The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1900-04-23
GREAT PUBEIsHERs.


Easy for fhem 70 succeed In the
Past hut Dimcult Now.
The failure in close succession of two
great publishing houses suggests the query
as to whether nowadays there IL ANYTHING
great to publish, In II we find something
of causstion more enlightening than the
hackneyed category which has been gone
over by commentators on these CONNER
cal demises
As a matter Of fact. in the prime OF the
Victorian era, when these houses mere
their fame and fortune, 1t was easy
enough to be a great publisher. There
were certain great authors whose work
every one demanded. IT was simply neces.
sary to supply the demand. There were
In science and philosophy Darwin. Hux-
lev Tyndall Spencer Mill. and Emerson
There were in history Carlyle rroule,
Macaulay, Motley. There were In poetry
Tennyson, Browning. Longfc'iow. Bryant,
Whittier. There were N fiction Thack-
cray. Dickens Eliot. Rcsde Hawthorne
Everybody who read books read these
hooks. and 1t IL scarcely necessary TO say
that they made books enough to read.
They supplied all the material for mental
furniture which the nnidd,sman could fan-
die There was no risk involved in bring
ing them out All the discovering haa
been done by English or Scotch, or In
some cases New England. publishers.
reason. feast unparalleled III former
centuries for Its variety and nutrition al
least and all that the great publisher"
Of New York at least. had to do was 10
serve II and charge for his services He
was simply the beneficiary of two extra
ordinary conditions. One was the fun
fruition Of the English literary mind on
being growths on new sell of the old
ctn TbA xuo ha N tc
country OF the 1rst lettered denocre sy.
the arrival Of the first great number IL
human beings who had been taught to
read books and had money to huy books
II was only necessary TO Introduce the
one TO the other and profit by the under
taking.
Times have changed The American
publisher Of today has to discover h'th
his authors and his readers from the
swarning millions about him There are
few names great enough TO command
steady sales of large volume. The con-
tinuous and regular upheavsl and sih-
merslon CT American society have denriv-
ed the olc-time publisher or his cert7ln
clientele, as the oid-tme theatrical man
aver was long since deprived OF his.
There are almost no fixed literary canons.
There can he no certainty nowadays "a to
the contents OF "a aentleman's library ="
Indeed. II IL doubtful " libraries are in
di.pensable 20 gentlemen. There Is N'ue
laughing at parvenus where majority II
rarvenu and .ociety's leaders date back
10 a bail given in the year Use. But when
there is laughing at parvenus the old
story about their ordering books by the
yara n never told. 1t has lost iss point
THE certain degree Of hockishness which
was once a mark OF the best American
society has been relesated rather 10 chau-
tauoun circles.
So the great publishers day has de-
rarted. There ars extensive FURNISHING
houses. probably more extensive now tnan
ever Nv, the time Of the nahohs Of ne
trade who made money 81 easily ami d,d
business so grandly, Il departing into tsst
past which holds their nfo,o'ypes VI ''e
srast rna,a ,rade-New York Press.