Stéphane MALLARMÉ. Oxford, Cambridge / La Musique et les Lettres. Paris, Perrin et Cie, 1895 [early December 1894], in-12 gray marocco spine and frame, marbled paper boards with gilt fillet, smooth titled spine, gilt t., covers and spine cons. (Delapierre). First edition. Ex. of the current edition on vellum. The lecture was first read in Oxford at the Taylorian Institution on February 28, 1894 in English by York Powell, who had kindly translated it, and the following day, March 1 [not 28, according to Galantaris 2014, p. 510] by the poet, who had refused to "lecturer" in English, despite protocol. So he wanted to justify himself the day before with this short speech introducing Powell's "reading". Corrected autograph manuscript, 1 f. mince in-8, the only one known, obviously used during the reading; edited (without erasures) by Marchal from a facsimile of an unidentified cat. (OC. II p. 1600): "Mesdames, Messieurs / Je prends la parole, aujourd'hui, dans ma langue, pour vous montrer jusqu'à quel point je suis incapable de parler Anglais, en public: d'où, pour moi, un immense regret, tempéré par l'honneur, que je sens profondément, d'entendre mon ami M. York Powell vous présenter, dans sa belle une traduction, la conférence que je vous reldirai demain simplement en Français". Spine very slightly faded, otherwise a fine, pleasantly "truffled" copy.