Buyer Beware

[mbhenty]

Not so much "buyer beware" as much as "buyer be aware" of what you are buying. Do your research. Do your homework. Then rip it all up and start again.

On ebay is a signature booklet with Andrew Borden's signature in it.... maybe?

And on this sale, I'm not so sure bidders/buyers are being prudent.

The sale is for an autograph booklet dated back to the 1870s. It is listed on ebay and has 8 hours to go. It is selling for a handsome 430 plus dollars... so far.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/381958906898?_t ... EBIDX%3AIT

My take on it is that Andrew J Borden's signature is what is giving the item its value.

But...... is it Andrew's signature?

I think there is a very good chance that IT IS NOT. Autograph booklets was something young people engaged in. In 1970 Andrew Borden was approaching 50 years of age. He could have signed? I'm not so sure. And definitely not 430 dollars sure.

But the explicit proof may be in Fall River history. At the time of Andrew Borden's life there were at least 5 Andrew Borden's. Including 3 Andrew J Borden.......Andrew J.

Is it Lizzie's father.....

We can't be sure. There is too much doubt.

What do you think?

(below is a list of Andrew Borden's from an 1885 fall river, small 'f' small 'r' for the small minds that live here, directory)

[mbhenty]

Sorry, but the date in the post above pertaining to Andrew Borden should be 1870s not 1970s.

[twinsrwe]

There is no need to be embarrassed, MB, we all make mistakes. I knew what you meant when I read it. My grandfather used to say, "Don't go by what I said, go by what I meant."

[twinsrwe]

I have to agree with you, MB; it is highly doubtful that this is actually the signature of Andrew Jackson Borden, the father of Lizzie Borden.

I did some research into the partial poem, that is shown in the picture. I wanted to find out what year that poem originated, as this would have told us if it was prior to 1870, or after Andrew Borden was killed. Most web sites just contribute the poem to Bishop Doane. After several hours of research, I finally came across this web site: http://tinyurl.com/z5ntu68

I am always suspicious of a seller who makes the kind of claims this seller did, without providing any proof. The document shown is signed by a person who used initials for their first and middle names; that signature could have been made by a male or female, and, IMO, most likely a female.

Decorative sentiment written by A. J. Borden - Highly doubtful.png

Scroll down until you see the above imagine, and then move you mouse over the image to enlarge and see it more clearly: http://tinyurl.com/gt5y75o

I have always visualized Andrew Borden as a no-nonsense sort of guy. I can’t imagine that he would take the time to write anything in a signature booklet, let alone write a line from a poem in an ornate style that is placed within a fancy musical imagine. I can see a woman taking the time to create something like this, but not a man, and especially a man such as Andrew Borden.

I think the buyer was taken for a ride, that cost them a whopping $587.88!

[InterestedReader]

Doesn't it look like the contribution of a youth, not a mature man?

If you google the 'sentiment' it's from this ghastly little verse: -

Life Sculpture
By George Washington Doane (1799 — 1859)

Chisel in hand stood a sculptor boy
With his marble block before him,
And his eyes lit up with a smile of joy,
As an angel-dream passed o’er him.

He carved the dream on that shapeless stone,
With many a sharp incision;
With heaven’s own flight the sculpture shone,
He’d caught that angel-vision.

Children of life are we, as we stand
With our lives uncarved before us,
Waiting the hour when, at God’s command,
Our life-dream shall pass o’er us.

If we carve it then on the yielding stone,
With many a sharp incision,
Its heavenly beauty shall be our own,
Our lives, that angel-vision.

[InterestedReader]

..Sorry Twins, we sent those simultaneous.

Yes, when you enlarge it, it looks even more of an immature hand.

How does it compare against Borden's known signature? I'm not sure where to find an example. There is this one online - we're told it's Borden's. But doesn't the next word mean signed by an attorney...? Well if it is Borden's, there's no resemblance with the expensive Ebay autograph

image.jpg

[mbhenty]

Hello InterestedReader. Thanks for posting. The document you posted with Andrew J Borden's signature was probably not signed by Andrew, but his Attorney. After the name you can see the acronym "Atty", for attorney. It is likely that the transaction was done by Andrew's attorney and the attorney signed Andrew's name. This was common practice back then in the business world. If not... then it is another Andrew J Borden, an attorney. I can't recall any Andrew Bordens who were attorneys living around that time line in Fall River.

Hey yeah twins I never thought about the initials "A. J." Could have been "Alice Jane" instead of Andrew Jackson.

Several hours researching an insubstantial poem. The crazy way we spend our time, heh