INFECTION

On one side of 21 x 33 cm piece of wove paper. Somewhat creased, with one dogeared corner and a closed tear neatly repaired on reverse with archival tape, but in good overall condition. A typical piece of late-Victorian corporate typography. Headed (all in capitals): ‘County Borough of Blackburn. / Danger of handling / Carcases of Animals infected / with Anthrax.

4pp., 16mo. Bifolium. 57 lines of closely-written text. In fair condition, on aged and worn paper. She begins by exclaiming 'I have been so very sorry for you!', before urging her correspondent to 'keep quarantine'. 'But about Isabel? [...] I would gladly take her to stay here as I have done beforetime - but there are some impediments - we must have complete separation between our house & yours - Mr Harris's dread is indescribable - he lost his wife & (I think) two sisters with scarlet fever. I think they wd.

Octavo: 15pp. Unbound and stitched, with original printed front wrap. Presentation copy, inscribed on front wrap 'With the Author's Compts | No. 4'. Good, with neat vertical fold and small glue stain to front wrap. 'There are few persons who, in the course of a lifetime manage to escape, and there is probably not a household which does escape, one or more of the numerous complaints which are popularly known as Fevers. [...] The object of this pamphlet is [...] to give shortly and to the point [...] that information about well-established Medical facts concerning these matters'.

Three pages, 12mo. Creased, foxed, and with traces of archival tape adhering to blank reverse of second leaf of bifoliate. Formal letter in the third person, requesting the return of 'Mr. Charles Cathcarts clothes, when they have been disinfected, directed to Prince of Wales Terrace Scarborough'. He is 'pretty well, and she thinks the change & sea air at Scarborough will most likely restore him to his usual health'. He 'would be glad to get his clothes as soon as they are considered quite free of infection'.