To JOHN MACFARLANE, Librarian of the Imperial Library, Calcutta.
My dear Macfarlane,—
Just as you had completed a valuable monographon that enterprising French publisher Antoine Vèrard, youwere whirled away to India to organise a great library atCalcutta. I have seen it stated in the newspapers, on highauthority, that your Imperial Library is to be a secondBritish Museum, but I am afraid that, even when fullydeveloped by your energy and skill, it will contain noVèrards. I hope, however, that when you come over onfurlough you will resume the pleasant studies we used topursue together, and that you may even be induced to readanother paper before the learned Society of which you wereonce my fellow secretary. To keep alive your interest inold books is thus a reasonable pretext for dedicating to youthese bookish essays. My real hope is that as they standon your book-shelf they may remind you of the originalBritish Museum and of the many friends you left behindhere after your seventeen years' work amid our Bloomsburyfogs.
Faithfully yours, Alfred W. Pollard
NOTE
The paper on 'England and the Bookish Arts' originallyappeared as an introduction to 'The English Bookman'sLibrary' (Kegan Paul and Co.). The other Essaysare reprinted from 'Bibliographica,' 'The Connoisseur,''The Guardian,' 'The Library,' 'The King's CollegeSchool Magazine,' 'Longman's Magazine,' 'Macmillan'sMagazine,' 'The Newbery House Magazine,' 'ThePageant,' and the 'Transactions' of the BibliographicalSociety. Separate acknowledgment of its source is madeat the beginning of each paper, but the author desireshere to thank the Publishers and Editors to whom he isindebted for permission to reprint. All the essays havebeen revised, and some of the illustrations appear herefor the first time.
