Northern Counties' Asylum for Idiots, Instituted at Lancaster, December 21, 1864
by N/A
- Used
- Very Good
- Condition
- Very Good
- Seller
-
Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
Lancaster: Printed by E. & J. L. Milner, Guardian Office, 1864. Original wrappers. Very good. First edition. xx, 45 pp. Octavo, publisher's pink wrappers, black letters and decorations on the front cover. Front wrapper slightly dust soiled and foxed, rear wrapper is sunned and creased. Wrapper edges and spine slightly chipped. Overall a very good copy. Internally clean and unmarked, with very minor occasional faint ink smudges. one gathering unopened. Rare in original wrappers. Very rare first edition of this pamphlet which traces the bequest, donations and council meetings which took place in 1864-5 to secure the founding of the northern asylum for 'idiots' modeled on the Earlswood Asylum (Surrey) and Essex Hall (Essex). 'Idiots' were defined as 'congenitally deficient in reasoning powers'; persons so defined were understood to be permanently affected rather than suffering an impairment of mental faculties due to temporary illness or collapse (OED, 'idiot' n. 2a).</p><p>The reports include accounts of patient life from the superintendent of Essex Hall: its 'erection was an experiment, but it is one of the last succeeded, and it shows us that the darkest spots of human existence still have some beams of merct and goodness; for being made clean, comfortable and of higher enjoyment of life. Youths who have made sport to the thoughtless have become so changed that they could no longer be objects of ridicule; dangerous idiots, made various by violent measures, have become gentle and good-humoured; those who were filthy have been transformed into decency of habit; the noisy have been rendered decorous; and the contortions of gait have vanished under careful drill and gymnastic apparatus' (p. 7). 1864
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Details
- Bookseller
- Aquila Books (CA)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- 144439
- Title
- Northern Counties' Asylum for Idiots, Instituted at Lancaster, December 21, 1864
- Author
- N/A
- Format/Binding
- Original wrappers
- Book Condition
- Used - Very Good
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Publisher
- Printed by E. & J. L. Milner, Guardian Office
- Place of Publication
- Lancaster
- Date Published
- 1864
- Bookseller catalogs
- History;
- Product_type
- Pamphlet
Terms of Sale
Aquila Books
30 day return guarantee, with refund if an item arrives misdescribed.
About the Seller
Aquila Books
Biblio member since 2010
Calgary, Alberta
About Aquila Books
Aquila Books specializes in books dealing with Polar Exploration, Western Canadiana, Mountaineering, the Canadian Pacific Railway, Early Voyages as well as many other areas. We also deal in antique maps and prints, historic photos, autograph letters, postcards, antique scientific instruments and antique bookcases. Please contact us if you have any questions.
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Octavo
- Another of the terms referring to page or book size, octavo refers to a standard printer's sheet folded four times, producing...
- Sunned
- Damage done to a book cover or dust jacket caused by exposure to direct sunlight. Very strong fluorescent light can cause slight...
- First Edition
- In book collecting, the first edition is the earliest published form of a book. A book may have more than one first edition in...
- Foxed
- Foxing is the age related browning, or brown-yellowish spots, that can occur to book paper over time. When this aging process...
- Unopened
- A state in which all or some of the pages of a book have not been separated from the adjacent pages, caused by a traditional...
- Wrappers
- The paper covering on the outside of a paperback. Also see the entry for pictorial wraps, color illustrated coverings for...
- Spine
- The outer portion of a book which covers the actual binding. The spine usually faces outward when a book is placed on a shelf....
- Edges
- The collective of the top, fore and bottom edges of the text block of the book, being that part of the edges of the pages of a...
- Soiled
- Generally refers to minor discoloration or staining.