first edition
1838 · London
by Copley, Esther
London: Printed for Houlston and Co, 1838. First edition. Very Good +. Twelvemo. 252, [1, ads] pp. Complete with the frontispiece. Publisher's red cloth with gilt spine. All edges gilt. A bright and attractive copy with just a bit of foxing to verso of frontispiece and toning to last few leaves. Contemporary ink gift inscription to upper flyleaf: "Mary Tollmash Clements - A birthday gift from her affectionate father." Very Good+
A collection of six stories by Esther Copley (1786 – 1851), an abolitionist, children's author, and public health advocate born in London to parents of Huguenot origin. Her tracts included Hints on the Cholera morbus (1832), a guide to remedies and prevention of cholera, and domestic tracts for the working class that included information on childbirth and other health topics. Her numerous works for young readers included collections of stories for middle- and working-class children as well as nonfiction like The Young Reviewers (1821), which introduced children to literary criticism; Scripture Natural History for Youth (1828); and A History of Slavery and its Abolition (1836). A History of Slavery was a crucial work, "tracing the course of slavery from scriptural times to [Copley’s] own day. Her youthful audience was spared neither graphic descriptions of the sufferings of black slaves in the West Indies nor lengthy accounts of the proceedings of the anti-slavery movement" (Oxford DNB). Copley's work remains “a witness to the significant commitment of nonconformist women to the anti-slavery cause" (ibid). Very Good +. (Inventory #: 7282)
A collection of six stories by Esther Copley (1786 – 1851), an abolitionist, children's author, and public health advocate born in London to parents of Huguenot origin. Her tracts included Hints on the Cholera morbus (1832), a guide to remedies and prevention of cholera, and domestic tracts for the working class that included information on childbirth and other health topics. Her numerous works for young readers included collections of stories for middle- and working-class children as well as nonfiction like The Young Reviewers (1821), which introduced children to literary criticism; Scripture Natural History for Youth (1828); and A History of Slavery and its Abolition (1836). A History of Slavery was a crucial work, "tracing the course of slavery from scriptural times to [Copley’s] own day. Her youthful audience was spared neither graphic descriptions of the sufferings of black slaves in the West Indies nor lengthy accounts of the proceedings of the anti-slavery movement" (Oxford DNB). Copley's work remains “a witness to the significant commitment of nonconformist women to the anti-slavery cause" (ibid). Very Good +. (Inventory #: 7282)
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