Webster, Noah:

$2,000 · Offered by William Reese Company

A COLLECTION OF ESSAYS AND FUGITIV [sic] WRITINGS. ON MORAL, HISTORICAL, POLITICAL AND LITERARY SUBJECTS. Noted grammarian and pundit William Safire's copy of the first collection of Noah Webster's writings, demonstrating the broad reach of the pioneering lexicographer's genius. Webster's essays touch a variety of topics, from the new constitution to the practical reasons why marriage between cousins is discouraged. Of particular note is the presence of many words that are spelled phonetically, such as "Guvernment," "Skools," and "Karacter." This editorial decision was in keeping with Webster's growing desire to simplify language and qualify it in American, as opposed to British, ways by dispensing with unnecessary vowels and misleading consonant pairings (such as "ch" for "k"). The language experiments played out here demonstrate an important step in Webster's development as lexicographer, which would culminate in the publication of Webster's famous dictionary nearly forty years later, in 1828.A charming Webster item, with a notable linguistics-related provenance, having been owned by William Safire, the preeminent popular language and grammar expert of the 20th century. Safire was an author, journalist, and speechwriter who wrote the long-running column "On Language" for the NEW YORK TIMES. An attractive copy by the foundational American language expert, owned by the most notable public expert on language in 20th-century America.

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