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CALIFORNIA
“The Great Discovery” — GOLD
(A
Book that HAD to Come First in This List). Dunbar, Edward E.
The romance of the age; Or, the discovery of gold in California. New York: D.
Appleton & Co., 1867. 16mo (18.6 cm, 7.3"). Frontis., 134, [10 (adv.)] pp.;
2 plts.
$150.00
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First edition: History of California immediately prior to and during the gold rush, based on the author's firsthand observations and on facts “gathered from living witnesses” (p. 9). The volume is illustrated with a frontispiece portrait of John Augustus Sutter and with two steel-engraved plates.
Sabin 21232; Gaer, California Literature of the Gold-Rush, 25; Cowan & Cowan, Bibliography of the History of California, 187. Publisher's textured maroon cloth, front cover with very decorative gilt-stamped title presentation; lightly rubbed, spine sunned and with some other sort of discoloration at top. Ex–social club library: front free endpaper and fly-leaf with inked numerals in a 19th-century hand; title-page, one plate, and one other page rubber-stamped. Pages faintly age-toned, otherwise clean. A nice little book. (26296)
Inscribed
by
the Author
Angney, Lydia F. California and other poems. Gilroy, CA: Pr. for the author by A.C. Eaton, 1900. 8vo. 96 pp.
$50.00

Privately printed first edition of this
“Californianum”
this copy with a laid-in slip of paper reading, “Christmas Greeting
to Frank & Annie, from Aunt Lydia.” Lydia Francis Witham
Angney authored two volumes of poetry, both published in Gilroy, the home of
the annual Garlic Festival, and endured a long widowhood following the death
of er husband W. Z. Angney. W.Z. served in the Mexican War and played a major
role in the U.S. occupation of New Mexico and in the territorial government,
then moved on to California, settling in Gilroy to raise tree fruit in his orchards,
but being sent to the state senate and called on by the governor for other civic
duties. He died in January 1878.
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the interior image for an enlargement.
Publisher's green cloth, front cover and spine with gilt-stamped
title; light shelf wear to corners and spine extremities. (22223)
Water as
CURE-ALL
Bourne, George Melksham. The home doctor: a guide to health. By Dr. Bourne, of San Francisco. San Francisco: San Francisco News Company, 1878. Small 8vo. Frontis. port., xx, 505, [1] pp.; illus.
$475.00

First edition of this practical treatise of alternative medicine. George Melksham Bourne was a practitioner of drugless healing in an era when scientific approaches to medicine were gaining public favor. Here, Bourne expounds his own system of the "water cure" which emphasized profuse sweating and steam-baths as a treatment for disease. The conflict between conventional and unconventional approaches to medicine is brought home in his vivid descriptions of the toxic effects of allopathic medicine and also in the preface, where he notes efforts by the "regulars" to impede the publication of this book. Illustrated with a frontispiece portrait of Bourne and an in-text illustration.
Click the interior image for an enlargement.
Publisher's brown buckram, stamped in gilt on the spine, in blind on covers. Paper edges marbled. Clean, free of chips or tears. A very fine copy. (24465)
(California Statehood). Report of the Committee on the Judiciary, with the views of the minority of that committee on Bill S.350, for the admission of California into the Union as a state. Washington: Pr. by Wendell & Van Benthuysen, 1849. 8vo (22 cm; 8.5"). 18 pp.
$400.00

The California Poets
California Writers Club. Poems. 1933. Berkeley: Pr. by The Professional Press, 1933. 8vo. 67, [1] pp.
$45.00
A collection of 15 poems selected for the 1933 Annual of the California Writers Club. The poems were chosen by Margaret Widdemer, Margaret Tod Witter, and David Morton, who singled out “Skylark Terrace” by Alice Harlow Stetson and “The Prairie Saga” by Don Farran as the best of the collection. One poem celebrates the campanile (Sather Tower) at Berkeley.
Provenance: Bookplate inside front wrapper of Lorraine & Horace Haynes.
Publisher's light-blue wrappers. Bookplate as above. Near fine. (23669)
San Francisco Cookery in a
High-Flying Era
Craig, John C., ed. The recipe book of
Lillie Hitchcock Coit. Introduction by Carol Hart Field. Berkeley, CA: The Friends of the Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley, 1998. 8vo. [2 (blank)], frontis., 5–65, [5 (3 blank)] pp.
$20.00
Number 44 in the Keepsakes series issued for its members by the Friends of the Bancroft Library. One of eighteen hundred copies in this edition. The original manuscript recipe book of Lillie Hitchcock Coit—whose life is recreated by Carol Hart Field in the introduction—was acquired by The Bancroft Library in 1995, and is here edited by John C. Craig and transcribed by Barbara Hoddy.
The recipes collected by Mrs. Coit reflect the “cosmopolitan character of San Francisco” during the 1870's and 1880's and show “the influence of the French, Spanish, Mexican, and English traditions in the cookery of the period.”
Illustrated with a frontispiece portrait and one additional illustration.
Paperback. Fine. (5461)

Fremont's Third Expedition
Frémont, John Charles. Geographical memoir upon upper
California, in illustration of his map of Oregon and California. Washington: Printed by Tippin & Streeper, 1849. 8vo (23.5 cm; 9.25"). 40 pp.
$165.00
Click the image to the right for an enlargement.
John Charles Frémont (1813–90) was born in Savanannah, Georgia, a strong and activist opponent of slavery, a born explorer, and strong-headed and -willed. His service in California during the Mexican War, for the Union during the Civil War, etc., in many ways shows why he was tapped to be a presidential candidate; but it was certainly his role as an explorer that captured the imagination and the hearts of many Americans.
Here Frémont presents to the U.S. Senate his formal report on his third expedition to the West. The map referred to in the title was
issued separately under title “Map of Oregon and Upper California. . . 1848" and is not present; hence the affordable price here.
The original edition, not a reprint. A government publication: [U.S.] 30th Cong., 2d sess. House. Misc. [doc.] 5.
Sabin 25837; Howes F366; Wagner-Camp-Becker, Plains and Rockies, 150:2. Recent marbled paper–covered boards with leather label on front cover. Occasional light foxing. (24883)

Front & Back Views of a
Black Cat Grace the Cover
Herford, Oliver; Ethel Watts Mumford; & Addison Mizner. The cynic's calendar of revised wisdom for 1904. San Francisco: The Tomoyé Press for Paul Elder and Co., ©1903. 16mo. [128] pp.
$40.00
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A collection of witty aphorisms and
law-related puns. Wry little calendar-book
meant as a New Year's gift, featuring declamations such as “Honor is without
profit — in most countries,” “Where there's a will there's
a law suit,” and “A little widow is a dangerous thing.” Wickedly
amusing illustrations evoking the era appear throughout, in black and red, provided
by “Towanda” and Mizner.
Original cloth over cardboard, front cover with printed and
illustrated paper label; lightly faded, some discoloration and soiling. Sewing
loosening but holding. Text clean.
A delight. (26798)

“A Good Kind of House to Build” — 228 Pages of Plates
Hodgson, Frederick Thomas. Practical bungalows and cottages for town and country. Chicago: Frederick J. Drake & Co., © 1906. 12mo. 8, [15 (index & adv.) pp.; [228] pp. of plts.
$125.00
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First edition: “Perspective views and floor plans of one hundred twenty-five low and medium priced houses and bungalows,” aimed primarily at the California market. This
volume offers a guide to the architectural plans available for sale from Frederick J. Drake & Co., most designs being represented by a half-tone photographic illustration of the front perspective and a blueprint of the floor plan, with prices given in the index.
Publisher's blue cloth, front cover with white-stamped title and pictorial vignette, spine with white-stamped title; joints and extremities showing moderate wear, covers with small spots of light discoloration. A solid, internally clean copy.
A pleasure, in hand. (26664)

The Boss & Family
Celebrate Christmas at the Ranch
Hotchkis, Katharine Bixby. Christmas eve at Rancho Los Alamitos. [San Francisco]: California Historical Society, 1971. 8vo. vii, [1], 23, [1] pp.; illus.
$25.00
Second, revised edition: First-person account of growing up on the headquarters of a working ranch in southern California during the early 20th century, illustrated with color-printed line drawings. This is special publication no. 47 of the California Historical Society.
Publisher's printed paper wrappers. A clean, fresh copy. (26075)
“My
Legs A-Bein' Queer,
They Never Let Me
Walk”
Johnson, Maurice.
Songs of a cripple. New
York: Grafton Press, © 1909. 12mo (15.5 cm, 6.1"). Frontis., xi, [1], 103,
[1] pp.; 5 plts.
$180.00
Sole edition of these poems, some in childish dialect, written in the voice of a disabled boy (and later man) who lived in Claremont, CA. The volume is illustrated with a frontispiece and five plates mostly depicting country and forest scenes.
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Signed by the author: With tipped-in typed sheet bearing inspirational message, signed in pencil. Also tipped in is a photograph of the author in
an early motorized wheelchair.
Publisher's tan cloth, front cover with gilt-stamped title and gilt and green laurel wreath, spine with gilt-stamped title and a little sunned; touches of rubbing and some pages with light to moderate spotting. A nice copy. (26621)

Dominican Missions in
California
Quiñones, Baltasar de. Autograph Letter Signed in Spanish to Fray Ignacio Gentil. Rome: 7 April 1789. Tall 8vo (26.5 cm; 10.5"). [2] pp., with integral address leaf.
$775.00
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As Master of the Order of Preachers (i.e., the Dominicans) from 1777 to 1798, Baltasar de Quiñones helped formulate policy concerning the missions that the Dominicans took over following the expulsion of the Jesuits in 1767. In this letter he addresses some matters relating to the Dominican missions in California.
The main question at hand is the appointing of a new attorney/solicitor (i.e., procurador) for the California missions. He says, “quiero que ahora y siempre que ocurra [la necesidad de un nuevo procurador], se haga el nombramiento por la Provincia misma despues de haber oido al Presidente de las Misiones, el cual es mi voluntad que en cuanto sea posible camine con acuerdo de la mayor parte
a lo menos de los demas misioneros, antes de hacer su propuesta a la Prov[inci]a.”
He also makes appointments to the positions of “Depositarios del Deposito” and the names of the four appointees are given.
Written in a clear large hand and with the paper and wax closure in evidence. (25329)
Around
the World “Overland”?
— including
HAWAII?
Simpson, George, Sir. An overland journey round the
world, during the years 1841 and 1842. Philadelphia: Lea & Blanchard, 1847. 8vo (21.3 cm,
8.4"). 273, [3], [17]–230, [2 (blank)] pp.
$325.00
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First U.S. edition, following the first London of the same year,
published under the title Narrative of a Journey Round the World. Simpson,
an enterprising businessman and administrator, was Governor-in-Chief of Rupert's
Land for the Hudson's Bay Company (and dedicated the present work to the nine
directors of that company). In a global trek that took just under 20 months,
he voyaged from London to Canada and thence to
CALIFORNIA,
Hawaii, Alaska, and Russia before returning to London. His careful observations
include much commentary on the degree of “civilization” among various
peoples and the results thereof — often not positive, especially with
regards to the impact of missionaries on local culture and morality. Simpson
also provides economic and trade analyses, linguistic comparisons, culinary
critiques (in particular, his distaste for the garlicky food served in California),
and descriptions of local flora and fauna.
Cowan & Cowan, Bibliography of the History of California, 589 (London ed.
only); Forbes, Hawaiian National Bibliography, 1671; Hill, Pacific Voyages, 1572; Howgego,
Encyclopedia of Exploration, II, S25; Hunnewell, Bibliography of the Hawaiian Islands, 67
(London ed.); Sabin 81344. Publisher's speckled sheep, spine with gilt-stamped leather title-label; leather rubbed and discolored but volume sound. Ex–social club
library: 19th-century bookplates and old inked call numbers on endpapers (with no other
markings). Endpapers and early/late leaves with waterstaining to lower inner portions; scattered
small spots of staining elsewhere. (26391)

Spanish Southwest Mexican Art New World Biography
Vetancurt, Agustín de (a.k.a., Vetancur). Chronica de la Provincia del Santo Evangelio de Mexico. Quarta parte del Teatro mexicano de successos religiosos. Mexico: por María de Benavides, viuda de Juan de Ribera, 1697. Folio (30 cm; 11.875"). [12], 136, [4], 153, 56 pp.
[SOLD]
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This is part 4, issued separately, of the author's Teatro mexicano: descripción breve de los sucesos exemplares. The Chronica de la provincia del Santo Evangelio gives detailed descriptions of the Franciscan houses and missions in all of New Spain — especially in Mexico City and Puebla, but also in such far-flung areas as New Mexico and California. Henry Raup Wagner, the dean of bibliographers of the Spanish Southwest, labels the Chronica “a prime authority for the history of New Mexico.” Vetancurt further offers a marvelous section on various apparitions of the Virgin across New Spain, each being given a lengthy paragraph with full details. He ends his volume with a menology of Franciscans and a biographical list of the bishops, writers, and other notables who served or lived in New Spain; a number of these figures were martyrs and their stories are recounted.
It must be pointed out, because it is often forgotten, that art historians will find the Chronica to be rich in architectural detail and brimming over with information about art work in 17th-century New Spain churches and convents. Guillermo Tovar de Teresa, the great historian and bibliographer of colonial-era Mexican books containing information on Mexican art, writes of the Chronica, “Para la historia del arte en México durante el Virreinato es capital; su lectura es imprescindible para los estudiosos de la arquitectura de los siglos XVI y XVII.”
Provenance: Augustinian monastic library of Morelia (marca de fuego on upper edge of closed book; on verso of title-page in an 18th-century hand: “pertenece al convento de San Augustin de Valladolid”); private use of Fr. Manuel Aigustin Farias (noted on the verso of title-page in an 18th-century hand, prelim. p. 12, first p. 1); later owned by José Martín de Infanzón (prelim. p. 9).
Medina, Mexico, 1684; Palau 361217; Sabin 99386; Andrade 1073; Tovar de Teresa, Bibliografía novohispana de arte, 105; Wagner, Spanish Southwest, 68. Early vellum over boards, rebacked; new endpapers and title-page backed for strength. Stray stains and ink markings variously, the latter in margins; minor worming in some lower margins, with waterstaining notable in the final section and a brown stain perhaps of another nature in upper gutter-ward areas of the same section, sometimes into text. Final six leaves with loss of lower outer corner, including some text; paper replaced and text in excellent facsimile. Volume now housed in a quarter blue morocco tray case with gilt spine.
(26824)

Allay that Pheasant, Splat that Pyke, Border that Pasty!
Wayland, Harold & Virginia, eds. Of carving, cards &
cookery or the mode of carving at the table as represented in a pack of playing cards originally
designed & sold by Joseph & James Moxon, London 1676–7. Arcadia, CA: Pr. for V. & H.
Wayland by Carol Allen Cockel at the Raccoon Press, 1962. 4to (21 cm, 8.25"). [6], 122, [2]
pp.; illus.
$285.00
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First edition: “With divers recipes for excellent Dishes of flesh,
fish, fowl & baked meats collected from
17th century Masters at the Art of Cookery . . . In this Book will be found
Instructions by means of which any ordinary Capacity may easily learn how to
Cut up or Carve as well as to Cook all the most usual Dishes as well as Rarities
to grace the Festive Table.” Mounted on the appropriate pages, along with
directions on preparing and carving the dishes depicted, are
53 (one-sided) facsimiles of the Moxons' original
instructional playing cards plus their wrapper.
Signed copy:
Signed by both authors on the dedication page. This edition
was limited to 275 copies, of which this is no. 250.
Publisher's vellum over boards, spine with raised bands and faux hand-inked title, in original red cloth slipcase.
A beautiful, clean, unworn copy in a perfect slipcase. (26750)
