The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1898-11-26
STATES BOOKS
FREE TO ALL
Should Circulate Among
the People.
LIBRARY ASSOCIATIONS PLAN
MAJORITY IN FAVOR OF THIS
INNOVATION.
Herbert c. Nash of Stanford Advo-
Gates the Establishment of
Copyright Re-
pository.
LIBRARY ASSOCIATIONS PLAN
MAJORITY IN FAVOR OF THIS
INNOVATION.
Special Dispatch to The Call.

SACRAMENTO, Nov. 25.-Pursuant
to call which has for its object the
adoption of a plan whereby the people
OF the State may get the benefit of the
books in the State Library, there was
to-day held in the Senate chamber a
conference of librarians, under the aus
pices Of the Library Association of CAL
ifornia- While a large number of pa
pers were read and addresses deliv-
cred on various subjects. it was evil
dent that most Of the librarians pres
ent favored a plan whereby the books
in the State Library could be placed
before the people. State Librarian
Coombs in opening the meeting stated
that he hoped this would be one of the
results of the present meeting.
George D. Clark, president of the Lii
brary Association of California, who
acted as chairman, reiterated Mr..
COMBS statement and said that the
riches of the State Library should be
opened to the people of the State. He
hoped that the present law could be
amended so as to permit the circula-
ton of the books in the State Library.
]. c. Rowell, librarian at the Univer
sity of California, declared that it was
far cheaper for a man in Los Angeles
to pay the freight or express charges
on a book than TO go to Sacramento
to read it, and he ought to be prfvil-
eyed to have the book sent to him I'M
der proper restrictions. Persons at
distance wishing to borrow books should
be allowed to get them through their
local libraries, and the local library,
acting as the borrower, should be held
responsible to the State.
Deputy State Librarian w. w. Sea-
man read a paper explaining the his
tory and growth of libraries attached
an educational value.
H. Weinstock of Sacramento followed
with a paper treating of the great
value of the library to the community.
He said that the function of the pub
lie schools was to give to the pupil
put him in the way of educating him
self. The free public library finished
and enlarged the education of the pupil,
and the free public library was the
greatest of all educators.
The evening session opened with
paper by Herbert c. Nash. librarian of
Stanford University. He advocated
the use of the State library as a depos
tory for copyrights. Under the present
copyright law authors are compelled to
deposit two copies of their works in the
library at Washington.
At the last session of Congress an
effort was made to get bill passed es-
additional copyright de-
positories at Denver, Chicago. New Or
leans and San Francisco. This was at
tackled by authors, publishers and
newspapers who misunderstood 1t and
thought it was an effort to get some
thing for nothing. The bill failed of
passage. 1t was now proposed to get a
law passed by Congress establishing
but one additional depository, and that
at Sacramento. Under this plan au-
thors would not be asked to deposit
more than two books, the same as at
present, the one copy being left at
Washington and the other at Sacra-
mento. If then the copyright library
at Washington were to be destroyed by
fire, the immensely valuable list of
American literary productions would
the copyright library Is not accessible
to the public. The bill proposed to be
introduced in Congress asks that the
books sent to Sacramento be given to
the public.
William D. Armes, trustee of the
Oakland public library, read a paper
in which he said that two important
amendments should be made in the law
The minimum amount to be raised for
library purposes should be fixed. and
the library trustees should not all go
out of office at once. He lampooned
the Mayor. of Oakland and the Oakland
City Council for their action in Grip
ping the library and reading rooms in
order that the money which legitimate
ly should have gone to the support of
the public library and it's auxiliaries
might be expended on Lake Merritt.
The session was closed with an ad-
dress by William H. Mills, in which he
treated Of the educational value of
libraries. He objected to the PROPOSE
ton to make Sacramento a copyright
depository and favored plan whereby
instead all departmental publications,
such as those of the Geodetic and Coast !
Survey and Department of Agriculture,
would be collected and preserved. He |
thought that such works as these would |
be of far greater value than the con- |
glomeration of literature ground out |
under the copyright laws. He opposed |
the plan Of circulating the books In the |
State Library.