Conger (syndicate)

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The conger was a system common in bookselling in 18th and early 19th century England, for financing the printing of a book. The term referred to a syndicate of booksellers, mostly in London, who bought shares to finance the book's printing. Each member agreed to take so many copies for sale themselves, and the final profit was split in proportion to the members' initial financial input. Their names all appeared on the title pages as co-publishers, though one of the major publishing houses usually took the lead in setting the deal up.

This system seems to have been mostly used in the financing of major projects -- for example, multi-volume works such as encyclopedias. Shares were often subdivided and re-sold, so the actual balance of ownership became very convoluted.

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