I love this little item; it belonged to the young Elisha Ely Camp and was presumably given to him by his father at age 12. We can only wonder if it played a part in framing who he would become in later life.
A descendent of Nathan Hale, Elisha Ely Camp was born in Sackets Harbor, NY in 1824. Camp was a business partner of Ulysses S. Grant in the Western Territories and then, at the commencement of the Civil War, was commissioned as a Lieutenant by Abraham Lincoln. He was later promoted to Captain by President Andrew Johnson. During the War, he served as Quartermaster in Washington D. C. and moved to the front in 1864 as a Brevet Lieutenant Colonel.
At his funeral, in 1867, these words were spoken, "He was in his last hours, as he had been through life, a faithful soldier of the cross; and when told that his hours upon earth were few, he said that he was ready."
Eddy, A. D. Addresses on the Duties, Dangers, and Securities of Youth: With an Introductory Essay by the Honourable Theodore Frelenghuysen, Esq. New York, Leavitt, Lord, & Co. 1836. 266pp.
Original blind stamped decorative cloth, faded to spine and at head of boards. Very crisp and clean with some light scattered foxing; neat early to mid 19th century printed ownership label for Elisha E. Camp.