J. Ross Browne: a biography. A dissertation submitted to the faculty of the school of letters of the Catholic University of America in partial fulfillment of its requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy by Francis J. Rock, M. A., L. H. M., Priest of the Archdiocese of San Francisco, San Francisco, California

(Browne, John Ross) ROCK, FRANCIS J.

Published by The Catholic University of America, Washington, D. C., 1929

23x15 cm, pp. [i-ii] iii [iv] v [vi] vii [viii] ix-x 1-80 [81-82: blank], original gray wrappers printed in black, sewn. First edition. The pioneer study of the life and work of John Ross Browne (1821-1875), journalist, travel writer, artist, government agent and California Forty-niner whose CRUSOE'S ISLAND: A RAMBLE IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF ALEXANDER SELKIRK. WITH SKETCHES OF ADVENTURE IN CALIFORNIA AND WASHOE (1864) was the model for Mark Twain's ROUGHING IT (1872). Browne wrote easily and was clever at caricaturing people and things about him. Browne's trip over the old Placerville Road took him to Virginia City, but he stayed there only a month. He described the town as a "mud hole . [with] no title to property and no property worth having." He said the Washoe mines were "nothing more than squirrel holes on a large scale, the difference being that the squirrels burrow in the ground because they want to live there, and men because they want to live somewhere else." "There are several reports that came from his pen while he was engaged in government service, among which RESOURCES OF THE PACIFIC SLOPE (1869) has been one of the most widely used . In 1870 he settled in Oakland, Cal., a place he had called 'home' since 1855, and entered the real estate business with offices in San Francisco, He was engaged in this at the time of his death . Browne had a keen sense of humor, was versatile, modest, good-natured, cordial, and generous." - DAB. Browne's fascinating career as a government agent is told in Richard Dillon's J. Ross Browne: Confidential Agent in Old California (Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press, 1965). Small private label affixed to front wrapper, a nearly fine copy. (#166293). Seller Inventory # 166293

Bibliographic Details

Title: J. Ross Browne: a biography. A dissertation ...
Publisher: The Catholic University of America, Washington, D. C.
Publication Date: 1929
Binding: Soft cover
Edition: 1st Edition