Keats, John. Poetical works.
Shairp, J. C. Aspects of poetry.
Sharp, Wm. Life of Shelley.
Tennyson, Lord. Demeter and other poems.
The first entry would be placed under a heading “Poems,” because it is an anthology. This heading “Poems” should be reserved for collections of miscellaneous poems by many authors and would not include a book like the Keats, which should be entered under the name of the author only. It does not require any entry under “Poetical works,” as that is simply a form, and can no more be justified than a heading “Prose works” could be. If, however, the book has a definite title, like the Tennyson, then a title-entry must be given as
Demeter and other poems. Tennyson, Lord.
Librarians sometimes consider it necessary to give a series of references under the heading “Poems” or “Poetry” to the names of the authors represented in the catalogue, but this is on an equality with the practice of grouping all the fiction under a heading “Novels.” These being class-headings are not strictly accurate but, no doubt, are a convenience to a section of readers. So much cannot be said for all such grouping in a dictionary catalogue, and it is better to avoid it if possible. A catalogue of a very important library has a heading “Essays,” under which an attempt has been made to enter all books written in the form of essays, as well as with the word “essay” upon the title-pages, and the result is a mere jumble of titles, absolutely useless, including as it does works so widely apart in character as Baring Gould’s Old country life, Barrie’s Auld licht idylls, Doran’s In and about Drury Lane, and Lang’s Books and bookmen. To attempt this in a classified catalogue would be bad enough, but in a dictionary catalogue it shows that the first principles governing its compilation are wholly misunderstood.
The book by Henry James would be fitly placed under “French literature” and the words “poets” and “novelists” ignored. Dr. Johnson’s book should go under “Poets,” together with any other lives of poets in collected form, but the life of an individual poet, like that of Shelley, would not be so entered, as lives of individuals are entered under their names, and not under the class to which they belong. Shairp’s book being upon “Poetry” in the abstract would accordingly go under that heading, as would any book of a miscellaneous character upon poetry which could not well be placed under a more definite subject-heading.
93.—Sometimes in the case of biographies it will be found unnecessary to give both author and subject-entries because the biographies are written or edited by a son or other relative bearing the same name, and accordingly both entries come together in the catalogue, therefore, while it is quite correct to give both entries, yet one suffices. If the single entry is adopted it is better to make choice of the subject for the entry, not the author, as
Stokes, William: his life and works, 1804-1878, by his son [Sir] Wm. Stokes. (Masters of medicine.) 1898