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# 1856 \"Cotton Is King\" — Authentic Presentation Copy inscribed by Author David Christy
## Inscribed to Civil War Confederate Captain Alphonse Chable (43rd Tennessee Infantry)
Up for sale/sale is a profoundly significant piece of American history. This is the 1856 Second Edition (Revised and Enlarged) of David Christy\'s influential political-economic work, *Cotton is King: Or, The Culture of Cotton, and Its Relation to Agriculture, Manufactures and Commerce*.
While standard copies of this text are highly collectible, this specific volume is a **unique, one-of-a-kind association copy** featuring a direct presentation inscription from the author himself.
### ✒️ HISTORICAL PROVENANCE & INSCRIPTION:
The mid-19th-century ink inscription on the yellow front endpaper reads:
*\"To Mr. Alphonse Chable with Respects of the Author\"*
* **The Author:** David Christy was a prominent chemist, geologist, and colonization agent whose arguments in this book formed the absolute ideological foundation of the South\'s \"King Cotton\" economic strategy leading directly into secession.
* **The Recipient:** Alphonse Chable was a notable French-American immigrant living in East Tennessee. Following the outbreak of the American Civil War, military records confirm Chable served as a Captain in Company B of the 43rd Tennessee Infantry (5th Regiment, East Tennessee Volunteers).
This direct line of provenance bridges the theoretical economic defense of the Antebellum South directly into the hands of a frontline Confederate officer.
### 📚 PUBLICATION DETAILS:
* **Title:** Cotton Is King: Or, The Culture of Cotton, and Its Relation to Agriculture, Manufactures and Commerce...
* **Author:** David Christy
* **Edition:** Second Edition, Revised and Enlarged
* **Publisher:** Derby & Jackson (New York) / H.W. Derby & Co. (Cincinnati)
* **Year:** 1856
* **Copyright:** Registered 1856 in the Clerk\'s Office of the District Court of the Southern District of Ohio.
### ⚠️ DETAILED CONDITION REPORT (Please Read Carefully):
This book is offered in **Fair / Aged** antiquarian condition and exhibits the expected flaws of a mid-19th-century volume that survived the Civil War era. It is priced lower than a pristine copy to account for these faults:
* **Spine & Binding:** The original brown cloth binding is heavily chipped and worn. There is significant cloth loss at the head and foot of the spine (affecting the publisher\'s imprint text at the bottom). The gold gilt lettering on the spine is aged but legible. Board edges and corners are heavily bumped and frayed.
* **Internal Pages & Paper:** There is extensive, widespread foxing (brown spotting) and heavy water dampstains/tide-marks visible throughout the text block, including the title and copyright pages.
* **The Inscription Page:** The critical yellow flyleaf containing the author\'s inscription remains fully intact, completely legible, tightly bound, and free from any cropping or modern ink. A later owner has written a faint pencil note reading \"Very rare\" at the very top edge.
* **Completeness:** The text block remains securely attached to the boards, though the hinges are tender.
*Please study all high-resolution photographs carefully, as they serve as the definitive baseline for the visual condition of this book.*
### 📦 SHIPPING & HANDLING:
This high-value historic artifact will be wrapped securely, heavily bubble-wrapped, and shipped in a rigid box. Signature confirmation and full shipping insurance are mandatory and included in the handling fee to protect both buyer and seller.