Franklin Library FULL leather edition of Washington Irving's "The Sketch of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent.," Illustrated by Richard Westall, a Limited edition, one of the COLLECTED STORIES OF THE WORLD'S GREATEST WRITERS series, published in 1985. Bound in a black leather, the book has gray moire silk end leaves, satin book marker, hubbed spine, gold gilding on three edges---in near FINE condition. Washington Irving, who lived from 1783 – 1859, was an American short story writer, essayists, biographer, historian, and diplomat of the early 19th century.  "Rip Van Winkle" is set in a pleasant village, at the foot of New York's Catskill Mountains.  Kindly Rip Van Winkle, a DUTCH villager, enjoys solitary activities in the wilderness, but he is also loved by all in town—especially the children to whom he tells stories and gives toys. However, he tends to shirk hard work, to his nagging wife's dismay, which has caused his home and farm to fall into disarray. One autumn day, to escape his wife's nagging, Van Winkle wanders up the mountains with his dog, Wolf. Hearing his name called out, Rip sees a man wearing antiquated Dutch clothing; he is carrying a keg up the mountain and requires help. Together, they proceed to a hollow in which Rip discovers the source of thunderous noises: a group of ornately dressed, silent, bearded men who are playing nine-pins. Rip awakes to discover shocking changes. His musket is rotting and rusty, his beard is a foot long, and his dog is nowhere to be found. Van Winkle returns to his village where he recognizes no one. He discovers that his wife has died and that his close friends have fallen in a war or moved away. He gets into trouble when he proclaims himself a loyal subject of KING GEORGE III, not aware that the American Revolution has taken place. King George's portrait in the inn has been replaced with one of George Washington. Rip Van Winkle is also disturbed to find another man called Rip Van Winkle: his son, now grown up. Rip learns he has been away from the village for at least twenty years. Other henpecked men wish they could have shared in Rip's good luck and had the luxury of sleeping through the hardships of the American Revolution. In 1790 in the Dutch settlement of Tarry Town, in a secluded glen called SLEEPY HOLLOW, renowned for its ghosts and the haunting atmosphere, some residents say this town is bewitched and that most infamous spectacle is the HEADLESS HORSEMAN, said to be the ghost of a HESSIAN trooper who had his head shot off by a stray cannonball during during the Revolutionary War. The "Legend" relates the tale of ICHABOD CRANE, a lean, lanky and extremely superstitious schoolmaster from Connecticut. I offer Combined shipping.