Beschreibung:

Title: Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (Tom Sawyer's Comrade) Author: Twain, Mark [pseud. of Samuel L. Clemens] Place: New York Publisher: Charles L. Webster Date: 1885 Description: 366 pp., blank. Double frontispiece (including portrait), with tissue-guard, plus numerous wood engravings throughout. (8vo)21.5x16.3 cm (8½x6½"), original decorative green cloth, stamped and lettered in gilt and black; custom half morocco slipcase & chemise. First American Edition, early state. A superb, bright, tight copy, practically as new, of the first edition of the quintessential classic of 19th century American literature. Accompanied by an autograph note, signed Mark Twain, on stationery imprinted "Tuxedo Park, New York," which imprint Twain has crossed out. The note reads: "This is Huck Finn, a child of mine of shady record. Be patient with him for his family's sake." The note has some glue residue on the reverse from earlier mounting. Also present is an example of the "Suppressed Plate from Huckleberry Finn 100 Proofs," showing the "priapic" state of the illustration on p.283; this was produced by Merle Johnson from the original leaf in the collection of Willard S. Morse. There is a pencil note by Merle Johnson on the front endpapers of the book, describing in brief the book and its exceptional condition: "...With the new plate tipped in p.283 - and copy inserted of the first 100 proofs of the suppressed plate. No copy has yet been discovered with the suppressed plate bound in - Merle Johnson. P.S. The finest copy as to condition I have every seen. M.J." The present copy exhibits the following issue points: title leaf is not a cancel, with copyright notice dated 1884 (third state); the illustration captioned "Him and another Man" [p.13] listed as p.88 (first state); 11th line from bottom of p.57 reads "...with the was..." (first state); p. 283 is a cancel, with corrected engraving (third state, but earliest known state in cloth-bound copies); the final 5 in the numeration of page 155 is lacking (first state); leaf 23-8 is present as a blank, first state of the frontispiece portrait (imprint of Heliotype with tablecloth visible). BAL 3415. Provenance: Maurice F. Neville Collection, Sotheby's, April 13, 2004. Lot Amendments Condition: The slightest rubbing to spine ends and corners, and faint rubmark to rear cover; a fine, bright copy. Item number: 273120