USA > Massachusetts > Norfolk County > Quincy > Inaugural address of the mayor, with the annual report of the officers of the city of Quincy for the year 1892 > Part 6
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shore reservation in a manner which would leave little to be desired.
In conclusion, let me express my thanks to Mr. H. T. Whit- man for his cordial assistance.
Yours respectfully, CHARLES ELIOT.
The Exchange Building, Boston, 2 Jan., 1892.
THOMAS CRANE PUBLIC LIBRARY.
The Trustees of the Thomas Crane Public Library submit herewith their annual report, being the twenty-second of the whole series since the Library was opened.
The number of books purchased during the past year was 670, of which 546 were credited to the foundation fund, or city appropriation, and 124 to the income from the Cotton Center Johnson fund. There have been 580 volumes rebound, and 307 volumes worn out in use have been replaced by new copies of the same books. There have been 135 pamphlets added to those already in the possession of the Library. The number of names on the Library register is 11,004, and of this number 625 were added during the year. The Library was opened to the public 305 days.
The division of reading matter in the books borrowed during the year 1892 is set forth in the following table :
PUBLIC
SCHOOLS
TOTAL
PER CENT
Fiction
24,667
328
24,995
34.4
Periodicals
16,252
396
16,648
22.9
Juvenile Fiction
14,714
1,331
16,045
22.0
History
2,832
633
3,465
4.7
General Literature
2,825
143
2,968
4.0
Arts and Sciences
2,241
207
2,448
3.3
Travels
1,836
337
2,173
2.9
Biography .
1,744
403
2,147
2.9
Poetry
1,153
78
1,231
.5
Religion
371
371
.5
Educational
153
153
.2
68,788
3.856
72,644
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The percentages in the foregoing table do not vary in any material respect from those in the similar tables in the reports for three years immediately preceding.
The attention of the Trustees has of late been more and more drawn to the over-crowded condition of the shelf room of the Crane Memorial Hall. This has naturally resulted from the fact that 500 volumes on an average are each year added to the col- lection. It began with about 4,600 volumes, and it is now enter- ing upon the twenty-third year of its existence. During these twenty-two years, in the neighborhood of 14,000 volumes, or three times the original number, have been added by purchase or gift. The library consequently may be likened to a reservoir, into which streams of considerable volume are always pouring, and from which there is no outlet. Under this process, there is necessarily a large accumulation of what may not inaptly be de- scribed as literary sediment,-that is, books either of ephemeral interest, or small original value, or not adapted to the use of a public library like that of Quincy. These are placed upon the shelves, and, though very rarely, if ever, called for, remain there, taking up room needed for works of a better class or in more immediate demand. This condition of affairs, common to nearly all libraries, may go on through a number of years; but it is obvious that the time will come, soon or late, when a measure of relief must be applied. Shelf room is nowhere unlimited; and in the case of the Crane Memorial Hall, must soon be exhausted.
At the beginning of the year the Trustees found themselves confronted with this situation. The shelves were as yet not seriously over-crowded, but the collection already contained about 19,000 volumes, and there were no accommodations for over 20,000, unless extensive changes were made. It, therefore, became necessary to decide on the policy to be pursued in respect to the acquisition of books and future growth of the library.
As the result of an experience now stretching over more than twenty years and of careful observation of the use made of the library, the Trustees concluded that it ought to be regarded, and in future developed, as a collection of books for popular refer-
137
ence, consultation and reading, and not as a collection designed for the use of scholars or specialists. It is, in their opinion, both futile and unwise for a city like Quincy, in the immediate vicinity of Boston, to attempt to have a large general library. Such a library must necessarily contain at least 40,000 or 50,- 000 volumes, and should, to be at all complete, contain 100,000. There are no less than three collections of this character in Bos- ton or its immediate vicinity,-the Boston Public Library, the Harvard College Library, and the Boston Athenæum,-while there are a number of special libraries,-medical, legal, historical, scientific and religious,-which are designed to have as complete collections as possible of works relating to their several depart- ments. Under these circumstances, should any inhabitant of Quincy who may be pursuing a special line of investigation or study wish to obtain or consult books relating to a subject other than those of a general and elementary character, the proper place for him to go for those books is to either one of the three great general libraries or to some of the special libraries. Even should any books of special rarity or value find their way into a library situated as a Quincy Public Library is, it would be far better that the Trustees should get such books by exchange or otherwise into the libraries of Boston or some special library than that they should retain them upon their own shelves. Books are made to use, not to hoard away or to conceal. They are of no earthly value except in so far as they are used ; and in order that they may be used they must be accessible. A rare, costly or purely professional book, not of an elementary charac- ter, is merely hid away upon the shelves of a local library like that of Quincy. No student or general investigator, even if liv- ing in the city, would ever look for them there. He would look for them at one of the libraries above referred to; and to those libraries students and investigators can always obtain access. Accordingly, the proper place for such books is in those libraries, and not in the local and incomplete collections.
The public library of a city like Quincy should, on the other hand, be made as complete and as available as possible for gen- eral, popular use, whether by old or young. It should contain
138
all the standard works in the language, and a good assortment of practical treatises and of the best works of reference. Above all whatever it has should be made easily accessible to persons of average intelligence, and every facility should be afforded for its use. It should in a word be a people's working and educational institution.
If this end is kept in view, it would follow that a sufficient library such as Quincy needs could be brought together within the limit of 10,000, or, at the outside, of 15,000 volumes : but, in order to keep the library within those limits, a judicious and continual process of winnowing is necessary ; all duplicates and books of ephemeral interest, nearly all books relating to special- ties and most rare books being from time to time removed from the shelves, and either destroyed or sent elsewhere.
Acting on this principle, the trustees during the past year have removed from the shelves of the Thomas Crane Library 1,070 duplicate volumes and 1,075 other volumes, principally pub- lic documents-in all, about a tenth part of the collection. The public documents thus removed afford a good illustration of the principle upon which the trustees have acted. It is obviously impossible, even were it desirable, for a library like the Thomas Crane Library to have complete sets of these documents, whether State or National. They would fill its entire shelf room several times over. On the shelves and in the attic of the Crane Memorial Hall there were at the beginning of last year probably 2,000 volumes of these documents. During the whole twenty years the library has been in use it may fairly be questioned whether 100 of these volumes have ever been consulted, or by as many as ten persons. Any one wishing to consult such works would naturally look for them in Boston at the library in the State House. Indeed, it would be far more convenient for him to con- sult them there than at Quincy, even though he might live in Quincy ; for at the State House he would be sure of finding what he wanted, whereas at Quincy it would be a chance whether he would find it or not. In the case o the Crane Memorial Hall, the public documents therefore took up more room than they were worth,
139
Of the equal number of duplicates, or books not consid- ered useful, also cleared from the shelves, a portion were sent to other libraries ; such as were there desired were given to the High School as the nucleus of an historical school library ; the rest were sold to dealers in old books for what could be got for them.
But in the case of a popular reading and working collection, it is quite as important that the books in it should be readily ac- cessible as that they should be intelligently selected. A mass of unarranged, uncatalogued volumes is, so far as popular use goes, little better than so much rubbish; and the size of the library affects very directly the practicability of keeping it accessible to the public. It is a difficult, but not insuperable, task to catalogue, and keep catalogued, for general public use ten thousand or even fifteen thousand volumes ; it is practically impossible to catalogue for general public use one hundred thou- sand volumes, and then afterwards to keep them and their accre- tions so catalogued. Both labor and expense prevent it.
The interests of Quincy, therefore, will, in the judgment of the Trustees, best be served by keeping the collection within the limit which admits of reasonably frequent revisions of the catalogue, so that it shall include all the works on the shelves. As there are now 16,800 volumes on the shelves, these should undergo a further reduction of 1,800, in order to bring the number within the limit (15,000) of reasonable catalogue work. If that limit is exceeded, the excess above 15,000 volumes, composed of books rarely called for, should be omitted from the printed catalogue and rendered accessible in some other way. Should this policy be strictly followed hereafter, the collection will never become unwieldy, and can always be made to serve its true purpose as an available public library for exclusively popular use.
The last catalogue of the library was printed seventeen years ago. During those seventeen years over 10,000 volumes have been added to the collection, the bulk of which have been cata- logued in the three supplementary catalogues from time to time, generally at intervals of about five years (1879, 1883 and 1888), prepared and issued by the Trustees. The last of these supple-
140
mentary catalogues was brought out in 1888, nearly five years ago. Since then some 3,000 volumes have been placed upon the shelves ; these consequently are included in no printed catalogue, and their presence in the library can be ascertained only through the disagreeable process of consulting the card catalogue. It is, therefore, at this time difficult to say what books are or are not in the library ; and this difficulty is constantly increasing, until at no remote day it must become most serious. The old cata- logue of 1875 and the supplements to it are also becoming more and more defective, owing to the destruction of books through long use, not all of which can be replaced, and to the fact that many volumes included in the catalogue are among those since cleared from the shelves.
No library can be made readily accessible to the mass of those people composing a community through a card catalogue. At best such a catalogue is inconvenient, and to consult it is al- most an art in itself. A good and widely distributed printed cat- alogue alone makes a library accessible to the general public, old and young. Ten thousand volumes made accessible in this way are, as a town or city library, more practically useful than a hun- dred thousand buried under their own mass.
In the case of this library the difficulty is financial. The pub- lication of a catalogue involves serious labor and large expense. It will probably cost, including the labor of preparation, between $2,000 and $3,000. The trustees are not disposed to call upon the city for a special appropriation of this sum; but, in order that they may not be compelled so to do, it is their design to enter upon a definite policy of accumulation. They have already, through fines, sales of material, and other sources, accumulated a small fund, with which to defray the cost of a catalogue when such a cost must be incurred, amounting already to between $500 and $600. They propose now to hasten the accumulation of this fund so that it shall suffice to meet the cost of printing a wholly new catalogue in the year 1895, when the present cata- logue will have been in use twenty years. The collection will by that time have undergone such changes as to be almost a differ- ent library. With this end in view, it is proposed hereafter, in-
141
cluding the present year, to purchase a smaller number of new books, now, for want of a proper catalogue, to a large extent in- accessible to the public, and to set aside one-half of the dog tax as an accumulating catalogue fund. The provision thus made will insure the possession of a fund amply sufficient for the pub- lication in 1895 of a wholly new catalogue of the library as it shall then exist; and this catalogue, when published, having been paid for out of the savings accumulated by reduced pur- chases of books, should be sold, irrespective of cost, at a price so low as to put it within the easy reach of any one wishing to use the library. In this matter as in the matter of the books com- posing the collection, it cannot too clearly be borne in mind that catalogues are printed for use ; and that to be used they must be generally distributed. Experience has also shown that very few families in any community care to incur the expense of buying a high-priced catalogue. They are unwilling to pay for it anything approaching its cost, which, in the case of a library of 10,000 volumes, will be in the neighborhood of $2.50 a copy, if an edi- tion of one thousand copies is printed. Those who make the largest use of our town public libraries also,-people who do not own books and are unable to buy them,- can ill afford such an expense ; yet, in the case of Quincy, a collection for popular use of ten thousand volumes, with a catalogue of them in every other house, will be of infinitely greater public and educational service than four times that number of volumes with catalogues only on the library tables of the Crane Memorial Hall. A good catalogue periodically revised and republished, and generally distributed at a nominal price, is thus, as an accessory to a library, wisely secured through a reduction in the number of volumes purchased, which without it are to a large extent inaccessible and, practi- cally, worthless.
The wisdom of the policy here outlined, both as respects the increase of the library and the rendering of the books in it accessible, is believed to be apparent. The trustees take this occasion to enlarge upon the subject, not because any reasonable doubt in regard to it can be entertained, but in order to make it a matter of record both for the present board and for those
142
composing any future boards hereafter appointed. It is most desirable that in these important respects no shifting or uncer- tain policy should be pursued.
CHARLES F. ADAMS, WILLIAM H. PRICE, FRED A. CLAFLIN, JOHN H. GILBERT, EMERY L. CRANE, HARRISON A. KEITH,
Trustees.
143
TREASURER'S STATEMENT,
JANUARY 16, 1893. Dr.
Balance on hand Jan. 11, 1892, date
of last report
$740 31
Catalogue fund .
$378 38
Proceeds sale of catalogues, and fines
95 55
$473 93
Income from $2,000 bonds, C. C.
Johnson fund .
$100 00
Insurance premium
.
5 00
Proceeds sale of documents
75 00
Interest received
32 60
$1,426 84
Cr.
Paid for books for C. C. Johnson fund, Estes & Lauriat
$118 58
Cassell Publishing Co.,
25 00
Balance in bank
1,187 71
Cash
95 55
$1,426 84
FRED A. CLAFLIN,
Treasurer.
FIRE DEPARTMENT.
To HIS HONOR, HENRY O. FAIRBANKS, MAYOR OF QUINCY :
SIR :- I have the honor, for the fourth time, to submit to you the annual report of the Fire Department, ending December 31, 1892, in compliance with the requirements govern- ing the same, together with a list of the members, with their rank, age, occupation and residence, location of fire alarm boxes, fires and alarms, also inventory of property in possession of the department at this date. A few suggestions would, in my opinion, also be in order at this time for the future benefit of the department.
FORCE OF THE DEPARTMENT.
The force of the department remains the same as last year, and is as follows: one chief engineer, six assistant engineers (one from each ward, as charter provides), six permanent men, and sixty-three call members; also one man who takes care of Chemical Engine No. 1, located at Houghs Neck, making the entire force of the department seventy-three men. And I have only to repeat other reports that I have made when I say that there are no better workers and none more willing, in my opinion, in any fire department, than in that of the City of Quincy.
APPARATUS.
The apparatus remains the same, and consists of one Amos- keag steam fire engine, one hook and ladder truck fully equipped, with the exception of one additional extension ladder, which will be added next year. Three hose wagons, one hose reel, four wheels, three hose jumpers, one supply wagon, one light express
146
wagon, for fire alarm purposes, one hose pung, two chemical engines and one hand engine. You will notice a little difference in the report of last year and this. Instead of two four-wheel hose reels, there is now but one, I having changed the same into a jumper, which now makes three jumpers instead of two. The hand engine (the Granite) was not mentioned last year for the reason it not being in service and also not being stored in any of the department houses. I had entirely forgotten about it until my attention was called to it in rather an uncourteous manner. The value of this engine is perhaps about twenty dollars for old junk. Hose two, the relief wagon and the fire alarm wagon have been painted and fixed up this year, and at this date are in good repair. Hose three and chemical engine No. 2, also hook and ladder No. 1, are badly in need of repairs and paint, and should have a thorough going over, and so far as the Council may think proper these repairs will be made in the near future. As I rec- ommended in my last report that the addition of a chemical engine, located in the vicinity of the City Hall, would be of great service, I will improve this opportunity in calling the special at- tention of the Committee on the Fire Department to this particu- lar part of this report, and would be pleased to confer with them at any time convenient for them so to do.
The hose reel now located in Ward Two, I would recommend being moved to the new Central Station and held in reserve, and a new Hose wagon placed in its stead with hanging harness and other equipments, the same as Hose Two and Three. Hose Four, at the present time, is the poorest equipped piece of apparatus in the department and it is the opinion of your Chief Engineer that Ward Two is entitled to as good as any other part of the city. In recommending the hose reel to be removed to the new station and held in reserve I do so for the following reasons. It is of course to be kept always ready for immediate service, and in case of a large conflagration where ad- ditional hose is wanted, it can be got at much quicker than if hose had to be lowered from the tower and loaded on to a wagon. Also valuable time would be saved after reaching the scene or place where the same is wanted. The cost of a new wagon would be about three hundred dollars.
147
FIRE STATION.
In regard to the several fire stations I am somewhat at a loss what to say. We have a Central Fire Station now under way and will probably be ready for occupancy about April first. In regards to new fire stations for Wards Two and Four, I believe the Committee was unable to report further than in their judg- ment, the ones now being used were entirely unfit for fire station purposes. Locations for same seemed to be the hardest thing to get over, which are, of course, the facts of the case. It being referred to the new Council, it is hoped by your Chief Engineer that the Committee on Fire Department will give this their early attention. The hose house in Ward Five is too low posted, but with an expenditure of about two hundred and fifty dollars it could be put in a condition that would answer for some time to come. Said station also needs painting, also the station at Houghs Neck needs painting. There are so many things needed that I hardly dare mention them all for fear some one will say "hold up, go slow." But your Fire Department must not go slow and where so much is expected of them they must have tools to work with.
HOSE.
We have at this date about 7,300 feet of hose in appar- ently good condition, and about 450 feet that is not reliable. About 400 feet has been condemned this year. I would recom- mend the purchase of 1000 feet new hose which will make up for losses, also be a small addition. The hose for chemical engines 1 and 2 will answer if no serious accident should over- take them.
WATER.
Now that the city owns her own plant and will no doubt have the indisputable right to extend the pipes wherever and whenever the Water Commissioners think it proper, and the Council appropriate money for the same. I shall expect a large addition of fire hydrants in all parts of the city. It is hoped that the Council of 1893 will be very liberal with this
148
department. It not only appears proper but I feel it my duty to again call your attention to the Houghs Neek district. There are now about one hundred and fifty or one hundred and seven- ty-five buildings in that district, the value of which is not less than one hundred and seventy-five thousand dollars. There is nothing at the present time for fire service that can be depended on in the shape of water, especially at low tide, or when the tide is not about full. I believe it would be a paying invest- ment for the city of Quincy to extend water mains to Houghs Neck, said mains to be large enough to supply fire hydrants, and recommend the same being done at an early date.
RESERVOIRS.
There are sixteen reservoirs, ten of which are supposed to be self-filling and on December 3, were in fair condition. As I have no confidence in them whatever ( with the exception of three or four ) I believe it is money thrown away to even clean them out or to keep the snow shoveled off in the winter.
FIRE ALARM.
The fire alarm under the care of Gilbert M. Wight, who has had the care of same for the past four years, has worked well and much credit is due to Mr. Wight for the good and efficient service rendered.
There is at this time about thirty-one and a half miles of wire all in one circuit. This will, in all probability be cut up in four or more circuits at an early date, as the Council of 1892 made a commencement in that direction. The cost of the out- side work I am not able to estimate at present, but will forward the same as soon as weather and circumstances will permit. The Houghs Neck loop also will be commenced as soon as weather permits. The fire alarm apparatus now in line is as follows: one automatic steam whistle attachment, four bell strikers, five large gongs, seven tappers, and thirty-four pull or signal boxes, four of which have been added this year.
149
LOCATION OF SIGNAL BOXES.
21 Cor. Granite street and Cranch place.
23 Cor. Hancock street and Cottage avenue.
25 Cor. Newcomb and Canal streets.
26 Unitarian Church.
28 Cor. Greenleaf and Hancock streets.
34 Cor. Main and Union streets.
35 Cor. School and Hancock streets.
37 Cor. Franklin and Water streets.
38 Cor. Liberty and Plain streets.
39 Cor. Liberty and Penn streets.
41 Cor. School and Granite streets.
42 Jones' corner.
43 Cor. Copeland and Common streets.
45 Cor. Willard and Crescent streets.
46 Hose House No. 3. Copeland street.
47 Cor. Bates avenue and Grove street.
18 Cor. Willard and Robertson streets.
49 Cor. Willard and Larry place.
51 Linden street, Tubular Rivet Co. factory.
52 Cor. Farrington and Brook streets.
53 Cor. Warren and Winthrop avenues.
54 Cor. Hancock and Fenno streets.
56 Wollaston Hotel.
Wollaston Park.
57 58 Cor. Adams and Beale streets.
59 Beale street, near Grand View avenue.
61 Cor. Hancock and Squantum streets.
62 Cor. Hancock and Atlantic streets.
64 Cor. Newbury and Billings streets.
68 Squantum Heights.
71 Cor. Mill and Washington streets.
72 Cor. South and Washington streets.
73 Cor. Winter and Howard streets.
Cor. Sumner and Main streets. 75
135 Weymouth.
137 Braintree. 158 Milton.
150
2 Blows, recall, "all out."
2-2 three times, one session in school.
1 blow for test, at 7 A. M., 5 P. M.
10 blows followed by box number denotes second alarm.
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