In printing lists of books, make the classes covered special, not general.  Give lists suitable for as many different needs and occasions as possible.  There can’t be too many of them.  For instance, a teacher would find thoroughly helpful and practicable such classified lists of books as, for beginners in third and fourth grades, for the intermediate pupils, for boys, for girls, numerous references to the current events of the day; historical readings divided into periods and adapted to different grades; historical fiction under several forms of classification; biographies and biographical sketches suited to different ages; geographical aids, including travel, description, life, scenes, and customs in different countries; natural history and elementary science; the resources of the library available for the purpose of illustrating topics in history, art, and science; material for theme studies; special lists for anniversary days now so generally observed in schools, and so on.

Lists in which the titles of the books come first are better liked by the general public than are author-lists.  People commonly know books by name, not by author.

Don’t make the mistake of spending much money, at the library’s beginning, for a printed catalog.  A printed catalog, as stated in chapter 25, is not a necessity.  It is useful, particularly for home use, to tell whether the library owns certain books; but with a good card catalog, newspaper lists, special lists, and the like, it is not a necessity.  Few large libraries now publish complete catalogs.

CHAPTER XXXII

Charging system

On the inside of the front cover of every book in the library paste a manilla pocket. (See Library Bureau catalog.) Or paste, by the bottom and the upper corners, thus making a pocket of it, a sheet of plain, stout paper at the bottom of the first page of the first flyleaf.  On this pocket, at the top, write the call-number of the book.  Below this print information for borrowers, if this seems necessary.  In this pocket place a book-card of heavy ledger paper or light cardboard.  On this book-card, at the top, write the call-number of the book in the pocket of which it is placed.

[Illustration:  Card-pocket. (Reduced; actual size, 7 x 13-1/2 cm.)

CHICAGO PUBLIC LIBRARY

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EXTRACT FROM CITY ORDINANCE.

SEC. 1.—­Any person who shall willfully or maliciously cut, write upon, injure, deface, tear, or destroy any Book, Newspaper, Plate, Picture, Engraving, or Statue belonging to the Chicago Public Library, shall be liable to a fine of not less than five dollars, nor more than fifty dollars for every such offense.

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EXTRACT FROM RULES.

27.—­Books may be retained two weeks, and may be once renewed for the same period.