New-York tribune., 1883-03-14
THE FAMOUS LIBRARY or MR.. COOKE.
RESULT OF THE FIRST DAYS sALE-MANY COLLEGES
REPRESENTED.

RESULT OF THE FIRST DAYS sALE-MiNY COLLEGES
REPRESENTED.
The sale of the library of the late Joseph j.
Cooke of Providence r. /, begun yesterday at the
auction rooms OF the messrs Leayitt, in Clinton Hall
The sale OF the library marked by features opccnar
interest owing terms OF the will OF It's late
owner. In 1854 Mr. Cooke withdrew from business.
Always fond OF books, he devoted himself during the
latter years Of his life to collecting them aad worked
with 40 great zeal that gathered OF tne hncs pr
yate libraries United States the value OF "h ich
as been estimated at $4,000. The preface OF the cat
aogue OF 100 pages which was prepared Tor TINS sale
by John Russell Bartlett gives Interesting facts as TO
the methods by which Mr.. Cooke formed hS collection
It's said 70 have been the owners nteDtloL To nave
founded great library in Rhode Island but instead OF
this he adopted eIpedent descr bed III the following
paragraph OF his will give and bequcah to the Rod
wood Library and Athengum, OF Nowpori, and the
AthenDun and Brown University, and the Rhode Island
ustorlcal Society and the Proyil lenco Public
Library, all o; tho City OF Providence, and all
I'm the State OF RhOds Island. 10 tho Worcester
Antiquarian Society, OF Worcester the library OF
Harvard University the Historical Genealogical Society
o. Boston, all OF Massachusetts, o. Yale Coese OF New
Haven, ana the Iriny College, OF Hartford, all OF Com
nccticut the sum OF s. 900 epc provide that the same
shall be used IN payment Tor Dill OF any DOCKS men
may he sold ~ them by auction by my executors or theF
successors ut any sale thereof bat not oLheTwsc."
rms in fact gave freely books wor1 $4,000 10 ten IN
stutOns so far as they cared 10 use ther pfOporohae
credit; but they gOt IncGpcnded balance In money
own librarian as IN The case OF Yale and Brown, by
agents and In competition with them private persons
hal sms chance at really desirable books Tho library
| embraced in all about 10000 volumes. II was
divided into three 5a1 the me as nst 0t %d%n
recent eIOn OF Fraucs Baeon's works, eix,eeu vol
| umes, brought Sl02 For Berangcrs complete works
$1l2 % was paid
The religious literature lad been most neglected. ana
when the collection OF Bibles aud TestamcnB
which formed Of the elrDngest features
OF the library reached, they sold ut what
were regarded very cheap rates indeed The ihTe0
gems Of this part OF the cOllcc however, were the
FIRST offered. The first Bible witt on the split
veIum thin and silky as tissue paper, called perOdmea
finn obOytiCUn, aud IL somewhat illuminated
n bore tho armorial bojkplae Of the Mar
outs Breadabanc, aUd lie history was attested
iV "A note In Lain, aYcrrlng that 10 had been given
bv Brother Vincent De AhcCls de Fayenta to the Rev
eP.nd Father Sir Leonard dc Pcrgiun, General o! the
Order of Jesus II written In 1870 This was sold
for 1928. The next Bbe was manuscript of smaller
sile i'm double columns, tine same thin veum ana
with margina notes IN b.ackctter characters OF mar
veIIons inputenes-, which must have been written
nnder n magniger. II belonged to the thirteenth cen
tury and brought 500. The third, similar Bible
ri TO- Messrs. Birch ard Hart and the Yale
and Brown libraries we're the pilnciIai Duy-
era OF Bibles. The evening sesslOh dlu not
present any very notable Incidents ana was ehleny o
cupled with manuals OF photography ana ealh9gues OF
ilbrares and book-saes, which were taken lor the
most part by the colleges and by Messrs hart
and Little. The highest prices pald were onnns u, Io
lowsi BARRIERS Dctionairo des OnVr1ges AnonymSs
ct Pseudonymes," etc., four volumes pal beJ9anMas
small catalogue Of early printer muHR ~
brary" S42; and, best OF all Brunt Mahuoi wv
Librare," In volumes, 9l55 80. ,c.,
The total proceeds OF tue auction as stated py
Lewis Cooke $3lGO The sale wiz continue to-ua!