Leaflets

The quantity and variety of what Elder called “leaflets”—medium-sized inspirational quotes with lovely artwork, suitable for framing—is impressive indeed. He published at least 166 of them between 1904 and 1913.

Impression Leaflets

Impression Leaflets make their first appearance in The Tomoyé Catalog Illustrated, from 1902 (catalog C2), where 21 of them are listed on page 23. Over the next several years, more leaflets were issued. In total, there are at least 71 different Impression Leaflets.

Their numbering, however, is inconsistent. Many Impression Leaflets are numbered on the verso as if the identification numbers were static—but this is not universally the case. In 1904 there were 32 Impression Leaflets, and by 1912 there were 54, but #1-32 in 1912 are not the same as #1-32 in 1912. For example, “The Night Has a Thousand Eyes” is #21 in 1902, but #8 in 1912. At least one catalog lists the leaflets without identification numbers. Occasionally a catalog will label a leaflet as “out of stock,” or jump from leaflet #15 to #17 as if #16 no longer existed. In these cases, it may be that there were no plans to reprint those leaflets.

Almost all the artwork featured in the Impression Leaflets were also used in the Impression Calendars and Aspirations Calendars.

Here are the 32 Impression Leaflets listed in the 1904 Catalogue of a Western Publisher, all designed by Spencer Wright:

1. “To Be Honest, To Be Kind,” by Robert Louis Stevenson
2. “My Symphony,” by William Henry Channing
3. “The Worldly Wisdom of Naureddin Ali”
4. “He Ate and Drank the Precious Words,” by Emily Dickinson
5. “Impressions of an Optimist,” by Regina Wilson
6. “The Value of a Simply Good Life,” by Edward Howard Griggs
7. “The Friendship of Books,” by Washington Irving
8. “Self-Dependence,” by Matthew Arnold
9. “Success for Young Men,” by Charles A. Murdock
10. “The Value of a Friend,” by Robert Louis Stevenson
11. “Influence,” by Fanny Kemble
12. “A Wise Dog Will Observe These Laws”
13. “Life’s Mirror,” by Madeline S. Bridges
14. “Carpe Diem,” by William Henry Hudson
15. “The Love of Reading,” by W. E. H. Lecky
16. “Attainment,” by Edward Robeson Taylor
17. Impression Bookmark
18. “On Easy Lives,” by Phillips Brooks
19. “Requiem,” by Robert Louis Stevenson
20. “I Am The Captain Of My Soul,” by William Ernest Henley
21. “The Night Has a Thousand Eyes,” by Francis William Bourdillon
22. “Happy Thought,” by Robert Louis Stevenson
23. “Today Is Your Day And Mine,” by David Starr Jordan
24. “A Heaven On Earth,” by William Morris
25. “A Smile”
26. “A Prayer,” by Robert Louis Stevenson
27. “Maxims,” by La Rochefoucauld
28. “My Creed,” by John Ruskin
29. “Morality,” by Robert Louis Stevenson
30. “Happiness,” by George W. Cable
31. “Religion In Life,” by Stopford A. Brooke
32. “An Ideal of Life,” by Edward Howard Griggs

Here are the 54 Impression Leaflets listed in the 1912 Impressions Annual 1912-1913. Leaflets 1-28, designed by Spencer Wright; leaflets 30-54, designed by Harold Sichel. Leaflets 1-15 also appeared in the 1904 list, though numbered differently:

1. “To Be Honest, To Be Kind,” by Robert Louis Stevenson (#1 in 1904)
2. “My Symphony,” by William Henry Channing (#2)
3. “The Value of a Simply Good Life,” by Edward Howard Griggs (#6)
4. “The Value of a Friend,” by Robert Louis Stevenson (#10)
5. “On Easy Lives,” by Phillips Brooks (#18)
6. “Requiem,” by Robert Louis Stevenson (#19)
7. “I Am The Captain Of My Soul,” by William Ernest Henley (#20)
8. “The Night Has a Thousand Eyes,” by Francis William Bourdillon (#21)
9. “Happy Thought,” by Robert Louis Stevenson (#22)
10. “Today Is Your Day And Mine,” by David Starr Jordan (#23)
11. “A Heaven On Earth,” by William Morris (#24)
12. “A Prayer,” by Robert Louis Stevenson (#26)
13. “My Creed,” by John Ruskin (#28)
14. “Morality,” by Robert Louis Stevenson (#29)
15. “Happiness,” by George W. Cable (#30)
16. “Then Welcome Each Rebuff,” by Robert Browning
17. Inspiration. “Follow the gleam,” by Alfred, Lord Tennyson
18. Peace. “‘Tis not in seeking,” by Edward Rowland Sill
19. Climb the Mountains. “Nature’s peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees,” by John Muir
20. The Truth that is Real. “Only that becomes real or helpful to any man which has cost the sweat of his brow,” by David Starr Jordan
21. Jesus saith “Let not him that seeketh cease.”
22. Life. “Make this forenoon sublime, this afternooon a psalm, this night a prayer,” by Edward Rowland Sill
23. A Prayer for the Day’s Help. “Help us to play the man,” by Robert Louis Stevenson
24. Happiness
25. “O for a Booke and a Shadie Nooke,” Avebury
26. “The Year’s at the Spring,” Browning
27. “A Garden is a Lovesome Thing, God Wot!” Thomas Edward Brown
28. “Then Away with Longing, and Ho! for Labor!”
29. Footpath to Peace. “Fear nothing except cowardice,” Henry Van Dyke
30. The Word. “The word for me is joy,” John Kendrick Bangs
31. “And I, too, Sing the Song of All Creation.”
32. Life’s Mirror. “Give to the world the best you have, and the best will come back to you,” Madeline S. Bridges
33. Thanksgiving. “Dear Lord, I thank Thee for my friend,” Juliet thompson
35. Desiderata. “Four things a man must learn to do,” Henry Van Dyke
36. The road to Laughtertown. “Go learn from the little child each day,” K. D. Blake
37. Life’s Purpose. “Baffled, get up and begin again,” Robert Browning
38. “The Heart that Dares,” Sweeney
39. A Prayer. “Courage to face the road,” Henry Van Dyke
40. Be Strong. “Shun not the struggle,” Babcock
41. Sleep to Wake. “One who never turned his back,” Robert Browning
42. Love’s Magic. “Love took up the glass of Time,” Tennyson
43. Sweetness with Strength. “Gentleness and cheerfulness, thes come before all morality,” Robert Louis Stevenson
44. Will is Fate. “And fate is fate through man’s free will,” Edward Rowland Sill
45. The Soul’s Victory. “This is alone Life, Joy, Empire, Victory,” Shelley
46. The Life Beautiful, “To be strong in pain,” Emperor William II of Germany
47. Heroic Hearts. “Though much is taken, much remains,” Tennyson
48. Much in Little. “A little bin best fits a little bread,” Robert Herrick
49. For Grace. “Have mercy on each in his deficiency,” Robert Louis Stevenson
50. The Prayer Perfect. “Look on all I love tenderly to-day!” Riley
51. A Man’s Life. “Live pure, speak true, right wrong, follow the King,” Tennyson
52. A Mile with Me. “Oh, who will walk a mile with me along life’s merry way?” Henry Van Dyke
53. Just One Friend. “If we have but one to whom we can speak out of our heart,” Robert Louis Stevenson
54. The Rainbow. “My heart leaps up when I behold a rainbow in the sky,” Wordsworth

Miniature Leaflets

From the 1912 Impressions Annual 1912-1913 catalog: “Compact messages, brave and wise. In color and gold on strong cardboard folders, 3 x 5 inches. Designed by Harold Sichel. Enclosed in envelopes. Each 10¢ net; postage 2¢.”

1. Do Not Worry. “Eat three square meals a day; say your prayers,” Abraham Lincoln
2. Rest. “Rest is the fitting of life to its sphere,” Goethe
3. The Savor of Past Mercies. “Like the voice of a bird singing in the rain, let grateful memory survive in teh hour of darkness.”
4. Individual Responsibility. “No one can acquire for another,” Walt Whitman
5. “Thankful Bee for Blessings To-day,” Gosse
6. Things That Make Men Happy. John Ruskin
7. The Optimist’s Creed, Dickens
8. Life is But Once. “Drink the cup, wear the roses,” Mary Johnston
9. The Man Worth While. “The one who will smile when everything goes dead wrong,” Ella Wheeler Wilcox
10. “Never Strike Sail to a Fear,” Ralph Waldo Emerson
11. Feed thy Soul. “Buy hyacinths to feed thy soul,” James Terry White
12. A Brief Prayer. “To find my place and keep it,” Wallace
13. Greatly Begin. “Not failure, but low aim in crime,” James Russell Lowell
14. The Simplest Creed. “Be good, sweet maid, and let who will be clever,” Kingsley
15. Mend Your Scales. “A trouble is what you make it,” Edmund Vance Cooke
16. Air Castles. “Now put foundations under them,” Henry D. Thoreau
17. Working Rules. “Have more than thou showest,” King Lear
18. Search Thyself. “Dress and undress thy soul,” George Herbert

Hospitalities

From the 1911 Impressions Annual 1911-1912 catalog: “Cheery wall cards that give a greeting to the guest, and serve admirably the purposes of mural decoration. Illuminated on sheets of Japan vellum, 8½ x 14½ inches, ready for framing, these rich, mediaeval pictures in color by Robert Wilson Hyde are appropriate for dining-room, hall, library, guest-room or parlor. Each, 35¢ net; postage, 5¢.”

1. Old Welsh Door Verse, “Hail, Guest!”
2. “Sleep Sweet Within this Quiet Room”
3. “Bring Here No Tattle In.”
4. “Some Hae Meat.” The Selkirk Grace. By Robert Burns.

Homely Maxims

From the 1911 Impressions Annual 1911-1912 catalog: “Each one of these is a gem of purely native wit and wisdom—a brilliant little splinter, a merry, philosophic quirk with something of the shrewd Yankee twist to it. Designs of quaint humor, by Raymond Carter, on cards, 3¾ x 7 inches. Enclosed in envelopes. Each, 10¢ net; postage, 2¢.”

1. Don’t Git Sorry fer Yerself. “Lots of others to be sorry for.” Mrs. Wiggs (Alice Hegan Rice)
2. Contrariness. “As a rule a man’s a fool.”
3. Concerning the Foolishness of Fowls. “But when you hear from a hen, she’s laid an egg.” Lorimer
4. Happiness versus Trouble. “Minnit a man stops lookin’ fer trouble, happiness’ll look fer him.” Irving Bachelor
5. Avoid Suspicion. “Don’t tie your shoe in a melon patch.” Hindu Maxim
6. For All of Us. “So much good in the worst of us.”
7. The Game of Life. “Hit the line hard!” Roosevelt
8. The Eleventh Commandment. “Minding his own business.” Andrew Jackson
9. Snaix. “That hold belongs to that snaix.” Josh Billings
10. The Other Feller. “Let him make a dollar once’n a while.” David Harum
11. It’s Up to You. “If you want to be cheerful.” Mrs. Wiggs
12. Having Fun. “There ain’t no pocket in a shroud.” David Harum

Guest Room Verses

From the 1911 Impressions Annual 1911-1912 catalog: “Mottoes for the guest-room which will give its occupant a sense of warm welcome, indicating as they do that hospitality is the generous rule of the house and that there is always a place prepared for the guest. Toned Chameleon folder, 6⅜ x 7¼ inches. Each, 25¢ net; postage, 4¢.”

1. “Sleep Sweet Within This Quiet Room,” designed by Jean Oliver
2. Rest in His Love,” designed by Charles Frank Ingerson

Good Cheer Leaflets

From the 1911 Impressions Annual 1911-1912 catalog: “Visions of the brighter side of life, mental rainbows that will not fade with set of sun; these glad messengers are lettered with designs in delicate harmonies of color by Harold Sichel on French vellum cards, 4¾ x 5½ inches. Enclosed in envelopes. Each, 10¢ net; postage, 2¢.”

1. All’s Blue. “I find earth not gray but rosy.” Robert Browning
2. “A World Worth Living In.” Ella Wheeler Wilcox
3. The Brighter Side. “The inner side of every cloud.”
4. A Little Word, a Little Song. “God help me speak the little word.”
5. Sunshine Philosophy. “A-makin’ the sunshine everywhere.”
6. Joy. “The word for me is Joy.” John Kendrick Bangs
7. Just Be Glad. “Let us fold away our fears.” James Whitcomb Riley
8. Jog On. “A merry heart goes all the day.” Shakespeare
9. A Laugh at Time. “Old Time his rusty scythe may whet.” Oliver Wendell Holmes
10. Pretty Good World. “Pretty good world, good people!” Frank L. Stanton
11. Look for gladness. “If you bring a smiling visage to the glass, you meet a smile.” Alice Cary
12. Be Blythe. “So to be blythe is surely best.” William Dunbar

 

Good Things and Graces

From the 1911 Impressions Annual 1911-1912 catalog: “Ethical recipes by Isabel Goodhue. Little moralities tucked away in bizarre recipes for appetizing dishes. The cheerful pages in many colors elaborately designed by Gordon Ross with flights of swallows. Size, 6¼ x 10¼ inches. Enclosed in envelopes. Each, 15¢ net; postage, 3¢.” Presumably, these are taken from the text of Goodhue’s book of the same name (checklist 113).

1. Game Pie. An open-air dish served in a bowl of blue sky.
2. Irish Stew. A compound of good sense and blarney.
3. Brown Betty. Wholesome girlhood flavored with sunshine.
4. Johnny Cake. Small boy with fun sauce.
5. Ginger-Snaps. A recipe for joyous endeavor.
6. Mayonnaise for Blue Monday Salad. A good work-day dressing.

 

Children’s Leaflets

From the 1911 Impressions Annual 1911-1912 catalog: “Pleasant rhymes that the little ones love and enjoy having told and retold to them over and over. Illustrated in colors on French vellum folders, 5 x 7½ inches. Enclosed in envelopes. Each, 10¢ net; postage, 2¢.” Leaflets 1-6, designed by Spencer Wright; leaflets 7-12, designed by Raymond Carter.

1. “Rose Dreamed She was a Lily.” M. E.
2. “Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep.” Theodore D. Seward
3. “He Prayeth Best who Loveth Best.” Coleridge
4. “Good Morrow, Little Rose-bush!” Joel Stacy
5. “Hark! Says Morning-glory.”
6. “Sleep, Baby, Sleep. “Thy Father’s Watching the Sheep.”
7. The Duties of Life. “God made a little man.”
8. Time to Rise. “A birdie with a yellow bill.” Stevenson
9. A Grace for a Child. “Here a little child I stand.” Herrick
10. It. “A wee little worm in a hicory nut.” James Whitcomb Riley
11. Lullaby. “Silver sails all out of the West.” Tennyson
12. Child Verse. “Rainy, rattle-stones.”

Shadowings

From the 1911 Impressions Annual 1911-1912 catalog: “The gentler, lighter thought of these tender lyrics is suggested in their presentation, for they are printed on shadow paper through which show faint traceries of leaves, and mounted on shaded brown or silvery Japanese wood cuttings of the thinness of paper. They are designed by Harold Sichel, and their dimensions are 3 x 8¼ inches. Enclosed in envelopes. Each, 10¢ net; postage, 2¢.”

1. Evolution. “Out of the cloud a silence, then, a lark.” John B. Tabb
2. Friends. “Such friends to laugh regrets away.” Herman Charles Merivale
3. Morn. “Pray, Sweet, for me.” Emily Henrietta Hickey
4. Love Stays. “Time flies, Love stays.” Angela Gordon
5. Light Your fire. “Life was made for love and cheer.” Henry Van Kyke
6. Afterwards—Day! “Here a star, and there a star, some lose their way.” Emily Dickinson

Songs of Faith

From the 1911 Impressions Annual 1911-1912 catalog: “Beautiful cards and folders bearing themes of the beauties and duties of life and love, songs and prayers of pure devotion and bits of idealistic philosophy. the treatment of the designs varies, but the color schemes used in each case are of particularly soft and delicate tones. As gifts these have an unusually personal appeal.”

The text of leaflets 1-6 are taken from Violet M. Firth’s Matins and Vespers, checklist 174.

1. Morning Prayer and Evening Prayer, by Violet M. Firth. Designed by Charles Frank Ingerson.
2. Morning Hymn and Evening Hymn, by Violet M. Firth. Designed by Raymond Carter.
3. Morning Prayer, by Violet M. Firth. Designed by Harold Sichel.
4. Evening Prayer, by Violet M. Firth. Designed by Harold Sichel.
5. Morning Hymn, by Violet M. Firth. Designed by Harold Sichel.
6. Evening Hymn, by Violet M. Firth. Designed by Harold Sichel.
7. Adoration, by Florence M. Schmidt. Designed by Harold Sichel.
8. No Night, by Florence M. Schmidt. Designed by Harold Sichel.
9. The Waving of Life’s Fabric, by Agness Greene Foster. Designed by Will Jenkins.
10. Beauty, the LIght that Lighteth Every Man, by Stanton Davis Kirkham. Designed by Harold Sichel.
11. The Kingdom of Heaven is Within, by Stanton Davis Kirkham. Designed by Harold Sichel.

Strengtheners

From the 1911 Impressions Annual 1911-1912 catalog: “Spurs to action and promises of peace are these strenghtening and comforting texts, to lighten dark days and to give new incentives to useful effort. Printed after designs by Harold Sichel, with distinctive decorations in bold colors on cards, 7 x 5½ inches. Each, 10¢ net; postage, 2¢.”

1. An Individual Strengthener. “All that belongs to God belongs to thee.” B.
2. So Live Today. “Love for man and faith in God.” Osgood Elliott.
3. Divine Peace. “Enfolded in Thy Love divine.” Alice A. Russell.
4. Live thy Creed. “Hold up to earth the torch diving.” Horatius Bonar.
5. A Little Fence of Trust. “Build a little fence of trust around today.” Mrs. Butts.
6. True Living. “Think truly, and thy thoughts shall the world’s famine feed.” Horatius Bonar.

Sunbeams

From the 1911 Impressions Annual 1911-1912 catalog: “Lyrics, by Agness Greene Foster, small in size but rich in heartening thought. Illuminated by Harold Sichel, with Japanesque colored designs of scattered blossoms of pale primrose tinted Florentine Cellini folders, 5⅞ x 5¾ inches. Enclosed in envelopes. Each, 10¢ net; postage, 2¢.”

1. No Fear. “Oh, help me keep Thine image clear!”
2. His Hand. “Hold fast to His hand.”
3. Just Think. “No time to read? No time to pray?”
4. All. “The strength of the strong is love.”
5. Keep Me Simple. “Make me of use to Thee.”
6. CanThere Be Aught But Gladness. “Where God is All and in His All?”

Doggerel Dodgers

From the 1911 Impressions Annual 1911-1912 catalog: “Nothing could be jollier for den or cosy-corner, at home or at college, than these very original pictues by Albertine Randall Wheelan. They are printed in quadri-color and mounted on heavy brown vellum cards, 9½ x 11 inches. Each, 25¢ net; postage, 5¢.” These are the same images that appear on the Doggerel Dodgers postcards, but in a larger format.

1. For it’s Always Fair Weather
2. Buns and Rolls
3. Teddy Bear’s Seal of Love
4. On the Lynx
5. The Kitten Debutante
6. So Near and Yet Chauffeur!