The Sun.
London, England, 1853-01-28 00:00:00

THE BOOKSELLERS AND MR. PANIZZI.

Yesterday, at Bow-street Police-court, Mr. Henry
G. Bohn, the bookseller, of York-street, Covent-garden,
attended before Mr. Jardine upon seventeen distinct
summonses, obtained at the instance of Antonio Panizzi,
and charging him with having neglected to supply the
British Museum with copies of works, or new editions
of works, published by him.
Mr. Bodkin, who was accompanied on the bench by
Mr. Panizzi and Mr. Harding, one of the solicitors to
the British Museum, conducted the prosecution.
Many readers will remember that not very long ago a
similar series of summonses, obtained at the instance o
Mr. Panizzi against Mr. Bohn, were heard at this court,
when the defendant complained in energetic terms of the
harsh and disobliging spirit with which the rights of the
British Museum under the Copyright Act were enforced
by the complainant. Subsequently Mr. Bohn repeated,
in a letter to Mr. Panizzi, his request that In future an
opportunity might be afforded him of correcting his
omissions by a reminder from the Museum. This re-
quest was refused. Informations were laid at this court,
and a subsequent tender of the works was declined as
too late. The books in respect of which the present
proceedings were taken were one volume of Vasari's
" Lives of the Painters," Lanzi's " History of Painting,"
in three volumes, and " hlichelet's " History of the
French Revolution," in the well-known Standard Li-
brary. It was not denied on the part of the defendant,
that a failure of compliance with the statute had taken
place in respect of the books referred to.
Mr. Ballantine, who appeared for Mr. Bohn, de-
nounce the proceeding of Mr. Panizzi as harsh, vexa-
tious, and tyrannical. It was clear that these proceed-
ings were taken in a vindictive spirit towards Mr. Bohn,
because most of the summonses related to works
published by him many years ago. In the case of
" Vassari's Lives," it was shown that the 2nd, 3rd, 4th,
and sth volumes of the work were sent by Mr. Bohn at
the time of their publication, in 1850 • but by some
oversight the Ist volume was omitted to be sent. This
fact was a striking illustration of the way in which Mr.
Panizzi attended to his duties in the British Museum.
If common diligence had been exercised, the discovery
that they possessed the 2nd and remaining volumes, and
not the first, would have been made atthe time. But no,
two years passed away, and then Mr. Panizzi, looking
for the means to satisfy his revenge, pounces upon these
odd volumes, and takes out his summons—not heeding
the probable opinion of the world, that in so doing he
disclosed his own palpable neglect of duty while endea-
vouring to convict Mr. Bohn. Then why were these
rigorous and expensive proceedings taken for new editions
merely for works, a dozen copies of which were already
in the library 1 At any rate, then, let these proceedings
be conducted in a more courteous spirit. He would un-
dertake to assert that Englishmen knew how to treat
each other, and by no Englishman would Mr. Bohn
have been exposed to the annoyance and trouble which
he had lately had to endure after so many years
of public utility. The publishers of London encoun-
tered no obstacles, and experienced no harshness, in
their intercourse with the other public institutions to
which they were also bound to send their books, because
they had to deal with men who understood the course of
conduct most agreeable to Englishmen, especially when
enforcing a law which operated somewhat harshly upon
the trade. It may be that the act does not require Mr.
Panizzi to make a demand ; but all men were liable to
errors, and could not secure themselves against the lathes
of servants, and no Englishman, in such a case, because
armed with this authority, would wrap himself up in an
artificial importance, and use it tyrannically. It was
persecution, and nothing else. The trade thought
iwilissthiceedohfitshrsocarssh'el
give way to the force of
and the public thought so •; and in this instance
every other, those who persisted in carrying it on,wasoulud
eventually be compelled to
psuufablciicenotpitnoiemn.eet
He
would deem it
worship
oinflict nominal
penalties only.
Mr. Bodkin had never heard such a request prefaced
by such a speech. He was not
e entitled to ask the pro-
secution not to press for thfull penalties.
Mr. Jardine had no doubt that Mr. Bohn was liable
to the penalties in each case, but he'should consider a
nominal penalty of ls.with the costs, sufficient. He knew
Mr. Bohn as an excellent neighbour, and every one
must value his labours for the public. He had also known
Mr. Panizzi for many years, and did not believe
there was anything really malignant in his heart, what-
ever may have been inferred by Mr. Bohn from a little
brusquerie of manner on the last occasion. He sin-
cerely trusted that both would go to work in a betterat
e
spirit in future ; the ono, determined to do what theb e ;
required of him, without causing unnecessary trouble _
and the other, to carry out the law, not as if it werell
like
an ordinary penal enactment, but as one which
operatedu
rather unfairly, perhaps, upon a certain class, and should
be enforced with as much anxiety as possible, to make
it less onerous to those whom it affected.occupied
a long
There were several other cases, which
time in discussion. One relating to two volumes of a very
rd Kingsborough's An-
tiquitiesLo
expensive character, namelyc "
" (published at 121. 125.) It was
of Mexico
contended that this work was published 20 years ago,
before the act of Victoria ;
but it was admitted that only
two copies were printedfor the author, one of which
was sold at a public auction.
Mr. Jardine did not consider this a publication.
In five other cases the summonses were withdrawn.
Mr. Bodkin applied for all the expenses, but his wor-
ship only allowed the usual court expenses, which, with
the penalties, amounted in all to 11/. 16s. 6d.

THE SHEFFIELD MONUMENT TO " THE CORN-LAW
BuymEn."—A monument in bronze, by Burnard, is
about to be erected in Sheffield, to the memory of Ebe-
nezer Elliott, the " Corn-law Rhymer." Through the
influence of Mr. Hadfield, M.P., for Sheffield, the coun-
cil of the Anti-Corn-law League have given a subscription
of 501. towards the cost of the monumental memorial.
Mr. Hadfield has likewise given a second subscription of
Si., and a like contribution has been received by the
monument committee from Colonel Thompson, who also
promises to canvass his friends for further pubscriptiels.