Search Results: Titles starting with N from Rootenberg Rare Books & Manuscripts

8vo. xxxiv, 304 pp. Engraved title vignette, head-piece, initial, and 1 folding engraved plate. Original wrappers, top of front wrapper torn away; minor spotting on preliminary and endleaves, otherwise an excellent unsophisticated copy preserved in a folding clamshell box. First edition of the author's fascinating treatise on lightning rods. Landriani treats not only practical matters of construction and use, but also incorporates a section on scientific theory, differentiating between natural and artificial electricity. He provides a detailed description of Franklin's experiments, and includes a catalogue of all known lightning rods installed in Europe. Landriani (1746-1815), physicist and inventor, was one of a small group of eighteenth-century Italian scientists who received government funds to travel for the purpose of investigating scientific advances in other countries. A number of letters from scientists such as Saussure and Toaldo, among others, are published here for the first time. Along… Read More

8vo. xvi, 463; [i], 480 pp. Frontispiece woodcut of the author's logical machine and text diagrams. Full calf prize bindings, covers decorated in gilt with the arms of the university, spine decorated in gilt in compartments with original labels. An exceptionally fine copy with an occasional spot on blank leaves. Bookplate of Owens College, Manchester, Sessions 1874-8 inscribed to John Stevenson by Professor Henry E. Roscoe. First edition of the author's most valuable contribution to logic and methodology. Jevons (1835- 1882) was a prominent English logician and political economist. Considered a landmark in the philosophy of science, this work contains practically all of the author's fundamental ideas on logical doctrine, including his investigation of the principles of pure logic, his analysis of induction, and his discussion of the theory of probability and the relation between probability and induction. The "logical piano" on the engraved frontispiece of the first volume is a fascinating device… Read More

8vo. Modern green boards; some minor foxing, but a good, crisp copy.
Only edition of this essay calling for the abolishment of the death penalty in France. The author, a lawyer and prison reformer, argues that execution does not deter repeat criminals from committing future crimes and that torture only tests the ability of the defendant to endure pain. He asserts that the death penalty and torturous interrogation cast the entirety of France in a bad light, and that society should be past such barbarous practices. In particular, he condemns the guillotine. He bolsters his claims with quantitative evidence from the years 1825-1833.
This paper was awarded a silver medal by the Société de la Morale Chrétienne during its 1836 general assembly. Unrecorded in institutional holdings.
Cat. de la Bib. de L'Administration Centrale du Ministère de la Justice, 5205.

New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1912. FIRST EDITION. Blue cloth, author and title on spine in gilt lettering. Ex library.

Philadelphia: Henry Perkins, 1839. FIRST EDITION. Contemporary gilt-ruled half pebbled sheep over marbled boards, gilt spine title, marbled edges. Ownership inscriptions of Ralph Ritzman and Sam Brooks dated 1839. Some foxing, but otherwise a good, sturdy copy.

London: John Murray, 1824. Second Edition. Complete with half title, large folding frontispiece map, and 3 additional large folding plates. Half calf and marbled boards, spine and extremities rubbed; lightly foxed on endpapers, text somewhat toned. Overall, a good copy from the library of Edwin C. Jellett (1860-1929), an American author well known for his various books about Germantown, Pennsyvania, with his book-label on the paste-down. Second edition (as stated on the title page) of Franklin's harrowing 5,500 mile expedition to the North that resulted in starvation, cannibalism, and murder. Tasked with charting the geography from the mouth of the Coppermine River to the far east of North America, Franklin's journey was doomed from the start. As a result of poor planning, slow progress, and bad luck, the expedition was fraught with disaster: supplies were not readily available, winter came early, and food was so scarce that one of the crew eventually turned to murder and cannibalism as a result of… Read More

New York: Harper & Brothers, 1866. FIRST AMERICAN EDITION. With double-page frontispiece of the great cataracts of the Zambesi, 12 full-page plates, 1 large folding map and text illustrations throughout. Brown textured cloth, exterior slightly faded and rubbed, spine nicked; text is slightly toned but clean. First American edition of Livingstone's account of his Zambezi expedition to examine the natural resources of southeastern Africa and to determine the navigability of the Zambezi River. He explored the Shire River, a stream leading to Zambezi and discovered Lake Nyasa along with the Rovuma River and Lake Chilwa. The expedition met with many difficulties. The Zambezi turned out unnavigable past the Cabora Bassa rapids and in addition, he lost his wife Mary to malaria. Livingstone became greatly concerned with the slave trade while exploring Lake Nyasa He encountered marches of manacled slaves and with the entire countryside devasted by warring and slave raiding made a great impact on him.… Read More

London: Longmans, Green, Reader, and Dyer, 1874. FIRST EDITION. Complete with 2 half-titles and 2 pages of advertisements. Original green cloth, very lightly rubbed; previous owners bookplate. First edition of the author's Three essays on religion, published posthumously with an introduction by Mill's stepdaughter, Helen Taylor, who had assisted him since the death of her mother in 1858.

Leipzig: Verlag Von Veit & Comp., 1914. FIRST EDITION. With frontispiece portrait of the author. Contemporary cloth-backed marbled boards, author and title in gilt on spine. An excellent copy from the library of Ernest Nagel (1901-1985), an American philosopher of science known as one of the major figures in the logical positivist movement.

Chicago: Hammersmark Publishing, 1904. FIRST EDITION. Contemporary brown cloth backed brown boards with paper title labels on front cover and spine, top edge gilt; a very good copy. Inscribed in pencil by Masters in 1904 on front paste-down. First edition. Masters' third and one of his most elusive books, a collection of political essays. Articles include discussions of Theodore Roosevelt, John Marshall, Jefferson and Hamilton, implied powers and imperialism, election of federal judges, despotism, and observations on democracy, among others. "In those essays, Masters praises Jefferson as the man "who gave form and purpose to the republic," while Hamilton is condemned as a monarchist whose policies amounted to nothing less than "imperialism." As early as 1904, Masters feared that the republic of Jefferson had decayed into a corrupt Hamiltonian empire."Masters (1868-1950) was an American attorney, poet, and essayist, most known for his Spoon River Anthology and his biographies of Lincoln and Twain.

Rhemes: John Fogny, 1582. FIRST EDITION. Complete with errata and tables. Decorative and historiated woodcut initials, head- and tailpieces throughout. Contemporary calf, rebacked, red morocco spine label; corners worn, insignificant worming, some minor intermittent discoloration, but generally in excellent condition. Contemporary annotations in English and Latin. FIRST EDITION OF THE DOUAY-RHEIMS NEW TESTAMENT. First edition, complete, of the first Roman Catholic New Testament in English. A lengthy prologue addresses moral and practical concerns a reader might have in regards to a translation of holy scripture. The authors claim to have produced the most authentic interpretation of the Vulgate Latin with close attention paid to the Greek text. The impetus behind translating the Bible into a vernacular tongue was not to simply claim a scholarly triumph, but to make the word of God accessible to lay-people and combat heretical and "impious translation put forth by sundry sectes" (ie., Lutherans and… Read More

New York, 1865. April 18 and 19 are in fine condition, April 17 has some chipping and a few tears at folds, but is still very good.

New York: Bernard Geis Associates, 1964. FIRST EDITION, FIRST PRINTING. Red cloth with gilt lettering on spine, dustjacket price clipped but otherwise in lovely condition; overall an attractive copy.

Boston: Lilly & Wait, 1830. First American edition. With map frontispiece (incorrectly placed facing chapter 1) and 46 text illustrations. An extra image has been tipped onto the verso of the title page (probably by a previous owner as opposed to the printer). Half calf and marbled boards with gilt title on the spine, boards slightly scuffed and edges a bit worn; some browning due to quality of paper and light scattered foxing. First American edition of this popular account of native New Zealanders and their interactions with Western society. Culled mainly from the written narratives of explorers like Cook and Rutherford, the author seeks to edify readers about the early history of New Zealand and its culture while also capitalizing on sensational topics such as cannibalism and tattooing. Firmly planted in the rhetoric of civilized (i.e. European) versus uncivilized, for modern readers this work is as much about European perceptions of "savage" cultures as it is about the native people and traditions… Read More

Philadelphia: Lippincott, Grambo & Co., 1854. FIRST EDITION. Contemporary mottled sheepskin with black morocco spine label, advertising end-papers, all edges marbled; paper residue to front paste-down, small damp-stain to fore-edge margin of first 100 pages, binding lightly scuffed and soiled, overall a solid very good copy. First edition.

Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1934. FIRST EDITION. Frontispiece plus 12 maps and illustrations. Light blue cloth, author and title on spine in red lettering, without the dust jacket. Laid in is a typed letter from the author and signed by him. First edition of Volume 7 of the Civilization of the American Indian Series. In two parts, the first details the Ghost Dance among the Sioux and the second part treats Sioux history, compiled from statements to Indian and white eye-witnesses of the events narrated.

Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1925. FIRST EDITION. Original cream paper boards, decorated in blind, title in gilt to top cover and spine, spine and boards lightly soiled; some light occasional spotting. An uncut and partially unopened copy with a TLS laid in. First edition. Includes the poems Cheddar pinks; Come si quando; and To Catullus.

New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1881. FIRST AMERICAN EDITION. With 3 folding maps and 2 full-page plates. Contemporary cloth, title in gilt on spine (somewhat faded); interior very good. First American edition of this interesting work on the development of Western Canada. Rae traveled west to Manitoba from eastern Canada across Lake Superior to Winnipeg. This work contains his letters contributed to The London Times (for whom he was a correspondent) during his two visits to the New West, as well as new accounts of his travels and observations. Details of the agriculture and mineral riches of the land, the organization of local government, and the history and architecture of various cities and provinces make this travelogue an interesting read. He also discusses the potential of western growth, and a most fascinating supplement contains a discourse on the weeds of North America. Rae (1835-1905) was a Scottish-born author and English barrister.

Paris: Flammarion, 1975. FIRST EDITION. Reproductions in black and white and color. Hardcover with original dust jacket. Interior in excellent condition.

Paris: Le Musée de Poche, 1958. FIRST EDITION. 11 tipped in plates in color and 8 figures in black and white. Softcover with attached dust jacket with reproduction in color.