Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1909-12-30
DEMANDS EXHAUST
STATES TRAVELLING
LIBRARY SUPPLY
Commission, Swamped by APP
peals, Cannot Fill Applica-
tiOns, Annual Report Shows.
[speelaI % the Newark star. ]


TRENTON, Dec. S0.-In the annual
report of the Public Library Commits
sion. which has been submitted to Gov
ernor Fort, it is shown that the travel
ing libraries have become SO popular
thai the commission finds that ii can
not fill the applications for the libraries
as fast as they are received. The de-
mand for these libraries comes princi-
pally from the smaller municipalities oil
the State. and the demand for them is
increasing rapidly. At the present time
there are twenty applications which the
commission cannot grant for the reason
that all of the libraries in thei pos
session are out and they cannot be sup
piled until they are returned. At the
present time there are PSI regular
travelling libraries, with a total eircu-
lation of 102, 1893,
The report shows that the reports
from the listed libraries indicate that
there are 1876, 297 books. exclusive OF
the travelling libraries. The latter has
611.166 volumes. Taken together. the
books in 10Th libraries have a I ltal cir
culation of 7.222, 700, or near four
volumes for every person, calcul ted on
the basis of the last State cens1
2I8 travelling Libraries.
AT the time OF the last report there
We're 173 of the regular travelling
libraries in circulation. There have
peer added during the year forty-shree,
making a total of PIG, not including the
tEirty-one special libraries sent to the
various institutions. In 1904, when the
travelling library work was transferred
- ~. 100 non,r m igcinp fhara Wpra
but twelve of the libraries in operation.
While the increase in the number has
beer rapid, averaging more than forty
for each of the five years, there are
many small, out-of-the-way communl-
ties that are still unserved, and winch
the commission had made little effort
to reach because of its inability to meet
the existing demand. There are travel
ing library stations in every county.
There are IL. 1876 books in h travelling
libraries. and their total circulation or
102. 1896 books make an average or q
little more than nine times for each
book in the working collection. The
average cost of circulating books in
these libraries is estimated at seven
cents. OF the books circulated about ~
per cent. was fiction and about 43 per
cent of the whole number were "Juve-
niles
with the hooks now on hand it is
,nossib,en Tho commission saws. ito
n,a1rn nm additional libraries. Many
NJ tbn Volumes that have been in al
sa,a4,a ;. si,oa 1900 are so
- as to no unfit for further circu-
1ation ard como of the ~nopular books
ana,,irad more reoentlv are in the same
oondition MANY have been repaired
-. tbo oom,oission and others were
aisoa rded or rather. distributed
aoorot tbe state and county institu-
+iors or in localities where they might
no IF . l;4t1a more use.
.orbot rho fra Yelling library books
~ heinz placed in the hands of resi-
don+s of tho small towns and rural
soctions 10 shown nv the fact that no
IF tho 21s libraries are in the hands of
erorgers of the order of the Patrons
of uysbandrv where. under the rules
odon+ed nv the commission. the books
orc made accessible TO all residents of
tho n-eigh A great deal of the
s,,ooess of the work is due to the in
+arast ranifested nv the
=,