Beschreibung:

DOBBS, Arthur, attributed to]. Reasons To Shew, that there is a great Probability of a Navigable Passage to the Western American Ocean, through Hudson's Streights, and Chesterfield Inlet; from the Observations made on board the Ships sent upon the late Discovery; supported by Affidavits, which coincides with several Former Accounts . London: J. Robinson 1749.
DOBBS, Arthur, attributed to]. Reasons To Shew, that there is a great Probability of a Navigable Passage to the Western American Ocean, through Hudson's Streights, and Chesterfield Inlet; from the Observations made on board the Ships sent upon the late Discovery; supported by Affidavits, which coincides with several Former Accounts . London: J. Robinson 1749. 8 o (205 x 122 mm). 23 pages. Modern half calf. Provenance : Thomas W. Streeter (bookplate; his sale part VI, Parke Bernet, 23 April 1969, lot 3643; purchased from Francis Edwards, 1950). FIRST EDITION. The Irishman Arthur Dobbs was persistent in his campaign against the Hudson's Bay Company. "The avowed purpose of Dobbs's intervention was to force the Company into an active search for the Northwest Passage, but this worthy undertaking was mixed with selfish commercial impulses" (Peter C. Newman, Empire of the Bay: The Story of the Hudson's Bay Company , New York, 2000, p.207). Ellis's expedition in 1746 had failed to find a passage out of Hudson's Bay, but this did not deter Dobbs and his fellow investors from pursuing exploration. Issued anonymously, this pamphlet contains Dobbs's theory as to the location of the passage, and includes affidavits of Henry Ellis and Jeremiah Westhall, who sailed on the 1746 expedition. If not authored directly by Dobbs, the pamphlet at least closely allies itself with Dobbs's position. Alden & Landis 749/226; JCB (3) III:904; Sabin 68291; Staton & Tremaine/TPL 216; Streeter sale VI:3643 (this copy).