Hardy, Thomas.

hardy's autograph manuscript, with revisions, of his great verse tribute to a.c. swinburne



nine stanzas (52 lines in all), beginning "In this fair niche above the unslumbering sea" (changed from "In this recess/high niche beside the sleepless sea"), the original heading "A South-Coast Nocturn" changed to "A Singer Asleep", with substantive autograph revisions in ten lines, dated from "Bonchurch: 1910", 2 pages, 4to, sewn in paper wrapper inscribed "Given to me by M^{rs Thomas Hardy August, 1937. C.H. St J. Hornby", together with some pages of related notes by Frederick B. Adams Jr and a letter to himabout the manuscript by T. Burnett (1988), in a fitted blue cloth box, 4to}

The author's wife Florence Hardy, given by her to C.H. St. John Hornby in 1937 (autograph note by St. John Hornby on upper wrapper); the Philadelphia autograph dealer David Holmes, sold by him in 1988 to the collector Frederick B. Adams Jr; the sale of his library at Sotheby's, 7 November 2001, Part II: Thomas Hardy, lot 488

Condition is described in the main body of the cataloguing, when appropriate.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
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Hardy was an early and passionate admirer of Swinburne's poetry. The two men later met and corresponded and Hardy sent him occasional copies of his works (for instance an inscribed copy of The Well-Beloved, also formerly in the Frederick B. Adams Jr library, sold at Sotheby's 7 November 2001, lot 489). The present elegy on the poet, among Hardy's finest poems, was written nearly a year after Swinburne's death, on a visit to his grave with Florence Dugdale (his future second wife) at Bonchurch, 23 March 1910. It was published in English Review in April 1910 (Purdy, pp.162-3).

This manuscript (the first page of which is reproduced in the Ashenden Press edition of Michael Millgate's biography of Hardy, opposite p.401), was given by Florence Hardy to C.H. St John Hornby just before her death in 1937 and purchased by Frederick Adams from David Holmes in 1988. Another manuscript of the poem (sent to English Review) was given by Hardy himself to Newnes Public Library, Putney (later transferred to Battersea District Library); a fair copy made by Hardy for T.J. Wise in 1920 is in the British Library (Ashley MS 4467); and yet another fair copy is in the manuscript of Satires of Circumstance (1914) in Dorset County Museum (Index of English Literary Manuscripts, IV, part 2 (1990), p.120).