ARBITRARY GOVERNMENT DISPLAYD TO THE LIFE, IN THE TYRANNICK USURPATION OF A JUNTO OF MEN CALLED THE RUMP PARLIAMENT. And more especially in that of the tyrant and usurper Oliver Cromwell. by (MAY, THOMAS ). FROM JOHN EVELYN'S LIBRARY.: - 1683

London, William Cademan, 1683.. In which you have a clear view of the arbitrary, illegal, and unjust proceedings of those persons under the notion of liberty. And a compendious history of those times, faithfully collected; with the characters and lives of several of those usurpers, and a brief account of the several persons that suffered death and imprisonment under them, for their loyalty to the King and country. And by which may be seen the difference between arbitrary usurpers and lawful kings, reigning by, and according to the laws of the land. Illustrated with several brass cutts, representing the chief persons and passages therein. SECOND EDITION 1683, small 12mo, approximately 150 x 85 mm, 5¾ x 3¼ inches, frontispiece and 3 engraved plates as required, 2 with 4 images each, pages: 92, 93-96 numbered as leaves, 97-156, 169-216, irregularities in pagination found in all copies, collated and guaranteed complete, bound in full old calf with blind rules and corner ornaments to covers, expertly rebacked with original blind decorated backstrip laid on, gilt lettered label, endpapers renewed at some time. Corners slightly worn, tiny scrape to lower cover, ink name on front endpaper and reverse of frontispiece, tipped onto reverse of frontispiece is a later added engraving of Cromwell from another book, frontispiece and plates faintly foxed, tiny rust hole in 1 page with loss of 2 letters, easily legible, light browning to some pages, occasional small light stain, small ink stain to 1 page, all still legible, pages tightly bound making some pages hard to read, from page 169 to the end many pages are cropped at the fore-edge, in some places shaving or losing the letter at the end or beginning of the line, almost all is easily legible. Binding tight and firm. A good copy of an anti Cromwell item. Our researches have uncovered nothing about the author who is not to be confused with the poet Thomas May who died in 1650. Most cataloguers give his dates as circa 1645-1718 and refer to him as Sir Thomas May, M. P. The date of the first edition1682 ? but is unknown as no copy is listed in the major libraries nor in ESTC. On the front pastedown is the small "JE" label which indicates that the book was sold in Christie's sale of the library of the Evelyn family and may have belonged to John Evelyn himself. It can be identified by the cropped fore-edges which are described in Christie's Catalogue of the Evelyn sale (Part III, No. 1005); ESTC R482983. MORE IMAGES ATTACHED TO THIS LISTING, ALL ZOOMABLE. FURTHER IMAGES ON REQUEST. POSTAGE AT COST.