ACCOUNTS, ESTIMATES, &C. OF THE BRITISH MUSEUM. 



VIII. — PROGRESS made in the Cataloguing and Arrangement of the Collections 

 and Account of Objects added, in the Year 1857. 



Department of Printed Books. 



1. Works added to the Collection during the year have been placed on tlie shelves of the 

 Library as soon as catalogued. The press-marks, indicating their respective localities, have 

 been marked on the inside and affixed to the back of each volume; also, on the tide and 

 entry in the Catalogue. The Library of Reference, removed from the old to the new 

 Reading Koom, has been re-marked, as have also the titles and entries of these books in the 

 Catalogue. Press-marks have also been added to letters A to K, of an extra copy of the 

 King's Catalogue. The total number of these press-marks amounts to 129,994. 



II. Cataloguing : — (a.) Neiu General Catalogue. — The number of titles written for 

 this Catalogue amounts to 35,285. The number of titles transcribed fourfold for this 

 Catalogue is 45,377, including 4,486 index slips; 79,624 titles have been laid down in 

 one copy of this Catalogue, and 153,711 in a second. Indexes have been prepared to the 

 long headings, and two copies laid down, each comprising 4,480 slips. The amalgamation 

 of the Catalogues, as far as the letter F inclusive, has been completed, and two copies 

 bound, each in 516 volumes. One of these copies has been placed in the Reading Room, 



(b.) Supplementary Catalogue. — 1. The number of titles written for this Catalogue amounts 

 to 29,567, besides 421 Chinese ; in all, 29,988. 



2. The number of titles transcribed fourfold for the Supplementary Catalogue is 26,418; 

 besides 221 index slips. The number of title slips inserted into each of three copies is 

 14,474; besides 695 index slips. This insertion has rendered it necessary, in order to 

 preserve the alphabetical order of the names and headings, to take up and re-insert 26,878 

 slips in each of the three copies. All the indexes to the long headings in the Catalogue 

 have been kept up. 



3. The number of headings made in the Hand Catalogue of the Periodical Publications 

 is 389. 



(c.) Carbonic Hand Catalogue. — 108,400 slips of the fourth copy of tlie transcript have 

 been mounted on cartridge paper for this Catalogue. 



(d.) Maps. — The new titles and cross-references for maps amount to 5,236. The 

 number of titles transcribed fourfold for this Catalogue is 14,898. 



(e.) 31usic Catalogue. — The titles and cross-references written for this collection amount 

 to 2,521. The number of titles transcribed fourfold to 8,367. 



III. — The number of volumes bound is 17,401 in 14,409, including 1,761 Pamphlets. 

 The number of volumes repaired is 11,320. 293 Maps and Charts have been mounted. 



IV. Reading Room Service. — 1. On the 30th of April last the two Rooms at the east 

 end of the north wing of the Library were closed to the Readers, and ceased to be used as 

 Reading Rooms. The new Reading Room was opened to the Readers on the 18th of the 

 following month. The Library of Reference, placed in the Reading Room for the use of the 

 Readers, has been re-arranged, a great number of Treatises and other Works for study, as 

 well as reference, have been added to it, and the whole enlarged, to the extent of about one- 

 fourth. In order that a correct idea may be conveyed of the increased accommodation 

 afforded by the erection of the present Reading Room, the returns relating to this branch 

 of the service will be divided into two parts; one embracing the period from January 1 to 

 April 30, and the other that commencing at May 18 and ending with the 31st December. 

 During the former period the number of books returned to the shelves of the General 

 Library from the Reading Room was 42,416 ; to those of the Royal Library, 3,168; to 

 those of the Grenville Library, 472; to the Closets in which books are kept from day to 

 day for the use of the Readers, 32,214; making a total of 78,270, or 823 per diem. 

 Adding the number of volumes returned to the shelves of the Reading Room, about 

 45,000, the whole amounts to 123,270, or 1,297 per diem. From the 18th of May to the 

 31st of December, the number of books returned to the shelves of the General Library 

 from the Reading Room was 98,262; to those of the Royal Library, 6,508; to those of the 

 Grenville Library, 684 ; to the Closets in which Books are kept from day to day for the use 

 of the Readers, 65,395 ; making a total of 170,849, or 908 per diem. Adding the number of 

 volumes returned to the shelves of the Reading Iloom^ about 281,000, the whole amounts to 

 .451,849, or 2,403 per diem. 



21 cj. B 2. The 



