First editions, first impressions, presentation copies inscribed by Lord Alfred Douglas on the front free endpapers of both titles "Hazel Hergenhahn from Alfred Douglas, April 1943". This presentation set includes 13 pages of typed letters (likely carbon copies, but the texts apparently unpublished) from Douglas to Hergenhahn, dated December 1939 to June 1940. The correspondence is lively and extensive, with frequent mentions of Oscar Wilde and the ongoing struggle for his own legacy and reputation, waged over several books and plays by Douglas and others. He also mentions his struggles with American publishers, alludes to other writers, and makes occasional reports on the Second World War. The recipient of these books and letters was Baroness Hazel Hergenhahn, a well-travelled Californian lady of extensive cultural acquaintances. These editions, published together, constitute Douglas's consolidation of four decades of poetic output. The rear panels of both jackets carry an appreciation of Douglas' poetry by Thomas Earle Welby. Very scarce together with the dust jackets and inscribed.
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