(Scarce) EVENINGS OF A WORKING MAN (Preface by Charles Dickens)

London: T.C. Newby, 1844. First. Fine. John Overs ‐ Overs was described by Charles Dickens as ″a working man ‐ a man who earns his weekly wages by plying of the hammer, plane and chisel″ Though not a healthy man, Overs found time to pen some verse and a single work, ″The Evenings of a Working Man″ He submitted his verses to Dickens, who strongly encouraged him to devote his energies to pursuits other than writing In spite of this, Dickens wrote a lengthy preface to ″Evenings,″ in which he provides a frank description of Overs and the evolution of their friendship, in the end providing encouragement to the prospective reader that some value resided in the work Dickens seemed moved by the message in the work, presenting the nobleness of the working man He expressed admiration for how Overs had raised himself beyond his station, at least in terms of intellectual development and dignity He further describes Overs as ″a simple, frugal, steady, upright, honourable man; especially to be noted for the unobtrusive independence of his character, the instinctive propriety of his manner, and the perfect neatness of his appearance The extent of his information; regard being had to his opportunities of acquiring it: is very remarkable; and the discrimination with which he has risen superior to the mere prejudices of the class with which he is associated, without losing his sympathy for all their real wrongs and grievances ‐ they have a few ‐ impressed me, in the beginnings of our acquaintance, strongly in his favour″
This work presents a scarce collectible for Dickens followers Dickens prepared a lengthy preface, relating to the identity of the author more than the nature of the work The writing is a mix of fiction vignettes and verse, and is printed with a color title page
Half title, xiii, [3], 205 [1]This handsome volume is one of several we are listing, all coming from a private estate library All are uniformly‐bound in fancy three‐quarter crimson leather with deep red marbled paper for endpapers and over the balance of the boards Gilt all around The materials used for the bindings date the binding to around 1890, and the bookplate of Julius Franke (1868‐1936) is present on the front pastedown Franke was a prominent New York City architect, whose work included designing the Wurlitzer Building, and it seems likely that he commissioned the bindings This volume shows only the slightest shelfwear The binding and text block are sound The pages are clean and bright, with no marks or damage xii, [2], 205 + 1 p ads pp.