Lamount Removes Gen Ed Reserve Books to Desk 1

All Lamont Library's closed reserve books for General Education courses will henceforth be distributed from Desk One instead of Desk Three, William B. Ernst, Jr., First Assistant in Lamont Library, announced yesterday. The new system will begin this morning.

Included in the books now located at Desk One are those necessary in all lower and upperlevel Humanities, Natural Science, and Social Science Courses. Ernst estimates that more than 40 percent of the volumes kept on closed reserve are used in those courses. At Desk Three yesterday, there was a total of some 6,000 books.

He did not foresee an increase in the library staff because of the new system although several people were added when Lamont announced it would extend its hours until midnight beginning Jan. 5.

There were two main reasons for the change, he said. Firstly, the shelves at Desk Three were overcrowded. An examination of the stacks showed that the books were paced in so solidly that little space was left for additional volumes.

Secondly, the crowds which swarmed about the desk at check out time could not be handled adequately under the present set-up, and since there was space downstairs at Desk One, Ernst said the change was decided upon.

If a book used in a Gen Ed course is also used in some other field, it will nevertheless be located at Desk One.

This is the second time that reserve books have been distributed from Desk One. During the first semester that the Library was used in 1949, books for Economics 1, Government 1, and History 1 were given out there.