Stools are used with these rather than chairs, mainly because they take up less room and are not used for long periods.
The English books speak of other styles of catalogs, but we use no other form except (rarely) different kinds of printed catalogs, which are kept loose on tables or desks.
As to floor space required for catalog cases, see that heading later on. Placing them is a nice and critical question of planning.
Note that a Library of Congress card-catalog room separate is called for by the Brooklyn Public Library.[233]
Cataloguing Room
In small libraries, cataloguing has to be done in the librarian’s rooms or at the delivery desk. In larger libraries one large room or a suite of rooms is needed, and requires careful planning by an experienced librarian. Ample light is naturally the first requisite. North light is most regular and less glary, but is somewhat cold and cheerless. Large windows, or what is practically one window along one side of a room, the windows running up from the level of the tables clear to the ceiling, are best. The working tables (better single or double desks perpendicular to the windows) should occupy the window side, with service tables (trestles will do) in the next space. Then floor cases for bibliography and books in transit, also perpendicular to the light, and wall cases beyond with a ledge, will conveniently furnish the room. If, as usual, the different processes of handling books are performed in this room, not only cataloguing proper, but selection, ordering, accessioning, shelf-listing, collation, labelling, numbering, and marking or covering, must be foreseen, in due succession. A lift at one end from the packing room should bring the books, to follow the order of work, over bins, or tables, or desks, or shelves, leading either to the delivery desk or the stack. One room is often not enough—a suite of rooms is required, perhaps up and down stairs. (Do not be tempted to use circular stairs; they are criminal; see under that head, [p. 177].) See the John Hay Library plans, for a central “stack,” so to speak, of such rooms, planned for speedy and economical service.[234]
For order of work, see Winsor,[235] and Bostwick[236] who enumerates other processes. This suite is a cosmos in itself, for which no architect unadvised could possibly arrange.