Excerpt from Collecting Antiques for Pleasure and Profit: The Narrative of Twenty-Five Years Search for Antique Furniture, Paints, China, Paintings and Other Works of Art, Copiously Pictured With Many Fine Examples<br><br>I first began to collect works of art in a small way as long ago as 1893, and it has seemed to me that my experiences as a collector may be of interest to those who, like myself, take a keen delight in acquiring things antique. I cannot boast of ever having bought an article that turned out to be worth thousands of pounds, although such prizes are possible; and this book is in tended for the collector of moderate means who is looking for pieces such as I possess. The illustrations - with a few exceptions - are from photographs, taken by myself, of specimens which have actually belonged to me, and many of which are still in my possession. When I began my collection I had no intention of sell ing any of my acquisitions, but since I retired from my profession and have had more time to devote to my hobby I have sold many of them and replaced them with finer specimens. This is the usual method with collectors, and one which is to be recommended.<br><br>About the Publisher<br><br>Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com<br><br>This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.