The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1901-03-09
AID FROM CARNEGIE
HE WILL HELP SAVANNAH TO A
FREE LIBRARY.
so ASSURED MISS HEYWARD.
HIS STIPULATION Is THAT THE
CITY ASSIST.

Meeting of Council This Afternoon
Upon the QuestiOn-BOard vi Man
ayers to the GeOrgin Historical So
ciety Will Also Consider It-COl.
George A. Mercer Says City VIII
Probably Have TO Get the LeGisla-
ture to Pass Special Act Allow
ing an Annual Appropriation to n
Library-HistOricaI Society May
Give a Site for a Building.
The City Council will meet this after
noon at . o'clock to consider proposition
from Mr.. Andrew Carnegie, through Miss
Maude Hayward, to establish a library
in Savannah. A meeting of the board of
managers of the Georgia Historical So
ciety will be held in the Mayors office
at the City Exchange at 4 o'clock for the
same purpose.
II was authoritatively stated yesterday
afternoon that the city will in all prob
ability, accept any offer Mr. Carnegie
may make and will accede to such terms
as he may propose for municipal main
tenance or support of the library after
he has established it,
The only question of the city's aid for
such a project, il is said. grows out of
it's being prevented, Under it's charter.
from appropriatng public funds for such
purpose. 1t is believed, however that
Council will show itself favorable to the
establishment OF free library, and that
means will be found for obviating the
difficulty.
F6 wi n c
rian of the Historical Society. left few
days ago for New York to endeavor 10
interest Mr.. Carnegie and induce him to
make a donation for the establishment of
a free library in Savannah. Several mem
bers of the board of managers of the
Georgia Historical Society. acting, not in
that capacity, but as citizens DESTROYS of
a free library contributed to the fund
needed for Miss Heyward's expenses, and
she left to see the philanthropic multi
millionaire.
A letter was received yesterday from
Miss Hayward by Dr. r. j. Num-, stating
that she and seen Mr.. Carnegie and that
he had promised to help the movement
for a library in Savannah. He told Miss
Hayward, she wrote that Savannah would
nave MS ASSISTANCE III the eSldDllSntHeul
of a library if the request for it came
from the Mayor and Council, with as
surances of help from the city.
Mr. Carnegie, Miss Hayward wrote, will
leave New York next Wednesday for Eu-
rope, to be gone six months. During his
absence he will attend to no business, so
that it is urgent that the request from the
Mayor and aldermen reach him at once,
in order that he may make his donation.
| hn 81 6ee Ia,
promised to give it his attention.
DR.. Num- was advised to see the Mayor
at once and have him call a meeting of
| Council SO that it might ask Mr.. Carue
| gia Historical Society, call meeting of
! ton with the Georgia Historical Society.
| Miss Hayward also advised that Col
| George A. Mercer. president of the Geor-
| ga Historical Society, call a meeting of
| the managers to cooperate with the
Mayor and aldermen. The request if
agreed upon. is to be sent to Mr.. Carnegie
| at once.
Miss Hayward win arrive in Savannah
| to-day, and, if necessary, she viii
| appear before Council to tell what she
knows about Mr.. Carnegie's purpose. The
city. she said must say that it is willing
| to cooperate with him.
News of the receipt of the letter by DR.
| Num- soon became known. The letter
was shown Mayor Myers and Col. Mercer
| and both called meetings. Col. Mercer
| said last night that the board of man.
| ayers win discuss among themselves the
best plan TO be followed to secure the as
sistance of Mr.. Carnegie and that the
managers will then attend the meeting of
| Council, offering any suggestions or adj
vice for which they may be asked.
Col Mercer, speaking personally, and
not for the board of managers, said that
| it was his idea that the Georgia Histori-
| cal Society would gladly donate a site for
| the library building. Ample ROOM he
says, is to be found upon the lot to the
south of Hodgson Hall, now occupied by
| the Historical Society.
mo very large building" said Col.
Mercer, would be required. The entire
! lot would not be taken up by such a
| building as would answer every purpose.
| One might be constructed, adjoining
| Hodgson Hall, three stories high, which
would furnish plenty of room for visitors
to the library and ample facilities for
storing books. Savannah, 1 regret to say,
is not city of literary tastes, and, for
some years, l am afraid, the library
would not be overtaxed for accommoda-
items for a stream Of visitors and readers.
l believe, however, that a free library
would be effective, in time, in educating
the people to proper appreciation of and
love for books and letters.
Some arrangement might be made
whereby the management Of the library
might devolve upon the Georgia Histor-
ical Society. The society might act as
trustee for the library, just as it does
for the Telfair Academy of Arts and
Sciences. having been created trustee by
the will of Miss Telfair This would not
necessarily involve a combination of the
library of the historical society with the
free library.
'"rhe city will have to have a special
act of the Legislature passed before it
can make an appropriation for a free Ii
brary Its charter forbids it's making
an expenditure for such a purpose II
no strong opposition among the citizens
is developed it will be an easy matter
to have such an act passed, so amending
the charter as to admit of an appropria-
ton being made for this specific purpose.
There are some In Savannah who do
not approve of the idea of free library.
Even the Board of Managers of the His
torical Society is not a unit in the opiu-
ION that there should he one. l do not
know what the report of the city attorney
upon the legal questions involved may be,
but / suppose il will recite this difficulty
of the charter. In that event the Legisla-
ture may be sought
Just how much Mr.. Carnegie may
give, i cannot say, nor can i say how
much, true to his maxim Of helping those
who help themselves. he may ask the