Ashley MS 5268

'The Heptalogia': a collection of parodies by A. C. Swinburne; [1870?]-[1880]. Autograph drafts and fair copies of poems printed in The Heptalogia, 1880. Ashley Library Catalogue, vi, p. 146. As follows:―

1. 'The Higher Pantheism in a Nutshell'; [1877-1880]. Autograph fair copy, with some revisions, written on one side only of two folio leaves of blue laid paper. Watermark 'G C & Co / Superfine / 1877' and figure of Britannia. Entitled as above in Swinburne's hand. The MS. has been used as printer's copy. On f. 2b is a fragment (ll. 39-42) of an autograph fair copy of 'Last Words of a Seventh-Rate Poet' (art. 6). ff. 1, 2, 2b.

2. 'John Jones's Wife II By the Cliff'; [1863-1875]. Autograph draft, written on one side only of a folio leaf of pale blue laid paper. Watermark 'T & F H / 1863'. On the verso (f. 3b) is an autograph draft of stanzas 8-13 of 'The Poet and the Woodlouse' (art. 4). ff. 3, 3b.

3. 'John Jones's Wife IV Up the Spout'; [1863-1875]. Autograph draft, written on one side only (f. 4) of a folio leaf of blue laid paper (watermark figure of Britannia), and on both sides (ff. 5, 5b) of a folio leaf of cream laid paper, watermarked 'A P & S' below the figure of Britannia. On f. 5 Swinburne has done a calculation concerning the number of lines in the poem, noting that there are eight rhyme words in each stanza. The MS. is entitled 'IV. Up the Spout' in Swinburne's hand. ff. 4, 5, 5b.

4. 'The Poet and the Woodlouse'; [1878-1880]. Autograph fair copy, with some revisions, written on one side only of three folio leaves of blue laid paper. Watermark 'Sawston / 1878'. The MS. is entitled as above in Swinburne's hand, and was used as printer's copy. See also sub art. 2. ff. 6, 7, 8.

5. 'The Person of the House'; [after 1865?]-[1880]. Autograph fair copy, with revisions, written on one side only of two folio leaves (ff. 9, 11) of blue laid paper, and on both sides of a further two (ff. 10, 12). Watermark 'E Towgood / 1859'. The MS. has been entitled by Swinburne on f. 9 'The Accompaniments / 1. The Monthly Nurse / 2. The Caudle / 3. The Sentences / The Kid'. In the top left-hand corner of f. 9 is the deleted title 'Idyl CXX[ ]'. The MS. has been used as printer's copy, and has been mailed to Swinburne at 16 Wilton Crescent W. He was at 36 Wilton Crescent in 1865. Lines 109-116 have been added after Swinburne received the MS. through the post. ff. 9-12b.

6. 'Last Words of a Seventh-Rate Poet'; n.d. and [1878-1880]. As follows: (a) Autograph draft, written on both sides of two conjoined folio leaves of cream wove paper. No watermark. The MS. is entitled in Swinburne's hand 'A Poet's Last Words / By O. M. [Owen Meredith]. ff. 13-14b. (b) Autograph fair copy, with extensive revisions and additions, written on one side only of three folio leaves of blue laid paper (ff. 15, 18, 20), and on both sides of a further three (ff. 16-17b, 19, 19b). Watermark 'Sawston / 1878' and figure of Britannia. The MS. is entitled 'Last Words of a Seventhrate Poet' in Swinburne's hand, and was used as printer's copy. See also sub art. 1. ff. 15-20.

On f. 21 (a half folio leaf of the same blue laid paper as found in art. 6b) is an autograph draft of two discarded lines and six deleted lines from another parody, 'Disgust; A Dramatic Monologue', [1881]. The poem was first printed in the Fortnightly Review for December 1881.

Bound up with the MSS. are the relevant pages from a copy of The Poems of A. C. Swinburne, vol. V, 1904, annotated by Edmund Gosse, and p. 699 from The Saturday Review for 3 Dec. 1904 with a review of The Heptalogia as printed in The Poems of A. C. Swinburne, vol. V, 1904. f. viii. A1904 is the MS. of 'John Jones', an early version of 'John Jones's Wife'.

Folio; ff. viii+21.

includes:

• ff. 1, 2 Algernon Charles Swinburne, poet: Parody, 'The Higher Pantheism in a Nutshell' by Algernon Charles Swinburne: [1877-1880]: Autogr. fair copy with revisions.
• f. 2b Algernon Charles Swinburne, poet: Parody, 'Last Words of a Seventh-rate Poet' by Algernon Charles Swinburne: [1877-1880]: Autogr. draft of ll. 39-42.
• f. 3a Algernon Charles Swinburne, poet: Parody, 'John Jones's Wife II. By the Cliff' by Algernon Charles Swinburne: [1863-1875]: Autogr. draft.
• f. 3b Algernon Charles Swinburne, poet: Parody, 'The Poet and the Woodlouse', stanzas 8-13, by Algernon Charles Swinburne: [1863-1875]: Autogr. draft of stanzas 8-13.
• ff. 4, 5, 5b Algernon Charles Swinburne, poet: Parody, 'John Jones's Wife IV. Up the Spout': [1863-1875]: Autogr. draft.
• ff. 6, 7, 8 Algernon Charles Swinburne, poet: Parody, 'The Poet and the Woodlouse' by Algernon Charles Swinburne: [1878-1880]: Autogr. fair copy.
• ff. 9, 10, 10b, 11, 12, 12b Algernon Charles Swinburne, poet: Parody, 'The Person of the House' by Algernon Charles Swinburne: [aft. 1865?]-[1880]: Autogr. fair copy with revisions and additions.
• ff. 13-14b Algernon Charles Swinburne, poet: Parody, 'Last Words of a Seventh-rate Poet', here entitled 'A Poet's Last Words By O.M.' by Algernon Charles Swinburne: n.d. and [1878-1880]: Autogr. early draft.
• ff. 15, 16, 16b, 17, 17b, 18, 19, 19b, 20 Algernon Charles Swinburne, poet: Parody, 'Last Words of a Seventh-rate Poet' by Algernon Charles Swinburne: [1878-1880]: Autogr. fair copy with revisions and additions. Imperf.
• f. 21 Algernon Charles Swinburne, poet: Parody, 'Disgust; A Dramatic Monologue', by Algernon Charles Swinburne: [1881]: Autogr. draft. Fragm.