Los Angeles herald., 1891-06-13
FREE AFTER THE FIRST.
NO MORE FEES AT THE PUBLIC Ii.
BRARY.
The Plan to Absorb the School Libraries.
A Plan for Branch Offces--Progress
the Word in the Library.


In the HERALD of Thursday there was
a short item which involves great deal
more than appears upon the surface.
The item is to the effect that after July
1st the Los Angeles public library will
be free to all persons above the age OF
twelve years.
Miss Kelso, the librarian, has had this
among other plans in her mind ever
since she took charge OF the library. No
doubt she will succeed in her other
plans equally we'll in time.
Many people suppose the money re-
ceived OF those now using the library
forms considerable portion of the reve-
nue.. To the contrary, the money re-
ceived from this source is of considerable
more bother than it is worth. 1t comes
in in trifling sums and involves a very
troublesome amount of bookkeeping.
Under the new plan, and with the alb
sorption OF the school libraries, the pub
lie library will become powerful and
yerv useful ally of the school teacher.
Visitors to the public library have no
doubt noticed that the catalogues OF tic-
ton and that of juvenile literature(
is largely of fictitious character) are
the most used of any in the collection,
while the catalogues of really useful
works are as clean as when they came
from the book-binders. That is not as it
should be, and there is hope for some
thing better in the new plan.
The majority of the patrons OF the
library are children, and two-thirds OF
these are boys. They come into the
library at about 4 O'Clock in the evening,
and the rush is so great that any super
vision on the part of the attendants is
entirely out of the question.
Sometimes a conversation is heard
something like this:
"Say, | am going to get book on
electricity"
"Well, what are you going to get?"
80, I don't know. l guess l will
ask the lady, she can tell me-"
80, don't bother her. See how many
she has to attend to, and here is a nice
book by Castlemon, about the war.
Take that out and do not bother the
lady,"
So the boy takes out the story, and
the chance of gaming useful knowledge
is past. OF course where the attendants
hear such conversation they always
take pains to procure book such as
the boy desires; but In the rush after
school hours it is impossible for the at
tendants to keep track of the dozens of
conversations going on in front OF the
desk.
Under the new plan the teachers OF
the public schools will be enabled to
hn Of
their scholars. With the immense Ii
brary at their disposal, if the class is
interested in any particular subject, it
will be easy for the teacher to recon-
mend certain books by name which will
be useful to the scholar and, judging
from what the school reporter of the
HERALD has seen in his visits to the
schools of the city, the wishes OF the
teachers have great weight with the
scholars. 1t is presumed, therefore,
that when school opens this fall,
change will be noted as regards the
reading matter called for by the chill
dren.
Among other plans of Miss Kelso's,
and one that can not be too soon carried
out, is the proposition to establish. not
branch libraries, but receiving stations
in distant parts of the city, where school
children can leave requests for books
and have them delivered without being
obliged to make the long trip to the city
hall in person.
Los Angeles has not many poor peo-
pie, but there are some to whom the
item of car fare would be an insur-
mountable obstacle in the way of OBJ
tanning books from the library in the
city hall. These are the ones who would
be chiefly benefited by the use of the
library, and the establishment of branch
stations can not be long delayed if the
library is to be made generally avail
able
The board of directors has been strug-
Cling with an economical mania for some
time past, and every expenditure comes
'as hard as pulling teeth" Ito use
slang expression.) At no point is econ
omy so misplaced, however, as when 1T
takes the form of reducing the number
of attendants, or the still more objec-
tionable form of reducing their salary,
The papers have for years teemed with
letters and editorials upon the cruelty
of compelling shop girls to stand for
several hours a day at their counters.
Yet the shop girls have one days rest in
seven, while the library attendants have
a far more engrossing occupation and
one which involves far more mental and
bodily exertion, without having either
Sundays or legal holidays for rest.
The old residents would contemplate
with horror the thought of going back
to the library as it used to be, and it is
to be hoped that nothing will be allowed
to interfere with the march of improve
ment go auspiciOusly begun.