CRUSOE'S ISLAND: A RAMBLE IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF ALEXANDER SELKIRK WITH SKETCHES OF ADVENTURE IN CALIFORNIA AND WASHOE
New York: Harper & Brothers, 1867. Later printing. Hardcover. 12mo. Green cloth-covered boards (7 1/8 in. x 4 1/2 in.). .Gilt lettering to spine. p. Rubbing to extremities and a bumped corner. 115 illustrations 436 pp. Good solid reading copy. Good. Item #88725
"J. Ross Browne (1821-1875) was born near Dublin, Ireland and immigrated with his family to America in 1833. He was a nineteenth century author, adventurer, artist, and government agent. Browne was considered to be one of the most widely traveled and versatile writers of his time. He also illustrated many of his own works. It is said he influenced the work of Mark Twain. In 1849, Browne came to California to report the proceedings of California's Constitutional Convention. He became an agent for the Treasury Department and surveyed custom houses and mints, reporting on irregularities. He also looked into Indian and Land Office affairs."
(Online Archive of California)
"In 1844, he took a job as a secretary to Robert J. Walker, Secretary of the United States Treasury. Gold fever swept the world in 1849 and Browne persuaded Walker to make him “Agent in the Revenue Service on the Pacific Coast.” Upon arrival, he discovered that his new job was “Inspector of Postal Service” and was to establish post offices throughout–or as he put it, “charged with a commission to establish a line of post-offices on the land-route to Los Angeles, and enter into contracts for the carrying of the mails” (9). His adventures were turned into A Dangerous Journey, first published as two articles in Harper’s Monthly in 1862. (Incidentally, the only post office he actually founded was in San Jose). He was also the official recording secretary of the California Constitutional Convention in 1849."
(Rewriting California).
Price: $65.00