Book excerpt: Excerpt from Index to the Periodicals of 1894 With regard to the indexing of newspapers, that task is at present the monopoly of Mr. Palmer, who confines himself sedulously to the Times. Other newspapers, some of which yield enormous incomes to their proprietors, are not ashamed to appear unindexed year after year, only because indexing does not pay. That, in a sense, is true. Neither does the build ing of St. Paul's Cathedral pay, or the foundation of a new religion. Most of the best things in the world are produced at a dead loss - a loss often by no means confined to pence alone. But leaving the indexing of newspapers to journalists at whose door it properly lies, I stick to the indexing of magazines and reviews. And as I personally have no part in the arduous and responsible work of compiling the Annual Index to Periodicals which it is my privilege to publish, I may be permitted to say how much I appreciate the invaluable assistance which its densely packed columns are capable of affording the student of the marvellously multifarious life of our present day. Mr. John Morley said on one occasion that whenever he had to make a speech without knowing exactly what he ought to say, he never failed to find inspiration in turning over the leaves of a dictionary. Following up the same idea, no editor at a loss for straw with which to make up his daily tale of journalistic bricks could fail to find helpful hints and suggestive guidance if he were to turn over the pages of the Annual Index. For it is no mere alphabetical arrangement of titles or of catchwords in titles; it is a series of carefully classified bibliographical monographs on all the more important subjects of human interest that have cropped up in the course of the twelvemonth. It is no wonder that it has fit audience found though few, and that there are few public libraries of importance in the English-speaking world where this Index has not come to be regarded as indispensable. This year, in order to gain more space for the growing Index proper, the elaborate guide to the periodical literature of the world which appeared in the previous volumes has been omitted. These volumes are still on sale, and those who desire to have the guide can obtain it in Volume IV. Of the Index. At the end of the present volume, however, will be found a complete table of all the periodicals indexed, with such necessary particulars as will enable any reader to communicate with the editor or publisher. In the Introduction the more important changes that have taken place in the world of magazines and reviews since our last issue are described. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.