Charles Dexter Allen

“ One of the finest examples is the plate of E. G. Asay, of Chicago. In this we find ourselves intruding upon the councils of the Muses; for we see Art seated upon a throne, with the palette and brushes idle in her lap, while about her, in graceful manner, recline History, Music, and Literature.{364} The lyre of Music is quiet, as, with her hand affectionately placed upon the shoulder of History, she listens to the reading of the just-inscribed record. Art likewise gives interested attention to the recital; and Literature, with her book closed, leans upon the convenient globe, and listens. ”

“ The Rowfant Club of Cleveland uses a small plate representing the corner of a library; the open window admits the fading light of the sun, which is sinking into the sea; the lattice swings idly, and the pile of books on the table proclaim a busy day. ”

“ The legend, Some books are to be tasted, some to be swallowed, and some to be chewed and digested, is given on the back of the books. Above the volumes, the scales carrying the heavy pen on one side, and the lighter sword on the other, is surmounted by a liberty-cap, behind which, in a blaze of glory, appears the motto, The pen mightier than the sword.
In the plate of George Imbrie Sill, three shelves of books are enclosed within a frame of scrolls which bear the name. A shield is placed across one end of the case, with the arms and crest upon it. ”

“ In England, where the heraldic features of a lady’s plate are required to be in some respects very different from those of the gentleman, they may be said to constitute a class by themselves. But with us, while of equal interest, they do not show any marked difference in their design from the gentlemen’s. Indeed,{373} most of them, if not all, would serve just as well for one as for the other. The plate of Charlotte Cushman, which is heraldic, is incorrect, if judged by the rules of the art. The arms are not in a lozenge, the crest is given, and the motto is displayed. ”

“ In the South, to which came men of wealth and leisure with cultivated tastes, we would expect to find the little superfluities and niceties of daily life sooner in vogue and more{4} generally used. Bringing books and musical instruments with them, retaining their connection with the far-away home by correspondence and visits, sending their sons to the great Universities to be educated, and to the Law Schools for a finishing course, and ordering their clothes, books, furniture, and all of the luxuries of life from England, they would naturally be the first to use the book-plate. ”

“ The strongest argument that can be said in its favor proving it to be American work is the poor heraldry displayed in its coat-of-arms, general make-up, and drawing. It will be noticed that the engraver has placed a wreath under the crown (an absolute heresy) , and this, with the faulty drawing of the raven, makes the whole plate a very slovenly piece of work. No engraver with any knowledge of the fundamental laws of heraldry would be guilty of drawing such a coat-of-arms as this. The arms of Washington engraved on his seal and ring, undoubtedly cut in England, are correctly done. ”

“ The design seems to reach perfection in the Wentworth plate; every feature is markedly better, the water still flows out of the scallop shell, the same shaped shield is used and the motto is placed upon a graceful ribbon with ends which run off into fancy foliations. ”

“ Chippendale. Motto, Faro quae sentiat. A very handsome plate. The shield is oval in form and is raised upon an elaborate frame, trimmed upon its upper edge with a garland of roses, and with the shell-edging at the base; at the left a cupid is just coming into view, holding up the festoon of flowers as he comes. The motto is on a ribbon at the base, and the name on a small curtain whose ends are thrust through the scrolls of the frame. ”

“ John Allan, the old-book lover of New York, used a plate with an open book against an anchor, and the plate of Edmund Penn shows a love for books in the dainty volumes disposed about the frame.
The patriotism of our book-lovers is shown in very many designs, which use the American flag or the eagle. The thirteen stars also, the motto of the United States, and various private mottoes of a very patriotic nature, are frequently used. ”

“ In the plate of John Herbert Corning, of Washington, Atlas, with strained muscles, supports the world of letters. Litterae is inscribed upon the immense globe which rests upon his shoulders.
Two children of the forest, a boy and a girl, with flowing hair and meagre garments, come{355} towards us in the plate of A. L. Hollingsworth, of Boston, bearing between them a panel on which is carved the motto Un bon livre est un bon ami. The dense forest is close behind them, and were it not for the reader, one feels as if no person would pass their way to see their lofty sentiment. ”

“ The motto, Christo et ecclesia, is just inside the border. The framework is embellished with a profusion of fruit and flowers; in the place of the crest, a pile of three books with the sun in splendor above them;
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on each side of the books two slender vases standing upon an upward curl of the ornamentation hold bouquets; below this whole design a gorgeous curtain is spread out to contain the name of the giver of the book; this is backed by a frame whose edge only is seen; this is elaborately scrolled, and is finished at the bottom with the canephoros head and shell pattern ”

“ No book-plate, however, is of greater interest to the American collector than that of George Washington, not alone by reason of the prominence of that eminent man, but because of the scarcity of the plate, the high price it brings, and the interesting fact that it is the only American plate which has been deemed worthy of counterfeiting. ”

“ Friendship and Science thus combine
To aid and honour our design:
With us unite an equal claim,
And share alike the social name.
Above, on a ribbon bearing the motto, E parvis oriunter magna, two grinning females mutually support a circular frame, in which the crowd of Brothers is seen walking bareheaded under a powerful sun. Omnes in uno concordia is on the frame. The supporters doubtless depict Friendship and Science. A pile of books between them completes the inventory. Signed, Wm. Taylor Deln. A. Doolittle Sculpt.
965. Yale College. Brothers in Unity. ”

“ In the plate of Eugene Field we have a beautiful example of the plain armorial, unaccompanied by motto or ornamentation of any kind.
Of similar character is the plate of Richard Grant White. This is armorial, but the motto, The right and sleep, is given, and the shield is decorated in a conventional manner, with mantling and scrolls.
A pleasing library interior is used by Arlo Bates. This represents an Oriental interior; a youth in scull-cap and flowing hair is reading a large book; a lily stem rises from a vase of striped Tyrian glass at his side; rows of books are seen at his back ”

“ As compared with its immediate predecessor, the differences in this style of plate are seen to be principally the liberating of the decorative features from the stiffness which thralled them in the Jacobean. Not now resembling ponderous carvings in oak and mahogany, but rising free and unrestrained, the rose branches and sprigs seem to be copied from Nature herself; not arranged with careful nicety and labored uniformity as formerly, but springing from any convenient niche, they add grace and delicacy to the whole design. ”

“ Beneath this, a pile of books is covered by a scroll, which bears upon it the motto, Amici et amicis. The Rev. Morgan Dix, of Trinity Church, New York City, uses an heraldic plate, in which also the crest only is given. This is surrounded by a circular garter, on which the motto, Quod dixi factum est, is printed. This ends our list of plain armorial plates.
Whatever sarcasm and disgust may be stirred up by the assumption of arms by persons not entitled to them, no word can be said against the display of authenticated arms upon the book-plate. ”

“ All of our early American plates can fairly be called scarce when compared with the foreign examples of the same period, for they outnumber ours, fifty to one; but many among ours are rarer than others. The John Franklin, brother of Benjamin, signed by Turner, is an exceeding rare plate; the Thomas Dering, signed by Hurd, is very rare. The plates of Stephen Cleveland, Samuel Chase, Francis Kinloch, Edward Augustus Holyoke, John Vassal, Lewis De Blois, Lenthal, Apthorp, the John Pintard, by Anderson, and many others are not seen in many collections. ”

“ The work of these native artisans, who were mostly self-taught in this art of engraving on copper, is confessedly inferior to that of the London{5} experts found upon the Southern plates, both in drawing and execution, but their work is of more value to the collector from this very fact of their being American work. They furnish examples of native skill, both in engraving and in copper-plate printing. ”

“ At the present day we use in our wall-paper, upholstery, and wood-carving on furniture and mantels, and even on outside cornices, a certain form of garland or festoon tied with ribbon which we call “Colonial”; in a general way this resembles{56} the decoration features of the Ribbon and Wreath book-plate. From wall-pins with fancy oval or round heads, festoons of flowers depend above the shield; branches of holly and palm, often tied with a ribbon whose fluttering ends bear a motto or the name, are crossed beneath the shield, and their graceful sprays extend up either side. ”

“ In the plate of Mary Bayliss, we have a frame of Chippendale tendency. The scrolls are edged with shell-work, and the flowers are free and natural.
Very interesting and successful work in designing and engraving book-plates is now being done by Mr. E. D. French, of New York City, Mr. E. H. Garrett, of Winchester, Mass., and by Mr. W. F. Hopson, of New Haven, Conn., all of whom are represented in this volume by prints from the original coppers. ”

“ To allure our desires, it unveils the sanctuary above, and discovers the glories and joys of the blessed in the Divine presence, by a light so strong and lively, that all the glittering vanities of this world vanish in the comparison, and a sincere believer will despise them, as one of mature age does the toys and baubles of children. ”

“ A peculiar out-of-door scene, in which the foreground is occupied with a very tall case of shelves filled with books; the corner post of the case is made of a pile of books carefully arranged; in the distance is seen the temple of Honor, upon the summit of a hill, the ascent to which is rocky and steep; the American eagle rests upon a globe which is placed upon the tall pile of books; the whole design is enclosed within an oval border, which is decorated with scrolls, etc. The last name only is engraved upon the plate, the first ones being written in. ”

“ We do not expect old carving to be anything but solid and immobile, and these characteristics are present in this style of book-plate. Indeed, Warren, in his chapter on the Jacobean style, says that no antiquary can fail to note the strong similarity of treatment and design between the wood-carving preserved in the churches of the time of Charles the Second and the mouldings on the monuments of the same period, and the book-plates of the style we have considered. ”

“ Minerva, just alighted from the clouds, with garments somewhat displaced by her flight through the air, and with clouds still about her, finds an Indian waiting to receive the volume she holds out to him; as he lays hold of it he seems to be offering his tomahawk in exchange. The shelves of the library are seen behind them, and in the gable the motto, Emollit mores, is painted. The oval frame enclosing this scene is upheld by ribbon and festoons, branches of oak are crossed beneath, and the plate is signed, Maverick. ”

“ As, during the 14th century some members of the Châtillons were Comtes de Blois, this title, extinct in 1364, over 500 years ago, is most unwarrantably used as if it were the family name, and the Châtillon arms adopted in a most extraordinary way, reversing the ordinary way of acquiring arms; so audacious and arrogant is the assumption and so sublime the impudence it entitles{192} the fact to a high place in the Curiosities of Heraldry.” (These notes are found accompanying the copy of the plate in the collection of the late Mr. James Eddy Mauran.) ”

“ Even a worthless book will thus be saved by the collector, which was fit but for the fire or the ash-heap, and which would have gone thither, plate and all, save for his discriminating eye, while a valuable book no one would think of despoiling. ”