Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SATURDAY, March 3, 1990                   TAG: 9003052187
SECTION: EDITORIAL                    PAGE: A7   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

GOOD TASTE

The FBI has accused Kathleen Wilkerson of putting a new twist to Vidal's words. Wilkerson, a part-time librarian at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, has been charged with stealing books - but not just any books.

The feds recovered a 1611 edition of "Hamlet," 1619 editions of "The Merchant of Venice" and "Henry V," a 1491 edition of Dante's "Divine Comedy," a collection of Chaucer's poems from 1542, and a 1776 copy of Thomas Paine's pamphlet "Common Sense."

Monetarily, the books are valued at between $770,000 and $1.7 million. But for works such as those, who can measure true value?

If Ms. Wilkerson indeed boosted the bard, no one can commend her actions. Library books should be returned on time, not pilfered.

It's hard, though, not to admire literary taste. It was the good stuff the feds recovered. In this case, it seems, the great writers got stolen.