The Companion. Vol. 1

n.p. c1830.


An unpublished manuscript literary magazine in twelve numbers. 178x120mm. pp. [2], 256, [2]. Brown half calf notebook with marbled paper covered boards. Joints a little worn and split at the foot of the spine at the lower cover. Chipping to head and foot of spine. Paper label to spine printed with the title "The Companion". Hinges are worn and splitting in places and there is some slight soiling but overall it is in good condition. The text is very clear and although it appears to have been written by more than one hand, the exceptionally neat italic style is uniform throughout. The contributors are referred to only by their initials (R, E, J.D. and V, although one is called "Theta"). On the title page is the epigraph "The first quality in a Companion is Truth" - Sir William Temple. This is printed on a small piece of paper and pasted onto the leaf. It has almost certainly been cut out of a copy of Leigh Hunt's literary journal, also called The Companion where this epigraph appears on the title page in exactly the same typeface and layout. The paper is watermarked 1828 and on the front free endpaper is the inscription "Charles Wilkinson 1830" hidden (but legible) under a glued piece of paper torn from the facing leaf.