Ephraim Gotthold Lessing:
Sammtliche Schriften - edition reliée, livre de poche
1904, ISBN: fec6af48cc749c5de543ee7abbd54ab8
Small quarto, 110 manuscript pages, bound in half leather, contemporary marbled paper backed boards, spine cracked, boards detached, worn, rubbed, paper good, entries written in a legible… Plus…
Small quarto, 110 manuscript pages, bound in half leather, contemporary marbled paper backed boards, spine cracked, boards detached, worn, rubbed, paper good, entries written in a legible hand, and dated 18 June to 8 September 1868.The diary records the incidents and events on a journey departing from New York harbor and arriving in Queenstown, Ireland on June 26th. He writes every day during the ocean voyage, describing shipboard life, the account consists of 25 manuscript pages, followed by a further 85 manuscript pages which vividly describe his adventures while in Europe, making a total of 110 manuscript pages. The diary ends on 8 September 1868, while he is touring Paris, France. Although the diary is not signed, there are enough clues and internal evidence within the diary to determine that the author is Joshua Merrill, a pioneer in the American petroleum industry. Our author lives in Boston Massachusetts and he is traveling in Europe with another man by the name of "Mr. Downer" both men are in the petroleum business. The two men are not there merely for sightseeing, or pleasure travel, but are examining the conditions of the oil, kerosene and petroleum business. Our diarist mentions being in Europe, (even in some of the same exact places) 12 years earlier in 1856. This information, the fact that they two men are oilmen and that the author was in Europe 12 years prior, are enough clues to identify the diarist. There is a Samuel Downer, an oil pioneer, whose obituary appears in The Boston Journal for 21 September 1881, this is likely the "Mr. Downer" mentioned in the diary: "Mr. Samuel Downer, senior member of the Downer Oil Company, and proprietor of Downer Landing, died at his residence in Dorchester, yesterday afternoon, at the age of seventy-four. He has been a leading merchant in the oil trade in this city (Boston) for many years, having succeeded his father, Samuel Downer, Sr., while the traffic consisted wholly in whale oil. With the decline of the whale fisheries and the development of the petroleum interest, Mr. Downer's sagacity led him to engage extensively in the manufacture or renting of the petroleum product for illuminating purposes, and he was one of the earliest, if not the first to establish that business in this city, his works being located at South Boston. With further research, we find in a volume titled Biographical Sketches of Representative Citizens of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts by Graves & Steinbarger (1901) that "Joshua Merrill" was a business partner of Samuel Downer, and that Merrill had traveled to Europe about 1856: "JOSHUA MERRILL, of South Boston, who may well be called the father of the oil industry in the United States, was born at Duxbury, Mass., October 6, 1828, son of the Rev. Abraham Dow and Nancy (Morrison) Merrill. His paternal grandfather was Major Joshua Merrill, of Salem, N. H., who fought against the British in the War of 1812. Major Joshua Merrill and his wife, whose maiden name was Mehitable Dow, and who was from Plaisted, N.H., were the parents of four children, two daughters and two sons. Joshua Merrill completed his education in the high school of Lowell, Mass. At the age of fifteen he left home and school to go to Boston, where he entered the employ of his elder brother, who was engaged in the manufacture of paper-hangings. In 1853 he undertook the sale of the lubricating oil then manufactured by the United States Chemical Manufacturing Company, of Waltham, Mass; and in the following year he entered into an engagement with the late Samuel Downer, who had acquired the proprietary rights of the Chemical Company's business, which included the manufacture of the article known as coup oil, a substance derived from the distillation of coal tar obtained in the manufacture of gas. Mr. Merrill disposed of this article for a number of years, or till 1856, to the proprietors of the New England cotton-mills. He then went to Europe to engage in the manufacture of that and other oils, and while there assisted in the erection of a factory for George Miller & Co., of Glasgow, Scotland. After a stay of one year in Europe he returned to America, and began a series of experiments in the manufacture of kerosene oil and other products of' coal distillation, at the Downer Kerosene Oil Company's works in South Boston, which were continued during the ensuing year with varying success. At length, after lavish expenditure, amounting to upwards of one hundred thousand dollars, he and his associates so far succeeded in perfecting the apparatus and manufacturing process that good merchantable oils, both illuminating and lubricating, were produced from 1857 to 1868, a period of eleven years. Mr. Merrill, however, still felt the need of a better lubricating oil than they had up to that time manufactured; and he bent his powerful inventive genius to its production. Many experiments were made, and failed to accomplish the desired result. Still, they were so far of use that they resulted in such an improvement of the company's product that their oils enjoyed the highest reputation and commanded the highest prices of any in the market. In 1867 Mr. Merrill was led by an accident that happened to one of the distilling vessels to pursue an entirely new and untried plan of manufacture, the operation being arranged to distil the oil at so low a temperature that the partial decomposition which usually takes place in the distillation of oils at a high temperature might be avoided. The results of this process were so satisfactory that in 1869 Mr. Merrill took out a patent for the new process of manufacture, and also another patent for the oil produced by it. Patents were early obtained in Europe, also, for "Merrill's Odorless Lubricating Oil." Mr. Merrill's next achievement was equally noteworthy. In 1870 he prepared, after long experimenting, in which he was ably assisted by his brother, Rufus S., an oil for illuminating purposes, to which he gave the name of mineral sperm oil. On the death of Mr. Samuel Downer, the founder of the oil works, Mr. Merrill, in company with his brother, William B., purchased the entire plant from the heirs, and has continued in the ownership up to the present time. He has been very successful; and the results of his life work have been of lasting benefit, not only to the oil industry, but also to the people of the United States and of other countries." Joshua had a brother named William, our diarist mentions that he wrote to "William" on a number of occasions. Ancestry.com shows that Joshua Merrill applied for a passport on 12 May 1868, the month before this diary begins. Ancestry.com also has a passport for a Joshua Merrill in 1856, the first time he went to Europe, as per his biography. Joshua Merrill was born on 6 October 1828 and died on 16 January 1904 at his home at 678 Massachusetts Avenue in Boston. Besides the oil business, he had for forty years been the most generous benefactor of the Tremont Methodist Church, president of the Boston Wesleyan Association and for many years a trustee of Boston University. Merrill mentions shaking the hand of Admiral Farragut on the Fourth of July while in Glasgow. Merrill sails on board the Cunard Line steamship, S. S. Cuba, and once in Europe his entries carry his description of European culture, the countryside, the people, the hotels, the oil business, and other impressions. Sample Quotations: "June 18th, On board S. S. Cuba June 18th, 1868, twenty four hours out from N. Y. from which port we sailed on 17th at 3 o'clock P.M. We are having so far a splendid run having logged about 289 miles in 24 hours. The weather was very hot in N.Y. when we started the thermometer indicator 90 in the shade. About dark it set in thick and foggy and the steam whistle was constantly blowing all night. About 7 ½ o'clock this morning passed a steam ship going west. Near enough to hear the whistle but not near enough to see him. It has continued thick all day so we have been unable to see any vessels. In fact, it is so wet on deck from the condensed fog as to be quite unpleasant. We have quite a large number of passengers on board. Mostly Americans among whom is Mr. A. T. Brown of ___celebrity with his entire family, a Mr. Mitchell and lady, a Mrs. Allen of Boston. The company are social and agreeable. Two very pretty young ladies from Georgia, Misses King's are on board. The majority of the passengers are well but a few have paid their respects to Neptune. I have escaped so far having been quite sick in N.Y before sailing and vomiting quiet fully. I hope I shall escape entirely. Mr. Downer is a little squeamish but a good lunch and a drink of Champaign seemed to cure him. He is at this moment sleeping soundly in the saloon on cushions. We have a Mr. Marshall on board who crossed with Mr. Downer in 66' in the China and home in the Ana with him. He is a young pleasant fellow and good company. I have on the whole enjoyed my first day at sea and begin to feel rested already." Merrill meets a Mr. Libby from Brooklyn, New York, the manager of Brooklyn Gas Works, they pass the Steamship City of Paris on the second day out. "June 20th, We have made a splendid run the last 24 hours, 342 miles by the ships log. The wind is S. West and is a good stiff breeze. All sails set and the ship is very steady. Few of the passengers are sick and the waiters have enough to do to wait upon the tables. Our Steward James is a good likely fellow and does first rate by us. I played Euchre last eve with a Mrs. Allen for a partner against Mr. Marshall and Mrs. Polk of Tennessee, the latter lady is a perfect lady and one I could like very much. She has a daughter on board, a pretty young lady. Also her Negro servant. We had a very nice game but were beaten by 3 games. The day has passed off very pleasantly and the whole ships company are more social and agreeable. I guess in a day or two we shall all know each other very well. I played scuttles again today and beat 2 out of 3 games I think. I am getting to be a very good player at it as I usually manage to score pretty well. We have several Englishmen on board, regular John Bulls who eat a big dinner and drink a quart of wine after dessert besides one or two bottles at dinner. How they stand the muddle I hardly see. But they seem to enjoy life and grow fat on it..We passed a ship under full sail last eve at 8 o'clock. Today we have seen not a sail; we must be nearly 1,000 miles from N.Y. and only passed as yet three vessels. Truly the ocean is a vast waste and a ship seems a tarry little thing upon its surface. The ship is all the world to us and as she gracefully dips and rises on the billows she seems almost endured with life. I have to love the old ship that so nobly carries us on our way. May God preserve her and her gallant officers and ____men." "June 21st, ... At 5 o'clock we discovered about six miles ahead a full rigged ship under full sail bound East. We rapidly over hauled her and in less than an hour we were along side. She proved to be the N. B. Ship Prince Leopold and as we sailed past her we gave them a parting adieu by moving of handkerchiefs and hats. It was a fine sight to see her with all sails set bounding over the billows. We passed a brig very near this morning at 4 ½ o'clock. We did not learn her name and I was cunning enough to be fast asleep in berths. Mr. Downer is an early riser. He was up at 4 o'clock this morning but he turned in again at 5 and slept well until 8 when I left him having complete my toilet. We had service at 10 o'clock today. The service was read by the surgeon, a fine young fellow whom everybody likes. I joined in the singing with a well and felt devotion." "June 23rd, This morning we passed a large ship bound east and at 10 o'clock another sail was in sight but so far to the North, we could but just see her. On the whole we see very few vessels. This is an evidence of the vastness of the ocean for hundreds of ships are on its bosom bound to and from Europe but we meet comparatively few of them and we can see on a clear day a radius of 30 miles or 60 miles diameter. How vast is the stupendous ocean. I have been quite free from sea sickness so far and expected a headache brought on by too much indulgence at table" "June 24th, The Cuba steamed against head winds and lost 24 hours. 318 miles. There is now a heavy roll and the passengers are mostly in the saloon playing Euchre, writing or reading. Mr. Downer is fast asleep in his bunk. He sleeps daytimes and complains of inability to sleep nights. I retire about 10 ½ o'clock and sleep sound all night. I think it much the best way. We passed about 11 o'clock through a school of dolphins. They jumped out of water and seemed quite playful. It is a pretty sight to see their colored sides and belly shine in the sun as they jumped about the ship. It is not raining quite hard so what with the rain and cinders on deck it is not very agreeable. We have decided to leave the ship at Queenstown, formerly Cork, then to Lakes of Killarney and then to Dublin and Belfast. Then by steamer to Glasgow going up Scotland first on boat then we will determine. We expect to be in Queenstown Friday by 12 A.M. giving us Sunday at Killarney and so on as above. It is now about dinner time and I must begin my toilet by washing up, combing my hair and get ready to appear decently at my table for today I bid my journal goodbye." "June 25th, Early this morning at 4 A.M. we were awakened by the ships engines stopping. So unusual an occurrence woke nearly the whole ship (or so it seems). We were hailed by a ship, 90 days from Valparaiso S. A. with her flag at half mast. Her Captain was sick with congestive liver. The ship lowered a boat and brought the sick man on board the steamer when off we sailed again. It was very fortunate for him we came along in his track for he might be two or three weeks yet before reaching port. We made 325 miles run last 24 hours" "June 26th, At 4 ½ o'clock the Cuba arrived at Queenstown, formerly called Cork Harbor until her Majesty calling one day it was altered to Queenstown. This place is attributed for its beautiful harbor and it is indeed very beautifully situated. I was the first one to step foot on the Irish soil and I was immediately beset by a crowd of women and children for pennies. In fact one persistent little girl followed us to the railway station, full half a mile, begging all the way for pennies. I did not give her anything as she seemed too persistent to be wholly in need" "June 27th, (Killarney)..My impression of Ireland so far is the country is beautiful but the people are poor and wretched. Squaller and poverty is the common lot in life with its accompaniments dirt and crime. The people are a downtrodden sort and the only hopes of the poor classes is in immigration to America, the golden land of promise whose fair, 0, Berlin: Vossische, 1825-28. Hardback. Very Good. 5.5" by 4". Not Stated. The complete thirty-two volumes of Ephraim Gotthold Lessing's works. In a pocket sized format, bound over sixteen volumes. A smart, uniformly bound set. In the original German. Portrait to volume I, six plates to volume III, folding table to volume 9. three plates to volume 32. Two pages of music to volume 15. Collated, complete. With the full pagination: xii, 234, [1]; vi, [4], 397; iv, 302; vi, 320; 244, iv, 257; iv, 260, 294; 235; 296; 266, 318; 280; 280; 296; 242; xi, 318, [1]; x, [3], 298; 278; 344; 304; 254; vi, 208; 378; iv, 362; 356; 390; 404; xvi, 404; xxiv, 335; xii, 228, 284pp Gotthold Ephraim Lessing was a German writer philosopher, dramatist, publicist and art critic. Lessing's writings were a substantial influence on German Literature. As well as writing, he is also regarded to be the first dramaturg in his role at Abel Seyler's Hamburg National Theatre. In uniform full cloth bindings. Externally, generally smart with light shelfwear to the head and tail of spines. Repair to the spine label of volume 3-4 and volume 23-24. Internally, firmly bound. Pages are slightly age toned. The occasional spots. Very Good, Vossische, 1825-28, 3<
