J O N K E R S R A R E B O O K S
A CORNERSTONE IN THE HISTORY OF DEMOCRACY 68. MILL, John Stuart ON LIBERTY John W. Parker and Son, 1859. First edition. 8vo. Original publisher’s brown cloth with gilt titles to the spine and blind ruled borders to the covers. A very good copy indeed with fading to the spine as usual and a little wear to a corner at the head of the spine. Internally fresh with perfect hinges and a discrete ownership stamp to the front endpaper. An exceptionally well preserved copy which is seldom found with- out significant repair. Housed in a stout cloth box. [45493] £12,500 Mill’s most significant work on the importance of freedom of speech, upon which much of his lasting influence rests. It was described on publication as “one of those remarkable works whose appearance forms an event in literature, as its perusal constitutes an epoch in the reader’s mind.” (The Spectator, Feb 1859) “Many of Mill’s ideas are now the commonplaces of democracy. His arguments for freedom of every kind of thought and speech have never been improved on. He was the first to recognize the tendency of a demo- cratically elected majority to tyrannize over a minority” (PMM). PMM 345
69. MILL, John Stuart CONSIDERATIONS ON REPRESENTA- TIVE GOVERNMENT Parker, Son and Bourn, 1861. First edition. 8vo. Original publisher’s slight brown cloth lettered in gilt to the spine with blind decorative borders to the covers. A near fine copy with short splits to the joints at the head and trivial wear to the corners and spine ends, but otherwise a bright, crisp copy. Ownership signatures to the front endpaper, inter- nally fresh. Housed in a cloth chemise and box. [45494] £4,500 Mill’s most substantial work on institutional politics and after On Lib- erty, his work with the longest shadow of influence. In it he discuss- es the optimum form for a government and how its powers should be structured to best represent the electorate. Central to his thesis is his support for proportional representation, in particular the single trans- ferable vote. “a wide-ranging book, and its interest lies as much in the discussion of general principles as in the particular recommendations regarding the ballot, proportional representation, and plural voting, not to mention the treatment of local government, federalism, and nationality” (Inter- national Encyclopaedia of Social Sciences).
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