Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1889-09-12
IN FREE READING ROOMS.
QUEER CHARACTERS WHO HAUNT
NEW YoRRs LIBRARIES.

them.
In the Mercantile library, for instance,
there are three men who spend the entire |
day there reading anything and every
thing, and this they have been doing for
years. One is an elderly man and both
the others are middle aged. They are at
the door of the room when it opens in the
morning at 0 o'clock. They take their
ssets in the most methodical fashion and
SnesR. One of them occasionally goes
@SRh stairs, gets book from the library,
&aA returning in a few moments, settles
himself in his corner with grunt of sat
isfaction and then appears oblivious to
his surroundings for hours.
At noon, or thereabouts, this trio goes
out to luncheon. Not together, as each
seems to be unaware of the similarity of
the others habits. Sometimes one comes
back in twenty minutes, sometimes in
thirty, but none would presume to re-
main away longer than an hour.
In the afternoon their pastime is again
resumed, and it is continued until the
doors close at night, when they go away
reluctantly.
When the library made rule to close
at 8 o'clock Saturday afternoons, these
people and several others protested
against the early closing movement as
an outrage.
Over at the Astor library there was
formerly peculiar looking German who
wore waxed ringlets and tremendous
necktie. He studied Goethe entirely, and
made notes by the bushelful on dirty
scraps of paper that he picked from the
floor or fished from his pockets. He has
been missed for some time.
There is one nice looking, white haired
old gentleman who comes to the Cooper
union reading room in the neighborhood
of Q o'clock every day and calls for can
thon's Classical Dictionary" which is a
sort of biography of eminent ancient
characters.
He never asks for anything else, and
when he is seen to enter, the librarian, if
not busy, goes to the case and brings that
work to the desk.
The peculiar thing about this character
is that he has been pursuing this custom
ever since 1888. The reading room was
closed during the extensive alterations tc
the building during 's5 and 's6. When
it reopened almost the first visitor was
this same white haired old gentleman,
and Mr.. Curtiss, the librarian, could moi
repress broad smile as the old gentle
man stepped before his desk and, laying
down his check, said, "How dye do
Glad you're open again." and then add
ed, unconcernedly, "Anthon's Classica
Dictionary, please"
There is another queer fellow VIII
comes into the same reading room ant
follows the attendants around as they FL
newspapers and periodicals. AS soon a
the attendant places one Of these in it
proper place the queer individual take
it up and rapidly turns and scans tn
pages. When the next one is placed h
props the first and Skins over the second
This he does with each and every one
He seems to have no definite object i
doing this, as he cares not what the pull
licatiOn may be.
At first the library assistants did nc
know what to make of him, but they ar
used to him now and would miss his con
panionship were he to leave off.
There is q third man who is also
daily visitor, and he must have informa
= ton enough stored away in his breast
run the world.
He is probably between 30 and G
years old. He has an air Of comfol
about him, and might be taken for
one time workingman who had amasse
q competence upon which he propose
to live at his ease for the rest of h
days. He has been coming to the libr,
~ for several years and began his reat
ing on volume i Of the American Ell
cyclopmdia. That book he called fl
evsry day for goodness knows how loni
and when he had presumably exhauste
its contents he began on volume
and SO he continued until he came
the last volume.
Then he began on volume 1 agai
and went over the entire ground. It
thought that he has read the Encycl
p@dia at least dozen times, and he
still at it.
Up at the Mechanics library ON We
Sixteenth street an old man had been
frequent visitor. He was fully 50 yea
old and feeble at that. He had man
for reading books ON longevity, az
bored for hours over "Inman's Prese
vation of Life" "Collins' Secret Of Lor
Life" and books Of the kind.
"Look at that old man." said Il
librarian one day to his assistant.
don't think his deep study on the pre-
ervation of life will keep him from Il
grave much longer. He has been loo
ing badly for week or two, and a
pears to be at the edge of the precipi
now" The prophecy proved correc
for the next thing heard Of tie old m;
was that he had been called from tt
weary world, and the knowledge CLEAN,
from Collins or Inman did not suffice
: keep him.
II Another character at the Mechanic
library is an old lady who revels in Il
most sentimental love stories. Tn
there are several misses who draw o
books Of the deepest philosophy ''just
show the high taste they have" the nj
at the desk says, and there are numb
of old men who delight In reading tai
of adventures for boys.
The ubiquitous TRAMP is a freque
caller at the Mechanics and other II
/ ~. i q 4 II II 4