ISSUE No. 29, June 2002 ISSN 0840-5565 Two minds, but a single thought … ince Edna Hajnal, the Fisher Library’s Other popular themes are Canadiana, Programme collection and we hope to be manuscript curator for the past European literature and politics, and fine able to process it this summer. The S fifteen years, will be retiring this printing. This year proved to be no ornithological faction was represented this June, we thought it appropriate that she exception. Avid theatregoer, Eric Etchin, year by the gift of Rosemary Speirs, who add her thoughts to my annual account of turned over a collection of programmes enabled us to add some two hundred donations made to the Fisher Library and playbills dating from 1958 through to volumes to the Baillie Collection. The during the past year. My account, there- 2000. The donation included complete Kenny Collection saw a major increase fore will deal only with printed books runs of the Toronto Symphony, with Professor Lee Lorch’s major donation donated last year. of books, pamphlets and periodicals Just before she retired, Rachel Grover, relating to the radical left. From Mrs. Edna’s predecessor, acquired an Yvonne Allen we received a scrapbook incunabula edition of the works of Saint that will be of interest to Kenny scholars: it Thomas Aquinas (ca. 1227-1274). This is a minute book of the Parkdale Chapter Dominican theologian spent most of his of the Co-operative Commonwealth short life involved in the service of his Federation from 1934-1936, including order. He worked incessantly, travelling news clippings of CCF activities in To- long distances to preach, to take part in ronto, a fascinating example of local church councils or to be consulted by the politics of that era. Pontiff. It has been said that no theolo- The Fisher Library’s Duff Collection of gian, with the exception of Saint Augus- books on fine printing will be consider- tine, had more influence on the theologi- ably increased by Luanna Peters’ donation cal thought and language of the Catholic of reference books and items issued by the Church. His works are of great importance Typophiles of New York. Among the for both their philosophical and for their treasures we found the very rare Spinach theological content. He is perhaps best from Many Gardens (1935). Made up of known for the Summa Theologiæ (sum of thirty-one bibliographically distinct items, all known learning). As the outward it includes illustrations by various design- appearance of the Mrs. Grover’s copy did ers, and was printed by separate presses. not reflect the importance of its contents, One of sixty copies produced, our copy she commissioned Emrys Evans, the Fisher (no. 48) belonged to Lester Douglas and Library’s conservator, to create a new contains his bookplate, designed by Bruce binding in a style appropriate to the age of Rogers. Rogers signed his contribution, as the work. This resulting magnificent did eleven other Typophiles. Douglas was volume will join our steadily increasing director of art and printing for the United collection of works printed before 1501, States Chamber of Commerce for twenty- and will ever be a tribute to the design five years and responsible for the design skills and workmanship of our master Title page of William Shortt’s Gesta of all of that organization’s publications, as binder. Emrys will also be retiring this Anglo-Americana. well as a leading book designer and an June and we are very pleased to have authority on typography. This donation been able to add another one of his also includes extensive archival materials special bindings to our collections. Tafelmusik, and the Aldeburgh Connec- relating to Douglas and his collaborators. I always look for themes when writing tion. The Shaw and Stratford Festivals are Among the many other items is a large this article and what is very evident as I go also well represented, as are the Crest, the assortment of Typophile chapbooks, through the sheets of gift-in-kind forms, is Red Barn, Theatre in the Dell, Second City previously in the possession of Arno the number of donors who are interested and Tarragon. This gift constitutes an Werner, a Typophile and well-known in birds, left wing politics, and theatre. important addition to this Library’s Theatre Massachusetts bookbinder. The chapbooks 2 Before television and movies consumed our free time, so-called pulp magazines were popular diversions. The gift of Donald McLeod indicates the variety of these ephemeral publications. While listing the many titles for appraisal, I felt myself tempted to glance through and sometimes read aloud to my colleagues in the work room, paragraphs from Daring Confes- sions, Detective Yearbook, Private Confes- sions, and Sky Fighters. Although I have never been driven to purchase The National Enquirer (enquiring minds want to know), these sometime naïve magazines do have an appeal of their own. Dr. Robert Brandeis has often been listed in these reports as a major contribu- tor to our Penguin Collection, and that was the case again this year. One of his gifts during 2001, however, indicate that Images this page and facing page: his collecting interest is not confined to Examples of pulp magazines donated by that familiar format. Late in the year, Don McLeod. Robert left a slim volume on my desk. It turned out to be an edition of Lewis Carroll’s The Game of Logic (London, 1887) with quite a wonderful provenance. On 6 arrived in custom leather-backed cases May 1894, Carroll met the schoolgirl Mary created by Werner to house the collection. Agnes Wilson and asked her to dine in his We are most grateful to Luanna and Ron rooms at Christ College, Oxford. She did Peters for this munificent addition to our so a week later and at that time, Carroll holdings presented her with this work. She subse- Our German language holdings quently dined with him in November, and received a welcome boost thanks to the in June of 1895, Carroll took her and a generosity of Martin Landmann. In his friend to see a matinée of The Merchant of mother’s collection we found limited Venice with Ellen Terry. Wilson later editions of Friedrich Hölderin’s Antigona married Arthur Stanley Ramsay (1867- (Bern, 1921), Heinrich Mann’s Die 1954), President of Magdalene College, Ehrgeizige (München, 1920) and a German Cambridge. Their son, Arthur Michael translation of Daniel Defoe’s Robinson Ramsay was Archbishop of Canterbury Crusoe with eighty-five drawings by from 1961 until 1974. Richard Seewald, including two originals The Fisher Library lost a very good signed by the artist. From Mr. Landmann’s friend with the death last spring of own collection we received, among other Professor H. Gordon Skilling. He was interesting items, a limited edition of 1880, and with the ink stamp of Madan chiefly responsible for the establishment of Goethe’s Faust, bound in parchment, and Falconer, it was purportedly written by a the Czech and Slovak collections at the decorated with intricate initials. “Diodorus Huronicus”. The text is in Fisher Library and right up to the week of A limited edition of Horace’s Carmina Greek and relates to Canada, American his death was doing research here. It was Alcaica printed by St. John Hornby at his Indians, the French and Indian War, the my very sad task, together with Harold Ashendene Press was one of several American Revolution and the war of 1812. Averill of the University Archives, to assist interesting additions made to our holdings Lithographed in Exeter by the author, it is, the family in selecting materials to be by the Fisher Library’s Director, Richard as the Latin translation of the title page added to both our institutions. Our Landon. His gift also contained the rare states, a “liber singularis”. Professor Czechoslovak holdings are now almost Gesta Anglo-Americana by William Shortt. Landon also found the first issue of the doubled by the addition of works on the Research has found only three other first journal devoted to television. Volume Masaryk family. Gordon had just published copies in the United States, but none in 1, number 1 of Television: A Monthly a work on Czechoslovakia’s first President, Canada. Presented by the author to Magazine, came out in March 1928, only Thomas Garrigue Masaryk, and was Richard Lynch Cotton, the provost of two years after the medium is generally working on English and Czech versions of Worcester College Oxford from 1839 to said to have been invented by J.L. Baird. his book on Alice and Olga Masaryk. The 3 Manuscript Gifts in 2001 ardens and manuscript collections contained a draft manuscript entitled “UK are rarely compared, but they do manuscript. This is the UK-manuscript G have one thing in common - they from which both Alias Grace and The grow. The collections of literary manu- Blind Assassin arose.” Early manuscript scripts and personal papers of the Thomas drafts of both books are already to be Fisher Rare Book Library continue to found among her papers. Another early flourish, thanks to the generosity of its draft of The Blind Assassin, “The Angel of Friends. Bad Judgment”, with the author’s holo- One donor, Dr. J. Murray Speirs, a graph notes, was also part of the donation long-time Friend, bequeathed his own along with other papers. David Donnell’s papers to the Library. After his death last gift had holograph drafts of two of his September the Fisher received his “Daily books—China Blues and Water Street Bird Journals” (257 volumes), dating from Days. Earlier drafts of these books are 1923 to 2000, (with only two short gaps among his papers.