Boyle, Esmeralda. The Story of Felice. London: Trübner & Co., 1873. [9416]
Blue cloth, spine plain, top board in bright gilt, bottom bordered in blind. Wear to the spine ends, some light flecking to the cloth, 17.5 x 11.5 cm. Chocolate end papers, small name label of the book collector John S. Mayfield on the front paste-down, his pencil note that he purchased the book in 1955, 1873 ink gift inscription of Samuel Tyler to Miss Mary Henry; the book is dedicated to Tylor; purple 15 centovos Spanish stamp on rear paste-down. [viii.], 55, [1] clean pp. Thin tear to top margin of the half-title due to rough opening; several leaves remain unopened. Good. Hardcover.
The Story of Felice is a poem in XXII Cantos. It is a love story set during the time of the American Civil War. The end of the volume has five poems celebrating birds and their songs.
Dedicated to Professor Samuel Tyler, LL.D., of Frederick, Maryland, who inscribes and signs the half-title page.
Esmeralda Boyle (1840-1928), b. Washington, DC; d. Grand Island, Nebraska. Author and poet, Boyle was the daughter of US Navy Commodore Junius Ignatius Boyle, privileged as one of Washington's elite families. She founded the Literary Society of Washington, which Society was the occasion for many gatherings of powerful men and elegant women. She wrote several volumes of poetry, the first biography of Francis Scott Key, and contributed to many periodicals, including The Army and Navy Journal, The Galaxy, The Hesperian, The Overland Monthly, Out West, and The St. Louis Magazine. She also wrote a society column in the Washington Capital newspaper.
"John S. Mayfield (1904-1983), born in Meridian, Texas, John Mayfield was the son of former U.S. Senator Earle B. Mayfield and Ora Lumpkin. He received a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Texas in 1930, a Master of Arts from Southern Methodist University in 1932, and studied for a doctorate at Columbia University from 1932 to 1935.
"Mayfields early career was with the U.S. military and government. From 1935 to 1942, he worked in the General Accounting Office, Washington, D.C., as an auditor and eventually became chief of recruitment, training and placement. During the Second World War he was a lieutenant commander in the Pacific with the U.S. Navy (1942-1946). Afterwards, he spent three years at the War Assets Administration, Washington, D.C. (1946-1949), in various capacities including Congressional liaison, deputy administrator for the Office of Administrative Services, and assistant deputy administrator for the Office of Management. From 1949 to 1950, Mayfield was the director of personnel at the Department of Defense.
"During the 1950s, Mayfield worked in the private sector, most notably becoming vice-president of the American Rail and Steel Company, Washington, D.C., in 1951. His primary responsibility was the management of relations and projects with federal agencies, as well as the companys operations in Asia and Latin America.
"By the 1950s, Mayfield had already garnered a reputation as a bibliophile and collector, not only of rare books, but of manuscripts by American and English poets and writers such as Lord Byron, Robinson Jeffers, Sidney Lanier, Amy Lowell, Algernon Charles Swinburne, Booth Tarkington, and Mark Twain, among others. It followed that he became the curator of the division of manuscripts and rare books at the Syracuse University Library (1961-1971). After retirement in 1971, Mayfield served as vice-chairman of trustees, chairman of the program committee, and member of the executive committee of the Georgetown University Library." - Georgetown University, online.
