VERE

[‘I used it because I meant it’: Nicolas Bentley, writer, illustrator and cartoonist.] Typed Letter Signed to V. H. Collins, defending his use of the phrase ‘I am afraid’.

Author: 
Nicolas Bentley [born Nicholas Clerihew Bentley] (1907-1978), writer, illustrator and cartoonist [Vere Henry Collins]
Publication details: 
10 October 1955. On letterhead of Andre Deutsch Limited, Publishers, 12-14 Carlisle Street, Soho Square, London W1.
£50.00

See his entry by Ruari Maclean in the Oxford DNB. The recipient Vere Henry Collins (1872-1966), was an author and grammatical stickler. 1p, 12mo. In good condition, lightly aged. With Bentley’s distinctive stylized signature ‘Nicolas Bentley’. After thanking him for his letter he writes (apparently with reference to a newspaper article): ‘I am sorry if in using the phrase “I am afraid” I ruffled your grammatical sensibilities. I used it because I meant it.

['I write it as rapidly as I can, with my head full of Marcel': Pamela Hansford Johnson, writer and playwright.] Autograph Letter Signed to V. H. Collins, discussing her Proust-inspired BBC radio play 'Madame de Charlus'.

Author: 
Pamela Hansford Johnson [married name Pamela Helen Hansford Snow, Lady Snow] (1912-1981), writer and playwright, wife of the novelist C. P. Snow [Vere Henry Collins, author]
Publication details: 
31 December 1954. On letterhead of Nethergate House, Clare, Suffolk.
£56.00

An interesting letter, in which Johnson discusses her writing practice. See her entry and that of her husband in the Oxford DNB. The recipient Vere Henry Collins (1872-1966), was an author and grammatical stickler. 2pp, 12mo. 27 lines of text. In good condition, lightly aged, with slight rust spotting from a paperclip. Folded twice for postage. On the topic of ‘Madame de Charlus’, one of the ‘Six Proust Reconstructions’ - plays by Johnson inspired by the work of Marcel Proust - just broadcast on the BBC Third Programme, she thanks him for his ‘most kind & pleasing letter’.

[Randolph Churchill [Major Randolph Spencer-Churchill], only son of Winston Churchill.] Typed Letter Signed to V. H. Collins, invoking his father’s name in support of his use of the word ‘EGALITARIAN’.

Author: 
Randolph Churchill, only son of Winston Churchill [Major Randolph Frederick Edward Spencer-Churchill] (1911-1968), writer, soldier, and Conservative Member of Parliament [Vere Henry Collins, author]
Publication details: 
7 July 1953. Oving House, Oving, Nr. Aylesbury, Bucks, on cancelled letterhead of 12 Catherine Place, London SW1.
£65.00

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 1p, 4to. In good condition, lightly aged. Signed ‘Randoph S. Churchill. The recipient Vere Henry Collins (1872-1966), was an author and grammatical stickler. After apologising for the delayed response he administers an effective put-down: ‘I do not pretend to be an expert in these mattes, but I have never heard the word EQUALITARIAN used in ordinary talk. EGALITARIAN, on the other hand, I have heard used by a wide variety of people who speak good English, including Sir Winston Churchill.

[Michael Sadleir, novelist, biographer and bibliographer.] Typed Letter Signed to V. H. Collins, apologising for a grammatical error, and informing him that he is ordering a copy of his book ‘The Choice of Words’.

Author: 
Michael Sadleir [Michael Thomas Harvey Sadleir, formerly Sadler] (1888-1957), novelist, biographer and bibliographer [Vere Henry Collins (1872-1966), author and literary stylist]
Publication details: 
12 August 1953. On letterhead of [Constable & Co.,] 10 Orange Street, London WC2.
£45.00

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 1p, 12mo. In fair condition, lightly aged, with a crease, dogeared corner and small nick. Folded once for postage. Signed ‘Michael Sadleir’. He is grateful to Collins ‘for pointing out the careless grammatical mistake of mine in the SUNDAY TIMES review. It is only too easy to slip into a conversational style (for I think that what I meant was perfectly clear) when writing rapid condensations for a newspaper.

[‘the lover of words (as I am)’: Lord Birkett, judge, British representative at the Nuremberg Trials.] Two Typed Letters Signed, one with long Autograph Postscript, and Typed Note Signed, all to V. H. Collins, defending his use of language.

Author: 
Lord Birkett [William Norman Birkett, 1st Baron Birkett] (1883-1962), judge, a British representative at the Nuremberg Trials, Lord Justice of Appeal, Liberal Member of Parliament [Vere Henry Collins]
Publication details: 
LETTERS: 9 July 1953 and 11 May 1954. NOTE: 14 July 1953. All three items on letterheads of the Royal Courts of Justice, Strand, London, WC2.
£180.00

The third letter gives an excellent indication of Birkett’s pride in his use of language. See his entry in the Oxford DNB. The recipient Vere Henry Collins (1872-1966), was an author and grammatical stickler. All three signed ‘Norman Birkett’. In fair condition, lightly aged and little grubby. The first letter with a small hole to one corner, and the two leaves of the last letter held together with a pin. ONE: ALS, 9 July 1953. 1pp, 4to. He is adding Collins’s book to his ‘select library on “words”’.

[A ‘happy and hap-hazard hedonist of etymologist’: Ivor Brown.] Autograph Letter Signed and Autograph Card Signed to V. H. Collins, the former defending his position as an ‘amateur’ rather than a ‘verbal authority’.

Author: 
Ivor Brown [Ivor John Carnegie Brown] (1891-1974), popular and prolific author, noted for his entertaining books on language [Vere Henry Collins, author]
Publication details: 
LETTER: 24 July 1953, on letterhead of the Observer, 22 Tudor Street, London EC4. CARD: 30 March [1954]. 20 Christchurch Hill NW3 [London].
£80.00

One could not find a better assessment by Brown of his qualities as a writer on language than the letter offered here. As his entry in the Oxford DNB notes: ‘As well as using the English language expertly, he was one of those logophiles, such as F. G. Fowler, H. W. Fowler, and Eric Partridge, who are fascinated by language itself. He became famous for his books about words, agreeable rambles around correct usage and philology, enlivened by literary allusion, quotation, wit, and personal anecdote.

[Lord Vere Beauclerk, Senior Naval Lord at the Admiralty and Member of Parliament.] Autograph Signature (‘Vere’) to Exchequer receipt for £30. With signature of witnesses Henry Woodall and ‘Ogborn’.

Author: 
Lord Vere Beauclerk [latterly Lord Vere (Vere Beauclerk, Baron Vere of Hanworth)] (1699-1781), Royal Navy officer, Senior Naval Lord at the Admiralty and Member of Parliament ; Henry Woodall; Ogborn
Vere
Publication details: 
3 May 1750. [His Majesty's Exchequer, London.]
£65.00
Vere

See his entries in the Oxford DNB and History of Parliament. The signature (‘Vere’) is good and bold, at the bottom right of the document, as is that of first witness Henry Woodall (‘Hez Woodall’), but there is slight loss at the beginning of the signature of the second witness ‘[...] Ogborn’, and the left side of the document has been torn away also causing loss to printed text, and there is wear and pitting along the top and left edge. The customary printed document, completed in manuscript. 1p, 8vo.

[Anne Chamberlain, wife of British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain.] Autograph Note Signed on her Downing Street calling card, thanking the recipient and ‘Major Cripps’ for ‘lovely carnations’.

Author: 
Neville Chamberlain’s wife Ann Chamberlain [Anne de Vere Chamberlain (née Cole), 1883-1967); Arthur Neville Chamberlain, British Prime Minister (1869-1940), widely condemned as an appeaser of Hitler]
Chamberlain
Publication details: 
No date, but calling card with printed address ‘Downing Street, / S.W.1.’ and so during her husband’s premiership, 1937 to 1940.
£80.00
Chamberlain

On 11.5 x 7.5 cm calling card. In good condition, lightly aged. The calling card is printed in copperplate font, with the name ‘Mrs. Neville Chamberlain.’ centred, and the address ‘10, Downing Street, / S.W.1.’ at bottom left. Two lines of the inscription are written above the name and the rest beneath. Reads: ‘Thank you so [sic] & Major Cripps so much for those more lovely carnations which I appreciated so much. / Anne Chamberlain’. See image.

[Anne de Vere Chamberlain, wife of Conservative Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain.] Autograph Note Signed ('Anne Chamberlain') to printed notice of thanks for messages of condolence on her husband's death.

Author: 
Anne de Vere Chamberlain [née Cole] (1883-1967), wife of Conservative Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain [Arthur Neville Chamberlain] (1869-1940), who pursued a policy of appeasement against Hitler
Publication details: 
Printed notice is dated from Highfield Park, Heckfield, Basingstoke; November 1940; Autograph Note undated.
£100.00

1p, 12mo. In good condition, lightly aged. Conventionally-presented printed notice, in copperplate with mourning border, with address and date at foot. Reads: 'Mrs. Neville Chamberlain is deeply grateful for the wonderful messages and letters which she has received and she sends you her heartfelt thanks for your sympathy.' At the head of the notice is the ANS: 'Thank you Sir Egerton so much. I [?] you are right in what you say about my husband's efforts & work. & I like to have your sympathy. | Anne Chamberlain'.

[Anne de Vere Chamberlain, widow of Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain.] Typed Letter Signed ('Anne Chamberlain') to journalist Collin Brooks, regarding his editorship of 'Truth' and the possibility of a meeting.

Author: 
Anne de Vere Chamberlain [née Cole] (1883-1967) wife of British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain (1869-1940), proponent of Appeasement of Nazi Germany [Collin Brooks (), journalist]
Publication details: 
On letterhead 8 Chester Square, S.W.1 [London]. 15 October 1954.
£50.00

Anne Chamberlain stood before the crowds on the balcony of Buckingham Palace with her husband and the members of the royal family, following his return with the 'piece of paper', 30 September 1938. 1p., 12mo. On blue paper. In fair condition, worn and lightly-creased, with a couple of staple-marks at head. The salutation and valediction are written in flowing autograph: 'Dear Mr. Brooks' and 'Yours sincerely | With all kind remembrances | Anne Chamberlain'.

[ Aubrey de Vere, Irish poet. ] Autograph Letter Signed ('Aubrey de Vere') [ to Samuel Waddington ], giving permission to publish sonnets by him in an anthology, and commenting on Hartley Coleridge, William Wordsworth and Sir Aubrey de Vere.

Author: 
Aubrey de Vere [ Aubrey Thomas Hunt de Vere ] (1814-1902), Irish poet annd critic [ Samuel Waddington ]
Publication details: 
On letterhead of the Athenaeum Club, Pall Mall [ London ]. 2 July 1880.
£110.00

3pp., 16mo. Bifolium. In good condition, lightly aged, with traces of stub adhering to blank reverse of sevond leaf. He is 'very much flattered' at Waddington's 'wishing to include sonnets of mine in your proposed selection. You are quite welcome to those you have named, or any others of mine.' He hopes he will 'include some of Hartley Coleridge's beautiful sonnets', and asks him to accept 'a vol. of sonnets by my Father, the late Sir Aubrey de Vere. Wordsworth spoke of his sonnets (my Father's) as the best modern sonnets he was acquainted with'.

[ Thomas Vere Bayne, friend of Lewis Carroll. ] Autograph Letter Signed ('T. Vere Bayne') to Sir Richard Harington, regarding an anecdote by Augustus Hare concerning Samuel Smith, Dean of Christ Church, Oxford.

Author: 
Thomas Vere Bayne (1829-1908), Student of Christ Church, Oxford, and friend of Charles Lutwidge Dodgson ('Lewis Carroll') [ Sir Richard Harington (1835-1911) of Ridlington, 11th Baronet ]
Publication details: 
On letterhead of the Royal Victoria Hotel, St. Leonards-on-Sea. 10 Janary 1897.
£75.00

2pp., 12mo. Bifolium. In good condition, lightly aged. A charming letter, the subject of which is an anecdote told by Augustus Hare in his autobiography relating to Samuel Smith, Dean of Christ Church, which was considered 'defamatory' by Smith's relation Harington, and gave offence to his family.

[ Admiral Vere Beauclerk, 1st Baron Vere. ] Autograph Signature ('Vere.') on part of Exchequer receipt.

Author: 
Admiral Vere Beauclerk, 1st Baron Vere (1699-1781), known as Lord Vere Beauclerk until 1750, British peer and politician
Publication details: 
His Majesty's Receipt of Exchequer, London. 27 July 1764.
£150.00

Part of printed receipt made out to Vere, on one side of a trimmed-down 18 x 12.5 cm. piece of paper. In fair condition, lightly aged and worn. Recording the receipt of £42 10s 0d, on behalf of 'Lady Vere & Hble Aubrey Beauclerk'.

[ Admiral Vere Beauclerk, 1st Baron Vere. ] Autograph Signature ('Vere.') on Exchequer receipt.

Author: 
Admiral Vere Beauclerk, 1st Baron Vere [ Lord Vere Beauclerk ] (1699-1781), grandson of King Charles II and Member of Parliament
Publication details: 
[ His Majesty's Receipt of Exchequer, London. ] 8 January 1765.
£150.00

1p., 8vo. In fair condition, aged and with particular wear to extremities. Laid out in the usual way, with printed text completed in manuscript. (The printed name of 'the Right Honourable James Earl Waldegrave, One of the Four Tellers of His Majesty's Receipt of Exchequer' has been amended in manuscript to 'Ld Henley', and the change initaled 'W. C.') Recording payment of £42 16s 0d on an annuity of £85. Signed at end, with the signature of the witness ''.

[ Printed House of Lords publication. ] Case and Pedigree on behalf of Henry De Vere Vane, of 74, Eaton Place, In the County of London, claiming to be Baron Barnard of Barnard Castle, in the Peerage of England, on his claim to the said title, [...]

Author: 
[ Henry De Vere Vane, 9th Baron Barnard of Barnard Castle (1854-1918); House of Lords, Lords Committee of Privileges ]
Publication details: 
In the House of Lords, Before the Lords Committee of Privileges. [ Trower, Freeling, & Parkin, Lincoln's Inn. ]
£120.00

(The title ends: '[...] the said title, honour, and dignity.') 52pp., folio. With large fold-out 'Pedigree of the Barony of Barnard'. In brown printed paper covers with red ribbon spine. In fair condition, on aged and worn paper, in worn and chipped wraps. Mainly consisting of 'Proofs to be adduced in support of the case of Henry De Vere Vane, claiming to be Baron Barnard of Barnard Castle, on his claim to the said peerage'. and an appendix in five parts. On the death in 1890 of the 4th Duke of Cleveland, the line of succession to the dukedom was left unclear.

[ E. Rimbault Dibdin, art critic and curator. ] Five Typed Letters Signed (all 'Edwd Rimbault Dibdin') to Sir Henry Trueman Wood, Secretary, Royal Society of Arts, regarding the Liverpool artists Richard Wright, Peter Perez Burdett and William Tate.

Author: 
E. Rimbault Dibdin [ Edward Rimbault Vere Dibdin ] (1853-1941), art critic, curator of the Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool [ Sir Henry Trueman Wood (1845-1929), Secretary, Royal Society of Arts ]
Publication details: 
The five on letterheads of the Walker Art Gallery, City of Liverpool, and dating between 27 November 1915 and 23 February 1916.
£220.00

The letters total 5pp., 4to; and 1p., 12mo. In good condition, on lightly-aged paper. With stamps of the Royal Society of Arts. On the reverse of one letter are pencil notes, presumably by Wood.

[ Barnard family pedigree. ] Autograph 'Draft Pedigree' by Frederick Arthur Crisp of the family of Lord Barnard.

Author: 
Henry de Vere Vane (1854-1918), 9th Baron Barnard, senior Freemason [ Frederick Arthur Crisp (1851-1922), FSA, genealogist ]
Publication details: 
In printed folder ('Visitation of England and Wales') for Frederick Arthur Crisp, F.S.A., "Grove Park Press," 270 Walworth Road, London, S.E. 1918 or later.
£60.00

The pedigree is written out by Crisp on one side of a 37 x 95 cm piece of paper, folded twice into a 37 x 23.5 cm packet, printed on the front of which is: 'Visitation of England and Wales. | DRAFT PEDIGREE. | Please return to Frederick Arthur Crisp, F.S.A., "Grove Park Press," 270 Walworth Road, London, S.E.' The same address is embossed at the head. In good condition, on lightly-aged paper. 'Barnard, B.' in manuscript in top right-hand corner of cover, underlined in red. Dated on cover '1905', but with latest entry for 1918.

Autograph Letter Signed from the Irish poet Aubrey de Vere, containing an appreciation of the theologian Richard Holt Hutton, with references to the new edition of his poems, the publishers Macmillan & Co, Baron von Hugel, and the Tennyson family.

Author: 
Aubrey de Vere [Aubrey Thomas de Vere] (1814-1902), Irish poet [Richard Holt Hutton (1826-1897), writer and theologian]
Autograph Letter Signed from the Irish poet Aubrey de Vere
Publication details: 
August 1895; on letterhead of the Athenaeum, Pall Mall, London.
£130.00
Autograph Letter Signed from the Irish poet Aubrey de Vere

16mo, 4 pp. 64 lines. Text clear and complete. Hutton was a friend of both de Vere and his correspondent, and 'this will always remain a link between us; for no one who ever knew him can forget him; & no one who remembers him can ever cease to honour him'.

Autograph Signature of the Australian composer William G. James, together with the score of the opening bars of his song 'The Sun-God' in his autograph.

Author: 
William G. James [William Garnet ('Billy') James] (1892-1977), Australian pianist and composer [Aubrey de Vere]
Autograph Signature of the Australian composer William G. James
Publication details: 
Undated.
£125.00
Autograph Signature of the Australian composer William G. James

On one side of a piece of pink paper, roughly 18 x 7.5 cm, cut from an autograph album. In good condition, on lightly-aged paper. At the head James has written ' "The Sun-God" W. G. James', with the opening two bars beneath this, beneath which he has written the words 'I saw the master of the Sun -' In the bottom right-hand corner: 'Yrs Sincerely | William G. James'. James's music for Aubrey de Vere's poem was first published in 1921.

Album containing 112 well-executed pen and ink drawings by the French nineteenth-century artist H. Du Chene de Vere [H. Duchene de Vere].

Author: 
H. Du Chene de Vere [H. Duchene de Vere], French nineteenth-century painter
H. Du Chene de Vere [H. Duchene de Vere], French nineteenth-century painter
Publication details: 
All undated [1850s?]. Captions may indicate that the drawings were executed in France, Italy and England.
£1,200.00
H. Du Chene de Vere [H. Duchene de Vere], French nineteenth-century painter

4to album of 33 leaves, with the 112 illustrations each on a separate piece of paper, and all laid down on 59 of the album's 66 leaves (the blank leaves of the album bearing traces of other illustrations having been removed). The illustrations range in size from 19 x 15.5 cm to 6 x 3 cm, with the average around 15 x 11 cm. The album's brown cloth covers are faded and worn, but internally the album is sound, with the illustrations themselves in good condition, on lightly-aged paper. Around twenty are signed, half with the spelling 'Duchene' and the other half 'Du Chene'.

Autograph Signature ('H de Vere Stacpoole.').

Author: 
Henry de Vere Stacpoole [Harry] (1863-1951), Anglo-Irish novelist, best known for his often-filmed book 'The Blue Lagoon' (1908)
Publication details: 
Place and date not stated.
£23.00

On a piece of thin card roughly 8.5 x 11.5 cm. Very good. Good signature, 7.5 cm long, neatly centred.

Autograph Note Signed to unnamed male correspondent.

Author: 
Henry De Vere Stacpoole
Publication details: 
24 April 1930; on letterhead of the Royal Marine Hotel, Ventnor.
£25.00

Irish novelist (1863-1951). One page, 12mo. Good, but with some rust stains from staple. Reads 'Dear Sir | I enclose autograph with much pleasure | Believe me | yours truly | H De Vere Stacpoole.'

Syndicate content