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Recent Australian experience with China and Southeast Asia
L;t~patl 4~qul~;ttons Pta~t~(eandTheor~,Vol 6. pp 149-160 1 9 ~ 2 Prmtedmthe USA Allrlghtsre~er~ed
0364-6408.82 020149-1250300,.0 ('op3rlght'¢~ 1982 Pergamon Press Ltd
ACQUISITIONS F R O M ASIA
RECENT AUSTRALIAN EXPERIENCE WITH C H I N A A N D S O U T H E A S T ASIA E N I D B I S H O P , Y.S. C H A N a n d W G
MILLER
Australian Natmnal Um,,ers~ty Canberra, /kustraha
ABSTRACT
Durmg the past 5 years, the Auslrahan Nattonal Untver,sttv} (,4 NU) evperlenees m a~qmrmg materials / t o m Chma and Southeast Asta have changed constderably There has been a stgm/tcant increase m pubh.shed matertals /rom the People,s Repubhc o/ China (PRC) including reprints atut a decrease m repubhshmg pro~h~ctton /rom Ta;~an Re~enth' there have been a number o / n e w supphers o/ P R C matertals Wtthm Southeast A.sta m/ormatton on avatlable matertals has dramatwallv increased mclu~hng wuter dt~trtbutlon o/ publishers' and dealers" ~atalogs There are also many more htbhographw aMs. Acqutrmg serials remams a problem /or all areas' Ltmtted aequtslttons budgets are contrtbutmg to greater cooperatton among Austrahan mstttutton,s, espectall_l' A NU and the National Lthrarl' o/ Austraha. Beginning m 1981 the Australian Btbhographwal Net~ork, hnked ~ tth the Washington Ltbrarv Net~ ork became operattonal
The last 5 years have seen a n u m b e r of changes in patterns of acquisitions of Asian pubh cat l o n s m A u s t r a h a n h b r a n e s [1] These differing patterns have come ab o u t mainly as a result of d e v e l o p m e n t s in the countries of origin, particularly m respect of their p u b h s h l n g actlvmcs, and to a lesser extent duc to changing conditions on the Australian library scene Experience at the Library of the Australian National University ( A N U ) has shown that, a m o n g the areas f r o m which this hbrar 5, regularly acquires material, acqulslttons from China and S o u t h eas t Asia have u n d e r g o n e the most significant changes, and it may be of interest to e x a m i n e in some detail what has been h a p p e m n g in dealings w~th these areas in recent years 149
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ENID BISHOP Y b CHANand WG MIll FR CHINA
The A N U Library still employs a variety of methods of acquisition in order to m a i n t a i n satisfactory supply of Chinese materials. In spite of recent dramatic changes in publishing a n d d i s t r i b u t i n g of Chinese books and periodicals, it is still true that no single method is a d e q u a t e for s u p p l y i n g research library needs Materials must still be obtained by selective purchasing from booksellers, direct ordering from publishers, exchange with major libraries a n d research institutions, a n d photocopying, both in the form of m a j o r projects and by individual title The most I m p o r t a n t factor c o n t r i b u t i n g to a growing complexity in the acquisition of Chinese language materials has been the flourishing of publishing in recent years In the years 1971-75, the publishing o u t p u t of the People's Republic of China ( P R C ) was still low but, m the last 5 ),ears, especially since 1978, there has been a gradual but slgnlhcant increase A l t h o u g h the o u t p u t of m o n o g r a p h s is still far below the level of 1956-1960, the n u m b e r of serial titles has increased by 72% over the previous "golden years" [2] In the 1950s, most East Asian collections in the West were still in the early stages of d e v e l o p m e n t and the financial s u p p o r t for their parent institutions was sound. Therefore the proliferation of relatively cheap Chinese p u b l i c a t i o n s was welcomed at that time by e x p a n d i n g East Asian collections However, the situation has been quite different in the last 5 years. The revival of publishing activities in 1971 was a relief after the long drought but there were no clear guidelines to enable hbrarlans outside China to c o m p r e h e n d Chxna's p u b h c a t l o n s export pohcy People ma'; havc been mchned at one stage to blame the " G a n g of F o u r " for the obscurity, but while there has been some easing of the restrictions since the fall of the "Gang," the obscurity has not been totally dispelled At present, the P R C still classifies its own p u b l i c a t i o n s into four categories (1) restricted publications "to be kept with care", (2) restricted publications, (3) publications for domestic circulation only, and (4) publications for domestic and foreign circulation Those u n f a m l h a r with the Chinese concept of classifying publications may assume that those publications which need to be "kept with care" are g o v e r n m e n t d o c u m e n t s or items dealing with sensitive and controversial issues. In fact, m a n y of these publications appear to have no confidentiality whatever, and some have even been released for open circulation later Thus to the outsider, the basis for classification is by no means clear As more books are pubhshed in China, librarians are faced with more problems The financial restraints which have been felt in most East Asian collections in recent years have been aggravated by the u n u s u a l rate of price inflation of Chinese publications [3] A l t h o u g h some hbrarles may still be able to meet the financial c o m m i t m e n t s involved, this is not sufficient to ensure success Expert knowledge of methods and sources of supply a n d related factors is also essential. In the past, many libraries preferred blanket order a r r a n g e m e n t s with book dealers in H o n g Kong and Talpel to ensure that all new works published in either the People's Republic of China, H o n g Kong, or T a l w a n which fell within the scope of the library's collection policy would be covered. Whilst publications in T a l w a n present a n o t h e r p r o b l e m which will be discussed later, blanket order a r r a n g e m e n t s with Hong Kong dealers in the last few years have not proved to be satisfactory Some libraries believe that they can secure more books by placing a blanket order with Guozi S h u d l a n (China P u b l i c a t i o n Centre) in Peking However, it is A N U ' s estimate that neither of these channels can regularly supply more than 30% of Chlna's publications A m o n g all titles received, there is also a high rate of d u p l i c a t i o n as m a n y of the new p u b l i c a t i o n s are now printed by various provincial publishers to save the cost of t r a n s p o r t a t i o n inside China. Some are also reprinted in H o n g
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K o n g for overseas d i s t r i b u t i o n U n d e r these circumstances, it is not surprising to receive the same book in duplicate or triplicate within a hmlted period of time If one o b w o u s a d v a n t a g e of the blanket order method is to save staff time in selection and bibliographical checking, it has the disadvantage of omitting m a n y i m p o r t a n t books which are only available t h r o u g h pirate reprint editions or other "irregular" channels. These sources, according to A N U experience, would account for a p p r o x i m a t e l y 10% of m o n o g r a p h s and 20% of serials To make the s i t u a t i o n more complicated, there are two more organizations in China, one in Peking and a n o t h e r in Shanghai, which have started to supply books and periodicals to overseas libraries O n checking, the titles offered differ from those of the C h i n a Publications Centre in Peking and the Joint Publishing C o m p a n y in Hong Kong If these companies prove successful, it is most likely that similar organizations will be found In other major cities in C h i n a If so, one may wonder which dealer should be chosen for blanket orders. A d o p t i n g title-by-tile book selection is a relatively costly exercise, especially since the rapid increase in p u b h s h m g output, as m a n y trade catalogues from all sources must be checked. This is a t a m e - c o n s u m i n g a n d p a i n s t a k i n g task which has become more difficult since staff ceilings have been imposed in libraries m recent years Being aware of all the problems of Chinese acquisitions, a few East Asian collections have a t t e m p t e d to use C h ' u a n k u o h s i n s h u m u (National Bibliography of the P R C ) as a tool for selection but this has proved to be not feasible. M a n y of the items listed in the Bibliography are not available outside C h i n a and also a large p r o p o r t i o n of them have become out-ofprint by the time the Blbhography is issued One possible way to make good the deficiencies in acquiring books through either blanket order or selection is to establish good e x c h a n g e r e l a t l o n s h l p s with major Chinese libraries, but this also takes time and patience Although theoretically every major library in C h i n a can now have direct relations with overseas libraries, j u d g i n g from the A N U ' s experience in the last 5 years, not every Chinese library knows how to deal with the West Under these circumstances, a library must be cautious in selecting its exchange partners if it is to get the best result from such cooperation If one were to say that out-of-print or rare Chinese material was steadily decreasing in Hong Kong d u r i n g 1971-75, one would have to say that the last 5 years witnessed the complete d i s a p p e a r a n c e of this type of material. There are still a handful of s e c o n d - h a n d b o o k dealers in J a p a n , the U S., a n d Europe who handle old and rare Chinese material, but only at prohibitive prices Despite th~s situation, it is interesting to note that the unavailability of out-of-print material is no longer a real problem for collection building in a Chinese academic or research library. In the 1960s and early 1970s, there was a reprint b o o m In Talwan. This was mainly due to the decline of publishing in the PRC, and reprinting was needed to fill the gap, which made it a very profitable enterprise. However, with the revival of Chinese publishing and the s h r i n k i n g of financial support, the reprinting of out-of-print material in Talwan, and to a lesser extent H o n g Kong, has recently been taken over by P R C In recent years, m a n y works have been reproduced in China. Publisher's reprint collectanea of the type formerly produced in T a l w a n have also b e g u n to appear. It is not clear whether these reprints are primarily for domestic c o n s u m p t i o n or for export If the latter, Chinese publishers may be too late, as the d e m a n d for this type of material by overseas libraries is gradually declining. A n o t h e r factor is that after the fall of the "Gang," Chinese libraries adopted a very friendly attitude towards overseas libraries. It is our experience that filling gaps in serial holdings or requesting reprints or microform copies of rare books is no longer a problem Thus, purchasing sets of less useful collectanea may no longer be necessary
152
FNIDBISHOP Y <, ('HA\ and W() VIII LER
In Talwan, the trend of publishing is also changing rapidly. As mentioned above, reprinting actlvltmS are declining, and m a n y of the publishers specializing in this business are disappearing This is mainly due to the limited market overseas Many new publishers have been established and more new titles are being published which are mainly catering for the domestic market These new p u b h c a t l o n s are expensive by local standards By the n u m b e r of titles published by m a n y larger publishers, it can be assumed that good original works are still in d e m a n d locally As in the PRC, quite a substantial p r o p o r t i o n of publications in Talwan are difficult to obtain The majority of these are a n t i - g o v e r n m e n t periodicals and m o n o g r a p h s which are quickly censored after circulation When some of these become available in Hong Kong, they are sold at a p p r o x i m a t e l y 5-10 times the original list price A p a r t from books classified as internal publications, it is the A N U ' s experience that a c q u i r i n g books from C h i n a is now much easmr than from Talwan, The m a i n reason is that there Is no organized b o o k - t r a d e in T a l w a n for the overseas market. M a n y of the wellk n o w n booksellers in T a l w a n do not have experience in dealing with overseas libraries Even in the case of the few who know the business, inadequate bibliographical details in their trade catalogues and poor service rendered present considerable difficulties for librarians when m a k i n g book selections and carrying out acquisitions In these circumstances the A N U has tended to rely on one or two suppliers who have some experience in supplying overseas hbrarles and who ha~e d e m o n s t r a t e d some measure ol rellablht 3 over a period of several )'ears As with China, good exchange relationships ~ l t h major T a l w a n libraries can be rewarding iI sulflcient time and effort is devoted to developing them
SOUTHEAS'I ASIA It is impossible to generahze a b o u t developments m the acquisition of Southeast Asian p u b l i c a t i o n s d u r i n g the past five years Experience at the A N U has shown that progress in publishing and i m p r o v e m e n t s in acquls~tions have not been uniform across the region and each country must therefore be considered separately
Indonesia In Indonesia, there is no question that the volume, attractiveness, and the intrinsic quahty of publications particularly commercially produced works have continued to rise d u r i n g the 1970s and into the 1980s, and this in itself creates the need to adjust one's acquisitions. It is difficult to locate specific figures, but in 1972 there were a b o u t 650 t,tles published [4] while by 1979 the n u m b e r was over 3,000 [5] A n intermediate figure given for 1978 is 1,852 titles [6] Specifically, there has been a flood comparatively speaking of hterar), biographical and other serious pubhshmg, and the technical quality has also VlSlbl) improved Needless to say, the rise In q u a h t y has been a c c o m p a n i e d by rising prices, and m a time of pegged library budgets, this has required more selectivity in acquisitions policies The question must be asked, however, whether in line with this i m p r o v e m e n t in publishing sales, p r o m o t i o n , and d i s t r i b u t i o n methods have also improved to the extent that better acquisition of material has resulted for overseas libraries There is certainly an increased volume of p r o m o t i o n a l material available now for I n d o n e s i a n commercial publications, however, the coverage is still nowhere near c o m p r e h e n sive. G u n u n g A g u n g (Singapore), Gramedla, the Centre for Strategic and I n t e r n a t i o n a l
Recent A u s t r a h a n L x p e r m n c e ~ l t h ( ' h m a a n d %outheast A,,m
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Studies, a n d Srltua Arief are several publishers who have been distributing blurbs D A Book Depot, M e l b o u r n e , has provided lists of I n d o n e s i a n titles, mainly those of P u s t a k a Jaya. Details of new titles are now frequently advertised in periodicals such as Tempo, Hortson, a n d Panjt Masyarakat, to n a m e but a few. The best source for I n d o n e s i a n pubhcatlons, however, is the l o n g - r u n n i n g Bertta Idayu Btbhogralt which, with its changing format, was a p p r o a c h i n g in style in 1979 a m o n t h l y I n d o n e s i a n version of the Publtshers" Weekly. However, c o m m e n c i n g In 1980, it has again reduced the a m o u n t of space devoted to b a c k g r o u n d articles on all aspects of the book trade in Indonesia, including libraries, which had proved extremely valuable, and it now appears to have limited itself to book reviews and the m o n t h l y list of titles catalogued at the Yayasan Idayu One reason for the reversion by Berlta Idayu Blbhografi to a more restricted format may be the a p p e a r a n c e on the I n d o n e s i a n periodical market of Optlrms. The publication of Opttmts has been one of the most exciting developments to occur on the I n d o n e s i a n p u b h s h l n g scene for m a n y years First a p p e a r i n g in F e b r u a r y 1980, Opttmls is a m o n t h l y periodical of articles and c o m m e n t s devoted to writing, publishing and reading, all placed within, and with relevance to, the wider context of I n d o n e s i a n society, politics, and culture Each issue contains substantial articles on pubhshers, authors, or libraries. It also carries a u t h o r i t a t i v e b o o k reviews and a " D a f t a r Pustaka" (list of new books currently in print) as well as publishers' advertisements, n u m e r o u s photographs and a hst of members Subscription entitles one to m e m b e r s h i p in the "Book Lovers" Club ( H i m p u n a n M a s y a r a k a t Penclta Buku), the publisher of Opnmts, which in turn is backed by a private f o u n d a t i o n whose m e m b e r s include several members of the I n d o n e s i a n ehte (e.g, A d a m Mahk, Yusuf Ismall, and Chrlstlanto Wlblsono) The Indonesian National Blbhography has completed its project of c u m u l a t i n g retrospective material but current entries, u n d e r s t a n d a b l y , take some time to appear a n d like most n a t i o n a l blbhographles it is less useful as a selection tool than as a blbhographlcal authority Despite these I m p r o v e m e n t s in the p r o m o t i o n of books, the actual supply of publications still leaves much to be desired. It is true that British and Malaysian hbrarles receive satisfactory blanket order service for I n d o n e s i a n commercial and some g o v e r n m e n t p u b h c a tlons, and several commercial suppliers are available, including those m e n t i o n e d earlier In addition, the A N U has d u r i n g the past few years acquired some material by direct ordering from Bhratara, Nusa Indah, G r a m e d l a and other publishers However, where they can afford it, m a j o r overseas libraries, or consortia of hbrarles, still prefer to m a i n t a i n their own acqmsitlons office in Indonesia. The Royal Institute for Linguistics and A n t h r o p o l o g y (The Netherlands), the Library of Congress (U S.) and the N a t i o n a l Library of Australia still c o n t i n u e to a p p o i n t resident p r o c u r e m e n t officers, particularly to ensure a satisfactory coverage of g o v e r n m e n t and institutional p u b h c a t l o n s . As these libraries themselves face increasing b u d g e t a r y constraints, there may be a move to rationalize their I n d o n e s i a n operations but, as yet, no official a n n o u n c e m e n t s have been made in this direction The cooperative acquisitions p r o g r a m m e s of the U.S. and Australia c o n t i n u e to face the inherent difficulties assocmted with such cooperative ventures These drawbacks have been discussed frequently before [7]. The major difficulty appears to be that acquisitions profiles for each participating library c a n n o t be Incorporated into the schemes without intolerable expense. F u r t h e r m o r e , as commercial publications become more readily available t h r o u g h n o r m a l book dealers, the need becomes greater to coordinate the two different methods of acquisitions to avoid unnecessary duplication Nevertheless, as they have done now for nearly 20 years, the cooperative acquisitions schemes will no d o u b t c o n t i n u e to prove their worth for the foreseeable future.
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ENID B I S H O P , Y S C H A N and W G
MILLER
The L i b r a r y of Congress p r o g r a m m e to microfilm the m a j o r i t y of n o n - c o m m e r c i a l p u b h c a t i o n s from I n d o n e s i a has been a further step in the direction of i m p r o v e d coverage. This system a p p e a r s to o p e r a t e well, items may be selected from the L C Southeast Asia Accessions List, each item h a w n g a unique microfiche o r d e r n u m b e r S u p p l y f r o m the L i b r a r y of Congress P h o t o d u p h c a t l o n Service is p r o m p t and r e a s o n a b l y priced. One p r o m i s i n g recent d e v e l o p m e n t for b i b l i o g r a p h i c a l control of I n d o n e s i a n g o v e r n m e n t p u b h c a t l o n s has been the a p p e a r a n c e of Daftar Penerbltan Pemermtah, a list published by the I n d o n e s i a n State Secretariat. If this serial continues to a p p e a r on a regular basis, it could develop as a m a j o r a c q m s m o n s tool, c o n t a i n i n g as it does useful details such as names and addresses of the sources of publications
Malaysia and Singapore T u r n i n g to M a l a y s i a and Singapore, while it has not been possible to locate recent statistics of b o o k publishing, the general Impression one is left with IS that both quality and q u a n t i t y have i m p r o v e d [8]. Certainly the p r o m o t i o n of M a l a y s i a n and S i n g a p o r e b o o k s has i m p r o v e d and it is now possible to receive regular lists of titles available from reliable suppliers such as Select Books, Maruzen, and C h o p m e n in S i n g a p o r e a n d the University of M a l a y a C o o p e r a t i v e B o o k s h o p a n d Parry's Book Centre in Malaysia. The last two include M a l a y - l a n g u a g e titles in their lists whmh is a c o n s i d e r a b l e a d v a n t a g e for Asian studies libraries This year 1981 has also seen the a p p e a r a n c e of Malaysian Books m Print [9] which hopefully will be an a n n u a l p u b l i c a t i o n The e d i t m n of this w o r k which has been seen c o n t a i n e d only English-language p u b h c a t l o n s It is fair to say that m a n y t~tles from small regional pubhshers in M a l a y s i a are still not available comprehensively t h r o u g h Kuala L u m p u r b o o k suppliers, and M a l a y s i a n a c q m s i t l o n s librarians themselves need to continue p e r s o n a l l y checking publishers' a d v e m s e m e n t s M a l a y s i a n suppliers are also b e c o m i n g increasingly efficient at handling M a l a y s i a n g o v e r n m e n t p u b h c a t m n s , t h o u g h the varying frequency and small print runs of the p u b l i c a t i o n s themselves present intrinsic difficulties for acqmsltlOnS a n d bibliographical c o n t r o l
Thailand T h a i l a n d suppliers still represent the most reliable, longest-standing b o o k dealers in S o u t h e a s t Asia The Thai b o o k t r a d e continues to flourish and the d i s t r i b u t i o n of c o m m e r c i a l m o n o g r a p h s is carried out by at least three established b o o k s h o p s , one of w h o m p r o d u c e s a m o n t h l y listing of new titles in stock The A N U Library, which in general avoids standingo r d e r a r r a n g e m e n t s , selects material from Thai umverslty accession lists This inevitably results in a small p r o p o r t i o n of orders being out-of-print by the time orders are placed, but the scheme overall works satisfactorily. Other libraries with m a j o r Thai collections find that b o o k suppliers have the capacity to provide satisfactory b l a n k e t - o r d e r service Thai g o v e r n m e n t p u b l i c a t i o n s on the o t h e r h a n d are not h a n d l e d by b o o k suppliers a n d their acqusltlOn still requires a great deal of initiative and personal c o r r e s p o n d e n c e to the g o v e r n m e n t offices concerned. Generally speaking, the Thai g o v e r n m e n t d e p a r t m e n t s are c o o p e r a t i v e when a p p r o a c h e d with specific requests (there is not the same degree of suspicion that one may meet in, for example, Indonesian g o v e r n m e n t offices), but for overseas libraries it is still difficult to establish what titles are being published Only a small n u m b e r of g o v e r n m e n t d e p a r t m e n t s a p p e a r to be able to provide their publications on a regular basis
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Vietnam Vietnamese acquisitions have displayed a d i s a p p o i n t i n g trend d u r i n g the past 2 years, at least insofar as the A N U has been concerned Until 1980, the intake of publications from V i e t n a m was increasing at a satisfying rate. This was achieved both by purchase t h r o u g h the state d i s t r i b u t i o n agency in Hanoi, X u n h a s a b a , and through exchange with the National Library of Vietnam Acquisitions since then have dropped off alarmingly Whether this has been due to a decline in p u b h s h l n g in Vietnam itself as a result of the deteriorating economic situation, whether It IS related to strained d i p l o m a t i c relations between A u s t r a h a and Vietnam, or whether it is a c o m b i n a t i o n of both factors is too early to tell On a slightly more positive note, m a n y earher Vietnamese books are being reprinted in the U S by "refugee" book publishers, and this has presented libraries with the o p p o r t u n i t y to fill gaps in their collections of retrospective material
Phthppme Regular lasts of commercial p u b h c a t l o n s from the Philippines are available for selection purposes. Some g o v e r n m e n t p u b l i c a t i o n s are available through commercial channels but the range of titles is not wide
Burma Burmese material IS still impossible to o b t a i n by purchase and the only way Western libraries are acquiring publications, as far as the present writers are aware, is by exchange a r r a n g e m e n t s with the Universities Central Library, R a n g o o n
Periodicals from Southeast Asia Unlike the situation for m o n o g r a p h s , it IS possible to generahse that the supply of periodicals from Southeast Asia has, generally, improved during the past few years. In Indonesia, while no single reliable subscription agent may have been forthcoming, it is true to say that the publishers themselves seem to be more efficient in the overseas d i s t r i b u t i o n of their j o u r n a l s , and subscriptions may now be more safely placed direct This is not as c o n v e n i e n t or efficient for libraries as an a r r a n g e m e n t whereby subscriptions can be placed t h r o u g h agents, as is done in most developed countries For example, invoices in foreign languages sent inside the j o u r n a l s themselves tend to get lost or be ignored, sometimes resulting in lapses in supply. However, despite the drawbacks, the chmate generally may be said to be an i m p r o v e m e n t over what it was 4 or 5 years ago Some Malaysian subscriptions may still need to be placed direct with the pubhsher (particularly the lslamlc ones) but the services are usually reliable Several book publishers do act as serial agents a n d one has recently published a list of titles carried [10]. Thai periodicals may be reliably subscribed to t h r o u g h the commercial book suppliers. A valuable service for microform editions of Thai newspapers is provided by Asian Library Services in the U S. [11] Despite the existing problems with Vietnamese monographs, Vietnamese periodicals may be rehably subscribed to through X u n h a s a b a , though to achieve u n i n t e r rupted supply of issues the A N U has f o u n d it necessary to subscribe to them by air mall
Suppher Services While the actual supply of p u b l i c a t i o n s from Southeast Asian countries has improved, the existing services are still far below those available for books from North America or Europe.
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F \ I I ) BISHOP, Y~, CItANand W(J MILLFR
R e g u l a r reports on o r d e r status, c a t a l o g u e card supply with books, regular a n n o u n c e m e n t s of new and f o r t h c o m i n g b o o k s , a p p r o v a l plans, searching f r o m d e s i d e r a t a hsts and o t h e r regular features which are an accepted part of supply a r r a n g e m e n t s for most Western language material are, for the most part, yet to be i n t r o d u c e d into the S o u t h e a s t Asian b o o k distribution system.
Blbhographtc Aids The most significant d e v e l o p m e n t s that have taken place m Southeast Asian collectmn d e v e l o p m e n t can only be described as p e r i p h e r a l to what m a y strictly be called acqulsltmns, but, m the long term, these d e v e l o p m e n t s are i m p o r t a n t for e x p a n s i o n and i m p r o v e m e n t of any S o u t h e a s t Asian a c q m s l t m n s p r o g r a m m e . The following publications, which have all a p p e a r e d within the last few years, are i m p o r t a n t b t b h o g r a p h l c a l rods and have b e c o m e essential tools for any developing Southeast Asian collection 1 P a r t a n m g r a t , W m a r t l , ( e d ) Masler Ltsl o/ Soultwast Asian 14tcro/orms S m g a p o r c , University Press for S A R B I C A , 1978 [distributed in N o r t h A m e r i c a bx the O h m Unlxerslt~ Press] 2 Rlcklefs, Merle. Indonesian Manuscripts m Great Britain... L o n d o n , O x f o r d University Press, 1977 3 Karnl, R.S Btbhograp&v o/Malaysm and Singapore Kuala Lumpur, Penerblt UmverSXtl M a l a y a , 1980.
4 Katalog Kolekst Melayu, Perpustakaan Umverattt Malaya--Catalogue o/ the Malay Collection, Umverslty o/ Malaya Llbrao' Kuala k u m p u r , P e r p u s t a k a a n , U m v e r s m M a l a y a , 1980
5 Blbhograft Nastonal lndonesm, kumulast 1964-1972 (2 vols ) J a k a r t a , P r o y e k Pengemb a n g a n P e r p u s t a k a a n , D e p a r t e m e n P e n d i d l k a n dan K e b u d a y a a n , 1978
6. Blbhografi Nastonal Indonesm, kumulast 1973-1977 (2 vols ) J a k a r t a , P r o y e k P e n g e m b a n g a n P e r p u s t a k a a n , D e p a r t e m e n P e n d l d l k a n dan K e b u d a y a a n , J a k a r t a , 1978.
COOPERATION
AND RESOURCE SHARING
In recent years a c a d e m i c a n d research libraries in Australia, as in other d e v e l o p e d countries, have experienced a steady decline in financial s u p p o r t , affecting their levels of acquisition, staffing, and services. This has forced them to give m o r e serious a t t e n t i o n than ever before to the a d v a n t a g e s to be gained by m o r e effective c o o p e r a t i o n with other llbrarms, both in acquisitions and shared cataloguing a r r a n g e m e n t s The s o m e w h a t a m b i t i o u s and perhaps too hastily conceived national resource-sharing network scheme k n o w n as A u s t r a l i a n Library Based I n f o r m a t i o n System ( A E B I S ) p r o p o s e d by the N a t i o n a l Library of A u s t r a l i a in 1975 [12] was not i m p l e m e n t e d due to lack of g o v e r n m e n t funding However, cflorts have continued in various ways and In specific areas to i m p r o v e library c o o p e r a t i o n The most i m p o r t a n t recent d e v e l o p m e n t on a n a t i o n a l scale is the establishment o! the A u s t r a l i a n B l b h o g r a p h l c a l Network ( A B N ) which is a n a t i o n a l shared c a t a l o g u i n g system linked with the W a s h i n g t o n Library N e t w o r k in the U S A T h l s s y s t e m b e c a m e l u l l y o p e r a t i o n a l in 1981 a f t e r a pilot ~tud~ la~tlng~l\ m o n t h s , and, as m o r e libraries t h r o u g h o u t the country' hnk up with it, it is expected that the resulting n a t i o n a l b l b h o g r a p h l c d a t a base will become an i m p o r t a n t element in the d e v e l o p m e n t of resource-sharing on a national scale as well as shared cataloguing
Recent A u s t r a h a n E \ p m m n c e with C h m a and Southeast Asia
157
Because of the great distances between the mare p o p u l a t i o n centres and the tact that a u t o m a t e d bibliographic networks are still only in a fairly early stage of development, n a t i o n - w i d e r a t i o n a l i z a t i o n of resources is not really a feasible p r o p o s i t i o n at this stage. There are, however, a few local cooperative schemes a n d a r r a n g e m e n t s which have existed for a considerable period with varying degrees of effectiveness. One such scheme is that for Chinese (and Japanese) materials between the A u s t r a l i a n N a t i o n a l University and the National Library of Australia, both of which are located in C a n b e r r a a n d which, in the East Asian field, serve a similar chentele It was agreed as long ago as 1955 that there should be cooperation between the two institutions in acquisitions of Chinese a n d Japanese materials in order to avoid unnecessary duplication in a spemalized field Originally, the agreement took the form of a schedule of subject classes based on the H a r v a r d - Y e n c h i n g Class~cation Scheme,for Chinese and Japanese Books [13], with each class assigned to one i n s t i t u t i o n or the other (or, in some cases, both, with provision for consultation), in accordance with what were perceived as the specific interests and priorities of each At the time the scheme was adopted, a n d for a b o u t 15 years thereafter, the major emphasis in Chinese studies at the A N U was on "traditional" rather than m o d e r n studies, while the main interest of the National Library of Australia was deemed to be m o d e r n and c o n t e m p o r a r y China. Thus, the A N U Library was for some years collecting mainly works on literature, religion, philosophy, and on history before 1911, while the National Library acquired m a i n l y works on twentieth century history and society. The National Library also acquired some of the major works m the "traditional" fields The areas in which the a g r e e m e n t was f o u n d to operate most effectively were the "types of materials" categories, such as newspapers, maps and other n o n - b o o k materials, which the ANU left almost entirely to the N a t m n a l Library to collect Subject classes which were only peripheral to academic interests at the A N U , but which had a v o l u m i n o u s a n d expensive body of hterature, such as fine arts, were also left largely to the N a t i o n a l L~brary. However, in the " m a i n s t r e a m " fields such as hterature, history, politms and g o v e r n m e n t , A N U interests overlapped to a considerable extent with those of the National Library, and it became increasingly difficult to interpret and i m p l e m e n t the existing agreement in ways which would serve the interests of all users to the best advantage In the late 1960s, the e s t a b l i s h m e n t of the C o n t e m p o r a r y C h i n a Centre at the A N U was a key factor in b r i n g i n g a b o u t a general shift of emphasis in Chinese studms from t r a d i t m n a l to " m o d e r n . " Th~s m e a n t that the original c o o p e r a n v e a c q m s m o n s agreement was now far less relevant to the needs of A N U users, a n d a meeting was eventually held in 1973 at which the terms of the scheme were revised. Under the new arrangements, the need for greater flexibility was recognized, and responslblhty for collecting in the two main areas of history and literature of all periods was assigned to the A N U Responslblhty for several major categories by types of material was still assumed by the National Library of Austraha, including newspapers, g o v e r n m e n t and pohtlcal party publications, reprints of general series (Is 'ung shu), and a u d m - w s u a l materials. While these changes recogmzed the need for the A N U Library to tailor its collecting to the c h a n g i n g requirements of ItS academic users, the National Library still c o n t i n u e d to collect fairly s u b s t a n t m l l y in all m a j o r subject fields and covering all periods In the last 2-3 years, however, s h r i n k i n g book budgets in both libraries have provided the impetus for renewed discussions on the cooperative a r r a n g e m e n t s to achieve effecnve rationalization of Chinese resources in C a n b e r r a and to eliminate d u p l i c a t i o n of all but the most basic works. Regular c o n s u l t a t m n s are now held between the C h i n a specialists in both h b r a n e s a n d further refine-
158
ENII) BISHOP, YS CHANand WG MILLER
ments to collecting policies are being w o r k e d out. These now p r o v i d e for c o n c e n t r a t i o n by the A N U L i b r a r y on retrospective acquisitions and "difficult" current material f r o m The P e o p l e ' s R e p u b l i c of C h i n a which is not generally available, including b a c k issues of periodicals, whde the N a t i o n a l L i b r a r y is seeking the m o r e readily available current m a t e r i a l a n d larger scale p u r c h a s e s generally, within the m a j o r fields of the social sciences and humanities. These b r o a d a r r a n g e m e n t s are subject to m o d i f i c a t i o n in areas where special e x c h a n g e r e l a t i o n s h i p s exist on either side. A further step t o w a r d s r a t i o n a h z a t i o n of Chinese materials has been the a s s u m p t i o n of the m a j o r responsibility for collecting periodicals from The People's R e p u b h c of C h i n a by the A N U Library. In these various ways, m o r e reahstlc a n d practical pohcles are being progressively defined which are a i m e d at m a k i n g the best use of available funds, skills a n d expert knowledge in both institutions in the Chinese field In the S o u t h e a s t A s m n area, there has never been a f o r m a l c o o p e r a t i v e acquisitions a g r e e m e n t between the N a t i o n a l L i b r a r y of A u s t r a h a and the A N U of the kind which has existed for Chinese and J a p a n e s e matermls. However, there is close c o o p e r a t i o n of an informal kind between the S o u t h e a s t Asian specmhst h b r a r m n s in both hbrarles, since b o t h collect f r o m all parts of S o u t h e a s t Asia a n d are also serving to a large extent the same clientele. It IS t h e r e f o r e in the interests of all c o n c e r n e d that s o m e ratxonalizaUon of collecting pohcxes between the two institutions be agreed upon. As with East A s m n materials, the A N U L i b r a r y has a d o p t e d the policy of largely refraining f r o m acquisitions of certain types of materials f r o m S o u t h e a s t Asia, such as newspapers, s o m e g o v e r n m e n t p u b h c a t l o n s , audlo-v~sual and other n o n - b o o k materials for which the N a u o n a l L i b r a r y has systematic a c q u i s i t i o n p r o g r a m m e s Th~s policy a p p h e s generally for all countries of the area F o r b o o k s and periodicals, different a r r a n g e m e n t s exist for various countries The A N U L i b r a r y p a r t i c i p a t e s in the I n d o n e s m n Acquisitions Project o p e r a t e d by the N a t i o n a l L i b r a r y of A u s t r a h a , under the terms of which each l i b r a r y agrees to take a set selection of current materml a c q m r e d and s u p p h e d t h r o u g h the N a u o n a l Library's Acquisitions Office in J a k a r t a A l t h o u g h this means that two sets of the same m a t e r i a l are held in C a n b e r r a , it is felt that th~s is not excessive d u p l i c a t i o n in view of the i m p o r t a n c e of I n d o n e s m n studies at the A N U a n d the fact that the set IS selected m a c c o r d a n c e with an agreed policy. Since the N a u o n a l L i b r a r y has better access to sources of I n d o n e s i a n materials generally than the A N U , the latter h b r a r y does not a t t e m p t to c o m p e t e with it in this area, but rather to c o n c e n t r a t e on o b t a i n i n g matermls needed for specific research projects, especially reprints of out-of-print works and certain types of materials m p h o t o c o p y and m i c r o f o r m Special efforts are now being m a d e to strengthen the A N U ' s holdings of Malaysia,,' Singapore p u b h c a u o n s on the principle that th~s h b r a r y ~s better placed to develop these materials than those of I n d o n e s i a , for which the N a t i o n a l L i b r a r y ~s seen to have a p r i m a r y responslblhty As regards Thin a n d Philippine matermls, the N a t i o n a l L i b r a r y has b l a n k e t o r d e r a r r a n g e m e n t s with local suppliers for current b o o k s and periodicals, while the A N U L i b r a r y follows a title-by-title selection policy closely geared to its a c a d e m i c p r o g r a m m e s . In the case o f Vietnam, the N a t i o n a l L i b r a r y rehes mainly on exchange a r r a n g e m e n t s with its c o u n t e r p a r t in Hanoi, while the A N U uses a variety of m e t h o d s a n d sources, including exchange, and seeks both current and out-of-print items As a result of b o t h differing m e t h o d s of acquisition and different e m p h a s e s a n d objectives m selecting material, the a m o u n t of d u p l i c a t i o n m acquisitions from S o u t h e a s t Asia between the N a t i o n a l L i b r a r y of A u s t r a l i a a n d the A N U is relatively small, even t h o u g h systematic r a t i o n a l i z a t i o n agreements do not exist.
Recent Austrahan Experience with China and Southeast Asia
159
A n a d d i t i o n a l factor c o n t r i b u t i n g to better c o o p e r a t i o n between hbrarles IS the Newsletter of the Southeast Asian Research Materials G r o u p ( S E A R M G ) [14], which regularly pubhshes reports of i m p o r t a n t Southeast Asian acquisitions by A u s t r a h a n libraries, thus reducing the h k e h h o o d of unnecessary d u p l i c a t i o n and aiding resources p l a n n i n g to some extent. The d e v e l o p m e n t of a u t o m a t e d blbhographlc networks, of course, holds the greatest potential for ~mprovement of resource-sharing, and the establishment of the project k n o w n as BISA (Bibliographic I n f o r m a t i o n on Southeast Asia) is an i m p o r t a n t step towards full bibliographic control of Indonesian/' Malay materials m major A u s t r a h a n collections, with the promise of on-line access in due course by all libraries through the Australian Blbhographlc Network (ABN) BISA, which is based at the D e p a r t m e n t of I n d o n e s i a n and M a l a y a n Studies at the University of Sydney, is still m the developmental stage, and the data base at present contains only a b o u t 8,000 entries, but with c o n t i n u i n g financial support this n u m b e r should increase fairly rapidly over the next year or two In a field such as Asian studies, where resources are few and are unevenly distributed t h r o u g h o u t the country, these developments hold out better prospects than have been e w d e n t for some years for improved service to m a n y users. There are still formidable problems to be overcome in estabhshlng standard codes and systems for data h a n d l i n g m East Asian scripts, but these are being progressively tackled a n d overcome, and it seems certain that all m a j o r academic and research h b r a n e s will be p a m c i p a t l n g m a u t o m a t e d bibliographic networks m the near future which will give them immediate access to i n f o r m a t i o n a b o u t resources on a local, national and even i n t e r n a t m n a l level
CONCLUSION The A N U Library has f o u n d it necessary to respond to a n u m b e r of changes m its deahngs with supphers in C h i n a and Southeast Asia in recent years, and has c o n t i n u e d as in the past to employ a range of different methods and approaches in ItS attempts to gain the best results for the benefit of Its users of Asian materials It must still make very specific efforts on a short-term basis to o b t a i n needed items for research projects, and this sort of activity is likely to c o n t i n u e to some extent lndefmltely However, recent reductions m financial support and c o n t i n u i n g staff ceilings in libraries have provided the impetus for renewed efforts m the area of inter-library cooperation in Asian a c q u l s m o n s C o l l e c n o n - b u l l d m g pohc~es have recently been rewsed a n d there is now a greatly increased wflhngness by all concerned to develop truly r a n o n a h / e d a c q u i s t n o n programmes. These efforts should eventually be facilitated by a u t o m a t e d bibliographic networks, which, though mostly still in their mfancy, are now developing rapidly. The next five years will u n d o u b t e d l y see d r a m a t i c changes in blbhographlc i n f o r m a t i o n interchange m A u s t r a h a n hbrarles, and these in turn will affect Asian acquismons, along with all other aspects of library acnvlty
NOTES AND REFERENCES 1 Editorial Note l n s o h c l t m g t h x s manuscnpt, theedltors referred to Ms Bishop's"Acqmrlng Eastern Material The Australian Solution" (Pro~ee~hngs o/ IFI_A W o r l d w M e Seminar, M a y 3 1 - J u n e 5, 1976 Seoul Korean labrary Association, 1976, pp 130-143) which, alter an excellent summar), concludes "1 v~ould expect slgmficanI changes to began to take place w~thm the next l~,,e years" (p 143) 2 According to official figures pro,~lded b) ChunJ(-auo ~t7 "u p a n m e n ~h w n 1980, 11,136 roles of monographs were
160
3
4 5 6 7
8
9
10 11 12. 13. 14.
ENID BISHOP, Y S C H A N a n d W G M I l l FR
pubhshed m 1979, approximately one-third of the 1959 total, but, m serial pubhcattons, the figure increased from 851 m 1959 to 1,470 in 1979 For a relatwely detailed study of inflation rates, see Y S Chan, "Chinese publishing m transmon, 1972-1979 " In Austrahan Academw and Research Libraries, March 1981, pp 30-31 BtbhografiNastonallndonesla, kumulasl 1964-1972, v I Jakarta, 1978, p 111 Bertta ldayu Blbhografi, 1979, t, p 19 Foyziah Ahmad Nasuruddm, "Perolehan buku-buku teks dan bahan-bahan lain dalam Babasa Malaysia/' Indonesia " (Unpublished), p 1 , 1980 For example, see Indonesian Pubhcattons Seminar, National Library of Austraha, Canberra, 16 July 1974 Papers and Proceedings, Transcript o f Tapes Canberra, National Library of Australia, 1975, and W G Miller, "Co-operative Acqmsltions from one Third World Country The Australian Experience m Indonesia " In Acquisitions from the Third World, D A Clarke (ed) London, Mansell, 1975, pp 267-273 One figure cited for Malaysia is 1,323 titles for 1978, which would include works in all languages, Foyzmh, op ctt , p 2 Malaysian Books m Print, 1981, with Author, Title Index Publications in English Kuala Lumpur, Umverslty of Malaya Co-operative Bookshop Publications, 1981 [Editorial Note From the same publisher are Terkml Terbttan Terkmi Malayslana covering Enghsh and Malaysian language publications respectively ] Majalah, 1980 Kuala Lumpur, Agency Dwislon, University of Malaya Co-operatwe Bookshop Asia Library Services, P O Box 643, Auburn, New York 13021 See National Library of Australia, Development o f Resource Sharing Networks Interim Report and Surveys Canberra, 1975, 686 pp By A K'ai-mmg Ch'lu (Washington, 1943) Distributed three times a year by The Secretary, SEARMG, c/o Asian Studies Dlwsion, The L~brary, ANU, P O Box 4, Canberra, A C T 2600
0364-6408.82 020149-1250300,.0 ('op3rlght'¢~ 1982 Pergamon Press Ltd
ACQUISITIONS F R O M ASIA
RECENT AUSTRALIAN EXPERIENCE WITH C H I N A A N D S O U T H E A S T ASIA E N I D B I S H O P , Y.S. C H A N a n d W G
MILLER
Australian Natmnal Um,,ers~ty Canberra, /kustraha
ABSTRACT
Durmg the past 5 years, the Auslrahan Nattonal Untver,sttv} (,4 NU) evperlenees m a~qmrmg materials / t o m Chma and Southeast Asta have changed constderably There has been a stgm/tcant increase m pubh.shed matertals /rom the People,s Repubhc o/ China (PRC) including reprints atut a decrease m repubhshmg pro~h~ctton /rom Ta;~an Re~enth' there have been a number o / n e w supphers o/ P R C matertals Wtthm Southeast A.sta m/ormatton on avatlable matertals has dramatwallv increased mclu~hng wuter dt~trtbutlon o/ publishers' and dealers" ~atalogs There are also many more htbhographw aMs. Acqutrmg serials remams a problem /or all areas' Ltmtted aequtslttons budgets are contrtbutmg to greater cooperatton among Austrahan mstttutton,s, espectall_l' A NU and the National Lthrarl' o/ Austraha. Beginning m 1981 the Australian Btbhographwal Net~ork, hnked ~ tth the Washington Ltbrarv Net~ ork became operattonal
The last 5 years have seen a n u m b e r of changes in patterns of acquisitions of Asian pubh cat l o n s m A u s t r a h a n h b r a n e s [1] These differing patterns have come ab o u t mainly as a result of d e v e l o p m e n t s in the countries of origin, particularly m respect of their p u b h s h l n g actlvmcs, and to a lesser extent duc to changing conditions on the Australian library scene Experience at the Library of the Australian National University ( A N U ) has shown that, a m o n g the areas f r o m which this hbrar 5, regularly acquires material, acqulslttons from China and S o u t h eas t Asia have u n d e r g o n e the most significant changes, and it may be of interest to e x a m i n e in some detail what has been h a p p e m n g in dealings w~th these areas in recent years 149
150
ENID BISHOP Y b CHANand WG MIll FR CHINA
The A N U Library still employs a variety of methods of acquisition in order to m a i n t a i n satisfactory supply of Chinese materials. In spite of recent dramatic changes in publishing a n d d i s t r i b u t i n g of Chinese books and periodicals, it is still true that no single method is a d e q u a t e for s u p p l y i n g research library needs Materials must still be obtained by selective purchasing from booksellers, direct ordering from publishers, exchange with major libraries a n d research institutions, a n d photocopying, both in the form of m a j o r projects and by individual title The most I m p o r t a n t factor c o n t r i b u t i n g to a growing complexity in the acquisition of Chinese language materials has been the flourishing of publishing in recent years In the years 1971-75, the publishing o u t p u t of the People's Republic of China ( P R C ) was still low but, m the last 5 ),ears, especially since 1978, there has been a gradual but slgnlhcant increase A l t h o u g h the o u t p u t of m o n o g r a p h s is still far below the level of 1956-1960, the n u m b e r of serial titles has increased by 72% over the previous "golden years" [2] In the 1950s, most East Asian collections in the West were still in the early stages of d e v e l o p m e n t and the financial s u p p o r t for their parent institutions was sound. Therefore the proliferation of relatively cheap Chinese p u b l i c a t i o n s was welcomed at that time by e x p a n d i n g East Asian collections However, the situation has been quite different in the last 5 years. The revival of publishing activities in 1971 was a relief after the long drought but there were no clear guidelines to enable hbrarlans outside China to c o m p r e h e n d Chxna's p u b h c a t l o n s export pohcy People ma'; havc been mchned at one stage to blame the " G a n g of F o u r " for the obscurity, but while there has been some easing of the restrictions since the fall of the "Gang," the obscurity has not been totally dispelled At present, the P R C still classifies its own p u b l i c a t i o n s into four categories (1) restricted publications "to be kept with care", (2) restricted publications, (3) publications for domestic circulation only, and (4) publications for domestic and foreign circulation Those u n f a m l h a r with the Chinese concept of classifying publications may assume that those publications which need to be "kept with care" are g o v e r n m e n t d o c u m e n t s or items dealing with sensitive and controversial issues. In fact, m a n y of these publications appear to have no confidentiality whatever, and some have even been released for open circulation later Thus to the outsider, the basis for classification is by no means clear As more books are pubhshed in China, librarians are faced with more problems The financial restraints which have been felt in most East Asian collections in recent years have been aggravated by the u n u s u a l rate of price inflation of Chinese publications [3] A l t h o u g h some hbrarles may still be able to meet the financial c o m m i t m e n t s involved, this is not sufficient to ensure success Expert knowledge of methods and sources of supply a n d related factors is also essential. In the past, many libraries preferred blanket order a r r a n g e m e n t s with book dealers in H o n g Kong and Talpel to ensure that all new works published in either the People's Republic of China, H o n g Kong, or T a l w a n which fell within the scope of the library's collection policy would be covered. Whilst publications in T a l w a n present a n o t h e r p r o b l e m which will be discussed later, blanket order a r r a n g e m e n t s with Hong Kong dealers in the last few years have not proved to be satisfactory Some libraries believe that they can secure more books by placing a blanket order with Guozi S h u d l a n (China P u b l i c a t i o n Centre) in Peking However, it is A N U ' s estimate that neither of these channels can regularly supply more than 30% of Chlna's publications A m o n g all titles received, there is also a high rate of d u p l i c a t i o n as m a n y of the new p u b l i c a t i o n s are now printed by various provincial publishers to save the cost of t r a n s p o r t a t i o n inside China. Some are also reprinted in H o n g
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K o n g for overseas d i s t r i b u t i o n U n d e r these circumstances, it is not surprising to receive the same book in duplicate or triplicate within a hmlted period of time If one o b w o u s a d v a n t a g e of the blanket order method is to save staff time in selection and bibliographical checking, it has the disadvantage of omitting m a n y i m p o r t a n t books which are only available t h r o u g h pirate reprint editions or other "irregular" channels. These sources, according to A N U experience, would account for a p p r o x i m a t e l y 10% of m o n o g r a p h s and 20% of serials To make the s i t u a t i o n more complicated, there are two more organizations in China, one in Peking and a n o t h e r in Shanghai, which have started to supply books and periodicals to overseas libraries O n checking, the titles offered differ from those of the C h i n a Publications Centre in Peking and the Joint Publishing C o m p a n y in Hong Kong If these companies prove successful, it is most likely that similar organizations will be found In other major cities in C h i n a If so, one may wonder which dealer should be chosen for blanket orders. A d o p t i n g title-by-tile book selection is a relatively costly exercise, especially since the rapid increase in p u b h s h m g output, as m a n y trade catalogues from all sources must be checked. This is a t a m e - c o n s u m i n g a n d p a i n s t a k i n g task which has become more difficult since staff ceilings have been imposed in libraries m recent years Being aware of all the problems of Chinese acquisitions, a few East Asian collections have a t t e m p t e d to use C h ' u a n k u o h s i n s h u m u (National Bibliography of the P R C ) as a tool for selection but this has proved to be not feasible. M a n y of the items listed in the Bibliography are not available outside C h i n a and also a large p r o p o r t i o n of them have become out-ofprint by the time the Blbhography is issued One possible way to make good the deficiencies in acquiring books through either blanket order or selection is to establish good e x c h a n g e r e l a t l o n s h l p s with major Chinese libraries, but this also takes time and patience Although theoretically every major library in C h i n a can now have direct relations with overseas libraries, j u d g i n g from the A N U ' s experience in the last 5 years, not every Chinese library knows how to deal with the West Under these circumstances, a library must be cautious in selecting its exchange partners if it is to get the best result from such cooperation If one were to say that out-of-print or rare Chinese material was steadily decreasing in Hong Kong d u r i n g 1971-75, one would have to say that the last 5 years witnessed the complete d i s a p p e a r a n c e of this type of material. There are still a handful of s e c o n d - h a n d b o o k dealers in J a p a n , the U S., a n d Europe who handle old and rare Chinese material, but only at prohibitive prices Despite th~s situation, it is interesting to note that the unavailability of out-of-print material is no longer a real problem for collection building in a Chinese academic or research library. In the 1960s and early 1970s, there was a reprint b o o m In Talwan. This was mainly due to the decline of publishing in the PRC, and reprinting was needed to fill the gap, which made it a very profitable enterprise. However, with the revival of Chinese publishing and the s h r i n k i n g of financial support, the reprinting of out-of-print material in Talwan, and to a lesser extent H o n g Kong, has recently been taken over by P R C In recent years, m a n y works have been reproduced in China. Publisher's reprint collectanea of the type formerly produced in T a l w a n have also b e g u n to appear. It is not clear whether these reprints are primarily for domestic c o n s u m p t i o n or for export If the latter, Chinese publishers may be too late, as the d e m a n d for this type of material by overseas libraries is gradually declining. A n o t h e r factor is that after the fall of the "Gang," Chinese libraries adopted a very friendly attitude towards overseas libraries. It is our experience that filling gaps in serial holdings or requesting reprints or microform copies of rare books is no longer a problem Thus, purchasing sets of less useful collectanea may no longer be necessary
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FNIDBISHOP Y <, ('HA\ and W() VIII LER
In Talwan, the trend of publishing is also changing rapidly. As mentioned above, reprinting actlvltmS are declining, and m a n y of the publishers specializing in this business are disappearing This is mainly due to the limited market overseas Many new publishers have been established and more new titles are being published which are mainly catering for the domestic market These new p u b h c a t l o n s are expensive by local standards By the n u m b e r of titles published by m a n y larger publishers, it can be assumed that good original works are still in d e m a n d locally As in the PRC, quite a substantial p r o p o r t i o n of publications in Talwan are difficult to obtain The majority of these are a n t i - g o v e r n m e n t periodicals and m o n o g r a p h s which are quickly censored after circulation When some of these become available in Hong Kong, they are sold at a p p r o x i m a t e l y 5-10 times the original list price A p a r t from books classified as internal publications, it is the A N U ' s experience that a c q u i r i n g books from C h i n a is now much easmr than from Talwan, The m a i n reason is that there Is no organized b o o k - t r a d e in T a l w a n for the overseas market. M a n y of the wellk n o w n booksellers in T a l w a n do not have experience in dealing with overseas libraries Even in the case of the few who know the business, inadequate bibliographical details in their trade catalogues and poor service rendered present considerable difficulties for librarians when m a k i n g book selections and carrying out acquisitions In these circumstances the A N U has tended to rely on one or two suppliers who have some experience in supplying overseas hbrarles and who ha~e d e m o n s t r a t e d some measure ol rellablht 3 over a period of several )'ears As with China, good exchange relationships ~ l t h major T a l w a n libraries can be rewarding iI sulflcient time and effort is devoted to developing them
SOUTHEAS'I ASIA It is impossible to generahze a b o u t developments m the acquisition of Southeast Asian p u b l i c a t i o n s d u r i n g the past five years Experience at the A N U has shown that progress in publishing and i m p r o v e m e n t s in acquls~tions have not been uniform across the region and each country must therefore be considered separately
Indonesia In Indonesia, there is no question that the volume, attractiveness, and the intrinsic quahty of publications particularly commercially produced works have continued to rise d u r i n g the 1970s and into the 1980s, and this in itself creates the need to adjust one's acquisitions. It is difficult to locate specific figures, but in 1972 there were a b o u t 650 t,tles published [4] while by 1979 the n u m b e r was over 3,000 [5] A n intermediate figure given for 1978 is 1,852 titles [6] Specifically, there has been a flood comparatively speaking of hterar), biographical and other serious pubhshmg, and the technical quality has also VlSlbl) improved Needless to say, the rise In q u a h t y has been a c c o m p a n i e d by rising prices, and m a time of pegged library budgets, this has required more selectivity in acquisitions policies The question must be asked, however, whether in line with this i m p r o v e m e n t in publishing sales, p r o m o t i o n , and d i s t r i b u t i o n methods have also improved to the extent that better acquisition of material has resulted for overseas libraries There is certainly an increased volume of p r o m o t i o n a l material available now for I n d o n e s i a n commercial publications, however, the coverage is still nowhere near c o m p r e h e n sive. G u n u n g A g u n g (Singapore), Gramedla, the Centre for Strategic and I n t e r n a t i o n a l
Recent A u s t r a h a n L x p e r m n c e ~ l t h ( ' h m a a n d %outheast A,,m
153
Studies, a n d Srltua Arief are several publishers who have been distributing blurbs D A Book Depot, M e l b o u r n e , has provided lists of I n d o n e s i a n titles, mainly those of P u s t a k a Jaya. Details of new titles are now frequently advertised in periodicals such as Tempo, Hortson, a n d Panjt Masyarakat, to n a m e but a few. The best source for I n d o n e s i a n pubhcatlons, however, is the l o n g - r u n n i n g Bertta Idayu Btbhogralt which, with its changing format, was a p p r o a c h i n g in style in 1979 a m o n t h l y I n d o n e s i a n version of the Publtshers" Weekly. However, c o m m e n c i n g In 1980, it has again reduced the a m o u n t of space devoted to b a c k g r o u n d articles on all aspects of the book trade in Indonesia, including libraries, which had proved extremely valuable, and it now appears to have limited itself to book reviews and the m o n t h l y list of titles catalogued at the Yayasan Idayu One reason for the reversion by Berlta Idayu Blbhografi to a more restricted format may be the a p p e a r a n c e on the I n d o n e s i a n periodical market of Optlrms. The publication of Opttmts has been one of the most exciting developments to occur on the I n d o n e s i a n p u b h s h l n g scene for m a n y years First a p p e a r i n g in F e b r u a r y 1980, Opttmls is a m o n t h l y periodical of articles and c o m m e n t s devoted to writing, publishing and reading, all placed within, and with relevance to, the wider context of I n d o n e s i a n society, politics, and culture Each issue contains substantial articles on pubhshers, authors, or libraries. It also carries a u t h o r i t a t i v e b o o k reviews and a " D a f t a r Pustaka" (list of new books currently in print) as well as publishers' advertisements, n u m e r o u s photographs and a hst of members Subscription entitles one to m e m b e r s h i p in the "Book Lovers" Club ( H i m p u n a n M a s y a r a k a t Penclta Buku), the publisher of Opnmts, which in turn is backed by a private f o u n d a t i o n whose m e m b e r s include several members of the I n d o n e s i a n ehte (e.g, A d a m Mahk, Yusuf Ismall, and Chrlstlanto Wlblsono) The Indonesian National Blbhography has completed its project of c u m u l a t i n g retrospective material but current entries, u n d e r s t a n d a b l y , take some time to appear a n d like most n a t i o n a l blbhographles it is less useful as a selection tool than as a blbhographlcal authority Despite these I m p r o v e m e n t s in the p r o m o t i o n of books, the actual supply of publications still leaves much to be desired. It is true that British and Malaysian hbrarles receive satisfactory blanket order service for I n d o n e s i a n commercial and some g o v e r n m e n t p u b h c a tlons, and several commercial suppliers are available, including those m e n t i o n e d earlier In addition, the A N U has d u r i n g the past few years acquired some material by direct ordering from Bhratara, Nusa Indah, G r a m e d l a and other publishers However, where they can afford it, m a j o r overseas libraries, or consortia of hbrarles, still prefer to m a i n t a i n their own acqmsitlons office in Indonesia. The Royal Institute for Linguistics and A n t h r o p o l o g y (The Netherlands), the Library of Congress (U S.) and the N a t i o n a l Library of Australia still c o n t i n u e to a p p o i n t resident p r o c u r e m e n t officers, particularly to ensure a satisfactory coverage of g o v e r n m e n t and institutional p u b h c a t l o n s . As these libraries themselves face increasing b u d g e t a r y constraints, there may be a move to rationalize their I n d o n e s i a n operations but, as yet, no official a n n o u n c e m e n t s have been made in this direction The cooperative acquisitions p r o g r a m m e s of the U.S. and Australia c o n t i n u e to face the inherent difficulties assocmted with such cooperative ventures These drawbacks have been discussed frequently before [7]. The major difficulty appears to be that acquisitions profiles for each participating library c a n n o t be Incorporated into the schemes without intolerable expense. F u r t h e r m o r e , as commercial publications become more readily available t h r o u g h n o r m a l book dealers, the need becomes greater to coordinate the two different methods of acquisitions to avoid unnecessary duplication Nevertheless, as they have done now for nearly 20 years, the cooperative acquisitions schemes will no d o u b t c o n t i n u e to prove their worth for the foreseeable future.
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ENID B I S H O P , Y S C H A N and W G
MILLER
The L i b r a r y of Congress p r o g r a m m e to microfilm the m a j o r i t y of n o n - c o m m e r c i a l p u b h c a t i o n s from I n d o n e s i a has been a further step in the direction of i m p r o v e d coverage. This system a p p e a r s to o p e r a t e well, items may be selected from the L C Southeast Asia Accessions List, each item h a w n g a unique microfiche o r d e r n u m b e r S u p p l y f r o m the L i b r a r y of Congress P h o t o d u p h c a t l o n Service is p r o m p t and r e a s o n a b l y priced. One p r o m i s i n g recent d e v e l o p m e n t for b i b l i o g r a p h i c a l control of I n d o n e s i a n g o v e r n m e n t p u b h c a t l o n s has been the a p p e a r a n c e of Daftar Penerbltan Pemermtah, a list published by the I n d o n e s i a n State Secretariat. If this serial continues to a p p e a r on a regular basis, it could develop as a m a j o r a c q m s m o n s tool, c o n t a i n i n g as it does useful details such as names and addresses of the sources of publications
Malaysia and Singapore T u r n i n g to M a l a y s i a and Singapore, while it has not been possible to locate recent statistics of b o o k publishing, the general Impression one is left with IS that both quality and q u a n t i t y have i m p r o v e d [8]. Certainly the p r o m o t i o n of M a l a y s i a n and S i n g a p o r e b o o k s has i m p r o v e d and it is now possible to receive regular lists of titles available from reliable suppliers such as Select Books, Maruzen, and C h o p m e n in S i n g a p o r e a n d the University of M a l a y a C o o p e r a t i v e B o o k s h o p a n d Parry's Book Centre in Malaysia. The last two include M a l a y - l a n g u a g e titles in their lists whmh is a c o n s i d e r a b l e a d v a n t a g e for Asian studies libraries This year 1981 has also seen the a p p e a r a n c e of Malaysian Books m Print [9] which hopefully will be an a n n u a l p u b l i c a t i o n The e d i t m n of this w o r k which has been seen c o n t a i n e d only English-language p u b h c a t l o n s It is fair to say that m a n y t~tles from small regional pubhshers in M a l a y s i a are still not available comprehensively t h r o u g h Kuala L u m p u r b o o k suppliers, and M a l a y s i a n a c q m s i t l o n s librarians themselves need to continue p e r s o n a l l y checking publishers' a d v e m s e m e n t s M a l a y s i a n suppliers are also b e c o m i n g increasingly efficient at handling M a l a y s i a n g o v e r n m e n t p u b h c a t m n s , t h o u g h the varying frequency and small print runs of the p u b l i c a t i o n s themselves present intrinsic difficulties for acqmsltlOnS a n d bibliographical c o n t r o l
Thailand T h a i l a n d suppliers still represent the most reliable, longest-standing b o o k dealers in S o u t h e a s t Asia The Thai b o o k t r a d e continues to flourish and the d i s t r i b u t i o n of c o m m e r c i a l m o n o g r a p h s is carried out by at least three established b o o k s h o p s , one of w h o m p r o d u c e s a m o n t h l y listing of new titles in stock The A N U Library, which in general avoids standingo r d e r a r r a n g e m e n t s , selects material from Thai umverslty accession lists This inevitably results in a small p r o p o r t i o n of orders being out-of-print by the time orders are placed, but the scheme overall works satisfactorily. Other libraries with m a j o r Thai collections find that b o o k suppliers have the capacity to provide satisfactory b l a n k e t - o r d e r service Thai g o v e r n m e n t p u b l i c a t i o n s on the o t h e r h a n d are not h a n d l e d by b o o k suppliers a n d their acqusltlOn still requires a great deal of initiative and personal c o r r e s p o n d e n c e to the g o v e r n m e n t offices concerned. Generally speaking, the Thai g o v e r n m e n t d e p a r t m e n t s are c o o p e r a t i v e when a p p r o a c h e d with specific requests (there is not the same degree of suspicion that one may meet in, for example, Indonesian g o v e r n m e n t offices), but for overseas libraries it is still difficult to establish what titles are being published Only a small n u m b e r of g o v e r n m e n t d e p a r t m e n t s a p p e a r to be able to provide their publications on a regular basis
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Vietnam Vietnamese acquisitions have displayed a d i s a p p o i n t i n g trend d u r i n g the past 2 years, at least insofar as the A N U has been concerned Until 1980, the intake of publications from V i e t n a m was increasing at a satisfying rate. This was achieved both by purchase t h r o u g h the state d i s t r i b u t i o n agency in Hanoi, X u n h a s a b a , and through exchange with the National Library of Vietnam Acquisitions since then have dropped off alarmingly Whether this has been due to a decline in p u b h s h l n g in Vietnam itself as a result of the deteriorating economic situation, whether It IS related to strained d i p l o m a t i c relations between A u s t r a h a and Vietnam, or whether it is a c o m b i n a t i o n of both factors is too early to tell On a slightly more positive note, m a n y earher Vietnamese books are being reprinted in the U S by "refugee" book publishers, and this has presented libraries with the o p p o r t u n i t y to fill gaps in their collections of retrospective material
Phthppme Regular lasts of commercial p u b h c a t l o n s from the Philippines are available for selection purposes. Some g o v e r n m e n t p u b l i c a t i o n s are available through commercial channels but the range of titles is not wide
Burma Burmese material IS still impossible to o b t a i n by purchase and the only way Western libraries are acquiring publications, as far as the present writers are aware, is by exchange a r r a n g e m e n t s with the Universities Central Library, R a n g o o n
Periodicals from Southeast Asia Unlike the situation for m o n o g r a p h s , it IS possible to generahse that the supply of periodicals from Southeast Asia has, generally, improved during the past few years. In Indonesia, while no single reliable subscription agent may have been forthcoming, it is true to say that the publishers themselves seem to be more efficient in the overseas d i s t r i b u t i o n of their j o u r n a l s , and subscriptions may now be more safely placed direct This is not as c o n v e n i e n t or efficient for libraries as an a r r a n g e m e n t whereby subscriptions can be placed t h r o u g h agents, as is done in most developed countries For example, invoices in foreign languages sent inside the j o u r n a l s themselves tend to get lost or be ignored, sometimes resulting in lapses in supply. However, despite the drawbacks, the chmate generally may be said to be an i m p r o v e m e n t over what it was 4 or 5 years ago Some Malaysian subscriptions may still need to be placed direct with the pubhsher (particularly the lslamlc ones) but the services are usually reliable Several book publishers do act as serial agents a n d one has recently published a list of titles carried [10]. Thai periodicals may be reliably subscribed to t h r o u g h the commercial book suppliers. A valuable service for microform editions of Thai newspapers is provided by Asian Library Services in the U S. [11] Despite the existing problems with Vietnamese monographs, Vietnamese periodicals may be rehably subscribed to through X u n h a s a b a , though to achieve u n i n t e r rupted supply of issues the A N U has f o u n d it necessary to subscribe to them by air mall
Suppher Services While the actual supply of p u b l i c a t i o n s from Southeast Asian countries has improved, the existing services are still far below those available for books from North America or Europe.
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F \ I I ) BISHOP, Y~, CItANand W(J MILLFR
R e g u l a r reports on o r d e r status, c a t a l o g u e card supply with books, regular a n n o u n c e m e n t s of new and f o r t h c o m i n g b o o k s , a p p r o v a l plans, searching f r o m d e s i d e r a t a hsts and o t h e r regular features which are an accepted part of supply a r r a n g e m e n t s for most Western language material are, for the most part, yet to be i n t r o d u c e d into the S o u t h e a s t Asian b o o k distribution system.
Blbhographtc Aids The most significant d e v e l o p m e n t s that have taken place m Southeast Asian collectmn d e v e l o p m e n t can only be described as p e r i p h e r a l to what m a y strictly be called acqulsltmns, but, m the long term, these d e v e l o p m e n t s are i m p o r t a n t for e x p a n s i o n and i m p r o v e m e n t of any S o u t h e a s t Asian a c q m s l t m n s p r o g r a m m e . The following publications, which have all a p p e a r e d within the last few years, are i m p o r t a n t b t b h o g r a p h l c a l rods and have b e c o m e essential tools for any developing Southeast Asian collection 1 P a r t a n m g r a t , W m a r t l , ( e d ) Masler Ltsl o/ Soultwast Asian 14tcro/orms S m g a p o r c , University Press for S A R B I C A , 1978 [distributed in N o r t h A m e r i c a bx the O h m Unlxerslt~ Press] 2 Rlcklefs, Merle. Indonesian Manuscripts m Great Britain... L o n d o n , O x f o r d University Press, 1977 3 Karnl, R.S Btbhograp&v o/Malaysm and Singapore Kuala Lumpur, Penerblt UmverSXtl M a l a y a , 1980.
4 Katalog Kolekst Melayu, Perpustakaan Umverattt Malaya--Catalogue o/ the Malay Collection, Umverslty o/ Malaya Llbrao' Kuala k u m p u r , P e r p u s t a k a a n , U m v e r s m M a l a y a , 1980
5 Blbhograft Nastonal lndonesm, kumulast 1964-1972 (2 vols ) J a k a r t a , P r o y e k Pengemb a n g a n P e r p u s t a k a a n , D e p a r t e m e n P e n d i d l k a n dan K e b u d a y a a n , 1978
6. Blbhografi Nastonal Indonesm, kumulast 1973-1977 (2 vols ) J a k a r t a , P r o y e k P e n g e m b a n g a n P e r p u s t a k a a n , D e p a r t e m e n P e n d l d l k a n dan K e b u d a y a a n , J a k a r t a , 1978.
COOPERATION
AND RESOURCE SHARING
In recent years a c a d e m i c a n d research libraries in Australia, as in other d e v e l o p e d countries, have experienced a steady decline in financial s u p p o r t , affecting their levels of acquisition, staffing, and services. This has forced them to give m o r e serious a t t e n t i o n than ever before to the a d v a n t a g e s to be gained by m o r e effective c o o p e r a t i o n with other llbrarms, both in acquisitions and shared cataloguing a r r a n g e m e n t s The s o m e w h a t a m b i t i o u s and perhaps too hastily conceived national resource-sharing network scheme k n o w n as A u s t r a l i a n Library Based I n f o r m a t i o n System ( A E B I S ) p r o p o s e d by the N a t i o n a l Library of A u s t r a l i a in 1975 [12] was not i m p l e m e n t e d due to lack of g o v e r n m e n t funding However, cflorts have continued in various ways and In specific areas to i m p r o v e library c o o p e r a t i o n The most i m p o r t a n t recent d e v e l o p m e n t on a n a t i o n a l scale is the establishment o! the A u s t r a l i a n B l b h o g r a p h l c a l Network ( A B N ) which is a n a t i o n a l shared c a t a l o g u i n g system linked with the W a s h i n g t o n Library N e t w o r k in the U S A T h l s s y s t e m b e c a m e l u l l y o p e r a t i o n a l in 1981 a f t e r a pilot ~tud~ la~tlng~l\ m o n t h s , and, as m o r e libraries t h r o u g h o u t the country' hnk up with it, it is expected that the resulting n a t i o n a l b l b h o g r a p h l c d a t a base will become an i m p o r t a n t element in the d e v e l o p m e n t of resource-sharing on a national scale as well as shared cataloguing
Recent A u s t r a h a n E \ p m m n c e with C h m a and Southeast Asia
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Because of the great distances between the mare p o p u l a t i o n centres and the tact that a u t o m a t e d bibliographic networks are still only in a fairly early stage of development, n a t i o n - w i d e r a t i o n a l i z a t i o n of resources is not really a feasible p r o p o s i t i o n at this stage. There are, however, a few local cooperative schemes a n d a r r a n g e m e n t s which have existed for a considerable period with varying degrees of effectiveness. One such scheme is that for Chinese (and Japanese) materials between the A u s t r a l i a n N a t i o n a l University and the National Library of Australia, both of which are located in C a n b e r r a a n d which, in the East Asian field, serve a similar chentele It was agreed as long ago as 1955 that there should be cooperation between the two institutions in acquisitions of Chinese a n d Japanese materials in order to avoid unnecessary duplication in a spemalized field Originally, the agreement took the form of a schedule of subject classes based on the H a r v a r d - Y e n c h i n g Class~cation Scheme,for Chinese and Japanese Books [13], with each class assigned to one i n s t i t u t i o n or the other (or, in some cases, both, with provision for consultation), in accordance with what were perceived as the specific interests and priorities of each At the time the scheme was adopted, a n d for a b o u t 15 years thereafter, the major emphasis in Chinese studies at the A N U was on "traditional" rather than m o d e r n studies, while the main interest of the National Library of Australia was deemed to be m o d e r n and c o n t e m p o r a r y China. Thus, the A N U Library was for some years collecting mainly works on literature, religion, philosophy, and on history before 1911, while the National Library acquired m a i n l y works on twentieth century history and society. The National Library also acquired some of the major works m the "traditional" fields The areas in which the a g r e e m e n t was f o u n d to operate most effectively were the "types of materials" categories, such as newspapers, maps and other n o n - b o o k materials, which the ANU left almost entirely to the N a t m n a l Library to collect Subject classes which were only peripheral to academic interests at the A N U , but which had a v o l u m i n o u s a n d expensive body of hterature, such as fine arts, were also left largely to the N a t i o n a l L~brary. However, in the " m a i n s t r e a m " fields such as hterature, history, politms and g o v e r n m e n t , A N U interests overlapped to a considerable extent with those of the National Library, and it became increasingly difficult to interpret and i m p l e m e n t the existing agreement in ways which would serve the interests of all users to the best advantage In the late 1960s, the e s t a b l i s h m e n t of the C o n t e m p o r a r y C h i n a Centre at the A N U was a key factor in b r i n g i n g a b o u t a general shift of emphasis in Chinese studms from t r a d i t m n a l to " m o d e r n . " Th~s m e a n t that the original c o o p e r a n v e a c q m s m o n s agreement was now far less relevant to the needs of A N U users, a n d a meeting was eventually held in 1973 at which the terms of the scheme were revised. Under the new arrangements, the need for greater flexibility was recognized, and responslblhty for collecting in the two main areas of history and literature of all periods was assigned to the A N U Responslblhty for several major categories by types of material was still assumed by the National Library of Austraha, including newspapers, g o v e r n m e n t and pohtlcal party publications, reprints of general series (Is 'ung shu), and a u d m - w s u a l materials. While these changes recogmzed the need for the A N U Library to tailor its collecting to the c h a n g i n g requirements of ItS academic users, the National Library still c o n t i n u e d to collect fairly s u b s t a n t m l l y in all m a j o r subject fields and covering all periods In the last 2-3 years, however, s h r i n k i n g book budgets in both libraries have provided the impetus for renewed discussions on the cooperative a r r a n g e m e n t s to achieve effecnve rationalization of Chinese resources in C a n b e r r a and to eliminate d u p l i c a t i o n of all but the most basic works. Regular c o n s u l t a t m n s are now held between the C h i n a specialists in both h b r a n e s a n d further refine-
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ENII) BISHOP, YS CHANand WG MILLER
ments to collecting policies are being w o r k e d out. These now p r o v i d e for c o n c e n t r a t i o n by the A N U L i b r a r y on retrospective acquisitions and "difficult" current material f r o m The P e o p l e ' s R e p u b l i c of C h i n a which is not generally available, including b a c k issues of periodicals, whde the N a t i o n a l L i b r a r y is seeking the m o r e readily available current m a t e r i a l a n d larger scale p u r c h a s e s generally, within the m a j o r fields of the social sciences and humanities. These b r o a d a r r a n g e m e n t s are subject to m o d i f i c a t i o n in areas where special e x c h a n g e r e l a t i o n s h i p s exist on either side. A further step t o w a r d s r a t i o n a h z a t i o n of Chinese materials has been the a s s u m p t i o n of the m a j o r responsibility for collecting periodicals from The People's R e p u b h c of C h i n a by the A N U Library. In these various ways, m o r e reahstlc a n d practical pohcles are being progressively defined which are a i m e d at m a k i n g the best use of available funds, skills a n d expert knowledge in both institutions in the Chinese field In the S o u t h e a s t A s m n area, there has never been a f o r m a l c o o p e r a t i v e acquisitions a g r e e m e n t between the N a t i o n a l L i b r a r y of A u s t r a h a and the A N U of the kind which has existed for Chinese and J a p a n e s e matermls. However, there is close c o o p e r a t i o n of an informal kind between the S o u t h e a s t Asian specmhst h b r a r m n s in both hbrarles, since b o t h collect f r o m all parts of S o u t h e a s t Asia a n d are also serving to a large extent the same clientele. It IS t h e r e f o r e in the interests of all c o n c e r n e d that s o m e ratxonalizaUon of collecting pohcxes between the two institutions be agreed upon. As with East A s m n materials, the A N U L i b r a r y has a d o p t e d the policy of largely refraining f r o m acquisitions of certain types of materials f r o m S o u t h e a s t Asia, such as newspapers, s o m e g o v e r n m e n t p u b h c a t l o n s , audlo-v~sual and other n o n - b o o k materials for which the N a u o n a l L i b r a r y has systematic a c q u i s i t i o n p r o g r a m m e s Th~s policy a p p h e s generally for all countries of the area F o r b o o k s and periodicals, different a r r a n g e m e n t s exist for various countries The A N U L i b r a r y p a r t i c i p a t e s in the I n d o n e s m n Acquisitions Project o p e r a t e d by the N a t i o n a l L i b r a r y of A u s t r a h a , under the terms of which each l i b r a r y agrees to take a set selection of current materml a c q m r e d and s u p p h e d t h r o u g h the N a u o n a l Library's Acquisitions Office in J a k a r t a A l t h o u g h this means that two sets of the same m a t e r i a l are held in C a n b e r r a , it is felt that th~s is not excessive d u p l i c a t i o n in view of the i m p o r t a n c e of I n d o n e s m n studies at the A N U a n d the fact that the set IS selected m a c c o r d a n c e with an agreed policy. Since the N a u o n a l L i b r a r y has better access to sources of I n d o n e s i a n materials generally than the A N U , the latter h b r a r y does not a t t e m p t to c o m p e t e with it in this area, but rather to c o n c e n t r a t e on o b t a i n i n g matermls needed for specific research projects, especially reprints of out-of-print works and certain types of materials m p h o t o c o p y and m i c r o f o r m Special efforts are now being m a d e to strengthen the A N U ' s holdings of Malaysia,,' Singapore p u b h c a u o n s on the principle that th~s h b r a r y ~s better placed to develop these materials than those of I n d o n e s i a , for which the N a t i o n a l L i b r a r y ~s seen to have a p r i m a r y responslblhty As regards Thin a n d Philippine matermls, the N a t i o n a l L i b r a r y has b l a n k e t o r d e r a r r a n g e m e n t s with local suppliers for current b o o k s and periodicals, while the A N U L i b r a r y follows a title-by-title selection policy closely geared to its a c a d e m i c p r o g r a m m e s . In the case o f Vietnam, the N a t i o n a l L i b r a r y rehes mainly on exchange a r r a n g e m e n t s with its c o u n t e r p a r t in Hanoi, while the A N U uses a variety of m e t h o d s a n d sources, including exchange, and seeks both current and out-of-print items As a result of b o t h differing m e t h o d s of acquisition and different e m p h a s e s a n d objectives m selecting material, the a m o u n t of d u p l i c a t i o n m acquisitions from S o u t h e a s t Asia between the N a t i o n a l L i b r a r y of A u s t r a l i a a n d the A N U is relatively small, even t h o u g h systematic r a t i o n a l i z a t i o n agreements do not exist.
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A n a d d i t i o n a l factor c o n t r i b u t i n g to better c o o p e r a t i o n between hbrarles IS the Newsletter of the Southeast Asian Research Materials G r o u p ( S E A R M G ) [14], which regularly pubhshes reports of i m p o r t a n t Southeast Asian acquisitions by A u s t r a h a n libraries, thus reducing the h k e h h o o d of unnecessary d u p l i c a t i o n and aiding resources p l a n n i n g to some extent. The d e v e l o p m e n t of a u t o m a t e d blbhographlc networks, of course, holds the greatest potential for ~mprovement of resource-sharing, and the establishment of the project k n o w n as BISA (Bibliographic I n f o r m a t i o n on Southeast Asia) is an i m p o r t a n t step towards full bibliographic control of Indonesian/' Malay materials m major A u s t r a h a n collections, with the promise of on-line access in due course by all libraries through the Australian Blbhographlc Network (ABN) BISA, which is based at the D e p a r t m e n t of I n d o n e s i a n and M a l a y a n Studies at the University of Sydney, is still m the developmental stage, and the data base at present contains only a b o u t 8,000 entries, but with c o n t i n u i n g financial support this n u m b e r should increase fairly rapidly over the next year or two In a field such as Asian studies, where resources are few and are unevenly distributed t h r o u g h o u t the country, these developments hold out better prospects than have been e w d e n t for some years for improved service to m a n y users. There are still formidable problems to be overcome in estabhshlng standard codes and systems for data h a n d l i n g m East Asian scripts, but these are being progressively tackled a n d overcome, and it seems certain that all m a j o r academic and research h b r a n e s will be p a m c i p a t l n g m a u t o m a t e d bibliographic networks m the near future which will give them immediate access to i n f o r m a t i o n a b o u t resources on a local, national and even i n t e r n a t m n a l level
CONCLUSION The A N U Library has f o u n d it necessary to respond to a n u m b e r of changes m its deahngs with supphers in C h i n a and Southeast Asia in recent years, and has c o n t i n u e d as in the past to employ a range of different methods and approaches in ItS attempts to gain the best results for the benefit of Its users of Asian materials It must still make very specific efforts on a short-term basis to o b t a i n needed items for research projects, and this sort of activity is likely to c o n t i n u e to some extent lndefmltely However, recent reductions m financial support and c o n t i n u i n g staff ceilings in libraries have provided the impetus for renewed efforts m the area of inter-library cooperation in Asian a c q u l s m o n s C o l l e c n o n - b u l l d m g pohc~es have recently been rewsed a n d there is now a greatly increased wflhngness by all concerned to develop truly r a n o n a h / e d a c q u i s t n o n programmes. These efforts should eventually be facilitated by a u t o m a t e d bibliographic networks, which, though mostly still in their mfancy, are now developing rapidly. The next five years will u n d o u b t e d l y see d r a m a t i c changes in blbhographlc i n f o r m a t i o n interchange m A u s t r a h a n hbrarles, and these in turn will affect Asian acquismons, along with all other aspects of library acnvlty
NOTES AND REFERENCES 1 Editorial Note l n s o h c l t m g t h x s manuscnpt, theedltors referred to Ms Bishop's"Acqmrlng Eastern Material The Australian Solution" (Pro~ee~hngs o/ IFI_A W o r l d w M e Seminar, M a y 3 1 - J u n e 5, 1976 Seoul Korean labrary Association, 1976, pp 130-143) which, alter an excellent summar), concludes "1 v~ould expect slgmficanI changes to began to take place w~thm the next l~,,e years" (p 143) 2 According to official figures pro,~lded b) ChunJ(-auo ~t7 "u p a n m e n ~h w n 1980, 11,136 roles of monographs were
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3
4 5 6 7
8
9
10 11 12. 13. 14.
ENID BISHOP, Y S C H A N a n d W G M I l l FR
pubhshed m 1979, approximately one-third of the 1959 total, but, m serial pubhcattons, the figure increased from 851 m 1959 to 1,470 in 1979 For a relatwely detailed study of inflation rates, see Y S Chan, "Chinese publishing m transmon, 1972-1979 " In Austrahan Academw and Research Libraries, March 1981, pp 30-31 BtbhografiNastonallndonesla, kumulasl 1964-1972, v I Jakarta, 1978, p 111 Bertta ldayu Blbhografi, 1979, t, p 19 Foyziah Ahmad Nasuruddm, "Perolehan buku-buku teks dan bahan-bahan lain dalam Babasa Malaysia/' Indonesia " (Unpublished), p 1 , 1980 For example, see Indonesian Pubhcattons Seminar, National Library of Austraha, Canberra, 16 July 1974 Papers and Proceedings, Transcript o f Tapes Canberra, National Library of Australia, 1975, and W G Miller, "Co-operative Acqmsltions from one Third World Country The Australian Experience m Indonesia " In Acquisitions from the Third World, D A Clarke (ed) London, Mansell, 1975, pp 267-273 One figure cited for Malaysia is 1,323 titles for 1978, which would include works in all languages, Foyzmh, op ctt , p 2 Malaysian Books m Print, 1981, with Author, Title Index Publications in English Kuala Lumpur, Umverslty of Malaya Co-operative Bookshop Publications, 1981 [Editorial Note From the same publisher are Terkml Terbttan Terkmi Malayslana covering Enghsh and Malaysian language publications respectively ] Majalah, 1980 Kuala Lumpur, Agency Dwislon, University of Malaya Co-operatwe Bookshop Asia Library Services, P O Box 643, Auburn, New York 13021 See National Library of Australia, Development o f Resource Sharing Networks Interim Report and Surveys Canberra, 1975, 686 pp By A K'ai-mmg Ch'lu (Washington, 1943) Distributed three times a year by The Secretary, SEARMG, c/o Asian Studies Dlwsion, The L~brary, ANU, P O Box 4, Canberra, A C T 2600