ENGLISH

8vo: 334 pp. Portrait of Northcliffe as frontispiece. Three facsimiles of letters in text and fold-out with facsimiles of three of Northcliffe's letters. Inscribed by Owen on front pastedown 'To Elaine from Louise and Northcliffe. | Nov. 1938'. (The reference to 'Northcliffe' is explained by the fact that Owen considered herself a spirit medium, in contact with the deceased Viscount.) Internally good: sound and tight, on lightly aged paper. In original worn red cloth, with slight bloom on front.

On a fragment, roughly 11 x 16 cm, of a page of laid paper from a diary. Good, on lightly aged paper. Two signatures, under the heading 'July 22': 'Spencer <?> | Steuart Wilson.' Lightly docketed in pencil.

On piece of laid paper (roughly 13 x 11 cm). Aged and chipped. Reads 'Yours truly | Frank Barrington Foote'. Chipping to the outer edge, very close to the last couple of letters of the signature. Foote, who frequently sang with Adelina Patti at Covent Garden, ended his days destitute in New York City.

On a light-green leaf (11 x 14 cm) removed from an autograph album. Lightly aged and creased. Reads 'Hugh P. Allen | Nov 8. 1928'. Lightly docketed in pencil. Two other autographs on reverse.

On one side of a leaf (roughly 11 x 16 mm), removed from an autograph album. Good, on lightly aged paper, with some show-through from amusing drawing on reverse by L. E. H. Phipson. Bold signature reads 'Yours Sincerely | Marie Novello'. Drawing on reverse depicts a monocled old fogey protesting his love to a pretty young thing regarding herself in a handmirror. Captioned 'I'd rather be a young man's slave!' Signed by the illustrator 'L. E. H. Phipson | 6/12/1917'. Docketed in pencil.

On piece of laid paper (roughly 8.5 x 16 cm) cut from diary. On aged paper with wear and 1 cm closed tear at head. Clear and clean signature, beneath the heading 'July 17'.

On piece of laid paper paper (roughly 11 x 16 cm) cut from diary. Good, on lightly-aged paper. Under the heading 'June 25'.

On piece (15 x 16 cm) of laid-paper cut from a page of a diary. Creased and worn at head. Signature under heading 'March 18'. Lightly docketed in pencil.

8vo: 8 pp. Unbound. Stabbed as issued. Very good, on rough-edged wove paper. The seven-page advertisement, signed in type by Cobbett, is succeeded by a page headed 'New Books, published by COBBETT and MORGAN'. (Eight titles are listed.) The advertisement is a personal address from Cobbett, the second paragraph casting valuable light on his motives and intentions: 'When I first undertook the Register, I was fully persuaded, that the plan, which, indeed, I had long thought of, was well calculated to ensure a wide circulation, and to produce an extensive as well as a lasting effect.

Octavo: 29 + [2] pp. Unbound, stabbed and stitched. Slightly dogeared, on grubby, lightly-spotted paper. Loss to top right-hand corner of title-leaf (not affecting text). Two pages of advertisements at rear, headed 'Important pamphlets, etc. Recently published by James Ridgway, Piccadilly.'

305 mm high and 225 mm wide. The print has been trimmed, with the top corners cut away to give the print the appearance of an arched window. A strip, 35 mm high, at the foot contains the caption, with the bottom right-hand corner damaged (not affecting print) by removal from backing. A good crisp impression, on lightly-aged paper, the only faults being loss to the sky above the Emperor as a result of the trimming of the top corners, and a couple of spots of glue to the sky.

On one side of a piece of wove paper roughly 275 x 230 mm. Printed and manuscript text clear and entirely legible on worn, creased and grubby paper with one small strip of paper repairing reverse. Crest of City of London at head. Two sets of four columns, side by side. The four columns are: 'Ships at Market', 'QUALITY', 'Ships sold' and 'PRICE'. The whole of the 'QUALITY' column in the first set is headed 'NEWCASTLE', containing 45 entries from 'Adair's' to 'Walls End Walker'.

Title continues: '[...] Aldermen, and Common Councell of the City of London.' 4to: 8 pp, paginated [ii] + 6. Trimmed (leaf dimensions roughly 165 x 135 mm) causing loss of the last line of text (the publication details beneath the word 'LONDON') on the title. Stitched as issued. Unbound. In poor condition, on aged, spotted and creased paper, with chipping to extremities and with the lower part of the last leaf torn away causing loss of around a dozen lines of text. A few lines in a contemporary hand on the first couple of leaves.

Printed on one side of a piece of stiff art paper (shiny on printed side, matt on reverse), dimensions roughly 245 x 160 mm). Very good. The name of the firm is not stated, and dabs of colour in 3 mm margins as printing guide. Attractive and characteristic illustration, in eight (?) colours: dark brown, beige, green, red, pink, yellow, dark and light blue, showing a carriage clock surrounded by plate, jewellery (including a goblet, a fan, a pearl necklace, a fob watch, decanters) and a profusion of flowers. The calendar in twelve tiny squares, six at the head at six at the foot.

On both sides of a piece of wove paper, dimensions roughly 8.5 x 20 cm. Cruikshank's signature is approximately 9 cm long, with the final letter of his Christian name in superscript. Paper aged and creased, with central vertical fold, and wear to one edge (not affecting text). Recto reads '<...> in the interim - | That 2 door Mats be ordered for the use of the Society | Adjourned till Thursday 7th June - | [signed] Geoe Cruikshank | Monday June 4. | General Meeting of the Society | Mr Parsonage in the Chair.

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

On a piece of paper, roughly 14 x 12 cm. Creased, and with a few pin holes (not affecting text). Edges untidily cut. Possibly the ffep of a presented book. Text in purple ink, with good firm signature (roughly 4.5 cm long). Reads 'To my very dear Friend | E. Bawden | [signed] Lionel Ellis | Siena May 1926'. The '6' in the date slightly cropped.

12mo: 2 pp. Sixteen lines of text. Good, on aged paper, with a strip from the previous mount adhering at the head of the reverse. Docketed in a contemporary hand 'Jacob Bell' and 'M. P. for St. Albans 1851.' He thanks him for taking the trouble to search 'the last document which fortunately is found much to my surprise in a store room in my own house'. He 'cannot account for the accident' and apologises once again.

The proofs are on one side each of five strips (each approximately 60 x 15.5 cm) of discoloured high-acidity paper. They are in good condition, with a little light creasing, and slight chipping at head of first strip (not affecting text). They are headed 'GALLEY ONE [TWO, THREE, FOUR, EIGHT]'. Text clear and entire. The article reads continuously, with no hiatus between Galleys Four and Eight. Some simple errors indicate that these are early proofs, i.e.

On a piece of paper roughly 5.5 x 13 cm. Good firm signature (8 cm long) on lightly aged and creased paper. Reads 'Faithfully yours | [signed] Marie Corelli'. Fragment on reverse reads '<...> education nowadays <...> hope you <...> induced to <...> estimable'.

On a piece of wove paper, roughly 5 x 14.5 cm. Rough lower edge. Good, on lightly aged paper. 0.5 cm closed tear at left (not affecting signature). Paper folded once vertically. Good clear signature.

Two pages. Dimensions of paper fourteen and a half inches by nine inches. Aged and stained, with fraying to extremities and some loss to one corner (not affecting text). Order to 'deliver and pay of such his Majesty's Treasure as remains in your Charge unto John Earl of Dunmore or his Assigns the Sum of Two hundred and Fifty Pounds', on Dunmore's 'Annuity or yearly Pension of One Thousand Pounds as one of the Gentlemen of his Majesty's Bedchamber'. With signatures of 'Winnington', 'G Earle' and <?>. Docketed 'Mr. Yorke I pray pay this Order out of Addl.

Octavo: 190 pp. In original red cloth binding. First edition. Lacks rear free endpaper. On aged paper and in heavily worn binding. INSCRIBED by author on creased front free endpaper 'Much that is contained in this book is founded on fact | [signed] William Le Queux | Oct 1916'.

Both items concern John Littlejohn's 'British Watercolour Painting and Painters of Today' (Pitman, 1931). Note of 18 December 1930: 12mo, 1 p. Five lines. Good on lightly aged paper. Thanking the publishers for sending 'the prints of my drawings [...] they are really very well done!' Letter of 13 February 1931: 12mo,1 p. Eight lines. Good, on lightly creased paper. Thanking the publishers for four presentation copies of the book. 'It is a handsome book and the drawings are well reproduced: I am particularly pleased with those of my own drawings.' Two items,

On irregularly shaped piece of paper, roughly 3 x 7 cm, cut around the signature and its double underlining. Good signature, with slight smudging to a couple of letters.

Landscape 12mo: 1 p. Headed 'Stage and Film Decor.' He thanks her for her letter of 4 November. 'I eagerly await book. If you could spare me more than one [last three words underlined] I should be appreciative.'

The six-line letter, which is laid down on a slightly larger piece of lilac paper, was originally on one side of an octavo leaf, but it has had a strip (presumably carrying the name and address of the recipient) beneath the address cut away. It is now in two pieces: 5 x 15.5 and 12 x 15.5 cm. Otherwise very good. Laid down on the top piece is a slip of paper in Hill's hand, reading 'From: Air Commodore Dame Felicity Hill D.B.E. WRAF (retd)'. In the bottom right-hand corner of the second piece of paper is a strip carrying Hill's autograph.

All three items concern Littlejohns' 'British Watercolour Painting and Painters of Today' (London: Pitman, 1931)'. First Letter: 12mo, 3 pp. 43 lines. Text clear and entire. On two leaves attached to one another in a corner by a pin. Good, on lightly-creased paper. Interesting and informative letter concerning 'two watercolours' which Williams would 'like to be 'reproduced in [Littlejohn's] work on water colours'. Gives details of the titles of the works and the name and address of the owner, 'who has consented to send them'.

Printed on one side only of a piece of watermarked laid paper, dimensions 32.5 x 19.5 cm. Folded twice for insertion in the magazine. Good, apart from strip of approximately 0.5 x 5.5 cm loss along top fold, affecting one word of text, and neatly repaired with archival tape. At head of page clean impression of satirical engraving (roughly 8.5 x 13 cm), showing Beckford (father of the connoisseur), in Lord Mayor's robes, telling Harley to 'Receive Instructions & not Silver'. Harley, holding a jacket, tailor's iron and shears, replies 'Teach us our Lesson! Are we then School Boys?

Folio: ii + 59 + [1] pp. Unbound. Stitched as issued. Text clear and entire, but in poor condition: on creased, discoloured and stained paper, with wear to extremities. Begins 'WHEREAS fires in warehouses in the borough of Liverpool have of late years been of frequent and alarming recurrence, and have been attended with considerable loss of life and property.' 124 clauses, followed by seven pages of 'Schedules referred to by the foregoing act'.