THE AMERICAN SHOOTER'S MANUAL, COMPRISING SUCH PLAIN AND SIMPLE RULES, AS ARE NECESSARY TO INTRODUCE THE INEXPERIENCED INTO A FULL KNOWLEDGE OF ALL THAT RELATES TO THE DOG, AND THE CORRECT USE OF THE GUN; ALSO A DESCRIPTION OF THE GAME OF THIS COUNTRY
Book Details + Condition: Carey, Lea & Carey (Philadelphia). First Edition / Second Printing, 1827. Hardcover. Paper covered boards with paper label to spine. 249 pages with advertisements at rear. Howes call this "the first American Sporting book". All former early sporting books were British imports. Kester deals mainly with game birds and waterfowl native to the Delaware Valley that surrounds Philadelphia: wild turkeys, partridge, snipe, quail, grouse, and ducks. With regard to rifles and guns, he addresses cleaning, powder, wadding. He also writes about dogs, their training and conditioning, and offers recipes for common ailments and gunshot wounds. All engravings are by Francis Kearny. An overall firm and clean copy, with tight binding; rubbed corners and edges; wear to boards, with some smudging/staining; old water staining (very old) to last half of pages and rear board; intermittent foxing and smudging to pages (also normal age-toning present); interior is free of markings.
