The National Ode

Boston: Jas. R. Osgood & Co., 1876. First Edition. Very good. First edition, facsimile of the original manuscript (the first trade edition would be published a year later, in 1877, by William F. Gill & Co.); 12 x 9 3/4; pp. [28], text to rectos only; green cloth over boards, ruled with an elaborate border in black and gilt title; corners and tips of spine a bit worn; a few spots to boards and occasional finger-smudges to pages; overall in very good condition.Written by author, translator, travel author, and diplomat Bayard Taylor (1825 - 1878), The National Ode was penned in 1876, at the request of the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition's organizers, to commemorate the 100th birthday of the United States. Bayard himself recited the poem at the exhibition, in front of a crowd of more than four thousand people - the largest audience for a poetry reading to that date and a record number, which would hold until 1961.