This month, we're featuring a few interesting, unusual, and even rare items related to California.
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06/12/2010
Shelvocke's Voyage Round the World, 1757
A pirate narrative with considerable California interest.
"Shelvocke has the fullest account of California, the natives, and other features, of any of the old voyagers"—Cowan and Cowan
A source for Coleridge's "Rime of the Ancient Mariner"
Shelvocke, Capt. George. A Voyage Round the World, By Way of the Great South Sea: Performed in a Private Expedition During the War, which Broke Out with Spain, in the Year 1718. London: Printed for W. Innys and J. Richardson, M. & T. Longman, 1757. Second edition, "revised and republished by George Shelvocke, Esq."
Octavo. [vi] 476 pages. One folding map, showing California as an island; four plates, two folding. Two of the engravings depict native Californians.
According to Cowan and Cowan (A
Bibliography of the History of California, p. 581-2), "Shelvocke has
the fullest account of California, the natives, and other features, of
any of the old voyagers. Gold-dust was discovered by the party in such
abundance, or so they claimed, that they were 'prejudiced against the
thought that this metal should be so promiscuously and universally
mingled with the common earth,' but the specimens they brought away were
lost." It is also claimed that Shelvocke's account of one of his men
shooting a black albatross off Cape Horn inspired the albatross scene in
Coleridge's "Rime of the Ancient Mariner."
$3,250
Continue reading "Shelvocke's Voyage Round the World, 1757" »
California Constitutional Convention, 1850
Browne, J. Ross. Report of the Debates in the Convention of California, on the Formation of the State Constitution, in September and October, 1849.
Washington: John T. Towers, 1850. 479 [1] xlvi [2] pages.
The end of the Mexican War and Sutter's discovery of gold within a few days of each other in early 1848 led to rapid population growth in the American West and put tremendous pressure on Congress to recognize California as a state in record time.
This record of the convention held in Monterey, California, between September 1 and October 13, 1849, is one of the foundation documents for the State of California. It contains a proclamation of General Bennett Riley, the military governor of California recommending the adoption of a state constitution or the formation of a territorial government, the journal of the proceedings of the convention, a list of the delegates, the Constitution of California, a memorial of US senators and representatives elect of California, a digest of Spanish laws, "supposed to be in existence in California at the time of the adoption of the state constitution," and the official correspondence related to statehood.
Zamorano 80 #11, Cowan and Cowan, Bibliography of the History of California p. 79 ("An exhaustive account of the acts and proceedings of this most remarkable assembly. Browne was the only shorthand reporter in California at that time, and for this work he received $10,000.")
A fine, clean copy, with very little foxing, recently rebound in red buckram with gilt spine titles. [10M]. (#S848)
$200
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Uncommon Gold Rush Narrative, 1851
Shaw, William. Golden Dreams and Waking Realities: Being the Adventures of a Gold-seeker in California and the Pacific Islands
London: Smith, Elder and Co., 1851. First edition. xii, 316 pages, plus 16 pages of ads dated June 1853. (Many copies, particularly rebound volumes, have no ads. The earliest recorded ads that I have found were dated June 1, 1851). Octavo.
Shaw, a British citizen, set sail for California from Australia on the first ship filled with gold seekers from the South Pacific.
"The keen observations vividly told by a Britisher who, like most of his class, professed to suffer from his contact with Californian society. His work is entertaining, and his description of the venerable Mission Dolores is peculiarly edifying, of which he says that 'one wing had a decidedly ecclesiastical appearance, ... the other wing formed a separate establishment, having been converted into a tavern.' He had ample opportunity to observe the places, for from its landlord he received work which lasted some months."—Cowan and Cowan, A Bibliography of the History of California, p 580.
Gary Kurutz, in his gold rush bibliography characterizes Shaw as a "rather uppity Britisher, " but describes his memoir as "one of the finest narratives of the Gold Rush." Shaw "witnessed a bloody battle between mining companies, discrimination against foreign miners, the horrible death of a fellow miner by an insect bite, and poor medical practice."
Once a staple in the Americana trade, this book has grown scarce, with just two appearances at auction in the last 30 years (most recently making $750, in 2005).
Original publisher's cloth decorated in blind, neatly rebacked with the original spine laid down; endpapers renewed. Old ownership signature excised from top of title page (not affecting text). Internally very good.
Rocq 16052. Sabin 79971. Kurutz 572. (#S642)
$600
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Dame Shirley Letters, 1854-55
The Finest First-hand Account of the Gold Rush
[Clappe, Louise Amelia Knapp Smith] Ewer, F. C. The Dame Shirley Letters from California Mines in 1851-52 [in] The Pioneer; or, California Monthly Magazine
San Francisco: W. H. Brooks & Company, 1854-55. First edition. Four volumes containing 24 issues of The Pioneer (all published), bound in four volumes; half polished calf and marbled paper-covered boards. Volume I, Jan. to June, 1854: iv, 384 pages, [terminal blank]; Volume II, July to Dec., 1854: iv, 384 pages; Volume III, Jan. to June, 1855, iv, 384 pages; Volume IV (misnumbered VI), July to Dec., 1855, mispaginated as follows, [i–iii], v, [5], 6-68, [65], 66-384. Title leaf and table of contents bound in at the front of each volume.
One of the scarcer Zamorano 80 titles and, to quote the former California State Librarian and historian Kevin Starr, “arguably the finest first-hand account of the gold rush.”
“A vivid and unexcelled picture of every-day life in the mines.” Howes US-Iana, C427. “Being a cultured woman’s contemporary report of experiences in the gold rush, they are unique.”—Zamorano 80.
“Mrs. Clappe’s vivid, picturesque, and highly appealing sketches of of life in the mining camps of Rich Bar and Indian Bar on the Feather River in 1851 and 1852 have influenced writers from Bret Harte to Wallace Stegner and are regarded as among the most important authentic accounts of the Gold Rush.”—John Howell Books Catalog 50.
$10,000
The Annals of San Francisco, 1855
"A necessary reference book of San Francisco to the middle fifties"
Soulé, Frank; John Gihon, and John Nisbet. The Annals of San Francisco; Containing a Summary of the History of the First Discovery, Settlement, Progress, and Present Condition of California, and a Complete History of All the Important Events Connected with Its Great City: To Which Are Added, Bibliographical Memoirs of Some Prominent Citizens
New York: D. Appleton & Company, 1855. First edition. 8vo. 824 pages.
A classic early history of California. Illustrated with 150 engravings, including two town views, a street plan of San Francisco, a folding map, and four portraits (this conforms to another copy we examined and to the standard bibliographies, none of which note that the portrait of Thomas Larkin, shown on the list of illustrations as facing page 758, was apparently left out of the edition).
The folding map, "General Map Showing the Countries Explored & Surveyed by the United States & Mexican Boundary Commission in the Years 1850, 51, 52 & 53, Under the Direction of John R. Bartlett", is a fine engraved map of the Western United States.
Zamorano 80 #70: "A necessary reference book of San Francisco to the middle fifties, compiled mainly from newspapers and information received from pioneer citizens."
The book has been rebound in a sturdy green buckram binding with new endpapers; the folding map has been professionally laid down on canvas and reinserted into the book. The preliminary pages are soiled from use and worn away at the corners, and many of the plates are foxed. There are two 19th century ownership inscriptions on a front blank, one dated in 1857 in San Francisco. (#E0000102)
$175
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A Guide for Aspiring Homesteaders, 1864
[Homesteading] [Morris, Edmund]. How to Get a Farm, and Where to Find One. Showing that homesteads may be had by those desirous of securing them: With the public law on the subject of free homes, and suggestions from practical farmers; together with numerous successful experiences of others, who, beginning with little or nothing, have become the owners of ample farms by the author of "Ten Acres Enough."
New York: James Miller, 1864. First edition. 345 pages, plus eight pages of ads for book and goods of use to beginning farmers.
A self-help book for Easterners hoping to make it big out west, with a short section specific to the virtues of California: "California may well claim the palm for her horticultural products, and though all her fruits may not equal those of our more northern clime, they certainly surpass them in abundance and size."
The author of this book for aspiring homesteaders is best-known for his memoir of leaving the city to take up small-scale farming, Ten Acres Enough. That book has become a favorite among a new generation of back-to-the-landers and it is currently in print from two publishers (and a host of print-on-demand firms).
After the initial flush of success with that book, Morris authored this guide to profiting from the 1862 Homestead Act, which granted settlers 160 acres of federal land in exchange for improving it. The book describes the Homestead Act and offers advice for getting started, and then surveys the quality of available land throughout the United States, going state by state and region by region. Most of Morris's information comes from published sources. This book was also popular, going through at least four editions by 1872. Morris, it turns out, liked to hand out advice—he also wrote a book on oil speculation in 1865. An uncommon and interesting book.
A very good copy in the original publisher's cloth with some stains to the edges and fading to the gilt title on the spine. [9M]. (#E310)
$150
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The Wonders of the Yosemite Valley, 1872
John Muir's first publication in a book, illustrated with original photographs
[Muir, John] Kneeland, Samuel. The Wonders of the Yosemite Valley, and of California. Boston and New York: Alexander Moore and Lee & Shepard, 1872
Second edition. John Muir's first contribution in a book. [iii-x], xi-xii, 12-79 pages. 10 small, mounted albumen photographs with tissue guards, two maps, three in-text illustrations. Red decorative borders on each page. Mulberry cloth, with the title decoratively stamped in gilt and black on the front board and in blind on the rear cover. All edges gilt.
A combination travelogue of a train journey from Omaha to Yosemite and a natural history of the valley, which is noteworthy for two reasons: the inclusion of ten small albumen photographs and John Muir's first appearance in a book (in chapters added to the second edition—Muir's work did not appear in the first). The albumens, including views of Half Dome, Bridal Veil Falls, and Yosemite Falls, are credited to John Soule, a Boston photographer, and he issued many of them, in slightly smaller form, as stereoviews.
$1,200
Continue reading "The Wonders of the Yosemite Valley, 1872" »
California from the Conquest, 1886
Royce, Josiah. American Commonwealths. California from the Conquest in 1846 to the Second Vigilance Committee in San Francisco: A Study of American Character
Boston and New York: Houghton, Mifflin and Company, 1886. First edition. [vii]-xv, 513 pages, [blank], and six leaves of ads.Folding map of California opposite the title page.
An early and popular history of California. Zamorano 80, no. 66. Howes R487. Cowan, Bibliography of the History of California, page 545: "One of the best authorities upon the events of that decade."
Original olive-green pebbled cloth with gilt titles; top edge gilt. Very good, with light edgewear and a bit of loss at the base of the spine. (#E626)
$125
Sterling's A Wine of Wizardry, 1909. Inscribed twice.
Sterling, George. A Wine of Wizardry and Other Poems
San Francisco: A. M. Robertson, 1909. First edition. 137 pages.
A nicely inscribed copy of this book containing what was, perhaps, Sterling's most well-known poem in his day, "A Wine of Wizardry." The poem first appeared in Cosmopolitan magazine in 1907, accompanied by a hyperbolic note of praise from Ambrose Bierce, "Not in our lifetime has our literature had any new thing of equal length containing so much poetry and so little else." The title poem is a mystical, allusion-laden ode to the wonder of drinking wine and watching the sunset on San Francisco Bay. The poem and Bierce's praise invoked considerable controversy and several parodies.
The San Francisco Examiner, in its editorial pages, took a dim view of the work, "five lines from "A Wine of Wizardry" would drive a man to beat a cripple, and ten lines would send him to the bottom of the river."
This copy wass inscribed in 1923, in Hollywood, three years before Sterling took his own life, and the poet alludes to the controversy: "The fuss made over this fool poem ("W. of W.") almost made me renounce verse-making forever. Ever your friend, George. Hollywood, Oct. 10, 1923." This copy is inscribed a second time on the half-title, "For George. R. Hyde from George A. Sterling." As is usually the case with signed copies of this title, the author also corrected a typographic error on p. 47.
$250
Continue reading "Sterling's A Wine of Wizardry, 1909. Inscribed twice." »
First Overland Wagon Train to California, 1937
Bidwell, John; Herbert Ingram Priestley (introduction). A Journey to California, with Observations about the Country, Climate, and the Route to This Country by John Bidwell. A Day-By-Day Record of the Journey from May 18, 1841, to November 6, 1841
San Francisco: John Henry Nash, 1937. ix, 48 pages.
An account of the first wagon team to come overland to California, in the early 1840s. Bidwell kept a journal, and while stopping at "Bodega, Port of the Russians," he mailed it back to a friend, Elam Brown, in Missouri, where Bidwell had lived. Brown had the diary published in a small pamphlet, of which only one copy survives, at the Bancroft Library.
During the early 20th century, Bidwell's account became a popular subject for reprints. This fine press edition, by one of San Francisco's most popular pressmen, has an introduction by Herbert Priestley, who retraced Bidwell's path across the Sierra Nevadas in the 1930s.
This copy is signed by the printer on the front pastedown.
Wagner-Camp 88, note. Howes B433. Cowan and Cowan, Bibliography of the History of California, p. 51.
A very fine copy in a near fine (one closed tear, a bit of chipping to the top of the spine) stiff-paper dust jacket with a paper spine label. (#S853)
$100
11/30/2009
Dickens' Child History of England
Dickens, Charles
A Child's History of EnglandLondon: Bradbury and Evans, 1852-53-54. First editions, first issues. Three small volumes (squarish 12mos, roughly 6 by 5 inches). Engraved frontispiece in each volume, marbled edges and endpapers.
Volume I: England from the Ancient Times, to the Death of King John.
Volume II: England from the Reign of Henry the Third, to the Reign of Richard the Third.
Volume III: England from the Reign of Henry the Seventh to the Revolution of 1688.
A brief history of England written by Dickens in the early 1850s and originally published between 1851 and 1853 in Household Words, one of the many publications he edited. The three volumes were first issued one per year about Christmastime in 1851, 1852, and 1853 (with copyright dates for the following year, as was usually the case for December publications) and reprinted several times. Complete sets of all three books in their first edition, first issue are relatively uncommon as a result of the staggered publication.
$2,750
Huck Finn First
Twain, Mark [pseudonym of Samuel Clemens].
New York: Charles L. Webster and Company, 1885. First printing, earliest cloth issue. A lovely first edition of what is arguably one of the greatest American novels of the 19th century. Huckleberry Finn has a rather complicated printing history and is found in a variety of states.
Three issue points are now considered as definitively identifying the first printing of the first edition, and this copy includes all three: on page [9], the second subheading of Chapter VI reads "Huck decided," which was later changed to "Huck decides"; on page 13, the illustration "Him and another man" is erroneously listed as being on page 88 (it is actually in page 87), and page 57 reads "with the was" instead of "with the saw."
SOLD
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