| Edmund Clarence Stedman, ed. (1833–1908). A Victorian Anthology, 1837–1895. 1895. |
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| Ballades. II. Of the Book-Hunter |
| | | Andrew Lang (1844–1912) |
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| IN torrid heats of late July, | |
| In March, beneath the bitter bise, | |
| He book-hunts while the loungers fly, | |
| He book-hunts, though December freeze; | |
| In breeches baggy at the knees, | 5 |
| And heedless of the public jeers, | |
| For these, for these, he hoards his fees,— | |
| Aldines, Bodonis, Elzevirs. | |
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| No dismal stall escapes his eye, | |
| He turns o’er tomes of low degrees, | 10 |
| There soiled romanticists may lie, | |
| Or Restoration comedies; | |
| Each tract that flutters in the breeze | |
| For him is charged with hopes and fears, | |
| In mouldy novels fancy sees | 15 |
| Aldines, Bodonis, Elzevirs. | |
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| With restless eyes that peer and spy, | |
| Sad eyes that heed not skies nor trees, | |
| In dismal nooks he loves to pry, | |
| Whose motto evermore is Spes! | 20 |
| But ah! the fabled treasure flees; | |
| Grown rarer with the fleeting years, | |
| In rich men’s shelves they take their ease,— | |
| Aldines, Bodonis, Elzevirs! | |
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ENVOY
Prince, all the things that tease and please,— | 25 |
| Fame, hope, wealth, kisses, cheers, and tears, | |
| What are they but such toys as these,— | |
| Aldines, Bodonis, Elzevirs? | |
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