DE SMET, Pierre-Jean

Cinquante Nouvelles Lettres du R.P. de Smet... Publiées par É. Terwecoren [Association Copy]

Paris: Édouard Terwecoren, 1858. First Edition. Hardcover. 8vo. Pp. 502 + 1pp. errata. Text in French. Marbled endpapers. Rebacked with a portion of original spine laid on, original pebbled boards, some rubbing, faint soiling to bottom edges. Inscribed by De Smet on the half-title page "Presented to Capt. La Barge With my best respects" Very Good. Item #12102

Captain Joseph Marie LaBarge (1815 – 1899) was a steamboat captain on the Mississippi and Missouri rivers, bringing fur traders, miners, goods and supplies up and down those rivers to their destinations, most importantly those pursuing opportunities in the westward expansion. During much of his career LaBarge was in the employ of the American Fur Company, earning renown as a vital conduit on the Missouri, where he routinely offered his steamboat services gratis to Jesuit missionaries.

In his capacity as Superior of the Indian Missions of the Oregon country,De Smet journeyed tirelessly, often transiting the Missouri and Mississippi; as such, the book at hand connects two prominent figures in the opening of the West. A superb association copy. Scarce thus.

Price: $6,000.00