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25
Annual Stocktaking:—
The lending Departments were closed during the first fourteen
days in July for the purposes of annual stocktaking and cleaning.
The books were examined and checked with the registers with
the result that every volume, except three at the Tate Library,
could be accounted for.
It may be interesting to mention that since the opening of
the libraries only twelve books, out of a circulation of over two
and a half million volumes, have been unaccounted for at the
annual stocktakings.
Catalogues, etc.:—
Considerable progress has been made with the work of cataloguing
the contents of the libraries, and the card catalogues at
the Balham and Tooting Libraries have been completed. To
make the limited contents of the latter institution as useful as
possible the books have been very fully indexed, and annotations
descriptive of the scope of the works have been appended to the
entries where thought desirable. Historical fiction has also
received some attention, the period dealt with by the writer being
briefly described under the author-entry.
The usual lists of additions to the libraries have been issued
at intervals during the year, as well as those relating to topics of
the day and other matters of public and local interest.
Reading Rooms: —
The Reading Rooms have been largely attended during the
year and their popularity and usefulness increased by the addition
of several new papers and magazines. The Reading Rooms are
open on week-days from 9 a.m. till 10 p.m., and on Sundays
(except during the months of July, August, and September) from
3 till 9 p.m.
Library Receipts: —
The following is a statement of the receipts from the sale of
catalogues, fines, etc., at the three libraries: —