96 American Manuscripts

catalogue two hundred ninety-two

William Reese Company 409 Temple Street New Haven, CT 06511 (203) 789-8081 A Note This catalogue is made up or manuscripts relating to the history of the Americas from the conquistadors, with the narrative of Domingo de Irala in South America in 1555, to a manuscript of “America the Beautiful” at the end of the 19th century. Included are letters, sketchbooks, ledgers, plat maps, requisition forms, drafts of government documents, memoirs, diaries, depositions, inventories, muster rolls, lecture notes, completed forms, family archives, and speeches. There is a magnificent Stephen Austin letter about the Texas Revolution, a certified copy of Amendment XII to the Constitution, and a host of other interesting material.

Available on request or via our website are our recent catalogues 282, Recent Acquisitions in Americana; 283, American Presidents; 285, The English Colonies in North America 1590- 1763; 287, Western Americana; 288, The Ordeal of the Union; 290, The American Revolution 1765-1783; and 291, The United States Navy, as well as Bulletin 21, American Cartog- raphy; Bulletin 22, Evidence; Bulletin 24, Provenance; Bulletin 25, American Broadsides, and many more topical lists.

Some of our catalogues, as well as some recent topical lists, are now posted on the Internet at www.reeseco.com. A portion of our stock may be viewed via links at www. reeseco.com. If you would like to receive e-mail notification when catalogues and lists are uploaded, please e-mail us at [email protected] or send us a fax, specifying whether you would like to receive the notifications in lieu of or in addition to paper catalogues.

Terms Material herein is offered subject to prior sale. All items are as described and are considered to be on approval. Notice of return must be given within ten days unless specific arrangements are made. Connecticut residents must be billed state sales tax. Postage and insurance charges are billed to all nonprepaid domestic orders. Overseas orders are sent by air unless otherwise requested, with full postage charges billed at our discretion. Payment by check, wire transfer or bank draft is preferred, but may also be made by MasterCard or Visa.

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Front cover: 11. Austin, Stephen F.: [Autograph Letter, Signed...]. Nashville, Tn. Feb. 25, 1836.

Rear cover: 27. [Constitutional Amendment]: [Manuscript Copy of Amendment XII of the United States Constitution...]. [Washington. Dec. 9, 1803]. John Adams Files a Legal Complaint Against a Boston Bookbinder

1. Adams, John: [PARTIALLY PRINTED FORM, COMPLETED IN MANUSCRIPT AND ENDORSED BY JOHN ADAMS, OUTLIN- ING A LEGAL COMPLAINT AGAINST A BOSTON BOOK- BINDER]. Boston. April 5, 1774. [1]p., docketed on verso. Folio. Old folds. Separation at some folds, with repairs on verso. Lightly soiled. Good. In a half morocco and cloth clamshell case, cloth chemise.

Legal document for a suit brought against William McAlpine, bookbinder, by the “Proprietors of the Presbyterian Church in Boston”; the form is completed in John Adams’ hand and endorsed by him on the verso. The Presbyterian Church in Boston, having submitted several books to William McAlpine for binding but never receiving them in return despite repeated entreaties, sued him via a specially appointed committee for the sum of £12,000. This document is addressed to the Sheriff of Suffolk County, demanding a bond of £100 from William McAlpine and remanding him for a court appearance on the third Tuesday of April, 1774. Adams has outlined the case thus:

The Proprietors of the Presbyterian Church in Long Lane, in said Boston, who sue by Simon Elliot of Boston in said county, Tobacconist, William McNeil of said Boston Rope Maker, William Mackay of said Boston Merchant, Robert Wier of said Boston Distiller, and John McLean of said Boston Watchmaker, a Committee specially chosen and appointed for that Purpose, in a Plea of Detinue, for that on the first day of last January, at said Boston, the said Pro- prietors delivered to the said William McAlpine, their books, called the Sessions Books, and also their other books called their Books of Records, of Marriages, Baptisms, and Deaths, (which books called the Sessions Books were to the said Proprietors, of the value of two thousand pounds, and which Books of Records of Marriages, Baptisms, and Deaths, are to the said Proprietors of the value of ten thousand pounds) to be redelivered to the said Proprietors on demand; yet the said William McAlpine, tho often requested hath never redelivered any of the said books to the said Proprietors but unjustly withholds and detains them.

Before the Declaration of Independence from Britain, Adams was a well-known lawyer whose most famous case was the defense of the British soldiers in the Boston Massacre, in 1770. Though he worried at the time about the effects the case might have on his reputation, it certainly had no long-lasting negative ramifications – this letter is dated mere months before Adams was chosen to represent Massachusetts in the First Continental Congress, in September 1774. His reputation for fairness and equal-minded justice would see him through to the top ranks of the newly formed United States government. A wonderful piece of bibliographical history involving one of the greatest of Founding Fathers. $6750. The Secretary of State Writes John Trumbull About His Most Famous Painting, Now in the U.S. Capitol

2. Adams, John Quincy: [LETTER SIGNED BY JOHN QUINCY AD- AMS TO JOHN TRUMBULL CONCERNING HIS PAINTING, “THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE”]. Washington. Aug. 3, 1818. [1]p. Quarto. Inlaid in later paper. Old fold lines. Very minor soiling. Very good. In a half morocco and cloth clamshell case, spine gilt, leather labels.

In 1817, Congress commissioned four paintings from John Trumbull to adorn the Rotunda of the United States Capitol. The first to be completed was “The Declara- tion of Independence,” which he would exhibit from September through December 1818 in New York City, Boston, Philadelphia, and Baltimore before it made its way to Washington. In this letter, Secretary of State Adams conveys that President Monroe has no objections to Trumbull exhibiting the painting in New York before sending it along to Washington. The letter reads: “Sir, At the time when I had the pleasure of receiving your letter of 29 June, the President was absent from this city. Upon his late return here, I laid your letter before him, and he informed me that he thought there could be no objection whatever to your exhibiting at New York the picture of the Declaration of Independence, before sending it here.” The letter is signed with Adams’ distinctive curling signature. The painting was begun in Paris, likely at the suggestion of Thomas Jefferson, mentor and close friend of Trumbull. Jefferson provided Trumbull with a firsthand account of the event in the Assembly Room in Independence Hall in Philadelphia, where Congress had met, providing a basis for the work. Rather than a depiction of the signing of the Declaration, the painting actually shows the committee tasked with drafting the document presenting it to Congress for approval. Combining a desire for historical accuracy with the need to visually commemorate a moment of transcendent historical importance, Trumbull depicts the entire committee presenting the document to John Hancock, president of Congress. Jefferson stands at the center, surrounded by John Adams, Roger Sherman, Robert Livingston, and Benjamin Franklin, and presents the document to Hancock. Hailed as the official painter of the Revolution, Trumbull studied painting and art in England and France. The youngest son of the governor of Connecticut, the elder John Trumbull very much wanted his son to go into law. Trumbull did study the law, but gladly joined the fight against the British when the Revolution broke out. He eventually served as Washington’s second aide-de-camp, having been brought to the General’s attention through some very accurate drawings he had made of British gun emplacements. He rose to the rank of colonel as a deputy adjutant-general, but resigned the commission he finally received because it was dated three months late, a slight his honor could not tolerate. He refused to return to the law, finding it quite distasteful, and chose instead to pursue his true passion, art, against his family’s wishes. Though he was never particularly wealthy in this pursuit, he did achieve a certain amount of success in his own lifetime. Among his most famous works are those commissioned in 1817 by Congress to adorn the Capitol: “The Surrender of General Burgoyne at Saratoga,” “The Surrender of General Cornwallis at Yorktown,” “The Declaration of Independence,” and “The Resignation of General Washington.” $14,000.

John Quincy Adams Denies Ever Being a Mason

3. Adams, John Quincy: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED, FROM JOHN QUINCY ADAMS TO OLIVER HEARTWELL, DENY- ING ANY CONNECTION WITH THE FREEMASONS AND DISCUSSING THE MURDER OF WILLIAM MORGAN]. Wash- ington. April 19, 1828. [1]p. Quarto. Old fold lines. Minor foxing and offset- ting. Very good.

A fine statement of principles by then President John Quincy Adams to Canandaigua, New York citizen Oliver Heartwell concerning the murder of anti-Masonic leader William Morgan – replying to Heartwell’s enquiry about Adams’ own associations with the Freemasons, but also stating his views on American justice. In his letter Adams denies any association with the Masons, but asks Heartwell not to publish his letter, lest it contribute to the uproar surrounding Morgan’s disappearance and probable death. William Morgan (1774-1826?) was a stonemason who settled in western New York. “In May 1825 Morgan was admitted to the Leroy Lodge of the Freemasons and became a Royal Arch Mason. Later in 1825 or in early 1826, the Masons of Batavia, including Morgan, petitioned the Grand Lodge of New York State to establish a chapter in their town, and a list of proposed members was drawn up. A leader in the petition drive named Ganson, who operated a saloon in Batavia where Morgan maintained a circle of friends, felt, along with other leading Masons, that owing to Morgan’s lower-class friends and his reputation for drunkenness he should not be included. Thus a second petition was drawn up without his name and submitted to the state lodge. When the charter was approved and returned to Batavia, Morgan determined that his name had been excluded and so he turned on the fraternity. The Masons believed that he entered into a plan with David C. Miller of Batavia to republish an eighteenth-century English Antimasonic tract, Jachin and Boaz, to create a sensation and make money. The result was Illustrations of Masonry, for which Morgan registered copyright in August 1826. It was said that he had come to believe that the bane of civil institutions was Masonry and that he owed it to his country to expose its dangers” – ANB. Morgan was arrested for nonpayment of debts and petty theft on Sept. 11, and taken to the Canandaigua jail to answer the charge. “Six men entered the Canandaigua jail and abducted Morgan....According to the most plausible account of what then happened, Mor- gan’s abductors took him to Fort Niagara, a state post near Lewiston, New York, and had him incarcerated in the blockhouse or powder magazine there. From that point on he was never reliably seen again” – ANB. His death created a firestorm of anti-Masonic feeling, which, in turn, led to the formation of the Anti-Masonic Party. On an interesting side note, Morgan’s wife later became one of the wives of Mormon leader Joseph Smith. Adams writes:

Sir, In answer to your enquiry in your letter of the 31st ulto. I state that I am not, never was, and never shall be a Free Mason. I give you this answer in the spirit of friendly return to the kindness with which you have made the enquiry. But unwilling to contribute in any manner to that excitement, produced by the mysterious abduction, and too probable murder of William Morgan, I request you not to give publicity to this letter. The deep and solemn feeling which pervades the community on this occasion is founded on the purest principles of human virtue and of human rights. In the just and lawful pursuit of a signal vindication of the laws of nature and of the land, violated in his person, which has been undertaken, and is yet in progress, with the authority and cooperation of your Legislature, I hope and trust that the fellow-citizens of the sufferer will temper with the Spirit of Justice the reparation of her wrongs, and in the infliction of every penalty, carefully abstain from visiting upon the innocent the misdeeds of the guilty. $6250.

Sam Adams Attacks the Society of the Cincinnati and Argues Washington Should Not Be a Member

4. Adams, Samuel: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED, FROM SAMUEL ADAMS TO ELBRIDGE GERRY, CRITICIZING THE SOCIETY OF THE CINCINNATI AND GEORGE WASHING- TON’S INCLUSION IN IT]. Boston. April 23, 1784. [2]pp. Folio. Sepa- rated at an old fold 1½ inches from bottom of sheet; silked by way of repair, with some loss to a few words of text. First paragraph with several neat strike- through lines, not affecting legibility. Minor soil, primarily around separation. Very good. In a half leather and cloth clamshell case, leather labels.

Samuel Adams writes to fellow Massachusetts politician and signer of the Declaration of Independence, Elbridge Gerry, expressing concern about George Washington’s participation in the Society of the Cincinnati. Adams and Gerry were at the core of a contingent of founders critical of the Society of the Cincinnati, seeing it as a threat to democracy and “a stride towards an hereditary military Nobility” in the newly founded nation. The Society of the Cincinnati was created in 1783, at the close of the American Revolution, by the officers of the Continental Army and their French counterparts. Its purpose was to preserve the bonds of friendship between the men, as well as to preserve the rights and liberties for which all had fought. It was a controversial organization because it excluded ordinary soldiers and militia men and because membership was hereditary; both of these factors led some to think that the Soci- ety’s real purpose was to establish a military nobility in America – an idea directly contrary to the founding principles of the country. Because of these aspects, it was seen by some – including Gerry and Adams – as highly controversial that General Washington was a member of the Society. Adams writes to Gerry at Annapolis, where he was serving in the Continental Congress:

I observe by the inclosed news paper that the Cincinnati in Congress assembled are to meet at Philadelphia on the 5th of May and that General Washington is to preside. That gentleman has an idea of the nature & tendency of the order very different from mine; otherwise I am certain he would never have given it his sanction. I look upon it to be as rapid a stride towards an hereditary military Nobility as ever was made in so short a time. My fears may be ill grounded; but if they are not, it is impossible for me not to think it a great misfortune to these States that he is a member; for the reputation he has justly acquired by his conduct while Commander in Chief of our Armies, & the gratitude & warm affection which his country men do & ought to feel towards him, will probably give weight to any thing he patronizes, & lustre to all who may be connected with him. It is a tribute due to the man who serves his country well to esteem him highly and confide in him. We ought not however to think any man incapable of error. But so it is with the bulk of mankind, & even in a free country – they reprobate the idea of implicit Faith, and at the same time, while the impression of gratitude is deep in their minds, they will not admit that a benefactor which must be said of every man, aliquands dormitat. I would never [two or three illegible words due to loss] suspicion of any man; especially of those who have render’d signal services to their country. But there is a degree of watchfulness over all men possess’d of Power or Influence, upon which the liberties of mankind much depend. It is necessary to guard against the infirmities of the best as well as the wickedness of the worst men. Such is the weakness of human nature that Tyranny has perhaps oftener sprung from that than any other source. It is this that unravels the mystery of millions being enslav’d by a few. What was it induced the Cincinnati gentlemen, who have undertaken to deliberate and act upon matters which may essentially concern “the Happiness & future Dignity of the American Empire” to admit foreign military subjects into their Society? Was there not danger before that a foreign influence might prevail in America? Do not foreigners wish to have weight in our councils? Can such a junction of the subjects of different nations, (& those nations widely differing in their principles of government) to deliberate upon things, which relate to the union & nation at honor, the happiness & future dignity of one consist with sound policy? Are we sure that those two nations will never have separate views and very national & interested ones too, because they once united in the same object & it was accidentally their mutual interest to fight side by side? If we could admit that the Cincinnati had a right to erect themselves into an order for the national purposes of their institution, had they a right to call in foreign aid for high purposes? It appears to me as impolitick preposterous & dangerous as it would be for the United States to invite and admit a delegation from that foreign power into their Congress.

The text of this letter is published in The Writings of Samuel Adams (1908); that text notes that a version of the letter, with modifications, is published in The Life of Elbridge Gerry (1828). The version of the letter published in the Gerry biography leaves out all the text that is critical of Washington. Doubtless the political and popular atmosphere was still such in 1828 that to voice such frank criticism of our Founding Father was verging on blasphemy. The present letter has four light pencil lines through that section, likely by a 19th-century editor in preparation for publication. $27,500.

The Story of Two Captured African Princes, 1773

5. [African Slave Trade]: Lace, Ambrose: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED, FROM AMBROSE LACE REGARDING THE TWO CAPTURED AFRICAN PRINCES FROM OLD CALABAR, LIT- TLE EPHRAIM AND ANCONA ROBIN JOHNS]. Liverpool. Nov. 11, 1773. [2]pp. Quarto. Old fold lines. A few small chips and repairs at edges. Lightly soiled. About very good.

A remarkable letter from English slave trader Ambrose Lace to his business partner, Thomas Jones, regarding two princes of Old Calabar, a port on the West African coast, who had been sold into slavery. In 1767, with collusion and assistance from English traders who were fed up with exorbitant prices being charged by the ruling chiefs, rivals at New Town massacred the ruling families. Captain Lace, one of the captains involved in the massacre, took Robin John Otto Ephraim, one of the captured sons of an elite family, to England to educate him; he was returned several years later, with the hope that his new education and relationship would assist Brit- ish slavers on the West African Coast, who relied heavily on the collusion of local elite Africans. The two captured princes in question here, Little Ephraim Robin John and Ancona Robin John, later negotiated with their captors, also slavers, for their release, a transaction likely based on preservation of elite African collusion with the British trade. Lace writes here to fellow slave trader Thomas Jones, who is trying to gain support for the release of the two princes. Lace is not particularly helpful, which may have been a calculated move, as he certainly knew more than he was saying, due to his close involvement with the Massacre of 1767. In response to Jones’ enquiry, Lace writes:

Sir, Yours of the 7th I recd. wherein you disire [sic] I will send an affidavit concerning the two black men you mention, Little Epm [Little Ephraim Robin John] & Ancoy, in what manner the[y] ware [sic] taken off the Coast & that I know them to be brothers to Grandy Epm. Robin John [a.k.a. Grandy George]; as to little Epm. I remember him very well, as to Ancy Rob. Rob. John I can’t recolect [sic] I ever saw him, I knew Old Robin John the father of Grandy Epm. & I think all the family but never found that little Epm. was one of Old Robin’s sons, and as to Rob. Rob. John he was not Old Rob. John’s Son. Old Robin took Rob. Rob. Jno’s mother for a wife when Robin Rob. Jno. was a boy of 6 or eight years old and as to Rob. Rob. Jno. he never had a son that I heard of. You know very well the custom of that place what ever man or woman goes to live in any family the[y] take the name of the first man in the family and call him father; how little Epm. came into the family I can’t tell and as to what ship they came off the Coast in I know no more then you, therefore can’t make the affidavit eather [sic] to their being brothers to Grandy Epm. or the manner the[y] was brought off the Coast. As to Grandy Epm. you know very well has been guilty of so many bad actions no man can say any thing in his favour, a history of his life would ex- ceed any of our pirates, the whole sett at Old Town you know as well as me. I brought young Epm. home & had him at school near two years then sent him out. He cost me above sixty pounds and when his father’s gone I hope the son will be a good man. As to Mr. Floyd he says more then I ever knew or heard of; he’s in many errors even in the name of the vessell I was in he’s wrong, there was no such a ship as the Hector while I was at Callebarr [sic], a man should be carefull when on oath. How he knows the two men to be brothers to Epm. can’t tell, I have several times had the pedigree of all the family from Abashey & the foregoing acct. of Rob. Rob. was from him, but to prove the two men to be Epm.’s brothers I don’t know how you will do it. I asure [sic] you I don’t think they are, if you think to send a vessell to Old Town it might ansr. for you to purchas[e] the two men. I once bogt. one at Jamaica a man of no consiquance [sic] in family but it ansrd. the expence. P.S. I left the [ships] Duke of York & Indian Queen at Callebarr.

A most important letter, providing important pieces of the history of the West African slave trade and of this particularly interesting episode. Randy J. Sparks, The Two Princes of Calabar (Harvard U.P., 2004), pp.93-95. $6500.

Convicts Sentenced to Transportation to America, 1736

6. [American Colonies]: [British Convicts]: [Georgia]: [MANUSCRIPT DOCUMENT AUTHORIZING THE TRANSPORTATION OF THREE CONVICTS TO THE AMERICAN COLONIES]. Glouces- ter. May 14, 1736. [2]pp. plus integral docketing leaf. Folio. Silked. Light soiling and dampstaining, not affecting legibility. About very good. In a green half morocco and cloth clamshell case.

Manuscript document authorizing the transportation of three felons to the colonies in America as punishment for their crimes, signed and sealed by two justices. The document sentences William Dowell, convicted in Gloucester on May 9 of “feloniously breaking and entering the hous [sic] of William Walter in the day time and stealing there [?] the value of five shillings for which he was excluded the benefitt of clergy,” to transportation and fourteen years penal service. It likewise sentences Benjamin Biddle to seven years transportation for grand larceny, in lieu of “punishment of burning the hand,” and Thomas Bodnam also to seven years for the same crime. The authorization is signed and sealed by judges Nathaniell Lye and Thomas Crawley Boevey. On June 26 the men were turned over to Benjamin Heming and John Heath, who both signed the document, and they in turn handed the men over to Stephen Perry, merchant, and to Roger Wellington and John Gale, mariners, all of the city of Bristol. The men were presumably handed over to parties who were sailing for the colonies in America. Though the document does not specify which colony, the colony of Georgia was founded in 1732 as an alternative to debtors prison; many convicts also found their way to the colony, which provided a convenient destination for England’s unwanted criminals, and it is likely they were sent there. A fascinating document showing how some people emigrated to America, not of their own free will. $2250.

Signed by Benjamin Franklin

7. [American Philosophical Society]: [McHenry, James]: TO ALL PER- SONS TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, GREET- ING. THE AMERICAN PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY HELD AT PHILADELPHIA FOR PROMOTING USEFUL KNOWLEDGE... HAVE ELECTED THE HONORABLE DOCTOR JAMES H. McHENRY OF BALTIMORE, MARYLAND A MEMBER...[caption title]. Philadelphia. Jan. 20, 1786. [1]p. manuscript document, 9¼ x 15¼ inches, with the original seal of the Society affixed by ribbon. Old folds. Near fine.

The original manuscript certificate naming Dr. James McHenry a member of the American Philosophical Society, the first learned society in America, founded in 1743 by Benjamin Franklin and others. The document is notable for being signed in manuscript by Benjamin Franklin as President of the American Philosophical Society. Franklin served in that role from 1769 until his death in 1790, but due to his prolonged absences from America in the 1770s and ‘80s, while he was away in Great Britain and France, very few official documents from American organizations he headed or of which he was a member carry his signature. The certificate is additionally signed by three vice-presidents of the Society, as well as four secretaries. James McHenry had garnered fame for his efforts during the Revolution, especially as a surgeon in the early years of the conflict, and it is likely for his medical contributions that he was made a member of the American Philosophical Society. Such original manuscript certificates electing members to the American Philosophical Society are quite rare, those signed by Benjamin Franklin as President are very rare and desirable indeed. James McHenry (1753-1816) was born in Ballymena, County Antrim, Ireland and educated in Dublin. He emigrated to America in 1771 and studied medicine with Dr. Benjamin Rush in Philadelphia. McHenry volunteered for military service on behalf of the colonies when hostilities with England broke out in 1775, and was assigned to a hospital in Cambridge, Massachusetts. In August 1776 he was named surgeon to the 5th Pennsylvania Battalion, and was captured at Fort Wash- ington on Manhattan in November 1776, along with two thousand other American troops. He was paroled two months later, but was effectively under “house arrest” in Philadelphia and Baltimore until he was formally exchanged for British prisoners in March 1778. McHenry was then named senior surgeon of the “Flying Hospital” at Valley Forge, and was quickly made a secretary to George Washington. It was at this time that he forged close friendships with Washington and Alexander Ham- ilton that lasted for decades. McHenry served as Washington’s assistant for two and a half years, without rank or pay, until he was transferred to Lafayette’s forces as aide-de-camp in August 1780. He was made a major, and was at Yorktown in October 1781 before leaving the army in December of that year. McHenry was a founding member of the Society of the Cincinnati in 1783. McHenry was politically active in his home state of Maryland for much of the 1780s and ‘90s. He served intermittently as a local justice of the peace, held a seat in the Maryland State Senate from 1781 to 1786 and again from 1791 to 1796, and in the Maryland Assembly from 1789 to 1791. He represented Maryland in the Confederation Congress in 1783-86, and also at the Constitutional Convention in the summer of 1787, where he kept extensive notes that serve as a valuable record of the debates on the creation of the U.S. Constitution. A staunch Federalist, McHenry was intimately involved in helping George Washington fill political patronage positions, and in 1796 he was selected by Washington as the nation’s third Secretary of War. He worked to reorganize the army in the late 1790s, and Fort McHenry in Baltimore is named for him. Disputes with John Adams led him to resign his post as Secretary of War in 1800, and he retired to his estate, Fayetteville, outside Baltimore. McHenry published a Baltimore directory in 1807. ANB 15, pp.80-82. DAB XII, pp.62-63. $30,000.

A Voyage to Astoria, Hawaii, and China, Paid for by Astor

8. [Astoria]: [Pacific Log Book]: [MANUSCRIPT LOG OF THE SHIP ALEXANDER ON A VOYAGE FROM BOSTON TO ASTORIA ON THE COLUMBIA RIVER ON THE NORTHWEST COAST, AND FROM THERE TO THE HAWAIIAN ISLANDS, CANTON, MANILA, BATAVIA, AND OTHER PORTS IN ASIA]. [Various places at sea and in port, as described below]. October 26, 1820 – November 23, 1822. [210]pp. manuscript log, plus an additional [18]pp. of manuscript “Lunar Observations” at the end. Folio. Original pale sheep. Binding stained, and rubbed, but quite sound. A few leaves with closed tears, with no loss of text. Quite clean and neat internally, and very legible. Very good. In a cloth chemise and half morocco and cloth slipcase, spine gilt.

A significant American naval log book, documenting an extensive Pacific voyage that involved trade with Fort Astoria on the Northwest Coast, as well as Hawaii and several Asian countries. Though John Jacob Astor’s Pacific Fur Company controlled Astoria for only a brief time, it operated as an important trade post for several years. Part of Astor’s plan was to use the post as a conduit for furs to Asia, and this log book, is an important record of that trade, as the Alexander traded goods and transported men between Astoria, Hawaii, and Asia over a more than two-year period. Fort Astoria was founded in 1811 by representatives of John Jacob Astor’s Pacific Fur Company. It was built near the Columbia River and the site of Fort Clatsop, where the Lewis and Clark expedition wintered just five years earlier. It was the first – and for many years the only – substantial trading post on the northwest coast, and an important conduit for the trade in furs and other goods. The North West Company acquired the fort in 1813, during the War of 1812, and it moved from American to British control, though trade was carried on with American vessels, as is evidenced by the log of the ship Alexander. The ship Alexander, captained by Frederick Comerford, left Boston on October 26, 1820, under pleasant weather and with strong breezes from the west. The log has the expected information for a voyage of this era, with the ship’s location and course carefully noted throughout each day’s entry, as well as notations for wind and weather conditions, and sailing maneuvers and exercises as well. Occasionally an entry will note the “latitude by Bowditch,” referring to Nathaniel Bowditch’s New American Practical Navigator. Interactions with other ships are also noted. For example, on November 27, (32 days out of Boston), the Alexander “was boarded from the English ship Hindustan 106 out from Calcutta bound to Liverpool. Supplied them with some vegetables. At 6am passed a ship standing to the north, showed Dutch colours.” At other times the Alexander encountered American whalers, and exchanged vegetables for whale oil. The ship reached the Falklands on Janu- ary 7, 1821, and spent several weeks rounding Cape Horn, where it experienced squalls and gales. On February 13th the log records that the ship encountered “a tremendous hurricane with a very heavy dangerous sea,” and a week later the ship withstood hail and snow. On May 3, 1821 (189 days out of Boston), the log records that the Alexander was four or five miles off Cape Disappointment, at the northern mouth of the Columbia River. The next day the ship steered “in for the opening of the river, stood in until Tongue Point (up the river and which appears like an island when first seen) the settlement that connects it with the South side being very low. Opened half way between Point Addams & Chinook Point & run for it until Cape Disappointment in 6½ fathoms. Sticky bottom.” Later it is noted that “a canoe came along with 3 Indians in it. Sent a letter to the settlement.” On May 5 the ship went further up the Columbia River, “until the Red Cliff above Point Ellice on the north side. Bore about N.N.W....the flood tide running strong and the wind blowing up river was obliged to anchor about ¼ mile above the fort.” The following day, “at 8am saluted the fort with 11 guns which they answered by the same number.” The Alexander spent the next several weeks on the Columbia River, presumably dispensing supplies and cargo, and taking on furs and other trade goods. On May 28th the log notes that the ship “received on board 13 Sandwich Islanders to take to their country.” On June 13th, after nearly a month and a half trading at Fort Astoria, the Alex- ander sailed back toward the Pacific and to the Hawaiian Islands. The ship arrived at “Owyhee” on July 1, after a brisk journey of eighteen days from the northwest coast. It remained in the islands, visiting Oahu, for a week, taking on supplies and goods. For example, the log records that on July 4th, “all hands employed receiving on board hogs vegetables &c.” On July 8 the Alexander sailed for Canton, passing Tinian Island after three weeks, and reached Canton in mid-August. It remained there for three months until departing for Manila. The Alexander spent the next year sailing along the coast of Asia, visiting Manila, Batavia ( Java), Sambas and Pontiana (Borneo), and Canton, usually spending from two weeks to a month or more in each port, trading in goods and taking on supplies. For example, they spent a month in the spring of 1822 on the coast of Borneo “discharging salt.” The final log entry is dated November 23, 1822, with the ship thirty-one days out of Manila, sailing for Batavia. Following the log are eighteen pages of manuscript “Lunar Observations,” dated March and April, 1821, while the ship was sailing north toward Astoria. A manuscript note on the front pastedown of the log book (and corresponding text on the spine of the slipcase) asserts that this log book was given as a gift to Captain Philip Dumaresq, a noted captain of China trade ships in the 19th century. An important primary record of the global reach of the early fur trade on the west coast of North America. $22,500.

A Turning Point in the American West: Gen. William Sherman’s Western Tour of 1866 Sets the Program for the Pacification of the West

9. Audenried, Joseph C.: [Sherman, William Tecumseh]: [FIRSTHAND ACCOUNT OF GEN. WILLIAM TECUMSEH SHERMAN’S 1866 TOUR OF WESTERN FORTS, RECORDED IN THE ORIGI- NAL MANUSCRIPT JOURNAL OF THE TOUR KEPT BY SHER- MAN’S AIDE-DE-CAMP, LIEUT. COL. JOSEPH C. AUDEN- RIED, AS WELL AS SIXTEEN ORIGINAL MANUSCRIPT LET- TERS FROM AUDENRIED TO HIS WIFE DESCRIBING THE JOURNEY]. [Various places in Missouri, Wyoming, Nebraska, Colorado, Dakota Territory, and Kansas, as described below]. August – October, 1866. [176]pp. manuscript journal, plus three drawings (two landscapes and a sketch of Fort Laramie). A total of some 15,000 words. With sixteen additional autograph letters, totaling [171] pages of text. All but two of the letters accompanied by original envelopes. Letters totaling another 22,000 words. Journal written in pencil on loose leaves from a disbound notebook. Light edge wear, but on the whole very good and legible. Letters written in ink on folded folio sheets or smaller. An occasional closed split at folds, but quite neat and legible. Near fine. In a half morocco and cloth box, spine gilt.

An outstanding source by which to study Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman’s important 1866 tour of military forts in the West. After the Civil War one of the priorities of the United States Army was the protection of settlers on the frontier from attacks by hostile Indians. As second in command of the Army, stationed at St. Louis, this responsibility fell to Sherman and the troops under his command. This manuscript collection includes the journal kept by Sherman’s aide-de-camp, Lieut. Col. Joseph C. Audenried, as well as a number of lengthy letters from Audenried to his wife describing the tour. In his published Memoirs, Sherman gives very few details of the two-month trip, and his biographers offer little more information. Audenried’s journal and letters provide a wealth of detail on this important mission to inspect new western forts and the Union Pacific railroad line, and to devise a strategy for protecting the railroad and settlers from hostile Indians. In 1865, Gen. Sherman was put in charge of the Military Division of the Mis- souri (with headquarters in St. Louis), giving him command of American troops between the Mississippi River and the Rocky Mountains, as well as Montana, Utah, and New Mexico. In July 1866, Sherman was promoted to lieutenant general, and was second in rank in the Army only to Ulysses S. Grant. The following month Sherman embarked on a tour of western forts, and spent two months travelling through the Plains by steamboat and carriage, traversing a total of some one thousand miles. The tour served many purposes: it was an inspection of American military installations on the frontier (many of which were newly constructed), a chance to plan Indian strategy, and an opportunity to examine the transcontinental railroad route to the Pacific. Sherman took many opportunities to meet with Indian tribes in order to judge their intentions and observe their methods, the better to enable him to devise a program for protecting railroad workers and westward bound mi- grants from hostile Indians. Audenried’s first letter to his wife is dated August 10th at Cincinnati, and the first journal entry is dated August 12th, the day that he, Sherman, and their small party departed St. Louis. They travelled from St. Louis by steamboat, up the Mis- souri River. On August 19th they were at Fort Kearny, Nebraska, and from there travelled to Fort Cottonwood (also called Fort McPherson), Nebraska, and to Fort Sedgewick in Colorado Territory. They soon moved on to Dakota Territory, visiting Fort Laramie and Fort John Buford in late August and early September. In mid-September they were in Denver, and then inspected forts Garland and Lyon in Colorado Territory. The first half of October was spent travelling to a number of outposts in Kansas, including Fort Dodge, Fort Larned, and Fort Ellsworth. Audenried’s journal and letters are very well-written and observant, and give an excellent description of the country through which they travelled, the forts they inspected, and the Indians and settlers they encountered. The following excerpts give a sense of the exceptionally interesting content found herein. Joseph Auden- ried’s wife was named Mary, but in his letters he often addresses her as “Gipsy.” On August 15th, while on a steamboat on the Missouri, Audenried writes that he is keeping a diary of the journey, and will write her as often as he can, copying the information from the dairy into his letters, “so that you will know all I do, from day to day, with whom I meet and where I was.” In a letter a few days later from Fort Kearny, Nebraska, their first stop, he writes:

This morning after breakfast Senator Sherman [Sen. John Sherman of Ohio, younger brother of Gen. Sherman] and I accompanied Gen. [Grenville] Dodge on the river to Council Bluffs. This town contains about 3500 inhabitants and lies about four miles from the river on a table land close against a bluff. It is an old Mormon settlement & once known as Cainesville. It is increasing & is to be the terminus of three railroads, Northwestern, Missouri & Mississippi, & Hannibal & St. Joe, the 1st of which will be finished by 1st April ‘67.... When I looked at the railroad & the telegraph passing thro’ this great waste of land I wondered what man cannot do. We averaged over 25 miles the hour and found the road, altho’ new, quite smooth running. No particular trade is yet done on it as all the cars are used in the construction.

In a letter of August 21st, from Fort Cottonwood, Nebraska, Audenried gives his wife some idea of how they travelled:

By 9:30 all was loaded and we started out in good spirits, glad to be thrown at last on our own resources. To appreciate our caravan you must imagine five ambulances each drawn by four mules, and these followed by about twenty cavalry. In the first is the General, & his brother, sitting on some hay on the floor....The nights have been cold and altho’ I slept on a blanket on the floor, from which my bones ached, I was glad to be off. We passed along the Platte River on our right, sand hills about eight miles to our left, making about six miles to the hour and by 1pm drew up for a halt. The country passed thro’ was open & flat with no [?] but those from which grew by the river, the road very dusty with here and there a government or emigrant train. Of these latter we passed one numbering fifty wagons, Mormons for Salt Lake, and Germans mostly at that. These wagons were drawn by oxen four six and eight to each making in all about 300....We made 22 miles before halting and there roomed at Mullany’s ranch. But very few houses were passed and these were one story and built of mud or rather sod....The sand hills gradually approached us until 10 o’clock we reached Fort Cottonwood or McPherson as it now is. This is a neat post being garrisoned by two companies of cavalry. The Capt. in command has his wife & wife’s sister with him & they seem quite happy.

Audenried mentions in another letter that the soldiers at Fort Cottonwood were “enlisted from rebel prisoners.” On August 24th, at Fort Sedgewick, Colorado Territory, Audenried writes:

Since writing you from Cottonwood, we have been pushing along and are now at this Post 294 miles from Omaha and 190 from Denver. Tomorrow morning we again start out, going now to the north west to Fort Laramie, the scene of the Indian troubles for the past four months. We arrived here this morning about 10:30 having come twenty-six miles. This is quite a good post but, as usual in this country, the quarters are made of sod, one story high and not very light.

On the road between Cottonwood and Sedgewick, Sherman’s party encountered some Indian camps:

Ten miles out, at Morrow’s ranch we saw an Indian encampment of 14 lodges containing 90 persons under the Chief “Two Strike.” They were a poor wretched set, the men wearing nothing but breech cloth and blanket while the women were greasy and ugly in the extreme. We visited their camp but saw nothing very interesting. Morrow’s house is the best we have seen being two story log. Emigrants soon passed at intervals, but the travel generally is mostly east. After going twenty miles we pulled out of the road....Here we found another Indian camp of six or more lodges. They were Minnesota Indians on a visiting trip. While we were at luncheon the chief and some three or four men came and sat down by the fire, smoking their pipes. After we had finished we gave them some coffee. Some squaws soon after came up carrying their babies, as one sees in illustrations, on their back, and with them some boys with bows & arrows. A stick was placed on the ground and on the end a piece of currency. From a distance of twenty paces the boys were directed to shoot at this & as they knocked down the stick the money was theirs. They did fine shooting. During it the old chief took a shot from about 10 paces. He struck the mark and the General taking up the bow and arrow from twenty paces, knocked down the target at the first shot.

Sherman, Audenried, and their party continued along the Platte River Road until they reached Laramie’s Fork, where they would take the road toward Fort Laramie:

Finding here a company of the 2nd U.S. Cavry which was waiting to escort us to Laramie. Laramie’s Fork is small, but long and contains fine fish, many of which I saw the men catch by means of a dip net made of oat sacks. One mile & a half from our camp was Courthouse Rock, so called by reason of its resemblance to such a buildings. This is so at a distance but loses that character as one approaches. The Gen. & I walked to it and going up the General killed a rattlesnake six years old. We did not go to the top of the rock as the ascent is dangerous. We found it to be about 200 ft. high of a clayey consistence and has evidently been formed by the washing away of the earth around. These two formations stand quite alone in the prairie, the largest having five terraces. From the 1st terrace one has a beautiful view extending for many miles.

In his journal Audenried includes a sketch of Courthouse Rock, and also of the nearby Chimney Rock, two of the great landmarks of the Oregon, California, and Mormon trails. They reached Fort Laramie on August 29th, and Audenried includes a sketch of the post in his journal, showing the location of the quarters, stables, mess, laundry, and a nearby Indian camp. Audenried describes the fort:

Laramie is the best I have seen since leaving Leavenworth. The quarters are generally of adobe which has been white washed and look quite fine. In the country I saw the graves of the daughter of “Spotted Tail,” & a child which was accidentally killed by a sentinel. The Indian woman crossing his post was challenged but as she ran, he fired, not knowing it was a squaw & killed the child on her back. These bodies are in boxes elevated on platforms. That of the daughter of “Spotted Tail” has two Indian ponies heads & tails nailed to the four posts. As she was dying she requested that her favorite ponies might be killed so that she could ride them in the spirit land. We then attended the “Laramie Varieties” conducted by soldiers. They were quite good & the per- formance was held in a building in which quite a good stage had been erected.

At Fort Garland, Colorado, Audenried met famed scout Kit Carson, then in command of the fort. Sherman and Carson had first met eighteen years earlier, when Carson delivered the first overland mail to California in 1848, while Sherman was on duty there. The fort was located at an elevation some 8000 feet above sea level, near the Sangre de Cristo mountain range.

The post is [?] of mts of perpetual snow & is commanded by Kit Carson who has four companies of New Mexico Vols. – all Mexican, dark almost as Indians four of whom speak English. Carson is 57 yrs. old, 5 ft. 6 in high, weighs about 140, has sandy hair & moustache, is somewhat bald, high cheek bones, large wide & high forehead, clear eye of a reddish grey, ruddy complexion, does not drink & is very quiet both in manner & speech. In the evening some of the soldiers came up & sang several Spanish songs.

From Fort Garland they went to nearby Fort Stevens: “Stevens is newly established and has as garrison one Co. 3rd U.S. Cav. and two companies of 57th Colored – the troops are in tents. This post is situated at the base of the Spanish Peaks near the Cuchera Cr. – it is, however, to be abandoned as the General deems it badly situated.” Audenried’s journal and letters continue, tracing his and Sherman’s journey through Colorado to several forts in Kansas, and finally back to St. Louis, where they arrived in mid-September. Joseph Crain Audenried (1839-80) was born in Pennsylvania and graduated from West Point in 1861. Brevetted a second lieutenant, he assisted in organizing and training troops in Washington before being assigned as aide-de-camp to Gen. Daniel Tyler, one of the commanders at the First Battle of Bull Run. In March 1862, Audenried transferred to the staff of Gen. William H. Emory, and four months later to the staff of Gen. Edwin Sumner, where he served as aide-de-camp. Audenried was seriously wounded at Antietam, was cited by Sumner for gallantry, and brevetted to captain. After Sumner’s death in March 1863, Audenried was briefly assigned to Gen. Wool’s command, and then travelled to the western theatre to join Ulysses S. Grant’s staff, where he participated in the fall of Vicksburg. In October 1863, Audenried was transferred to Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman’s command, and he served as Sherman’s aide-de-camp and principal assistant until his death in 1880 at age forty. With Sherman, Audenried participated in the events for which Sherman is most famous: the siege of Atlanta, the March to the Sea, and the March through the Carolinas. He was promoted to captain in the 6th Cavalry in 1866, and then to colonel in 1869. Audenried was stationed with Sherman at St. Louis for much of this time, and joined his commander in the Indian Wars of the West and on tours of the West, and also on Sherman’s tour of Europe and the Middle East in 1871-72. Audenried married Mary Colkett in 1863, and the two had a daughter, Florence, in 1867. After Audenried’s death in 1880, Sherman and Mary Audenried grew quite close, and it has been speculated that the married commander engaged in an affair with his aide’s widow. These letters and journal of Gen. Sherman’s aide-de-camp, Lieut. Col. Joseph Audenried, provide an exceptional account of Sherman’s 1866 tour to inspect fortifications on the frontier, assess the construction of the Transcontinental railroad, and gauge the intentions and actions of Indian tribes. A truly remarkable collection of original manuscripts of an important tour of western forts, made on the eve of the Indian Wars of the West. $60,000.

A Certificate of Admission to Austin’s Colony: One of the Earliest Obtainable Texas Imprints 10. [Austin, Stephen F.]: EL CIUDADANO ESTEVAN F. AUSTIN, EMPRESARIO, PARA INTRODUCIR EMIGRADOS ES- TRANGEROS, EN LAS COLONIAS QUE LE TIENE, DESIGNA- DAS EL SUPREMO GOBIERNO DEL ESTADO DE COAHUILA Y TEXAS, POR LOS CONTRATOS CELEBRADOS ENTRE EL DICHO GOBIERNO Y EL MISMO AUSTIN.... [San Felipe de Austin: Printed by G.B. Cotten, 1829]. Printed document, 6 x 8¼ inches, completed in manuscript. Signed by Benjamin F. Hughs. Faint age toning and creasing, ink stain affecting “i” in “Colonias” of title docketed on verso in contemporary manuscript. Very good. Cloth matted with facsimile portrait of Stephen Austin and three accompanying plaques, two of which contain explanatory text. A rare imprint from the San Felipe de Austin press of Godwin Brown Cotten, being an original certificate of admission to Austin’s colony. “These grants were the foundation of the colonization of Texas” – Streeter. This document reflects one of the four essential steps in the colonization process, being the empresario’s certification stating that the immigrant (in this case a widow named Frances Manifee) had been admitted as a member of Austin’s colony. The next step would be to present this certificate to the commissioner charged with issuing land titles in the Colony. This document is signed in manuscript by Benjamin F. Hughs and dated July 29, 1831. This is effectively the earliest obtainable Texas imprint, since any earlier ones are only surmised or exist in a few copies in institutions. It is now extremely rare in the marketplace. The only relatively recent sale of a copy was of a much inferior one, with loss in the top margin, which sold at Sotheby’s in the Texas Independence Collection sale on June 18, 2004 for $30,000 including house premium. STREETER TEXAS 9. EBERSTADT 162:39. $25,000.

The Greatest Texas Letter Ever Stephen Austin Urges the Texas Revolution: “The foundation I wished for is laid....Nothing now remains but to elevate the Temple of Liberty upon it.”

11. Austin, Stephen F.: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED, FROM STEPHEN F. AUSTIN TO GEN. JOHN M. McCALLA OF KEN- TUCKY, URGING HIM TO RAISE TROOPS TO AID IN THE WAR FOR TEXAS INDEPENDENCE, AND ESPOUSING THE PHILOSOPHICAL VIRTUES AND MATERIAL PROSPECTS OF TEXAS]. Nashville, Tn. Feb. 25, 1836. [4]pp. Addressed in Austin’s hand on the fourth page (with ink postmark). Originally written on one folded sheet of paper, the sheet now split neatly in half to form two leaves. Both leaves with edge wear and old folds. First leaf with two tears in foredge, affecting a few letters of text. Second leaf with tear where formerly sealed by wax, with no loss of text. Neat splits at folds, several tape repairs. In very good condition. In a half green morocco and cloth box, grey cloth boards, cloth chemise. [See front cover of this catalogue for illustration]

An incredible Stephen F. Austin letter, the best and most important to come to the market that we have ever seen, in which he seeks to raise troops for the Texas Revolution, describes its material advantages, and lays out his vision of what Texas will become. Austin is one of the few Americans who can be called the founder of a nation, and as the father of the Republic of Texas he is the towering figure in Texas history. In this letter, written two days after the beginning of the siege on the Alamo (though that fact was unknown to him), Austin writes an old friend and military leader, John McCalla of Kentucky, urging him to raise troops to support the cause of Texas independence, promoting the virtues and potential of Texas, and stating that Texas will be a “great Temple of Liberty.” This letter exemplifies Austin’s best abilities as a promoter and empresario of Texas, carries the full urgency of a leader trying to secure the material support for his revolution, and verbalizes the full scope of his vision for the country he founded. On December 26, 1835, Stephen Austin and his fellow commissioners (Wil- liam Wharton and Branch Archer) sailed for New Orleans and eventually the East Coast, sent on a mission by the Texas provisional government to seek financial assistance, and to enquire about the possible annexation of Texas by the United States. In New Orleans in early January they attended a large meeting in favor of Texas independence, and eventually secured a quarter million dollar loan. About this time, Austin learned that Santa Anna was marching north toward Texas with a large army. Up to that point Austin had publicly wavered on the question of all-out independence for Texas (as opposed to a possible federal relationship with Mexico). Now, he finally came out decisively in support of independence, and stated this belief in a series of letters home. Austin and Archer reached Nashville in early February, and a bout with the flu delayed Austin there for more than two weeks as he struggled to regain his health. Just before leaving for Louisville and, eventually, Lexington, Austin wrote this letter to McCalla. By 1836, Stephen Austin and John McCalla had known each other for more than twenty-five years, having met when they were classmates at Transylvania University in Lexington, Kentucky. John Moore McCalla (1793-1873) was a veteran of the War of 1812 and a leader of the Jacksonian Democrats. By the early 1830s he owned a plantation in Kentucky of more than 750 acres, worked by twenty-six slaves. Since at least 1829, McCalla had been optimistic about the possibility of Kentuckians settling in Texas, and he wrote to Austin on October 6th of that year, “A great many citizens of Kentucky would move to your settlement instantly if it were under our government” (quoted in The Austin Papers). McCalla was an important political and military ally for Austin – he could use his political connections as a Democrat to curry support for Texas among Jacksonians, and he might be able to raise much needed troops and military supplies for the cause of independence. Austin kept up the pressure on McCalla for support, exhorting his cousin (and Texas promoter in her own right), Mary Austin Holley (in a letter of late March 1836) to speak to McCalla and raise the subject of Texas again. McCalla did eventually provide support for the Texas independence movement. Austin writes:

My friend, I have been detained here by an attack of pleurisy but have recov’d. and shall leave tomorrow. I shall pass through Lexington, but cannot stop more than one or two days. I know not what your inclinations may be towards a removal to Texas. That you are at heart an enthusiast in favor of our cause I have no doubt. Your moral character for patriotism and devotion to liberty insures it. But I wish to see you there, sword in hand, family property and all. “A more glorious field never presented itself. That country is in fact superior to any part of the U.S. in points of climate & soil, and local advantages. Much better lands than the Mississippi & Louisiana. Choice lands can be had there now at from one dollar to five dollars an acre, near the coast, say from one mile to forty. Above that, the land is as good and better watered, and may be had at from 25 cents to one dollar. Besides, emigrants who go now will all get lands as settlers for little or nothing. The bounty for volunteers is 640 acres. We need a Brig. General. Raise a brigade of Kentuckians and go. Glory & fame & fort[une] call you. Take your family, your all [and] rise with the country...even the visionary will be astonished. I repeat there never was such an opening. I have for fifteen years been a dray horse laboring to take materials there for a solid and permanent foundation – American and Anglo-Saxon materials. A foundation well laid of those materials I knew would sustain the great temple of liberty which I always expected to see reared in Texas. My occupation has not been one to shed among me the glitter of military pageantry, or dazzle the urges of a multitude, for it has been the occupation of the Philanthropist – of a builder & not a destroyer. He who caused a spear of grass to grow where none grew before, merited the eulogy of Dean Swift. But he, who like Napoleon or Caesar armed[?] the blight of war over kingdoms and countries, has lived in a blaze of glory. My ambition has been and is of the first distinction. The foundation I wished for is laid – it cannot be broken up. Nothing now remains but to elevate the Temple of Liberty upon it. Come to ‘the raising’ – come & help us to build up this glorious temple. Bring 2000 Kentuckians with you, families & all. Make a settlement in a body – form a New Kentucky of your own. What is to prevent? I see nothing. Col. T. D. Owings has engaged to raise one or two regiments. Have an understanding with him and no interference. We have made an engagement with him, but you & him can unite. The truth is we shall have very little fight, perhaps none. Mexico is too weak and distracted at home to attack us. Now then is the time. Our land will soon rise. Mississippi and Kansas lands sell now for 50 doll. per acre – wild lands, sickly and overflown. Ours are better in every respect for they are both cotton & sugar lands. Texas as an independent nation will go as far west & N.W. as we plan to take our limits. The field is unbounded & is richly [?] with fertile soil, salubrious climate, diversity of lands & undulations & hills & mines & mountains & silver mines & iron ore & stone, coal and everything. The Pacific Ocean terminates the prospect on the Northwest – a line from Tampico to the Gulf of California on the S.W. Where can ambition or avarice find such and their field? Don’t think I am wild & partake of the rambling qualities of the buffalo from the quantity of their marrow bones I have sucked, or of the wandering savage, whose woods life I have led in Texas – or that I am a visionary schemer. Nothing of this. I am a calm calculator, & it has been often attributed to me as a defect that I am too much so, & not as sanguine as I ought to be, because I have opposed precipitancy or premature movements in Texas. The time has now come. The foundation is laid. This I wanted to see before we began to raise the superstructure. I now wish to get up the new fabric as quickly as possible & see Texas step forward as a new & independent nation. In this work I wish to see you engaged. It is worthy of great minds, sound heads[?] & pure hearts. The timid may shrink, the wealthy may buy their gold & stay at home but bold spirits & philanthropic hearts enough will be found who go to Texas & “do or die.” In that number I wish to see you & chivalrous Kentucky take a part. Tennessee has so far taken the lead & is in motion, almost en masse. Farewell, S.F. Austin.

Austin adds a postscript invoking the memory of Kentuckian Benjamin Milam, who had been killed on December 7, 1835 during the Siege of Bexar (in San Antonio), a battle at which Austin himself had commanded Texan forces:

You knew our friend the noble & brave Milam. He was an honor to Kentucky. He intended to have gone to his native state to raise a regiment. His glorious patriotic spirit calls upon his countrymen to arm for liberty & Texas & avenge his death. I hope the call will be responded to & that 1000’s of Kentuckians will soon honor the grave of Milam by their presence in Texas.

This letter was unknown to Eugene C. Barker, and is not included in his edited collection, The Austin Papers (Austin, Tx., 1919-26). Nor was it known to Gregg Cantrell, Austin’s most recent and most thorough biographer. Stephen F. Austin died less than a year after he wrote this letter, on December 27, 1836, at age forty-three. Austin letters of substance are rare on the market. A letter such as this, written at the height of the struggle for the independence of Texas, and filled with Austin’s glowing descriptions of Texas, his soaring invocations of the defense of human liberty, and his exhortation to “do or die,” is a fabulous letter indeed. Gregg Cantrell, Stephen F. Austin. Empresario to Texas (New Haven, Ct., 1999), pp.329-47. $375,000.

Barnum to Bok: “...I find it impossible to shake you off ”

12. Barnum, P[hineas] T[aylor]: [COLLECTION OF SIX AUTO- GRAPH LETTERS, SIGNED (“P.T. BARNUM”), FROM P.T. BARNUM, AND ONE LETTER, SIGNED, TO EDWIN W. BOK]. [with:] [VINTAGE CABINET CARD, INSCRIBED BY BARNUM TO BOK]. Bridgeport, Ct. & New York, N.Y. Dec. 10, 1881 – Sept. 27, 1890. [13]pp. in ink, on various stationery. Octavo and quarto. Creases from prior folding, two letters laid down, some light browning. Overall very good.

A collection of letters and writings from P.T. Barnum to the young Edward W. Bok (1863-1930), charting the latter’s development from pesky autograph hound to esteemed editor of The Brooklyn Magazine and The Ladies Home Journal. In the first two early letters Barnum good-naturedly concedes defeat to Bok’s apparently unrelenting entreaties for an autograph. “...I find it impossible to shake you off. So I must join your ‘innumerable caravan.’...But life is too short to permit an ever-busy man like me to write letters to strangers....I cannot do it. The idea of a man in his 72d year to be called upon to write letters about nothing! Why the thing is perfectly preposterous! I shan’t do it!” (Dec. 10, 1881). “By extraordinary & sometimes no doubt annoying persistence, persuasion & patience, supplemented with audacity, you have succeeded in obtaining a collection of autographs of which any person may be proud. Having accomplished so much at the age of nineteen, I almost envy you....Meanwhile I sympathize with the sick, lame, halt, blind, aged and decrepit victims to whom you will give no rest till they surrender...” (Oct. 11, 1882). Some two years later Bok was editor of The Brooklyn Magazine. Barnum – at this point unaware of the coincidence – contributes a six-page testimonial on the Brooklyn Tabernacle pastor, Dr. Thomas De Witt Talmage – “...one of the greatest preachers of our time and century” (Dec. 4, 1884) – for a fifty-third birthday tribute to be published by The Brooklyn Magazine. Barnum then writes to request “8 or 10 of your Talmage number” ( Jan. 24, 1885) in lieu of fulfilling a year’s subscription. On March 18, 1887, Barnum writes to Bok, again agreeing to write a short piece in praise of an unnamed person (perhaps himself) for a book that Bok is publishing. Having finally made the connection that Bok is the same man who once hounded Barnum for autographs, he writes four days later to withdraw his offer: “I am just reminded that you are the indefatigable autograph-letter-hunter, and can see an object in your publishing the proposed book which I cannot approve. Hence I decline having my name therein” (March 22, 1887). Three years later and Bok had assumed his influential role as editor of The Ladies Home Journal. Barnum writes concerning an article written by his wife, entitled “Moths of Modern Marriages,” to be published by Bok, and sends word that a new photograph of Mrs. Barnum is on the way. He commends his wife’s charity work, but admits that “I also write for money, usually” (Sept. 27, 1890). With a signed cabinet card photo, in exceptionally fine condition, of Barnum, inscribed on the verso: “For Edward W Bok, PT Barnum. Waldemere Bridgeport Conn January 27th 1882.” A fine collection of Barnum letters, showing the impresario to be irascible, generous, and always humorous. $9000.

Manuscript of “America the Beautiful”

13. Bates, Katherine Lee: [AUTOGRAPH MANUSCRIPT, SIGNED (“KATHERINE LEE BATES”), FAIR COPY, OF “AMERICA THE BEAUTIFUL”]. [Np, Wellesley, Ma? nd]. [1]p. manuscript on the verso of a quarto-sized sheet of Wellesley College English Literature Department stationery. Some toning on verso, old folds, small closed tear along fold. Very good. In a blue half morocco and cloth folding box, spine gilt.

In 1893, a young professor of English literature from Wellesley College, Katherine Lee Bates, penned the lyrics to what was to become one of America’s most famous patriotic anthems. Originally written while teaching a summer session at Colorado College, Bates’ poem was first entitled “Pike’s Peak,” and first appeared in a publication called The Congregationalist on July 4, 1895. Bates revised the lyrics in 1904 for a version published that year in The Boston Evening Transcript; final revisions were made in 1913. When set to music by Samuel A. Ward and published in 1910, it was entitled “America the Beautiful,” and its popularity has grown ever since. It has been proposed as a replacement for “The Star-Spangled Banner” as the national anthem, and although such efforts have never succeeded, the popularity and esteem it has enjoyed for over a hundred years have given it a permanent place of honor in the national memory. Famously, Marian Anderson chose to sing a version of “America the Beautiful” on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in 1939, after being denied the use of Constitution Hall by the Daughters of the American Revolution. Katherine Lee Bates, an ardent feminist, poet, educator, and scholar, taught at Wellesley College from 1893 until 1925, and this transcript of America’s “second” National Anthem, is appropriately transcribed on letterhead of Wellesley College, Department of English Literature. $25,000.

The Deciding Vote in the Election of 1800 Writes on the Election, Presidential Appointments, and Life in Washington, D.C.: “the greatest act of absolute Constitutionalism”

14. Bayard, James Asheton: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED, FROM JAMES A. BAYARD, U.S. REPRESENTATIVE FROM DELAWARE, TO HIS COUSIN, SAMUEL BAYARD]. Washington [D.C.]. Jan. 30, 1801. [3]pp. written on a single bifolium. Old folds, two small tears, minor soiling. Else very good. In a half morocco and cloth clamshell box, spine gilt, leather labels.

A remarkable letter from the elector in the U.S. House of Representatives who decided the outcome of the presidential election of 1800, James A. Bayard (1767- 1815), writing to his cousin, Samuel Bayard. Bayard’s parents died when he was young and he was raised with his uncle’s family, so Samuel was more like a brother to him. He was elected to Congress as a Federalist from Delaware in 1796. In the letter he discusses three topics of the greatest contemporary interest: the appointment of judges contemplated by President John Adams before he left office, the deadlocked presidential election, and living conditions in the fledgling city of Washington, D.C. Bayard first addresses judicial appointments. His older cousin, Samuel Bayard, had served as clerk of the Supreme Court in 1791-94 and hoped for a federal judgeship; James promised to lobby:

What is in my power shall be done to accomplish the wishes you have expressed. It is impossible for me to give you any assurance of success. We know of no scale nor even principle of influence with the President [ John Adams]. It is harsh to say his appointments are the result of mere caprice, but in fact they are generally unaccountable. Nobody knows who advised nor what motive induced. It is generally thought no one is ever consulted. I have spoken to Mr. G[ouverneur] Morris, but I am sure he can do you little good. I will speak to the Chief Justice Marshall who can be more service- able, I will do what I have never done before, ask the favor of the President either in word or writing.

Bayard was good to his word, and on Feb. 8 met personally with the President to press his cousin’s case. In the end, Samuel Bayard was not made one of the famous “Midnight Judges” whom Adams appointed the day before he left office, possibly because of James Bayard’s role in Jefferson’s election. Bayard then compares life in the infant town of Washington with Philadelphia, painting a grim picture of its crowding and cost:

The means of sustenance are in sufficient plenty, but we have none of the elegant pleasures of our former residence. I am lodged at Stille’s Hotel with upwards of thirty gentlemen of the two houses and we set down to dinner seldom with less than forty persons. The life is something in the style of the Camp. The expense is exorbitant. I pay 23 dollars a week for self servant & wood & then there are a thousand &cs....

Bayard then turns to the burning question of the hour, the deadlocked presidential contest between Aaron Burr and Thomas Jefferson. He writes:

...We are much agitated with the question of President. The federalists have generally decided to support Mr. B[urr] and it is like upon the first ballot his will have six votes, Mr. J[efferson] eight. It is thought notwithstanding that there is an equal chance of his elevation. The State of Delaware in this business stands upon the same ground with the ancient dominion, and what increases her importance has the power of preserving the union from the terrible situation of being without a head. It is difficult to offer a conjecture as to the result of the votes of the House of Representatives. One member one way & three the other can turn the scale on either side.

James Bayard knew exactly what he was talking about, for he was in a unique position; as the only elector from Delaware, a change in his vote alone would give the election to Jefferson. He had already been heavily lobbied to do so by, of all people, Alexander Hamilton, who had decided that Jefferson was the best of bad choices. Writing to Bayard on Jan. 16, he had argued that if Jefferson’s policies were bad, he would be moderate and that he was “not capable of being corrupted.” Burr, on the other hand, Hamilton called “one of the most unprincipled men in the United States.” Hamilton’s biographer notes: “James A. Bayard was the key, occupying the most strategic position of any one man in the House.” When balloting began on Feb. 11, 1801, Bayard at first voted for Burr: “...On the first thirty-five ballots, Jefferson secured the votes of eight states, Burr of six (all controlled by Bayard’s Federalist colleagues); two states, equally divided between Federalists and Demo- cratic-Republicans, cast no votes. Thus neither contender gained the majority of states voting – nine being needed for election. As Delaware’s single representative, Bayard was in a position to give or deny the outcome to Jefferson, whom Bayard deeply distrusted. Withstanding intense pressure from fellow Federalists, Bayard precipitated a conclusion by submitting a blank ballot on the thirty-sixth ballot. Bayard’s action led one other delegation to do the same and the Federalists in two others to withdraw, thus allowing Jefferson to become president with the vote of ten states. Bayard...explained his actions simply: because, he wrote, of the ‘imperious necessity’ of running ‘no risk of the Constitution,’ he would not ‘exclude Jefferson at the expense of the Constitution.’ By acting thus to end the nation’s first major constitutional crisis, he performed one of the earliest and arguably one of the greatest acts of absolute constitutionalism in the nation’s history” – ANB. Bayard later maintained that he had personally gone to Jefferson and offered a deal: he would throw the election to Jefferson if the latter promised not to remove Federalist officeholders. Jefferson always denied there was a deal, but his moderation in this regard suggests there may well have been. Bayard stated further that he offered the same deal to Burr, who would not take it. Whether there was a deal, or Bayard simply followed Hamilton’s advice, has never been settled. If there was a deal, and John Adams knew of it, it may have cost Samuel Bayard his proposed federal judgeship. A remarkable letter from one of the key players in the election and Constitutional crisis of 1801. It is not in Bayard’s published correspondence. ANB 2, pp.363-64. James A. Bayard, Papers of James A. Bayard (1913), passim. Robert Hendrickson, Hamilton, Vol. 2, pp.527-28. $15,000.

The Botany of the West Indies in the 1680s

15. [Bégon, Michel]: [COLLECTION OF MANUSCRIPTS RELAT- ING TO MICHEL BÉGON’S BOTANICAL INTERESTS]. [Np, but possibly St. Domingue. ca. 1685?]. [26]pp. As described below.

Collection of manuscript documents relating to the amateur botanical activities of French colonial administrator Michel Bégon in the West Indies in the 1680s. This group of documents includes lists of plants “particuliers aux isles,” including several considered medicinal in nature. The “Memoire des plantes medicinales” lists aloe, sarsaparilla, acacia, and guaiac. Guaiac, also known as lignum-vitae, is native to the West Indies and believed to have medicinal properties. Originally used for treating syphilis, by the time this was written the London Pharmacopoeia of 1677 indicated its use for gout, the stone, palsy, leprosy, dropsy, and epilepsy. Also of a medical nature is a memoire from M. l’Abbé Vergon. Roughly translated, it reads: “Memoire for Monsieur Bégon Intendant of the Islands of Martinique concerning new researches on pharmaceuticals, that is to say taking the trouble to search out all simples which can be transported.” The memoire goes on to list questions Vergon has, as well as several items which he would like to have transported back to him. This collection also contains Bégon’s botany “to do” list. Items on the list, roughly translated: “Extract the juice of the hepatic aloe by incision & dry it in the sun; Conserve the fresh roots of ginger; Prepare & dry the bark of Indiawood for the cinnamon cloves; Remark well the 3 different sorts of medicinal nut & see which is the sweetest one; The white poppy seeded there to make great heads and draw from them the opium by incision; Extract much juice from citrons.” Interestingly, also included in this group is a list of pieces which Bégon had already acquired or hoped to collect for his West Indian Cabinet. These items range from birds, birds’ eggs, feathers, turtles, and snakes, to mats made from porcupine quills by Carib Indians. Michel Bégon (1638-1710) was a French civil servant and administrator, and an enthusiastic amateur in the arts and sciences, particularly botany. After a military career, Bégon served as an administrator in Canada and then the Caribbean, at Martinique in the early 1680s, and later as intendant of Santo Domingo, where he was at the time of Plumier’s 1688-90 voyage. He was also an amateur botanist and naturalist who collected many specimens and other curiosities, who is best remembered today in the begonia, named in his honor by Plumier. By 1694 he was governor of the Port of Rochelle, a position he held until his death. There he had “a rich cabinet of medals, antiquities, prints, shells, rare plants and other curiosities from all parts of the world,” which he opened generously to the use of his friends. Overall, an interesting collection of botanical memoranda from the West Indies. $4500. The Business of the First Congress

16. Benson, Egbert: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED (“EGBT BENSON”), FROM EGBERT BENSON AS U.S. CONGRESS- MAN FROM NEW YORK, TO AN UNNAMED RECIPIENT (PROBABLY SAMUEL JONES)]. Philadelphia. Nov. 14, 1790. [2]pp. on recto and verso of a single sheet. Very good. In a half morocco clamshell case.

An intriguing letter from Egbert Benson, New York’s first attorney general after independence, a leading New York jurist, prime mover in the push for a new federal constitution, and Representative from New York in the First Congress. Benson, along with Alexander Hamilton, had introduced the resolution for a constitutional convention at the Annapolis Convention of 1786, and he introduced the resolution for a New York ratifying convention in 1788. He writes to an unnamed correspondent, reporting on the business of the third session, with mention of President Washington’s speech, Alexander Hamilton’s reports, and New York Supreme Court justices John S. Hobart and Robert Yates; and the recent military campaign against the Miamis in the Ohio Valley.

Dear Sir, Upon Reflection it has appeared to Me, and I am persuaded it will appear to you, most advisable that the intended Correspondence between Us should seem to commence with you. Indeed it will not be easy for me or satisfactory to you for me to write to you generally on the Subject, and therefore wish you would from time to time write to me stating the Questions which you may be desirous to have examined and answered. It will be most prudent that your Letters should be communicated to the other Gentlemen in the Delegation and therefore my answers will in a Degree be public Communications. I do not propose however to confine myself to a mere answer to an Interrogatory; my Letters will contain Suggestions of whatever may occur to Me as useful – We have scarcely entered on the Business of the Session. The President’s Speech with the Answers and his Replies you will see in the Papers; and we have two reports from Mr. Hamilton, the one providing additional means for the Payment of the Interest on the public Debt and the other on the Subject of a Bank. These will be printed and I shall send a Copy to Robert [Yates?] for the perusal of Judge Hobart and Yourself*. Our troops have returned from the Western Expedition and have so far succeeded as to have destroyed a Number of Indian Towns with a great Quantity of Provision. Possibly as far as there was Reason to expect it probably would be, the Object of the Expedition has been effected, but with the Loss of near 200 Men on our Side. It is said that upwards of 100 of the Indians were killed in the two different Engagements.

While the recipient of the letter is not named, Kenneth Bowling of the First Fed- eral Congress Project believes it to be Samuel Jones, a prominent Anti-Federalist from Queens County, who nonetheless voted for the Constitution at the New York convention. Bowling cites Benson’s other letters to Jones, of which several survive, and the roundabout language of the first paragraph, which suggests Benson was concerned what use might be made of his correspondence. Bowling notes that no Benson letters survive from the first two sessions of the First Congress, and only seven from the third: four to Nicholas Low, and two definitely to Jones. He thinks this is a third. ANB 2, pp.602-4. STAN HENKELS AUCTIONS, CATALOGUE 1501, item 585 (when this letter was sold in 1937). E-mail from Kenneth Bowling, May 17, 2010. $5000.

Human Sacrifice in Oregon, 1844

17. [Brewer, Henry Bridgeman]: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED, FROM OREGON MISSIONARY HENRY BRIDGEMAN BREW- ER TO HIS PARENTS, DESCRIBING THE ATTEMPTED HU- MAN SACRIFICE OF A YOUNG SLAVE BY LOCAL INDIANS AND THE CHILD’S RESCUE BY A FELLOW MISSIONARY, AS WELL AS THE ACTIVITIES OF THE MISSIONARIES]. Oregon Territory, Columbia River. Sept. 27 to Oct. 3, 1844. [4]pp. manuscript letter on a folded sheet, addressed and postmarked on a blank portion of the fourth page. Old folds. A few stains. Some small closed splits along folds, longer split along bottom fold of second leaf, with no loss of text. Overall very good.

A remarkable letter, offering a wealth of information on the activities of the Meth- odist Mission in Oregon Territory in the 1840s, and also including vivid details of the attempted sacrifice of a young slave by local Indians. At the time of this letter the Methodist Mission in Oregon was a decade old, and leadership was passing from the mission’s founder, Rev. Jason Lee. Henry Brewer’s letter describes this tumultuous time in the mission’s history, gives information on his own experiences with local Indians, and relates, in riveting detail, the near sacrifice of a young slave. Henry Bridgeman Brewer (1813-86) was a Methodist missionary born in Wil- braham, Massachusetts. In October 1839 he sailed with the Methodist Episcopal Mission around Cape Horn, arriving at Fort Vancouver the following June. He served as a farmer, teacher, and translator at the Wascopum Mission at the Dalles of the Columbia River until 1847, when the mission was transferred to the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions, and he returned to Massachusetts. The most striking passage in Brewer’s letter describes the attempted sacrifice of a young slave by a grieving Indian father:

While we were on our visit to Wallamette a circumstance took place which shows that heathenistic practices are not all done away. It may be a good story for a Sabbath school. Sinimsh an Indian who lives not far from our house had a little boy whom he loved dearly; the father’s heart was set upon him. This little boy was taken sick and died. The father had a little slave that used to wait upon his little son in his life time. The father thought for the love he had for his son he ought to sacrifice the slave at his death, accordingly the deceased child and the living slave were taken to the sepulchre of the dead. (The Indians of the Dalles bury their dead in houses made of boards on an island in the Dalles to keep them from the wolves). The slave is probably eight years old. He made no resistance. They bound him hand & foot & laid him upon the bodies of other deceased persons who had been recently placed there, with his face downward & the body of the deceased child placed upon him. Just as they were about to leave him he called to them to loose the cord that bound him but they heeded not his cries. In this awful situation he spent one long dismal night though before morning he shook the corpse off from him. He said he heard the dead singing (the Indians believe this to be really true). One of the chiefs was in at Br. Perkins & was mentioning the circumstances & said he tried to dissuade them from doing as they did. Br. P. tried to have them bring him away that night but in vain. The next day Br. Perkins ransomed him from the grave by paying three blankets & a shirt which are to be placed in the room of the slave so that the dead may not be robbed. Br. P. has named him Ransom for he was ransomed from the grave. The little slave is a bright active little fellow. The sores where he was tied have not quite healed. Br. P. has him along & will probably put him out to some good pious man at Wallamette as an apprentice.

Brewer’s letter also gives a great deal of information about the activities of the missionaries in Oregon, including the succession of the leadership of the mission from the founder, Jason Lee, to George Gary, and the activities of missionaries Alvin F. Waller and H.K.W. Perkins. Brewer writes:

You no doubt have been apprised that Rev. Geo. Gary has been appointed to supersede Br. Lee in the superintendency of the Oregon Mission. The board no doubt made a good selection. Br. Gary is a good Father to us all. He is now 51 years old & a man of much experience. The board authorized him to dismiss all of the secular men of the mission except myself & sell all the farms, mills &c &c of the mission except the Wascopam [sic] farm, as they know not enough about that station to determine. Br. Gary has acted accordingly. The three farms on the Willamette are sold. The Indian school is given up, the store at Willamette Falls is sold &c. Toward the end of the letter, in a passage dated October 3, Brewer announces his arrival at Wallamette Falls, relates news of the health of his wife, and describes the recent murder of a feared Indian: “Kladicula the Indian who abused us last spring was shot by a Cayuse Indian a few days before I left home. The Indians all seem to rejoice for they feared him. Thus you see vengeance belongs to God. I have felt for some time as though he would be cut off for his sins.” An exceptional letter from an Oregon missionary, offering a firsthand account of attempted human sacrifice by Indians, as well as details of missionary activities. $8500. Jim Bridger’s Bad Debts

18. [Bridger, Jim]: [Sarpy, John]: [Fur Trade]: [MANUSCRIPT DOCU- MENT SIGNED BY JOHN P. SARPY TESTIFYING TO THE DISPERSAL OF THE ESTATE OF HENRY FRAEB AND THE DIFFICULTY OF COLLECTING MONEY FROM FAMED MOUNTAIN MAN JIM BRIDGER]. St. Louis. June 20, 1843. [1]p., docketed on verso. Folio. Old fold lines; some separation at folds, a few repaired with older archival tape. Quite clean and bright. Good.

A remarkable window into the business dealings of famed mountain man Jim Bridger, this signed manuscript affidavit of John P. Sarpy testifies to his actions on behalf of the estate of fellow fur trader Henry Fraeb, who was killed by Indians in the Rocky Mountains. Sarpy, who was a partner in the major firm of Pierre Chouteau & Co., had worked closely with Fraeb and knew him well. In his affidavit he writes about the Chouteau Company’s concerns about Jim Bridger, Fraeb’s partner at the time of his demise, and the difficulty of getting Bridger to pay his debts. Dated at St. Louis, Sarpy’s affidavit states:

...on the 8th day of August last he was appointed...administrator of the estate of Henry Fraeb then lately deceased. Said Fraeb had been a trader in the mountains, & was at the time of his death in partnership with a man of the name of James Bridger, & said Bridger & Fraeb were indebted to the firm of Pierre Chouteau Jr. & Co., & it was feared by the members of said firm that unless some one became the administrator of the said Fraeb, the said Bridger might interpose difficulties in the settlement of the accounts existing between them & Bridger & Fraeb. & for the purpose of doing justice to themselves, as well as to the said Fraeb, the said Sarpy applied for letters of administration, which were granted to him as above mentioned. The said Bridger has however since this time been here & has settled in full the accounts existing between the firm of Pierre Chouteau Jr. & Co. & the said Bridger & Fraeb. And the said Sarpy says that no property has come into his hands as the administrator of the said Fraeb, although it may be that the said Fraeb has property in the [mountain?] country or in the hands of James Bridger his former partner.

Though he may have been one of the greatest and most beloved mountain men of all time, Jim Bridger was not the best debt in the world, nor did Pierre Chouteau & Co. forget business. $5500.

The Marquess of Rockingham’s Manuscript Account of Proceedings in the House of Lords

19. [British Parliament]: [Rockingham, Marquess of ]: [TWO MANU- SCRIPT VOLUMES CONTAINING PARLIAMENTARY PRO- TESTS FILED IN THE HOUSE OF LORDS FROM 1641 TO 1799]. [London. 1641-1799]. Two volumes. [10],610; 311,[24]pp. Large folio. First volume in black morocco, elaborately tooled in gilt; second volume in dark green calf, also elaborately gilt. Hinges cracked, head and foot of spine worn; extremities rubbed, boards lightly scuffed. Internally fine, with very minor scattered foxing. Contemporary armorial bookplate of the Marquess of Rockingham on front pastedown. In matching blue half morocco clamshell cases, spines gilt.

An exhaustive manuscript set of protests lodged by Members of the House of Lords over the period from 1641 to 1799, copied by the clerks in the Parliament Office and bound for Charles Watson-Wentworth, Second Marquess of Rockingham, with his bookplate. Peers had the right to protest decisions reached by Parliament into the journal or formal record of the House’s proceedings, simply by signing their names against the record of the decision. Members could also add a protest consisting of a reason or series of reasons for their dissent; the first such protest originated in 1641. Such protests were not published at the time and would not have been available in printed form. This set includes, among other things, protests lodged against the Stamp Act and the Declaratory Act during the period preceding the American Revolution. Charles Watson-Wentworth, Second Marquess of Rockingham (1730-82) had long been a supporter of American rights and played a major role in the independence of the United States. He was Prime Minister first in 1766, and oversaw the repeal of the Stamp Act. His second stint as Prime Minister came in 1782, when he led Parliament in recognizing the independence of the United States at the end of the American Revolution. Rockingham always urged moderation in his government’s treatment of the colonies, but nevertheless condemned the Boston Tea Party and other outrages, and in this respect did not differ from the rest of the British establishment during the time. Close connections with prominent British merchants influenced his support of the colonies, which were highly profitable for British trade, when not engaged in open rebellion. He was also the political mentor of Charles James Fox, the leading voice of American sympathy in British debates, and Edmund Burke was his personal secretary and political mouthpiece. Protest against the repeal of the Stamp Act takes up fourteen pages, covering the dissent over the second and third readings of the bill, on March 11 and 17, 1766. Among the reasons given for protesting the repeal in the second reading, the journal states that a bill could have been made to amend the Stamp Act, without repealing it, which the Lords would have considered “with a warm desire of relieving our countrymen in America, from any grievance or hardship; but with proper care to enforce their submission and obedience to the law so amended and to the whole Legislative Authority of Great Britain, without any reserve or distinction whatsoever.” Likewise listed as reasons are the irrefutable authority of the power of taxation and the need for Americans to be taxed like all other British subjects, and the obvious ability of the Americans to bear their portion of the tax burden. Another point indicated is that if Americans are given the free trade they desire, the colonies will no longer be of any benefit to Britain, and would in fact be “in the highest degree prejudicial to the commerce and welfare of their Mother Country.” The dissent on the third reading opens with the statement:

We think, that the Declaratory Bill we pass’d last week, cannot possibly obviate the growing mischiefs in America where it may seem calculated only to deceive people of Great Britain, by holding forth a delusive and nugatory affirmance of the legislative right of this Kingdom, whilst enacting part of it, does no more than abrogate the resolutions of the House of Representatives in the North American Colonies, which have not in themselves the least colour of authority; and declares that which is apparently and certainly criminal only, null and void.

The dissent closes with the statement:

...repeal of this law, under the present circumstances, will we fear not only surrender the honour and essential interests of the Kingdom now and forever both at home and abroad...[but] we in effect annihilate this branch of the legislature and vote ourselves useless; or if by passing this bill, we mean to justify those who in America, and even in Great Britain, have treated a series of British Acts of Parliament, as so many acts of Tyranny and Oppression, which it is scarcely criminal to resist...we shall then give our approbation to an open breach of the first article of that great palladium of our liberties, the Bill of Rights....

The second volume contains numerous dissents related to the conflict with the American colonies, including an eloquent protest directed to the King regarding the imprudence and potential disgrace of hiring foreign mercenaries to fight the colonists. Additionally, protests against ceasing trade with the colonies and the impressment of American seamen. Altogether, a trove of British Parliamentary opinions, with important commentary on the American Revolution, with excellent and significant provenance. $37,500.

Archive of John Brown the Younger on Politics, Bloody Kansas, Harper’s Ferry, and the Civil War

20. Brown, John, Jr.: [ARCHIVE OF FORTY LETTERS CONCERN- ING THE ANTI-SLAVERY MOVEMENT, PRIMARILY WRIT- TEN TO JOHN BROWN, JR.]. [Various places]. 1848-1891. Forty letters, comprising 102pp. Various sizes, but primarily octavo and quarto. Old folds. Light scattered soiling and wear. Six letters laminated. Generally very good. In a half morocco and cloth box, spine gilt.

The son and namesake of the radical abolitionist, John Brown, Jr., rode side by side with his father through the battlefields of Bloody Kansas, and while he was not part of the Provisional Army that raided the Federal Arsenal at Harper’s Ferry, he never faltered in his ideals, even after his father’s execution. This series of forty letters, most written to John Brown, Jr., documents the years during which he and his family were immersed in armed struggle against slavery in the United States, and includes letters from and about the foot soldiers in Brown’s antislavery army and about the tragic end to the struggle at Harper’s Ferry. The collection begins with two letters to John Brown, Sr., hinting at his political inclinations in the years before he committed himself to ending slavery by force of arms. One of these, from uncle R. Bidwell dated Aug. 20, 1848, is a warm family letter joking with Brown about going to Fowler and Wells (phrenologists). Touch- ing on politics, he writes:

I should like to see the ‘free soil’ principles triumph, not that I think Van [Bu- ren] any more honest than he was eight years ago. The South has treated him so shabbily that I think he will he will go against slavery & sustain Northern rights more for revenge than from principle. I think that neither Cass or Van B know any thing, experimentally about that old fashioned virtue called Hon- esty....It is hard for a politician to be honest, especially if he aspires to Office. I have as little confidence in the patriotism & integrity of the leader of the “free soil” party, as in other men.

The heart of the collection is an exceptional series of letters that charts the insurrec- tion Brown planned to end slavery and its aftermath. These begin with a fair copy of a letter from Charles Robinson, Free State fighter and Governor of Kansas, dated Sept. 14, 1856, congratulating Brown on surviving the Battle of Osawatomie. He writes: “Your course, so far as I have been informed has been such as to merit the highest praise from every patriot, and I cheerfully accord to you my heartfelt thanks for prompt, efficient, and timely action against the invaders of our rights and the murderers of our citizens.” This series of letters documents the zeal and religious fervor that bound Brown’s tiny army together and drove them forward in the cause. Three quite extraordinary letters in the archive were written in the aftermath of Harper’s Ferry and Brown’s execution. One of those was written by Mary Stearns, the wife of George L. Stearns (one of Brown’s most ardent supporters and one of the so-called Secret Six). Her letter to John Brown, Jr. reveals the depth of emo- tion aroused by Brown, Sr., even after his execution:

The only comfort & cheer we could glean, was from the sublime heroism & devotion which through the influence of the Holy Spirit so adorned & glori- fied humanity in the person of your Sainted Father....There has been no such spectacle on earth since Jesus ascended from Calvary, and unborn generations will revere with holy enthusiasm, the memory of John Brown at Harpers Ferry! The Second of December is forever sacred in our Calendar.

Similarly moved, Richard J. Hinton, a staunch fellow traveler and later Brown’s biographer, wrote to John Brown, Jr. a year after the raid on Harper’s Ferry. In a letter dated Oct. 17, 1860, he writes:

Today I feel as if I must again renew our friendship & fraternity at the shrine of your sacred memories, sorrows and sacrifices – may I not say ours. This is the first anniversary of Harper’s Ferry...let this poor medium speak for me to you of my love & sympathy. It is but a faint echo, but as your souls catch its reverberations, & feel something of the kindly magnetisms & aroma which affluently wells out from me to you, you may feel for me what I cannot express in this cold & imperfect medium.

Most remarkable of all, however, is a letter from John Brown’s close associate, George B. Gill, writing under cover to Owen and John Brown Jr. on April 9, 1860:

One of you I am acquainted with the other I am not, yet we are not strangers, for in a cause like ours in which souls pulsate to the same strain there can be no strangership. Owen it has been many months since we parted, since then I have worked a little in the cause, but while you were working, sacrificing and toiling, I have been a laggard. My spirit reproaches me for my inactivity, but God knows my will was good enough to face the hottest fires of hell in defence of our nations crushed and suffering poor....I was with your father in the campaign of 58 & 59, and consequently was thoroughly acquainted with [ John Henry] Kagi, [Aaron Dwight] Stevens, [Albert] Hazlett, [ Jeremiah Goldmsith] Anderson and others [Brown’s associates killed at Harper’s Ferry or executed after]. They were men of sterling worth and though I deprecate their death, yet I feel confident that they are still working, and that too in a field where they will yield a more abundant harvest. This was too limited for their great souls.

Finally, there is also a peculiar letter written by Rufus Clark, Dec. 30, 1859, asking for details on the Brown family, including: “Was Frederick killed by a slaveholding minister Rev. Martin White of Missouri? How long had Oliver and Walter been married when they met their fatal end at Harper’s Ferry?” Although Brown did not live to see the culmination of his antislavery work, several of his associates went on to serve in the Civil War. George H. Hoyt, the attorney who defended Brown after Harper’s Ferry, became the organizer of the notorious Red Legs, irregular scouts who defended the Kansas border against pro-Confederate forces. Hoyt also helped Charles R. Jennison to raise the 7th Kansas Cavalry Regiment. Better known as Jennison’s Jayhawkers, the 7th was a marauding outfit of fiery antislavery principles that brought the merciless, no-holds- barred offensive style learned during the Bleeding Kansas years to the Civil War. The collection includes a wonderful letter from Lieut. Hoyt to his captain, John Brown, Jr. Hoyt writes: “You see we have the advantage of the other companies in this glorious Regiment of being drilled as Infantry. Can’t be mustered in until you are but I am going strong with the boys & shall fight without pay gladly....It is a glorious regiment & is the only one here that is doing work on the right principle.” The same devotion to antislavery principles is evident in the four letters from Lieut. Burr H. Bostwick, also of Jennison’s Jawhawkers, written in 1862 and 1863, mentioning his regiment’s activities, brushes with Confederate cavalry, the arming of negroes, and on Nov. 11, 1863, an impassioned restatement of his principles:

Yes I am proud to say that I have the honor (for such I deem it and it is) to lead them forth to battle, the one common foe of our rights and liberties. With right and justice and equal rights to all victory must and will be ours, nor do I want peace restored until servitude is unknown, and the shackles shall fall from every bondman through the length and breadth of the land. When they shall know their freedom and be able and willing to defend and maintain it.

No less committed was a fellow Union soldier, Conrad M. Brenner, writing to Brown, Jr. from Columbiana on Aug. 4, 1862:

I am well aware that our present crisis had a great influence at the sentiments of the government and the people, and may be, the result will need no interference from our side; but I doubt very much, that more will be done against slavery and for the colored people, as what the most necessary circumstances will force people and government to grant; prejudice and hatred against the colored people will be as strong as before and it is a question if under such circumstances their situation would be much better, when in possession of conditional freedom. I think the time will come before long, when the colored people can get freedom without begging for; for this time we have to prepare, and if our assistance is not needed such much the better. But I am nearly certain, that the colored men can never enjoy perfect freedom as long as white people can interfere with their rights and dictate, where to live and how much freedom they shall have.

Also included among the Civil War material are two military passes from the Kansas Brigade signed by M.H. Insley; a letter from Insley regarding Brown joining the Kansas Brigade; a letter from Gov. Austin Blair authorizing Brown to recruit fifty sharpshooters in Michigan for the Kansas Brigade; and a letter from Richard Hinton to Brown, dated July 19, 1864, regarding Brown’s attempts to join Lane’s Brigade:

I am exceedingly glad, because Lane’s Brigade will be the Anti Slavery Corp of this War. Tidd [another Brown veteran] has also volunteered, Merriam also I believe....The General has got a little ambition to come up as the Military Anti Slavery Candidate for the Presidency in 1864. A good thing to encourage, as he will work harder for the cause. He means to clean out Arkansas, Indian Territory, and Texas before he gets through – so he says.

The collection includes other materials reflecting the wider influence of Brown’s apocalyptic vision and his reach in popular culture, including a two-page letter from novelist William Dean Howells relating to a story about Owen Brown’s escape from Harper’s Ferry. Other miscellaneous items include a manuscript story of the shackle used to confine James Townsley, one of John Brown’s men captured at the Battle of Hickory Point in 1856; and two poignant letters, one announcing Owen Brown’s death in 1889, the other asking John to consider removing his father’s body from its out-of-the-way grave in New York to be reinterred in Kansas. A truly extraordinary archive of the Brown family and the radical wing of the anti-slavery movement. $25,000.

“...are there inducements in the Horrid Region...?”: Yellowstone, Jedediah Smith, and the Fate of Hiram Scott

21. Bruffee, James B.: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED, FROM JAMES B. BRUFFEE TO ROBERT CAMPBELL, DESCRIBING THE YELLOWSTONE COUNTRY AND REQUESTING FUR- THER DETAILS OF THE DEATH OF HIRAM SCOTT]. Potosi, Mo. Sept. 10, 1829. 3pp., docketed on verso. Quarto, on a folded folio sheet. Old folds; separation at some folds, a few repaired with archival tape. Hole from wax seal affecting two words of text. Minor soiling. In a clear and legible hand. Good.

An intriguing letter from James B. Bruffee to his friend and fellow fur trader, Robert Campbell, containing a very early reference to Yellowstone and the bleakness of its landscape, as well as the death of his business partner, Hiram Scott. Bypassed by the Lewis and Clark expedition, Yellowstone was largely unknown to white men; the legendary Hugh Glass ventured there in 1807, and when the fur trade opened up the Upper Missouri and the Rocky Mountains in the 1820s, fur traders and mountain men began making forays into the area. The region, however, remained largely unexplored until the after the Civil War, and there are only a handful of references to it at this early date. Regarding the Yellowstone country, Bruffee writes that he hopes Campbell does not feel the need to return to that “Horrid Region,” but admits that his own financial affairs make it likely that he himself will have to venture there once more:

But my much respected friend, are there inducements in the Horrid Region still sufficient to induce you back? Certainly the hazard is more and more increased....Consequently I feel disposed to yield to a necessity that may say your happiness and your best interest calls for further enterprise. Certain it is that my own wants and even embarrassments are still of a character to venture if it were to tread the infernal confines. Could I gain cash to justify such a life and such a voyage, and were there an opening I would willingly join you in your returns, but presume you have no power to dispense with any thing in the shape of an interesting birth in that dreary and inhospitable region.

He continues, writing of his concern for his friend, Jedediah Smith, still out in the wilderness, and elaborates on some further business and his desire to see Campbell:

I have for many months past been filled with thoughts the most perplexing and the greatest degree of solicitude for our [friend] Mr. Smith’s precarious situation in the mountains and now to have those feelings reawakened is truly distressing, yet I still have a hope left me, that a man of his boldness, prudence, and merit must finally succeed. But that he is still safe together with his frds. J & S [Smith’s business partners, David Jackson and William Sublette] I do most fondly hope....Were there not such a necessity for my unremitted application to business I would try to see you &c a week from thus period, but now I can’t promise myself that pleasure by a trip to St. Louis unless I can effect some arrangements to lay in a small stock of iron & steel for my winter business. Times are truly hard with those in debt here without a capital capable of being wielded to advantage. The great fall in the price of lead coupled with the natural barrenness of the country is grievously felt....Be good enough to mention in your next communication what particular vestiges you saw of the remains of unfortunate Scott, where he made his exit, &c.

Bruffee had gone to the 1827 rendezvous at Bear Lake with supplies for the famed Rocky Mountain Fur Trade Company, owned by Smith, Jackson & Sublette. Among his crew was Hiram Scott, who became ill on the way to the rendezvous. The group split into two parties in order to facilitate an easier return for Scott, with Bruffee and his men in the second party promising to wait for Scott and the others to catch up with them at the steep bluffs on the south side of the North Platte River, in present-day Nebraska. When Scott’s party arrived there was no trace of Bruffee or his men. The two men with Scott, now on the brink of collapse themselves, had to choose – would they all three perish together, or would they abandon Scott and try to save themselves? They chose the latter, leaving Scott, lest they too die in the wilderness. William Sublette later found Scott’s remains and buried them; the bluff where they were found has since been known as Scott’s Bluff. It is likely that Bruffee only learned of Scott’s death in the letter sent him by Robert Campbell, to which he is responding here, hence his request for further details. Though he seems to have been close to most of the major players of the fur trade at this time, Bruffee remains a relatively obscure character, due to the scant information about him. He does not appear in LeRoy Hafen’s ten-volume work, The Mountain Men and the Fur Trade of the Far West. An early and eye-witness description of Yellowstone and the fur trade in the Far West. $7500.

Early Sketches of Stockton and Other California Towns

22. [California]: [Browere, Alburtus del Orient]: [TWO SKETCH- BOOKS CONTAINING PENCIL DRAWINGS OF CALIFOR- NIA SCENES, SEVERAL OF THEM IDENTIFIED AS BEING IN SACRAMENTO, STOCKTON, SAN DIEGO, AND MARYS- VILLE. OTHER SKETCHES INCLUDE RENDERINGS OF IN- DIANS, ANIMALS, MINING SCENES, LANDSCAPES, etc.]. [Various places in California. ca. 1852-1862]. Smaller sketchbook: 12mo., 6¼ x 3¾ inches. Original limp sheep. [23]pp. of pencil sketches. Three leaves (apparently of notes and calculations) torn out at front, final two leaves torn with loss of about a quarter of each leaf, one leaf loosely laid in. Larger sketchbook: Oblong octavo, 7¼ x 9¾ inches. Original paper wrappers. [15] pp. of pencil sketches, plus sketches on both pastedowns. General wear to the wrappers of the larger notebook. Internally both are clean and in very good condition. In an oblong half morocco and cloth box.

An interesting pair of sketchbooks attributed to the well-regarded artist, Alburtus del Orient Browere, showing scenes in California in the mid-19th century. The notebooks are unsigned, but they descended through the Browere family before becoming available. There are a few instances of manuscript notes. Alburtus Browere (1814-87) was the son of sculptor John Henri Isaac Browere, famous for his plaster life masks of Thomas Jefferson, Gilbert Stuart, and others. Largely self-taught, Alburtus was influenced by Thomas Cole and other Hudson River School painters, and became known for his landscape work and historical scenes at an early age, exhibiting several times in New York. In 1852 he sailed around the Horn, and spent the next four years in California mining for gold and painting the mountainous landscape and images of local life during the gold rush. He returned to California in 1858 and remained until 1862. “His sketches of mining towns and camps constitute a significant contribution to early California art” – Dawdy. “His genre paintings of the gold miners and majestic landscapes of the Sierra Nevada Range are some of California’s finest artistic heritage” – Hughes. The drawings exhibit a considerable amount of skill, and were done as preliminary sketches for later, more polished renditions. The sketch of Stockton, for example, was incorporated by Browere into several later paintings of the city, including those that can be found in the deYoung Museum, the Oakland Museum (a view of Stockton in 1856), and the Haggin Museum in Stockton. The sketch of an oxcart can be associated with a view of Mokelumne Hill in the collections of the Bancroft Library. Several of the drawings have notes regarding the colors of the vegetation, rocks, landscape, and buildings shown, as well as the angle and quality of light. For example, one scene notes that a riverbank is made of clay, that there is “green in the water,” and that a rooftop is the color of umber. The smaller sketchbook contains six landscape drawings that are unidentified as to location, but the scenes are filled with vegetation, rocks, and water, and one of them shows a prospector and mule in the lower corner (Browere was known for incorporating himself as a miner into his paintings). Several of the sketches in this notebook are identified, however. Two of the drawings are of Sacramento, both showing scenes in the woods outside the city. Another scene is entitled “Marysville,” although it appears to be a mostly unfinished sketch. Four of the best drawings are of Stockton and show a very busy, densely-built riverside town engaged in commerce. As mentioned, these sketches were incorporated by Browere into his well-known paintings of Stockton, some of the best early depictions of this important central California town, which boomed during the gold rush. Two single-page drawings show riverside scenes and are entitled “Parks Bar,” which may be a location on the Yuba River. One drawing is a profile of a female Indian from the chest up, and is titled “Digger Indian.” Four of the other drawings show mules or mule teams. The larger sketchbook contains more elaborate and detailed drawings. It begins with a scene of a man, apparently a weary prospector, stretched out asleep along a riverside with a city visible across the water. This is almost certainly another Stockton or Sacramento scene. The next scene is the only interior in the sketchbooks, showing a rather grand three-story space with stairs, balconies, and curtained windows. The next illustration is a large, double-page sketch of a town, possibly Sacramento or Stockton. It is a crowded scene of vegetation among numerous buildings. Browere has made several notes on the drawing with regard to colors and the qualities of the light he observed. This is followed by two untitled sketches of landscapes, and a seaside sketch entitled “San Diego.” The San Diego drawing shows several small boats in the water in front of an outcropping of small buildings. Following this are two very large and detailed drawings of what appear to be mission churches, featuring bell towers. These drawings have several notes on them, and are clearly preliminary sketches for later, more polished renderings. Another drawing in this sketchbook shows a group of men digging in the foreground, with a city discernible in the far background. An interesting collection of early California sketches, done by a talented artist and adding much to the knowledge of Browere’s time in California and his artistic methods. Dawdy, Artists of the American West I, pp.34-35. Hughes, Artists in California, p.65. Vincent, O Cali- fornia!, pp.71, 78, 84. $6000. An Extremely Rare Kit Carson Signature

23. Carson, Christopher: [MANUSCRIPT REQUISITION DOCU- MENT SIGNED BY CHRISTOPHER “KIT” CARSON AS THE COMMANDER OF FORT GARLAND]. Fort Garland, Co. July 1866. [1]p., docketed on verso. Quarto. Old fold lines. Very minor soiling. Fine. In a half morocco and cloth box, leather label.

Manuscript requisition for provisions for the officers and their families stationed at Fort Garland in Colorado Territory, signed by Christopher “Kit” Carson as commanding officer of the post. The document reads at the top: “Special Requisition For Subsistence Stores for the use of Officers at Fort Garland C.T. for 365 days, commencing the 1st day of August 1866 and ending the 1st day of September 1867.” A small chart then outlines the reasoning behind the need for 10,000 rations for the officers and their families for the year. It is signed at the bottom “C. Carson” as Col. of the 1st New Mexico Cavalry and Brevet Brigadier General U.S.V., Commander of the Post, and countersigned by W.H. Barlow as Captain and Quartermaster. Carson’s autograph is one of the rarest in Western Americana. Unable to read or write, other than to sign his name, Carson left behind very little in the way of a written record. Following his famous exploits as a mountain man, fur trapper, and guide in the American West, Carson served as a colonel in the Civil War and was later breveted as a brigadier general and given command of Fort Garland in 1866. He resigned a year later due to ill health and took a post as superintendent of Indian affairs for Colorado Territory, but died shortly thereafter, in the summer of 1868. This is the more typical form of his signature; he only used “Kit Carson” on some carte-de-visites for autograph seekers, and never used his full name. A rare signature by one of the most legendary names in the American West. ANB (online). $25,000.

Fine Woman’s Journal of Life in the South During the Civil War

24. [Civil War]: JOURNAL KEPT DURING THE SOUTHERN WAR [manuscript title]. [New Castle, De.; Baltimore; Virginia; and Arkansas. Oct. 16, 1861 – Sept. 9, 1863. [126]pp. manuscript, a total of some 25,000 words. Bound in contemporary sheep and calf, rebound in calf in matching style. Boards edgeworn and scuffed. Very clean and neat internally. Very good overall. In a half morocco and cloth box, spine gilt.

An outstanding, engaging, and detailed journal kept by a woman from Delaware, whose pro-Southern sympathies led her to move from her native state to Arkansas during the Civil War. In this journal she records nearly two years in her life, from 1861 to 1863, as she travelled from Delaware to Baltimore, then to Virginia and eventually to Arkansas, where she settled in a home near the Mississippi River. Throughout the journal the anonymous author records her experiences in literate prose, whether describing the consequences of divided sympathies in Baltimore, her interactions with the Virginia gentry, and the constant fear of attacks from Union gunboats on the Mississippi once she reached Arkansas. This journal gives an excellent firsthand account of life in the Confederate West during the Civil War, and of the experiences of a woman from a Border State who felt compelled to move to the deeper Confederacy in Arkansas. We do not know the full name of the author, but she was apparently originally from New Castle, Delaware. A few times in the text others refer to her as “An- nie,” though her last name does not appear (there is another Annie mentioned in the Arkansas portion of the text, but it appears that the author’s name was Ann or Annie as well). The text appears to have been written intermittently as her circumstances allowed; in the initial writing of the journal the author abbreviated the names of friends and places, and in several instances went back at a later point and wrote the full names in the appropriate places. She is not married, and appears to be of middle-age; several times she writes about past suitors, including one who became a Union general. The tone of the writing alternates from a description of the author’s travels and the sights that she saw and people she encountered, to a sort of “open letter” to her friends and family, expressing her sorrow over having to leave Delaware, her wistful memories of old times, and the torment of war. These passages are interwoven with lively and gripping accounts of life during the Civil War, including her experiences in Arkansas as Union troops made incursions into the countryside, ransacking homes and plantations. A recurring theme in the journal is the author’s espousal of her sympathies with the Southern cause, which she saw as being on side of true freedom. For example, in one instance she writes: “There is wrong deadly wrong in the North, and I cannot but feel that Freedom is snatched from the people, and they do not comprehend it.” The author writes in the opening pages of her journal of the difficult emotions that she felt on having to leave her home in Delaware for the “land of war”: “When I had determined that a change of home was necessary I looked forward to a meeting with those from whom I had been so rudely and stunningly torn. War – separation, because of war was so new to me, that I could scarcely realize that running the gauntlet...and [finding] myself near those nearest me in blood, and affection.” After bidding a tearful farewell to her friends, she travelled to Baltimore to board a ship to begin her journey, only to find herself stalled at the very beginning:

A fleet was preparing for embarkation at Old Point [Comfort, in Virginia], and no one would be allowed to go to the Point unless taking the ‘Oath of Allegiance’ to the Lincoln government. Of course I who was running from the Oath, who gave up my pension rather than take it, had no alternative left but to remain in Baltimore. Life is very difficult, many days go calmly, then comes strife. I looked round me, the boat I was in was like a familiar friend. I had journeyed in it often. Many pleasurable emotions were centered on it. Often it had borne me to friends, then returned me joyous, to loving hearts; but how changed its interior. Now around me anxious faces of women who are longing to reach husbands, brothers. Employees of the the government are now masters of the boat tricked in the gilt, and brass of service. Men dressed in a little brief authority and using that authority in too authoritative a manner, unlike the deference of the true soldier.

She spent the second half of October 1861 stranded in Baltimore, visiting friends and observing, with increasing horror, the actions of Union troops in a city that contained many Confederate sympathizers and agitators:

Saw many friends today all gloomy. No one looked so resigned as Lydia Howard, so beautiful in her resignation. She told me she had been called from her sleep in the night, how she had appeared before armed men, not having time to more than throw a wrapper round her form, her feet thrust into slippers, her hair in wild disorder, she frantic that they should take her husband from her, and incarcerate him (her husband’s father was also a prisoner in the “Bastile”).... Fathers, brothers, sons, hurried off to prisons without trial, the women treated with indignity. Surely this is the reign of terror.

The author finally left Baltimore on a Southern boat (“we were in a Dixie boat and we were Dixie’s children”) on October 31, bound for Virginia. Once there, her tone changes significantly from dread and anger to joy, though she reveals her fears that, in ultimately heading for the Mississippi River, she is moving into the “jaws of war,” and expresses “a melancholy feeling as though sadder days were ahead.” After a few weeks in central Virginia she boarded a train headed southwest, toward Memphis, Tennessee. The tone of the journal varies from rapturous descriptions of the countryside and the “Peaks of Otter” in southwestern Virginia, to accounts of bridges burned by Union troops, including her report of bridge burners being hung in Knoxville the day before her arrival there.

The people we meet with are furiously agitated against the Yankees as they call them and the only fear is that there will be a want of arms, this feeling is strong though when I left the North the Southerners were called thieves and robbers, for stealing the ammunition and guns of the government. Surely this has not been the case for each man shoulders his own rifle brought from home. Every man here has a gun, not so in the North.

The author arrived in Arkansas on December 22, 1861 and settled in a house in the area of Lake Chicot, near the Mississippi River just north of the Louisiana border. The rest of the journal describes her experiences in that area for the following twenty months. She provides long descriptions of her new neighbors, their families, and their personal qualities. Among those described are other expatriates, including a judge and his wife who had recently moved to Arkansas from New England. Often she will describe local manners and customs in Arkansas, and contrast them with her own notions, which come out of her experiences growing up in Delaware. For example, at one point she writes:

We are a peculiar people here [in Arkansas]. I think we rely more upon cotton than on any known object. I decline making myself one of the members for I belong in tastes and opinions to the old country. I cannot be used to the idea of shorting a man if he looks at you and you would rather he should not. I am for giving the wide berth, but here “Greek meets Greek” then comes the tug of war. We would be ungrateful not to like the “gude folks” for every where without exception we have been cordially welcomed.

In reporting on the gossiping tendencies of her neighbors, she writes in exaspera- tion: “save me from my friends, I can defend myself from my enemies.” Several of her friends and neighbors are mentioned by name, providing valuable information on the local history of this region of eastern Arkansas. The author regularly turns back to writing about the effects of the war, including her view that even Confederate defeats raise hopes, as they demonstrate the tenacity of the Rebels. She also describes the scarcity caused by the war, in her entry for March 1862: “We feel that every exertion must be made by every individual and willingly are they sent. The fall of Fort Kearny and Donaldson [i.e. Donelson] have only served to raise our hopes. We now know how our gallant soldiers can fight... every man woman and child’s heart, and hands are enlisted for the cause. All our men are leaving – some leaving their hearts behind them.” Later she writes: “May brings the fall of New Orleans. Our newspapers become scarce and the paper is curi- ous to view, sky blue, dark blue, bright yellow; colors of every hue – green, etc. We need paper in the Confederacy – women wear out your clothes and save your rags.” She notes that they occasionally receive northern newspapers, but accuses them of spreading propagandistic lies about Union victories. In July 1862 she notes with horror the report that the Union army is about to bring blacks into their forces: “The New York Herald still talks of arming the negroes. It is I imagine a kind of threat to bring the rebels in by scaring them. It can never be; the enormity, the great depravity would send the officers of the old army, and the soldiers who are not in the Devil’s pay quickly out of Lincoln’s army. Can it be that in time their evil hearts will look leniently upon this awful crime?” Later in July she writes: “Many gun boats are passing down the river we hear the cannon.” One of the boats delivered a northern newspaper, and a report of Union losses during the Peninsu- lar campaign, particularly those suffered by Silas Casey in Virginia, sparked the author’s recollections of Casey’s attempts to woo her in the past, when he “begged me to make his house.” The war continued close to home throughout the summer, and the author describes the Confederate capture of the Union steamer, Sallie Wood, on the Mis- sissippi near her home in late July:

Quite a brilliant skirmish which shows the spirit of resistance exhibited towards the invaders by our gallant people of this state. Their gun boats go up and down the river flaunting their flags. We are so unprotected that we have asked for guerrillas our homes are now entered by the marauding bandits. They are Butler’s and Farragut’s employees. We have a rendezvous at Greenville just opposite us and we opened fire upon a boat going up not succeeding in setting her on fire, our soldiers followed her a mile or two, put a shot through her smoke stack & she was blazing. I saw her from the upper porch. She ran to shore disgorged three officers, twenty odd men and three women. We took the officers and some of the women prisoners – the rest of the men and women escaped. The boat was the Sallie Wood. She had on board coffee sugar and other delicacies.

With some regularity the author embarks upon screeds against the Union forces, decrying their lack of chivalry and gallantry, and condemning them for what she calls their war on women and defenseless communities. Throughout the journal her view of the United States, its government and army, is rife with bitterness and anger. In February 1863 she again relates how immediate is the threat from Union forces to her home and those of her neighbors, as troops from Union gunboats on the Mississippi make raids inland:

The enemy are growing daily more and more outrageous. They are plundering every house on the river and growing more fearless for they leave their boats and make raids some ten miles back. There is an alarm almost daily. We have secreted our silver in almost every imaginable place, and our own articles of jewelry have at times been secreted in the eaves of the house, then taken from there as we have heard that the enemy had indeed “gone up the spout.” At last a bag round my waist has been constructed.

She describes some of the measures she has taken to keep the Yankees from ransacking her home: “At a friends house some days ago the lady said ‘why do you break the locks?’ ‘We do not when we have the keys’ said General [Alfred W.] Ellet of New Jersey notoriety, so I taking the hint put the keys in every lock. Thus we prepared for the Northern soldiers of the Grand Army of the United States.” A long passage follows in which Union troops come to her house and demand dinner for six officers. She engages them in a debate over the legitimacy of their demand before finally agreeing to feed the Union officers, and describes the scene as soldiers round up chickens and turkeys from her yard for their own consumption. The spring and summer of 1863 saw further Yankee raids into the Arkansas countryside along the Mississippi, and more plundering of farms and plantations. In her entry for the start of September, she writes:

I have not been able to take up my pen for a week. In the meantime I have lived in my armor and well I might. These horrible miscreants have been making another descent upon us. This time it was upon the other side of the Lake. Lake Village is opposite to us. It was their place of plunder but they took the plantations on their way. That wretch commanded the land sharks called ‘Ellet.’ They entered every house, at Mrs. Chapman’s they found an iron safe the keys could not at the moment be found, Mr. C was in the village, they threatened Mrs. C to burn her house down, and blow off her head if she were not quick in producing the keys. This was said to her by one of the officers. When the safe was opened they found only business papers which they took the greatest delight in destroying. See the conquerors come!!! They pass in line – four abreast raising a mighty dust. They enter the village in which are women, children, and cows, they enter the druggists store, they take a lb. or two of Epsom Salt, some honey, blister plasters, etc. searching eagerly for quinine, the medicine that is necessary for their ebony brethren. They then proceed to a distillery drink up all the whiskey and reeling by with right good hearts lay to the axes and put an end to the whole concern not knowing that they are really conferring a kindness upon the aforesaid Ebonys.

As a consequence of the raids, she notes, the farmers and land owners of the area have been planning accordingly: “everything of any consequence to the planter on this Lake has been removed to Texas or thereabouts.” The journal concludes with entries later in September 1863. A fine account of life during the Civil War, by a Delaware woman whose sympathies drove her to live in Confederate Arkansas. $20,000. Reporting on Indian Captives

25. Claus, Daniel: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED “D. CLAUS,” FROM DANIEL CLAUS TO CAPT. MATHEWS, REPORTING ON INDIAN CAPTIVES DURING THE AMERICAN REVOLU- TION]. Montreal. March 23, 1780. [2]pp. written on folio sheet. Old folds. Four small pin holes. Very good. Accompanied by a typed transcription.

Daniel Claus (1727-87) came to North America from Germany in 1749 and settled for a time in Philadelphia. Almost immediately upon his arrival he became interested in the various languages of the tribes of the Six Nations. He worked under William Johnson, and in 1760 was based in Montreal, becoming deputy agent to the Canadian Indians and reporting to both Johnson and the local military government. By the mid-1760s he had married and had acquired considerable land in the vicin- ity of Albany, New York. His life changed, both administratively and personally, when in 1774, Sir William Johnson died suddenly, and Sir Guy Carleton replaced Claus with John Campbell. Shortly thereafter, with the outbreak of the American Revolution and the subsequent defeat of Burgoyne at Saratoga, the Loyalist cause in the upper Hudson valley was lost, and Claus and his family fled to Canada, leaving behind their lands and their possessions. In 1778, Frederick Haldimand, Carleton’s successor, appointed Claus deputy agent of the Six Nations in Canada, with special emphasis on the Mohawks. In this hurriedly written letter (probably the original draft of the letter, containing many manuscript corrections), which pertains to one Peter Hansen, “active in ye Rebellion,” whom the Indians had taken for the British “for intelligence,” Claus also mentions in an afterthought: “The Mohawk Village here is somewhat sickly within this short time.” $5750.

An Extraordinary Manuscript Collection of Early High Arctic Voyages

26. Coats, William: CAPTAIN WILLIAM COATS’S REMARKS IN MANY VOYAGES TO HUDSONS BAY [manuscript title]. [England. ca. 1751?]. [137]pp. Folio. Contemporary vellum. Light foxing and toning. Some minor scattered soiling. Very good. In a blue half morocco and cloth clamshell box, spine gilt extra.

This manuscript is a remarkable compilation of Captain William Coats’ many explorations and travels in Hudson Bay over a quarter of a century, describing annual voyages every summer between 1727 and 1751. Coats’ legacy is commemorated by a sizable island named for him at the entrance to the Bay (thought to have been the last outpost of the Dorset Eskimo people). Except for 1749, when he accompanied Thomas Mitchell on a Company exploring expedition, he commanded one of the three supply ships that the Hudson’s Bay Company sent out each season to Churchill, Albany, and York Factory. This manuscript is one of the most extensive narratives of high Arctic travel and exploration from the first half of the 18th century to survive, and is crucial to the contemporary questions regarding whether or not Hudson Bay had a western outlet into a northwest passage. On his first voyage, while conveying Thomas Maclish to York Factory as the new governor of Hudson Bay, Coats lost his ship off Cape Farewell. Everyone was saved into the Hannah, one of the consorts, commanded by Charles Middleton. For the next thirteen seasons Coats, Middleton, and George Spurrell were the supply ship commanders, but in 1741, Middleton was engaged by the Admiralty, at the urgings of Arthur Dobbs, to search for a northwest passage in H.M.S. Furnace. To Dobbs’ frustration, Middleton only discovered Wager Bay; a written war ensued in the form of a pamphlet exchange, for which Middleton is best remembered today. The argument between the two men is referred to by Coats at the commencement of the manuscript, in which he appears to side firmly with Middleton: “What Mr. Dobbs has thought fitt to call a description of Hudsons bay, is so erroneous so superficial and so trifling in almost every circumstance. So contrary to the experience and concurrent testimony...that when it first Appeared it was matter of astonishment, to all those who be supposed to be competent Judges.” Coats refers to the claims and counterclaims of Middleton and Dobbs, regarding the fall of tides in Hudson Bay, in the body of the manuscript. In 1749, Coats was excused from the supply voyage, and was asked instead to accompany Thomas Mitchell, who was to continue his previous exploring expedition, now under the auspices of the Hudson’s Bay Company. In 1744 the expedition had been sent to examine the Eastmain, or eastern coast of Hudson Bay. The 1749 expedition found the coast just as intimidating as its predecessor had, but nonetheless charted the Richmond Gulf and the coast between Cape Digges and Little Whale River. The Eastmain is described in the manuscript from observations in 1749. The manuscript, addressed to Coats’ son, was drawn up after the 1750 voyage, which is the last voyage referred to. The majority of the text (and all of the Ap- pendage where the references give the year of the journal from which they were extracted) contains sailing directions, latitude and longitude, and description of the important landfalls and many capes, bays, and islands from Cape Resolution into Hudson Bay, together with information on ice (especially its avoidance) and tides. In addition there is information on the differences between the various tribes of Indians and Inuit groups encountered by Coats, and knowledge of the hinterland of Hudson Bay including conjectural conclusions (e.g. that a large lake or sea named “Winipeggon” was said to lay to the west of Churchill, and that this could explain the extraordinary tides on the west coast of Hudson Bay, and the belief that this [Lake Winnipeg] connected with the Bay). Apart from the geography of the Bay, Coats provides descriptions of the natives, including detailed accounts of their clothing and demeanor. He even notes that the features of the Eskimos are similar to that of the Chinese: “I have often thought this people are of the lineage of the Chinease, in the many features I think I see in them, their bloated, flatt faces, little eyes, black hair, little hands & feet.” Coats describes artifacts of the culture: canoes, toys, hunting implements, music, and costume; he writes about diet, means of hunting, and their lack of Christian religion. On the latter topic he writes:

That they are idoliters I am perswaided for I have had a bone Deity which they seldom are without in their canoes. The rising sun summons all on their knees, [at which point] you hear such a contrast of vocal musick...with such energy and noble contempt as lift these people in idea above the common level of all mankind, and I dare say they think themselves the favorite people of God, and look on us with more compassion and contempt than we do them.

He makes similar observations about the natives at other points in the text. This remarkable manuscript came into the hands of celebrated Arctic explorer Sir Edward Parry, who passed it to Francis Beaufort, who in turn passed it to the fledgling Hakluyt Society in the person of John Barrow Jr. (1808-98), a founding member of the Society, Keeper of the Records at the Admiralty, and member of the Arctic Council dedicated to solving the mystery of Sir John Franklin. Barrow edited the manuscript as the eleventh volume of the Hakluyt Society’s First Series under the manuscript’s subtitle: The Geography of Hudson’s Bay (1852). To this was added an appendix containing extracts from the log of Capt. Middleton on his voyage for the discovery of the North-West Passage in 1741-42. Not all of the manuscript was published. The text that Barrow chose to edit out is lightly marked in pencil, consisting primarily of nautical observations along the British coast. A major manuscript account of Arctic exploration in the first half of the 18th century, by a man who probably made more Arctic voyages in the period than any other sailor. $125,000.

An Officially Certified Manuscript Copy of the 12th Constitutional Amendment, on Presidential Elections

27. [Constitutional Amendments]: [Presidential Elections]: [MANU- SCRIPT COPY OF AMENDMENT XII OF THE UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION AS PASSED BY CONGRESS DE- CEMBER 9, 1803, OFFICIALLY CERTIFIED BY THE CLERK OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES AND THE SECRETARY OF THE SENATE]. [Washington. December 9, 1803]. 4pp. Quarto, on a folded folio sheet. Second leaf inlaid in later paper. Old fold lines. Minute paper loss from ink burn. Very good. In a blue half morocco and cloth clamshell box, spine gilt. [See rear cover of this catalogue for illustration]

An officially certified manuscript copy of the 12th Amendment to the United States Constitution, altering the system for electing the president and vice president so that individuals ran for each office separately. The copy is written in a secretarial hand, but certified with the actual signatures of John Beckley, Clerk to the House of Representatives, and Samuel A. Otis, Secretary of the Senate. The 12th amendment sets forth the procedure for electing the president and vice president, superseding a portion of Article II, Section 1 of the original Constitution; this amendment was in turn superseded by Section 3 of the twentieth amendment. It was ratified and made into law on June 15, 1804. In the original Constitution, which had not anticipated a two-party system, the electors cast their votes for president; the individual with the highest number was elected to that office, while the person with the second highest became vice president. This led to great difficulties in the elections of 1796 and 1800. In the first it resulted in two men with diametrically opposed views, Adams and Jefferson, holding the two offices, while in 1800 a stalemate between Jefferson and Burr almost caused a constitutional crisis. The amendment separated the elections, allowing persons of the same party to run as a ticket. It also changed other procedures for settling ties or stalemates. Once the Republicans took over control of both Congress and the presidency in 1801, they began to formulate plans to revise the election procedures of the executive branch. As Garry Wills has pointed out, such a plan was bound to favor the slaveholding states and the “Virginia Dynasty.” While there was general concession that reform was needed, it remained a party and sectional issue, and it was not until the first session of the eighth Congress that the proposal was introduced. Jefferson’s two primary legislative goals for the session were the Louisiana Purchase and the amendment. With the Purchase quickly settled on (in the eyes of New England another expansion of the slave-holding power), the amendment was debated in the House and Senate, and a final version agreed upon on December 9, 1803. Any Constitutional amendments in this era would have been circulated to the States in officially certified manuscript copies; this was famously the case with the first ten, the Bill of Rights, and continued to be true here. As with the Bill of Rights, other officially certified copies may have been created for other purposes. And as with the Bill of Rights, the certifiers were John Beckley, Clerk of the House, and Samuel Otis, Secretary of the Senate. With seventeen states in the Union, thirteen were required to ratify. This followed swiftly, and the amendment became part of the Constitution on June 15, 1804, in time for the next presidential election. Tennessee ratified later, and only the Federalist strongholds of Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Delaware, rallying around the leadership of Timothy Pickering, refused to ratify. Here is the full text of this document:

Eighth Congress of the United States at the first session. Begun and held at the City of Washington, in the Territory of Columbia, on Monday the seventeenth of October, one thousand eight hundred and three. Resolved, by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America, in Congress assembled, two thirds of both Houses concerning that in lieu of the third paragraph of the first Section of the Second article of the Constitu- tion of the United States, the following be proposed as an amendment to the Constitution of the United States, which when ratified by three fourths of the Legislatures of the several states, shall be valid to all intents and purposes, as part of the said Constitution, to wit: The Electors shall meet in their respective states, and vote by ballot for President and Vice President, one of whom at least, shall not be an inhabitant of the same state with themselves; they shall name in their ballots the person voted for as President, and in distinct ballots the person voted for as Vice President, and they shall make distinct lists of all persons voted for as President, and of all persons voted for as Vice President, and of the number of votes for each, which lists they shall sign and certify, and transmit sealed to the seat of the Government of the United States, directed to the President of the Senate; the President of the Senate shall, in the presence of the Senate and House of Representatives, open all the certificates and the votes shall then be counted. The person having the greatest number of votes for President shall be the President, if such number be a majority of the whole number of Elec- tors appointed; and if no person have such majority, then from the persons having the highest numbers not exceeding three on the list of those voted for as President, the House of Representatives shall choose immediately, by ballot, the President. But in choosing the President, the votes shall be taken by States, the representation from each State having one vote; a quorum for the purpose shall consist of a member or members from two thirds of the states, and a majority of all the states shall be necessary to a choice. And if the House of Representatives shall not choose a President whenever the right of choice shall devolve upon them, before the fourth day of March next following, then the Vice President shall act as President, as in the case of the death or other constitutional disability of the President. The person having the greatest number of votes as Vice President, shall be the Vice President, if such number be a majority of the whole number of Electors appointed, and if no person have a majority, then from the two highest numbers on the list, the Senate shall choose the Vice President; a quorum for the purpose shall consist of two thirds of the whole number of Senators, and a majority of the whole number shall be necessary to a choice. But no person constitutionally ineligible to the office of President shall be eligible to that of Vice President of the United States.

It is signed in the same secretarial hand by Nathaniel Macon, Speaker of the House, and Aaron Burr, vice president. On the final page, however, it is signed in the actual autograph of each “John Beckley, Clerk to the House of Representatives of the United States” and “Sam: A. Otis, Secretary of the Senate UStates.” A fantastic document in Constitutional history which created the modern system of election of the president of the United States, in an original certified copy of the Twelfth Amendment, as sent to the States for ratification. $250,000.

Fighting the Paxton Boys

28. Coultas, James: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED, FROM JAMES COULTAS, WRITTEN WHILE MARCHING A REGI- MENT OF MILITIA TO DEFEND PHILADELPHIA FROM THE PAXTON BOYS]. Passyunk. Feb. 7, 1764. [1]p., single sheet, addressed to William Ilison [i.e. Ellison?] on verso. Quarto. Usual hole from opening with remnants of original wax seal, some browning and toning, some ink burn through, minor paper losses at upper corners. Accompanied by an incomplete portion of another autograph letter signed by Coultas relating to the Paxton Boys, evidently written at a later date. In a cloth chemise and half green morocco and cloth slipcase.

A remarkable letter from a Pennsylvania militia officer marching to meet the “Pax- ton murderers.” Although much of Quaker Philadelphia refused to arm themselves against the marching Paxton Boys, others rushed to the city to aid in its defense. “Eventually, nearly a thousand citizens took up arms and were formed into six companies of foot, two of horse, and one battery of artillery” – Hindle. James Coultas, along with volunteers from other outlying Philadelphia areas, were apparently among those, though probably arrived too late, considering that this letter is dated the day that Benjamin Franklin negotiated peace. Little is known of Coultas, although he is listed as a Captain in the Philadelphia Associated Regiment of Foot in 1747 following Franklin’s call for self-defense against the French and Spanish. Here he writes:

This is to inform you your Aunt and I laid at Bro. Grays. I seem better than I was and the swelling of my Leggs is much Gone Down. I am coming to town w the Blockley, Kingsess & Darby Volunteers. Expect to set off from the Ferry at 11 o’clock. I should be glad of as many of my friends as possible to meet me on horseback with their Fire Locks. Pray lett Irwin Kinsey & Hiltsheimer know immediately as my volunteers have only had notice since Eight o’clock last night. Pray go to Chas. Jenkins as soon as this comes to hand and request them to provide Dinner &c for at least 50 men. Good substantial dishes such as rounds & [unclear word] of beef Diet fit for soldiers & none of your nasty Tarts or any such Triffles. Pray send by Bearer a Line what further News is Now Going and when it is supposed we may be happy enough to see the Paxton murderers.... $3000.

An Arizona Pioneer

29. Davis, Alonzo E.: PIONEER DAYS IN ARIZONA, BY ONE WHO WAS THERE. [Palm Springs. ca. 1914]. [1],191pp. Carbon-copy typescript. First leaf lightly chipped at edges. Minor toning and soiling. Contemporary corrections. Very good. In a later black binder. [with:] [TWO ALBUMS OF FAMILY PHOTOS AND PAPERS]. Very good.

An interesting memoir by an early California and Arizona resident, Alonzo E. Davis (1839-1915). Davis left Pennsylvania in 1857 and sailed to California, where he bought a ranch and dabbled in mining. At the onset of the Civil War he enlisted in Company I, 4th California Infantry Regiment, and was sent to Arizona. Davis provides vivid descriptions of his time as a soldier in Arizona, where he was at Fort Mojave, as well as his life after the war in Hardyville, Arizona, near Prescott. There is a great deal about encounters with the Indians during the war, and mining and Indian fights after. Virtually the entire work is devoted to Arizona, until the author returned to California about 1880. A brief blurb at the front of the typescript says that the memoir “vividly portrays pioneer life in the West in the days following the Civil War.” The account includes chapters called “I prospect and suffer from thirst” and “Indian troubles & other incidents.” Davis worked variously as a schoolteacher, cowboy, soldier, miner, and merchant, and his memoir is brimming with anecdotes about life in the Southwest, both his own and those of people he knew. Accompanying the typescript are two albums containing family photographs and some correspondence, as well as photocopies of some family documents. This material is mostly contemporary with the typescript, circa 1910 or so, and is a nice addition to the typescript describing Davis’ earlier days. An important early western memoir, as yet unpublished, though a copy does reside in the Arizona Historical Society. $3000. Douglass Writes of Comrades in the Anti-Slavery Fight

30. Douglass, Frederick: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED, FROM FREDERICK DOUGLASS TO ROBERT ADAMS]. Cedar Hill, Ana- costia, D.C. Nov. 12, 1891. [1]p. Folio. Lined paper. Old fold lines. Small tear in lower right corner, not affecting text. Minor soiling. In a clear, legible hand. Very good. In a green half morocco and cloth clamshell case, spine gilt.

A warm letter written by legendary abolitionist and orator Frederick Douglass to his friend, Robert Adams, sometime conductor of the Underground Railroad in Fall River, Massachusetts. Douglass regrets that his health is not what it could be at the moment, but hopes he will be able to attend the wedding anniversary celebration of his friend, George Thomas Downing. Downing was of mixed-race ancestry and was a successful businessman and a pillar in the Newport community. He was also active in the quest for equal rights and believed that intermarriage between the races would eventually eradicate prejudice. In his letter Douglass also laments the passing of the old guard of antislavery activists. He writes:

I do not forget that I received your kind letter asking us (Helen and I) to visit you. We are invited by Mr. Downing to New Port on the 24th on the occasion of the fiftieth anniversary of his marriage, and if my health, which just now, is not quite to high water mark, will permit, we think we will go to New Port. In that case, we may be able to spend a few hours with you. How fondly we cling to old friends as time rolls on and time thins the ranks of those who have been dear to us. Our meeting in Boston with old time antislavery men and women was to me a great happiness. It would be good to have the occasion repeated though it does not seem probable that it will be. One year has left us less strong in health and fewer in numbers, than we were then. Two of those I met there who were very dear to me, have died, one Mr. George Evans a noble man has passed way only a few weeks ago, and Mrs. Spooner a noble woman is gone. Kindest and best regards to your household. Yours truly to the end.

A friendly and slightly wistful letter from one of America’s most famous abolition- ists, written four years before his death. $7500.

A Fine Civil War Correspondence in the Western Theatre

31. Fee, James Frank: [ARCHIVE OF CIVIL WAR LETTERS WRIT- TEN BY SERGEANT JAMES FRANK FEE, 31st INDIANA IN- FANTRY]. [Various places, including locations in Indiana, Tennessee, and Texas. 1861-1865]. Forty-one letters, totaling [133]pp. Some light soiling and wear, but generally very good. Each with a typed transcript.

A twenty-year-old clerk from Bloomington, Indiana, Frank Fee enlisted at Terre Haute in September 1861, and was respected enough by his comrades to earn the rank of sergeant. The regiment he joined, the 31st Indiana Infantry, became one of the most active regiments in the Civil War west, earning a distinguished record during its four years of duty. They saw action at Fort Donelson, Shiloh, Corinth, and Perryville, at Stones River, Chickamauga, and Chattanooga, and during the Atlanta Campaign, at Franklin and Nashville. When he finally mustered out in Victoria, Texas, in December 1865, Fee had risen to the rank of 1st lieutenant. In long and literate letters that betray a keen intelligence, Fee reveals the attitudes and experiences of a strongly motivated Civil War soldier, touching on everything from the hardships of marching and combat to camp life and thoughts of home. The letters begin in May 1861, when Fee went to Terre Haute to enlist, though it appears he was not mustered into the federal service for several months. On May 11, 1861 he described a classic incident of early war recruitment camps: “There was one of our Boys got into an awful fix last night. He lost his Boots, pants and hat and could not tell where he last had them and the Company had to raise a Collection to buy him a pair of shoes and Cap. It is needless for me to say that he was drunk and I am sorry to say there were several in the same fix, but I will not mention any names.” There is more on the early organization of regiments in Indiana and the tensions between those willing to enlist only for one year versus those who would up for three, and several allusions to efforts to arm the outfit: “The Company on the Right and the one on the left get Rifles. We I suppose will get Muskets but the Col. says that he is either going to have Rifles or Rifled Muskets than the Enfield Rifles for the reason that the Muskets are lighter than the Enfield and they shoot better too. It is said they will shoot a thousand yards with deadly aim.” With recruitment of the 31st complete, the regiment was ordered into Ken- tucky in October 1861, where Fee first tasted the life of field service. He sought to reassure his family that he was comfortable, even in the unusually cold weather in their winter quarters at Calhoun, writing: “The Boys have been working today (Sunday) putting chimneys to their tents. You folks at home think that we Poor Soldiers suffer in our canvas tents, but I tell you we sleep as warm as fleas in a rug, perhaps as warm as you do at home on a Feather bed with five or six coverlets over you.” With the arrival of warmer weather in February 1862, the 31st moved into Tennessee; however, Fee fell ill and was sent north to recuperate in March and April, missing the regiment’s first battle at Shiloh. He reported hearing the first news of the battle from his hospital bed in Evansville: “That was a terrible hard fight. Some 5 or 6 thousand killed and wounded on our side. The Rebels suffered worse than that. Their loss is not known. They lost their Commander in Chief, Gen. Sidney Johnson, his head was taken smooth off by a cannon ball. Bully for him. Gen. Beauregard had his arm shot off. Go it Boots. We will get the rascal after while.” Rejoining his regiment while still at Pittsburg Landing, Fee went with them into Mississippi in June and then into Alabama and Tennessee, pressing and being pressed by Confederate forces the whole way. On July 16, 1862 he describes typical events at Camp Morton, Tennessee:

About Midnight 4 of the Rebels got out. The guard shot at them but mist them. It was so dark that they could not see to shoot. The next morning we sent scouts to hunt them, but they could not be found. It cleared off that morning and stayed clear til dark again and there came up a storm and it blowed and thundered and lightning and rained for all that was out and the rebels made a general rake and of all the shooting and drums beating I never heard. We fell in rank in double quick and the wind blew so hard that we had to prop ourself with the guns, to stand in ranks and we were marched off in double quick and went double quick for about two hours.

The skirmish ensued. Fee’s letters include a fine account of Battle of Murfreesboro ( Jan 10, 1863). The 31st left Nashville on Dec. 26, and traveled barely eight miles along the Mur- freesboro Pike before they ran into the enemy’s pickets.

We then skirmished all the way to a small town....There they seemed to have a tolerably strong force and presented a bold front, thinking thereby to scare us, but no, we were not to be scared so easily as all that. We formed in line of battle and moved off to the left of the Pike, the balance of our Division going to the right of the Pike...[we] finally made a charge and scared them away from their Battery, and could have taken it away but we did not know that they left it, until after they had come back and taken it away.

Fee continues at some length about the slaughter the next morning:

About 10 AM our pickets came running in, and reported the enemy advancing in force. We then lay close to the ground and anxiously awaited the appearance of the Rebels. We did not have long to wait, for they soon came. As soon as they came in view on top of the hill, in front, we opened on them with our Enfield and Springfield rifles, with terrible slaughter. They still kept advancing until they got within a hundred yards of us. We then poured our fire among their ranks so thick that they could not stand it, so they turned and started to run.

He elaborates significantly on the ebb and flow of a hot contest. Remaining in East Tennessee through autumn, Fee and his regiment took part in the Atlanta Campaign during the spring, guarding supply lines and becoming confident of an imminent victory: “You need not be surprised if you hear that we have possession of Atlanta inside of two weeks. If such is the case, and Grant takes Richmond, I shall say ‘Good by, Southern Confederacy.’ Bully for the Bo- gus Confederacy. It is like a lousy calf, ‘It lives all winter to die in the spring.’” Unfortunately, there is a gap in Fee’s letters from May 1864 until February 1865. In this collection, however, the war’s end does not signal the end to interesting content. Capping the collection are two interesting letters from a former college classmate, G.A. Beeman, datelined Aiken, Texas. In March 24, 1866, Beeman attempted to renew an acquaintance broken by the war:

Nal and I were both in the army and came through unhurt curiously (I received two slight wounds). I was a rebel from choice because for our principal, but we have failed and I now submit to the law yet not from choice but necessity and now I think I would do as much to support those laws as any man who fought for them during the war, and now Jule if you feel interest enough in a rebel to answer this I will tell you the particulars hereafter.

Fee apparently did respond, since there is a second letter from Beeman dated Sept. 16, 1866:

I had supposed from the sentiment expressed in your letter, from your utter hatred of the name of rebel and anything attached or associated therewith and from the conflicting views expressed in mine, the decisive manner in which I answered your letter, and uncomplimentary letter that you would hardly answer. But I was, I can say, rather agreeably surprised that your prejudice had not led you so far, or your fear of disgrace by corresponding with a Rebel.

Beeman acknowledges (apparently in response to Fee’s letter, which is not present) that the Atlanta Campaign was indeed a Southern failure:

But when we come to look at the war as a whole we cannot reiterate your assertion that “although you had courageous men in the South yet they were nothing to compare with Northern heroes.” But it seems to me that if they were heroic, when they outnumbered us five to one, when they had free access to the world not only for supplies of arms and ammunition of war in general but also for men to use them (who by the bye used them much better than the Yankee whenever they came under my observation) it does not look to me as if they had been so courageous to contend for four years with a force so much inferior in number and completely hemmed in.

One can practically see the turning of the wheels that drove the myth of the Lost Cause. Fee mustered out in 1866, and he went on to marry his childhood sweetheart in 1868, to whom he wrote many of the letters. He moved to Greencastle, Indiana, where he had a successful real estate, insurance, and law practice. In 1898, Fee again enlisted in the Army to participate in the Spanish American War. Fee was active in the GAR and the Presbyterian Church, and he died in Greencastle a highly respected man and decorated veteran, having entered the military as a private and having retired as a major. $8500.

The French and Indian War on the Pennsylvania Frontier

32. [French and Indian War]: Harris, John, Jr.: [AUTOGRAPH LET- TER, SIGNED, FROM JOHN HARRIS, Jr. TO GOVERNOR HUNTER MORRIS, REGARDING THE NEED FOR REIN- FORCEMENTS ON THE PENNSYLVANIA FRONTIER DUR- ING THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR]. Paxton. Aug. 14, 1756. [2]pp. Folio. Old fold lines. Some loss at folded edge, repaired with tissue. Minor soiling. About very good. In a half morocco and cloth clamshell case, spine gilt.

Lengthy and detailed letter written by John Harris, Jr., son of the founder of Harrisburg, to Pennsylvania governor Hunter Morris, expressing a need for men, supplies, and reinforcements on the uneasy frontier. Harris (1716-91) was the son of the founder of a trading post on the Susquehanna River at the site of what would later be Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. He continued in his father’s footsteps, maintaining the post on the Susquehanna, even through the troubled years of the French and Indian War. Harris wrote several letters to the governor, expressing his concerns about the issues that faced the post on the frontier – poor supplies, not enough men, and a constant danger of Indian attack. The present letter eloquently conveys these issues. He writes:

May it please yr. Honour, I make no doubt but you daily hear of the miserable state of Cumb[erlan]d County lately & by this time greatest part abandoned and upon the approach of a body of the enemy which is daily expected[. It] will inevitably be ruined without good assistance and that in time, there is not an inhabitant living in their own habitation on ye west side [of the] Susque- hanah from Yellow Breeches to the North Mountain but my bro[the]r Wm. Harris who remains as yet. And by late accounts from Carrel, the man taken up Susquehanah lately and made his escape from the enemy, informs that the Indians were verry [sic] inquisitive abt. this place & hunters & its his opinion. I have here at present but eleven soldiers three of wch. is verry sick and the whole of them ordinary men (or rather boys). They are also almost naked and in general barefooted, haveing never as yet rec’d any kind of cloathing or cash from the province, discarded out of ye regiment, never mustered by the paymaster and are in despair of ever receiving any pay for their past services, doing duty with reluctance. The serg[ean]t and the men requested me to let yr. Honour know their miserable condition, hopeing for redress from yr. Honour & some necessarys ordered [for] them such as shirts, shoes, & stockings till they may receive some pay. One of the party left here lately deserted and several of the remainder here says they must follow the same example without a supply of some necessarys. There was application made by the serg[an]t here to the col[one]l, but without any success. As Susquehanah is at present become of the utmost consequence to this province to keep possession of, I hope yr. Honour will be pleased to take my situation into consideration and order me some more assistance of men wch. if I had and sd. men allowed to assist me in making some little alteration in my fort I hope (with God’s assistance) to keep off a number of the enemy in case of an attack, which we daily expect as there was Indians seen near my barn lately, supposed to be spies. In case of no assistance, I must be under the disagreeable necessity of removing my family at some distance upon the nearer approaches of danger, wch. will be a discouraging thing to the inhabitants here.”

A great letter, describing the hardships faced by frontier troops during the French and Indian War. $5000.

Gallatin Against Jackson

33. Gallatin, Albert: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED, FROM ALBERT GALLATIN TO AN UNKNOWN RECIPIENT, EX- PRESSING HIS RELIEF THAT ANDREW JACKSON WAS NOT ELECTED PRESIDENT]. New Geneva, Pa. Feb. 18, 1825. 4pp. Quarto, on a folded folio sheet. Old fold lines. Small loss to bottom corner, not affecting text. Lightly soiled. Very good. In a black half morocco and cloth clamshell case, spine gilt, tan leather labels.

Letter written by Albert Gallatin, fourth Treasury Secretary of the United States, to an unidentified gentleman, expressing his feelings of intense relief that Andrew Jackson has not been elected to the presidency – an event he places on the same level of disaster as “a dissolution of the Union.” Gallatin (1761-1849) was a young Swiss immigrant who began a lengthy political career in America when he first rose to political prominence in the Pennsylvania legislature, advocating for small farmers and entrepreneurs. He was a member of Jefferson and Madison’s Republican- Democratic faction, and served as Thomas Jefferson’s Treasury Secretary. He retired from that position in 1813, and would go on to serve in various diplomatic posts; his last job was as president of the National Bank of New York (1831-39). The Era of Good Feelings was the name widely used to describe James Mon- roe’s two administrations (1817-25). The demise of the Federalist Party gave the appearance of political union in strong nationalism, illustrated by the tariff act of 1816, the second National Bank, and Western development. Monroe weathered the panic of 1819 and received all but one electoral vote in 1820. But shifting economic interests caused nascent sectional rivalries and bitter personal conflicts leading up to the close election of 1824 – conflicts alluded to by Gallatin in this letter. The major combatants for the presidency in 1824 were John Quincy Adams and Andrew Jackson; however, standing in the wings was the team of William H. Crawford, who had served as Monroe’s Treasury secretary, and Albert Gallatin. These gentlemen withdrew from the contest, and by so doing, tilted the close election in Adams’ favor. In 1828, however, Andrew Jackson made a successful bid for the presidency, serving two terms. Gallatin’s letter brims with national spirit, and sheds light on this fascinating era of American politics. Writing from his “remote corner” of Western Pennsylvania, Gallatin expresses his relief, comparing the foolishness of the American people voting for Andrew Jackson to the folly of the French embracing Napoleon.

With the most sincere attachment to our popular institutions and with the belief that it is important & proper that the President should be agreeable to the Nation, I cannot help being thankful that the choice has not fallen on Gen. Jackson. I think that we have, for this time at least, escaped the danger to which, next to a dissolution of the Union, we are most exposed. When that general, I had almost said universal tendency of the mass of mankind for monarchy? Is it hatred for all those who have some accidental superiority of talent, wealth or knowledge? and wish to equalize all under the yoke of one? Is it that idolatry for men, above all for heroes, is more natural, is a sentiment more easily received than that abstract attachment to principles which is the result of experience and knowledge? We might have flattered ourselves that the natural feeling of envy, towards those who are in a better situation than others, would be so softened in a country where there is nothing hereditary, where there is a perpetual fluctuation, where the road to wealth, honours & power is opened to all, that it would produce no effect but emulation. And I had always thought that if our people were not as enlightened as they are sometimes made to believe, there was a deep rooted habit of republican feeling which would preserve them from that dangerous tendency to idolatry to which I have alluded. In this opinion I was encouraged by what I had known and seen at the end of our revolutionary war with respect to Gen. Washington & his fellow soldiers: a time when I thought the people not sufficiently grateful. But what has passed lately has disappointed and grieved me. We the last hope of liberty & of mankind; we placed under the most favourable circumstances for establishing a permanent republic and laying the foundation of a better order of things throughout the world, at least throughout the Christian & civilized world; to act not much better, taking every thing into consideration, that the long enslaved Frenchmen did, when, naturally ignorant of the principles of liberty, they eagerly threw themselves in the iron arms of Bonaparte: this has truly afflicted me.

He goes on to suggest the abolition – or at least modification – of the Presidency, and voices a harsh critique of the Monroe administration. $3000.

Georgia Land Grant with a Manuscript Map

34. [Georgia]: STATE OF GEORGIA. BY HIS EXCELLENCY GEORGE MATHEWS, CAPTAIN-GENERAL, GOVERNOR, AND COMMANDER IN CHIEF IN AND OVER THE SAID STATE, AND OF THE MILITIA THEREOF...DO GIVE AND GRANT UNTO RICHMOND DAWSON...ONE THOUSAND ACRES.... [Augusta?]. 1794. Printed document, completed in manuscript, about 13 x 13 inches. With attached smaller printed land survey document with small manuscript map, this second document measuring about 10 x 7 inches. Large, heavy wax seal of Georgia hanging by ribbon. Clean and very good.

An impressive printed land grant, completed in manuscript, for 1000 acres of land in Washington County, Georgia, granted by Gov. George Mathews to one Richmond Dawson. The document is signed by Mathews as well as by the surveyor, George Weatherby, who has included a sketch of the land in question. The land is described as “on the waters of Choopee River, bounded SE and NE by said Dawson’s Land and on all other sides by Vacant Lands.” Governor Mathews had an eventful career, first as a Revolutionary soldier (including a stint as colonel of the Virginia troops in Greene’s Carolina campaign), then as governor of Georgia, and finally as a special agent leading “irregular” activities in attempts to wrest Florida from Spain in 1810- 12. In the end the U.S. government repudiated Mathews’ Florida actions, and he died in Augusta a bitter old man. “By his demise the authorities at Washington escaped the consequences of his threat that he’d ‘be dam’d if he didn’t blow them all up,’ and he carried to the grave much evidence that might explain his debatable conduct” – DAB. A handsome Georgia document and unusual early imprint. DAB XII, p.403. $2250.

The Gerrymanderer Threatens a Boycott

35. Gerry, Elbridge: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED, FROM EL- BRIDGE GERRY TO SAMUEL HUNTINGTON AS PRESIDENT OF THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS, ANNOUNCING HIS IN- TENTION TO BOYCOTT CONGRESS UNTIL HIS MOTION IS CONSIDERED]. Philadelphia. Feb. 22, 1780. [2]pp. Quarto. Old fold lines. One older tape stain, else quite clean. Very good plus. In a folio-sized green half morocco and cloth clamshell case.

Elbridge Gerry’s retained copy of a letter sent to Samuel Huntington, president of the Continental Congress, protesting Congress’ refusal to consider his motion for a vote tally. Gerry was a signer of the Declaration of Independence, and later vice president under James Madison. In February 1780 the Continental Congress considered an estimate of supplies to be furnished for the war in the current year and the prices at which these supplies should be credited to the states, resulting in a levy upon each state. The final amounts were based not on prior contributions or the inequalities thereof, but on the opinions of the members, who simply wished to pass the burden on to others. The Massachusetts delegation felt their state was unduly overburdened and opposed the assessment, but their motion was ruled out of order by the full house. Gerry moved for presentation of a vote tally on the ruling, but was refused. Gerry writes to Huntington:

Sir, I am informed by some of my colleagues, that Congress have not yet considered ye letter which I had ye honor of addressing them ye 19th instant, conceived had deprived me of an essential privilege of a Member of ye house. The reason assigned for this is that some of ye Gentlemen objected to my mode of proceeding as unparliamentary ‘and said’ that a Member who sup- poses his privileges infringed should remonstrate in his place & may there be heard. I know of no resolution of Congress for governing their proceedings by rules of parliament neither will they apply in general, or in ye present case. Nevertheless, I shall readily attend Congress if they think it expedient, but cannot consent to take my place for these amongst other reasons that I have not ye privilege in Congress of other Members, & that every Member, by ye rules of the House may require my voice upon any questions agitated & put whilst I am in Congress, in answering which I shall betray my cause. When disputes respecting privileges are not between Congress & a Member, ye latter may complain in his plea without these inconveniences.

Gerry views the vote tally as essential:

I conceive that ye privilege contended for, is an essential one, & that without it, a Member cannot discharge his trust. Congress have viewed it in this light, or I presume they would not have ingrafted it into ye Confederation, & twelve of ye States are of ye same opinion, or they would probably never have ratified it, without objecting to ye article establishing this privilege. Several days have elapsed since my absence from Congress during which time they have proceeded in ye important business under consideration at ye time of my leaving it; if I ought to be restored to ye privilege claimed, Congress will perceive, that in ye present case a delay of justice is a denial of it to ye state which I have ye honor to represent, so far at least as I am able to render it any services in Congress. Congress will consider or not consider my letter, & grant or refuse my claim, as to them may seem meet, I am in no way solicitous about ye event, as it respects me personally; but as a Member of ye House & citizen of ye United States wish to prevent a measure, which if confirmed by Congress will as it appears to me strike at a fundamental principle of ye union. $7500.

All the Latest Gossip from Philadelphia, 1791

36. Gerry, Elbridge: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED, FROM EL- BRIDGE GERRY TO HIS WIFE ANN, RELATING THE LAT- EST GOSSIP AND NEWS FROM THE CAPITAL]. Philadelphia. May 30, 1791. 7pp. Quarto, on folded folio sheets. Old fold lines. Crisp and clean. Docketed on verso in Ann Gerry’s hand. Fine. In a folio-sized half morocco and cloth clamshell case, spine gilt.

A charming and chatty letter written from the nation’s capital in Philadelphia by Founding Father Elbridge Gerry to his wife Ann, relaying instructions and news. Gerry did not marry until he was forty-one, and then to the much younger Ann Thompson, who was twenty-two. Ann, a New York socialite, has the melancholy distinction of being the last surviving widow of a signer of the Declaration, dying in New Haven on March 17, 1849. After instructing Ann on the disposition of some of his correspondence, Gerry writes (noting that he wrote the first portion of the letter while in the House of Representatives):

The above I wrote in the House of Reps. & from thence went to dine with the President, who is very friendly. There were the Earl of Wisecomb, a number of gentlemen of the Senate, & the following ladies: Mrs. Cabot, Mrs. Lear, Miss Butler & Miss Wadsworth. The first I think is an ordinary piece of household stuf [sic]. I did not know her, until enquiring of Cabot for his wife he informed me she sat next to Mrs. Washington. Mrs. Lear was very particular in her enquiry for you & why I had not brot you. I wispered [sic] that it was impracticable, she laughed & said it was a good reason. I enquired for her little boy, & informed her that as she herself was improved, (for she looks very pretty), in the manufacture I hoped she would continue it. But like all other ladies she declared her intention (as tho it was the reverse) to leave it off....The President & his family are sociable & friendly. Dear little Miss Custis was there & looks thin, owing as she informed me to her having had the fever & ague at Mount Vernon. Her little brother had been confined 20 days with a fever & like to have dyed.

Gerry continues with further tales about members of Philadelphia society in their circle. Ann has docketed the letter on the final page, noting that it is from “My ever dear E. Gerry.” $6000.

Gerry Discusses His Role as President of the Senate, and His Conflict with Senators Over “Usages” of the Senate

37. Gerry, Elbridge: [LENGTHY AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED, FROM VICE PRESIDENT ELBRIDGE GERRY, DISCUSSING HIS ROLE AS PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE AND RECOUNT- ING THE PRACTICE OF USAGES IN THE SENATE]. Washing- ton. March 22, 1814. 8pp. Quarto. Old fold lines. Two small tears in foredge of last two leaves. Minor soiling. Very good plus. In a folio-sized brown half morocco and cloth clamshell case, spine gilt.

A superb letter written by Elbridge Gerry to an unidentified recipient discussing his role as presiding officer of the Senate during his term as vice president, written just a few months before the end of his life. Gerry served as President Madison’s vice president and staunchly supported Madison’s aggression against the British in the War of 1812. The vice president’s job, as stated in the Constitution, is to preside over the Senate; most holders of that office, however, had relinquished the post to a president pro tem. In a move that went entirely against tradition, Gerry refused to relinquish his position as presiding officer of the Senate after the close of the session, lest a peace advocate from Virginia take his place. Gerry’s letter, which is entirely focused on his work as the presiding officer of the Senate, discusses the issue of “usages” – unwritten rules that governed the Senate in addition to the recorded rules. He was informed by the Senate that they would let him know, as needed, what these usages were and where they were applicable, a practice Gerry refers to near the end of the letter as “a mean snare to entangle the presiding officer.” Gerry writes:

I suspect from appearances, there have been anonymous complaints against our friend B.; there certainly have against Mr. [Henry] Dearborn. Your conduct in regard to the former was wise, honorable & friendly; & let the issue be as it may, he never can impute blame to you, & would I think prefer you as a successor, to any other person. This mode of shooting in ambush is savage, & if countenanced, would drive from office every man of honor & substitute in his place an assassin....The attempt to criminate Governor [Return Jonathan] Meigs has failed, & he after an ordeal is confirmed by the Senate [as postmaster general]. In it there is at present such a number of Federalists, & of ostensible Republicans, as to nicely ballance this body on some points, & to preponderate in their favor or others. The former, in regard to myself, have preserved in general more delicacy than the latter; several of whom, at the moment of my taking the chair, opened a masked battery on it, under the denomination of usages. The written rules & Jefferson’s Manual were sent to me by the Secretary before I came to this city, & another set of them was placed on the Senate table. These I applied but was informed of another kind of rule called usages, which were to govern my conduct & that of the Senate. I enquired whether they were in the Jour- nals, or any record, or in print, & was answered in the negative, but that the members knew them & would from time to time give me information. This queer kind of orders was communicated to me from time to time & submitted to the awkward mode adopted by some gentlemen of being thus catechized into the knowledge of their usages; but took the precautions always writing them as stated, & of taking the sense of the Senate, whether they were to be considered as the usages of that body. This record I left on the table for the use of new members, as well as for the government of myself in the last session; during which, one of the members being disposed at a time to dispute the usage, the chair was supported, & Judge Anderson declared, that the President ought to be embarrassed with such kind of rules, but that they ought to be exploded.

Gerry then launches into a lengthy and detailed account of an incident involving a dispute in the Senate over usages. He notes that the entire incident was subsequently stricken from the record, likely making this one of the only records of the occurrence:

One of these usages required that each member presenting a petition should not only comply with the written rule by stating the purport of the petition, but should declare that “it was conceived in respectful terms.” Mr. King soon after my arrival presented a petition, [which] complied with the written rule, & refused to comply with the usage; altho it was read & confirmed by a number of gentlemen who declared it to be correct. Mr. Mason demanded whether the usage was on the journals, & objected to my record of it; but he was corrected by Mr. Dana of Connecticut & others....[Mr. King later] preferred another petition from the city of N. York, complying with the written rule only. I enquired whether it was conceived in respectful terms, he refused to answer, & demanded whether he was in order; saying that if the chair refused to receive the petition, he would take it back, & return it to his constituents with a statement of the facts. In answer, I informed the Senate that the member was in order according to the written rules, but out of order according to the usage; & requested the sense of the Senate, in order to put an end to such unpleasant conflicts on this question, whether not having complied with the usage of the house requiring the declaration mentioned, he was in order? This produced a warm debate....During the debate, Mr. Giles in an il- liberal, & I tho’t ungentlemanly manner cast blame on the chair for having in one instance only produced excitement in his feelings by merely enquiring whether a petition which he had preferred, was (agreeably to the requisite of his usage) conceived in respectful terms. He stated that the question had not been presented by any President pro tem, & implied a distrust of the honor of the member. I stated if there existed a distrust, it was not on my part, but on that of the Senate; which had established the usage & made it binding on the members of the Senate, & who made it the duty of the President to apply it as a rule...After the [flame?] had risen, I informed the gentlemen, that they had not supported the Chair in applying their usage, which was here apparently a mean snare to entangle the presiding officer; & that until the usages were ascertained, recorded & determined to be rules of proceeding by the Senate, they would not again by me be applied as such. The next day Mr. Dagget moved to amend the Journal so as that the decision of the Senate should not appear to have been against a usage. I read the motion & informed the Senate that they had a right to put what they pleased in their Journals, over which I had no control; but that the motion did not state the fact, & that this was truly recorded by the Secretary. Another member then moved to strike out the record in regard to this matter & so it ended.

Gerry adds in a post script: “The members of the Senate have appeared since this affair attentive, more so than usual. But it develops I think a high degree of party prejudice. I shall bury it however in oblivion, & alter my future proceedings, so as to stand on recorded rules and practices.” Gerry served in the Continental Congress and was a signer of the Declaration of Independence. He was an early and vigorous advocate of American Independence, and played a crucial role in the formation of the new United States government, insisting on a bill of rights being added to the new Constitution. “Gerry warned that the Constitution would not be ratified without a bill of rights, and he proved to be right. Massachusetts accepted the document, but only with the strong rec- ommendation that a bill of rights be added. Several other states followed suit, and the Constitution was ratified but only with these provisos. Gerry staunchly supported the new government, helped to frame the Bill of Rights, and served as congressman from 1789 to 1793” – ANB. His name is perhaps most remembered, however ignominiously, in connection with the term “gerrymandering.” In his second term as governor of Massachusetts, Gerry redrew district lines to consolidate his party’s control in the state senate. “The shape of one electoral district on the map resembled a salamander, and one wit promptly dubbed it a ‘Gerrymander.’ Hence, the term used today when redistricting results in a concentration of the strength of one political party and a weakening of its opponent’s strength” – ANB. Though this was not necessarily a new practice, the name stuck. Gerry ran on the ticket with President Madison in 1812, for Madison’s second term as president, and died in office in November 1814. An interesting and detailed letter by Gerry, unraveling the intricacies of the rules in the Senate, coupled with the difficulties of handling party politics in that body. $9500.

Correspondence of Several Significant Pennsylvania Families 38. Gibson, Elizabeth Bordley, and members of the Shippen and Mif- flin families: [ARCHIVE OF CORRESPONDENCE, OVER 200 LETTERS IN ALL, IN THE FAMILY OF ELIZABETH BORD- LEY GIBSON, INCLUDING A COMMONPLACE BOOK AND SOME OF HER HUSBAND’S PAPERS]. Pennsylvania & Cape May, N.J. 1796-1863. Quarto. Some pages edgeworn, with occasional chipping and tearing from wax seal; some soiling or spotting, rarely affecting text. Overall in very good condition. A historically significant archive of correspondence written primarily to or by Elizabeth Bordley Gibson (1777-1863), famous for her correspondence with Martha Washington’s granddaughter, Eleanor Parke Custis Lewis. The collection consists of over 200 letters and notes written during 1796 to 1863. The bulk of these correspondences are to and from members of the Bordley, Shippen, and Mifflin families, who each had a great economic and political influence on the history of Pennsylvania and Maryland, particularly in the Colonial period. Roughly half the correspondence are letters from Elizabeth Mifflin, Gibson’s niece, written from 1853 to 1863, and letters to Edward Shippen, her cousin on her mother’s side (her mother’s sister was married to Joseph Shippen), and his wife Augusta, dated 1845 to 1862. Also included are letters from her niece, Anna Bordley, and nephew, Beale Bordley; letters from Elizabeth Bordley Gibson (copied in her hand) to the Ross family (related to the Mifflins by marriage); as well as twenty-four letters from Anna C. Ross. There are several documents sent to and received from the Department of Treasury by James Gibson; several documents concerning the death of James Gibson; and several more on the subject of property owned by Elizabeth Bordley Gibson and Edward Shippen. Related to these documents are ten letters containing legal and financial advice written between 1814 and 1816 by Edward Burd, justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court and cousin to the Shippen family, including a letter approving her intention of marrying James Gibson. Miscellaneous letters include: one letter by George de la Roche, the engineer who designed Oak Hill Cemetery in Georgetown; a letter from Bordley sending her portrait by Gilbert Stuart (American painter, 1755-1828, who also painted George Washington) to Elizabeth Mifflin; a letter from James Gibson to his mother; a sales receipt for John Casey, Jr. Wines & Liquors; and several letters from members of the Deas family. Other items include nearly a hundred pages of notes written by Mrs. Gibson, several on sewn quires, which mostly concern her thoughts on literature, religion, and philosophy, with occasional notes concerning family genealogy. The majority of these notes are undated, but dated ones range from 1804 to 1835. There are also several dozen original envelopes addressed to Gibson and Edward Shippen, which reveal the addresses of their Philadelphia homes. Also included in the collection is a commonplace book, which contains the inscription: “Thoughts and Memories of My dear friend Elizabeth Bordley Gibson Inscribed by H.H. Shippen to all those who love her. Spruce & Eighth Sts. Phila- delphia October 1, 1856.” Its only other content is a memoir of Louisa Minot (1788-1858), daughter of Daniel Davis, solicitor general of Massachusetts. It was, as the document states, copied from the Boston Courier, 1858. Minot played an important role in the history of education in Boston. She taught at the Franklin School, located on Washington Street, and introduced drawing into the public school curriculum. Though published anonymously, two books on teaching drawing in schools – Methods of Teaching Linear Drawing Adapted for the Public Schools and Easy Lessons in Perspective – have been attributed to her. Elizabeth Bordley Gibson’s father, John Beale Bordley (1727-1804), was a lawyer, judge, and agriculturalist who acted as Clerk of Baltimore County, Maryland. His first wife, Margaret Chew, owned several major properties in the Chesapeake Bay area, and from her Bordley took ownership of half of Maryland’s Wye Island, where the family lived before moving to Philadelphia. Here he found a place among prominent Pennsylvania families and helped to form the Agricultural Society of Philadelphia along with Edward Shippen IV (1729-1806) in 1785 (of which Ben- jamin Franklin was also a member). He became acquainted with General George Washington, which lead to a lifelong friendship between his daughter, Elizabeth, and Eleanor Custis (later Lewis), granddaughter of Martha Washington. It is likely that John Beal Bordley became acquainted with these founding fathers through one of the oldest Pennsylvania families: the Shippens, active in Pennsylvania political circle dating back to the 17th century. Both the Shippen and Mifflin families were related to Elizabeth Bordley Gibson’s mother, Sarah Fishbourne Mifflin, who was the daughter of William Fishbourne, mayor of Philadelphia from 1718 to 1722. She was John Beale Bordley’s second wife and a widow herself. Many of the letters concern debts on properties in Philadelphia and Cape May, New Jersey, and other financial information of the Bordley and Shippen families. These documents provide essential information regarding the private history of these notable families. This correspondence begin just before 1800, where most published genealogies end, and these letters can provide a framework for extending the histories of these fascinating families. The story painted in these letters stands in contrast to the prosperity of these families in the 18th century. The bulk of the letters are written during the 1850s, when Elizabeth Bordley Gibson began facing financial problems. During this time her relationship with Edward Shippen was colored by her financial dependence on him, evidence of which appears in letters written shortly after her husband’s death. However, there is also a great intimacy between the two cousins, and her letters transition smoothly from a familial to a business relationship: First – as regards your preserves – you sent them over to be examined and treated according to their state, & be ready for Augusta when she returned – we examined them, & found only two that were spoilt...2nd I wish to know how I stand with the Library Company – whether I hold 3 shares or two – the day for annual payment is past – I hope that they may not require of me the forfeiture of my shares?...3rd Is there any thing further required of me as Executrix under the will of my Father? or of my dear Husband? 4th Has any stone been placed over our grave in St. Peter’s ground? Something should distinguish it, and I should like something respectful & suitable, tho’ not extravagant – something that will include my name, leaving the date blank. Respectfully your cousin and friend E B Gibson Gibson’s appeals for bills to be paid by Shippen are, however, numerous, and her letters reveal Shippen to be the only one to whom Gibson can turn: A bill has been sent in to me to which I must beg your especial attention – It is from the “estate of Casey” – deceased, of whom I had taken wine and brandy sometime past...This bill is for $65.50 – without stating for what or the quantity, but lumped together under the word “Merchandise” – I am sorry to be so troublesome, but I have no one to apply to but you – & you can take your time for it I suppose. The aforementioned bill from the Casey estate is included in the archive, along with numerous other specific references to bills and other debts – with amounts to be paid by Shippen – dating up until shortly before her death. Shippen’s support did not prevent her from having to sell properties after her husband’s death, and several letters concern the selling of properties in Philadelphia and Cape May, New Jersey: There is a legal question that I wish to ask you, as to the selling of my Union street property – it is devised by my Will to my nieces & nephew Mifflin, and after their decease, to the Church & vestry of St. Peters, permanently – If it is to be sold very low, how can I make up for this failure in a legacy I consider essential? – I did hope to reinvest the product of the sale in some ample substitute – some substitutes I must find. Now Mr. Thomas’s estimate is quite too little – if from the supposed “six thousand” the mortgage of $4500 be deducted – what a little is left!! At times her correspondence with him has an air of desperation: Tomorrow you leave town again to go some considerable distance off – What am I to do in your absence? – I cannot live without means – I am constantly called upon for small change – but have it not – am afraid if I break in on my last $5 bill, shall then have nothing – I am ashamed to say I owe John (the waiter here) 15cts....Oh! Dear Edward – don’t wonder that I feel my situation an anxious one – and excuse me for repeating these things. Letters from Elizabeth Mifflin mainly contain a litany of family ailments, deaths, births, marriages, travels, and visitations. They also reveal the emotional perspective on affairs identified in the Shippen correspondences – sentimental memories of her Cape May and Union Street houses, recently sold. These, along with Gibson’s personal notes, also reflect her spiritual side and vulnerability. Yet, though these letters primarily reflect the trials of this later chapter in the Bordley family history, the impact of having known Washington during the height of the Bordley’s social status is never forgotten, as shown in an undated letter from Elizabeth Mifflin: Have you yet had Washington Irving’s Life of Washington? We have it from the Library with a noble likeness of Washington from Wertmuller’s portrait – To look at such a head makes on feel more elevated – more dignified, more patriotic – But I dare say you have seen the original picture, and can say whether that was like Washington as a gentleman in private life. Overall a rich and diverse collection of documents revealing much about the private lives of this important family. $9500.

Chemistry Notes from Benjamin Silliman’s Course

39. Goulding, John: [Silliman, Benjamin]: NOTES ON CHEMISTRY TAKEN FROM THE COURSE OF LECTURES BY PROFESSOR SILLIMAN, YALE COLLEGE, 1819 – 1820. By John Goulding, Member of the junior class [manuscript title]. [New Haven. 1819-1821]. [62]pp. Quarto. Original three-quarter morocco and boards. Light wear to binding. Minor foxing. Very good.

Manuscript notebook in the hand of Yale College student John Goulding, capturing lectures in chemistry taught by Professor Benjamin Silliman, Sr. Goulding (1797-1860) received a medical degree from Yale in 1824 and spent his life as a Connecticut physician in nearby Stratford. Silliman was a professor of natural sciences at Yale and a leading figure in American science in the 1820s. Part one of the manuscript contains lecture notes from 1819 to 1820, comprised of twenty-nine leaves of notes covering fifty lectures. A second section covers lectures sixty-six through seventy, and yet a third section, which begins at the rear of the volume, contains four more leaves of notes from January 1821. There is a manuscript in- dex on the front pastedown which indicates topics and the corresponding lecture numbers. Topics include Heat, Evaporation, Elementary Bodies, Carbonic Acid and Alkalies, Earths, Sulphur, Carbon, and others. In our experience, lecture notes from this period are scarce in the marketplace, most having long ago perished or ended up in institutional collections. A valuable insight into the teaching style and content of an early American scientist, as well as what a 19th-century student thought worth noting. $2500.

An Extensive Manuscript Plat Book from Northern Michigan

40. [Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad Company]: [LEDGER CONTAIN- ING 148 PRINTED TOWNSHIP PLAT DIAGRAMS, WITH GEO- GRAPHIC DETAILS AND NOTES COMPLETED IN MANUSCRIPT]. [Np. ca. 1854-1880]. [148] leaves, plus two larger folding manuscript maps measuring 13 x 8½ inches. Thick quarto. Calf, tooled in gilt. Hinges cracked but reinforced. Ex- tremities rubbed. Moderate soiling to first and last leaves, with some wear at edges. Minor soiling otherwise, and generally quite clean internally. All leaves backed with linen. Very good.

A book of plat maps, or diagrams, showing the land development plans of the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad in northern Michigan. Each diagram in the book contains one township, which is divided into thirty-six sections, each being a single square mile; each of these square miles is then further divided into sixteen forty-acre lots. Each diagram is labelled at the top with township, range, and meridian numbers; the date of the last survey has been written at the bottom right of most leaves. Notes are included within the diagram containing information on the ownership of sections and lots. At the bottom of each page are six blank lines which were used for handwritten notes concerning the specific diagram. Some notes simply read: “The vacant lands withdrawn from sale by order of the President April 16, 1864.” Some diagrams show townships, sections, and lots noted as “Reserved for Indian purposes by order of the President May 14, 1855.” For example, notes for the township located at the tip of Burt Lake, thirty miles south of the Straits of Mackinac read: “Township reserved under Treaty of July 30 1855, for Cheboygan Band of Indians. Ms. to R.&R. Apl 24 ‘56.” Several of these notes, however, are either preceded or followed by dated notes indicating that the land was “restored,” presumably meaning it was again available for development and no longer set aside for Indian purposes. Many whole sections are delineated for railroad ownership. Formed in 1854, the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad was, at its apex, an important link carrying freight and passengers from the Straits of Mackinac, Michigan to Cincinnati, Ohio. It was eventually incorporated into the Pennsylvania Railroad. The railroad served to accelerate the settlement of northern Michigan, which was largely a wilderness in the mid-1800s. Most of the manuscript information in this volume is from the 1850s through the 1870s. Noted geographic features include Walloon Lake, Little Traverse Bay, Grand Traverse Bay, and Torch Lake. $2500.

President Benjamin Harrison on Tour in the West

41. [Harrison, Benjamin]: [ARCHIVE OF TWENTY-THREE PIECES OF PRINTED EPHEMERA FROM PRESIDENT BENJAMIN HARRISON’S TRIP ACROSS THE COUNTRY BY TRAIN]. [Vari- ous places, mostly California]. 1891. Twenty-three pieces. Overall, very good.

A unique archive of printed ephemera from President Benjamin Harrison’s epic cross-country railroad journey, from the papers of E.F. Tibbott, Harrison’s private secretary who accompanied him on the trip. The President’s train left Washington and proceeded to make a large loop through the country, traveling through nineteen states: Virginia, Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama, Arkansas, Texas, Arizona, California, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Utah, Colorado, Nebraska, Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. The journey covered nearly 10,000 miles, during which time the President made nearly 150 speeches, which were later published in a volume compiled by a correspondent from the New York Mail and Express (item no. 23) who accompanied the President’s party. The introduction to that volume claims: “So complete were the arrangements in detail that the train carrying the Presidential party was always on time, and was never once delayed for repairs. Country of all sorts was traversed, all kinds and conditions of mankind seen, and every variety of weather encountered. Still nothing hindered the party from keeping every engagement.” The majority of the items in relate to Harrison’s time in the West, particularly California. A wonderful collection of memorabilia from this presidential journey, a detailed list of which is available on request. $3750.

Remarkable Letters by William Henry Harrison About the Imminent Tecumseh Revolt

42. Harrison, William Henry: [GROUP OF FOUR MANUSCRIPT LETTERS, SIGNED, FROM INDIANA TERRITORY GOVER- NOR WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON DESCRIBING INCREAS- INGLY HOSTILE ACTIVITIES BY SHAWNEE LEADERS TE- CUMSEH AND THE PROPHET, AND WARNING OF IMMI- NENT ATTACKS ON AMERICAN SETTLEMENTS]. Vincennes, In. 1808-1810. Four manuscript letters, written on folded folio sheets, totaling [12]pp. Written on folded folio sheets. Neat splits along several folds, occasionally costing a small bit of paper but no text. Several small, neat tape repairs. One letter with a small hold from opening, but with no loss of text. In good condition overall, and very easily readable. In a half morocco and cloth clamshell case, cloth chemise.

A fascinating and informative group of important manuscript letters, signed, by Indiana governor and future president of the United States, William Henry Har- rison, discussing the state of relations with Indians on the frontier, and the growing power of the Shawnee leaders, Tecumseh and his brother, “the Prophet.” The four letters, written in a variety of clerical hands and signed by Harrison, are all addressed to the Secretary of War – the earliest to Henry Dearborn and the other three to William Eustis. William Henry Harrison (1773-1841) had a long and distinguished career in politics and military affairs, culminating with his election as president in 1840. In 1800 he was appointed the first governor of Indiana Territory, and as such he had to contend with several tribes of Indians, some friendly and others hostile. These relations were complicated due to the large number of American settlers pushing into Indiana in the first decade of the 19th century. Hostilities with some tribes, particularly the Shawnee and their leaders, Tecumseh and the Prophet, culminated in the Battle of Tippecanoe in 1811. Harrison led the victorious American forces, and it brought him to national attention and won him lasting fame (as well as a campaign slogan). Those growing hostilities are vividly described in this group of letters signed by Harrison. He relates to Washington news of growing Indian forces under the influence of Tecumseh and the Prophet, the state of readiness of the increasingly outnumbered local militias, Indian incursions into white settlements, the theft of property and other provocations, and the constant backdrop of imminent Indian attack. An interesting aspect of the letters is Harrison’s emphasis on the perceived power and influence of the Prophet, above and beyond that of Tecumseh. In the earliest letter, dated May 19, 1808, Harrison writes:

The Shawnee imposter [the Prophet] has acquired such an ascendancy over the minds of the Indians that there can be little doubt of their pursuing any course which he may dictate to them, and that his views are already hostile to the United States is but too evident. I had a very considerable confidence in the Delawares and Miamis to resist his designs, but a late circumstance has convinced me that altho they may not be converts to his divine mission they are under the greatest apprehensions of his temporal power....I have lately conversed with an intelligent man who passed (a few weeks ago) through some of the villages of the Potawatomies that are under the Prophet’s influence. He says that they are constantly engaged in what they term religious duties. But that their prayers are always succeeded by or intermixed with warlike sports, shooting with the bow, throwing the Tomahawk or wielding the war club. This combination of religious and warlike exercise and the choice of weapons of their own manufacture sufficiently indicates the designs of their author. I most sincerely wish the President would think himself authorized to have him seized and conveyed to the interior of the United States until the present appearance of war is removed.

Harrison gives other examples of the growing influence of the Prophet. He describes how the Shawnee leader seeks to persuade members of the other tribes to follow his will, but also resorts to shows of force by Tecumseh if the Pottawatomi, Ottawa, Chippewa, and others do not fall into line. The next letter was written a year later, and is dated May 3, 1809. William Eustis had succeeded Henry Dearborn as Secretary of War two months earlier, and Harrison sends him the latest intelligence he has gathered about the activities of the Shawnee leaders, and alarming news of their increasingly militant behavior:

Mr. Dubois...arrived here a few days ago from Detroit via Fort Wayne. He is decidedly of opinion that the Prophet will attack our settlements. His opinion is formed from a variety of circumstances but principally from a communication made to Mr. LaFontaine by two chiefs his friends, the substance of which was that the Prophet and his followers had determined to commence hostilities as soon as they could be prepared & to “sweep all the white people from the Wabash and White River” after which they intend to attack the Miamis.... About eight days ago he had with him three hundred and fifty warriors well armed with rifles and tolerably supplied with ammunition. They have also bows & arrows, war clubs, and a kind of spear. I still think he will not dare to attack us but I am preparing the militia as well as circumstances and the two companies which I have ordered out are rapidly improving in discipline being daily exercised either by the Major who commands them or myself in the evolutions practiced by General Wayne’s army. The Prophet cannot keep the number of men which he now has embodied any length of time. As soon as they disperse I shall dismiss the two companies which I have had mustered agreeably to the instructions of Gen. Dearborn by a careful person selected for that purpose.

Harrison also discusses a ploy being used by the Prophet, involving the purported scalping of an Indian woman to disguise the fact that he is raising his forces for use against the white settlements. Nearly a year passed until the third letter in this group, dated April 25, 1810. Harrison sends Eustis another alarming report of hostile Indian intentions, and informs Washington that he has strong evidence that the British in the area are supplying the Shawnee with arms:

I have lately received information from sources which leave no room to doubt its correctness, that the Shawnee Prophet is again exciting the Indians to hostilities against the United States. A trader who is entirely to be depended on, & who has lately returned from the residence of the Prophet, assures me that he has at least 1000 souls under his immediate control (perhaps 350 or 400 men).... The friends of the French traders amongst the Indians have advised them to separate themselves from the Americans in this town, lest they should suffer in the attack, which they meditate against the latter. I have no doubt that the present hostile disposition of the Prophet & his votaries has been produced by British influence. It is certain that they have rec’d. a considerable supply of ammunition from that source. They refused to buy that which was offered them by the traders alleging that they had as much as they wanted, & when it was expended they could get more without paying for it....I have before done myself the honor to describe to you the exposed situation of this town & how susceptible it is of surprise by a very small force. The militia in the country are so scattered that they could not be collected in time enough to be of any service in repelling an attack. There are not more than a full company of American militia in the town, & the French for any military purpose are worth nothing....The report of the Indians having meditated hostilities will do us great injury by retarding the settlement of the country. We lost several hundred families last spring, in consequence of the hostile appearances they exhibited. And I am persuaded that similar consequences will flow from those which are now manifested. And it will probably be eternally the case unless the rascally Prophet is driven from his present position or a Fort built somewhere on the Wabash....I beg leave to recommend this measure most earnestly to the President, as one from which the greatest advantages would arise both to the Territory & to the United States.

The final letter in this group is dated July 11, 1810. Harrison describes the activities of scouting parties of hostile Indians, who have been stealing the horses of farmers and trying to goad the Americans into an attack. He warns Eustis that these actions are ratcheting up tensions in his Territory, and that it might cause American settlers to take matters into their own hands. He writes that a week ago “four canoes passed the Wea Village of Terre Hoite [sic] with four or five men in each.” Of these, one descended as far as a local Shaker settlement:

They had left their canoes there and had gone to the meeting of the Shakers on Sunday. They returned late in the evening of that day & proceeded up the Wabash about one half mile where they left their canoes, cut a hole in her & in the night stole five horses. These fellows were all completely armed, had no skins to trade with, nor did they profess to have any other business than to visit the Shakers. That they were spies from the larger party I have not the least doubt....The people in the neighborhood from whence the horses were taken are so much alarmed that they have collected together for their defence. I have forbad their pursuit of the thieves because I know that it will produce blood shed. Indeed from the little pains which was taken to conceal the tracks of the horses I am convinced that pursuit was desired by the Indians & that a larger party was lying in ambush at some distance. I was informed some considerable time ago that this was one of the methods they intended to take to bring on the War....As long however as no blood is spilt I shall have hopes of bringing the Prophet to reason. But our people will not suffer their property to be taken & I dailey [sic] expect to hear of some Indians being killed in an attempt to take off horses, nor will this be the most disagreeable circumstance attending those depredations.

An outstanding group of letters from William Henry Harrison, ably transmitting the increasing tensions, fears, and hostilities on the Indiana frontier that led to the Battle of Tippecanoe. $47,500.

Hawaii Sends Jarves to Negotiate with the French in 1849

43. [Hawaii]: Kamehameha III: [MANUSCRIPT DOCUMENT, SIGNED BY KING KAMEHAMEHA III OF HAWAII, APPOINT- ING JAMES JACKSON JARVES AS THE HAWAIIAN SPECIAL COMMISSIONER TO FRANCE]. Honolulu. April 24, 1849. [2]pp. manuscript document on a 13¾ x 7¼-inch sheet. Containing the blindstamped seal of the Kingdom of Hawaii in the margin. Old folds. Fine. In a half morocco and cloth box.

By this appointment King Kamehameha III names James Jackson Jarves to be Hawaii’s “Special Commissioner to the Government of the Republic of France.” Kamehameha III (1813-54) was Hawaii’s longest reigning monarch, taking the throne in 1824 and remaining until his death. While he was king Hawaii went from an absolute monarchy to a constitutional monarchy, some land reform was undertaken, and the kingdom’s trade and population swelled in the wake of the California Gold Rush. This appointment gives Jarves the “full power and authority to appear, for us, at said government, and there make known our views and our wishes, upon matters relating to the Treaty of the 26th of March 1846, to the preservation of our independence and the security of our neutrality during all wars, and the greater regularity and uniformity of our relations, with all foreign nations.” The appointment is also signed by R.C. Wyllie, the Hawaiian Minister of Foreign Relations, and one of the most significant characters in early Hawaiian history. The treaty referred to was a treaty of peace, amity, and commerce between Hawaii and France. In the spring of 1849, France ramped up its imperialistic bullying of Hawaii. Its Consul, Guillaume Patrick Dillon, demanded that French become the official language for any transactions with Frenchmen within the Kingdom. This was refused, and Jarves was evidently dispatched at this point to try to deal with the French government directly. While he was still en route to France, in August, two French frigates attacked Honolulu, destroying the fort guarding the harbor and all of its arms. In 1850, Hawaii negotiated treaties of friendship with the U.S. and Great Britain, which served to insure that France would back down. James Jackson Jarves (1818-88) led an interesting and varied life as a newspaper editor, diplomat, art critic, and collector. For much of the 1840s he was editor of the Hawaiian newspaper, the Polynesian, and wrote several books about Hawaii, including an influential history published in 1843, and Kiana, which is generally acknowledged as the first full-length piece of fiction with a Hawaiian setting. After serving in France, Jarves moved to Florence, where he was an influential art critic and collector. An interesting document in the diplomatic history of the Hawaiian Islands, signed by Kamehameha III. $8500.

44. Houston, Samuel: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER OF INTRODUC- TION, SIGNED, BY SAM HOUSTON]. Washington. Jan. 18, 1853. 3pp. Quarto, on a folded folio sheet. Old fold lines. Slight separation at vertical fold, minor soiling and light ink bleed. Very good. In a red cloth folder, spine gilt.

Written in a bold and flourishing hand, this letter from Sam Houston to Joseph Reed Ingersoll, U.S. Minister in England, introduces an up-and-coming Congress- man from New York, Caleb Lyon. Lyon served just one term in the House of Rep- resentatives, and later served briefly as governor of Idaho Territory, where he was very unpopular. Houston writes:

My dear Sir, It affords me great pleasure to present my friend, Hon. Caleb Lyon of Lyonsdale, member elect, to the next Congress from N. York, to your notice, and regard. You will find him a gentleman, of the purest honor and feelings. Mr. L. is in every way worthy of your friendly attentions. He will extend his tour, from London and any thing in your power to make it pleasant, I hope you will contribute upon our partial acquaintance. I may press too far and if I do, you will please to excuse me on the grounds of my respect for you, and a desire to make my friend happy by presenting him to you as he is anxious to become acquainted with you!

Houston’s closing signature is quite large and underscored with flourishes. $3000. Detailed Manuscript Account of Hudson’s Bay Company Fur Trading in the Wilds of Canada

45. [Hudson’s Bay Company]: Stewart, Alexander: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED, FROM ALEXANDER STEWART TO “THE GOVERNOR CHIEF FACTORS & CHIEF TRADERS NORTH- ERN DEPARTMENT”]. Fort Chipewyan [Athabasca, Alberta, Canada]. Dec. 28, 1827. 5½pp. Legal folio. Dampstained, tears at folds, two bifolium, with docket panel on verso of final page: “Fort Chipewyan 28th Decr. ‘27 / Alex Stewart.” Provenance: Charles de Volpy (“C.de V.” ink collector’s stamp, sale: R. Maresch & Son, May 26, 1982, lot 21).

Alexander Stewart, the chief Hudson’s Bay Company factor at Fort Chipewyan (present-day Athabasca) writes a detailed and fascinating “account of the Companys Affairs in this District,” in 1827. The Fort, just north of present-day Edmonton, was the main jumping-off point for trapping expeditions into what is now northern Alberta and the Northwest Territories, especially the area around the Great Slave Lake. This was new country for the trappers; Sir John Franklin’s second expedition had explored the country in 1825-27, with the help of the Hudson’s Bay Company, and particularly Peter Dease. In this letter Stewart describes the situation at the end of 1827, noting that they might have lost important ship-board supplies for trading with Native Canadians “had not Mr. C.[hief ] t.[rader] Simon McGillivray...by his judicious management ultimately succeed in getting them here in due time. La Londe the conductor of the craft for this District, I look upon as no longer fit for that duty, having no more command of the men than a common steersman....I, with the able assistance of Mr. P(eter) W. Dease, whom I found here waiting with the remainder of the Mackenzie’s River outfit, made various arrangements and settlements with the Indians....Both Peace River and Great Slave Lake (in present-day Northwest Territories) outfits with their people left this on the 5th and 6th.” Stewart goes on to mention that he had difficulty distributing goods to the natives, as they came in greater numbers than expected, and describes a disease (“chin-cough,” i.e. whooping-cough) that has affected the families. He further mentions that non-importation of liquor has not been a problem and that:

The natives of Fort Chipewyan and Great Slave Lake have been as obedient as could be expected to our orders not to destroy the beaver during the summer season....The Beaver Indians being more destitute and more in the habit of making their hunt by the Gun....I have taken the liberty to forward herewith to Mr. C.F. McTavish the requisition for outfit 1828....I mean to send off three boats, which I have no doubt contain all the packs that may be made at this place and Seal River....There are in the district including 4 interpret- ers 45 men – To take out 3 boats – 21 men / Two loaded canoes – 9 men / Messrs. Smith & Stewarts Canoe – 6 men: 36 men – 9 men left. / Required for summer establishment: Great Slave Lake – 3 men, incl. interpreter / Fort Chipewyan – 3 / Fort Vermilion – 3 / Dunvegon – 3...showing a deficiency of 4....We must recourse to the hiring, if possible, [of ] some of our half-breeds or free-men in order to get our returns.

Alexander Stewart had originally worked for the North West Company, rising from apprentice (in 1796) to partner (in 1813). At the time of the merger of the North West Company with the Hudson’s Bay Company he was based at Little Slave Lake. Stewart was appointed one of the chief factors in the newly merged company, initially based at Fort William (1821-23) and Island Lake (1823-26) before taking over at Fort Chipewyan, where he remained until 1830. He took a furlough in 1830-31, but suffered health problems which led to his retirement in 1833. Peter Warren Dease (1788-1863), whose help Stewart praises in the present letter, would become a chief factor in his own right in the following year. Dease had earlier assisted Franklin during his second expedition in 1825-26, and he went on to gain renown as an Arctic explorer in his own right. In 1836-39, with Thomas Simpson, Dease commanded an expedition which explored the Arctic coast from the mouth of the Mackenzie River to Point Barrow. $6750.

Hunnewell’s Journal of His Voyage from Hawaii to Boston

46. Hunnewell, James: JOURNAL. At sea from Hawaii to Boston. 1830- 1831. [28]pp. plus fourteen blank pages and one leaf of later manuscript. Folio. Original pink patterned wrappers. Top half of front cover torn along hinge; remainder of spine chipped. Front cover lightly dampstained. Bright and clean internally. Near fine.

Manuscript journal of James Hunnewell (1794-1869) during his return trip from Hawaii to Boston in 1830-31 aboard the ship Owhyhee. The journal mostly gives account of the weather and conditions at sea, as well as the latitude and longitude positions of the ship. A roster of the crew and passengers is written on the last page. A later manuscript sheet is laid into the front of the journal. It contains a listing of Hunnewell’s voyages beginning in 1818 up through the trip aboard the Owhyhee, presumably written by his son, James F. Hunnewell. Hunnewell became familiar with the islands when the ship he was on was sold to Hawaiian chiefs; he was responsible for collecting the payment in sandalwood and then selling it in China. As a result he spent several months in the islands and became friendly with the local populace. In 1820 he arrived in Honolulu as second mate on the brig Thaddeus, the ship bearing the first American missionaries and also the first printing press. He later developed a significant business in Hawaii which grew into the commercial house later known as C. Brewer & Company. Though he returned to Charlestown, Massachusetts, he spent the rest of his life actively engaged in exporting goods to Hawaii and California. Part of his considerable fortune was given to found Oahu College. DAB IX, p.381. $10,000. A Conquistador’s Narrative, of Paramount Importance for the Early History of La Plata

47. Irala, Domingo Martinez de: [MANUSCRIPT, SIGNED BY DOMINGO MARTINEZ DE IRALA, FOR THE EMPEROR CHARLES V AND THE COUNCIL OF THE INDIES, NARRAT- ING HIS ACTIONS AND EXPLORATIONS AS THE DE FACTO GOVERNOR OF LA PLATA FROM 1545 TO 1555]. Asuncion [now Paraguay]. 1555. [4] leaves, approximately 3,500 words. Folio. Bound in limp red morocco for Sir Thomas Phillipps at the Middle Hill bindery. Fine. In a half morocco box.

An extraordinary manuscript of the greatest importance for the early history and exploration of South America. Written by the famed conquistador, Domingo Martinez de Irala, it narrates for the Emperor Charles V and his Council of the Indies the history of the Province of La Plata and Irala’s activities and explorations during the decade from 1545 to 1555, a period when the Province was virtually cut off from Spain. This manuscript must rank as one of the most important in the early history of the Americas still in private hands. Irala is the dominant figure in the early history of the Province of La Plata. He left Spain with the Mendoza expedition in 1534, a young Biscayan adventurer full of ambition. He played a distinguished part in the many Indian fights over the next five years, and was one of the founders of Asuncion in 1539. The deaths of the leaders of the expedition and Irala’s natural abilities caused him to be elected governor the same year. In 1540, Alvar Nunez Cabeça de Vaca, already famous for his exploits in North America, was appointed governor of La Plata by Charles V, and arrived in Asuncion in March 1542. Unwisely, he retained Irala as lieutenant- governor. The two were frequently at cross-purposes over the next two years, and in 1544, Irala staged a coup and imprisoned Cabeça de Vaca. The following year Irala shipped his prisoner back to Spain, along with several of his partisans, to justify his actions and ask for his formal appointment as governor of La Plata. For the next ten years, the period covered by the present manuscript, Irala held power as de facto governor of La Plata, but without an official appointment. He was keenly aware of the tenuous nature of his position and made various attempts to be officially appointed. This manuscript was clearly written to further that endeavor, justifying Irala’s own actions and ending with a plea for appointment. In the meantime, several plans to replace him were stymied by the deaths of the officially appointed governors before they could take office, and other strokes of fate. Either because of this 1555 letter or bowing to reality, in 1556, the year of his death, Irala was officially appointed to the position he had held so long. In fact, news of his appointment reached him only a few weeks before his demise. With the exception of Cabeça de Vaca’s two years as governor, Irala had been the effec- tive ruler of La Plata from 1539 to 1556, making him by far the most important conquistador of the territory. This manuscript provides a detailed account of Irala’s actions in the decade from the deposing of Cabeça de Vaca to his own appointment as governor, from 1545 to 1555. He first describes his explorations up the Parana in 1545, as far as 16° south. Then in 1546, Irala led an expedition to the borders of Peru, almost as far as the mines at Potosi. There he was warned by the Viceroy to stay out of Peru, but camped in the foothills of the Andes and sent his trusted lieutenant, Nuflo de Chaves, to Lima to see the Viceroy, the first overland expedition from La Plata across the continent. Nuflo de Chaves transmitted the first of Irala’s petitions to officially be made governor. After an absence of almost two years, Irala returned to Asuncion to discover a coup had taken place, led by soldiers still loyal to Cabeça de Vaca. He describes his efforts to suppress this rebellion and justifies his actions. With the period of strife over, Irala sent Nuflo de Chaves on further explorations, and conducted more campaigns against various Indian tribes. During all of this time there was very little communication with Spain, and Irala’s province was virtually a world unto itself. This manuscript sheds considerable light on this period, the first part of which is covered elsewhere by the narrative of the German mercenary, Hulderico Schmidel, but the latter years of which are very poorly documented. Finally, in June 1555 a ship arrived from Spain with instructions (but still no appointment) for Irala. The present narrative, evidently written in July 1555, was clearly intended to be sent back with that ship. Written in a secretarial hand, it is signed by Irala (here translated into English): “Most powerful Lords, your least servant who kisses your royal hands and feet, Domingo de Irala.” This is one of two known copies of this manuscript, the other being in the Archive of the Indies. That copy contains some variants in spelling and form, and has been published in R. de Lafuente Machain’s Domingo de Irala (Buenos Aires, 1939). The present manuscript’s provenance begins with diplomat-bookseller Obadiah Rich, who acquired it in Spain sometime after 1815 and sold it to the collector, Lord Kingsborough. At the Kingsborough sale it passed to Sir William Betham, and later to the famous British collector of manuscripts, Sir Thomas Phillipps, who had it bound in its present limp red morocco binding. It was later sold at one of the Phillipps dispersal sales, in 1938, and has been off the market ever since. A manuscript of the utmost importance and interest. PHILLIPPS MSS. 13301 (see PHILLIPPS STUDIES 4:182). R. de Lafuente Machain, Domingo de Irala (Buenos Aires, 1939), pp.499-509. Fernando de Valle Lersundi, Irala, Algunos Documentos... (Madrid, 1932) (compare signature illustrated on p.27). Julian M. Rubio, Exploracion y Conquista de Rio de la Plata Siglos XVI y XVII (Barcelona, 1942). $160,000.

A Bookseller Gives Andrew Jackson Some Books

48. Jackson, Andrew: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED, FROM ANDREW JACKSON TO PHILADELPHIA BOOKSELLER MATHEW CAREY, THANKING HIM FOR A GIFT OF SEV- ERAL BOOKS]. Nashville. Aug. 3, 1818. [1]p. Quarto. Old fold lines. Contemporary paper strip along left edge on verso. Minor toning. Very good.

Andrew Jackson writes to Philadelphia publisher and bookseller Mathew Carey, thanking him for a gift of some books; written from Nashville, after Jackson’s return from the Seminole campaign. Jackson has addressed his letter from Headquarters, Department of the South, writing:

Dr. Sir, I reached this place on the 29th of June last, in bad health, where I had the pleasure to receive the books you had the goodness & liberality to present to me. Ill health added to a press of publick business that crowded on me at the close of the campaign, has hitherto prevented me, from acknowledging the receipt of this real mark of your personal respect & esteem for me. These books are an invaluable addition to my small liberary [sic], and when leisure occurs will afford me much edification & amusement & a lively & gratefull recollection of the donor. Accept my dr. sir for this gratefull present my sincere thanks....

As a former lawyer, Congressman and judge, Jackson had a decent library, though mostly comprised of law and history books and political pamphlets. Jackson remained commander of the Southern Division of the army until 1821, when he resigned his commission and became governor of Florida. This letter is marked as “Rec’d Aug. 21,” likely in Carey’s hand. $9500. Jefferson Writes to the Designer of the Great Seal

49. Jefferson, Thomas: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED, FROM THOMAS JEFFERSON TO WILLIAM BARTON, REGARDING A LETTER MEANT FOR BARTON AND AN ALMANAC SENT TO THE AMERICAN PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY]. [Philadel- phia]. March 26, 1793. [1]p. letter on a quarto sheet, folded for mailing so that the text of the letter and the address information, both in Jefferson’s hand, are on the same side of the sheet. Wax seal on verso. Near fine.

An interesting autograph letter, signed, from Thomas Jefferson to William Barton, lawyer, scholar, and co-designer of the Great Seal of the United States. Signifi- cantly, the letter highlights Jefferson’s lifelong interest in and involvement with books, his position as a focal point of the intellectual and scientific community in Philadelphia, his ongoing relationship with European scholars, and his association with the American Philosophical Society, of which Jefferson was a president and William Barton a member. The origin of the letter is in the election of the Swiss philologist, Johann Ro- dolph von Valltravers, to the American Philosophical Society in 1792. As a token of his appreciation, Valltravers sent the Society a copy of his recently published almanac, Le Vrai Calendrier Perpetual.... Valltravers evidently sent the almanac, and a letter meant for William Barton, through the offices of Charles William Frederick Dumas, a Swiss national resident in the Netherlands who was apparently acting as a “secret” agent for the United States (see Dumas’ letter to Jefferson of November 30, 1792 published in The Papers of Thomas Jefferson, volume 24). Valltravers’ letter for William Barton and the almanac meant for the Philosophical Society were eventually delivered to Jefferson in Philadelphia, who wrote the present letter to William Barton to update him on the situation. Jefferson writes (in full):

Th. Jefferson presents his compliments to Mr. Barton and informs him that the letter addressed to him was left at the house of Th. J. during his absence, he knows not by whom. A box was left at the same time for the Philosophi- cal Society, which he presented at the last meeting. It contains a paste-board almanac only, somewhat in the style of those Mr. Barton may have seen. The society desired Mr. Peale to take it & keep it in his museum.

The last line is a reference to the already famed and influential Philadelphia museum of Charles Willson Peale, which was opened to the public in 1786. A copy of this letter is not in the Library of Congress’ Thomas Jefferson papers collection, and it was previously unknown to the published edition of The Papers of Thomas Jefferson. $12,500. Jefferson Comments on a New Torpedo

50. Jefferson, Thomas: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED, FROM THOMAS JEFFERSON TO ENGLEHART CRUSE, REPLYING TO CRUSE’S LETTER REGARDING A DEVICE FOR BLOW- ING UP SHIPS]. Monticello. July 23, 1813. [1]p., plus integral address leaf. Quarto, on a folded folio sheet. Reinforced or repaired at old folds, mostly with tissue. Minor loss at some folds, affecting a few letters of text. Some paper loss to address leaf, not affecting text. Lightly dampstained. Still quite legible. Good.

A letter written by Thomas Jefferson during his retirement, in response to Englehart Cruse, who had sent him a letter and drawing regarding an invention for blowing up ships. As a well-known public figure, and an inventor and innovator himself, Jefferson was a likely target for many men pursuing hopeful new inventions and ideas. Englehart Cruse had a history of steam inventions, including applying in 1790 for one of the first patents, for his steam-powered mill (the first of its kind) in Baltimore. Jefferson writes, self-deprecatingly, that he is hardly an authority on this area and thus can offer no firm opinion on the feasibility of Cruse’s invention. He thanks him, nonetheless, for sending the idea along.

Sir, I received duly your favor of the 3d and in it the description of your ap- paratus for blowing up ships, which I have considered and now re-inclose. My inland situation has made me the least of all men a judge of anything nautical. Mr. Fulton communicated to me the plan of his floating torpedo, which appeared to me plausible. I should think the same of yours, could I permit myself to form a judgment in a case wherein I am so ignorant. Not meddling at all now in the affairs of the government I return to you the paper because it would go better from yourself; and because too it is possible you may wish to obtain a patent for the invention, in which case it must go from yourself in the ordinary form. With my thanks for its communication, accept assurances of my respects. $20,000.

Signer of the Constitution from Maryland

51. Jenifer, Daniel of St. Thomas: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED, FROM DANIEL OF ST. THOMAS JENIFER TO JAMES CHRIS- TIE, REGARDING CHRISTIE’S FINANCIAL AFFAIRS]. An- napolis. Nov. 8, 1767. [1]p., docketed on verso. Quarto. Two conjoined leaves inlaid in a frame of later paper as one leaf. Light soiling. Paper loss from wax seal, not affecting text. Later manuscript notes on verso. Good. In a blue half morocco and cloth clamshell case, spine gilt.

Maryland Founding Father Daniel of St. Thomas Jenifer writes to James Christie, a Maryland merchant, regarding Christie’s debts and Jenifer’s inability to relieve him of them. Daniel of St. Thomas Jenifer was a Maryland planter, merchant, and politician, and a signer of the Constitution of the United States. He was in charge of the state’s finances from 1782 to 1785, and seems to have been a very successful businessman. James Christie was likewise a successful Maryland merchant, who ended up on the other side of the political fence, expelled and banished from Mary- land in 1775 for his Loyalist sympathies. At the time this letter was written, he appears to have been in London on business. Jenifer’s letter, along with expressed regrets and some news on the tobacco crop, sends money. It reads:

Dear Sir, Your favor of the 23d of May I received & wish with all my heart it was in my power to contribute towards remittances from your debtors. All that I can do shall be done, but I am so much confined to this place that I have not time to go out. Your brother tells me that he expects to collect a considerable sum this fall. I have desired him to sue every one without respect to persons that do not pay. There will not be more than half crops this year made in Virga. & Maryland and it is expected that [tobacco] will sell for 21/ [?] next year. Inclosed you have Robert Peters [?] on Mr. Glassford £26 & Nichs. Brewer on Jona. Forward & Co. £5, which apply to the company accts.

$4000.

Preaching to the Distillers, Just Before the Whiskey Rebellion

52. Latta, James: A SERIOUS AND AFFECTIONATE ADDRESS TO THE DISTILLERS OF SPIRITUOUS LIQUORS IN THE UNIT- ED STATES [manuscript caption title]. [Lancaster County, Pa. ca. 1790]. [7]pp. manuscript on octavo sheets. Approximately 2000 words total. Stitched. Chipped at edges, a few small tears. Good overall, and easily readable.

An unpublished original manuscript sermon on the prohibition of liquor, by influential Presbyterian minister James Latta, who had a long career in the pulpit in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. This sermon is addressed to the distillers of spirits in the United States, and is more in the form of an open letter to distillers than to the members of Latta’s congregation. He calls on the distillers to cease in their production, as it does nothing for the subsistence or comfort of mankind. “To be a slave to habitual drunkenness is so degrading to human nature, so hurtful to the health, the understanding, the morals and the souls of men, that you will allow that no wise or prudent man, no man, who has any due concern for his interest here, and his happiness hereafter, will run the risk of it.” A later manuscript note (in a different hand) at the conclusion of the text identifies the work as being by Rev. Latta, and notes that it was donated by his son, also a Rev. James Latta of Sadsbury, Pennsylvania. James Latta (1732-1801) was born in Ireland, emigrated to America at a young age, and settled with his parents near Elkton, Maryland. He was one of the first graduates of Rev. Francis Alison’s Academy (which evolved into the University of Delaware), and was also educated at the College of Philadelphia. He preached in Virginia, the Carolinas, and Pennsylvania until 1770, when he was appointed minister at the Chestnut Level Presbyterian Church, where he served until his death in 1801. During the American Revolution he served as a private and a chaplain in the Pennsylvania Militia. Latta was the third moderator of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in America, and author of A Discourse on Psalmody. We can find no evidence that this work on liquor and its prohibition was ever published. $2000.

The Famous Financier

53. Law, John: [MANUSCRIPT DOCUMENT, SIGNED BY JOHN LAW WHILE COMPTROLLER GENERAL OF FRENCH FI- NANCE]. Paris. Feb. 12, 1720. [2]pp. Very minor soiling at right edge. Near fine.

A letter to a bureaucrat about reaction to some of John Law’s economic policies, signed by Law as Controller General of Finance for France. In the previous few years Law, a Scottish economist and gambler who was once jailed for murder, had crested the world of high finance to become one of the wealthiest and most powerful figures in France. Law bought controlling interest in the Mississippi Company in 1717; later that same year, he floated the Mississippi Company as a joint stock trading company called the Compagnie d’Occident, which was granted a trade monopoly of both the West Indies and North America. Against everyone’s advice, including that of Law himself, the Company founded the city of New Orleans in 1718. Things were not to endure, however, for Law. The bank he had set up in 1716, which had helped him gain his current power and control in the French government, began its grand collapse shortly thereafter (commonly referred to as the bursting of the Mississippi Bubble). The bank had been consolidated with the Compagnie d’Occident, under Law’s control, and speculation in the trading arm of the endeavor soon overran the bank end of the business. It was, however, extremely successful until it collapsed and caused an economic crisis in France and across Europe. His experiment in France – to issue paper currency backed by investments – was in high gear at the time this document was drafted. Law’s financial structure was just beginning to hemorrhage, and its dramatic collapse was about to take place. It ended badly for Law, who died in exile. $6000.

Leutze Writes a Washington Family Member About Painting “Washington Crossing the Delaware”

54. Leutze, Emanuel: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED, FROM EMANUEL LEUTZE TO GEORGE WASHINGTON PARKE CUSTIS, DISCUSSING THE CREATION OF HIS PAINTING OF WASHINGTON CROSSING THE DELAWARE]. Dusseldorf. Nov. 10, 1850. 4pp. Folio. Silked. Minor soiling. Very good. In a half morocco and cloth clamshell case.

German American painter Emanuel Leutze writes to George Washington Parke Custis, Martha Washington’s grandson and father of Robert E. Lee’s wife, concerning the trials involved in creating Leutze’s famous painting of Washington crossing the Delaware. Leutze decided on the subject matter for this painting during the Revolution of 1848; he hoped to inspire Europe’s liberal reformers with this dramatic scene from the American Revolution. He used American tourists and students as models, and eventually completed the painting in 1851. Leutze thanks Custis for relaying to him details of the crossing which were instrumental in his accurately depicting the event:

I have in hand most valuable information, of the shade of the troops &c. about the time of Washington’s bold attempt to cross the Delaware, for which I am indebted to you kind sir, and beg the permission in a few words to offer you my sincerest thanks for your valuable communications on the subject. I feared not without cause the many difficulties I would encounter, so far from home, in the execution of a work I had set my hopes and pride upon, but the ready and kind assistance I had from home, and particularly your precise and comprehensive descriptions, have assisted me so much in my task that the labor seemed pleasure. I had already advanced so far as to have the picture more than dead colored, to the satisfaction of the many visitors by whom I was honored when a few days since (5 Nov.) I suddenly discovered my studio in flames, the fire spread so rapidly, that it seemed hopeless to extinguish it, the picture too large to remove, nothing was left but amid the smoke and flames to cut the picture from the frame and roll it, in this task I with the assistance of my friends succeeded perfectly, but unfortunately the good people outside seized it so roughly that the canvass was broken in more than five different places, and so much ruined that I must give up every hope of finishing it. I have already sent for another canvass as soon as my studio is repaired I will commence upon it with renewed vigour and hope to finish it by next year to the satisfaction of my friends and my countrymen. I would endeavour to attach a small description of the picture if I did not fear to tire you, and had not the conviction that a description in words is but vague. I would therefore be delighted if you would permit me in a short time to send you a drawing, and perhaps a daguerreotype for your inspection and valuable remarks.

A fascinating history of the trials and tribulations of this famous work of art. $6000. The American Minister in France Describes His Impressions, 1802

55. Livingston, Robert: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED, FROM AMERICAN MINISTER TO FRANCE ROBERT LIVINGSTON TO HIS SISTER CATHARINE, DESCRIBING THE WORKINGS OF THE FRENCH LEGISLATURE, HIS IMPRESSIONS OF FRENCH POLITICS AND SOCIETY, AND A DESCRIPTION OF THE CATHEDRAL OF SAINT SULPICE]. Paris. Feb. 22, 1802. [7]pp. manuscript on two folded folio sheets. Second sheet (containing final three pages of letter and the address page) lightly silked to repair tears and some paper loss. Overall, in very good condition. In a half morocco and cloth folding box, spine gilt.

A very interesting letter from Robert Livingston, United States Minister to France, to his sister in America, describing the workings of the French legislature’s “Corps Legislatif,” the architecture of the Saint Sulpice cathedral, and giving his impressions of Parisian life. Livingston’s most notable achievement while in France was his negotiation, with James Monroe, of the Louisiana Purchase Treaty of 1803. However, he had a long career in American politics, serving in the Continental Congress, being assigned to the committee that drafted the Declaration of Inde- pendence, and helping to write the constitution of New York in 1777. Livingston was a man of keen intellect, and his observations of political structures and machi- nations are insightful. In this letter Livingston offers valuable descriptions and impressions of French politics and society, and also gives an excellent description of the magnificent Roman Catholic cathedral, Saint Sulpice. Robert Livingston (1746-1813) was born in New York City, attended King’s College, and as a young man practiced law with John Jay. He had a long career in politics and diplomacy, beginning with his appointment as recorder of New York City in 1773. A member of the Second Continental Congress, Livingston was assigned to the committee appointed to draft the Declaration of Independence, though it does not appear that he played a significant role in the process, and he was not on hand in Philadelphia to sign the document. From 1777 to 1801 he was the first Chancellor of New York, the highest judicial position in the state, which entitled him to administer the oath of office to George Washington when he assumed the presidency in 1789. In 1777 he also served on the convention that wrote the constitution of the state of New York. Politically, Livingston would eventually align himself with the Jeffersonian Republicans, which estranged him from many of the leaders of his region, including Alexander Hamilton and John Jay. From 1781 to 1783 he was the United States’ Secretary of Foreign Affairs, the chief diplomatic position under the Articles of Confederation. In 1801, Livingston became American Minister to France, and it was in this role that he and James Monroe negotiated the Louisiana Purchase Treaty, signed April 30, 1803. Late in life he was involved with Robert Fulton in developing steamboats as a means of transportation. A large part of this letter is taken up by a description of the lower chamber of the French legislature, the so-called “Corps Legislatif.” Livingston’s description is valuable for giving an account of the functioning of this body some two years before Napoleon stripped it of much of its power. He writes:

I set out with my sons upon a visit to the Corps Legislative to whose sittings you are admitted by tickets. The constitution having directed that there shall not be more than two hundred spectators – this regulation originated in the influence that the galleries formerly had, in the deliberations of the Legislature. It was usual for the violent party to have a mob occupy the tribunes as they were called, who cryed [sic] down their opponents, indeed interfered so much, as in a great measure as to govern the debates & resolutions. The new constitution not only guards against this evil but by condemning the Legislature themselves to silence, they take care that one member shall not influence another – all they can say is yes, or no, every law being proposed by the government, debated by the Tribunate, & if they & the government disagree, they each appoint orators. These are pitted against each other in the Corps Legislative, who determine ultimately on what is offered without debate; you may easily believe that a set of French politicians condemned to lose the use of their tongues cannot feel very easy in their seats.

After discussing the procedures of the legislature, Livingston moves on to a detailed description of the legislative chamber itself, and of the manners and dress of the members of the body:

The house they sit in was a palace of the prince of Conde, very large and elegant, it has one front upon the Seine, another upon the place de Vindoms at the distance of about 700 feet. The room the Legislature occupies is a semi-circle, the seats rising in regular gradation one above the other, with a very elevated seat for the president, in front of whom is the altar of Liberty & Law & one each side, statues of the greatest statesmen & orators, apparently speaking from their nitches [sic]. The floor is tipulated marbled & the wall so exact an imitation of it as not to be distinguished but by a connoisseur....

Livingston continues his letter with a long and detailed description of the Roman Catholic cathedral of Saint Sulpice, describing its relatively modern architecture and its ornate interior decoration. He goes on to lament that much fine public architecture has been destroyed during the course of the French Revolution: “It is much to be lamented that the barbarians of the revolution have destroyed all the monuments of art that ornamented the different chappels [sic] & tombs of the nobility within this & every other church in France.” Livingston concludes by alluding to the licentious habits of the French. A very informative letter from Robert Livingston a year before he negotiated the Louisiana Purchase, giving valuable insights into the workings of the French government, the mores of French society, and a fine description of the Saint Sulpice cathedral. DAB XI, pp.320-25 ANB 13, pp.774-76. $3750. Making the Louisiana Purchase Happen, and an Invitation to the Ball in Honor of the Transfer of Louisiana

56. [Louisiana Purchase]: Laussat, Pierre Clément de: [MANUSCRIPT LETTER, SIGNED, FROM THE FRENCH COLONIAL PRE- FECT OF LOUISIANA, LAUSSAT, TO CAPTAIN GUILLERMO DUPARC, COMMANDANT OF THE POINT COUPEE POST, TELLING HIM OF THE SPANISH RETROCESSION OF LOUI- SIANA TO THE FRENCH, AND INSTRUCTING HIM TO TAKE THE NECESSARY MEASURES TO EXERT CONTROL OVER HIS PARISH]. New Orleans. Dec. 10 [i.e. 9], 1803 [17 Frimaire an 12]. [1]p. letter on a folded folio sheet, with engraved scene entitled “Republique Francaise” at the top of the first page. A few manuscript notes and calculations on the second and fourth pages. Old folds. Some soiling on fourth page, a bit of ink bleedthrough. Very good. [with:] [PRINTED INVITATION, SENT BY THE FRENCH COLONIAL PREFECT OF LOUISI- ANA, LAUSSAT, FOR A GALA IN HONOR OF THE SPANISH COMMANDER IN LOUISIANA, AND IN ANTICIPATION OF HANDING THE LOUISIANA TERRITORY OVER TO THE UNITED STATES]. Dec. 11, 1803 [19 Frimaire an XII]. [1]p., printed on a folded quarto sheet, addressed in manuscript on the fourth page. Small tear in upper right corner of first page, half-inch split along one fold. Very good. The pair in a half morocco clamshell case, cloth chemises.

A remarkable pair of documents, announcing to a local French commander the completion of the transfer of Louisiana from Spanish to French control, and invit- ing him to an upcoming gala in honor of the local Spanish commander and the forthcoming transfer of Louisiana Territory to the United States. The letter and invitation are both addressed to Captain Guillermo Duparc, commandant of the Point Coupee military outpost, just northwest of Baton Rouge. Pierre Clément de Laussat, the last French Colonial Prefect of Louisiana, arrived there in late March 1803, just a month before the Louisiana Purchase Treaty was signed in Paris (on April 30). Spain had ceded Louisiana to the French in the Treaty of San Ildefonso of 1800, though the provisions of the treaty had remained a secret; his immediate responsibility was to oversee the transfer from Spain to France. Laussat had been hearing rumors since his arrival of a potential sale of Louisiana from France to the Americans, and those rumors were officially confirmed to him in August. In May 1803 the Spanish commanders of Louisiana, including the Marquis de Casa Calvo, announced the forthcoming retrocession of Louisiana from Spanish to French control, a process that was formally completed on November 30, 1803. In the present letter, dated just nine days after the completion of the Spanish retrocession, Laussat writes Duparc, sending him (in translation from the French) “the order which I have issued concerning taking possession of the French Republic of Louisiana in your district. I reached an agreement on it, in advance, with the Commissioners of S.M.C. [Sa Majeste Catholique, i.e. King Charles IV of Spain] dated the 12th of Frimaire [December 4, 1803].” Laussat writes that, along with the proclamation, he is sending Duparc various decrees regarding the circumstances of French control and asks him to redouble his efforts for tranquility, peace, and order in his district. The proclamation and decrees mentioned by Laussat are not present with this letter. The manuscript letter is on Laussat’s official letterhead, with the seal of the French Republic and the engraved text, “Marine. Coloniea. Louisiane.” Interestingly, Laussat has annotated the pre-printed portion of the letter, changing his title from “Colonial Prefect of Louisiana” to “Colonial Prefect Commissioner of the French Government,” reflecting the new political situation after the Spanish hand-over of the territory to the French just nine days earlier. The printed invitation is also addressed to M. Duparc, and is very rare, located by Jumonville in only one other copy, at the Historic New Orleans Collection. Dated December 11, 1803, it invites Duparc to a soiree hosted by Laussat on “next Thursday,” the 15th of December. The party was being held to commemorate the transfer of Louisiana from Spanish to French control, and its impending transfer to the United States. More specifically the party was in honor of the Spanish commander, the Marquis de Casa-Calvo, brigadier of the Spanish armies, in thanks for the Spaniards’ efforts in recent days, and as a sign of the union and friendship between the Spanish and French governments. On December 20, 1803, just eleven days after writing this letter and five days after his gala in honor of Casa-Calvo, Laussat presided over the ceremony officially transferring Louisiana Territory to the United States. Laussat’s manuscript letter and printed invitation of Captain Duparc are rare survivals, and fascinating evidence of the political, military, and social aspects of events in Louisiana in 1803, from the Spanish transfer of control of the territory to France, to the official completion of the Louisiana Purchase by the United States. Printed invitation: JUMONVILLE 86. $60,000.

“Shall We Gather at the River”

57. Lowry, Robert: [AUTOGRAPH TRANSCRIPTION, SIGNED (“ROBERT LOWRY”), OF TWO STANZAS OF “SHALL WE GATHER AT THE RIVER”]. Plainsfield, N.J. May 26, 1891. [1]. on personal letterhead, signed and dated beneath the text. 12mo. Fine.

Robert Lowry (1826-99) first composed the words and music of this quintessential, classic American hymn in 1864, while a working as pastor in Brooklyn, New York. It has been used countless times in films (e.g. “Stagecoach,” “The Wild Bunch”) and has been arranged by both Aaron Copland and Charles Ives. The full hymn consists of five stanzas and the famous chorus: “Yes, we’ll gather at the river, / The beautiful, the beautiful river; / Gather with the saints at the river / That flows by the throne of God.” $3000.

The Secretary of State Aids in Scientific Communications

58. Madison, James: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED, FROM JAMES MADISON TO ANDREW ELLICOTT, REGARDING COMMUNICATIONS WITH THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF FRANCE]. Washington. Nov. 22, 1810. [1]p. Quarto. Old fold lines, else quite fine.

President James Madison replies to Andrew Ellicott, who has asked to continue to forward correspondence for the National Institute of France through the De- partment of State with letters for the American minister in France. Ellicott was a member of the National Institute of France, elected in 1808, pursuing an active interest in astronomy in his retirement. Madison assures him here that his letters are of great import and he will happily send them along with the State Department’s correspondence to France. He writes:

Dear Sir, I have read your letter of the 14th; and shall consider any aid in facilitating your intercourse with the National Institute at Paris, as too much due to the object of it, not to be readily afforded. Your letters forwarded within to me or to the Dept. of State will be always attended to, in making up the communications to our Minister at that place. With my friendly wishes accept assurances of my respect, & esteem.

Andrew Ellicott (1754-1820) was a surveyor and mathematician, responsible for surveying the District of Columbia and designing parts of Washington City, as well as several other significant federal projects. Ellicott worked closely with the federal government for most of his career, and was offered a position as Surveyor General by Jefferson in 1801, though he refused the position, preferring fieldwork to life behind a desk. He served as a teacher and mentor to Meriwether Lewis in preparation for the Lewis and Clark expedition in 1803, and President Madison appointed him teacher of mathematics at West Point in 1813. A nice letter from President Madison to one of early America’s leading scien- tists. $6000.

Manuscript Account of a Disorderly and Dangerous French Voyage to Africa and the Caribbean

59. Malescot de Coulomiers, le Sieur: MEMOIRE OU JOURNAL DE CE QUI S’EST PASSÉ ABORD DU FOCON ANGLOIS, COM- MANDÉ PAR LE SR. PETIT, DEPUIS SON DÉPART DES RADES DE LA ROCHELLE...A SON ARRIVÉE AU FORT RO- JAL DE LA MARTINIQUE...[caption title]. [La Rochelle. 1705-1706]. 33¼ pp. of neat manuscript in French, plus three blank leaves. Later [?] notes in the left margin in the same hand. Approximately 8500 words. A few marginal marks by Michel Bégon. Folio. Gathered leaves, stitched. Bit tanned and slightly frayed at edges, one or two small stains in margins, small tear at bottom fold of front and back leaves, none affecting text. Very good. Ac- companied by a transcript in French. In a cloth clamshell case, leather label.

This remarkable narrative describes the voyage of the French ship, English Falcon (Faucon Anglois), which left La Rochelle in late September of 1705 and, after various unsavory adventures and accidents along the African coast, eventually arrived in Martinique in July of 1706. The adventure was recorded in a lively and critical manner by the King’s scrivener, le sieur Malescot de Coulomiers, who had been sent along on the voyage against his will by Michel Bégon, the Intendant of La Rochelle (Malescot de Coulomiers notes that before he obeyed his orders, he begged Bégon to release him from an assignment “of which everyone speaks so unfavorably”). This journal, presented to Michel Bégon after the voyage, is both an account and an indictment of the behavior of the captain and crew. The ship’s mission is unclear, although it may well have been intended to be a government-sponsored privateer. Privateering was the most likely mission; despite the triangular nature of the voyage, the ship was not a slaver. However, a secondary motive seems to have been general trade. This was undercut from the beginning by the captain, Petit, who had not shipped sufficient stores and had padded the crew list. A projected stop at Teneriffe for more supplies and crew members was abandoned because of lack of maneuverability and because the fine weather and good fishing induced laziness in captain and crew. The African coast was reached at Gorée, but the French fort commandant, after encouraging Capt. Petit to launch a treacherous and unprovoked attack on a local tribe, then quarreled with Petit, precluding any possibility of obtaining supplies or trade. The vessel then coasted southward to about the location of modern Monrovia, touching at various places. Malescot de Coulomiers complains in his report that Capt. Petit is unfamiliar with the route, and frequently runs the ship aground; the insolent and almost mutinous crew plunder, rape, and pillage, alienating every possible trading establishment, while generously imbibing the eau de vie brought along to sell in Senegal. Constant fires in the ship’s storeroom add to the perils of the voyage. Furthering this general chaos, Petit and his crew attempted to engage in some privateering practices. An attack on a coastal settlement failed abysmally because of Petit’s indecision and fear of his crew. Their ship was threatened by a group of English ships; Petit again hesitated, but managed to avoid a serious encounter. A Danish ship, short on food and crew, was encountered and seized, and the captain and crew were confined, because Petit and his crew learned that the Danes had some gold on board. This was illegal piracy by any standard, as Malescot de Coulomiers repeatedly points out, since France and Denmark were not at war. Petit’s crew sailed the Danish vessel with the English Falcon en route to Martinique, but an avaricious crew member, seeking gold he believed hidden in the powder magazine, caused an explosion that destroyed the Danish ship and caused many deaths. In short, the entire voyage of the English Falcon was a series of disasters. Malescot de Coulomiers refers at various times to “the Enterprise” (at one point sarcastically quoting Capt. Petit’s description of it as destined “to be the astonishment of the court and posterity”), but if there was some larger mission, it seems to have been lost in the incompetence of the captain and malice of the crew. This manuscript is from the papers of Michel Bégon, who had a long and distinguished career in the service of the French court, perhaps most notably as the intendant of the French Antilles. At the time of this voyage, however, he was the intendant for the Rochefort region, including La Rochelle. This report was most probably prepared for him preliminary to an investigation into the conduct of Capt. Petit. Bégon, a trusted civil servant, both directed voyages out of La Rochelle and used his position to gather intelligence useful to the government. A true account of unruly adventures at sea, both marvelous and terrible, re- counted in a lively fashion by a narrator who is by turns astonished and cynical. As disorganized and chaotic as the voyage was, it is probably more representative of such 18th-century seafaring ventures than more polite narratives. $20,000.

A British Army Officer Who Stayed in America After the Revolution

60. Maunsell, John: [ARCHIVE OF TWENTY-SIX AUTOGRAPH LETTERS, SIGNED, FROM LIEUTENANT GENERAL JOHN MAUNSELL OF THE BRITISH ARMY TO AUGUSTINE PRE- VOST, INCLUDING A LETTER TO HORATIO GATES]. New York. 1792-1794, 1796. 58pp., plus several integral address leaves. Folio. Old folds. Torn along some folds. Some loss due to removal of wax seal. Some light soiling. In a highly legible hand. Overall very good. In a half morocco and cloth clamshell case, spine gilt.

A highly interesting series of confidential letters between high-ranking former officers in the British Army, now residing in America. Lieutenant General John Maunsell (1724-95) had served with distinction at Louisbourg, Quebec, Montreal, Martinique, and Havana. When the American Revolution broke out, however, Maunsell – married to an American – received a posting to Ireland in order to avoid serving against the American colonies. After the war he lived in New York and kept up a confidential correspondence with former British Army officers such as Prevost and even disgraced American General Horatio Gates (nominally the victor of Saratoga and loser at Camden). Maunsell likewise forwarded important English letters to General Henry Knox, Secretary of War, for Washington’s perusal. His letters, literate and informative, provide a unique window into the former enemy’s view of the affairs of the new nation and the larger world. Though the majority of the letters are written to Major Augustine Prevost, a former British officer who had become a U.S. citizen, one of the letters included here is addressed to General Horatio Gates. Maunsell writes on May 28, 1792: “I dined at Sir John Temple...with the Captain & an officer of Simcoe’s Rangers that brings dispatches from Canada, to which place he moves immediately; he says the location of the capital is to be near Detroit, I think on Lake Sinclair....” Maunsell also writes of the campaigns of Cornwallis in India against Tippoo Sultan; naval battles with the French; and interestingly, reports: “Mr. Wilberforce has carried the negro emancipating Bill, all slaves in the West Indies are to be freed & the plantations to be worked by the present black generation & their descendants. It is said that natural increase will answer the purpose, but their labour must be paid for by the planter in future.” Writing to Prevost, Maunsell passes along more information from New York. On June 11, 1792 he writes: “France...has declared war against the Emperor... Clinton and [ John] Jay contest not closed; the general opinion is in favor of Jay – I think that Clinton will succeed...Lord Cornwallis on his march, & near Tippoo’s capital.” Writing further on June 30, he informs Prevost that he has received very significant intelligence from a London correspondent and “forwarded my letters to Gen.[Henry] Knox, for Mr. Washington’s perusal....” He discusses Aaron Burr’s recent political defeats: “all his importance in this state is fled, & he cannot come forward again as a candidate. That is the prevailing opinion in New York.” After the second United States presidential election, he reports: “Mr Adams is rechosen Vice President – the votes were – for Adams 80 – for Clinton 50, for Lawyer Burr 1. This last candidate must have no interest in America; he sat up to be our Govr, I hear, but had not one vote. Mr Washington was reelected, unanimously.” On July 14, 1793, Maunsell stresses the need for secrecy: “...all that passes between us is truly confidential, pray never mention my name, or anything that passes between us....Always acknowledge receipt of any letters I send that come from England.” He reiterates his feelings on the subject in another letter several days later. In the same letter, of July 25, he writes about the Genet affair and the trouble being stirred up by the French envoy: “Citizen Genet, wishes & endeavours to disseminate the Jacobin Doctrine at Philadelphia, talks of a new kind of Liberty, and equality, of which we knew nothing of, previous to...the murder of Louis 16.... The president unexpectedly returns to the seat of Government, when he, and the heads of every Department met...to debate on measures profound & important... some domestic political clouds are rising....” He reports further on the Genet affair on Sept. 25, complaining, “Our city [New York] has been in much confusion owing the affairs of the French fleet,” and warning Prevost to “observe silence as safety depends upon it.” There is also significant content on British-American political relations, and on British Canada. A letter from Maunsell’s widow dated Aug. 9, 1796 is also included. An altogether fascinating historical archive, illuminating the British-American view of the early federal political situation in the United States, with commentary on wider world affairs. $14,000.

Two Important Washingtonians Correspond

61. McKenney, Thomas L.: [COLLECTION OF NINETEEN AUTO- GRAPH LETTERS, NOTES, AND ARTICLES FROM SUPER- INTENDENT OF INDIAN AFFAIRS THOMAS L. McKEN- NEY, MOST OF THEM ADDRESSED TO PUBLISHER PETER FORCE, ON A VARIETY OF SUBJECTS, INCLUDING INDIAN AFFAIRS AND POLITICS]. Washington. [A few of them dated, most undated, but apparently all written 1824-1826]. A total of some [35]pp. of manuscript, written mostly on folded folio sheets or quarto sheets, some letters or shorter notes on smaller sheets of paper. Most of the manuscripts are accompanied by a typed transcript. Most have old folds, a few have closed splits along folds. A bit of edge wear or tears where formerly sealed with wax. Overall, very good. In a half morocco clamshell case, cloth chemise.

A very interesting and informative collection of letters from Thomas L. McKen- ney, Superintendent of Indian Affairs, and most famous as the creator of the ac- claimed color plate book, History of the Indian Tribes of North America. Most of the documents in this collection are letters written by McKenney to Peter Force, the influential editor and publisher of the National Journal, and an important figure in the compilation and preservation of early American government documents. The manuscripts are either letters from McKenney to Force, or editorial commentaries submitted by McKenney for publication in Force’s newspaper. They offer a fine insight into McKenney’s active role in politics and government from his defense of government policy regarding Indians (especially the role of Secretary of War John Calhoun), to attacks on political candidates, and his explanation of the War Department’s conduct in the court-martial of Commodore David Porter. Most interestingly, they are fascinating evidence of McKenney’s sub rosa role in seeking to influence public perception of policy and politics through the use of anonymous newspaper editorials. Thomas Loraine McKenney (1785-1859) was born in Chestertown, Maryland. In 1809 he moved his family to Georgetown in the District of Columbia, where he operated a dry goods store. He briefly served in a local militia during the War of 1812, and in 1816, James Madison appointed him superintendent of Indian Trade. In that role, McKenney fostered commercial activity with the Indian tribes, attempting to furnish them with quality goods in exchange for their furs, thereby hoping to win their friendship and loyalty. He held that position until the office was abolished in 1822. He briefly was the editor of the Washington Republican and Congressional Examiner, and in 1824 was appointed by Secretary of War John Calhoun to be superintendent of the newly created Office of Indian Affairs, which McKenney ran until he was dismissed by Andrew Jackson in 1830. His most lasting legacies with regard to Indian policy are the administration of the so-called “factory system” of trade with the Indians, and his role in the policy of Indian removal westward which included the “Trail of Tears.” During his decade and a half as the leading government official on Indian Affairs, McKenney gathered a huge collection of books, documents, artifacts, and paintings, and became an expert on Indian ethnology. All his research culminated in the publication of the History of the Indian Tribes of North America, one of the most notable and handsome publications on the American Indian. Containing 120 portraits of Indian men and women, it is a basic source for the study of the Indians of the period. Included in this collection is an undated letter which, from its content, appears to be one of the earliest sent by McKenney to Force. The letter gives a good idea of McKenney’s purposes in submitting editorial comments to the National Journal, and of his confidence in the value of his own opinions. Further evidence of McKenney’s means of operation is found in a letter to Force dated July 23, 1824. McKenney orders a subscription to the National Journal for the Office of Indian Affairs, for which he will pay, and instructs Force to send him a separate subscription to his residence in Georgetown, “for which I do not wish to pay.” He explains that “my object is to use the private paper for purposes of commenting for it; and these I must make at home. The paper for the office, therefore, will not suit me, being out of my reach.” A manuscript note at the end of the letter records that McKenney’s subscriptions have been “ordered as requested.” One of the most interesting manuscripts in the collection is an editorial sent by McKenney to Peter Force for publication in the National Journal, giving his view of the settling of a recent treaty controversy with the Creek Indians of Georgia. A treaty had been ratified by the Senate in 1825, in which the Creeks seemed to agree to cede all their lands in Georgia, and to move themselves west of the Mis- sissippi River. Apparently the treaty had been negotiated by two Creek leaders who represented only a small portion of the tribe. Later in 1825 a Creek delegation, led by Chief Opothle Yoholo, came to Washington to meet with President Adams to protest the treaty terms, and to negotiate a new agreement. The administration initially tried to get the Indians to abide by the terms of the earlier treaty, but the Creeks protested adamantly, Opothle Yoholo going so far as to attempt suicide in his Washington hotel room. Eventually Adams instructed his negotiator to accept the Creeks’ proposed boundary line of the Chattahoochee River, and the matter was settled. McKenney takes special care to credit Secretary of War Calhoun for his role in resolving the affair. He adds at the end, in a private note to Force: “I have a very particular reason that it should not be known that I furnished this article, unless the Secy. of War, or President may want to know. I will tell you that reason when I see you. That it may be kept with yourself, therefore, copy it in your own hand for the printer & publish it tomorrow.”

McKenney also deeply involved himself in the Presidential election of 1824, mostly as an opponent of the election of Democratic-Republican candidate Wil- liam H. Crawford. An article in McKenney’s hand, also written for publication as an editorial in Force’s National Journal, reports on early election results that showed Crawford temporarily leading in the race. McKenney writes that those votes are all coming from “radical” precincts in North Carolina, and predicts that “the remaining counties will entirely change the result, and will give the people’s ticket a majority of many thousand.” Another unsigned editorial for the National Journal, written in McKenney’s hand and entitled “The Flag Lowered,” further comments on Crawford’s 1824 bid for the Presidency. McKenney criticizes the editors of the Intelligencer who so optimistically reported on Crawford’s chances, despite evidence to the contrary: “they are full of faith, or to give it a more correct description infatuation. Mr. Crawford’s chance is utterly hopeless.” He goes on to prognosticate on the presidential election: “It may for instance be asserted with confidence that Mr. Calhoun will be chosen Vice President almost without opposition; and that the only serious contest for the Presidency will be between Mr. Jackson and Mr. Adams. They and they only are emphatically the people’s candidates.” A final editorial by McKenney on the subject, titled “Great & Glorious Triumph,” rejoices over Crawford’s electoral defeat in New York state: “All the arts of the most daring and profligate faction that has ever appeared in this Country has not been able to give the votes of the state of N. York to the Radical Chief.” McKenney involved himself in more local politics as well, doing what he could to scuttle the candidacy of John Crompton Weems of Maryland for a seat in the House of Representatives. A note to Force, marked “strictly confidential,” describes McKenney’s efforts to defeat Weems’ candidacy, and an undated letter from McKenney to the Washington printers Gales & Seaton explains that he wants to punish Weems for attacks that Weems has made on McKenney and his conduct. McKenney writes that he wants to “read a lesson to him [Weems] at the ballot box, which such insolence (from no matter what party) deserved.” Ironically, McKenney adds: “I meddle not in politics.” Another undated letter sent to Force contains McKenney’s defense of the conduct of the Navy Department in the court-martial of Commodore David Porter, who was punished for his unsanctioned invasion of Fajardo, Puerto Rico in 1825. McKenney is most concerned with clarifying the controversy over the cost of the proceedings, taking pains to emphasize that the cost was not $20,000, as reported, but closer to $1,000. McKenney again concludes by asking Force to keep his name off the published article. A letter of May 1, 1826 to Force discusses a lawsuit for outstanding debt filed against McKenney by a Mr. Branson. McKenney writes: “The man who could order the body of his fellow man imprisoned, for debt, must be far gone in all the degradation of feeling which belonged to other and less liberal days. Any man who would now-a-days thus order, needs only to be known, to sink in the estimation of freemen and Christians.” A fascinating group of letters from a central figure in the early Indian policy of the United States, giving much insight into Thomas McKenney’s means of using newspapers to influence public opinion on a wide range of subjects. ANB 15, pp.110-11. $6500.

“...for the Mexican never was made to kill me.”

62. [Mexican-American War]: Cornock, John: [FOUR AUTOGRAPH LETTERS, SIGNED, FROM JOHN CORNOCK TO HIS SIS- TERS BACK HOME, WRITTEN DURING HIS TIME AS A SOLDIER IN THE MEXICAN-AMERICAN WAR]. Fort Hamilton, N.Y. & Mexico. 1847-1848. 9pp. total, plus integral address leaf in each of the four letters, addressed on verso. Quarto, on a folded folio sheet. Minor soiling. One letter with small tears and minor paper loss at edge due to wax seal. Very good to near fine.

Four detailed letters written by the young soldier John Cornock, who left home to enlist in the Mexican-American War, leaving without telling his family of his intentions. The first three letters are to his sister Mary in Albany. His first letter home to his sister relays some of his apprehension about his parents’ reaction to his disappearance. Cornock tried to enlist on two previous occasions, but was turned away as being too young. He was finally accepted in 1847 and went on to serve with Winfield Scott and fight in the Battle of Mexico City. After the war he took the overland trail West to California as a Forty-Niner. In his first letter, dated May 15, 1847, Cornock relates the details of his flight from home to the big city of New York, and thence into the army bound for Veracruz:

I am going to expose myself to all the dangers, fatigue and privations of war; I may never see you or any other of my few relations but I go with a willing heart; if death be my lot I am resigned if not the same, but I go and the best 1,000 dollars I ever seen will not buy me. I have just wrote to father explaining the reasons why I left in plain terms. I don’t know how they will like it but it is as it is. I suppose you would like to hear what happened [to] me.... On Sunday the 18th [of April] I started without any persons knowledge but myself; on Monday & Tuesday & Wednesday I took a sight at the great city of New York & on Thursday the 22d I got my likeness took which you have no doubt received before this; in the afternoon I listed in Capt. Duff ’s company of 3d draggoons and a finer company of men never took the field.

Cornock and his company then set out by steamer, but the ship collided with another ship and had to be towed back to Fort Hamilton for repairs. “...how long we stay here no man can tell but Veracruz is now our destination.” He notes that his sister should direct her letters to John C. White, the name he is using, and asks that she write to say if she received his likeness and how the folks at home are reacting to his departure. His subsequent letter, dated May 21, indicates that he received a reproachful letter from his sister in reply. He apologizes and assures her of his consistent love and devotion, but also states his need to be free and make his own choices: “I can judge yor [sic] feelings in loseing one you love so well and I hope you doubt not that love finds a responce in my bosom. My feelings were long wounded and I could not stand it and to do justice to myself I had to leave and a soldier’s life I love for I never was in better health or spirits....” He proceeds with the details of his daily routine at the Fort, rising to the bugle at four a.m., followed by muster and roll call, after which they are dismissed “and have from then until 9 o’clock to clean ourselves an [sic] get our breakfast which consists of one ration of bread and pork; we also have coffe [sic] well sweetened for breakfast and supper and soup for dinner.” Breakfast is followed by drilling, lunch, more drilling, and then the evening meal. Finally, “at 20 minutes past 9 the bugle sounds and we have to go to bed.” It seems his likeness did not arrive at home, and he encloses a lock of his hair with this letter, writing, “if you cannot come [to visit] do the same that I may have something to remember you by.” Nearly a year passes in between that letter and the next, possibly due to the difficulty of getting the mails through and not necessarily a gap in actual correspondence, as Cornock mentions Fort Hamilton again in this letter. He is now writing from the front in Mexico, and this – his longest – letter contains details of military actions, including the assault on Mexico City, where he is proud to have helped plant the U.S. flag “on the pallace [sic] of the Montezumas.” Likewise, he recounts the grisly details of a skirmish, after which the U.S. troops kill all the Mexican wounded, pillage the town, and set the place on fire. Cornock mentions rumors of a treaty between the United States and Mexico; in fact, the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was signed on Feb. 2, 1848, a month prior to this letter, though news had likely not yet reached troops in the Mexican countryside. His final letter is addressed to one Mrs. (Ann) Henery Knight in Albany and is dated April 7, 1848. From the tone and content of the letter, Ann is perhaps a married sister or a close friend, and this is the first letter Cornock has written to her since leaving home. He again explains his reason and need to leave Albany and the confines of home, and relates how proud he is to be part of the army fighting in the Mexican-American War. A wonderful group of letters, illuminating the path followed by one young soldier through the Mexican-American War. $4000.

The Montezuma Estates in Mexico

63. [Mexico]: COPIA DE UNAS INFORMACIONES, FEES DE BAP- TISMO, Y CASAMIENTOS, Y OTROS INSTRUMENTOS QUE SE PRESENTARON POR DOÑA MARIA DE VIVERO MON- TEZUMA Y DON NICOLAS DE VIVERO Y PEREDO EN EL PLEITO DE TENUTA SOBRE EL ESTADO DE FUENSALDAÑA Y SAN JUAN SACADA EN VIRTUD DE REAL PROVISION SU- PLICATORIA DE LOS SEÑORES PRESIDENTE Y OYDORES DE LA SEÑOR CONDE DE LA ENJARADA PARA TEXTIMAR SU PERSONA...[manuscript title]. [Valladolid. May 14, 1727]. 339 leaves of manuscript. Ornate titlepage. Folio. Contemporary plain wrappers. Minor edge wear and curling at corners. Internally clean. Near fine, untrimmed. In a half morocco and cloth box.

An exhaustive transcript of baptismal and marriage records presented by Doña Maria de Vivero in support of her claim to the Montezuma estates of Fuensaldaña and San Juan. The many lawsuits perpetuated by the several heirs persisted over hundreds of years and lasted into the 19th century. The documents present here include an overwhelming amount of genealogical evidence, presumably gathered to prove the legitimacy of Vivero’s claim on the estates, as well as other data relevant to the famous lawsuits. The persistence of Vivero and the other heirs is a testament to the value of the land in contest. Such disputes were not limited to the Montezuma estates. In the early years after Cortés’ conquest, nascent Mexican agriculture developed on an ad hoc basis. Land grants were common, but the most frequent method of expanding one’s property was to simply seize adjacent acreage. Naturally, this behavior gave rise to numerous lawsuits, and the problem never reached a satisfactory decision until large haciendas emerged and consolidated available resources and power. A fine resource for Mexican legal history, reaching back to the earliest Spanish colonization. MAGGS BIBLIOTHECA AMERICANA 2049a, 5313 (this manuscript). Cambridge History of Latin America, pp.153-88. $7500.

An American on the Grand Tour

64. Minturn, Robert B.: DIARY OF ROBERT B. MINTURN, DEC. 29, 1848 [manuscript cover title]. [Various locations in Italy]. 1848-1849. 96pp. Approximately 9,500 words. Original drab boards with marbled spine. Lightly worn. Covers decorated in manuscript drawings. Internally clean. Very good.

Diary of Robert Bowne Minturn, Jr., kept while his family was abroad on a tour of Europe; this volume deals primarily with Italy, and recounts some of the events of the Italian Revolution there. Robert Bowne Minturn, Jr. (1836-89) was the son of the American shipping magnate of the same name, and would go on to join his father’s business later in life. As many others on a Grand Tour, Minturn records his visits to various important historical sites in Rome, including museums, palaces, St. Peters, the opera, and the site where Caesar was killed, among others. About halfway through his diary, in February, the young Minturn begins to record the political events happening around him and his family. On Feb. 9 he records: “The National Assembly sat from XI o’clock yesterday until II o’clock this morning & then proclaimed these four articles: I – The temporal power of the pope is abolished. II – The pope is acknowledged head of the church. III – The government of Rome is democratic under the name of the Roman Republic. IV – The Roman Republic recognizes Italian nationality.” He continues: “The republic has been proclaimed from the Capitol today & the green-white & red flag & liberty cap hoisted in the piazza del Popolo.” The move toward Italian unification and nationality came to a head in 1848, as did other revolutions in Europe. The many Italian states tried to throw off Austrian control and establish themselves as an independent country. Pope Pius IX was forced to flee Rome in November of that year in the midst of a violent uprising, when he refused to lead the war against Austria. French forces came to the aid of the Pope, reestablishing his authority several months later. On April 26, Minturn writes:

In morning went to the national assembly from which however we were soon cleared out as the assembly dissolved itself into a secret committee on Mazzini announcing the ultimatum of the French general, viz. 1. Either to receive the Pope back. 2. Or to have a general vote to know whether the people choose the pope or the Republic. 3. War directly. Which of these things they decide upon, we shall know this afternoon.

His next entry speaks of being barricaded into Rome with troops advancing on that city. The next several pages mention troop movements and an anticipated attack upon the city. In mid-May they finally leave Rome, though he continues to mention French troops and ships, even visiting their encampment outside the city. An interesting and unusual travel narrative, recounting important events in Italian history from the perspective of a young American observer. $2750.

Monroe Weighs His Chances of being Elected in 1816

65. Monroe, James: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED, FROM JAMES MONROE TO CHARLES EVERETT, REGARDING THE LIKELIHOOD OF HIS ELECTION TO THE PRESIDENCY]. Washington. Dec. 16, 1815. 3pp. Quarto, on a folded folio sheet. Expertly silked; minor loss to head and foot of each leaf, repaired. Very good. In a folio-sized green half morocco and cloth clamshell case, spine gilt.

A detailed letter written by James Monroe to his neighbor, friend, and family physician, Charles Everett, discussing his candidacy for the presidency and opining that Virginia should stay out of any debate on the subject. Monroe was loathe to be seen as the “Virginia” candidate, as many people felt that the state had heretofore had too much influence on the national government, a view supported by the fact that every president thus far, save John Adams, was from Virginia (the so-called “Virginia Dynasty”). New York, now the most populous of the states, felt it was their turn to have a candidate in the president’s office, and Monroe feared that two of his fiercest critics, Senator William Branch Giles and Representative Wilson Cary Nicholas (both Virginians), might conspire with the New York delegation to form an anti-Monroe coalition. His greatest rival for the nomination, however, was William H. Crawford, senator from Georgia. Ultimately, Crawford stepped back from the nomination, clearing the way for Monroe, and served as Monroe’s Secretary of the Treasury. Another possible rival was Daniel D. Tompkins, governor of New York and Monroe’s eventual vice president. Monroe refers to Tompkins in the letter, saying some very unflattering things about his character; at the same time, it becomes clear that having the New Yorker on the ticket was a way of placating northern interests even if Monroe personally detested him. At the time of his election, Monroe was serving as Secretary of State in Presi- dent Madison’s administration, and he felt that his public service ought to speak for itself. He writes: “My public life ought to speak for itself, and for the last five or 6 years, if the war thru which the country has passed, and the burdens I have borne, are not sufficient proofs, in connection with all that preceded, of my claim to public confidence, nothing will be.” Monroe expresses his doubts about the quality of character of the members of the New York coalition, but indicates that their un- derhandedness may lend an advantage toward securing the presidential nomination.

After the election of the present Executive Incumbent [Tompkins], there was no remedy but in public opinion, and that was sure to be more effectual, in the case that my nearest friends manifested no sensibility to it. An attack on him by them, would give consequence to which neither his talents or any other circumstance in his favor, merited. His re-election according to the mass of the state, followed of course, if by some overt act, he did not bring public in- dignation on him, which his silent, underhand, night-moving practice render’d improbable. The stand gave to him & his associates immense advantages in the procuring of their object, and it has, doubtless, been turned to all the account of which it was susceptible. The trip of [William Branch] Giles to the East, and of others in other states to different parts of the nation, were harmonious cooperatory movements to the same end. All that they have been able to do is done, but yet in a manner not to be seen. I have no doubt that promises have been made that Virga. would not only take no part in my favor, but abstain from participation in the coming vote heretofore practic’d....My own opinion always has been that, after the advantage they had gained, there was no remedy but in public opinion, or in other words, that no attack ought to be made on [Wilson Cary] Nicholas, with a view to prevent his re-election. I think that his disposition would have done injury in other states, not by any might he has there, or any where, but as appearing to be an act of persecution, on acct. of his hostility to me. Mr. [Henry] Tazewell [Senator from Virginia and friend of Monroe] was in New York this summer, and held a congress, which comprised some of my friends there. He said that he was personally friendly to me, had always been, &cc....I have always confided in him, and shd. be very sorry to suspect that his projected trip was to promote unfriendly purposes to me. Yet it may be. The danger is of making enemies, of friends, or affording, under public patronage, opportunities to enemies to do harm. I give you the above hint, in profound confidence, to be mention’d to no one. My private opinion is that the proposed arrangement is so contemplated by the Richmond parties for the purpose of intrigue, yet that Tazewell wd. not answer their views, that heretofore dissatisfied in some things.

Monroe closes with a restatement of his opinion that he should be elected by his obvious public merits or not at all:

Dr. Bible of Georgia assur’d me that Georgia has long since made up her mind in my favor; that Mr. [William H.] Crawford knows & approves it; the same is stated of Kentucky & Tennessee, in relation to persons of merit in each. I take no part, nor will I, as is well known, being resolv’d, if the nation does elect me, that the election shall be due to it, without the slightest movement of my own. Others here can give you better intelligence than I can, of the general sentiment. My opinion is that Virga. ought to take no prominent part in the business. Mr. Nelson inform’d me lately that some persons at Richmond thought of holding a caucus there to lead public opinion in my favor. This surely can not be thought of by my friends. If the idea has occur’d, I suspect it originated with my enemies, in the hope, be the result what it might, of injuring me. If for example the whole assembly met, & declared in my favor, it would give offence to & alienate other states. If a small vote was given, much noise took place, & confusion, it would operate against me by showing that my support in Virga. was futile. Virga. had therefore better do nothing of the kind, but act after others, & according to her judgment and interest.

An interesting and insightful letter into the intricacies of Monroe’s campaign for and election to the presidency. Daniel Preston, A Comprehensive Catalogue of the Correspondence and Papers of James Monroe (Westport, Ct.: Greenwood Press, 2001). $12,500.

The Famous Lola Montez

66. Montez, Lola: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED, FROM LOLA MONTEZ TO MR. DUBOIS]. 26 Park Lane, London. June 15, 1859. 4pp. on a single folded sheet. 12mo. Fine. In a half leather portfolio.

A fine letter from legendary Irish-born dancer Lola Montez (1821-61), whose life as a courtesan, as lover of Franz Liszt, as mistress of Ludwig I of Bavaria, and whose charms, inspired the saying, “Whatever Lola Wants, Lola Gets.” Written toward the end of her life after her move to the United States. Here she writes to an old friend:

I am very much pleased my dear Mr. Dubois on receiving a letter from you but I thank you for having written to me and for thinking of me at such a long distance – I am glad to hear that Charles Eigenschank is doing well. He deserves to get on for he is a good musician in every respect. Also that Sigmond is also doing well....Everything as regards Theatricals and Musicals is looking Dark and Gloomy enough here at the present. Many of the Theatres are closed. I saw Bartlett the other day from Sealong. He attended me in my lectures and I was very glad to see the poor fellow – The best place after all is where the Star Spangled Banner waves over the breeze. America is the country of good, better, best [underscored] – the Austrians are getting a capital whipping and that is worth one hundred thousand pounds to me to know of it....

Lola Montez died two years after writing this, in New York City, where she is buried in Greenwood Cemetery, Brooklyn. Charles Eigenschank was of the Royal Conservatory in Paris, and Montez’s orchestra leader and violinist who apparently met Montez in San Francisco and went on tour with her. He also went to Australia with her, where she performed her famous “Spider Dance,” but they separated before the end of her tour. $2500.

Indian Removal

67. [Ohio Lewistown Indians]: [MANUSCRIPT MUSTER ROLL OF THE “MIXED BAND OF SENECA & SHAWNEE INDIANS OF LEWISTOWN, OHIO,” SIGNED BY JAMES McPHERSON]. Lewistown, Ohio. Aug. 13, 1832. [3]pp. manuscript text. Oblong folio sheet, folded. Some minor staining, slight gnawing at top and bottom of center fold, else quite good. In a half morocco box.

The Lewistown Indians ceded their lands and agreed on removal west of the Missis- sippi in the treaty of 1831. This agreement gave some of their lands to McPherson, “in consideration of the sincere attachment of the said chiefs and their people for [him], who has lived among them...for forty years.” McPherson signs the present manuscript document, certifying “that the within Roll of Shawnees and Senecas of Lewis Town is entitled to rations.” The document lists thirty-six names of heads of Indian families, with numbers of males and females in each family noted as well. $4000.

Oil in Pennsylvania

68. [Oil Industry]: [LARGE ARCHIVE OF MATERIALS RELATING TO THE PENNSYLVANIA OIL INDUSTRY]. [Various places, but including Philadelphia. 1864-1879]. Scores of letters, printed forms, account sheets, legal forms, and other documents, plus one folding partially colored lithographed map. Letters, map, and other documents with light fold lines. Map backed on linen. Uniformly clean. Very good.

An impressive assemblage of materials relating to Pennsylvania’s oil industry. Most of the documents relate to three oilmen and their affairs, Paul A. Davis, George Crawford, and Alexander Garrett; and two specific firms: the Schuylkill & Oil Creek Oil Company, and the Philadelphia Oil and Cement House. The documents include numerous letters between the three men and their associates, legal forms relating to various trespass suits and bad debts, and account sheets noting sales of stock. Of particular interest is a letter from the board of directors of the Schuylkill & Oil Creek Oil Company to Garrett informing him that his resignation as treasurer has not been accepted because of several discrepancies left in his account books. The map, “Plan of the Bennehoff Petroleum Company’s Property. April-1865,” predates drilling on that location by one year. The future rig location is shown in the lower right corner. Many of the remaining documents are comprised of receipts and brief notes, many with decorative letterheads. These documents largely stem from the early, boom period of the Pennsylvania oil industry. A well of useful information. Such original source material is extremely rare. $2500. Thomas Paine as Clerk of the Pennsylvania Assembly

69. Paine, Thomas: [MANUSCRIPT DOCUMENT, SIGNED BY THOMAS PAINE AS CLERK OF THE PENNSYLVANIA GEN- ERAL ASSEMBLY, TRANSMITTING A RESOLUTION RE- GARDING THE BOUNDARY BETWEEN PENNSYLVANIA AND VIRGINIA]. [Philadelphia. Nov. 19, 1779]. [1]p. on a bifolium sheet, the following two pages blank, the document addressed and docketed on the fourth page. Old fold lines. Near fine.

An official communication, signed by Thomas Paine, author of Common Sense, transmitting a resolution of the Pennsylvania General Assembly. Paine was involved in Pennsylvania politics for several years after his arrival in America in 1774. He was associated with the men who drafted the state’s new constitution in 1776, and he wrote a series of letters in local newspapers supporting the constitution. In 1777, Paine was elected to the Committee of Correspondence of the Whig Society in Pennsylvania. He was appointed clerk of the Pennsylvania Assembly in Novem- ber 1779, shortly after resigning his position as secretary of foreign affairs for the Continental Congress. He needed other employment in order to supplement his income as a writer. In this document Paine, as clerk of the Pennsylvania Assembly, transmits a resolution to the state’s Supreme Executive Council, in care of Governor Joseph Reed. The resolution (not present here) addressed the question of the state’s boundary with Virginia and the extension of the Mason-Dixon line. $25,000.

70. Paine, Thomas: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED WITH INI- TIALS, FROM THOMAS PAINE TO BENJAMIN MOSLEY, RE- GARDING THE SITUATION IN FRANCE SHORTLY AFTER THE PROCLAMATION OF THE FIRST REPUBLIC]. Paris. Oct. 1, [1792]. 1 Year of the Republic. [2]pp. letter on a folded folio sheet. Third page blank; fourth page carrying address and original wax seal. Old folds, a few fox marks. Tear in foredge of second leaf where wax seal was affixed, not affecting any text. Very good.

An interesting and exciting letter from Thomas Paine in revolutionary France, written just weeks after the abolition of the monarchy and the proclamation of the First French Republic. Two years after the onset of the French Revolution a constitutional monarchy was established, lasting from the fall of 1791 to the fall of 1792. Paine had been shuttling between London (where he was accused of seditious libel for his pamphleteering) and Paris for much of the late 1780s and early 1790s. In late August 1792, Paine was granted French citizenship (as were Washington, Hamilton, and Madison), and on September 6 he was elected to the French National Convention. He took his seat as a member from Pas-de-Calais, and prepared to join his fellow deputies in writing a new French constitution. In this letter he writes his friend, Benjamin Mosley, in London, apprising him of events as he finds them in Paris, the work of the convention, and the threat to the French revolutionary movement from foreign intervention. He writes:

You have before this time heard that the National Convention met punctual to the day appointed. The members verified their powers on the 20th and met in convention the 21st ult. The first business done was to abolish the bagatelle of Royalty which was decreed unanimously. This day the convention will appoint a Committee of Constitution to consist of nine members, who are to bring in a plan of the new constitution. Affairs are turning round fast.

Paine next describes the military situation, as the young French government found itself under attack from Austria and Prussia to the east: “The Prussian army with Frederic and Brunswick at its head are about fourteen miles from Verdun, on the road towards Chilons. They are now very nearly in the condition that Burgoyne was in, in America. The King of Prussia has proposed to negotiate. It is I believe over with him as to any further operations.” Paine closes the letter by instructing Mosley to “show this to our friend Fitzger- ald.” He refers here to Lord Edward Fitzgerald, an Irishman with whom Paine would meet later in October 1792, to make plans for fomenting republican revolution in Ireland. This letter brilliantly illustrates Paine’s ongoing involvement in revolutionary movements long after he authored Common Sense, as he takes his place in the French revolutionary government and works toward fomenting independence for Ireland. Paine allied himself with the Girondin faction in the National Convention, but fell out of favor in French politics during the Terror, when several Girondin leaders were executed. Paine himself was imprisoned in France from late 1793 to late 1794. Any manuscripts from Thomas Paine are rare on the market. A letter such as this, written in the midst of the French Revolution and describing Paine’s involvement in the infancy of the First French Republic, is a Paine manuscript of great importance. This document was formerly in the possession of the Thomas Paine National Historical Association, deaccessioned in 2005. PHILIP FONER, THE COMPLETE WRITINGS OF THOMAS PAINE, II, p.1326. $30,000.

A Pioneering Western Joint Venture Between Founders: Hamilton, Knox, and Paterson Look for Copper

71. Paterson, William: Knox, Henry: [Hamilton, Alexander]: [MANU- SCRIPT MEMORANDUM CONCERNING COPPER MINING AND EXPLORATION IN CARVER LAND GRANT IN THE GREAT LAKES REGION, SIGNED BY WILLIAM PATERSON, HENRY KNOX, AND FOUR OTHERS, AND INVOLVING ALEX- ANDER HAMILTON]. [Np]. March 13, 1795. [1]p. plus integral docketing leaf. Small quarto, on a folded folio sheet. Old folds. Minor soiling. Narrow strip of later paper attached to left edge. Very good. In a brown half morocco and cloth clamshell case, spine gilt.

A significant memorandum signed by several important Revolutionary-era figures, including William Paterson and Henry Knox, concerning a joint venture to investigate copper mines in the Great Lakes region on the so-called Carver Grant. Many public figures in the founding days of the United States dabbled in land speculation and other similar ventures. This group of eminent Americans was apparently involved with the Carver Grant, a land grant totaling hundreds of square miles located in western Wisconsin and in Minnesota (including the present-day location of Saint Paul), which was supposedly given to explorer Jonathan Carver by two local Sioux chiefs in 1767. For several decades after Carver’s death his heirs and various others tried to capitalize on the grant by petitioning the United States Congress to recognize its validity, and by selling and reselling lands in the region. Jonathan Carver (1710-80) was born in Weymouth, Massachusetts, raised in Connecticut, and spent most of his adult years in western Massachusetts. He distinguished himself through his service in the French and Indian War, and in 1766-67 undertook to explore Great Britain’s newly-won lands around the Up- per Mississippi River, partly with a mind to seeking a route to the Pacific Ocean. Carver spent the 1770s in London, petitioning the Crown for compensation for his explorations and seeking to publish the journal of his travels. Carver’s Travels Through the Interior Parts of North America was published in London in 1778 and was immediately popular, appearing in several editions. Despite this, Carver died penniless in London in 1780. In 1781 a “third edition” of Carver’s Travels appeared, issued by Dr. John Lettsom, a benefactor of Carver’s British widow. In that edition, as part of biographical material on Jonathan Carver, the text of a deed dated May 1, 1767 was published for the first time, in which Carver was apparently given hundreds of miles of land in Minnesota and western Wisconsin. Over the next several decades Carver’s heirs in the United States and England, as well as dozens of others who bought and tried to sell land in the grant area, worked to prove the validity of the grant and to profit from the sales. Congress was petitioned to validate the grant, the heirs of the Sioux chiefs were appealed to, and various schemes were developed by Samuel Harrison of Vermont, the Rev. Samuel Peters, and others, to sell and resell the land. The decades-long tale of the Carver Grant is best told by Milo Quaife and John Parker in the references cited below. The present document reads:

Memorandum that we whose names are hereunto subscribed do covenant, promise and agree with each other to use our separate and joint interest in obtaining a right of preemption for the lands mentioned in a book known by the title of Carver’s Travels and where he mentions having seen vast quantities of virgin copper and we further covenant with each other that we will become equally concerned in the above undertaking both in profit and loss. Witness our hands this thirteenth day of March and year seventeen hundred and ninety five. [signed] Benj. Henfrey / Wm. Paterson / H. Knox / W. Macpherson / Anthy. W. White / James chambers. The docketing on the second leaf contains a list of “parties to the within articles respecting the exploring the country on Lake Superior, &c,” and the list includes Knox, Paterson, Alexander Hamilton, New Jersey Governor Richard Howell, and six others, plus “if approved by him, His Excellency the Honble. Major General [Anthony] Wayne.” Hamilton at this point had been a private citizen for six weeks, having retired as Secretary of the Treasury on Jan. 31, 1795. The document is signed by William Paterson, a signer of the Constitution, U.S. Senator, governor of New Jersey (1790-93), and Associate Justice of the Supreme Court from 1793 until his death in 1806; Henry Knox, Washington’s first secretary of war (1789-94); William Bingham, a Pennsylvania Congressman; Benjamin Henfrey, an Englishman who had emigrated to Pennsylvania and patented a method of making gas light, using his “thermo-lamp,” which he showcased in Baltimore, Richmond, and Philadelphia; and William Macpherson and Anthony W. White, who both served in the United States Army and were involved in quelling the Whiskey Rebellion in 1794. A remarkable document illustrating a pioneering western joint venture, and Alexander Hamilton’s return to private investing. This document sold for $7170 at Heritage Auctions on Oct. 24, 2007. Milo M. Quaife, “Jonathan Carver and the Carver Grant” in The Mississippi Valley Historical Review ( June 1920), pp.3-25. John Parker (editor), The Journals of Jonathan Carver and Related Documents, 1766- 1770 (Minnesota Historical Society Press, 1976), pp.1-56, especially pp.47-51. $8000.

72. Pendleton, Edmund: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED, FROM EDMUND PENDLETON TO HIS AGENT, COL. WILLIAM PRESTON, REGARDING A SALE OF PENDLETON’S LANDS]. Caroline, Va. Nov. 16, 1778. [2]pp. plus integral address leaf. Quarto, on a folded folio sheet. Silked. Small paper loss from wax seal (repaired), affecting several words of text. Significant paper loss to top quarter of address leaf, as well as seal area; repaired and not affecting text. In his highly legible hand. Very good. In a folio-sized tan half morocco and cloth clamshell case, spine gilt.

Virginia lawyer and Revolutionary patriot Edmund Pendleton writes to his agent, William Preston, regarding several land transactions Preston is carrying out on his behalf. Edmund Pendleton served as a representative to the First Continental Congress, was president of both of Virginia’s revolutionary conventions in 1775, and was also president of the powerful Committee of Safety for the state. Only an injury sustained in a fall from a horse (to which he refers in this letter) kept him from being in the Second Congress and a signer of the Declaration. He was elected president of the Virginia convention again in 1776, and under his direction, Virginia’s delegates to the Continental Congress put forth a motion for independence from Britain. Following Independence, he helped revise Virginia’s own Constitution, and worked tirelessly on behalf of the judicial system, serving as a chief justice in Virginia’s courts. Finally, he presided as president of Virginia’s Ratifying Convention for the Constitution in 1788. William Preston was a political and military leader on the Virginia frontier. During the Revolution he organized Virginia’s frontier defenses, and personally organized and led a group of militiamen who fought at the Battle of Guilford Courthouse in North Carolina. In this letter Pendleton writes Preston about several sales of land, detailing a number of accounts. The one of most concern to him, however, involves settlers who have not paid for the land and are now demanding to buy it at a very low price. Though he is loathe to part with the land so cheaply, if Preston has entered into such an agreement on his behalf, he is willing to honor it. He writes:

Since I wrote you a few days agoe I have reached home & have made up a list of the several payments made on account of Col. Patton’s estate, which I now inclose to you. The debets I judged you did not want, as I furnished you in 1774 a copy of the whole account wch. the last 4 payments have discharged, nothing being added to the debet. I am sorry it did not suit you to be at Williamsburg, as I might have had the pleasure of seeing you once more....I would gladly visit my Washington lands & take you in the way but tho’ I have sufficient health for such a journey, yet it would be too much for a man to undertake who can’t walk a step without the assistance of crutches. Permit me to trouble you with a word or two on the subject of those lands. Of the several purchasers Mr. Logan only has paid off; Mr. Robert Craig paid in June 1775 £99, & Mr. Wm. Cocke in April 1776 £60; as I did not receive these sums myself I know not if it came through your hands & therefore note it for yr. direction to be indorsed on the bonds. I fear I am to have some trouble with the settlers on the reedy creek land, who because I will not take £30 a hundred for [text loss] (tho’ not more than 1/5th of the value money was at when I offered it at the [text loss] £60) seem disposed to dispute the title with me, and I am uncertain [whether?] they have not had it assessed as theirs, tho’ Mr. Bledsoe inform’d the assessors it was mine & that he was ready to pay the tax. If they have done so, unless they agree before witnesses to give me possession next fall, I will send out ejectments against them from the General Court, as I shall think they make an ungrateful return for my offer last winter to pay them for their improvements, where the use of the land had not been equal to their value. You informed me they had all agreed to become my tenants, I don’t recollect whether you mentioned their having signed a writing to that purpose and will thank you to inform me by the first opportunity & mentioned their names....

An interesting letter between Virginia patriots, illustrating both the disruptions of the war years, the problems of inflated currency, and the issues of squatters on Vir- ginia lands in this period. Pendleton letters are extremely rare in the marketplace; only two autograph letters signed appear in ABPC for the last thirty-five years. $3750.

A Critical Document in Colonial Unity on the Eve of the Declaration of Independence

73. [Pennsylvania-Virginia Boundary Dispute]: Lee, Richard Henry: [MANUSCRIPT DOCUMENT IN THE HAND OF RICHARD HENRY LEE, SIGNED BY HIM AND BY HIM ON BEHALF OF FRANCIS LIGHTFOOT LEE AND THOMAS NELSON, JR., RE- LATING TO EFFORTS TO RESOLVE THE CONFLICT OVER THE PENNSYLVANIA-VIRGINIA BOUNDARY]. [Philadelphia. June 1776]. [1]p. manuscript on a folio sheet. Sheet inlaid. Several tape repairs on verso, mostly to repair closed tears along folds. A few small chips in the right margin, touching a letter of text. Faint dampstains. Good. In a half morocco and cloth folding case, spine gilt.

A highly important manuscript document relating to the long-standing dispute regarding the Pennsylvania-Virginia boundary. This document, undated but written in June 1776, shows the divisiveness that existed between two of the most important American colonies on the eve of the Declaration of Independence, and the efforts being made to resolve it by some of the leading supporters of independence. By the summer of 1776 the Pennsylvania-Virginia boundary had been in dispute for nearly a century. In fact, the issue was not definitively settled until the Civil War and the creation of the state of West Virginia. The issue originated in the ambiguous terms of the 1681 grant to William Penn, which conflicted with Vir- ginia’s claim to lands “from sea to sea, west and northwest,” over any territory not covered by royal grants. Prior to the French and Indian War of the 1750s, Virginia claimed most of what is now southwestern Pennsylvania, and attempted to settle it. The surveying of the Mason-Dixon line the following decade did little to alleviate the dispute, as it indicated that Pennsylvania extended some distance west of the Allegheny Mountains. In 1773, Pennsylvania established Westmoreland County in the disputed territory, and the following year Virginia took possession of Fort Pitt and the Westmoreland County seat, arresting the justices who refused to recognize the jurisdiction of Virginia. The dispute almost boiled into open warfare in 1774-75, as the last colonial governor, Lord Dunmore, sought to bring the Virginia frontier under control. In 1776, Pennsylvania proposed that a temporary boundary, “as nearly correspondent to the true one as possible such as will ‘do no injury to either party,’” should be established. The present document is the response of three of the Virginia delegates to the Continental Congress, who received the proposal. The document is in the hand of Richard Henry Lee, who has signed it himself, and has also added the signatures of two of his fellow Virginia delegates, Thomas Nelson, Jr., and his brother, Francis Lightfoot Lee. The text reads:

The Virginia Delegates have received the proposal for establishing a temporary boundary between the States of Virginia and Pennsylvania and for answer, say, their power is ended; having been expressly limited to the line already proposed to the honorable Convention of the State of Pennsylvania as a temporary boundary. That they will without delay transmit the proposal of the honorable Committee to the Governor and Council of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in order to its being laid before the General Assembly that meets early in October next; and in the mean time they wish that the influence of both governments may be exerted to preserve friendship and peace between the people of both States on the controverted Boundary.

At the time this proposal was considered, Richard Henry Lee, Francis Lightfoot Lee, and Thomas Nelson, Jr. were all representing Virginia in the Second Conti- nental Congress, and all three men would affix their signatures to the Declaration of Independence the following month. Richard Henry Lee, in fact, formally put forth the motion on June 7, calling on the Congress to declare independence. A highly important step on the road to independence, suspending a dramatic conflict between two of the leading colonies about to become the United States. $25,000.

Two Letters of the Utmost Importance to the Early Discovery and Explorations of the Gulf of California: The King of Spain Writes to the Viceroy of New Spain and Admiral Don Pedro Porter Casanate

74. Philip IV of Spain: [MANUSCRIPT LETTER, SIGNED WITH THE ROYAL SIGN MANUAL, TO THE VICEROY OF NEW SPAIN, CONCERNING ADMIRAL PORTER CASANATE’S EX- PEDITIONS TO THE GULF OF CALIFORNIA]. Madrid. Aug. 6, 1650. [2]pp. Folio. In a green levant morocco case. [with:] Philip IV of Spain: [MANUSCRIPT LETTER, SIGNED WITH THE ROYAL SIGN MANUAL, TO ADMIRAL DON PEDRO PORTER CASA- NATE, IN REPLY TO THE LATTER’S LETTER CONCERNING THE DISCOVERY OF THE GULF OF CALIFORNIA]. Madrid. Aug. 6, 1659. 2pp. Folio. In a green levant morocco case.

Don Pedro Porter Casanate was the dominant figure in the exploration of the Gulf of California from 1635 to 1653. Born in Spain in 1604, he joined the Spanish navy early in life, serving with distinction against pirates in the Atlantic and Carib- bean. In 1634 he published the fruits of his observations on navigation as Reparo a Errores de la Navegacion Espanola.... Shortly thereafter he shifted his operations to the Gulf of California, where he led an expedition in 1635 under orders of the Viceroy. Evidently intrigued by this voyage, Casanate petitioned the Crown for permission to explore further, and in 1640 he was granted a license to “explore the Gulf of California without limit to leagues or time.” Porter pushed his explorations forward, but was handicapped by a lack of funds, since the Crown would grant him no money nor appoint him to the various patronage positions he requested, which might have supplied funds in a more round-about way. Nonetheless, he managed in 1648-50 to explore the upper reaches of the Gulf of California, especially the Baja side. It is at that point that these two manuscripts were written. The first is a letter from the King of Spain, Philip IV, to the Viceroy of New Spain concerning Casanate and his proposed expedition. The King summarizes his previous arrangements with the explorer, instructs the Viceroy to obtain detailed reports, to ascertain the cost and means of the expedition, and if Casanate discovers anything valuable, such as a pearl fishery, to come to his assistance. On the same day, Philip IV writes to Casanate (the second letter), denying him the judgeship of Sinaloa, but at the same time encouraging him in his explorations and demanding a full report once they are concluded. In short, while the Crown and the Council of the Indies were willing to do very little to aid the explorer, they were quite willing to benefit from his excursions. Certainly two of the earliest and most important documents pertaining to the Gulf of California and the discovery of Baja. Portillo y Diez de Sollano, Descubrimientos y Exploraciones en la Costas de California (Madrid, 1947), pp.243-90. Ricardo del Arco, “El Almirante Pedro Porter y Casanate. Explorador del Golfo de California” in Revista de Indias, Vol. 8 (1947), pp.783-844. $35,000. A Hard-Line New England Federalist Attacks the Republicans

75. Pickering, Timothy: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED, FROM TIMOTHY PICKERING TO JAMES McHENRY, DISCUSSING HIS VIEWS ON U.S.-BRITISH RELATIONS, AND HIS CRIT- ICISMS OF THE POLICIES OF THOMAS JEFFERSON AND JAMES MADISON]. Washington. March 17, 1810. [4]pp. on a folded folio sheet. Old folds. Tears along the center vertical fold and the horizontal folds, with some loss of paper and affecting a few letters of text. Overall good. In a half morocco and cloth folding box, spine gilt.

A very interesting letter from Timothy Pickering to James McHenry – from one old-line Federalist to another, and from the second American Secretary of War to his successor. The letter is emblematic of the fractured politics of the period leading up to the War of 1812, and of the crumbling relations between the United States and Great Britain. Pinckney’s political views hardened in the 1790s, as the split between “Federalists” and “Republicans” (later “Jeffersonians” or “Democratic- Republicans”) developed and grew. By 1810 he was the leading explicator of the Federalist position, an unabashed defender of England and its actions in naval conflicts with the United States, and a bitter opponent of Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and their policies. In this letter to a political confidante, Pickering lets loose his anger toward his political enemies, and defends the actions of the British Minister to the United States, Francis James Jackson. Jackson (1770-1814) was a veteran of the British foreign service, and had come to the U.S. as Minister Pleni- potentiary in 1809. In 1810, as U.S.-British relations worsened, Madison broke off communications with Jackson, who returned to London. Pickering writes McHenry (in part):

The supposition you put, to account for the reported declamation of Lord Wellesley [Richard Wellesley, the British Foreign Secretary] to Mr. Pinckney of his disapprobation of Jackson’s conduct, is natural, and (if he made any declaration of the kind) undoubtedly just. But for my own part, I needed no solution whatever except this – that Lord Wellesley is not a fool. I would not say so much of some other statesmen. It is not difficult to discover that some men are defective in understanding; and that others, tho’ celebrated for learning and extensive diplomatic research, may yet want common sense and political integrity. In his message at the opening of the present session of Congress, Mr. Madison plainly insinuates – and insinuates for the purpose of popular deception – that “a minister plenipotentiary” without any special authority could enter into an “agreement” that is, make a treaty, which should bind his government. This he would be ashamed to avow in explicit terms; it would make him a subject of ridicule among all men of information. But for temporary purposes – or rather in expectation that a people whom Jeffer- son had found it easy to deceive for eight years, might continue the dupes of similar artifices in his successor – he was willing to hazard not only the above insinuation but the contempt which could not fail of being felt toward him by all the respectable portion of the community at home, and of the English & other foreign nations, as far as the correspondence subscribed by his Secretary, with Mr. Jackson, should extend....

Timothy Pickering (1745-1829) was born in Salem, Massachusetts and attended Harvard. As a young man he harbored Loyalist sympathies, but eventually he joined the Whigs. Never a full-fledged Revolutionary, he nevertheless accepted an appointment in the Essex County militia and slowly rose in the ranks of the Continental Army, as an adjutant general, member of the Board of War, and finally as quartermaster general of the army (1780-85). That last position was a bitter one, as a lack of funds meant that the army was poorly fed and supplied. Settling in Pennsylvania after the war, he was a delegate to the state convention that ratified the U.S. Constitution. George Washington named him a special representative to the Seneca Indians, and postmaster general in 1791. In 1794 he became the second Secretary of War, succeeding Henry Knox. Pickering was followed in that position by James McHenry, the recipient of this letter. By this time Pickering was a bitter and uncompromising Federalist. In 1795 he was made Secretary of State, a position he held through most of John Adams’ administration, despite the fact that the two men clashed bitterly over policies toward France. Adams fired Pickering in 1800, and he returned to Massachusetts. From 1803 to 1817, Pickering represented that state in the United States Senate and House, and grew increasingly conservative and opposed to Jeffersonian policies, urging that New England secede from the Union and applauding the British burning of Washington. In 1810 he was strident in his defense of the British Minister to the United States, Francis James Jackson, who was dismissed by President Madison because of insulting allegations made against the government. James McHenry (1753-1816) was born in Ballymena, County Antrim, Ireland and educated in Dublin. He emigrated to America in 1771 and studied medicine with Dr. Benjamin Rush in Philadelphia. McHenry volunteered for military service on behalf of the colonies when hostilities with England broke out in 1775, and was assigned to a hospital in Cambridge, Massachusetts. After a period as a prisoner of war, McHenry was named senior surgeon of the “Flying Hospital” at Valley Forge, and was quickly made a secretary to George Washington. It was at this time that he forged close friendships with Washington and with Alexander Hamilton that lasted for decades. McHenry served as Washington’s assistant for two and a half years, without rank or pay, until he was transferred to Lafayette’s forces as aide- de-camp in August 1780. He was made a major, and was at Yorktown in October 1781, before leaving the army in December of that year. McHenry was a founding member of the Society of the Cincinnati in 1783. McHenry was politically active in his home state of Maryland for much of the 1780s and ‘90s. He represented Maryland in the Confederation Congress in 1783-86, and at the Constitutional Convention in the summer of 1787, where he kept extensive notes that serve as a valuable record of the debates on the creation of the U.S. Constitution. A staunch Federalist, McHenry was intimately involved in helping George Washington fill political patronage positions, and in 1796 he was selected by Washington as the nation’s third Secretary of War. He worked to reorganize the army in the late 1790s, and Fort McHenry in Baltimore is named for him. Disputes with John Adams led him to resign his post as Secretary of War in 1800, and he retired to his estate, Fayetteville, outside Baltimore. A highly charged letter, reflective of the state of American political factionalism and U.S.-British relations in 1810. ANB 17, pp.478-80. DAB XIV, pp.565-68. $5000.

Early Diplomacy with Russia

76. Pinckney, Charles Cotesworth: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED, FROM CHARLES COTESWORTH PINCKNEY TO FULWAR SKIPWITH, RELAYING INFORMATION FROM THE EM- PEROR OF RUSSIA RELATIVE TO AMERICAN SHIPPING]. Amsterdam. March 6, 1797. [1]p. plus integral address leaf. Quarto, on a folded folio sheet. Old folds. Small loss from wax seal, repaired; affecting a few words of marginal postscript. Some light soiling and foxing. About very good. In a folio-sized brown half morocco and cloth clamshell case, spine gilt.

Charles Cotesworth Pinckney – signer of the Constitution, Founding Father, and twice presidential candidate – writes to U.S. Consul General in France Fulwar Skipwith concerning orders he has received from the Russian emperor regarding the shipping of French liquors to Russia. Skipwith served as Consul General for several years and was integral in negotiating the Louisiana Purchase. Pinckney writes from the Netherlands, where he awaits further orders from the U.S. government after being expelled from France, where he was serving as U.S. Minister. The French, highly displeased with the results of the Jay Treaty which the U.S. made with Britain, threatened to imprison Pinckney and evicted him from the country. Pinckney writes:

Sir, I have just received authentic information of the enclosed orders of the Emperor of Russia relative to the importation of the wines & brandies of France in neutral vessels into his territories. As these orders may prove of considerable importance to such of our fellow citizens in France as are concerned in shipping, you will be pleased to communicate them to our consuls, vice consuls & consular agents in that Republic, that our countrymen may be made acquainted with them.

Charles Cotesworth Pinckney (1745-1825) was a South Carolina politician and army officer, who rose to the rank of brigadier general in the American Revolution. After the war he set about rebuilding his plantations and fortunes. Elected to the Constitutional Convention in 1787, he signed the U.S. Constitution (as did his cousin, Charles Pinckney), and worked to have the document ratified by his state. Though he turned down several government appointments to pursue his personal affairs, Pinckney did accept a position as Minister to France, which he held only briefly, arriving in December 1796 and leaving in January 1797. Expelled by an indignant French government, angry over the Jay Treaty, Pinckney returned to Paris in September 1797 with Elbridge Gerry and John Marshall to negotiate. He left in April 1798, outraged that the French had tried to extort bribes form the commission. He ran twice as a Federalist candidate for president, in 1804 and 1808, but was elected neither time. A good letter from this Founding Father, concerning diplomatic affairs in France. This letter sold for $475 at Sotheby’s in 1978. $2000. An American Political Autograph Book Beginning with Abraham Lincoln

77. [Political Autographs]: [Lincoln, Abraham]: [VOLUME OF AUTO- GRAPHS OF AMERICAN POLITICAL FIGURES OF THE 1860s TO THE 1880s, INCLUDING THE SIGNATURES OF PRESI- DENTS ABRAHAM LINCOLN, RUTHERFORD B. HAYES, AND CHESTER ARTHUR, AS WELL AS CABINET SECRETARIES, SENATORS, AND CONGRESSMEN]. [Washington. 1860s-1880s]. [77]pp., containing hundreds of signatures, either signed directly on the page, or being an affixed clipped signature. All contained in a circa 1864 volume bound in contemporary black roan, boards stamped in blind and gilt, spine richly gilt, a.e.g. Boards rubbed, scuffed, and shelfworn. Glazed titlepage printed in gilt: “Autographs. J.B. Lippincott & Co., Philadelphia.” Titlepage oxidized. Ownership and gift inscriptions on front free endpaper, bookplate on front pastedown. Internally very neat and clean. Very good overall.

A remarkable autograph book, bearing the signatures of three American presidents, including Abraham Lincoln. This volume was initially compiled by John W. Ray, who has signed it on the front free endpaper. Dated July 4, 1864, his signature identifies him as an official in the United States Department of the Interior. Be- low this inscription is a gift inscription from the Rev. J. Wainwright Ray, a relative (possibly the brother) of the above, who has presented the volume as a Christmas gift to his friend, the Rev. Alexander Mackey-Smith in 1902. This volume comprises a virtual who’s who of American politics in the period from the Civil War to the Gilded Age. Most noteworthy is the first page, which contains the signatures of the sixteenth, nineteenth, and twenty-first presidents of the United States: Abraham Lincoln, Rutherford B. Hayes, and Chester Arthur. Arthur’s signature is on a clipped piece of paper affixed to the album leaf, whereas Lincoln and Hayes have signed the volume itself. Also on this page is the affixed clipped signature of Lincoln’s Secretary of State, William Seward, and First Lady Lucy Hayes, who has signed the page just below her husband’s name. Several other cabinet officials have signed succeeding pages, including Lincoln’s Interior Secretary John P. Usher; William M. Evarts (who signed in 1879, during his tenure as Secretary of State); F.W. Seward (son of William Seward and an Assistant Secretary of State); and Hamilton Fish, who was Secretary of State to Ulysses Grant. Three other pages contain the signatures of Interior Department and General Land Office officials. A very interesting signature herein is that of famed Cherokee leader John Ross (1790-1866), who has signed as Chief of the Cherokee Nation. The majority of the rest of the leaves contain the signatures of United States Senators and Congressmen from the period. Included are senators Lyman Trumbull of Illinois, Solomon Foot of Vermont, Garrett Davis of Kentucky, Reverdy Johnson of Maryland (a former Attorney General of the United States and American Minister to Great Britain), and John Sherman of Ohio (who was also an Interior Secretary). Foremost among the members of the House is Schuyler Colfax, who has signed as Speaker, a post he held from 1863 to 1869, when he was elected as Ulysses Grant’s vice president. The signatures of dozens of Congressmen follow, from all over the United States. There are also signatures of various members of the clergy. An outstanding collection of American autographs, containing the signatures of some of the most significant politicians of the Civil War era and the decades following. $8750.

Archive of the Officer Charged with Guarding the Lincoln Assassination Conspirators Sent to Dry Tortugas, Including Dr. Samuel Mudd

78. Prentice, William R.: [Lincoln Assassination]: [ARCHIVE OF FIF- TY-ONE DOCUMENTS, PRIMARILY MANUSCRIPT, DEAL- ING WITH LIFE AT FORT JEFFERSON PRISON, INCLUDING CONTENT ON THE CONSPIRATORS BEHIND LINCOLN’S ASSASSINATION]. Fort Jefferson, Fl. 1865. Fifty-one documents. Gener- ally very good or better. In a cloth clamshell case.

After the assassination of Abraham Lincoln and the discovery of the massive conspiracy, Mary Surratt, George Atzerodt, David Herrold, and Lewis Powell were tried and hanged on July 7, 1865. Four more conspirators were found guilty and sentenced to terms at the military prison in Fort Jefferson, Florida. Situated in the desolate Dry Tortugas off the Florida Keys, Fort Jefferson was a place for hard time and had been used to house federal deserters and mutineers during the Civil War. The four conspirators, Samuel Arnold, Michael O’Laughlen, Edward Spangler, and most famously, Dr. Samuel Mudd, joined the federal riff raff there in July 1865, sentenced to life. With the war ended and the demobilization of troops in full swing in September 1865, command at Fort Jefferson was transferred from the 161st New York Infantry to the 82nd U.S. Colored Infantry. Incensed, despondent, opportunistic, afraid of how he would be treated by “colored” soldiers, Mudd attempted to stow away aboard the transport Thomas A. Scott and escape. He was quickly discovered and he, Arnold, O’Laughlen, Spangler, and one other man were confined for three months in a “dungeon,” let out six days a week in chains for labor in the yard. Although Arnold and O’Laughlen had both attempted to drop out of the conspiracy, they were swept up after the assassination for their complicity. All four were sentenced to life in prison. O’Laughlen died of yellow fever in 1867, during the epidemic in which Mudd filled in for the prison doctor who also succumbed, and Andrew Johnson pardoned Mudd, Arnold, and Spangler in 1869. Almost half of this collection of over fifty items assembled by Capt. William Prentice of the 161st New York Infantry, relates to the period that he was stationed at Fort Jefferson, overseeing the military prison that housed the Lincoln conspirators. Among these documents are the comparatively mundane records of accounts necessary to keep a military outfit running efficiently, including twenty-one returns, receipts, or invoices for supplies or stores. Most of these are printed forms and relatively routine, but one (Special orders 8) is an unusual receipt from a lieutenant for turning in the regimental colors; and one return that lists twenty men from Co. F, 161th NY, with an indication that five would transfer into another company and one would remain south after mustering out. One receipt is signed by Henry A. Morris, Capt. 82nd US Colored Troops and Provost Marshall for stores issued to that regiment (clothing, straw hats, iron pots, account books). Two document on transfer of responsibility from the 161st NY to the 82nd USCT. Not all is routine, however. Amid the apparently common run of returns and receipts is a remarkable document signed (with an x) by each prisoner held at Fort Jefferson on August 31, 1865, for the issue of clothing and blankets. In many cases the prisoners, presumably deserters or mutineers, are listed with their regiment indicated (e.g. the 69th, 122nd, 140th, and 157th NY Infantry, 26 NY Battery; 1st U.S. Infantry, and several from 6th U.S. Heavy Artillery). A few are noted as “Colored.” Within this list, however, are the names of the four men convicted of conspiring to kill Abraham Lincoln: Edward Spangler, Michael O’Laughlen, Samuel Mudd, and Samuel Arnold. Spangler, Arnold, and O’Laughlen are listed in one document together, suggesting all were together at the time. The conspirators each received a pair of pants, shoes, a blanket, and two shirts. A second return, dated September 1865, lists Arnold, but not the other conspirators for reasons that remain unclear. Adding to this exceptionally rare record is a photograph of a spectacular and important letter from conspirator Samuel B. Arnold (signed Samuel B. A.) addressed to Prentice, Nov. 16, 1865. Having been confined in the dungeon, Arnold asked Prentice for a letter testifying to his good behavior while under Prentice’s keep, presumably to show to the new command. He wrote:

It is impossible to give you any items of the place at present writing, as I know nothing, only permitted to look upon the bare wall and chilly floor of our prison cell, the slow and measured tread of the sentry as he walks his beat both day and night before our quarters, now intercourse with outside – all, all is monotonous. This change was inaugurated upon the 82nd U.S. C. Troops taken command and like orders been handed down to present command, the 5th U.S. H. Artillery, which of course, must be adhered to on their part. I have been thus far unable to ascertain from whence the order emanated, so many versions having been tendered. Its origin tho’ seems to come from Mudd’s attempted escape. If such be the case, I can’t see the justice of punishing me for his offence....I feel that the present Regt, will investigate the matter and treat us as we all by our deportment are deserving of, for if good conduct brings present suffering, bad certainly would produce death. I suffered my present imprisonment through the act of others, for I had not even knowledge though, and in like manner am again under the strict surveillance through the offence of another....Accept the best wishes from the heart of one, tho’ branded with shame, that contains within its inmost core, feelings of honor, purity, and truth, equal to any beating heart.

The documents that date from Prentice’s military career prior to Fort Jefferson include eighteen returns, receipts, or invoices for supplies and stores, including a return of supplies lost in an accident involving the steamer John H. Dickey; an unusual letter trying to account for stores lost relative to men who had died or transferred from the regiment while detached; two documents relating to Prentice’s mustering in, and a special order relieving Prentice of duty and ordering him to “turn over all papers Books and Blanks belonging to his Office to Capt. Jos.. H. Meredith, 82nd U.S.C.I. who will assume the duties of Assist Inspector Genl.” There are three fine items relating to Prentice’s commissioning, including his mustering in roll after promotion from lieutenant to captain, September 1863; Special Order 44 appoint- ing Prentice Provost Marshall at Fort Jefferson, July 31, 1865; and his Captain’s commission on vellum, signed by Gov. Horatio Seymour, 1863. Demonstrating that bureaucracies never die, nor do they entirely reason, one of the returns is of particular note: a statement of equipment lost at the Battle of Sabine Cross Roads, April 30, 1864. Prentice explained:

...while the Regt was in Bivouac at Pleasant Hill, La., the enemy began skir- mishing along our while line, preparatory to the general engagement, which came on later in the day. I was ordered...to take my company and pull down a Barricade in our front which might be of advantage to the enemy. I then to deploy them as skirmishers in a piece of timber on our Right. By his order all our Baggage was left in camp. While we were thus employed, the engagement became general, the Regt was sent to the Front, and by order of Brig. Gen. Emory...our Baggage was placed upon a wagon & during the Retreat of the following night was lost.

Rare enough in itself as a record of activity in a federal prison for deserters, the Prentice collection contains some of the rarest of all Civil War items: materials relating directly to the Lincoln assassination and to the conspirators who fomented it. $6750.

79. [Rix Family]: [Burton Family]: [Connecticut]: [ARCHIVE OF THE RIX AND BURTON FAMILIES OF CONNECTICUT, PROVID- ING A DETAILED LOOK AT LIFE IN NEW ENGLAND OVER 200 YEARS, INCLUDING CONTENT ON THE WAR OF 1812]. [Various locations, including Connecticut, New York, and Haiti]. 1688-1860. Approximately 200 documents (primarily manuscript), including fifty-six letters, seventy-five receipts and small notes, and about sixty other documents. With small leather-covered document box. Various sizes, but mostly folio and quarto sheets. Old folds, scattered wear and soiling. Overall, good to very good.

Extensive archive of the Rix and Burton families, containing correspondence, land deeds and business agreements, and numerous other documents, such as deeds, wills, and indentures. Thomas Rix emigrated from England to Salem, Massachu- setts in the mid-17th century. Around 1700, the family relocated to the recently established town of Preston, Connecticut, counting them among the first families in the area. Israel Burton came to Preston some years later, and the two families intermarried. This archive offers valuable insight into a New England family as they were lured westward for new opportunities, and on their mercantile activities during and after the War of 1812. In addition to a rich body of women’s correspondence and family news, the collection includes a series of letters written in the early 19th century from the towns of Jerusalem and Penn Yan, New York, in the Finger Lakes region, in the early years of white settlement in that area. A relative in Jerusalem, Giles Kinney, purchased half a whiskey distillery in Jerusalem in November 1818, and in one letter he urges Israel Burton to invest with him. His letters frequently discuss the local economy and hopes for a better life in the region as the Erie Canal was beginning to exert its influence. After discussing prices in Jerusalem, for example, Kinney writes, in January 1822: “I think the canall is a going to be a fine thing for the western country, but I do believe it will be a disadvantage to the Eastern state. It of course will nock down the prices of produce in your country and raise the prices of ours because produce can be transported to the city of New York by way of the canal cheaper than you can in that country afford it.” Other relatives tried their hands in various corners of the country and beyond, as attested by the correspondence present here. William Burton found himself in a lucrative teaching position with a private family in King William County, Virginia, earning $400 and free board. His first impression of the South was not entirely positive, reflecting very New England sensibilities. He writes, in January 1820:

Mr. Nelson, the man by whom I am employed, sustains, and I believe justly, the reputation of integrity and benevolence. The children of whom I have the care though indolent and impatient of restraint are tractable and respectful in their behavior towards me....The manners and Habits of the people here are materially different from those of the people at the north. The labour is almost entirely performed by the slaves. Indeed it is a rare thing that a farmer attends to his own business. On almost every plantation there is one or more overseers who transact the business of the owners. Hence the most of their time is spent in idleness or dissipated amusements, such as horse-racing, gambling, and the like. Dueling is here mentioned with approbation.

Henry J. Rix wandered all the way to Jeremie, Haiti in 1824, and four letters sent from there are present in the archive. Rix’s first letter from Haiti relates his impressions of the place, including the climate and inhabitants, reassuring the folks back home. He writes:

...you may give yourself no trouble on my account onacount of the climate being unhealthy, as you may think, but as that is not the case I beg you to rest assured that this is as healthy a place as any whatever; it being open to the sea breeze, is not in general uncomfortable hot. I content myself tolerable well there being several Americans in the place that I have opertunity to converse frequently. I begin to get hold of the language and am able to converse with the inhabitants a little; they are in general very sociable and thare some very fine looking people in this country notwithstanding there dark complexion. They those of them that are able dress extremely well, they are very neat and proud to the hi[gh]est degree.

The Rix family’s involvement in shipping made them vulnerable to the economic disruptions of the War of 1812, as several letters attest. In August 1814, Henry Jennings wrote to Thomas Rix (apparently his brother in law) to inform him that “it has been requested & recommended to the merchants by the corporation of this city, to send all the ships up the river – the object I presume is the fear of an attack on this place [New York]....I am much mistaken if our dear country is not drenched in blood before our rights are Established.” Jennings followed up the next February, revealing the consequences of sending their ships up river, writing: “I have not yet heard from my owners since the News of Peace but expect it dayly. My ship is now Froze up solid & the river will not Break up until towards the last of March...in about 4 days more we shall have the news from Washington of the Ratification of the treaty by President Madison when Hostillities are to cease Between our Country & England.” Likewise concerning the War of 1812, there is also a letter relaying news of the massacre at Fort Niagara, dated June 2, 1814. About a third of the collection falls in the early to mid-19th century, with the bulk of the interest in women writing to women, mostly in Connecticut. Covering the typical topics of family, climate, health, and a woman’s perspective on economy and life, the letters are generally highly literate and entertaining, evoking a intimate sense of New England life. A letter from Nancy Burdick to Sarah Rix, written in the 1830s, is typical of the style and content. Nancy writes:

I think of you every day and talk about going down but do you know what – storms – what – ice – what – snows; and freezeing cold weather. We have hardly dared to go down to spend one night for fear that we shall have a big snow and can’t get back; we in Brooklyn never saw the like. First came the ice and since snow upon snow has come till in many places it is over the walls most of the way from our house to Capt. Days. It is about level with the wall and so hard we can ride on the top of it. E. thinks we are all taken up with sleighing. We think there is not much fun in it [in] such cold weather, but I can tell you it does not stop them, they go string after string of sleys....The 2 Brooklyn Taverns have enough to do to roast Turkeys and cook oysters and such nice loaves of cake. Mr. Snow had over 200 one night to cook for.

The earliest material in the collection consists primarily of an array of deeds, wills, indentures, and inventories. Several items stand out for particular note are an ap- prenticeship contract for Thomas Bellows to Thomas Rix, shoemaker, in Preston, dated 1770; a fine printed broadside from Thomas Stewart, in debtor’s prison, seeking to settle with his creditors, Griswold, Connecticut, July 13, 1816; and a settlement agreement between Thomas Rix and Eleazer Herrick for a bastard child, dated at Preston, 1794: “the Condition of the above Obligation [£100] is such that whereas the son of the sd. Thomas Rix (viz) Ethan Allen Rix of Preston aforesaid a minor under the age of twenty one years stands accused of begetting the Daughter of the above bounded Eleazer Herrick with Child and whereas a settlement hath this day taken place.” Among the balance of the collection is a presumably unrelated, but intriguing letter from a purveyor of quack medicine, R.L. Hamilton to C.C. Burdick, dated Nov. 25, 1865, which reads:

It must be remembered that chronic diseases of this character usually come on gradually, and of course must go off in the same manner, from the fact that the whole body, flesh, blood, and bones, are filled with the morbid matter, and after the disease is broken up, it takes some time to thoroughly eradicate its effects, and build up the system anew....Old complicated diseases require time and perseverance to remove them, even though the proper remedies are being most skillfully used.

An excellent family archive, ripe with research potential. $4750.

Manuscript Memoir of a Career French Naval Officer, from the Central American Coast to Beachy Head: 1663 to 1690

80. [Roches, M. La Vallier, Sieur des]: [MANUSCRIPT MEMOIR OF M. LA VALLIER DES ROCHES, FRENCH NAVAL OFFICER, SPANNING THIRTY YEARS OF FRENCH INVOLVEMENT IN THE NEAR EAST, AFRICA, AND THE AMERICAS]. [Np. ca. 1690]. 127pp. numbered in contemporary manuscript, plus two pen-and-ink drawings, one of Carthagena and the other a map, “Plan de Ste. Marthe.” Folio. Gathered signatures. Internally bright and clean. Near fine. In a half morocco and cloth box.

A remarkable and extensive memoir composed by the career French naval officer, M. La Vallier des Roches, spanning nearly three decades of service in the Near East, Africa, and the Americas. From the papers of Michel Bégon (1638-1710). Bégon was a French civil servant and colonial administrator who served for a while in Canada, and then in the Caribbean at Martinique. In the 1680s he became intendent at Santo Domingo, and was later sent to Martinique for official duties. Later he was the intendent of the port of La Rochelle and gathered a great deal of intelligence for the French Crown. Des Roches’ narrative is divided into seven main sections: the march of six thousand French soldiers to Hungary before the battle of St. Gothard; the seizure of the Dutch slave colony of Gorée off the African coast in 1678; an account of the taking of Tobago later in 1678; the disaster suffered by the French fleet under d’Estrées on its way to attack Curacao in August of 1678; a 1682 naval reconnaissance voyage along the coast of Central America; a French demonstration of force off the coast of Copenhagen in 1683; and Tourville’s defeat of the English and Dutch fleets off Beachy Head in 1690. Des Roches’ narrative is rich in specific detail, sometimes at the expense of style. Excerpts from each section follow below (in English translation):

1) From the march to Hungary:

During the different [?] between the Pope and the King, the Kingdom of Hungary which for several years has rested from the fatigues of a furious war which overwhelmed it, began anew to feel itself torn asunder by the Ottoman armies, and to be reduced to having these vast and fertile lands serve only as theater for playing bloody tragedies. This numerous army, at the head of which the grand Seigneur had placed his first Vizir, would without a doubt have subdued the rest of this Kingdom if the Emperor hadn’t asked for help from his allies, that is, the Electors and other Christian Princes. The King, who has no greater passion than helping his brothers, and all those who have need of his forces, particularly when it lies in the interests of the Religion, at the first demand from the Emperor provided 6000 men from the best troops of his Kingdom: 4000 infantry and 2000 horse, which troops were paid by his majesty. The companies of light horse already in Italy were ordered to leave and to pass into Hungary to go to the aid of this pitiful realm.

2) From the taking of Gorée:

L’Isle de Gorée est terre d’affrique...; arrived Sunday last of Oct.; squadron carried Dutch colors; fired upon; moored; same evening armed sloops detached; saluted by enemy but continued approaching land; enemy abandoned lower fort; retired to upper; next day Mon. 1 Nov. vice admiral requested surrender; gov. replied saying he had a good fort; Sr. de Combe, Ingenieur, was envoy; attacked planned; participants listed; cannonade followed by surrender; garrison of 120 men taken prison; Tues. forts razed; armaments listed incl. 40 black slaves.

3) From the taking of Tobago:

...arrived 6 Dec.; d’Estrées sent troops ashore; Blenag & Grancey share command by land & sea; camp; placing cannon, cutting road through woods; took some prisoners; several French came to help; request for surrender includes threats against Gorée prisoners if French in fort are harmed; “renegade” French for Prince of Orange; preparations continue; Sunday midday 14 cannon volleys; a bomb in their powder magazine; vice admiral immediately to fort to accept surrender; such good care given to wounded that others surrender easily; 650 prisoners as well as fort; Precieux, 56, retaken with three others; one a 52; a frigate of 8 and 200 ton flustre, 10; fort no less well armed; sang Te Deum; blew up fort.

4) From the journey to Curacao:

...I note that we got lost on the way to the third...called Corosol [Curacao]...we left St. Christophe 6th May; squadron joined by several smaller craft from St. Dominique, by order of the king, carrying 13 or 14 hundred men, inhabitants, buccaneers, filibusters; northeasterly wind favorable...four days to the south & southwest seeking favorable winds favorable to reconnoitre Orchilla & seek Corosol in the same longitude; the plan being prudently enough formed seemed to have only the happiest consequences; nevertheless things were otherwise: currents of which we knew not the force drove us westward upon a Rock unknown to us & unmarked in the charts...weather had been nice but as soon as we touched the wind increased greatly, driving the sea before it, both of which contributed to the loss of several boats.

5) From the reconnaissance of the Central American Coast:

Took on stores & water, left Martinique 15 July intending to go by way of Grenada but had an easterly wind so steered westward with a following wind; 24th made St. Martha [represented by one of the maps], called “Tierra Nivadas” which in our language means mountains of snow...Inhabitants at its feet & along part of its coast by a small people who could be called pygmies; they live apart from other peoples; they flee & hide; in time of great heat they live higher up the mountain; they eat ouycou, magnoc; religion unknown...2d August left Portobello; reconnoitred the Isles des catives which number 50, uninhabited, & Roatan, inhabited only by corsairs, went to reconnoitre the Isle despins, Cap St. Nicolas, Cap St. Antoine, west of Cuba. 3 Sept. passed Cayenne; 6th, Havana, rendezvous of the galleons as well as for all the West Indies....

6) From the naval demonstration off Copenhagen:

10th, north wind, prepared for departure; wind southerly, stayed where they were. 11th, news by a letter intercepted that the Swedish army would emerge; 14th detained Swedish frigate flying so large a flag it looks as though it were made expressly to be recognized, asked questions about Swedish dispositions; following this ingenuous confession the frigates saluted the admiral who did not return it and the frigates who did...ordered back to France, giving joy to all but one who prefers the pay of extended tours to returning to his family.

7) From Tourville’s defeat of the English and Dutch off Beachy Head:

4th found the English fleet to the NE but they have the wind; French moored 5th, wind SW the French prepared to attack; wind veers SE the English try to flee at which they succeed knowing better the coastal waters, wind NE, both fleets moored 4 leagues apart for the night; the 6th, NE breezes, form line of battle, a new way of signaling...Combat: the 10th, blue squadron rejoins as avant garde; enemy approaches...the Dutch (25 ships of which the smallest carried 50 cannon); French line of battle extended SE-NW; violent battle... solid bravery of M. de St. Cler second the Precieux & the offices, I made every effort to imitate their example until I was wounded toward the end; the Dutch were so busy firing at us that they let 6 of our ships gain the wind, which all did their duty well; the enemy could do no more & fled....

A unique record of a French soldier, with major New World interest. $22,500.

A Future Signer of the Declaration Calls the British Quartermaster on His Overdrawn Account

81. Ross, George: [LETTER, SIGNED, FROM GEORGE ROSS TO SIR JOHN ST. CLAIR, REGARDING ST. CLAIR’S BANK AC- COUNT]. London. May 10, 1766. [1]p. plus integral address leaf. Quarto, on a folded folio sheet. Slight paper loss to address leaf, not affecting text. Slight separation at fold; other separations repaired. Minor soiling. Very good. In a folio-sized blue half morocco and cloth clamshell case, spine gilt.

George Ross, a Pennsylvania signer of the Declaration of Independence, writes to Sir John St. Clair, Deputy Quarter Master General of the British Forces in America, regarding St. Clair’s over-drafted account. George Ross was a lawyer, serving as the King’s prosecutor for Lancaster, Pennsylvania from 1756 to 1768, after which he was elected to the Pennsylvania legislature; swayed toward the colonial cause, he was a delegate to the Continental Congress, where he signed the Declaration of Independence. Sir John St. Clair was appointed Deputy Quarter Master General of the British forces in North America in 1754. He died just a year and a half after this letter was written. Writing from London, possibly on official business, Ross includes a detailed list of the bills which have been paid out of St. Clair’s account, beyond his available funds; the whole totals £386/1/2. His note reads:

Dear Sir, I have your favour of 20th March advising Bill for £100, which I shall honour, to prevent the distress of its return, but I must request of you, for your own sake, not to draw again till your funds have discharged the above heavy ballance [sic]. For tho’ my inclination to serve you be great, yet it is quite irregular as well as unsafe to have so great a ballance on an open account, without shadow of security. Your Subn. and Staff pay of last year will soon discharge this debt, and afterwards, I hope, you will be open to go on comfort- ably with your current income.

A good letter from Ross, before his crucial move into colonial politics. Ross letters are rare; there is only one letter signed in ABPC in the last thirty-five years, while all the rest are signed documents. $4250.

“We live among the dead, and in a valley of human bones.”

82. Rush, Benjamin: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED, FROM BENJAMIN RUSH TO ELISHA BOUDINOT, CONDOLING HIM ON THE LOSS OF HIS WIFE]. Philadelphia. Sept. 8, 1797. [2] pp., plus integral address leaf. Folio. Old fold lines. Reinforced with tissue at some folds. Tear in blank leaf from wax seal. Lightly soiled. Very good. In a half morocco clamshell case, spine gilt.

A warm letter written by Dr. Benjamin Rush, Philadelphia physician and signer of the Declaration of Independence, to fellow patriot Elisha Boudinot, expressing his condolences upon the loss of Boudinot’s wife. Boudinot (1749-1819) was an early supporter of the Revolution, and was active in New Jersey political and social circles, interacting with many of the important men of the era. He had eleven children with his first wife, Catherine Smith, to whom this letter refers. She died in the terrible yellow fever epidemic of 1797. Boudinot remarried the year following her death. Benjamin Rush was a delegate to the Continental Congress and signed the Declaration of Independence; he later served as surgeon general for the Middle Department of the Continental Army, though he resigned in outrage over the dis- organization and corruption in army hospitals. Rush established several medical facilities in Philadelphia, including the College of Physicians in 1787. “Writing prolifically over nearly half a century, Rush was the first American physician to become widely known at home and abroad. More than any other physician, Rush established the reputation of Philadelphia as a center for medical training....His drive to understand mental illness and render the treatment of mental patients more humane earned Rush the title ‘father of American psychiatry’” – ANB. Rush’s letter conveys his sympathies as well as Christian hope for life beyond the grave. It reads, in part:

My dear sir, Permit me to join in the general sympathy your late bereave- ment has excited in the breasts of all your friends....Yes, my dear friend, we live among the dead, and in a valley of human bones. Every newspaper we pick up is an obituary of departed friends, or fellow citizens. At the present awful moment, the passing hearse, the shut up houses, and the silent streets of our city, all proclaim that we are made of the dust, & that we are doomed to return to it. But let us not complain as those who have no hope. The grave shall ere long be robbed of its prey. Even Hell itself shall give up its prisoners. The conquests, & grace of Jesus Christ extend to the utmost limits of fire & misery, & all, all shall in due time be made to partake of the benefits of his infinite atonement. P.S. The fever encreases, but it is confined chiefly to one part of the city. I have hitherto been preserved, except from a light attack of it, which confined me but one day.

In fact, Rush had stayed in Philadelphia to treat those sick with the fever, and was lucky to survive. Later his political opponent, William Cobbett, accused Rush of using his treatments to kill off Federalists. Rush successfully sued Cobbett for libel, driving him out of the United States. $5500. Benjamin Rush Presents John Jay with His Latest Book: “...private virtue never fails ultimately to subdue prejudice...”

83. Rush, Benjamin: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED, FROM BENJAMIN RUSH TO GOVERNOR JOHN JAY OF NEW YORK]. Philadelphia. Jan. 14, 1798. [2]pp. plus integral docketing leaf. Folio. Old fold lines. Faint toning; small dampstain on second leaf. Near fine. In a blue half morocco and cloth clamshell case, spine gilt.

Dr. Benjamin Rush writes to his friend, Governor John Jay, transmitted with a copy of Rush’s Essays. Among his many accomplishments, Jay, the recipient of this letter, served as the first chief justice of the Supreme Court, governor of New York, and was instrumental in negotiating the treaty named for him. Rush writes:

Dear Sir, Permit me to request the favor of your acceptance of the enclosed volume of Essays. You will perceive in reading some of them, that the author has been actuated by a belief in the future prevalence of those principles of Universal peace & order which is predicted on the Old & New Testament. Permit me at the same time to express the great pleasure with which I hear from time to time of the satisfaction with which the citizens of the State of New York of all parties and religious denominations, speak of your administration of their government. In the fluctuation of public opinion respecting men, I have uniformly observed that private virtue never fails ultimately to subdue prejudice, and to preserve justice to opinions, and conduct.

This letter likely accompanied a copy of Rush’s Essays, Literary, Moral & Philosophi- cal which was published in 1798. ANB (online). $6500.

Dr. Rush Accepts Thanks for Defeating William Cobbett

84. Rush, Benjamin: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED, FROM BENJAMIN RUSH TO FELLOW PHYSICIAN NATHANIEL POTTER, DISCUSSING MEDICAL MATTERS AND THE LI- BEL CASE AGAINST WILLIAM COBBETT]. Philadelphia. Jan. 8, 1800. [1]p. plus address leaf. Folio. Old fold lines. Some light soiling and toning. Slight separation at folds. Address leaf moderately soiled, with small loss from wax seal. Very good. In a red half calf and cloth clamshell case, spine gilt.

Dr. Benjamin Rush writes to his colleague in Baltimore, Dr. Nathaniel Potter, discussing the libel case of William Cobbett and mentioning the winter’s diseases. Cobbett, one of the most scurrilous journalists of the Federal period, was an inveter- ate enemy of Rush. In his newspaper, Porcupine’s Gazette, and in various pamphlets, Cobbett attacked the Republicans and defended Federal interests. His downfall came with a direct attack on Rush, a series of pamphlets called The Rush-Light, which culminated in accusing Rush of deliberately killing his patients during the Philadelphia yellow fever epidemics in the 1790s (Rush’s harsh purgatives may have done in a few people, but the Doctor courageously stuck it out in the city when other doctors fled). Rush sued for libel and won, as he describes here. After the Philadelphia judgment against him, Cobbett fled to England to avoid payment. Rush writes:

Dear Sir, Accept my thanks for your kind congratulations upon the decision of our court against Wm. Cobbett. It has given general satisfaction in our city. Some of my brethren I have reason to believe are not pleased with it. ‘Father forgive them’ – I wish I could add, ‘they know not what they do.’ The winter with us has been sickly, but our diseases, though violent, have seldom proved mortal. The lament has been used freely by all our practitioners. The forms of disease are cynanche trachialis [sic], catarrh, pleurisy, and angina inflam- matoria, accompanied nearly in every case with bilious discharges from the stomach and bowels. My class consists of 102 pupils who honour me with the most patient and regular attention. I have made many additions of facts to my lectures all of which I hope add support to my principles. Present my respects & congratulations to Dr. Alexander. I consider you & him as the pivots of my system in Baltimore. May you both be useful, and successful in all your pursuits and enterprises in medicine.

ANB (online). $5000.

The Printer Zamorano Gets a Promotion

85. Santa Anna, Antonio Lopez de: [PARTIALLY PRINTED FORM, COMPLETED IN MANUSCRIPT, SIGNED BY SANTA ANNA AS PRESIDENT OF MEXICO, AND WITH THE PAPER SEAL OF THE REPUBLIC OF MEXICO, PROMOTING AGUSTIN ZAMORANO, THE PIONEER PRINTER OF CALIFORNIA, TO THE RANK OF COLONEL OF THE ARMY]. Mexico. Feb. 23, 1842. [1]p. partially printed form, completed in manuscript. Paper seal affixed to lower left corner, and with a contemporary blindstamp validating the document for 1842-43 as well. With further manuscript notes and an ink stamp on the verso. Old folds. Some staining. About very good. In a folding cloth box, gilt leather label.

This document unites two major figures in the history of Mexico and California in the mid-19th century: Mexican president and general Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, and Agustin Zamorano, the pioneer printer of California. It promotes Zamorano to the rank of colonel in the Mexican Army, noting his service in California since 1825, and his contributions in aid of national independence and the integrity of the territory of the Republic. Zamorano (1798-1842) had a long career in the Mexican Army, and in the civic and material life of California. He came to California in 1825 as secretary to the governor of Alta California, and he held the position of governor himself in 1832-33. In 1839-40 he was the military commander of Baja California. Zamorano is most famed as the first printer in California; he established a print shop in Monterey in 1834, and his imprints are rare and highly prized. Zamorano died a few months after this promotion was made. The document is signed on the recto to the right of the paper seal of Mexico by Santa Anna, and is also signed by Mexican general Jose Maria Tornel. It is further signed and dated on the verso by Juan Jose Andrade and Francisco Romero. $4000.

Inventory of a Household Moving from France to America

86. [Transatlantic Inventory]: [MID-19th-CENTURY FRENCH MANUSCRIPT INVENTORY DETAILING PERSONAL AND HOUSEHOLD GOODS, INCLUDING BOOKS, MAPS, AND ENGRAVINGS, SENT FROM FRANCE TO NEW YORK AND FROM THE UNITED STATES BACK TO FRANCE]. [France & the United States. nd, but ca. 1840]. [26] leaves plus forty-eight blank leaves. Contemporary mottled calf, spine gilt, edges marbled. Slight wear to outer joints. Composed in a clear, clean hand. Occasional minute soiling. In very good condition.

A detailed manuscript inventory listing personal and household goods transported to the United States from France and, separately, items shipped from America back to France. The volume records the possessions of Eugène Mourgue, his wife Colombe, and their domestic servants, beginning with the dozen trunks which they had shipped to the United States. The objects shipped for their travels includes cloth, clothing, porcelain, china, and silver. The manuscript also provides detailed lists of the objects the Mourgue household shipped back to France upon their return to the Continent. Of particular interest is a box of books with specific titles briefly noted. These include La Pérouse’s Voyage in four volumes plus atlas; a multi-volume set of Duhamel du Monceau, a twenty-volume set of Buffon; Abbé Raynal’s Atlas; numerous books for children; geographies, dictionaries, and other educational volumes; and numerous other works (including Oliver Goldsmith’s Vicaire de Wakefield). Morgue also returned to France with numerous maps and prints, including “Amerique septentionale,” “Golphe du mexique,” “La mort[e] de [Captain] Cook,” views of New York and Mount Vernon, and portraits of Wash- ington and Franklin. $2500.

Instructions to a British Diplomat Negotiating a Treaty with Spain in 1715

87. [Treaty of Madrid]: Walpole, Horatio: INSTRUCTIONS TO SIR PAUL METHUEN, HIS MAJESTY’S AMBASSADOR IN SPAIN 1717, UPON WHICH THE TREATY OF MADRID DEC. 14, 1715, SIGNED BY MR. BUB, WAS FOUNDED. THIS PAPER WAS DRAWN BY THE RIGHT HONBLE. HORATIO WALPOLE, ESQ., THEN COMMIS. TO MY LORD TOWNSHEND AT THAT TIME SOLE SECRETARY OF STATE [manuscript title]. [Np. nd, but ca. 1745]. 17pp. Folio. Loose gatherings. Light vertical crease. Near fine. In a cloth and marbled boards clamshell case.

A later copy of the instructions given in 1715 to Ambassador to Spain Sir Paul Methuen, in order to negotiate a commercial treaty with that nation, which lists in fifteen detailed sections the possible positions the Spanish negotiators might take and Methuen’s possible answers to them. Where, or even if, there is a 1715 original, is unknown to us. The Treaty of Madrid was signed Dec. 14, 1715, after the initial Treaty of Utrecht, signed in 1713. Methuen began negotiations, but George Bubb closed and signed the treaty on behalf of England. “George Bubb, afterwards celebrated as George Bubb Dodington, Methuen’s successor at Madrid, negotiated a new commercial treaty...to the lively satisfaction of the English trading classes. By it duties on commerce in the two countries were reduced to the status quo of the reign of Charles II (of Spain), and each contracting party conceded to the other the privileges of the most favored nation, a clause highly injurious to the French woolen manufacture” – Hunt & Poole. One of the articles specifically mentions indigo and other products from the West Indies, used in the British woolen manufacture. This document was drawn up by Horatio Walpole, 1st Baron Walpole of Wolverton (1678-1757) several years later (the watermark in the paper dates to around 1745), and appears to be, in some capacity, official. Walpole was a diplomat and politician, brother of the powerful Prime Minister and the uncle of the author Horace Walpole. William Hunt & Reginald L. Poole, eds., The Political History of England (1921). $2750.

Painter John Trumbull Gets the Cold Shoulder in London, 1781

88. Trumbull, John: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED, FROM JOHN TRUMBULL TO HIS FATHER, JONATHAN TRUMBULL, REGARDING LONDON BUSINESS DEALINGS AND ANTI- AMERICAN SENTIMENT]. Amsterdam. July 8, 1781. 4pp. Quarto, on a folded folio sheet. Old folds. Small loss in center of sheet, not affecting text. Strip of later paper at left edge of first leaf. Light toning and soiling. Good. In a folio-sized black half morocco and cloth clamshell case, spine gilt.

Painter John Trumbull writes to his father, Connecticut governor and merchant Jonathan Trumbull, relating information about business affairs in London and some of the anti-American sentiment at work against him there. John Trumbull’s skill with the pen earned him the notice of General George Washington – drawing battle plans at Lexington – and Washington made him an aide-de-camp. Trumbull later served as a colonel under Horatio Gates, but retired from the army in 1777. In 1780 he traveled to Paris on business for his father, also journeying to London and the Netherlands, whence he wrote this letter. Trumbull expresses a resigned frustration over his treatment as an American in London during the American Revolution. He writes:

Dear Sir, Before I left London, I called at Messrs. Lane Son & Frazer’s counting house, to have some conversation with them on the subject of their debt; but finding none of them at home, & being oblig’d to leave the City the next morning, I wrote a few lines explaining your wish to bring the affair to a con- clusive fulfillment, & assuring them that tho’ the war, & consequent distress of America had not advanc’d the facility of a payment, yet if they chose to confide full powers on that head to their attorney Dr. Johnson, they might depend upon every degree of honour on your part. After having finished the letter, I was desir’d to step into the house of the elder Mr. Lane, whom I found accordingly. I told him my name and the subject on which I came to converse, and was treated as I expected rather cavalierly. I took leave therefore immediately, in the same style, telling him that he might depend upon it I was as perfectly indifferent to the business as he possibly could be. But if the house should see fit to think a little more at leisure on the subject, I had left a few lines with a direction under which they might write to me. On my arrival here I found the letter of which I enclose a copy & to which I have return’d a few lines in answer, as you will see, & which I hope will prove agreeable. It is proper I should add a few words on the character which the house sup- ports in the present contest, which is most inveterately anti American. Their table is attended one or two days in every week by the Refugees [i.e., Loyalists], and when some two years ago a subscription was set on foot for the relief of the American prisoners, a counter subscription ‘for the purpose of enabling His Majesty to carry on the just and necessary war against his rebellious subjects in America’ was put about, and among many others this house subscribed one hundred pounds. In short, every part of their conduct & language as I have been constantly inform’d, is hostile in the highest degree, and it was for this reason that I avoided calling upon them, until the whole force of Refugee vengeance had been exhausted upon me, & I had nothing more to fear. $4750.

89. Trumbull, John: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED, FROM JOHN TRUMBULL TO LORD SIDMOUTH, ACCOMPANIED BY TRUMBULL’S NOTES ON THEIR RESULTING CONVER- SATION ON THE WAR OF 1812]. [London]. June 1813. [3]pp. Both sheets held together with period wax and a seal stamp. Quarto. Very faint old fold lines. Fine.

Letter sent by Trumbull to Sidmouth requesting “the honour of a few minutes conversation at any hour which his Lordship shall please to name.” The second sheet bears Sidmouth’s cordial response, naming the time and place. It does not appear that Trumbull was acting in a kind of official capacity but was, perhaps, merely paying an informal social visit on an influential friend. On the verso of Sidmouth’s response, Trumbull has made notes on their conversation. His notes read, in part:

Conversation turned on the destruction of small towns on the Chesapeake. I expressed my high satisfaction that the officers & troops in Canada, instead of retaliating the threats held out in Gen’l Hull’s proclamation, of giving no quarters & the conduct of the commanding officer of Fort Niagara, in firing hot balls upon the Village of Newark – had conducted the war with humanity & restrained the savages in a great degree from their usual habits of indiscrimi- nate destruction & burning....His [Lordship] made many professions of gen’l good will to the U.S. – regretted the war which had been forced upon [Great Britain] by the unreasonable pretensions of the [American Government], etc.

Trumbull served as John Jay’s secretary during the peace negotiations with Britain that followed the American Revolution. Sidmouth had served as a Speaker in the House of Commons during Trumbull’s time as Jay’s secretary, and the two may have become friendly at that time. Likewise, Trumbull spent significant time in London for his painting career. When Trumbull called on Sidmouth in 1813, Sidmouth was in the beginning of his lengthy term as Britain’s Home Secretary. $3750.

Conversations with Lafayette During His Triumphal American Tour in 1824

90. Van Pelt, Peter I.: A NARRATIVE OF THE ARRIVAL OF GEN. LAFAYETTE FROM FRANCE, AT THE HOUSE OF GOV. TOMPKINS; NEAR THE QUARANTINE, STATEN ISLAND AU- GUST 15, 1824. AND HIS RECEPTION IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK ON THE FOLLOWING DAY & THENCE THROUGH- OUT THE UNITED STATES AS THE NATION’S GUEST... [manuscript title]. [New York. ca. 1850]. 28pp., approximately 9,000 words. Quarto. Light wear and soiling. Manuscript with numerous corrections and additions. Very good. Accompanied by a typewritten transcript of the original manuscript. In a cloth clamshell case, leather label.

Highly interesting reminiscences of Peter Van Pelt’s meeting and conversations with Gen. Lafayette at the commencement of the General’s triumphal return to the United States in 1824. Van Pelt (1778-1861) was the pastor of the Reformed Protestant Church at Port Richmond on Staten Island, and also served as a chaplain during the War of 1812. He includes detailed descriptions of Lafayette’s recollections of George Washington during the Revolution, as well as his own recollections of Washington and the recollections of others whom Van Pelt encountered, including Alexander Hamilton, Col. Rutgers, and Col. Sebastian Bauman. Lafayette’s life after his youthful fame in the American Revolution was a checkered one. After being a leader of the French Revolution, he fell from favor, spending years in prison and then being marginalized by Napoleon. His star rose again after Waterloo, as he became a respected elder statesman in France. In 1824, President Monroe invited him to visit America. He arrived on August 15, 1824 for what became a triumphal year-long pilgrimage throughout the United States, hailed as one of the key figures in the success of the American Revolution. When Lafayette arrived in New York, he was invited to spend his first night in America at the Staten Island home of Governor Daniel Tompkins. Reverend Van Pelt, whose church the governor attended, was called upon to welcome and engage the General, and during the course of their exchange Lafayette reminisced extensively about the War of Independence. Among the subjects touched upon in anecdotal accounts are Washington’s first awareness of Benedict Arnold’s treachery at West Point, the Battle of Monmouth and Washington’s arrest of Gen. Lee, the Siege of Yorktown (with an apparently unknown anecdote regarding a roast pig catered by Lafayette and a cannon ball that nearly took Washington’s life), the circumstances by which Lafayette came to America to join the Revolution, and his imprisonment during the French Revolution. The manuscript also includes detailed descriptions of Lafayette’s triumphal entry into New York City; his reception at Col. Rutger’s house (the door of which still proudly bore the “R” for Rebel painted on it by the British); his thoughts on the Catholic Church and his insistence on attending services at Boston’s Old South Church where Washington had worshipped; discourses on religion, democracy and government, and distrust of Jesuits; and his reunion with Governor Ogden of New Jersey, who had been a captain under him. The manuscript concludes with tran- scriptions of newspaper accounts of Lafayette’s reception in New York, Boston, and Philadelphia, and an anecdote regarding the raising of the American flag when the British evacuated New York. The title notes the inclusion of an appendix of notes regarding Major André and the surrender of Charleston, which is not present here. Van Pelt himself met Washington as a school boy on Long Island, when his teacher brought the class to be introduced, and the event is described at length. He expends similar effort on an encounter his uncle had with Washington just before the British landed at New Utrecht, as well as a meeting his father-in-law had just after, at Gowanus. A native of King’s County, Van Pelt attended Washington’s inaugura- tion in New York and later attended Columbia College, class of 1799. Washington died on the last day of that year, and Van Pelt describes how, as a divinity student, he was appointed Orator of the Day by a King’s County committee and delivered a funeral oration, later published, on the President’s death. He was later a chaplain in the War of 1812, and eventually became the minister at the Protestant Church of Port Richmond, Staten Island. According to Van Pelt’s introduction, these manuscript recollections were written at the encouragement of David Banks, an alderman of New York City, who intended to publish them, but never did. Written twenty-five years after Lafayette’s visit, the text glows with Van Pelt’s veneration of his subjects and the burnish of memory, yet there are numerous sufficiently fresh, evocative, and intriguing details in the anecdotal gathering to merit further study. $6000. A Voyage From Boston to Chile, 1821

91. [Walker, Henry]: JOURNAL KEPT ON BOARD THE SHIP IDA OF BOSTON...FROM BOSTON TOWARDS N.W. COAST OF AMERICA [manuscript title]. [Primarily at sea]. 1821-1822. [188]pp. plus two manuscript deeds, and four other sheets of manuscript laid in. Folio. Contemporary half calf and marbled boards. Rubbed at extremities, lightly soiled. Some minor scattered foxing, else text is clean and very legible. Deeds chipped and lightly foxed. Old fold lines; one reinforced along folds, the other with a hole one inch by two, affecting text. Overall, very good. In a cloth clamshell case, leather label.

A journal detailing a voyage from Boston to Chile. Walker’s log opens with the Ida’s departure from Boston harbor, December 7, 1821, “with a heavy heart and thoughts of home.” He records all the standard nautical details of his voyage: wind and weather conditions, daily mileage, speed of the ship each hour, and latitude and longitude. He also keeps track of wildlife seen at sea, including dolphins, sharks, turtles, and albatrosses and various other birds. But his journal contains more than just the weather and local wildlife. On January 20, 1822, now well south of the Equator, the Ida encounters the ship Emerald of London, which she provides with provisions, including “6 barrels of flour, 6 of beef, one of pork and two of bread and two cases of gin.” The next day’s entry reads: “Fresh gales and clear pleasant weather. At 2 P.M., found a strange man on board that had secreted himself under one of the forecastle berths he said he came from the Emerald in the second boat – he is supposed to be a convict from New Zealand.” No hint is given as to the fate of the stowaway. A few days later they pass the Falkland Islands; on February 4 they round Cape Horn. That day’s entry notes that Walker “saw a Rain Bow at midnight caused by the moon.” Ten days later they arrive in Valparaiso where they furlough for two months. They leave port on April 12, bound for San Blas, and then to Guayaquil in Ecuador, and finally back to Valparaiso on November 19, 1822. Walker uses small pointing hands throughout his journal to indicate events or details he finds particularly important. One of those hands points at the entry for November 20th: “At 11 p.m. we was sudenly [sic] alarmed by a violent shock that effected the ship as if she had struck the bottom, all hands sprung on deck and cried out the ship ashore...on reflection knew it was impossible for her to have struck any bottom in so heavy a sea as was on at the time without bilgeing the bottom in. I then thought of a wreck of a vessel but lastly I imputed it to an earth quake.” Aftershocks wrack the sea periodically for the next few days. On November 22 they get word about the effects of the quake: “They...informed us that there had been a heavy shock of an earth quake on shore and that Valparaiso had been nearly destroyed and had lost 23 lives in the fall of a Castle. St. Jago & several of the towns in the interior had suffered severely the inhabitants about the sea coast fled to the mountains for safety fearing that the sea would flow in upon them, animals of every kind on shore appeared to be affected by the shock.” The Ida stays on in Valparaiso, and Walker briefly notes on March 1, 1823: “I was informed by Capt. Scott that the ship Ida was sold this day.” There is no record of the interim period, and Walker’s entries are both brief and incomplete for a return journey to Boston. There are notes in a later hand throughout the volume which give pieces of information about Walker, and a paragraph on the last page gives an accounting of Walker’s return, indicating that Walker returned on a whaling vessel to Nantucket and thence to Boston. The last journal entry is July 6, 1823, and presumably Walker landed that day or the next. The two deeds pertain to land. They are marked as “Deed, Walker to Wood- bury,” and Nancy Walker’s share in the estate of Luke Woodbury – Copy.” The other manuscript sheets are in the same later hand as in the journal and elaborate further on Walker’s life and career. An interesting trove of information related to life at sea. $2500.

Diary of a Medal of Honor Winner, Including Virginia in 1864

92. Walling, William Henry: [TWO CIVIL WAR POCKET DIARIES, WITH ORIGINAL MECHANICAL PENCILS, BELONGING TO CAPTAIN WILLIAM HENRY WALLING]. [Various places, including locations in Virginia and North Carolina]. 1864-1865. Approximately 150pp. Original leather wallet-style bindings. Extremities rubbed. Interiors quite clean and legible. Very good.

William Henry Walling responded to Lincoln’s first call for troops, enlisting for two years with the 16th New York in May 1861 as a 1st Sergeant. The 16th was briefly engaged at First Manassas, and in the spring of the following year, saw action at West Point, Gaines’ Mill, was in reserve at Antietam, and on picket duty at Fredericksburg. The 16th was part of Burnside’s “Mud March,” and active in the Chancellorsville campaign. At West Point and Gaines’ Mill the unit suffered more than 200 casualties; Walling was wounded at Salem Church. During his service with the 16th, Walling was twice promoted, and mustered out in 1863 as a 1st lieutenant. Like many of those who served in early war units, Walling almost immediately re-enlisted, this time as a 1st lieutenant in the newly formed 142nd NY. It was in his capacity as an officer in his new unit that Walling was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for his actions at the Battle of Fort Fisher, North Carolina in December of 1864. Walling used the early pages of his 1864 diary for notes, although the first three seem to be code keys or similar. Other lists include supplies issued (clothing, knapsacks, etc.), presumably noted there until he could transfer the information to official forms. The actual journal begins on March 4, when he is still recruiting around Malone, Plattsburg, and Ogdensburgh. May 2: “Started for the seat of war this AM.” He arrived at Fort Monroe on the 8th, then headed for Bermuda Hun- dred, an area he would get to know well over the coming weeks, and immediately encountered fighting as he went looking for his regiment. On May 16 at Drewry’s Bluff, Captain Giffin was wounded and Walling took command of that company. On the back “Memoranda” pages of the calendar, Walling lists those killed and wounded on May 16, 19, and 20 at Spottsylvania; also for June 5, 15, 16, 23, and 30, July 4 and 26, and Sept. 29, when he also was wounded (again). For several days the unit was on picket duty, and entries are spotty. Receiving orders to have three days’ rations on hand and move toward Bermuda Hundred, they landed on May 31 at White House, Virginia. They remained entrenched for several days, half of the men under arms at all times. “Dull, very dull, lying in the trenches, and oh, so dirty.” Advancing on Petersburg on June 13-14th, they took some rebel fortifications including a dozen cannons. On June 24: “This forenoon the rebel picket commenced firing again – but did not keep it up long. Said by a deserter to have been ordered by Gen. Pickett to prevent his men from deserting. [ June 25] All quiet on the picket line to-day. One deserter came in tired of the war.” By the end of June he notes: “Got very tired making out muster Rolls.” On July 29 the unit received orders to be ready to move at a moment’s notice, which they did a “little after dark to the rear of Gen. Burnside who sprung his mine on the rebel Fort about 5 A.M. It was followed by the most terrific cannonading.” The only note for the next few weeks is another explosion, this one on Aug. 9: “Heard a heavy explosion about noon in the direction of City Point. Have since heard it was ammunition piled on the dock. Much damage was done – 400 men said to have been killed.” As usual, the first reports were exaggerated, although about 43 were killed instantly and another 126 or so wounded. City Point was Grant’s headquarters through this period, and facilities were built to supply the Union forces using it as a base. It was learned later that the explosion was an act of sabotage. Confederate Secret Service agent John Maxwell smuggled a bomb aboard an ammunition barge, using a clockwork mechanism to detonate it at the Union dock (what he called his “Horological Torpedo”). The 142nd spent most of the next month on picket duty. Finally on Sept. 29 he writes: “Crossed the James at Deep Bottom a little after midnight. The colored troop rout the rebel pickets. Then the 142nd led the division on the New Market road. Met the enemy near a little church – routed them. In the afternoon charged the rebel works and was repulsed. [Sept 30] Was wounded yesterday in the charge. Just...taken to the Base Hospital.” In the morning he was transferred to the hospital boat, which he left the next day and went to the Chesapeake Hospital. The remainder of the diary for 1864 is blank, except for Nov. 11 and 12, when Walling mentions serving on a court-martial board. Unfortunately, the events surrounding the Dec. 25 actions of the 142nd at Fort Fisher, North Carolina are not included. Though the “Fort Fischer Affair” was a military fiasco, Walling was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for dashing inside the fort and capturing the enemy colors. The Fort Fisher Affair was an embarrassment to the army, and ultimately led to Gen. Benjamin Butler being relieved of command. On Christmas Eve a fleet of nearly sixty ships began bombarding Fort Fisher, a haven for Confederate blockade runners and the last obstacle to Wilmington. The next day a reconnaissance party landed to see if an attack was feasible. By all accounts, these men found the fort lightly defended. Walling was able to dash into the fort and retrieve the flag, cutting it to pieces and sharing it with his comrades. New Year’s Day 1865 found the 142nd returning from Fort Fisher and Wilm- ington. He received his captain’s commission the same evening. On the 3rd they received orders to have four days’ rations in their haversacks. He also learned that the “Wilmington farce” was to be repeated – his only word on the matter in his diary. The Federal forces were able to take the fort in mid-January, and moved on to occupy Wilmington. The second Battle of Fort Fisher was not without its problems, however. On the 16th Walling notes the explosion of the fort’s main magazine, and writes: “Supposed to be the work of carelessness. Many of the 3rd brigade perished and many badly wounded. Loss now estimated about 300.” He described multiple explosions the next night, coming from the direction of Smith’s Island and Fort Carswell on the mainland. The immediate death toll was about 200 men from both sides. Once Fort Fisher and Wilmington fell, Walling spent several weeks in and out of Wilmington. He found the local civilians “destitute,” and not especially hostile to Union troops. Writing on Jan. 27, he discusses the racial situation in the area. In mid-March the 142nd was marching eight to fifteen miles or so a day. After a few days, they began to hear cannons and to speculate that it was Sherman’s col- umn, which it turned out to be. They encountered Sherman’s foragers, even as they were foraging for themselves. They were held up at Cox’s Bridge until Sherman passed. In early April they got new recruits, but the movement made drilling to get them ready nearly impossible. By the 12th they received word of Lee’s surrender: “Gen. Terry communicated with Schofield and received a dispatch that Gen. Lee surrendered his whole army to U.S. Grant on the 9th inst. Three cheers for U.S. & U.S. Thus passes away the rebellion.” The war was not over for the 142nd, however. Heading out to meet up with Sherman, they waited near Raleigh when they received word Johnston might surrender. While surrender negotiations were going on, they drilled a bit, and the assembled generals, including Sherman, reviewed the troops. On April 29 they received official word of Lincoln’s assassination and “appropriate observations” were made. The 142nd continued to maintain order, searching out guerillas and any others threatening the peace. After the surrender there were a few episodes of trouble, some involving alcohol, of which Walling seems to disapprove. By mid-June they arrived at Camp Wheeler, New York. As a captain, Walling made note of ordnance and equipment returns. The Paymaster arrived on the 28th, and the next day the unit dispersed for civilian life. A few of the pages in the back include names and hometowns of people with whom Walling probably planned to keep in touch. A snapshot of an active unit, even though the entries are short in the usual three days per page pocket diary format. A bit disappointing that he does not mention the event for which he goes down in history, but he seems to have been as disappointed with the outcome as were later historians. $4000.

A Detailed Description of the Battle of Chippawa, an Important Victory for American Arms in the War of 1812

93. [War of 1812]: [Callender, A.]: [AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED, FROM A. CALLENDER TO LEVI CALLENDER, RELATING GRAPHIC DETAILS OF THE BATTLE OF CHIPPAWA]. Buf- falo. July 10, 1814. [2]pp. Folio, on a folded folio sheet. Docketed on verso. Old fold lines. Some slight paper loss at folds, minutely affecting closing signature. Minor soiling. Very good.

This detailed letter describes the Battle of Chippawa, a key engagement in the war of 1812. Written by a participant, A. Callender, it is addressed to Levi Callender, possibly the author’s brother. Levi Callender was a member of the New York State Assembly, representing Greene County from 1816 to 1817. In the summer of 1814 the War of 1812 was deadlocked, but the Americans could see that the British would soon be reinforced by seasoned troops freed up by the defeat of Napoleon. Winfield Scott, who had worked hard to drill discipline into the American forces, decided to launch an invasion of Canada along the Ni- agara River while the British forces were still weak. The Battle of Chippawa soon resulted. The Americans, led by Maj. Gen. Jacob Brown and Brig. Gen. Winfield Scott, engaged the British troops led by Maj. Gen. Phineas Riall early on July 5, 1814. Due to a misunderstanding of uniforms, Riall assumed he was opposing grey-clad militiamen, when in truth he was fighting more disciplined regulars, the result of Scott’s drilling. After the American lines refused to retreat, he is famously reputed to have exclaimed, “Those are regulars, by God!” After a fierce exchange of fire, lasting about half an hour, Riall and the British troops fled the field, leaving many casualties behind them. Callender describes the carnage in his letter:

I just drop a few words to you relating to our arms, our Army under the command of Maj. Gen. Brown, Brig. Gen. Scott & Ripley. Crossed the Niagara on the eve of the 2nd and on the third Fort Erie was surrendered without opposition in which were about 150 men. On the next day our Army passed down the Niagara met with some little opposition at Black Creek about 12 miles down river, but the British retired to Chippeway where they had a strong and well fortified position. On the 5th Inst. they marched out of Chippeway and met our Army about two miles and a half above, where Gen. Scott’s Brigade, the Seneca Indians, and the Pennsylvania Volunteers engaged them and after a severe engagement of near two hours the British were obliged to retire leaving as report says three hundred dead and wounded on the field. Our loss in killed is stated at 71, wounded 150, many severely. All the wounded capable of being removed have been conveyed to this place and it is a shocking sight to behold. Some with one leg, some with one arm, many shot through the body. Arms, legs and in fact every part of body mangled. One was tomahawked in five places through the scull [sic] was brought here alive. Likewise three that were scalped, all save one of which have since died. The British have since evacuated Chippeway, our Army in pursuit &c. The groans of the wounded and dying are constantly sounding in our ears. We have an Officer in our house which was shot through the body which we expect will not survive many days....I write this in great haste knowing you would be anxious to hear from this frontier.

A graphic, firsthand description of a key action in the War of 1812. $5500.

Lafayette Seeks Assistance in Editing Washington’s Papers

94. [Washington, George]: Lafayette, Gilbert, Marquis de: [AUTO- GRAPH LETTER IN FRENCH, SIGNED, FROM THE MAR- QUIS DE LAFAYETTE, REGARDING THE PUBLICATION OF WASHINGTON’S PAPERS BY JARED SPARKS]. Chateau La Grange [outside Paris]. July 14, 1833. [1]p. plus integral address leaf. Quarto, on a folded folio sheet. Old fold lines. Small loss to address leaf from wax seal, not affecting address. Small closed tear to inner margin. Minor soiling. Very good. In a folio-sized red half morocco clamshell case, spine gilt.

The Marquis de Lafayette writes to Jean Louis Eugène Lerminier, a professor at the College de France in Paris, regarding Jared Sparks’ research on George Washington’s papers in France, and the translating and publication thereof. In his letter Lafayette asks if Prof. Lerminier would oversee the work of translating Washington’s papers for a French edition of the book. Lerminier was a lawyer and legal scholar who took a professorship at the University in 1831. Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette (1757- 1834), was a hero of the American Revolution, serving as a general under George Washington and working to increase French support for the American cause. After his return to France he served as the head of the National Guard (1789-91), but had to flee after the Jacobins took control and began the bloody business that was the French Revolution. His son was sent to America, as a ward of George Washington, but Lafayette and the rest of his family spent five years in prison, until they were released by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1797. Lafayette then settled at Chateau La Grange, forty miles southeast of Paris, where he lived until his death. He returned to the United States only once, in 1824-25, where he toured each state and was greeted as a returning hero everywhere he went. A translation reads, in part:

I come with confidence, my dear doctor, to talk with you about a matter that is very dear to me, since it regards the memory of my fraternal friend, Wash- ington. A distinguished writer from the United States, Mr. Sparks of Boston, had undertaken to put his papers in order and to publish his voluminous correspondence. All the archives of the central government, of the various states, of citizens, have been opened to him....He is a tireless and conscientious worker. While he was here I put him in touch with Mr. Guisot, who undertook to look after the translation of that correspondence of Washington and of the archives that relate to it. But then the July Revolution came, followed by the Ministry, and above all, the aversion and fear of the American doctrines – Mr. Guisot has doubtless forgotten Mr. Sparks and his obliging offers, and you will see by the enclosed letter that Mr. Sparks himself feels that Mr. Guisot is not the appropriate man to watch over the great monument to the American Revolu- tion....Could you, my dear friend, take charge of this great undertaking, not to do the translations yourself – which would take too much of your time – but to oversee them, revise them, to reduce what seems to you too lengthy, in a word to be a supervisor of that French edition. The first volumes begin with the Seven Years’ War. They will then deal with the Revolution, the Convention, the Administration, and will discuss the long period of time when Washington played so great and fine a role.

Sparks, a noted historian and biographer, first published his biography of Wash- ington in twelve volumes in 1834-37. It was later issued in abridged versions and reprinted many times. He also wrote biographies of Gouverneur Morris and Ben- jamin Franklin, and served as president of Harvard University (1849-53). An interesting letter by Lafayette, illuminating his concern for the preservation of the memory of his good friend, George Washington. This letter last sold for $4,950 at Christie’s in December 1989. $7500.

Where to Bury Our Nation’s Founder: His Grieving Widow Writes President Adams

95. [Washington, Martha]: [Washington, George]: Lear, Tobias: [TWO LETTERS WRITTEN BY TOBIAS LEAR TO PRESIDENT JOHN ADAMS, ONE AS A DRAFT FOR MARTHA WASHINGTON, REGARDING GEORGE AND MARTHA WASHINGTON’S POSSIBLE BURIAL IN THE CAPITOL]. Mount Vernon. Dec. 31, 1799 and Jan. 1, 1800. [3]pp. total. Quarto. Old fold lines. Each letter with a later paper strip on right margin of verso (evidently where each was once tipped into an album). Fine. In a half morocco box, with two cloth chemises.

Two remarkable letters in the hand of Tobias Lear, George Washington’s personal secretary at the end of his life and executor of his estate, written to President John Adams concerning George Washington’s final resting place. The first is the draft of a letter from Martha Washington, evidently composed by Lear, while the second is a letter from Lear to Adams. Washington died at Mount Vernon on Dec. 14, 1799 after a brief illness, and was buried there on the 18th. It was not until the following day that news reached Congress, sitting in Philadelphia. A movement was immediately begun to propose that Washington be buried in the yet-to-be built new Capitol building in the Dis- trict of Columbia, and on Dec. 23, John Marshall reported several resolutions from both the House and Senate requesting this to President Adams. It fell to Adams to make the delicate request to the grieving widow, which he did in a letter of Dec. 24th, probably received by her on the 28th or 29th. Washington’s will, however, requested that he be buried at his beloved Mount Vernon. Martha Washington wished to be buried with her husband when her time came, and was concerned about the prospect for that eventuality if the General’s body was interred in the Capitol building. Not surprisingly, as these documents reveal, Martha Washington turned to To- bias Lear to assist her in drafting a reply. Lear (1762-1816) is best known for the time he spent as General Washington’s personal secretary (1786-93 and 1798-99). He formed a close relationship with Washington and his family – he was married successively to two of Washington’s nieces. Upon Washington’s death, Lear was the executor of Washington’s estate and spent nearly two years sorting out the General’s affairs. He was someone Martha Washington could trust to address the difficult question put to her, balancing her husband’s stated wishes, the will of the country as expressed by Adams, and her own feelings as a grieving spouse. The second letter is Lear’s retained copy of an accompanying explanatory letter from Lear to Adams, elaborating on the sentiments expressed in Mrs. Washington’s letter. The first document, a letter to President Adams dated Dec. 31, 1799, was likely written by Lear, and revised in consultation with Mrs. Washington; it is a working draft with numerous deletions and corrections, and various phrases crossed out in favor of others. It conveys her profound sense of loss, even while it expresses her gratitude for all the “tributes of respect & veneration” which Adams and others have paid to her husband’s memory. Though she seems reluctant, she implies that perhaps Washington would have wanted to be buried in the Capitol as a final act of public service. Items which have been struck out in the manuscript are here indicated in brackets:

Sir, While I feel with [the] keenest anguish, the late dispensation of Divine Providence, I cannot be insensible to the [respectful] mournful [and respectful] tributes of respect & veneration which are paid to the memory of my dear deceased Husband. And as his best services and anxious wishes were always [employed in promotion] devoted to the welfare and happiness of his country; [it affords] to know that they were truly appreciated and gratefully remembered affords me [the higher service of consolation] no inconsiderable consolation. Taught by the great example, which I have so long had before me, never to oppose my private wishes to the public will, I must consent to the request made by Congress, which you have had the goodness to transmit to me. And in doing this, I need not, – I cannot say what a sacrifice of individual feeling I make to a sense of public duty. With [grateful unfeigned thanks for] grateful acknowledgements and unfeigned thanks for the personal respect and evidence of condolence expressed by Congress and yourself [and with unfeigned thanks for your expression of condolence] I remain, very respectfully, Sir, yr. mo. obd. most hu. sr. M. Washington.

Lear’s accompanying letter to Adams, here present in his retained draft, is dated Jan. 1, 1800. It emphasizes that Mrs. Washington’s greatest concern is that she be interred with her husband. Lear feels confident that this is possible and reiterates his assurances to President Adams:

Sir, I have received, by the hands of Mr. Shaw, the letter which you did me the honor to write on the 24th of December; and have communicated to the Family at this place, your kind assurances of regard and sympathy; for which they request you will accept their grateful and respectful acknowledgements. For the feelings which you have had the goodness to express for my loss, I am truly grateful; and it shall be the pride of my life to shew that I was not unworthy of the confidence and affection of my revered and beloved friend. After a severe struggle, Mrs. Washington has yielded to the request made by Congress, as you will find from her letter. Having passed upwards of forty years with the Partner of her Heart, it required more than common fortitude to consent to an act which, possibly, might deprive her of almost the only consolation she has had since his decease – namely, that her remains would be deposited in the same tomb with his. Knowing her feelings on this occasion, I have ventured to give her the firmest assurance of my belief that the removal of the General’s body would not deprive her of this consolation, which is so dear to a mind afflicted like hers. And I trust I shall not be disappointed in this belief. My best respects attend Mrs. Adams, with the sincerest wish that you both enjoy many returns of this day, with as much health and uninterrupted happiness as can fall the lot of Mortals. With the highest respect, I have the honor Tobias Lear.

Adams and Congress did indeed accept the principle that Martha Washington could be buried with her husband in the Capitol, and plans proceeded for a mau- soleum in the form of a pyramid, with a base one hundred feet square. In the fall of 1800 the House passed a bill appropriating $200,000 for the project, but the idea had now become a political football between mainly northern Federalists who favored the idea, and Republicans who paid lip service to honoring Washington but questioned both the expense and the glorification of one individual, no matter how revered. The appropriation finally squeaked through the Senate by one vote in March 1801. The new Jefferson administration then proceeded to do nothing about it, and the project died. Not definitely, however. The idea was revived at various points, especially around the centenary of Washington’s birth in 1832, when there was again a spirited debate and discussions with the Washington family. The matter was finally settled once and for all by the interment of Washington in the new tomb at Mount Vernon in 1837. A remarkable pair of letters, from those closest to George Washington, immediately after his death, deciding the final resting place of our first president and Founding Father. Kenneth R. Bowling, ed., Establishing Congress (Columbus, 2005). See the excellent essay by Rubil Morales-Vazquez, “Redeeming a Sacred Pledge: The Plans to Bury George Washington in the Nation’s Capitol,” pp.148-89. $85,000.

With a Wonderful Drawing of a Conestoga Wagon Setting Out to the Rockies

96. Wilson, William: [TWO AUTOGRAPH LETTERS, SIGNED, FROM WILLIAM WILSON TO HIS FAMILY IN SCOTLAND, OUTLINING HIS UPCOMING OVERLAND TRIP AND HIS EVENTUAL SETTLING]. St. Louis & Iowa. April 3, 1843 and April 17, 1848. 6pp., each letter docketed on verso of second leaf. Quarto, on a folded folio sheet. Old fold lines. First letter reinforced at a few folds. Some minor loss to sections of folds on second leaf, not affecting text. Minor soiling. Second letter with slight loss at a few folds, affecting a few letters of text. Some light staining and soiling. Very good.

A wonderful pair of autograph letters from Scottish emigre William Wilson, written to his mother and brother back in Glasgow. In the first letter, dated April 23, 1843, Wilson relates his plans for the next year and a half, working as a carpenter for the American Fur Company traveling up the Missouri and into the Rocky Mountains. At the top of the first letter is a charming drawing of a man driving six oxen pulling a Conestoga wagon. Rich in small details, the sketch also depicts a gravestone by the side of the trail, a familiar sight to travelers on the Great Plains. After the opening family pleasantries, Wilson writes:

I have engaged as Carpenter for 15 months to a coarse but healthy life. I am going up the Rocky Mountains with the American Fur Company. I will only have $10 pr month but I am takeing up a lott of jewelry, beads and ribands to traid with the Indians on my own account, by which I expect to make a little. The company will start on the Omega steamer tomorrow, we will call on all the different towns and forts on the Missouri River, saill up as farr as it is navigable that is 5 miles up the Yellow-Stone River. About 2000 miles then on mules I expect above one thousand miles through the different Indian Nations, feed on nothing but bufflo meet 3 times a day. Traid is very dull in St. Louis, if it is not better when I come down I will either come home or go to South America.

During Wilson’s trip up the Missouri on the Omega, his most renowned fellow passenger was naturalist John James Audubon. Indians fired on the boat, during which time a Scottish passenger who was asleep in his berth was awakened in terror when the bullet entered his cabin. Could that Scot have been William Wilson? As it turns out, instead of heading back to St. Louis or down to South America, Wilson chose to settle on the fertile plains of Iowa. The second letter in this pair is dated Sept. 17, 1848 and is addressed from Richland Township in Jackson County, Iowa. Wilson, now married and a wheat farmer, regrets that he has not been able to pull together the funds to bring his mother and brother over from Scotland. The wet weather of the past year has caused wheat rust, ruining the crops and greatly affecting Wilson’s finances.

As for ourselves we have been thinking of trying to borrow some money from some of the speculators, as they are all speculators about here, when they have a few 100 dollars past them, but how can I, when I know not how to pay them. My wheat crop the only cash article of produce, in this country, has been a compliet failure this year....it looked promising till the heads were about half filled when it came on a very wet spell, followed by heavy dews at night, which caused it to be (what we call) struck with the rust, so that the head did not fill any more, and it was not worth cutting....We will have about 25 [bushels] of wheat for flour, as much corn meal, potatoes, and pork as we cane make use off. I expect we will have three milk cows early next spring, besides the 10 acres I have put in Fall wheat I have other 25 ready for Spring crop. If you can possibly raise the means try and come early next spring, as I cannot promice to send anything till after next harvest, and then only if the crops is favourable....I have 20 dollars owing me and I am 18 dollars in debt. I have a few jobs for wet days at fixing waggons, which will gett what little cloathing we need.

Despite the debt and cost and hardships, Wilson remains hopeful that somehow his family will find the money to cross the Atlantic and join him in the Midwest:

I thought of building a new house this winter but I am afraid I will not have time as I would like to make and hawl about 2,000 rails for fencing before next spring, however I could soon put an addition to the log cabin which would make it both commodious and comfortable for you and I promise that we will do all that lies in our power to make mother and any one you wish to bring along with you as comfortable as we can.

He closes with a post script: “I hope this will be the last letter I will need to write to you, however write soon and let me know how things are going on and when I might expect you here.” A wonderful pair of letters describing the hardships faced on the midwestern frontier and illustrated with a splendid firsthand drawing of life on the trail West. Letters from the Overland Trail in 1843 are of great rarity, and the illustration which accompanies it one of the few such. $8750.