Evening star., 1936-08-02

the days Of Spanish-Dutch sov-
ereignty, it was finally adjudged to
Holland upon the premise that it had
never been within the province Of
Spain to cede 1t to us. Maps within
the jurisdiction Of the Library Of
Congress were contributory factors In
reaching the decision.
The facilities Of the Division also
were heavily drawn upon when the
inhabitants of the Isle Of Pines Pc
titioned Congress to consider the
island a portion of our island pos
sessions, largely upon the basis that a
United States map showed the Isle of
Pines to be of the same color as that
of the United States, but other evi-
dence indicated that the map maker
apparently had washed the blue of
the surrounding ocean over the Isle
of Pines in a little darker shade, thus
causing it to take on the hue Of the
United States. Congress, however,
finally denied the petition.
To say that the Division of Maps Is
bulging with maps Is to put the case
mildly.
Protected From Hazards.
There are tiers upon tiers. in two
story high steel cases which constitute
the ideal way Of storing maps to pro-
tect them from the hazards Of dust,
fire and changes of temperature But
there are, unfortunately, almost as
many maps in the old original wooden
filing cases. considered the last word
IN equipment when the maps were
moved over from the Capitol in 1897
to their present overflowing quarters.
In order to relieve the congestion
in the map files 1t has been necessary
to take out all of the photographic
charts and place them in portfolios
in a book stack Of the Library.
The copyright law requiring two
copies be deposited in the Library
Of Congress has been one Of the Map
Divisions chief sources Of acquisition,
but an increasingly great number Of
maps are coming to the collection
through gifts, transfer. exchange and
purchase.
More and more, public-spirited citi-
Gems and the public in general are
coming to realize that the Library of
Congress will preserve for posterity
treasured maps and aliases under con-
ditions of usefulness. which 1t Is sell
dom possible to achieve In . pri-
vate capacity.
AS with everything else in our ma
tional life, the increment Of maps
varies from year to year. In 1888
there were about one-third fewer
maps added to the collection than
had been the case in more normal
times. This year, to date, there has
been an increase Of 21,000 maps, or
$500 more than were received in
the division last year.
An industrious expert, skilled in the
mounting and repairing Of old maps,
mounted almost 1000 last year. Yet,
he scarcely was able to scratch the
surface Of the divisions needs along
this line alone.
Collection Famous Throughout World.
Comparatively little has been writ
ten about maps in the United States
in comparison with the vast amount
of geographical literature that has
been published in European countries
The first chief Of the division was
Mr.. Phillip Lee Phillips, who came
to head this section upon its organi-
zation in 1897 from his position as a
cataloguer in the Library Of Congress
Under his direction there were COM
piled the list of maps Of America in
the Library of Congress published by
Congress in 1901, and the list of geo.
graphical aliases in the Library Of
Congress, in four volumes, 1909-1920.
In the span Of life that was allotted
to. him until 1924, the division, thanks
to the cooperation of its librarian,
Herbert Putnam, became known
throughout the world for its Amer
lean history collection.
The present chief, Col. Martin, has
q worldwide reputation as a carto-
grapher and geographer, having been
honored with numerous foreign dis
tinctions and awards. He came to
head the division from the State De-
partment in october, 1924, nine
months after the death Of Mr.. Phil
lips.
In Col. Martins absence on Sum-
mer leave, was directed to Miss
Clara Egli, q slender brunei, almost
shy in manner, who, I discovered, was
the assistant chief Of the division.
Despite her extremely modest mien.
I speedily found that here was au-
thoritative knowledge, the result Of
some 81 years Of study, research and
experience in this particular depart
ment Of the Library, although her
youthful appearance bellies her COM
ing Of age professionally.
Only by o persistence that eluci-
dated q bit here and one there, did ]
find out that Miss Egli has been as
sistant chief since 1881.
While employed as an assistant IN
the catalogue division, Miss Egli well
coined an opportunity to supplement
her income by serving in the Division
of Maps on Sundays for nine months
of the year, as well as on many holi-
days Here began that absorbing in
terest in maps which has become the
motivating one Of her life.
Among her contributions to the
photography Of maps is her biography
Of Cyprian Southack, famous New
England sea captain, whose life span
was from 1665-1745. His galley
ACQUIRED the MassachlasettS coast for