Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1896-02-17
SHOWING OLD BOOkNiEKS.
Novel and Interesting Exhibition
at the Cosmos Club.

at the Cosmos Club.
The exhibition tomorrow and Wednesday
at the Cosmos Club Of book plates belong
ing to the members of the newly formed
Washington Elk Libris Society cannot fail
to he of interest to these vino know any
thing of these marks of ownership of
books. The collecting of book plates is
comparatively Il recent thing in this ooun-
try, but collections and EN- Libris societies
have for many years flourished in England,
France and Germany, and investigators
have urearthed in many old libraries val
liable specimens showing the tastes or re
culifTitieS of the owners Of books ard
bringing to light much information about
engravers and their works. Any one who
cared enough for his or her hooks to pas,e
a book-plate on the inside OF the first cover
instead of writing his name on the title
page would naturally insist on having tie
plate made in first-cIass manner, aud so
we find men like .Albrecht Durer, jest
Amman, William Hogarth. George ertue.
BeWick. BartooZZi and Raphael MOrghen
were willing to devote their time and taste
to designing and engraving book-piates
In this country in early times the Use of
book plates was. of course, not as common
as In England, but many of the young men
who We're sent abroad to be t.,.uca ted
brought back with them book pIa.es gen.
orally armorial in character which they
had had engraved in London or Paris, and
1t is astonishing how many early Ameri-
can book-Ilates have been discovered lev
dll1gent research on the part of the modern
collector.
Among the nearly six thousand hook
plates shown at the Cosmos Club it
Is almost impossible to pick out those
especially worthy Of mention, but
among those which cannot fail TO be
of interest may be mentioned the plates
OF George Wasnii ston. Jonn Adams,
John Quincy Adams. John Tyler, James
I1raEjInntS ha nj. a1
States; William Penn. proprietor of Penn
Eylvania; Dr. John Jeffries. who recognized
the body of General Warren the battle
field of Bunker Hill; OF John Adams. Chas.
Carroll of Carrollton. and Thomas Hay
ward. sisners of the Declaration. of Daniel
Webster and his law partner, Richard S.
Coke of this city: George Bancroft. George
w. Childs. William Boyd of MISSIONER. Oil
yer Wendell Holmes-a beautiful represen-
tation of the ''Chambered NauttIus'-of
Henry W: Longfeilow. Brander Matthews
Aldrich, the late Eugene Field Laurence
Hutton and many others. The four plates
belonging to- the OSle Tayloe family Will
be OF interest to observation-disclosures, and also
the plate of Governor Van Ness =
The book-plate of George Washington is
probably the most valuable American plate
so valuable that in 1856; a count erfcit an
peared, supposed TO be the work of a deal.
ef IN econd-hand books. whic: was pasted
In all the Old books obta Unable, which were
put up to he sold at alc.ion DE- Poole
and DR.. Toner We're present at the sale and
denounced the plate as a forgery, SO that
the books brought only their actual value
The prepeonderance of early southern
plates over those from the north is notice
able. Many more Young men were sen;
from the south to England and France
to be educated, and would bring back with
them habits and customs of the country so
tEat the ordering of books clothes furni-
ture, etc, naturally brought with them
book-plates made abroad.
some of the quaintest marks Of owner
ship SHOWN are simply printed labels. some
tunes with the date added, and very often
bearing an appeal for the return of the
book In the shape of d few lines of poetry
Or quotation from the Bible as to the ad-
visibility of going rather to those who sell
and buying for youi selves.
Inc French and German book-Dlatcs
shown are generally more elaborate and or
nate than the American and English some of
them being exquisite examples of designing
and engraving. One of the most Interesting
French plates is that of Bonapar.e when
hrst consul Of the French republic engraved
in March. 1So0-a female figure seated bv a
column, on which are the words IAN Nom
du Peuple FrancaiS." Tickets 10 the ex-
hlbftfon may lie obtained from members of
the Cosmos Club.