Los Angeles herald., 1890-06-30
What the Patrons of the Lii
braryl Read.
Examples of Change in the Pop
ular Taste.
Books Once Much in Demand Now
Unread.
The Names of Some of the Works Most
in Demand-Solid and Light Read
ing for the People.

Tedul1S IldtIcI DIS Iuey uO Ill OlcSs pde-
terms. There are various ways of dis
covering the prevailing style, and the
public library offers one of the best op-
portunities. An average of $50 persons
a day draw books from the city library,
and 250 to 800 people make 'use of the
reading room. The tenor of their de-
mands for reading matter will serve to
give pretty clear idea of the condition
of public taste in the matter of books.
For example, about ten months ago
there was great demand for Looking
Backward" and the nine copies owned
by the library quite failed to satisfy the
many hundred people who kept asking
for it. At the same time brisk
demand sprang up for Henry
Georges books and for works on
subjects of social and economic
science. Whether everybody in the
city has now read the Looking Back
ward" or whether interest in the
book and related subjects has died down
need not be discussed, but it is fact
that there is in longer much demand for
Mr.. Bellamy's work and all the copies
frequently remain on the shelves un-
sought for weeks at time.
The steadiest demand is always for
the masters of fiction like Dickens, Scott
and Thackery. Books like" Lorna Doone"
of Blackmore and Jane Eyre" of Char
lotte Bronte always have plenty of read
ers. A few OF these stand out alone
from the immense body of works OF tic-
ton that gains place on library shelves.
The books of E. P. Roe in spite of the
contempt in which they are held by all
critics are very popular and have
a large class of women readers.
There were formerly many demands
for books of somewhat
lower grade-morally at least-than
Roe's, such as, for example, the novels
of Mrs. Holmes and Mrs. Southworth.
But the library directors, who appar-
emily aim to defect, if not to change,
mistaken tastes, have taken them from
the shelves as fast as they wore out, so
that there are now but few of them left
Among recent books for which there is
just at present lively demand, is Marie
Corelli's "Romace of Two Worlds"
''The Odd Number" of Guy de Maui
paussant, which has found many read
ers ali over the United States, is not
much in demand. Apparently collec-
this vicinity, as the Rossiter Johnson
"Little Classics collections of tales,
are not often drawn out. "Pastels in
Prose-" a companion book, to which the
literary critics have called attention as
indicating a new line in literature, is
not much read, although it has a few
ardent admirers. The only instances of
popular collections of short stories are
the volumes which contain the quaint
tales of Frank A. Stockton, which are
much in demand.
The library contains six copies OF the
journal of Marie Bashkirtseff," !" but the
interest in the work seems to be tagging
Amelie Reeves. whose "The Quick or
the Dead" was in much demand a
couple of years ago, is quite forgotten.
Heinrich Ibsen, the Norwegian drama
tist, who is the present fad of Boston, is
sometimes asked for, but his readers dc
not become very enthusiastic. ''The
Dolls House." which is found in sep
arate volume from the other dramas, is
more popular than the others.
The last work of Mr. Howells IA
Hazard of New Fortunes" is not much
read, principally by reason of its great
length, for it appears to be generally
admitted that it is the authors best work
Cobb is not read at all. The works
of Walter Besant are very much in de-
mand, more so than the novels of Be.
SAINT and Rice. Robert Louis Stevenson
is very popular, and Balsac has many
readers. Edna Baily's Donovan" and
"The Hardy Norseman" are much in de-
mand. The war and army stories o.
Captain Charles King have recently
come into great popularity.
Outside Of the domain OF fiction ''The
Life and Letters of Louisa Alcott" is one
of the most popular works in the library
at present The three copies of it are
usually out. There are three theosophy
clubs in the city, and their members ap
pear to do good deal of reading in tina
line. The two copies of Isis Unveiled
and the romances of Won Hartman anC
Mrs. Sinnette are continually in de
mand.
The library has three copies each o
the North American" Forum" ant
Popular Science" which can be draw
out by subscribers. The fact that the
are in constant use indicates that tn
people of Los Angeles are fond of soli
periodical reading. There are ten copie
of "Harpers Monthly" and the same c
"Scribners" and ''The Century" Thes
are all much in demand.
OTIR PJJRJIC PIJII DING