Michael Arlen's London

Some years ago Nicolas Granger-Taylor ran a series of London Walks, in which an assembly of louche characters visited literary haunts. Here is my guide to Michael Arlen’s London.

1 BERKELEY SQUARE

It is famous for the song, “A Nightingale Sang in . . .”, written by Eric Maschwitz. Up against a deadline, he glanced at the title of a story in a book lying about and seized on that for the theme and chorus of his song. The story was by Michael Arlen, in his collection These Charming People, sub-titled:

“Being a tapestry of the fortunes, follies, adventures, galanteries and general activities of Shelmerdene (that lovely lady), Lord Tarlyon, Mr Michael Wagstaffe, Mr Ralph Wyndham Trevor and some others of their friends of the lighter sort, written down by Ralph Wyndham-Trevor and arranged by Michael Arlen . . ."

Friends, they don’t write sub-titles like that any more, and we are the poorer for it. Arlen’s story was “When the Nightingale . . .” etc. And it concludes: 'A nightingale has never sung in Berkeley Square before and may never sing there again, but if it does it will probably mean something.'

Ironically, the story is quite the opposite of the song; not about spoony lovers but about a bitter irony to do with marital disloyalty.

Incidentally, Maschwitz himself was also a novelist, the author (amongst other things) of a fantasy, The Passionate Clowns, The Story of a Modern Witch (1927), under the name Holt Marvell, and several detective novels written with Val Gielgud.

2 CHARLES STREET

Here is situated Quorn House, with a view of Berkeley Square, and a flight of stone steps going up to its door. This is the home of the Countess of Quorn & Beaumanoir, who entertains gentlemen to [ahem] tea. Here she is blackmailed by Michael Wagstaffe, the Cavalier of the Streets, a Raffles-like character who disapproves of her, in the title story of Arlen’s third Mayfair collection, The Crooked Coronet; they prove to be a real match for each other.

In “a quiet house” here lived Hugh, in the story “To Lamoir” in Arlen’s second collection, Mayfair. He is a man whose marriage is haunted by a childhood dream of an ideal playmate, a girl in a strange garden

Left into Queen Street, right at the end into Curzon Street - and here was where the narrator of The Green Hat saw the last of Gerald March, author of The Savage Device, a queer brutal mystic history about transcendence through pain, serialised first in The New Voice, disguise for The New Age, the journal that took Arlen’s early work.

We cross the road to Trebeck Street, and go down this to . . .

3 SHEPHERD’S MARKET

Michael Arlen lived here for around four years when he was trying to earn a living as a writer. He describes these in his runaway success The Green Hat. Above him, in the story, lives the tragic Gerald March. At the corner here was parked the sleek yellow Hispano-Suiza of the heroine Iris Storm, the almost-twin of Gerald, when she came to see him and ended up seeing rather more of the narrator.

Iris is modelled in part on Nancy Cunard, who told Arlen, 'I have a pagan body but a puritan mind'. To which he is said to have replied, 'I see. Tell me, are you ever absent-minded? . . .'

4 CLARGES STREET

By the flower shop here, Maturin in “The Ace of Cads” meets a mysterious car sent to take him to the home of Sir Guy Conduit de Grammercy - with £1,000 for his trouble.

5 HALF-MOON STREET

In Arlen’s thriller Hell! Said the Duchess, a white cardboard hat-box is found just inside the railings of Green Park, almost opposite Half-Moon Street. What’s in it? The head of a man - seemingly 'Jane the Ripper', the devilish villainess of the book has struck again. Riots result.

6 LANDSDOWNE PASSAGE

The scene of a story (in These Charming People), “The Locquacious Lady of” (etc): George Tarlyon was “almost half-way through before he realised that he was sharing the passage with another, a woman just ahead of him, walking slowly in his direction, loitering against the wall” who passes but then calls after him, and he touches his hat. 'I am afraid to walk alone through this passage', she says, and asks him to walk with her to the Curzon St end.

And she tells him why she is afraid and what happened to her here and how she heard the clock striking three: and Tarlyon runs headlong out of the passage as the clock strikes that hour again . . .

It is also the scene of Arlen’s story "The Prince of the Jews", in Mayfair, wherein Rear-Admiral Sir Charles Fasset-Faith is haunted by Julian Raphael, the black archangel. Here Landsdowne Passage is described as 'a slit in a grey wall' off Curzon Street, which 'leads between Landsdowne House and the wreck of Devonshire House to Berkeley Street'.

7 CORNER OF DAVIES STREET/MOUNT STREET

In "The Ghoul of Golder’s Green" (in Mayfair), Ralph Wyndham Trevor was walking up Davies Street and at the corner with Mount Street caught a cab, that lead to adventure.

8 BROOK STREET

In "The Man With the Broken Nose" (These Charming People), we think we meet an Armenian, who is really Michael Wagstaffe.

Michael Arlen was an Armenian by birth, born Dikran Koyoumoudjian. His family fled the Turkish persecutions and came to England when he was an infant, settling in Lancashire. But he never forgot his Armenian roots. In this story the hoaxer Michael Wagstaffe poses as an Armenian in order to pull off a theft from his own father. But Arlen uses it, subtly, ironically, to get across to his readers the history of his race, their courage and their implacable patience against their foes.

9 NORTH/SOUTH AUDLEY STREET

In the Prologue to Mayfair, we are told that 'where South Street becomes North Street', in 'a great house that stood in a walled garden' where 'ladies recline in slenderness on divans, playing with rosaries of black pearls and eating scented macaroons out of bowls of white jade', a young man sees a pale hand with a scarlet flower. Here the Princess of Valeria lives, a Ruritanian damosel, and a duel is fought for her in the garden - while she insouciantly goes off with another.

This is a light disguise for North/South Audley Street. And finally . . .

10 GROSVENOR SQUARE

In “The Gentleman from America” (Mayfair), a tale is told by 'a decayed gentleman at the sign of The Leather Butler in Shepherd’s Market' about an untenanted, lonely house in Grosvenor Square.

And there are riots here in Hell! Said the Duchess, columns pouring down Bruton Street and South Audley Street, because here is where the demure Duchess of Dove, the chief suspect in the book, has her house.

Mark Valentine

Wormwood 32 - Literary Enigmas

Wormwood 32 is now available. Several of our contributors in this issue discuss literary enigmas. Peter Bell considers ‘The Mystery of Mark Hansom’, an author who published a succession of weird thrillers in a five year period in the mid Nineteen Thirties, and then vanished. The name was no doubt a pseudonym — but who was the writer behind the mask?

Various theories have been suggested, but Peter puts forward a startling new proposal, supported by careful discussion. If he is right, this brings a whole new dimension to the work of another author in the supernatural fiction field.

Chris Mikul, meanwhile, looks into the unusual career of Julian Osgood Field, who wrote racy fin-de-siecle thrillers under the pseudonym ‘X.L.’ Though this identity has never been in doubt, the full extent of his other activities has not been revealed before, and they even involve an unfortunate contact with another noted literary family.

The decadent thrillers of Edogawo Ranpo, who may have adopted his pen-name from an allusion to Edgar Allan Poe, ought to be better-known outside his native Japan. Oliver Kerkdijk, in his celebration of the writings, concedes that Ranpo is no stylist, but celebrates the utter strangeness of his extraordinary fantasies.

Charles Eric Maine wrote what he liked to call ‘scientific thrillers’. As John Howard recounts, this pseudonym was adopted by a young SF fan from Liverpool who went on to produce a score of brisk futuristic novels. Like Ranpo’s work, they may not be read for their style, but they have their furtive enthusiasts for their narrative drive.

Victor Neuberg is perhaps still mostly known as an acolyte of Aleister Crowley. But, as Adam Daly explains, there was much more to this eccentric figure than this. He was a poet, an editor, an encourager of poets (among the first to publish Dylan Thomas) and most of all an elliptical visionary.

R B Russell discusses a mystery concerning that most recherché of literary figures, Frederick Rolfe, who adopted the pen-name Baron Corvo, and who has long obsessed collectors keen to discover anything at all to do with him, including somewhat unusual impedimenta.

In our regular columns, Doug Anderson offers Late Reviews of several books (and authors) which have not been widely noticed before. But obscurity does not necessarily mean quality, and Doug assesses which of them are merely competent and adequate, and those that are distinctive and original.

John Howard’s Camers Obscura column, devoted to the independent presses, ranges from an early 19th century supernatural tale which may be a previously unidentified piece by a distinguished figure in the field, to experimental contemporary prose.

Reggie Oliver reviews a new biography of Oscar Wilde, and offers his own illuminating insights into his life and work, and also discusses some recent contemporary fiction.

Secondhand Bookshops in Britain - Still Rising

In 2017, I reported on The Rise of Secondhand Bookshops in Britain, and in 2018 I updated this, noting that the numbers seemed to be remaining broadly stable.

The news pages at the excellent website The Book Guide report regularly on newly opened or newly discovered bookshops, and also on closures, while customer reviewers provides notes on any that seem to be in peril.

In the first quarter of this year, the guide has reported new second hand bookshops opening in York (Pitch 22), Barnard Castle (Curlews – a reopening), Bath (Fact or Fiction), Eastbourne (Vintage etc), Epping (Oxfam), Shipley (The Children’s Society), Hay-on-Wye (The Story of Books), and Halifax (Brame), and newly discovered ones at Strathcarron (Hospice Bookshop) and Kingcussie (Caberfeidh Horizons): whereas only one closure (Marlow, Oxfam) has been noted.

That’s a net increase of nine second hand bookshops.Two thirds of those are privately owned, so the increase is not being driven mainly by charity bookshops.

Recent reviews by browsers do, however, note several existing bookshops that proved not to be opened when advertised or expected, although that has always been a characteristic in some parts of the trade, particularly in those shops gallantly run by sole owners.

It may well be, therefore, that a few shops are for all practical purposes closed, even if not officially so. But even if this is the case, we can still say that the number of secondhand bookshops in Britain remains at least stable, and more likely the total is continuing to rise slightly. Of course, this is only a picture from one full quarter of a year, but so far the sense that many collectors have of a steep decline continues not to show up in the figures.

Sivori Levey And His Masks

Going through The English Catalogue of Books 1919 from Z towards A, I was looking out for obscure and interesting-sounding books, when I discovered several listed for Sivori Levey, a songwriter, playwright, entertainer, poet, Shakespeare enthusiast and prolific self-publisher.

From his address at 6, Roehampton Lane, Putney Heath, London SW15, he issued around 80 titles under various personal imprints. A few were also published by commercial publishers, such as series of songs from Chappell & Co in 1913. Most of his work is light verse written with jaunty verve, or comic songs on popular themes.

There are notes about him on two war memorial websites, and brief allusions elsewhere. He was born in Steyning, Sussex in 1879 to Richard and Emma Levey (nee Raymond). His full name was Sivori Antonio Joachim Levey.

In the First World War, he was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant and served on the Western Front. A big jolly man who composed comic and cheery songs for his men at the front, he lost a leg at Passchendaele, and undaunted later wrote, as “A Wounded Warrior”, The Story of a Wooden Leg, December 1918.

His work ranged from the frivolous and fey to serious interpretations of Shakespeare. For example, in 1918 he published The Fairie Boat, and Other Verses Written in the Pixie Parlour. On 23 April 1919 he gave what was described as “his 20th Poetry Music Recital” at the Steinway Hall, “A Special Reading, with music, of the DRAMA reconstructed by Gerald Massey of SHAKESPEARE’S SONNETS.”

In July 1919, he published Jazzers’ Joy! Song Souvenirs. In 1921 he toured a striking solo performance of Shakespeare characters using only masks, together with songs from the plays with his own piano music. The masks were made by a friend, Maie Hoey.

Sivori Levey died following the amputation of his remaining leg as a result of complications from his wartime injuries, in 1924.

The checklist below, which may be the first compiled of his works (and is certain to be incomplete) is a tribute to the dauntless creativity of a man who clearly enjoyed writing, singing and performing, and was determined to offer his work to others. The many publications cover both topical themes and timeless classics. Very few seem to have survived and they may have only been issued in fairly small numbers. But that does not seem to have discouraged Sivori Levey’s prolific and varied output.

A Checklist of Sivori Levey’s Publications

Jane Shore written by Siv Levey and F.V. St. Clair ; composed by F.V. St. Clair (Francis, Day & Hunter c1899)
Immortality: The Creation of Woman; and Other Legendary Lines in Vivacious Verse (1908)
Parted: Dramatic Poem with Music, for reciter and singer (1908)
Popular Recitations with Musical Accompaniment [for Pianoforte]. 1. The Brook. - Tennyson. - 2. All the World's a Stage. - Shakespeare. - 3. Sweet Music. - Shakespeare. - 4. Le Corbeau et le Renard. - La Fontaine. (Metzler & Co, 1908)
Alcyone, Fate, Death or Life, and The Silver Flute: Rhymes (1909)
The Angels of the Heavens (1909)
The Conquest of the Air (E T Heron, 1909)
Plays (E T Heron & Co, 1909)
The Drummer Boy, A Tragedy, Founded on An Old Scottish Legend (1910)
The Empires of the Earth: A History of the World in Summary (1910)
Love in the Forest, A Fancy (1910)
The Student: A Masque (1910)
The Wedding Party: A Scene (1910)
'The Little Blue Flower', and Other Simple Thoughts in Rhyme (1911)
Sacred Poems: Legends of The Childhood of Christ (1911)
‘A Smile’, ‘Don’t Worry’ & Other Verses (1911)
Daddy and Babsy. Song, words and music by . . . (Chappell & Co, 1913)
He Met Her On the Stairs; Song, words and music by . . . . (Chappell & Co, 1913)
His Little Teddy Bear, Song, words and music by . . . . (Chappell & Co, 1913)
The Salvation of Satan & Other Impressions (1913)
Britishers! And Other Songs of the War (1914)
Cornish Pasty: Lines in Verse Written at Fowey (1917)
Flanders to Fowey: "Ypres" and "Après"; Verses of Active Service, Hospital, and Convalescence. By ‘A Wounded Warrior’. (1917)
The Air-Raiders, Twelve German Gothas (1918)
The Bird's Nest in the Church Clock (between minutes 48 and 49) (1918)
The Black Hunter : a Dramatic Ballad. The Old Cornish tale of "Treg'ayg'l the Wicked" by John Penwarne, edited by Sivori Levey (1918)
The Boy and His Angel by Robert Browning, Arranged for Stage Representation in Costume (1918)
Cornwall in general and Fowey in particular : selections in verse from my Cornish note book (1918)
Egg Days (1918)
The Faerie Boat & Other Verses Written in the Pixie Parlour (1918)
The Fairy Prince: ‘Tis Love that I Love (1918)
Forty-Seven Thousand! The Black Book (1918)
The Fourth of July (Inter-dependence day, London, 1918) (1918)
H.M.S. "Vindictive" (The Raid on the Mole) : a Story of the Old Nelson Touch (1918)
Ils ne Passeront Pas (They Shall Not Pass) (1918)
Lost Love: The Boyhood of The Pied Piper (1918)
"My son" and "The Old Saw Mill" (Priceless old thing): the Words of Two New Songs (1918)
Nana, The Fruit Girl, The Love Story of My Life, Song (1918)
Nennette and Rintintin (Paris, 1918): dedicated to the American Red Cross (1918)
Penny Postage, The Post We Always Leaned On (1918)
Radadou, The Baby (1918)
Ready Money Cove, & Way Back o' Beyond: Verses (1918)
Roehampton Rhymes: Selections from a Dover House Revue, etc.(1918)
The Rose of France (July 14th, 1918) (1918)
The Second Thousand Million! National War Bonds. An up-to-date patriotic recitation (1918)
Six Songs; Words and Music (1918)
Songlin’ Series: Words and Music (1918)
The Storie of Foye, or, Rather Some of It, in verse.(1918)
Story of a Wooden Leg (1918)
When the Sammies Marched Through London (May 11th, 1918) (1918)
The Words of Two Beautiful Ballads, written and composed by . . . (1918)
Bible Children: Word-Pictures in Song-Verse. (Pilgrimage poems) (1919)
Comfort (1919)
The Fountain Reciter: Pleasant and Playful Selections in Verse. (1919)
A "Foyen" picture book. By ‘A Wounded Warrior’ (1919)
Guinivere and Arthur, Adapted from Tennyson's 'Idylls of the King' (1919)
Jazzers’ Joy! Song Souvenirs (1919)
Mahmud the Sultan, Adapted from Shelley's ‘Hellas’(1919)
The 'Mummie' Reciter. Cheer-o! And Other Selections [written by S.A.J. Levey] from the Repertoire of A.A. Levey (1919)
Peter! ... Peter Pan! (the Boy Who Won't Grow Up): A Song for the Family Circle (1919)
The Pilgrimage Reciter, Legendary Lines in Rhyme for Recitations (1919)
Shakespeare in London, 1919 : an incomplete but helpful record to Shakespearean activities-literary, dramatic and musical, etc. With On the Threshold, 1919. Companion volume to “Shakespeare in London, 1919.”). (Both 1919)
Sunshine and Shadow (1919)
The Two Knights, Adapted from The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer: Dramatised as a Pageant Play for Costume Representation (1919)
Virginel, An Ancient Historical Drama, Reconstructed (1919)
"Feramorz", Adapted from Tom Moore's "Lalla Rookh" (1920)
Longfellow's ‘Hiawatha’, Dramatised for Costume Presentation (1920)
A Merry Masque of the Months: a Calendar of Ancient Rome (1920)
A 'Minerva' comment: an indication of how to produce Shakespeare's 'comedy' Twelfe night, or, What you will and why (1920)
A "Minerva" comment as a "Mayflower" Tercentenary Celebration Contribution on Shake-speares Anglo-American Mystery-Morality play The Tempest: what led up to it, and what followed. 1623-1923 First folio tercentenary (1920)
A Play entitled "Ozymandias king of kings". Portrayed for Costume Representation (1920)
The Roehampton Reciter: Dramatic and Humorous selections (1920)
The Ruby in the Wine: A Persian Allegory of old Omar Khayyam and his friends, being Fitzgerald's 'Omar Khayyam' Dramatised for Costume Presentation (1920)
The Tempest : What Led Up to it, and What Followed (1920)
The New Study of Shakespeare (1921)
Sir Gareth's Quest, Adapted from Tennyson's 'Idylls of the King' and Arranged for Costume Representation (1921)
Three short plays. I. Dagobert the jester ... II. Radezka ... III. The Enchanted Garden, Adapted and Arranged (1921)
The Bell-ario, a Series of Shakespeare’s Most Beautiful Songs, Arranged by . . . (The Ludo Press, 1922)
Dream Flowers, Being the Version of Aarak: Verses (1922)
Ivory Leaves: a Medium of Expression for the New Intensive Study of Shakespeare (1922)
Melody-Harmony, A Re-Study of the Shakespeare Play Songs, No 1, It Was a Lover and His Lass (The Pilgrimage, 1922)
The Merchant of Venice: A Mystery Play (The Pilgrimage, 1922)
Old Pierrot: written and composed by . . . (Reynolds & Co, 1922)
Shakespeare's Morality Play, The Comedy of Errors (The Pilgrimage, 1922)
Shakespeare's Wonderful Women : a 1923 Translation-Dictionary (The Pilgrimage, 1922)
After 300 Years (1623-1923) (Ludo Press, 1923)
King Macbeth (1623-1923) : a Shakespearean morality play, founded and modelled on Greek tragedy and Roman comedy generally, and medieval mystery and morality plays particularly: a study (Ludo Press, 1923)
The Elemental Drama: A Re-Study of the Shakespeare Plays (1924)

Note

All issued by the author unless stated. His private press at Putney Heath is variously called Fountain Publishing, The Roehampton Press or Sivori Levy Publications, or sometimes catalogued as ‘privately printed’. The Ludo Press and The Pilgrimage are probably also the author’s imprints. The author is given as ‘S Levey’ or ‘Sivori Levey’ unless stated. The date of many of those attributed to 1918 has been assumed by library cataloguers: 1919 is also possible.

References

100 First World War Stories. Cornish Collections Illuminating the First World War (blog). ‘Sivori Levy (1879-1924)—Songwriter and Amputee’. Short biographical note.
Lewis-Stempel, John. Six Weeks: The Short and Gallant Life of the British Officer in the First World War. Quotes from SL’s poem ‘The Road That Brought Me to Roehampton’.
London, Lucy. ‘Sivori Levey (1879 – 1924) – British Author, Composer, Actor, Pianist, Poet, Lyricist, Teacher and Soldier’ on Forgotten Poets of the First World War blog. Posted 16 January 2016. Biographical note. Notes that “in the early 1900s the family lived in Oxford and Cambridge Mansions in Marylebone, London and Sivori was apparently a Civil Servant. Sivori’s elder sister Adeline was a singer.”
MacDonald, Lyn. They Called it Passchendaele: The Story of the Battle of Ypres [etc] With a portrait of SL.
Spitalfields Life (blog).‘East End Entertainers of 1922'. Posted January 23, 2015. Illustrates poster for ‘Sivori Levey And his Masks’

Mark Valentine

John P. Quaine: Catalogue of Penny Bloods (1931)

Melbourne book dealer  John P. Quaine (1883-1957) is well known for fooling Montague Summers into adding some invented Penny Blood titles into his Gothic Bibliography (1940).  As Michael Anglo explains in his book, Penny Dreadfuls and Other Victorian Horrors (1977),

"Montague Summers.....was certainly fooled by [John. P. Quaine,] an extremely knowledgeable Melbourne bookseller with a sense of humour, who issued an important catalogue for collectors in the 1930s. Stanley Larnach, a writer and collector of ‘dreadfuls’ who lived in Sydney, New South Wales, and was a leading member of the Book Collector’s Society of Australia, said that Quayne’s catalogue included two beautiful ‘dreadful’ titles: ‘The Skeleton Clutch; or, The Goblet of Gore’, a romance by T. Prest issued in penny parts (E.Lloyd 1841); and ‘Sawney Beane, the Man-Eater of Midlothian’ by T. Prest issued in penny parts (E.Lloyd 1851). Montague listed both of these splendid titles, which were Quayne inventions, in his Gothic Bibliography."

The catalogue in question may be the one preserved in a Scrapbook of Bloods in State Library of Victoria, MS 3700/3 (though it doesn't include "The Skeleton Clutch").  Described as "late 1940s-1950s, comprising press clippings, illustrations clipped from journals, published bibliographies of penny bloods, book sales, lists of penny dreadfuls and penny bloods; also, seventy letters from the Melbourne bookseller J.P. Quaine (1951-1957) to Stanley Larnach, Walter W. Stone and J.K. Moir."

Here is the catalogue in Mr Quaine's inimitable style, replete with "fierce cuts" and rarae aves.  I've made a few comments in square brackets.  "James & Smith" is Penny Dreadfuls and Boys' Adventures : the Barry Ono Collection of Victorian Popular Literature in the British Library (1998).  "Summers" is his Gothic Bibliography.  The list clearly isn't the original catalogue, but has been typed by someone, presumably Stanley Larnach.

Copy of Sales List From J.P. Quaine, 139 Commercial Rd, South Yarra, Melbourne, Victoria. 1931.

Rare Penny Dreadfuls offered from my own Private Collection.  All unobtainable anywhere else in Australia.

1.  Edwin J. Brett’s “Boys of England”.  The four first vols., a reissue dated 1876 et seq., bound in 2 large vols.  Containing dozens of the best “bloods” issued by Brett.  Only £4, less than quarter the London price.  SOLD.

2.  Brett’s “Young Men of Great Britain”.  The first 4 vols.  Original Editions, 1868 et seq.  Bound in 3 vols, with all the rare gory illustrations and coloured Xmas Number.  £5-10-0.

3.  “Young Men of Great Britain”, odd vol. 1880.  Contains “Ned Nimble amongst the Pirates” complete.  Good order.  Only 20/-

4. “Young Men of Great Britain”, thick vol containing numbers between 1884 and 1886, not quite complete.  One vol. 20/-.

5.  Brett’s “Jack Harkaway Series”.  Broken series, 13 vols, original covers. £3.  A Mint set of this rarity sells at 20 guineas in London.

6.  “Handsome Harry of the Fighting Belvedere”. Exceedingly scarce, wants 2 leaves, original cloth. 15/-.  A perfect copy worth £4.
[James & Smith, 102]

7.  “Broad Arrow Jack”, a perfect copy.  Coloured Front.  A bargain at £4. 2 others bound in.
[Edwin Harcourt Burrage, Broad-arrow Jack.  James & Smith, 89]

8.  “The Rival Apprentices” and “Rupert Dreadnought” or “The Secret of the Iron Chest”, with all gory woodcuts, 2 bound in 1 vol.  £3.
[Vane Ireton Saint John, The Rival Apprentices, a Tale of the Riots of 1780.  James & Smith, 581.  Vane Ireton Saint John, Rupert Dreadnought; or, The Secrets of the Iron Chest.  James & Smith, 582-584]

9.  “The London Apprentice” by Pierce Egan, Large vol, of over 90 numbers, each with a quaint cut.  Well bound copy in Mint Order.  Sold for £5-10-0.

10.  “Black Bess or The Knight of the Road”.  A tale of Dick Turpin, is the longest Penny Blood in history.  Just recently an article in the Herald from a London Paper referred to it as being in the possession of a man who refuses to sell at any price.  2 vols, which contain two thirds of the original 254 numbers, gory cuts. £2.
[James & Smith, 674; Summers, 247]

11.  Aldine “Tip Top Tales” 40 Blood-thirsty little penny books with coloured covers issued in the Nineties.  One coloured wrapper missing.  Bound in 5 dumpy vols. £2-5-0. (300 others, loose, for £20.)

12.  “Tom Wildrake’s Schooldays”.  A cloth copy of this rara avis midst old boy’s books.  London value at least £5, my price £2.
[James & Smith, 189-191]

13.  Hogarth House “Shot and Shell Series”.  The six vol set by George Emmett.  2 thick vols, with Brett’s “Comic History of London” bound in. 2 vols. £4

14.  Mint bound copy of that famous old boy’s book “Tom Tartar”. £1.
[E. Harcourt Burrage, Tom Tarter at School; or, True Friend and Noble Foe.  James & Smith, 118]

15.  “Will Watch, the Bold Smuggler”. 1852. 47 Penny Numbers each with a quaint cut.  Well bound. 30/-.
[Summers, 558]

16.  “The Parricide”, by G.W.M. Reynolds.  The rarest of his works.  Never knew of another in Australia and heard of few in England.  Original issue 1847. £2.  Even the cheap Dick’s reprint is rare now.
[G.W.M. Reynolds. The Parricide; or, A Youth’s Career of Crime.  Summers, 457]

17.  The ORIGINAL Penny Weekly issue of Hugo’s “Esmerelda, or the Hunchback of Notre Dame”. Small vol, well bound, dozens of cuts.  35/-.

18.  Hugo’s “Hans of Iceland”.  The first English Edition.  Cruikshank’s fine fierce plates.  £3-10-0.  London price – Ten guineas.

19.  Brett’s “Barons of Old; or the Robbers of the Rhine”. Each number has several cuts, also 3 coloured plates are bound in the vol.  35/-.
[James & Smith, 13]

20.  “Dark Deeds of Old London” and another Brett “Blood”. 25/-.
[James & Smith, 340]

21.  “Bravos of Alsatia” and one other Brett “Blood” in one vol. 30/-.  SOLD.
[James & Smith, 337]

22. “Massacre of Glencoe” by Reynolds, in one vol: original numbers. 20/-. SOLD.
[Summers, 404]

23. “Kenneth” by Reynolds, original issue in one vol. 15/-, Gilberts illustrations.
[Summers, 152-3]

24. “Gentleman George, the King of the Road”, with sequel “King of Diamonds”, with all the cuts, and 2 others in one vol. £2-10-0.

[James & Smith, 68-69]

25.  “Dashing Duke; or the Mystery of the Red Mask”. 20/-.

[James & Smith, 683]

26.  “The Outlaws of Epping Forest”, a real gory old ‘un, fierce cuts. £2.

[James & Smith, 440-441]

27.  “Manfrone the One-Handed Monk”.  Mrs Radcliffe, early edition.  Well Bound leather back, gilt title.  Dated 1839.  10/6.

[Summers, 398]

28.  Pirated American edition of “Oliver Twist”.  Very rare. 20/-.  SOLD.

29.  Dickens imitation, “Dombey and Daughter”, Penny numbers, each with crude cut, neatly bound.  Sells at Five pounds in London.  My price £2-2-0.  SOLD.

[Summers, 298]

30.  Autobiography of the Author of the above item (self-styled “Chief Baron Renton Nicholson”.) with his autograph.  This is a unique volume, and of immense interest to Dickensians. £1.  SOLD.

31. “Tales of Chivalry; or Adventures by Flood and Field”. Original cloth, each Penny number has a curious cut, issued in 1839, but the condition is as if it was just off the press. £3-10-0.

[Tales of Chivalry, Perils by Flood and Field.  Summers, 523]

32.  “Jack Harkaway at School in America”, “Among the Pirates” and “At the Tales of Palms; the Last Stronghold of the Black Flag”.  These three tales selected by E.J. Brett and issued as the “American Series”.  One vol. 20/-.

33.  The Brett “Tom Floremall Series”, the three original series in one vol. 20/-.

34.  Brett’s “Boyhood Days of Jack Straw” and “Boyhood Days of Guy Fawkes”, the two in one neat vol.  20/-.

[James & Smith, 335-336]

35.  “The Corsican Brothers; or the Fatal Duel”. Really a piracy of Dumas’ play and book of the same title.  39 numbers, each with a lurid cut.  Magnificently bound.  A perfect Collector’s Copy!  1852.  Published by Purkess, who ranked high among the “Blood” producers. 30/-.

36.  A rare Lloyd “Blood”: “Adeline, or the Grave of the Forsaken”.  52 most fearsomely illustrated number.  First page was typed in by previous owner from a complete copy.  25/-

[James & Smith, 542; Summers, 222]

37. “The Cottage Girl; or Betrayed on Her Marriage Day”.  Neatly bound, each number with crude cut.  12/6.

[Elizabeth Bennett, The Cottage Girl; or, The Marriage Day.  Summers, 285]

38.  “Ada the Betrayed; or, the Murder in the Old Smithy”.  This tale is quite unprocurable now.  This is the original issue in Lloyds Miscellany. 2 large vols with dozens of other loathsomely gory stories.  This journal was issued without illustrations.  2 vols. Dated 1842.  45/-

[James Malcolm Rymer, Ada the Betrayed; or, the Murder at the Old Smithy.  James & Smith, 541; Summers, 221]

39.  “The Ship-wrecked Stranger”, in 49 crudely illustrated numbers. 1850.  7/6. SOLD.

[Hannah Maria Jones, The Shipwrecked Stranger.  Summers, 502]

40.  “Rough and Ready Jack”, and 2 other Bretts bound in one gorgeous volume.  Mint order. 20/-.  SOLD.

[James & Smith, 538]

41.  The Green Eye of the Little Yellow God Among Books [in red ink].

“The Pixy” by G.M.W. Reynolds.  An Xmas story done in imitation of Dickens Xmas books.  The Great Auks Egg of Rarities! [again in red ink]  2 illustrations. Small pocket size.  Original edition. 15/-.  Sheer chucked away at that price.

[G.W.M. Reynolds, The Pixy; or, The Unbaptized Child. James & Smith, 528; Summers, 464-465]

42.  3 vols Fox’s “Boys Leisure Hour” First page was typed in by previous owner from a complete copy.  25/- £5.

43. 2 large vols “Boys Standard”. 3 smaller ones. £5.

44.  “Boys Halfpenny Standard”.  One vol. £1-10-0.

45.  “Young Men of Great Britain”, from 1868 to finish as “Boys of Empire & Young Men of Great Britain”.  Approx 60 vols. £25.

46.  Run of “Boys of England” from Vol 1 (1866) to last vol (No 66) in 1899.  Wanting a few between vols 20 and 40. £30.

Supplementary List of “Penny Number Bloods” at outrageously reduced prices.

47.  “The Wild Witch of the Heath; or the Demon of the Glen”.  1841.  Lacks the last number, but contains some of the most luridly gory cuts in the history of fierce literature.  25/-.

48.  “The Secret Oath; or the Bloodstained Dagger”. 1812. 7/6.  SOLD.

[Summers, 499]

49.  “The She-Tiger; or Felina the Female Fiend”. 1853.  Merely part of the tale, but an interesting example of ferocity.  7/6.

[Melchior Frédéric Soulié, The She Tiger of Paris: Containing a History of the Life and Adventures of a Celebrated French Lady of Fashion, Under the Name of Felina de Cambure.  James & Smith, 607; Summers, 501]

50.  “The Horror of Zindorf Castle”. A rare Lloyd “Blood”. 52 very alluring cuts sublime in their crude ghastliness.  25/-.

[Vileroy; or, the Horrors of Zindorf Castle. A Romance of Chivalry.  James & Smith, 246; Summers, 547]

51.  “The Cavern of Horrors; or the Miseries of Miranda”.  1833. 10/-. SOLD.

[Summers, 270]

52.  “The Black Monk; or the Secret of the Grey Turret”.  Lloyd. 1842.  Wildly illustrated with blood-curdling cuts. £5.

[James & Smith, 544; Summers, 248]

53.  “Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street”.  The rare Chas. Fox edition.  Practically a reprint of the original Lloyd issue, with the addition of further gruesome details.  Bound with “The Brigand of the Sea; or the Sailor Highwayman”, and another old-timer.  Coloured wrappers and cuts. £12.  Worth five times as much in London.

[James & Smith, 626; Summers, 519-521]

54.  “The Revenge of the Blighted Man”.  Lloyd. With all the fierce cuts.  1844.  This is one right out of the box.  35/-. 

[Possibly Alice Home: or, the Revenge of the Blighted One. A Romance of Deep Interest]

55.  “Melina the Murderess; or the Crime at the Old Milestone”.  Cuts. 20/-.  SOLD.

56.  “Three Times Dead; or the Trail of the Serpent”.  (Miss Braddon’s first story.)  Original issue in Half-penny Miscellany.  1864.  Crude cuts.  20/-.

[Mary Elizabeth Braddon, Three Times Dead; or, The Secret of the Heath.  Revised as The Trail of the Serpent; or, The Secret of the Heath.  Summers, 15]

57.  “The Wife’s Tragedy; or the Secret of the London Sewers”.  1850.  The 104 numbers of this choice old “Blood” backs all the rest off the board.  The quality of the cuts is indescribable! £2.

[Helen Porter; or, A Wife’s Tragedy and a Sister’s Trials.  Drop-head title is “The Wife’s Tragedy: A Secret of the Sewers of London.”  James & Smith, 289]

58.  “The Female Bluebeard”.  Many quaint cuts.  (By Eugene Sue.)  10/-.  SOLD.

59.  “The Cannibal Courtezan”.  Six humdinging cuts.  1866. 12/6.  SOLD. [May be an invented title]

60.  “The Parricide Priest; or the Murder in the Monastery”.  Cuts.  15/-.  SOLD.  [May be an invented title]

61.  “Mabel the Marble-hearted; or the Outcast’s Revenge”. Cuts. 1842. 20/-.  SOLD. [May be an invented title]

62.  “The Outcasts of London; or the perils of Pauline, the Victim of Crime.”  The first seven instalments of this famous story in an illustrated publication called The London Pioneer.  1844.  10/-.

63.  “Mabel; or the Child [JPQ has “Ghouls”] of the Battlefield”.  55 numbers, each with a gory cut.  Lloyd. 1846. 20/-.  SOLD. 

[James & Smith, 382]

64.  “The Blue Dwarf; or Love, Mystery and Crime”.  With coloured folding plates and innumerable fierce cuts.  Coloured wrappers. 3 vols in one. £3-10-0.

[James & Smith, 573; Summers, 250]

65.  “Wagner the Wehr-Wolf” by Reynolds, and several other “Bloods” by the same author, in one thick vol.  15/-.

[Summers, 550]

66.  “The Loves and Crimes of Paris”.  On its own as a thriller of the past.  29 numbers.  Vickers.  London. 1846.  Damaged badly.  3/6.

[Paul Feval, The Loves of Paris.  Summers, 393]

67.  “Walter the Archer; or the Robber Lords of the Mountains”.  Coloured wrapper.  Scarce.  Brett. 3/6.  SOLD.

[James & Smith, 684]

68.  “Florence Graham; or, the Pirate’s Daughter” [Quaine has “Penelope the Pirate’s Daughter].  Lloyd.  1847.  Crude cuts.  20/-.

[James & Smith, 515]

69.  “The Death Grasp; or the Father’s Curse”.  Weird cuts.  20/-.  SOLD.

[James & Smith, 476]

70.  “Rook the Robber”.  32 numbers.  Cuts.  Dicks.  London.  1868.  35/-.

[James & Smith, 160-161]

71.  “Under the Blood-Red Flag; or at War with the World”.  Cuts.  10/-.

72.  “The Murder of Maria Marten in the Red Barn at Polstead”, with all the strange engravings.  Original edition.  1828.  Polished calf.  Very rare.  £4.  SOLD.

[Maria Marten; or, The Murder in the Red Barn.  Summers, 400-401]

73.  “Burke and Hare, the Body snatchers”, with appropriate cuts.  Neat little vol. Well bound.  30/-

[Summers, 256]

74.  “The Bravo of Venice”, by ‘Monk’ Lewis.  Early edition, with fine frontispiece.  Only 7/6.

[Summers, 252-253]

75.  “The Robber Foundling”, a rare Lloyd “Blood”.  Weird cuts.  25/-.

[Possibly The Robber Chief; or, The Foundling of the Forest, though not a Lloyd title]

76.  “William Tell, the Patriot of the Mountains”.  Cuts.  Scarce. 10/-.

[Possibly William Tell, the Hero of Switzerland.  James & Smith, 431; Summers, 559]

77.  “The Mysterious Avengers; or the Voice of Blood”.  Cuts.  (Mentioned by George Saintsbury in one of his essays.)  Rare. 15/-.  [May be an invented title]

78.  “Ela the Outcast; or the Gypsy of Rosemary Dell”, by Prest, the author of Sweeny Todd.  (This work has been mentioned by Sala, as the before-mentioned Author’s best seller.)  Many fierce cuts.  35/-.  SOLD.

[James & Smith, 478; Summers, 305]

79.  “The Wreck of a Heart; or the Trials of Agnes Primrose”.  Really a travesty of Mrs Inchbalds “Nature and Art”, but a better tale because it has a more reasonable conclusion, melodramatic and gory.  Cuts.  20/-.

80. “The Lady in Black; or the Wanderer of the Tombs”, by Prest.  Lloyd. London.  1844.  Gory cuts.  40/-.  [May be an invented title]

[Possibly The Lady in Black; or, The Widow and the Wife.  James & Smith, 558]

81.  “The Doom of the Dancing Master”.  Original periodical issue, with all the crude illustrations.  10/6.  In book form also 10/-.

82.  “The Gypsy Chief; or the Haunted Oak, a Tale of the Other Days”.  This most sensational story is now rare in the weekly form.  Many plates.  10/-.  SOLD. 

83.  “Fatherless Fanny; or the Misfortunes of a Little Mendicant”.  Plates.  A morally immoral old story.  Now scarce.  5/-.  SOLD.

[Fatherless fanny; or, A Young Lady’s First Entrance into Life, Being the Memoirs of a Little Mendicant and Her Benefactors.  Summers, 320-321]

84.  “Doctor or Demon; or the Doom of the Deloraines”.  Original periodical issue.  1882.  10/6.  SOLD. 

85.  “The Dance of Death; or the Hangman’s Plot.”  Cuts.  1874.  10/6.  SOLD.

[James & Smith, 80]

86.  “Edith the Captive; or the Robbers of Epping Forest”.  104 cuts.  Fine copy. 40/-.

[James & Smith, 549]

87.  “Ruth the Betrayer”.  Fine copy. Many cuts.  15/-.  SOLD.

[James & Smith, 162]

88.  “Barnfylde Moore Carew, the Gypsy Gentleman”.  12 cuts.  Rare.  10/-.  SOLD.

89.  Emalinda, the Orphan of the Castle”.  Cuts. 10/-.  SOLD.

90. “Jessie the Morgue-keepers Daughter”.  Gruesome cuts.  1845.  20/-.  SOLD.

[Jessie the Mormon’s Daughter. James and Smith, 293; Summers, 375]

91.  “The Mysteries of the Dissecting Room”.  Horrific cuts.  1846.  20/-.  SOLD.

[Possibly Secrets of the Dissecting Room]

92.  “The Maniac Mother; or the Victim of Vice”.  Damaged.  10/6.  SOLD.  [May be an invented title]

93.  “The Monk”, by ‘Monk’ Lewis.  The Penny number Lloyd issues, with most fearsome cuts.  1848. £2.  SOLD.

[Summers, 419-426]

94.  “The Profligate Pope; or the Mysteries of the Vatican”.  Cuts in keeping with the Title and text.  1866.  20/-.  SOLD.  [May be an invented title]

95.  “The Mysteries of the Inquisition”, by Reynolds.  1846.  Contained in the rare first volume of the London Journal.  Terrific cuts.  20/-.

[James & Smith, 213; Summers, 434]

96.  “The Mysteries of Bedlam; or the Annals of a madhouse”.  Cuts.  25/-.  SOLD.

97.  “Vipont the Vulture”, an imitation of that rara avis midst “Bloods” – Varney the Vampire; or The Feast of Blood.)  The cuts are glorious in their repellancy.  £2.  SOLD.  [May be an invented title]

98.  “Tyburn Dick, the Boy King of the Highwayman; or Take Me Who Dare”.  The prosecuted issue of this rather ‘over the fence’ story, Mint order. Neatly bound with two other similar tales.  £4.  SOLD.

[Tyborn Dick, the Prince of Highwaymen.  Cover has the title Tyborn Dick; or, Take Me Who Dare.  James & Smith, 669]

99.  “Turnpike Dick, the Star of the Road”.  The desirable Chas.  Fox edition, with all the coloured wrappers.  3 vols. (60 numbers) in one.  £3.

[James & Smith, 348]

100.  “The Headless Horseman”.  Original edition.  1866.  Half calf. £10. 

101.  “Robin Hood; or the Merry Men of Sherwood”.  Pierce Egan’s original Penny number edition.  1841.  40/-.

[Possibly Pierce Egan the Younger, Robin Hood and Little John; or, the Merry men of Sherwood Forest.  Summers, 481]

102.  The same tale, re-issued in 1865, different cuts.  Three coloured plates. 10/-.

103.  “Robin Hood”.  Hogarth House edition, by George Emmet.  Mint copy.  Crude cuts.  Three copies.  15/- each.

[James & Smith, 185]

104.  “Jack Cade, the Rebel of London”.  1851.  Cuts. Last number out.  SOLD.

[Jack Cade, the Insurrectionist; A Tale of the olden Times.  Summers, 372]

105.  “Wat Tyler”, by Pierce Egan. Original edition 1844.  With fierce cuts. Damaged.  7/6.

[Summers, 553]

106.  Same tale, reprint with different cuts.  1864.  10/-.

107.  “The Black Bandits of the Rhine”, with four other tales.  Cuts.  20/-.

108.  “The Ned Nimble Series”, in 2 large vols, with all the coloured wrappers of the 11 vols.  £4-4-0.

109.  The World Famous Deadwood Dick Series.  5 vols containing the original ALDINE run from No. 1 “The Outlaw of the Black Hills” to No. 58.  Absolutely unobtainable anywhere else in the Universe.  Actually dumped at £25.

110.  The original Harkaway Series running through the Boys of England, 1871-1878.  £20.

111.  The original Penny Number and Shilling volume edition, sumptuously bound in 4 gilt-backed vols.  With all the coloured wrappers.  An exhibition set, lettered “Jack Harkaway” and decorated with crossed swords, an anchor and a sailing ship in gold ornament. £20.

112.  The Hogarth House Series of the American “Jack Harkaway”.  The set of seven with all the gory coloured wrappers and fierce crude cuts in one thick volume.  £6-10-0.

113.  “The Wild Riders of the Staked Plains; or Jack the Hero of Texas”, and 12 other equally choice “O’er Land and Sea” series, on one vol.  30/-.

114.  “Sawney Bean, the Man-eater of Midlothian”.  Fierce frontispiece.  20/-.  SOLD.  [invented title]

115.  “The Nameless Crimes of the Quaker City; or Devilbug the One-eyed Ghoul”.  A rare American Dime-a-number Dreadful.  Large thick vol. 15/-.  SOLD.  
[George Lippard's The Quaker City; or, The Monks of Monk Hall]

116.  “The Headsman of Old London Bridge”, and another Brett “Blood”. 1 vol. 15/-.

[James & Smith, 255]

117. “The Hunchback of Old St Pauls”, and 2 others in one vol.  20/-.

118.  “Alone in the Pirate’s Lair”, “The Brigand Muleteer; or the Scourge of the Pyrenees”, and “Alone Among the Brigands”.  2 vols.  35/-.

[James & Smith, 616-617, 77]

119. “Boys of England”, the last 26 vols. 1884 to 1899. £20.  A gift.

120.  Reynolds “Mysteries of London”. Original Penny numbers in 4 vols. 20/-.

121.  Reynolds “Mysteries of the Court of London”.  Original issue. 8 vols. 30/-. SOLD.

122.  “Catalina; or the Spaniard’s Revenge”.  9 numbers.  Cuts. 1847.  20/-.

[James & Smith, 287]

123.  “Jane Shore the Goldsmith’s Wife”.  Original numbers, bound.  7/6.

[Summers, 374]

124.  “The Jester’s Revenge, or the Seven Masks”, and three others in the one vol.  20/-.  SOLD.

[Summers, 375]

125.  “Under the Black Flag”, and 2 others in 1 vol. 25/-.  SOLD.

[Possibly Under the Pirate’s Flag.  James & Smith, 671]

126.  “The Maniac’s Secret”, and 6 others in one vol.  No cuts.  7/6.

127.  “The Rival Hangman”.  3 numbers only, all that were issued.  3 cuts. 1870.  5/-.  SOLD.

128.  “The Ruin of the Rector’s Daughter”.  Weird cuts.  London.  1848.  20/-.

[Possibly Emma Mayfield; or, the Rector’s Daughter.  Summers, 309]

129.  “The Black Band; or the Mysteries at Midnight”.  (Miss Braddon’s early blood)  Cuts by Dore. 20/-.

[James & Smith, 66]

130.  “The Secrets of the Old House at West St.”  (Jonathon Wild’s House).  One of the most blood-freezing of the old Bloods.  In 2 vols.  104 cuts.  SOLD for £10.

[The Old House of West Street; or, London in the last Century.  James & Smith, 503; Summer, 541]

131.  “The Hebrew Maiden; or the Lost Diamond”.  (A piracy of Scott’s Ivanhoe).  A rare 1841 Lloyd.  Crude cuts.  Damaged badly.  15/-.

[James & Smith, 488; Summers, 349]

132.  “Black Plume, the Demon of the Ocean”, and ten other small bloods, with coloured wrappers.  Now rare.  15/-.  SOLD.

133.  “The Ghost of Inchvally castle, a Tale, alas, too true”.  Old cuts.  1821.  7/6.

134.  “The Smuggler King; or the Wolf of the Wave”.  Second half only.  Cuts. 10/-.

[Possibly The Smuggler King; or, The Foundling of the Wreck. James & Smith, 509]

135.  “Powerful Dramatic Tales”.  6 large vols of Romantic Dramas, each with coloured cover and cuts.  £5.

136.  The Demon of Brickarhein; or the Enchanted Ring”.  Bound with “Wolfgang; or the Wreckers Beacon”.  Both extracted and bound from the Australian Journal of 1876 and 1877.  rare. 1 vol.  7/6.
[Should be "The Demon of Brockenheim"]

137.  “Black-Eyed Susan”, “The Pirate’s Isle”, and 2 others.  Coloured wrappers.  Cuts.  In one vol.  30/-.

[James & Smith, 165-166, 182]

138.  “Manualla, the Executioner’s Daughter”. 2 vols (should be 3).  Frontispiece. 5/-

Contents of both lists cheap at £200.

ADDENDA 1945

139.  Vols 1 and 2 of the “Boys Comic Journal” in one thick vol.  45/-.

140.  Number of vols of “Young Men of Great Britain”, several vols.  Cloth or paper covers.  25/- each.

141.  “Boys of the Empire and Young Men of Great Britain”, several vols.  Cloth or paper covers.  25/- each.

142.  Rehash of the Brett’s Journals issued in the early 1900s under the title of “Up-to-date Boys” and later “Boys of Empire”, slightly broken run to finish in 1906.  27 vols. £15.

143.  Miscellaneous vols, such as “Boys Champion Journal” 1891, “Our Boys Paper”, “Boys Weekly Reader”, “Our Boys Journal”, etc. 30/- each.

144.  About 600 of the Aldine Library, Penny, Twopenny and Threepenny Tales.  All in Mint order, with coloured wrappers.  £30 the lot.  SOLD SOME.

145.  “Robert Macaire the French Bandit in England”.  Gorgeous vol.  Cloth Gilt.  1847. £3-10-0.

[Summers, 480]

146.  “Ada the Betrayed; or the Murder in the Old Smithy”.  Original Penny Numbers.  Bound in one vol, with all the fierce cuts.  1847. £3-10-0.

[James & Smith, 541]

147.  “Sweeny Todd the Demon Barber of Fleet Street”.  Original Chas. Fox edition.  (First time the ‘Demon’ was used in the Title).  With Coloured wrapper, bound with “For Honour” by Burrage, and “The Brigands of the Sea; or the sailor Highwayman”, also with a fierce cover.  “Sweeny” by itself is almost priceless in England.  Costs, when found, up to £20.  (The 1851 edition went to £30).  This vol is cheap at a tenner.

[James & Smith, 626; Summers, 519-521]

148.  “Cartouche, the French Jack Sheppard”.  Very rare Fox item published 1897. £1.

[James & Smith, 682; Summers, 262]

149.  Brett, Fox and Hogarth House Shilling vols, some in paper, others cased, with coloured wrappers preserved; also 15 in limp cloth, without coloured wrappers.  Worth marked prices, ranging from 15/- to 30/- each.

150.  “The Handsome Harry Series”.  Original “Best for Boys” edition, in one thick vol.  Finishes at “Young Ching Ching”.  £5-10-0.

151.  Another vol. Hogarth House: “Handsome Harry and Cheerful Ching Ching”.  Cloth £2.  SOLD.

152.  The same, bound with Willie Grey” and “Young Tom Wildrake”.  Coloured frontispiece.  £5.

153.  “Slapcrash Boys” and “Black Bandits of the Rhine”, in one vol. £1.

154.  10 vols “Australian News” and “Melbourne Post”, between 1860 and 1881.  Worth at least £50.

155.  Volume of “Melbourne Herald” 1865.  (Bushranging year, Morgan, Hall, Gilbert, etc).  £2.

156.  “Golden Hours”, rehash issued in the nineties, of various American Boys papers and Burrage’s Ching Ching own”.  3 large vols.  £3.

157.  “Spring-heeled Jack, the Terror of London”. Vols 2,3,4, bound with two fierce coloured frontispieces. £2.

[James & Smith, 347; Summers, 513]

158.  “Shot and Shell” Series.  Hogarth House.  Five of the original six.  With coloured wrappers intact, and duplicate “Captain Jack”.  £2.

John P Quaine's copy of The Lady in Black