The Washington herald., 1907-07-18


then the fad branched out in many diff
,erent lines. IN early Roman history the
collection OF Greek statues was a fad.
Kings have become enthusiasts, and had
il not been for the Needicis and the ar
lists OF the Renaissance many art treas
ures would never have been known 10
the people Of to-day. George " Of Eng
land had a famous collection OF saddles.
a prominent citizen of his realm had a
passion for the halters with which cTi-ni-
nails had been hanged. and a royal
princess devoted much of her time to the
classification Of the wealth Of shells that
she had gathered together.
A New Yorker has a unique collection
OF 'epis' or pinnaCles OF glazed pottery
which were used TO decorate the gables of
houses and castles Of Gothic and Renais-
sance architecture during the period ex-
tending from the fourteenth 10 the sew
enteenth centuries An earlier New
Yorker, lady of Harlem. was ac-
Cused Of being a collector Of husbands
When she finally attracted the notice of
the burgomeister she had just buried
her twenty-fifth. and a law was enacted
10 prevent her marrying again Shoes
have long proved an interesting object
for CuTiO hunters, though when collect
ing began 10 be made a commercial ven
ture they were not so profitable as other
things. Such collections reveal many
things. however. that history does not
In one famous collection IS Il shoe of
Nine. Pompadour. which shows that
the foot of this great favOrite was un-
deniably large. while romance would have
Il most Cinderella-Iike \ shoe Of the Duke
of ReiChstadt, the little King OF Rome,
was given 10 Nine Bernhardt in a
tiny jeweled case because of her sue
cessful resurrection OF L'Aiglon." Some
lover Of Napoleon had carefully preserved
the valuable relic for years.
Americans are possibly the most en-
thusiastic collectors. for they spare no
expense in getting what they want either
for themselves, OF for their clients, If
they happen 10 be professional gatherers-
IN Of rare things. Their tastes run not
only In the orthodox channels but in
most unheard-of byways. \ late justice
Of the Supreme Court made a lifelong
business Of getting together all the al
manacs that were available from Frank
Inns Poor Richards Almanac" on down
10 the yellow ones that had ''jokes' and
weather forecasts. with patent medicine
testimonials saudwiched IN between. Pos
sibly this and other cases caused a mod
ern satirist 10 define man as IAN animal
who collects" The owner Of a New
England shipyard has small collection
OF fgureheads from old-time boats. With
the modernizing OF ship and boat build
ing the figurehead, bequeathed us by the
Greeks, PhOenicians, and Mortimer Of
centuries ago. slowly disappeared. Some
how no one thought TO collect them, and
very few now remain.
Old signbOards from inns and taverns
had better fate, and many still hang
enticingly over quaint dOOrways in old
New England towns. Whenever progress
DEGREES that some Of them come down,
interested collectors are always there to
take them IN hand. The intrinsic value Of
some OF these signboards Is great. not
only because great men passed under
them 10 seek bodily refreshment. and a
bit Of gossip in the tap room beyond,
but because great artists have not
scrupled 10 turn an honest penny by
painting the designs Of Indian maids, nags'
heads. or kingly countenances that were
considered high art in those DAYS. \
French collector has two signs painted by
none other than Vatican. while a Middle
PENNSYLVANIA tavern proudly shows one
done by Benjamin West, when he was
a struggling young student. who made
his first brush from a bit of wood and
hairs from cats tail
Autograph collecting is one OF the most
profitable businesses. In this there Is Of
ten room for the charlatan. as authors
viii themselves tell you. The willy fel-
low viii write an author asking his in
depreciation Of certain lines, or for a list
Of his complete works that he may add
10 an imaginary library. and so fatter
the great man that a reply is invariably
given with the coveted signature affixed.
This the collector puts in a book with
similarly acquired autographs and sells
for good sum. When Kipling lived in
America he was puzzled TO know why a
number Of checks for small amounts had
not been Cancelled at his bank On in
quiry II developed that his butcher and
baker and Candlestick maker were each
doing a profitable little business in dis
posing Of these checks at a little above
their face value to autograph collectors
The autograph OF Columbus will always
bring about $50 in the market, that Of
NOlere, 500: Dickens from 8 TO S. and
PATHS usually about S4 The world has
more than once owed debt Of gratitude
10 those who have preserved signatures
and manuscripts for their own pleasure.
To a member of the French tribune. Ma
thieu de Villenave France owes the
preservation Of many OF her valuable pa
pers that would have otherwise perished
in the troubles Of 1898. It is said that for
go years no American collection Of books
nor hoard Of manuscripts has been al
lowed 70 remain intact Citizens Of New
York saw the British soldiers wheel off
barrows Of books from Kings College to
barter them for liquor. When possible.
States have become possessors Of many
private collections TO preserve them for
the public good
Uncle Alex McKeIly. Of Sandusky..
Ohio, a journeyman printer and proof
reader. who was employed half a century
or more ago on Graham's Magazine. got.
possession of about 150 manuscripts that
are to-day of great value These include
poems and other writings Of Poe. LOngfel-
low. Lowell. and other well-known
writer's. The manuscript of "The Raven"
was originally among them. but was sold
or lost The collection eventually passed
into the hands Of Mr.. McKellys grand
nephew. who took excellent care of it.
Last year the most valuable American
printed book was secured by Dodd, Mead
& Co. after years of patient search. 1t
IS the first printed collection of laws Of
the colony Of Massachusetts. and came
from the press Of Matthew Day. Cam
bridge. with the date. l6iS. 1t was found
in a private library
There are severa. interesting private