Did He Really Say That? Well, It Was the 1950s (Almost)

From "Three Basic Rules for the Good Host", included in Crosby Gaige, The Standard Cocktail Guide: A Manual of Mixed Drinks Written for the American Host (M. Barrows & Company 1944):

The success of a cocktail party or just a casual pick-me-up before dinner depends on the Host. A dinner party usually depends on the Hostess but in the realm of the cocktail the Host shines forth in all his glory. This is his department and should be dealt with properly.

Having set his gender roles in so much concrete as to make his wonderful little book all but inaccessible to a 21st century audience, the good Mr. Gaige goes on to recommend following the recipes precisely and taking care not to stir carbonated water too vigorously, capped by a striking analogy of glassware that had my mother in law laughing out loud:

The careful host knows his glasses. The proper glass embellishes a drink just as a glamorous evening dress renders the female figure presentable in polite society. No one would think of serving beer in a Champagne glass. Neither should you serve an Old Fashioned in a Cocktail glass, or a Martini in a Wine glass. Glasses as well as shaker should be thoroughly chilled before using.

(emphasis added). Let's raise a glass to polite society!

"Where'd I put that sermon?"

Several years ago I picked up one of the real gems of my meager library -- a 3-volume first American edition of John Calvin's Institutes of the Christian Religion. Published in Philadelphia in 1816. Nice quarto size, leather bindings in decent condition with red title blocks on the spines. And that wonderful old book smell.

My copy is made all the more interesting because I know who owned it for a large part of the 19th century -- the Rev. Charles Chapman. Who is he, you ask? I had no idea until I read the carefully typed (on a manual typewriter) paragraph about his life that a prior owner pasted inside the cover of Volume II. (The pasted paragraph in Volume I is about John Calvin, with whom I was already slightly familiar!)

Youngest child of the Saybrook, Conn. family of deacon Wm. Chapman. Graduated from Hamilton college, class of 1826. Studied theology at the Auburn, NY school. Ordained by the Onondaga and Delaware Presbyteries, 1831 and 1832. Married Elizabeth H. Porter of Hamden, NY. Preached at Downsville NY. later at Meredith Square (now Meridale) later at Rock Stream, Yates county NY, died there.

Born 1804, died 1883. Father of Wm P Chapman, and Charles B Chapman, both of Norwich NY. Brother of Benj Chapman, or Norwich NY. Grandfather of RC Chapman.

When about 1822 or 23, the Rev Charles Chapman was a young student in Hamilton, his brother Benjamin, had become established in business at Norwich NY, had built his Homestead, and was helping his young brother through college at Clinton.

Rev Charles Chapman inherited the Puritan theology, but like his brother Ezekiel, tempered it with a genial liberalism that expressed a more modern thought.

So, you'd like to know what Rev Chapman may have preached on? Well, someone (and my money is on the Rev Chapman) has helpfully tucked into the early part of Volume II a sermon outline written out in longhand with an old fashioned ink pen. (See photo at right.) It's a sermon on I John 3:3, and the emphasis seems to be on avoiding false hope. I regret to report that Rev Chapman saw lots of ways that hope might be false, but didn't spend much time on how to achieve true hope!

Not to Mention What You Find Stuck in Old Books . . . .

And then there are the treasures you sometimes find stuck inside old books. The crisp, yellowed newspaper article; the aged critical review of the book; perhaps even the dedicatory note from the gift giver. One of my favorites was tucked inside a nice leatherbound edition of The Works of Thomas Chalmers, D.D., Minister of the Tron Church, Glasgow, published in Philadelphia in 1830. (Chalmers was a prolific pastor of the Free Church of Scotland who dedicated himself with unwavering passion to his congregation and who inspired some rather amazing missionary, educational and mercy ministry endeavors, and Franklin, Tennessee, pastor and author George Grant has begun to reacquaint Christendom with Chalmers' reputation -- just Google "George Grant Thomas Chalmers" to find his lecture series online.)

It's a personal pledge card. And it's about bicycling. On Sunday.

Here's the text in full in case you can't see it in the picture:

Remember the Sabbath Day to keep it Holy.

Sunday Wheeling has become a popular mania, and is now one of the most subtle foes of the Lord's Day. Desiring to throw all my influence against its desecration, I pledge myself that I will not ride my Bicycle for pleasure on Sunday, and further, that I will not use my Wheel for any purpose on that day if my reasons for doing so are likely to be misunderstood by others.

Signed_________________________

A "subtle foe" of the Lord's Day indeed!

I'm not sure if I treasure the card more or less for its lack of a signature. In any case, I doubt I'll be riding my bicycle this Sunday. I wouldn't want anyone to misunderstand my reasons for doing so.

The Dedication

Right up there with the preface must rank the dedication, that personalized message from the giver to the recipient that becomes a permanent part of that particular copy of the book. When the book is later sold, inherited or even re-gifted, the personalized dedication can turn an ordinary book into a real treasure.

Like this book I recently picked up: The Martini by Barnaby Conrad III. It's a mini-coffee table book about the wonders produced by a small portion of gin and a smaller portion of vermouth. (Who knew vermouth had fifty ingredients and takes four years to craft?) Nice pictures; mostly clever and interesting text. But the personalized dedication makes my copy unique:

To Betty From Joanna

Happy Mothers Day
Happy Birthday

I love having a Mother who enjoys her Martinis

J

I hope Betty enjoyed her book as much as I did. If not as much as she enjoyed her Martinis.

Another Preface: The Good Ole KJV

In 1611, Robert Barker, printer to the King, published "The Holy Bible, Conteyning the Old Testament and the New. Newly Translated out of the Originall tongues; & with the former Translations diligently compared and revised by his Majestie's speciall Commandement. Appointed to be read in Churches." It wasn't the first English language Bible by any means, being preceded by the Bishop's Bible, the Coverdale Bible, William Tyndale's Bible (Tyndale was burned alive for translating the Bible), Matthew's Bible, Whitchurch's Bible, and of course the bestselling Puritan favorite (and the Bible of Shakespeare), the Geneva Bible. But the King James set a new standard of literary achievement, precision in translation, and accumulation of wisdom and progress in translation of the ancient Biblical languages into English.

The KJV's fascinating story is well told in Alister McGrath's "In the Beginning: The Story of the King James Bible and How It Changed a Nation, a Language, and a Culture." But what concerns us here, of course, is the Preface to the 1611 KJV. (Unless you have a really old copy, don't bother to pull your KJV off the shelf as the Preface was omitted from most later printings; but you can find it on Google, of course.)

It's too lengthy to include the whole thing here, so I'm content to give just this excerpt concerning the value, beauty and sufficiency of the Bible:

[The Bible] is not only an armour, but also a whole armoury of weapons, both offensive and defensive; whereby we may save ourselves and put the enemy to flight.

It is not an herb, but a tree, or rather a whole paradise of trees of life, which bring forth fruit every month, and the fruit thereof is for meat, and the leaves for medicine.

It is not a pot of Manna, or a cruse of oil, which were for memory only, or for a meal's meat or two, but as it were a shower of heavenly bread sufficient for a whole host, be it never so great; and as it were a whole cellar full of oil vessels; whereby all our necessities may be provided for, and our debts discharged.

In a word, it is a panary of wholesome food, against fenowed traditions; a physician's shop (Saint Basil calleth it) of preservatives against poisoned heresies; a pandect of profitable laws against rebellious spirits; a treasury of most costly jewels against beggarly rudiments; finally, a fountain of most pure water springing up unto everlasting life.

And what marvel? the original thereof being from heaven, not from earth; the author being God, not man; the inditer, the Holy Spirit, not the wit of the Apostles or Prophets; the penmen, such as were sanctified from the womb, and endued with a principal portion of God's Spirit; the matter, verity, piety, purity, uprightness; the form, God's word, God's testimony, God's oracles, the word of truth, the word of salvation, &c;.; the effects, light of understanding, stableness of persuasion, repentance from dead works, newness of life, holiness, peace, joy in the Holy Ghost; lastly, the end and reward of the study thereof, fellowship with the Saints, participation of the heavenly nature, fruition of an inheritance immortal, undefiled, and that never shall fade away. Happy is the man that delighteth in the Scripture, and thrice happy that meditateth in it day and night.

The Preface: My Introduction

When I was about 12 years old, I was sitting in my family's Methodist church one Sunday flipping through the Methodist Book of Hymns (1964 edition, I believe). It was hard to find many hymns I liked, though there were a few. But then I happened on page viii, the "Directions for Singing" excerpted from John Wesley's preface to the 1761 publication of "Sacred Melody", one of the Wesley brothers' great hymnals. Looking back, I believe this was the first "preface" I'd actually read, and it stuck with me for its brevity, its pointedness, and the certainty and authority with which its author spoke. The fact that the kind of enthusiastic singing championed by Wesley helped sell me on a Presbyterian church later in life ("These people must really believe this stuff; listen to how loud they're singing!") may have made it continue to stick in my memory. In any case, I've paid special attention to "Prefaces" ever since.

Here is the 1968 Methodist Hymnal's excerpt from Wesley's 1761 Preface in full, copied direclty from the hymnal given "for the glory of God" in memory of my great-grandmother, Estella Ponder, by my mother's sister Maxine and her husband Bill:

"I. Learn these tunes before you learn any others; afterwards learn as many as you please.

"II. Sing them exactly as they are printed here, without altering or mending them at all; and if you have learned to sing them otherwise, unlearn it as soon as you can.

"III. Sing all. See that you join with the congregation as frequently as you can. Let not a slight degree of weakness or weariness hinder you. If it is a cross to you, take it up, and you will find it a blessing.

"IV. Sing lustily [!] and with a good courage. Beware of singing as if you were half dead, or half asleep; but lift up your voice with strength. Be no more afraid of your voice now, nor more ashamed of its being heard, than when you sung the songs of Satan.

"V. Sing modestly. Do not bawl, so as to be heard above or distinct from the rest of the congregation, that you may not detroy the harmony; but strive to unite your voices together, so as to make one clear melodious sound.

"VI. Sing in time. Whatever time is sung be sure to keep with it. Do not run before nor stay behind it; but attend close to the leading voices, and move therewith as exactly as you can; and take care not to sing too slow. This drawling way naturally stales on all who are lazy; and it is high time to drive it out from us, and sing all our tunes just as quick as we did at first.

"VII. Above all sing spiritually. Have an eye to God in every word you sing. Aim at pleasing him more than yourself, or any other creature. In order to do this attend strictly to the sense of what you sing, and see that your heart is not carried away with the sound, but offered to God continually; so shall your singing be such as the Lord will approve here, and reward you when he cometh in the clouds of heaven."