Evening star., 1901-12-28
Holiday Publications Purchased in
Washington as Never Before.
JUVENILE STORIES HEAD THE LIST
Robinson Crusoe and Swiss Family
Robinson in Demand.
FICTION IS LOSING GROUND

tically clear of books and looking about at
row after row of empty shelves, Mr. Fred
Woodward, manager of the book depart
ment of the Boston Store, counted his
Christmas work done the day after Christ
mas. Clerks all about him were busting
books and cleaning tables. A pro tempore
cashiers desk was being slid into a store
room. The entire book department boasted
but one customer man at the magazine
rack.
Il have been thinking right hard about
those empty alcoves over there said Mr.
Woodward, with his eyes on the shelves
marked Juvenile Publications." II doubt
very much whether any one but the book
seller appreciates the great Importance of
that trade In the number of books sold
during the holidays it leads every other
feature of the book store. 1t represents
most regular patronage. 1t is almost as
extended and comprehensive in the number
of authors represented as fiction.
ITO put the matter briefly, we must have
sold in the two weeks before Christmas day
over 10000 high-grade children'S books.
Fiction for adults will run a close second,
but don't believe any other department of
our book store has a credit of the same sales.
Every group of three alcoveS over there
filled when the Christmas sale began. Most
of them have been filled twice. And now
three-fourths Of the space is dry.
Robinson CrusOe and Other Old Fa-
vOrites.
'It would be the purest hazard to esti
mate the selling price Of those 10000 books.
All the cheaper juvenile publications are
sold upstairs, and we have nothing to do
with them. This stock ranges from 25
cents a volume to over So, but the real
trade in juveniles stops at about S125.
There are many which are more expensive
of one book which is marked $3.50 we sold
fifteen copies, l think. But the average
father who buys books for his children
stops at the $1.2o shelves. He gets a good
book for the money. There are editions of
old stand-bys like Robinson Crusoe' and
which are beautifully illustrated, well
bound and very attractively printed, and
which so like hot cakes before Christmas.
1T is interesting to note how steadily
those old books sell. Every year brings
us a new constituency of children to read
them and children will not be put off with
anything else. We have probably sent out
400 copies of Swiss Family Robinson in
these past two weeks. The sale goes righ;
on, no matter what happens to the fiction
and editions de luxe departments of the
store. Prints of either Of those works can be
bought at 20 cents, and we have some at
81. There are editions at every interme-
diate price, but no single new juvenile is
nation suggests itself. When a man wants
to get a book for a boy he is very likely to
look for the book which was most promi-
nent in his own boyhood and, nine chances
out of ten it was either Robinson Crusoe'
or Swiss Family Robinson If you show
him good copy of either his eye will dance
and the sale is soon made. 1t will be
mighty hard ever to displace those two old
faVoriteS.
However. the trade in Henty books and
some other later writings is very large.
Henty has fallen off in the past year but
we must have sold over 1000 copies of his
various stories. Last Christmas the num-
Der exceeded 1000 Biographies of great
Americans sell very well. The average boy
probably knows that field of literature much
better than his parents. The girls still read
Louisa M. Alcott.
Cannot Write for Children.
Robert Louis Stephenson, Rudyard Kip
ling and men of their class usually fail
when they attempt to compete with the
standard authors for children. "A Child's
Garden of Verses is a book for grown-ups,
with readers Of nineteen years and over in
stead of nine. Kipling's Jungle Book has
been characterized a book for children be-
more of vogue among people of the latter
age than the former. Such men as the
authors of David Balfour' and The Brush
wood Boy can hardly get their minds
atune with the child's mind. The heart and
purpose are all right, but the mind is wrong.
Miss Helen Hays rhymes meet the demand
better. But the greatest achievement of
many years in writing for children is
'Wynken, Blynken and Nod That poem
has done more for Eugene Field among the
booksellers than anything else he ever
wrote. 1t is a work of the purest genius.
II is bound to last and-viewing the matter
is sure to sell.
Stevenson, kipling and their compeers
"ll nd cold tint,l ,,-Iyr
well during the holidays. Mr.. Stevenson's
fame grows steadily, for he has been mo-
nopolized by the stylists for too many
years. Today he is read by everybody
and everybody buys his books, while you
can find Kipling everywhere. Our greatest
adult trade this year was in what might be
termed current fiction. OF a dozen popu-
lar novels, l think we must have sold coo
copies EACH and there were twice as many
with sales of 200 or 300 copies each Gift
BOOKS have a particular value at Christ
mas-such works as The Forest of Arden
The First Christmas Tree and The Life
of a Young Man Even Bibles respond to
the special holiday activity, and our sale in
the book of books increased notably dur
ing the month of December, most Of the
holiday buyers purchasing edition
bound in very handsome leather and
printed on paper so thin that the whole
book is less than an inch from cover to
cover.
Trade in Fine Books.
"A growing clientage is being established
in Washington for especially fine books.
William Morris and the Vale press set
themselves some years ago to produce a
book made of the best paper in the world,
printed from the best type-plates and
bound modestly and appropriately The
cost of such publications was very great.
AT one time the printers dried each page
by waving it separately in the air. The
younger houses have succeeded in reducing
the cost without lowering the standard
yet such books still cost a great deal. Our
trade in publications of that class has
grown so steadily, though, that we now
give them an entire corner Of the depart
ment
THE Christmas trade is over, of course;
but a considerable holiday trade stil re-
mains. During the week between Christ
mas and New Year day book stores always
do an exceptional business. That is indi-
Gated by the fact that half the thirty-five
extra clerks taken on for the December
trade have been retained, and about ten
OF them will be needed through the whole
month of January. There are always three
or four discoveries among the extra sales
men, and they will remain in the store
permanently"
Mr. Woodward turned to direct two men
with truckload of books consigned to one
a1pOVeS 10