Notice sur la Position Financiere Actuelle des Etats de L'Amerique du Nord, Accompagnee de quelques details sur les Dettes des Principaux Etates European Soft cover - 1841

Geneve: Imprimere de Ch. Gruaz, 1841. First Edition First Printing . Soft cover. Fair. 8vo - over 7¾ - 9¾" tall. Octavo. 67, [2] pages. Soft cover bound in original printed wrappers. The binding shows heavy wear as well as some soiling and pest damage. A reinforced paper spine is all but perished. Outer wrappers show some foxing. The text block is delicate and may easily separate, however the text is largely unopened. Extensive damping at the lower quarter of the binding, affecting the text. This is heavier at the front where it affects the bottom 3/4 of the fore edge to over half of the bottom edge and retreats the further one goes though the text. Contains two large foldout tables at the rear. Housed in a board backed plastic sleeve. Text is in French. A rough translation of the title is, "Notice on the Current Financial Position of the States of North America, Accompanied by some details on the Debts of the Principal European States." The United States was in financial distress in the 1830s and 1840s. The Panic of 1837 led to a tightening of credit, especially from the Bank of England. 19 of the 26 U.S. states had issued State Bonds for finance internal improvements (roads, railroads, canals), and a number of these were in default. The U.S. enacted the Bankruptcy Act of 1841 to allow debtors to file for their own bankruptcy without creditors initiating it (although this was repealed in 1843). Much of the U.S. debt at that time was held by European banks. Alexandre Lombard (1810-1887) was a Swiss banker. This is a rare analysis of the financial health of the United States during a time of crisis by one of its creditors. We have found no auctions records for this work; currently no other copies appear to be for sale. It does not appear to have been translated into English.