 The library profession was stunned by Linderfelt 's arrest . The news was " a great shock " , Green wrote later in his history of the profession . Green wrote to Poole " I should have as soon suspected myself as Linderfelt " and others had similar reactions of disbelief . Many librarians wrote letters of support for Linderfelt . The ALA acted swiftly to mitigate the damage to the image of the profession . On May 22 , the executive board of the ALA moved that William I. Fletcher be appointed president following Linderfelt 's resignation , and that he be officially recorded as president retroactively for the entire term , essentially erasing Linderfelt from the historical record of the ALA . A month later , Melvil Dewey was elected ALA president for the next term . The incident was seen as a triumph of newer librarians like Dewey over the " old guard " represented by Poole , of whom Linderfelt was seen as a protege . 
