College and Research Libraries totaling $954,231. Major developments in other areas are detailed in the Report. T h e appendixes to the Report should also receive some attention. T h e Library of Con- gress, already giving incomparable leader- ship and service to the profession, could pro- vide an additional service in straightening out the statistics muddle. T h e r e is much con- fusion among librarians concerning the total size of a library. On page 80, LC adds up all types of units and comes up with 36,- 905,919, a new high, which it calls the " T o t a l Contents of the Library." It seems to the writer that this is a meaningless figure because volumes, microcards, microfilms, etc., are all added together. Why not add pages in books? Moreover the definition of the meaning of a volume by LC, acceptable to the profession, would resolve the contradic- tion in the definitions given by CRL for its annual statistics and those of the Office of Education for its annual statistics. Space limitations prevent more detailed develop- ment of these comments. A minor point that may also need straightening out is the use in the LC statistics, by the reference department, of the term "items accessioned," and by the processing department, of the term "pieces processed." Is there a differ- ence? An important appendix to the Report is the list of notable publications of the Library of Congress for fiscal 1958, which includes the National Union Catalog, the sixth edition of Subject Headings Used in the Dictionary Catalogs of the Library of Congress, and other important titles. T h e 1957-58 annual report of the Li- brarian of Congress is an exciting document and is recommended reading for all librari- ans.—Henry Birnbaum, Chief Circulation Librarian, Brooklyn College. Bible Bibliography Eleven Years of Bible Bibliography; the Book Lists of the Society for Old Testament Study, 1946-56. Edited by H. H. Rowley, Indian Hills, Colo.: Falcon's Wing Press [C1957] vii, 804p. T h e r e is no disputing the primary ob- jective of this volume which is to present a reliable and annotated bibliography of Old Testament studies during the past dec- ade. But to leave it at that might appear as lack of. appreciation of the labors of the indefatigable and erudite editor of the vol- ume. What is more, it might frighten away from it searching but unsuspecting and ir- resolute readers and reduce its usage to the mercy of cloistered scholars, theologians, librarians, teachers, preachers, etc. Not an inconsiderable conglomeration, to be sure, as far as audiences go. But the volume has an appeal much broader, and would prove very useful to a growing number of intelli- gent lay readers who are neophytes to Bible study. Scholars specializing in related and adjoining fields who lack the time and en- ergy to pursue Old Testament studies in detail, will learn much about recent research on the subject. For, strange as it may sound, the average literate layman would rarely associate with Bible study the huge amount of preparatory research work and the toil required to pro- duce an up-to-date, readable, and meaning- ful translation in any modern language. Few would suspect that, in order to arrive at the exact meaning of the text, access to older versions and the minute perusal of long checklists of manuscripts are required. T o penetrate beneath the transcript of the text as it reached us one would have to fa- miliarize himself with the origin and de- velopment of writing and the attempts at decipherment. T h a t the pottery, metals, flora and fauna, coins, buildings, temples, fortifications, and evidence gleaned from travel accounts are part and parcel of it is an undeniable, although unappreciated fact. Few connect aerial reconnaissance with Biblical excavations. Yet to the initiated few there is no conceiving of modern ar- cheological excavations without it. Electro- magnetic detection, radio-carbon dating, and the dating of fossilized bones by fluo- rite content have all been utilized in the search of Biblical truth. T h e normal expansion of Biblical studies through many newly erected seminaries, and the revival of Hebrew as a spokerl lan- guage in the new Republic of Israel, may have contributed their share to this grow- ing interest in the Bible. But what really brought it to the attention of millions of 326 COLLEGE AND RESEARCH LIBRARIES Americans and placed several volumes deal- ing with it on the best seller list are the Dead Sea or Judean Scrolls. This epochal discovery has given Biblical research a new impetus. T h e enthusiasm which it has gen- erated among circles not previously known for their excessive attachment to such writ- ings accounted for dozens of volumes and hundreds of articles treating in exhaustive detail every conceivable phase of it. Over- night the subject has become fashionable, a topic of conversation in good society, and a discipline worthy of further pursuit. But at this very stage the lack of adequate preparation for the intelligent pursuit of their study became most apparent. T h e r e was no lack of basic, standard paraphernalia on the subject, such as concordances, dic- tionaries, grammars, textbooks, etc. But the historical implications and the evolving minutiae were apparent only to a select mi- nority. T h e invaluable studies on the Bible produced in a dozen major languages and extending over all continents and climes naturally contributed to the difficulties of maintaining adequate controls over them. T h e war years, the paper shortage im- mediately following it, and the overempha- sis on other more immediate tasks caused havoc in the Bible publishing field. Only by accident did we learn of an important work published in Estonia, Finland, or some Scandinavian country shedding new light on an old problem, offering a new approach, or raising doubts about an accepted solu- tion to some Bible questions. Great was the discomfort of a scholar or a librarian who, after spending much time and effort to se- cure the title of a new publication, would suddenly discover that it was no longer obtainable, that it was already out of print. And only the luxury of extensive corre- spondence would bring back the reply of an anxious dealer that he would continue with his efforts to secure a copy. One can, therefore, easily imagine the joy with which cognoscenti greeted the appearance of this volume. T h e mere initials of the interna- tionally known savants gracing the expertly drawn up reviews avoiding excessive verbi- age and stilted compliments carry weight and spell confidence in their evaluations. A reviewer would not hesitate to point out that some contributors to a commentary designed for readers without a knowledge of the Biblical languages should consider themselves part of the audience. On a more personal note, another would remark about the weak binding in a tome designed for daily use, and conclude on a more plaintive note that "copy has already come to pieces." And perhaps even more important than the listing and reviews of the studies de- voted to individual subjects, are the vol- umes it names which compress within their covers a variety of treatments and topics, in succinct form, by expert hands, often reflecting the sum total of accumulated knowledge on a given area. Many such tomes, both Festschriften and memorial vol- umes, have resulted of late from the spread- ing custom of collecting into book form pa- pers by colleagues, pupils, and friends, to mark the anniversary or death of a re- spected expositor, or to honor an interna- tional gathering or similar event. Most of these writings, produced during the last decade, appeared in too few copies. These limited editions, to be sure, were motivated by no other reason than innate humility. But to the perplexing question of why they received so little or no attention in the press, there is no cogent answer. Even schol- ars intimately connected with these various fields often find it extremely difficult to lo- cate a desired copy. Privileged is he who receives reprints of some of the articles, upon the implicit understanding that he will reciprocate with a similarly elusive study in the not too distant future. Everything of importance to Bible studies which appeared in book form, and with some exceptions as articles, during the past dozen years or so, whether it touch upon history and geography, exegesis and modern translations, literary criticism and introduc- tions, including the history of interpreta- tion, law, religion and theology, the life and thought of the neighboring people, the Dead Sea Scrolls, post-Biblical Judaism, phi- lology and grammar, aside from more gen- eral topics, will be awaiting the conscien- tious peruser of this most valuable volume. —Lawrence Marwick, Library of Congress. JULY 1959 327