Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-12-17
BOON FOR THE BLIND
Stainless Persons Using Ma
tionaI Headquarters.
CIRCULATING LIBRARY PLAN
Exchange System to Cover Many
Cities Is Desired.
NEW PRESS FOR RAISED TYPE
Book Printing to Be Done-Thomas
Nelson Page President of
Association.
CIRCULATING LIBRARY PLAN
NEW PRESS FOR RAISED TYPE

| residents already have begun to use the
National Headquarters for the Blind that
has been opened at 1929 H street north
west. The association is starting a cir
culating library plan Of national scope.
that may eventually develop into an in
ternational movement.
The president of the association is
Thomas Nelson Page. and the most active
workers are the director. Miss Eta Josse-
lyn Giffen. and Miss Ella Lorraine Dorsey,
the recording secretary. The headquar-
tiers was established and furnished by
Mrs. William Hitz. one of the members.
and the other members are all working
to make the movement a success.
The need of a national circulating Ii
brary for the blind was felt for years 1t
Is rather expensive matter to print
books in the raised type necessary for
the use of sightless readers and, while
there are large collections of such books
in few Of the larger cities, many other
cities have no such libraries.
Exchange System Planned.
The National Library is arranging not
only to print books for the use of its
own readers, but to establish an exchange
system among the various libraries
whereby they can all in turn get the bene-
fit of all the new books in the raised type.
The work has just been begun. but the
association already has a list of seventy
five libraries, many of them large ones,
which it is hoped to work into the ex-
change system
The libraries in New York, Cincirnati
and San Francisco are all large. The
raised type books are valuable. and ar
rangements will be made for safeguarding
the exchanges so that the volumes Will
be safe. So far the governors of the
various states have taken a great in
terest in the work and will. in most cases,
act as the agents of the association.
The need of such a nationwide associa-
ton had been felt for long time. but
the federal government did not seem in
clined to do anything. SO the members of
the association set to work and did it for
themselves. The headquarters on H
street are cozy and artistic, so that they
are attractive for the members of the as
ISOLATION as well as their sightless
patrons The latest acquisition is
French printing press for the raised type.
Funds Are Growing.
The books can be transcribed into the
raised type by hand. This is the work
that the blind can do themselves when
they have reader to dictate to them
from a printed page. 1t is one of the
forms Of employment that the association
gives its proteges. and the amount of
work they can do is limited only by the
funds from which the association can pay
them. These funds are growing. though
not so fast as the members would Ike.
All the life membership fees are invested
and the income from each fee is used to
pay for the transcrbing work. Charles
J. Bell is one Of the members who take
active charge Of the finances.
Book printing is. of course, not the only
work the friends of the association can
do They make all sorts of worsted work.
basketry and other things. and this work
is kept on exhibition at the headquarters
and sold for the benefit of the workers
and orders are taken for special articles.
Some Resident Members.
Among the resident members and ma
tional officers are Mrs. Ernest w. Rob
erts Mrs. Champ Clark, Mrs. William
Hitz Admiral and Mrs. Dewey, Mrs.
Enoch Totten. Miss Totten, Mrs. Ruth
Josselyn Clifton. Mrs. Young, Mr.. and
Mrs. Hamilton, Gen. Daingerfield Parker.
Mrs. de Lagnel. Senator Briggs Repre-
sentative George Loud. Mrs. Gilbert NJ.
Hitchcock. Miss Sybil Hayes. Miss
Blanche Hopes. Mrs. Charles Bennett
Smith. Mrs. Thomas H. Carter, Mgr. w.
T. Russell. Bishop Harding. Mrs. Harriet
s. Turner and c. c. Glover.
Among the life members are Thomas
Nelson Page. Mrs. Thomas Nelson Page,
John Cadwalader. Mrs. William Clarke.
Mrs. r. M. Colfelt and Mrs. Andrews.
The life fees constitute permanent
fund. the interest on which goes into
printing annually as many of the best
short stories of the year as there are life
members. each of which is embossed as
an annual gift from that member. The
current fund goes entirely to pay the
blind copyists. The national library has
added-thirty-five new books to the litera-
ture for the blind. and has received LAT
as gifts from Nova Scotia and private
donations.