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Suffrage Stories: Bloomsbury Links in Life And Literature
Posted in Suffrage Stories on May 21, 2013
In Night and Day, set in 1910, Virginia Woolf writes explicitly of the suffrage campaign. She places the office of her suffrage society, the ‘S.G.S.’, in the heart of Bloomsbury, in Russell Square. Mary Datchet works there (‘From ten to six every day’) in an office on the top-floor of a large house ‘which had once been lived in by a great city merchant and his family’. When Mary Datchet is found ‘lost, apparently, in admiration of the large hotel across the square’, she could in fact have been looking at not one but two imposing hotels – the Russell and the Imperial.
A house with just such a view, number 23, on the north-western corner of the square, belonged to Sir Alexander Rendel, grandfather of Ellie Rendel, close friend of Ray Strachey. Although by 1910 the offices of the main women’s suffrage societies were in real life based either in Westminster, where Ray Strachey was busy working for the National Union of Women’s Suffrage Societies, or around the Strand, Russell Square had indeed, in the later years of the 19th century, been a centre of the movement. The northern corner of the Hotel Russell (perhaps the very hotel on which Mary Datchet’s gaze rested) had replaced 8 Russell Square, where Dr Richard Pankhurst, his wife Emmeline, and their young family had lived from 1888 to 1893.
It was here, in the 1890s, that the Pankhursts’ art-furnished double drawing room had provided a useful gathering place for conferences of the Women’s Franchise League, a society aimed at winning the vote for women. The most lavish of these conferences, held over three days in December 1891, was illustrated in the Graphic and reproduced 40 years later in Our Mothers (ed. Alan Bott & Irene Clepahane), a book owned by Virginia Woolf and consulted by her when writing Three Guineas.
Elizabeth Wolstenholme Elmy photographed c 1906
The chief founder of the Women’s Franchise League was Mrs Elizabeth Wolstenholme Elmy, one of the 19th-century’s most active workers for the women’s Cause. Virginia Woolf’s father, Leslie Stephen, was in touch with Mrs Elmy on at least one occasion, for it is she he thanks for the information he used when compiling the entry for the Dictionary of National Biography on her brother, Joseph Wolstenholme.
The latter was, until his death in 1891, an intimate of the Stephen household; the two men had met at Cambridge where, before an unfortunate marriage, Wolstenholme had been a fellow of Christ’s College. Noel Annan describes a dinner in Wolstnholme’s rooms at Christs’ at which Leslie Stephen took issue with the opinions held by his dining companions. He accused them of ‘drivelling radicalism’ and joked: ‘to give women votes – why, it might save the Church of England for a quarter of a century’.
There were many reasons for objecting to the vote for women but Joseph Wolstenholme was not to be swayed. In 1870 he and two other fro Cambridge subscribed to the Manchester National Society for Women’s Suffrage, the most radical of the women’s suffrage societies, founded by his sister in 1865.
Joseph Wolstenholme
Whatever differences they might have had on such subjects, Leslie Stephen remained an affectionate friend, inviting Joseph Wolstenholme to share the Stephen holiday each summer in Cornwall and reminiscing about these visits in the Mausoleum Book in which he alludes to Wolstenholme’s ‘Bohemian tastes and heterodox opinions’. Quentin Bell has suggested that the character of Augustus Carmichael in To the Lighthouse was based on that of Joseph Wolstenholme. Carmichael and Wolstenholme certainly shared a taste for opium. Carmichael does not, however, reveal his opinion on women’s suffrage.
Virginia Woolf with her parents at Talland House, Cornwall, in 1892. Alas, the ‘Woolly One’ would be holidaying with them no more
Virginia Woolf included memories of ‘The Woolly One’ (as Wolstenholme was fondly known to the young Stephens) in A Sketch of the Past and mentions in 22 Hyde Park Gate, that George Duckworth thought ‘old Mr Wolstenholme not one of the “nice people”‘.
So we can recognise that, as Mary Datchet’s eyes gazed across Russell Square from the S.G.S. office, threads of association spooled forth linking her and her creator to two of the most influential activists for women’s suffrage. It would be a mistake, however, to identify the ‘S.G.S.’, the acronym never elucidated, with a women’s suffrage society.
In 1910 Virginia Stephen offered her services to the People’s Suffrage Federation (P.S.F.), a society formed in October 1909 to promote adult (not merely female) suffrage and to remove the property basis as the qualification for citizenship.
To her friend and teacher, Janet Case, Virginia wrote in a letter dated 1 January 1910: ‘I don’t know anything about the question. Perhaps you could send me a pamphlet, or give me the address of the office …You impressed me so much the other night with the wrongness of the present state of affairs that I feel that action is necessary.’
Mecklenburgh Square, Bloomsbury
So it was that Virginia Stephen spent a short time working in an office in Mecklenburgh Square, addressing envelopes for the P.S.F., while absorbing details that were to be transported across Bloomsbury to the office of the S.G.S. As the adult suffrage for which the P.S.F. was committed was also known as ‘universal suffrage’, perhaps we could unravel the initials of Mary Datchet’s society and reconstruct them as ‘The Society for General Suffrage’.
Hotel Russell
All things pass away and, as Mrs Pankhurst’s double drawing room made way for the terracotta splendour of the Hotel Russell, so the ‘Virginia Woolf Burger and Pasta Bar’ that at the beginning of the 21st century nestled in the hotel’s northern corner where once the members of the Women’s Franchise League held earnest debate, is, alas, no more. How suitable, then, that the hotel’s new dining room is named ‘Tempus’, with Night following Day in the diurnal rhythm that sweeps us onward while Mary Datchet still stands, ‘lost in admiration’, gazing out across Russell Square.
Campaigning For The Vote: Kate Frye and ‘Black Friday’, November 1910
Posted in Kate Frye's suffrage diary on May 20, 2013
Kate Frye was present on so many important suffrage occasions – including ‘Black Friday’ – 18 November 1910. On this day the suffrage societies learned that the Conciliation Bill, on which they had pinned their hopes, would be abandoned as, with the two houses of Parliament locked in confrontation over Lloyd George’s budget, Parliament was to be dissolved. The police were out in force and employed brutal tactics to break up the women’s demonstration.
Only a short excerpt of Kate’s ‘Black Friday’ diary entry appears in Campaigning for the Vote because it occurred in the period before Kate began work as a paid organizer for the New Constitutional Society for Women’s Suffrage. There was, alas, just too much material in her diary to make a book out of her whole suffrage experience. So, for those who would like more, here are full details of Kate’s experience that momentous day.
Kate’s invitation from the WSPU to attend the protest, Friday 18 November 1910. Just imagine how many of these fragile flyers lay torn and trampled on the ground at the end of ‘Black Friday’. Kate carefully preserved hers, took it home and laid it in her diary
Friday November 18th 1910
Up in good time. Brushed Mickie [her dog] then took him for a walk – then started at 10.30 for the Caxton Hall. Train from Notting Hill Gate to St James’ Park. I got there about 12 – and the hall was already full and the crowd hanging about were soon after turned out of the vestibule – so I stood some time on the steps. Then from there we were turned into the street and I waited there, chatting with different women, till about 12.40 when the 1st deputation left the Caxton Hall for Parliament Square.
They were soon swallowed up in a seething mob and I simply flew with many other women by short cuts to Parliament Square where I landed more or less by chance in the thick of it. One could hardly see the plan of it all amid the hurly burly excitement, shouts, laughter applause & rushes of the enormous crowd which grew every minute. I was almost struck dumb and I felt sick for hours. It was a most horrible experience. I have rarely been in anything more unpleasant – it was ghastly and the loud laughter & hideous remarks of the men – so called gentlemen – even of the correctly attired top-hatted kind – was truly awful. It made all the men and women seem mad together. And the poor women – the look of dogged suffering & strain on their faces.
Spread – with newspaper cuttings laid in – from Kate’s Black Friday’ diary entry
I first reached the wall of the moat [round the Houses of Parliament] at the angle so I could see the door plainly and Mrs Pankhurst and the elderly lady [Elizabeth Garrett Anderson] – over 70 years of age – with her. Then I saw policemen breaking up the little standards held by a group of women. I saw deputations pass along and ugly rushes and ever the crowd grew.
I stood some time but I had to give up my place by the wall people pushed so and I was awfully afraid of getting crushed. So I got out to the road and there watched the deputations come along and saw the horrible hustling by the crowds of roughs and overheard the hideous laughter and remarks of the men looking on. Half of them made the remark that it was the funniest thing they had ever seen in their lives – all had their mouths open in an insane grin. One or two were so horrible that I just gazed upon them till they noticed me and moved away, not liking I suppose to be overheard. Several spoke to me – many indignant: ‘What good do you suppose this will do?’ ‘What else would you suggest?’ said I. Then he began the usual – that the militant methods had disgusted all nicely feeling people etc. I turned his attention to my two badges – constitutional societies, as I told him – and asked ‘What help have you ever given us?’ He walked away. Not one man did I hear speak on the women’s side. There may have been some, but not near me.
I saw Captain Gonne led off & heard afterwards of his doings. Many women there were of the WSPU – and a few London Society [ie members of the constitutional NUWSS society] – all standing about perfectly wretched & green – cheering them on to battle and off to Cannon Row when arrested. One poor lady in her wheel chair [probably Rosa Billinghurst]– propelled by hand – followed in the wake of a deputation – generally 6 to a dozen people – she rang her bell violently and the crowd gave way before her – it was a funny but dreadfully tragic sight.
As the crowd grew and the crowd kept being pressed back – I moved away and once, seeing some fighting women & policemen on the pavement coming my way, I stood back to the railing expecting them to go by. But, oh no – a burly policemen, taking me for one of a deputation, caught hold of me with an ‘Out you come’ and for some minutes I was tossed about like a cork on an angry sea, turning round and round – sometimes bumped on to a policeman – sometimes on a hospital nurse, who was fighting for all she was worth – pale to the lips but determined (and I afterwards saw her led off arrested ) – until I was with the others pushed out of the danger zone.
The others went back but I sat down by the railing for a few minutes. I can’t say the man actually hurt me and I was too excited to realise quite what was happening and I was so thickly dressed as not to feel the bumps much – but it wasn’t nice. I don’t know I could have spoken if I had wished to – but I didn’t wish and I didn’t speak. What I felt was – I am not going to get out of the trouble by saying I am not one of them for I am in heart and anyway he will probably think I am trying to trick him and it will do no good and if these women can stand so much I can stand this little. And of course it was nothing really – only a new experience.
Two ladies – one quite elderly came out of their first battle determined not to go back into it. They were a pitiable spectacle – their nerve had gone. One felt so sorry – they were beside themselves and were not aware they had in fact turned ‘coward’. A little lady – evidently there to plead with the faint hearted – spoke quietly to them, urging them to go when they felt rested. ‘But we couldn’t’, they said, ‘we have been half killed’. ‘Oh, but you must – you must go back again and again and again’ and so on. And I spoke to them – thinking an outsider’s word might turn their attention. Their eyes were brimming. They told me that they were supposed to go on till their strength was exhausted – they thought theirs was – but it wasn’t. But poor souls – their fight – of course they had never realised the awfulness of the business and what they would have to endure until they should fall fainting or injured. I wonder if they went back. Perhaps courage did come back to them but who could blame them – they were very saddening.
On the next page of the diary entry Kate laid in the WSPU’s pamphlet prepared as a result of ‘Black Friday’
I couldn’t seem to leave even when I had crossed to the station side. I stood and watched the arrested being led off – & gave them a send off – but soon after 2 I gave it up and, leaving the horrid spectacle, went in to Westminster Bridge station. They were beginning to clear the Square of people. Hundreds of policemen were arriving and one could less than ever see the plan of it all. A lot of Yankee sailors had been mystified but delighted and a lot of people were frankly puzzled by it all – and it was a sad business explaining to them. I got back cold to the bone – fetched my lunch on a tray – and was glad of hot soup.
After a visit to friend for tea on way home] grabbed up some evening papers then home. Couldn’t keep my mind off the morning’s experience and we talked of little else. 105 have been arrested. It was about the most bitterly cold night I have ever been out in.’
As a result of what she had witnessed on ‘Black Friday’ Kate Frye joined the WSPU
Campaigning for the Vote: Kate Parry Frye’s Suffrage Diary edited by Elizabeth Crawford
For a full description of the book click here
Wrap-around paper covers, 226 pp, over 70 illustrations, all drawn from Kate Frye’s personal archive.
ISBN 978 1903427 75 0
£14.99
Copies available from Francis Boutle Publishers, or from Elizabeth Crawford – e.crawford@sphere20.freeserve.co.uk, from all good bookshops – especially Foyle’s, London Review Bookshop, Persephone Bookshop, British Library Bookshop, The National Archives Bookshop and Newham Bookshop. Also online – especially recommend very favourable price offered by Foyle’s Online (and they pay all taxes!)
- ‘Campaigning for the Vote’ – Front and back cover of wrappers
Collecting Suffrage: Suffragette Jewellery And ‘The Antiques Trade Gazette’
Posted in Collecting Suffrage on May 17, 2013
This week’s issue of the Antiques Trade Gazette contains a letter from me protesting against the mis-describing of random pieces of Victorian/Edwardian jewellery that have a combination of metals and/or stones approximating to the purple, white and green of the WSPU, as ‘suffragette’.
Here is the text of the letter:
‘As a long-established dealer in suffragette memorabilia I must try once again to take a stand against the mis-labelling as ‘suffragette’ of any pieces of jewellery that contain stones approximating to some shade of purple (or pink or red), white and green.
I see on page 32 of this week’s ATG that two auction houses so described 3 brooches/pendants. I have no idea if the intrinsic value of the items was commensurate with the sale price achieved, but of one thing I am certain – there was nothing in the lot descriptions that convinced me that these pieces had any association with the suffragette movement. I only hope that those bidding were not doing so with any thought that they were acquiring a piece of suffragette history. It should be obvious to anyone with any historical sense that it is necessary to have a much more detailed provenance – a documented history – other than some woolly description about ‘purple, white and green’.
The ‘colours’ were the invention of one of the leaders of the WSPU, Mrs Emmeline Pethick-Lawrence, as a way of creating a ‘brand’ for the WSPU and were first used in June 1908 at a grand rally held by the WSPU in Hyde Park.‘The Public Meeting Act’ of December 1908, mentioned in the ATG piece, was intended, although notably unsuccessful, to prevent suffragettes from heckling ministers – not to prevent suffragettes themselves from holding meetings. It was not until years later – in April 1913 – that there was any prohibition on the WSPU holding meetings in public parks. Moreover, Britain was never such a repressive country that suffragettes found it necessary to wear jewellery ‘in the colours’ as a secret token of allegiance. Quite the reverse; women wore their badges (also now very collectable) proudly –advertising the WSPU and many other suffrage societies.
Since each of these societies followed the WSPU lead and adopted an individual combination of colours of their own I am surprised that auction houses and dealers have not yet leaped onto that bandwagon. For instance, the colours of the main suffrage society – the National Union of Women’s Suffrage Societies – were red, white and green. Just think how many pieces of jewellery with stones in those colours could be described as ‘suffragette’ if we were seriously to follow the ‘purple, white and green’ rule.
I have studied the suffragette movement in depth – in all its manifestations – and can report that there is no evidence that ‘suffragette’ jewellery was made in anything like the quantity flooding the auction houses and, of course, Ebay. Moreover the only commercial company known to have made and retailed ‘suffragette jewellery’ as such was Mappin and Webb (Stanley Mappin was a convinced supporter of the WSPU – joining in the suffrage boycott of the 1911 census). I would be interested to learn of any documentation citing any other commercial company as maker of ‘suffragette jewellery’.
Other jewellery was made by individual artist craftswomen- such as the well-known enameller Ernestine Mills – to sell at fund-raising suffragette bazaars and may well have included references to suffragette colours and motifs. On occasion one can find pieces that demonstrate clearly their suffragette provenance. One such is a pendant made – in purple, white and green enamel – from a design by Sylvia Pankhurst. The pendant is long since sold but I use the image of it as the identifier on my website – womanandhersphere.com – on which those who really want to know about ‘suffragette’ jewellery can find more information – as they can in the entry under ‘Jewellery and Badges’ in my The Women’s Suffrage Movement; a reference guide, published by Routledge. Ignorance should not be a reason for allowing auction houses and dealers to perpetuate the ‘suffragette jewellery’ myth. As I say, I specialize in suffragette memorabilia but could not possibly bring myself to sell something as ‘suffragette’ if I was not certain that it had an authentic provenance.’
I don’t suppose this will make a jot of difference – but I try. A suffrage collector told me recently that, after buying an item on Ebay and then doing a little research, he realised that the item was not of original suffragette provenance. When he protested to the Ebay seller, he was toled, ’Prove it’. That was not a valuable item, so it was not worth the trouble of engaging in a prolonged battle with a seller who lacked both historical knowledge and a conscience. However, I am sure there are cases, particularly of jewellery, where sales are made that would not have been without the spurious ‘suffragette’ description.
Caveat Emptor
Buy only from a reputable dealer.
Suffrage Stories/Campaigning for the Vote: Selfridge’s and Suffragettes
Posted in Kate Frye's suffrage diary, Suffrage Stories on May 16, 2013
The Suffrage Annual and Women’s Who’s Who
Selfridge’s opened its glamorous, purpose-built store in Oxford Street on 15 March 1909 and Kate Frye, an ever curious shopper, paid her first visit there on 29 March. (For Kate’s published suffrage activities see here.)
In the morning Kate attended a meeting of the Dance Committee of which she, along with the actress Eva Moore, was a member – they were organising a fund-raising dance for the New Constitutional Society for Women’s Suffrage. Then she met her fiance, John Collins, and, together, they went along to inspect Selfridge’s.
‘We had some lunch there and did the roof and tried to make ourselves giddy – it was lovely up there. Then we systematically did the shop beginning with the top. We had 2d of gramophone each and generally played about and it was 4.30 by the time we had finished. It is a wonderful building but there is nothing in the goods to especially attract. The place was packed and a good many people were buying.’
Kate was, of course, a keen suffrage sympathiser and, although she may not, on that first visit, have appreciated it, Selfridge’s was to be generally supportive of the suffrage cause. For four years later, advertising itself as ‘Selfridge and Co: The Modern Woman’s Club-Store’ on the book’s purple cover, Selfridge’s put its stamp on what is now one of the most useful research tools available to suffrage historians.
The Suffrage Annual and Women’s Who’s Who, published in 1913, contains irreplaceable details about women involved in the suffrage campaign – both militants and constitutionalists. It is likely that Selfridge’s underwrote much of the expense of producing it for, as you see, besides its cover advertisement, the store took running advertisements along the foot of every page.
It is reported, but I have yet to verify, that on occasion Selfridge’s dressed their windows in the purple, white and green colours of the WSPU and even flew the WSPU purple, white and green flag from the store’s flagpole.
Gladys Evans (photo courtesy of Ward Skinner)
However, one clear link between Selfridge’s and the suffragettes is this woman, Gladys Evans, the daughter of a man, now dead, who had owned the British weekly magazine Vanity Fair –a very influential ‘society’ paper ( not to be confused with the Conde Naste magazine which in 1914 adopted the name). Gladys joined Selfridge’s in 1908 in preparation for the opening of the new store and worked there for over a year before leaving to take over a WSPU shop. In 1911 she emigrated to Canada, where a sister had settled, but returned in March 1912 after learning of the arrests of Mrs Pankhurst and Mr and Mrs Pethick Lawrence.
Firmly back on the WSPU warpath, in July 1912 Gladys went over to Dublin where Asquith was on a formal visit and, with other suffragettes, Mary Leigh and Jennie Baines, set fire to a theatre – empty at the time – but the one in which Asquith was due to speak that evening. Gladys Evans was given a long prison sentence, went on hunger strike and was forcibly fed for 58 days. There was a good deal of lobbying to get her and her companions given the status of political prisoners – which would have allowed them better conditions. One of those who wrote on Gladys’ behalf was Selfridge’s staff manager, Mr Best. Apparently, even Mr Selfridge himself was sympathetic, though reluctant to put pen to paper in Gladys’ support because, as an American, he thought it might look as though he were trying to interfere in matters that didn’t concern him. Gladys and Mary Leigh were eventually returned to England, where they promptly gave the police the slip and went on the run.
For most of her later life Gladys Evans lived in the US, dying at the age of 90 in Los Angeles. Evans’ family history relates that Gladys gave all her suffragette papers to the New York Public Library. I have not, however, been able to find a listing for them. That might be a research project for an interested New Yorker.
Selfridge’s suffrage sympathies may have stood the store in good stead when the WSPU went on its window-smashing campaigns in November 1911 and March 1912. Many department stores- even those which, like Swan and Edgar, were regular advertisers in Votes for Women – were targeted. But Selfridge’s windows - 21 in all, of which 12 contained the largest sheets of plate glass in the world - escaped unscathed.
Sarah Bennet, photographed by Lena Connell
However in February 1913, in protest against the fact that the government had been withdrawn the proposed Franchise Bill, Sarah Benett, one-time treasurer of the Women’s Freedom League, was sentenced to six month’s imprisonment after breaking one of these windows. Incidentally, Sarah Benett in 1916 sent a donation to Maud Arncliffe Sennett towards the expense of employing Gladys Evans as an organizer for the Northern Men’s Federation for Women’s Suffrage.
Campaigning for the Vote: Kate Frye in ‘History Workshop Online’
Posted in Uncategorized on May 13, 2013
Do click History Workshop Online
to discover how, in a dark and dank north-London cellar, I first encountered Kate Parry Frye and how I slowly recognized the importance of her diaries are to those interested in the suffrage movement.
To buy Campaigning for the Vote, published by Francis Boutle Publishers, £14.99 click here
Campaigning For The Vote: Book Launch Invitation
Posted in Kate Frye's suffrage diary on May 9, 2013
Campaigning for the Vote: Kate Frye And The Problem Of The Diarist’s Multiple Roles
Posted in Kate Frye's suffrage diary on May 7, 2013
In the following article I discuss the ethics of ‘mining’ the diary that Kate Parry Frye kept for her entire lifetime in order to re-present her in one role only– as a suffragist. The piece is based on a paper I gave at the 2011 Women’s History Network Conference. Campaigning for the Vote: Kate Parry Frye’s Suffrage Diary is published by Francis Boutle Publishers at £14.99
‘Campaigning for the Vote’ – Front and back cover of wrappers
Kate Parry Frye[1] was a diarist. She was also a girl, a young woman, a middle-aged woman, an old woman, a daughter, a sister, a cousin, a niece, a fiancée, a wife, an actress, a suffragist, a playwright, an annuitant, a letter writer, a Liberal, a valetudinarian, a playgoer, and a shopper. She was a rail traveller, a bus traveller, a tube traveller, a reader, a flaneur, a friend, and a political canvasser. She was a diner – in her parents’ homes, in digs, in hotels, in restaurants, in cafés and later, of necessity, a diner of her self-cooked meals. She was an enthusiast for clothes, a keeper of accounts, a reader of palms, a dancer, a holidaymaker, a visitor to the dentist, to the doctor, an observer of the weather, a worker of toy theatres, a needleworker, an animal lover – indeed dog worshipper – a close observer of the First World War and then of the Second.
Kate as a radio listener – 1920s?
She was radio listener, a television viewer, a neighbour and, finally, a carer, recording in detail the effect on her husband of the remorseless onset of dementia and the disintegration of his body and mind. Every one of these roles is played out in minute detail in the diaries Kate Frye kept for 71 years, from 1887, when she was 8 years old, until October 1958, barely three months before her death in February 1959.[2]
Moreover, each role has its variations, depending on time and place. Thus, for example, as a middle-class daughter, Kate Frye played the pampered child, the indulged adolescent and, later, the resentful adult.
Kate photographed c 1897
She was for many years supported financially and lived comfortably. In early womanhood she was afforded considerable freedom, her parents allowing her, indeed encouraging her, to train as an actress and to travel around Britain and Ireland with a repertory company. When that venture proved unprofitable she was able to return to life as a daughter-at-home, a role that appears to have combined the minimum of domestic chores with the maximum of freedom. Until December 1910 the family divided their time between two homes – a house, later a flat, in North Kensington and ‘The Plat’, a large detached, much-loved house on the river at Bourne End in Buckinghamshire.
Details of the auction of The Plat and its contents – the Fryes’ possessions
But Kate Frye was also the daughter of a man whose business failed, whose lack of financial acumen she judged harshly, forcing as it did her mother, her sister and herself to leave their homes and sell all their possessions. Before 1910 there had been periodic indications of financial instability, when, for instance, ‘The Plat’ was let out for the summer, but Kate’s father failed to take his wife and daughters into his confidence, making the ultimate catastrophe all the more shocking. To Kate’s shame the family subsequently relied on the charity of her mother’s wealthy wine-merchant relations, the Gilbeys.[3] Her role in this performance might be studied, shedding as its does a clear light on the precarious reality of the long Edwardian summer. One year Kate could take for granted a life of boating and regattas, dressmakers, cooks and maids, the next she was living in dingy digs, attempting to raise money by hawking the family jewellery and old clothes around shops, while wondering if her relations had remembered to send the remittance and what she would do if they forgot..
Or perhaps one could look through Kate Frye’s eyes at the reality of working the towns of Edwardian England, Scotland and Ireland as an actress.
Kate Frye photographed in costume for her part in J. M. Barrie’s ‘Quality Street’ – on tour in 1903
For instance, between September and December 1903 she was a member of a Gatti and Frohman touring production of J.M. Barrie’s Quality Street and writes in considerable detail of company train travel, theatrical lodgings and the other members of the cast, among who was a young May Whitty. Kate was paid £2 a week and includes in the diary some weekly accounts, which could be studied in conjunction with the management’s financial accounts of the tour.[4] Or her diary could be used to give an insight into the issue of class and gender in the Edwardian theatre; Kate’s experience does not indicate that family and friends felt that her new role was in any way either imprudent or declassé.[5] Or her diary might be used to research the behind-the scenes world of post-1918 theatre, as Kate reports on her husband’s attempt to earn a precarious living as actor and stage manager.[6] Kate’s involvement with theatre saw her performing on both sides of the stage – in her role as an actress and, in the auditorium, as a spectator – and her diary might also be used to study of the habits of playgoers over the decades, recording as it does her comments on the vast number of performances she attended. On occasion she thought nothing of seeing two plays in one day.
Kate kept a separate record of all the plays she saw – including Elizabeth Robins’ ‘Votes for Women!’
Or perhaps one could use her diary to study the nature of ill-health, real or perceived. Menstrual pain – ‘the rat pain’ – lurks behind some of Kate’s continuous complaints of ‘seediness’ and included in some of the diaries are small yearly calendars with the date of each menstrual period marked in pencil.
Kate’s menstrual calendar
But the feeling of ill-health suffered by Kate, by her elder sister, Agnes,[7] and their mother was due to more than menstruation. For weeks at a time, year after year, one or the other, or all three, are confined to their beds. The doctor calls – and is paid – medications are prescribed and taken. For some of the time ‘seediness’ is endured and Kate, at least, gets on with things. It is noticeable that when she has an active life to lead, whether on tour as an actress or as a suffrage organiser, she makes many fewer complaints of ill-health. It is difficult to avoid the thought that some, at least, of the malaise was due to depression occasioned by lack of occupation. Kate did, after all, continue fit and healthy until she was 80. The diary could be read and edited to bring this aspect of her life to the fore, studying the links, in the first 50 years of the 20th century, between status, expectation and occupation – or lack of it – and mental and physical wellbeing Certainly Kate’s sister, who never worked and appears to have had few interests, seems to have given up on life, spending much of her later years in bed and drifting into death. However, although these aspects of Kate Frye’s life are intriguing, it is for her involvement with the Edwardian suffrage movement that she is now likely to be remembered. For Kate Frye’s diaries have been directed, by chance, towards an editor whose research interests centre on suffrage.
Kate was what one student of diary writing terms a ‘chronicler’, that is her diary was a ‘carrier of the private, the everyday, the intriguing, the sordid, the sublime, the boring – in short a chronicle of everything’ and in its extent is not a little daunting.[8] But, reading the volumes covering the years prior to the First World War, one quickly realises that involvement in one of the major campaigns of the day provided Kate’s life – and her diary – with a focus. For the Frye family’s descent into near, if genteel, destitution coincided with the growth of the suffrage movement, which subsequently provided Kate with employment. Although she was untrained for any career other than acting, which she had found, in fact, did not pay, work of a political nature was not outside her sphere of knowledge, for one of her earlier roles had been that of the daughter of an MP. Kate’s father, Frederick Frye, had been the Liberal member for North Kensington from 1892 to 1895 and an interest in politics was taken for granted within the family. Over the years Kate had helped her mother with the regular ‘At Homes’ held for the Liberal ladies of North Kensington and had accompanied her father to many a political meeting.
Flyer advertising the NUWSS ‘Mud March’
The diary entries trace her growing involvement in the suffrage campaign, from participation in the first NUWSS ‘Mud March’ in early 1907, through her performance as a palm reader at numerous fund-raising suffrage bazaars and dances, attendance at meetings of the Actresses’ Franchise League, marching in all the main spectacular processions, stewarding at meetings, bearing witness to the ‘Black Friday’ police brutality in Parliament Square on 18 November 1910, to her employment, from early 1911 until mid-1915, as a paid organiser for the New Constitutional Society for Women’s Suffrage. The diary, as edited as Campaigning for the Vote, highlighting the detail Kate provides of daily life as a suffragist and illustrated with the wealth of suffrage ephemera with which she embellished the original, is an interesting addition to published source material.
But what are the ethics of spotlighting this one role – or any role – from a lifetime performance? Kate’s diary seems to lend itself quite naturally to a style of editing that sets her entries, replete with delightfully quotidian suffrage detail, within a linking narrative, explaining the greater campaign and providing information on people she meets in the course of her days. But, increasingly uneasy, the editor of Kate Frye’s diary felt it necessary to take soundings from commentators on diary writing in order to discover whether the perceived problem, that of highlighting only one of the diarist’s multiple roles – one of her many selves, is one that others have resolved.
Robert Fothergill’s Private Chronicles, published 35 years ago, is generally considered the earliest academic work to have made a serious study of diary-writing.[9] In his study Fothergill considered the diaries both of men and of women but since then much of the attention the genre has received has concentrated on diary writing by women. For in the 1980s and 1990s, with the growing interest in women’s history, academics such as Margo Culley, Cheryl Cline, Harriet Blodgett, Suzanne Bunkers and Cynthia Huff saw women’s diaries as an exciting new source through which to re-examine and re-envisage women’s lives.[10] As Bunkers and Huff wrote, ‘Within the academy the diary has historically been considered primarily as a document to be mined for information about the writer’s life and times – now the diary is recognized as a far richer lode. Its status as a research tool for historians, a therapeutic instrument for psychologists, a repository of information about social structures and relationships for sociologists, and a form of literature and composition for rhetoricians and literary scholars makes the diary a logical choice for interdisciplinary study.’[11] These writers use metaphors such as ‘weaving’, ‘quilting’, ‘braiding’ and ‘invisible mending’ to describe the way in which a woman fashions her diary, a diary of dailiness rather than of great moments. But that ‘weaving’ or ‘quilting’ or ‘braiding’ lies at the heart of the problem. Is it legitimate to unravel this self-construction and fashion it into something else?
That question might be answered quite simply by a judgment made in 1923 by Sir Arthur Ponsonby and much quoted, even by the American women historians of the 1980s. For in English Diaries, Ponsonby was adamant: ‘No editor can be trusted not to spoil a diary.’[12] For his part, Robert Fothergill stated that the only respectable motive behind the amputation of a diary was the desire to make it readable – ‘commonly the abridgement or distillation of an unwieldy original, through the elimination of whatever was considered stodgy, pedestrian or repetitious’.[13] But such an ‘amputation’ is not unproblematic, for what might be considered stodgy and pedestrian to one reader, or in one decade, might be lively and interesting to the next. To anyone interested in the daily life of a suffragist, even the repetitions in Kate Frye’s daily life are revealing. Cheryl Cline elaborated Fothergill’s point, writing, ‘The most sensitive and careful editors, in cutting what they may feel unimportant, irrelevant, repetitious or even “too personal”, walk a very fine line. They may end up, for all their good intentions, ruining the work. Many editors have been neither sensitive nor careful. Editors have cut manuscripts they felt were too long, padded those they thought too short; re-arranged material to suit themselves; bowdlerized writings which revealed the less-than-perfect character of their authors. Too often, they have destroyed the originals once the edited version was published’.[14] So reservations about editing Kate Frye’s lifetime performance to refashion it as a ‘suffrage diary’ are, perhaps, not unjustified, although Kate Frye’s published diary will be neither ‘padded out’, or ‘bowdlerized’, nor will the original be ‘destroyed’. However, the charge of ‘re-arrang[ing] material’ is, perhaps, not inappropriate. It is not that the published entries will have been re-arranged, rather they will have been accorded a prominence they did not have in the original.
It is worth remarking that much of the academic literature on diary writing concentrates on the published diary.[15] There appears to be little recent consideration of the ethics of, as Bunkers and Huff put it, ‘mining’ a manuscript diary for the light it throws on particular aspects of the past, other than the difficulty this creates for those critiquing diary writing per se. Indeed, these authors appear to suggest that it was only in the past that a diary would be treated in this way. Fothergill touched on this point, condemning most severely ‘the ravages of editors, committed in, amongst other things, the name of thematic unity, writing that, from the point of view of his study of diaries, ‘A fatally damaging editorial approach is the subordination of a diary’s general interest to a specialist one, retaining only what is of use to the political or religious historian, for example.’[16] However Cheryl Cline has taken a more tolerant attitude to this aspect of diary editing, commenting ‘The urge to make a “good story” out of a diary that seems rambling and disjointed…is the motive which guides many an editor’s blue-pencil. While many diaries..are written around a theme .. or an event .., most private writings are disjointed and far-ranging. In this case material may be extracted from them and shaped into a more cohesive narrative.’[17] She then cites, as a well-known example of editing for story, A Writer’s Diary, compiled from Virginia Woolf’s diary by Leonard Woolf.[18] Kate Frye’s diary, edited to tell her suffrage story, might, therefore, be said to be keeping exalted company.[19] However it is certainly true that since the middle of the 20th century, the move in diary editing has been towards the unabridged text, complete with full scholarly apparatus. But Kate Frye would never be given that kind of treatment. So is it better to give a wider audience a ‘ravaged’ text – or to leave it, unpublished, in its wholeness on the archive shelf? An argument for leaving it untouched might well be made by the academics who have stressed the importance of the diary as a complete self-construct, a form of autobiography or life writing.[20] The author has considerable sympathy with this viewpoint, while recognising the specific interest to students of women’s suffrage in retelling the story of Kate’s suffrage years.
But perhaps, if theory cannot provide a clear answer, we should look for guidance to the diarist herself. What would Kate Frye have liked done with her text? Although she has been dead for 50 years that text is still alive with her personality and it is not inconceivable that someone who put so much of herself onto the page, developing her writing skill as she shaped her life, would have been happy to have known that she would one day reach out to a wider audience.
In this context it is worth considering for whom Kate Parry Frye had been performing. Most certainly in her diary she acted out her days for herself. From her very early years the diaries had become an essential part of her life. On occasion she discusses whether to bring her diary writing to an end, but always decides to carry on. Until mid-1916, utilising the format that Cynthia Huff describes as ‘self-determined,’ Kate wrote her entries in a large ledger-type book, embellishing them with the addition of relevant ephemera.[21] When, on 16 November 1913, on reaching the end of yet another of these books, she wrote ‘And so I have come to the end of this volume with no book to go on with though I have written to Whiteleys.[22] It would be more sensible to leave off writing a diary – at any rate such an extensive one – but more lonely’. But she did acquire another volume from Whiteleys, although that was to be the last of this kind and she afterwards continued her record in purpose-made diaries, adhering, more or less, to the space allocated for each day and no longer inserting additional material..
So that is one explanation as to why Kate kept her diary; it was her daily companion. In it she depicts herself as slightly aloof from her parents, sister and husband, her abilities unappreciated. As Fothergill has observed, ‘the function of the diary is to provide for the valuation of [self] which circumstances conspire to thwart.’[23] Financial circumstances certainly thwarted Kate’s ability to maintain the class position that for some years she had enjoyed, but in her diary she could continue to present herself as an aspiring member of the upper-middle middle class, although, after 1910, always conscious of the financial chasm that existed between this idea of herself and the reality. On March 17th 1913, when meeting her Kensington contemporaries, she notes: ‘They all seemed so smart and so well dressed and so of a different life – the life really that we have left behind. Oh what a difference money makes.’ Lack of money is a recurrent theme, although in her entry for 22 December 1913 she does try to overcome her regrets, writing, ‘I always feel given nice clothes … I could look nice and attractive. I hate being shabby. It is bad enough to grow old, but to grow dowdy with it, but what can one do without money and lots of it. I do seem to grumble. I seem to forget I am aiming for “goodness” in an advanced and suffrage meaning, and that really any other state is very petty.’ It was not that she struck extravagant poses in her diary, rather that there she felt that there her days were being re-enacted in front of an appreciative audience – herself.
Kate seldom dwells on the act of diary writing, but on Sunday 8 February 1914 was prompted to record:
‘I am reading ‘The Journal of Marie Bashkirtseff’. It is too absolutely interesting for words – and yet all so natural….it isn’t far off me in the inmost soul. Only in performance she was a genius – she could do – I can only dream that I could and do – accomplish. It made me want to read my old Journals but how tame after Marie’s. I was always for putting time and place and leaving out the really interesting bits in consequence – though I sometimes think I catch atmosphere. That is the disadvantages of writing a diary instead of a Journal – one only ought to write when one is inspired and at the moment the feeling or idea strikes one – but with a diary the date and correctness is the thing.’[24]
Perhaps it is fortunate for us the Kate did not write what she terms a ‘Journal’; it is the ‘putting time and place’ that makes Kate’s diary so interesting.[25] We can sit with her on the tube or bus, travelling around London; we can reconstruct the route taking her from Notting Hill Gate to the Criterion Restaurant in Piccadilly for a meeting of the Actresses’ Franchise League – and then eavesdrop on the proceedings; we can go with her to Covent Garden to see the Russian Ballet – ‘as for M Nijinsky, well, words fail me’;[26] we can travel with her around the country roads of Norfolk, searching out suffrage sympathisers; and accompany her as she organises the transport of her boxes, a complicated business, to and from stations and ‘digs’ in the small towns of east and southern England.
For Kate Frye’s diary keeping makes no distinction between the daily chores – brushing her dog, having lunch, changing her books at Smith’s – and life-changing events. Even so, like all diarists, it is clear that she edited her day and, unsurprisingly, for her diaries had no locks, did not make explicit the details of everything that happened to her. For instance, it was only the reading of an entry in a post-Second World War diary that gave a clue to what lay behind her long association with – and eventual marriage to – John Collins, a fellow actor in the 1903 touring production of Quality Street, a relationship that, as presented in Kate’s words, seems rather puzzling. That post-war entry referred to the one for 20 September 1904, the day that Kate finally agreed to marry John. The entry itself is, naturally, of interest because she is writing of the day of her engagement but, when read in context, is constructed – or self-edited – so as not to include anything particularly revealing, merely that, after some, perhaps rather melodramatic, hesitation, Kate had finally acquiesced to John’s repeated offer of marriage. However, on re-reading the entry in the light of the later comment, a rather different story emerges. Kate’s words – ‘..I had to promise, it is the only right thing left to do …I couldn’t marry anyone else now, as he says. I have burnt my boats and no one must ever know that my real self is hesitating’ – appeared to be those of a woman who had realised that she had to make a decision, that she could no longer keep the man hanging on. But, alerted by the entry written nearly 50 years later, a re-reading reveals a rather different story. For, it transpires Kate had acted in such a way that ensured that, this time, she had to agree to marry John. It is hardly worth speculating on what actually had occurred, although in this entry Kate does write of passion and desire. In fact his lack of money, coupled with her lack of inclination, meant that it was a further 11 years before Kate and John married. Although she often debates with herself as to whether she can continue with the engagement, Kate feels unable to escape what she sees as her obligation. The story of that day in Croydon digs – with the landlady out shopping – is only one, albeit major, episode where the diarist, while ostensibly being frank, has not made all explicit.
The ‘Wedding Day’ page – 9 January 1915 -of Kate Frye’s diary
There are doubtless very many other such occasions on which the doings of the self as portrayed in Kate’s diary do not reflect exactly the experience of the self that enacted them, the self of the diary having been refashioned by the diarist’s pen. For Kate Frye recognised her diary’s usefulness in providing her with the daily discipline of putting words on paper. Her diary is written in direct, colloquial prose. Her writing is fluent and she makes virtually no corrections. As we have seen, she was interested in ‘catching atmosphere’ and, although she never intended her diary for publication, she did aspire to literary success. Over many years she mentions time spent on ‘writing’ and a quantity of her manuscripts and typescripts, together with the rejection letters from agents and publishers, survive. Unsurprisingly, for one so enamoured of the theatre, these works are all plays, but only a one, co-written with John Collins, was ever published.[27]
Kate as writer
Regretting as she did her lack of literary success, it is difficult to believe that she would be averse to seeing her words in print now.
Recognising the affection Kate felt for her diary and the time and care she had spent on shaping it, it is worth considering what she had thought might happen to it after her death. In fact her will reveals that the diaries were in effect her main bequest. She left the many volumes, together with the lead-lined bookcase in which they were kept, itself an indication of the concern she felt for their well-being, to the son of one of her cousins. That cousin, long dead, had been the only one of her relations to have had similar literary aspirations, albeit rather greater success. For, Abbie Frye was a prolific Edwardian novelist who wrote under the name ‘L. Parry Truscott’.[28] Kate had clearly wanted the diaries preserved and had not been worried at the thought of their being read by a member of the younger generation - and, by inference, a later general public. But would she have objected to being presented to the general public only in her role as a suffragist – for that is in effect how she is now re-created?
So let us now view the problem from the other side and consider the contribution that Kate Frye’s diary may make to our understanding of the suffrage movement and of the lives lived by its members. How does Kate’s diary stand among other diaries dealing with the suffrage movement? What makes it worth the trouble of editing and publishing? The main difference between the diary of Kate Frye and most others recording suffrage involvement that survive in the public domain is that the latter were written primarily because that involvement represented a singular experience, a highpoint in the diarist’s life. Thus, for instance, the militant campaign is well represented by diaries kept by imprisoned suffragettes, recording the horrors of forcible feeding.[29] For the constitutionalists, two diaries kept by Margery Lees have survived. Leader of the Oldham NUWSS society, she has recorded in one the work of the society and, in the other, gives an account of her participation in a great NUWSS event, the 1913 suffrage pilgrimage.[30]
Apart from that of Kate Frye, only a handful of other diaries with suffrage-related daily entries are known. Those of the delightfully Pooterish Blathwayts of Batheaston, father, mother and daughter, have proved an excellent source for researchers of WSPU personalities and of the militant campaign in Bath[31] and that of Dr Alice Ker provides short factual notes on the suffrage scene in Birkenhead and Liverpool.[32] The diary of Eunice Murray, a prominent Scottish member of the Women’s Freedom League, is in some ways comparable to that of Kate Frye, although the former’s comments on the suffrage campaign are more measured, while her actual accounts are less detailed.[33] Like Kate, Eunice Murray spoke at suffrage meetings but was not required to organise them and was certainly less concerned with ‘catching the atmosphere’ when writing up her diary entries. The diaries of the actress and novelist Elizabeth Robins (held in the Fales Library, New York) record her involvement with the English suffragette movement but, again, although she contributed as a speaker, she was not working at the suffrage ‘coal face’, as it were. None of these diaries, suffragist or suffragette, has yet been published. Excerpts from the diaries of Ruth Slate and Eva Slawson make clear their interest in the Cause and, interwoven with material from their letters, have been published, but within the overall narrative of their lives and concerns suffrage plays only a relatively minor part.[34]
Kate’s diary is valuable because it records her continuous involvement as a foot soldier in the suffrage campaign. She is writing without the benefit of hindsight, recording the inconsequential details of, say, finding a chairman for a suffrage meeting in Maldon or dealing with an imperious speaker in Dover, as well as the rather more momentous suffrage occasions, such as waiting on the platform at King’s Cross station as the train carrying Emily Wilding Davison’s coffin is about to leave for Morpeth. We can trace day by day, week by week, Kate’s growing participation in the movement, reflecting as it does both the increasing publicity given to and acceptance of the suffrage campaign and the decline in her family’s fortunes.
In 1913 Kate was campaigning for the New Constitutional Society in Whitechapel, distributing NCS leaflets translated into Yiddish
Although we cannot say that she became an increasingly militant (although never actively militant)[35] supporter because she regretted her lack of education, in the very first entry in which she refers to suffrage, on 3 December 1906, she writes: ‘I really do feel a great belief in the need of the Vote for Women – if only as a means of Education. I feel my prayer for Women in the words of George Meredith: “More brains, Oh Lord, more brains” ‘[36] – or, again, in 1914, ‘Neither do I understand why I was born if I wasn’t to be educated.’ Kate’s education had been that considered suitable for her gender and class. She did not attend school, but until she was 16 was visited by a ‘daily governess’, although visits were not invariably daily. After that she received somewhat erratic tuition from teachers of French and music. Nor can we say she became a suffragist because she lacked economic power. But she was certainly aware that those two factors – a lack of education and a lack of funds – made life as a woman without the shelter of family money, or the ability to earn her own, very difficult.
Like so many other women at that time, Kate Frye saw the acquisition of the vote as one step towards autonomy. It is our luck that for a few years she attempted to solve her economic problem by propounding the political solution, that is, she earned a living, of sorts, by becoming a suffrage organiser. It is extra fortunate that she did so for a society, the New Constitutional Society for Women’s Suffrage, about which very little has hitherto been known. In fact Kate Frye’s diary contains more information about the NCSWS and more of the society’s ephemera than exists anywhere else.
A page from the ‘Organiser’s Book’ kept by Kate for perusal by the Committee of the NCS
Her elaboration of diary entries by the addition of leaflets advertising the suffrage meetings she attended, even on occasion leaflets she herself had arranged to have printed, and for the processions in which she took part, demonstrates how prominently the campaign figured in her life. Virtually no other ephemeral material is included during this period.
We need only look to the diary for the answer to the question as to whether Kate Frye would object to being remembered as a suffragist. For on ‘Sunday 10 February 1918’ she wrote, ‘One of my afternoon letters was to Gladys Simmons[37] in commemoration of the passing of the Franchise Bill. Haven’t had a single letter from anyone concerning it – I said I wouldn’t but it seems very strange – that someone hasn’t thought of me in connection with the work.’ Now that her suffrage diary is published, at last Kate Frye will ‘be thought of in connection with the work’ and be recognised as a suffragist.[38] However, the very act of publication highlights just this one of her many roles. Out of the multiplicity of Kate Frye’s self-constructions, it is the ‘self’ of her suffrage years that emerges. The reader will have to accept that ‘mining’ a diary in order to view an historical episode from a fresh angle may come at the expense of maintaining the integrity of the diarist’s conception of ‘self’.
Kate’s diary entry for 21 May 1914 in which she records witnessing the WSPU demonstration in front of Buckingham Palace
[1] Katharine Parry Frye (1878-1959), daughter of Frederick and Jane Kezia Frye. Frederick Frye was a director of a chain of licensed grocery shops, Leverett and Frye, a firm financed by the wine merchants W.& A.Gilbey, as a useful outlet for their wines. When Frederick Frye became an M.P., Gilbey’s took over the running of the business. The Irish branch still operates. Frederick’s father had been a ‘professor of music’ and for 64 years organist at Saffron Walden parish church. Jane Frye’s father was a Winchester grocer. In 1915 Kate married John R. Collins.
[2] In August 2010 correspondence on Guardian Online, which included contributions from members of the Women’s History Network, demonstrated that it is by no means unusual for contemporary women to keep daily diaries over decades of their lives..
[3] Kate’s Aunt Agnes (1834-1920, née Crosbie), her mother’s sister, was the widow of Alfred Gilbey (d. 1879). For details of the Gilbeys of Wooburn House, Wooburn, Buckinghamshire see B. B. Wheals (1983) Theirs were but human hearts: a local history of three Thameside parishes (Bourne End: H.S. Publishing). From their relatively humble origins the brothers Walter and Alfred Gilbey grew wealthy as they developed England’s largest wine merchant business, W. & A. Gilbey.
[4] ‘Accounts and Legal’, Quality Street tour accounts (Theatre Museum), cited in Tracy C. Davis (2000) The Economics of the British Stage 1800-1914 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press) p.217.
[5] For a discussion of the entrance of middle-class women into the acting profession see Tracy C. Davis (1991) Actresses as Working Women (London: Routledge) pp. 13-16.
[6] In the 1920s and 1930s Kate often joined her husband on tour. For instance, over many years she spent some time each year at Stratford-on-Avon, where her husband was stage manager for productions at the old Memorial Theatre.
[7] Agnes Frye (1874-1937)
[8] See T. Mallon (1995) A Book of One’s Own: people and their diaries (St Paul, Minn: Hungry Mind Press) p. 1.
[9] Robert A. Fothergill (1974) Private Chronicles: a study of English diaries (London: OUP).
[10] See Jane DuPree Begos (1977) Annotated Bibliography of Published Women’s Diaries (issued by the author); Margo Culley (Ed) (1985) A Day at a Time: the diary literature of American women from 1764 to the present day (Old Westbury NY: Feminist Press); Harriet Blodgett (1989) Centuries of Female Day: Englishwomen’s Private Diaries (New Brunswick, London: Rutgers University Press); Cheryl Cline (1989) Women’s Diaries, Journals and Letters: an annotated bibliography (New York and London: Garland Publishing); Harriet Blodgett (Ed.) (1992) The Englishwoman’s Diary (London: Fourth Estate); Suzanne L. Bunkers and Cynthia A. Huff (1996) Inscribing the Daily: critical essays on women’s diaries (Amherst: University of Massachusetts Press) Suzanne L. Bunkers (2001) Diaries of Girls and Women: a midwestern American sampler (London, University of Wisconsin Press).
[11] Suzanne L. Bunkers and Cynthia Huff ‘Issues in Studying Women’s Diaries: a theoretical and critical introduction’, in Bunkers and Huff (Eds) Inscribing the Daily, p.1
[12] Sir Arthur Ponsonby (1923) English Diaries (London:Methuen & Co), p. 5.
[13] Fothergill, Private Chronicles, p. 5
[14] Cline, Women’s Diaries, p xxvii-xxviii.
[15] Exceptions include Bunkers, Diaries of Girls and Women. See also Cynthia Huff (1985) British Women’s Diaries: a descriptive bibliography of selected 19th-century women’s manuscript diaries (New York: AMS Press).
[16] Fothergill, Private Chronicles, p. 5.
[17] Cline, Women’s Diaries, p. xxviii.
[18] L. Woolf (Ed) (1953) A Writer’s Diary. Being extracts from the diary of Virginia Woolf (London, Hogarth Press).
[19] Although, after Leonard Woolf’s ‘dismembering’, the diaries were reconstructed, in five volumes, edited by Anne Olivier Bell.
[20] For instance, Martin Hewitt (2006) Diary, Autobiography and the Practice of Life History in David Amigoni (Ed) Life Writing and Victorian Culture (Aldershot: Ashgate).
[21] Huff, British Women’s Diaries, p xiv.
[22] Whiteleys was a large department store, which, when Kate wrote this 1913 entry, was in Queensway. The store’s owner, William Whiteley, ‘the Universal Provider’, had been a close friend of the Frye family and his murder and subsequent trial are recorded in detail in Kate’s 1907 diary.
[23] Fothergill, Private Chronicles, p.82.
[24] .Marie Bashkirtseff, a young Frenchwoman, filled 85 notebooks with her journal, which was edited for publication after her death in 1884. An English edition, Mathilde Blind (Ed. and Trans) 1890, The Journal of Marie Bashkirtseff (London: Cassell) 2 volumes. Philippe Lejeune has described the Journal as foreshadowing ‘a line of diaries where introspection, active contestation of the condition of women, and interest in writing stand out as defining features’, see Philippe Lejeune The “Journal de jeune fille” in Nineteenth Century France in Bunkers and Huff, Inscribing the Daily, p119.
[25] Some attention has been paid to this distinction by scholars of diary writing. Suzanne Bunkers, after initially believing that what distinguishes a journal from a diary is that the diary is ‘a form of recording events, and the journal is a form of introspection, reflection, and the expression of feeling’, comes to the conclusion that the distinction is untenable, see S. Bunkers, Diaries of Girls and Women, p 12.
[26] Diary entry for 9 July 1912.
[27] Katharine Parry and John R. Collins (1921) Cease Fire!: a play in one act (London: French’s Acting Editions).
[28] Gertrude Abbie Frye (always known as Abbie), later Mrs Basil Hargrave (1871-1936). The works of ‘L. Parry Truscott’ were mistakenly attributed to Katharine Edith Spicer-Jay in Halkett (1926) Dictionary of Anonymous and Pseudonymous English Literature, (Edinburgh: Oliver and Boyd), Vol 1. By 1926 ‘L. Parry Truscott’’s star had waned and Abbie, by now a widow, was vitually penniless. A considerable amount of information about the interesting life of Abbie Frye can be gleaned from Kate Frye’s diary.
[29] See the manuscript prison diaries of Mary Anne Rawle, Elsie Duval and Katie Gliddon (Women’s Library); the manuscript prison diaries of Olive Walton and Florence Haig (Museum of London); and the manuscript prison diary of Olive Wharry (British Library); The manuscript prison diary of Anne Cobden Sanderson (London School of Economics) has been edited by Anthony Howe but is, as yet, unpublished.
[30] Both Margery Lees’s diaries are held by the Women’s Library.
[31] The Blathwayt diaries are held in the Gloucestershire Record Office. See June Hannam ‘Suffragettes are Splendid for Any Work’: the Blathwayt Diaries as a Source of Suffrage History in Clare Eustance, Joan Ryan and Laura Ugolini (Eds.) (2000) A Suffrage Reader: charting directions in British Suffrage History (London: Leicester University Press).
[32] Dr Alice Ker’s diaries are held in a private collection.
[33] The manuscript of Eunice Murray’s diary are held at the Women’s Library, together with a bound copy of the Diary of Eunice Guthrie Murray, transcribed by Frances Sylvia Martin.
[34] T. Thompson (Ed.) (1987) Dear Girl: the diaries and letters of two working women (1897-1917) (London: Women’s Press).
[35] Kate Frye joined the WSPU in November 1910, after witnessing the ‘Black Friday’ demonstration, but was soon appointed as a paid organiser for the newly-formed New Constitutional Society for Women’s Suffrage.
[36] The quotation is taken from Modern Love by George Meredith, first published in 1862.
[37] As Gladys Wright, she had been a very old Kensington friend of Kate Frye and hon. Sec. of the NCSWS.
[38] Campaigning for the Vote: The Suffrage Diary of Kate Parry Frye, is published by Francis Boutle
Suffrage Stories: Advertisers in ‘Votes for Women’: Amy Kotze ‘Artistic Dresses’
Posted in Suffrage Stories on May 3, 2013
Amy Kotze advertised weekly in ‘Votes for Women’. This is the ‘School Dress’
Who were the dress makers whose advertisements adorn the pages of Votes for Women? Were they suffragettes or did they just see a useful marketing opportunity?
Amy Kotze was one such, advertising, as on the left, clothes for children (made up in Liberty fabric) as well as hand-embroidered ’Artistic Dresses and Djibbahs’.
Amy Charlotta Wilhelmina Heynes Kotze was born in 1884 at the Cape of Good Hope, the daughter of a South-African-born lawyer. Her parents were married in England before going out to South Africa and then returning to England in 1898. Amy was educated at a convent school and then studied at Sydenham Art School. Her father, Frederick Kotze, appears to have left the family in June 1901, returning for good to South Africa. Amy, with her mother and sisters continued living at 83 Croxted Road, Dulwich.
In 1907 Amy walked into Libertys, asked for a job, and was then employed there
Aesthetic gown, 1908-10, produced by Libertys at a time when Amy Kotze was working for them. Picture courtesy of Augusta Auctions
In an interview she gave in 1976, quoted by Barbara Morris in Liberty Design, Amy Kotze described how, influenced by artistic, reformed dress, she made herself a loose tunic which was much admired by friends. She then made a dress for Mrs Emmeline Pankhurst and then set up on her own as a dress maker. She worked for a short time at home and then nearby, in Half Moon Lane, Herne Hill, before moving into Town where from 1910 she had a workshop just along the street from Libertys, first at 3 and then at 8 Great Marlborough Street.
In the night of 2 April 1911 Amy Kotze’s mother and sister are recorded by the census enumerator at the family Dulwich home, but there is no trace anywhere of Amy. Thus she was another of those who appear to have successfully joined the boycott of the census organised by the Women’s Social and Political Union and the Women’s Freedom League .
Amy Kotze paid rates on the Great Marlborough Street premises until 1923. When interviewed she remarked that after the First World War her trade was killed by ‘off-the-peg’ dresses and she then founded the Little Gallery in the same premises, citing Jacob Epstein and Henri Gaudier-Brzeska as artists she had championed. However I have seen a rather earlier review (Observer, February 1914) of a Little Gallery exhibition at 8 Great Marlborough Street, where works by Walter Sickert and Charles Ginner, among others, were being shown.
After 1923, probably until 1934, Amy Kotze was in business with her sister, Louie (1873-1975), at 5 Avery Row, a delightfully bohemian Mayfair by-way, by which time the street directory described their premises as a ‘fancy repository’. I imagine that, as with the Little Gallery, this involved selling their own work and that of other artist craftsmen.
Amy Kotze was now quite comfortably off, living from 1935 until 1948 at Brick House, Great Hormead in Hertfordshire before moving to Greenfields, Henley, near Dorchester in Dorset. She died in Weymouth in 1976, presumably not long after giving the interview in which she described her early career.
Miss Folkard 3 Hills Place, Oxford Circus (1853-1921)
1911, aged 57, 1 Hoveden Road, Cricklewood – living with sister – andAlice Northcott, dressmaker’s assistant
First as dressmaker on 1901 census – when mother was alive apparently none of daughters worked. Had opened shop at 3 Hills Place in 1903
When she died she left £4056
Minnie Roberta Mills
b Cheltenham 1870
By 1891 father had died and mother and 3 surviving children had moved to Brixton – Roberta was an assistatnt in a photographic works. In 1901 as an artist – retoucher and in 1911 leather craft worker, living with mother at 7 Stansfield Road Brixton
Suffrage Stories: Mrs Alice Singer, Miss Edith New And The Suffragette Doll
Posted in Collecting Suffrage, Suffrage Stories on May 2, 2013
Feature on Edith New in Swindon Heritage magazine
The arrival of the first issue of the admirable Swindon Heritage magazine has reminded me of a slight connection I had some years ago with an interesting object created by Edith New – the subject of one of its articles.
It was in 2006 that I was approached by a BBC TV producer planning a spin-off of the Antiques Roadshow -to be called the Antiques Roadshow Greatest Finds. The idea was that they would take a few of the more intriguing items that had been brought to Roadshows in the previous year and research and discuss them in greater depth. The item that was brought to my attention was a Suffragette Doll. My research into its history and that of the woman who had owned it proved utterly fascinating. In addition I had a most enjoyable couple of days making the film that developed from the research.
I am only sorry that I do not have a photograph of the doll, which was dressed as a suffragette in prison uniform. Items such as this may occasionally appear on ebay or at auction but it is not that difficult to ‘forge’ a Suffragette Doll and what one needs is provenance, linking it to its original owner. This ‘Roadshow’ doll was just such a treasure – handed down through a family. What is more to my great pleasure I was able to discover more of the original owner, Mrs Alice Singer, than, when given the commission, I thought would be possible. For, like Kate Frye (the subject of my latest book, Campaigning for the Vote). Mrs Singer had kept a diary which, although a very much more sketchy affair than Kate’s, did reveal a good deal of her involvement with the Women’s Social and Political Union. The diary is now held in Israel by a branch of the family, but they were kind enough to let me have a look at it for the purpose of researching the programme.
Mrs Alice Singer (1873-1955) was born Alice Emma Isabel Isaac, the eldest of three daughters of Stephen Hart Isaac (1850-1877) and his wife Simi Seruya Isaac. Sime Seruya was of Portuguese extraction, although she was living in London when they married in 1872 at Bayswater Synagogue. At this time, and presumably later, when Alice was born, Stephen Isaac was working as the assistant manager of a coal mine at Colwick in Nottinghamshire. When he married he was living at Colwick Hall with his uncle, Saul Isaac, who was the lessee of the mine. Saul Isaac, was at this time MP for Nottingham (1874-80).
When Stephen Isaac died, aged 26, (at 31 Warrington Crescent, Paddington) on 2 January 1877, he was a widower. His death certificate shows that he had been ill for c. 9 months, probably with TB. His wife had died in Lisbon on 4 September 1876, a week after the birth of her third child. It is possible that they were in Lisbon for the sake of Stephen’s health. Lisbon was a place favoured by those suffering from TB. The fact that Sime had family there would have been an obvious attraction.
The three young girls, Alice, Daisy and Sime Seruya Isaac (who was now more than 6 months old) were left under the guardianship of their grandfather, Samuel Isaac, although Sime was brought up by her Portuguese grandparents. Alice, therefore, was orphaned by the time she was 4 years old. She lived at Warrington Crescent until her marriage, I think. [NB across the road, at no 2 Warrington Crescent, there is a plaque to Alan Turing. Interestingly - and the ghosts pile up in London - that was also the address in 1866 of Louisa Garrett Smith (eldest sister of Millicent Garrett Fawcett and Elizabeth Garrett Anderson) the very first secretary of the first London women’s suffrage society.]
Samuel Isaac was an army contractor – his firm was the largest European supporter of the southern (Confederate) states during the American Civil War – and failed on the fall of the Confederacy. After a while he became the main promoter of the Mersey Tunnel, which he was responsible for building.
Samuel (1812-86) and his wife, Emma (nee Hart), with the 2 elder girls, continued living at 31 Warrington Crescent until at least 1881. By 1886, when Samuel died, they were living at 29 Warrington Crescent. [Warrington Crescent, north of Paddington, was a smart address – houses were then new, large and italianate]. In 1891 Sime Seruya Isaac was boarding at a school at Kew. She went on to become an actress – a leading member of the Actresses’ Franchise League and one of the founders of the International Suffrage Shop.
Alice was educated at home by a governess and in 1895 married Julius Singer (1870-1926), son of Simeon and Charlotte Singer. In 1899 her sister, Daisy, married Julius’ brother, David.
Simeon Singer (1846-1906) was a leading light in the Jewish establishment in England, minister of the New West End Synagogue, St Petersburgh Place, Bayswater, from 1878 until his death. He was the translator and editor of the Authorized Daily Prayer Book, still the standard prayer book of Orthodox Jews in Britain. He is clearly still, a hundred years after his death, a strongly felt presence in the synagogue. Julius had four brothers and a sister and the family was clearly at the heart of Anglo-Jewry. Julius died in 1926 (18 Reynolds Close, Golders Green). During the course of the diary Alice is definitely anti-religion – of any kind.
When the census was taken in 1901 Alice and Julius Singer were living at Darby Green Farm, Darby Green, Yateley, Hampshire, which Alice had bought in 1900. Julius was described as a ‘wine and spirit merchant’. However, around 1908 his work seems to have involved the tea industry in some way –probably Lyons – and by then the family had moved to London. In 1911 they were living at 18 Reynolds Close, Golders Green where, on the day of the census, only two servants were at home. There is no trace elsewhere of the Singers – were they evading the enumerator to join in the suffragette boycott of the census?
In 1906 Alice and Julius appear to have been Conservative supporters. In later life Alice lamented that she wished she had been brought up in Fabian circles and, like her sister, Sime, moved dramatically to the Left. She visited Russia in the 1930s. She was keen to use women doctors (Dr Honor Bone) and opticians (Amy Sheppard – who worked at the Elizabeth Garrett Anderson Hospital for Women). She was keen on passing fads – such as vegetarianism, psychology etc – which clearly infuriated her children!
Alice Singer joined the WSPU after attending one of their meetings on 18 February 1907 and by November was prepared to give some time to the cause, addressing envelopes in the office at Clement’s Inn. A week later, when she and her husband attended a WSPU rally in the Queen’s Hall, Julius bought a copy of the new card game – ‘Suffragette’. for my post about this game click here. At the end of the month the Singers took the momentous decision to adopt a child – being themselves still childless. In the casual fashion typical of the time a girl, Mary, was found for them by Mrs Ernestine Mills, a fellow suffragist. (For an example of Ernestine’s work as a jeweller, see here). The Singers were on very friendly terms with the Ernestine and her husband, on occasion staying with them at their Dorset home at Studland.
The Singers continued to be involved members of the WSPU, Alice’s activities only briefly curtailed in 1909 by a long-awaited pregnancy. Emmeline Christabel Kenney Singer (known as ‘Christabel) was born on 10 December. A studio photograph, taken by Lena Connell, is still held by the family, showing Alice with Mary and Christabel. Baby Christabel has a WSPU badge pinned to the hem of her frock.
It was in 1908/9 that Alice Singer bought the Suffragette Doll – presumably at a WSPU fund-raising event. Remarkably in a diary entry of 1931 she reveals that she had met again, at a Suffragette party, the maker of the doll – Miss Edith New. It was such luck that she chose to put this connection on paper – such an ephemeral link but one that gives the doll such an excellent provenance. On 22 August 1908 Alice Singer had attended the WSPU breakfast honouring Edith New and Mary Leigh on their release from Holloway. For much more about Edith New do read the Spring 2013 edition of ‘Swindon Heritage’ – a lively and well-produced model of a local history magazine – click here for details.
There is a strong Antiques Roadshow connection linking Edith New and Alice Singer’s Suffragette Doll – for in 2011 a quantity of Edith’s suffragette memorabilia, now held in the Swindon Heritage Centre (see http://www.swindonheritage.com), was brought to the Roadshow when it visited Swindon. Coincidentally it was the Roadshow expert Hilary Kay who discussed this collection, as she had the Suffragette Doll a few years earlier.
In March 1912 Alice Singer was arrested after taking part in the WSPU window-smashing campaign. When arrested she had a hammer in her hand and when charged said of the windows, ‘I thought it was only one, they seemed like marble, not going to break.’ Alice had chosen to break three windows in the West Strand Telegraph Office, close to Trafalgar Square. Her family thought it appropriate that she, essentially law abiding and a respecter of property, should have chosen quasi-official premises, rather than privately-owned property.
Alice was remanded in Holloway until she appeared in court on 13 March. By now the Singers were living in Golders Green and a solicitor was organised by Mrs Lilian Hicks to represent the Hampstead women. Alice was charged under the Malicious Damage to Property Act and in court declared, ‘I only did it as a political protest. I admit I did it, but not for malice. I plead not guilty to malice.’ She agreed to be bound over – that is, not to commit any other such acts – for 12 months. Only one other woman also agreed to be bound over – all the other women (over 100 had been arrested) were sentenced to prison – their sentences varying but some repeat offenders getting as long as six months. Most of the other women were either single or with older families. Christabel was only 2 years old and I imagine Alice could not contemplate being away from home – in prison – for any length of time. The diary does not reveal any guilt at not opting for imprisonment.
Julius was very supportive while Alice was in prison – he visited her – but was kept waiting for 2 hours before seeing her for a short time ‘We forgot all we really wished to say in the fluster of the time limit and presence of wardresses..’
Alice Singer continued to work actively for the WSPU, in 1913 becoming treasurer of the Hendon and Golders Green branch. In November 1918 she was at last able to cast her first parliamentary vote – ‘I recorded for Mrs Edith How-Martyn for the new constituency of Hendon’. Edith How-Martyn, who had been a leader of the Women’s Freedom League, was standing as a Labour candidate but was unsuccessful.
The Suffragette Doll, treasured by Alice’s descendants, is silent testimony to her involvement in the ‘votes for women’ campaign and her indirect connection to Edith New, Swindon’s own suffragette.
Suffrage Stories: The Raid On WSPU Headquarters, 30 April 1913
Posted in Suffrage Stories on April 30, 2013
Lincoln’s Inn House 2013, former headquarters of the WSPU
One hundred years ago today – on 30 April 1913 – WSPU headquarters at Lincolns Inn House in Kingsway were raided by the police. See here for a photograph (Museum of London) showing the raid in progress.
The WSPU had moved into the imposing new office building during the course of the previous summer – vacating their previous quarters in Clements Inn which had been very much Pethick-Lawrence territory. The geographical separation heralded the political separation that occurred in October 1912 when the Pethick-Lawrences were dismissed from the WSPU.
The police raid was one element in the increasing Home Office crackdown on the WSPU which had begun in February 1913 when, on the day after a house being built for Lloyd George had been damaged by a suffragette bomb, Mrs Pankhurst declared,’For all that has been done in the past I accept full responsibility. I have advised, I have incited, I have conspired.’ The speech was seized on by the Home Office as the opportunity for which they had been waiting to arrest Mrs Pankhurst. She was charged with procuring or inciting women to commit offences contrary to the Malicious Injuries to Property Act and on 2 April was found guilty and sentenced to three years’ imprisonment. She immediately went on hunger strike.
It was no coincidence that a day later the bill that was to become known as the ‘Cat
WSPU poster protesting against the ‘Cat and Mouse’ Act
and Mouse Act’ received its Second Reading in Parliament. The passage of this Bill demonstrates how quickly Parliament could move when the Government was determined to act, for the Bill rapidly became an Act, receiving its Royal Assent on 25 April.
At the beginning of April both Annie Kenney and Flora Drummond were also arrested, the Home Office invoking obscure statutes to ensure that they would appear before the courts. A few days later managers of halls were encouraged by the Home Office no longer to let to the WSPU, who were also proscribed from holding meetings in public parks.
This is the context in which the raid on Lincoln’s Inn House should be seen. The chief office organizers, Harriet Kerr, Beatrice Sanders, Rachel Barrett, Agnes Lake and Flora Drummond were arrested and were to spend most of May in front of the Bow Street magistrate, Mr Curtis Bennett. The police, under the command of Inspector Quinn of Scotland Yard, loaded a pantechnicon with WSPU papers seized from Lincoln’s Inn House, papers, incidentally, which were never returned. I must say I lament their loss as they would most certainly have shed more factual light on the workings of the WSPU - Emmeline Pethick Lawrence had been a very business-like manager. In their absence the WSPU story has had to rely to a great extent on hindsight memories and the information culled from Votes for Women and The Suffragette, sources biased in a way that business letter, receipts and account books are not.
As part of their campaign to cut off WSPU funding, the Home Office intended to trawl through the records seized in order to discover the names of WSPU subscribers and then prosecute them for supporting an organization that encouraged its members to damage property. This plan was never put into practice. The Home Office did, however, prosecute the printer of the WSPU paper, The Suffragette, driving the paper underground but never preventing its publication. On 2 May the Home Office asked the General Post Office to cut off all telephone communication with Lincoln’s Inn House; but the GPO replied that it was not entitled to do so.
These attempts at suppressing the WSPU had, as might have been predicted, the effect of creating a void that was filled by even more extreme words and deeds. Between February and April there were over 30 arson attacks ascribed to the ‘work’ of suffragettes, as well as many lesser attacks – on golf courses, letter boxes etc. Moreover, when combined with the publicity given to Mrs Pankhurst’s successive hunger strikes, it is unsurprising that matters reached a crisis point – at the Derby on 4 June.
Campaigning For The Vote: Kate Frye and Knightsbridge
Posted in Kate Frye's suffrage diary on April 29, 2013
In early 1911 Kate Frye took up her position as a paid organizer for the New Constitutional Society for Women’s Suffrage. The Society had been founded in January 1910 to take a position between that held by the militant Women’s Social and Political Union and the ‘constitutional’ National Union of Women’s Suffrage Societies. Although its members did not want to break the law themselves, the NCS did not condemn WSPU tactics and supported its policy of campaigning against government (Liberal) candidates at elections, thinking the NUWSS had become too ineffectual.
Unlike the other main suffrage societies that had their offices either around the
Burberry shop, Knightsbridge. The offices of the NCS were inside this building
Holborn/Strand area or in Victoria/Westminster, the NCS took up residence in Knightsbridge. They rented an office in Park Mansions Arcade which ran through a relatively newly-built block of mansion flats between Knightsbridge and Brompton Road. The shop area at street level is now occupied by a major Burberry store, into which the Arcade has, at some time in the past, been incorporated. The Arcade part now houses a recently created Burberry Menswear department. To see today’s glamorous reality and to imagine Kate and her co-workers at the NCS walking through this space – full of thoughts of converting the women – and men – of Britain to the Cause – click here.
Knightsbridge was an area that would have appealed to members of the NCS, many of whom lived in Kensington and Paddington. Many of these women had belonged to the London Society for Women’s Suffrage (NUWSS), but had become disenchanted with what appeared to be lack of progress, although were not quite prepared to go so far as to join the militants. However, you can see from the entertainments offered at the opening of the Park Mansions Arcade Office, that members of the WSPU and the Actresses’ Franchise League lent their support.
Notice of the opening of the NCS office, April 1910
Catalogue 179: Books And Ephemera For Sale
Posted in Books And Ephemera For Sale, Collecting Suffrage on April 26, 2013
WOMAN AND HER SPHERE
Catalogue 179
Elizabeth Crawford
Email E.Crawford@sphere20.freeserve.co.uk
JUST PUBLISHED
Campaigning for the Vote: The Suffrage Diary of Kate Parry Frye
Edited by Elizabeth Crawford
An extract
‘Saturday June 14th 1913. [Kate is lodging in Baker Street, London]
I had had a black coat and skirt sent there for Miss Davison’s funeral procession and the landlady had given me permission to change in her room. I tore into my black things then we tore off by tube to Piccadilly and had some lunch in Lyons. But the time was getting on – and the cortege was timed to start at 2 o’clock from Victoria. We saw it splendidly at the start until we were driven away from our position and then could not see for the crowds and then we walked right down Buckingham Palace Rd and joined in the procession at the end. It was really most wonderful – the really organised part – groups of women in black with white lilies – in white and in purple – and lots of clergymen and special sort of pall bearers each side of the coffin. She gave her life publicly to make known to the public the demand of Votes for Women – it was only fitting she should be honoured publicly by the comrades. It must have been most imposing. [Plus much more description of the procession as Kate follows it into King’s Cross station]
Campaigning for the Vote tells, in her own words, the efforts of a working suffragist to instil in the men and women of England the necessity of ‘votes for women’ in the years before the First World War. The detailed diary kept all her life by Kate Parry Frye (1878-1959) has been edited to cover 1911-1915, years she spent as a paid organiser for the New Constitutional Society for Women’s Suffrage. The book constitutes that near impossibility – completely new primary material, published for the first time 100 years after the events it records.
With Kate for company we experience the reality of the ‘votes for women’ campaign as, day after day, in London and in the provinces, she knocks on doors, arranges meetings, trembles on platforms, speaks from carts in market squares, village greens, and seaside piers, enduring indifference, incivility and even the threat of firecrackers under her skirt.
Kate’s words bring to life the world of the itinerant organiser – a world of train journeys, of complicated luggage conveyance, of hotels – and hotel flirtations – , of boarding houses, of landladies, and of the ‘quaintness’ of fellow boarders. This was not a way of life to which she was born, for her years as an organiser were played out against the catastrophic loss of family money and enforced departure from a much-loved home. Before 1911 Kate had had the luxury of giving her time as a volunteer to the suffrage cause; now she depended on it for her keep.
No other diary gives such an extensive account of the working life of a suffragist, one who had an eye for the grand tableau – such as following Emily Wilding Davison’s cortege through the London streets – as well as the minutiae of producing an advertisement for a village meeting. Moreover Kate Frye gives us the fullest account to date of the workings of the previously shadowy New Constitutional Society for Women’s Suffrage. She writes at length of her fellow workers, never refraining from discussing their egos and foibles. After the outbreak of war in August 1914 Kate continued to work for some time at the society’s headquarters, helping to organize its war effort, her diary entries allowing us to experience her reality of life in war-time London.
ITV has selected Kate Frye – to be portrayed by a leading young actress – as one of the main characters in a 2014 documentary series to mark the centenary of the outbreak of the First World War.
Wrap-around paper covers, 226 pp, over 70 illustrations, all drawn from Kate Frye’s personal archive.
£14.99
ISBN 978 1903427 75 0
Catalogue Books
Non-fiction
1. AHMED, Leila Women and Gender in Islam Yale University Press 1992 [10512] Fine in d/w £15
2. ALLEN, Sheila And WOLKOWITZ, Carol Homeworking: myths and realities Macmillan Education 1987 [10097] Presents women homeworkers’ own experience of their work, to explain why they do it and to show who are the suppliers of homework, how they benefit from it and the ways in which they control their hidden workforce. In the ‘Women in Society’ series. Soft covers – fine £8
3. ANON After the Dawn: a record of the pioneer work in Edinburgh for the higher education of women Oliver & Boyd 1939 [9159] Based on a scrapbook kept by Sarah Siddons Mair and other records contemporary with the 19th-century movement for higher education in Edinburgh. Very good £48
4. ANSCOMBE, Isabelle A Woman’s Touch: women in design from 1860 to the present day Virago 1984 [10409] Soft covers – very good , cover a little creased £15
5. APPRENTICESHIP AND SKILLED EMPLOYMENT ASSOCIATION Trades for London Girls and How to Enter Them Longmans, Green 1909 [9178] Packed with information on trades and wages.Soft covers – good – scarce £38
6. BARRACLOUGH, Arthur Et Al Practical Home Decorating and Repairs Odhams Press, no date (1930s?) [10318] Heavily illustrated £6
7. BEACHY, Robert Et Al (eds) Women, Business and Finance in 19th-century Europe: rethinking separate spheres Berg 2006 [9208] Fine £12
8. BEER, Patricia Reader, I Married Him: a study of the women characters of Jane Austen, Charlotte Bronte, Elizabeth Gaskell and George Eliot Macmillan 1974 [9669] Very good in d/w £15
9. BERRY, Mrs Edward And MICHAELIS, Madame (eds) 135 Kindergarten Songs and Games Charles and Dible, no date [1881] [9035] ‘These songs are printed to supply a want in English Kindergartens’ – the music is, of course, included – as are movement instructions. Mme Michaelis ran the Croydon Kindergarten. Very good £48
10. BLOOM, Stanley The Launderette: a history Duckworth 1988 [10201] Soft covers – very good £10
11. BOSANQUET, Mrs Bernard Rich and Poor Macmillan 2nd ed, reprinted,1908 [12641] The Introduction begins ‘The separation between rich and poor in our large towns, and more especially in London, has often been pointed out as one of the most characteristic and threatening signs of the times.’ Plus ça change. A plea – with facts, figures and case studies – for greater understanding between the classes. £12
12. BOYD, Kenneth Scottish Church Attitudes to Sex, Marriage and the Family 1850-1914 John Donald 1980 [9679] Fine in d/w £18
13. BRITTAIN, Vera Lady Into Woman: a history of women from Victoria to Elizabeth II Andrew Dakers 1953 [13161] Good – though ex-public library £8
14. BURSTALL, Sara A. The Story of the Manchester High School for Girls 1871-1911 Manchester University Press 1911 [9606] Very good internally – slightly marked cover £38
15. BUTTERWORTH, Annie Manual of Household Work and Management Longmans, Green, 3rd ed 1913 [9186] A text book, written primarily for student qualifying for the Teacher’s Diploma of Houswifery. Annie Butterworth taught in the Domestic Arts department of University College of South Wales. Good £12
16. CHAPONE, Mrs On the Improvement of the Mind together with Dr Gregory’s, Legacy to His Daughters and Lady Pennington’s, Advice to Her Absent Daughter, with An Additional letter on the Management and Education of Infant Children Scott, Webster and Geary, no date c. 1835 [9555] A compendium of Good Conduct – a ‘four in one’. With engraved frontispiece and title page -good in slightly rubbed half leather and marbled boards £38
17. CHECKLAND, Olive Philanthropy in Victorian Scotland: social welfare and the voluntary principle John Donald Ltd 1980 [9241] Fine in fine d/w £20
18. CLARK, Alice Working Life of Women in the Seventeenth Century Routledge 1982 [10534] First published in1919. Soft covers – very good £8
19. CLARK, Margaret Homecraft: a guide to the modern home and family Routledge, 3rd ed 1978 (r/p) [10288] The author was senior adviser for Home Economics for Derbyshire. The book was a textbook, suitable for school Home Economics courses. First published in 1966. Soft covers – very good £6
20. COWAN, Ruth Schwartz More Work For Mother: the ironies of household technology from the open hearth to the microwave Basic Books (NY) 1983 [10355] Very good in d/w £10
21. CRAIG, Elizabeth Housekeeping Collins 1947 [13047] With many photographs. In ‘Elizabeth Craig’s Household Library’ series. Good in torn d/w £8
22. CRAWFORD, Elizabeth Enterprising Women: the Garretts and their circle Francis Boutle 2009 (r/p) [12665] Pioneering access to education at all levels for women, including training for the professions, the women of the Garrett circle opened the way for women to gain employment in medicine, teaching, horticulture and interiior design – and were also deeply involved in the campaign for women’s suffrage. Soft covers, large format, over 70 illustrations. Mint – new book £25
23. DICKENS, Andrea Janelle Female Mystic: great women thinkers of the Middle Ages I.B. Tauris 2009 [11947] Soft covers – fine £10
24. DIGBY, Anne Making a Medical Living: doctors and patients in the English market for medicine, 1720-1911 CUP 1994 [10601] Mint in d/w £18 SOLD
25. DINSHAW, Carolyn and WALLACE, David (eds) The Cambridge Companion to Medieval Women’s Writing CUP 2003 [11857] Soft covers – fine £12
26. DON VANN, J. and VANARSDEL, Rosemary T. (eds) Periodicals of Queen Victoria’s Empire: an exploration University of Toronto Press 1996 [9600] Fine in fine d/w £18
27. DOODY, Margaret Anne The True Story of the Novel Fontana 1998 [10562] Aims to prove that the novel is an ancient form – with a continuous history of 2000 years. Soft covers – very good £5
28. DURHAM, Edith High Albania Virago 1985 [10802] First published in 1909. Soft covers – very good £8
29. ERKKILA, Betsy The Wicked Sisters: women poets, literary history & discord OUP 1992 [10529] Study of the lives and works of Emily Dickinson, Marianne Moore, Elizabeth Bishop, Adrienne Rich, and Gwendolyn Brooks. Soft covers – fine £8
30. GATES, Evelyn (ed) Woman’s Year Book 1923-1924 Women Publishers Ltd 1924 (3rd ed) [13237] An invaluable reference work, covering all aspects of the post-emancipation period in considerable detail. Contributors include Millicent Fawcett (aunt of the editor), Commandant Mary Allen, Lena Ashwell, Lilian Barker, Margaret Bondfield, Winifred Cullis, Margaret Llewellyn Davies, Margery Fry, Chrystal Macmillan, Hilda Martindale, Bertha Mason, Edith Picton-Turbervill, Eleanor Rathbone – among many others. Full of facts and figures, names and addresses. Very good internally – cloth grubby – withdrawn from the Women’s Library . £65
31. GILBERT, Sandra And GUBAR, Susan The Madwoman in the Attic: the woman writer and the nineteenth-century literary imagination Yale University Press 1984 (r/p) [9549] Soft covers – 719pp – very good £12
32. GILBERT, Sandra And GUBAR, Susan No Man’s Land: the place of the woman writer in the twentieth century Yale University Press 1994 [8899] Vol 3 – ‘Letters From the Front’ .477pp - mint in d/w £25
33. GOLDSMITH, Margaret Women at War Lindsay Drummond Ltd (1943) [12602] Study of women’s work and life during the Second World War. Many photographs. Good £20
34. GOOD HOUSEKEEPING’S HOME ENCYCLOPAEDIA Ebury Press 1968 (r/p) [10297] Packed with information and illustrations. Large format – very good in rubbed d/w – heavy £10
35. HARWOOD, Hilda The History of Milton Mount School Independent Press 1959 [9641] Good £15
36. HASTE, Cate Rules of Desire: sex in Britain: World War 1 to the present Pimlico 1992 [10519] Soft covers – very good £8
37. HAYES, Alan and URQUHART, Diane (eds) The Irish Women’s History Reader Routledge 2001 [12496] Soft covers – very good £12 SOLD
38. HENNEY, E. And BYETT, J.D. Modern Home Laundrywork Dent, new, revised ed 1965 [10225] ‘The most authoritative book of its kind available to teachers, students and housewives.’ Good in chipped d/w £6
39. HIGONNET, Margaret (ed) Lines of Fire: women writers of World War 1 Plume 1999 [8894] Comprehensive collection of women’s writing from the First World War – includes women of all nationalities. Soft covers – mint – 574pp £18
40. HILL, Georgiana Women in English Life: from mediaeval to modern times Richard Bentley 1896 [10453] An excellent study – in two volumes. Most of the second volume is devoted to the position of women at the end of the 19th century – written by one who was very much involved with the woman’s movement. Very good – a little bumped at top and bottom of spine. A scarce set £95
41. HOBBY, Elaine Virtue of Necessity: English women’s writing 1649-88 Virago 1998 [11939] Soft covers – very good £8 SOLD
42. HOFFMAN, P.C. They Also Serve: the story of the shop worker Porcupine Press 1949 [9133] Soft covers – very good £15
43. HOLT, Anne A Ministry To The Poor: being a history of the Liverpool Domestic Mission Society, 1836-1936 Henry Young (Liverpool) 1936 [9243] Very good – scarce £45
44. HORSFIELD, Margaret Biting the Dust: the joys of housework Fourth Estate 1997 [10183] Mint in d/w £10
45. HOUSEHOLD REFERENCE LIBRARY Household Management and Entertaining Fleetway House, no daty (1930s) [10276] An amazingly eclectic compilation – with many photographs. Good £12
46. HUMM, Maggie A Reader’s Guide to Contemporary Feminist Literary Criticism Harvester Wheatsheaf 1994 [10538] Soft covers – fine £8
47. (HUTCHINSON) Kathleen Coburn (ed) The Letters of Sara Hutchinson from 1800 to 1835 Routledge 1954 [9604] Friend of Mary and William Wordsworth – loved by Coleridge. Good £18
48. JAMES, Selma Sex, Race and Class Falling Wall Press 1975 [13193] Paper covers – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £5
49. JEFFREYS, Sheila Beauty and Misogyny: harmful cultural practices in the West Routledge 2005 [9892] Soft covers – mint £12
50. JEPHCOTT, Pearl With Nancy Seear and John H. Smith Married Women Working Allen & Unwin 1962 [9160] Very good in d/w – with stamp of the Reference and Political Library of the Conservative Research Department £15
51. JOHNSON, Patricia E. Hidden Hands: working-class women and Victorian social-problem fiction Ohio University Press 2001 [10784] ‘Argues that the female industrial worker became more dangerous to represent than the prostitute or the male radical because the worker exposed crucial contradictions between the class and gender ideologies of the period and its economic realities’. Soft covers – mint £15
52. JOHNSON, Sheila Et Al Working Lives Brighton and Hove Community Resource Centre, no date 1980s [10420] Elderly Brighton working-class residents look back on their lives . Soft covers – 60pp -very good £4
53. KATZMAN, David Seven Days a Week: women and domestic service in industrializing America University of Illinois Press 1981 (r/p) [10292] Soft covers – good £7
54. KEDDIE, Nikki And BARON, Beth (eds) Women in Middle Eastern History: shifting boundaries in sex and gender Yale University Press 1991 [10511] The first study of gender relations in the Middle East from the earliest Islamic period to the present. Fine in d/w £15
55. KEEBLE, Samuel (ed) Citizen of To-morrow: a handbook on social questions Charles H. Kelly (10th thousand) c 1906 [9811] Dedicated to the members of the Weslyan Methodist Union for Social Science. Among many articles on subject such as housing, land, drink, unemployment etc is one by Marie Stuart, Late Associate of the Royal Sanitary Society, on Women and Social Problems, which covers sweated trades, factory work, infant mortality, creches, shop work etc. Good £14
56. KING, Brenda Silk and Empire Manchester University Press [9845] A study of the Anglo-Indian silk trade, challenging the notion that Britain always exploited its empire. Mint in d/w (pub price £55) £30
57. L.N.R. (Ellen Raynard) The Missing Link; or, Bible-women in the homes of the London poor Robert Carter & Brothers (NY) 1860 [10712] Excellent descriptions of early social work among London’s poor. Packed full of information about the way that people lived in the mid-19th century. Good in original cloth binding £38
58. LANG, Elsie British Women of the Twentieth Century T. Werner Laurie 1929 [12505] Excellent collection of essays on all aspects of (middle-class) women’s lives – including ‘Higher Education and University Life’, ‘The Medical Profession’, ‘The Fight for the Franchise’, ‘Women and the Legal Profession’, ‘Dress and Society’, ‘Women and the Arts’, ‘Careers for Women. With an interesting selection of photographs. Good £18
59. LANTZ, Louise Old American Kitchenware 1725-1925 Williamsmead Publishers (USA) 1988 (r/p) [10283] Packed with illustrations. Soft covers – large format – very good £10
60. LEWIS, Judith Schneid In the Family Way: childbearing in the British aristocracy, 1760-1860 Rutgers University Press 1986 [8652] Very good in slightly chipped d/w £25
61. LLEWELYN DAVIES, Margaret (ed) Maternity: letters from working women collected by the Women’s Co-operative Guild Virago 1978 [13159] First published in 1915. Soft covers – very good £8
62. LOANE, M. An Englishman’s Castle Edward Arnold 1909 [9060] Martha Loane was a district nurse – this study of the homes of the poor is the result of her social investigation. Good £18
63. (LUXEMBOURG) Richard Abraham Rosa Luxembourg: a life for the International Berg 1989 [1399] Mint in d/w £10
64. MCCANN, Jean Thomas Howell and the School at Llandaff D. Brown (Cowbridge) 1972 [10608] Good – ex-university library £15
65. MCCONVILLE, Brigid Sisters: love and conflict within the lifelong bond Pan 1985 [10311] Soft covers – good £2
66. MCGREGOR, O.R. Divorce in England: a centenary study Heinemann 1957 [10426] Very good in d/w £20
67. MCLACHLAN, H. The Widows’ Fund Association (established 1764): a historical sketch privately printed 1937 [10583] Founded as ‘The Society for the Relief of the Necessitous Widows and Fatherless Children of Protestant Dissenting Ministers’ by, among others, Joseph Priestley. £7
68. MARTIN, Jane Women and the Politics of Schooling in Victorian and Edwardian England Leicester University Press 1999 [10781] Mint (pub price £65) £35
69. MASON, Michael The Making of Victorian Sexuality OUP 1994 [10599] Fine in d/w £14
70. MAUTHNER, Melanie Sistering: power and change in female relationships Palgrave 2002 [10310] Mint in d/w £12
71. MOI, Toril Sexual/Textual Politics Methuen 1995 [10542] Soft covers – very good £7
72. MOLE, Mrs A. And WATERMAN, Miss Alys 20th Century Cookery: how to cook by electricity British Electrical Development Association, revised ed no date (1930s) [10213] ‘An indispensable handbook for the Housewife or Cook, giving recipes of 100 dainty dishes which can be prepared without trouble and at small cost.’ Instructions for using electrical equipment – cooker, refrigerator and water heater – and recipes. Card covers – very jazz age – good internally – covers a little rubbed and paper missing from narrow spine £8
73. MOORE, Lucy Liberty: the lives and times of six women in revolutionary France HarperPress 2006 [10520] Soft covers – uncorrected proof copy £4
74. NELSON, Claudia Boys Will Be Girls: the feminine ethic and British children’s fiction, 1857-1917 Rutgers University Press 1991 [9805] Mint in d/w £18
75. NEWMAN, Barbara God and the Goddesses: vision, poetry, and belief in the Middle Ages University of Pennsylvania Press 2003 [10524] A direct challenge to modern theologians to reconsider the role of goddesses in the Christian tradition. Fine in d/w £12 SOLD
76. NORWICH HIGH SCHOOL 1875-1950 privately printed, no date [1950] [9612] A GPDST school. Very good internally – green cloth covers sunned – ex-university library £15
77. OAKLEY, Ann The Sociology of Housework Martin Robertson 1974 [10301] Soft covers – good – ex-library £4
78. ORAM, Alison And TURNBULL, Annmarie The Lesbian History Sourcebook: love and sex between women in Britain from 1780 to 1970 Routledge 2001 [9092] Soft covers – fine £12
79. ORRINSMITH, Mrs The Drawing Room: its decoration and furniture Macmillan 1877 [9344] In the ‘Art at Home’ series. ‘The author has endeavoured to give more particular directions as to the furnishing and adornment of the Drawing-Room than was possible in the Miss Garretts’ volume treating of the whole subject of ‘House Decoration’ .’ Very good – missing free front end paper many illustrations – a scarce book £60
80. OSBORNE, Honor And MANISTY, Peggy A History of the Royal School for Daughters of Officers of the Army 1864-1965 Hodder & Stoughton 1966 [10609] Good – ex-university library £12
81. PATTEN, Marguerite The Victory Cookbook Imperial War Museum 1995 (r/p) [10328] ‘Over 200 recipes which helped the nation celebrfate on that special day and right up to the end of rationing in 1954′. Packed with illustrations. Soft covers – very good £8
82. PERREAULT, Jeanne Writing Selves: contemporary feminist autobiography University of Minnesota Press 1995 [10103] Soft covers – mint £10
83. PHILLIPS, M. And TOMPKINSON, W.S. English Women in Life and Letters OUP 1927 [9151] Describes the lives of Englishwomen of the past, some rich, others poor and unknown – using both historical sources and fiction – from the 14th century to the mid 19th. Very good £20
84. PHILLIPS, Margaret Mann Willingly to School: memories of York College for Girls 1919-1924 Highgate Publications 1989 [13124] Good in card covers – though ex-library £10
85. PINES, Davida The Marriage Paradox: modernist novels and the cultural imperative to marry University Press of Florida 2006 [10188] Mint £18
86. PORTER, Marilyn Home Work and Class Consciousness Manchester University Press 1983 [10341] Study based on research undertaken in a West Country factory. Very good in d/w £10
87. PRINCE, Ancliffe (ed) The Complete Launderer Power Laundry Journal [10215] ‘Will constitute a useful foundation for the tyro to the study of a successful plant operation, and a constant source of guidance and inspiration to those already firmly estalished in the managerial saddle – for the most successful launderers are those who can always go on learning’. Everything one ever needed to know about setting up a professional laundry in the 1930s. With pages of photographs and advertisements. Very good £10
88. RENDALL, Jane The Origins of Modern Feminism: women in Britain, France and the United States 1780-1860 Macmillan 1985 [9461] Soft covers – very good £15
89. RENNE, Tanya (ed) Ana’s Land: sisterhood in Eastern Europe Westview Press 1997 [10315] Voices of women from throughout Eastern Europe as they struggle to establish their human rights. Soft covers – fine £15
90. RICHARDS, Anna The Wasting Heroine in German Fiction by Women 1770-1914 OUP 2004 [9691] Mint in d/w £12
91. RICHMONDS GAS COOKER BOOK 1935 [10214] ‘This Richmonds Gas Cooker Book, which is issued in the Spring of each year, is compiled for your personal use and is not intended for issue to consumers. It provides, in a handy form, and bound itno one cover, illustrations, brief descriptions, dimensions and prices of Richmonds Cooking appliances for domestic use. You will note that the pages are interleaved with writing paper for your convenience in making notes which may prove helpful to you from time to time’. Clearly intended for shops selling cookers – packed with photographs and details of Richmond Cookers. Card covers – very good £10
92. ROYDEN, A. Maude Political Christianity G.P. Putnams’ 1923 (r/p) [13120] Dedicated to members of the Guildhouse congregation. Good – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £8
93. SANG And ZHANG Chinese Lives Macmillan [10027] In 1984 the authors travelled around China interviewing people to form a composite picture of the Chinese. Good – title page missing £8
94. SCHOESER, Mary Watts Book of Embroidery English church embroidery 1833-1953 Watts & Co 1998 [9859] Heavily illustrated. Soft covers £12
95. SELLERS, Susan (ed) Delighting the Heart: a notebook by women writers Women’s Press 1989 [10536] Seventeen women – poets, novelists and playwrights – talk about how they began to write, how they approach a new piece of work and how they develop it. Soft covers – very good £7
96. SIX POINT GROUP In Her Own Right: a discussion conducted by the Six Point Group Harrap 1968 [12975] Includes contributions from Hazel Hunkins-Hallinan, Marghanita Laski, Pat Hornsby-Smith and Lena Jeger, stemming from a conference ‘where it was felt that it was timely to investigate ths uccess of the movement towards emancipation and to discuss the problems remaining fifty years after the emancipation of women’. Paper covers – good £10
97. STAFFORD, H.M. Queenswood: the first sixty years 1894-1954 privately printed 1954 [9643] History of the school. Good – ex-college library £12
98. STANLEY, Liz Et Al (eds) Auto/Biography: Bulletin of the British Sociological Association Study Group on Auto/Biography (1993) [10494] Vol 2, no 1 ‘Research Practices’. Soft covers – fine £9
99. STARK, Freya East is West Century 1986 [10557] Her war-time experiences in Egypt, Palestine and Syria. First published in 1945. Soft covers – very good £5
100. STOREY, Joan Home Service Book: the answers to your everyday problems in the home Hodder & Stoughton 1955 [10275] With numerous photographs of, for instance, heating equipment – v. evocative. Good £6
101. SULEIMAN, Susan Rubin Budapest Diary: in search of the Motherbook University of Nebraska Press 1997 [10568] She escaped Hungary as a child in 1949. This is an account of her return and her efforts to uncover her family’s past. Fascinating. Soft covers – fine £7
102. TAYLOR, Barbara Mary Wollstonecraft and the Feminist Imagination CUP 2003 [11898] Soft covers – fine £17
103. THE ENGLISHWOMAN’S YEAR BOOK AND DIRECTORY 1904 A & C Black 1904 [10837] Indispensable source of information. Very good internally in library binding £80
104. TOBIN, Beth Fowkes Superintending the Poor: charitable ladies and paternal landlords in British fiction, 1770-1860 Yale University Press 1993 [9806] Mint in d/w £18
105. TYLECOTE, Mabel The Education of Women at Manchester University 1883 to 1933 Manchester University Press 1941 [13139] With a newscutting obituary of Dame Mabel Tylecote laid in. Good – scarce £40
106. VALENZE, Deborah The First Industrial Woman OUP 1995 [10786] Examines the underlying assumptions about gender and work that informed the transformation of English society, and in turn, ideas about economic progress. Charts the birth of a new economic order resting on social and sexual hierarchies which remain a part of our contemporary lives. Soft covers – mint £15
107. VINCE, Mrs Millicent Decoration and Care of the Home W. Collins 1923 [12870] Mrs Vince had been a pupil of the pioneer ‘House Decorator’, Agnes Garrett. Very good in rubbed d/w £18
108. WALLER, Jane And VAUGHAN-REES, Michael Women in Uniform 1939-45 Papermac 1989 [10344] Paper covers – large format £12
109. WARE, Susan Holding Their Own: American women in the 1930s Twayne 1982 [10285] Soft covers – fine £10
110. WARWICK, Countess Of A Woman and the War Chapman and Hall 1916 [13141] The wartime thoughts of an interesting woman – a social reformer. Includes chapters on ‘Nursing in Wartime’ and ‘Women and the War’. Very good £48
111. WINDRATH, Helen (ed) A Career in Crime: inside information from leading women writers Women’s Press 1999 [10708] Leading women crime writers – including Val McDermid, Gillian Linscott and Stella Duffy – describe their professional lives. Soft covers – very good £5 SOLD
112. WOODS, Edgar & Diana Things That Are Not Done: an outspoken commentary on popular habits and a guide to correct conduct Universal Publications, no date (1937) [10612] Good £12
Biography
113. ALLEN, Alexandra Travelling Ladies: Victorian Adventuresses [13198] Studies of Daisy Bates, Isabella Bird Bishop, Midlred Cabele and Evangeline and Francesca French, Alexandra David-Neel, Jane Digby el Mesrab, Kate Marsden, Marianne North and May French Sheldon. Fine in d/w £10
114. (BEETON) Kathryn Hughes The Short Life and Long Times of Mrs Beeton Harper 2006 [10918] Excellent biography. Soft covers – fine £6
115. BELL, Alan (ed and with an introduction by) Sir Leslie Stephen’s ‘Mausoleum Book’ OUP 1977 [13199] Intimate autobiography written for Stephen’s immediate family after the death of his wife, Julia, the mother of Vanessa and Virginia. Very good in d/w £12
116. BELL, MAUREEN, PARFIT, GEORGE AND SHEPHERD, SIMON A Biographical Dictionary of English Women Writers 1560-1720 G.K. Hall 1990 [11878] Expands the boundaries of what is conventionally recognized as 17th century English literature by uncovering, reintroducing and documenting the lives and works of more than 550 English women who wrote betwen 1580-1720. Fine in d/w £25
117. (BURNEY) Janice Farrar Thaddeus Frances Burney: a literary life St Martin’s Press 2000 [10546] Soft covers – very good £8
118. CHAPMAN, Barbara Boxing Day Baby QueenSpark Market Books 1994 [10402] She was born in Brighton on Boxing Day in 1927. Soft covers – 34pp – very good £4
119. (EDEN) Violet Dickinson (Ed) Miss Eden’s Letters Macmillan 1919 [9339] Born, a Whig, in 1797. Her letters are full of social detail. In 1835 she went to India with her brother when he became governor-general. Very good £28
120. (ELLIS) Anne Ellis Plain Anne Ellis University of Nebraska Press 1997 [6101] First published in 1931 – the autobiography of a woman, twice widowed, bringing up her children in a small town in Colorado. Soft covers – mint £8
121. (GASKELL) John Chapple (ed) Elizabeth Gaskell: the early years Manchester University Press 1997 [9614] Mint in d/w £18
122. HAYS, Frances Women of the Day: a biographical dictionary of notable contemporaries J.B. Lipincott (Philadelphia) 1885 [12594] A superb biographical source on interesting women. Good in original binding – with library shelf mark in ink on spine- scarce £75
123. (HOWARD) Elizabeth Jane Howard Slipstream: a memoir Macmillan 2002 [10523] Fine in d/w £8
124. (JAMESON) Storm Jameson Journey from the North: autobiography of Storm Jameson Virago 1984 [9685] Soft covers – good – 2 volumes complete £12
125. [JEBB] Alice Salomon Eglantyne Jebb Union Internationale de Secours Aux Enfants 1936 [13170] Short study in French. Paper covers – 53pp – very good £5
126. KELSALL, Helen Berridge House Who’s Who, 1893-1957 privately published [1957] [13005] A list of all the pupils and staff of the National Society’s Training College for Domestic Subjects - with a short history of the college. Paper covers – good £12
127. (LOVELACE) Betty Alexandra Toole (ed) Ada, The Enchantress of Numbers: a selection from the letters of Lord Byron’s daughter and her description of the first computer Strawberry Press (USA) 1992 [9798] Fine in d/w – inscribed in ink on the free front end paper by the editor. £18 SOLD
128. MARTINDALE, Hilda Some Victorian Portraits and Others Allen & Unwin 1948 [6071] Biographical essays of members of her circle – including Adelaide Anderson, factory inspector. Very good in d/w £18
129. MAVINGA, Isha McKenzie And PERKINS, Thelma In Search of Mr McKenzie: two sisters’ quest for an unknown father Women’s Press 1991 [10418] An intriguing search to find their black father – their mother was white and Jewish. Soft covers – good £5
130. (MORRELL) Robert Gathorne-Hardy (ed) Ottoline:the early memoirs of Lady Ottoline Morrell; Ottoline at Garsington: memoirs of Lady Ottoline Morrell Faber, 1963 and Faber, 1974 (respectively [9499] Two volumes together, as a set – both good in d/w £28
131. (NICE) Miranda Seymour The Bugatti Queen: in search of a motor-racing legend Simon & Schuster 2004 [10532] Romantic life of Helle Nice, who set land-speed records for Bugatti in the 1930s. Fine in d/w £8
132. (NICHOL) Anna Stoddart Elizabeth Pease Nichol Dent 1899 [12999] (1807-1897) Scottish Quaker – daughter of the founder of the Peace Society, suffragist, chartist, anti-vivesectionist. Very good – scarce £35
133. (PHILIPS) Philip Webster Souers The Matchless Orinda Harvard University Press 1931 [9602] An account of the life of Mrs Katherine Philips, the first woman in England to gain the reputation of a poetess.Good – ex university library £28
134. (PUREFOY) G. Eland (ed) Purefoy Letters 1735-1753 Sidgwick & Jackson 1931 [9338] The letters of Elizabeth Purefoy (1672-1765), whose husband died in 1704, and her son, Henry Purefoy. Elizabeth Purefoy was, as her epitaph recorded, ‘a woman of excellent understanding, prudent and frugal’ and her letters are full of domestic detail. Very good – two volumes £40
135. (RAVERAT) Gwen Raverat Period Piece Faber 1987 (r/p) [9686] Soft covers – very good £6
136. (RHYS) Francis Wyndham And Diana Melly (eds) Jean Rhys Letters 1931-1966 Deutsch 1984 [9507] Very good in d/w £12
137. (RICHARDSON) Gloria G. Fromm (ed) Windows on Modernism: selected letters of Dorothy Richardson University of Georgia Press 1995 [6766] Over 700pp – mint in d/w £55
138. [RUSKIN] Mary Lutyens (ed) Young Mrs Ruskin in Venice: the picture of society and life with John Ruskin 1849-1852 Vanguard Press (NY) 1965 [13200] Very good in d/w £12
139. (SOYER) Ruth Cowen Relish: the extraordinary life of Alexis Soyer, Victorian celebrity chef Weidenfeld 2006 [9824] Chef and kitchen designer to the Reform Club and reformer of army catering. Mint in d/w £15
140. (SPRINGFIELD) VALENTINE, Penny And WICKHAM, Vicki Dancing With Demons: the authorised biography of Dusty Springfield Hodder 2000 [10049] Mint in d/w £6
141. STARK, Freya The Coast of Incense: autobiography 1933-1939 John Murray 1953 [10564] Covers her travels in Egypt, the Middle East and South Arabia. Good in chipped d/w £6
142. (STOREY) Joyce Storey Our Joyce Broadsides 1987 [10389] Life in pre-Second World War Bristol. Soft covers – very good £10
143. (TAYLORS) Doris Mary Armitage The Taylors of Ongar W. Heffer 1939 [9601] A joint biography of the family of writers that included Ann and Jane Taylor – the latter the author of ‘Twinkle, Twinkle little star’. Good – ex-university library £18
144. (TENNYSON) James O. Hoge Lady Tennyson’s Journal University Press of Virginia 1981 [9675] Fine in d/w £18
145. (TROUBRIDGE) Jaqueline Hope-Nicholson (ed) Life Amongst the Troubridges: journals of a young Victorian 1873-1884 by Laura Troubridge John Murray 1966 [9324] Very good in rubbed d/w £10
146. (TUCKER) Agnes Giberne A Lady of England: the life and letters of Charlotte Maria Tucker Hodder & Stoughton 1895 [9599] The standard biography of a popular children’s and religious writer – who spent the later years of her life as a missionary in India. Good – though ex-university library £28
147. (TUSSAUD) Kate Berridge Waxing Mythical: the life and legend of Madame Tussaud John Murray 2006 [9827] Fine in d/w £18
148. (TWINING) Louisa Twining Recollections of My Life and Work Edward Arnold 1893 [10625] She was an early ‘social worker’ – involved with workhouse visiting, promoting the idea of poor law inspectors and was herself a poor law guardian. Very good – scarce £68
149. (WEAVER) Jane Lidderdale And Mary Nicholson Dear Miss Weaver: Harriet Shaw Weaver 1876-1961 Faber 1970 [8925] The woman behind The Egoist and patron of James Joyce. Very good in d/w £20
150. (WEETON) Edward Hall (ed) Miss Weeton journal of a governess OUP, 1936 and 1939 [7614] In two volumes – covering the years 1807-11 and 1811-25 – shows what life was like for an unprotected female (albeit one of great strength of character) in the North of England (Huddersfield, Wigan, Liverpool), Wales and London. Very good £60
151. (WHARTON) R.W.B. Lewis And Nancy Lewis The Letters of Edith Wharton Simon & Schuster 1988 [9747] Fine in fine d/w – 654pp £12
152. (WOLLSTONECRAFT) Janet Todd (ed) The Collected Letters of Mary Wollstonecraft Allen Lane 2003 [9496] Mint in d/w £25
153. (WOLLSTONECRAFT) William Godwin Memoir of Mary Wollstonecraft Constable 1928 [6080] The edition that retrieved the memoir from oblivion. Very good in chipped d/w £20
154. (WRIGHT) Margaret Lane Frances Wright and the ‘Great Experiment’ Manchester University Press 1972 [6081] An Owenite – the ‘Great Experiment’ was Nashoba, a utopian community in America. Very good £18
155. (YOURCENAR) Josyane Savigneau Marguerite Yourcenar: inventing a life University of Chicago Press 1993 [10522] Biography of the author of ‘The Memoirs of Hadrian’ . Translated from French by Joan E. Howard. Fine in d/w £10
Ephemera
156. ANON The Board of Education and Catholic Secondary Schools W. Watson & Co (Birmingham) 1910 [13037] Written by a supporter of Catholic education – and heavily annotated – presumably by someone at the Board of Education. Interesting. Paper covers – good – 16pp in card covers – ex-Board of Education £6
157. ASSOCIATION FOR PROMOTING THE EMPLOYMENT OF HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS IN ELEMENTARY SCHOOLWORK Report of Meeting Held at the Westminster Town Hall on Wed Nov 12th 1902 [13043] The Association was formed in 1897 and was disbanded in 1905. The Association’s aim, at its most basic, of promoting the employment of middle-class young women – ie those who had attended high schools – in working-class – ie elementary – schools. ‘Higher teachers are now at last waking up to the absolute necessity of training, and Elementary teachers are far more cultured than they were five or ten years ago.’16-pp pamphlet – good £4
158. ASSOCIATION OF ASSISTANT MISTRESSES Education Policy (with special reference to Secondary Education) AAM no date (1920s?) [13042] 4-pp leaflet. Good – ex-Board of Education library £2
159. ASSOCIATION OF TECHNICAL INSTITUTIONS Collection of Proceedings at the Annual General Meetings [13223] Proceedings of the meetings held in 1895, 1896, 1897, 1898, 1899, 1900, 1901, 1902. Each c 34pp, in original paper covers (some covers present but detached). As a collection £20
160. ASSOCIATION OF UNIVERSITY WOMEN TEACHERS Thirtieth Annual Report, 1912-1913 AUWT 1914 [13216] Includes a (slightly surprisingly) long list of the members. Soft covers – good – ex-Board of Education Library £10
161. BINFIELD, Clyde Belmont’s Portias: Victorian nonconformists and middle-class education for girls Dr Williams’ Trust 1981 [9158] The 35th Friends of Dr Williams’s Library Lecture. Paper covers – 35pp – good – scarce £18
162. BIRMINGHAM, H.R. The Church After the War Midland Educational Co (Birmingham) [1918] [13209] 20-pp pamphlet by the Bishop of Birmingham. Good in original covers – bound into plain card covers – ex-Board of Education Library £12
163. BRITISH WOMEN TRADE UNIONISTS Soviet Russia: An Investigation by British Women Trade Unionists, April to July 1925 W.P. Coates 1925 [13212] They liked it. Soft covers – 88pp – good – ex-Board of Education Library £14
164. BUTLER, Josephine (ed) The Storm Bell Ladies’ National Association for the Abolition of State Regulation of Vice Feb 1899 [9802] Single issue. Contains the rather touching notice: ‘If there should occasionally be some delay or irregularity in the appearance of the Storm Bell, I beg my Friends to judge its Editor leniently….As I have no Sub-Editor, it will be understood that it is not always easy to prepare even so humble a periodical as this, in time to be out exactly at the right date.’ Fine – scarce £28
165. CARPENTER, J. Estlin The Promotion of International Peace Through Universities National Peace Council 1912 [13210] ‘A Paper read at the Eighth National Peace Congress, 1912′. 12-pp – paper covers – good – ex-Board of Education Library £8
166. CHARITY ORGANISATION SOCIETY Right and Wrong as to School Feeding COS 1906 [9237] Facts and figures. Paper covers – 8pp – very good – unusual £18
167. CHARITY ORGANISATION SOCIETY D.R. Sharpe Centralised Registration of Assistance COS 1911 [9236] Paper read on 31 May 1911 at the Annual National Conference of Charity Organisation Societies. Paper covers – 14pp pamphlet – good – unusual £18
168. CHARITY ORGANISATION SOCIETY Miss Pike Friendly Visiting and Personal Service COS 1911 [9238] Paper read on 1 June 1911 at the Annual National Conference of Charity Organisation Societies. Paper covers – 11pp – good – a little foxing – unusual £20
169. COLLECTION OF FABIAN SOCIETY TRACTS ETC [13143] The collection comprises: 1) The Abolition of Poor Law Guardians (Fabian Tract 126), 1906; Socialism and Labor Policy (FT 127), 1906; 2) The Case for a Legal Minimum Wage (FT 128), 1906; 3) More Books To Read on Social and Economic Subjects (FT 129), 1906; 4) Miss L.B. Hutchins, Home Work and Sweating: the causes and the remedies (FT 130), 1907; 5) Sidney Webb, The Decline in the Birth-Rate (FT 131), 1907; 6) A Guide to Books For Socialists (FT 132), 1907; 7) The Rev Percy Dearmer, Socialism and Christianity (FT 133), 1907; 8) Small Holdings, Allotments, and Common Pastures (FT 134), 1907; 9) Sidney Webb, Paupers and Old Age Pensions (FT 135), 1907; 10) Edward Carpenter, The Villand and the Landlord (FT 136), 1907; 11) Parish Councils and Village Life (FT 137), 1908; 12) 22nd Annual Report on the work of the Fabian Society for year ended March 1905, reprinted1906; 13) 23rd Annual Report on the work of the Fabian Society for year ended March 1906, 1906; 14) 24th Annual Report on the work of the Fabian Society for the year ended March 1907, 1907; 15) Lecture List of the Fabian Society: London and Provinces, Sept 1907; 16) F. Lewis Donaldson, The Unemployed, Christian Social Union pamphlet no 14, 1907; 17) James Timewell, The Royal Commission on the Metropolitan Police, pub by the Police and Public Vigilance Society, c.1906; 18) Sybella Gurney, Co-operative Housing, pub by the Co-partnership Tenants’ Housing Council, c.1907; 19) John Nettlefold, Slum Reform and Town Planning: the Garden City idea applied to existing cities and their suburbs, c 1907. 19 pamphlets in cloth binding which bears the stamp of Westminster Public Libraries. Bookplate on front pastedown shows that it has been withdrawn from the Library. £35
170. COMMISSION OF ENQUIRY INTO INDUSTRIAL UNREST: Report of the Commission for Wales HMSO 1917 [13215] 50pp – good reading copy – bound into later card covers – ex-Board of Education Library £12
171. DAILY MIRROR 2 October 1940 [10719] The headline is ‘First Women to win GM’. – describing the actions that had led to three A.R.P. women being awarded the George Medal for Valour. Very good £4
172. DAME IRENE WARD (1895-1980) [12477] Collecction of letters and cards from Irene Ward (Conservative MP for, first, in 1931, Wallsend and then, 1950, Tyneside) to a friend, Cynthia Josephine Romilly (after her marriage in 1964, Romilly-Luscombe) (1914-2001) – together with a colleciton of cuttings about Irene Ward that her correspondent pasted onto album sheets – together with a quantity of loose cuttings - following the MP’s career – from the early 1940s. The correspondence continues into the late 1970s. Good – as a collection. £65
173. FABIAN WOMEN’S GROUP Summary of Eight Papers and Discussions upon the Disabilities of Mothers as Workers Fabian Women’s Group (Private Circulation) 1910 [12973] Papers by Mrs Pember Reeves, Dr Ethel Vaughan-sawyer, Mrs Spence Weiss, Mrs Bartrick Baker, Mrs Stanbury, Mrs S.K. Ratcliffe, Miss B.L. Hutchins, Mrs O’Brien Harris. Paper covers – good £15
174. GARDNERS’ TRUST FOR THE BLIND Report of the Conference on Matters relating to the Blind Farmer and Sons 1902 [13222] The Conference was held at the Church House, Westminster on 22, 23, 23 April 1902. 258pp in original boards – good – ex-Board of Education Library £18
175. GIRL GUIDES Log of 2nd Worthing Ranger Company April-September 1927 [13127] An exercise book covered in linen with a handpainted Girl Guide trefoil on the front and dried specimens of the Company’s three patrols – Poppy, Oak and Silver Birch on the inside front cover. The title page has been lovingly decorated – and there are occasional drawings in the text and a few photographs of the girls at camp. The Log is a handwritten record of the Rangers’ activities in 6 months of 1927- recorded in some detail. The names of many of the girls and their leaders are mentioned. Unusual £35
176. HARTOG, P.J. The Owens College, Manchester Co-operative Printing Society 1895 [13224] A description and history of the College – with photographs. Originally presented by the author to Michael Sadler – paper covers – 31pp – ex-Board of Education Library £5
177. LIST, Alfred The Two Phases of The Social Evil Ogle and Murray (Edinburgh), 2nd ed 1861 [13142] A short study of prostitution in Scotland. The author was the Registration Examiner of Births, Deaths and Marriages in Scotland and includes tables showing the number of illegitimate births in various towns, relating them to the occupation of the mothers. He points out that ‘the sisterhood of the needle occupy the foremost place’ and draws the conclusion that the poor wages these women could demand forced them into prostitution. 47pp pamphlet bound into a modern cloth binding. Very good – scarce
178. LONDON INSTITUTE FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF PLAIN NEEDLEWORK Annual Report for the Year ending September 30th, 1909 1909 [13041] 24pp – good in card covers – ex-Board of Education library £8
179. MANNING, E. A. Moral Teaching in Schools: a paper read at the Social Science Congress, Brighton Edward Stanford Oct 1875 [13208] Elizabeth Adelaide Manning was, among other things, for many years hon sec of the National Indian Association. Paper covers – 16pp – good – ex-Board of Education Library £12
180. NATIONAL UNION OF WOMEN WORKERS OF GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND Collection of Conference Reports [13207] Papers Read at the Conferences held at Cheltenham and Gloucester, 1903; Birmingham, 1905; Tunbridge Wells, 1906; Manchester, 1907; Aberdeen, 1908; and Lincoln, 1910. The Papers cover a wide range of the subjects close to the heart of the actively philanthropic women involved with the NUWW. The speakers included, at random, Margaret Bondfield, Henrietta Barnett, Millicent Fawcett, Sarah Siddons Mair, Eunice Murray, Honnor Morten, Mrs George Cadbury, Dorothea Beale, Sarah Burstall, Mary MacArthur, Sarah Dickenson and Margaret Irwin. 6 volumes – good reading copies – they have been disbound at some point from an all-encompassing binding and the sewing is no longer tight. Ex-Board of Education Library. Scarce. As a collection £80
181. PAUPER HOSPITALS AND SCHOOLS Return of ‘all district and separate pauper hospitals (including asylums of the Metropolitan Asylum District), also of district and separate pauper schools, built during the past ten years; giving the name of hospital or school; names of unions contribution; class of inmates; extent of area; cost of site; cost of building; number of inmates; exclusive of officers; cost per head on number to be accommodated; and number of inmates on 1 May 1885 HMSO 1885 [9205] 6 foolscap pages. Very good – disbound £20
182. PRIMROSE LEAGUE Dance Card [12476] for a Primrose League Dance organised by the North Kensington (Hamilton Habitation on 23 January 1908 at the Ladbroke Hall. Green’s Imperial Orchestra provided the music and on the reverse of the card is a list of the dances – beginning with a Polka and ending with a Sir Roger de Coverley. Thick card – all edges gilt – with a punch hole at one corner (through which a silken twist would once have been threaded – either to loop around the wrist – or, perhaps, attached to a pencil). This card has not been completed with the names of the lucky partners. Very good – unusual £15
183. REFORMATORIES AND INDUSTRIAL SCHOOLS (COMMITTALS) Returns showing the comparative number of committals of boys and girls to reformatories and industrial schools April 1872 [9150] ‘Shows comparative number of committals of boys and girls to reformatories and industrial schools in 1870, with the number of cases in which the parents have been charged with such payment towards their children’s cost at such schools as may be considered equal to the expense they are saved by so throwing their children on public support, together with a comparative statement of the number of cases in which such charge has been adjudged, with that of the charges actually recovered and regularly paid.’ Raw facts. 4 foolscap pp – disbound £28
184. ROBERT BROWNING HALL SERIES OF SOCIAL TRACTS: nO 2 The Labour Movement in Religion [13227] Talk by the Warden, Herbert Stead on 6 Jan 1895. Paper covers – 8pp – fair – ex-Board of Education Library £3
185. ROBERT BROWNING HALL SOCIAL TRACTS: NO 1 The State and the Unemployed by Sir John Gorst MP [13226] A speech delivered by Gorst on 9 May 1895 in Robert Browning Hall, Walworth. 8-pp leaflet – fair – ex-Board of Education Library £4
186. ROBERT BROWNING SOCIAL SETTLEMENT, WALWORTH [13225] Collection of Reports of the Settlement, founded in Walworth in 1895. Reports for 1895,1896, 1897, 1898, 1899, 1900, 1902, 1904, 1905. With photographs. A rare record of the early years of a successful philanthropic institution. 9 items – as a collection – all in good condition – ex-Board of Education Library £70
187. SENIOR, Mrs Nassau Pauper Schools HMSO 1875 [10457] ‘Copy ”of a Letter addressed to the President of the Local Government Board by Mrs Nassau Senior, lately an Inspector of the Board, being a reply to the observation of Mr Tufnell, also a former inspector upon her report on pauper schools’. This was a follow-up to Mrs Senior’s 1874 report.
24pp – large format – disbound. £55
188. SHAFTS ed. by Margaret Shurmer Sibthorpe 1892 [12501] Volume 1 – issue no 1 – 3 Nov 1892 – of this ‘progressive’ radical woman’s paper. This first issue contains an article on The Pioneer Club – whose – members were just the readership at which ‘Shafts’ was aiming – on ‘Type-Writing as an Employment for Women’ – on ‘Social Purity’ by ‘A Working Woman’ – and a review by Frances Lord (first English translator of Ibsen) of ‘Peter Ibbetson’ by George du Maurier.- noted as the first in a series of ‘short notes on Books containing Occult, Psychical or Mystical Teaching.’ ‘Shafts’ caught the fin-de-siècle zeitgeist. First issue – very good condition – very scarce £48
189. SIDGWICK, Mrs Henry University Education for Women Manchester University Press 1913 [12791] ‘Presidential Address delivered to the Education Society, Manchester University, on 21st November, 1912.’ Paper covers – 24pp – ex-Board of Education library – good £15
190. SMALL COLLECTION DOCUMENTING THE ACADEMIC PROGRESS OF MURIEL LONG AT THE COUNTY HIGH SCHOOL FOR GIRLS, WEST KIRBY 1920-1926 [12613] The tenor of Muriel’s school reports is ‘very fair’ – and we all know what that means. But she was clearly much younger than the average age of the class and does quite well in maths and science. Generally her conduct is ‘very good’ but at least one report notes ‘rather noisy in the class room’.Included in the collection are a number of programmes for Speech Day and Annual Sports. In 1926 Muriel went on to Underwood Commercial College in Liverpool to learn shorthand and typing (1st in the class in ‘Office Routine’). I think Muriel married in 1940 and died in 2006 – leaving bequests to Venice in Peril and the Royal Overseas League – so it doesn’t look as though being graded only ‘very fair’ at Scripture, Ancient History etc had prevented her taking an interest. An eclectic collection of material £45
191. SOCIETY OF FEMALE ARTISTS Thirteenth Season 1869 [7231] Catalogue of the exhibition held at the Gallery, 9 Conduit Street, London. Besides listing all the officers of the Society, the main body of the catalogue lists all the women exhibiting (giving the addresses of many, always useful), with the titles of their works shown and the prices asked. Very good in paper covers – 30pp – extremely scarce £85
192. ‘SUNNYHOLME’, BOIS COMMON, CHESHAM, BUCKS 1930s? [10576] ‘Bright country home, for children of respectable families, requiring change of air for a fortnight or longer, as desired’. 4-pp leaflet, setting out the Rules. Good – with ink, handwritten amendments £5
193. TEACHERS’ GUILD Helps to Self-Help for Teachers by Assurance and Investment through the Teachers’ Guild 1901 [13221] Paper covers – 28pp – good – ex-Board of Education Library £8
194. TEACHERS’ GUILD OF GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND Collection of Annual Reports [13217] Reports for 1896-1897; 1897; 1899; 1900; 1901-1902; 1904-1905; 1905-1906; 1906; 1907-1908; 1908; 1909-10; 1910; 1911-12. The Guild represented both male and female teachers. With much detail of local branches. Each Report c 90pp, in original paper covers (the occasional cover present, but detached) – all in good condition. Together – 13 items £80
195. TEACHERS’ GUILD OF GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND List of Members Alphabetically Arranged 1913 [13218] Names and addresses – very useful. Women teachers appear to be in the majority. Soft covers – good – ex-Board of Education Library £15
196. THE ASSOCIATION OF HEAD MISTRESSES List of Public Secondary Schools for Girls 1903 1903 [13045] Card covers – good – ex-Board of Education Library £10
197. THE ASSOCIATION OF HEAD MISTRESSES List of Public Secondary Schools for Girls 1905 1905 [13046] Card covers – good – ex-Board of Education library £10
198. THE ASSOCIATION OF HEADMISTRESSES Girls’ Patriotic Union of Secondary Schools: Subscription list for the ‘Star and Garter’ home at Richmond for sailors and soldiers totally disabled in the war 1916 [13044] List of schools that subscribed. The treasurer was Miss Gadesden of Blackheath High School. 1-p leaflet — ex-Board of Education library £2
199. THE EDUCATIONAL MUSEUM OF THE TEACHERS’ GUILD OF GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND A Catalogue of the Historical Section 1896 [13219] A list of the costumes, tables, charts, photographs, maps and lantern slides that were available for hire by teachers. Interesting. Paper covers – 20pp – fair – ex-Board of Education Library £8
200. THE HOUSEHOLD WASH A collection of modern postcards all associated with the household wash. 26 of the cards are reproductions of late-19th and early-20th century advertisements for e.g.Sunlight Soap, Recitts Blue, Rinso, Vim Persil etc. 8 cards are reproductions of various washing days. 2 cards are typograhical 1980s humour with a washing-day theme. Together with an original advertising 6-pp fold-out leaflet for E.G. Bentford’s Washing, Wringing and Mangling Machines. The leaflet is printed on both sides – showing, therefore, 12 of their lines of stock. The firm was based in Brighton – the leaflet dates from, I think, the beginning of the 20th century. The postcards are all unused and unposted. The advertising leaflet is in good condition. As a collection [11626] £25
201. THE LAUNDRY INDUSTRY EDUCATION BOARD Education, Training and Scholarships in the Laundry Industry Laundry Industry Education Board 1953 (revised) [13214] A vanished world of work. Paper covers – 16pp – good – ex-Board of Education Library £8
202. THE TEACHERS’ GUILD OF GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND Scheme of Proposed Teachers’ Guild Friendly Society (Sickness and Accident Fund) 1897 [13220] Insurance for teachers. The contributions for women teachers is set higher arising ‘from the fact that amonst women the frequency, if not the duration of sickness, is very much greater than amongst men of coresponding ages, and to provide for both on the same terms would be inequitable and unsafe.’ Soft covers – 12pp – good – ex-Board of Education Library £8
203. THE UPLANDS ASSOCIATION The Uplands Circular [13211] The Uplands Association was an organisation pledged to reform school life and teaching. Its first principle was ‘All types of schooling to be pursued as far as climatic conditions will permit in the open air’. They ran a Summer School each year at Glastonbury and issued a newsletter ‘The Uplands Circular’. This is a collection of the Circulars for June, 1915, Nov 1915, Feb 1916 and Feb 1922. All in good condition – ex-Board of Education Library – 4 items – as a collection £18
204. WILKINS, Mrs Roland The Training and Employment of Education Women in Horticulture and Agriculture Women’s Farm and Garden Association 1927 [13213] Soft covers – 52pp – good – ex-Board of Education Library £25
205. A WOMAN’S RIGHT TO CHOOSE Abortion Law Reform Association Why we must fight the Abortion (Amendment) Bill and how to go about it [13197] 20-pp pamphlet giving ‘Some Information about the Abortion (Amendment) Bill’ – and including a ‘List of Members of Parliament who voted AGAINST the Bill’s Second Reading, 7 Feb 1975) £8
206. WOMEN’S IMPERIAL HEALTH ASSOCIATION The Cry of the Children to the Mothers of Great Britain c. 1912 [12522] 1. ‘Please let me sleep in a cot all to myself and keep my nursery window open’. 2. ‘Please nurse me yourself (as God meant you to) till I am nine months old.’ etc. There are 10 ‘cries’. Single-sided sheet – fine condition £15
207. WOMEN’S IMPERIAL HEALTH ASSOCIATION The Ten Health Commandments c 1912 [12521] The second commandment is ‘Do Not Spit’ and No 8 ‘Wash whole body at least once a week’. There are another 6 additional commandments for children. The Associaiton was an element of the pre-First World War eugenics movement. Single-sided leaflet – very good condition £15
208. WOMEN’S UNIVERSITY SETTLEMENT FOR WORK IN THE POORER DISTRICTS OF LONDON Fifteenth Annual Report WUS March 1902 [13038] Packed with names of subscribers as well as a report of the work accomplished by the Settlement. Paper covers – good -ex-Board of Education library £18 SOLD
209. HORTICULTURAL COLLEGE FOR WOMEN, HEXTABLE [12876] real photographic postcard of Hextable House, home of Swanley Horticultural College (for details of which see Crawford, ‘Enterprising Women: the Garretts and their circle’). The card was posted on 19 Jan 1918 from, I assume, a student to her mother, with the message ‘Have arrived safely.’ Good £8
Fiction
210. ARNOLD, Ethel Platonics: a study Thoemmes Press 1995 [9025] First published in 1894. This edition with introduction by Phyllis Walker. Soft covers – fine £6
211. BEHN, Aphra Ten Pleasures of Marriage and the second part of The Confession of the New Married Couple printed for the Navarre Society 1950 [12468] With an introduction by John Harvey. Good – corners a little bumped £10
212. BRADDON, M.E. Lady Audley’s Secret Virago 1985 [4463] First published in 1862. Still a page-turner. Paper covers – very good £8
213. DALBY, Richard (ed) The Virago Book of Victorian Ghost Stories Virago 1988 [10714] Stories by, among others, Charlotte Bronte, Elizabeth Gaskell, Catherine Crowe, M.E. Braddon, Rhoda Broughton, Vernon Lee, Violet Hunt and Mary Cholomondeley. Fine in good d/w £8
214. ‘DANBY, Frank’ [pseud. of Julia Frankau] Joseph in Jeopardy Methuen 1912 [8121] A novel of Edwardian society manners. Good £12
215. HALL, Marguerite Radclyffe- The Forgotten Island Chapman & Hall 1915 [7694] Poems. Very good – scarce £50
216. HALL, Radclyffe Poems of the Past and Present Chapman & Hall 1915 [3624] Very good – very scarce £95
217. JONES, Nora And WARD, Liz (eds) The Forgotten Army: women’s poetry of the First World war Highgate Publications 1991 [8879] Soft covers – fine £15
218. KOLLONTAI, Alexandra Love of Worker Bees Virago 1977 [9525] Soft covers – with Carmen Callil’s signature on free front endpaper and her book label on inside cover. Fine £10
219. LEON, Donna Doctored Evidence William Heinemann 2004 [8908] Set in Venice. Mint in d/w – signed by the author £18
220. MEW, Charlotte The Farmer’s Bride The Poetry Bookshop, 3rd imp 1929 [7693] Very good internally – cover sunned around edges £12
221. MORGAN, Fidelis The Years Between: plays by women on the London stage 1900-1950 Virago 1994 [3861] Paper covers – very good £8
222. NEWLIN, Keith (ed) American Plays of the New Woman Ivan R. Dee (Chicago) 2000 [5449] Plays by William Vaughan Moore, Rachel Crothers, Augustus Thomas, Alice Gerstenberg, Susan Glaspell and Jesse Lynch Williams. Paper covers – mint £10
223. NICHOLS, Grace The Fat Black Woman’s Poems Virago 1984 [9912] Soft covers – very good £3
224. NICHOLS, Grace Whole of a Morning Sky Virago 1986 [9898] A novel. Soft covers – good £2
225. PROCTER, Adelaide Anne Legends and Lyrics Bell & Daldy, 14th ed 1872 [1585] Poems by a leading member of the Langham-Place group. very good – leather, with gilt decorations and all edges gilt £28
226. RICH, Adrienne A Wild Patience Has Taken Me This Far: poems 1978-1981 W.W. Norton 1981 [9888] Soft covers – very good £5
227. ROYDE SMITH, Naomi Jane Fairfax Macmillan 1940 [8348] Not exactly a sequel to Jane Austen’s ‘Emma’- but a parallel, using many of Austen’s characters. Good – quite scarce £6
228. SHERIDAN, Frances Memoirs of Miss Sidney Bidulph Pandora 1987 [9372] First published in 1767. Soft covers – very good £8
229. SINCLAIR,Catherine Modern Society; or, the March of the Intellect William Whyte 1837 [10803] Very good in half-leather and marbled boards £20
230. BLUM, Deborah Ghost Hunters Century 2006 [9861] Study of the Society for Psychical Research, founded in 1882. Soft covers – mint £8
Suffrage Non-fiction
231. DICEY, A.V. Letters to a Friend on Votes for Women John Murray 1909 [3457] Very good internally – wrappers sunned and bumped on corners with writing in pencil on front. An anti-suffragist tract. 93pp – Scarce £55
232. KENT, Susan Sex and Suffrage in Britain, 1860-1914 Princeton University Press 1987 [1361] Fine in d/w (which has one slight nick) £20
233. OWEN, Harold Woman Adrift: the menace of suffragism Stanley Paul [1912] [13140] Anti-suffrage polemic by a playwright and journalist.. Good – scarce £55
234. PETHICK-LAWRENCE, Frederick The Women’s Fight for the Vote The Woman’s Press 1910 [13138] One of the classics of the women’s suffrage campaign. Very good internally – delightfully decorated cover (purple and gold) slightly rubbed and faded- – very scarce £150
235. RUBINSTEIN, David Before the Suffragettes: women’s emancipation in the 1890s Harvester 1986 [13158] Soft covers – very good £15
Suffrage Biography
236. (LYTTON) Lady Betty Balfour (ed) Letters of Constance Lytton William Heinemann 1925 [10628] Very good – in purple cloth, with design by Syvlia Pankhurst on front cover £68
237. (PANKHURST) Richard Pankhurst Sylvia Pankhurst: artist and crusader Paddington Press 1979 [13162] Fully illustrated study of her work as an artist. Very good £12
Suffrage Fiction
238. ETHELMER, Ellis Woman Free Women’s Emancipation Union 1893 [13144] ‘Woman Free’ is a 32-page poem – enhanced by c 200 pp of notes revealing a wide range of reading – Richard Jefferies, Tennyson, Geddes and Thomson’s Evolution of Sex , Mary Wollstonecraft; Westermarck’s History of Human Marriage, Walt Whitman, Ruskin, and J.S. Mill. Its central idea is that men’s sexual violence and exploitation of women followed from their destruction of the Matriarchate. Elizabeth Wolstenholme Elmy, the begetter of the Women’s Emancipation Union, and her busband, Ben, jointly used the pseudonym ‘Ellis Ethelmer’. Interesting and idiosyncratic. Good – and very scarce. I cannot remember that I have ever had a copy in stock before – certainly this is the first time this century. £95
239. JOHNSTON, Sir Harry Mrs Warren’s daughter: a story of the women’s movement Chatto & Windus 1920 [1342] A suffrage novel. Very good – presentation copy from the author’s wife £85
240. MCLEOD, Irene Rutherford Songs to Save a Soul Chatto and Windus 1916 (7th ed) [13186] A collection of poems. An introductory note states that some had been previously published in, amongst other journals, ‘Votes for Women’. Irene McLeod had been a member of the WSPU’s Young Purple, White and Green Association and of its Drummers’ Union. Very good £20
241. MASSIE, Chris Esther Vanner Sampson Low, Marston & Co no date (1937) [1436] The heroine is a suffragette. Very good in d/w £85
242. PAGE, Gertrude The Winding Paths Hurst & Blackett c 1911 [8th ed] [12888] A novel with a suffrage theme. ‘The men call them “new Women” with derision, or mannish, or unsexed; but those who have been among them, and known them as friends, know that they hold in their ranks some of th most generous-hearted, unselfish, big-souled women who exist in England to-day…One such as the best of these was Ethel Hayward..’ Good £20
243. SAUTER, Lilian Through High Windows Curtis & Davison (11a Church St, Kensington) 1911 [12880] Poems. Includes ‘Woman’s Plea for Suffrage’ and ‘Woman’s Song of Freedom.’. The latter was set to music by Annette Hullah and published by the London Society for Women’s Suffrage £25
244. SHAW, Bernard Press Cuttings: a topical sketch compiled from the editorial and correspondence columns of the Daily Papers Constable & Co no date (1909) [13000] as performed by the Civic and Dramatic Guild at the Royal Court Theatre, London, on the 9th July 1909. A suffragette play. In grey card covers a little chipped at edge £35
245. TEMPEST, Evelyn [pseud. of Edward Cuming] The Doubts of Diana Hodder & Stoughton [1911/12] [12881] Light-hearted novel – with the heroine taking part in a suffragette raid akin to ‘Black Friday’ ['The rumour that Govenment had thoughts of employing policemen from other parts of London was lightly discredited; everybody was sure no such thing would be done, even by the new Home Secretary'] and ending up in a police court. Good in original binding £28 SOLD
246. WHITE, Percy To-Day Tauchnitz 1913 [12885] A very readable novel – with suffrage taking central stage – alongside criticism of the divorce laws. The heroine, as in ‘Ann Veronica’, is prepared to sacrifice her social position for the Cause and enter into a legal pact rather than a conventional marriage. Paper covers – good – scarce £18
Suffrage Ephemera
247. ANTI-SUFFRAGE CAMPAIGN [13053] Typed letter, dated 18 July 1910, from George Calderon, Acting Secretary to the Campaign Committee, on note paper headed ‘Anti-Suffrage Campaign’ and giving the names of committee members and the office address (Palace Chambers, Bridge Street, Westminster, S.W.) The letter thanks an MP for the ‘really splendid speech’ he gave ‘on Saturday’. Very good £25
248. BODICHON, Mrs Reasons for the Enfranchisement of Women London National Society for Women’s Suffrage, no date late 1860s? [9519] Printed by Head, Hole & Co, Farringdon Street and Ivy Lane, E.C. Scarce and important pamphlet -8pp – good £250
249. CALLING ALL WOMEN: Newsletter of the Suffragette Fellowship Suffragette Fellowship 1971 [13172] Issue for 1971 – with photograph of the statue of Mrs Pankhurst on the cover and inside a photograph and report of the unveiling of the suffrage memorial in front of Caxton Hall, together with a short autobiographical piece by Grace Roe Very good £30
250. CONSERVATIVE AND UNIONIST WOMEN’S FRANCHISE ASSOCIATION A Reply to the Anti-Suffragists CUWFA [13191] 4-pp leaflet written by Annesley Horsfall. Pages detached – edges very nicked – but text untouched. Withdrawn from the Women’s Library £12
251. DAILY GRAPHIC 7 May 1913 [8536] The front page is devoted to an interior view of the destruction of St Catherine’s Church, Hatcham – inside there is another photograph of the fire – with fire engine. Also a report of the defeat of the Dickinson Bill proposing a measure of women’s enfranchisement. Complete issue – very good £18 SOLD
252. DAVIES, Emily Parliamentary Franchise for Women 1904 [13066] A 4-pp pamphlet, a reprint of a letter written to the Editor of ‘The Times’ on 31 March 1904. Emily Davies had, of course, been an instigator of the suffrage movement 38 years previously and noted that ‘within the last 20 years a marked change has taken place in public opinion in regard to it. The tone of mingled disapproval and derision, once so common, has to a great extent disappeared, and a disposition is shown to give the quesion a fair hearing, with an undertone of prophecy that “it will come”‘. The pamphlet is not credited to any specific suffrage society, but was, presumably, sold by the NUWSS. Fragile, chipped at edges – unusual – and scarce £55 SOLD
253. ELMY, Elizabeth Wostenholme Woman’s Franchise: the need of the hour ILP 2nd ed, no date [1907] [12760] A campaigner for women’s suffrage since the mid-1860s, she had put aside a lifetime’s aversion to party politics and joined the Manchester ILP in 1904. This article was originally published in the ‘Westminster Review’. In her concise style she analyses the events of the previous 40 years and demands that Liberal MPs who profess to support women’s suffrage honour their pledges. £65
254. FAWCETT, Mrs Henry Home and Politics an address delivered at Toynbee Hall and
elsewhere Women’s Printing Society 1894 [12939] A much reproduced speech – first given c
1890. This printing does not bear a date but probably c 1900. It carries the ownership stamp of
Margaret Clark, Street, Somerset who in 1909 married Arthur Gillett – so probably predates
1909. 8pp – a little creased and marked – but tight £35
255. GRONNO, Arthur The Woman M.P.: a Peril to Women and the Country Manchester Branch of the Women’s National Anti-Suffrage League, 2nd ed c. 1909 [13148] Originally published in 12 articles in the ‘Manchester Evening News’. Paper covers – 40pp – very good – very scarce £98
256. HILL, MISS OCTAVIA Women and the Suffrage 1910 [13150] 2-sided leaflet, reproducing a letter from Octavia Hill to the Editor of the ‘Times’, dated 14 July 1910. In this she repudiates the necessity of votes for women – ‘Let the woman seek the quiet paths of helpful real work, be set on finding where she is wanted, on her duties, not on her rights…’ The 2-sided leaflet was printed by the National Press Agency Ltd and does not carry the imprimatur of the anti-suffrage society, although I imagine that group was probably behind its publication, the NPA being their usual printer. Good – very scarce £68
257. IN MEMORIAM Rt Hon Lord and Lady (Emmeline) Pethick-Lawrence of Peaslake [13195] 4-pp leaflet describing the various commemorations of the lives of the Pethick-Lawrences. Issued by the Suffragette Fellowship under the names of Lady (Helen) Pethick-Lawrence and Grace Roe. Good £15
258. INTERNATIONAL WOMAN SUFFRAGE CONGRESS [13134] Budapest June 15-20 1913. This is a small advertising paper label (double-sided) for the Congress – showing two graceful women stretching their arms, to hold hands across the globe. The type-face is very 1913. A pretty and interesting memento of the last pre-war international women’s gathering. Fine -amazingly ephemeral – and unusual £85 SOLD
259. L’UNION FRANCAISE POUR LE SUFFRAGE DES FEMMES La Charte de la Femme 1910 [13192] par Jean Finot suivie d’une Enquete sur le Vote Politique des Femmes en France. 60 pp – fair – paper covers present but detached £8
260. LEIGH SMITH, Barbara A Brief Summary in Plain Language of the Most Important Laws Concerning Women; together with a few observations thereon Holyoake & Co, 2nd edition revised with addition 1856 [9033] Barbara Leigh Smith (later Barbara Bodichon) was 27 years old when she wrote this pamphlet, first published in 1854 as part of her campaign to change the Married Women’s Property Acts. This pamphlet is extremely scarce (I have never had a copy for sale before), bound inside recent paper covers. Rather amusingly, the printed price of ‘Threepence’ has been scored through and ’1 1/2 d’ added – a comment, presumably, then on the interest being shown in the campaign by a public not yet awakened to the cause. Very good £280
261. LENNOX, Geraldine The Suffragette Spirit The Suffragette Fellowship 1932 [12960] One of the series of ‘Suffragette Lectures’ – given at Caxton Hall on 17 Nov 1931. Paper covers – good internally -although has been folded. Paper covers carry many shelf marks – withdrawn from the Woman’s Library – scarce £40
262. LONDON AND NATIONAL SOCIETY FOR WOMEN’S SERVICE Report, October 1st 1938 to March 31st 1943 [13194] A Report giving details of how Women’s Service House fared during the early years of the war (bombed) and where the Library was accommodated (Oxford) – together with details of the Society’s perilous financial postition. Good £25
263. LYDIA BECKER [12607] Letter from Lydia Becker to ‘Mr Levi’ – written from 85 Carter St, Greenyes, Manchester on ‘Oct 16′ – I have worked out that the year is1868. ‘Mr Levi’ is probably Prof Leone Levi, to whom she had sent a pamphlet a few days earlier. I think, in response, he had written to her in admiration asking for some material from her for his autograph book. In this letter, in return, she writes ‘I have written out my three Norwich prospositions ,[these are drawn from her address at Norwich to the British Association Section F on 25 Aug 1868] which I hope may serve your purpose as a curiosity! for your autograph book, and a bone of contention for your friends.’ These ‘three Norwich propositions’ are set out on a separate sheet. But, in addition, in her 4-pp mss letter she sets out ‘my general wishes and conclusions as to the rights of women’.. All the material has been carefully attached to a sheet that once was page 77 in a collection of autograph material. Incidentally the material on the reverse, p 78, is in Italian, lending credence to my supposition that the correspondent was Leone Levi, who had left his native Italy for Liverpool in 1844. A very interesting letter – very good £95
264. MCCABE, Joseph Woman in Political Evolution Watts & Co 1909 [9803] An overview -from ‘ Woman Before Civilisation’ to ‘The Moral Base of Enfranchisement.’Paper wrappers – one nick at spine eats into the margin of a few pages -and a tiny bit of text is lost on two pages, but does not interfere with reading. £28
265. MCLAREN, Lady ‘Better and Happier’: An Answer from the Ladies’ Gallery to the Speeches in Opposition to the Women’s Suffrage Bill, February 28th, 1908 T. Fisher Unwin 1908 [13102] I have always been rather an admirer of Laura McLaren and her straight-forward prose. 46-pp – paper covers present but detached – text otherwise good and tight – scarce £75
266. (MARSH) Suffragette Fellowship Memories of Charlotte Marsh published for the Suffragette Fellowship by Marion Lawson June 1961 [12979] Paper covers – tribute to a leading WSPU activist – 20-pp pamphlet -card covers reproduces her hunger strike medal. Good -carries library marks – withdrawn from the Women’s Library. Scarce £30
267. MEN’S LEAGUE FOR OPPOSING WOMAN SUFFRAGE Gladstone on Woman Suffrage MLOWS c. 1909 [13146] The Men’s League for Opposing Woman Suffrage was founded in early 1909 and in 1910 merged with the Women’s National Anti-Suffrage League to form the National League for Opposing Woman Suffrage. This pamphlet – reproducing the Grand Old Man’s words on the subject is pamphlet no 3 issued by the Men’s League, presumably quite soon after its founding in 1909. 4-pp – good, with some foxing, scarce £78
268. MEN’S LEAGUE FOR OPPOSING WOMAN SUFFRAGE Is Woman Suffrage A Logical Outcome of Democracy? MLOWS c 1909 [13147] Pamphlet no 6 published by the short-lived Men’s League for Opposing Woman Suffrage. 4-pp – very good – scarce £60
269. MISS MORGAN, OF BRECON The Duties of Citizenship Women’s Local Government Society c 1912 [12946] Extracts reprinted from a paper read at the Annual Conference of the National Union of Women Workers, Manchester, October 27th 1896. By the time this leafet was issued Miss Morgan had been Mayor of Brecon, 1911-12. 4-pp – good – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £15
270. NATIONAL LEAGUE FOR OPPOSING WOMAN SUFFRAGE The ‘Conciliation’ Bill: Revised Version NLOWS no date (1911) [13152] The 2-sided leaflet, no 33 in the series, is headed ‘Against Votes for Women’ and ends with ‘Vote and Work Against Votes For Women In Parliamentary Affairs’. Very good – very scarce £75
271. NATIONAL LEAGUE FOR OPPOSING WOMAN SUFFRAGE Mr J.R. Tolmie’s Reply to Mr L. Housman’s Pamphlet NLOWS no date (1913) [13145] The pamphlet of Laurence Housman’s to which this refers is ‘The Physical Force Fallacy’. Pamphlet no 37 issued by the National League for Opposing Woman Suffrage. 4-pp – very good £65
272. NATIONAL LEAGUE FOR OPPOSING WOMAN SUFFRAGE Woman Suffrage and the Factory Acts NLOWS no date [13155] A 4-pp leaflet, no 8 in the NLOWS series, pointing out that the ‘Women’s Party’ (ie pro-suffrage campaigners) were opposed to the ‘humane acts’ limiting women’s work in factory etc because ‘most of them harbour such a jealous mistrust of men that they suppose even their evidently disinterested actions to be prompted by insidious and harmful motive.’ The leaflet concludes ‘To grant women the franchise would therefore be to raise a fresh obstacle in the way of progress and to defer reforms still necessary for the welfare of the working classes..’ Very good – very scarce £75
273. NATIONAL SOCIETY FOR WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE CENTRAL COMMITTEE: First Report of the Executive Committee presented at the General Meeting of the Central Committee held on Wednesday 17 July 1872 National Society for Women’s Suffrage 1872 [12931] See my ‘Women’s Suffrage Movement: a reference guide’ as to how and why the Central Committee came into being. This – the Committee’s first report, contains lists of names of members of the Committee, of subscribers, and of the Local Committtes around England and Scotland that affiliated to the Central. In original paper covers – rubbed – very scarce £95
274. NATIONAL UNION OF WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE SOCIETIES [3986] with the Men’s League (Portsmouth branches) – Programme for an evening meeting that began with a musical recital, followed by the singing of suffrage songs (the words are printed – one of them is by Margaret O’Shea, sister of the secretary of the Portsmouth NUWSS society and then a speech by Lady Balfour followed by more singing and then a closing speech by Alice Abadam. Interestingly the Vote of Thanks is seconded by Alderman Sanders, LCC, who in 1908 was Labour parliamentary candidate for Portsmouth and whose wife, Beatrice, was financial secretary to the WSPU. I think this programme may date from 1908 – because there is a mention at its foot of an Exhibition of Banners (Fuller’s tea Rooms, Palmerston Road) – and such exhibitions were common after the June 1908 Hyde Park rally. 1 sheet -good £180
275. NATIONAL UNION OF WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE SOCIETIES Final Report of the Professional Women’s Patriotic Service Fund NUWSS Oct 1915 [12943] ‘The Fund began work in Jan 1915, when a Committee was formed for the purpose of assisting professional women, by paying their salaries and offering their services to organisations which are dealing with war needs.’ I knew nothing of this short-lived Fund before reading this Report. It lists, on the one had, donors and, on the other, the positions in which they had placed needy ‘professional’ women. The Fund was wound up when it became clear that its services were no longer required. The Committee included, among others, Mrs Auerbach, Mrs Fawcett, Catherine Marshall, Ray Strachey, Dr Jane Walker – and its secretary was Kathleen Courtney. 12pp – good – scarce £50
276. NATIONAL UNION OF WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE SOCIETIES Memorial of Head Mistresses of Girls’ Public Secondary Schools NUWSS 1909 [12934] ‘The headmistresses who signed this Memorial asked Mr Asquith to receive a deputation in order that they might lay their views before him in person. This request was refused.’ Text of the memorial forwarded to Asquith in June 1909 – listing all those who had signed it. 16-pp pamphlet – goodish – a bit creased around the edges £35 SOLD
277. OSLER, Mrs A.C. Why Women Need the Vote Templar Press (Birmingham) no date (1910) [13126] 55-pp pamphlet by the doyenne of the Birmingham Women’s Suffrage Society. According to COPAC the only copies held by UK libraries are at Birmingham and the Women’s Library. Good internally – paper covers damaged and with shelf marks – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £45 SOLD
278. PANKHURST, EMMELINE ET AL Suffrage Speeches From the Dock: Conspiracy Trial, Old Bailey, May 15th-22nd 1912 The Woman’s Press, no date (1912) [12965] The speeches given during their trial for conspiracy by Mrs Pankhurst, Mrs Pethick-Lawrence, Mr Pethick Lawrence and Tim Healy (counsel for the defence). They were reprinted and published by the WSPU’s publishing arm, the Woman’s Press. Fair – first 4 pages present but detached – spine reinforced with sellotape – paper covers chipped and carry library shelf marks – withdrawn from the Women’s Library- extremely scarce £55
279. SCOTCHMEN AT DOWNING STREET Speeches by the Delegates 18 July 1913 [12936] The ‘Scotchmen’ were the Northern Men’s Federation for Women’s Suffrage founded by Maud Arncliffe-Sennett with the purpose of taking a deputation to see Asquith. The intention was that the deputation should, for maximum publicity, be timed to coincide with the arrival of the NUWSS ‘Pilgrims’ in London. Asquith, however, held true to his word – repeated on several occasions – that he would no receive the deputation. This pamphlet, which they had prepared in advance, contains the speeches they would have given. The ‘Scotchmen’ were, in the main, members of the Edinburgh and Glasgow city council and the deputation stressed its non-party credentials. 16-pp in card covers – in good condition – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £60
280. SNOWDEN, Philip The Dominant Issue Feb 1913 [12945] A comment on the ‘Franchise Bill fiasco’ – that is, Asquith’s promise that a Manhood Suffrage Bill would be amended to include women – and the Speaker’s eventual ruling that such an amendment would destroy the Bill. Pamphlet reproducing an article first published in ‘The Christian Commonwealth’ . Good – a little foxed and grubby £25
281. SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE [12661] is the caption to this full page George Belcher cartoon, published in the Tatler on 12 August 1908. Two impoverished old women are talking in the street – a unconsciously joky exchange – which is the amusing part for the audience of the day (I won’t go into the rather laboured humour which, if it has any suffrage relevance, is only to mock woman’s supposed illogicality)- but what is interesting to us is that one of the old dears is standing holding an advertising bill for the magazine, ‘New Age’, on which the roughly sketched in legend reads something like ‘A Suffragette’s reply to Belfort Bax.’. For the book that sparked off the debate in New Age see item ? Bax had published an article ‘Feminism and Female Suffrage’ in the issue for 30 May, to which Millicent Murby had written a reply that appeared in the issue of 6 June, to which Bax had made a riposte in the issue of 8 August. Single page – very good £15
282. STRACHEY, Philippa Memorandum On The Position of English Women In Relation to That of English Men London & National Society for Women’s Service 1935 [12985] 23-pp pamphlet. Paper covers, goodish condition, withdrawn from the Women’s Library £12
283. STRACHEY, Ray The Women’s Movement in Great Britain: a short summary of its rise, methods and victories National Council of Women of Great Britain no date (c 1928) [13109] A pamphlet abridged from Strachey’s ‘The Cause’. Chipped and rubbed – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £10
284. SUFFRAGETTE FELLOWSHIP Roll of Honour Suffragette Prisoners 1905-1914 Suffragette Fellowship no date [1966] [13107] 16-pp, double column, listing all the suffragette prisoners that the Suffragette Fellowship knew of. A couple of names have been added in ink. Internally fine – cover has shelf markings etc – withdrawn from the Women’s Library. Scarce £150
285. THE ANNUAL CELEBRATION OF THE BIRTHDAY OF MRS EMMELINE PANKHURST [12986] will take place on Friday 14th July 1939. Single sheet leaflet setting out the plans for the celebration and a list of the societies that were supporting the occasion. Good £20
286. THE CATHOLIC CITIZEN [13016] ‘Organ of St Joan’s Alliance (formerly the Catholic Women’s Suffrage Society) 15 May 1963. fair – withdrawn from the Women’s Library – together £4
287. THE EARL OF LYTTON The House of Lords and Women’s Suffrage P.S. King for the NUWSS 1914 [12944] Speech given on 6 May 1914 in a debate on the private member’s bill introduced by Lord Selborne which would have enfranchised municpal women voters. Very good – 36pp in card covers £45
288. THE HIPPODROME, LEEDS: THEATRE OF VARIETIES Programme for the evening of Monday September 10th 1906 [13236] and on the bill, among other delights, is ‘”The Fair Suffragettes” By the Barrascope.’. The term ‘suffragette’ had been coined by the ‘Daily Mail’ in March 1906 so Mr Thomas Barrasford was completely up-to-date in using it His ‘Barrascope’ was a cinematograph machine – so it would be a fair deduction that ‘The Fair Suffragettes’ was an early – indeed one of the earliest – suffragette films. I am assuming it was a feature film and as far as I can tell has not previously been recorded. Do consult the section on ‘Film’ in my Reference Guide to the Women’s Suffrage Movement. The folding programme is colourful and packed with Leeds-related advertisements. Very good – most unusual
£30
289. The Suffragee [13004] I’m suffering from a suff-e-ragette
Suffering sore you can see
Since my wife’s joined the suffragists
I’ve been a suffragee
Sings Jock Mills on this Homophon Company (6816) record. I haven’t listened to the record – no longer have a suitable player. Surface, to my untutored eye, looks rather marked – the label is in good condition. But it has survived. ‘Recorded in London. Pressed in Berlin’ Scarce £45 SOLD
290. VOTES FOR WOMEN, 16 August 1912 [13190] Complete copy – although the pages are detached. The main news in this issue is of the sentencing in Dublin of Mary Leigh and Gladys Evans. Fair reading copy – scarce £60
291. VOTES FOR WOMEN, 26 July 1912 [13188] An incomplete copy – pp 693-698 (inc) and 703-708 (inc) – but gives a flavour £30
292. VOTES FOR WOMEN, 27 September 1912 [13176] At this date the paper, owned and edited by Emmeline and Frederick Pethick-Lawrence, was still the mouthpiece of the WSPU. However this issue contains both news of the Pethick-Lawrences’ imminent return from Canada and that of the WSPU’s move from Clement’s Inn to Lincoln’s Inn House. The two items – and that describing the large meeting to be held in the Albert Hall – were not unconnected, I think. This is one of the last issues of the paper before the Pethick-Lawrences were ousted from the WSPU. In fair condition – splits on spine – and some annotation, probably contemporary. Scarce £95
293. VOTES FOR WOMEN, 9 June 1911 [13189] Incomplete copy – pp 589-592 (inc) and 601-604 (inc) – but gives a flavour. The WSPU is planning the Coronation Procession. £30
294. WOMEN ON WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE [12763] full-page of line drawings, by R.M. Paxton, from ‘Black & White, 22 October 1903 showing ‘The afternoon sitting at the National Convention in Defence of the Civic Rights of Women at the Holborn Town Hall last Friday’. I rather feel that the importance of this event, held on 16-17 October, as a turning point in the suffrage campaign is overlooked by suffrage historians. It was, in the main, the result of Elizabeth Wostenholme Elmy’s persistence that it was held, backed by W.T. Stead. She was very keen that there should be a mass suffrage campaign in the run-up to the next election. 200 delegates attended and it marked a revitalisation of the NUWSS. Mrs Pankhurst, whether or not she was invited, did not attend; she had held her first kitchen-table meeting with the group that became the WSPU on 10 October. The timing may be a coincidence. The vignettes in the illustration show ‘Mrs Elmy on Women’s Highest Mission’, The chairman, the Rev Alfred Steinthal, Mrs Green (President of the Women’s Co-operative Guild), Miss Eva Gore-Booth (Sec Women’s Trade Union Council Manchester) and a scene of a section of the gathered company listening attentively. Very good – unusual £18
295. WOMEN’S LOCAL GOVERNMENT SOCIETY The Parish Meeting and Parish Council LGS 1919 [13154] 4-pp leaflet explaining the scope and powers of the parish council. It was issued in January 1919, under the name of (Miss) C.G. K. Scovell who adds ‘The country looks to its women voters to arouse interest in local affairs, and to take their share of the steady and unobtrusive work that has to be done by Parish Councils.’ Miss Scovell lived in Sussex – and this leaflet was printed in Hove. Good £48
296. WOMEN’S NATIONAL ANTI-SUFFRAGE LEAGUE On Suffragettes: extracts from ‘What’s Wrong With The World’ by G.K. Chesterton WNASL c 1909 [13151] ‘They do not create revolution; what they do create is anarchy’. 2-sided leaflet – noo 30 in the WNASL’s series of leaflets – very good – very scarce £78
297. WOMEN’S NATIONAL ANTI-SUFFRAGE LEAGUE To The Women Of Great Britain WNASL c 1909 [13149] An appeal to women to pause and think before signing any petitions etc in favour of ‘votes for women’. 1-p leaflet -Number 10 in the League’s series of leaflets - with the rubber stamp of the ‘Manchester Branch: 1 Princess Street, Albert Square’ Very good – very scarce £78 SOLD
298. WOMEN’S NATIONAL ANTI-SUFFRAGE LEAGUE Woman’s Suffrage and Women’s Wages WNASL c 1909 [13156] ‘The leaflet concludes Woman Suffrage therefore has nothing to do with wages, and the interests of woman workers can be promoted, and are constantly being promoted in quite other ways.’ One of the ways that the League thought would help solve the problem of the inequality of wages between the sexes would be ‘The more even distribution of the female population throughout the terrotory of the Empire, by means of emigration’. Two-sided leaflet – very good – very scarce £65
299. ROBERTSON, Margaret Working Men and Women’s Suffrage NUWSS Aug 1913 [12937] Margaret Robertson was a university graduate and NUWSS organiser. This pamphlet was written at a time when the NUWSS had set up its Election Fighting Fund to support Labour Party candidates – and was intended for distribution amongst trade unionists. Small format, 24pp in card covers £35
Suffrage Postcards – Real Photographic
300. ARREST OF CAPT. C.M. GONNE [12914] Member of the Men’s Political Union for Women’s Enfranchisement, Parliament Square, November 18th, 1910.’ Capt Gonne was photographed by the ‘Daily Mirror’ being escorted by two policemen during the ‘Black Friday’ tumult. Capt Charles Melvill Gonne (1862-1926), Royal Artillery, was the author of ‘Hints on Horses’ (John Murray, 1904), an active suffragist, who supported his wife, a tax resister, and was a cousin of Maud Gonne, the Irish nationalist heroine. Very good -unusual - unposted £190
301. CICELY HAMILTON [12954] photograph by Lena Connell. Fine – unposted £120
302. COUNTESS RUSSELL [13241] real photographic postcard – headed ‘Votes for Women’ of ‘Countess Russell Member of National Executive Committee Women’s Freedom League’. The card depicts Countess Russell photographed in a studio setting – and is signed in ink ‘Yours sincerely Mollie Russell’. She was the second wife of Frank Russell, 2nd Earl Russell, the elder brother of Bertrand. Mollie was described by George Santyana as ‘a fat, florid Irishwoman, with black curls, friendly manners and emotional opinions: a political agitator and reformer.’ The photograph in no way belies the physical description. She and Russell were divorced in 1915. Fine – unposted – scarce – I have never seen this card before £120
303. DR THEKLA HULTIN [13168] The Finnish MP is photographed at her desk. She sent the card from Helsingfors (Helsinki) on 12 April 1917 to Mrs Louisa Thompson-Price of the Women’s Freedom League. From the message on the reverse it would appear that the two women shared a birthday ‘I wish you all the best (including the vote) in the following 50 years…’ Very good – posted – very unusual £120
304. EDITH CRAIG [12955] photographed by Lena Connell, published at The Suffrage Shop, 31 Bedford Street (therefore the card dates from c 1910 – before its removal in 1911 south of the Strand). Fine – unposted £120
305. FREDERICK PETHICK LAWRENCE [13166] photographed by F. Kehrhahn & Co, Bexley Heath. (For an article unravelling who ‘F. Kehrhahn’ was see ‘The WSPU Photographer, DORA and the Nazis’ – on my website). Fine – unposted – unusual £120 SOLD
306. GREAT VOTES FOR WOMEN DEMONSTRATION IN HYDE PARK [13163] The WSPU rally on Sunday 21 June 1908. Crowds as far as the eye can see – with massed banners, including those of Cardiff and Newport, waving in the breeze. Fine – published by Sandle Bros – unposted £85
308. KILLARNEY SUFFRAGETTE [13234] A real photographic postcard, published by Hartnett of Killarney, showing a woman with a plaid shawl over her head sitting in a donkey-drawn cart – and in her hand is a copy of ‘The Suffragette’. It is the kind of image that is used to illustrate how widely circulated a paper or journal is – that is, even here in Killarney…Fine – unposted – there are very few Irish suffrage-related postcards – most unusual £120 SOLD
309. MISS GRACE ROE [12958] The caption is ‘UNDAUNTED’!’ She is being marched out of the WSPU headquarters, Lincolns Inn House, by police, arrested in May 1914. She was not released from prison until under the amnesty in August. The postcard photography was by courtesy of the ‘Daily Mirror’. An iconic image. Fine – unposted – scarce. £190
310. MISS MURIEL MATTERS OF AUSTRALIA, LECTURER [12918] Women’s Freedom League 1 Robert Street, Adelphi, London WC. The card, headed ‘Votes for Women’ , shows Muriel Matters seated, reading a book and was published by the WFL Fine – unposted £120
311. MRS EMMELINE PANKHURST [13240] real photographic postcard. She is wearing a shield-shaped WSPU badge – in the chevron design. Fine – unposted – a rather unusual image – the first I’ve had in stock since 2000.
312. MRS HENRY FAWCETT, LL.D [13239] ‘President of the National Union of Women’s Suffrage Societies’, is the caption below her photograph by Lizzie Caswall Smith. Probably dates from c 1910. Fine – unposted -although written on the back in pencil is ‘Return to Mrs Thomson-Price 42 Parkhill Road, Hampstead N.W.’ The card comes from the collection of Louisa Thomson-Price, one of the leading members of the Women’s Freedom League. £6
313. SUFFRAGETTE FIRE NEVILL CRICKET GROUND, TUNBRIDGE WELLS [13233] The ruins of the pavilion stand gaunt. the handwritten message contains the line – victim of suffragette arson on 11 April 1913. Very good – unposted £95 SOLD
314. ‘SUFFRAGETTE’ POSTCARD [13243] real photographic card – though it must be staged. Set in what appears to be the country – with trees and flowers – it shows a woman in loose-fitting jacket and long skirt – with one of the shield-shaped chevron WSPU badges pinned to her lapel, being apprehended by a policeman in helmet and uniform and sporting an imposing display of medals. The point of the photograph is that the woman is holding out for him to see a copy of the ‘Suffragette’ newspaper. I have never seen this image before. It is issued as a postcard – but no photographer or publisher is cited. Most unusual – unposted – very good (with a slight crease at the bottom right-hand corner where it has been held in (Louisa Thomson-Price’s) postcard album £120
315. SUFFRAGETTE SUMMER FESTIVAL, JUNE 1913 [13235] photographic postcard of women – beautifully attired in white – standing with flower-decorated placards to advertise the WSU’s 1913 Summer Festival. They are probably outside the venue – the Empress Rooms, which were adjacent to the Kensington Palace end of Kensington Gardens. It was here that Emily Wilding Davison spent her final evening – Tuesday 3 June – before setting out the next day for the Derby. This postcard is a copy made some time ago not by a commercial organisation but by a private individual. Although not original it is extremely interesting – as I have never myself before seen the image. £25
316. THE WOMEN’S GUILD OF EMPIRE [12877] ‘souvenir packet’ of 6 postcards, in their original printed paper envelope, published by the Women’s Guild of Empire. The cards are: 1) ‘Women’s Guild of Empire Committee’ – the 6 members of the Committee, who included Flora Drummond and Elsie Bowerman, sit around a table; 2) Mrs R.S Henderson, president; 3) Mrs Flora Drummond, Controller-in-Chief; 4) WGE banner ‘Peace Unity Concord’ surrounded by members; 5) Banner Making for the Great Demonstration April 17th 1926 – Mrs Drummond under an ‘Effeciancy and Entrprise’ banner; 6) ‘Women Pipers from the Lothians’ – with Mrs Drummond in control Scottishness was to the fore. An extremely rare set – I have never seen any of these cards before – and, in general, there are few images of the Guild of Empire and its work. The printed envelope carries details of the ‘Objects’ of the Guild and of its work. All cards in pristine condition – dating, I assume, to c 1926. As a set £220
317. WOMEN’S FREEDOM LEAGUE Miss Sarah Benett [12950] photographed by Lena Connell. In this studio photograph Sarah Benett is wearing her WFL Holloway brooch; she was for a time the WFL treasurer. She was also a member of the WSPU and of the Tax Resistance League. This photograph by Lena Connell was also used on a WFL-published postcard – but this one is not attributed to the WFL. The background to the image is little irridescent. £100
318. WOMEN’S FREEDOM LEAGUE Mrs Amy Sanderson [12919] Women’s Freedom League, 1 Robert Street, Adelphi, London WC. She had been a member of the WSPU, and, as such had endured one term of imprisonment, before helping to found the WFL in 1907. She is, I think, wearing her WFL Holloway brooch in the photograph. Card, published by WFL, fine – unusual – unposted £150
320. WOMEN’S FREEDOM LEAGUE Mrs Edith How-Martyn , ARCS, BSc [12917] Hon Sec Women’s Freedom League 1 Robert Street, Adelphi, London WC. She is wearing herWFL Holloway brooch. Photographed by M.P. Co (London) – which I think is probably the Merchants Portrait Co in Kentish Town that did a fair amount of work for the WFL. The card is headed ‘Votes for Women’ and was published by the WFL. Fine – unposted £120
321. WOMEN’S FREEDOM LEAGUE Mrs Marion Holmes [12921] card headed ‘Votes for Women’ published by the Women’s Freedom League, 1 Robert St, Adelphi, London WC. Mrs Holmes was joint editor of the WFL paper ‘The Vote’. She is photoraphed wearing herWFL Holloway badge as well as one of the WFL enamel badges. Fine – unusual – unposted £120
322. WOMEN’S FREEDOM LEAGUE Suffragette At Work in Prison – Mrs Borrmann Wells WFL 1910 [13132] Bettina Borrmann Wells was an organiser for the WFL in London, having worked for suffrage in the US for a couple of years. She had spent 3 weeks in Holloway in 1908 and is here seen in prison garb, down on her hands and knees as though scrubbing the cell floor. ‘Woman’s work’. Fine – unposted £120
Suffrage Postcards – Commercial Artists
323. A CABINET PUDDING [13228] a postcard – one of those that is ‘words only’ – beginning ‘Take a Fresh Young Suffragette, add a large slice of her own importance and as much sauce as you like. Allow her to stand on a Cabinet Minister’s doorstep until in white heat….’etc. Very good – unposted £18
324. THIS IS ‘THE HOUSE’ THAT MAN BUILT [13229] And this is the Minister weary and worn/Who treated the Suffragette with scorn,/Who wanted a Vote, and (a saying to quote),/ Dared him to tread on the tail of the coat/If the bold Suffragette determined to get,/Into ‘THE HOUSE’ that man built.’ The Minister is surrounded by elegant suffragettes – with the House of Commons in the background £55 SOLD
Suffrage Postcards –Suffrage Artist Cards
325. ARTISTS’ SUFFRAGE LEAGUE Go Hang Yourselves – We Fought at Acre, and you were not there [13012] The suffragist figure (dressed in a loose aesthetic robe) leans on a shield whose message is, ’190? The Franchise Won’. Behind here is a ‘No taxation without representation’ BANNER. She is addressing two crinolined ladies, with ’1909′ running as a repeat around the bottom of their skirts – who are throwing up her hands in horror at her aT her words – and exclaim ‘Oh my dear!! So unladylike!!!’ Printed and published by the Artists’ Suffrage League. Fine – unposted – scarce £95
326. ARTISTS’ SUFFRAGE LEAGUE Miss Jane Bull [13010] addresses Master Johnnie Bull, asking, ‘Give me a bit of your Franchise Cake, Johnnie’ He replies ‘It wouldn’t be good for you’ She responds ‘How can you tell if you won’t let me try it? it doesn’t hurt those other little girls’ – she points to Finnish, New Zealand, Australian and Norwegian children – boys and girls.Postcard published by the Artists’ Suffrage League. The artists are ‘C.H. & D.M.’ Very good – unposted £95
327. SEVEN TO TWO! [13231] Silhouttes of men, their trades and professions identified by their clothing, are numbered from one to seven as they stand outside the polling station. Two women stand watching. The caption explains ‘Seven to eight million men have Votes. Only one-and-a-half to two million women would be entitled to vote if what we are asking for is granted’. A card designed to stem fears that enfranchised women would swampt the voting register. Published by the Artists’ Suffrage League. Very good – unposted – v scarce £95
328. WOMEN WRITERS’ SUFFRAGE LEAGUE [12957] postcard for the League designed by W.H. Margetson. ‘Woman’ is dragged from the feet of blind ‘Justice’ by the figure of ‘Prejudice’. This is the coloured version – in fine condition – unposted £85
329. ‘YE ANTI-SUFFRAGE LEAGUE’ [13232] Snooty ladies with coronets and pince-nez ride past in their automobile – driven by chap with a crown. The car carries a placard ‘We have all we want. No votes for women’. Dated (1908)- published by the Artists’ Suffrage League and, unusually, the artist is a man, Charles Lane Vicary. Very good- unposted – very scarce £95
330. YOUNG NEW ZEALAND [13230] cycles on her modern bicycle with its two wheels equal in size. The front one is labelled ‘Male and Female’ and teh back one ‘Equal Electoral Rights’. She calls out to old John Bull who is struggling atop a penny farthing, ‘Oh Grandpapa! what a funny old machine. Why don’t you get one like mine?’ The artist is JHD [Joan Harvey Drew]. Published by the Artists’ Suffrage League. Very good- unposted – v scarce £95
Women and the First World War
331. BARTON, Edith And CODY, Marguerite Eve in Khaki: the story of the Women’s Army at home and abroad Thomas Nelson, no date (1918) [12577] Part I – in England by Edith M. Barton. Part II – In France by Marguerite Cody. The First World War and the early years of the WAAC. Very good £38
332. DENT, Olive A V.A.D. in France Grant Richards Ltd 1917 [12636] Autobiographical account of nursing in France in the First World War. Very good, with atmospheric pictorial cloth cover £75
333. FARMBOROUGH, Florence Russian Album 1908-1918 Michael Russell 1979 [12645] Photographs taken both before and during the First World War by Florence Farmborough, who first went to Russia in 1908 – and left in 1918. At the outbreak of war she served with the Russian Red Cross. An amazing collection. Large format, fine in d/w £28
334. MCLAREN, Eva Shaw (ed) A History of the Scottish Women’s Hospitals Hodder & Stoughton 1919 [12638] A very full history of the work of the SWH in the First World War. With 57 illustrations, including a marvellous pull-out panoramic photograph of the Salonika hospital in 1918 – huts and tents as far as the eye can see. 408pp – very good -with new endpapers and a little foxing – scarce £65
335. MARLOW, Joyce (ed) The Virago Book of Women and the Great War Virago 1998 [11926] Hardcover – fine in fine d/w £12
336. STONE, Gilbert (ed) Women War Workers: accounts contributed by representative workers of the work done by women in the more important branches of war employment George G. Harrap & Co 1917 [12631] With a foreword by Lady Jellicoe. Chapters on: munition work; the land; work as a postwoman; banking; as a bus conductor; driver of butcher’s delivery cart; nursing at the Front in France; work as a V.A.D.; working with ‘Concerts at the Front’; and welfare work. Includes a chapter on War Organisations for Women, full of facts and figures – with 12 photographs. Very good – a surprisingly scarce book £60
Women and the First World War – Biography
337. [HALL] Edith Hall Canary Girls & Stockpots WEA Luton Branch 1977 [12884] Memories of life in the First World War – and of the ’20s and ’30s. During the War Edith Hall’s mother was landlady to munition workers – ‘the Canaries’ (so called because the chemicals turned their skin yellow) at the Hayes factories.
Soft covers – signed by the author £10
338. [WALKER] Dora M. Walker With the Lost Generation 1915-1919: From a V.A.D.s Diary A. Brown & Sons (Hull) 2nd imp 1971 [12879] ‘A “Girl’s Eye View” of work in some of the famous War Hospitals of 1914-1918.’ – written at the time by the author to her father. Dora Walker worked in hospitals in Britain, France and Belgium. With 20 photographs. Fine – scarce £25
Women and the First World War – Ephemera
339. HMSO Substitution of Women in Non-Munition Factories During the War HMSO 1919 [12581] ‘In view of the important questions which will arise at the close of the War in regard to women’s employment, it now seems desirable to make generally available the experience of the Department [the Factory Dept. of the Home Office] in regard to the extensions of women’s employment during the War in the great industries (other than the munitions industries) of the Country.’ The industries range from ‘Aero Engines’ to ‘Woollen and Worsted’. 52-pp – good in blue paper covers as issued £35 SOLD
340. GRANT, LILIAS and MOIR, ETHEL ‘Uncensored Diary’ and ‘Uncensored Letters’ [12590] Lilias Grant wrote the ‘Uncensored Diary’ and her friend, Ethel Moir, the ‘Uncensored Letters’ while on service together – as orderlies – with Dr Elsie Inglis’ Serbian-Russian Unit of the Scottish Women’s Hospitals in Rumania and Russia between August 1916 and April 1917. Also in that unit were Elsie Bowerman and Yvonne Fitzroy – and many other figures now well known to students of the SWH make frequent appearances. Ethel Moir did further service with the SWH between Feb 1918 and Jan 1919 with the ‘Elsie Inglis Unit’ in Salonika, Verbiliani and Hordiack and recorded that experience in a second section of the ‘Uncensored Letters’. These foolscap typescripts (or, in the case of the Moir Letters, a xerox of the tss) have been bound and were each inscribed by Lilias Grant (by then Mrs Lilias Dyson) and given in 1972 to her friends Nina and Ian Cameron of North Petherton, Somerset. Laid in the Moir volume is a letter from her husband, Dacre Dyson, explaining that there are only 3 copies of the Moir tss (and, by inference, also of the Grant Diary). One set is this set, owned by the Camerons, one is in the possession of Ethel Moir’s sister and the Dysons’ own set is destined, in due course, to be given to Edinburgh Central Library. Lilias Dyson died in 1975 and her husband in 1980 and their set of tss is now in the ECL. Indeed it was after reading the tss there that the playwright Abigail Docherty wrote her SWH play ‘Sea, Land and Sky’, staged at the Tron Theatre in Glasgow in 2010. Audrey Cahill published excerpts from the diary and letters in ‘Between the Lines’ (see item # ). Although she been unable to find anything further about Lilias Grant, the extra information provided in the laid-in letter and note that accompanies these volumes has made it possible to establish that, born in York in 1880, in 1922 she married Dacre Dyson, a Ceylon tea planter. They lived in Ceylon until at least 1938 and after the Second World War were living in Burley in Hampshire. Ethel Moir and Lilias Grant, who were both living in Inverness, had been friends before, together, joining the SWH The whereabouts of the third set of the tss is at the moment unknown.
The tss have been very well bound and are in fine condition (with one very small scuff on the spine of ‘Uncensored Letters’) – with presentation inscription from Lilias Grant and laid-in letter and note from her husband. Extremely scarce £500
341. HMSO Annual Report of the Chief Inspector of Factories and Workshops 1915 HMSO 1916 [13125] With a Special Report appended by Adelaide Anderson, HM Principal Lady Inspector of Factories, on ‘Effect of the Second Year of War on Industrial Employment of Women and Girls’.. Good reading copy – missing blue paper covers £12
342. SCOTTISH WOMEN’S FIRST AID CORPS [12892] natural-coloured linen canvas satchel with the initials ‘S.W.F.A.C.’ [Scottish Women's First Aid Corps] machine-embroidered in red on the front.The satchel hangs from a long red grosgrain ribbon strap which has a buckle for altering its length. The bag still contains an Esmarch’s Triangular Bandage – printed with images of how to apply, in a variety of ways, the bandage to wounded men, together with two packs labelled ‘Scottish Women’s First Aid Corps First Field Dressing’, supplied by J. Gordon Nicholson, Pharmaceutical Chemist, 15 Hanover Street, Edinburgh, and two small safety pins on a piece of card, presumably to be used for fixing the bandages. Luckily this SWFAC member was required to put the bandages to the test. The SWFAC had been formed in 1909 by Mary E. Macmillan and came into its own in the First World War, appealing to middle and upper-middle class women who wanted to ‘do their bit’. The SWFAC ran classes in First Aid and sick nursing and some of its recruits then went out to nurse in Italy and Serbia. Very good – an unusual survival £120
343. YOUR KING & COUNTRY WANT YOU a woman’s recruiting song Chappell & Co 1914 [12802] Sheet music – words & music by Paul A. Rubens. The cover is illustrated by John Hassall. ‘The entire profits from the sale of this song will be devoted to Queen Mary’s “Work for Women” Fund’. ‘Oh! we don’t want to lose you but we think you ought to go. For your King and your Country both need you so; We shall want you and miss you but with all our might and main. We shall cheer you, thank you, kiss you when you come back again’. Makes the spine creep. 6-pp – very good £38
Women and the First World War – Fiction
344. MACAULAY, Rose Three Days Constable & Co 1919 [12622] Poems. Already an established novelist, during the First World War Rose Macaulay worked as a VAD nurse and a land girl and in early 1917 joined the War Office. Good – a little chipped on spine – in wrapper cover. £25
345. MARCHANT, Bessie A Girl Munition Worker:
a story of a girl’s work during the Great War Blackie [1916] [13002] Novel of the First World by ‘the girls’ Henry’. This would appear to be a first edition -with an ownership inscription for ‘Xmas 1916′ on free front end paper In original pictorial cloth cover – cloth rubbed and corners bumped – very scarce £45
An illustration from Campaigning for the Vote: Kate Parry Frye’s Suffrage Diary
The New Constitutional Society’s War-Work Work Room c 1915.
Note the Society’s banner in the background
For more much more information on Kate Frye and her Diary see ‘Kate Frye’s Suffrage Diary’ posts on
Womanandhersphere.com
**
My other books
The Women’s Suffrage Movement 1866-1928: A reference guide
Elizabeth Crawford
‘It is no exaggeration to describe Elizabeth Crawford’s Guide as a landmark in the history of the women’s movement…’ History Today
Routledge, 2000 785pp paperback £65
The Women’s Suffrage Movement in Britain and Ireland: a regional survey
Elizabeth Crawford
‘Crawford provides meticulous accounts of the activists, petitions, organisations, and major events pertaining to each county.’ Victorian Studies
Routledge, 2008 320pp paperback £26
Enterprising Women: the Garretts and their circle
‘Crawford’s scholarship is admirable and Enterprising Women offers increasingly compelling reading’ Journal of William Morris Studies
Francis Boutle, 2002 338pp 75 illus paperback £25
Campaigning For The Vote: Kate Wrestles With North Norfolk, 1912
Posted in Kate Frye's suffrage diary, Suffrage Stories on April 25, 2013
In early summer 1912 Kate Frye was in Norfolk, based in East Dereham, organizing the ‘votes for women’ campaign for the New Constitutional Society for Women’s Suffrage in Norfolk. In May the sitting MP for the Northwestern Division of Norfolk died and a by-election was called. Kate hurried to Hunstanton to organise the NCS campaign – rather at a disadvantage vis a vis the other suffrage societies, the WSPU and the NUWSS, both of which had many more organisers, money, and, above all, cars at their disposal to cover the constituency. But Kate did her best. For example:
On 28 May she hired a motor for 22/- from Johnson’s Garage in Hunstanton to take the Society’s speakers, Miss McGowan, Mrs Chapman (the Society’s president) and Mr Lloyd (supposedly an Australian although she began to have her doubts) to Burnham Market.
Tuesday May 28th 1912 [lodging in Hunstanton at Palace House, Westgate]
Had a lot of writing to do in the morning and had to go out to make arrangements and then a great rush to get something to eat and off to Burnham Market at mid-day. I took the Literature to the Hotel, left it here and ordered tea – then I canvassed hard and walked all the way to Burnham Overy.
Came [back to Burnham Market] to Hoste Arms Hotel – found one of my Irish friends [these were Irish political
Burnham Market in 1912
organisers also in the area campaigning for the by-election] still there- the younger married one- at least the other was married too – but I gathered he was separated from his wife. My friend greeted me quite tenderly – we met as old friends – there were two other Irishmen – Anti Home Rulers and two Liberals – a young coming-on Politician – quite nice looking – and an older man who, I was told afterwards, was Mr Ouithwaite – a candidate somewhere. We all had tea and eggs and Suffrage discussions – Mr Ouithwaite was quite violent – but I really had him every time – quite a roar went up at some some my answers – I enjoyed that tea party immensely. I think we all did – Mr Ouithwaite least of all, perhaps, but I felt I was scoring – and as only the two odd Irishmen were inclined for Votes for Women I had no help. No 1 Irish was not so rabid though.
I only got to the Schools just in time to have the doors open and let the crowd in – no policeman there so the boys had to go – it looked like a rowdy meeting from the first. The place was pretty full when the car arrived – Miss McGowan with Mrs Chapman and Mr Lloyd. Miss McGowan took the Chair – and they were fairly quiet while she spoke – but directly Mrs Chapman got up the trouble began. No one could hear her – she was feeling so dreadfully ill with a feverish cold – she must have had a miserable evening and I felt so sorry for her – and the people were so insolent. I went and stood right at the back amongst the rowdies and it was a lively evening – and so stuffy. Mr Lloyd (from Australia) stood on a Chair and bellowed – ‘Oh men of England’ over and over again – he tried his best and was cheery but not much of what he shouted could be heard. I took a collection – which was brave I think – but I felt I had to do something. I was so disappointed and we drove off amidst groans. A very Liberal place – but the boys were the mischief – once in they wouldn’t quiet.
We motored back to Hunstanton – left Mrs Chapman at the ‘Golden Lion’ – then Mr Lloyd at the Temperance Hotel in our road – then home. The WSPU had been holding a meeting in the Town Hall and Miss Mansell had been down to help Steward – but only about 100 people turned up – some said 50 – so they had an open air afterwards as Mrs Massy and Mrs Haverfield were there. That was just over so we three tramped off to Roberts Room where Mr Hemmerde [the Liberal candidate] was speaking – a small room but well filled. He was just answering questions put to him by our lively friend Mr Lloyd – so when the people came out we gave away our handbills. ‘
Campaigning for the Vote: Kate Parry Frye’s Suffrage Diary edited by Elizabeth Crawford
For a full description of the book click here
Wrap-around paper covers, 226 pp, over 70 illustrations, all drawn from Kate Frye’s personal archive.
ISBN 978 1903427 75 0
£14.99
Copies available from Francis Boutle Publishers, or from Elizabeth Crawford – e.crawford@sphere20.freeserve.co.uk
or from all good bookshops.
- ‘Campaigning for the Vote’ – Front and back cover of wrappers
Campaigning For The Vote: Kate Converts Bourne End, Buckinghamshire
Posted in Kate Frye's suffrage diary, Suffrage Stories on April 24, 2013
‘The Plat’ at Bourne End in Buckinghamshire had been the Frye family’s country house since the late 1880s.
The Plat, Bourne End
The house was right on the River and teas were served on its lawns during the annual Bourne End Regatta.
Bourne End Regatta
Kate’s father, Frederick Frye, had been an influential figure in the neighbourhood but by 1911 had lost control of his business and the family finances were in dire straits. In order to earn her keep Kate now took employment as a paid organiser for the New Constitutional Society for Women’s Suffrage. She spent much of the time working away from home but in the autumn of 1911 did succeed in launching the Bourne End and District Women’s Suffrage Society.
Thursday October 19th 1911 [Bourne End: The Plat]
So hot – very foggy and dull, some rain but fortunately it didn’t keep on. Agnes and I walked up to Mrs Bleek-Leech’s at Lindenhurst as she was most kindly having the first meeting of the Bourne End and District Women’s Suffrage Society. It was such a success – about 50 people present. Miss Dove [headmistress of Wycombe Abbey School] was going to take the Chair but in her absence Daddie did so. Mrs Cecil Chapman [president of the New Constitutional Society] came to speak. She spoke for an hour and was most stirring. Mrs Graham from Henley also somehow got there and spoke for a few minutes on the sweated workers at Reading. Mrs Smart proposed a Vote of Thanks all round. Then tea. Mrs Leech had arranged it all most beautifully and was quite charming about it. I was as busy as a bee, of course. A good bit rested on me but I was delighted at the success. Mrs Chapman must have touched her hearers’ hearts and although we only made 10 or so members. People said that they had never heard suffrage before but were so interested they promised to come on Dec 15th. Every one was pleased. We stayed last finishing up things. Then after supper accounts for the 3 Suffrage Papers and the Standard.
Campaigning for the Vote: Kate Parry Frye’s Suffrage Diary edited by Elizabeth Crawford
For a full description of the book click here
Wrap-around paper covers, 226 pp, over 70 illustrations, all drawn from Kate Frye’s personal archive.
ISBN 978 1903427 75 0
£14.99
Copies available from Francis Boutle Publishers, or from Elizabeth Crawford – e.crawford@sphere20.freeserve.co.uk
or from all good bookshops.
- ‘Campaigning for the Vote’ – Front and back cover of wrappers
Campaigning For The Vote: Kate Frye In ‘Spitalfields Life’
Posted in Kate Frye's suffrage diary on April 19, 2013
Kate and her Suffrage Diary have been given most generous coverage in that most admirable of blogs
Campaigning for the Vote: Kate Parry Frye’s Suffrage Diary edited by Elizabeth Crawford
For a full description of the book click here
Wrap-around paper covers, 226 pp, over 70 illustrations, all drawn from Kate Frye’s personal archive.
ISBN 978 1903427 75 0
Copies available from Francis Boutle Publishers, or from Elizabeth Crawford – e.crawford@sphere20.freeserve.co.uk (£14.99 +UK postage £3. Please ask for international postage cost), or from all good bookshops. In stock at London Review of Books Bookshop, Foyles, National Archives Bookshop.
- ‘Campaigning for the Vote’ – Front and back cover of wrappers
Campaigning For The Vote: Kate In Norfolk: East Dereham
Posted in Kate Frye's suffrage diary on April 18, 2013
Between 1911 and 1914 Kate Frye spent over 20 weeks organising the New Constitutional Society for Women Suffrage’s campaign in Norfolk. For the greater part of that time she was based in East Dereham.
In Campaigning for the Vote entries – such as these samples below relating – at random – two days in Kate’s Norfolk experience – are fully annotated, giving biographical details of most of the people she mentions. Thus Kate’s diary is of interest to local historians over and above the light it sheds on the suffrage campaign in the area. For instance, ‘Miss Cory’ was Violet, daughter of the London and Provincial bank manager. The Corys lived above the bank, now Lloyds TSB and still there at 38 Market Place. For a most interesting tour around Dereham’s Market Place – an area with which Kate became intimate – see here.
Tuesday March 25th 1913 [lodging at 63 Norwich Street, East Dereham]
Most of the day spent in hunting about for rooms for Mrs Mayer with no success – even the Kings Head refused to have her. Canvassing and bill distributing – beginning, as usual, to feel anxious about the success of next Monday’s meeting. Changed and out at 4 to Miss Cory’s to tea. I went to call on Mrs Pearse when I left there and saw Mr Pearse and asked him to take the Chair but he would none of it. We had all been so ‘naughty’ etc and of course the destruction of the golf links had been the last straw. He is a pasty-faced Villain. But I wish he would take the Chair for us because if he does not I don’t know who will and I shall have to do it – the very idea curdles my blood.
On 10 March 1914 a WSPU member, Mary Richardson, attacked the Velasquez painting, ‘Venus with a Mirror’, hanging in the National Gallery, in order to draw attention to what she saw as the slow destruction of Mrs Pankhurst, who had, on 9 March, yet again been arrested.
Wednesday March 11th 1914 [lodging at 3 Elvin Road, East Dereham]
Miss Cory here at 10.30 and we went through the people I am to call upon. Out 12 to 1. To see Miss Shellabear. Very off, of course, the latest – the Rokeby Velasquez – is upsetting everyone now. Out 2.45 to 6.15. Calls.
Quebec Hall is now a Christian Eventide Hall. Photo courtesy of Quebec Hall website
Happened on the new people at Quebec Hall who are keen WSPU. Had tea with Miss Louisa Gay who has done 8 months [in prison]– a very jolly girl – she means to do some waking up if she can. Then to see Mr and Mrs Hewitt – I do like them so. Miss Cory and Mrs Goddard here 8 to 10. Talking. Talking. Talking.
Campaigning for the Vote: Kate Parry Frye’s Suffrage Diary edited by Elizabeth Crawford
For a full description of the book click here
Wrap-around paper covers, 226 pp, over 70 illustrations, all drawn from Kate Frye’s personal archive.
ISBN 978 1903427 75 0
Copies available from Francis Boutle Publishers, or from Elizabeth Crawford – e.crawford@sphere20.freeserve.co.uk (£14.99 +UK postage £3. Please ask for international postage cost), or from all good bookshops. In stock at London Review of Books Bookshop, Foyles, National Archives Bookshop.
- ‘Campaigning for the Vote’ – Front and back cover of wrappers
Campaigning For The Vote: Kate In Kent: Folkestone
Posted in Kate Frye's suffrage diary on April 17, 2013
In the course of the years 1911-1914 Kate Frye spent over 20 weeks organising the New Constitutional Society for Women’s Suffrage’s campaign in Kent. She recorded every detail of her daily life in the entries she made in her diary and a selection, relating to the conduct of the campaign, are included in Campaigning for the Vote.
Kate spent time in Ashford, Folkestone, Hythe and Dover, canvassing house-by-house and organising meetings in drawing-rooms and public halls.
Below are three samples of Kate’s Folkestone experiences.
Saturday October 21st 1911 [Folkestone: 4 Salisbury Villas]
Quite a mild day and needed no fire till evening but inclined to shower. I wrote letters – then at 11 to Mrs Kenny’s – 63 Bouverie Road, Folkestone.
The Kennys’ house in Bouverie Road
She had asked me to lunch but Mrs Hill wanted me back again so, as there wasn’t much I could do, I just had a chat with her and Mrs Chapman, who is staying there, and came back again. Changed and got back to Mrs Kenny’s at 2.30 for her party at 4. Miss Lewis of Hythe took the Chair and Mrs Chapman spoke. There were between 70 and 80 people – mostly very smart – a military set. Mrs Kenny is very nice and Colonel Kenny is quite sweet. Some of the men were very amusing. I got a golf ball from one and sold it for 2/6. And got one young officer to buy The Subjection of Women. There was a most gorgeous tea, which no-one hardly touched. Mrs Hill and I walked home together – got in about 6.30. Another evening of gabbling chat and to bed about 10 o’clock. She is very nice but so intellectual. I feel sorry for the child. A most terrific gale raged all night. I thought the house must be blown in.
Kate spent two weeks in Folkestone on that occasion, returned for another two in February 1912 and that autumn spent a further three weeks attempting to galvanise the Kent campaign into a semblance of life.
Saturday October 5th 1912 [Folkestone: 33 Coolinge Road]
In my morning of calls, I only found two people at home. At 12.30 I gave it up. I did feel depressed. More so when, having met Mrs Kenny at the Grand Hotel at 3.30, where she was attending a wedding reception of a Miss Cooper, and whose good-byes I just came in for, Mrs Kenny and I called together upon the manager’s wife, Madame Gelardi, and to my horror I found that her husband would not contemplate for a moment letting us have a Suffrage At Home in the reception room. Well that does put the lid on things.The time is slipping away here – the days fly, I love the place and am very comfortable in my rooms but I cannot seem to work here and I feel utterly miserable about it.
Kate’s mention – in the entry below – of ‘this split’ refers to the announcement Mrs Pankhurst had made on 17 October at an Albert Hall meeting that the Pethick-Lawrences were no longer involved with the WSPU. The Pethick-Lawrences’ departure had been unilateral. Lady Irving was the – long-estranged – widow of the actor, Sir Henry Irving
Coolinge Road, Folkestone
Tuesday October 22nd 1912 [Folkestone: 33 Coolinge Road]
As for the work I am doing here I am clean off it – I am doing nothing towards ‘Votes for Women’ – what do the people of Folkestone care and what is the good of trying to make them care? Propaganda may have had its uses in the past, it may still please some people, but I don’t want to go on talking about the Vote – I want to get it! And I am wondering more than ever what is the way to get it. This split, if split it is between the Pankhursts and Pethick-Lawrences is depressing, but I am not at all sure there it not more in it than meets the eye. Anyway here one feels so out of things – the Vote seems a very tiny speck in an ocean of talk and twaddle.
Back to tea and to write letters, then at 8 o’clock I tidied myself and went off to call on Lady Irving by appointment at 8.30. I was interested and so much enjoyed the interview, and she joined us as a member. I had been told of her powdered face, how, like the cat, she always walked alone, that all Folkestone hates her. I liked her immensely, she seems the only real person I have met, the only understanding person. I am told her temper is abnormal, that may be, she was sweet to me, and, after all, these sweet-tempered creatures can be temper trying enough for anything. That she and Henry Irving could not get on together I can quite understand. ‘No surrender’ is writ large in her composition – and after all why should the woman always give way. I imagine she had very strong views as to what was fitting for a wife and probably he did not live up to these. I did not stay long but we got a lot in the time and I think she liked me. How wonderfully young she is. Suffrage to her finger tips, and Suffrage before it was passably comfortable to be Suffrage.
Campaigning for the Vote: Kate Parry Frye’s Suffrage Diary edited by Elizabeth Crawford
For a full description of the book click here
Wrap-around paper covers, 226 pp, over 70 illustrations, all drawn from Kate Frye’s personal archive.
ISBN 978 1903427 75 0
Copies available from Francis Boutle Publishers, or from Elizabeth Crawford – e.crawford@sphere20.freeserve.co.uk (£14.99 +UK postage £3. Please ask for international postage cost), or from all good bookshops. In stock at London Review of Books Bookshop, Foyles, National Archives Bookshop.
- ‘Campaigning for the Vote’ – Front and back cover of wrappers
Now Published: Campaigning For The Vote: Kate Parry Frye’s Suffrage Diary, Edited By Elizabeth Crawford
Posted in Kate Frye's suffrage diary on April 15, 2013
An extract:
‘Saturday June 14th 1913. [Kate is lodging in Baker Street, London] I had had a black coat and skirt sent there for Miss Davison’s funeral procession and the landlady had given me permission to change in her room. I tore into my black things then we tore off by tube to Piccadilly and had some lunch in Lyons. But the time was getting on – and the cortege was timed to start at 2 o’clock from Victoria.
We saw it splendidly at the start until we were driven away from our position and then could not see for the crowds and then we walked right down Buckingham Palace Rd and joined in the procession at the end. It was really most wonderful – the really organised part – groups of women in black with white lilies – in white and in purple – and lots of clergymen and special sort of pall bearers each side of the coffin.
She gave her life publicly to make known to the public the demand of Votes for Women – it was only fitting she should be honoured publicly by the comrades. It must have been most imposing.
The crowds were thinner in Piccadilly but the windows were filled but the people had all tramped north and later on the crowds were tremendous. The people who stood watching were mostly reverent and well behaved. We were with the rag tag and bobtail element but they were very earnest people. It was tiring. Sometimes we had long waits – sometimes the pace was tremendous. Most of the time we could hear a band playing the funeral march.
Just before Kings Cross we came across Miss Forsyth (a fellow worker for the New Constitutional Society) – some of the New Constitutional Society had been marching with the Tax Resisters. I had not seen them or should have joined in. I had a chat with her.
Near Kings Cross the procession lost all semblance of a procession – one crowded process – everyone was moving. We lost our banner – we all got separated and our idea was to get away from the huge crowd of unwashed unhealthy creatures pressing us on all sides. We went down the Tube way. But I did not feel like a Tube and went through to the other side finding ourselves in Kings Cross station.
Saying we wanted tea we went on the platform and there was the train – the special carriage for the coffin – and, finding a seat, sank down and we did not move until the train left. Lots of the processionists were in the train, which was taking the body to Northumberland for interrment – and another huge procession tomorrow. To think she had had to give her life because men will not listen to the claims of reason and of justice. I was so tired I felt completely done. We found our way to the refreshment room and there were several of the pall bearers having tea. ‘
Campaigning for the Vote tells, in her own words, the efforts of a working suffragist to instil in the men and women of England the necessity of ‘votes for women’ in the years before the First World War.
The detailed diary kept all her life by Kate Parry Frye (1878-1959) has been edited to cover 1911-1915, years she spent as a paid organiser for the New Constitutional Society for Women’s Suffrage. A biographical introduction positions Kate’s ‘suffrage years’ in the context of her long life., a knowledge of her background giving the reader a deeper appreciation of the way in which she undertook her work. Editorial comment adds further information about the people Kate meets and the situations in which she finds herself.
Campaigning for the Vote constitutes that near impossibility – completely new primary material on the ‘votes for women’ campaign, published for the first time 100 years after the events it records.
With Kate for company we experience the reality of the ‘votes for women’ campaign as, day after day, in London and in the provinces, she knocks on doors, arranges meetings, trembles on platforms, speaks from carts in market squares, village greens, and seaside piers, enduring indifference, incivility and even the threat of firecrackers under her skirt. Kate’s words bring to life the world of the itinerant organiser – a world of train journeys, of complicated luggage conveyance, of hotels – and hotel flirtations – , of boarding houses, of landladies, and of the ‘quaintness’ of fellow boarders.
This was not a way of life to which she was born, for her years as an organiser were played out against the catastrophic loss of family money and enforced departure from a much-loved home. Before 1911 Kate had had the luxury of giving her time as a volunteer to the suffrage cause; now she depended on it for her keep. No other diary gives such an extensive account of the working life of a suffragist, one who had an eye for the grand tableau – such as following Emily Wilding Davison’s cortége through the London streets – as well as the minutiae of producing an advertisement for a village meeting.
Moreover Kate Frye gives us the fullest account to date of the workings of the previously shadowy New Constitutional Society for Women’s Suffrage. She writes at length of her fellow workers, never refraining from discussing their egos and foibles. After the outbreak of war in August 1914 Kate continued to work for some time at the society’s headquarters, helping to organize its war effort, her diary entries allowing us to experience her reality of life in war-time London.
ITV has selected Kate Frye – to be portrayed by a leading young actress – as one of the main characters in a 2014 documentary series to mark the centenary of the outbreak of the First World War.
See also ‘Kate Frye in “Spitalfields Life”‘ and ‘Kate Frye in “History Workshop Online”‘
Wrap-around paper covers, 226 pp, over 70 illustrations, all drawn from Kate Frye’s personal archive. ISBN 978 1903427 75 0 Copies available from Francis Boutle Publishers, or from Elizabeth Crawford – e.crawford@sphere20.freeserve.co.uk (£14.99 +UK postage £2.60. Please ask for international postage cost), or from all good bookshops. In stock at London Review Bookshop, Foyles, Daunt Books, Persephone Bookshop, Newham Bookshop and National Archives Bookshop.
‘Campaigning for the Vote’ – Front and back cover of wrappers
Suffrage Stories: Arson at Tunbridge Wells, April 1913
Posted in Collecting Suffrage, Suffrage Stories on April 15, 2013
The Nevill Pavilion, Tunbridge Wells, on the morning of 11 April 1913
On Friday 11 April 1913 Percy Lankester, one of Tunbridge Wells’ leading photographers, forsook his studio at 38 High Street and, on a day as cold as that 100 years later, set off with his camera for the Nevill Cricket Ground, a brisk 15 minute walk away.
He was on his way to photograph a scene very different from his usual views of the elegant and harmonious streets of Tunbridge Wells. For what he recorded, from several different angles, was the all-but destruction of the cricket pavilion – and the complete destruction of the club’s archives. Percy Lankester published his photographs of the ruined Nevill Pavilion as postcards, souvenirs of one incident in Tunbridge Well’s history.
The arson attack was ascribed to the action of militant suffragettes – although no-one was ever held responsible. With Mrs Pankhurst on hunger strike in prison, April 1913 saw an intensifying in the WSPU campaign of protest – with arson becoming an increasingly popular weapon. The Nevill Pavilion was one of the first casualties in this new stage in the long fight for ‘votes for women’.
The above photograph is one of the postcards published by Percy Lankester- and I have it in stock at the moment. It has never been posted and – 100 years old – is in fine condition and, a crisp and clear image, is a tribute to Mr Lankester’s photographic skills.
If you are interested in buying it, do email me for details – e.crawford@sphere20.freeserve.co.uk.
Other arson attacks -on churches, houses, railway stations etc – were recorded in other localities by other photographers – who then issued the result, as did Mr Lankester, on a photographic postcard. Such scenes make an interesting sub-genre for the collector of suffragette postcards.
To find out more about the arson attack on the Nevill Pavilion – and its context – do visit the Inspiring Women exhibition at Tunbridge Wells Museum.
Suffrage Stories: Where Did Christabel Pankhurst Live In Paris?
Posted in Suffrage Stories on April 12, 2013
9 Rue Roy
In early March 1912, after members of the WSPU had launched a window-smashing campaign in the West End of London, the Home Office determined to hold their leaders accountable and immediately arrested Emmeline Pankhurst and Frederick and Emmeline Pethick-Lawrence. Christabel Pankhurst, however, nimbly escaped over the English Channel to the safety of Paris.
The building on the left, 9 Rue Roy, now the Hotel Saint Augustin, is where she took refuge and where she lived for well over a year. It would appear that she rented an apartment in the building – perhaps not then functioning as an hotel.
Christabel looking out of the window at 9 Rue Roy
Here we see Christabel photographed in her room, looking out of the window – perhaps one of those in my photograph. Not that there was much to see – Rue Roy is a narrow, somewhat nondescript little street, a turning off the Boulevard Haussmann. But this district, still relatively recently developed, was a usefully central and anonymous location in which a fugitive might take up residence.
Place Saint Augustin
Christabel could not have taken with her much in the way of personal possessions (though one imagines she perhaps did not regret being forced to acquire a suitably Parisian wardrobe) – but she did arrive well-armed with useful introductions. A mere four or five days after her arrival she was visiting the salon of Winaretta Singer, Princesse de Polignac – an entrée arranged through the good offices of Ethel Smyth, the Princesse’s sometime lover.
Princesse de Polignac’s music room (courtesy of The Blue Lantern blogspot)
It was in these glamorous surroundings that Annie Kenney, on her first visit to Paris, was asked to meet Christabel. One would love to know more – but in her posthumous memoir, Unshackled, Christabel is distinctly discreet as to how her time in Paris was spent. Or, indeed, how her prolonged sojourn there was financed; she did no work – in the conventional sense – during the two and a half years that she lived in Paris until the outbreak of war in August 1914 made it safe for her to return to England.
Indeed, after the French had refused to extradite her, by the autumn of 1913 Christabel had moved to a rather more central – and presumably more expensive – Parisian address -
11 Avenue de la Grande Armee - in centre
11 Avenue de la Grande Armeé, later -crossing the Avenue to live at a flat at no. 8. It was from here, in the very heart of Paris, that she conducted the last frenetic months of the WSPU campaign.
and a stone’s throw from the Arc de Triomphe
Number 8 Avenue de la Grande Armee, where Christabel later lived, is directly across the wide avenue
Women Writers And Italy: Mrs Piozzi Vouchsafes Her Opinion of Rome And The Romans
Posted in Women Writers and Italy on April 6, 2013
In April 1786 Mrs Piozzi (the former Mrs Hester Thrale) was about to depart from Rome, the leisurely continental tour she had been enjoying with her second husband, Gabriel Piozzi, former music teacher to her children, was drawing to a close. Her final observation on the Eternal City and its inhabitants – both natives and visitors – is characteristically sharp.
‘The laburnum which at this gay season (16 April) adorns the environs of London, I look for in vain about the Porta Del Popola’. ‘Piazza del Popolo’ from Glimpses of Italian Society in the 18th century
The air of the city is unwholesome to foreigners, but if they pass the first year, the remainder goes well enough. Many English seem very healthy who are established here without even the smallest intention of returning home to Great Britain, for which place we are setting out to-morrow, 19th April, 1786, and quit a town that still retains so many just pretences to be styled the first among the cities of the earth, to which almost as any strangers are now attracted by curiosity as were dragged thither by violence in the first stage of its dominion, impelled by superstitious zeal in the second.
The rage for antiquities now seems to have spread its contagion of connoisseurship over all those people whose predecessors tore down, levelled, and destroyed, or buried underground, their statues, pictures, every work of art; Poles, Germans, Swedes, and Germans innumerable flock daily hither in this age to admire with rapture the remains of those very fabrics which their own barbarous ancestors pulled down ten centuries ado, and give for the head of a Livia, a Probus, or Gallienus, what emperors and queens could not then use with any efficacy for the preservation of their own persons, now grown sacred by rust and valuable from their difficulty to be deciphered.
The English were wont to be the only travellers of Europe, the only dupes, too, in this way; but desire of distinction is diffused among all the northern nations, and our Romans here have it more in their power, with that prudence to assist them which it is said they do not want, if not to conquer their neighbours once again, at least to ruin them, by dint of digging up their dead heroes, and calling in the assistance of their own pagan deities, now useful to them in a new manner, and ever propitious to the city.
From Glimpses of Italian Society in the Eighteenth Century, From the ‘Journal of Mrs Piozzi’, Seeley & Co, 1892
Suffrage Stories: An Entire Birmingham College Boycotts The 1911 Census
Posted in Suffrage Stories on April 2, 2013
Rhoda Anstey (1865-1936) [courtesy of ConnectingHistories)
When researching the suffragette boycott of the 1911 census it is no surprise to find individuals in households – or, in the case of all-female households, all the members – refusing to give information to the enumerator.
Moreover one can discover instances of mass- evasion, such as those in Manchester and Portsmouth, which were instigated by the local WSPU organiser. It is, however, more unusual to find that an entire institution has absented itself from the census – but that is what happened in the case of the Anstey College of Physical Education. The College occupied a large house on the long Chester Road in Edrington, on the outskirts of Birmingham. All the Chester Road houses were then unnumberd, each having its own name – such as ‘Davos, ‘Glen Mor’ or ‘Westbourne’ – and it has taken some determined hunting but I have now managed to locate the census form issued to the College’s Principal, Rhoda Anstey. She gave no answers to the government’s questions but wrote across the form:
No Vote No Census! I protest against the injustice done to women rate-payers by the continued refusal of the government to give them the vote, and hereby refuse to fill in the census forms for my household.’ Rhoda Anstey, Principal of Anstey College. Note ‘If the Conciliation Bill passes the 3rd Reading on 5 May I undertake to give the information desired.’
On the form the Registrar noted in red ink that: ‘From the information obtained from several sources it is estimated that on the night of April 2nd 40 females slept on the premises and this number has been enumerated. ‘
Rhoda Anstey, theosophist, vegetarian and tax resister, had taken a contingent of her students to London on 19 June 1910 to take part in the grand procession organised by the WSPU in London and for the next few years actively supported the WSPU, advertising regularly in Votes for Women. Some of the College’s former students are likely to have been members of the Gymnastic Teachers’ Suffrage Society which had been founded in 1908. I presume that the 40 females enumerated on the night of 2 April included students at the College; I wonder if Miss Anstey enquired as to whether or not they wished to be enumerated?
For further information about Rhoda Anstey and her College click here.
Women Writers and Italy: Two Englishwomen In Rome and Sarah Parker Remond
Posted in Women Writers and Italy on March 30, 2013
Anne ( 1841-1928) and Matilda Lucas (1849-1943) were the daughters of Samuel Lucas, a brewer with land and influence in Hitchin, Hertfordshire. The Lucas family were Quakers. Their mother had died when they were young and after their father’s death in 1870 the sisters continued to live for a short time with their step-mother. But then, in mid-1871, they left England for Rome, where, for the next 29 years, they were to spend much of the year. Ten years after her sister’s death, Matilda Lucas published excerpts from the letters sent over the years by the sisters to friends and relations back in England. Two Englishwomen in Rome, 1871-1900 (Methuen, 1938) makes very interesting reading.
Sarah Parker Remond c. 1865 (Courtesy Peabody Essex Museum Collection)
The few disingenuous sentences I transcribe below would appear to delineate the discomfort that must have been endured by Sarah Parker Remond (1824-94) , or Sarah Remond Pintor as she was by then, as she mixed in society – even expatriate Roman society, which was by no means ruled by convention. An American free-born black woman, Sarah Remond had lived for a time in London, signing the first women’s suffrage petition in 1866, perhaps the only black woman to do so, had then travelled to Italy, where she qualified as a doctor. She had married an Italian, Lazzaro Pintor in Florence in 1877. There is some debate as to how long the marriage lasted. From the Lucas’ evidence, Pintor did not accompany his wife to this social occasion in Rome in March 1878, but Sarah was sufficiently still married to feel able to don her bridal dress.
However am I correct, I wonder, to read the passage as reflecting the curiosity and, perhaps, also slight discomfort felt by the gathering at the presence of a black woman in their midst? If Sarah was their aunt the P___s must surely have been the ’Putnams’ – the family of Sarah’s sister, Caroline Remond Putnam, who lived with her in Italy on various occasions. If so the fact that Caroline also was ‘black’ makes the passage a little difficult to interpret. Why was Sarah specifically their ‘black aunt’? Did they have any other kind? So perhaps it was only the bridal dress that was the cause for comment. A simple scene, but something of a puzzle.
March 17, 1878. Tell Madgie that the P___s were there with their black aunt. She was a bride, having just married an Italian, and wore her bridal dress of grey silk. It must have been very trying for Mrs P____. People came up to question her. One Italian said, ‘Chi e quell’Africana?’ It appears that she is very clever, and a female doctor. She was taken up a good deal in London by different people who were interested in negroes. I think she lived with the Peter Taylors. She has given lectures. I went to sit on the sofa with her, to the amusement of Franz, who cannot rise above her appearance. Dr Baedtke was much impressed to think that anyone has had the courage to marry her, and said, ‘In that I should have been a coward.’
Click here for Sarah Parker Remond: A Daughter of Salem, Massachusetts - a very interesting website
Elizabeth Garrett Anderson Gallery At The UNISON Centre
Posted in The Garretts and their Circle on March 28, 2013
The Elizabeth Garrett Anderson Gallery at the UNISON Centre tells the story of Elizabeth Garrett Anderson, of the hospital she built, and of women’s struggle to achieve equality in the field of medicine.
Elizabeth Garrett Anderson
Elizabeth Garrett Anderson (1836-1917) was determined to do something worthwhile with her life. In 1865 she qualified as a doctor. This was a landmark achievement. She was the first woman to overcome the obstacles created by the medical establishment to ensure it remained the preserve of men.
Elizabeth Garrett Anderson then helped other women into the medical profession, founding the New Hospital for Women where women patients were treated only by women doctors.
Elizabeth Garrett Anderson, by her example, demonstrated that a woman could be a wife and mother as well as having a professional career.
Elizabeth Garrett Anderson worked to achieve equality for women, being especially active in the campaigns for higher education and ‘votes for women’.
In the early 1890s the New Hospital for Women (later renamed the Elizabeth Garrett Anderson Hospital) was built on the Euston Road and continued to treat women until 2000. For some years this building then lay derelict until a campaign by ‘EGA for Women’ won it listed status. UNISON has now carefully restored the building, bringing it back to life as part of the UNISON Centre.
Two important rooms in the original 1890 hospital building have been dedicated to the Elizabeth Garrett Anderson Gallery. One is the
ORIGINAL ENTRANCE HALL
of the hospital which has been carefully restored to its original form. Here you can study an album, compiled specially for the Gallery, telling the history of the Elizabeth Garrett Anderson Hospital in words and pictures, while, in the background you can listen to a soundscape evocative of hospital life. This is interwoven with the reminiscences of hospital patients, snippets from the letters of Elizabeth Garrett Anderson and sundry other sounds to stimulate your imagination.
The main gallery
The other Gallery room is what was known when the hospital opened as
THE MEDICAL INSTITUTE
This was a room, running along the front of the hospital, parallel to Euston Road, set aside for all women doctors, from all over the country, at a time when they were still barred from the British Medical Association. It was intended as a space in which they could meet, talk and keep up with the medical journals.
Here you can use a variety of media to follow the story of women, work and co-operation in the 19th and 20th centuries.
A BACK-LIT GRAPHIC LECTERN RUNS AROUND THE MAIN GALLERY:
allowing you to see in words and pictures a quick overview of the life of Elizabeth Garrett Anderson and of her hospital.
AT INTERVALS ARE SET SIX INTERACTIVE TOUCH-SCREEN MONITORS
-named - Ambition, Perseverance, Leadership, Equality, Power in Numbers and Making Our Voices Heard - allowing you to access more information about Elizabeth Garrett Anderson, about the social and political conditions that have shaped her world and ours, and about the building’s new occupant – UNISON..
Each monitor contains:
TWO SHORT VIDEO SEGMENTS.
‘Elizabeth’s Story’. Follow the video from screen to screen. Often speaking her own words, the video uses images and voices to tell the story of Elizabeth Garrett Anderson’s life.
‘UNISON Now’ UNISON members tell you what the union means to them.
and four
INTERACTIVES
‘Campaigns for Justice’ and ‘Changing Lives’.
Touch the screen icons to discover how life in Britain has changed since the birth of Elizabeth Garrett Anderson.
AMBITION
Campaigns for justice
Victorian Britain: a society in flux
Victorian democracy: who could vote, and who couldn’t
Did a woman have rights?
Workers organised
Changing lives
The people’s lives in Victorian Britain
The medical profession before Elizabeth Garrett
Restricted lives, big ambitions: middle-class women in the Victorian era
Women workers in the first half of the 19th century
PERSEVERANCE
Campaigns for justice
The changing political landscape
Widening the franchise: can we trust the workers?
Women want to vote: the beginnings of a movement
Trade unions become trade unions
Changing lives
A new concept of active government: Victorian social reform
Women as nurses and carers
Living a life that’s never been lived before: women attempt to enter medicine
International pioneers: women study medicine abroad
LEADERSHIP
Campaigns for justice
Contagious Diseases Acts
Trade unions broaden their vision
Women and education
Women trade unionists
Changing lives
The middle-class century
Working women in the second half of the 19th century
Social reform, philanthropy and paternalism
Women doctors for India
EQUALITY
Campaigns for justice
The women’s suffrage movement
The Taff Vale decision hampers the unions
The founding of the Labour party
The People’s Budget
Changing lives
Work and play
Marylebone and Somers Town
Did the working classes want a welfare state?
1901 – Who were the workers in the NewHospital for Women?
POWER IN NUMBERS
Campaigns for justice
The General Strike – 1926
The first Labour governments
Feminist campaigns between the wars
1901: The lives of working women in London
Changing lives
Work of women doctors in the First World War
Can we afford the doctor? Health services before the NHS
Wartime demand for social justice
The creation of the National Health Service 1945-1948
MAKING OUR VOICES HEARD
Campaigns for justice
Equality campaigns
Public sector unions before UNISON
UNISON brings public service workers together
Are trade unions still relevant?
Changing lives
The National Health Service becomes sacrosanct
Did the welfare state change the family?
Women’s equality today
Women in medicine now
IN THE CENTRE OF THE GALLERY YOU WILL FIND:
ENTERPRISING WOMEN
an interactive table containing short biographies of over 100 women renowned for their achievements in Britain in the 19th-21st centuries. Up to four visitors can use the table at any one time. Drag a photograph towards the edge of the table to discover details of that individual’s life. Or search by name or vocation, using the alphabetical or subject lists.
ON THE WALLS OF THE GALLERY
PROJECTIONS
show a changing display of pictures of the hospital as it was and of Elizabeth Garrett Anderson and some of the other women whose stories the Gallery tells.
THE GARRETT CORNER
Garrett Laburnum
is designed in the style associated with the work of Elizabeth Garrett Anderson’s sister, the architectural decorator Agnes Garrett, who was in charge of the original interior decoration of the hospital in 1890. The Gallery’s fireplace is the only surviving example of Agnes Garrett’s work. Next to this hangs a length of wallpaper, ‘Garrett Laburnum’, re-created from one of her designs.
In the Garrett Corner a display case and a low table contain a small collection of objects relevant to Elizabeth Garrett Anderson, the hospital and early women doctors.
While here do sit down and browse the library of books. These relate to the history of women – in society, in medicine, in the workplace, and in trade unions – and to the Somers Town area.
ACROSS FROM THE GARRETT CORNER IS A DISPLAY OF
CERAMIC PLAQUES
Decorative plaques that used to hang beside patients’ beds, each commemorating a donor’s generosity.
You can read in detail about the work of the Garrett family in the fields of medicine, education, interior design, landscape design, citizenship and material culture in Elizabeth Crawford, Enterprising Women: the Garretts and their circle, published by Francis Boutle Publishers, £25. The book can be bought direct from womanandhersphere.com or click here to buy from the publisher
Plaque commemorating a substantial donation to the hospital by Henry Tate, industrialist and philanthropist
DO VISIT:
Elizabeth Garrett Anderson Gallery at the UNISON Centre
UNISON Centre
130 Euston Road
London NW1 2AY
Telephone: 0845 355 0845
Open Wednesday to Friday 9.00am to 6.00pm
and the first Saturday of every month 9.00am to 6.00pm
Admission Free
Suffrage Stories: Devon Suffragists
Posted in Suffrage Stories on March 26, 2013
NUWSS South-West branch of the Pilgrimage photographed in 1913
In the summer of 1913, in the aftermath of Emily Wilding Davison’s spectacular funeral procession, while WSPU members were reading in the pages of The Suffragette details of Mrs Pankhurst’s successive hunger strikes, numerous reports of increasingly dangerous suffragette militancy, and Christabel Pankhurst’s denunciation of prostitution and venereal disease (eventually published as The Great Scourge), the constitutional suffragists, the National Union of Women’s Suffrage Societies, were planning a ‘Woman’s Suffrage Pilgrimage’.
The Pilgrimage was intended to act as a counter to suffragette militancy, to create a spectacle demonstrating that women, while disciplined, were also law-abiding. The air of spirituality that had surrounded Emily Davison’s coffin was paralleled by the consciousness-raising intent of the Pilgrimage. It is interesting to note that the model, which had been enacted the previous autumn when a small group of women had journeyed from Edinburgh to London, was known as the ‘Women’s March’. By mid-1913 the mood had changed – the women were no longer marchers, they were pilgrims.
In my Women’s Suffrage Movement: a reference guide I give an account of the various strands of the Pilgrimage, which, beginning at various distant points in England, approached London along eight main routes.
Now, to mark the centenary of the Pilgrimage, the Dreadnought South West Association is planning to tour a new play, ‘Oxygen’, playing at many of the stopping places of the south-west route of the Pilgrimage, which began at Land’s End on 19 June. One of those involved in planning the Pilgrimage commemoration is Dr Julia Neville, details of whose latest book are given below.
Viva Juanita:
Juanita Phillips: Champion for Change in East Devon between the wars
by Julia Neville
‘”Juanita Maxwell Phillips, OBE (1880 – 1966) was eleven times Mayor of Honiton, Alderman and Freeman of the Borough, Devon County Councillor and County Alderman, JP and OBE. Her extraordinary story – from Chile to Honiton, from suffragette to pillar of the establishment, from amateur dramatics to theatre impresario – was uncovered in 2009 by the Senior Council for Honiton. It was brought to life in Honiton in newspaper articles, presentations, commemorative events, and a Honiton Players production, Viva Juanita! Now this fascinating illustrated book tells her story in words and pictures.”
For details of how to buy Viva Juanita see here
While being generally interested in NUWSS activities, I have an interest slightly more personal in the Devon branch because for some years before 1913, its secretary was Miss Jessie Montgomery, who was also a mover in establishing the college that eventually became Exeter University. When I arrived as a student I was among the first intake at a hall of residence that went by what seemed the rather cumbersome name of ‘Jessie Montgomery House’. We were never told who this Jessie Montgomery was – or had been – and I must say I never inquired – although I do remember being rather pleased when I could give her some reality, after coming across a commemorative plaque to her in Exeter Cathedral. Anyway, Miss Montgomery is now once more history – I see that ‘her’ hall of residence, along with others on that campus, have now been demolished. Sic transit…
Suffrage Stories: ‘From Frederick Street to Winson Green’: The Birmingham Women’s Suffrage Campaign
Posted in Suffrage Stories on March 22, 2013
On 13 October 2008 I gave the following talk in King’s Norton, Birmingham. It was part of a series of lectures to commemorate the restoration of the Old Grammar School and the Saracen’s Head, which in 2004 had won the BBC’ ‘Restoration’ television series.
17 Frederick Road, Edgbaston (with thanks to Carole McKeown)
I chose the title ‘From Frederick Street to Winson Green’ because it is interesting to trace the growth of the women’s suffrage movement in Birmingham through the streets and buildings in which the men and women of the city conducted their campaign. We will see that this campaign moved slowly from a domestic environment, from the villas (particularly the drawing rooms) of its main protagonists – into the public buildings and then the streets of Birmingham. And it was in Winson Green, the city’s castellated jail, that in 1909 the campaign which had begun 43 years earlier, took on a completely different and very much more dangerous aspect, that for which it has become notorious, when it was in there that suffragettes were forcibly fed for the first time in Britain.
But to begin at the beginning – it is worth bearing in mind that the campaign for women’s enfranchisement was just one among many in which liberal-minded men and women of the mid-19th century were interested. The campaigns for, example, land reform, anti-vaccination, compulsory education, early closing, and the Sunday opening of museums and art galleries were ones to which equal attention was devoted by their adherents. In 1866 the country was aware that parliamentary reform was in the air. It was over 30 years since the last attempt at reform and those who had industrialised Britain were determined that their exclusion from the franchise should be remedied. John Bright, who from 1858 had been Birmingham’s Radical MP, was at the forefront of this agitation. It was not, however, around Bright, who, unlike the rest of his remarkable family, was never in favour of giving any women the vote, but around another Radical MP, John Stuart Mill, that the campaign to include women in this potentially enlarged electorate was to centre. When Mill was elected to the Westminster seat in 1865 it was on a manifesto that included women as a category in a proposed enlarged franchise
A year later, in June 1866, he presented to Parliament a petition, signed by 1499 women, asking that the vote should be given to women on the same terms as it was given to men. This did not, of course, mean that all women should have a vote – any more than it meant all men – the capacity to vote was still to be determined by a property qualification. This petition includes only three names definitely from the Birmingham area – one woman lived at King’s Heath and two in Hockley. None of these women played any significant part in the ensuing campaign and it is likely that they were each asked to give their signature by a friend or relation from outside the area. There was clearly not yet an existing ‘feminist network’ in Birmingham, although this situation was soon to be remedied by the arrival at 10 Chad Road,
10 Chad Road (with thanks to Carole McKeown)
Edgbaston in c. 1867 of William Taylor and his young family. He was a member of a family that was closely involved both by business and marriage with the Courtaulds, manufacturers in Essex of that most eminently Victorian material – crape. Courtauld and Taylor fortunes were built on the backs, literally, of mourning Britons. William’s brother, Peter Alfred Taylor, was the very wealthy and very radical MP for Leicester. P.A. Taylor’s wife, Clementia, had been very active in the campaign to abolish slavery – as well as in numerous other radical causes – and was a member of the committee that organised that first women’s suffrage petition. William Taylor’s wife, Caroline, had signed the petition while they were living in Bridgwater. The family was Unitarian (as were so many others of their fellow campaigners of this period) and William is described in the 1871 census as an iron merchant and manufacturer.
The 1867 Reform Bill, when passed, did not, of course, include women in the enlarged franchise and groups of men and women in London and Manchester slowly formed themselves into the nuclei of a continuing campaign to put further petitions before parliament. At the time this was seen as the correct way in which to exert pressure on parliament; methods were to change over the years.
A committee of this National Society for Women’s Suffrage was formed in Birmingham on 21 April 1868 ‘in accordance with the request of Mrs P. Taylor, the Secretary of the London Suffrage Society, who had urged Mrs William Taylor, of Birmingham, and Miss Johnson to take up the matter’. A month later the committee held its first public meeting at the Exchange Rooms in New Street. William and Caroline Taylor were from the first members of the Birmingham executive committee and in 1868 Caroline was its treasurer. The first secretary was Mary Johnson, who had already been subscribing to the main London suffrage society in 1867. She lived with her parents, George and Fanny Johnson, at 90 Wheeley’s Road in Edgbaston. George Johnson is described in the 1871 census as an Independent minister. Lydia Becker, who was secretary of the very influential women’s suffrage society in Manchester, acted as Mary Johnson’s mentor, giving her guidance in setting up and running the society.
However in 1870 after her marriage, Mary Johnsonmoved to West Bromwich and was succeeded as secretary by Eliza Mary Sturge who lived at 17 Frederick Street (long ago renamed ‘Frederick Road’). She was the 28-year-old daughter of Charles Sturge, alderman of the city, brother of Joseph Sturge. The latter was by then dead, but very much alive in the Birmingham municipal memory. In the 1820s he had been one of the most vociferous campaigners against slavery and had been secretary of the Birmingham Anti-Slavery Society – even going out to the West Indies to inspect conditions there for himself. In the 1840s Joseph Sturge had been a leading campaigner in favour of the repeal of the Corn Laws, had throughout his life been an ardent supporter of free trade, peace and temperance, an advocate of manhood suffrage, founder of the Complete Suffrage Union, but, like John Bright, was not prepared to include women in any proposed enlarged franchise.
Sturge statue
After his death, in 1862 a fountain and statue had been dedicated to his memory at Five Ways, in Edgbaston and it is still there, despite all the road alterations. His brother, Charles, who worked in business with him as a corn merchant, was also involved in Joseph’s philanthropic endeavours but, unlike him gave practical, financial, support to the women’s suffrage movement. In 1871 he lived with his two daughters, Eliza and Maria, at 17 Frederick Street and it was from her home that Eliza conducted the business of the Birmingham Women’s Suffrage Society. The Sturges were Quakers and were related to the Clark family – the Quaker shoe makers – of Street in Somerset, who with other Sturge cousins were influential in the Bristol women’s suffrage society.
Having taken over the role of secretary in Birmingham, Eliza quickly became an active speaker in the suffrage cause. It was the policy of the suffrage societies around the country to attempt to influence both the existing, male, electorate and the women of the country by holding public meetings, using both local and imported speakers to lay out the arguments for women’s right to a vote in pithy speeches. In December 1871 there had been such a meeting in Birmingham, held in the Masonic Hall and described as crowded and highly successful.
Millicent Fawcett
Millicent Garrett Fawcett came from London to speak at it. Eliza Sturge herself also took to the road as a suffrage speaker. In 1872, for instance, she was a speaker at suffrage meetings in both Bristol and Rochdale. A speech she gave on 6 December that year at BirminghamTown Hall was reprinted as a pamphlet. In the course of this speech she mentions that ‘I know that I can go and return from public meetings alone at night without experiencing the slightest difficulty or annoyance’, which says something about the streets of Birmingham at the time and gives us an idea of how Eliza Sturge occupied her evenings! Millicent Garrett Fawcett was again a speaker and her speech was also reprinted. In it she made the point that ‘I can scarcely imagine that the Birmingham politicians, who took so prominent part in the reform agitation for the extension of the suffrage to working men, can be blind to the patent fact that all the most convincing arguments used during that agitation in favour of admitting the working classes to representation apply with equal cogency to the case of women.’ In 1873, very soon after women became eligible to stand, Eliza Sturge was elected as a member of the Birmingham School Board, of which Joseph Chamberlain was then the chairman. She was a Liberal supporter but in the 1870s despaired at the Liberal Party’s lack of interest in the woman’s cause.
As well as holding public meetings, members of the Birmingham society also undertook personal canvassing and the distribution of pamphlets in some of the wards of the city. However they were always at this time hampered by a lack of funds. At the beginning of the 1870s the society had a subscribing membership of about 30 and had only slightly increased its numbers by the end of the decade. The society’s annual reports are notably brief in comparison with those of, for instance, the Manchester or Edinburgh societies, But in March 1873 the society did manage to move its affairs out of Frederick St and into an office in central Birmingham, at 4 Broad Street Corner and spent £3 13s on its furnishing.
In 1872, the executive committee of the society also included the Rev Henry Crosskey and his wife, who, like the Taylors, were also recent arrivals in Birmingham. He was a Unitarian minister and had previously been living in Glasgow.
Church of the Messiah
In Birmingham he became minister of the congregation of the Church of the Messiah in Broad Street, a large Gothic building which reflected, as Pevsner put it, ‘the importance of Unitarians in Birmingham in the second half of the 19th century’. Under Crosskey the Church of the Messiah became an intellectual centre, a place where ideas about society were openly and critically discussed. Crosskey had long been associated with such radical causes as the Young Italy movement (Garibaldi and Mazzini were heroes to all the early supporters of women’s suffrage) and in Birmingham found a comrade in George Dawson, another independent nonconformist minister. Dawson had been a Baptist but in 1847 had opened his own church, the Church of the Saviour, in the middle of the city. His congregation included many people – Kenricks, Martineaus and Chamberlains -who were to become influential in the civic life of Birmingham. Dawson’s message was that the church should eschew fixed creeds and work towards the greater good, urging citizens to give all their talents for the service of the city. Dawson, thus, was a promoter of the ‘civic gospel’ that led Birmingham, in the 1870s and 1880s, to acquire the reputation for being the best-governed city in the world. Dawson had as early as the 1840s made clear that he was concerned about the position of women in society. It is unsurprising, therefore, to discover that his wife was also a member of the executive committee of the suffrage society at this time.
By 1878 Eliza Sturge had moved with her father and sister to Bewdley, from where, for a time she continued to act as secretary to the suffrage society. But by 1885 the honorary secretaryship had been taken over by Catherine Osler, who was finally to retire, as president of the society, 35 years later in 1920. As Catherine Courtauld Taylor, daughter of William and Caroline Taylor of 10 Chad Road, she had subscribed 1/- to the Birmingham Women’s Suffrage Society when it was founded in 1868; she was then 14. In 1873 she had married, in Crosskey’s Church of the Messiah, Alfred Clarkson Osler, a member of the wealthy Birmingham family of glass manufacturers. From both their families Catherine and Alfred Osler inherited a radical liberal tradition and from about 1884 Catherine was president of the Birmingham Women’s Liberal Association. All 4 of their children were to become active in the women’s suffrage movement. With increasing prosperity the Oslers moved to a large house in Edgbaston, ‘Fallowfields’, in Norfolk Road, the scene of a plethora of drawing-room meetings at which the question of women’s suffrage was discussed.
Mrs Osler (c) Birmingham Museums and Art Gallery, Supplied by the Public Catalogue Foundation
When Catherine Osler became secretary of the suffrage society her unmarried sister, Edith, became treasurer. It will have become clear that the 19th-century suffrage campaign in Birmingham, as in the rest of the country, was very much a middle-class affair – indeed very much an Edgbaston affair. With the vote firmly allied to a property qualification, it would only be householders and ratepayers who would benefit from any extension of the vote. There were, however, even within the middle-class pro-suffragists, degrees of liberalism. The 19th-century campaign split in 1888 along the lines of the split in the Liberal Party over Home Rule for Ireland. In Birmingham, as in the country at large, Joseph Chamberlain was one of the most prominent of the Liberal Unionists (those against Home Rule); the Oslers, unlike most of the Birmingham industrial families, who followed Chamberlain, were members of the more radical wing – followers of Gladstone in supporting Home Rule. This schism was reflected in a split in the national suffrage society so that for most of the 1890s the suffrage movement rather lost its focus, although individual members and societies were extremely active.
In 1892 Birmingham was chosen as the venue for a national conference organized by one of the splinter societies, the Women’s Emancipation Union, perhaps the most radical of these societies, with an agenda that demanded equality with men in every aspect of life. Although it is doubtful that Catherine Osler was actually a member of this society she did chair one session of this conference and proposed a resolution supporting the inclusion of women in any reformed scheme of local government. One of the leading members of the Women’s Emancipation Union was an interesting Birmingham woman. She was Caroline Smith, the sister of George Jacob Holyoake, Chartist and secularist, the last man in England to be sentenced on a charge of atheism. They were the eldest children in a large family, living in the 1820s in comparative poverty at 1 Inge Street in central Birmingham. As a child George Holyoake worked as a whitesmith alongside his father in the Eagle Foundry. Their mother had a small home workshop making horn buttons, before being put out of work by the growth of larger manufacturers. The Holyoakes were obviously an able family. However nothing is known about Caroline’s early life except that at some point she married a William Benjamin Smith, who had been born in Kings Norton around 1822. When the 1871 census was taken they were living at 19 Carpenter Road, Edgbaston. Although the Smiths’ house has now disappeared, it was presumably not unlike those that do remain – that is to say a large stucco Regency villa – a far cry from the house cum workshop in Inge Street where Caroline grew up. She was a member of the executive committee of the Birmingham Women’s Suffrage Society in 1885 but had clearly been attracted to the more radical movement and by 1892 was the national treasurer of the Women’s Emancipation Union.
It was doubtless its central position in the country that made Birmingham a popular venue for national conferences because again it was here, in 1896, that the main suffrage societies made a concerted effort to regroup. It was proposed that past differences be put aside and that they should unite as the National Union of Women’s Suffrage Societies, it being recognised that, after 30 years of campaigning – and the goal little nearer achievement – there was a need to present a common front from the centre. Although no parliamentary bill in favour of women’s suffrage was presented between 1897 and 1904 the suffrage movement did benefit from a more effective central organisation and this enthusiasm permeated down to the local societies. In October 1900 the minutes of the Birmingham society record that one of its best ever drawing-room meetings had been held in a private house at which 100 ladies were present and 26 new members enrolled. In 1902 the annual meeting of the Birmingham society – held in the Grand Hotel – was addressed by Sir Oliver Lodge, principal of Birmingham University. His speech was published as a pamphlet‘ so that today we can read that he thought, ‘The vote itself is a trivial affair, but its artificial withholding is a gratuitous insult: I am not surprised that the arbitrary withholding on that small function is one that galls out of all proportion to its importance. I recognize the desirability of doing away with artificial obstacles, and giving to everyone a clear field and an equal chance – a fair share in education, an open entrance to the professions, and a fair and reasonable opportunity of service in every direction.’
By this time Catherine Osler had become president of the Birmingham society and in 1903-4, with help from paid organizers (the movement was definitely moving away from involvement on a purely voluntary basis), she had supervised the opening of new branches in Coventry, Warwick, Redditch, and Leamington. At this time the Birmingham Women’s Suffrage Society thought it advisable to undertake work among working women, as was being done in Lancashire among the women textile workers. The Birmingham society began with the women chain makers of Cradley, paying for an organizer to go around from yard to yard, talking to the women about the suffrage issue.
Women chainmakers at Cradley Heath
In early 1904 they conducted another campaign amongst the Cradley nail makers. During 1907 the society held 30 meetings in Birmingham and the surrounding district and in 1908 drew in £8 6s 3d in subscriptions – making it the second largest society (after London) in England.
The increasing activity of the Birmingham Women’s Suffrage Society was not only due to better central organization but doubtless owed something to the impetus provided by the arrival on the suffrage scene of a new ginger group. This was the Women’s Social and Political Union, which had been founded in October 1903 in Manchester by Mrs Emmeline Pankhurst, but which had only really begun to make an impact with the arrest and imprisonment in October 1905 (in Manchester) of Mrs Pankhurst’s eldest daughter, Christabel, and of Annie Kenney on charges of obstructing the police.
The WSPU determined to win the vote by what they termed ‘militant methods’, that is, in order to bring pressure to bear on the Cabinet they were prepared to do more than hold orderly public meetings and present petitions to parliament through MPs. The political process itself had evolved since the 1860s; it was clear that individual members of parliament had little real power (that now resided in the Cabinet) and that no bill in favour of women’s suffrage would have a chance of passing into law unless it was presented as a government measure. What actually were ‘militant methods’ was never clearly defined by the WSPU - members more or less set their own limits, and that militancy escalated as the years passed. Initially WSPU strategy was to hold large meetings at the beginning of each session of parliament in a hall, such as Caxton Hall, close to the House of Commons, and for a deputation, often led by Mrs Pankhurst herself, to attempt to present a petition to the Prime Minister, who would invariably refuse to see them. The police would attempt to prevent them reaching Parliament and brawling would ensue.
Mrs Pankhurst arrested while leading a deputation to Parliament
This all attracted marvellous publicity, in a way in which drawing-room meetings in Edgbaston never had. The WSPU provided newspapers with ‘news’, that is, spectacle that was recorded in the photographs that had only lately superseded the engravings with which newspapers had been illustrated, and with the kind of behaviour that, because it was considered ‘extreme’, was, therefore, ‘news’.
Although the WSPU opened branches around the country it was increasingly autocratically controlled from Clement’s Inn, its London centre, by the Pankhursts and their fellow leaders, Emmeline and Frederick Pethick-Lawrence. The WSPU did not, like the NUWSS societies, foster local centres run by local women, Instead organizers were appointed by Clement’s Inn to the main cities and were expected to work to orders. These organizers were moved frequently around in order that they might not develop too close local attachments.
The Pankhursts’ autocratic system was not put in place without difficulty. In the autumn 1907 one group, which perhaps might be roughly characterized as a more left-wing element, broke away from the WSPU. When first founded in Manchester the WSPU had drawn support from the local Labour party and women had been drawn into it through their interest in furthering the cause of Labour as well as of women. When it became clear that, as well as forbidding any democracy within their own society, the Pankhursts were not interested in supporting the Labour party at parliamentary elections, a group, under the leadership of Charlotte Despard, withdrew and formed the Women’s Freedom League.
Thus in Edwardian Britain there were three main suffrage groupings, the National Union of Women’s Suffrage Societies, which sought the vote using constitutional methods, the Women’s Social and Political Union that employed militant methods, and the Women’s Freedom League that was prepared to use militant methods against the political process (such as attacking the ballot box and picketing parliament) but would not countenance harm to people or property. Interestingly, although by 1913 the WFL had 59 branches, it only had two in the West Midlands, in Wolverhampton and the Potteries, and never supported a branch in Birmingham, although on occasion, during general election campaigns, for instance, WFL speakers, such as its leader, Charlotte Despard, did come to speak in Birmingham.
Emma Sproson
The most active member of the WFL in the West Midlands was Emma Sproson, who had been a member of the WSPU in 1906, but joined the WFL after the 1907 split. She was a keen supporter of the Labour Party. Mrs Pankhurst had stayed with Emma Sproson when she visited Wolverhampton in 1906 to speak to local members of the Labour Party.
In keeping with their practice, by November 1907 the WSPU had appointed as their organizer in Birmingham Annie Kenney’s younger sister, Nell, who was based at 22 Belgrave Road, Edgbaston. She had worked from the age of 10 in an Oldham mill, until forced by ill health to leave and become a shop assistant. Now in her mid- twenties she set about organizing Birmingham. She calmly notes in her report for the WSPU newspaper, Votes for Women, in November 1907, ‘I am visiting most of the influential people in Birmingham and surrounding districts’. She was also holding a series of drawing-room, open-air and factory-gate meetings, besides addressing different religious societies and women’s co-operative guilds. She notes that ‘Our meetings are being run on strictly economical lines. The outdoor meetings are being advertised by chalking the pavements or ringing the bell, and the audiences so far have been orderly and sympathetic’. On 20 November 1907 a well-publicized WSPU meeting was held at Birmingham Town Hall, with both Mrs Pankhurst and Mrs Pethick-Lawrence as speakers, and Christabel Pankhurst taking the chair. Regular, women-only meetings were held at this time on Thursdays at the Bristol Street Schools. In February 1908 a contingent of women travelled from Birmingham to London to take part in what was called ‘The Women’s Parliament’, a meeting held in Caxton Hall on the occasion of the opening of a new session of the ‘the men’s parliament’. In the ensuing fracas four women from Birmingham were among the 50 or so arrested and subsequently sent to Holloway.
Mrs Pankhurst arrested while leading a deputation to Parliament
Another Birmingham woman was arrested the next day while taking part in the deputation led by Mrs Pankhurst that attempted to approach the House of Commons.
In June 1908 the WSPU organized an extravagant demonstration in Hyde Park to which women from all over the country came. Birmingham was on the line from Wolverhampton along which travelled on the day a Special Train bringing Birmingham supporters to take part in the rally. Tickets for the train cost seven shillings return and could be bought from Stanford and Mann, booksellers in New Street, from James Pass’s music warehouse at 48 Cherry Street, or from Combridge at 4 and 5 New Street. The train left Birmingham at quarter to eight in the morning. When they got off the train at Euston the women lined up with thousands of others to process to Hyde Park.
One of the main speakers in Hyde Park, with her own platform from which to address the vast crowds, was Gladice Keevil,
Gladice Keevil
considered one of the prettiest and most effective of WSPU speakers. She was a Londoner and was then 24 years old – she had already spent six weeks that year in Holloway. The Daily News report of the Hyde Park rally singled her out : ‘Miss Keevil was a particularly striking figure. Robed in flowing white muslin, her lithe figure swaying to every changing expression, and the animated face that smiled and scolded beneath the black straw hat and waving white ostrich feather, was the centre of one of the densest crowds’, showing that then, as now, it is the messenger rather than the message that captures the attention of the reporter. It was around this time that Gladice Keevil came to Birmingham, appointed WSPU National Organizer in the Midlands. She had already played her part in the conducting of the WSPU campaign at a by-election in Wolverhampton in May. WSPU election policy was to oppose the government (that is the Liberal) candidate in order, as they hoped, to bring pressure to bear on the government. At this Wolverhampton election the Liberal retained his seat with a majority of only eight (reduced from over 2800); the WSPU of course claimed that it was their campaign that had produced this close call. By the end of October 1908 Gladice Keevil had opened a WSPU office in Birmingham at 14 Ethel Street, which was to act as the headquarters for the Midlands. Evening At Homes were held there at 7.30 on Tuesdays, presumably attracting women who were working during the day, while afternoon
Edgbaston Assembly Rooms
meetings were held for the leisured at the Edgbaston Assembly Rooms. Working closely with Gladice Keevil at this time was Bertha Ryland, the daughter of Mrs Alice Ryland, of 19 Hermitage Road,
19 Hermitage Road (thanks to Carole McKeown)
Edgbaston, who in the mid 1870s had been a member of the executive committee of the Birmingham Women’s Suffrage Society and who had, with her daughter, transferred allegiance The Birmingham WSPU took its campaign into the Bourneville works and reported that many of the girls there wore the WSPU ‘Votes for Women’ badges. In February 1909 Christabel Pankhurst was the speaker at a meeting at the Town Hall and, as Votes for Women reported, ‘received an ovation the like of which no woman has ever experienced in Birmingham’.
A month later Mrs Pankhurst addressed a reception at the Midland Hotel, and a month after that Mrs Pethick-Lawrence led another Town Hall meeting. Birmingham was certainly not allowed to forget the women’s Familiar names appear in the list of WSPU activists; Miss Mathews and Miss Saxelby, for instance, have the same surnames as married women members of the 19th-century suffrage society, presumably attracted by the opportunity of more direct action offered by the WSPU. Catherine Osler’s daughters, Nellie and Dorothy, remained active members of the constitutional society and their brother, Julian was by this time a member of the Men’s League for Women’s Suffrage, the male counterpart of the NUWSS. Their other brother, John, was running the London side of the glass business and his wife was secretary of the Hampstead NUWSS society.
Gladice Keevil had introduced plenty of amusement for the young women of Birmingham; they could join the Votes for Women Corps and take to the street, standing in the gutter and attempt to persuade passers by to buy the WSPU newspaper. Again this activity seems to have been aimed at the leisured because quarter to 12 on a Friday morning was the rendevous time for the Corps to meet. Those sufficiently active could join the Cycling Scouts who, covering a 10-mile radius around Birmingham, took the suffrage message to out of the way places. There was also a Midlands WSPU horse-drawn caravan which in the summer toured the surrounding countryside.
Throughout the spring of 1909 there was also rather more sedentary activity that could be dedicated to the cause; the WSPU held in London a vast fund-raising bazaar, to which each district was encouraged to contribute goods for sale. The Midland group supported two stalls, one presided over by Mrs Kerwood, who had been one of the WSPU prisoners in March 1908, and the other by Mrs Gertrude Howey of Malvern, who had donated the campaigning caravan and whose daughter, Elsie, was one of the most active of the younger WSPU members. Women were encouraged to come from all over the country to visit the Exhibition, which was beautifully decorated by Sylvia Pankhurst, another of that remarkable family. Parties came down from Birmingham for the occasion on special excursion tickets. Birmingham women jewellers, including a Miss Myers and Annie Steen (of Woodfield Cottage, Woodfield Road, King’s Heath) contributed jewellery for sale on the Midland stall. Annie Steen was a regular advertizer in the pages of Votes for Women. In the 1901 census she had been described as an Art Teacher living at Mayfield Road, Kings Norton. Some of this jewellery would have been rendered with enamelling or stones in the WSPU ‘colours’; Annie Steen advertised in October 1909 ‘Handwrought jewellery in gold and silver set with stones in the colours’. Emmeline Pethick-Lawrence had introduced the colours, purple, white, and green, as ‘favours’ to be worn at the Hyde Park rally the previous year and WSPU branding had taken off in Birmingham. In a May 1909 report Gladice Keevil reminded members that hats, ties etc in the colours could be obtained from Romney, a milliner at 150 Broad Street and noted that one member was having the colours introduced into her wedding in every possible way, including the bouquets and the cake. Besides supplying jewellery to the cause Annie Steen also volunteered her drawing room for WSPU At Homes. Such meetings were also held at this time in the Women’s Hospital and in Queen’s College.
Mary Leigh in her uniform as leader of the WSPU Fife and Drum Band
Birmingham hit the headlines in September 1909 when suffragettes (as WSPU members had been nicknamed in order to be differentiated from members of the non-militant societies, the suffragists) dramatically interrupted a meeting that Asquith was attempting to hold in the Bingley Hall. Birmingham had tried to protect itself against any likely outrage; nine-foot high barricades had lined the station platform and the main streets along which the prime minister had travelled. However one intrepid suffragette had penetrated the defence and had reached the roof of the hall, from where she proceeded to hurl down slates to the ground. The five suffragettes, only one of whom (Evelyn Hilda Burkitt, a secretary who lived at 214 Wellington Road, Perry Barr) was native to Birmingham, were arrested. Four were sentenced to three months’ imprisonment and the fifth, Mary Leigh, who was regarded as a repeat offender, was sentenced to four months’ imprisonment with hard labour in Winson Green. There they went on hunger strike. Mary Leigh had used the tactic, both in Holloway and in Walton jail, Liverpool, and on both occasions had starved herself out of prison before the end of her sentence. However by late September the Home Office, whose officials had been giving advice to the prison medical officers, decided that enough was enough and Winson Green staff were instructed to institute a regime of forcible or, as the Home Office preferred to call it, ‘artificial’ feeding.
The minutes of the Prison Visiting Committee for this period make interesting reading. Unlike the issues of Votes for Women in which the suffragettes told their story, the Committee minutes give a dispassionate account of the procedure, recording that attempts were first made to feed Mary Leigh with a spoon, and when she resisted, resort was made to feeding by a nasal tube, but that by the end of the month she was taking food from a feeding cup. The WSPU brought a case on her behalf against the Home Office and the Governor of Winson Green, to the effect that a prisoner had a right to refuse such ‘treatment’ as feeding, However, the Lord Chief Justice eventually ruled that it was a medical officer’s duty to prevent prisoners committing suicide. A statement made by Mary Leigh, ‘Forcible Feeding in Prison’, based on her experiences in Winson Green, was published by the WSPU. The Birmingham WSPU did what they could to capitalise on the prison’s notoriety; parades were organised to march around outside, the women singing to offer encouragement to the inmates, I have seen a postcard sent at the time by a certain Arthur Lewis, who wrote to his correspondent ‘No doubt you have heard of the Birmingham suffragettes being forcibly fed in the prison.. It is occurring only about 3 minutes walk from our house and nearly every night the suffragettes who are at liberty ride to the prison in sometimes wagonettes and sometimes a fruitier’s cart and blow bugles. There are always some policemen there and do not let the conveyance stop. One suffragette Mrs Leigh was released yesterday, Saturday.’ Indeed Much had been made of the release of Mrs Leigh who was taken to the Ethel Street office in a cab and then straight to a nursing home.
The sight, as it were, of the Liberal government forcibly feeding suffrage prisoners was too much for Catherine Osler and at the end of the year she resigned as president of the Birmingham Women’s Liberal Association, a position she had held for most of her adult life. She did not, however, condone militancy, as she made clear in a pamphlet, ‘Why Women Need the Vote’.
By January 1910, when the general election that resulted from the House of Lord’s rejection of Lloyd George’s budget was held, Gladice Keevil had been moved on from Birmingham to Exeter, a very marginal Liberal seat, which went, with an equally small majority to the Conservatives; obviously Gladice’s winning ways were thought an essential tool in this aspect of the campaign. Liberalism was presumably too entrenched in Birmingham for it to be thought worth more than the usual measure of campaigning. The new organiser was Dorothy Evans and a new office, which stayed open until 8 in the evening, was opened at 33 Paradise Street. Throughout 1910, with the Liberal government dependent on a greatly reduced majority, the WSPU put militancy on hold, taking at face value Asquith’s assurance that if a reform bill were to be introduced the government would make the question of a women’s suffrage amendment open to a free vote. Activity therefore in the country concentrated on keeping the issue in front of the electorate. Bertha Ryland and Hilda Burkitt were still active WSPU workers, attracting a range of high- profile WSPU speakers to Birmingham. Through the pages of Votes for Women the minutiae of the campaign can be traced; it certainly involved an incredible amount of organisation. By the end of the year the WSPU activists were even able to employ electricity to advertize a meeting at which Mrs Pankhurst was speaking in the Town Hall; lanterns were ‘fitted with electric light which shone through’ throwing up the words ‘Mrs Pankhurst, Town Hall, November 15’ and were carried around the streets. The lanterns had been made by members of the local Men’s Political Union – the WSPU’s male counterpart. Women might agitate for the vote but they obviously didn’t mess with electricity.
The Birmingham NUWSS society had reopened an office c 1908 at 10 Easy Row – it was apparent that they had been without a central office for several years. Catherine Osler had by now an extremely competent secretary to run the society – Mrs Florence Carol Ring. I have been unable to find out anything about Mrs Ring – perhaps some local researcher can – but believe she was a most efficient organizer. A notebook in the Archives is labelled ‘Town Hall Meetings: Method of organizing and procedure’ and is full of the most detailed notes of how to organize and advertize the suffrage society’s meetings. All the items are costed and this notebook highlights the orderliness and forward planning that went into NUWSS meetings in this period.
In the summer of 1910 the country’s NUWSS and WSPU societies jointly staged in London a grand rally, wonderfully decorated with banners. There would have been trainloads of participants from Birmingham.
MRs Aubrey Dowson (ed), The Women’s Suffrage Cookery Boook
The Birmingham Women’s Suffrage Society was behind the production of one of the NUWSS’s most appealing fund-raising projects, the Women’s Suffrage Cookery Book, edited by Mrs Aubrey Dowson, whose husband was a nephew of Catherine Osler. The recipes were gathered from suffragists all over the country – the first in the book, for Egg Croquettes is from Mrs Julian Osler, Catherine’s daughter-in-law.
The suffrage peace came to an end in November 1910 when it was announced that parliament was to be dissolved without women being any closer to getting the vote. This was not the outcome for which the suffrage societies, both constitutional and militant, had been working; the WSPU put in place prepared plans for a deputation to the House of Commons. This met with firm police resistance in Parliament Square.
‘Black Friday’, Parliament Square, November 1910
Women were assaulted and the occasion went down in suffrage history as ‘Black Friday’. Dorothy Evans was among the women arrested but, because the Home Office realised that the occasion would be used as a wonderful source of propaganda by the WSPU, no charges were brought against her or any of the many others. However women who, a couple of days later, protested about the Parliament Square debacle by throwing stones at government offices, were arrested and charged. One of these, who was sentenced to two weeks’ imprisonment, was a Mrs Pattie Hall, who although originally from Manchester, where she and her husband had been very close associates of the Pankhursts in their Labour Party days, now lived in Edgbaston, at 56 Hagley Road. Her young daughter, Nellie, had taken part the previous year in the parades outside Winson Green and was to remain a supporter of Mrs Pankhurst until the latter’s death. A wonderful collection of Nellie Hall’s suffrage papers and ephemera (including a suffragette tea service and her hunger strike medal) is on loan to the Birmingham Museum. By mid 1911 the WSPU office had moved again – to 97 John Bright Street.
In April 1911 some members of the Birmingham WSPU joined in the boycott called on the census. One of these was Mrs Ethel Adair Impey, a Quaker, of Cropthorne, Middletonhall Road, King’s Norton. She was described on the census form, filled in by the registrar, as a ‘Suffragette, Information Refused’. In fact information was refused not only by her, but also by her husband, her son, her servant and about 6 nameless females.
In November 1911 after yet another long period of truce, Asquith announced that the government planned to introduce a manhood suffrage bill, which might, if the House of Commons desired, be amended to include women. An unlikelihood. This was the signal for women to take to the streets in London with stones, breaking more windows of government offices. Amongst the many arrested was Bertha Brewster, a young Birmingham woman whose mother had also long been a suffrage supporter. She was sentenced to 21 days’ imprisonment and on her release, with other Birmingham prisoners, she was given a hero’s welcome, in a room in Queen’s College, by the local WSPU. Dorothy Evans was among the many women arrested in London in March 1912 after smashing windows in the West End; Mrs Pankhurst had told the WSPU that ‘the argument of the broken pane of glass is the most valuable argument in modern politics’. Dorothy Evans was sentenced to two month’s imprisonment and a Miss Grew took over as organizer in Birmingham. Because there were too many suffragette prisoners to be accommodated in Holloway many were farmed out to prisons around the country. Twenty-five ordinary prisoners were moved from Winson Green in order to make way for suffragettes, who then went on hunger strike and were forcibly fed. Miss Grew organized members to go each night to stand outside the prison and cheer them on.
The prisoners appear to have made the most of their incarceration. They produced a hand-written, illustrated magazine, entitled The Hammerer’s Magazine – ‘for private circulation only’, its cover showing a hammer striking a pane of glass. One of the sketches, drawn on toilet paper, shows the 25 suffragettes in two rows seated on chairs, backs to the artist, with the prison gallery above, one warder at the front and another on the first-floor gallery. This is quite an important sketch, giving a rare view of life inside Winson Green..
The best poem in the magazine is probably one entitled ‘Winson Green in April & May 1912’ which appears to be written on the back of a Robertson’s Golden Shred marmalade wrapper! It begins:
Cling, clang of prison keys,
Slam bang of doors,
Wash slosh – Monday morn,
Water on the floors –
Tramp, tramp of prison feet,
Ring, rang of bells,
Clash smash of prison bars,
Suffragettes in cells.
Among the women imprisoned at this time was Maude Kate Smith from Birmingham, with whom Professor Brian Harrison recorded an excellent interview now held in the Women’s Library. Besides giving very graphic detail of her experience of forcible feeding, during the course of the interview Miss Smith reveals that there were plans afoot to blow up a Birmingham canal – for during 1912 and 1913 WSPU militancy escalated as the government’s intractability became more apparent.
Pillar boxes were fired – here is one comical comments on this method of militancy. More seriously, property (always at least intended to be empty) was also targeted. The actions of the government contributed towards what might now be seen as ‘terrorism’. In April 1913 parliament passed ‘The Cat and Mouse Act’, by which women prisoners who were being forcibly fed were to be released for a few days to recover their health and were required to return to prison to resume their sentence. Most of those released – the mice – did not bother to return to prison and in many instances the police did not bother to look for them. This ‘underground’ life did, however, have a momentum of its own. Mice, already branded as criminals, thought nothing of repeating their acts of arson (or, as they called it, ‘work’) and much of the damage, which was really quite extensive, was carried out by a dedicated few, travelling around the country, given shelter by well wishers.
For instance, on Christmas Day 1913 one young suffragette, Lilian Lenton, who had been arrested on a charge of setting fire to a house in Cheltenham, was released from prison after going on a hunger-and-thirst-strike – into the care of Mrs Edith Impey of King’s Norton. In April 1913 suffragettes were suspected of setting fire to a boathouse in Handsworth Park. In the same month the Morning Post reported that the suffragettes had planned to set fire to the Old Grammar School at Kings Norton, but had changed their minds when they saw its beauty. In June 1913 a house in Solihull was destroyed and in July one in Perry Bar and another in Selly Park was set on fire. Nellie Hall was charged on suspicion of having been involved with this last arson attack; she had been caught on 13 July after throwing a brick at Asquith’s car when he visited Birmingham and was sentenced to three weeks’ imprisonment. In October 1913 two local railway stations -Northfield (not far from here) and
Hagley Road Station c 1913
Hagley Road were fired and in February 1914 Northfield Library was destroyed – the damage was estimated at £1000 – and on the same day a bomb exploded at Moor Hall Green. Soon after there were several other serious arson attempts in Birmingham; two houses and two cricket pavilions were set alight – at Smethick and Harborne. The slogan left at Harborne was ‘Down with sport, up with fair play for women’ – and there was a fire on the Midland railway at Kings Norton. .In March 1914 the Cathedral was defaced by suffrage slogans – including ‘Stop Forcible Feeding’ –which were daubed on much of its interior in white enamel paint. ‘Votes for Women’ was painted across the middle of the Burne- Jones window. On the vestry door was painted ‘The clergy must rise on our behalf’ Edgbaston Parish Church and St Stephen’s Selly Hill were also attacked.
On 17 May a grandstand at Bromford Bridge racecourse was destroyed and on 8 June Bertha Ryland, cleaver in hand, slashed a picture, ‘Master Thornhill’ by Romney, in Birmingham Art Gallery . She carried a letter giving an explanation of her conduct, saying ‘I attack this work of art deliberately as a protest against the government’s criminal injustice in denying women the vote, and also against the government’s brutal injustice in imprisoning, forcibly feeding, and drugging suffragist militants, while allowing Ulster militants to go free..’ The gallery was immediately closed for six weeks. After that it was not open after 5 in the afternoon and was closed all day Sunday; presumably the level of security had to be increased and the gallery could not afford to open for so many hours. A rule of ‘No muffs, wrist-bags or sticks’ was subsequently enforced.. Bertha Ryland, the presumably gently-nurtured daughter of Edgbaston (whose mother had 30 years earlier been intent on bringing art to the working-classes), had already spent a week in Holloway in November 1911 and, after taking part in the March 1912 window-smashing campaign in London, had been sentenced to six months’ imprisonment. She had spent four months in Winson Green prison, had gone on hunger strike and been forcibly fed.
Bertha Ryland’s WSPU hunger-strike medal (together with her Coronation medal) courtesy of Christie’s
After her arrest in the Art Gallery she went on hunger strike while held on remand. She then accepted bail, was too ill to stand trial at the July assizes, and still had not been sentenced when war broke out. She suffered permanent kidney damage as a result of her treatment in prison.
With Mrs Pankhurst in and out of prison under the Cat and Mouse Act and Christabel based in Paris, to where she had fled to escape the police, the WSPU leadership was
Christabel Pankhurst relaxing in France
increasingly out of touch with day-to-day reality and the campaign was ricocheting out of control. It is my contention that the WSPU was only saved from real disaster by the outbreak of war. The Pankhursts then dropped all suffrage activity and rallied to the flag leaving many, but by no means all, of their supporters dumbfounded. Some of the latter group founded the United Suffragists, to carry on campaigning. In 1915 Bertha Brewster founded a Birmingham branch of the United Suffragists, with an office at 15 New Street.
The NUWSS had, of course, eschewed all the pre-war violence and concentrated on spectacle and politicking. The constitutional or ‘law-abiding’, as they termed themselves, societies had organised themselves into Federations to concentrate their efforts. Birmingham played a leading part in the Midlands (West) Federation and in June 1913 joined with the other societies in The Pilgrimage, a grand attempt to bring a dignified campaign to the country and the prime minister. The Birmingham society travelled along the route that brought pilgrims, with cockleshell badges pinned to their hats, from Carlisle to London. On 14 July 1913 the Birmingham Daily Mail carried a report of the arrival of the pilgrims in Birmingham. ‘At 5 o’clock a strong contingent of the Birmingham Women’s Suffrage Society marched from Easy Row to meet the pilgrims who had started early in the afternoon from Wolverhampton. At Great King St, Hockley, the visitors were joined by the local suffragists, and a procession was formed, headed by the Baskerville Band. Banners bearing the legends ‘Law Abiding’ and ‘By Reason, Not Force’ were prominently displayed’. The pilgrims that passed through Birmingham would have been among those who continued on to Oxford.
As far as politics was concerned, the NUWSS entered into an electoral alliance with the Labour party in order to support Labour candidates at by-elections and thereby subject Liberal candidates to rather more opposition that the usual lone Conservative – that is, they were prepared to turn by-elections into three-cornered fights. Catherine Osler supported the national executive in this, although by no means all local societies did. Birmingham was still radical. By 1913 the society had enrolled 1600 ‘Friends of Women’s Suffrage’, mainly working-class women who could not afford to pay the annual membership fee but were prepared to sign pledges of support. The society at this time suggested founding ‘Women’s Study Circles’ at which working women could meet in each others homes to discuss the suffrage issue; Mrs Osler’s pamphlet ‘Why Women need the Vote’ was one of the suggested texts, as was John Stuart Mill’s Subjection of Women. At this time the Society had over 700 full members.
Unlike the WSPU, the NUWSS societies carried on campaigning during the First World War, as well as supporting the war effort. There was a split in the NUWSS; a majority of its committee wished to withdraw this support and to join in a Women’s Peace Conference to be held at The Hague and it was in Birmingham in June 1915 that at a national conference this move was defeated.
Whether it was because of women’s contribution to the war effort, matters were at last reaching a resolution. In March 1917 Catherine Osler presided over a meeting held in the Midland Institute in support of the move to include women in the proposed Electoral Bill. When the first installment of enfranchisement (that is, to women over the age of 30) was granted in 1918 the NUWSS’s work was ostensibly finished. Catherine Osler was in the chair at the meeting in which the proposed amalgamation of the Birmingham Women’s Suffrage Society and the local branch of the National Union of Women Workers (‘workers’ in this usage were not working-class women but women workers in a cause – in a 19th-century sense – philanthropists). The amalgamated society became the Birmingham Society for Equal Citizenship. Catherine Osler, radical to the end, was keen that the lack of representatives of women’s labour organizations on the new body should be rectified, suggesting that the Women’s Co-operative Guild should be given three representatives. She finally resigned as president in 1920; a portrait of her was commissioned and was presented to the ArtGallery (see above). The surplus of the money raised to pay for the portrait was used to fund a scholarship in her name at Birmingham University, to allow women graduates to read for a postgraduate degree in the Faculty of Arts. It is still awarded from time until very recently.
As well as all this activity from the two main suffrage societies, Birmingham also had other smaller but active suffrage groups. In 1913 the Birmingham branch of the Church League for Women’s Suffrage operated from the home of Miss Griffiths at 34 Harborne Road, Edgbaston; that of the Conservative and Unionist Women’s Franchise Association from the home of Miss Adams at 56 Carlyle Road, Edgbaston, the Birmingham branch of the Men’s League for Women’s Suffrage was run by Mr Evans from 382 Moseley Road, and that of the Friends League for Women’s Suffrage from the home of Miss Joyce at 12 Frederick Road, Edgbaston (a few doors from where Eliza Sturge, also a Quaker, had campaigned nearly 45 years previously).
Mrs Margery Corbett Ashby
At the 1918 general election, the first at which women (albeit only those over 30 years of age) could both vote and stand as candidates, the main attention was focused on Smethwick where Christabel Pankhurst stood as a coalition candidate; she was defeated. At that election Birmingham’s first woman candidate (at Ladywood) was Mrs Margery Corbett Ashby, who stood as a Liberal, again unsuccessfully. The Women’s Library archive includes a 1975 interview with Dame Margery, as she had then become, in which she says that the idea of her standing against a Chamberlain in Birmingham was greeted by her family with hoots of laughter. She goes on to say that she didn’t have ‘the faintest idea of getting in – which would have been very inconvenient – but did so in order to get people used to the idea of a woman standing. That she did as well as other Liberal candidates around. And her candidature was greeted with surprise but with no ridicule.
Dame Elizabeth Cadbury
The first woman to stand as a candidate for King’s Norton’s at a general election – in 1923 – was Elizabeth Cadbury, widow, by then, of George Cadbury, the chocolate manufacturer. She was a Liberal and was also unsuccessful. She lived at Manor House, Northfield, and was a city councillor for Kings Norton from 1919 to 1924. In 1928, 60 years after Birmingham’s campaign had been launched at the meeting in the Exchange Rooms, New Street, all women were given the vote on the same terms as men. However Birmingham did not have a woman MP until after the Second World War – with Mrs Edith Wills elected as Labour member for Duddeston in 1945 and Mrs Edith Pitt (Conservative) elected for Edgbaston in 1953 – the culmination of the campaign that had begun in 1866 with a mere three Birmingham names on that very first ‘women’s suffrage’ petition.
See also:
Birmingham Stories: Votes for Women
Fight for the Right: the Birmingham Suffragettes
Suffragette Acts in Birmingham: Parliament UK
Suffrage Stories: Radio 4 ‘Document’: Votes For Victorian Women
Posted in Suffrage Stories on March 19, 2013
On Monday, 19 March 2013 Radio 4 broadcast, in the series ‘Document, an interesting programme to which I made a small contribution. Below is the description of the programme that appears on the BBC website. The programme is available on iPlayer for a year – that is until March 2014 – click here to listen.
‘Votes for Victorian Women
- Duration:
- 28 minutes
- First broadcast:
Monday 18 March 2013
Popular history tells us that women did not get the vote until 1918.
Though they could technically vote in local elections before that, many historians have argued that in practice they had no vote until the 1860s at the earliest. And evidence that they ever did vote has proved almost impossible to find.
But now a poll book, discovered in a box of papers in a local record office, clearly shows 25 women voting in elections for important local posts in Lichfield in 1843.
In this week’s Document, the historian Sarah Richardson follows the trail of these women, to reveal a picture of Victorian women’s involvement in politics which challenges many of our assumptions.
She discovers that they represented a surprising cross-section of society – old and young, poor and prosperous – and attempts to trace their descendants today.
She finds out how, when even universal manhood suffrage was seen as a radical, dangerous idea, these women may have been just a few of many more who could vote at a local level.
Coronation Procession 1911: The Historical Pageant
And she explores how, decades later, campaigners for Votes for Women at the Westminster level had to contend with this complex legacy.’
[Left - the photograph that Sarah and I are looking at when discussing the way in which 20th-century suffrage campaigners were keen to legitimise their claim to the franchise by looking to the power, occasionally electoral, exercised by women in the past.]
Women Writers And Italy: Mrs Piozzi And St Peter’s, 1786
Posted in Women Writers and Italy on March 18, 2013
Mrs Piozzi
Before images of St Peter’s and the Sistine Chapel disappear from our television screens, I thought you might like to read how this set piece of the Roman scene was viewed at the end of the 18th century by a plain-spoken English woman.
At Easter 1786 Mrs Piozzi (the former Mrs Hester Thrale) was in Rome. The continental tour she had been enjoying with her second husband, Gabriel Piozzi, former music teacher to her children, was drawing to a close.
Like Charlotte Eaton, who arrived in Rome some years later, Mrs Piozzi viewed St Peter’s – and its Easter celebration – with an eye not a little clouded by Protestant prejudice.
‘Nothing can look very grand in St Peter’s church; and though I saw the general benediction given (I hope partook it) upon Easter Day, my constant impression was, that the people were below the place; no pomp, no glare, no dove and glory on the chair of state, but what looked too little for the area that contained them. Sublimity disdains to catch the vulgar eye, she elevates the soul; nor can long-drawn processions, or splendid ceremonies, suffice to content those travellers who seek for images that never tarnish, and for truths that never can decay. Pius Sextus, in his morning dress, paying his private devotions at the altar, without any pageantry, and with very few attendants, struck me more a thousand and a thousand times, than when arrayed in gold, in colours, and diamonds, he was carried to the front of a balcony big enough to have contained the conclave; and there, shaded by two white fans, which, though really enormous, looked no larger than that a girl carries in her pocket, pronounced words which, on account of the height they came from, were difficult to hear.
Pilgrims in St Peter’s From ‘Glimpses of Italian Society’
All this is known and felt by the managers of these theatrical exhibitions so certainly, that they judiciously confine great part of them to the Capella Sistina, which, being large enough to impress the mind with its solemnity, and not spacious enough for the priests, congregation, and all, to be lost in it, is well adapted for those various functions that really make Rome a scene of perpetual gala during the Holy Week – which an English friend here protested to me he had never spent with so little devotion in his life before.’
From Glimspses of Italian Society in the Eighteenth Century, From the ‘Journal of Mrs Piozzi’, Seeley & Co, 1892
Catalogue 178: Books And Ephemera For Sale
Posted in Books And Ephemera For Sale, Kate Frye's suffrage diary, Uncategorized on March 15, 2013
WOMAN AND HER SPHERE
CATALOGUE 178
ELIZABETH CRAWFORD
e.crawford@sphere20.freeserve.co.uk
Email me if there is any item you would like to order from this catalogue.
Payment may be made by sterling cheque or by Paypal
Postage extra at cost
Non-fiction
1. ALEXANDER, Lynn Women, Work and Representation: needlewomen in Victorian art and literature Ohio Unversity Press 2003 [11620] Hardcovers – mint in d/w £15
2. ANDREWS, Maggie The Acceptable Face of Feminism: the Women’s Institute as a social movement Lawrence & Wishart 1997 [9533] Soft covers – mint £9
3. ANGERMAN, Anna Et Al (eds) Current Issues in Women’s History Routledge 1989 [10641] Includes articles on ‘Witchcraft in the Northern Netherlands’, ‘Female culture, pacifism and feminism: Women Strike for Peace’, ‘The origins of feminism in Egypt’, ‘Female aspiration and male ideology: school-teaching in 19th century New England’, ‘Women’s psychological disorders in 17th-century Britain’ (by Anne Laurence), ‘Whores and gossips: sexual reputation in London 1770-1825′ (by Anna Clark) etc. Soft covers – very good £5
4. ANON After the Dawn: a record of the pioneer work in Edinburgh for the higher education of women Oliver & Boyd 1939 [9159] Based on a scrapbook kept by Sarah Siddons Mair and other records contemporary with the 19th-century movement for higher education in Edinburgh. Very good £48
5. APPRENTICESHIP AND SKILLED EMPLOYMENT ASSOCIATION Trades for London Girls and How to Enter Them Longmans, Green 1909 [9178] Packed with information on trades and wages.Soft covers – good – scarce £38
6. AUCHMUTY, Rosemary A World of Women: growing up in the girls’ school story Women’s Press 1999 [11875] Soft covers – fine £5
7. BEACHY, Robert Et Al (eds) Women, Business and Finance in 19th-century Europe: rethinking separate spheres Berg 2006 [9208] Fine £12
8. BEER, Patricia Reader, I Married Him: a study of the women characters of Jane Austen, Charlotte Bronte, Elizabeth Gaskell and George Eliot Macmillan 1974 [9669] Very good in d/w £15
9. BENJAMIN, Marina (ed) Science and Sensibility: gender and scientific enquiry 1780-1945 Basil Blackwell 1994 [11668] An interesting collection of essays, Soft covers – mint £18
10. BERRY, Mrs Edward And MICHAELIS, Madame (eds) 135 Kindergarten Songs and Games Charles and Dible, no date [1881] [9035] ‘These songs are printed to supply a want in English Kindergartens’ – the music is, of course, included – as are movement instructions. Mme Michaelis ran the Croydon Kindergarten. Very good £48
11. BLACK, Clementina Sweated Industry and the Minimum Wage Duckworth 1907 [11756] With an introduction by A.G. Gardiner, chairman of the executive committee of the National Anti-Sweating League £45
12. BLOCH, R. Howard Medieval Misogyny and the Invention of Western Romantic Love University of Chicago Press 1991 [11978] Soft covers – fine £18
13. BOYD, Kenneth Scottish Church Attitudes to Sex, Marriage and the Family 1850-1914 John Donald 1980 [9679] Fine in d/w £18
14. BRITTAIN, Vera Lady Into Woman: a history of women from Victoria to Elizabeth II Andrew Dakers 1953 [13161] Good – though ex-public library £8
15. BURGAN, Mary Illness, Gender and Writing: the case of Katherine Mansfield John Hopkins University Press 1994 [11905] Mint in d/w £15
16. BURSTALL, Sara A. The Story of the Manchester High School for Girls 1871-1911 Manchester University Press 1911 [9606] Very good internally – slightly marked cover £38
17. BUTTERWORTH, Annie Manual of Household Work and Management Longmans, Green, 3rd ed 1913 [9186] A text book, written primarily for student qualifying for the Teacher’s Diploma of Houswifery. Annie Butterworth taught in the Domestic Arts department of University College of South Wales. Good £12
18. CADBURY, E. And SHANN, G. Sweating Headley Bros 1907 [7636] A study of the sweating system in England and Scotland, the research undertaken at a time when it was a matter of great economic and social concern. Full of facts and figures. This copy presented to Astwood Bank Adult School Library ‘with Mr George Cadbury, Jnr’s best wishes’. The book itself has the printed dedication to ‘George Cadbury, an adult school teacher for forty-eight years, in recognition of his efforts to remedy the lot of the sweated workers.’ Soft covers – very good £55
19. CADBURY, Edward, MATHESON, M. Cecile and SHANN, George Women’s Work and Wages: a phase of life in an industrial city University of Chicago Press 1907 [8076] US edition of this study of women’s work in Birmingham. Good – inner hinge a little loose £50
20. CHAPONE, Mrs On the Improvement of the Mind together with Dr Gregory’s, Legacy to His Daughters and Lady Pennington’s, Advice to Her Absent Daughter, with An Additional letter on the Management and Education of Infant Children Scott, Webster and Geary, no date c. 1835 [9555] A compendium of Good Conduct – a ‘four in one’. With engraved frontispiece and title page -good in slightly rubbed half leather and marbled boards £38
21. CHECKLAND, Olive Philanthropy in Victorian Scotland: social welfare and the voluntary principle John Donald Ltd 1980 [9241] Fine in fine d/w £20
22. CLARK, Alice Working Life of Women in the Seventeenth Century Routledge 1982 [10534] First published in1919. Soft covers – very good £8
23. COLLET, Clara Report by Miss Collet of the Statistics of Employment of Women and Girls HMSO 1894 [7203] Report prepared under the aegis of the Board of Trade – Employment of Women (Labour Department). Very good – 152pp – bound into new protective card covers £85
24. COLLET, Clara Report by Miss Collet on the Money Wages of Indoor Domestic Servants HMSO 1899 [7207] Women workers were in the overwhelming majority of those considered in this report. Fascinating information. Very good in original card covers £55
25. DEMOOR, Marysa Their Fair Share: women, power and criticism in the ‘Athenaeum’ , from Millicent Garrett Fawcett to Katherine Mansfield, 1870-1920 Ashgate 2000 [11667] Mint £25
26. DICKENS, Andrea Janelle Female Mystic: great women thinkers of the Midle Ages I.B. Tauris 2009 [11947] Soft covers – fine £10
27. DIGBY, Anne Making a Medical Living: doctors and patients in the English market for medicine, 1720-1911 CUP 1994 [10601] Mint in d/w £18
28. DINSHAW, Carolyn and WALLACE, David (eds) The Cambridge Companion to Medieval Women’s Writing CUP 2003 [11857] Soft covers – fine £12
29. DON VANN, J. and VANARSDEL, Rosemary T. (eds) Periodicals of Queen Victoria’s Empire: an exploration University of Toronto Press 1996 [9600] Fine in fine d/w £18
30. DURHAM, Edith High Albania Virago 1985 [10802] First published in 1909. Soft covers – very good £8
31. ELLIS, Mrs Sarah Stickney The Select Works Henry G. Langley (New York) 1844 [11234] Includes ‘The Poetry of Life’, ‘Pictures of Private Life’, ‘A Voice From the Vintage, on the force of example addressed to those who think and feel’
Good in original decorative cloth £48
32. ERICKSON, Amy Louise Women and Property in Early Modern England Routledge 2002 (r/p) [9730] Soft covers – fine internally – crease to front cover £15
33. EVERGATES, Theodore (ed) Aristocratic Women in Medieval France University of Pennsylvania Press 1999 [11979] Soft covers – very good £17
34. FARRELL, Christine My Mother Said…; the way young people learned about sex and birth control Institute for Social Studies in Medical Care 1978 [8997] Based on over 1500 interviews with a national random sample of 16- to 19-year olds in 1974-5. Very good in good d/w – though ex-library £10
35. FRYE, Susan And ROBERTSON, Karen (Eds) Maids and Mistresses, Cousins and Queens: women’s alliances in early modern England OUP 1999 [7435] A collection of essays exploring how early modern women associated with other women in a variety of roles, from alewives to midwives, prostitutes to pleasure seekers, slaves to queens, serving maids to ladies in waiting …’. Fine £35
36. FULLER, Sophie The Pandora Book of Women Composers Pandora 1994 [8979] Fine in d/w £15
37. GATES, Evelyn (ed) Woman’s Year Book 1923-1924 Women Publishers Ltd 1924 (3rd ed) [13196] An invaluable reference work, covering all aspects of the post-emancipation period in considerable detail. Contributors include Millicent Fawcett (aunt of the editor), Commandant Mary Allen, Lena Ashwell, Lilian Barker, Margaret Bondfield, Winifred Cullis, Margaret Llewellyn Davies, Margery Fry, Chrystal Macmillan, Hilda Martindale, Bertha Mason, Edith Picton-Turbervill, Eleanor Rathbone – among many others. Full of facts and figures, names and addresses. Very good internally – cloth grubby – withdrawn from the Women’s Library . £65
38. GILBERT, Sandra And GUBAR, Susan The Madwoman in the Attic: the woman writer and the nineteenth-century literary imagination Yale University Press 1984 (r/p) [9549] Soft covers – 719pp – very good £12
39. GILBERT, Sandra And GUBAR, Susan No Man’s Land: the place of the woman writer in the twentieth century Yale University Press 1994 [8899] Vol 3 – ‘Letters From the Front’ .477pp - mint in d/w £25
40. GILLESPIE, Diane F. (ed) The Multiple Muses of Virginia Woolf University of Missouri Press [7496] Fine in d/w £25
41. GLUCK, Sherna Berger and PATAI, Daphne (eds) Women’s Words: the practice of oral history Routledge 1991 [11532] Explores the theoretical, methodological, and practical problems that arise when women utilize oral history as a tool of feminist scholarship. Hardback – fine in d/w £15
42. HALLSWORTH, Joseph and DAVIES, Rhys J The Working Life of Shop Assistants: a study of conditions of labour in the distributive trades privately published 1910 [11765] Fascinating insight into the working conditions and wages of a wide range of shop workers with description of some of the reforms that had been put in place. Very good in original cloth £35
43. HARWOOD, Hilda The History of Milton Mount School Independent Press 1959 [9641] Good £15
44. HILDEGARD OF BINGEN Selected Writings Penguin 2001 [11853] With introduction and notes by Mark Atherton. Soft covers – fine £6
45. HOBBY, Elaine Virtue of Necessity: English women’s writing 1649-88 Virago 1998 [11939] Soft covers – very good £8
46. HOFFMAN, P.C. They Also Serve: the story of the shop worker Porcupine Press 1949 [9133] Soft covers – very good £15
47. HOLCOMBE, Lee Victorian Ladies at Work: middle-class working women in England and Wales 1850-1914 David & Charles 1973 [11226] Very good in chipped d/w £25
48. HOLT, Anne A Ministry To The Poor: being a history of the Liverpool Domestic Mission Society, 1836-1936 Henry Young (Liverpool) 1936 [9243] Very good – scarce £45
49. HUGHES, Linda K. And LUND, Michal Victorian Publishing and Mrs Gaskell’s Work University Press of Virginia 1999 [9537] Fine in fine d/w £15
50. JAMES, Selma Sex, Race and Class Falling Wall Press 1975 [13193] Paper covers – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £5
51. JEFFREYS, Sheila Beauty and Misogyny: harmful cultural practices in the West Routledge 2005 [9892] Soft covers – mint £12
52. JEPHCOTT, Pearl With Nancy Seear and John H. Smith Married Women Working Allen & Unwin 1962 [9160] Very good in d/w – with stamp of the Reference and Political Library of the Conservative Research Department £15
53. JOHNSON, Patricia E. Hidden Hands: working-class women and Victorian social-problem fiction Ohio University Press 2001 [10784] ‘Argues that the female industrial worker became more dangerous to represent than the prostitute or the male radical because the worker exposed crucial contradictions between the class and gender ideologies of the period and its economic realities’. Soft covers – mint £15
54. KEDDIE, Nikki And BARON, Beth (eds) Women in Middle Eastern History: shifting boundaries in sex and gender Yale University Press 1991 [10511] The first study of gender relations in the Middle East from the earliest Islamic period to the present. Fine in d/w £15
55. KEEBLE, Samuel (ed) Citizen of To-morrow: a handbook on social questions Charles H. Kelly (10th thousand) c 1906 [9811] Dedicated to the members of the Weslyan Methodist Union for Social Science. Among many articles on subject such as housing, land, drink, unemployment etc is one by Marie Stuart, Late Associate of the Royal Sanitary Society, on Women and Social Problems, which covers sweated trades, factory work, infant mortality, creches, shop work etc. Good £14
56. KING, Brenda Silk and Empire Manchester University Press [9845] A study of the Anglo-Indian silk trade, challenging the notion that Britain always exploited its empire. Mint in d/w (pub price £55) £30
57. LERNER, Gerda The Creation of Feminist Consciousness: from the middle ages to 1870 OUP 1993 [11921] Hardcover – fine in fine d/w £13
58. LERNER, Gerda The Creation of Patriarchy OUP 1986 [11924] Soft covers – fine £10
59. LEWIS, Judith Schneid In the Family Way: childbearing in the British aristocracy, 1760-1860 Rutgers University Press 1986 [8652] Very good in slightly chipped d/w £25
60. LITOFF, Judy Barrett And SMITH, David C. We’re In This War, Too: World War II Letters from American Women in Uniform OUP 1994 [8310] Fine in d/w £16
61. LLEWELYN DAVIES, Margaret (ed) Maternity: letters from working women collected by the Women’s Co-operative Guild Virago 1978 [13159] First published in 1915. Soft covers – very good £8
62. LOANE, M. An Englishman’s Castle Edward Arnold 1909 [9060] Martha Loane was a district nurse – this study of the homes of the poor is the result of her social investigation. Good £18
63. (LUXEMBOURG) Richard Abraham Rosa Luxembourg: a life for the International Berg 1989 [1399] Mint in d/w £10
64. MCCANN, Jean Thomas Howell and the School at Llandaff D. Brown (Cowbridge) 1972 [10608] Good – ex-university library £15
65. McMILLAN, Margaret The Child and the State The National Labour Press 1911 [11641] In which she advocated giving poor children a more broad and humane education than they currently were receiving. Vol 9 in the Socialist Library series. Card covers – very good £28
66. MALVERY, Olive Christian Baby Toilers Hutchinson 1907 [8216] A study of the child workers of Edwardian Britain. Good £38
67. MARKS, Lara Metropolitan Maternity maternity and infant welfare services in early 20th century London Rodopi 1996 [11624] Soft covers – fine £22
68. MARTIN, Jane Women and the Politics of Schooling in Victorian and Edwardian England Leicester University Press 1999 [10781] Mint (pub price £65) £35
69. MASON, Michael The Making of Victorian Sexuality OUP 1994 [10599] Fine in d/w £14
70. MILLER, Robert Researching Life Stories and Family Histories Sage 2000 [11520] Covers methods and issues involved in collecting and analysing family histories, and collecting and analysing life histories. (pub. price £24.99) £15
71. NELSON, Claudia Boys Will Be Girls: the feminine ethic and British children’s fiction, 1857-1917 Rutgers University Press 1991 [9805] Mint in d/w £18
72. NEWMAN, Barbara St Hildegard’s Theology of the Feminine University of California Press 1989 [11856] Soft covers – fine £10
73. NORWICH HIGH SCHOOL 1875-1950 privately printed, no date [1950] [9612] A GPDST school. Very good internally – green cloth covers sunned – ex-university library £15
74. ORRINSMITH, Mrs The Drawing Room: its decoration and furniture Macmillan 1877 [9344] In the ‘Art at Home’ series. ‘The author has endeavoured to give more particular directions as to the furnishing and adornment of the Drawing-Room than was possible in the Miss Garretts’ volume treating of the whole subject of ‘House Decoration’ .’ Very good – missing free front end paper many illustrations – a scarce book £60
75. OSBORNE, Honor And MANISTY, Peggy A History of the Royal School for Daughters of Officers of the Army 1864-1965 Hodder & Stoughton 1966 [10609] Good – ex-university library £12
76. PEACH, Linden Contemporary Irish and Welsh Women’s Fiction: gender, desire and power University of Wales Press 2008 [11572] The first comparative study of fiction by late 20th and 21st-century women writers from England, Southern Ireland and Wales. Soft covers – mint £15
77. PEDERSEN, Frederik Marriage Disputes in Medieval England Hambledon 2000 [11977] The records of the church courts of the province of York, mainly dating from the 14th c, provide a welcome light on private, family life and on individual reactions to it. Hardcovers – fine in fine d/w £25
78. PHILLIPS, M. And TOMPKINSON, W.S. English Women in Life and Letters OUP 1927 [9151] Describes the lives of Englishwomen of the past, some rich, others poor and unknown – using both historical sources and fiction – from the 14th century to the mid 19th. Very good £20
79. PHILLIPS, Margaret Mann Willingly to School: memories of York College for Girls 1919-1924 Highgate Publications 1989 [13124] Good in card covers – though ex-library £10
80. RENDALL, Jane The Origins of Modern Feminism: women in Britain, France and the United States 1780-1860 Macmillan 1985 [9461] Soft covers – very good £15
81. RICHARDS, Anna The Wasting Heroine in German Fiction by Women 1770-1914 OUP 2004 [9691] Mint in d/w £12
82. ROBERTS, Alison Hathor Rising: the serpent power in ancient Egypt Northgate 1995 [11866] Soft covers – fine £8
83. ROYDEN, A. Maude Political Christianity G.P. Putnams’ 1923 (r/p) [13120] Dedicated to members of the Guildhouse congregation. Good – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £8
84. SANGER, Margaret (Esther Katz. ed) The Selected Papers of Margaret Sanger Vol 2: Birth Control Comes of Age, 1928-1939 University of Illinois Press 2007 [11583] Hard covers – mint in d/w – heavy (pub price £38) £25
85. SAYERS, Jane The Fountain Unsealed: a history of Notting Hill and Ealing High School privately published 1973 [9688] A study of one of the most successful of the GPDST schools – and one of the best school histories that I have ever read. Very good £28
86. SCARLET WOMEN Scarlet Women Collective April 1978 [11322] Newsletter of the Socialist Feminist Current. Combined issues 6 & 7. Good £4
87. SCARLET WOMEN Scarlet Women Collective August 1978 [11324] Newsletter of the Socialist Feminist Current. Issue 8. Very good £4
88. SHAHAR, Shulamith The Fourth Estate: a history of women in the Middle Ages Routledge 1993 (r/p) [11858] Paper covers – fine £12
89. SHIRAZI, Faegheh Velvet Jihad: Muslim women’s quiet resistance to Islamic fundamentalism University Press of Florida 2009 [11615] Hardcovers – mint in d/w £20
90. SHOWALTER, Elaine A Jury of Her Peers: American women writers from Anne Bradstreet to Annie Proulx Virago 2009 [11900] Hardcover – fine in fine d/w £12
91. SIX POINT GROUP In Her Own Right: a discussion conducted by the Six Point Group Harrap 1968 [12975] Includes contributions from Hazel Hunkins-Hallinan, Marghanita Laski, Pat Hornsby-Smith and Lena Jeger, stemming from a conference ‘where it was felt that it was timely to investigate ths uccess of the movement towards emancipation and to discuss the problems remaining fifty years after the emancipation of women’. Paper covers – good £10
92. STAFFORD, H.M. Queenswood: the first sixty years 1894-1954 privately printed 1954 [9643] History of the school. Good – ex-college library £12
93. STANLEY, Liz Et Al (eds) Auto/Biography: Bulletin of the British Sociological Association Study Group on Auto/Biography (1993) [10494] Vol 2, no 1 ‘Research Practices’. Soft covers – fine £9
94. STENTON, Doris Mary The English Woman in History Allen & Unwin 1957 [8440] Good reading copy – ex-library £15
95. STONE, Dorothy The National: the story of a pioneer college Robert Hale 1976 [8231] History of the pioneering domestic economy training college – The National Training College of Domestic Subjects. Fine in d/w £12
96. TAYLOR, Barbara Mary Wollstonecraft and the Feminist Imagination CUP 2003 [11898] Soft covers – fine £17
97. TAYLOR, Yvette Working-class Lesbian Life: classed outsiders Palgrave 2007 [11575] Hardcovers – mint (pub. price £45) £25
98. THE ENGLISHWOMAN’S YEAR-BOOK AND DIRECTORY FOR 1888 JUBILEE EDITION Hatchard’s 1888 [11772] edited by ‘L.M. H.’ [Louisa Hubbard], comprising Part I Englishwomen and their work in Queen Victoria’s reign and Part II
Directory for 1888. A wonderful source – full of details of names and addresses. Very good and tight in decorative boards, a little darkened and marked with age. Extremely scarce £195
99. THE ENGLISHWOMAN’S YEARBOOK AND DIRECTORY 1901 A & C Black 1901 [11770] Ed by Emily Janes. Packed with information. Good internally – cloth covers marked – scarce £80
100. TOBIN, Beth Fowkes Superintending the Poor: charitable ladies and paternal landlords in British fiction, 1770-1860 Yale University Press 1993 [9806] Mint in d/w £18
101. TROUBLE AND STRIFE: Trouble and Strife Collective 1988 [11683] Issue no 14 Winter 1988. Very good £4
102. TROUBLE AND STRIFE: a radical feminist magazine Trouble and Strife Collective 1984 [11679] Issue no 3 Summer 1984. Includes ‘Storming the Wimpy Bars: an interview with Lilian Mohin’. Very good £4
103. TROUBLE AND STRIFE: a radical feminist magazine Trouble and Strife Collective 1985 [11680] Issue No. 5. Spring 1985 £4
104. TROUBLE AND STRIFE: a radical feminist magazine Trouble and Strife Collective 1986 [11681] Issue no 9 Summer 1986 £4
105. TROUBLE AND STRIFE: a radical feminist magazine Trouble and Strife Collective 1988 [11682] Issue no 13 Summer 1988 £4
106. TUCKWELL, Gertrude The State and its Children Methuen 1894 [11651] ‘Among the social questions with which the nation has to deal there is none, it seems to me, so important as the question of children.’ Chapters include: ‘Reformatories and Indusrial Schools’, ‘Workhouse schools and children’, ‘Canal and van children’; ‘Circus and theatre children’, ‘Homes for blind and deaf and dumb’ and ‘Work for the Society for the Prevention of Curelty to Children’. Very good – scarce £25
107. TYLECOTE, Mabel The Education of Women at Manchester University 1883 to 1933 Manchester University Press 1941 [13139] With a newscutting obituary of Dame Mabel Tylecote laid in. Good – scarce £40
108. VINCE, Mrs Millicent Decoration and Care of the Home W. Collins 1923 [12870] Mrs Vince had been a pupil of the pioneer ‘House Decorator’, Agnes Garrett. Very good in rubbed d/w £18
109. WARWICK, Countess Of A Woman and the War Chapman and Hall 1916 [13141] The wartime thoughts of an interesting woman – a social reformer. Includes chapters on ‘Nursing in Wartime’ and ‘Women and the War’. Very good £48
110. WEST, Rebecca The Young Rebecca: writings of Rebecca West 1911-17 Indiana University Press 1982 [11674] Selected and introduced by Jane Marcus. Soft covers – fine £12
111. WILLIAMS, A. Susan Ladies of Influence: women of the elite in interwar Britain Allen Lane 2000 [8087] Studies of, among others, Edith, Marchioness of Londonderry, Katharine, Duchess of Atholl, Nancy Cunard, and Stella, Marchioness of Reading. Fine in very good d/w £12
112. WOODS, Edgar & Diana Things That Are Not Done: an outspoken commentary on popular habits and a guide to correct conduct Universal Publications, no date (1937) [10612] Good £12
Biography
113. ALLEN, Alexandra Travelling Ladies: Victorian Adventuresses [13198] Studies of Daisy Bates, Isabella Bird Bishop, Midlred Cabele and Evangeline and Francesca French, Alexandra David-Neel, Jane Digby el Mesrab, Kate Marsden, Marianne North and May French Sheldon. Fine in d/w £10
114. BELL, Alan (ed and with an introduction by) Sir Leslie Stephen’s ‘Mausoleum Book’ OUP 1977 [13199] Intimate autobiography written for Stephen’s immediate family after the death of his wife, Julia, the mother of Vanessa and Virginia. Very good in d/w £12
115. BELL, MAUREEN, PARFIT, GEORGE AND SHEPHERD, SIMON A Biographical Dictionary of English Women Writers 1560-1720 G.K. Hall 1990 [11878] Expands the boundaries of what is conventionally recognized as 17th century English literature by uncovering, reintroducing and documenting the lives and works of more than 550 English women who wrote betwen 1580-1720. Fine in d/w £25
116. BETHAM, Matilda A Biographical Dictionary of the Celebrated Women of Every Age and Country printed for B. Crosby 1804 [11227] A fascinating compilation. First edition – 852pp – bound in half leather and marbled boards – very good – scarce £200
117. (BRONTE) Margaret Smith (ed) Selected Letters of Charlotte Bronte OUP 2007 [11632] Mint in d/w £15
118. (COBBE) Frances Power Cobbe Life of Frances Power Cobbe : as told by herself Swan Sonnenschein 1904 [11475] The Posthumous – and best – edition – ‘With Additions by the Author and Introduction by Blanche Atkinson’. Fine – rather scarce £75
119. (EDEN) Violet Dickinson (Ed) Miss Eden’s Letters Macmillan 1919 [9339] Born, a Whig, in 1797. Her letters are full of social detail. In 1835 she went to India with her brother when he became governor-general. Very good £28
120. (GASKELL) John Chapple (ed) Elizabeth Gaskell: the early years Manchester University Press 1997 [9614] Mint in d/w £18
121. (HILDEGARD OF BINGEN) Sabina Flanagan Hildegard of Bingen: a visionary life Routledge 1990 [11854] Soft covers – fine £7
122. (HOWARD) Elizabeth Jane Howard Slipstream: a memoir Macmillan 2002 [10523] Fine in d/w £8
123. (HOWE) Valarie Ziegler Diva Julia: the public romance and private agony of Julia Ward Howe Trinity Press International 2003 [11892] Hardcover – fine in fine d/w £10
124. (JAMESON) Storm Jameson Journey from the North: autobiography of Storm Jameson Virago 1984 [9685] Soft covers – good – 2 volumes complete £12
125. [JEBB] Alice Salomon Eglantyne Jebb Union Internationale de Secours Aux Enfants 1936 [13170] Short study in French. Paper covers – 53pp – very good £5
126. (JERNINGHAM) Ernest Betham (ed) A House of Letters: being excerpts from the correspondence of Miss Charlotte Jerningham, Lady Jerningham, Coleridge, Lamb, Southey, Bernard and Lucy Barton, and others, with Matilda Betham Jarrolds [2179] ‘Also notes of some phases in the evolution of an English family’- the Bethams. Good £28
127. KELSALL, Helen Berridge House Who’s Who, 1893-1957 privately published [1957] [13005] A list of all the pupils and staff of the National Society’s Training College for Domestic Subjects - with a short history of the college. Paper covers – good £12
128. (KINGSLEY) Robert Pearce Mary Kingsley: light at the heart of darkness Kensal Press 1990 [9667] A biography of the West African traveller. Very good in d/w £15
129. (LOVELACE) Betty Alexandra Toole (ed) Ada, The Enchantress of Numbers: a selection from the letters of Lord Byron’s daughter and her description of the first computer Strawberry Press (USA) 1992 [9798] Fine in d/w – inscribed in ink on the free front end paper by the editor. £18
130. (MARTIN) Sarah Martin A Brief Sketch of the Life of the Late Miss Sarah Martin of Great Yarmouth: with extracts from the Parliamentary Reports on Prisons; her own Prison Journals etc C. Barber (Yarmouth) 2nd ed, 1844 [12756] Prison visitor, dressmaker, Sunday School teacher. Her comments on the prisoners are particularly interesting. Good in original cloth £35
131. (MOODIE/TRAILL) Charlotte Gray Sisters in the Wilderness: Susanna Moodie and Catherine Parr Traill, pioneers of the Canadian backwoods Duckworth 2001 [11887] Hardcover – fine in fine d/w £12
132. (MORRELL) Robert Gathorne-Hardy (ed) Ottoline:the early memoirs of Lady Ottoline Morrell; Ottoline at Garsington: memoirs of Lady Ottoline Morrell Faber, 1963 and Faber, 1974 (respectively [9499] Two volumes together, as a set – both good in d/w £28
133. NEWNHAM COLLEGE REGISTER 1871-1950 privately printed [11776] packed with biographical information on students and staff. Soft covers – 2 vols – good – although backing on vol 1 is coming unstuck and outermost cover of vol II is missing- internally very good – scarce £40
134. (NICE) Miranda Seymour The Bugatti Queen: in search of a motor-racing legend Simon & Schuster 2004 [10532] Romantic life of Helle Nice, who set land-speed records for Bugatti in the 1930s. Fine in d/w £8
135. (NICHOL) Anna Stoddart Elizabeth Pease Nichol Dent 1899 [12999] (1807-1897) Scottish Quaker – daughter of the founder of the Peace Society, suffragist, chartist, anti-vivesectionist. Very good – scarce £35
136. (OUTRAM) Mary Frances Outram Margaret Outram 1778-1863; mother of the Bayard of India John Murray 1932 [3593] A wide-ranging, satisfying biography. Good internally – tho’ ex-library £15
137. (PHILIPS) Philip Webster Souers The Matchless Orinda Harvard University Press 1931 [9602] An account of the life of Mrs Katherine Philips, the first woman in England to gain the reputation of a poetess.Good – ex university library £28
138. (PROCTER) Zoe Procter Life and Yesterday The Favil Press 1960 [13175] Autobiography of an active member of the WSPU. She had previously been secretary to Pearl Craigie (John Oliver Hobbes) and to ‘Henrietta Leslie’- and was a niece of Adelaide Procter, of whom she writes. Much about her imprisonment in Holloway – where she met Dorothea Rock, the woman who was to become her life partner. Very good in chipped d/w – a joint presentation copy signed at Xmas 1960 to ‘Rhoda’ from the author and Dorothea. £45
139. (PUREFOY) G. Eland (ed) Purefoy Letters 1735-1753 Sidgwick & Jackson 1931 [9338] The letters of Elizabeth Purefoy (1672-1765), whose husband died in 1704, and her son, Henry Purefoy. Elizabeth Purefoy was, as her epitaph recorded, ‘a woman of excellent understanding, prudent and frugal’ and her letters are full of domestic detail. Very good – two volumes £40
140. (RAVERAT) Gwen Raverat Period Piece Faber 1987 (r/p) [9686] Soft covers – very good £6
141. (RHYS) Francis Wyndham And Diana Melly (eds) Jean Rhys Letters 1931-1966 Deutsch 1984 [9507] Very good in d/w £12
142. [RUSKIN] Mary Lutyens (ed) Young Mrs Ruskin in Venice: the picture of society and life with John Ruskin 1849-1852 Vanguard Press (NY) 1965 [13200] Very good in d/w £12
143. (SOYER) Ruth Cowen Relish: the extraordinary life of Alexis Soyer, Victorian celebrity chef Weidenfeld 2006 [9824] Chef and kitchen designer to the Reform Club and reformer of army catering. Mint in d/w £15
144. (SPRINGFIELD) VALENTINE, Penny And WICKHAM, Vicki Dancing With Demons: the authorised biography of Dusty Springfield Hodder 2000 [10049] Mint in d/w £6
145. (STANLEY) Jane H. Adeane (ed) The Early Married Life of Maria Josepha Lady Stanley, with extracts from Sir John Stanleys ‘Praeterita’ Longmans, Green 1899 [1675] Follows the life of the engaging Maria Josepha from 1797 until 1817 – much social detail. Very good internally – in rubbed and bumped decorative binding £15
146. (STUART) James Stuart Reminiscences privately printed (Chiswick Press) 1911 [11653] Autobiography of a man who was especially supportive of the women’s movement. He was one of the first Girton lecturers in the earliest days at Hitchin and then one of Josephine Butler’s chief supporters. His sister was one of the chief peripatetic lecturers for Central Committee for Women’s Suffrage in the 1870s. Stuart succeeded Henry Fawcett as MP for Hackney, in 1890 married Laura Colman, who had studied at Newnham, and eventually became director of her family firm, Colmans, mustard manufacturers, of Norwich. In fine condition- scarce £20
147. (TAYLORS) Doris Mary Armitage The Taylors of Ongar W. Heffer 1939 [9601] A joint biography of the family of writers that included Ann and Jane Taylor – the latter the author of ‘Twinkle, Twinkle little star’. Good – ex-university library £18
148. (TENNYSON) James O. Hoge Lady Tennyson’s Journal University Press of Virginia 1981 [9675] Fine in d/w £18
149. (TREFUSIS) Philippe Jullian And PHILLIPS, John Violet Trefusis: a biography including correspondence with Vita Sackville-West Methuen 1986 [10164] Soft covers – good £7
150. (TROUBRIDGE) Jaqueline Hope-Nicholson (ed) Life Amongst the Troubridges: journals of a young Victorian 1873-1884 by Laura Troubridge John Murray 1966 [9324] Very good in rubbed d/w £10
151. (TUCKER) Agnes Giberne A Lady of England: the life and letters of Charlotte Maria Tucker Hodder & Stoughton 1895 [9599] The standard biography of a popular children’s and religious writer – who spent the later years of her life as a missionary in India. Good – though ex-university library £28
152. (TUSSAUD) Kate Berridge Waxing Mythical: the life and legend of Madame Tussaud John Murray 2006 [9827] Fine in d/w £18
153. (TWINING) Louisa Twining Recollections of My Life and Work Edward Arnold 1893 [10625] She was an early ‘social worker’ – involved with workhouse visiting, promoting the idea of poor law inspectors and was herself a poor law guardian. Very good – scarce £68
154. (WARWICK) Charlotte Fell-Smith Mary Rich, Countess of Warwick (1625-1678), her family and friends Longmans, Green 1901 [1754] Very good £45
155. (WHARTON) R.W.B. Lewis And Nancy Lewis The Letters of Edith Wharton Simon & Schuster 1988 [9747] Fine in fine d/w – 654pp £12
156. (YOURCENAR) Josyane Savigneau Marguerite Yourcenar: inventing a life University of Chicago Press 1993 [10522] Biography of the author of ‘The Memoirs of Hadrian’ . Translated from French by Joan E. Howard. Fine in d/w £10
Ephemera
157. ANON The Board of Education and Catholic Secondary Schools W. Watson & Co (Birmingham) 1910 [13037] Written by a supporter of Catholic education – and heavily annotated – presumably by someone at the Board of Education. Interesting. Paper covers – good – 16pp in card covers – ex-Board of Education £6
158. ASSOCIATION FOR PROMOTING THE EMPLOYMENT OF HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS IN ELEMENTARY SCHOOLWORK Report of Meeting Held at the Westminster Town Hall on Wed Nov 12th 1902 [13043] The Association was formed in 1897 and was disbanded in 1905. The Association’s aim, at its most basic, of promoting the employment of middle-class young women – ie those who had attended high schools – in working-class – ie elementary – schools. ‘Higher teachers are now at last waking up to the absolute necessity of training, and Elementary teachers are far more cultured than they were five or ten years ago.’16-pp pamphlet – good £4
159. ASSOCIATION OF ASSISTANT MISTRESSES Education Policy (with special reference to Secondary Education) AAM no date (1920s?) [13042] 4-pp leaflet. Good – ex-Board of Education library £2
160. ASSOCIATION OF HEAD MISTRESSES Nursing as a Profession 1923 [13040] 4-pp leaflet . Rather dog-eared- ex-Board of Education library £2
161. BINFIELD, Clyde Belmont’s Portias: Victorian nonconformists and middle-class education for girls Dr Williams’ Trust 1981 [9158] The 35th Friends of Dr Williams’s Library Lecture. Paper covers – 35pp – good – scarce £18
162. BUTLER, Josephine (ed) The Storm Bell Ladies’ National Association for the Abolition of State Regulation of Vice Feb 1899 [9802] Single issue. Contains the rather touching notice: ‘If there should occasionally be some delay or irregularity in the appearance of the Storm Bell, I beg my Friends to judge its Editor leniently….As I have no Sub-Editor, it will be understood that it is not always easy to prepare even so humble a periodical as this, in time to be out exactly at the right date.’ Fine – scarce £28
163. CHARITY ORGANISATION SOCIETY Right and Wrong as to School Feeding COS 1906 [9237] Facts and figures. Paper covers – 8pp – very good – unusual £18
164. CHARITY ORGANISATION SOCIETY D.R. Sharpe Centralised Registration of Assistance COS 1911 [9236] Paper read on 31 May 1911 at the Annual National Conference of Charity Organisation Societies. Paper covers – 14pp pamphlet – good – unusual £18
165. CHARITY ORGANISATION SOCIETY Miss Pike Friendly Visiting and Personal Service COS 1911 [9238] Paper read on 1 June 1911 at the Annual National Conference of Charity Organisation Societies. Paper covers – 11pp – good – a little foxing – unusual £20
166. CO-OPERATIVE HOLIDAYS ASSOCIATION [12798] 3-pp pamphlet, reprinted from ‘Modern Language Teaching’, June 1910, setting out the work of this Associaiton, which had begun by the Congregational Church in industrial Lancashire, together with
Annual Reports for the year ending Sept 30th, 1910 and Annual Report for the year ending Sept 30th 1911. Interesting – 3 items – the Annual Reports v good – the pamphlet rubbed and split (with no loss of text) – ex-Board of Education library – as a collection £15
167. COLLECTION OF FABIAN SOCIETY TRACTS ETC [13143] The collection comprises: 1) The Abolition of Poor Law Guardians (Fabian Tract 126), 1906; Socialism and Labor Policy (FT 127), 1906; 2) The Case for a Legal Minimum Wage (FT 128), 1906; 3) More Books To Read on Social and Economic Subjects (FT 129), 1906; 4) Miss L.B. Hutchins, Home Work and Sweating: the causes and the remedies (FT 130), 1907; 5) Sidney Webb, The Decline in the Birth-Rate (FT 131), 1907; 6) A Guide to Books For Socialists (FT 132), 1907; 7) The Rev Percy Dearmer, Socialism and Christianity (FT 133), 1907; 8) Small Holdings, Allotments, and Common Pastures (FT 134), 1907; 9) Sidney Webb, Paupers and Old Age Pensions (FT 135), 1907; 10) Edward Carpenter, The Villand and the Landlord (FT 136), 1907; 11) Parish Councils and Village Life (FT 137), 1908; 12) 22nd Annual Report on the work of the Fabian Society for year ended March 1905, reprinted1906; 13) 23rd Annual Report on the work of the Fabian Society for year ended March 1906, 1906; 14) 24th Annual Report on the work of the Fabian Society for the year ended March 1907, 1907; 15) Lecture List of the Fabian Society: London and Provinces, Sept 1907; 16) F. Lewis Donaldson, The Unemployed, Christian Social Union pamphlet no 14, 1907; 17) James Timewell, The Royal Commission on the Metropolitan Police, pub by the Police and Public Vigilance Society, c.1906; 18) Sybella Gurney, Co-operative Housing, pub by the Co-partnership Tenants’ Housing Council, c.1907; 19) John Nettlefold, Slum Reform and Town Planning: the Garden City idea applied to existing cities and their suburbs, c 1907. 19 pamphlets in cloth binding which bears the stamp of Westminster Public Libraries. Bookplate on front pastedown shows that it has been withdrawn from the Library. £35
168. FABIAN WOMEN’S GROUP Summary of Eight Papers and Discussions upon the Disabilities of Mothers as Workers Fabian Women’s Group (Private Circulation) 1910 [12973] Papers by Mrs Pember Reeves, Dr Ethel Vaughan-sawyer, Mrs Spence Weiss, Mrs Bartrick Baker, Mrs Stanbury, Mrs S.K. Ratcliffe, Miss B.L. Hutchins, Mrs O’Brien Harris. Paper covers – good £15
169. GIRL GUIDES Log of 2nd Worthing Ranger Company April-September 1927 [13127] An exercise book covered in linen with a handpainted Girl Guide trefoil on the front and dried specimens of the Company’s three patrols – Poppy, Oak and Silver Birch on the inside front cover. The title page has been lovingly decorated – and there are occasional drawings in the text and a few photographs of the girls at camp. The Log is a handwritten record of the Rangers’ activities in 6 months of 1927- recorded in some detail. The names of many of the girls and their leaders are mentioned. Unusual £35
170. GRONNO, Arthur The Woman M.P.: a Periol to Women and the Country Manchester Branch of the Women’s National Anti-Suffrage League, 2nd ed c. 1909 [13148] Originally published in 12 articles in the ‘Manchester Evening News’. Paper covers – 40pp – very good – very scarce £98
171. INDEPENDENT LABOUR PARTY What Socialism Means for Women ILP c 1905 [12757] ILP Leaflet No 6. ‘Socialism means freedom for women just as it does for men. It means enfranchising them…’ Worthy aims. Small – 4-pp leaflet £12
172. LIST, Alfred The Two Phases of The Social Evil Ogle and Murray (Edinburgh), 2nd ed 1861 [13142] A short study of prostitution in Scotland. The author was the Registration Examiner of Births, Deaths and Marriages in Scotland and includes tables showing the number of illegitimate births in various towns, relating them to the occupation of the mothers. He points out that ‘the sisterhood of the needle occupy the foremost place’ and draws the conclusion that the poor wages these women could demand forced them into prostitution. 47pp pamphlet bound into a modern cloth binding. Very good – scarce
173. LONDON INSTITUTE FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF PLAIN NEEDLEWORK Annual Report for the Year ending September 30th, 1909 1909 [13041] 24pp – good in card covers – ex-Board of Education library £8
174. MELLORS, Robert Evening School in the Villages of Nottinghamshire [13024] ‘An appeal to the ladies and gentlemen of every class in the county to aid in the formation and management of evening schools adapted to local industrial conditions.’ Mr Mellors was an alderman on Nottinghamshire County Council. 20-pp pamphlet – good – ex-Board of Education library
175. MINISTRY OF HEALTH Government Evacuation Scheme HMSO 1939 [12786] ‘Memo. Ev. 4′. All the details of the scheme to evacuate children, expectant mothers and the disabled from cities in the event of war. Probably missing a blue paper cover – otherwise good – 32pp – ex-Board of Education library £12
176. NATIONAL COUNCIL OF WOMEN Collection of Annual Report and Accounts [13157] Reports for 1961-1966 inclusive – and for 1968 and for 1975/6. Paper covers – good. 7 items – as a collection £10
177. NORWEGIAN JOINT COMMITTEE ON INTERNATIONAL SOCIAL POLICY The Status of Women in Norway Today 1953 [13173] Paper covers -67 pp – with photographs – with drawn from the Women’s Library £3
178. PALLISTER, Minnie Socialism for Women ILP no date [1924] [12759] ‘Not only the “Intelligent” Women but for all Women’ – with a nod to G.B. Shaw. Paper covers -18-pp pamphlet – good £18
179. PAUPER HOSPITALS AND SCHOOLS Return of ‘all district and separate pauper hospitals (including asylums of the Metropolitan Asylum District), also of district and separate pauper schools, built during the past ten years; giving the name of hospital or school; names of unions contribution; class of inmates; extent of area; cost of site; cost of building; number of inmates; exclusive of officers; cost per head on number to be accommodated; and number of inmates on 1 May 1885 HMSO 1885 [9205] 6 foolscap pages. Very good – disbound £20
180. REFORMATORIES AND INDUSTRIAL SCHOOLS (COMMITTALS) Returns showing the comparative number of committals of boys and girls to reformatories and industrial schools April 1872 [9150] ‘Shows comparative number of committals of boys and girls to reformatories and industrial schools in 1870, with the number of cases in which the parents have been charged with such payment towards their children’s cost at such schools as may be considered equal to the expense they are saved by so throwing their children on public support, together with a comparative statement of the number of cases in which such charge has been adjudged, with that of the charges actually recovered and regularly paid.’ Raw facts. 4 foolscap pp – disbound £28
181. SENIOR, Mrs Nassau Pauper Schools HMSO 1875 [10457] ‘Copy ”of a Letter addressed to the President of the Local Government Board by Mrs Nassau Senior, lately an Inspector of the Board, being a reply to the observation of Mr Tufnell, also a former inspector upon her report on pauper schools’. This was a follow-up to Mrs Senior’s 1874 report.
24pp – large format – disbound. £55
182. SIDGWICK, Mrs Henry University Education for Women Manchester University Press 1913 [12791] ‘Presidential Address delivered to the Education Society, Manchester University, on 21st November, 1912.’ Paper covers – 24pp – ex-Board of Education library – good £15
183. SIR HENRY JONES [11407] writes a glowing testimonial for his former pupil, Mabel Atkinson, a candidate for a lectureship at the University College of South Wales and Monmouthshire. She was a Fabian and a suffragette Fine £48
184. THE ASSOCIATION OF HEAD MISTRESSES List of Public Secondary Schools for Girls 1903 1903 [13045] Card covers – good – ex-Board of Education Library £10
185. THE ASSOCIATION OF HEAD MISTRESSES List of Public Secondary Schools for Girls 1905 1905 [13046] Card covers – good – ex-Board of Education library £10
186. THE ASSOCIATION OF HEADMISTRESSES Girls’ Patriotic Union of Secondary Schools: Subscription list for the ‘Star and Garter’ home at Richmond for sailors and soldiers totally disabled in the war 1916 [13044] List of schools that subscribed. The treasurer was Miss Gadesden of Blackheath High School. 1-p leaflet — ex-Board of Education library £2
187. WHITE, Florence The Spinsters Manifesto!!: a detailed statement of the case for contributory (non-retiring) pensions at 55 National Spinsters Pensions Association 1945 [11346] ‘We herewith present the case for pension consideration for single women at 55, trusting that after perusal you will be impressed by the reasonable nature of the reform advocated, agreeing with us that single women are indeed the OVERLOOKED SECTION in the present Social Insurance Proposals’. Pamphlet -12pp – fine £28
188. A WOMAN’S RIGHT TO CHOOSE Abortion Law Reform Association
Why we must fight the Abortion (Amendment) Bill and how to go about it [13197] 20-pp pamphlet giving ‘Some Information about the Abortion (Amendment) Bill’ – and including a ‘List of Members of Parliament who voted AGAINST the Bill’s Second Reading, 7 Feb 1975) £8
189. WOMEN’S UNIVERSITY SETTLEMENT FOR WORK IN THE POORER DISTRICTS OF LONDON Fifteenth Annual Report WUS March 1902 [13038] Packed with names of subscribers as well as a report of the work accomplished by the Settlement. Paper covers – good -ex-Board of Education library £18
Real Photographic Postcards
190. CLARK’S COLLEGE, CIVIL SERVICE Preparing for the Lady Clerk’s G.P.O. Exam [9233] Photograph of the young women preparing for this exam which, if they passed, offered a chance of bettering themselves. Very good – unposted £12
191. HORTICULTURAL COLLEGE FOR WOMEN, HEXTABLE [12876] real photographic postcard of Hextable House, home of Swanley Horticultural College (for details of which see Crawford, ‘Enterprising Women: the Garretts and their circle’). The card was posted on 19 Jan 1918 from, I assume, a student to her mother, with the message ‘Have arrived safely.’ Good £8
192. MERCHANT TAYLORS’ SCHOOL FOR GIRLS [11781] Real photographic postcard of the exterior of the Crosby, Liverpool, girls’ school. The ink message on the back includes ‘The view is of Aunty Nina’s school..’ and continues onto the front of the card on white space to the side of the photograph. Posted in, I think, 1933. Good £10
Fiction
193. BAILLIE, Joanna A Series of Plays in which it is attempted to delineate the stronger passions of the mind Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme, & Brown, a new edition 1821 [2509] A handsome set – newly rebound in cloth £120
194. MCLEOD, Irene Rutherford Songs to Save a Soul Chatto and Windus 1916 (7th ed) [13186] A collection of poems. An introductory note states that some had been previously published in, amongst other journals, ‘Votes for Women’. Irene McLeod had been a member of the WSPU’s Young Purple, White and Green Association and of its Drummers’ Union. Very good £20
195. MAZZANTINI, Margaret Don’t Move Chatto & Windus 2004 [8907] A novel with a Roman setting. Soft covers – uncorrected proof copy – fine £6
196. MOGGACH, Deborah In The Dark Chatto 2007 [10805] A very readable novel – set in the First World War. Fine in d/w £7
197. PROCTER, Adelaide Anne Legends and Lyrics Bell & Daldy, 14th ed 1872 [1585] Poems by a leading member of the Langham-Place group. very good – leather, with gilt decorations and all edges gilt £28
198. SIGOURNEY, Mrs (ed. F.W.N. Bailey) The Poetical Works of Mrs L.H. Sigourney G. Routledge 1857 [2428] Neatly rebound in cloth £20
199. SINCLAIR,Catherine Modern Society; or, the March of the Intellect William Whyte 1837 [10803] Very good in half-leather and marbled boards £20
200. SPARK, Muriel Territorial Rights Macmillan 1979 [8910] Set in Venice. Very good in d/w £12
201. SWAN, Annie S. Aldersyde: a Border story of seventy years ago Oliphant, Anderson, & Ferrier 1885 (r/p) [9697] Good reading copy – cover marked £8
202. SWAN, Annie S. Carlowrie: or, among Lothian folk Oliphant, Anderson and Ferrier, no date, reprint (1890s?) [9696] Good reading copy £8
203. SWAN, Annie S. The Secret Panel Oliphant, Anderson & Ferrier 1896 (r/p [9701] Very good in decorative binding £8
204. SWAN, Annie S. The Strait Gate S.W. Partridge, no date (1890s?) [9706] Good in decorative binding £8
205. TRAVERS, Graham [pseud of Margaret Todd] Mona MacLean: medical student William Blackwood, 14th ed 1899 [11784] Novel written by Sophia Jex-Blake’s friend and biographer. Cover marked – scarce £38
206. YONGE, Charlotte M. A Book of Golden Deeds T. Nelson, no date, reprint [9698] Good reading copy £5
Suffrage Non-fiction
207. BLACKBURN, Helen (ed) A Handbook for Women engaged in social and political work J.W. Arrowsmith 1895 [3534] Packed with information and names; Helen Blackburn’s precise intelligence shines through. Two pull-out diagrams. Very good – and very scarce £80
208. CAMPBELL, Olwen W. The Feminine Point of View Williams & Norgate 1952 [4231] The report of a Conference which began in the winter of 1947 and included among its members Teresa Billington-Greig and Margery Corbett Ashby. Olwen Campbell was the daughter of Mary Ward, who had been the leading light of the Cambridge Association for Women’s Suffrage. Very good in d/w £18
209. GIBSON, Sir John The Emancipation of Women Gwasg Gomer 1992 [10973] First published in 1891. Gibson was editor of the ‘Cambrian News’ between 1875-1915 and a strong supporter of women’s suffrage in Wales. Soft covers – mint £12
210. KENT, Susan Sex and Suffrage in Britain, 1860-1914 Princeton University Press 1987 [1361] Fine in d/w (which has one slight nick) £20
211. MARTIN, Anna Mother and Social Reform NUWSS 1913 [11478] Two articles reprinted from the ‘Nineteenth Century and After’ issues of May and June 1913 as a booklet. Anna Martin, deeply concerned about the level of infant mortality and general ill-health of poor women and children, argues for easier separation in cases where the husband and father is neglectful or worse, the right of women to a ‘maintenance’ that is in some way defined. With a membership form for the NUWSS tipped in at the front, and a subscription form to ‘The Common Cause’ at the back. Paper covers (with a few nicks at edges) – very good condition -64pp £45
212. OWEN, Harold Woman Adrift: the menace of suffragism Stanley Paul [1912] [13140] Anti-suffrage polemic by a playwright and journalist.. Good – scarce £55
213. PANKHURST, Sylvia The Suffragette: the history of the women’s militant suffrage movement 1905-1910 The Woman’s Journal (Boston) 1911 [4798] This history of the British militant suffrage movement was first published in the USA – this copy bears the pinprick library mark of Louisville Free Public Library – very good – scarce £85
214. PETHICK-LAWRENCE, Frederick The Women’s Fight for the Vote The Woman’s Press 1910 [13138] One of the classics of the women’s suffrage campaign. Very good internally – delightfully decorated cover (purple and gold) slightly rubbed and faded- – very scarce £150
215. RUBINSTEIN, David Before the Suffragettes: women’s emancipation in the 1890s Harvester 1986 [13158] Soft covers – very good £15
216. SEAWELL, Molly Elliot The Ladies’ Battle Macmillan Co (NY) 1911 [11143] She was an American novelist who here argues against women’s suffrage, maintaining that if women were to vote an unlooked-for ‘general revolution’ would be inaugurated. Good – uncommon £38
217. STOPES, Charlotte Carmichael British Freewomen: their historical privilege Swan Sonnenschein, 3rd ed 1907 [13137] An important volume in the historiography of the women’s suffrage movement. Mrs Stopes made use of material collected by Helen Blackburn. Good. £65
Suffrage Biography
218. (LESLIE) ‘Henrietta Leslie’ (pseudonym of Gladys Schutze) More Ha’pence Than Kicks; being some things remembered MacDonald, 2nd imp 1943 [11239] Her autobiography – she was a keen supporter of the WSPU – gave shelter to Mrs Pankhurst at her house in Chelsea. Good internally – cover rubbed – quite scarce £19
219. (LYTTON) Lady Betty Balfour (ed) Letters of Constance Lytton William Heinemann 1925 [10628] Very good – in purple cloth, with design by Syvlia Pankhurst on front cover £68
220. (MILL) John Stuart Mill Autobiography Longmans, Green 1873 [1463] First edition. Good – in rubbed half leather and marbled boards £55
221. (PANKHURST) Barbara Castle Sylvia and Christabel Pankhurst Penguin 1987 [13160] Paper covers – very good £5
222. (PANKHURST) Richard Pankhurst Sylvia Pankhurst: artist and crusader Paddington Press 1979 [13162] Fully illustrated study of her work as an artist. Very good £12
Suffrage Fiction
223. ARMOUR, Margaret Agnes of Edinburgh Andrew Melrose 1911 [3719] A novel of its time – the suffrage movement although not central to the plot – flows along behind, occasionally breaking the surface in a discussion of women’s rights and attitudes to the campaign. Interesting – very scarce – I’ve only seen it previously in the Briitish Library. Very good in rubbed paper wrapper – with a little card inlaid – showing that it had been presented to Nesta Prichard, of Form Vb, as a prize for mathematics. £55
224. ETHELMER, Ellis Woman Free Women’s Emancipation Union 1893 [13144] ‘Woman Free’ is a 32-page poem – enhanced by c 200 pp of notes revealing a wide range of reading – Richard Jefferies, Tennyson, Geddes and Thomson’s Evolution of Sex , Mary Wollstonecraft; Westermarck’s History of Human Marriage, Walt Whitman, Ruskin, and J.S. Mill. Its central idea is that men’s sexual violence and exploitation of women followed from their destruction of the Matriarchate. Elizabeth Wolstenholme Elmy, the begetter of the Women’s Emancipation Union, and her busband, Ben, jointly used the pseudonym ‘Ellis Ethelmer’. Interesting and idiosyncratic. Good – and very scarce. I cannot remember that I have ever had a copy in stock before – certainly this is the first time this century. £95
225. JOHNSTON, Mary Hagar Constable 1913 [1344] Includes mention of the US women’s suffrage campaign. Very good £12
226. JOHNSTON, Sir Harry Mrs Warren’s daughter: a story of the women’s movement Chatto & Windus 1920 [1342] A suffrage novel. Very good – presentation copy from the author’s wife £85
227. LUCAS, E.V. Mr Ingleside Methuen, 7th eds, no date 1910912?) [1397] A novel with suffrage scenes. Very good £15
228. MASSIE, Chris Esther Vanner Sampson Low, Marston & Co no date (1937) [1436] The heroine is a suffragette. Very good in d/w £85
229. PAGE, Gertrude The Winding Paths Hurst & Blackett c 1911 [8th ed] [12888] A novel with a suffrage theme. ‘The men call them “new Women” with derision, or mannish, or unsexed; but those who have been among them, and known them as friends, know that they hold in their ranks some of th most generous-hearted, unselfish, big-souled women who exist in England to-day…One such as the best of these was Ethel Hayward..’ Good £20
230. ROBERTS, Katherine Pages From the Diary of a Militant Suffragette Garden City Press 1910 [11202] There has been some doubt about whether this is an autobiography or fiction. I tend to think that it is fiction – clearly written by an active suffragette – but am not further forward about who Katherine Roberts was. Extremely interesting – and vivid. Paper covers – a little chipped – but a very good copy – clean and tight – of a very scarce book £250
231. ROBINS, Elizabeth The Convert Women’s Press 1980 [11672] Her suffrage novel. Reprint of the 1907 edition – with an introduction by Jane Marcus £9
232. SAUTER, Lilian Through High Windows Curtis & Davison (11a Church St, Kensington) 1911 [12880] Poems. Includes ‘Woman’s Plea for Suffrage’ and ‘Woman’s Song of Freedom.’. The latter was set to music by Annette Hullah and published by the London Society for Women’s Suffrage £25
233. SHAW, Bernard Press Cuttings: a topical sketch compiled from the editorial and correspondence columns of the Daily Papers Constable & Co no date (1909) [13000] as performed by the Civic and Dramatic Guild at the Royal Court Theatre, London, on the 9th July 1909. A suffragette play. In grey card covers a little chipped at edge £35
234. TEMPEST, Evelyn [pseud. of Edward Cuming] The Doubts of Diana Hodder & Stoughton [1911/12] [12881] Light-hearted novel – with the heroine taking part in a suffragette raid akin to ‘Black Friday’ ['The rumour that Govenment had thoughts of employing policemen from other parts of London was lightly discredited; everybody was sure no such thing would be done, even by the new Home Secretary'] and ending up in a police court. Good in original binding £28
235. TREVELYAN, Sir G.O. Ladies in Parliament, Horace at Athens, and other pieces George Bell, new edition 1888 [1736] ‘”The Ladies in Parliament” was composed during the the great agitation which followed the rejection of Mr Gladstone’s Reform Bill of 1866′. Very good £25
236. WHITE, Percy To-Day Tauchnitz 1913 [12885] A very readable novel – with suffrage taking central stage – alongside criticism of the divorce laws. The heroine, as in ‘Ann Veronica’, is prepared to sacrifice her social position for the Cause and enter into a legal pact rather than a conventional marriage. Paper covers – good – scarce £18
Suffrage Ephemera
237. ANTI-SUFFRAGE CAMPAIGN [13053] Typed letter, dated 18 July 1910, from George Calderon, Acting Secretary to the Campaign Committee, on note paper headed ‘Anti-Suffrage Campaign’ and giving the names of committee members and the office address (Palace Chambers, Bridge Street, Westminster, S.W.) The letter thanks an MP for the ‘really splendid speech’ he gave ‘on Saturday’. Very good £25
238. BODICHON, Mrs Reasons for the Enfranchisement of Women London National Society for Women’s Suffrage, no date late 1860s? [9519] Printed by Head, Hole & Co, Farringdon Street and Ivy Lane, E.C. Scarce and important pamphlet -8pp – good £250
239. CALLING ALL WOMEN: Newsletter of the Suffragette Fellowship Suffragette Fellowship 1963 [13171] Issue for February 1963 – with photograph of bronze statuette of Christabel Pankhurst by Sir Charles Wheeler on the cover and inside a report of the unveiling at Peaslake of a portrait and plaque recording the work of Emmeline and Frederick Pethick Lawrence and a review of Mary Gawthorpe’s memoir, ‘Up Hill to Holloway’. Very good £30
240. CALLING ALL WOMEN: Newsletter of the Suffragette Fellowship Suffragette Fellowship 1971 [13172] Issue for 1971 – with photograph of the statue of Mrs Pankhurst on the cover and inside a photograph and report of the unveiling of the suffrage memorial in front of Caxton Hall, together with a short autobiographical piece by Grace Roe Very good £30
241. CONSERVATIVE AND UNIONIST WOMEN’S FRANCHISE ASSOCIATION A Reply to the Anti-Suffragists CUWFA [13191] 4-pp leaflet written by Annesley Horsfall. Pages detached – edges very nicked – but text untouched. Withdrawn from the Women’s Library £12
242. CORONATION PROCESSION 17 June 1911 [11274] A stereoscope photograph of ‘The Empire Car’ – part of the ‘Pageant of Empire’ part of the procession staged by the suffrage societies to mark the Coronation of George V. Very good £95
243. DAILY GRAPHIC 7 May 1913 [8536] The front page is devoted to an interior view of the destruction of St Catherine’s Church, Hatcham – inside there is another photograph of the fire – with fire engine. Also a report of the defeat of the Dickinson Bill proposing a measure of women’s enfranchisement. Complete issue – very good £18
244. DAVIES, Emily Parliamentary Franchise for Women 1904 [13066] A 4-pp pamphlet, a reprint of a letter written to the Editor of ‘The Times’ on 31 March 1904. Emily Davies had, of course, been an instigator of the suffrage movement 38 years previously and noted that ‘within the last 20 years a marked change has taken place in public opinion in regard to it. The tone of mingled disapproval and derision, once so common, has to a great extent disappeared, and a disposition is shown to give the quesion a fair hearing, with an undertone of prophecy that “it will come”‘. The pamphlet is not credited to any specific suffrage society, but was, presumably, sold by the NUWSS. Fragile, chipped at edges – unusual – and scarce £55
245. ELMY, Elizabeth Wostenholme Woman’s Franchise: the need of the hour ILP 2nd ed, no date [1907] [12760] A campaigner for women’s suffrage since the mid-1860s, she had put aside a lifetime’s aversion to party politics and joined the Manchester ILP in 1904. This article was originally published in the ‘Westminster Review’. In her concise style she analyses the events of the previous 40 years and demands that Liberal MPs who profess to support women’s suffrage honour their pledges. £65
246. FAWCETT, Mrs Henry Home and Politics an address delivered at Toynbee Hall and elsewhere Women’s Printing Society 1894 [12939] A much reproduced speech – first given c 1890. This printing does not bear a date but probably c 1900. It carries the ownership stamp of Margaret Clark, Street, Somerset who in 1909 married Arthur Gillett – so probably predates 1909. 8pp – a little creased and marked – but tight £35
247. HILL, MISS OCTAVIA Women and the Suffrage 1910 [13150] 2-sided leaflet, reproducing a letter from Octavia Hill to the Editor of the ‘Times’, dated 14 July 1910. In this she repudiates the necessity of votes for women – ‘Let the woman seek the quiet paths of helpful real work, be set on finding where she is wanted, on her duties, not on her rights…’ The 2-sided leaflet was printed by the National Press Agency Ltd and does not carry the imprimatur of the anti-suffrage society, although I imagine that group was probably behind its publication, the NPA being their usual printer. Good – very scarce £68
248. IN MEMORIAM Rt Hon Lord and Lady (Emmeline) Pethick-Lawrence of Peaslake [13195] 4-pp leaflet describing the various commemorations of the lives of the Pethick-Lawrences. Issued by the Suffragette Fellowship under the names of Lady (Helen) Pethick-Lawrence and Grace Roe. Good £15
249. INTERNATIONAL WOMAN SUFFRAGE CONGRESS [13134] Budapest June 15-20 1913. This is a small advertising paper label (double-sided) for the Congress – showing two graceful women stretching their arms, to hold hands across the globe. The type-face is very 1913. A pretty and interesting memento of the last pre-war international women’s gathering. Fine -amazingly ephemeral – and unusual £85
250. L’UNION FRANCAISE POUR LE SUFFRAGE DES FEMMES La Charte de la Femme 1910 [13192] par Jean Finot suivie d’une Enquete sur le Vote Politique des Femmes en France. 60 pp – fair – paper covers present but detached £8
251. LEIGH SMITH, Barbara A Brief Summary in Plain Language of the Most Important Laws Concerning Women; together with a few observations thereon Holyoake & Co, 2nd edition revised with addition 1856 [9033] Barbara Leigh Smith (later Barbara Bodichon) was 27 years old when she wrote this pamphlet, first published in 1854 as part of her campaign to change the Married Women’s Property Acts. This pamphlet is extremely scarce (I have never had a copy for sale before), bound inside recent paper covers. Rather amusingly, the printed price of ‘Threepence’ has been scored through and ’1 1/2 d’ added – a comment, presumably, then on the interest being shown in the campaign by a public not yet awakened to the cause. Very good £280
252. LENNOX, Geraldine The Suffragette Spirit The Suffragette Fellowship 1932 [12960] One of the series of ‘Suffragette Lectures’ – given at Caxton Hall on 17 Nov 1931. Paper covers – good internally -although has been folded. Paper covers carry many shelf marks – withdrawn from the Woman’s Library – scarce £40
253. LONDON AND NATIONAL SOCIETY FOR WOMEN’S SERVICE Report, October 1st 1938 to March 31st 1943 [13194] A Report giving details of how Women’s Service House fared during the early years of the war (bombed) and where the Library was accommodated (Oxford) – together with details of the Society’s perilous financial postition. Good £25
254. LONDON SOCIETY FOR WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE [12935] single-sheet leaflet setting out the LSWS’s ‘Policy’.Printed by the Women’s Printing Society sometime after 1910 (the year in which the Society moved to 58 Victoria Street – the address given). Very good £15
255. MCCABE, Joseph Woman in Political Evolution Watts & Co 1909 [9803] An overview -from ‘ Woman Before Civilisation’ to ‘The Moral Base of Enfranchisement.’Paper wrappers – one nick at spine eats into the margin of a few pages -and a tiny bit of text is lost on two pages, but does not interfere with reading. £28
256. MCLAREN, Lady ‘Better and Happier’: An Answer from the Ladies’ Gallery to the Speeches in Opposition to the Women’s Suffrage Bill, February 28th, 1908 T. Fisher Unwin 1908 [13102] I have always been rather an admirer of Laura McLaren and her straight-forward prose. 46-pp – paper covers present but detached – text otherwise good and tight – scarce £75
257. (MARSH) Suffragette Fellowship Memories of Charlotte Marsh published for the Suffragette Fellowship by Marion Lawson June 1961 [12979] Paper covers – tribute to a leading WSPU activist – 20-pp pamphlet -card covers reproduces her hunger strike medal. Good -carries library marks – withdrawn from the Women’s Library. Scarce £30
258. MEN’S LEAGUE FOR OPPOSING WOMAN SUFFRAGE Gladstone on Woman Suffrage MLOWS c. 1909 [13146] The Men’s League for Opposing Woman Suffrage was founded in early 1909 and in 1910 merged with the Women’s National Anti-Suffrage League to form the National League for Opposing Woman Suffrage. This pamphlet – reproducing the Grand Old Man’s words on the subject is pamphlet no 3 issued by the Men’s League, presumably quite soon after its founding in 1909. 4-pp – good, with some foxing, scarce £78
259. MEN’S LEAGUE FOR OPPOSING WOMAN SUFFRAGE Is Woman Suffrage A Logical Outcome of Democracy? MLOWS c 1909 [13147] Pamphlet no 6 published by the short-lived Men’s League for Opposing Woman Suffrage. 4-pp – very good – scarce £60
260. MILL, Mrs Stuart (Harriet Taylor Mill) The Enfranchisement of Women Trubner & Co 1868 [12964] A reissue, in pamphlet form, of the important article that Harriet Taylor contributed to the ‘Westminster Review’ in 1851. Paper covers – back cover has a tear across – front cover has several library shelf marks – withdrawn from the Women’s Libary. But internally good – and scarce £75
261. MISS MORGAN, OF BRECON The Duties of Citizenship Women’s Local Government Society c 1912 [12946] Extracts reprinted from a paper read at the Annual Conference of the National Union of Women Workers, Manchester, October 27th 1896. By the time this leafet was issued Miss Morgan had beed Mayor of Brecon, 1911-12. 4-pp – good – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £15
262. NATIONAL LEAGUE FOR OPPOSING WOMAN SUFFRAGE The ‘Conciliation’ Bill: Revised Version NLOWS no date (1911) [13152] The 2-sided leaflet, no 33 in the series, is headed ‘Against Votes for Women’ and ends with ‘Vote and Work Against Votes For Women In Parliamentary Affairs’. Very good – very scarce £75
263. NATIONAL LEAGUE FOR OPPOSING WOMAN SUFFRAGE Mr J.R. Tolmie’s Reply to Mr L. Housman’s Pamphlet NLOWS no date (1913) [13145] The pamphlet of Laurence Housman’s to which this refers is ‘The Physical Force Fallacy’. Pamphlet no 37 issued by the National League for Opposing Woman Suffrage. 4-pp – very good £65
264. NATIONAL LEAGUE FOR OPPOSING WOMAN SUFFRAGE Woman Suffrage and the Factory Acts NLOWS no date [13155] A 4-pp leaflet, no 8 in the NLOWS series, pointing out that the ‘Women’s Party’ (ie pro-suffrage campaigners) were opposed to the ‘humane acts’ limiting women’s work in factory etc because ‘most of them harbour such a jealous mistrust of men that they suppose even their evidently disinterested actions to be prompted by insidious and harmful motive.’ The leaflet concludes ‘To grant women the franchise would therefore be to raise a fresh obstacle in the way of progress and to defer reforms still necessary for the welfare of the working classes..’ Very good – very scarce £75
265. NATIONAL SOCIETY FOR WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE CENTRAL COMMITTEE: First Report of the Executive Committee presented at the General Meeting of the Central Committee held on Wednesday 17 July 1872 National Society for Women’s Suffrage 1872 [12931] See my ‘Women’s Suffrage Movement: a reference guide’ as to how and why the Central Committee came into being. This – the Committee’s first report, contains lists of names of members of the Committee, of subscribers, and of the Local Committtes around England and Scotland that affiliated to the Central. In original paper covers – rubbed – very scarce £95
266. NATIONAL UNION OF WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE SOCIETIES [3986] with the Men’s League (Portsmouth branches) – Programme for an evening meeting that began with a musical recital, followed by the singing of suffrage songs (the words are printed – one of them is by Margaret O’Shea, sister of the secretary of the Portsmouth NUWSS society and then a speech by Lady Balfour followed by more singing and then a closing speech by Alice Abadam. Interestingly the Vote of Thanks is seconded by Alderman Sanders, LCC, who in 1908 was Labour parliamentary candidate for Portsmouth and whose wife, Beatrice, was financial secretary to the WSPU. I think this programme may date from 1908 – because there is a mention at its foot of an Exhibition of Banners (Fuller’s tea Rooms, Palmerston Road) – and such exhibitions were common after the June 1908 Hyde Park rally. 1 sheet -good £180
267. NATIONAL UNION OF WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE SOCIETIES Final Report of the Professional Women’s Patriotic Service Fund NUWSS Oct 1915 [12943] ‘The Fund began work in Jan 1915, when a Committee was formed for the purpose of assisting professional women, by paying their salaries and offering their services to organisations which are dealing with war needs.’ I knew nothing of this short-lived Fund before reading this Report. It lists, on the one had, donors and, on the other, the positions in which they had placed needy ‘professional’ women. The Fund was wound up when it became clear that its services were no longer required. The Committee included, among others, Mrs Auerbach, Mrs Fawcett, Catherine Marshall, Ray Strachey, Dr Jane Walker – and its secretary was Kathleen Courtney. 12pp – good – scarce £50
268. NATIONAL UNION OF WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE SOCIETIES Memorial of Head Mistresses of Girls’ Public Secondary Schools NUWSS 1909 [12934] ‘The headmistresses who signed this Memorial asked Mr Asquith to receive a deputation in order that they might lay their views before him in person. This request was refused.’ Text of the memorial forwarded to Asquith in June 1909 – listing all those who had signed it. 16-pp pamphlet – goodish – a bit creased around the edges £35
269. NATIONAL WOMEN’S SOCIAL AND POLITICAL UNION Second Annual Report Woman’s Press 1908 [12972] Includes long list of subscribers, the WSPU financial accounts, and details of their activitis during 1907. Good internall – paper covers present, but detached. Scarce £95
270. NATIONAL WOMEN’S SOCIAL AND POLITICAL UNION Second Year Intermediate Report NWSPU 1907 [12981] Includes financial accounts for six months ending 31 Aug 1907 – together with a description of the WSPU’s activities and a list of subscribers. This was published after Mrs Despard etc had broken away to form the WFL. Fair – paper covers present but detached. Scarce £95
271. NEVINSON, Henry W Women’s Vote and Men WFL no date (1910?) [12978] Reprinted from ‘The English Review’. 11-pp pamphlet, original paper covers with library shelf marks. Fair – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £15
272. OSLER, Mrs A.C. Why Women Need the Vote Templar Press (Birmingham) no date (1910) [13126] 55-pp pamphlet by the doyenne of the Birmingham Women’s Suffrage Society. According to COPAC the only copies held by UK libraries are at Birmingham and the Women’s Library. Good internally – paper covers damaged and with shelf marks – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £45
273. PANKHURST, EMMELINE ET AL Suffrage Speeches From the Dock: Conspiracy Trial, Old Bailey, May 15th-22nd 1912 The Woman’s Press, no date (1912) [12965] The speeches given during their trial for conspiracy by Mrs Pankhurst, Mrs Pethick-Lawrence, Mr Pethick Lawrence and Tim Healy (counsel for the defence). They were reprinted and published by the WSPU’s publishing arm, the Woman’s Press. Fair – first 4 pages present but detached – spine reinforced with sellotape – paper covers chipped and carry library shelf marks – withdrawn from the Women’s Library- extremely scarce £55
274. PHILLIPS, Mary The Militant Suffrage Campaign privately printed 1957 [11357] ‘This pamphlet is designed to tell in a concise form the story of the ‘Votes for Women Canpaign’ and to explain the reasoned policy on which it was based.’ Mary Phillips had been a leading WSPU organizer. Soft covers – 15pp – scarce £65
275. PUNCH CARTOON [12766] 30 Nov 1910, scene is a suffragette demonstration, ‘Votes for Women’ flags flying. Two young street urchins observe and comment. Caption is ‘Man of the World (lighting up), “Well ‘ave to give it ‘em, I expect, Chorlie”‘. Half-page illustration £10
276. PUNCH CARTOON [12767] 13 July 1910, full-page – the caption is ‘Excelsior!’ as Suffragist puts her shoulder to the boulder of ‘Women’s Suffrage’ and says, ‘It’s no good talking to me about Sisyphus; he was only a man’ £10
277. PUNCH CARTOON [12768] 13 March 1912, full-page, suffragettes wield hammers in the background as Roman-type matron, bearing a paper labelled ‘Woman’s Suffrage’ comments ‘To think that, after all these years, I should be the first martyr’. the heading is ‘In the House of Her Friends’ £10
278. PUNCH CARTOON [12769] 23 January 1918 – A St Joan figure holds the ‘Woman’s Franchise’ banner and, with arms outstretched, cries out ‘At Last’. Full page – very good £12
279. PUNCH CARTOON [12770] 20 July 1910, Asquith is placing The Women’s Suffrage Bill on an overhead shelf and saying to the assembled cabinet, ‘Well, Gentlemen, now that your individual consciences had had their fling, let’s get to work again’. Just so. Very good £10
280. PUNCH CARTOON [12772] 10 January 1912 -full page – ‘United We Differ’. Lloyd George and Lewis Harcourt are back to back on a platform. Lloyd George addressing his side, where a Votes for Women’ banner is to be seen, cries ‘Votes for Women! Don’t you listen to my esteemed colleague!’. While addressing his, male, crowd cries ‘No Votes for Women! My esteemed colleague is talking nonsense!’. Asquith’s cabinet was split on this issue. Very good £10
281. PUNCH CARTOON [12773] 5 Oct 1927 -full-page - The Conservative Party (in the guise of one four-plussed chap in a shooting party) looks at a young flapperish women taking a gun from the ghillie and says ‘I hope she’s got enough ‘intutition’ not to let off in my direction’. The explanation is given: ‘The question of extended suffrage for women (in whose ‘intutition’ Mr Baldwin reposes so much confidence) will be raised at the approaching Conference of the Conservative Party.’ £10
282. PUNCH CARTOON [12775] 21 October 1908 – full page – two burglars ‘on the way to suburban night-work’ pass a line of policemen marching in the opposite direction. The wallposter announces a Votes for Women demonstration in Parliament Square – and the burglars agree that ‘sufferajits’ are a good thing, keeping the police occupied they we they do. £10
283. PUNCH CARTOON [12776] 2 December 1908 – a Bernard Partridge full-length illustration shows Asquith (Andromedus) chained to his rock – beset by the sea monster taunting him with her Votes for Women triton and searching for salvation from Persea – the Women’s National Anti-Suffrage League. Very good £12
284. PUNCH CARTOON [12777] 21 January 1912 – full page – ‘The Suffrage Split’. Sir George Askwith (the charismatic industrial conciliator), as ‘Fairy Peacemaker’, has tamed the dragon of the Cotton Strike – and Asquith, wrestling to keep a seat on the Cabinet horse turns to him ‘Now that you’ve charmed yon dragon I shall need ye to stop the strike inside this fractious gee-gee.’ £10
285. PUNCH CARTOON [12778] 21 October 1908 – c. half-page – two effete anti-suffragist club loafers – the one to the other, ‘The idea of their wantin’ to be like us!’ and the response ‘Yes, makin’ themselves utterly ridiculous!’. £8
286. PUNCH CARTOON [12779] 7 December 1910 – small cartoon captioned ‘Voter’s Vertigo’. Yet another general election is at hand and the poor voter is in a frightful spin as he wrestles with ‘don’t tax the poor man’s dreadnought’; ‘home rule for suffragettes’ and ‘two power standard for the house of lords’ £6
287. SCOTCHMEN AT DOWNING STREET Speeches by the Delegates 18 July 1913 [12936] The ‘Scotchmen’ were the Northern Men’s Federation for Women’s Suffrage founded by Maud Arncliffe-Sennett with the purpose of taking a deputation to see Asquith. The intention was that the deputation should, for maximum publicity, be timed to coincide with the arrival of the NUWSS ‘Pilgrims’ in London. Asquith, however, held true to his word – repeated on several occasions – that he would no receive the deputation. This pamphlet, which they had prepared in advance, contains the speeches they would have given. The ‘Scotchmen’ were, in the main, members of the Edinburgh and Glasgow city council and the deputation stressed its non-party credentials. 16-pp in card covers – in good condition – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £60
288. SNOWDEN, Philip The Dominant Issue Feb 1913 [12945] A comment on the ‘Franchise Bill fiasco’ – that is, Asquith’s promise that a Manhood Suffrage Bill would be amended to include women – and the Speaker’s eventual ruling that such an amendment would destroy the Bill. Pamphlet reproducing an article first published in ‘The Christian Commonwealth’ . Good – a little foxed and grubby £25
289. STRACHEY, Philippa Memorandum On The Position of English Women In Relation to That of English Men London & National Society for Women’s Service 1935 [12985] 23-pp pamphlet. Paper covers, goodish condition, withdrawn from the Women’s Library £12
290. STRACHEY, Ray The Women’s Movement in Great Britain: a short summary of its rise, methods and victories National Council of Women of Great Britain no date (c 1928) [13109] A pamphlet abridged from Strachey’s ‘The Cause’. Chipped and rubbed – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £10
291. SUFFRAGETTE FELLOWSHIP Roll of Honour Suffragette Prisoners 1905-1914 Suffragette Fellowship no date [1966] [13107] 16-pp, double column, listing all the suffragette prisoners that the Suffragette Fellowship knew of. A couple of names have been added in ink. Internally fine – cover has shelf markings etc – withdrawn from the Women’s Library. Scarce £150
292. THE ANNUAL CELEBRATION OF THE BIRTHDAY OF MRS EMMELINE PANKHURST [12986] will take place on Friday 14th July 1939. Single sheet leaflet setting out the plans for the celebration and a list of the societies that were supporting the occasion. Good £20
293. THE BISHOP OF LONDON The Claim of Justice Church League for Women’s Suffrage 1914 [12940] ‘A speech delivered in the House of Lords in support of the Earl of Selborne’s Women’s Enfranchisement Bill, 5th May, 1914′. 14pp in yellow card covers – small format – printed by Francis & Co, The Athenaeum Press, which did so much to further the suffrage cause. Good – scarce – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £40
294. THE CATHOLIC CITIZEN [13016] ‘Organ of St Joan’s Alliance (formerly the Catholic Women’s Suffrage Society) 15 May 1963. fair – withdrawn from the Women’s Library – together £4
295. THE EARL OF LYTTON The House of Lords and Women’s Suffrage P.S. King for the NUWSS 1914 [12944] Speech given on 6 May 1914 in a debate on the private member’s bill introduced by Lord Selborne which would have enfranchised municpal women voters. Very good – 36pp in card covers £45
296. THE REV. F.M. GREEN The Clergy and Politics Church League for Women’s Suffrage no date, c 1913 [12941] CLWS pamphlets No 4 – printed by Francis & Co. 8-pp – a little creased – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £25
297. The Suffragee [13004] I’m suffering from a suff-e-ragette
Suffering sore you can see
Since my wife’s joined the suffragists
I’ve been a suffragee
Sings Jock Mills on this Homophon Company (6816) record. I haven’t listened to the record – no longer have a suitable player. Surface, to my untutored eye, looks rather marked – the label is in good condition. But it has survived. ‘Recorded in London. Pressed in Berlin’ Scarce £95
298. THE WOMEN’S BULLETIN: organ of the Women’s Freedom League WFL [13068] 10 issues from 1957-1961. The Bulletin, usually 4 or 5 mimeographed, stapled pages covering feminist issues, was by the late 1950s/60s produced irregularly. These issues, by no means a complete run for the period, give a flavour of the concerns of the day. Lilian Lenton was the editor and Teresa Billington-Greig was still a contributor. Together £50
299. VOTES FOR WOMEN, 16 August 1912 [13190] Complete copy – although the pages are detached. The main news in this issue is of the sentencing in Dublin of Mary Leigh and Gladys Evans. Fair reading copy – scarce £60
300. VOTES FOR WOMEN, 26 July 1912 [13188] An incomplete copy – pp 693-698 (inc) and 703-708 (inc) – but gives a flavour £30
301. VOTES FOR WOMEN, 27 September 1912 [13176] At this date the paper, owned and edited by Emmeline and Frederick Pethick-Lawrence, was still the mouthpiece of the WSPU. However this issue contains both news of the Pethick-Lawrences’ imminent return from Canada and that of the WSPU’s move from Clement’s Inn to Lincoln’s Inn House. The two items – and that describing the large meeting to be held in the Albert Hall – were not unconnected, I think. This is one of the last issues of the paper before the Pethick-Lawrences were ousted from the WSPU. In fair condition – splits on spine – and some annotation, probably contemporary. Scarce £95
302. VOTES FOR WOMEN, 9 June 1911 [13189] Incomplete copy – pp 589-592 (inc) and 601-604 (inc) – but gives a flavour. The WSPU is planning the Coronation Procession. £30
303. WIDDOWSON, Florence The Power of the Vote ILP c 1928 [12758] A 2-sided leaflet appealing to the newly-enfranchised young woman to vote for Socialism. Good £12
304. WOMEN ON WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE [12763] full-page of line drawings, by R.M. Paxton, from ‘Black & White, 22 October 1903 showing ‘The afternoon sitting at the National Convention in Defence of the Civic Rights of Women at the Holborn Town Hall last Friday’. I rather feel that the importance of this event, held on 16-17 October, as a turning point in the suffrage campaign is overlooked by suffrage historians. It was, in the main, the result of Elizabeth Wostenholme Elmy’s persistence that it was held, backed by W.T. Stead. She was very keen that there should be a mass suffrage campaign in the run-up to the next election. 200 delegates attended and it marked a revitalisation of the NUWSS. Mrs Pankhurst, whether or not she was invited, did not attend; she had held her first kitchen-table meeting with the group that became the WSPU on 10 October. The timing may be a coincidence. The vignettes in the illustration show ‘Mrs Elmy on Women’s Highest Mission’, The chairman, the Rev Alfred Steinthal, Mrs Green (President of the Women’s Co-operative Guild), Miss Eva Gore-Booth (Sec Women’s Trade Union Council Manchester) and a scene of a section of the gathered company listening attentively. Very good – unusual £18
305. WOMEN’S LOCAL GOVERNMENT SOCIETY The Parish Meeting and Parish Council LGS 1919 [13154] 4-pp leaflet explaining the scope and powers of the parish council. It was issued in January 1919, under the name of (Miss) C.G. K. Scovell who adds ‘The country looks to its women voters to arouse interest in local affairs, and to take their share of the steady and unobtrusive work that has to be done by Parish Councils.’ Miss Scovell lived in Sussex – and this leaflet was printed in Hove. Good £48
306. WOMEN’S NATIONAL ANTI-SUFFRAGE LEAGUE On Suffragettes: extracts from ‘What’s Wrong With The World’ by G.K. Chesterton WNASL c 1909 [13151] ‘They do not create revolution; what they do create is anarchy’. 2-sided leaflet – noo 30 in the WNASL’s series of leaflets – very good – very scarce £78
307. WOMEN’S NATIONAL ANTI-SUFFRAGE LEAGUE To The Women Of Great Britain WNASL c 1909 [13149] An appeal to women to pause and think before signing any petitions etc in favour of ‘votes for women’. 1-p leaflet -Number 10 in the League’s series of leaflets - with the rubber stamp of the ‘Manchester Branch: 1 Princess Street, Albert Square’ Very good – very scarce £78
308. WOMEN’S NATIONAL ANTI-SUFFRAGE LEAGUE Woman’s Suffrage and Women’s Wages WNASL c 1909 [13156] ‘The leaflet concludes Woman Suffrage therefore has nothing to do with wages, and the interests of woman workers can be promoted, and are constantly being promoted in quite other ways.’ One of the ways that the League thought would help solve the problem of the inequality of wages between the sexes would be ‘The more even distribution of the female population throughout the terrotory of the Empire, by means of emigration’. Two-sided leaflet – very good – very scarce £65
309. ROBERTSON, Margaret Working Men and Women’s Suffrage NUWSS Aug 1913 [12937] Margaret Robertson was a university graduate and NUWSS organiser. This pamphlet was written at a time when the NUWSS had set up its Election Fighting Fund to support Labour Party candidates – and was intended for distribution amongst trade unionists. Small format, 24pp in card covers £35
Suffrage Postcards – Real Photographic
310. ARREST OF CAPT. C.M. GONNE [12914] Member of the Men’s Political Union for Women’s Enfranchisement, Parliament Square, November 18th, 1910.’ Capt Gonne was photographed by the ‘Daily Mirror’ being escorted by two policemen during the ‘Black Friday’ tumult. Capt Charles Melvill Gonne (1862-1926), Royal Artillery, was the author of ‘Hints on Horses’ (John Murray, 1904), an active suffragist, who supported his wife, a tax resister, and was a cousin of Maud Gonne, the Irish nationalist heroine. Very good -unusual - unposted £190
311. CICELY HAMILTON [12954] photograph by Lena Connell. Fine – unposted £120
312. DR THEKLA HULTIN [13168] The Finnish MP is photographed at her desk. She sent the card from Helsingfors (Helsinki) on 12 April 1917 to Mrs Louisa Thompson-Price of the Women’s Freedom League. From the message on the reverse it would appear that the two women shared a birthday ‘I wish you all the best (including the vote) in the following 50 years…’ Very good – posted – very unusual £120
313. EDITH CRAIG [12955] photographed by Lena Connell, published at The Suffrage Shop, 31 Bedford Street (therefore the card dates from c 1910 – before its removal in 1911 south of the Strand). Fine – unposted £120
314. FREDERICK PETHICK LAWRENCE [13166] photographed by F. Kehrhahn & Co, Bexley Heath. (For an article unravelling who ‘F. Kehrhahn’ was see ‘The WSPU Photographer, DORA and the Nazis’ – on my website). Fine – unposted – unusual £120
315. GREAT VOTES FOR WOMEN DEMONSTRATION IN HYDE PARK [13163] The WSPU rally on Sunday 21 June 1908. Crowds as far as the eye can see – with massed banners, including those of Cardiff and Newport, waving in the breeze. Fine – published by Sandle Bros – unposted £85
316. MISS GRACE ROE [12958] The caption is ‘UNDAUNTED’!’ She is being marched out of the WSPU headquarters, Lincolns Inn House, by police, arrested in May 1914. She was not released from prison until under the amnesty in August. The postcard photography was by courtesy of the ‘Daily Mirror’. An iconic image. Fine – unposted – scarce. £190
317. ‘RUINS OF ST KATHERINE’S CHURCH, BURNT DOWN MAY 6 1913 [11824] Real photographic card. There are several images published on postcards of the ruins of St Catherine’s (this is the correct spelling; the card’s publisher was a bit slapdash) Church at Hatcham in Surrey, for the burning of which the suffragettes were thought responsible – but I have never seen this one before. £35
318. SIR WILLIAM LEVER’S BUNGALOW [8958] at Rivington. The photographic postcard shows it after it had been set on fire by Edith Rigby, Preston’s infamous suffragette. The note, in ink, on the reverse reads ‘Sir William Lever’s Bungalow, Rivington. fired by Suffragettes 1 a.m.July 8th 1913.’ I have never seen this image before. Very good – unposted £95
319. THE WOMEN’S GUILD OF EMPIRE [12877] ‘souvenir packet’ of 6 postcards, in their original printed paper envelope, published by the Women’s Guild of Empire. The cards are: 1) ‘Women’s Guild of Empire Committee’ – the 6 members of the Committee, who included Flora Drummond and Elsie Bowerman, sit around a table; 2) Mrs R.S Henderson, president; 3) Mrs Flora Drummond, Controller-in-Chief; 4) WGE banner ‘Peace Unity Concord’ surrounded by members; 5) Banner Making for the Great Demonstration April 17th 1926 – Mrs Drummond under an ‘Effeciancy and Entrprise’ banner; 6) ‘Women Pipers from the Lothians’ – with Mrs Drummond in control Scottishness was to the fore. An extremely rare set – I have never seen any of these cards before – and, in general, there are few images of the Guild of Empire and its work. The printed envelope carries details of the ‘Objects’ of the Guild and of its work. All cards in pristine condition – dating, I assume, to c 1926. As a set £220
320. WOMEN’S FREEDOM LEAGE Miss Muriel Matters of Australia, Lecturer [12918] Women’s Freedom League 1 Robert Street, Adelphi, London WC. The card, headed ‘Votes for Women’ , shows Muriel Matters seated, reading a book and was published by the WFL Fine – unposted £120
321. WOMEN’S FREEDOM LEAGUE Miss Sarah Benett [12950] photographed by Lena Connell. In this studio photograph Sarah Benett is wearing her WFL Holloway brooch; she was for a time the WFL treasurer. She was also a member of the WSPU and of the Tax Resistance League. This photograph by Lena Connell was also used on a WFL-published postcard – but this one is not attributed to the WFL. The background to the image is little irridescent. £100
322. WOMEN’S FREEDOM LEAGUE Mrs Amy Sanderson [12919] Women’s Freedom League, 1 Robert Street, Adelphi, London WC. She had been a member of the WSPU, and, as such had endured one term of imprisonment, before helping to found the WFL in 1907. She is, I think, wearing her WFL Holloway brooch in the photograph. Card, published by WFL, fine – unusual – unposted £150
323. WOMEN’S FREEDOM LEAGUE Mrs DESPARD AND MRS COBDEN SANDERSON WAITING FOR MR ASQUITH [12911] ‘Arrested August 19th, 1909′ They are shown wating outside 10 Downing Street as part of the campaign to picket the Prime Minister in a vain attempt to force him to accept a petition. Fine condition – scarce – unposted £180
324. WOMEN’S FREEDOM LEAGUE Mrs Edith How-Martyn , ARCS, BSc [12917] Hon Sec Women’s Freedom League 1 Robert Street, Adelphi, London WC. She is wearing herWFL Holloway brooch. Photographed by M.P. Co (London) – which I think is probably the Merchants Portrait Co in Kentish Town that did a fair amount of work for the WFL. The card is headed ‘Votes for Women’ and was published by the WFL. Fine – unposted £120
325. WOMEN’S FREEDOM LEAGUE Mrs Marion Holmes [12921] card headed ‘Votes for Women’ published by the Women’s Freedom League, 1 Robert St, Adelphi, London WC. Mrs Holmes was joint editor of the WFL paper ‘The Vote’. She is photoraphed wearing herWFL Holloway badge as well as one of the WFL enamel badges. Fine – unusual – unposted £120
326. WOMEN’S FREEDOM LEAGUE Suffragette At Work in Prison – Mrs Borrmann Wells WFL 1910 [13132] Bettina Borrmann Wells was an organiser for the WFL in London, having worked for suffrage in the US for a couple of years. She had spent 3 weeks in Holloway in 1908 and is here seen in prison garb, down on her hands and knees as though scrubbing the cell floor. ‘Woman’s work’. Fine – unposted £120
Suffrage Postcards: Suffrage Artists
327. ARTISTS’ SUFFRAGE LEAGUE Go Hang Yourselves – We Fought at Acre, and you were not there [13012] The suffragist figure (dressed in a loose aesthetic robe) leans on a shield whose message is, ’190? The Franchise Won’. Behind here is a ‘No taxation without representation’ BANNER. She is addressing two crinolined ladies, with ’1909′ running as a repeat around the bottom of their skirts – who are throwing up her hands in horror at her aT her words – and exclaim ‘Oh my dear!! So unladylike!!!’ Printed and published by the Artists’ Suffrage League. Fine – unposted – scarce £95
328. ARTISTS’ SUFFRAGE LEAGUE Miss Jane Bull [13010] addresses Master Johnnie Bull, asking, ‘Give me a bit of your Franchise Cake, Johnnie’ He replies ‘It wouldn’t be good for you’ She responds ‘How can you tell if you won’t let me try it? it doesn’t hurt those other little girls’ – she points to Finnish, New Zealand, Australian and Norwegian children – boys and girls.Postcard published by the Artists’ Suffrage League. The artists are ‘C.H. & D.M.’ Very good – unposted £95
329. WOMEN WRITERS’ SUFFRAGE LEAGUE [12957] postcard for the League designed by W.H. Margetson. ‘Woman’ is dragged from the feet of blind ‘Justice’ by the figure of ‘Prejudice’. This is the coloured version – in fine condition – unposted £85
Women and the First World War
330. CABLE, Boyd Doing Their Bit: war work at home Hodder and Stoughton, 2nd imp 1916 [8646] Includes a chapter on ‘The Women’. Good £18
331. CAHILL, Audrey Fawcett Between the Lines: letters and diaries from Elsie Inglis’s Russian Unit Pentland Press 1999 [11675] Soft covers – mint £15
332. [HALL] Edith Hall Canary Girls & Stockpots WEA Luton Branch 1977 [12884] Memories of life in the First World War – and of the ’20s and ’30s. During the War Edith Hall’s mother was landlady to munition workers – ‘the Canaries’ (so called because the chemicals turned their skin yellow) at the Hayes factories.
Soft covers – signed by the author £10
333. MARLOW, Joyce (ed) The Virago Book of Women and the Great War Virago 1998 [11926] Hardcover – fine in fine d/w £12
334. WALKER, Dora M. With the Lost Generation 1915-1919: From a V.A.D.s Diary A. Brown & Sons (Hull) 2nd imp 1971 [12879] ‘A “Girl’s Eye View” of work in some of the famous War Hospitals of 1914-1918.’ – written at the time by the author to her father. Dora Walker worked in hospitals in Britain, France and Belgium. With 20 photographs. Fine – scarce £25
Women and the First World War: Ephemera
335. DENNYS, Joyce Portrait of Nurse Winifred Whitworth [11472] Winifred Fanny Whitworth (b.1891) was a VAD nurse at the Royal Naval Auxiliary Hospital, Truro, when she was commended for ‘valuable service in connection with the war’ in the London Gazette 29 Nov 1918. She was the only daughter (with 6 brothers) of Mr & Mrs R. Whitworth of Truro. Joyce Dennys (1893-1991), illustrator and humourist, was herself a VAD, working in hospitals in Devon. She was commissioned c 1915 to draw the pictures for ‘Our Hospitals ABC’, pub by John Lane. She must have visited the Royal Naval Auxiliary Hospital at Truro c 1917, when she was working in the VAD adminsitration office. The pastel and gouache portrait of Nurse Whitworth is one of 31, unsigned drawings, that were contained in a sketch book. Research by an art dealer, specialising in art of the First World War, established that the sketch book was the work of Joyce Dennys. Plenty of scope, I feel, for further research on Nurse Whitworth and her fellow Cornish VADs. Very good – mounted £95
336. HMSO Annual Report of the Chief Inspector of Factories and Workshops 1915 HMSO 1916 [13125] With a Special Report appended by Adelaide Anderson, HM Principal Lady Inspector of Factories, on ‘Effect of the Second Year of War on Industrial Employment of Women and Girls’.. Good reading copy – missing blue paper covers £12
337. SCOTTISH WOMEN’S FIRST AID CORPS [12892] natural-coloured linen canvas satchel with the initials ‘S.W.F.A.C.’ [Scottish Women's First Aid Corps] machine-embroidered in red on the front.The satchel hangs from a long red grosgrain ribbon strap which has a buckle for altering its length. The bag still contains an Esmarch’s Triangular Bandage – printed with images of how to apply, in a variety of ways, the bandage to wounded men, together with two packs labelled ‘Scottish Women’s First Aid Corps First Field Dressing’, supplied by J. Gordon Nicholson, Pharmaceutical Chemist, 15 Hanover Street, Edinburgh, and two small safety pins on a piece of card, presumably to be used for fixing the bandages. Luckily this SWFAC member was required to put the bandages to the test. The SWFAC had been formed in 1909 by Mary E. Macmillan and came into its own in the First World War, appealing to middle and upper-middle class women who wanted to ‘do their bit’. The SWFAC ran classes in First Aid and sick nursing and some of its recruits then went out to nurse in Italy and Serbia. Very good – an unusual survival £120
338. THE WOMEN’S IMPERIAL HEALTH ASSOCIATION Sixth Annual Report 1915 [12796] The Associations’s first Aim was ‘To teach the women of the Empire the elementary principles in health; particularly with reference to the care and nurture of children’. This annual report gives full details of the Association, its work, and its subscribers and supporters. With many photographs. Paper covers – 52pp – good – ex-Board of Education library £10
339. YOUR KING & COUNTRY WANT YOU a woman’s recruiting song Chappell & Co 1914 [12802] Sheet music – words & music by Paul A. Rubens. The cover is illustrated by John Hassall. ‘The entire profits from the sale of this song will be devoted to Queen Mary’s “Work for Women” Fund’. ‘Oh! we don’t want to lose you but we think you ought to go. For your King and your Country both need you so; We shall want you and miss you but with all our might and main. We shall cheer you, thank you, kiss you when you come back again’. Makes the spine creep. 6-pp – very good £38
Women and the First World War: Fiction
340. MARCHANT, Bessie A Girl Munition Worker: a story of a girl’s work during the Great War Blackie [1916] [13002] Novel of the First World by ‘the girls’ Henry’. This would appear to be a first edition -with an ownership inscription for ‘Xmas 1916′ on free front end paper In original pictorial cloth cover – cloth rubbed and corners bumped – very scarce £45
**
To be published at end of March 2013
- Drawn from a new primary source, Campaigning for the Vote tells, in her own words, the efforts of Kate Frye, a working suffragist, to convert the men and women of England to the cause of women’s suffrage. The detailed diary Kate kept all her life (1878-1959) has been edited to cover 1911-1915, years she spent as a paid organiser for the New Constitutional Society for Women’s Suffrage.
- No other diary gives such an extensive account of the working life of a suffragist, one who had an eye for the grand tableau – such as following Emily Wilding Davison’s cortége through the London streets – as well as the minutiae of producing an advertisement for a village meeting.
- With Kate for company we can experience the reality of the ‘votes for women’ campaign as, day after day, in London and in the provinces, she knocks on doors, arranges meetings, trembles on platforms, speaks from carts in market squares, village greens, and seaside piers, enduring indifference, incivility and even the threat of firecrackers under her skirt.
- Kate’s words bring to life the world of the itinerant organiser – a world of train journeys, of complicated luggage conveyance, of hotels – and hotel flirtations – , of boarding houses, of landladies, and of the ‘quaintness’ of fellow boarders. This was not a world to which she was born, for her years as an organiser were played out against the catastrophic loss of family money and enforced departure from a much-loved home. Before 1911 Kate had had the luxury of giving her time as a volunteer to the suffrage cause; now she depended on it for her keep.
- Kate Frye gives us the fullest account to date of the workings of the previously shadowy New Constitutional Society for Women’s Suffrage. She writes at length of her fellow workers, never refraining from discussing their egos and foibles.
- After the outbreak of war in August 1914 Kate continued to work for some time at the society’s headquarter, helping to organize its war effort, while allowing us to experience her reality of life in war-time London.
- Campaigning for the Vote is over 200pp long and contains over 70 illustrations, all drawn from Kate Frye’s personal archive. ISBN 978 1903427 75 0 £14.99
- Advance orders may be placed either with womanandhersphere.com or with the Francis Boutle Publishers – or with any good bookshop.
For a video of Campaigning for the Vote: the diary of Kate Parry Frye - a talk given in the House of Commons during ‘Parliament Week’ – see the Youtube Parliament Channel http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u2aeMUGkmDM
Wrap-around paper covers, c. 200pp, over 70 illustrations
ISBN 978 1903427 75 0 £14.99
**
ALREADY PUBLISHED
The Women’s Suffrage Movement 1866-1928: A reference guide
Elizabeth Crawford
‘It is no exaggeration to describe Elizabeth Crawford’s Guide as a landmark in the history of the women’s movement…’ History Today
Routledge, 2000 785pp paperback £65
The Women’s Suffrage Movement in Britain and Ireland: a regional survey
Elizabeth Crawford
‘Crawford provides meticulous accounts of the activists, petitions, organisations, and major events pertaining to each county.’ Victorian Studies
Routledge, 2008 320pp paperback £26
Enterprising Women: the Garretts and their circle
‘Crawford’s scholarship is admirable and Enterprising Women offers increasingly compelling reading’ Journal of William Morris Studies
Francis Boutle, 2002 338pp 75 illus paperback £25
Kate Frye’s Suffrage Diary: ‘Campaigning for the Vote’ Is Nearly Here
Posted in Kate Frye's suffrage diary, Suffrage Stories on March 13, 2013
Here is the front cover of Campaigning for the Vote: Kate Parry Frye’s Suffrage Diary - to be published by Francis Boutle Publishers at the end of March.
The key points about the book are:
- Drawn from a new primary source, Campaigning for the Vote tells, in her own words, the efforts of Kate Frye, a working suffragist, to convert the men and women of England to the cause of women’s suffrage. The detailed diary Kate kept all her life (1878-1959) has been edited to cover 1911-1915, years she spent as a paid organiser for the New Constitutional Society for Women’s Suffrage.
- No other diary gives such an extensive account of the working life of a suffragist, one who had an eye for the grand tableau – such as following Emily Wilding Davison’s cortége through the London streets – as well as the minutiae of producing an advertisement for a village meeting.
- With Kate for company we can experience the reality of the ‘votes for women’ campaign as, day after day, in London and in the provinces, she knocks on doors, arranges meetings, trembles on platforms, speaks from carts in market squares, village greens, and seaside piers, enduring indifference, incivility and even the threat of firecrackers under her skirt.
- Kate’s words bring to life the world of the itinerant organiser – a world of train journeys, of complicated luggage conveyance, of hotels – and hotel flirtations – , of boarding houses, of landladies, and of the ‘quaintness’ of fellow boarders. This was not a world to which she was born, for her years as an organiser were played out against the catastrophic loss of family money and enforced departure from a much-loved home. Before 1911 Kate had had the luxury of giving her time as a volunteer to the suffrage cause; now she depended on it for her keep.
- Kate Frye gives us the fullest account to date of the workings of the previously shadowy New Constitutional Society for Women’s Suffrage. She writes at length of her fellow workers, never refraining from discussing their egos and foibles.
- After the outbreak of war in August 1914 Kate continued to work for some time at the society’s headquarter, helping to organize its war effort, while allowing us to experience her reality of life in war-time London.
- Campaigning for the Vote is over 200pp long and contains over 70 illustrations, all drawn from Kate Frye’s personal archive. ISBN 978 1903427 75 0 £14.99
- Advance orders may be placed either with me or with the publisher – or with any good bookshop.
‘Campaigning for the Vote’ – Front and back cover of wrappers
Women Writers and Italy: Charlotte Eaton: St Peter’s Through Protestant Eyes
Posted in Women Writers and Italy on March 12, 2013
Scottish- born Charlotte Waldie (1788-1859), with her sister, Jane, and brother, John, travelled to Europe – as did so many others – in 1816/17, after the final defeat of Napoleon. For at least some of the time the two sisters travelled alone, when John was otherwise occupied. They each kept detailed notes of their journeys and sojourns: Charlotte turned her experience into Rome in the Nineteenth Century, first published privately and then, in 1820, by Archibald Constable.
Charlotte’s view of St Peter’s, recorded in these extracts, was reflected through a prism of Protestantism.
Colonnade of St PEter’s from ‘Rome in the Nineteenth Century’
It is impossible to express my disappointment I felt on seeing what seemed to me to be – not a church, but a large house or palace, three stories high, with little attic windows at the top. The dome is placed so far back, in consequence of the length of the Latin cross, that in the front view its grandeur is lost. Its design is irredeemably faulty, in giving to the front of the greatest temple in the world the frittering littleness of the exterior of a dwelling-house, and the effect, in producing apparent mediocrity of size, is as striking to the eye, that I could scarcely recognise in it any character of a church, much less of St Peter’s, that boast of modern architecture, and latest wonder of the world.
The crowded courts and irregular angles of that huge, unwieldy pile of building, the Vatican Palace, which adhere to it on one side like a monstrous excresence, are a great deformity. They overlook the top of the colonnade, depress the elevation, destroy its uniformity, and injure its general effect.
Having ventured inside, Charlotte found ‘The interior, on the whole, as far surpassed my highly-raised expectations, as the exterior fell short of them. Yet notwithstanding its beauty, I was conscious of a species of disappointment too commonly felt, when what we have long dwelt on in fancy is seen in reality. I had pictured it to myself less beautiful, and far less magnificent but more sublime. With an imagination deeply impressed with the imposing effects of the Gothic cathedrals of our own country, I expected, from the immensity of St Peter’s, even more of that religious awe and deep solemn melancholy, which they never fail to inspire: and I was unprepared for its lightness, decoration, and brilliance; – and, above all, for that impression of gaiety, which the first sight of its interior produces.
Charlotte condemns the use of Corinthian pilaster and, particularly, the Grecian arch which ‘has the unfortunate effect of diminishing the apparent length, which the the perspective of a Grecian colonnade, or a Gothic aisle, uniformly appears to increase….The windows, too, are mean and poor-looking, and offensive to the eye. It is easier, however, to point out the fault than the remedy; for windows do not enter gracefully into the beautiful combinations of Grecian architecture. In Gothic churches, on the contrary, how grand and majestic an object is the arched and shafted window! Indeed, if I may venture to own to you the truth, it is my humble opinion, that though Grecian architecture is admirably adapted to palaces and theatres, and places of public assembly, and public buildings of almost every other kind, it is not suited to churches….it does not accord with the solemn purposes of Christian worship, to which the simplicity and grandeur of the Gothic, and its impressive effect upon the mind, are so peculiarly fitted.
Certainly some apology may be found for its defects in the frequent changes of plans, and architects, and Popes during the building of [St Peter's]; and in the real and imaginary necessity of having an upper balcony for the purpose of giving the benediction; a circumstance which has been so ruinous to its beauty, that we might say with truth, that the blessings of the Popes have been the perdition of the Church. But whatever the cause, the faults of the front of St Peter’s are unredeemable and unpardonable.
Kate Frye’s Suffrage Diary: ‘Votes for Women!’ At The Royal Court, April 1907
Posted in Kate Frye's suffrage diary, Suffrage Stories on March 8, 2013
Kate Frye photographed in costume for her part in J. M. Barrie’s ‘Quality Street’ – on tour in 1903
Kate Frye, besides being a life-long diarist, had a life-long devotion to the theatre, for a few years at the beginning of the 20th century even putting herself on the stage. However, on this afternoon in April 1907, it is her experience as a theatre-goer that she records. Her growing interest in women’s suffrage, which had been instigated by her new friends, Alexandra and Gladys Wright, was stimulated by a visit to the Royal Court Theatre to see Votes for Women! – a play by the American actress and author, Elizabeth Robins.
‘Tuesday April 16th 1907 [London: 25 Arundel Gardens, North Kensington]
..Changed my dress before lunch. Agnes and I had to leave at a quarter to two and went up to Notting Hill Gate. There met Mrs Wright, Alexandra and Gladys. They had asked us to join them in a theatre party to see ‘Votes for Women’ at The Court – but Mrs Wright told us it was her party and wouldn’t let us pay for a thing. They took us first-class to Sloane Square and in the Dress Circle – second row right – in the centre – to see the piece. It was a most enjoyable and interesting afternoon. I loved the piece – it is quite fine – most cleverly written and the characters are so well drawn. Needless to say the acting was perfection as it generally is at the Court Theatre and the second act – the meeting in Trafalgar Square – ought to draw the whole of London. I was besides myself with excitement over it – so were the Wrights – we all loved it. It was a jolly afternoon – and most awfully kind of them to take us like that. Gladys was very keen to know if it would have any effect on people. I can’t tell – people are not so easily influenced, I fear, except in isolated cases. I wanted to know what the men were thinking of it.
Edith Wynne Matthison
Miss Wynne Matthison was fine – really great, I thought – as Vida. Dorothy Minto was good and I liked Jean Sterling Mackinlay. Aubrey Smith was just the man for the part and played it well. Lewis Casson, Holman Clark were good too and Edmund Gwenn was fine and so amusing as a ‘Labour Member’. Miss Maud Milton, Miss Frances Ivor, Miss Gertrude Burnett and Agnes Thomas all played well and added to the complete success of the piece. The papers have not done it credit, I think – they have only seen the novelty of the idea and situations – not the cleverness in writing and construction. It was pouring when we came out. Mrs Wright took us to a tea shop and gave us tea and then we all came home by train together.’
Votes for Women! (n.b. the exclamation mark that Kate omitted) was first performed on 9 April 1907, directed by Granville Barker. The title had been changed from more the rather more anodyne ‘The Friend of Woman’. The Pankhursts were in the audience on the first night.
Nearly 100 years later, on 19 March 2003, Samantha Ellis wrote a most interesting piece on the play and its production for guardian.co.uk. See here for the whole article.
She notes that, like Kate, the critics loved the second act,
‘which had 40 actors, a plastercast base of Nelson’s Column and two huge ‘Votes for Women’ banners. For the Sketch it was “the finest stage crowd scene that has been seen for years”; to the Observer, it was “a marvel of verisimilitude akin to that which might be achieved by a joint use of megaphone and cinematograph”. Beerbohm, writing in the Saturday Review, felt that Dorothy Minto, playing one of the speakers, “caught exactly the spirit of her part – the blithe spirit of the budding platformist”. The Illustrated London News praised Agnes Thomas, playing a speaker identified in the script only as “A Working Woman”, for having “just the rasping Cockney tones, the termagant attitude, that are required” but carped: “There never were such speeches in Trafalgar Square.”
The play’s heroine, Vida Levering, a militant with a mysterious past, who may have been based on Christabel Pankhurst, was played by doe-eyed Edith Wynne-Matthison. Her casting affronted some reviewers; the Times’s critic sniffed, “The cause would make much more headway than it does if all its advocates were as fair to look upon and as beautifully dressed as Miss Wynne-Matthison,” and wondered: “Why, by the way, does Miss Levering take such care to make the best of her good looks and pretty figure and wear such charming frocks? Is it to please other women?”
Elizabeth Robins
He also cast doubt on the play’s polemical power: “Whether … the cause Miss Robins has at heart is likely to be advanced by hanging it on to other questions of seduction, abortion, and infanticide is perhaps doubtful.” He was not the only one to dislike the plot, in which Vida is revealed as the quintessential fallen woman, who hates men because an ex-lover forced her to have an abortion. Beerbohm claimed that he “yawned outright” when the ex-lover’s perfidy was revealed by the creaky device of a dropped handkerchief.
At the final plot twist, “when the ex-lover became a born-again suffragette”, even the Stage’s critic became distressed: “Except to those who have the Cause at heart … this might have seemed a rather lame and impotent conclusion.” For the Illustrated London News’s critic, the “play proper [was] not so interesting; its melodramatic story … [was] far too long and … far too thin”. But the suffragettes did not care. Robins gave them a quarter of her royalties, and in 1909 the play was staged in New York and Rome, selling the feminist message far beyond London. It also converted its leading lady, Edith Wynne-Matthison, to the cause; she and Robins founded the Actresses’ Franchise League in 1908 “ensuring that men like the Times’s critic could never again imply that suffragettes could not be glamorous”. ‘
As far as I remember Kate Frye, although she became a member of the Actresses’ Franchise League very soon after it was founded and was very proud to walk with the AFL in the 1911 Coronation Procession, makes no mention of seeing any of the short plays written to be performed by members of the suffrage societies. Some of these plays – such as How The Vote Was Won by Cicely Hamilton and Christopher St John – have been collected in The Methuen Drama Book of Suffrage Plays, edited by actress and researcher Naomi Paxton, recently published by Bloomsbury. See here for details.
Kate Frye did, however, have a starring – if silent – role in the first production, directed by Edith Craig, of Christopher St John’s controversial play, The Coronation. You can read her full diary entries relating that experience in
Campaigning for the Vote: Kate Parry Frye’s Suffrage Diary edited by Elizabeth Crawford
For a full description of the book click here
Wrap-around paper covers, 226 pp, over 70 illustrations, all drawn from Kate Frye’s personal archive.
ISBN 978 1903427 75 0
Copies available from Francis Boutle Publishers, or from Elizabeth Crawford – e.crawford@sphere20.freeserve.co.uk (£14.99 +UK postage £3. Please ask for international postage cost), or from all good bookshops. In stock at London Review of Books Bookshop, Foyles, National Archives Bookshop.
- ‘Campaigning for the Vote’ – Front and back cover of wrappers
Suffrage Stories: Kate Frye’s Suffrage Diary, The Royal Albert Hall, And The Importance of Gas
Posted in Suffrage Stories on March 5, 2013
The Royal Albert Hall was the scene of many grand suffrage occasions – organised by both the constitutional and the militant suffrage societies. The management of the Hall has recognised this by supporting its archivists in mounting a small display relating to its suffrage past. The display may be viewed by anyone with a ticket to an event in the hall.
Researchers use the primary sources available and Suzanne Keyte, Project Archivist at the Royal Albert Hall, has mined what is known as the Hall’s ’Gas Book’ to recreate a list of occasions on which the Hall was rented for suffrage-related meetings. The ‘Gas Book’ records the amount of cubic feet used each time the Hall was let for a concert or a political or a religious meeting and, with certain provisos, can be used as an indication of the size of the audience.
Kate Frye witnessed several grand suffrage occasions in the Hall. Here she describes an evening stewarding for the London Society for Women’s Suffrage at a Mass Meeting of suffrage societies in support of the Conciliation Bill
Saturday November 12th 1910
I sat and sewed a red, green and white scarf for the evening. We had tea at 4.15 and I had a rush to dress and take Mickie [her dog] out and get off by soon after 5 o’clock. I was due at the Albert Hall at 5.30. Was given a job to do till 6.30 – or rather before – when we all went to our posts. Mine was Balcony – selling of programmes and ‘Common Causes’ [the NUWSS newspaper] & helping with the collections. The hall looked lovely – the banners were so beautifully arranged – but it wasn’t so full as I should have liked. The W.S.P.U. had a crowded meeting on Thursday and collected £8,000. Wonderful people one simply cannot hear from the Balcony. Mrs Swanwick was the only one I could really hear – her elocution is marvellous. It was so interesting seeing all the Societies – but [ie except for] the W.S.P.U. there – such lots of colours & badges – and I got very chatsome to some of my companions upstairs from the different societies.
When the meeting was nearly over I went down to the hall & tried to sell ‘Common Cause’. Old Major General Sir Alfred Turner, who was sporting around with Adeline Bourne, bought one of me with a beam and a handful of coin – he is a joke. It had come on to pour with rain and the Wrights insisted on bringing me as far as their place in their Taxi which was kind. ‘
The Hall’s ’Gas Book’ shows that for this meeting the NUWSS consumed – and were charged for – 47,800 cubic feet of gas. On this November night one imagines that it would have been necessary to have lit all the Hall’s lamps. In fact, on 19 March 1908, when Kate Frye attended the first WSPU meeting to be held in the Albert Hall, that night’s gas consumption had been very similar- 46,800 cubic feet (click here to see Kate’s description of that meeting). From this idiosyncratic source we can deduce that the NUWSS did not lag behind the WSPU in ensuring that their evening meetings were brilliantly lit, even though, from Kate’s account, they were not necessarily able to muster as large an audience.
There was something to be said for staging meetings in the Albert Hall on summer evenings. For at the meeting held there that marked the finale to the NUWSS’s procession through London on 13 June 1908, gas consumption was only 16,000 cubic feet. We know when the meeting started because Kate Frye carefully noted in her diary that, after marching from the Embankment in the rearguard position which the Kensington branch had been allotted, she reached the Albert Hall at 5.10, just as the meeting was about to begin. Clearly less artificial illumination was required for a meeting held on an early evening in summer than for one in the winter, thereby reducing at least one element of the cost. (See here for the entry from Kate’s diary describing the procession).
Suzanne Keyte has identified c 30 suffrage meetings that were held at the Royal Albert Hall. By June 1913, however, after pressure had been exerted on hall owners throughout the country, the management of the Hall decided that they would refuse the WSPU any further lettings. What was in effect their last meeting had taken place a couple of months earlier, on 10 April.
Campaigning for the Vote: Kate Parry Frye’s Suffrage Diary edited by Elizabeth Crawford
For a full description of the book click here
Wrap-around paper covers, 226 pp, over 70 illustrations, all drawn from Kate Frye’s personal archive.
ISBN 978 1903427 75 0
Copies available from Francis Boutle Publishers, or from Elizabeth Crawford – e.crawford@sphere20.freeserve.co.uk (£14.99 +UK postage £3. Please ask for international postage cost), or from all good bookshops. In stock at London Review of Books Bookshop, Foyles, National Archives Bookshop.
- ‘Campaigning for the Vote’ – Front and back cover of wrappers
Suffrage Stories/Suffragette Jewellery: Mary Leigh’s Emily Wilding Davison Brooch
Posted in Collecting Suffrage, Suffrage Stories on February 18, 2013
This circular brooch, containing a photograph of Emily Wilding Davison in academic dress, formerly belonged to her friend and champion, Mary Leigh. The photograph of Emily Wilding Davison (for the photographer/publisher of the postcard see here) is rather worn and has a little ink scribble on it – though what the intention – if any – of this is, I cannot say.
The photo is held in the brooch frame by a card showing Sylvia Pankhurst’s WSPU design, in purple, white and green, of ‘the sower’. This may originally been a component in a WSPU badge. Written on it in capital letters, in Mary Leigh’s idiosyncratic style, is ‘LIBERTY. NO SURRENDER. E.W.D.’.
This is a piece that, unlike so much else on the market, clearly merits the description ‘suffragette jewellery’. I do not think that this commemoration photo of Emily Wilding Davison was issued by the WSPU in this particular style of circular brooch, but suspect that Mary Leigh herself put the photo in it. The brooch is edged with alternating little pink and white stones. It is worth noting that Mary Leigh, even with her close acquaintance with WSPU imagery and branding, did not bother to select or commission a brooch with stones reflecting more closely the WSPU colours.
Kate Frye’s Suffrage Diary: Myra Luxmoore, Suffrage Artist
Posted in Kate Frye's suffrage diary, Uncategorized on February 4, 2013
57 Bedford Gardens (now renumbered as 77, courtesy of wikipage on William Magrath)
I first came across mention of ‘Miss Luxmoore’ in the pages of Kate Frye’s diary. Obviously a suffragist, with a Studio at 57 Bedford Gardens, Campden Hill, I presumed she was an artist. But who was she? Her name is not recorded in, for instance, Lisa Tickner’s Spectacle of Women, the vademecum on suffrage artists. Intrigued, I thought it worth finding out more about Miss Luxmoore and her world.
So, to begin at the beginning, here are three entries from Kate Frye’s diary in which she records meetings held at Miss Luxmoore’s Studio.
Tuesday February 9th 1909
Dinner at 7.30. Off at 8 o’clock to Bedford Gardens – Miss Luxmoore’s Studio to a Suffrage meeting. Got there in good time and started to work at once stewarding and trying to make converts. Got a young man student to join the Men’s League. Mr Mitchell and Miss Clementina Black were the speakers and did very well. Alexandra [Wright] was in the Chair. I waited at the end helped count the money etc and walked up to Notting Hill Gate with the Wrights and Miss Black and walked all the way home. Was not in till after 11 o’clock. Very much enjoyed the meeting and the Suffrage atmosphere and meeting all those students was like a page out of a book.
Tuesday March 30th 1909
I changed my dress had a bit of something to eat then off at 7.30. Walked to Richmond Road took a bus to Bedford Gardens and went to Miss Luxmoore’s Studio Suffrage meeting. Gladys was there. Mrs Graves took the chair. Miss Meyer helped and Mrs Stanbury spoke – but, besides ourselves, there were only 15 audience. Mrs Henry of the Camden Institute was there. I had sent her a card and she quite disgraced herself and made Mrs Stanbury very uncomfortable by hissing loudly, then walking out with her poor unfortunate daughter. Something Mrs Stanbury said upset her – she was only talking history but Mrs Henry took it to mean the Queen of Spain – but I could not understand it till I got home and found from Daddie that Mrs Henry has become a ‘pervert’ to the Roman Catholic Church. It made a nasty impression on us somehow. We had a chat afterwards and all got very low spirited. There has been another raid on the House – several arrests and the women much knocked about – it is all so awful.
Tuesday May 4th 1909
Went off at 7.30 [pm] Walked to Richmond Road – a bus from there to Bedford Gardens – and to Miss Luxmoore’s Studio for a Woman’s Suffrage meeting. Such a crush of people and no end of helpers. Mrs Carl Hentschel, Miss Abadam and Mr Walter McLaren were the speakers. Miss Hentschel [her father, Carl Hentschel, was a lithographic printer, responsible for some suffrage posters], Miss Porter, Miss Meyer and, of course, Gladys and Alexandra. I had sent Miss Lockyer [who had been the late William Whiteley's housekeeper] a ticket and she was there with Miss Clara Whiteley – and who should be there but one of the Miss Hollingsworths (Jessie) taken by some friend. I made three members – which wasn’t bad – and I waited with the others to help clear up and walked to Notting Hill Gate with them. Then came home in a bus. Was so tired. Mother was waiting up. Supper & bed. Mrs Carl Hentschel’s maiden speech and she did it very well and I don’t think I ever heard a more rousing speech than Miss Abadam. Mr McLaren [Walter McLaren, Liberal MP] was stupid.’
My research has shown me that ‘Miss Luxmoore’ was Myra Elizabeth Luxmoore (1860-1918), born in Paddington, the only child of John and Jane Luxmoore. By her first marriage, however, Jane had at least three daughters, Myra’s elder half-sisters. John Luxmoore worked for the Great Western Railway as a superintendent locomotive engineer. After a period based in Paddington, the family followed John’s work to Newport in south Wales and finally to Newton Abbot in his native Devon.
By 1888, giving her address as Somerford, Newton Abbot, Myra Luxmoore was exhibiting as an Associate with the Society of Women Artists. By 1891 she had moved to London and was living at 32 Charlotte Street, Fitzroy Square. She then spent a brief time living at 87 Cadogan Gardens before moving, c 1905, to her studio at 57 Bedford Gardens. After that she began exhibiting regularly at the Royal Academy. Around 1912 Myra Luxmoore moved to 80 Redcliffe Square, Kensington, remaining there until her death in 1918.
You can see from the photograph (above) that 57 Bedford Gardens had been purpose-built with artists in mind, with large windows to provide ample light. A google search shows photographs of the inside of the apartments as they are today – lofty spaces, providing ample room for a suffrage meeting.
When researching suffrage boycotters of the 1911 census I was interested to note that, while the enumerator wrote in his book that Myra Luxmoore was the occupier of a studio at 57 Bedford Gardens, he marked the apartment as unoccupied on census night. Presumably she, along with several other of the artists who shared the address, had opted to spend the night elsewhere. Her distinctive name is to be found nowhere else in the census returns.
Myra Luxmoore’s card published by the Conservative and Unionist Women’s Franchise Association (photo courtesy of Ken Florey)
I had wondered where Myra Luxmoore’s suffrage allegiances lay and have recently discovered this card (left) illustrated by her and published by the Conservative and Unionist Women’s Franchise Association. I think, therefore, it would not be too far-fetched to think that she was a supporter of the CUWFA. Incidentally, as far as I remember, this is the only postcard issued by the CUWFA that I have ever seen.
The majority of Myra Luxmoore’s exhibited works bear rather wispy titles – such as ‘Roses and Sweet Lavender’, or ‘What’s O’Clock?’ – although a few portraits are noted. One such was the portrait of Norah, the 18-year-old daughter of Sir John Craggs MVO, exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1913. By 1910 another of Sir John’s daughters, Helen, was a full-time paid organiser for the WSPU. This was most definitely not a career move of which her father approved and I wonder if he would have commissioned the portrait if he had known that the artist had strong suffrage – although not militant – sympathies? [Incidentally Helen Craggs in 1957 married, as her second husband, the widowed Lord Pethick-Lawrence.]
One portrait by Myra Luxmoore is known to hang in a public collection, that of the Very Rev Edward McClure (1833-1906), Dean of Manchester.
Very Reverend Edward C. MClure, Manchester City Art Gallery, courtesy of BBC – Your Paintings
Other of her works were collected by Mother Agnes Mason, Foundress of the Community of the Holy Family. Click here to read about her connection with Myra Luxmoore and her works. The article also gives some, unverified, information about the Luxmoore family’s friendship with the family of Gerard Manley Hopkins.
Campaigning for the Vote: Kate Parry Frye’s Suffrage Diary edited by Elizabeth Crawford
For a full description of the book click here
Wrap-around paper covers, 226 pp, over 70 illustrations, all drawn from Kate Frye’s personal archive.
ISBN 978 1903427 75 0
Copies available from Francis Boutle Publishers, or from Elizabeth Crawford – e.crawford@sphere20.freeserve.co.uk (£14.99 +UK postage £3. Please ask for international postage cost), or from all good bookshops. In stock at London Review of Books Bookshop, Foyles, National Archives Bookshop.
- ‘Campaigning for the Vote’ – Front and back cover of wrappers
Women Writers And Italy: The Albergo Di Parigi In Via Della Croce
Posted in Women Writers and Italy on January 28, 2013
Waldie: Sketches Descriptive of Italy, 1820
Charlotte and Jane Waldie arrived in Rome in the winter of 1816. We have read Charlotte’s report of her first sight of Rome, but Jane, too, was busy with her notebook. Her Sketches Descriptive of Italy in the years 1816 and 1817 were published by John Murray in 1820, the same year as Charlotte’s Rome in the Nineteenth Century.
Jane corroborated her sister’s description of that magical first sight of Rome. ‘ When the dome of St Peter’s first burst on our view in the midst of the Campagna. Unable any longer to restrain ourselves, we leaped out of the carriage and ran up a bank by the road-side. Never, oh, never shall I forget the motions with which I gazed on this prospect! That Rome itself should be before me seemed incredible, that my mind could scarcely take in the fact.’
We can then take up their story again with Charlotte who describes how, having arrived in the Piazza del Popolo, ”Rome was overflowing. We drove about for more than two hours, and found every hotel full of Inglesi. The lucky departure of one family of them, however, at length enabled us to take possession of their newly-vacated apartments, which are indeed most comfortable. You cannot conceive, without having travelled Vetturino from Florence to Rome, and lodged in the holes we have done, how delightful is the sensation of being in a habitable hotel, how acceptable the idea of a good dinner, and how transporting the prospect of sleeping in a clean bed.
Charlotte was, however, immediately ill with a pleuritic fever ’Cicero himself was dangerously ill of it; so that, if I had died, I should have died a very classical death, which would undoubtedly have been a great consolation.’
‘By way of an agreeable adventure, about midnight, on the second night of my illness, loud cries through the hotel and in the street spread the alarm of fire. The master of the house (a Frenchman) burst into my room in his shirt, followed by a whole train of distracted damsels wringing their hands, while he continued to vociferate ‘Au feu! Grand Dieu!’ in a key which drowned even the shrill lamentations of the women. Volleys of smoke rolled down our chimney, where the fire had originated, and, rapidly spreading to the rafters of the room above, gained ground so fast, that in spite of the promptitude with which all the firemen of the city and their engines set to work, two hours elapsed before it was extinguished. In the interim, the inmates of the hotel fled in consternation from their apartments, all but ourselves; for, conceiving that there was much more danger, in my situation, of getting my death by cold than by fire, and expecting the flames to be got under every moment, I laid quietly in bed and S-, who would not leave me, sate beside me until we were both nearly stifled; thus acting as if it was no concern of ours the house being on fire, since we were only lodgers.’
Piazza di Spagna. The hotel di Parigi and the via della Croce are off to the left of this scene
It is from Jane that we learn that this hotel, its management conducted by, as Charlotte relates, a Frenchman, was in fact the Albergo di Parigi in the Via della Croce, just off the Piazza di Spagna. This hotel – sometimes variously termed the Hotel de Paris or Villa di Parigi – was to provide shelter to many English women writers over the next 20 years. It is slightly surreal to see their shades slipping into bed, one after the other, under this one Roman roof. Amusingly all commented on the indifference of its facilities; as soon as Charlotte had recovered the Waldies moved to lodgings in the Corso.
It was at the Villa di Parigi in March 1819, two years or so after Charlotte and Jane’s sojourn, that Mary Shelley, with husband, step-sister – Claire Clairmont – and her sole surviving child, William – stayed very briefly before also making the move to lodgings in the Corso. As summer approached they then moved again to take advantage to what they hoped was less feverish air at the top of the Spanish Steps. They may as well not have bothered, as far as the fate of poor little William was concerned.
A few years later Anna Jameson – then still Anna Murphy – related in Diary of an Ennuyee that her party was ‘rather indifferently lodged at the Albergo di Parigi’. ’So here we are in Rome where we have been for the last five hours, and have not seen an inch of the city beyond the dirty pavement of the Via Santa Croce; where an excellent dinner cooked a la Anglaise, a blazing fire, a drawing-room snugly carpeted and curtained, and the rain beating against our windows, would almost persuade us that we are in London; and every now and then, it is with a kind of surprise that I remind myself that I am really in Rome .’ But to be fair to the Parigi it was December and the scene as she describes it appears rather cosy. At least the fire blazed without setting the chimney alight.
Women Writers and Italy: Charlotte Eaton’s First Sight of Rome
Posted in Women Writers and Italy on January 25, 2013
Scottish- born Charlotte Waldie (1788-1859), with her sister, Jane, and brother, John, travelled to Europe – as did so many others – in 1816/17, after the final defeat of Napoleon. For at least some of the time the two sisters travelled alone, when John was otherwise occupied. They each kept detailed notes of their journeys and sojourns: Charlotte turned her experience into Rome in the Nineteenth Century, first published privately and then, in 1820, by Archibald Constable.
Here follows her report of arriving – at last – in sight of Rome. The night before their arrival was spent at Monterosi. I particularly relish descriptions of gothic-horror inns.
Jervis McEntee, Journey’s Pause in the Roman Campagna
‘After considerable delay we did get into a bed-room, more wretched than language can describe: open in many a cranny to the weather, unswept, unplastered, and unfurnished except by two such beds as it is impossible for you to form any idea of; but as the surly people of the house could or would shew us no other, we had no remedy. A fire, that grand consoler of discomforts, was not to be had. The wood was so wet, the wind so high, and the chimney so wide, that while we were blinded and suffocated with wreaths of pungent smoke, and while the wind whistled at its pleasure through the hundred chinks of the unglazed windows, our most persevering efforts failed to make a blaze. Though something swimming in oil, and smelling of garlic, was set before us its appearance was so disgusting, that, after a fast of more than twelve hours, not even hunger could persuade us to touch it. If we did not eat, however, we were eaten; whole hosts made us their prey during the night, while we lay shivering and defenceless.
First view of Rome from Eaton, Rome in the 19th century
We got up – I believe in the middle of the night..and we were dragged along at a foot-pace.. for about three hours in darkness, til we approached Baccano, when the sun rose in splendour and we found ourselves on the deserted Campagna of Rome. In answer to our eager inquiries of when we should see Rome, our phlegmatic Vetturino only replied, ‘Adesso! adesso!!’ unable to conceive any other cause for our anxiety than the very natural impatience to get to the end of our tedious journey. Our longing eyes were intently fixed on the spot where we were told that it would first appear; when, at length, the carriage having toiled up to the top of a long hill, the Vetturino exclaimed, ‘Eccola!’ The dome of St Peter’s appeared in view; and, springing out of the carriage, and up a bank by the road side, we beheld from its summit, Rome!’
Women Writers and Italy: Two Englishwomen in Rome, Garibaldi And Rheumatism
Posted in Women Writers and Italy on January 22, 2013
Anne ( 1841-1928) and Matilda Lucas (1849-1943) were the daughters of Samuel Lucas, a brewer with land and influence in Hitchin, Hertfordshire. The Lucas family were Quakers. Their mother had died when they were young and after their father’s death in 1870 the sisters continued to live for a short time with their step-mother. But then, in mid-1871, they left England for Rome, where, for the next 29 years, they were to spend much of the year. Ten years after her sister’s death, Matilda Lucas published excerpts from the letters sent over the years by the sisters to friends and relations back in England. Two Englishwomen in Rome, 1871-1900 (Methuen, 1938) makes very entertaining reading.
Garibaldi and family c 1875
Rome. Hotel Milano. February 27, 1875.
We have not seen Garibaldi yet. He is quite a cripple and goes about on crutches. He seems quite taken up with his scheme of draining the Campagna and turning the Tiber. I think it very well that he should be harmlessly busy; it keeps him quiet. I have not heard of his baptizing any one here. It seems to be one of his ideas to think he can do those sort of things instead of a priest.
Rome. March 14, 1875.
This morning I paid a call of sympathy on Miss Pagan. She spent yesterday in bed with rheumatism and was rather feverish. Tomorrow she is going with some others to call on Garibaldi. The poor General’s hands are quite drawn with rheumatism and he often cannot sleep at night; so I tell her she had better take some of her pills with her. I am thinking of calling on him with a small bottle of colchicum and a little laudanum for outward application.
Rome. March 21, 1875.
As it was Garibaldi’s Saint’s day, Villa Casalini was crowded with people. Just as the Irvings came by the General threw up a window and appeared in his red shirt, waving his rheumatic hand.
Suffrage Stories: Mrs Evelina Haverfield And The Campaigning Raincoat
Posted in Suffrage Stories on January 21, 2013
Advertisement from ‘Votes for Women’, 1912
In 1912 Mrs Evelina Haverfield gave her imprimatur to the ‘Omne Tempus’ Raincoat – ‘The Ideal Coat for Town, Country or Campaigning’. As Kate Frye records in Campaigning for the Vote (my forthcoming edition of her diary), the suffrage organiser was forced to contend with all weathers as she tramped from door to door, canvassing for support for her society. On a typical wind-lashed and rain-soaked day she then had the prospect of returning to dank digs, to a room that offered few facilities for drying a sodden, mud-splashed skirt. A coat – suitable for ‘all times’ – guaranteed by the manufacturers to keep out the rain – was a very necessary requirement for the suffrage campaigner. Kate, in fact, favoured Aquascutum; Mrs Haverfield put her faith in Samuel Brothers.
Evelina Haverfield (1867-1920) was the younger daughter of 3rd Baron Abinger. An adept sportswoman, she married young and had two sons. After his early death she remarried and for two years during the Boer War was with her second husband in South Africa, where she set up a retirement camp for horses left to die on the veldt. By 1908, with the second husband no longer on the scene, she was a suffragette, a member of – and generous benefactor to – the Women’s Social and Political Union. She was particularly keen on appearing on horseback – riding astride in suffragette processions – often with Vera Holme, with whom she formed a life-time partnership.
Mrs Haverfield’s collaboration with Samuel Brothers of Ludgate Hill was clearly very suitable. The manufacturers of the ‘Omne Tempus’ were – and are still – military tailors. During the First World War Mrs Haverfield, was one of the founders of, first, the Women’s Emergency Corps and then the Women’s Volunteer Reserve, a militaristic organisation, the members of which sported khaki uniforms and felt hats. She was commandant of the WVR and the writer Christopher St John described her as looking ‘every inch a soldier in her khaki uniform, in spite of the short skirt which she had to wear over her well-cut riding breeches’. See here for Mrs Haverfield’s defence of the WVS uniform as ‘useful and sensible’ and her dismissal of much current fashion as ‘ridiculous and preposterous’.
WVS uniform – from Imperial War Museum ‘Women’s War Work Collection’, courtesy of Gale Learning
I wonder if the WVS uniform (for details see here) – modelled on male military attire and certainly made in London – was manufactured by Samuels Brothers? It did initially excite a great deal of controversy- see here, for instance – but as the war wore on lost the power to shock. Indeed, ‘civilian’ fashion was soon influenced with, as the Daily Graphic (7 June 1915) put it, ’military touches charmingly introduced’.
From 1915 Mrs Haverfield, with Vera Holme, promoted the Serbian cause, both in that country and in England. She was working in Serbia in 1920 when she contracted pneumonia and died.
For more information see the entries on Evelina Haverfield and Vera Holme in Crawford, The Women’s Suffrage Movement: a reference guide.
Suffrage Stories: The WSPU Photographer, DORA And The Nazis
Posted in Suffrage Stories on January 17, 2013
If you care to look at the entry ‘Photographs and Photography’ in my Women’s Suffrage Movement: a reference guide’ – you will discover that F. Kehrnhahn & Co of Bexleyheath were the publishers of a variety of real photographic postcards depicting key WSPU occasions. For instance, see here the firm’s picture of WSPU members tricked out in 18th-century attire, designed by Sylvia Pankhurst, as they (wo)manned their stall at the 1911 Christmas Fair.
But who was ‘F. Kehrnhahn’, whose name sat a little incongruously alongside ‘Bexleyheath’? The answer is another intriguing ‘Suffrage Story’.
Ferdinand Louis Kehrhahn was born in Birkenhead in 1883, christened at Tranmere, Cheshire, in 1884 and by 1911 was living with his parents and younger brother, Frederick, at 303 Broadway, Bexleyheath. His father, a watchmaker, had been born in Germany and his mother in Sheffield. On the census form Ferdinand described himself as a ‘Traveller & Photographer’ and Frederick as a ‘Photo Postcard Producer’.
Hampstead by F. Kehrhahn
The brothers, as one might expect, produced a great number of topographical postcards showing scenes in Kent and in London and, at some point, had made contact with the WSPU. I note in my book a number of WSPU occasions – and a number of individual WSPU members – photographed by F. Kehrhahn. I now realise that this was probably something more than a purely commercial arrangement and that there may have been a real coincidence of sympathy between the Bexleyheath photographer and the militant wing of the suffrage movement.
For I have now discovered that during the First World War Ferdinand Kerhahn was an internee. From 1916 he spent some time in the Islington internment camp, which was housed in a former workhouse. The vast majority of the inmates – c 700 – were, according to Hansard (20 Dec 1916), alien enemies, but, in addition, the camp held 39 British subjects and 7 alien friends, held there under the Defence of the Realm Act. Presumably Kehrhahn, who had been born in Birkenhead, was one of those 39 British subjects.
But how had he fallen foul of DORA? The answer lay in his membership of the radical ‘anti-war’ wing of the British Socialist party. In November 1916 he managed to escape from internment and reached New York before being arrested and returned, c April 1917, to Brixton prison [see Hansard 29 Nov 1917].
In the inter-war period Kerhahn, who had now changed his name to ‘Kerran’, was a leading member of the Communist Party, working alongside such former suffragettes as Sylvia Pankhurst, Dora Montefiore and Helen Crawfurd. Apparently, although I have not verified this, before the outbreak of the Second World War Ferdinanad Kerran was working in Germany, helping Jews to escape and listed by the Gestapo as an enemy of the Nazis.
And so, when, on the suffrage trail, you view pictures of maidens in mob caps standing by their stalls ready to sell gewgaws for the Cause, your eye should travel back through the camera into the mind of the photographer where, biding its time, was the desire that capitalism should be overthrown.
Ferdinand Kerran, who had married Lily Chris in 1919, died in Hampstead in 1949.
The Garretts And Their Circle: Ladies’ Residential Chambers And The Importance of Tiles
Posted in The Garretts and their Circle on January 15, 2013
York Street Chambers
York Street Chambers – in York Street, Marylebone – was the second venture undertaken by the Ladies’ Residential Chambers Company, of which Agnes Garrett was a driving force. Its purpose was to provide purpose-built accommodation for ‘educated working women’.
The company had successfully launched the Ladies’ Residential Chambers in Chenies Street in 1889 – to a design by J.M. Brydon – and lost no time in commissioning Thackeray Turner, brother-in-law of Christiana Herringham, one of the company’s directors, to plan for another set of chambers, to be erected in York Street, just south of the Marylebone Road. Turner worked in partnership with Eustace Balfour, whose sister, Eleanor Sidgwick, was involved with Millicent Fawcett (Agnes Garrett’s sister) in the founding of Newnham College, Cambridge.
The York Street Chambers were twice as expensive to build as those in Chenies Street – and have not suffered the indignity of the Second World War bombing that destroyed much of the latter’s original detail. Today York Street Chambers still looks handsome – both outside and inside.
Although it is unlikely that Agnes Garrett was responsible for the internal decoration (while, of course, assiduously attending committee meetings and doubtless supervising such matters) the green tiles that still line the corridors of York Street Chambers appear identical to the blue tiles commissioned from Powells of Whitefriars by Agnes for the corridors of the New Hospital for Women, her sister Elizabeth’s contemporary venture. Alas, we cannot compare them with those selected for Chenies St for it appears that, c 1990, Camden Council removed the corridor tiles before spraying the walls with a purple-fleck paint (they have since been given a rather less aggressive treatment).
Basement c 2000- originally the communal dining room – of York Street Chambers
As in Chenies Street, so in York Street, the basement of the chambers housed a communal dining room. While this was supposed to make life easier for the residents by relieving them of the burden of cooking, committee minutes show that in both sets of chambers the dining room was the focus of a variety of bitter resentments. It makes quite entertaining reading when minuted (if you are that way inclined), but must have been very wearing on the patience of the Company’s directors. When I visited York Street Chambers – probably c 2000 – the basement was in the process of being renovated in order to house a School of Massage and I do not know whether the tiles with which the room was lined were retained. I was, however, very taken by the vigour and panache of the decoration and cannot believe that they would have been ripped out.
Tiles in the erstwhile dining room of the York Street Residential Chambers
When, in Enterprising Women, I described the similar space – by then divided into two flats – that had originally constituted the Chenies Street communal dining room I had no idea that underneath the bland decoration lay a similar riot of ‘Persian’ tiles. It was only a year or so after the book was published that the elderly owner (who had been so helpful in giving me access – and allowing me to photograph Ellen Rope’s ‘Hope’ hovering over his mantlepiece) sold the flat to a young couple who undertook a full-scale renovation. Knowing that I had written about the Chambers – indeed ‘Hope’ was on its cover -they were kind enough to invite me round to see what they had uncovered. And, behold, the room was transformed – the light reflecting off the colourful tiles with which the original dining room had been lined. This was closer to the effect experienced by the chambers’ earlier tenants as they dined – with Ellen Rope’s ‘Hope, Faith, Charity and Heavenly Wisdom’ for inspiration along the wall above them – than the rather claustrophobic gloom of the room as I had first encountered it.
A section of the (former) Chenies Street communal dining room
The Garretts and their Circle: Fanny Wilkinson And The Bloomsbury Triangle
Posted in The Garretts and their Circle on January 14, 2013
Fanny Wilkinson’s flat was on the first floor. Photo courtesy of understanding rome.com
In early 1885 Fanny Wilkinson, a recently qualified landscape architect – indeed the first woman in Britain to undertake a professional training course – moved into a flat at 15 Bloomsbury Street, just south of what is now New Oxford Street. Ten years or so ago, when I first wrote about Fanny Wilkinson – in Enterprising Women: the Garretts and their circle - I assumed that, as there was no trace now of that address, the building had been swept away in the various redevelopments that have taken place in the area over the last 100 years or so. Anyway, the exact site of Fanny’s first London home was not particularly important in the context of that book.
However, three or four years ago I undertook a little more concentrated research on the subject and, realising that 15 Bloomsbury Street had, soon after Fanny’s arrival, been renamed 241 Shaftesbury Avenue, discovered that the building in which she had lived is still there. Moreover, because the bus routes I use most frequently – the 38 and 19 – have been diverted (courtesy of CrossRail development at Tottenham Court Road) I now pass almost daily alongside Fanny Wilkinson’s former home.
The building – red-brick, with Queen Ann-ish windows and corner turret – faces onto an odd little triangle of land that had I long thought rather intriguing. The space is reminiscent of one of those Parisian squares (or triangles) that one may have seen - or imagined. It is rather dark – even in the summer – with lofty trees rising, close together, out of the pavement. In Paris one would add a cafe, waiters with long white aprons, an accordion etc. The London reality includes quantities of strutting pigeons and a peculiar raised concrete circle – ugly and serving no obviously useful purpose – probably something to do with underground systems of one kind or another – a useful shelf for discarded KFC packets, coca cola cans etc.
A little investigation revealed that the triangle had been formed when the final section of Shaftesbury Avenue was cut through St Giles Rookeries and that it was Fanny Wilkinson, in her capacity as landscape gardener to the Metropolitan Public Gardens Association, who ensured that it was not built over. She recommended that trees – London plane trees, as it happened – should be planted and seats made available for the public. The trees – although probably not the originals – are still there but the seats had only a short existence. They were removed c 1893 having attracted ‘dirty tramps, who make them a sleeping place in the day time and by loose women at night.’
Had the journalist who interviewed Fanny Wilkinson for the Women’s Penny Paper in 1890 ‘at her charming flat in Bloomsbury’, had to pick her way past sleeping tramps? Anyway, if she did, she put a brave face on it and assured her readers that ‘[Miss Wilkinson's] rooms have a pleasant country air about them, and it would be difficult to imagine that one was in the heart of the big city in her pretty drawing room. It is the home of a lady, and instinctively one feels its owner must be a woman of refined taste.’ I do not know for certain, but would like to think that the drawing room ran across the first-floor, including the turret corner window, and that one would have looked down onto the leafy tops of the recently-planted trees.
Next door to the building is a pub – The Crown – which was there, under the same name, in Fanny’s day. It now does something to bring an approximation to the Parisian look by setting out tables on its frontage on the triangle. As the smokers huddle there we can be certain that not one – if they gave any thought at all to their surrounding – would imagine that the tiny section of urbanscape before them owed anything to decisions taken 125 years ago by a young Yorkshire woman. Nor, indeed, will the estate agents now attempting to lease the building in which she lived have any idea that what to them is merely so many square feet of office space was once the ‘pretty drawing room’ of a ‘woman of refined taste’. But now, as you walk up this section of Shaftesbury Avenue or inch past on the 38 or 19 (because the traffic is always jammed) – you, at least, will be aware of the layers of the past that hover around this odd little triangle.
For an article about Fanny Wilkinson and Bloomsbury click here
Suffrage Stories: Alison Neilans Cleans The Stove
Posted in Suffrage Stories on January 12, 2013
Another in the Women’s Freedom League ironic series – c 1910 – of ‘Suffragettes At Home’. Here Alison Neilans, then about 26 years old, is seen cleaning her gas cooker.
The gas stove may have been in the kitchen/scullery attached to the 4 rooms she shared with her mother and brother at 37 Caversham Road, Kentish Town. (Not that she was there on the night of the 1911 census – she was, rather, enumerated by the police walking with a couple of companions down Hampstead Road in a boycotting attempt.) Or perhaps it photographed in somebody else’s kitchen – borrowed for this propaganda purpose. Who knows.
Moreover, as ‘Mrs Joseph McCabe Bathing Her Baby’ (the previous card in the series about which I posted), was rather more subverting than the ostensibly homely depiction of a suffragette mother and her son when one realised that the child was the product of her marriage to an ex-Catholic priest, that the erstwhile ‘Brother Anthony’ was now a rampant aetheist, and that she herself was a secularist – so I would like to think that more can be read into this photograph of Alison Neilans.
The fact that she is photographed engaged in an act of cleaning might be taken as an allusion to the act of sabotage she performed at the 1909 Bermondsey by-election when she poured liquid into the ballot boxes. Is this photograph not saying ‘I may have dirtied and destroyed voting papers in the man’s sphere of the polling station but in the woman’s sphere I am relentless in my cleansing’? For, from 1917, Alison Neilans devoted her life to ‘Moral and Social Hygiene’ – as Secretary of the Association of Moral and Social Hygiene and editor of its journal.
By the way, I do have a number of leaflets/pamphlets etc associated with Alison Neilans in stock at the moment
Catalogue 177: Books And Ephemera For Sale
Posted in Books And Ephemera For Sale, Collecting Suffrage, Uncategorized on January 11, 2013
CATALOGUE 177
Item # 300
To order email me – Elizabeth Crawford – at
e.crawford@sphere20.freeserve.co.uk
Postage extra at cost
Non-fiction
1. ALLEN, Isobel Birth Control in Runcorn and Coalville: a study of the F.P.A. campaign PEP 1974 [9020] Soft covers – fine £4
2. ANON After the Dawn: a record of the pioneer work in Edinburgh for the higher education of women Oliver & Boyd 1939 [9159] Based on a scrapbook kept by Sarah Siddons Mair and other records contemporary with the 19th-century movement for higher education in Edinburgh. Very good £48
3. APPRENTICESHIP AND SKILLED EMPLOYMENT ASSOCIATION Trades for London Girls and How to Enter Them Longmans, Green 1909 [9178] Packed with information on trades and wages.Soft covers – good – scarce £38
4. BERRY, Mrs Edward And MICHAELIS, Madame (eds) 135 Kindergarten Songs and Games Charles and Dible, no date [1881] [9035] ‘These songs are printed to supply a want in English Kindergartens’ – the music is, of course, included – as are movement instructions. Mme Michaelis ran the Croydon Kindergarten. Very good £48
5. BOARD OF EDUCATION Special Reports on Educational Subjects vol 19 HMSO 1907 [12233] ‘School Training for the Home Duties of Women. Part III The Domestic Training of Girls in Germany and Austria’. Paper wrappers marked and worn -internally good – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £8
6. BOSANQUET, Mrs Bernard Rich and Poor Macmillan 2nd ed, reprinted,1908 [12641] The Introduction begins ‘The separation between rich and poor in our large towns, and more especially in London, has often been pointed out as one of the most characteristic and threatening signs of the times.’ Plus ça change. A plea – with facts, figures and case studies – for greater understanding between the classes. £12
7. BROWN, Marie Sweated Labour: a study of homework Low Pay Unit 1975 (r/p) [13112] Full of real-life stories as well as facts and figures. 26pp – fine in paper covers £10
8. BULLEY, A. Amy and WHITLEY, Margaret Women’s Work Methuen 1894 [12108] With a preface by Lady Dilke. In the ‘Social Questions of To-day’ series. Very good in original cloth – scarce £55
9. BUTLER, C.V. Domestic Service: an enquiry by the Women’s Industrial Council Garland Publishing 1980 [12114] Facsimile reprint of the study first published by G. Bell & Sons in 1916. £20
10. BUTTERWORTH, Annie Manual of Household Work and Management Longmans, Green, 3rd ed 1913 [9186] A text book, written primarily for student qualifying for the Teacher’s Diploma of Houswifery. Annie Butterworth taught in the Domestic Arts department of University College of South Wales. Good £12
11. CADBURY, E. And SHANN, G. Sweating Headley Bros 1907 [7636] A study of the sweating system in England and Scotland, the research undertaken at a time when it was a matter of great economic and social concern. Full of facts and figures. This copy presented to Astwood Bank Adult School Library ‘with Mr George Cadbury, Jnr’s best wishes’. The book itself has the printed dedication to ‘George Cadbury, an adult school teacher for forty-eight years, in recognition of his efforts to remedy the lot of the sweated workers.’ Soft covers – very good £55
12. CADBURY, Edward, MATHESON, M. Cecile and SHANN, George Women’s Work and Wages: a phase of life in an industrial city University of Chicago Press 1907 [8076] US edition of this study of women’s work in Birmingham. Good – inner hinge a little loose £50
13. CHECKLAND, Olive Philanthropy in Victorian Scotland: social welfare and the voluntary principle John Donald Ltd 1980 [9241] Fine in fine d/w £20
14. CHISHOLM, Cecil and WALTON, Dudley The Business Girl’s Handbook Sir Isaac Pitman & Sons Ltd (1916) [12502] Everything the ambitious young office woman of 1916 might need to know. Rather oddly the book carries a message from Madame Sarah Bernhardt to ‘The Working Women of England” – ‘You who read this book know what it is to work. That makes a link between you and me. For all my life my work has been the one passion of my existence. In this time of war it has been my supreme solace’ etc. Very good £25
15. CLARKE, Patricia The Governesses: letters from the colonies 1862-1882 Hutchinson 1985 [12463] Fine in fine d/w £7
16. COHEN, Monica Professional Domesticity in the Victorian Novel: women, work and home CUP 1998 [12419] Offers new readings of narratives by Jane Austen, Charlotte Bronte, Dickens, George Eliot, Emily Eden etc to show how domestic work, the most feminine of all activities, gained much of its social credibility by positioning itself in relation to the emergent professions. Soft cover – fine £25
17. COLLET, Clara Report by Miss Collet of the Statistics of Employment of Women and Girls HMSO 1894 [7203] Report prepared under the aegis of the Board of Trade – Employment of Women (Labour Department). Very good – 152pp – bound into new protective card covers £85
18. COLLET, Clara Report by Miss Collet on the Money Wages of Indoor Domestic Servants HMSO 1899 [7207] Women workers were in the overwhelming majority of those considered in this report. Fascinating information. Very good in original card covers £55
19. CRAIG, Elizabeth Housekeeping Collins 1947 [13047] With many photographs. In ‘Elizabeth Craig’s Household Library’ series. Good in torn d/w £8
20. CRAWFORD, Elizabeth Enterprising Women: the Garretts and their circle Francis Boutle 2009 (r/p) [12677] Pioneering access to education at all levels for women, including training for the professions, the women of the Garrett circle opened the way for women to gain employment in medicine, teaching, horticulture and interiior design – and were also deeply involved in the campaign for women’s suffrage. Soft covers, large format, over 70 illustrations. Mint – new book £25
21. FAWCETT, MILLICENT Political Economy for Beginners Macmillan, 7th ed 1889 [4335] Reasonable copy – ex College of Preceptors Library £16
22. FINDLAY, J.J. (ed) The Young Wage-Earner and the Problem of His Education: essays and reports Sigwick and Jackson 1918 [8026] For ‘His Education’ read also ‘Hers’. The essays include: ‘From Home Life to Industrial Life: with special reference to adolescent girls, by James Shelley, prof of education, University College, Southampton; ‘The Young Factory Girl’ by emily Matthias, superintendent of women employees, the Phoenix Dynamo Manufacturing Co, Bradford and the reports include: ‘Working Girls and Trade Schools (London)’ by Theodora Pugh and ‘The Sons and Daughters of Farming Folk’ by J.J. Findlay. Very good
£25
23. GATES, Evelyn (ed) Woman’s Year Book 1923-1924 Women Publishers Ltd 1924 (3rd ed) [13006] An invaluable reference work, covering all aspects of the post-emancipation period in considerable detail. Contributors include Millicent Fawcett (aunt of the editor), Commandant Mary Allen, Lena Ashwell, Lilian Barker, Margaret Bondfield, Winifred Cullis, Margaret Llewellyn Davies, Margery Fry, Chrystal Macmillan, Hilda Martindale, Bertha Mason, Edith Picton-Turbervill, Eleanor Rathbone – among many others. Full of facts and figures, names and addresses. Very good internally – cloth grubby – withdrawn from the Women’s Library . £65
24. GILBERT, Sandra And GUBAR, Susan No Man’s Land: the place of the woman writer in the twentieth century Yale University Press 1994 [8899] Vol 3 – ‘Letters From the Front’ .477pp - mint in d/w £25
25. GILLESPIE, Diane F. (ed) The Multiple Muses of Virginia Woolf University of Missouri Press [7496] Fine in d/w £25
26. GOLDSMITH, Margaret Women and the Future Lindsay Drummond 1946 [12101] A study of what the position was likely to be in the post-Second World War world. Scarce.Fine – in very slightly chipped d/w £25
27. GOLDSMITH, Margaret Women at War Lindsay Drummond Ltd (1943) [12602] Study of women’s work and life during the Second World War. Many photographs. Good £20
28. HAYES, Alan and URQUHART, Diane (eds) The Irish Women’s History Reader Routledge 2001 [12496] Soft covers – very good £12
29. HEATH, Ambrose Good Savouries Faber 5th imp 1945 [12649] Delicious – retro – recipes. In chipped Edward Bawden dustwrapper – and with Bawden title page design £28
30. HESSELGRAVE, Ruth Avaline Lady Miller and the Batheaston Literary Circle Yale University Press 1927 [3020] An 18th-century Bath literary salon. Lady Miller was the first English woman to describe her travels in Italy. Fine £55
31. HOLT, Anne A Ministry To The Poor: being a history of the Liverpool Domestic Mission Society, 1836-1936 Henry Young (Liverpool) 1936 [9243] Very good – scarce £45
32. HOLTBY, Winifred Women John Lane 1941 (r/p) [12102] First published in 1934. Good reading copy – spine nicked and marked £12
33. JEFFREYS, Sheila The Spinster and Her Enemies: feminism and sexuality 1880-1930 Pandora 1985 [12445] Soft covers – fine £8
34. JEPHCOTT, Pearl With Nancy Seear and John H. Smith Married Women Working Allen & Unwin 1962 [9160] Very good in d/w – with stamp of the Reference and Political Library of the Conservative Research Department £15
35. KANNENSTINE, Louis F. The Art of Djuna Barnes: duality and damnation New York University Press 1977 [2572] A study of the entire range of Djuna Barnes’ work. Fine in d/w £18
36. KENEALY, Arabella Feminism and Sex-Extinction E.P. Dutton & Co (NY) 1920 [12107] Anti-feminist eugenicist polemic. US edition is scarce. Very good internally – cloth cover a little bumped and rubbed £25
37. KLEIN, Viola Working Wives: a survey of facts and opinions concerning the gainful employment of married women in Britain Institute of Personnel Management no date (1960) [12267] A survey carried out in co-operation with Mass Observation Ltd. Paper covers faded – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £10
38. LANG, Elsie British Women of the Twentieth Century T. Werner Laurie 1929 [12505] Excellent collection of essays on all aspects of (middle-class) women’s lives – including ‘Higher Education and University Life’, ‘The Medical Profession’, ‘The Fight for the Franchise’, ‘Women and the Legal Profession’, ‘Dress and Society’, ‘Women and the Arts’, ‘Careers for Women. With an interesting selection of photographs. Good £18
39. LEVINE, Philippa Victorian Feminism 1850-1900 University Press of Florida 1994 [12134] Paper covers – very good £15
40. LEWIS, Judith Schneid In the Family Way: childbearing in the British aristocracy, 1760-1860 Rutgers University Press 1986 [8652] Very good in slightly chipped d/w £25
41. LOANE, M. An Englishman’s Castle Edward Arnold 1909 [9060] Martha Loane was a district nurse – this study of the homes of the poor is the result of her social investigation. Good £18
42. LOANE, M. The Queen’s Poor: life as they find it in town and country Edward Arnold (new and cheaper edition0 1906 [7995] Martha Loane, a Queen’s Nurse in Portsmouth, wrote as a social investigator among the ‘respectable poor’. This was her first study. Good in decorative boards £35
43. LOOTENS, Tricia Lost Saints: silence, gender, and Victorian literary canonization University Press of Virginia 1996 [12398] Fine in d/w £35
44. MACFARLANE, Iris Daughters of the Empire: a memoir of life and times in the British raj OUP 2006 [13122] Four generations of English women in India. Fine in d/w £8
45. MEAKIN, Annette Woman in Transition Methuen 1907 [12646] A feminist study of a changing society. Fixed to the inner front cover is a piece of doggerel from a newspaper entitled ‘My Lady in Khaki’, dated 1916, showing how even greater were the changes to be a mere 9 years after the book’s publication. ‘There is a change, a subtle change/That’s quite apparent in your bearing,/In perfect keeping with the strange,/Weird uniform you’re wearing.’ Very good £28
46. NASH, David Secularism, Art and Freedom Leicester Unviersity Press 1992 [7447] A study of the Secular movement in Victorian England. Fine £18
47. NASH, Julie And SUESS, Barbara (eds) New Approaches to the Literary Art of Anne Bronte Ashgate 2001 [12423] Mint in d/w (pub price £55) £35
48. PAPWORTH, L. Wyatt and ZIMMERN, Dorothy M. The Occupations of Women according to the census of England and Wales, 1911 Women’s Industrial Council 1914 [12235] Soft covers – very good – ex-Women’s Library £20
49. PHILLIPS, Margaret Mann Willingly to School: memories of York College for Girls 1919-1924 Highgate Publications 1989 [13124] Good in card covers – though ex-library £10
50. ROBINSON, Annabel, PURKIS, John, MASSING, Ann A Florentine Procession: a painting by Jane Benham Hay at Homerton College, Cambridge Homestead Press (Cambridge) 1997 [2465] A study of the Pre-raphaelite style painting and its artist – who was a friend of Bessie Rayner Parkes. With colour reproduction of the large painting. Paper covers – mint £8
51. ROGERS, Helen Women and the People: authority, authorship and the radical tradition in nineteenth-century England Ashgate 2000 [8401] Fine £30
52. ROYDEN, A. Maude The Church and Woman James Clarke no date (1923) [13007] ‘With a chapter on the evangelical and free churches by Constance M. Coltman’. Good in d/w – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £12
53. ROYDEN, A. Maude Political Christianity G.P. Putnams’ 1923 (r/p) [13120] Dedicated to members of the Guildhouse congregation. Good – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £8
54. SIX POINT GROUP In Her Own Right: a discussion conducted by the SWix Point Group Harrap 1968 [12975] Includes contributions from Hazel Hunkins-Hallinan, Marghanita Laski, Pat Hornsby-Smith and Lena Jeger, stemming from a conference ‘where it was felt that it was timely to investigate ths uccess of the movement towards emancipation and to discuss the problems remaining fifty years after the emancipation of women’. Paper covers – good £10
55. SOLANAS, Valerie SCUM Manifesto Matriarchy Study Group 1981 [13123] Good – ex-library £6
56. STENTON, Doris Mary The English Woman in History Allen & Unwin 1957 [8440] Good reading copy – ex-library £15
57. STOPES, Marie Birth Control Today Hogarth Press, 12th ed 1957 [9003] Very good in d/w £5
58. STOPES, Marie Carmichael Contraception (Birth Control: its theory, history and practice) Putnam, 8th ed 1952 [9002] ‘A manual for the medical and legal professions’. Very good in d/w £12
59. STOPES, Marie Carmichael Roman Catholic Methods of Birth Control Peter Davies 1949 (r/p) [8996] Very good in d/w £12
60. TAYLOR, Barbara Mary Wollstonecraft and the Feminist Imagination CUP 2003 [11898] Soft covers – fine £17
61. THORMAHLEN, Marianne The Brontes and Religion CUP 2004 [12430] Soft covers – fine £30
62. TODD, Janet Gender, Art and Death Continuum (NY) 1993 [3972] Mint in d/w £18
63. TRIMMER, Mrs Abridgment of Scripture History consisting of Lessons selected from the Old Testament for the use of Schools and Families Rivington, stereotyped ed 1811 [3042] One of the most popular scripture textbooks of the 19th century. Good in original boards £25
64. VINCE, Mrs Millicent Decoration and Care of the Home W. Collins 1923 [12870] Mrs Vince had been a pupil of the pioneer ‘House Decorator’, Agnes Garrett. Very good in rubbed d/w £18
Biography
65. ANON (Agnes Maud Davies) A Book with Seven Seals Cayme Press 1928 [8552] First edition of a classic of Victorian childhood – I think perhaps it is a ‘faction’ – am not sure that it is actually a memoir. If I said that it strikes me as having a hint of Rachel Ferguson about it, those that are familiar with her work will know what I mean. The author’s name was withheld for this first edition. An elegant book – cover a little blotched £25
66. (BURNEY) F. Frankfort Moore The Keeper of the Robes Hooder and Stoughton (no date- 1920s) [3800] Large format, illustrated, study of Fanny Burney’s time in the royal household – in the service of Queen Charlotte. Very good £20
67. (BUTTS) Nathalie Blondel (ed) The Journals of Mary Butts Yale University Press 2002 [12460] 500pp – heavy – mint in mint d/w £20
68. (DU MAURIER) Judith Cook Daphne: a portrait of Daphne du Maurier Bantam Press 1991 [12400] Very good in d/w £5
69. (EDGEWORTH) Christina Colvin (ed) Maria Edgeworth in France and Switzerland: selections from the Edgeworth family lettes Clarendon Press 1979 [2988] Fine in d/w £25
70. (GLADSTONE) Lucy Masterman (ed) Mary Gladstone (Mrs Drew): her diaries and letters Methuen 1930 [8409] Daughter of Gladstone, born in 1847, excellent diary and letters, 1858-to her death (1927). Very good in d/w £18
71. (HAMMOND) Mrs John Hays Hammond A Woman’s Part in a Revolution Longmans, Green 1987 [6083] The ‘Revolution’ was the Boer War – her husband was imprisoned by the Boers. Good £30
72. (HAYS) A.F. Wedd (ed) The Love Letters of Mary Hays (1779-1780) Methuen 1925 [8655] Very good – scarce £45
73. HAYS, Frances Women of the Day: a biographical dictionary of notable contemporaries J.B. Lipincott (Philadelphia) 1885 [12594] A superb biographical source on interesting women. Good in original binding – with library shelf mark in ink on spine- scarce £75
74. (HUMBERT) Agnes Humbert Résistance: memoirs of Occupied France Bloomsbury 2008 [12392] Memoirs of Agnes Humbert (1894-1963), an art historian who helped form one of the first organised groups of the French Resistance. First published in France in 1946, this translation, by Barbara Mellor, is the first in English. Mint in d/w £5
75. (JAMESON) G.H. Needler (ed) Letters of Anna Jameson to Ottilie von Goethe OUP 1939 [12451] Very good internally – cover marked £20
76. (JAMESON) Judith Johnston Anna Jameson: Victorian, feminist, woman of letters Scolar Press 1997 [12461] An examination of Jameson’s non-fiction writing in the context of her life. Mint in mint d/w £20
77. (JERNINGHAM) Ernest Betham (ed) A House of Letters: being excerpts from the correspondence of Miss Charlotte Jerningham, Lady Jerningham, Coleridge, Lamb, Southey, Bernard and Lucy Barton, and others, with Matilda Betham Jarrolds [2179] ‘Also notes of some phases in the evolution of an English family’- the Bethams. Good £28
78. (MARTIN) Sarah Martin A Brief Sketch of the Life of the Late Miss Sarah Martin of Great Yarmouth: with extracts from the Parliamentary Reports on Prisons; her own Prison Journals etc C. Barber (Yarmouth) 2nd ed, 1844 [12756] Prison visitor, dressmaker, Sunday School teacher. Her comments on the prisoners are particularly interesting. Good in original cloth £35
79. (NICHOL) Anna Stoddart Elizabeth Pease Nichol Dent 1899 [12999] (1807-1897) Scottish Quaker – daughter of the founder of the Peace Society, suffragist, chartist, anti-vivesectionist. Very good – scarce £35
80. (OUTRAM) Mary Frances Outram Margaret Outram 1778-1863; mother of the Bayard of India John Murray 1932 [3593] A wide-ranging, satisfying biography. Good internally – tho’ ex-library £15
81. (PERRY) Ruth Perry The Celebrated Mary Astell: an early English feminist University of Chicago Press 1986 [11897] Soft covers – very good – scarce £25
82. (SEWELL) Mrs Bayly The Life and Letters of Mrs Sewell James Nisbet, 3rd ed 1889 [2667] Memoir of the Quaker writer of moral didactics for children; she was mother of Anna Sewell. Good £12
83. (TRIMMER) Mrs Trimmer Some Account of the Life and Writings of Mrs Trimmer with original letters, and meditations and prayers, selected from her journal Printed for C & J Rivington, 3rd ed 1825 [7884] A good, clean and tight copy in original calf boards of this interesting memoir – some marking and rubbing and 1” split at top of spine, which is decorated with gilt and raised bands. £65
84. (VICTORIA) Dorothy Marshall The Life and Times of Victoria Weidenfeld & Nicolson 1992 (r/p) [6510] Lavishly illustrated. Mint in d/w £10
85. (WEAVER) Jane Lidderdale And Mary Nicholson Dear Miss Weaver: Harriet Shaw Weaver 1876-1961 Faber 1970 [8925] The woman behind The Egoist and patron of James Joyce. Very good in d/w £20
86. (WEETON) Edward Hall (ed) Miss Weeton journal of a governess OUP, 1936 and 1939 [7614] In two volumes – covering the years 1807-11 and 1811-25 – shows what life was like for an unprotected female (albeit one of great strength of character) in the North of England (Huddersfield, Wigan, Liverpool), Wales and London. Very good £60
87. (WOLLSTONECRAFT) H.R. James Mary Wollstonecraft: a sketch OUP 1932 [2590] Very good in d/w £18
88. (WOLLSTONECRAFT) Margaret Tims Mary Wollstonecraft: a social pioneer Millington 1976 [2516] Fine in d/w £8
89. (WORDSWORTH) Robert Gittings And MANTON, Jo Dorothy Wordsworth OUP 1985 [4284] Fine in d/w £12
90. (WRIGHT) Margaret Lane Frances Wright and the ‘Great Experiment’ Manchester University Press 1972 [6081] An Owenite – the ‘Great Experiment’ was Nashoba, a utopian community in America. Very good £18
Ephemera
91. The Home Friend (New Series) SPCK 1854 [8313] 4 vols of miscellany of fact and fiction. Very good in embossed decorative original cloth – together £45
92. Mother India’s Daughters: the significance of the Women’s Movement Women’s International League no date [1934] [13073] ‘The Women’s Movement in India is growing with a rapidity and vigour which is probably without parallel..it is essential that British men and women should be prepared to give it their understanding, sympathy and support. 8-pp pamphlet – good – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £8
93. ASSOCIATION FOR MORAL AND SOCIAL HYGIENE Collection of Annual Reports [12313] A collection of 13 of the Association’s Annual Reports – 7th (1921/22)-15th (1929/30); 29th (1950)-33rd (1954). Packed with information – and names of members, Paper covers – all in good condition – 13 items – together £50
94. ASSOCIATION FOR MORAL AND SOCIAL HYGIENE Reasons for Objecting to Clauses 2 & 6 of the Criminal Law Amendment Bill 1917 [12370] together with 2) ‘United Protest Against Clauses 3 & 7 of the Criminal Law Amendment Bill (No 2) (as amended by the Joint Select Committee.’ As ever, ASMH attempts to protect women from compulsory detention and to make the communication of venereal disease a punishable offence; 3) ‘Manifesto of the Association for Moral and Social Hygiene on the Sexual Offences Bill, 1918, and the Criminal Law Amendment Bill, 1918′ – 4-pp pamphlet.. All in good condition – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £8
95. AUTOGRAPHS (1) [13057] A sheet of paper on which are fixed the individual cut-out signatures of Lady Constance Lytton, Louise Creighton, Alison Sheppard, Dorothy R. Maud, Louise Donaldson and Lena Ashwell. Very good £50
96. AUTOGRAPHS (2) [13058] A sheet of paper on which are fixed the individual cut-out signatures of Marie, Lady Willoughby de Broke, Maud Selborne (the Countess of Selborne), Florence E. Barrett, Henrietta Barnett, Margery Corbett Ashby, Dorothy Jewson, Mabel Dearmer and Hester Kempthorne (wife of a bishop) £45
98. AUTOGRAPHS – LEAGUE OF CHURCH MILITANT [13060] 4 sheets of paper to which are fixed 28 individual cut-out signatures of members of the League of Church Militant, the successor to the Church League for Women’s Suffrage. The signatures include thos of Margaret Benn (Lady Stansgate), Hope Joseph (artist), Evelyn Morrison (a WSPU activist), Edith Picton-Turbervill and M.A.R. Tuker. Many of the signatures are identified by pencilled annotations. Together £35
100. AUTOGRAPHS – THE GUILDHOUSE [13061] The Guildhouse was an ecumenical place of worship and cultural centre founded in 1921 by Maude Royden. On 4 sheets of paper are fixed 25 individual cut-out signatures, including those of Maude Royden, Hudson Shaw, Daisy Dobson (Maude Royden’s secretary), Zoe Procter (former WSPU activist), and Katherine Courtney (of the NUWSS). Together £45
101. BINFIELD, Clyde Belmont’s Portias: Victorian nonconformists and middle-class education for girls Dr Williams’ Trust 1981 [9158] The 35th Friends of Dr Williams’s Library Lecture. Paper covers – 35pp – good – scarce £18
102. BRITISH, CONTINENTAL, AND GENERAL FEDERATION FOR THE ABOLITION OF GOVERNMENT REGULATION OF PROSTITUTION Fourth Annual Report British, Continental, and General Federation 1879 [12322] Covers the year 1878-79. Paper covers – good – a little creased and chipped £12
103. BRITISH MEDICAL ASSOCIATION [8762] Memorandum of the Articles of Association, and by-laws of the British Medical Association, together with a few other items sent with a letter, dated 17 July 1922, welcoming Dr Gladys Stableforth, Moorfields, Fenham, Northumberland as a member of the BMA. £3
104. BURTON, Elaine What is She Worth? a study of the report on equal pay 1947 [12268] Paper covers – 12pp – good -w ithdrawn from the Women’s Library £4
105. CAMPBELL, Dame Janet Infant Mortality Ministry of Health 1929 [12257] International Inquiry of the Health Organisation of the League of Nations, English Section. Paper covers – 118pp – good – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £8
106. CARPENTER, Edward Woman, and her place in a free society The Labour Press Society (Manchester) 1894 [13075] 41-pp pamphlet in which he argued that the ‘liberation’ of woman would not be achieved until ‘our whole commercial system, with its barter and sale of human labour and human love for gain is done away with.’ With ownership inscription dated 4/12/94. The paper covers are present but chipped and detached – the text is good and firm – withdrawn from the Women’s Library – scarce £75
107. CHARITY ORGANISATION REVIEW Vol X (New Series) July To Dec 1901 Longmans, Green 1902 [9244] half-yearly bound volume of the COS’s own magazine. Very good £28
108. CO-OPERATIVE HOLIDAYS ASSOCIATION [12798] 3-pp pamphlet, reprinted from ‘Modern Language Teaching’, June 1910, setting out the work of this Associaiton, which had begun by the Congregational Church in industrial Lancashire, together with Annual Reports for the year ending Sept 30th, 1910 and Annual Report for the year ending Sept 30th 1911. Interesting – 3 items – the Annual Reports v good – the pamphlet rubbed and split (with no loss of text) – ex-Board of Education library – as a collection £15
109. DINNER AND PRESENTATION TO MISS ALISON NEILANS [12351] 4-pp leaflet, reprinted from ‘The Shield’, Dec 1938, describing the ‘Silver Jubilee dinner held at St Ermin’s Hotel, Westminster, to celebrate Miss Neilans’ 25 years work with the Association for Moral and Social Hygiene’. Good – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £8
110. FARIDOONFI, Mrs Rustomji Address to the All-India Women’s Conference, Karachi, 1934-35 1935 [13113] 22pp – good – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £6
111. FAWCETT, Millicent Speech or Silence [12358] article – extracted from ‘The Contemporary Review’, together with an article from the same issue by Ellice Hopkins on ‘The Apocalypse of Evil’ – both on the subject of moral reform. 16pp – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £3
112. Fédération Abolitioniste Internationale Conference in Portsmouth 1914 British Branch of the International Abolitionist Federation 1914 [12316] The Handbook for the Conference, containing details of the delegates, the Programme, and photographs and information about Portsmouth as a town, together with ‘Morals and Public Health’ the 352-pp Report of the Conference. Both items in very good condition -paper covers – withdrawn from the Women’s Library. 2 items together £35
113. FEMINIST ARTS NEWS Vol 2 No 1 no date (1986?) [13118] This issue is titled ‘Women for Peace’. Good – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £3
114. FEMINIST ARTS NEWS Vol 3 no 3 1990 [13114] This issue is titled ‘Politics of Location/Culture of Dislocation: Irish Women – Britain. Good – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £3
115. FEMINIST ARTS NEWS Vol 3 No 4 1990 [13117] This issue is titled ‘Women, Modernism, Modernity’. Good – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £3
116. GIRL GUIDES Log of 2nd Worthing Ranger Company April-September 1927 [13127] An exercise book covered in linen with a handpainted Girl Guide trefoil on the front and dried specimens of the Company’s three patrols – Poppy, Oak and Silver Birch on the inside front cover. The title page has been lovingly decorated – and there are occasional drawings in the text and a few photographs of the girls at camp. The Log is a handwritten record of the Rangers’ activities in 6 months of 1927- recorded in some detail. The names of many of the girls and their leaders are mentioned. Unusual £35
117. GORDON, Dr Mary Prophylaxis and Venereal Disease 1919 [12344] A paper read before the International Conference of Medical Women, New York, Oct 1919. 8-pp pamphlet – reprinted from ‘The Shield, Dec 1919-Jan 1920. Good condition – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £3
118. HOMERTON COLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE [12782] Reports of the Congregational Board of Education on its Training College, Homerton Undenominational College – for the years ending 30 June 1900, 1901, 1902. All in good condition – ex Board of Education library – 3 items together £20
119. INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS ON THE WHITE SLAVE TRAFFIC Memorandum Presented to the Delegates and Members by the British Committee of the International Federation for the Abolition of State Regulation of Prostitution 1899 [12315] Paper covers – 46pp – good condition – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £8
120. LOCAL GOVERNMENT BOARD Supplement in continuation of the Report of the Medical Officer of the Board for 1914-15 Containing a Report on Maternal Mortality in connection with childbearing and its relation to Infant Mortality. HMSO 1915 [12256] The 44th Annual Report of the Local Government Board, 1914-15. Complete, but missing its paper covers – otherwise good – 140pp – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £8
121. LONDON INSTITUTE FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF PLAIN NEEDLWORK [12681] opened in 1878 with the aim of teaching teachers how to teach needlework and to present diplomas to those who passed its examinations. The diploma holders were then eligible to give demonstrations in plain needlework and to teach it. This collection of annual reports of the Instute runs from 1902-1914, 1916,1917, 1918 (merely a postcard report – ‘war conditions’), 1919, 1920. (17 items).. Certificates were awarded to girls from a range of schools - Cheltenham Ladies’ College and Wycombe Abbey as well as high schools and proprietory schools. The reports include not only the names of all these schools, but also the names of all those who held the Institute’s various qualifications – and details of all the syllabuses for its examinations. All in good condition in original wrappers- ex-Board of Education library. A collection £85
122. MINISTRY OF HOUSING AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT Moving from the Slums HMSO 1956 [12249] Seventh Report of the Housing Management Sub-committee of the Central Housing Advisory Committee. Paper covers – good – withdrawn from the Women’s Library. £4
123. REPORT OF A DEPARTMENTAL COMMITTEE ON THE PREVALENCE OF VENEREAL DISEASE AMONG THE BRITISH TROOPS IN INDIA HMSO 1897 [12353] 33-pp foolscap Report – together with – ‘A Rough Record 1858-1935 on the work of the Association for Moral and Social Hygiene, in connection with the British Army in India’ – 8-pp foolscap report. In good condition – withdrawn from the Women’s Library. Together £12
124. REVIEW OF REVIEWS [3887] edited by W.T. Stead. the first volume, January-June 1890. As Stead spotted, here was a gap in the market, enabling the interested observer to keep a finger on the pulse of the world. With v useful indexes to articles in current periodicals. Very good £25
125. ROYDEN, A. Maude The Hour and the Church Allen & Unwin 1918 [12232] Soft covers – very good – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £10
126. SHAFTS ed. by Margaret Shurmer Sibthorpe 1892 [12501] Volume 1 – issue no 1 – 3 Nov 1892 – of this ‘progressive’ radical woman’s paper. This first issue contains an article on The Pioneer Club – whose – members were just the readership at which ‘Shafts’ was aiming – on ‘Type-Writing as an Employment for Women’ – on ‘Social Purity’ by ‘A Working Woman’ – and a review by Frances Lord (first English translator of Ibsen) of ‘Peter Ibbetson’ by George du Maurier.- noted as the first in a series of ‘short notes on Books containing Occult, Psychical or Mystical Teaching.’ ‘Shafts’ caught the fin-de-siècle zeitgeist. First issue – very good condition – very scarce £48
127. SMALL COLLECTION DOCUMENTING THE ACADEMIC PROGRESS OF MURIEL LONG AT THE COUNTY HIGH SCHOOL FOR GIRLS, WEST KIRBY 1920-1926 [12613] The tenor of Muriel’s school reports is ‘very fair’ – and we all know what that means. But she was clearly much younger than the average age of the class and does quite well in maths and science. Generally her conduct is ‘very good’ but at least one report notes ‘rather noisy in the class room’.Included in the collection are a number of programmes for Speech Day and Annual Sports. In 1926 Muriel went on to Underwood Commercial College in Liverpool to learn shorthand and typing (1st in the class in ‘Office Routine’). I think Muriel married in 1940 and died in 2006 – leaving bequests to Venice in Peril and the Royal Overseas League – so it doesn’t look as though being graded only ‘very fair’ at Scripture, Ancient History etc had prevented her taking an interest. An eclectic collection of material £45
128. SOCIETY OF FEMALE ARTISTS Thirteenth Season 1869 [7231] Catalogue of the exhibition held at the Gallery, 9 Conduit Street, London. Besides listing all the officers of the Society, the main body of the catalogue lists all the women exhibiting (giving the addresses of many, always useful), with the titles of their works shown and the prices asked. Very good in paper covers – 30pp – extremely scarce £85
129. SOUTHWARK HOUSING ASSOCIATION LTD Fifth Report Southwark Housing Association May 1937 [12247] Paper covers – 20-pp – with a map, a photograph and lots of names of subscribers. Very good £4
130. THE ASSOCIATION FOR MORAL AND SOCIAL HYGIENE The Alison Neilans Memorial Lectures AMSH [12335] 6 of these annual lectures: 1) No 2 Madame Legrand-Falco, History of the Abolition of State Regulation of Prostitution, with special relation to France and the position today, 1946; 2) No 3 Mrs Franklin Lefroy, The Solicitation Laws, 1948; 3) No 4 C.R. Hewitt, The Police and the Prostitute, 1951; 4) No 5 Mary Stocks, Josephine Butler and the Moral Standards of Today, 1961; 5) No 6 T.C.N. Gibbens, The Clients of Prostitutes, 1962; 6) No 10 Dr R.D. Catterall, Prostitution and the Venereal Diseases, 1967. All paper covers – in good condition, withdrawn from the Women’s Library. Together £20
131. THE ASSOCIATION FOR MORAL & SOCIAL HYGIENE Its Work and its Needs AMSH 1927 [12329] 12-pp pamphlet – soft covers – TOGETHER WITH – a 4-pp leaflet, ‘The Work of the A.M.S.H.’, 1938. 2 items together – both in good condition – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £4
132. THE HOUSING AND SLUM PROBLEM Questions and Answers Burrup, Mathieson & Co 1933 [12246] Paper covers -12pp – good – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £4
133. THE SHIELD [12339] ‘The Official Organ of the British Committee of the International Federation for the Abolition of State Regulation of Vice’ – 5 issues. 1) August 1911; 2) Feb-March 1926; 3) May 1940; 4) Oct 1961; 5) Nov 1970 (Centenary Number) All paper covers – good condition – withdrawn from the Women’s Library. – together £12
134. THE VIGILANCE RECORD [12336] ‘The Organ of the National Vigilance Association’, 3 issues: 1) 15 January 1888, ed Mrs Ormiston Chant 2) April 1926 3) April 1928. All withdrawn from the Women’s Library – in good condition – nicked and creassed at edges. Together £10
135. WILSON, Helen On Some Causes of Prostitution with special reference to economic conditions Association for Moral and Social Hygiene 1916 [12318] A paper read at the Eleventh Congress of the International Abolitionist Federation, held in Paris, June 9-12, 1913, revised edition. Paper covers – 15pp – good £2
136. WOMEN’S INTERNATIONAL LEAGUE International House Club WIL no date (1930s) [12212] Dorothy Evans was secretary of the Club, which provided a centre for people of international mind, for study, entertainment and refreshment. The Club boasted a Cafeteria ‘on the American “hel yourself” system’ and a Reading and Smoking Room. 4-pp leaflet, which includes a Membership Form and a photograph of the dining room. Withdrawn from the Women’s Library. £8
137. WOMEN’S TRADE UNION LEAGUE 40th Annual report WTUL Sept 1915 [6155] Packed full of facts, figures and names. Paper covers – 48-pp – fine £35
138. WOMEN’S UNIVERSITY SETTLEMENT FOR WORK IN THE POORER DISTRICTS OF LONDON Fifteenth Annual Report WUS March 1902 [13038] Packed with names of subscribers as well as a report of the work accomplished by the Settlement. Paper covers – good -ex-Board of Education library £18
Postcards
139. CLARK‘S COLLEGE, CIVIL SERVICE Preparing for the Lady Clerk’s G.P.O. Exam [9233] Photograph of the young women preparing for this exam which, if they passed, offered a chance of bettering themselves. Very good – unposted £12
140. MISS MARGARET MCMILLAN [8930] photographic postcard, reproduced by the Newcastle Socialist Society, c 1908. With the caption ‘My message to the Socialist movement is always the same: REAL education would make children fit to live in a better social environment and unfit to live in the world of todday..’ Very good – unposted £24
141. MISS MINNIE PALLISTER [8418] photographic postcard of the ILP speaker and writer. Probably dates from 1920s – unposted – very good £12
Fiction
142. BAILLIE, Joanna A Series of Plays in which it is attempted to delineate the stronger passions of the mind Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme, & Brown, a new edition 1821 [2509] A handsome set – newly rebound in cloth £120
143. BETHUNE, Geo. W. Bethune The British Female Poets: with biographical and critical notices R. Worthington (NY) [7889] The poets and their works – begin with Juliana Berners and include, among many others, Katharine Philips, the Duchess of Newcastle, Mrs Elizabeth Rowe, Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, Charlotte Smith, Anna Seward, Mrs Barbauld, Anne Yearsley, Mrs Hemans, Mary Howitt, Mrs Norton, Eliza Cook and Elizabeth Barrett Browning. First published in 1848 – this is a later reprint (probably 1870s). Good in rather rubbed decorative binding £38
144. BOYLE, Kay Primer for Combat Faber 1943 [8355] ‘Shows the effect of Nazi conquest on the daily life of the men and women of France.’ Very good in chipped d/w £8
145. DEARMER, Mrs Percy (Mabel) The Dreamer: a drama of the life of Joseph A.R. Mowbray 1912 [3069] Good – in decorative paper covers with a split in the spine paper £8
146. FEINSTEIN, Elaine The Russian Jerusalem Carcanet 2008 [12394] A novel of Russia – both Putin’s and Stalin’s – with poems and pictures. Soft covers – mint £5
147. GILLIATT, Penelope The Cutting Edge Secker 7 Warburg 1978 [2829] Fine in fine d/w £5
148. GILLIATT, Penelope Nobody’s Business Secker & Warburg 1972 [2830] Short stories. Fine in fine d/w £5
149. GILLIATT, Penelope Splendid Lives Secker & Warburg 1977 [2827] Short stories. Fine in d/w £5
150. HALL, Marguerite Radclyffe- The Forgotten Island Chapman & Hall 1915 [7694] Poems. Very good – scarce £50
151. HALL, Radclyffe Poems of the Past and Present Chapman & Hall 1915 [3624] Very good – very scarce £95
152. HASTINGS, Lady Flora Poems William Blackwood 1841 [5816] The poems of poor Lady Flora were edited for publication by her sister. Lady Flora, a lady in waiting at court in 1838, was suspected of being pregnant, though unmarried. In fact her body was swollen with illness – and she died. Everybody was then v. sorry. Pasted onto the free front endpaper is a black-bordered printed ‘Elegy on the Death of Lady Flora Hastings.’ Annotation in ink reveals that the copy had in 1882 belonged to Mr John Gladstone, 39 Gunter Grove, Redcliffe Gardens, London S.W.. Latterly the copy had been held in the City of Cardiff Reference Library – perhaps given to it by Mr Gladstone. It bears a ‘Withdrawn from Stock’ stamp as well as the library albel on the front pastedown. The copy, in its original decorative green cloth, is worn along spine and hinge to front board is tender – contents very good £25
153. KREITMAN, Esther Deborah Virago 1983 [4467] First published in 1936. Paper covers – very good £7
154. LEHMANN, Beatrix Rumour of Heaven Virago 1987 [4466] First published in 1934. Paper covers – very good £8
155. LEHMANN, Rosamond The Gipsy’s Baby Virago 1982 [4462] First published in 1946. Paper covers – good £7
156. LEON, Donna Doctored Evidence William Heinemann 2004 [8908] Set in Venice. Mint in d/w – signed by the author £18
157. MACDONALD, M.P. Trefoil: the story of a girl’s society Thomas Nelson no date (c 1908?) [2489] An Australian (Melbourne) girls’ story. Good £8
158. MARCHANT, Bessie Juliette the Mail-Carrier Collins (r/p), no date [8047] Set in Nova Scotia – young Juliette comes good – taking over the position as mail carrier in her element-battered home region. Sunday School prize dated 1924. Very good £8
159. MEW, Charlotte The Farmer’s Bride The Poetry Bookshop, 3rd imp 1929 [7693] Very good internally – cover sunned around edges £12
160. PARRIS, P.B. His Arms are Full of Broken Things Viking 1997 [2979] A novel based on the life of Charlotte Mew. Fine in d/w £10
161. ROYDE SMITH, Naomi Jane Fairfax Macmillan 1940 [8348] Not exactly a sequel to Jane Austen’s ‘Emma’- but a parallel, using many of Austen’s characters. Good – quite scarce £6
162. SELLERS, Sue Vanessa and Virginia Two Ravens Press 2008 [12402] A novel exploring the relationship between Virginia Woolf and Vanessa Bell. Soft covers – fine £5
163. SERGEANT, Adeline Alison’s Ordeal James Nisbet no date (1903?) [2969] By a prolific and very professional novelist. £10
164. SIGOURNEY, Mrs (ed. F.W.N. Bailey) The Poetical Works of Mrs L.H. Sigourney G. Routledge 1857 [2428] Neatly rebound in cloth £20
165. SNELL, Roy Norma Kent of the WACS Whitmand Publishing Co (Wisconsin) 1943 [2448] In the ‘Fighters for Freedom’ series. Norma Kent joined the Women’s Army Corps, never left mainland America, but had lots of adventures and did her part to win the war! Good in d/w £18
166. SPARK, Muriel Territorial Rights Macmillan 1979 [8910] Set in Venice. Very good in d/w £12
167. WARD, Mrs Humphry Eleanor Houghton Mifflin Co 1911 [9027] A volume from the uniform edition of Mrs Ward’s works. Good £12
Suffrage
168. BAX, Belfort The Legal Subjection of Men: a reply to the Suffragettes The New Age Press 1908 (new edition) [12660] ‘There have been few agitations in history which have been characterised by such hard lying and shameless perversions of fact as the so-called ‘Woman’s Movement’.. The ‘Woman’s rights’ (?) agitator has succeeded by a system of pure impudent, brazen, ‘bluff’, alternately of thh whimpering and the shrieking order, in inducing a credulous public to believe that in some mysterious way the female sex is groaning under the weight of the tyranny of him whom they are pleased to term ‘man the brute’. Very good – rebound in cloth – with original paper covers bound in. £28
169. DOVE, Iris Yours in the Cause: suffragettes in Lewisham, Greenwich and Woolwich Lewisham Library Services and Greenwich Library Services 1988 [13110] 22-pp in card covers. Withdrawn from the Women’s Library. Scarce £25
170. MACKENZIE, Midge Shoulder To Shoulder Penguin 1975 [8062] The book of the acclaimed television series. Paper covers – large format – fine £12
171. MARKINO, Yoshio My Idealed John Bullesses Constable 1913 [7381] A Japanese illustrator – includes a long chapter, with illustrations, about Christabel Pankhurst and the WSPU. Good – with decorative cloth cover. Bears the ownership inscription of the novelist Beatrice Kean – scarce £155
172. TICKNER, Lisa The Spectacle of Women: imagery of the suffrage campaign 1907-14 Chatto and Windus 1987 [12606] A wonderful book. Fine in d/w – scarce £45
Suffrage Fiction
173. BALDRY, W. Burton From Hampstead to Holloway: depicting the suffragette in her happiest mood John Ouseley 1909 [12755] Delightful comic novel relating the journey of a suffragette from active membership of the ‘Women’s Defence League’ to contented bride – taking in many of the well-known motifs along the way – the office in Westminster, the meeting in ‘Paxton Hall’, the rally in Trafalgar Square, the battle with the police, the appearance in court, and, finaly, Holloway, where, like Ann Veronica, she finds herself thinking rather more about a certain young man than the Cause. Profusely and splendidly illustrated by G.E. Shepeard. Very good – original pictorial yellow cloth slightly rubbed and dulled, leading inner hinge slightly cracking – very scarce – I last had a copy in 1999 £350
174. FAIRBAIRNS, Zoe Stand We at Last Virago 1983 [1222] A picaresque novel, with a suffrage sequence. Paper covers – very good £6
175. HAMILTON, Cicely How The Vote Was Won Women Writers’ Suffrage League no date [1908] [13063] This 16-pp book – with wonderful illustrations by the mysterious suffrage artist, C. Hedley Charlton – was the precursor to the play of the same title by Cicely Hamilton and Christopher St John. The original ‘story’ – written by Cicely Hamilton only – purports to be ‘short Extracts from Prof. Dryasdust’s “Political History of the Twentieth Century”, published in the year 2008 AD’ and tells how women of all sorts and conditions decided that ‘every woman was to cease work until such time as her work was recognised by the State, and that, until the State did recognise it, she was to demand support and the necessities of life from her nearest male relative, however distant’. The book was published by the Women Writers’ Suffrage League from 15 Sandringham Court, Maida Vale, which in 1908 was the home of Bessie Hatton. COPAC shows copies held only in the Women’s Library, the British Library and York University library. This copy is a duplicate withdrawn from the Women’s Library – with rubber stamp and shelf markings on the cover – a rubber stamp on two pages – not affecting text or image. The paper covers are present but semi-detached, along with the final page. But extremely scarce £150
176. A LOOKER-ON The Home-Breakers Hurst and Blackett 1913 [12632] ‘An anti-militant suffragist novel by a Popular and Well-known Novelist who desires to remain anonymous’. The author was J.S. Stainton. An extremely interesting ‘suffrage’ novel – its ‘anti’ sentiment when written, has been rather eroded by the passing of time – and it is an excellent read for the detail in which it delinates the militant campaign and the women involved in it. And, again, although it might have been inteded to be anti-militant, the publishers were sufficiently savvy to ensure that it was cased in purple cloth (now a little faded) with the title in white in a green rectangle – ie the WSPU colours. It was obviously published in the latter half of 1913, as it includes a visit to the Derby, witnessing Emily Davidson [sic] go under the horse’s hooves. Very scarce £75
177. PAGE, Gertrude The Winding Paths Hurst & Blackett c 1911 [8th ed] [12888] A novel with a suffrage theme. ‘The men call them “new Women” with derision, or mannish, or unsexed; but those who have been among them, and known them as friends, know that they hold in their ranks some of th most generous-hearted, unselfish, big-souled women who exist in England to-day…One such as the best of these was Ethel Hayward..’ Good £20
178. ROBERTS, Katherine Pages From the Diary of a Militant Suffragette Garden City Press 1910 [11202] There has been some doubt about whether this is an autobiography or fiction. I tend to think that it is fiction – clearly written by an active suffragette – but am not further forward about who Katherine Roberts was. Extremely interesting – and vivid. Paper covers – a little chipped – but a very good copy – clean and tight – of a very scarce book £250
179. SAUTER, Lilian Through High Windows Curtis & Davison (11a Church St, Kensington) 1911 [12880] Poems. Includes ‘Woman’s Plea for Suffrage’ and ‘Woman’s Song of Freedom.’. The latter was set to music by Annette Hullah and published by the London Society for Women’s Suffrage £25
180. SHAW, Bernard Press Cuttings: a topical sketch compiled from the editorial and correspondence columns of the Daily Papers Constable & Co no date (1909) [13000] as performed by the Civic and Dramatic Guild at the Royal Court Theatre, London, on the 9th July 1909. A suffragette play. In grey card covers a little chipped at edge £35
181. TEMPEST, Evelyn [pseud. of Edward Cuming] The Doubts of Diana Hodder & Stoughton [1911/12] [12881] Light-hearted novel – with the heroine taking part in a suffragette raid akin to ‘Black Friday’ ['The rumour that Govenment had thoughts of employing policemen from other parts of London was lightly discredited; everybody was sure no such thing would be done, even by the new Home Secretary'] and ending up in a police court. Good in original binding £28
182. TREVELYAN, Sir G.O. Ladies in Parliament, Horace at Athens, and other pieces George Bell, new edition 1888 [1736] ‘”The Ladies in Parliament” was composed during the the great agitation which followed the rejection of Mr Gladstone’s Reform Bill of 1866′. Very good £25
183. WHITE, Percy To-Day Tauchnitz 1913 [12885] A very readable novel – with suffrage taking central stage – alongside criticism of the divorce laws. The heroine, as in ‘Ann Veronica’, is prepared to sacrifice her social position for the Cause and enter into a legal pact rather than a conventional marriage. Paper covers – good – scarce £18
Suffrage Ephemera
184. A Brief Review of the Women’s Suffrage Movement since its Beginning in 1832 [NUWSS] Sept 1913 [13079] 16-pp pamphlet. A pamphlet of the same name, printed by Vacher and dated to 1911, is recorded in COPAC. This, presumably an updated version, was printed at the Templar Printing Works, Birmingham, and bears the ownership signature of Catherine Osler, doyenne of the Birmingham Women’s Suffrage Society. There is, however, no suggestion that she was its author. This copy was withdrawn from the Women’s Library (which does hold the 1911 version – and ‘NUWSS’ is lightly pencilled on the front cover. Good £15
185. Women and the General Election: Report prepared by Standing Joint Committee of Industrial Women’s Organisations to be presented to the National Conference of Labour Women, 1929 The Labour Party 1929 [13067] ”The General Election of 1929 ushers in a new epoch. For the first time in our history, women will exercise a franchise based on full equality with men, and nearly fourteen million women will be upon the electoral register…Women hold in their hands the destinies of their sex and of their country. They find themselves in a majority over men of more than two millions. In such a position, they must ralise that their responsibility is as great as their power.’ 36-pp pamphlet setting our Labour women’s hopes for the future and analysis of social and economic conditions for women in the immediate past. Good – ex-library, with shelfmarkings on cover £18
186. AN OLD-FASHIONED CONSERVATIVE A Reply to the Anti-Suffrage Manifesto Conservative and Unionist Women’s franchise Association No date (c 1910?) [12995] ‘Reprinted, with alterations, from ‘The Queen’. Interesting to see the Conservative pro-suffrage arguments. 4-pp leaflet – fair – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £15
187. BERNHARD, Dr Margarete (ed) The Present Postition of Woman Suffrage: on behalf of the International Alliance of Women for Suffrage and Equal Citizenship IAWSEC 1929 [13106] A survey of the status of one half of the world’s ‘citizens’ in 1929. Paper covers – good £18
188. BODICHON, Mrs Reasons for the Enfranchisement of Women London National Society for Women’s Suffrage, no date late 1860s? [9519] Printed by Head, Hole & Co, Farringdon Street and Ivy Lane, E.C. Scarce and important pamphlet -8pp – good £250
189. CALLING ALL WOMEN: Newsletter of the Suffragette Fellowship Suffragette Fellowship [13062] 14 issues of ‘Calling All Women’ between Feb 1956 and Feb 1971. They are full of interesting information – from the horses’ mouths, as it were – on the afterlives of suffragettes and reveal something of the efforts of consciousness-raising in the days before second-wave feminism. All in good condition – as a collection £250
190. CHRISTITCH, Elizabeth A Word on Woman Suffrage Catholic Women’s Suffrage Society 3rd ed, no date [1912] [13071] 12-pp pamphlet putting the Catholic woman’s point of view. The inside front cover gives details of the office and branches etc of the Catholic Women’s Suffrage Society. Good – with shelf markings – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £18
191. CORONATION PROCESSION 17 June 1911 [11274] A stereoscope photograph of ‘The Empire Car’ – part of the ‘Pageant of Empire’ part of the procession staged by the suffrage societies to mark the Coronation of George V. Very good £95
192. DAVIES, Emily Parliamentary Franchise for Women 1904 [13066] A 4-pp pamphlet, a reprint of a letter written to the Editor of ‘The Times’ on 31 March 1904. Emily Davies had, of course, been an instigator of the suffrage movement 38 years previously and noted that ‘within the last 20 years a marked change has taken place in public opinion in regard to it. The tone of mingled disapproval and derision, once so common, has to a great extent disappeared, and a disposition is shown to give the quesion a fair hearing, with an undertone of prophecy that “it will come”‘. The pamphlet is not credited to any specific suffrage society, but was, presumably, sold by the NUWSS. Fragile, chipped at edges – unusual – and scarce £55
193. DEPUTATION OF VOTERS OF KENT Men Demand Votes for Women [13077] ‘Protest lodged at Downing Street, July 25th, 1914, by a Deputation of Voters from Ashford, Kent.’ A deputation of men from Ashford had called on the prime minister to lobby in favour of women’s suffrage. Asquith was not at home. The protest is signed by Councillor Bolton, Hon Sec of the Deputation of Voters of Kent. The deputation was afterwards entertained by Mrs Chapman and other members of the New Constitutional Society, which had devoted some efforts in campaigning in Ashford (some details of which are given in my forthcoming book ‘Campaigning for the Vote: Kate Parry Frye’s Suffrage Diary’).. Single sheet – in good condition £15
194. EDINBURGH NATIONAL SOCIETY FOR WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE [11313] Testimonial, dated 14 December 1881, from the Edinburgh National Society to Charles Cameron, MP for Glasgow, for ‘having introduced and successfully carried through Parliament, during the last troubled Session, the Municipal Franchise Bill, conferring on Women Householders the same right which men Householders have hitherto enjoyed..’ The testimonial is signed by Priscilla McLaren, as President, and with the signatures also appended of the Secretaries, Eliza Wigham, Emily Rosaline Masson and Elisa Kirkland. £300
195. ELMY, Elizabeth Wostenholme Woman’s Franchise: the need of the hour ILP 2nd ed, no date [1907] [12760] A campaigner for women’s suffrage since the mid-1860s, she had put aside a lifetime’s aversion to party politics and joined the Manchester ILP in 1904. This article was originally published in the ‘Westminster Review’. In her concise style she analyses the events of the previous 40 years and demands that Liberal MPs who profess to support women’s suffrage honour their pledges. £65
196. FAWCETT, Mrs Henry Home and Politics an address delivered at Toynbee Hall and elsewhere Women’s Printing Society 1894 [12939] A much reproduced speech – first given c 1890. This printing does not bear a date but probably c 1900. It carries the ownership stamp of Margaret Clark, Street, Somerset who in 1909 married Arthur Gillett – so probably predates 1909. 8pp – a little creased and marked – but tight £35
197. HALDANE, Richard B., K.C.,M.P. Speech on the Parliamentary Franchise (Women) Bill, 1910 National Union Women’s Suffrage Societies 1910 [13104] 6-pp leaflet – speech on the Conciliation Bill – rubbed – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £10
198. HAMILTON, Cicely Beware!: A Warning to Suffragists Artists’ Suffrage League 1908/09 [?] [13065] with sketches by Mary Lowndes, Dora Meeson-Coates and C. Hedley Charlton. A book of neat rhymes. I reproduced it as a series of posts on my website womanandhersphere.com – but here is the chance to own the original copy. The ASL production was very simple – the pages were held together by a brass clip through the top left-hand corner of the covers and pages. This is missing – so all the pages are separate. The condition is reasonably good – a few chips on the cover – but no markings. Extremely scarce £250
199. HMSO Representation of the People Bill HMSO 1917 [13074] ‘A Bill to Amend the Law with respect to Parliamentary and Local Government Franchises..etc’. Clause 4 allowed the vote to women over the age of 30. 42 pages – a good reading copy – missing its paper covers £15
200. INTERNATIONAL WOMAN SUFFRAGE CONGRESS [13134] Budapest June 15-20 1913. This is a small advertising paper label (double-sided) for the Congress – showing two graceful women stretching their arms, to hold hands across the globe. The type-face is very 1913. A pretty and interesting memento of the last pre-war international women’s gathering. Fine -amazingly ephemeral – and unusual £85
201. KELLEY, Florence Persuasion or Responsibility? National American Woman Suffrage Association c 1905? [13076] Vol 2, No 8 in ‘Political Equality Series’. Small format – 4pp – good – with shelfmark – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £5
202. LEIGH SMITH, Barbara A Brief Summary in Plain Language of the Most Important Laws Concerning Women; together with a few observations thereon Holyoake & Co, 2nd edition revised with addition 1856 [9033] Barbara Leigh Smith (later Barbara Bodichon) was 27 years old when she wrote this pamphlet, first published in 1854 as part of her campaign to change the Married Women’s Property Acts. This pamphlet is extremely scarce (I have never had a copy for sale before), bound inside recent paper covers. Rather amusingly, the printed price of ‘Threepence’ has been scored through and ’1 1/2 d’ added – a comment, presumably, then on the interest being shown in the campaign by a public not yet awakened to the cause. Very good £280
203. LENNOX, Geraldine The Suffragette Spirit The Suffragette Fellowship 1932 [12960] One of the series of ‘Suffragette Lectures’ – given at Caxton Hall on 17 Nov 1931. Paper covers – good internally -although has been folded. Paper covers carry many shelf marks – withdrawn from the Woman’s Library – scarce £40
204. LONDON SOCIETY FOR WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE Annual Report 1914 LSWS 1914 [12968] Presented at the Annual General Meeting held at the Caxton hall, Westminster, December 10, 1914. With useful list of local committees and branches, and names and addresses of their secretaries etc. And, of course, most importantly, details of the aid the Society was giving to the war effort in the early months of the War. 24pp in paper covers – very good – the cream paper of the covers just a little grubby. Scarce £65
205. LONDON SOCIETY FOR WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE Annual Report 1916 LSWS 1916 [12969] With details of their war efforts, both at home and in France and Serbia – and of their local committees etc. 34pp – paper covers – good – a little creased and grubby. Scarce £50
206. LONDON SOCIETY FOR WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE Annual Report 1917 LSWS 1917 [12970] Details of local committees etc – and of war work – including that ofovers the Women’s Service Bureau. Financial accounts are given for the different areas of operation – ie ‘War Service Fund’, ‘London Units of the Scottish Women’s Hospitals for Foreign Service’ and ‘Welding School, Ministry of Munitions’. 34pp -paper covers marked – internally good £55
207. LONDON SOCIETY FOR WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE Annual Report 1918 LSWS [12992] ‘Presented at the annual general meeting held at the Caxton Hall, Westminster, Feb 24th 1919.’ Financial accounts are given for the different areas of operation – ie ‘War Service Fund’, ‘London Units of the Scottish Women’s Hospitals for Foreign Service’ and ‘Welding School, Ministry of Munitions’. Paper covers marked – internally good – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £30
208. LONDON SOCIETY FOR WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE Debate between Mrs Humphry Ward and Mrs Henry Fawcett LSWS 1909 [12947] The debate was held in London on 26 Feb 1909 – organised by the St Pancras Committee of the LSWS. As an afternote, the local chairman and secretary felt obliged to set out details of the exact circumstances of the distribution of tickets – it had been that kind of evening. 32-pp – the text is all there – in poor but readable condition – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £10
209. LONDON SOCIETY FOR WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE Women and the Nation LSWS Feb 1917 [13084] ‘There has never been a time when England has so much needed the service of her women citizens as she does NOW.’ Single-sided leaflet issued as Parliament was beginning to discuss the inclusion of women in the new Representation of the People Bill. vERY GOOD £12
210. LYDIA BECKER [12607] Letter from Lydia Becker to ‘Mr Levi’ – written from 85 Carter St, Greenyes, Manchester on ‘Oct 16′ – I have worked out that the year is1868. ‘Mr Levi’ is probably Prof Leone Levi, to whom she had sent a pamphlet a few days earlier. I think, in response, he had written to her in admiration asking for some material from her for his autograph book. In this letter, in return, she writes ‘I have written out my three Norwich prospositions ,[these are drawn from her address at Norwich to the British Association Section F on 25 Aug 1868] which I hope may serve your purpose as a curiosity! for your autograph book, and a bone of contention for your friends.’ These ‘three Norwich propositions’ are set out on a separate sheet. But, in addition, in her 4-pp mss letter she sets out ‘my general wishes and conclusions as to the rights of women’.. All the material has been carefully attached to a sheet that once was page 77 in a collection of autograph material. Incidentally the material on the reverse, p 78, is in Italian, lending credence to my supposition that the correspondent was Leone Levi, who had left his native Italy for Liverpool in 1844. A very interesting letter – very good £95
211. MCCABE, Joseph Woman in Political Evolution Watts & Co 1909 [9803] An overview -from ‘ Woman Before Civilisation’ to ‘The Moral Base of Enfranchisement.’Paper wrappers – one nick at spine eats into the margin of a few pages -and a tiny bit of text is lost on two pages, but does not interfere with reading. £28
212. MCLAREN, Lady ‘Better and Happier’: An Answer from the Ladies’ Gallery to the Speeches in Opposition to the Women’s Suffrage Bill, February 28th, 1908 T. Fisher Unwin 1908 [13102] I have always been rather an admirer of Laura McLaren and her straight-forward prose. 46-pp – paper covers present but detached – text otherwise good and tight – scarce £75
213. MACMILLAN, Chrystal And Shall I Have a Parliamentary Vote? NUWSS March 1918 [12949] Contains all the details on what was necessary for a woman to claim her newly-won vote. 18pp – paper covers – marked with a little pencilled underlining – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £25
214. MAP OF THE WSPU/WFL PROCESSION OF 18 JUNE 1910. [12303] The map was a contemporary reprint of a page from ‘Votes for Women’ for 17 June 1910 and was issued to those thousands taking part. It shows where the separate sections should line up – from the Portsmouth and Petersfield WSPU at Westminster Bridge to the Peckham WSPU at Carmelite Street. The procession was to be led up Northumberland Avenue by University Graduates, Pharmacists and Women Sanitary Inspectors and members of the Men’s League. The map is framed in a silver metal frame -looks rather good. Because of the problem of the glass, I will be unable to post it, so it will need to be picked up in London. £95
215. (MARSH) Suffragette Fellowship Memories of Charlotte Marsh published for the Suffragette Fellowship by Marion Lawson June 1961 [12979] Paper covers – tribute to a leading WSPU activist – 20-pp pamphlet -card covers reproduces her hunger strike medal. Good -carries library marks – withdrawn from the Women’s Library. Scarce £30
216. MARSHALL, Catherine Women’s Suffrage Election Campaign in Cumberland [13082] ‘Reprint of letter sent to the Local Press Jan 5th 1910′. Catherine Marshall was the very active NUWSS local secretary in Cumberland, here describing the efforts that suffragists were making during the first general election of 1910. Single-sided leaflet – rubbed £10
217. MEN’S POLITICAL UNION FOR WOMEN’S ENFRANCHISEMENT First Annual Report MPU 1911 [12982] Includes an account of the Union’s work and a list of donors. Paper covers (with rather attractive purple, white and green motif) present, but detached – and rather chipped and grubby. Internally fair – with some pencilled annotations. Scarce £40
218. MILL, Mrs Stuart (Harriet Taylor Mill) The Enfranchisement of Women Trubner & Co 1868 [12964] A reissue, in pamphlet form, of the important article that Harriet Taylor contributed to the ‘Westminster Review’ in 1851. Paper covers – back cover has a tear across – front cover has several library shelf marks – withdrawn from the Women’s Libary. But internally good – and scarce £75
219. MISS MORGAN, OF BRECON The Duties of Citizenship Women’s Local Government Society c 1912 [12946] Extracts reprinted from a paper read at the Annual Conference of the National Union of Women Workers, Manchester, October 27th 1896. By the time this leafet was issued Miss Morgan had beed Mayor of Brecon, 1911-12. 4-pp – good – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £15
220. MURRAY, Eunice Woman’s Value in War Time WFL c 1917 [12991] 12pp pamphlet. – front paper cover present, but detached – back cover missing.- fair – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £12
221. NATIONAL LEAGUE FOR OPPOSING WOMAN SUFFRAGE Woman and Manhood Suffrage NLOWS no date [c 1912?] [13078] What they fear is ‘the Government of this country by a majority of women electors. Such a result being absurd and intolerable, contrary to all reason, experience, nature and common sense..’ Single, double-sided sheet -fragile, chipped and rubbed £5
222. NATIONAL SOCIETY FOR WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE CENTRAL COMMITTEE: First Report of the Executive Committee presented at the General Meeting of the Central Committee held on Wednesday 17 July 1872 National Society for Women’s Suffrage 1872 [12931] See my ‘Women’s Suffrage Movement: a reference guide’ as to how and why the Central Committee came into being. This – the Committee’s first report, contains lists of names of members of the Committee, of subscribers, and of the Local Committtes around England and Scotland that affiliated to the Central. In original paper covers – rubbed – very scarce £95
223. NATIONAL UNION OF WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE SOCIETIES Women Workers and Women’s Votes: Women Tax-Payers NUWSS no date (c 1917) [13099] Double-sided leaflet. ‘Just because the need is great and the wise spending of every penny is all important, women tax-payers ask to share in electing the men who are responsible for raising and spending the revenues of the country.’ Fine £10
224. NATIONAL UNION OF WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE SOCIETIES Final Report of the Professional Women’s Patriotic Service Fund NUWSS Oct 1915 [12943] ‘The Fund began work in Jan 1915, when a Committee was formed for the purpose of assisting professional women, by paying their salaries and offering their services to organisations which are dealing with war needs.’ I knew nothing of this short-lived Fund before reading this Report. It lists, on the one had, donors and, on the other, the positions in which they had placed needy ‘professional’ women. The Fund was wound up when it became clear that its services were no longer required. The Committee included, among others, Mrs Auerbach, Mrs Fawcett, Catherine Marshall, Ray Strachey, Dr Jane Walker – and its secretary was Kathleen Courtney. 12pp – good – scarce £50
225. NATIONAL UNION OF WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE SOCIETIES Five Points in the relation between votes for women and certain economic and social facts [7401] Written by Geraldine Hodgson. Double-sided sheet – a little frayed round the edges – no loss of text £15
226. NATIONAL UNION OF WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE SOCIETIES A Memorandum Showing Cause Why Women Should Take Part in the Election of the Parliament which is to deal with problems of reconstruction arising out of the war NUWSS Nov 1916 [13017] ‘The object of this Memorandum is to put together the latest facts and figures bearing on the question of the enfranchisement of women in relation to the present political and industrial situation.’ Foolscap -34pp -card covers – good £30
227. NATIONAL UNION OF WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE SOCIETIES Memorial of Head Mistresses of Girls’ Public Secondary Schools NUWSS 1909 [12934] ‘The headmistresses who signed this Memorial asked Mr Asquith to receive a deputation in order that they might lay their views before him in person. This request was refused.’ Text of the memorial forwarded to Asquith in June 1909 – listing all those who had signed it. 16-pp pamphlet – goodish – a bit creased around the edges £35
228. NATIONAL UNION OF WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE SOCIETIES Will the Vote Help Industrial Women? NUWSS 1910? [13081] Single sheet – chipped and rubbed £8
229. NATIONAL UNION OF WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE SOCIETIES Women Workers and Women’s Votes: Teachers NUWSS no date (c 1917) [13085] Double-sided leaflet aimed specifically at women teachers – ‘it is unjust that men teachers have the power of the vote behind them, and women are politically helpless.’ Fine £10
230. NATIONAL UNION OF WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE SOCIETIES Women Workers and Women’s Votes: Why Women Clerical Workers Want the Vote NUWSS no date (c 1917) [13086] ‘Because the man with a Vote can get £400 or £500 a year for work for which a woman is paid £250..’ Double-sided leaflet – very good £10
231. NATIONAL UNION OF WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE SOCIETIES Women Workers and Women’s Votes: Nurses NUWSS no date (c 1917) [13088] ‘All the great departments of the State are calling upon nurses for their services today’… To all these departments nurses give ungrudging service, but, in spite of their work for the State, they are not counted among its citizens.’ Double-sided leaflet – fine £10
232. NATIONAL UNION OF WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE SOCIETIES Women Workers and Women’s Votes: Postition of (Civilian) Widows NUWSS no date (c 1917) [13090] Double-sided leaflet extolling the power of the vote to ensure that non-military widows and orphans received adequate support. Fine £10
233. NATIONAL UNION OF WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE SOCIETIES Women Workers and Women’s Votes: Agricultural Women NUWSS no date (c 1917) [13091] Double-sided leaflet calling for the vote for women who had responded to the Government’s call to work on the land during the War £10
234. NATIONAL UNION OF WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE SOCIETIES Women Workers and Women’s Votes: Mothers NUWSS no date (c 1917) [13093] ‘Women must have a say in the legislation that affects Motherhood’. Double-sided leaflet. Fine £10
235. NATIONAL UNION OF WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE SOCIETIES Women Workers and Women’s Votes: Business Women NUWSS no date 9c 1917) [13094] ‘Thousands of women are carrying on businesses while their husbands are fighting.’ ‘Give us the Vote.’ Doublde-sided leaflet – fine £10
236. NATIONAL UNION OF WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE SOCIETIES Women Workers and Women’s Votes: Midwives NUWSS no date (c 1917) [13095] ‘Midwives know well how essential their work is to the community, and they ask that they shall have a voice in making the laws by which that work is regulated’. Double-sided leaflet – fine £10
237. NATIONAL UNION OF WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE SOCIETIES Women Workers and Women’s Votes: Social Workers NUWSS no date (c 1917) [13096] Double-sided leaflet setting out why ‘As a class, social workers feel their unenfranchised condition more keenly than any other body’. £10
238. NATIONAL UNION OF WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE SOCIETIES Women Workers and Women’s Votes: Factory Work and Women’s Health NUWSS no date (c 1917) [13097] Double-sided leaflet showing how the welfare of women in factories would be more carefully protected if women had the vote. Fine £10
239. NATIONAL UNION OF WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE SOCIETIES Women Workers and Women’s Votes: Professional Women NUWSS no date (c 1917) [13098] ‘Is it not a strange anomaly that women of proved intellect and experience are still denied the elementary rights of citizenship?” Double-sided leaflet – fine £10
240. NATIONAL WOMEN’S SOCIAL AND POLITICAL UNION Second Year Intermediate Report NWSPU 1907 [12981] Includes financial accounts for six months ending 31 Aug 1907 – together with a description of the WSPU’s activities and a list of subscribers. This was published after Mrs Despard etc had broken away to form the WFL. Fair – paper covers present but detached. Scarce £95
241. OSLER, Mrs A.C. Why Women Need the Vote Templar Press (Birmingham) no date (1910) [13126] 55-pp pamphlet by the doyenne of the Birmingham Women’s Suffrage Society. According to COPAC the only copies held by UK libraries are at Birmingham and the Women’s Library. Good internally – paper covers damaged and with shelf marks – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £45
242. PANKHURST, Christabel The War: a speech delivered at the London Opera House on September 8th 1914 WSPU [12962] ‘Every day it has become to us more and more apparent that our country is in danger, and that it is necessary for all sections to unite, in order that we may be strong as we have never been strong before; and therefor we Suffragettes believe tht it is our duty to do all we can to rouse the individual citizen to fight for the freedom and the independence of this country and this Empire.’ 16-pp pamphlet – fair in marked paper covers (the back cover is missing a small section) with many library shelf markings – withdrawn from the Women’s Libary. Very scarce £50
243. PANKHURST, EMMELINE ET AL Suffrage Speeches From the Dock: Conspiracy Trial, Old Bailey, May 15th-22nd 1912 The Woman’s Press, no date (1912) [12965] The speeches given during their trial for conspiracy by Mrs Pankhurst, Mrs Pethick-Lawrence, Mr Pethick Lawrence and Tim Healy (counsel for the defence). They were reprinted and published by the WSPU’s publishing arm, the Woman’s Press. Fair – first 4 pages present but detached – spine reinforced with sellotape – paper covers chipped and carry library shelf marks – withdrawn from the Women’s Library- extremely scarce £55
244. PETERSEN, H. Frances The Belief in Innate Rights NUWSS no date [1913] [13100] 12-pp pamphlet printed for the NUWSS by the Women’s Printing Society – reprinted from the ‘Law Magazine and Review’. Good in original paper covers £12
245. PETHICK-LAWRENCE, Emmeline and Frederick (eds) VOTES FOR WOMEN VOL III Oct 1909-Sept 1910 [12407] Hefty bound volume of the WSPU weekly newspaper, in original Sylvia Pankhurst-designed boards. Signs of wear at leather corners – spines rebacked – ex Reading University Library – with library label on back boards. Internally very clean and tight, except for page of the Index where paper has split, but with no loss of text.. £900
246. PHILLIPS, Mary The Militant Suffrage Campaign privately printed 1957 [11357] ‘This pamphlet is designed to tell in a concise form the story of the ‘Votes for Women Canpaign’ and to explain the reasoned policy on which it was based.’ Mary Phillips had been a leading WSPU organizer. Soft covers – 15pp – scarce £65
247. REDMOND, Mr W., M.P. And Mr Kettle, M.P. Speeches on the Parliamentary Franchise (Women) Bill, 1910 National Union of Women’s Suffrage Societies 1910 [13105] 8-pp pamphlet – speeches on the Conciliation Bill. Chipped and rubbed – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £10
248. ROYDEN, A. Maude Votes and Wages: how women’s suffrage will improve the economic postition of women NUWSS 2nd 1912 [12996] Maude Royden thanks Isabella Ford for help and advice in compiling this pamphlet; the cover illustration is Emily Ford’s ‘They have a cheek! I’ve never been asked’. 20pp pamphlet – good – paper covers with library shelf markings. WIthdrawn from the Women’s Library. Scarce £30
249. SCOTCHMEN AT DOWNING STREET Speeches by the Delegates 18 July 1913 [12936] The ‘Scotchmen’ were the Northern Men’s Federation for Women’s Suffrage founded by Maud Arncliffe-Sennett with the purpose of taking a deputation to see Asquith. The intention was that the deputation should, for maximum publicity, be timed to coincide with the arrival of the NUWSS ‘Pilgrims’ in London. Asquith, however, held true to his word – repeated on several occasions – that he would no receive the deputation. This pamphlet, which they had prepared in advance, contains the speeches they would have given. The ‘Scotchmen’ were, in the main, members of the Edinburgh and Glasgow city council and the deputation stressed its non-party credentials. 16-pp in card covers – in good condition – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £60
250. SIX POINT GROUP What We Think on questions of interest to women: Report of Spring Conference 1965 [13108] 28-pp in card covers. Good – has been folded – withdrawn from the Women’s Library
251. SNOWDEN, Philip The Dominant Issue Feb 1913 [12945] A comment on the ‘Franchise Bill fiasco’ – that is, Asquith’s promise that a Manhood Suffrage Bill would be amended to include women – and the Speaker’s eventual ruling that such an amendment would destroy the Bill. Pamphlet reproducing an article first published in ‘The Christian Commonwealth’ . Good – a little foxed and grubby £25
252. SNOWDEN, Philip, M.P. Speech on the Parliamentary Franchise (Women) Bill, 1910 National Union of Women’s Suffrage Societies 1910 [13103] 4-pp leaflet – as delivered in the debate on the Conciliation Bill. A little chipped and rubbed – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £10
253. STRACHEY, Ray The Women’s Movement in Great Britain: a short summary of its rise, methods and victories National Council of Women of Great Britain no date (c 1928) [13109] A pamphlet abridged from Strachey’s ‘The Cause’. Chipped and rubbed – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £10
254. SUFFRAGETTE BEING FORCIBLY REMOVED FROM THE RAILINGS OF BUCKINGHAM PALACE – 21 MAY 1914 [12612] real news photograph – showing a policeman seizing a distressed young woman who, with her one free hand, is clutching the Palace railings. This policeman is in the act of pulling off her hat or pulling down her hair while another, hidden from view, is pulling her away – his arm firmly locked around her waist. Besides capturing a moment of dramatic action, the photograph is a rather well composed shot of intermingled limbs, movement and shadows.
The photograph – 15cm x 11 cm – has been mounted, but is unframed. Very good – unusual £95
255. SUFFRAGETTE FELLOWSHIP Roll of Honour Suffragette Prisoners 1905-1914 Suffragette Fellowship no date [1966] [13107] 16-pp, double column, listing all the suffragette prisoners that the Suffragette Fellowship knew of. A couple of names have been added in ink. Internally fine – cover has shelf markings etc – withdrawn from the Women’s Library. Scarce £150
256. THE ANNUAL CELEBRATION OF THE BIRTHDAY OF MRS EMMELINE PANKHURST [12986] will take place on Friday 14th July 1939. Single sheet leaflet setting out the plans for the celebration and a list of the societies that were supporting the occasion. Good £20
257. THE BISHOP OF LONDON The Claim of Justice Church League for Women’s Suffrage 1914 [12940] ‘A speech delivered in the House of Lords in support of the Earl of Selborne’s Women’s Enfranchisement Bill, 5th May, 1914′. 14pp in yellow card covers – small format – printed by Francis & Co, The Athenaeum Press, which did so much to further the suffrage cause. Good – scarce – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £40
258. THE EARL OF LYTTON The House of Lords and Women’s Suffrage P.S. King for the NUWSS 1914 [12944] Speech given on 6 May 1914 in a debate on the private member’s bill introduced by Lord Selborne which would have enfranchised municpal women voters. Very good – 36pp in card covers £45
259. THE ENGLISH REVIEW, JUNE 1913 [5463] Includes an article, ‘The Truth About White Slavery’ by Teresa Billington-Greig in which, with (as always) clear-minded logic, she suggests that a climate of hysteria had been whipped up (not least by the writings of members of the WSPU) – and that ‘the Mothers of the new Church are threatening the future by the whitewashing of women and the doctrine of the uncleanness of men’. Good – scarce £24
260. THE NEW CONSTITUTIONAL SOCIETY FOR WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE Dear Brothers [13080] double-sided leaflet issued by the NCSWS – calling on men to support the enfranchisement of women. Chipped and rubbed £15
261. THE REV. F.M. GREEN The Clergy and Politics Church League for Women’s Suffrage no date, c 1913 [12941] CLWS pamphlets No 4 – printed by Francis & Co. 8-pp – a little creased – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £25
262. The Suffragee [13004] I’m suffering from a suff-e-ragette
Suffering sore you can see
Since my wife’s joined the suffragists
I’ve been a suffragee
Sings Jock Mills on this Homophon Company (6816) record. I haven’t listened to the record – no longer have a suitable player. Surface, to my untutored eye, looks rather marked – the label is in good condition. But it has survived. ‘Recorded in London. Pressed in Berlin’ Scarce £95
263. THE WOMEN’S BULLETIN: organ of the Women’s Freedom League WFL [13068] 10 issues from 1957-1961. The Bulletin, usually 4 or 5 mimeographed, stapled pages covering feminist issues, was by the late 1950s/60s produced irregularly. These issues, by no means a complete run for the period, give a flavour of the concerns of the day. Lilian Lenton was the editor and Teresa Billington-Greig was still a contributor. Together £50
264. THE WOMEN’S NATIONAL ANTI-SUFFRAGE LEAGUE Constitution WNASL no date [c 1908] [13072] Single sheet setting out the League’s Constitution. The League was founded in mid-1908. Fine £20
265. VOTES FOR WOMEN AT TWENTY-ONE [13101] ‘Extracts from a Speech by the Prime Minister at the Albert Hall, London, Mary 27, 1927.’ The Prime Minister was Stanley Baldwin ‘I have always held the view that our party, of all others, has nothing to fear from any broadening of the basis of representation.’ 4-pp leaflet – with no indication who was behind its publication ‘Printed and published by Burrup, Mathieson & Co, of Throgmorton St, London. Creased and rubbed – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £8
266. WOMEN’S LOCAL GOVERNMENT SOCIETY Local Government Elections in England and Wales: Qualifications for Candidates WLGS May 1918 [12170] 1-page leaflet – very good condition £10
267. WOMEN’S LOCAL GOVERNMENT SOCIETY A New Franchise WLGS Feb 1918 [12169] 1-page, double-sided, leaflet, written by Margaret Kilgour, setting out the qualifications for voting in local government elections under the new ‘Representation of the People’ Act 1918. Good – with two punch holes in the wide margin and slight tear inward from the left-hand margin, with no loss of text £8
268. WOMEN’S LOCAL GOVERNMENT SOCIETY Registration in England and Wales: Women Occupiers and their Votes WLGS July 1905 [12171] 1-page, double sided, leaflet setting out the position after the Eduation Act of 1902 had abolished School Boards, by which women rate payers were no longer automatically qualified to vote and it was necessary for women occupiers to be registered. The 1902 Act was another in a series of acts that actively disenfranchised women of local government rights that they had gained in the 3rd quarter of the 19th century – and was one of the causes of the impetus given to the suffrage campaign at the beginning of the 20th. This leaflet, which is withdrawn from the Women’s Library, has an ink emendation to the final paragraph, noting that the fact that a woman could not be a candidate for county, borough or metropolitan borough councils had been remedied by the passing of the 1907 Qualification of Women Act. Fair condition, edges rubbed and nicked £12
269. WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE AND THE NATIONAL WELFARE Women’s National Anti-Suffrage League 1909 [13069] Double-sided leaflet explaining that ‘The pretensions of a particular section of women to speak for their sex on these [that is matters of national concern] and other important matters are not justified by the facts, and it is most desirable to demonstrate this.’ Cogent, specious arguments. Good – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £18
270. ZANGWILL, Israel Talked Out! Women’s Freedom League 1907 [13064] ‘Being a verbatim report of the speech at Exeter Hall, Marhc 8, 1907.’ – in which he mentions that just the week previous he had been one of the founders of the Men’s League for Women’s Suffrage. ‘We propose to be an active political force.’ Paper covers – carrying information on WFL branches/secretaries etc, details of the WFL constitution and publications for sale. Good – withdrawn from the Women’s Library – with usual shelf markings £25
271. ROBERTSON, Margaret Working Men and Women’s Suffrage NUWSS Aug 1913 [12937] Margaret Robertson was a university graduate and NUWSS organiser. This pamphlet was written at a time when the NUWSS had set up its Election Fighting Fund to support Labour Party candidates – and was intended for distribution amongst trade unionists. Small format, 24pp in card covers £35
Suffrage Postcards: real photographic
272. ARREST OF CAPT. C.M. GONNE [12914] Member of the Men’s Political Union for Women’s Enfranchisement, Parliament Square, November 18th, 1910.’ Capt Gonne was photographed by the ‘Daily Mirror’ being escorted by two policemen during the ‘Black Friday’ tumult. Capt Charles Melvill Gonne (1862-1926), Royal Artillery, was the author of ‘Hints on Horses’ (John Murray, 1904), an active suffragist, who supported his wife, a tax resister, and was a cousin of Maud Gonne, the Irish nationalist heroine. Very good -unusual - unposted £190
273. CICELY HAMILTON [12954] photograph by Lena Connell. Fine – unposted £120
274. EDITH CRAIG [12955] photographed by Lena Connell, published at The Suffrage Shop, 31 Bedford Street (therefore the card dates from c 1910 – before its removal in 1911 south of the Strand). Fine – unposted £120
275. ETHEL SMYTH AND PAN III 1927 [13135] photograph of the composer with her dog – with musical excerpt – presumably from one of her works – running along the top of the card. Reproduced to celebrate the Fiftieth Season of the People’s Concert Society. Unposted – very good £45
276. FORTISSIMO [12875] - real photograph, – toddler holds the songsheet for ‘Bother the Men’, dating from the 1880s. Published by Rotary Photo, this is one in a series. Posted by Dick on 21 December 1908 to Master Harry Day of 9 Arthur St, Pembroke Dock, with the message ‘Harry boy – learning Dada’s Xmas Song.’ Good £28
277. MISS GRACE ROE [12958] The caption is ‘UNDAUNTED’!’ She is being marched out of the WSPU headquarters, Lincolns Inn House, by police, arrested in May 1914. She was not released from prison until under the amnesty in August. The postcard photography was by courtesy of the ‘Daily Mirror’. An iconic image. Fine – unposted – scarce. £190
278. MRS PANKHURST [12764] arrested in Victoria Street, 13 February 1908. She is on her way from the WSPU ‘Women’s Parliament’ in Caxton Hall – a policeman holds her left hand – she carries her ‘Parliament’s’ resolution in the other. Very good – unposted £45
279. ‘RUINS OF ST KATHERINE’S CHURCH, BURNT DOWN MAY 6 1913 [11824] Real photographic card. There are several images published on postcards of the ruins of St Catherine’s (this is the correct spelling; the card’s publisher was a bit slapdash) Church at Hatcham in Surrey, for the burning of which the suffragettes were thought responsible – but I have never seen this one before. £35
280. SIR WILLIAM LEVER’S BUNGALOW [8958] at Rivington. The photographic postcard shows it after it had been set on fire by Edith Rigby, Preston’s infamous suffragette. The note, in ink, on the reverse reads ‘Sir William Lever’s Bungalow, Rivington. fired by Suffragettes 1 a.m.July 8th 1913.’ I have never seen this image before. Very good – unposted £95
281. THE WOMEN’S GUILD OF EMPIRE [12877] ‘souvenir packet’ of 6 postcards, in their original printed paper envelope, published by the Women’s Guild of Empire. The cards are: 1) ‘Women’s Guild of Empire Committee’ – the 6 members of the Committee, who included Flora Drummond and Elsie Bowerman, sit around a table; 2) Mrs R.S Henderson, president; 3) Mrs Flora Drummond, Controller-in-Chief; 4) WGE banner ‘Peace Unity Concord’ surrounded by members; 5) Banner Making for the Great Demonstration April 17th 1926 – Mrs Drummond under an ‘Effeciancy and Entrprise’ banner; 6) ‘Women Pipers from the Lothians’ – with Mrs Drummond in control Scottishness was to the fore. An extremely rare set – I have never seen any of these cards before – and, in general, there are few images of the Guild of Empire and its work. The printed envelope carries details of the ‘Objects’ of the Guild and of its work. All cards in pristine condition – dating, I assume, to c 1926. As a set £220
282. WHITEKIRK CHURCH (Lothian) [11067] A photograph of the church before it was burned down by Fanny Parker on 26 Feb 1914 – in retaliation for the forcibly feeding of Ethel Moorhead £6
283. WOMEN’S FREEDOM LEAGUE Marguerite Sidley [12610] Photograph by Foulsham and Banfield, headed ‘Votes for Women’ and captioned ‘Women’s Freedom League’ 1 Robert St, Adelphi, London W.C.,’ She wears, I think, the WFL ‘Holloway’ badge at ther throat and, certainly, a WFL flag brooch on her bosom. She had joined the WSPU in London in 1907, working for some time in the London office and then as a peripatetic organizer before leaving the WSPU to do the same kind of work for the Women’s Freedom League. Fine – scarce – unposted £85
284. WOMEN’S FREEDOM LEAGUE Miss Edmée Manning, B.A. [12920] card headed ‘Votes for Women’ published by the Women’s Freedom League, 1 Robert St, Adelphi, London WC. Miss Manning, who worked as an organiser for the WFL, is photographed wearing her WFL Holloway badge. She was a graduate of Royal Holloway College – and an English prize donated in her memory is still given.. Fine – unusual – unposted £150
285. WOMEN’S FREEDOM LEAGUE Miss Irene Miller [12913] escorted by a policeman. The card is headed ‘Votes for Women’ and was an early one (c1907) published by the Women’s Freedom League (whose address is still given as 18 Buckingham Street, Strand). Irene Miller had been arrested for knocking on the door of 10 Downing Street and was photographed, with the policeman, by the ‘Daily Mirror’. Small nick on right hand border – not affecting picture or text – otherwise good – unposted £100
286. WOMEN’S FREEDOM LEAGUE Miss Sarah Benett [12950] photographed by Lena Connell. In this studio photograph Sarah Benett is wearing her WFL Holloway brooch; she was for a time the WFL treasurer. She was also a member of the WSPU and of the Tax Resistance League. This photograph by Lena Connell was also used on a WFL-published postcard – but this one is not attributed to the WFL. The background to the image is little irridescent. £100
287. WOMEN’S FREEDOM LEAGUE Mrs Amy Sanderson [12919] Women’s Freedom League, 1 Robert Street, Adelphi, London WC. She had been a member of the WSPU, and, as such had endured one term of imprisonment, before helping to found the WFL in 1907. She is, I think, wearing her WFL Holloway brooch in the photograph. Card, published by WFL, fine – unusual – unposted £150
288. WOMEN’S FREEDOM LEAGUE Mrs DESPARD AND MRS COBDEN SANDERSON WAITING FOR MR ASQUITH [12911] ‘Arrested August 19th, 1909′ They are shown wating outside 10 Downing Street as part of the campaign to picket the Prime Minister in a vain attempt to force him to accept a petition. Fine condition – scarce – unposted £180
289. WOMEN’S FREEDOM LEAGUE Mrs Edith How-Martyn , ARCS, BSc [12917] Hon Sec Women’s Freedom League 1 Robert Street, Adelphi, London WC. She is wearing herWFL Holloway brooch. Photographed by M.P. Co (London) – which I think is probably the Merchants Portrait Co in Kentish Town that did a fair amount of work for the WFL. The card is headed ‘Votes for Women’ and was published by the WFL. Fine – unposted £120
290. WOMEN’S FREEDOM LEAGUE Mrs Marion Holmes [12921] card headed ‘Votes for Women’ published by the Women’s Freedom League, 1 Robert St, Adelphi, London WC. Mrs Holmes was joint editor of the WFL paper ‘The Vote’. She is photoraphed wearing herWFL Holloway badge as well as one of the WFL enamel badges. Fine – unusual – unposted £120
291. WOMEN’S FREEDOM LEAGUE Suffragette At Work in Prison – Mrs Borrmann Wells WFL 1910 [13132] Bettina Borrmann Wells was an organiser for the WFL in London, having worked for suffrage in the US for a couple of years. She had spent 3 weeks in Holloway in 1908 and is here seen in prison garb, down on her hands and knees as though scrubbing the cell floor. ‘Woman’s work’. Fine – unposted £120
292. WOMEN’S FREEDOM LEAGUE Tribute to John Stuart Mill May 20th 1908 [13133] Photograph of crowd gathered around John Stuart Mill’s statue in Embankment Gardens (quite close to the WFL offices at 1 Robert Street, Adelphi). The WFL chose to pay homage to Mill – the presenter of the first women’s suffrage petition – on 20 May, his birthday. In this photograph a large ‘Votes for Women’ wreath has been laid on the pedestal of his statue. The card was sent by Sarah Benett, the WFL treasurer, from 1 Robert Street, on 12 February 1910 to Mrs Louisa Thomson Price, another WFL activist. Good – unusual £180
Suffrage Postcards: commercial artist
293. AMID THIS MIGHT FUSS JUST LET ME MENTION THE RIGHTS OF WOMAN MERIT SOME ATTENTION [12874] These words of Robert Burns are the caption to a scene that has the stereotypical comic postcard suffragette – tyrolean hat with feather, fierce expression and umbrella ['gamp'], ensuring that she has the attention of her female audience. The artist is ‘F. MacLeod’. The card was posted in Stratford (London E.) on 4 December 1908 and reads: ‘Just a P.C. to let you know I am still alive & kicking like the old girl opposite. We had a few like these at the Town Hall on Tuesday (minus the gamp)..’ Good – with a very slight crease that does nothing to spoil the image. £28
Suffrage Postcards: suffrage artists
294. ARTISTS’ SUFFRAGE LEAGUE Dear Young Ladies [13008] You are left PENNILESS, Your father’s estates are entailed and everything goes to a distant cousin, BECAUSE YOU ARE WOMEN’ the family solicitor tells the grieving widow and children. The artist is K.F. Powell. Very good – unposted £95
295. ARTISTS’ SUFFRAGE LEAGUE Go Hang Yourselves – We Fought at Acre, and you were not there [13012] The suffragist figure (dressed in a loose aesthetic robe) leans on a shield whose message is, ’190? The Franchise Won’. Behind here is a ‘No taxation without representation’ BANNER. She is addressing two crinolined ladies, with ’1909′ running as a repeat around the bottom of their skirts – who are throwing up her hands in horror at her aT her words – and exclaim ‘Oh my dear!! So unladylike!!!’ Printed and published by the Artists’ Suffrage League. Fine – unposted – scarce £95
296. ARTISTS’ SUFFRAGE LEAGUE Miss Jane Bull [13010] addresses Master Johnnie Bull, asking, ‘Give me a bit of your Franchise Cake, Johnnie’ He replies ‘It wouldn’t be good for you’ She responds ‘How can you tell if you won’t let me try it? it doesn’t hurt those other little girls’ – she points to Finnish, New Zealand, Australian and Norwegian children – boys and girls.Postcard published by the Artists’ Suffrage League. The artists are ‘C.H. & D.M.’ Very good – unposted £95
297. ARTISTS SUFFRAGE LEAGUE Miss Jane Bull [13011] - with ‘Votes for Women’ running as a repeat around the bottom of her skirt’ -addresses the Home Secretary (Herbert Gladstone) outside his office – behind
her is a sign ‘Committee Rooms House of Commons’. She is holding a box labelled ‘Majority 179′ and she says ‘The’ve [sic] given me this – but there’s nothing in it.’ Gladstone responds ‘Dear me! didn’t think she would find that out yet.’ The illustration is making the point that H.Y. Stanger’s Women Suffrage Bill had gained a majority of 179 at its Second Reading in 1908 – the greatest since 1897 – but still nothing had come of it. The artist is Emily J. Harding Andrews. Very good – unposted £95
298. ARTISTS’ SUFFRAGE LEAGUE They Have a Cheek, I’ve Never Been Asked [13014] Beshawled factory girl stands at the factory gate reading a notice ‘Factory Acts Regulations for Women’. The card was drawn by Emily Ford – Leeds artist and suffragist – sister of Isabella Ford – and published by the Artists’ Suffrage League. it is particularly interesting as expressing the helplessness of working women faced with protective legislation passed by a male parliament that, while ostensibly protecting their interests, could equally deny them work. Very good – unposted £95
299. ARTISTS’ SUFFRAGE LEAGUE The Worker’s Husband [13013] Lady Canvasser, very neat and middle-class, stands outside a Polling Station. She addresses a down-at-heel ne’er do well, ‘Have you a vote, Mr Brown?’. Loafer: ”Course I got a vote, and shall have so long as my wife takes in washing’. The gloss is, of course, that he is being maintained in the station in life that will earn him a vote by way of the property qualification that his wife’s earnings provide for him. Postcard printed and published by the Artists’ Suffrage League. Very good – unposted £95
300. WOMEN WRITERS’ SUFFRAGE LEAGUE [12957] postcard for the League designed by W.H. Margetson. ‘Woman’ is dragged from the feet of blind ‘Justice’ by the figure of ‘Prejudice’. This is the coloured version – in fine condition – unposted £85
Women and the First World War
301. BARTON, Edith And BARTON, Marguerite Eve in Khaki:the story of the Women’s Army at home and abroad Thomas Nelson, no date (1918) [12577] Part I – in England by Edith M. Barton. Part II – In France by Marguerite Cody. The First World War and the early years of the WAAC. Very good £38
302. CABLE, Boyd Doing Their Bit: war work at home Hodder and Stoughton, 2nd imp 1916 [8646] Includes a chapter on ‘The Women’. Good £18
303. DEARMER, Mabel Letters from a Field Hospital: with a memoir of the author by Stephen Gwynn Macmillan 1916 [12640] In April 1915 Mabel Dearmer, the wife of the Christian socialist Rev Percy Dearmer, went out to work with Mrs Stobart in Serbia. She died of enteric fever in July. Very good internally – cream cloth cover a little grubby – scarce £75
304. DENT, Olive A V.A.D. in France Grant Richards Ltd 1917 [12636] Autobiographical account of nursing in France in the First World War. Very good, with atmospheric pictorial cloth cover £75
305. FARMBOROUGH, Florence Russian Album 1908-1918 Michael Russell 1979 [12645] Photographs taken both before and during the First World War by Florence Farmborough, who first went to Russia in 1908 – and left in 1918. At the outbreak of war she served with the Russian Red Cross. An amazing collection. Large format, fine in d/w £28
306. [HALL] Edith Hall Canary Girls & Stockpots WEA Luton Branch 1977 [12884] Memories of life in the First World War – and of the ’20s and ’30s. During the War Edith Hall’s mother was landlady to munition workers – ‘the Canaries’ (so called because the chemicals turned their skin yellow) at the Hayes factories.
Soft covers – signed by the author £10
307. MCLAREN, Eva Shaw (ed) A History of the Scottish Women’s Hospitals Hodder & Stoughton 1919 [12638] A very full history of the work of the SWH in the First World War. With 57 illustrations, including a marvellous pull-out panoramic photograph of the Salonika hospital in 1918 – huts and tents as far as the eye can see. 408pp – very good -with new endpapers and a little foxing – scarce £65
308. STONE, Gilbert (ed) Women War Workers: accounts contributed by representative workers of the work done by women in the more important branches of war employment George G. Harrap & Co 1917 [12631] With a foreword by Lady Jellicoe. Chapters on: munition work; the land; work as a postwoman; banking; as a bus conductor; driver of butcher’s delivery cart; nursing at the Front in France; work as a V.A.D.; working with ‘Concerts at the Front’; and welfare work. Includes a chapter on War Organisations for Women, full of facts and figures – with 12 photographs. Very good – a surprisingly scarce book £60
309. WALKER, Dora M. With the Lost Generation 1915-1919: From a V.A.D.s Diary A. Brown & Sons (Hull) 2nd imp 1971 [12879] ‘A “Girl’s Eye View” of work in some of the famous War Hospitals of 1914-1918.’ – written at the time by the author to her father. Dora Walker worked in hospitals in Britain, France and Belgium. With 20 photographs. Fine – scarce £25
Women and the First World War: ephemera
310. The Deportation of Women and Girls from Lille Hodder & Stoughton 1916 [12197] ‘Translated textually from the Note addressed by the French Government to the Governments of Neutral Powers on the conduct of the German Authorities towards the population of the French Departments in the occupation of the enemy.’ 81-pp – paper covers – good £12
311. HMSO Annual Report of the Chief Inspector of Factories and Workshops 1915 HMSO 1916 [13125] With a Special Report appended by Adelaide Anderson, HM Principal Lady Inspector of Factories, on ‘Effect of the Second Year of War on Industrial Employment of Women and Girls’.. Good reading copy – missing blue paper covers £12
312. SCOTTISH WOMEN’S FIRST AID CORPS [12892] natural-coloured linen canvas satchel with the initials ‘S.W.F.A.C.’ [Scottish Women's First Aid Corps] machine-embroidered in red on the front.The satchel hangs from a long red grosgrain ribbon strap which has a buckle for altering its length. The bag still contains an Esmarch’s Triangular Bandage – printed with images of how to apply, in a variety of ways, the bandage to wounded men, together with two packs labelled ‘Scottish Women’s First Aid Corps First Field Dressing’, supplied by J. Gordon Nicholson, Pharmaceutical Chemist, 15 Hanover Street, Edinburgh, and two small safety pins on a piece of card, presumably to be used for fixing the bandages. Luckily this SWFAC member was required to put the bandages to the test. The SWFAC had been formed in 1909 by Mary E. Macmillan and came into its own in the First World War, appealing to middle and upper-middle class women who wanted to ‘do their bit’. The SWFAC ran classes in First Aid and sick nursing and some of its recruits then went out to nurse in Italy and Serbia. Very good – an unusual survival £120
313. YOUR KING & COUNTRY WANT YOU a woman’s recruiting song Chappell & Co 1914 [12802] Sheet music – words & music by Paul A. Rubens. The cover is illustrated by John Hassall. ‘The entire profits from the sale of this song will be devoted to Queen Mary’s “Work for Women” Fund’. ‘Oh! we don’t want to lose you but we think you ought to go. For your King and your Country both need you so; We shall want you and miss you but with all our might and main. We shall cheer you, thank you, kiss you when you come back again’. Makes the spine creep. 6-pp – very good £38
TO BE PUBLISHED IN FEBRUARY
BY FRANCIS BOUTLE PUBLISHERS
francisboutle.co.uk
CAMPAIGNING FOR THE VOTE:
THE SUFFRAGE DIARY OF KATE PARRY FRYE
Edited by Elizabeth Crawford
Kate Frye, suffrage organizer, 1913
Campaigning for the Vote tells, in her own words, the efforts of a working suffragist to convert the men and women of Edwardian England to the cause of women’s suffrage. Kate Parry Frye (1878-1959) kept a detailed diary of life as a paid organizer for the New Constitutional Society for Women’s Suffrage and in this edited edition, covering the years 1911-1915, we accompany her in London and in the provinces – particularly in Norfolk, Kent, Berkshire and Buckinghamshire – as she knocks on doors, arranges meetings, trembles on platforms, speaks from carts in market squares, and deals with the egos and foibles of her fellow suffragists.
For a video of Campaigning for the Vote: the diary of Kate Parry Frye - a talk I gave in the House of Commons during ‘Parliament Week’ see the Youtube Parliament Channel http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u2aeMUGkmDM
Wrap-around paper covers, c. 200pp, over 70 illustrations
ISBN 978 1903427 75 0 £14.99
Email e.crawford@sphere20.freeserve.co.uk to place an order. I will then send the book to you on publication, with an invoice (£14.99 plus postage).
Suffrage Stories: Mrs Joseph McCabe Bathing her Baby
Posted in Suffrage Stories on January 10, 2013
This card was one of several published by the Women’s Freedom League in 1910 in an ironical series ‘Suffragettes At Home’ – a tongue-in-the cheek riposte to those who castigated suffragettes as being unwomanly.
Mrs Joseph McCabe was born Beatrice Alice Lee in Leicester in 1880, one of several children of William Lee, a framework knitter and, most importantly, a member of the Leicester Secular Society. For it was doubtless through the Lee family’s association with that Society that in 1899 Beatrice Lee, at barely 19 years old, came to marry Joseph McCabe. The latter was then 32 years old and had already experienced an adventurous religious life – having, at about the time Beatrice was born, entered the Franciscan order and in 1890 having been ordained as a Roman Catholic priest. By 1896, however, he had lost his faith, left the priesthood and begun a career as a writer and thinker on freethought. From 1898-99 he was secretary of the Leicester Secular Society.
In 1911 the family was living in north London, at 16 Elm Grove, Cricklewood. On 2 April, when the census was taken, Joseph was away in Wales, presumably on a lecture tour, leaving Beatrice at home with her four children. Although we must assume – in that she allowed herself to be promoted in the WFL card – that she was a member of the Women’s Freedom League she did not evade the census enumerator when he left the form with her at 16 Elm Grove. She completed it, describing herself as ‘mother, nurse and housekeeper also cook’. Besides the 4 children and the 17-year-old domestic help she lists the other members of the household – the cat ‘Diddie’ (neutered), 5 rabbits: ‘Brownie’, ‘Toodles’, ‘Baby’, ‘Biskie’ and ‘Bunkie’, and 3 goldfishes ‘no name’.
Across the form she added the following protest:
‘I wish to register in the strongest possible terms, my utter detestation of, and indignation at, having thrust upon me in the absence of my husband, the duties and responsibilities of citizenship, when neither I nor any single member of my sex is allowed to exercise the most elementary right of a citizen. I would also protest against the insult especially to mothers in describing their valuable services as ‘”only” domestic’.
Joseph McCabe was a keen supporter of women’s suffrage – particularly speaking for the Women’s Freedom League. In 1917 Beatrice McCabe was the hon secretary of the Hendon Women’s Franchise Society, which was affiliated to the United Suffragists. The McCabes were then living at 49 Bridge Lane, Hendon, but separated in 1925; Joseph was notoriously difficult. Beatrice died in 1960.
So that is the story that underpins ‘Mrs Joseph McCabe Bathing her Baby’ – that chubby-cheeked chap being Ernest (1909-1988).
Kate Frye: A War-Time Birthday: 9 January 1917
Posted in Kate Frye's suffrage diary on January 9, 2013
Kate
On her birthday – 9 January 1915 – Kate Frye had at last married her long-term fiance, John Collins. Two years later he was fighting in France and she was living with her mother and sister in a house at Berghers Hill, Buckinghamshire, courtesy of her mother’s sister, the wealthy Mrs Agnes Gilbey. A small cluster of cottages on a ridge at the top of a steep hill above Wooburn Green, Berghers Hill lay exposed to the elements. The wind whipped through Kate’s cottage, bedrooms were icy, the pipes froze – and burst. The walk down the hill to Wooburn Green and Cores End, whether by the road or the path through Wooburn Manor Park (the Gilbey property), was treacherous in winter.
Tuesday 9 January 1917
Woke to a terrible morning – dark & cold & sleet. It continued to sleet & snow & hail at intervals all day and the wind out was cruel. The anniversary of our wedding day. Two years ago at Hove. All day long & into the night I kept thinking at this time we were doing so & so and Oh it was sad to think of the present and to wonder whether John was alive or dead. It comes so suddenly – the death to them and it would be hours & days before I should hear.
Agnes [Kate's sister] still seedy & in bed and so cross with both Mother & I. I went off soon after 10.30 to Cores End to seek a Cod’s Head for the cats & fish for her dinner. Couldn’t get the former, the latter she refused to eat when cooked and sent up.
Writing letters most of the evening and after supper sat over the fire trying to get warm & thinking, thinking. Fortunately Mother went to bed. A letter from John – the first since Friday.
For more on Kate - look out for Elizabeth Crawford (ed): Campaigning for the Vote: the suffrage diary of Kate Parry Frye to be published by Francis Boutle Publishers in February 2013
Mariana Starke: First Productions
Posted in Mariana Starke on January 7, 2013
In 1787 J. Walter, a London publisher/bookseller operating from premises close to Charing Cross, issued – as Theatre of Education - a new English translation of Le Théâtre á l’usage des jeunes personnes, a collection of comedies by Mme de Genlis, the first woman to be appointed tutor to princes of France.
Madame de Genlis
This innovative method of providing a moral education for children through the use of short plays had proved immensely popular on both sides of the Channel. First published in France in July 1779, an English translation, under the imprint of T. Cadell and P. Elmsly ; T. Durham, appeared in 4 octavo volumes in 1781, with a new edition, in 3 volumes, under the same imprint, following in 1783. [See http://archive.org/details/theatreeducatio07genlgoog for the online edition of the 1781 4-volume edition]. Nowhere is the name of the translator of this edition stated, although it is thought that he was male. As far as I know he has never been identified – although this really is not my field and I would welcome correction.
Nor, indeed, is there any indication on the title page of the J. Walter edition of the names of the translator(s) of his edition. It was not until 1831, when an obituary of Mrs Millecent Thomas (the former Millcent Parkhurst -see Mariana Starke: An Epsom Education) appeared, that the truth was revealed.
As the Annual Register and The Gentleman’s Magazine reported, Mrs Thomas ‘assisted her friend Miss Starke in translating Mme de Genlis’ Theatre of Education’. Over 150 years later, in Notes and Queries (45:1; March 1998), Edward W. Pitcher identified the edition translated by Mariana and Millecent as that published by J. Walter. The Annual Register had cited the translation as being issued between 1783 and 1788 in three duodecimo volumes, although a consultation of COPAC reveals no J. Walter edition pre-dating 1787. It does, however, seem to have been issued in a variety of formats. The 3-volume British Library set appears to be inscribed, if I have deciphered the handwriting correctly, ‘Miss M.B. Woollery, the gift of her friend Mrs Thomas’. Millicent Parkhurst married the Rev Joseph Thomas in 1791, the gift, if it really was from her, presumably post-dating her marriage. The only advertisement for the J. Walter edition that I have found appears in The Times, 28 July 1790, and refers to a set of four-volumes, at the not inconsiderable price of 10 shillings. J. Walter was the publisher of, among a wide variety of productions, Mrs Chapone’s works – including Letters on the Improvement of the Mind, a seminal conduct book for young women of the period. He had presumably thought it worth backing a translation of Theatre of Education to rival that issued by Cadell et al, although doubtless he had paid little to the youthful translators. It does not appear to have merited either a reissue or a second edition.
So we find that the two young women, still in their mid-20s, living in Epsom, across the road from each other, had embarked on a new translation of a much-fêted work which they had then succeeded in getting published. Not that this, when we know their circumstances, is particularly surprising. For, by the 1780s, Millecent Parkhurst and Mariana Starke were well-educated young women, with influential literary contacts. We have noted that John Parkhurst, Millecent’s father, and William Hayley, to whom Mariana was a ‘poetic daughter’, both gave encouragement.
Mariana Starke was also on intimate authorly terms with George Monck Berkeley (1763-93), a precocious literary talent. In a letter written to him at Magdalen Hall, Oxford, on 22 August 1787, Mariana reveals ‘that I am now much better qualified to write a Tragedy than when I composed the first three Acts of Ethelinda, as I have lately studied dramatic composition with great diligence.’ She is referring to a play, Ethelinda, which she and Monck were writing together. It is tempting to conclude that her reference to recent dramatic composition might not be unrelated to the work involved in producing the translation of Mme de Genlis’ plays. A few sentences later she tells Monck that ‘After I had finished Ethelinda to the best of my abilities, I carried it to my excellent Friend, Mr Parkhurst, whose almost paternal regard for me prompted him to consider it with great attention: he has corrected all the errors which happened to strike him; and advises me to let every material thing stand as it is now, saying, he thinks the Play very dramatic, and very likely to be well received: As he has condescended to take infinite pains with the Piece, I am sure you must agree with me in thinking it would be extremely indelicate to put any Critic over him, especially as Mr Parkhurst (from the soundness of his judgment and the depth and universality of his knowledge), is perhaps of all men in this Kingdom, best qualified for the office of a Critic. I have, in conformity to your advice, shortened my own acts and lengthened yours; and I have studied to insert the many excellent speeches, with which your acts abound; but sorry am I to say, that there is one sweet speech on fame, which I know not how to introduce according to the present plan of the Play. Your speech on murder, which is, by the by, the finest thing I ever read, I have put into the beginning of the Play, where it shows to great advantage; and many more of your lines I have occasionally introduced among my own, by way of giving a strength to my composition, which it seemed to want. I find, from Joinville, that the Crusaders always crowned their Heroes with palm, therefore I have substituted that for laurel. I am told by a Gentleman who is deeply read in the records, that even Kings, in the time of Richard the 1st, did not espouse what we now call the regal style; therefore I should think Ethel had better not do it – and I have taken the liberty to alter the two last lines of Bertram’s [?] dying speech, because (if Homer may be credited) no man, who dies of a wound in the breast, can see objects immediately before his death. I have applied to a Friend for Mrs Siddons’s interest but am not certain how I shall succeed – if I was more intimate with Mrs Soane [?] I would certainly write to her; but slight as our acquaintance is, it would be too presumptuous – from you, perhaps, she might receive an application graciously. Another Friend of mine, who is acquainted with Linley and King, has undertaken to introduce Ethelinda and me to both of them, and I almost daily expect a summons to appear before those mighty Rulers of the Theatre. So, if you have any interest, work it now, let me entreat you. Linley, at present, is at Bath, but he will speedily return to London.’
Thus, it is clear that by 1787 Mariana Starke was working her apprenticeship as a playwright and knew how to network the theatrical scene. (Mrs Siddons was the most famous tragic actress of her day; Thomas Linley and Thomas King were both involved with the management of the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane.) It is virtually certain (although I have not yet found any pre-1788 evidence) that Mariana was already well acquainted with Mrs Mary Crespigny (see Mariana Starke: The Mystery of the Bodleian Diary), who organized dramatic performances at a private theatre erected in the grounds of her Camberwell home. The success of The Theatre of Education was predicated on the willingness of families, such as the Crespignys, to stage short plays for amusement – and instruction. For an interesting article on the relationship at this time between private theatricals and public theatre see here.
Although the translators of the J. Walter edition are not named, the ‘Advertisement’ that prefaces the text at least makes clear that they were women. ‘The fame acquired by Madame de Genlis is so deservedly great, and the Theatre d’Education so universally considered as her chef-d’oeuvre, that it naturally becomes the study and admiration of her sex; some of whom, in order to amuse their minds, and at the same time amend their hearts, by imprinting on the memory such exalted precepts as those contained in the Theatre d’Education, undertook to translate it into English, and have now, to the best of their abilities, finished this Work, which they presume to place before the eyes of an indulgent Publick….[so that].people of all ages and all ranks may derive from the Original of Madame de Genlis, the most useful and persuasive lessons, couched in the most eloquent and characteristic language.
I have only compared the two editions in the most superficial way, but, even so, could immediately detect distinct differences in the language used. It was presumably because they felt something wanting in the 1781 translation of Mme de Genlis’ work that the two young women felt encouraged to embark on their own. However, The Critical Review, while conceding that there were faults in the 1781 edition, could not bring itself to praise the J. Walter edition.
The translators make clear in the Preface to the J. Walter edition that they had sought Mme de Genlis’ permission to publish their translation of her work: ‘Permit us, Madam, thus publickly to return our most thankful acknowledgements for the honour you confer upon us, by allowing the following translation to be inscribed to your name; an honour which demands our gratitude in an especial manner, as we do not enjoy the happiness of your personal acquaintance’. There had, presumably, been an exchange of letters between Epsom and France. Unfortunately there is no correspondence (or, at least, none that I have found) that throws any more light on either the production of the translation of the Theatre of Education or its afterlife as it related to the life of Mariana Starke. I have come across no reference at all to the work in any subsequent correspondence. This is perhaps just a little surprising.
We do know, however, the fate of the other work mentioned with which Mariana was involved – for, on 30 October 1788 [at least, I think it was 1788, but it may have been 1787 – the dating of the letters is uncertain], her mother, Mary Starke, wrote from Epsom to George Monck Berkeley a letter in which she she mentions that Mariana is awaiting ‘something decisive respecting the fate of the rash, yet beauteous Ethelinda.. You long ago were informed that this heroic Damsel was presented to, and rejected, by the respective Managers of Drury Lane and Covent Garden. Her next application was to Mr Colman [of the Theatre Royal, Haymarket] who paused a long while upon the question, her merit making a deeper impression upon his mind, than upon either of the other Gentlemen. Yesterday, and not before, his determination reached Epsom – ‘That he thinks the piece distinguished by many touches of Poetry, tho’ on the whole too romantick ..for the Theatre. ‘…The dear Authoress has laid aside her pen, and taken up her distaff, in other words, her time now is chiefly occupied in inquiring as to the practicability and possibility [?] of establishing Sunday Schools & Schools of Industry in this neighbourhood. How much more becoming in a Female [?] is this than dabbling in ink. However I have derived so large a portion of amusement, not to say instruction, from some female Writers of the present age that I cannot subscribe implicitly to this opinion, worthless perhaps it does not seem proper and may so claim an exception from this lordly privilege on behalf of my own daughter. Therefore she, as I told you before, is resuming the primitive employment of the distaff. Let her rejoice at the success attendant upon the fair Heloise….’
The latter remark may refer to Monck Berkeley’s Heloise: or the Siege of Rhodes, published in 1788. Ethelinda, clearly a play set at the time of the Crusades, does not alas, appear ever to have been staged. However we know that Mariana Starke certainly did not take up the distaff and devote herself to ‘Sunday Schools & Schools of Industry’ but, if the dating of her mother’s letter is correct, had already, on 8 August 1788, seen another of her plays – The Sword of Peace – given its first public performance at the Theatre Royal, Haymarket. George Colman had, as we shall discover in the next Mariana Starke post, proved most supportive.
Sources: Berkeley mss, British Library
Christmas List For Suffragettes
Posted in Books And Ephemera For Sale on December 17, 2012
Woman and Her Sphere’s Christmas List for Suffragettes – to give or receive
There is still time ….order from e.crawford@sphere20.freeserve.co.uk
Cicely Hamilton Item # 90
Suffrage Biography
1. (FAWCETT) David Rubinstein A Different World for Women: the life of Millicent Garrett Fawcett Ohio State University Press 1991 [11196] Mint in d/w £15
2. (LESLIE) ‘Henrietta Leslie’ (pseudonym of Gladys Schutze) More Ha’pence Than Kicks; being some things remembered MacDonald, 2nd imp 1943 [11239] Her autobiography – she was a keen supporter of the WSPU – gave shelter to Mrs Pankhurst at her house in Chelsea. Good internally – cover rubbed – quite scarce £19
3. (LYTTON) Lady Betty Balfour (ed) Letters of Constance Lytton William Heinemann 1925 [10628] Very good – in purple cloth, with design by Syvlia Pankhurst on front cover £68
Suffrage Fiction
4. BALDRY, W. Burton From Hampstead to Holloway: depicting the suffragette in her happiest mood John Ouseley 1909 [12755] Delightful comic novel relating the journey of a suffragette from active membership of the ‘Women’s Defence League’ to contented bride – taking in many of the well-known motifs along the way – the office in Westminster, the meeting in ‘Paxton Hall’, the rally in Trafalgar Square, the battle with the police, the appearance in court, and, finaly, Holloway, where, like Ann Veronica, she finds herself thinking rather more about a certain young man than the Cause. Profusely and splendidly illustrated by G.E. Shepeard. Very good – original pictorial yellow cloth slightly rubbed and dulled, leading inner hinge slightly cracking – very scarce – I last had a copy in 1999 £350
5. FAIRBAIRNS, Zoe Stand We at Last Virago 1983 [1222] A picaresque novel, with a suffrage sequence. Paper covers – very good £6
6. HAMILTON, Cicely A Pageant of Great Women The Suffrage Shop 1910 [12929] First perfomred at the Scala Theatre, London, on 10 November 1909, with a cast that included Cicely Hamilton, Ellen Terry, Edith Craig, Marion Terry and Winifred Mayo. With 15 photographs of members of the cast – most by Miss Leon (30 Regent St).and one (Ellen Terry) by Lena Connell. The copy has been recased – with new spine and back board – but with the original front board – which is somewhat scuffed. A goodish copy of a scarce title £95
7. JOHNSTON, Mary Hagar Constable 1913 [1344] Includes mention of the US women’s suffrage campaign. Very good £12
8. JOHNSTON, Sir Harry Mrs Warren’s daughter: a story of the women’s movement Chatto & Windus 1920 [1342] A suffrage novel. Very good – presentation copy from the author’s wife £85
9. A LOOKER-ON The Home-Breakers Hurst and Blackett 1913 [12632] ‘An anti-militant suffragist novel by a Popular and Well-known Novelist who desires to remain anonymous’. The author was J.S. Stainton. An extremely interesting ‘suffrage’ novel – its ‘anti’ sentiment when written, has been rather eroded by the passing of time – and it is an excellent read for the detail in which it delinates the militant campaign and the women involved in it. And, again, although it might have been inteded to be anti-militant, the publishers were sufficiently savvy to ensure that it was cased in purple cloth (now a little faded) with the title in white in a green rectangle – ie the WSPU colours. It was obviously published in the latter half of 1913, as it includes a visit to the Derby, witnessing Emily Davidson [sic] go under the horse’s hooves. Very scarce £75
10. MASSIE, Chris Esther Vanner Sampson Low, Marston & Co no date (1937) [1436] The heroine is a suffragette. Very good in d/w £85
11. PAGE, Gertrude The Winding Paths Hurst & Blackett c 1911 [8th ed] [12888] A novel with a suffrage theme. ‘The men call them “new Women” with derision, or mannish, or unsexed; but those who have been among them, and known them as friends, know that they hold in their ranks some of th most generous-hearted, unselfish, big-souled women who exist in England to-day…One such as the best of these was Ethel Hayward..’ Good £20
12. QUINN, Anthony Half the Human Race Cape 2011 [12485] ‘London. In the sweltering summer of 1911, the streets ring to the cheers of the new king’s coronation, and to the cries of suffragist women marching for the vote. One of them is the 21-year-old daughter of a middle-class Islington family fallen on hard times…Forced to abandon her dream of a medical career she is now faced with another hard choice – to maintain lawful protest against an intransigient government or to join the glass-breaking militants in the greatest cause…’ I was, I must admit, surprised to find it engaging and intelligent – rather more convincing than many of the early 20th-century suffragist novels. And there’s a man and cricket in there as well. A good read. Mint in mint d/w – signed by the author £12
13. ROBERTS, Katherine Pages From the Diary of a Militant Suffragette Garden City Press 1910 [11202] There has been some doubt about whether this is an autobiography or fiction. I tend to think that it is fiction – clearly written by an active suffragette – but am not further forward about who Katherine Roberts was. Extremely interesting – and vivid. Paper covers – a little chipped – but a very good copy – clean and tight – of a very scarce book £250
14. ROBINS, Elizabeth The Convert Women’s Press 1980 [11672] Her suffrage novel. Reprint of the 1907 edition – with an introduction by Jane Marcus £9
15. SAUTER, Lilian Through High Windows Curtis & Davison (11a Church St, Kensington) 1911 [12880] Poems. Includes ‘Woman’s Plea for Suffrage’ and ‘Woman’s Song of Freedom.’. The latter was set to music by Annette Hullah and published by the London Society for Women’s Suffrage £25
16. SHAW, Bernard Press Cuttings: a topical sketch compiled from the editorial and correspondence columns of the Daily Papers Constable & Co no date (1909) [13000] as performed by the Civic and Dramatic Guild at the Royal Court Theatre, London, on the 9th July 1909. A suffragette play. In grey card covers a little chipped at edge £35
17. TEMPEST, Evelyn [pseud. of Edward Cuming] The Doubts of Diana Hodder & Stoughton [1911/12] [12881] Light-hearted novel – with the heroine taking part in a suffragette raid akin to ‘Black Friday’ ['The rumour that Govenment had thoughts of employing policemen from other parts of London was lightly discredited; everybody was sure no such thing would be done, even by the new Home Secretary'] and ending up in a police court. Good in original binding £28
18. WHITE, Percy To-Day Tauchnitz 1913 [12885] A very readable novel – with suffrage taking central stage – alongside criticism of the divorce laws. The heroine, as in ‘Ann Veronica’, is prepared to sacrifice her social position for the Cause and enter into a legal pact rather than a conventional marriage. Paper covers – good – scarce £18
Suffrage Ephemera
19. ADA HINES [12587] (1872-1949) of ‘The Nook’, Ashton-on-Mersey, was an artist and a suffragette – the joint founder, in 1909, with her friend and fellow artist, Lucy Fildes, of the Manchester branch of the Women’s Freedom League. Here is an opportunity to acquire a small oil painting by her – unframed – on board – entitled ‘Sunset’. Signed but undated – rather atmospheric. £75
20. AN OLD-FASHIONED CONSERVATIVE A Reply to the Anti-Suffrage Manifesto Conservative and Unionist Women’s franchise Association No date (c 1910?) [12995] ‘Reprinted, with alterations, from ‘The Queen’. Interesting to see the Conservative pro-suffrage arguments. 4-pp leaflet – fair – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £15
21. CENTRAL SOCIETY FOR WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE Some Objections to Women’s Suffrage Considered March 1907 [12527] Written by Lady Strachey – who deftly sets out answers to 8 stereotypical objections. 4-pp leaflet – fine – scarce £55
22. DAILY SKETCH Friday, May 22, 1914 [12512] ‘”Tell the King!” Mrs Pankhurst’s agonised cry as she is torn bodily from the gates of Buckingham Palace in an amazing riot’ is the headline – and the front page is filled with the picture of Mrs Pankhurst being picked up by Inspector Roise. Complete paper – good condition – a little frayed along the edges – but the iconic photo of Mrs Pankhurst is untouched. £25
23. EARENGEY, W.G. Woman Under the Law Women’s Freedom League, no date 1908 [12961] W.G. Earengey, a lawyer, was the brother-in-law of Edith How-Martyn, one of the leaders of the Women’s Freedom League. He and his wife, Florence, had been founder members of the WSPU in Cheltenham, before moving to the WFL. He writes in his introduction to this little book, ‘A careful consideration of the legal disabilities still attaching to women should convince every fair-minded an that Woman’s demand for sex-equality in the Law is based on elementary principles of natural justice.’ Good – though paper covers carry many library shelf marks – withdrawn from the Woman’s Library £12
24. ELMY, Elizabeth Wostenholme Woman’s Franchise: the need of the hour ILP 2nd ed, no date [1907] [12760] A campaigner for women’s suffrage since the mid-1860s, she had put aside a lifetime’s aversion to party politics and joined the Manchester ILP in 1904. This article was originally published in the ‘Westminster Review’. In her concise style she analyses the events of the previous 40 years and demands that Liberal MPs who profess to support women’s suffrage honour their pledges. £65
25. FAWCETT, Mrs Henry Home and Politics an address delivered at Toynbee Hall and elsewhere Women’s Printing Society 1894 [12939] A much reproduced speech – first given c 1890. This printing does not bear a date but probably c 1900. It carries the ownership stamp of Margaret Clark, Street, Somerset who in 1909 married Arthur Gillett – so probably predates 1909. 8pp – a little creased and marked – but tight £35
26. FORD MADDOX HEUFFER ‘The Women of the Novelist’ [12518] [Ford Madox Hueffer in 1919 becameFord Madox Ford.] A flyer advertising a lecture by the novelist to be held on 5 February 1908 in aid of the funds of the London Society for Women’s Suffrage at 10 Linden Gardens, Notting Hill Gate. This was then the address of Alexandra and Gladys Wright who were a couple of years later to desert the London Society for the newly-founded New Constitutional Society for Women’s Suffrage. Very good – very scarce £65
27. IN MEMORIAM Rt Hon Lord and Lady (Emmeline) Pethick-Lawrence of Peaslake [12984] 4-pp leaflet describing the various commemorations of the lives of the Pethick-Lawrences. Issued by the Suffragette Fellowship under the names of Lady (Helen) Pethick-Lawrence and Grace Roe. Good £15
28. LENNOX, Geraldine The Suffragette Spirit The Suffragette Fellowship 1932 [12960] One of the series of ‘Suffragette Lectures’ – given at Caxton Hall on 17 Nov 1931. Paper covers – good internally -although has been folded. Paper covers carry many shelf marks – withdrawn from the Woman’s Library – scarce £40
29. LONDON SOCIETY FOR WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE [12935] single-sheet leaflet setting out the LSWS’s ‘Policy’.Printed by the Women’s Printing Society sometime after 1910 (the year in which the Society moved to 58 Victoria Street – the address given). Very good £15
30. LONDON SOCIETY FOR WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE Annual Report 1914 LSWS 1914 [12968] Presented at the Annual General Meeting held at the Caxton hall, Westminster, December 10, 1914. With useful list of local committees and branches, and names and addresses of their secretaries etc. And, of course, most importantly, details of the aid the Society was giving to the war effort in the early months of the War. 24pp in paper covers – very good – the cream paper of the covers just a little grubby. Scarce £65
31. LONDON SOCIETY FOR WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE Annual Report 1916 LSWS 1916 [12969] With details of their war efforts, both at home and in France and Serbia – and of their local committees etc. 34pp – paper covers – good – a little creased and grubby. Scarce £50
32. LONDON SOCIETY FOR WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE Annual Report 1917 LSWS 1917 [12970] Details of local committees etc – and of war work – including that ofovers the Women’s Service Bureau. Financial accounts are given for the different areas of operation – ie ‘War Service Fund’, ‘London Units of the Scottish Women’s Hospitals for Foreign Service’ and ‘Welding School, Ministry of Munitions’. 34pp -paper covers marked – internally good £55
33. LONDON SOCIETY FOR WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE Annual Report 1918 LSWS [12992] ‘Presented at the annual general meeting held at the Caxton Hall, Westminster, Feb 24th 1919.’ Financial accounts are given for the different areas of operation – ie ‘War Service Fund’, ‘London Units of the Scottish Women’s Hospitals for Foreign Service’ and ‘Welding School, Ministry of Munitions’. Paper covers marked – internally good – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £30
34. LONDON SOCIETY FOR WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE Debate between Mrs Humphry Ward and Mrs Henry Fawcett LSWS 1909 [12947] The debate was held in London on 26 Feb 1909 – organised by the St Pancras Committee of the LSWS. As an afternote, the local chairman and secretary felt obliged to set out details of the exact circumstances of the distribution of tickets – it had been that kind of evening. 32-pp – the text is all there – in poor but readable condition – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £10
35. LONDON SOCIETY FOR WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE Women Workers’ Demonstration NUWSS 1917 [12932] 4-pp leaflet issued by the NUWSS for this demonstration, held in the Queen’s Hall in London on Tuesday 20 February 1917. It was supported by a range of suffrage societies and on the platform were representative women from trades and professions – including actresses, book binders, bus conductors, bakers, chainmakers, doctors oxy-acetylene welders, voluntary aid detachments, window cleaners etc. Millicent Fawcett was in the chair and the speech was given by Ray Strachey. Very good – unusual £35
36. LYDIA BECKER [12607] Letter from Lydia Becker to ‘Mr Levi’ – written from 85 Carter St, Greenyes, Manchester on ‘Oct 16′ – I have worked out that the year is1868. ‘Mr Levi’ is probably Prof Leone Levi, to whom she had sent a pamphlet a few days earlier. I think, in response, he had written to her in admiration asking for some material from her for his autograph book. In this letter, in return, she writes ‘I have written out my three Norwich prospositions ,[these are drawn from her address at Norwich to the British Association Section F on 25 Aug 1868] which I hope may serve your purpose as a curiosity! for your autograph book, and a bone of contention for your friends.’ These ‘three Norwich propositions’ are set out on a separate sheet. But, in addition, in her 4-pp mss letter she sets out ‘my general wishes and conclusions as to the rights of women’.. All the material has been carefully attached to a sheet that once was page 77 in a collection of autograph material. Incidentally the material on the reverse, p 78, is in Italian, lending credence to my supposition that the correspondent was Leone Levi, who had left his native Italy for Liverpool in 1844. A very interesting letter – very good £95
37. MACMILLAN, Chrystal And Shall I Have a Parliamentary Vote? NUWSS March 1918 [12949] Contains all the details on what was necessary for a woman to claim her newly-won vote. 18pp – paper covers – marked with a little pencilled underlining – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £25
38. MAP OF THE WSPU/WFL PROCESSION OF 18 JUNE 1910. [12303] The map was a contemporary reprint of a page from ‘Votes for Women’ for 17 June 1910 and was issued to those thousands taking part. It shows where the separate sections should line up – from the Portsmouth and Petersfield WSPU at Westminster Bridge to the Peckham WSPU at Carmelite Street. The procession was to be led up Northumberland Avenue by University Graduates, Pharmacists and Women Sanitary Inspectors and members of the Men’s League. The map is framed in a silver metal frame -looks rather good. Because of the problem of the glass, I will be unable to post it, so it will need to be picked up in London. £95
39. (MARSH) Suffragette Fellowship Memories of Charlotte Marsh published for the Suffragette Fellowship by Marion Lawson June 1961 [12979] Paper covers – tribute to a leading WSPU activist – 20-pp pamphlet -card covers reproduces her hunger strike medal. Good -carries library marks – withdrawn from the Women’s Library. Scarce £30
40. MARSHALL, Catherine E. Women’s Suffrage Election in Cumberland [12989] ‘reprint of letter sent to the local press’ 5 Jan 1910. Catherine Marshall was the very energetic local organising secretary for the the NUWSS at this by-election. Single sheet – fair – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £10
41. MEN’S POLITICAL UNION FOR WOMEN’S ENFRANCHISEMENT First Annual Report MPU 1911 [12982] Includes an account of the Union’s work and a list of donors. Paper covers (with rather attractive purple, white and green motif) present, but detached – and rather chipped and grubby. Internally fair – with some pencilled annotations. Scarce £40
42. MILL, Mrs Stuart (Harriet Taylor Mill) The Enfranchisement of Women Trubner & Co 1868 [12964] A reissue, in pamphlet form, of the important article that Harriet Taylor contributed to the ‘Westminster Review’ in 1851. Paper covers – back cover has a tear across – front cover has several library shelf marks – withdrawn from the Women’s Libary. But internally good – and scarce £75
43. MISS MORGAN, OF BRECON The Duties of Citizenship Women’s Local Government Society c 1912 [12946] Extracts reprinted from a paper read at the Annual Conference of the National Union of Women Workers, Manchester, October 27th 1896. By the time this leafet was issued Miss Morgan had beed Mayor of Brecon, 1911-12. 4-pp – good – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £15
44. MURRAY, Eunice Woman’s Value in War Time WFL c 1917 [12991] 12pp pamphlet. – front paper cover present, but detached – back cover missing.- fair – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £12
45. NATIONAL SOCIETY FOR WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE CENTRAL COMMITTEE: First Report of the Executive Committee presented at the General Meeting of the Central Committee held on Wednesday 17 July 1872 National Society for Women’s Suffrage 1872 [12931] See my ‘Women’s Suffrage Movement: a reference guide’ as to how and why the Central Committee came into being. This – the Committee’s first report, contains lists of names of members of the Committee, of subscribers, and of the Local Committtes around England and Scotland that affiliated to the Central. In original paper covers – rubbed – very scarce £95
46. NATIONAL UNION OF WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE SOCIETIES Bye-election Policies Compared Oct 1908 [12525] Double-sided, two-columned leaflet in which the NUWSS compares the different elements of its bye-election policy with that of the WSPU. The NUWSS had incorporated material supplied by Christabel Pankhurst into the WSPU statements. Fine – a little tag remaining on the second side – not affecting text – where it has been pasted into album – very scarce £55
47. NATIONAL UNION OF WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE SOCIETIES Final Report of the Professional Women’s Patriotic Service Fund NUWSS Oct 1915 [12943] ‘The Fund began work in Jan 1915, when a Committee was formed for the purpose of assisting professional women, by paying their salaries and offering their services to organisations which are dealing with war needs.’ I knew nothing of this short-lived Fund before reading this Report. It lists, on the one had, donors and, on the other, the positions in which they had placed needy ‘professional’ women. The Fund was wound up when it became clear that its services were no longer required. The Committee included, among others, Mrs Auerbach, Mrs Fawcett, Catherine Marshall, Ray Strachey, Dr Jane Walker – and its secretary was Kathleen Courtney. 12pp – good – scarce £50
48. NATIONAL UNION OF WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE SOCIETIES Leading Facts of the Movement for the Parliamentary Enfranchisement of Women c 1907 [12526] 4-pp leaflet setting out the principal dates and achievements in the advance towards enfranchisement. Good – a little creased £35
49. NATIONAL UNION OF WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE SOCIETIES A Memorandum Showing Cause Why Women Should Take Part in the Election of the Parliament which is to deal with problems of reconstruction arising out of the war NUWSS Nov 1916 [13017] ‘The object of this Memorandum is to put together the latest facts and figures bearing on the question of the enfranchisement of women in relation to the present political and industrial situation.’ Foolscap -34pp -card covers – good £30
50. NATIONAL UNION OF WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE SOCIETIES Memorial of Head Mistresses of Girls’ Public Secondary Schools NUWSS 1909 [12934] ‘The headmistresses who signed this Memorial asked Mr Asquith to receive a deputation in order that they might lay their views before him in person. This request was refused.’ Text of the memorial forwarded to Asquith in June 1909 – listing all those who had signed it. 16-pp pamphlet – goodish – a bit creased around the edges £35
51. NATIONAL UNION OF WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE SOCIETIES Women Suffragists’ Celebration [12515] Flyer for the celebrations held at Queen’s Hall, Langham Place on Thursday 21 February 1918 – ‘To Welcome the Extension of the Franchise to Women’. The flyer includes the long list of societies that were taking part – the WSPU was a notable exception. On the list was the New Constitutional Society for Women’s Suffrage – and this flyer bears the annotation in ink ‘Please get tickets from’ followed by the NCWS’s rubber stamp with their address in Knightsbridge. Very good – very scarce £55
52. NATIONAL WOMEN’S SOCIAL AND POLITICAL UNION Second Annual Report Woman’s Press 1908 [12972] Includes long list of subscribers, the WSPU financial accounts, and details of their activitis during 1907. Good internall – paper covers present, but detached. Scarce £95
53. NATIONAL WOMEN’S SOCIAL AND POLITICAL UNION Second Year Intermediate Report NWSPU 1907 [12981] Includes financial accounts for six months ending 31 Aug 1907 – together with a description of the WSPU’s activities and a list of subscribers. This was published after Mrs Despard etc had broken away to form the WFL. Fair – paper covers present but detached. Scarce £95
54. NEVINSON, Henry W Women’s Vote and Men WFL no date (1910?) [12978] Reprinted from ‘The English Review’. 11-pp pamphlet, original paper covers with library shelf marks. Fair – withdrawn from the Women’s Library £15
55. PANKHURST, Christabel International Militancy WSPU 1915 [12977] ‘A speech delivered at Carnegie Hall, New York, January 13th, 1915′. 24-pp pamphlet, paper covers (with photograph of Christabel Pankhurst) – covers with shelf – marks, withdrawn from the Women’s Library. Scarce £95
56. PANKHURST, Christabel The War: a speech delivered at the London Opera House on September 8th 1914 WSPU [12962] ‘Every day it has become to us more and more apparent that our country is in danger, and that it is necessary for all sections to unite, in order that we may be strong as we have never been strong before; and therefor we Suffragettes believe tht it is our duty to do all we can to rouse the individual citizen to fight for the freedom and the independence of this country and this Empire.’ 16-pp pamphlet – fair in marked paper covers (the back cover is missing a small section) with many library shelf markings – withdrawn from the Women’s Libary. Very scarce £50
57. PANKHURST, EMMELINE ET AL Suffrage Speeches From the Dock: Conspiracy Trial, Old Bailey, May 15th-22nd 1912 The Woman’s Press, no date (1912) [12965] The speeches given during their trial for conspiracy by Mrs Pankhurst, Mrs Pethick-Lawrence, Mr Pethick Lawrence and Tim Healy (counsel for the defence). They were reprinted and published by the WSPU’s publishing arm, the Woman’s Press. Fair – first 4 pages present but detached – spine reinforced with sellotape – paper covers chipped and carry library shelf marks – withdrawn from the Women’s Library- extremely scarce £55
58. PETHICK-LAWRENCE, Emmeline and Frederick (eds) VOTES FOR WOMEN VOL III Oct 1909-Sept 1910 [12407] Hefty bound volume of the WSPU weekly newspaper, in original Sylvia Pankhurst-designed boards. Signs of wear at leather corners – spines rebacked – ex Reading University Library – with library label on back boards. Internally very clean and tight, except for page of the Index where paper has split, but with no loss of text. £900
59. PETHICK-LAWRENCE MEMORIAL COMMITTEE Memories of Fred and Emmeline Pethick-Lawrence Pethick-Lawrence Memorial Committee 1963 [12967] Reminiscences by those who knew them. – with a list of contributors to the Memorial Fund. 16-pp in card covers (which is decorated with a purple, white and green stripe). Fine £35
60. PUNCH CARTOON [12766] 30 Nov 1910, scene is a suffragette demonstration, ‘Votes for Women’ flags flying. Two young street urchins observe and comment. Caption is ‘Man of the World (lighting up), “Well ‘ave to give it ‘em, I expect, Chorlie”‘. Half-page illustration £10
61. PUNCH CARTOON [12767] 13 July 1910, full-page – the caption is ‘Excelsior!’ as Suffragist puts her shoulder to the boulder of ‘Women’s Suffrage’ and says, ‘It’s no good talking to me about Sisyphus; he was only a man’ £10
62. PUNCH CARTOON [12768] 13 March 1912, full-page, suffragettes wield hammers in the background as Roman-type matron, bearing a paper labelled ‘Woman’s Suffrage’ comments ‘To think that, after all these years, I should be the first martyr’. the heading is ‘In the House of Her Friends’ £10
63. PUNCH CARTOON [12769] 23 January 1918 – A St Joan figure holds the ‘Woman’s Franchise’ banner and, with arms outstretched, cries out ‘At Last’. Full page – very good £12
64. PUNCH CARTOON [12770] 20 July 1910, Asquith is placing The Women’s Suffrage Bill on an overhead shelf and saying to the assembled cabinet, ‘Well, Gentlemen, now that your individual consciences had had their fling, let’s get to work again’. Just so. Very good £10
65. PUNCH CARTOON [12772] 10 January 1912 -full page – ‘United We Differ’. Lloyd George and Lewis Harcourt are back to back on a platform. Lloyd George addressing his side, where a Votes for Women’ banner is to be seen, cries ‘Votes for Women! Don’t you listen to my esteemed colleague!’. While addressing his, male, crowd cries ‘No Votes for Women! My esteemed colleague is talking nonsense!’. Asquith’s cabinet was split on this issue. Very good £10
66. PUNCH CARTOON [12773] 5 Oct 1927 -full-page - The Conservative Party (in the guise of one four-plussed chap in a shooting party) looks at a young flapperish women taking a gun from the ghillie and says ‘I hope she’s got enough ‘intutition’ not to let off in my direction’. The explanation is given: ‘The question of extended suffrage for women (in whose ‘intutition’ Mr Baldwin reposes so much confidence) will be raised at the approaching Conference of the Conservative Party.’ £10
67. PUNCH CARTOON [12775] 21 October 1908 – full page – two burglars ‘on the way to suburban night-work’ pass a line of policemen marching in the opposite direction. The wallposter announces a Votes for Women demonstration in Parliament Square – and the burglars agree that ‘sufferajits’ are a good thing, keeping the police occupied they we they do. £10
68. PUNCH CARTOON [12776] 2 December 1908 – a Bernard Partridge full-length illustration shows Asquith (Andromedus) chained to his rock – beset by the sea monster taunting him with her Votes for Women triton and searching for salvation from Persea – the Women’s National Anti-Suffrage League. Very good £12
69. PUNCH CARTOON [12777] 21 January 1912 – full page – ‘The Suffrage Split’. Sir George Askwith (the charismatic industrial conciliator), as ‘Fairy Peacemaker’, has tamed the dragon of the Cotton Strike – and Asquith, wrestling to keep a seat on the Cabinet horse turns to him ‘Now that you’ve charmed yon dragon I shall need ye to stop the strike inside this fractious gee-gee.’ £10
70. PUNCH CARTOON [12778] 21 October 1908 – c. half-page – two effete anti-suffragist club loafers – the one to the other, ‘The idea of their wantin’ to be like us!’ and the response ‘Yes, makin’ themselves utterly ridiculous!’. £8
71. PUNCH CARTOON [12779] 7 December 1910 – small cartoon captioned ‘Voter’s Vertigo’. Yet another general election is at hand and the poor voter is in a frightful spin as he wrestles with ‘don’t tax the poor man’s dreadnought’; ‘home rule for suffragettes’ and ‘two power standard for t