Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-03-24
Books for the Public Library.

For ten years or so the advocates Of the
establishment In the District of a public
circulating library, whose efforts have just
eliminated In the installation of the public
library in the beautiful building given by
Mr. Carnegie, have been pointing to the
miscellaneous collections of books In the
departments. where they have served In
limited way the reading needs of the clerks
Of those offices When the public circulat-
ing library idea was first preached 1t was
believed that these books would of them
selves form substantial nucleus for the
great peoples collection. But as events
have developed. the library was organized
and finally housed in an Unexpectedly hand
some style before a move was actually
made to transfer to the shelves any OF
these scattered volumes. AS will be seen
by an article in todayS news columns a
start has at last been made to this end,
under the terms of a law enacted during
the session of Congress just closed, opening
the way, by a somewhat roundabout route.
from these departmental shelves to those OF
the public library.
The accession of nine hundred volumes
from the library of the Department of La
Dor, which is about to occur, ought to slim
,late the heads of the other departments
book collections exist. to follow the benef-
cent example of Commissioner Wright.
These department libraries are of an ex-
ceedingly limited usefulness. They are
available only to a small number of per-
sons and to them only for limited periods.
II placed within the charge of the public
library they would be available to the peo-
pie of the entire District and for a much
greater period. Their usefulness would be
vastly increased and the value of the pub
lie library to the community would be
HANGED.
OF course, each department will continue
to maintain its own technical book col
lection, available for immediate reference
by the officials and clerks of those offices.
1t has never been proposed to disturb these
collections or to cumber the shelves Of the
public library with works of a limited use
fulness to the average reader. The de-
mands Of circulating library are distinct
from those Of the technical collection.
There are. 1t is known, thousands of books
of the very character which are needed
at the Mount Vernon square establishment
for the benefit of all the clerks and Of the
national capitals entire reading population,
which. on the other hand, are not needed.
save for the selfish pleasure of very few
CLERKS, III tnelT present places OI CuStOuS.
Furthermore. there is reason to expect that
the move made by way Of this new law will
result in the opening of another source of
book supply. These books are to reach the
public library from the Library Of Con-
gress, where now rest many thousands Of
books of the very sort of which the former
Is now in need and for which the latter
has no real use. Upward Of twenty thou
sand Of these are duplicate copies of I'M
copyrighted works, the transfer Of which
to the public library Is presumably within
the power of the librarian of Congress
without further enactment Of law. There
are in addition a much larger number OF
copyright duplicates, for the transfer of
which some form of enactment may be re-
Quisite. inasmuch as they are in the custody
o. the librarian of Congress under the law
regulating copyrights. If the miscellaneous
departmental books and the uncopyrlghted
duplicates in the Library Of Congress are
transferred at once, there will be ma
terial increase In the usefulness of the cir
culating collection. And then when later
Congress sees fit to permit the transfer of
the copyrighted duplicates, or such of them
as it may be desirable to shift, the public
library will begin to attain to its full
stature as the book circulating medium of
the national capital.