Major Roger Alden's Copy of the "Federalist Papers, "

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Major Roger Alden's Copy of the "Federalist Papers, "

About the Item

THE FEDERALIST IN ORIGINAL BOARDS Major Roger Alden's Copy of the "Federalist Papers," "the Most Famous and Influential American Political Work" Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay. The Federalist: A Collection of Essays, Written in Favour of the New Constitution, as Agreed upon by the Federal Convention, September 17, 1787. In Two Volumes. New-York: Printed and Sold by J. and A. M'Lean, 1788. From the library of the man who was entrusted with the Constitution [HAMILTON, JAY, AND MADISON.] The Federalist: a collection of essays written in favor of the new constitution. New York: John and Andrew M’Lean, 1788. Two volumes. Original boards, rebacked in paper, untrimmed. Title reinserted in volume one, light foxing, a few stains, minor repair to last leaf. An outstanding set. (6.8125 x 4.5 inches; 173 x 115 mm. and 7.5 x 4.5 inches; 193 x 113 mm., respectively). [2, blank], vi, 227, [1, blank]; [2, blank], vi, 384 pages. FIRST EDITION. A splendid association copy from the library of Roger Alden, Revolutionary War officer, deputy secretary of the Continental Congress, deputy secretary of Foreign Affairs under Washington, and the man entrusted with the original Constitution after its signing. “On September 18, 1787, the morning after it had been signed, the [Constitution] was placed on the 11:00 a.m. stagecoach for delivery to the Congress in New York City. There all the papers of the Convention were entrusted to Roger Alden, deputy secretary of the Congress” (Kammen, A Machine That Would Go of Itself: The Constitution in American Culture, p. 72). Two years later, Alden was again entrusted with the great state papers, this time including the Declaration of Independence. When the new government was formed in 1789, President Washington ordered Charles Thomson, secretary of the Continental Congress, “to deliver the Books, Records, and papers and the late Congress, the Great Seal ... to Mr. Roger Alden, the late Deputy Secretary of Congress; who is requested to take charge of them until farther directions shall be given.” Alden was keenly interested in the debates surrounding the new government, and he evidently treasured his copy of The Federalist, signing each volume on the cover and on the title. “Few issues in American history have engrossed public attention like the debate about whether to adopt the Constitution. ... Roger Alden joked to brother-in-law Samuel William Johnson [in a letter dated December 31, 1787] that ‘the report of the Convention affords a fruitful subject for wits, politicians and Law-makers-the presses, which conceived by the incubation of the Convention are delivered from the pangs of travail, & have become prolific indeed-the offspring is so numerous, that the public ear has become deaf to the cries of the distressed, and grow impatient for the christening of the first born’“ (Kramer, “Putting the Politics Back into the Political Safeguards of Federalism” in Columbia Law Review, January 2000, p. 251). In July 1789, the First Congress under the new Constitution created the Department of Foreign Affairs and directed that its Secretary should have “the custody and charge of all records, books, and papers” kept by the department of the same name under the old government. When Washington wrote to Thomas Jefferson in Paris on October 13, 1789, offering him the post of Secretary of State, he suggested Roger Alden to be his assistant: “Unwilling, as I am, to interfere in the direction of your choice of assistants, I shall only take the liberty of observing to you, that, from warm recommendations which I have received in behalf of Roger Alden, Esq., assistant Secretary to the late Congress, I have placed all the papers thereunto belonging, under his care. Those papers, which more properly appertain to the office of Foreign Affairs, are under the superintendence of Mr. Jay, who has been so obliging as to continue his good offices, and they are in the immediate charge of Mr. Remsen.” This extraordinary survival, worthy of the most discriminating collector, combines excellent original condition with an outstanding Founding era provenance. Provenance: Roger Alden (1754-1836), inscribed by him “R. Alden’s 1788” on front board and title-page of both volumes. Roger Alden was a major and aide- de-camp to Jedediah Huntington during the Revolutionary War. In 1781 he became deputy secretary to the Continental Congress under Charles Thomson. When the new federal government was formed in 1789, Alden was made deputy secretary of Foreign Affairs. In the latter capacities he was entrusted with the safekeeping of both the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence. Grolier 100 American Books 19. Printing and the Mind of Man 234.

Dimensions:
Height: 6.813 in (17.31 cm)Width: 4.5 in (11.43 cm)Depth: 2 in (5.08 cm)
Sold As:
Set of 2
Period:
Late 18th Century
Date of Manufacture:
1788
Condition:
Wear consistent with age and use. 6.8125 x 4.5 inches;.
Seller Location:
Dallas, TX
Reference Number:
1stDibs: LU4680214364342