MAGIC LIBRARY MAY VANISH

Britain's largest library of literature related to magic and the supernatural may be broken up and sold. The Independent reports, "The Harry Price Library of Magical Literature, based at the University of London, is the UK's largest of its kind and contains letters between Price and the legendary illusionist Houdini. It also has detailed correspondence between Price and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, a believer in the paranormal. Titles such as The Hammer of Witches, a 1486 treatise on witchcraft, are among its 13,000 items, which include pamphlets and hand-pressed books as well as photographs." Because of dramatic budget cuts, John Fielden, who heads Chems, the consultancy carrying out the review, admits that selling off collections including Price's is under consideration.