An Authentic Account of an Embassy from the King of Great Britain to The Emperor of China: including cursory observations made, and information obtained in travelling through that ancient empire, and a small part of Chinese Tartary ... Volumes 1 and 2

London: G. Nicol, 1797. 1st Edition 1st Printing. Quarter Morocco Over Boards. Very Good +. 11 1/8" Tall. Frontispieces, Plates And Illustrations. (Ii), Xxxiv,518; (Ii), Xx, 626. The Two Complete Text Volumes In Full Size, Text Blocks 10 5/8" Tall; The Plates Were Issued 1796 In A Separate Volume, Not Present Here; But The Plate Of The Camellia Sesanqua Is Present Between Pp 466 And 467. Original Quarter Morocco Binding, Five Bands, Morocco Spine Labels, Over Boards Covered With Marbled Paper, Original Off-White Endpapers, Preliminary And Final Blank In Each Volume. Bindings With Old Wear But Nicely Furbished, Morocco Labels Clean With Brilliant Gilt, A Little Loss Of Leather At Tops Of Spines And At Top Right Front Spine Edge, Paper Frayed Along All Edges Of Boards, Hinges Tight, Contents Clean, Just A Few Tiny Foxing Spots. Small Very Old Booksellers' Label Of The China Times, Bookseller, 94 Consular Road, Tientsin. And Another From Sydney. Former Owner's Signature Dated 1894, Erased In Volume 1, Of George Ernest Morrison, And A Few Marginalia Which Appear To Be His; George Ernest "G. E." Morrison (1862 - 1920), Also Known As Morrison Of Peking Or Chinese Morrison, Was An Australian Adventurer, Appointed In February 1897 As The Times Correspondent In Peking Despite His Lack Of Knowledge In The Chinese Language. He Traveled To Vladivostok And Reported To The Times That Russian Engineers Were Making Preliminary Surveys From Kirin Towards Port Arthur, Then Sent A Telegram To Say That Russia Had Presented A Five-Day Ultimatum To China Demanding The Right To Construct A Railway To Port Arthur. This Was A Triumph For The Times And Its Correspondent, But He Had Also Shown Prophetic Insight In Another Phrase Of His Dispatch, When He Stated That "The Importance Of Japan In Relation To The Future Of Manchuria Cannot Be Disregarded". After A Visit To Siam And England, Then To Australia, 1899-1900, He Returned To Peking. When The Boxer Uprising Broke Out And During The Siege Of The Legations From June To August Morrison As An Acting-Lieutenant Showed Great Courage, Always Ready To Volunteer For Every Service Of Danger. After A Siege Of 55 Days, The Legations Were Relieved By A Multinational Force, Which Then Ransacked Much Of The Palaces In Peking, With Morrison Taking Part In The Looting. There Was Great Uncertainty Regarding The Future Of China In The Following Months, And Through The Times Morrison Managed To Depict A Skewed Picture Before The British Public. While Russia And Japan United In Opposing Any Dismemberment Of China, The Country Was Nevertheless Punished By The Imposition Of A Heavy Indemnity. In 1904 Morrison Became A Correspondent With The Japanese Army. He Was Present At The Entry Of The Japanese Into Port Arthur Early In 1905, And Represented The Times At The Usa Peace Conference. In 1907 He Crossed China From Peking To The French Border Of Tonkin And In 1910 Rode From Honan Across Asia To Russian Turkestan. From Andijan He Took A Train To St Petersburg, And Then Traveled To London Arriving On 29 July 1910. A Great Chinese Physician, Dr. Wu Lien-Teh, Succeeded In Staying The Spread Of This Mortal Sickness Which Seemed To Threaten The Whole World. Morrison Published A Series Of Articles Advocating The Launching Of A Modern Scientific Public Health Service In China. When The Chinese Revolution Began In 1911 Morrison Took The Side Of The Revolutionaries. In August Morrison Resigned His Position On The Times To Become Political Adviser To The Chinese Government, And Immediately Went To London To Assist In Floating A Chinese Loan Of £10 Million. In China During The Following Years He Had An Anxious Time Advising, And Endeavoring To Deal With The Political Intrigues That Were Continually Going On. He Visited Australia Again In December 1917 And Returned To Peking In February 1918. He Represented China During The Peace Discussions At Versailles In 1919, But His Health Began To Give Way And He Retired To England Well Aware That He Had Only A Short Time To Live. He Died On 30 May 1920 . A Nice Historical Association. Later Ownership Signatures Of G B Wilson.