AUTOGRAPH

Varying in size from a few lines to a column nineteen inches in length, and on aged high-acidity paper. In good condition, though frail, and with a few closed tears. Texts clear and complete. In the remains of a stamped envelope (postmarked Philadelphia, 21 February 1912), addressed to E. H. Lauer of the Cadmus Book Company. Fewer than half the items are dated. The dated items include a long and interesting article on a forgotten English-born Philadelphian forger, headed 'A FORGER OF AUTOGRAPHS. | ROBERT SPRING'S SUCCESS IN BOLD LITERARY FRAUDS.

One page, octavo. Good on aged and lightly creased paper. 'As you see by the enclosed it was returned to Mme D'Alvarez. | She is so sorry, but hopes it will now reach you. | Yours Truly | [signed] Evelyn Woolf | Secretary'.

Quarto: 196 + xii pp. 58 facsimiles in text, but lacking frontispiece. No dustwrapper. In original cloth binding, decorated on the front board in yellow, grey and black. Good, with spotting to edges and boards. Concentrating exclusively on German autographs. Wolbe was removed from his teaching post by the Nazis in 1933.

Quarto: 65 pp. Numerous plates. In original grey printed wraps. Internally good, with a little spotting and creasing to the ruckled edges; wraps worn and stained. A beautifully printed item, on thick laid paper. Among the printed matter are books of hours, breviaries, psalters, and letters (with facsimile plates) by Byron, Keats, Johnson and Sterne; and manuscripts of Fielding and Horace Walpole.

Quarto: ii + 234 pp. In original grey boards and cloth spine, with chipped white label. Unopened. Good, with slightly discoloured endpapers. Extensive transcriptions from the Countess of Blessington's correspondence, the writers ranging from Mrs Abell ('Napoleon's pet English child at St. Helena') to Nathaniel Parker Willis.

Two pages, 12mo. Good, on spotted paper. Folded twice.He is obliged to his correspondent for 'sending me a copy of the Disraeli letter in your possession'. He will not trouble his correspondent for a loan of the original 'as the contents are rather of private than of public interest'.

One page, 12mo. Good, on lightly aged and creased paper. 'I thank you sincerely, and I thank you heartily for the Signature of the late eccentric and wealthy Lord Chedworth. - Had I stood at the elbow of the person who placed it on the File - I should have requested him to pierce it nearer the edge of the paper - more befitting a Collector of Autographs - and more acceptable to dear Sir, Your very obliged St'.

One page, 12mo. On blue paper discoloured from glue by previous mounting. Seven-line printed biographical cutting in top right-hand corner. 'I am very happy to comply with your request [for an autograph].'

One page, 12mo. Very good. Docketed in pencil at head. 'I have no knowledge of Mr Tupper [presumably the poetaster Martin Farquhar Tupper, 1810-89] or of his address. I was in hopes that the madness of collecting autographs had subsided - but I am sorry to perceive, from your letter, that this is not yet the Case.'

One page, octavo. Good, on lightly creased and aged paper, with a little wear at foot. Purple ink. He thanks him 'for Cheque safely to hand for the Autograph Album. There is no question abot the Collection being a genuine one.' Details the provenance from the artist H. W. Pickersgill, to Charles Kingsley, to Kingsley's brother. 'I bought the Vol at the latters sale -'. He will send the two letters 'and the Kingslake in the morning'. He has been 'laid up ill for some days'.

On piece of paper roughly seven inches by eight wide. On aged paper with closed tears and fraying to extremities. Top part of document torn away, leaving ten complete lines of text. Lays out the conditions under which an archive of letters is offered for sale.

One page, 12mo. Very good on lightly-aged grey paper. Reads 'Dear Sir. | Here is the autograph you require. | Faithfully your's | [signed] Edmund Yates'. The words 'Here' and 'to' are slightly smudged.

One page, on piece of lightly aged paper, roughly six and a half inches by seven. Strip neatly torn away at head (not affecting text, but perhaps bearing recipient's address). Good, with a little damage from breaking of wafer and slight evidence of previous mounting on revese. Thirteen lines. He is sending the selected autographs, and will 'be happy to receive, at your leisure, those of Currie, Daubeny, Mc.Culloch, Flowers, Woodville & Phillips & Jones - or such 5 of them as you can best spare'.

Total 18pp., 8vo (letters), 3pp., 4to (lists), and one page 8vo (list). The dealers are giving advice and information to the collector, particularly relating to the Dawson Turner Sale (1859) and the Libri Sale (1859), often illegibly or nearly so. A. William Boone (4 June 1859) advises that a "holograph letter of Napoleon" will attract interest enough to justify two guineas and would sell for more in Paris". He believes a volume "on Scottish affairs" would "realize fully" £420.

All items good, though on dusty and aged paper. Five items are addressed to sellers of manuscripts (probably the same individual). ONE (to H. Barker, 23 April 1885, on letterhead of 'The Antiquarian Magazine and Bibliographer', one page, octavo): Asks to be offered Wellesley autographs purchased at a recent Sotheby sale, of which he sent an account to 'The Times', which was 'crowded out'. TWO (to F. Barker, 25 April [1885], 'at T.

One page, 12mo. Good, on aged and lightly spotted paper, but with blank verso showing traces of previous mounting. Nine-line printed biographical cutting laid down in top left-hand corner. Reads 'Madam, In accordance with your request I enclose my autograph'.

Four pages, 12mo. Aged and stained. Asks if he will favour him 'by signing in a collection of autographs in which the Queen and every member of the Royal family, Tsar & Tsaritsa, Kinngs & Queens of Denmark, Spain, & the Belgians, the Pope, all the ambassadors, Judges, Royal Academicians, leading Statesmen &c. &c. &c. have signed.' It has been shown to Lord and Lady Aberdeen 'who were very interested'. 'I may add I am a cousin of late B[isho]p of <?> (Burn).' States time when it would be convenient for his correspondent to sign. 'I live @ 26 Wolverton Gardens W.

Two pages, 8vo, good condition. He claims that he has checked his post and finds he had not answered her. "If you still have the autograph letters of Gissing & others & will post them on approval I will see if I can afford your price." He refers to his enclosure of a "The 'Bazaar' Reference Register" (present) which is a coupon certifying that the references provided by "Capt. W. Waithman Caddell" were perfectly satisfactory.

Printed Post Card, dimensions three and a half inches by five and a half. Good, on aged paper, but with the reverse (showing the remains of a photograph of Brighton) damaged by its removal from an autograph album. Unobtrusive vertical crease. Reads (apparently in Egerton Castle's hand) 'Dear Miss Gray | Your letter has been forwarded to us here. We have much pleasure in sending you the autographs you desire'.

In French. One page, 4to, blank bifoliate, fold marks, mainly good condition. The central subject is autograph-collecting. He initially refers to the "interessants" autographs which Cossilla sent him in 1841and which had not arrived by a diplomatic conduit but only 4 or 5 months previously. He makes a comment about his "relations autographiques" with his correspondent and promises to offer duplicates ("doubles [underlined] qui pourront vous convenir"). Note: an online reference to de Stassart (a Descartes letter from his collection) indicates a major autograph collector.

One page, 12mo. Very good, laid down on piece of larger, thicker, blue-backed paper. Amusing response to a request for an autograph. 'I do not know why you should bother about collecting consul's autographs. Consuls are generally a useless lot of fellows who do nothing and think a great deal about themselves. Instead of being intermediaries of trade they assume diplomatic attitudes; dress well, smoke well and so on. They should be diplomats. | I am not a Consul General, neither am I in London, but if my autograph is needed to add to your collection I give it here below.'

One page, 12mo. Very good on lightly aged paper. 'It gives me much pleasure to add my autograph to your collection.' With a 38-line biographical cutting on Fiske.

Two pages, 8vo, good condition. A good deal of politeness and circumlocution surround his statement of gratitude for the gift of some autographs.

On piece of paper five inches by six and a half. Good, with slight smudging to a couple of lines and a strip of archival tape on blank reverse. The four lines of text, in a different hand from the signature, were presumably written out by the purchaser, in order to indemnify himself in case of dispute. Reads: 'I hereby certify that these four papers signed respectively by Nelson, Hardy, St Vincent & Trowbridge have descended to me through my grandfather Richard Longfield Davies.-' Signature reads 'R. Hedges Davies | Nover. 10th. 1883.'

Two pages, 12mo. Very good, on lightly creased paper. He is sending five autographs to add to her collection and is 'sorry not to have those of distinguished men of later dates but I am quite out of the service now'. Wonders if she knows his 'very dear friend General Nicholson who is living now at St. Andrews. He and his wife are among our dearest friends.' He 'saw the Godfreys last week - both well.'

Octavo, one page. Good, on lightly aged and creased paper, with the merest hint of a damp stain. English translation in contemporary hand on separate piece of 12mo paper, with slight loss at head (not affecting text). She has received no acknowledgement from him for 'the autograph which I sent you and a little book of verse sold for the benefit of the soldier who wrote them. The little book ought to be sold for at least 75 cents.

The letter: one page, 12mo. Good, but with removal from mount having thinned the paper in places, and with traces of brown paper mount still adhering. He is sending the autographs of 'Henry Seton Merriman (Hugh Scott); Gertrude Atherton; Miss Fowler; and Douglas Sladen. Also a photo from Ted (not a good one, but the only one I have left).' He enjoyed himself 'so much' at Langford. 'It was a week of real enjoyment to me.' The fragment: one page, four inches by four and a half wide.

The material is loosely sewn together and not bound, much marking and chipping but little textual loss. There is an interchange of information, the main drive being antiquarian material concerning Sir Michael Stanhope, however remote the connection, some elicited by a request for information in "Notes & Queries".Twenty-one autograph letters, most extensive, signed from antiquaries, many distinguished: Robert Lemon, archivist (DNB) (1), George R. Corner, antiquary (DNB) (9), "Mr Sage" (enclosed in letter from King - and TO H.W. King - but signature cut off: "E.J.

Two pages, quarto. Very good. With traces of blue paper mount adhering to addressed verso of second leaf of bifolium. Dawson Turner having declined to buy a collection on the grounds that it is 'wholly out of his line of collecting', Russell now offers it to Thompson. They are 'not so interesting' as he anticipated when he 'bought them at an auction without looking at them till they were on the table'. Gives details of the purchase and describes the volumes, estimating their cost in binding.

One page, octavo. Very good, on lightly aged paper, with embossed blue ink monogram at head. 'Dear Sir | My Sister Isabella, just arrived, tells me you desire my autograph, I have great pleasure in complying with your flattering request. [...]' The blank second leaf of the bifolium is carefully attached to a larger piece of neatly-docketed paper, and has the two newspaper cuttings partially laid down on it. The short Times obituary, dated 17 March 1908, states that 'She must surely have been the last person alive to whom Charles Lamb addressed a poem'.