Before the era of locking up, many books were “abstracted” from the Library and never returned. And it is said that the alcoves were used during the sessions of Congress by the belles of the Capitol for reception rooms in which they received homage and listened to marriage proposals. The story is told of “a wealthy Southern representative gleaning materials for a speech in an upper section,” who was suddenly stopped in his pursuit after knowledge above by the knowledge ascending from below that “a penniless adventurer” was that moment persuading his pretty daughter to elope in the alcove under him. It did not take the parent long to descend into that alcove. The daughter did not elope. The halls are lined with wide tables and arm-chairs provided for all who wish to make use of the treasures of the Library. Tickets with blanks can be filled with the name of any book desired, over the signature of the applicant, who retains the book while remaining in the Library. On the back of those tickets are printed the following regulations of the Library: 1. Visitors are requested to remove their hats. 2. No loud talking is permitted. 3. No readers under sixteen years of age are permitted. 4. No book can be taken from the Library. 5. Readers are required to present tickets for all books wanted, and to return their books and take back their tickets before leaving the Library. 6. No reader is allowed to enter the alcoves. No books can be taken out of the Library except on the responsibility of a member of Congress. Till within a very few years, books were allowed to be taken by strangers who presented a written permit to do so from a Congressional official. This courtesy resulted in the destruction and loss of so many valuable works, it had to be abolished and the stringent rules of the present time established and strictly enforced. An act of Congress provided that books can be taken out of the Library only by the President of the United States, Members of the Cabinet, Judges of the United States Supreme Court, Members of the Senate and House of Representatives, Secretary of the Senate, Clerk of the House and members of the Diplomatic Corps. This privilege of course includes the families of these official gentlemen. Forgetting this fact, the long list of story-books and new novels often “charged” to these State names would be something ridiculous. Dealers in light literature suffer somewhat from this privilege. The copyright law and the Congressional Library together provide society and State with all the surface literature that they want during their sojourn in Washington. For reference the books are most extensively and thoroughly used by all seekers after knowledge. American and foreign authors line the tables in these quiet halls daily, and the results of their research are usually given to the world. Legal, political, and historical works are the ones most constantly called for and searched.