One of twelve specially-printed copies for John Hanning Speke (1827-1864), it contains an eight-page supplement, describing Speke's announcement of his discovery of the source of the River Nile to the Royal Geographical Society, and also details of his feud with Sir Richard Burton over the source of the Nile. These pages were suppressed from the trade edition at the behest of Speke's family and his publisher, Blackwood, anxious not to fan the flames of the dispute with Burton. As a compromise twelve copies with the controversial text, what Speke referred to as the 'sting in the tail', were printed for him to give to family and friends. Speke died only a few weeks after receiving his copies, probably as a result of being careless with a shotgun - although Burton's supporters claimed suicide - and did not get the chance to distribute them all. This copy contains an inscription by the author's brother, the Rev. Benjamin Speke, who appears to have become custodian of the undistributed copies after Speke's untimely death, presenting this one to one William Beaumont.

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