Show I I THE LIBRARY LIB OF CONGRESS I BY FREDERIC J HASKIN A great national library cooperating with every other library In the United States In such a way as all will serve to tomake tomake tomake make U Jt the central mechanism that binds bind them together as one composite whole such Is the idea of Librarian Putnam as asto asto asto to what the tM library of congress ought te to tebe tebe tobe be and what Ire ii is making It as rapidly rapid I as all allwell well ered and effort san can do It The library Is now the third in size among the tile libraries of DC the world the National of Parte Parle with three million volumes ranking first and andrue the rue one ODe of or the British museum second It t Is ill by odds the largest and most complete compete in the western hemisphere But with all this tilts there Is much that is yet It lacking Many a publication n indispensable to cm 8 in Its particular line Itne Js JJ J wanting The fhe serious student will find many miss missing m missing IIII ing links Th The same seine Is la true of every other library In America But what bat one ORe lacks another possesses By proper cooperation they may make it as if each possessed an all aIL Suds Such is the aim of or Mr 1 Putnam and when heft realized every work In every library of oC the tile country will be bit available to those thOle engaged engage in 10 research re The first step necessary ary to the full real realization or of this thill high purpose will be the making or of a complete c card index of each publication to be found round In the libraries of the country countr This Thill will cover many million cards as each tae book requires an average of or five cards to properly index it with the th appropriate cross references This In Index Index Index dex will show shew In what libraries the rarer Hirer works ks may 1107 be bad and application to any aft library by a serious student will wilt make it available even if It has to come from the most meat me distant corner of the country count Of course such auch an arrangement would require a complete and carefully worked out organization but with the library of congress as the firm nucleus around which such an organization could be built bunt It Il is ts if wife safe to predict that it could be made to work well n When hesi this movement for th the nationalization nationalization of or th the library of congress is II real realized realIzed realized America wilt will be b ahead of every eel other nation in tn library matters malten Neither the British h nor the French libraries have I dyer dver er undertaken such a J work week and they are hardly so constitute I Ial as al to warrant their doing doln so In the future It will mark the most important step in library progress 1 yet taken by b any nation Already Mr Jr Putnam has placed his ideas as Into partial operation and with the I most moat at signal success The library of or con I gives Is II now supplying at cost to other ot r rU U libraries extra copies of cards represent representing ing in books in their own collections also 1180 antI and offers offen facilities in its private printing plant for foe the printing p of cards of or books boks booksIn bo I In other libraries that are not nal In its own I collection It keeps copies of or these cards to ta inform itself and ami Rn other libraries con concerned n nm m a as to their resources and thus with it II its own cards furnished to them avoids needless duplication and aids ids In reciprocal Furthermore it has facilities for relieving other libraries of or I 7 accumulated material m not necessary in InI their special work for supplying them with such materials as they the may ma need n to te I defective sets essential to their work and for purchasing at their theli In tn Instance instance stance publications fundamental to their work but beyond their means In tn addition ad to all tills this the library of or coo con congress geese gress lends freely freel to other libraries and even deposits with them Ulem for tor long periods such sueh material as they the require in their Work they paying transportation Even ten beyond this t its bibliographic hl Service fin In Inthe I the compilation of reference lists and In aid of specific s fic research is always at their I service Without losing sight of the fact tact that the t I library was wall founded for fo congress and by congress and that the tile lawmakers have haV havethe havethe I the first t claim upon its attentions attention the librarian is seeking kin In every eve way t to ex extend extend tend the scope COpt and the usefulness s of his hiJI work ork He ha has established hed a co cooperation col cooperation II operation o ration between the th library of congress con l and the libraries of or the th various depart departments ments lD and bureaus of tb the government so IO I IUt Ut t all told teM till they Have mot than J 39 J 00 l Woks and ROO Without sue sor rendering their tb lr individual standing their work has bee been be so merged that th t to an en In Intents 1 Intents tents and aDd es they c e as a III single Magic library as J If nB all th the coIler cotler were w und T on one rent Taken to tl together gether the nt now new ha HI bee the tar l r rIe j rest Ie t collection of books boot in th the world I What WIIt has hs bren accomplished with it r t tIto Ito to th government go libraries it Is I hoped hope i will l I accomplished with re t 10 to all alii i ii i n I II I The card Index Inde system has been bren n h l find nd the blat of ln In duplicate I plicate cards for gratuitous supply to th thI the various government govern ent libraries e and stid a cost rost I to 18 other has hu proved the nation tieR ef at th the library worker Tt It oo costS ts j I from rum to nta per pe vol volme i ime nine me to catalogue library books sad and from i iI fifteen n tr thirty cents to print the cards card i I D DH attests are now no supplied at two to rents cents I fer the n t copy and cent for tot forach I each aeh additional ropy copy The average t book hook I II I requires five he cards caros to appropriately class classIfy If and c cross troSS oss reference It There ar now I more mere mere than a thousand libraries 11 bra riel sub crib I In ln for the printed prided cards card can of the library j of con congress res s and anti the number numb r of era ers is u increasing at the rats rate of about six sis sixteen sixteen teen per cent per year ear There The are several grades of cards and the lowest grade full set te to date may be had for about IO O OThey They The arc are of manila paper and because they th take up p so much b less Ius space requiring lug ling only ORI about the space of the tire beet best cards c they are often oCten preferred to the others It IB Is estimated that there t re are some m m 60 ea books In the public bk libraries s of the till United States Of course coune the vast at ma m mortty of these represent e t duplicates but taken together they constitute cen a as complete an array of or publications as Is to be found In hi any an country Ones One the library has b bi be beI become i come fully nationalized the American in or will have the finest library i service in tn the world at his hU disposal No NoI o I other nation has bas yet evolved such uch a corn com comprehensive m mI plan of support to research I or aid to tf investigation Some idea of tb the magnitude of the in indexing InI IndexIng I and classification work the library is doing may be gleaned from the state statement statement ment meat that if a book Index of or the material In m Its shelves were to be printed it would take fifteen n years ears to complete the th Job and would cost coat a quarter million dollars Some time In the this thin may ma be un undertaken undertaken Undertaken but the time list liet of or material received makes make such INch a publication tion Uon almost If not entirely IY impracticable With more than a B million and a half of ot books and other things in proportion i In tn the library and the list Hat growing at atthe atthe the rate of or books a year lear th the ava avs able aWe space was w all taken alcoa up and a Ma fa cry for more shelf Mell kel room was Wall sent up This appeal was by of eI GOO congress with an appropriation for a new n w book stack li It will be com corn completed I I In tn about a B year vear and w will iII II have ha ten stories of ot book shelves with a total ca capacity Ih of about JoO s Hereto H Heretofore reto f fore r it It lt has been beef to store many man mam i of the Important newspaper In the th bas lIas ment and when bet the Investigator Ator sp nt a afew afe afew few fe hours boun looking through b son some tonN of h he be em to look more lIk a coil heaver than a literary light Congress CO does doe 1 not give gle much consid consideration fratton to the question of education in fix fixing log leg salaries in the government service r I A man or woman who Is an average can an work up to Jl I W in almost aJmo t tamy any amy branch of or tb the service f Oly a good English education Is 18 need Hi d In 11 the library a successful and aDd em must be on rather intimate with French and German and he e I must be bf thoroughly posted DOted In everything per pertaining taming to books Tet Tt the till 5 salaries aries are a much lower than in other branches of or the till i government service p se i well veil 11 as aO lower lowr i r than those of outside libraries The library Is ts engaged en In re the th contents of the in r with wit modern modem m classification rules rule hs work ark is materially retarded ret by b the in inability inability inability ability to retain a I l force foree fo E As soon n nall all as s a new gets th essential ex experience experienc there is 18 a better Job Hm im el elsewhere The result is it that the library Is 19 always losing its most moat j efficient employee empl Yes Low Lo ray my Y is I lar true in the case of the th a In Inthe Inthe the reading reacting room These attendants must have the th education f of a or sor r yet ft the thc th highest b t salary oaM ud i is only j Ii The are the th f who wh may pt al always 1 j ways be b relied on n to pun pull IN the tbt re reeder l r out JIlt of C k a liol hol hole s when bell for Something h he I cannot find fled The ef Sr f the tl library milT mae b bP II 11 I In hi a thousand ways way VI For Por In nce In the sixties O h brad ad of l c cattle wore were driven drivet off a Texas ra rah h y wore Wor they th were driven diven nth fifty miles tn to th left of Twin mountain Twin mountain wa not located on 00 an map iv to the tm of or o claim If tr th attle were driven n to IA the one on side it wa done OM hv by th the b A ries het and the oTT ment would hAw have to lO D 0 V o C thE ther If Tf tf te t the other side fide tha were driven en tf rf bv by b the hostile Comanche end nd d the cov mv O ww u der no tit rt to re Ti huM hurse the hP tt owners A t Of 1 ot on fi n fin nII fit n II th or of vares iras HS MS l lp wed p d l It tt laid U th eU Beit t the t f loer t ter Ar af f the tribe AR and b to Ie th libra II library fItI rv will aJ alws be a it or n Orce e Id 11 that tb thee e W fv b h hIn n ci oen In the nt n bank asserting t tn tl no I men man ro iW tell wf at t of or the tit j trash of or W null iM b b th t nr n o tomorrow Th The T Twin mountain I t that declaration A set of f ft I Ib I t b he Charleston boucht for a con 1 nm has ht b ben en used need In to i determine the tb of or of f trio iho who ho made mR claIms Im for tn fo WOrt tro ed 1 liv fedal ft lJ nr the civil war It is 18 estimated d that it if i has baa saved tie te at lit l I a st t a liuti dr dred 1 times Its It cOt cost cOtT Tl TI librarian of fir congress I ho hol a mo mot most t to te th Ut the tit In an a offic l 1 of it itself ef h i hy bY ti the nt and mas PIa 1 his bin report to the th vice Ice t rn end pitt l il tb speaker k of the bou tou ou Mr Putnam m h hs held the place ince t M Tl Tit greatest t era of or s I bp PI been n de tie developed d eloped under his raH r Copyright 1909 by Frederic J 3 Tomorrow To The Art of |