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The Will of General George Washington: to Which is Annexed

The Will of General George Washington: to Which is Annexed, a Schedule of His Property, Directed to be Sold

WASHINGTON, George (1732-1799) (6 3/4 x 3 3/5 inches). First edition. [A4] B-C4 [D4]. 16 ff. [1]-32. 32 pp. Title, Will, Schedule of Property. Contemporary ink manuscript date of "1800" added to title. Original plain blue paper wrappers folded and stab-stitched with later ink manuscript titling on front wrapper, within a black cloth chemise and black morocco clamshell box Exceedingly rare first edition of George Washington's will, published in his home state of Virginia, in its original wrappers. This is the document which emancipated Washington's slaves. "Upon the decease of my wife, it is my will and desire, that all the Slaves which I hold in my own right shall receive their freedom." - George Washington, p.4 This example of the first printing of the first edition of George Washington's will is exceedingly rare, especially so in its original publisher's wrappers, as here. "In the name of God, amen. I, George Washington, of Mount-Vernon, a Citizen of the United States, and lately President of the same, do make, ordain and declare this instrument." [p.3] Washington's will is said to have been prepared and written by Washington alone on July 9th, 1799, without the consultation of any "professional character." Washington would die only six months later, and his executors would present his will for probate at the County Court of Fairfax. The clerk of courts George Deneale recorded the will there on January 23rd, 1800. Shortly after, this pamphlet was published in Alexandria, detailing Washington's wishes. The most notable of its contents is certainly Washington's second codicil, which directs the people enslaved who were not part of his wife's dowry to be freed upon the death of his wife, Martha. It also provides for those "who from old age or bodily infirmities, and others who on account of their infancy, will be unable to support themselves." [p.4] Martha Washington did not wait for her own passing to free the people enslaved; she signed deeds of manumission for them in December of 1800. The people whom Washington enslaved officially became free on January 1st, 1801. It was not until 1810 that appraisers filed their report at the office of the clerk of the Fairfax County Court. The executors held public sales of the livestock at Mount Vernon before Martha Washington's death in 1802, and continued selling the remainder of the listed property for years afterward. Final settlement of the Washington estate was not achieved until June 21, 1847. As to the rest of Washington's will, it contains "detailed arrangements for the dispersal of Washington's property to his relatives and friends, including the Marquis de Lafayette (who received a pair of steel pistols taken from the British during the Revolution), and his nephew, Bushrod Washington, who took possession of Washington's personal papers and library. The schedule of property gives a detailed accounting of Washington's real holdings at the time of his death. The will reveals how wealthy Washington was, whose estate had a value of over a million dollars, making him one of the richest men in the country." The Alexandria pamphlet was followed in the same year by several other printings in various US cities, including a more common, and shorter, Boston edition, and Charleston, Philadelphia, New York, and Worcester. The Alexandria edition is the true first publication and has eight more pages than the Boston. ESTC W29703. Evans 39000. Howes W145. Reese, Celebration of My Country 145. Sabin 101752.
  • $20,000
  • $20,000
DR. OX'S EXPERIMENT

DR. OX’S EXPERIMENT, and other Stories

Verne, Jules With Numerous Illustrations. London: Sampson Low, Marston, Low, & Searle, 1874. Original deep red pebble-grain cloth pictorially decorated in black and gilt, board edges beveled, all page edges gilt. First English Edition (and first fully-illustrated edition in the English language) of these four tales, three of which are among Verne's earliest: "A Drama in the Air" (appeared in a periodical in 1851, his second story), "Master Zacharius" (1854, his fourth), and "A Winter amid the Ice" (1855, his fifth). Also included (of course) is "Dr. Ox's Experiment" from 1872 -- plus "Ascent of Mont Blanc" by Jules's brother Paul Verne. "Dr. Ox's Experiment" is a great tale: Doctor Ox and his assistant Ygene come to the small quiet community of Quiquendone located in Flanders. He promises to light this town with a network of oxyhydric gas pipes. During the construction of this network, the quiet community becomes quite excitable, to the point where they are ready to go to war against a neighboring community. But what is the cause of this change in the nature of the good people of Quiquendone? Perhaps it is something in the air. .and so is "Master Zacharius". As a clockmaker in Geneva Switzlerland begins dying, all of the timepieces that he has crafted begin failing as though a part of his soul became a part of each of them. Soon only one of his timepieces remains functional, and for the clockmaker to gain possession of it, he must give his daughter's hand in marriage to a man who works for the devil himself. [quotes from Kytasaari] This fully-illustrated London edition came out in November 1874 (with "Master Zacharias" misspelled thus on front cover and spine); the gilt vignette on the spine shows the grinning character "Time," from the story "Master Zacharius." This edition was preceded by a small unillustrated edition by Osgood of Boston, and by a semi-illustrated edition titled FROM THE CLOUDS TO THE MOUNTAINS by Gill of Boston; following this British edition, in mid-1875 Osgood came out with a fully-illustrated American edition, using these British sheets. This is a copy bound without an ad catalogue at the rear, in deep red cloth (we have also handled copies in brown, blue, green, and purple -- no precedence). Its condition is very good-plus (front endpaper slightly cracked, very minor wear at the extremities, but very little other wear, and with the cover gilt brighter than usual); typically for deep red cloth, the spine is slightly faded. This is a rather uncommon edition, with a terrific binding design. Taves & Michaluk V012; Mistichelli et al. A34; Myers 16. Provenance: frontispiece recto signature and small inkstamp of Jno. A Goold.
  • $1,450
  • $1,450
MICAH CLARKE. His Statement

MICAH CLARKE. His Statement

Doyle, A. Conan [a fine, bright copy] As made to his Three Grandchildren Joseph, Gervas, & Reuben during the Hard Winter of 1734. London: Longmans, Green, and Co., 1889. 2 pp undated ads + 16 pp ads dated January 1889. Original very dark blue cloth, beveled edges. First Edition, consisting of only 1000 copies. This historical novel was Doyle's third book -- his first hardcover one, preceded only by the two wrappered titles A STUDY IN SCARLET and THE MYSTERY OF CLOOMBER. MICAH CLARKE was quite successful, running through several quick printings, though Doyle had had to take it to numerous publishers before Andrew Lang at Longmans finally accepted it. [Doyle] brought together his knowledge of the seventeenth century and supplemented it with months of research on detail. Then, at intervals of tramping medical rounds or studying optics at the Portsmouth Eye Hospital, he wrote the book in three months. Now the power of MICAH CLARKE, aside from its best action scenes -- the bloodhounds on Salisbury Plain, the brush with the King's Dragoons, the fight in Wells Cathedral, the blinding battle-piece at Sedgemoor -- still lies in its characterization: that other imagination, the use of homely detail, by which each character grows into life before ever a shot is fired in war [Carr]. This copy has the "standard" ad catalogue dated January 1889; there exist copies with leftover catalogues dated as early as June 1888, but the book was not actually published until February 1889. This is quite simply a fine, bright copy -- essentially no soil or wear, original patterned endpapers clean and intact. Although surprisingly not a scarce title, we have had no better copy in our ca. 45 years in business. Green & Gibson A3a.
  • $750
Autograph Letter Signed ("Mark") to "Friend Frank [Bliss]"

Autograph Letter Signed (“Mark”) to “Friend Frank [Bliss]”

Twain, Mark "Elmira [NY], Apl. 19 [1872]." One side of a sheet of lined paper, with "Saml. Clemens | Elmira | April 19/72" written (by the recipient?) on the verso. The text of this early letter reads: What is your _new_ number? I only know 149 Asylum. Wm. C. Smythe (whose letter I enclose) [not included] is a splendid old friend of mine. He is city editor of the principal Pittsburgh paper -- a city _where I drew the largest audience ever assembled in Pittsburgh to hear a lecture._ Send him a book. I want a _big_ sale in Pittsburgh. _Mark_ Francis Edward Bliss (1843-1915) was the son of Elisha Bliss, who had founded the American Publishing Company in Hartford; "Frank" left a banking career to join his father's company in the 1860s, and was soon Treasurer. In 1867 Elisha had gotten in touch with fledgling newspaper journalist "Mark Twain," and by the time of this April 1872 letter, APC had published Twain's THE INNOCENTS ABROAD (1869), and (in February 1872) ROUGHING IT; it would soon publish THE GILDED AGE (1873) and then THE ADVENTURES OF TOM SAWYER (1876). Elisha died in 1880, leaving the company in the hands of Frank and his brother Walter. By 1880 MT thought he had had enough of [Frank] Bliss, who turned out to be as good at misleading his authors as he was at misleading the public. The established Boston firm of Osgood & Company brought out two MT books -- The Prince and the Pauper and Life on the Mississippi -- but by 1884 MT had founded his own publishing house: Webster & Co. Its first book was Huck Finn [UVa]. This letter shows that even as early as 1872, Twain's swagger was evident -- underlining his entire boast (exaggeration?) of the crowd he had recently drawn in Pittsburgh (his "Roughing It" lecture, at Library Hall on January 12, 1872), and ordering his publisher to "send him a book" because "I want a big sale." The letter is in very good condition, with horizontal folds from original mailing and a vertical fold (one short split) from Bliss's filing; there are also a few pinholes probably due to Bliss's filing process. Provenance: though not so identified, this letter came from the renowned Fred Bentley Sr. collection of Mark Twain.
  • $3,750
  • $3,750
THE HAUNTED MAN and THE GHOST'S BARGAIN

THE HAUNTED MAN and THE GHOST’S BARGAIN

Dickens, Charles A Fancy for Christmas-Time. New York: Harper & Brothers, n.d. [1849]. 2 pp undated ads. Original brown printed wrappers. First American Edition of Dickens's fifth and last Christmas book; there had been no late-1847 Christmas book, as Dickens had then been busy with DOMBEY AND SON. Though undated, this Harper edition in wrappers came out on January 6, 1849; this is earlier in January than was the case for their four previous Christmas books, and for good reason: in December Harper had paid Dickens five pounds for advance sheets -- the first amount an American publisher paid Dickens for a Christmas book. With the earlier four books, several American publishers leapt at the chance to be first; however, for this one, since Harper had a head-start, no other American publisher bothered to make the effort. In this copy, the (inside and outside) wrapper ads are the primary ones cited by Smith; the terminal ad leaf (pp [35-36]) has "Valuable Geographic Works" (Smith's state "c") on the recto, and "Harper's Family Library" (Smith's state "f") on the verso. Smith notes that "it is not possible to prioritize the states [of the ad leaf] accurately." This copy is in near-fine condition, with the front wrapper unusually clean and the delicate spine quite intact. There are a few marks on the rear wrapper, the usual foxing on the leaves within, plus some wear at the fore- and lower edge of the wrapper -- a common problem for this booklet, as the wrapper extends past the textual leaves. There is also a little marginal damage to some leaves, due to improper opening. We do not see this book in much better condition. Smith pp 104-107; Podeschi (Yale) A120; Carr (UTexas) B426(1).
  • $625
The Tower Menagerie: Comprising the Natural History of the Animals Contained in that Establishment; with Anecdotes of their Characters and History.illustrated.

The Tower Menagerie: Comprising the Natural History of the Animals Contained in that Establishment; with Anecdotes of their Characters and History.illustrated.

[BENNETT, Edward Turner] Octavo, with 107 wood-engravings; finely bound in contemporary red morocco gilt decorated, edges fully gilt, early inked manuscript note on endpaper. First edition. The menagerie in the Tower of London had been established in the mid-thirteenth century at which time it housed a white bear which bathed and fished in the River Thames. The fortunes of the zoo waxed and waned until 1822 when the new director, Alfred Cops, arrived to find no more than 'one grizzly bear, an elephant and one or two birds'. Within six years of his appointment, he had revitalised the collection and this description of some sixty species was completed each of which was drawn from life by William Harvey, friend and favourite pupil of Thomas Bewick, the fine English engraver (as borne out in the inked manuscript note of a previous owner). The collection boasted kangaroos, "yellow" crested cockatoos and emus, all of which are depicted and described in some detail. It is remarkable to think that by this date the exotic fauna of Australia - so recently discovered - was available locally: "The Emeus, like the Kanguroos, have become to a certain extant naturalised in the Royal Park at Windsor, where they breed without difficulty and with no extraordinary precautions. The pair in the Tower were obtained from this establishment, where they were bred". . A fine copy in a most attractive contemporary binding.
  • $1,512
  • $1,512
Nineteen Eighty-Four

Nineteen Eighty-Four

Orwell, George; Gunn, James (Introduction); Freas, Frank Kelly (Artwork) Octavo size, 328 pp. George Orwell (born Eric Arthur Blair, 1903-1950) is renowned for his works "Animal Farm" and "1984" and his outspoken criticism of totalitarianism and authoritarian social practices. Many of the words and expressions used in his work, including "Big Brother", "Thought Police", "doublethink", and "thoughtcrime" have entered the popular culture and are routinely used today. This work, "Nineteen Eighty-Four", was published shortly before Orwell's death of tuberculosis. Made into films at least twice, it is, along with Huxley's "Brave New World", one of "the century's most famous English-language Dystopia.It is a book of hectic, devilish, claustrophobic intensity." (n.b., quote from "The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction" by John Clute and Peter Nicholls, p. 896). ___DESCRIPTION: Bound in full leather by The Easton Press, this noted on the title page as the "Collector's Edition", with gilt images and lettering on both covers and the spine, all edges gilt, white satin ribbon marker, patterened endpapers, the frontis illustration in full colour by Frank Kelly Freas (note that this version is without the interior illustrations by Alan Clark); octavo size, pagination: [i-ii] iii-xiii [1, blank] [1-2] 3-314. ___CONDITION: Fine, the leather covers supple, clean and unworn, straight corners without rubbing, a strong, square text block with solid hinges, the interior is clean and bright, and entirely free of prior owner markings; clean, crisp, and as new. ___POSTAGE: International customers, please note that additional postage may apply as the standard does not always cover costs; please inquire for details. ___Swan's Fine Books is pleased to be a member of the ABAA, ILAB, and IOBA and we stand behind every book we sell. Please contact us with any questions you may have, we are here to help.
  • $200
A Universal Turing Machine with Two Internal States

A Universal Turing Machine with Two Internal States

Shannon, Claude E. [Elwood]; McCarthy, J. (editor with Shannon) [1 (title page)], [1 (blank verso)], 157-165, [3 (blank)] pages. 10 x 7 inches. Stapled printed self-wrappers, with leaves trimmed at the spine. Light staining at foreedge The construction of this item is unusual. It consists of separate leaves of the printed paper in the original journal fonts, with a new title page "AUTOMATA STUDIES" (blank verso) and an added trailing blank leaf, all stapled at the spine. All examined copies from Shannon's files are the same, leading us to conclude it was likely an author offprint even though a reprint statement is not present. Wraps. Originally printed as an internal Bell Laboratories Memorandum: Number 54-114-38, May 15, 1954. "Automata Studies," Annals of Mathematics Studies number 34, 1956 (edited by Claude Shannon and John McCarthy), first published this Shannon paper as "A Universal Turing Machine With Two Internal States" on pages 157-165. "Our main result is to show that a universal Turing machine can be constructed using one tape and having only two internal states. It will also be shown that it is impossible to do this with one internal state. Finally, a construction is given for a universal Turing machine with only two tape symbols." (p 158 of introduction) "A Turing machine which, by appropriate programming using a finite length of input tape, can act as any Turing machine whatsoever. In his seminal paper, Turing himself gave the first construction for a universal Turing machine (Turing 1937, 1938). Shannon (1956) showed that two colors were sufficient, so long as enough states were used. [ as here ]" Wolfram Mathworld PROVENANCE: The personal files of Claude E. Shannon (unmarked). There were multiple examples of this item in Shannon's files. REFERENCES: Sloane and Wyner, "Claude Elwood Shannon Collected Papers," #93.
  • $110
General Treatment of the Problem of Coding [reproduced typescript]

General Treatment of the Problem of Coding [reproduced typescript]

Shannon, C. E. [Claude Elwood] [1]-6 leaves. 10 7/8 x 8 3/8 inches. Reproduced typescript, stapled upper left. Dated in type on the last page. Wraps. The "Report of Proceedings, Symposium on Information Theory" (London) first published this paper in Sept. 1950." The "Transactions of the IRE Professional Group on Information Theory" reprinted it in Volume: 1, Issue: 1, Feb. 1953, pages 102-104, Feb. 1953. We are not aware of offprints from either publication. Offered here is a reproduced typescript of the paper from Shannon's file predating the first publication. We have not compared it to the published papers. Shannon defines a typical communication system as consisting of five elements: 1) an information source. 2) an encoding or transmitting element. 3) a channel on which the signal is transmitted from transmitter to receiver. 4) a receiving and decoding device that recovers the original message from the received signal. And 5) the destination of the information. From the Abstract: ".The central problems to be considered are how one can measure the capacity of a channel for transmitting information; how this capacity depends on various parameters such as bandwidth, available transmitter power and type of noise; and what is the best encoding system for a given information source to utilize a channel most efficiently." PROVENANCE: The personal files of Claude E. Shannon (unmarked). One of three examples in Shannon's files. REFERENCES: Sloane and Wyner, "Claude Elwood Shannon Collected Papers," #61.
  • $660
Computers and Automata [Methodos offprint]

Computers and Automata [Methodos offprint]

Shannon, Claude E. [Elwood] Later printing. 115-130 pages plus wrappers. 234 x 188 mm. (9 1/4 x 6 5/8 inches). Printed light green printed wrappers. Tanned pages, light browning to the extremities. Lower left corner bumped. Reprinted by kind permission of the Author and the Editors from the Proceedings of the I.R.E. October 1953." Wraps. First published in the famous "Computer Issue" of the Proceedings of the Institute of Radio Engineers (Vol. 41, 1953, pp. 1234-1241), we are unaware of any IRE offprints of this paper. Thus the Bell Telephone System Monograph series (#2150: March 1954) constitutes the first separate appearance. Reprinted in Methodos [as here], Vol. 6 (1954), pp. 115-130. The Methodos reprint lacks both the sample checker program game and notes by Strachey. Methodos was a quarterly serial issued by the "Centro italiano di metodologia e analisi del linguaggio" [Italian Center for Language Methodology and Analysis] which survived from 1949-1964, 16 volumes, Numbers 1 thru 62. (OCLC Acc#: 1695345) "This paper reviews briefly some of the recent developments in the field of automata and nonnumerical computation. A number of typical machines are described, including logic machines, game-playing machines, and learning machines. Some theoretical questions and developments are discussed, such as a comparison of computers and the brain, Turing's formulation of computing machines, and von Neumann's models of self-reproducing machines." (summary, p 130). "A brief review of developments in the field of automata and non-numerical computation. Included are descriptions of logic machines, game-playing machines, learning machines, Turing's formulation of computing machines, and von Neumann's models of self-reproducing machines. The paper was written for the special computer issue of the Proceedings of the IRE." (Origins of Cyberspace) In his review of this article for The Journal of Symbolic Logic (Vol 19), Alonzo Church describes it as ".an excellent descriptive non-technical article." PROVENANCE: The personal files of Claude E. Shannon (unmarked). There were seven examples of this item in Shannon's files. REFERENCES: Sloane and Wyner, "Claude Elwood Shannon Collected Papers," #82 Hook and Norman, "Origins of Cyberspace," #885.
  • $358
1643: English Gunnery and Fireworks

1643: English Gunnery and Fireworks

Smith, Thomas, souldier of Barwick upon Tweed. The art of gunnery, vvherein is set forth a number of serviceable secrets, and practicall conclusions, belonging to the art of gunnery, by arithmetick skill to be accomplished: both pretty, pleasant, and profitable for all such as are professors of the same faculty. Compiled by Thomas Smith of Barwick upon Tweed Souldier. Variant title Certaine additions to the book of gunnery. With a supply of fire-workes. London : [s.n.], printed in the yeare 1643. small 4to. 14 x 7.5 cm [8], 120 p., [3] folded leaves of plates (1 folding leaf at p. 57 with hadl loss) : ill. (woodcuts), diagrams, tables. Internally, some toning, a small marginal tear without loss, t.p. with minor losses and small repair to verso. Old calf, hinges repaired. General note "Certaine additions to the book of gunnery. With a supply of fire-vvorkes." has a separate dated title page on leaf L1r; pagination and register are continuous. This work by soldier and author Thomas Smith, from Berwick upon Tweed, is quite scarce in commerce, Although Smith claims to have been trained in the military from childhood by a valiant captain, there is no evidence that he saw any military action, despite the fragile peace that existed on the Anglo-Scottish border prior to 1603. In 1601, Smith published "Certaine Additions to the Booke of Gunnery, with a Supplie of Fire-Workes," which was more suitable for active soldiers. In 1628 and 1643, the two books were reissued together in a single volume . The book covers a wide range of topics related to the use of firearms and artillery, including the construction and design of guns, the types of ammunition that can be used, and the principles of ballistics and trajectory. It also includes detailed instructions on how to operate and maintain guns, as well as strategies for their effective use in battle.
  • $1,500
  • $1,500
Printed 1575 with Stephanus's Greek typeface

Printed 1575 with Stephanus’s Greek typeface

(ORATORES GRAECI.) Oratorum veterum orationes. Greek text with Latin translation by Henri Estienne and others; edited by Estienne. [Geneva]: Henricus Stephanus, 1575 [12], 213 [i. e., 208]; 191, [1]; 178, lacking final blank. Folio, 36 x 29. 19th century calf, spine largely gone, boards separating, requires some binding restoration, internally some foxing and toning, generally very good and wide-margined. First Estienne edition and second of these texts after the 1513 Aldine original edition. Hoffmann III, 15; Schreiber 192. The Oratorum Veterum Orationes is a collection of speeches by ancient Greek orators, compiled and edited by Henri Estienne and other scholars in the 16th century. The speeches included in the collection are primarily political speeches delivered in Athens and other Greek city-states during the 5th and 4th centuries BCE. The collection was originally published in Greek with Latin translations by Henri Estienne in 1563, and subsequently reissued in revised editions by other editors. The collection was highly influential in the study of ancient rhetoric and oratory, and was used as a primary source for teaching rhetoric and public speaking in schools and universities throughout Europe. The Oratorum Veterum Orationes includes speeches by notable Greek orators such as Demosthenes, Lysias, and Isocrates, as well as lesser-known orators. The speeches cover a wide range of topics, including political and legal disputes, diplomatic negotiations, and philosophical debates. Stephanus's Greek typeface, which he developed in the mid-16th century, was a significant improvement over previous attempts at Greek typography. His typeface was more elegant and legible, with clearer distinctions between characters and a more consistent weight and spacing. He also developed a system of accents and diacritical marks that made it easier to distinguish between different vowel sounds and to indicate stress and tone. Stephanus's Greek typeface was widely used in the printing of classical texts and became the standard for Greek typography throughout Europe. His editions of Greek texts, such as the Oratorum Veterum Orationes, were highly regarded for their accuracy and readability and played a significant role in the revival of classical scholarship during the Renaissance.
  • $1,350
  • $1,350