Fig. 174.—Periodicals File ([Section 476]).
As an aid in keeping order in public newsrooms it is a good plan to frame a few copies of the 1898 “Act to provide for the Punishment of Offences in Libraries,” and to hang them in conspicuous places, along with the admonitory notices regarding “Silence,” etc. The official appearance of a framed Act of Parliament has a daunting effect upon a certain type of mind, and has been found to act as a check upon sporting and loafing individuals.
479. Women’s Rooms.
479. Women’s Rooms.—About eighty public libraries in Britain have provided separate rooms for the use of women, but it is doubtful if such accommodation is really necessary, and they have not been uniformly successful. To a certain extent the matter depends upon the locality. If there is plenty of room in the building there is no harm in making this extra provision, if the room can be properly overlooked, but in cases where space is limited, it is a mistake to cramp the rest of the building for the sake of a somewhat sentimental idea. A few extra women of a fidgety or timid sort may be attracted to the library because of this exclusive accommodation, but the great majority of women prefer to use the ordinary departments of a public library on the same footing and conditions as men, and resent distinctions, such as the room implies. If women can use the crowded spaces in front of restricted lending libraries, and can mix with men in open lending libraries, they can surely use the other public rooms without harm or inconvenience.
480. Public Lavatory Accommodation.
480. Public Lavatory Accommodation.—This is perhaps a convenient place to mention lavatory accommodation for the public. It should not be provided by public library authorities at all, unless to a limited extent for the use of reference library readers, or for social meetings in connexion with lecture rooms. It is the duty of the sanitary or public health authorities to provide this kind of public accommodation, and not library boards with painfully limited funds. Somewhere adjacent to the library building provision of this kind can be made by the local authority, and it will be found a convenience to the public and a relief to the library funds.
481. Bibliography
No monograph. For articles see Cannons: E 69 et seq., Newsrooms; D 38-9, Racks and Stands; E 70-4, Fittings and Notices; E 78, Ladies’ Rooms.