p a small winding
stair-case, and reached the topmost landing place. A succession of small
rooms--(I think _ten_ in number) lined with the _true_ furniture, strikes
my astonished eye, and makes warm my palpitating heart. "This is
charming"--exclaimed I, to my guide, Monsieur Thiebaut--"this is as it
should be." M. Thieubaut bowed graciously.

The floors are all composed of octagonal, deeply-tinted red, tiles: a
little too highly glazed, as usual; but cool, of a good picturesque tint,
and perfectly harmonising with the backs of the books. The first little
room which you gain, contains a plaster-bust of the late Abbe HOOKE,[101]
who lived sometime in England with the good Cardinal----. His bust faces
another of Palissot. You turn to the right, and obtain the first
foreshortened view of the "ten little chambers" of which I just spoke. I
continued to accompany my guide: when, reaching the _first_ of the last
_three_ rooms, he turned round and bade me remark that these last three
rooms were devoted exclusively to "books printed in the _Fifteenth
Century_: of which they possessed about fifteen hundred." This intelligence
recruited my spirits; and I began to look around with eagerness. But alas!
although the crop was plentiful, a deadly blight had prevailed. In other
words, there was number without choice: quantity rather than quality. Yet I
will not be ill-natured; for, on reaching the third of these rooms, and the
last in the suite, Monsieur Thiebaut placed before me the following select
articles.

BIBLIA LATINA. _Printed by Fust and Schoiffher: Without Date, but supposed
to be in the year 1455 or 1456_. Folio. 2 vols. For the last dozen years of
my life, I had earnestly desired to see this copy: not because I had heard
much of its beauty, but because it is the _identical_ copy which gave rise
to the calling of this impression the MAZARINE BIBLE.[102] Certainly, all
those copies which I had previously seen--and they cannot be fewer than ten
or twelve--were generally superior; nor must this edition be henceforth
designated as "of the very first degree of rarity."

BIBLIA LATINA. _Printed by the Same_, 1462. Folio. 2 vols. A fair, sound,
large copy: UPON VELLUM. The date is printed in red, at the end of each
volume--a variety, which is not always observable. This copy is in red
morocco binding.

BIBLIA ITALICA. _Printed by Vindelin de Spira, Kalend. August. 1471_.
Folio. 2 vols. A fine copy of an extremely rare edition; per