THE MANSION by Henry Van Dyke Illustrations Green, Large Format 1911 First Edition
By Henry Van Dyke with illustrations by Elizabeth Shippen
Green. Illustrated First Edition. Harper
& Brothers Publishers, New York, and London. Copyright 1911. 45 pages, 5 7/8” x 8 7/8"
This is the scarcer 1st edition, in a larger
format with non-colored gilt cover, colored frontispiece and only 45 pages.
Includes 2 mounted color plates and 4 B/W illustrations.
The Mansion is about John Weightman, an important man
with substantial influence and power. Among other things, he has funded the
building of one school, three small churches, and a wing of the hospital. He is
proud of the recognition and respect he has attained through his many good
works. One night, he has an argument with his adult son, who would like to give
some money to a friend with a life-threatening lung condition. John Weightman
thinks it a poor investment since there is no guarantee the young man will
live, and even if he does, he may or may not amount to anything which will
further the reach of John Weightman's good name. After the argument, John falls
into a troubled sleep where he finds himself traveling on a road with a large
group of people who are being taken to the mansions that have been prepared for
them. John is the last one to reach his, which turns out to be a humble shack
in a desolate field. He is indignant since he has lived such an honorable life.
But he learns that it is not just his actions but his motivations for those
actions that count in the grand scope of eternity.