• Forum Auctions
    Colour Plate Books from the Library of Norman Bobins
    Part 2
    27th March 2024
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Alken (Henry). Sporting Notions, first edition, T.McLean, 1832-33. £800 to £1,200.
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Bardi (Lorenzo). Nuova Raccolta delle piu interessanti Vedute della Citta di Firenze…, Florence, Lorenzo Bardi, [c.1840]. £1,500 to £2,000.
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Crawfurd (John). Journal of an Embassy from the Governor-General of India to the Court of Ava..., first edition, 1829. £1,000 to £1,500.
    Forum Auctions
    Colour Plate Books from the Library of Norman Bobins
    Part 2
    27th March 2024
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Dawe (George, engraver). The Life of a Nobleman, first edition, Geo. Henderson, [c.1825]. £1,000 to £1,500.
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: [Doyle (John)], "H.B.". Political Sketches &c., 10 vol. including The Descriptive Key to H.B., Thomas McLean, [1829-51]. £4,000 to £6,000.
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Eben (Adolphus Christian Frederick, Baron von) and Nicolaus Heideloff. Modèles de l'Uniforme Militaire Adopté dans l'Armée Royale de Suède, Rudolph Ackerman, 1808. £1,500 to £2,000.
    Forum Auctions
    Colour Plate Books from the Library of Norman Bobins
    Part 2
    27th March 2024
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Geissler (J.G.G.) and Friedrich Hempel. Mahlerische Darstellungen der Sitten, Gebrauche und Lustbarkeiten bey den Russischen, Tartarischen…, 4 parts in 1, Leipzig and Paris, [1804]. £1,000 to £1,500.
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Hunt (Charles). Portraits of Winning Horses...of the Derby, Oaks, & St. Leger, from the Year 1842 to 1849…, Rock Brothers & Payne, 1849. £1,500 to £2,000.
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Kunike (Adolf Friedrich). Zwey hundert und sechzig Donau-Ansichten nach dem Laufe des Donaustromes…, Vienna, Leopold Grund, 1826. £3,000 to £5,000.
    Forum Auctions
    Colour Plate Books from the Library of Norman Bobins
    Part 2
    27th March 2024
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Lasinio (Carlo). [Matrimony], Florence, 1790. £1,500 to £2,000.
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Reinhardt (Joseph). A Collection of Swiss Costumes, in Miniature, second English edition, James Goodwin, [1828]. £800 to £1,200.
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Wengen (Gottfried Durst von). Die Öffentliche Maskerade Bamberg am Fastnachts-Montage 1833…, Bamberg, [1833]. £2,000 to £3,000.
  • Sotheby’s
    Modern First Editions
    Available for Immediate Purchase
    Sotheby’s, Available Now: Winston Churchill. The Second World War. Set of First-Edition Volumes. 6,000 USD
    Sotheby’s, Available Now: A.A. Milne, Ernest H. Shepard. A Collection of The Pooh Books. Set of First-Editions. 18,600 USD
    Sotheby’s, Available Now: Salvador Dalí, Lewis Carroll. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. Finely Bound and Signed Limited Edition. 15,000 USD
    Sotheby’s
    Modern First Editions
    Available for Immediate Purchase
    Sotheby’s, Available Now: Ian Fleming. Live and Let Die. First Edition. 9,500 USD
    Sotheby’s, Available Now: J.K. Rowling. Harry Potter Series. Finely Bound First Printing Set of Complete Series. 5,650 USD
    Sotheby’s, Available Now: Ernest Hemingway. A Farewell to Arms. First Edition, First Printing. 4,200 USD
  • Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: A RUTH BADER GINSBURG BEADED JUDICIAL COLLAR. $80,000 - $120,000
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: ONLY KNOWN COPY OF THE ONLY BOOK BY THE REMARKABLE EVE ADAMS. $8,000 - $12,000
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: A COMPLETE RUN OF VISIONAIRE MAGAZINE THROUGH 2010. $6,000 - $9,000
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: LAW REVIEW OFFPRINT SIGNED AND INSCRIBED BY RUTH BADER GINSBURG. $3,000 - $5,000
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: META REBNER'S WORKING SCRIPT OF THE LOVED ONE. $1,500 - $2,000
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: A KATHY GROVE PORTRAIT OF CYNDI LAUPER FOR THE FEBRUARY 1989 DETAILS COVER. $800 - $1,200
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: A PLASTIC COAT BY MILLIE DAVID FEATURED IN SOHO NEWS STYLE SECTION, FROM THE COLLECTION OF ANNIE FLANDERS. $500 - $700
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: A RUTH BADER GINSBURG JEWELRY BOX. $600 - $900
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: A SET OF JONI MITCHELL LYRICS FOR "IF I HAD A HEART." $2,000 - $3,000
  • 19th Century Shop
    Catalogue 198 just published
    19th Century Shop. Darwin and Wallace, first printing of the first paper on natural selection
    19th Century Shop. Shakespeare’s Poems, first collected edition
    19th Century Shop. Walt Whitman portrait inscribed with a Leaves of Grass poem
    19th Century Shop. Major Elizabeth Barrett Browning manuscript notebook
    19th Century Shop. Spock's Baby Book, original MS
    19th Century Shop. Cellarius, Harmonia Macrocosmica, the great celestial atlas

Rare Book Monthly

Book Catalogue Reviews - November - 2018 Issue

Rare 18th and 19th Century Americana from David M. Lesser Antiquarian Books

Rare Americana.

David M. Lesser Fine Antiquarian Books has issued their 164th catalogue of Rare Americana. The type of material is mostly what we expect from Lesser, but the individual items are new. Primarily, we find late 18th and 19th century material relating to America. An occasional item comes from outside those time and national boundaries. It is primarily shorter form material, pamphlets, broadsides, prints, and various types of manuscript items. Here are a few examples from this latest selection.

 

Since these are times of contentious politics and political corruption, it's reassuring...sort of...to know that this isn't a unique time in history. American politics has always been full of corruption. Simon Cameron was a powerful Pennsylvania political leader. He served several nonconsecutive terms as a senator, starting as a Democrat in the 1840s, then as a Republican just before the Civil War, and again in the 1870s. He also had a reputation. He was briefly a presidential contender in 1860 but threw his votes to Lincoln. He was rewarded with the position of Secretary of War. He lasted about a year before accusations of either laxity or corruption forced him out. The story, disputed by some, is that when Lincoln asked Representative Thaddeus Stevens whether Cameron was honest, the latter replied, "I do not believe he would steal a red hot stove." When Cameron demanded a retraction, Stevens denied his earlier claim in a way to imply that yes, he would steal even a red hot stove. With this as background, item 27 is an autograph letter from Cameron in 1845, while seeking his first term as senator. In it, Cameron relates to the recipient that someone had placed a lower bid than he for a government contract. Cameron says that if he had been present, they probably could have done away with the lower bid. Cameron writes that he gave up the plan to throw out the bid "for a plan to have a new advertisement, and another bidding. This I think will be done; and if so, we will get it right." In a postscript beneath his signature, Cameron adds, "There are 4 bids for $7, & one for $6.50 - the last man has agreed to back out." Always looking out for the taxpayers. Priced at $175.

 

How about dirty politics? That has always been fine. Attacking the candidate's wife? No first lady was ever subject to such personal attack as Rachel Jackson (well, maybe "Lock Her Up" Hillary might disagree). Rachel married Andrew Jackson almost four decades before he became President. However, she had been married to another, an unhappy, likely abusive marriage. This was out on the frontier, and she thought her husband had obtained a divorce. He filed, but did not obtain one. That made Rachel technically a bigamist and adulterer. After the issue was discovered, a divorce was obtained and she and Jackson had another marriage ceremony. This did not stop the personal attacks almost four decades later. Item 33 is Political Extracts from a Leading Adams Paper, the Massachusetts Journal, Edited and Published in Boston by David L. Child... It was published in 1828, during the campaign. The "Adams" was President John Quincy Adams, who defeated Jackson is 1824, but would lose this election of 1828 to his rival. Among the comments in this piece is one which says, "Who is there in all the land that has a wife, a sister or daughter that could be pleased to see Mrs. Jackson (Mrs. Roberts that was) presiding in the Drawing-Room at Washington. There is pollution in the touch, there is perdition in the example of a profligate woman..." Rachel Jackson died shortly before her husband took office, and he blamed the attacks for playing a role in her death. $275.

 

This next letter provides a heartrending portrayal of another president, one whose unpopularity was much deserved. That opinion has not been ameliorated by time. Item 75 is a letter from Harvard Professor Barrett Wendell, dated October 4, 1889, describing a meeting someone he knew had in the White House with President Andrew Johnson during the latter's impeachment proceedings in 1868. Supposedly, that person was a friend of the Secretary of the Treasury, and when the Secretary asked him his opinion of the President, he described Johnson as "impolitic but thoroughly honest." That must have been the nicest thing anyone had said about Johnson in a while, as the friend was asked to repeat the comment to Johnson personally. Writes Wendell, "I know of few more pathetic scenes than this... Ignorant, patriotic Johnson, maddened by the hounds of party politics, believing himself doomed to stand alone for what he believed right, & actually affected beyond the range of speech by the meeting with a single man who was willing to avow belief in his honesty." Wendell concludes, "I believe, he will be recognized as one who did his best." Perhaps, but if he did his best, it was not very good. Johnson became Vice-President, and then President after Lincoln was assassinated, for being an unwavering supporter of the Union from the divided, border state of Tennessee. However, that support was based on his antipathy for the wealthy plantation class, not out of sympathy for the slaves. After the war, Johnson put many roadblocks in the way of congressional attempts to protect the rights of the newly freed slaves, siding with southerners who wanted to restore conditions as close to slavery as they could get away with. He brought on his own unpopularity in the North, though he did manage to escape being removed from office by a single vote. $750.

 

Here's a woman who deserves credit for her originality, though not so much for her ethics. Olivia Eames was a Massachusetts native who lived for several years in New Orleans. When she returned to her home in Holden, Massachusetts, in 1839, she brought along a 13-year-old young lady. Anne was Ms. Eames' slave. Local resident Samuel Stratton and other Holden citizens sued Eames. Slavery had been held unconstitutional in Massachusetts 50 years earlier. They argued the minute Anne set foot in the state, she was free. Ms. Eames had a response. She countersued Stratton and the others. Her argument was that Anne was not a slave, but a servant, and they were attempting to defraud her of the voluntary services of her servant. Stratton countered that Anne was denied a proper education, was overtasked, beaten, and treated like a slave. After testimony by two defense witnesses. the District Attorney convinced Ms. Eames she didn't have a chance. Stratton et al. were acquitted. The case is described in the Report of the Holden Slave Case, Tried at the January Term of the Court of Common Pleas... Published by the Board of Directors of the Holden Anti-Slavery Society in 1839. Item 126. $2,500.

 

Next we have the Extraordinary Trial of the Rev. John Seys, Pastor of the Bedford Street Methodist Episcopal Church. New-York City, for an Alleged Assault and Battery on Mrs. Elizabeth Cram... published in 1847. Specifically, the alleged assault and battery was rape. Rev. Seys had served for 11 years as a missionary in Africa, losing four children while there (he must have been a better pastor than father). He returned to New York for his new job in 1845. Mrs. Cram attempted to press charges, but they were dismissed. She then appeared on her own before a grand jury which indicted Seys, but the trial jury acquitted him. They didn't believe the woman. However, before you feel too sorry for the suffering poor Seys endured, it should be noted that a committee of five ministers expelled him from the church for "immoral character and practices." He didn't get the job. Item 123. $600.

 

David M. Lesser Fine Antiquarian Books may be reached at 203-389-8111 or dmlesser@lesserbooks.com. Their website is www.lesserbooks.com.

Rare Book Monthly

  • Potter & Potter Auctions
    How History Unfolds on Paper:
    Choice Selections from the Eric C. Caren Collection
    Part IX
    April 18, 2024
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: [RUTH, George Herman “Babe” (1895-1948)]. Signed photograph. Circa 1930s. 191 x 248 mm. $1,500 to $2,500.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: HARRISON, Benjamin. Document signed (“Benj Harrison”) as governor of Virginia, certifying the service of Daniel Cumbo, a Black Revolutionary soldier. $6,000 to $9,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: ONE OF THE FIRST PRINTED ANNOUNCEMENTS OF THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. $4,000 to $6,000.
    Potter & Potter Auctions
    How History Unfolds on Paper:
    Choice Selections from the Eric C. Caren Collection
    Part IX
    April 18, 2024
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: FIRST PRINTING OF LINCOLN’S IMMORTAL GETTYSBURG ADDRESS. $4,000 to $6,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: HIGHLY IMPORTANT MORMON ARCHIVE. ALLEY, George. Archive of 23 Autograph Letters Signed by Mormon Convert George Alley to His Brother Joseph Alley. $10,000 to $20,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: [AVIATION]. [ARMSTRONG, Neil A.] Aviation Hall of Fame Gold Medal MS64 NGC, Awarded to Neil Armstrong in 1979. $2,000 to $3,000.
    Potter & Potter Auctions
    How History Unfolds on Paper:
    Choice Selections from the Eric C. Caren Collection
    Part IX
    April 18, 2024
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: NEWLY DISCOVERED FIRST PRINTING OF "WITH MALICE TOWARDS NONE... " FROM THE ONLY NEWSPAPER ACTUALLY ALLOWED TO PARTICIPATE IN LINCOLN’S SECOND INAUGURAL PROCESSION. $4,000 to $8,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: THE MOST IMPORTANT GEORGE WASHINGTON DOCUMENT IN PRIVATE HANDS; GEORGE WASHINGTON’S COMMISSION AS COMMANDER IN CHIEF, 1775, ONE OF ONLY TWO ORIGINALS. $150,000 to $250,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: A VERY RARE ACCOUNT OF BLACKBEARD’S DEATH AND ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT PIRATE ITEMS EXTANT. $3,000 to $5,000.
    Potter & Potter Auctions
    How History Unfolds on Paper:
    Choice Selections from the Eric C. Caren Collection
    Part IX
    April 18, 2024
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: EDISON, Thomas. Patent for Edison’s Improvements on the Electric-Light, No. 219,628. [Washington, D.C.: U.S. Patent Office], 16 September 1879. $2,000 to $3,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: [VIETNAM WAR]. The original pen used by Secretary of State William P. Rogers to sign the Vietnam Peace Agreement, Paris, 27 January 1973. $10,000 to $15,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: SONS OF LIBERTY FOUNDER COLONEL BARRÉ ANNOTATED TITLE-PAGE, “WHICH OUGHT TO ROUSE UP BRITISH ATTENTION”. $4,000 to $6,000.
  • Forum Auctions
    Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
    28th March 2024
    Forum Mar. 28: [Langland (William)]. The vision of Pierce Plowman, nowe the seconde time imprinted..., Roberte Crowley, 1550. £8,000 to £10,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: [Shakespeare (William)]. [Comedies, Histories, and Tragedies], second folio edition, [by Tho.Cotes, for Robert Allot], [1632]. £30,000 to £40,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Bible, Czech Biblia Bohemica, first complete Bible printed in the Czech vernacular, Prague, August 1488. £30,000 to £40,000.
    Forum Auctions
    Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
    28th March 2024
    Forum Mar. 28: Shabthai Tzvi.- Collection of four printed and illustrated broadsides detailing the appearance, rise and fall of the false messiah, Shabthai Tzvi, Augsburg, 1666-67. £40,000 to £60,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Leaf from the Beauvais Missal, in Latin, illuminated manuscript on parchment, [Northern France (perhaps Beauvais or Amiens)], [fourteenth century (c.1310)]. £4,000 to £6,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Aubrey (John). [Remaines of Gentilisme and Judaisme], manuscript in English, Latin and Greek, [c. 1693]. £30,000 to £50,000.
    Forum Auctions
    Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
    28th March 2024
    Forum Mar. 28: Byron (George Gordon Noel, Lord). Poems on Various Occasions, first edition, Harriet Maltby's copy, Newark, Printed by S. & J. Ridge, 1807. £30,000 to £40,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Tolkien (J.R.R.) The Hobbit, first edition, second impression with dust-jacket, 1937 [but 1938]. £7,000 to £10,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Blake (William).- Thornton (Robert John). The Pastorals of Virgil, 2 vol., engraved plates by William Blake, 1821. £8,000 to £12,000.
    Forum Auctions
    Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
    28th March 2024
    Forum Mar. 28: America.- Mount (William J.) & Thomas Page. The English Pilot…, [bound with] The Fourth Book, describing The West Indies Navigation from Hudson's-Bay to the River Amazones, 1721. £20,000 to £30,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Oldfield (Henry Ambrose), Rajman Singh Chitrakar & others. An album of 160 photographs and 13 original artworks, (1833-1919), [c. 1850s-1880s]. £20,000 to £30,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Audubon (John James) [and William MacGillivray]. Ornithological Biography…, 5 vol., first edition, presentation copy inscribed by Audubon, Edinburgh, 1831-49 [i.e. 1831-39]. £10,000 to £15,000.

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