The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1893-06-24
HOW BOOKS GO AsTRAY.
rho Various Ways In which Public libra
rics Lose Many Volumes.

Tics ssUSe 'bhHy NOIuues.
There are forty-nine public libraric'
In this city, all of which do larger
Or smaller circulating business. 1t is
safe to say that the aggregate number
IF volumes on the shelves in these
forty-nine libraries will amount to at
least one million, five hundred thou
sand. 1t is no wonder, then, that
with this large number of books, and
the many who draw them and either
take them to their homes or use them
in the libraries, n great many should
be lost.
at would be q matter of surprise to
a layman, said the librarian of one OF
the largo libraries recently. eff he
could know by actual count the mum.
Der of books which are lost. strayed or
stolen in all the libraries of the city.
Do not understand me to mean that all
| of the books which disappear from the
library shelves and never find their
way back again are Intentionally
stolen; great many people take books
to their homes. and although their in
tention is good and they mean to re.
turn them they forget to- do so. OF
course we keep an account of all the
books that are taken from the library,
and If n member is derclict we write to
| him and aSi. for the return of the book.
In many instances we get them back.
In some cases, however, they have been
kept so long that the fines which we
impose for keeping n book after it
| is overdue have grown to such
an amount that they exceed the value
i I.~f a L..
not afford to return it. This in some
instances is made good by the borrower
| replacing the book. in which case we
say nothing about the fine, being glad
to get the book back again. even
though we do have to put on new
cover and Il new library label. In
other eases, however. and these are
! very many, the borrower has moved
and left no address, and has probably
gone out of town to take up residence
in another city. Then the book is lost
to us forever. You can readily see how
it would not pay for us to spend any
very large amount of time or money in
looking up book which is worth per-
haps dollar or two"
among what class of books are the
disappearances lnrgest?'
so, fiction of course, because the
largest number of disappearances are
in consequence of the reasons have
given you. And I'll tell you very
singular thing. 1t may astonish you.
l say it with a due respect to the in.
tegrity of clergymen, but whenever we
let a clergyman take book from the
library we lleepa more particular watch
upon that book than upon any other
1t seems hard to say it, but there are
more valuable books lost by reason OF
lending to clergymen than by lending
to any other class of people. This does
not argue that they are exceedingly
absent minded. 1t is certain that there
is no class of people who are so un
businesslil1e in their methods as min
listers. Their intention is good enough
but the books get on their shelves, and
they are chiefly books of reference, anG
after they have worked up the particu
lar sermon for which they wanted the
book they forget all about it. If they
are regular members of library it i:
easy enough to recover the book. be
cause we can jog their memories whe1
they come in for other books, but man,
clergymen come to libraries who ar,
not members, and their cloth is sutfi
: cient to secure for them the courtesie
of almost any library in the city. No
body cares to refuse minister a book
Very frequently their cards bear no ad
dresses, and sometimes even clergymel
move.
"Then there are the women. Forget
, full and without an idea of busines
methods. We write, and write, ant
; write, and get no response, and Otter
have to send one of our employees t,
call in person and secure the book"
"Valuable books?"
swell, it is sometimes very cas-,
I matter fo~ persons who are meal
enough to steal books to steal these. /
man comes in with a package or
satchel. In very few libraries is ther
man stationed on watch on the exit
: whose business it IS to see that nobod,
comes in or goes out with a package
1t is the easiest thing in the world
where man gets book to use in tn
library, for him to wrap it up in tn
package which he has been carrying
e and which, perhaps, contains two o
/ three other books, or to. drop
y into his satchel and carry it out an
q this is the way that most of them ar
stolen. Ev n law libraries, which ar
the best guarded libraries in the city
suffer considerably from this metho
e of stealing. IN. Y. Press.