Voyages du capitaine Robert Lade en differentes parties de l'Afrique, de l'Asie et de l'Amerique; contenant l'histoire de sa fortune & ses observations sur les colonies & le commerce des Espagnols, des Anglois, des Hollandois, &c.; ouvrage traduit de l'Anglois

by l'abbè Prèvost

Paris: Didot, 1744

2 v.  |  v.1: [2], xvi, 370 p.  |  v. 2: [2], 360 [i.e. 400] p.  |  12mo  |  v.1: pi1 a^8(-a8) e1 A-P^12 Q^6(-Q6)  |  v.2: pi1 A^6 B-R^12 S^2  |  174 x 103 mm

First edition, followed by a second in 1784. Howes identified the present work's account of "the infant colony of Georgia" as particularly valuable. Prévost describes Savannah, for example, as a settlement of nearly 140 homes. He makes some mention of the area's native tribes, identifying Coweta as the principal settlement of the Creek (v. 2, p. 185).  ¶ Prévost's observations are all the more remarkable for his never having visited North America. Not translated from the English, but rather the author's own invention, the work capitalized on the popularity of both fictional and authentic travel narratives of the time. Perhaps the chief interest of the work lies in the fact that it convinced some contemporary readers of its professed veracity, not unlike Robinson Crusoeand Gulliver's Travels. The Mercure de France reported in November 1744: "One does not see in Robert Lade's travels these incredible peculiarities that often exist only in the imagination of the travelers, more attentive to piquing the curiosity of the readers than to respecting the truth" (translated). "There was no reliable way for contemporary readers to gauge the truthfulness and accuracy of travel accounts, however authoritative they seemed," Paul Arthur wrote, "because there was no trustworthy store of knowledge to draw upon. In a corresponding way, actual discoveries sometimes seemed too fantastical to be taken seriously."  ¶  If not entirely reliable for the historian, some scholars at least have found value in the creativity of Prévost's narrative: "Never has a travel narrative been adorned with more diverse adventures; never did Prévost give his imagination freer rein" (Ducarre, translated). Ironically, several of Prévost's descriptions here, including many of Caribbean lands, were later incorporated into his non-fiction Histoire générale des voyages.  ¶  Title pages printed in red and black; head- and tail-pieces; initials. Publisher's catalog on p. 387-[400] in v.2.  

CONDITION:  Contemporary mottled leather, the surface rather pitted; spines tooled in gold, black leather labels; edges stained red; marbled endpapers.  ¶  Lacking the two maps, which anyway would be cumbersome to unfold and would only drive up the cost. Corners worn and spine ends chipped; leather covering v. 1 joints split, but all cords intact and boards holding strong; a couple booksellers' notations on v. 1 fly-leaf.  ¶  A sturdy set in contemporary French bindings.

REFERENCES:  Howes L11; Sabin H.38530 (v. 10, p. 13)  ¶   J. Ducarre, "Une supercherie littéraire de l'abbé Prévost," Revue de Littérature Comparée XVI (October-December 1936); Paul Longley Arthur, "Fictions of Encounter: Eighteenth-Century Imaginary Voyages to the Antipodes,” The Eighteenth Century: Theory and Interpretation 49.3 (2008)

Item #9