Perth Amboy evening news., 1922-03-06
{ O HAND BOOK SHOPS
FILL NEW YORK STREETS

I of shoe-poiish. "It's a family Bibl'
and vol wonder how 1t ever hap
pe1ed to go artray. It's come al
the way from Schenectady and its
got q full record of family births and
deaths ir the hacl: Of it. I'm getting
1t ready for a customer who says
she believes she knows some or the
people recorded in it. Funny, amt
it?
"Sucf condolences often happen.
Once, several years ago, l remember
there was Il quiet, studious young
mar standing by the table over there
looking cver the days bargains when
suddenly he dropped the book ne
was holding and stood staring at 1t
where it lay on the floor as IL he was
paralyzed. Then he picks it up and
comes running Dver to me-. very
much excited. ard wants to Know
whore 1 get :.
"'This book, he says, is inscribed
with the nams Cf my brother whom
I haven't seen for years. He left
home tn years ago. and we haven't
heard from him since. MY father
would given anything to know that
he was here in New York, alive and
well, and here at last is a clue.
Don't you know where you got this
book--whethcr It came from a priv
alto house or q hotel Or
""The man VINO sold me that book
along with several others lives right
around the corner, and he often
| comes in here I interrupted, and 60
! ing back to my desk l looked up the
address and gave it to him. And do
you knew that book was the means
of this young man and his brother
meeting and making up a quarrel of
lorg standing? W'el!-as I was say
ing to a customer the other night
truth 10 stranger than the fction
sven we secondhand dealers carry"
Fabulous Bargains Are Rar
Some fabulous tales are told con-
corning the L.argains always to be
but it is probable that such delight
full instances s.re rare. Most of the
dealers are goo1 judges of literature,
as well as shfewd business men
AMI they are nct likely to part with
a literary rem for a price below its
worth. 1he profit On used textbooks
and on the best sellers of yesterday
is very slight, it is said. but that on
first editions. DO sks that are out OF
print, ard oos ks of a sensational ma
tu~e is i immense. Volumes which re-
ceive the official taboo of the Society
for the Supprc ssiori of Vice are also
given n-cordial welcome by many OF
tha dealers, wi q find it easy to sell
them at a fat price. 1t is reported
that ore downtown dealer made
enough prof. VI. the sale of James
Branch Canel's "Jurgen" alone tt
open another hookshop uptown.
it is not surprising, therefore, &c
find most OF the secondhand book
sellers strongly in favor OF a rigic
censorship of L literature. In fact
!, their only critic ism of the Anti-Vict
Society is that t is TOO lenient. One
such admirirg dealer on the Yves
Side even has a photograph of thu
late ANTHONY Con,stock conspicuous
ly in evidence en- the wall above hi:
desk.
..The world is getting worse ant
worse" iamented this gentleman re
Gently, echoing the views of New
York's much discussed preacher. LII
John Roach S~traton, especially II
its taste for he oks. The movies have
ruined it. You can't sell the good
sweet love stores our mothers uset
to read any more. The new girl
want something snappy. Today,
young girl not any older than M
daughter came into the store. drew
me over in the corner there where
none OF the other customers coulo
hear her, and asked me II I had IL
sto ,k a copy Of 'Ulysses'--that's the
book the Society suppressed in this
corntrv last year. All, you know it
Hnm'-here no paused and gazeo
at the customer a tri1e suspiciously
but Mt last seemed to be treasured
by what he saw--"have You seen tn
latest Lawrence novel? I happen te
have one there On the back she'll
And here Is another that is likely to
be suppressed eoon." He held up {
brand-new copy OF a book and added
~irreievantly. ~ am getting in a large
stock OF this book tomorrow, al
though. CT course, 1t Is a little late
for the Society to act now after
nearly everybody has read the work.
Sources Of Book Supply
The q cut majority of the books
sod in the secondhand shops arc
obtained by the dealers at auction
a.ss OF large estates and from other
sa,es of private libraries. but a good
many are also bought up at n low
price from European dealers and
shipped to this country. To n who
is a close observer il is also appar-
ent that at least afew of the deal
ere Cor perhsrs the people from