1896 Second Edition – THE HAPPY HYPOCRITE By Max Beerbohm. Antiquarian Small Leather-Bound Book (“Bodley Booklets” Series No.1). A Fairy Tale For Tired Men. 
 
This is a COPYRIGHT, 1896, SECOND EDITION, published by John Lane, New York, which I understand is the same year as the first edition. On the last typed page of the book, it states “Here ends the tale of the Happy Hypocrite, by Max Beerbohm. Done into typed and printed for John Lane, at the Wayside Press, Springfield, Mass., in November, m dccc xc vi” (1896). 
 
Bound by "THE NOTARY BINDERS", 3 Church Street, London. 
 
This is a RARE LEATHER and VERY EARLY EDITION, bound in FULL CRUSHED MOROCCO, with GILT RULING and MOTIFS and LETTERING, and there are ALL-EDGE GILT PAGES.
 
Max Beerbohm (1872–1956) was a British caricaturist, essayist, and playwright, known for his sharp wit and distinctive style. Born in London, he was educated at the University College School and later at the University of Oxford, where he developed his talents in writing and art. 
 
This does not include a dust jacket. 
 
The boards and spine are intact, robust, and in a good condition for nearly 130 years old. There is some wear, expected from a book of this age. This includes patches of discolouration on the boards, discolouration on the spine, a slight crushing to the top, front corner, a few small marks, and light scratches. Please see the photographs provided for further reference. 
 
Inside, the pages are lightly tanned, which is consistent with a book of this age. There is darker tanning at the edges of the free endpapers. The pages are in an overall neat and uncreased condition, with just the occasional small marks or very light foxing. This does not affect the text. Most of the pages are without rips, and there is only an extremely small rip at the top edge of one of the flyleaf pages at the rear. This does not affect any of the text. On the front free endpaper there is a pen inscription written. There are no further pen or pencil marks written in this book. There is a small sticker pasted to the reverse of the back free endpaper stating, “Bound By The Notary Binders 5 Church Street W.8”. All the pages are secure and there are no loose pages, but between a couple of pages there are minor and partial cracks in the gutter. There are no missing pages and so all 54 pages are present. 
 
Please study the photos carefully as to the condition of this book, as they do form part of the description. 
 
This is a small book which measures approximately 16 cm by 12.2 cm and 1.2 cm wide. It weighs approximately 202 grams. 
 
Thank you for looking.