(#157113) A MAN MADE OF MONEY. Douglas Jerrold.

A MAN MADE OF MONEY. London: Published at the Punch Office, 85, Fleet Street, October 1848-March 1849. Octavo, six parts: pp. [1-4] [1] 2-283 [284: printer's imprint], the full compliment of advertisers and advertising leaves are present, twelve inserted plates with steel engravings after drawings by John Leech, original white wrappers printed in light green and black, edges untrimmed, sewn. First edition. "The protagonist, besieged by demands from his wife and stepdaughters, wishes that he were 'made of money;' he then finds himself able to peel banknotes from his breast. As his fortune increases, his substance dwindles, while his temper and reputation go steadily to the bad. The acidic wit is assisted by a remarkably extravagant style, giving the story more savage bite than Dalton's INVISIBLE GENTLEMAN ..." - Barron, ed., Fantasy and Horror (1999) 3-74. Douglas William Jerrold (1803-1857), "famous wit, successful playwright, magazine proprietor (he was one of the founders of PUNCH) and very minor novelist, flourished on the edge of the Victorian fiction scene ... In the 1820s, a period of excited reform agitation, he developed the political radicalism which he held throughout his life ... This story is one of Jerrold's most effective satires on capitalism. He apparently borrowed the idea for his novel from Balzac's LA PEAU DE CHAGRIN (1831)." - Sutherland, Victorian Fiction, pp. 332-33; 406. Bleiler, The Guide to Supernatural Fiction 922. Bleiler (1978), p. 109. Reginald 07896. Block, The English Novel 1740-1850, p. 123. Wolff 3667a. Wrappers lightly chipped at edges, worn, spotted, soiled, and/or faded, part V has insect damage along the fore-edge which toward the end affects words on a few lines of text, the plates are foxed, especially the two in part I and both are detached in part VI, a good copy. The last set of parts at public auction sold for $1250 on 18 October 2011 at Bonhams. This is hardly a distinguished copy, but it is uncommon in the original parts. (#157113).

Price: $350.00

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