Cheyenne transporter. [volume] (Darlington, Indian Terr.) 1879-1886, 1885-05-15
RARE AMERICAN BOOKS.
The History of Printing on This Side of the
Atlantic-Some Curious Works.

second story of the building contains
the stock to which the sign refers.
When asked yesterday by a reporter
for The Mail and EgpreSS when book
printing was first done on the Ameri-
can continent, the proprietor of this
bookstore said:
Printing on this side of the Allan
tic was first done in Mexico in 1886.
The earliest American book extant is
dated 1889. 1t is doctrine of faith of
the Roman Catholic church, entitled
'Doctrina ChristiaDa,' and was printed
in Mexico in the Spanish language.
Another book to be numbered among
the Oldest printed in America is
Mexican vocabulary, dictionary of
native Spanish and Mexican. 1t was
printed in 1911.
I'm the United States the first print
ing done was in 1859. In this year
Freeman's "Oath" and Almanac"
were printed in Cambridge, Mass, the
''oath" being printed on one side of
half sheet of foolscap. Neither of them
is eXtant. The earliest printed book
now in existence of those printed in
this country is the book of Psalms,
which was published in Cambridge in
164O. The next place where printing
was done was in Boston. We have
here in stock book printed in Cam
bridge in 1911, and it is one of the old
est we ever had"
The speaker then showed the report
er a small and very ancient looking
brown-paper pamphlet of thirty four
pages 1t was partly torn and had
evidently seen hard usage. 1t was an
election sermon preached at Boston on
May 10, 1867, on election day, by Rev.
Jonathan Mitchell, 'late pastor of the
Church of Christ, Cambridge" It's
title was nehemiah on the Wall in
Troublesome Times" Another curl
Osity which was shown was textbook
used in Harvard college in 1853. 1t
was printed in Boston by John Draper
1t was textbook of logic, and was
printed in Latin. Its title was Com
pendium Logic9 Secundum Principia,
ID. Renati Cartetit ct Catechistice Pro-
poftum."
A rare book also found here relating
to this city was in the Dutch language,
printed in Holland in 1867. Two vol
umes in vcllum were bound in one.
and its price was $40. This book"
said the proprietor, ''is said TO con-
tain the first printed report of the
capture of New Netherland by the En-
glish in 1864 1t is considered the most
complete and authentic account in ex-
istence of the war between Holland
and England, and includes list of
vessels and goods captured by the En-
glish from the Dutch.
A curious volume in the stock was
a selection of handbills circulated in
this city just previous to the general
state election in 1910. at is an anus
ing gubernatorial campaign docu-
ment, said the owner, appearing
mainly to Methodist and somwhat
to the Baptists. Jonas Platt was the
federalist candidate and Daniel ID.
Tompkins the republican. Brother
Elias Vanderlip and Samuel Winton,
OF the Methodist church, were their
respective champions in this rather
acrimonious controversy. Each as
sumes high moral grounds, and each de
precates the bringing of politics inside
the church, and OF course denounces
the other for doing 1t. Neither claims
his candidate as communicate, or
even as an attendant of the Methodist
church, but seems to consider him
good enough Christian until after
election.
An interesting volume seen was
written by Cadwallader ID. Golden
printed in 1925 1t was of half-morocco
binding with gilt top, and is held
at Sl3. 1t is a "Memoir, Prepared at
the Request of a Committee of the
Common Council of the City of New
York at the Celebration of the Com
pletIon of the New York Canals"