Fig. 24.—West Islington Library, showing wicket.
Fig. 25.—North Islington Staff Enclosure, Open Access ([Section 133]).
133.
133. Lending library barriers for open access are planned in a variety of ways to take charging trays, etc. The following are typical illustrations of barriers or combined counters and screens specially designed for open access libraries. The object of the glazed screen is to protect the staff from draughts and the charging system from being tampered with. The plans and views of open access barriers in [Figs. 24]-[25] show the usual arrangement for ordinary purposes, and an imaginary design for a library doing a very large business requiring three assistants at each side is shown in [Fig. 28]. By means of this it would be possible for six assistants, three at each side, to discharge and charge books at the rate of 1400 per hour, a speed never required anywhere.
For all practical purposes a barrier with two wickets on the entrance side and one at the exit will serve for the largest single library in existence ([Fig. 27]). The treadle latches such as are fitted in the open access libraries of Croydon, Clerkenwell, Hornsey, Lambeth, Darwen, Southport, etc., will be found well adapted for the purpose of controlling the wickets of both single and double open access barriers ([Fig. 29]).
Fig. 26.—Lambeth (Herne Hill) Branch Library Open Access Barrier ([Section 133]).