London: Chapman and Hall, 1861. First edition. 3 octavo volumes. Original violet wavy-grained cloth, the covers with floral decoration within linear border stamped in blind, spines lettered in gilt, yellow endpapers. Housed in a custom red quarter morocco and cloth solander box. With 32 pp. publisher’s adverts at end of Vol. III dated May 1861. Spines expertly relined with original spines laid down, ends and tips refurbished, hinges skillfully repaired, some foxing and spotting to contents, withal a very good copy in bright cloth.

First impression, published on 6 July 1861, one of 1,000 copies. The first edition was divided into five impressions, with distinct title pages labelling them as five editions, perhaps to imply rapid sales. This copy has the great majority of Cardwell’s points for the first impression (from Appendix D to the Clarendon edition), but with the following exceptions: Vol. II: 282.3 no ink between seemed and hardly; Vol. III: 39.5 no ink between you and feel; 193 foot middle I in III is not faint (although the same page has line 23 with the initial i in inflexible missing, Cardwell’s state 1); 195.2 first inverted comma not faint; 217.3 in Cardwell's state 4/5, with very faint dot of semicolon after night; 220.16 end-of-line hyphen is not faint.

Cardwell notes: “The Bodleian copy of Vol. III in 1st impression emends the following faults: 103 page-No.; 193.23; 195.2; 220.16. It also has at 192.11-12 himself very/carefully. These changes suggest a later state of Vol. III within the 1st impression.” This copy has 192.11-12 himself very/carefully, but emends five faults, only two of which are as the Bodleian copy, which suggests that Cardwell's account of Vol. III does not definitively reflect all possible variants within the first impression as issued.

An excellent copy of one of the most elusive Dickens first editions.

Smith I.14. Very Good (Item #1969)