Camp-Fires and Guide-Posts

New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1921 First edition. Publisher's dark blue cloth designed by Margaret Armstrong (unsigned); in the scarce original dust jacket, light green laid paper stamped in dark green, a simple design, not matching the binding. Very good or better book, text block uniformly toned and with some darker foxing to endpapers and prelims, small nick to rear free endpaper at top edge, some very light wear to corners, cloth bright and clean; in a very good unclipped dust jacket, with some toning to spine, light scattered foxing and soiling most notably to rear panel, shallow chipping to head of spine and two small holes near middle of spine. Overall, an attractive book in an excellent example of the extremely scarce dust jacket. Camp-Fires and Guide-Posts is a collection of essays and reflections by Henry Van Dyke, minister, diplomat, and professor of English at Princeton University. Specifically, it includes "Fishing in Strange Waters," "Japonica," "Firelight Views," "A Certain Insularity of Islanders," "Sympathetic Antipathies," and "Interludes on the Koto," among others. In addition to his essays, this volume also includes what Van Dyke calls interludes, which he says, "may be taken as talks by the camp-fire," as well as several tributes to fellow beloved travelers. Notably, this volume is one of many bindings that are part of a uniform set of Van Dyke's novels, published from 1895-1926. Margaret Armstrong (1867-1944) was a renowned artist and designer. Along with her contemporary Sarah Wyman Whitman (1824-1904), Armstrong is an example of how the Arts and Crafts and Aesthetic movements at the time provided new opportunities for women's employment in the arts. After beginning her career with A. C. McClurg, Armstrong worked primarily for Scribner's and specifically focused on the works of a few authors. Armstrong's style, which was influenced by the floral patterns of Art Nouveau and the lines and shapes that are characteristic of the Arts and Crafts movement, made her bindings distinct, which was useful in terms of advertisement and branding an author's works as a unique set.. First Edition. Hard Cover. Very Good/Very Good.