BOOKS THAT SELL.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVIII, 8 September 1924, Page 3

BOOKS THAT SELL.

* . DICKENS STILL FAVOURITE FATE OF GREAT NAMES. LESSONS OF FIFTY YEARS. m SYDNEY, August 21. the veteran Melbourne book-seller, Mr, Leonard Slade, of the firm of Robertson and Mullen, has just completed half a century’s participation in his ancient and honourable calling. - As & lad Mr. Slade was employed in 1874 in selling tracts fer a religious society. A few months later he joined the firm °f Samuel Mullen, then at 55-57 Collins street. Although' many alterations have been made in the controlling interests of the firm, Mr, Slade has remained .with it. Out of his rich store of experience Mr. Slade can point to manjr a man, such as the late Alfred Deaknv who has reached fame in the public life of Australia, who in their, student days were constant patrons of his shop, and to hear a string of such names from his lips is a revelation of the extent to which books must contribute to greatness. -His reminiscences, too, are a revelation of how quickly greatness fades. Authors whose names a generation ago were such as to conjure with, and -were amongst the ‘best sellers,” are' now remembered bj few and read by none. ‘‘Of the old-time authors,”, says Mr. telade, ‘‘Dickens is the only one who retains his early popularity. Probably because of his character sketches there is now just as big a dexpandforhis work as ever. He is still sought after by young and old alike. The public was once easy to satisfy, as our,* stock was, of course, limited. I remember one of the most phenomenal sales on record, a .work by J. H. Shorthouse. It was a genu-philosophical novel called “John Inglesaut,” and the demand for it in 1880 was extraordinary. The present generation has never heard of it. Once the works' of Charles Lever Were m great demand. Now only one °f. . his publications, such as Gharies O’AJallcy,” are over asked for, and then only on very rare accasions’ ihe same applies to Lytton. Once read by everyone, he has no sale now. ihe only publications of his stocked are The Last of the Barons” and “The Last Days of Pompeii,” and there is hardly any call on these. The same applies to other once popular authors Sive a lad Captain Marryat ® ... Midshipman Easy,” he would most likely throw it at you. , “Another author who was read once “J all English speaking people/' S ays M?- Slade, “was Charles Reade. Now Ihe Cloister and the Hearth” is the only work of his ever asked for. In my opinion, the public will turn back vO good romance when they tire of the sex phase,” said Air. Sladq. ‘‘With few exceptions our stories are now all of this variety, I do not think that this class of reading will last.” Among current works, Air. Slade considers . that those of Air. W J Locke’s, John Galsworthy, W. B. Maxi well and P. B. Kyne, the latter of the t<T£ ieilCan SCIO are * n most demand. It you purchase a boko of Locke’s, tor instance, you can always depend I?P° n clean reading,remarked Mr. Slade. “I think he ranks foream°n i g P resen Gday novelists.” Mr. blade considers that in proportion to their population, Australia and Now Zealand are the greatest bookloving countries in the world. In hi® opinion Australians exercise remarkable discrimination in the choice of reading matter.

Tlie .Australian and Ne\v Zealander can pick a good book,” he said “You cannot palm rubbish on him.” , . Slade recalls what he considers the biggest success ever attained by his firm. That was when it secured the Australian rights of Stanley’s ‘ Darkest Africa.” “There were few people who did not secure a copv of this, said Mr. Slade. “However, with tile exception of Dickens, and perhaps Jane Austin, the demand for the old authors has died out. An effort was made to revive Trollope, hut it was of no avail. Thackeray also is a hack number. P