THE HISTORY OF SANDFORD AND MERTON. Corrected and Revised by Cecil Hartley

"A New Edition". With the provenance of Francis [Frank] Cabot Lowell, Federal Judge and member of one of New England's most prestigious families of the 19th century. It is inscribed to him at age twelve by his maternal grandfather in 1862. With a number of fine engraved plates illustrating the adventures, most feature animals such as lions, elephants, seals, and camels. 12mo, publisher's original deep blue cloth blind-embossed all over in an intricate Victorian manner, the upper cover with lettering within a gilt pictorial vignette featuring the two children, the spine gilt decorated with an elaborate tree encompassing gilt lettering and the two children in gilt. vii, 462, [2 ads] pp. A bright and attractive copy, the cloth fresh with vivid gilt, some light expected rubbing or mellowing along the tips and edges, the hinges both tight and intact, the text clean, fresh, and completely free of spotting or toning, the text-block shaken at the center gutter.

Edizione: a very handsome vintage edition of this once very popular morality tale for youth. originally published between 1783 and 1789, it is not really a "history" as such, but rather an assemblage of varied stories tied together around a common narrative. it follows the reform of a spoiled young brat into a virtuous young gentleman by way of series of adventures and incidents which provide education ranging from fables to scientific lessons. the text embodies many of the educational and philosophical tenets espoused by jean-jacques rousseau.<br> in one of charles dickens' best novels, david copperfield, sandford and merton is referenced, and called the "crocodile book". pegotty, a maidservant in the copperfield household, reads episodes of it to david when he is a child. dickens' eponymous hero fantasizes about the various incidents and adventures described in the book.