usual here to leave a few pages blank for the index, and to arrange the
entries in strict alphabetical order under the first letters and then
under the first vowel following a consonant, or the second, when the
initial is a vowel. This is highly inconvenient and confusing,
especially when words without a second vowel, as _Ash_ and _Epps_, are
placed at the head of each letter, _Ash_ coming before _Adam_ and
_Abel_, and _Epps_ before _Ebenezer_. It is better to spare a few more
pages for the index, and plan the alphabet out so that the entries may
come in their correct alphabetical order. Unfortunately the blank index
is usually set out according to this absurd vowel system. Commonplace
books are now, however, very much out of fashion. A better system of
note-keeping is to use paper of a uniform size, to write each distinct
note on a separate sheet of paper, and to fasten the slips of paper
together by means of clips. If this plan is adopted, the notes are much
more easily consulted, and they can be rearranged as often as is
necessary. Now the index can be made on cards, or a special
alphabeticised[19] book can be set aside for the purpose. Cards of a
uniform size, kept in trays or boxes, are very convenient for the
purpose of making an ever-growing index. You can make a general index in
one alphabet, and when you have any special subject on hand, you can
choose out the particular cards connected with that subject, and arrange
them in a distinct alphabet. When the distinct alphabet is no longer
required, the cards can be rearranged in the general alphabet. Cards are
unquestionably the most convenient for an index that is ever changing in
volume and in form. Rearrangement can be made without the trouble of
re-writing the entries.
[19] Some may consider this a monstrous word; but it conveys a
convenient description of blank books with the alphabet
marked on the leaves of the book either cut in or with
tablets projecting from the margin.
2. For an index which is made straight off at one time, and sent to the
printer when finished, foolscap paper is probably the most convenient to
use. The pages as written upon can be numbered, and this will relieve
the mind of the indexer of fear that any of these should be lost. The
numbering will serve till the time comes for the index to be cut up and
arranged.
Some indexers use separate slips of a uniform size, or cards, with a
single entry on each slip. Although this plan has the advantage that you
can keep your index in alphabetical order as you go along, which is
sometimes convenient for reference, it is, on the whole, a cumbersome
one for an index, although it is almost essential for a catalogue.
In the present day when paper is so cheap, it is well to use fresh
sheets all of the same size--either quarto post or foolscap. Some
persons are so absurdly economical as to use the blank sides of used
paper, such as envelopes, etc., so that their manuscript is of all sizes
and will never range. It is necessary to warn such persons that they
lose more time by the inconvenient form of their paper than they gain by
not buying new material.
In general practice the most convenient plan is to make your index
straight on, using the paper you have chosen. Another plan is to use a
portfolio of parchment with an alphabet cut on the leaves, and with
guards to receive several leaves of foolscap under each letter. Thus
every entry can be written at once in first letters. Where there are
many large headings this is very convenient, and time is saved by
entering the various references on the same folio without the constant
repetition of the same heading. Possibly the most convenient method is
to unite the two plans. Those references which we know to belong to
large headings can be entered on the folios in the alphabetical
guard-book, and the rest can be written straight through on the separate
leaves.
Before commencing his work, the indexer must think out the plan and the
kind of index he is to produce; he will then consider how he is to draw
out the references.
Whatever system is adopted, it is well to bear in mind that the indexer
should obtain some knowledge of the book he is about to index before he
sets to work. The following remarks by Lord Thring may be applied to
other subjects than law:
"A complete knowledge of the whole _law_ is required before he
begins to make the index, for until he can look down on the
entire field of law before him, he cannot possibly judge of the
proper arrangement of the headings or of the relative importance
of the various provisions."
During his work the indexer must constantly ask himself what it is for
which the consulter is likely to seek. The author frequently uses
periphrases to escape from the repetition of the same fact in the same
form, but these periphrases will give little information when inserted
as headings in an index; and it is in this point of selecting the best
catchword that the good indexer will show his superiority over the
commonplace worker.
This paramount characteristic of the good indexer is by no means an easy
one to acquire. When the indexer is absorbed in the work upon which he
is working, he takes for granted much with which the consulter coming
fresh to the subject is not familiar. The want of this characteristic is
most marked in the case of the bad indexer.
In printing references to the entries in an index it is important to
make a distinction between the volume and the page; this is done best by
printing the number of the volumes in Roman letters and the page in
Arabic numerals. When, however, the volumes are numerous, the Roman
letters become cumbersome, and mistakes are apt to occur, so that one is
forced to use Arabic numerals; and in order to distinguish between
volume and page, the numbers of the volumes must be printed in solid
black type.
When a book is often reprinted in different forms it would be well to
refer to chapters and paragraphs, so that the same index would do for
all editions. The paragraphs in Dr. Jessopp's edition of North's _Lives
of the Norths_ are numbered, but they are not numbered throughout. The
references are very confusing and require a key. Thus, P stands for
Preface; F for Life of the Lord Keeper; D, Life of Dudley; J, Life of
Dr. John; R, Autobiography of Roger, and also Notes; R L, Letters from
Lady North; R I, Letters from Roger North; and S, Supplementary. In the
Letters the references are to pages and not to paragraphs. With such a
complicated system, one is tempted to leave the index severely alone.
This is the more annoying in that the index is not a long one, and the
pages might have been inserted without any great trouble.
Much confusion has been caused by reprinting an index for one edition in
a later one without alteration. An instance may be given by citing the
reprint of Whitelock's _Memorials_, published at the University Press,
Oxford, in 1853. The original edition is in one volume folio (1682,
reprinted 1732), and the new edition is in four volumes octavo. But to
save expense the old index was printed to the new book. The difficulty
was in part got over by giving the pages of the 1732 edition in the
margin; but as may be imagined, it is a most troublesome business to
find anything by this means. Moreover, the old index is not a good one,
but thoroughly bad, with all the old misprints retained in the new
edition. As a specimen of the extreme inaccuracy of the compilation, it
may be mentioned that under one heading of thirty-four entries Mr.
Edward Peacock detected seven blunders. Although Mr. Peacock had no
statistics of the other entries, his experience led him to believe that
if any heading were taken at random, about one in four of the entries
would be found to be misprinted.
In the case of a large index it is necessary to take into consideration
the greatly increased work connected with arrangement. The amount of
this may be said to increase in geometrical rather than in arithmetical
progression. When the indexer comes to the last page of a great book he
rejoices to have finished his work; but he will find by experience, when
he calculates the arrangement of his materials, that he has scarcely
done more than half of what is before him.
If cards or separate slips are used, these will only need to be arranged
for the press; but if sheets of paper have been, written upon, these
will have to be cut up. There is little to be said about this, but it is
worth giving the hint that much time is saved if shears or large
scissors are used, so that the whole width of paper may be severed in
two cuts.
In the case of a small index there is little difficulty with material,
for it can be arranged at once into first letters, and when the table is
cleared of the slips these can be placed in the pages of an ordinary
book to keep them distinct, and can then be sorted in perfect alphabet
and pasted down. In the case of a large index it will be necessary to
place the slips in a safer place. Large envelopes are useful receptacles
for first letters; and when the slips are placed in them, the indexer
will feel at ease and sure that none will be lost.
It is well to go through the whole of the envelopes of first letters and
sort the slips into second and third letters before the pasting is
commenced, so that you may know that the order is correct, or make such
alterations as are necessary before it is too late. The final perfect
alphabetical arrangement can be made when the slips are placed on the
table ready to be pasted.
The sorting of slips into alphabetical order seems a simple matter which
scarcely needs any particular directions; still such have been made.
The late Mr. Charles F. Blackburn, who had had a considerable
experience, gave some instruction for sorting slips in his _Hints on
Catalogue Titles_ (1884). He wrote:
"Having never seen in print any directions for putting titles
into alphabetical order, I venture to describe the system I have
been accustomed to use. First sort the entire heap into six
heaps, which will lie before you thus:
A--D E--H I--M
N--R S T--Z.
Then take the heap A--D and sort it into its component letters,
after which each letter can be brought into shape by use of the
plan first applied to the whole alphabet. It is best to go on
with the second process until you have the whole alphabet in
separate letters, because if you brought A, for example, into
its component parts and put them into alphabetical order, you
might not impossibly find some A's among the later letters--one
of the inevitable accidents of sorting quickly. With this hint
or two the young cataloguer will easily find his way; and
various devices for doing this or that more handily are sure to
suggest themselves in the course of practice. The great thing is
to be started."
The latter part of this extract is good advice, but I think it is a
mistake to make two operations of the sorting in first letters, for it
can be done quite easily in one.
The following suggestion made by Mr. Blackburn is a good one, and is
likely to save the very possible mixture of some of the heaps:
"In my own practice I have got into a way of letting the slips
fall on the table at an angle of forty-five degrees. Then, if
the accumulation of titles should cause the heaps to slide, they
will run into one another distinct, so that they can be
separated instantly without sorting afresh."
I have never myself found any difficulty in sorting out into first
letters at one time, and it soon becomes easy to place the slips in
their proper heaps without any thought. Mr. F. B. Perkins, of the Boston
Public Library, however, in his paper on "Book Indexes" gives some good
directions which are worth quoting here:
"Next alphabet them by initial letters. This process is usually
best done by using a diagram or imaginary frame of five rows of
five letters each, on which to put the titles at this first
handling. The following arrangement of printers' dashes will
show what I mean. (The letters placed at the left hand of the
first row and right hand of the last indicate well enough where
the rest belong.)
A ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- U
B ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- V
C ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- W
D ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- X
E ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- YZ."[20]
[20] _Public Libraries in the United States._ Special Report.
Part I., 1876, p. 730.
When the alphabetical arrangement is completed so far as the indexer
considers it necessary for his purpose, it is time to think of the
pasting down of the slips. This can be done in several ways, and the
operator will doubtless choose that which suits him best. As already
remarked, men will always find out the way most agreeable to themselves,
and it is unwise to insist on others following our way in preference to
their own.
The human mind is capable of interesting itself in almost anything it
may undertake; but indexing cannot be other than hard work, and it is
unfair to make it harder by fixing unnecessary limits. The worker is
always happier at his work if he is allowed to do it in his own way.
The first thing to settle is as to the paper upon which the index is to
be pasted. A very large-sized paper is inconvenient, and foolscap or
quarto is the best for constant handling,--all the pages should be of
exactly the same size. Sometimes it is necessary to have a small margin,
but generally the width of the paper used for the index should be
followed. There is no greater mistake than to study economy in the use
of paper for pasting on. Some persons have facilities for the use of
wastepaper that has been printed on on one side, and, not having been
used, is in good order and of equal size. Some persons cut up
newspapers, but this is a practice not to be recommended, not only on
account of the print, but because the paper is generally so abominably
bad and tearable. If the wastepaper referred to above is not within
reach, it is well to buy a good printing-paper, which can be cut into
the size required. There are, however, many cheap papers already
machine-cut into the size required, which can easily be obtained.
Some with the love of saving strong upon them cut up newspapers into
lengths of about four inches wide, and paste the slips upon these, with
the result that all the ragged ends give continual trouble, and are apt
to be torn away. Of all savings, this is the most ill-advised.
Although the "copy" is to be printed from at once, and will soon become
useless, it is a great comfort to have material that is convenient to
handle while it is required. Some thought may also be given to the
compositor, whose life will be made a burden to him if you send him
"copy" with all the ends loose. It is also well to keep the pages as
flat as possible, so that a heap of these do not wobble about, but keep
together smooth and tidy.
Sometimes it may be desirable to paste only on half the paper, so as to
have room for additional entries. If this is done, the side must be
altered periodically, or the pages will slip about and give endless
trouble.
When the index is in course of arrangement the greatest care must be
taken that none of the slips are lost, for such a loss is almost
irreparable--first because you do not know when a slip goes astray; and
even if you do know of your loss it is almost impossible to remedy it,
as you have no clue to the place from which the slip came.
There will always be anxiety to the indexer while his work is being cut
up and sorted. A breeze from a window when a door is opened may blow
some of his slips away. Too many of the slips should not be allowed on
the table at one time, and the indexer will feel the greatest comfort
when he knows that his slips are safely reposing in their several
envelopes. All queries should also be kept in envelopes, and each
envelope should be inscribed with a proper description of its contents.
When the slips are pasted down they are safe--that is if they have been
affixed securely to the paper.
Having made these general observations, we may now proceed to consider
how to paste. It seems a very simple matter, that requires no
directions; but even here a few remarks may not be out of place.
When your paper is ready in a pile of about fifty pages, each page
numbered in its proper sequence, you can proceed to work. For the
purpose of laying down slips on uniform pages at one time, paste is the
only satisfactory material. Gum will only be used by the inexperienced.
It cannot be used satisfactorily on large surfaces, like paste, and when
it oozes up between the slips it is stickier and does more damage in
fixing the pages together than paste does. You might as well fix
paperhangings on your walls with gum.
As to paste, if you have a long job on hand it is better to have it made
at home, of a good consistency, but not too thick. It ought to run
freely from the brush. A good cook will make good paste, but if you are
specially particular you can make it yourself. If you require it to last
for any time, you must add a little alum; but when you have a big index
before you, you will use a bowl of paste in an evening, and there is
therefore no question as to keeping.
"Stickphast" is a very good material; it sticks well and keeps well, and
it is an excellent adjunct to the writing-table, but it is not suitable
for pasting down a long index. It is too dear, it is too thick, and it
is too lumpy. If the paste is made at home, it need not be lumpy; and
lumps, when you are pasting, are irritating to the last degree.
The paper and the paste being ready, with a fair-sized brush to spread
the paste, we come to consider how best to proceed with the work in
hand. You require a good-sized table,--a large board on tressels in an
empty room is the best, but a dining-table will serve. At the extreme
right of the table you place the batch of paper upon which you are about
to paste, and then sort your slips in perfect order, ranging them in
columns from right to left. The object of thus going backwards is to
save you from passing over several columns as you take the slips off the
table, and, instead, going straight on. You can push your batch of paper
on as the various columns successively disappear. More slips should not
be set out than you can paste at one sitting, as it is not well to leave
the slips loose on the table. Of course, you can paste from the left
side if you wish, and then the columns will range from left to right;
but this is not so convenient for continued arrangement of the columns
of slips as you require them.
There are more ways than one in placing the paste upon the paper; the
most usual way is to paste down the two sides of the paper just the
width of the slips, and some add a stroke down the middle. Another way
is to put a plentiful supply of paste on a page or board, and then to
place the back of each slip upon this. If you place your fingers on the
two ends and press them towards the middle, the slip will be ready to be
placed in its proper position, having taken up just sufficient paste. A
still different plan is to paste the board or paper as in the previous
case, and then place the face of the whole page on this. You then take
it off, and, placing the dry side on the batch of paper, proceed to
affix the slips to it. The advantage of the two last processes is that
the paper is not so wet as in the first-mentioned plan, and in
consequence the paper does not curl so much, but lies flatter. In the
first place the sheets must be set out separately on the floor to dry,
so that they may not stick together, but this is not so necessary in the
two latter processes.
Some indexers strongly object to pasting. This was the case with Mr. E.
H. Malcolm, who wrote thus to _Notes and Queries_:
"I long ago discovered the cause of imperfections in my own
work. It was the 'cutting into slips' and 'laying down'
processes. The fact is you cannot be sure of preserving the
cuttings or slips, if very numerous; they are almost certain to
get mixed or lost, or elude you somehow. My remedy is this. I
now take cheap notepaper and write one entry only on each leaf.
Having compiled my index thus from A to Z, I arrange my slips
and manipulate them as I would a pack of cards, although
shuffling only for the purpose of getting the arrangement of the
letters right. Thus I save myself all the labour and trouble of
pasting or laying down the slips in analytical order. I do not
mind a little extra expenditure of paper by only entering one
item on every slip, for I am compensated for the appearance of
bulk by finding that I have secured order and arrangement free
from the consequences of a finical arrangement of the slips and
a dirty and tiresome labour of pasting down."[21]
[21] 5th S., vi. 114 (1876).
As already pointed out in these pages, Mr. Malcolm is quite right
respecting slips for a growing index; but when it comes to sending the
"copy" to the printer the case is different. Here there is more safety
in the pasted down slips, which are less likely to be lost than the
loose ones even when numbered.
As you proceed in your work you may wish to know how far your index
agrees with other indexes in its proportion of letters, and to calculate
what proportion of the whole you have already done.
Some calculations as to the relative extent of the different letters
have been made. Thus B is the largest letter in an index of proper
names, but loses its pre-eminence in an index of subjects; and S takes
high rank in both classes.
Mr. F. A. Curtis,[22] of the Eagle Insurance Office, made in 1858 a
calculation of the relative proportions of the different letters of the
alphabet in respect to proper names. He described his object in a letter
entitled, "On the Best Method of Constructing an Index." He wrote that,
having had occasion to construct an index of the lives assured in the
"Eagle" Company, he had drawn up a few observations upon the subject.
"The requirements of an index and the proportions of its several parts
are the two principal questions to be considered. Under the first head
it may be observed that the index of a company upon a large scale should
afford as much abstract information as possible. Those who refer to it
do so with different views, for the objects of their inquiry must
necessarily vary with their respective duties. It is therefore desirable
that the index should be constructed with a view to provide for the
wants of each person, so far, at least, as to enable him to obtain
information in the most direct way; and it will be proper to insert in
the index particulars some of which do not usually find a place in such
a book. Let it be supposed that an individual signing his name 'J.
Smith' inquires about the bonus, premium, or assignment, etc., of his
policy, without stating either number, date, or amount. This is not an
unusual case, and it will serve to illustrate my meaning by showing the
nature of the difficulties which have to be encountered. J. may stand
for John, James, Joseph, etc. There will probably be many of each kind
in connection with the like surname, and it would be very difficult to
discover, without a tedious investigation, to which policy J. Smith
refers, unless the individuality of each person recorded in the index
under that name be distinctly shown. The 'locality' of the assurance
might be adopted as a mark of distinction; and we should in many
instances be able to fix upon the right name by simply comparing the
address of the writer with the place where the policy was effected."
[22] _Assurance Magazine_, vol. viii., 1860, pp. 54-7.
This is a most valuable suggestion to all indexers. Many persons, to
save trouble at the time, write initials instead of full Christian
names. It should be a rule always to write these in full. When the index
comes to be printed, the Christian names can be contracted if it is
necessary to save space. The most important matter in the arrangement of
an index is to avoid the confusion of two persons as one, and the
possibility of making this blunder is greatly increased by the use of
initials instead of full names. In the _British Museum Catalogue_ it has
been found necessary in many cases to add particulars to distinguish
between men with the same names.
Mr. Curtis goes on to say:
"With regard to the second part of this subject--_i.e._ the
proportions of the several parts of the index--I may observe
that the most useful mode of division appears to me to be that
which is adopted by many offices--namely, to classify the
surname under its first letter, and to subdivide according to
the first vowel thereafter, adopting the first subdivision for
such names as 'Ash,' 'Epps,' etc., which have no succeeding
vowel."
This, however, is a very unnatural arrangement, and has been, I believe,
very generally given up. It is therefore unnecessary to refer further to
Mr. Curtis's calculations of the proportions of the vowels in the
subdivisions. Calculations can be made for the subdivision of the
complete alphabet with a better result. Of course, in the case of
initial vowels the following consonants have most to be considered, and
in initial consonants the following vowels. Mr. Curtis's calculations
respecting the first letters of surnames are of much value. He used the
commercial lists of the _Post Office London Directory_, and compared
them with Liverpool, Hull, Manchester, Sheffield, Birmingham, and
Bristol directories, and with three lists of different assurance
companies; and after making his calculations from nearly 233,000
surnames, he found the total average very similar in its result. Mr.
William Davis made similar calculations from the _Clergy List_, which
came out much the same. These he contributed to _Notes and Queries_,[23]
and subsequently he made a further calculation from French names.[24]
[23] 2nd S., vi. 496.
[24] 3rd S., iv. 371.
I have united these results in one table as follows:
MR. CURTIS. CLERGY LIST. FRENCH NAMES.
A 3.1 3.1 2.9
B 10.9 11.3 11.5
C 8.5 7.9 9.2
D 4.3 4.7 10.7
E 2.4 2.5 0.9
F 3.6 3.1 3.9
G 5.1 4.6 7.4
H 8.6 9.3 3.5
I, J 3.2 3.5 2.4
K 2.0 1.8 6.4
L 4.7 4.3 10.8
M 6.7 6.9 8.8
N 2.0 1.6 1.2
O 1.0 1.1 0.6
P 5.9 6.1 6.7
Q 0.2 0.0 0.3
R 4.6 4.4 5.3
S 9.7 7.7 4.3
T 4.0 4.4 3.3
U, V 1.0 1.3 3.2
W 7.9 8.3 0.8
X 0.0 0.0 0.0
Y 0.5 0.4 0.1
Z 0.1 0.0 0.0
It will be noticed that B is strongest in all three, and C is fairly
equal. S is smaller in French names, but probably would be much larger
in German names. H and W are also much smaller in French, while D and L
are much larger. The preponderance of the latter letters is of course
caused by the large number of names beginning with _De_ and _La_.
Indexes are not confined to proper names, and therefore it is necessary
to add some calculations as to the proportions of the several letters in
indexes of subjects. The following table is formed from three large
indexes, each different in character. I. represents Gough's _Index to
the Publications of the Parker Society_, which may be taken as a very
good standard index. The subjects are very varied, and there are no
specially long headings; it also contains proper names as well as
subjects. II. represents an index of subjects in Civil Engineering which
contains a good number of large headings. III. represents the index to
the Minutes of a public board, and also contains a considerable
proportion of large headings. It will be seen that the numbers vary so
considerably as to be of very little practical value. The percentages
are, I think, interesting, but they show conclusively that indexes will
vary so considerably that in order to obtain a satisfactory percentage a
separate calculation will have to be made in each case. Large headings
will vitiate any average; in fact, I have lately had to do with an index
in which R was the largest letter, on account of such extensive headings
as _Railways_ and _Roads_.
One striking point in the averages is that B is found to be displaced
from the pre-eminent position it occupies in the percentages of proper
names.
I. II. III.
A 10.67 2.63 5.58
B 6.94 5.07 6.28
C 15.63 8.26 8.84
D 2.48 4.50 4.65
E 3.23 6.94 11.39
F 2.85 3.38 1.63
G 4.34 3.56 1.86
H 4.34 3.19 2.09
I 1.74 2.72 1.39
J 3.97 0.14 0.46
K 0.74 0.05 0.23
L 5.58 4.97 15.12
M 5.71 5.82 7.67
N 1.37 0.19 0.93
O 1.74 1.31 1.63
P 9.31 6.75 7.67
Q 0.12 0.94 0.47
R 2.48 12.38 8.14
S 8.44 13.32 8.14
T 3.60 5.72 1.40
U 0.50 0.05 0.47
V 0.99 0.61 2.33
W 2.61 7.41 1.51
X 0.03 0.00 0.00
Y 0.22 0.00 0.00
Z 0.37 0.09 0.06
------ ------ ------
100.00 100.00 100.00
When the whole index is pasted down it is not yet ready for the printer,
as it will require to be marked for the instruction of the compositor.
The printer will have general instructions as to the kind of type to be
used and the plan to be adopted, but it will be necessary to mark out
those words that are not to be repeated and to insert lines indicating
repetition. There are also sure to be little alterations in wording,
necessitated by the coming together of the slips, which could not be
foreseen when the slips were first written out.
In a large work it is probable that your employers are importunate for
"copy," and you will be urged to send this to the printer as you have it
ready. If possible, it should be kept to the end, so that you may look
over it as a whole, and so see that the same subjects are not in more
places than one. You will probably have to make modifications in your
plan as you go along, and this may cause difficulties which you will now
be able to set right.
Much of the value of an index depends upon the mode in which it is
printed, and every endeavour should be made to set it out with
clearness. It was not the practice in old indexes to bring the indexed
word to the front, but to leave it in its place in the sentence, so that
the alphabetical order was not made perceptible to the eye.
There is a great deal to arrange in preparing for the press. Lines of
repetition are often a source of blundering, specimens of which have
already been given.
The dash should not be too long, and very often space is saved and
greater clearness is obtained by putting the general heading on a line
by itself, and slightly indenting the following entries.
Black type for headings and for the references to volume and page add
much to the clearness of an index, but some persons have a decided
objection to the spottiness that is thus given to the page.
Tastes differ so much in respect to printing that it is not possible to
indicate the best style to be adopted, and so each must choose for
himself. One point, however, is of the greatest importance, and that is
where a heading is continued over leaf it should be repeated with the
addition of _continued_ at the end of the heading. It is not unusual in
such cases to see the dash used at the top of the page, which is absurd.
When the index has been put into print, the indexer has still to correct
the press, and this is not always an easy matter, as the printer is
scarcely likely to have understood all the necessarily elaborate and
complicated marks used in preparing for the press. It will therefore
still be some time before the end is in sight, and probably the indexer
will see cause to agree with my statement on a former page, that in the
case of a large index, when the indexing of the book itself is
completed, little more than half of the total work is done.
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
CHAPTER VIII.
GENERAL OR UNIVERSAL INDEX.
"When Baillet, the learned author of the _Jugemens des Savans_,
was appointed by M. de Lamoignon keeper of the exquisite library
collected by that nobleman, he set to work to compile an index
of the contents of all the books contained in it, and this he is
said to have completed in August, 1682. After this date,
however, the Index continued to grow, and it extended to
thirty-two folio volumes, all written by Baillet's own hand."
[Illustration: A]s knowledge increases and books and magazines gather in
number, the need for many indexes becomes daily more evident. We often
are certain that something has been written on a subject in which we are
interested, but in vain we seek for a clue to it. We want a key to all
this ever-increasing literature.
As long ago as 1842 the late Thomas Watts, of the British Museum, one of
the most learned and all-knowing of librarians, spoke to the late Dr.
Greenhill of Hastings on the need for the formation of an Index Society.
This date I give on the authority of Dr. Greenhill. Mr. Watts was a
perfect index in himself, and few inquirers sought information from him
which his fully stored mind was not able to supply; and he was not
jealous of the printed index, as some authorities are. Twelve years
after--in 1854--an announcement was made in _Notes and Queries_ of the
projected formation of a "Society for the Formation of a General
Literary Index." In the 2nd Series, vol. i., p. 486, the late Mr. Thomas
Jones, who signed himself "Bibliothecar. Chetham.," commenced a series
of articles, which he continued for several years, as a contribution to
this general index; but nothing more was heard of the society. Inquiries
were made in various numbers of _Notes and Queries_, but no response was
obtained. In 1876 a contributor to the same periodical, signing himself
"A. H.," proposed the formation of a staff of index compilers. In 1874
the late Professor Stanley Jevons published his _Principles of Science_.
In the chapter on Classification he enlarged on the value of indexes,
and added:
"The time will perhaps come when our views upon this subject
will be extended, and either Government or some public society
will undertake the systematic cataloguing and indexing of masses
of historical and scientific information, which are now almost
closed against inquiry" (1st ed., vol. ii., p. 405; 2nd ed., p.
718).
In the following year Mr. Edward Solly and I, without having then seen
this passage, consulted as to the possibility of starting an Index
Society, but postponed the actual carrying out of the scheme for a time.
In July of this same year, 1875, Mr. J. Ashton Cross argued in a
pamphlet that a universal index might be formed by co-operation through
a clearing-house, and would pay if published in separate parts. In
September, 1877, some letters by Mr. W. J. Thoms, who signed himself "A
Lover of Indexes," were published in the _Pall Mall Gazette_, in which
the foundation of an Index Society was strongly urged. In October, 1877,
Mr. Cross read a paper before the Conference of Librarians, which was a
revival of the scheme previously suggested. Mr. Robert Harrison, late
Secretary of the London Library, in a report of the Conference of
Librarians published in the _Athenaeum_ for October 13th, 1877, wrote:
"Could not a permanent Index Society be founded with the support
of voluntary contributions of money as well as of subject
matter? In this way a regular staff could be set to work, under
competent direction, and could be kept steadily at work until
its performances became so generally known and so useful as to
enable it to stand alone and be self-supporting. Many readers
would readily jot down the name of any new subject they met with
in the book before them, and the page on which it occurs, and
forward their notes to be sorted and arranged by any society
that would undertake the work."
Mr. Justin Winsor, the late distinguished librarian of Harvard
University, writing to the _Athenaeum_, said:
"We have been in America striving for years to get some
organised body to undertake this very work."
Following on all this correspondence, the Index Society was founded; but
after doing some useful work it was amalgamated with the Index Library
founded by Mr. Phillimore, having failed from want of popular support.
This want of permanent success was probably owing to its aim being too
general. Those who were interested in one class of index cared little
for indexes which were quite different in subject.
I fear that the interest of the public in the production of indexes
(which is considerable) does not go to the length of willingness to pay
for these indexes, which from the fewness of those who care for these
helps must always be expensive. When suggestions were made in _Notes and
Queries_ for the compilation and publication of certain needed indexes,
Mr. J. Cuthbert Welch wrote that the editor of a journal offered to
publish an index if he could obtain sufficient subscribers. Respecting
this offer, the publisher said, "Altogether I had six offers to take one
copy each." This rebuff caused Mr. Welch to say, "Is it not rather that
people are not energetic to buy such indexes than that publishers are
not energetic enough to issue them?"[25]
[25] 8th S., i. 364.
There is still a great want for indexes of history and biography, and it
is probable that if the objects of the Index Society had been confined
to these it might have been more successful. In November, 1878, Mr.
Edward Solly wrote a letter to me in which he sketched out a very
important scheme for a biographical index which would be of the greatest
value. He wrote:
"I do not think the Index Society can take up any subject of
greater utility, or one more likely to be of service to the
general public as well as students, than an Index of
Biographies. An entire index of all known lives would obviously
be much too large an undertaking; we can only attempt a part of
the subject. Probably in the first instance we should do well to
try and form an index of British lives; such a work would I
think, if tolerably complete, certainly fill at least ten large
octavo volumes.
"The work might be considerably diminished in bulk if we were to
determine to leave out all names now to be found in certain
standard works such as Chalmers' Biographical Dictionary. It is
evident, however, that to do this would greatly diminish the
value of our index, and would cause us to put aside hundreds of
memoranda which it is most important to index, I mean references
to more recent notes, memoirs, letters and anecdotes, which are
to be met with in journals and lives, and which often throw new
and important light on older published Biographies.
"It is on account of these difficulties that I would propose
that we endeavour to undertake an index of Biographical
references of persons who have died in a certain given
period--say 1800-1825, or 1800-1850, or perhaps 1750-1800.
"With a view to this I should like to see lists made of all
Biographical matters in such books as the Gentleman's Magazine,
European Magazine, Monthly Magazine, Anti-Jacobin Magazine, etc.
Also such books as the Annual Necrology, Public Characters,
Living Authors, etc., and thirdly of references to Biographical
Memoranda dispersed throughout Lives and Memoirs such as
'Kilvert's Memoirs,' I mean books in which no one from the title
would expect to find such information."
It will be seen that such an index as is here sketched would be an
inestimable help to the student. It would form a useful supplement to
the _Dictionary of National Biography_, for it must be remembered that
such an index would contain a majority of references to men and women
whose claims to distinction or notoriety do not attain to the standard
set up by the promoters of that grand work. Possibly, if such an index
was undertaken by co-operation as an object in itself, and not as one
among other subjects, it might be compiled in one alphabet instead of in
periods, which would make it much more valuable for reference. Naturally
the great advantage of periods is that, if left incomplete, what is
published (if it covers a period) will always be of value, while a
portion of the alphabet would be almost worthless.
The Rev. John E. B. Mayor has collected a great mass of biographical
references which are of much value. In an interesting communication on
his indexes he suggests the formation of a British Biographical Society
which might be called the Antony Wood Society.[26]
[26] _Notes and Queries_, 5th S., xii. 511.
There is one project of the Index Society which has never been
undertaken, but which is still wanted as much as ever--_viz._ a general
or universal index. Some think this to be an impossibility, and that to
attempt its preparation is a waste of time. Those who hold this opinion
have not sufficient faith in the simplicity and usefulness of the
alphabet. Every one has notes and references of some kind, which are
useless if kept unarranged, but, if sorted into alphabetical order,
become valuable.
The object of the general index is just this, that anything, however
disconnected, can be placed there, and much that would otherwise be lost
will there find a resting-place. Always growing and never pretending to
be complete, the index will be useful to all, and its consulters will be
sure to find something worth their trouble, if not all they may require.
Some attempts have been made at compiling a general index, for what are
_Poole's Index_, _Index of Essays_, Q.P. Indexes, Hetherington's _Index
to the Periodicals of the World_, and _Indexes to "The Times,"_ but
contributions towards a universal index? Such a work as is here proposed
can scarcely be carried out unless Government aid is extended to it; but
surely the small amount of money that need be expended upon a sort of
general inquiry office would be well laid out!
A sort of skeleton index of universal information might be drawn up, and
this could be added to gradually, partly by specialised effort and
partly by the reception of any stray references of interest sent by
those who recognise that their notes would find a home. This could be
kept in a clearing-house and reference-room.
When the index had become of some importance, and was recognised as a
help to the inquirer, it could be printed. When published, it might be
interleaved, so that additions might be made which could be sent to the
office. Gradually the index would grow into a work of very considerable
importance.
One of the chief objections to index catalogues of public libraries is
that the same work is practically repeated by each library, while a
general index would be useful to all. Surely some arrangement might be
made by which the various libraries would contribute funds to the
central office and receive the indexes, which would serve their purpose
as well as those of all the other libraries!
Having said so much, it seems necessary to explain rather more fully
what the general index should contain and what should be omitted. To
explain it in a few words, it should be a sort of encyclopaedia of
references rather than of direct information; but it should contain more
headings than any existing encyclopaedia. Every one must have felt the
want of some book which would give information or references on a large
number of subjects that are constantly topics of ordinary conversation,
but are consistently ignored in the ordinary books of reference. On the
other hand, mere technical references should be omitted, because these
details would overload the work, and because specialists have their own
sources of information. It is the general information which every one is
supposed to possess that is so difficult to obtain.
In the first instance the groundwork of the index should be laid down
with care by an expert. All special bibliographies should be entered
under their subjects, both those published separately and those included
in other books. Various societies have published indexes. There are
those among the publications of the Index Society and many others. The
Bibliographical Society has published indexes to the German periodical
_Serapeum_ and to Dibdin's edition of Ames' and Herbert's _Typographical
Antiquities_; but very few persons know of these books.
The authorities of the British Museum have given students an immense
help by gathering separate indexes and bibliographies on various
subjects into the dwarf bookcases in the Reading-room. Here are a large
number of aids to knowledge of which the general reader would have known
nothing if they had not so obligingly been brought under his notice.[27]
[27] The late Professor Justin Winsor gave a list of indexes in
his useful _Handbook for Readers_ (for the Boston Public
Library); and I added a "Preliminary List of Indexes" to _What
is an Index?_ London, 1879. Other lists have also been published
by the British Museum, etc.
A large number of books contain special information of importance on
various subjects, the existence of which would never be guessed from the
titles. Attempts at general indexes of special subjects have been
published, such as F. S. Thomas's _Historical Notes_ (1509-1714), and
the main points of these should be included in the proposed General
Index.
When a good groundwork has been made, the index could be printed; and
doubtless, if this printed index was widely circulated, a large number
of helpers would speedily be found. Many persons know of places where
full information on some subject may be found, and would be glad to
place their collections where they would be helpful to others.
There can surely be no doubt that a general inquiry office with such an
ever-growing index and a library of printed indexes would be a boon not
only to the student, but to the general public. Every day the great
truth that keys to knowledge are more and more required is generally
appreciated.
As a groundwork for such a general index, selection could be made from
the books already mentioned; and from the index volumes of Watt's
_Bibliotheca Britannica_ (1824), which, with all its faults, is one of
the most valuable helps to bibliography, and the subject index of James
Darling's _Cyclopaedia Bibliographica_ (1854-1859), many useful
references could be obtained. These two books are gradually getting out
of date, but information may be obtained from their pages which is not
easily to be obtained elsewhere.
In closing this subject, I feel that too great honour cannot be done to
the memory of W. F. Poole, who placed the world under great obligations
by the production of his _Index of Periodical Literature_. As far back
as 1848, when a student at Yale College, he published an _Index to
Subjects treated in the Reviews and other Periodicals_ (New York). In
1853 an improved edition was published as the _Index to Periodical
Literature_. When Mr. Poole attended the Library Conference at London in
1877 he expressed publicly his pleasure in seeing on the shelves of the
British Museum Library a copy of his first index, which he had not seen
for some years elsewhere. He realised that the work, if it were to be
continued, was too great an undertaking for one man, and he succeeded in
arranging for a co-operative index, which is continued now in several
supplements under the able superintendence of Mr. William I. Fletcher.
An _Index to the "Times"_ was started by J. Giddings in 1862-63, but not
continued. Later, Mr. S. Palmer commenced a _Quarterly Index_, which has
been continued forward to the present time, and also backward. In 1899
Bailey's _Annual Index to the "Times"_ came into being.
The indexing of a paper such as the _Times_ is a very arduous and
difficult undertaking. In consequence, these indexes cannot be
considered as models of what such works should be.
Mr. Corrie Leonard Thompson criticises in _Notes and Queries_ (7th S.,
x. 345) the arrangement of the headings of Palmer's _Index to the
"Times"_ severely, but not unfairly. He writes:
"The following are instances of the absurdities which appear in
the volume just issued (Oct.-Dec. 1842), and will serve to
illustrate the system which has been adopted throughout the
index:
"In November, 1842, a floating chapel on the Severn was loosed
from its moorings; this occurrence appears in the index under
the heading, 'Disgraceful Act.' Again, referring to the dry
weather that was prevailing at the time, the entry is, 'Present
Dry Season.' Other references to the same subject are, however,
to be found under the heading 'Weather,' which of course is
correct.
"A more marked example of carelessness or ignorance of the art
of indexing, or both, is that of two women who were committed to
Ruthin prison--one, Amelia Home for firing a pistol at a man
named Roberts; the other, Jane Williams, for stealing a mare
belonging to Robert Owen. This occurrence is entered under the
letter R--'Rather uncommon for Females.' The chance of any one
looking under Rather for an occurrence of this kind must be
infinitesimal, to say the least of it; and so on. A storm at
Saone-et-Loire is indexed under 'Fatal Storm,' and an account of
the trial of a small boy for stealing a twopenny pie will be
found under 'Atrocious Criminal.' A certain Jane Thomas was so
overjoyed at seeing her mother waiting at the stage-door of a
theatre that she died in her arms. The employment of capitals is
most remarkable, as is also the arrangement of the words, 'Death
of Jane Thomas in her Mother's Arms in Holborn at Joy in Seeing
her parent at the Stage Door to Receive her.'
"The errors pointed out in these examples, omitting the last
instance, as well as the additional fault of indexing under
adjectives which have no distinctive feature in them to guide
the searcher, evidently arise from the fact that the simple
heading of the newspaper article has been taken, without any
attempt being made to discover the actual contents of such
article."
As already stated on a previous page, it is most important to index the
articles in periodicals afresh, and not always to follow the heading of
the original. This is of course more particularly the case in respect to
newspapers, where the headings are drawn up to catch the reader's eye.
The same rule may be insisted on in respect to all indexing, and this is
so important that the restatement of it may well conclude this little
volume.
In making a general index of several volumes, always index the volumes
afresh, and do not be contented with using what has been done before. It
is always wiser to put 'new wine into new bottles.'
[Illustration]
INDEX.
Abecedarie as a synonym of index, 8.
Acrostic as a motto for an index, 85.
Adjectives, when to be used as catchwords, 151.
---- (substantival) as headings, 151.
Allibone's _Dictionary of English Literature_ alluded to, 87.
---- the forty indexes, 155.
Alphabet (One) for indexes, 134;
order of the English alphabet, 135.
Alphabetisation, Want of complete, in indexes, 65.
Alphabets, Variety of, in indexes, 69.
_Annual Register_, fourteen alphabets in the index, 70.
Antonio (N.), value of his _Bibliotheca Hispana_, 88.
---- his quotation of the remark that an index should be made by
the author of the book, 109.
Appendix, objection to the plural appendices, 12.
_Archaeological Epistle to Dean Milles, not_ by Mason, but by
Baynes, 82.
Arrangement (Bad) in indexes, 64.
_Athenaeum (The)_, suggestion of an Index Society in 1877, 209.
Athenaeum library catalogue, index of subjects, 117, 124.
_Athenian Oracle_, Index to, 30.
Atterbury (Bishop), his connection with the attack upon Dr. Bentley,
40.
Authorities quoted or referred to to be indexed, 159.
_Ayenbite of Inwyt_, table of contents to the book, 6.
Baillet, his index to the books in the Lamoignon Library, 206.
Baret's _Alvearie_, use of the words "index" and "table" in that
book, 8.
Baronius, noble index to his Annales _Ecclesiastici_, 89.
Bartlett (John), concordance to Shakespeare, 120.
Bayle, his opinion on the need of judgment in the compilation of an
index, 132.
Baynes (John), his terrible curse, 82.
Bellenden (Mary) maligned in an index, 81.
Bentham's _Works_, Good index to, by J. H. Burton, 102.
Bentley's _Dissertation on the Epistle of Phalaris_, attack of the
"Wits" upon this book and Dr. King's Index, 36.
Best (Mr. Justice), his great mind, 157.
Bible, Concordances to the, 119.
"Bibliothecar. Chetham.," his contribution to a general index in
_Notes and Queries_, 207.
_Biglow Papers_, Humorous index to, 33.
Biographical (British) Society suggested by the Rev. John E. B.
Mayor, 214.
_Biography, Dictionary of National_, plan of arranging peers under
their surnames instead of their titles, 146.
Birdwood's (Sir George) note "On the Indexing of the Names of Eastern
People," 164.
Blackburn (Charles F.), _Hints on Catalogue Titles_ quoted, 183.
"Book Prices Current," General index to, 113.
Boswell's _Life of Johnson_, Boswell's own index, 109.
---- Dr. Birkbeck Hill's admirable index to his edition, 105.
Boyle (Hon. Charles), his attack upon Bentley, 36.
---- offended Atterbury, 40.
"Boyle upon Bentley," 36.
Boyle's (Hon. Robert) _Considerations touching Natural Philosophy_,
table of contents called an index, 13.
_British Association Reports_, index in six alphabets, 70.
British Museum, collection of indexes in the Reading-room a great
boon, 218.
---- proposed subject index to the catalogue of the library, 126.
Bromley's (William) _Travels_, ill-natured index made to them by Dr.
King, 44;
his note on the attack made upon him, 46;
his Jacobite leanings, 52;
his portrait at Oxford, 52.
Bruce's (John) edition of _Historie of Edward IV._, absurd filling
up of initials J. C., 78.
Brunet (G.) translates _White Knight_ as _Le Chevalier Blanc_, 77.
Buckland (Dr.) said to be the author of a work _Sur les Ponts et
Chaussees_, 77.
Burton (Hill), _Book-Hunter_, allusion to the power in the hands of
an indexer, 24.
---- his reference to Prynne's _Histrio-Mastix_, 20.
---- his index to Bentham's _Works_, 102.
Calendar as a synonym of index, 7.
Camden Society's publications, Proposed index to, 112.
Campbell (Lady Charlotte) maligned in an index, 81.
Campbell (Lord) proposed punishment for the publication of an
indexless book, 82.
---- his confession, 83.
Campkin (Henry), plea for index-makers, 92.
_Canadian Journal_, bad index, 56.
Capgrave's _Chronicle of England_, blunder in the index, 66.
Cards or separate slips used for indexes, 182.
Carlyle (Thomas), he denounces the putters-forth of indexless books,
82, 91.
---- his reference to Prynne's _Histrio-Mastix_, 15.
---- his remarks on the want of indexes to the standard historical
collections, 91.
Catalogue as a synonym of index, 7.
Catalogues, Indexes to, 123.
---- of libraries, Indexes to, 123.
Chitty (E.), his supposed grudge against Justice Best, 157.
_Christian Observer_, Index to, by Macaulay, 91.
Cicero, his use of the word "index," 6, 8.
Clark's (Perceval) index to Trevelyan's _Life of Macaulay_, 95.
Clarke (Mrs. Cowden), her _Concordance to Shakespeare_, 120.
Clarke (William) quoted, 118.
Classification within the alphabet, Evils of, 58, 67.
Cobbett's _Woodlands_ quoted, 72.
Coke (Lord Chief Justice) an inaccurate man, 101.
Commonplace books, Indexes to, 174.
Concordances to the Bible, 119.
Concordances to Shakespeare, 120.
Contractions, dangers in filling them out, 78.
_Corpus Christi Guild, York_, Incomplete index to _The Register_ of,
122.
Crestadoro's _Index to the Manchester Free Library Catalogue_, 125.
Cross (J. Ashton), proposal for a universal index, 208, 209.
Cross references not usually popular, 158.
---- curiosities of, 72.
---- want of, in indexes, 70.
Cunningham (Mr.) paid L500 for indexing, 97.
Curll's authors, instructions how to find them, 53.
Curtis (F. A.) on the best method of constructing an index, 195.
Cutter's rule as to the arrangement of peers under their surnames,
146.
Cutting up of entries when written on pages of paper, 182.
"Da," surnames not to be arranged under this prefix, 141.
"Dal" surnames to be arranged under this prefix, 141.
Darling's (James) _Cyclopaedia Bibliographica_, Index, 220.
Dashes in printing representing repetition to be of uniform length,
161, 204;
instances of incorrect use of them, 80, 138.
"De," French surnames not to be arranged under this prefix, 141;
English surnames to be arranged under this prefix, 142.
De Quincey on Bentley, 39.
"Del," "Della," surnames to be arranged under these prefixes, 141.
"Des," surnames to be arranged under this prefix, 141.
Dictionary catalogue, its history, 129.
---- Mr. Fortescue's objections to it, 130.
Dictionary makers really indexers, 120.
Disraeli's (Isaac) _Literary Miscellanies_ quoted, 1.
Drayton (M.), his use of the word "index," 11.
"Du," surnames to be arranged under this prefix, 141.
Dugdale's _Warwickshire_, the words "index" and "table" both used, 9.
Dumas (Alexandre) _pere et fils_, confused with Alexandre _pere et
fils_, harmonium-makers, 24.
Eadie's _Dictionary of the Bible_, Cross reference in, 72.
Electricity, Indexes of, 123.
Ellis's _Original Letters_ quoted, 19.
_Encyclopaedia Britannica_, Cross references in, 72, 74.
Envelopes as safe receptacles for index slips, 182, 189.
Erasmus made alphabetical indexes, 7.
Fetis Musical Library, blunder in the index to the catalogue, 24.
Flaxman (Dr. Roger) paid L3000 for indexing, 97.
Fleming (Abraham), his use of the word "index," 8.
Fletcher (William I.), his valuable additions to index literature,
221.
Ford's _Handbook of Spain_, Amusing cross reference in, 76.
Forster (Rev. --) paid L3000 for indexing, 97.
Fortescue (G. K.) on the proposed subject index to the British
Museum library catalogue, 126.
---- on five-yearly indexes to the British Museum catalogue, 128.
Freeman's opinion that foreign names should be Englished, 144.
_Freemason_, bad index quoted, 54.
Fuller (Thomas) quoted, 3, 172.
Gay's _Trivia_, humorous index, 32.
_Gentleman's Magazine_, badness of the index of names, 153.
Gerarde's _Herbal_, by Johnson, use of the words "index" and "table"
in that book, 9.
Giddings (J.), index to _The Times_, 221.
Glanville's (Joseph) _Vanity of Dogmatizing_ quoted, 2.
Gough (H.), index to Parker Society's publications, 112.
Greenhill (Dr.) on the formation of an Index Society, 207.
Gruter's _Thesaurus Inscriptionum_, index to the book by Scaliger, 88.
Gum an unsatisfactory material for laying down slips, 189.
Hardy (Sir T. Duffus), remarks on the "Pye-book," 7.
Hare's _Walks in London_, Index to, 152.
Harley (Robert, Earl of Oxford), the index to Bromley's _Travels_
attributed to him, 46, 48.
Harrison (Robert) proposes the formation of an Index Society in
_The Athenaeum_, 209.
Hawkins's _Pleas of the Crown_, Odd cross references in, 75.
Headings, alphabetical arrangement of, 137.
---- instances of bad, 54.
---- printing of, 160.
Henrietta Maria offended with Prynne's _Histrio-Mastix_, 18.
Heskeths, their change of name, 151.
Hetherington's (Miss) opinions on the indexing of periodicals, 59;
specimens of absurd references quoted by her, 60;
on the qualifications of an indexer, 114.
Hill's (Dr. Birkbeck) admirable indexes, 105-108.
Historical collections, need of indexes to these standard works, 91.
Homer, poetical index to Pope's translation of the Iliad, 21.
House of Commons' Journals, sums paid for the indexes, 97.
Hume (David), index to his _Essays_, 23;
he was glad to be saved from the drudgery of making one, 23.
Hunt (Leigh), his opinion on index-making, 26.
---- supposed author of the joke on Best's great mind, 157.
Hutchins's _Dorset_, Separate indexes to, 69.
Hyphen, Use of, in compound names, 149.
I and J to be kept distinct, 66, 135.
Im Thurn, place of this name in the alphabet, 143.
Index, alphabetical order not at first considered essential, 6;
classification to be abjured in an alphabetical index, 58, 67;
evils of dividing an index into several alphabets, 69;
_General or Universal Index_ (chap. viii.), 206, 223;
history of the word, 7;
use by the Romans, 6;
naturalisation of the word in English, 8;
introduced into English in the nominative case, 10;
_How to Set About the Index_ (chap. vii.), 172-205;
long struggle with the word "table," 7;
soul of a book, _Title-page_;
one index to each book, 134;
two chief causes of the badness of indexes, 64;
varied kinds of, 5.
Index-learning ridiculed, 2.
Index Society, its formation, 210;
published index to Trevelyan's _Life of Macaulay_, 95;
amalgamation with the Index Library, 210.
Indexer, chief characteristics of a good indexer, 116;
difference of opinion as to whether the indexer is "born, _not_
made," "not born, _but_ made," or "born _and_ made," 114;
power in his hands, 93;
_The Bad Indexer_ (chap. iii.), 53-84;
_The Good Indexer_ (chap. iv.), 85-117.
Indexes, _Amusing and Satirical Indexes_ (chap. ii.), 25-52;
_Different Classes of Indexes_ (chap. v.), 118-131;
_General Rules for Alphabetical Indexes_ (chap. vi.), 132-171;
list of indexes, 218;
official indexes, 96;
to great authors proposed, 111;
veneration due to the inventor of indexes, 1.
India said in the index to Capgrave's _Chronicle_ to be conquered by
Judas Maccabeus, 66.
Indical, word used by Fuller, 4.
Indice, word used by Ben Jonson, 10.
---- French word, 10.
---- Italian word, 10.
Indices, objections to the use of this plural in English, 11.
Indicium, the original of the French _indice_, 10.
Initials, Careless use of, 161.
Inventory as a synonym of index, 7.
J.C., absurd filling out of these initials, 78.
Jaggard's (William) index to _Book Prices Current_, 113.
Jeake's _Arithmetick Surveighed and Reviewed_, Index to, 89.
Jevons (Professor Stanley), his suggestion of an Index Society, 208.
---- his _Principles of Science_ quoted, 208.
Jewel's _Apology_ by Isaacson, bad index, 56.
Jews generally wore red hats in Italy, but not at Leghorn, 51.
Johnson (Dr.), his division of necessary knowledge, 5.
---- advises Richardson to add an index to his novels, 21.
Jones (Thomas), his contribution to a general index in _Notes and
Queries_, 207.
Jonson (Ben), his use of the word "indice," 10.
King (Dr. William), the inventor of satirical indexes, 35.
---- his attack upon Bentley in the index to "Boyle upon Bentley,"
36.
King (Dr. William), his parody of _Lister's Journey to Paris_, 42.
---- his attack upon Sir Hans Sloane and the _Philosophical
Transactions"_, 42.
---- satirical index to Bromley's _Travels_, 44.
Knowledge, what is true, 1.
"La," surnames to be arranged under this prefix, 141.
Lamoignon (M. de), his library, indexed by Baillet, 206.
Lawyers good indexers, 98.
"Le," surnames to be arranged under this prefix, 141.
Library Association, Index to _Reports_, 113.
Lister's _Journey to Paris_ parodied by Dr. King, 42.
Littre, his derivation of indice, 10.
Lo_n_don (George), his name often spelt Lo_u_don, 67.
_Longman's Magazine_, bad index, 63.
Lo_u_don (C. J.), the Duke of Wellington mistakes his signature for
that of the Bishop of London, 67.
Lowell's _Biglow Papers_, humorous index, 33.
"M'" and "Mc" to be arranged as if written "Mac," 145.
Macaulay (Lord) an indexer, 91.
---- indexers treated with contempt by him, 92.
---- his opinion on the index to his _History_, 93.
---- objection to the indexing of his _History_ by a Tory, 93.
---- his Englishing of foreign names approved by Freeman, 144.
---- on Bentley's foibles, 38.
Maine (Duc de), Duc of Maine, Duke de Maine, or Duke of Maine, 144.
Malcolm (E. H.) quoted, 193.
Markland (J. H.), remarks on indexing, 82.
Mayor's (Rev. John E. B.) collection of biographical references, 214.
Michel's (Dan) _Ayenbite of Inwyt_, table of contents, 6.
Minsheu, his use of the word "index," 9.
Montaigne's _Essays_, index to Florio's translation, 12.
Moore (Edward) paid L6400 for indexing, 97.
More (Hannah), Macaulay's letter to her, 91.
Morley (John) protests against indexless books, 84.
Morris (William) on an absurd cross reference, 72.
Names, authors arranged under their Christian names, 89;
compound names, 149;
proper names with prefixes, 145;
rule for the arrangement of compound names, 149;
rules for the arrangement of foreign and English respectively,
141, 142.
North's _Lives of the Norths_, index to Jessopp's edition, 179.
Norton (Thomas), Remembrancer of London, an indexer, 85.
_Notes and Queries_, announcement in its pages of the projected
formation of an Index Society in 1854, 207.
---- indexes highly appreciated, 112.
Noy (Attorney-General) prosecutes Prynne, 15
Numerals, Use of, for series of volumes, 159.
Oldys (William) on the need of indexes, 86.
Oriental names, Rules for indexing, 163;
Sir George Birdwood's notes on the names of Eastern people, 164.
Oxford (Robert Harley, Earl of) reported to be author of the index
to Bromley's _Travels_, 46, 48.
Page, when a division of a, should be marked, 159.
Paget (Sir James) pleased to make an index, 23.
Paper, saving of, an unwise economy, 176, 187.
Parr (Dr.), note on the index to Bromley's _Travels_, 47.
Paste the only material for laying down slips, 189.
Peacock (Edward), detection of blunders in Oxford reprint of
Whitelock's _Memorials_, 181.
Peers to be arranged under their titles, 145.
_Penny Cyclopaedia_, vague cross references in, 73.
Periodicals, transactions, etc., Indexing of, 121;
usually badly indexed, 59.
Perkins (F. B.), plan of arranging slips, 185.
_Philosophical Transactions_ laughed at by Dr. King, 42.
Pineda (Juan de), index to his _Monarchia Ecclesiastica_, 89.
Plays, Prynne's attack upon, 16.
Plinie's _Natural Historie_, by Holland, Use of the word "index"
in, 10.
Plutarch's _Lives_, by North, the index called a table, 8.
Poole's (W. F.) _Index to Periodical Literature_ quoted, 59;
its great value, 220;
new edition by co-operation, 221;
his remarks on cross references, 71.
Printing of headings, 160;
special type, 160.
Prynne, _Histrio-Mastix_, specimens from the index, 14.
---- a martyr to his conscientiousness in making an index, 15.
Puritans, Prynne's praise of, 17.
"Pye" as a synonym of index, 7 (note).
"Pye-book," derivation, 7 (note).
Ranke's _History of England_, issue of revised index by the
Clarendon Press, 113.
Rawlinson (Dr.) on the index to Bromley's _Travels_, 45.
Register as a synonym of index, 7, 8.
_Remembrancia_, Index to, quoted, 85.
Repetition, Marks of, in an index, 161, 204;
instances of incorrect use of them, 80, 138.
Richardson (S.), index to his three novels, 22.
---- a practised indexer, 22.
Royal Society attacked by Dr. King, 42.
_Rules for Alphabetical Indexes_ (chap. vi.), 132-171.
Rules for cataloguing referred to, 133.
Ruskin's _Fors Clavigera_, Index to, 103.
Russell (Constance, Lady) points out confusions in indexes, 80.
"St." to be arranged in the alphabet as "Saint," 145.
Saints to be arranged under their proper names, 145.
Scaliger, his index to Gruter's _Thesaurus Inscriptionum_, 88.
Schmidt (Dr. Alexander), _Shakespeare Lexicon_ (1874), 120.
"Scholar's (A)" opposition to publication of a subject-index to the
British Museum library catalogue, 126.
Scientific books, Indexing of, 120.
Scobell's _Acts and Ordinances of Parliament_, the words "index" and
"table" both used, 9.
_Selwyn (George), and his Contemporaries_, published without an
index, 84.
Seneca, his indication of the contents of his books, 6.
Shakespeare, his use of the word "index," 11.
Shenstone's _Schoolmistress_, humorous table of contents, 31.
Shylock acted by Macklin in a red hat, 51.
Sloane (Sir Hans) laughed at by Dr. King, 42.
Solly (Edward), calculation of the time wasted in looking up a
reference in the index to the _Gentleman's Magazine_, 153.
---- note on early indexes, 14.
---- proposes the formation of an Index Society, 208.
---- scheme of a biographical index, 211.
_Spectator, The_, Index to, 30.
_Spectators_, _Tatlers_, and _Guardians_, general index, 29.
Speed's _History of Great Britaine_, the words "index" and "table"
both used, 10.
State papers, indexes to the calendars, 97.
Statutes of the realm, valuable index to the edition of the _Record
Commission_, 98.
Stephen (Sir J. Fitzjames) on a complete digest of the law, 99.
---- on the early digesters of the law, 101.
Summary as a synonym of index, 7.
Swift's _Battle of the Books_ quoted, 38.
---- _Condition of Edmund Curll_ quoted, 53.
---- his satirical reference to index-learning, 2.
---- _Tale of a Tub_ quoted, 2.
---- _Works_ edited by Scott, bad index, 154.
Syllabus as a synonym of index, 7, 8.
Table as a synonym of index, 7, 8, 9.
_Tatler, The_, Index to, 27.
Tedder (H. R.), his indexes to _Reports of Conference of Librarians
and Library Association_, 112.
Ten Brink, place of this name in the alphabet, 143.
Thomas (F. S.), _Historical Notes_ referred to, 219.
Thompson (Corrie L.), his criticism of Palmer's index to
_The Times_, 221.
Thoms (W. J.) urged the formation of an Index Society, 209.
Thring (Lord), his instructions for an index to the _Statute Law_, 98.
Thrub-chandler, Bung of a, 73.
_Times (The)_, Indexes to, 221;
criticism on Palmer's index, 221.
Translations (French) of titles, 77.
Trevelyan's _Life of Macaulay_, Index to, by Perceval Clark, 95.
U and N, Confusion between, 66.
U and V to be kept distinct, 66, 135.
"Van," foreign names not to be indexed under this prefix, 141.
---- English names to be indexed under this prefix, 142.
Vergil (Polydore), _Anglicae Historiae_ has a good index, 14.
"Von," surnames not to be arranged under this prefix, 141.
Walford (Cornelius), inquiry for the earliest index, 14.
Walpole's _Letters_, Bad index to, 79;
examples of bad entries, 80.
Warton's _History of English Poetry_, index, 70.
Watt's _Bibliotheca Britannica_, index, 219.
Watts (Dr.), his warning against index-learning, 2.
Watts (Thomas), his expression of the need for an Index Society, 207.
Welch (J. Cuthbert) on the publication of an index to a journal, 211.
Wellington (Duke of), amusing misreading of Lo_u_don's letter, 67.
---- cross reference in Ford's _Handbook to Spain_, 76.
Wheatley (B. R.) as a good indexer, 117;
his "Evitandum" in indexing, 155.
_White Knights_ translated as _Le Chevalier Blanc_, 77.
Whitelock's _Memorial_, Carlyle's condemnation of, 91;
index to Oxford reprint, 180.
Winsor (Justin) advocated the formation of Index Society, 210.
Wynford (Lord), previously Sir W. D. Best, 157.
_York, Register of Corpu Christi Guild_, index, 122.
_Elliot Stock, Paternoster Row, London._
[Illustration]
PREVIOUS VOLUMES OF
BOOK-LOVER'S LIBRARY.
_Cloth, price_ =4s. 6d.=; _Roxburgh Half Morocco_, =7s. 6d.=;
_Large Paper_, =L1 1s.= _net_.
=How to Form a Library.= By HENRY B. WHEATLEY, F.S.A. Second Edition.
CONTENTS: How Men have Formed Libraries.--How to Buy.--Public
Libraries.--General Bibliographies.--Special Bibliographies.--Publishing
Societies.--Child's Library.--One Hundred Books.
=Old Cookery Books and Ancient Cuisine.= By WILLIAM CAREW HAZLITT.
=The Literature of Local Institutions.= By G. LAURENCE GOMME, F.S.A.
The work is divided into the following Sections: 1. Local Government
generally.--2. The Shire.--3. The Hundred.--4. Municipal
Government.--5. Guilds.--6. The Manor.--7. The Township and Parish.
=Foreign Visitors in England, and What They have Thought of Us.= Being
some Notes on their Books and Opinions during the last Three
Centuries. By EDWARD SMITH.
=Modern Methods of Illustrating Books.= Commencing with the early forms
of illustrating books, and tracing the art down to our own day, the
author leads the reader up to modern processes of producing
illustrations.
=The Dedication of Books.= To Patron and Friend. A Chapter in Literary
History. By HENRY B. WHEATLEY, F.S.A.
=Gleanings in Old Garden Literature.= By WILLIAM CAREW HAZLITT.
=The Story of some Famous Books.= Second Edition. By EDWARD SAUNDERS,
Author of "Salad for the Social." Interspersed in the narrative are
many amusing anecdotes, curious and suggestive allusions, and much
out-of-the way information which will be welcomed by the book-lover
and the student, as well as the reader who seeks amusement only.
=The Enemies of Books.= By WILLIAM BLADES. Second Edition. This
entertaining volume gives a series of readable chapters on the
various causes which have operated in the destruction of books.
=The Book of Noodles.= Stories of Simpletons; or, Fools and their
Follies. By W. A. CLOUSTON, Author of "The Book of Sindibad,"
"Popular Tales and Fictions," etc., etc.
=How to Catalogue a Library.= By HENRY B. WHEATLEY, F.S.A., Author of
"How to Form a Library."
CONTENTS: Introduction on Cataloguing Generally.--The Battle of the
Rules.--Print _v._ MS.--How to treat a Title-page.--Reference and
Subject-Index.--The Arrangement of a Catalogue.--Something about
MSS.--Rules for a Small Library.--A List of Latinised Names of
Places.--A List of Classical Names.--An unusually copious Index is
added.
=Reporting in the Olden Time and To-day.= By JOHN PENDLETON,
Author of "The History of Derbyshire."
=Studies In Jocular Literature.= A Popular Subject more closely
Considered. By WILLIAM C. HAZLITT.
=The Story of the IMITATIONE CHRISTI.= By LEONARD WHEATLEY. With
a Portrait of Thomas a Kempis.
=Books Condemned to be Burnt.= By JAMES ANSON FARRER.
=Books in Chains=, and other Bibliographical Papers. By WM. BLADES.
=Literary Blunders=: A Chapter in the History of Human Error. By
HENRY B. WHEATLEY, F.S.A.
=Book Song=: An Anthology of Poems of Books and Book-men, from
Modern Authors. Edited by GLEESON WHITE.
=Walton and the Early Writers on Fishing.= By R. B. MANSTON,
Editor of the _Fishing Gazette_.
=Books that have been Fatal to their Authors.= By Rev. P. H.
DITCHFIELD.
=Book Verse=: An Anthology of Poems of Books and Book-men, from
the Earliest Times to Recent Years. Edited by W. ROBERTS.
=The Literature of Music.= By JAMES E. MATTHEW, Author of "A
Manual of Musical History."
=The Novels of Charles Dickens.= A Bibliography and Sketch. By
FREDERIC G. KITTON, Author of "Charles Dickens by Pen and
Pencil," etc. With a portrait which has not been published
before.
=The Minor Writings of Charles Dickens=: A Bibliography and
Sketch. By F. G. KITTON, Author of "Dickensiana," "The Novels of
Charles Dickens," "Dickens and his Illustrators," etc.
=Book Auctions in England in the Seventeenth Century.= By JOHN
LAWLER, Compiler of the Sunderland and Ashburnham Catalogues.
LONDON:
ELLIOT STOCK, 62, PATERNOSTER ROW.
Transcriber Notes:
Passages in italics were indicated by _underscores_.
Passages in bold were indicated by =equal signs=.
Small caps were replaced with ALL CAPS.
Throughout the document, the oe ligature was replaced with "oe".
Throughout the dialogues, there were words used to mimic accents of
the speakers. Those words were retained as-is.
The illustrations have been moved so that they do not break up
paragraphs and so that they are next to the text they illustrate. Thus
the page number of the illustration might not match the page number in
the List of Illustrations, and the order of illustrations may not be the
same in the List of Illustrations and in the book.
Errors in punctuations and inconsistent hyphenation were not corrected
unless otherwise noted.
In the first page, a period was added after "F.S.A".
On page 6, the y in "boc volyinde" was a yogh in the book.
On page 22, a quotation mark was removed after "proper heads.".
On page 58, a quotation mark was added after "Classes of Literature."
On page 77, the caret symbol followed by an "e" represents a
superscripted e.
On page 110, a quotation mark was added before "Heberden, Dr."
On page 112, "It it" was replaced with "It is".
On page 115, "wil" was replaced with "will".
On page 188, "with slip about" was replaced with "will slip about".
On page 213, a period was placed after "etc".
On page 216, a period was placed after "considerable importance".
On page 225, a period was placed after "88".
On page 228, a period was placed after "220".
On page 229, a period was placed after "54".
On page 229, a comma was placed after "Athenaeum".
On page 232, a period was placed after 44.
On page 235, a period was placed after "Corrie L".
In the advertisements, a period was added after "Henry B".
End of Project Gutenberg's How to Make an Index, by Henry B. Wheatley