The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1916-1920, 1918-09-08
Rare Book
AT the Sign of the Sparrow"
Bailey. Book Plate Collector
Two Editions of P. B. Shelley

TT has become quite the fashion for book
i sellers to adopt names for their estab-
lishments, as "At the Sign Of the Lark, I"
and others Of like character. The latest is
that Of Albert F. Goldsmith, AZ Lexington
avenue, who has adopted cat the Sign OF
the Sparrow" The sparrow Is vigorous
little cuss.
Charles Kingsley. the assistant Of Robert
Il. Dodd; has been appointed receiver Tor
the bankrupt firm Of W. R. jenkins & Co,
and will probably sell the entire stock at
auction in the. near future.
A well known city dealer has shown US
letter and post card which he received in
response to calls for he Beardsley llustra-
lions to Poe. The letter was from Boston
bookseller who evidently did not keep up
with the market, his price being $40 for the
set Of five pieces. The post card was from
Brooklyn and quoted the price so cents,
mailed.
w. E. Bailey of Bridgeport, Conn.,, who
has been spending some days in this city, is
said to be the owner of the largest collec-
ton Of American bookplates in existence.
The only other collection in the country that
ut all approaches Mr.. Bailey's is that of the
late Frank L. Marshall of Philadelphia,
which was on the market for some time and
was finally sold by w. J. Campbell of Phila-
delphia to a gentleman in Honolulu. This
buyer has also bought the large English
collection of W. H. K. Wright, secretary Of
the Elk Libris Society Of Great Britain.
Catalogues Received.
A catalogue of the first annual exhibition
of books, manuscripts, paintings, engravings,
sculptures, &C., of the Negro Library Asso-
work of negroes. The catalogue Of twenty.
three pages is well printed and shows an
amazing amount of work by negroes along
all the artistic lines. Unfortunately it is so
badly arranged that it is difficult to find any
particular item, no regard having been paid
to alphabetical order. However, a first cata-
logue is always certain to have defects that
are not often found in succeeding ones.
From P. F. Madigan, Autograph Bulletin
No. 81, carrying ninety seven items; many
of them Of exceeding interest and all mod.
erately priced.
Mr.. Everitt's Finds.
Charlie Evertt is some fisherman, accord
ing to statements from North Windham,
Me. He won t tell fish stories because no
one would believe them; but perhaps he
thinks some one will believe this:
"NoRTH WINDHAM, Me-, Aug. 25, 1918.
"EDTToR Books AND THE Book WORLD,
THE Sun, NEW YORK: Suppose from note in
last Sundays issue that you expect at least
one fish story from me.
"Stopped off at the Varney House near
the old home of Nathaniel Hawthorne the
other. day to get a light for my pipe. 1 was
handed an old fashioned lamplighter of
rolled paper. After getting light from stove
and talking to Mr.. Varney I unrolled the
balance of the lighter and found the follow
"'Tdmmerl
"'by
"'A Bosto'
"Asking if there happened to be any
more old books in the house, was informed
that there had been a couple and that al
though they had been offered dollar for
them they had lost the address of party
making offer and when paper was not at
hand had used one of them up. Would I
give them so cents for the one lefty
"Well, what 8 the use of kicking. The
other one was Thoreau' s Week with the fol-
lowing note on fyleaf: 'NatI Hawthorne
from Henry d. Thoreau.'
"To prevent questions as to price let me
say that this is like DR.. Rosenbach s copy
Of Fitch s Map-not for sale-I like it my
self. If you don t like this will send you
another next week. Yours truly.
"CHARLEs p. EVERETT"
In the Auction Room.
At the Walpole Galleries on Thursday,
August 90, was sold Part of the Ameri.
cana collection of the late N. c.. Prickett of
Ravenswood, West Virginia, comprising SIS
lots. If the prices obtained at this sale are
to be taken as. an indication of auction
values in coming season we are in for
an era of prosperity in the book trade such
as has not been seen for many years.
Bourke's Scdtalogic Rites, $l2; Butter
field s History Of the Girtys, So; Campbell 8
PhdHic Worship, IS; Burton Wanderinas
in Vest africa. $1l; same authors Mission
to Galele, 81; Wright's Life of Burton,
$3.50; Cabanes's Bypdths From History,
Sio; Gordon's Book Of Penny Toys, 1915;
Pixies History Of Crime in England, $40. so
Farmer Slang and Its. Anaiogues, 7 vols.
$3.50; same author s Merry Songs, s vols,