A Library Primer Part 6

2. Smith, H.P. and Johnson, H.K. Dictionary of terms, phrases, and quotations. 1895. O. Appleton, half leather, $3.

3. Smith, W. Cla.s.sical dictionary. New edition by Marindin. 1894. O.

Appleton, $6.

1. Smith, W. Dictionary of the Bible. 1884. O. Coates, cl. $2, half mor. $3.

3. Smith, W. and Cheetham, S. Dictionary of Christian antiquities.

1891. 2 v. O. Burr, Hartford, Conn., cl. $7, leather $8.

1. Soule, R. Dictionary of English synonyms. 1895. O. Lippincott, cl.

$2.25, mor. $2.75.

1. Spiers, A. and Surenne, O. French and English p.r.o.nouncing dictionary. 1891. Q. Appleton, half mor. $5.

1. Standard dictionary of the English language, 2 v. Q. 1895. Funk & Wagnalls, half rus. $15; with Denison's reference index, $17.

3. Statesmen's year book, 1899, v. 36. D. Macmillan, $3.

2. Walsh, W.S. Handy book of literary curiosities. 1893. O.

Lippincott, half leather, $3.50.

2. Walsh, W.S. Curiosities of popular customs, and of rites, ceremonies, observances and miscellaneous antiquities. 1898. O.

Lippincott, half leather, $3.50.

1. Webster, N. International dictionary. Springfield, Ma.s.s. Merriam.

1891. $10.

2. Wheeler, W.A. Familiar allusions. 1891. D. Houghton, cl. $2.

2. Wheeler, W.A. Explanatory and p.r.o.nouncing dictionary of noted names of fiction. 1892. D. Houghton, cl. $2.

3. Wheeler, W.A. and C.G. Who wrote it? D. Lee & Shepard, cl. $2.

2. Whitaker's almanac. 1899. D. Whitaker, paper, 2s. 6d.

Whitaker's directory of t.i.tled persons for the year 1898; a companion to his Almanac. D. Whitaker, paper, 2s. 6d.

3. Who's who? annual; autobiographies of the leading men and women of the day; complete peerage, etc. 1899. D. Black, cl. 3s. 6d.

1. World almanac and encyclopaedia. 1898. D. New York World, pa. 25 cents.

2. Young, R. a.n.a.lytical concordance to the Bible, n.d. Ed. 6. Q.

Religious tract society, cl. 24s., mor. 30s.

CHAPTER XIII

Reference work---Helping the inexperienced inquirer--Periodicals

Reference work in libraries large and small has for its first rule: Meet the inquirer more than half way. To the stranger a library is often an oppressive place, an awesome place--in his imagination. He comes in shyly; everyone appears busy, his question suddenly seems to him trivial; he won't trouble these wise and busy people with it--and goes out.

A good second rule is: Learn at once just exactly what the inquirer wishes to know. This is not always easy. Tact and a little patience will generally effect it.

A good third rule is: Whenever possible show the inquirer how the answer is found, so that he may next time in some measure help himself. It is surprising how many, especially of the younger people in a community, can be taught within one year, on their occasional visits, to make the proper use of at least a few reference books.

Another rule of very general application is: Go first to a dictionary.

In many cases a question answers itself, or betrays where its answer may best be found, if it is once plainly stated. And nothing is better than reference to a few words in a dictionary for the clear statement of a question. The larger dictionaries, moreover, and notably the Century, will answer many more inquiries than even great readers often suppose.

Many questions come up again and again. Of these, and of the references which answered them, notes should be kept on cards for future use. In fact it is well to keep an index in this way of the references looked up for all the more important inquiries.

The following excellent advice is from an article on The use of periodicals in reference work, by Frederick Winthrop Faxon, in Public Libraries for June, 1898:

"In all reference work periodicals play a large part. They may be roughly divided into two great cla.s.ses, the technical and the popular.

The former are indispensable to the scholar, or the expert, and in the rapid advancement of science are the only real sources of information.

Text-books or treatises are out of date before published; therefore for a correct present view, or a complete history of the development of any science, the technical reviews and society transactions must be consulted. These will be the princ.i.p.al part of a scientific library, and should be in the large public and college libraries in order to cover advanced study.

They have, on the other hand, little place in small libraries--they would seldom be of use, and are very expensive.

"But the popular periodicals every library needs. In the better cla.s.s of these reviews it is possible, if we know where to look, to find several articles on both sides of almost any subject. Furthermore, these are often written by the foremost authors or scientists, and are in a language intelligible to all. The amateur cannot give the time or patience to wade two-volume deep in the subject his club wishes him to treat in half an hour's speech. The magazine gives just what he wants in several pages. There are periodicals exclusively devoted to every branch of every science, and magazines which, in their files, include articles on all subjects. This mine of information has been opened up by Poole's index. Since 1881, when the third and enlarged edition of Poole's index was published, all this is common property for the asking. Grouped around Poole and keeping pace with the times are the Poole supplements, which ought, perhaps, to be named the Fletchers, covering the five-year periods since 1881, ending respectively 1886, 1891, 1896. Then the Annual literary index gives a yearly index of subjects and authors, and serves as a supplement to the Poole supplement. For such as cannot be even a year without a periodical index we now have the admirable c.u.mulative index, bi-monthly, edited by the Cleveland public library. Thus all the princ.i.p.al periodicals since the beginning of the century may be consulted by reference to one or more of five single books or alphabets.

"The Review of reviews must be mentioned as a useful monthly index to current periodical literature, but of little value for study reference as compared with the indexes just mentioned. An annual index issued by the Review of reviews, since 1890, is good in its way, though rather superficial. Sargent's Reading for the young, and its supplement, index the juvenile sets of St Nicholas, Harper's young people, and Wide Awake. Poole and the c.u.mulative are of little use without a fair a.s.sortment of the sets therein indexed.

"Thus far 442 t.i.tles (practically all of them serials published since 1800) have been indexed. It is a mistake, however, to suppose that most of these are necessary in a small library before Poole's index should be purchased or can be of use. Given Poole and a complete set of Littell's living age, and Harper's monthly, more reference work can be done than with twice the number of reference books not periodicals.

A small collection of sets has enabled more than one struggling library to hold its own with the students and club members, and to accomplish work which could not have been done as well with many works of reference, the purchase of which would have exhausted the whole book fund."

CHAPTER XIV

Reading room--Periodicals

A free reading room is generally opened in connection with the library, and often proves its most attractive feature. It should be comfortably furnished and scrupulously clean. As the room is for the use of all clean and orderly people, quiet should be maintained to give all a chance to read and study without interruption. There should be no signs commanding things, and the fewest possible--and they un.o.btrusive--requesting things. Signs giving information helpful to readers are always permissible; but see that they harmonize with the furnis.h.i.+ngs of the room and are clean. Gray, or some modest tint, is preferable to white cardboard for all signs. The general atmosphere of the place should be such as one would wish to have in his own home--orderly, inviting, cheerful.

The village library ought to preserve for reference a file of local papers; and it seems proper for it to provide for public use a few dailies or weeklies from the nearest cities. Further than this in this direction it would not seem expedient to go, because better work can be done, with the money newspapers would cost, in other directions.

In fact, where the room is limited, as well as funds, it will often be better to provide no newspapers at all. Few are unable to get papers to read elsewhere. The library can well devote itself to the encouraging the reading of other things. Most people read the newspapers enough, library or no library. Many, save for the library, would not read the standard American and English periodicals.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Magazine binder. (Reduced; various sizes.)]

The young people are the library's most hopeful material. To them the librarian hopes to give, through books and journals, an added pleasure; and in them he hopes to awaken a taste for reading something--in time something good. To attract the children it will be wise to have on file a few juvenile journals and picture papers and ill.u.s.trated magazines. As to the standard and popular monthlies and quarterlies there seems to be no question; they should be taken freely. The magazines furnish us with the best fiction, the best poetry, the best essays, the best discussions of all subjects, old and new, and the latest science. It is a question if many a village library would not do more, vastly more, to stimulate the mental life of its community, and to broaden its views and sympathies, and to encourage study, if it diverted a far larger part of its income than it now does from inferior books, and especially inferior novels, to weekly journals and popular and standard magazines. It is not yet fully impressed upon us that the thing the community needs is not a "library"--it may have a street lined with "libraries" and still dwell in the outer darkness--but contact with the printed page. Get this contact first, then, by means of attractive rooms, and clean, wholesome, interesting periodicals and books, and let the well rounded students' collection of books come on as it will.

From 5 to 20 per cent can very often be saved on the cost of periodicals by ordering them through a reliable subscription agency.

The custom is extending of taking extra numbers of the popular magazines and lending them as if they were books though generally for a shorter period and without the privilege of renewal. When this is done, put each magazine in a binder made for the purpose, and marked with the library's name, to keep it clean and smooth, and to identify it as library property. Similar binders are often put on the magazines which are placed in the reading rooms. (See Library Bureau catalog.)