Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-09-04
Grain, Provisions and Cotton MARKETS.
OLD PRINTS VALUABLE.
If Kept Long Enough They Acquire
Good Intrinsic Properties.

From the Philadelphia Public Ledger
I'm our business we make 1t rule never
to throw anything away" said a dealer
in old prints on 4th avenue. II have kept
engravings for years. until they became
faded and yellow. My wife-who ia liter
ally my partner. in. the shop. since the
business was hers when l married her
has often urged ME to throw them away.
but refused. Sooner or later 1 get my
price that well repays me for all the trou-
BILE .-..- 1870.
"Old sporting prints sell the best; those
gaudy colored things of pugflists and race
track men that you seen framed ard hung
In the windows, L still get orders for
colOred Autographs OF the Heenan-Sayers
prize fight. Good copies of them bring
as much as modern water color. Copies
of old base ball prints. such as the carly
games between the Mutuals OF New York
and the original Athletics OF Philadelphia.
are constantly asked for. Horse pictures.
particularly of the trotting circuit races
IN the Dexter days. are good lfue as
so many bank notes. So are pictures of
races on some OF the best known English
tracks
"Proprietors of road houses. saloons
frequented by the sporting fraternity, and
stewards OF sporting clubs the usual
purchasers Of old Autographs of this sort
AS general thing they want good speci-
mems. and they do not care what they
pay for them. so long as the pric, Is not
rank extortion. These men have sense
enough to know that a dealer does not
Keep back number prints for years with
out expecting to be paid for them
"A few days ago l received a call from
q man who kept road house Oh Long
Island. 1t was burned down. Ona Of
the best collections Of sporting prints in
TINS country was utterly destroyed. He
Is building another road house. and wants
to duplicate his old prints. II possible. or
course he cannot do it. any more than il
would be possible to reproduce a collection
o
known Broadway chop house But the man
was able to restore about one third of Lis
lost collection from my stock and | think
he will be able to do quite as well from
another man In the same line OF business
on Shaftesbury avenue. London. The Brit
ISM oid-prfRt man and myself are on the
best OF terms. We are constantly calling
on each other to help out on an order
Men come to New York from the west
and south. see an old engraving of some
sporting event in road house or 4 club
and want one like 1t for their own place
Or course. 1t Is out OF print. and they have
to rummage around in places like this A
Chicago man paid SIS the other dag for a
very crude Autograph of the Sullivan Cor
old prints find their way into the auction
rooms. where there is no immediate de-
mand for them. They can be bought cheap
as an Investment Most persons who see
them at auctions have no idea OF their
value.
Actors and professional people I do not
have much call for. They have other
sources of supply. Once in a while a play
wright comes In for a print TO give him
an Idea OF costumes and stage setting.
Booth. Lawrence Barrett. jefferson Henry
Irving. Richard Harding Davis Clyde
Fitch Bronson Howard and a cumber Of
others. prominent in stage life have all
been customers of mine. Charles and Dam
lei Frohman used to come here themselves.
but now they send subOrdinates. Las. win
ter l was offered SIS for that old print
of Billy Florence YOU see over nv desk 1t
is not for sale. Billy was an old friend of
mine. and can afford to keep it.