The Isle Of Pines (1668): and An Essay in Bibliography by Worthington Chauncey FordNeville, Henry
General
The Isle Of Pines (1668): and An Essay in Bibliography by Worthington Chauncey Ford
Neville, Henry
Voyages, Imaginary -- Early works to 1800
The pamphlet was sold, I am told, for fourteen shillings,{1} and resold
shortly after to a New York bookseller for fifty-five dollars. He was
attracted by the imprint, which read in full, "London, by S. G. for
Allen Banks and Charles Harper at the Flower-Deluice near Cripplegate
Church." The general appearance of the pamphlet was unlike even the
moderately good issues of the English press, and the "by S. G." not only
did not answer to any London printer of the day, except Sarah Griffin,
"a printer in the Old Bailey,"{2} but was in form and usage exactly what
could be found on a number of the issues of the press of Samuel Green,
of Cambridge, Massachusetts.
1 The sale took place July 30, 1917.
2 Only once does her name occur in the Term Catalogues,
when in February, 1673, the prints George Buchanan'
Psalmorum Davidis Paraphrasis Poetica, which told for two
shillings a copy. Samuel Gellibrand was not a printer but a
bookseller, with a shop "at the Ball in St. Paul's
Churchyard."
On comparing the first page of the text of his purchase with the same
page of an acknowledged London issue of the "Isle of Pines" [7]in the
John Carter Brown Library,{1} the bookseller concluded that the two were
entirely different publications.
An expert cataloguer connected with one of the large auction firms of
New York then took up the subject. After a study of the tract he
became assured that it could only have been printed by Samuel Green,
of Cambridge, and he brought forward facts and comparisons which seemed
conclusive and for which he deserves much credit. It was a clever bit of
bibliographical work. With such an endorsement as to rarity and
quality the pamphlet was again put to the test of the auction room. The
cataloguer stated his case in sufficient fulness of detail and the
first page of the text was reproduced.{2} Naturally the discovery sent
a little thrill through the mad-house of bibliography. The tract was
knocked down for $400 to a bookseller from Hartford, Connecticut,
presumably for some local collection. The incident would have passed
from memory had it not been for one of those accidents to which even the
amateur bibliographer is liable.
1 No. 5 in the Bibliography, page 93, infra.
2 Nuggets of American History, American Art Association,
November 19, 1917. The Isle of Pines was lot 142, and was
introduced by the words, "Cambridge Press in New England."
The catalogue was prepared by Mr. F. W. Coar.
In the bitter days of the winter of 1917-18 the working force of the
Massachusetts Historical Society was contracted into one room--the
Dowse Library--where was at least a semblance [8]of warmth in the open
fireplace.
THE DOWSE COPIES
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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