[Bermuda] [Jamaica] [Barbados] The West Indies and the Spanish Main

London: Chapman & Hall, 1860. Decorative Cloth. Near Fine+. Fourth Edition (in format identical to the first) of this chronicle of Trollope's travels through Barbados, the Bermudas, Cuba, Jamaica, New Granada, St. Thomas, and Trinidad, written while he was on post office business in the West Indies. Crown 8vo (196 x 118mm): iv,5-371,[1],32[publishers' catalogue dated February, 1860]pp, with colored folding map frontispiece. Original grained maroon cloth, covers and spine blocked in blind, spine lettered in gold, edges uncut, pale yellow end papers. Binding lightly rubbed, but tightly bound and clean throughout, a collectible copy. Sadleir 9 (incorrectly dating this edition 1861). Terry, pp. 582-84. The first of Trollope's travel books, originally published the previous year. "Trollope sailed for the West Indies on 17 November 1858, his second postal mission . . . He checked postal routes meticulously . . . prescribed economies, and initiated changes. . . . Henceforth travel would become more important in his life, feeding into his fiction . . . The West Indies and the Spanish Main . . . is rich in observation, commentary on people and places, and careful evaluation of practical issues. His forthright views on race mirror contemporary thinking but have their own integrity based on observation. The book is rich too in anecdote, incident, description, as well as humour." (Terry) N. B. With few exceptions (always identified), we only stock books in exceptional condition, carefully preserved in archival, removable mylar sleeves. All orders are packaged with care and posted promptly. Satisfaction guaranteed. (Fine Editions Ltd is a member of the Independent Online Booksellers Association, and we subscribe to its codes of ethics.).