New York Times on Harper's Half-Hour Series

NEW PUBLICATIONS:
HARPER'S HALF-HOUR SERIES.
EPOCHS OF ENGLISH HISTORY. UNIVERSITY LIFE IN ANCIENT ATHENS. THE GALAXY. THE ART JOURNAL.

June 2, 1877, Wednesday

Page 7, (3206 words)

1st paragraph:
The Half-Hour Series, of which some half dozen volumes have already been offered to the public, is a pleasant addition to the various regiments of small books, whose special uniforms entitle them to occupy a separate place in our libraries, in spite of the heterogeneous materials from which they are made up.

Lovecraft tells us that this was Lillian (Phillips) Clark's little book, and thus she would have acquired it sometime after 1877 - possibly 1880. Having been born in 1856, she would have been about 24 (not a child), and perhaps this was a "sample" for long time readers of Harper's Magazine?

It does not appear that it was a purchased present for young Howard.