Rare Book Monthly
Book Catalogue Reviews - December - 2004 Issue
American Historical Autographs From Joseph Rubinfine
39-page letter from George Armstrong Custer to his wife.
Moses Dawson's "A Historical Narrative of the Civil and Military Services of Major-General William H. Harrison, and a Vindication of his Character and Conduct as a Statesman, a Citizen, and a Soldier," has been lauded by bibliographers such as Howes and Field as being one of the best accounts of the west during the War of 1812, and of the military career of General Harrison. What they didn't point out, and perhaps did not realize, was that the future president had helped to finance its publication. Perhaps this had an impact on the book being so laudatory of the General. Unfortunately, Harrison was having a hard time paying his bills, and the project ended up ruining Dawson at the time. In this 1824 letter to Dawson, a clearly embarrassed Harrison writes, "I regret that I cannot immediately comply with your request to pay the balance of your account." He goes on to say, "I assure you it is not a little mortifying to Me that you have lost everything by this work...." and "I owe you an apology for not paying over the Money...." Ironically, 16 years later, when Harrison ran (successfully) for president, Moses Dawson was on the other side, writing, "Sketches of the Life of Martin Van Buren, President of the United States," for his opponent. Maybe that isn't so ironic after all, considering how Harrison had stiffed him. Item 12. $5,000.
General George Armstrong Custer will always be remembered for his one big mistake, but there were many things he could do well. One of them was to write letters. In January 1869 he wrote a 39-page letter to his wife Elizabeth at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, from his location in Oklahoma. He talks about his situation, his men, and probably just about everything else. Several of the men mentioned would play roles on that fateful day in Montana seven years later. Something else that also can be seen in this letter is Custer's great love for his wife. Perhaps that explains why Elizabeth Custer would devote her 57 years of widowhood to upholding the memory and reputation of her husband. Item 36. $100,000.
Abner Doubleday was second in command of the Union forces at Fort Sumter when the firing on that fort signaled the outbreak of the Civil War. Years later, he would write to James Edward Kelly, an illustrator producing drawings of that momentous event. Kelly had provided him with sketches, and Doubleday responded with comments on even the smallest of details about the scene. How he could have remembered the position people were holding their arms at that event from 20 years later is beyond me, but Doubleday either had a remarkable memory or remarkable imagination. Oddly, despite his role at this historic moment, Doubleday is best remembered for something he didn't do: invent baseball. Item 37. $12,500.
Joseph Rubinfine may be reached by phone at 561-659-7077 or by email at JoeRubinfine@mindspring.com.
