[Rarebooks] Offering: Ambrose Bierce, George Sterling, Nora May French.

[Michael John Thompson]

Ambrose Bierce, George Sterling, Nora May French.
Some associational copies.


Prices in USD, Canadian Funds at par (exchange is within 2%)
Terms as Usual.

BIERCE, Ambrose., THE SHADOW ON THE DIAL AND 
OTHER ESSAYS., San Francisco: A.M. Robertson. 
1909. First edition. large octavo, original brown 
cloth titled and decorated in gilt on spine, 
titled in gilt and decorated in black on front 
cover. Elaborate deocrated title page. 249 pp. A 
fine copy in a slightly ragged but essentially 
complete dust jacket, small chips and tears to 
edges. ¶ Collection of essays edited by S.O. 
Howes, intended for inclusion in Bierce's 
'Collected Works', but first issued here. $150.00

BIERCE, Ambrose; POPE, Berta Clark [ed]; 
STERLING, George., THE LETTERS OF AMBROSE BIERCE. 
EDITED BY BERTHA CLARK POPE. WITH A MEMOIR BY 
GEORGE STERLING., San Francisco: The Book Club of 
California. 1922. First edition. Octavo, original 
marbled paper boards with black cloth spine, 
leather label on spine titled in gilt. 415 copies 
printed, this being No. 220 of 400 copies offered 
for sale. 204 pp, tipped-in frontispiece portrait 
of Bierce. Lora Bierce's copy, inscribed to her 
on the front free endpaper in George Sterling's 
hand: "For Lora; / These letters of / the great 
man who loved / and admired her as deeply. / "Me 
too!" / Gruk. / San Francisco, / Dec 24th, 1922." 
With a further inscription on the following blank 
leaf: "For Lora Bierce / from George Sterling". A 
fine copy. Included in the volume are letters 
from many Bierce to Sterling, and letters from 
Bierce to his niece Lora, including the last two 
known missives from Bierce upon his disappearance into Mexico in 1913. $400.00

FRENCH, Nora May., POEMS., San Francisco: The 
Strange Company. 1910. First edition. 12mo, 
original gray paper covered boards, vellum spine, 
silver titles. 91 pp. Tipped in photographic 
frontispiece portrait with tissue guard. 
Bookplate on inner front cover and a small ink 
inscription on front fly, minor scratches to the 
boards, a near fine copy. ¶ The author's rare 
first book of poetry, published posthumously. 
French (1881-1907) was a California poet, a 
friend of George Sterling, Mary Austin, Jack 
London and Clark Ashton Smith, among others. She 
died, a suicide, in 1907. Smith spoke of her 
poems as 'such stuff as dreams are made of' and 
wrote verse dedicated to her as well. $750.00

STERLING, George., THE TESTIMONY OF THE SUNS AND 
OTHER POEMS., San Francisco: W.E. Wood, 
Publisher. 1903. First edition. Octavo, original 
black cloth titled, ruled and decorated in gilt. 
142 pp. The author's first book. With a Signed 
inscription from the author on the front free 
endpaper "Compliments of / George Sterling / 
Piedmont, Cal. / Jan 29th, 1904- ". Small 
previous owner's bookplate on inner front cover, 
spine panel lettering effaced and gilt on front 
panel partially so; a very good, clean copy. 
Scarce, particularly so inscribed. $200.00

STERLING, George., THE TESTIMONY OF THE SUNS AND 
OTHER POEMS. THE AUTHOR'S OWN COPY, WITH FOUR 
MANUSCRIPT POEMS., San Francisco: A.M. Robertson. 
1907. Third edition. Octavo, original blue cloth 
titled in silver on spine, titled and decorated 
in silver on front panel. 142 pp. THE AUTHOR'S 
OWN COPY, with his bookplate on the inner front 
cover and five pages of manuscript poems at the 
rear, comprising 4 poems: THE MUSE OF THE 
INCOMMUNICABLE (Pencil, 14 lines, approx 100 
words, signed in full, dated Jan 14th, 1912); THE 
COMING SINGER (Pencil, 14 lines, approx 100 
words, signed in full, dated Jan. 10th, 1912); 
KINDRED (Pencil, 14 lines, approx 100 words, 
signed in full, undated); and DIRGE (Pen, 12 
lines, approx 75 words, signed in full, dated 
1918). Front flyleaf removed (by Sterling, it is 
tipped in at the rear and bears the MS poem THE 
MUSE OF THE INCOMMUNICABLE); a very good clean 
copy, bright and attractive. $650.00

STERLING, George., A WINE OF WIZARDRY AND OTHER 
POEMS., San Francisco: A.M. Robertson. 1909. 
First edition. Octavo, original wine red cloth 
titled in gilt on spine panel, titled and 
decorated in gilt on front panel. 137 pp. A label 
tipped onto the rear notes that the book is from 
the George Sterling collection of Willard S. 
Morse, New York "A Wine of Wizardry / George 
Sterling / AM Robertson San Francisco / 1909 / 
Letter Chas Warren Stoddard / an auto copy Poem / 
To George Sterling / enclosed / 2000 copies 
printed. Browning on front endpaper and evidence 
of something removed from the front free endpaper 
(the letter and MS poem mentioned above, most 
likely, as they are certainly not present). Gilt 
on spine panel tarnished, bookplate of Willard S. 
Morse on inner front cover and another, smaller 
bookplate of L.M. Kauffman. A very good, bright copy. $85.00

STERLING, George., A WINE OF WIZARDRY AND OTHER 
POEMS., San Francisco: A.M. Robertson. 1909. 
First edition. Octavo, original wine red cloth 
titled in gilt on spine panel, titled and 
decorated in gilt on front panel. 137 pp. 
Newspaper clipping concerning Sterling's death 
"10 years Ago", dated 1936, affixed to front free 
endpaper (Sterling was a suicide in 1926). 
Bookplate on inner front cover, small stains to 
cloth, a very good, bright copy. $75.00

STERLING, George; BRUGUIERE, Francis., THE 
EVANESCENT CITY. WITH NINE ILLUSTRATIONS AFTER 
PHOTOGRAPHS BY FRANCIS BRUGUIERE, AND A COVER IN 
COLOR AFTER THE PAINTING BY WILL SPARKS., San 
Francisco: A.M. Robertson. 1916. First edition. 
Octavo, original card covers with folding 
cardstock dust jacket, gilt designs and 
lettering, colour pictorial label on front panel 
of wrapper. 16 pp., tipped-in frontispiece with 
tissue guard, eight additional tipped-in 
illustrations. Inscribed by the author on a 
preliminary blank leaf "For / Miss Louise Mahony 
/ with the best wishes of / George Sterling. / 
San Francisco, / Feb. 1st, 1916." Wrappers worn 
at edges, binding slightly cracked; a good to 
very good copy. ¶ Sterling's commemorative poem 
of the Panama-Pacific International Exposition, 
held in San Francisco in 1915. $125.00

STERLING, George; HOVEY, Richard., THE MARRIAGE 
OF GUENEVERE BY RICHARD HOVEY., Boston: Small, 
maynard and Company. 1899. Reprint, first issued 
by Stone & Kimball in 1895. 12mo, original brown 
buff boards, vellum-style parchment spine titled 
and elaborately decorated in gilt. 171 pp. 
California poet George Sterling's copy, with his 
ownership signature on the front free endpaper 
"George Sterling / Piedmont, Cal. / Mch. 3rd, 
1903.". Small bookseller's ticket (D.P. Eldar and 
Morgan Sheppard, San Francisco) on inner rear 
cover. Minor browning, a very good bright copy. $75.00

STERLING, George; LANDOR, Walter Savage., POEMS, 
DIALOGUES IN VERSE AND EPIGRAMS BY WALTER SAVAGE 
LANDOR. EDITED WITH NOTES BY CHARLES G. CRUMP. IN 
TWO VOLUMES. GEORGE STERLING'S COPIES., London; 
J.M. Dent & Co. 1892. First printing of this 
edition. Two volumes. Octavo, original dark green 
cloth over bevelled boards, spines elaborately 
decorated in gilt, publisher's device in gilt on 
front boards. Frontispieces. Vol. One: Dramatic 
Scenes; Vol. Two: Poems and Epigrams. California 
poet George Sterling's copies, signed by him on 
the front endpaper of Vol. Two: "Geo. Sterling - 
/ Piedmont, Cal." Small, early ownership label on 
inner front cover of Vol. One, some minor rubbing 
to the cloth at extremities, a fresh, clean, very 
good set, bright and attractive. $125.00




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Michael John Thompson
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