Description:

Thoreau Henry 1817 - 1862



A leaf from Henry David Thoreau's "Moonlight" lecture delivered at Leyden Hall in Plymouth in October 1854, offering unique insight to his own writing style exhibited in Walden, which was published less than two months before. "If my pages were written in larger character, I would extinguish these lamps & standing by a window read them by the light of the moon alone."


Scarce Autograph Manuscript (unsigned), 1.25 pages, front and verso, 7.5" x 9.5", [n.p., n.d., but likely Concord, c. August-September, 1854], being a draft page from his Journal bearing the text of his "Moonlight" lecture delivered at Leyden Hall in Plymouth, Massachusetts on October 7, 1854. With numerous autograph corrections and emendations. Moderate toning along one horizontal fold, some light wear in the left margin, else very good.


Thoreau's manuscript reads in most part: "I complain of arctic voyageurs that in their accounts they do not enough remind us directly or indirectly of the peculiar dreariness of the scenery—and the perpetual twilight of the arctic night. So he whose theme is moon light will find it difficult to illustrate it with the light of the moon alone though this I think is necessary. I fear that I have not put duskiness enough into my night & moonlight walks. Every sentence should contain some twilight or night, at least the light in it should be the yellow or creamy light of the moon with at most a silvery radiance—or the fine beams of stars and not the white or dazzling light of day. Occasionally a mere phosphorescence or gleaming as from rotten wood—Nor should any complain if at rare intervals it is uncertain & wandering, far over treacherous bogs like an ignis fatuus. The peculiar dusky serenity of the sentences must not allow the hearer to forget that it is evening or night, though I do not warn him that it is dark of the darkness—Otherwise he will of course presume a day light atmosphere. If my pages were written in larger character, I would extinguish these lamps & standing by a window read them by the light of the moon alone."


From October 1837 to November 1861, Thoreau kept a journal that started as a simple record of ideas which evolved into a writer's notebook, and eventually became the principal imaginative work of his literary career. The journal, the source for much of his published writing, was also a record of his personal life as well as his deep studies of the natural history of his native Concord. The journal ultimately filled forty-seven manuscript volumes. The last paragraph of the Original draft of Walden speaks to the words of this rare journal leaf: "…but such is the character of that morrow which mere lapse of time can never make to dawn. The light which puts out our eyes is darkness to us. Only that day dawns to which we are awake. There is more day to dawn. The sun is but a morning star."


The first portion of this passage appears on page 59 of Volume 8 of his Journal as published by Houghton Mifflin in 1906.


While Manuscript pages from Walden, which are scarce but exist, routinely fetch $45,000-$70,000 at auction, we can find no similar manuscript in which he illuminates his so revered writing style.

Accepted Forms of Payment:

American Express, MasterCard, Money Order / Cashiers Check, Paypal, Personal Check, Visa, Wire Transfer

Shipping

Applicable shipping and handling charges will be added to the invoice. Shipping and handling costs are competitive as we maintain discounted contracts with FedEx. If you have any questions, contact University Archives prior to bidding. After payment has been made in full, University Archives will ship your purchase within 5 business days following receipt of full payment for item. We currently ship via FedEx but if your purchase is shipping to a P.O. Box, we ship via USPS. All items are insured. We ship from our offices in Westport, CT. We may opt to use a third party shipper for very fragile, bulky or oversized items. Items requiring third party shipping will be denoted in the item description. Packages shipped internationally will have full value declared on shipping form. International buyers will be responsible for any customs fees incurred.

Please remember that the buyer is responsible for all shipping costs from University Archives' offices in Westport, CT to the buyer's door. Please see full Terms and Conditions of Sale.

University Archives

You agree to pay a buyer's premium of 20% and any applicable taxes and shipping.

View full terms and conditions

Bid Increments
From: To: Increments:
$0 $99 $10
$100 $299 $20
$300 $499 $25
$500 $999 $50
$1,000 $1,999 $100
$2,000 $2,999 $200
$3,000 $4,999 $250
$5,000 $9,999 $500
$10,000 $19,999 $1,000
$20,000 $49,999 $2,500
$50,000 + $5,000