Chapter II: Part I: The Evening Walk (1)

_On the right uses of Literature_ p. 3-20.

II. THE CABINET. _Outline of Foreign and Domestic Bibliography_ p. 23-92.

III. THE AUCTION-ROOM. _Character of Orlando. Of ancient Prices of Books, and of Book-Binding. Book-Auction Bibliomaniacs_ p. 103-139.

IV. THE LIBRARY. _Dr. Henry's History of Great Britain. A Game at Chess. Of Monachism and Chivalry. Dinner at Lorenzo's. Some Account of Book Collectors in England_ p. 143-207.

V. THE DRAWING ROOM. _History of the Bibliomania, or Account of Book Collectors, concluded_ p. 211-463.

VI. THE ALCOVE. _Symptoms of the Disease called the Bibliomania. Probable Means of its Cure_ p. 467-565.

SUPPLEMENT.

CHRONOLOGICAL INDEX.

BIBLIOGRAPHICAL INDEX.

GENERAL INDEX.

PUBLISHED BY THE PROPRIETOR (FOR THE NEW EDITION) OF THE REV. Dr. DIBDINS BIBLIOMANIA, 1840.

=The Bibliomania.=

MY DEAR SIR,

When the poetical Epistle of Dr. Ferriar, under the popular title of "THE BIBLIOMANIA," was announced for publication, I honestly confess that, in common with many of my book-loving acquaintance, a strong sensation of fear and of hope possessed me: of fear, that I might have been accused, however indirectly, of having contributed towards the increase of this Mania; and of hope, that the true object of book-collecting, and literary pursuits, might have been fully and fairly developed. The perusal of this elegant epistle dissipated alike my fears and my hopes; for, instead of caustic verses, and satirical notes,[3] I found a smooth, melodious, and persuasive panegyric; unmixed, however, with any rules for the choice of books, or the regulation of study.

[Footnote 3: There are, nevertheless, some satirical
allusions which one could have wished had been suppressed.
For instance:

He turns where PYBUS rears his atlas-head
Or MADOC'S mass conceals its veins of lead;

What has Mr. Pybus's gorgeous book in praise of the late
Russian Emperor Paul I. (which some have called the
chef-d'oeuvre of Bensley's press[A]) to do with Mr.
Southey's fine Poem of Madoc?--in which, if there are "veins
of lead," there are not a few "of silver and gold." Of the
extraordinary talents of Mr. Southey, the indefatigable
student in ancient lore, and especially in all that regards
Spanish Literature and Old English Romances, this is not the
place to make mention. His "_Remains of Henry Kirk White_,"
the sweetest specimen of modern biography, has sunk into
every heart, and received an eulogy from every tongue. Yet
is his own life

"The more endearing song."

Dr. Ferriar's next satirical verses are levelled at Mr.
THOMAS HOPE.

"The lettered fop now takes a larger scope,
With classic furniture, design'd by HOPE.
(HOPE, whom upholsterers eye with mute despair,
The doughty pedant of an elbow chair.")

It has appeared to me that Mr. Hope's magnificent volume on
"_Household Furniture_" has been generally misunderstood,
and, in a few instances, criticised upon false
principles.--The first question is, does the _subject_ admit
of illustration? and if so, has Mr. Hope illustrated it
properly? I believe there is no canon of criticism which
forbids the treating of such a subject; and, while we are
amused with archæological discussions on Roman tiles and
tesselated pavements, there seems to be no absurdity in
making the decorations of our sitting rooms, including
something more than the floor we walk upon, a subject at
least of temperate and classical disquisition. Suppose we
had found such a treatise in the volumes of Gronovius and
Montfaucon? (and are there not a few, apparently, as
unimportant and confined in these rich volumes of the
Treasures of Antiquity?) or suppose something similar to Mr.
Hope's work had been found among the ruins of Herculaneum?
Or, lastly, let us suppose the author had printed it only as
a _private_ book, to be circulated as a present! In each of
these instances, should we have heard the harsh censures
which have been thrown out against it? On the contrary, is
it not very probable that a wish might have been expressed
that "so valuable a work ought to be made public."

Upon what principle, _a priori_, are we to ridicule and
condemn it? I know of none. We admit Vitruvius, Inigo Jones,
Gibbs, and Chambers, into our libraries: and why not Mr.
Hope's book? Is decoration to be confined only to the
exterior? and, if so, are works, which treat of these only,
to be read and applauded? Is the delicate bas-relief, and
beautifully carved column, to be thrust from the cabinet and
drawing room, to perish on the outside of a smoke-dried
portico? Or, is not _that_ the most deserving of
commendation which produces the most numerous and pleasing
associations of ideas? I recollect, when in company with the
excellent DR. JENNER,

----[clarum et venerabile nomen
Gentibus, et multum nostræ quod proderat urbi]

and a half dozen more friends, we visited the splendid
apartments in Duchess Street, Portland Place, we were not
only struck with the appropriate arrangement of every thing,
but, on our leaving them, and coming out into the dull foggy
atmosphere of London, we acknowledged that the effect
produced upon our minds was something like that which might
have arisen had we been regaling ourselves on the silken
couches, and within the illuminated chambers, of some of the
enchanted palaces described in the Arabian Nights'
Entertainments. I suspect that those who have criticised Mr.
Hope's work with asperity have never seen his house.

These sentiments are not the result of partiality or
prejudice, for I am wholly unacquainted with Mr. Hope. They
are delivered with zeal, but with deference. It is quite
consolatory to find a gentleman of large fortune, of
respectable ancestry, and of classical attainments, devoting
a great portion of that leisure time which hangs like a
leaden weight upon the generality of fashionable people, to
the service of the Fine Arts, and in the patronage of merit
and ingenuity. How much the world will again be indebted to
Mr. Hope's taste and liberality may be anticipated from the
"_Costume of the Ancients_," a work which has recently been
published under his particular superintendence.]

[Footnote A: This book is beautifully executed, undoubtedly,
but being little more than a thin folio pamphlet devoid of
_typographical_ embellishment--it has been thought by some
hardly fair to say this of a press which brought out so many
works characterized by magnitude and various elegance. B.B.]

To say that I was not gratified by the perusal of it would be a confession contrary to the truth; but to say how ardently I anticipated an amplification of the subject, how eagerly I looked forward to a number of curious, apposite, and amusing anecdotes, and found them not therein, is an avowal of which I need not fear the rashness, when the known talents of the detector of Stern's plagiarisms[4] are considered. I will not, however, disguise to you that I read it with uniform delight, and that I rose from the perusal with a keener appetite for

"The small, rare volume, black with tarnished gold."

_Dr. Ferriar's Ep._ v. 138.

[Footnote 4: In the fourth volume of the Transactions of the
Manchester Literary Society, part iv., p. 45-87, will be
found a most ingenious and amusing Essay, entitled
"_Comments on Sterne_," which excited a good deal of
interest at the time of its publication. This discovery may
be considered, in some measure, as the result of the
BIBLIOMANIA. In my edition of Sir Thomas More's Utopia, a
suggestion is thrown out that even Burton may have been an
imitator of Boisatuau [Transcriber's Note: Boiastuau]: see
vol. II. 143.]

Whoever undertakes to write down the follies which grow out of an excessive attachment to any particular pursuit, be that pursuit horses,[5] hawks, dogs, guns, snuff boxes,[6] old china, coins, or rusty armour, may be thought to have little consulted the best means of ensuring success for his labours, when he adopts the dull vehicle of _Prose_ for the commnication [Transcriber's Note: communication] of his ideas not considering that from _Poetry_ ten thousand bright scintillations are struck off, which please and convince while they attract and astonish. Thus when Pope talks of allotting for

"Pembroke[7] Statues, dirty Gods and Coins;
Rare monkish manuscripts for Hearne[8] alone;
And books to Mead[9] and butterflies to Sloane,"[10]

when he says that

These Aldus[11] printed, those Du S[=u]eil has bound[12]

moreover that

For Locke or Milton[13] 'tis in vain to look;
These shelves admit not any modern book;

he not only seems to illustrate the propriety of the foregoing remark, by shewing the immense superiority of verse to prose, in ridiculing reigning absurdities, but he seems to have had a pretty strong foresight of the BIBLIOMANIA which rages at the present day. However, as the ancients tell us that a Poet cannot be a _manufactured_ creature, and as I have not the smallest pretensions to the "rhyming art," [although in former times[14] I did venture to dabble with it] I must of necessity have recourse to _Prose_; and, at the same time, to your candour and forbearance in perusing the pages which ensue.

[Footnote 5: It may be taken for granted that the first book
in this country which excited a passion for the _Sports of
the field_ was Dame Juliana Berners, or Barnes's, work, on
_Hunting and Hawking_, printed at St. Alban's, in the year
1486; of which Lord Spencer's copy is, I believe, the only
perfect one known. It was formerly the Poet Mason's, and is
mentioned in the quarto edition of Hoccleve's Poems, p. 19,
1786. See too Bibl. Mason. Pt. iv. No. 153. Whether the
forementioned worthy lady was really the author of the work
has been questioned. Her book was reprinted by Wynkyn de
Worde in 1497, with an additional Treatise on _Fishing_. The
following specimen, from this latter edition, ascertains the
general usage of the French language with our huntsmen in
the 15th century.

Beasts of Venery.

Where so ever ye fare by frith or by fell,
My dear child, take heed how Trystram do you tell.
How many manner beasts of Venery there were:
Listen to your dame and she shall you _lere_.
Four manner beasts of Venery there are.
The first of them is the _Hart_; the second is the _Hare_;
The _Horse_ is one of them; the _Wolf_; and not one _mo_.

Beasts of the Chace.

And where that ye come in plain or in place
I shall tell you which be beasts of enchace.
One of them is the _Buck_; another is the _Doe_;
The _Fox_; and the _Marteron_, and the wild _Roe_;
And ye shall see, my dear child, other beastes all:
Where so ye them find _Rascal_ ye shall them call.

Of the hunting of the Hare.

How to speke of the haare how all shall be wrought:
When she shall with houndes be founden and sought.
The fyrst worde to the ho[=u]dis that the hunter shall
out pit
Is at the kenell doore whan he openeth it.
That all maye hym here: he shall say "_Arere!_"
For his houndes would come to hastily.
That is the firste worde my sone of Venery.
And when he hath couplyed his houndes echoon
And is forth wyth theym to the felde goon,
And whan he hath of caste his couples at wyll
Thenne he shall speke and saye his houndes tyll
"_Hors de couple avant, sa avant!_" twyse soo:
And then "_So ho, so ho!_" thryes, and no moo.

And then say "_Sacy avaunt, so how_," I thou praye, etc. The
following are a few more specimens--"_Ha cy touz cy est
yll_--_Venez ares sa how sa_--_La douce la eit a venuz_--_Ho
ho ore, swet a lay, douce a luy_--_So how, so how, venez
acoupler!!!_"

Whoever wishes to see these subjects brought down to later
times, and handled with considerable dexterity, may consult
the last numbers of the Censura Literaria, with the
signature J.H. affixed to them. Those who are anxious to
procure the rare books mentioned in these bibliographical
treatises, may be pretty safely taxed with being infected by
the BIBLIOMANIA. What apology my friend Mr. Haslewood, the
author of them, has to offer in extenuation of the mischief
committed, it is _his_ business, and not mine, to consider;
and what the public will say to his curious forthcoming
reprint of the ancient edition of Wynkyn De Worde _on
Hunting, Hawking, and Fishing_, 1497 (with wood cuts), I
will not pretend to divine!

In regard to Hawking, I believe the enterprising Colonel
Thornton in [Transcriber's Note: is] the only gentleman of
the present day who keeps up this custom of "good old
times."

The Sultans of the East seem not to have been insensible to
the charms of Falconry, if we are to judge from the evidence
of Tippoo Saib having a work of this kind in his library;
which is thus described from the Catalogue of it just
published in a fine quarto volume, of which only 250 copies
are printed.

"_Sh[=a]bb[=a]r N[=a]meh_, 4to. a Treatise on Falcony;
containing Instructions for selecting the best species of
Hawks, and the method of teaching them; describing their
different qualities; also the disorders they are subject to,
and method of cure. Author unknown."--Oriental Library of
Tippoo Saib, 1809, p. 96.]

[Footnote 6: Of _Snuff boxes_ every one knows what a
collection the great Frederick, King of Prussia, had--many
of them studded with precious stones, and decorated with
enamelled portraits. Dr. C. of G----, has been represented
to be the most successful rival of Frederick, in this "line
of collection," as it is called; some of his boxes are of
uncommon curiosity. It may gratify a Bibliographer to find
that there are other MANIAS besides that of the book; and
that even physicians are not exempt from these diseases.

Of _Old China_, _Coins_, and _Rusty Armour_, the names of
hundreds present themselves in these departments; but to the
more commonly-known ones of Rawle and Grose, let me add that
of the late Mr. John White, of Newgate-Street; a catalogue
of whose curiosities [including some very uncommon books]
was published in the year 1788, in three parts, 8vo. Dr.
Burney tells us that Mr. White "was in possession of a
valuable collection of ancient rarities, as well as natural
productions, of the most curious and extraordinary kind; no
one of which however was more remarkable than the obliging
manner in which he allowed them to be viewed and examined by
his friends."--_History of Music_, vol. II. 539, note.]

[Footnote 7: The reader will find an animated eulogy on this
great nobleman in Walpole's _Anecdotes of Painters_, vol.
iv. 227: part of which was transcribed by Joseph Warton for
his Variorum edition of Pope's Works, and thence copied into
the recent edition of the same by the Rev. W.L. Bowles. But
PEMBROKE deserved a more particular notice. Exclusively of
his fine statues, and architectural decorations, the Earl
contrived to procure a number of curious and rare books; and
the testimonies of Maittaire [who speaks indeed of him with
a sort of rapture!] and Palmer shew that the productions of
Jenson and Caxton were no strangers to his library. _Annales
Typographici_, vol. I. 13. edit. 1719. _History of
Printing_, p. v. "There is nothing that so surely proves the
pre-eminence of virtue more than the universal admiration of
mankind, and the respect paid it even by persons in opposite
interests; and more than this, it is a sparkling gem which
even time does not destroy: it is hung up in the Temple of
Fame, and respected for ever." _Continuation of Granger_,
vol. I. 37, &c. "He raised, continues Mr. Noble, a
collection of Antiques that were unrivalled by any subject.
His learning made him a fit companion for the literati.
Wilton will ever be a monument of his extensive knowledge;
and the princely presents it contains, of the high
estimation in which he was held by foreign potentates, as
well as by the many monarchs he saw and served at home. He
lived rather as a primitive christian; in his behaviour,
meek: in his dress, plain: rather retired, conversing but
little." Burnet, in the _History of his own Times_, has
spoken of the Earl with spirit and propriety.]

[Footnote 8: In the recent Variorum Edition of Pope's Works,
all that is annexed to Hearne's name, as above introduced by
the Poet, is, "well known as an Antiquarian."

ALAS, POOR HEARNE!

thy merits, which are now fully appreciated, deserve an
ampler notice! In spite of Gibbon's unmerciful critique
[_Posthumous Works_, vol. II. 711.], the productions of this
modest, erudite, and indefatigable antiquary are rising in
price proportionably to their worth. If he had only edited
the _Collectanea_ and _Itinerary_ of his favourite Leland,
he would have stood on high ground in the department of
literature and antiquities; but his other and numerous works
place him on a much loftier eminence. Of these, the present
is not the place to make mention; suffice it to say that,
for copies of his works, on LARGE PAPER, which the author
used to advertise as selling for 7_s._ or 10_s._, or about
which placards, to the same effect, used to be stuck on the
walls of the colleges,--these very copies are now sometimes
sold for more than the like number of guineas! It is amusing
to observe that the lapse of a few years only has caused
such a rise in the article of HEARNE; and that the Peter
Langtoft on large paper, which at Rowe Mores's sale [Bibl.
Mores. No. 2191.] was purchased for £1. 2_s._ produced at
a late sale, [A.D. 1808] £37! A complete list of Hearne's
Pieces will be found at the end of his Life, printed with
Leland's, &c., at the Clarendon Press, in 1772, 8vo. Of
these the "_Acta Apostolorum_, Gr. Lat;" and "_Aluredi
Beverlacensis Annales_," are, I believe, the scarcest. It is
wonderful to think how this amiable and excellent man
persevered "through evil report and good report," in
illustrating the antiquities of his country. To the very
last he appears to have been molested; and among his
persecutors, the learned editor of Josephus and Dionysius
Halicarnasseus, Dr. Hudson, must be ranked, to the disgrace
of himself and the party which he espoused. "Hearne was
buried in the church yard of St. Peter's (at Oxford) in the
East, where is erected over his remains, a tomb, with an
inscription written by himself,

Amicitiæ Ergo.
Here lyeth the Body of
THOMAS HEARNE, M.A.
Who studied and preserved
Antiquities.
He dyed June 10, 1735.
Aged 57 years.
Deut. xxxii: 7.
Remember the days of old;
consider the years
of many generations;
ask thy Father
and he will shew thee;
thy elders
and they will tell thee.
Job. viii. 8, 9, 10.
Enquire I pray thee."

_Life of Hearne_, p. 34.]

[Footnote 9: Of Dr. MEAD and his Library a particular
account is given in the following pages.]

[Footnote 10: For this distinguished character consult
Nichols's _Anecdotes of Bowyer_, 550, note*; which, however,
relates entirely to his ordinary habits and modes of life.
His magnificent collection of Natural Curiosities and MSS.
is now in the British Museum.]

[Footnote 11: The annals of the Aldine Press have had ample
justice done to them in the beautiful and accurate work
published by Renouard, under the title of "_Annales de
L'Imprimerie des Alde_," in two vols., 8vo. 1804. One is
rather surprised at not finding any reference to this
masterly piece of bibliography in the last edition of Mr.
Roscoe's Leo X., where there is a pleasing account of the
establishment of the Aldine Press.]

[Footnote 12: I do not recollect having seen any book bound
by this binder. Of Padaloup, De Rome, and Baumgarten, where
is the fine collection that does not boast of a few
specimens? We will speak "anon" of the Roger Paynes,
Kalthoebers, Herrings, Stagemiers, and in Macklays of the
day!]

[Footnote 13: This is not the reproach of the age we live
in; for reprints of Bacon, Locke, and Milton have been
published with complete success. It would be ridiculous
indeed for a man of sense, and especially a University man,
to give £5 or £6 for "_Gosson's School of Abuse, against
Pipers and Players_," or £3. 3_s._ for a clean copy of
"_Recreation for Ingenious Head Pieces_, or a _Pleasant
Grove for their Wits to walk in,"_ and grudge the like sum
for a dozen handsome octavo volumes of the finest writers of
his country.]

[Footnote 14: About twelve years ago I was rash enough to
publish a small volume of Poems, with my name affixed. They
were the productions of my juvenile years; and I need hardly
say, at this period, how ashamed I am of their author-ship.
The monthly and Analytical Reviews did me the kindness of
just tolerating them, and of warning me not to commit any
future trespass upon the premises of Parnassus. I struck off
500 copies, and was glad to get rid of half of them as waste
paper; the remaining half has been partly destroyed by my
own hands, and has partly mouldered away in oblivion amidst
the dust of Booksellers' shelves. My only consolation is
that the volume is _exceedingly rare_!]

If ever there was a country upon the face of the globe--from the days of Nimrod the beast, to Bagford[15] the book-hunter--distinguished for the variety, the justness, and magnanimity of its views; if ever there was a nation which really and unceasingly "felt for another's woe" [I call to witness our Infirmaries, Hospitals, Asylums, and other public and private Institutions of a charitable nature, that, like so many belts of adamant, unite and strengthen us in the great cause of HUMANITY]; if ever there was a country and a set of human beings pre-eminently distinguished for all the social virtues which soften and animate the soul of man, surely OLD ENGLAND and ENGLISHMEN ARE THEY! The common cant, it may be urged, of all writers in favour of the country where they chance to live! And what, you will say, has this to do with Book Collectors and Books?--Much, every way: a nation thus glorious is, at this present eventful moment, afflicted not only with the Dog[16], but the BOOK, disease--

Fire in each eye, and paper in each hand
They rave, recite,----

[Footnote 15: "JOHN BAGFORD, by profession a bookseller,
frequently travelled into Holland and other parts, in search
of scarce books and valuable prints, and brought a vast
number into this kingdom, the greatest part of which were
purchased by the Earl of Oxford. He had been in his younger
days a shoemaker; and, for the many curiosities wherewith he
enriched the famous library of Dr. John Moore, Bishop of
Ely, his Lordship got him admitted into the Charter House.
He died in 1706, aged 65: after his death Lord Oxford
purchased all his collections and papers, for his library:
these are now in the Harleian collection in the British
Museum. In 1707 were published, in the Philosophical
Transactions, his Proposals for a General History of
Printing."--Bowyer and Nichols's _Origin of Printing_, p.
164, 189, note.

It has been my fortune (whether good or bad remains to be
proved) not only to transcribe the slender memorial of
Printing in the Philosophical Transactions, drawn up by
Wanley for Bagford, but to wade through _forty-two_ folio
volumes, in which Bagford's materials for a History of
Printing are incorporated, in the British Museum: and from
these, I think I have furnished myself with a pretty fair
idea of the said Bagford. He was the most hungry and
rapacious of all book and print collectors; and, in his
ravages, spared neither the most delicate nor costly
specimens. His eyes and his mouth seem to have been always
open to express his astonishment at, sometimes, the most
common and contemptible productions; and his paper in the
Philosophical Transactions betrays such simplicity and
ignorance that one is astonished how my Lord Oxford and the
learned Bishop of Ely could have employed so credulous a
bibliographical forager. A modern collector and lover of
_perfect_ copies will witness, with shuddering, among
Bagford's immense collection of Title Pages, in the Museum,
the frontispieces of the Complutensian Polyglot, and
Chauncy's History of Hertfordshire, torn out to illustrate a
History of Printing. His enthusiasm, however, carried him
through a great deal of laborious toil; and he supplied, in
some measure, by this qualification, the want of other
attainments. His whole mind was devoted to book-hunting; and
his integrity and diligence probably made his employers
overlook his many failings. His hand-writing is scarcely
legible, and his orthography is still more wretched; but if
he was ignorant, he was humble, zealous, and grateful; and
he has certainly done something towards the accomplishment
of that desirable object, an accurate General History of
Printing. In my edition of _Ames's Typographical
Antiquities_, I shall give an analysis of Bagford's papers,
with a specimen or two of his composition.]

[Footnote 16: For an eloquent account of this disorder
consult the letters of Dr. Mosely inserted in the Morning
Herald of last year. I have always been surprised, and a
little vexed, that these animated pieces of composition
should be relished and praised by every one--but _the
Faculty_!]

Let us enquire, therefore, into the origin and tendency of the BIBLIOMANIA.

In this enquiry I purpose considering the subject under three points of view: I. THE HISTORY OF THE DISEASE; or an account of the eminent men who have fallen victims to it: II. THE NATURE, OR SYMPTOMS OF THE DISEASE: and III. THE PROBABLE MEANS OF ITS CURE. We are to consider, then,

1. THE HISTORY OF THE DISEASE. In treating of the history of this disease, it will be found to have been attended with this remarkable circumstance; namely, that it has almost uniformly confined its attacks to the _male_ sex, and, among these, to people in the higher and middling classes of society, while the artificer, labourer, and peasant have escaped wholly uninjured. It has raged chiefly in palaces, castles, halls, and gay mansions; and those things which in general are supposed not to be inimical to health, such as cleanliness, spaciousness, and splendour, are only so many inducements towards the introduction and propagation of the BIBLIOMANIA! What renders it particularly formidable is that it rages in all seasons of the year, and at all periods of human existence. The emotions of friendship or of love are weakened or subdued as old age advances; but the influence of this passion, or rather disease, admits of no mitigation: "it grows with our growth, and strengthens with our strength;" and is oft-times

----The ruling passion strong in death.[17]

[Footnote 17: The writings of the Roman philologers seem to
bear evidence of this fact. Seneca, when an old man, says
that, "if you are fond of books, you will escape the ennui
of life; you will neither sigh for evening, disgusted with
the occupations of the day--nor will you live dissatisfied
with yourself, or unprofitable to others." _De
Tranquilitate_, ch. 3. Cicero has positively told us that
"study is the food of youth, and the amusement of old age."
_Orat. pro Archia_. The younger Pliny was a downright
Bibliomaniac. "I am quite transported and comforted," says
he, "in the midst of my books: they give a zest to the
happiest, and assuage the anguish of the bitterest, moments
of existence! Therefore, whether distracted by the cares or
the losses of my family, or my friends, I fly to my library
as the only refuge in distress: here I learn to bear
adversity with fortitude." _Epist._ lib. viii. cap. 19. But
consult Cicero _De Senectute_. All these treatises afford
abundant proof of the hopelessness of cure in cases of the
Bibliomania.]

We will now, my dear Sir, begin "making out the catalogue" of victims to the BIBLIOMANIA! The first eminent character who appears to have been infected with this disease was RICHARD DE BURY, one of the tutors of Edward III., and afterwards Bishop of Durham; a man who has been uniformly praised for the variety of his erudition, and the intenseness of his ardour in book-collecting.[18] I discover no other notorious example of the fatality of the BIBLIOMANIA until the time of Henry VII.; when the monarch himself may be considered as having added to the number. Although our venerable typographer, Caxton, lauds and magnifies, with equal sincerity, the whole line of British Kings, from Edward IV. to Henry VII. [under whose patronage he would seem, in some measure, to have carried on his printing business], yet, of all these monarchs, the latter alone was so unfortunate as to fall a victim to this disease. His library must have been a magnificent one, if we may judge from the splendid specimens of it which now remain.[19] It would appear, too, that, about this time, the BIBLIOMANIA was increased by the introduction of foreign printed books; and it is not very improbable that a portion of Henry's immense wealth was devoted towards the purchase of VELLUM copies, which were now beginning to be published by the great typographical triumvirate, Verard, Eustace, and Pigouchet.

[Footnote 18: It may be expected that I should notice a few
book-lovers, and probably BIBLIOMANIACS, previously to the
time of Richard De Bury; but so little is known with
accuracy of Johannes Scotus Erigena, and his patron Charles
the Bald, King of France, or of the book tête-a-têtes they
used to have together--so little, also, of Nennius, Bede,
and Alfred [although the monasteries at this period, from
the evidence of Sir William Dugdale, in the first volume of
the Monasticon were "opulently endowed,"--inter alia, I
should hope, with magnificent MSS. on vellum, bound in
velvet, and embossed with gold and silver], or the
illustrious writers in the Norman period, and the fine books
which were in the abbey of Croyland--so little is known of
book-collectors, previously to the 14th century, that I
thought it the most prudent and safe way to begin with the
above excellent prelate.

RICHARD DE BURY was the friend and correspondent of
Petrarch; and is said by Mons. de Sade, in his Memoires pour
la vie de Petrarque, "to have done in England what Petrarch
did all his life in France, Italy, and Germany, towards the
discovery of MSS. of the best ancient writers, and making
copies of them under his own superintendence." His passion
for book-collecting was unbounded ["vir ardentis ingenii,"
says Petrarch of him]; and in order to excite the same
ardour in his countrymen, or rather to propagate the disease
of the BIBLIOMANIA with all his might, he composed a
bibliographical work under the title of _Philobiblion_;
concerning the first edition of which, printed at Spires in
1483, Clement (tom. v. 142) has a long gossiping account;
and Morhof tells us that it is "rarissima et in paucorum
manibus versatur." It was reprinted in Paris in 1500, 4to.,
by the elder Ascensius, and frequently in the subsequent
century, but the best editions of it are those by Goldastus
in 1674, 8vo., and Hummius in 1703. Morhof observes that,
"however De Bury's work savours of the rudeness of the age,
it is rather elegantly written, and many things are well
said in it relating to Bibliothecism." _Polyhist. Literar._
vol. i. 187, edit. 1747.

For further particulars concerning De Bury, read Bale,
Wharton, Cave, and Godwin's Episcopal Biography. He left
behind him a fine library of MSS. which he bequeathed to
Durham, now Trinity, College, Oxford.

It may be worth the antiquary's notice, that, in consequence
(I suppose) of this amiable prelate's exertions, "in every
convent was a noble library and a great: and every friar,
that had state in school, such as they be now, hath AN HUGH
LIBRARY." See the curious Sermon of the Archbishop of
Armagh, Nov. 8, 1387, in Trevisa's works among the _Harleian
MSS._ No. 1900. Whether these Friars, thus affected with
the frensy of book-collecting, ever visited the "old
chapelle at the Est End of the church of S. Saink
[Berkshire], whither of late time resorted in pilgrimage
many folkes for the disease of _madness_," [see Leland's
_Itinerary_, vol. ii. 29, edit. 1770] I have not been able,
after the most diligent investigation, to ascertain.]

[Footnote 19: The British Museum contains a great number of
books which bear the royal stamp of Henry VII.'s arms. Some
of these printed by Verard, UPON VELLUM, are magnificent
memorials of a library, the dispersion of which is for ever
to be regretted. As Henry VIII. knew nothing of, and cared
less for, fine books, it is not very improbable that some of
the choicest volumes belonging to the late king were
presented to Cardinal Wolsey.]

During the reign of Henry VIII., I should suppose that the Earl of Surrey[20] and Sir Thomas Wyatt were a little attached to book-collecting; and that Dean Colet[21] and his friend Sir Thomas More and Erasmus were downright Bibliomaniacs. There can be little doubt but that neither the great LELAND[22] nor his Biographer Bale,[23] were able to escape the contagion; and that, in the ensuing period, Rogar [Transcriber's Note: Roger] Ascham became notorious for the Book-disease. He purchased probably, during his travels abroad[24] many a fine copy of the Greek and Latin Classics, from which he read to his illustrious pupils, Lady Jane Grey, and Queen Elizabeth: but whether he made use of an _Editio Princeps_, or a _Large paper copy_, I have hitherto not been lucky enough to discover. This learned character died in the vigour of life, and in the bloom of reputation: and, as I suspect, in consequence of the BIBLIOMANIA--for he was always collecting books, and always studying them. His "Schoolmaster" is a work which can only perish with our language.

[Footnote 20: The EARL of SURREY and SIR THOMAS WYATT were
among the first who taught their countrymen to be charmed
with the elegance and copiousness of their own language. How
effectually they accomplished this laudable object, will be
seen from the forthcoming beautiful and complete edition of
their works by the Rev. Dr. Nott.[B]]

[Footnote B: It fell to the lot of the printer of this
volume, during his apprenticeship to his father, to correct
the press of nearly the whole of Dr. Nott's labours, which
were completed, after several years of toil, when in the
extensive conflagration of the printing-office at Bolt
Court, Fleet-street, in 1819, all but _two_ copies were
totally destroyed!]

[Footnote 21: COLET, MORE, and ERASMUS [considering the
latter when he was in England] were _here_ undoubtedly the
great literary triumvirate of the early part of the 16th
century. The lives of More and Erasmus are generally read
and known; but of DEAN COLET it may not be so generally
known that his ardour for books and for classical literature
was keen, and insatiable; that, in the foundation of ST.
PAUL'S SCHOOL, he has left behind a name which entitles him
to rank in the foremost of those who have fallen victims to
the BIBLIOMANIA. How anxiously does he seem to have watched
the progress, and pushed the sale, of his friend Erasmus's
first edition of the Greek Testament! "Quod scribis de Novo
Testamento intelligo. Et libri _novæ editionis tuæ hic avide
emuntur et passim leguntur_!" The entire epistle (which may
be seen in Dr. Knight's dry Life of Colet, p. 315) is
devoted to an account of Erasmus's publications. "I am
really astonished, my dear Erasmus [does he exclaim], at the
fruitfulness of your talents; that, without any fixed
residence, and with a precarious and limited income, you
contrive to publish so many and such excellent works."
Adverting to the distracted state of Germany at this period,
and to the wish of his friend to live secluded and
unmolested, he observes--"As to the tranquil retirement
which you sigh for, be assured that you have my sincere
wishes for its rendering you as happy and composed as you
can wish it. Your age and erudition entitle you to such a
retreat. I fondly hope, indeed, that you will choose this
country for it, and come and live amongst us, whose
disposition you know, and whose friendship you have proved."

There is hardly a more curious picture of the custom of the
times, relating to the education of boys, than the Dean's
own Statutes for the regulation of St. Paul's School, which
he had founded. These shew, too, the _popular books_ then
read by the learned. "The children shall come unto the
School in the morning at seven of the clock, both winter and
summer, and tarry there until eleven; and return against one
of the clock, and depart at five, &c. In the school, no time
in the year, they shall use tallow candle in no wise, but
_only wax candle_, at the costs of their friends. Also I
will they bring no meat nor drink, nor bottle, nor use in
the school no breakfasts, nor drinkings, in the time of
learning, in no wise, &c. I will they use no cockfightings,
nor riding about of victory, nor disputing at Saint
Bartholomew, which is but foolish babbling and loss of
time." The master is then restricted, under the penalty of
40 shillings, from granting the boys a holiday, or "remedy,"
[play-day,] as it is here called "except the King, an
Archbishop, or a Bishop, present in his own person in the
school, desire it." The studies for the lads were,
"Erasmus's Copia & Institutum Christiani Hominis (composed
at the Dean's request) Lactantius, Prudentius, Juvencus,
Proba and Sedulius, and Baptista Mantuanus, and such other
as shall be thought convenient and most to purpose unto the
true Latin speech: all barbary, all corruption, all Latin
adulterate, which ignorant blind fools brought into this
world, and with the same hath distained and poisoned the old
Latin speech, and the _veray_ Roman tongue, which in the
time of Tully and Sallust and Virgil and Terence was used--I
say that filthiness, and all such abusion, which the later
blind world brought in, which more rather may be called
_Bloterature_ that [Transcriber's Note: than] _Literature_,
I utterly banish and exclude out of this school." _Life of
Knight's Colet_, 362-4.

What was to be expected, but that boys, thus educated, would
hereafter fall victims to the BIBLIOMANIA?]

[Footnote 22: The history of this great men [Transcriber's
Note: man], and of his literary labours, is most
interesting. He was a pupil of William Lilly, the first
head-master of St. Paul's School; and, by the kindness and
liberality of a Mr. Myles, he afterwards received the
advantage of a College education, and was supplied with
money in order to travel abroad, and make such collections
as he should deem necessary for the great work which even
then seemed to dawn upon his young and ardent mind. Leland
endeavoured to requite the kindness of his benefactor by an
elegant copy of Latin verses, in which he warmly expatiates
on the generosity of his patron, and acknowledges that his
acquaintance with the _Almæ Matres_ [for he was of both
Universities] was entirely the result of such beneficence.
While he resided on the continent, he was admitted into the
society of the most eminent Greek and Latin Scholars, and
could probably number among his correspondents the
illustrious names of Budæus, Erasmus, the Stephani, Faber
and Turnebus. Here, too, he cultivated his natural taste for
poetry; and from inspecting the fine BOOKS which the Italian
and French presses had produced, as well as fired by the
love of Grecian learning, which had fled, on the sacking of
Constantinople, to take shelter in the academic bowers of
the Medici, he seems to have matured his plans for carrying
into effect the great work which had now taken full
possession of his mind. He returned to England, resolved to
institute an inquiry into the state of the LIBRARIES,
Antiquities, Records and Writings then in existence. Having
entered into holy orders, and obtained preferment at the
express interposition of the King, (Henry VIII.), he was
appointed his Antiquary and Library Keeper, and a royal
commission was issued in which Leland was directed to search
after "ENGLAND'S ANTIQUITIES, and peruse the LIBRARIES of
all Cathedrals, Abbies, Priories, Colleges, etc., as also
all the places wherein Records, Writings, and Secrets of
Antiquity were reposited." "Before Leland's time," says
Hearne, in the Preface to the Itinerary, "all the literary
monuments of Antiquity were totally disregarded; and
Students of Germany, apprised of this culpable indifference,
were suffered to enter our libraries unmolested, and to cut
out of the books deposited there whatever passages they
thought proper--which they afterwards published as relics of
the ancient literature of their own country."

Leland was occupied, without intermission, in this immense
undertaking, for the space of six years; and, on its
completion, he hastened to the metropolis to lay at the feet
of his Sovereign the result of his researches. This was
presented to Henry under the title of A NEW YEAR'S GIFT; and
was first published by Bale in 1549, 8vo. "Being inflamed,"
says the author, "with a love to see thoroughly all those
parts of your opulent and ample realm, in so much that all
my other occupations intermitted, I have so travelled in
your dominions, both by the sea coasts and the middle parts,
sparing neither labour nor costs, by the space of six years
past, that there is neither cape nor bay, haven, creek, or
pier, river, or confluence of rivers, breeches, wastes,
lakes, moors, fenny waters, mountains, vallies, heaths,
forests, chases, woods, cities, burghes, castles, principal
manor places, monasteries and colleges, but I have seen
them; and noted, in so doing, a whole world of things very
memorable." Leland moreover tells his Majesty--that "By his
laborious journey and costly enterprise, he had conserved
many good authors, the which otherwise had been like to have
perished; of the which, part remained in the royal palaces,
part also in his own custody, &c."

As Leland was engaged six years in this literary tour, so he
was occupied for a no less period of time in digesting and
arranging the prodigious number of MSS. he had collected.
But he sunk beneath the immensity of the task! The want of
amanuenses, and of other attentions and comforts, seems to
have deeply affected him; in this melancholy state, he wrote
to Archbishop Cranmer a Latin epistle, in verse, of which
the following is the commencement--very forcibly describing
his situation and anguish of mind.

Est congesta mihi domi supellex
Ingens, aurea, nobilis, venusta
Qua totus studeo Britanniarum
Vero reddere gloriam nitori.
Sed fortuna meis noverca coeptis
Jam felicibus invidet maligna.
Quare, ne pereant brevi vel hora
Multarum mihi noctium labores
Omnes----
CRANMERE, eximium decus piorum!
Implorare tuam benignitatem
Cogor.

The result was that Leland lost his senses; and, after
lingering two years in a state of total derangement, he died
on the 18th of April, 1552. "Prôh tristes rerum humanarum
vices! prôh viri optimi deplorandam infelicissimamque
sortem!" exclaims Dr. Smith, in his preface to Camden's
Life, 1691, 4to.

The precious and voluminous MSS. of Leland were doomed to
suffer a fate scarcely less pitiable than that of their
owner. After being pilfered by some, and garbled by others,
they served to replenish the pages of Stow, Lambard, Camden,
Burton, Dugdale, and many other antiquaries and historians.
Polydore Virgil, who had stolen from them pretty freely, had
the insolence to abuse Leland's memory--calling him "a vain
glorious man;" but what shall we say to this flippant
egotist? who, according to Caius's testimony [_De Antiq.
Cantab. head. lib._ 1.] "to prevent a discovery of the many
errors of his own History of England, collected and burnt a
greater number of ancient histories and manuscripts than
would have loaded a waggon." The imperfect remains of
Leland's MSS. are now deposited in the Bodleian Library, and
in the British Museum.

Upon the whole, it must be acknowledged that Leland is a
melancholy, as well as illustrious, example of the influence
of the BIBLIOMANIA!]

[Footnote 23: In spite of BALE'S coarseness, positiveness,
and severity, he has done much towards the cause of
learning; and, perhaps, towards the propagation of the
disease under discussion. His regard for Leland does him
great honour; and although his plays are miserably dull,
notwithstanding the high prices which the original editions
of them bear, (vide ex. gr. Cat. Steevens, No. 1221;
which was sold for £12 12_s._ See also the reprints in the
Harleian Miscellany) the lover of literary antiquities must
not forget that his "_Scriptores Britanniæ_" are yet quoted
with satisfaction by some of the most respectable writers of
the day. That he wanted delicacy of feeling, and
impartiality of investigation, must be admitted; but a
certain rough honesty and prompt benevolence which he had
about him compensated for a multitude of offences. The
abhorrence with which he speaks of the dilapidation of some
of our old libraries must endear his memory to every honest
bibliographer: "Never (says he) had we been offended for the
loss of our LIBRARIES, being so many in number, and in so
desolate places for the more part, if the chief monuments
and most notable works of our excellent writers had been
reserved. If there had been in every shire of England, but
one SOLEMPNE LIBRARY, to the preservation of those noble
works, and preferment of good learning in our posterity, it
had been yet somewhat. But to destroy all without
consideration, is, and will be, unto England for ever, a
most horrible infamy among the grave seniors of other
nations. A great number of them which purchased those
superstitious mansions, reserved of those library-books,
some to serve the _jakes_, some to scour their candlesticks,
and some to rub their boots: some they sold to the grocers
and soap-sellers; some they sent over sea to the
book-binders, not in small number, but at times whole ships
full, to the wondering of the foreign nations. Yea, the
Universities of this realm are not all clear of this
detestable fact. But cursed is that belly which seeketh to
be fed with such ungodly gain, and shameth his natural
country. I know a merchant man, which shall at this time be
nameless, that _bought the contents of two noble libraries
for forty shillings price_; a shame it is to be spoken! This
stuff hath he occupied in the stead of grey paper, by the
space of more than ten years, and yet he hath store enough
for as many year to come!" Bale's Preface to Leland's
"_Laboryouse journey_, &c." Emprented at London by John
Bale. Anno M.D. xlix. 8vo.

After this, who shall doubt the story of the Alexandrian
Library supplying the hot baths of Alexandria with fuel for
six months! See Gibbon on the latter subject; vol. ix. 440.]

[Footnote 24: ASCHAM'S English letter, written when he was
abroad, will be found at the end of Bennet's edition of his
works, in 4to. They are curious and amusing. What relates to
the BIBLIOMANIA I here select from similar specimens. "Oct.
4. At afternoon I went about the town [of Bruxelles]. I went
to the frier [Transcriber's Note: friar] Carmelites house,
and heard their even song: after, I desired to see the
LIBRARY. A frier [Transcriber's Note: friar] was sent to me,
and led me into it. There was not one good book but _Lyra_.
The friar was learned, spoke Latin readily, entered into
Greek, having a very good wit, and a greater desire to
learning. He was gentle and honest, &c." p. 370-1. "Oct. 20.
to Spira: a good city. Here I first saw _Sturmius de
periodis_. I also found here _Ajax_, _Electra_, and
_Antigone Sophocles_, excellently, by my good judgment,
translated into verse, and fair printed this summer by
Gryphius. Your stationers do ill, that at least do 'not
provide you the register of all books, especially of old
authors, &c.'" p. 372. Again: "Hieronimus Wolfius, that
translated Demosthenes and Isocrates, is in this town. I am
well acquainted with him, and have brought him twice to my
Lord's to dinner. He looks very simple. He telleth me that
one Borrheus, that hath written well upon Aristot. priorum,
&c., even now is printing goodly commentaries upon
Aristotle's Rhetoric. But Sturmius will obscure them all."
p. 381.

It is impossible to read these extracts without being
convinced that Roger Ascham was a book-hunter, and infected
with the BIBLIOMANIA!]

If we are to judge from the beautiful Missal lying open before Lady Jane Grey, in Mr. Copley's elegant picture now exhibiting at the British Institution, it would seem rational to infer that this amiable and learned female was slightly attacked by the disease. It is to be taken for granted that Queen Elizabeth was not exempt from it; and that her great Secretary,[25] Cecil, sympathised with her! In regard to Elizabeth, her _Prayer-Book_[26] is quite evidence sufficient for me that she found the BIBLIOMANIA irresistible! During her reign, how vast and how frightful were the ravages of the Book-madness! If we are to credit Laneham's celebrated Letter, it had extended far into the country, and infected some of the worthy inhabitants of Coventry; for one "Captain Cox,[27] by profession a mason, and that right skilful," had "as fair a library of sciences, and as many goodly monuments both in Prose and Poetry, and at afternoon could talk as much without book, as any Innholder betwixt Brentford and Bagshot, what degree soever he be!"

[Footnote 25: It is a question which requires more time for
the solution than I am able to spare, whether CECIL'S name
stands more frequently at the head of a Dedication, in a
printed book, or of State Papers and other political
documents in MS. He was a wonderful man; but a little
infected--as I suspect--with the BOOK-DISEASE.

----Famous Cicill, treasurer of the land,
Whose wisedom, counsell, skill of Princes state
The world admires----
The house itselfe doth shewe the owners wit,
And may for bewtie, state, and every thing,
Compared be with most within the land.

_Tale of Two Swannes_, 1590. 4_to._

I have never yet been able to ascertain whether the owner's
attachment towards VELLUM, or LARGE PAPER, Copies was the
more vehement!]

[Footnote 26: Perhaps this conclusion is too precipitate.
But whoever looks at Elizabeth's portrait, on her bended
knees, struck off on the reverse of the title page to her
prayer book (first printed in 1565) may suppose that the
Queen thought the addition of her own portrait would be no
mean decoration to the work. Every page is adorned with
borders, engraved on wood, of the most spirited execution:
representing, amongst other subjects, "The Dance of Death."
My copy is the reprint of 1608--in high preservation. I have
no doubt that there was a _presentation_ copy printed UPON
VELLUM; but in what cabinet does this precious gem now
slumber?]

[Footnote 27: Laneham gives a splendid list of Romances and
Old Ballads possessed by this said CAPTAIN COX; and tells
us, moreover, that "he had them all at his fingers ends."
Among the ballads we find "Broom broom on Hil; So Wo is me
begon twlly lo; Over a Whinny Meg; Hey ding a ding; Bony
lass upon Green; My bony on gave me a bek; By a bank as I
lay; and two more he had fair wrapt up in parchment, and
bound with a whip cord." Edit. 1784, p. 36-7-8. Ritson, in
his Historical Essay on _Scottish Song_, speaks of some of
these, with a zest, as if he longed to untie the "whip-cord"
packet.]

While the country was thus giving proofs of the prevalence of this disorder, the two Harringtons (especially the younger)[28] and the illustrious Spenser[29] were unfortunately seized with it in the metropolis.

[Footnote 28: SIR JOHN HARRINGTON, knt. Sir John, and his
father John Harrington, were very considerable literary
characters in the 16th century; and whoever has been
fortunate enough to read through Mr. Park's new edition of
the _Nugæ Antiquæ_, 1804, 8vo., will meet with numerous
instances in which the son displays considerable
bibliographical knowledge--especially in _Italian_
literature; Harrington and Spenser seem to have been the
Matthias and Roscoe of the day. I make no doubt but that the
former was as thoroughly acquainted with the _vera edizione_
of the Giuntæ edition of Boccaccio's Decamerone, 1527, 4to.,
as either Haym, Orlandi, or Bandini. Paterson, with all his
skill, was mistaken in this article when he catalogued
Croft's books. See Bibl. Crofts. No. 3976: his true
edition was knocked down for 6_s._!!!]

[Footnote 29: Spenser's general acquaintance with Italian
literature has received the best illustration in Mr. Todd's
Variorum edition of the poet's works; where the reader will
find, in the notes, a constant succession of anecdotes of,
and references to, the state of anterior and contemporaneous
literature, foreign and domestic.]

In the seventeenth century, from the death of Elizabeth to the commencement of Anne's reign, it seems to have made considerable havoc; yet, such was our blindness to it that we scrupled not to engage in overtures for the purchase of Isaac Vossius's[30] fine library, enriched with many treasures from the Queen of Sweden's, which this versatile genius scrupled not to pillage without confession or apology. During this century our great reasoners and philosophers began to be in motion; and, like the fumes of tobacco, which drive the concealed and clotted insects from the interior to the extremity of the leaves, the infectious particles of the BIBLIOMANIA set a thousand busy brains a-thinking, and produced ten thousand capricious works, which, over-shadowed by the majestic remains of Bacon, Locke, and Boyle, perished for want of air, and warmth, and moisture.

[Footnote 30: "The story is extant, and written in very
choice _French_." Consult Chauffepié's _Supplement to
Bayle's Dictionary_, vol. iv. p. 621. note Q. Vossius's
library was magnificent and extensive. The University of
Leyden offered not less than 36,000 florins for it. _Idem._
p. 631.]