It may interest the reader to know that half of the writings in this volume are by women.

Sole edition. The volume was a fund-raising effort: “The principal reason that these stories have been gathered together and given to the public, is to start a fund wherewith to erect a fountain on the Campus of the University of California to be in harmony with the great Hearst architectural plan.”

Binding:  Publisher's blue cloth stamped in gilt with title and a scene of a rolling hill with trees on it. Binding signed “Kales.”

•  BAL 15035.   Binding as above: gilt a little rubbed or dulled. Overall, very good.  (34834)

•  NSTC 2A1050.   Binding as above, moderate rubbing to edges and extremities, gilt vignette showing very slight rubbing. Split in text block repaired and loosened leaves reattached. Front hinge reinforced. Minor offsetting to first and last leaves, some plates gently darkened; overall both attractive and entertaining.  (37266)

Binding:  Publisher's textured green cloth, front cover and spine with gilt-stamped vignettes. All edges gilt.

•  NSTC 2A1051.   Binding as above, moderate rubbing to edges and extremities with top of spine pulled, gilt vignettes showing slight rubbing. Early pencilled ownership inscription in upper portion of first text page; some plate leaves a bit more age-toned than others or than text leaves. Overall both attractive and entertaining.  (37284)

This is the original first edition, not a modern reprint.

Binding:  Publisher's light blue straight-grained cloth, front cover and spine with gilt-stamped title, front cover with desert vignette stamped in black and green.

•  Binding as above, minimal wear to extremities, spine with small area of light discoloration. Light pencilled underlining and marks of emphasis, including a star and a wing (all removable). A nice copy of an interesting volume.  (28604)

The frontispiece (retaining its tissue guard) is an engraving by Thomas Phillibrown showing a young male writer in a sea-side cave with a quill pen, leaning on his writing pad and looking for inspiration.

Binding:  Signed binding (embossed stamp on front fly-leaf) by B. Bradley of Boston. Green cloth, spine stamped in gold with vines, grapes, and title; stamped in blind on covers featuring birds and vines. Yellow calendared endpapers. All edges gilt.

Provenance:  Mid- to late-19th-century pencil signature of L.A. Nichols.

•  American Imprints 41-128.   Binding as above. Minor discoloration in a few inner and foremargins; offsetting from frontispiece to title-page despite tissue (or because of it). Very good.  (36017)

This isnumbered copy 733 of 2000 printed, signed at the colophon by the illustrator. Both the appropriate Club newsletter (in its original envelope) and the prospectus are laid in.

•  Bibliography of the Fine Books Published by the Limited Editions Club, 497.   Publisher's fabric-covered binding as above, spine with gilt-stamped leather title-label, in original brown paper–covered slipcase with printed paper label; spine cloth very slightly (and unobtrusively) sunned, slipcase showing only minimal traces of shelfwear.A nice copy of this handsome piece of LEC exotica.  (36838)

Signed binding: Publisher's green cloth, front cover pictorially stamped with a young lady in a luxury car in black, white and red, spine with gilt-stamped title. Front cover design with “A” monogram in a half circle. Designer unknown.

•  Dinkytown, American Decorated Covers, 1890–1930, 13.   Binding as above, slightly cocked with very (very) minor rubbing to extremities. A nice copy of an interesting “period” work.  (36774)

Binding:  Cream-colored textured cloth boards, horizontally striped in magenta, with blind-stamped panel containing corner arabesques and (on the front only) a central gilt-stamped floral design. Spine gilt-stamped with title and arabesques. All edges gilt.

The use of striping on Victorian cloth bindings was uncommon and short-lived, lasting roughly from 1845 to 1852. On this type of binding, see: Andrea Krupp, Making a Case for Cloth, fol. 6.

Provenance:  Mid-19th-century pencil signature on front pastedown of May Harris of Deposit, Delaware County, NY; full inscription repeated on a blank at the rear.

•  Faxon 631a (for an 1843 edition by the same publishers). Not in Tepper, American Gift Books & Literary Annuals. (Second edition); not in Thompson, American Literary Annuals & Gift Books.   Bound as above; covers lightly soiled and with a scattering of small spots. Foxing general but light, to interior; a clean, nice copy.  (32064)

Bell (1867–1929) was born in Chicago, brought up in Atlanta, and after marriage lived in Tarrytown, NY.

Binding:  Blue cloth, front cover stamped in black, very pale green, and rust; at center a young couple arm in arm in formal wear with four small vignettes at the corners of the frame around them. The four offer symbols of love (hearts and an arrow), commitment to honest hard work (a rooster up at dawn), social relaxation (a wine carafe and glass, and study (books and an inkwell and pen). Signed “AS” (Amy Sacker).

Provenance:  Private pressure-stamp, “The Blasberg Collection,” to endpaper and title-page.

Evidence of readership: Pencil notes on front free endpaper and on the contents page either tying text to appearances in Harper's Magazine or summarizing events on specific pages of this book.

•  Smith, American Fiction, 1901–1925, B-463 (for first book edition).   Binding as above, lightly rubbed. Old paperclip rust-stains to four leaves, else very good.  (37059)

Binding:  Publisher's green “contour” moiré cloth over boards with printed paper label on spine.

•  Hills 881; O'Callaghan 233-36; American Imprints 23377. On binding, see: Krupp, Bookcloth in England and America, 1823–50, Moi4.   Bound as above; rebacked and most of original spine laid downwith hinges (inside) strengthened. Six-digit number stamped in lower margin of one preliminary page; moderate foxing, mostly in margins.  (35413)

Binding:  Bound by Russell-Rutter Company in half white leather with slightly raised bands a gilt-background title label; smooth vellum-paper sides, gold-stamped with a large image of Ruth holding a sheaf of grain and a scythe. Top edge gilt.

•  Limited Editions Club, Bibliography of the Fine Books Published by The Limited Editions Club, 184.   Binding as above, in the original gold foil-covered slipcase; volume with spine and corners moderately darkened and rubbed, slipcase foil with expectable rubbing and spine chipped. LEC newsletter creased, with small stains. In spite of these flaws, still a sturdy case and a pleasing book, internally bright and lovely.  (36857)

Binding: Publisher's red pictorial cloth, front cover and spine stamped in black, brown, and gilt.

•  Good++: Some soiling to binding; light to moderate foxing internally.  (8539)

•  BAL 2482 (second printing state, with plates included in pagination). Publisher's brown cloth, front cover stamped in gilt and green, spine with gilt-stamped title; front cover lightly scuffed, with corners rubbed. Front fly-leaf with inked gift inscription "to My Daughter," dated 1890; newspaper clipping about Carleton affixed to front fly-leaf, poem affixed to back fly-leaf as described above. Several insurance advertisements, religious leaflets, and other ephemera laid in.  (14367)

This is the genuine first edition, not a modern reprint.

Binding:  Publisher's olive cloth, front cover with Art Nouveau water lily design and gilt-stamped title, spine with gilt-stamped title.

•  Binding as above, minor rubbing at extremities. Front free endpaper with pencilled Christmas gift inscription dated 1902; back free endpaper with rubber-stamped numeral (no other markings). Pages and plates clean. A very nice copy.  (28585)

The work contains several full-page and in-text engravings related to the stories, including a fetching squirrel, an engraved title-page of a boy using his dog to pull a sled, and a hand-colored frontispiece of two children dreaming of Saint Nicholas colored in green, yellow, blue, maroon, and purple. The presentation leaf has not been inscribed to anyone, and a final publisher's advertisement leaf tells parents of other books and holiday gifts available for the season.

Binding:  Purple publisher's cloth, spine gilt extra with stamped illustrations of two women, one watering a beanstalk and the other surrounded by foliage. Covers triple ruled in blind with central stamp of a boy and his dog, image gilt on the front and in blind on the back. All edges gilt.

•  Shoemaker 44-5448; Faxon 743. Not in Thompson, American Literary Annuals & Gift Books; not Tepper, American Gift Books & Literary Annuals. (Second edition).   Bound as above, gently rubbed and faded, including gilt edges, with boards slightly bowed; light pencilling on endpapers, one detached at front. One page tip missing, a few spots, light to moderate age-toning. A perfectly charming Christmas present.  (36728)

Binding: Publisher's pale blue-green ribbed cloth richly stamped in gold on covers and spine. All edges gilt.

•  Bound as above, a bit rubbed at head and foot of spine; 1852 gift inscription on front free endpaper. Foxing to frontispiece and endpapers.  (30496)

Provenance:  Front fly-leaf with inked inscription: “John H. White Merry Christmas from Mabel 1903.”

Binding:  Publisher's cloth, front cover with gilt-stamped title and decorative red-stamped frame surrounding an affixed, color-printed illustration of a broken cannon in a cloudy landscape.

•  Binding as above, very slightly cocked, extremities very lightly rubbed. Inscription as above; pages clean and crisp. A lovely thing.  (35256)

Binding:  Publisher's terra-cotta cloth, front cover stamped with gilt rose and ribbon design, spine with similar motifs; front coversigned “G.W.E.” — George Wharton Edwards.

•  BAL 4200.   Binding as above, gently faded overall, slightly cocked, edges and extremities rubbed. Top edge gilt. Front free endpaper with early inked ownership inscription. A few scattered faint spots, pages overall clean.  (35835)

Provenance:  Front free endpaper with inked inscription: “Merry Xmas 1905 [/] C.B.B. from Puss.”

Binding:  Publisher's green cloth, front cover and spine stamped in gilt, black, and yellow. Binding signed “RR” — Rome K. Richardson.

•  BAL 4224.   Binding as above, extremities slightly rubbed, spine gilt with one small spot of rubbing (front gilt bright and fresh); front hinge (inside) tender. Inscription as above; pages gently age-toned. A pretty copy of a rather interesting novel.  (35745)

Signed Binding: Publisher's teal pebbled cloth, front covers with striking chariot and armorial scene in light blue, tan, and gilt. The “Cibeles” statue found in Madrid's Cibeles Plaza and the coat of arms (and gilt monogram) of the city of Madrid appear with de la Cruz's name stamped in gilt below; spines offer gilt-stamped title and black-stamped griffin decoration. Cover of vol. II is signed “J. Orba.” All page edges are stamped in a Greek key pattern in blue and gilt.

Provenance:  Half-titles each with old-fashioned rubber-stamp of José Carmona y Ramos.

•  Palau 65340.   Bindings as above, edges and extremities showing minor shelfwear, back cover of vol. I with small spots of faint discoloration, front joint of vol. II rubbed. Collector's stamp as above, each front pastedown with small paper label bearing hand-inked numeral. Pages age-toned; edges slightly embrittled, occasionally with small chips or short tears. Scattered light smudges in vol. I; vol. II with mild to moderate foxing. A peacocky set demonstrating the INTERNATIONALITY of the “publisher's cloth” phenomenon.  (29262)

•  Bibliography of the Fine Books Published by the Limited Editions Club, 41.   Binding as above, in publisher's tan paper-covered slipcase; slipcase with corners and edges chipped. Volume pristine, with signatures unopened.  (36308)

Binding:  Publisher's navy cloth, front cover and spine stamped in gilt and orange with the described streets' names and appropriate devices woven into a decorative wreath surrounding the work's title on the front cover.

•  Binding as above, top edge gilt, extremities and edges lightly rubbed. Past bookseller pricing on back endpapers, interior clean with some age-toned edges. A beautiful copy.  (35912)

Signed binding: Teal cloth, front cover with village scene stamped in dark green, terra cotta, and white, marked with the distinctive intertwined capital Ds of Decorative Designers (Henry and Lee Thayer).

•  Binding as above, slightly cocked, spine dimmed, front panel lightly rubbed. Front free endpaper with early inked ownership inscription of Lottie Ellis. One piece of dried plant matter laid in.  (35665)

Binding:  Percaline mosaïquée binding of publisher's violet cloth, covers framed in blind, front cover with gilt-stamped Last Supper vignette surrounded by smaller vignettes and decorations stamped in gilt, white, green, red, and pink; back cover with elaborate IHS display stamped in gilt, green, blue, red, and white; spine gilt extra and stamped in red and green. All edges gilt.

•  Binding as above, spine and edges of front cover somewhat sunned, front cover with a few small spots of discoloration, extremities rubbed, “presence” very nice. Hinges (inside) tender, requiring some caution (not unexpected in a volume of this size).; one plate separated, one starting to separate. Intermittent faint foxing only; in fact a sumptuous and pleasing presentation, with an intriguing inscription, in a copy that can be called not only “clean” but “bright.”  (30993)

•  Publisher's cloth, front cover and spine decoratively gilt-stamped; spine, lower edges, and corners a touch rubbed. Top edge gilt. A few leaves and plates with waterstaining to lower outer corners, scattered spots of light foxing.  (18409)

Issues 1 and 2 have thelaid-in photographs and 22 includes the separate leaflet supplement, “Vals de Monterey [sic] Viejo.” The first number, as noted, is the second issue, with Doxey's imprint; the second contains “relics” of R.L. Stevenson.

Binding:  Publisher's muslin bindings designed by Florence Lundborg, with her monogram on vol. I; covers illustrated and printed in color, each volume with a different cover image.

•  Publisher's cloth bindings, lightly rubbed; all wrappers present, that of Issue 15 with a large hole that appears actually to be a paper flaw, not “damage.” All pages untrimmed. A very nice set.  (37159)

Binding:  Publisher's brown cloth, front board with Armstrong's design of a trellis entwined with a red flowering vine and with two scrolls; the larger scroll has a tan field bearing the title in gold and the smaller one has a field of the binding's brown bearing the author's name in gold. Top edge gilt.

•  BAL 4948; Gullans & Espey, Checklist of Trade Bindings Designed by Margaret Armstrong, 73.   Binding as above; as usual, without the d/j. Signs of something once having been pinned to front free endpaper, minor cracking in gutter between quires, else very good.  (35379)

Binding:  Publisher's sage green paper–covered sides with dark green cloth shelfback, front cover with decorative title and train vignette both stamped in gilt and dark green, spine with gilt-stamped title. Top edge gilt, outer edge deckle.

•  Binding as above; edges, joints, and extremities rubbed, front cover mottled. Front pastedown with inked ownership inscription. Pages and plates clean.  (29126)

Binding:  Publisher's blue cloth, front cover with gilt-stamped title. Cloth is ribbed and fits Krupp's Rb3 pattern.

Evidence of readership: One pencilled footnote, arguing that capital punishment is the will of the divine.

•  American Imprints 55455. On the binding cloth, see: Krupp, Bookcloth in England and America, 1823–50, p. 40.   Binding as above; spine and board edges gently faded, extremities rubbed. Mild to moderate foxing throughout. An interesting book in a good example of an early American cloth binding.  (34765)

•  Publisher's embossed cloth, spine with gilt-stamped title; corners and spine extremities showing minor wear, with gilt oxidized. Front free endpaper with pencilled inscription; some page edges with small blotches. Binding very handsome in its subtle way. Impossible! to get a good image of!  (12986)

Signed binding: Publisher's dark blue cloth, front cover with gilt-stamped stylized double fish design, signed with the double D monogram of Decorative Designers; spine with gilt-stamped title and scallop shell. Top edge gilt.

•  Binding as above, corners and spine a bit rubbed. Front pastedown with private owner's bookplate. A clean, attractive copy.  (28862)

Binding:  Publisher's green cloth, front cover with affixed color-printed vignette surrounded by blind-stamped butterfly wing design, title and author stamped in cream, spine with publication information stamped in cream, volume inpublisher's original box with cover vignette rendered in tones of rose and sepia on lid. Endpapers with striking design of butterfly-winged sprites pulling a flying automobile, printed in pale green; each page framed with similar motifs.

•  Binding as above, book showing almost no wear; box mildly darkened and dust-soiled with paper and one side of the boxtop chipped. Front pastedown with early 20th-century inked ownership inscription. A very attractive acquisition or gift for fans of Edwardian-era illustration and design, screwball romances, or vintage automobiles.  (35162)

Binding:  Publisher's green cloth, front cover and spine stamped in black, gilt, and yellow, with a frame of apples and greenery surrounding a decorative title and small gilt motifs.

•  Binding as above, corners and spine extremities very slightly rubbed, dust jacket lacking. Endpapers and a few pages sprinkled with spots of faint staining, pages generally clean A popular and entertaining author, in an attractive and well-preserved binding.  (35257)

The story is illustrated witheight black and white plates reproducing paintings by Nell Marion Tenison Cuneo (1867–1953).

Binding:  Signed binding, marked “DD” for Decorative Designers: navy cloth, front cover and spine stamped with Art Nouveau–inspired pomegranate and leaf motif in green and with title in gilt.

•  Binding as above; extremities very lightly rubbed with all gilt and stamping bright. Front free endpaper with early inked ownership inscription. Pages very faintly age-toned with a few scattered spots, generally clean. A decidedly pretty copy of an interesting look at early 20th-century social mores regarding love, religion, and ambition.  (35619)

Binding:  Each text is bound in a different color of publisher's cloth (red, green, rust, blue) with the title decoratively gilt-stamped and a small landscape picture pasted on the front cover. The four books are housed together in a delicate cardboard box covered in gilt-patterned mint green paper with a maroon paper lid, the latter gilt-lettered and featuring a paper onlay that presents a color engraving of two girls playing with a doll.

Provenance:  Pencilled signature of Rosetta J[ane?] Quackenbush on underside of lid.

•  Bradbury, R.C. Antique United States miniature books, p. 92.   Bindings very bright and only very gently rubbed; one very lightly waterstained corner on one back endpaper; texts clean. Housed and bound as above, box worn and gently soiled with small loss of paper and three tears to lid, two at corners and one at bottom center (tears repaired to strengthen from inside). A happy survival, a pleasing gathering.  (36801)

•  Publisher's cloth, front cover and spine stamped in white, black, orange, and gilt; lacking the dust jacket, with binding slightly cocked, spine stamping a bit dimmed. Front free endpaper with inked ownership inscription.  (13027)

Binding:  In the style of a percaline mosaïquée, but the gilt and mosaic are applied to a textured pebbled cloth. Spine gilt extra with added “mosaic” of green, white, red and blue. Front cover with a blind-stamped border incorporating elegant corner-pieces; within this, “Souvenir de Versailles” gilt-stamped in an arc above a large on-laid crowned coat of arms flanked by banners and flags, this embellished in gilt with rich use of blue, white, red, blue, and green. Rear cover with similar blind-stamped border and a different large gilt-stamped center device strikingly incorporating an on-lay of blue stamped in gilt with a military medal. All edges gilt.

•  On this type of binding, see: Morris & Levin, The Art of Publishers' Bookbindings, pp. 94–97.   Binding as above, rubbed to the underlying boards at the corners of the boards and top of spine slightly pulled with one bit of rubbing. Scattered pale brown stains mostly on interleaves and sometimes visible on versos of plates; some discoloration in some margins of plates and occasionally into one; overwhelmingly a clean copy, remarkably bright and unfoxed. A strong and nice example of this category of “souvenir” and of a gilt mosaic binding.  (30464)

•  Publisher's green cloth binding, front cover stamped in black and gilt; bright and clean, with cloth showing only very minor wear to corners and extremities. All edges gilt.  (14437)

•  Publisher's teal cloth, front cover and spine with gilt-stamped title and decorative floral motifs; back cover and corners showing very slight scuffing. Back hinge cracked and front hinge starting; front free endpaper excised. Still, an attractive copy.  (18393)

Binding:  Publisher's red cloth, covers and spine gilt-stamped with avian and foliate designs; all edges gilt.

•  Faxon 786.  Spine and edges moderately rubbed with front hinge cracked; spots of staining to bottom part of front cover. Front free endpaper with good portion torn away, back free endpaper lacking; waterstaining in varying degrees to lower outer corners after p. 120 and some soiling. One signature extruded and others heading for that; one plate shaved very very close to image at top but image itself not quite touched! Not a fresh copy, still, an interesting one. (12944)

Binding:  Contemporary dark green cloth, covers with blind-stamped foliate border, spine with similar design and gilt-stamped title; front free endpaper with pressure-stamp of Benjamin Bradley's Boston bindery — at which company Gough worked for a few months in late 1837 before being fired for presenting a shabby appearance.

•  American Imprints 45-2792.   Binding as above, very slightly cocked, spine darkened, extremities lightly rubbed; front and back fly-leaves excised. Scattered mild to moderate foxing and a few mild to moderate instances of stain; a few corners dog-eared. A very readable copy, with the added attraction of the Bradley connection.  (34808)

•  Scott, A Bibliography of the Works of Sir Henry Haggard 1856–1925, 10. Publisher's red pictorial cloth, issued without frontispiece. Spine a bit darkened, a few leaves with faint spots of foxing, endpapers lightly discolored. Spine slightly cocked.  (8614)

Binding:  Blue publisher's cloth, spine stamped in gilt with fancified title and partly arabesque design, covers decoratively framed in blind.

•  Not in Faxon, nor Thompson, American Literary Annuals & Gift Books; for another year, see Tepper, American Gift Books & Literary Annuals. (Second edition), p. 100.   Bound as above, recently well rebacked with original spine laid on and new endpapers, gently rubbed, small sticker on spine. Light age-toning and foxing (especially around the frontispiece as usual), with occasional other spotting or staining (some perhaps in press); a sound copy representingan interesting phenomenon in marketing.  (37262)

•  BAL 7841.   Publisher's tan cloth, front cover with affixed color-printed paper illustration; binding somewhat darkened (especially spine), corners and spine extremities rubbed, a few small spots of discoloration to front and back covers. Front pastedown with pencilled gift inscription, front free endpaper with bookseller's small ticket. Pages clean. A very nice book. (20839)

Binding:  Publisher's very bright blue cloth, front cover with overall oak-and-acorn and geometric pattern stamped in gilt and black, with decorative title and sun vignette, spine similar. All edges gilt.

•  Binding as above, slightly cocked, extremities lightly rubbed; sewing of first signature loosening. Four leaves with short tear in upper margin, not touching text; several more creased across one corner; one page with light smudges, pages otherwise clean. A simultaneously disturbing and amusing look at quack medicine of the 19th century.  (35120)

Neat gift inscription on front free endpaper: “Mollie, with Ada's love. 898.”

•  Publisher's light blue cloth, front cover stamped in silver with images of the Washington Monument and the Capitol; author's name and title of work stamped in in gold within silver cartouches. Light wear to edges of boards and a little spotting; a Very Good copy.  (37010)

Provenance: With a tipped-in, printed slip reading “With the kind regards of The Author.”

•  Publisher's purple cloth, front cover and spine gilt-stamped; spine and edges sunned, back cover with its double layer of cloth partially torn through the top layer (interesting, as to binding structure). Front pastedown with institutional bookplate, preliminary leaf with early inked ownership inscription and pressure-stamp of a religious institution, title-page with small rubber-stamp. Pages clean. (20829)

SPECIAL INTEREST SPOILER ALERT! One character here is revealed as having what we would now call agambling addiction, the presented details of which are timeless . . .

Provenance:  Front free endpaper with inked ownership inscription: “George G. Jayne [/] 1906.”

Binding:  Publisher's straight-grained green cloth, front cover with gilt-stamped title and decorative stylized iris motif, spine similarly gilt-stamped, back cover with blind-stamped publisher's mark.

•  BAL 8694 (state 1).   Binding as above, slightly cocked, mildly rubbed; without the d/j. Inscription as above. Two pages with spots of light staining. A nice copy of an (unusually!) bank-related love story.  (35377)

Despite Hope's having been English and even knighted, this work was apparently never printed in England.

Binding:  Publisher's red cloth, front cover with gilt-stamped title and blind-stamped garden design, spine with gilt-stamped title. Signed binding: Front cover with monogram of a J crowned with E (unidentified designer).

•  Binding as above, cocked, with minimal rubbing to extremities. Front free endpaper with inked gift inscription dated Christmas 1904. A few corners bumped, one torn away. Pages very clean. A bright, pretty copy.  (29132)

•  BAL 9401. Green publisher's cloth, front cover stamped in white and gilt, spine with gilt-stamped title; clean and solid, with only very slight traces of wear to extremities. Front free endpaper with inked owner's name.  (16665)

Binding:  Publisher's green cloth elaborately stamped in gilt on front cover with an overall pattern of torches with bows, surrounding a central cartouche with the title and author in gilt.

•  BAL 9577 (for first edition).   Binding as above, lightly rubbed at base of spine, small area of minor discoloration on spine. Ex–social club library: call number on endpaper, rubber-stamp on title-page, no other markings.  (26805)