Phillipsburg herald. [volume] (Phillipsburg, Kan.) 1882-1905, 1882-10-12

vision of Calvin and OliVetan, his cOad-
tutor 1t takes its name from the emblem
of the printer on the. title page. Mr..
Peter Cooper and Prof. j. a. Weisse
are said to possess copies, which are rare
and valuable. The Messrs. Leavitt also
show copy of one'of the first printed
editions of the Scriptures, which was
published in Latin at Nuremberg by
Anthony Coberger in 1875. The cap
itals are illuminated by hand. The
volume is bound in vellum on oak
panels, the covering stamped with relig-
ious designs. 1t was bought at Frank
fort last summer. There are copies in
America of Beza's Geneva Bible (1660),
the first printed in Roman characters
instead of in black letter. 1t is curious
to note that the first book ever stereo-
typed was the New Testament in Syriac,
and that the first book published by
subscription was a Polyglot Bible in six
volumes, edited by j. Walton. and dated
London, 1867.
Original copies of the King James
version are occasionally sold in America.
Mr.. John Carter Brown, of Providence,
r. l., purchased for E40 at Sir William
Tite's sale in London in 1874 an imper-
feet volume of Tyndalrs translation of
the Pentateuch. At the same sale Gov
erdale's -" English Translation of the
Holy Scriptures in black letter, sold
for ESQ, and Brooches Bible brought
EFT. Mr.. Brown was formerly propri-
etOr of the four great national POlyglOt
Bibles-the Comprehension 0514-17),
the Paris PolygIot (ten folio volumes,
large paper editiOn), the Antwerp Poly
glot (six volumes). and Walton's Poly
glot, with - CaStelPs Lexicon (eight
volumes fOlio). An interesting work to
photographers is the Great or Crom-
wells Bible, which bears the arms of
Thomas, Lord Cromwell, on the title
page. 1t was begun by Grafton and
Whitchurchin Paris in 1923 and finished
in London in 1889 The titles were de-
signed by Hans Holbein. Imperfect
copies only of the black-letter edition of
Tyndall and Coverdale's Dutch and
Latin translation, printed in double col
umns, with wood-cuts by Hans. Gebald
Beham, are in existence in America. A
moderately good specimen is valued at
from $3.50 to 81, 900.
Fabulous prices are on occasion paid
for scarce books. The highest sum re-
corded as having been given for a Bible
was that paid for a ''Mazarin" copy at
the Perkins sale in London in 1873
93, 400. Two leaves were in fac smile.
Mr.. Perkins had bought it in 1926 for
1854. The highest figure ever realized
in America was for a tWO-vOlume copy
of the same edition, which MessrS.
Leavitt sold recently for $4,000. Mr..
Hamilton Cole, an amateur collector,
was the purchaser. For the Sykes copy
of the same book 92, 800 was paid in
1873. A specimen is at the Lenox Lii
brary. The Mazarin Bible in the Bib
liotheque Rationale of Paris is the most
valuable copy of the Scriptures in the
world. This version is called also the
Gutenberg" having been the first
printed with movable types. 1t is printed
in double columns in two volumes. De
Brue, the great French photographer,
discovered it in the library of Cardinal
Mazarin, whose name the edition has
since bore, There are only eleven
copies known to exist, and none of these
is perfect. At the Menzies sale in New
York, $3.50 was paid for two leaves of
Faust & Shaeffer's 1472 version.
An industry which is prosecuted with
success and has received great impetus
| of late years is the purchase of biblical
and other works for the sake of their
plates, the books being torn up and their
of the Bible. The idea may be said to
have been first carried into effect in the
publication of Changers History of
England in 1769-74, of which work
twenty sets were struck off on Atlas
paper, space being left for the insertion
of illustrations. Old Bibles, which are
not rare, derive their value from the use
to which their plates may be put. Mr..
| Wright, from the firm of John Wiley's
Sons, has constructed some valuable
| books in this manner. The famous ''ten
| thousand dollar Bible contains about
! 10000 illustrations, most of which have
been inserted. A London bookseller
named Brown spent about thirty years
of his life in collecting engravings for
this book from all conceivable sources.
1t is a Kitto's Q83O Bible, chosen on
account of possessing a greater number
of illustrations than any other Bible.
Mr.. j. w. Bouton, the New York book
seller, valued it at $4,000, some years
ago. 1t is now in a private library at
Oswego, N. Y.
Manuscript Bibles are valued at much
higher prices generally than most of the
early printed editions. A rare volume
is the ''Biblia Pauperum," written and
! illuminated by hand, of which there were
| five editions of some twenty volumes
issued. 1t receives its name from the
fact of its having been the only copy of
the Scriptures within the reach of poor
people. The few copies now extant are
in very bad condition, but are worth
thousands of dollars each. TemperIey
accounts for the destruction of this book
by the great wear and tear to which it
was subjected. A reprinted copy by
John Russell Smith, of London, brought
| $1,000 at the Menzies sale. A copy of
German manuscript missal of about
1850 is in possession of Messrs. Wiley.
Vellum is the material used and the IL
Nominations are superb. The volume is
a huge folio, its covers being of very
thick leather bound in brass and studded
with immense brass bosses. The missals
of the date of the introduction of print
ing offer curious commentary on human
nature. Spurious works, without num-
Der were issued from the press. illumi-
mated and touched by hand so as to rep
resent closely the manuscript volume.
Mr.. Sotheran possesses missal of this
description, printed in Paris about the
year 1850 by German Hardouin, who is
said to have produced a number of such
! forgeries. Y. World.