Cash was not always the currency of choice in the 18th century. Merchants often bartered for different goods of comparable value. Item 65 is an account book of Newbury, Massachusetts, shoemaker John Moody from 1736-1756. Among the exchanges Moody received for shoes was whale bone from Isaac Marack, and rum and molasses from Joseph Woodbrig. $725.

This letter bears an imprint of its place and time. It was written in November of 1859 by S.W. Augustus, Proprietor of Magnolia House, Holly Springs, Mississippi. At the end of an uneventful letter, Augustus writes, "I have just whipped 5 nigers and am a little nervous." Magnolia House was used as a hospital during the Civil War, but we do not know what became of it after that. Item 73. $100.

Item 61 is a beautiful, yet unusual map of the U.S.A. It was published in 1851 by Case, Tiffany and Company of Hartford. This 25" x 23" map includes America's states and territories at the time, most attractively colored by hand. Insets show the Capitol and a portrait of George Washington, while features such as the location of Indian tribes and the "Mormon Settlement" in Utah are denoted. This map is unusual as it was accurate for only a brief period of time. It includes the lands ceded to the United States in 1848 after the Mexican War, but not the land obtained from Mexico five years later from the Gadsden Purchase. As a result, the border of the American Southwest, primarily Arizona, is farther north than it is today. $550.

You may reach Thomas Cullen, Rockland Bookman, at 716-662-2082 or tomcatt@roadrunner.com. To view this entire catalogue online, click here now.