I was interested to read in this week’s Daily Telegraph that an unknown letter from Charles Dickens had been found between the pages of a second-hand paperback Bible.
It was discovered by Cotswold resident, Dr Jackie Sheehan, who had been given the book by an elderly neighbour in Blockley, Gloucestershire.
Dickens, pictured below, sent the note to his solicitor, Frederic Ouvry, in May 1858 wanting to leave his wife, Catherine, after falling for an 18-yearold actress, Ellen Ternan.
The author, who stayed on a number of occasions at The Lion Hotel in Shrewsbury, offered his wife a settlement of £600 a year, equivalent to around £25,000 today.
He spoke contemptuously of his wife, who had given birth to their ten children, saying the sum would allow her to maintain her ‘Brougham’, a horse-drawn carriage, in style.
His wife found out about the affair when a bracelet Dickens had bought for Ternan was delivered to the family home.
Within days of writing the letter Dickens legally separated from his wife and remained with Ternan until he died.
Dr Sheehan, who is offering the letter for sale, said: “This little paperback Bible was in a batch of books which my sister’s mother-in-law was given by an elderly neighbour who moved into residential care seven or eight years ago.
“Earlier this year she was having a clear-out and the letter fell out.”
How the letter ended up in the Cotswolds is a mystery as Dickens had no links to the area.
It will be sold by Fraser’s Autographs of London on Thursday, September 27, when it is expected to fetch between £1,000 and £1,500.
To find out more about the Dickens link to Shrewsbury signed copies of my book, Four Centuries at The Lion Hotel, Shrewsbury, are available for £6.50 including postage in the UK and £7.50 anywhere in the world by emailing John@jbutterworth.plus.com
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