Lot 155
Dickens, Charles (1812-70) British novelist; author of classics such as Pickwick Papers, Oliver Twist, The Old Curiosity Shop, A Christmas Carol, David Copperfield, and A Tale of Two Cities. Autograph Letter Signed on letterhead engraved "Gad's Hill Place, Higham by Rochester, Kent," 2½ pp, 7x4½", 29 July 1868. Fine; accompanied by the original transmittal envelope, addressed in Dicken's hand and signed in the lower left corner, with Dicken's embossed "C.D." seal on the flap. To T.J. Serle, a dramatic author who was acting manager of Covent Garden Theatre in 1838, when his acquaintance with Charles Dickens began. Dickens answers some questions regarding the extension of copyright to the United States, and refers to a horrible train wreck on 9 June 1865, in which Dickens was involved and from which he never fully recovered. In part: "I do not believe there is the slightest chance of an international copyright law being passed in America for a long time to come. Some Massachusetts men do believe in such a thing, but they fail (as I think) to take into account the powerful Western Opposition. Such an alteration as you suggest in the English law would give no copyright in America…." He explains in detail, then adds, "On that horrible Staplehurst day, I had not the slightest idea that I knew any one in the train….It's remarkable that my watch (a special chronometer) has never gone quite correctly since. And to this day there sometimes comes over me - on a railway, in a hansom - in any sort of conveyance - for a few seconds a vague sense of dread that I have no power to check. It comes and passes, but I cannot prevent its coming…."
Estimated Value $2,000 - 3,000.
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| Realized $11,213 |
