The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1904-10-02
STARVING FOR FINE BOOKS.
80 NICE YOUNG MAN PICKED UP
a FEW IN STORES.

FEW IN STORES.
Detected CribbinB ,Elzevtrs, He Said He
Once ONnc Some and Got OF Riea for
SympatAy-Fat Purchases Sent c. o. ID.
10 Vacant Lots-Dealers Alert Now.
A Young man with the su arthy COM
pleyion OF South American and foreign
accent has been noticed OF late In a num-
Ter OF stores that make a speciality OF old
too's and autographs He has spent
hours IN each store looking over the stock
and SHOW ing more or less know ledge OF
editions and valuable prints and manu-.
scripts. In arnaJority OF the places hich
he visited, he selected a number OF books,
his his running from $500 to 5000. The
goods he ordered sent c. o. D. The book
sellers, who noticed nothing wrong al out
the man before he left the store, have in
zach case sent the books and found that
either the address given was a vacant lot
or house where no person OF the name
given v as known.
In one store, the visitor was detected
putting rare volume In his overcoat pocket
surreptitiously. He vas ordered out and
lis order was cancelled. Since other
/ 90 sellers have learned OF this incident
they have no longer wondered how II was
that nany rare volumes were missing
from their shelves.
The too'- store Of Ernest d. North. At IA
asst TT entieth street. v as the place herein
the nan vas detected. Mr.. North was
Az ay at the tire and bis assistant was In
charge. The young man was not reoog-
ni2ed as buyer Of rare booas, but since
he vas OF good appearance and look ed
prosperous, he as allow ed the liberty OF
the store. He pic ed out an edition OF
Shall espeare. one Of Balzac and two or
three other sets in the course ~ the three
hours he spent ar ong the toos. Finally
he as ed that certain editions be looked up.
While this was Icing done, he wandered
sbout the shelves in another room. He
carried lis over oat on his arm. The man
in char 70 had just coa back when q VOL
uu e of Charles Lambs Album Verses,
bearing ON ins ription to the original owner,
saying II had been a present from tho su-
thor, and worth about 500, dropped to
the floor.
Il leg your pardon said the stranger.
has lily ri king it up, Il must have brushed
that oi."
The book had been tightly wedged In on
4 shelf and sli ions " ere aroused. Willie
the IL ans ILL was Icing Ii ade out, the boy
in the store mott ed him handling q 81 all
appear. Thea the man in charged politely
asked the st ranger for his ov ercoat and took
from the poc kets two more Elze, irs and q
few other classics, worth about SO.
know this see ms very strange to you, :"
II you love books as do, perhaps you may
feel some symI a.hy for me- / am literally
starving for good books Of the kind once
had and n without any means now to
purchase them. have told you the whole
The man was allowed to 60. When Mr..
North came back the next day and heard
OF the incident, he cav that such q man at
large among the bookstores was q very
dangerous person. he at onoe took pains
that . number had received visits from
tho man. Among them were Putnam's,
George D. Smith Of 80 New street. J. W.
Bouton in West Twenty-eighth street,
sTeet and the New York Cooperative
Association at Thirty-fourth street and
At North's the man had given the name Of
Mellon. At smith's. he gave the name OF
and johnson. At Harper's he purchased
expensive editions OF standard works worth
about $500. They were sent to an address
found TO be boarding house. At Bouton' g
the Same thln8 happened IN tn8t cAoo
the books were to DO delivered At power
house on the West Side. Some Of the book
sellers doubted that the man had been able
to satisfy his book hunger In their stores.
because hs had been pretty we'll watched.
sThe trouble IT," said Mr.. North yester-
day. 'that in few. II any, OF the book stores
Is there any catalogue kept Then, too.
It s the habit to allow any one OF good ap-
pearance q lot Of liberty In wandering about
the shelves, and know with us 1t would
be hard to tell whether anything had been
taken or not. CT course, we are in little
danger OF the ordinary thief, because new
book would be too hard for him to dispose
Of without suspicion. 1t Is q man such as
this one whom we fear a man with craving
for books, to satisfy which he must steal
them
At Harpor's book store the man was
detected opening O case OF rare books
containing volumes worth $500 and $500
As he had been purchasing books Of a to.
tally different kind. Mr.. Harper said that
he guessed there was nothing there that
he wanted, and the man walked away. As
he left he said:
Il am going to Philadelphia In . week
and want to get those books before ! 60.
Mr.. Harper took pains to write to book