The Sun.
London, England, 1852-04-15 00:00:00

N°.18,585.]

APRIL 15, 1852.
7

It the discount were reduced be was satisfied it would
be impossible to support the agencies throughout the
country.
Mr. SEELEY expressed his conviction, from personal
knowledge, that the gentlemen who managed thc?
Booksellers' Association had been actuated solely by
regard for the interests of the trade, of the public, and
of literature generally. After referring at length to
some of the statements in the letter of Messrs. Bickers
and Bush, he observed that if the Noble Lord and his
associates should, upon consideration, be of opinion
that the Booksellers' Association were right, they
would succeed in their object—that of maintaining
peace, and law, and order in the trade. On the other
hand, if the Noble Lord and the gentlemen by whom
he was assisted decided that the Booksellers' Associa-

tion were wrong, the end would be chaos, confusion,
and disorder.

Mr. MILES entered into some details with reference
to the position of houses in the bookselling trade (with
one of which he is himself connected), whose business
consists exclusively in acting as " middlemen"
between the great London publishers and the coun-
try retail booksellers, their dealings being thus con-
fined entirely to the trade. He showed the large ex-
penses which were necessarily incurred in conducting
such establishments, in consequence, especially, of the
vast increase of cheap periodical literature ; and con-
tended that, even with the present rate of trade allow-
ances, the profits realized by such houses were not
excessive—not amounting on an average to more than
about 4 per cent.
Mr. LONGMAN then said he thought the state-
ments of the gentlemen who had expressed their
opinions tended to show that the present amount of
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allowances was not too large. As long as they had
for underselling, the peculiarities of the trade ren-
atheeripnr:suelin:
underselling, he feared that a competition might
arise which would destroy the retail booksellers; and
he, and the gentlemen by whom he was surrounded,
were of opinion that if the retail trade were concen-
trated in the hands of a few large monopolists, great
injury would result to literature, to the trade, and toi
the public. The main question was, whether the;
change suggested by the opponents of the Booksel-:
lers' Association would injure the retail booksellers'
or not. Hie opinion was that the competition that
would arise would destroy them. Then, if a repres-
sive system was necessary, it must be a coercive one.
Mr. Alecaulay had said to his brothee...._, If you think
that Mr. Bickers or anybody else injures you, or in-
jures my book, by selling it at and under price, by all,
means have no dealings with them." Now that
seemed perfectly sound advice, but, unfortunately,
it would not accomplish the proposed end, unless
they had a coercive system. Mr. Milee, or Mr. Bohn,
or a hundred other gentlemen, could supply Mr.
Macaulay's book to Mr. Bickers or any one else.
It was necessary, therefore, that the trade should
come to some arrangement among themselves, but
that would be useless unless a penalty was imposed
for an infraction of the regulations. He believed
that if unrestricted competition took place hundreds
of retail booksellers would be ruined. Mr. Bohn
said the other day—" If Mr. Bickers can sell at .5 per
cent. profit, I can sell at one," and he feared the trade
might be driven to act upon some system of that kind.
He believed they would fight until they reduced
their profits to the lowest possible ebb—to a percent-
age which would not pay them ; and then the present
system would be re-established by an engagement
among themselves not to sell under certain prices.
After some desultory conversation with regard to
the bookselling trade in America,
Lord CAmpueLL said the case had been very ably
argued on the part of the association ; but, although
a great deal of valuable information had been afforded
on the subject, he and his friends, Dr. Milman and
Mr. Grote, were not at present in a situation to ex-
press an opinion upon the question. He thought
the great desideratum was that they should hear
the other side, for in his opinion they ought
to act upon the maxim, " Audi alteram partem."
Even if he were convinced by the arguments he had
heard in favour of the association, he would like to
hear the other aide, who might convert him.—(A.
laugh.) Lord Eldon never would decide any cause,
however clear it might be, without hearing the side
against whicn he was inclined. He (Lord Campbell)
must say that his mind was quite unbiassed on this
question, until he had a farther opportunity of infor-
mation and discussion, but he thought it desirable
that they should bear the arguments of those who
took a different view of the question, without its being
expected that those parties should he bound by any
opinion which he or his friends Mr. Grote and Dr.
Milman might express. If Mr. Bickers, Mr. Bentley,
Mr. Chapman, or any other gentleman wi:hed to he
heard, he would be most happy to meet them, with-
out expecting them to say that they would change
their mode of dealing in conformity with any opinion
expressed by himself or his friends.
After some conversation it was arranged that if any
of the " undersellers" desired to argue the case against
the association, Lord Campbell, the Dean of St.
Paul's, Mr. Grote, and probably other literary gen-
tlemen, would be prepared to hear their statements,
between the 16th and 21st of May.