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AMERICAN
BOOKPLATES
[Illustration]
AMERICAN BOOK-PLATES
(EX-LIBRIS)
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
American Book-Plates
A Guide to their Study with Examples
By Charles Dexter Allen
Member Ex-Libris Society London · Member Grolier Club New York
Member Connecticut Historical Society Hartford
With a Bibliography by Eben Newell Hewins
Member Ex-Libris Society
Illustrated with many reproductions of rare and interesting book-plates
and in the finer editions with many prints from the original
coppers both old and recent
[Illustration]
New York · Macmillan and Co. · London
Mdcccxciv
COPYRIGHT, 1894,
BY MACMILLAN AND CO.
Norwood Press:
J. S. Cushing & Co.--Berwick & Smith.
Boston, Mass., U.S.A.
PREFACE.
[Illustration: I]n a few years Book-plate literature will have a place
in the catalogues of the Libraries, as it now has in those of the
dealers in books. The works of the Hon. J. Leicester Warren (Lord de
Tabley), Mr. Egerton Castle, and Mr. W. J. Hardy on the English plates,
Mr. Walter Hamilton, M. Henri Bouchot, and M. Poulet-Malassis on the
French, Herr Warnecke on the German, and M. Carlander on the Swedish,
are all the work of master hands, and are recognized as authorities. In
our own country the lists and essays of Mr. Richard C. Lichtenstein and
Mr. Laurence Hutton have long been of invaluable service, and occupy a
position both at home and abroad of undisputed eminence.
A large number of articles has also been contributed to periodical
literature by those well informed upon the subject, and numerous
monographs testify to the growth of interest in this fascinating study,
and by the names of their authors, to the class of scholars and students
of antiquarian lore who deem the humble book-plate worthy of their
attention.
In view of what has been and of what will be written, this present
modest attempt to introduce more fully than has yet been done, the
book-plates of America, needs to be understood as simply a pioneer work;
a great deal of information will reward the patient and painstaking
investigator of the future, which is now inaccessible, and without
doubt, too, much will be found even within the present to supplement
these pages.
This book could not have been undertaken nor carried to completion had
the writer been denied the generous assistance and hearty sympathy of
our collectors, to whom he desires to express his appreciation of the
kindnesses shown him.
Especially to Mr. R. C. Lichtenstein, Mr. E. N. Hewins, and Mr. Fred J.
Libbie of Boston, does he feel under deep obligation for the generous
loan of their splendid collections, for ready advice and counsel, for
cheerful assistance whenever asked for, and for that tangible sympathy
and lively interest which are worth so much to one engaged in such work.
To many others also is he indebted, both for the loan of plates and for
kindly words of encouragement.
To Mr. S. P. Avery, Mr. Beverly Chew, Mr. E. H. Bierstadt, Mr. Henry
Blackwell, Mr. D. McN. Stauffer, Mr. Edward D. Harris, Mr. Laurence
Hutton, and Mr. E. W. Nash, of New York City; to Mr. W. G. Brown of
Washington and Lee University at Lexington, Va.; Mr. H. E. Deats of
Flemington, N.J.; Dr. C. E. Clark of Lynn; Hon. W. A. Courtnay of
Charleston, S.C.; Miss Helen E. Brainerd of the Columbia College
Library; Mr. Pickering Dodge of Washington, D.C.; Mr. Charles T. Martin,
Mr. Frank B. Gay, Mr. A. C. Bates, and Mr. John C. Parsons, of
Hartford; Dr. Henry C. Eno of Saugatuck; Dr. J. H. Dubbs of Lancaster,
Penn., President of Franklin and Marshall College; Mr. D. V. R. Johnston
of the State Library at Albany; Mr. Nathaniel Paine of Worcester; Mr.
Daniel Ravenel of Charleston, S.C.; Mr. Howard Sill of Glendale, Md.;
Mr. R. A. Brock of Richmond, Va.; Mr. Howard Edwards of Philadelphia;
Dr. Swan M. Burnett of Washington, D.C.; Mr. Richard Wijnkoop of
Brooklyn; Mr. Bisbee of Dartmouth College; Mr. William Kelby of the New
York Historical Society; and to Mr. Lyon G. Tyler of Williamsburg, Va.,
President of William and Mary College, does he wish to make
acknowledgment for the favors which have contributed so much to the
value of the work. From over the sea, particularly kind assistance has
come from Rev. T. W. Carson, the veteran collector and eminent authority
of Dublin.
To all others who by letter, gift, or advice have assisted him, the
writer wishes hereby to make suitable and hearty acknowledgment.
The writer’s thanks are also extended to those who have so kindly
permitted him the use of their plates for the illustrating of the book.
A word more is due to Mr. E. N. Hewins, who very kindly, at the writer’s
request, accepted the labor of preparing the excellent Bibliography
which appears in the volume.
CHARLES DEXTER ALLEN.
HARTFORD, CONN., June, 1894.
CONTENTS
PAGE
PREFACE v
A LIST OF THE ILLUSTRATIONS xi
INTRODUCTORY 1
NAME-LABELS AND MOTTOES 16
ARMORIAL BOOK-PLATES 35
PICTORIAL AND ALLEGORICAL BOOK-PLATES AND PLATES
OF COLLEGES, LIBRARIES, AND SOCIETIES 57
BOOK-PLATES OF SPECIAL INTEREST 79
EARLY AMERICAN BOOK-PLATE ENGRAVERS, WITH LISTS
OF THEIR WORK 104
AN ALPHABETICAL LIST OF EARLY AMERICAN BOOK-PLATES 160
A CHRONOLOGICAL LIST OF THE DATED PLATES 313
AN ALPHABETICAL LIST OF THE SIGNED PLATES, SHOWING
THE EXACT MANNER OF SIGNING 314
A LIST OF MOTTOES FOUND UPON THE EARLY PLATES,
WITH TRANSLATIONS 323
A FEW RECENT EXAMPLES 340
THE AMERICAN COLLECTORS AND COLLECTIONS 377
THE EX LIBRIS SOCIETIES 387
BIBLIOGRAPHY (AMERICAN, ENGLISH, AND FRENCH) 389
CONCLUSION 421
INDEX 423
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
COPPER-PLATES.
CHARLES DEXTER ALLEN, by _E. H. Garrett_ _Title-page_
_To face page_
EDWARD HALE BIERSTADT, by _E. D. French_ 90
OLIVER WENDELL HOLMES 98
ALEXANDER ANDERSON, by _Anderson_ 120
AMERICAN ACADEMY OF ARTS AND SCIENCES, attributed to
_Callender_ 126
GEORGE GOODWIN, attributed to _Doolittle_ 132
MARSHALL C. LEFFERTS, by _E. D. French_ 352
GEORGE DUDLEY SEYMOUR, by _W. F. Hopson_ 370
FRANCIS WILSON, by _E. H. Garrett_ 376
FULL-PAGE REPRODUCTIONS.
JEREH. WADSWORTH 1
MORAL LIBRARY, YALE COLLEGE 6
JAMES EDDY MAURAN 16
EUGENE FIELD 35
JACOB SARGEANT, by _Jacob Sargeant_ 46
PETER MANIGAULT, by _Yates_ 52
JOHN WILLIAMS 54
RICHARD WYNKOOP 56
SOCIAL LAW LIBRARY 66
GEORGE ALEXANDER MACBETH 79
W. F. HOPSON, by _W. F. Hopson_ 104
WILLIAM ASHMEAD COURTENAY 122
EDMUND H. GARRETT, by _E. H. Garrett_ 138
H. E. DEATS 150
RICHARD C. LICHTENSTEIN, by _George Moore_ 160
LOUIS J. HABER 323
GEORGE H. ELLWANGER, by _Sidney L. Smith_ 340
JOHN E. RUSSELL, by _M. T. Callahan_ 357
DEAN SAGE 360
FRED C. SCHLAICK, by _Howard Sill_ 362
ARTHUR ROBINSON STONE, by _George M. White_ 364
F. W. HOYT 366
ILLUSTRATIONS IN THE TEXT.
PAGE
George Lee Tuberville, Virginia 2
Timothy Newell, printed by _Isaiah Thomas_ 3
William Lord, East Haddam 5
Geo. C. M. Roberts, M.D., Baltimore 6
Elijah F. Reed 7
Jared Ingersoll, Esq., of New Haven, Conn. 8
John Walters Gibbs, Charleston, S.C., by _Abernethie_ 9
Peter Middleton, M.D., by _J. Lewis_ 10
Harrison Gray Otis 11
Lieut. E. Trenchard, U. S. Navy 12
Samuel Elam, Rhode Island 13
John Adams 15
Hannah Reynolds 17
E Libris Thomæ Holt 18
John Campbell, Charles County 19
Richard Sprigg, Jr., by _T. Sparrow_ 20
Thomas O. Selfridge, Boston, 1799 22
Worcester Circulating Library 23
Daniel Greenleaf 25
Timothy Mann, Walpole, Oct., 1810 27
A. L. Hollingsworth, Boston, Mass. 29
George Bancroft 31
William Prescott 32
Henry Blackwell, New York City 33
Edward Pennington, Philadelphia 34
Gabriel Jones, Attorney at Law, in Virginia 36
Joseph Dudley, 1754 38
Jer. Dummer, Anglus Americanus 39
Minot, Boston 40
Frederik Philipse, Esq. 42
William P. Smith, A.M., by _Thomas Johnston_ 45
Andrew Tyler, by _Hurd_ 46
John Durand, Esq. 47
Anthony Stewart, Annapolis, Md. 48
Myles Cooper, LL.D., etc. 49
Andrew Oliver, attributed to _Hurd_ 50
Benjamin Kissam, by _Dawkins_ 51
Samuel Vaughan, Esq. 53
W. Jackson 54
De Witt Clinton, by _Maverick_ 55
James Parker 58
Henry Andrews, by _Harris_ 59
New York Society Library, by _Maverick_ 60
New York Society Library, 1789, by _Maverick_ 61
Monthly Library in Farmington, Conn. 63
Village Library, Farmington, Conn. 65
Society for Propagating the Gospel in Foreign Parts 66
Hasty Pudding Library, Harvard College 68
Linonian Library, Yale College 69
Linonian Library (_Yale College_) 70
Arnold Arboretum, 1892, by _Geo. Wharton Edwards_ 72
New York Society Library, by _Elisha Gallaudet_ 74
Phoenix Society 76
Brothers in Unity, Yale College, by _Pelton_ 77
Samuel Hill 78
Stephen Cleveland 80
Columbia College Library, New York, by _Anderson_ 81
Isaiah Thomas 83
Albany Society Library, 1759 84
John Quincy Adams 86
Josiah Quincy 87
Livius 88
Dr. John Jeffries, attributed to _Callender_ 89
Geo. Washington, _genuine_ 91
Geo. Washington, _fraudulent_ 94
Bushrod Washington 96
Daniel Webster 97
Brander Matthews, by _E. A. Abbey_ 99
Edmund Clarence Stedman 100
Laurence Hutton 102
Winfield Scott 103
Robert Hale, Esq., of Beverly, by _Hurd_ 107
John Chandler, Jr., Esq., by _Hurd_ 108
Lewis De Blois, by _Hurd_ 109
Joshua Spooner, by _Hurd_ 110
Harvard College, by _Hurd_ 112
John Vassall, Esq., by _Hurd_ 114
John Lowell, by _Hurd_ 115
Peter A. Browne, by _Akin_ 118
John Pintard, LL.D., by _Anderson_ 120
Apprentices’ Library, New York City, by _Anderson_ 121
Thomas Russell, by _Callender_ 125
Henry D. Gilpin, by _Childs_ 127
Whitehead Hicks, by _Dawkins_ 130
Social Library, Wethersfield, by _Doolittle_ 133
Eli Forbes, by _Furnass_ 135
John Chambers, by Elisha _Gallaudet_ 136
Anonymous, by _Maverick_ 141
Abraham Bancker, by _Maverick_ 143
Gardiner Chandler, by _Revere_ 146
William Wetmore, by _Revere_ 147
Paul Revere, by _Revere_ 148
John Lenthall, by _Thackara_ 153
Bloomfield, by _Trenchard_ 154
Luther Martin, attributed to _Trenchard_ 155
John Franklin, Boston, New Eng., by _Turner_ 156
Bloomfield McIlvaine, by _Seymour_ 157
G. A. Smith 159
Anonymous, by _Maverick_ 161
William Belcher, Savannah 171
Absalom Blackley, by _Maverick_ 173
Hon. William Carmichael, Esq. 181
Col. John Skey Eustace 199
Ewing 201
Andrew G. Fraunces, by _Maverick_ 205
John Goelet, attributed to _Maverick_ 209
Richard Harison 215
Barrack Hays, by _Hutt_ 219
Samuel Farmar Jarvis, D.D. 227
William Jauncey 229
Thomas Johnson, by _Maverick_ 231
Edward Livingston, by _Maverick_ 238
Abraham Lodge 240
Rev. John Murray 253
Francis Panton, Jr., by _Maverick_ 259
Samuel Parker 260
William Penn 263
James Power 270
Samuel Smith 283
J. B. Swett 289
John Tayloe 291
Richard Varick, by _Billings_ 295
Virginia Council Chamber 297
John C. Warren 299
W. Warren 301
William Duer 322
Malvians 339
Thomas Bailey Aldrich 343
Melvin H. Hapgood 344
Joseph Henry Dubbs, D.D. 345
James Phinney Baxter 348
Albert C. Bates 350
George Wharton Edwards 351
John Herbert Corning, by _H. Sandham_ 354
George L. Parmelee 355
Paul Lemperly, by _Bert K. Canfield_ 359
Joseph H. Wheeler 361
Chauncey Lawrence Williams, by _Geo. R. Halm_ 364
Samuel Wesley Marvin 366
Adam Van Allan 367
Marcus Benjamin 369
Henry S. Rowe 376
Julia Dexter Coffin 374
Jeremiah Evarts 386
John Andrew 388
Paul Lemperly, by _E. H. Garrett_ 421
[Illustration: Jere^{h}. Wadsworth.]
AMERICAN BOOK-PLATES.
INTRODUCTORY.
[Illustration: W]e cannot venture to guess which was the first
book-plate made in America, nor to say with absolute certainty whence
came the first plate used in our country; but undoubtedly the latter
came over already pasted into some book of a Dutch or English settler.
The larger part of our books came from England, and very few plates are
found with arms of other nationalities. The colonists who came from
England bringing books, brought also the home ideas concerning books,
and the book-plate was a natural piece of property to acquire. Their
descendants, who continued the connection with the mother-country, used
plates more generally, and the fashion spread naturally. It never became
very general, but was confined to those of gentle birth; the clergy, the
lawyers, and men of education. We shall see that it was not confined to
the men alone, but that the women of literary accomplishments also used
plates.
[Illustration: George Lee Turberville.
Virginia.]
By far the greater part of the plates are cut on copper, but there are
some woodcuts as will be seen in an examination of the list; also, there
are some which look as if cut in silver, which was an easier metal to
work, or perhaps in type-metal. One example is known in which brass was
used, and this old plate is now in the possession of the writer. The
steel engravings are of rather recent date; and while there are a number
of these, the new plates are mostly on copper. The simple labels are
printed from type.
The larger part of our early plates are armorial in character; and while
heraldry forms so prominent and important a feature, it is left
practically untouched in the present volume. The number interested in
the science is small, the authorities on coats-of-arms and on blazoning
differ, and the present writer had not the time to make the thorough
investigation necessary to a satisfactory treatment of this interesting
branch. Upon consultation with other collectors, and with their advice,
it was decided to leave this subject for a future volume should any call
for it arise.
[Illustration: Timothy Newell.]
A decided difference is noticed between the book-plates of the Northern
and the Southern Colonies. In the South, to which came men of wealth and
leisure with cultivated tastes, we would expect to find the little
superfluities and niceties of daily life sooner in vogue and more
generally used. Bringing books and musical instruments with them,
retaining their connection with the far-away home by correspondence and
visits, sending their sons to the great Universities to be educated, and
to the Law Schools for a finishing course, and ordering their clothes,
books, furniture, and all of the luxuries of life from England, they
would naturally be the first to use the book-plate. Very few of the
Southern plates were engraved by American engravers. They were nearly
all done in London, when some member of the family was over, or by order
from the Colony; for this reason the Southern plates are better in
heraldry, design, and execution than those of New England and New York.
They were the product of men experienced in such work; they were all
armorial and in the prevailing English mode.
The earliest comers to New England had a prejudice against coats-of-arms
and trinkets of such-like character, which their descendants, however,
soon forgot. Pride of ancestry and love of the display of aristocratic
claims developed when the hard circumstances of the former years had
worn off, and we find the prominent families of the North using
book-plates, and having their arms upon their coaches. In one important
feature, however, these Northern plates differ from the Southern,--they
are mostly the work of our native engravers, very few being done in
England.
The work of these native artisans, who were mostly self-taught in this
art of engraving on copper, is confessedly inferior to that of the
London experts found upon the Southern plates, both in drawing and
execution, but their work is of more value to the collector from this
very fact of their being American work. They furnish examples of native
skill, both in engraving and in copper-plate printing.
The ornamentation of buttons, spoons, tableware, and other articles of
silver was already practised when the demand for the book-plate arose,
so that there were skilful men ready to turn their attention to this new
branch of their art.
[Illustration: WILLIAM LORD]
The War of the Revolution naturally affected the native production of
book-plates, but a few years after its close, when Boston, New York, and
Philadelphia were active in publishing books, the engraver found work
more plenty, and very many who were employed upon the plates for the
illustration of books also produced book-plates.
Nathaniel Hurd was the principal engraver of book-plates in the North
before the war, though Thomas Johnson, who was born before him and who
also died before he did, made some plates, while Turner and Paul Revere
were also working at this period.
Henry Dawkins, in Philadelphia, came over from England, and so did the
elder Maverick, who made so many plates for the New Yorkers.
[Illustration: George C. M. Roberts, M.D.]
The literary plates are smaller in number than we could wish, and they
do not show a wide range of ideas either. Very probably some of the
designs were borrowed from English plates, and were produced over again
for different customers, or were freely copied by other engravers who
liked, or who found customers who liked, the design of others. The plate
used by _George Goodwin_ is one of four of this same design. The shelf
of books is also seen in the plate of _G. C. M. Roberts, M.D._, _Thomas
Robbins_, and the
[Illustration: MORAL LIBRARY
YALE COLLEGE]
_Elijah F. Reed_, which is a direct reproduction of the _Robbins_. Piles
of books, but not the regulation “Book-pile,” are seen in the _Brown_
and _Lewis_ plates, while the only real library interiors are the
_Tayloe_ plate, the _Moral Library_ and the _Village Library_
(Farmington, Conn.). John Allan, the old-book lover of New York, used a
plate with an open book against an anchor, and the plate of _Edmund
Penn_ shows a love for books in the dainty volumes disposed about the
frame.
[Illustration: Elijah F. Reed’s]
The patriotism of our book-lovers is shown in very many designs, which
use the American flag or the eagle. The thirteen stars also, the motto
of the United States, and various private mottoes of a very patriotic
nature, are frequently used.
It is noticeable that as compared with the Southern plates there are but
few of the Northern examples which give the address or residence of the
owner; that is, speaking of the armorial plates, the printed name
labels give these particulars quite often.
[Illustration: Jared Ingersoll Esq^{r}.
of New Haven Connecticut.]
The _Jared Ingersoll_ plate gives _New Haven_ as the residence of the
owner, while _Rhode Island_ follows the name on the plate of _Samuel
Elam_. Other Northern plates which are so engraved are the _Colonel
Eustace of New York_, _Comptroller Elliston_ also _of New York_, _Lenox
of Philadelphia_, _Atlee of Lancaster_, _John Franklin, Boston, New
England_, and _Robert Hale of Beverly_. Of the Southern plates,
_Wormeley_, _Waller_, _Tuberville_, _Tazewell_, _Skelton_, _Randolph_,
and _Ludwell_
[Illustration: John Walters Gibbs.]
give _Virginia_ as their residence; _Drayton_ names _South Carolina_,
the _Dr. Cabell_ plate names _Richmond_, and the _John Walters Gibbs_
names _Charleston, S.C._ The plates used in the West Indies also show
the residence quite often. There, too, as well as in the Southern
colonies, the profession or position of the owner, as well as the London
law school in which he was educated, are often given. Thus we have
_William Blanc, Middle Temple, Dominica_; _Chas. Pinfold, LL.D.,
Governor of Barbadoes_; _Peyton Randolph of the Middle Temple, London_;
_Francis Page of the Inner Temple Esqr._; _William Assheton of Gray’s
Inn_. In the Northern examples we find _John Gardiner of the Inner
Temple_, and _Jonathan Belcher, E Societate Medij Templi_.
[Illustration: PETER MIDDLETON. M.D.]
We note also in running through the List that the occupations most often
noted on the book-plates are those of the medical and the legal
profession. Barristers, lawyers, and attorneys are often so named, and
the initials _M.D._, or the full word _Doctor_, are seen.
The abbreviations of other degrees are found also, and the plates of
clergymen are not uncommon.
Several plates remain unnoticed in the following pages, which are
probably American, but which, for lack of positive information, it is
thought best not to include. Among these is an early Dutch plate which,
if it could be accurately traced to its original owner, might prove to
be one of the earliest plates used in America.
[Illustration: Harrison Gray Otis.]
It seems that a word is needed in defence of the perfectly legitimate
and gentle pursuit of collecting book-plates. A great deal of sarcasm
and indignation have found their way into the columns of periodical
literature, particularly in England, the especial purpose of which is to
trouble the humble collector, and to discredit him in the eyes of the
world. He is pointed out as a destroyer of valuable books, as an animal
so greedy in the pursuit of his insignificant prey as to ruin elegant
bindings that he may secure worthless bits of paper, and as actually so
devoid of good sense as to remove such of these as are interesting--for
it is reluctantly admitted that some interest does attach to the plates
used by certain men of fame in historical annals--from their rightful
place within the covers of the very books read and handled by these
illustrious owners.
[Illustration: Lieut. E. Trenchard]
Let it be remembered that but a small part of the many books published
have a permanent value, and that a book once eagerly sought may outlive
its usefulness, and come to have a commercial value of so much a pound
as old paper, instead of so much a copy in different styles of binding.
Surely, no one can quarrel with the collector who removes the
book-plate, found within it, from such a worn-out specimen, even if the
removal necessitates the ruin of the cover. But to remove a book-plate
does not necessarily mean to ruin the cover; it requires some skill and
considerable patience to remove a valuable plate without injury to
either itself or the cover upon which it was pasted, but it is done
daily. Surely no one can find fault with this--a skilful operation
resulting satisfactorily to the plate-collector and to the book-owner.
[Illustration: Samuel Elam.]
Again, no intelligent book-plate collector will separate the plate of a
famous man from the book which has been its home for years, and which
was once handled and read by its famous owner. Even a worthless book
will thus be saved by the collector, which was fit but for the fire or
the ash-heap, and which would have gone thither, plate and all, save for
his discriminating eye, while a valuable book no one would think of
despoiling. Would an intelligent collector, having a book from the
library of George Washington, with his plate upon the cover and his
autograph in its accustomed place, think of soaking off the plate and
cutting out the signature? Not at all; no matter how worthless the book
might chance to be, the fact that it was Washington’s is sufficient to
insure it from any harm, while the presence of the autograph and the
book-plate but adds to the value as establishing beyond peradventure the
original ownership.
The book-plate collector is naturally a book-lover. He must not be
accused or suspected of crimes against his own kith and kin. He is a
harmless and useful specimen of the _genus_ collector, who with
assiduity, perseverance, and intelligence seeks to preserve these
memorials of past days, which in the rage for indiscriminate collecting
were overlooked, and are but now beginning to receive the attention they
are worthy of.
It is, however, to be admitted that at first glance, the general reader
who has not developed a special liking for the things of the past in
history, art, or biography, may see no especial interest in book-plates.
But let him examine a collection of good plates with their intelligent
owner, who can point out to him the facts worthy of note; let him once
understand that celebrated artists like Albrecht Durer, Jost Amman,
William Hogarth, William Marshall, George Vertue, Bewick, Bartolozzi,
and even Raphael Morghen were willing to devote time and taste to the
designing or engraving of the book-plate; let him handle some of their
work, and reflect upon the effort the master considered so small a
design worthy of; let him see the plates of some of the noted names in
history, art, letters, medicine, the sciences, and the professions; let
him take in his hands the plates of William Penn, the friend of the
Indian and benefactor of his race, of Laurence Sterne, of David Garrick,
of Horace Walpole, of Samuel Rogers, of Charles Dickens, or of George
Washington, of John Adams, and Charles Carroll, signers of the
Declaration; let him see a plate engraved by Paul Revere whose services
in the Revolution he has known of from his schooldays;--let him see
these and scores more of similar interest, and he cannot fail to respond
to the enthusiasm of their owner. But indeed it is a pursuit, the
delights of which are discernible to those only who bring to it the
capacity for such pleasures.
[Illustration: _John Adams._]
NAME-LABELS AND MOTTOES.
[Illustration: O]f all forms of book-plates the simplest possible is the
printed name of the owner, unaccompanied by either motto, device, or
ornamentation of any kind. Such a plate had _Philip Hone_, one of the
founders of the Mercantile Library, and in the early twenties a mayor of
the city of New York. His plate is merely a bit of paper with his name
in bold script printed upon it from an engraved copper-plate.
This style of plate is not chronologically the earliest, but is taken as
our starting-point because of its unrelieved simplicity; this fulfils
the mission of the book-plate,--it proclaims the ownership of the book
in which it is seen; not in delicate language, to be sure, not with any
invitation to dip into the volume in hand, not with any evidence of the
owner’s taste in reading, but with a directness not to be misunderstood.
The essential part of the book-plate is the name of the owner; and while
this is sufficient of itself, it is found profitable and pleasant to
accompany it with an apt quotation from a favorite author, with a
caution against the improper
[Illustration: James Eddy Mauran.]
handling of books, with a warning of the sad result of declining
Wisdom’s guidance, or with an invitation to enjoy the beauties of
literature and to share the benefits of careful reading. In addition to
these mere typographical adjuncts an opportunity is offered for the
display of those more decorative garnishments which have led to the
development of the handsomer styles of plates.
[Illustration: _Hannah Reynolds._]
_Alexander Stedman’s: Thomas Thaxter’s, 1791: William W. Potter’s Book:
Aaron Woolworth’s, Ex Dono Rev. S. Buell, D.D._ These plates use the
possessive case, are embellished with borders of ornamental type, and
supply some further information by showing the date of their being used,
or by naming the giver of the volumes. Other styles of expressing
book-ownership are afforded by the following: _Nicolas Pike His Book
1768_: _Hannah Adams, Medfield 179-_: _The Property of John Clap,
Roxbury 1791_: _Davidis Dickinson Liber, A.D. 1796_: _Lieut. E.
Trenchard, U. S. Navy_: _Simeon Baldwin, Owner_: _Ex Libris I. G.
Thomas_: _Library T. W. Curtis, No._: _Belonging to the Library of
Thomas Forrest Betton, Germantown Pa._: _The Property of John Weld
native of Pomfret, Conn. Resident of Pomfret, Bo’t of Mr. James Steele
of Hartford, January 12, 1796_: _W. Lewis, Ejus Liber_: _Johann
Christoph Kunze, Prediger in Philadelphia_: _Emmanuel Jones e Coll; Gul;
et Ma: 1756_.
[Illustration: THOMÆ HOLT.]
These old type-set labels with their quaint borders of ornamental
type,--scrolls, flourishes, stars, vines, and even grammatical
signs,--are usually found to be printed on good white handmade paper,
which was seldom trimmed with care; occasionally a tinted paper is
found,--yellow more often than any other, but sometimes a blue or green;
these served the less pretentious of our ancestors in lieu of the
coats-of-arms and family mottoes of those of higher lineage, and are
found in quantities throughout the New England and Middle States: even
farther south they are not uncommon, but are not so numerous.
[Illustration: JOHN CAMPBELL,
Charles County.]
In making up these ornamental borders the type was usually set in the
form of a parallelogram, occasionally in a square, oval, circle, or
diamond, and seldom in fanciful shapes. The most ambitious plate of this
kind which has come under my observation is that which once graced the
books of Mary McGinley; this is a rather large plate, and the type is
set in the form of an urn, within the lines of which are given the motto
and the owner’s name.
A step in advance of these wholly typographical examples are those which
employ a woodcut border to surround the name, and instances can be
given of such a border enclosing the name printed from type; festoons of
flowers or of cord, and draperies of cloth, were also used as a simple
setting for the owner’s name. In this connection mention may be made of
the work of T. Sparrow, an obscure engraver of Maryland; no heraldic or
pictorial examples of his workmanship have been identified, and he
probably confined himself to the simple woodcut designs of which but a
small number are known. Always using a border of floriated scrolls, he
never omitted an original contrivance which is the characteristic mark
of his work,--a group of thirteen stars surrounded often by a wreath.
This is always found in a prominent place, and is an indication of his
patriotism as well as that of the owner of the plate.
[Illustration: RICHARD SPRIGG, jun.]
It must not be supposed that the heraldic book-plate was an outgrowth or
development of the name-label: not at all; they were contemporaneous
and were both used in England long before they were here.
Coming now to the subject of mottoes, we find a wide field to travel
over, many languages to read, many quotations to recognize, with hints
and warnings, and even threatenings, by the score, from jealous
book-lovers. Mottoes readily fall into two classes: those which are
chosen by the owner for some personal reason, and those which are family
mottoes, and which are used without thought because they are a family
inheritance, or with a commendable pride in such legacies from an
honorable ancestry. Latin is the language most often used probably,
though English is a strong rival, while German, French, Greek, and even
Hebrew and Welsh are also found upon our book-plates. Sentiments
opposing the habit of book-borrowing are of frequent occurrence, and in
some instances are of such severity as to leave no doubt of their
effectiveness. For brevity and pointedness the following example can
hardly be exceeded:--
_This book was bought and paid for by_
_D. C. Colesworthy._
_Borrowing neighbors are recommended_
_to supply themselves in the same manner._
_Price seventy-five cents._
On the book-plate of _D. W. Jayne_ the following verse from the Bible is
used:--
_Go ye rather to them that sell and buy for yourselves. Matt. Chap.
xxv. ver. 9._
[Illustration: Thomas O. Selfridge,
_BOSTON_,
1799.]
Verses from Holy Writ are quite frequently used on plates, and the style
of expression found in the Psalms and Proverbs is borrowed as adding an
authoritative emphasis to the words of caution and advice,--
_The wicked borrow, and returneth not: do thou not like unto them._
_Return what thou borroweth with the most sacred punctuality, and
withhold it not._
On the plate of a book-lover in Charleston, S.C.,--
_And ye shall keep me until the fourteenth day. And it shall be
when thou hast made an end of reading this book. Send me away unto
my master. Ex. xii. 6: Jer. li. 63: Gen. xxiv. 54._
[Illustration: THE PROPERTY OF THE
Worcester Circulating Library Company.]
Every one has suffered from book-borrowers, even from school-day times,
when the rude doggerel,--
_Steal not this book for fear of shame,_
_For here you see the owner’s name_,
or its variant,
_Steal not this book for fear of strife,_
_For its owner carries a huge jack-knife_,
was printed in coarse letters across the cover of the books most likely
to go astray. How irritating it is to find the very volume one needs at
the moment, missing from its accustomed place on the shelf; if anything
is lacking to complete the torment of the discovery, let it be
impossible to find out who has taken the desired volume, or to get any
clew as to when it went or where!
_Private Library of J. N. Candee Cole, This book is not loaned.
Matt. xxv. 9._
_Read not books alone: but men, and be careful to read thyself. The
property of John Lambert, South Reading._
_To Borrowers of Books._
YOU _remember, my friend, I freely comply’d
With the favour you asked me, and fully relied
On a favour from you, which, tho’ promised, I find,
As it hasn’t been granted, is out of your mind,
To return in due time what I’ve wanted to see,
The Book, which ’tis long since you borrow’d of me.
Another I now with reluctance implore,
’Tis only to ask that you borrow no more._
_Stolen from J. W. Houx_,
_Book-keeping taught in three words,
Never lend them._
The would-be borrower who finds these sentiments in the book he was
about to ask for will scarcely be encouraged to do so, and for
directness they are exceeded by only one example, in which the owner’s
name is followed by the simple declaration, _He does not lend books_.
The motto on the plate of the late _George Ticknor_--_Suum cuique, To
every man his own_--was also calculated to discourage the borrower.
But some people do lend books, and have them returned too,--in good
second-hand condition. And so it comes about that the proper use of
books is made the subject of another class of mottoes.
_My Friend! Should you this book peruse,_
_Please to protect it from abuse:_
_Nor soil, nor stain, nor mark its page,_
_Nor give it premature old age:_
_And, when it has effected all,_
_Please to return it ere I call._
[Illustration: Daniel Greenleaf]
The following verse is common property and is found on several plates:--
_If thou art borrowed by a friend,_
_Right welcome shall he be_
_To read, to study, not to lend,_
_And to return to me._
_Not that imparted learning doth_
_Diminish learning’s store,_
_But books, I find, if often lent,_
_Return to me no more._
_Read slowly,_
_Pause frequently,_
_Think seriously,_
_Return duly with the corners of the leaves not turned down._
_Neither blemish this book, nor the leaves double down,_
_Nor lend it to each idle friend in the town:_
_Return it when read,--or if lost please supply_
_Another, as good to the mind and the eye._
_With right and with reason you need but be friends_
_And each book in my study your pleasure attends._
_If through respect or love I lend_
_This book unto my worthy friend,_
_He must not soil, abuse, nor tear,_
_But read with diligence and care;_
_And when its contents you have learned,_
_Remember, it must be_ RETURNED.
On the plate of _Samuel W. Francis_ appear the following lines:--
_Any one may borrow,_
_But a gentleman returns._
* * * * *
_The property_
_of_
_Thomas C. Cowan._
_Borrower,_
_read, mark, and_ AVOID
_the former part_
_of_
_Psalm xxxvii. 21_.
* * * * *
IF _you borrow, freely use it,_
_Take great care and don’t abuse it:_
_Read, but neither lose nor lend it,_
_Then unto the owner send it_.
_Never open a book farther than to bring both sides of the cover on
to the same plane. Never lend a borrowed book, but return it as
soon as you are through with it, so that the owner may not be
deprived of its use. You may think this a strange request, but I
find that although many of my friends are poor arithmeticians, they
are nearly all of them good book-keepers._
[Illustration: TIMOTHY MANN.]
In strong contrast to all the preceding are those mottoes of generous
souls who find no pleasure in withholding their treasures, but who wish
to have it understood that they are for the use of all; not very many
are bold enough to thus advertise their willingness to lend, but a few
do so, and generally by the use of the Latin, _Sibi et amicis_, or _et
amicorum_.
Sentiments in praise of books and reading are not uncommon, and
quotations from classic writers both in prose and poetry do good
service on book-plates. Pope’s well-known lines--
_A little learning is a dangerous thing,_
_Drink deep or taste not the Pierian Spring;_
_Where shallow draughts intoxicate the brain,_
_But drinking largely sobers us again._
are found on an old American plate.
On a recent New York plate,--
_Far more seemly were it for thee to have thy Study full of Books
than thy purse full of money. Lilly._
On a Maine plate,--
_Who learns and learns but does not what he learns,_
_Is one who plows and plows but never sows._
* * * * *
_Weigh well each thought, each sentence freely scan,_
_In Reason’s balance try the works of man._
_Be bias’d not by those who praise or blame,_
_Nor, Servile, Yield opinion to a name._
On a recent Boston plate,--
_Un bon livre est un bon ami._
On a recent Western plate,--
_A jolly goode booke,_
_Whereon to looke,_
_Is better to me than golde._
On a recent Washington plate,--
_A trusty villain, sir, that very oft when I am dull with care and
melancholy lightens my humour._
[Illustration: EX LIBRIS A. L. HOLLINGSWORTH.]
The mottoes on the plates of those who have achieved distinction have a
peculiar interest, especially when chosen by the owners themselves. The
plate of _Henry W. Longfellow_ bears the following line:--
_Non clamor sed amor_,
which is from an unknown author and is found in the following verse:--
_Non vox sed votum,_
_Non chordas sed cor,_
_Non clamor sed amor,_
_Sonat in aure Dei._
_Not voice but vow,_
_Not harp-string, but heart-string,_
_Not loudness but love,_
_Sound in the ear of God._
The motto of _George Washington_,--_Exitus acta probat_, is not given in
the accepted lists as the family motto of his ancestors, but it may have
been such. The meaning of it has brought out criticism recently because
of its Jesuitical sound,--“_The end shows the deed_.” But this may also
be taken as a patriotic utterance in view of the part of the illustrious
owner of this plate in the Revolution.
On the plate of _William Penn_ we see a motto most fitting for the
character he sustained, _Dum clavum rectum teneam_--“_While I hold to
glory, let me hold to right_.” In the plate the third word is omitted,
as the engraver found the motto too long for the space reserved, and
through some
[Illustration: George Bancroft]
blunder the _r_ in _clarum_ is changed to a _v_, which makes no sense at
all.
On the plate of _George Bancroft_, the late historian, a chubby cherub
bears a panel on which is the motto, _Sursum corda_. Another plate was
also used by Mr. Bancroft which was in all respects like the above,
except that the motto was changed to ΕΙΣ ΦΑΟΣ.
The plate of the late _Mr. George W. Childs_ has the following motto
whose appropriateness is evident at once,--_The pen is mightier than the
sword_. Above this a second motto of equal appropriateness is
given,--_Nihil sine labore_.
On the plate of _Dr. Oliver Wendell Holmes_, _Per ampliora ad altiora_
is given upon a ribbon under a beautiful drawing of the “chambered
nautilus.”
[Illustration: WILLIAM PRESCOTT]
Instances of mottoes which are cleverly made to carry some meaning, or
some word, which will be seen at a glance to be taken from the name of
the owner, are found often.
On the plate of _Harold Clarence Ernst_ this motto is given, _Ernst ist
das Leben_.
On the plate of _George Curry, D.D._,--_Sic curre capias_.
On the plate of _Edward Spencer Dix_,--_Quod dixi id feci_.
[Illustration: HENRY BLACKWELL]
In concluding this list of mottoes two from the Welsh can be instanced,
one on the plate of a New York collector of Welshiana, which is _Cared
Doeth Yr Encilic_, meaning, “_The learned love the things of the
past_.” The other is on a Washington plate, and reads thus, _A fynno Dwy
y Fydd_, meaning, “_What God wills, will be_.”
In the list of languages used on book-plates, we must now include the
Volapük, for we have the first instance of its use already in a New York
plate; the motto reading, _Menad bal pukbal_, and meaning, “_One
humanity, one language_.”
[Illustration: Edward Penington.]
[Illustration: Eugene Field.]
ARMORIAL BOOK-PLATES.
[Illustration: B]ook-plates admit of many kinds of extraneous
ornamentation, and wholly apart from the special function of recording
the ownership of books, they serve as expressions of artistic taste;
they lend themselves readily to many forms of design, and have passed
through several changes or “styles” in the three hundred years of their
existence; they can be dignified or flippant, serious or punning, of
artistic beauty or positive deformity; they can express the owner’s
choice of reading and can preserve lines from his favorite authors; can
convey warning or invitation, and can, in short, be made a very personal
affair.
The first book-plates were heraldic. In those early and, in some senses,
good old days, before the schoolmaster was abroad in the land, when
learning was the possession of the aristocrats and the churchmen only,
and consequently when handwriting was not in use among the people,
families were distinguished by emblems which were known of all. These
heraldic devices were painted on their shields, carved upon their
walls, engraved upon their breast-plates, woven upon their banners and
their tapestries, displayed upon their own persons, upon those of their
dependents, and even upon their animals and the furniture and books of
their homes; even the purely ornamental and ephemeral luxuries came to
be adorned with the family coat-of-arms.
[Illustration: Gabriel Jones, Attorney at Law, in Virginia.]
The armorial bearings, stamped upon the back or sides of a book, or
printed upon paper and pasted within the cover, were sufficient, without
a name, to identify the family to which it belonged. Libraries descended
from father to son, and were kept intact for generations; and the
family arms and motto were the most appropriate label possible.
Warren, one of the first to study book-plates and to give to others the
benefit of his researches, has divided the armorial plates into general
classes, and has given them suitable names, which are accepted the world
over. A considerable number of subdivisions has been made; and while
they may be serviceable where book-plates are plentiful, they are
but an incumbrance to the collector of the early plates of America,
for our examples are few in number, and are quite sufficiently
distinguished--for the purpose of the present work, at least--by the
following styles: Early English, Jacobean, Chippendale, Ribbon, and
Wreath. Distinctive, easily remembered characteristics pertain to each
of these, and fairly accurate dates of their adoption and continuance
can be given.
Adopting then the nomenclature of Warren, and following his lead, we
come now to consider the meaning of the different styles and the
diversity of their designs.
The very earliest class is the Early English, in which the shield of
arms is present with all its accessories. In these plates the mantling
is very profuse, and in large full-rounded curves surrounds three, and
often all four, sides of the shield. This is the only ornamentation,
nothing incidental being added as yet; the name of the owner is usually
or often accompanied by a title and address, and quite frequently also
by the date.
[Illustration: Joseph Dudley
1754]
We have but few examples of this style; perhaps the most satisfactory as
an example of the class will be the plate of _Joseph Dudley_, dated
1754. (This plate was really engraved much earlier than this. Hurd
erased the original name, and cut the present one with the date in its
place.) In this the mantling, running out beyond the edges of the
shield, curls both upward and downward, and completely envelops three
sides; the design takes on a strong resemblance to oak leaves, and a
single leaf of this is engraved upon the helmet: the background, or
space enclosed within the scroll-work, is filled in with perpendicular
lines which might be taken for the tincture _gules_; in the
name-bracket, the oak-leaf pattern is again made use of, forming a neat
finish to the ends.
[Illustration: Jer. Dummer
Anglus Americanus]
In the plate of _The Honourable Wm. Carmichael, Esqr._, the mantling is
not so completely transformed into the oak-leaf design, although the
latter is here apparent. The plate of _Jer. Dummer, Anglus Americanus_
is peculiar in that the space enclosed by the scroll-work is lined with
the solid brick wall of the later Jacobean style; in this the
[Illustration: Minot]
mantling is less striking than in the _Dudley_, but it surrounds the
shield well, and curves upward about the crest. In the _Minot_ plate,
which is very peculiar and rather difficult to classify, the mantling is
very unworthy of the name; it does not proceed from the helmet, nor
indeed from anywhere in particular, but in wild and very eccentric
fashion, envelops the crest and most of the shield; the field of the
shield is tinctured _azure_, and it is enclosed within a border or
moulding which nearly surrounds it, but leaves a portion at the base
unprotected; a further peculiarity of this moulding is that it is an
integral part of the helmet, for it curves over at the top of the shield
and actually proceeds from the helmet.
A very fine example of this style is the _Francis Page_ plate.
The next style is the Jacobean, commonly spoken of as existing from
about 1700 to about 1745; the styles overlap naturally, and no
hard-and-fast period can be established within which only one particular
style of plate was used. Examples of the Jacobean plate are found in
England which would date later than 1745, and the style which succeeded
this was used somewhat before the year which begins its accepted period:
the dates of the periods, then, are approximate. The names by which the
different styles are known have all a good reason for their acceptance,
although each one was suggested by differing circumstances.
The style of book-plate in vogue at the time of the last James is
designated as Jacobean; and, while it continued in use long after the
death of the deposed monarch who gave it its name, any change in its
designation would be misleading. The principal features of this style
are its heavy, carved appearance, the evenly balanced proportions, and
the exact coincidence of the two sides of the design. The shield, always
of regular outline, is usually placed upon an ornamental frame whose
background, or lining, is either filled in
[Illustration: _FREDERIK·PHILIPSE ESQ^{r}._]