Rome possesses a dozen collections and celebrated deposits. The Vatican, not numerous, is most choice; the importance of its manuscripts is known to the entire world, but only a part of the 50,000 printed books are catalogued. The Library of Victor Emmanuel, formerly of the Jesuits, amounts to about 66,000 volumes. At Venice the splendid monument called the Antiqua Libraria di St. Marco has changed its destination; constructed in the sixteenth century and commenced by Sansovino for a library, it is now a royal palace. This city has lost that which had made its glory, and its collections are very modest in our days. The magnificent educational establishments in the form of public libraries provided in the United States deserve special mention. Nearly every city has its public library, supported by a small tax; and many large libraries are wholly supported by private munificence. The first to be established was founded in 1732 by Benjamin Franklin in Philadelphia, and still exists as the Library Company; many important bequests have been made to it, the latest being £200,000 by Dr. Richard Rush. The library now numbers 150,000 volumes. The Congressional Library of Washington, besides its annual income from Government, receives by deposit for copyright a copy of every work published in the United States; it now has 565,000 volumes. The Astor Library and the Lenox Library of New York were both founded and endowed by the families whose name they bear; the former has 223,284 volumes, the latter 25,000. The city of Chicago recently fell heir to the magnificent sum of over one million sterling for the establishment of a library of reference, and New York was benefited by the late Mr. Tilden to the extent of £800,000 for a public library. When we have named the libraries of St. Petersburg and Moscow for Russia, Stockholm for Sweden, and the Escurial for Spain, we shall have mentioned very hastily the most important establishments in the world. For more than four centuries the love of books has preserved and fortified itself, and increases each day. If we were to endeavour to approximately imagine the number of printed books diffused, we should be frightened at it. It is by miles that to-day are counted the shelves of the National Library or of the British Museum; and each year the production is accelerated, as is also the number of readers. THE END. INDEX. Albi, first printer at, 47. Alciati, books of emblems, 126. Alding, Henry, printer in Sicily, 35. Aldus Manutius, son-in-law of Torresani, 51; printer in Venice, 99, 103, 128; books for Grolier, 260. America, North, printing in, 216. Antwerp, early printing at, 67; Plantin, 140. _Ars Memorandi_, block book, 10. _Ars Moriendi_, block book, 8. Asola, Andrew d', successor of Jenson, 50. Audran, C., engraver, 158. Augsburg, _Formschneiders_ at, 58. Badier, Florimond, bookbinder, 280. Badius, Jodocus, printer in Paris, 122, 246.