bookselling

Twelve items. All texts clear and complete. In a variety of formats from 4to to 12mo. The collection is in fair condition, on aged and grubby paper. An interesting series of letters from one leading figure in the publishing circles of Edwardian London to another, revealing Hammerton's energetic no-nonsense approach. Much of the correspondence concerns the publication by Richards of Hammerton's 'Stevensoniana' (including a typed copy of a letter from Richards to Hammerton, 2 February 1903, stating terms). The discussion of the book includes references to 'Mrs R. L.

12mo: 123 + [iv] pp. Engraved title (dated 'Octr. 1823') featuring engraving Heath from design by Corbould. Four pages of publisher's advertisements at rear. In contemporary green leather binding with decorative gilt spine and pattern to edges of boards, marbled endpapers and marbling to edges. Contemporary ownership inscription of 'Miss L. Smith'. A tight, sound copy, on lightly-aged paper, with light staining to engraved title, and wear to binding. COPAC only lists copies of this edition at Durham, St Andrews, Oxford and the British Library.

8vo, 90 pp. Stitched and unbound. 3328 priced items. Text clear and complete. On aged paper.

8vo, 8 pp. Unbound. An unopened leaf, folded twice to make four leaves. Text clear and complete. On aged and worn paper.

Letter: 12mo, 2 pp. Bifolium. Good, on aged paper, with small rust stain at head from paperclip. She is writing to Harmsworth ('President, Dr Johnson's House') to ask him to accept a copy of 'my Journal in which mention is made of my Portrait of Dr Samuel Johnson which hangs in the Garrett of Dr Samuel Johnson house this was presented by H. B. Wheatley whom I knew for many years.' On a visit to the curator of Johnson's house she was 'pleased to see the picture still hands in its original place'.

12mo, 32 pp. Stapled. Text clear and complete. On aged and worn paper, with rusted staples causing the outer bifolium to detach. Items 2067 to 2786, with 'Supplément. Deutsche Werhe.' (Items from the firm's Leipzig branch.)

4to, 4 pp. Bifolium. Complete issue, paginated 17-20. Good, on aged paper. The first page announces J. D. Corbett ('Writer of "Canberra Commentary" in "The Argus") as guest speaker ('And he's sure to be good'). The first of two articles on the second page is the report of a speech by 'His Honor Judge Foster'. The second article, under the heading 'A Blood and Thunder Merchant', is an interview, with small photograph, with 'the Sanguinary-minded Fellow J. P.

On one side of a piece of grey wove paper roughly 13 x 20 cm. Elaborate engraved letterhead in a variety of fonts: 'To Chas. Edwd. Mudie, | BOOKSELLER, STATIONER & NEWS AGENT, | 28, Upper King Street, Bloomsbury Square. | Select Library of Popular Works, | IN HISTORY, RELIGION, PHILOSOPHY & GENERAL LITERATURE. | Single Subscription Seven Shillings a Quarter, One Guinea a Year. | [at left] BOOKBINDING | AND | Engraving' | [at left] PRINTING | AND | Lithography.' Boissier's subscription for '15 Vols. new' is charged at five guineas. In a large hand at foot of page: 'Recd Payt.

8vo, 72 pp. Stapled and unbound. Complete. On aged paper. The outer leaves are worn and coming apart at the spine. Otherwise the item is sound and tight. 1976 items. Items 783 to 883 concern 'the Bacon-Shakespeare Controversy'. Items 888 to 893 are 'Books from the Library of the late Dame Ellen Terry.' ('Only a few Books from her Library were sold, and Association Books are very difficult to obtain.'). Items 894 to 982 are 'Books on the Drama and Shakespeare, from the library of Henry Arthur Jones'. Items 983 to 1976 are 'Books on the Drama'.

12mo: 2 pp. Twenty-eight lines of closely-written text. Clear and complete. Good, on lightly-aged paper. She has received his letter and the cheque for £7 10s 'for the Vidal', about the sale of which and the price she is 'very much pleased'. 'You do not mention the commission [...] I hope for good luck with Hall's Stradivari later.' His 'kindness [...] is greatly appreciated'. 'I hope to come in one day when the spring is really here.

On upper half of a piece of quarto paper, unevenly torn to make a piece roughly 11 x 18.5 cm. Fair: on aged paper. Part of address from previous letter to 'W. Jerdan <...> | 267 Strand <...>' on reverse, which is docketed 'Procter | Miss Proby | Cornwalls poems'. Reads 'I inclose you a note left here for you | George says he will review the book for you next week - in the meantime give a flourish in your notice - 'The time does not admit of doing just to the vol. &c &c We are all a Party in this success -'.

Four pages, 8vo, good condition. Price one farthing. It includes an obituary of William Roscoe, a facsimile of the playbill "in which the late Mrs Siddons was announced to sing!", notes on "The Arts", "Metropolitan Weekly Return" (including "Seduced females 1000"), and "Stocks" ("Impudence, open . . . Merit, shut").. With the Prospectus , c. 8 x 7ins., headed "The Cheapest Periodical in the World" and listing contents as above and printing information as above, anticipating its eight columns and price.

Quarto. 135 pages of skillfully executed autographs followed by a 45-page printed 'INDEX TO AUTOGRAPHS', ranging from 'H.R.H. The PRINCE of WALES, K.G.' to 'Zillwood, A., The Abbey, Romsey, Hants.'. Attractive title in gold, purple, blue, yellow and green, with illustration of Osborne House. A handsome, if somewhat flashy, production. Maroon morocco binding, with a large crest stamped in gilt within a decorative border on the front board. All edges gilt. Tight copy, rebacked with new endpapers. Offsetting to fly leaf and a little damp damage to corner of title.

12mo, 1 p. Six lines of text. Good, on lightly aged and creased paper. Inviting Macmillan to join him and 'some of the lads' in a dinner at the Reform Club, 'on the occasion of Colin Hunter's being made an Associate'.

16mo bifolium (leaf dimensions 11 x 9 cm): 2 pp. 17 lines of text. Very good on lightly aged paper. Wonders whether Lockyer would like to spend his Easter holidays at Altnaharra, for a fortnight from 14 April. (The Altnaharra Hotel was used by anglers visiting the nearby lochs.) 'It is an expensive journey; but the sport is good - at least it has been good this last fortnight, but now we are sadly in want of rain. The weather is like June, only more so.' Forty salmon have been killed 'in these two weeks, averaging 11 lbs each'. Black's publisher was Alexander Macmillan.

Two pages, 12mo. Very good. In a case involving ['The Sphere'?] newspaper, Crooke has accepted the judgement in the case of the printers Hodge & Co., but he has appealed 'to the Inner House of the Court of Session' against the judgement in the case against the publishers. 'If the appeal is proceeded with it is not likely to be heard sooner than about December.'

4to, 1 page and 12mo, 2 pp (single 4to leaf, folded as to give two 12mo pp on one side). Thirty-seven lines of text. Maccall is 'willing to accept any proposal which is reasonable and just' concerning his 'Christian Legends' (published by Sonnenschein in 1882), and also 'to make sacrifices for the sake of obliging [...] As the one manuscript is about twice the length of the other - I speak from memory, - it might honestly claim better remuneration'.

Alexander MacLehose: Letter One: 4to, 1 p. Good, on slightly aged and lightly creased paper. He is sending a copy of his catalogue, 'which has reached me from the printers to-day'. He has 'sent a copy also to the firm'. Would like Wilson's 'advice as to whether "Memories of the Months" should have a paper jacket. The binders have sent me a nice cellophane cover, which shows the rather handsome binding. Would there be any objection, from a selling point of view, to a cellophane cover in place of the ordinary paper jacket?' Letter Two: 12mo, 2 pp.

8vo: 2 pp. Bifolium. Good, on lightly creased and discoloured paper, with strip roughly 1.5 x 6 cm missing from top outside corner of first leaf, resulting in loss of around four words. 'Dr. Macleod' [Norman Macleod, 1812-1872, DNB] has just returned 'the M.SS which you were kind enough to submit to me | He likes Miss Robertson's papers, and would be glad to give her a place in "Good Words" if she wrote anything suitable.' Macleod 'is to think over a subject and suggest it the first time he is in town'.

Disbound. Octavo: four pages. Good: slightly aged and with some creasing to extremities. Thirty-one lines of text, followed by a double-column list of subscribers, and amounts subscribed.

4to (27.5 x 21.5 cm), 140 pp on shiny art paper. In original light-green red and black printed wraps. Tight, on lightly-aged paper, a little dog-eared at back. In worn and chipped wraps. Filled with striking and attractive engraved illustrations and advertisements. Illustrations include stock cabinets, book presses, printing presses, ledgers, notebooks, artists' materials, magnifying glasses. Long obituary of Edward Lloyd of Lloyd's News.

One page, minor defects, text clear and complete. He would like to see some drawings which have beeen mentioned, and will call in. "Our contributions to the Scott Exhibition were returned this morning in excellent conditio, and I would like to congratulate you and Miss Hughes on a most excellent show. | By the way, Miss Hughes has never let me have back the Scott's butler's MS., which I lent her some time ago. I wish you would mention this to her." He concludes by asking Wilson to address letters to "Archie Black" or "A.A.G. Black" to avoid confusion with his father.

Printed on a sheet of wove paper roughly 37 x 24 cm. Fair, on lightly aged and stained paper, with slight wear to extremities. Illustration, roughly 9 cm square, shows Christ, a crown of thorns above his head and a crucifix behind him, blessing an orb which he holds in his hand. Attractively printed in two columns divided by decorative rule, with ornament beneath title. Text in small type, divided into sections titled 'A Letter of Jesus Christ', 'Christ's Cures and Miracles', 'King Agbarus's Letter to Christ', 'Our Saviour's Answer' and 'Lentulus's Epistle to the Senate of Rome'.

12mo, 2 pp. 12 lines of text. Very good on lightly-aged paper. He has received Holdsworth's letter, and is 'sorry to hear that you found our description of the Royal Hotel not justified'. Note will be taken of Holdsworth's 'experiences' and 'whatever alterations are necessary' will be made, 'when next we reprint the Index & Directory of the Handbook'. 'Notes such as [Holdsworth's] are most acceptable.'

4to, 1 p. Bifolium, addressed with postmarks, penny red stamp, and remains of black wax seal, on reverse of second leaf to 'Mr Blanchard, 5 Hackney Terrace, South Hackney'. Text clear and complete. In poor condition, on aged, ruckled and stained paper. Following their 'conversation of Saturday Morning' Brewer agrees 'to purchase the Copyrights of the "City Polka's [sic] & also the Song entitled "Ever the Same" upon the following terms [...]'.

4to, 1 p. Eight lines in typescript and one line in manuscript. Good, on lightly-aged paper. With stamped Envelope addressed in manuscript. The firm is 'sorry to hear' that she intends to 'take two volumes' over her book on Henry III, not considering that 'a biography of him could succeed in more than one complete volume. To take him to 1237 in the first volume would spoil the completeness of what we feel should be a one-volume biography.' He adds in manuscript: 'I hope we will not prove too unwieldy.'

12mo, 3 pp. Bifolium with mourning border. Good: lightly aged and with a slight bloom at the foot. Text clear and complete. Written to a business partner, and providing an insight into the everyday workings of the Edwardian book trade. The beginning of the letter appears to be a response to suggestions by Service of authors to write a book on Holland. Begins 'Dear Mr. Service, | We cannot employ Clive Holland again until he has at least put his "Egypt" into a shape in which we can venture to reprint it.

12mo, 1 page. Bifolium with address ('John Gough Nichols Esqre. | 25 Parliament Street | London') on reverse of second leaf. Grey paper. Fourteen lines. Text clear and complete. Good: lightly aged and with one corner slightly creased. Begins 'I have much pleasure in again committing to your care Torkingtons M.S. Pilgrimage with my Transcript, & shall be gratified by seeing it embodied in a Vol: of the Camden Society Publications. How soon will the Volume be issued?' In a postscript enquires after a copy of Sir George Chetwynd's 'Catalogue of Provincial Coins'.

8vo, 1 p. Good, on lightly-aged paper. In response to a 'kind note', Samuelson informs Sonnenschein that 'the next number of our Review, which will appear shortly, is to deal with the Irish question'. He has 'a very copious list of publications' and although he would have welcomed Sonnenschein's assistance, he hardly thinks it is worth his while at the present time to trouble himself over the matter, 'for reasons which I will explain to you some day'.

4to, 2 pp. Thirty-two lines. Text clear and complete. Good, on lightly-aged and creased paper. A tactful letter in response to an enquiry concerning the possibility of employment as a translator of Dutch publications. Unwins 'very seldom have occasion to translate from Dutch, but we should always be glad to give consideration to any important Dutch book which you were able to bring to our attention'. He suggests times when Thompson might be able to meet Stanley Unwin, who is travelling on the continent.