River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1904-07-07
[ Numbered LIBRARY BOOKS
Public Institution Has to Renovate
Thousands Of Volumes
Every Year.

A large room on the first floor of the
Chicago public library building reminds
one Of laundry with soiled clothes at
one end and washed and ironed ones at
the other. Two or three long, wide
tables are covered with books, torn,
frayed and dirty. Other tables and rows
of shelves are filed with volumes just
from the bindery, in spick span, new
clothes, with black, blue, green, purple,
maroon or red backs; not as gaudy or as
gilty as in their original array, but far
more solid and substantial, says the Chi
cago Tribune.
Last year 5000 volumes were reclaimed
and reclad, and this year 5000 will be-.
Most of them are novels, an occasional
history or work on practical arts feeling
as lost in the tattered rank of fiction as a
pedigreed dog among the ours of the
pound. The original binding seldom
lasts more than six months. But stout
boards" in place of cloth is substituted,
and the leather backs instead of cloth
ones. The thread is much stronger, and
each token" or cluster of pages, is
sewed separately, so that the renovated
book of this grade and sort lasts four or
five times as long as it did in it's original
covers. Each new book costs an average
of IS cents, and it's new suit 35 cents, or,
taking into account it's longer endurance,
about nine cents.
The chief damage done is the tearing
of the leaves, the tearing of the covers
from the leaves, the soil, and the writing
in them. The writing mainly consists
of comment upon the book, either in
praise or blame. Lovely book" 'Fine
story" "Be sure and read it." isn't
she just lovely?" 81 think Reginald is a
splendid fellow" Gust too fine for any
thing" Adverse judgments are briefer
and explicit Bum and mo good"
sums it up.
These commentaries have all to be
erased, which is sometimes made impos-
sible by their being written in indelible
ink Occasionally the character of the
book provokes controversial inscrip-
tions. Books in favor of secession excite
emphatic protests from union readers.
The history of Belle Boyd" the spy, has
been fearfully marked up with frank
opinions of her secession proclivities.
Protestants and Catholics also give vent
to their sentiments in regard to each 9TH
er's creed and conduct So do those of
socialistic or anarchistic beliefs, when
the rare chance of their presence in fic-
ton offers. Frequently these voluntary
commentators are satisfied to draw line
under the obnoxious text and set ques-
ton or interrogation mark in the mar
gin. These expositions are generally in
poor writing, bad spelling, and bad Eng
lish. Occasionally they are bitter, and
even profane.
Two or three damaged books are kept
as curiosities. One is history, by SEN
ator Lodge, of Massachusetts. It was
run over by the wheel of street car and
a hundred-odd pages cut sheer across d1-
agonally. Another is copy of the Unit
ed States Official Register, from which
some one while in the library was able
undetected to cut over 400 pages contain
ing the list of post offices and postmast-
ers in the United States, probably for
mailing list. Many of the books are bad
ly stained with the compound of mud
and SCOT that overlays Chicago streets.
When a book has been defaced or dam
aged, but is not yet far gone enough for
rebinding, the one who draws it from the
library after the defects have been seen,
Is protected by stamped line reading:
pages 145 to 153 of this book were cut
out previous to June Is, 1904" or what
ever the date may have been.