"The object in view is of course to render as readily available as possible all the information contained in the library on subjects of present or possible future interest to the laboratory staff.
"The main sources of this information are two: first, the scientific and technical literature, consisting of books, periodicals, pamphlets and special publications, clippings, and abstracts from the technical literature, compiled by the publication department of the company, and second the reports from the various laboratories of the company."
The handling of the different classes of material in this library is minutely described and covers several unique features, both in the kinds of material handled and in the methods used. In concluding, she said: "We are attempting to build up a system requiring the minimum amount of work for maintenance, sufficiently simple to appeal to the most hurried research mind, flexible enough to admit of continued improvement without demolishment, and yet adequate to the varied needs of practical scientific investigation."
Mr. R. R. Bowker, of the Library Journal, added some very interesting thoughts along the general trend of the meeting drawn from his many years of experience in library and commercial fields, which were much appreciated by all those present.
SECOND SESSION
The second session of the Association was called to order in the Ladies' Parlor at 3 p. m., June 26th, by the president.
A few general introductory remarks were made by the president regarding the purpose of this session which hinged chiefly about the question of handling clippings.
Honorable Robert Luce in a very carefully prepared address then discussed, under the title, "The clipping bureau and the library," the internal working of the clipping bureau which bears his name. Probably few librarians have realized the enormous volume of detail handled by the large clipping bureau in the course of a day's work. Mr. Luce in his paper has carefully brought home that fact and urged that many users of material from clipping bureaus, and among them librarians, had never learned how to correctly judge results of clipping-bureau service. This judgment should be used upon the mass result rather than upon detail. An interesting description of the method of caring for a collection of 20,000 or more articles of his own proved an important part of the paper. A discussion of the "scrap book" and its function in the library was also handled. An earnest plea was made for co-operation on the part of the librarians ordering material from the clipping bureau. The employment of the clipping bureau is a step in the line of efficiency. "No man accustomed to business methods can fail to be struck with the waste therein due to the employment of high-grade minds on low-grade work. When some part of the working time of a public servant possessing intellectual acumen is put into manual labor that can be as well performed by a youth without special training, there is economic loss. When your subordinates handle the scissors and the paste-brush, you are paying them for work that can more quickly and much more cheaply be done in our cutting rooms."
A significant question by Mr. Bowker brought out the following facts: "After the reader marks the newspaper it goes to the cutter. There is very seldom any loss there. Occasionally an item is slashed or overlooked, and when the clippings have been cut and pasted they go to the sorter, whose duty it is to sort them by groups. We have the clippings divided into 128 classifications. We allow each customer one of those classifications." Mr. Luce answered many other questions raised by different speakers.[17]
[17] See full discussion in "Special Libraries."