The Blind
See Bostwick’s chapter on “Libraries for the Blind.”[339]
“Books for the blind are handled by a public library in much the same way as those for the seeing. It is common to have a separate department or suite of rooms, but this is not necessary.... Owing to the size of the books, shelving for them is of unusual depth.... Free access to the shelves is as valuable to a blind reader as to one who has the use of his eyes.”
“The question of space will arise in many places. No space could, however, be devoted to a more humane and valuable purpose than the storage of books for the blind, and every encouragement and support should be given to the movement.”—Duff-Brown.[340]
Because of the space required, very careful consideration should be given by the building committee as to how much space the conditions of their community will allow them to give to such special wants. If they decide to have rooms for the blind, these ought to be, if possible, near an entrance from the street level. In regard to dimensions, shelving, etc., the librarian would best inquire of some library of the same grade and class. Experience is the best teacher, and the local treatment of this subject must be defined and specially planned for.
Special Rooms
Small libraries have no space for differentiation. One room, or a few rooms, must be divided by rails, low bookcases, or glass partitions, into the functions they can manage to separate. But as a library enlarges, and grows to other stories, it finds many advantages in segregating different classes of books and readers, thus approaching Dr. Poole’s plan of separate reading rooms, or the department plan in universities. Even before any such activities have grown enough to occupy a full room, any space in a new plan which can be spared may well be marked “unassigned.”
Some of these rooms are used in all public libraries of all sizes except the smallest; some of them are desirable in many other classes of libraries.