New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1886-10-17
A LlTTLE-KNOWN LIBRARY.
rprAsuREs COLLECTED BY JAMES LENox.

WHAT MAY Bf SEEN WHhN oNCH iNoipn'
The Lenox Library is in many ways the most
strikiug and peculiar. and certainly tho least
known. OF the great book collections OF Ncw-fork
CITY Almost any one can tell you these two or
three facts about it: that in 1870 James Lenox.
who had speut great part of his life gathering
together rare and costly books. turned his whole
collection over to a corporation chosen by himself
"a the nucleus Of a free pubhc library !; that nc
also gave block Of lots in Fifth-sve., between
Svenlieth and Seventy frat SITS, for building
ate and built there afterward the massive hre-
proof structure that now bears his name; that the
library was opened formally in 1877 and that the
work of arranging and catalogung the booKs mas
been going OH ever since Few New Workers have
had the patience or leisure to get further GU IMAM
this. Under the curious restrictions in vogue the
library has been open but five hours q day OH hVe
DAYS of each week. Ii always has been ana stii Is
necessary to apply by mail for cards of admittance.
oood for one dsGh only. Once inside the walls the
visitor could get az near the rarest books as the
glass covers of their showcases or gaze at the ouk
of them from behind tho ale I'VE ratings. spec,a'
permit it is true, would give recognized scnoiai
access to certain volumes at the discretion oi 'no
librarian. All in all the drawbacks were enough
to discourage the most ardent OF book WORMS INC
average New-Yorker knew the OUTSIDE OIL '"o
library well enough but as for Mr. Lenoxs rare
been sbelved away securely in the moon.
A Rostonian. perhaps who has revelled IN the
freadom of the Public Library or the Athen@um,
will saw that the Lenox Library quite character
istic of New York: that it IN no pubic library az
all 1t is open but five days q week. anu On
those DAYS it's hours are short II is not Tree AZ
has no readers. Its books. however costly "".
really valuable in themselves, are mere sho" anu
have no nse It's collection OF curioslties oni''
l..l.o .l.tnn al 40.
ogain only when the summer idlers have come BACK
10 town.
NOT MEANT TO BE POPULAR"
And mnch Of this of course. is true. The LenoN
Library was never meant to he popular III wouiu
Ia obsnr1 IN allow its best books TO be handled
hovever sparingly even IN the library building
;,soIf yonv of them are worth hundreds some
thousands of dollars, and once injured they couIu
not be replaced. The library. too. Is msrcly
ronp Of spscal unrelated collections, having ut'o
or no interest for the general reader lDey Oil o''
one of the four large library rooms, ana are on' ING
prom,se of a splendid collection, wncp Win
further endow may some day o'eriahe 'no
ambitious fancies of its founder and the generous
limits of the imposing granite Duiidlhg WHICH ho
planned. , t.,.;,
,he mark at Seventieth-st. easily dominates the
baifdozen blocks in each direction. Nothing could
no frmer looking or more solid. The square court
between the wings out of which the granite soeos
GO ND 10 the main entrance, is all oil stone 90 ~
the high wall which cuts it off abruptly from the
street The building itself is faced throughout
with Granite some smooth. some rough-hewu, the
inner brick walls showing only at the oacK. ne
hall within is laid in flags on which ones footsteps
fall noisily. Canes and umbrellas are torpiuden'
Int the cater is not senslbly decreased. The main
,~i,, To
on a long. wide room. filled with cases tables ana
helves and decorated here and there with statuary
mr. naintincs From each end. too. Hight OF
granite stairs runs up the hall galleries on the
upper floor The body of the main building on ms
floor is used Tor Offices, to rhlch there Is no
admittance. of course.
RARE AND VALUABLE BOOKS.
The bnlk of the Lenox collection is in the south
wing of the library Here will be the reading-room
when the books finally put II shape LOT use
The mare costly volumes are ranged along the TWO
aides OF the open space in glass cases. iaoeoo IKE
the specimens OF a museum. lhere are ioui
branches at least. in which the COLLECTION
esnecially strong Bibles Americana Shakespear-
lana aud Miltouana. One can glance aiohs 'ne
line at the best pieces in each
There are more than 1000 Bibles in II languages
in the library At the head OF the list stands the
Gutenberg. or Mazarn Rible, supposed 10 nave
been printed hy Gutenberg. assisted by Faust. al
M.ntz between 40 and 1850 IL is the earliest
book known printed with movable types lhers
are two large volumes, in beautiful clear print
Latin of course. paper which looks as iresh no"
as 1t did 400 years ago. The two volumes arr
almost invaluable TO the bbophlle. Ihelr marker
price now is perhaps $25.O0O. Latin ooe
printed at Nuremburg in 1877 has the autograph
of Mel,pc,bon in it, and there copies of the frs
and MI
l476.
A Latin Bible from Mentz. 1902, isknown to be
the sixth book printed with date. The thHo
hook also from Mentz, 1850, Durandus De
Rationale Divlnorum Otfciorum." Is IN the LehoS
collection. There are number OF DION ooo oNa
They show "A queer combination OF manuscript
writing aud typography. One OF them IS va,t .s
Recueil OF the Histories Of Troge." he Game an'
PLAY o. Chess" the Cation" "Gason an h
q Mirronr of the World" The "Recneil' IS the
FIRST hook printed in the English language. ant
dafes from l474 The Others follow down to i+'o
Tue "Caton" was the first book CaXtoh pIin'e'
q; Westminster. There is copy mere, 700; o
C,xtou's EDITION of CHANGERS Canterbury laes
For two OF the Caxton books and first folio o
Shakespeare $4,000 was gwen
SOME CHOICE AMERICANA.
Tn the AmerIcana is the " Doctrina Chrstiana
Zumarraga, printed in the City of Mexico IN l5l'
and l544 one of the first books published III
America The " Bay Psalm Book" by stepher
, Dave. Cambridg 20, 1910, is the first English boob
printed in this country. William Bradtords Law
and Acts of New-York" l693-94 Is the hrst boof
nr,nfed IN this city, There several works o
John Eliot, the Indian apostle, the lndiaI
Grammar" Bible and New Testament, all but the
first IN the Indian languages: . :;
The Lenox collection is especially rch II
Americana of the discovery period There Is
cory for instance. of Colum3uss hrst letter Oh UNI
discovery of America printed at kQpe. III October
1893. Among the Others are Cortezs books; oevlI'
and Toledo, 1928 and 1923; lie Nonvea.
Monde" of Vesputius. Paris 1916; Peter Martyr
Vi First Decade" Seville 1911; Francisco az
Xeress Conquest of Perm" Seville 15SiNthe t only
I'll HistoTv of Virginia" London, 1924 anC
Tho Hariot's Account of Ralegh's expiora
tons London. 1885. !,