Ashley MS 1866

'Bothwell'. Trial printing, with autograph corrections and revisions, of Act I and Act II, Scene I, as far as Darnley's first exit (p. 109, l. 9, in the First Edition).

No title page, no imprint.

Collation: Octavo (190 x 125); B-E8 F4 Gl; 37 leaves; pp. 1, 2-32, 33, 34-64; ff. 65-69; $I (- D, E, G) signed.

Contents: 1-69 text (33, 65b-69b blank).

No running title.

Paper: White wove unwatermarked.

Binding: Modern.

The letter from Frederick Locker cited under 5261 shows that this trial printing must probably have been produced during July 1871. According to Wise (Ashley Library Catalogue, vi, p. 92) the other of the only two extant copies bears the note in Locker's hand 'I got these pages printed for Swinburne by Davy from his MS. as he feared he might lose it; he had half a dozen copies printed. It is full of errors.' When allowance is made for these errors, the printed text of Act I, Scenes I and II, in 1866 is identical with the text of 5261. Swinburne then corrected the printed text, and in addition made revisions on nearly every page. On p. 20, l. 6, is the word '(Serbina)', a misprint for '(Sestina)' (see 5261), indicating the position of Rizzio's song. Swinburne deleted this word, and wrote in pencil in the margin 'Insert the song here'. The MS. of the sestina was formerly bound into the volume between pp. 20 and 21 (a stub remains), but is now A1866, ff. 27-28. Page 33 is blank. As it is the first page of the gathering following that into which the text of the sestina had to be inserted, it seems probable that it was left so in order to allow space for the insertion. The corrected and revised printed text, together with the MS. of the sestina, must have been returned to the printers and used by them to correct the type for the revise.

Octavo; ff. iii+37.

Drama: Algernon Charles Swinburne, poet: Verse tragedy, 'Bothwell', Act I, Act II, part of Sc. I, by Algernon Charles Swinburne: [1871]: Trial printing with autogr. revisions and corrections.