books of the day (together
with the information about their contents and merits furnished by the
literary reviews, which he must read, however sparingly, in order to keep
up with his profession) to be able to furnish readers with some word of
comment as to most books coming into the Library. This course, or as
close an approximation to it as his multifarious duties will permit, will
go far to solve the problem that confronts every librarian who is
expected to be an exponent of universal knowledge. Always refraining from
unqualified praise of books (especially of new ones) always maintaining
that impartial attitude toward men and opinions which becomes the
librarian, he should act the part of a liberal, eclectic, catholic guide
to inquirers of every kind.

And here let me emphasize the great importance to every librarian or
assistant of early learning to make the most of his working faculties. He
cannot afford to plod along through a book, sentence by sentence, like an
ordinary reader. He must learn to read a sentence at a glance. The moment
his eye lights upon a title-page he should be able to take it all in by a
comprehensive and intuitive mental process. Too much stress cannot be
laid upon the every-day habit or method of reading. It makes all the
difference between time saved, and time wasted; between efficiency and
inefficiency; between rapid progress and standing still, in one's daily
work. No pains should be spared, before entering upon the all-engrossing
work of a library, to acquire the habit of rapid reading. An eminent
librarian of one of the largest libraries was asked whether he did not
find a great deal of time to read? His reply was--"I wish that I could
ever get as much as one hour a day for reading--but I have never been
able to do it." Of course every librarian must spend much time in special
researches; and in this way a good deal of some of his days will be spent
in acquainting himself with the resources of his library; but this is
incidental and not systematic reading.

In viewing the essential qualifications of a librarian, it is necessary
to say at the outset that a library is no place for uneducated people.
The requirements of the position are such as to demand not only native
talent above the average, but also intellectual acquirements above the
average. The more a librarian knows, the more he is worth, and the
converse of the proposition is equally true, that the less he knows the
less he is w