London to Ladysmith via Pretoria.

Toronto: The Copp, Clark Company, Limited,, 1900. First Canadian edition, first printing, cloth issue, of Churchill's account of his experiences as a war correspondent in the Second Boer War. This copy is from the collection of Churchill's bibliographer Ronald Cohen. "The volume essentially consists of 27 letters and telegrams to the Morning Post written between 26 October 1899 and 10 March 1900... It is, as Churchill said in his Introductory Note, 'mainly a personal record of my adventures and impressions during the first five months of the African War. It may also be found to give a tolerably coherent account of the operations conducted by Sir Redvers Buller for the Relief of Ladysmith" (Cohen). A major component is Churchill's internment in a prisoner-of-war camp and his daring escape, which enthralled readers at the time and helped to cement his reputation as a man of action and character. The Canadian edition was issued from the plates of the US edition, both published in June 1900, following the British edition in May. The Canadian is "the scarcest by far of the three first editions" (Langworth, p. 56). It was also issued in wrappers, though almost never surviving in that format. Provenance: Ronald Cohen, with his ownership inscription in pencil on the front free endpaper. Cohen's Bibliography of the Writings of Sir Winston Churchill, published in three volumes in 2006, is the authoritative source for collectors, librarians, and dealers. Octavo. Original brown cloth, spine lettered in red and black, front cover lettered in red and black with black line-drawing of armoured train. With 3 folding maps including frontispiece, plans in text. Light spotting to cloth and edges. A near-fine copy. Cohen A4.3.a. Richard Langworth, A Connoisseur's Guide to the Books of Sir Winston Churchill, 1998.