me. They appear in the books … because they are part of the representation of Gandalf bearer of the Ring of Fire, the Kindler: the most childlike aspect shown to the Hobbits being fireworks.” (29 February 1968) As the prospect of publishing Swann’s settings of the songs hoves into view, Tolkien devotes some time to providing context for the songs within The Lord of the Rings , for the purpose of performance, particularly the two in Elvish. “Galadriel was a southerner, but I have no doubt some of the Elvish folk up at Rivendell had a northern accent. We will suppose that W[illiam] E[lvin] represents Glorfindel. But let him trill his Rs. All Elves did that!” (21 March 1966). In common with most of his books, Tolkien held strong views on their pro- duction. He had already complained bitterly about the jacket design for Tr ee and Leaf , “It makes me sick. Behold a pollarded chestnut (?), made to look like a revolving sea-anemone, making a ‘modesty gesture’ with one of its tenta- cles – possibly in a vain attempt to conceal the deliberately hideous lettering. What has that to do with the contents?” (14 October 1966) In the case of The Road Goes Ever On , Tolkien is keen to be involved, “This
business of the Elvish Songs, and versions, and examples of Elvish script is just precisely what I like doing” (20 March 1967). However there is quickly friction between Tolkien and the production team at Houghton Mifflin, “I cannot visualise what is meant by weaving the Elvish writing round the music. It might be decorative; but it also might be absurd...”(20 March 1967). Matters come to a head with the desire to use broken up pieces of Elvish text as space fillers
and tailpieces, “tasteless squiggles or equivalent space fillers... This kind of calligraphic flourishes… do not accord with texts that are either simple or rustic, or else (as the Elvish) remote and archaic… The elvish decorations begin by being inaccu- rate and end in mere nonsense.” (13 July 1967) As publication draws near, Tolkien makes arrangements for the day of the launch party at Crosby Hall, in which Swann and Elvin will again perform, “If there is any corner (in 40 Museum Street?) where an old boozy hobbit could snooze for a bit, that should suit me. But then I might stalk forth like an Ent refreshed, with a hoom and a ha and descend on you?” (29 Febrary 1968)
As well as practical matters, the correspondence is littered with asides about his and his family’s health, tongue in cheek political views, (“Do you think the World Court would list- ed to a proposal that we would let the Spaniards have the Rock [Gibraltar], if Boston was returned to us?” (14 Oc-
tober 1966)), and an interesting passage in the genesis of the Inklings, “an undergraduate club that used to hear its members read unpublished poems or short tales, and voted some of them into a minute books. They invented the name Inklings, and not I or Lewis. The Club lasted the usual year or two of undergraduate societies; and the name became transferred to the circle of C.S.Lewis, when only he and I were left of it.” (14 October 1966) Historical Importance and Rarity Substantial Tolkien manuscript material is almost unknown in commerce, the vast majority being held institutionally, having been bought directly by either Marquette University in Milwaukee or The Bodleian Library in Ox- ford. This is therefore the only manuscript for one of Tolkien’s major books to remain in private hands. With its supplementary cycle of correspondence, it is the most comprehensive cache of material linking Tolkien with a collab- orator on a major work. It is unquestionably the most important archive of Tolkien material to be offered for sale in more than a generation.
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