New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1897-02-28

written on Books and Their Makers During '"'
Middle AVes" are taken UP with some trepida'ioh'
as being likely TO have the trying quai''es VI
-. u.orrs ~ reference. Then they are read on
and ON until the end Of the second voiuhe 10
o,a rhov are books of reference. II Is true
hut Mr. Putnam has a smooth style; ne mas Nv.
,,oro,, r,ostered his material but he has put IL
,o,,o,hor With uncommon method. and the result
l., ..ororoh,v compact history Of the subject
ore that can be grasped without any puroeh-
49,. ro,,so ., multiplicity Of details. The evo-
,ut,on Of the book as we know 1t to-day Is eaS"y
..s q, ,,.sa naRes. though the record stops
with the end Of the seventeenth century MI.
n.. ..r,.s bis narrative from the monkish
IT.. o.. tho followers of Gutenberg. from
Coss,odorus and St Benedict to Plantin ana the
r,,o,,re II &c q chronicle fairly romantic IN us
r,cturesoueness. fairly exciting IN the process
which It paints of literature slowly working ''S
$780, .houob tho more or less conventional
parchments and Examinations OF the mohas'e''e'
90 Tho infinite variety of the printing press.
What will most impress the reader OF THESE
vo,rr,es 70 the dlsinterested love Of literature
ubicb eoe,ns TO have imbued the scr1bes ana
r,rt.rs FOR centuries 1t is OF course. true that
the monks. as well as their secular SUCCESSORS,
their bandiwork Tor high prices. that they pro-
tected themselves with jealous care against the
nirating as it were Of manuscripts which they
considered their special property. Mr.. putnam
remarks that the monasteries guarded 'he'r
,,oruecrnt treasures with such care as to assign
ono monk to hold the original in his hands while
tho monk who had come from a distance to copy
Il was performing his task. But that iio'iN
.o,,,d ,,al,o q long tourney TO copy this orgl-
nal that he would "go to Rome or to FLORENCE
from, Fulda from St Gall from Fleury or even
from far-off Glastonbury 10 prepare :"
transcript of some valued codex" was surely the
fr,,it Of n more than mercenary enthusiasm.
Cassiodorus who may be said to have FOUNDED
tho uonartic .'scriptorum" was certainly moved
hy q lofty ideal and there is very gracious at
mcsnherA hanging about Mr.. Putnams record
an ATMOSPHERE of the leisurely advance OF learn
irc of tho slow but sure eforescence of noble
idoa He pavs a loyal tribute to the Renaissance,
Indicating the important part played by the
Italian humanists in the fostering of the max
ing Of hooks Thousands of precious Volumes
written and printed would not have seen the
light in the west for many. many years per-
hans for centuries had not the Florentine pas
sion for classical learning launched the trans
lators and bookmakers upon steady stream OF
activity Mr. Putnam tells his story well. WIN
q comnactness that must have involved the Sc
verest labor where such mountains of data were
at hand. and whether for purposes OF reference
mr. for ouet reading in the library these volumes
aro destined to a permanent position.
,,r powe,l's "E,xcursions in Librara" is book
of shreds and patches-al of them delightful. ii
il usually disappointing to read Froissart III al
ohstroct but the most careful translation could
hardly surpass "A Gascon Tragedy Mr. POW
ellis second chapter. in the preservation OF the
old French chronicler's romantic glamour. Inc
essav is a cunning arrangement of fragments OF
rrojssart's text with longer passages OF MI
powells own writing. The morale Is tactfuily
laid ont. and it gains from wearing the air OF
having been made in library. All or THESE
ssavs are thoroughly bookish. They are DOCK
ish in the good sense. not artihcially' put as
though the writer had a sincere. spontaneous
love for the old volumes over which he Hnsers'
from which he gets some Of his most fasci-
mating material The themes are wei! chosen
ranging from 1.-THE Philosophy of Rarity 10
Radicals Of Rome" and THE Wit of History.
There are many anecdotes and on every count
Mr. Powell Is to be designated a companionable
and even charming writer.
Mr. Roberts hardly deserves either epithet IN
his Rare Books and Their Prices" inasmuch as
he deals with his subject in rather prosaic way
But he has cleaned some curious records OF sales
| abnormal and otherwise. he has some flashes OF
| photographed wisdom, when he denounces
| the "laree-paper" fad, and he prints several
trifes of anecdote which it is amusing 10 pos
sess one of them is this rhyme of Thackeray s.
inscribed in copy of The Virginians' which
| he gave to a friend:
| In the l.. States and In the Queens dominions
| All people have a right to their opinions.
| And many people don't much relish The Nir-
| giniGns."
| Peruse my book, dear r.. and II you find It
| A little to your taste | hope you'll bind 1t.
| Mr. Ditchhelds subject has been wasted or
| him. Books Fatal to Their Authors'-there Is
| inspiration in the very title, but he has done NJ
| more than compile in a somewhat amateurisf
| manner the baldest facts concerning the burning
| of Giordano Bruno the Imprisonment of Votairc
| or the martyrdom of Huss. As work of ref
| erence, however, this seems to be exact. and il
is in it's very simplicity handy little compen
| dun.
SAMUEL PEPYS'S WILL.