The Peoples and Politics of the Far East; Travels and Studies in the British, French, Spanish and Portuguese Colonies, Siberia, China, Japan, Korea, Siam and Malaya

New York, NY: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1895. 1st Edition . Hardcover. Very Good. 8vo - over 7¾ - 9¾" tall. This is the first edition of this classic work. Presumed printed and bound in the USA. 9 x 6.25 inches. Heavy-duty ecru binding, with an intaglio design in shades of silver and pea green, and with dark gray lettering to the front board and spine. Very gently bumped spine head and tail, and with sharp corners. An exceptionally clean and appealing binding, with spine slightly sunned. The text block is firmly bound in. Top page edges featuring an attractive gray-green stain; fore-edges and bottom edges deckled. With xvi and 608 numbered pages, including index. With a graphic frontispiece, The Confession of Guilt under Torture, a facsimile of a drawing by a Chinese artist. Indeed an entire chapter of the book is devoted to "Chinese Horrors" and includes an extremely graphic photo of the aftermath of Death by the Thousand Cuts. With a total of 60 B&W illustrations, many full-page on coated stock, and 4 maps: Vladivostok; Won-San; Indo-China; Malay Peninsula. The latter two are pull-out maps and in pristine condition. Remnant of a blue ribbon page marker. Rear pastedown with remnant of what resembles a pocket for a library card but no markings anywhere in the book to indicate ex library status. The interior is immensely clean, and no stains or underlining or age toning in evidence. Rated a Very Good Plus copy. Scarce in any condition. 3 lbs. 1 oz. weight.