7x4½, one-page, approximately 75 words, inked in purple on stationary letterhead “Ivory” circled embossed on top corner. Dated January 8, 1872, “Chestnuts,” Guildford. Signed and addressed to long-time publisher, [Alexander] Macmillan (1818-1896).
The author of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass… writes to his long-suffering publisher. Dodgson’s relation with the firm of Macmillan and Co. was a peculiar one, as he paid for and supervised every detail of the production of his works issued by them, with Macmillan receiving a commission on books sold rather than paying royalties to Carroll. In addition, Carroll/Dodgson, treated his publisher rather as his personal manservant, directing him to perform a variety of errands and services. Most of the surviving Macmillan / Carroll letters are preserved at the Rosenbach Museum in Philadelphia. The present piece is somewhat unusual in that it deals with a Carroll publication about which very little is known. In this letter, Dodgson instructs his publisher, “Please print 100 of the letters of which I sent a corrected proof, & send copies to all the charities marked in Low’s hand-book, which I will send by book-post.” The piece in question is known as “Circular to Hospitals” and is recorded only in the bibliographical appendix to Stuart Dodgson Collingwood’s The Life and Letters of Lewis Carroll (1899). One of several such charitable solicitations made by Dodgson was to donate copies of the two Alice books to hospitals and other institutions for sick children. The Lewis Carroll Handbook (1979) aver that no copies of this Circular have been located and suggest that this piece may date from as late as 1877, a speculation disproved by the present letter. The letter goes on requesting Macmillan to send him “printed extracts from the ‘Month’ & ‘Illustrated Times’ – which I prefer to manuscript copies”; referring to reviews and comments on Through the Looking Glass. He further requests, with reference to the Circular, “Also please keep the ‘letter’ in type for a short time, as I may want more struck off.” Macmillan or an associate has drawn two light vertical lines through the text to indicate that action has been taken and has added a minute note “To Clays / S” – denoting that the instructions have been forwarded to the printer. [See Collingwood, p.434 & Lewis Carroll Handbook, 87].
Condition:
Original folds, left edge slightly irregular, some fading along right margin; a couple of light vertical lines and brief notation inked by recipient; else very good.