India - Emily Eden’s Account of the Lahore Durbar - A rare 1866 first edition two volume set of the renowned work by Emily Eden ‘Up the country – letters written to her sister from the Upper Provinces of India’, original red cloth with gilt titles. The Hon Emily Eden visited the Punjab with her brother Lord Auckland in 1838 and gives a detailed account of the Punjab, the Durbar, the Sikh courtiers and the family of Ranjit Singh, in particular she describes Ranjit Singh like an old mouse seated with one leg crossed on a chair and gives vivid descriptions of Sher Singh, Kharak Singh and Naunihal Singh, and the Dogras. This set belonging to Sir Conrad Cornfield with his bookplates pasted to both volumes. Cornfield was private secretary to Lord Mountbatten of Burma. He was concerned about the rights of the princes in the independent India and asserted that the princely states should be allowed to remain independent if they chose to do so. He also sought and received the permission of the British government to destroy the records that had been collected concerning the princes' personal lives. He felt these records could be used by the new government of India as blackmail against the princes. Scarce. (2)