copyright 1899; "With Fifty Illustrations"; Henry Altemus Company publishers, Philadelphia; smaller hardbound; quite good condition of book with unmarked pages; inside front page has gift note from 1904 (in pencil) - see pic; boards good with very minor edge wear - see pics.
 
Description -
The Swiss Family Robinson (German: Der Schweizerische Robinson) is a novel by Johann David Wyss, first published in 1812, about a Swiss family shipwrecked in the East Indies en route to Port Jackson, Australia.
 
Plot -
The novel opens with the family in the hold of a sailing ship, weathering a great storm. The ship's crew evacuate without them, and William and Elizabeth and their four children (Fritz, Ernest, Jack and Franz) are left to survive alone. As the ship tosses about, the father – William – prays that God will spare them.
The ship survives the night and the family finds themselves within sight of a tropical desert island. The next morning, they decide to get to the island they can see beyond the reef. With much effort, they construct a vessel out of tubs. After they fill the tubs with food and ammunition and all other articles of value they can safely carry, they row toward the island. Two dogs from the ship named Turk and Juno swim beside them. The ship's cargo of livestock (including a cow, a donkey, two goats, six sheep, a ram, a pig, chickens, domestic ducks, domestic geese, and domestic pigeons), guns and powder, carpentry tools, books, a disassembled pinnace, and provisions have survived.
 
Upon reaching the island, the family set up a makeshift camp. William knows that they must prepare for a long time on the island and his thoughts are as much on provisions for the future as for their immediate wants. William and his oldest son Fritz spend the next day exploring the island...