1872 Helen Hunt Jackson Bits of Travel -- BAL Look Up Please

[rennybooks]

Good Morning

I have a copy of H H Jackson's Bits of Travel.  Dated 1872 on the title page and with Osgood shown as the publisher with the Welch, Bigelow imprint on the verso of the title page and again on the final page.  No illustrations of any sort.

Anyone have the appropriate volume of Bibliography of American Literature for Jackson?  The entry is 10418.  I am not sure that determining the books state will affect value much, but would like to be concise.

Thank your for your time!

[rennybooks]

Also accepting any conjecture, disinformation and outright lies 😉

[lludwig]

rennybooks - Thanks for my morning laugh! 

[jeanpaulbooks · Accepted solution]

The BAL states "According to the publisher's records, there were four printings dated 1872."

1.  Jan 23, 1872;  1412 printed by Welch, Bigelow; imprint on copyright page and p. 304;

2.  May 1, 1872;  514 copies printed by W,B; imprint on copyright page and p. 304.

3.  June 7, 187; 1000 copies printed by W,B: imprint on copyright page and p. 304.

4.  August 15, 1872; 825 copies printed by Rand, Avery.

It states there  was a "possible prior publication" in London, 1871.  The editors had not actually seen it but had seen an announcement.

[rennybooks]

Thank you Jeanpaulbooks!  Exactly what I was looking for.

Not sure that it clears anything up. 

[jeanpaulbooks]

There is an additional point of information that might be useful: the first printing used paper weighing 70 lbs per ream, while the second and third printings used paper weighing 54 lbs per ream (the fourth printing was also 54 lbs per ream). It looks like you would need a first and second/third printing to be able to establish whether one copy is a first printing, i.e., if you could tell the difference in the paper weights.