484 APPENDIX TO PART II

would, as far as he could, induce people to buy them, and the examples he had exhibited certainly would not look well with those. He would say nothing further upon this point, therefore, except that he should like to receive the advice and suggestions of workmen themselves upon it. In the lettering on the outside of shop-fronts illuminated letters might appropriately be employed, and would form a pleasing change from the dingy appearance which many of the shop-fronts, especially in the Metropolis, presented. He would urge upon them, when they had shop-fronts to decorate, to endeavour to induce the shopkeeper to allow them to introduce such letters. He believed the effect would be good, and our streets greatly warmed by it; but he was not over-sanguine when he looked at that unhappy thing in Leicester Square,¹ which was abominably ugly, in spite of its colour.

12. Another and a most important field for the exercise of this art, was the decoration of books. He did not say that every book should be illuminated,-some books, as the Bible, should, he thought, be as simple in lettering as possible; but books of poetry or art might be very appropriately decorated as suggested. He was anxious to see a taste for decorating books in this manner, because he believed we were falling into a very careless way of regarding our books. It might be that we had so many books now as compared with what persons in similar positions in life formerly possessed. It had been said that it was better to have a few books than many; he could not say that that was his feeling; he considered it a most delightful thing to have a library. At the same time, he should like people to value and love their books more than they did, and feel in the manufacture of a book what the people of the Middle Ages felt. The feeling that prevailed in the Middle Ages with regard to books was, that they were holy things, and those who were employed upon them felt that they were engaged upon a holy work. He would like to bring back something of that feeling; and he would also like to bring back for the workmen the employment of illuminating books, for he thought it must have been a most happy employment. He did not know at what cost now an illuminator might be able to produce a finely illuminated page. That was a subject on which he was anxious to obtain information. He wanted to have the data, and if the workmen would furnish him with that, he would endeavour to bring the subject before the public. What he wanted was the information to enable him to say, when asked, what would be the cost of illuminating some beloved book, which it might be desired to preserve as a valued work in a family. He thought very many persons would gladly avail themselves of the opportunity, if it were offered them, to have books of this character so decorated to be preserved as heir-looms. For his own part, he would infinitely rather have a finely illuminated book than a picture. He would like to have a book of which every page was a picture. The great point was to make this art of book illumination fashionable: if that were done, it would go on as a matter of course. A new school of art would be introduced; the eye for colour would become disciplined; the perception of truth and form in outline would become disciplined; and the art of painting would be more and more appreciated. A Titian

¹ [The “Royal Panopticon of Science and Art,” built (1852-1853) in the Moorish style as a Polytechnic, afterwards converted into a Music Hall and renamed “The Alhambra”; burnt down in 1882; rebuilt 1883-1884.]

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