uch, and is daily
making sensible advances in the work. It is, however, also evident
that four hundred thousand volumes thus collected must include an
immense number of duplicates; and, worse still, that (as may be
readily supposed from the sources whence the books have come) one
special branch of general literature will be represented in very undue
proportion. Of course, the greater portion of the conventual
libraries was theological. It may be presumed that classical and (old)
historical literature will be found to exist, the former in tolerable
completeness (so far as regards old and in many cases now obsolete
editions), and the latter in considerable abundance. But of modern
literature little or nothing can be expected, even of Italian, and
still less of any other language. Among the number of volumes which
has been mentioned there are some seven or eight thousand manuscripts,
and perhaps an equal number of the editions of the fifteenth century,
which go far to make the library an interesting one to the learned and
to the student and lover of bibliography, but are of very little avail
toward rendering the collection worth much as a national _working_
library. The question then arises, What means has Italy of procuring
such a library for her capital? Something may be probably expected
from the liberality of her Parliament in furtherance of this great
national object. But for the present, in the depressed (though
improving) state of the Italian finances, this cannot be much. There
exists in Italy a law similar to that on the same subject in England,
by which every publisher is obliged to deposit one copy of every book
published in the national library. But this copy at present is sent to
the Magliabecchian Library at Florence. Signor Castellani hopes that
the privilege may be transferred, as seems but reasonable, to Rome.
But I do not see why it should be necessary thus to impoverish
Florence to enrich the capital. In England the law requires eleven
copies which are distributed to the great libraries of the three
kingdoms. It is true that this exaction has sometimes been complained
of, and it is said that in the case of very costly illustrated
works the tax is a very heavy one, and that in some instances it
has operated to make the production of certain books impossible. And
perhaps it may be reasonable to make some regulation by which such
works should be exempted from the obligation. But in ordinary cases
the tax is