Raynors HCA 2016-06
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 6/17/2016
Book, “THE STRANGER IN AMERICA: CONTAINING OBSERVATIONS MADE DURING A LONG RESIDENCE IN THAT COUNTRY, ON THE GENIUS, MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF THE PEOPLE OF THE UNITED STATES....”, London, 1807, 499pp., plus 12 plates including “Death of Washington” and “Mount Vernon,” Contemporary drab boards; rebacked, preserving portion of the original spine, corners renewed. Boards somewhat soiled and worn. Minor foxing and toning to text. Very good. Janson lived in America from 1793 to 1805, beginning in Rhode Island (where he failed in business) before travelling in the American South, especially Virginia, the Carolinas, and Georgia, where he was defrauded in the Yazoo land scheme. He did not like what he saw, or at least felt that the rise of Jeffersonian democracy was guided by the devil. Clark sums up the book well: "Janson draws a picture of unrelieved black, but one worthy of attention because of the length of his stay and the breadth of his interests. He covers an astonishing variety of subjects in a loose topical arrangement...." "A petulant view of U.S. life" - Howes. The handsomely produced book contains plates depicting six scenes in Philadelphia, one of Mount Vernon, and one each in Boston and New York. The view on the engraved titlepage is the earliest known published image of the White House, and the Mount Vernon plate is one of the earliest of Washington's home.
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