Archibald Cary Coolidge and the Harvard Library, V. the Director As Diplomat
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Archibald Cary Coolidge and the Harvard Library, V. The director as diplomat The Harvard community has made this article openly available. Please share how this access benefits you. Your story matters Citation Bentinck-Smith, William. 1974. Archibald Cary Coolidge and the Harvard Library, V. The director as diplomat. Harvard Library Bulletin XXII (3), July 1974: 317-353. Citable link https://nrs.harvard.edu/URN-3:HUL.INSTREPOS:37363677 Terms of Use This article was downloaded from Harvard University’s DASH repository, and is made available under the terms and conditions applicable to Other Posted Material, as set forth at http:// nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:dash.current.terms-of- use#LAA Archibald Cary Coolidge and the Harvard Library T11 illia111B e11ti11 ck-S1nith \ 1. THE DrRECTORAS D1PL01\:IAT Disrupting though the effects of the first '~'orld "\~Tar,vere, they did encourage. the central Library to turn in,vard, sett1e· jmn1ediate pto b lcn1st -and -assessa c con1p 1ish n1 ents. The first n1 enter on the dock et , vus to sup pl cn1ent l\-lrs Y\7i deneris gifts by· fur rushing the building ,vith such necessary jte1ns as i 8,000 label holders, 39,000 book sup- ports, tables and chairs for 300 stalls, furniture for 7 2 studies1 -and ne,v furniture for the principal offices "to accord \\ 1ith the dignity 172 of the LiLrat)7 • u AH these ,vere quicldy obtained, thanks to the pro1npt generosity of J. P. A·lorganand others.. The ne,v building had brought \Yithjr a host of n1inor problerns for the Director and his staff. Sorne of the questions so solen1nlysettled in 1915 have an aur~ of unrc-ality in today~s \Yorld. The matter .of approprjate dress, for exatnple: It should he rc,ncmbcrcrl thnt the ,, 7idener Library is open to vjs;tors "'ho con1c in la rgc n un1h crs fro n1 alt pn rt:S of the country. This 1na.kcs it the: nl ore necessary to 111ainraina proper dccoru1n in the re~ding roo1ns. Readers arc requested nor to put thdr feet on the chairs or to sit in shjrrsh.:e,·t-s1 rdthough in rcnl1y \varm \1,:e-nthcrouting shj rt and belt a coat arc pcnnis-s1ble.ns In the J"'jl )tr-try of r 91 5 the p1nce reserved for Radc]iffe College students ,vas close to tota] exclusion. By preva]cnt theory the Library ,vas n n1alc sanctuary~ financed by I--Iarvard College and therefore rightfuHy the scholarly resource of Harvard students and faculty .. Anything Radcliff c g·ot ca111e ll)• cautious negotiation. L. Il. Jt. Briggs, Dean of the I-Jarvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences an<l Presi- dent of Radc]iffe~ had recognized lladcliffc's obligation to give so1nc- thing jn return for her 111odicun1of privilege. \!\ 7hen Coolidge.asked l~:! 1V. C. Lane, lJndat~d u~,] emorandun1 of Items Still Needed for the Equip- u1cnr of tl1c Nc\.v Lihr:try}j [ 1915]. 1'::i Undated 1nemorandum [191 s]. Harvard University - Houghton Library / Harvard University. Harvard Library bulletin. Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Library. Volume XXII, Number 3 (July 1974) 318 H ar-vardLibrary Bull eti11 lladc1itfe in l 9l l to pay· a siualI annual sucn to Harvard for its oc- casiona 1 u sc of the Lib r::1ry President Briggs nfficj ally a ckn ov{ 1cd gc d 1 1 1 that RadclitTes use of I-Ia.rvards books and of the so-called ,"'pcn ' (,vhcrc Radcliffe students ,\·aiterl in Gore unti] a library page got them ,vhat they ·lvanrcd) ,vas ,vorth .so1nerhingon the order of .$500 .. As President llriggs "\\1rote: ''- 7hen a ccrnfin use of the I-Iarv.1r<lLibrary \Vas al1o\vcd to the gids, .it ,vas a use the 1nconvenience of \Vhich co I-I~n·ard ,vas reduced to the -very Jo,vest terms.. lladcliffc did its br.~tto keep the gjrls out of the Ul1rary .... and got returned· bool.:s by its o\vn 1ncsscngcr . Sucl1: use of the Libt;::ery as Rad- cljff e h:1sfa purely a I"llatter of counesy and good ;.-dHoo the part of Hnrv~rd. E,~cn courtesy sccn1s:to have been ca ref uHy guarded i for one Radcliffe gra<lu- 3te en1ployed jn University 9, ,vho ,,rent to the gjds' rooni in rhe Harvard Li- br-nry nftc.r hn1ch to rt:ad! \V'15 locked .in and had to rjng up a boy hcforc she could gee out. 1 H 2 I Brjggs re1ninded Coolidge of the ~(dcs1rab]enessof suitab]e pro- I 1 vision for Radcljffc students in the ne,v Jiurary' - not 1nerely i I l roon1 but ''opporn1nitics in the stack.'' 17ri C:uolidgc,vou1d not prom- I ! ise this. It \Vas a question not of architecture but of rcgn]ation, he : l 1 said. '\\ 1i th out undertaking to prophesy \Vhat ,vc shall do, it secn1s to n1e that the st~ck ,viii he f recly opened to graduate stndents, but ' I • [as in the case of students in Harvard College] not to undergradu- : I ates. H 1 7 r. So 1t turned out. The nc\v rcgu1atjons governing Radcliffe stu- dents in \J/idener Jimited undergraduates to the Radcliffe study on the second floor adjacent to the General {leading lloon1, ,vhere R:1d- c]iffc staff and students cou]d use reserved books, reference books, and titles ternporarily borrolvcd for reading 111the building. Other books 1 as in the past~ ,vcre to be borro,ved through the Radcliffe Li- brary. On the other hand, Radcliffe gradu~te students (like tho~e of I-I-arv-ard) could use the stacks "on reconnncndation of their in- structors, ,vhen such access is essential to their \vork.,' '"l"heycould a]so attend ,csen1inary courses,' in the L,ibrary not open to H ar,Tard undcrgraduates. l 77 111 L. H_R. Brigg:s-to A. C. Coolfrlge~::u 1 September 19u i L. B. R. Brigg~ to A. C. Cooiidgct 8 K ovember 191 r i A. C. Coolidge to L. B. R. Brjggs, 11 ~ovcrnbr-r 1911. 17 ~ L, n. R. Briggs to A. C, Coolidge, 15 1'.,.o,T(~mbcr[91 l. 17 r. A. C. Coolidge: to L. B. R. Brigg.,;;1 18 Ntwcn1hcr t90:. 1 4 " Undtlc-d 1 undated 1ncn1oranducn headed iJ.-Jan·~rd College Lihrary/' relating to Rad cUff e ar ra 11gc ~nents [No \"en1ber 1 9 I 5]. Harvard University - Houghton Library / Harvard University. Harvard Library bulletin. Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Library. Volume XXII, Number 3 (July 1974) Arcbibald Cary Coolidgeand the Har11.}ardl.3brary 3 r 9 The sticking point ,vas the evening. Coolidge queried Briggs as to \vhethcr he thought it desir:tble "that Radcliffe students~ even grn.du- a:te on~s., should use the "\~1idcncr l.,ihrary in the evening.'~ He had hecn told there "Tas a .student ,v ho had to do ,vork in the evening in the history· sen1inar roo1n on the top floor. "1This docs not sccn1 to me advisabh.\ cspcciaHy as the Libr~ry exercises no general supervision of that floor at night~n HR Briggs- countered ,vith the inf orn1ation that the girrs only ti111e for \Vork ,vns in the evening. 1 'She goc.~ ho1ne at half-past nine/' he said. uA]so she -js near a good n1any persons ::ind app:irenrly C)Uitc safe. On the ,vhole it seems . hctrer to Jct the n1attcr go on." lie added.,,vith secrningfatalism, (~\,1hatevcr happens, I thank you for caHing our attention ro the situation." Ho Coolidge did not feel he could 1ct the subject drop at that. HThc general question is too large for nlc to feel conipctent to settle on n1y O\Vn rcsponsibiJity-." I-le proposed to refer the prohlcn1 to the L,i- brary Councili "though I ~n1 -n_otsure, i, he said~falling back on high- er authority, -uthat the President. ,vill 11orthink it should go to hin1 as a nlattcr of University po]icy.H 160 The question \vas uitin1ate-1ysettled by the. Jjbrary Conncilt \vhich n1ct on 10 Novcn1bcr r915. Coolidge reported the results to Briggs ·the next day: It ,vas voted: thatl visitors shall not be adn1jtted to the Library after six 0 1c]ock. l~hcrc ,,,ill he ob,,ion~ly a certain amoun.t of dis-cretion in enf orci~g rhi~ rule. h \V~s voted: th~ti the Radcliffe Reading Roo1n 5hall be closed ~fter s~x o~clock. tlrnt, aU ,vo1nc11be excluded f ror11 the :::itack af tcr ~ix olclock. th~tl under tbe cxijsting conditions~ sc1nin~ry roo1nsl special libraries, of- :ficcsi and studie.'i shall not be open to "\V(mH!n after thi~ ~~rrnehnur; but th~t r\1c D1rcctor shaU have discretion 3n app~yjng this rule to fixc.d ap- poi ntn1ctns in University courses~ 'This l~~t provision \n1.~ put jn for the benefit of the Rndcliff e stnclent ,vho .. may + •• continue to conic, !lnd 1 shall gjvc directions that she be ad- mitted. If there are any other cases of the same kind 1 I ~hould be glad to be n oti ri eel of them. Gi\'"cn in this fonn, it n1ay scc1n to you that the Counci] sat do\vn to 1uake :1.-.sA. C. Coulidgc to J ,. U. R. Hrjggs, r (1 Octobct· 19 t.5. 70 ] L.B. R. Briggs to A. C. Coolidgel 1 z October l9l 5T ]'~A. C. Coolidge: to L. Il. R. Brjggs, i6 October I-CJl .5~ Harvard University - Houghton Library / Harvard University. Harvard Library bulletin. Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Library.