Los Angeles herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1900-1911, 1908-06-27

the enlightenment or the people, ne
said once, and remembering the days
when he read In the II. Anderson IL
brary institute of Allegheny city''-an
institution established primarily for
millmen far back in 1S50-Carnegie de-
cided to insure the nation by putting
books In easy reach. In 1899 he gave
his first library to the American peo-
pie, and since then has donated millions
to this work, the benefactions ranging
from few thousand given some small
struggling town to $350,000 given Wash
ington. The conditions attending such
requests are that the city which is the
beneficiary furnish the site and guar
antee the library an annual income OF
at least 10 per cent of the grit, The
majority of the Carnegie libraries go to
newly settled districts, and many nave
found place in the south.
In the north, where public schools
were almost contemporaneous with
settlement. public Libraries soon be-
came necessity. In the south the pup
lie library came twenty-five years aIter
the public school and the movement IS
traceable to the influence of the press,
of women's clubs, the Southern Library
association and the Southern Educa-
tional association. In the olden days.
when a sort of feudal system was in
vogue and the southern man the best
read of his times. each planter had his
own private libraries. his tutors ana
governesses, and there was no need
for public provision OF these. Col. Will
lam Byrd of Westover had, In the early
eighteenth century, the finest American
library, about 1900 volumes In all. JEFF
ferson's library of 6700 volumes became,
when purchased by congress, the foun-
dalton for the famous library OF con-
gress. The southern novelist, Simms,
- =. af
South Carolina alone there were thirty
three private collections Of books of
considerable size before the Civil war.
These and other southern libraries
suffered from the vandalism that fol-
lows on the heels of war. Rare books
were burned, carried away or torn up
to furnish pictures for the decoration
of negro cabins, many went as legitf-
mate spoils of war and many were sold
to northern libraries by impoverished
owners, SO that the best Southern
Americana Is to be found now In the
British museum or among English state
papers. The southern planter or colon>
ial and post-revolutionary days had
his English factor set aside $40 from
every cargo of tobacco to buy books
for his private library. Now the pur-
chases that count are made by the pub
lie libraries, the past two years each
averaging about $500 a year for North
Carolina. $500 for Massachusetts,. $4,000
for California and $4,000 for New
York.
The aim of the libraries is to reach
and uplift all people. One-third of the
books issued are for children, so there
arises the need of placing before them
the right material, seeing that the read
ing may supplement the school work.
that 1t may be elevating to home life.
that picture books capable of awaken
ing an interest in art are given, that
fairy tales keep alive the dream world
and that nature books and hero tales
are plentiful. The modern library that
has not its children's room Is rare.
Special work, as recently done In vari-
Gus public libraries of the land, in
cludes the development of state archives
in Connecticut, Pennsylvania and
Connecticut; document collecting in
Maine, Oregon and Vermont. travelling
libraries In Tennessee, Washington and
Wisconsin, and books for the blind in
Colorado. Harvard library has long
been noted for it's folklore collection
and the public library of Boston for
Its Shakespearean literature wash
branches of work. including a summer
library school and women's study clubs.
The libraries have been of untold
aid to the blind. They have not only
put books In their hands, but they have
taught them handicrafts. have been di-
rectly and indirectly responsible for
the opening Of schools for them. and
are now even going to the expense of
getting out catalogues for them in
Braille. Led by the free library of
Philadelphia nearly a score of libraries
are doing special work for the blind.
It is the great hope of the public IL
braries to reach all the people of the
nation. Among the poor whites of the
south the work Is slowest, for even
when illiteracy has been overcome the
Anglo Saxon conservatism and opposi-
ton to paternalism in any form have
not been so easy to overcome. Those
are now being reached by travelling
libraries, a system of educational effort
that was born of the fertile brain of
Melvil Dewey of the state library of
New York, and had its beginning In
that state in 1892. Through state IL
brary commissions the library workers
hope eventually to place libraries in
reach of the members of rural COM
munities as well as those of the city
and town.
The work Of the public libraries in
social and moral as well as 1ntellectual
betterment is considerable. To these
leading thinkers point for a help in
solving the Sunday problem" All the
leading free libraries of the country.
with the exception of the free library
of Philadelphia, are open certain hours
on Sunday, Ravens for the homeless and
diversions for idle minds. The way for
the library worker has invariably led
uphill, but the measure of progress be-
tween John Harvard's small collection
of books and the libraries of Boston
and New York, of Philadelphia or
Washington, is the measure of the
nation. It's greatest exemplif1cation Is
found in the library of congress housed
in the most complete library building
in the world. The 600 volumes bought
from Jefferson have increased to
million and a half and the building.
designed by the nations leading arr
chitects, built of its most beautiful
stones and marbles and decorated by
it's leading artists, stands as monu-
ment to the progress of the nation.
Copyright 1908. by Frederic ]. Haslsin).
Tomorrow-"Getting the Nomination"