Item 33 - Letter from Kenneth Sisam to R. B. McKerrow

1 single sheet

Clarendon Press, Oxford.—Discusses the American sales of his book.

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Transcript

The Clarendon Press, Oxford
16th January, 1928.

Dear Mr. McKerrow,

This is just a line to answer your question about American sales, which comes very pat, for to-day I have a cable order from our New York Branch for another 300 copies, in addition to previous smaller orders. This does not mean that the 300 copies are all sold; but it does mean that they are selling very fast; and our New York house probably have some University orders to fulfil. It means too that you ought to be ready with your amendments for the type fairly soon, as our reserves no longer look formidable, and I shall want to start the printer when we get down to 250 copies.

Although we keep them strictly separate, we find it very hard to gauge American sales, because so many libraries and private buyers order in London through agents or export booksellers. Our own branch in New York thus does a lot of publicity work without reaping the full benefit. But we always expected a big share of the sale in U.S.A., where bibliography is a great subject; and we were careful to send copies of your book to distinguished ‘fans’.

Yours sincerely,
Kenneth Sisam

R. B. McKerrow Esq.,
Enderley,
Little Kingshill,
Great Missenden,
Bucks.

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Typed, except the signature. At the head are the reference ‘L.B. 5889/K.S.’ and, elsewhere, the letter ‘C.’