Book description
AN INTRODUCTION TO LIBRARY SCIENCE by PIERCE BUTLER. FOREWORD: THE
Graduate Library School of the Uni versity of Chicago was established in
1926 in response to a desire on the part of many librarians and
organizations interested in education for librarianship that a library
school should be provided in connection with one of Americas great
universities which would de vote itself to advanced study and
investigation in the field of librarianship. In urging the establishment
of such a school its advocates were impressed with the rapidly in
creasing resources of American libraries and their consequent growing
complexity. They were also convinced of the necessity of providing
instruction in accord with the highest standards of modern scholarship
in order that the most ef fective forms of library organization and
admin istration might be insured. The rapid expansion of public, county,
school, and special libraries al so offered convincing evidence that the
relation ships of these organizations to society and gov ernment were of
such a nature as to require con sideration as comprehensive and
scholarly as that given to the development and direction of social and
economic institutions. The University of Chicago, in assuming re
sponsibility for the development of such a school, has constantly kept
these objectives in mind. Accordingly, the Graduate Library School,
established on this basis, has undertaken to realize these objectives
through the organiza tion of its curricula, the methods of investiga
tion which it employs, and the correlation of its work with that of
other schools and departments of the University which seem to have
something of value to contribute to the study of librarian ship. The
School has also undertaken the publi cation of the Library Quarterly
through which members of its staff and student body, librari ans, and
others may present the results of inves tigations or record significant
developments in the various fields of library interest. In order to
carry this work further, the School herewith begins the publication of a
series of studies in Library Science in which will appear from time to
time the results of more extensive studies than can appropriately be
presented through the pages of the Library Quarterly, The present
volume, An Introduction to Li brary Science is the first of these
studies to ap pear in the series. It has been prepared by Dr. Pierce
Butler, formerly of the staff of the New berry Library and now Professor
of Bibliograph ical History in the Graduate Library School. As the title
indicates, it is concerned with the consideration of librarianship as a
science. It should be pointed out, however, that the title will prove
misleading if it is interpreted too liter ally. The volume is not an
elementary handbook which deals with library rules and procedures. On
the contrary, through the essays which con stitute the volume. Dr.
Butler sets forth the es sential nature of science as he conceives it,
and shows how the problems of the modern library as an important social
institution may be studied in accord with its spirit and methods. In
this re spect it reflects the approach made by the School to
librarianship and the attitude assumed by it in the study and
investigation of library prob lems. That many librarians will not agree
that libra rianship can properly be studied in this way is to be taken
for granted. Differences of opinion on this point have already been
expressed and will continue to be. It is the hope of Dr. Butler and of
the School, however, that while this diversity of opinion will continue
to exist, those who hold such a contrary opinion will accord his
presenta tion a sympathetic hearing...
