THE OEFER A LIMITED ONE.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 7338, 26 February 1902, Page 1

THE OEFER A LIMITED ONE.

.■--■■ r~ ■ — ♦ ~ " '• ' It has been .said of tlie vast library ol the British Museum that the. twenty thousand voluiiacs Kept in the : reading-room for curreaat reference contain all that is worth reading m the two million -volumes in the' galleries.- And if the " Encyclopjedia' Britannica'?- may, bs regarded as in some sort a second .distillation of , the whole, it would be the height of ingenuousness to attempt to^give in a few words that which should fairly iepresent the " Encyclopasdia." In so small a space little more can be- done th^i to; qall- to mind the form and typor. ctaphy of the pages. Qne turns instinctiveIj'to the "'Encyclopfsdia Britannica" when some nrgent^question is. to be answered', but it is an error to think of it only as axejnsdy in .moments of emergency... It is -withal a book to read, " to read' easily, . for the mere pleasure- of hearing a tale well ty>ld : the. delight w;e feel, even at our laeiest moments, in following the 'lead of an able ondnd. : The " Encyclopaedia Britaniiica "is not, a lexicon, it is neither dull nor categorioal; its. comfortable pages, full of matured thought, are for all men's .common use-. There, is not a trace of pedlantry in its tone: the great men of our. day wrote it, and; every one of them wasproud to- do 3tLs best in such goodly company. This is the -work the " Daily ■ Mail " is now offtr.dng .residents of the colony -upon such favourable terms; 5s "first, payment and less^th&n: sixpence a day in monthly instalments. : ;The offer as a limi-ted bnfe.