CHOICE OF SCHEME FOR CLASSIFICATION - Indian Statistical ...

"I have seen it used in the universities where I had worked"! And the President had to be
obeyed.
9.6.3 Unwisdom of Re-Classification by LC
Perreault has given cogent, sound, and scientific reasons bringing put the unwisdom
of re-classification by LC. He has also administered a warning that the adoption of LC
will ultimately prove prejudicial to the development of library service and of library
science. He is not afraid of being a solitary voice in the USA of today to administer such
a warning. He is indeed a brave soul; and the progress of the world depends essentially
on such brave souls.
9.6.4 Additional Comments
There are, however, two statements in Sec 3.12 of the pamphlet calling for
additional comments.
9.6.5 Alien Look of BC and CC Notations
According to Perreault, "The major reason for not advocating CC or BC is their
notations; not that they do not do what is expected of them (namely, primarily, that they
"Mechanize" the order — in array and in chain — of concepts), but that they are so alien
to what we expect a library notation to look like, that it would be very surprising if they
could be widely acceptable in American libraries."
9.6.6 Three Purposes of Classification
Generally, there is resistance to anything new or unfamiliar (See also Sec 3813 to
3816 of this article). Such a resistance blocks progress. There are three uses of
classification as Perreault himself suggests:
1 It helps in the precise and co-extensive ascertainment of the subject of a document;
2 It mechanizes the helpful arrangement of the documents - old ones as well as new
arrivals — on the shelves, and of their Main Entries in the catalogue; and
3 It is helpful in eliciting from a reader the precise subject required by him at the
moment.
In the American library tradition, the second use dominates; and classification is
not used for the first and the third purposes. This impression of mine was gathered from
the younger generation of librarians in my visits to USA. Recently, this was confirmed
by a young American librarian visiting us in DRTC a few months ago. If the American
librarians realise the great importance and value of the first and the third purposes of
classification, there is every chance for the disappearance of the allergy alleged to be
now prevailing in America against a notation said to be "so alien to what we expect a
library notation to look like". Further, the look of UDC number would also be alien, if it
is worked out to its fulness as it should be.