The Fruits of The Tree, William Jennings Bryan, Signed 1913. This book is titled "The Fruits of The Tree" and was written by William Jennings Bryan, and it's a presentation copy inscribed and signed by him in 1913. William Jennings Bryan (1860 - 1925) was one of the major politicians of his era, becoming the Democratic candidate for President of the United States three times between 1896 and 1908. He was United States Secretary of State under Woodrow Wilson and one of the most popular speakers in American history. Born in Illinois, he lived his first years in Salem, where he became a member of the Presbyterian Church, and he initially wanted to become a minister, but eventually became a lawyer. He moved to Nebraska, entered politics and became editor-in-chief of a local newspaper. In his political life, he supported free silver in the 1890's and promoted getting rid of the gold standard; he was a critic of banks and railroads, supported Prohibition, was an opponent of Darwinism and evolution - he was a lawyer at the famous Scopes trial in 1925, where he argued against Darwinism and won the case, but he got awful press and died in his sleep five days later. He gained national prominence after arguing against Darwin and evolution, but the case might have cost him his life. Bryan is remembered for his defense of fundamentalist Christianity in the face of modern science and evolution, and you can see some of his roots in the book here. The book is a first edition, according to WorldCat. It was published by Fleming Revell, but there is no copyright date, and WorldCat says the first edition came out around 1910. The cover is a simple design, with a paper label and gilt border on the front cover. The blank endpapers have a bold signature of Bryan on the front flyleaf, and the inscription reads "To Hon. Chas S. Hamlin, with compliments & best wishes of W. J. Bryan, Aug 13 - 1913". Charles Sumner Hamlin was an American lawyer and politician who served as the first chairman of the Federal Reserve from 1914 to 1916, and he had been an assistant Secretary of the Treasury before that. The book is 61 pages long, with a two-page list of books related to Christianity at the rear - the pages are called "Clinical Studies of Christianity", and the book comes in the original onion-skin wrapper which has protected the book so well. The book measures 7 1/2 x 5 1/8 in. wide, with clean pages and a tight binding, and the signature is as clear as a bell, and the only blemish we noticed was a slight wrinkle at the bottom of the spine and faint brown spots on the front endpapers, and the onion skin wrapper has some holes and creases, but it doesn't detract from the book at all. The book is in remarkable shape, and it's a testimony to the life of the author. We didn't find any copies of this book online signed by Bryan, and there were only three copies of any book signed by Bryan listed on the rare book website we use, and those three copies were listed at $150, $250, and $395, so to get a better sense of value, we turned to finding out what his signature went for on plain old documents and found that his signatures on hand-written letters go for $250 to $1190, and those letters are few and far between. (They actually go for $250, $275, $420, $680, $695, and $1190.) So a rare copy of this book signed by Bryan that reflects his religious values, the book and his signature are in great condition, and a chance to own a book signed by a three-time candidate for President of the United States. #33 #7035