y of enhancing its rarity, and therefore its value, I was quite
willing to enjoy such an advantage.

When the Procrustes was ready for distribution, each subscriber received
his copy by mail, in a neat pasteboard box. Each number was wrapped in
a thin and transparent but very strong paper through which the cover
design and tooling were clearly visible. The number of the copy was
indorsed upon the wrapper, the folds of which were securely fastened at
each end with sealing-wax, upon which was impressed, as a guaranty of
its inviolateness, the monogram of the club.

At the next meeting of the Bodleian, a great deal was said about the
Procrustes, and it was unanimously agreed that no finer specimen
of bookmaking had ever been published by the club. By a curious
coincidence, no one had brought his copy with him, and the two club
copies had not yet been received from the binder, who, Baxter had
reported was retaining them for some extra fine work. Upon resolution,
offered by a member who had not subscribed for the volume, a committee
of three was appointed to review the Procrustes at the next literary
meeting of the club. Of this committee it was my doubtful fortune to
constitute one.

In pursuance of my duty in the premises, it of course became necessary
for me to read the Procrustes. In all probability I should have cut my
own copy for this purpose, had not one of the club auctions intervened
between my appointment and the date set for the discussion of the
Procrustes. At this meeting a copy of the book, still sealed, was
offered for sale, and bought by a non-subscriber for the unprecedented
price of one hundred and fifty dollars. After this a proper regard for
my own interests would not permit me to spoil my copy by opening it, and
I was therefore compelled to procure my information concerning the poem
from some other source. As I had no desire to appear mercenary, I
said nothing about my own copy, and made no attempt to borrow. I did,
however, casually remark to Baxter that I should like to look at
his copy of the proof sheets, since I wished to make some extended
quotations for my review, and would rather not trust my copy to a typist
for that purpose. Baxter assured me, with every evidence of regret, that
he had considered them of so little importance that he had thrown them
into the fire. This indifference of Baxter to literary values struck
me as just a little overdone. The proof sheets of Hamlet, corrected in
Shak