The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1882-11-04
Charles Reade's Workshop.

Let us take a peep into his sanctum
sanctorum. There, arranged upon strong
deal shelves, are rows of guard books
containing extracts from English, Amer
lean and French journals. The ercepta
misceLLanea are the collection of many
years-nothing of Importance has es-
capped the eye of this literary ARGUS.
The newspaper cuttings are not pasted
in the books in the usual careless man
ner, but properly classified under differ
ent headings. One set of books devoted
to reports of curious police cases, under
the heading of ''Curialia," or man as
revealed in the courts of law. Another
filled with paragraphs about women, and
labelled 'Femina Vera" Some
volumes headed "Humores Diei,"
or the humors of the dav.
Several ponderous tones labeled
"Nigri Loci" containing reports of dark
deeds perpetrated in prisons, lunatio
asylums, warehouses and orphan homes.
In these volumes are to be found MANY
heart breaking stories of wretched pris-
oners done to death in county ials. The
crimes of men ''drest in a little brief
authority" Reports of sane people
shut up for years in private asylums.
Conspiracies in which the chief actors
were official tyrants and wicked relatives.
Husbands who have consigned wives to
lifelong captivity. Wives who have
connived with authority to get rid of
troublesome husbands, not because they
were mad, but because they knew too
much for their guilty partners.
Heirs and heiresses shut up to
make room for those who thought
they had a better right to thor
property; and accounts Of villain
Gus deeds practiced upon poor creatures
whose minds were really deranged; how
their bones were broken and their lives
beaten out of them by ruffianly keepers.
In this collection are the confessions of
escaped nuns, revolving stories of i'm
morality in religious institutions, and
many accounts of cruelties practieed
upon defenceless children in so-called
orphan homes. On another shelf are
books containing reports of trade out
RACES and strikes, headed " The Dirty
OGgarchv." Several volumes of mining
reports, details of colliery explosions,
outrages at sea, and any quantity of Off
cial blue-books. On the floor of the Ii
brary are rows of giant folios, contain
ing thousands of wood-cuts, labeled:
d" Pictura Theatri' and " Pictura Nov
ellie" A number of yearly volumes of
LloydS Weekly Newspaper, the Graphic,
the Police Necs, English and American,
are carefully indexed under Mr., Reade's
favorite headings, and the most striking
paragraphs marked with red or blue
pencil. Every volume is indexed and
classified, and in addition to the induces
pasted in each folio there are three quar-
to vellum-covered volumes, containing
copies of the Floriligeal induces, so that
when the author wishes to find subject
he is not obliged to drag about the
heavy annual volumes or the giant fol-
los; he can find what he requires in the
portable quarto or Index ad Indices. In
addition to this large collection of facts,
there are about 400 volumes of "La Bib
liotheque Dramatique" -containing not
fewer than 1000 French plays-and a
few standard works of reference As Mr..
Reade once remarked to friend, This
is library of note books. THE Gen
Hemens Magazine.