Travels through the States of North America, and the Provinces of Upper Canada during the years 1795, 1796 and 1797. Illustrated and Embellished with Sixteen Plates.
London. Printed for John Stockdale. 1799. 1st Edition. Hardcover. 4to. 27cm, The First Edition, xxiv,464,[8]p., (publisher's ads), with a folding map (coloured in outline), 2 plans, 2 maps and 11 full-page engraved plate views, in hard full speckled calf boards rebacked, gilt and blind ruled raised bands, gilt borders and centre device decorations in the panels, crushed crimson morocco label, gilt titles, gilt roll borders on the boards, marbled endpapers, some dark patches on the corner of the boards, some slight wear on the board edges, a very good to fine sound copy in attractive contemporary binding. (cgc) T.P.L. 708. Lande 890. Dionne 909. Sabin 102541. Vlach 754. Story p103. Gagnon 1-3701. One of the most popular North American travel narratives. Weld, an Irishman, came to America with the hope of finding more cheerful prospects than those offered by war-torn Europe, but after two years he left "without a sigh, and without entertaining the slightest wish to revisit it". Story notes that "his account of Canada, (letters 21-25) is a clear and sustained description of an area and a way of life that pleased him more than had the United States". The attractive copper engraved plates are after original sketches by the author. Inland Canada as a destination for travellers seeking picturesque scenery appears first in Isaac Weld's Travels, which publicizes "romantic"' Quebec, "sublime" Niagara Falls, "charming" Thousand Islands, and the excitement of movement in canoe, lake bateau, and calèche. Weld also brought into focus the military establishment, the French Canadian mores (the customs and conventions of a community), the existence of theatrical and literary efforts - and the abrasive manners of American travellers. Weld finally carries his reader to the far end of Lake Erie, for a brief glimpse of rattlesnakes, frontier posts, and Western Indians. -Waterston, p22. Item #39442
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