Description
The first presidential memoir, Mr. Buchanan’s Administration on the Eve Of The Rebellion, inscribed by President James Buchanan to his private secretary.
Octavo, x, [9]-296pp, [6pp ads]. Green pebbled cloth, title in gilt on spine. Touch of rubbing to tips of spine, solid text block with no markings. Previous ownership bookplate and label on front endpaper. (Sabin 8861) Housed in custom green leather clamshell case, title in gilt on spine over black morocco label. Signed on the front free endpaper: “Hon. A.J. Glossbrenner, from his friend, James Buchanan.” An exceptionally rare signed copy of the first presidential memoir, where President Buchanan offers a rigorous defense of his administration’s actions leading up to the Civil War.
The recipient of this copy, Adam J. Glossbrenner (1810-1889) was a member of the House of Representatives from Pennsylvania and the private secretary for President James Buchanan. Prior to joining the Buchanan administration, he served for ten years as the Sergeant at Arms of the United States House of Representatives. After his time in the White House, he corresponded frequently with President Buchanan, often commenting on the former presidents treatment by the Lincoln administration and the public at large. The first edition of this work was printed in 1865 in New York and London and titled The Administration On The Eve Of The Rebellion: A History of Four Years Before The War. The title was changed with the second printing to Mr. Buchanan’s Administration on the Eve Of The Rebellion.
