Mr. Young then sent for a copy of "Faust" in German, Hugo's "Les Châtiments," and Hildreth's "History of the United States," vol. i., all on one order, and for the London _Times_ of 1815, the year of the battle of Waterloo, on a separate order. The "Faust" and the history arrived in eight minutes and "Les Châtiments" on the next carrier. The order for the London _Times_ was an extreme test, as the volume is so large that the carriers in the Library connecting with the shelves would not accommodate it, and a messenger had to be sent from the main desk to the top deck of the south stack, where the newspaper files are shelved. When the messenger returned he just missed the carrier, which had been sent off with one of the other volumes ordered, and he had to wait the four minutes consumed by the transit of the carriers before he could start the _Times_ on its journey. It arrived at the Capitol just thirteen minutes after the order for it was sent.
The carrier consists of an endless cable, with two metal baskets at an equal distance from each other. These work on the cable, the power for which is furnished by the Library dynamo. The books are carried through the tunnel, and when they reach the wheels which change the direction, the speed is automatically slackened, so that the delivery is made gently and without the possibility of damage. Smaller books are first placed in a large sole-leather case. The carriers are taken through the tunnel at the rate of six hundred feet per minute. Should any trouble occur, the mechanism can be instantly stopped by an electric button, one at each end. The machinery of the carriers and its instalment was largely the work of Superintendent Green.
All who witnessed the test were surprised at the ease and swiftness with which the books could be sent for, taken from the shelves, and transported a distance of about a quarter of a mile. Librarian Young was very much gratified. He characterized the system as remarkable. The test also demonstrated that the arrangement of the books in their new quarters is perfect, as those sent for were selected at random and were readily picked out from the enormous collection by those in charge of the shelves.