Physical description

vi, 340 p, ; xi, 137 p. Embossed green cover, titles of works and series titles in gold on spine. Frontispiece illustration - portrait of Washington Irving.
Volume VIII consists of re-issues of two works published by Bell & Daldy (which were themselves new editions of previously published works): 'Astoria : or Anecdotes of an enterprise beyond the Rocky Mountains' (published 1868), and 'A tour on the Prairies' (published 1867). Each work has own pagination, preface, explanatory introduction, and table of contents.

Publication type

non-fiction

Inscriptions & markings

Book plate pasted inside front cover: 'Linton / Mechanics' Institute / Established, 1871'. Signed 'J.Dodds, Secretary'. Book plate indicates book was part of original Linton Mechanics' Institute collection, acquired before 1891.
Circular 'Linton Mechanics' Institute' stamp.

Summary

'Astoria': Describes an expedition to the mouth of the Columbia River and the ultimate failure of attempts between 1810-1813 to establish a permanent American-controlled commercial base at Astoria, in competition with British Russian interests in the region. (First published 1836.)
'A tour on the Prairies': An account of Irving's journey through the Great Plains of the United States, also known as the Prairies, in the early 1800s. (First published 1835.)