THE PARTING OF THE WAYS

River House, Hammersmith: [Printed at the Chiswick Press for] Hammersmith Publishing Company, 1903. FIRST EDITION. 218 x 152 mm. (8 1/2 x 6"). 34 pp., [2] leaves.
Original vellum backed tan paper boards, title printed in black on smooth spine, UNOPENED. With a typed letter laid in, SIGNED by Emery Walker on his firm's stationary (responding to a letter mistakenly delivered to him); front pastedown with remnants of glue from a removed bookplate. ◆Negligible light stain on lower cover, occasional dusting of light foxing internally (a little heavier on rear endpapers), otherwise an excellent copy.

Attractively printed with deep impressions of the type on fine quality laid paper, the text here comes from an address delivered at the William Morris Labour Church in 1902, describing Morris' transition from Liberalism to Socialism. It was written by Morris' friend and biographer, John William Mackail (1859-1945), who was also a distinguished classical scholar, a poet, and a literary critic. As the son-in-law of Edward Burne-Jones, he knew Morris well, and his biography of the man is one of the best modern works of its kind. This copy comes with a brief typed letter signed by Emery Walker, responding to a letter apparently delivered to him in error. He rather humorously muses, "I wonder why you write to me?".