Goldsboro semi-weekly argus., 1909-12-08

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for every three children who get
secondary education there are sixty
Z i've who leave school after five years
l The great problem of the state today
: therefore, is to carry on the trainin,
: after the elementary steps have beel
! taken in the free public schools
something must be done for the sixty
five. There are numerous agencies
at work, night schools, Young Mems
Christian Association classes, CORE.
spondence schools, museums, and free
lectures. All of these might be called
continuation schools. The .erm "een-
tiEuation school," while commonly
used in England for some time, has
not been generally employed in this
country 1t refers to any type of
school which offers to people while
they are at work opportunity FOR sur
the education and training, Arthur ].
Jones, of Columbia Universi ", in his
pamphlet on the continuation school,
issued by the United States govern
ment, says that the continuation
school is supplementary to the work
of the regular school in the sense that
it is additional to it, and is supple
mentary to the training which the in
dividual is receiving in hs Occupation.
IN the sense that it aims to give him
that which he cannot receive in his
daily work"
The continuation school" will be
/ n mr. 0x~to nj 20
the problem of liberal education for
the masses, but 1t must be borne in
mind that it is inseparably bound up
with other agencies and constitutes
only one phase Of this work. The
most important Of these agencies is
the free public library
North Carolina has made wonderful
progress in educatio min the last few
years. Our splendid public schools
our State Normal School, our Univer-
sity and our colleges are our Just
pride. but these schools are, after all,
for the few, and for limited periods.
The opportunity for Continuous edu-
cation" must be within reach of all
Ter people: The only institution
which can do this is the free public
liD1 ary-the peoples univarsi.r."
What are actual library conditions
in North Carolina? OF the one hun
dred and fifty towns in the State hay
ing population of 1000 or more, pos
sibly twenty have public libraries, and
less than half of these are free to all
the people. The scheoland college Ii
barries are, generally speaking, made
quate and poorly administered. There
are thousands and thousands of peo-
pie who do not have access to libra
ries Of any kind and many do not see
book from the first day of January
to the following Christmas Condi
tions such as these secured the pas
sage by the last Legislature of an act
creating the North Carolina Library
Commission: The chief significance
of this measure lies in the fact that it
carries with it the endorsement of the
state; it puts the people of the State
behind movement supported hither-
to by the North Carolina Library As
sociation and the State Federation of
Women's Clubs.
The law says that it is our business
to give assistance, advice and counsel
to all libraries In the State, to, all
communities which may propose to
establish Libraries and to all persons
interested as to the best means of es-
tablishing and administering such Ii
braries. The assistance which tie
State stands ready to give may be
classed as follows:
First Advice to towns concerning
the awakening of local interest and
the establishment of local libraries
Second. Advice to towns concerning
organization or reorganization.
Third. Distribution of book lists,
circulars of information and the North
Carolina Library Bulletin.
Anyone interested in starting a IL
erary in his community should COM
municate with the commission Office,
which is prepared to answer all ques-
ticns pertaining to the organization
and establishment of libraries. 1:'rus-
tees, as soon as appointed, can obtain
assistance in organizing their libra
ries, suggestions on the powers and
duties of trustees, information about
how to obtain a library building from
| Andrew Carnegie, etc. The librarian
can obtain assistance in drawing up
| rules and regulations, deciding on
| l.ours and charging systems, in the
selection of the first books to be pur-
chased, and help in solving any OF the
L. oh ems of his particdl library and
locality.
The commission is likewise pre-
pared to give advice and counsel to
| Libraries already established in the
| State, including free public libraries,
school, college and university libra
ries. Young Mems Christian Associa-
| ton, legal association, medical asso-
ciation, Supreme Court and State Ii
/ braries. The librarians of these vari.
Gus libraries may obtain assistance in
classification, cataloging, book selec-
tion and book buying, reference work.
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