Folio by Rood and Hunte, 1480.  Some years elapsed, and then the Ecclesiastical Commissioners took the foundation in hand, but when at last Trustees were appointed, and the valuable library was re-arranged and catalogued, this “Caxton,” together with the fine copy of “Latterbury” from the first Oxford Press, had disappeared entirely.  Whatever ignorance may have been displayed in the mutilation, quite another word should be applied to the disappearance.

The following anecdote is so apropos, that although it has lately appeared in No. 1 of The Antiquary, I cannot resist the temptation of re-printing it, as a warning to inheritors of old libraries.  The account was copied by me years ago from a letter written in 1847, by the Rev. C. F. Newmarsh, Rector of Pelham, to the Rev. S. R. Maitland, Librarian to the Archbishop of Canterbury, and is as follows:—­

“In June, 1844, a pedlar called at a cottage in Blyton and asked an old widow, named Naylor, whether she had any rags to sell.  She answered, No! but offered him some old paper, and took from a shelf the `Boke of St. Albans’ and others, weighing 9 lbs., for which she received 9_d_.  The pedlar carried them through Gainsborough tied up in string, past a chemist’s shop, who, being used to buy old paper to wrap his drugs in, called the man in, and, struck by the appearance of the `Boke,’ gave him 3_s_. for the lot.  Not being able to read the Colophon, he took it to an equally ignorant stationer, and offered it to him for a guinea, at which price he declined it, but proposed that it should be exposed in his window as a means of eliciting some information about it.  It was accordingly placed there with this label, `Very old curious work.’  A collector of books went in and offered half-a-crown for it, which excited the suspicion of the vendor.  Soon after Mr. Bird, Vicar of Gainsborough, went in and asked the price, wishing to possess a very early specimen of printing, but not knowing the value of the book.  While he was examining it, Stark, a very intelligent bookseller, came in, to whom Mr. Bird at once ceded the right of pre-emption.  Stark betrayed such visible anxiety that the vendor, Smith, declined setting a price.  Soon after Sir C. Anderson, of Lea (author of Ancient Models), came in and took away the book to collate, but brought it back in the morning having found it imperfect in the middle, and offered L5 for it.  Sir Charles had no book of reference to guide him to its value.  But in the meantime, Stark had employed a friend to obtain for him the refusal of it, and had undertaken to give for it a little more than any sum Sir Charles might offer.  On finding that at least L5 could be got for it, Smith went to the chemist and gave him two guineas, and then sold it to Stark’s agent for seven guineas.  Stark took it to London, and sold it at once to the Rt.  Hon. Thos.  Grenville for seventy pounds or guineas.