The evening times., 1896-06-09
FOUND InOl6 IHEL[Iv[s
Strange Things Purchased by
Second hand Book Dealers.
LETTER WRITTEN BY BLAINE
Other "Reminiscences Of the Great
Statesman Sold for a Trffie-wills
and Marriage Certificates Left In
the Volumes Disposed of-How a
Forger Was Captured.

Strange things are often found by second
land book dealers in volumes purchased
by them. Pins. needles, bank notes, wills.
feathers, hair and letters are included In
the list Occasionally a will and marriage
certificate are unearthed.
1t all goes to show the careiessness Of
some people in not looking over their books
before selling them to the dealer.
In reply to a query from Times repre-
sentative a well-known Washington sec
secondhand bookseller said: Il frequent
ly make finds in books L buy. but they
are not as numerous as they were ten or
even five years ago. The autumn leaf fad
Is growing smaller, however, and the red
aud many -hued maple and other leaves are
seldom found, except in the works OF the
older poets or novelsts.
1.-The works OF Longfellow and Tennysn
are often punctuated between the pages
with pressed flowers and ferns, while in
novels aud modern books letters frequently
mark the stopping place of the reader.
Then. again, books seem to be used as re-
ceptacies for r-letters. / have found as high
as half q dozen letters in one book Of less
than SEQ pages.
NJ VIC htNCi 6cb WHY =" hNHh sHNihs
they are too numerous. Why, in one pur-
chase Of less than 400 books got bushel
Of letters. which l instructed to be put
into sack and taken to the dump. 1 have
occasionally come across valuable letters
containing the autograph of some we'll
known public man, an / the autographs have
acted three to five times as much as the
book
As he was speaking the dealer took from
a shelf Il large book, handsomely bound and
inscribed Memorial Volume by james
6. Blaine. 1t was copy of Biaine's eulogy
on President Garfield, delivered in the
House of Representatives February %,
1882 On the fly leaf was written with
sincere regard of James G. Elaine
LETTER FROM JAMES G BLAINE
THAT is not ALL" said the bockman,
turning over the pages and opening to view
scrupulously clean letter addressed to a
weIl-kuown Washingtonian. 1t read:
..'Dear -: Please call At my house as
soon as you start out this morning.
Accept with my sincere regard the ac-
companying volume Of the Memorial Vol
ume." in which have inscribed my name.
Sincerely, JAMES G. BLAINE
"In the years to come that letter will be
worth something" continued the book
seller. Yes, I have had autographs of
Grant and once one Of jeff Davis. Several
times have found marriage certificates
aud on one occasion had a return call for
one.
1T was a young lady and she was very
much worried The book she sold me was
q
the certificate, very small one, was
folded many times and lay about in the
middle of the book.
"Ihaye found many photographs and they
are the most frequently called for articles
| among the many left in books.
ut is Interesting to notice the margina
| notes ON some books. A great many people
| have the habit of writing on the margin
their impressions of certain passages.
once had copy of Cushing's Manual which
must have belonged to Blaine when he was
| Speaker of the House. which, believe, was
| IN the Forty-third or Forty fourth Congress
| The fly leaf of the book contained his name
| and the passages referring TO the chaiI
were all marked with notes. sold The
book year or so ago, but one note dis
| tinctly remember. 1t read, Give no reason
| for decisions
81 have found It rather interesting to no
| tice the inscriptions In many OF the books
brought here. They are distinctly feminine
aud among them are such phrases as From
| Mamma TO Nellie To Darling Bessie from
will,' with love to sweetest SUSIE"
One Washington dealer told the news
paper man that he had found several locks
Of hair aud in one book a piece of rope il
| an envelope labelled "Guiteau."
Another bookman had found paper money
and at another time will
81 bought volume OF a well-knowr
work froma lady some years ago, "he said
| land after she had gone, while turning
over the leaves, came across a will which
| disposed OF some thousands of dollars wortf
| of property. I put the will carefully way
and the following day the lady returned
| IN a frightful state OF excitement, ant
wanted to buy the book back at my owl
| price.
RECOVERED THE WILL.
81 guessed what she really wanted. bu