So Many Dead Ends

For every “The American Peasant” there are at least a dozen cases of “The Professor and the Saw.”

I am always chasing old and obscure titles, perhaps to translate them or reprint them with some modern context. Right now, I have about a dozen titles that I’m actively looking for. These are books or manuscripts that haven’t been digitized or translated into English.

Last week, I knocked one of those titles off my list when I acquired “The Professor and the Saw,” a beautifully printed novella (?) from 1915. The 48-page booklet was printed by Simonds Manufacturing Co. of Fitchburg, Mass. It is the fictional account of a college professor who has a mental breakdown and then fights his way back to health by becoming a carpenter and then starting a woodshop program at the local high school.

The book also includes plans for a canoe, a rowboat, a desk, a curio cabinet, ice boat, bookshelves and a serving table.

I began chasing this title about five years ago after a customer briefly showed me his …