New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1880-10-31
TIE ENEMIES or BOOKS.
From The Pail Mall gazette

One Of tie most deteTn med fees Of books is the
bOOkwOTm-the insect not the student Mn. EiadeS
was anxious to coilect a lew bo0kwoTms 10 eXhibil
at the GaXton celebration; but he might as well
have tired TO display q few ghosts III glass case
As III the matter OF ghosts, Mr.. Blades could find M
witness who had actually seen a bOOkworm. Their
works are manifest TO all and the neat round holes
they drill from TO cover of volume are abso-
lutcly rreparabe. Mentzeus maintained that he had
heard the book worn carol 10 It's mate; but MentZe
Illus has been dead these many years and he may
have been the victim of some hallucnation. All APP
parItOnS 1t Is an axiom OF science, are haiucina-
tons, aud by not all OOOkWOrms Inc DOOkwornl,
according to AentZeius, carries "a grey crOst, and
when 1t calls its mate II claps its wings wi loud
rattle. If this be true the term " worm y seems \
worms is to anOiDt the wooden covers of
old books with olive oil t i1Ied with tn
the paste used in bookbDdng will compel the book
worms who live mainly on THIS paste, to seek sub
sistence elsewhere. Whom the great Vil!oson lwho
discovered the Vene us A. Ms. of the Iliadl trav-
eled in the East he found that bookworms were
the scourge Of the Levant. The Libraries at SciOs
Naxos, Salouica aud COpstantinople were falling
INTO dust before tho ravages of cgions of book
worms. Constant OF books and frequent clean
ing of them the great preservatlves against this
pest of the library.
Next 10 beOkworms which attack q book in de-
tail and fire. which has consumed so many libraries
gas is OF the greatest foes of literature Mr..
ladies' found that III his study three jets Of gas
soOd reduced the leather of his bindings to "A kind
of finder which OH being handled turned into
powder like snuff. The paper does not suffer, but
constant reminding is not only announcement ana eX
pensive but it destroys tho beauty of book
Binders are among the worst foes of books
They. cannot leave Oft cutting, down
MARGINS till they have shipped into
the actual text. They hate Ay-leaves. and are the
sworn enemies of title-pages. Hardly any care will
prevent them from lettering ungramlnatcal tit les
as Homcrus Operum outside the lliad-on tho backs OF
tine books. one of The Oldest Mss. OF the New les,
lament in the British Museum has been g cut down"
by the bOOkbnder Servants are also great enemies
OF books and especially of the Ms. of books still
4 Their
As 10 books already In existence printed and boarded,
servants prefer to lose and miSlaN them This they
do when tdyi nR," when the master Is absent.
They separate all the volumes OF work III
the bookShelveS, turning some tones upside
down. and hiding others tb IN book draY SnS
also burn all fragments of books and magazines
which you have stored away with the purpose OF
binding them Children tear. beslobber. scrlbble
over and paint books IN very free and engaging
style. Friends borrow books, aud thus may be
called less the of books than the enemies OF
book owners. Among the involuntary enemies of
books may be r,ckoncd people who have
swallowed them. Of these list was lately published
in lie LIRE Ezeklal Chapter Iii, 49, is the
earliest and most notorious example OF book
bequius) cat books in order that they may +" IN
wardly digest and master their contents, cannot
be called the friends OF literature. When Urban '.
was Young the Duke of Milan made him eat
apostolic letter OF Pope Innocent " So says Full
gOslus " he made him swallow the Pope's letter
which he carred-a thing undoubtedly most proud
and insOlcut." The author of DANA ad exfcros de
peridils suacorum" 1G43, quarto) was gwen the
choice Of being decapltated or of eating his
own book lie chose the latter, in soup. Isaac
Vomar was compelled by one of the Dukes of Sax
ony TO eat his own lbels. Fish have eaten books.
and in 1862, fragments of a work by JOhn Fryth
were found IN the stomach OF a club. certain
Tribe in Central ASIA once possessed sacred book
but a COW ate II. The pOll-b0Ok, after an Irish cleo
tIon, "fell into the broth, and 1t was eaten by a
gp-Or 80 witnesses declared to q Parliamentary
Commission. Process servers III Ireland have de-
vourod a good deal of manuscript but processes
can scarcely be called literature. Nelson once
threatened To make French Admiral eat his own
d, pa ches but lie had the luck to catch this
of