A.D. 1849
The valuable collection of Oriental MSS. formed by Rev. W. H. Mill, D.D., Regius Professor of Hebrew at Cambridge, during his residence in India as Principal of Bishop’s College, Calcutta, was purchased from him for £350. A small remaining portion of his collection, comprising thirty-six volumes, was bought in 1858, after his death, for £35. In all there are 160 volumes, of which 145 are in Sanscrit. These latter are fully described in Prof. Aufrecht’s Sanscrit Catalogue.
The chief purchases of printed books were made at the sale at Berlin, in May, of the library of Professor C. F. G. Jacobs, the editor of the Anthologia Græca (who died March 30, 1847), whence a large number of classical dissertations, many of them authors’ presentation copies, were obtained346, and at the sale of the library of Rev. Hen. Francis Lyte (deceased 1847) which took place in July. A collection of 360 sermons, published by Non-juring divines between 1688 and 1750, is an interesting item in the year’s list; another is a copy of Pliny’s Historia Naturalis, printed at Rome by Sweynheym and Pannartz in 1473, with a MS. collation of three very early codices made by Ang. Politian in 1490, which was bought for £21, at an extremely curious sale at Messrs. Leigh Sotheby’s, in Feb., of books ‘selected from the library of an eminent literary character’ (M. Libri?).
The two statutable Assistants at this time and for one or two years previously were Mr. J. M. Price, All Souls’ College (B.A. 1849, M.A. 1852, now Vicar of Cuddington, Bucks,) and Mr. W. W. Garrett, New College (B.A. 1849). The former of these was succeeded about 1850, by the last undergraduate Assistant, Mr. J. C. Hyatt, Magd. Hall (B.A. 1852, now Perp. Curate of Queenshead, Yorkshire). Since then, in consequence of the difficulty of reconciling attendance on College lectures, &c. with attention to the continually increasing work of the Library, the junior Assistants have been taken from the City instead of from the undergraduate members of the University, as had been generally the case hitherto.
In pursuance of an address from the House of Commons, Sept. 4, 1848, on the motion of Mr. Ewart, various returns relative to public libraries were obtained, which were printed by Parliament in 1849, State Paper, No. 18. The following is the reply from Dr. Bandinel there printed:—
‘Bodleian Library,
‘January 9, 1849.
‘Sir,—In compliance with your letter, dated Oct. 27, 1848, desiring certain Returns respecting the Bodleian Library, I have to state—
‘1. As to the number of books received under the various Copyright Acts, no distinct register of the books so received has been kept, but they have, at the end of each year, been incorporated into the general collection, so that I am unable to give the number of the books so received.
‘2. The number of printed volumes in the Bodleian Library amounts to about 220,000; but this statement will very inadequately express the real extent of the collection, as so many works have been bound together in one volume.
‘3. The number of manuscripts is about 21,000.
‘4. All graduates of the University have the right of admission to the Library; other persons must apply for admission to the regular authorities.
‘5. No register is kept of persons consulting the Library; accordingly, the number of students who have frequented it during the last ten years cannot be ascertained.
‘I have, &c.
‘BULKELEY BANDINEL,
‘Bodleian Librarian.
‘George Cornewall Lewis, Esq.,
‘Under-Secretary of State, Whitehall.’
The estimate of printed volumes here given is believed to be as nearly accurate as it was possible to make it, as considerable pains were taken in forming the calculation. The number of separate printed books and tracts may be reckoned as at least treble the number of volumes. With regard to the reply to the fifth enquiry some explanation is requisite. A register is kept of all the octavo and most of the quarto volumes taken out for readers, of all the volumes from special and separate collections, and of all the MSS.; but no account is kept of the folios and other books on the ground-floor of the great room, which are accessible to readers themselves, and frequently used by them without the help of the assistants. Consequently, any return of the number of readers entered on the register would not adequately represent the whole number of students who use the Library, although, of course, it would, with a margin for allowance, afford a very fair approximation. No record, however, of separate visits of readers is kept, as distinct from the books required; so that although a reader may be at work for days or weeks together, yet, if he continue to use only the same books, one entry alone will be made of his name.
Notes
346 A separate list of the books purchased at Jacobs’ sale is appended to the annual Catalogue.