SURTEES, Robert Smith; LEECH, John (illus.).

Inquire · Offered by Peter Harrington

Mr Sponge's Sporting Tour. By the Author of "Handley Cross", Jorrocks's Jaunts', Etc. Etc. First edition, in the original monthly parts published from January to December 1852. Leech's humorous illustrations and his "caricatured but more modern approach [were] the perfect foil to Surtees's writing" (ODNB).Surtees's (1805-64) novels revolve around British field sports. His "sharp, authentic descriptions of the hunting field have retained their popularity among fox-hunters" and "his mordant observations on men, women, and manners; his entertaining array of eccentrics, rakes, and rogues; his skill in the construction of lively dialogue (a matter over which he took great pains); his happy genius for unforgettable and quotable phrases... have won him successive generations of devoted followers" (ODNB). "Sponge lives up to his name by forcing himself upon rich men and making up to their daughters. He is, however, redeemed by enormous courage and skill on horseback and a genuine love of hunting" (Head, p. 776).The set conforms to Wolff's issue points, save for the absence of the Allsopp ale advertisement in Part VII, and has an additional advertisement leaf in Part II for the first instalment of Dickens's Bleak House. The edition in book form was published in January 1853.Provenance: H. Bradley Martin (1906-1988), American collector, with his bookplate on the chemise (lot 2324A in his sale at Sotheby's NY, Part VIII, 1990; Sotheby's sale ticket loosely inserted) - Fitz Eugene Dixon

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