Wit and Humor of the American Pulpit. A Collection from Various Sources Classified Under Appropriate Subject Headings

Philadelphia: George W. Jacobs & Co, 1904. First Edition. 16mo (15cm). Gilt-decorated blue cloth boards; 248pp. Frontispiece portrait of Henry Ward Beecher. Slight external wear, a few instances of pencil marginalia; still a clean, VG copy. No editorial credit is given for this hodge-podge of religious wit and wisdom, presumably intended as a sourcebook for ministers of the stand-up variety. Includes a chapter of "Beecheriana" – alas not, as one might expect (or wish), a collection of jokes at Beecher's expense, but rather a selection of anecdotes casting a worshipful light on Beecher's own wealthy store of pulpit humor, making no mention of his highly-publicized adulterous escapades with his best friend's wife.