The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1902-11-07

means to the cultivating of mind and
heart, and the preparing of the indi-
vidual for the duties of lifei An
affirmative answer to these questions
is upon every lip, and it may also be
predicated of public library for the
librarian is the colleague of the
teacher and the library is the hand
maid of the public school. The meas
ure of the value of the public school is
in exact proportion TO the number of
persons to whom it ministers; so also
is the efficiency of the public library.
Both of these institutions deserve the
hearty and liberal support of every
loyal citizen of the republic.
There is this difference, however,
between the service of the school and
the library, the former works almost
altogether with persons in the period
of childhood and youth while the Ii
brary adds to this constituency ele-
ments in and beyond the school age
which have had little or no chance to
get an education, and it also ministers
to the tastes and wants of the thinker
and the scholar. These are reasons
which make it desirable for any COM
munity to own a collection of fine
books.
Consider the educational value of
books. Lord Bacon says; Histories
make men wise; poets, witty ; mathe-
matics, subtle; natural science. deep
moral philosophy, grave; logic and
rhetoric able to debate.
Perhaps this statement will appeal
more strongly to the mind if its OPP
posite is considered. Bad books de-
generate the mind. The newspapers
frequently report cases of boys who
commit crimes traceable solely to the
influence of trashy fiction. | will Sc
lect from the multitude an item that
came to my notice in 1899. In Sep
TENDER of that year remarkably and
outrageously cold blooded murder
took place in Chicago. Its cause is
worth thinking about. A boy from
the country who had just come to the
city and begun work as telegraph
operator lay sick in bed at his board
ing house. Late In the evening two
young men, neither of them over
twenty-nne years of age, entered the
house, and, against the protests of the
landlady, forced their way to the sick
man 8 room. When the gas was turn
ed on full blaze, he had hardly time
| to recognize the intruders before one
of them stabbed him several times
with an immense bowie knife. Tie
victim fell to the floor expiring shortly
afterwards. The murderers were over
taken and arrested the next morning.
In the "sweat box they confessed
the whole plot to the police. 1t turned
out that the three boys came from the
same town in Missouri, and some sort
of family feud existed between
them. This had been intensified by
boyish jealousies aroused at school.
From wide acquaintance with yellow
backed novels and pink covered
papers, dealing with crime and re-
venge, the two aggrieyed ones ca me to
regard assassination as a noble and
manly achievement. From this it was
an easy step to the cowardly crime
com mitGed.
A young man of my acquaintance
who was studying for the medical pro-
fession visited me some years since.
was surprised, sitter few days of
intimate fellowship. to find that he
carried in his pocket a book of detec-
tive stories, reading which he
whiled away slack moments. When
I demonstrated with him he
replied: 81 know 1t is foolish I ought
to be reading good books to tone up
my brain, but when boy acquired
this taste and have never taken the
trouble to break 1t of" That young
man tried for seven years to pass ex-
aminations which would admit him
to the practice of medicine and sur
gerry but he failed. And the one cause
assignable to his failure lies in the
weakening. degenerating effects of
reading light, frivolous, exciting,
corrupt literature. The human body
wants meat and beans and bread to
make 1t stalwart and sturdy. Like
wise the brain needs pure, strong, It's
sue building thought-creating ma
terial which will impart to it power
and purpose.
About six or seven playmates of my
youth will remember the first dime
novel which entered our town. The
community was settled by cultivated
people, from the vicinity of Oberlin
college, whose chief ambition was to
have good schools, well chosen books
in their libraries, and instructive
teachers and.,speakers on the platform
and in the pulpit. Upon the scanty
bookshelves of our parents we found
"Pilgrims Progress, - "Young Amer
lea In Politics. Longfellow, Whittier
and Milton; the works of Scott and
Dickens Thackery's "Vanity Fair. =
a volume of Victor Hugo, possibly an
abridged dictionary, an encyclopedias
and the Bible. One day new boy
came to town. He brought the dime
production and we went to his faith
er's barn to hear him read 1t. But