Our members list new acquisitions and recently catalogued items almost every day of the year. Below, you'll find a few highlights from these recent additions...
by Nicholas de Fer
Paris: Nicolas De Fer, 1701. First Edition. Very Good. Ginville, Vincent de. Ginville, Vincent de. First Edition. Paper size 42.5 cm x 28.5 cm. Plate mark 34 x 22.5 cm. Marked "sculpsit Vincent de Ginville" lower left. Paper clip mark just to the plate mark upper margin, '109' inked upper right corner, some marginal chipping to the paper, marginal old pencil price lower right. A few unobtrusive spots inside the plate marks. Copperplate engraving with later hand color. From Nicolas De Fer's Atlas Curieux. Highlights locations of Indian villages found by La Salle during his explorations of the coastal areas of the United States. (LOC online) We see the Gulf of Mexico, Cap de la Floride and many inland village names. A nice map showing some early history of the southern United States.
Offered by Kuenzig Books.
Belgium, antique map with vignette views
by John Tallis Rapkin
London: John Tallis & Co., 1854. Maps. Steel engraved map from the famous Victorian publisher John Tallis, well-known for the attractive vignette views surrounding the maps, which illustrate the peoples & customs of the region. 12 1/2 x 10" plus margins. Attractive decorative border around edge, period outline color, very good condition.
Offered by Antipodean Books.
Michael Mercator
Amsterdam: Hondius, circa, 1628. Copper-engraved map, early hand-colouring. French text on verso. Roundels at each corner with inset maps of the Gulf of Mexico, Cuba and Hispaniola, the remaining containing the cartouche. (Expert restoration at sheet edges).
A fine example of one of the most celebrated maps of the Americas, the only printed map by Gerard Mercator's grandson Michael. Made by Gerard's grandson Michael to complete the atlas begun by Gerard in 1584 ( Atlantis Pars Altera ), this map is noted for its outstanding design and beauty, particularly its symmetrical configuration of circular insets and Mannerist flow of vines, flowers and leavessurrounding the circular map. Largely based on Rumold Mercator's world map of 1587, this map aptly reflects 16th-century knowledge, theories and suppositions regarding the New World. Naturally, most of this new knowledge was coastal, and configurations of any large areas were greatly hampered by the lack of a sound means of determining longitude. Nevertheless, the collective accomplishment of explorers and mapmakers represented in this map is astounding, showing in a generally correct way the vast extent of the New World. "A few of the most famous theories are still present: a large inland lake in Canada, two of the four islands of the North Pole, a bulge to the west coast of South America and the large southern continent" (Burden). The map appeared in 1595 and 1606 editions of the Atlantis Pars Altera , after which the plate was sold to Jodocus Hondius, who reissued the maps in varying editions through 1639. The present example includes French text on verso (confirming it to be a Hondius issue), with signature mark "S" on verso, suggesting it to be from a 1628 edition of the atlas (see Koeman Me 28a). Burden, The Mapping of North America I, 87; Koeman, Atlantes Neerlandici, Me 28a; Goss, The Mapping of North America, 19; America Emergent 12.
Offered by Donald A. Heald Rare Books.
1925. Map. Offset lithograph. 8" x 10.25". Fantasy map from The Significance of Trollope (1925) by Spencer Van Bokkelen Nichols, painted by George F. Muendel. Barsetshire is a fictional English county created by Anthony Trollope in the series of novels known as the Chronicles of Barsetshire. Towns within Barsetshire include Hogglestock, Greshamsbury, Uffley, Puddingdale, and the capital, Barchester. A key in the lower left denotes roads, railways, and the boundaries of East and West Barsetshire. Small views near each of the towns depict scenery and institutions in those towns.
Offered by Argosy Book Store.
The Adventures of Mark Twain. A Pictorial Map of The Life of Mark Twain... River Pilot, Frontiersman, Reporter, Traveler, Famous Author and Great American. His Story is Told in The Motion Picture, "The Adventures of Mark Twain."
Warner Bros.. No date. [ 1944].. Color pictorial / pictographic map, 18 3/4 x 28 1/2 inches on sheet 21 1/2 x 31 inches, folding as issued to 10 3/4 x 7 3/4 inches. Light creasing horizontally not noticeable from Very good condition. "The Adventures of Mark Twain" was a 1944 biographical film produced by Warner Brothers; text at the bottom of the map states that the map is "published in the interest of a better understanding and appreciation of the life and works of Mark Twain...scenes...read clockwise, starting at top center. Figures 1 thru 37 present a picture outline of Mark Twain's life. Starred (*) cities figured prominently in his career." The pictorial border features photographic images from the movie. At lower centre is featured a quote from the movie "We can and must hold fast to our ideal of democracy because we have made it a shining reality..."
Offered by Old Imprints.
The Human Eye and Its Auxiliary Organs
by Hermann Renlow
London: George Philip & Son, 1896. First English language edition. Hardcover. g- to vg. Quarto. 20pp. + fold-out model. Red cloth spine over illustrated tan paper boards, with black lettering on the front cover. This informative early modern optometrical work discusses the physiology and anatomy of the human eye. The book is illustrated with a number of detailed engraved b/w figures throughout, and a beautifully produced multilayered full color chromolithographic fold-out model of the eye, nasal passage, and surrounding muscles of the human face, on the interior back cover. This detailed fold-out is accompanied by a detailed key, enumerating and labeling 99 different parts of the model. Binding with a large chip to the bottom right corner of the front cover, and some additional light rubbing and/or chipping to other extremities. Front cover with a vertical crease, and some light staining at the top right corner. Interior with some minor to light sporadic foxing and water stains to the pages throughout. Binding looses along gutter. Binding in very good-, interior in good condition, model in very good condition overall. Protected by modern mylar. * There are known German and Swedish editions printed the same year, an Italian edition published the following year, and a Spanish translation published at an unknown date. It is not known if this English-language edition is the first or the German (both published the same year). John Browning (c. 1831-1925) was an English inventor and manufacturer of scientific and medical instruments. He was an optician who was particularly known for his ophthalmic instruments, and was a founder and the first president of the British Optical Association (1895), the first body of its kind for professional optometrists. He is considered by many to have been the first first professional optometrist.
Offered by Eric Chaim Kline Bookseller.
Finely Illuminated Vellum Manuscript Signature in Latin, perhaps France, ca. late 15th Century
[No location given: ca. 15th Century].. 22 x 21.75 cm. Double-columned, double-sided single signature, 32 lines. The leaf features 69 gilt initials with embellished pen-work, 2 of them larger with blue backgrounds and the rest smaller with beige or dark brown (matching text ink) backgrounds, with some additional red lettering and the heading "Psalms." 4 pp. Fine vellum; some initials faintly faded with gilt and colors otherwise bright and text clear. Fine. Although not fully translated, this signature was likely once part of a psalter. It features part of a litany from the Book of Hours—Psalm 70 in its entirety, moving into a call-and-response from with red letters marking the call v. the response, beginning with "V: Salvos fac servos tuos" and cutting off at "R: aeternam dona eis. . .." Due to the structure of books, the page opposite the beginning of this litany is not the page that should numerically follow it were it still bound, and so it is broken early. The leaf also features almost all of Psalm 37," ending with "Qui retribuunt mala pro. . .."
Offered by Jeff Weber Rare Books.
THE ADVENTURES OF PRICKLY PORKY
by Thornton W. Burgess
Bost: LB 1916 (1916). 8vo, pict. cloth, 120p. name erased from endpaper and sl. soil rear cover else VG+. 1st ed. Illus. by HARRISON CADY with 6 nice b&w plates. A Bedtime-Story / Quaddie Book.
Offered by Aleph-Bet Books.
by Walter Jerrold (Editor), Charles Robinson (Illustrations)
London: Blackie and Son Limited, 1912. First Edition. Hardcover. Near fine. Robinson, Charles. First printing, quarto size, 317 pp. The fables in this book range from short, whimsical poems to prose stories, and all are full of the magic and charm of animals rendered by British book illustrator Charles Robinson (1870-1937). An extremely prolific artist, Robinson fills this volume with copious line drawings on nearly every page, with twenty-eight colour illustrations which bring to life the unique personality of each animal in the tales. Robinson collaborated often with English writer and editor Walter Jerrold (1865-1929), as is the case with this collection of fables; together they create a monumental work of stories that have captured the imaginaton of children for generations.
DESCRIPTION: Full red cloth, gilt lettering and illustrations on the front board and spine, all edges gilt, endpapers with illustrations in green, dark grey, and white, frontispiece a full-colour illustration by Charles Robinson captioned "The Peacock and the Crane", title page in red and black with an illustration of a rooster, line drawings in black, many full-page, and twenty-eight (including frontispiece) full-page colour illustrations by Robinson throughout; quarto size (10" by 8"), pagination: [i-v] vi-xxi [xxiii] [1-2] 3-293 [294].
CONDITION: Volume is near fine, with clean boards, bright gilt, a strong, square text block with solid hinges, and the interior is clean and bright; slight rubbing to bottom front corner, some gentle bumping to the head and tail of the spine, light foxing to the front free endpapers and to the margins of several pages throughout, and a prior owner gift inscription on the half-title page dated "Xmas 1913".
CITATION: Baumgarten p. 170.
Offered by Swan's Fine Books.
by Christopher Morley
Garden City: Doubleday, Page, 1917. 12mo., cloth & pictorial boards in dust jacket. First Edition. An immaculate copy of the first edition. First issue, with the misprint "Y ears" for "Years" on p. 4, line 8 and with the "l" missing in "goldenrod" on page 169, line 11. Also in the first state dust jacket, with "vibrating" instead of "beating" on the front cover.
The entire front endpaper is covered by the following signed autograph inscription by the author, to famous movie director Frank Capra: "This is Frank Capra's copy of this little book-and I am grieved when I think how much he paid for it! It cost him 160 times as much as if he had bought it in September 1917- also, the Author is not worth 160 times what he was then! There is a mistake somewhere! With embarrassment and every good wish- Christopher Morley Jan 28-1935." It is interesting to note that the quotation on the front jacket does not agree with the text of the book, as it appears on p. 146 and leads to speculation that some subsequent issues of the book were issued without dust jackets. With the John C. Eckel bookplate.
Near fine; very tiny nicks or short tears to a lovely dust jacket. Enclosed in a nice leather and cloth slipcase with gilt lettering on the spine. A great association copy in wonderful condition!
Offered by Antic Hay Books.
A Scanner Darkly (Signed, First Edition)
by Philip K. Dick
New York: Doubleday and Company, 1977. First edition of one of the author's best-known works. Octavo, original cloth. Signed by Philip K. Dick on the title page. Fine in a fine dust jacket. Jacket illustration by the Quays. Rare and desirable signed. Upon its publication in 1977, A Scanner Darkly was hailed by ALA Booklist as "his best yet!" Brian Aldiss lauded it as "the best book of the year." "It is Dick's most politically astute novel" (Christopher Palmer, Science Fiction Studies 18:3). "An affecting, powerful novel" (Anatomy of Wonder II-333). It was made into the 2006 film directed by Richard Linklater and starring Keanu Reeves, Winona Ryder, and Robert Downey, Jr.
Offered by Raptis Rare Books.
by Mrs. Dunoyer De Noirmont & Alfred De Marbot (authors & artists). Lithography by Andre & Gustave David.
Paris and London, respectively : Clément; E. Gambart, 1860. First edition. Quarter Morocco. Marbled boards. Near FIne. A gorgeous, sweeping collection of historic French military costume plates, as comprehensive as imaginable, spanning 1439 to 1815, or from the Renaissance to Waterloo. Folio, 45 by 33.5 cm. 450 hand-colored plates in all. Vol. 1: 100 pp, hand-colored plates numbered 1 to115. Vol. 2: 48 pp. Plates numbered 116 to 300. Vol. 3: 58 pp. Plates numbered 1 to 150. The illustrations are generally not static, dull costume plates but rather, the artist usually shows the soldiers in engaged in some activity, and so the illustrations also document the military lifestyle of the day depicted. Many of these plates, thus, can be viewed as genre or action pictures, and their large size contributes to their visual excitement as well. Condition: some light foxing on the text pages. Plate leaves have light age toning along edges but are otherwise very clean, fresh, bright. Morocco spines with a few minor scuffs and rubbing. Bindings are overall solid and attractive.
Offered by White Fox Rare Books & Autographs.
Bruce Lee's Black Silk Fur-Lined Jacket, Worn Regularly by Him
Ca. 1970. Bruce Lee's Black Silk Fur-Lined Jacket, Worn Regularly by Him.
Offered by University Archives.
The Israeli Official Gazette, with the Declaration of the Establishment of the State of Israel
The first issue of the Official Gazette of the Israeli provisional government, contains the first printing of "The Declaration of the Establishment of the State of Israel," the new nation's Declaration of Independence. The names of the 37 members of the Provisional Government who signed the document, headed by David Ben-Gurion (1886-1973), are listed on the second page. [ISRAEL].
Newspaper. Iton Rishmi [Official Gazette], May 14, 1948. Bulletin. Tel Aviv, Israel: Provisional Government of Israel. In Hebrew. 3 pp., 8 x 13 in.
Excerpt: "WE EXTEND our hand to all neighbouring states and their peoples in an offer of peace andgood neighbourliness, and appeal to them to establish bonds of cooperation and mutual help with the sovereign Jewish people settled in its own land. The State of Israel is prepared to do its share in a common effort for the advancement of the entire Middle East.
"WE APPEAL to the Jewish people throughout the Diaspora to rally round the Jews of Eretz-Israel in the tasks of immigration and upbuilding and to stand by them in the great struggle for the realization of the age-old dream - the redemption of Israel.
"PLACING OUR TRUST IN THE "ROCK OF ISRAEL," WE AFFIX OUR SIGNATURES TO THIS PROCLAMATION AT THIS SESSION OF THE PROVISIONAL COUNCIL OF STATE, ON THE SOIL OF THE HOMELAND, IN THE CITY OF TEL-AVIV, ON THIS SABBATH EVE, THE 5TH DAY OF IYAR, 5708 (14TH MAY, 1948)."
Historical Background
After World War I, Britain controlled Palestine by League of Nations mandate. By 1946, Britain was under pressure to withdraw from Palestine because of attacks by Arab militias and armed Zionist groups. A special United Nations committee recommended the immediate partitioning of Palestine into two states, one for Arabs and the other for Jews, with Jerusalem maintained by the U.N. as an international city. The General Assembly approved the proposal, and the British announced they would leave Palestine on May 15, 1948.
Members of the provisional government drafted the Declaration of the Establishment of the State of Israel, and the provisional government voted in favor of it on May 12. They settled on final wording and held a Declaration ceremony in the Tel Aviv Museum on May 14. Twenty-five members of the Provisional State Council signed it that day, and twelve more added their names later. One was out of the country, and the other eleven were trapped in besieged Jerusalem.
The two rabbis in the provisional government argued for a including the draft phrase "and placing our trust in the Almighty," but a member of the secularist Mapam party strongly opposed it. Rather than including a direct reference to God, the Declaration uses the phrase "Rock of Israel" in the final section, which could refer either to God or to the land of Israel.
Other prominent signers include future Prime Minister Moshe Shertok [Sharett] (1894-1965), future Prime Minister Golda Myerson [Meir] (1898-1978), first Jewish mayor of Jerusalem Daniel Auster (1893-1963), future President Yitzhak Ben-Zvi (1884-1963), first Minister of the Interior Yitzhak Gruenbaum (1879-1970), first Minister of Finance Eliezer Kaplan (1891-1952), first Minister of Religions Rabbi Yehuda Leib Maimon (1875-1962), first Minister of Transportation David Remez (1886-1951), first Minister of Justice Pinchas Rosen (1887-1978), first Minister of Health and Minister of Immigration Haim-Moshe Shapira (1902-1970), first and longest-serving Minister of Police Bechor-Shalom Sheetrit (1895-1967), Communist Party of Israel leader Meir Vilner (1918-2003), and many other future members of the Knesset.
At midnight on May 14/15, 1948 (6 p.m., May 14, in Washington), the British Mandate officially ended, and David Ben-Gurion declared the establishment of the State of Israel. Eleven minutes later, President Harry S. Truman recognized Israel on behalf of the United States. In the next few days, Iran, the Soviet Union, and several other nations recognized Israel. Over the next few days after the declaration, armies of Egypt, Trans-Jordan, Iraq, and Syria engaged Israeli troops, starting the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, which ended ten months later with a substantial increase in the area governed by Israel.
Condition: Fine.
Offered by Seth Kaller, Inc.
by Allen Ginsburg
San Francisco: City Lights Books. Later Printing. Very Good+. [ca 1990]. Thirty-eighth printing. Signed by Allen Ginsberg on the title page and dated 4/22/92. Bound in publisher's wraps printed in black. Very Good+ with light rubbing to wraps and light shelf wear. A lovely copy, signed by the poet.
Offered by Burnside Rare Books.
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c.1920. Gray wraps with plate attached. Stained covers and front detached. Thirty color and bright plates plus illustrated title page. Scarce copy without previous owners' names or markings.
Offered by William Chrisant & Sons.
by Wanamaker's Department Store
[New York City Subway] THE WANAMAKER VEST POCKET SUBWAY GUIDE. 12.5 cm x 13 cm, a folded cardboard postcard created as promotional advertising for the new New York City Wanamaker department store at Astor Place, which featured its own store entrance directly from the subway platform.
Augustyn and Cohen, in MANHATTAN MAPS 1527 – 2014 state: "The first subway map to be distributed was a private venture. In 1904, Wanamaker's, whose new department store boasted an entrance right at the downtown platform at Astor Place, published a simplified subway map heralding the coming of both the subway and the new store." (p. 135) The image printed on the card is titled "The Wanamaker Station in the Subway at Astor Place. As it will appear when the new Wanamaker Building is completed." This promotional post card was printed in 1904, the year in which underground subway service began in New York City. It shows the platform entrance to Wanamaker's store, with the subway train, headlights on, travelling in the tunnel. (The earliest segment of the New York train transportation system was the above-ground Ninth Avenue El, which began operations in 1868 as a cable-hauled line.) The Wanamaker Department Store at Astor Place was being built in 1904 as an annex to the earlier A. T. Stewart store, which Wanamaker acquired, accessed by a third-floor walkway. According to Henry Collins Brown (1862 - 1961) ground was broken in 1903.
The Astor Place subway station is one of the original twenty-eight stations in the newly opened 1904 underground subway system in New York City. This vest pocket subway guide bears a red stamp with an arrow pointing to the underground subway platform entrance, added when the new store opened in 1907, which says, "Direct Entrance from SUBWAY to the WANAMAKER STORE NOW OPEN." Below the image of the underground entrance to Wanamaker's is a time table: "Time Table of the New Subway, from City Hall to 145th St. – the portion at present completed." On the left-hand side the express stations are listed: Brooklyn Bridge, 14th Street, 42nd Street, 72nd Street, 96th Street, 103rd Street, 110th Street, 116th Street, Manhattan Street, 137th Street, 145th Street. The running times in minutes from the start, Brooklyn Bridge, are listed opposite the stations. On the right-hand side of the guide, below the image, are listed the local stations in double columns: City Hall (now partially illegible, due to the fold), Brooklyn Bridge, Worth Street, Canal Street, Spring Street, Bleeker Street, Astor Place (Wanamaker's), 14th Street, 18th Street, 23rd Street, 28th Street, 33rd Street, 42nd Street (Grand Central), 42nd Street (Broadway), 59th Street, 60th Street, 66th Street, 72nd Street, 79th Street, 86th Street, 91st Street, 96th Street, 103rd Street, 110th Street, 116th Street, Manhattan Street, 137th Street, 145th Street. Below the Time Table is the "Route of the Subway," showing those portions completed at the time of printing, 1904.
This copy, in its original unrestored state, is believed to be one of three recorded copies of THE WANAMAKER VEST POCKET SUBWAY GUIDE with a time table of running times between express stations and a listing of the local station stops. With the exception of a fold, with some letters of text being folded over, but not entirely lost, the condition of this extraordinarily rare WANAMAKER VEST POCKET SUBWAY GUIDE is very good, as it was never addressed, stamped or sent through the mail. The verso is very clean as is the recto with the image and printed information. In Henry Collins Brown's The New Subway in Manhattan, New York: Wanamaker, 1904, both the image of the underground entrance to Wanamaker's store and the map are reproduced on separate pages: the subway map with running times is on page 21 and the image of Wanamaker's subway platform entrance on pp. 14-15.
Offered by Gosen Rare Books.
Trial of Andrew Johnson, President of the United States
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1970. Johnson, Andrew [1808-1875], Defendant. Trial of Andrew Johnson, President of the United States, Before the Senate of the United States, On Impeachment by the House of Representatives for High Crimes and Misdemeanors. Washington: Government Printing Office, 1868. Reprint. [New York: Da Capo Press, 1970]. 3 volumes. Original cloth hardcover, gilt titles and library location lales to spines, library marks to edges and endleaves and title page, card pockets to rear free endpapers. Reprint of the first edition.
This is a report of the trial made by the regular stenographers of the Senate for the use of that body. The first volume contains the opening argument of the managers and the evidence, the second the argument in general of the managers and of the counsel for the President, and the third the opinions filed by the individual Senators and, in an appendix, the debate on the right of Senator Wade to sit as a member of the court.
Offered by Lawbook Exchange.
TELEPHONE DIRECTORY. San Francisco. Pacific States Telephone and Telegraph Company. October, - 1905.
[California / San Francisco Local History]. [Chinese Americana]. Sabin, Jno. I - President. Wettig, Miss Anna - Former Owner.
San Francisco: Issued by and property of Pacific States Telephone and Telegraph Company, 1905. 1st printing of this edition. xii, [8], 284 pp., plus 3 unpaginated, inserted advert leaves, blue, buff & pink paper respectively. 8vo. 9" x 6". Original printed grey paper wrappers, stapled, with hole for hanging-cord in upper left. Affixed to front wrapper a caution not to use the Directory until "4 A. M. November 12th. It contains many changed numbers which are not effective until that date." General wear & soiling, A Very Good copy.
Here offered a rare early 20th C. San Francisco telephone directory, the last one issued before the devastating 1906 earthquake & fire. The volume's listings are presented in alphabetical order, accompanied by the occasional exhortation to get a telephone: "You need a telephone. The rates are low. Order one now."
Of particular note & interest in this volume is the 14 page Chinese section at front, 8 pages in Chinese, providing names and numbers of those individuals listed on the "Chinese Exchange, 743 Washington Street" [first founded in 1894].
Interesting in its own right as an early California telephone directory, the volume also serves as a snapshot of San Francisco just months before the city was to suffer its most horrifying destruction, and too, as a document showing the increasing role of the Chinese in the San Francisco environs.
We find only one copy listed on OCLC: CSL.
Offered by Tavistock Books, and featured in their new e-catalog, "Samm's New Short List" (item #3).
by Thomas Jefferson
Philadelphia, 1793. [1]p. manuscript letter on a quarto sheet, 9 1/4 x 7 1/2 inches. Old folds. Small tape repair on verso. Near fine.
A relatively brief but significant letter from Thomas Jefferson that relates to a number of important foreign and domestic political issues that bedeviled George Washington's administration in the early 1790s. The issues addressed by Jefferson, directly and indirectly, include the war between France and Great Britain, Washington's Neutrality Proclamation with regard to that conflict, the efforts of Edmond Genet to enlist private American aid in commandeering British shipping, and the duties, powers, and responsibilities of the individual states as opposed to the federal government. The task of enforcing American neutrality fell largely to Jefferson as Secretary of State, and it was a major instance of his reasoned notion that America must remain neutral coming into conflict with his emotional attachment to France.
Edmond Genet, the first minister of the French Republic to the United States, arrived in Charleston, South Carolina on April 8, 1793, and immediately undertook a course of actions that strained French-American relations. France had declared war on Great Britain the previous February, and Genet sought to enlist American assistance in seizing British ships, and in attacking British holdings in North America. He commissioned American ships as privateers against British ships, and established French prize courts to divide the spoils. Just two weeks after Genet's arrival, Washington pronounced that the official policy of the United States toward France and Great Britain would be strict neutrality, and he instructed American citizens to refrain from any belligerent activities. This neutrality proclamation did nothing to dissuade Genet, however, and on April 29 a British-owned schooner, Eunice, was captured off the coast of Virginia by an American-built and armed schooner that sailed under French colors, but which was manned largely by Americans. The Eunice was sent to Baltimore, where it was to be tried in a (Genet-organized) prize court. In the wake of this and other events, the Washington administration issued several important directives in May 1793, including an order for prosecuting American citizens bearing arms with European belligerents, and circular letters to the state governors regarding the preservation of peace and against the outfitting of privateering vessels.
The present letter from Jefferson to Maryland governor Thomas Sim Lee is a response to a letter from Lee dated May 20th. In that letter Lee updated Jefferson on the status of the Eunice, and deferred to the federal government on how to proceed with that issue and in similar cases. In the present letter of May 25th, Jefferson responds to Lee in a direct and forthright manner, informing him that he has shown Lee's letter of the 20th to President Washington. Jefferson addresses the issue of how to deal with Americans aiding the belligerents, referring to Attorney General Edmund Randolph's recently issued order: "Measures had been already taken for prosecuting such American citizens as had joined in the capture therein mentioned, a letter to that effect having been written to the Attorney of the U.S. in the state of Maryland." With regard to how the states should respond to instances of captured ships being brought into their ports, Jefferson informs Lee that the federal government expects the states to use their own resources: "With respect to the prize, the government did not think itself authorised to do any thing. Your Excellency will have been informed by a letter from the Secretary at war, addressed to you as the head of the militia of your state, of the measures proposed for preventing the fitting out privateers in our ports in future, as well as for the preservation of peace within our limits." This refers to the two orders issued by Secretary of War Henry Knox on May 23 and May 24, just a few days before Jefferson wrote this letter. Throughout 1793, Secretary of State Jefferson wrestled with the issues raised by the war between Great Britain and France: America's neutrality, his personal pro-French sentiments, the deleterious effects of Genet's activities, and the role that the states and the federal government should play in preserving peace. This letter encompasses all those issues. PAPERS OF THOMAS JEFFERSON 26, pp.67-68, 117-18. Malone, JEFFERSON AND THE ORDEAL OF LIBERTY, pp.79-89, 102-3. Harry Ammon, THE GENET MISSION (New York, 1973), pp.32-79. Lawrence S. Kaplan, JEFFERSON AND FRANCE (New Haven, 1967), pp.51-59.
Offered by William Reese Co.
London: Walker, 1809. Original Wraps. Orig. illustrated wrappers. Near fine. 22.5 x 32.5 cm. Bright, fresh color engraving with caption above List of Prices reading, "Now gentlemen you had better be quick I have a few bargains to dispose of as the partnership is disolving." British army officers purchased their commissions and were expected to pay for each rank of promotion which was not abolished until 1871. Adhesion marks on verso.
Offered by Roy Young Bookseller.
Catch 22 (Signed)
by Joseph Heller
A near fine first printing (stated First Printing on copyright page) in a near fine dust jacket, signed by Heller on a tipped-in page after the front free endpaper. Previous owner's name on front free endpaper. Housed in a custom-made collector's slipcase.
Offered by Bookbid.
by Anthony Trollope
1869. [the Hatton / Jackson set] With Thirty Illustrations by H. Woods. [In eleven monthly serial parts.] London: Bradbury, Evans, and Co., 1869-1870. Original blue-grey wrappers printed in black and orange. First Edition, in the original eleven serial parts, of this novel "written chiefly with the idea of exciting not only pity but also sympathy for a fallen woman" [per Trollope's autobiography]. Carry Brattle, the Bullhampton miller's daughter, seduced and then rejected by a lover, was "exiled" to London; her brother Sam would in turn be accused of a murder; the town Vicar, who had earlier befriended the young boy, supports him and provides the push toward finding the real murderers. In 1868 THE VICAR was contracted to appear serially in Bradbury & Evans's literary periodical Once a Week -- but by the time the novel was finished, the weekly was over-committed, so B&E resorted to issuing it in monthly parts instead -- hence the unusual (and low) number of parts. THE VICAR came out in eleven monthly parts, issued from July 1869 through May 1870 (the book edition was published in April 1870). The first ten parts were priced at one shilling, the last (a double-number) at half-a-crown. As Sadleir points out, there are actually 35 illustrations, not 30 as indicated on the title page (each wrapper reads "with upwards of thirty illustrations"): 23 full-page plates, plus twelve vignettes (title page plus eleven chapter headings). By 1869-1870, the popularity of the serial-parts format was dying out (like its champion, Charles Dickens -- who would die the month after this title's final part came out). It is believed that these factors led B&E to issue THE VICAR in small numbers: of the eight Trollope novels that were initially issued serially, THE VICAR is the scarcest after the impossible RALPH THE HEIR (issued by Strahan in 1870-1871) -- of which the most-recent set to appear at auction (the Jackson set) sold in 2011 for $88,900. This set includes ALL of the advertising matter specified by Sadleir -- which frankly is not all that much (with "nil" in Parts 4-10), due to the serial novel's lack of popularity. Condition is near-fine (expert restoration at some backstrips, a small stain to the first and last internal leaf of several parts); there is very little actual wear, and the plates are clean and free of foxing. In all, an exceptional set of one of the scarcest Trollope novels in parts. Sadleir pp 108-111 -- who even in 1928 was saying "Owing to the rarity of THE VICAR OF BULLHAMPTON in this form [parts], I have not been able to examine as many sets as I could have wished." Housed in a morocco-backed slipcase with inner chemise. Provenance: bookplates of Thomas Hatton (1876-1943, co-bibliographer of Dickens in parts) and of Robert & Donna Jackson.
Offered by Sumner & Stillman.
Bugs Bunny portrait sketch signed with note, on 6 x 8.5 fine paper
by Friz Freleng
Very Good. Bugs Bunny smiles brightly from the page in this pen and ink portrait of Bugs' familiar face. Freleng has signed "Friz Freleng" in his typical capital letters and penned below his name in similar style, "Sorry Can't Make It This Time - Maybe the Next. Wish You Well." What a charming way to send regrets. Condition: center fold slightly visible suggesting the drawing was sent to decline an invitation.
Offered by Schulson Autographs.
by William Lee (William S. Burroughs)
New York: Ace Books, Inc, 1953. First edition. Paperback Original. Very Good +. First printing of William S. Burroughs first book, written under a pseudonym. Considered unprintable until Allen Ginsberg championed the work to a pulp paperback publisher, A.A. Wyn. Bound as an Ace Double with Narcotic Agent by Maurice Helbrant, Burroughs first work was largely overlooked by literary critics and libraries. This copy Very Good+ to Near Fine, appearing unread. Minor creasing at the corners and lower spine with a short tear. Pages browning as usual. Considered a seminal text for the Beat generation, Junkie is a semi-autobiographical work drawn from Burroughs' own experiences using and selling heroin. Written at the urgining of Allen Ginsberg, the book also benefited from Ginsberg's editing and promoting. It was ultimately produced in paperback form, which allowed it to gain cult status among his own generation, but cause delays in it being recognized by institutions or non-Beat intellectuals. Very Good +.
Offered by Whitmore Rare Books.
BOOK OF HOURS (Use of Rome), illuminated manuscript on parchment in Latin and French
REMARKABLE EXAMPLE OF A PERFECTLY PRESERVED PARISIAN RENAISSANCE BOOK OF HOURS WITH BINDING, CLASPS, AND PICTURES ALL INTACT. Illuminated manuscript on parchment, in Latin and French, France, Paris, c. 1500. Dimensions 220 x 130 mm., 90 folios, complete, written in a single column of 30 lines in a pleasing formal bâtarde book hand, rubrics in red, one-line initials throughout, numerous two-line initials, 14 LARGE AND 23 SMALL FINELY EXECUTED MINIATURES by the workshop of JEAN COENE IV (=MASTER OF THE PARIS ENTRIES).
BINDING: Bound in ORIGINAL, unrepaired blind-stamped leather, with raised bands, two original openwork silver clasps, original catch plates and anchor plates, remnants of velvet chemise beneath, vellum pastedowns, all edges gilt. In a modern brown cloth clamshell box with leather spine label.
ILLUSTRATION: This exceptional Book of Hours was clearly a premium production, almost certainly done by the master Jean Coene IV (active c. 1490-1520) himself. The harmonious composition of each scene, the use of vibrant color combinations, and the confident line strokes clearly indicate the work of a practiced hand.
PROVENANCE: The manuscript's original owner was Jean Martin, an official in the French government, whose name and important genealogical dates are written in the back of this volume. Front pastedown contains an armorial bookplate of Monsieur le Marquis de Dollon (1769- 1856); later in a private collection.
CONDITION: few marks and a little rubbing to the leather, small stain affecting top margin of one gathering, trivial erosion to paint, light rubbing to one or two miniatures, but all imperfections are very minor. Overall in outstanding condition. Full description and images available.
Offered by Les Enluminures.
Edited by Boz. With Illustrations by “Phiz.” Charles Dickens [1812 - 1870]. New York: Harper & Brothers, [1843 - 1844]. 2nd US edition, following that of Winchester (Arents PARTS, p. 30; Edgar & Vail, p. 22; Gimbel A73; Smith AMERICAN, pp. 199 - 205; Wilkins, p. 24). Not in the Calinescu Collection Catalogue, nor the McGuire Collection Catalogue. 7 parts, complete. Text double column, ~ 48 pp per part. Duplicate copy of Part II. Volume prelims in Part VII, per usual publisher practice. 14 steel engraved plates, 2 per part. 8vo. 9-1/2” x 5-7/8”. Part I lacks wrappers [originally buff paper]; Parts II - VII in printed greenish blue paper wrappers [Part VI lacking most of front wrapper]. Red cloth chemise, with red morocco quarter leather slipcase with red cloth boards. General wear, chipping & staining. Part II - V & VII with same prior owner signature at top of front wrapper. Part V with significant staining to rear wrapper. Part VII with ink splot to front wrapper. In general, and with a nod to the missing wrappers, a Good set of a rare Dickensiana item. [Item Number: 33560.1]. Only the second set we’ve handled in 30 years.
Offered by Tavistock Books, and featured in their "Summer Catalog 2019" (item #2). (This item is also listed on abaa.org.)
Charles Rambert, Grande Semaine d'Aviation Rouen. Rouen du 19 au 26 Juin 1910
Rouen: Girieud, 1910. First edition of this iconic aviation poster. Chromolithograph mounted on boards. 37 x 51 inches, Some mild marginal stains but a bright and attractive image The Wright Brothers conquered heavier-than-air flight in 1903 and just seven years later "a rash of aviation meetings broke out in the spring of 1910 in places as diverse as Saint Petersburg, Vienna, Budapest, Bournemouth, Boston, Lanark and New York City," as well as Rouen (Villard / Allen p. 57). "Created by Charles Rambert, an artist of the Swiss school this imaginative, signed poster reveals the Slavic influence under which Renard worked. Born at Lausanne in 1867, he studied in Russia as a pupil of K. Kryshitsky, which suggested the mustachioed pilot could well be a Russian (though in fact it was Leon Moran who circled the spires of Notre Dame) The beauty, originality, and sly humor of the artist's design [make this poster] a memorable work of art. Flying past the spires of the cathedral, then under repair, the pilot of a sprightly (though improbable-looking) monoplane cheerfully salutes two ecclesiastical statues in a niche who throw up their hands in amazement at the miracle of human flight" (Looping the Loop p. 59).
"When the French Aero-Club published its list of sanctioned meetings in early 1910 one of the major ones was the one in Rouen in mid-June, with an announced prize fund of 200,000 francs. The meeting was organized by the Automobile-Club de Normandie, supported by the Ligue Nationale Aerienne and the sports daily L'Auto. The organization committee was headed by Marcel Debons, president of the Automobile-Club de Normandie, and comprised many members of the Automobile-Club and representatives from local industries and businesses. A suitable site was found, in the form of the military exercise grounds "Les Bruyeres", six kilometres southwest of the city centre, where a typical 1910 temporary airfield with all its installations and a three-kilometre course was built...The meeting attracted a quality field of twenty pilots, all except four having participated in previous meetings. It was reported that a total of 50,000 francs had been paid as guaranteed appearance money. The biggest name was the famous Hubert Latham, but several others, like Joseph Christiaens, Charles van den Born, "Geo" Chavez, Bertram Dickson and Léon Morane had won big prizes at previous meetings, and Émile Dubonnet had recently made a highly publicized flight across Paris, winning the "La Nature" cross-country flight prize. Several new airplane types would for the first time be displayed at a meeting in France, for example the Hanriot monoplane. The new Breguet biplane would also be on display, as would the new two-seat Gnome-engined Bleriot, model XI-2 bis."(The First Air Races)."
Offered by Nat DesMarais Rare Books, and featured in their catalog "Early Aviation and Automobiles" (item #7). This item is not listed on abaa.org.
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