THE BISHOP AND THE CATERPILLAR (AS RECITED BY MR. BRANDRAM) AND OTHER PIECES

Second edition. x, 92p, 8p ads. Bound in coated linen, the upper cover decorated with stylized title in blue and two pictorial vignettes in red. This copy SIGNED by the author "With kind regards from MEManners". There is also written in ink "C.L. Dodgson", which may or may not be written by Miss Manners. It could beg the question if this may have been Lewis Carroll's copy. In October 1892, Dodgson sent a letter to Miss Manners thanking her for the book and the dedication, and pointing out that his name had been misspelled. "The publishers corrected the spelling of Carroll in the next edition of the book, and Dodgson was able to write to Miss Manners on March 1, 1893 (MS: Guilford): 'Accept thanks for book, now correctly printed.' Cohen. Letters of Lewis Carroll P. 921n. Although it seems odd that Miss Manners did not include Dodgson's name when she inscribed the book, a letter from Dodgson to her in November, 1897 admonished her for not so doing. "Dear Miss Manners, Many thanks for the book [Aunt Agatha Ann and Other Verses]: but would you kindly inscribe my name. in each of the enclosed books? You can hardly have realized how utterly valueless an author's inscription is, unless it names the person to whom the book is given. I have half-a-dozen books on my shelves, all inscribed, by their distinguished authors, with such inscriptions as these contain; and any one, looking at them, might say 'What distinguished friends you have!' the fact being that they are all perfect strangers to me, and that I merely bought the books second-hand." Letters of Lewis Carroll p. 1146. Moderate to light soil, and with small hole in last leaf, minor looseness at front inner hinge, but altogether about VG.…