This book is titled "The Field Book; Or Sports And Pastimes Of The British Islands: By The Author Of 'Wild Sports Of The West' ", published in London by G. Kershaw & Son circa 1833. The author is not stated, but W. H. Maxwell was the author of "Wild Sports Of The West", and he is credited with writing "The Field Book" as well. The book is 3/4 bound, with five raised bands, six compartments with gilt lettering and gilt devices on the spine, light red cloth boards, marbled endpapers, the bookplate of Thomas W Lawson and the binder's names "Root & Son" and "Charles E Lauriat" on the first blank endpaper, a sepia-colored fox hunt for a frontis, then a tissue guard and the vignette title page, a four-page Introduction, the text is 563 pages long in double columns, set up like an encyclopedia with entries arranged in alphabetical order running from "Abdomen" to "Zootomy", with numerous woodcut illustrations throughout, and all the edges are gilt. The book is not dated on the title page, so we are not sure if the book is a first edition, but the Introduction is dated April 8, 1833, WorldCat says the first edition was published in 1833, and the original spine is laid in at the rear of the book, so we believe this copy was published circa 1833 and might be a first edition. (See the the photo of the spine laid in at the rear.) William Hamilton Maxwell (1792 - 1850) was an Irish novelist educated in Dublin at Trinity College. He claimed he entered the British Army and saw service in the Peninsular War against Napoleon and at the Battle of Waterloo, but this is generally doubted. He wrote O'Hara (1825) and Stories from Waterloo (1834), and he also wrote a Life of the Duke of Wellington (1839-1841) and a History of the Irish Rebellion of 1798 (1845), which was written in a spirit hostile to the rebels and accompanied with similarly hostile illustrations by George Cruikshank. Thomas William Lawson (1857 - 1925) was an American businessman and author, and a highly controversial Boston stock promoter known for both his efforts to promote reforms in the stock markets and the fortune he amassed for himself through highly dubious stock manipulations. Ahha! The book is 8vo. and measures 8 5/8 x 6 in. wide, and is in great condition. The binding is tight and the text and illustrations are very clean, with a small brown spot on one page and just a bit of brown spots on the two blank endpapers after the last page of text, there's light rubbing on the spine and at the tips, and a very attractive copy of this unusual sporting title from England in the 1800's. #115 #1656