Beschreibung:

Evans, Marian 'George Eliot', 1819-1880 An autograph letter signed from Susanna Chapman, 142 Strand, 8 November, circa 1851, to Miss Evans, opening 'Mr Bray had some conversation with Mr Chapman respecting your intention of spending some time in London this winter and Mr Bray thought if our terms had been more moderate you would have liked to stay with us', and continuing that this would be possible, written in a clear hand in blue ink, three pages, upper portion of second leaf cut away with loss of three lines of writing on page 3 and possibly a postscript at the head of page 4, with a numbered list of ten names written in black ink and vertically to lower blank area of page 4 in the hand of Marian Evans, names listed including Holyoake, W. Marshall, Mr Chapman, G. Dawson, C. Bray, Froude, C.C.H., Mrs Chapman, Laura Marshall and Miss Lynn, 8vo In 1850 Marian Evans moved to London with the intent of becoming a writer, and in 1851 she became a lodger at 142 Strand the house of Susanna and John Chapman the radical publisher whom she had met earlier at Rosehill and who had published her first book as translation of David Strauss's Life of Jesus Christ (1846). Chapman had recently purchased the campaigning, left-wing journal The Westminster Review, and Evans became its assistant editor in 1851, working from 142 Strand. Although Chapman was officially the editor, it was Evans who did most of the work of producing the journal, contributing many essays and reviews beginning with the January 1852 issue and continuing until the end of her employment at the Review in the first half of 1854. The list of names compiled by Evans on the back of the letter is likely a check-list of potential journal contributors, including as it does the names of known writers George Jacob Holyoake, James Anthony Froude and Charles Bray. (Qty: 1)