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Show BOOK BUYING IN THE SOUTH. Wo have been told in the past by more than one publisher that tho poorest poor-est book market in the country was to be found in the South, and even row some think it a practical waste of money to advertise their books in the South. But there has recently been a change so far as this section is concerned.. The booksellers insist that the Southern people are buying more books than ever before, and that, therefore, they must be reading more. There is a greater demand for books of the hour, as well as a renewed Interest In-terest in the volumes that have stood the test of time. Now, this Is a very significant development, and it stands for a more substantial form of progress prog-ress than that represented by the industrial in-dustrial expansion over which so much unnecessary noise Is made. That this statement is true, only a moment's reflection will suffice to show. The fact that the book, market in the South is widening and expanding Is a sign of Intellectual progress. In a smaller degree It stands for spiritual progress, and emails for more rejoicing than an increase In the number of cotton spindles in this section, which ofien represent the number of traps eet to catch and smother the intellectual intel-lectual activities of thousands of children, chil-dren, who are at least as important to the state as the amount of capital invested in the cotton mills. v This is progress in tho best and highest sense, for the reason that it will inevitably lead to a keener appreciation appre-ciation of the finer Issues of life. Some of tho books for which there is a demand may be indifferently bad, but no. matter; even an indifferently bad book contains some good, and the human hu-man mind will instinctively assimilate the good. There Is no more hopeful lgn than that of an increased demand lor books among the people of this section. Joel Chandler Harris, in' the Home Magazine. |