Rare Book Monthly
Book Catalogue Reviews - November - 2007 Issue
William Reese Revisits The Streeter Sale
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We will mention a couple of the titles Reese is offering. Item 32 is interesting both for its story and its provenance. It is the Memoirs of Stephen Burroughs, by, naturally, Stephen Burroughs, and includes the rare second volume. Published in 1798 and 1804, it recounts the biography of a rogue who later in life settled down to become a Catholic teacher. Before seeing the light, Burroughs was a difficult child, ran away at 14, joined the army and deserted, went to sea with a privateer by impersonating a physician, impersonated a minister, became a counterfeiter, was sent to jail, set fire to the prison in an escape attempt, was sent to a second prison from which he escaped but was recaptured, and after serving out his term, moved to Canada and joined a counterfeiting ring. Streeter called his book, "one of the great criminal autobiographies..." The provenance for this copy is that it belonged to both Streeters, having sold at the first Streeter sale for $375. Priced at $7,500.
Item 189 is the earliest obtainable printing of the Gettysburg Address. This is the first report of the address in book form, preceded only by newspaper reports and a single pamphlet known to exist in just three copies. The title is An Oration Delivered on the Battlefield of Gettysburg, but the author is not who you believe. Rather, it is attributed to Edward Everett, a Massachusetts Senator and one of the greatest orators of his day. That was only fair, as 29 pages of the book are devoted to Everett's long (1 1/2-2 hours) and forgotten speech. Lincoln's brief remarks took up only half of page 40, yet contrary to the President's prediction, his words were long remembered. Sold for $400 at the Streeter sale. $27,500.
Item 92 is an important work on what was the West in 1784, The Discovery, Settlement and Present State of Kentucke...by John Filson. This may be the best description of the American frontier, that land south of the Ohio and west of the Alleghenies, at the close of the American Revolution. This book introduced Americans to the quintessential frontiersman, Daniel Boone. Sold at the Streeter sale for $1,100. $30,000.
Item 84 is one of Streeter's few works that take us into modern times: Two Thousand Miles on an Automobile...Trip through New England, New York, Canada, and the West. In 1902, the "West," at least as far as roads were concerned, was Ohio. This is generally considered the first account of an automobile trip in the U.S., and road conditions were even worse than today, though traffic was lighter. The anonymous work is now attributed to Arthur J. Eddy. It is not as uncommon as believed at the time of the Streeter sale, so it has seen one of the smallest of appreciations. Sold for $100 at Streeter. $350.
The William Reese Company may be visited online at www.reeseco.com, telephone 203-789-8081.
