Little guidance is given in today's general technical services or cataloging textbooks to assist librarians in making decisions on procedures for the physical preparation of materials prior to placement on the shelves for public access. As small, private academic libraries face automation of circulation, addition of security systems, and debates on the outsourcing of services, physical processing policies should be examined. This paper surveys the current physical processing procedures for general circulating books held by private, liberal arts colleges in Ohio. Eleven (73.3%) of 15 Ohio college libraries responded to a questionnaire which covered four categories of post-cataloging procedures: (1) ownership indication; (2) provision of necessary items for circulation; (3) location indication; and (4) protective treatments. Surveyed libraries do not share a consensus on the "right way" to physically process books for circulation. The minimum steps for a library with automated circulation are: ownership indicated in one easily seen place; one barcode in an easily accessible area and a loose slip of paper marked with a due date inserted inside the book; and a spine label. Appendices include the cover letter, survey, and tabulated responses to the questions in numerical and percentage form. (Contains 17 references.) (Author/SWC)