eBay
This item measures approximately 5 in. by 7 ¼ in. when closed.

It’s the menu for the sixtieth anniversary dinner of The Johnson Society, held March 6th, 1931 at Pembroke College, Oxford, England.

As best I can tell (some of the handwriting is very difficult to interpret), 22 different people are represented by the messages and signatures, including the (then future) author of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, John Ronald Reuel Tolkien.

I was able to decipher a couple of them and find reference to them online:

H. F. B. Brett-Smith who shows up as an Oxford editor of a significant number of publications during the 1920, 30’s and 40’s.

W. Maxwell Duncan who shows up on a blog page called “After the Conflict - Cumbrian War Memorials” on which he is mentioned as having been headmaster at Charney Hall Preparatory School in Grange-over-Sands in the 1950’s.

Condition – as shown - please see all 22 scans, below:

Front cover (Tolkien autograph at LL):

Back cover:

Inside front cover:

Menu:

Inside back cover:

Tolkien autograph (LL of front cover):

H.F.B. Brett-Smith (just below middle of front cover):

W. Maxwell Duncan (LR corner of front cover):

“in vino veritas X Geoffrey Wel(l)ington” and “Oh Elliott! [xxx?]”:

Probably R. J. Harvey, President of the Society - one of the names printed on the back cover:

??? (middle left of front cover):

Noel [xxxxxxx?]:

“We are all right out of the top draw tonight – look at the arms! Claude”

“To one of Oxford’s [Dickenses?], Paul [xxxx xxxxxxx?] (sideways along RH edge of front cover:

“Elly and [Doug? Davy?] – The Two [Dears?] (top of back cover):

Paulie, Syd Linton and P. [xxx?] (back cover above middle):

Charles [Stroud? Freud?] (LH middle of back cover):

[J.S.?] Johnson:

“My dear Eliot – Eric White” – presumably the “E.V.E. White [barrister, I believe] listed on the back cover as Secretary of the society. I found an Eric Vincent Ewart White online, co-author of a 1935 book titled “The Practice Relating to Debentures; a Handbook of Legal and Practical Knowledge for Directors, Receivers, Secretaries, Accountants and Debenture Holders”:

Alan H. [Bxxx?] (LR corner of back cover):

[Z. R.?] Hollis (inside front cover):

“My every apology my dear sir, how could it be else than well meant? [xxxx xxxxxxx xxxx?] (inside front cover):

Literary society

Thanks for bidding!