Old English 'Squire, The
by CARELESS, John [pseudonym]; RIVIÉRE & SON; [CHATTO, William Andrew]
- Used
- first
- Condition
- See description
- Seller
-
Calabasas, California, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
London: Printed for Thomas McLean, 1821. Scarce Copy
With Earliest Watermarks
Complete With Half-Title
CARELESS, John [pseudonym]. [CHATTO, William Andrew]. The Old English 'Squire. "A Jovial Gay Fox-Hunter, Bold, Frank, and Free." A Poem in Ten Cantos. Illustrated with Plates, by One of the Family. London: Printed for Thomas McLean... by Howlett and Brimmer, 1821.
First edition, earliest issue, a Large Paper copy complete with half-title; scarce.
Tall octavo (10 3/8 x 7 1/8 in; 263 x 181 mm ). viii, 136 pp. Twenty-four hand-colored aquatint plates, including frontispiece, watermarked "Whatman 1821". (The plates in Abbey's copy watermarked "Whatman 1823."
Bound by Rivière & Son in full green crushed morocco, covers with French fillets, spine with five raised bands elaborately tooled and lettered in gilt in compartments, wide gilt decorated turn-ins, plum endpapers, top edge gilt, others uncut. Spine slightly sunned. With the armorial bookplate of sporting book collector Graham M. Adee on front paste-down. A fine copy.
"The half-title is frequently missing" (Tooley).
The story of the life of a somewhat debauched squire from birth until his bridle at marriage.
"'John Careless, Esq.,' is only known as the author of a rare colour-book, The Old English Squire, published by M'Lean in 1821, with twenty [i.e. 24] coloured plates 'by one of the family' in the style of Rowlandson. The literary matter differs from that of Combe and Mitford in being strongly influenced by the style of Walter Scott, wherever the galloping metre of Retaliation and Haunch of Venison is not used. Especially curious is the account of the collection of Old Masters, from which the Old English Squire bought his St Anthony preaching to the Fishes..." (Prideaux).
"It is not certainly known who 'John Careless' was. He is sometimes said to have been 'Stephen Oliver' (a pseudonym of W.A. Chatto); but Chatto's poem of the same title was published in 1838 by 'Phiz.' His 'Old English Squire', with twenty-four aquatints colored by hand ('by one of the family'), is in fact something of a mystery, and, for the collector, rather an expensive one: it may cost £20, or even more. The reason of such a price (though there is the justification of rarity) lies in two features it possesses. One is the plates, which are attributed to Thomas Rowlandson, of which all that can be said is that they are utterly unworthy of the artist who in the same year completed the illustrations to 'Dr. Syntax's' three 'Tours.' However, these puzzles of authorship and illustration make the book interesting. And trashy though the verse is, it has yet one other great interest - that of life" (Sawyer and Darton, English Books 1475-1900).
The stunning library of color-plate and sporting books collected by Capt. Graham M. Adee (USN, ret.) of Newport. R.I. was sold at Parke-Bernet Galleries in 1953.
Tooley 128. Abbey, Life, 387. Prideaux pp. 305, 330. Schwerdt I, p. 95.
With Earliest Watermarks
Complete With Half-Title
CARELESS, John [pseudonym]. [CHATTO, William Andrew]. The Old English 'Squire. "A Jovial Gay Fox-Hunter, Bold, Frank, and Free." A Poem in Ten Cantos. Illustrated with Plates, by One of the Family. London: Printed for Thomas McLean... by Howlett and Brimmer, 1821.
First edition, earliest issue, a Large Paper copy complete with half-title; scarce.
Tall octavo (10 3/8 x 7 1/8 in; 263 x 181 mm ). viii, 136 pp. Twenty-four hand-colored aquatint plates, including frontispiece, watermarked "Whatman 1821". (The plates in Abbey's copy watermarked "Whatman 1823."
Bound by Rivière & Son in full green crushed morocco, covers with French fillets, spine with five raised bands elaborately tooled and lettered in gilt in compartments, wide gilt decorated turn-ins, plum endpapers, top edge gilt, others uncut. Spine slightly sunned. With the armorial bookplate of sporting book collector Graham M. Adee on front paste-down. A fine copy.
"The half-title is frequently missing" (Tooley).
The story of the life of a somewhat debauched squire from birth until his bridle at marriage.
"'John Careless, Esq.,' is only known as the author of a rare colour-book, The Old English Squire, published by M'Lean in 1821, with twenty [i.e. 24] coloured plates 'by one of the family' in the style of Rowlandson. The literary matter differs from that of Combe and Mitford in being strongly influenced by the style of Walter Scott, wherever the galloping metre of Retaliation and Haunch of Venison is not used. Especially curious is the account of the collection of Old Masters, from which the Old English Squire bought his St Anthony preaching to the Fishes..." (Prideaux).
"It is not certainly known who 'John Careless' was. He is sometimes said to have been 'Stephen Oliver' (a pseudonym of W.A. Chatto); but Chatto's poem of the same title was published in 1838 by 'Phiz.' His 'Old English Squire', with twenty-four aquatints colored by hand ('by one of the family'), is in fact something of a mystery, and, for the collector, rather an expensive one: it may cost £20, or even more. The reason of such a price (though there is the justification of rarity) lies in two features it possesses. One is the plates, which are attributed to Thomas Rowlandson, of which all that can be said is that they are utterly unworthy of the artist who in the same year completed the illustrations to 'Dr. Syntax's' three 'Tours.' However, these puzzles of authorship and illustration make the book interesting. And trashy though the verse is, it has yet one other great interest - that of life" (Sawyer and Darton, English Books 1475-1900).
The stunning library of color-plate and sporting books collected by Capt. Graham M. Adee (USN, ret.) of Newport. R.I. was sold at Parke-Bernet Galleries in 1953.
Tooley 128. Abbey, Life, 387. Prideaux pp. 305, 330. Schwerdt I, p. 95.
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Details
- Bookseller
- David Brass Rare Books, Inc. (US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- 02297
- Title
- Old English 'Squire, The
- Author
- CARELESS, John [pseudonym]; RIVIÉRE & SON; [CHATTO, William Andrew]
- Book Condition
- Used
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Publisher
- London: Printed for Thomas McLean, 1821
- Keywords
- RIVIÉRE & SON [CHATTO, William Andrew]
Terms of Sale
David Brass Rare Books, Inc.
We will extend to you a 48-hour approval period on all items that are purchased sight unseen. If you are not completely satisfied with the item simply contact us within 48 hours after receipt, and then return it in the same condition you received it for a full refund, less freight charges, or any related costs including credit card transactions, taxes, and duties levied, especially when returning from other countries.
About the Seller
David Brass Rare Books, Inc.
Biblio member since 2007
Calabasas, California
About David Brass Rare Books, Inc.
David Brass Rare Books, Inc. specializes in buying and selling only the finest examples of English, American and European Literature, Children\\\'s Books, Color-Plate Books, Illustrated Books, Early Printed Books, Private Press Books, Fine Bindings, Original Artwork, Manuscripts, High Spot Modern First Editions, Rare Books and High Spots.
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Top Edge Gilt
- Top edge gilt refers to the practice of applying gold or a gold-like finish to the top of the text block (the edges the pages...
- Bookplate
- Highly sought after by some collectors, a book plate is an inscribed or decorative device that identifies the owner, or former...
- Fine
- A book in fine condition exhibits no flaws. A fine condition book closely approaches As New condition, but may lack the...
- Gilt
- The decorative application of gold or gold coloring to a portion of a book on the spine, edges of the text block, or an inlay in...
- Raised Band(s)
- Raised bands refer to the ridges that protrude slightly from the spine on leather bound books. The bands are created in the...
- Paste-down
- The paste-down is the portion of the endpaper that is glued to the inner boards of a hardback book. The paste-down forms an...
- Sunned
- Damage done to a book cover or dust jacket caused by exposure to direct sunlight. Very strong fluorescent light can cause slight...
- Spine
- The outer portion of a book which covers the actual binding. The spine usually faces outward when a book is placed on a shelf....
- Octavo
- Another of the terms referring to page or book size, octavo refers to a standard printer's sheet folded four times, producing...
- Morocco
- Morocco is a style of leather book binding that is usually made with goatskin, as it is durable and easy to dye. (see also...
- First Edition
- In book collecting, the first edition is the earliest published form of a book. A book may have more than one first edition in...