The Memoirs of William Hickey, Volumes II-IV, (1775-1809)

Volumes II, III and IV. 1919-1925. Uniformly bound in deep blue cloth-covered boards with gilt titles on spine. 8vo. Volume I: x, 408pp, with tissue-guarded photogravure frontispiece and two further similar illustrations. Volume III: viii, 404pp, with tissue-guarded photogravure frontispiece and one further similar illustration. Volume IV: xii, 505pp, with tissue-guarded photogravure frontispiece and six other illustrations. All volumes a little rubbed and rounded on corners and spine ends, with a few marks on boards. A little spotting on page block edges and prelims, else internally neat, clean and tight barring Volume IV where the gutter is cracked between frontispiece and title page, causing a little loosening. William Hickey (30 June 1749 - 31 May 1830) was an English lawyer best known for his lengthy Memoirs, which give an extraordinarily vivid picture of life in late 18th-century London, Calcutta, Madras and Jamaica. Somewhat of a rake, Hickey was expelled from school, embezzled from his father and was sent to India to see if he could make good there.