A friend of mine boasted some years ago that he had never made a bad mistake in judging glass, because he had “kept his eyes open,” and invariably asked some one who “knew” to accompany him whenever he thought he had discovered a piece worthy of being added to his collection; but, alas! during a summer holiday spent among the Irish lakes he fell a victim. The lady who was the vendor had evidently kissed the Blarney stone, and as she was moving and the matter was urgent, a price--a tall one--was fixed on the spot, and my friend became the possessor of a remarkably fine collection which expert examination proved to be entirely of Dutch extraction. And the moral! Well, had he in the beginning relied upon his own judgment he would have made mistakes, but he would, at the same time, have acquired first-hand knowledge and have escaped a serious disaster. One often finds replicas of old glass moulded; and as moulded glass was, of course, the earliest kind, the pieces seem to acquire a spurious value. Moulded glass with its heavy, thick appearance and its rounded edges lends itself easily to imitation. But the reproductions are often made in common glass, which gives itself away to the touch. One need hardly be an expert to detect common glass by its feel and texture. It must not be assumed that the best method of forming a collection is to pick up those pieces which appear to be cheap. Real old glass, like other genuine antiques, is greatly sought after and commands a highly respectable price. This question of price is really a considerable factor to the amateur collector. His aim should be to get a complete collection, however small, and his danger that of duplicating, simply because he sees a specimen cheap. “Oh, I must have that; I gave nearly twice as much for the one I have,” is a sentiment often heard. But the collector must eliminate duplicates unless he aims at completing a set, say a dozen of wine glasses or finger basins. The ultimate fate of duplicates is to be “weeded out” often at a price far below what they cost. I remember a case in point in which a novice found himself, after a brief experience, the owner of so large a collection that his cupboards failed to accommodate it, and he had to have larger ones made. And yet one shelf alone contained four barley wine glasses, five ordinary air-twisted stem glasses, three Early English plain wine glasses, four early finger basins, and five rummers of different shapes--all of the most ordinary type. When by experience he had acquired wisdom these and similar articles were sent to the sale-room. Two lots did not elicit a single bid, and the remainder went for far less than had been paid for them. Now, however, he possesses a good representative collection, which will be sure to fetch, when under the hammer, a sum which will produce a handsome return upon his expenditure.