| OCR Text |
Show The Congressional Library. There are several valuable collections of books in the library that have been bought by congress at various times. In 186? congress purchased for 100,000 the collection of rare historical books and pamphlets, files of newspapers, map3, engravings, etc., accumulated by Peter Force, of Washington, during thirty years of antiquarian research. The Force collection now forms a very valuable department of the library of congress. The collection of books relating relat-ing to the history and topography o America is unsurpassed. Among the rare works are two great folios, written on vellum, with numerous illuminations by hand, executed with the utmost care in the Thirteenth century; a constitution of Pope Clement V, of Rome, 1467, by-Peter by-Peter Schoeffer at Mentz; a copy of Eliot's Indian Bible; 300 early atlases and maps, some unpublished, of the American Ameri-can continent; a large number of incunabula, in-cunabula, or books printed during tho infancy of the art, by the most distinguished distin-guished early printers, representing; every year from 1467 to 1300, andforty-eight andforty-eight folio volumes of historical autographs auto-graphs of great rarity and interest. |
