September 12, 1864: New Book of Nonsense

The New Book of Nonsense was published for sale at the Philadelphia Great Central Sanitary Fair, which ran from June 7 to June 29, 1864. It is an imitation of Edward Lear’s Book of Nonsense.

  Transcript:

There was a bold painter who said, “I will paint such a wonderful head,

That I’ll make the whole Fair, with astonishment stare

When they see this miraculous head.”

Citation: The new book of nonsense. A contribution to the Great Central Fair in aid of the Sanitary Commission. Philadelphia: Ashmead & Evans, 1864. A 864n