TREASURES AMONG OLD BOOKS

Evening Star, Issue 23729, 9 November 1940, Page 4

TREASURES AMONG OLD BOOKS

Seeking for treasure trove has often resulted in valuable finds, and those who set themselves to hunt for rare books not only experience thrills, but gain much interesting information at the same time (says the ‘ Christian Science Monitor ’). Valuable books may turn up anywhere, and by no means confine themselves to libraries or lumber rooms. When returning from his voyage to America, Columbus encountered extremely severe storms, and, thinking his ship might founder and the knowledge of his-great discovery never reach his royal master the King of Spain, he described Mis .'adventures’ in a message written on’ stout parchment. This he sealed in a Strong barrel and threw, the lot overboard. But the barrel was never found, and is probably still resting at the bottom of the ocean if it has not fallen to pieces, But what a “ find ” and what a thrill he would get if, clambering about among the rocks at the seaside, some boy happened to stumble across that old oak barrel and its treasured contents!

How would you feel if, when walking into some old library one dark evening, your hand missed the electric switch and came in (contact with a roll of parchments among which was a genuine letter of great interest and value from the pen of Columbus himself? This is what actually happened, some years ago, to a well-known American book collector who was visiting England. Where is the book of poems which General Wolfe read on his journey up the St. Lawrence on his way to capture Quebec? What has happened to the books which travelled round the world with Raleigh, or Captain Cook? Some, perhaps, are in libraries, but others may lie forgotten on some obscure bookshelf or under a pile of dusty lumber. Think of the thousands of charts used on the old sailing vessels. Not all have gone down to “Davy Jones’s Locker.” How exciting it would be to discover one of them in the attic, lumber room, or some dark cupboard under the wide staircase of an old house. FIRST EDITIONS. If you can read Italian you may come across a book entitled ' Concerning the Kingdoms and Marvels of the East,’ on the opening page of which are the words; “ To all Princes, Emperors and Kings and Burgesses and People of all Degree. .. . .” Should you happen upon it you will know that you have found a copy of the and voyages of Marco Polo, the brave Venetian Merchantman.

Not all old books and papers are either useful or valuable from a collector’s point of view, but most of them are extremely informative. Searching for first editions is good fun, too. Imagine finding a perfect first edition copy of Kipling’s ‘ Jungle Book ’ propping open a window I This actually occurred to a friend of the writer. The first issue of Bunyan’s ‘ Pilgrim’s Progress ’ is very rare indeed. When an old house was being demolished, a copy of this issue was unearthed in a secret hole in the chimney corner where some one may have left it after reading late one night by the fire long ago. A first edition of ‘ Gulliver’s Travels ’ would bo worth owning, so, too, would a copy of 11. L. Stevenson’s ‘ Treasure Island,’ or Dumas’s ‘ Three Musketeers,’ or ‘ Huckleberry Finn ’ by Mark Twain, or that rare joy to collectors, ‘ Hans Anderson's Fairy Tales.’ Besides books, leaflets, pamphlets, or even certain old newspapers are often sought for by collectors. Books are sometimes of value or interest because of their association with some historic character who has owned, or who has written in them. Or the book may have been bound by a famous bookbinder, or may contain illustrations by a well-known artist, or be a translation by a great poet. While the writer was preparing this article he wished to verify a point'of information, and while doing so came upon a first edition of ‘ Wheels of Chance ’ by H. G. Wells, which he had bought for sixpence many years ago from an oddments stove. The price of this copy would now be approximately £l2. AMONG ODDMENTS. Generally speaking, books which roach tho oddments store have been

well examined first, but occasionally one gets a “ find.” The writer dropped on a perfect copy of Washington Irving’s ‘ Alhambra ’ for fourpenee, and on another occasion bought a complete copy of a Baskerville Bible for a shilling. These two books are not of great value, but they are worth having in a library, and collectors of Bibles value copies by John Baskerville since he was the outstanding British printer of his time.