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    62o the Publishers ' 'Circular '" ^^ ' ^...

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    l^evi ewf, &ct.

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  • Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.

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    The Dawn Of English Bookselling.

    The first printers not only performed the mechanical part of the book , but finished it off in

    everj respect , and then sold it . The production of books was a very tedious progress , and many specimens still in existence are monuments rof

    patience and artistic skill . The number of copies struck-ofif of each impression could not have been large—probably not more than a hundred or two at

    ¦ ^^^ H ^¦¦^ V ^^^ T H ^ H ^^ V ^ M ^ T ^^™ ^^ V ^^^ ^ ^^ ^^ " ^ ^^™ v ^ v ^^ V ^^^ ^^^ ^^ V ^^ p ^ V ^^^ ^^ V ^^^^ ^^ V ^^^^ " ^ ^^ " ^ " ^^^^^* ^^^^^ ^^^ F ^^ v ^^^™ ^^^^^ ^^^^ ^™ ^^^ " ^ ™ *^ " ~ ^^ V ^^^ " »~ ™ ^—^— ~~ the outside of even very popular books . The market was Caxton rarel commenced y glutted selling fcfr a considerable the productions time of after his

    own press . He and his immediate successors shrewdly foresaw the result of an over-supply , and wisely kept on the safe side The earliest instance

    of a plethora of printed books with which we are acquainted dates six years prior to Caxton ' s appearance at Westminsterand was in the form of a

    petition to Sixtus the , Fourth , by Sweynheim and Pannartz , the two Grerman emigrant printers , who established themselves and their inthe

    OBtauiiontJU . uioiiiatji vvo auu . biivir press press liL ^ Monastery of Subiaco . ^ In the case of Caxton , he rarely undertook the

    publication of a "work unless he had some sort of gu 4 ^ 7 arantee that he should tencounter no loss * or unless «^ mi i 1 4 < a the B ^ h persuasions ^ h ^ a «^* 'm # 4 ^* v ^ n « m of ¦ - ¦ i - ¦»! - ¦ * v *» ¦¦ ¦ noty m 1 *^ I ^^ . and ^ r « ^ m ^ ^ J clivers ^* J ap ^ r « kA

    gentlemen ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ Vresolved *^ ^^ ^ themselves ^ " ^ * many *^ into ^^ some e tang ibl ^^ e proof r — — . But — in 1483 — — the scarci — _ . __ ty _ ^ of — — books _ — _ was _ so

    great that an Act of Parliament was passed to promote their importation from foreign countries . We . need not go further into the history of

    Caxton , for , as a matter of fact , bookselling with him was in every way subordinate to printing . The same may be said of his successors . The example

    which he set was emulated by his apprentices , Wynkyn de Word © and Richard Pynson . The ^ former ^^ ^ m ^ B ^ H 4 ^ ^^ 0 m * , m ¦ with W V ~ «^^ fc ^ a ^ - ^ singular vw ^ ^^ HM ^ ' ^ ¦^ m *^ ^ B reverence ^^ ^ v « ^^ - ^^ - ^ ^^ ^* " ^ 1 ^ and ^ M ^ ^»*^ respect ^ H «^« lf «^ ^ m ^ m ^* ^ for ^ i ^ ^»

    his toaster , invariably gives Caxton ' s initials precedence to his own name He issued over 400 bookswhilst his fellow-apprentice was the printer

    and vendor , of about half that number . Printing and its collateral occupations bad reached such a comparatively high state of perfection , and

    had obtained such a footing , that sundry regulations were deemed necessary . An Act , 25 Henry VIII . c . 15 was passedwh ^ ch prevented printers and

    booksellers , from levying , impositions . The fourth and last section runs to the effect that if any complaint be mad ^^^^ va ^ r ¦ ^^^^ » e ^^^ eith ^^^ " ^ ^^ r ^ b . ^^ er - ^* - ^^— to — " m the ^^ — - ^^ ^ Ki ¦ n ' g ^^^ w , h the — — — — ' Lord ¦ ^^— - — ^¦ ' - ^ Chancel - ^^ ^^^^^ - ^^ - ^ r ^^^^ ' ^^ " ^^ ^^ ^ l ^ or ^*^ ^^ b , h ^ Lord h ^^^ ' ^^^ 4 ^ q ^^ B

    Treasurer , or any of the Chief Justices , it should be inquired into and judgment meted out by the ' discretions' of ' twelve honest and discreet persons . '

    The same officials had power also given them to ' reform and redress such inhancing of the prices of printed books from time to time by their discretions ,

    and to limit prices as well of the books as for the binding of them ; ' and where offenders are convicted , the punishment laid down is that they ' lose and

    forfeit for every book sold ' at an unfair price , the sum of three shillings and fourpence , half of which to be giveu to the kiDgand the other half to the

    aggrieved party . A similar , Act was passed 8 Anne , cap . 19 , sec . 4 , which enforced a penalty of £ 5 for every book sold at a higher price than the ' discreet *

    persons should affix to it . The latter Act was repealed 12 George II . cap . 36 , sec . 3 , but the former is , we believe , actually still in force , inasmuch as it

    has never been expressly repealed . But these laws were only repetitions of those car-• ried out in Paris in the thirteenth and fourteenth

    centuries . Here at this period everything was in the favour of the purchaser , and no wonder the poor bookseller groaned underneath a heavy weight of

    rules and regulations . Each bookseller had to keep a list of his books , and not only had to submit to having them priced for himbut had to lend them

    to stiidenta , who coukl only , be charged a small sum

    ... -. L- , . | < t [_ At for the loan . But the indignities did not end here . ^ At ^ . ^¦^ v ^^ Bologna ^^^^^^ ^^* - ^^ v ' ^^ f ^^ v ^^^^^^^^ in ^* ^^^^^ particular ^ r ^ ^— ^^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^— ^— , the ^^ ^^ authorities — —— ^ — — — — — laid — — — down —^^ ^^^^

    a catalogue of 117 books which every bookseller was to have in stock , with selling and lending prices . The books , observed for a writer in the Dublin

    Univerm ^ Magazine August 1868 . were divided into quartern us and pecia . The former , contained sixteen pagesand the latter sixteen columns ; each

    sixtytwo l , | nes of thirty-two letters , and was equal to half a quarternus . The usual price for a quarternus was four denarii , or rather less than two shillings

    in modern English money . It-will be seen , therefore , that bookselling from early times has been fraught with difficultiesand if

    it had not been altogether suppressed -it , is not because it has met with no opposition . For centuries , those / whom if ¦ ¦ a mistaken *» p j ^ + notio \/ n / A laced * vvvk in judgment /

    V ^ IVmV m m ^ w * mm mm r ~ v «»» .. x- muvav ** p v « aaa j f ^ M **** ^ aji U over their fellow-men bave used the ' profession' as a shuttlecockand as an object upon which every

    , worthless < person in authority' could vent his spleen .

    ( Zfe be continued . )

    62o The Publishers ' 'Circular '" ^^ ' ^...

    62 o the Publishers ' ' Circular ' " ^^ ' ^'§ * ik " ' ' ' ' 7 I I l . . ^ J ^— . Z . ! ! l ___ jJ-4 _ -l ; -Z ! -:--,. ¦ - »

    L^Evi Ewf, &Ct.

    l ^ evi ewf , & ct .

    From Messrs . "W . BC . Allen & Co . —* London in 18 $ 7 ' in the new edition-shows the usual advances in the way of corrections up to date and so forth

    besides new views and a new map . This is the , work which was originally edited by Mr . Herbert Fry .

    From Street Messrs ) . —Mr . . R C . harles Anderson Marvin A has Co demonstrate . ( Cockspur d very " —~ ^ J ^ forci " ^ ^^^ ^~ ^ — bl ^ " — y M in —^^ ^ his ^^^ ^^ ^ little ^ ^^ ^^ ™ ^^ pam W" ^ ^*^ ^ ^ ^ p m ^ hl —it et ^** ^^ , « ' The ^ B ^^ B ^^ ^ Moloch v ^^^^ jklr ^^*

    of Paraffin / the dangers arising from using certain forms of lamp . The letterpress is further emp of hasi - the sed where accidents necessary that r by diagrams almost . dail In view take place , through many the careless or ignorant y use of

    lamps of their , and construction tie want , of Mr knowled . Marvi ge n that ' s work is betrayed should undeniably serve an exceedingl-useful and hihl

    ygy necessary observe , its purpose thirtieth . thousand It has , and now that reach it ed should , we have — — had so — — large f-y — a —— ci ¦—¦— rculati — - —F ¦—»— ¦ — ^ w * on ^* - »» we *» ^^ regard ^ ^^ f * % ^ " * as »«* tr f a % ^ V sub > kj V % ^^

    -ject for sincere and hearty congratulation . But and it" deserves of the -to practical be even information still more that widel it y contains spread ,

    no user of lamps should be ignorant . From ^ ^ " ¦ " — " - Mr " . » J ^^ . W www . Arrowamith ¦ ¦ 11 ii ^ »^ « v m « m » a w ** ¦ , a Bristol ^ j & i ) j ft ^ V ^ A . * —* P JL atty uLI / T ' s

    littl Pa of rtner the e volume , well ' by -known Jean , which Midd Bri forms sto lemass l Library . the The twe , is p n lot ty not -second of alto this

    depend gether easy princi to pal descri ly upon be , the but trials it may of Patty be said Urske to , a gold-burnisher in a porcelain manu actory at

    partn Arundale Arundale er . of , who who the eventuall eventuallv firm , Max y m m Schi arries n / rrien heim the I-Ha . nptninr senior The heroine of the ptory , however , is pp scarcely so interesting — as some of ¦— — the subsidiary ^ # characters VJfe

    ^ J - " T — - ^»^~™ w - ^ « v , m ^ v »«* a W VAMVA ^ s \ A ^ - * **• . and Bertha equall York y interesting e is an especiall , though y after lovabl a e different creation , fashion — are — Angey — — —— ^ Tramberiey »¦¦ ™^ and the VUV Hon

    Felix Elton , . The m ^ ^ enti re » »<» story ^^ - ^ r jb . . » ^^ , though WkAvi scarcel . ^ Lak ^^ ** y . up entertaining to the authoress . ' s best form , is readable and

    From the Bibliotheque Oil arp en tier , Paris . — T * Ihis JL his ' armee might mifirht de almost almos John t be be Bull called called , ' par a a Hector man nmnnn ual . 1 Fran of nf thp the ce . ,

    Eng British lishman army will for gai the n civilian from it information reader . vMany about an

    and our abroad military . The system aut and hor does its work full iustice ing at to home the

    qualities or bota otticers and men , while he does

• Citation
  • Publishers’ Circular (1880-1890), June 1, 1887, page 620, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/pc/issues/tec_01061887/page/14/