Duncannon Record, November 17, 1893
LITERARY NOTES.
The most elegant and appropriate souvenir of the Exposition which a visitor can carry away is Bancroft’s Book of the Fair, taking it home being the next thing to having the entire Exposition forever with him. It is the most complete and pertect reproduction of the Great Display that has been made, or that can be made within rersonable limits. The 1,000 imperial folio pages which the work is to contain will be packed with all that is most interesting to read and best worth preserving, while the illustrations are in the highest art, as the numbers so far issued amply show.
In addition to their great work entitled The Book of the Fair, The Bancroft Company will soon publish the Resources and Development of Mexico, written by Hubert Howe Baneroft at the personal request of President Diaz, who issued & commission to gather fresh material from every quarter of the republic and aid Mr. Bancroft in every way in the prosecution of the work.
The Bancroft Company, Auditorium Building, Chicago, are engaged in a work deserving of more than passing notice. It is the production in book form in the highest style of art, of the entire Exposition. In The Book of the Fair, as the works is called, the great panorama will move from the past to the present, in logical any historical order. The reader will observe how the foundations upon which previous fairs were built gradually broadened, and like some magical plant will see the unfolding of the ideas which are at the base of he Columbian Exposition. Having introduced this latest and greatest of the world’s fairs, the book will trace its evolution in all details, will show how it was built, and who were its chief founders. and then picture it not only in its general but in its special features. In the evolution of the broad foundation upon which the Fair is established, in the creation of the Fair itself, and in the presentation of the gorgeous and the bewildering spectacle which is now before us, the pencil of the artist and the pen af the author will be complementary, each assisting the other.
- Left: Cygne Noir Edition (150 copies)
Right: Fin de Siècle Edition
- Left: Four Volume Edition
Right: Three Volume Edition
Chicago Tribune, December 29, 1894
The Book of the Fair.
One thousand imperial folio pages, adorned by no less than 2,500 engravings, go to make up the Hubert Howe Bancroft Book of the Fair, which is now bound in two volumes, and redeems the promise it gave when the sections were noticed severally. The work presents all the features of the Fair, artistic and industrial, besides containing chapters on “Fairs of the Past,” “Sketch of Chicago,” and an account of “Evolution of the Exposition.” Much space and attention are also given to the exhibits and exhibiters. The palaces of the White City were not swept away by fire, as one supposed, for they live again with their old charm in these sumptuous volumes. (The Bancroft company, Auditorium Building, Chicago.)
Book of Wealth, Fin de Siècle Edition, Preface, 1896
Companion and consort to The Book of the Fair is this Book of Wealth, one marking the progress and recording the achievements of the human race as exemplified in the Columbian Exposition, the other unfolding the motive power by which they have been accomplished. It is an inquiry into the nature and distribution of the world’s resources and riches, and a history of the origin and influence of property, its possession, accumulation, and disposition in all ages and among all nations, as a factor in human accomplishment, an agency of human refinement, and in I the evolution of civilization from the earliest to the present era.—Hubert Howe Bancroft
Chicago Tribune, February 20, 1898
Bound in covers of heavy golden silk, lined with a white brocade of the same rich fabric, embellished with frontispieces in original water color, and illustrated throughout its 1,000 pages in every style known to the modern printing art, The Book of Wealth is under publication in Chicago.
It is the most wonderful book in the world, its sponsors say—an illustrated summary of all that is most worth knowing, all that ever can be remembered of the history of every nation and era of all times, from the dawn of civilization in Egypt and Chaldea to the culture and industrial development which mark the closing years of the nineteenth century, especially in the United States of America.
The two editions of this work will cost $250,500. In all only 400 copies will be printed—150 of the first or cygne noir edition at $2,500 a copy, and 200 copies of a less embellished edition at $1,000 a copy. Each copy is made up of ten sections of 100 pages each—1,000 pages in all. The covers are 17×22 inches in size.
In addition to the 2,500 illustrations in the book proper each cygne noir copy is accompanied by ten portfolios covered with embroidered silk and containing 100 large size pictures in hand-retouched color, etching, and other elaborate processes.
Of the ten sections of The Book of Wealth seven are completed. The remaining three will be printed within a year.
The author is Mr. Hubert Howe Bancroft of San Francisco. The inspiration that led him to undertake the work was found in the World’s Columbian Exposition while he was preparing matter for his subsequently published Book of the Fair, itself a prodigious venture.
While this unique literary effort is called The Book of Wealth the author insists that it is not intended exclusively for rich persons nor as a glorification of them. Its purpose is to show what has been done for the world by men and women who have used their riches of mind and purse for the advancement of the peoples of the earth.
Chicagoans in the Book.
The three volumes yet to be published will deal with United States citizens of this class. The Chicagoans whose achievements it is planned to give are:
- Philip D. Armour, business-man, financier, patron of the church, founder of Armour Institute.
William Deering, reaper king, manufacturer, financier, and donor to Northwestern University.
Marshall Field, merchant prince, financier, founder of the Field Columbian Museum.
Cyrus H. M’Cormick, inventor of the reaper, manufacturer, financier, liberal contributor to McCormick Theological Seminary, which is named after him.
Joseph Medill, editor of The Chicago Tribune.
Samuel M. Nickerson, banker.
George M. Pullman, introducer of the first fractical sleeping car, manufacturer, financler, patron of the church, and founder of a school.
Mrs. Potter Palmer, benefactor of women.
Miss Frances Willard, who gave up her life to work for social purity and temperance.
Mrs. Dr. Nicholas Senn has purchased a cygne noir edition for Newberry Library.
Chicago Fair the Inspiration.
In Jackson Park during the exposition period there was gathered much that represented the wealth and civilization of all lands. Behind this, of course, was the vast material that could not be brought here for display. The immense wealth of the world, as evidenced by the few “samples.” impressed Mr. Bancroft so deeply that the suggestion came to him to gather from the four corners of the earth and place in one grand volume all that represented the wealth of the nations.
The Commissioners General of foreign countries were in Chicago then. They promised their aid in gathering material for text and illustration. The work was begun then in earnest. Pictures were made largely from nature, and the text was secured from the most authentic sources, with the result that after six years of labor seven of the ten sections, as said in the foregoing, are completed.
The first section may be taken as a type. It is covered with rich old gold armure silk made for the purpose and imported to this city by a Chicago house. On the outer cover is a dashing water color by Will H. Low, entitled “Jason and the Golden Fleece.” It represents the adventurer after he has secured the trophy. He holds the glittering fleece high in the air with one hand, while the other grasps his good sword, which he is handing to a kneeling female figure. Jason’s foot is planted triumphantly on the dragon’s neck. The picture is rich in classic hues. About it is a dainty border, also in water color, made up of circular designs. The subject is explained in the following text:
- When the Argonauts reached Colchis, which was the eastern extremity of the earth, as the Pillars of Hercules were the western, Jason, after plowing the field of Mars with bulls snorting fire and having hoofs of brass, and sowing the field with dragons’ teeth from which were to spring armed men, approached the dragon, which he quieted with a mixture given him for that purpose by Medea, and made himself master of the golden fleece.
The inner covers of the typical section are of white brocaded China silk, the brocade being in conventional flowers. This silk, too, was imported by a Chicago house for The Book of Wealth. In fact, all the materials used are provided by local concerns.
The first chapter of the section opens with a full page half-tone picture from a drawing by E. H. Blashfield, representing young Chaldean goddess dispelling Chaos. The figure is that of a girl, nude, and partly veiled by the mists of the unorganized world. Next comes the text, in large, clear type on heavy calendered paper, profusely illustrated. The dawn of civilization is first told. Then comes a consecutive history of the nations of remote antiquity, as far as it is known. The economic, financial, and artistic features of these early peoples are described. Then follows the next oldest civilization, and the next, and so on as the historic thread is followed through the sections until the United States is reached.
The water color panel on the cover of section 2 is entitled “Camillus and the Gauls,” and is executed by Irving R. Wiles. The story is illustrated at the point where Brennus throws his sword into the scale, already weighted down with Roman gold, but not yet containing sufficient to satisfy the greed of the Gauls. The covers of the remaining sections are embellished with the following water colors:
Section 3, “Launcelot and Guinevere,” by Helen Maitland Armstrong; Section 4, “Trial Scene ‘Merchant of Venice,'” by E. B. Child; section 5, “Captain Kidd and His Treasure,” by Helen Maitland Armstrong; section 6, “The Veiled Prophet of Khorassan,” by A. Castalgne: section 7, “The Awakening of Abou Hassan,” by Henry Sandham; section 8, “The Cid’s Stratagem,” to be painted; section 9, “Feast of Ivan the Terrible,” to be painted; section 10, “Atahualpa’s Ransom,” to be painted.
Subjects Treated in the Book.
The subjects treated in the various sections are these:
- Section 1. Chaldea, Babylonia, Assyria, Persia, Egypt, Phonecia, Palestine, Arabta.
Section 2. India, China, Japan, Central and Southeastern Asia, Greece.
Section 3. Italy, Spain, Portugal, the Turkish Empire.
Section 4. France, Switzerland, Belgium, Holland, the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
Section 5. Germany, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Russia.
Section 6. Great Britain and Ireland, Africa, Austala, the Hawaiian Islands.
Section 7. South America, Central America, West India Islands, Mexico, Canada.
Section 8. Pacific United States, Rocky Mountain States, midcontinental States.
Section 9. Southern States, central lake States.
Section 10. New England States, middle Atlantic States.
Each of the sections is accompanied by a portfolio of ten extra plates, making 100 with the set. These portfolios are covered with heavy golden silk, embroidered in flowers, and lined with white brocade silk. They are held closed with bowknots of ribbon. In the water color frontispieces and in these extra plates the illustrative feature of The Book of Wealth finds its acme. The plates include the following among those of special interest:
- “The Hanging Gardens of Babylon,” painted by Thomas Moran, facsimile in gorgeous colors.
“Palace of Sennacherib,” etching by C. F. W. Mielatz.
“Temple of Solomon,” painted by W. H. Lippencott, facsimile in colors.
“Palace of Sargon,” etching by C. A. Vanderhoof.
“Thebes Restored,” painted by Woodward, facsimile in colors.
“Mosque of Omar,” painted by Woodward, facsimile in colors.
“The Mogul Palace, Kashmir,” painted by W. L. Dodge, photogravure by Elson.
“The Acropolis Restored,” painted by C. I. Turner, facsimile in colors.
“The Baths of Caracalla,” painted by Dodge, facsimile, in colors.
“Roman Forum Restored,” painted by Tuttle, facsimile in colors.
“Pompell Restored,” etching by Thomas R. Manley.
“The Bastile,” etching by James Fagan.
“Citadel of Quebec,” etching by Manley.
“Levee, New Orleans,” etching by Vanderhoof.
“Wall Street, New York,” etching by Mielatz.
“Cincinnati,” etching by Manley.
“State Street, Chicago,”” etching by Bicknell.
“San Francisco,” etching by Vanderhoof.
“Electrie Power, Niagara Falls,” an etching.
“The Capitol at Washington,” photogravure by Elson.
“Old St. Louis,” painting by Sandham, photogravure by Elson.
“Boston in the Olden Times,” painted by Sandham, photogravure by Elson.
Author Talks of His Work.
Mr. Bancroft at present is residing at Cambridge, where his sons are attending Harvard College. Speaking of The Book of Wealth. he said recently:
- The wealth of the world is limitless. Much as has been gathered and created, infinitely more is yet to come. We have only just begun to get rich. We have only just entered upon the civilization in which wealth is so powerful a factor. And The Book of Wealth shows so clearly how wealth is one with civilization.
Wealth signifies primarily weal, well-being, prosperity; in this sense it was used by Adam Smith in his Wealth of Nations, by John Stuart Mill in his Political Economy by Herbert Spencer in his Philosophy, and there is no other word in the lexicon of economics to supply its place.
Public wealth, or the wealth or welfare of the nations, and likewise of individuals-as the nation is composed of individuals is the theme of this book, which is therefore called The Book of Wealth. It is this wealth, or wealth, which gives prosperity and contributes to the happiness of all. It is the fundamental element of progress; for until wealth is in some degree accumulated there can be no culture, no refinement, no intellectual advancement.
The object of The Book of Wealth is neither to extol personal riches nor those by whom they have been gathered, but to show what wealth has done for mankind and how, with the aid of wealth, man has improved his condition, has enlarged and refined the intellectual and moral qualities of his nature, developing the arts and sciences, building up cities and commonwealths, and ever bringing into existence and use fresh objects of beauty and utility. Thus the term wealth as here used embodies all that is most noble and beautiful in the nature and handiwork of man—wealth of intellect and moral wealth, as well as material possessions in the form of money or property.
Never a Book Like It.
Never since books were made has there been one like this; never before has any such plan been conceived, not to say worked out. Is it history that is wanted? Here is a summary of all that is most worth knowing. all that ever can be remembered of the history of every nation and era of all times, from the dawn of civilization in Egypt and Chaldea to the culture and industrial development which mark the closing years of the nineteenth century, especially in the United States of America. Is it philosophy, science, and art that are required? Their full elucidation is here. Is it economics? The ratural wealth of the world, the products of its several divisions, whether in mining, agriculture, or manufactures, city building. and the construction of great public works, canals, bridges, and railroads, all are here exquisitely pictured by thousands of the finest illustrations, and accurately described in the text. Herein is gathered all the material necessary to the solution of that great problem of humanity, the greatest good to the greatest number.
Is it too much to say, then, that this book is a library in itself; that these pages, with the beautiful pictures ever before the eye, stamping their impress indelibly upon the mind, give the reader a better knowledge of the world, and of the useful and beautiful things that It contains and has contained from the beginning to the present time, than can be secured in any other form?
Among the many pronounced features are the portraits of the rich and powerful of all ages and nations, from Rameses to the Rothschilds, from Alexander to Astor. Of these there are several hundreds, drawn with the greatest care and accuracy from the most reliable sources. Thus while we are speaking, for example, of Ivan the Terrible, first Czar of Russia. and his imposing group of fortress palaces, the Kremlin of Moscow, there is a portrait of the man himself, copied from an old painting, whereby we may see and know him; and in the text his life and character and an account of a great feast, whereat he passed to his guests the poisoned cup, with his many other atrocities, all cloaked under the profoundest piety. And so of others, Solomon and Pharaoh, Xerxes and Crosus, Cyrus and Cæsar, and thence along the centuries to modern times.
Centennial History of the City of Chicago, Its Men and Institutions,Inter Ocean, 1905
The Blakely Printing Company’s plant is in operation both day and night, employing a large force of the most skilled and intelligent workmen. The company has a reputation for turning out high-class work. Their most worthy pieces of work were the two volumes The Book of The Fair and The Book of Wealth. The latter was the most expensive modern book ever published. The edition de luxe was limited each volume sold for $2,500. W. K. Vanderbilt, J. Pierpont Morgan, Alva E. Belmont, Caroline Astor, J. J. Astor and Helen Gould were among the subscribers.
Leave a Reply