Perhaps Beaumont was suffering from the “English Malady.” Item 29 is The English Malady: Or, A Treatise of Nervous Diseases of All Kinds, as Spleen, Vapours, Lowness of Spirits, Hypochondriacal, and Hysterical Distempers, &c, published in 1733. Author George Cheyne was a physician, scientist, and friend of Isaac Newton. He also became a proponent of vegetarianism, finding that the only way to cure his tendency to ill health and obesity. However, Cheyne also suffered from psychological issues, notably depression, and he writes this book from his own experience. £450 (US $719).
Next is a tale of a terrible accident at sea, though one with a much better ending than could have been imagined under the circumstances, thanks to the quick thinking and bravery of the captain and crew of a passing ship. Item 129 is A Narrative of the Loss of the Kent East Indiaman, By Fire, on the Bay of Biscay, on the 1st March, 1825. In a Letter to a Friend. By A Passenger. The Kent was sailing from England to China, with 641 persons on board, including officers, soldiers, passengers, and many women and children. A fire was started when a candle touched some leaking spirits, and the crew was unable to put it out. By a stroke of luck, the Kent's distress signal was seen by a much smaller ship, the Cambria, with 31 on board, including 20 miners heading for work in Mexico. Captain Cook of the Cambria did the right thing. He headed straight for the Kent, and he, his crew, and the miners worked tirelessly to save the people on the Kent, many swimming through the icy waters to save people's lives. They managed to save around 550 of them, and crammed on their small ship, they returned to England. This copy of the book once belonged to the British military historian and officer John Drinkwater. £325 (US $520).
Item 138 is a collection of 59 playbills from the Theater Royal of Liverpool. They range from 1784-1838. The theater was founded in 1773 and was successful through the late 18th and early 19th centuries. The edifice stood until being demolished in 1965. Many of the great performers of the day appeared at the theater, including the American emigrant Junius Brutus Booth, father of one of the most dastardly characters in American history, actor and Lincoln assassin John Wilkes Booth. £2,500 (US $4,000).
Antiquates Fine and Rare Books may be reached at 07921 151496 or tom@lintern-mole.com. Their website is found at www.antiquates.co.uk.
