[Seven adventure novels of the Americas, in the English publisher's "Magnificent Illustrated Edition"].

SENSATIONAL STORIES FROM THE AMERICAN FRONTIER

1). The Border Rifles, A Tale of the Texan War. Engraved frontispiece, extra-illustrated title-page, 10 engraved plates. 12mo. Publisher's green pebble-grained cloth, richly decorated in gilt and blind. A.e.g. Small hole to pp.167-8 with loss of a few characters, else very good. viii, 311, [1]pp. London, Ward & Lock, 1862. 

2). The White Scalper, A Story of the Texan War. Engraved frontispiece, extra-illustrated title-page, 10 engraved plates. 12mo. Publisher's orange pebble-grained cloth, richly decorated in gilt and blind. A.e.g. Very good. viii, 352pp. London, Ward & Lock, 1863.

3). The Trail Hunter, A Tale of the Far West. Engraved frontispiece, extra-illustrated title-page, 9 engraved plates. 12mo. Publisher's orange pebble-grained cloth, richly decorated in gilt and blind. A.e.g. A few quires a little loose. Very good. viii, 392pp. London, Ward & Lock, 1863.

4). The Pirate of the Prairies, Adventures in the American Desert. Engraved frontispiece, extra-illustrated title-page, 10 engraved plates. 12mo. Publisher's aqua pebble-grained cloth, richly decorated in gilt and blind. A.e.g. Spine lightly rubbed, one loose quire. Very good. viii, 320pp. London, Ward & Lock, 1862.

5). The Indian Chief, A Tale of the Desert. Engraved frontispiece, extra-illustrated title-page, 10 engraved plates. 12mo. Publisher's brown pebble-grained cloth, richly decorated in gilt and blind. A.e.g. Very good. [viii], 324pp. London, Ward & Lock, 1863.

6). The Prairie-Flower, Adventures on the Indian Border. Engraved frontispiece, extra-illustrated title-page, 9 engraved plates. 12mo. Publisher's indigo pebble-grained cloth, richly decorated in gilt and blind. A.e.g. Very good. viii, 360pp. London, Ward & Lock, 1862.

7). The Indian Scout, A Story of the Aztec City. Engraved frontispiece, extra-illustrated title-page, 10 engraved plates. 12mo. Publisher's plumb pebble-grained cloth, richly decorated in gilt and blind. A.e.g. Very good. vi, 429, [1]pp. London, Ward & Lock, 1863.

Gustave Aimard (1818-1883) was born in Paris, the illegitimate son of a French noble woman and a Corsican general. He was raised by the Gloux family (his name is sometimes given as Olivier Gloux), who were paid for their trouble. At age 12 he ran away to sea, graduated to the French Navy at 17, and promptly deserted in either Mexico or Chile at the first chance he got. Thus commenced ten years of roving through Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Mexico, California, New Mexico, Texas and beyond. He claimed to have been adopted into the Comanche tribe, and many of his novels purport to draw on the firsthand experiences he had living amongst Native Americans. He returned to France in 1847, just in time for the French Revolution, in which he served with the guarde mobile - the "Working Class Army". After these excitements, he turned his full intensity to writing and galloped through novels with a demon speed - in his lifetime completing at least 78 works. A seeming adventure addict, Aimard appears only very loosely disguised as the character "Valentine Guillois" in many of his novels, which though they could be deemed juveniles, contain every imaginable vice. Whether it be an innocent nun buried alive in cave called "Hell" beneath a Mexican convent, or a Comanche chief nailing the heart of his horse to the door of the woman he is courting, between near constant knife-fights and murder plots, it's easy to see how Aimard's work is considered an important early example of the "Western" genre. As with much in his novels, his observations of Native American customs speak both of experience and exaggeration. He takes pains to carefully describe the difference between tribal costumes and ceremonies, whilst also falling back heavily on tropes of captivity narratives, with endless white women swept off, in need of rescue. Known as "The French Fenimore Cooper", Aimard's attitudes, though sensationalising, do near invariably align his sympathies with those oppressed by colonial rule.

 

Immensely popular in France, Aimard's works were also translated into at least ten languages. The present set of seven volumes were produced by his London publisher Ward and Lock as part of a special illustrated edition, following the great success of the first plain edition of these works in English. From an advertisement at the front of one volume: "Encouraged by the unexpected favourable reception these volumes have met with, the Publishers have determined on producing a Magnificent Illustrated edition. Each volume will contain twelve pages of Engravings drawn and engraved by the First artist of the Day, and will be published at a price which will place the series within the reach of all classes". It goes on to state that the engraver, Mr. Edmund Evans had consulted Catlin's works to ensure the accuracy of the depictions of Native Americans in the illustrations. The full advertised range of this "Magnificent Illustrated edition" appears to contain 11 individual titles, over three distinct series'. Each series has a different richly gilt cloth design, and the present 7 represent 2/3 of the first series, 3/6 of the second, and 2/2 of the third. The volumes were not printed in sequence however, and we have not been able to determine whether all intended titles were in fact produced in this special edition. The introductory notes stress that though characters recur between them, the stories are distinct and "each of these volumes is complete in itself". 

 

These editions were produced during the American Civil War, and several have preface notes from the translator drawing comparisons between, for example, the liberation of Texas from Mexico, and that present conflict between Northern and Southern states. From the preface of The Indian Scout: "From this volume we learn to regard the Indian from a very different side than the one hitherto taken; for it is evident that they are something more than savages, and posses their traditions just as much as any nation of the Old World. At the present moment, when the Redskins appear destined to play an important part in the American struggle, I think that such knowledge as our Author is enabled alone to give us about their manners and customs, will be read with interest."

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Stock Code: 230892