est,
President of the Royal Society. George Nicol, the bookseller, was an
extensive purchaser at this sale for the King, for whom, indeed, he
acted in a similar capacity up to the last. Nicol told Dibdin 'with his
usual pleasantry and point, that he got abused in the public papers, by
Almon and others, for having purchased nearly the whole of the Caxtonian
volumes in this collection for his Majesty's library. It was said abroad
that a Scotchman had lavished away the King's money in buying old
black-letter books.' The absurdity of this report was soon proved at
subsequent sales. Dibdin adds, as a circumstance highly honourable to
the King, that 'his Majesty, in his directions to Mr. Nicol, forbade any
competition with those purchasers who wanted books of science and
_belles lettres_ for their own progressive or literary pursuits; thus
using the power of his purse in a manner at once merciful and wise.'

[Illustration: _George Nicol, the King's Bookseller._]

The impetus which book-collecting, and more particularly the section to
which we have just referred, received by the dispersal of the West
Library gathered in force as time went on, reaching its climax with the
Roxburghe sale thirty-nine years afterwards. The enthusiasm culminated
in a club--the Roxburghe, which still flourishes. The warfare (at
Roxburghe House, St. James's Square), as Mr. Silvanus Urban has
recorded, was equalled only by the courage and gallantry displayed on
the plains of Salamanca about the same period. 'As a pillar, or other
similar memorial, could not be conveniently erected to mark the spot
where so many bibliographical champions fought and conquered, another
method was adopted to record their fame, and perpetuate this brilliant
epoch in literary annals. Accordingly, a phalanx of the most hardy
veterans has been enrolled under the banner of the far-famed Valdarfer's
Boccaccio of 1471. . . . The first anniversary meeting of this noble
band was celebrated at the St. Alban's Tavern [St. Alban's Street, now
Waterloo Place] on Thursday, June 17, 1813, being the memorable day on
which the before-mentioned Boccaccio was sold for L2,260. The chair was
taken by Earl Spencer (perpetual president of the club), supported by
Lords Morpeth and Gower, and the following gentlemen,[61:A] viz., Sir E.
Brydges, Messrs. W. Bentham, W. Bolland, J. Dent, T. F. Dibdin
(vice-president), Francis Freeling, Henry Freeling, Joseph Hazlewood,
Richard Heber, Thomas C. Hebe