, 5 November 1905. 1p, 12mo. ‘Your letter gives me the key to the memorial.

See his entry in the Oxford DNB, along with that of E. D. Morel, a campaigner like Roger Casement against abuses in the Belgian Congo. (Morel had been given a 'testimonial luncheon' two days before the writing of this letter.) 1p, 4to. In good condition, lightly aged, creased and worn. Folded for postage. Ten lines of stylishly-written text. Signed ‘W. Rothenstein’. After thanking her for writing he states: ‘Nothing could please me more than to feel that you care for something I have put into the painting of your noble husband.

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 1p, 12mo. In good condition, lightly aged and folded twice for postage. One corner very slightly cropped. Signed ‘Tho. Hughes’. In response to a request for an autograph he writes: ‘My dear Madam / I have only just returned to town where I find your note, with the request contained in which I have much pleasure in complying & sending you my signature below, though it is not a good specimen as I have got hold of a rascally bad pen.’ See Image.

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 1p, 16mo. In good condition, lightly aged. Folded once for postage. Signed ‘W. L. Wyllie.’ He is sorry that he will be unable to avail himself of ‘the kind invitation to dinner sent me by the Master of the Salters Company’. He is starting for Norway on the last day of the month, and will not return until the end of July.

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 1p, 12mo. In good condition, lightly aged. Strip of glue from mount adhering to one edge of the blank reverse. Folded for postage. Addressed to ‘J M Hare Esqr’. Reads: ‘Dear Sir / I have to acknowledge the receipt of the Patent you have kindly sent me, pray accept my thanks for your attention / I am dear Sir / Yrs faithfully / S. Morton Peto’. In Victorian hand at foot: ‘M P. Norwich 1851’.

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. In good condition, lightly aged. Good firm attractive signature ‘John Betjeman.’On irregularly-shaped corner (approximately 9 x 7 cm) torn from a letter on cartridge paper. Reads ‘[...] pho[...] / [...]ed to se[...] / [...] author in this [...] / never be too hope[...] / [...]urs faithfully, / [...]HELL-MEX and B. P. LIMITED. / [signed] John Betjeman. / [...]urn of post unless otherwise stated’. Perhaps something to do with Shell Guides(?)See Image.

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. In good condition, lightly aged. Good firm signature ‘John Betjeman’ on 9 x 3 cm slip of paper. Laid down at the foot of one side of a 12mo leaf (extracted from an edition of his poems), at the foot of the Betjeman poem ‘Henley-on-Thames’. On the reverse, paginated 24, is his poem ‘East Anglian Bathe’. See Imagew

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 1p, 12mo. In fair condition, but lightly discoloured, with a large rectangle of sunning covering most of the lower part, and a neat crease at bottom right (not affecting the signature, which is partially sunned). Annotated in pencil by a later hand on the reverse. Betjeman’s handwriting is bad, so the following reading is tentative. ‘Dear Lady Jones, / I meant to write to you long ere this to tell you how grateful I was to you & Sir Roderick [Jones, her husband] for letting us [house?] this prize in your capacious drawing room.

See his entry, and that of George Doo, engraver, in the Oxford DNB. The four items are in good condition, lightly aged and worn The items of 1832 and 1838 are in the third person; those of 1837 and 1839 are signed, 'D. Wilkie' and 'David Wilkie' respectively. The 1832 letter, accepting a dinner invitation from 'Dr and Mrs Baillie', is 1p, 16mo; the other three items are each 1p, 12mo. In 1838 he writes to 'Capt Seymour' to ask for 'the present address of Sir William Knighton'.

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. Wilkie was in a good position to assist Waagen, who was touring England making notes on significant art collections, for use in his ‘Kunstwerke und Künstler in England und Paris’ (3 vols, Berlin, 1837–39), which formed the basis for his influential ‘The Treasures of Art in Great Britain’ (translated by Lady Eastlake, 4 vols, London, 1854 and 1857). Wilkie had strong connections with Wellington. His 1822 painting ‘The Chelsea Pensioners reading the Waterloo Dispatch’ had been commissioned by the Duke, and was sold to him for the unheard-of sum of 1,200 guineas.

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 1p, 12mo. In good condition. The letterhead describes the firm (‘formerly Walker and Cockerell’) as being ‘Process and General Engravers, Draughtsmen, Map Constructors Copper-plate Printers Collotypers and Photographers of Works of Art’. Signed ‘Emery Walker’. He is sending Wright ‘proofs of the plan from Coutts’ Bank’, and is sending a duplicate to ‘Mr. Fayle’, asking him ‘to let me have the lettering, that is, if he wishes on seeing the plan to vary it’. He is having ‘proofs of the title page from Messrs.

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 2pp, 12mo. On first leaf of bifolium. In good condition, lightly aged, with small and slightly rusted staple holes to one corner. Folded once. Addressed to ‘My dear [Gern?] King / A. G. B. I’ (i.e. the Artists’ General Benevolent Institution) and signed ‘Aston Webb / Presd. A G B I -’. He is writing at the request of ‘the Council’, ‘to express to you on their behalf & my own our sincere regret at your resignation from our Council’.

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. In 1787 he had been appointed equerry to the Duke of York, and he accompanied him to the Netherlands as Aide-de-Camp. The present item was written a three months before the Battle of Villers-en-Cauchies, at which Craufurd, at the head of two squadrons, is said to have captured three guns and a thousand men. 1p, 12mo. On watermarked laid paper. In good condition, lightly aged, with creases from having been folded into a packet. Docketed on reverse. Reads: ‘Major Craufurd’s Account. / Paid to the Russian Minister at Brussels for a Pellice for the Duke ..

See his entry in Encyclopaedia Britannica. Both items are in good condition, lightly aged. TLS: 1p, 4to. Addressed to 'Rosalyn Sacks / YMHA - YWHA / Congregation of Mishkan Israel-Linas Hazedek of Jamaica, Inc. / 153-14 90th Avenue / Jamaica, New York 11432'. Signed 'Norman Mailer'. Reads: 'Dear Rosalyn Sacks, / I don't have any pictures at the moment, but I'll try to get ahold of one and autograph it and send it to you and the members of the Congregation of Mishkan Israel-Linas Hazedek in Jamaica.

An interesting letter, in which Webb sets out his approach to bookplate design. According to his entry in the Oxford DNB, ‘By 1899 Webb was in poor health and losing money. His meagre savings were insufficient to build a cottage, so he accepted Caxtons, a four-bedroom sixteenth-century yeoman's house at Worth, near Crawley, Sussex, offered at a selflessly low rental by his friend William Scawen Blunt.’ For the context of the present letter, see the letter from Webb to Sydney Cockerell, 1 September 1902, in volume 3 of John Apin’s edition of Webb’s letters.

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. All three items signed 'Linley Sambourne'. All three in good condition, lightly aged and worn, and all folded for postage. ONE: 10 April 1889. 2pp, 12mo. Bifolium. Begins 'Dear Sir / Mr Furniss [Harry Furniss, Punch illustrator] has kindly written enclosed & I am sending a boy to you at / 5, Clarendon Place / Hyde Park'.

With Thomas Carlyle recognised by the Victorians as one of their two greatest historians. See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 1p, 12mo. On grey wove watermarked paper. In good condition, lightly creased and aged. Folded twice. Reads ‘Dear Miss Richardson, / I am extremely sorry that I have an engagement which will make it impossible for me to have the pleasure of dining with you on Wednesday fortnight / Very truly yours, / T B Macaulay’.

See her entry, and that of Whittaker, in the Oxford DNB. 1p, landscape 12mo. A corner of the letter carrying a few words of text has been torn away on opening; it is still attached, beneath a red wax seal, so that the entire document is present in two parts. Otherwise in fair condition, lightly aged and worn. Addressed by Mitford 'To / Messrs. Baynes & Son / 23 Paternoster Row'. Begins: 'Miss Mitford presents her Compts. to Mr.