The Washington herald., 1908-06-21

! One more resort Of great interest to
those who make summer pilgrimages 10
Cambridge Is now open. In room of
/ the Harvard University library especial
" constructed for the purpose there are
being shown. one or two afternoons a
week, the rare books acquired by gift and
/ purchase for the Charles Eliot Norton
collection, the books left 70 the unlver-
sity upon his death by Charles Sumner
and the very interesting Carlyle library,
/ bequeathed Ito New England by the
will of the sage OF Chelsea. Also here IS
the one book, Downame's Christian
Warfare" that survived the college fire
OF 1854, from the library left the college
by the Rev John Harvard, TWO and
three-quarters centuries ago.
In writing Of these books, as in exam
ming them, it is hard to know where TO
begin. Yet there are perhaps few to
whom the Bible used by John Bunyan
will not give a thrill. This book is in
/ the Sumner collection. and it has the dis
tinction Of being the only autographed
Bunyan book-except Fox's Book OF
Martyrs'-which has ever been offered
4 for sale II is a well-thumbed brass cor
nered Bible. and it bears on the title
page OF the New Testament the auto
/ graph OF the Bedford tinker. says writ
er in the New York Herald. II contrasts
oddly enough in appearance with the
pretty blue morocco copy Of the Greek
Testament which stands next ii on the
book shelves and bears in two different
places the autograph of the French ira
gedian. Racine who once owned il.
The most interesting autograph volume
in the Sumner collection is an autograph
album which formerly belonged 10 Cam
/ Illus Cardoyn, a Neapolitan nobleman.
who resided in Geneva from 160S TO l64Q
and who was able, from his residence in
that city, 20 get in touch with nearly all
the men Of the period who happened 10
I be travelling 10 Italy. The album con
tains several hundred autographs OF peo-
pie Of different nations but its star entry
is from the hand Of Milton, and is dated
June TO- 1899. The English verses quoted
are the last mines Of "Comus.'
II Vertue feeble were
Heaven II sclfe woul1e stOoDc 10 her
/ T.
"Coelum non anlmum muto dunn trans
marc curro." an adaptation. Of course. OF
he famous Horace lines which proclaim
The truth that those who travel beyond
he sea change merely the sky and not
their own mental state. William EHery
/ Claiming. who knew Of Summers owner
ship Of this autograph. believed that NIL
/ ton, by altering the Latin from the third
10 the first person and linking the lines
with the Comus one meant 20 assert
principle of his life.
Sends Dedicatory Poem.
Another thing OF striking intimate IN
terest among the Sumner books is a first
edition Of James Thompson's Spring
Che famous Seasons" were first pub
lshed separately. presented by the auth
or TO his beloved Miss Young. and con-
tanning In his own hand on the ny-leaf
and inside cover n love letter and a dedi-
catory poem. Here is the poem.
TO MISS YOUNG
Accert lov'd Young. this Tribute. due
To tender friendship. Love and You;
But with IL take what breathd the whole
o take 70 thine the Poets soul
II Fancy here her Powder displays.
And If an Heart c1alts these Lays,
Thou faintcst in that Fancy shine,
And al that Heart IS fCndy thine
This st. Valentine doggerel is. however.
dignihed by the unmistakable sincerity
of the letter which precedrs II and by the
fact that for eight years, that is, from
the time he met her until she married
another. Thompson loved with deep de-
votiOn tais sister-in-law Of his friend.
James Robertson. From the blow Of her
marriage 10 another he never recovered.
and his death soon followed. This par
ttcular love letter is dated Hagley, Aug
Ust % TAB. and SAYS IN part
L would rather live in the most humble
corner Of London with you than in the
q finest country retirement-and that, too,
enlivened by the best Of society-without
you. Think with friendship and tender
ness OF him who Is. with friendship and
tenderness inexpressible. all yours. James
Thompson
Among tre Nortcn books there are sew
eral presentation volumes from RUskin
and William Morris, which are Of par
ticular interest because Of the we'll known
friendship which existed between Prof.
Norton and these distinguished men. The
following letter accompanied Morris gift
of his translation from the Icelandic or
Grettir the Strong:
MAY 10 1859
Ny Dear Norton. The strong man herewith; I
hope You viii Ike him; there IS no doubt q
great deal that viii strike YOU as coarse ard rude
IN IL and a life very different from the ideal one
of the future that YOU were talking of Yesterday
nevertheless I can't doubt that y0uu be interested
In what Is real and % my mind. also there under
lies all the uldeness sentiment and a moral sense
that somehow made the hopeless looking lfe Of our
hero eudu1able, az any rate. be did endure Il IN 4
Kind Of way that is lesson. I think. 10 efete
folk Of the Old World I needn't ask you 20 ex-
c1se my Own shortening in the translation. as I
know you viii DO only too Teadv 70 do 50. Your
most affectionate WILLIAM MORRIS.
Carlyle Tells of Gift.
On the title page Of some essays OF his
on economics Ruskin has written:
ITO Charles Eliot Norton, with the un-
economical love OF J. Ruskin''
Near this book on the shelves stand
the two volumes of Maj Herbert B. Ed
wards. "A Year on the Punjab Frontier -
books which were used by Ruskin. Mr
Norton tells us in compiling a knights
Faith" The marks and marginal notes
are Ruskin's, and they interestingly show
his method of work When the text
speaks of a certain kind Of Tong -barreled
and light-stocked guns used by the na-
tives Ruskin queries. Where nader"
Native gun factories?" ''Where?"
The personal equation in such a col
lection as this often connects two totally
dissimilar volumes. For instance. a first