Part 2

+------+----------------------+ |SHELF.| CASE 594. | +------+----------------------+ | A |Buffon’s Nat. Hist. | | B |Geological Rec. | | C |Sach’s Bot.; Bot. Mag.| | D |&c. | | E |&c. | | F |&c. | +------+----------------------+

Others bear the book numbers, while some simply refer to the shelf contents as part of a particular scheme of classification, viz.:—

941·1 Northern Scotland.

To keep these contents-cards clean it is usual to cover them with little squares of glass.

Glazed book-cases are not recommended, wire-work being much better in cases where it is necessary to have locked doors. The mesh of the wire-work should be as fine as possible, because valuable bindings are sometimes nail-marked and scratched by inquisitive persons poking through at the books. It is only in very special circumstances that locked presses are required, such as when they are placed in a public reading-room or in a passage, and though glazed book-cases are a tradition among house furnishers, no librarian will have them if it can possibly be avoided. Their preservative value is very questionable, and books do very well in the open, while there can be no two opinions as to their being a source of considerable trouble. Blinds concealed in the cornices of book-cases are sometimes used, their object being to protect the books from dust during the night, but they do not seem to be wanted in public libraries. In regard to the various shelf-edgings seen in libraries, leather is only ornamental, certainly not durable; while scalloped cloth, though much more effective, may also be dispensed with.

COUNTERS, CUPBOARDS, &c.

To the practical librarian a good counter is a source of perennial joy. It is not only the theatre of war, and the centre to which every piece of work undertaken by the library converges, but it is a barrier over which are passed most of the suggestions and criticisms which lead to good work, and from which can be gleaned the best idea of the business accomplished. For these reasons alone a first-class counter is very desirable. As in every other branch of library management, local circumstances must govern the size and shape of the counter to be provided. Lending libraries using indicators require a different kind of counter than those which use ledgers or card-charging systems, and reference libraries must have them according to the plan of arrangement followed for the books. A lending library counter where no indicator is used need not be a very formidable affair, but it ought to afford accommodation for at least six persons standing abreast, and have space for a screened desk and a flap giving access to the public side. On the staff side should be plenty of shelves, cupboards, and drawers, and it may be found desirable to place in it a locked till also for the safe-keeping of money received for fines, catalogues, &c. All counter-tops should project several inches beyond the front to keep back the damage-working toes of the public, and on the staff side a space of at least 3 inches should be left under the pot-board. A height of 3 feet and a width of 2 feet will be found convenient dimensions for reference and non-indicator lending library counters. Where indicators are used a width of 18 inches and a height of 30 of 32 inches will be found best. If the counter is made too high and wide neither readers nor assistants can conveniently see or reach the top numbers. As regards length, everything will depend on the indicator used and the size of the library. An idea of the comparative size of some indicators may be got from the following table:—

Counter space required for 12,000 numbers Cotgreave 15 feet. ” ” ” Elliot (small) 16 feet. ” ” ” Duplex (small) 22 feet. ” ” ” ” (full) 32 feet. ” ” ” Elliot (full) 36 feet.

Allowing 12 feet of counter space for service of readers, 2 feet for desk space, and 2 feet for flap, a Cotgreave indicator for 12,000 numbers would mean a counter 31 feet long, a small Elliot 32 feet, a small Duplex 38 feet, a full Duplex 48 feet, and a full Elliot 52 feet. For double the quantity of numbers the smallest indicator would require a counter 46 feet long, and the largest one 88 feet. These are important points to bear in mind when planning the counter; though it must be said generally that, in nearly every instance where a Library Committee has proceeded with the fitting of a new building before appointing a librarian, they are over-looked, because the architect invariably provides a counter about 6 feet long, 3 feet wide, and 3 feet high, with a carved front of surpassing excellence! What has been already said respecting materials applies with equal force to this class of fitting; but it should be added that a good hard-wood counter will likely last for ever. Some librarians who use card catalogues prefer to keep them in drawers opening to the public side of the reference library counter. This point is worth remembering in connection with the fitting of the reference department.

In addition to the store cupboards provided behind the counters there should be plenty of wall or other presses fixed in convenient places for holding stationery, supplies of forms, &c. Locked store presses are also useful; and every large library should have a key-press, in which should be hung every public key belonging to the building, properly numbered and labelled to correspond with a list pasted inside the press itself. These useful little cabinets are infinitely superior to the caretaker’s pocket, and much inconvenience is avoided by their use. Desks for the staff use should be made with a beading all round the top and at bottom of slope to prevent papers, pens, and ink from falling or being pushed over. Superintendents’ desks should be made large, and to stand on a double pedestal of drawers, so that they may be high enough for useful oversight and capacious enough for stationery or other supplies. There is an admirable specimen of a superintendent’s desk in the Mitchell Library, Glasgow.

FURNITURE.

Tables for reading or writing at are best made in the form of a double desk, [Illustration] which gives readers the most convenience, and affords an effective but unobtrusive means of mutual oversight. The framing and rails should be as shallow as possible, so as not to interfere with the comfort of readers, and elaborately turned or carved legs should be avoided, because certain to harbour dust, and likely to form resting-places for feet. Tables with flat tops resting on central pedestals, and without side rails, are very useful in general reading-rooms, the free leg space being a decided advantage. Long tables are not recommended, nor are narrow ones which accommodate readers on one side only. The former are obstructive, and the latter are neither economical as regards the seating of readers, nor of much use for the necessary mutual oversight which ought to be promoted among the public. Very good dimensions for reading-room tables are 8 to 10 feet long by 3 to 3 feet 6 inches wide by 2 feet 6 inches high. But the librarian who wishes to consult the varying requirements of his readers will have his tables made different heights—some 29, some 30, and some 32 inches high. Whatever materials may be used for the framing and legs of tables, let the tops be hard-wood, like American or English oak, mahogany, or walnut. Teak is handsome and very durable, but its cost is much more than the better known woods. Yellow pine is too soft and looks common, and should not be used for tops unless the most rigid economy is absolutely necessary. Heavy tables, like those used in clubs, are not recommended. Ink wells, if provided at all, should be let in flush with the tops of the desk tables, and ought to have sliding brass covers, with thumb-notches for moving instead of knobs. Two common forms of library tables are shown in the annexed illustrations. The one on pedestals need not have such large brackets, and the ends can easily be allowed to project at least 18 inches from the pedestals in order to admit of readers sitting at them. In connection with tables there are various kinds of reading slopes made for large books, of which those with movable supporters working in a ratcheted base are the most useful. But there are endless varieties of such reading desks or stands in existence, and some invalid-appliance makers manufacture many different kinds.

PERIODICAL RACKS.

Librarians are not unanimous as regards the treatment of the current numbers of periodicals. Some maintain that they should be spread all over the tables of the reading-room in any order, to ensure that all shall receive plenty of attention at the _hands_ of readers, whether they are wanted or not for perusal. Others hold the opinion that the periodicals in covers should be spread over the tables, but in some recognised order, alphabetical or otherwise. Yet another section will have it that this spreading should be accompanied by fixing, and that each cover should be fastened in its place on the table. Finally, many think that the magazines, &c., should be kept off the tables entirely, and be arranged in racks where they will be accessible without littering the room, and at the same time serve as a sort of indicator to periodicals which are in or out of use. For the unfixed alphabetical arrangement several appliances have been introduced. At Manchester the periodicals are arranged on raised desks along the middle of the tables. In the Mitchell Library, Glasgow, each table is surmounted by a platform raised on brackets which carries the magazine covers, without altogether obstructing the reader’s view of the room and his neighbours. Each periodical is given a certain place on the elevated carriers, and this is indicated to the reader by a label fixed on the rail behind the cover. On the cover itself is stamped the name of the periodical and its table number. Each table has a list of the periodicals belonging to it shown in a glazed tablet at the outer end of the platform support. Wolverhampton and St. Martin’s, London, furnish very good examples of the fixed arrangement. In the former library each periodical is fastened to its table by a rod, and has appropriated to it a chair, so that removal and disarrangement cannot occur. In the latter those located in the newsroom are fastened on stands where chairs cannot be used, and the arrangement is more economical as regards space than at Wolverhampton. The periodicals in the magazine room are fixed by cords to the centre of the table and signboards indicate the location of each periodical. This seems to be the best solution of the difficulty after all. Every periodical in this library is fixed, more or less, and it is therefore easy to find out if a periodical is in use.

The rack system has many advocates, and can be seen both in libraries and clubs in quite a variety of styles. At the London Institution there is an arrangement of rails and narrow beaded shelves on the wall, which holds a large number of periodicals not in covers, and seems to work very well. The rails are fastened horizontally about two inches from the walls at a distance above the small shelf sufficient to hold and keep upright the periodicals proposed to be placed on it, and a small label bearing a title being fixed on the rail, the corresponding periodical is simply dropped behind it on to the shelf, and so remains located. A similar style of rail-rack has been introduced for time-tables, &c., in several libraries, and has been found very useful. Another style of periodical-rack is that invented by Mr. Alfred Cotgreave, whereby periodicals are displayed on two sides of a large board, and secured in their places by means of clips. The same inventor has also an arrangement similar to that described as in the London Institution for magazines in covers. The ordinary clip-rack used largely by newsvendors has been often introduced in libraries where floor space was not available, and is very convenient for keeping in order the shoals of presented periodicals, which live and die like mushrooms, and scarcely ever justify the expense of a cover. An improvement on the usual perpendicular wall-rack just mentioned is that used in the National Liberal Club, London, which revolves on a stand, and can be made to hold two or three dozen periodicals or newspapers, according to dimensions.

The racks just mentioned are all designed to hold periodicals without covers, but there are several kinds in existence for holding them in their covers. Among such are the table supports, in metal and wood, on the same principle as shelf book-holders, in which the magazines lie in their cases on their fore-edges, and are distinguished by having the titles lettered along the back or otherwise. Probably the best of all the racks devised for periodicals in their cases is that on the system of overlapping sloping shelves, shown in the illustration. The idea of this rack is simply that the covers should lie on the shelves with only the title exposed. They are retained in place by a beading just deep enough to afford a catch for one cover, and so avoid the chance of their being hidden by another periodical laid above. These racks can also be made single to stand against the wall if floor space is not available. Oak, walnut, and mahogany are the best woods to use, but pitch or ordinary yellow pine may also be used.

NEWSPAPER STANDS.

The day has not yet come when octavo-sized newspapers will obviate the necessity for expensive and obstructive stands on which the day’s news is spread in the manner least conducive to the comfort of readers. The man who runs and reads has no necessity for much study, while he who stands and reads does so with the consciousness that at any moment he may be elbowed from his studies by impatient news-seekers, and be subjected to the added discomfort of being made a leaning pillar for half-a-dozen persons to embrace. Meanwhile it is necessary to provide convenient reading desks for the broadsheets which are issued. It is cheaper to have double stands, holding four spread papers, than single ones, holding only two, though there is certainly less comfort to readers with the larger size. The illustration shows a single stand, but it should be remembered that the design can be made much heavier and richer. The dimensions should be for double stands 7′ 6″ long, 2′ 6″ high for slope, and about 3′ from floor to bottom of slope. Single ones should be 4′ long, with the other measurements as before. Half-stands for going against the wall have only the slope to the front, and are generally made in long lengths to cover the whole side of a room. The slope should not in any case be made either too steep or too great—the former always causing the papers to droop, and the latter placing the upper parts beyond the sight of short persons. Before adopting any type of stand, it is advisable to visit a few other libraries and examine their fittings. It is so much easier to judge what is liked best by actual examination. Fittings for holding the newspapers in their places are generally made of wood or brass, and there are many different kinds in use. The wooden ones usually consist of a narrow oak bar, fitted with spikes to keep the paper up, hinged at top and secured at bottom of the slope by a staple and padlock, or simply by a button. The brass ones include some patented fittings, such as Cummings’, made by Messrs. Denison of Leeds, and Hills’, invented by the library superintendent of Bridgeport, Connecticut. The former is a rod working on an eccentric bed, and is turned with a key to tighten or loosen it; the latter works on a revolving pivot secured in the middle of the desk, and is intended more particularly for illustrated periodicals, like the _Graphic_, &c., which require turning about to suit the pictures. The “Burgoyne” spring rod made by the North of England School Furnishing Co., Darlington and London, is very effective, neat, and comparatively inexpensive. It is secured by a catch, which requires a key to open it, but it is simply snapped down over the paper when changes are made. Other varieties of brass holders are those secured by ordinary locks or strong thumb-screws. In cases where the rods have no spikes (which are not recommended) or buttons, or which do not lie in grooves, it is advisable to have on them two stout rubber rings, which will keep the papers firmly pressed in their places, and so prevent slipping. A half-inch beading along the bottom of the slope is sometimes useful in preventing doubling down and slipping. The names of the papers may be either gilded or painted on the title-board, or they may be done in black or blue letters on white enamelled title-pieces and screwed to the head board. These latter are very cheap, durable, and clear. Some librarians prefer movable titles; and in this case grooved holders or brass frames must be provided to hold the names, which can be printed on stiff cards, or painted on wood or bone tablets. The brass rail at the foot of the slope, shown in the illustration, is meant to prevent readers from leaning on the papers with their arms. By some librarians it is thought quite unnecessary, by others it is considered essential; but it is really a matter for the decision of every individual librarian.

CHAIRS AND MISCELLANEOUS MATTERS.

The chairs made in Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire are the best and cheapest in the market, and more satisfaction will result from orders placed direct with the makers than from purchasing at an ordinary furniture dealer’s. It is better to have small chairs made with the back and back legs all in one piece, thus, [Illustration] rather than with legs and back rails all separately glued into the seat like this, [Illustration]. The reason is of course that by the former plan of construction greater strength is obtained, and future trouble in the way of repairs will be largely obviated. Avoid showy chairs, and everything that smacks of the cheap furniture market. It will strengthen the chairs to have hat rails as well as ordinary side rails, and be a convenience to readers as well. They should cross from the bottom side rail, thus, [Illustration]. Arm-chairs should be provided at discretion. In magazine rooms where there is a rack, tables can be largely dispensed with if arm-chairs are used. If neither wood-block flooring nor linoleum is used, the chairs may with great advantage be shod with round pieces of sole leather screwed through a slightly sunk hole to the ends of the legs. These deaden the noise of moving greatly, and are more durable than india-rubber. Two or three dozen of chairs _more_ than are actually required should be ordered. Umbrella stands are best patronised when attached to the tables, like ordinary pew ones. An umbrella stand close to the door is such an obvious temptation to the thief that careful readers never use them on any consideration. Of rails for fixing to the tables there are many kinds, but probably the hinged pew variety, plain rail, or rubber wheel, all with water-pans, will serve most purposes. Many libraries make no provision at all either of hat rails or umbrella stands, for the simple reason that 50% of the readers do not enter to stay, while 99% never remove their hats. In proprietary libraries everything is different, and an approach to comforts of the sort indicated must be made. The standard hat rack and umbrella stand combined, like that used in clubs, schools, the House of Commons, &c., is the best for such institutions.

Show-cases ought to be well made by one of the special firms who make this class of fitting. Glass sides and sliding trays, with hinged and _locked_ backs, are essential. For museum purposes all sorts of special cases are required, and the only way to find out what is best is to visit one or two good museums for the purpose.

TECHNICAL APPLIANCES.

CHARGING SYSTEMS AND INDICATORS.—The charging of books includes every operation connected with the means taken to record issues and returns, whether in lending or reference libraries. Although the word “charging” refers mainly to the actual entry or booking of an issue to the account of a borrower, it has been understood in recent years to mean the whole process of counter work in circulating libraries. It is necessary to make this explanation at the outset, as many young librarians understand the meaning of the word differently. For example, one bright young man on being asked what was the system of “charging” pursued in his library responded: “Oh! just a penny for the ticket!” And another equally intelligent assistant replied to the same question: “We don’t charge anything unless you keep books more than the _proscribed_ time!” Before proceeding to describe some of the existing systems it may be wise to impress on assistants in libraries the advisability of trying to think for themselves in this matter. There is nothing more discouraging than to find young librarians slavishly following the methods bequeathed by their predecessors, because in no sphere of public work is there a larger field for substantial improvement, or less reason to suppose that readers are as easily satisfied as they were thirty years ago. The truth is that every library method is more or less imperfect in matters of detail, and there are numerous directions in which little improvements tending to greater homogeneity and accuracy can be effected. It is all very well, and likewise easy, to sit at the feet of some bibliothecal Gameliel, treasuring his dicta as incontrovertible, and at the same time assuming that the public is utterly indifferent to efficiency and simplicity of system. But it ought to be seriously considered that everything changes, and that the public knowledge of all that relates to their welfare increases every day; so that the believer in a _dolce far niente_ policy must be prepared for much adverse criticism, and possibly for improvements being effected in his despite, which is very unpleasant. In libraries conducted for profit, everything likely to lead to extension of business, or to the increased convenience of the public, is at once adopted, and it is this sort of generous flexibility which ought to be more largely imported into public library management. A suitable reverence for the good work accomplished in the past should be no obstacle to improvement and enlargement of ideas in the future.

LEDGERS.