New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1891-02-24
THE IVES LIBRARY.f
A VALUABLE COLLECTION OF BOOKS AND
MANUSCRIPTS.

A more generally interesting and lntrinslcaiiy N"'
able collection of books and manuscripts tndh Una"
belonging to Mr.. Brayton IVES now OIL eAihoi''o"
tho American Art Galleries, is seldom open 10 pupio
-, S,nI more rarely is a collection found III
b;ch the standard of excellence is so igh: In "oh
50 large a proportion of really precious eAanipio, ~
different kinds and degrees OF rarity ana VdIuc' d
brought together Ii IS not only that the huilpei VI
Absolutely famous books is great, but that III auu'
n, those so many of the books not absolutely famous
hut still important represented mere III '"c '.'
hest examples and that the value of first eui'on'
- ~ Yearly everv instance enhanced by excellence oi
binding So much has already been said OF the "u'o"
berg Bible and the Balbus Cathohcoh "''' Wv
uho had not examined the really noble catalogue p
pared by the jrdcious lberalty OF the colec'or e'
easily fall into the error of Understandings NV
c.letrated books which these have for the moment
oo,tnsod The book.lovcc. however, and especially
Tho h,o,.lover whose bank account enables HI"
IN look forward 10 the sale with at IedNt eo"'o
homes of modest acquisition will have pcrceVeu '"V
there are scores and scores OF undcnlaOle "o'S"
registered in this portly volume. and that tle 'aS "
the colecto has been so catholic as to insure 'ns
eager attention of all who seek bibnosaph''di ION
ties in no matter what field.
passing over the great frstprnted Bible ana u'c
first printed lexicon, together with the famous Oo','
hus letter (of which these arc several eu''loI' III ''
,,oction, we will glance at the fine array of Amer
icana" scattered through the catalogue fr' ol an VI
the letter Just HltuliOhVi' WIN
atip and one German edition. Then come the " oF-
os of Vcspuciuss who IS believed 10 have landed on
these shores a wear at least before Columbus Ihec
ave four examples they all perfect ana IN eeau'n'
condition. and handsomely bound. They came rom
the Barlow sale , 49,
OF the Works Of COrtes there are also several eN-
amples mostly first editions. the letters oil reiauo"'
with the plans as originally issued. save IN one III
stance when another has been substituted Inc"
are * fine collection Of the Works of Peter MafNr'
intending first edition 0jln, noby bo'hd III "I"l''
tvlo bv Hardy, together with first editions OF the
first three the fourth and the eighth Decades al
these Others being bound by Bedford
Space would fail Us did we attempt 10 eApa,i""
rron the examples of the Voyages OF Munez Caoece
de Vaca of Landowners. Jaques cartier ovie""'
tIohluvt De Brv Champlain Garcilasso dc IA vega
Cantain. John smith, and many others, 0gether WIN
the rare accounts Of settlements by French anu Ene
ush Adventures during the seventeenth century Inv
fine copy Of Elot's Indian Bible Is. OF course one VI
h er+ nrizo, Of the collection and should rank per
hans after the Gutenberg Bible. IL l. b0uilu III az
cordance with its value by Bedford and honored WIZ"
= orocial velvet-lined morocco case or "etu." Ihee
l. fine representation OF the scarce ana huch-prDe"
works OF the NIathers; Cotton MatheTs " Menioraoio
proy,dences "Wonderful Works Of Cod and won
ders of the Invisible World with ms Maene'iA
Christi: Increase Mather's Brlef hlstor!' III
roI editions AS also his Further Account Oh ti'o
Ta,s ~ the New. England Witches" his "oospei or
dar pevivcd etc Among the particularly rare amer
ic,,a may lie mentioned Matthew Mayhew's CohdAcs''
and Trumphs Of Grace a very me copy !" .r
uonal order. Book-lovers will Be delighted wan "A
onnor4nnity 10 obtain beautiful example OF NS'p"'
wards Simple Cobbler Of Aggawam' "o ''.
od,,iop ueA71 Roger Williams is represented oy Nv
loss than four volumes, all curious, inteieNts' anu
d,,irct historical value though mainly controVersla
poss;ng again TO "Incunabua" we nnu aihnS '"i'
| editions of the classics, among winch ''nro a.
editions Of Cicero take tie highest RANK iNo
Orcss IS remarkable as being the hrst ciasslc p
| and AZ also the first book in when pfihlcn "''e
| haract,rs werc'used Here are also hrSt enuons Vi
tIo,us poccacco St Augustine, Caesar, ST. ChrS'o'
| ,n <,cud Enripidcs IesTfod, Homer, Horace Lac-
| ,aptius Pctrarch, Pindar. Pnny, fluthch' HoHc'"
Tacitus Virgil and several others ana al Vi '"o'
are exemplary copie, in the finest condlo' anu O'uu
| uyuriouslv The seeker after Typographical IhV""
rents will find Subtraction enough III tins coiecuoh
of nearly every primitive order Of books there are
ocir,ens such a. the first books printed IN venice
| 1t,,, AVID Paris: the first in which signatures were
| Mood the first octave volume the first stere"yped
| hook. and many other oddities ard raritc5
| Cant,n's edition Of iiigdens "P0Fcirohlcoh" i
another highly valuable book and the more so Since tS
| !, po of six perfect copies which are the only ones
,ovr IN he in existence Another precious volume Is
| The y1tas Patrurn," printed by Wynkyn dc Worde'
p,ch.r1 pynson is represented by fine English edition
81 K,andt,s ship Of Fools" and there Is beautiful
| conv Of Arnold's Chronicle by Peter ITcverlS'
| rho Shakespeare examples In themselves an un-
nsual collection The four ollos are represented al
nv good examples Of the 1uartos the poems also
ard there is Venus and Adons which is said 10 be
one Of but two perfect copies known, the other beng
in the British Museum, and therefore inaccessible "
| the collector. ,.
The collection is rich in manuscripts the range oeih
| unusually wide While the Books Of Hours are quite
sufficiently represented, there arc examples III many
d.nortmonts Of literature also Among the former tht
Pembroke Book of Hours naturally stands hrSt' Dnt
This has been described often that 1t Is needless 10
more than aludc it, with the remark that us mag
| nI1cence has not been exaggerated Iheis aic "o
manuscript Bibles OF the thirteenth century one ceI
family and the other probably OF English eXecuuoi'
| Emo ,rorl, no doukt OF monks on fine vellum, and in
snora excellent examples both OF chirosraphy ana OIL
| mcd;acval illumination. Another me mhh"scrlp''
| and moreover unique Is the ChansonS CT Mo'els,
work OF the sixteenth century, executed Tor Henri VI
| France and Diana OF PoiticrS. The binding OF 'hls
yonme is scarcely less precious than what II encloscs'
| being a masterpiece By " lie Petlt' bernard IL "a'
acquired at the sale Of NJ. Leopold Donbe' ID i0"''
wa may further mention Cicero OF the htechth cen
| ,rrv IN vellum with horatcd ornaments, mcmahon
| portrats etc: fine fifteenth century LactahlluS'
beautiful Petrarch and number OF BOOKS oi iio"r''
| all handsomely Illuminated, and all maehH'ehuS
| hound nor must omit the unique 81 jerome from
,h collection of Cardinal saviat also OF the period
| named above. r,
! AZ, Ivos had strong bent toward the English
! ,,,atete and poets for beside the works already
| named we find first editions o. shirley. Mas'ihe' T.
pcec Jonson Daniel. Milton, Burns, Keats, ana oi@
| ley. The last-named has the special attraction u
brinc a presentation copy from the author 70 Mary
Woll,toncclaf Goodwin, and contains some autograph
| lines from her hand, describing her feeling toward
| shelley Defce Of course, is here. and swift. IN hs'
| editions Coming down to recent utAcs' Inc
croc,on rcnrcsents the eighteenth century French
| =, we'll chosen selection from the great "contcurs'
and Illustrators La FOntaine. illustrated By Eisen
Romain de HOoehc, ChOlard, Oudry, MORGAN le.Jenne
| Desscne Dugourg etc; the FermicrGeneruX edition
the "Cones7 in English "a very rare editoh)' inc
works of Dorct with Esens and MerillieTs etchlnGs
and other interesting works illustrate this period
| graphically. geographically. and in binding Mar