276 The Smithsonian Institution 



literature in Brown University, a place which he held, as well 

 as that of librarian, until 1848. His appointment was made 

 with the understanding that he should have the opportunity 

 of traveling for the purpose of familiarizing himself with the 

 modern languages, and of making the acquaintance of libra- 

 rians and library methods abroad. During this time he also 

 purchased for the Brown University Library a collection of 

 7,000 books, which still forms one of the most choice por- 

 tions of that valuable library. 



As stated before, Professor Jewett was appointed assistant 

 secretary and librarian by Professor Henry in 1847, but it 

 was some little time before he actively began the work of 

 collecting books. Meanwhile, he formed various projects 

 which were of high importance for the development of Ameri- 

 can libraries. His ideas as to the proper functions of the 

 Smithsonian Institution in library and bibliographical work 

 entirely coincided with those of Professor Henry, and he 

 early made an attempt to secure a complete catalogue of 

 all the libraries in the United States. The method that 

 he proposed was to secure two, or even three, copies of the 

 printed catalogues of the various libraries, to supplement 

 these by manuscript copies, and to make in this way a cat- 

 alogue on slips, or cards, of all the libraries in the United 

 States. It was this activity, and the correspondence which 

 it occasioned, that brought about the publication of his 

 "Notices of Public Libraries in the United States of America" 

 by the Smithsonian Institution in 1851, which was "the pi- 

 oneer attempt to give a description of all our libraries." 1 



1 "Public Libraries in the United States States, and British Provinces of North Amer- 



of America." Special Report of the Bureau ica." Philadelphia, J. B. Lippincott & Co., 



of Education. Washington, 1876, page xviii. 1859. The various reports of the Bureau 



A most useful elaboration of this work was of Education as to the libraries in this coun- 



published in 1859 by Mr. W. J. Rhees, un- try are its legitimate successors. See also 



der the title " Manual of Public Libraries, The Library Journal, Volume XI, 1886, 



Institutions, and Societies in the United page 199. 



