The Louisiana Democrat. [volume] (Alexandria, La.) 1845-1918, 1891-07-22
NUMERALS THAT INFORM.
Curious Developments in the System OF
Numbering Houses,


When our forefathers began to mum.
Der the houses in their cities, they went
TO work in a very simple fashion. They
put on the first house, 2 on the next,
on the third, and so on until they
came to the end of street Then they
crossed over, and if the last house they
had numbered was 80, the first on the
opposite side was 81, the next 80, and
so on until they came back to
their starting point, when perhaps
number 100 faced number l. AS straight
and regular streets took the place of
crooked and winding ones, new plan
of numbering came into vogue. The
odd numbers We're given to the houses
on one side of the street, and even num-
bers to those on the other side. When
streets direction was known, a num-
Der at once told whether house faced
north or south, or east or west
Another improvement became posi-
BILE when new cities sprang up in Amer
lea, with thoroughfares as uniform as
the lines on chess-board. Philadel-
phia is a model in this regard, and it's
regularity enabled it's houses to be num-
bered in so instructive way that the
plan has been copied in many other
cities of the Union.
When, for example, one walks up
Walnut street, he finds the first door
above Ninth street to bear No. 9O1.
This although the next house below it,
across Ninth, is, let us say, No. $40.
The plan does not tell how many doors
there are in the street, but it does some
thing much better; it shows in the hum
dreds figure or figures of the number in
what particular block door is to be
found.
If tailor advertises coats at 1913
Walnut street, or any street parallel
with it, we know his door to be the sew
enth above Tenth street. Tenth street
itself, and all the thoroughfares rum
ming in the same direction, conform to
the system, and begin a new block with
new hundred for a number This
makes it not Only very easy to find ones
way about the city, but also to tell in
advance how long it will take to get
from one place to another.
In hotels and large office buildings a
somewhat similar plan is adopted,
greatly to the aid of guests and callers.
Room AT, for example, will be found
on the fourth floor; Immediately be-
meath it will be 81 on the third floor,
and over it SIT on the fifth.
Perhaps the most ingenious use of
numbers to convey information is due
to Mr.. Melvil Dewey, state librarian of
New York He has divided literature
into ten great departments, and given
each of them one of the ten numerals.
History, for instance, is represented by
0, and every historical work has for
the first figure in it's number.
The second figure denotes the subdi-
vision of history to which work be-
longs; as a second figure is marked
upon volumes treating of North Amer
lea. Another and similar step gives
as third figure for histories of the
United States.
The works of Mr.. George Bancroft,
as Mr.. Dewey would classify them,
would bear the numerals 97S. After
that number would come the figures
pointing out the shelf on which the vol
umes were to be found. To avoid dis
arrangement, it is usual in large libra
ries to leave ample room for new addi-
tons in each department; the shelves
are not permitted to become quito
full.-Youth's Companion.