The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-08-30
PERFECT corr OF FIRST FOLIO
SHAKESPElRE
The Only One Known TO Exist sold IN LON
don for 90, $50 Description of the Book.

Tho Only One Known TO Exist sold IA Lon-
don for %, $50 Description of the Book.
Mr.. Sidney Lee gives mn interesting account
I'm The dthrndeum OF the COPY OF nrst folio
Shakespeare that was sod lately In London
auction room Tor the record price OF SS,ooO
Tho copy was unknown before and turns out
TO be pcr'ec. The purchaser was an English
man. whose name Mr.. Lee wlthholds. though
he allowed Mr.. Lee to make very careful ex-
animation Of the book. The following are the
point. Of general interest described by him:
The recently purchased copy OF the first
folio apart from the pecunlary value nov,
attaching to II, possesses numerous points ol
first. rats interest. Until its appearance In
Christies salerooms its existence was prac-
native Of Belgium. who stated that 1t hal
been in poseession OF ms family iop mges
,as More Ssw. ss" EO
from. and its return to. our shores;
Very slight sxamInation was .s,. male hI D.r 81
readily perceived. however. that that It was not
merely perfect. but hsd meyer suffered any
gins of lew pages are torn away: the text i ,n
oil points intact. tho fly Leaf containing Ven
lonsons yerses Is untomehsd ana ,ms po,sr'
The binding dates from the last years Of The
seventssnth century Ths new 1wme. %, tns
OF making q full examination of his prize. and
the results OF my inspection Eili probably
prove OF interest 10
The measursments o. the c"py are - ~.
known. Tho Toovey. copy was somewhat
larger. 13'I inches by SH inches. The Baron
ess Burdett- Coutts's Daniel copy 10 u inches
high. and the Duke OF Devonshirc's Is = inchss.
But the dimensions OF tho newly rnr-
chased volume are exactly identical with
those oil the admr able copy in tho irenville
Collection at the British Museum. The great
majority OF extant copies arc shorter and mar
rover by Mt least hall an inch in each direc;
ton. The Brayton-1ves copy. which ietehsd
$40. at Now York In 1891. measured IL $40
inches by Z 15- II inchea.
sages arc scored at tho side with line In ink
1t is difficult to detect any principle In tho pro-
cess. Somo Of the scored passages are such as
actors might be inclined to omit in theatrical
representations. but others are OF the highest
dramatic value. The only fact OF definite inter-
est to be noted in this connection 10 that the
faded ink Is In all cases more than two centu-
ries old. and may possibly have come from the
pen OF a contem porory OF the dramatist.
More important are the manuscript notes
which are scattered at intervals through the
volume Two handvritinRs are apparent. both
entries may be dated well before 1850; the
bulk may DO dated o little after that yeaI, Tho
annotations number some forty In all. Most OF
them aim at removing obscuritiee OF phrase
and typographical confusions., Occasionally
comment OF moro ambitious literary charac-
ter is attempted. Once or twice an effort ia
made to improve the metre. Romeo and juliet
and Hamlet were obviously read by early
owners OF this copy with closer attention than
the other plays: but man uscript comments are
not infreuuent elsewhere"