246 A LIBRARIAN'S WORK. [xn. 



visited seem to have taken their cue from the British 

 Museum. But in America we have hit upon a less 

 ponderous method. To accomplish this end of keep- 

 ing our titles in their proper alphabetical order, we 

 write them on separate cards, of stiff paper, and 

 arrange these cards in little drawers, in such a way 

 that any one, by opening the drawer and tilting the 

 cards therein, can easily find the title for which he is 

 seeking. Our new catalogue at Cambridge is a 

 marvel of practical convenience in this respect. At 

 each end the row of stiff cards is supported by 

 bevelled blocks, in such a way that some title lies 

 always open to view ; and by simply tilting the cards 

 with the forefinger, any given title is quickly found, 

 without raising the card from its place in the drawer. 

 In September, 1833, our library began its second 

 supplement, consisting of two alphabetical manu- 

 script catalogues. Volumes received after that date 

 were catalogued upon stiff cards arranged in drawers, 

 while pamplilets were catalogued, after the European 

 fashion, on slips of paper pasted into great folio 

 scrap-books. This distinction between pamphlets 

 and volumes was a most unhappy one. To a 

 librarian the only practical difference between these 

 two kinds of book is that the latter can generally 

 be made to stand on a shelf, while the former 



