z 675 N4 L6 MAIN B M EDI 7MD Newspaper Library Manual Adapted for use in Newspaper Offices and Schools of Journalism BY GUSTAF V. LINDNER Librarian New York Herald Ex-Assistant in Reference Dcpt. of the N. Y. Pub. Library LEMCKE & aUECHNER. NEW YORK. Copyright, 1912 By GUSTAF V. LINDNER Newspaper Library Manual Adapted for use in Newspaper Offices and Schools of Journalism ■ . > » , .- BY GUSTAF V. LINDNKR Librarian New Vork Herald Kx-Assistant in Reference Depr. of the N. Y. Pub. Library y CONTENDS Introduction 5 Librarian and His Duties 6 Library 7 Reference Department 8 Special Works 16 Cataloguing 18 Indexing Department 19 Index Subjects 23 Book Suggestions 33 Samples of Card Entries, Records, etc 39 Library Furniture 41 > t< INTRODUCTION. In journalistic routine it is obviously necessary at times to make use of information gathered from refer- ence works and records of various kinds. For this pur- pose a newspaper office usually has as its adjunct a library, or reference department, more or less complete- ly equipped, according to the utility expected of the same in each instance. The. m ain purpose of such a library is to furnish r e ndily -■viil'ihln nnrl nc c nr:ilc infnrmatimT on an y topic subject to publicity In order to serve these aims properly, peculiar requirements are demanded of a newspaper library, in regard to the selection of books, their cataloguing and arrangement, and also, especially in the office of a large daily newspaper, in regard to the system of managing the service itself by the librarian and his assistants. No matter how complete a library of this kind may be, its value is considerably lessened in cases where the accessibility of the material is hampered, either by lack of convenient service- methods, or by a reference system involving too much cumbersome red tape and, consequently, entailing a loss of valuable time. Since the importance of the library to exhaustive and systematic journalistic production is self-evident and fully recognized in the offices of our modern and enter- prising newspapers, the suggestions contained in this manual may be of some practical value, not only to those who already are, or eventually will be, in charge, of a newspaper library, but also to students of journalism, in general. The result of many years of actual experience in library and newspaper work is here compiled in con- cise form and the manual may therefore serve its pri- mary purpose as a ready hand book for newspaper libra- rians. 5 257883 :l^ NEWSPAPER LIBRARY WOR] I. THE LIBRARIAN AND HIS GENERAL DUTIES. On a daily newspaper the librarian has oftentimes one or more assistants, especially if any extensive indexing is being done. Among these assistants one is assigned to the inquiry desk, where members of the editorial staff apply for information. The inquiry clerk, or librarian, will not only advise questioners about sources from which the desired information may be gained, but will also pro- duce the reference material itself and assist in looking up whatever dates and facts may be wanted. The books, clippings, etc., thus produced, should be consulted in the library, and when the research is finished, the inquiry clerk must be notified, in order that he may restore the material used to proper locations. This is preferable to allowing staff members to attend to shelving of books which they have been consulting. In the latter event, books are easily misplaced, and time — one of the all-im- portant considerations in conveying news to the public — - is lost to the editor, or reporter, as the case may be. As a rule, reference material must not be removed from the library, except under urgent conditions. When it is deemed advisable to permit a staff member to take a l>n<>k temporarily out of the library to some other de- partment, but not out of the office, he is required to sign a receipt, which is thereupon dated and filed away by tlie librarian, who will destroy it upon the return of the borrowed material in good condition. Some general reference books, for instance, dictionaries, encyclopedias, gazetteers, maps, etc., are never allowed to be taken out of the library on any pretext. Record is kept of all inquiries made by staff members, giving names of inquirer and attendant, subject of in- quiry, time consumed in research and result obtained. This is done principally to enable the librarian to product' documentary evidence, in case subsequent developments in connection with any article or item should make it 6 desirable to trace its origin in detail. A day journal is also kept by the librarian, in which he records the pres- ence and hours of duty of the members in his depart- ment. The service must be arranged so that it covers every hour of the day and night, when any members of the editorial staff are on duty in the offiee. Besides attending to requests from staff members, the librarian, or his assistant, usually answers letters of inquiry from subscribers and other readers of the paper. Such correspondence is, in most instances, addressed to the General Manager, or The Editor, and is forwarded to the librarian for reply. The latter will not answer anv inquiries of this sort without the authorization of either of the above officials, or of somebody else who is em- powered to give instructions in the matter. II. , ■ ~ THE LIBRARY. To equip a newspaper library is rather expensive, if a fairly adequate collection of reference and other use- ful works is desired. The greater number of such books must be bought, and as some of them appear in new and revised editions annually, or periodically, it is not enough to lay out a considerable amount of money once for all <>n these costly works, but a regular annual ap- propriation is needed to keep a newspaper library sup- plied with up-to-date general reference material. Quite a few books, however, covering subjects which ought to be represented in a newspaper library, may be selected from those sent in by publishers for review. ( Hhers. like public documents, annual reports of institu- tions and societies, catalogues, etc., may be obtained simply by making request for them. Two distinct divisions constitute a complete news- paper library. ( )ne is the reference department, or library proper. The other is the indexing department, which is of secondary character, supplementing the for- mer in regard to detail information contained in files of contemporary newspapers, or periodical publications. It will be dealt with later on. after due attention has been given to the principal part of the newspaper library, its reference department. III. THE REFERENCE DEPARTMENT. Material in this department can be classified in four principal groups : General Reference Works. Biographical Works. Public Documents. Portraits and Pictures. I. General Reference Works. — Under this caption come, generally speaking, such books as are commonly found on the "open shelves" in the public libraries, i. e. } works containing standard information, of one kind or another, systematized in a way to make it easily, avail- able to the average searcher. For the sake of more expediency, the group may be subdivided in several sections : {a) Dictionaries of English and Other Languages. — It is needless to assert that an English dictionary of highest quality is the first requisite in a newspaper library. I f the appropriation at the disposal of the librarian will allow it, copies of the same dictionary should be placed also in the reporters' room, on the copy desk, and with the proofreader^. To insure uniformity in spelling, all these copies must be of one edition. As to dictionaries of foreign languages, it would be well to have as many of them as may be found prac- ticable. French and German dictionaries are highly de- sirable, and one of the Latin language is almost indis- pensable, at least one containing the expressions and phrases used in common legal and medical parlance. A Spanish dictionary will prove a valuable asset, in view uf the extensive field for news presented in the Spanish- speaking possessions of the L T nited States and the Latin- American countries. (b) Encyclopedias. — At least one general work of this character must be found in the library of a news- paper office. Then there are encyclopedic works in spe- cial branches of science and knowledge which are very serviceable and time-saving and supply more detail in- formation on account of being confined within their own specific ranges of subjects. To this class of reference s books belong dictionaries of architecture, art, law, litera- ture, medicine, music, mythology, painting, poetry, qu< tations, religion, statistics etc. Among them may also be grouped Concordance of the Bible, Dictionary of Days, historical dictionaries, books of facts and the like. (c) Annuals. — This group comprises publications of many different kinds, such as almanacs, year-books of societies, churches and other institutions, university and college catalogues, etc. Much of this material comes un- solicited to a newspaper office and should always be sub- mitted to the librarian, that be may select from it what seems to be worth keeping for future reference. Al- manacs are always handy to have in a newspaper library, because they usually contain much local information as well as election tables, records, digests and reviews of many kinds. (d) Atlases and Gazetteers. — One good atlas of the world on a fairly large scale is absolutely necessary, and so are detail maps of the states, territories and extrane- ous possessions of the United States. The state maps should show county divisions very plainly, and those of the locality where the newspaper concerned has its head- quarters and principal circulation must be as perfect in detail as possible. Gazetteers are often appended to at- lases, but it is advisable also to have a complete work of that kind. Of great assistance f<>r geographical pur- poses are a I nited States Post Office Guide and a Rail- road Guide, the latter having outline maps of the various railway systems. (e i Directories of Addresses. — Local address and business directories must be accessible at all times in a newspaper office. If only one copy of each is supplied, it would almost be better to place the address directory, at least, with the City Editor, or his assistant, who gives assignments to the reporters, than in the library. How- ever, copies ought to be kept also there and in the busi- ness office of the establishment. Address directories of other localities, including foreign capitals, are not ex- actly needed, but may on occasion be of great service. especially the foreign ones with their valuable miscel- laneous information, much of which can be used to good advantage as supplementary matter to short cable des- patches, in offices making a feature of their foreign news. 2. Biographical Works. — This is probably the most important section of a newspaper library and one to which cannot be given too much care and attention. The material must not only be kept up to date in order to be of real value, but should also be constantly increased from the numerous sources which are available to a watchful librarian. As with the general reference works, the scope of the biographical section will be best com- prehended by discussing its several component parts each for itself. (a) Biographical Dictionaries and Encyclopedias. — Of such there is a vast number in the book market from which it will be sufficient to select a couple of the most complete general works, one covering all nationalities and ages, and the other persons of mark in American history, political and social. (b) Who's Who Series. — In all likelihood no books, possibly with the exception of the English dictionaries, are more frequently consulted in a newspaper library than the collections of short personal sketches which commenced to be published some years ago under the title Who's Who. At present, quite a number of these publications are being issued at regular intervals. Thus there are an International Who's Who, a biennial Who's Who in America, another biennial Who's Who in New York State, and an annual English Y\'ho's Who. Cor- responding to these the Germans have their "Wer Ist's,' r and the French their "Qui EtesWous," both of which should have places alongside of the English books of the same class. Still another foreign biographical work which should not be lacking in a newspaper library is the Al- manach de Gotha, and to this might even be added no- bility calendars of the European countries. Of course, these foreign books are not required in small newspaper offices, which have no direct cable service, but those that have such cannot very well be without them. Want of equal means for establishing the identity of persons who arc only briefly mentioned in cable messages is many times the cause of regrettable mistakes, which should never be permitted to occur in a newspaper of quality. The misspelling of foreign names may once in a while be excused on some pretext, but other blunders of more serious nature are apt to creep into the foreign news, if 10 the editor in charge is not in possession of adequate re- sources for verifying his interpretation of a message. A case in point was presented recently when a European gentleman of princely rank was prominently mentioned in the American press. Jn three big daily newspapers he was, owing to a similarity of family names, referred to as so many separate individuals, and in one paper he was one day himself, next day a second cousin of his own and the day following some other representative of the same princely house. Intelligent readers will not be persuaded to blame such mistakes on that much-maligned receptacle of editorial and public odium, the printer's devil. (c) Professional Directories. — The number of these is limited, but all that are procurable should be acquired. It will be admitted that ordinarily they do not furnish much personal information, but they are nevertheless very useful for identification purposes. In connection with this kind of directories should be mentioned the pro- fessional "Who's Who" editions, which are augmenting rapidly, as their usefulness becomes more apparent. Here are the names of some, which have been published in one or more editions during recent years: 'Who's \\ ho in Finance," "Who's Who in Insurance." "Who's Who on the Stage," etc. ( d ) Club and Society Lists. — Membership rolls of local organizations, at least those of some prominence, are of good use, in the same way as professional direc- tories, and will sometimes prove of particular value in tracing the connections of some certain person. (e) Memorial Volumes. — On occasions of centenni- als, or other anniversaries, it is the custom of state or municipal authorities to issue memorial volumes, in which are frequently inserted good personal sketches, accom- panied by portraits, of leading citizens. If these sketches can be cut out of the volume without damage, this should be done and the material filed away in the obituary cabi- net, of which a description will be given here below. Otherwise, the volumes may be left intact and dummies for every sketch filed among the obituaries, with refer- ence to the shelf location of the book wherein the sketches may be found. Anniversary publications are easily ob- tained, because they serve at the same time as an adver- 11 tising medium and on this account are scattered about broadcast. ( f ) Obituary Sketches. — Every newspaper office has what is known in professional jargon as a "Morgue." The sinister appellation is derived from the fact that this "Morgue" is a repository for all kinds of clippings and other material intended for obituary sketches. It would, however, be entirely inconsistent with the practical and progressive spirit of American journalism to accumulate any "dead wood'' of this sort simply with a view of using it as coffin material, so to speak. The obituary envel- opes are of much greater and more immediate service than that. They are referred to constantly for personal data, and many times they are invaluable at a hurry call for a write-up of some more obscure or un- pretentious individual, who may have been brought into the limelight all of a sudden. He may not have been of enough conspicuity in civic life before to warrant his immortalization in any biographical reference work, but scraps of information about him may, on the other hand, have appeared in print from time to time and found their way to a niche in the newspaper "Morgue." The gath- ering of material for the latter will here be explained. Jt proceeds mainly from two sources: i. Clipping of personal items and sketches which ap- pear in daily and other newspapers and periodicals. 2. Securing the publications of various concerns which supply biographical sketches and portraits to news- papers, for instance, the United Press Syndicate, the Co- operative Press and the National Press Bureau, all lo- cated in Xew York City. These clippings and sketches are dated and riled away in stout envelopes (4x9 inches is a convenient size) and arranged alphabetically in a cabinet with drawers large enough to admit insertion of the envelopes in an upright position, so that the names written across their tops may be easily distinguished by running the fingers over a number of them. On the outside the cabinet drawers are labeled to show their contents, and if there be a great bulk of material, guide cards should be put in among the envelopes at expedient intervals. Additional clippings are placed every day in many of these envelopes, and new ones are tiled whenever a sketch 12 or personal notice is received concerning some person who has not been the subject of a write-up before. In order not to encumber the obituary cabinet with superfluous material, the death notice? in the daily papers arc clipped every day and arranged in alphabetical order at the end of the week. A search is then made of the cabinet, to ascertain whether any of those departed had a biographical envelope on file, and where this is found to be the case, such envelope is then withdrawn and de- stroyed. 3. Public Documents. — Through the liberality of fed- eral, state, municipal and other public administration.-, official documents and reports can be had for the asking in many instances. In others, a nominal price is charged. Newspaper librarians should undoubtedly take advantage of the opportunities of getting documents, yet they must exercise a good deal of discretion in deciding which of these should be kept permanently. Some are only of transient importance and may never be needed again for reference. Others, like monthly statements and sum- maries, may be held until supplanted by a quarterly, semi- annual or annual report. And again, many of the annual reports can be disposed of after receipt of the next suc- ceeding ones. Where the space will permit, it might be a good plan to maintain complete files of certain reports and other documents for a succession of years, although they are rather bulky and of comparatively small reference value. Besides, the public libraries usually have such files avail- able for consultation, and it seems a better policy to rely on this resource in an emergency than to pile up an onerous document collection in a newspaper office. It is difficult to give definite suggestions about what documents to preserve and which to discard. As already intimated, the newspaper librarian must follow his own judgment in the matter and be guided by consideration of the requirements of his own publication, as he knows them through previous experience, or as stated, at his request, by the chiefs of the various divisions in the edi- torial department. There are, naturally, instances when the particular character of an official document makes it a desirable addition to the newspaper library, for instance, transac- 13 tions and records of special boards of arbitration, in- quiry, investigation, etc., such as the reports of the Fed- eral Anthracite Strike Commission of 1902, the Lorimer United States Senate Inquiry, the Allds Investigation in New York, etc. Among the public documents may be counted the Con- gressional Directory and the Legislative Manuals of the different states. These are at the same time general reference and biographical works of great importance, and as complete files of them as possible ought to be kept. Another publication by the federal government which should not be lacking in the library is the United States Statistical Abstract. 4. Portraits and Pictures. — On many newspapers this section forms part of the art department, but in offices where only a small amount of illustrative work is being done, it is generally affiliated with the library. In either case, the librarian gathers material for the two "gal- leries" from the same sources to which he has recourse in keeping the obituary cabinet supplied. It is also con- sidered a commendable practice for him in his daily routine to note down names of persons who may be men- tioned casually in a news item, but are likely to come into greater prominence later. A list of these names is made up weekly and submitted to the chief of the art department, or some one else in authority, in order that photographs of the persons concerned may be ordered and held in readiness for future use. Portraits are kept on file in large envelopes, alpha- betically arranged on shelves. In case of group portraits with names attached, dummy envelopes, or entries, are employed in the same manner as described above with regard to memorial volumes, giving reference to the en- velope in which the portrait has been placed. Other group portraits, without individual names, as for example, of societies, clubs and the like, are filed under the names of the respective organizations. Pictures of places are similarly preserved. There is no need of any elaborate arrangement in geographical divisions and subdivisions. It would be impractical, for instance, to put a place like "Dresden" under "Saxony." and then have "Saxony" as a subdivision under "Ger- many." This would involve the looking up of three loca- 14 tions in the files instead of one, whereas by making "Dres- den (Saxony, Germany)" an independent entry in a gen- eral alphabetical system the search would be much simpler and less time-consuming. All portraits and pictures must be dated before being filed away. It happens sometimes that a portrait, or a picture, which is wanted for immediate use, can only be found in some copyrighted book and, consequently, cannot be used without due permission. To avoid embarrassment on this account the librarian, or, in a big newspaper office, the chief of the art department, should try to procure a general release of copyright from publishers of such ref- erence works as are most likely to be resorted to for illus- trations. This policy does away with the necessity of applying for releases in every particular instance, when reproduction of a copyrighted picture is desired. Material in the portrait and picture section is bound to accumulate steadily, and no weeding-out process can be applied to any great extent. The acquisition of a photograph, or illustration, of more recent date does not warrant the discarding of an older one of the same per- son or subject, for it might happen that a picture of a certain date or period may be wanted instead of the late>t one available. It is, on this account, safer to provide ample space for increasing portrait and picture collec- tions rather than attempt some regular weeding method which might seriously impair their value. To the four principal divisions of the reference de- partment which have already been considered may be added one of "Special Topics." It consists of newspaper and magazine clippings on live issues of the day. The material is filed under proper subjects in large envelopes, which are kept in alphabetical order in a separate case or cabinet. Mention of a few subjects of the kind in- cluded in this miniature encyclopedia of modern events will probably indicate its purpose more clearly : Aviation (latest records, accident lists, inventions) ; Panama Canal (latest accounts of progress of work, articles on fortifica- tion question, international aspect, etc.) ; Disasters (ma- rine and railroad, reviews and lists) ; Woman Suffrage (articles on extension of movement), etc., etc. Of course, these "Special Topics" envelopes are by no means an essential accessory to a newspaper library. Their great practical usefulness is unquestionable, never- theless, and advocates strongly in their favor. They pro- vide a kind of short-cut to the sort of information which is in constant demand and may be called for at almost any time. Furthermore, the judicious clipping of articles on current topics of interest makes unnecessary the keep- ing of magazine hies containing, perhaps, 90 per cent, of irrelevant matter to every ten which may prove of actual reference value in a newspaper office. In small concerns, where economical or other condi- tions do not justify the establishment of a library on any great scale, a carefully managed special topics section will obviate the purchase of many an expensive refer- ence work, and can itself be maintained practically at no cost whatsoever, since the material may be collected in its entirety from exchanges in the magazine or news- paper field. IV. SPECIAL WORKS. While a well selected supply of general reference works will meet the average demands on a newspaper library, sections of a more specific kind might also be established, as circumstances may permit, or even crave. No systematic classification of such subject groups will be attempted here, but only an outline given, to show what kind of books would come within this category. Very few of them need be bought, as they are sent in by publishers for review. An agreement with the liter- ary editor may therefore give the librarian opportunities to secure gradually a handsome collection of books sup- plementary to the reference works he already has in the library. First of all, books dealing with general, or only Ameri- can history, should be received in the library, especially if they are illustrated and have good indices. Geographical and descriptive works of countries, cities, etc., are also of value for occasional reference. Baedeker's and Murray's handbooks are real treasures among this class of books, and there are many others which can be easily acquired and will be of almost equally good service. The historical and geographical works, including illustrated place descriptions, are best shelved 16 under country divisions, or, as to the United States ma- terial, under states and territories. Biographies of individuals published after their death are of little use, unless the persons concerned attained great distinction, in some way, during their careers, or if their life work is apt to attract future attention. In regard to general literature, the newspaper librari- an has an opportunity of collecting practically as much as he may care to have. But, except he has special facili- ties for housing a great number of such books, it will be a prudent policy on his part to content himself with standard editions of the Greek and Roman classics, Eng- lish and American authors of note, translations of works of well-known foreign writers, collections of speeches, poetry, fables, fairy tales, and, in short, such material as is likely to be of use occasionally. Some good books on the fine arts and their history should not be lacking, and the more profusely they are illustrated, the more welcome they will be to the art critic and other writers of articles on subjects of this kind. General books on sports and athletics and special works on particular branches thereof, as baseball, foot- ball, golf, hockey, hunting, polo, rowing, swimming, ten- nis, yachting, etc., are acceptable, and with these, as with most of the books in the supplementary sections here suggested, the consideration of greatest moment is, that they contain useful illustrations, which are not copy- righted, or for which a copyright release may be easily obtained. Scientific books of various kinds, works on philosophy, religion, law, medicine and hygiene, sociology, finance, government, and kindred topics, are seldom referred to, because sufficient information coming within their scope can usually be gathered more expeditiously from some encyclopedia. Still, as has been pointed out already, if space conditions are favorable, there cannot possibly be any objections to harboring a selection of such literature in a newspaper library. 17 V. CATALOGUING. Just as a newspaper library, on account of its own special requirements, differs in many respects from other reference libraries, so its cataloguing rules necessarily are somewhat unlike theirs and have an individuality of their own. Cataloguing in accordance with any of the systems in vogue in the public libraries would hardly be suitable to journalistic ends. The simplest method is to catalogue the contents of a newspaper library merely under subject headings, without any subdivisions of the latter and also without any cross references under authors' names, ex- cept possibly in regard to such, whose prominence makes it desirable to have all their works listed under their own names. Otherwise, subject entries are sufficient, and even the headings of these do not always conform in their style with scientific library rules on this point. The accepted technical designation of a subject is often sacrificed for some popular form which is more apt to suggest itself to a journalist when making a library research. It is, as has been asserted before, the librarian's principal duty to facilitate in every possible way the gathering of information from sources in his keeping and to devise any feasible means for minimizing the time consump- tion at this task. Hence he is compelled to do violence to many circumstantial library rules and substitute for them some common sense system which serves the same purpose and appeals more to the journalistic searcher, who is interested in getting quick results rather than in familiarizing himself with the fine points in library science. In making catalogue entries, of which a sample will be found toward the end of this book, all immaterial details are omitted. After the subject, name of author and title of work are given. Tf the book has any por- traits, diagrams, maps, colored plates or other illustra- tions, these facts are annotated, in abbreviation, and finally the place and year of publication are mentioned. Ordinarily, name of publisher may be left out. Undoubtedly, a card system is most convenient for a 18 newspaper "library catalogue. A small cabinet containing the cards should be located in a conspicuous place near the inquiry desk. After a book has been catalogued, a bookplate label sliould be placed on the inside of the cover, or an im- print of the office stamp made on the title-page. On the llv-leaf will be inscribed the date of accession and the classification mark, denoting the shelf location of the book. VI. THE INDEXING DEPARTMENT. Only a limited number of newspapers go to the tr< >uble and expense of keeping a detailed record of their new- contents. In some offices the principal articles and items in the paper are clipped daily, dated and put away in envelopes or boxes, which are labeled to show what kind of material they contain. This method makes reference to previously published matter direct and convenient up to a certain stage, when the contents of envelopes or boxes becomes too bulky to handle without considerable loss of time. Then some scheme of subdivision or grouping must be devised, and in time this must again be under- taken as often as the rapidly increasing material on rec- ord makes it necessary. Finally the mass of clippings will be altogether too unwieldy, and some of them may have become so frayed and worn by frequent handling that their usefulness is at an end. These latter objectionable features are not attached to the indexing method of keeping a record. A system which has gained wide popularity in the general business world is the card index, and it has also been introduced in the offices of a few large daily newspapers. Its appli- cation is in no wise intricate, and its permanent value cannot be contested. The indexing of a daily newspaper will be described here in the form of rules wdiich may, with certain modifications according to circumstances, serve the purpose also in smaller concerns. Every day the librarian receives a full set of the paper, meaning' all the editions issued, including "make-overs." He has then the alternative of two ways of procedure. In the one event he can personally go over the paper, column after column, page after page, and underscore 19 in the text of every item, or write across it, the heading or headings under which it should be indexed. After- wards he distributes the pages for indexing among his assistants, taking part of the paper for himself, too, if need be. This indication of subject matters can be dispensed with, if the librarian has able indexers as assistants. In such case, he just gives out the pages to them, relying on their good judgment to make the index entries under proper headings. A set of general indexing rules is helpful to insure regularity and uniformity on this score, and it is, furthermore, a good policy for the librarian to hand certain sections of the paper to the same man every day. In that way additional assurance is furnished that a news item to which publicity is given during sev- eral succeeding days will, in every instance, be indexed under the same subject headings. When all the pages of the first edition of an issue have been indexed, the items are checked oft" in the subsequent editions, and if an indexer should find new articles in any of these, they must be recorded and the respective editions in which they occur marked down on the card. Before recording these new articles, the indexer ought to ask his co-workers whether they have possibly had the same on their pages, in which case they need not be indexed again. For indexing, small cards, 3x5 inches, are most handy. After the indexer has read through an item thoroughly, he indicates its contents on one or more of these cards, depending on the number of headings he wishes to give it. The style of the entry should be concise, but great care must be taken that no essential phase of the item is omitted. If portraits, diagrams, maps or other illustrations accompany articles, such facts must be denoted in the entries. After the entry follows reference to date and location of article, for instance, icial Social Evil Socialism Societies Soldier S< tng South Pole Souvenir Speed Spelling Spiritualism Sports Stabbing Stable Stage Stammering Star Starvation ( !ars Cleaning Statue Steamboats and Steamships Stockings Stocks Stomach Stone Stories Storm Stove Stowaway Strangulation Straw \ ote Street Street Street Strike Student Studio Submarine Subways Suffocation Sugar Suicide Summer Sun Sunday Superstition Surgery Swearing Swimming Swindling T Table Tailors Tar and Feathers Tariff (Foreign Countries) Tariff (U. S.) Tax (Income) Tax (Single) Taxes (Miscellaneous) Taxicab Taxidermy Tea Teachers Teeth Telegraph Telegraph (Wireless) Telephone Tenement Tennis (Court) Tennis (Lawn) Theatres Theatrical Threats Tickets Tide Time Tips Titles (of Nobility, etc.) Tobacco Tornado Torped* i Tourists Tourney Toys Trade Train Train Robbery Tramps Trance Travel and Travelers Treasure 31 Treaty Tunnel Trees Turf (Foreign) Trials Turf (U. S.) Trotting Turtle Truck Twins Trunk Typewriter Trust Companies Typhoid Trusts Typographical Tuberculosis U Undertakers U. S. Congress (Miscell.) Unemployed U. S. Government Uniforms l'. S. Marine Corps Union U. S. Militarv Academy Unitarians U. S. Mint U. S. Congress (House ) U. S. Naval Academy U. S. Congress (Senate) Universities V Vacation Vegetarians Vaccination Verdict Vagrancy Veterans Vandalism Vice Vatican Vivisection Vaudeville Volcano Vegetables W Wagon White Slavery Waiters Widows Walking Wills Wall Wind War Winter Washing Wire Tappers Watch Witness Water Wolf Waterways Woman Weapon Woman Suffrage Weather Wood Weights and M easures Wool Wells Words Whale Works Wheat World Whisky Wrecks (Marine) Whist Wrecks (Railroad) Whistling Wrestling White House Yachting Yachts (Auxiliary) Yachts (Power I Zoological Y Yachts (Sailing) Yellow Fever Z 32 Jn the preceding list, sonic subjects arc given in the singular form, while others are in the plural. This is not accidental, but has a reason in most instances. Either the meaning of the subject is made clearer by using the singular or plural form, respectively, or there may be some other cause for it, which will be more readily un- derstood by the practical newspaper librarian than by an ordinary library worker. A considerable number of the headings selected would also be objectionable to a scientific librarian, but their very irregularity tends to show that they have been found useful in journalistic routine, and, on that ground, have been added to the indexing list. Names of noted persons, concerns of various kinds, societies, political bodies, countries, states, cities and places, in general, have headings of their own, as a rule. There may be cases, however, when such are not only unnecessary, but making the research rather more diffi- cult, as pointed out in a previous paragraph on the rela- tive importance of individuals and subjects. Should it happen that these two considerations seem to weigh equally in the balance, i. e., if one is of as much or little significance as the other, it will be safer to index under both. Before concluding the remarks on indexing, a little matter in connection with the accumulation of the re- corded material in book form requires some attention. In a daily newspaper are found numerous "small news" items, for instance, advance notes on coming events, which, although they are of temporary importance and therefore must be indexed, do not justify their placing on permanent record. These may be omitted without risk in the printed form of the index. VII. BOOK SUGGESTIONS. It would be almost impossible to make out a definite list of books that are needed in a newspaper library, since the requirements vary in different offices. How- ever, some general suggestions, based on experience, may be given along this line. In several of the selections mentioned here below the books are arranged in three groups. To the first one 33 belong such as seem almost indispensable. In the sec- ond are works which are very useful, but not absolutely necessary. They may rather be considered as supple- mentary material, which should be acquired only if cir- cumstances will permit. The third group includes books that will make a newspaper library still more complete. In the enumeration of these books no prejudice what- sover is contemplated. Other works than those named under the respective headings may be just as suitable and useful. The lists as made out are merely suggestive, although the books in them have not been picked out at random. Experience has proved their usefulness, but as has just been remarked, this does not preclude the selection of other meritorious works, which may be of just as great value for journalistic reference purposes. GENERAL REFERENCE WORKS Dictionaries . Century Cyclopedia and Dictionary French, James and Mole German, Elwell Latin, Appleton's Webster's New International French, Clifton and Grimanx German, Thieme-Preusser Italian, Mel/i Spanish. Bustamente American Diet, of Slang, Maitland Diet, of Americanisms, Bartlett French, Spiers and Surenne German, Fluegel German, Muret-Sanders Italian, James and Grassi Spanish, Velazquez Encyclopedias and Encyclopedic Works on Special Subjects: Encyclopedia Americana Familiar Quotations, Bartlett Church Dictionary and Cyclopedia Bible, with commentaries Young Folks' Cycl. of Art and Literature, Champlin Element. Hist, of Art. Architecture, Sculpture and Paint- ing. D'Anvers Manual of Mythology, A. S. Murray Haydn's Dictionary of Date< 34 New International Encyclopedia Dictionary of Classical Quotations ( Bohn scries) Adeline's Art Dictionary Dictionary of Bible, Smith I [arper's Book of Facts Cyclopedia of Engl. Literature, Chambers Cyclopedia of Music and Musicians. Stokes Harper's Diet, of Classical Literature and Antiquities Historical Reference Book, Heilprin Goodholme's Domestic Cyclopedia of Practical Informa- tion Mythology of Greece and Rome, A. Fairbanks Architecture for General Readers. II. II. Statham Five Thousand Facts and Fancies Tabular Views of Universal History, G. P. Putnam Encyclopedia Britannica Catholic Encyclopedia Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge, Schaff-Herzog Jewish Encyclopedia Words. Facts and Phrases, Edwards Lives of the Saints, Butler Larned's Historj for Ready Reference Historians' History of the World Smith's Dictionary of Greek and Roman Mythology Dispensatorv of the L T . S. Pocket Medical Dictionary. Gould Literary Curiosities. W. S. Walsh Xew Encyclopedia of Social Reform Household Book of Poetry Mercantile Dictionary, I. de Yeitelle Index Guide to Travel and Art. L. C. Loomis Cyclopedia of Music and Musicians, J. D. Champlin Dictionary of Music. H. Riemann Cyclopedia of Painters and Paintings, J. D. Champlin Handbook of Architectural Styles. A .A. Rosengarten Book of Davs. Chambers Literary Leaders of America, R. Burton Great Words from Great Americans Proverbs and Phrases of All Ages. R. Christy Encyclopedia of Sport, ed. by Earl of Suffolk and Berk- shire et al. Annuals, etc: Statesman's Year Book American Year Book Yew International Year Book Hazell's Annual Lord Brassey's Naval Annual Whitaker's Almanac Jewish Year Book 35 Poor's Manual of Railroads Corporation Service (Moody's Manual) Manual of Statistics, Stock Exchange Hand Book ■1 liases and Gazetteers: Commercial Atlas of America. Rand, McNally & Co. New Gazetteer of the World, Lippincott Philips' Chamber of Commerce Atlas Atlas of Modern Geography, Stieler Atlas and Gazetteer, Harmsworth Directories of Addresses, etc.: Amer. Newspaper Manual. Ayer College and School Directory, Patterson Legal Directory, Hubbell (also Digest of State Laws) Official Catholic Directory Directory of Attorneys and Banks, Wilber International Cable Directory Lloyd's Register Commercial Directory of the American Republics BIOGRAPHICAL WORKS Dictionaries and Cyclopedias, General: Pronouncing Biographical Dictionary, Lippincott Cyclopedia of American Biography, Appleton Men and Women of America National Cyclopedia of American Biographv. J. T. White & Co. Who's WHo Series: International Who's Who Who's Who in America Umanach de Gotha Who's Who (English) Wer Ist's (German ) Qui Etes-Vous ( French) Who's Who in N. Y. State Whitaker's Peerage Who's Who in [apan Chi E. (Italian Who's Who) Burke's Peerage and Baronetage Burke's Landed Gentry 3r, Professional Directories: Official Army Register of U. S. Register of (J. S. Navy and .Marino Corps Official Register of U. S. Congressional Directory \\"li"*s Who in Finance Who's Who in Insurance Who's Who on the Stage Officers of Civil War. Powell Medical Register and Directory of N. Amer., Polk Actors' Birthday Book Minerva, Handbuch der Gelchrten Welt GENERAL TOPICS History: General History of Europe, Thatcher History of the United States, E. B. Andrews History of U. S. Navy, J. R. Spears Story of the Revolution, H. C. Lodge American Civil War, J. Formby United States Navy, E. S. Maclay Civil War Trough the Camera Our Navy in the War With Spain, J. R. Spears History of the U. S., Bancroft Literary History of America, B. Wendell American Merchant Marine, W. L. Marvin The United States and Foreign Powers, W. E. Curtis Recollections of Civil War, C. A. Dana History of Civilisation, Seignobos Three Years' War, Gen. C. R. De Wet Natural History: American Natural History. W. T. Hornaday Book of the Animal Kingdom, W. P. Westell American Birds, W. L. Finley Familiar Fishes. E. McCarthy Familiar Flowers of Field and Garden, F. S. Mathews Familiar Trees and Their Leaves, F. S. Mathews Xew Book of the Dog. ed. by R. Leighton Color Key to N. American Birds, F. M. Chapman Book of Fish and Fishing, L. Rhead Zoologv, J. A. Thomson Insect Book and other Nat. Hist. vols, in Doubleday, Page & Co. seri< Civics: Government in State and Nation, A. H. Sanford Problems of City Government. L. S. Rowe 37 Initiative. Referendum and Recall, W. B. Munro City Government by Commission. C. R. Woodruff Rights of Women, M. Ostrogorski Handbook of Socialism. W. D. P. Bliss Regulation of Municipal Utilities. C. L. King Finance: Financial Crises, T. E. Burton American Corporations. T. J. Sullivan Work of Wall St.. S. S. Pratt Modern Industrialism. F. L. McYey The Truth about the Trusts. J. Moody Science and Inventions: Popular Astronomy. C. Flammarion Aerial Navigation. A. F. Zahm Conquest of the Air. A. Berget Aerial Warfare, R. P. Hearne Races of Man. O. Peschel Electricity in Daily Life. C. F. Brackett et al. Story of the Altantic Telegraph, Rev. Ff. M. Field Geology, K. von Zitter Interpretation of Radium, Soddy Miscellaneous: Navigator's Pocket Book, Capt. Ff. Patterson Boat Sailor's Manual. E. F. Qualtrough Model Yachts and Boats. J. Du V. Grosvenor Handbook of Heraldry, J. E. Cussans Costumes Historiques, Racinet Punctuation, F. H. Teale Some Ill-Used Words. A. Avers Practical Journalism, E. L. Shuman Newspaper Reporting and Correspondence, G. M. Hyde Modern Advertising, Calkins and Holden Tables of Weights, Measures. Coins, etc., T. Egleston Modern Accounting, H. R. Hatfield Industrial Evolution of the U. S., C. D. Wright Emigration and Immigration. R. M. Smith The Other Americans, A. Ruhl The Earth's History, R. D. Roberts Earthquakes, J. Milne Ocean and Inland Water Transportation, E. R. Johnson American Railway Transportation, E. R. Johnson Scientific American Handbook of Travel Book of Games, Mary White First Aid in I lines- and Injury. J. E. Pilcher Harper's series of Boys' Books Dan C. Beard series of Boys' Books Lina and Adelia Beard series of '.iris' Books - VIII. SAMPLES OF CARDS, Etc. Catalogue Cards. Size, 2x4 inches; ruled 5 or 6 lines ASTRONOMY Olcott, W. T.— In Starland with a Three-Inch Telescope Illus., pi., X. Y., 1909 O Receipt Cards. Size 2x4 inches. Printed form as follows ( Name of Newspaper Office) (Date) T acknowledge receipt from the Librarian of the above described material for temporary use in ray department and agree to return it to him within a reasonable time or to reimburse the office for its mutilation, damage or loss. Signed Issued Returned •a* Indexing Cards. Size, 3 x 5 inches. Any cheap qualit) o\ Hun cardboard will do, providing that it be stiff enough to make handling easy in setting up cards in tray for alphabetization. DIVORCE M Nemo, X.. sues wife, names X. Y. Jones co- respondent, portr. of .Mrs. (3(1 A) Sp I. 3- r >- Last line in the above card reads in full: (3d edition. 2nd section), [912, September 1, page 3, column 6. When indexer, in writing down an entry, makes no mention of edition or .section, he is supposed to mean the first one in either cas 39 Index Record Cards. Size 5x8. Thin white cardboard, not liable to crack when placed in typewriter. Ruled with one line only, about Y\ inch from top. Xemo, N. N. (Merchant, N. Y.) Sues wife for divorce, names X. Y. Jones 12 Sp i 36 Mrs., portrait 136 Date for divorce trial 432 Divorce case opens, portr. of Mrs. Oc 247 Divorce, sensational evidence, detls. 3 4 5 Decree granted, divorce case 652 Leaves for Europe Dc 15 9 1 Inquiry Record. Size of page to suit ; ruled. INQUIRY RECORD. (Name of Newspaper Office) (Date) Subject Inquirer Attendant Time Result Marine Wrecks Jones Smith 10 min. Fd. Morgan, J. P. Collins " 5 " Jones, X. " " 15 " N. R. Fd. — Found, meaning that the inquirer obtained the infor- mation lie was seeking. X. R. — No Record, meaning that the library could supply no information about the person or subject in question. 40 - • v • •• # . • - - « • i • • « » , • . < • •< Service Record. Size of page to suit; ruled. (Name 6 f "Newspaper Office) LIBRARY SERVICE SCHEDULE. (Date) (Name) In charge 8 A. M— 5 P. M. [nquiry Clerk " 9 A. M.-6 P. M. fndexer " 5 P. M.-i A. M. I ndexer " 7 P. M.— 3 A. M. Typist " 9 A. M.— 5 P. M. ■ 1 • Absent: J. Smith, day off P. Jones, reported sick Cards written 410 Cards entered on record 400 Inquiries 67 New obit, envelopes 5 Old obit, envelopes supplemented 8 Portraits and pictures filed 7 Books accessioned 3 IX. LIBRARY FURNITURE. For the books any kind of cases may be used. Mark these by letters, from A on. If the alphabet should not be sufficient for marking all sections, commence it over again, only doubling the letters, AA, etc. Shelves of each bookcase are numbered from bottom up. Thus if a book is marked A 4, it must be looked for in Case A, on the 4th shelf from the floor. The catalogue re- quires a cabinet of six or more trays, depending on the number of cards to be filed in it. Trays should be about a foot deep and their height and width in accordance with size of catalogue cards. With an average of 500 entries daily and if the per- manent index record is closed out and printed at inter- vals of two years, the cabinet for these cards must have 41 at least 72 trays, or drawers. Surely it is not necessary to get the entire equipment at once, as such cabinets can be bought in sections of 4, 8 or more drawers. A 24-drawer cabinet is sufficient to begin with, and addi- tional sections may be secured as the bulk of the index increases. Trays ought not to be more than \y 2 foot deep, or they will be too heavy for handling when full. Width and height to correspond with size of record cards. In regard to the obituary cabinet, the "Morgue," of which has been spoken before, the drawers in it may be made as deep as convenient and be partitioned off length- wise, so that three rows of envelopes can be placed in each. By this method space is saved, and a greater number of envelopes can be looked over at one time. No catalogue of the contents in this cabinet is needed, as the material is arranged in strict alphabetical order and the trays are marked on the outside accordingly. VI