The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1888-04-01
ODD THINGS IN SECONDHAND BOOKS.
A Dealer Says Those Who Buy Them Ara
Cranks, While the Sellers Are Eccentrics.

1t is the opinion of certain book dealer that
the great majority of people who frequent sec
ond-hand book stores are crsuks. IT mean by
that" be continued, that they are people Of
hobbies and whims. They usually have some
special hobby that they are devoting attention
to, and they buy book that subject wneth-
er it has anything in it of value or rot. Others
simply have propensity for buying books
sort of mania which grows by what it feeds
upon. Thsy buy volume after volume to put up
in cases, oftentimes never to be taken down
again A good illustration of this came within my
observation recently. have received four cat
alogues, each representing $4,000 worth Of
books, of a sale to be made in an Eastern city.
The books were the property of millionaire, q
successful business man, and he had been coll
lectng library for years. He not q raaT
that read at all, anything beyond the daily pa
pers, but he had mania for collecting books,
aud never failed to hunt up the antquary's shon
in any city wherever his large business called
him. You see the result: He has spent fortune
In gratifying mere whim."
''In what sort of books do you deal most large
Tyr inquired the reporter. to whom he was talk
ing.
''Oh our business is confined to no one field
Nearly every book antiquary has his owr
particula idea Some seek for works on
science, some on theology, some on
tu0utcAl SUBJECTS, some on chess, some
heraldry-each according to his own fancy
Every second hand book dealer, like his patrons
you see, is crank on some subject, and he gen.
orally INDUCES his own within. good part of
our business" continued the dealer. lis with
historical societies, libraries and institutions of
learning. We have a great correspondence with
collectors of scientific works-people who seek
out-of- the-way things. Books on SCIENCE that
contain nothing more than D schoolboy knowl-
edge now. are sought out for the purpose of
showing just what the people did know when
they were written. It's always attractive to q
scientist 30 see the great progress science has
made, and this kind of book gives him an OPP
portunity for that. There seems to be periods
when calls for class OF books will preponder-
ate, then another just 1 am having a
great call. all over the country, for works of
early dramatsts. Ben Jonson Christopher Mar
lowe, Beaumont, Fletcher and Others Many
sales of that class ara made here in town. You
see. the business Is something of an index of
what the public looking up. A short
time since there was great demand
for works on pottery. then a demand followed
for works OF art, on hand painting, water coll
ors; that demand is running still to-day. There
is great rage for autographs Just now. Book
dealers in the East holding large sales Of
in the East that make specially Of this line OF
work. They 90 into dust knee deep, ransack
old Rarrsts and closets. infest paper-mills
move heaven and earth to get possession OF the
Of famous persons They are also
dealing In original manuscripts of Thackeray,
Dickens. George Eliot, Bulwer, Scott and 9TH
OF essayists like Addison. Steele, Chas Lamb
and, to some extent, in writings OF other Kinds.
New York houses have agents in ENGLAND for
THIS special work, and &c liz surprising what
sums expended in this way. There 10
great CALL too. among secondhand dealers, for
old Bibles. Here's one have just picked up"
The dealer then laid out on his case quaint lit
tie old book with parchment back, printed in
black lie tier Latin 1t full Of curious pictures
OF devils and saints, and all kinds OF Bible his
tory, work that tina ANTIQUARIAN would 90 into
ecstacies over. and bore on the title page 1881.
A wo-k also of Saint Thomas Aquinas-tI565l
defense of monastic institutions, was shown. This
-as also printed in black letter latin with tllum-
mated title, and capitals this illumination or cap
tails all being done by hand, a strange and cur-
GUS sort of decoration in red ink. The copyists
It that time were all thrown out of work by the
introduction of printing in order give
hem something to do they were hired to 60 !.
through and finish off the printing work in red
nix.
do you find much OF a sale for rare books in
ndiauapCisp resumed the reporter
mo-" replied the dealer There is not much of
demand here The sales in that line are gen.
rally confined to large cities, such as New York
nd Philadelphia, where there great num-
er OF wealthy mon. You see this thing of max
ne collections Of books ia CONTAGIOUS.
)ne man starts in on it and another becomes
nvious OF his neighbor and begins also TO,
ooks is up to such figures as they often
ring There IS often great competition
Or rare books The secondhand school book
rade now is large business which has sprung
p IN the last few years. Larger houses gather up
hese books and find ready market for them,
in the South. The people of the
outh are not up with the North in educational
latters, and this 10 one reason why this class of
ooks find reader sale there than anywhere
lse. Then the frequent changes in textbooks
ave made this business a sort of necessity The
secondhand book business affords good op-
ortuniiy for studying peculiarities of human
allure. Book collectors come around to sit and
nat with a dealer. They seem to enjoy the
rusty smell OF ancient volumes. and like to dis
purse on the subject They will come and sit
shop for hours. / used to have a man that
ould come day after 6ay and sit for long
me on the same stool there. He seemed to
Ike peculiar delight in all the surroundings.
he business is, you see, as said at first, large
dependent on hobbies and whms, and carried
to large extent by cranks."