Evening Star Newspaper, May 19, 1929, Page 22

22 CURATOR EXPLAING LIBRARY METHODS Miss Patten Describes| Gathering of Famous ‘Wash- ingtoniana Collection.” An interesting historical contfibution, descriptive of some of the methods fol- lowed in conducting the already famous | ‘Washingtoniana collection of the Public | Library of the Disgrict of Columbia, was | made by Miss Katharine K. Patten, curator of Washingtoniana, of the library, before the members of the News- paper Group of Speclal Libraries As- sociation, meeting here in annual con- ference at the Mayflower Hotel during the past week. “In 1905 the Public Library of the District of Columbia started a modest collection of books, maps, pamphlets and clippings about District of Columbia history and institutions,” Miss Patten explained, “which was given the name “Washingtoniana Collection.” “At that time the name was larger than the collection, which was divided into three parts. The first part, the books, occupied a small section reserved for them in the stacks, the maps were stored in cases in the librarian’s office and the vertical fille was kept in the reference room. For many years the books of the collection circulated freely, their value hardly being realized, and more attention was necessarily being iven to other phases of the work. These ks, of which there are nearly 3,000, cover biography, history and descrip- tion, the laws of the city from the be- ginning of the Government here, en- gineering projects and the.history and government of the public schools. Among the rare books in the collection are the early city directories from 1822, the Ilittle books of etiquette of the early days, the 1830 edition of the ‘Ten Miles Square’ and the guide books and year books for many years. The col- lection of early fiction written about the District of Columbia un- usually strong. Maps Tell Story. “How did the site of Washington and the District of Columbia look in 1790 and 1800 when the Government came here? The maps of the Wash- toniana collection, that fascinating study of the early plan of the city, tell this story. The basis of this valuable col- lection of 180 maps, is what is known as the ‘Hood collection,’ purchased from James P. Hood many years ago. Included in it are the ‘embryo’ map. the L'Enfant map and the Ellicott map. The maps have been treated as library material, shelf-listed by num- ber and a careful record kept of each addition to the collection. “The vertical file and the scrap books: From the standpoint of the librarian_this would probably be con- sidered the backbone of the. collection. For this very reason in the early days of the work more attention was given to the building up of the vertical file. “When the library moved into its present home in 1902 a great quantity of loose material, bound and unbound, came with it. This material was in boxes, barrels and just loose. A sys- tematic_examination was given all of it, duplicate coples of bound maga- zines by the dozens were ‘sliced,’ ap- propriate pamphlets were laid aside, old newspapers carefully scanned for interesting sidelights, the clipping of the current Washington newspapers be- gun in earnest and the vertical file was born. Clipping went on endlessly, and the ‘Song of the Shears’ might be said to have bzen the favorite poem of those entrusted with the care of the: vertical file. This clipping kept the file up to date on all current topics. It was en- riched greatly, however, along other lines by the acquisition of two large coliections, those of James A. Wine- ‘berger and Francis E. Leupp. “Mr. Wineberger was & bookseller of the early days, and a genuine collector of Was] n material. His name is synonymous with some of the best there is in the Washingtoniana collection, both books and pamphlets. Press Collection Accurate. “Mr. Leupp Was & newspaper man, famous in his day as being one of the few whose e:rv sent from Washington was taken without question. His col- lection was & lar newspaper man’s collection, with the additional charm to the librarian of Mr. Leupp's exactness as to sources and dates. The two col- lections were very large, and though at first the task looked endless, the examination of them will always remain one of the high lights of the early days of the work. The difference, too, in the character of the two collections was a delight, one supplementing the other to a remarkable degree and strengthen- ing the contents of the file wonderfully. “Into the vertical file also goes every- thing pertaining to the District in the way of legislation. The Congressional Record is checked daily for bills af- fecting the city; the Monthly Cata- log of Public Documents is checked for hearings and reports on these bills. ‘These are placed with other material on their subject in the file, thus bringing up to date the status of each project. In the case of the bridges and other engineering undertakings as well as UNDAY STAR, WASHINGTON, IN THE CIRCUS SPECTACLE Two of the chorus girls and a clown in the spectacle which opens the Ring- ling Bros. and Barnum and Bailey Circus tomorrow. those of a private nature the attempt is made to keep the file as strong as possible. “The prints are another valuable and fascinating adjunct to the vertical file. There are between 300 and 400 prints in the collection, photographs, wood cuts and half-tones. These illustrations are placed with their subject; the print collection being strongest on such sub- Jects as biography, Capitol, description, | gins. historic houses, inauguration, memorials and monuments and the White House. During its first year in its own home the Washington division has prepared four large exhibits drawn almost en- tirely from the vertical file and con- sisting in a large part of these prints. “The arrangement of the vertical file is by subject with many subdivisions. ‘There are no entries in the catalogue for the ~Washingtoniana subjects. This would be impossible from the character of the collection. Phrases and historical allusions must be used in classifying a collection like Washingtoniana, as catch words grow often to be the designated name of a locality. A case in point is the word ‘Triangle’ which is used al- together to designate the land which he U. S. Government is developing. A similar case, many years ago, occurred when the present Center Market was laid out. The space on the north of Pennsylvania avenue between Seventh end Ninth streets was referred to gen- erally as ‘Market Space’ and so it is to this day among the older ¥ashing- tonians. The ‘Market Space’ stores in the 80's and 90's were among the most prominent in the city. Index of All Magazines. “The file is strangthened in various ways. A card index is kept of all mag- azine articles about Washington, ap- pearing in the indexes from Poole to date. In cases where the magazine is not available for clipping a note is made on the pocket referring to the card in- dex. Call numbers of books in the col- lection and outside are placed on the pockets when there is a shortage of good popular matter about it. As soon as one phase of a subject separates it- self from the main thing under discus- sion in the papers, a pocket is made for it, and it assumes the proportions of a separate subdivision. The extension of the Capitol grounds, for instance, has assumed such proportions that it has bacom~ tha Plaza with cross reference from Capitol. i “The subdivisions are many and tha arrangement varies according to the subject. Diplomats are arranged by countries, historic houses by locality, as, in the old days, a locality had more significance than a house: alitics and government, under the different forms of government with the dates during which each lasted; the White House, under many, there being 30 subdivisions under the name of this historic build- g. “As the pamphlet and clipping collec-. tion increased in size and value, it was decided to try our hand at some form of scrapbook which would preserve the clippings and also put into book form much of the loose material which never seems to be of much value to the or- dinary reader. Our first attempt, about 1910, was a volume of historic houses, followed soon after by one on the ‘White House. books were bound in close binding and made a dignified appearance as well as being exceed- ing!{ useful as books of reference. This work went steadily on as fast as it could be sandwiched in with other duties. During the war years little could be done other than holding our own and keeping the vertical file up-to- date on the record of those full years. Later, in 1920, when we were able to sit up once more and take stock of things; we found that, in spite of all the drawbacks, we had eight scrapbooks to our credit. : Scrapbooks Permanent. “During this period many changes were worked out. As it was seen that the scrapbooks were to be a permanent and useful feature of the work, it was decided to have them of uniform size AT ITS NEW OFFICES it is more convenient than ever to ask (anadian Pacific 14th St. and New York Ave., NV, * Washington For your Vacationing, we suggest— The Resorts in the Mile-High Canadian Rockies Banfl, Lake Louise, Emerald Lake, the Yoho, the Bungalow Camps. The Alaska Cruises The North Pacific Coast On "Princess” Liners. Stopping at the Vancouver or Empress Hotel d” or "The Mountaineer”. nd Toronto—to Vancouver; or from Chicago, St. Paul-Minneapolis—to Vancouver. Or the near-at-hand Resorts and Vacation Trips Ontario—with lakes and camps. Quebec -— and Chateau Frontenac. Thke Laurentian Mountains. Eastern Provinces, including Nova Scotia. Great Lakes Service—For 5-day trips or to vary rail journey. Summer Tourist Tickets At Greatly Reduced Fares Also, the Smart, Luxurious Ocean Services Fo ES)ROPE—via the St. Lawrence Route, on the Empress Liners Begal Duchesses, or the Cabin *M” Ships. Th¢ ORIENT —Japan, China presses”— from nd Manila, by "Great White ncouver, via Victoria. The Winter Cruises—1929-30 Round the World South America-Africa To the Mediterranean To the West Inl’ For tickets and reservations, phone National 0758 or call at Canadian Pacific (LG Phelps, Gen. Agent, 14t nd New York Av iogion, D.C. 5 [ 4 and binding. With the help of Miss Elizabeth P. Gray, then curator of binding, the present loose leaf binder was designed. These binders arc a model for all work of this kind and are a monument to the ingenuity of Miss Gray in devising unusual accessories for Washingtoniana. Sheets of paper of uniform size are cut in our bindery and a frame used to outline the mar- . The actual mounting is what we call ‘special mounting’ and requires a certain deftness and assurance together with an artistic sense when it comes to arrangement and captions. Before the real mounting takes place there is often much ‘unmounting’ to be done. The material coming into Washingtoniana is, nine times out of ten, in the form of masses of loose clippings without ar- rangement or anything else; frequently the very lot that is selected for preser- vation has already been mounted by some careful soul who wanted to save it for posterity. They are mounted on anything handy, manila paper, ordi- nary newspaper and cardboard. All this must be unmounted. A flat hos- pital pan is used for this and each section of the material carefully num- bered so that the putting together again will be easy. Entire absence of source or date is another feature which must be corrected or acknowledged. The hand press is used for smaller mounts, ?K:e&he larger t‘lil:d :;;ore h’gportnn! are sent to the bin Pressing. FIACE “Indexing soon became 2 regular fea- ture of these books. When the larger volumes of the ‘Rambler’ were in prep- aratlon it was realized they would be of little value unless indexed. Indexing was taken up in earnest and now forms a necessary adjlinct to this part of the work, There are now, in all, 32 scrap- books varying in size and importance; the latest to be undertaken being one of the ‘Old Brick Capitol’ This his- toric building will soon be a thing of the past. When it was finally decided that it was to go, the book was started. There is very little in concrete form about this historic building, because of this and, also, because the vertical file had an unusual collection from many sources on the brick capitol, it was de- cided to give it the dignity of a scrap- book of its own. Hereafter this book will represent one of the places for in- formation about this landmark in United States history. “The vertical file was for many years the stepchild of the reference rozn{; its chief value in the eyes of many mem- bers of the staff being that it served as a barrier to the public from its position in room. Work on it was neces- sarily done when other claims on time allowed. In spite of this it has grown from 2 drawers at the start to 24 at the present time and work on the scrap- books must be kept up or it will ov “BIG TOP" REARED FOR2-DAY STAND Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey at Camp Meigs Site. The “big top” of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey circus will be reared at the Camp Meigs site this morning and its train of animals and performers unloaded in preparation for the opening performance tomorrow of ‘ét.! two-day engagement in Washing- o n. | Billed as “bigger and better” than | ever before, the circus will have in ac- tion & number of new aerial performers ! and other stars whose feats are counted upon to produce real thrills. Complete |revolutions of the body—a serles of | forward somersaults down the entire length of the hippodrome track—are | performed by one of the stars, little | Theol Nelson, descendant of a long line of circus performers. She is said to be the only circus performer in the world. who "has accomplished this somersaulting feat. Theol is one performer who “dou- bles,” for she was selected to play the role of the Beautiful Princess in the grand spectacle which opens the show and is known to thousands of children us “The Cinderella Girl.” There is another performer whose ac- tions will be eagerly awaited by the Washington audience. She is Fannie Arley, the petite trapese performer who was_badly injured when the circus played Washington last year. For flow all bounds, for it deals with Wash- ington history and that will go on, as it has in the past, hand in hand with the history of the Government of the United States.” Medel 71 72 from us for $10.00 D. €, MAY 19, severa] weeks she was ent at the Emergency Hospital as a result of fall- ing to the ring while in the finale of her “perch act.” Undaunted by her experience, Miss Arley has been con- tinuing her dangerous aerial stunts ever since her recovery. HYDE UPHOLDS MERIT IN CO-OPERATIVE IDEA Secretary of Agriculture Points to Similarity Between Indus- try and Farming. Co-operative organizations can win ground for agriculture which can be consolidated and held, Arthur M. Hyde, Secretary of Agriculture, told the Men's Club of the Foundry Methodist Church Friday evening in pointing out that legislation alone cannot answer the farmers’ problems. “After all that may be done by sym- pathetic legislation,” he said, “‘there will always be much that must be done by the farmers themselves.” In business, in civic affairs and in re- ligion co-operation has achieved respec- tability as in nearly every field of hu- man endeavor, Secretary Hyde declared, yet when the question is raised to its application to agricuiture it is a subject of criticism. “Why co-operation, when applied to agriculture, should be frowned upon,” he said, “why stald and comeervative business men who have co-operated and are co-operating in many business, re- ligious and civic enterprises should hold up their hands in horror, and allow a righteous dread to drown their souls, when farmers begin to work together, is past my limit of understanding. “The object of corporate production and selling of industrial commodities 1s the same as the aim of co-operative marketing of agricultural commodities— profit. for the producers. “Tne object of co-operatively pro- chlng a civic ideal, or seeking justice or a class, is not distinguishable from seeking a fair price for agricultural products and promoting justice to the farmers of America as a class,” he de- clared. They Couldn’t Improve, Majestic Radio So They Lowered the Price! Majestic, “mighty monarch of the air,” is as near perfection as possible—so cutting the price is the company’s way of showing appreciation for the wonderful popularity it enjoys. Was $157.25 $187.25 Cline’s attractive studio, where “nothing is too much trouble,” is the ideal place to hear the Majestic . . . and yo: can buy this great set lown. Now $129.50 $144.50 Also Authorized Agents for ‘Atwater Kent and Radiola 920 14th St. N.W. Opposite Franklin Park Open Evenings “At Seventh and K”—The Dependable Store 39 ELECTRIC ON SALE MONDAY Sewing Machines All slightly scuffed —but otherwise new and mechanically perfect. Com- plete with attachments. Table Electrics as low as. .. Console Electrics as low $115 Consolette Electrics $98 Automatic Chain Stitch. .. 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