Passages of a Working Life during half a century: with A Prelude of Early Reminiscences [3 Volumes]

London: Bradbury & Evans, 1864. Hardcover. Good. Ex-library, non-circulating collection. Half-leather with plum-colored cloth sides (gilt rules). Spine with raised bands, gilt tooled compartments. Top edge gilt. Some wear and corners, extremities; front covers have a bit of discoloration. Spine compartments that formerly had call numbers are slightly brighter. Marbled endpapers. Bookplates on front pastedowns; no pockets. Each volume has a pinhole library stamp on title page and one additional page. 8vo. V.1: xi, [6], (18)-346. V.II: [3], (4)-336. V.III: [3], (4)-344. 7.5 x 4.75 inches. The first two volumes were published in 1864 and Volume III in 1865. Volume III includes a fourteen-page index of names of the contemporaries of the author receiving mention, including personal encounters with Charles Dickens and George III. Autobiography of Charles Knight (1791-1873), an English publisher, editor, writer, and Shakespeare scholar. He was the author of several books, including The Old Printer and the Modern Press (1854) and Shadows of Old Booksellers (1865), and was the founder and publisher of The Penny Magazine. From the collection of John Wilson (c. 1826-1900), pioneer merchant and book collector of Portland, Oregon. The eight-thousand volume collection, considered one of the finest on the west coast, was bequeathed to the Portland public library in 1900.