The Travelers' Handbook for China; With 8 Maps and Plans and 32 Illustrations
Shanghai: Hwa-Mei Book Concern, 1913. Hardcover. Sixteenmo size, 226 pp. Very good. Item #26061420
China, in 1913, was only in its second year as a Republic. The section of this travel book titled "Historical Sketch" opens with a black-and-white half-tone of "President Yuan Shih K'ai". However, although the historical section takes up quite a bit of this volume, its intention is "to be nothing more than its title indicates, a travelers' handbook..." (per the author's foreword).
The author of this work, Carl Crow (1884-1945) spent a quarter of a century in China "as a journalist, newspaper proprietor, and ad-man. He also did stints as a hostage negotiator, emergency police sergeant, gentleman farmer, go-between for the American government, and propagandist" (n.b., per Wiki). He led a fascinating life during his time there, including "attending the negotiations in Peking which led to the fall of the Qing Dynasty, getting a scoop on the Japanese interference in China during the First World War, negotiating the release of a group of western hostages from mountain bandits, and being one of the first westerners to journey up the Burma Road during the Second World War. He met and interviewed most of the major figures of the time, including Sun Yat-sen, Chiang Kai-shek, the Soong sisters, and Mao Zedong's second-in-command Zhou Enlai" (ibid).
While reprints of this work abound in the online marketplace, as of this writing we see no other copies of the first edition.
___DESCRIPTION: Bound in olive green cloth over flexible boards, grey lettering and Chinese characters debossed on the front board, the title on the spine, the corners rounded, all edges stained red, the front endpaper an advertisement for the Shanghai-Nanking Railway, a colour map tipped-in between the half-title and title pages titled "China and Japan" consisting of eighteen panels (three folds by six folds), an additional six folding maps throughout, these all in black, ranging from a single page to nine folds, titled: "Shanghai (Central District)", "Shanghai-Nanking Railway", "Nanking", "Tourist's Map of Peking", "Tourist's Skeleton Map of Railway and Steamship Lines in North China", and "Cook's Plan of Victoria, Central District Hongkong", the eighth map, "Map Showing House Boat Routes From Shanghai" being printed in-text on p. 101,, the chapters include "Practical Information", "Historical Sketch", "The Chinese People", "Arts and Industries", "The Government of China", "Shanghai and the Yangtsze Valley", "Peking and North China", and "Hongkong and South China" with each chapter having an initial capital set within a boxed photograph or drawing, twenty-one plates of reproductions of black-and-white photographs throughout (not included in the pagination), "Memoranda" section at the rear consisting of eight leaves of lined paper (unused) the rear endpaper being an advertisement for "Chinese Government Railways"; binding sixteenmo size (6 3/4" by 4 3/4"), pagination: [2, front endpaper] [1, half-title] [6] [1] 2-214 [1, divisional title for Memoranda section] [2, rear endpaper]; note that pp. 171-214 contain a mixture of text and advertisements.
___CONDITION: A solid very good copy, the binding strong, straight corners without rubbing, a strong, square text block with solid hinges, five of the maps fine, clean and without tears, one map has a very short tear where it is tipped into the book, and one map (the coloured one) has a longer tear (of about 3") diagonally across two panels (see picture) and the edges near the guttar with some creasing, the interior is clean with most pages bright, a few with light toning, the sole prior owner marking we see a Private Library label mounted onto the front pastedown (partially obscuring the advertisement and some writing, of which one can only see "70"), from one G.F. Henry; the boards with overall light soil, a bit of silverfishing, and what appears to be old damp (only visible in certain lights) on the front board, with no indication of damp to the front endpaper; overall, a near fine interior with a good only exterior.
___POSTAGE: International customers, please note the following: (i) additional postage may apply as the standard does not always cover costs, please inquire for details; and (ii) any taxes, duty, or tariffs charged by your country will, of necessity, be your responsibility.
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Price: $900.00