SOME FRAGILE HOPES

Manawatu Times, Volume 62, Issue 167, 16 July 1937, Page 8

SOME FRAGILE HOPES

Old Books and Lost Fortunes

One of the things which struck John gibbons when ho used to answer questions for a popular paper was the vast Bumbcr of people who were encouraged by reports of auctions to think that they possessed valuable old books or pictures. If a rare edition of Pilgrim’a Progress were auctioned at £lO'K), there would be floods of letters from people who also had very ancient boots, and wanted to know how* they could get their £IOOO. * * This has queer pictures in, 1 1 one letter said, * 'therefore is must be still more valuable. 11 It was the samo with pictures and coins, and Mr Gibbons often thought it was pathetic for hardup people to waste stamps sending in ctaff not worth twopence. Another class of letter-writer was composed of those who believed that they were heirs to lost fortunes. “I've

n known people go literally mad, hunting s- for estates like that," said Mr Gib>t bons. ‘‘They give up their jobs and d spend their days haunting the Law L t Courts and searching old papers in free >r libraries, and they get shabbier and 1- shabbier, and finally go insane, huntit ing for a fortune which isn’t there. ‘3 These are extreme cases, of course, but »t I know thero must bo thousands of deY ce.it families believing themselves owners of some mysterious estate if only t- hty had their rights! It’s no secret. II The Law Courts themselves periodih callv issue a statement warning the f. public against lost fortunes, but be3. cause it’s an official statement in a dryn looking paper, the pnhli** read it. ,T Mr Gibbons admitted that there lg is money left to people, and there are old books and so forth worth big sums; but it is not wise to set too much store re on fragile hopes.