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50 DARWIN, Charles. On the Origin of Species. London: John Murray, 1861 A PARTICULARLY FRESH COPY Third edition of “the most influential scientific work of the 19th century” (Horblit) and “certainly the most important biological book ever written” (Freeman), in which Darwin explained his concept of evolutionary adaptation through natural selection, which would become the foundation of modern evolutionary theory. Darwin’s Origin was first published in 1859. For the third edition, the text was extensively altered, and a table is given of differences from the second edition of 1860, a feature that occurs in each subsequent Murray edition. The third edition is also notable for the addition of the historical sketch in which Darwin acknowledges his predecessors in the general theory of evolution, which had already appeared in shorter form in the first German edition, as well as in the fourth American printing, both in 1860. All copies of the third edition are marked “seventh thousand” on the title page, noting the total issue of copies from the first edition onwards.
1943 and April 1944. Despite these apparently large numbers, the attrition rate was high and survival rare, particularly in such fine condition. The compilation of these brilliantly succinct and well-organized handbooks was the work of J. L. Austin (1911–1960), who was to become known as one of the leaders of “Oxford philosophy”, and is often thought of “as the paradigmatic ‘linguistic philosopher’” ( ODNB ). During the Second World War, after preliminary training, he was commissioned into the Intelligence Corps and posted to the War Office, where he was first employed working on the German Order of Battle, “work which demanded the exactly the kind of detailed accuracy, which was, of course, immensely congenial to him” (Warnock, p. 8). He subsequently took command of GHQ Home Forces, a small unit formed to do preliminary work for the invasion of Western Europe, “and this was the field in which he became an unrivalled authority. His section, whose earlier days had been rather haphazard, was soon operating with method, rapidity, and a clear purpose”. As preparations for D-day advanced, Austin’s section was “vastly enlarged and transferred, under the name of Theatre Intelligence Section, to 21 Army Group”.
Octavo. Original green diagonal-wave-grain cloth, spine lettered and decorated in gilt (Freeman’s variant b, no priority), covers blocked in blind, brown endpapers. Folding diagram facing p. 123. Contemporary bookseller’s ticket of William Dodd of Newcastle to front pastedown, binder’s ticket of Edmonds & Remnants of London to rear pastedown. Light residue of removed sticker to spine and very minor rubbing to rear joint, contents clean, short closed tear at fore edge of pp. 375/6, slight separation in book block between sigs. T and U, a few leaves opened a little roughly, a few unopened in index; a bright, fresh copy. ¶ Freeman 381. Ernst Mayr, introduction to the Harvard University facsimile of the first edition, 1964, pp. vii–xxviii. £6,500 [152633] 51 D-DAY – AUSTIN, J. L. “Invade Mecum” Volume 3. London: 1944 POCKET-SIZED INGENUITY THAT MADE D-DAY POSSIBLE An excellent example of one of the battledress pocket guidebooks for D-day invasion troops, brilliantly conceived by one of the great minds of post-war British philosophy. The binders were produced in November 1943 in a run of 30,000; all parts with print runs of 10,000 and issue dates between November
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