BRITISH

An interesting and evocative collection of ephemeral material, casting light on the social activities and entertainments of the British in India in the last months of the Indian Mutiny, also the year of the dissolution of the East India Company. No other record of this amateur ‘Corps Dramatique’, or of its conductor ‘Mrs. Comfit’, has been discovered.

4to, 1 p. Fourteen lines. Text clear and complete. Fair, on aged paper. He has been 'extremely unwell', and is sending '3 bills for the account of Thomsons Chemistry £1100'. 'I trust that you will not be dis-satisfied with this as I can assure you conscientiously that I could not afford to give them shorter.' Reference to Longmans, and to his anxiety, 'as you left the settlement to my own conscience'.

Totalling 4pp., sm.fol. Very good, on lightly-aged paper. The letter (1p., 8vo) is a circular, and in it Keenan writes: 'Do not be alarmed at the sudden appearance of these instructions. Rather accept them as a fact that some one has your interests at heart'. The instructions (2pp., 8vo) are headed 'APPX 3 TO ANNEX D | CAMP HOLF SOP NO 2 | INSTRUCTIONS TO FAMILIES'. Divided into 13 sections, under the headings: Introduction; Wardens; Precautions; Children; Shopping; Special Warning Procedure; Leave; Finally.

One page, 16mo, very good contion. Text as above.

Two page, 12mo, fold marks, good condition. Text: I thank you by post [underlined] for you invitation, in order you may get my answer sooned. | I am in town & not likely to go out of it any more than the monument. I have not been well & have been obliged to shut & live by rule. I suppose that owing to that I am better, but I must not presume too much, and, with great reluctance, I must beg to be excused from being with you on Monday next. With many thanks believe me [...].

LETTER ONE (April): Three pages, 12mo, good condition. He discusses their respective illnesses, him recuperating at Minehead. The district round about Minehead is very stimulating, & inspiring. Watchet, a romantic port near by, immediately took my fancy. I tried to do some watercolours here but my efforts met with indifferent success. I learned later that Watchet is the traditional place from which Coleridge's 'Ancient Mariner' sailed. A fellow artist ('Scott') 'assailed' him when he was 'back to school', saying, he was down at Chelsea , & there was quite a group of artists there now.

One page, 12mo. fold marks, very good condition. Text: Thank you for yoyr letter inviting me to contribute to a Wesh Exhibition you are organising. I hope I may be able to find something for this purpose.

Four pages, 4to, fold marks, good condition, closely written, pages joined at top. He thanks Davis for writing at such length. But as you still attribute to me ideas wh[ich] I repudiate, you must put up with a rejoinder.

Four pages, 8vo, bifolium. He apologises for being too busy to reply sooner, and goes on to discuss the affairs of the Club [British Club in the venue de Palais, Biarritz]. It was decided to build a new Club on a large scale on the site of the lodge on the right as you enter to Palais grounds. It is to cost £8000 of which they say £5000 is promised - They go to work at once. Of the success or otherwise of the undertaking I say nothing. He then describes the circumstances in which a Lt Col. Frederick [West?] was blackballed, but who thought Knox was the principal offender.

Two pages, 12mo, bifolium. good condition. Text: Herewith I return the Proofs, corrected to the best of my ability. The speech is wonderfully well reported I think. | I have not touched any speech but my own. | Lady Edwardes joins me in kind regards to Mrs. Phillips & yourself; & I assure you we look back with pleasure to our stay under yur roof. [...] He is, perhaps, referring to his speech at the Church Missionary Society's Meeting in London, in May, 1860(?).

See his obituary in the Gentleman's Magazine, September 1839. B. Dulau & Co. was a firm of foreign language booksellers in Soho Square, London, founded by a Benedictine monk, Armand Bertrand Dulau, who had fled France during the revolution. 2pp, 4to. Thirty-two lines of text. In good condition, lightly aged, with stub from mounting adhering to one edge, and negligible damage at a corner. The letter begins: 'Sir James Craufurd prie M.

Alistair Sooke, on the BBC website, makes the case that 'Meredith Frampton is the forgotten genius of British art'. See Frampton's entry in the Oxford DNB, and also those of Codner and of Frampton's father Sir George Frampton, who executed the celebrated statue of Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens (not modelled on his son, who was eighteen when it was made). 1p, 4to, in fair condition, aged and worn. Folded once. Writing to 'My dear Codner', he apologises for 'keeping you up till such a late hour last night'.

Tritton was educated at Winchester College, and in later life held the office of High Sheriff of Essex. He served as War Office Publicity Officer between 1940 and 1945 (the first civilian to hold the post). The present items exhibit the candour and evocative immediacy for which his wartime diaries were praised on their publication in 2012. Two long letters to 'Darling', both 2pp, 4to. Both in good condition, lightly aged, and folded twice. ONE (signed 'R.'): Thirty-eight lines of text. He is writing her a second letter of the day, prompted by boredom and the want of something else to do'.

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 2pp, 12mo. In good condition, lightly aged, with traces of mount adhering to blank second leaf of bifolium. Folded twice. He returned 'but very late from Brighton, and was afterwards very unwell, which added to a great deal of business', prevented him from finding for Adams 'an Autograph of my Brothers, which I promised you some time back'. He is now enclosing the autograph, but apologises that he has 'none of my Father's [i.e. William Pitt the elder] to send you, for among his letters, there are no copies preserved in his own hand writing.'

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 1p, 12mo. In good condition, lightly aged. Reads: 'My dear Lord, | I have fixed the Oath's Bills &c for Tuesday July 9. | Believe me | faithfully Yours | Kimberley'.

See Knox's entry in the Oxford DNB, along with those of his father and three brothers. 8pp, 4to. Paginated and complete; on eight leaves held together with a rusting paperclip. In fair condition, aged and creased. A fair copy, with occasional emendations. There is no indication that this essay was published. A polished piece of writing by an accomplished essayist, lightly humorous but with serious intent, Knox's aim being to put forward the view that modern childhood is more self-indulgent than that of previous generations, and results is the self-deceit of adults who have never grown up.

Sibbald was in Ceylon between 1818 and 1833. There is no indication that any of these four items have been published. One: 'The Origin of the Kandelay Tank'. 8pp., foolscap 8vo. On two bifoliums of paper with Gater watermark dated 1827. In good condition, on aged paper.

256pp., 12mo. With frontispiece engraving and vignette on title. In original brown cloth binding, with blind-stamped decorative pattern on the boards, and title and design on the spine. Ownership inscription of 'Arthur Baxter | Runcorn | 1861' on piece of paper laid down on front pastedown. A tight copy, on stained paper (particularly the last few leaves) and aged paper, in worn binding with gilt almost dulled. An interesting production, reminiscent of previous Minerva Press publications, and looking ahead to the yellow-back.

Card, 9 x 11.5cm, a little grubby but the messge is bold and clear, as follows: Dear Sir | Shall be very pleased to show you what I am sending to R.A. the next Sunday aft[ernoon].

Sir Colin Thornton-Kernsley is identified as author from the first of the pamphlet's seven appendices ('Eastern Command | List of officers principally concerned with plans for the mounting of Overlord'), where he is described as: 'Chairman: AQMG(Ops) Lt. Col. C. N. Thornton Kernsley MP-RA'.

1p, 12mo. In fair condition, aged and creased. Folded twice. Written in a shaky hand, as explained by the text: 'My dear Sir / | Agreeable to promise I send my Likeness, I wish it was something worthy of your acceptance - suffice it to say the original saw the death of Nelson and Abercrombie. Served under Wellington in the Spanish peninsular War, attended his funeral, and from 1797 to 1814 was by Sea and Land in 23 Actions[.] I am well in health but cannot see what I write - My sincere love to Mrs. Macwey - God bless you'.

9pp, 12mo. On twi bifoliums and a single leaf, only the first of the bifoliums carrying the letterhead. In good condition, on aged paper. Folded once and in an envelope with 'Whist for 2. | Rules by Miss Stanton.' on cover. The letterhead has the feel of the 1920s, but the handwriting is Victorian, and presumably that of an old spinster. The first bifolium carries a separate set of instructions over four pages, headed 'Whist for two', and concluding: 'Hope you can read it excuse blots for I cant see what I have written'.

One page, 12mo, one edge rough, good condition. Should you care to see my picture of 'Egypt 1882' I shall be happy to show it to you when you may be pleased to honour my Studio with a visit. Note: Desanges's picture represented an equestrian group of all the commanders in Egypt with Wolseley in the centre. The picture was published by Henry Graves and Co. in 1884 under the title Egypt 1882.

3pp, 4to, each page on a separate leaf. In fair condition, lightly aged and worn. Folded once. There is no indication that either item was published, nor even that the poem is connected to the 'programme'. (If unpublished the poem may have found its way into Fry's papers from Hassall's.) The 'programme' - with no title or heading - is two pages long (with slight damage from a small staple to corners of both leaves) and complete, being divided into six numbered sections.

Contemporary duplicated typescript, from the Christopher Fry papers. 14pp, 8vo. Each page on a separate leaf. In fair condition, lightly aged. Fry's introductory talk is present in its entirety on pp.1-5, this is followed by an unpaginated page, then pp.8-15 with p.[10] also unpaginated. Hence p.6 or p.7, beginning the extracts from the play, would appear to be absent. On the front page, between the heading and transmission details is: 'Rehearsal: Thursday 4th June 1953: 10.00 onwards | Recording: Thursday 4th June 1953: 12.15 - 1.00 p.m. 3A | Recording of Insert: [BLANK]'.

19pp, 8vo. On ten foliated leaves. On aged paper; the first leaf with slight damage and loss to corner and one edge, with minor loss to text. Addressed to 'My dear Jens'. According to Elinor Barr, 'Swedes in Canada: Invisible Immigrants' (2015), Boving 'developed several new strains of forage crops and grains'. The recipient, Boving's brother Jens Orten Boving (1873-1959), was a hydro-electric engineer and inventor based in London, responsible, according to 'Who's Who in Engineering', 1922, 'for a large number of water-power plants, pulp mills and pumping plants in all parts of the world'.

2pp, 8vo. In fair condition, lightly aged and worn. Folded twice. The content is remarkably sprightly and the handwriting firm. The letter begins: 'My dear Russell, | Telephone: no good. So I guess that you are holiday-making. | Lord Drogheda is my close friend & collaborator. His wife Joan is a pianist[.] I have heard her only when she gave her services. But she appears to practice daily, like a professional trooper.' He has advised her to 'play chamber music.

1p, landscape 12mo. In good condition, lightly aged. He thanks him for his letter containing 'kind words about my book, Your England'. He did not expect anyone to agree with all he wrote in it. His aim in writing was 'to pay a tribute to the English who are the most broad-minded, tolerant, and humane of all the numerous peoples among whom I have lived.'

1p, 8vo. Aged and worn. Four folds. Panel from envelope attached to reverse, with postmark and address to 'Chas. Thompson Esqr. | 34 Bedford Street | Covent Gard.' He has 'already so many unpublished Plays' in which he has 'the right of Representation', that he must 'decline making any further purchases at present'. But even if he were 'inclined to make further purchases, it would most certainly be in Copyright and not in rights to print - which I suppose is what you mean by the term Printing Copyright'. He is however still 'much obliged to you for the offer'.

In good condition, lightly aged and worn. Christmas card with unusual image of the three wise men (in Roman helmets) seen from behind, following the guiding star as it leads them across a Hawaian beach to the hut in which the birth of the messiah is occurring. Printed message in card in Hawaian and English. The reverse of the second leaf has nothing printed on it other than the publisher's slug, and at the head the prime minister has written 'Happy Christmas'. Beneath this, one above the other, are the five signatures: 'Harold Wilson | Mary Wilson. | Giles Wilson.