A BILL IN THE CHANCERY OF NEW-JERSEY, AT THE SUIT OF JOHN EARL OF STAIR, AND OTHERS, PROPRIETORS OF THE EASTERN-DIVISION OF NEW- JERSEY; AGAINST BENJAMIN BOND, AND SOME OTHER PERSONS OF ELIZABETH-TOWN, DISTINGUISHED BY THE NAME OF THE CLINKER LOT RIGHT ME

by [Evans, Lewis, et al]:

[30 Day Return Guarantee] Price: $45,000.00

Book Description

New York: James Parker, 1747.. 124,11,[1],13-24,[1],25-39pp. plus three folding maps. Folio. Late 19th- century polished calf, spine and boards gilt, leather label. Heraldic bookplate on front pastedown, contemporary ownership inscription of Hendrick Remsen on front fly leaf. Occasional minor stains. Bound at the end is the March 7, 1747-48 issue of THE NEW-YORK GAZETTE (No. 268). A very good copy. This highly important work is of interest for a number of reasons: its primary author, James Alexander, achieved great fame as the lawyer of Peter Zenger; it contains some of the first maps engraved in America; it was seen through the press by Benjamin Franklin and his New York partner, James Parker; and it is a vital document in settling the long- standing land disputes of colonial New Jersey. Streeter calls it "one of the most remarkable documents of colonial times." The land disputes dealt with in this document had their origins in overlapping Crown grants made by Charles II, which came to a head in arguments over quitrents and surveys in the 1720s. James Alexander, who had been surveyor- general of New Jersey before becoming a lawyer and winning fame as the successful defender of Zenger, undertook on behalf of the Board of Proprietors of the Eastern Division of New Jersey to assemble the evidence for a Bill in Chancery to settle the matter. He assembled the material published here in the 1740s, arguing the proprietors' case with "great subtlety and complexity," according to Streeter. Alexander consulted Benjamin Franklin concerning publication, and the printing work of the letterpress was executed by James Parker of New York, a partner of Franklin. However, Franklin advised that proper map engraving could not be accomplished in Philadelphia or New York, and work on the three maps was farmed out to James Turner of Boston. The now-famed cartographer, Lewis Evans, drew the maps, the first showing North America from Cape Hatteras to Boston; the second showing early survey and boundary lines, Indian paths, and major roads; and the third showing surveys and purchases in East New Jersey. The maps were available to purchasers in both colored and uncolored format. Those present here are in the uncolored state. These are some of the earliest maps drawn and engraved in the colonies, and as such are of tremendous importance. Additional information on the history of A BILL IN THE CHANCERY... can be found in Joseph Felcone's bibliography, cited below. EVANS 6021. MILLER 426. STREETER SALE 918. CHURCH 961. SABIN 5378. COHEN 11664. DAB I, pp.167-68. FELCONE, NEW JERSEY BOOKS 21. WHEAT & BRUN 294, 397, 398.

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