The Philosophical Dictionary, for the Pocket. Translated from the French Edition. Corrected by the Author

Catskill: Printed by T. and M. Croswell for selves and J. Fellows & E. Duyckinck, New York, 1796. First American edition. This edition was first published in 1764. Engraved title with vignette portrait by P. R. Maverick of New York. 1 vols. 12mo. Contemporary sheep, morocco label; front joint cracked. Marginal browning of text, browning or staining of endpapers, else a very good copy with the contemporary signature of John Gebhard Jr on free endpaper. First American edition. This edition was first published in 1764. Engraved title with vignette portrait by P. R. Maverick of New York. 1 vols. 12mo. The editor notes on the advertisement leaf that he recognizes that there might be criticism for the translation and publication of this work “on account of the author's freedom in regard to matters of religion” but feels that the quality of the work exceeds its criticisms and the “True religion is not afraid of bearing the strictest examination.” There was strong interest in the French writers of “free thought” and “intellectual liberalism” in America in the eighteenth-early 19th century, especially Voltaire and Condillac. The Enlightenment in France greatly influenced the American enlightenment. Library Company of Philadelphia “First American Editions” p. 5; Shipton and Mooney 31518