The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-08-05

are readily accessible from tho main reading
rooms, where they will be constantly In use. Tho
arrangement of tho stacks affords a reasonable
amount of light and does not make the stacks
wholly dependent on artificial light. which will
be expensive and In other respects objections.
only six tiers OF stacks; tho space at tho bottom,
corresponding to the level Of tho basement,
t eStns 9 %Si not eSt ! tSr GsbHs fd 5nr storss sp ~
books"
Of the reading rooms freely open to the public.
tho main ones are TO accommodate 500 readers
and to cover 26,s00 square feet, allowing thirty
square feet for zach reader. There will be three
rooms T ,,n,s So SS %rr ri : cs1 IN that es SnIS one need be used at
counter. Tho periodical and newspaper rooms
arc to cover 1000 square feet each. There viii
documents rooms, 1000 square feet; a children's
room. 1000 square foet, accommodating 80
feet. for 20 readers. The reading rooms for
scholars and special, students, to which admis-
sion will DO by card only. win be divided as
follows: Five or six special reading rooms,
from !, 800 TO 1000 square feet each; manuscript
department. will n storeroom. reading and
| a Bible room. 800 square feet u map room, 1000
square feet. and eight ,workrooms for special
students: The lending lend ing delivery room will have
will cover 10000 square feet. There will be three
exhibition rooms, open to the public, consisting
and an exhibition room for the history Of print.
ing. The administrative department will have
a trustees room cstnio aireeso rSom roU am oS an orGSr de- de.
BOOKS, a packing and delivery room. a dupii.
1900, 600 Volumes. $4,000 linear feet Of Shely.
ing, a binding department, q printing office, a
business superintendents Office, q photograph
ing department, and lunch rooms.
There will DO two reception rooms, a woman's
room. two cloak. parcel, and bicycle rooms. q
public telephone room, public lavatories, and
two or moro elevators.
The report OF the committee on the prelimi-
nary competition states that of tho eightyeight
designs submitted twenty.nine followed sub
stantially the scheme Of the tentative sketch
furnished In the instructions which placed the
] reading rooms on the third floor. The report
Tho result seems to show conclusivcly that
v~enience and OF economical administration can
be better met bv the arrangements suggested
ea trS tss't the book etSH t STACKS a"S in 1'n a rec ns . eSn.
the public reading, rooms above them on
en- ends S and in. f the middle OF the sS s"st si dea the s@ cen.
eentT saP SriivspS OF Of i Books fss cam b5 50 ss"sr sad w ihS
very simple mechanism. free and direct COM
munica,ion lbs between hHee the "a ADMINISTRATIVE mini hc dep art
and opportunity for easily extending both the
book stacks and the reading rooms toward the
west can be provided for. whenever this may be
desirable. Moreover, reading. rooms placed at
the top of the house are not only quietcr. better
the case with rooms OF equal size in the first or
second story. but they can be constructed with
out encumbcring the floor with columns; In all
these respects. the plans which place the read
ing rooms on the first or second floor are more or
less defective.
Against these advantages is weighed the
disadvantage Of two or three flights OF stairs.
But this is met by the use of lifts or elevators.
Since, moreover, most OF tho visitors who use
tho public reading rooms will probably enter
the building at the Forty.second street entrance,
which will probably be on the level OF the base:
ment floor, there will be one or two flights of
stairs to pass at any rate. and II elevators are
provided, as they should he, they may as well