When
Mutilators stalk the stacks When
Mutilators stalk the stacks
In the seemingly peaceful aisles of the library, a mutilator lurks, planning his attack. He takes a stealthy survey of the area, then seizes and begins dismembering his helpless victim. Within a few moments, the carnage is complete; the mutilator slinks off with his trophies, leaving the shredded remains of his victim discarded behind him.
If you think a scene like this could
not happen here, think again.
In fact, it happens several times a month!!
The victims, of course,
are books and journals. "Mutilation of library materials is a serious problem facing all libraries. Library materials are subject to a range of intentional mutilation. Some people like to write notes, highlight, or annotate in books they’ve borrowed. Others mutilate books to convey a personal message of political, religious, or social belief. Books and journal articles are also cut out because people couldn’t be bothered to use the photocopier. Some remove pages because they want to be the only ones in their class able to read that chapter or article."
-- Sally Lancaster, Mutilation of Library Materials, UCSD Libraries Preservation Department web site.
The Biomedical Library must replace an average of 240 articles per year due to damage or deliberate mutilation. Campus-wide, the UCSD Libraries replace more than a thousand pages per month. (Some articles or book chapters cannot be replaced at all, with the result that they are forever unavailable to the library’s users.)
Replacing pages costs money. Every dollar spent repairing damaged or mutilated books is a dollar that cannot be spent on purchasing books or maintaining journal subscriptions.
The cost of replacing missing articles varies. At the Biomedical Library, the minimum cost of replacing a brief missing article averages $19.70, including staff time and supplies. Longer articles, pages with color plates, or pages from hard-to-find items may cost much more to replace; items so badly damaged that they must be sent out for rebinding push up the cost of repairs even further.
This means that the Biomedical Library alone spends more than $4,728.00 per year simply repairing the damage done by criminals who deliberately destroy library property.
This amount would fund yearly subscriptions to all of the following:
We need your help to stop the carnage. If you see people damaging library materials, please report the offenders to the nearest library service desk. After all, it’s your money they’re wasting!
And if you’ve ever been tempted to damage library materials, please remember this: mutilation of library materials is a crime. Section 490.5 of the California Penal Code gives library personnel the right to detain users suspected of stealing library materials. Book mutilators caught by the UCSD Libraries have been prosecuted and have served jail time. Don’t risk it!
This display was prepared by Jennifer Tom, Administrative Assistant. Much valuable assistance was provided by: Irene Allison, Nancy Beale, Ruth Gustafson, Sally Hampton, Sally Lancaster, and Anne Prussing.
