Aladdin s Cave or Bargain Basement? : balancing the principles of access and preservation

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1 Aladdin s Cave or Bargain Basement? : balancing the principles of access and preservation Teresa Horn 1 and Bronwyn Matthews 2 1 Lincoln University Library, Canterbury, NZ 2 University of Canterbury Library, Christchurch, NZ Theft from library collections is not a new phenomenon. Medieval monasteries tried to protect their books by chaining them to the shelves. Since the 7th century, curses warning of divine punishment for book theft have been inscribed in European books. Nowadays we try a more subtle means of controlling this apparently perennial human desire to steal books, but the problem persists. Library theft is not a one-off catastrophe like a fire or flood: it is insidious, and the larger the collection, the less likely it is to be noticed. Cumulative loss due to theft can, however, have a serious impact on our collections, on staff morale, and on the public perception of libraries. We would like to share our experience of large scale library theft in the hope that, collectively, we can preserve more of New Zealand s book collections for the future. I will talk about Operation Pukapuka, how the University of Canterbury responded to the thefts, and the implications for our collections. Teresa will address the broader issues relating to the place of books, universities and collections in contemporary New Zealand society. Operation Pukapuka was launched in July 2004 when Detective Sergeant Ross Tarawhiti of the Christchurch police contacted Robin Stevens, the Special Collections Librarian at the University of Canterbury Library. He was requesting assistance with an operation which the police were conducting to intercept a ring of book thieves they suspected of targeting university library collections over a number of years. In no time Robin found himself working almost full time with the police, systematically collecting evidence and information on what was probably the most organised and successful book theft enterprise in our country s history. The targets, as we now know were the country s university libraries, museum libraries and any of the public libraries which held valuable collectable material in a number of well-defined subject areas: New Zealand and Pacific history, First contact reports, Expedition and discovery reports, British colonial and military history, and 19 th century natural history books. Robin described the early stages of this operation as a nightmare and certainly it was both distressing and depressing to discover that many valued items had disappeared from the library s collection. The nightmare only worsened later when the full extent of the crime rings activities was revealed. After many weeks of evidence-gathering the police made the decision to move in on the crime ring in September last year. Six Library staff reported to the Central Police Station at 7am for the operation briefing, along with 30 police officers. We were then taken out on raids of several homes, two second hand bookshops and several cold warehouses throughout the city. Not only were we Library staff taken aback by the scale of the discoveries, but the police, used to dealing with all manner of sordid and violent crime, were appalled by what they referred to as ripping off New Zealand s cultural heritage. Their unswerving dedication and determination throughout the operation has been a testament to how strongly they felt about the injustice of this. Page 1 of 9

2 After the raids thousands of books were painstakingly examined by Library staff and police for evidence of previous library ownership. As a result of this work 1800 items have been identified as stolen to date, 880 of these coming from the University of Canterbury Library alone. Police are still making efforts to track down items already sold in New Zealand and overseas. So total losses are still not yet known and the books so far recovered are still being held by the police as evidence for trials which have yet to be held. The self-styled Brains behind the Operation Lee Simpson pleaded guilty and is serving a prison sentence but he has appealed on the grounds that he co-operated fully with the police to the extent that they were able to track down further stolen books, including those that had been buried in a pit on the banks of the Waimakariri River! One other member of the gang has been convicted and sentenced to several years in prison, and other cases are pending. While legal proceedings are being taken against the thieves, and many stolen books were recovered in those September raids, the aftermath of this operation for the University of Canterbury Library has not been straightforward. The Library was challenged to examine its policies and practices in order to minimise future security risks. These included both collection management practices, and previously-held attitudes regarding the accessibility of collections. The response had to be swift, so immediate action was taken. Our Librarian Gail Pattie appointed a Security Project team of three library staff and gave us six weeks to do a comprehensive collection security review. We were to: identify and prioritise security risks to the collections in all 5 campus libraries; identify solutions to those risks, both short-term and long-term; identify costs of the solutions, particularly for the highest priority risks suggest a plan of action and a timeline for action. The Project Team s goals were to: 1) prevent further targeted theft of valuable items 2) reduce academically-motivated theft 3) reduce opportunistic theft of books, equipment, cash and personal items Throughout its investigations of the campus libraries the project team was guided by the literature on library security and these commonly recurring themes: Theft prevention is less expensive than the cost of recovery and replacement Theft is facilitated through staff carelessness and neglect Theft occurs less often when there a visible security presence There were recurring recommendations to: Rank collections according to value and plan for different degrees of security Protect access and means of access Separate private and public areas of the library The first stage was to get the staff involved. Key staff in every area of the Central Library, including the evening supervisors and student computer room supervisor, were asked to share their thoughts and observations. The campus branch library staff were asked to consider what the most valuable items (intellectual or monetary value) in their collections were, and were then asked to cast themselves in the role of a prospective thief e.g. -If you wanted to take an item without going through the issue desk, what are your options? -If you wanted to cut a map/illustration out of a book, where would you go to do it? -If you were willing to steal cash or equipment how easy would it be? Page 2 of 9

3 Staff approached these questions with enthusiasm. Their answers, which included anecdotal evidence, revealed many physical and procedural loopholes, both interesting and alarming. The determined thief would have a wide range of options! The second stage consisted of the site inspections. The project team undertook thorough inspections (accompanied by staff as necessary) of: the Central Library (11 floors) the smaller Physical Sciences, Engineering, and Macmillan Brown Libraries (2 floors each) the Law Library (2 floors plus a large basement storage area), and the Library s onsite warehouse for archives and low-use books. The potential thief perspective continued to be a useful way to analyse the libraries entrances, exits, and interiors. It soon became very apparent that architects had a lot to answer for. The libraries built in the 1970s and early 80s featured lots of: Reading areas beside opening windows, Outdoor balconies opening from reading areas, Very secluded study spaces amongst the stacks, Opening windows in the stairwells Few physical barriers between staff work areas and the public, and Loading bays which offered free access to storage areas. Subsequent modifications to library buildings to suit changing needs had in some cases weakened the library s security even further. A clear risk had emerged with the trend towards allowing units which are not part of the library to operate within in the library buildings. For example, a large student computer workroom on the 5th floor of the Central Library building was welcomed by students when it opened, but has created a challenge for the security guards ever since. This facility is open 24/7, and is accessible via a lift which is programmed to service only that level of the building outside of library hours. The students continue to try out many innovative ideas for hiding library books in this computer workroom and adjacent area when the library is open, so they can pick them up later after the library floors have closed. Security guards have retrieved books hidden at the bottom of rubbish bins, in recycled paper trays, inside ventilator grills and toilet cisterns, and behind wall heaters. It was not, however, always the physical design of the library that was at fault. Often it was staff procedures that had the potential to put the collection at risk. The Rare Books and Special Collections, for example, are stored in an ideal climate-controlled, windowless room deep within one of the Library buildings, but the well-labelled keys to this room were in an unsecured key cupboard in a staff workroom within public view! The site inspections were valuable, but what troubled the Project Team the most was what Operation Pukapuka had revealed: the thieves had not necessarily availed themselves of many of the physical and procedural loopholes we were noting, but they had simply used the front door. All the libraries are equipped with 3M security gates, and the Central Library has the sort with a stomach-height bar that locks upon activation. Our security gates are tested regularly, and adjusted and serviced by the supplier, but they are not foolproof. Police camera footage had shown the offenders leaving the Central Library carrying a low-slung sports bag. Exiting the library by the front door was clearly their preferred means of stealing so much more discreet than throwing books out of windows and risking being seen, or damaging the books they were intending to sell. Page 3 of 9

4 While we have not seen the actual bag seen on the police footage, one possible method is simple to replicate. Since the system is a magnetic one, it is beaten by anything that interferes with the magnetic field. Students use all manner of bags for their belongings and it does not take much imagination to dress like a student and blend in to the crowd. Simpson and Co. did just that. The Project Team summarised each library s deficiencies in a long table which described every problem, its recommended solution, the approximate cost, a priority ranking on a scale of 3, and a possible timeframe. Some things could be done very quickly and cheaply, such as permanently locking the balcony doors, sealing windows in the stairwells, replacing those key cupboards, and requiring all staff in public areas of the library to wear official name badges. Many recommendations however required the management a whole sequence of events: for example, the removal from the open shelves of all 19 th century material would place a significant demand on closed access storage. Therefore we would need to do a detailed analysis of what was to be moved: not all 19 th century material has high market value at present, but it does have preservation needs regardless of whether it is on open or closed access. Work continues on this. Not surprisingly, some of the recommended solutions came with not only a large price tag, but the necessity for considerable consultation and cooperation with other facilities on campus. Fortunately all members of staff have smart cards for door access, but the installation of further strategically-placed card-activated doors was around $5,000 each. Security cameras (monitored) around the exit gates? $ As anyone who has worked in a large public institution knows, there can be a long time between making a works request and seeing it fulfilled. A whole set of recommendations pertained to collection management across the campus libraries: 1. Improve ownership identification on all new stock We should continue all existing processing and marking of books and serials. Ownership marks, or evidence of their removal, proved vital in identifying previous library ownership when we were examining books captured from shops, warehouses and homes during the raids. In one case when a searcher opened a book to page 99 to check if our library s ownership stamp was present, he found instead of a stamp a little piece of the sandpaper that had been carefully used to erase it! One of the most surprising and useful marks was the underlining of the main entry on the title page, often overlooked by the thieves but even if the pencil marks were rubbed out the indentations of the mark was still visible in good light. Ironically, in recent years the Library had deliberately minimised the amount of processing and ownership identification on its stock. Where once a book would have received at least four ownership stamps, current practice only required one. At the very time the book thefts were under investigation Collection Services staff were considering following the practice of some other university libraries, and discontinuing the use of bookplates. We have abandoned such considerations and have continued to use bookplates. 2. Improve identification of de-accessioned stock We will continue to apply the withdrawn or cancelled stamp over all ownership markings, including page 99, changing colour of stamp each year, and removing the title page from the book. It is also vital to maintain a de-accession list. One of the problems for police when examining the hoard of books caught up in the raid was that many items were genuinely de-accessioned Page 4 of 9

5 stock which had been sold to second hand book dealers. Identifying these was a laborious process which involved checking holdings on Te Puna, and then contacting each holding library to see if their copy of the title in question was still on the shelves. Clear and consistent marking of all de-accessioned stock, as well as the maintenance of a de-accession list would have made this process much more straightforward. 3. Identify at-risk resources and move them to closed-access storage. The items would still be available for borrowing but not for browsing. At the same time, the current criteria for transfer of items to the Rare Books Collection were expanded to include items published pre 1930, books with fine bindings and any that would be deemed collectable with regard to subject, illustration and condition. Longer term it was recommended a closed access reading room facility be provided. Some books appeared to have been saved from theft because they had at some stage been rebound by the Library s bindery and had therefore lost much of their market value with the original binding. We found, however that when a book in one of those desirable categories mentioned earlier remains on the shelf, it pays to check inside. Quite possibly the illustrations, sold individually, are worth more than the book as a whole. Discovery in the raids of a coloured plate from the Ibis, a well-known ornithological journal prompted an inspection of the 12 nineteenth century volumes of this journal which remained on our open shelves. Only one coloured plate remained. Each volume would typically have had 12 or so plates. 4. Undertake an inventory of the monograph collection. It was clear that in order to get a complete picture of the extent of book thefts recent and past, it would be essential to do a complete inventory. As far as anyone could remember a full inventory of the Library s collection of 1.5 million volumes had never been undertaken. However the Library s system (Horizon) provides an inventory module, and this situation provided the ideal opportunity to put it to use. The process for the inventory requires the use of hand-held scanners to read the barcode on each item. The scanned barcodes are then compared to the data in the catalogue. This identifies the gaps, both in terms of items scanned not having a matching record in the catalogue, and records in the catalogue not being matched up with an item. When Library IT ran the comparison report from the first batch of scanning it revealed 3055 actual items missing which is, overall, 1.4%. It is possible that this figure will be reduced slightly after the rest of the collection has been scanned and items presumed missing turn up in other places. Not surprisingly, large numbers of items were found to be missing from the art and music collections, and we assume many these have been stolen for profit. What was revealing was the large number of books stolen from the political science, philosophy and religious studies collections. Some of the titles of these suggest they might have been deliberately removed to prevent access to ideas and beliefs considered by some groups to be extreme or inappropriate. This is a well-known phenomenon for books on witchcraft, but it is interesting that it has also affected all the mainstream religions. There were also a larger number of text books and course-related resources missing than we had expected, especially in the commerce subjects! The worst affected area was the history collection, particularly New Zealand history. Data on this is still being analysed but early indications are that 6% is missing from this area. The analysis of the inventory results, and associated tidying up of the catalogue records has proved a massive undertaking for Collection Services staff. For Canterbury, ongoing inventory checks will become an essential factor in future collection management. These were the practical steps that were taken to improve security of buildings and resources. I am going to talk about the more philosophical issues relating to professional principles of access and preservation that were highlighted in the wake of the thefts. Page 5 of 9

6 After news of Operation Pukapuka was reported, the Library staff heard lots of comments like Why did you have such valuable stuff on the open shelves?, Why do you just let anyone walk in to the Library?, Why didn t you notice these things were missing earlier? Often these comments came from people in the business sector where the management of stock, whatever it may be, is strongly focused on inventory processes and valuation for accounting purposes. University libraries do not generally think of themselves as businesses the commodity is the information and the focus of our service is on providing free and open access to this. But the question remains: why weren t we expecting this? What was it about our professional thinking on the principles of access and preservation that led to us being so unprepared? One part of the answer perhaps lies in something we have been calling the New Zealand Way. A recommendation arising from the security review was to control access to the library by installing turnstile gates operated by the student and staff smart cards, and forcing any visitors to pass through a security desk. The idea of restricting entry to members of the university, and declining entry to the general public had never been raised seriously until the Library was faced with the evidence of large scale organised theft by members of the general public. The solution seemed simple: the ultimate way to keep out the likes of the recent thieves was to not let members of the public into libraries at all. During the subsequent debate with the academic community however, one of the academic staff commented that gating the library should not be an option because it is simply not the New Zealand Way. We all knew what was meant by this comment and a number were in agreement with it, but what exactly is this New Zealand Way? We suggest that the New Zealand Way is perhaps a combination of attitudes, values, and habits: Basically, we trust each other. We value variety in knowledge and ideas, and the freedom to debate these. We believe that education is a good thing, and essential to the proper functioning of a democratic country. We believe in equality of opportunity, and that libraries are for sharing knowledge. We are committed to providing the best possible service to our current clientele, and building collections that will enrich future generations. But the New Zealand Way has some flaws too. The she ll be right attitude engenders complacency. It can mean that change doesn t happen until there s a crisis and then it s too late. It is too late for some of our books. Social and political changes in New Zealand over the last 20 years mean we can no longer assume that everyone respects or agrees with the New Zealand way. So what effect does the New Zealand Way have on our view of the role that university libraries play in New Zealand society? The primary role of the university library is to support the students and staff of the university in their learning, teaching and research. Fulltime students pay over $3,000 per year to attend courses, and access to the library s collections is part of the package to which they are entitled. In the main, the general public have always been allowed physical access to academic libraries in New Zealand. Universities in New Zealand are publicly funded institutions and despite the introduction of tertiary fees, they are still heavily subsidised by the government. Large sums of public money have been spent on the collections over the years and as a result of conservative retention policies these collections represent a large and deep body of knowledge, which not only supports research and teaching but also provides a rich cultural record to which, in an ideal society, everyone should have access. Page 6 of 9

7 In recognition of this, New Zealand university libraries generally have a membership option for locally-resident external users who have a need to borrow specialised materials. Furthermore, the university libraries have always participated in the Interloans scheme, allowing all but rare or unique items to be borrowed by other libraries on behalf of their patrons. Is the idea of gating the Library then a culturally inappropriate overreaction, or an idea whose time has not yet come? It has been deferred at Canterbury, in the meantime, but if the other security strategies do not reduce theft it will be back on the agenda. An alternative to restricting access to the Library as a whole is to restrict access to parts of the collection identified as being at risk. At the University of Canterbury Library and most other libraries in New Zealand, the bulk of the collection is kept in open access within the library. No one disputes that books from the 18th century and earlier should be in a closed collection for preservation reasons as well as assumed monetary value. However the Library s principal closed collection, the Macmillan Brown Library for NZ and Pacific materials, has frequently met with criticism from students and academic staff on the grounds that there is no browsing or borrowing, even of contemporary materials, allowed from its main, closed access, collection. One doesn t need to be a bibliophile to know that many worthwhile discoveries and connections can be made through serendipitous browsing of the shelves. We must emphasise that we did not lose any items from the Macmillan Brown closed access or Rare Books collections. Rare and highly valuable items were not jeopardised during this operation it was the moderately priced, highly collectable items that usually comprise a good browsing collection that were the targets of the thieves. In response to this, materials that are considered at risk are being removed from open shelves at the University of Canterbury Library and put into closed access storage to be retrieved on request for bona fide users of the Library. It might be considered a reduction in service in that the user cannot browse these materials, but it might also be considered an increase in service in that the materials will always be available because they are more secure and their whereabouts known at any time. Therein lies the conflict. We also need to consider the part played in all of this by the web which has after all revolutionised the library profession. Although its impact has only been felt within the last ten years, that impact has been profound and far reaching, from the development of web-based catalogues, the prevalence of online databases, the ubiquitous Google, digitised collections etc. While no-one would suggest we have become a paperless profession and we all still value our book collections, it is probably fair to say that there is far less emphasis and reliance on print resources for information provision than there was ten years ago. Has this impacted on our awareness of books in the collection? Would we have missed those books earlier if we had needed to consult them on a more regular basis? Are we becoming remote from our print resources? A second issue relating to the web relates to availability of online catalogues. How do we stay true to our professional principle of providing ready and easy access to detailed, accurate bibliographic descriptions in a world where the online catalogue can effectively be used as a shopping list by those of a more unscrupulous motivation? It is sad but true that the simpler the search options and the better the catalogue record the more helpful it is in identifying valuable items, e.g. 1 st editions, autographed copies. The web also provides infrastructure for sale of stolen goods through the likes of Trade Me and E-Bay. Transactions can be conducted without any face-to-face exchange, true identities are hidden behind passwords and trading names. It is worth pointing out that Lee Simpson, trading under an alias, had excellent feedback reports on Trade Me. Cultural issues of a more global nature have also had an impact. One of these is the increased level of acquisitiveness in our society and how this feeds, and is fed by collecting as a hobby. This passion for collecting perpetuates a climate of supply and demand so that Page 7 of 9

8 an easy profit can be made from the theft of certain types of books. Books as collectable items assume a new level of attraction and novelty in this age of ephemeral electronic information. In the past, at the University of Canterbury, the focus of day-to-day collection security has tended be on the books which are in high demand for academic purposes. Three-day loans, three-hour loans and even one hour loans with fines by-the-minute are all strategies for ensuring equitable use of the most sought-after books. We know that students hide books, the security gates catch students who forget to have books issued, and we ve had articles cut out of periodicals. We ve even had students trying to sell library textbooks to classmates. But these cases all reflect that the information is the commodity not the book itself. The resale value of the latest edition of, for example, the recommended management textbook is much higher than that of earlier editions. (There may not even BE a market for the earlier editions). Management textbooks may never be destined to become classics. However in certain fields, at some point in the history of ideas, the relative values of information and book become reversed. The information is out there in scores of different editions and the text is free on the internet, but the book itself in its first (or early) edition becomes the commodity. The first edition represents the arrival of that piece of information or idea in the world. Einstein s Theory of Relativity is described, explained and discussed on numerous free web sites, but the 1905 volume of Annal der Physik, in which his original papers were first published will sell for thousands of dollars at an auction. Einstein s 1905 papers changed the world of physics. What will be next? It may pay to keep a close eye on Watson and Crick s paper on the structure of DNA in Nature, It is not just great ideas or first editions which develop market value. If a book was published perhaps before the era of photography, in a format that incorporated the creative work of an illustrator, or fine work by a book binder, then it too can become a valuable commodity. In conclusion, we believe the challenge for the library profession rests in finding the balance between the Aladdin s Cave collection, the treasure store available to only a select few, and low-value 24/7 Bargain Basement. If we ignore our traditional responsibilities of preserving cultural heritage and facilitating the sharing of knowledge by developing rich collections, we will have little left to offer contemporary society. For some materials, the demand for increased accessibility and instant gratification may have to be fulfilled by the digital version of the original. The libraries affected by Operation Pukapuka have been warned by the police that the word in the criminal underworld now is that libraries are easy targets for theft. To protect our collections there will need to be a marked swing towards procedures and policies more in line with the Aladdin s Cave concept, including such things as: monitoring of book values and the market regular stock monitoring through inventories an increase in the number and size of closed-access collections digitisation of rare and valuable items more visible security measures more staff training in security awareness After all, it is a sad but true fact that in our modern, secular society we can no longer simply rely on a juicy damning curse to protect our collections:. For him that stealeth, or borroweth and returneth not, this book from its owner, let it change into a serpent in his hand & rend him. Let him be struck with palsy, & all his members blasted. Let him languish in pain crying aloud for mercy, & let there be no surcease to his agony till he Page 8 of 9

9 sing in dissolution. Let bookworms gnaw his entrails in token of the Worm that dieth not, & when at last he goeth to his final punishment, let the flames of Hell consume him for ever. (from a book in the Monastery of San Pedro, Barcelona, quoted in Drogin s book below) Bibliography Drogin, Marc. Anathema! : medieval scribes and the history of book curses. Montclair, N.J.: A Schram, p.88.. O'Neill, Robert Keating. Management of Library and Archival Security : From the Outside Looking In. New York: Haworth Press, Rennie, Chris, and Mike Houlahan. "Stolen History: Stop Thieves - Please." The Press 2004, sec. D:1-2. Shuman, Bruce A. Library Security and Safety Handbook : Prevention, Policies, and Procedures. Chicago: American Library Association, Page 9 of 9