Pawtucket tribune. (Pawtucket, R.I.) 1890-189?, 1894-03-31
THE PUBLIC LIBRARY.
What il Has Done and is
Doing.
AN EXTREMELY BUSY PLACE
Correspondent Gives a Broad Hint to
Our Wealthy Citizens.

~ II safe 10 say tnat tnere are not very
many people in Pawtucket who do not
know that we have Free Public Library,
but Il is also absolutely certain that there
are a much smaller number who have any
adequate idea OF the amount and kind of
work that is done, and has for years past
been done oy the same public institution.
The facilities afforded for successful ef-
fort nave always been comparatively
slight, and the scope of the Library has
been narrowed, contracted and limited
and the energies and exertioDs OF It's
active agents have been almost SET at
nsught. because the means at hand and
available have always been upon very
small and unworthy scale OF magnitude
and liberality. A somew hat intimate ac-
quaintance with the details of the subject
during the past six months enables the
writer TO present facts not generally
known, and may afford opportunity for
few suggestions deserving of consideia-
tion and possibly productive OF good re-
suits.
The Library at present contains between
thirteen and fourteen Thousand volumes,
selected with very great care and excel
lent judgment and discernment, and ad-
,dltions are frequently made, limited only
by the small amount OF money at the
command OF the purchasing committee.
During the last twelve mo nths these ad-
ditions number 354. The books are 80 ar
ranged as to be easily accessible, and
patrons are allowed free entrance to all
the shelves and alcoves at all times, and
make their own selections either from ex-
animation at the time, or by the help OF
an excellent and very complete card cat
slogue giving full particulars OF title,
subject, author and edition. Volumes
for reference upon almost every subject
imaginable are to be found near tables for
theirsespecisl accommodation, and are in
constant demand and use. A fair num-
Der of newspapers, magazines and period
icsls, 1877 In all, are at hand In what by
courtesy Is spoken OF as the Reading
Room, probably because IL is not a room
at all, but twice as many publications and
four times the present space would be
none too much TO meet the calls upon this
part of the Library that are made every
dsy. The whole floor area, including al
coves, shelf space, reference and reading
table accommodations and the rest, Is less
than $500 squsre'feet, and these numerous
calls cannot be satisfactorily met for the
simple reason that there is not room
enough in which to do the necessary
work. All this however Is matter OF COM
mon knowledge, familiar to those having
even the slightest acquaintance with the
Library, and worthy perhaps OF no very
extended comment.
IL is however In the special lines OF
work carried on by those In charge that
the benefits and advantages of tho Library
are most plainly seen, and to these lines 1t
Is the object of this article to direct atten-
tion. 1t may be said without hesitation
that but for assistance rendered by the
Library and its efficient corps OF workers,
the public schools Of Pawtucket could
not possibly begin to do what Is required
of them In many branches OF study. 1t
must also be borne In mind that all this
labor, for 1t is labor Of most exacting
kind, is something entirely outside and
beyond the legitimate duty and require
ments of a Librarian, and for which she
receives not one cent OF compensation Ia
any form whatever. School children go
to the LIBRARY as regularly, more so per-
haps, than any ther class of patrons, and
they need In many cases not only to have
the books obtained for them from the
shelves, but they also have to be told
what books are best for them to read,
and this is by no means small item In
the multifarious duties OF Mrs. Sanders
and her assistants. IL subject OF pecu'
liar interest comes up for con-
sideration in any school, anywhere from
to 25 of the pupils Immediately start for
the Library to find out what can be
learned In regard to IL, and they are never
sent away empty handed or unsatished.
The range OF subjects too is unlimited,
and the questions proposed would some-
times puzzle q philosopher, a linguist, and
an adept In the lore Of the ages, to say
nothing OF a woman of today compelled
to look after all thevaried material interests
OF an institution likethe one under con-
sideration. The writer on recent occa-
sion saw So children at one
time in the Library, all eager
for information upon certain subject,
no two of whom presented 1t In the same
aspect, or would or could be contented
with exactly the same answer, Christie
pher Colum bus, his anniversary, his fes-
tival or whatever IL was, would have been
"unwept, unhonored and unsung", so far
as Pawtucket was concerned, but for the
labor, and patient investigation, and
thousand times repeated answer to child
ish inquiries, of this same Librarian. Is
the highly important subject Of the
"diaphaneIty and striation OF minerals"
to be Investigated by a lot OF youthful
savants OF the mature age Of ten to thir-
teen years3-the Library must be invoked
to shed light upon such an interesting
topic. Does little child wonder what
in the name OF common sense, OF rather
uncommon nonsense, may be the nature,
uses and peculiar beauties of "Serpen-
timer "Oh, 60 to the Library, they can
tell". Is there a slight badness or un-
certainty In regard to the early, middle
or modern history OF the United Ststesf-
"Please Mrs. Sanders, will you give me
the Irving bookf want to fnd out all
about him when he was the first Presi-
dent OF this country"i ! ! Are the profit
able researches of ten-year old seekers
after the secrets OF "nature study" to be
put into the form OF an ESSAY" with an
appropriate poetical motto ~ at the
top3-"Well, don't know any
thing such as you want. Go to the LIZ
brary and ask Mrs. 81. Does some lazy
devil OF full grown man come across a
quotation In the course OF his desultory
reading, The author or source OF which is