Victoria, Queen of Great Britain

AUTOGRAPH PRESENTATION INSCRIPTION FROM QUEEN VICTORIA to Earl Cairns, The Lord Chancellor: 'To | Lord Cairns, Lord Chancellor | from |Victoria R | Balmoral | Oct: 21, 1868' on the front flyleaf. Second Edition, edited by Arthur Helps. 8vo (200 x 137mm), pp. xv, [1 (blank)], [2 (contents)], [2 (section-title, verso blank)], 315, [1 (imprint)]; engraved frontispiece and engraved plate, both retaining tissue guards, wood-engraved illustrations in the text, after the author. In the rare original green hard-grained morocco gilt presentation binding by Burn & Co., London, boards with gilt-ruled borders and central design of antlers, reproducing the design in the trade binding, spine lettered and ruled in gilt, board-edges roll-tooled in gilt, gilt-ruled turn-ins, mid-brown endpapers, all edges gilt, blue silk marker. TOGETHER WITH an AUTOGRAPH LETTER FROM QUEEN VICTORIA to Earl Cairns, Balmoral, 21 October 1868; 1 page, 8vo, light-blue mourning paper with black border and printed address; a few light spots, laid down.