NARRATIVE OF AN EXPEDITION INTO SOUTHERN AFRICA DURING THE YEARS 1836 AND 1837 - SCARCE BOMBAY EDITION

18+406 pages. Original boards, spine slightly faded, small split to top of rear board, very occasional spot of foxing, remains a very good copy. Lithographic frontispiece, and three other similar plates, folding lithographic map with some outline colour, showing the movement of the Voortrekkers in the Great Trek. 

Variant issue of the first Bombay edition, which predates the first London by a year, "scarce" (Czech). Harris was commissioned in the Bombay Engineers in 1823, promoted captain in 1834 and major in 1836. Invalided to South Africa for two years, on the voyage out he joined up with Richard Williamson, a Bombay civil servant, deciding to undertake a big game hunting expedition.

"Harris journeyed to the Meritsane River where he encountered a herd of quaggas and brindled 'gnoos' he estimated at 15,000 head. He bagged eland and was attacked by lion in the region. Crossing the Mariqua River, he hunted ostrich and white rhinoceros. Entering the Cashan Mountains, he collected elephant, the proceeded to the Limpopo Valley where he hunted buffalo and hippopotamus, with additional sport after giraffe, black rhinoceros, sable, and lion. Harris's work is valuable as it presents a detailed picture of the South African game fields prior to the growing pressure of civilization.

"Howgego remarks that "Although primarily a hunting expedition, Harris covered much ground not seen before by Europeans, and on his way to the Vaal discovered the source of the Marique River, one of the head-waters of the Limpopo", and Mendelssohn draws attention to the "two chapters on the 'Great Trek'" and the "interesting map 'exhibiting the relative positions of the emigrant farmers and the native tribes'". Neat ink ownership inscription of John Leveson Gower on end paper & top of title page. Abbey Travel 333; Czech pp118-9; Mendelssohn I, pp.686-8; SABIB, 2, p.506. N.B. This copy appears to be a variant copy of the 1st issue. The frontispiece seems to be from the 2nd issue of the first edition (see Catalogue of Prints in the Africana Museum up to 1870, Vol. 1 H.9). The rest of the book tallies with all the points for 1 First Issue of the 1st edition (see - A Bibliography of Captain Harris's Wild Sports of Southern Africa, by Edward C. Tabler, Africana Notes and News, Volume 12, no.1, March 1956, pages 61 to 65.) including the caption on the frontispiece, the lack of captions under plates 2 & 4, the subscribers’ list on pages 399-406, the Prospectus on pages 397-98, the lack of the insert between pages 368 & 369. For clarification or further details please contact the seller.