palette" to the painter; draperies, features, fingers, and hair to the sculptor; or the traditional constructional and pedantic precedents of the ordinary architect.

But all is dealt with as so much decorative property, to be used for artistic ends, to convey the impressions valued by this architect-sculptor-painter to the world. We have a manifest sense of thickness, depth, and strength; wellproportioned buttress piers, the outlines emphasized with mouldings, and their surfaces sunk with panels and niches. The columns are for their own æsthetic qualities, much as those of Inigo Jones on the façade of the Banqueting House at Whitehall, only recessed, as must be in this hall, instead of projecting. The mouldings have great originality, refinement, and beauty of drawing, and the ornaments on the caps and architraves are restrained and delicate.

The jaded designer will refresh himself with the vigour and originality of the whole, and find its suggestiveness attractive enough to induce more constant reference than to other popular fountains of inspiration. We discern. the love of light and shade, of perspective, of drawing, of squareness of form in the decorative lines, and the contrast of round and square surfaces that characterize the sculptor, and with all these a strong sense of the pleasure of designing and executing in large scale and in lasting materials, a pleasure which comes more frequently to the architect than to other artists.

The library room is worthy of its contents, rich in ornament and decoration, restful and dignified, and the vestibule, qualified though the result may be, is an example all to one's purpose of the assertive dignity of imaginative design. It claims, if archaically or embryonically, yet definitely and earnestly, that the forces of architectural form and construction have poetic expression and intellectual purpose. These, though unlettered and silent, are here witness to the existence and power of that deep and inexpressible reign of Art, often antecedent to Literature,

and into the discrimination of whose charms the choicest poems of the pen have striven persistently to enter. BERESFORD PITE.

As illustrations of Mr. Pite's article we show a general view of the Great Room in the Laurentian Library, and also some of the book-stands, reproduced by permission of the Fratelli Alinari from photographs Nos. 1908 and 1911 in their series. The sketches of architectural details have been made by Mr. Pite himself from the plates in Ruggieri's Studio d'Architettura Civile ' (1722-28).

NOTES ON BOOKS AND WORK.

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OUR of the show-cases in the King's Library at the British Museum are now filled with specimens of English engraved book-illustrations, beginning with the earliest known specimen, the title page the Compendiosa Anatomiae delineatio' of Gemini, published in 1545, and coming down to the death of William Marshall, the most prolific of English engravers, in 1651. The books shown include the Bible of 1568, Kip's engravings for Harrison's The Arch of Triumph erected in honor of the High and Mighty Prince James,' and some fine specimens of the work of William Rogers, Elstracke, Hole, and Cecill. Marshall's later work and that of his successors is slovenly and mechanical but many of the engravings in books printed between 1590 and 1640 are rich and effective, and this branch of English book-illustration deserves to be better known.

The annual report of the Bodleian Library is as interesting as usual, and the number of items received,' 64,752, even more than ordinarily portentous. 47,143 of these

come under the Copyright Act, and as 24,805 are 'parts of periodicals, over 6,000 maps, over 3,000 pieces' or sheets of music, and 1,111 cards, the volume of additions is perhaps not quite so alarming as it sounds.

Among the donations recorded, the place of honour is given to a folio sheet of paper containing four copies of a proclamation conveying alleged pronouncements of Popes Innocent and Alexander in favour of Henry VII.'s succession.' Four such sheets were found by Mr. W. D. Macray in the binding of a book at Magdalen College, and readily identified by him as printed by Wynkyn de Worde. Retaining one for itself, the College generously presented the others to the British Museum, Bodley, and the University Library, Cambridge. The word 'alleged' in the Report seems unnecessary, as we do not know of any reason to doubt the authenticity of the papal pronouncements. Other important acquisitions during the year are a manuscript of John of Salisbury's Policraticus' and 'Metalogicon,' five tracts printed by Theodoricus of Cologne (almost certainly the Theodoricus Rood who printed at Oxford), and a nice handful of Spanish incunabula. A kindly reference is made to the retirement on a pension of Mr. Adolf Neubauer, after thirty years' work in the library.

The Paris Exhibition does not hold out many attractions to bookish folk, but it is pleasant to see from the 'Catalogue of the Collection of Printed Books and Music, formed under the direction of the Publishers' Association,' that at least one great British industry will be worthily represented. Visitors to the Exhibition report that while the books of other nations stand closed on their shelves, as if the backs were their chief feature, the British exhibits are shown open, so that print, paper, and illustrations can be fairly judged, and with the great Kelmscott Chaucer' in their midst, make a very fine display. The catalogue of the collection, with its entries in red and black, is itself a good piece of printing, and its two indexes, the first of

publishers, the second of printers, yield some interesting points. Including the twenty 'sixpenny editions' (examples of cheapness difficult to beat), but excluding Bibles and Music, rather under 300 books are shown, and of these Messrs. Macmillan contribute twenty-nine; the Clarendon Press, twenty-four; Messrs. Bell and Sons, twenty-one; Mr. Nutt, fifteen; Messrs. Kegan Paul, Heinemann, Edwin Arnold, Black, and the Cambridge Press, ten apiece; Smith, Elder and Co., nine; Messrs. Longmans, Murray, and Fisher Unwin, eight each. We should have expected Messrs. Lawrence and Bullen and Methuen and Co., to have had more exhibits than six and seven respectively, but those who care enough for artistic printing to have watched the course of book-production during recent years will not be surprised at the comparative poverty of the contributions from some of the oldest firms of publishers.

Turning now to the printers, we find that Messrs. R. and R. Clark head the list with forty-two exhibits; the Chiswick Press and Messrs. Ballantyne tying for second place with thirty-six apiece; the Clarendon Press coming fourth with twenty-eight (excluding Bibles); and Messrs. T. and A. Constable fifth with twenty-two. By some chance the present writer has never had a book of his printed by Messrs. Ballantyne and Co., but to all the other firms (as well as to Messrs. Clay, who show seventeen books, and Messrs. Clowes, who show twelve) he owes debts of gratitude, and it would be pleasant to dilate on their respective excellences. The predominance of Messrs. Clark comes rather as a surprise; but for abundance of type, excellent reading,' and classic neatness they and the Clarendon Press are splendid rivals, just as anyone who wants a really beautiful page, with some originality in the building of it, must needs spin a halfpenny to decide whether he will ask the help of the Chiswick Press or of Messrs. Constable. Messrs. Clowes should have shown a volume of the British Museum Catalogue, and Messrs. Clay an early English Text Society book, with the faithful

reproduction of all the little twiddles in fifteenth-century manuscripts and types. Altogether British printing is a very pleasant subject to think on, and it is good to have the evidence of this catalogue that it is being shown to due advantage.

In saying that the Paris Exhibition does not appeal much to bookish people, we had forgotten for the moment that an International Congress of Librarians is to be held in connection with it on August 20th to 23rd. The programme of the discussions is drawn up on familiar Îines, but with M. Léopold Delisle as its president the Congress cannot fail to be interesting.

Germany is enjoying its exhibition and celebrations during the present month, for the 500jährige GeburtsFeier Johann Gutenbergs' begins on June 23rd with the opening of the Typographical Exhibition in the rooms of the Castle at Mainz. Sunday, the 24th, is to be given up to a cantata, the unveiling of a Gutenberg memorial, and a 'Commers' in the Townhall. On Monday comes the 'Great Historical Procession' and a 'Kostümfest; on Tuesday talk of the Gutenberg Museum, and visits to Bingen and Eltville-altogether a very pleasing programme. Towards the Museum the Town Council of Mainz and the Hesse Darmstadt Government have each promised £1,250, and further contributions are invited.

·

From the figures quoted in the new volume of Mr. Luther S. Livingston's American Book-Prices Current,' which has just reached England, it would seem that a good trade might be done by transporting Kelmscott Press books to and from America. Up to September last the 'Golden Legend' had never sold in England for more than ten guineas, nor the Recuyell' above £7 175. 6d., in America they respectively attained to no less than £27 and £21, while a ' Keats,' for which the English maximum was £27 10s., went for £42. On the other hand the 'Herrick,' which fetches £20 in England, has never touched half this price in America, and on one occasion