Description
The first edition of Garner of Texas: A Personal History by Bascom N. Timmons, inscribed by Vice President John Nance Garner.
Octavo, [12], 294pp, [2]. Black cloth, title stamped in gilt on spine. Stated “First Edition / H-X” on the copyright page. Solid text block, free of notable wear. Light offsetting to endpapers. In the publisher’s dust jacket, $3.00 on the front flap, light sunning to spine, a solid, near fine example. Stated “Special Texas Edition” on the dust jacket, which appeared interchangeably with the trade edition dust jacket.
Signed on the front free endpaper: “To Al Cashman / with best wishes / John N. Garner / May 5 – 49.”
John Nance Garner (1868-1967) was the 32nd vice president of the United States, serving from 1933 to 1941 under President Franklin D. Roosevelt. A Democrat from Texas, he previously served as Speaker of the House (1931-1933) and was a key figure in passing early New Deal legislation. Initially supportive of Roosevelt, he later opposed the administration’s expansion of federal power and ran unsuccessfully for the Democratic nomination in 1940. Known for his blunt style, he famously described the vice presidency as “not worth a bucket of warm spit.” He retired from politics in 1941 and lived to be nearly 99 years old.
