ACCOUNTS, ESTIMATES, &C. OF THE BRITISH MUSEUM. 15 



IX. — PROGRESS made in the Cataloguing and Arrangement, and Account 

 of Objects added, in the Year 1867. 



Department of Printed Books. 



I. Arrangement. — The books and portions of books added to the Collection, during the 

 year, Avere arranged on the shelves according to the system of classification adopted in the 

 Museum library. The press-mark indicating the locality of each volume, was noted in 

 the inside and on the outside of each, and on the main titles and cross-references belong- 

 ing to each work. The number of indications thus affixed and of separate entries of 

 press-marks altered in the Catalogue amounted altogether to 139,111. 



II. Cataloguing: — (a.) Nexo General Catalogue from A to L. — The number of title- 

 slips (a term including both main-titles and cross-references) which were written expressly 

 for this Catalogue, amounted to 6,761, and the number of title-slips transcribed fourfold 

 for insertion to 40,386. The latter number includes the title-slips of books of recent date 

 or acquisition, the headings of which fall under the earlier letters of the alphabet from 

 A to L. The number of index-slips prepared and transcribed fourfold, to facilitate con- 

 sultation of the Catalogue, was 1,030. 



31,397 title-slips, and 272 index-slips were incorporated into each of the three copies of 

 this Catalogue. This incorporation rendered it necessary, in order to maintain the alpha- 

 betical arrangement, to remove and reinsert in each copy, 41,116 title-slips, and 279 

 index-slips, and to add to each copy 1,290 new leaves to receive new entries. 11,214 

 title-slips (of which 5,264 were new) completing letter L, were laid down in one copy 

 of this Catalogue; 14,987,title-slips (of which 6,809 were new) in a second copy, and 8,610 

 title-slips (of which 6,382 were new) in a third ; 776 index-slips of the letter 1j were 

 laid down in each of the three copies of the Catalogue. 



(b.) Supplementary Catalogue from M to Z. — The number of title-slips written for this 

 Catalogue was 60,077, the whole of which, with a few casual exceptions, belonged to the 

 recent acquisitions of the department. The number of these slips transcribed fourfold for 

 insertion was 15,191 and of index-slips 360; 20,360 title-slips and 359 index-slips were 

 incorporated into each of the three copies of the Catalogue. In order to maintain the 

 alphabetical arrangement, 34,051 title-slips, and 106 index-slips were removed and re- 

 inserted in each copy, and 1,455 new leaves were added to each copy to receive them; 

 12,284 title-slips were relaid in two copies of this Catalogue, in order to divide thick 

 volumes and give additional space for new entries, and 11,014 index-slips were relaid in 

 all three copies of the Catalcigue, for the same reasons. 



The number of new entries made in the Hand- Catalogue of the Periodical Publications 

 was 294. 



(c.) Music Catalogue. — The number of title-slips written was 6,145, and of those 

 transcribed fourfold, 8,796. 



(d.) Chinese Catalogue. — The number of title-slips written was 2,460. 



(e.) Hebrew Catalogue. — The number of title-slips written was 97. In January the 

 printed volume of the Catalogue was issued to the public. 



(f.) Carhonic Hand- Catalogue. — Of the fourth copy of the fourfold transcript of the 

 title-slips made use of to form a Hand-Catalogue, 44,548 title-slips were mounted on car- 

 tridge paper, 66,080 were arranged according to the press-marks, and 60,620 were incor- 

 porated into the general series. 



(g.) List of Books of Reference in the Reading Room.— The number of alterations and 

 additions in the interleaved copies of this list, and in the Hand-Catalogue of the same 

 collection, made to record the changes in the books of reference by the addition 

 of new works, and the exchange of old for new editions, amounted to 281 in each of the 

 interleaved copies, and 140 in the Hand-Catalogue. 



III. Binding. — The number of volumes sent to the binder, in the course of the year, 

 was 15,563; and in consequence of the plan frequently adopted of binding several 

 volumes in one, the number sent back was 13,741, including 2,354 pamphlets. 



The number of volumes repaired was 310. 



IV. Reading Room Service.— I. The number of volumes returned to the General 

 Library, fromuse in the Reading Room, was 244,087, to the Royal Library, 10,541, to 

 the Grenvillfe Library, 1,126, and to the closets, in which books are kept day by day for 

 the use of readers, 170,1-^3. Adding the estimated number of voliunes returned to the 



254. B 4 shelves 



