The Dickinson press., 1891-02-21
NOTED BOOK THIEVES.
HISTORICAL PERsoNAGEs WHO
STOLE UNIQUE VOLUMES.

HISTORICAL PERsoNAGES WHO
STOLE UNIQUE VOLUMES.
Tie Well Dressed and Intelligent Look
- Class Which Librarians Fea-A
Bishop, an Inspector General, Pope
and Noted Priest We're Thieves
Book stealing is an art upon which
much ingenuity has been expended. One
never knows in what form it will next
break out. 1t is an incident by no means
uncommon in Booksellers row for
bibliopole to be- offered book which
had been stolen from his next door
neighbor. There is something more than
tradition to the effect that bookseller
has Oh occasion purchased book taken
minute or two previously from the
shelves outside his shop!
Afavorite mode of stealing books from
public libraries is to procure book, sit
down to read it and then wrap it up in
an overcoat, and after this to take up a
paper or magazine. The rest is easily
guessed. The public libraries suffer in
all sorts of ways, for here the accumu-
lated wisdom of the thief finds plenty of
scope. Some of the tribe have a mania
for oil directories. Librarians complain
frequently of the clerical thief of SER
mons and theological literature.
Novels and "books of the bibliophile"
las the French call them) one can under
stand being stolen; but sermons and
theology! Women, more or less-gen-
orally more-respectably dressed, are
often objects of suspicion with libra
rians; for the "receptivity" of cloaks is
infinite, and the feelings" of the culprit
must also be considered. AS general
rule, the thief is well dressed and edu-
Gated, and frequently we'll to do
HISTORICAL TIETTS.
Whatever may be the causes which
prompt a person to steal books there is
always this consolation-he is in good
company This balm may not be very
healing one to the soul of the person
whose books are stolen, but it must be
consolatory to the thief, when repenting
in prison, to know that some great and
good men have been touched with the
same species of insanity. Hearne. in his
johannes Glastoniensis," more than
hints that Sir Thomas Bodley had a
weakness in this direction eff you
hold." he warns Sir Henry Saville, "any
books so deare as that you would bee
loath to have him out of your sight, set
him aside" etc Moore, Bishop of Ely
has likewise come under such stigma.
The anecdote runs to this effect: A
gentleman calling on IL friend who had Il
very choice library found him unusually
busy in putting his best books out of
sight Upon asking his view in this he
was answered, Don't you know the
Bishop of - dimes with me today?"
The very king of book stealers was
Libri, who, as inspector general of
French libraries under Louis Philippe,
had special facilities for helping himself
and whose known thefts have been
valued at 100000. The most interesting
illustration of this mans depredations
was exposed in 1868, when Lord Ash
burnham issued a translation of the
Pentateuch from Latin MS. which had
been purchased by the late Lord Ash
burnha1n from Libri, who had sold it
under the condition that it was not to
be published for twenty years. 1t had
been stolen in lS47 from the Lyons
library and the last clause of the agree
lnent, therefore, could be easily under
stood. Libri evidently was not one of
those whom Jules Janin describes as
people who don't think it thieving to
steal book unless you sell it afterward.'
POPE AND PRIEST.
Innocent X, when still Mgr. Pam
philio, stole book from Du Moustier.
who was himself book thief, and ought
to have been en- courant with the de-
vices and designs of his own weaknesses.
1t is refreshing to come across an cx-
ample when the tables are so completely
turned; and if anything would induce an
honest man to turn book thief it should
be the exhilarating fun of stealing from
another thiet. 1t is reported, however,
that Du Moustier recovered the book,
and kicked the Cardinal out of the
house. Catherine de Medici went in for
stealing books by wholesale and bare
faced she seized the fine library of
Marshal Strozzi and promised to pay his
sou for it in installments, but never
farthing did he get.
Of another and equally extreme type
was the Spanish priest Don Vincento
who sold books and then murdered the
purchasers to regain possession of his
coveted treasures. Like most of the
biblioklept tribe lie came to grief at last.
The original edition (14S2) of the "Furs
eordinacions fetes per los gloriosos Reys
de Arago ais regnicois del Regne de
Valencia" was offered for sale by auo-
ton, and after a long and obstinate COM
petition was knocked down to book
seller named Paxtot.
A week afterward Paxtot's shop was
burned down, and he was suffocated at
the same time. Suspicion was directed
toward Don Vincento, whose residence
was searched, and there at length was
discovered the incunabule abovenamed.
The priest was arrested, and at the
hearing he confessed-not from contri-
ton or the fear Of torments in tho
next world, but because it appeared that
the volume was not unique, as had been
supposed He sobbcd violently when he
was condemned to be strangled, and the
only defense he vouchsafed was, "Ah
your worship, my copy was not unique"
st ,)aJnrs GuZrtte