[USSELINCX, Willem?]. ADAMS, Yemant (pseudonym).

Den Nederlandtschen Bye-Korf: waer in ghy beschreven vindt, al tghene dat nu wtghegaen is, op den Stilstant ofte Vrede, ... beginnende in Mey 1607, ende noch en hebben wy niet het eynde. Ende is ghestelt op een tzamen-sprekinghe, tusschen een Vlaming ende Hollander. Noch is hier by ghevoecht een Ghedicht, ...[Amsterdam?], 1608. Small 4to (19.5 x 15 cm). With 2 decorated woodcut initial letters, arabesque fleurons on the title-page and forming a headpiece, and 1 woodcut tailpiece. Disbound.

      (8) pp. Alden & Landis 608/116 (4 copies); Asher 26/1 & Add.; Knuttel 1474; Sabin 98201; Tiele 684; OCLC WorldCat (2 copies); STCN (7 copies); cf. Simoni U-10 (2nd ed.). A nearly untrimmed copy of the first edition of the famous Nederlandse Bijenkorf (Dutch Beehive), printed to advertise and introduce a collective issue of thirty anonymous pamphlets agitating against the proposed truce between Spain and the Netherlands in the middle of the Eighty Years' War, and warning the Dutch not to sacrifice their West Indian trade to the pursuit of peace. The anonymous publisher notes that a friend had urged him to gather together "all that has been published about the ceasefire and peace" because many people wished to collect the pamphlets and have them bound together, but since not even the booksellers know exactly what has been published, no one knows whether their collections are complete. He therefore brought together "all that I could get hold of" and added the present dialogue to be bound before them. In fact he included only pamphlets against the truce: none in favour of the truce! The main text of the present introductory pamphlet takes the form of a conversation between a Hollander (from the Dutch Republic in the Northern Netherlands) and a Flemish refugee (from the Spanish-controlled Southern Netherlands), the Hollander selling the Fleming the pamphlets, which are named individually. The present pamphlet therefore serves as a sort of catalogue, as well as a general introduction to the subject. The poem at the end, about Spain's untrustworthiness and the dangers of trying to make a peace settlement with them, is signed "Yemant Adams" (Someone Adams, a pseudonym probably meaning merely a descendent of Adam).On 4 May 1607, after forty years of war, Spain and the Dutch Republic began a ceasefire and peace negotiations that were to lead to the twelve-year truce two years later. The sharply divided opinions on the acceptable terms for peace and on the benefits and harm a truce might bring to the Republic set off a flood of pamphlets. The Dutch were considering establishing a West India Company, and Spain's wish to limit Dutch trade in the West Indies was the biggest stumbling block in the negotiations. The present pamphlet appeared in at least three editions (the STCN notes a fourth variant) listing an increasing number of pamphlets (from 30 in the present first to 37 in the third edition, including the introduction). All three are dated 1608 and apparently appeared after Easter (6 April: Asher 26-28/24 refers to events of that date) but before most of the pamphlets were banned on 27 August 1608, for the ban specifically mentions two pamphlets listed only in the third edition. Several of the key pamphlets in the collection were written by Willem Usselincx, but it is not known whether he had a hand in the introduction. His most beloved project was to establish the West India Company, and the present introduction mentions both the Spanish intent to snatch away the best part of the Indies trade and how important it is to safeguard the Republic's free trade in the West Indies. The Hollander in the dialogue explicitly notes already in this first edition that some of the pamphlets are "difficult to find." He also notes that one pamphlet exists under two different titles, so it had clearly gone through two editions before the first edition of the introduction. Some pamphlets listed in all three editions of the Bye-Korf , appear to have been printed only once, while some mentioned only in the third edition survive in several printings. Clearly the pamphlets were reprinted at irregular intervals as supplies ran out, and more study is needed to determine the order of the editions and which were issued with which editions of the Bye-Korf . Nearly all are Pot quartos.In very good condition and nearly untrimmed, leaving large margins. Only slightly browned and with minor damage at the fold, not approaching the text or decorations. An unusually large-marginned copy of the first edition Bye-Korf .