The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1889-03-26
PARE OLD NEWSPAPERS.
some of the Curious Files to Be Found
in the Netional Library.
From the Washington Star.

cramped quarters in the capitol building
are many things that are rare. In the mar
row room there is for reading the tables are
already surrounded by busy searchers-
from the wild-eyed poet to the figure-wise
nolitical economist; from the school
Girl to the white-haired philosopher. When
fhev get into their new quarters, the library
building that Is now assured to them, many
musty old volumes will get out of
cramped position and shake the dust off
their bindings, and the people who read,
and those who study, will have a chance to
seek out their choice company. 1t will be
relief for Librarian Spofford when he mas
his beloved books in perfect order on
roomy and comfortable shelves If
the want of room has given the
library piled-together appearance,
it cannot be said that the selec ions
for the library have been made on the hap
hazard principle. There is much less of
the hap-hazard element entering into the
foundation of the collection" Mr.. Spofford
says. ethan is generally supposed from its
having been for nearly twenty years past
receptacle for copyright books. The vari-
ous departments have been kept up and re-
cruited by constant and timely purchases,
mainly at auction sales, thus constantly
filling gaps in the collection. In fact, it
NAV be said that the library has been
formed from the first with the view of the
highest utility and general unity of plan"
RARE AND CURIOUS THINGS.
Mr.. Spofford talked with the Star re-
porter yesterday about some of the rare and
curious things in the library. Besides the
many valuable features of the collection is
a rare class of newspapers and periodicals.
The only set in America of the files of the
London Gazette, from the first publication
in 1865, to the present date, is in this library.
There are only three of these sets in the
- of xrTDlY1
1t is the official journal, published by
the British government semi-weekly.
1t first appeared in London in 1865
was published there for a short time, when,
on account of the plague, it was removed
to Oxford for awhile. It's issue has been
uninterrupted. The early numbers were
but a single dingy sheet of the foolscap size,
which now seems very odd. The latest
numbers consist of forty or fifty pages.
This set is full of interest. In the papers
are published the queens orders Of
council the announcements of all APP
pointments in the army and navy, and
the civil service the advertisements of cor
porations and all bankruptcy notices. From
this last has been derived the erm ''gaZetted"
to denote failure. 1t is curious to read in
these papers for the years about 1916 to
1S4S, during the period of the great railroad
craze in Great Britain. Then it was that
Hudson, the railroad king" organized
company after company, and the whole
ration went insane over speculation.
Transportation companies were formed all
over the land, and there we're companies
for water transportation.
MANY THOUSAND MILLION POUNDS
were sunk in these bubble companies and
kite-hying speculations, even clergymen
and women being involved. The excite
ment of the times is shown by appearance
IF ba Y1offa aynanHod until aanh
number made a large volume, crammed
with advertisements of companies formed
and being formed and notices of shares,
etc. Extending back almost to the time of
Cromwell, these papers possess peculiar
interest.
Beside this set the library contains COM
plete set of the London Times daily from
1896 to date.
There is a file of the London Morning
Chronicle from 1914 to 1856, and the file of
the London Globe from 1888 to date.
There is full set of the important liter
airy and political weeklies from their COM
mencement, including the AthGnGLDt, the
ACADEMY, the Examiner, the Spectator,
the Literary Gazette, the Public Opinion,
the Court Journal, the Economist, etc.
There is also complete file of the Paris
Moniteur from its beginning, in 1889, to
the time of the last French republic, 1870,
when it was merged into the Journal
O6fcieJ. The set of the ReUue deua MondeS
is complete from 1928 to the present time
This is valued highly, as the journal is re-
garded as one of the most important liter
airy and critical journals ever published.
There are a multitude of reviews and
magazines, American, English and Cont
mental, and the recent additions in periodi-
cal literature, continually supplemented, as
they will be. by filing of gaps in series,
readers will soon find in our national col
lection sets of nearly every periodical which
has made for itself a name in literature,
science or art.
EARLY AMERICAN NEWSPAPERS.
In the collection are some rare early
American newspapers. The library has
partial set Of Ben amin Franklin's paper,
the Pennsylvania Gazette, from 1884 to 1884 !;
and there is file of the Pennsylvania
Euening Post from IT'S to 1884, in one
number Of which may be found the first
publication of the declaration of indepe d.
ence, July 4, 1776. A file of the Penn
sylvania Journal runs from ITS to 1889;
and the POrcupjne Gazette, " illiam Cob
belts paper, from 1897 to 1899; the Penn
sylvania Ledger, Mercury and Chronicle,
from 1867 to 1856 There is also the Penn
sylvana Packet, the first daily paper pub
hshed in the United States, which has been
continued under other names for more than
a century, and is now the North American
These are all Philadelphia papers
Among New York's early journals is a
complete set of the EUening Post from the
first issue in 1901 to the present date, and
the Gazette of the United States, the first
paper to publish the debates OF congress,
which was started / 1889
Then there are: The New York Gazette,
from 1877 e. 1921; the New York Journal,
from l17l to 1888, and very curious file of
hVlngton's Loyal Gazette, British tory
paper published during the hot times of the
revolution, and running under various
aliases from 1913 to 1888. There is also
tull set Of the earliest "Price Current,
Shipping and Commercial List, from 1915 to
From Boston there are multitude of
periodicals. Of the revolutionary period and
earlier, though Incomplete, as is usually the
case In files of these early journals. Among
Ghem are the Massachusetts, Gazette, the
boston NeUS Letter, the Boston Gazette,
ana the Independent Chronicle.
Baltimore is well represented in the col
lection. There is the Maryland Journal,
Ihe Baltimore Gazette. of earlier days; and
iater the Batim re Sun, Clipper, Ameri-
can, Patriot, etc.
SOUTHERN NEWSPAPERS.
NOT have the southern states been neg
S sscceu In making up this valuable collection.
SSuor,ly after The war a full set of the
Snarleston Daily Courier from 1908, the first
issue, and covering the entire period since
Under the name of NeicS and
courier, was purchased for the library.
ID hA