LORD LOVELACE'S " ASTARTE."
THE EDITOR OF THE " SPECTATOR.1
SIR,—In your very interesting review in last week's issue of Mr. Edgeumbe's book on Byron you write of " Astarte " : —
"The book was issued privately as a family document, and a very few copies were given to students of Byron and personal friends of the author. We gravely doubt the wisdom of replyit g to an argument stated in a strictly private work by a book et ch as Mr. Edgcumbe's, published in the ordinary way."
Had "Astarte" been issued in this manner, I doubt if Mr. Edgcumbe's work would have been written ; certainly it would not have been published by me. But your reviewer is mistaken. "Astarte" was formally published both here and (I believe) in the United States. Copies were sold by the publishers—the Chiswick Press—but purchasers had first to
obtain permission from Lord Lovelace. 1 know several people who obtained copies thus, and I bought one myself through a friend. Before his death Lord Lovelace seems to have restricted, if not stopped, the sale ; but I know of at least two
people whose applications had been refused by him who after his death received a printed circular telling them that they
could purchase copies if they still desired to do so. These
facts speak for themselves. The price was E3 10s.—I am,
50 Albemarle Street, W.
P.S.—The book is entered at Stationers' Hall on Decem- ber 27th, 1905, as having been published on December 21st of that year.
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