American historian, cabinet member and diplomat. ALS, 1p, 4½" X 7", Newport, RI, 1853 November 2. Very good. Minor foxing along top edge; mounting traces on verso. Sends a check for $575 "which please put to my credit in account." Accompanied by a fine carte-de-visite portrait photograph [Gurney & Son..... More
There were quite a few prominent persons named Barber (sometimes spelled Barbur) in Windsor, Connecticut, the first English settlement in Connecticut founded in the early 17th century -- and this promissory note is signed by one and involves another. DS, 1p, 7¼" X 11", Windsor, CT, 1732 February 13. Very..... More
New York: The Macmillan Company, 1939. Hardcover. Drawings by Wilfred Jones. Complete 2-volume set in slipcase. 8vo. Blue cloth with gilt spine lettering, slipcase with paper spine label. 977pp. Small chapter opening wood engravings. Near fine/very good. Early (not first) printing, tight and handsome. Lovely pair of this continuation of..... More
Abraham Lincoln's great-grandson and Robert Todd Lincoln's grandson, second child of Robert's daughter Jessie Lincoln Beckwith (1875-1948); wealthy and reclusive, R.T.L. Beckwith shunned publicity and the spotlight and died without issue -- making him the last living direct Lincoln descendant at the time of his death. Signed envelope, 8 3/4"..... More
Chicago: Keen & Lee, 1856. Hardcover. Small 8vo. Red blind-embossed cloth with gilt spine. 412pp. Frontispiece, engraved title page, 3 full-page plates, foldout color map, front endpaper text. Good plus. Contemporary nonauthorial gift inscription on inner flyleaf; binding slightly edgeworn and spine rather faded and rubbed, extending slightly onto front..... More
New York: Thomas Y. Crowell & Co., [1893]. Hardcover. Biographical sketch by Nathan Haskell Dole. 12mo. Beige cloth spine with gilt lettering and elaborate gilt floral pattern and pale green decorated cloth. li, 384pp. All edges gilt. Tissue-guarded frontispiece + engraved title page. Very good. Faint binding edgewear, else tight..... More
"The Flying Frenchman," a French-born Canadian wrestler who held a number of world titles in the 1950s and '60s; a French underground resistance fighter during World War Two and a member of France's men's gymnastics team at the 1948 Olympics in London, Carpentier brought great gymnastics skills to the ring..... More
Major general in charge of the Department of Maryland and the East; as treasury secretary, he is credited with saying, "If anyone attempts to haul down the American flag, shoot him on the spot!" Printed DS, 1p, 13" X 6¼", New York, NY, n.d. Fine. Stock certificate ("Construction Stock"), never..... More
Jersey City, NJ: Clark Johnson, 1873. Hardcover. 12mo. Light orange cloth with black lettering and rules. 309pp, (1p). Frontispiece, illustrations. Good only. Binding quite rough and edgeworn (especially at spine head and tail) and corner bumped, age toned and scuffed; moderately age toned and foxed internally, though hinges are decently..... More
Chicago: Walter M. Hill, Publisher, [1938]. Hardcover. Illustrations by Mary Lee Gabbert. Small 4to. Blue cloth with blind rules and gilt spine lettering. xiv, 150pp. Illustrations. Very good. Faint edgewear only. A tight and attractive first edition, with gilt bright. Limited to 1000 numbered copies (this #398). Truly a lovely..... More
Thomas Carlyle's close friend and literary executor belonged to the Oxford Movement and wrote controversial novels, but is mainly remembered for his 12-volume "History of England from the Fall of Wolsey to the Defeat of the Spanish Armada" and other histories. Closing portion of ALS, 4½" X 2¼", n.p., n.d...... More
This heavyweight boxing contender is famed for proclaiming "I'll moider da bum" before each bout. ANS, 1p, irregularly-trimmed (roughly rectangular) 7½" X 4" sheet, n.p., n.d. [ca. 1957]. Addressed to "Friend Donald." Very good. Several small tape stains at the margins touching upon several words (including the "to" in "Galento")..... More
French opera composer. Brief ALS in French, 1p, 6" X 4½", n.p. [Paris, France], 1921 June 17. Addressed to A. Dandeld. Very good. Writing on an aerogramme, Georges asks about a Sonia Herma as a possible singer for three fall concerts; complains about the difficulty of finding good singers. More
Chicago: The Lakeside Press, 1929. Hardcover. Small 4to. Green cloth, gilt. xvi, 261pp. Top edge gilt. Frontispiece map, illustrations, 2 maps (one foldout). Very good. Entwined ownership initials inkstamped in blue on title page; owner's red pencilled occasional brief margin comments erased but sometimes faintly visible. Tight, clean and handsome..... More
The Lithuanian-born American violinist was a child prodigy who debuted at age five and is considered one of the great classical violinists of his day. Signed First Day Cover, 6½" X 3½", cancelled in Boston, Massachusetts on 3 December 1969 and with "First Day of Issue" boldly stamped. Single 6-cent..... More
New York: Grosset & Dunlap, [1929]. Hardcover. Illustrations by Bert Salg. Small 8vo. Brown cloth with black spine lettering and black-bordered orange front board lettering, pictorial dust jacket. 198pp, (4pp ads). Frontispiece, 3 full-page plates. Very good/very good. Fainting binding wear only; jacket mildly edgeworn and a tad age toned..... More
This U.S. Army general led the American Division in the Pacific during World War Two and later served as Korean War commander. ALS, 1p, 7¼" X 10½", Fort Bragg, NC, 1949 November 2. Addressed to Mary B. Day. Near fine. Staple holes at upper left, not affecting text. Chatty personal..... More
The star Yankee pitcher of the 1920s and '30s, known as "Schoolboy," became one of the first players to enter sportscasting; elected to the Hall of Fame in 1969. TNS, 1p, 6" X 7", n.p., n.y. Near fine. On his personal imprinted letterhead, Hoyt writes a choice sentiment: "To a...... More
New York: The Century Co., 1930-35. Hardcover. Complete 2-volume set. Foreword by William E. Dodd. Full green pebble-grain morocco with gilt spine lettering and rules, paper-over-board slipcases. x, 493pp; viii, 793pp. Top edges gilt. Tissue-guarded frontispiece, illustrations, foldouts. Fine/very good. Both slipcases slightly worn and faintly scuffed, else strong. Handsome..... More
British artist celebrated for his vibrant paintings of fruit and flowers, though he also produced historical scenes such as the prize-winning "Melancthon's First Misgivings of the Church of Rome"; some credit him with single-handedly reviving interest in still lifes, and no less than J.M.W. Turner called him one of the..... More
AM (unsigned), 19pp (recto and verso), 4 3/4" X 7 3/4", n.p., n.y. [ca. 1870s?]. Very good. Bit of faint age toning and old folds (neither strong nor weakened). Quite attractive and frustratingly cryptic unsigned Autograph Manuscript, two-punched at top and string-tied with original pink ribbon. Fascinating firsthand recollections of..... More
New York: Artabras, [1993]. Hardcover. Folio. Cream cloth with teal blue spine lettering and rules, pictorial dust jacket. Unpaginated (ca. 700pp). Color frontispiece, extensive full-page color illustrations. Near fine/near fine. Jacket spine faintly sunned. Tight and most handsome first of this modern edition -- "The Audubon Society Baby Elephant Folio"..... More
New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1949. Hardcover. Small 4to. Light green cloth with dark green lettering and pictorial stamping, pictorial dust jacket. (31pp). Numerous color illustrations. Near fine/very good. Mild jacket edgewear. A tight and lovely early (not first) printing of this Caldecott Medal winner (1950), with circular gold foil..... More
Chicago: The Caxton Club, 1905. Hardcover. Introduction by Richard Garnett. 4to. Quarter vellum with gilt lettering and tan paper over boards with gilt device. xx, 198pp. Illustrations, rubricated capitals. Very good. Mild binding edgewear, with endpapers faintly foxed. A tight and nice first edition, limited to 252 copies. Front pastedown..... More