Rare books from The Raab Collection

24/01/1939. Franklin D. Roosevelt “I am off I hope in February for somewhere to the eastward of Barbados - Fleet Problem no. XX. You will not read much about it in the paper, but I will tell you about it on your way north.”President Roosevelt was appalled by the dictators in Europe and Asia, and by the appeasement of them. He saw before most that war was coming, and that the United States would be drawn into it. He wanted the U.S. military to be strong and ready, believing that “We must and will marshal our great potential strength to fend off war from our shores.”“Fleet Problem” was the term used by the U.S. Navy to describe 21 large-scale naval war-readiness exercises conducted between 1923 and 1940. The nation’s leadership used these exercises to understand, exploit and incorporate new technologies and capabilities, while developing tactics, training and procedures to employ should war present itself. Conducted in all the major waters adjacent to the U.S., these Fleet Problems… Read More

1897. Frederic Remington Shortly after the discovery of America, the Spanish people became obsessed with the idea that somewhere in the interior of the New World there were rich mines of gold and silver, and various expeditions were sent out to search for these treasures. From 1540-42, Francisco Vasquez de Coronado led a well-equipped force of conquistadores north from Mexico in search of the supposedly fabulously wealthy Seven Cities of Cibola and the country of Quivira. The force included 230 horsemen, some with several horses, 62 soldiers on foot, 5 friars with their assistants, and a military guard, numbering altogether about 330. They had fifteen hundred horses, mules, and cattle, and these were likely the first of their breeds in the United States. With various parties heading far into the unknown northwestern and northeastern territory, they went throughout Arizona and reached as far as the Grand Canyon and the plains of Kansas. Although no riches were found, Coronado’s journey added greatly… Read More

1890. Jim Younger There are 31 letters from Cole Younger, 46 letters from Jim Younger, over a dozen poems and drawings by Jim, 44 letters of others, and innumerable other items.Provenance: the descendants of the recipient and never before offered for saleLetters of these men are not common, particularly those of Jim, of which only 3 appear in public sale recordsCole and Jim Younger, Cora: A HistoryThe Younger-James GangThomas Coleman “Cole” Younger and his brothers Jim and Bob have entered legend as outlaws who joined forces with the notorious Jesse and Frank James to rob banks and trains in the period following the Civil War. The James–Younger Gang became the most storied of the 19th-century gangs of the West. They were accused or were implicated in about 20 robberies and murders during its spree from 1866-1876.The Youngers were born into a large and affluent family, Cole in 1844 and Jim in 1848, near Lee’s Summit, Missouri. Though his father was a respected landowner and merchant, the elder… Read More

15/12/1868. Victor Hugo From 1830 into the 1860's, there were a series of massive political upheavals in Europe. Most were caused by the desire of the peoples of many nations to oust their royal elites and attain a fairer and more representative government. At the core of this was a struggle between the haves and have-nots. The elites fought back hard and there was fighting in the streets. There was a revolt in France in 1830, one in which Victor Hugo took part. but it led to the disappointing enthronement of King Louis Philippe. There was a widespread liberal revolution throughout much of the continent in 1848 which was crushed. In 1851 France was again in upheaval and Louis Napoleon seized power and proclaimed himself emperor. By 1860, forces in Italy and Germany sought to unify their respective people in national entities, and wars were in progress that would soon achieve those goals. Thus, there was both a significant reorientation of the political landscape, the frustration of populist… Read More

21/06/1930. Thomas Wolfe William Faulkner once said that Thomas Wolfe, who died before age 40, may have been the greatest talent of his generation for aiming higher than any other writer. His influence extends to the writings of Beat Generation writer Jack Kerouac, and to authors Ray Bradbury and Philip Roth, among others. He was one of the first masters of autobiographical fiction, and his work was filled with details that came from his own life and his home in North Carolina, as well as that of his friends in New York.Henry Hart was an editor at Scribner’s. The two had a close and long relationship and corresponded as friends. In Christmas 1930 Wolfe wrote to Hart, with some cheeky remarks, one referencing Oscar Wilde and the other Calvin Coolidge.Autograph postcard signed, June 21, likely 1930, from Rouen, to Hart. ""Dear Henry, I finally got here, in order to uphold your reputation for veracity. Don't know how long I'll stay. Sedgewick, your other novelist, came down from Paris with me but has… Read More

26/09/1969. Otto Frank The story of Anne Frank and her family and friends in the Annex is too well-known to justify repeating here. What is less well-known, however, is the important work her father did after the Holocaust to preserve Anne’s memory, and views of life, into the future.After Auschwitz was liberated, Anne’s father, Otto Frank, returned to Amsterdam. On his way back, he heard of his wife Edith’s death. Back in Amsterdam, he did everything he could to find out what had happened to his two daughters Anne and Margot. He placed an advertisement in the newspaper and talked to survivors who were returning from the camps. He wrote to his sister, “I just can’t think how I would go on without children having lost Edith already…It’s too upsetting for me to write about them. Naturally I still hope, and wait, wait, wait.""On July 18, 1945, he met two sisters who had been in Bergen-Belsen with Anne and Margot, and they told him that his daughters were dead. The next day Otto sent a… Read More

18/01/1992. Charles Schulz Peanuts is perhaps the most quintessentially American comic strip and was a mainstay in major US and foreign publications for decades.The comic strip, a high resolution reproduction, from January 18, 1992, measuring a large 20 x 7 inches, dated January 18 1992, picturing Snoopy's brother Spike making waffles, drawn by Schulz himself, with the quote, ""When I got up this morning I thought to myself 'Gee wouldn't a waffle be good?'""The strip is signed and inscribed to Leon, from whom we acquired it; his firm made waffle makers and thus inspired the comic strip. It has never been offered for sale before. The United Feature Syndicate copyright notice is shown on the left and affixed to the verso of the sheet.A very uncommon and desirable strip of Schulz, this being our first.

24/05/1911. George V Very uncommon, the first such invitation we have hadThe Edwardian Age - the years of the reign of King Edward VII - lasted from 1901-1910. It was a romantic golden age of long summer afternoons and garden parties, basking in a sun that never set on the British Empire. Britannia ruled the waves, and the carnage of World War I was unimaginable and still in the future. Rapid industrialization increased economic opportunity, creating conditions that allowed for more social mobility and prosperity, and with it more social change. There was also a rise in social concerns and attention to the plight of the poor, as well as a push for women's voting rights that would soon be successful.King Edward VII died on May 6, 1910, at age 68, bringing an end to the Edwardian Age. He lay in state at Westminster Hall, where a quarter of a million people filed past his body. On May 20 he was buried in St. George's Chapel, Windsor. The funeral procession saw a horseback procession, followed by 11… Read More

09/02/1850. Ralph Waldo Emerson This unpublished letter, written at the time of debates around the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850, comes from the collection of Dr. Otto O. Fisher, who bought primarily in the 1930s and 1940s, and thus has not been offered for sale in nearly a centuryIn the middle of the 19th century, Massachusetts brought together men and women who gathered to form perhaps America's first prominent literary movement. It was a flowering of literary artistic creation, and the image of the great men and women of the era sitting around the table discussing and debating the great issues and literary works of the time, from their own works to the evil institution of slavery, is today iconic.Amos Bronson Alcott founded the Town and Country Club in 1849 ""to establish better acquaintance between men of scientific, literary, and philanthropic pursuit ,"" in particular bringing together ""Town” intellectuals with those living outside urban Boston and Cambridge in the “Country"", such as Ralph… Read More

26/05/1945. Americana|Norman Rockwell “Hasten the Homecoming” by revered artist and illustrator Norman Rockwell is a color poster from a Saturday Evening Post cover painting by Rockwell. It appeared on the cover of the Post on May 26, 1945. This is yet another timeless favorite of Rockwell collectors, a classic for all the ages. Excellent.

Medieval History, Literature, Law|Ege|All Medieval Historical Documents A very uncommon leaf from Livy, very few manuscript examples having survivedRome, having survived the invasions of the Celtic Gauls in the early 4th century BC, set its sights on further expansion in the middle part of the century. They re-conquered those Latin and Etruscan towns that had left the fold during the Gallic occupation, and in absorbing others, reconsolidated their position as the dominant force in Latium and Central Italy. With their home turf secured (or so it seemed) the Romans looked south towards Campania.At this time, the Samnites had moved into the fertile lands of Campania, from the south-central Appenines. They already controlled the towns of Capua and Cumae to the south of Rome, and held sway to the east, as well. Rome, to protect its flanks while still in the midst of re-taking Latium and Etruria, wisely entered into an alliance with the Samnites in 354 BC. Conflict with Samnium over Campanian dominance was… Read More

1967. Queen Elizabeth II A unique visitors book kept by a prominent boutique, filled with the iconic names of the era, from Mick Jagger to Queen Elizabeth II to Donovan to Twiggy With thousands of signatures, the most complete such collection we have seenSwinging London: Its very name conjures up images of style, culture, excitement and romance. Presided over by a young Queen Elizabeth, London transformed itself from a bleak, conservative, colorless city, only just beginning to forget the troubles of the Second World War, into the focus of all the world’s attention, bursting into bloom with color, freedom, optimism and promise. It represented a fundamental and explosive change in attitude, values, and art. And all classes took part, from the Queen’s own sister, Margaret, to a hairdresser’s daughter, Cilla Black. London was the center of all the action; the city where everything was happening and where anything was possible.London captured the imagination of the world’s media, and soon… Read More

22/06/1793. George Washington|Thomas Jefferson In the early days of the American republic, ships leaving U.S. ports for foreign shores were required to have passports, and both the president and secretary of state frequently signed these documents. Between March 1790 and December 1793, passports signed by Washington as President were also signed by Thomas Jefferson as Secretary of State.Document Signed by President Washington and Secretary of State Jefferson, Philadelphia, June 22, 1793, a ship’s passport in English, French and Dutch giving permission to “Patrick Maxfield, master or commander of the Snow Freelove…lying at present at the Port of Philadelphia and bound for St. Eustacia, and laden with Provisions, to depart and proceed with this said Snow.” A Snow was a two-masted vessel with rigging that permitted a small triangular or square sail to be hoisted in place of a larger sail when winds were very high. St. Eustacia is an island in the West Indies, which in the 18th century was a… Read More

Jacqueline Kennedy From the moment that John F. Kennedy was elected president in November 1960, it was clear that the incoming First Family would bring an unaccustomed sense of style, grace and optimism to the White House. Jacqueline Kennedy was a young woman of notable beauty, at once wistful and luminous, and of acute intelligence and exacting expectation. Her response to life was aesthetic, and to her appreciation of the arts, Mrs. Kennedy added a passionate sense of history. These qualities made her the ideal person to initiate a quest to bring beauty and history to the White House, one that was brilliantly executed, and led to the most influential redecoration in its history.On February 23, 1961, hardly a month after the inauguration, the 12-member Fine Arts Committee for the White House came into existence as a body empowered to develop restoration plans and ""locate authentic furniture of the date of the building of the White House and raise funds to purchase this furniture as gifts."" Henry… Read More

09/11/1840. John Q. Adams Autograph Letter Signed, Boston, November 9, 1840, to his niece, Caroline Amelia DeWint in Fishkill, New York. “My dear niece: I have engaged to deliver a lecture before the New York Lyceum on Tuesday the 18th inst. and another at Brooklyn the next day. I shall be happy to meet you in New York if it should suit your convenience, and am ever your affectionate Uncle, with my kindest regards to Mr. DeWint and all the family.” Adams was currently serving in the U.S. Congress, which was probably on Christmas vacation.Caroline Amelia (Smith) DeWint (1795-1852) was the daughter of President John Adam’s daughter Abigail Adams and William Stephens Smith. She married John Peter DeWint. The couple had 11 children.Adam's diary indicates that in New York he delivered a lecture on Society and Civilization, and that his niece attended.