The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1893-06-17
FINEST STUDY IN THE WORLD.
The British Museum In London, Whose
Trcnsurca Include Two Million hooks.

Treasures Include Two Million Books.
There is no place where the student
! .an so easily and comfortably avail
himself of the worlds best literature
rs in the British museum library. lie
sits down at well furnished writing
desk and, without saying q word, sum.
mons tones and treasures from the vast
stores of books with which that insti
tuition is filed. The temple of the in
| tellect is large circular room lined
from foor to roof with books The
central space is filed wioh desks for
the accommodation of readers, and
shelves on which the catalogues of the
museum are placed. On entering this
room the student is entitled to take
possession of any vacant seat he may
| find except the two rows of seats al
lotted to ladies. The seats radiate from
the center of the room in double rows.
A comfortable, stuff-bottomcd chair, a
hat rack and foot bars are provided for
each reader together with two pens,
an ink bottle and wiper. On the thick,
patent leather covered desk is n blot
ting book, and close at hand Il paper
knife for the readers use. On his right
hand II shelf falls down for the purpose
of holding his surplus volumes, and or
his left an ingenious bookholder opens
out at any angle most convenient to his
posture in the chair. The floor of the
room is carpeted with noiseless mater
ial, and as conversation is not allowed
it would be difficult to study under
more favorable conditions. When the
student requires new book he consults
the catalogue. writes the name of the
book require ON slip, deposits the
slip in u basket and resumes his seat
. Ten or fifteen minutes afterward an
attendant places the book on his desk
, And what u vast store of books are
! at his disposal! People often ask how
many books there are in che British
, museum, but nobody seems to know.
In fact, there are SO many that it is
| impossible to count them. Some years
ago it was estimated by measurement
> that there were two million books
: there. Since that estimate was made
the number has considerably increased.
l Under the copyright acts publishers
4 are bound to send to the museum every
book, pamphlet, periodical or news.
n paper that is offered for sale in the
1 British isles. Every week an enor.
o nous shoal of literature is poured into
. the vaults of the museum and. strange
/ to say, it never comes out again
i, Books good and bad, newspapers
a worthy and worthless. pamphlets poor
. and paltry, all hurry along in u ccnse
= less stream to the museum, to be most
religiously preserved in its cavernou:
D depths. In addition IL large number OF
c books are added each year. Parlia.
v mcnt grants Il sum of money each yea,
S for the purchase of desirable books
# that are not already in stock. Then
d extensive gifts of books are often mads
: by enterprising collectors. The Gren
e vile library, containing upward o
II twenty thousand volumes, is notable
n example. 1t was built up by the Rt
e Hon. Thomas Grenville and consisted
:. chiefly of the rarest editions and TIL
|: finest examples of binding whicl
d money could buy. The magnficen
k library of George III. is anothe
instance of the way in which tn
e museum library has been stocked by
d generous donors. The ibr ary contain
n upward of sixty-fve thousand volume
" and eight thousand pamphlets, and
" placed in q fine gallery known as til
If kings library. III all the books in tn
,r museum were closely placed side b.
IF side on one long shelf the shelf woul
n require to be no less than thirty mile
,e in length
Vi The catalogue of this stupendou
" library is an equally colossal affair.
ID isa library in itself. Until it's conten,
,e We're compressed by printing, the cati
logue consisted of two Thousand tw
hundred folio volumes. each volum
seventeen inches by twelve inches i
size and about two inches thick. y
cf together the catalogue weighed fiy
tons. The gigantic task of re-cditin
le and printing this manuscript cat;
rt logue is now in progress, and it is COZ
ne puted that the work will not be cor.
e pleted for another five or eight year
nj No less than nine volumes are file
.r- with the list of books which have bee
IN written by the Smiths of the worl,
he The word Bible is another impo,.
ant heading, occupying no less tha
he twenty-one volumes. This will give
,p. faint idea Of the large collection
ng Bibles and portions CT the Scripture
&C which the British museum possesse
1T The museum is rich in works of beau'
id, and rarity. The first book printed /
i'd William CaXton is to he seen ther
ng also the cele brated Ma2arin Bibl
ur which was printed by Gutenberg ~
OH Faust in 1455. There is also the fl
" nous Magma Charta of King JOIN
dated 1915, and the bull of Pope Leo
ok comforting on King Henry the title
it defender of the faith. In one of Il
er collections is the manual of pray'
is which was used by Lady Jane Grey c
ID. the scaifold. 1t is bound in vellul
,e- illuminated with miniatures, and il
lel scribed on the margin with her ow
er notes and comments. The muscu
to also possesses n copy of the Psa!tc
W, printed on vellum in 1859, u copy
I which was sold not long ago fl
twentyfour Thousand seven hnndrs
lis and fifty dollars.-The Million.