The winter vacation; or, holidays in the country

London: Printed for Darton, Harvey, and Darton, 1818. 71pp, [1]. With an engraved frontispiece and a further five engraved plates. Original publisher's marbled boards, green roan spine, ruled and lettered in gilt. Extremities worn, both boards held by single cords only, loss to spine. Booksellers ticket of Duffield's Juvenile Library, Bath to FEP, scattered foxing. The first edition, in original unsophisticated state, of an anonymous tale of two London children who are invited to stay with their cousins at Hawthorn Hall in the Essex countryside. A sequel, The summer vacation..., was published in 1821. In his Walks Through Bath... (Bath, 1819), sporting journalist and author Pierce Egan (1772- 1849) makes brief reference to Duffield's Library: 'The news of the day is also to be acquired at the libraries of Messrs. Godwin and Duffield, whose reading-rooms render a lounge most agreeable and pleasant'. Duffield purchased the library, housed at 11 and then later 12 Milsom Street, from bookseller John Bally in 1811. He maintained the premises until some point between 1838 and 1840, when he founded the Royal Union Library and Reading Rooms in Prince's Buildings. OCLC records copies at location (BL, California, Cambridge, Florida, Princeton, St. Andrews, and Toronto); COPAC adds one further (Oxford). Darton G1051.. First edition. 12mo.