POLICE SEIZE 1,200 BOOKS

Greymouth Evening Star, 27 November 1929, Page 2

POLICE SEIZE 1,200 BOOKS

LIBRARY THEFTS CHARGE. LONDON, October 5. A statement that Scotland Yard officers had seized 1200 of this year’s books at the brancli agencies of a London library was made at Marylebone policecourt yesterday, in a prosecution by Boots Cash Chemists, Ltd., the proprietors of Boots Booklovers’ Library. Before the Court were Edward Kent Willing-Denton (45), librarian, of Station Road, Kensal Rise; Bertram Hartman (50), bookseller, of Petherton Road, Stoke Newington, and Charles Edward Tarrant (46), clerk, of Priory Road, Honrsey. All three were arrested as a result of magistrates’ search warrants, and were charged on remand with stealing and receiving a number of books, and with conspiring together between November, 1928, and July, 1929, to steal books from the library.

Prosecuting for Boots, Mr. J. F. Eastwood, explained that tlie company had branches all over the country. Early this year it was noticed that a number of new books were disappearing from various branches, and as a result of observation it was found that Tarrant (otherwise Edwards), an “on demand.” subscriber to the library, was ordering an enormous number of the newes and most popular works, and often returning in their place copies of old books. The new books included fifteen copies of “All Quiet on the Western Front.” MANY VOLUMES RE-LABELLED. Further inquiry showed, said counsel, that Tarrant was taking the new volumes to Hartman, keeper of a small bookshop in Stroud Green Road, and that from there the books found their way to various branches of the “Modern Fiction Library,” run by Denton. At one branch no fewer than 75 per cent, of the books on the shelves were Boots, all 1929 books, from which Messrs. Boots label had been removed, and. Denton’s labels had been substituted.

When Denton was arrested, said counsel, thirty-six of Messrs. Boots’ books were found at his address. Some had been re-labelled; others still bore Boots’ labels. Hartman remarked on arrest, “What a rotten endins’ to a clean life,” and when sixty-two seized books had been identified as Boots’ property, he added, “These are the books that Edwards brought here. I certainly did not steal them.”

Detective-Inspector Cooper also took possession of a number of volumes at Tarrant s address, and went to twenty of Denton’s agencies and seized over 1200 books that were identified as Boots.

Mr. Slade indicated that Denton’s defence was that he had had over 3000 books from Hartman, for which he had paid a fair market price, and he had kept a record of the transactions. Fredk. Richardson, chief librarian of the Booklovers’ Library for 18 years said there were 345 branches, and their books ran into millions. The exchanges last year were over 30,000,0000. Within a month, Tarrant had made 113 exchanges. Counsel said 150 books were brought from Boots’ Seven Sisters Road branch in July, 1928.

Mrs. Millicent Ida Jones, of Holmdale Road, West said she acted as assistant and chauffeur to Mr Denton from March, 1926, to January’ 1929, at Station Road, Kensal Rise. ’He started the Modern Fiction Library in her name. Mr. Denton removed the Boots labels from the books at Station Road, and Modern Fiction Library labels were put on. On Deuton’s .instruction she became a subscriber to Mudie’s Library in her maiden name of Hersey. A driver named Shepherd, and a son of Denton, were also subscribers to Mudie’s. Books which she and Shepherd borr<^ d ™ Om Mudl6 ’ s were lent to agents of the Modern Fiction Library for special customers. 1 A fuither remand was ordered Tar rant alone being refused bail.