a1935: Haiti book days.

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

>From Bob Corbett

My goodness, books have about taken over my world for the time
being.  As you all saw, I have my own book sale going on, and that
is PHENOMENALLY labor intensive as I am packing and finding books
by the hours.

But, also, I have had the enormous pleasure of announcing the arrival
of two different items to my rare book collection,

	-- the three volumes of Bryan Edwards history which I announced
		just yesterday

	and

	-- the equisite play about Dessalines which arrived a few
		days ago.

Now, Saturday brings a third and one of the books that's been on my
MOST WANTED list for 15 years and I'd never seen a copy for sale:

I just received a lovely first edition 1842 copy of:

BRIEF NOTICES OF HAYTI WITH ITS CONDITION, RESOURCES, AND PROSPECTS.
by:  John Candler.  London:  Thomas Ward and Co., 1842.

This is a small 5 x7 book, perhaps a bit smaller, 175 pages long.

Now I have to admit this is EXTREMELY unusual to add three books to
my rare books collection in the same week.  I only have 117 books
all together in my rare books collection, so three in the same week
is perhaps a first, or at least very unusual.

But my oh my, has this been a busy and very very fun week with Haiti
books.

And then I had a most lucky break.  I was down in my basement rummaging
in a large box of boxes I keep for sending out books and I stumbled upon
a large flat package that was unopened.  It was from the year 2000
according to the post mark and has newpapers and magazines with
significnat articles on Haiti dating from 1817, the 1820s, 30s and 40s.
I didn't even know they were there and had never even opened the package.
I have unwrapped them yet to see what treasures are there, but I see one
that says Proclamation by Petion and another France recognizes Haytian
Independence and an 1849 feature story on Imperor Faustin I.

Good grief.  Treasures I didn't know I even had!!!

One of my great hopes as time goes on is to find a way to get many of
the old and out of copywrite books scanned and put on my web site
for all to use.  But, for any of you who have done such work it is
extremely labor intensive.  I'll just have to see how to get on it.

Anyone know a foundation that might be interested in funding such
scanning?  It could be such an incredible tool for Haiti research.

Bob Corbett