REPORT OF THE LIBRARIAN FOR 1927 

 Dr. C. Stuart Gager, Director. 



Sir: I take pleasure in submitting herewith my report for the 

 year ending December 31, 1927. 



There have been decided increases in various phases of the work 

 of the department. About 600 volumes were forwarded for hind 

 ing as contrasted with a little over 200 of last year; 870 current 

 periodical and serial titles were received by gift, exchange, pur- 

 chase, or deposit. The total accessions numbered 7,86^ of winch 

 ()_'2 were book ' pimphlrt md h t maim l< r parts of serials 

 and periodicals. 



Reference Work 



It may be well at this point to call attention to the diverse types 

 of reference questions the department is called upon to answer for 



individual linn md institutions. A firm of investment bankers, 

 or one of patent attorneys, both of the metropolitan district of 

 New York, would hardly be considered firms that would seek the 

 aid of a botanic garden library. It would seem more natural for 

 a patent medicine firm to telephone us (as was done) for infor- 

 mation as to where may be found an illustration of a longitudinal 

 section of a grain of wheat ; or for an editorial writer to call per- 

 sonally to consul! Parkinson's I'ann/is,' /// Sole, a book printed in 

 London in 1629. Here is an institution of a neighboring state 

 asking where tree labels ma\ be purchased ; a visitor spends a day 

 in the library to find out what herbs can be grown 

 ten acres of woodland in Connecticut; another i 

 a list of references on the Mexican bean beetle; one of the Fathers 

 of a church nearby pores over illustrations of flowers for inspira 

 lion in designing new stained glass windows. A visitor wishes to 

 rid his thirty-acre lake of pond hikes, without poisoning the water 

 or the fish, as the lake is used for commercial purposes, and still 

 another is especially interested in hybrid poplars for the cultivation 

 of wood in the manufacture of matches. 



We could go on indefinitely writing of information given to 

 members of garden clubs, to journalists, to physicians, to members 

 of museum staffs, to artists, to an electrical laboratory in a 



