The Life and Remarkable Adventures of ISRAEL R. POTTER [Illustration: “OLD CHAIRS TO MEND.”] ISRAEL R. POTTER _The autobiography of America’s first tragic hero--the basis of Herman Melville’s famous novel_ _Introduction by Leonard Kriegel_ [Illustration: The American Experience Series] CORINTH AE 16 $1.25 LIFE AND REMARKABLE ADVENTURES OF ISRAEL R. POTTER “Shortly after his return in infirm old age to his native land, a little narrative of his adventures, forlornly published on sleazy gray paper, appeared among the peddlers, written, probably not by himself, but taken down from his lips by another. But like the crutch-marks of the cripple by the Beautiful Gate, this blurred record is now out of print.” So Herman Melville, on June 17th, 1854, described this original volume in the Dedication (_To His Highness, The Bunker Hill Monument_) of his fictionalized version of Potter’s autobiography. The present edition is a faithful republication of Potter’s own story, reset from the Henry Trumbull printing in 1824. The reproduction of the original title page and frontispiece illustration are from a copy in the New York Public Library and used with their kind permission. Also reproduced is the title page and frontispiece illustration of the J. Howard printing in the same year. In an Appendix, the final chapters of Herman Melville’s _Israel Potter_ have been reproduced from the 1855 first edition printing. LIFE and REMARKABLE ADVENTURES of ISRAEL R. POTTER _Introduction by Leonard Kriegel_ [Illustration: The American Experience Series] CONSULTING EDITOR: HENRY BAMFORD PARKES CORINTH BOOKS NEW YORK LEONARD KRIEGEL is an Instructor of English at The City College of New York. He has edited a book on the political philosophy of the Founding Fathers which is soon to be published and has written a number of stories and articles. Library of Congress Catalog Card No. 62-10046 Copyright © 1962 Corinth Books, Inc. THE AMERICAN EXPERIENCE SERIES Published by Corinth Books Inc. 32 West Eighth Street, New York 11, N. Y. Distributed by The Citadel Press 222 Park Avenue South, New York 3, N. Y. _Printed in the U.S.A._ NOBLE OFFSET PRINTERS, INC. NEW YORK 3, N. Y. INTRODUCTION