Beschreibung:

Sassoon (Siegfried, 1886-1967). English Poet, Writer and Soldier. Autograph Poem signed with his distinctive monogram 'SS' of the humorous poem 'Out of Date', circa 1925, 12 lines, beginning, 'A noon edition said / "Lord Out of Date is dead"...', written in light purple pencil on a Reform Club Pall Mall correspondence card, 14 x 9 cm, address side blank, preserved in a purpose-made red cloth book box with gilt-titled spine, together with three autograph letters signed by Sassoon, the first to Colin [Fenton], Heytesbury [House], 10 April 1954, declaring that some of his poems depress him and are not worth printing, mentioning his great friend Max Beerbohm lamenting the effects of solitude and disparaging the dons of All Souls, in particular A.L. Rowse, '... the other poems in the M.S. I sent to John [Sparrow] give me a feeling of depression, and I don't think many of them are worth printing. I imagine people finding them too solemn and unstimulating...', written in a close hand in blue ink to upper half a page of light blue paper with monogram signature, 8vo; an earlier autograph letter signed to Mr Horsley, London, 20 July 1926, offering to meet with members of Horsley's College Library Society, and asking him to leave it open, in blue ink on a small correspondence card with verso blank, oblong 16mo; the last and undated letter to Horsley, cancelling a proposed visit to Cambridge and sending his apologies, a little marginal toning, one page, 8vo; plus a printed decorative card featuring Sassoon's poem Another Spring with signed presentation inscription from Siegfried Sassoon to C.F. [Colin Fenton] to lower margin, verso blank, 10 x 16 cm (Qty: 5) The autograph poem is apparently unpublished. It may date from circa 1920/21 if the reference to '... Caruso's grave condition...' is contemporary with the poem. In his biography of the poet, Max Egremont draws attention to the fact that Sassoon's poetry returned to satire in 1920. It was at this same time that Caruso became seriously ill, suffering a throat haemorrhage on 11 December, the news of which would have crossed most of Europe and America. Colin Fenton (1929-1982) was a student at Christ Church College Oxford, and was believed to have been John Sparrow's lover. For a time, Fenton shared Sparrow's accommodation at C1 Albany and it was Sparrow who introduced Fenton to Sassoon in 1953. Fenton was to write Sassoon's obituary for the Times in 1967. The autograph poem and letters are all apparently unpublished.