SINKING

A tenuous Titanic item: at the time of writing Simon, as solicitor-general, was representing the Board of Trade at the British enquiry into the sinking, at the address on the letterhead. See his entry and Ilbert's in the Oxford DNB. Joyce Violet Ilbert (1890-1957) was the youngest of Sir Courtenay's five daughters. 3pp, 12mo. On bifolium. In good condition, lightly aged and worn. Folded twice. Written in pencil. Signed ‘John Ilbert’.

4pp., 4to. On three leaves. In fair condition, aged and creased. The poem, headed 'Titanic', is 64 lines long, divided into 15 stanzas (the first ten numbered), and is signed and dated at the end, following 'R.I.P.', 'William Hall | May 1912'. The verse is heartfelt and devout, in style something of a cross between Walt Whitman and William McGonagall. Apparently unpublished. The author is unknown, but the poem reflects the popular response to the celebrated maritime disaster.

On one side of a 12 x 13 cm piece of paper. On aged paper with four folds. The crown is drawn in pencil, and is 2.5 x 2.75 cm. The caption, in ink, is below, and reads: 'Scottish crown. | Drawing to be returned.' Between the two lines of text is the firm's stamp, made up of perforated lettering. Presumably a design for a letterhead, or other engraving.

ONE: Prospectus headed: 'Rose's Patent Lifeboats, Ltd. | Share Capital £125,000 in 125,000 Shares of £1 each. | Boats for all for passenger steamers :: The Difficulty Solved | Prospectus.' Printed on one side of a piece of 62.5 x 46.5 cm paper. In fair condition, aged and creased, with some wear to extremities. With four diagrams: 'For Passenger Steamers. - Steel seamless lifeboat. Completely covered in, and a life raft combined. Design No. 8.' and 'Submarine showing position of lifeboat fixed' and 'Submarine lifeboat.

Printed on one side of a piece of 62.5 x 46.5 cm paper. Headed: 'Rose's Patent Lifeboats, Ltd. | Share Capital £125,000 in 125,000 Shares of £1 each. | Boats for all for passenger steamers :: The Difficulty Solved | Prospectus.' In fair condition, aged and creased, with some wear to extremities. With four diagrams: 'For Passenger Steamers. - Steel seamless lifeboat. Completely covered in, and a life raft combined. Design No. 8.' and 'Submarine showing position of lifeboat fixed' and 'Submarine lifeboat.

64 pages, 16mo. In original printed wraps. In poor condition. Ownership inscription at head of front wrap. The two binding staples rusted, and the wraps in particular grubby, torn and worn. Photograph of 'Private JENKIN THOMAS' in what appears to be World War I uniform on front wrap. Illustration of the 'SINKING OF THE "TITANIC." ' on page 9; photograph of 'WILLIAM HERBERT HARRIS, A.L.C.M.' on page 47.