Description
First edition of American Diplomacy in the Orient, inscribed by Secretary of State John W. Foster to his Private Secretary, John B. Henderson, Jr.
Octavo, xiv, [2], 498pp. Brown cloth, title stamped in gilt on cover and spine. No additional printings noted. Top edge gilt, solid text block. Bookplate on front endpaper.
This copy is inscribed to John B. Henderson, Jr., the Private Secretary to Secretary Foster while he was diplomatic advisor to the Chinese government. Inscription reads: “To John B. Henderson, Jr., With the high esteem of his friend, John W. Foster / March 20, 03.”
John W. Foster (1836-1917) served as the Secretary of State for President Benjamin Harrison, after the resignation of James G. Blaine. During his short time as Secretary of State he helped to overthrow the monarch of Hawaii.
During the Civil War, Foster served in the 25th Indiana Volunteer Infantry, 65th Indiana Volunteer Mounted Infantry and 136th Indiana Volunteer Infantry. His troops were the first to enter Knoxville after the successful campaign of General Ambrose Burnside.
In retirement, he published American Diplomacy in the Orient (1903), Arbitration and the Hague Court (1904) and The Practice of Diplomacy (1906). He is the grandfather of Secretary of State John Foster Dulles and CIA director, Allan Welsh Dulles.
