
AMERICANA
AFTER 1820
A-B Bibles C D-E F-G H I-K
L M
N-Pd Pe-Sa Sb-Sz T-V W-Z
[
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Inscribed by the Author Housed in a
Spine-Gilt-Extra Slipcase
Tarkington, Booth. Monsieur Beaucaire. New York: McClure, Phillips & Co., 1900. 8vo (19.8 cm, 7.75"). 3–127 pp.; 6 plts.
$250.00
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First edition, first issue and inscribed by the Pulitzer Prize–winning Hoosier author: a short novel about a mysterious French gambler in 18th-century Bath, Monsieur Beaucaire, who has a reputation for honesty. When he threatens to reveal the Duke of Winterset’s cheating, he trades his silence for an introduction to the beautiful Lady Mary Carlisle; after many complications his true royal rank is eventually revealed.
Booth Tarkington (1869–1946) is one of just three writers to receive more than one Pulitzer Prize in fiction. Immensely prolific and popular, he was known for his quintessentially Midwestern fiction; Monsieur Beaucaire, set notably far from the American heartland, was his second published work.
This first edition was
inscribed by the author on the front flyleaf: “’And live men are jus’ — names!’ said M. Beaucaire. Booth Tarkington, Kennebunkport, Oct. 17, 1940.” (Tarkington spent much of his later life in Kennebunkport, ME.)
The novel is
illustrated with six plates (including a frontispiece) by C.D. Williams, printed in violet with dark green frames and and all having tissue guards. The other decorations in the book were designed by Charles Edwin Hooper.
Binding: Publisher’s red cloth with gilt lettering and decoration to spine and front board; illustrated endpapers and top edge gilt. Housed in a chemise within quarter red morocco openback slipcase with five raised bands, gilt lettering and decoration to spine.
Wright, III, 5370; Merle Johnson, p. 489; Russo & Sullivan, pp. 6–9. Bound as above; corners slightly bumped, slipcase edges lightly rubbed. Very minor gutter crack at p. 44 and a more notable one at p. 62, without affecting strength of binding. Charmingly cased and signed by its celebrated author, a nice copy
attractive and smart. (37920)

Ultra-Patriotic Verse Tribute to the
Spirit of America
Taylor, Bayard. The national ode. The memorial freedom poem. Boston: William F. Gill & Co., 1877 (copyright 1876). 8vo (22 cm, 8.7"). Frontis., 744 pp.; illus.
$125.00
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“The Memorial Freedom Poem, which may be fittingly termed the poem of the centennial year, was written for the celebration of the one hundredth anniversary of the birth of American Independence” (p. 5). This is the first edition standard book-form printing, it having been preceded by a heliotype facsimile of Taylor's manuscript in 1876, following the piece's smashing success at the festivities in Philadelphia. Electrotyped by Smith & McDougal and printed by Filmer & Class, the volume is illustrated with
more than 70 engravings done by a variety of hands, including at least one woman.
Provenance: Front free endpaper (now separated) with bookplate of Dr. Martin J. Loeb, a prominent New York physician and philanthropist, with an explanatory “Legend of the Bookplate” label affixed to opposing fly-leaf.
BAL 19807. Publisher's brown morocco, bevelled boards, covers framed in decorative blind rolls, spine with raised band and gilt-stamped title, turn-ins with gilt roll; light wear overall with extremities rubbed and spine title dimmed. All edges gilt. BAL binding C, the others being cloth. Front free endpaper (with bookplate) separated; back pastedown with small (upside-down!) numerical paper label. Foxing, as the paper is inclined to it, and a little soiling; a “decent” copy. (40360)

Highlights of the New World
for
Youthful Edification & Entertainment
Taylor, Isaac. Scenes in America, for the amusement and instruction of little tarry-at-home travellers. London: J. Harris & Son (pr. by H. Bryer), 1821. 12mo (17 cm, 6.69"). viii, 122, [2 (adv.)] pp.; fold. map, 28 plts.
$425.00
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First edition: a view of the Americas intended to engage juvenile readers. These scenes were written and illustrated by the Rev. Isaac Taylor (1759–1829), a nonconformist minister who, like his father, was an accomplished engraver. The stories — and accounts of creatures such as beavers and rattlesnakes — come from South, Central, and North America, including items from Mexico, Canada, and Patagonia; strong abolitionist themes are notable, and sympathy for indigenous peoples abused by conquering invaders, although also present are underlying assumptions that English ways are sanest and most logical. The text is
illustrated with 28 copper-engraved plates laid out in double-page spreads, each side of the opening with three images, as issued uncolored in this copy.
Provenance: Half-title with inked inscription of M.A. Nelson, dated 1821; most recently in the children's book collection of Albert A. Howard, small booklabel (“AHA”) at rear.
Osborne Collection, p. 190; Opie H 140; Gumuchian 5535; Sabin 94469. Publisher's printed tan paper–covered sides with red roan shelfback, hinges (inside) tender; sides dust-darkened, spine and extremities rubbed with leather chipped and cracking. Interior with expectable age-toning and foxing/spotting, and title-page with some offsetting from map; map in good sturdy condition.
Overall a very reasonable, indeed attractive copy of this first edition. (41180)

The La Crosse Morning Leader's Leader Speaks
Taylor, Lute A. Lute Taylor's chip basket; being choice selections from the lectures, essays, addresses, editorials, and public and social correspondence. Hudson, WI: Star & Times Printing House, 1874. 8vo (17.4 cm, 6.75"). Frontis., 218 pp.
$40.00
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First edition: Collected writings of a beloved Wisconsin newspaperman (and stutterer, who writes with good humor about that here). A steel-engraved portrait of the author opens the volume.
Binding: Publisher's green cloth, covers framed in blind, front cover with gilt-stamped decorative title and basket vignette, spine with gilt-stamped author and title.
Light wear only to joints and extremities, cloth showing small spots of faint discoloration. Front free endpaper with pencilled ownership inscription dated 1910, front fly-leaf with same owner's inked inscription. Pages gently age-toned, otherwise clean. (30499)
Much
FUNEREAL Detail . . .
(Taylor, Zachary). Obituary addresses delivered on the occasion of the death of Zachary Taylor, president of the United States, in the Senate and House of Representatives, July 10, 1850; with the funeral sermon by the Rev. Smith Pyne, D.D. rector of St. John's church, Washington, preached in the presidential mansion, July 13, 1850. Washington: William M. Belt, 1850. 8vo. Frontis., 107, [5 (blank)] pp.
$90.00
Zachary Taylor's sudden death (possibly from eating a bowl of bad cherries) was a shock to the nation. His funeral took place in Washington on July 12th, 1850, with an estimated 100,000 people attending the funeral procession. The presidential hearse was drawn by eight white horses accompanied by grooms dressed in white and wearing white turbans. Behind the hearse were military units, pall-bearers (drawn from the ranks of Congress, the military, and the Supreme Court), the president's beloved horse "Old Whitey," his family, and a long line of citizens. The procession stretched over two miles. This book has a detailed account of the procession as well as speeches by many Washington dignitaries
Not in Sabin. Quarter buckram over paper-covered sides. Without the original mourning wrappers. "Mercantile Library Co." blind-stamped on both sides. Paper call number label on spine. Edges and corners worn, tips of spine pulled, with loss. Ownership signature on front fly leaf, and charge pocket and card on rear free endpaper. Dog-eared. (3722)

Childhood Amusements & Lessons — Charming & Intricate Illustration
Teller, Thomas [pseud. of George Tuttle?]; Purcell, Edward B., illus. A parent's offering; or my mother's story of her own home and childhood. New Haven: S. Babcock, [1845]. 16mo (13.7 cm, 5.4"). 64 pp.; 8 plts. (incl. in pagination).
[SOLD]
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From “Teller's Amusing, Instructive, and Entertaining Tales” series, the
first edition of this sweet story of domestic life in which seven children grow up in a country house in Connecticut, learning appropriate lessons and writing letters to one another via their in-house “post office.” Set near New Haven, CT, this chapbook was also printed there, and bears a wood-engraved vignette of the
New Haven Green (done by Lossino) on the title-page; it is
illustrated with eight plates with central designs of family members at lessons or play both indoors and out, each surrounded by a complex frame composed of variable small renderings of amusements and equipment representing (only “for example”) archery, marbles, fishing, swinging, stilt-walking, boating, kite flying, jump-rope, tug-of-war, bubble-blowing, and — these last showing multiple games or exercises — gymnastics, hoops, and racquet sports including(??) lacrosse. The cover illustration is signed E[dward B.] Purcell.
This story is told by a girl narrator; Mamma is the family botanist and its general natural historian, while handsome Papa takes care of the children's chemistry lessons and presents entertaining experiments with his “electrical machine.”
American Imprints 45-6531. Publisher's charmingly printed tan paper wrappers; corners rubbed, sides with light staining, spine paper chipped. Plates age-toned; pages with light to moderate foxing and staining.
This was not a “luxury” production but it was quite a nice one — appealing both textually and visually. (41445)
Tennyson, Alfred Tennyson, Baron. Maud, and other poems. Boston: Ticknor & Fields, 1856. 8vo (18.7 cm, 7.4"). 160, [2 (blank)], 12 (adv.) pp.
$100.00
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Second U.S. edition: The first volume of Tennyson’s verse that was published. after his acceptance of the poet-laureateship.
Publisher’s cloth, covers blind-stamped, spine with gilt-stamped title; binding lightly scuffed overall, spine with extremities worn and one compartment gently faded, back joint with small ink blotch and corner of front cover with traces of old adhesion, as a sticker. Front pastedown with private collector’s bookplate and institutional bookplate, front free endpaper with inked ownership inscription dated 1859, title-page verso stamped (no other markings). Pages slightly age-toned. (19078)

ON AMERICAN GIFT BOOKS
A Useful & Attractive Paperback
Tepper, Michael. American gift books & literary annuals: An annotated catalog. [Easton, MD: Michael Tepper], copyright 2016. 8vo (25 cm; 9.5"). 215 pp., illus. (some color).
$35.00
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The second edition (first was 2015) of a very good catalogue of this genre of 19th-century books, chiefly based on the author's large private collection: “This is a catalog of a large, privately held collection” (back cover). “The second edition contains additions and corrections and adds over 100 titles to the collection” (p. 15).
We've added a copy to our permanent reference library here at PRB&M: This includes collations and useful commentary.
Paperback with full color illustrations.
A very good reference work. (36706)

Starting with, “How First Love May Interrupt Breakfast”
Thackeray, William Makepeace. The history of Pendennis. New York: Harper & Brothers, [1849]. 8vo (23.5 cm, 9.25"). [10]–104 pp.; illus.
$125.00
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>First number of the first U.S. edition of this charming, humorous Bildungsroman, here in the publisher's original wrappers. 16 in-text wood engravings adorn the text; like the illustration on the front wrapper here, they are based on the
originals done by Thackeray himself. The front wrapper states “To be completed in seven numbers,” although in actuality it took eight. A nice example of a “part” of a book issued in parts.
Publisher's printed paper wrappers; wrappers darkened with corners bumped, front wrapper with small ink spots, short edge tears, and faint rings of discoloration. Faint intermittent foxing with one signature (only) more notably age-toned.; final leaf with portion torn out of outer margin, not touching text.
A pleasing touchstone for Victorian literature and its “production.” (33259)
Thackeray, William Makepeace. Vanity Fair. A novel without a hero. New York: Harper & Brothers, 1848. 8vo (23.8 cm, 9.3"). Add. engr. t.-p., 332 pp.; 31 plts.
$750.00
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First U.S. edition of Thackeray’s first great literary success. This classic Victorian novel, illustrated with the author’s own designs, had originally appeared in London in serialized form commencing the year before this publication.
NCBEL, III, 857. Contemporary half goat with marbled paper–covered sides, spine with gilt-stamped leather title label; binding worn and rubbed, but sturdy. Title-page with early inked ownership inscription. Front free endpaper excised, back free endpaper torn. Pages with scattered light pencil markings and some spots of mild foxing, with most of the plates browned. (8294)

Humor, Pathos, Redemption & Local MID-WEST Color
Thanet, Octave (i.e., Alice French). The missionary sheriff; being incidents in the life of a plain man who tried to do his duty. New York: Harper & Brothers, 1897. Small 8vo (19 cm; 7.5"). [3] ff., 248 pp., frontis., 14 plates.
$45.00
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Thanet (1850–1934) was the nom-de-plume of Alice French, a granddaughter of Massachusetts Governor Marcus Morton. She was a novelist and short story writer who at the age of six moved with her family to Davenport, Iowa; however, she was educated in New England and at Vassar, returning to live in Iowa and summering in Arkansas, both states providing her with settings and dialects for her writings.
The present work is a series of short stories (“The Missionary Sheriff,” “The Cabinet Organ,” “His Duty,” “The Hypnotist,” “The Next Room,” and “The Defeat of Amos Wickliff”) set in Iowa The black and white illustrations are by A.B. Frost and Clifford Carleton.
Binding: Publisher's blue-gray cloth stamped in white with an overall pattern of an exuberant vine hiding the repeating image of an eagle with a palm branch in one talon and arrows in the other. Title and author in gilt on cover and on spine.
Wright, III, 2046. Binding as above, very bright and nice; without the dust jacket. Very good condition. (34607)

“Exact Portraitures of the
Very Peculiarities of Temper That Are
Every Day Passing under Our Own Observation”
American Edition, Uncredited
Theophrastus. The characters of Theophrastus; illustrated by physionomical sketches. Boston: Frederic S. Hill (stereotyped by Jenkins & Greenough), 1831. 12mo (16.9 cm, 6.7"). xiv, 64 pp.; 31 plts.
$100.00
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The earliest surviving character studies, translated from the original Greek into English. This appears to be an unauthorized American reprinting of the 1824 London edition attributed to “Francis Howell” but actually done by artist and theologian Isaac Taylor; Taylor's preface (signed “T”) appears here but his appended commentary on human nature does not, and his
31 wood engravings — a bust of Theophrastus and 30 caricatures — have been recut.
Evidence of Readership: One sketch in this copy bears a pencilled identification (“The Dissembler” = Dr. Baker); in addition, many of the images have been traced in pencil on the reverse of their plates.
American Imprints 9398. Contemporary tan paper–covered boards with brown cloth shelfback; cloth worn, paper lost over rear board and wrinkled/chipped on front board. Front pastedown and free endpaper with early inked and pencilled inscriptions; tracing and annotation as above. Pages age-toned; one plate with upper portion excised, just shaving top of image.
A quirky copy of a quirky work. (36683)

“The Bat . . . Is a Murderous Plaything”
“Thine, Bawlingly.” Something for the admirers of base ball. New York: Glenn Horowitz, 1990. 16mo (21.5 cm, 8.5"). 12, [4] pp.; illus.
$125.00
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Dedicated to the memory of Bart Giamatti and reprinted from the Salem Register of 15 August 1867: a comic account of the trials and tribulations of the game of baseball in its formative years. This is one of 150 copies printed at the Kelly/Winterton Press.
Publisher's paper wrappers.
A fresh, clean copy. (37134)

Dispatches from the Frontier
Thorpe, Thomas Bangs. Our army on the Rio Grande. Being a short account of the important events transpiring from the time of the removal of the “Army of Occupation” from Corpus Christi, to the surrender of Matamoros; with descriptions of the battles of Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma, the bombardment of Fort Brown, and the ceremonies of the surrender of Matamoros: with descriptions of the city, etc. etc. Philadelphia: Carey and Hart, 1846. 8vo (17.7 cm, 7"). [2] ff., ix, [10]–300 pp.; 9 pls.
$450.00
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Detailed descriptions of travel, battle, and business with Mexico form a captivating narrative in this edition illustrated with
nine full-page wood-engraved plates by Gilbert and Gihon (counting the frontispiece), and
17 engravings in text, including one full-page plan of Matamoros, Fort Brown, and environs.
This copy has the officers'
official reports (pp. 197–300), sometimes lacking.
Howes T-236; Sabin 95665; Basic Texas Books 205. Recently rebound in glazed black moiré cloth, title gilt on leather spine label, edges lightly speckled brown. Ex-library with pressure-stamps on added illustrated title-page and title-page; no other markings. Browning at edges throughout and light cockling from sometime damp on all leaves; brown-liquid spatters not impairing reading on ten or so pages. Only a “good” copy and so priced, this gives a fine glimpse of Mexico at the onset of the
Mexican-American War. (26481)

With
TWO Wood-Engraved Plates
[True, Charles Kittredge]. Tri-mountain; or, the early history of Boston. Boston: Pub. by Heath & Graves, [© 1845]. 12mo (6 inches, 15.5 cm). Frontis., 136 pp. (pp. [7 & 8, & 130] blank; number 131 & 132 not used in pagination), plt., [4 (ads)] ff.
$80.00
Originally published in 1845 under the title Shawmut, or, the Settlement of Boston by the Puritan Pilgrims. This edition of this history of the Pilgrims and their era in Boston was almost certainly printed ca. 185055 (based on the binding); it bears a wood-engraved frontispiece and a wood-engraved plate ("Sanctity of Conscience").
Sabin 97079. Publisher's blind stamped charcoal gray cloth with a grain to it; spine stamped and lettered in gilt. Cloth a little bubbled on the boards, with spots of discoloration. Top and bottom of spine pulled. Faint traces of waterstaining at top of some pages and a few other, stray stains. An “okay” copy. (8005)

American WINE & More 1867
United States. Department of Agriculture. Report of the Commissioner of Agriculture for the year 1867. Washington: Government Printing Office, 1868. 8vo (23.5 cm; 9.25"). xix, [1], 512 pp., XXXVII plates; illus.
$225.00
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A presentation copy of Acting Commissioner John W. Stokes' report to Congress for the year 1867. The report includes reports and research on a variety of crops and domestic animals; steam and other cultivation, and rural construction; patents; agricultural clubs, schools, associations; also climate and meteorology. The authors include Thomas Antisell (chemist of the
department), Thomas Glover (entomologist), F.R. Elliott (on hardy fruit, especially apples), Walter W.W. Bowie (on tobacco), and Mrs. Ellen S. Tupper (winter bee keeping), to single out a
few.
Freethinker George Husmann (of Herman, Missouri) provided this cataloguer's favorite report, “American Wine and Wine Making.”
The excellent plates are divided between steel and wood engravings, with additional wood-engraved illustrations in some texts.
The presenter of the volume was R.T. McLain, chief clerk of the Department of Agriculture; the Hon. J. Gregory Smith, the recipient, was the president of the Northern Pacific Railroad Company.
Binding: A presentation binding of black morocco over boards with slightly bevelled edges. Covers with a gilt triple fillet border and a gilt floral vine inner “border.” Recipient's name in gilt in center of front board. Round spine, raised bands, gilt spine extra; gilt roll on board edges, different gilt roll on turn-ins. Pink endpapers of a textured paper, printed with an overall pattern of small gilt interlocking circles. Green silk place marker. All edges gilt.
A very nice example of a mid-19th-century presentation binding.
Binding as above, lightly rubbed at the joints (outside) and board edges. McLain's presentation card pasted to front pastedown, above Smith's bookplate.
A very good copy of a book that is, as we say here, “interesting for more than one reason.” (35244)
United States. House of Representatives. Committee on Naval Affairs. Contract for coal...May 24, 1860. Mr. Morse, from the Committee on Naval Affairs, made the following report. The Committee on Naval Affairs, to whom was referred so much of the annual report of the Secretary of the Navy as relates to a "conditional contract" made by him for the purpose of securing a supply of coal for the use of the navy, and other privileges in the Republic of New Granada, report as follows...." [Washington, D.C., 1860]. 2 parts in 1 vol. 79 pp., 3 large fold. maps; 15 pp.
$145.00
Steam-powered naval vessels of the 19th-century needed coal and lots of it. The U.S. Secretary of the Navy sought to obtain a reliable and abundant supply for the Pacific and Caribbean fleets through a contract with the Chiriqui Improvement Company of Nueva Granada; coal from the Chiriqui region of what is now Panama was to be extracted and transported for the navy's use to two ports, one on the Caribbean coast and one on the Pacific. Present here are the majority and minority reports of the House Committee on Naval Affairs. They are detailed and informative and include three highly important maps of the Chiriqui region. Very Good condition, in recent wrappers. (7771)
For more of MILITARY/NAVAL interest, click here.

Mutiny at Buena Vista?
United States. President. 1845-1849. Message from the President...relative to an alleged mutiny at Buena Vista.... U.S. 30th Congress, 1st session, 1848. Sen. Exec. Doc. No. 62. [Washington: 1848]. 8vo. 214 pp.
$150.00
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The full proceedings of a court of inquiry held at Saltillo, Mexico, from January to April 1848, investigating a mutiny that occurred among American forces stationed at Buena Vista in August 1847 during the Mexican American War. The court exonerates Col. Robert T. Paine, who was the focus of the mutiny and who killed one soldier and wounded another in overcoming the mutineers.
The depositions here offer a view of “ordinary” military life that is full of specifics, as well as accounts of moments of high excitement.
Sewn as issued; in later plain wrappers. Some dust-soiling and light foxing. (3303)

The
O'Gallala Trade Warfare for Farming?
United States. Treaties, etc. 1865–1869 Johnson. Treaty between the United States of America and the O'Gallala band of Dakota or Sioux Indians. Concluded October 28, 1865. Ratification advised, with amendment, March 5, 1866. Proclaimed March 17, 1866. [Washington: publisher not identified, 1866]. Folio (29.6 cm; 11.625"). 6, [2] pp.
$650.00
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Printed version of the treaty between the United States government and the Oglala Lakota signed in print by Newton Edmunds (governor of the Dakota Territory), Edward B. Taylor (superintendent of Indian affairs for the northern superintendency), Gen. H.H. Sibley, Tan-tan-ka-has-ka (Chief Long Bull), Ma-lo-wa-ta-khe (The Charging Bear), Pa-ha-to-ne-je (The Man that Stands on a Hill), and others at Fort Sully, Dakota Territory, on 28 October 1865.
The treaty states that the United States will pay each family thirty dollars annually for twenty years for their decisions to “withdraw from the route overland already established,” ceasing all warfare with other groups, and to settle future disputes by using the president as an arbitrator. The government promises that it will provide protection from “annoyance or molestation on the part of whites or Indians” should members of the group settle permanently to engage in agricultural pursuits, and offers further incentives for their doing so.
It was ratified 5 March 1866 and later proclaimed by President Johnson on March 17.
Eberstadt 130. Folded sheets, light age-toning, gently chipped along edges; light pencilling on upper margin of title-page. (36650)

“A Treaty Was Made & Concluded at Fort Sully”
United States. Treaties, etc. 1865–1869 Johnson. Treaty between the United States of America and
the Sans Arcs band of Dakota or Sioux Indians. Concluded October 20, 1865. Ratification advised, with amendment March 5, 1866. Proclaimed March 17, 1866. [Washington: publisher not identified, 1866]. Folio (31.4 cm; 12.375"). 6, [2] pp.
$600.00
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Printed version of the treaty between the United States government and the Sans Arc Lakota signed by Newton Edmunds (governor of the Dakota Territory), Edward B. Taylor (superintendent of Indian affairs for the northern superintendency), Gen. H.H. Sibley, Wah-mun-dee-o-pee-doo-tah (The War Eagle with the Red Tail), Cha-tau-'hne (Yellow Hawk), Shon-kah-we-te-ko (The Fool Dog), and others at Fort Sully, Dakota Territory, on 20 October 1865.
The treaty states that the United States will pay each family thirty dollars annually for twenty years for their decisions to “withdraw from the route overland already established,” ceasing all warfare with other groups, and to settle future disputes by using the president as an arbitrator. The government promises that it will provide protection from “annoyance or molestation on the part of whites or Indians” should members of the group settle permanently to engage in agricultural pursuits, and offers further incentives for their doing so.
It was ratified 5 March 1866 and later proclaimed by President Johnson on March 17.
Eberstadt 130. Folded sheets, light age-toning, gentle chipping along edges; light pencilling on upper margin of title-page, bottom corner of same chipped away. (36651)

ANOTHER KIND of
“Student Social Activism” @ Berkeley —
Hey, Gang! Let's Build a Fountain!
University of California magazine. Under the Berkeley Oaks. Stories by students of the University of California; selected and edited by the editorial staff of the University of California magazine. San Francisco: A.M. Robertson, 1901, ©1900. 12mo (19 cm, 7.25"). Frontis., [2] ff., 227, [1] pp.
$110.00
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Not many student publications are listed in the Bibliography of American Literature, but this one is. And that is because the lead-off entry in this anthology of stories is Frank Norris' “Travis Hallett's Half-back.” Norris (1870–1902) was class of '94.
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)

When Undergrads Could Understand & Translate Demotic
When It Could Seem Sensible to Them to Produce a WHOLE BOOK by Lithography
. . . *&* with CHROMOLITHOGRAPHY Plentifully Present . . .
University of Pennsylvania. Philomathean Society (Henry Morton, Charles R. Hale, Samuel Huntington Jones). Report of the committee appointed by the Philomathean Society of the University of Pennsylvania to translate the inscription on the Rosetta Stone. [Philadelphia: The Philomathean Society], copyright 1859. Small 4to (23 cm; 9"). 152 pp., [4] ff., 6 plates. [also bound in] Catalogue of members of the Philomathean Society ... Philadelphia: Ringwalt & Co, 1859. Small 4to. 24 pp.; and tipped-in lithographed copyright notice.
$1100.00
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Probably the most famous
American all-lithographed book of the 19th century, with
chromolithographic illustrations and embellishments that lavishly enhance the whole. In his already classic study of 19th-century American color plate books, Stamped with a National Character, William Reese writes of this work: “The first full translation of the Rosetta Stone, undertaken by three members of the University of Pennsylvania . . . [student body], provided the basis for a notable display of chromolithographic book illustration by the Philadelphia lithographer, Louis Rosenthal. The entire book was lithographed, presumably to better accommodate the hieroglyphs, but Rosenthal went far beyond necessity. He created hundreds of crude but exuberant chromolithographs intermingled with the text, showing scenes from Egyptian life or elaborate borders in quasi-Egyptian motifs. It is one of the few American books printed entirely by lithography” (p. 99).
The genesis of the work was the arrival at the Philomatheans' building of a donated cast of the Rosetta Stone. Three Philomatheans — Henry Morton, Charles R. Hale, and Samuel Huntington Jones — worked out a plan to translate the stone and produce the book here offered. Hale undertook to transcribe and translated the Greek and Demotic texts, Jones produced the historical introduction, and Morton supplied the hieroglyphic inscriptions, drawings, and other illustrations. The first edition of the finished work appeared just before Christmas, 1858, in an edition of 400 copies and sold out immediately.
In late January 1859, the Society wished to print a second edition of 600 copies; but because no lithographic establishment could afford not to reuse lithographic stones, all stones save those for the last 20 or so pages of their work had been ground down. Thus in the second edition, i.e., the edition offered here, the artistic embellishments are “largely a new work,” in the words of Randolph G. Adams (“The Rosetta Stone,” in Bibliographical Essays, A Tribute to Wilberforce Eames, p. 234).
In some very few copies of this second edition, p. 6 bears the signatures of the three Philomatheans who produced the book. This is, unfortunately, not one of those few, hence the lower price. But this copy does have the oft-missing copyright notice at the rear.
Reese, Stamped with a National Character, 91; Bennett, American Color Plate Books, p. 93. On the story of the production of the book and for a chart showing which pages of the second edition are restrikes from the first, see: Randolph G. Adams, “The Rosetta Stone,” in Bibliographical Essays, A Tribute to Wilberforce Eames, pp. 227–40. Publisher's dark green cloth, covers stamped in blind with a gilt center device of a sphynx; spine also stamped in blind but with two gilt-stamped vertical lozenges and the title in gilt. About six small areas of loss of cloth on spine or board, some probably silverfish damage. Bookseller's description of a different copy pasted to rear pastedown. A good++ copy well worth having. (35384)

“Just the Facts, Sir” — Just before Those 20's Began to “Roar”
Van Dyke, James Edward. The investor's pocket manual. New York: The Financial Press, 1921. 16mo (15.5 cm, 6.1"). 272 pp.
$500.00
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Vol. XIII, no. 4 (May, 1921) of a monthly publication offering “current statistics, records and high and low prices of stocks and bonds of railroad, industrial, and mining corporations, also grain, cotton, coffee and provisions.” The publisher advertised in contemporary magazines that copies of this “real help to investors” would be “furnished FREE by any investment house . . . on request,” and the front wrapper of the present example identifies it as coming from Kurtz Brothers Bankers and Brokers at 1421 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA. There is a great deal here on the structure and value of many, many individual companies.
These ephemeral guidebooks are not widely institutionally held in the U.S., although a different, quarterly publication of the same title (published by E.A. Pierce & Co.) appears to be somewhat more common.
Publisher's printed yellow paper wrappers; creased and lightly soiled, with inked date on spine and pencilled annotations on back wrapper. Text block just starting to pull away from wrappers. Pages age-toned; three leaves separated.
A useful snapshot of the American economy in the spring of 1921. (37198)

The Title Says It All
Various Hands. A paradise of daintie devices. A collection of poems, songs, ballads. New York: Imprinted [by the Press of Francis Hart & Co.] for Charles Pratt & Co., Christmas, 1882. 8vo (20.6 cm; 8.125"). [6], 9–97, [7] pp.
$125.00
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Promotional gift book created by Charles Pratt & Co. for “patrons of ours already, or shall become such hereafter” to celebrate the Christmas season (p. [5]). The text contains a variety of poems and songs — some about Christmas, some not — from Longfellow, Robert Burns, Edmund Clarence Stedman, Keats, and more. A surprising number of poems discuss death, and one from the Cottonian MS. beseeches women not to be “wilful wives.”
Following the poetry section there is a series of advertisements for products such as Pratt's Astral Oil and double-deodorized benzine. This is an interesting, attractive little relic of an era when manufacturers of such humble products sought surprisingly often to associate themselves with Much Higher Things — often going to real trouble and expense to do so!
Beige printed wrappers with “1888" written on the front cover in ink and a small pink stain at top edge; light age-toning. (36736)

Wise, WARM Advice to a
Young Philadelphia Woman
V[aux], R[oberts]. Autograph Sentiment Signed (with initials) for Isabella Walsh. [Philadelphia]: 18 January 1828. Small 4to. 1 p.
$75.00
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Inscribed on a page of Walsh's autograph album is this wonderful sentiment and advice:
“The affectionate interest which I have always entertained for the welfare & happiness, of the eldest daughter, & proper representative, of one of the most estimable, and accomplished ladies who ever adorned the society of Philadelphia, induces me to comply with a request of the possessor of this volume, to inscribe some lines upon one of its pages.
It were impossible to contribute wiser counsel, or more excellent lessons, than those already recorded in this Album, by her honoured Father, & several of his, & her Mothers [sic] friends.
I will only commend her to the most faithful observation of that advice, and to the strictest imitation of the pure & bright example, furnished in the character of her departed & lamented Mother, whose unostentation piety, gave especial grace & dignity to her life, and has no doubt yielded for her immortal spirit, a precious & enduring rest, in Heaven.”
Vaux was a noted lawyer, philanthropist, abolitionist, and civic leader. Miss Walsh (b. 8 July 1812) was the daughter of Robert Walsh (lawyer and abolitionist) and Anna Maria Moylan Walsh (who died in 1826).
Provenance: The Walsh album sold at Anderson Galleries 28 November 1921 (sale 1609) as lot 60. Later in the Allyn K. Ford Collection, Minnesota Historical Society, recently deaccessioned.
Very good condition. (34490)

Kennebunkport Church Cookery
Village Baptist Church (Kennebunkport, ME). Ladies' Guild. Cook book. Kennebunkport, ME: Published by Village Baptist Church Kennebunkport Maine [at the Press of Arundel], [1948]. 8vo (23 cm, 9"). 56, [24 (adv.)] pp. (some pagination out of sequence).
$75.00
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Uncommon fund-raising cookbook, printed in “an edition of 1000 from the press of Arundel for the Village Baptist Church”; date of publication is supplied by the New York Public Library. This copy includes a number of laid-in manuscript and printed recipes, including a handwritten recipe for cranberry coffee cake, an advertising item from Swanson with recipes for “Oriental Chicken” and other dishes, a recipe pamphlet from Purity Supreme, instructions for the “Energy Miser Original Potato Baker,” a Dover Farms whipped topping lid with recipe for apple crisp, an envelope with handwritten notes on rhubarb bread (with the original letter still inside, acknowledging the recipient for donating equipment to a project known as “Camp Waban for Retarded Citizens”), etc.
WorldCat locates only one library reporting ownership (NYPL).
Not in Brown, Culinary Americana. Publisher's printed yellow paper wrappers, stapled as issued; spine and edges rubbed, moderately worn overall, front wrapper with scuff and old crease, back wrapper with small spots of staining. Inside a few scattered spots only, pages mostly clean.
Seldom-seen ephemeral Maine church cookery, this example with extra interest for its lay-ins. (38089)
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