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and previous preparations without which excellence is not
attainable in any
art whatsoever.
Now, in our own times, it is singular, and really philosophically
curious, to remark the utter blindness of writers, readers,
publishers, and all parties whatever interested in literature, as
to the trivial fraction of publicity which settles upon each separate
work. The very multiplication of books has continually
defeated the object in growing progression. Readers have
increased, the engines of publication have increased; but
books, increasing in a still greater proportion, have left as the
practical result an average quotient of publicity for each
book, taken apart, continually decreasing. And, if the whole
world were readers, probably the average publicity for each
separate work would reach a minimum; such would be the
concurrent increase of books. But even this view of the case
keeps out of sight the most monstrous forms of this phenomenon.
The inequality of the publication has the effect of
keeping very many books absolutely without a reader. The
majority of books are never opened;
five hundred copies may
be printed, or half as many more; of these it may happen that
five are carelessly turned over. Popular journals, again,
which carry a promiscuous miscellany of papers into the same
number of hands, as a stage-coach must convey all its pasrs
at the same rate of speed, dupe the public with a
notion that here at leuM all are read. Not at all. One or two
are read from the interest attached to their subjects. Occasionally
one is read a little from the ability
with which it
a subject not otherwise attractive. The rot have a
ainly than book-, because they arc at any
rate placed under the eye and in the hand of readers. But
thi> i> no more than a variety
of tin A hasty
iy
be taken I'Y one in a hundred at the lc>s attractive
'Mit
nadin^ is out of the tion. Then, again,