FOOTNOTE:[3]Address, on this subject, The Grafton Press, Genealogical and Biographical Department, 70 Fifth Avenue, New York City. Estimates will be given on data or manuscripts submitted.
[3]Address, on this subject, The Grafton Press, Genealogical and Biographical Department, 70 Fifth Avenue, New York City. Estimates will be given on data or manuscripts submitted.
[3]Address, on this subject, The Grafton Press, Genealogical and Biographical Department, 70 Fifth Avenue, New York City. Estimates will be given on data or manuscripts submitted.
Our chapter heading is simply a re-christening of the oldest and hitherto the favorite plan of the American genealogist. We might rather call it the American genealogy, for nearly all the genealogical works, which have seen the light, are of this kind.
The plan of most of the existing works is distinctly that of the exhibition of a genealogical tribe or clan. Its purpose is to assemble in one book all the known descendants of a certain ancestor, or only the male descendants who are bearers of the family surname. The head of the clan is generally the first American emigrant, and his family becomes "Family 1" of the book. "Family 2" will depend upon our choice of one of two modifications of the general plan.
Let us suppose that the head of the clan is John Smith, and that he had three children, Mary, John, and Philip, all of whom had families. If our purpose is to exhibit the entire clan, we will make no difference between daughters who marry and give their children the surnames of their husbands, and sons who give their children the surname of the head of the clan. In that case, the family of John Smith being Family 1, that of his oldest child, Mary, will be Family 2, while the families of John and Philip will be 3 and 4 respectively. In the third generation we will go back to Mary's oldest child, who leftdescendants, who will become the head of Family 5, followed by her other children, who had families, in the order of birth. The children of John will next be given in order of birth, followed by those of Philip, all who had children being treated as heads of families to which a family number is assigned.
But the work of accounting for all the descendants becomes so irksome, in the case of fertile families, which have to be carried through a number of generations, that it is the prevailing custom to shirk the responsibility of this full exhibit. Thus, only the families of sons, and son's sons, are carried down from generation to generation. The daughters, if their descendants bear other surnames, are set aside, although the blood-tie is the same. The tribe itself is not exhibited, but only that part which bears the surname of the common ancestor. This is the modification adopted by the most eminent genealogists.
All forms of the "clan" genealogy unite collateral lines of descent by the sentimental bond of a thin blood-tie, affording an excellent basis for "family reunions." But they are quite unsatisfactory as attempts to exhibit one's ancestry. If we are included in such a book, "The Smith Family," for example, we generally find but one of our many ancestral lines traced. And even if one or two of our Smith progenitors married cousins of the same name, only two or three of the Smith lines will lead down to ourselves.
Such an arrangement does not go far toward showing one's ancestry. Not a few Americans are in thetenth generation from their earliest forefathers on this side of the water. Hundreds of thousands are in the seventh, eighth or ninth generation. Let us reckon the number of our progenitors for ten generations. We had 2 parents, 4 grandparents, 8 great-grandparents, 16 great-great-grandparents, 32 ancestors of the sixth generation, 64 of the seventh, 128 of the eighth, 256 of the ninth, and 512 of the tenth generation.
The number of ancestors for ten generations is thus 1,022. The different surnames represented among them may be as many as the number of ancestors of the earliest generation—i.e., 128 for eight generations, 256 for nine, and 512 for ten generations. The actual number is frequently lessened by the marriage of ancestors who bear the same surname. But the general significance of the numerical argument remains.
Are we a descendant of the first John Smith, in the tenth generation and through a single line? Then the book on "The Smith Family" will only show 18 of our 1,022 ancestors, assuming that the wife of each of our ancestral Smiths is mentioned. If the wives are omitted, only 9 ancestors will be shown. And in the latter case the book shows our link with but one family and surname out of a possible 512. Or, if the book gives the maiden names of the wives of our nine ancestral Smiths, nine other family surnames out of the 512 will receive a bare mention. But none of these lines will be traced.
The reader will now fully appreciate our reference to this kind of book as the "clan" genealogy. It shows the relationships, most of them quite distant, between the collateral branches of a single tribe; but it doesnotexhibit the many lines of one's ancestry. The kind of book which accomplishes the latter object will come before us in the next chapter.
Nevertheless, the "clan" genealogy has its place. The recognition of tribal relations has become popular, and family organizations, with the occasional function of a "family re-union," are rapidly increasing. Many of these organizations, embracing all the known descendants of a common ancestor, elect regular officers, and in a few cases the whole tribe has a legal status as a corporation.
The tribal genealogy is also favored by many who hope to make a profit by the sale of their book. A fair-sized tribe is considered a promising field for such an enterprise. Among several thousand clansmen a considerable number, it is assumed, will purchase a copy of a book which traces one of their ancestral lines. When the project is well managed and the book properly exploited this hope is often realized very handsomely.
The "clan" genealogy also finds a prominent place in local history. The annals of a town or neighborhood having been given, these are supplemented by monographs on the old families. Beginning with the first settler, his descendants are traced down, each family sketch becoming a "clan" genealogy on a smallscale. This feature immensely increases the interest of town histories, and if the tribal genealogy needs any justification, it certainly finds it here.
Finally, there is the undoubted fact stated at the beginning of our chapter, that the "clan" genealogy has pre-empted the field. It is the work everywhere met, the book which is in every mind when a genealogy is thought of.
Special difficulties attend the compiling of this kind of work, and for the overcoming of these we have prepared a special notebook.
It should be remembered that if, instead of counting one man's ancestors, we should reckon one man's descendants, assuming an average, in each family, of three children who become parents, in nine generations some 9,841 descendants would have become parents, each with a wife or husband, making a total of 19,682 to appear in the tribal book, without counting descendants that leave no issue!
After the ninth generation the tribe grows with leaps and bounds that are truly mighty. A single additional generation, the tenth, would add a new crop of no less than 39,366 husbands and wives, making a total of 59,048 tribesmen entitled to a place in the book! And the eleventh generation—but peace! Our little work on the joys of genealogical research shall not be marred by the statistical bore who tries to scare with his wretched arithmetic!
In truth, formidable as the "clan" genealogy sometimes is, at present it seldom takes in ten generations,while our estimate of family increase is perhaps too great. And what genealogist, though he beg and implore information of the later generations, sending out hundreds of eloquent letters, is ever able to make a complete exhibit of a great tribe? Our figures should not terrify, therefore, but simply compel proper appreciation of the problem of the notebook.
How shall the data for a whole tribe be preserved until the day of compilation, and how can we keep it from becoming a jumbled miscellany that will drive us to despair?
The terror of the notebooks first dawned upon us just as we thought we had the matter well in hand. It was our first extensive investigation, and as the ancestral names increased on our research list we found that we must make a choice of methods. Should we search the authorities for one name at a time? Many advise this to avoid confusion, on the principle of choosing the lesser of two evils.
But it is a clumsy method, well nigh intolerable, which leads one to visit certain places and consult certain authorities for data on one name, and then return over pretty much the same ground for the second, the third, and all other names on a long list. We rejected the thought of such a system, determining that as each authority came into our hands we would extract whatever it contained on any of our names.
This settled, another question presented itself.Should we carry a separate notebook for every name investigated? Our list of names was so formidable that such an expedient threatened to transform the genealogist into a genealogical packhorse. Hence we preferred to carry a book or two at a time, to which we committed all our discoveries. Previous historical training had taught us to note the authority with each item, and we made rapid progress with the work. When one notebook was full, another took its place. What could be more simple and expeditious?
But the day came when we sat down to compile. Alas! our sins had found us out! A stack of notebooks lay before us, and through them all were scattered our data for each name, without system or chronological order. Oh, the despair of going through that pile of books, turning down pages and numbering items according to dates, in a desperate attempt to arrange the material for each name so as to compile the facts in a decent order!
In spite of all our care, the wretched books concealed desirable items until our manuscript had passed the proper place of insertion, sardonically calling our attention to the omissions when we were busy with another subject. How we grew to hate those notebooks, and how they tormented us with a plague of re-writing! We had a premonition that they would conceal some things to the very last; and, sure enough, having tortured us during the days of writing, humiliated us in the proof-sheets, and demanded a display of errata as the book went to press,they waited until it was nicely printed, bound and published before making their final disclosures!
To obviate all this trouble, we now have the Grafton Genealogical Notebook, American Form. As the last two words indicate, this notebook embodies the arrangement of the "clan" genealogy used by the most eminent American genealogists and adopted by such organizations as the New England Historic-Genealogical Society and the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society.
This notebook consists of a succession of groups of pages, each group arranged with blanks to receive the data for a whole family. The facts are written in their proper spaces when first ascertained, and when the work of research is finished it will be found that the work of compilation has taken care of itself! In fact, the notebook is self-compiling. The blank spaces are arranged in the order of the statements as they are to appear on the printed page, the connecting words and proper punctuation being printed in the notebook. Having filled in all the spaces which our data requires, we simply draw a pen through the rest, and our book is practically compiled, for its own leaves may be sent to the printer as manuscript! The leaves are perforated so that they may be readily detached, and thus we are saved the labor and the possible errors of recopying.
For example, having written our introductory matter, we detach the leaves from our notebooks, group by group, beginning with the family of the commonancestor, followed by that of his oldest child, who had issue, and so on through all the families and generations in order. In this order, we consecutively number the leaves in blank spaces provided for that purpose, and if the "family" and "individual" numbers have not already been assigned, we note them in the proper spaces.
We may add that this notebook is equally well adapted for tracing all of the descendants of an ancestor, or those of the sons alone. Its use will be understood at a glance by experienced genealogists. Detailed instructions, however, with sample blanks filled out, have been prepared for those desiring them. These instructions completely initiate the amateur into the details of the best form of "clan" genealogy.[4]
FOOTNOTE:[4]The Grafton Genealogical Notebook, American Form (copyrighted), can be had of The Grafton Press, Genealogical and Biographical Department, 70 Fifth Avenue, New York City. Price, per copy, 25 cents; 12 copies for $2.50. The book is 5 1-4 inches wide by 8 1-2 long, and can be carried in the pocket. The instruction pamphlet will be sent to any address upon receipt of 25 cents. It is furnished free,when requested, to every purchaser of 12 copies of the notebook.
[4]The Grafton Genealogical Notebook, American Form (copyrighted), can be had of The Grafton Press, Genealogical and Biographical Department, 70 Fifth Avenue, New York City. Price, per copy, 25 cents; 12 copies for $2.50. The book is 5 1-4 inches wide by 8 1-2 long, and can be carried in the pocket. The instruction pamphlet will be sent to any address upon receipt of 25 cents. It is furnished free,when requested, to every purchaser of 12 copies of the notebook.
[4]The Grafton Genealogical Notebook, American Form (copyrighted), can be had of The Grafton Press, Genealogical and Biographical Department, 70 Fifth Avenue, New York City. Price, per copy, 25 cents; 12 copies for $2.50. The book is 5 1-4 inches wide by 8 1-2 long, and can be carried in the pocket. The instruction pamphlet will be sent to any address upon receipt of 25 cents. It is furnished free,when requested, to every purchaser of 12 copies of the notebook.
Under this name we introduce a plan of genealogy which we believe is destined to become more popular than the clan genealogy. This is the book for all who are interested in their own ancestral lines more than in the ramifications of a thinly-connected tribe.
It is the plan which permits a full discourse of all that is nearest to the heart. Its preliminary investigations thrill one with discoveries of the deepest personal interest. Its compilation permits all the humors and liberties of literary speech. Its every page and chapter is like a visit to ancestral halls, where the genial shades of forebears seem to gather round as we gaze at their portraits, listen to the old tales, handle the heirlooms and ransack the family papers.
The general idea of this genealogy is simple. It enables one to exhibit as many of one's direct ancestral lines as can be ascertained, or a sufficient number to make an interesting volume.
Where do we begin? With ourselves, James Smith! Next we put down the name of our father, William Smith, and the maiden name of our mother, Mary Jones, and under each name collect all the biographical data possible. In the next generation there are four names. There is our paternal grandparent, William Smith, Sr., still hale and hearty, and his wife, Mary Doe, of sainted memory, whom we rememberalmost as well as we do the fragrant odor of her inimitable pies and cake!
Then there is our maternal grandfather, Colonel Henry Jones, a soldier and a gentleman if there ever was one, and his young wife, Mary Summers, whom we never saw because she yielded her sweet life in the throes which brought our mother into the world. Have we not often mused over that dear face, gentle and beautiful in the old daguerreotype! Many a tear have we shed over her sad story—in the sentimental days, before the callous cares of this world's business crept into our heart!
The names of all these we put down, gathering the materials for full biographies, and thus we continue with our eight great-grandparents, our sixteen great-great-grandparents, our thirty-two great-great-greats, and so on until we have unraveled the glories of the entire ten generations (if we can boast so many in America), with their 1,022 ancestors and 512 surnames.
The reader may ask, "Is this not as bad as a 'clan' genealogy? How shall we manage all these names and the reams of data?"
The fact is, however, that he who can boast himself to be in the tenth generation in even a single line is fortunate, and must have had an American ancestor contemporary with the Jamestown gentlemen or the Mayflower pilgrims. Undoubtedly many of our lines go back on this side of the Atlantic only four, five or six generations. Such cases subtractmaterially from our 1,022 possible ancestors and 512 surnames.
And let us suppose that when the Dutch stem of Schermerhorn and the French stem of de Lancey come into view in our family tree, we find Joneses again, and—yes, a little research proves that these Joneses also descended from the emigrant, Stephen Jones, the ancestor of our maternal grandfather, Colonel William Jones. The Jones stock is a fine brand, and three strains are none too many, but their appearance subtracts two more surnames from the theoretical number.
Furthermore, while we may be able to find our way back from generation to generation with almost ridiculous ease in some cases, such luck is usually too good to last. It is a rare vein which yields family connections at every stroke of the genealogical spade, and one such line may have to console us for a number which we mine slowly and painfully, and for some others which yield no results whatever beyond a certain point. In truth, most old American families pan out fairly well, with here and there a golden nugget of peculiar lustre, or a diamond of the first water; but we are seldom troubled by finding more of this wealth than we are able to handle.
In making the investigation, we should aim to collect data for a very full account of each ancestor, with a portrait, autograph, the history of his possessions, photograph of the homestead, his old letters, his Bible and will—in fact, any and all materials which pictureclearly his character and affairs. When we have finished collecting, our accumulations are worked up into monographs on each one of the lines traced, each monograph enriched by illustrations and accompanied by an appendix in which we exhibit in full the documents and extracts constituting the proofs of the descent. We recommend that each monograph be introduced by a chart, exhibiting the pedigree from the earliest known progenitor down to the person whose ancestry is the subject of the book. This adds a valuable feature, and makes the whole line clear at a glance. After all the monographs are completed, they should be arranged together for publication in one volume.
If expense is not much of an object, it is especially interesting to prepare for one's own library one copy of the edition printed, sumptuously bound and enriched with original documents, or certified copies of them,—old prints, silhouette portraits and other illustrations gathered solely for that copy. In fact, some people may prefer to limit the edition to this one copy. These ideas may be followed in the Grafton plan of genealogy with brilliant results. A proper method of research, with the necessary means at its disposal, should result in the accumulation of an abundance of interesting illustrative matter for such a book.
The Grafton plan of work calls for a notebook in which the display of the genealogical statistics of a family takes a subordinate place. What is wanted isa notebook in which an indefinite number of pages may be devoted to the data of each ancestor, with some index system which will make all instantly accessible, and some ready means of rearranging the pages. These ends are achieved by a notebook equipped with the Grafton Chart Index, which is quite different from the notebook mentioned in the last chapter.
The Chart Index affords a diagrammatic display of one's ancestry for ten generations—spaces for writing in the names of every one of our 1,022 theoretically possible ancestors, each in his proper place. Each name is located by a Roman numeral, indicating the generation to which it belongs, and by an Arabic figure, indicating its place in that generation. With each name also appears a blank space in brackets, to receive the number of the page of the notebook where the data of that name begins. And at the top of this page in the notebook are written the generation and place numbers of the name in the diagram.
Do we wish to know where to look for the data bearing upon a certain person? We glance at his place in the chart and there find the page reference to his place in the notebook. Or, with our notebook open at a certain place, do we wish to know the ancestral connections of the individual there treated? We glance at the numerals which head his data, and thus learn his place in the chart, which displays at aglance his relations to all the lines and other individuals of our entire ancestry, so far as determined. The body of the notebook is detachable from the cover and chart-index. When its pages are full, another section may be attached, which becomes Section B of one great notebook, this process being repeated as often as desired, the one index covering the whole. If the data on John Smith begins on page 50 of the first section, the page reference in the chart will be A50, or simply 50. If it begins on the same page of the next section, the reference will be to B50, and so on.
The leaves of the notebook are perforated and easily detachable. When the work of investigation is complete, or at any time in the process, the data can be rearranged in any order desired. When the data for one complete line has been gathered, we may wish to arrange it in the order of descent and begin the delightful task of working it up for the printer while other lines are still being investigated.
The Chart Index may be obtained separately. It can be used simply as a chart, to exhibit one's entire ancestry, or may be adjusted as an index to some system of notebooks which the reader already has in hand.[5]
The notebook referred to in our last chapter may be used to advantage in conjunction with the one just described.
For example, John Smith, the first of one of our lines, may have had eight children. While the "Grafton" genealogy will dwell at length only upon that one of the children who is our ancestor,—Stephen Smith, for example,—his seven brothers and sisters will be briefly noticed, although their descendants will not be followed unless it be to call attention to distinguished relatives in some of these collateral lines. Having given the history of the first John Smith in full, we append a condensed account of all his children, other than the one who is our ancestor, after which we take up the latter, Stephen Smith, in full. The notebook devised for the "clan" genealogy will serve admirably for collecting the skeleton of facts desired for these notices of the brothers and sisters of our ancestors.
The research necessary for a "Grafton" genealogy sounds every note in the gamut of joys peculiar to ancestry-hunting, and adds a special appeal to those who wish to join one of the patriotic societies. If the line of our surname fails to yield ancestors who had the foresight to qualify us for membership in a given organization, it may be that another line will give better results. Or if our name is already on the roll, it will be pleasant to be numbered among those who have qualified through more than one ancestor. Who knows what riches lie hidden, patientlyawaiting a discoverer, to reward him who systematically carries back all of his family lines?
The "Grafton" genealogy recommends itself to us, even if one of our lines has already appeared in a "clan" genealogy, and that line the one through which we inherit our surname. In Europe, where titles and property are inherited by male children, under the laws of entail and primogeniture, a legal significance attaches to the line of the surname, and to most Americans this line is of special interest. Nevertheless, it often happens that our ancestry along this line is less brilliant than along some of the other lines. In that case we will not do full justice to our surname until we reveal the glory of the sturdy stocks which our ancestors had the good sense to engraft upon our line by marriage.
Our line may appear in its due place in the great tome of the clan, but does it shine with the splendor worthy of our immediate ancestors? Is it not almost hidden from sight among so many other lines? And when we find it, is there anything more than a concise epitome of dry facts under the name of each ancestor?
No doubt the tribe-embracing plan prohibits all else, but is this all we want? Do we not desire a full history of each ancestor, with all the interesting facts, traditions and illustrations which can be brought together? Then let us set to work to gather these, and to make our own line the subject of the first monograph of a Grafton genealogy, which will show allthe luxuriant branches of our particular family tree, a happy intertwining of many stocks and surnames, of which we are the final product. Those who work in the hope of realizing a profit from the sales of the printed book should consider the possibilities of the Grafton genealogy. What gives interest to a genealogy? Not the later generations, but the earlier stems and origin of the tree, ascertained through historical research. Instead of presenting one such stem and appealing to a single tribe, why not exploit all the stems of one's ancestry and appeal to as many great tribes of descendants? The prospect certainly seems as favorable for marketing a genealogy which sets forth researches on the origins of many American stems as for the other kind, which only interests descendants of a single stem. But whether the finished work embodies the "clan" or the "Grafton" plan, its sale will principally depend upon the application of proper methods in getting the book before the public. This subject will come before us a little farther on.
We add a word on our right to assume the rôle of godfather toward the plan of genealogy discussed in this chapter. We claim no patent-rights over the bare idea of a work which traces more ancestral lines than one. But where, outside of these pages, will the reader find a recognition of the possibilities of such a work? Where else will he find its plan developed and presented so that its advantages may at once be seen by the ancestry-hunter? The rights of occupation and colonization are certainly ours, althoughwe exercise them with a royal largeness of heart! We have developed this rich territory, only to throw it open to the world. Having ourselves cultivated its fertile fields with pleasing results, and transformed a barren wilderness into a blossoming garden, we now invite our friend, the reader, to step in and take full possession!
FOOTNOTE:[5]The chart-index and cover (copyrighted), with notebook, can be had for $1.25; 12 copies for $13. Additional sections of the notebook, 25 cents each; 12 copies for $2.50. The chart-index alone, 50 cents per copy; 12 copies for $5.50. Address, The Grafton Press, Genealogical and Biographical Department, 70 Fifth Avenue, New York City.
[5]The chart-index and cover (copyrighted), with notebook, can be had for $1.25; 12 copies for $13. Additional sections of the notebook, 25 cents each; 12 copies for $2.50. The chart-index alone, 50 cents per copy; 12 copies for $5.50. Address, The Grafton Press, Genealogical and Biographical Department, 70 Fifth Avenue, New York City.
[5]The chart-index and cover (copyrighted), with notebook, can be had for $1.25; 12 copies for $13. Additional sections of the notebook, 25 cents each; 12 copies for $2.50. The chart-index alone, 50 cents per copy; 12 copies for $5.50. Address, The Grafton Press, Genealogical and Biographical Department, 70 Fifth Avenue, New York City.
Whether the offspring of our love and labor be a clan or a Grafton genealogy, we will now suppose it has attained its maturity. It will grow no more. Not alone is the research complete, but our data has been compiled into a book in manuscript form. What next?
We sincerely trust that no genealogical worker who reads these lines has any other thought than that of giving the fruit of his labors to the public. The whole genealogical world protests against any other idea. It is a patriotic duty as well as a moral obligation to put it in print. Having ourselves profited from the printed pages of many a worker, shall we refuse to repay the debt?
We hope better things of every reader of this book, and assume that all his researches are to appear in print as soon as they can be put into proper shape. It matters not whether we have much or little, one page or a thousand, enough copy for a chart, a pamphlet or a volume: it should be printed and published. If we have worked out only a single ancestral line, and have no leisure for further work, or must turn away from such labor for some time to come, let us print what we have collected.
If we commit our manuscript to type, we are quite likely to receive a rich reward. Some one sees ourproduction, gets into communication with us,—being interested along the same lines,—and very soon we find ourselves learning things we long desired to know! Hundreds can tell of such experiences.
Do not hesitate to print because your work is fragmentary or incomplete. Sometimes one strikes a genealogical "snag," and, do what he may, is unable to proceed in the work of investigation. Under these circumstances some genealogists become discouraged, holding back their entire work for years in the hope of solving their perplexities. This is the wrong way. It is much better to print the work in its incomplete form, frankly setting forth the difficulties encountered. This has many times resulted in the solution of the problem. Some one, somewhere, may hold the key, and as soon as our printed page catches his eye he will supply the needed link.
Sometimes two genealogists, unknown to each other, are at work on intersecting lines, which cause them the greatest perplexity, while each has in his hands the precise facts which would solve the other's puzzle. In this situation they may grope on for years without making material progress. If they would only print what they have completed, each would discover the complement of his work in the other, and each could then go on with his task rejoicing.
Printing in itself is another reward. The exultant thrill of actual authorship is only felt when we see our work in black and white on the pages of theprinted volume. This is the true goal of literary desire.
But this leads us to warn all that only correct and tasteful printing produces this result. Poor type, incompetent proof-reading and inferior presswork produce that which will be a perpetual eyesore and humiliation. When we have come to the point of printing, we cannot afford to practice an undue economy. It is not even "good business" to do so. People do not like to add inferior specimens of book-making to their libraries, and every publisher knows that the quality of the printing may turn the balance and make or mar the success of a book.
Peculiar difficulties attend the printing of genealogies because of their charts, names and dates. We must have exact work as well as tasteful work, and neither of these things is found everywhere, while still less frequently are they found in combination.
In the first place, we would say, put your manuscript in the hands of careful and responsible parties. It is your treasure, and you cannot afford to entrust it to those who will not provide a safe place for it, and guard and watch over it from beginning to end.
In the second place, choose a printer who is accustomed to genealogical work. This is always preferable. Only thus can we obtain the facilities and the experience our book deserves. When the manuscript is in the hands of printers untrained to the peculiar kind of work needed, one of two results generally follows. The book is inaccurate in matter andslovenly in appearance, or we may have to insist that much of the work be done over. A printer often trains himself at our expense, his bill piling up far above his estimate, while the book comes forth at last with an unmistakably amateurish touch everywhere apparent.
But it is not sufficient to choose a printer accustomed to genealogies. We know of some who have done this kind of work for many years, yet scarcely ever have done it well. Their books are many, but in wretched taste, some of the volumes being a disgrace to the book-maker's art. Genealogy is worthy of better things!
Choose a printer and publisher who has taste and enthusiasm, who is unwilling to resort to cheap material, ordinary type, and careless labor for the sake of a wider margin of profit on his contract. It is not difficult to select the right man. Examine samples of his book-work, and see ifallare attractive, the lowest-priced as well as the expensive editions. If he is the right man, a touch of taste and excellence will appear in all his work.
Ascertain, if possible, the character of proof-reading you will receive. The author, of course, will read his own proofs, but even if he is an experienced writer, and has carried several books through the press, he will be saved many a mistake by good proof-reading. It is a peculiar fact that a mistake which our own eye has once passed over in the manuscript is likely to escape our notice many times. But thefresh eye of an expert proof-reader, versed in genealogical work, will detect many of these mistakes, and we will find ourselves deeply indebted to his habit of questioning doubtful points for our reconsideration.
If the reader is not himself an expert genealogist, or is printing his first work, the services of the right kind of proof-reader are still more indispensable. But, in fact, all writers are largely dependent upon the printer and proof-reader for the systematic carrying out of a correct style of punctuation, capitalization and spelling. How satisfying is the book which receives expert attention in all these details!
Finally, choose a printer and publisher who is a book-making genius. The author is dependent upon the printer for the best suggestions for style of book within the limits of cost decided upon. There are masters of the art of making books who, having learned the author's mind as to price, have an ability almost amounting to genius for suggesting the perfect thing within the limit named. They have the character of the work in mind, and they suggest an ideal combination of type, size of page, illustrations, paper, margins and style of cover. Such book-makers are readily recognized by the books they turn out. The author cannot do better than to follow their suggestions.
In a word, let your genealogy appear in the most attractive dress which you feel you can afford, andyou ought to feel that you cannotafford anything which is unscholarly or unsightly. Do you want a book which will give you pleasure to the end of time, or one which you cannot hand to a friend without an apology? We repeat again the maxim, that the stage of printing is no place for injudicious economy!
Have we any "practical help" to offer in this chapter? Yes, dear reader, if you desire the kind of printer's service herein described, it is offered to you by the publishers of this little book. Let the reader satisfy himself as to the quality of workmanship by examining the books which bear the stamp of The Grafton Press. If these do not tell the story, nothing can. This is the true test in every case.
We may add, however, that the Genealogical Department established in connection with The Grafton Press was organized expressly to bring together the expert co-operation necessary in order to lift every feature of genealogical work to a higher standard of excellence than now generally prevails. The supervision of this department extends to all the genealogical printing done by The Grafton Press.
In submitting manuscripts in order to obtain estimates of cost of printing, a general idea of the style expected should be given. For example, let it be known which of the following three kinds of book is desired:
First, the elaborate volume, made for those for whom the item of expense is not an important consideration. This book is sumptuous, "a thing ofbeauty and a joy forever." It is printed on fine hand-made paper, with a handsome morocco binding, and illustrations by the very best processes.
Second, the low-priced book, very plain and strictly businesslike. It is as useful as the first, but the cost is kept down to the minimum. Yet, although plain, it is good, and in good taste.
Third, the book which has a place between the other two. Serviceable and of moderate cost, it is made very attractive and will give solid satisfaction during the years to come. This is the book chosen in the great majority of cases.[6]
All-important are the principles laid down in this chapter. Let the reader regard his genealogical work as an offspring to whom he owes all the care of a fond parent. It is a question of proper clothes for the child.
All this having been decided on, another duty confronts the author while his work is in process of transformation from a manuscript to a book. He not only has proofs to read, but also an index to make, or to have made for him. We say nothing of an index of general subjects and places; but an index of names is indispensable in order to make the contents of a genealogical work accessible. If the work is a "clan" genealogy, two indexes are calledfor, one devoted to persons bearing the common surname, the other devoted to those of other surnames.
For example, in "The Smith Family" we would have one index, in which all the Smiths are arranged alphabetically according to their baptismal names. The generation to which each individual belonged should be shown by a small Arabic figure after his baptismal name. The other index includes all the other persons mentioned in the book, with an alphabetical arrangement of the different surnames. The husbands and children of Smith daughters are found in this index.
The index can be begun as soon as the page-proofs are in hand. Each name, with its page number, is generally written on a separate slip of paper, all the names under one letter being kept together. When all are written, the names under "A" can be rearranged like a card catalog, according to the alphabetical order of the second, third and fourth letters in each name, and when in proper order may be pasted upon sheets for the printer. So we continue through all the letters of the alphabet.
FOOTNOTE:[6]Address, on all questions of printing, The Grafton Press, Genealogical and Biographical Department, 70 Fifth Avenue, New York City. Estimates given on any kind of manuscript, genealogical, historical or biographical, whether for chart, pamphlet or volume. Along with estimates, specimens of type-pages, paper, binding and illustrations will be cheerfully submitted when desired.
[6]Address, on all questions of printing, The Grafton Press, Genealogical and Biographical Department, 70 Fifth Avenue, New York City. Estimates given on any kind of manuscript, genealogical, historical or biographical, whether for chart, pamphlet or volume. Along with estimates, specimens of type-pages, paper, binding and illustrations will be cheerfully submitted when desired.
[6]Address, on all questions of printing, The Grafton Press, Genealogical and Biographical Department, 70 Fifth Avenue, New York City. Estimates given on any kind of manuscript, genealogical, historical or biographical, whether for chart, pamphlet or volume. Along with estimates, specimens of type-pages, paper, binding and illustrations will be cheerfully submitted when desired.
The first copy of our book has come in, crisp and fresh from the binder's. What a delight, what a feast to the eye, as we turn its wholesome pages! None can imagine the joy of this hour—it must be experienced. It never fails us. True, we may be veterans, who have seen many a campaign; nevertheless, each new battle thrills us afresh. Is her fifth babe nothing to the mother, because she has had four children? Just ask her, dear reader! And so is it with the joy of hailing our latest-born, fresh from the press-room and bindery!
But already the reader begins to sigh. "Now, at last," he cries, "I have exhausted the sensations that my book can give!" Friend, speak not so hastily. Have you forgotten the great joy of publishing? the excitement of getting the book before the public? the sweetness of the hearty congratulations of friends and fellow-workers? the delight of reading the press notices and the book reviews? the pleasure of receiving your publisher's smile and handshake as he tells you how well the book is selling? the deep satisfaction of banking the goodly checks which accompany his reports of sales?
The most substantial fruits of our labor are still untasted when our book comes from the press, and in order that these may be enjoyed to the full by thereader we offer him the practical suggestions of this closing chapter. We assume that the garments of his offspring, obtained from the printer, are all that they should be. Otherwise, the pleasures of publishing can never be realized. Neither our friends, nor the reviewer, nor the great public, will enthuse over a shabby book. Why should they?
But the reader of these pages, we trust, will have had his work nicely printed. He is now ready to market his book, and he desires the advice of experience as to ways and means.
First of all, choose a publisher. Have the imprint of a firm of good standing, furnishers of excellent books to the public, upon the title-page of your volume. This will be found to be a great advantage even if the author expects to push and sell his own work.
In the second place, arrange if possible with the publisher to list and handle the book for you, through the book and library trade. Have him put it upon his catalogues, which are regularly furnished to the booksellers. No individual can well attempt to handle this end of the business himself. He does not know how to go about it, and if he did, the necessary machinery of manipulation would be too costly if set up in connection with a single book. But the publisher has this machinery already working in the interest of his other books, and he only needs to take ours on his list in order to give it the benefit of extensive publicity.
Other things being equal, choose a publisher who is located in the great book and literary centre of the country. No doubt the cost of printing and publishing is a trifle more in a large city, where rents are high, than in country or semi-country places. Nevertheless, it is worth while. The prestige which goes with the right place of publication is a satisfaction to the author and a substantial help to his book.
By all means, if possible, commit the printing and the publishing of your book to the same hands. While the book is still in process of making, the plans for bringing it before the public should be arranged. Preliminary announcements can be made, and it can be put into catalogues which it would miss if placed in the hands of a publisher only after the printing had been done. Literary notes, circulars, review slips, and all the paraphernalia of its announcement to the public can thus be prepared, and all be ready for the campaign as soon as the book comes from the press. This is a very important point.
Genealogical works should be committed to publishers who have already had experience along this special line. The sale of genealogical works depends very largely upon a special kind of circularizing which will bring them to the attention of those particularly interested—public librarians, historical and genealogical societies, and special collectors. And whether the book be a "clan" or "Grafton" genealogy, there are many who will be anxious to own it, onaccount of distant tribal connections, and who can be reached only by the proper methods.
A little judicious advertising may prove a paying investment. For this the author is altogether dependent upon his publisher. He who ignorantly plunges into the luxury of advertising may readily sink a large fortune, without returns, in a very short time. Or the little that he has to invest will all be thrown away. But the experienced publisher is like an old fox that has learned the ways of hounds and hunters and is not easily caught. Such a publisher knows the best mediums, where a modest notice almost always brings good returns, and one cannot do better than to reap the fruits of his experience.
If the reader desires to try his own hand in the work of publishing, we wish him well, and advise him that the only way in which he may hope to realize sales is by carrying out, as well as he can, the regular methods of the publisher.
The truth, however, is that the author cannot expect to do for himself, even in a modest way, much which the experienced publisher does for him. The avenues to the book trade, the book reviewer, and therefore to the general public, are not really open to any of us who are not publishers—as we can soon learn by making the attempt to travel, unpiloted, in these directions.
The only genealogist who may hope for any measure of financial success by his own efforts, is the author of a "clan" genealogy who has systematicallygathered the names and addresses of the living representatives of the "tribe" his book exploits. These may be circularized, and appealed to on the ground of family pride and of fair play. The least they can do for a historian who has toiled for their glory is to take a copy of his book.
The plan commonly adopted is to make such works "subscription books" from the beginning. The author fixes a price for his forthcoming volume and as he sends letters for information to living representatives of the tribe, he invites a subscription to his book. But whether these subscriptions have or have not covered the cost of production by the time the book is ready for the printer, why should the author not seek to realize all the additional profits which can be secured through the regular channels, aided by a publisher?
The services of The Grafton Press can be secured as the publishers of any good genealogy, as well as in all the other capacities hitherto mentioned. Probably such a connection would approach as near to the ideal set forth in this chapter as any which it would be possible to make. Added to all the rest, it certainly would secure the hearty co-operation of an experienced firm which pushes the works of genealogists with special zeal and enthusiasm.
The publishing of a "clan" genealogy will be cheerfully assumed at any stage in the production. If desired, the "subscription" feature will be taken in hand, and that as soon as the author begins his work.Or if he has handled this feature during the progress of authorship, every effort will be made to realize the further profits from a proper introduction of the book to the public.
The service rendered may be in the capacity of publishing agents merely, or that of a kind of partnership arrangement in connection with the author's book; and the work in question may be a chart, a pamphlet, a volume, or a work of still larger proportions. The desire is to co-operate so as to give the worker all the fruits of his toil, and secure to him all the profits which the best business methods can realize.[7]
Many readers will be glad to know what the general prospect is for the sale of genealogical works. In the matter of immediate sales, such books are not unlike others: some have a good run and others sell more slowly. Nor can the author or publisher be certain in advance of the fate of a book. The favor of the public is a peculiar thing, and the quality which makes a book popular is frequently beyond the power of analysis or the ken of the prophet.
In the case of "clan" genealogies, much depends upon the size of the "tribe," its financial circumstances, degree of family pride, and proper education in a genealogical direction. The rest depends upon the author and the publisher—upon the employmentof the right methods in presenting the claims of the book.
But in general, and in the long run, it is undoubtedly true that there is scarcely another kind of book which enjoys the permanent popularity and marketable character of the genealogical work. Immediately after publication, in the case of many "subscription" genealogies, or in the course of a few years, in most cases, the book is at a premium. It does not get out of date, like books on other subjects, but becomes more desirable as a historical authority and treasure as time passes. There will be a demand for it fifty, seventy-five, or a hundred years hence.
This is what experience has shown. Genealogical works compiled on the principles set forth in this little book, with a permanent historical value which can never be shaken, because they set forth the proofs of their statements, will never lose their marketable value. Property rights in such works by copyright and copyright renewals should be secured by their authors. The demand will last so long as Americans take an interest in the question of their ancestry, and the price will increase as the copies become scarce.
In conclusion we will suppose that the reader has at length tasted all the delights of research, all the excitement of the discovery of ancestors. He has experienced the pleasure of compiling a Grafton genealogy, and the joy of seeing it pass from the manuscript state into that of the printed volume. The triumphs of successful publishing, the delight ofreading the reviews and the satisfaction of realizing a fair profit on the sales, have all been his. And now perhaps he sighs as he thinks that nothing remains but the reminiscence of past enjoyment.
But here we offer the reader another suggestion. Would he have all those pleasures and delights once more a reality, and not merely a memory? Then let him begin again at the beginning, andstart another genealogy! And when that is finished let him start a third one! What a glorious prospect! Added to all the joy and excitement of each achievement there is also the prospect of a little stream of checks from the sales of each work—two, three, four or five streams instead of one!