rorkesdriftvc.com :: View topic - The Washing of the Spears "Collectors Edition"

Posted: Fri Jun 05, 2009 7:22 pm

Just thought I might pass this information on to those few of us who are guilty of acquiring books for their artistic merit as well as their content. Until I discovered it as a "Buy It Now" offering on Ebay for short money, I was unaware that a "Collectors Edition" of Morris' "The Washing of the Spears" was published in 1993 by Easton, replete with leather binding and 22K gilt edges and lettering. I've no clue how its existence has managed to elude me for some fifteen years, but it is out there and can be had for a reasonable price as a reward for patience and deliberate searching.

To all intents and purposes, it's a facsimile copy of the first addition on archival paper complete with all of the photos and wrapped up in a very sexy binding (perhaps I take books too seriously?).

Posted: Sat Jun 06, 2009 2:46 pm

Sawubona

That's interesting. I didn't know such a 'Collectors Edition' of TWOTS existed.

In the mid-90s I did purchase a hardback version of the book from a second-hand book shop, but not of the above, although I didn't keep it for long, as it was very tatty and smelling of dampness.

I for one, have always liked TWOTS faults and all, finding it well-written and a nice first book, which can be added to/corrected as you read other books on the Anglo-Zulu War 1879.

I've just re-read it a couple of months ago and still enjoyed it.

A Collectors Edition would be a good addition.

I'd have thought it'd be a bit pricey though.

Coll

Posted: Sat Jun 06, 2009 3:47 pm

Coll,
Nor did I know it existed! There's absolutely nothing new in it or about it (aside from the fancy leather and gilt) except the frontispiece which states that it was printed by Easton in 1993 in Connecticut (one of our New England States). It's just one heck of a pretty book. I for one can state without equivocation that TWOTS has had more impact on my life than any other single book, so I was thrilled to acquire a rare copy of it. If Morris had never written it, I wouldn't be on this site nor (probably) would some of the rest of us. I've first editions of TWOTS in F/VF condition w/dust covers in storage, but sadly I'll likely never own a signed copy. I do know where there is one, but understandably (and sadly) he has no wish to part with it for love nor money.

I do have a shield that Donald Morris purchased in Zululand in the '60s as a thank you gift to an acquaintance of mine who had no interest or need for it. My acquaintance didn't let it go for cheap however. That's sort of the same thing, isn't it? I didn't think so either.

Anyway, I paid only thirty dollars for the Collectors Edition, which I don't consider to be a lot of money for any book-particularly one which can be had tomorrow if one is willing to spend $160 on Alibris LOL. Don't let that "sticker shock" discourage you however. I posted the above to make other members aware of its existence and the fact that it can be had for a reasonable amount of money if one is willing to search patiently.

Posted: Tue Jun 09, 2009 8:53 pm

Sawubona

All Easton's books are "Collector's Edition"s and are never a general offering, they are a specialty book club that re-publishes in gold-gilt fine leather editions under various headings. TWOTS is (still) part of their "Military History: The Masterpiece Library" collection. It is a subscription service with many individual 'series' choices as well as some individual volumes. I was forced to cancel a number of subscriptions I had when their prices started to go through the roof. Thirty years ago the volumes went for $9.95 and today, TWOTS for instance, is $69.95 and can only be received as part of the aforementioned series.

Their's is actually from the original 1965 edition of TWOTS and although I've never done a line by line comparison with my old 1986 second edition the only difference I've noted is that in the second edition preface Morris acknowledges the ammunition controversy he had stirred up but he sticks to his guns based mostly on the mangled piece of ammo box strap he picked up on the battlefield!

Best

Michael

Posted: Wed Jun 10, 2009 6:21 am

Sawubona

I was just going to edit my post from "second edition preface" to "second edition Forward" (they both contain the same Preface) when I realized that based on your post there may be victims of e-bay mis-information. When checking for the Easton Press web site on Google I noticed a paid e-bay advert "Bid on Easton Press Books now! Find Antique Books" that seemed quite misleading, most are, as I said previously, still in print. It appears that many people,like myself, had subscribed to various Easton series over the years only to now, for whatever reason, sell them off. (Not me! I, like yourself and many others here, love books. I plan to have my crypt outfitted with glass-encased book cases so I can, in effect, "take it with me"!) (I even considered doing the same with my LP and DVD collection but the rates they now charge for perpetual electrical service put the kabosh on that!) I don't suppose I can blame people for trying, but some are attempting to recoup even more than their original investment. You lucked out getting your 'TWOTS' for half the current price but I saw one attempt to sell the complete "Master and Commander" 20 vol. set, used, for more than one can buy it today from Easton brand-new (it's available as a separate 'series'). However, there are some deals there so I'm thinking of filling out my collection with some astute bargaining. They are wonderful editions, some of mine go back decades and although they've lost the leather aroma they still appear brand new, even the well-used individuals.

Caveat emptor and caveat lector (in its literal sense). [Or even its figurative sense when it comes to 'TWOTS'!]

That said, I too followed a seemingly common coherent progression - ZULU to The Washing Of The Spears to RDVC, much to the chagrin of most of our well-studied members perhaps, 'ZULU' being a much loved film but 'TWOTS' a not-so-much-loved book! The primary, though not exclusive, reason being Morris' deeply held conviction (presumably to his grave) about ammo at Isandhlwana. This may be a good time to revisit Morris' convictions, with an extract in his own words, from the Forward to his (1986) second edition [In the interest of forestalling any complaints, here's the fabled 'marathon debate' from the old forum - http://www.rorkesdriftvc.com/discussion.php?topid=9006&forid=1 ,still a Must-Read as well as this - http://www.rorkesdriftvc.com/discussion.php?topid=11757&forid=1 .] -

"A curious controversy has arisen concerning the ammunition supply at Isandhlwana. I made much of the difficulty of opening the stout wooden boxes, closed with two copper straps, each held in place by nine screws; to open the boxes, six screws had to be removed. And it was well over a half hour's trot for the drummer boys (who brought ammunition packets in their helmets to the wagons and back." [I forget, did he get that from "Zulu Dawn" or did they get that from him?] [Sorry, couldn't resist!] "The Zulus, pinned down by the fire as long as the ammunition held out, only charged and overwhelmed the line when the fire dwindled.

Even before 1879, a "Mk IV" box had been fashioned from the old ones. A quick-opening top was devised by cutting out the wood between the straps, fitting tongue-and-groove edges, and holding it in place by a split pin; this could be slid out without removing any screws. Such boxes were present in Natal in 1879; F.W.D. Jackson places them at Isandhlwana and doubts an ammunition failure played any role in the defeat. Two schools of thought seem to have formed; my account is apparently known as the "traditional" version. I still maintain there were no Mk IV boxes at Isandhlwana.

On October 29th, 1937, the Dean Forest Register interviewed RSM Henry B. Andrews, late 2nd Battalion, 2nd Warwickshires, who marched out of Isandhlwana under Colonel Glyn to reinforce Dartnell the morning of the battle. He lists as a contributing factor the great difficulty in opening the boxes, with only one screwdriver per battalion; as a result, the ammunition was subsequently packed in the split-pin boxes.

And even as I write I have eloquent evidence on my desk there were no Mk IV boxes at Isandhlwana. It is a twisted, corroded strap, found in 1962 half-buried in the soil on the site of Durnford's last stand around the ammunition wagons. It had lain there 83 years, unnoticed by the countless visitors.

There are six holes in the strap, and the end (with three missing holes) had been wrenched bodily away. The last screw hole has been forcibly prised up over a screw head, and beside it is a high undulation in the strap where a bayonet was thrust under it in the desperate effort to pry it up."

[For a more recent attribution of Morris' see -

http://www.rorkesdriftvc.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=368&highlight=&sid=da3bf4b17f984b4e1ef0379cded77c1a and for an interestingly similar thread dealing with cut bands see -

http://www.rorkesdriftvc.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=501&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0&sid=a0485683ad78712d7249edf2ec18d45d ]

Best

Michael