GEORGE BERNARD SHAW TO: MISS BEATRICE SALTMARSH ~~AN OUTSTANDING ARCHIVE OF FOURTEEN LETTERS WHEREIN HE DESCRIBES THE ISSUES HE IS HAVING WITH HIS RADIO!
SHAW, GEORGE BERNARD. (1856-1950). Irish-born writer and dramatist. An archive of fourteen pieces of correspondence from Shaw to Miss Beatrice Saltmarsh. Very fine condition. The archive includes:
Autograph Letter Signed, “G. Bernard Shaw”, on his imprinted Ayot St. Lawrence stationery. Two pages, oblong octavo. “4, Whitehall Court, London, S.W.1.”, November 22, 1927. Shaw writes: “Dear Miss Saltmarsh, You are too modest. I have sketched a model bill on the back of this sheet. The set is performing beautifully. Faithfully, G. Bernard Shaw. P.S. I don’t want the old values.” He has written on verso: “Attendance & diagnosis, Ayot St. L: £1-1-0. Disconnecting set: 7-6. Carriage to Sandridge: 9-0. Taking down set: 17-6. Re-wiring same: 1-10-0. Reassembling same: 1-2-6. Removing unsuitable lamps (5-each): 10-0. Supplying 1 new Mullard P.ll.256 valve: 1-0-0. Setting up same: 5-0. Supplying 5x valve: 10-6. Setting up same: 2-6. Royalties: 4-13-0. Testing set on London: 15-0. Ditto on Dublin: 1-0-0. Carriage to Ayot: 9-0. Attendance and testing set in situ: 1-10-6. Connecting up same: 17-6. Woman’s time, 2 days: 1-12-0. Overtime: 16-0. Total: £19-8-6”.
Autograph Letter Signed, “G.B.S.”, on his imprinted Ayot St. Lawrence note card. One page, small octavo. “4, Whitehall Court, London, S.W.1.”, November 27, 1928. Addressed on verso: “Miss Beatrice Saltmarsh, Sandridge, St. Albans”, with orange, one-penny stamp and postal cancellation. Shaw writes: “You are wasting a lot of good remorse. It is a compliment to people to ask them to broadcast an appeal. It is both a tribute to their influence and an offer of a first class advertisement. You need never hesitate. Nobody else ever does or did or will. I refused, not in the least because I was displeased by the invitation, but because if I accepted it every charity on earth would be down on me next day for an appeal; and I have refused so many lovely and distinguished ladies that, if I fell to you, both our characters would be gone. G.B.S.”
Typed Letter Signed, “G. Bernard Shaw”, on his imprinted stationery. One page, quarto. “4, Whitehall Court, London, S.W.1.”, November 30, 1928. Very fine condition. Shaw writes: “Dear Miss Saltmarsh, This will never do. It shows a deplorable lack not only of business training but of business intelligence, and must end in your ruin. The first thing your father should do is to charge you a rent for your workshop. The second is that he should make you pay for your food, so that you may realize that its cost enters into every transaction, and obliges you to recover it as payment for your time. When you have grasped this thoroughly you must understand that if you employ a man at, say, one and threepence an hour to do something for me, you charge me two and sixpence for ‘man’s time’, giving half to him and keeping half as your payment for finding and employing him. You will find it necessary to have a formula for averaging your charges, as it is not possible to treat every transaction on its own merits; and in fixing such a formula you must take care not to charge more than the other shops in the neighborhood: otherwise they may take away all your customers. Also you must not charge less, especially before your father exacts rent and board from you, because you would make it impossible for them to live by taking their customers away and sweating your father instead of your customers. Now I do not know what percentage of profit electric shops adopt as their formula. But you can ascertain it in this way. Pye and Magnavox have sold to you a wireless set which you have sold to me. The difference between what you pay them and I pay you is so much percent on your expenditure. All you have to do is to find out how much percent it was. Say it was twenty, then you charge me 20 % on the £10, which would be £2; if 33 1/3% £3-6-8; if 5% 10/, and so on. So send me in a bill for whatever it is and I will send you a cheque. And learn these instructions by heart for future reference. Faithfully, G. Bernard Shaw”.
Autograph Note Signed, “G.B.S.”, on his imprinted With Bernard Shaw’s compliments note card. One page, 32mo. “Ayot St. Lawrence, Welwyn, Herts.”, December 9, 1928. Shaw writes: “‘Allowance’ is an inadmissible expression: it has other implications. But it would be correct to say that you ‘allowed’ me £8 for the Burndept. However, you are getting on. These compunctions do not last. G.B.S.”
Autograph Sentiment Signed, “The only card I’ve sent. G. Bernard Shaw”, on the verso of a black-and-white octavo postcard, depicting Shaw in a three-quarter bust pose. “Ayot St. Lawrence”, January 1, 1930. Addressed in Shaw’s hand to “Miss Beatrice Saltmarsh, Sandridge”.
Autograph Note Signed, “G.B.S.”, on his imprinted With Bernard Shaw’s compliments note card. One page, 32mo. “Ayot St. Lawrence, Welwyn, Herts.”, February 22, 1930. Shaw writes: “Unless the weather is too utterly discouraging we will come over on Sunday afternoon with a few records. G.B.S.”
Autograph Letter Signed, “G.B.S.”, on his imprinted Ayot St. Lawrence note card. One full page, 12mo. Addressed on verso, in Shaw’s hand, to “Miss Beatrice Saltmarsh, at Ston Easton Park, W. Bath”, with orange, one-penny stamp and postal cancellations. Shaw writes: “The wireless has the hiccups. It has been getting worse and worse, and is now so unbearable that we long for its death. The resistance in the kitchen is said to affect it. Will you get it for us? We shall be in London until Saturday afternoon. You can have it all to yourself undisturbed at any hour from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. that may be convenient whilst we are away. G.B.S.”
Autograph Letter Signed, “G.B.S.”, on his imprinted Ayot St. Lawrence stationery. Two pages, oblong octavo. “4, Whitehall Court, London, S.W.1.”, October 26, 1931. Shaw writes: “Dear Miss Saltmarsh, I had no idea the thing was three years old: I should have guessed three months. It is now vociferous enough: in fact I work it mostly without the aerial—always, indeed, for speeches; but I can get nothing but National and London Regional, although when I get these the whole world starts in as well; so that I get Ramsay Macdonald with French, German and Italian accompaniments and several orchestras thrown in. I should certainly like to have radio-gramophone and an up-to-date reception if there has been any real advance. I am open to a proposal to bring my set up to date and gramophonize it if that can be done, or to scrap the whole darned thing for the newest and best (not necessarily Pye) if the cost is not ruinous. You might look into the matter for me if and when you can spare the time. Faithfully, G.B.S.”
Autograph Note Signed, “G.B.S.”, on his imprinted With Bernard Shaw’s compliments note card. One page, 32mo. “Ayot St. Lawrence, Welwyn, Herts.”, December 6, 1931. Shaw writes: “No hurry about the gramophone. We shall not be back until late in March—possibly April. G.B.S.”
Autograph Letter Signed, “G. Bernard Shaw”, on his imprinted Ayot St. Lawrence note card. One full page, 12mo. “Welwyn, Herts.”, May 17, 1932. Addressed on verso, in Shaw’s hand, to “Miss Beatrice Saltmarsh, Ston Easton Park, near Bath, Somerset”, with orange, one-penny stamp and postal cancellations. Shaw writes: “Just when we shall be up in town, worse luck! The wireless is behaving fairly well; but the switch which should cut it off into the kitchen no longer works; and there is the question of connecting it with the gramophone which you said was practicable. If you don’t mind our absence in London and at Oxford over the week and would care to tackle it when you come up by all means do so. If not, drop me a card; and I’ll send for Giffen. G. Bernard Shaw”.
Autograph Note Signed, “G. Bernard Shaw”, on the verso of a black-and-white octavo postcard, depicting Shaw in a profile pose, seated in a chair. “The Malvern Hotel, Great Malvern, Worc.”, August 9, 1932. Addressed to “Miss Beatrice Saltmarsh, Sandridge, St. Albans, Herts.”, with orange, one-penny stamp and postal cancellations. Shaw writes: “Giffen’s bill is quite in order; and I consider £2 a noble offer for the old set. You are a bit too far for an excursion; but if we go home Bath way, we may after due notice, blow in. G. Bernard Shaw”.
Autograph Note Signed, “G.B.S.”, on his imprinted With Bernard Shaw’s compliments note card. One page, 32mo. “Ayot St. Lawrence, Welwyn, Herts.”, November 1, 1932. Shaw writes: “In haste to catch the post. The set is very good as far as it goes—perhaps because it doesn’t go as far as Ghince [?]. G.B.S.”
Printed note, reading, “Mr. Bernard Shaw has gone abroad, and will not return before the middle of April”, on an imprinted note card. One page, oblong octavo. “4, Whitehall Court, S.W.1.”, December 16, 1932. Addressed on verso to “Miss Beatrice Saltmarsh, Ston Easton Park, Nr. Bath, Somerset”, with a green, halfpenny stamp and postal cancellations.
Autograph Note Unsigned, in pencil, on his imprinted Ayot St. Lawrence note card. One page, 12mo. “Welwyn Herts.”, no date. The note reads: “Kamberol [?], 26 Park Avenue, Willesden Green, N.W.2., Anti-fly”.
Just charming content and rather revealing insight into Shaw’s ability to deal with the mundane issues of life, and a non-working radio!
$13,500.00