[COMBE (William)]:

Letters of the Late Lord Lyttelton. Fourth Edition.

London: Printed for J. Bew..., 1781. Small 8vo, pp. [ii], vii [viii blank], 222, contemporary calf, red leather label; top of spine chipped with small portion of panel missing. Combe apparently claimed credit for the work later in his life, though the letters are sometimes thought to be genuine ones by Thomas Lyttelton, the second Lord Lyttelton.

John Price Antiquarian BooksProfessional seller

Book number: 3917

Catalogue: Letters

Keywords: letters forgery prose

HERVEY (James):

A Collection of Letters, by the late Reverend James Hervey.

Glasgow: Printed by J. and M. Robertson, 1792. 12mo (in 6s), pp. 604, with pp. 279 - 302 misnumbered as 179 - 202, contemporary sheepskin, gilt spine, red morocco label; upper front joint slightly cracked, top and base of spine chipped, corners worn, binding a little dried and rubbed. The anonymous editor observes in the Preface, that Hervey "seemed to make it almost an invariable rule, not to write a letter on any occasion, without at least some pious sentence in it..."; the pious sentences are balance by the more ordinary aspirations of writers, e. g., is a projected book likely to be published. ESTC on-line locates three copies of this edition: E; FMU and MBAt.

John Price Antiquarian BooksProfessional seller

Book number: 3410

Catalogue: Letters

Keywords: letters religion prose

HERVEY (James):

A Collection of the Letters of the late Reverend James Hervey, A. M. To which is prefixed, An Account of his Life and Death. In Two Volumes. [AND]: Eleven Letters from the late Rev. Mr. Hervey, to the Rev. Mr. John Wesley; Containing An Answer to that Gentleman's Remarks on Theron and Aspasio. Published form the Author's Manuscript, Left in the Possession of his Brother W. Hervey. With A Preface, Shewing the Reason of their now being published.

London Printed by Charles Rivington, For John Rivington..., 1760, 1765. FIRST EDITIONS. 3 volumes. 8vo, pp. xcix [xcx Errata], 326; viii, 439 [440 Errata, 441 - 444 adverts]; xxxviii, 297 [298 blank], O1 in volume 2 in cancelled state, contemporary calf, spines ornately gilt in compartments, red and green morocco labels; lacking the engraved portrait of Hervey found in some issues of volume 1, slight wear to front joint volume 1, one label slightly chipped, tops and bases of spines a little worn, but generally a very good set. James Hervey (1714 - 1758) produced some of the most popular devotional writings of the 18th century: his Meditations and Contemplations (1746 - 1747) was probably reprinted more often in the second half of the 18th century than even Thomson's Seasons. Hervey's Calvinistic, evangelical sympathies did, however, provoke some attacks, which he seems to have been indifferent to. His answer to Wesley's criticism of his popular Theron and Aspasio (1755) was first published without his or his brother's authority in 1764. Although the letters are filled with devotional topics, there are frequent comments on political topics and literary productions of the day, viz., "Thanks for Mr. Mason's Odes. Polished Performances' but not equal, in my Judgement, to his Isis, or his Monody on Pope."

John Price Antiquarian BooksProfessional seller

Book number: 4359

Catalogue: Letters

Keywords: letters biography prose

HERVEY (James):

A Collection of Letters.

Glasgow, Printed by J. and M. Robertson, 1792. 12mo (in 6s), pp. 604, contemporary calf, morocco label; lacks all before title-page, horizontal tear in title-page from inner margin but not reaching fore margin, rear cover detached, top and base of spine chipped, top and base of front joint cracked. For this edition, there is a new preface as well as a two-page assessment of his writings at the end, but perhaps the most interesting part of the book is the booksellers' label almost filling the front paste-down end-paper, advertising a large collection of books at the "Reader's General Repository of Literature, Cranbrook..." ESTC N27473 locates 4 copies: E, L; FMU, MBAt.

John Price Antiquarian BooksProfessional seller

Book number: 4556

Catalogue: Letters

Keywords: letters religion

HOUSMAN (A. E.):

Fifteen Letters to Walter Ashburner. [Edited by Alan Bell.]

Edinburgh: The Tragara Press, 1976. FIRST EDITION. 8vo, pp. 24 [25 - 26 blank, 27 limitation notice, 28 blank], including half-title, original blue printed wrappers. A fine copy. Handset and printed by hand by Alan Anderson at the Tragara Press. Edition limited to 125 copes "of which 100 are for sale". "This is one of 25 copies printed for the editor." Ashburner (1864 - 1936), an American educated in England, met Housman at Oxford; they shared an interest in books and dining.