# Is "The Formation of Vegetable Mould, through the Action of Worms" by Charles Darwin a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Formation of Vegetable Mould, through the Action of Worms by Charles Darwin (John Murray, 1881) is identified by: Darwin's last book, published 10 October 1881, collating [ii], viii, 326 pages (the index included within that pagination) plus 2 pages of publisher's advertisements, with 15 text illustrations.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Darwin's last book, published 10 October 1881, collating [ii], viii, 326 pages (the index included within that pagination) plus 2 pages of publisher's advertisements, with 15 text illustrations
- Because of brisk demand Murray printed a 'second thousand' from the same setting of type almost immediately, adding only the words 'Second Thousand' to the title page; the unmarked first-thousand state and the second-thousand state are textually identical and both belong to the same first-edition printing
- Only from the 'fifth thousand' state onward does the title page add '(corrected), and with textual changes,' marking a textually revised later printing; the intervening third thousand instead carries an inserted errata slip, whose corrections are worked directly into the text by the fourth thousand
- Original binding is publisher's green cloth, spine lettered in gilt, boards blind-panelled, with brown-coated endpapers
- Publisher imprint reads John Murray
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Charles Darwin |
| Publisher | John Murray |
| Year | 1881 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Darwin's last book, published 10 October 1881, collating [ii], viii, 326 pages (the index included within that pagination) plus 2 pages of… |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
Darwin's last book, published 10 October 1881, collating [ii], viii, 326 pages (the index included within that pagination) plus 2 pages of publisher's advertisements, with 15 text illustrations. Because of brisk demand Murray printed a 'second thousand' from the same setting of type almost immediately, adding only the words 'Second Thousand' to the title page; the unmarked first-thousand state and the second-thousand state are textually identical and both belong to the same first-edition printing. Only from the 'fifth thousand' state onward does the title page add '(corrected), and with textual changes,' marking a textually revised later printing; the intervening third thousand instead carries an inserted errata slip, whose corrections are worked directly into the text by the fourth thousand. Original binding is publisher's green cloth, spine lettered in gilt, boards blind-panelled, with brown-coated endpapers.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Any title page reading 'Fifth Thousand' or higher, or bearing the phrase 'corrected, and with textual changes,' is a revised later printing rather than the original October 1881 text.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Formation of Vegetable Mould, through the Action of Worms* by Charles Darwin a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-formation-of-vegetable-mould-through-the-action-of-worms
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.