Maggie a Girl of the Streets by Crane, Stephen

New York: Appleton, 1896. First edition thus (158 adverts). Octavo, in tan cloth with gilt, red, and black decoration and titles. The first appearance of Maggie under Crane’s name, the book having been published first in paper in 1893 under the name (chosen from the telephone book) Johnston Smith and with the parenthetic subtitle ‘A Story of New York’. With the commercial success of the Red Badge of Courage, Appleton published this hard cover edition; it comes with the curious publisher’s note claiming this was the first Maggie to see the light of day. There is more about these matters in Michael Quigley’s excellent feature article in Firsts magazine (January 1996). Covers blotched and rubbed (Appleton’s rough cloth covers had a way of ‘rusting’ in a humid atmosphere); front hinge just starting, deckle edges becoming brittle. Not the cleanest and brightest of covers, but tight and neat inside.