Second son of William Booth (Salvation Army founder); commander of army in U.S. (1887-96); after fall-out with father, founded Volunteers of America (1896). TLS, 1p, 8½" X 11", Volunteers of America letterhead, New York, NY, 1903 October 3. Addressed to the editor of the "New York Independent." Good. Faint ink... More
The Union general who gave us "sideburns" experienced victories in East Tennessee and North Carolina and managed to outwit General John Hunt Morgan and his raiders, but defeats in the Battle of Fredericksburg and the Battle of the Crater caused him to resign; he was later elected governor and then... More
This English nobleman (12th Baronet of Stratton Hall) emigrated to America and played cowboy, among other things, before becoming a minister; authored the 1928 memoir "From Cowboy to Pulpit." ALS, 1p, 8½" X 11", ornate Salvation Army Industrial Home letterhead, Chester, PA, 1912 July 4. Addressed to Roddick W. Marten... More
This Union soldier with Company G of the 101st Regiment of Indiana Volunteers was mustered in August 1862 as a private and mustered out as a sergeant in July 1865; in later years he served as a Wells County, Indiana school superintendent and circuit court clerk. Good content ALS, 3pp... More
St. Louis: Imperial Publishing Co. [1891]. Hardcover. 8vo. Brown cloth rebind with gilt spine lettering. 592pp. Frontispiece, numerous full-page illustrations. Very good. Text block moderately age toned as usual, and largely free of the tiny edge chips to which this delicate, low-grade paper is prone; inoffensive stain to power page... More
This influential Ohio politician, judge and educator -- originally from Connecticut and an acquaintance of George Washington -- helped to write and sign that state's Constitution; an ardent Abolitionist, he drafted the Constitution in such a way as to prohibit slavery in Ohio; later a trustee of Ohio University. ADS... More
Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1924. Hardcover. Small 4to. Grey cloth spine with black calf label and green paper over boards. xv, 487pp. Frontispiece, illustrations. Very good. Mild edgewear. Tight and nice first edition of this scarce and influential volume of Blake criticism, which did for interest in Blake what Raymond... More
This American writer authored one bestselling book, the 1917 "Alone in the Caribbean: The Cruise of the 'Yakaboo' in the Lesser Antilles," a nonfiction boating classic, as well as magazine and newspaper stories and articles; a mechanical engineer, he specialized in yacht designs and improvements, some still in use today;... More
This Chicago journalist, essayist and children's poet penned such classics as "Little Boy Blue" and "Wynken, Blynken and Nod." Unsigned AM, 3pp, 7½" X 10" (separate leaves), n.p., n.y. Near fine. This beautifully penned manuscript, in Field's usual incredibly miniscule but highly legible hand, has been superbly bound in full... More
London: Hurst & Blackett, 1913. Hardcover. 8vo. Full tan calf with gilt spine panels, dentelles. viii, 307pp. Top edge gilt. Marbled endpapers. Very good. A bit scuffed at edges. First edition, handsomely bound by Riviere. Not really a travelogue, but -- well, let Fielding-Hall explain it: "It is of the... More
On January 4, 1940 this Brattleboro, Vermont resident became the first U.S. citizen to receive a monthly Social Security check -- $22.54; she only paid in $24.75 to the system, but by the time of her death had collected $22,888.92. Signed First Day Cover, 5½" X 3¼", cancelled in Washington... More
Italian composer whose ten verismo style operas include "Andrea Chenier" (1896), "Fedora" (1898) and "Siberia" (1903). Brief ALS "Umberto" in Italian), 1p, 5" X 6½", n.p., n.y. Addressed to "Alberti." Very good. Minor edgewear. On black-bordered mourning stationery. Not translated, but notes receipt of a telegram and, based on the... More
London: The Bodley Head, [1967]. Hardcover. Small 8vo. Green cloth spine with gilt lettering and green patterned paper over boards, acetate jacket. 188pp. Fine/fine. Lacks the often-absent tissue wrapper. Superbly tight and handsome first edition of this short story collection, limited to 500 numbered copies (this #322) signed by Greene... More
This American Army officer -- one of the most decorated ever -- commanded the First Armored Division in the North African and Italian campaigns of World War Two. IPS, 7" X 10", n.p., n.d. [1973]. Fine. A fine color photograph of Harmon in uniform housed in a photographer's presentation folder... More
Paperback. Chinese composer. Signed pamphlet, "Four Pieces for piano solo" (no publisher or year given), a 16-page small 4to in stiff tan wrappers. Near fine. The front cover, which gives the title in English and also in Chinese characters, is nicely inscribed in English "To Mrs. Trevor Bowen / Best... More
Prolific American playwright, novelist and screenplay writer ("Bride of Frankenstein" 1935, "Imitation of Life" 1934). TMS, 1p, 8½" X 11", n.p., n.y. [dated 1923 February 22 in pencil in another hand]. Very good. Quite mild age toning; four-punched at left margin, not affecting text. Page from "Act I" of Hurlbut's... More
This unusual British politician and writer spurned his upper class upbringing and became the first to expound the ideas of Karl Marx in England; he founded the country's first socialist political party, the Social Democratic Federation, in 1881, and later the National Socialist Party. Good content ALS, 2pp (1st and... More
This legendary R & B tenor hit the charts in the mid-50s with the Drifters and such hits as "Money Honey," "Such a Night" and "Honey Love" before going solo. AQS, 1p, irregularly-trimmed (roughly rectangular) 8" X 4½", n.p., n.d. [January 1958]. Very good. Yellowed tape stain at each corner... More
Thirty-seventh president of the United States. Magazine color IPS, 7" X 10", n.p., n.d. Near fine. Full-page color "Time" magazine portrait from the April 25, 1988 issue, a casual portrait showing Nixon in his study, nicely inscribed at lower left "To Terry & M[?] Ellsworth / With best wishes /... More
New York: International Book Company, n.y. Hardcover. Complete 2-volume set. 12mo. Quarter tan calf with compartments and gilt lettering and marbled paper over boards. xxii, 317pp; ix, 334pp. Frontispieces, map, marbled endpapers and page edges. Very good. Bindings faintly edgeworn, else internally fine -- tight, bright, lovely. Handsome set of... More
Sir John was a Scots-Quebecer politician who held a wide array of influential high-level Canadian positions and later lesser positions in Britain; he was named 1st Baronet Rose in 1872. His son Sir Charles was also a politician, but is better known as a competitive yachtsman, horse breeder and businessman... More
Auto safety pioneer long before Ralph Nader popularized the topic in "Unsafe at Any Speed," this University of Minnesota mechanical engineering professor (1931-63) patented the first retractable safety seat belt in 1963 and the "black box" flight recorder in 1960; he also improved hydraulic bumpers, dashboards and collapsible steering columns... More
Los Angeles: Avenue Entertainment, (1991). Paperback. 4to. Stiff glossy wrappers, clasp-bound. (Ca. 150pp, rectos only). Very good. Internally near fine, though outer wrappers (only) a bit age toned and foxed. Film script for this 1988 novel, signed boldly on the title page by Tolkin (blue fineline) and others named on... More
Springfield: State Journal Steam Press, 1866. Hardcover. Small 4to. Modern green buckram. xvi, 504pp, iii. Frontispiece, Fine/very good. Modern binding is superb, clean and handsome; text block is clean and only ever-so-slightly age toned, with bit of soiling to preliminary leaves; there is the occasional spot of foxing, but the... More