uld happen! I was
not long in doubt, for book by book, and in lots of two and three, my
selection was knocked down in rapid succession, at prices varying from
1_s_. 6_d_. to 3_s_. 6_d_., this latter sum seeming to be the utmost
limit to the speculative turn of my competitors. The _bonne bouche_ of
the lot was, however, kept back by the auctioneer, because, as he said,
it was 'a pretty book,' and I began to respect his critical judgment,
for 'a pretty book' it was, being a large paper copy of Dibdin's
Bibliographical Decameron, three volumes, in the original binding.
Suffice it to say that, including this charming book, my purchases did
not amount to L13, and I had pretty well a cart-load of books for my
money--more than I wanted much! Having brought them home, I 'weeded them
out,' and the 'weeding' realised four times what I gave for the whole,
leaving me with some real book treasures.

"Some weeks afterwards I heard that the remainder of the books were
literally treated as waste lumber, and carted off to the neighbouring
town, and were to be had, any one of them, for sixpence, from a cobbler
who had allowed his shop to be used as a store house for them. The news
of their being there reached the ears of an old bookseller in one of
the large towns, and he, I think, cleared out the lot. So curious an
instance of the most total ignorance on the part of the sellers, and
I may add on the part of the possible buyers also, I think is worth
noting."

How would the reader in this Year of Grace, 1887, like such an
experience as that?

CONCLUSION.

IT is a great pity that there should be so many distinct enemies at
work for the destruction of literature, and that they should so often be
allowed to work out their sad end. Looked at rightly, the possession of
any old book is a sacred trust, which a conscientious owner or guardian
would as soon think of ignoring as a parent would of neglecting his
child. An old book, whatever its subject or internal merits, is truly
a portion of the national history; we may imitate it and print it in
fac-simile, but we can never exactly reproduce it; and as an historical
document it should be carefully preserved.

I do not envy any man that absence of sentiment which makes some people
careless of the memorials of their ancestors, and whose blood can
be warmed up only by talking of horses or the price of hops. To them
solitude means _ennui_, and anybody's company is preferable to their
own.