er tears,
and not her wit, prevailed.

A pamphlet published in the year 1738, entitled "A Letter to the Society
of Booksellers, on the Method of forming a true Judgment of the
Manuscripts of Authors," contains some curious literary intelligence.

"We have known books, that in the MS. have been damned, as well as
others which seem to be so, since, after their appearance in the world,
they have often lain by neglected. Witness the 'Paradise Lost' of the
famous Milton, and the Optics of Sir Isaac Newton, which last, 'tis
said, had no character or credit here till noticed in France. 'The
Historical Connection of the Old and New Testament,' by Shuckford, is
also reported to have been seldom inquired after for about a
twelvemonth's time; however, it made a shift, though not without some
difficulty, to creep up to a second edition, and afterwards even to a
third. And which is another remarkable instance, the manuscript of Dr.
Prideaux's 'Connection' is well known to have been bandied about from
hand to hand among several, at least five or six, of the most eminent
booksellers, during the space of at least two years, to no purpose, none
of them undertaking to print that excellent work. It lay in obscurity,
till Archdeacon Echard, the author's friend, strongly recommended it to
Tonson. It was purchased, and the publication was very successful.
Robinson Crusoe in manuscript also ran through the whole trade, nor
would any one print it, though the writer, De Foe, was in good repute as
an author. One bookseller at last, not remarkable for his discernment,
but for his speculative turn, engaged in this publication. _This_
bookseller got above a thousand guineas by it; and the booksellers are
accumulating money every hour by editions of this work in all shapes.
The undertaker of the translation of Rapin, after a very considerable
part of the work had been published, was not a little dubious of its
success, and was strongly inclined to drop the design. It proved at last
to be a most profitable literary adventure." It is, perhaps, useful to
record, that while the fine compositions of genius and the elaborate
labours of erudition are doomed to encounter these obstacles to fame,
and never are but slightly remunerated, works of another description are
rewarded in the most princely manner; at the recent sale of a
bookseller, the copyright of "Vyse's Spelling-book" was sold at the
enormous price of L2200, with an annuity of 50 guineas to the