College and Research Libraries By R I C H A R D H. BELKNAP Research Libraries and Scientific Publishers IN W H A T W A Y S can college and research libraries and scientific publishers, as typified by the American Chemical Soci- ety, cooperate to best advantage in our common cause—the widest and most rapid dissemination of scientific knowl- edge? This is an extremely complex question, and needs far more time for adequate discussion than we have at this time. Therefore I shall limit my remarks to two matters which are of major concern to all of us. I shall consider first the changes in reading and subscription habits which are drastically increasing the operating costs of libraries and forcing subscrip- tion prices upward. T h e n I shall com- ment briefly upon the matter of unre- stricted reproduction of copyrighted ma- terial. Finally, by using Chemical Ab- stracts as a case history, I shall illustrate how these two things are affecting crit- ically the present and future course of this publication. A phenomenal growth in scientific publishing has occurred since World War II. Perhaps this is most dramatically demonstrated by the growth of Chemical Abstracts. In 1947 it published 30,000 abstracts of papers and in 1958 it pub- lished more than 95,000. This indicates that there has been more than a three- fold increase in chemical papers pub- lished in primary journals during that period. Mr. Belknap is Business Manager, American Chemical Society. This paper was presented as a talk at the Washing- ton Conference's meeting of ACRL's Ad- visory Committee on Cooperation with Educational and Professional Organiza- tions, June 24. Mere volume of material has increased costs. Inflation has also. Unfortunately rising expense has not been accompa- nied by increased numbers of subscrib- ers to share the new costs. For example, the Journal of the American Chemical Society in 1933 had 17,500 subscriptions, but in 1958 only 15,600. T h e inevitable result has been that each subscriber pays much more for this journal than he did ten years ago. For a number of years both member- ship and the number of subscriptions to Society journals increased, although not in parallel, and helped to hold prices relatively stable. Now this is no longer true. T o a considerable degree the growth in library services is responsible for the decreases in circulation. Extend- ed library services make it largely un- necessary for many scientists to sub- scribe personally. T h e day of the indi- vidual extensive private library is nearly gone. For example W . Albert Noyes, editor of the Journal of the American Chemical Society, recalls the day when his father's library was the library of the chemistry department at the University of Illinois. Now that institution has its own departmental library paid for from university funds. Higher prices have driven some sub- scribers away although member subscrip- tions to society journals still are remark- ably cheap. For example a member can buy Industrial and Engineering Chemis- try for only $4.50 and Chemical Ab- stracts for the fantastically low price of $20. What seems to have had a greater influence in reducing subscriptions is that centralized searching services act as an inhibitor on personal subscrip- tions and on the number of departmen- tal subscriptions which might be en- SEPTEMBER 1959 353 tered. This hurts subscription sales and tends toward further increases in sub- scription prices. Regardless of how many persons are served by one copy someone must pay original, fixed costs and these are high. Whether we produce one copy or 15,000 copies of the Journal of the American Chemical Society someone must pay the fixed costs of over $245,000 for editorial production, copy prepara- tion, and setting the articles in type for printing the first copy. As matters now stand, you can subscribe to this journal for $30, $15.66 of which are fixed costs. If all our member subscribers were lost, however, this journal would cost you $95. If, on the other hand, circulation could be doubled, each library sub- scription would cost only $15 to $20 and more than twice as many persons would be served. W e believe that every scientist should subscribe to some scientific or technical periodical. Not only does he protect his investment in his scientific training but his subscription helps to hold costs down for all classes of subscribers. W e believe that you can help us and your- selves if you will promote the idea of copies for personal use of at least one or two journals for every scientist or student of science who uses your service. Frequently ideas obtained from gen- eral reading of scientific journals will lead to the recognition of the applica- tion of findings from an apparently un- related field. Systematic searches by oth- ers could fail to uncover these nuggets. Another library practice which is be- coming increasingly widespread is the custom of more or less unrestricted pho- tocopying of parts of journals for inter- office circulation and other use. If car- ried to a degree which reduces subscrip- tion orders, the practice will end by hurting both of us. Certainly there is no objection to the making of a single copy of an article from a copyrighted publication for in- clusion in a departmental report. Upon request the ACS always has been willing to grant such permission. Of late, how- ever, the practice has grown to the stage where we now definitely can point to lost subscriptions. Fortunately, both your profession and our own are seeking a practical way to provide this service in a manner equitable for all. One serv- ice already provided by the ACS is the right to reproduce material from CA for a fee. What perhaps is not understood by libraries which engage in this practice is the income lost to publishers, not only in subscription revenue but in income from the sale of back numbers and sin- gle copies of current issues, income which helps to hold down subscription prices. T h e ACS this year will invest over six million dollars in the production and distribution of its serial publications. Every act—and photocopying is one— which serves to decrease circulation to our journals has just one effect. Those libraries and others which must have the journals to exist must somehow pay that six million dollars if these journals are to continue. That means every subscriber pays more than he would if many indi- viduals subscribed. Also, ACS maintains back issue stocks of nearly two million numbers. These cost us money to produce and they cost us money to house. Much of this invest- ment never will be recovered if libraries continue to photocopy for individuals and in other cases where back issues should be purchased. Our operation must break even. Every source of subsi- diary income of which you deprive us increases your subscription expense. Let us examine Chemical Abstracts in the light of the comments made above. This journal is probably more widely available and more widely used in tech- nical libraries than any other scientific publication. (Continued on page 382) 354 COLLEGE AND RESEARCH LIBRARIES Research Libraries and Scientific Publishers (Continued, from page 354) Despite the fact that it costs the ACS member only $20 per year, member cir- culation has dropped from 22,675 in 1949 to 17,301 in 1958. Why? Apparently because libraries have made Chemical Abstracts and information from Chem- ical Abstracts so easily available. T h e r e is no urgency felt by the individual sci- entist to subscribe to this publication. T h i s is a rather disheartening observa- tion to make about our members but it does seem to be valid. W i t h the steady decline in number of subscriptions and the increase in mate- rial published it has become necessary to charge more and more for Chemical Abstracts. Prices now are $20 to mem- bers, $80 to colleges and universities, and $350 to all others. F o r 1960—and you are among the first to know—these prices will increase to $32, $150, and $570. T h e two higher categories of prices are those paid by libraries. How could these prices be reduced or held stable? From the results of re- search, for one. T h e ACS already has an extensive program in progess. W e hope thereby to reduce some expenses and add some special services, for a fee. By increasing numbers of subscriptions is a second way; each subscriber then pays less in fixed charges. F i n a l l y — a n d strangely enough—by not photocopying material from this publication for dis- tribution unless you pay for the right to do so. Based on evidence on hand we have calculated that if the material re- produced from Chemical Abstracts were all paid for at the fees we charge for this service, and if libraries took advan- tage of this special service to compile bulletins consisting of pertinent ab- stracts for their own organizations, the price of every nonmember subscriber could be reduced by $50 to $75 and per- haps more. Furthermore we believe that adoption of this plan would save library staffs much of the time now spent in making their own abstracts. T h e ACS charter sets forth as one of the primary objectives of the Society the promoting of scientific interest and in- quiry through its publication program. W e want to make our journals as useful as possible and also to do all in our power to see that they are universally available. T o a large extent you are agents in providing availability. W e ear- nestly desire to work with you. N e w Periodicals of 1959—Part I (Continued from page 368) linzona, Switzerland, v.l, no.l, January/- February 1959. Bimonthly. Fr.18. Science Information News. National Science Foundation, Washington 25. v . l , n o . l , February/March 1959. Bimonthly. $1.25. SIAM Review. Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics. Box 7541, Philadel- phia. v.l, no.l, January 1959. Semiannual. $5. Technical Education. Evans Brothers, Ltd., Montague House, Russell Square, Lon- don, W C 1. v.l, n o . l , February 1959. Fre- quency not given. Price not given. Technometrics. J . Stuart Hunter, 167 Nas- sau Street, Princeton, N.J. v.l, no.l. Feb- ruary 1959. Quarterly. $8. Tropical Science. H.M. Stationery Office, London, v.l, n o . l , 1959. Quarterly. 26,y. ,382 COLLEGE AND RESEARCH LIBRARIES