THE WHOLE PROCEEDINGS OF THE SIEGE OF DROGHEDA IN IRELAND. WITH A THANKFUL REMEMBRANCE FOR ITS WONDERFUL DELIVERY; A TRUE ACCOUNT OF THE SIEGE OF LONDON-DERRY
Dublin, Ireland: Printed by R. Reilly on Cork-Hill, for S. Hyde, Bookseller. 1736. Leather-bound. The three gauffered edges, no matter how faintly so, make this short octavo hardcover exemplar, measuring 8" x 6 1/4" in height and width, respectively, sit up and bark. Decorated paper over boards, gilt-ruled half-calf, with four raised bands, with rubbed, stamped titles in two compartments, with "1641" stamped in miniscule in one, "1689" in another. Wearing away of leather at tips, joints, spine head and foot suggest later (not original) binding laid down in repair. The tome remains quite solid. Clean newer decorated endpapers, mildly worn (two faint slices to first free endpaper), front and rear endpapers reinforced. Tide-line to pp. xix-xvii, thence dissipating, again at outset of Walker's contribution. Mild foxing to mildly rippled paper. Lovely tailpiece at p. 94, section header at p. 95, opposite, torn page at 83-84 pp. In order: two blanks, general title page, specific title page, Order of Printing, Dedication, three-page note to the reader, two testimonies of veracity (by Gibson, Sloughter, etc., and by Moore), Paginated as: xix 1[1], 2-107 pp., including an Appendix of "Some other occurrences fallen out since . . . " of a religious nature; then begins Walker's A TRUE ACCOUNT OF THE SIEGE OF LONDON-DERRY, published first in 1689 [3], 114-147, then mispagination: 160-178 [blank] pp. Good. Item #85186
Scarce title in this state and condition and with benefit of Walker's empirical account appended. Bernard's contribution was first printed in 1642 (see John White's Order of Printing dated July 14, 1642 from the House of Commons, and author's eight-pages-long Dedication is dated May 25, 1642, Drogheda, Ireland). General title page suggests this edition's 1736 publication date; specific title page dated also to 1736 lists the titles of the two works (by Bernard and by Walker), publisher, place of publication and date, etc., but sans authors' names. Nicholas Bernard (also Barnard, 1600-1661) was an Anglican priest and later biographer of Archbishop James Ussher, having served as his chaplain and librarian. He did a stint in the Fleet Prison for lacking proper licensing to preach, having been brought before the Committee for Plundered Ministers (!) (Wikipedia). The contribution of George Walker (1645-1690) was published originally in 1689 by Robert Clavel and Ralph Simpson. Slightly mispaginated, but containing fascinating letters from battle commanders, lists of officers (not soldiers) killed or taken prisoner, drowning of 48 men (including two friars) coming over the river at Liford, unit sizes (each Company being comprised of 50 men) and the subsistence accorded them (meat and meal, butter, and salmon [!]), names of clergy-men who stayed in London-Derry during the siege, plus seven "nonconforming ministers" four of whom also died, and finally, numbers of bombs thrown from April 24 to July 28 and their respective weights. Walker's text ends by reprising a letter from an Iniskillin Man that laments the general and specific lack of use of his own Lord Kingston as he was drawn from his Garrison at Sligo to one at Derry. Most extraordarily present is the full-page likeness resembling a bowling pin but dubbed "The Measure of Our Blessed Lady's Foot" which, when kissed three times and followed by three "Aves Maria," it is said, shall bring the Mother of Christ's foot-kisser seventy years of Pardon and delivery from many perils. All in, an uncommonly seen exemplar of two important works.
Price: $900.00