Chart II—Vanity Fair Schedule of
Disbursement
There are various ways to read the publisher's records to gain an idea
of the rate at which books left the publisher for the public—none
produce
the same result. All the records account for the book by parts so that a
single bound book is treated as 20 parts. There are records of payments
made for stitching copies (no telling if for parts or book issue), but
apparently some copies were sold unstitched. There are half-yearly
summary reports of numbers sold (no telling whether as parts or
book-form), but these figures were determined, apparently, by subtracting
the numbers currently in hand, presented, given to the author, etc., from
the number in hand at the beginning of the six month period plus any new
printings; hence, the number "sold" seldom if ever equals a number
divisible by 20 parts, which if that were the case might indicate all sales
were of whole books. So it is not clear whether the number recorded as
sold accurately reflects the sale of partial runs in parts or
simply approximates the numbers sold in book-form. Finally there are
six-month records of the form of copies remaining in hand: so many parts
in quires, so many stitched, so many in cloth binding, and so many "P.O."
(a label I do not understand identifying figures which sometimes are
divisible by 20, sometimes not and ranging from 3 to 242).
The following chart provides half-yearly summaries of the records of
disbursement and analysis of stock in hand in parts in order to demonstrate
the ways any bound copy of the book might combine sheets from separate
printings as a normal product of the manufacturing process—making
it,
incidentally, solecistic to speak of the "impression" or "state" of a given
copy of Vanity Fair as a whole. The usually discrete
production
stages of book publishing (printing, binding, selling) intermingle in serial
publication to produce bewildering combinations.
Ending Date of Half-Year Reporting Period: |
June 47 |
Dec 47 |
June 48 Dec 48} |
June 49 |
Dec 49 |
June 50 |
Dec 50 |
June 51 |
Dec 51 |
June 52 |
Dec 52 |
Number of Parts |
In Hand at Beginning: |
---- |
10016 |
10868 |
4245 |
30304 |
25425 |
20206 |
19258 |
15605 |
14418 |
11953 |
Printed During Period: |
37000 |
25000 |
92250 |
40000 |
---- |
---- |
---- |
---- |
---- |
---- |
---- |
Total Parts Available: |
37000 |
35016 |
103118 |
44245 |
30304 |
25425 |
20206 |
19258 |
15605 |
14418 |
11953 |
Sold: |
25717 |
22972 |
96961 |
13941 |
4879 |
5219 |
948 |
3653 |
1187 |
2465 |
2411 |
Otherwise Disposed of: |
1267 |
1176 |
1912 |
---- |
---- |
---- |
---- |
---- |
---- |
---- |
40 |
Total Parts Disbursed: |
26984 |
24148 |
98873 |
13941 |
4879 |
5219 |
948 |
3653 |
1187 |
2465 |
2451 |
Number of Parts |
In Hand at End: Quired: |
6694 |
8450 |
3145 |
28289 |
24187 |
19245 |
17897 |
15067 |
12729 |
11165 |
8506 |
Stitched: |
2722 |
1718 |
558 |
460 |
231 |
331 |
411 |
251 |
426 |
198 |
226 |
Bound: |
---- |
---- |
300 |
1420 |
900 |
580 |
900 |
200 |
1220 |
540 |
660 |
P.O.: |
---- |
---- |
242 |
135 |
107 |
50 |
50 |
87 |
43 |
50 |
46 |
Other: |
600 |
700 |
---- |
---- |
---- |
---- |
---- |
---- |
---- |
---- |
64 |
Total Parts Remaining: |
10016 |
10868 |
4245 |
30304 |
25425 |
20206 |
19258 |
15605 |
14418 |
11953 |
9502 |
Ending Date of Half-Year Reporting Period: |
June 53 |
Dec 53 |
June 54 |
Dec 54 |
June 55 |
Dec 55 |
June 56 |
Dec 56 |
June 57 |
Dec 57 |
June 58 |
Dec 58 |
Number of Parts |
In Hand at Beginning: |
9502 |
7338 |
6536 |
4470 |
4753 |
6662 |
6069 |
5362 |
6785 |
8415 |
7956 |
7310 |
Printed During Period: |
---- |
---- |
---- |
1000 |
3000 |
---- |
500 |
2000 |
3500 |
---- |
---- |
---- |
Total Parts Available: |
9502 |
7338 |
6536 |
5470 |
7753 |
6662 |
6569 |
7362 |
10285 |
8415 |
7956 |
7310 |
Sold: |
2144 |
802 |
2066 |
717 |
1091 |
573 |
1207 |
577 |
1870 |
459 |
646 |
485 |
Otherwise Disposed of: |
20 |
---- |
---- |
---- |
---- |
20 |
---- |
---- |
---- |
---- |
---- |
---- |
Total Parts Disbursed: |
2164 |
802 |
2066 |
717 |
1091 |
593 |
1207 |
577 |
1870 |
459 |
646 |
485 |
Number of Parts |
In Hand at End: Quired: |
6629 |
6022 |
2762 |
3788 |
5675 |
5583 |
4896 |
6284 |
8125 |
7554 |
6696 |
5562 |
Stitched: |
276 |
191 |
214 |
188 |
177 |
66 |
102 |
117 |
170 |
80 |
74 |
58 |
Bound: |
280 |
160 |
1340 |
620 |
500 |
320 |
240 |
200 |
60 |
260 |
440 |
560 |
P.O.: |
89 |
99 |
90 |
93 |
90 |
60 |
64 |
84 |
---- |
42 |
40 |
65 |
Other: |
64 |
64 |
64 |
64 |
220 |
40 |
60 |
100 |
60 |
20 |
60 |
580 |
Total Parts Remaining: |
7338 |
6536 |
4470 |
4753 |
6662 |
6069 |
5362 |
6785 |
8415 |
7956 |
7310 |
6825 |
Ending Date of Half-Year Reporting Period: |
June 59 |
Dec 59 |
June 60 |
Dec 60 |
June 61 |
Dec 61 |
June 62 |
Dec 62 |
June 63 |
Dec 63 |
Number of Parts |
In Hand at Beginning: |
6825 |
5687 |
5228 |
4585 |
3724 |
3991 |
3743 |
3646 |
3429 |
3286 |
Printed During Period: |
---- |
---- |
---- |
---- |
1000 |
---- |
---- |
---- |
---- |
1000 |
Total Parts Available: |
6825 |
5687 |
5228 |
4585 |
4724 |
3991 |
3743 |
3646 |
3429 |
4286 |
Sold: |
1098 |
459 |
643 |
861 |
733 |
248 |
97 |
217 |
143 |
602 |
Otherwise Disposed of: |
40 |
---- |
---- |
---- |
---- |
---- |
---- |
---- |
---- |
20 |
Total Parts Disbursed: |
1138 |
459 |
643 |
861 |
733 |
248 |
97 |
217 |
143 |
622 |
Number of Parts |
In Hand at End: Quired: |
5437 |
4776 |
4166 |
3458 |
3698 |
3498 |
3430 |
3110 |
3058 |
3356 |
Stitched: |
60 |
182 |
54 |
71 |
33 |
27 |
65 |
64 |
84 |
63 |
Bound: |
60 |
180 |
220 |
80 |
140 |
100 |
40 |
180 |
80 |
180 |
P.O.: |
70 |
50 |
65 |
55 |
60 |
58 |
91 |
55 |
44 |
65 |
Other: |
60 |
40 |
80 |
60 |
60 |
60 |
20 |
20 |
20 |
---- |
Total Parts Remaining: |
5687 |
5228 |
4585 |
3724 |
3991 |
3743 |
3646 |
3429 |
3286 |
3664 |
Ending Date of Half-Year Reporting Period: |
June 64 |
Dec 64 |
June 65 |
30 June 65 |
Number of Parts |
In Hand at Beginning: |
3664 |
5833 |
5251 |
5005 |
Printed During Period: |
6500 |
---- |
500 |
---- |
Total Parts Available: |
10164 |
5833 |
5751 |
5005 |
Sold: |
4331 |
582 |
746 |
5005 |
Otherwise disposed of: |
---- |
---- |
---- |
---- |
Total Parts Disbursed: |
4331 |
582 |
746 |
5005 |
Number of Parts |
In Hand at End: Quired: |
5389 |
4942 |
4965 |
---- |
Stitched: |
---- |
42 |
---- |
---- |
Bound: |
420 |
220 |
40 |
---- |
P.O.: |
24 |
47 |
---- |
---- |
Other: |
---- |
---- |
---- |
---- |
Total Parts Remaining: |
5833 |
5251 |
5005 |
---- |
The Smith, Elder Publishers account books record 5,001 parts
including 2 bound copies received from Bradbury and Evans in June 1865.
In 1865 Smith, Elder printed 7,391 more parts and in 1866 they printed
5,000 more, yielding 17,392 parts available. These were bound into 865
bound copies leaving 92 odd parts. In 1868 they printed 250 more copies
of the whole book. The Smith, Elder accounts of the first edition of
Vanity Fair were closed out in 1883.