d was anxious to know
whether there was in the library of the Pope, the great library of the
Vatican, a certain book. . . . . The gentleman went to the Italians that
used the library. They referred him to the private secretary of one of
the cardinals, and after a moment's thought the secretary answered, 'No,
sir, I don't know; but there is a young man in the city from Boston, and
if the book is there he will know. They went to George Sumner, and
asked him if there was such a volume in the library. 'Yes, it is in the
tenth alcove, the third shelf, the seventh book to your right as you
enter.'

Similar stories, doubtless, could be told of Bradshaw, the Cambridge
University librarian, or of Thomas Ruddiman and George Buchanan.

Mr. Lloyd P. Smith[55] gives the following definition, among others, of
the qualifications of a librarian: 'Librarians, like editors and
proofreaders, are expected to know everything; and in one sense they
should know everything--that is, they should have that _maxima pars
eruditionis_, which consists in knowing where everything is to be found.
A librarian should be able, of his own knowledge, to answer many questions,
and especially the two questions which meet him at every turn, "Where
can I find such-and-such information?" and "What is the best work on
such-and-such a subject?" These are legitimate questions, which it
should be the pride of every librarian to answer offhand . . . . All
the book-learning in the world, however, will be insufficient for the
practical duties of his place, unless the librarian has also the organ
of order. His motto should be, "A place for everything and everything
in its place."'

'The book of regulations for the court and household of Guidobaldo I.
contains these rules for the administration of the library:--"The
librarian should be learned, of good presence, temper, and manners,
correct, and ready of speech. He must get from the gardrobe an inventory
of the books, and keep them arranged and easily accessible, whether
Latin, Greek, Hebrew, or others, maintaining also the rooms in good
condition. He must preserve the books from damp and vermin, as well as
from the hands of trifling, ignorant, dirty, and tasteless persons. To
those of authority and learning, he ought himself to exhibit them with
all facility, courteously explaining their beauty and remarkable
characteristics, the handwriting and miniatures, but observant that such
abstract no leaves. When ignorant o