Shelf fittings for wooden book-presses are required in all modern libraries where movable shelves are almost universally used. Cases with fixed shelves are much cheaper than those fitted with one of the button or other spacing arrangements now in the market, but the serious disadvantage of having to size the books to fit the shelves disposes of any argument that can be urged on behalf of fixtures. There are many varieties of shelf fitting designed to assist in the necessary differential spacing of shelves, from the old-fashioned, and by no means cheap, wooden ratchet and bar arrangement to the comparatively recent metal stud. The fitting which is most often adopted in new libraries is that of Messrs. E. Tonks, of Birmingham. It consists of metal strips, perforated at 1-inch intervals, let into the uprights of the cases and small gun-metal studs for supporting the shelves. As is shown in the illustration, the studs fit into the perforations and support the shelves on little points which sink into the wood, and prevent tilting or sliding. The strips should not go either to the top or bottom of the uprights, and at least two feet can be saved in every division by stopping 6 inches from both ends. Though rather more expensive than pegs, or the studs mentioned below, it is very desirable to have Tonks’ fittings, because of their superiority to all others in the matters of convenience and ease in adjusting. Another form of stud often used is the one shaped like this
which fits into holes drilled in the uprights and supports the shelf on the lower rectangular part. These are most effective in operation when let into grooves as broad as the studs, otherwise the shelves must be cut shorter than the width of the divisions; and in that case end spaces are caused and security is considerably sacrificed. The peg part of this stud is very apt in course of time, to enlarge the wooden holes, and when any series of shelves have to be frequently moved, the result of such enlargement is to make the studs drop out. If perforated metal strips are used, of course the price immediately goes up, and there is then no advantage over the Tonks’ fitting. Another form of peg for use in the same kind of round hole is that similar in shape to the pegs used for violins, and, like them, demanding much judicious thumbing before they can be properly adjusted. There are many other kinds of shelf fitting in the market, but none of them are so well known or useful as those just described.
IRON BOOK-CASES.
The iron book-cases manufactured by Messrs. Lucy & Co. of Oxford are very convenient, and in buildings designed as fire-proof, in basements, or in certain cases where much weight is wanted to be carried, they should be useful. They can be fitted up as continuous wall-cases, or supplied as standards holding books on both sides. The size B, 7′ 6″ high × 4′ 1″ wide × 1′ 3″ deep, will hold about 640 demy 8vo books, and the ironwork costs £4, shelves £1 4s. Other sizes are made, and the continuous wall-shelving is charged per yard run—7 feet high, £3 3s.; shelves of wood, 12 inches deep, 5s. each; if iron, felt covered, 4s. 6d. each. The durability of these cases is beyond question, and the expense is not great when their security, strength, and neatness are considered. The arrangement for spacing the shelves is convenient and effective. The sliding iron book-cases swung in the galleries of the British Museum, and their prototype[3] at Bethnal Green Free Library, London, have been so often and so fully described elsewhere[4] that it is needless to do more here than to briefly refer to them. The British Museum pattern, the invention of Mr. Jenner of the Printed Books Department, consists of a double case suspended from strong runners, which can be pushed against the permanent cases when not in use, or pulled out when books are required. Only libraries with very wide passages between the cases could use them, and only then by greatly strengthening the ordinary wooden presses in existence.[5] The revolving wooden book-cases now so extensively used for office purposes, and in clubs or private libraries, can be bought for £3 and upwards. They should not be placed for public use in ordinary libraries to which all persons have access, though there is no reason why subscription libraries and kindred institutions should not have them for the benefit of their members.
Other fittings connected with book-cases are press and shelf numbers, contents or classification frames, blinds, and shelf-edging. The press marks used in the fixed location are sometimes painted or written in gold over the cases, but white enamelled copper tablets, with the numbers or letters painted in black or blue, are much more clear and effective. They cost only a few pence each. The numbering of shelves for the movable location, or their lettering for the fixed location, is usually done by means of printed labels. These are sold in sheets, gummed and perforated, and can be supplied in various sizes in consecutive series at prices ranging from 2s. 6d. per 1000 for numbers, and 1d. or 2d. each for alphabets. Shelf numbers can also be stamped on in gold or written with paint, and brass numbers are also made for the purpose, but the cost is very great. The little frames used for indicating the contents of a particular case or division are usually made of brass, and have their edges folded over to hold the cards. Some are made like the sliding carte-de-visite frames, but the object in all is the same, namely—to carry descriptive cards referring to the contents or classification of book-cases. They are most often used in reference libraries where readers are allowed direct access to the shelves, and are commonly screwed to the uprights. A convenient form is that used with numbered presses, and the card bears such particulars as these—
| Shelf. | Case 594. |
|---|---|
| A | Buffon’s Nat. Hist. |
| B | Geological Rec. |
| C | Sach’s Bot.; Bot. Mag. |
| D | &c. |
| E | &c. |
| F | &c. |
Others bear the book numbers, while some simply refer to the shelf contents as part of a particular scheme of classification, viz.:—
941·1 Northern Scotland.