ded as otherwise than precarious and terminable; the fourth
succession of Miller has just expired in an unexpected manner, and the
destiny of the Britwell treasures is problematical. Rumour has long
since pointed to the Advocates' Library at Edinburgh as the ultimate
reversioner.

In a volume of moderate compass, professedly addressing itself in a
special manner to English collectors, the consideration of foreign
literature must of necessity be a secondary and incidental feature and
element, although it may be quite true that our countrymen and
countrywomen look so frequently aside, as it were, from the literary
productions of their own soil to study those of other lands. In Great
Britain we may be said to be much more cosmopolitan in our
book-collecting tastes than many of our contemporaries on the
Continent of Europe, Germany perhaps excepted. In France, Spain,
Portugal, Italy, and elsewhere, the demand is almost exclusively for
native authors; but the Germans, Americans, and ourselves take a
pride, and a just one, in being more catholic and broad: we see the
advantage, no doubt, and no doubt we reap the fruit, of such a policy.
At the same time, in a monograph of limited scope it is obviously
impossible to embrace even a general view of the enormously wide range
which is before any one who crosses over from his own country to add
to his English possessions even a select collection of books in
foreign languages; and we have confined our efforts in this direction
to an indication of such typical or special works (principally French)
as are usually sought by people in these islands, who resort more or
less to the Continental market. Even prominent Anglo-French amateurs
like Mr. R. S. Turner and Lord Ashburton are found keeping within
certain classes of literature, and certain copies recommendable by
their _provenance_, binding, or graphic peculiarities.

CHAPTER II

Spoliation of public libraries in past times--Denouncers of the
robbers of books--Schedule of public libraries in the United
Kingdom--View of the chief features of some of these--Cathedral
libraries--Public libraries on the Continent and in
America--Early English books in foreign collections--Difference
in the constitution of public collections--Private
libraries--Their classification--The writer's _Rolls of
Collectors_--The Harleian Library--The idea borrowed from
abroad--Formation of a new English Scho