The Voyages, Travels, Dangerous Adventures, and Imminent Escapes of Capt. Richard Falconer, of Burton in Somersetshire. London: Printed and Sold by S. Fisher, No. 10, St. John's Lane, Clerkenwell; also sold by T. Hurst, No. 32, Paternoster-row; and Wilmott and Hill, No. 50, High Street, Borough. June 27th, 1801. Contemporary binding, CHAPBOOK, frontispiece, 72 pp, 7 x 4.5", 12mo. In good condition. Marbled paper covered boards lightly rubbed at edges and corners. Head and tail of cloth spine rubbed. Binder's ticket found on top corner of front paste-down: "Henri Vannaz, Atelier de Reliure, Lausanne." Fresh end-pages and fly-leaves remain clean. Frontispieces has caused some off-setting on title page. Normal age-related toning throughout text-block. Modern binding tight and intact. Please see photos and ask questions, if any, before purchasing. William Rufus Chetwood (died 1766) was an English or Anglo-Irish publisher and bookseller, and a prolific writers of plays and adventures novels. He also penned a valuable General History of the Stage. Nothing certain is known of Chetwood's early life, but he may have spent an extended period of time at sea. His first published writing appears to have been a Life of Lady Jane Grey, published in Dublin in 1715. By June 1715, he was prompter at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, which he remained for much of the following 20 years. Chetwood soon built up a business as a publisher and bookseller, operating alone or in conjunction with other firms. His frequent publishing partners included Barnaby Bernard Lintot, John Watts, William Mears, and James Roberts. He published, alone, plays by Theophilus Cibber, Thomas d'Urfey, and Thomas Doggett. Chetwood died on March 3, 1766, probably in debtors' prison. Chapbooks (or chap-books) were cheap, anonymous publications that were the usual reading material for lower-class people who could not afford books. Members of the upper classes occasionally owned chapbooks, and sometimes bound them in leather. Printers typically tailored their texts for the popular market. Chapbooks were usually around 40 pages long, produced on rough paper with crude, frequently recycled woodcut illustrations. They sold in the millions. A RARE chapbook in INCREDIBLE condition - clean & rebound! Gift quality!! RAREB1801MORB 04/24 - HK1512
