ON BOOK-MAKING. THE great evil, that attends the present diffusion and fashion of literature, is book-making. Every man who puts his name to a book, is now-a-days not necessarily an author, and there are many booksellers who are as mere tradesmen as haber. dashers-manufacturing the articles they sell, and selling the articles they manufacture. Nay, some daring spirits in "the trade" have gone so far as to place their names both in the au thor's and the publisher's department of the title-page; and the number of books that are daily sold in the shops" by the real maker," without acknowledgment, is not to be told. Your true book-maker does not write, because he has really something to tell the world, but because just at this time such a book will sell. Your modern bookseller does not undertake a new edition of an old author, because the last was bad, and he can publish a better, but because there is a demand for that author in the market: and, since his works, in so many volumes, bound in russia, will fill the shelves of a "nobleman or gentleman's" library, whether they are badly edited or well, the bookseller prefers to have them done in what he calls the shop manner, because that is the cheaper.* Every one who knows any thing of the trade," is convinced that this is the origin of half the books that are published in New Bridge-Street, and Paternoster Row. Nor are these. bookmakers less dexterous as booksellers; they can push off a book with as much adroitness as they can put it together, and a revelation of their secret arts of puffing would furnish anew scene for the farce of the " Critic." There are as fine examples of the puff collateral, or puff by implication,”. in a late work, published by SIR RICHARD PHILLIPS, called "Joyce's Arithmetic," as the best of those which Mr. RI. CHARD SHERIDAN has only imagined. The following sly re *It was thus that Mr. Walter Scott lately undertook to edit the works of Beaumont and Fletcher for one hundred guineas a volume well, and fifty guineas shop, and that his booksellers decided in favour of the shop. commendations of some of SIR RICHARD'S publications, insinuate themselves into the minds of the tutors and pupils of boarding-schools, under the innocent title of " Miscellaneous Questions in Arithmetic." "If 3000 copies of MAVOR's History of America, each containing eleven sheets, require sixty-six reams of paper, how much paper will 5000 take, if the work be extended to twelve sheets and a half?" "What number of words are there in Dr. GREGORY'S Dictionary of Arts and Sciences, which contains 240 sheets, 4to. and each page contains 1848 words?" "How many reams of paper were used in printing that dictionary, 6000 copies having been taken off ?" "How many pens were used in writing that dictionary, supposing each pen to write 844 words?" But the following" arithmetical question," from the same work, is the prize-puff. "Mr. Phillips, the publisher of this arithmetic, caused to be printed for various books, between the years 1798 and 1808, as many sheets of paper as would, if joined together, extend round the world. Considering each sheet as two feet in length, how many reams of paper did he use in that time, and what was the value of such paper, taking it at twenty-eight shillings per ream ?" The vast ideas of the publisher's consequence, which cannot fail to rise in the mind, at the idea of PUFF, like Puck, “putting a girdle round about the earth," are confirmed by some passages in a catchpenny work, which has latey been published, not by Sir Richard, entitled, "Letters from an Irish student in London, to his father in Dublin." In the index to this publication, our eye is caught by the words, "Phillips, Mr. Sherif, an enterprising bookseller, p. 20. p. 21." -, the extent of his warehouses, Upon turning to the passages pointed out by these references, we read: "Amongst the most enterprising booksellers of the day An I am informed that Mr. Sheriff Phillips takes the lead. acquaintance of his, the other day, took me to see his underground warehouses, in which there is an immense pile of printed sheets, ready to be stitched, of works of which he is the sole proprietor. There are several passages entirely formed out of this literary mine, which is valued at a very large sum of money. I am informed that the sheriff has printed as many sheets as placed endways would go round the globe," In the "Rev. David Blair's" English Grammar, we have the following examples of "sentences for correction :" "Eliza Phillips' book. Richard Phillip's book. Alfred Phillips, his book." "I went to Tabart's, the bookseller." "Eliza, Richard, Emily, and Alfred, learns their books, but Laura, Georgiana or Horatio, are making a great noise." But the master-piece of your modern bookseller's ingenuity is to make one, book recommend another, just as one wheel turns another, and keeps the whole machine in motion. So, each of the characters in FIELDING'S "Tom Thumb" makes away with the other, and "So, when the child, whom nurse from danger guards, This is sometimes done by the puff direct, as when one of Sir Richard Phillips's authors recommends the works of another, and sometimes by the puff by implication, as in the following "sentences for correction," from "the Rev. David Blair's" Grammar: "Dr. MAVOR has published an Universal History, and Dr. Gregory has just finished an useful Cyclopedia." "As soon that the chiefest parts of this grammar is well fixed in the memory, and its principles clearly understood, the student might have placed in his hands, Dr. Irving's Ele X X-VOL. VII.* ments of English Composition, to perfect their taste, Dr. Grẻgory's Letters on Literature, Taste, and Composition. They will then have nothing further to desire with respect of books on that subject, and moderate study and attention cannot fail to render him an elegant scholar.” "The Rev. David Blair's" First Catechism for Children leads to some of the rest of Sir Richard's school publications by this paragraph: "Those parents and tutors, who are desirous to enlarge on many of the topics contained in this catechism, will be enabled to do so, by consulting the author's Reading Exercises, for the earliest classes (a supplement to Mavor's Spelling Book) or his Class Book, or 365 Lessons, books which he has reason to believe are now in the hands of all intelligent schoolmasters and governesses." Now here is a powerful inducement for the conductors of schools to use 66 the Author's Reading Exercises," and "Mavor's Spelling Book." All "intelligent schoolmasters and governesses" do. Do you, therefore; and you will be "intelligent." Sir Richard Phillips has lately announced a complete series of school-books, every one of which will of course lead to the other, as naturally as whist-players play into their partners' hands. But it is confidently hoped, that here he will overshoot his mark, and so completely expose and bring into contempt the art of book-making, that, as it has in him reached its acme, with him it will die. "The wit and genius of those old Heathens beguiled me, and as I despaired of raising myself up to their standard upon fair ground, I thought the only chance I had of looking over their heads, was to get upon their shoulders." ALTHOUGH I have gone steadily through the Xth and XIth books, I have in general observed so little order, and so little is perhaps required in dealing with such a farrago as Athenæus exhibits, that I shall make no apology for proceeding, by a retrograde motion, with the fourth. We are here treated with a sumptuous nuptial feast-treated in description. The fashion of using finger or water glasses after dinner was a custom "i' th' olden time." See p. 128. D. when we had feasted sufficiently, says he, exeg↓ausda, wę washed our hands. It was usual also, amongst the Romans, and there is no doubt that they had good need of the cere mony, before they began to eat— Dant manibus famuli lymphas. Virg. Æn. 1. It would seem from this circumstance, and particularly from their frequent use of the bath, that they were remarkably cleanly; but it must be recollected that the latter was not more necessary than the former, as they had no linen, and the tunica and toga, were made of wool. The tunic, the close dress only, without the gown, was worn by the common peo. ple-"Tunicatus popellus." Hor. After the greatest profusion, and in our phrase, some hard heads had pushed the bottle about merrily, musical performers, vocal and instrumental, are introduced. The description here of the appearance of the Rhodian woman, who played on the sambuca, fairly describes our fashionable belles playing on the tambourine—εμοι μεν δοκω γυμναίς πλην έλεγον τινες εχειν χιλίωνας -A. 129. i. e. They seemed to me to be naked, but some said that they had tunics on, or as we should say, shifts. At page 130. C. for read ευτυχείς. ευτυχείς Amongst the numerous amusements of this costly feast was one, which is not rarely seen at our tables. I mean the introduction of players to mimic and entertain the company. Here, p. 130. D. Mandrogenes, o yeλwroToios, the laughtermaker, or buffoon, played all his tricks and made them laugh immoderately. The verses of Antiphanes, in F. require a dif ferent arrangement, for oßox read oßɛños. At page 131. D. for read and in E. ελαιαι for ελααι. At γας, page 132. Α. τραπεζα for παρεθηκε. 1n these verses of Lynceus the same sort of complaint is made by a stranger to the Attic after σμύρνης, και |