Small, Maynard & Company (Small, Maynard and Company in bibliographies) is a defunct publishing house located in
Boston. In its day it was a highly reputable house in literature, and several U.S. authors were published by it, including
Walt Whitman.
The company opened its doors in 1897 at 6 Beacon St. in Boston. New editions of Whitman's ''
Leaves of Grass'' and an edition of his complete works among the first to be published, after acquiring the rights to these works from the poet's executors.
The company
motto, which it published decoratively and in
Latin, on
title pages of its books was ''
Scire quod sciendum,'' and translates as ''Knowledge worth knowing.''
In 1899, Small, Maynard & Co. took over the Copeland & Day publishing house. A year later, founder Herbert Small retired due to ill health.
The business was sold at auction to
Norman H. White
Norman Hill White (December 25, 1871 – May 5, 1951) was an American publisher and politician.
Early life and business career
White was born on December 25, 1871, in Montclair, New Jersey to Henry and Henrietta Hill White. He graduated from ...
, of Brookline, Massachusetts, owner of the Boston Bookbinding Company. White left the firm in 1907, but later returned.
In the summer of 1907, the company acquired the Herbert B. Turner & Co. publishing company, which was less than five years old and had specialized in publishing classics such as a new, 13-volume edition of
Robert Louis Stevenson's works, as well as theological works by
laymen
In religious organizations, the laity () consists of all members who are not part of the clergy, usually including any non-ordained members of religious orders, e.g. a nun or a lay brother.
In both religious and wider secular usage, a layperson ...
.
Around 1907, the firm specialized in
Belles-lettres
is a category of writing, originally meaning beautiful or fine writing. In the modern narrow sense, it is a label for literary works that do not fall into the major categories such as fiction, poetry, or drama. The phrase is sometimes used pejora ...
and biographies.
Protocols of Zion
The house is also known for publishing the first
American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
English language US edition of the
Protocols of the Elders of Zion. The work carries no editor, translator or name of a compiler; however, it includes an alleged
facsimile
A facsimile (from Latin ''fac simile'', "to make alike") is a copy or reproduction of an old book, manuscript, map, Old master print, art print, or other item of historical value that is as true to the original source as possible. It differs from ...
of a title page, in the
Russian language
Russian (russian: русский язык, russkij jazyk, link=no, ) is an East Slavic languages, East Slavic language mainly spoken in Russia. It is the First language, native language of the Russians, and belongs to the Indo-European langua ...
, with a translation on the other side. The translation indicates that the author was
Sergei Nilus
Sergei Aleksandrovich Nilus (also ''Sergius'', and variants; russian: Серге́й Алекса́ндрович Ни́лус; – 14 January 1929) was a Russian religious writer and self-described mystic.
His book ''Velikoe v malom i antik ...
and the place (apparently of publication) is given as "THE TOWN OF SERGIEV." This town appears to be
Sergiev Posad.
The book opens, after the facsimile title page, with "Part One, Introductory Statement," and on page 5 of this introduction is the following accounting as to the original source for the translation:
::Now, for the first time, the document entitled by Mr. Nilus "Protocols of the Meetings of the Zionist Men of Wisdom" is published in the United States, correctly translated from the Russian text as it appears in Mr. Nilus's book, "It is Near, At the Door," 1917, published in the printing office of the Sviato-Troitzky Monastery.
Cesare G. De Michelis
Cesare G. De Michelis (born 20 April 1944 in Rome) is a scholar and professor of Russian literature at the University of Rome Tor Vergata, Italy.
Biography
He is also an authority on the notorious plagiarism, hoax, and literary forgery known as ...
not only indicates that this imprint is the first US
English language editions of "The Protocols," but gives the name of the editor as
Boris Brasol, an
antisemite
Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism.
Antis ...
whom
Robert Singerman called "
public enemy" of the Jews.
*
The Protocols and World Revolution
This lists early editions of '' The Protocols of the Learned Elders of Zion'', an antisemitic forgery purporting to describe a Jewish conspiracy to achieve world domination. For recent editions, see Contemporary imprints of The Protocols of th ...
:
anonymous
Anonymous may refer to:
* Anonymity, the state of an individual's identity, or personally identifiable information, being publicly unknown
** Anonymous work, a work of art or literature that has an unnamed or unknown creator or author
* Anonym ...
(
Boris Brasol)
:(Boston: Small, Maynard & Company, 1920)
:
Library of Congress Online Catalog
Bankruptcy
Owing $1,475,569 to creditors, the company filed for bankruptcy on March 1, 1927. Norman White, who was then the company's president, later pleaded not guilty to eight indictments in twenty-five counts, charging larceny through false pretenses of $474,500 from eight Boston banks.
White was later sentenced to 3–5 years in prison for theft of over $369,000 from local banks.
N.H. White Sentences for $469,000 Theft; Ex-Publisher and Politician Gets 3 to 5 Years for Larceny in Boston Bank Loans.
New York Times, October 2, 1928.
See also
* Robert Singerman
References
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Small, Maynard and Company
Defunct book publishing companies of the United States
Protocols of the Elders of Zion