ABRAHAM LINCOLN

Two hundred and six years ago, a man who is still revered had a humble beginning in a Kentucky log cabin.  Abraham Lincoln  grew up to become a lawyer, member of the U.S. House of Representatives,  and the 16th president of the United States.  As president he led our country through the Civil War, which resulted in the preservation of the union and the abolishment of slavery.

For those of you who would like to learn more about the world that Lincoln lived in as a child, there's a Bullis book for you! It is:

Pine Knot; A Story of Kentucky Life

by William Eleazar Barton

Published by D. Appleton and Company, New York, 1900

It's a work of fiction, and its content reflects the lifestyle that had not changed a great deal since the time of Lincoln's boyhood. Some of the chapter titles are:

Granny White's Remedies

A Blue-Grass Christmas

For the Cause of Freedom

So please stop by the Bullis Room and spend some time in Pine Knot ... and remember the man who made such a great contribution to his country.

TELEPHONE TECHNOLOGY

On January 25, 1915, a big celebration took place after the following conversation:

Alexander Graham Bell (sitting in New York, speaking into a telephone):  

"Mr Watson, come here.  I want you." 

Mr. Watson (Bell's assistant, listening in on a telephone in San Francisco): 

"It will take me five days to get there now!"

Prior to this history-making call, a trial phone call had already taken place in July, 1914, when Theodore Vail, the president of AT&T, spoke coast to coast with his voice being boosted in Pittsburgh, Omaha, and Salt Lake City. The company had been wanting to link the two coasts via phone, and finally found a device to make that possible - Lee DeForest's "audions," the first vacuum tubes. (pbs.org, "A Transcontinental Telephone Line")

If you have an interest in the technology that made this event possible, we invite you to stop by the Bullis Room and spend some time with these century-plus old books:

The History of the Telephone

by Herbert Newton Casson

published in Chicago by A. C. McClurg, 1911

and

The Telephone: An Account of the Phenomena of

Electricity, Magnetism, and Sound, as Involved in its Action.

With Directions for Making a Speaking Telephone

by A. E. Dolbear

published in Boston by Lee & Shepard, 1877

Alexander Graham Bell's invention of the telephone changed his life, and its modern equivalent has become such a part of our lives, we wonder how we would function without it. So "thank you," Mr. Bell. Many, many thanks.

HONORING REVEREND MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.

An article on abcnews.com today lists "5 Ways to Honor the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr." They are:

Give something

Learn something

Teach something

Commit to something

Dream something

And so to honor Rev. King, some of us Bullis Room volunteers are focusing on the second item in this list and suggesting that all of us take a look at this 168-year-old Bullis book:

First lessons in civil government, 

including a comprehensive view of the government of the state of New York, and an abstract of the laws, showing the rights, duties, and responsibilities of citizens in the civil and domestic relations, with an outline of the government of the United States : adapted to the capacities of children and youth, and designed for the use of schools,

Published in New York by M. H. Newman, 1847,

12th edition, revised and adapted to the new constitution

Knowing what "rights, duties and responsibilities of citizens..." were taught to our ancestors two centuries past, we can have a better appreciation and understanding of Rev. King's civil rights legacy.

This week, you're invited to stop by the Bullis Room and learn something new from this rare book.

ANOTHER CENTURY-OLD BULLIS BOOK

Actually, this one is turning 108 this year since it was published in 1907.  This week we are focusing on:

  Practical Mechanical Engineering; 

A Comrehensive Treatise on Steam Machinery and Apparatus, Compressed Air, 

Refrigerating Machinery, Hydraulic Elevators, Gas and Oil Engines, Turbines, etc.

Author: Carl S. Dow

Published: Philadelphia, The American Text-Boo Company, 1907

According to a recent newspaper article, practical household refrigerators were introduced in 1915. If you're curious about the technology used to produce this basic and indispensable household appliance, consider stopping by and taking a look at this book in the Bullis Room shelves.

Author Dow's book will give all of us a greater appreciation of the technology that produced the modern appliance that we occasionally enjoy raiding around midnight.  (Raiding a cabinet just wouldn't be the same.)

So ... please stop by.

LOOKING BACK 100 YEARS

Looking at the Bullis books that were published in 1915 gives us an idea of what the family was "into" way back then. In scanning the list, we found two books that would have been of particular interest to Charlie Bullis:

Field Book of American Trees and Shrubs

Author: F. Mathews

Published: New York, 1915

and

Bulbs

Author: C. L. Allen

Published: New York, 1915

In 1915 Charlie Bullis would have been 24 years old, serving his country in World War I.  After the war,  he returned home and devoted himself to projects conducted on the family's Canandaigua Road property.  Horticulture was one of his areas of expertise, and there is a significant number of books on this subject in the collection. 

If you, too, have a green thumb (or aspire to that status), we suggest you stop by the Bullis Room and look at some of the horticulture books in the collection. The two we've listed above would be a good place to start.

Hope to see you soon. 

Postscript: If you'd like to read more about Charlie Bullis, here's a link to our April 2, 2009 post: http://bullisbookchronicles.blogspot.com/2009/04/charles-rogers-bullis.html

THRIFT GIFTS

Being bombarded daily with advertisements urging us to buy expensive holiday gifts again reminds us of the Bullis family's emphasis on frugality.  One example of this trait is Nettie Bullis's evening meals that consisted of a bologna sandwich and a pint of milk, even though she could have afforded to eat gourmet meals; Charlie Bullis's used-book purchases at area garage and barn sales is another.

It has been said that Charlie Bullis could often be seen at these sales, carting off bags or even boxes of books that were someone else's castoffs. The phrase "one person's trash, another person's treasure" certainly describes a number of rare books that ended up in the Bullis Collection as a result of Mr. Bullis's love of books and his equal love of frugality.

The family's thrift resulted in an estate that Nettie Bullis left to benefit her home town and county. And Charlie Bullis's focus on acquiring used books resulted in a more interesting collection.  We thank both of them for these gifts of thrift.

WRITING HOME TO MOM

Digging through and organizing folders this week, we came across a document titled "JOHN LAPHAM BULLIS, Letters to his Mother, Mrs. Dr. A. H. Bullis"  followed by a list of dates and synopses of some of Bullis's correspondence with his mother between November 1863 and February, 1867.

We had looked over this document a year or so ago, and this morning, we reread the entry titled "3 Dec 1865."  At that time John Lapham Bullis was in the 118th Infantry, which was located in "Brownsville, opposite Matamoros." The entry reads:

"Near mouth of Rio Grande. Across the river, Maximilianists still determined to hold out against Liberalists. Fearful they will be successful, as L's badly equipped. But L's captured a vessel and turned it over to Americans. French Commodore demanded it be delivered to Imperialists. (Not done) at Bagdad and also captors of it but Weitzel would not and secret orders to guard same. Health good. Johnnie."

We are puzzled by this entry and would appreciate any information and insight that would help explain exactly what happening on the Texas-Mexico border, 149 years ago today--both from the standpoint of our nation's history as well as John Lapham Bullis's personal and professional life.