"A great number of slaves of the class librarii (transcribers) were employed in various bibliothetic services. The term indicates în a general sense every thing which has relation to the act of writing and MSS. and they were therefore also merely called scribe, Under this name, however, they are to be distinguished from the scribe publice, who were liberi (amanuensis,)(free,) and formed a particular order of their own; and next from the bibliopole, (a bookseller,) who were also called librarii, and who had with the librarii of the libraries a sort of business intercourse, whence naturally arises the idea of the sale of works transcribed on their account. Among the transcribers were some whose occupation was to relieve library students from the burden of making extracts, the fittest for the business were short-hand writers-those stenographists of antiquity whose dexterity is perhaps unsurpassed by the moderns: they had a method also of secret writing by changes and transpositions of letters.

It appears that, when the old Roman text began to be converted into a running hand, those who adhered to the ancient formal uncial character were called antiquarii, with as propriety as that name was

given writers who designedly selected

antique, or abstruse and profound subjects. "The librarii were, however, not only transcribers, but also bookbinders, if that word can be applied to rolls. Respecting their occupations, see the following disserta

tion on

BOOKS.

"The material on which works were chiefly written was the fine bark of the Egyptian papyrus. By manipulation and bleaching it was brought to such perfection in the age of Augustus, that the fabric which had before been the best, became only the third in quality, while the first rank was then occupied by that which was named Augustus, after the Emperor; and to the next sort was assigned the name of Livia. There were several manufactories of the article in Rome. Pliny enumerates altogether eight sorts, the lowest of which, the emporetica, (brown, or packing paper,) could not be used as writing paper, and was only fit for packing.

"The narrow strips of paper, only about the width of six fingers, as found in Herculaneum rolls, pasted together, became pagine, schede, (a page, or leaf of a book; but, according to Martial, it signifies the last strip of the roll.) The rolls varied in breadth, as, of course, they did in length. The Herculaneum rolls are in general the width of a Neapolitan palm, (three inches,) but some are

narrower.

"After the discovery of Eunenes of Pergamus, the most practical material, next to papyrus, was parchment; the use of which, however, was very limited, as it was probably

much the dearest. Though writings on leas ther, or even on silk, are mentioned, they must be regarded as belonging either to the imperfections of the more early, or to the sin. gularities of the latter times, or perhaps nothing of the nature of books is meant.

"The ink used in writing was a kind of Indian ink prepared from lampblack. What Winkelman says agrees pretty well with this. -The Herculaneum manuscripts are written with a kind of black pigment, very much resembling Chinese ink, but which has more body than the common ink. When the manuscript is held against the light, the character appears somewhat elevated. That such was the nature of the ink is proved by some found in an inkstand.' We must also conclude from what appears in Persius, though the scholiast denies it, that the fluid secreted by the sepia was used for writing.

"The ancients do not seem to have been acquainted with any artificial sympathetic ink, by which the writing might be made to appear after a particular treatment, known only to those instructed in the secret. However, they were no strangers to the use of some natural substances, such as milk or vegetable juices, in effecting the same object.

"A reed, the best kinds of which are brought from Egypt, Guidus, and the Anaitian Lake, was used instead of the pen now commonly employed, and it was cut in much the same manner.

"In one of the frescos discovered in Herculaneum, there is such a calamus (a reed) lying across an inkstand.

"The writing was, frequently at least, divided into columns, between which lines were drawn, probably with a red colouring matter. In the Herculaneum rolls these lines appear white, for which the circumstances under which they were found will readily account. A book had its title both at the commencement and the end.

“According to the regular practice, the charta or membrana, (paper, or thin skin.) had writing on one side only.

"The custom with regard to unimportant or valueless writing, as for instance that consumed by children for practice in the course of their education, was to use no new material.

"These opisthographa (paper, &c., written on both sides) were besides used for notes, memorandums, selections, or even essays, of which clean copies were afterwards to be made. When a book was held to be of no value, its contents were washed entirely out, and the paper served for a new manuscript, which was then called palimpsestus. The back or blank side of books were stained with cedrus or saffron colour, doubtless to protect them from moths and

writing to the end, it is probable that the stick or reed on which it was to be rolled, was then usually attached to the last page or strip. These reeds, which are to be seen in the Herculaneum rolls, do not stand out from either end, but have their extremities within the superfices of the cylinder's base. They are supposed to be the umbilici (middle) of the ancients.

"A small stick was passed through the tube, which formed, as it were, the axis of the cylinder, and to the two ends which projected beyond the disk, ivory, gilt, or painted knobs were affixed. These knobs are precisely the cornua or umbilici (corner and middle.)

"Previously, however, the bases of the roll were carefully cut, smoothed with pumice-stone, and coloured black. It is here worthy of remark that the pictures dis. covered in Herculaneum and Pompeii present nothing that can be considered as properly resembling these knobs, and that even no trace of them is found in the Herculaneum manuscripts.

"For the better preservation of the rolls, they were wrapped in parchment, which was coloured externally with the fine yellow of the lutum lutea.

"Finally, the title, titulus, index, was ap pended; and it was written on a narrow slip of papyrus or parchment, with a deep red colour, coccum or minium (scarlet or vermillion.) It is, however, not so easy to deter mine where this ticket was placed. Winkelmann's reference to a ticket hanging from the roll, as in Herculaneum paintings, is not satisfactory; for this circumstance does not correspond with the citation to be made from Tibullus. What appears to be most reasonable is to suppose with Schwartz that the ticket was placed upon the top of the roll.

"Winkelmann does not admit that the rolls were bound, at least there was no trace of any fastening to be found in Herculaneum.

To conclude, I must not omit to mention, that it was usual to have the author's portrait painted on the first page.

"When a decided taste for domestic and foreign literature began to spread, and the possession of a library became indispensable to the learned, or those who affected to appear learned, it was in the natural course of things that some individuals should make it their business to satisfy the new want. Copies of the laws were sold by the librarii. Under Augustus, the relations of the trade became still more palpable, and Horace names the brothers Sosi, by whom his poems were sold. These librarii transcribed books themselves, and kept assistants for the more rapid multiplication of copies. They were also called billiopola, iv. 71.

xiii.

Their business appears to have been considered entirely mercantile; wherefore requisites for the labour were valued more than correctness.e grvello? auT] "Authors, therefore, who wished to fai vour their friends, read the copies which were made for them, and corrected the blunders of the transcribers. Mars vil-23 10 "In Martial's time these librarii or bibliopolæ, had their shops (taberna) for the most part round the Argiletum. There were, however, somes in other places namely, in the Vicus Sandalarius There the titles of the books for sale were hung up at the shop doors, or,qiflaher taberna was under a portico, on the adjoining pillarsells

n

"The price at which books were sold ap pears really moderate, especially as the exi penses of external ornaments must be included in the charges sigo9q to em69112

"In what relation the bookseller stood to the author is not one of the least interesting of the questions connected with this subjecti An opinion has prevailed that the ancients wrote only for honour and reputation, and never thought of obtaining any pecuniary reward for their literary labours. If, howe ever, this may be regarded as in general true, more particularly in the earlier times, still there is no reason to doubt that inscere tain cases authors obtained a positive profit from their works. If Plautus and Terence sold their comedies to the Ediles, it cannot be regarded as extraordinary that other authors should accept remuneration for their labours. The elder Pliny was offered by a private individual 40,000 sesterces (80,000 francs) for his Commentarii Electorum, This, it is true, was not the offer of a book, seller, but such transactions between them and authors are often indicated by Martial as, for example, when he directs those who wished to obtain his poems by presents or by loan, to go to the bookseller and buy them; and elsewhere he speaks of poetry as a miserable occupation, and of the scantiness of the remuneration compared with. that obtained by other productive employ ments; and complains that he was nothing the richer for his epigrams, This, however, does not exclude the idea of some sort of bargain with a bookseller; and it, indeed, is not conceivable that Martial should, without obtaining any advantage to himself, look on like an indifferent spectator, while Tryphon, or Secundus, or Pollins, was driv ing a thriving trade with his poems, for many books could not fail to prove very productive articles of commerce. Besides, there were booksellers, not ony in Rome or Greece, and wherever Grecian learning had found a home, but Roman literature was spread through the few civilized provinces. On this account Horace says of a good book, "trans mare curret ;' and for the same reason Martial found readers in Gaul and Britain."

the charges against him, though weighty, were few; the evidence was not complicated or multitudinous, and the trial was of ma nageable extent, and was concluded in a rea sonable period.-From an admirable Lecture on the Writings and Character of Burke, by A. A. Fry, Esq. of Lincoln's Inn.

The Gatherer.

Funeral of the Pretender. The following account of the funeral of the Pretender, who died December 30, 1765, is extracted from a letter, dated Rome, January 30, 1766: -The pretender being dressed in royal robes, with the crown upon his head, the sceptre in his hand, and upon his breast the arms of Great Britain, in gold and jewels, was carried in private to his own parish church, and laid upon a bed of state, above which was a throne suspended from the ceiling: on the top of the throne were the figures of four angels holding the crown and sceptre; and at each corner a figure of death looking down. From the canopy were suspended four large pieces of drapery of purple silk, on which, at the distance of every six inches, was a row of gold lace, lined with white fringe; this drapery was parted, and hung to the capitals of four columns on each side of the church, which was hung with black cloth, enriched with ornaments of gold. The church was full of chandeliers, with skeletous holding wax tapers, After laying three days in state, during which period none were allowed to enter except the Italian princes and the English, he was carried, upon the same bed of state, to St. Peter's, to be buried. The procession proceeded in the following order: the children of the different schools; twelve companies, of fifty men each, in ancient and different dresses, with tapers; about one thousand friars of different orders, with torches; the singing boys of St. Peter's, dressed in purple silk gowns and about fifty casons, singing hymus. Round the body was the English College, and four cardinals upon mules, covered with purple velvet trappings; the chevalier's servants, in twelve coaches, lined with black velvet, closing the procession. W. G. C.

A Florentine, of the name of Carletti, in troduced the use of chocolate into Italy: it passed from Spain into France with Anne of Austria, queen of Louis XIII., and it was not till the latter end of the 17th century, that the manufacture of it became at all general in France. H. M.

Character of the people of Berlin, by a Prussian." Berlin is a scene of constant intrigue. We don't all drink, we don't all pray-but we all intrigue. From the prince to the peasant, each has his affaire d'amour in hand, and we care very little if all the world know it."-Gleig..

A hardy seaman, who had escaped one of the recent shipwrecks upon the coast, was usked by a good lady how he felt when the waves dashed over him. He replied, "Wet, madam, very wet."

of St. Januarius, at Pozzoli, near Naples, is The following legend, relating to the statue given by a modern traveller: The Saracens in one of their expeditions to the kingdom Naples, having wantonly defaced the state by breaking off its nose and carrying it away the wind began to blow so violently that they found it impossible to put to sea. some of them said that they thought it wa owing to the resentment of the image, which would not be appeased as long as its nose was in their possession; whereupon a council was held, at which it was determined to throw into the sea, which they had no sooner accumplished than fine weather inmediately suc ceeded, and they set sail for their own country, In the meantime a number of artists had endeavoured to repair image with a new nose, but neither art nor force could fasten one on; at length some fishermen took up the original nose in their nets, but not know

g what it was, they threw it again into the sea; nevertheless, the nose continued to offer

itself to their nets in whatever place they were fishing. At last, one of the fi-hermen. having suggested that it i might be the nose of the saint, they applied it to the statue, to exawithout any cement, united so exactly, as mine whether it fitted, when it immediately, scarcely to leave any appearance of its having W. G. C.

been detached.