The Washington times., 1895-02-25

IN Introducing Mr. Ainsworth r. Spot
fond. Librarian OF Congress. TO the audience
last night nj the Eighth Street Synagogue,
rabbi Stearn made the good point that
people generally skipped long prefaces to
books. His preface therefore would be very
short. In it, however, he took occasion TO
say that TO ore could speak more enter
taihins,Iy ON hooks than Mr.. Spoffcrd, who
had spent his life among them.
Mr. Sporford began by quoting the state
mint OF Carlyle, That the art OF writing is
thr most miraculous ever devised by man.
The most wonderful OF things, he said, are
the things which we call books, and we can
not over r-estinate our debt TO their authors
Books contain poetry, art, science, chron
iclcs OF travel, lives Of the illust trious, OBJ
servations OF naturalists, dreams of euthu-
siastS, the fascinations OF fiction, the crea-
tiCns of art. the liaunonies of music, CORE
sIic ndcnce of men OF letters, the ycrdicts OF
cIitlcism, the traditions of the race, and, in
fIne, the manifold history OF the physical
and intellectual world.
AMONG THE THINKERS OF ALL AGES
HaAitt says we owe TO the books every
thing on This side of barbarism. He who
crters a library walks among The thinkers
of all ages. You can choose your company,
AID need not he bored as in the world Of
society.
books talk only when they are hidden
An appreciativc reader is Hevcr less alone
Than when alone. Ia library mans hori-
Zon widcns. He becomes a cit iZcu OF the
world He can cover the ancient, middle
and modern ages in Homer, Dante, and
Shakespeare.
Mr. Spofrord then referred to some of the
masters briefly, alluding 10 the scope, pur-
pose, and effect OF each. as Ccryantes,
Pope, Burns, Scott, BalZac, Plato. Aris-
tote, George Elliott, Victor Hugo, Thack
cray, Goethe. Hume, Macauley, Mill, Lecky.
Herbert Spencer, and ''the great trio whose
influence is unsurpassed in the true, the
beautiful and ideal" Carl yle, Rusiin,
and Emerson.
Much converse with books fills the mind
with a sense ofsits own ignorance. The
more a man reads, the wider becomes the
illImtable realm of thought, aud the great
er The depths OF the attainablc, perhaps the
unat ttainabe
A Librarian is often asked. do you ex-
peci TO read all these boOks?'' the answer TO
which is: Did you ever read your diction-
ary through"
WHAT NOT TO READ.
The good use OF books depends on a
knowledge OF what to skip, keen dis
cernment, practice, and a resouie pur-
pose TO make the best use OF time. Mir.
spofford showed how this was absolutely
nee essary in view of the fearrully Incrcas
ing number Of books that are not Use
ful and especially the modern erratic
literature OF such men as Zola, Du Bos
gobey, and their American INIT ators.
Mr.. Spofford also hit hard books Of the
bigamist school, which he said, had the
trail of the serpent over them, and paid
his respects to Augusta Evans, Auelia
Rives, ouida, the Duchess. Marie Bash
kirtscheIf, and Edgar Fau"ctt. He
touched up that class OF lady readers who
senses are ravished by "Dodo," pr The
Heavenly Twins"
He criticised sharply the style ana me thod
OF the current press in dlShing up sandals,
criminal cases, divorce suits. and raEing
the slums for sensations. The iorr1als Of
Washington, he said. were measu urably free
from this bad habit, v hich was ;ll the
more TO be appreciated, as some people get
their whole education from me press.
He also referred 10 [ he pictorial .Halure OF
a newspaper. He hoped that Hhcn the
papers got through publishing :hc IOr-
traits civilians and miilinDaires who marry
servant girls the rest OF the world viii ipe let
alone in their normal obScurty.
He would not. however, underestimate
th- vaine Of the press as a public educator
when properly conducted.
NO HARD AND FAST RULES.
Mr Spofrord said that there We're no hard
and fast rules for the selection Of books.
AS inthe world OF men, only intellectual and
moral worth survive in books In this con
neetion he drew a powerful contrast be-
tween Napoleon and Washington, giving
tilv palm 10 The latter, = sentiment which
vas much applauded. As a general rule
/ those books were best which are fire.
quently reprinted and only about percent.
OF the publications ever live. Some of the
best books and tbe raTest books are rot to be
found in public but i'm private Libraries and
hence The ZCal pf book hunters He cUmpli-
meHJcd the government on lie new library
and hoped that The appTopr iations for
additional books wonld bn such as 10 make
ths public library among tie best in the
world. The English government is now
giving seven rimes more 10 its library than
the United States gives
Air Speffordmade thcfoilowing eiaSSiiiCa-
tiOn OF readers. Those who gobblc up q book,
the mcthgdiCal. those who callup through
thcm. those wfo sleep through them, tie
sensitive, the absorbed. Ire Credulnus. the
critical and capticuS. The admirng and re-
ceptiye. tie reverent, and the rough.