The herald., 1897-01-22
THE PUBLIC LIBRARY
The Annual Report of the Beard of
Directors
The Finances in Good Shape, With a
Handsome Cash Balance-Work Of
the Circulating Department.

The annual report OF the board of IL
brary directors has just been issued and
! makes an attractive pamphlet of eigh-
| teen pages. In his Introductory preface
| the president of the board of trustees,
Hon. George II. Bonebrake, says:
I'm accordance with this system, a
class of six young ladies has been given
| during the year the benefits of six
months training in the methods and
| work of the library, eliminating in an
examination as TO their qualification
| and adaptation to library work. They,
in turn, have given their services for
the same period free Of charge. S3me of
these have received regular appoint
| ments as assistants and ara rendering
efficient service. The process of Sitting
out the applicants for positions in the
library has much to commend 1t. A new
class has just been started, and will In
due time, doubtless, afford well-eQuipned
recruits for our own or other Libraries.
1.-THE two Rudolph irdexers alluded to
in our last report have been properly
supplied with the information necessary
TO show the complete list Of fiction con-
tained in the library, and are so con-
structed that, with but little labor, the
list will remaha complete i'll. alphabetical
order and In such form as to be readily
accessible to the public
$50 useful and practical has been the
working of these indexers that the hoard
has procured two additional ones. that
are now being Lut N rea1ire SIS. covering
all other books and pamphlets.
1T will be but short time, in our
opinion, when still othars muse be added
20. .v,axS Jnt &.l1x
lists.
LAS will be seen by the librarians re-
port, the total cir::.l.stipn for the yer
has been 556,312. an increase over that Cf
the preceding year Of li.Sa5 volumes.
THE library has been managed during
the last year at minimum cost, the to-
tai expense for salaries being but $32. 72
more than during the preceding year
This slight increase. in connection with
the number of books circulated during
the same time, Is good indication that
the librarian and her assistants have not
been neglectful of the interests intrusted
to them"
The librarian also makes an itemized
report of receipts and expenditures
from which 1t appears that the total
receipts for the year, including $5141 81
cash on hand from 1894-95, were $685.
9o9.61. The expenditures were well with
in the receipts. there being a cash bal
ance at the close of the year of $5326 30.
The circulating department was open
302 days during the year, and3SS. 1856 vol
umes were taken out for home reading.
The daily average circulation was 1897,
for 1894-95 it was 1927.
A table of circulation shows that the
readers of fiction outnumbered all other
readers combined with some to spare.
This class of readers took out 227 ,os7
volumes to satisfy their tastes. The
VnllnQSfarS thirA j,,x,o
books went out. Magazine readers re-
quired 110,202 periodicals. Religious
readers numbered but 4611. OF foreign
works, italian creations were least in
demand, 2S0 and French greatest. 3941.
Comparison of the circulation of the
Los Angeles Public library with that of
libraries in some of the large cities for
the year 1896:
Last year the libraries of New York
city circulated something over a million
of volumes, and received a total appro-
priation from the city Of $65, O0O
The Boston Public library circulated
$4,000 volumes and received Sl7, 800
from the city.
The Chicago Public library circulated
1,150.000 volumes, and received 1921. 900.
The Cleveland Public library circu-
lated $4,000 volumes, and received $780,
900.
The st. Louis Public library circulatetN
ooi,VVV Noiuilies, anu received $bU,UUo.
The Los Angeles Public library circu-
lated for the same year Sal ,457 volumes
and received $21, 800
BY comparing these figures we fini
that the Los Angeles Public library cir
culated about half as many books as
the New York libraries, and received
less than one third the money from the
city. more than So 1-3 per cent as many
books as the Boston library, and receiv-
ed about one-eighth the money; over II
per cent as many books as circulated by
the Chicago library on little more than
one-sixth the money
The Cleveland Public library circu-
lated about $4,000 more volumes than the
Los Angeles on nearly three times the
money.
ST. Louis circulated 21O,557 volumes
less than Los Angeles and received
$SS, 400 more money.
In New York city the maximum rate
to be received from the city is ten cents
for each volume circulated Had this
library received that amount for its cir.
culation of 541, ,457 volumes for last year.
the new books added this year would
have been something of which to be
proud.