LIBPAFY Of CONGRESS
It/
ft
O ARJtiVE at sense understanding
of the activities of the Library
of Congress ss an Institution, s
brief description of th« building,
which stands ss s lasting monu
ment to Axerlcan genius In ar
chMectnre. sculpture and art will
he necessary.
The grounds adjoin those of
the national Capitol, the outer
walls having a Trout age on four
streets The building is of the Italian renais
sance order of arc Siiterture. has three stories
sowers an are* of nearly four acres of ground,
art I ft four large inner courts 150 by 73 to 100
'wet in site !• is hatred by about 2.000 windows.
Is glided jtune. 195 feet high, ’erminates in a
(tided finis: r- presen'ing the ever burning torch
f seteSKW
Is front of tie man entrance and between the
treat stows t fairways trading to the facade is
he great le-midr- ular basin represe niing the
ourt of n. p'uor—the classic god of the sea—
*t «s*> h..i* bronze figure forms ihe center of a
group of tritons, sea nymphs, sea horses, sep
ftcuts *n other marine animate and amphibious
msnUrmo. This f-iunain is said to be the most
wiishiy o-nam-ni 1 res'ion of its kind in this
uuunrry
Tb* exterior of *be building is not profusely
•"Wil'd but the very simplicity of its < lassie
.non se>i- o tj. . . aadeur of its imposing appear
iw* lb* ecran purlieu, has sixteen rounded
pillar* with Corin'bian capitals. Four colossal
stteates rapport ue p*-dinunt. in which are
rcuiptjred Ao»Ti*an eagres, wrh supporting flg
mnm of etuidna !a the windows are nine great
ptwtrait tons’a in grasiie. of Kmerson, Irving,
•e-wthe. Franklin. Xa*auluy. Haw:borne. Scott.
I to-tre ».r t and 1 <wnie Tb*> :hr-e deep arches
’-b-* psvtlteB terminate .u :he throe zi-> ••
fcrss* sniranew doors. II feet high and 7l„ feet
WHta. •« firing U . ton# each, which are beaut!- "
tsl wotfcs of art :n themselves in their sculptured
doatgbs la relief,
typifying Tradition.
TAntlng sad the art
niTii i
Heron 4 these 1
4cwi» Is tbs mala
reaMba>. b> pjrtt
•4 flow stair see
bell hr jnem of i'al
las warble, ortn
W sated nltb pilas
ters sap portico
benrble ar- .‘.«s. o*er
bsd kiag a p%c
<-'e4 oetj.no tte««>o»«
la shift sad ««!4.
hspswiitly rich
«d eleKsat la 4e
•**“ Tbs X'ided
b«aM of (be oetllca
aapparted br
•b»te «ad toM -on
-*• rrwit of etcb and i1idoi»i de
i from it staad out the sculptured figures,
la *»--« »f ip* zrodd-zs M nrru, one o! Wax.
■Ml the other of peace
From ats vtmubcle la entered the staircase
hall, aa apart Kent unsurpassed in magniii
'"aaa aad artrcuc beauty by any entrance hall
la the world. It is truly “a vision in polished
B'uwe." with Its vaulted ceiling 72 feet high.
Its Mdse lined throughout with fine Italian
marble, highly polished, while on the sides rise
t«lf« of aiagnlfleent marble columns with
■laborstec* carved Corinthian capi'als. Through
lbs taterwanlag spaces are seen glimpses of
tha rich cotorteg of the moral paintings and
the glittering gold of the celling decorations
<M the vaui'ed arches sad galleries of the sec
ond low
The grand double si a tease with white
amrhle hs uatmdes. one on the north and the
;other on 'he south side of the hall, has prob
ably no egual In the western hemisphere. The
newel posts, richly decorated with festoons
ad Bower* and leaves, are surmounted by two
kens broc.se figure* of classically draped wom
en Lnviiiig aloft a duster of electric lights.
The sis<resses are highly ornamented with
mlaiatur*- marble figures tarred In relief rep
resenting ra « mbletnatic sculpture the vari
ant arts aad sciences Oil the buttress of the
teeth stairway are the sculptured figures rep
resenting America and /ifn.a supporting be
tween 'hem a giooe show tag these continents,
while on 'he north side i. similar group repre
sents Ea'fipe and Asia.
Tht# spacion* and magnificently decorated
hall. taken ia connection with the grand corri
dors aad the viaboraiel/ and ar’istically etn
UMUshed trading room, furnish the finest
marble interior in America.
F»»*n the east corridor a stairway ascends
la the balcony of ’he reading room On the
wfil at the landing of this stairway is a beau
tiful mosaic of Minerva. the goddress of wis
dom. by Ulba Tedder Entering the visitors'
gallery aa eaueiieuf view is * Corded of this
wgmekow* rotunda or mi in reading room. Its
vaMnra* is hat dimly appreciable from the
here statement that St s 1<X* feet in diameter
wad J2v feat la height, and that the pillars are
41 tee* high aad the window* 32 feet wide.
On* of its chief beauties is the harmonious
Mending of the rich cclonng effev’ed by the
dart Tennessee the r d Nutnidlan and the
yellow shade* of Sienna marbles, accentuated
*>y the old Ivory of the stucco ornamentation
of the inmt. Upon th- eight immense piers
saptoreng the dome are plaoed female figures
<4 ffidnshvl statute, shore enen bring a quota
flow enls'lv* to the phase of learning or
s IBs.. n~ farther '••presented by tbe 16
•wonse sta’uos standing In the gallery, two in
each of tbe great art fees which encircle the*
foam In those states Religion is represent
ed by Moses asd Saint Paul: Commerce by Co
hushaa and Fnitoa; Ha -tory by Herodotus and
CMm; Art by Michael Angelo and Beetho
ven. Philosophy by Plato and Bacon; Poetry
by Hosier and Siakewpeare; Law by Solon
Kant. Science by New on and Henry.
In the cotter of the dome, which is Let feet
In eixcuiif'-r*n*e. is a symbolism of tbe twelve
nwitone and - pa h# tc ■ h have contributed to
the advance of l e woild. each represented as
n naaicd •r.a'e bearing th* emhWms suggestive
of tlx pe niter attribute. Egypt represents
W fit la a Record*; Jin rj, Religion. Greece.
jyss&izzr os'GoirGZsrjj
Tsi£J?onmZlR. j&JLDlW? IZOQTi
Philosophy; Rome, Adminis
tration; Islam, Physics;
Middle Ages. Modern Lan
guages; Italy, Fine Arts;
Germany. Art of Printing;
cpaiu, » vi j ,
Literature; France, Emancipation; and Amer
ica. Science.
In the crown of the great lantern of the
dome is painted The Human Understanding,
an allegorical figure of a woman floating
among the clouds and attended by two chil
dren genii.
The artistic mural decoration of the interior
is upon a magnificent scale and the paintings
in each of the many pavilions, corridors and
galleries are so numerous that no attempt
can be made in this article to give a descrip
tion of them. Every artistic design has pur
pose and meaning in every stroke of the art
ist’s brush, in every curve and line wrought
by the sculptor’s chisel. The completed build
ing stands today as the highest expression of
American art, the greatest monument yet
erected to American genius.
The eight acres of floor space contained in
the building are utilized as follows: On the
ground floor are the copyright office, reading
room for the blind, superintendent’s and dis
bursing office, bookbinding department, print
ing department, music rooms, mail room,
lockers, etc. The first floor contains the main
reading room, the librarian's room, periodical
reading room, senators' reading room, repre
sentatives' reading room, map and chart
rootrs. administration rooms. The second floor
is taken up with the galleries, pavilions and
rooms filled with exhibits of rare engravings,
manuscripts, prints, rare boobs, first editions,
portraits of the presidents and other celebrat
ed personages. The attic floor contains a
kitchen and restaurant, rooms for print re
pairs. manuscript repairs, photography docu
ments and copyright storage.
In 1814 :he library, consisting of about 3,000
volumes, was burned by the British troops.
Congress made- a fresh start by purchasing
the Thomas Jefferson library of about 7,000
volumes, which grew until in 1851 it had about
55.000 volumes. Another fire then destroyed
all but 20,000 of these. The country had grown
so much in wealth by this time, however, that
this was but a temporary check, and the libra
ry quarters in the Capitol were promptly re
stored and many of the books which had been
destroyed were replaced. In 1867 the Peter
Force collection of Americana, consisting of
about 6".000 articles, was purchased for $110,
OoO, and the acquisition in the same year of
i he library of the Smithsonian institution, con
sisting of 40,000 volumes, brought the total
up to over 200.000 volumes. The copyright
law of 1846 required the deposit of one copy
of each book copyrighted in the library, and
an act was passed in 1870 which placed the
registration of copyrights under the care of
th*- librarian of congress, and required the de
posit of two copies of each book or article
copyrighted, ibus assuring the acquisition of
books published in the United States.
The rapid progress of the library dates from
1SG4, when Dr. A. R. Spofford was appointed
librarian. His tireless energy and unflagging
real increased the acquisitions until in 1897,
the date of his retirement, it had grown to
more than 1,000.000 books and pamphlets, and
the necessity for more spacious quarters had
been realized for some years. In 1S86 the con
struction of a new building was authorised
and eleven years later this was completed at
a cost of $6,347,000. on a site bought for $395,
«" * This is t^e present home of the third
larges: library in the world. That the cost of
this magnificent building was kept down to
such a comparatively reasonable figure is ex
plained by the fact that many of the artists
and sculptors, in a spirit of patriotic loyalty,
gave their genius and their art free of cost
to the nation. It is said that twice the sum
expended could not duplicate the building un
der ordinary circumstances.
As to the practical features of the Institu
tion, its capacity, facilities for serving the
public, and its various activities, only a brief
outline can be given. Including the main
reading room, the room for periodicals, the
senators' and representatives reading rooms,
and the special reservations In the alcoves
anfl galleries, the library can comfortably ac
commodate 1,000 readers at any one time.
The main reading room, which contains the ,
issue desk, has seating capacity and desks for
200 readers and 60 tables In the alcoves and
galleries, which are assigned to scholars mak
ing extended investigations. The issue desk
is connected with the stacks, the Capitol,
Smithsonian division and librarian's office by
pneumatic tubes, while electric book carriers
connect the desk with the stacks and with the
Capitol.
When a book Is called for at the desk the
slip is sent by a pneumatic tube to the clerk
in the proper stack. He places the book into
a receptacle, from which it Is taken by one of
the brass book baskets, eighteen of which are
mounted on an endless double chain forming
the book carrier, which travels continually be
tween the stacks and the issue desk. The bas
ket carries the book down to the reading
room and automatically deposits It into a
cushioned box at the central desk, whence it
is taken out by the attendant and delivered
to the desk selected by the reader. Tba> books
can also be returned to the stacks in the same
manner. If a member of congress desires a
book delivered to him In the Capitol, the
pneumatic tube carries the slip making the
request to the issue desk and another electric
book carrier conveys the book through an un
derground tunnel over a quarter of a mile in
length and delivers it to the waiting states
man in about three minutes.
The book stacks, which radiate from the
main reading room, consist of a series of cast
iron frames, supporting tiers and shelves to a
height of nine and ten stories to the roof, the
largest stack being 65 feet high. The shelves,
of cold-rolled steel, are polished smooth, and
since the addition of the last stack have a ca
pacity of about 3.000,000 volumes. The ulti
mate capacity, when other stacks are added,
will be over 4,010,000 volumes—a row of books
which would extend over 100 miles.
According to the report of Mr. Herbert Put
nam. the librarian. Just submitted to congress,
the contents of the library at present are:
Books .*.1,891,729
Maps and charts (pieces) . 123.568
Music (volumes and pieces) . 557.010
Manuscripts (a numerical statement not feas
ible)
The library proper Is strongest In bibliogra
phy, public documents (especially those of for
eign governments). Americana, economics, polit
ical science, public law and legislation, geneal
ogy and newspapers. Through the Smithsonian
institution extensive files of transactions of for
eign learned societies are received. By virtue
of the copyright law it has received the most
complete collection in existence of the prod
ucts of the American press. American -local
history and biography are represented with
unusual fullness. The Yudin collection of
some 80,000 volumes of Russian works, pur
chased in 1907, Is particularly valuable for the
history of Russia and Siberia. A collection of
j&zzr 'Snazzwasr
5 Japanese books (9,000 volumes) was
bought in 1907, and in 1908 the Huit
feldt-Kaas collection of Scandinavian
literature of about 5,000 volumes. Ori
entalia is further represented by the
Weber library of Sanskrit literature (3,018 vol
umes. 1,002 pamphlets). The library has
bought recently large numbers of the monu
menta of European history, and is rapidly
growing in the sciences, pure and applied.
The administrative officers of the library
are the librarian, chief assistant librarian,
chief clerk and secretary. The superintendent
of the building and grounds, with bis aids, has
entire charge of the maintenance of the build
ing and makes all disbursements for the
library.
The library force, consisting of about 500
persons, is organized into divisions, each with
a chief and assistants. The followinig consti
tute the principal divisions: Mail and delivery,
order, printing office and bindery, catalogue,
card distribution, bibliography, periodicals,
documents, manuscripts, maps and charts,
prints, law library and copyright office.
FIG GATHERING IN ITALY.
The season for gathering the figs in Italy
joins hands in October with the vintage: but
it really begins in august, owing to a curious
system of culture.
Early in August the fig gatherers squirm
through the twisting branches from tree top
to tree top and “oil the fruit.” These fig
people are nomadic: they appear and disap
pear like the wandering harvesters of France.
I^te in July the masserie are rented to them,
a stated sum being paid to the proprietor, a
payment that gives to the fig gatherers the
right to all the fruit, beginning with the figs
and ending with the last cluster of grapes.
Rude huts thatched with straw are built by
the proprietor of all his orchards, and in these
the gypsylike harvesters live with their fam
ilies. Sometimes they supplement their nar
row quarters with a ragged tent. Three sticks
placed crosswise and a kettle in the crotch con
stitute the kitchen.
Shortly after their arrival the work of
forcing the fruit is begun. The methods
employed are curious. In one a wad of cot
ton is dipped in olive oil and gently rubbed
on the Sower and of the fig. Fig by fig is
thus treated, agjd in eight days the fruit is
ready for the mtk-ket.
Another method consists in gathering In the
spring the half formed fruit, which is strung
on ropes. These ropes or garlands are
thrown over the branches of the tree and are
allowed to decay under the burning sun. There
is born of this decay an insect that, pierces
the growing fig and induces rapid ma
turity.
The fig. when perfectly ripe, exudes a drop
of honey sweet juice at the nether end. which
never falls but hangs there, a standing tempta»
tion to children and to bees. When fresh pick
ed at this stage the fig has a rich Savor en
tirely lost in the dried fruit.
A Striking Illustration.
"When your husband started the quarrel
again what did you do?”
‘Took your advice and. gave him a light re
tort.”
‘That’s right. Did it affect him?”
“It ought to have done so. I threw the lamp
at him.”
A Distinction.
Manager—You told me you had a full house
at the performance last night, and now 1 am
told there were only a few there and every
man was drunk.
Actor—That’s just what I said—that the
house was fulL
lie Was Stung By Pickles
...
Brtt»s*«r Spend* Bad Quarter of an
Hour 0ur*n0 a Vint to West
India*.
»d of baring ’Hat
quar^r of an
lot to endure
No one
I_ . a wore* quarter of
tfcaa aa Kagl taken an bad dur
j Dg a visit to St. laicia. in the West
’ndies.
This Britisher had been hospitably
i entertained by the neighboring plant
ers. who. as he was preparing to re
' tarn, had sent him gifts of guava jel
j !y. pine jam limes, peppers and the
• like. Among other gifts he received
: a live fer-de-lance, one of the dead
j llest serpents in the world, a speci
men of which he had been anxious to
obtain. While waiting to have a box
made for his unpleasant pet, he kept
it in the glass jar in which It had been
seut, replacing the glass stopper with
a piece of perforated zinc. .
One afternoon, having placed the
jar upon the table, he was watching
the serpent and smoking a cigar. Sud
denly he fell asleep. When he awoke
it was pitch dark—there being no
twilight in those latitudes. He had
been roused by a tremendous crash
as of glass. His first thought, pf
course, was of the fer-de-lance. and,
not realizing that his slippers had
fallen off, he started to rush from
the room, when he ffelt what seemed
to he a slight blow on the foot, fol
lowed by a burning pain.
He instantly drew himself up in the
chair, in dread of a second bite, and
made frantic efforts to such the
wound. Failing in that, he held out
the foot so it would bleed freely, and
1 tried to put a ligature about the an tie,
calling madly for help all the time.
The servants, hearing him cry that
the fer-de-lance was loose, were afraid
to come In, bat at- last his host ap
peared with,, lights and ready to dis
patch the serpent. It was found still
in the jar upon thg tablet.
The cause of the alarm was the fail
of a jar of hot pickles which was also
standing on-the'table, and which had
been overturned in some way. As the
Britisher’s foot struck the floor it was
cut by one of the pieces of broken
glass, and the acid or the pickles in
the wound produced the intone pain.
"Uncle Joe" Cannon celebrated his
; seventy-sixth birthday at Washington
the other day under a cloud ol grief,
i The night before be exultantly an
i nounced that he was going to observe
| the day by dissipating wildly. A cir
cus was in town and he was going to
take the afternoon and, if necessary,
the evening off and go to see the lions
and tigers and the hippograffe and the
beautiful lady acrobats and the hair
raising trapezists.
Instead of that he went meekly up
to the home on Congressman Weeks,
of Massachusetts, with his daughter
and spent the evening decorously
there.
“Thought you were going to the cir- 1
cus," a reporter said to him.
“I was." said Uncle Joe, “but it
ry 'ned. And in the course of aeventy
—I mean seventy-six—years of
qiTet and irreproachable life I have
found that whenever it rains and I go
* aina^s get HCU
The people around me seem to be dry and happy. I always get that
wet spot and am miserable. If seventy-five years—I should say seventy-six—
teach a man anything, it must be to profit by experience.
‘ It has taken me seventy-five years to learn anything, but now that I’m
seventy-six I have learned this lesson, if not any other, and I have just sense
enough not to go.
So I m up here at, John Weeks’, with Mrs. Weeks and my daughter, and
I’ve missed the circus, but I’m happy and I’m not damp.”
”1 suppose you got a lot of congratulations V
^es. said the ex-speaker, reflectively. "Quite a number of people came
up to me and congratulated me on being a year nearer the grave. Funny
thing to congratulate a man on. Don’t you think so? But they meant it
kindly."
“How does it feel to be seventy-six?”
| “I don’t notice any perceptible difference,” said Uncle Joe. taking his
i cigar out for the first time and pondering. "I’m very well, but I was'very
I yesterday. I suppose I m seventy-six because everybody tells me so,
but 1 m not throwing mybat up about it, and at the same time son I’tn not
weeping about it.”
— -
SULTAN A MEDIATIZED RULER
--
On March 30, France inaugurated a
change in her political dealings with
Morocco, by the signing of a treaty
with the Sultan. Mulia-Abd-el-Hafid.
establishing a French protectorate.
France has had much experience in
the government of the North African
countries, which line the Mediterran
ean from Tripoli to the Atlantic ocean,
and the decision to leave the govern
ment nominally in native hands is a
wise one. It Is evidently based on the
success of ber peaceful conquest of
Tunis where the externals of Arab
rule have been preserved. In Algeria,
on the other hand, where the admin
istration is directly and openly
French, her domination aroused the
bitter jealousy and hostility of the
natives who saw in the elimination of
their native rulers a threatened sub
version of the Mahommedan religion,
with the result that France has had
to maintain her footing by rigorous
military rule. Mulla Hand, the pres
j ent Sultan and nominal ruler of Morocco, is known to his subjects a3 the
i Prince of True Believers and is the thirty-sixth lineal descendant of All,
uncle and son-in-law of the Prophet Mahomet. He revolted against his broth
er, the Sultan Mulia Aziz, in 1907, and his usurpation of the throne was
j recognized by the powers in January, 1909. He is a learned and devoted
adherent of lslamism and has written several books on theology and philology.
GOV. WEST TRUSTS CONVICTS j
“The only honor lacking in the aver
age criminal is that which is wrenched
• from him by incivility, distrust and
inhumanity. Extend to a convict the
courtesy, confidence and trust due him
| as a man and he will respond with
1 more honor than the average person
who has never seen the bars, the dun
geon or the dismal gray walls of a
penitentiary."
Basing his action on this bit of
philosophy. Gov. Oswald West of Ore
gon recently threw open the barred
doors of the Oregon state penitentiary
isd turned more than 200 convicts ont
into the inviting forests and fields to
serve the remainder of their terms
without guards, stripes, chains or
stockades.
With one sweep the dungeon, the
j dark cell, the striped suits, the ball
and chain and the gallows were wiped
| out as unnecessary parts of the insti
tution and in their stead was estab
j lished a unique and revolutionary
nonor system. s>mce tne nrst wholesale liberation convicts have been added
: to the list as they have proven eligible until the total number today Is about
500. Honor Is the only guard over fifteen convict camps which are maintained
permanently in various parts of the state, in some cases many miles from the
dingy walls of the prison, and in ail cases in the forests where the only
effort required to make an escape is to leisurely disappear.
On every side are hiding places where detection by the officers would be
difficult if they learned of the escape before the convict had time to reach
any of the cities of the northwest where chances for permanent escape would
be good.
Out of the fifteen convict camps in which are now about 300 men one
half are so far from the state prison that the convicts are not required to
report in at night. In some cases the entire camp could desert and the
! officials would not know about it for two or three days. But Governor West
has too much confidence in yeggmen. burglars, holdup men, murderers and
. sneak thieves to believe that they would break the pledges which they make
i before being liberated.
The men are engaged in building roads, oprating rock quarries and
clearing land.
Reuben B. Hale, the vice-president
of the Panama-Pacific International
exposition, to be held in San Franciscc
in 1915, celebrating the completion ol
the Panama Canal, was one of a spe
cial commission appointed to make a
trip abroad to lay before ministers of
foreign affairs and army and navy
authorities, the details and scope of
the enterprise. The commission sailed
on the Mauretania April 24th. Mr.
Hale is a well-known merchant of
San Francisco, who was the first per
son to suggest the holding of an ex
position to celebrate the completion of
the Panama Canal. The commission
consists of Mr. John Hays Hammond,
president; Mr. Reuben B. Hale, vice
president of the Panama-Pacific Inter
national exposition; Brigadier-General
Clarence B. Edwards, U. S. A.; Mr.
William T. Sesnon, vice-president ol
the San Franciscc chamber of com
merce; Mr. Theodore Hardee, execu
live uium , mr. vunues r. niiauu,
diplomatic officer, and Mr. Archibald C. Emery, secretary. General Edwarda
and Admiral Staunton were detailed by President Taft to represent the army
and navy- The commission is accredited by the department of state to Amer
ican ambassadors and ministers abroad, and bear letters to the highest gov
ernment authorities of the various countries visited.
