[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 130 (Thursday, September 19, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Pages S10978-S10979]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              THE 125TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE SENATE LIBRARY

  Mr. BYRD. Mr. President, Shakespeare wrote in The Tempest, ``My 
library was dukedom large enough.'' With those few words he expressed 
the satisfaction, fulfillment and power available through the knowledge 
recorded and preserved in a well-stocked library.
  With those thoughts in mind, I rise to pay tribute to the 125th 
anniversary of the establishment of the Senate's own ``dukedom,'' the 
Senate Library.
  The Library of the Senate is a legislative and general reference 
library that provides a wide variety of information services to Senate 
offices in a prompt and timely fashion.
  It maintains a comprehensive collection of congressional and 
governmental publications, and of materials relating to the specialized 
information needs of the Senate: government and politics, history, 
political biography, economics, international relations and other 
topics. The Library's resources and services are dedicated to providing 
the Members of the Senate and their staffs with critically needed 
information on issues affecting legislative deliberation and 
decisionmaking.
  The origins of the Senate Library can be traced back as early as 1792 
when the Senate, then meeting in Philadelphia, directed the Secretary 
``to procure, and deposit in his office, the laws of the several 
states, for the use of the Senate,'' as well as maps of the country. 
During the first half of the nineteenth century, the Chief Clerk of the 
Senate added to these materials by collecting copies of the bills, 
resolutions and reports of each Congress. By the end of the 1850's, the 
need for a library to maintain this collection had become evident; 
efforts to establish the library culminated in resolutions in 1870 to 
designate rooms to be fitted--and I quote from the Senate Journal--``to 
hold and arrange for the convenience of the Senate books and documents 
now in charge of the Secretary of the Senate.''
  Let me say that again: ``to hold and arrange for the convenience of 
the Senate books and documents now in charge of the Secretary of the 
Senate.''
  The first librarian to be appointed was George S. Wagner, who 
officially commenced his duties on July 1, 1871.
  While today's Senate Library continues to maintain the core 
collection of legislative materials that necessitated its establishment 
125 years ago, its operations have been transformed by modern 
technology. The current Senate Librarian, Roger K. Haley, is a veteran 
of 32 years in the library, and he has witnessed the transition from a 
completely paper-based service to one that now relies as well on 
electronic databases, the Internet, and microform. Another significant 
change occurring over the last twenty years has been the growth in 
professional staffing in response to the more diverse and sophisticated 
information needs of Senate patrons.
  More than half of the current library staff of 22 consists of highly 
skilled librarians trained to meet the special requirements of Senate 
offices. This dedicated team performs an outstanding job in responding 
quickly to the some 70,000 inquiries that were received last year.
  It is a pleasure for me to take this opportunity to commend the 
Senate Library for its vital service to the Senate and to extend a warm 
congratulations as it celebrates its 125th anniversary year.
  Thomas Carlyle wrote that, ``All that mankind has done, thought, 
gained or been: it is lying as in magic preservation in the pages of 
books.''
  Especially in this day and age when our Nation faces the turmoil of 
dramatic, far-reaching change, the knowledge, wisdom, and experience 
available to us through the source of an extensive and efficient in-
house library is critical to helping us make considered judgments.
  I thank all of the fine personnel involved with the Senate Library 
for helping us to light the corridors of our minds so that we may 
better lead the way for our Nation.
  Mr. President, I know of no Senator--I would not have any reason to 
know if there were--any Senator who calls upon the Senate library more 
than I call upon it, more than my staff and I lean upon it and depend 
upon it. And I want to express my gratitude to the people in the Senate 
library who always respond so courteously and are so cooperative.
  So there is a list of 16 persons who have served the Senate as 
Librarian

[[Page S10979]]

since 1871. And I ask unanimous consent that they be printed in the 
Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

                 Librarians of the United States Senate

       George S. Wagner, 1871-1875.
       George F. Dawson, 1875-1879.
       P. J. Pierce, 1879-1884.
       George M. Weston, 1884-1887.
       Alonzo W. Church, 1887-1906.
       James M. Baker, 1898-1901 \1\.
       Cliff Warden, 1901-1904 \1\.
       James M. Baker, 1904-1904 \1\.
       Edward C. Goodwin, 1904-1906 \1\.
       Edward C. Goodwin, 1906-1921.
       Walter P. Scott, 1921-1923.
       Edward C. Goodwin, 1923-1930.
       James D. Preston, 1931-1935.
       Ruskin McArdle, 1935-1947.
       George W. Straubinger, 1947-1951.
       Richard D. Hupman, 1951-1953.
       Sterling Dean, 1953-1954.
       Richard D. Hupman, 1954-1954 \1\.
       Gus J. Miller, 1954-1955.
       Richard D. Hupman, 1955-1973.
       Roger K. Haley, 1973-    .

     \1\ Acting Librarian

  Mr. BYRD. Mr. President, I yield the floor.

                          ____________________