THE COMPLETE AUTOGRAPH MANUSCRIPT OF THE LAST LEAF BY OLIVER WENDELL HOLMES
c. 1885. Quarto, X pages. In Very Good condition. Bound in full green gilt stamped leather by C. Walters, with their gilt name, for A. S. W. Rosenbach. Heavy wear to hinges. Bumping to fore edges and corners of boards. Light discoloration and scuffing to boards. Top edge of textblock gilt. With silk endpapers.
Contents: silk endpapers, white endpaper with inscription, a black-and-white frontispiece, four pages of the poem written in the author's hand and dated 1885, a black-and-white plate, first page of the printed poem, a black-and-white plate, second page of the printed poem, a black-and-white plate, third and fourth pages of the printed poem, a black-and-white plate, four printed pages titled "The History of this Poem" written by Holmes in 1885, a black-and-white plate, loose small folded card from Ms. Felix M. Warburg, two white endpapers, and silk endpapers.
Shelved in Case 0.
1418041
Shelved Dupont Bookstore
Price: $2,500
NOTES
Pencil inscription on second free endpaper reads: 'MS. OF "THE LAST LEAF" BY OLIVER WENDELL HOLMES / Of all of Holmes' poems this one and "Old Ironsides" are the two that have the strongest hold on the affections of the American public. — Holmes, as is well known to collectors, did not preserve his Mss. and it is almost certain that the first draft of this poem no longer exists. While he would at times write out one stanza of it for some friend, I know of one other complete copy of the entire poem in his autograph. This particular Ms. gains in interest from the fact that it was written by Holmes more than half a century after the composition of the poem, when he himself was growing to be "The last leaf." — As the Ms. of me of the simplest and most touching of famous American poems, this Ms. is a rara avis. / G.S.H. (Hallman)" with "(Hallman)" written in pen.
Pencil inscription continues: "Major Thomas Melville of Boston was the original of "The Last Leaf." His daughter, Nancy, became engaged to Lemuel Shaw — the future Chief Justice — but she died before marrying. See L.W Levy: The Law of the Commonwealth and Chief Justice Shaw, Harvard 1957, p 9 Compare Holmes to Laski March 27, 1921 (H-L Lelter-(Howe-) p. 323) "Herman Melville used to live within 3/4 mile of us at Pittsfield" H.M was the grandson of Thomas Melville, and he married Elizabeth Shaw, daughter of L.S. — See Levy. p. 9. See also the Melville family tree in Eliana Melville Metcalf, Herman Melville (Harvard 1953)".
Typed slip of paper taped in underneath inscriptions reads: "From Aunt Frieda I have(in leather bindings prepared by A. S. W. Rosenbach)the manuscript Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr. 's poem The Last Leaf, and James Russell Lowell's Commemoration Ode."
Pen inscription on loose folded card stock reads: "Dear Charles, We have all enjoyed Justice Holmes' biographical play, that [unintelligible] attitude, [unintelligible] that may treasure this autograph copy of Oliver Wendell's famous "Last Leaf" which I am sending you with all my good wishes for Laura + Laura's little family for the new year. Affectionately, Aunt Frieda."