PAKENHAM

See his entry in the Oxford DNB. 1p, foolscap 8vo, on recto of first leaf of bifolium. Docketted in customary style, lengthwise on reverse of second leaf: ‘Earl of Longford / War Office 29 June 68 / Army Chaplain’s Bill’. Addressed to ‘John Graham Esq / &c &c / 3 Westminster Chambers’. Small tight signature 'Longford', good and uncrowded, on creased and worn paper. Folded into packet. The rest of the document is written hurriedly in the under-secretary’s hand.

The two letters in good condition, on lightly aged paper. ONE: 2pp., 12mo. He begins by stating that he 'knew Leonard pretty well in the 2nd Life G[uar]ds., he was a good fellow, but rough and wild - he came from Mullingar, my local capital, a good man with a horn but too heavy for a groom'. He could not give Leonard 'a better character than the regiment has done', and if 'his knee is too bad for him to soldier it probably would prevent him being a groom anywhere [...] he occasionally came before me for punishment - and as a fellow countryman I took an interest in him'.

The collection is lightly-aged, but in good overall condition. It consists of five undated typescripts, twenty-four black and white photographs, and a few items of correspondence. The typescripts: ONE. Early draft of Longford's 1953 autobiography 'Born to Believe', published in 1953. 4to, 58 pp, paginated 1-55, 9A, 9B and 52A. Ends midway through Chapter 6. There are a number of autograph emendations, and the typescript exhibits differences from the published version. A second typed draft of half a page of text covers the earlier draft, which is still legible beneath.