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AT Oxford, on October 8th and 9th, was celebrated the tercentenary of the founding of the Bodleian Library by Sir Thomas Bodley, an Exeter man, who early realised the value of books in the work of education. The occasion was made one of great importance, and there were gathered together distinguished representatives of literature and librarianship from all parts of the world. The list of delegates given below will show how extensive this representation was, although it will occur to some, as a somewhat remarkable circumstance, that not a single municipal library in London was represented, while many of the more important English towns were also ignored. Considering that such libraries are doing so much in the cause of popular education, compared to which the work of many of the colleges and institutions represented is microscopical, it does strike the outsider that the gathering would have been much more impressive and representative had there been more “Town” and less “Gown” in the celebration. The following is a full list of all but the Oxford representatives, who included practically every head of a college, professor, or college librarian, together with various local celebrities:—

After giving a brief account of the historical background to the Division's Slavonic holdings, the author describes present acquisitions policy and procedures for both serials and monographs. The records maintained are described together with the special treatment necessary for ‘difficult’ types of material. The use made of the stock is shown to be small relative to the rest of the Division's activities, being only some 4% of total requests received. The various success rates from both stock and borrowing from abroad are analysed and some reasons for the small number of requests for humanities material as compared with scientific are suggested. The problems of transliteration are mentioned, including those encountered amongst the non‐Slavonic languages of the USSR.

THE exact date of the first foundation of the library is not discoverable, but it was within the first two years of the formation of the Medico‐Chirurgical Society (1805–1807), as a Library Committee was appointed as early as March, 1807.

SO much controversy has raged around the subject of newsrooms in the past two years, that librarians are, as a rule, utterly tired of it, and the appearance of still another article upon the subject is not calculated to tone down the general spirit of vexation. It requires no little courage to appear in the arena in this year of Grace, openly championing those departments of our institutions which were originally intended to convey the news of the day in the broadest manner.

In preparing this report, the compliance sub‐group has set out to (a) summarise the current compliance regime as a matter of law and practice, (b) identify particular problem areas within that regime concerning public sector officials (PSOs), and (c) suggest recommendations for change. The result may be seen as providing features of a ‘model’ compliance structure designed to cause difficulties for corrupt PSOs seeking to launder the proceeds of their corruption; UK law and practice has formed the springboard for the model, but it should be stressed that in order to be of any utility any suggested changes would have to be adopted (effectively) universally throughout the financial world. Piecemeal adoption by one or a few states would merely be likely to drive the tainted monies elsewhere, and would not serve the desired purpose of reducing the extent/profitability of corruption.

PERHAPS there is no library topic more interesting both to librarians and to the public whom they serve than the ethical influence of the fiction which forms such a large percentage of the circulation of the average Public Library. Opinions will probably always differ widely as to whether individual novels are moral or immoral, and yet it should be possible to establish some criteria of morality in fiction to which the majority of us would be willing to consent.

IF we count the University of Strathclyde School of Librarianship as a “new” school—rather than simply an old school transferred from a College of Commerce to a university—then four “new” schools were established between 1963 and 1964, three of the four in universities and the other closely linked with a university, though remaining independent. All four schools have their special features but I consider the more significant of Belfast's features to be its right, from the outset, to conduct all its own examinations for graduates and non‐graduates. Queen's was also the first British university to provide non‐graduates with courses in librarianship. (Strathclyde is the second.) All successful students are eligible for admission to the Register of Chartered Librarians (ALA) after they have completed the prescribed period of practical experience.

The work of protecting the public food supply during the pre‐Christmas rush period can be exhausting, although food inspectors and others engaged nowadays may have achieved the proletarian distinction of the shift system and perhaps, overtime pay, but in the old days, we had none of these blessings and supervising the Christmas fare could indeed be a “dog's life”.