The Great Thirst Land [1878]

"I shoot for the pot - id est, to fill the pot; when that is done I cease to take the lives of valuable, food-furnishing animals." These are the opening words of the author's preface, which ends with a challenge to those who would like to join him in a journey through Africa from south to north.

Light maroon cloth-boards, decorated and lettered in gilt and black on the upper board and spine. Plain endpapers. xviii + 466 pp of text (title page printed in red and black) + frontispiece (but no other illustrations, map or index).

The boards are well rubbed at the extremities and spine joins. The front free endpaper is pasted to the paste-down. The verso carries the names of two former owners in ink. This page and the verso of the frontispiece are heavily cracked and the binding is shaken, though the hinges remain intact. There are some other binding cracks, including O/P, with pp 225/6 almost detached, and S/T, with pp 289/90 also almost detached. Finally, there are a few pencilled marginal notes (such as correcting "camile-dorn" to "kameeldoorn".

A pencilled note on the frontispiece verso reads: "(1876), wood-engraved frontis, R1865, w a f [binding deficient], Czech p 63".

This rare book can be very valuable but in this case the reserve has been lowered because the condition is only acceptable - though better than a reading copy.