Open Collections

 V, 2, No. 1 OF THE U.B.C. LIBRARY STAFF NEWSLETTER OCTOBER 1965
NEWS FROM THE FRONT
From the Minutes of the Reference Meetings, September 30th and
October 7th, 1965.
1. The * Secretary outlined a trip to Europe to be taken by
the Librarian and the -'-'Secretary starting October 9th
and returning November 8th for the prime purpose of buying
books.  Itinerary included Amsterdam, Stockholm, Brussels,
Paris, London, Oxford and other places. The principle
bookstores at present selling to the Library would be
visited.  Inquiries would be made at sundry places for
desiderata, or collections, or periodicals, or duplicates,
or etc.  Some discussion followed which served to convince
the *Secretary further that he should be allowed to do this
kind of trip annually in order to catch up with all the
possibi1ities.
2. It was announced that there would be no English 200 lectures given by the Librarians this year because of pressure of work and increasing doubt as to the usefulness of
the lectures from a bibliographic standpoint.
* The Secretary is Mr. Bert Hamilton, in case you were
interested. 3. The possibility of using tapes and films (or slides) for
bigger and better library education tours for freshmen, etc.
is being seriously considered.
4. Many new professional and library assistant personnel have
joined the staff and orientation tours will be (are now) set
up to help reveal the scope of our library's operations.
5. Praises due. To Mrs. Helen Constable, Science Division,
on the new divisional Library Information leaflets.  In
editorial arrangement, format, contents, general appeal and
usefulness they topped anything seen to date.
To Mr. John Grey, Cataloguing Division for his able conducting of the student hiring process.
6. The backlog is still very much with us.  Miss Dobbin asks
that the extra step in cataloguing, that of punching book-
cards please be taken into account when requesting rush
cataloguing.
NEWS FROM OTHER PLACES  (Middle, Back, etc.)
Woodward Library Serials List
A revised version of the temporary list has now been prepared by xeroxing the Linadex. Copies of these lists are
in Acquisitions, Social Sciences and the Science Divisions.
Library Delivery Service
The Library now has its own library delivery truck.  Our
driver is Mr. Les Kalinsky.  Local for pick-up or delivery
is 3208.  The University Dispatcher need not be contacted.
Teletype
WE NIXXX NOW HAVE TELEVIXXX TELETYPE LURKXXX LINKING THE
WOODWARD, MAIN ( IN PSYCHXXX CIRCULATION DIVERSXXX DIVISION )
AND THE BIOMADXXX MED BRANCH LIBRARIES. Special Collections Division
All bound copies of the Vancouver Sun and Province are now
housed in Special Collections.
Woodward again
Hildegard Spaulding is saying "Why didn't we think of it
sooner?" The guest book which was placed a month ago in the
Memorial Room has been signed by visitors from Oxford, New
York, Hong Kong, Japan, Denmark, as well as visiting dignitaries from less glamourous places such as North and West
Vancouver.
From our Museum of Anthropology
Webster defines the word "exchange" as "the act of giving
or taking one thing in return for another as an equivalent".
What does it mean to you?
Jill Willmott, the museum assistant, has organized an
exhibit entitled Exchange - what is it? Through juxtaposition of objects, questions, and quotations she attempts
to "stimulate thought which would analyze and explore anew
what is meant by the word 'exchange'." One word to describe
this exhibit is 'dynamic', for it is designed to show that
museums can become actively involved in the current issues
of theoretical anthropology.  Don't miss it!
From the Fine Arts Gallery
If you missed, or were completely baffled by, the Beyond
Regionalism exhibit, October 6 to 23, don't miss the next
three part Chinese exhibition called Cosmic Breath, on display from October 27 to November 13.  Part I is a one-man
show by Anna Wu Weakland of the San Francisco Bay area.  Part
II displays contemporary Chinese communist paintings.  Part
III, Chinese objects, ancient and contemporary, from local
collections.  Gallery hours - 10:30 to 5:00 Tues. to Sat.
and 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. on Tuesdays.  Several of the
paintings will also be on display in the Fine Arts Division. NEWS FROM THE INNOCENTS ABROAD
Dear Biblos,
Den Haag
Saturday, Oct.
16, 1965
At your request we have herewith compiled a composite report
on the invasion of Basil & Bert (hereafter referred to as B and
&B) of Europe.
B, with his usual assiduity in getting with it bought on arrival
in Amsterdam a Harper's Dutch Phrase book which he consults on
all occasions before dealing with people, hotel registrations,
meals, buying train tickets, etc. &B doesn't bother with phrase
books for communication with natives, relying chiefly on his
honest face and considerable command of French.  So far neither
B or &B have gotten past more than a few words of their adopted
phraseology before the natives in reply burst into voluble
English, tainted by Oxford or Soho.
B has been buying a lot of books.  His reckless abandon is
something that Acquisitions would not cheer on.  Even &B is
impressed and is apt to exclaim "Gee whif Baz!" Whereupon the
dealer invariably turns to &B for a moment and says "Geewhizbas?
No, sorry, that's out of print, but Kraus may be reprinting
soon, thank you."
In our more reflective moments we think of a lot of things we
should not write about in a staff letter: things which refer
to ourselves, e.g. the highest mountains in Holland (not what
you think, Mclnnes), the worst food in the world, the traffic
(the Dutch, otherwise stolid, go wild on bicycles, motorcycles,
cars), the unsmiling faces (we think maybe they have cold
feet all the time), or the worst food in the world, (it bears
repeating),
We should mention the internationalization of things here.
Coca-Cola refreshes here, also, even in the middle of gourmet
meals.  You can buy Hallmark get-sick cards in English. We read the New York Times or the Herald Tribune,
being preferable because it contains Peanuts, Pogo
Pfeiffer.
On the other hand,
there is a category of
things which seem to
be distinctively West
European.  Little automobiles - they drive up
on sidewalks in tight
places, so one watches
ones toes.
Servfice in restaurants is
ornate and refined to the
point of being ritualistic;
every once in a while one
is diverted by the service
into thinking that the
cooking is good, which it
isn1t.
y^oofetx—°_t In the light of our extensive experience we have some reservations about a theory expounded by an American psychologist to
the effect that people couped up en masse in a small area will
resort to violence by way of protest. The people here seem
considerate and long suffering. They don't smile much, but
B and &B readily admit that they are hungering for signs of
friendly personal approval. We miss the subservient and obsequious demonstrations of our fellow staff members at home.
It may be of interest to students of abnormal psychology to
learn that last night we asked outselves what it was about
Holland that made the greatest impression on us, and the
answer was - not the girls (alasj) - not the food (urpj) -
not the climate (blub!), but in B's case, the Persian rugs
in the carpet stores, and in &B's case , the orchids used
for window-dressing in shops.
There have been moments of hilarity.  How could you, at home,
appreciate the piquancy of going into a KLM airline office
in Amsterdam and being confronted by a travel poster which
said "Saskatchewan for Fishing".
If anyone is really interested in the business details of
this trip, just ask Dorothy Shields or Hans Burndorfer. We
have visited sixteen bookstores in three cities in six days,
and spent about xxx,xxx dollars.  In practical terms, the
trip is a success. But then, we are not here to have a
good time, are we?  Are we?
Yours faithfully
B and &B. NEW FACES
Mrs. Mary Alford, Clerk II, Woodward, September 15th, 1965.
Miss Francine Parker, Clerk I, Circulation, October 6th.
NEW HOPE
Mrs. Pat Gorgenyi, Library Assistant to Senior Library Assistant, Acquisitions, September 1st.
Mrs. Maria Horvath, Library Assistant to Senior Library Assistant, Humanities, October 1st,
Miss Margaret Leighton, Library Assistant to Senior Library
Assistant, Woodward Library, October 1st,
Mrs, Dorothy Mercer, Library Assistant to Senior Library Assistant, Curriculum Laboratory, October 1st.
Mrs. Elizabeth McAully, Library Assistant to Senior Library
Assistant, Woodward Library, October 1st.
Mrs. Joyce Harries, Secretary II to Secretary III, Circulation,
October 1st.
Mr. Julius Benyovits, Clerk II to Clerk II I, Acquisitions,
October 1st.
Miss Lydia Lobach, Clerk II to Library Assistant, Humanities,
October 1st.
Miss M. Belford, Clerk I to Clerk II, Curriculum Laboratory,
August 1st.
Miss Gwen Symons, Clerk I to Clerk II, Humanities, October 1st.
Mr. S. Y. Tse, Clerk I to Library Assistant, Asian Studies,
October 1st.
Mrs. Colleen Copithorne, Clerk I, Woodward to Clerk I I in
Acquisitions, July 2nd.
Mrs. Giselle Crotogino, Clerk I to Clerk II, Social Sciences,
August 27th.
Mrs, Penny Jandali, Clerk II to Library Assistant, Circulation, July 1st.
Miss Margaret Litzcke, Clerk I to Clerk II, Circulation,
July 1st,
Miss Vivi Jorgensen, Clerk I to Clerk II, Serials, July 1st.
Miss Susan Hurford, Clerk I to Clerk II, Cataloguing, September 1st.
Miss Kay Fukuzawa, Library Assistant to Senior Library Assistant, Cataloguing, June 15th,
Miss Lorna Goossen, Clerk II to Library Assistant, Cataloguing,
October 1st. NEW HORIZONS
Miss Maureen Wallace resigned as Senior Library Assistant in
Serials, October 22nd, 1965.
Miss Eleanor Scarlett, resigns as.Clerk I in Cataloguing,
October 31st, 1965.
Miss Elspeth Hughes resigned her Clerk I post in Woodward,
October 5th, I965. And takes up her new post in
the Library School Office,,
NEW POSTS - FAMILIAR FACES
Welcome back Mr. Lanning. Roland Lanning returned October
1st to become Head of the Bibliography Division.
FAMILIAR FACES
Penny Clark, Circulation Division, became Mrs. Terry Jandali
on September 4th.
NEW LITTLE FACES
Mrs. Elvie Eigendorf, formerly of the Circulation Division,
had a baby girl, Natasha, Saturday, October 9th.
NEW BIBLOS "VOLUNTEER"
Brett Osborne, Serials, is the seventh member of our Biblos
sleuth staff.
OLD CHESTNUTS
A small boy paying his five-cent overdue fine looked
thoughtfully at his friendly local librarian and asked:
"Can you make a living out of this?" FOR YOUR INFORMATION
What is a green slip? No, it isn't a riddle, and you don't have
to plant it, or wear it, or eat it.
The What. Why, and How of the Green Slip Caper
The What of a Green Slip
Every book minus a Library of Congress number (and consequently
banished to backlog) has a record of its presence in said backlog filed in the main card catalogue in the shape of a Green
Slip date stamped by cataloguing when the book was received
for processing.
The Why of a Green Slip
Owing to stepped up buying, $3,000,000, a shortage of professional cataloguers, and a willingness to live up to Toronto and
California with their 18 month and 36 month backlogs, it has
become necessary to devise a method of keeping track of each
volume in the backlog.  The Green Slip filed in the main card
catalogue makes these backlog items available to the public in
the shortest possible time.
The How of a Green Slip
A borrower requiring a book for which there is a Green Slip in
the main card catalogue fills out a call card in the usual
manner and presents it at the Humanities desk.  The Green Slip
is not removed from the catalogue.  Borrower is told to return
in 48 hours, at wh ich time the book will be ready for him.
After varied ribald remarks of disbelief he departs and the
highly efficient Green Slip caper goes into operation.  The
Librarian at Humanities Desk notes date of processing from
Green Slip onto call card and takes call card to Cataloguing.
The book is immediately found in the backlog and "Rush Catalogued" (O.K.Kay?)  After 48 hours the book is ready to be
turned over to the"student of little faith".
This, briefly, is the highly efficient function of the Green
Slip, to be replaced in the near future by a highly efficient
I.B.M, method, at which time your highly efficient Biblos
staff will give you the facts in their usual highly ef....0UCH!
P. LaV. 10
CRY WOLF
Dear Editor:
On October 10th at about 10:45 a.m. there was an UNEXPECTED
fire alarm. Why I capitalize the word 'unexpected' is that
I overheard many of the Library's staff complaining that a
better day weatherwise should have been chosen.  Fire does
not choose days!
I have never seen such a display of unadult behaviour in a
simulated state of emergency with unnecessary talking,
joking, leaving by the wrong exits and even waiting for the
elevator.
Fortunately, it was not a real fire or there would probably
have been many tragic incidents. Most of us remember the
many fire drills during our good old school days. They were
treated seriously and were executed in as swift, quiet and
orderly a manner as possible.  I guess some of us have just
forgotten how to act in such an emergency situation.
We all hope there will never be a real fire, and with the
installation of our fire and smoke detectors we should be
given fair warning if there is one.  The next time that
bell rings how about more order, more speed and less talk?
Remember - the life you save may be your own.
M. Bolton
Cataloguing Division
To le-ve or not to 1-ve?
As one little ash to another ash said,
"I really resent this being so dead.
The times we've ignored the bell's false appeal.
So who was to know this last was for real?"
P. LaV. 11
Note:  Front Office is meeting with the Fire Marshall and
Buildings and Grounds.  Specific instructions as to exits,
etc. will be relayed as soon as possible.  In the meantime,
if the alarm sounds, leave the building quickly in an orderly
and quiet manner and come back in only when given the "all
c 1 ea r".
ARE YOU IN THE PEPSI OR DYSPEPSIA GENERATION?
Take advantage of this chance to express hidden talents, release frustrations, hold forth on a favourite topic.  Subscribe by active participation tothe 1965/66 monthly issues
of U.B.C. Library Life - better known as Biblos.  A Biblos
Box will be placed in the Staff Lounge.  Sneak in any time
and deposit poems, prose, poison pen or pencil letters.  If
you are exceedingly shy or vindictive, you need not sign away
your life (or job).  Department and date will be sufficient.
Your friendly (if you contribute) Biblos Committee is also
available to receive any information leading to...(sorry)...
to receive any contributions.  Simply bring your boxtops to
any of the following locations.
Acquisitions
Cataloguing
Circulation
Pat LaVac
Dave Thomas
Kathy Ward
Pat O'Rourke
Fine Arts       Diana Cooper
Serials Information Desk
Brett Osborne
Woodward Jean Rennie
The above list is republished from the September issue
for the benefit of those who do not have it immediately
at hand.  *** Next deadline - November L8_th,
Txcoffcr. 12
A FINAL FAREWELL
The staff of Biblos joins with the entire Library staff
in expressing their sorrow at the death, October 1st, of Len
Williams, our Stack Supervisor. Mr, Williams worked untiringly
for the library since he joined the staff in March 1958.
Keeping half a million volumes in working order, carrying out
extensive book moves to help keep the collection evenly distributed, supervising and organizing student assistants,
helping out wherever and whenever he was needed - our salute
and thanks to a man whose quiet, somewhat dry sense of humour,
camping and fishing stories, and very efficient organizational
abilities will be missed and long remembered.