r their knowledge and experience." But is this
quite fair, and is it not likely that the rarer books will be supplied
cheaper if the bookseller is allowed to pay himself partly out of the sale
of the commoner books, which it is now proposed the librarian shall buy
himself? My contention is that it is for the advantage of libraries that
intelligent booksellers, ready to place their knowledge at the service of
the librarians, should exist, and it is unwise and uneconomic to do that
which may cause this class to cease to exist. Sellers of books must always
exist, but it is possible to drive out of the trade those who do it the
most honour. We see what has occurred in the new book trade, and there can
be little doubt that the book-buyer loses much more than he gains by the
present system of discount. When the bookseller could obtain sufficient
profit by the sale of new books to keep his shop open, it was worth his
while to take some trouble in finding the book required; but now that the
customer expects to buy a book at trade price, he cannot be surprised if
he does not give full particulars as to the publisher of the book he
requires if it is reported to him as "not known." Those only who, by
taking a large quantity of copies, obtain an extra discount, can make new
bookselling pay.

3. There are a large number of books which, although real additions to
literature, can only be expected to obtain a small number of readers and
buyers. Some of these are not taken by the circulating libraries, and
publishers, in making their calculations, naturally count upon supplying
some of the chief libraries of the country. If these libraries wait till
the book is second-hand, the number of sales is likely to be so much
reduced that it is not worth while to publish the book at all, to the
evident damage of the cause of learning.

It has been often suggested that an arrangement should be made by
libraries in close proximity, so that the same expensive book should not
be bought by more than one of the libraries. No doubt this is advantageous
in certain circumstances, but in the case of books with a limited sale it
would have the same consequence as stated above, and the book would not be
published at all, or be published at a loss.

Selden wrote in his _Table Talk_: "The giving a bookseller his price for
his books has this advantage; he that will do so, shall have the refusal
of whatsoever comes to his hand, and so by that means get many th