The value of a quiet room

Source A: an original contemporary non-fiction-style account.

“The new study room in our library opened in January. It has twelve desks, no computers and a sign asking visitors to take phone calls outside. I use it twice a week after work. At home, I share the kitchen table with two flatmates, so the room gives me a place where I do not have to negotiate space before opening a book. There is no charge and no requirement to buy a drink.

Quiet is sometimes described as an absence, but here it feels like something provided. Someone keeps the room warm, fixes the lights and explains the rule to a visitor whose phone rings. The silence is not empty; it is held in place by ordinary work. I do not want every part of the library to be hushed. Children need stories and neighbours need conversation. This one room matters because it offers another choice. A public building is generous when it can accommodate different needs without asking each person to apologise for having them.”

Source B: an original nineteenth-century-style letter or account, written for practice; this is not an archival document.

“The reading room offers an advantage which those with private studies may scarcely notice. A clerk lodging in a crowded house can enter, sit at a table and read without purchasing the right to remain. The lamps are tended and the fire maintained. These arrangements may appear unremarkable to a comfortable observer; to others they are the conditions which make study possible.

I support the rule against unnecessary noise within that room, though I would not impose it upon every gathering place in the town. Conversation has its own value. The point is to preserve a place for an activity which requires different conditions. A useful public institution need not make every room serve every purpose. It should make its purposes clear and keep them accessible.”

Refer to both sources. Infer the differences in the facilities and circumstances of the people using the rooms. Write a summary supported by details from both sources.