Liberalism and the Social Problem, the extraordinarily rare wraps issue of the first edition, one of only two surviving copies known

London: Hodder and Stoughton, Ltd., 1909. First edition, second printing. Wraps. This exciting find is one of only two known surviving copies of the first edition, second and final printing, softcover (wraps) issue of Churchill's Liberalism and the Social Problem, his third published book of speeches.

Discovering a previously unidentified issue of a book-length work in the Churchill canon is remarkable. Churchill is one of history’s most studied and best documented figures and the bibliography of his published works is impressively thorough. Nonetheless, until we discovered copies in 2010 and 2017, no wraps issue was known for Liberalism and the Social Problem.

This second copy was discovered in northeastern England in 2017 and the other in Glasgow in 2010. Despite the fact that only two copies are known, surprisingly, they differ. The rear cover of the copy discovered in 2010 lists three Hodder & Stoughton “Pamphlets for Distribution”. By contrast, the rear cover of this copy only features two lines of print specifying the printer and publisher. Instead, a terminal leaf following p.414 advertises the three aforementioned pamphlets on the verso and two additional works – The People’s Budget Explained by David Lloyd George and The Political Situation by T. J. Macnamara – on the recto. We speculate that this copy – which is the more complete and better-preserved of the two – was the first issued. Consolidation of advertisements onto the rear cover was plausibly done to save the printers and binders a step.

The front cover of this wraps issue perfectly encapsulates the brash young Cabinet Minster with an iconic image. The front cover features the same striking half-tone photograph of the author found on the dust jackets (only two substantially complete dust jackets are known to survive) of the hardcover issue, with the title above the image and author's name and publisher below. The spine prints the title and author at the top and publisher at the bottom.

This wraps issue measures 6.75 x 4.875 inches (17.2 x 12.4 cm), in contrast to the 7.75 x 5.375 inches (19.7 x 13.7 cm) dimensions of the hardcover issue. The text block was obviously trimmed for this wraps issue. The contents are identical to those of the hardcover first edition, second printing, and bulk the same 1.5 inches thick, the only difference being the omission of the endpapers and addition of the terminal advertisement leaf following p. 414. Churchill’s bibliographer cites just 1,000 second printing copies (erroneously designated "Second Edition" on the title page) printed by the publisher prior to the end of the 1909-10 fiscal year. This extravagantly rare wraps issue was issued from an unknown, doubtless small, number of these 1,000 sets of sheets.

Condition is very good - better than expected for a perishable paperback issue of a political book by a young M.P. published in very small numbers over 100 years ago. The thin paper wraps are present and remain attached and the entire binding remains sound, square and tight with only minor concavity to the spine. The front wrap and spine are almost entirely intact, lightly soiled with creasing and wear to extremities. All of the print and the striking front cover portrait of Churchill are complete and clearly legible. Only the rear cover shows appreciable loss, a roughly 1.75 x 1.5 inch (4.5 x 3.8 cm) x triangular loss at the upper left corner and a .5 x .375 inch (1.3 x .95 cm) loss at the lower left corner. There is also a 1.25 inch (3.2 cm) closed tear at the upper rear joint. The center rear cover print remains fully intact and clearly legible. The contents are surprisingly bright. We find no previous ownership marks. Spotting is primarily confined to the prelims and page edges. The first and final leaves show mild creasing to the corners. The volume is protected within a full red Morocco goatskin Solander case featuring rounded spine with raised, gilt-ruled bands, gilt rule-framed covers, red cloth and paper-lined interior. Condition of the Solander case is pristine.

Reference: See Cohen A29.1.b