A leaf from his 1839 diary - photo 1
A leaf from his 1839 diary - photo 2

A leaf from his 1839 diary

Lot 299
16.06.2023 10:00UTC -05:00
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$ 3 276
AuctioneerCHRISTIE'S
Event locationUSA, New York
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ID 967499
Lot 299 | A leaf from his 1839 diary
Estimate value
$ 3 000 – 5 000
HAWTHORNE, Nathaniel (1804-1864). Autograph manuscript, [Boston, 15 &] 19 February [1839].

Two pages, 153 x 93mm, with one pencil emendation laid into a larger sheet with printed caption below (mild toning at extreme margins). Half red morocco clamshell.

A leaf from Nathaniel Hawthorne's 1839 diary, written during his tenure at the Boston Customs House. First published in 1896 in the Atlantic Monthly, the present leaf concludes a lengthy meditation on the existence of ghosts and then moves to a detailed description of William Pike, the inspector of the Boston Custom House. In an entry for 15 February Hawthorne recounts Pike's tale of the discovery of a headless skeleton in Salem and their discussion about ghosts, specifically, the appearances of the ghost of a woman who had just died:
"[How the] ghost vanished, I do not recollect; but the old gentleman, when told of the matter, answered very scornfully. Nevertheless, it turned out that his wife had died precisely, allowing for the difference of time caused by distance of place, at the time when this apparition had made its threefold visit. Mr. Pike is not an utter disbeliever in ghosts, and has had some singular experiences himself : — for instance, he saw, one night, a boy’s face, as plainly as ever he saw anything in his life, gazing at him. Another time — or, as I think, two or three other times — he saw the figure of a man standing motionless for half an hour in Norman street, where the headless ghost is said to walk."
Several days later, Hawthorne added his next entry with a discussion of Pike's visage and health problems: "Feby. 19th. Mr. Pike is a shortish man, very stoutly built, with a short neck — an apoplectic frame. His forehead is marked, but not expansive, though large — I mean, it has not a broad, smooth quietude. His face dark and sallow —- ugly, but with a pleasant, kindly, as well as strong and thoughtful expression. Stiff, black hair, which starts bushy and almost erect from his forehead — a heavy, yet very intelligent countenance. He is subject to the asthma, and moreover to a sort of apoplectic fit, which compels him to sleep almost as erect as he sits; and if he were to lie down horizontally in bed, he would feel almost sure of one of these fits. When they seize him, he awakes feeling as if [his] head were swelled to enormous size, and on the point of bursting — with great pain. He has his perfect consciousness, but is unable to call for assistance, or make any noise except by blowing forcibly with [his mouth, and unless this bring help, he must die.]"

It was George Bancroft who secured Hawthorne the position as a measurer of coal and salt, a position he held from January 1839 to January 1841. A lifelong Democrat, Hawthorne was not willing to work under the incoming administration of William Henry Harrison.
Artist:Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804 - 1864)
Place of origin:USA
Auction house category:Letters, documents and manuscripts
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