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These designs by a woman call to mind the fact that among the book-plates of over one hundred and fifty women designers with which I am familiar, I know of but one other nude. This other is by Miss Mary Florence, and is of a large full-length angel entirely undraped.

Fritz Erler, a German designer of much strength, has made a number of symbolic book-plates. All, I believe, have the feminine as motif, and in several the figures are nude. The design for Emil Gerh?user is inoffensive and well-drawn, but surely is not beautiful, and lacks a good excuse for existence. In a generally pleasing decorative arrangement for Robert H. Smith, Harold Nelson, an English designer, shows a rather attenuated nude maiden looking with envy at a gorgeous peacock on the opposite side of the design; while the peacock in turn seems to say, "Why don't you grow some feathers?"

American artists have essayed the nude but little in book-plate design, perhaps through wisdom, perhaps through fear; but the fact remains that they have thereby avoided the perpetration of at least some crimes. Judging by the examples we have been able to cite, and they are representative, it would seem that the best advice we can give those tempted to use the undraped beautiful in their book-plates is--don't.

BOOK-PLATES OF TO-DAY TONNEL? & COMPANY NEW YORK

THE ARCHITECT AS A BOOK-PLATE DESIGNER

Among the book-plate designers of the present day the architect may, if he choose, take a high place. He is one whose studies have led him through the paths of artistic training where his eye and hand have learned to see color and form and balance of parts, and while the usual media of his profession are wood, stone, terra cotta and iron, there are many by-paths through which he must travel to appreciate the value of his pencil lines upon the flat.

No more delightful by-way than the book-plate route will open before him, hedged in as it is by purely artistic shrubbery and leading constantly to pretty and even beautiful designs in which the genius of architecture has played a great part. Moreover, all his preceding journey through the hard conventional country to which architecture at first seems limited, has equipped him thoroughly to give expression to his fancy. That the gift of imagination is among his endowments should be taken for granted, however, if the architect is to succeed in the line of drawing book-plates.

Fancy and imagination being in his mental equipment the architect can "rest" his mind in no more delightful fashion than by giving them full scope in this gem-like art. His experience, his collections of drawings, the work of others of his craft which he has studied, all tend to render his fund of information large, and if he has the key to book-plate art, inexhaustible, since nothing comes amiss to the pen of one whose facile fancy can grasp a good motive and direct it to a purpose other than that originally intended.

In the early days of art the architect was not only a designer of buildings but was also a sculptor and sometimes a decorative painter. He was called upon by his patrons to design whatever was needed at the moment, and these men were "all-round" artists, the day of specialization and the speculator not having dawned.

Buonarotti is an awesome name to call up, but this great painter, sculptor, architect and builder touched nothing that he did not adorn, and in many of the hundreds of crayon sketches and cartoons that he left behind him, the feeling of the book-plate artist is clear. Had Lorenzo the Magnificent wanted a book-plate for use in his library, the great Michael Angelo could have filled the want from his own notes, with very little of either suppression or expansion. It may seem strange to think of this Titan of art, the creator of the sweeping "Last Judgment" turning his pencil to the delicate lines, the imperceptible nuances demanded by a book-plate, yet it may be repeated, in his work may be found a myriad of suggestions for these gem-like products.

Buonarotti was not, however, first and last an architect. Painter and sculptor also, these sides of his artist soul would have been drawn on for the book-plate. Therefore the statement that not every architect can design so fanciful and dainty a work as a book-plate becomes a truism patent to everybody. The architect's profession calls for a two-fold nature, the one side tending toward that of the engineer with its eminently practical and very necessary tables of stress and strain, its mathematical calculations for loads and disposition of carrying walls, while the other side leans to a nice discernment of color and proportion. The laying out of vistas and the arrangement of surfaces and lines, so that the eye is aided in receiving the best impression from all points of view. Of this turn of mind is the one who can and does design book-plates. The very practical architect, if he wishes the glory, which is doubtful, has one of his draftsmen make the design and then signs the drawing and gets the glory. It would be amusing if such an one through some luck charm received constant application for such work. His draftsmen would change and his drawings be as dissimilar as the men who drew them. Possibly the signature would lead the long-suffering public to think him very versatile.

It is not of this class of architect that we write. It is of him who is half painter or sculptor, and who loves his pen and pencil and delights in the personal expression of his ideals. He finds that his way of seeing things is more to his liking than any way of any other man. He sees the infinite beauty of nature and loves her shifting pictures in the clouds. Then too, he must have the ability to clearly comprehend the half-formed ideas of him whose plate he undertakes to draw. This is not always an easy matter. There are but few in the world who can formulate their ideas, much less invent a picture without first seeing it. Here the architect has, perhaps, an advantage over the purely imaginative artist, since the average man does not know the difference between the Classic period and the Gothic, the Napoleon era and the modern German renaissance.

Mr. Frank Pool is obviously a lover of the drama. In an oval window set in masonry, is a Roman gentleman, laurel crowned, reading from a large volume, while at the upper right and left sides are comedy and tragedy masks from which hang a gracefully festooned wreath. Palms, ribbon and name plate finish the design. For Mr. Farragut, the son of our old admiral, Mr. Tryon has made a very "salt water" arrangement of arms. The shield is surmounted by a quaint ship and the bearers are dolphins, which on one side encircle a trident and on the other a sword. The conventional acanthus leaves give body and decoration to the whole. Perhaps one of the most distinctively beautiful of Mr. Tryon's designs is the fleur-de-lis for Mr. Marcus. In this the artist has blended most delightfully the natural and the heraldic flower and has produced a gem of which one never tires. For his sister and her children Mr. Tryon has made a light and airy design, distinctively feminine and graceful. The main feature of the design is an ornate cypher of the letters S T. On the ribbon below the name is shown. This is changed to the names of Mrs. Stone's three daughters for their individual use. The plate reproduced here is that of one of Mrs. Stone's daughters. The design for "The Boys Club" is surmounted by the American eagle perched upon the globe, and the flag of our country is draped over the tablet bearing the lettering. This plate has been reproduced both by photo-process and copper plate.

Of the three color plates reproduced the first was made for Mr. A. W. Brunner, and has for "piece de resistence" a very ingenious monogram set in an oval frame. For bearers there are two graceful palms and the keystone is surmounted by a pile of books and a classic student's lamp. The base of the design is relieved by a pleasing arrangement of acanthus leaves. The plate for Miss Cox is a seal-like design, dignified yet dainty, and would be entirely in place in all kinds of volumes. The plate for Mr. Steell quite speaks for itself and makes the sportsman feel wildly for the trigger of his gun. The buck and doe silhouetted against the yellow of evening and the reflection in the stream are a delight.

Three of Mr. Tryon's designs have been engraved by Mr. E. D. French. The famous Sovereign plates being two, and one for Mr. Havemeyer being the third. This plate for Mr. Havemeyer is indicative of the owner's collection of Washingtoniana, and is surrounded by several of the well-known portraits of the father of his country, while at the top is a small view of Mount Vernon. The portraits and view are interwoven with foliage and ribbon and form a frame in which Mr. Havemeyer's arms are displayed. The "Sovereign" plates, which were made in 1895 for the library of Mr. M. C. D. Borden's yacht, are of great richness, the first or "crown" design being especially so. This one did not please the owner, who had a second one made surmounted by an eagle instead of a crown. This is simpler in treatment and not so decorative as the earlier design. These plates were both cut on the copper by Mr. French who treated them in a very sympathetic manner and brought out in clear relief the ideas of the designer.

Mr. Tryon's production has not been great, reckoned by the number of plates made, but as his work is never done hurriedly or slightingly it carries an air of finished dignity and worth that gives it lasting qualities. As he usually has one or two plates in hand to which he adds a few lines and a few thoughts from time to time, we may still expect pleasant surprises in this miniature art from his workshop.

BOOK-PLATES OF TO-DAY TONNEL? & COMPANY NEW YORK

A CHECK-LIST of the WORK of TWENTY-THREE BOOK-PLATE DESIGNERS of PROMINENCE

Compiled by WILBUR MACEY STONE

It was thought that interest and value would be added to this book by the inclusion of lists of the book-plates made by the more prominent artists whose work is reproduced here. These lists are the nearest complete of any that have ever been published, and as they have been verified in many instances by the artists themselves, and in others carefully collated from the actual book-plates, they may be relied upon as highly accurate. The sundry notes, bibliographical and otherwise, by which the individual lists are prefaced, are in no way exhaustive, but just a cursory gathering to relieve the bareness of the lists and to give some little additional assistance to the amateur. The lists are arranged alphabetically under the artists' names as follows:

William Phillips Barrett Robert Anning Bell D. Y. Cameron Thomas Maitland Cleland Gordon Craig Julius Diez George Wharton Edwards Fritz Erler William Edgar Fisher Edwin Davis French Bertram G. Goodhue Harry E. Goodhue T. B. Hapgood, Jr. Harold E. Nelson Edmund H. New Henry Ospovat Armand Rassenfosse Louis Rhead Byam Shaw Joseph W. Simpson Hans Thoma Thomas Tryon Bernhard Wenig

WILLIAM PHILLIPS BARRETT

Lady Gerard Hon. E. Byng Mr. Jack Cummings Lord Manners Lady Sarah Wilson Lady Charles Bentinck H. Somers Somerset, Esq. Lady K. Somerset

J. Watson Armstrong, Esq. Lady Angela Forbes Mrs. Panmure Gordon Hon. Mrs. Charles Harbord Miss Beatrice Dudley Smith The Marchioness of Headfort Miss Audrey Battye Lady Beatrix Taylour Miss Rachel Duncombe J. S. Forbes, Esq.

Lady Maud Warrender Lady de Trafford Hon. Marie Hay The Countess Mar and Kellie Mrs. Brocklebank The Viscountess Wolseley Robertson Lawson, Esq. Baron K?nigswarter Baroness K?nigswarter Miss Van Wart Reginald Nicholson, Esq. Lady Sybil Carden The Countess of Lathom

The Duchess of Bedford Miss Eadith Walker The Countess of Wilton The Viscountess Chelsea Mrs. Duff J. E. Ballie, Esq. Lord Bolton Lady Margaret Levett Miss Howell Basil Levett, Esq. Mrs. Harcourt Powell Lady Ampthill J. & E. Bishop Lefroy of Lahore Mrs. McCalmont Miss Gabrielle de Montgeon

Her Royal Highness Princess Victoria of Great Britain The Earl of Lathom The Duke of Beaufort Hon. Mrs. Gervase Beckett The Countess of Gosford The Marchioness of Bath Mrs. Lee Pilkington Freda and Winifreda Armstrong Mrs. Wernher Miss Freda Villiers Miss Muriel Dudley Smith Lord Kenyon Lady Savile Crossley Hon. Hilda Chichester Lady Dickson-Poynder Sir John Dickson-Poynder Gervase Beckett, Esq. Canon Stanton The Duke of Portland Mrs. Alfred Harmsworth Mrs. Arthur Wilson J. Hutchinson, Esq. Hon. Mrs. G. Kenyon Captain Noble Edward Hubbuck, Esq. R. L. Foster, Esq. Royal Naval and Military Will Watson Armstrong Masonic Supreme Council, 33? The Earl of Shaftesbury Miss Barclay H. A. Harben, Esq.

Ivor Fergusson, Esq. Harold Harmsworth, Esq. Lord Haddo Lady Mary Cayley Mrs. Sheridan The Marchioness Anglesey Sir Charles Cust The Countess of Derby Lady Hillingdon Lady Alice Stanley Lady Clementine Walsh R. C. Donaldson-Hudson, Esq.

ROBERT ANNING BELL

Robert Anning Bell, Director of the Art School of the Liverpool University, is the most prolific designer of artistic picture-plates in Great Britain. His work has long been the envy of amateurs, and no collection can claim to be representative without some examples of his work. His book-plates have been reproduced and commented on in almost all published articles on the general subject. The book-plate number of the "Studio," Simpson's "Book of Book-plates," Bowdoin's "Rise of the Book-plate," Zur Westen's "Ex Libris" , all show examples. His work is characterized by dignity and grace, is in good drawing, and has an average of excellence unsurpassed. The list is complete to July 1, 1902.

D. Y. CAMERON

Donald & Grace Cameron Swan Robert M. Mann John Roberton John Maclaren Roberta Elliot S. Paterson Joanna Cameron Jeanie Ure MacLaurin Katherine Cameron J. Craig Annan James Arthur John Macartney Wilson James Henry Todd James J. Maclehose Robert G. Paterson R. Y. Pickering, 1895 R. Y. Pickering John A. Downie Beatrice H. MacLaurin Sir James Bell, Bart.

THOMAS MAITLAND CLELAND

Mr. Cleland is a young man who has an innate appreciation for decorative effect and, what is more to the purpose, an ability to apply it. For some years past his skill in typographic arrangement has added much to the products of several of our more advanced publishers; by more advanced I mean those with a knowledge and belief that it is good business to offer to the public books that delight the eye as well as the mind. Mr. Cleland has done many decorative bits by way of head- and tail-pieces and initials. There are also to his credit a baker's dozen of book-plates. These last are intensely decorative, and to class them as pictorial really does them injustice. They are thoroughly conventional and quite medieval in feeling.

Sara Stockwell Clark Herbert Wood Adams Laura Gaston Finley Elmer Bragg Adams Lewis W. Hatch Angus Frederick Mackay Julian Pearce Smith Irving and Sissie Lehman Louis and Bertha Stillings Alice and Arthur Cahn Rubie La Lande de Ferri?re Maurice M. Sternberger George Louis Beer

GORDON CRAIG

"The Page" has been so much exploited in the public press that it seems supererogation to write anything more about it or Gordon Craig, one the embodiment of the other. Mr. Craig is very much of an all-round young man; brought up in the atmosphere of the theater and of books and pictures, he has dabbled in all to some purpose. He has a clear-cut individuality that differentiates him and his--work, I was going say, but perhaps play would be better, for Mr. Craig is one of those inconsequential chaps that seem to take things as they come and be chipper and happy and youthful-hearted with all. His book-plate work is of the meat-ax variety and inspired by the rough wood-cuts of the early engravers. His work has the air of the poseur that is as balm to the heart of the dilettante.

JULIUS DIEZ

The work of Julius Diez is rich with the flavor of medievalism and full decorative effect. The example shown in this book, the plate for Max Ostenrieder, is a little masterpiece and an ideal book-plate. Mr. Diez has done others much more elaborate, and with well-drawn and well thought-out motifs, but none to excel the bit referred to.

Bayerischer Kunstgewerbe-Verein Gustav Euprius Max Ostenrieder Gustav Wolff Richard Hildebrandt August Drumm Luise Riggaur Joseph Flokmann Dr. Jul. Fekler Julie von Boschinger Georg Hirth Adolf Beermann Julius Diez Paul Scharff Elise Diez Georg Buchner Franz Langheinrich Paul Meyer

GEORGE WHARTON EDWARDS

Mr. Edwards has made a large number of very excellent book-cover designs and has decorated several volumes throughout. One of the most beautiful of the latter is Spenser's Epithalamion, published by Dodd, Mead & Company. Mr. Edwards has done a few other book-plates in addition to those listed here, but these are all he wishes to stand sponsor for.

Harvard University, Arnold Arboretum, 1892 Grolier Club Author's Club Library George Washington Cram Tudor Jenks G. W. Drake

FRITZ ERLER

Fritz Erler has been one of the leading contributors to that prince of German art periodicals, "Jugend," since its beginning. His book-plates are characterized by the same imaginative spirit and weirdness that appear in all his work. His work is often reproduced in soft tints with excellent effect. In the third volume of "Jugend" there was a double page given to prints of Mr. Erler's book-plates.

Carl Mayr Arthur Scott T. Neisser Hugo Wolf C. Schoenfield Sigmund Schott M. Souchon S. Fuld Albert Schott Ulrich Putze Max Mayr Toni Neisser M. von B. M. von B. E. Gerh?user H. Marx Gustav Eberius Liebermann

WILLIAM EDGAR FISHER

Mr. Fisher's work is fully described in the leading article in this book by Mr. Bowdoin. The list of plates is in chronological order and is complete to July 1, 1902.

EDWIN DAVIS FRENCH

The book-plates of Edwin Davis French are the most esteemed of those of our present American engravers. His work is decidedly the vogue among those who can afford the best, and is much prized by collectors. There has rarely been an article on book-plates published in the past five years or more that has not contained a eulogy of his work, and there have been reproductions galore, both from the original coppers and by half-tone. There is no American designer whose work is so eagerly sought by the collector or for which larger returns are asked in exchanges. Mr. French usually designs the work he engraves, but in several instances he has cut plates from the designs of others. Such instances are noted in the list. Mr. French's work is characterized by daintiness of design and great beauty of execution. He is unquestionably a master of the graver in decorative work. In the following list those numbered 133 and below are from Mr. Lemperly's well-known list, and credit is hereby rendered him therefor. The rest of the list is made up from various sources and has been very carefully compared and is believed to be accurate and complete, with the few exceptions noted, to July 1, 1902.

BERTRAM G. GOODHUE

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