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Cataloguing and Arranging the Books and Pamphlets of a Library [Dewey Decimal Classification], by Melvil Dewey

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Title: A Classification and Subject Index for Cataloguing and Arranging the Books and Pamphlets of a Library [Dewey Decimal Classification]

Author: Melvil Dewey

Release Date: June 4, 2004 [EBook #12513]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK DEWEY DECIMAL CLASSIFICATION ***

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DEWEY DECIMAL CLASSIFICATION

CENTENNIAL 1876-1976

Facsimile reprinted

by

Forest Press Division
Lake Placid Educational Foundation

* * *

Printed and Bound
Kingsport Press, Inc.
KINGSPORT, TENNESSEE

A

CLASSIFICATION

AND

SUBJECT INDEX

FOR

CATALOGUING AND ARRANGING

THE

BOOKS AND PAMPHLETS

OF A

LIBRARY.

* * * * *

AMHERST, MASS.
1876.

COPYRIGHTED

1876

MELVIL DEWEY

PREFACE.

The plan of the following Classification and Index was developed early in
1873. It was the result of several months' study of library economy as
found in some hundreds of books and pamphlets, and in over fifty personal
visits to various American libraries. In this study, the author became
convinced that the usefulness of these libraries might be greatly
increased without additional expenditure. Three years practical use of
the system here explained, leads him to believe that it will accomplish
this result; for with its aid, the catalogues, shelf lists, indexes, and
cross-references essential to this increased usefulness, can be made more
economically than by any other method which he has been able to find.
The system was devised for cataloguing and indexing purposes, but it was
found on trial to be equally valuable for numbering and arranging books
and pamphlets on the shelves.

The library is first divided into nine special libraries which are called
Classes. These Classes are Philosophy, Theology, &c., and are numbered
with the nine digits. Thus Class 9 is the Library of History; Class 7,