On Desert Trails with Everett Ruess (Second edition inscribed by Everett's brother, Waldo Ruess)
Palm Desert, California: Desert Magazine Press, 1950. Second edition [Advance Readers Copy?]. Paperback. 80pp. Slim quarto [25.5 cm] Brown cloth spine with tan wraps. Title in gilt on front wrap. Light wear to the wraps.
The book includes facsimiles of Ruess' woodcuts and facsimile photographs of Ruess and his travels. It was published sixteen years after Ruess disappeared in the wilds of Southern Utah. This copy is highly significant, as it is inscribed by Waldo Ruess, brother of Everett, on the recto of the frontispiece: "For Buckley Jeppson who / appreciates and understands the / beauty to be found within these / pages. / Sincerely, / Waldo Ruess / Santa Barbara / Dec. 30, 1980."
Buckley Jeppson was very much involved in the rediscovery of Everett Ruess. He researched the timeline, hunted down and visited the family in California, searched a previous residence of the family for materials, visited on horseback the last-known site of Everett in the Escalante desert, and eventually edited the book “Everett Ruess: A Vagabond for Beauty,” published by Gibbs M. Smith in 1983.
In “Everett Ruess: A Vagabond for Beauty,” W. L. Rusho emphasizes that Ruess' brother, Waldo, was one of the anchors in Everett's life at home. He was 4 1/2 years older than Everett, and by the early 1930s he was already active in his chosen career as a government diplomatic aide and later as an international businessman. Waldo worked and lived in ten foreign countries, and traveled in 100 others. Despite the distance between them, Everett wrote frequently to Waldo, and his high regard for his older brother is clearly demonstrated in his letters. Very Good. Item #64592
he mystery surrounding renowned vagabond, artist and writer, Everett Ruess (1914-1934) continues to the present day. Ruess vanished into the Escalante wilderness in November of 1934 and hasn't been heard of since. No trace of him has ever been found. His last letter written to his brother Waldo indicated that "...As to when I shall revisit civilization, it will not be soon, I think. I have not yet tired of the wilderness"
From Gibbs Smith's entry in "Utah History Encyclopedia" edited by Allan Kent Powell-
"Ruess traveled on foot, leading a pack burro, in northern Arizona and southern Utah in the early 1930s. He wrote impassioned letters to his parents, brother, and friends about his adventures and about the natural beauty of the canyonlands and Colorado Plateau region. He particularly admired Monument Valley and the Escalante area, and created wood-block prints.
"He resided in California during the winter months, and was friends with photographers Edward Weston, Ansel Adams, Dorothea Lange, and painter Maynard Dixon. All saw great potential in this young man and encouraged him in his artistic endeavors.
"In the autumn of 1934, Ruess set out from Escalante in southern Utah, intending to go south into Arizona to spend the winter. In February 1935 his burro was found in Davis Gulch. His probable last camp was found in Cottonwood Canyon. Ruess himself has never been found. He is celebrated by many for his spirit and writings, such as his words: 'There is a splendid freedom in solitude, and after all, it is for solitude that I go to the mountains and deserts, not for companionship. In solitude I can bare my soul to the mountains unabashed. I can work or think, act or recline at my whim, and nothing stands between me and the Wild.' See: W. L. Rusho and Waldo Ruess, Everett Ruess: A Vagabond for Beauty (1983)."
Price: $1,500.00