The word "bibliotechny" is not found in any English dictionary known to me, although long in use in its equivalent forms in France and Germany.
It means all that belongs to the knowledge of the book, to its handling, cataloguing, and its arrangement upon the shelves of a library. It is also applied to the science of the formation of libraries, and their complete organization. It is employed in the widest and most extended sense of what may be termed material or physical bibliography.
Bibliotechny applies, that is to say, to the technics of the librarian"s work--to the outside of the books rather than the inside--to the mechanics, not the metaphysics of the profession. The French word "_Bibliotheconomie_," much in use of late years, signifies much the same thing as _Bibliotechnie_, and we translate it, not into one word, but two, calling it "library economy." This word "economy" is not used in the most current sense--as significant of saving--but in the broad, modern sense of systematic order, or arrangement.
There are two other words which have found their way into Murray"s Oxford Dictionary, the most copious repository of English words, with ill.u.s.trations of their origin and history, ever published, namely, Biblioclast--a destroyer of books (from the same final root as iconoclast) and Bibliogony, the production of books. I will add that out of the fifteen or more words cited as a.n.a.logous to Bibliography, only three are found used earlier than the last quarter century, the first use of most having been this side of 1880. This is a striking instance of the phenomenal growth of new words in our already rich and flexible English tongue. Carlyle even has the word "Bibliopoesy," the making of books,--from _Biblion_, and _poiein_--to make.
Public libraries are useful to readers in proportion to the extent and ready supply of the helps they furnish to facilitate researches of every kind. Among these helps a wisely selected collection of books of reference stands foremost. Considering the vast extent and opulence of the world of letters, and the want of experience of the majority of readers in exploring this almost boundless field, the importance of every key which can unlock its hidden stores becomes apparent. The printed catalogue of no single library is at all adequate to supply full references, even to its own stores of knowledge; while these catalogues are, of course, comparatively useless as to other stores of information, elsewhere existing. Even the completest and most extensive catalogue in the world, that of the British Museum Library, although now extended to more than 370 folio volumes in print, representing 3,000 volumes in ma.n.u.script, is not completed so as to embrace the entire contents of that rich repository of knowledge.
From lack of information of the aid furnished by adequate books of reference in a special field, many a reader goes groping in pursuit of references or information which might be found in some one of the many volumes which may be designated as works of bibliography. The diffidence and reserve of many students in libraries, and the mistaken fear of giving trouble to librarians, frequently deprives them of even those aids which a few words of inquiry might bring forth from the ready knowledge of the custodians in charge.
That is the best library, and he is the most useful librarian, by whose aid every reader is enabled to put his finger on the fact he wants, just when it is wanted. In attaining this end it is essential that the more recent, important, and valuable aids to research in general science, as well as in special departments of each, should form a part of the library. In order to make a fit selection of books (and all libraries are practically reduced to a selection, from want of means to possess the whole) it is indispensable to know the relative value of the books concerned. Many works of reference of great fame, and once of great value, have become almost obsolete, through the issue of more extensive and carefully edited works in the same field. While a great and comprehensive library should possess every work of reference, old or new, which has aided or may aid the researches of scholars, (not forgetting even the earlier editions of works often reprinted), the smaller libraries, on the other hand, are compelled to exercise a close economy of selection. The most valuable works of reference, among which the more copious and extensive bibliographies stand first, are frequently expensive treasures, and it is important to the librarian furnishing a limited and select library to know what books he can best afford to do without. If he cannot buy both the _Manuel du libraire_ by Brunet, in five volumes, and the _Tresor des livres rares et precieux_ of Graesse, seven volumes, both of which are dictionaries of the choicer portions of literature, it is important to know that Brunet is the more indispensable of the two. From the 20,000 reference books lying open to the consultation of all readers in the great rotunda of the British Museum reading room, to the small and select case of dictionaries, catalogues, cyclopaedias, and other works of reference in a town or subscription library, the interval is wide indeed. But where we cannot have all, it becomes the more important to have the best; and the reader who has at hand for ready reference the latest and most copious dictionary of each of the leading languages of the world, two or three of the best general bibliographies, the most copious catalogue raisonne of the literature in each great department of science, the best biographical dictionaries, and the latest and most copious encyclopaedias issued from the press, is tolerably well equipped for the prosecution of his researches.
Next in importance to the possession in any library of a good selection of the most useful books of reference, is the convenient accessibility of these works to the reading public. Just in proportion to the indispensability and frequency of use of any work should be the facility to the reader of availing himself of its aid. The leading encyclopaedias, bibliographies, dictionaries, annuals, and other books of reference should never be locked up in cases, nor placed on high or remote shelves.
There should be in every library what may be termed a central bureau of reference. Here should be a.s.sembled, whether on circular cases made to revolve on a pivot, or on a rectangular case, with volumes covering both sides, or in a central alcove forming a portion of the shelves of the main library, all those books of reference, and volumes incessantly needed by students in pursuit of their various inquiries. It is important that the custodians of all libraries should remember that this ready and convenient supply of the reference books most constantly wanted, serves the double object of economizing the time of the librarian and a.s.sistants for other labor, and of accommodating in the highest degree the readers, whose time is also economized. The misplacement of volumes which will thus occur is easily rectified, while the possibility of loss through abstraction is so extremely small that it should not be permitted to weigh for a moment in comparison with the great advantages resulting from the rule of liberality in aiding the wants of readers.
Bibliography, in its most intimate sense, is the proper science of the librarian. To many it is a study--to some, it is a pa.s.sion. While the best works in bibliography have not always been written by librarians, but by scholars enamored of the science of books, and devotees of learning, it is safe to say that the great catalogues which afford such inestimable aid to research, have nearly all been prepared in libraries, and not one of the books worthy of the name of bibliography, could have been written without their aid.
In viewing the extensive field of bibliographies, regard for systematic treatment requires that they be divided into cla.s.ses. Beginning first with general bibliographies, or those claiming to be universal, we should afterwards consider the numerous bibliographies of countries, or those devoted to national literature; following that by the still more numerous special bibliographies, or those embracing works on specially designated subjects. The two cla.s.ses last named are by far the most numerous.
Although what may be termed a "universal catalogue" has been the dream of scholars for many ages, it is as far as ever from being realized--and in fact much farther than ever before, since each year that is added to the long roll of the past increases enormously the number of books to be dealt with, and consequently the difficulties of the problem. We may set down the publication of a work which should contain the t.i.tles of all books ever printed, as a practical impossibility. The world"s literature is too vast and complex to be completely catalogued, whether on the cooperative plan, or any other. Meanwhile the many thousands of volumes, each of which has been devoted to some portion of the vast and ever-increasing stores of literature and science which human brains have put in print, will serve to aid the researches of the student, when rightly guided by an intelligent librarian.
Notwithstanding the hopeless nature of the quest, it is true that some men of learning have essayed what have been termed universal bibliographies. The earliest attempt in this direction was published at Zurich in 1545, under the t.i.tle of "Bibliotheca Universalis," by Conrad Gesner, a Swiss scholar whose acquisition of knowledge was so extensive that he was styled "a miracle of learning." This great work gave the t.i.tles of all books of which its author could find trace, and was ill.u.s.trated by a ma.s.s of bibliographical notes and criticism. It long held a high place in the world of letters, though it is now seldom referred to in the plethora of more modern works of bibliography. In 1625, the bookseller B. Ostern put forth at Frankfort, his _Bibliotheque Universelle_, a catalogue of all books from 1500 to 1624. In 1742, Th.
Georgi issued in eleven folio volumes, his _Allgemeines Europaisches_ _Bucher-lexikon_, claiming to represent the works of nearly all writers from 1500 down to 1739. This formidable catalogue may perhaps be said to embrace more forgotten books than any other in the literary history of the world.
Almost equally formidable, however, is the bibliography of that erudite scholar, Christian G. Jocher, who put forth in 1750, at Leipzig, his _Allgemeines Gelehrten-lexicon_, in which, says the t.i.tle page, "the learned men of all cla.s.ses who have lived from the beginning of the world up to the present time, are described." This book, with its supplement, by Adelung and Rotermund, (completed only to letter R), makes ten ponderous quarto volumes, and may fairly be styled a thesaurus of the birth and death of ancient scholars and their works. It is still largely used in great libraries, to identify the period and the full names of many obscure writers of books, who are not commemorated in the catalogues of universal bibliography, compiled on a more restrictive plan.
We come now to the notable catalogues of early-printed books, which aim to cover all the issues of the press from the first invention of printing, up to a certain period. One of the most carefully edited and most readily useful of these is Hain, (L.) _Repertorium Bibliographic.u.m_, in four small and portable octavo volumes, published at Stuttgart in 1826-38. This gives, in an alphabet of authors, all the publications found printed (with their variations and new editions), from A. D. 1450 to A. D. 1500.
More extensive is the great catalogue of G. W. Panzer, ent.i.tled _Annales Typographici_, in eleven quarto volumes, published at Nuremberg from 1793 to 1803. This work, which covers the period from 1457 (the period of the first book ever printed with a date) up to A. D. 1536, is not arranged alphabetically (as in Hain"s Repertorium) by the names of authors, but in the order of the cities or places where the books catalogued were printed. The bibliography thus brings together in one view, the typographical product of each city or town for about eighty years after the earliest dated issues of the press, arranged in chronological order of the years when printed. This system has undeniable advantages, but equally obvious defects, which are sought to be remedied by many copious indexes of authors and printers.
Next in importance comes M. Maittaire"s _Annales Typographici, ab artis inventae origine ad annum 1664_, printed at The Hague (Hagae Comitum) and completed at London, from 1722-89, in eleven volumes, quarto, often bound in five volumes. There is besides, devoted to the early printed literature of the world, the useful three volume bibliography by La Serna de Santander, published at Brussels in 1805, ent.i.tled _Dictionnaire bibliographique choisie du quinzieme siecle_, Bruxelles, 1803, embracing a selection of what its compiler deemed the more important books published from the beginning of printing up to A. D. 1500. All the four works last named contain the t.i.tles and descriptions of what are known as _incunabula_, or cradle-books (from Latin _cunabula_, a cradle) a term applied to all works produced in the infancy of printing, and most commonly to those appearing before 1500. These books are also sometimes called fifteeners, or 15th century books.
Of general bibliographies of later date, only a few of the most useful and important can here be named. At the head of these stands, deservedly, the great work of J. C. Brunet, ent.i.tled _Manuel du Libraire et de l"amateur des livres_, the last or 5th edition of which appeared at Paris in 1860-64, in five thick octavo volumes. The first edition of Brunet appeared in 1810, and every issue since has exhibited not only an extensive enlargement, but great improvement in careful, critical editorship. It embraces most of the choicest books that have appeared in the princ.i.p.al languages of Europe, and a supplement in two volumes, by P.
Deschamps and G. Brunet, appeared in 1878.
Next to Brunet in importance to the librarian, is J. G. T. Graesse"s _Tresor des Livres rares et precieux_, which is more full than Brunet in works in the Teutonic languages, and was published at Dresden in six quarto volumes, with a supplement, in 1861-69. Both of these bibliographies aim at a universal range, though they make a selection of the best authors and editions, ancient and modern, omitting however, the most recent writers. The arrangement of both is strictly alphabetical, or a dictionary of authors" names, while Brunet gives in a final volume a cla.s.sification by subjects. Both catalogues are rendered additionally valuable by the citation of prices at which many of the works catalogued have been sold at book auctions in the present century.
In 1857 was published at Paris a kind of universal bibliography, on the plan of a _catalogue raisonne_, or dictionary of subjects, by Messrs. F.
Denis, Pincon, and De Martonne, two of whom were librarians by profession. This work of over 700 pages, though printed in almost microscopic type, and now about forty years in arrears, has much value as a ready key to the best books then known on nearly every subject in science and literature. It is arranged in a complete index of topics, the books under each being described in chronological order, instead of the alphabetical. The preponderance is given to the French in the works cited on most subjects, but the literature of other nations is by no means neglected. It is ent.i.tled _Nouveau Manuel de Bibliographie universelle_, and being a subjective index, while Brunet and Graesse are arranged by authors" names, it may be used to advantage in connection with these standard bibliographies.
While on this subject, let me name the books specially devoted to lists of bibliographical works--general and special. These may be termed the catalogues of catalogues,--and are highly useful aids, indeed indispensable to the librarian, who seeks to know what lists of books have appeared that are devoted to the t.i.tles of publications covering any period, or country, or special subject in the whole circle of sciences or literatures. The first notably important book of reference in this field, was the work of that most industrious bibliographer, Gabriel Peignot, who published at Paris, in 1812, his _Repertoire bibliographique universelle_, in one volume. This work contains the t.i.tles of most special bibliographies, of whatever subject or country, published up to 1812, and of many works bibliographical in character, devoted to literary history.
Dr. Julius Petzholdt, one of the most learned and laborious of librarians, issued at Leipzig in 1866, a _Bibliotheca bibliographica_, the fuller t.i.tle of which was "a critical catalogue, exhibiting in systematic order, the entire field of bibliography covering the literature of Germany and other countries." The rather ambitious promise of this t.i.tle is well redeemed in the contents: for very few catalogues of importance issued before 1866, are omitted in this elaborate book of 931 closely printed pages. Most t.i.tles of the bibliographies given are followed by critical and explanatory notes, of much value to the unskilled reader. These notes are in German, while all the t.i.tles cited are in the language of the books themselves. After giving full t.i.tles of all the books in general bibliography, he takes up the national bibliographies by countries, citing both systematic catalogues and periodicals devoted to the literature of each in any period. This is followed by a distributive list of scientific bibliographies, so full as to leave little to be desired, except for later issues of the press. One of the curiosities of this work is its catalogue of all the issues of the "Index Librorum Prohibitorum", or books forbidden to be read, including 185 separate catalogues, from A. D. 1510 to A. D. 1862.
The next bibliographical work claiming to cover this field was in the French language, being the _Bibliographie des bibliographies_ of Leon Vallee, published in 1883 at Paris. This book, though beautifully printed, is so full of errors, and still fuller of omissions, that it is regarded by competent scholars as a failure, though still having its uses to the librarian. It is amazing that any writer should put forth a book seventeen years after the great and successful work of Petzholdt, purporting to be a catalogue of bibliographies, and yet fail to record such a mult.i.tude of printed contributions to the science of sciences as Vallee has overlooked.
Some ten years later, or in 1897, there came from the French press, a far better bibliographical work, covering the modern issues of books of bibliography more especially, with greater fullness and superior plan.
This is the _Manuel de Bibliographie generale_, by Henri Stein. This work contains, in 915 well-printed pages, 1st. a list of universal bibliographies: 2d. a catalogue of national bibliographies, in alphabetical order of countries: 3d. a list of cla.s.sified bibliographies of subjects, divided into seventeen cla.s.ses, namely, religious sciences, philosophical sciences, juridical, economic, social, and educational sciences, pure and applied sciences, medical sciences, philology and belles lettres, geographical and historical sciences, sciences auxiliary to history, archaeology and fine arts, music, and biography. Besides these extremely useful categories of bibliographical aids, in which the freshest publications of catalogues and lists of books in each field are set forth, M. Stein gives us a complete geographical bibliography of printing, on a new plan. This he ent.i.tles "_Geographie bibliographique_,"
or systematic lists of localities in every part of the world which possessed a printing press prior to the 19th century. It gives, after the modern or current name of each place, the Latin, or ancient name, the country in which located, the year in which the first printed publication appeared in each place, and finally, the authority for the statement.
This handy-list of information alone, is worth the cost of the work, since it will save much time of the inquirer, in hunting over many volumes of Panzer, Maittaire, Hain, Dibdin, Thomas, or other authors on printing, to find the origin of the art, or early name of the place where it was introduced. The work contains, in addition, a general table of the periodicals of all countries, (of course not exhaustive) divided into cla.s.ses, and filling seventy-five pages. It closes with a "repertory of the princ.i.p.al libraries of the entire world," and with an index to the whole work, in which the early names in Latin, of all places where books were printed, are interspersed in the alphabet, distinguished by italic type, and with the modern name of each town or city affixed. This admirable feature will render unnecessary any reference to the _Orbis Latinus_ of Graesse, or to any other vocabulary of geography, to identify the place in which early-printed books appeared. Stein is by no means free from errors, and some surprising omissions. One cardinal defect is the absence of any full index of authors whose books are cited.
There are also quite brief catalogues of works on bibliography in J.
Power"s Handy Book about Books, London, 1870, and in J. Sabin"s Bibliography: a handy book about books which relate to books, N. Y., 1877. The latter work is an expansion of the first-named.
We come now to the second cla.s.s of our bibliographies, _viz._: those of various countries. Here the reader must be on his guard not to be misled into too general an interpretation of geographical terms. Thus, he will find many books and pamphlets ambitiously styled "_Catalogue Americaine_", which are so far from being general bibliographies of books relating to America, that they are merely lists of a few books for sale by some book-dealer, which have something American in their subject. To know what catalogues are comprehensive, and what period they cover, as well as the limitations of nearly all of them, is a necessary part of the training of a bibliographer, and is essential to the librarian who would economize his time and enlarge his usefulness.
Let us begin with our own country. Here we are met at the outset by the great paucity of general catalogues of American literature, and the utter impossibility of finding any really comprehensive lists of the books published in the United States, during certain periods. We can get along tolerably well for the publications within the last thirty years, which nearly represent the time since systematic weekly bibliographical journals have been published, containing lists of the current issues of books. But for the period just before the Civil War, back to the year 1775, or for very nearly a century, we are without any systematic bibliography of the product of the American press. The fragmentary attempts which have been made toward supplying an account of what books have been published in the United States from the beginning, will hereafter be briefly noted. At the outset, you are to observe the wide distinction that exists between books treating of America, or any part of it, and books printed in America. The former may have been printed anywhere, at any time since 1492, and in any language: and to such books, the broad significant term "_Americana_" may properly be applied, as implying books relating to America. But this cla.s.s of works is wholly different from that of books written or produced by Americans, or printed in America. It is these latter that we mean when we lament the want of a comprehensive American catalogue. There have been published in the United States alone (to go no farther into America at present) thousands of books, whose t.i.tles are not found anywhere, except widely scattered in the catalogues of libraries, public and private, in which they exist.
Nay, there are mult.i.tudes of publications which have been issued in this country during the last two hundred years, whose t.i.tles cannot be found anywhere in print. This is not, generally, because the books have perished utterly,--though this is unquestionably true of some, but because mult.i.tudes of books that have appeared, and do appear, wholly escape the eye of the literary, or critical, or bibliographical chronicler. It is, beyond doubt true even now, that what are commonly accepted as complete catalogues of the issues of the press of any year, are wofully incomplete, and that too, through no fault of their compilers. Many works are printed in obscure towns, or in newspaper offices, which never reach the great eastern cities, where our princ.i.p.al bibliographies, both periodical and permanent, are prepared. Many books, too, are "privately printed," to gratify the pride or the taste of their authors, and a few copies distributed to friends, or sometimes to selected libraries, or public men. In these cases, not only are the public chroniclers of new issues of the press in ignorance of the printing of many books, but they are purposely kept in ignorance. Charles Lamb, of humorous and perhaps immortal memory, used to complain of the mult.i.tudes of books which are no books; and we of to-day may complain, if we choose, of the vast number of publications that are not published.
Take a single example of the failure of even large and imposing volumes to be included in the "American Catalogue," for whose aid, librarians are so immeasurably indebted to the enterprise of its publishers. A single publishing house west of New York, printed and circulated in about four years time, no less than thirty-two elaborate and costly histories, of western counties and towns, not one of which was ever recorded by t.i.tle in our only comprehensive American bibliography. Why was this? Simply because the works referred to were published only as subscription books, circulated by agents, carefully kept out of booksellers" hands, and never sent to the Eastern press for notice or review. When circ.u.mstances like these exist as to even very recent American publications (and they are continually happening) is it any wonder that our bibliographies are incomplete?
Perhaps some will suggest that there must be one record of American publications which is complete, namely, the office of Copyright at Washington. It is true that the t.i.tles of all copyright publications are required by law to be there registered, and copies deposited as soon as printed. It is also true that a weekly catalogue of all books and other copyright publications is printed, and distributed by the Treasury, to all our custom-houses, to intercept piratical re-prints which might be imported. But the books just referred to were not entered for copyright at all, the publishers apparently preferring the risk of any rival"s reprinting them, rather than to incur the cost of the small copyright fee, and the deposit of copies. In such cases, there is no law requiring publishers to furnish copies of their books. The government guarantees no monopoly of publication, and so cannot exact a _quid pro quo._, however much it might inure to the interest of publisher and author to have the work seen and noticed, and preserved beyond risk of perishing (unless printed on wood-pulp paper) in the Library of the United States.
If such extensive omissions of the t.i.tles of books sometimes important, can now continually occur in our accepted standards of national bibliography, what shall we say of times when we had no critical journals, no publishers" trade organs, and no weekly, nor annual, nor quinquennial catalogues of American books issued? Must we not allow, in the absence of any catalogues worthy of the name, to represent such periods, that all our reference books are from the very necessity of the case deplorably incomplete? Only by the most devoted, indefatigable and unrewarded industry have we got such aids to research as to the existence of American publications, as Haven"s Catalogue of American publications prior to 1776, Sabin"s Bibliotheca Americana, and the American Catalogues of Leypoldt, Bowker, and their coadjutors.
These ill.u.s.trations are cited to guard against the too common error of supposing that we have in the numerous American catalogues that exist, even putting them all together, any full bibliography of the t.i.tles of American books. While it cannot be said that the _lacunae_ or omissions approach the actual entries in number, it must be allowed that books are turning up every day, both new and old, whose t.i.tles are not found in any catalogue. The most important books--those which deserve a name as literature, are found recorded somewhere--although even as to many of these, one has to search many alphabets, in a large number of volumes, before tracing them, or some editions of them.
One princ.i.p.al source of the great number of t.i.tles of books found wanting in American catalogues, is that many books were printed at places remote from the great cities, and were never announced in the columns of the press at all. This is especially true as to books printed toward the close of the 18th century, and during the first quarter of the 19th. Not only have we no bibliography whatever of American issues of the press, specially devoted to covering the long period between 1775 and 1820, but mult.i.tudes of books printed during that neglected half-century, have failed to get into the printed catalogues of our libraries. As ill.u.s.trations we might give a long catalogue of places where book-publication was long carried on, and many books of more or less importance printed or reprinted, but in which towns not a book has been produced for more than three-quarters of a century past. One of these towns was Winchester, and another Williamsburg, in Virginia; another was Exeter, New Hampshire, and a fourth was Carlisle, Pa. In the last-named place, one Archibald Loudon printed many books, between A. D. 1798, and 1813, which have nearly all escaped the chroniclers of American book-t.i.tles. Notable among the productions of his press, was his own book, A History of Indian Wars, or as he styled it in the t.i.tle page, "A selection of some of the most interesting narratives of outrages committed by the Indians in their wars with the white people." This history appeared in two volumes from the press of A. Loudon, Carlisle, Pa., in 1808 and 1811. It is so rare that I have failed to find its t.i.tle anywhere except in Sabin"s Bibliotheca Americana, Field"s Indian Bibliography, and the Catalogue of the Library of Congress. Not even the British Museum Library, so rich in Americana, has a copy. Sabin states that only six copies are known, and Field styles it, "this rarest of books on America," adding that he could learn of only three perfect copies in the world. A Harrisburg reprint of 1888 (100 copies to subscribers) is also quite rare.
Continuing the subject of American bibliography, and still lamenting the want of any comprehensive or finished work in that field which is worthy of the name, let us see what catalogues do exist, even approximating completeness for any period. The earlier years of the production of American books have been partially covered by the "Catalogue of publications in what is now the United States, prior to 1776." This list was compiled by an indefatigable librarian, the late Samuel F. Haven, who was at the head of the Library of the American Antiquarian Society, at Worcester, Ma.s.s. It gives all t.i.tles by sequence of years of publication, instead of alphabetical order, from 1639 (the epoch of the earliest printing in the United States) to the end of 1775. The t.i.tles of books and pamphlets are described with provoking brevity, being generally limited to a single line for each, and usually without publishers" names, (though the places of publication and sometimes the number of pages are given) so that it leaves much to be desired. Notwithstanding this, Mr.
Haven"s catalogue is an invaluable aid to the searcher after t.i.tles of the early printed literature of our country. It appeared at Albany, N.
Y., in 1874, as an appendix [in Vol 2] to a new (or second) edition of Isaiah Thomas"s History of Printing in America, which was first published in 1810. In using it, the librarian will find no difficulty, if he knows the year when the publication he looks for appeared, as all books of each year are arranged in alphabetical order. But if he knows only the author"s name, he may have a long search to trace the t.i.tle, there being no general alphabet or index of authors. This chronological arrangement has certain advantages to the literary inquirer or historian, while for ready reference, its disadvantages are obvious.
While there were several earlier undertakings of an American bibliography than Haven"s catalogue of publications before the American revolution, yet the long period which that list covers, and its importance, ent.i.tled it to first mention here. There had, however, appeared, as early as the year 1804, in Boston, "A Catalogue of all books, printed in the United States, with the prices, and places where published, annexed." This large promise is hardly redeemed by the contents of this thin pamphlet of 91 pages, all told. Yet the editor goes on to a.s.sure us--
"This Catalogue is intended to include all books of general sale printed in the United States, whether original, or reprinted; that the public may see the rapid progress of book-printing in a country, where, twenty years since, scarcely a book was published. Local and occasional tracts are generally omitted.
Some of the books in the Catalogue are now out of print, and others are scarce. It is contemplated to publish a new edition of this Catalogue, every two years, and to make the necessary additions and corrections; and it is hoped the time is not far distant, when useful Libraries may be formed of American editions of Books, well printed, and handsomely bound.
Printed at Boston, for the Book sellers, Jan., 1804."
The really remarkable thing about this catalogue is that it was the very first bibliographical attempt at a general catalogue, in separate form, in America. It is quite interesting as an early booksellers" list of American publications, as well as for its cla.s.sification, which is as follows: "Law, Physic, Divinity, Bibles, Miscellanies, School Books, Singing Books, Omissions."
The fact that no subsequent issues of the catalogue appeared, evinces the very small interest taken in bibliographic knowledge in those early days.
This curiosity of early American bibliography gives the t.i.tles of 1338 books, all of American publication, with prices in 1804. Here are samples: Bingham"s Columbian Orator, 75 cts.: Burney"s Cecilia, 3 vols.
$3: Memoirs of Pious Women, $1.12: Belknap"s New Hampshire, 3 vols. $5: Mrs. Coghlan"s Memoirs, 62 cts.: Brockden Brown"s Wieland, $1: Federalist, 2 vols. $4.50: Dilworth"s Spelling Book, 12 cts.: Pike"s Arithmetic, $2.25.
The number of out-of-the-way places in which books were published in those days is remarkable. Thus, in Connecticut, we have as issuing books, Litchfield, New London and Fairhaven: in Ma.s.sachusetts, Leominster, Dedham, Greenfield, Brookfield, and Wrentham: in New Hampshire, Dover, Walpole, Portsmouth, and Exeter: in Pennsylvania, Washington, Carlisle, and Chambersburg: in New Jersey, Morristown, Elizabethtown, and Burlington. At Alexandria, Va., eight books are recorded as published.
This historical nugget of the Boston bookmongers of a century ago is so rare, that only two copies are known in public libraries, namely, in the Library of Congress, and in that of the Ma.s.sachusetts Historical Society.
It was reprinted in 1898, for the Dibdin Club of New York, by Mr. A.
Growoll, of the Publishers" Weekly, to whose curious and valuable notes on "Booktrade Bibliography in the United States in the 19th century," it forms a supplement.
The next catalogue of note claiming to be an American catalogue, or of books published in America, was put forth in 1847, at Claremont, N. H., by Alexander V. Blake. This was ent.i.tled, "The American Bookseller"s complete reference trade-list, and alphabetical catalogue of books, published in this country, with the publishers" and authors" names, and prices." This quarto volume, making 351 pages (with its supplement issued in 1848) was the precursor of the now current "Trade List Annual,"
containing the lists of books published by all publishers whose lists could be secured. The t.i.tles are very brief, and are arranged in the catalogue under the names of the respective publishers, with an alphabetical index of authors and of anonymous t.i.tles at the end. It served well its purpose of a book-trade catalogue fifty years ago, being the pioneer in that important field. It is now, like the catalogue of 1804, just noticed, chiefly interesting as a bibliographical curiosity, although both lists do contain the t.i.tles of some books not elsewhere found.
Mr. Orville A. Roorbach, a New York bookseller, was the next compiler of an American bibliography. His first issue of 1849 was enlarged and published in 1852, under this t.i.tle: "Bibliotheca Americana: a catalogue of American publications, including reprints and original works, from 1820 to 1852, inclusive." This octavo volume of 663 pages, in large, clear type, closely abbreviates nearly all t.i.tles, though giving in one comprehensive alphabet, the authors" names, and the t.i.tles of the books under the first word, with year and place of publication, publisher"s name, and price at which issued. No collation of the books is given, but the catalogue supplies sufficient portions of each t.i.tle to identify the book. It is followed in an appendix by a catalogue of law books, in a separate alphabet, and a list of periodicals published in the United States in 1852.
Roorbach continued his catalogue to the year 1861, by the issue of three successive supplements: (1) covering the American publications of 1853 to 1855: (2) from 1855 to 1858: (3) from 1858 to 1861. These four catalogues, aiming to cover, in four different alphabets, the issues of the American press for forty years, or from 1820 to 1861, are extremely useful lists to the librarian, as finding lists, although the rigorously abbreviated t.i.tles leave very much to be desired by the bibliographer, and the omissions are exceedingly numerous of books published within the years named, but whose t.i.tles escaped the compiler.