07/26/2023
The Native American: A Gift for the People. Compiled & published by Hector Orr, Philadelphia, 1845.
An important, early example of nativist propaganda from the Native American Party (commonly referred to as the Know-Nothings).
Publisher's forest green Morocco leather. Ornate gilt stamping to covers & spine. All edges gilt. Text printed in red ink with blue border. Five engravings with tissue guards: two different images of George Washington (one of them the frontispiece, which faces the half-title page), & one each of Thomas Jefferson, John Adams and Benjamin Franklin. Two sectional dividers printed on pink paper. One page, "Names of Members of the Native American National Convention", printed in gold on black paper. 199 + [1] pages. 7" x 10-1/8".
The Native American Party (later changed to the American Party, & more commonly known as the Know Nothing Party) held their first national convention on July 4, 1845 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The party was the successor to the American Republican Party, an anti-Catholic, anti-immigration, & nativist political organization that was launched in New York in June 1843, largely as a protest against immigrant voters & officeholders. In 1844, the American Republican Party carried municipal elections in New York City & Philadelphia, & the party expanded so rapidly that by 1845 a national convention was called.
This book, which was compiled & published by Hector Orr, a Philadelphia printer & delegate to the National Convention, consists of five sections. The first three sections reprint important foundational texts of the United States: (1) George Washington's Farewell Address; (2) The Declaration of Independence; & (3) The U.S. Constitution. The final two sections present the "Addresses of the Native American Conventions": Section 4 reprints the Address of the National Convention, & section 5 reprints the Address issued by the Pennsylvania State Convention, which was held August 6, 1845 in Harrisburg.
The National Convention's "Address of the Delegates" contains two parts. The first part is a "Declaration" that enumerates the Party's nativst & anti-Catholic grievances about the present state of immigration in the United States. The second part is a "Principles" section which presents the Party's political agenda, including requiring a 21-year residency on all immigrants before they are granted the right to vote, & the requirement that the Protestant King James Bible be used in public schools.
By printing these "Addresses of the Native American Conventions" together with three of the patriotic touchstones of the founding of the nation, Hector Orr was asserting that the Native American Party was the heir to the Founding Fathers & that the party was representing "real" Americans, which explicitly meant native born, white Protestants.
Very good. Previous owner's name in pencil to half-title & second front end paper; writing & initials to verso of front end paper. Foxing throughout, with areas of heavy toning & foxing, including pp. 13-20, final few pages, & most engravings & tissue guards. Otherwise, interior tight & clean. Creases to top corners of several pages. Small crack to top end of inside front hinge; rear hinge sound. Binding firm & square. Covers have mild wear at spine ends, along edges, at corners & along spine edges; small tear & repair to leather on rear cover; mild scuff to bottom portion of front cover; minor rubbing to gilt stamping.
Sabin 52038. According to WorldCat, only 28 physical copies are held by libraries.
An impressive, well-preserved copy.
$2,500
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