Book Collecting Sunday, Jan 26 2014 

Esperanza , acairfearann 14:24

1856, from a letter by Julie to Morris:

“Dear Morris,

If you can find a copy of ‘My Peninsular Medal’ illustrated and illuminated, bound in double gilt extra, had you not better add it to our collection. It is a rare and choice work you know, and no really fine library is complete without it. Joking aside, we must either pause in our book buying or enlarge our borders for decidedly the place is getting too straight for us. The Edition of Dickens, however, we must have. If indeed it shall be all that it promises, fair sized volumes, good large print, and complete in all the stories. I insist on large print because I mean the delightful tales of this real man shall be my companions when I wear double spectacles from extreme old age, when I walk with a staff and then heavily. Where we will bestow the precious books is a matter to be decided after we really get them. We will resolve ourselves into a committee of two and fix their destination.”

There are several complete sets of Dickens hanging about, so they did get an edition.  Whether it was The Edition? Who knows. 

 

Awkward Questions Sunday, Jan 19 2014 

Esperanza acairfearann 15:50

One of the invariable questions asked by first-time visitors to Esperanza is, ‘have you read all these books?’  Now, the answer is patently obvious: there are between twelve and fourteen thousand volumes.  No.  I read a lot, but not necessarily the books in the house. Some books I have read to the point of memorization, others…  There is, however, a slightly more embarrassing point that can arise.  Some of the books have Never been read, not in their decades, their century plus of life.  The give away is that books from the 1800’s and early 1900’s often have uncut, or incompletely cut pages: the quarto fold was never properly cut after printing, leaving the tops or sides of two pages  together.  If the book has been read completely, that obviously has been dealt with; it is a pain, however, requiring a steady hand and a sharp blade.  So if the book has never been read, but only flipped through….well!

But why?  The uncut books are almost entirely those associated with William Webster Ellsworth’s publishing and work as a literary critic/reviewer.  (Though I did just hit one that was clearly a gift to Carlotta Norton Smith in the 1860’s, not a successful gift it would seem).  WWE seems to have gotten a number of books, either for review or for other business, mostly in poetry/drama/memoirs that he never got all the way through.  I have to wonder if he reviewed any of them without reading all the way….

Still, awkward!

 

Reminders Thursday, Jan 9 2014 

Esperanza and gardening and Landscapes and Modern Photos , acairfearann 08:58

A reminder that last winter was no more kind than this year’s; and this was the result…

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Merry Christmas from Esperanza Wednesday, Dec 25 2013 

Esperanza acairfearann 10:11

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Christmas card from c.1895, it hasn’t changed much. The chair I am sitting in while writing this is different, a few of the paintings on the mantle have been rearranged.  But not all.

 

Mystery letters Monday, Dec 16 2013 

Esperanza acairfearann 13:34

Most of the letters, excerpts, and guestbook entries that I post come from people who are, in some way, connected with either Esperanza or its family.  However, every once in awhile….

I have a fascinating set of three letters (enclosed in a single envelope) that came off a bookshelf in a room that was being re-organized.  Now, the books it was in with were not in place pre-1970; however some of those books came from other collections in the house, notably those belonging to WWE (William Webster Ellsworth).  Presumably, it fell out of one of those.  But which one is unknown, or maybe it was wedged in there for longer, and when the case was unweighted it dropped.

The enclosing envelope was addressed to Governor Thomas H. Seymour, at the time of the mailing a former CT governor running for re-election.  The time it was mailed? 1862.  Scrawled on the back, “equivalent to saying an oath is not binding at all – for when Lincoln came in he took an oath to uphold the Constitution.”

Inside three letters, I haven’t read them all the way through yet.  But two were from one Willard Clark; who I believe is the same Willard Clark who was acquitted of an 1855 murder by reason of insanity.  Both letters present long, very well written arguments for why the South had the legal right to secede.  The third letter was by a Rebel prisoner to a friend in Boston.  It is all Very odd.  I have yet to figure out any reason why these three letters ended up here.  The only, tenuous connection so far is that the judge who presided over Clark’s trial was William Wolcott Ellsworth, the grandfather of William Webster Ellsworth.  But, that is a very dubious link.

 

Winter Windows Tuesday, Dec 10 2013 

Esperanza and Modern Photos acairfearann 19:59

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Letter Excerpt, Dec. 30th 1918 Saturday, Dec 7 2013 

Esperanza and Historical Events , , acairfearann 20:41

Also known as: ‘And we think we have problems with the mail, and waiting more than five minutes for a reply? Horrors!’

“Dec. 30, 1918

My dear Dad,

Your letter of Dec. 9th and mailed on Dec. 12th just received so mail is going to be better perhaps. It usually has taken much longer you see. By Dec. 9th you should have heard from me, but Lord only knows what becomes of mail from this end. No! I’m not a Major but have had the pleasure of running three of them as operations officer thru the fighting and am back at my old job as Reg. I.O. and quite content as I’ve written before. When anything is fresh in my mind, it seems as if I could sit down and write reams of interesting stuff, but the old war is stale already and tonight no incidents pop into my head to come out on paper – when the things you wanted to know about happened old boy Censor was on the job, (he still is by the way on certain matters – casualties for one) and opportunities to sit down and write those reams were few and far between. What we want most is to sit down and talk about it and as the soldier was never accused of being any kin to the violet we will do some talking one of these days – even in talking amongst ourselves the stories that were originally concerned with patrols are now all about attacks – from some of the clippings you have sent, New York is already suffering. Wait ‘til we all descend on you!

New Year’s Eve is almost here and our mess is much troubled over the outlook – shopping for food hereabouts is difficult but today I managed to find some wild boar meat and know where the champagne tree grows – it still flourishes here – so we won’t fare badly at all. Our Xmas was a great success – did I write to thank you for the cigarettes? They helped a lot – at that time none had received a Xmas 9 x 4 brick and we All appreciated this one.”

From a letter by Capt. Bradford Ellsworth, A.E.F. 306th Infantry, 77th Division; to his father, William Webster Ellsworth, back home at Esperanza. (although by the time he received the letter, they would have closed the house for the winter and would have been in NYC, delaying its arrival even more!)

Yes, still working on that transcription project.

 

How Many Books Friday, Dec 6 2013 

Esperanza acairfearann 17:24

I periodically contemplate our stated number of volumes in this place: 14,000 give or take; and decide it must, must be an overstatement.  I mean really? That is absurd.  I periodically work at a house museum where everyone (visitors included) routinely agrees that 4,000 is a lot.

And then I clean a minor bookshelf, in a minor room (as far as books go seeing as it only has two bookcases) and realize that it has about 150 books on it.  And then I refill a file cabinet in which the top drawer is devoted to pamphlet manuscripts, and then I look at the top of my desk (19 books) and next to my desk (41) neither are areas which Should have books…and figure that the number probably isn’t that Off.  Considering the library, the other twenty plus rooms with books, the two cottages, the barn, under my bed….

 

Fixing a door 1915 Wednesday, Nov 27 2013 

Esperanza and Historic Photos , acairfearann 14:36

I do know the door is Happy Thought’s east door, I don’t know who the person is.  I do like the knee socks and pork pie hat though.  This is Not, by the way, how one is supposed to fix a door.  It would appear he is shaving off the bottom of the door rather than rehanging it.  Which, come to think of it, accounts for the gap….

(No idea why the door looks like it came off a funhouse, the negative may have had an odd curl?

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On stairs Tuesday, Nov 26 2013 

Esperanza acairfearann 17:37

There are certain things, a large number of things, that I don’t particularly care for.  Open stairs are one of those things.  Which is unfortunate, seeing as this house has a three-story open staircase, with the stairs cantilevered off the exterior walls so there is only a single central post.*  It makes a lovely architectural statement, which I greatly appreciate.  But I have always navigated the upper, attic level clinging to the wall.  Always have, always will, and no number of engineers or carpenters or hundreds of trips up and down will change my mind.

Now this wouldn’t be an issue, except said stairs are also made of lovely amber-shellaced hard pine which was re-shellaced  a few years ago and so is back to a high gloss finish.  That glowing, dark amber color is wonderful, but I know of no other surface (especially when backlit by low angle western sunlight) that shows dust quite so well.  It got dusted today, in preparation for the holiday season, and it needed it*; but that is one dusting job I never enjoy…you can’t do it without leaning over the balusters.  That is not enjoyable!

Fun and games.

*story number four goes into the basement.

**Yes I am fully aware that I haven’t finished the attic landing.

 

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