[Royal Lit. Fund.] ALS from Anthony Trollope to 'My Dear Mr Blewitt', on the headed paper of Waltham House, Feb 25, [18]70. '. they have failed and owned their failure.'

40 lines, in black ink, on first three sides of folded 8vo leaf, laid down. v.g. Not published in The Letters, 1983. A strong letter from Trollope to the author Octavian Blewitt, Secretary of the Royal Literary Fund, discussing an article Blewitt has written for Saint Paul's Magazine which concerns both Bulwer Lytton and Charles Dickens. Trollope informs Blewitt, 'I have read your paper, and I like it so well (with one exception), that I will endeavour to publish it myself.' Explaining his misgivings, he continues, 'I do not like the first two pages. I think, considering that we have triumphed over Lytton & Dickens, that they have failed and owned their failure, that you are a little hard on them - or something perhaps too triumphant. The effort was well meant, though we did not agree with them. Both Dickens and my Lord tried their best; and though I think it may be fair (and I think is judicious) to mention the fact that the property is to be sold, I would do it with some little acceptance of their good intentions'. Trollope further explains, 'Dickens is privately my friend, and of course knows that I edit the magazine. I should hardly like to put in a paper that seemed to be hard on his failure. And I should like it the less as Lord Lytton, some time since owned to me at Knebworth the failure in a very frank manner.' Signed with initials, 'Yours always, A.T.' Blewitt, under Trollope's direction, evidently softened the hard edges, and the seven-page article was published in Saint Paul's Magazine in May 1870, under the title 'Bricks and Mortar Charities'. It focused on the decision of the committee of the Guild of Literature and Art, 'to sell the three houses which they erected a few years ago on the Knebworth estate, and to apply the proceeds in small pensions to decayed artists and men of letters'. In the article Blewitt applauded the decision to sell, observing that 'artists and literary men. have been disinclined to accept a residence rent free at such a distance from their work, without an allowance for furnishing and keeping it up'. Blewitt, along with Trollope, had clearly been opposed to the Guild's honourably intended but flawed experiment in property ownership, and was pleased to see that Dickens and Lytton had come to accept its inadequacies. There is no specific reference to the matter in Pilgrim Letters, suggesting the decision to give up the Guild's properties was not too much of a blow to Dickens. If he did take issue with Blewitt's article, Dickens had little time to respond; he took ill shortly after its publication, and died the following month. PLEASE NOTE: For customers within the UK this item is subject to VAT at 20%.…