If a business library finds it needs any foreign language dictionaries, possibly French and Spanish, bilingual ones can be obtained in one volume editions from any first class book dealer at a cost of not more than $3.00 a volume.
Encyclopedias
The new edition of the Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia is a luxury for a business organization and need not be considered in this list, but the business library must have a general encyclopedia, and the best one for the American business office is without doubt the New International Encyclopedia, published by Dodd, Mead and Company in 23 volumes, latest edition 1916. Price bound in library buckram, $7.50 per volume.
Its advantages for business use over the new edition of the much recently advertised Encyclopedia Britannica, are that the point of view of the articles covers American needs better, that all information is alphabeted under the most specific subject word, so that no index volume has to be consulted as is the case in using the Britannica, and that there are ample "see" references, if the subject looked up is entered under a different terminology.
In regard to its authority, comprehensiveness, illustrations, maps and bibliographical references at the end of the articles, the New International ranks in the first class of encyclopedia productions. It can be purchased printed on the much exploited India paper if the saving of shelf space means more to the business office than does the rapid turning of leaves. The India paper leaves are apt to stick together and also crumple easily. The most desirable binding is library buckram rather than flexible leather, which some business libraries have been unwise enough to purchase. Dodd, Mead and Company also issue an excellent annual encyclopedia entitled the New International Year Book, as a supplement to the New International Encyclopedia, which brings the Encyclopedia down to date at a cost of $6.50 per volume.
The World Almanac and Encyclopedia, published for the New York World both in cloth and paper binding at 50 and 35 cents per volume, is an invaluable addition to the business library, no matter how well supplied it may be with pretentious encyclopedias. It is strong on statistics of all kinds which are brought down to date and contains a wide range of miscellaneous information which cannot be found readily in more expensive handbooks. It has an excellent index and is generally the best book to consult in a hurry in answering the many miscellaneous questions which arise in a business office. It has been estimated that it will answer 25% of the questions which come up in every day business experience.
Lippincott's New Gazetteer of the World, a geographical dictionary, Philadelphia, Lippincott, 1906, price $10.00, is useful but much out of date in its statistics.
The United States Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce publishes each year the Statistical Abstract of the United States at 50 cents per volume, paper binding, or it may be had in cloth. This abstract gives tabulated statistics covering a number of years on the natural resources and various economic activities of the United States. This Bureau also publishes annually a valuable volume of statistics entitled Foreign Commerce and Navigation of the United States, which gives statistics of imports and exports of different classes of merchandise with rates of duty, quantities and value.
For commercial, political and statistical information about foreign countries the Statesman's Year Book, a British publication issued annually by Macmillan, at $7.50 per volume, is a valuable addition to any business library. It also gives a list of the best books on each country and its most important government publications, and includes a list of books relating to the war and a diary of its principal events. Maps of the different countries are also included.
The American Newspaper Annual, a directory published by Ayer and Son, Philadelphia, price $10.00, gives a list of all newspapers and periodicals published in the United States and territories, Canada, Cuba, West Indies, arranged by states and cities, with maps of the states and information about the industries and institutions of each city. It gives the population of cities and towns of the United States and Canada whose population is over 3,000. It lists all publications in foreign languages printed in different states of the United States and also gives a list of trade papers for certain industries. A mid-year supplement is free to subscribers.