The Spirit of Romance - 1910

London / New York: J. M. Dent & Sons, Ltd. / E. P. Dutton & Co, 1910. 1st Edition. Very Good. The first printing of this book included 1250 books, of which 300 were for the American market - this being one of the 300. Bound in olive cloth over boards with gilded lettering on the spine. No jacket, as issued. Binding is original. Rubbing to the edges, some fraying at edges and spine ends, overall holding and looking firm, slightly cocked. The long and lower edges are rough cut, the top edge is gilded. the interior is clean and clear with a few examples of underlining in pencil. Provenance: Ex Libris inside the front cover for Alfred A. Knopf and containing the profile of, Frédéric François Chopin. On the first page is an inscription reading, "December 21, 1910 - Comparative Literature I." In 1910/11 Aldred A. Knopf Sr. was a student at Columbia University in New York and soon to meet his future wife, Blanche Wolf Knopf, with whom he shared a mutual love of books and eventually started their famous publishing house together. Printed in Edinburgh by Turnbull and Spears. Text is clean with a few underlined notes; including, "No man could think base thoughts who looked on her," (page 93).  Pages: (10) 252 Dimensions: 8¼ x 6 x 1½.