[Two printed volumes, with the second volume containing memoranda on the corps by Major Thomas Fraser King.] Incidents and Anecdotes in the Life of Lieut.-General Sprot, Honorary Colonel of the Princess Louise's Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders.

Author: 
Lieut.-General Sprot [John Sprot (1830-1907) of Riddell House, Roxburghshire], Honorary Colonel of the Princess Louise's Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders [Major Thomas Fraser King (d.1928)]
Publication details: 
Printed for private circulation only. [Edinburgh: Gordon Wilson, Printer, 47 Thistle Street.] Vol. 1, 1906; vol. 2, 1907.
£450.00
SKU: 13272

2 vols, 8vo. Vol.1 (1906): [8] + 106 + [1] + 17. Vol.2 (1907): [6] + 97pp. Both volumes with frontispieces and several plates. Both in original red cloth bindings with Sprot's crest in gilt on front board, and all edges gilt. Both in fair condition, on lightly-aged paper, and with the first volume (despite slight damp staining to the binding and damage to one plate) better and brighter than the second, which has wear at the foot of the spine. The lengthy subtitle provides a resume of Sprot's career, stating that he 'served twenty years in the 83rd Regiment, now the 1st Battalion Royal Irish Rifles, twelve of which were in India, including all through the Mutiny from the beginning to the end, in civil and military employments | He also commanded the 91st Argyllshire Highlanders for seven years; was Assistant Adjutant and Assistant Quartermaster-General for Scotland in Edinburgh | and commanded the 31st Surrey (South London) Brigade Depot at Kingston-on-Thames for five years; also for a short time the Maidstone Brigade Depot, No. 46'. Thomas Fraser King was the author of at least eight books, on military law and courts martial, strategy and tactics, organization and equipment, and he second volume has six pages of autograph notes by him at the front, in red and black ink, with annotation in red ink and blue pencil throughout. He begins with full page detailing his own career, before beginning: 'The Second Volume was sent to me after the death of my very dear Old Colonel (Lieut General Sprot) by Mrs. Sprot - | I shall ever cherish his memory firstly because he was my first & best C.O. and secondly he commanded the Regiment I loved & joined from the RMC - Cruel fate compelled me to exchange from the XCI to the 49th. Still all through my service my thoughts wandered back to the XCI Officers - my special chums Schank & MacDonald are both dead - the former I met in Egypt in 1882 he was attached to the 74th. as he belonged then to the 71st. We talked over our Ensigns days & altho Schank was serving in the 71st. he still regretted leaving the XCI & seemed like myself not to care for his new Corps. MacDonald was unfortunately killed from a fall off his horse in Hyde Park'. He proceeds to give an extensive list of information on the regiments officers. The notes in the text begin with one on p.5: 'Any reader of this book will note many of Lieut General Sprots ideas have been carried out in a modified form'. Note signed by P. King, dated 1969, at head of title-page of vol.2: 'My Father Major T. F. KING who made the Notes in Book [sic] died in 1928'. Only four copies of the book on COPAC: at the British Library, National Library of Scotland, Oxford and St Andrews.