The perfect horse-man or, the experienced secrets of Mr. Markham's fifty years practice : shewing how a man may come to be a general horse-man by the knowledge of these seven offices, viz. the breeder, feeder, ambler, rider, keeper, buyer, farrier /
Michael Laird, bookseller, description of copy 3: Full brown 17th century (American?) sheep bound reliably with sinew cords. Covers well worn but sound and serviceable, despite many decades of use. Title page soiled, gathering A loosening. INSCRIPTIONS: Front fly leaf reads in part "EBENEZER P...
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| Format: | Book |
| Language: | English |
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London :
Printed by B.W. for Richard Chiswel at the Rose and Crown in St. Paul's Church-Yard,
1684.
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| Edition: | The last edition, corrected. |
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| Summary: | Michael Laird, bookseller, description of copy 3: Full brown 17th century (American?) sheep bound reliably with sinew cords. Covers well worn but sound and serviceable, despite many decades of use. Title page soiled, gathering A loosening. INSCRIPTIONS: Front fly leaf reads in part "EBENEZER PROUTT (sic) HIS LIB. ANNO 1688...(followed by notes for house construction materials)." Page 97 has marginal ink notation 'William Prout his book'. Last page verso also with an old ink ownership inscription which reads in part: "MR. WILLIAM PROUT -- All in my youth and tender age onto the (illegible) I was a page (illegible).....William Prout his book 1716." Preserved in protective cloth case with 4-flap lignin-free chemise. A just famous equestrian book; this copy is distinguished by its continuous American provenance: since the 17th-century it has belonged to single family across 7 generations. It has reliably passed down through the Prout family line for over 300 years until it was sold at auction last year. Although long, continuous familial provenances are not unknown in Europe and the British Islands, it is very rare to find American examples of any 17th-century book, veterinary or otherwise. Ebenezer Prout (1656 - 1735) was the youngest son of Captain Timothy Prout and Margaret Prout. He was born in Boston on March 15, 1656 and was baptized at First Church. Ebenezer was a land speculator, sea captain, schoolteacher and a doctor. His death is recorded in the Middletown, Connecticut town records on April 27, 1735 at age 79. His son William (who also owned this book) also recorded his father's death in his pocket journal. Ebenezer lived in Boston, Concord, Medford, Charlestown, Malden, Marlborough and Watertown Massachusetts. Ebenezer served in King Phillips War between 1673 -76 where he served under Captain Nicholas Manning of Ipswich. Ebenezer became a Freeman on March 22, 1689 taking the oath and therein becoming a full and esteemed citizen with voting rights. He later became Town Clerk of Watertown, MA in the 1690's. William Prout (1699 - 1789) was the youngest son of Ebenezer Prout (above) and Grace (nee Sherman) Prout. It seems as though William became a school teacher after 1717 and resided in 'Upper Houses' (now called Cromwell, Connecticut). In 1744, William lost everything in a fire at his house but a chest belonging to his Grandfather, Captain Timothy Prout. Misfortune fell upon him again in the same year when his horse fell through the ice while crossing the Connecticut River at night. After enduring about 40 minutes in the icy water, he became an invalid thereafter living on land owned by his wife's family. William was one of the earlier merchants and shipowners in Connecticut. William Prout was buried on December 22, 1789 in the Farm Hill Cemetery. To our knowledge this is the complete provenance: Ebenezer Prout (1656 - 1735), William Prout (1699 - 1789), John Prout (1749 - 1823), Curtis Prout (1780 - 1870), Darius B. Prout (1827 - 1920), Dr. Thomas Peck Prout Sr. (1867 - 1946), Virginia McDonald Prout (1918 - 2005), Victoria Gilbert (1940 - ?). Purchased at auction on Aug. 13, 2017 (numerous books from the Prout family appeared therein). The Prout family genealogy is comprehensively detailed in Dale Ellison Prout's 'Ancestry and Descendants of Captain Timothy Prout of Boston' (Gateway Press; 2002), of which we made grateful use. CATALOGUER'S NOTE: The present copy is of a completely different edition than MSL John G.P. Wood Collection SF 309 M341p 1684 and ESTC R180368 (Yale ONLY), unless the bespoke two copies were catalogued incorrectly: apparently they collate "A-L8" and consist of "16 unnumbered pages, 175 pages, 1 unnumbered pages"). |
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| Item Description: | Signatures: A-M⁸. Page [1] is engraved titlepage. "Books printed for and sold by Richard Chiswell": pages [13]-[16]. |
| Physical Description: | 16 unnumbered pages, 175 pages ; 15cm. (octavo) |