Evening star., 1936-11-16
MEDICAL LIBRARY
WILL CELEBRATE
Army Unit to Observe Hun
dredth Anniversary
This Evening.

largest medical library III 1iic WI iu'
located at Seventh street and Inde.
pendence avenue southwest, will cele-
brate the Tooth anniversary OF its
founding tonight at O'Clock.
The program will be opened by the
librarian. Col Harold w. Jones, and
Surg. Gen. Charles J. Reynolds OF the
United States Army, will make the
address of welcome. The guest OF the
evening, Sir Humphrey Davy Roles
ton, Bart. eminent physician OF Hasle-
mere. Surrey, England, will make the
principal address.
Sir Humphrey, who holds several
degrees. was formerly regius professor
of physics at the University Of Cam
bridge, as we'll as president OF the
ROYAL Society of Medicine and OF the
Royal College Of Physicians. AS q
student of the history of medicine ne
has long been interested in the Army
Medical Library.
Col. Jones announced more than
1900 invitations to prominent persons
have been issued for the occasion, 500
to foreign countries. Among those
who have indicated their intention
to attend the ceremonies are DR.. Har-
vey Cushing, brain specialist OF Yale
University and biographer OF William
Osler; DR.. Henry E. Sigerist, profes-
sor of the history Of medicine AZ
Johns Hopkins University and dlrec-
tor of the history of medicine IN
Baltimore.
Others will include Lieut.. Gen.
Friedrich Won Boetticher, military at
tache of the German Embassy; Dr.
Simon Flexner of the Rockefeller
Institute in New York City; Dr.
George r. Minot of Boston, a recent
winner of the Nobel Prize for medi-
cine, who will represent the Belgian
Royal Academy of Medicine. and Miss
Margaret Janeway Billings, the daugh-
ter of Deputy Surg. Gen. John Sna"
Billings. Prominent local figures who
will attend the ceremonies will be
Admiral Percival Rossiter, surgeon
general of the Navy, and Merrltte W.
Ireland, former surgeon general OF
the Army.
Flow OF Greetings.
A continuous flow Of greetings on
the centennial from other world
famed medical institutions, socletles
and libraries is being received
in the librarians Office. The Royal
Caroline Institute of Stockholm, Swe.
den. congratulated the Army Medical
Library on its anniversary with
handsome Latin parchment scroll
Sin,ilar sentiments were received from
the president and fellows of the Royal
College of Physicians of Ireland.
The ROYAL Academy of Medicine o.
ireland, in formally acknowledgint
and thanking the Army Medica
Library for its invitation to the cere'
monies, wrote that its 1ellowl
and members had long beer
conscious of the great oeo'
that medical workers all over th'
world owe to your library and YOU
wonderful Index Catalogue.
The Index Catalogue, the prepara'
tion of which has been called gar
rantuan" by the famous physician
william Osler. is probably the great
est contribution made by the Army
Medical Library, recognized as one o.
the foremost scientific institutions ol
the world. The work was started d
the recommendation and under th'
supervision of DR.. John Shaw Bill
ines. the famous first librarian OF the
institution, who was able to secure
funds for this purpose from the Fed
eral Government after the Civil War
In DR.. Billings words, this index wa
commenced to spare medical teach
ers and writer's the drudgery Of con.
sulting 10000 or more different texts
to find the dozen or so references OF
which they might be in search"
The Government Printing Once
annually publishes 1000 copies OF tht
Index Catalogue, the worlds standard
medical photography, at an estimated
cost of $33 per copy. The 1nde,
Medicus, another much-thumbed an.
nual contribution Of the library. Il
Q catalogue of more general scientific
classification.
No other medical library is as rich
In medical material as the Army Med
zeal Library. On the shelves Of thi,
vast storehouse of medical literature
there rest, according to recent
count, 941,1S1 literary items.
Begun in 1886.
The library was begun in 1886 ~
the humble reference collection o.
Surg. Gen. Joseph Lowell of the Army
In the cramped quarters over the ole
Riggs Bank across from the present
Treasury Building on Pennsylvania
avenue, books and pamphlets wert
accumulated until the piles became
too cumbersome They were ther
ticketed and catalogued and sent t.
the Library Hall in Ford's Theater
later the scene of President Lincoln.
assassination The hall was ther
used by the War Department, largel,
Is storehouse. 1t is said that spac'
was so limited in the quarters owe
the Riggs Bank that boxes Of book
had to be opened in the back yard.
An appropriation Of 100000 mad
by Congress in 1885, two years late
opened to the public the present three
story building which houses both tn
Army Medical Library and Museum
The Army Medical Library shares one
half of the building.
Further appropriations by Congress
have enabled the library to purchas
many medical literary treasures. Their,
are about 600 known medical volume
which were printed before the yea
1900. OF this number the Arm!
Medical Library possesses $50, man!
of these being the sole copies Of tn
edition in existence.