
BIBLIO-GIFTABLES
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“A Surprising Narrative” — Set in NYC
“Old Sleuth” [pseud. of Harlan Page Halsey]. Carrol Moore; or how he became a detective. New York: J.S. Ogilvie, © 1897. 8vo (18.5 cm, 7.25"). 89, [11 (adv.)] pp.
$65.00
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A now-uncommon dime novel, No. 77 in the “Old Sleuth's Own” series: a shrewd young illustrator, newly arrived in New York City, embroils himself in the hunt for a missing heiress.
WorldCat locates only four U.S. institutional holdings.
Publisher's printed paper wrappers; wrappers slightly darkened with spine rubbed and back edges chipped. Pages predictably age-toned; final advertising leaves with edges chipped.
“You will never leave this room alive,” indeed! (34859)
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Experiments in Printing Subtlety from the Perishable Press
Oppen, George. Alpine. Mt. Horeb, WI: Perishable
Press, 1969. 8vo (24.5 cm, 9.7"). [16] pp.; illus.
$125.00
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First edition, dedicated “to those who as poets and publishers have rescued a
nation's literature”; Walter Hamady, proprietor of the Perishable Press, was particularly pleased
with that dedication, saying “one of my favorite pages is the dedication page, 18 point Palatino
italic has a fine flow to it & the blind debossment of another geologic structure below it excites
me.” Like that blind-stamped illustration, his distinctive pressmark appears also in blind, at the
colophon — and
the copyright line (deliberately) appears in such a faint grey, overlying a
line on the title-page recto, that its near-invisibility caused issues with filing for copyright.
The text was set by hand in Palatino and Michaelangelo, and printed in black and grey on Shadwell paper; this is one of 250 copies printed.
Two Decades of Hamady & the Perishable Press, 21. Publisher's tan paper wrappers, front wrapper with blind-stamped title. Minimal wear to extremities, otherwise a clean and fresh copy. (30930)
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Explore Old Europe — Signed Decorated Cloth
Osborne, Albert B. Picture towns of Europe. New York: Robert M. McBride & Co., 1926. 8vo (21.3 cm, 8.375"). Frontis, xii, [2], 247, [1] pp.; 47 plts., map (incl. in pagination).
$28.75
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A unique travel book written with a personal touch: “My aim has been to select from each country in Europe, save the northern lands which I have yet to see, the towns that of themselves, and by their environment, as well as by something of the ancient life and tradition still surviving there, suggest most clearly to the present day the colorful and picturesque past” (p. viii).
The author travelled Europe in search of a certain old-world atmosphere. His descriptions of his discoveries in towns such as Clovelly, England; Carcassonne, France; and San Gimignano, Italy, are accompanied by 48 black and white photographs, as well as a map of Europe. This is the second printing.
Binding: Publisher's olive cloth with white lettering to spine. On the front board, a picturesque townscape with white-stamped stone exteriors and maroon-stamped roofs against a gilt sky; the lettering is also in white. Signed by “GH,” presumably George Washington Hood.
Bound as above, extremely minor rubbing to extremities, faint scratches to gilt decoration, scrape to bottom page edges; faint foxing to the very top edge of the plates and several leaves.
In a decorated binding as quaint as the towns! (38922)
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Her First Published Novel
Ostenso, Martha. Wild geese. New York: Dodd, Mead, & Co., 1925. Small 8vo (20 cm, 7.5"). [3] ff., 356 pp.
$39.50
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Ostenso (1900–1963) was a Norwegian by birth, and after 1931 a naturalized U.S. citizen. As a child she emigrated with her family to “the midwestern US in 1902, then to Brandon, Manitoba, and later to Winnipeg, where [she] completed high school” (Canadian Encyclopedia, online). In adulthood she lived in New York City and elsewhere with Canadian novelist and screenwriter Douglas Durkin.
“Ostenso's major achievement, Wild Geese, was her only novel set in Canada. A compelling romance, it realistically explores the strange unity between man and nature, and the spareness of both physical and spiritual life in a pioneering farm community” (Canadian Encyclopedia). Widely regarded as
a landmark in Canadian realism, it is set in a farming community on the windswept plains of northern Manitoba, where the independent and at times fiery Judith Gare struggles for freedom from her father's brutal, controlling rule. This is the
first American edition, first printing (the work was also issued in 1925 by McClelland & Stewart in Toronto, and in Norwegian translation as Graagaas in Oslo).
Binding: Publisher's gray cloth stamped in black and orange on cover with skyview of Canada geese in formation against setting sun with clouds, the lettering of title and authors in orange; lettering in black on spine, with three orange geese silhouetted against a black circle. Binding signed “H.o.H” (H.O. Hofman).
The illustrated endpapers, also featuring Canada geese, are also signed “H.O. Hofman” in upper right corner.
This is one of the few instances we've seen of endpapers signed by the artist.
Ingles, Peel's Bibliography of the Canadian Prairies to 1953, 4939; Smith, American Fiction, 1901–1925, O-148; Minsky, American Decorated Publishers' Bindings, II, p. 72. Binding as above; top and bottom of spine lightly pulled. Without the dust jacket. Very good. (39277)
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Well-Edited & Well-Produced
Otway, Thomas. The complete works.... Bloomsbury: The Nonesuch Press, 1926. Folio. 3 vols.
$250.00
Edited by Montague Summers. Limited to 1340 sets, this one of 1250 on machine-made paper.
McKitterick/Rendall/Dreyfus 38. Quarter light brown publisher's buckram with cream Ingres paper sides. Cream paper label at top of spine. All edges untrimmed. Light dustsoiling. Bookplate on front pastedown of each volume. A rather nice set. (3819)
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Virginia Love Story / Margaret Armstrong Binding
Page, Thomas Nelson. The old gentleman of the Black Stock. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1900. 8vo (18.7 cm, 7.3"). viii, [4], 169, [1] pp.; 8 col. plts.
$80.00
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First enlarged, illustrated edition of this sweet multigenerational romance, originally printed in 1897. The title character is a
book collector, and the action takes place in Richmond, Virginia — a setting the author knew well, being descended from not one but two of the most prominent families in that state. The text, expanded by Page for this printing, is illustrated with
eight color plates by Howard Chandler Christy (including the title-page's “Old Gentleman” portrait).
Binding: Publisher's blue-gray cloth, front cover with vignette of a tree rooted in a heart, bearing silhouette portraits of a woman and man done in black and gilt on a cream paper inlay; binding signed “MA” — Margaret Armstrong.
BAL 15377 (for first ed.); Gullans & Espey 158. Binding as above, top edge gilt; very slightly cocked, edges and extremities lightly rubbed. Faint waterstaining to some lower outer corners. A nice copy of an engaging work. (35751)
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Spenser Susan Hawk Trouble
Parker, Robert B. The Catskill eagle: A Spenser novel. [New York]: Delacorte Press Seymour Lawrence, (1985). 8vo. 311 pp.
$25.00
First trade edition, first printing.
Fine copy in fine dust jacket, the flaps unclipped and retaining original price and month/year printing code. (6815)

An “American-Mexican”
Printer's Own Story
Pascoe, Juan. A printer's apprentice. Santa Rosa, Las Joyas, Tacámbaro Michoacán: Taller Martín Pescador, 2018. 8vo (9.25"). 208 pp.
$55.00
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“Juan Pascoe’s story begins in the nineteenth century like a novel: 'My English great-grandfather, James Pascoe, was born in Cornwall . . . ' But this is a true, unique story of an American-Mexican fine printer with English ancestry grafted onto a sturdy, Quixotically Protestant Mexican lineage, leaving Juan with two languages and not much other capital. Through the luck of becoming apprenticed to Harry Duncan, one of America’s greatest handpress printers, Juan found his way as a man of books, and of his making of beautiful books (and posters, broadsheets, catalogues, cards, etc.) and jarocho music (as a founding member of Grupo Mono Blanco) there is no end. Great printers were active in Mexico in the sixteenth century long before Anglo-European printing presses had arrived in New England, and Juan’s work continues in that great tradition.
Juan’s narrative quickly establishes him as a master prose stylist, like Duncan, and as printers they are also equals, in my opinion, having worked with both. His dual identity as American and Mexican gives this compelling memoir a topical appeal beyond that of hand-press printing or poetry” (John Ridland).
Hardcover, set in Espinosa Nova and printed digitally in black and red throughout; binding in shades of cream with vintage printshop cover illustration on front and John Ridland's summary on rear. New. (38863)
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A Pretty Way to
Encounter This Tale
Pater, Walter, trans. The story of Cupid and Psyche done out of the Latin of Apuleius. New York: Platt & Peck Co., [ca. 1914]. 12mo (15.5 cm, 6.1"). Frontis., [2], 107, [1] pp.
$50.00
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Uncommon printing of an elegant, much-commended English translation originally included as part of Pater's Marius the Epicurean. The frontispiece is a sepia portrait of Pater, and the text is printed
on rectos only.
Publisher's tan and brown printed paper–covered boards; spine somewhat darkened, paper chipped at spine and cracking along front joint. Front and rear free endpaper with inked presentation inscriptions dated 1914. Pages age-toned; one leaf with short tear from outer margin. (33100)
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A Treasure Trove of Information
Historical *&* Commercial — BATH, 1884
Peach, R. E. Historic houses In Bath and their associations. [Second Series]. London: Simpkin, Marshall & Co.; & Bath: R. E. Peach, 1884. Square 4to (22 cm; 8.75"). Frontis., [2] ff., 158 pp., [11 (ads)] ff.
$45.00
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Brimming with information on literary and other association information. Old Manor House (Claverton) and Kingston House (Bradford-on-Avon) are illustrated, the latter by a
tipped-in photograph. The eleven leaves of advertisements at the rear are entirely for businesses in Bath.
Binding: Publisher's brown cloth, gilt-and black-stamped.
A little spotting, a little shaken; a good++ copy. (34001)
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Embossed Raised-Letter Printing — One Leaf, Presenting Music
Pennsylvania Institution for the Instruction of the Blind. Tenth annual report of the managers of the Pennsylvania Institution for the Instruction of the Blind; Presented to the contributors March, 1843. Philadelphia: J. Crissy, printer, 1843. 8vo (22.2 cm, 8.75"). 28 pp., [2] ff.
$100.00
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Nice wood engraving of the Institution on the front wrapper . . . and following the report are two embossed, raised-letter printing specimens. The first reads: “Specimen of Printing, from the press of the Pennsylvania Institution for the Instruction of the Blind” and continuing with a rewording of Addison's famous quotation, now reading “Education is a companion which no misfortune can repress, no clime destroy, no enemy alienate,no disposition enslave; at home, a friend; abroad, an introduction; in solitude a solace; in society an ornament; it chastens vice, it guides virtue; it gives at once a grace, an ornament to genius. Without it what is man? A slave.” The second specimen of raised printing, reads: “The music type invented in 1839, by M. Snider, Printer” with two bars of music below. The raised letter type is known as Boston Line.
Provenance: The signature of Geo. Harrison is on the title-page. (Not the Beatle!) Most recently from the residue of the stock of the F. Thomas Heller bookselling firm (est. ca. 1928).
In publisher's brown paper wrappers; minor wrinkling and fading, lacking small portion of one corner. Provenance marks as above, foxing to several leaves. Very good. (39621)
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Retitled but
Readable & Well Decorated
Percival, Emily, ed. The garland: Or, token of friendship. A Christmas and New Year's gift. New York: Leavitt & Allen, [1854–5]. 12mo (19 cm, 7.5"). 288 pp.; 7 plts.
[SOLD]
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A romantic, feminine turn-of-the-year present: the eighth entry in the popular Garland series of American gift books. Actually a retitled version of 1854's Amaranth, this issue of the Garland appeared in several variants; the first piece in the present copy is “The Daughter of the Bardi.” The volume is decorated with a frontispiece, an added chromolithographic title-page, and five plates, all save one with the original protective tissue. While the printed list of illustrations attributes all of the five story-related plates to H.W. Smith (only), two of the plates themselves are labelled as engraved by Sartain after Pingret and by A.H. Ritchie after F. Rochard, two more only signed by Sartain, and the final two unsigned. The list also calls for a presentation plate, here replaced with a frontispiece.
The chromolithographic title-page is accomplished in blue, green, pink, and maroon. Compared to the digitized University of California copy, which has a substantially different binding and only five plates (including a frontispiece replacing the presentation plate), this item has a completely different added title-page and only one identical plate bound in a different location — but entirely the same text. Clearly “stock” stereotyped plates were used here!
Binding: This is in LEATHER, not cloth . . . 19th-century textured red roan in imitation of morocco, both covers and spine gilt extra with elaborate floral and foliate designs, title in each case in red relief “on” a pair of gilt panels textured with cross-hatching. Covers framed in triple fillets, the second delicately cornered with small diamonds, surrounding a border incorporating floral corner brackets and a floral base supporting an arch that itself breaks out in flowery flourishes. All edges gilt.
Evidence of Readership: A previous owner has tucked in a newspaper clipping of a poem titled “What is Love?” as well as two poems
printed on silk and framed in paper lace (gilt in the one case, pink and white in the other), titled “To Papa” and “Farewell.”
Faxon, Literary Annuals and Gift Books, 258; Tepper, American Gift Books & Literary Annuals (2nd ed.), pp. 84–85 (see copy 2); Thompson, American Literary Annuals & Gift Books, pp. 106–07. Bound as above, rubbed along board edges with very small worm holes along joints, light glue action to pastedowns. Light age-toning with the occasional spot or stain, plates moderately to heavily foxed; a few gently creased pages, one gathering loosely attached to binding.
Lay-ins absolutely charming. (38203)
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MYSTIC or Pragmatic Wife?
Pérez
Galdós, Benito. La loca de la
casa, comedia en cuatro actos. Madrid: Imprenta de la Guirnalda, 1893. 12mo
(18.2 cm, 7.15"). [8], 294 pp.
$100.00
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First edition: Acclaimed play from a prominent Spanish realist author, addressing issues of class, materialism, and feminism.
Palau 220783. Contemporary quarter maroon sheep and red pebbled paper–covered sides, spine with gilt-stamped title and compartment decorations; spine attractively darkened, edges and extremities rubbed, sides with spots of discoloration. Front free endpaper with private shelf-code sticker; title-page with private collector's rubber-stamp. Pages age-toned, with some scattered small smudges or spots of light staining. (29936)
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“In the Dew of Time”
Perishable
Press. Broadside, begins:
“Warning! Oh yes you can too do it & whoumzoevber sed not is full
of snot ... ” [Mt. Horeb, WI: Perishable Press], 1980. 8vo (27
x 19 cm.; 10.5" x 7.25"). 1 p.
$125.00
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A type specimen thank-you to Paul Duensing for teaching “an old dog a new trick. At least P[aul] H D[uensing] managed to taught [sic] W[alter] S H[amady] to cast type in the barn! Here is the first attempt at solo experiment & this is Ashely-Crawford 24 point. MFG. Spring 1980.”
Fine copy.
(30791)
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FALLS from
Vermont to Hawaii
Pfahl, John. Waterfall. Tucson, AZ: Nazraeli Press, [2000]. Oblong 8vo (12 cm, 4.75"). [36] pp., [1 (laid-in)] f.; illus.
$125.00
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Elegant accordion-pleated presentation of this series of waterfall photographs, taken throughout the United States and offering intriguing urban images in addition to the more typical scenic views. Deborah Tall's accompanying essay on waterfalls and representations thereof is laid in.
Publisher's midnight blue cloth–covered boards, spine with blind-stamped title, in original cream and blue cloth–covered slipcase; binding and case in beautiful condition. An attractive volume. (30642)
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Pleasant Thoughts on
Congenial Spirits
The Philipena, or friendship's token: A present for all seasons. Boston: G.W. Cottrell & Co.; New York: T.W. Strong, [1848]. 16mo. Col. frontis., 126 pp.
$75.00
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Petite, pretty gift book: stories and poems dedicated to the happy rewards of virtuous domestic life. The volume opens with an
illuminated color-printed frontispiece; present here are “Social Life, or the Plains of Matrimony,” “The Heart That's True,” “Marrying for Money,” “A Good Daughter,” “Worth and Wealth,” “Congenial Spirits,” etc.
Binding: Publisher's brown cloth, covers framed in blind, front cover with gilt-stamped urn of flowers, back cover with same design in blind. All edges gilt.
Faxon 655. Bound as above, corners bumped/rubbed and base of rear joint and spine a little rubbed; gilt bright. Endpapers with early pencilled inscriptions, frontispiece with adhesion of a sliver of paper from title-page along inner margin, title-page with brown spot in lower margin offset onto lower edge of frontispiece. Sewing loosening with some early and final leaves starting to separate, title-page all but separated. Pages generally clean, with a few scattered spots; one upper margin with pencilled inscription mostly erased. A read and cherished copy, still sweetly sentimental and interesting to look at. (30368)

Philadelphia
Poets, Playwrights, & Publishers BEWARE
Pindar, Jr., Peter [pseud. of Nathaniel Chapman Freeman]. Parnassus in Philadelphia. A satire by Peter Pindar, Jr. Philadelphia: [Privately Printed], 1854. 12mo. 58 pp.
$250.00
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A well-done poetic skewering of prominent literary Philadelphians (poets, playwrights, journalists, periodical editors and publishers) of the mid–19th century as well as fulmination on some practices and events. Uncommon, as one would expect, as
privately printed.
Sabin 62915. Publisher's plain dark gray boards, front cover with “Parnass” etched in an early hand; rubbed overall with front joint carefully repaired, spine and edges subtly restored with toned repair tissue. Ex-library, spine with remnants of paper shelving label, front pastedown with faint traces of now-absent bookplate, pencilled annotation along inner margin of first text page. Front pastedown with early pencilled note regarding contents. Light foxing, a bit of soiling. (24837)
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SPECIAL EFFECTS! A BALLOON ASCENSION!!
Playbill. 18 December 1783, Drury-Lane. The Gamester (Edward Moore) [Sixth time; ending with a new comic ballet by Mr. and Miss Hamoir] with Who's the Dupe? (Hannah Cowley). London: 1783.
[SOLD]
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Acting are Mr. Kemble, Mr. Brereton, Mr. Aickin, Mr. R. Palmer, Mr. Phillimore, Mr. Palmer, Mrs. Brereton, and Mrs. Siddons.Advertised for the next day: The Chances, and a “Pantomime Entertainment called Fortunatus, In which will be introduced
an AIR BALLOON.”
In Mylar folder. Lightly age-toned with chipped edges and some soiling. In overall good condition. (33866)
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Two Seasonal Spectacles at the Theatre Royal
SPECIAL EFFECTS 1829
Playbill. Broadside. Begins: Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. This evening, Monday, December 28, 1829, His Majesty's Servants will act the tragedy of King Richard III. [London]: Pr. by J. Tabby, [1829]. Folio (34.5 cm, 13.5"). [2] ff.
$125.00
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Unusual theatrical bifolium: two attached playbills from 1829. The first sheet advertises a Shakespeare production starring Mr. Aitken, Mr. Kean, Mrs. Faucit, and Miss Faucit, along with
“a Splendid Comic Christmas Pantomime” called Jack in the Box; or, Harlequin and the Princess of the Hidden Island. The latter includes a descriptive list of the scenes as painted by Clarkson Stanfield (“The Giant's Dining Parlour,” “Lime-Kilns, near Gravesend,” “Cheesemonger's Shop and Wine Vaults,” etc.).
The second sheet is for Stanfield's “Grand Local Diorama,” the grand finale of which involved the “magnificent display of the Falls of the Virginia Waters, seen through the Fairy Temple of Luminaria” — facilitated by a hydraulic apparatus capable of discharging 39 tons of water, “forming a coup d'oeil never before witnessed on any stage.”
A contemporary of Stanfield's once called him “the prince of scene-painters,” and his dioramas were legendary for their beauty and immersive effects.
Split halfway up center fold and neatly repaired from rear; one untrimmed outer edge slightly ragged. Gently age-toned.
Delightful (and very displayable) piece of theatrical ephemera. (36575)
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Philadelphia's “Mad Men”— 1956!
Poor Richard Club (Philadelphia). The Poor Richard Club roster. Its aims and purposes, officers, directors, members. August 1[,] 1957. Philadelphia: 1957. 8vo. Frontis., 74 pp.
$45.00
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“The Poor Richard Club is one of America's oldest and largest advertising organizations,” as stated by this membership publication on p. 8. Illustrated with a photograph of the Club's handsome building, then located at 1319 Locust Street, Philadelphia, this offering includes a typewritten letter on Club stationery, laid in.
The sections offering the house rules, by-laws, committee-lists, and so forth are expectably full of period flavor (the card room closes at midnight, no ifs, ands, or buts); but the simple listing of members and their business affiliations is suggestive as well.
The Club's published history seems to be readily available online; evocative ephemera like this, Not.
Original embossed ecru wrappers, light age-toning; edges lightly discolored. One member's name is checked in the roster, in ink; otherwise clean and very good. (10346)
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Exceptionally Nice Condition — A Good Exemplar
Protestant Episcopal Church in the U.S.A. The Church almanac for the year of our Lord 1854. New York: The Protestant Episcopal Tract Society (Van Norden & Amerman, printers), [1853]. 12mo. 48 pp., plus wrappers.
$27.50
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Includes a list of clergy, and general and diocesan institutions of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States. Also includes a list of bishops in the other reformed branches of the Church and the succession of bishops in the American Church.
Original printed wrappers, with a faint fold mark across width of wrappers. Three small punch holes penetrating inner margins, from front to back, without touching text.
Mild foxing in margins. Overall, a very good copy. (9984)
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Enchanting
19th-Century Reminiscences of the ROSE
The Queen of flowers: or, Memoirs of the rose. Philadelphia: Lea & Blanchard, 1841. 24mo (14.2 cm, 5.6"). viii, [13]–219 pp., 3 col. plts. Lacks frontis.
$60.00
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Epistolary musings on roses originally published as Memoirs of the Rose in 1824, here in their second edition. This version contains
three striking hand-colored lithographs of different rose species, including the Cabbage, Common Dog, and Damask.
Binding: Publisher's purple cloth, gilt-stamped title on spine; each cover framed in blind rules, with foliate and drawer-handle motifs surrounding a gilt leaf device at center. All edges gilt.
Bound as above, almost entirely sunned to brown and with a very little rubbing. Light to moderate age-toning and foxing throughout; lacks frontispiece, other three plates present and brightly colored.
Overall a handsomely done collection of letters about roses (and life). (35940)
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“Oh, C'mon . . . ”
(As He Might Have Put It)
Quincy, Josiah. [drop-title] Speech of Josiah Quincey [sic], Representative in Congress for the state of Massachusetts, on the joint resolution approving of the conduct of the executive of the United States, in relation to the refusal to receive any farther communication from the British Minister, 28th December, 1809. No place, [1810?]. 12mo. 24 pp.
$97.50
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He feels the House has gone overboard in the language used in the censure of the British ambassador in his discussions with the president.
A very uncommon Quincy item.
Not in Shaw & Shoemaker. Removed from a nonce volume; stapled and respined with archival tissue. Six-digit number stamped on title-page. (198)
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A Review for
Printers & Bibliophiles
Randle, John & Rosalind, eds. Matrix 7. Number seven, winter 1987. Gloucestershire:
The Whittington Press, 1987. Imperial 8vo (28.7 cm, 11.3"). [6], 166, [2] pp.; illus.
$175.00
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Another volume of worthwhile and aesthetically pleasing reading for book arts enthusiasts, including “A Moroccan Diary” by Edwina Ellis, “Ornamented Types: the Making of the Edition” by Ian Mortimer, “On the Shape of Books” by Brooke Crutchley, “A Medley of Printers Past” by Ward Ritchie, “Letters from a Papermaker's Husband” by Brian Richardson, and a variety of other essays and reviews pertaining to typography, fine printing, and illustration, as well as two poems by Philip Gallo. This is
one of 960 copies printed, illustrated with an assortment of photographic plates, an oversized folding plate reproducing illustrations by Annie Newnham, tipped-in examples of printing, etc. The prospectus for Matrix 8 is laid in.
Publisher's printed yellow paper wrappers over printed paper–covered stiff boards; wrappers with spine sunned, minor edge wear. Contents clean and crisp. Very good. (34969)
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The Baron with
Hand-Colored Plates
[Raspe, Rudolf Erich]; Alfred Crowquill [pseud. of Alfred Henry Forrester], illus. The travels and surprising adventures of Baron Munchausen. New York: James Miller, 1864. 12mo (17.7 cm, 7"). Col. frontis., col. t.-p., 251, [1] pp.; 8 col. plts., illus.
$250.00
Click the images for enlargements.
Rudolph Erich Raspe's dauntless Baron is presented here with
ten vibrant, hand-colored plates by English artist Alfred Henry Forrester (1804–72), credited under his pseudonym, “Alfred Crowquill.” The plates, which include a frontispiece and title-page, bring to life some of the Baron's most well-known adventures, such as confronting lions, falling from the moon, and riding a half-horse. The text is also embellished with in-text illustrations and decorative initials.
The German writer anonymously introduced the nobleman, Baron Munchausen, in 1785 based on a real-life baron, Hieronymus Karl Friedrich von Münchhausen, who was known for telling inflated versions of his exploits. His fictional Baron also entertains by narrating his implausible adventures.
Binding: Textured blue cloth, front board with corner maple leaves in blind and elaborate gilt center medallion with lettering. On the spine, the Baron appears to be cutting the rope he's hanging onto that dangles from the Moon, with a lion and alligator waiting underneath him. Undoubtedly he'll come out alive!
Bound as above; mild rubbing to extremities and rear board, spine cocked very slightly. Some occasional light foxing and general age-toning to interior.
Fantastic fun for lovers of adventure and art. (39527)
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Also, if “The Baron” is a friend of yours, please enter
[Raspe, Rudolf Erich]
in the “Author ” field of
our website's search engine.
We presently have several other interesting and charming editions,
not all of which will appear in illustrated catalogues.

Popular “Medieval” Novel
Illustrated by Lynd Ward
Reade, Charles. The cloister and the hearth. A tale of the Middle Ages. New York: The Limited Editions Club, 1932. 8vo. 2 vols. I: xv, [1], 367, [1] pp.; 15 plts. II: 745, [3] pp.; 15 plts.
$75.00
Click the images for enlargements.
Dramatic historical novel featuring a scribe torn between his sweetheart and the Church, including a few genuine medieval figures such as Margaret Van Eyck and Gerard Gerardson (now better known as Erasmus). Originally published in 1861, this, the most popular of Reade's works, appears here in a Limited Editions Club rendition with introduction by Hendrik Willem Van Loon — who says the novel “survives today as a spiritual retreat for the weary” — and with
30 photogravure plates of wash drawings done by Lynd Ward. The volume was designed by George Macy and printed by A. Colish on Hurlbut paper, and bound by George McKibbin & Son in full brown duck cloth, “gold-stamped and printed in brown and orange from a design by Mr. Ward.”
This is numbered copy 1051 of 1500 printed; it was
signed at the colophon by the artist.
Bibliography of the Fine Books Published by the Limited Editions Club, 32. Publisher's brown and orange cloth as above, spines with gilt-stamped titles; slipcase and wrappers lacking, bindings showing moderate shelf wear most pronounced at spine extremities. Clean. (30404)
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Hymns & Carols for All — Illustrations Abound — HAPPY CHRISTMAS!
Religious Tract Society (Great Britain). The Christmas box or New Year's gift. London: Printed for the Religious Tract Society, by J.S. Hughes, 66, Paternoster-Row; & sold by J. Davis, 56, Paternoster Row, and J. Nisbet, 15, Castle Street, Oxford Street, [1823]. 12mo (18.1 cm, 7.1"). 80, [4] pp.; illus.
$225.00
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Charming collection of well-illustrated Christmas hymns and carols. It begins with an elaborate woodcut–framed title-page showcasing a vignette of a man handing books to a parade of girls and boys, features numerous excellent unsigned in-text woodcuts of various sizes throughout, and includes
seven full-page plates of which five function as sectional title-pages, with a final half-page cut as “finis” at the end.
Beyond the fine decoration, a later reprint of the work claims this to be the first true book produced by the British Religious Tract Society — that designation relying on a very specific definition of “book” vs. pamphlet. Regardless, it is
an early example of longer printed material from the society, which was founded in 1799.
Provenance: From the library of American collector Albert A. Howard, small booklabel (“AHA”) at rear.
NSTC 2C20928; Osborne Collection, p. 56. 19th-century quarter green roan in imitation of morocco and marbled paper–covered boards, spine ruled and lettered in gilt, all edges stained yellow; well-rubbed with some loss of paper and leather, joints (outside) starting but boards firmly attached. Light age-toning. Booklabel as above.
Beautiful illustrations in a fascinating historical “Christmas & New Year's” piece. (39667)
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CASANOVA Beyond His Exploitatious Exploits
Ricci, Seymour de. Jacques Casanova de Seingalt: An address to the Philobiblon Club of Philadelphia, 24 May, 1923. Philadelphia: Privately Printed [for The Philobiblon Club], 1923. 8vo (22 cm; 8.5"). 24 pp.
$22.50
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The great bibliographer and friend of Dr. Rosenbach (and of many American, British, and French bibliophiles and booksellers) entertained the gentlemen of the Philobiblon Club with a good and sympathetic account of Count Casanova, the publishing history of his memoirs, and the fate of the manuscript of the same.
New. Publisher's blue cloth shelfback and French swirl marbled paper over boards; white paper label on front cover. (35760)
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“Used by
Famous Cooks & Chefs of Old Mexico”
Richardson, Myrtle. Genuine Mexican and Spanish cookery recipes for American homes. Kansas City, MO: Putnam Printing Co., [1946]. 16mo (16.9 cm, 6.7"). 31, [1] pp.
$150.00
Click the images for enlargements.
Early post-War printing of a very popular Mexican-American cookery booklet — one of the earliest to promote tacos for mainstream U.S. consumption, with the tacos here still described as tortillas folded over a stuffing and then fried, rather than the later style served in pre-fried, U-shaped shells. Richardson notes that the advent of the automobile and good roads have enabled many to visit Old Mexico and the Mexican border, where they have learned to enjoy Mexican cookery and so now want to duplicate dishes at home.
This is the stated 16th printing, following the first of 1934, with a frontispiece showing Taos Pueblo.
Brown, Culinary Americana, 1972. Publisher's chili red paper wrappers, printed in black, green, and dark red; mildly worn overall, front wrapper with maiden on horseback vignette now slightly faded, traces of ownership inscription in upper margin. Pages lightly age-toned, frontispiece and inner front wrapper with area of staining not obscuring image, final leaf with pinkish offsetting from back wrapper. A notably early entry in the rise of Tex-Mex cuisine nationwide, this was
published in Missouri, not California, Texas, New Mexico, or Arizona. (36158)
MEXICO is one of our great specialties.
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“Jes' Looky Hyonder, Hey?”
Riley, James Whitcomb. Riley songs o'cheer. Indianapolis: The Bobbs-Merrill Co., [1905]. 8vo (20 cm, 7.8"). 195, [1] pp.; illus.
$75.00
Click the images for enlargements.
First edition, first issue of this compendium bringing together poems previously published and these new elements: “Songs O'Cheer,” “Dedication to Bliss Carman,” “A Christmas Carol,” and “Her Smile of Cheer and Voice of Song.” The “Hoosier Poet” presents some verses in his classic midwestern dialect and some in more elegant verbiage, while
Will Vawter provided numerous full-page and in-text illustrations nicely evoking a nostalgic, mostly rural America to match.
Binding: Publisher's green cloth with a young farmer's vignette stamped in white, black, and gilt on the cover, spine with gilt-stamped title and bird vignette.
BAL 16671. Binding as above, dust jacket lacking, very minor rubbing to extremities and front cover vignette. Front pastedown with ownership inscription of Alice Grace Stone. Clean and fresh. (35049)
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LEC: 50 Rilke Poems
Rilke, Rainer Maria. Selected poems of Rainer Maria Rilke. New York: The Limited Editions Club, 1981. 8vo (24.2 cm, 9.5"). xxxiii, [1], 129, [3] pp.; illus.
$75.00
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The Limited Editions Club takes on “Germany's greatest modern poet”: 50 poems from Rilke's early career, selected, translated, and annotated by Carlyle Ferren MacIntyre, with a preface by Harry T. Moore. The poems are
printed in English and German on facing pages, with mutedly melancholy, gray-toned, stippled full-page and in-text illustrations (four of the former, six of the latter) done by Robert Kipniss and lithographed by George C. Miller & Son. Katy Homans designed the volume; the text was printed in Dante type (both roman and italic) on Mohawk eggshell wove paper, and the binding was done by A. Horowitz & Son.
This is numbered copy 1063 of 2000 printed, signed at the colophon by the artist. The appropriate LEC newsletter is laid in.
Bibliography of the Fine Books Published by the Limited Editions Club, 518. Publisher's quarter navy buckram and light blue paper–covered boards, spine with author stamped in silver, in original matching slipcase; slipcase showing minor shelfwear with spine and edges gently sunned, volume spine likewise gently sunned, otherwise crisp and solid. (37247)
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Scots Antiquarianism — ILLUSTRATED
Ritson, Joseph, ed. The Caledonian muse: A chronological
selection of Scotish poetry from the earliest times. London: Robert Triphook, 1821. 8vo. Frontis., iv, 232 pp.
$275.00
Click the images for enlargements.
During the heyday of attempts to find the origins of Great Britain's literature, Ritson collected and published anthologies of nursery rhymes, Robin Hoodiana, English songs and ballads, and English and Scottish poems. Shortly before the present work was supposed to be published in 1785, a fire destroyed part of the printer's warehouse and the manuscript of Ritson's introductory essay; the surviving sheets, printed in octavo with horizontal chain lines, make their first appearance here with a new introduction. The poems are illustrated with vignettes engraved by Heath after Stothard's designs, and with small woodcuts by Bewick. The frontispiece is an engraved silhouette portrait of Ritson.
NSTC 2R11677; Lowndes 2099; Hugo, The Bewick Collector, 434. Contemporary half dark green morocco with red marbled paper sides, spine with gilt-stamped title; some rubbing and with a bit of green discoloration to paper of front cover. Minor offsetting to frontispiece and title-page; mild to moderate foxing in first third of volume and to last few pages. (21934)
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Classic
Collection / Uncommon
Illustrated Variant
[Roach, John, ed.]. The beauties of the poets of Great Britain,
carefully selected from the works of the best authors. Embellished with engravings on wood. London:
Sherwin & Co., 1821–22. 12mo (15 cm, 5.9"). 2 vols. I: [4], ii, 360 pp.; 9 plts. II: [2], iii, [1], 360 pp.;
9 plts.
$250.00
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Scarce-to-say-the-least illustrated variant of a long-popular anthology first published
in 1793. OCLC and NUC Pre-1956 fail to find any holdings of this edition, which is also not listed
by NSTC; from this time period, most catalogues and bibliographies find only the three-volume 1826
printing.
The contents of these two volumes appear to be based almost entirely on John Roach's Beauties of the
Poets of Great Britain, although Roach is not cited as the editor, the pieces are in a different order than
originally presented, and there are a few minor changes: “The Negro Boy” is not included here, while
several “runic odes” by Mathias and Penrose have been added. The expected highlights of Pope, Gray,
Cowper, Burns, Chatterton, Goldsmith, etc. are present, as well as lesser-known pieces such as Mrs.
Carter's “Address to Meditation,” Mary Darby Robinson's “Trumpeter,” and Helen Maria Williams's
“Sonnet to Twilight” and “Sonnet to Hope” (the latter memorized by Wordsworth, whose first
published poem was “Sonnet, on seeing Miss Helen Maria Williams Weep at a Tale of Distress”).
The volumes are illustrated with 18 wood-engraved plates signed by Sears, Willis, and others — not
the 1793 originals.
Provenance:
Ownership note of “Adams Jewett, M.D.” to top of title-page.
This ed.
not in NSTC, Lowndes, or Allibone. Not in British Library OPAC, not in NUC Pre-1956, not in
OCLC, not in COPAC. Recent marbled paper–covered boards, spines with printed
paper labels. Each title-page with early inked ownership inscription in upper margin as above. Some
pages with offsetting; spots of light to moderate staining; one page with pencilled annotation.
(25339)
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An Artist's Miniature Keepsake
Roatcap, Adela Spindler. Lunch at Albert's: Reflections on Joe D'Ambrosio's A Memoir of Book Design. San Francisco: Joe D'Ambrosio, 2005. Miniature (7.1 cm, 2.8"). [6], 40 pp.; col. illus.
[SOLD]
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Delightful little commemorative volume in honor of the Book Club of California's 2005 Oscar Lewis Award to beloved book artist Joe D'Ambrosio (1934–2009). This is
numbered copy 32 of 50 signed by the artist on the inside back cover (there were an additional 10 unnumbered artist proof copies produced). The text was printed via ink-jet in black and heliotrope; the illustrations include a mounted image of D'Ambrosio's letter-themed floor mosaic at the California State Library.
Binding: Original black cloth with cheerful red, green, blue, and yellow star print, spine with printed paper label, inside front cover with inset photograph of D'Ambrosio.
Binding as above. A fresh, clean copy of an uncommon tribute. (35689)
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Love & Honor in the REVOLUTION
Roe, Edward Payson. Near to nature's heart. New York: Dodd, Mead, & Co., © 1876. 12mo. [4], [7]–556, [4 (adv.)] pp.
$75.00
Click the image for an enlargement.
First edition. Presbyterian minister and popular novelist Edward Payson Roe wrote this romance with strong Christian themes, set in New York state during the Revolutionary War — mixing in real people such as “Captain Molly” Corbin and George Washington.
Binding: Publisher's dark green cloth, front cover and spine with flowering branches stamped in black, spine with gilt-stamped title.
BAL 16902 (not matching either described binding); Wright, III, 4619. Bound as above, extremities rubbed not too roughly; front cover with small areas of faint discoloration. Front free endpaper with inked ownership inscription (S.M. Woodburn) dated [18]81 and tear with a bit of loss from upper margin. Generally clean and nice with occasional light spots; ads at the back giving extra pleasure and interest. (28406)
For PRE-1820 AMERICANA click here and/or for
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Poems for a “Much Loved Daughter” — Ticketed Binding
Rogers, Samuel. Poems. London: Edward Moxon [colophon: Chiswick Press: Pr. by C. Whittingham], 1839. 16mo (16.7 cm, 6.625"). viii, 311, [1] pp.; illus.
$100.00
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Nicely bound selection of poems from the celebrated Romantic-era English poet and member of the Dickens circle, with many charming vignettes (head- and tailpieces), mostly of women, scattered throughout the work. The vignettes were done by Thomas Stothard, with some bearing his logo.Binding: 19th-century black pebbled calf, spine with gilt title surrounded by various double gilt rules and arabesque stamps, covers framed with double fillets in blind around two drawer pulls connected by a rule of dots surrounding a mostly oval gilt foliate design. All edges gilt; original brown silk ribbon placeholder present. Front pastedown with binder's ticket of T. Edmondson, 38 Marketplace, Lancaster.
Provenance: With gift inscription “Elisabeth Sophia Jameson to her much Loved Daughter Maryanne Jameson Lancaster July the 7 1848" on front fly-leaf in ink and a pencilled note “C.S.F. July 10 1915" immediately below. A small rubber-stamp green monogram, possibly C.S.F.'s, appears at the bottom of the title-page. Most recently in the library of American collector Albert A. Howard, small booklabel (“AHA”) at rear.
Binding as above, very gently rubbed at corners and joints, top back joint (outside) just starting, front cover very slightly splayed. Light age-toning throughout, a handful of specks, one small marginal spot. Provenance markings as above, binder's ticket offsetting to front endpaper. Despite the sound of the necessarily recited faults, this is
a strong, lovely copy of this handsome production. (38254)
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“True Poetry Forever Lasts”
Ronsard, Pierre de. Songs & sonnets ... Selected & translated into English verse by Curtis Hidden Page. Boston: Houghton Mifflin & Company, [May] 1903. 8vo (19.2 cm, 7.6"). xxxvi, 137, [2] pp.
$125.00
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This collection of poems on love, nature, and poetry itself begins with biographical notes. The Renaissance “Prince of Poets,” Ronsard (1524–85) was the “favorite and friend of six successive [French] kings,” with patronage from queens and princesses to match. Many editions of his works appeared before 1623, and one in 1629, however none came forth again until 200 years later, when interest in 16th-century poetry was revived by Sainte-Beuve, Blanchemain, et al.
This edition was designed by the great American typographer (or “typster,” as he labeled himself) Bruce Rogers, and he left his mark on its final page; it was limited to 425 copies printed at the Riverside Press in Cambridge, MA. Bound in maroon paper–covered boards with a white paper spine label printed in black, this is copy 405 and is in its original dust wrapper and with its box, being
rare thus. The spare label is tipped in at the back.
Work of Bruce Rogers, 101. Bound and in its box as above; dust jacket and box label sunned, box edges rubbed. The pristine text is, which can be read with enjoyment by peeping, is
unopened and uncut. (30539)
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Chocolate, Chocolate, Chocolate!
Rose, Peter G., & Sandra Baenen, illus. Festive chocolate. White Plains, NY: Peter Pauper Press, (1986). 12mo (19 cm, 7.5"). 64 pp.; col. illus.
$20.00
Click the images for enlargements.
“Festive Chocolate combines treasured existing recipes with others created especially for this book, menus for chocolate parties, chocolate history and facts, and tips on preparation of chocolate.”
Try chocolate holiday treats like Melt-In-Your-Mouth Truffles, Monster Cookies, and Deep Fried Chocolate Ice Cream!
Publisher's green, red and white pictorial paper-covered boards with black lettering to spine and front board; extremities lightly rubbed.
Very clean for a cookbook! (38539)
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Perishable Press: Marking the Occasion
Rothenberg, Jerome. B • R • M • TZ • V • H. Mount
Horeb, WI: Perishable Press, 1979. 8vo (21 cm, 8.25"). [8] pp.
$75.00
Click the image for an enlargement.
First edition of this poem in honor of Matthew Rothenberg's bar mitzvah,
signed by the author. This is one of 225 copies printed in black and gray on Umbria paper and pamphlet-sewn in a single, four-folded sheet of Raffaello Roma. Walter Hamady's usual
colophonic flair is showcased here: the edition statement is composed
acrostically.
Two Decades of Hamady & the Perishable Press, 90.
Publisher's paper wrappers, front wrapper with title printed in off-white. Crisp and clean.
(30903)
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A Perishable Press Birthday Gift
Rothenberg, Jerome. A poem to celebrate the spring &
Diane Rothenberg's birthday 3/20/75 in four parts. [Mount Horeb], WI: Perishable Press, 1975.
Oblong 8vo (15.2 cm, 6"). [16] pp.
$125.00
Click the images for enlargements.
Sole edition and signed by the poet, this piece was thoughtfully and inventively
designed and produced by Walter Hamady of the Perishable Press, with
“a small gift added
in by Jody Shields”: a bow-like, brightly colored paper sculpture “print” in paper wrappers. The
colophon proclaims that “this small volume is the Seventy-fourth from this press & is intended as
a continuation of the celebration, a present interchanged by friends”; the present example is
numbered copy 70 of only 76 produced, handset in Palatino printed in pink, blue, black,
raspberry, and blind “on various papers none quite as nice as Shadwell” (also per the colophon).
Two Decades of Hamady & the Perishable Press, 71.
Pamphlet-sewn by printer in double-folded Swedish marbled papers; minor rubbing to spine
extremities, otherwise crisp and clean. (30895)
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Improving *&* Entertaining
Rowe, Elizabeth Singer. Friendship in death: In twenty letters from the dead to the living. To which are added, letters moral and entertaining, in prose and verse. London: Toplis & Bunney, and J. Mozley, 1780. 12mo (17.3 cm, 6.8"). xxv, [1], 278 pp.
[SOLD]
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Elizabeth Rowe (1674–1737), was a poet, essayist, and novelist who famously went into rural seclusion following the premature death of her beloved husband; she was perhaps best known for her pious prose works including the hugely popular Devout Exercises of the Heart. The present work of fiction offers epistolary words of advice and confessional tales written by the dearly departed to their friends, relatives, and love interests — followed by Rowe's translation of Nicole's “Thoughts on Death” and then by more lively letters which, dubbed “moral and entertaining,” display a keen interest in intrigues and romances ending mostly with either happy marriages of pious young virgins or else mournful deaths of repentant sinners (or, on occasion, righteously tragic deaths of pious young virgins).
This is a later edition, following the first of 1728, with this particular printing being uncommon: ESTC locates only four institutional holdings (two in the U.K. and two in the U.S.), while COPAC does not find any additional U.K locations. WorldCat adds two more U.S. locations, for a total of only four.
Binding: Contemporary treed sheep, spine gilt extra with gilt-stamped red leather title-label, board edges with gilt roll; tooling very attractive along lines that “feel” just a touch “provincial.”
Provenance: Front free endpaper with inked inscription: “Mrs. Hinckley 1809.”
ESTC N3296; this edition not in NCBEL, but see II:565 for earlier editions and translations into French and German. Binding with edges rubbed, spine leather showing small cracks, joints carefully repaired with tissue, caps rebuilt, corners reinforced, leather consolidated. Occasional minor staining; inscription as above.
A very readable copy in an attractive period binding. (28806)
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Three Plates with Cottage Designs
(Rural
Housing Issues). Third annual report of the directors
of the Association for Promoting Improvement in the Dwellings and Domestic Condition
of Agricultural Labourers in Scotland. Edinburgh: Pr. for the Association by
William Blackwood & Sons, 1857.
$139.50
Click the images for enlargement.
Uncommon pamphlet, detail-packed as to both present housing realities and desirable changes, illustrated with three plates containing plans and elevations for cottage designs
by architect William Fowler.
NSTC 2A17980 (for all years 1855–61). Removed from a nonce volume. Title-page with small inked numeral in upper outer corner, otherwise clean. (17033)
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EXHUMATION!
Rush, Benjamin. William B. Reed, of Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia. Expert in the art of exhumation of the dead. [London]: 1867. 8vo. 15, [1 (blank)] pp.
$47.50
Re-printed from the London edition.” Reed attempted to resurrect an old unpleasantness and is rebuffed.
Sewn; wrappers chipped, front separating near spine; author's name pencilled on front. Ex-historical society copy with stamp on title-page. Some page edges irregular and with short tears. (650)
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For “Workmen & Laborers” & Including Ruskin's
Attack on Whistler
Ruskin, John. Fors clavigera. Letters to the workmen and labourers of Great Britain. New York: Greenwood Press, 1968. 8vo (21.8 cm, 8.6"). 4 vols. I: 430 pp. II: 459, [1] pp. III: 425, [1] pp. IV: 412 pp.
$100.00
Click the images for enlargements.
Facsimile printing of the 1886 Frank F. Lovell & Co. edition: pamphlets presenting Ruskin's perspective on contemporary moral and social issues.
Publisher's teal cloth, spines with gilt-stamped title; spines with gilt slightly dimmed and minor extremity wear, front cover of vol. II with a small light smudge. A solid and pleasant set, with its pages very crisp and clean. (33164)
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“My dearest John,” “My dear Girl,” “My dearest Boy,” “My dear Father” . . .
Ruskin, John James; Van Akin Burd, ed. The Ruskin family letters. Ithaca & London: Cornell University Press, © 1973. 8vo. 2 vols. I: Frontis., lviii, 417, [1] pp. II: Frontis., [418]–792, [2] pp.
$45.00
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First edition: the correspondence of John James Ruskin, his wife, and their son John, from 1801 through 1843 — an important body of material for scholars of the great art critic.
Publisher's red cloth, spines gilt-stamped, in matching slipcase; volume spines sunned, slipcase showing minimal shelfwear. Overall very clean and crisp. (33160)
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For BIOGRAPHIES, mostly 20th-Century
“General Reading” & Inexpensive, click here.

Mid-19th-Century Music for
the Young
Russell, Benjamin A., & Charles Walton Sanders. The robin red breast; a new juvenile singing book. New York: Ivison & Phinney; Chicago: S.C. Griggs & Co.; Buffalo: Phinney & Co.; et al., 1855. Oblong 8vo. 199, [1] pp.
$75.00
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“Containing a choice collection of popular music, original and selected, arranged for one, two, three, and four voices, mostly with piano accompaniments,” according to the title-page. Following a brief introduction to musical theory, this children's songbook opens with “The Boy and the Robin”; the subsequent selections tend notably towards “what adults think children should sing” rather than “what children actually enjoy singing.”
This is the second edition, following the (scarce) first of 1852; the front cover differs from the title-page in giving the publication information as Chicago.
Provenance: Front pastedown with several early pencilled inscriptions, including one reading “To Vestilla from W.B. Lear, July 13th 1857.” A folded section from a smaller hymnal is laid in.
Publisher's quarter sheep and printed paper–covered boards; binding darkened and rubbed, front joint starting from head, front cover creased. Front free endpaper partially excised and back free endpaper lacking; front pastedown with inscriptions as above, back pastedown with early inked annotations and numerals. First three leaves with central tear affecting several words. Laid-in hymnal pages with upper edges chewed. Moderate foxing and intermittent waterstaining; some corners dog-eared.
Interesting for its graphically appealing cover and the array of its “juvenile” repertoire choices. (30255)
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This appears in the GENERAL
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