Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1928-06-28
THIS AND THAT
BY CHARLES +. TRACEW ELL.

few pages, the traceries began to APP
pear intensely diSagreeable. A few more
nages. and they seemed absurd. A Few
more. and one shut the book In dis
gust.
This. let it be noted, was the effect
certainly not foreSeen by the publisher
upon at least one possible purchaser.
vet. no doubt there will be those VINO
will be intrigued by those pages, each
holding few lines and large amount
of ink-Work done in scrolls. inns is
the individuality of books. TASTES Ior
certain books often are caused more py
the formal, the shape and size, the gen
eral style, or get-up, than by reason OF
the contents. although possibly the pur-
chaser is bllssfully ignorant oil tnlS'
Heavy. substantial bindings. whether
in clotn, leather or WnatnOt, are de-
sirable in most cases, and usually nave
a great deal to do with ones preference
for a certain volume.
who has not treasured book picked
ND on a second hand stall simply on
account of its time-Worn, weather.
beaten but eminently capable cover,
hardly dogeared by the passage OF tlme
and a thousand unknown hands?
Mostly such books have capable
"backbones " usually seWed, so that the
volume NAV be opened without danger
of the disagreeable splitting which
causes so much anguish to the true
booklover.
why is it that the booklover usually
has so many friends who are positive
lowbrows when it comes to considera-
ton for books?
He has lust picked up fine book,
Nrf, fpIV which a NASTY
publisher thought to economic on by
failing to give it a good ribbing down
the back
The owner wants to display it, yet
fears the mighty paws of the friend
The friend. wanting to please the So
called "high-brow," grabs the volume
the moment he puts eyes on 1t.
His mighty paws forcibly rend the
covers Blackjack. hard and fast. There
is a splitting sound, then an ugly open
ing appears. dividing the pages, like
ali Gaul. into two parts,
Henceforth that book is ruined for
the booklover Call him fool VINO
will He may try to overlook it, but
he cannot. If he opens the book, 1t
naturally falls open at the split. 1t can
open no other place now. He tells him
self that 1t makes no difference-but
IL Goes ana lilS Sdu pdLe VI AZ 10 eAid1
it did the other no good. He was not
interested in the book. He just broke
its back. that was all he got out of it
or all he did to it. He does not even
know the name of the thing. That is
the sad part of it.
Publishers are more and more COM
Ing to realize that every book should
have an individuality of its own, as
far as possible. so they are striving
with might and main to achieve this
in every case. Such things as colored
edges and unusual length as COM
pared to width are but devices to give
book personality. The book as thing,
as something in its own right. as well
as for its reading. has always been
recognized, of course. 1t is no new
idea but an old one tending to come
more into its own at certain times,
as the herd of books from the presses
tends toward uniformity.
Standardized books. like too stand
ardized persons. have numbing
effect upon the brain--that is why the
individual, If he. she or 1t is not too
much so, has such a pleasing effect.
II book can have nothing more. 1t
may be mice and leathery" and that
is something.