The Opelousas courier., 1892-05-21
THE NATIONAL LIBRARY,
a GREAT COLLECTION OF BOOKS
AND PAMPHLETS.
Nearly 600, GOO Volumes - Facts
About Copyrishts-A New Libra
ny Building.

most active IN the world, writes
the Washington correspondent
Of the Times-Denocrat. The
gray matter which lines our Uranium
seems to grow in power from year to
year, and there are almost as many liter
ary inventions as there are mechanical
ones. We are fast becoming a hookish
nation, as well as a working one, and the
day will come when our national library
of Congress will surpass in size any of
the other great libraries Of the world.
We have one of the finest librarians IN
the world in the Hon. AinsWorth B.
Spofford, who tos a quarter Of a century
has been dealing out books to the Con
gressmen, scientists aud iterateurs who
make Washington their headquarters. |
called on Mr.. Spofford and asked him to
tell me the extent of the library, and to
give me the condition of the copyright
bill. Said he.
awe have now in the National Libra
ry very nearly seven hundred thousand
bound volumes and two hundred thou
sand pamphlets. This is an immense
amount of literary matter, and. we now
rank as the sixth great library of the
world. Tne five greater ones are the
National Library Of France at Paris, the
British Museum Library at London, the
Royal Library of Germany at Berlin, the
Imperial Library of Russia at st. Peters
burg, The Paris library is the largest,
containing two and a quarter million
volumes. The British Museum Library
ranks second, with one aud a half million
volumes.
HThese foreign libraries are much
older than ours. The Library of Con
gress had a small beginning in the year
1900, when an appropriation of $4,000
was made to purchase books for the use
of Congress. The selections were limited
to such works as were needed by the
members for reference. As a people we
were then almost unknown in literature.
There was evidently no thought Of giving
to the library its present wide scope.
Additions were made from time to time,
and the library gradually assumed a more
extended range. =
Besides copies of all books copy
righted and published in the United
States, the library contains probably
200, 600 foreign books, which are pro
cured by both purchase and exchange.
About three-fourths of the whole mum
Der are of American and English issue.
The remaining fourth represents all
civilized nations of the world, with
France and Germany in the lead. There
are books in all the languages of Eu-
rope, and a limited number from Asia
and other countries. Any foreigner Wis
iting Washington and wishing to consult
books in his mother tongue may find
them here"
"Does the library grow much from
year to year,
"The yearly increase of books in the
library is from Is, 900 to 10000. In
the actual number of volumes the in
crease is 10, 0 to $4,000 greater, as
the copyright law requires the filing of
two copies of each publication. One
copy is placed in the library and the
other is deposited in the copyright ar
chives. From 5000 to 5000 volumes,
chiefly foreign, are added by purchase
each year and as many more by donation
and deposit"
TELL me something about copy
rights"
1.-THE first copyright law" replied Mr..
Spoford, "in the United States was
passed in 1890. There are books on our
shelves bearing that date. In these later
DAYS of making books there is no end,
but at that time the copyright business
| was not a hundredth part of what it i:
now. Last year the number of entries
for copyright was 1925. Of these
there were: Books, Il, 1888; periodicals
lin round numbersl, 1000; musical
and dramatic compositions, 5000:
| photographs, 1000; ~engravings and
chromos, 1000; the remaining $500
embrace prints, cuts, designs, drawings,
! paintings, maps and charts. Formerly
business trademarks and labels were also
issued under the copyright law, but il
| 1874 these were transferred to the Pat
ent Office. The issue of copyrights by
the librarian of Congress isnow confined
to literature aud art in their variou:
branches. A copyright secures the au
thor against pillage of the product of his
brain, as a patent does to the Inventor,
The life of a copyright is twenty-eigh
wears. At the expiration of that time i
may be renewed fer fourteen years NOR
By the author, or by his heirs if he b,
dead. It cannot be extended beyond
fort5-two years. There are very few pub
locations tbs vitality of whfca is not ex.
hausted long before even the first limfI
is reached.
aThe library of Congress is open Il
the people Of Washington. Books ma,
be drawn upon a deposit of money t,
cover their value, the money being re
turned when the drawer wishes to close
the account. The books that may b,
taken out are the duplicate copies upor
the shelves. Those in the archives ar,
not disturbed. There is no library il
Washington that is accessible to the gen
era. public. Each of the department
mas q library IoF the Use OF It's eHpioye
only. The loss Of the books of tn
library Of Congress IN consequence o
the circulating system is small and i
made good from the money forfeited i
such cases. The reminding of book
when necessary is done out of the lihrar
appropriations.
1.-THE library is now very muc
crowded. Is it nnt2o