400 STUDY OF NATURAL HISTORY. 



general) one half its bulk, there is still another 

 process to be gone into, much more expensive, at 

 all times, than the first, and generally doubling that 

 amount. All these plates must be coloured by 

 skilful hands, not indeed in a wholesale way (for 

 such an expense would be an insuperable obstacle to 

 bringing out such publications), but as they are 

 wanted for immediate sale. The expense of the 

 work, since it quitted the hands of the printer, is 

 thus increased threefold, and the author of such a 

 work is consequently subject to a tax three times 

 greater than if his book merely consisted of letter- 

 press. Did the generality of illustrative works give 

 any profit to their publishers, or even remunerate 

 them for their first expenses, there would not be so 

 much reason for complaint ; but those who have un- 

 fortunately made the experiment, with the hope of 

 benefiting science, if they are not absolute losers 

 thereby, know by experience that in nine instances 

 out of ten such publications, however admirable may 

 be their execution, are sure to entail pecuniary loss 

 upon their projectors. A recent case, strongly il- 

 lustrating the present argument, has come to our 

 personal knowledge, of a zoological publication, where 

 the copies which might be claimed by public li- 

 braries were eleven, and the subscribers to the work 

 were twelve, so that the author was subject to the 

 expense of colouring eleven copies over and above 

 the twelve which were sold, — an expense, be it re- 

 membered, which there would have been no necessity 

 of incurring, except from the enforcement of the 

 copyright laws. The sale of only twelve copies of 

 each number would have done something to diminish 



