POLITICS

[Lord Sankey [John Sankey, 1st Viscount Sankey], judge, Labour politician whose committee drew up the 1940 Sankey Declaration of the Rights of Man.] Autograph Letter Signed to ‘[A.G.L.] Rogers’, regarding a 'hostel' and the Bishop of St David's.

Author: 
Lord Sankey [John Sankey, 1st Viscount Sankey (1866-1948)], High Court judge, Labour politician who chaired the committee that drew up the 1940 Sankey Declaration of the Rights of Man [A.G.L. Rogers]
Publication details: 
1 January 1926. On embossed letterhead of the Royal Courts of Justice.
£56.00

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. From the papers of Arthur George Liddon Rogers (1864-1944), son and editor of the economist Thorold Rogers [James Edwin Thorold Rogers] (1823-1890), for information regarding whom see his entry in the Oxford DNB. A little grubby, but in fair condition, folded once. Good clear signature. Reads: ‘The 1st. of January 1926. / My dear Rogers, / Many thanks for your letter and information re the hostel. I have already brought it before The Bishop of St. David’s and hope that something may result. / With kind regards and best wishes.

[‘Become an ambassador if you like’: H. A. L. Fisher [Herbert Albert Laurens Fisher], English historian and Liberal politician.] Autograph Letter Signed to Beresford-Hope, congratulating him on his ‘triumph in the Diplomatic Service examination’.

Author: 
H. A. L. Fisher [Herbert Albert Laurens Fisher] (1865-1940), English historian and Liberal politician; Virginia Woolf’s cousin [Harold Thomas Beresford-Hope (1882-1917)]
Publication details: 
9 June 1907; 34 Norham Road, Oxford.
£56.00

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. At his death in 1917, H. T. Beresford-Hope was Third Secretary at the British Legation at Athens; and he left the enormous sum of £67,167. Bifolium. In fair condition, lightly aged and worn. Folded twice for postage. Addressed to ‘My dear Beresford-Hope’ and signed ‘H. Fisher’. Twenty-eight lines of text. He begins a gently teasing letter by stating that he is delighted to hear of Beresford-Hope’s ‘triumph in the Diplomatic Service examination’, his wife joining him in sending congratulations.

[‘100% Socialist but disrespectful to Marx’: Sir Richard Acland, Labour politician and a founder of CND.] Typed Letter Signed to Philip Dosse, publisher of ‘Books and Bookmen’, describing his self-published book ‘The Next Step’.

Author: 
Sir Richard Acland [Sir Richard Thomas Dyke Acland, 15th Baronet] (1906-1990), Common Wealth Party and Labour politician, a founder of CND [Philip Dosse (1925-1980), publisher ‘Books and Bookmen’]
Publication details: 
8 February 1974; Sprydon, Broadclyst, Exeter.
£45.00

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. The recipient Philip Dosse was proprietor of Hansom Books, publisher of a stable of seven arts magazines including Books and Bookmen and Plays and Players. See ‘Death of a Bookman’ by the novelist Sally Emerson (editor of ‘Books and Bookmen’ at the time of Dosse’s suicide), in Standpoint magazine, October 2018. This item is 2pp, 4to. In good condition, lightly aged and worn, with the two leaves attached by a slightly rusty staple. Folded twice for postage. Large sprawling signature ‘Richard Acland’ above typed name ‘Sir Richard Acland’.

[Sir John Beckett of Somerby Park, as Under-Secretary of State for Home Affairs.] Autograph Letter Signed, to Col. Torrens, giving view of Home Secretary Richard Ryder on ‘The Commander in Chief’ (Prince Frederick, Duke of York) and ‘Mr Sonnenberg'.

Author: 
Sir John Beckett (1775-1847) of Somerby Park, Lincs, Tory politician [Col. Robert Torrens (1780-1864); Richard Ryder (1766-1832), Home Secretary; Prince Frederick, Duke of York; Sir Robert Peel]
Publication details: 
‘Whitehall 26th. March 12’ [i.e. 1812].
£80.00

See Beckett’s entry in the History of Parliament, according to which he held the position of Under-Secretary of State for Home Affairs from 1806 to 1817. 1p, foolscap 8vo. In fair condition, lightly aged and creased at the foot, with strip of discoloration at the head. Folded twice into a packet. Addressed to ‘Colonel Torrens’.

[Saint-Marc Girardin of the Académie Française, French Orléanist politician, professor, and anti-Romantic literary critic.] Autograph Letter Signed, in French, asking ‘Monsieur le Marechal’ for an audience.

Author: 
Saint-Marc Girardin (1801-1873) of the Académie Française, French Orléanist politician, professor, and anti-Romantic literary critic with the Journal des débats and the Revue des deux mondes
Publication details: 
No date. Rue de l’Odean 27 [Paris].
£56.00

1p, 8vo. In good condition, lightly aged. Removed from an album, and with stub still adhering to inner edge. Folded twice. He asks to be accorded ‘un quart d’heure d’audiénce’, as he is leaving on a journey and needs a passport and letters of recommendation. The recipient is not named, but he has written ‘Samedi à midi’ at top left.

[The Raj in the 1880s.] Collection of fourteen British parliamentary papers, relating to: transfer of government to Simla, railways, silver, finance (tax, accounts, loans, revenue and expenditure).

Author: 
[The Raj in the 1880s: British parliamentary papers relating to India]
Publication details: 
All fourteen items printed for the House of Commons in London in 1886: items 9, 12 and 14 by Eyre and Spottiswoode, the rest by Henry Hansard and Son.
£100.00

The present collection reflects the state of Kipling’s India during the high summer of the Raj. At the end of 1884 Lord Dufferin replaced the Earl of Ripon as Viceroy, and apart from a period of seven months between June of 1885 and January of 1886, when Lord Salisbury and the Conservatives were in power following the death of General Gordon, and Lord Randolph Churchill was Secretary of State, Gladstone and the Liberals were in power.

['What are we to do with our “monstrous Regiment” of Women?': Sir Charles Trevelyan, Liberal politician.] Autograph Letter Signed, to W. A. Lock, giving his views on women and ‘German Immigrants’.

Author: 
Sir Charles Trevelyan [Sir Charles Edward Trevelyan] (1807-1886), Liberal politician and administrator in India, notorious for his response to the Irish potato famine
Trevelyan
Publication details: 
‘Treasury. / 8 Dec 1882’.
£220.00
Trevelyan

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 3pp, 12mo. Bifolium. In good condition, lightly aged, with thin neat strip from windowpane mount adhering to edges. Folded twice for postage. Twenty-four hands of text in secretary hand, addressed to ‘W. A. Lock Esqre’, and signed in autograph ‘Sir C Trevelyan’. He thanks him for his ‘very interesting Letter’, and hopes he will ‘never think it necessary to make any excuse for writing to me [other such?]’. He has asked ‘Mr. Farr’ for ‘any observations he might have to offer on the early part of it; and his answer is enclosed’ (not present).

[Sir Stafford Northcote, Conservative Chancellor of the Exchequer.] Autograph Letter Signed to barrister C. H. Bellenden Ker, regarding the drafting of clauses to an Act of Parliament, relating to ‘banking Companies’.

Author: 
Sir Stafford Northcote [Stafford Henry Northcote, 1st Earl of Iddesleigh] (1818-1887), Conservative politician; Chancellor of the Exchequer, 1874-1880 [Charles Henry Bellenden Ker (c.1785-1871)]
Publication details: 
‘Board of Trade [Whitehall] / June 21. 1849’.
£80.00

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. The recipient was a barrister and legal reformer. 2pp, 12mo. Signed ‘Stafford H. Northcote’ and addressed to ‘H. Bellenden Ker Esq’. In good condition, lightly aged, with thin neat strip from windowpane mount adhering to edges. Folded twice for postage. A few tiny calculations in another hand (Northcote’s?) at foot of second page. Twenty lines of neatly written text.

[Lord Granville [Granville George Leveson-Gower, 2nd Earl Granville], Liberal politician.] Original unpublished Autograph Poem (‘Oh! Mr. Delane, Oh! Mr. Delane’) to the editor of The Times, with reference to Landseer, Sir Robert Peel and others.

Author: 
Lord Granville [Granville George Leveson-Gower (1815-1891), 2nd Earl Granville], Leader of the Liberal Party in the House of Lords [John Thadeus Delane (1817-1879), editor of The Times]
Publication details: 
23 June 1861. On letterhead of 16 Bruton Street, London, W.
£120.00

See both men's entries in the Oxford DNB. 3pp, 12mo. Bifolium. In good condition, folded twice for postage, and with negligible remnants of windowpane mount adhering at edges of blank reverse of second leaf. A pleasant specimen of ‘Vers de société’ (The recipient's entry in the Oxford DNB states that 'In the social circles which Delane frequented [...] he was welcomed as a delightful companion').The poem consists of twenty-two lines in heroic couplets, unsigned and without any other text. The poem reads as follows: ‘Oh! Mr. Delane, Oh! Mr.

[Lord Palmerston, Liberal Prime Minister.] Autograph Signature franking the cover of an envelope addressed by him to Peter Legh Jnr of Warrington.

Author: 
Lord Palmerston [Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston] (1784-1865), Liberal Prime Minister
Palmerston
Publication details: 
20 February 1826; London.
£50.00
Palmerston

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. An 11.5 x 7 cm piece of paper, cut from the front of an envelope. In fair condition, laid down on a piece of grey paper cut from an album. Faint franking postmark in red ink. Laid out in Palmerston’s neat and stylish hand in the customary way, and reading: ‘London February Twenty 1826 / Peter Legh Esqr. Junr / Haydock Lodge / Warrington’, with the signature ‘Palmerston’ at bottom left. See image.

[Sir Edward Baines, nonconformist newspaper editor and Liberal politician.] Autograph Letter Signed to Rev. H. R. Reynolds D.D., describing an encounter he has just had with the ailing Earl Russell [the former Lord John Russell] in the House of Lords

Author: 
Sir Edward Baines (1800-1890), nonconformist newspaper editor and Liberal MP [Rev. Henry Robert Reynolds (1825-1896), D.D., Congregational minister, President of Cheshunt College; Lord John Russell]
Publication details: 
‘Monday Evening’ [no date, but between 1861 and 1878]; on letterhead of the House of Commons [Westminster].
£56.00

See the entries for Baines and Reynolds in the Oxford DNB. 2pp, 12mo. In good condition, lightly aged. Folded twice. Addressed to ‘The Rev. H. R. Reynolds, D.D.’, and signed ‘Edw. Baines.’ The letter dates from between 1861, when Lord John Russell was created Earl Russell, and his death in 1878. Begins: ‘My very dear Friend, / I have just been shaking hands with Earl Russell. I was standing with the mob of M.

[William Ewart Gladstone and banking in the colonies, 1846.] Colonial Office printed circular dispatch, with printed set of ‘Regulations and Conditions’ regarding ‘Banking Companies’, for governors, legislative bodies and local authorities.

Author: 
W. E. Gladstone [William Ewart Gladstone] as Secretary of State for the Colonies, 1846 [Colonial Office, Whitehall; banking regulations]
Publication details: 
ONE: Circular dispatch, dated from Downing Street, 30 May 1846. TWO: ‘Regulations and conditions’ [Whitehall, London, 1846].
£120.00

Both items are scarce: no copy of the first and only two copies of the second on OCLC WorldCat and JISC (at Manchester and Glasgow). Both are in good condition, lightly aged. Disbound from a volume and paginated in manuscript. ONE: Printed ‘Circular’ headed in manuscript ‘Banking Companies’, and dated from Downing Street, 30 May 1846. 1p, 8vo. Paginated in manuscript 67. Thirty-two lines of small print, in a copperplate font. At foot of the page (not in Gladstone’s hand): ‘/sd/ Grey [last word deleted] W. E. Gladstone’.

[Lord John Russell and banking in the colonies, 1840.] Colonial Office manuscript circular dispatch by Russell, with printed set of ‘Regulations and Conditions’ regarding ‘Banking Companies’, for governors, legislative bodies and local authorities.

Author: 
Lord John Russell as Secretary of State for the Colonies, 1840 [Colonial Office, Whitehall; banking regulations]
Publication details: 
ONE: Manuscript circular dispatch, dated from Downing Street, 4 May 1840. TWO: Printed ‘Regulations and conditions’ [1840]. Slug: ‘LONDON: / PRINTED BY W. CLOWES AND SONS, 14, CHARING CROSS, / For Her Majesty’s Stationery Office.’
£120.00

The printed item is excessively scarce: no copy on OCLC WorldCat or JISC. Transcriptions of both items are to be found in The Journal of the Legislative Council of the Province of New Brunswick, 20 January to 26 March, pp.26-28. The two items are in good condition, lightly aged and worn. Disbound from a volume and paginated in manuscript. ONE: Manuscript ‘Circular’ headed ‘Banking Companies’ and dated from Downing Street, 4 May 1840. 1p, 8vo. Paginated in manuscript 15. On W. Horsington paper with watermark date 1839.

[Lord Cross [Richard Assheton Cross, 1st Viscount Cross], Conservative politician.] Autograph Letter Signed to ‘Mr de Winton’, regarding the reduction of the ‘York House’.

Author: 
Lord Cross [Richard Assheton Cross, 1st Viscount Cross] (1823-1914), Conservative politician, Home Secretary under Disraeli and Lord Salisbury
Publication details: 
2 October 1904; on letterhead of Eccle Riggs, Broughton in Furness.
£45.00

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 2pp, 12mo. Fifteen lines. In good condition. Folded once. Address to ‘Mr. de Winton’ and signed ‘Cross’. He finds that de Winton’s ‘last letter certainly makes a very considerable difference’, but ‘the obvious answer’ to his mind is, as de Winton only proposes ‘to reduce the York House from 112 to 110, it is hardly worth stirring up the waters at all. And especially so, as the population is increasing so rapidly that the next Census will probably alter the whole state of things.’

[Ethel Snowden, Fabian socialist and suffragist.] Seven Typed Letters Signed and one Autograph Letter Signed, to Rev. A. H. Sayers, regarding a talk by her to the League of Nations Union, Monmouth; with one after her husband’s death.

Author: 
Ethel Snowden, Viscountess Snowden [née Ethel Annakin] (1881-1951), Fabian socialist, suffragist, temperance and peace campaigner, wife of first Labour Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Snowden
Publication details: 
The ALS and six of the TLsS from 1934, one TLS from 1937 and another undated (but from November 1934), All eight items from Eden Lodge, Tilford, with four on letterheads.
£280.00

She her entry, and that of her husband, in the Oxford DNB. Throughout her life she inspired a range of responses. The ‘Labour Leader’ described her as a ‘second Annie Besant’, while Manny Shinwell dismissed her as ‘the would-be Sarah Bernhardt of the party’; to Lord Reith, during her time as a BBC governor, she was ‘the Scarlet Woman’. The present eight items are in good condition, lightly aged, and all folded for postage. A total of eleven typed pages (4to, 12mo and 16mo) and one page in 4to autograph. All signed ‘Ethel Snowden’.

[Sir George Otto Trevelyan, Liberal politician and author.] Autograph Signature on letter in secretary’s hand to Theodore Fry of Darlington, regarding the application of ‘Mr. M. Hedley, a Veterinary Inspr. in Ireland, for increase of pay’.

Author: 
Sir George Otto Trevelyan (1838-1928), Liberal politician and author, twice a minister in a Gladstone government, biographer of his uncle Thomas Babington Macaulay [Sir Theodore Fry (1836-1912)]
Publication details: 
2 December 1882; on embossed government letterhead of the Irish Office, Great Queen Street, S.W. [London.]
£35.00

See his entry and Fry’s in the Oxford DNB. 2pp, 12mo. On first leaf of bifolium. In fair condition, lightly aged. Folded once. Signed ‘G O Trevelyan’. He has received Fry’s letter ‘in support of an application made by Mr. M. Hedley, a Verterinary Inspr. in Ireland, for increase of pay’, and will submit his recommendation ‘to his Excellency the Lord Lieutenant’. The second leaf carries the name of Trevelyan’s parliamentary constituency Hawick at the head of the recto.

[Louis Blanc, French socialist politician and historian.] Autograph Letter Signed, in French, regarding the purchase of books, including one on ‘notre digne et excellent ami Karl Blind’.

Author: 
Louis Blanc [Louis Jean Joseph Charles Blanc] (1811-1882), French socialist politician and historian and advocate of co-operative enterprise, who obtained an amnesty for the Communards [Karl Blind]
Publication details: 
18 April 1861; no place.
£100.00

3pp, 16mo. Bifolium. 25 lines of text. In good condition, on thin paper, with minor staining from label to mount. Signed ‘Louis Blanc’. The salutation is ‘Cher Monsieur’. The recipient, who is not named, is presumably a bookseller. He is returning two of the books, keeping only the ‘Cabinet Lawyer’, whose price he asks. He wants to acquire a copy of the latest edition of ‘la Biographie des contemporains de M. Vapereau’: ‘naturellement plus complète, et où beaucoup d’erreurs se trouvent, je suppose, corrigées’.

[‘The time is not one that favours such an enterprise’: Lord Haldane, Lord Chancellor and philosopher.] Autograph Letter Signed to ‘Miss Black’, giving his considered opinion of the prospects for ‘a new weekly paper’.

Author: 
Lord Haldane [Richard Burdon Haldane, 1st Viscount Haldane] (1856-1928), Scottish Liberal and Labour politician, philosopher, and Lord Chancellor
Publication details: 
9 March 1920; on letterhead of 28 Queen Anne’s Gate, Westminster.
£65.00

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 2pp, 12mo. In good condition, lightly aged with a crease. Folded once. Signed ‘Haldane’. He begins ‘With all good wishes for any cause you are engaged in’, but ‘no hope of success for a new weekly paper’.

[Lord Derby disassociates himself from John Stuart Mill.] Autograph Letter in the third person [to Matthew Arnold], expressing a willingness to join in ‘any mark of respect’, as long as it does not imply ‘an agreement in Mr Mill’s political opinions'

Author: 
Lord Derby [Edward Henry Stanley, 15th Earl of Derby] (1826-1893), Conservative politician who served as Foreign Secretary and Colonial Secretary [John Stuart Mill; Matthew Arnold]
Publication details: 
13 May 1873; 23 St James’s Square [London].
£120.00

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. Mill had died on 8 May, and in his 2018 biography, Timothy Larsen gives an account of the controversy over the efforts to have buried in Westminister Abbey. (In any event by his own desire Helen Taylor had her husband buried at Avignon.) 2pp, 12mo. With thin mourning border. In fair condition, lightly aged. Folded three times.

[Lord Carnarvon [Henry Herbert, 4th Earl of Carnarvon], Conservative politician.] Autograph Letter Signed to E. Lovell, expressing a desire to attend an event, while explaining that this is unlikely.

Author: 
Lord Carnarvon [Henry Howard Molyneux Herbert, 4th Earl of Carnarvon] (1831-1890), Conservative politician, known as Lord Porchester from 1833 to 1849, who served as Lord Lieutenant of Ireland
Publication details: 
4 April 1857; Torquay.
£45.00

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 1p, 12mo. In fair condition, aged and worn, with slight damage to one corner from removal from mount. Folded four times. Signed ‘Carnarvon’ and addressed to ‘E. Lovell Esr.’ If he possibly can he will ‘attend on the Wednesday’, but he doubts whether his ‘other business’ will allow this. ‘Wednesday is a less convenient day than Tuesday to me, but I sd. be very glad to attend if possible.’

[Thomas Mann, trade unionist and communist.] Two Autograph Letters Signed (both ‘Tom Mann’), as Secretary of London Reform Union, one endorsing a ‘scheme’ which will reduce the death rate; the other about ‘Douglas’ and a meeting of the Stepney Branch

Author: 
Tom Mann [Thomas Mann] (1856-1941), trade unionist, socialist and communist [A. G. L. Rogers]
Publication details: 
12 and 30 May 1993; both on letterhead of London Reform Union, Granville House, 3 Arundel Street, W.C. [London].
£90.00

See the entry for Thomas Mann in the Oxford DNB. From the papers of Arthur George Liddon Rogers (1864-1944), son and editor of the economist Thorold Rogers [James Edwin Thorold Rogers] (1823-1890), for information regarding whom see his entry in the Oxford DNB. The second letter in good condition, lightly aged and folded once; the first in fair condition, folded three times with a number of short closed tears along creases. Mann is writing in his capacity as Secretary of the London Reform Union (for whose ‘Object’ see the end of this entry). ONE: 12 May 1893. 2pp, 4to.

[Graham Wallas, Fabian socialist thinker and a co-founder of the London School of Economics.] Autograph Signature to conclusion of Autograph Letter Signed [to A. G. L. Rogers].

Author: 
Graham Wallas (1858-1932), English socialist thinker, social psychologist, educationalist, a leader of the Fabian Society and a co-founder of the London School of Economics [A. G. L. Rogers]
Publication details: 
May 10 [no year]. 32 Great Ormond Street, W.C. [London.]
£28.00

See Wallas’s entry in the Oxford DNB. From the papers of Arthur George Liddon Rogers (1864-1944), son and editor of the economist Thorold Rogers [James Edwin Thorold Rogers] (1823-1890), for information regarding whom see his entry in the Oxford DNB. 1p, 12mo. On recto of first leaf of bifolium. In good condition, lightly aged. Folded once. The conclusion of the letter only. Reads: ‘[...] extracts enclosed - / Edgeworth says he will look out for materials for you. / Sincerely / Graham Wallas / 32 Great Ormond St / W. C. / May 10 -’.

[Arnold Morley, Liberal politician.] Three Autograph Letters Signed to A. G. L. Rogers, one defending his comments on Conservative ‘tactics’ in the General Election, another formally appointing Rogers as Secretary to the Publication Department.

Author: 
Arnold Morley (1849-1916), Liberal politician, Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury under Gladstone, and then Postmaster General [A. G. L. Rogers]
Publication details: 
ONE: 5 November 1891; on letterhead of Liberal Central Association, London. TWO: 10 August 1892; on letterhead of 7 Stratton Street, Piccadilly. THREE: 27 May 1893; from Stratton Street, on cancelled letterhead of Her Majesty’s Post Master General.
£100.00

From the papers of Arthur George Liddon Rogers (1864-1944), son and editor of the economist Thorold Rogers [James Edwin Thorold Rogers] (1823-1890), for information regarding whom see his entry in the Oxford DNB. The three items in good condition, lightly aged. Each folded three times. All three signed ‘Arnold Morley’. ONE: 5 November 1891. 3pp, 12mo.

[Sir Charles Wentworth Dilke, radical politician ruined by the Crawford Scandal.] Autograph Letter Signed (‘Charles W. Dilke’) to fellow-MP Robert Bourke (the future Lord Connemara), regarding ‘Greek Papers’ being sent to the Commons from the Lords.

Author: 
Sir Charles Wentworth Dilke (1843–1911), radical Liberal politician and author, ruined by Crawford Scandal [Robert Bourke (1827-1902), 1st Baron Connemara, Conservative politician, Governor of Madras]
Publication details: 
20 May 1879; on letterhead of 76 Sloane Street, S.W. [London]
£50.00

See the two men’s entries in the Oxford DNB. Lurid claims of three-in-a-bed adulteries put a paid to Dilke’s political ambitions (he had been touted as a future prime minister), and rendered him the butt of musical hall jokes. 16mo, 2pp. On bifolium. In good condition, lightly aged and folded once. ‘Dear Bourke / If you are in the House at 2 o’clock to-day I propose to ask you when the Greek Papers which were promised yesterday in the House of Lords are likely to be distributed to members of the House of Commons / Yrs. very truly, / Charles W.

[Sir Charles Wentworth Dilke, radical politician ruined by the Crawford Scandal.] Autograph Card Signed (‘Charles W. Dilke’), explaining to an unnamed painter the reason he was not able to visit his studio.

Author: 
Sir Charles Wentworth Dilke (1843–1911), radical Liberal politician and author, ruined by the Crawford Scandal
Publication details: 
26 March 1892; on letterhead of 76 Sloane Street, S.W. [London]
£38.00

See Dilke’s entry in the Oxford DNB. Lurid claims of three-in-a-bed adulteries put a paid to his political ambitions (he had been touted as a future prime minister), and rendered him the butt of musical hall jokes. The recipient is not named. On one side of a plain 11.5 x 9 cm postcard. In fair condition, lightly aged, with the two right-hand corners creased.

[Sir Charles Wentworth Dilke, radical Liberal politician and central figure in the Crawford Scandal.] Autograph Letter Signed (‘Charles W. Dilke’) regarding his 1878 pamphlet ‘Parliamentary Reform’, mentioning W. H. Smith and Prof. W. A. Hunter.

Author: 
Sir Charles Wentworth Dilke (1843–1911), radical Liberal politician and author, ruined by the Crawford Scandal [Professor William Alexander Hunter (1844-1898) of University College; W. H. Smith]
Publication details: 
7 December [no year, but post 1878]. On House of Commons letterhead [Westminster].
£45.00

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. Lurid claims of three-in-a-bed adulteries put a paid to Dilke’s political ambitions (he had been touted as a future prime minister), and rendered him the butt of musical hall jokes. The recipient is not named. 2pp, 12mo. On bifolium. In good condition, on aged and lightly-worn paper. The letter begins: ‘Dear Sir, / I suppose a pamphlet is meant - called I think “Parliamentary Reform” - (but I’m not quite sure), written about 1878 & sold at Smith’s bookstall.

[Barbara Castle, Labour politician.] Autograph Note Signed to ‘Pip’, accompanying signed press photograph to him, the other side of the note carrying an Autograph Note from deaf Labour politician Jack Ashley.

Author: 
Barbara Castle [Barbara Anne Castle, Baroness Castle of Blackburn, née Betts] (1910-2002), Labour politician [Jack Ashley [John Ashley, Baron Ashley of Stoke] (1922-2012)]
Publication details: 
Barbara Castle’s note dated 11 July 1973; no place. The ‘British Official Photograph’ dated on accompanying leaf to 1974.
£76.00

See their entries in the Oxford DNB. Castle was a pioneer for woman in British politics and a champion of the welfare state; and Ashley, said to have been the first totally deaf democratic representative in the world, was a campaigner for the rights of the disabled.. Both items in good condition. The ANS is on a 16mo leaf of pink paper. On one side: ‘To Pip / who has lightened our load and brightened our lives for so many years. / Bless you! / Barbara Castle / 11. 7. 73.’ On the other: ‘To PIP THE POPular / With every good wish / Jack Ashley / P.S. And lots and lots of fun. / JA’.

[Paul-Henri Spaak, Prime Minister of Belgium and ‘Mr Europe’.] Typed Letter Signed (‘P. H. Spaak’), in French, as Belgian Foreign Minister, to Sir George Rendell, regarding the success of a mission to Singapore and a paper on a mysterious subject.

Author: 
Paul-Henri Spaak (1899-1972), Prime Minister of Belgium, nicknamed ‘Mr Europe’ because of his work towards European integration [Sir George Rendell (1889-1979), British diplomat]
Publication details: 
26 May 1954. On letterhead of the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Brussells.
£90.00

Rendell had served as Ambassador to Belgium between 1947 and 1950. At the time of writing he was heading the Commission which resulted in the 1955 Constitution of Singapore. 1p, long 8vo. Folded twice. In fair condition, lightly aged. Endorsed with action taken in red ink. Twenty lines of text, addressed to ‘Sir Georges [sic] RENDELL’ in London as ‘Mon cher ami’. Having once again ‘repris mon job avec plaisir et intérêt’, he has not spent much times in the Belgian capital, instead ‘faisant la navette entre Genève, Strasbourg et Bruxelles’.

[Printed] To the Whole People of Ireland. The Manifesto of the Dungannon Club Belfast ([c.1905]).

Author: 
[Dungannon Club Publications, No.2]
Publication details: 
Belfast, c.1905.
£180.00

Pamphlet, 8pp., 8vo, damage and staining but minimal loss to text. One copy on COPAC (Lambeth Palace), one on WorldCat (University College, Dublin).Note from TrinityCD, The Dungannon Clubs were founded in 1905 and absorbed into Sinn Fein between 1906 and 1908. This item is listed in my catalogue, Printed and Other Material From the Papers of Robert and Sylvia Lynd, all of Irish interest. Hard copy available.

[ Hugh MacDiarmid ] Substantial part of a Typed Letter Signed C.M. Grieve (Hugh MacDiarmid) introducing his unknown correspondent to a leaflet giving information about him [PRESENT]

Author: 
C.M. Grieve (Hugh MacDiarmid), Scottish Poet, journalist, essayist and political figure.
Publication details: 
Apparently the top of the letter has been cut off (with presumably his address and the date, and name of correspondent).
£180.00

Paper, 20 x 11.5cm, punch-hole (one only, the other having been cut off (as stated above) - perhaps filed formerly). Text: My name may perhaps be known to you as that of a well-known Scottish poet and essayist, author of a number of books on Scottish literary, historical, sociological, economic and political matters. I enclose a leaflet giving some information about my work. | I will be glad to write and submit an article along the above lines immediiately if I hear from you that you are willing to consider this.

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