The Introduction of Printing into Canada; | A Brief History | by Ægidius Fauteux, F.R.S.C.
Montreal: Rolland Paper Company Limited, 1930. Octavo, 23.3 x 16.6 cm. Cased in full black leather. The upper cover is decorated with a dotted frame, arabesque corner stamps, and an arabesque centrepiece in gilt. Three raised bands, lettering in gilt, and a gilt quatrefoil ornament with purple accents to the spine. The lower cover is decorated with a simple blind-tooled frame. The turn-ins are framed in gilt, with gilt and red corner pieces. Binder’s stamp in gilt to bottom of the front turn-in (‘Reliure Francaise’). The endpapers are decorated (painted?) with gilt accents over a blue and purple dyed background. Top edges gilt, bottom edges trimmed, fore-edges opened but untrimmed. pp. [ll.2: blanks; pp. 4] v-xii, [2] 3-178 [2]. The covering leather is rubbed and scuffed in a few places; most noticeably, there are two bruises and some rubbing along the top, bottom, and fore edges on the lower cover, rubbing to the upper corners, and some scuffs and rubbing to the spine, especially to the foot and the top and bottommost raised bands. There is also a minor split of a few cm to the surface of the leather along the bottom of the upper cover joint; but only the surface of the leather is affected, so the joint remains strong. A few minor spots to the first chapter heading page, and the occasional faint smudge in the margins, else internally clean and bright. In spite of the litany, still a very good and internally near fine copy. The text was set in Caslon Old Style and printed on Rolland de Luxe Book paper by The Federated Press Limited, Montreal. The chapter openings are decorated with ornamental headpieces and foliate bordered dropped capitals; the capitals were printed in red and the borders and headpieces in black. The binding was done by Jean Charles Gingras.
A copy of the original prospectus and a vellum colophon leaf are laid in. The prospectus is a bifolium leaflet, printed on the first and second rectos and the first verso (21 x 13.2 cm closed). Its lower corners are creased, and there are bands of mild offsetting to its first recto along the bottom and fore edges. The vellum leaf (20.9 x 13.2 cm) is similarly creased and mildly darkened along the top, but is otherwise fine. It is printed on the recto only. Item #413
“As the title-page indicates, this book has been privately published by the Rolland Paper Company in the interests of the printing craft of Canada. Recognizing the interest and inspiration it contained for its fellow craftsmen, F.N. Southam, of Montreal, has, with permission of the publishers, placed in a special hand tooled binding certain de luxe copies, of which this is one.
The author is Ægidius Fauteux, barrister, journalist and littérateur of Montreal, who, after years of close association with printer’s ink, was, at the time of writing this work, librarian of the St. Sulpice reference library here. The binding is the work of Jean Charles Gingras, using the machinery and stamping tools of the Provincial Government of Quebec.
Besides being unique as a history of the beginnings of printing in this country, the book is noteworthy itself as an example of the art to which it is dedicated. Few better examples of the book-maker’s craft have ever been turned out in Canada. Five years have been devoted to its preparation, and to those responsible for the paper, the format, and the binding, no less than to the author himself, it has manifestly been a labor of love. Their achievement speaks for itself.” (from the vellum leaf).
Price: $225.00