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  JOURNAI, 
  OF 
  the; 
  WASHINGTON 
  ACADEMY 
  OF 
  SCIENCES 
  VOX,. 
  12, 
  NO. 
  21 
  

  

  bulletin 
  and 
  has 
  subsequently 
  been 
  copied 
  elsewhere. 
  The 
  wide- 
  

   spread 
  interest 
  indicated 
  in 
  such 
  a 
  list 
  led 
  Dr. 
  Bowerman 
  to 
  suggest 
  

   that 
  it 
  be 
  published 
  by 
  the 
  American 
  Library 
  Association 
  in 
  a 
  form 
  

   available 
  for 
  libraries 
  in 
  general, 
  and 
  the 
  preliminary 
  edition 
  above 
  

   referred 
  to 
  has 
  therefore 
  been 
  revised 
  with 
  that 
  end 
  in 
  view. 
  

  

  REVISION 
  OF 
  THE 
  LIST 
  

  

  A 
  new 
  committee, 
  consisting 
  of 
  the 
  President 
  and 
  resident 
  Vice- 
  

   Presidents 
  for 
  the 
  current 
  year, 
  with 
  the 
  writer 
  as 
  chairman, 
  was 
  

   appointed. 
  As 
  a 
  preliminary 
  to 
  this 
  revision 
  the 
  list, 
  condensed 
  

   to 
  author 
  and 
  title 
  only, 
  was 
  sent 
  to 
  all 
  members 
  of 
  the 
  Academy 
  in 
  

   the 
  form 
  of 
  a 
  ballot 
  in 
  December, 
  1921. 
  The 
  ballot 
  also 
  contained, 
  

   in 
  addition 
  to 
  the 
  one 
  hundred, 
  forty-five 
  titles 
  which 
  had 
  been 
  favor- 
  

   ably 
  recommended 
  to 
  the 
  Committee. 
  The 
  request 
  heading 
  the 
  ballot 
  

   was 
  as 
  follows: 
  

  

  "The 
  committee 
  in 
  charge 
  of 
  the 
  selection 
  wishes 
  to 
  obtain 
  the 
  best 
  possible 
  

   list, 
  and 
  will 
  welcome 
  your 
  opinion 
  on 
  the 
  books 
  already 
  selected, 
  and 
  your 
  

   suggestions 
  as 
  to 
  changes 
  which 
  would 
  improve 
  the 
  list. 
  

  

  Specifications: 
  (1) 
  The 
  book 
  must 
  be 
  readable; 
  if 
  the 
  average 
  visitor 
  to 
  

   the 
  library 
  takes 
  the 
  book 
  home, 
  it 
  will 
  interest 
  him 
  so 
  much 
  that 
  he 
  will 
  

   read 
  it 
  through, 
  and 
  will 
  come 
  back 
  to 
  ask 
  the 
  librarian 
  for 
  another 
  on 
  the 
  

   same 
  subject. 
  (2) 
  It 
  must 
  be 
  accurate; 
  preferably 
  written 
  by 
  one 
  who 
  

   knows 
  his 
  subject 
  at 
  first 
  hand. 
  Minor 
  points 
  are: 
  (3) 
  up-to-dateness; 
  

   (4) 
  small 
  bulk; 
  (5) 
  attractive 
  binding, 
  type, 
  and 
  illustrations. 
  

  

  The 
  relative 
  number 
  of 
  books 
  in 
  different 
  branches 
  of 
  science 
  is 
  not 
  fixed. 
  

   For 
  example, 
  a 
  good 
  book 
  in 
  mathematics 
  may 
  be 
  substituted 
  for 
  a 
  poor 
  

   book 
  in 
  anthropology, 
  provided 
  anthropology 
  is 
  not 
  thereby 
  left 
  wholly 
  un- 
  

   represented." 
  

  

  About 
  one-fourth 
  of 
  the 
  resident 
  members 
  responded 
  with 
  criticisms 
  

   and 
  new 
  titles, 
  and 
  replies 
  were 
  also 
  received 
  from 
  many 
  non-resident 
  

   members.^ 
  These 
  ballots 
  were 
  made 
  the 
  basis 
  of 
  the 
  new 
  revision. 
  

   The 
  total 
  number 
  of 
  books 
  nominated 
  and 
  considered 
  was 
  323. 
  

  

  A 
  new 
  feature 
  of 
  the 
  revision 
  which 
  the 
  first 
  committee 
  had 
  not 
  

   had 
  to 
  consider 
  was 
  the 
  question 
  whether 
  books 
  were 
  in 
  print. 
  The 
  

   larger 
  libraries, 
  when 
  issuing 
  reading 
  lists, 
  sometimes 
  find 
  it 
  necessary 
  

   to 
  have 
  many 
  copies 
  of 
  a 
  book 
  on 
  hand. 
  Furthermore, 
  copies 
  are 
  

   continually 
  being 
  worn 
  out 
  and 
  replaced, 
  so 
  that 
  for 
  wide 
  circulation 
  

   it 
  is 
  important 
  that 
  the 
  list 
  contain 
  only 
  books 
  which 
  are 
  readily 
  

  

  ' 
  It 
  may 
  be 
  of 
  interest 
  in 
  passing 
  to 
  note 
  that 
  the 
  member 
  of 
  the 
  Academy 
  who 
  made 
  

   the 
  "highest 
  score" 
  as 
  to 
  the 
  number 
  of 
  books 
  read 
  was 
  the 
  president 
  of 
  a 
  large 
  research 
  

   institution, 
  working 
  in 
  many 
  fields 
  of 
  science. 
  He 
  had 
  read, 
  and 
  gave 
  opinions 
  upon, 
  

   fifty-two 
  books 
  out 
  of 
  the 
  hundred. 
  The 
  member 
  who 
  came 
  next 
  in 
  order 
  was 
  a 
  man 
  who 
  

   had 
  devoted 
  most 
  of 
  his 
  life 
  to 
  research 
  in 
  a 
  relatively 
  narrow 
  specialty. 
  

  

  