REPORT 



OF THE 



Secretary and LiBRARiAisr 



FOR THE YEAR 1889. 



. The paost prominent thing to be noticed in this department 

 during the present year has been the extraordinary calls upon my 

 time in many directions, caused mainly, either directly or indi- 

 rectly, by the fire in the building last winter. I regret that, owing 

 to what appeared to be more immediately pressing demands, it 

 has been impossible to print the Transactions as early as usual. 

 The next part is, however, now in the hands of the printer and 

 will be pushed as rapidly as possible. 



As regards the Library, this has been in some respects the most 

 memorable year in its history. We may congratulate ourselves- 

 that being at the opposite end of the building from the fire it 

 wholly escaped injury from that calamity, and that we have now, 

 for the first time for many years, sufficient room for new books 

 without crowding. This however has not been effected without 

 adding largely to the labors of the Librarian and his assistant. 



1 need not say anything of the work of carrying ever}' book and 

 bookcase into the Hall, ai-ranging them there, and then reversing 

 the process, for it must have been apparent to every one. A still 

 greater work yet remains before us, viz., the entire rearrangement 

 of the whole library in a systematic manner, bringing together all 

 the books on the same subject or on kindred subjects. After this 

 we shall have to change all the shelf numbers, both in the books 

 and in the catalogue, the whole forming, as I remarked in my 

 report two years ago, a work of great magnitude, but absolutely 

 necessary to be performed as speedily as possible. 



