J. P. [“Sarsfield”] Thornton. THE SECTIONAL SYSTEM OF GENTLEMEN’S GARMENT CUTTING. London: Minister & Co., 1902[?]. 5th Edition, Revised and Enlarged. Clothbound, large quarto (11 3/4 x 9 ½ in.), frontispiece, viii, 222 pp., [4 pp.], and 97 full-page plates. The extremely rare 5th edition and highly important tailor’s manual, written by the editor of Minister’s Gazette of Fashion [no copies found in Worldcat or noted in SELIGMAN (1996)]. This seminal work covers all aspects of fitting and cutting gentlemen’s clothing (patterns and diagrams inclusive). Garments include greatcoats, coats, vests, and trousers, as well as specialized occupational dress, including court and diplomatic uniforms, clerical and legal, military and naval uniforms, sporting and livery dress as worn during the opening years of the Edwardian era--the uniform patterns and insignia appropriate to the Boer War. Mended tears to 2 rear end papers and approx. 1-inch tears to the bottom margins of plates 80-81 and p. 179, not affecting patterns or text. Otherwise very good.