Rare books from Main Street Fine Books & Manuscripts, ABAA

N.p. [Caracas, Venezuela]: Editoral Lectura Caracas, 1962: Editoral Lectura Caracas. Hardcover. 4to. Red cloth, pictorial dust jacket. 102pp. Numerous color illustrations, line drawings. Near fine/very good. Mild jacket edgewear, with couple small edge chips. Tight, clean, attractive first edition of this heavily pictorial overview. The renowned orchid expert and orchid photographer (1905-88) handsomely inscribes and signs the title page in black fineline to another noted photographer: "To Archie Lieberman / With the author's warmest saludos -- / [stylized signature] / Caracas May 1967." ARCHIE LIEBERMAN (1926-2008) is a noted Chicago photographer and author of "Farm Boy." Signed copies of this title are rarely encountered.

Philadelphia: James B. Rodgers, 1864. Paperback. 16mo. Pale red wrappers. 36pp. Very good. Overall a tight and attractive copy, though a bit of paper loss to rear wrapper. Reports on "Our Navy Work" (including a prayer meeting on the Monitor Onondaga), "Western New York," "Maryland," "The Shenandoah" and "Army of Potomac." The U.S. Christian Commission was a forerunner of the Red Cross.

British airship commander, the first to use a British airship on patrol in World War One and the first to make a transatlantic airship flight in 1919. ALS, 2pp (single leaf), 4½" X 7½", Cardington, England, 1930 February 25. Addressed to the librarian of Chicago's Museum of Science and Industry. Near fine. Single original mailing fold. Blind-embossed crest. Boldly penned in blue fountain pen from the "Royal Airship Works," Scott transmits "the 'Royal Aeronautical Society' Journal, of November 1929 [not present], which include a copy of the lecture I gave before the Society, on the subject of 'Handling & Mooring of Airships'...." Handsomely signed in full. Scott was killed eight months later in the spectacular crash of the airship R 101 in northern France -- which signaled the end of Britain's interest in dirigibles. Extremely scarce in this form, especially with dirigible content.

Washington, D.C.: Department of State, 1861. Paperback. 8vo. Wrappers. 15pp. Good. Wrappers age toned, else fine. Close-cropped clipped signature of CSA diplomat John Slidell (1793-1871) tipped to front wrapper. Circa 1900 catalogue slip affixed to top of front cover. NEVINS I, 274.

Mark Twain's son-in-law (wife of Clara Clemens) was a Russian-born pianist and conductor who studied under Anton Rubenstein and Theodor Leschetizky; from 1918 until his death he led the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. AMuQS, 1p, heavy stock 3½" X 2½" card, n.p., n.y. [1902]. Near fine. Light, even age toning. On a 2½" X 1" slip tipped to the center of this heavy card, Gabrilowitsch neatly writes out three measures of music, identifying it above as "Chopin, Concerto." Below the slip, on the heavy card he signs boldly. Quite attractive and very uncommon in this form.

New York: Wm. C. Bryant & Co, 1862. Paperback. 8vo. Wrappers. 30pp. Good. Internally sound (some soiling to several pages), but outer wrappers soiled and a bit edgeworn. At a banquet honoring British member of Parliament Bright (1811-89), both Bright and his 1846 comrade-in-arms in repealing the corn laws, Cobden (1804-65), offer speeches supporting the Union cause. First edition. SABIN 14037.

New York: Horizon Press, 1959. Hardcover. Introduction by Harold Rosenberg. Folio. Black cloth with silver stamping, pictorial dust jacket. (Ca. 150pp). Numerous illustrations. Very good/good plus. Jacket edgeworn and a bit rubbed, with several archivally closed (on verso) edge tears and one wide chip running along the bottom edge of the front panel (triangular, 8½" wide X 1¼" at left side narrowing to ¼" at right side) -- fairly attractive overall despite obvious flaws. A tight, nice first edition of this scarce first photo collection by the reknowned New York and Chicago photographer (1903-91), who pioneered abstract expressionism in photography. Though not so noted, from the collection of noted Midwest photographer Archie Lieberman (1926-2008), author of "Farm Boy." A handsome copy of this desireable title.

The only child of George Washington's long-time personal secretary Tobias Lear was actually born in the early "White House" in Philadelphia, and Washington was his godfather; his mother died when he was two (Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton were among her pallbearers), and he went on to become a successful attorney in Washington, DC; Gilbert Stuart painted a well-known portrait of him. Outstanding AMS, 2pp (recto and verso), 7 3/4" X 12 3/4", Portsmouth, NH, 1817 August 20. Very good. Three light horizontal original folds; mild age toning and slight edgewear. This attractively and boldly penned document is titled "Christmas Hymn," and contains the full text of a Christmas song whose original we have not been able to determine. Begins, "Hail holy morn, upon whose beams / A thousand radiant Seraphs rode, / Bright from the Sapphire throne of God. / Bursting upon the Shepherd's dreams.- / While poised upon the glittering wing, / A thousand choral voices sing, / Glad tidings of great joy we bring,… Read More

Original space-flown flag (5½" X 4¼") and cloth patch (4¼" X 4 3/4") presented on a 12 3/4" X 16 3/4" cream colored heavy stock, in turn mounted to a 16" X 20" pale blue mat board. Very good. Bit of slight soiling. The cream colored stock bears glossy photographs on the upper left (takeoff) and lower right (landing) corners. At lower left is a circular flute-edged NASA gold foil seal, and the space-flown flag is mounted at upper right -- consisting of the State Seal of Illinois, with the word "ILLINOIS" below, against a white background. The printed text cited above appears immediately below this flag, and the crew patch below this text. JOHN YOUNG (1930-2018) signs boldly in black ink to the left of the patch, while ROBERT L. CRIPPEN (born 1937) signs to the right. The Columbia STS-1 flight was called by NASA "The boldest test flight in history." It was the first orbital flight of the Space Shuttle program, lasting 54½ hours and orbiting the Earth 37 times; commanded by John Young and piloted by… Read More

When France's King Henry II died in 1559 and his sickly 15-year-old heir Francis II followed the next year, the throne went to 10-year-old Charles Maximilian, who became Charles IX; his mother, Catherine de' Medici, dominated his reign, which is noted for the Wars of Religion and for the infamous St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre of 1572. Partial vellum DS, 1p, 11" X 8", n.p., n.y. [September 1570 lightly pencilled in another hand]. Very good. Folds and mild bit of wear evident, but overall handsome and boldly penned. Though penned in difficult early French (which is to modern French what Elizabethan English is to modern English) and not accompanied by a translation, this is a probate approval legal document. Below six lines of finely penned legalese, Charles signs at left with his usual enormous signature in a different and somewhat lighter ink. Below this appears another sentence in a large flamboyant hand (which appears to refer to Provence) and huge ornate signature of an official. This atmospheric… Read More

London: C. Roworth, 1802. Hardcover. 12mo. Modern brown cloth rebind with burgundy leather spine label. 407pp. Very good. Modern binding of course fine and pristine; some age toning about the edges of the title page; original text block clean and quite handsome. First edition, tight and handsome. Ritson (1752-1803) was an eccentric but highly-regarded English antiquarian whose many collections of early texts includes such volumes as "A Select Collection of English Songs" (1783) and "Ancient Songs and Ballads from the Reign of King Henry the Second to the Revolution" (1792), "Robin Hood: A Collection of All the Ancient Poems, Songs, and Ballads, Now Extant Relative to That Celebrated English Outlaw" (1795). This unique copy of "Bibliographia Poetica" belonged to the American poet, editor and essayist JAMES RUSSELL LOWELL (1819-91), with his signature and the year "1843" boldly penned in brown ink at the top of the title page. Lowell makes three interesting editorial comments in the margins. On page… Read More

Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1929. Hardcover. 4to, Original blue buckram. xxxv, 785pp. Very good. Some faint pencil underlining shadows in the opening text pages; rear inner hinge a tad delicate, but sound. First edition, tight and nice, of this famed bibliography. Editors W.W. Francis, R.H. Hill and Archibald Mallach open this classic, explaining this collection and their method in approaching it, after which in his introduction, "The Collecting of a Library," Osler relates the history of his collection. 7,787 items are described -- an essential reference and scarce in first edition form. This copy bears the handsome custom bookplate on the front pastedown and ownership signature (dated "Chicago / 1930") of ELMER A. SMITH, a noted Chicago attorney and Illinois Central Railroad solicitor general who presented two papers about Osler, one titled "Sir William Osler as seen by a layman." Lovely copy of this quite uncommon work and bearing an appropriate connection.

New London, CT: Wm. Bolles & Co, 1850. Hardcover. Miniature (2" X 1.75"). Full calf, gilt spine lettering. 192pp. Frontispiece woodcut, woodcut illustrations. Very good. Mild bit of edgewear; some slightly irregular and closely trimmed pages. Tight, lovely copy of this American Tom Thumb Bible, a popular category of miniature book in the early 19th century. This is a later printing of the edition that W. & J. Bolles first brought out around 1831. The woodcut illustrations are charmingly primitive. Original leather binding is in exceptionally sharp, handsome condition, with spine lettering bright.

New York: Harper & Brothers, 1851. Hardcover. Small 8vo. Original pebble-grained red cloth with gilt spine lettering and blind-embossed rules and front board publisher's device. xxiii, 635pp, (6pp ads). Very good. Internally tight and unrestored, showing only mild sporadic age toning and occasional light foxing; binding is sound and decent, with exposed tips; somewhat rough spine has had mild and discreet archival restoration; pencilled 1852 ownership signature on inner flyleaf. A tight, presentable and quite handleable first U.S. edition, first issue, of this giant of 19th century literature. One of only 3000 U.S. copies, the American edition (preceded by the 2-volume English version one month prior) met with little fanfare, and supposedly many unsold copies were destroyed in an 1854 warehouse fire. Original terra cotta endpapers. Despite wear this is a respectable copy, appropriately priced. Housed in a handsome custom red cloth clamshell case with gilt spine lettering. BAL 13664.

New York: Random House, 1954. Hardcover. 4to. Glossy pictorial paper over boards, pictorial dust jacket. (Ca. 75pp). Extensive color illustrations, pictorial endpapers. Very good/very good. Rear jacket flap shows inoffensive small abrasion (from price sticker removal?); mild jacket edgewear. A tight, attractive true first edition of this modern classic, with all proper points. Best of all, this special copy bears choice autograph additions: The first adaptation of this tale to the screen was a 1970 made-for-t.v. animated special directed by Chuck Jones and produced by Theodore Geisel (Dr. Seuss) -- narrated by famed character actor HANS CONRIED (1917-82), who also voiced Horton and Dr. Hoovie, with Jane kangaroo voiced by JUNE FORAY (1917-2017). Tipped to blank leaf facing the title page, a unique frontispiece, are a pair of fine, matching heavy stock 5" X 3" cards. Hans Conried signs the card at top beautifully in blue fineline, dating it 1 May 1968 at upper right, and below this June Foray signs… Read More