An Authentic and Genuine Narrative of the Life and Surprizing...
The "Monarch of Highwaymen" [Criminals]. [Great Britain]. [Hawke, William (d.1774)]. An Authentic and Genuine Narrative of the Life and Surprizing Exploits, Of William Hawke, The Famous Highwayman, Who Was Executed at Tyburn, July 1, 1774, For Robbing Mr. Charles Hart, On the Highway, Of 1s. 8d. Containing I. An Account of His Birth, Education, And First Entrance on the Thieving Trade. [...] With Two Copper-Plates; One being a Striking Likeness of the Criminal, The Other the Manner of His Robbing Capt. Cunningham and Mr. Hart. London: Printed for the Author; And Sold by R. Richards, 1774. [iii], 6-30 pp. Frontispiece of two facing copperplates. Octavo (8" x 5"). Stab-stitched pamphlet bound into later stiff wrappers, endpapers added. Light rubbing to wrappers, moderate rubbing to extremities with minor wear to spine ends, later armorial bookplate (of lexicographer and bibliophile Godfrey G. Roundell Greene [1888-1956]) to front endleaf. Light toning to interior, small tear to upper-inside corner of left-hand plate, light foxing to a few leaves, light soiling to p. 30. $1,950. * Only edition. Cunning and frequently vicious, Hawke and his confederates were also known for their generosity and compassion towards the poor and afflicted. Known as the "Monarch of Highwaymen," Hawke was captured twice by Sir John Fielding's men. The first time, in 1770, he was sentenced to transportation to America with one of his companions, but escaped back to England twelve months later and reorganized his gang. By this time, aware of his ever-increasing fame, his exploits became more daring. Finally, in 1774, his location betrayed by a coachman, he was captured, sentenced at the Old Bailey, and hanged at Tyburn. The pamphlet ends with reflections on highway robbers and the market for the goods they steal; a footnote refers to Henry Fielding's Enquiry into the Causes of the Late Increase of Robberies (1751). OCLC locates 10 copies, 1 in a law library (Library of Congress). English Short Title Catalogue N15942.
Price: $1,950.00
Book number 78383