The Return of the Native by Hardy, Thomas - 1878

London: Smith, Elder and Co., 1878. Three volumes complete - Volume One - vi, 303pp, [1]; Volume Two - vi, 297pp, [3] and Volume Three - vi, 320pp. Later full crushed morocco by Sangorski and Sutcliffe, raised bands, spines in six panels, title in gilt to second panel, author and volume to third, remaining panels gilt with central flower head, surrounded by a quadrilobe and volutes with dots and small roundels in the background, covers with double fillet border and an inner single fillet frame, gilt rolls to edges and inner edges, t.e.g. Slightly rubbed to extremities, otherwise externally very good indeed. Internally very lightly browned with one or two small spots of foxing, but generally quite bright and clean. With frontispiece in volume one. The Foyle copy, with the Beeleigh Abbey bookplate to front pastedowns, also the Clement K. Shorter copy, with his bookplate to one of the blanks of volume one, with a presentation inscription by Hardy to Shorter on the half-title of volume one stating 'To Clement Shorter, Yours Sincerely, Thomas Hardy July 2. 1903'. Now housed in a cloth slipcase made by Temple Bookbinders. Hardy gave the original manuscript of 'The Return of the Native' to Shorter in 1908 in return for his having had a number of Hardy's manuscripts bound (Purdy, page 27), and whilst Purdy records two other books inscribed to Shorter by Hardy, books inscribed by Hardy are uncommon. Sadleir 1113, Purdy, pages 24-27. Signed by Author. First Edition. Full Morocco. Very Good. 8vo.