A Bibliotheca Nacional, por Xavier da Cunha

The Project Gutenberg EBook of A Bibliotheca Nacional, by Xavier da Cunha This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org Title: A Bibliotheca Nacional Suas deficiencias e remedios d'essas deficiencias Author: Xavier da Cunha Release Date: December 11, 2010 [EBook #34622] Language: Portuguese Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 *** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A BIBLIOTHECA NACIONAL *** Produced by Mike Silva

Convidado pela Academia de Sciencias de Portugal a escrever sobre deficiencias das nossas Bibliothecas e remedios de taes deficiencias, escolhi de preferencia, para objectivo de minhas considerações, a Bibliotheca Nacional de Lisboa, em que, por Decreto de 27 de Novembro de 1902, tive a immerecida honra de ser nomeado Director.

Fundada em 1796 sob o titulo «Real Bibliotheca Pública da Côrte», ella funccionou durante annos em salas da Praça do Commercio,—e foi só depois de extinctas as ordens religiosas de Portugal que a Bibliotheca veiu installar-se no Convento de San'-Francisco, onde existe ainda hoje, sem todavia d'esse vasto edificio occupar mais do que uma parte, pois que outras partes se acham destinadas a nellas se accommodarem a Academia Real de Bellas Artes e as repartições do Governo Civil de Lisboa.

Quando em 1844 José Feliciano de Castilho, Bibliothecario-Mór da Bibliotheca Nacional de Lisboa, apresentou ao Ministro do Reino o relatorio da sua diligentissima gerencia,—relatorio que se publicou impresso, constituindo 4 volumes in-8.º,—queixava-se elle do improprio logar que lhe prestava o destinado convento.

E tanto no tempo d'aquelle prestimoso funccionario, como egualmente em quadras ulteriores, se teem por vezes dispendido sommas importantes,—sem que todavia as condições do edificio hajam mudado a ponto de o tornarem adequado ao fim que lhe destinaram; nem creio mesmo que possam nunca taes desejos converter-se ahi numa realidade, pois que (segundo o tem sempre mostrado a experiencia) de um convento nada mais se pode fazer do que... outro convento.

Ora advirta-se que, no tempo de Castilho, a parte do Convento destinada á Bibliotheca Nacional, posto que lhe escasseassem as condições proprias, era ainda sufficientemente ampla para accommodação das especies existentes.

E ainda em 1886, quando, por concurso de provas públicas, eu alli tive ingresso, na categoria de Segundo-Conservador, sobejava o espaço a ponto de poderem ser facultados gabinetes especiaes ao isolado trabalho de certos estudiosos.

São todavia decorridos, desde então, pouco mais de vinte annos—e foi quanto bastou para que a affluencia das especies, quotidianamente adquiridas, invadisse todos os recantos,—assuberbando-nos o receio de não termos em breve onde accommodar novas acquisições.

Nos meus relatorios trimestraes, que o Boletim das Bibliothecas e Archivos Nacionaes costuma sempre publicar, tenho eu frequentemente instado por que nos sejam cedidos os aposentos occupados pelas repartições do Governo Civil, transferindo-se essas para outro local,—e no mesmo sentido representou depois a Academia Real das Sciencias de Lisboa; infelizmente, porêm, similhantes instancias ainda até hoje não obtiveram resultado algum.

Com a falta do espaço coincide a pobreza do mobiliario, e não sómente pobreza, mas impropriedade. As estantes que a Bibliotheca Nacional possue acham-se longe, muito longe, de corresponder ás condições exigiveis para acondicionamento de especies raras e preciosas, accrescendo a triste circumstancia de não ter a Bibliotheca, em sua pequenissima dotação, recursos pecuniarios para a conveniente reforma de taes estantes.

O mesmo direi com respeito á verba decretada para compra de livros, assiguatura de revistas extrangeiras, e despeza indeclinavel de incadernações: é escassissima, e deficientissima a quantia destinada para taes incargos.

Escasso e deficiente é, não menos, o quadro dos funccionarios,—resultando d'esse facto que ainda estão apenas em projecto (projecto por ora platonico!) alguns dos mais indispensaveis Catalogos (v. g. um Catalogo alphabetico geral por nomes de auctores; um Catalogo por tilulos de obras; Catalogos methodicos das diversas especialidades; e um Catalogo-Diccionario por especificação singular de materias, como actualmente se vai usando com muito proveito nalgumas bibliothecas dos Estados Unidos da America).

Querem estas deficiencias significar pouco interêsse de quem na Bibliotheca Nacional tem superintendido? por fórma nenhuma. Significam ellas apenas a ausencia dos indispensaveis recursos.

Do impenho que altos funccionarios teem mostrado pelo ingrandecimento da Bibliotheca, foram exemplos frisantes a personalidade distinctissima de José Feliciano de Castilho (digno continuador de Antonio Ribeiro dos Santos), a actividade energica de Silva Tullio (que frequentes vezes desimpenhou interinamente as funcções de Bibliothecario-Mór), e o incansavel zelo do erudito Director a quem succedi em 1902 na gerencia da Bibliotheca (o Sr. Gabriel Pereira, que hoje exerce as funcções de Inspector das Bibliothecas e Archivos Nacionaes).

Em conclusão do que deixo laconicamente expendido (e muito haveria que particularizar sobre o assumpto), a Academia das Sciencias de Portugal, que sobremaneira me distinguiu constituindo-me seu delegado e seu interprete perante o Congresso Nacional, emitte os seguintes votos:

1.º—Que o Governo de Sua Majestade Fidelissima resolva proceder com a maxima brevidade á construcçao de um edificio especial, destinado exclusivamente á Bibliotheca Nacional de Lisboa, edificio por todas as faces completamente isolado, e absolutamente disposto em harmonia com as prescripções que para taes institutos determina a hygiene,—hygiene em relação aos livros e mais especies congeneres, hygiene em relação aos leitores, e hygiene em relação aos funccionarios;

2.º—Que o mesmo Governo proceda urgentemente á indispensavel ampliação dos aposentos que actualmente usufrue a Bibliotheca Nacional, para que esta, provisoriamente (emquanto se lhe não constróe definitivo edificio), possa bem accommodar as suas especies;

3.º—Que á Bibliotheca sejam fornecidos os meios pecuniarios para adquirir o mobiliario conveniente á boa arrumação e conservação das especies na Bibliotheca arrecadadas;

4.º—Que a dotação annual da Bibliotheca Nacional seja sufficientemente augmentada, para que se possam adquirir, por compra, importantissimas obras, de que, perante a exiguidade ridicula da actual dotação, nos fica tolhido alcançar exemplares;

5.º—Que o quadro do pessoal seja convenientemente ampliado com funccionarios idoneos e que tenham o amor do officio, funccionarios escolhidos sempre em concurso do provas públicas (concurso em que a decisão do jury technico seja respeitada), funccionarios condignamente remunerados,—conseguindo-se, por essa ampliação do quadro, organizar num breve lapso de tempo todos os Catalogos indispensaveis á consulta dos estudiosos, e realizar todos os mais serviços correlativos;

6.º—Que a todas as outras Bibliothecas públicas do nosso paiz se appliquem, dentro das suas especiaes necessidades, e conforme as circumstancias peculiares exijam, reformas analogas ás que ficam summariamente expostas para a Bibliotheca Nacional de Lisboa.

End of Project Gutenberg's A Bibliotheca Nacional, by Xavier da Cunha *** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A BIBLIOTHECA NACIONAL *** ***** This file should be named 34622-h.htm or 34622-h.zip ***** This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: https://www.gutenberg.org/3/4/6/2/34622/ Produced by Mike Silva Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will be renamed. Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without permission and without paying copyright royalties. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark. Project Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission. If you do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the rules is very easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and research. They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks. Redistribution is subject to the trademark license, especially commercial redistribution. *** START: FULL LICENSE *** THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work (or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project Gutenberg-tm License (available with this file or online at https://gutenberg.org/license). Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works 1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property (trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession. If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8. 1.B. "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works. See paragraph 1.E below. 1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation" or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual works in the collection are in the public domain in the United States. If an individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg are removed. Of course, we hope that you will support the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with the work. You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others. 1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are in a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, check the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project Gutenberg-tm work. The Foundation makes no representations concerning the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United States. 1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg: 1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed, copied or distributed: This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org 1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees or charges. If you are redistributing or providing access to a work with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. 1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms will be linked to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work. 1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm. 1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project Gutenberg-tm License. 1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary, compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access to or distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.org), you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other form. Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1. 1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. 1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided that - You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax returns. Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation." - You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm License. You must require such a user to return or destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of Project Gutenberg-tm works. - You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days of receipt of the work. - You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works. 1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark. Contact the Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below. 1.F. 1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain "Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by your equipment. 1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH 1.F.3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE. 1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you with the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a refund. If you received the work electronically, the person or entity providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If the second copy is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further opportunities to fix the problem. 1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS' WITH NO OTHER WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTIBILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE. 1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages. If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by the applicable state law. The invalidity or unenforceability of any provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions. 1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production, promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works, harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees, that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause. Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It exists because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from people in all walks of life. Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the assistance they need are critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations. To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4 and the Foundation web page at https://www.pglaf.org. Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit 501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal Revenue Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification number is 64-6221541. Its 501(c)(3) letter is posted at https://pglaf.org/fundraising. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws. The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S. Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered throughout numerous locations. Its business office is located at 809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887, email [email protected]. Email contact links and up to date contact information can be found at the Foundation's web site and official page at https://pglaf.org For additional contact information: Dr. Gregory B. Newby Chief Executive and Director [email protected] Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations ($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt status with the IRS. The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any particular state visit https://pglaf.org While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who approach us with offers to donate. International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff. Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other ways including including checks, online payments and credit card donations. To donate, please visit: https://pglaf.org/donate Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared with anyone. For thirty years, he produced and distributed Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support. Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S. unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not necessarily keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition. Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility: https://www.gutenberg.org This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm, including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks.