MAX

[Max Müller, Sanskrit scholar, Oxford's first Professor of Comparative Philology.] Autograph Signature and Note to printed letter of thanks (addressed in autograph to 'Mr. Conway') for congratulations on his appointment to the Privy Council.

Author: 
Max Müller [Friedrich Max Müller; Muller] (1823-1900), Sanskrit scholar and philologist in England, born in Germany, Oxford's first Professor of Comparative Philology
Publication details: 
Printed date and place: ‘7 NORHAM GARDENS, / OXFORD, / May, 1896.’
£45.00

See his long and appreciative entry in the Oxford DNB, concluding with the praise of his ‘pioneering achievements, especially in the fields of Vedic studies and comparative philology'. 1p, 12mo. In good condition, lighty aged. Folded for postage. In autograph are the salutation (‘Dear Mr. Conway’) and valediction and postscript (‘Yours very truly / F. Max Müller / (in bed with a cold)’. The printed body of the letter reads: ‘Being quite unable to answer the numerous letters addressed to me, I had to choose this way of thanking my friends for their kind congratulations.

[Abram Smythe Palmer, D.D., author and lexicographer.] Autograph Letter Signed to J. T. Barron, regarding the sale of one of his titles, and ‘ A.K.HB’s address’.

Author: 
Abram Smythe Palmer (1844-1917), D.D., lecturer at Trinity College, Dublin, lexicographer, supporter of Max Müller’s ‘solar myth’ hypothesis
Publication details: 
15 March 1882; ‘Leacroft / Staines’.
£45.00

For most of his life Palmer was Vicar of Holy Trinity Church, South Woodford. He was the father of the composer Geoffrey Molyneaux Palmer. 1p, 12mo. In good condition, lightly aged. Folded once for postage. Signed ‘A. Smyth Palmer’. He offers to supply a copy of his ‘Word-hunter’s Note-book’ at a cheaper price than it can be got from the publisher Trübner. ‘I am sorry I cannot help you to A.K.HB’s address - He is a clergyman (I think) of the Church of Scotland - probably “N. B.” [i.e. addressing the letter with this abbreviation for ‘North Britain’] would find him.’

[Sir Stanley Rous, association football referee and 6th President of FIFA.] Typed Note Signed (‘Stanley Rous’) to the BBC sports commentator Max Robertson.

Author: 
Stanley Rous [Sir Stanley Ford Rous] (1895-1986), Secretary of the Football Association, 6th President of FIFA, referee [Max Robertson [William Maxwell Robertson] (1915-2009), BBC sports commentator]
Rous
Publication details: 
26 May 1955; on letterhead of the Football Association, 22 Lancaster Gate, London W2.
£35.00
Rous

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 1p, 12mo. In fair condition, lightly aged, with slight creasing to one corner. Folded once. In addition to the signature ‘Stanley Rous’, the salutation ‘Dear Max’ is written in Rous’s autograph. (Robertson’s full Wandsworth address is typed out at the head.) The note reads: ‘The enclosed translation of an article which appeared in a Continental newspaper has just been handed to me. I sent it on at once, in case it is of help to you.’ See image

[Lord Beaverbook, owner of the Daily Express, Fleet Street press baron.] Typed Note Signed (‘Max Aitken’) to the educationalist T. Lloyd Humberstone, enquring into ‘the situation regarding the Bedford estate’.

Author: 
Lord Beaverbrook [Max Aitken, 1st Baron Beaverbrook] (1879-1964), Fleet Street press baron, owner of the Daily Express and other titles [T. Lloyd Humberstone, educationalist]
Publication details: 
8 May 1948. On House of Commons and 121 Fleet Street letterhead of ‘The Hon. Max Aitken, D.S.O., D.F.C., M.P.’
£40.00

See Beaverbrook's entry in the Oxford DNB. The recipient Thomas Lloyd Humberstone (1876-1957) was an educationalist and prominent member of the Convocation of the University of London. 1p, 12mo. In good condition, lightly aged. Folded once. Addressed to Humberstone at 15 Gower Street, London. After apologizing for the delay in replying, due to his absence, he simply states: ‘I am inquiring into the situation regarding the Bedford estate.’ Possibly written in reference to the Senate House development, in which Humberstone took a keen interest.

[ Julius Beerbohm, traveller and poet, half-brother of Max Beerbohm ] Manuscript Poem Signed J Beerbohm (calligraphically). See image.

Author: 
Julius Beerbohm [ Julius Beerbohm (1854 – 1906), Victorian travel-writer, engineer, explorer and poet.]
beerbohm
Publication details: 
No place, but dated by him 9 Sept. 90.
£220.00
beerbohm

32 line poem, cr.8vo, in a frame of an album page (detached), 4to, one ragged edge, celebrating summer, commencing: Is it not well, when the long day is over, | That brimmed with fulness of the summer time-| - Joy of wild bees that roam the the scented clover; [....] See image for full text. Verso: Sentiment by obscure German.

['Max O'Rell' [Léon Paul Blouet], French author and journalist.] Cabinet Card photographic portrait by Taber of San Francisco, signed 'Max O'Rell'; with Autograph Letter Signed to his lecture agent E. W. Appleton, regarding fees.

Author: 
'Max O'Rell' [Léon Paul Blouet] (1847-1903), French author and journalist who wrote in English for British and American markets, crossed swords with Mark Twain [E. W. Appleton; Taber of San Francisco]
Publication details: 
Letter to Appleton: 14 December 1885; 2 Lime Grove, Uxbridge Road, W. [London] Cabinet Card by Taber, 8 Montgomery Street, 'opposite the Palace and Grand Hotels', San Francisco; undated.
£120.00

ONE: Cabinet Card: 13.5 x 10 cm photographic head-and-shoulders portrait of Blouet, smartly-dressed with glasses and handlebar moustache, mounted on 16.5 x 10.5 cm card, with printed details of the photographers Taber's printed in gold below the image, and an elaborate advertisement for the firm printed in brown on the reverse. In fair condition, lightly aged. Inscribed on the base of the print: 'Yours Sincerely | Max O'Rell'. TWO: Autograph Letter Signed to 'Mr Appleton', i.e. E. W. Appleton. 1p, 12mo. On bifolium. 14 December 1885; 2 Lime Grove, Uxbridge Road, W.

['Max Wall' [Maxwell George Lorimer), comedian and actor.] Autograph Signature: 'Good luck to Enid! | Max Wall | 1951'.

Author: 
'Max Wall' [Maxwell George Lorimer (1908-1990)], comedian and actor in music hall, theatre, film and television
Publication details: 
No place. 1951.
£28.00

On one side of 8 x 13.5 cm leaf of cream paper. In good condition, lightly aged and worn, with slight creasing to one corner. A good, firm underlined signature. Reads: 'Good luck to Enid! | Max Wall | 1951'. On the reverse is the autograph of an unknown signatory: 'To Enid | [Sister? Lister?] [J?] Ferguson'.

[Lord Beaverbrook responds to Collin Brooks's appeal for a job.] Two telegrams ('Maxwell Beaverbrook' and 'Max'), one in reply to Brooks's appeal on loss of editorship of Truth, with copy letter from publisher Ronald Staples.

Author: 
Lord Beaverbrook [Max Aitken, 1st Baron Beaverbrook] (1879-1964), Fleet Street press baron [Collin Brooks, journalist and editor; Ronald Staples, publisher of the magazine 'Truth']
Publication details: 
Four items from 1952, the other from 1950.
£80.00

Five documents. The two telegrams are in fair condition, lightly aged and worn; the other items are in good condition. A photocopy of a typed page from Brooks's diary explains the context in entertaining fashion: '”Staggerer number one,” whispered Dick Swiveller over my shoulder this morning when on my office desk I found a letter from Ronald Staples giving me a twelve month's statutory notice of dismissal from the editorship of Truth.' He explains that the magazine is losing money, and criticises Staples's plans. 'However – here's a how-de-do!

[ Surrealism. ] Set of twelve photographic slides, with accompanying booklet in French, of work by Ernst, Miro, Arp, Malkine, Tanguy, Dali, Giacometti, Magritte, Masson and Man Ray, to accompany Patrick Waldberg's book.

Author: 
[ Patrick Waldberg (1913-1985), poet and expert on Surrealism; Ernst, Miro, Arp, Malkine, Tanguy, Dali, Giacometti, Magritte, Masson and Man Ray ]
Publication details: 
'Dossier 5-306 et 307 Juin-Juillet 1970'. 'Droits de reproduction reserves S. P. A. D. E. M., Syndicat de la Propriete Artistique, et A. D. A. G. P., Association pour la Diffusion des Arts Graphiques et Plastiques, Paris.'
£220.00

In very good condition, in transparent plastic waller. Accompanied by two booklets in French, containing extensive scholarly text on each painting. From the Philip West archive.

[ Max Halbe, German 'Naturalist' dramatist. ] Typescript of an unpublished English translation of 'Youth. A Love Drama in Three Acts. By Max Halbe'.

Author: 
Max Halbe (1865-1944), German dramatist, a main exponent of Naturalism
Publication details: 
Mrs. Marshall's Type Writing Office, 126, Strand. [ London. ] 8 May 1900. Translated from the '(6th Edition) | Berlin, 1898.'
£350.00

86pp., 4to. With each of the three acts bound into separate grey wraps, with typed labels on covers. Internally in good condition, on aged paper, in worn and aged wraps. This unpublished anonymous translation predates the one by Sara Tracy Barrows, with an introduction by Ludwig Lewisohn, published in New York by Doubleday in 1916. There is no record of an English production.

[ Douglas Woodruff and Dr Max Bindermann ] Typed Letter Signed from Woodruff to Bindermann, defending the Tablet's position on the Hungary; with typed article by Bindermann on the Habsburgs and Fascist Fatherland Front; and autograph notes by him.

Author: 
Douglas Woodruff (1897-1978), editor of 'The Tablet', London Roman Catholic newspaper; Dr Max Bindermann, Viennese lawyer and socialist, an emigré in London
Publication details: 
Woodruff's letter on letterhead of The Tablet, London. 6 November 1939. Bindermann's article undated (but in response to one in the Tablet, 11 November 1939). Some notes dated 27 February 1940.
£180.00

The three items in fair condition, on aged and worn paper. ONE: TLS by 'Douglas Woodruff'. 1p., 4to. The letter begins testily: 'Dear Sir, | I was rather puzzled to receive your letter in the form of a carbon copy. As you may imagine, we are not fond of letters that are circulated. I have now read it in Truth, although presumably the opening paragraph refers to the Tablet.

[Archive; unpublished history] Papers and correspondence relating to an intended history of the early years of the Daily Express

Author: 
John Gordon, editor of the Sunday Express [Lord Beaverbrook]:
Publication details: 
No particular place or date.
£2,000.00

For more about John Rutherford Gordon (1890-1974), editor of the Sunday Express between 1928 and 1952, see his entry in the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography.Although the volume for which the present material was amassed did not materialise, there is no doubting the seriousness of the project. Working with Beaverbrook's approval and encouragement (the nine memoranda by him present in the collection indicate his interest), Gordon employed Sunday Express news editor Jack Garbutt (John Lambert Garbutt, 1907-1973), John ('Jock') Selby Bradford and 'T. N. Shane' (i.e. H. A. H.

[William W. Clary, Los Angeles book collector.] Typed Letter Signed ('William W Clary') to the wife of London theatrical bookseller Ifan Kyrle Fletcher, regarding 'autographed letters', the publication of a Max Beerbohm item, and the Zamorano Club.

Author: 
William W. Clary (1888-1971), Los Angeles lawyer, book collector and founding member of the Zamorano Club [Ifan Kyrle Fletcher (d.1964), London theatrical historian and bookseller; Max Beerbohm]
Publication details: 
433 South Sprint Street, Los Angeles 5, California. 8 May 1961.
£90.00

1p., 8vo. Air mail letter addressed to Fletcher at 22 Buckingham Gate, London SW1. In good condition, lightly aged and worn. He thanks him for his letter 'regarding autographed [sic] letters', explaining that 'we have gone in very little for letters and manuscripts, although we have made a few exceptions where they were in bound volumes or had some very important Oxford interest'. (Clary's Oxford collection is now at the Claremont Colleges Library. Williams's letters do not 'quite fit our program' (the plural presumably referring to Claremont).

[St James's Theatre, London.] 'Treasury Sheet' completed in manuscript, giving accounts for seven performances of '"By Candlelight" - Southampton', with 'Artistes' Salaries' including Leslie Howard and expenses for Max Miller and Gertrude Lawrence

Author: 
St James's Theatre, Duke Street, St James's, London [Leslie Howard; Max Miller; Gertrude Lawrence]
Publication details: 
St James's Theatre [Duke Street, St James's, London]. 'Treasury Sheet for Week ending 31st August 1929'.
£220.00

On one side of a piece of 33 x 52 cm paper. In fair condition, on aged and worn paper. A form printed in black and red, completed in manuscript. Divided into sections on: Artiste's Salaries; Advertising; Stage Expenses; Front of House Expenses; Gas and Electricity; Printing & Stationery; Author's Fees; Miscellaneous; Receipts; Summary of Expenses. The 'Artiste's Salaries' were: Leslie Howard £20; Reginald Owen £40; Betty Schuster £20; Adrienne Allen £40; Robert English £15; Duncan McRae £15; Jack Carlton £8.

Typed Letter Signed ('Beaverbrook') from the press baron Max Aitken, Lord Beaverbrook, proprietor of the Daily Express, to the London bookseller Charles J. Sawyer, regarding 'the United States Tariff Act'.

Author: 
William Maxwell "Max" Aitken (1879-1964), 1st Baron Beaverbrook [Lord Beaverbrook], Anglo-Canadian press baron, proprietor of the Daily Express [Charles J. Sawyer, London bookseller]
Publication details: 
On letterhead of Lord Beaverbrook's Office, 29 Bury Street, St James', SW1 [London]. 14 July 1930.
£60.00

1p., 4to. In good condition, on lightly-aged paper, with strip from mount adhering at head of blank reverse. He thanks Sawyer for his letter: 'I am obliged to you for sending me the front page of the United States Tariff Act'. 'The Americans are out for their own prosperity all the time. I only wish our own Government would show the same propensity.' He addresses the letter to 'Chas. J. Sawyer, Esq., 12 & 13, Grafton Street, New Bond Street, W.1.

Autograph Note Signed ('Max Pemberton') from Sir Max Pemberton to 'Dear Betty' [i.e. Elizabeth, daughter of the actor Seymour Hicks and his wife Ellaline Terriss]

Author: 
Sir Max Pemberton (1863-1950), popular Victorian novelist [Sir Arthur Seymour Hicks (1871-1949)]
Publication details: 
On letterhead of Georgian House, Bury Street, St James', SW [London]. 12 January 1914.
£28.00

1p., 12mo. On thick deckled-edge paper. He apologises for the delay in sending a copy of his 'Iron Pirate', due to a delay in receiving it from the publishers.

'Change of Address' card of the composer and conductor Sir Eugene Goossens, addressed to the violinist Max Rostal.

Author: 
Sir Eugene Goossens [Sir Eugene Aynsley Goossens] (1893-1962), English composer and conductor [Max Rostal (1905-1991), violinist and music teacher]
Publication details: 
Postmarked from Maida Hill on 16 September 1957.
£30.00

Printed on one side of a 9 x 10.5 cm card. In good condition, lightly-aged and with a couple of corners slightly worn. The notice reads: 'Change of Address | Please note that | Sir Eugene Goossens | is now residing at | 76 Hamilton Terrace, London, N.W.8. | Telephone: CUNningham 9383'. Docketed in pencil at head (by Rostal?) 'Received 17th Sept.' Addressed on reverse, with stamp and postmark, to 'Max Rostal Esq., Highflower, 45, Brondesbury Park, London, NW6.

Two Autograph Letters Signed ('Diana Mosley') from Lady Diana Mosley [Diana Mitford] to the architectural historian Peter Reid, regarding the family home (Rolleston Hall, Burton-on-Trent) of her husband Sir Oswald Mosley.

Author: 
Lady Diana Mosley [Diana Mitford; née Freeman-Mitford] (1910-2003), wife of the leader of the British Union of Fascists Sir Oswald Mosley, one of the Mitford sisters [Peter Reid]
Publication details: 
On letterheads of Temple de la Gloire, Orsay, Essonne. 16 May 1972 and 13 August 1984.
£100.00

Both letters good, on lightly-aged paper. The second letter in envelope addressed by Mosley to 'Peter Reid Esq | 68 New Cavendish Street | London W1 M 7 LD [sic] | Angleterre'. Letter One (2pp., 12mo): She begins: 'My husband asked me to answer your letter. I think we have got photographs of Rolleston, but all such things are stored in Ireland, where we used to have a house. When I go through them (which one day I must) I will send you what I find.

Autograph Letter Signed ('R. Bruce Lockhart') to 'Max', on the death of his father Lord Beaverbrook.

Author: 
Sir Robert Bruce Lockhart [Sir Robert Hamilton Bruce Lockhart] (1887-1970), Scottish diplomat and writer [William Maxwell Aitken (1879-1964), 1st Baron Beaverbrook; his son Max Aitken (1910-1985)]
Publication details: 
10 June 1964; on letterhead of the Gyllyngdune Hotel Ltd., Falmouth.
£85.00

12mo, 2 pp. Twenty-eight lines of text. Good, on lightly-creased paper. Lockhart's signature has been docketed in ink (by Aitken?) 'Sir Robert'. A letter of condolence on the death of Aitken's father. Reminisces about the 'moment I came into his life', a 'luncheon at Charkley' soon after the First World War: 'The only other guest was Augustus John. [...] as you know, I learnt much from him. Indeed, it was he who taught me how to write, and in his house I met numerous people whom, but for him, I should never have known.' He considers that Beaverbrook treated him 'nobly'.

The Arrow. W. B. Yeats Commemoration Number.

Author: 
Edmund Dulac, Oliver St. John Gogarty, John Masefield, Lennox Robinson, William Rothenstein, Max Beerbohm, contributors [The Abbey Theatre, Dublin; W. B. Yeats; Irish literature]
Publication details: 
Summer 1939. Published by the Abbey Theatre, Dublin. [Wood Printing Works, Ltd., Dublin.]
£50.00

4to, 24 pp. With four pages of illustrations (by J. B. Yeats, Charles Shannon, Sean O'Sullivan, Max Beerbohm and Edmund Dulac). Stapled. In original grey printed wraps. Aged and dog-eared, in worn wraps. The introduction, by 'L. R.', explains that 'THE ARROW is an occasional, a very occasional, publication by the Abbey Theatre. Only four numbers of it have appeared, two in 1906, one in 1907, 1908 and 1909.' Essays by John Masefield ('William Butler Yeats'), F. R.

Black and white original publicity photograph: signed, dated, and inscribed to 'Peggy'.

Author: 
Max Wall [Maxwell George Lorimer] (1908-1990), English music-hall comedian and actor
Wall
Publication details: 
1932
£120.00
Wall

Dimensions of paper 23 x 17 cm. White border of 0.25 cm. A little grubby and with slight silvering at base, but overall a very good impression. A striking head and shoulders shot, with a clean shaven young Wall, neatly dressed in evening wear with black bow tie, and wearing a white sailor's hat at an angle, staring straight at the camera, with glossy lips, eyebrows raised and deadpan expression. The words 'Max Wall' printed in bottom left-hand corner. The inscription reads 'To Peggy | Sincere good wishes | [signed] Max Wall | 1932'.

Autograph Signature on card.

Author: 
Max O'Rell' (Paul Blouet, 1848-1903), French satirical author and journalist
Publication details: 
18 March 1895; place not stated.
£10.00

Dimensions of card roughly two and three-quarter inches by four inches wide. Good, with light creasing to corners. Clear signature reads 'Yours very sincerely | Max O'Rell | 18 March 1895'.

Autograph Letter Signed ('Paul Blouët') in English to unnamed correspondent.

Author: 
Max O'Rell' (Paul Blouet, 1848-1903), French humorous writer and journalist, Editor of the Paris 'Figaro'
Publication details: 
20 September 1893; 4 Bentinck Terrace, Regent's Park, London N.W.
£45.00

One page, 12mo. Very good on lightly aged paper. Giving details of a proposed lecture. He was to have been in Salford, Manchester, but the dates have been changed. Can only offer two dates. '<?> the two years' <?> has been a huge success & a most interesting journey by which we have all benefited. I remember the Bolton audience with great pleasure. Kindly name the subject you choose. My fee: ten guineas as before.' Accompanied by magazine cutting of photographic portrait captioned 'M. PAUL BLOUET ("MAX O'RELL"), NEW EDITOR OF THE PARIS "FIGARO."

Two Autograph Letters Signed to 'Mr. Perry'[, Secretary?, Royal Society of Arts].

Author: 
Maxwell Ashby Armfield
Publication details: 
22 March and 2 April 1931; the first on letterhead '8 Roland Gardens, London, S.W.7', the second on letterhead of the Greenleaf Theatre
£150.00

British stage designer (died 1971), painter, writer and lecturer. Both items one page, octavo, and very good, though lightly creased. Both signed 'Maxwell Armfield'. LETTER ONE (docketed and bearing R.S.A. stamp): He has read the lecture by 'Mr. Davis', 'with great interest [...] our opinions on the subject seem to be identical! I should like to meet him some time if he is an accessible sort of person. [...] a series of such lectures issued as pamphlets with attractive titles would do a great deal towards a better understanding of the problem'.

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