Library administration

Front matter

;ilrtat:g

BOUGHT WITH THE INCOME FROM THE

SAGE ENDOWMENT FUND

Preface

The present writer has not made it his aim to produce an authoritative code of library government — that were too ambitious an aim, and moreover, forbidden by exigencies of space. He hopes, however, to have touched at least upon the salient points of the librarian's duties and difficulties, and while treating them chiefly as affecting libraries of the first rank, to have produced a work not unacceptable in institutions less highly organised.

It is hoped, too, that the account of the processes designed to serve the needs of readers may prove of interest to the layman also, and that the details given of Continental libraries and the methods of the British Museum will be found to possess some claim to novelty.

In conclusion, the writer wishes to express his hearty thanks for kind assistance to the editor of this series, and to many colleagues in the British Museum, to M. Blanchet of the Paris National Library, M. Paris of the Brussels Royal Library,

X PREFACE

Mr. Jenkinson, Librarian of the University of Cambridge, and Mr. Welch, Librarian of the Guildhall Library ; also to the heads of the libraries at Bootle (Mr. Ogle), Clerkenwell (Mr. J. D. Brown), Brixton (Mr. Burgoyne), and Wandsworth (Mr. Cecil Davis).

J. MACFARLANE.

January 1898.

Chapter I

The genesis of the library, public or private, can be traced through the histories of all complex civilisations. It is, however, with the public library of modern times, its aims and methods, that the present work is chiefly concerned. For the appreciation of these we may neglect Assyria and Rome, and the monastic libraries, wherein alone the lamp of science was kept aHght in the Dark and Middle Ages, and pass to the Renaissance. The phrase bibliotheca publica is first found, as far as at present known, in the fifteenth century,^ and in 1437 the earliest institution deserving of this title was founded when Niccolo Niccoli left his collection of manuscripts to the city of Florence, and they were thrown open to public use in a library which is now merged in the Laurenziana.

The functions of the librarian evolved themselves in natural sequence. He was primarily custodian

A of the books, and in the perpetual wars of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries the office was no sinecure. Thus we may well imagine that Gosselin, who had charge of the Bibliotheque du Roi during the wars of the League, had enough to do to ensure the safety of his charge, and it is not surprising to learn that during his forty-four years of office he never found time to make a catalogue, nor that his too jealous guardianship often thwarted the inquiring zeal of Isaac Casaubon, who afterwards succeeded him.^ He, again, was a striking example of a class of librarian that even to-day is by no means extinct — the mere scholar, who reads instead of causing books to be read.

The modern conception of the librarian seems to have been first reached, at least in Great Britain, by one John Durie, who set forth his views in an interesting little work, "The Reformed Librarie- Keeper" {London, 1650, i2mo). He was particularly opposed to the notion of a library being a mere museum of curiosities, and greatly blames the administration of the library at Heidelberg, in that "they that had the keeping of this librarie made it an idol, to bee respected and worshipped for a raritie by an implicate faith." He sets forth the defects that characterised the librarians of his time in words that are not without their application to-day : —

" The Librarie-keeper's place and office, in most countries (as most other Places and offices both in Churches and

' See Mark Pattison's "Casaubon,"

Universities) are looked upon as Places of profit and gain, and so accordingly sought after and valued in that regard : and not in regard of the Service which is to bee done by them unto the Common-wealth of Israel, for the advancement of Pietie and Learning : . . . and so they subordinate all the advantages of their places to purchase mainly two things thereby, viz. an easie subsistence, and som credit in comparison with others ; nor is the last much regarded, if the first may bee had."

". . . If Librarie-keepers did understand themselvs in the nature of their work, and would make themselvs, as they ought to bee, useful in their places in a publick waie, they ought to becom Agents for the advancement of universal Learning, and to this effect I could wish that their places might not bee made, as everie where they are, Mercenarie, but rather Honorarie ; and that with the competent allowance of two hundred pounds a year ; som emploiments should bee put upon them further than a bare keeping of the Books."

" The proper charge then of the Honorarie Librarie-keeper in an Universitie should bee thought upon, and the end of that Imploiment, in my conception, is to keep the public stock of Learning, which is in Books and Manuscripts, to increas it, and to propose to others in the waie which may bee most useful unto all."

To this end Durie proceeds, the librarian shall "trade" with foreign men of learning for exchange of books and of discoveries in science, making himself a sort of confidential international agent. To carry this system out he must know the " parts " of all scholars of eminence. As a check on his administration he shall give an annual account of his " trading," accompanied by a " Catalogue of

Additionals," which latter shall be printed every three years for transmission abroad. As the Bodleian in Durie's time had privileges of copyright, provision is made for the treatment of " copyright books " by the ideal librarian. " I would have at the time of giving accounts the Librarie-keeper also bound to produce the Catalogue of all the books sent unto the Universitie's Librarie by the Stationars that printed them, to the end that everie one of the Doctors in their own Faculties should declare whether or no they should bee added, and where they should bee placed in the Catalogue of Additionals." These rejected books were to be kept, though not added to the catalogue.

The modern ideal of the librarian has been forcibly explained by one who was perhaps the greatest among them, in this country at least — we mean Henry Bradshaw. " A librarian is one who earns his living by attending to the wants of those for whose use the library under his charge exists ; his primary duty being, in the widest possible sense of the phrase, to save the time of those who seek his services." ^ To achieve this end there is required a rare combination of three qualities — scholarship, character, and business capacity. The day is long past when universal erudition was possible, but the ideal librarian will be a man of catholic tastes and retentive memory, interested in all the developments of human knowledge, and able by his linguistic attainments to follow them

' Address to the Library Association of the United Kingdom, 1882.

in the literature of the chief civilised nations. Such a man is almost certain to be drawn by his natural bent into one field of specialisation, and with the aid of his staff, among whom his worthy successors are to be looked for, will be able to furnish to readers the advice of an expert over a large domain of knowledge. This ideal presupposes in him the zeal and sympathy which incite to study and research, with which must be combined the care for detail and the firmness of character that belongs to the efficient man of business.

We have now first to consider the methods by which it is sought to select and train the candidates for this high office, and the internal discipline of a library staff. The system under which librarians are selected and educated in the United Kingdom shares the virtues and defects of our general attitude in these matters. It lacks the precision characteristic of Continental and American methods, but is perhaps not less successful if we judge by results.

The staffs of the larger libraries, except that of the British Museum, are recruited without examination of the candidates. This is counterbalanced, in the case of the Universities at any rate, by the ability of the chiefs, which those seats of learning seem always able to provide, men in whom the absence of technical training is amply compensated for by scholarship and administrative capacity. Of these men the rarest and most brilliant example is found in Henry Bradshaw, late University Librarian at Cambridge.

The staff of assistant librarians in the British Museum is selected by a double test. First, the three principal Trustees, of the institution (the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Speaker of the House of Commons, and the Lord Chancellor) give "nominations" or permissions to compete to a number of candidates selected with a view to their usefulness, and then these compete among themselves for the place or places that may become vacant. The examination is in part qualificatory (writing, arithmetic, mathematics, or history) and in part competitive (translation from and composition in Latin and Greek, and two or three modern languages). No bibliographical knowledge is exacted, and herein is the most striking contrast with all other systems. The successful candidate or candidates are then received on probation in the library for two years. In that space of time their capacity to acquire bibliographical and other knowledge can be tested. For a considerable portion of the staif the antiquarian part of bibliography, so much insisted on in the Continental examinations, will be quite superfluous. At least two assistants are required to look after the supply of modern European literature, and for this require knowledge of languages and literature, and a capacity to thwart the wiliness or stir up the sluggishness of booksellers. Another will be concerned with the administration of the Copyright Acts, another with the binding department. A knowledge of early printers, for instance, or the Dewey system, will be of little service to these. The principle of the entrance examination is one that runs through the whole of the Civil Service examinations in this country — to select men of general capacity, whose education rather fits them to learn than fills them with knowledge. Sometimes, luckily for the public service, candidates of special attainments are found and nominated, whose general knowledge enables them to take the first place in the competitive examinations. These are ideal candidates, and necessarily not common.

The only organised education and examination of librarians in this country is directed by the Library Association of the United Kingdom. The education takes the form of a " Summer School for Students of Librarianship," which is "intended to give library assistants and others who are training for appointments in libraries an opportunity of gaining a practical insight into those subjects which, as a rule, they can only learn from books, and to enable them to compare the various systems of hbrary management." The programme of the 1897 School, just brought to a successful close, will give a good idea of the methods of the school : —

Monday, T,\st May.

7.30 P.M. Reception in the rooms of the Association,

20 Hanover Square, W. Tea and coffee. 8 P.M. Inaugural address by the Chairman of the

Committee, C. Welsh, Esq., F.S.A. 8.30 P.M. Lecture by R. Garnett, Esq., C.B., LL.D.,

on " History and Poetry in the Victorian

Age."

Tuesday, isi June.

lo A.M. Visit to the British Museum. 12 noon. Visit to the Cripplegate Institute, Golden

Capper, *Esq., will conduct the party

over the building. 3.30 P.M. Lecture by J. J. Ogle, Esq., on "Aids to

Readers," at 20 Hanover Square, W. 7.45 P.M. Tea and coffee at 20 Hanover Square, W. 8.30 P.M. Lecture and demonstration on "Binding,"

by C. Chivers, Esq.

Wednesday, 2nd June.

10 A.M. Visit to the St. Bride Foundation Institute,

Bride Lane, Fleet Street, E.G. Walter J. Picket, Esq., Clerk to the Governors, and F. W. T. Lange, Esq., Librarian, will conduct the party over the building.

11 A.M. Visit to the Bishopsgate Institute, Bishops-

gate Street Without, E.G. R. W. Heaton, Esq., M.A., the Director and Librarian, will conduct the party over the building. 3 P.M. Lecture and demonstration by J. Henry Quinn, Esq., on " Subject Cataloguing," at the Chelsea Public Library, Manresa Road, S.W., to be followed by a Lecture and demonstration on "Library Accounts," by Frank Pacy, Esq. 7.30 P.M. Tea and coffee at the Guildhall Library, King Street, Gheapside, E.G , by invitation of the Chairman of the Summer School Committee.

8.30 P.M. Lecture by W. May, Esq., on " Library Administration, Maintenance, and Executive Work.''

Thursday, T^rd June.

10 A.M. Visit to the works of Messrs. Cassell & Co. The students will assemble in La Belle Sauvage Yard, Ludgate Hill, E.G., and will be taken round in small parties. 3 P.M. Visit to Lambeth Palace and Lambeth Palace Library, by kind permission of his Grace the Archbishop of Canter- "bury. The Librarian, S. W. Kershaw, Esq., M.A., F.S.A., will conduct the students over the library. 7 P.M. Tea and coffee at 20 Hanover Square, W.

7.30. P.M. Lecture by Herbert Jones, Esq., on " Public Library Legislation."

8.30. P.M. " Things Heard and Seen : " an open discussion by members of the Summer School.

Friday, ^th June.

Examination. — Particulars will be announced during the session, and it is earnestly hoped that all the members of the School will present themselves on the occasion. Prizes of three guineas, two guineas, and one guinea will be offered for competition.

It will be noticed that there is time left on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, between the afternoon and evening lectures, which might be utilised for visits to libraries, at the discretion of the students.

It is to be feared that the effect of this programme is to produce bewilderment among the

10 LIBKARY ADMINISTRATION

students ; the " turns " we venture to think are too many, and too close together. Many of the students may be seen on occasion of the various visits taking diligent notes, which will serve in some measure to prevent complete intellectual indigestion. It is rather significant that sometimes {e.g. in 1895) when prizes are offered for the best sets of notes, the examiners find no one worthy to receive the second prize. We would venture to suggest the abridgment of the programme by cutting out visits to printers and bookbinders, whose work can be seen in any large town by the students individually.

SUMMER SCHOOL OF THE LIBRARY ASSOCIATION

Fifth Session, 1897

examination

Friday, i\,thjune, at 11 a.m., at 20 Hanover Square.

Only ten questions are to be attempted, which must include those marked with an asterisk (*).

Only two questions in each class are to be attempted.

A. I. What cause has principally modified the study of

history in the Victorian era? 2. By what poet has the general spirit of the Victorian era been most accurately reproduced ?

B. *i. Name six books with which you are acquainted

that contain lists of authorities or select bibliographies to the subjects of the sections or chapters. 2. Give as full a list of concordances to the works of English poets as you can.

THE LIBRARY AND ITS STAFF II

3. Where would you begin to seek information as to the books on a subject which you had hitherto known little or nothing about? and how would you follow up your clues ?

C. *i. How can you tell whether the binder has done

his work well ?

2. When should tight backs be used, and when

loose, and why ?

3. Give the strain at which ordinary binders' (a)

string and (d) tape wilUbreak.

D. *i. State the advantages which you consider the

classed catalogue has compared with the dictionary, and the disadvantages. 2. Under what headings would you place Nansen's "Farthest North" in a classed catalogue.

E. *i. Give an illustration of the method which seems

best to you of vouching for and recording the receipts taken from day to day in a library, as fines and penalties.

2. A sum of ;£i2, i2S. 6d. is received during one

month in a library, made up as follows : Fines and penalties, ;!^S, 7s. 6d. ; sale of catalogues, ^3, 5s. ; donations, ^2, 15s. ; and miscellaneous items, ;^i, 5s. Show what entries are necessary for the proper recording of the amounts in the books (cash-book and ledger).

3. A library building has cost ;^45oo, towards

which amount ;^4ooo has been borrowed, the balance being paid out of revenue. The whole cost of the building has been defrayed within the period of one financial year. The repayment of principal on account of the loan in the same year amounts to ;^76, 17s. iid. What would be the balance on the building account ? and show how it is arrived at.

F. *i. What are the essential particulars to be given in

an annual report to adequately describe the work of a free library during the year ?

2. Describe briefly the variously detailed informa-

tion which should be given in a stock-book.

3. Describe fully the process of preparing a new

book for public circulation, from its receipt from the bookseller to its handing to the first borrower.

G. *i. Describe briefly how the Public Library Acts are

to be adopted —

(a) In an urban district. (d) In a parish.

2. What was the date of the passing of the (a)

principal Public Library Act? and the name of its promoter ? and (6) the dates of the Acts now in force ?

3. What is the number of Commissioners allowed

under the Act ? and for how long are they appointed ?

Who audits the accounts of the Library

authorities ?

What sanctions are necessary before a Library authority can borrow money for the purposes of the Acts ?

H. *i. Describe briefly the visit to eMer — (a) The British Museum, (6) The works of Messrs. Cassell & Co., or (c) The Lambeth Palace and Lambeth Palace Library.

This is all the organised instruction of librarians that exists ; but there are many libraries where the assistants are trained by their chief with the greatest thoroughness, and where the governing bodies second these efforts by allowing time for instruction which does not, strictly speaking, form part of the duty of their staff. We extract, as an example, the following paragraph from the thirty-fourth Report of the Cardiff Public Libraries : " The librarian, with the cordial sanction of the Committee, has formed the library staff into an association for the study and discussion of questions relating to practical librarianship, with a view to increasing the interest taken by the staff in the work of the library. ... It is hoped that this will be the means of training up a more efficient staff of assistants, and of qualifying the assistants to take more important positions in other libraries."

The examination organised by the Library Association is intended to keep up a supply of trained candidates for library appointments, with the hope that committees and other governing bodies will in course of time give them preference over untrained candidates, and also that the supply of a more costly article will create a demand, and the salaries of librarians will increase in proportion.

As a preliminary test of the general education of candidates, it is required that they shall either have been engaged in library work for three years, or produce a certificate of having passed some public examination from among those accepted by the General Medical Council.

The syllabus of the examination is as follows : —

SYLLABUS

I. — BIBLIOGRAPHY AND LITERARY HISTORY

(a) Bibliography. — Besides the practical knowledge obtained in his own library, the candidate must show a fair knowledge of the matter dealt with in Home's " Introduction to BibUography," and the bibliographical articles in the " Encyclopaedia Britannica." He must have some acquaintance with the history of printing, and the leading bibliographical works of reference. He must know the Latin names of the towns most frequently found in imprints.

(b) Literary History (of two countries), especially of the last hundred years.

Each candidate must show that he has a thorough knowledge of the matter of the text-books in the [appended] list, and moreover, an acquaintance with the editions and forms in which the leading writers have been published, and of the literature that has grown up around those works.

II. — CATALOGUING, CLASSIFICATION, AND SHELF ARRANGEMENT

The candidate must be able to catalogue and classify a number of books in at least two languages (one of which must be Latin) besides English. He must be familiar with leading systems of cataloguing, and the best printed catalogues produced in Englishspeaking countries, theories and schemes of classification, size-notation, shelf-registers, mechanical methods used in cataloguing, &c.

III. — LIBRARY MANAGEMENT

This section of the examination will be a test of the candidate's experience and his skill and readiness in dealing with the various practical problems which may come before him. He will be examined as to the methods in use in his own library. The chief subjects may be thus arranged : —

(i) Public Libraries Acts. — History and leading provisions (only if the candidate is from a ratesupported library).

ness books, rules and regulations for the public.

(3) Buildings. — Plans and specifications, lighting,

heating, ventilation.

(4) Fittings and appliances generally, but excluding

mechanical methods used in cataloguing.

(5) Maintenance. — Binding, stationery, periodicals,

donations, propositions, &c., and their various books of records.

(6) Executive Work.— Charging and registration of

books, lending and reference, registration of readers or borrowers, issue and other statistics.

(7) General. — Aid to readers, reference library work,

news-rooms.

A list of text-books is appended to this syllabus, showing its scope more nearly. Thus, for the part dealing with Classification and Shelf Arrangement the following books are recommended : Edwards' " Memoirs of Libraries," vol. i., Brunei's " Manuel,"

Garnett on " British Museum System " (an article), Dewey's " Decimal Classification," Greenwood's " Public Libraries," Brown's " Library Appliances," and a few review articles. Of all the books in this appalling list, the unfortunate candidate is expected to bring up "a thorough knowledge."

If the questions set are not absurdly superficial, the test is absurdly severe, and it is no wonder that candidates fail to present themselves. It should, of course, be understood that the examiners are nearly all librarians of popular libraries, and that the examination is intended for candidates for posts in those libraries. A set of questions given last year (1896) is here appended.

THE LIBRARY ASSOCIATION

QUESTIONS SET AT THE EXAMINATION IN JULY 1896

Bibliography

Ti7ne 2\ hours. Five questions must be answered, including at least two among A'os. i, 2, 5, and 7.

1. (a) Mention the titles of five block-books, (b) In what town was printing in use in the year 1470?

2. What do you remember of Home's remarks on the rarity of books ?

3. When did the following printers flourish, and for what are they chiefly known : (i.) Antony Koburger ; (ii.) Foulis ; (iii.) Bodoni; (iv.) Baskerville; (v.) Julian Notary.

4. (a) Explain the following terms: (i.) Register; (ii.) Palimpsest; (iii.) Colophon; (iv.) Incunabula; (v.) Format; (vi.) Gros batarde; (vii.) Inset, (b) What is meant by (i.)

Bamberg Bible ; (ii.) Pine's Horace ; (iii.) The Bay Psalm Book?

5. Mention the titles of works on the bibliography of any two of the following subjects: (i.) History of England; (ii.) English Literature since 1840; (iii.) Botany; (iv.) Anonymous and Pseudonymous books (English, French and Latin).

6. Mention some of the Kings' printers in chronological order, and state what you know about their patents.

7. (a) What are the Latin names of: (i.) Paris^; (ii.) Mainz; (iii.) Spires ; (iv.) Brussels ; (v.) Lisbon? (6) What are: (i.) Lexovium ; (ii.) Audomaropolis ; (iii.) Pictavia ; (iv.) Salisburgium ; (v.) Hafnia?

8. Who were: (i.) J. Grolier; (ii. ) Richard de Bury ; (iii.) J. A. Fabricius; (iv.) A. A. Barbier; (v.) Miles Coverdale?

9. Mention any five printed catalogues of private libraries, and state for what each is chiefly remarkable.

10. What do you know of the printed catalogues of: (i.) The Advocates' Library ; (ii.) The Boston Athenaeum ; (iii.) The Bodleian Library ; (iv.) Library of Trinity College, Dublin ?

English Literary History

Time i| hours. Four questions must be answered, including Nos. i and 2.

1. Name the works of not less than three of the following writers : {a) Editions known to you of them ; {b) Editors or critics of them ; {c) Works describing places connected with them : Scott, Rogers, Coleridge, Wordsworth, Tennyson.

2. Give a brief sketch (about one foolscap page) of either {a) History of Juvenile Literature in England to the present time ; {b) History of the English Printed Bible ; (c) History of the English Novel in i860 : in the manner of a short article for an encyclopedia.

3. Name the successive writers in the following Sciences

B whose names, linked together, make a history of the Science : (a) Geology ; (i) Chemistry ; (c) Optics.

4. Describe three leading peculiarities in the works of either (a) William Morris, {/>) John Ruskin. Mention the works which best exhibit them.

5. Describe the influence of America on English Literature, or, Describe the influence of France on English Literature. State the periods of such influence, and authors by whom caused.

6. Name notable English writers who were also great as (a) Soldiers, (i) Sailors, {c) Artists, (d) Publishers, (e) Librarians.

7. Discriminate the works of authors bearing the following names : (a) Oliphant, (d) Stanley, (c) Arnold.

8. What modern writers have the most improved our knowledge of early English Literature ?

French Literary History

Time i^ hours. Six questions to be answered, including JVos. I, 2, and 10. Two of these to be answered in French.

1. Make a sketch list of authors who must needs be included in selecting a small general library of French literature, principally modern.

2. Translate the following : —

3. Describe the characteristics of the following works, and give the authors' names : Origines de la France contemporaine, Lettres a une inconnue, Causeries du Lundi, Mimoires d'outre-tombe.

4. Name some of the subsidiary titles in the following groups : Comkdie Hutnaine, Les Rougon-Macquart, Batailles de la vie.

5. Describe the nature of the writings of some of the following authors : Rabelais, Moliere, Bdranger, Bossuet, Bungener, Ribot, Amiel, Mme. Craven, Jules Simon.

6. Give a chain of dramatic authors in chronological sequence from Moliere to the present time.

7. Under what reigns must we place the biographies of the following persons : Du Barry, De Berri, Pompadour, Montespan, Ninon de I'Enclos.

8. Name the writings of Napoleon III., Due d'Aumale, Due d'Orl^ans, Comte de Paris.

9. Under what other names may we look for catalogue entries of the following writers : D'Abrantes, De Raguse ?

10. What authors would you recommend to a reader desirous of being acquainted with the lives of: (a) Napoleon I., ib) Louis XIV., {c) Marie Antoinette? (Avoid direct biographies of them.)

Cataloguing Time \\ hours.

1. Describe the differences between "dictionary" and " classified " forms of catalogues, and the merits or defects of each.

2. Rule 28 of the Library Association Cataloguing Rules reads : "All persons generally known by a fore-name are to be so entered, the English form being used in the case of sovereigns, popes, ruling princes. Oriental writers, friars, and persons canonised." Give illustrations showing the meaning of this rule.

3. To what extent should the repetition dash be used in accordance with Cutter's Rules ?

4. Give a list of divisions into which you could subdivide the subject-headings in a dictionary catalogue of: Bible, India, Chemistry.

5. Catalogue the five books set before you in accordance with Cutter's Rules for a Dictionary Catalogue, afterwards alphabetising all the entries by means of numbers, and making as many cross-references as may be necessary in the case of synonymous headings.

6. Catalogue the same books for a classified catalogue.

Classification and Shelf Arrangement Time \\ hours.

1. Explain the special features of the Dewey system of classification, and give a list of its classes, and the divisions under Sociology and Natural Science.

2. Compare the relative advantages of the Decimal Classification and Relative Index and the Dictionary Catalogue.

3. Enumerate the chief hindrances met ' with in the classification of literature.

4. Contrast the relative advantages of Mr. Swan Sonnenschein's "Best Books" and Mr. Fortescue's "Subject- Index of the Modern Works added to the Library of the British Museum," with special regard to the internal arrangement of titles.

5. Enumerate the advantages and disadvantages of close classification on the shelves.

6. Describe the system of classification you would adopt in dealing with, say, 5000 volumes covering every period of British history.

7. How would you arrange a collection of books by local authors and from local presses, with tracts, pamphlets, and papers, the materials of local history?

8. Find close subject-headings for Ruskin's " Sesame and Lilies," Schliemann's "Tiryns," Sir Thomas More's "Utopia," Ascham's " Scholemaster," Hartland's "Fairy Mythology," Muir's " Theory of Determinants."

Library Management Clause 2. Time i\ hours.

1. Having an assured income per annum from the penny rate and other sources, what means would you adopt for ascertaining the relative expenditure, i.e. on books, binding, periodicals, &c. ?

2. What rule or rules would you enforce in a general reading-room to ensure the fullest possible use of the newspapers and periodicals ?