Lot 53
Alexander, Sir James Edward (1803-1885)
Manuscript journals of two sea voyages, Ireland to New Zealand, 1860, & Australia to England, 1862
Auction: The Library of General Sir James Alexander | Wed 25 February from 10am | Lots 31 to 62
Description
‘The Nautilus, a weekly illustrated paper & record of the voyage from Cork to Auckland, New Zealand, of the steam transport ‘Robert Lowe’. ‘Contributors, Colonel Sir J. E. Alexander, 14th Regt, Lieut Anderson, 14th, Dr Carberry, 14th, Lieut Cope, 14th, Mr Patton, 14th, Mr Dudley, 2nd Officer (R. Lowe)', 1860. 4to (23 x 18cm), contemporary maroon half calf, approx. [70] ff., comprising 10 weekly 'numbers' (erratically paginated, possibly from being bound up from separately paginated parts), illustrated with 25 pen-and-ink sketches (a few pasted in), generally satirical, including Maori cannibals, various depictions of life on ship, binding rubbed;
‘The Albatross, or a Record of the Voyage of the S. S. S. [sic] Great Britain from Victoria to England', 1862. 4to (22.7 x 18cm), contemporary black half calf, 278 pp., comprising 8 weekly ‘numbers’ (each separately paginated, probably bound up from the parts), 10 pen-and-ink sketches (a headpiece to each number, including depictions of the S. S. Great Britain rounding the Horn and off the Falkland Islands, together with sketches of St Paul's Islets, ‘Trinidade’, i.e. Trindade, and the Australian 'Bottle Tree', with kangaroos), the contents comprising a narrative of the voyage including lands sighted (e.g. the Auckland Islands) and descriptions of onboard life and recreation, together with jokes, poems and songs, Alexander's recollections of experiences in Canada, Persia, southern Africa and elsewhere, anecdotes submitted by shipmates including a series on ‘whaling incidents’ (one off the coast of Tasmania), an account of life in Port Phillip, Australia, during the 1840s, and a series of pieces ‘relating to the Aborigines of Australia’ (including the position of women in Aboriginal society), and more;
Together with a copy of the published version of the narrative: The Albatross: Record of Voyage of the “Great Britain” Steam Ship from Victoria to England in 1862, edited by Colonel Sir James E. Alexander, Stirling: Charles Rogers & Co., 1863 (first edition, presentation copy, inscribed by the author to his wife Eveline, 8vo, original cloth, folding map) (3)
Provenance
THE LIBRARY OF GENERAL SIR JAMES EDWARD ALEXANDER (1803-1885)
Footnote
In 1858 Alexander, then commanding a depot battalion in Ireland following his return from the Crimean War, was directed to raise and command the 2nd Battalion, 14th Regiment of Foot, with whom he had served in Canada and the Crimea. On the outbreak of the First Taranaki War in 1860 he was ordered with his battalion to New Zealand, where he commanded the troops at Auckland until 1862. He made the homeward voyage on Isambard Kingdom Brunel's S.S. Great Britain, captained by the Shetland-born mariner John Gray (1819-1872), who mysteriously disappeared overboard during the same voyage 10 years later. In 1863, soon after his return, Alexander published two books, Incidents of the Maori War and The Albatross, his wife's copy of the latter being included with the lot. In 1864 he was granted a pension for ‘distinguished service’ (ODNB).