Wheeling times and advertiser. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1839-1849, 1845-06-16

having been annually dictated to him by Beel |
lrbub. The confronting of the two men took |
as Use most likely from the cunning of the |
monks alter the Reformation; OF which, there |
lsno question, the diffusion of the Bible bv
means oi the pres, was the primary cause They
therefore owed John Faust no good will for
tue part he unwittingly took in DESTROYING
their system, and tried 10 de.amc his memory
10y mixing up his life with that OF IA moumtc-
bank.
The venerable goldsmith, rfintcr and book
seller, did not depart this life till lac had pla
ecu the Pans agency on a scct,te footing
Inc name oil the agent he employed was Her
man dc Staten, and the agency was carried on
al the House OF one John Guymcr as we learn
rom curious document found in copy of
faust and Schociier's edition of the Latin Ri.
bic. II II deed of sale of the book To Tourne-
VIE, Bishop of Anglers, and runs thus -" |,
herman, German, workman of the honest
ana discreet John Guymer, sworn book seller
oi the university of Paris, acknowledged to
nave sold To the illustrious and learned master
Nllliam, OF Iourncville, archbishop and can
ON oil Anglers, my most respectable lord and
master, Bible printed at Mentz (Mayence)
upon Vellum, in two volumes, for the price
and sum OF forty crowns. which have abso-
lutely received, which also ratify by these
presents, promising to abide by the same, and
guaranteeing my lord, purchaser of the said
bible, against any one who would dispossess
him. In ratification of which have hereun
10 afilXed my SEAL this fifth day of the month
| oil April, IN the year of our Lord NJ ccccLyx.
Herman BY this we perceive that since
they first came into Paris, the printed bibles
were elevated in price.
1t happened, unfortunately, that Herman of
Staten failed TO obtain amy legal instrument
OF naturalization in France; and when he
al ha T.,, L.
ter, Faust-his effects were confsceted Ms the
property of foreigner The books intrusted
To HIM by Schoeiler, and amounting i'll value
to | 100 francs, Were included in the confsca-
| ton. Schoefler, however, obtained restitu-
ton through the libemlity of Louis XII 1t is
striking illustration of the value and scarcity
! oi money at that period, that the King of
France found ii announcement to pay the sum
equal only To G46. 6s. Sat once /; but
did so in two years ins,alments!
The distribution of Faust, Schoeflcr, and
Company's workmen at the seigc of Maycnce
in ll62, began by this time (lI70) to operate
throughout Europe, by supplying printers to
various continental cities. At this carly time
most printers sold their own books, and if we
state the different periods at which printing
was introduced into various countries, we
shall show also when books of print began to
be- sold in each place. The first introduction
of this invention into Italy was at Subbiaco,
in 1863; into Paris, in 1866; into England
(Westminster,) i'll ll7l into Spain BARGE
.3na,i IN l473 inc hpyssinia, i'm sci into
Mexico in 1850; into the East Indias. (Geo)
in 1877 into Peru, (Lima } in 1886; into
North America Cambridge, Boston and Phil
adclphia,) in 1910. One of the most active
OF the German printers and booksellers, be-
tween l473 and 1913, was Ant Kober at Nj
rcmberg, who had 81 presses and nearly 100
workmen in his employ, and kept open shops
at Frankfort, Leipsic, Amsterdam and We
nice, all conducted with the greatest reguari-
" and order. He had ON sale not only works
of his own publication, but works of 9TH
er publishers. All Ulm and Basic there were
likewise several booksellers carrying on an
extensive trade. The many pilgrmages wall
iahrten) 10 holy places in the interior of Ger
many-whiCh were then as much frequented
as the sacred shrines in India, and are so still
in some Roman Catholic countries--oficred
books, particularly of those having religions
| tendency, which were printed on cheap linen
paper, instead of the expensive parchment
formerly in use.
Wherever we Turn, we shall find that. once
introduced into country, the press was kept
in extraordinary activity, and books were
spread in all directions. There were in Enc.
land, from the time of Caxton to 1000, no few
er than three hundred and fifty printers. Ames
and Herbert have recorded the titles of ton
thousand different works printed here i'm the
same interval; the yearly average number of
distinct works issued and sold i'm the hundred
and thirty years was seventy The num-
Der OF copies of each was, however, i'm all
probability small, for the early book sellers
We're cautious. Even Grafton only printed
JOO copies OF his complete edition of the Scrip-
lures Chat of lUi y and vet so great was the
| 10 Inc li-i, ,I,. a..
still cXtant copies OF 326 editions of it which
were printed between 1926 and 1000.
In Italy the works of the old classic Roman
authors were rapidly printed, when means for
doing SO were introduced. In Switzerland,
especially at Geneva and Basic, great mum
Der OF Books, chiefly of a religious character
were printed and sold Immediately after press.
as were set up. Indeed the trading talent of
the Swiss manifested itself in the beginning
OF the sixteenth century very prominently in
relation To books, for they supplied book sell
ers even TO Germany--to which we must now
return.
In the dawn of literary commerce, whole.
sale trade, in whateverartcle, was chiefly con-
Quoted at fairs, which took place once, twice.
or thrice year. To these great meetings
manufacturers and agricuturists brought such
produce as was OF perishable character. and
which was purchased by retailers, who either
came from other parts of the country or en-
ployed local agents TO purchase on their nc
count. Amongst other manufacturers, the
printers brought goods which were bought
by retailers, and distributed by them through
out the country. At first the greatest auanti-
" oil booksellers stalls was assembled at the
Frankfort iairs, where multitudes of strangers
and merchants met. Ant. Kobcr of Nurem-
berg Ch. Plautin, of Antwerp and Stephenus
(Etlenne) OF Paris, are recorded as book sellers
visiting the Frankfort fair as early as the wear
l473. From this period Frankfort gradually
became the book-mart In 1926 Christopher
Froschaucr. from Basic, wrote to his principal
OlTlch L"lngli, informing him of the rapid
and profitable sale of his books at Frankfort
to persons who had sent for them from all
parts. In 1919 Operin. of Basic, publishers of
tho ELn-.i.. ni.ilDl Er.nL IL ....l - |