The Drums of the Fore and Aft [The TRUE FIRST AMERICAN EDITION TOGETHER WITH THE FIRST AUTHORIZED AMERICAN EDITION FURTHER TOGETHER WITH THE FIRST WRAPPERED EDITION]

New York: Bretano's; Doubleday; and F. Tennyson Neely, [1898 and 1899]. First Editions. Original Cloth and Original Wrappers. Very good +. TEMPORARILY DISCOUNTED. WAS $1,250. NOW $375. A Very Good copy of the TRUE FIRST AMERICAN Separate EDITION (a piracy) [1898] meeting all of the detailed bibliographic requirements of that edition, together with a Near Fine copy of the slightly later First Authorized American separate edition, the first having been published by Bretano's and the first Authorized separate edition published by Dana Estes and Company in 1898. The true first separate edition (which shows a closed tear to the outer margin of one page) precedes the first authorized one and is, in our experience, is -- by quite a bit -- the scarcer of the two. This copy is the first of multiple undated editions of the tale published by Bretano's (of which we have seen several for sale with the same outer appearance but which are not the true first separate American edition), -- with this copy meeting all the particular requirements required to qualify for its priority. [The tale previously appeared in Kipling's "Wee Willie Winkie and Other Stories" first published in 1888.) The Bretano's copy shows some modest general wear to the board edges and the Estes copy shows tiny rubs to the corners, and bumping to the spine ends. The two copies were both produced by the same printing company but the type was reset for the Authorized separated edition, making the unauthorized edition even more unique than it otherwise would be. [The Estes edition is mistakenly considered by many to be the first separate American edition of the tale, an error which further demonstrates the SCARCITY OF THE TRUE FIRST SEPARATE AMERICAN EDITION.] ALSO INCLUDED is the FIRST WRAPPERED EDITION of the tale's seperate publication, published by F. Tennyson Neely in the original wrappers lettered and decorated in black. This copy shows general edge wear and some fading to the spine. In spite of the foregoing, it is in the best condition of any copy known to us. The book is QUITE SCARCE TO THE MARKET and is undated but, we think, was published in 1899. Together this set of all three major separate publication of the tale is QUITE SCARCE TO THE MARKET.
[NOTE: A commentator has noted that Wee Willie Winkie is a collection of 16 Kiplings short stories collected together in 1895. Most of the stories originate in three booklets of short stories published in 1888. The stories are grouped into three sections corresponding to these booklets, with a couple of extra stories added at the end together with a short play. The stories mainly belong in the period in which Kipling was in India, with consequent Indian influences on many of the tales therein included. Nevertheless 'Only A Subaltern', 'The Man Who Would Be King', and 'The Drums of the Fore and Aft' are Kipling through and through.]