Fumes of Formation.

Belfast, Carswell 1933. Octavo, very good in publisher's orange cloth with design and lettering in black, matching dustwrapper (this with pieces missing). The neat inscription 'Chatto & Windus' on the front fly suggests that this was their file copy. They republished her second novel 'Delina Delaney' in 1935 and it makes sense that they would have a proprietorial interest in her books. Mercer's bibiography of Ros (appended to Jack Loudan's biography of her) tells us that copies exist in two original bindings, in quantities of about 100 and 60 copies respectively. This copy is in the first binding. The remaining unbound sheets were supposedly destroyed but unbound copies have appeared. In any case this is not a common book with dustwrapper - even one that is defective. Verse, and the last thing Mrs Ros published (a few things appeared posthumously), it includes what must be her most famous poem, On Visiting Westminster Abbey . : "Holy Moses! Have a look! / Flesh decayed in every nook! / Some rare bits of brain lie here / Mortal loads of beef and beer, .". …