Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-01-04
Fifty Years Ago
In The Star

On the strength Of the report Of the
engineers that q proper foundation
Planning for G GUSlc De s tUune for
New Library. the new Library Of
Congr ess Building
without great expense, a joint congress
Sional committee having this project
in charge was prepared to press for leg
islation Immediately after the recon-
vening Of Congress in 1881. The fol-
lowing in The Star of December 90,
1880, relates to this question:
"Plans and designs in several different
styles Of architecture have been sent to
Senator Voorhees,, chairman of the
Joint Congressional Committee, for the
proposed new Library Building, and the
committee will report the bill for the
construction of the building soon after
the recess. The members of the COM
mittee, who by reason of their duties
have been all through the Library, fully
appreciate the urgent necessity of pro-
viding the new building at the earliest
practicable moment and they intend to
press this important matter with all
their ability.
every available inch Of space in the
Library rooms at the Capitol seems to
be Allied, and yet there is q steady in
crease in the number Of volumes. The
shelves contain double rows of books
one row behind the other-while on the
floors are stacks and piles of books, Pc
riodicals, etc., as high as they can be
piled. For the present year the copy
right entries reach about 10000, while
in no former year did the number go
above $4,000. Two COPIES or volumes of
every copyright are required by law to
be sent to the Library, 50 that by this
channel alone the increase In the Lie
brary this year has been 10000. Among
the copyrights are multitudes Of large
fine engravings, chromoS and other
works Of art, which occupy much more
space than the corresponding number
Of books.
THE growth of maps has been enor-
nous, and though they are valuable, all
Of them are unused, because of want Of
space to arrange them for display, and
they must remain as 50 much dead mat
ter until the Library is put in quarters
where these maps can be properly dis
played. Complete sets of all the books
and works printed by the Government
are required to be kept in the Library,
and my this means thousands of vol
umes, many of them very large, are an
nually added to the already overcrowded
rooms. Then there is an immense
yearly increase Of English and other
foreign books and periodicals and Of the
published transactions Of learned So
cieties and organizations throughout
the civilized world, which are obtained
through exchanges with the Smith
sonian Institution for similar works of
our country. The Smithsonian sends
these vast and valuable exchanges to
the Congressional Library.
ITO these must be added thousands
NJ vO1I1Y1ac If documents F1lIhliChad an
nually by foreign governments, which
were obtained by exchange for the
works, documents, etc, published by our
Government. All these exchanges from
all the governments, making yearly
vast collection, are stored in the Lie
brary. Besides these several channels
of collection and increase, there is the
yearly purchase of books and publica-
tions, etc, with money appropriated by
Congress for that purpose.
This stream Is constantly pouring In
upon the Library, which Is already 50
packed and damned that 1t Is utterly
impossible to make room for more.
Everybody readily admits that there
must be Library Building to accom-
modate the rapidly growing institution
and those most familiar with the con-
dition of the Library realize that the
new accommodations must be provided
without delay, as much OF the valuable
collection is being injured because of
want of sufficient room for properly ar
range the conference.
1.-THE purpose Of the committee is to
provide money and begin work on the
proposed new building in Judiciary
Square as soon as the weather will adj
NIT for that sort of work, and then to
push the building to completion. Once
In the new building the Library win be
kept open at nights, and everybody viii
be welcome to its reading rooms. The
regulations for taking books from the
Library will probably remain as at pres
ent, controlled by members of Congress
The idea will be to make 1t a national
reading library and not a circulating
library. The present Library rooms are
not provided with gas and therefore
could not be kept open ct night, even Il
the rules permitted it.