Autograph letter signed : Orpington, to John Thomas Hobbs, 1892 March 3.

Thanking Hobbs for the barrel of Australian wine and ordering another of the same type from him; recounting a trip to the Lake District to see Ruskin last autumn; discussing Ruskin's mental health and a visit Mrs. Severn paid to the Allen family; giving details about the sales of "Modern Painters" ("What a lucrative book it has been for Mr. R") and discussing two volumes of early work he is currently preparing for publication, "The Poetry of Architecture" and "Juvenilia", the latter edited by W.G. Collingwood who had previously edited Ruskin's "Poems"; recounting negotiations with Smith, Elder and Co. for the blocks of "The Elements of Drawing" and other works; mentioning the ongoing success of "Sesame and Lilies" and the new interest in Ruskin's works of political economy, such as "Unto This Last"; discussing other aspects of the publishing business, including the advantages of the London office he has recently opened, the sales of his books in America through Merrell & Co., pirated editions, and the effect of the new copyright act; sending news of his wife and children, particularly their involvement in the publishing house, and other family members; lamenting Britain's surplus population, the decline of the British workman, and a possible coal famine; commenting on the fruit crop in the area the previous year.