Page:The library a magazine of bibliography and library literature, Volume 6.djvu/66

 54 The Library. from the public point of view alone are too many and too serious to be easily overcome. The one difficulty of handling the cards with the necessary speed is in itself sufficient to repel many readers, and forms an insurmountable objection to others. At Clerkenwell, when we had book catalogues and card cabinets side by side, the former were invariably used by our readers to the neglect of the latter. I observed the same conduct among the readers in American libraries, and believe this will be found the general experience everywhere. The considerations of com- parative cost, space occupied, and unpopularity with readers should be enough to make librarians reflect before adopting any " Card " system. The "Sheaf" system of keeping catalogues is not so well- known in Britain as the "Card" or " Page" system, but it has for many years been adopted in Italy, Holland, France, Germany, and generally throughout Europe. America has only recently bestowed serious attention on the plan, and has contributed one or two varieties to the common stock. The " Sheaf" system aims at combining the advantages of both card and book catalogues, and to a considerable extent succeeds. The main objects of the system are to break up the catalogue into handy sections, so that the maximum number of readers can be served at once ; to provide means for continuous expansion in strict alphabetical order ; to thoroughly safeguard the sections ; to reduce the amount of space occupied ; and to furnish readers with a volume which can be used with as much facility as an ordinary book. The idea is by no means novel. Where it actually originated I cannot say, but I know that a primitive example of the system was used by Dr. Crestadoro, of Manches- ter, thirty years ago, and that Mr. Sutton showed a sample of it at Nottingham in 1891. This consisted of an iron bar, on which were two bolts slightly apart, having a small nut on each. The slips were punched to fit on to the bolts, and the bundle was clamped by the nuts. It was an invention only adapted for private use. 9 In 1871, was invented the Leyden slip catalogue, so named because it was designed for use in the University Library of Leyden, in Holland. It consists, as may be seen from the example now in my hand, of a pair of boards, hinged, 9 Mr. Robertson, of Aberdeen, devised a similar apparatus for the University Library, which he described in Monthly Notes, 1883, p. 84 ; and Mr. C. M. Torboss, of Philadelphia, described a one-screw arrangement in Library Notes, 1887, p. 214. I am not aware if this has been used.