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The excerpt represents the core issue or deciding factor on which you must meditate, and is drawn from Enemies of Books by William Blades: estimate of the relative value of the same coin in different ages;
but reckoning that money then had at least ten times the purchasing
value of money now, we arrive at what was probably about the value
of the magical books burnt, viz.: L18,750.
The ruins of Ephesus bear unimpeachable evidence that the City
was very extensive and had magnificent buildings. It was one
of the free cities, governing itself. Its trade in shrines and
idols was very extensive, being spread through all known lands.
There the magical arts were remarkably prevalent, and notwithstanding
the numerous converts made by the early Christians, the , or little scrolls upon which magic sentences
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