Omaha daily bee., 1894-02-25
The Age of hooks.

The nineteenth century is beyond question
the greatest century of all the years Of time.
Sitting in the sunset glory Of its latest de-
cade, and looking back to its hopeful dawn,
the path that lies between has been rich
in 10000 victories Of peace, more to be de-
sired than all the warrior conflicts of ancient
years. The word Civilization" If not ex-
actly created by this century, has at least
become endowed with q larger life and a
diviner meaning, while progress" that has
limped and Jagged through many generations,
has marched sublimely on toward that
one far-off divine event,
To which the whole creation moves.
The revolutions of the last ninety years
have been revolutions of miraculous prog
ress, not a year of all the ninety but has
lifted high some banner of advancement
to the wondering gaze of man. And it is
not a little interesting to note that repre-
sentatives of all important departments
of life have claimed this century as their
own. To men of science this century has
been beyond a doubt the century of science;
but the inventor, with equal enthusiasm,
has claimed this age as above all things
else the age of invention, The philan-
thropist declares that it has been the des-
tiny of the last half of the nineteenth CEN
fury to spell out the word humanity" with
full resonance and meaning. Is 1t re-
markable that lovers of art, In music and
aAANA 80 hAN' f'ANof fh'AhA
claim this century as their own? Nay,
has not this age been superlatively an age
of books? More and better books could be
bought for 500 today than could be bought
for so, 600 when this century was young.
In those days the author. the publisher and
the book seller knocked at only a few doors;
the secondhand bookseller and the old book
stall did the rest. The bible, 'Bunyan's
Pilgrims Progress Culpepper's Herbal"
and here and there a stray number OF an
applaginctipol F,au1yfpa with a gtaaI nprIratt
of some godly minister suffering from dys-
pepsia, often constituted the whole library
of ordinary households. Now see the change.
Every home has it's pictures, its music, its
books.A hundred years ago the old hand
press, working at the terrific rate of a
token $3.50 Impressions an hour. managed
to satisfy the literary wants Of the world,
but now steam presses are at work by tens
of thousands, working as the angels sing,
day and night without ceasing." pouring
forth millions of books, where thousands
would have once been considered as a drug
on the market. At the rate things are going
II would be well to begin and plant trees.
for in a half a century hence, more lumber
than we dream of will be needed for book,
shelves for the studious America OF 1850!
But how can books be read lntelligently
or intelligibly without the aid of an accur-
ate, reliable dictionary? A thoroughly relia-
BILE dictionary has become an absolute neces-
sity to every reader, ana in these days all
men read more or less. But TO what end
do we read, If we do not understand? And
how can we understand unless we are
taught? And how can we be taught unless
we have a teacher? A dictionary Is a ne
cesslty Of the commonest modes OF educa-
ton. Time was when a ponderous diction-
AIRY was regarded as the necessary aid OF
laborious scholars. doctors in law, in diyin-
ity, in medicine, teachers and professors In
public schools, students in colleges and oc-
Cupants Of editorial chairs. But a dictionary
That 10 mot thorpupb1V pybaugttXA and ra-
liable Is worse than useless. A good die
tionary should contain all you want, and
should define. explain and Illustrate It cor
rectly, giving at the same time the correct
pronunciation OF every word. with these
Views we have both pride and pleasure in
announcing that The Bee has made arrange
ments by which The American Encyclopedia
Dictionary, the greatest work OF the nine