ON THE CLASSIFICATION OF BOOKS. 419 



eolf-expression : language, belles-lettres, fine arts, rhetoric, logic, education, 

 and philanthropy; but is a worthy engrossment and presentation of all the 

 classes gone before, and the fittest introduction to Class VIII, biography, the 

 science of the individual man -per se, of the microcosm, the summary and con- 

 clusion of knowledge, the return of the circle into itself. 



Regarded as divisions and subdivisions of human knowledge, it is very likely 

 that other minds consulting this catalogue will take a different view of the relative 

 value of these classes and divisions, and therefore of their respective claims to 

 the prominent places which they occupy. But there is not one of them that has 

 not been called and is not well recognized as a separate branch of science, having 

 societies specially founded for its investigation and text-books written for its 

 special elucidation. The list also seems complete. There may be question of 

 the arrangement in certain parts, but the uninterrupted progression of the whole 

 will be allowed on the ground of the accepted hierarchy of the numerical, inor- 

 ganic, organic, mental, moral, and religious worlds. No argument can change 

 this order of sequence and dignity. 



Certain exigencies of the librarian, nevertheless, or of the student, and certain 

 inosculations, interferences, or cross-relationships among the many members of 

 the corpus scientiarum, cause perplexity, and introduce an apparent element of 

 discord. But when the principal instances of its appearance have been mentioned, 

 they will be seen to cause no serious disturbance in the order of the whole, and 

 may be compared to those threads of shade which throw themselves across the 

 colors of the spectrum, only to suggest new revelations of the harmony which 

 reigns throughout the universe of light. 



The following are the principal suggestions to be made in view of the practi- 

 cally abnormal occurrences to be expected in this arrangement of a library. 



Class I. Under societies' proceedings (1'^) a complete list of learned societies, 

 whose publications are represented in any degree in the libi-ary, is given. But as 

 many of these societies devote their publications to special sciences, the detailed 

 description of their issues must appear under such special heads. In such an 

 immense collection of these issues as that now making by the Smithsonian Insti- 

 tution at Washington, it is found necessary to devote one entire hall of the library 

 to their reception, and, in fact, to organize a separate department of correspond- 

 ence. Even with smaller collections, this is by far the best arrangement for the 

 librarian. But for the student it is evidently more desirable to have the issues of 

 all botanical societies in the alcove devoted to botany, all those of medical socie- 

 ties in the alcove of medicine, all those of antiquarian societies in archaeology, 

 those of historical societies in the cases of history, &c. But for the same reason 

 it is proper to classify the titles of their issues under corresponding heads in the 

 .catalogue raisonnee. If, at the same time, the titles of all general societies and 

 references to the titles of all special societies be resumed under the division (1^) 

 of learned societies, a couj) d' ee.il is obtained of the learned world. In some 

 few instances double entries must be made of so-called special societies, such as 

 those of natural history, the titles of which must be referred to under botany, 

 and under zoology also. But they are few in number. 



Class II. Meteorology is a science with a literature of its own, and must 

 therefore have a place of its own ; but its disjecta memhra give much trouble, 

 .ind would be thrown by a close criticism into several divisions or subdivisions. 

 Its observations are almost always made in connexion with astronomy; some; 

 of its meteors are cosmical, and come under a sub-section of astronomy (2^"); 

 others are atmospheric, and come under another sub-section of astronomy (2^") ; 

 others are of a so-called physical kind, and would come under magnetism, &c., 

 (2'*) ; others are mineralogical, and connected Avith geological phenomena, and 

 would come under 3^ and 3*. It has been placed in this class and made a cor- 

 relative branch of its second division with astronomy, because of their practical 

 :>onnexion in the observatory, and because of their literal connexion in the 



