[ADAMS, HENRY] | Two First Editions

The Property of a Gentleman

[ADAMS, HENRY]

Two First Editions

Democracy. An American Novel. New York: Henry Holt and Company, 1880. 8vo (4 1/4 x 6 1/8 in.; 110 x 166 mm). Title-page with owl device, publisher's advertisements at end; marginal stain to pp. 211-212. Publisher's cream-colored cloth over boards, pictorially stamped in black, endpapers printed in red with "The Leisure Hour Series" advertisements; minor foxing and wear, light toning to spine. In custom clamshell case. First edition, first issue. BAL 11 — Esther: A Novel. New York: Henry Holt, 1884. 8vo (4 3/8 x 6 5/8 in.; 114 x 166 mm). Holt owl device to title-page; some marginal toning. Original green cloth covered boards, upper cover and spine pictorially stamped in brown and gilt, lower cover stamped in blind, endpapers printed in brown with publisher's advertisements dated March 1884; very minor rubbing to extremities. In custom black cloth covered clamshell case. First edition. BAL 16 

Group lots not subject to return.  

Together two fine first editions

Published anonymously in 1880, Democracy is one of only a handful of works from the period set in the nation’s capital. It was after Henry Adams' death in 1918 that his publisher revealed the true author of the narrative: a member of the Adams political dynasty, descended from two U.S. Presidents. Being a tale of political power, its acquisition, and its abuse following the election and inauguration of a new president, Democracy has remained a particularly salient work. 

Esther, published pseudonymous four years later, has become an incredibly scarce title for collectors. Of the 1,000 copies printed, approximately 500 were sold. In 1889 Adams purchased the remaining copies and had them pulped. Our records show only one other copy having been offered at auction (Sotheby's New York, 1 June 1995, lot 102).