Don't give me the evil eye for my book-acquisition addiction

As I mentioned last week, I'm trying — really trying — to prune more books from my new bedroom to make room for everything. Many things have departed. More things still need to go.

I'm using the blog to help with The Lessening, the theory being that once I've documented and published a post about a cool book cover or inscription or bookplate or tucked-away-inside item, then I'm free to re-release the book into the wild. My job as historian is done, at least in the digital sense.

But my plan failed miserably in one very recent instance. Pruning one book led directly to the purchase of another. That kind of math isn't going to lead to fewer books in the inventory.

Here's what happened: Writing about the groovy old bookplate inside A Diary from Dixie allowed me send Diary out of the house.

Minus one book.

But, in writing about the bookplate, I discovered that its owner, Edward S. Gifford Jr., had published a book titled The Evil Eye: Studies in the Folklore of Vision in 1958. And if you know anything about me by now, you know I had to have that book.

Plus one book.

(The Price is Right fail horn.)

I found a cheap copy online and, voilà, The Evil Eye is now in my collection of folklore titles, alongside the likes of Wonder Tales from the China Seas, Korean Lore, Old Schuylkill Tales and The Land of Haunted Castles.

Here's an excerpt from the dust jacket of The Evil Eye:

"For Dr. Gifford, writing is a late evening occupation; his days are fully occupied in his office and in discharging his duties as Chief Ophthalmologist to the Pennsylvania Hospital ... Fascinated by the folklore of his science, Dr. Gifford has made an exhaustive study of it. ... The grist for Dr. Gifford's mill is the whole of man's history, from the earliest written records down to the latest researches of modern psychiatrists. The author is an ophthalmologist as well as a balanced and enlightened raconteur. The result is this amusing and erudite treat, a book that will strongly appeal to all who relish the unusual."

The 216-page book comes with an exhaustive 12-page bibliography. The interior illustrations are by Virginia Mason Gifford, Edward's wife, and the book is dedicated to her. The cover was designed by Gilbert Etheredge, and, yes, I think the drawing looks a little bit like E.T.

From the readers: Manning-Sanders, bus history & Beatles movies

Here's a roundup of comments that have been made on Papergreat posts this spring. Thanks, as always, for sharing your thoughts!

"A Book of Mermaids" by Ruth Manning-Sanders is back in print! Katie writes: "I was thrilled to receive this book for Christmas. Like you, I have been collecting these books in the last few years. I still have yet to find Magic Horses, Magic Adventures, Heroes and Heroines and Marvels and Magic at a reasonable expense. I loved reading these stories as a child, and vividly recall the ink artwork in the original publishings. I was disappointed to find these missing in the republished edition of Mermaids. Nevertheless, I hope that the trend continues so that many more can enjoy this wonderful collection of stories!"

Thanks for writing, Katie. I agree it would have been great to see the Robin Jacques artwork in the reprint, but I fully understand how the logistics (and cost) of that might have been prohibitive. Meanwhile, I think the four books you mentioned are the exact same "final four" that I had the most difficulty acquiring. It mostly just takes perseverance and a willingness to check Amazon, Alibris, AbeBooks and eBay on a regular basis. Almost everything will surface eventually at a fair price. Best wishes to you!

Mystery at Penmarth: a Ruth Manning-Sanders rarity: Thecheshirecat writes: "I have to say that the hardest of Manning-Sanders' novels to find and get copies of are Selina Pennaluna (1927) and Mermaid's Mirror (1935). Did you find these hard to obtain?"

There are still numerous Manning-Sanders books that I do not have — she was so prolific. Plus, for many years, I focused solely on her books related to folk and fairy tales. I do not have either of the books you mentioned, and I would fully agree that they are extremely rare. I don't think I've ever seen a copy of Mermaid's Mirror available anywhere. ... I do have Pages from the History of Zachy Trenoy, which has always seemed fairly scarce. I believe Run Away is fairly scarce, too. It seems like Manning-Sanders rarities would be a good topic for a future post.

Five cool things from 1935's "Elements of Business Training": A reader with the code name yc720_06 writes: "Google Pickwick Nitecoach for starters and if you can manage to find a copy of the periodical, Motor Coach Age, October 1972, published by the Motor bus Society, there's a whole issue devoted to 'Sleeper Buses and the Pickwick Stages System.' There were only four built of the type shown, which was of a slightly different design to the earlier three. Named 'Morpheus,' it was the fourth, but by no means the last, of a series of highly innovative designs patented by Dwight E. Austin, which culminated in the first bus with a transverse rear engine. Eight were built and Austin was hired by GM subsidiary Yellow Coach in 1934 for his unique 'angle drive' engine transmission patent. The rest as they say was history. Hope this helps."

Old postcard: U.S. Veterans Hospital 88 in Memphis: Anonymous writes: "This hospital was operated by the Veterans Bureau (1920-1930) before it was renamed the Veterans Administration. The number 88 indicated it was listed as the 88th hospital in the Veterans Bureau inventory. TC Mid-South Paralyzed Veterans of America Chapter Historian."

"I've Got My Beatles Movie Ticket...": Tom from the Garage Sale Finds blog writes: "Coincidentally, I just finished watching A Hard Day's Night today. I've always been a bigger fan of Help! (I know, sacrilege among Beatles fans) and had never watched A Hard Day's Night all the way through. Enjoyable, but I still have to go with Help! as the more enjoyable of the two. I guess because it has a more involved story line."

Full disclosure: I have never seen any of The Beatles movies. If I had to dive into that genre (no pun intended), I would probably start with Yellow Submarine, minus the LSD.

Ephemera for Lunch #21: Class photo on the outside steps: Anonymous writes: "G.B.Lohmuller is my grandfather. Bertie is his wife. One of the boys in the center looks JUST like my father so he has to be his father. My dad was born in 1926 so this is his father. So cool. Thanks so much for a wonderful surprise."

Classified advertisements from a 1932 issue of Hobbies magazine: Anonymous writes: "The A.H. Griffith in the text above was a noted scholar of Abraham Lincoln. Here is more information, and a photo of Albert H. Griffith: https://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=pis&PIpi=155524550&PIgrid=92761663"

Straight Arrow Injun-uity card from Nabisco Shredded Wheat: Rod South writes: "I have a 28 book #1 set of the Straight Arrow cards and on the cover card it says a set of 28 cards, everywhere I look shows book #1 and #2 contain cards numbered to #36. These cards are from Canada and I'm wondering if the Canadian set was smaller?"

That's a good question, Rod. I don't know the answer, but I hope one of our readers might be able to help.

Delving into Henry K. Wampole & Company: Lyndigger writes: "I also am related to the Wampole name via George W. Wampole. Not sure if or how he was related to Henry Wampole. Also related to Shermerhorn. Interesting how these names were connected in history."

St. Peter's Church in the Great Valley: Anonymous writes: "The Rev. Frederick A. Breuninger, who drafted the original receipt for your family's burial plot on August 3, 1958, passed away in June of 1982. He is buried in the same cemetery. Source: https://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=125356031. When you next visit your mother, visit the Reverend as well. It would be an honor to them both, bless their memories."

I will definitely do that. Thank you so much for sharing this information.

Sunday's postcard: Nebraska's Crowell Memorial Home, circa 1910

This old postcard is captioned "Crowell M.E. Memorial Home, Blair, Neb." on the front. It was mailed in 1910, and this home is still around and thriving 107 years later! According to the Crowell Memorial Home's website:

"Crowell Home sits high on a shady hillside, overlooking Blair, Nebraska, and the beautiful Missouri River Valley. It was founded in 1905 when Christopher Columbus¹ and Polly Crowell donated their mansion to be used as a retirement home. We are a non-profit facility dedicated to providing care to all.

"A Medicare/Medicaid certified facility, we offer a full continuum of care with 88 skilled nursing beds, 18 assisted living apartments and eight independent living apartments. Crowell Home is one of only ten Nebraska Nursing Homes to qualify as a founding member of Nebraska's 'I Support Quality of Life Project.'"

This postcard was mailed to Miss Frances Newman in Minneapolis, Minnesota, which is about six hours northeast of Blair (based on today's driving times). The note on the back states (with a little editing to make it more readable):

"Blair July 14th 1910
My Dear Friend
Franches
I rec'd your Card. Thanks ever so much it. Glad to hear from you and that you had a nice time. We wish you could take a trip down here. How glad we all would be to see you. We hop you will someday. Give our love to your Mother and sisters and keep a share for your self. Will be pleased to hear from you anytime. Your friend, [indecipherable]."

And, in case you were wondering, the Phillies split a doubleheader with the Chicago Cubs on July 14, 1910.

Footnote
1. Not that Christopher Columbus.

Saturday's postcard: Miss Hilda Trevelyan (and cat)*

This undated, never-used postcard features Miss Hilda Trevelyan and a cat in a basket. Presumably, it's her cat. There is also a very nice shelf of books behind them.

This is a bit of a "trading card" postcard. Trevelyan (1877-1959) was a famous English stage actress (who assumed her stage name years after being born as Hilda Marie Antoinette Anna Tucker). She created the role of Wendy in J.M. Barrie's Peter Pan and played it on stage nearly 1,000 times. Here's a short excerpt from a 1979 article by Andrew Birkin in The New York Times about the play's history:

"Barrie's first choice for Wendy was expecting a baby, so they settled on another young actress, Hilda Trevelyan. Hilda's nervous excitement at being offered the part, of which she had been told nothing, heightened into sheer anxiety when she received her first rehearsal notice: 'Rehearsal — 10:30 for Flying.'"

Trevelyan also had a tiny, uncredited role in Hitchcock's The 39 Steps.

This postcard was part of the "YES OR NO" Series and has a stamp box that asks for writers to affix a halfpenny stamp.

Historical footnote
*-The first "Saturday's postcard" on Papergreat appeared on February 5, 2011.

Box of Dennison DeLuxe Gummed Reinforcements

Seriously, though, who titles a blog post "Box of Dennison DeLuxe Gummed Reinforcements"? Who even reads that?

This is a slice of my life: I'm sitting at Mom's old desk, which is positioned inside my bedroom closet, which has been turned into a desk alcove to make the most efficient use of space, because I'm all about efficiency, which is important when you're trying to make everything fit. My laptop takes up half the desk. To my right is my off-from-work-day checklist. To my left is the Box of Dennison DeLuxe Gummed Reinforcements. A few inches further to the left is the dictionary stand from Oak Crest Lane, with the 1951 Webster's New International Dictionary of the English Language, Second Edition, sitting atop it, opened to Page 1332 (Jegaal ... Jeopardy Assessment) and Page 1333 (Jepard ... Jessamy Bride).¹ The shelves underneath the dictionary are stacked with books to be blogged, books to read, books I couldn't yet part with, and an old family Bible, or two, with serious binding issues. At my feet is another book I want to blog soon, so that I can subsequently donate it and get it gone from the bedroom, and the Summer 1967 issue of Saucer News. Because of course.

The cats have been fed, so I have a semblance of peace for writing.

So ... "Box of Dennison DeLuxe Gummed Reinforcements." I was around a lot of old office and desk supplies during my teen years. When we moved from Florida to Oak Crest Lane in Wallingford in 1986, my sister and I were entering the house at its peak accumulation of Stuff. From the 1950s through 1980s, my grandmother and great-grandparents had been saving everything, forgetting about half of it, and buying more. There were never yard sales or spring-cleaning events. There were only drawers and closets and shelves and dressers and rooms filled with things. That included office supplies from the 1960s and 1970s, many never or rarely used.

Things got better between 2005 and 2015, when Mom and I — it took a decade of weekend visits — slowly sorted and removed Stuff, trashing things like petrified glue and donating the rest to charity. But it wasn't a clean sweep. Some of the Stuff survived all of the purges and made the westward trip from Wallingford to Aspers in 2015. And then, after Mom's death earlier this year, it made another trip from Aspers to Dover.

And, thus, the matchbox-sized "Box of Dennison DeLuxe Gummed Reinforcements" is sitting here beside me, being just interesting enough to receive some Papergreat love before heading to the landfill or recycling center.

So here's a little bit about Dennison: It was founded in 1844 in Brunswick, Maine, to make jewelry boxes. In 1898, the enterprise moved to Framingham, Massachusetts, where the Dennison Manufacturing Company became the towering center of the local economy, an era described in this 2014 article in the MetroWest Daily News. In 1990, Dennison merged with the Avery International Corporation to create Avery Dennison.

I believe that the woman shown on the back of the Gummed Reinforcements is supposed to be Spee-d-ADA. She appears on other Dennison products of this time period, as you can see on KookyKitsch.com, Wild Goose Chase, and K is for Calligraphy.

Some of those aforementioned websites want to sell you old office supplies.

I'm good, thanks.

Footnote
1. Jegaal? Jeopardy Assessment? Jepard? Jessamy Bride? I can see why the editors dropped a quarter-million entries between the second and third editions of Webster's unabridged dictionary.

Three nifty old sports-themed book covers

Full disclosure: Between the inventory from Mom's estate and my recent move (reminders that we rarely control the timing of Big Events in life), I have a moderately dire need right now to downsize quickly, before I become like the Collyer brothers. This post will allow me to move three books — a substantial space savings — on to their new Forever Homes. So you might be seeing a few more posts like this in the coming days, as The Lessening continues.

• Title: Ethel Morton at Sweetbrier Lodge
• Series: The Ethel Morton Books
• Author: Mabell Shippie Clarke Smith (1864-1942)
• Cover illustrator: Unknown
• Publisher: The Goldsmith Publishing Company, Cleveland
• Year of publication: 1915
• Pages: 247
• Excerpt: "You want to repeat in the furniture the colors of the rug," she said. "They give you a wide range of tones because these Oriental rugs may have as many as twenty-five shades of blue, so finely graduated that you can hardly tell them apart, except with a reading glass."
• Notes: The dust jacket indicates this hardcover's price was 50 cents. ... The tennis game on the cover illustration is a bit misleading, with regard to the contents of the book, which seems mostly to be about interior decorating, travel, history lessons and finding a husband.

• Title: Paul Jones, The Naval Hero of 76
• Subtitle: The Fearless Fighter and Commander of the American Revolution
• Author: Lieut. John Troy Burden
• Publisher: Hurst & Company, New York
• Year of publication: 1900 [?]
• Pages: 399
• Excerpt: But Jones, whatever he might think, was not of the temperament to which the cultivation of maize and tobacco — which in America about that period must have comprehended "the rural life in all its joy and elegance" — could long remain the favorite scheme.
• Notes: Once again, the cover is misleading. The ice hockey player must have been a generic illustration used for a series of Hurst & Company books aimed at a young audience. The book itself is a rather dense history of the life of the famed naval commander. It's thick with long excerpts from letters and other works, and it isn't exactly light reading. ... Three names of former owners are written on the title page:
  
  • 1. Ray Bailey, Xmas 1905
  • 2. For Richard Frederick Birthday. 13 year old. From Aunt Gertrude F. 1938.
  • 3. John Brake 1972

• Title: Marjorie Dean, High School Senior
• Series: Marjorie Dean High School Series (Book 4 of 4)
• Author: Pauline Lester (pen name for Josephine Chase)
• Cover illustrator: Unknown
• Publisher: A.L. Burt Company, New York
• Year of publication: 1917
• Pages: 302
• Excerpt: The "witches' deadly brew" proved to be very excellent chicken boullion [sic], which did not come amiss after Marjorie's ride in the cool autumn air. By the time she had finished it, her goblin conductor had scurried away to answer the ring of the door bell, leaving her to mingle with the other sinister shapes that wandered singly or in twos and threes about the room.
• Notes: Following the Marjorie Dean High School Series, there was the four-book Marjorie Dean College Series and the six-book Marjorie Dean Post-Graduate Series. ... The name "Anna Kass" is written in cursive on the first page. ... There are 16 pages of advertisements at the back of the book for other juvenile series, including The Ranger Boys Series, The Radio Boys Series, Princess Polly Series, The Virginia Davis Series and The Merry Lynn Series.

See also

• "The Girls of Central High on Track and Field"
• More fabulous covers from vintage juvenile-fiction books
• Two more dandy vintage book covers, including a Rex Kingdon novel
• Front covers and opening passages from four old books

Old bookplate featuring a beard-grabbing skeleton

This bookplate for Edward Stewart Gifford Jr. is either humorous or spine-tingling, depending on your point of view. (I choose humorous.) It features a skeleton grabbing the beard of a surprised scholar. Or maybe he's an alchemist whose experiments to revive the dead had an unexpected outcome. Details in the illustration include a microscope, a flask, the edge of a globe and a small shelf of books that includes Gray's Anatomy and Plays.

The is also a painter's palette and several brushes that have been attached to the wall in an odd manner.

Skeletons and skulls are not an uncommon element of bookplates. Scott D. Haddow wrote a short post about them on the blog A Bone to Pick in 2012. He states: "At the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century, the design of bookplates became more personalized, with heraldic elements slowly replaced by increasingly symbolic/allegorical representations. ... The focus on mortality reminds me of the medieval allegorical themes of the Danse Macabre, i.e. the universality and egalitarianism of death."

Some additional skeleton-themed bookplates can be see at the BibliOdyssey blog, the blog of Harvard's Houghton Library, and the website 50 Watts.

The Duke University Medical Center's digital repository has a copy of this same bookplate (within the History of Medicine Collection of the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library). According to Duke, the illustrator is Virginia Mason Gifford (there is a tiny V in the lower-left corner and a tiny M in the lower-right corner). Edward and Virginia were married.

Edward Stewart Gifford Jr. was, according to a short obituary notice in the May 12, 1994, edition of the Philadelphia Daily News, an ophthalmologist for more than 50 years and also a published author. His books included 1958's The Evil Eye: Studies in the Folklore of Vision, which actually sounds pretty cool.¹

Virginia, who created her husband's bookplate, died in 2003. In 1988, she published a book titled Glimpses of My Family's Past.

This bookplate was inside a copy of the 1929 Peter Smith reprint edition² of A Diary from Dixie, as written by Mary Boykin Chesnut, "wife of James Chesnut Jr., United States senator from South Carolina, 1859-1861, and afterward an aide to Jefferson Davis and a Brigadier-General in the Confederate Army." The book was part of Mom's estate. I cannot remember whether it was on her bookshelves because it interested her (she loved diaries by women) or my great-grandfather (who loved books about the Civil War).

Footnotes
1. An Amazon reviewer wrote this in 2015: "If you're looking for a how-to, this isn't the book. But if you're looking for a fun, exhaustive cultural history of The Evil Eye across history and many different cultures, you'll love this book. Written by an eminent eye-doctor who had a passion for collecting eye-related lore and artifacts, it's information-dense, wit written with a wry sense of humor that stops it from becoming dry and text-bookish. Amongst the topics he covers are the beliefs and traditions in casting an evil eye, the ways it's been combated and how magic and medicine have been used to heal and protect more mundane eye problems as well."
2. Peter Smith, who died in 1982 at age 85, was according to The New York Times, "the dean of the branch of publishing that reissues hard-to-find books for libraries, scholars and collectors. Nearly 1,000 titles were issued under his imprint."

I'll be back, eventually...