Ladysmith news-budget. [volume] (Ladysmith, Rusk County, Wis.) 1907-1927, 1913-05-09
DISCARDED BOOKS
What Becomes of Best Sellers"
After They Are Read.
VANISH WHEN FORGOTTEN.

oPuiST NOVELS are Usually mead OnCc,
Then Thrown Away or Given to
Charitable lnstituton-Ones Cheaply
Made Soon Pass Out Of Existence.
What becomes Of all the books that
are printed: In New York alone The
classified telephone directory devoteS
ten columns of fine print to publishers
When il is considered that Boston,
Chicago ana Philadelphia can show a
large number and that every other big
city III the country has it's publishing
houses, to say nothing of the lesser in
situations in smaller towns. some small
idea may be obtained of the number OF
concerns in this country whose bust
ness is issuing books In addition to
these and augmenting them are the
many books that are privately printed
or published by societies.
There are almost eco publishers Of
various grades in Greater New York
Taking them big and small. they should
average at least one book year and
1000 printed copies to the book That
would mean that 100000 books veal
Of various sorts and kinds are put out
in that city. Ii does not follow by any
means that that number is sold As
matter Of fact. it is only the compare
tive few which reach an enormous sale
The best sellers. for instance. doubt
less often run we'll over 100000 copies.
But if the sale OF the average novel
gets rs high as 300 copies the book is
by no means considered failure. No
matter how many or how few are
printed, however, there are always
more or less copies left on the pub
fishers hands after the final edition
has been run off the press Some of
these, of course, are held in reserve.
but eventually the question arises OF
diSposing Of the remainder. Sooner or
later these get into the hands of the
second hand dealers.
These latter also replenish their stock
from the ordinary reading public.
What do you yourself do. for instance,
with a novel that you have read? You
may forget ii and leave ii on the train
or street car, you may lend ii and lose
it in that manner. You may give 1t
away. or if you like it particularly you
may put it in the bookcase, there to
join the ranks of the chosen few that
are read and reread. The average
reader rs novels accumulate about the
house usually sends a lot Of them to
charity SMnh nc tho Snluntinn
Army or to some hospital or else sells
them for what he can get for them
Many of them 60 down with ships at
sea. Some of them travel to far lands
to rot and decay under the equatorial
sun or the polar SHOWS. Possibly fire
destroys more of them than any other
element does. AS Il matter Of fact, the
ordinary book Of today is not con-
structed for Il long life. The author
hurrieS to get it out, the publisher hur-
rieS TO publish it, the papermaker hur-
ries the paper for it's manufacture, the
printer hurries to print it, the press
agent hurrieS to advertise it, and the
reader hurries to read it. The result is
that the life Of the book is not what il
should be-
After it has passed through two or
three experiences of being carted
around it shakes off the trammelS Of
its binding. Sometimes it fades away
leaf by leaf. If it is conStitutionally
strong enough TO hold together the bat
tered wreck of itself it may find its
way to the papermakerS, there TO dis
solve inc a pulp from which eventually
other books shall spring. If it is too
feeble for this useful end it eventually
finds its way 10 the ash can or the
street.
Then it either goes up in flame with
other rubbish or is east into the ocean
ana forever swept away. At the last,
says the st. Louis Post. Dispatch, the
naughty best seller and the pathetical-
ly thin volume Of verse privately print
ed by the author are equal.