Conrad, Joseph

large 8vo (245 x 163mm.), 120pp., first separate issue, copyright edition, one of eight known copies, original grey wove paper wrappers, note by Heinemann or publisher's clerk on upper wrapper ("serial | setting | only. Book form | will be | ordinary | sized page"), preserved in blue cloth folding case and matching slipcase, some slight wear and creasing at head and base of the spine and at extremities 

Charles Scribner's Sons, New York, presented to them by the publisher, inscription on upper wrapper; by descent to The Scribner Book Store, Fifth Avenue, New York, their typed description loosely inserted ("...a book too noble to be considered merely as a work of art..."), c.1940s; Sotheby's New York, 15 June 1990, lot 28, $28,000

Cagle A3a, recording copies at the British Library, the Bodleian, Cambridge University Library, the National Library of Scotland, Colgate University, Yale (two copies) and "one in a private collection" (presumably the present copy).

"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

The only recorded copy in private hands of the rare copyright edition of Conrad's great novel. This edition was printed at around the same time as the first instalment of the serialization of the novel appeared in the New Review on 26 July 1897. Conrad had signed an agreement with Heinemann for the English book publication on the same day, and the publisher immediately instructed W.E. Henley (to whom Conrad had given the serial rights in May) to print the necessary copyright copies from the typesetting for the New Review (see Cagle A3a, and the note on the upper wrapper of the present lot).

Between the serial and book-form publication Conrad made a number of textual changes (see Cagle, p.24), "largely a matter of substituting a more precise word or phrase in his continuing search for the mot juste". The two examples given by Cagle are present in this copyright edition struck off from the same setting: line 7 on the first page has "then said deliberately", replaced by "then said reflectively" in lines 9-10 of the book edition; and p.15, line 22 "just a little bitterness" is changed to "some slight bitterness".

The pagination in the present copy varies substantially from that in the New Review (a collation and comparison of this, from the time of the Sotheby's 1990 sale, is included in the lot). Pp. 71-80 are paginated and printed on the rectos only, indicating that they are perhaps proof sheets; many of the other leaves are quite possibly page proofs, printed on recto and verso.