James Cummins Bookseller

Halifax, [Nova Scotia] and London: published by John B. Strong ... and Day & Son, 1860.

Price: $8,500.00

About the item

First edition. 8 hand-coloured lithographed plates, drawn on stone by F. Jones after Hickman, printed by Day & Son, each with a leaf of letter-press description. 1 vols. Small folio. Original grained blue cloth, the covers blocked in blind with elaborate borders, the upper cover with a large gilt blocked arabesque incorporating the author and title. Rebacked, with with original spine laid down. Some minor toning of cloth, last text leaf with old crease, else fine. Plates fresh and with fine original coloring. Westwood & Satchell p. 118; Wetzel p. 158; Bruns p. 220 (not seen, citing Wetzel); Abbey Travel II 629; Sabin 31706 (citing an 1861 edition); TPL 3988; Bibliotheca Salmo Salar 98. Not in Lande.

Item #351860

A rare color-plate view book and authoritative fishing guide.

This beautifully illustrated work is a record of a six week fishing and camping trip by the author from Bathurst, New Brunswick, along the Nipisaguit river in New Brunswick, Canada. The fine plates are all worked up from original sketches done on the spot by the author, armed "with fishing-rod and sketch-book". In the preface, he pleads for the preservation of the river's salmon, a great natural resource: "The Nipisaguit is one of the very few rivers in North America where the salmon still visit for breeding purposes in undiminished numbers; saw-mills, spearing, netting, and what in England would be called poaching, have ruined the rest ... If the contents of the following pages should in any way attract the attention to the subject before it is too late, and the Author thus contribute to the preservation of the river he loves so well, his object in publishing them will be fully gained". It is interesting to note that the author gives his address as Government House, Halifax, Nova Scotia at the end of the preface.

The introductory chapter includes some history of the area, of the river and of the fishing (the "first salmon caught with the artificial fly ... were taken ... in August 1845") , information about reaching the river (allow 13 days to travel from Liverpool, England to Bathurst), and then a glowing endorsement of the local guides ("It is impossible to speak too highly of this class of people ... the 'Vineaus' and the 'Chamberlains' are among the best-known and most experienced; but there are very few amongst them who will not give satisfaction to any reasonable employer"). The text proper consists of descriptions of locations depicted on the eight plates, these descriptions are generally accompanied by notes on the quality and type of fishing that can be expected.