I don't like
in after
as early as, and these search results in published literature confirm my preference:
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He himself, as we have seen, said,
as early as 1704, that if his
humour and means had permitted him to think of marriage, his choice
would have been Stella. ...
The Journal to Stella by Swift, Jonathan
http://www.literaturepost.com/chapter/20382.html
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According to some sources an earlier version of the work was written
in the form of a novel in letters, and read aloud to the family
as
early as 1795. ...
Literature Post: Jane Austen
http://
www.literaturepost.com/authors/Austen.html
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