Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1901-03-16
cARNEGIE's GREAT OFFER
The Plan Will Require an Outlay Of
Over Five Million of
Dollars.

Andrew Carnegie has offered to give to
the city of New York 100000 for the
erection of sixty-five branch library build
ings provided the city furnished the sites
and fund for the maintenance Of the
libraries. The offer was made in letter
from Mr.. Carnegie to DR.. John 9. Billings.
director Of the New York Public Library
(Astor, Lenox and Tilden Foundations).
written on March II.
Mr.. Carnegies offer was yesterday OH
cially made known to Mayor Van Wyck,
for the trustees of the New York Public
Library. by George L. Rives. the secretary
of the board. Mr.. Rives embodied in his
letter the communication received from DR..
Billings by the trustees at the same time
that Mr.. Carnegie's proposal was laid be-
fore them by the director Of the library.
DR.. Billings says that he has had several
talks with Mr.. Carnegie on the subject and
at these conferences he made suggestions
which related mainly to a free public
library system for the boroughs of Man
haitian and the Bronx. He says that he
told Mr.. Carnegie that such a system
should include the great central reference
library at 42d street and 9TH avenue, about
forty branch libraries for circulation, small
distributing centers in those public school
buildings which are adapted to such pur-
poses, and large travelling library system
operated from the central building.
DIR. Billings also gave his views as to
the proper size for the reading rooms for
adults of the libraries, the number of
volumes of encyclopedias dictionaries, at
lases, etc, each library should have, the
average cost of the sites and equipments
OF the libraries, an estimated cost of the
maintenance of the system and other data.
he further says that he told Mr.. Carnegie
that about twenty-five libraries would be
required for the other boroughs. He fur
nshed Mr.. Carnegie with data regarding
the libraries of Boston, Chicago, Buffalo,
Greater New York and the contract made
by the city of Buffalo with the Buffalo
Public Library. DR.. Billings thought the
contract would probably throw some light
on the question of how best to provide for
the maintenance of a free public library
system for New York. DIR. Billings more
over, told Mr.. Carnegie that he estimated
the cost of site and equipment for each
building at from $4,000 to $125, 600, and the
cost of maintaining the system in the
boroughs of Manhattan and the Bronx at
100000 a year.
MIR. CarneEie's Letter.
Mr.. Carnegies letter to DR. Billings,
dated the 18th instant. is as follows:
Our conferences upon the needs Of
Greater New York for branch libraries to
reach the masses of the people in every
district have convinced me of the wisdom
of your plans.
.'Sixty-five branches strike one at first as
very large order, but as other cities have
found one necessary for every 10000 or
10000 of population the number is not eX-
cesSve
you estimate the average cost of these
libraries at, say, $4,000 each, being 3d.
100000 for all. If New York will furnish
sites for these branches for the special
benefit of the masses of the people, as it
has done for the Central Library, and also
agree in satisfactory form to provide for
their maintenance as built. should esteem
1t rare privilege to be permitted to fur
nish the money as needed for the buildings,
say So,2OO0O0, Sixty-five libraries at one
stroke probably breaks the record, but this
is the day of big operations. and New York
is soon to be the biggest of cities"
Acceptance Probable.
Officials of the city are of the opinion
that this offer will be accepted.
1t is reported that Mr.. Carnegie may give
at least S25.0O0,0O0 for the erection of build
ings In Pittsburg and for the endowment
of the proposed technical school there. A
dispatch states that Mr.. Carnegie has Of
fered to give s1.0000O0 to ST. Louis for a
library If the city would furnish the site
and guarantee fund of $3.50 O00 yearly for
the maintenance of the institution The
site has already been selected