ALS signed “C. L. Dodgson,” one page, 3.5 x 5.5, August 2, 1889. Handwritten letter to "Miss Maxwell," Ethel Heron-Maxwell, the Lady of Honor of the Duchess of Albany, in charge of her children, Princess Alice and Prince Charles-Edward. In full: "They have been an enormous time, binding the copy of 'Alice Underground' which I hope to present to the Duchess: but they have promised to send it now, & expect to receive it today. What had I better do with it? As I see in the papers that H.R.H. is gone, or just going, abroad. Shall I send it to you to forward to her? Or is she so constantly moving about, that it would be better to keep it until she returns to England?" In fine condition.
Lewis Carroll began writing the manuscript for Alice's Adventures in Wonderland under the working title 'Alice's Adventures Under Ground,' and presented the original handwritten manuscript to the story's inspiration, Alice Liddell, as a Christmas gift in 1864. He expanded the work for publication, and the first edition was released in 1865 to popular acclaim. The fantastic story immediately became beloved by children and adults alike, and a facsimile edition of the original 'Alice's Adventures Under Ground' manuscript was released at Christmas 1886. A few years later, Dodgson commissioned a finely bound version of this facsimile to present to Princess Helen, Duchess of Albany. The author had become acquainted with the family in June 1889 during his stay at Hatfield House as a guest of Lord Salisbury, and struck up a friendship with the children.
In her autobiography, Princess Alice recalled their early friendship: 'Doctor Dodgson or ‘Lewis Carroll’ was especially kind to Charlie and me, though when I was five I offended him once, when, at a children’s party at Hatfield, he was telling a story. He was a stammerer and being unable to follow what he was saying I suddenly asked in a loud voice, ‘Why does he waggle his mouth like that?’ I was hastily removed by the lady-in-waiting. Afterwards he wrote that he ‘liked Charlie but thought Alice would turn out badly.’ He soon forgot all this and gave us books for Christmas with anagrams of our names on the fly-leaf.'
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