# Is "Principles of Political Economy, with Some of Their Applications to Social Philosophy" by John Stuart Mill a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Principles of Political Economy, with Some of Their Applications to Social Philosophy by John Stuart Mill (John W. Parker, 1848) is identified by: First edition, London: John W.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First edition, London: John W. Parker, 1848, issued in two octavo volumes collating xvi,593pp and xv,549pp, bound in the publisher's original green cloth with printed paper spine labels
- This is the first appearance of Mill's major economic treatise, published five years after his System of Logic
- Both volumes close with a handful of leaves of publisher's advertisements, and a second, revised edition followed within a year in 1849, so a correct first-edition set carries the 1848 date on both volume title pages with no "second edition" statement
- Publisher imprint reads John W. Parker
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | John Stuart Mill |
| Publisher | John W. Parker |
| Year | 1848 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First edition, London: John W. Parker, 1848, issued in two octavo volumes collating xvi,593pp and xv,549pp, bound in the publisher's… |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
First edition, London: John W. Parker, 1848, issued in two octavo volumes collating xvi,593pp and xv,549pp, bound in the publisher's original green cloth with printed paper spine labels. This is the first appearance of Mill's major economic treatise, published five years after his System of Logic (1843). Both volumes close with a handful of leaves of publisher's advertisements, and a second, revised edition followed within a year in 1849, so a correct first-edition set carries the 1848 date on both volume title pages with no "second edition" statement.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Principles of Political Economy, with Some of Their Applications to Social Philosophy* by John Stuart Mill a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/principles-of-political-economy-with-some-of-their-applicati
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-04.