Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-12-14

| contains the name or every English anC
American writer of fame who has con
| tributed to the entertainment and educa
i, ton of the Engish-speaking world since
Baron Tauchnitz began his business
No. 1000 is an edition of the New
Testament. Illuminated with notes. show
sions. no. 1000 is English Literature
in the Reign Of Victoria" by Henry Nor
ris.
OF the four thousand books in the
| TauchnitZ edition SO7 are by 40 British
and 396 are by 60 American authors.
| Has Always Paid Royalties.
Although the International copyright
! laws did not exist at the time Baron
| Tauchnitz began to publish foreign works
of fiction. and there was no lawful claim
upon him for royalty. he has never taken
/ advantage OF that fact, and has always
recognized the moral obligations and has
paid generous royalties to all the writ
ers of the books he has published. Nor
has he ever taken the liberty Of printing
a volume without securing the consent of
the author and making a contract with
him.
This honorable record should be known
to every one who reads the Tauchnitz
editions. because it is not only exeep-
tional. but the facts have been repeatedly
misrepresented by writer's whose works
were rejected by the readers OF the
house when offered for publication.
In the rear Of the fine old mansion
have referred to is an ugly four-story
factory building. where the mechanical
work is done. More than 1D printers,
pressmen and other employees are. engag-
ed-all Germans-and some of them have
been on the pay roll for fifty years. Most
of them are sons and grandsons of the
first employees of the house. Like similar
establishments in Leipzig. it is family
affair. German printers and artisans are
not nomadic in their habits. as in the
United States. but the sons usually learn
the trades of their fathers and work In
the same establishments.
Although the Tauchnitz books are al
most entirely in English. not one of the
employees outside of the business once
guage They simply follow copy, as
every good printer does. The first rule
taught to an apprentice in a printing es-
Establishment is to follow your copy even
If it flies out of the window The proof
readers as we'll as the printers are Ger
mans and not one Of them understands
line that he reads, except perhaps accl-
dentally.
Letters From Noted Authors.
The library of the Tauchnitz bust
ress office contains remarkable col
lection of autograph letters. I am quite
sure it is incompatible of it's Kind !
do not believe there is another collection
in which so many famous literary men
are represented by personal letters con-
corning themselves and their own affairs.
The letter files Of Baron TauchnitZ con-
tain correspondence with every English
literary planet and star of the first mag
nitude for about seventy years. and every
letter in the collection is of a personal
character written for private perusal
All of this correspondence has been
carefully saved and filed. and it is one of
the most valuable assets of the company.
The oldest letters are from BulWer-Lyt-
ton, Charles Dickens. Nathaniel Haw-
thorne and Fenimore Cooper, and among
the latest are characteristic letters from
Mark Twain.
The letters Of Charles Dickens are par
ticularly interesting. His friendship with
Baron TauchntZ was so close that he
sent his son Charles to school in Leip-
zig, where Baron Tauchnitz looked after
him.
while he should be we'll looked after.
as al boys require to be-. Dickens wrote
to Tauchnitz, Il wish him to be not too
obviously restrained and to have the adj
vantages of cheerful and good society.
want him to have an Interest in and a
knowledge of the life around him and to
be treated like q gentleman. though PAM
pered in nothing. By punctuality in all
things. great or small, SET great store.
In Dickens last letter tn Baron Tauch-
nitz. dated March a. 1870. he refers to
the publication of Edwin Brood in the
propose are quite satisfactory, and l &C