SPORTS

Although there is no clear connection, the present unpublished poem dates from around the same time as Edward Lear was drawing watercolours in the place referred to in it. Vidya Dehejia’s‘Impossible Picturesqueness / Edward Lear’s Indian Watercolours, 1873-1875’ (1989) describes how Lear visited ‘The two small hill-stations of Matheran and Mahabaleshwar near Bombay’. Of the former Lear wrote: ‘Matheran by the bye, has most probably been the original Eden - I don’t mean the first Lord Auckland, - but Paradise -’.

Barton, who was born in London, joined the Royal Mint’s Melbourne branch as one of two assayers on its opening in 1869; in 1887 he was promoted to Superintendent, and in 1895 to Deputy Master, holding that position until his reitrement in 1904. See his entry in the Encyclopaedia of Australian Science and Innovation. In case Barton has misspelled the name, the recipient may be William Dawson Grubb (1817-1879) or his son Frederick William Grubb (1844-1923), who have a joint-entry in the Australian Dictionary of National Biography. 3pp, 12mo. Bifolium. Signed ‘Robert Barton’.

The present item is excessively scarce: there is no record of it on either OCLC WorldCat or JISC. The Staff College Drag Hunt at the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, was established in 1869 as a private pack which drag-hunted twice a week in the area surrounding Camberley, and after more than a hundred and fifty years, the hunt still rides. 1p, 12mo. Text enclosed in rules with decorative corners. In fair condition, lightly worn and spotted, with traces of stub and mounting on blank reverse. Titled: ‘The Staff College Drag Hunt Song. / By Major M.

In blue ink on a 9 x 6 cm rectangle of laid paper. In good condition. Hard signs first ('Darlene | Hard') with Rosewall's signature ('Ken Rosewall') curving upwards beneath hers. Between the two, in another hand is the date 1956, and beneath Rosewall's signature, in the same hand, is '(Rosewall)'. In 1956 Rosewall was on the verge of turning professional. In that year he won the US Open, beating fellow-Australian Lew Hoad. It was one of eight Grand Slam finals he played in as an amateur, winning three. In 1956 Hard was nearing her peak.

9pp, 12mo. On twi bifoliums and a single leaf, only the first of the bifoliums carrying the letterhead. In good condition, on aged paper. Folded once and in an envelope with 'Whist for 2. | Rules by Miss Stanton.' on cover. The letterhead has the feel of the 1920s, but the handwriting is Victorian, and presumably that of an old spinster. The first bifolium carries a separate set of instructions over four pages, headed 'Whist for two', and concluding: 'Hope you can read it excuse blots for I cant see what I have written'.

On 8 x 11 cm piece of card. In fair condition, lightly aged, with traces of glue from mount on reverse. A good bold signature, clearly in response to a request for an autograph. Reads: 'Yours Truly | Willie Smith | 1 – 2 – 24'. Smith has made a short line under the date, but the signature is not underlined.

1p, 8vo. In good condition. Laid down on part of leaf from album. Reads: 'Lord Albemarle presents His Compliments to the Mayor Elect, and is sorry to find that It is not in his power to have the Honor of dining with him at Yarmouth on Michaelmas Day next.'

8pp., 8vo. On two bifoliums, unstitched and unbound. Aged and worn. A spoof of an Act of Parliament, priced at threepence, with parody of the royal coat of arms at the head of the first page, with motto 'Throw Physic To The Dogs | The Mixture As Before'. Paragraph synopses in the margins, with around 40 caricature illustrations. A lighthearted satire on drunken seaside revelry ('The Popular Revolutionary Air of “We won't go Home till Morning” to be forthwith suppressed.' and 'Cheap Cigars and the Snobs who smoke them, to be put down.').

1p., 16mo. In fair condition, aged and with bands of glue at head and tail on reverse. He thanks her for her note, but he cannot join her party. 'I wish I could!' Postscript: 'I hope you are quite well again!'

Crisply printed, with the long s, on one side of a piece of 37.5 x 25 cm. thick laid paper. In fair condition, aged and worn, having been used to wrap up items, and with the following in manuscript on reverse: 'No. 1. | Vouchers | recd. of Mr. Gabell'. The text begins: 'Notice is hereby given, that by the Acts of 48 Geo. III. Cap. 55. and 52 Geo. III. Cap. 93.

A total of 46pp., mostly on 4to Mtotohovu letterheads. In fair condition, aged and worn. From the Meynell family papers. In the first letter he describes his preparations for an elephant shoot on the Serengeti: 'I a taking a 400 elephant gun a 300 high velocity gun, and a shot gun. My escort consists of a gun bearer, cook, tent boy lorry driver & skinner.' Of the participants in the '"Ngoma" native dance games' he writes: 'they really were awful, covered in red & yellow clay or mud - they really did look maniacs & I am sure are more than half Savages'.

3pp., 12mo. Bifolium. In fair condition, on aged and worn paper, with closed tear along gutter and traces of mount on black reverse of second leaf. He fears she will think him 'but faithless' when he asks that she does not wait for him that day, 'as if Lord B. comes in to Edinbh. as I expect him to I cannot depend on getting away from home as early as 2'. He suggests that they go to Arthur's Seat the following day, and in a postscript explains that his sons have delivered the present letter 'en passant to school', and that they will wait 'for a verbal answer' on their way home.

1p., 8vo. In fair condition, on aged paper with wear to extremities. Addressed to 'F. Gardner Esq | Little Coggeshall | Essex'. The letter is signed 'Wm Ford | Per Pro' and reads: 'Dear Sir | In reply to your kind enquiry the cost to improve the shooting of your little .410 would be about 10/- if a double gun as near as I can tell without seeing it. | Trusting to be favoured with your kind command'. The letterhead contains a mass of text at the head and filling the left-hand margin.

4pp., 12mo. Bifolium. In good condition, on lightly-aged paper. He requests him to have 'a warrant issued, in my favour, for a Buck from The New Forest, as soon after this letter reaches you, as may be convenient - and that you will give the instructions for its disposal'. He gives three numbered instructions regarding the warrant's packing and dispatch, adding 'going by the Luggage train is essential, in order that the expence may not be excessive'. In a postscript he asks that the buck be 'killed & dispatched ' when the weather is 'suitable'.

Not published. A fair copy, neatly written out over 8pp., 4to. 175 lines, in heroic couplets. On two bifoliums of wove paper, each with hunting-horn watermark of 'G R'. A well-written production, with valuable content regarding a loathsome practice which persisted in England until 1835.

On a piece of 6 x 10 cm paper. Laid down on leaf removed from autograph album, next to a newspaper cutting of a photograph of Drobny at play. Three autographs on slips of paper laid down on the reverse of the leaf: one of 'Leonard Cheshire' and two of Hugh Foot (one 'Hugh Foot' and the other 'Hugh Caradon').

The seventeen signatures are on a piece of 8.5 x 11 cm paper, laid down on a leaf removed from an album, captioned '"ENGLAND" RUGBY FOOTBALL TEAM | 1954'. In good condition, on lightly-aged paper. Present (with one unidentified) are the signatures of Vic Leadbetter; Ted Woodward; Phil Jones; John Kendall-Carpenter; <?>; Jeff Butterworth; Pat Quinn; Eric Evans; Tug Wilson; Peter Young; Dickie Jeeps; Gordon Rimmer; Peter Yarranton; Rob Stirling; Martin Regan; Sandy Sanders; Reg Higgins. It may be that the item is misdated, as this exact team did not play in the Five Nations of that year.

1p., 12mo. In good condition, on lightly aged and worn paper. The note reads: 'My dear Sir | You and your Brother are quite welcome to come and fish here, on any day that you like; and I only hope that you may find any sport. | Believe me| Very faithfully Your's [sic] | Churchill'.

2pp., 12mo. On two leaves laid down on a piece of paper removed from an autograph album. In fair condition, slightly-ruckled and worn. The letterhead, printed in red, consists of a monogram of a shining sun, with 'MASUDA STATE' on a banner above it, and the motto 'QUO FAS ET GLORIO DUCUNT' beneath. The letter reads: 'My dear Sir | I thank you very much for your kind letter of the 12th. Instant. I had killed a pig seven days ago[.] It was a very good and joky [sic] game[.] It suddenly fell by my stroke of spear. My mare also fell being pushed at the leg by the pig.

12mo, 1 p. On bifolium. Thirteen lines of text. Clear and complete. Fair, on aged and creased paper, with slight rust marking from hooks. Semi-literate, and redolent of the area and period. He asks Devon (not Captain Thomas Barker Devon, RN, who had died in 1846) to 'pardon the Liberty I have taken in writen [sic]' to him. He knows 'the Great difficulty that Gentlemen have in Getting good made peal [sic] Flys and firm Tied ones', and is enclosing 'a few of my Own Making & you will Greatly Oblidge me by your Trying of them'.

4to, 6 pp, with a seventh leaf carrying the title 'The Ludlow Hunt Alphabet. An Adaptation.' (The title at the head of the poem itself is 'The Ludlow Alphabet. An Adaptation.') A genuine typescript, and not a reproduction. A poem of 128 lines, divided into 32 4-line stanzas. Fair, on aged paper, with the last leaf laid down on a leaf of an autograph album, with traces of a newspaper cutting on the reverse. Consisting of playful references to members of the Hunt, arranged alphabetically. First stanza: 'A's for Allcroft, on chestnut | With frontlet of blue.

4to, 2 pp. Bifolium. Addressed ('H. Davidson Esqr | | No 3 North Charlotte St | Edinb') and docketed ('Offer | The Clyde Salmon Fishing Company. | For Menzies Fishings in Holy Lock'), with two postmarks, on the reverse of the second leaf. Twenty three lines of text (including four-line initialled postscript), clear and complete. Good, on aged paper, with hole in second leaf from breaking of wafer. Discussing proposed terms, ending 'Or in place of a sent will give the net proceeds of every tenth fish after marketing -'.

One page. On one side of a piece of watermarked, laid paper, 18 x 11.5 cm, with the reverse blank. On aged paper with slight loss to left-hand margin and slight stain beneath text at foot of page. Laid down on a leaf removed from an album.

Printed on one side of a piece of wove paper, 25 x 18.5 cm. Good, on lightly creased paper. Giving detailed information in two columns of small print. Addressed 'To Thomas Ashworth, Esq.' and signed in type, 'Dr. Anthony Wimmer, Professor. Landshut, 11th June, 1857.' Scarce: no copy in the British Library or on COPAC.

12mo bifolium: 4 pp. Printed on grey paper. Very good. Small print.

Both items with text clear and entire. Item One: offprint, on one side of a piece of wove paper 25 x 18.5 cm. Good, on lightly-aged paper with some wear to extremities. Headed 'AQUAECULTURE, And the Artificial Propogation [sic] of the Danube Salmon in Bavaria, BY DR. WIMMER. | Re-printed from the Macclesfield Courier June 27, 1857.' The letter, dated 'Landshut, 11th June, 1857', is addressed to 'Thomas Ashworth, Esq.' and covers two columns of small print. Item Two: offprint, on one side of a piece of watermarked wove paper 33.5 x 20.5 cm.

12mo, 2 pp. Text complete and legible, on grubby and creased paper. Trace of grey paper mount adhering to blank verso of second leaf of bifolium. Crude caricature of a man's face in top left-hand corner of first page. Draper 'bolted from the Club last night' - Webber can 'guess the cause' - 'thereby depriving the committee of the unit necessary to form a quorum'. Had he not done so 'Marks would have shown you the drawing which he had brought down, finished, for your inspection.' Webber will 'bring it with me to the Circle to-morrow.

Dimensions: 5 inches by 7 inches. Somewhat grubby and with ink stain at foot. Headed 'THE MASTERS OF FOX HOUNDS ASSOCIATION, | TATTERSALLS, ALBERT GATE, LONDON.' Standing order to Dalkeith's bank, Coutts & Co of 59 Strand, to make an annual payment on 1 May to the Herries Farquhar branch of Lloyds one pound, as his subscription to the association. Signed 'Dalkeith'. Docketed by the bank and pinned to a 'Tattersalls' letterhead, roughly 5 inches by 7 inches, carrying a note which reads 'With the Secretary of the M. F. H. A's compliments.

2 pages, 16mo. Somewhat grubby and creased, and obtrusively docketed in ink, with the phrase 'Sent off | 10th 28' written across the text on the recto. Reads 'Dear Sir, | You hoped to return my book (album) last week but no doubt the holidays interfered. I am just sending a line to say I am leaving Town for the Country for the summer early on Monday next so hope it may be returned this week | Yours sincy | E Lechmere'.

Scottish animal painter and cartoonist (1864-1949), for many years connected with Punch. In good condition, with the printed cartoon approximately 6 inches by 5, on 8vo piece of paper with two neat holes for ring binder. One of Armour's cartoons ('PLAYS FOR THE HUNTING-FIELD. | "HONOURS EASY."), has been cut from Punch, and stuck to the piece of paper, to which Armour has added his signature, 'G. Denholm Armour | 14 - 3 - 30'. Above the signature, in another hand, is ' "Punch" 5 - 3 - 30.'