[Rarebooks] Rare Children's Book For Sale

[Pia Oliver]

[JOHNSON, Richard]. THE LILLIPUTIAN LIBRARY; OR, GULLIVER'S MUSEUM. 
CONTAINING, Lectures on Morality. Historical Pieces. Interesting 
Fables. Diverting Tales. Miraculous Voyages. Surprising Adventures. 
Remarkable Lives. Poetical Pieces. Comical Jokes. Useful Letters. The 
Whole forming a complete System of JUVENILE KNOWLEDGE, For the 
Amusement and Improvement of All little MASTERS and MISSES, Whether 
in Summer or Winter, Morning, Noon, or Evening. By Lilliputius 
Gulliver, Citizen of Utopia, and Knight of the most noble Order of 
Human Prudence. London: Printed for W. Domville, under the Royal 
Exchange; and Byfield and Hawkesworth, at Charing Cross, c. 1779. 
Volume X (of ten). Includes the frontispiece (A1v).(A-E)12. 120pp. 85 
x  102mm. Frontispiece and 19 wood cut illustrations and decorative 
tail pieces. 16mo, original green and orange flower patterned 
paper-clad boards, original printed paper label on front cover. 
Slight rubbing at edges, some damage to the paper wrap down the 
spine, light fading, internally fresh and clean. A most attractive 
copy.

Pictures are available here 
<http://www.RandallHouseRareBooks.com/epix/lilliputian.jpg> 
<http://www.RandallHouseRareBooks.com/epix/lilliputian1.jpg> 
<http://www.RandallHouseRareBooks.com/epix/lilliputian2.jpg>

First edition.  This is the original scarce Domville edition of c. 
1779. There are two sets in the Opie collection at Princeton (one 
complete,  one incomplete) and a partial set (seven of ten volumes) 
at Cambridge University. The British Library has the Berlin edition 
only, which is very different and quite common. The volume is a 
wonderful example of an entertaining and instructive book for young 
children, exposing them to a wide variety of characters, settings, 
customs and behaviours.

The original binding is in remarkably good condition and is quite 
unusual in its floral pattern in bright colours.

The text concludes with a listings of the 'young masters and misses' 
who had purchased the series, and the advertisement on the verso of 
the titlepage describes the purchase of the volumes at 6d per week, 
instead of paying out 5/- [5 shillings] in one go for the set. It is 
probably the only list of child-subscribers to a work ever printed. 
The volume has woodcuts in the 18th century chapbook style 
illustrating the stories and many quite fancy tail pieces.  Some of 
the stories are: 'The Story of Fortunatus' (classic chapbook tale) 
and 'The Effect of Good-Nature. A Fairy-Tale'. There's a fabulous 
woodcut device on p. 37 signed 'FM' illustrating the story. 'The 
Persian Sultan's Exemplary Justice' starts on p. 40. 'The History of 
King Allgood' begins on p. 44. 'The History of Clarinda and Cloe' , 
'The Advice of a Father to his Children', 'Androcles and the Numidian 
Lion' (the lion in the story features in the woodcut on p. 88) and 
'Sultan Mahmoud and his Visier. A Turkish Tale' are some more titles. 
The History of the Mercolians' is a story about 'a people who 
possessed an island in the Lilliputian seas'. 'The American Merchant' 
on p. 99 . 'The History of Mr. Ashfield' beginning on p.111 
concludes the volume. Pp.118-120 have a fabulous list of the children 
of the nobility who subscribe to the periodical, e.g. Lady Elizabeth 
Fitzroy, Lady Harriet Somerset, Lord Henry John Spencer, Lady Anne 
Spencer, Lady Frances Compton, just to name a few .

[See Opie A 512, 513/7-10. Weedon, 1949. Roscoe J218].	$3,500.00


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