Library Legacy

I happened across an antique store on whight ave today that displayed a couple of well illustrated Paleo books in the front window. I wandered in and found that they had an impressive collection of paleo books for sale including "Cope's Bible," which is a report on tertiary mammals and is about five inches thick. Upon inquiry, I found out that the store owner had bought them all at once from an estate sale and that what was displayed was only about half of it.
I can't help but wonder though to whom these had belonged. They must have been purchased in Edmonton and previously owned by someone who's been here for a long time, since one item was a finely printed course manual for a U of A paleo field school in the 50's. There were also several articles from the the mid 1920's and 30's and Cope's bible has been out of print for decades. The family of the original owner should be dragged out into the street and beaten with a cane for deciding to sell the library rather than donate it to the University where it belongs. I wonder if some day the same fate will befall my burgeoning collection of books and articles? We don't collect things like this just to have them eventually sold off piece meal. An academic's library is a reflection of his career and acheivements. To sell it off is to obliterate his memory, and scoff in the face of what we Academics stand for: the accumulation of knowledge.