A Plea for Urania: Being a Popular Sketch of Celestial Philosophy; With Observations on the Impolicy of the Law Which is Supposed to Prohibit the Practice of Astral Science in the Present Age
London: Piper, Stephenson & Spence, 1854. First Edition. Hardcover. Small octavo. xxxii + 387pp. Original brown cloth decorated in blind with gilt titling to spine, b&w illustrations. In this volume the author "intended to present to the reader a general view of the principles of astral science, usually known by the name of Judicial Astrology, or Celestial Philosophy." (from the Introduction). The author was a keen astrologer and lawyer who was closely associated with the English astrologer "Zadkiel" (Richard James Morrison: 1795 – 1874), with whom he sought to defend a number of astrologers who had been prosecuted, and in some instances imprisoned, for fortune telling. He was also involved in the Spiritualist movement, founded the Astro-Meteorological Society etc. and is said to have himself represented Zadkiel in a successful 1863 libel action against Admiral Sir Edward Belcher. He also wrote the wonderfully eccentric, semi-autobiographical "Curiosities of Occult Literature (1873-1878)." A much used copy: cloth well worn and rubbed, spine ends and corners bumped and chafed with some fraying, small splits to cloth at upper spine edges, page edges darkened and thumbed, endpapers a bit discolored, bookshop sticker, owner's names reverse of front blank and title page, scattered browning and some light foxing, pages toned with some edge creasing but unmarked. Overall a well used but solid & clean Good copy. Scarce. Item #64944
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