The citizen. (Honesdale, Pa.) 1908-1914, 1912-09-25
HoNEsDALE's FREE LIBRARY.

HONESDALE'S FREE LIBRARY.
The Citizen, from time to time, has
printed a number of articles upon
Honesdale's free library, endeavor-
ing to bring the public in close re-
lationship with the storehouse of
knowledge which is confined upon the
shelves in the High school building.
1t is admitted by librarians that the
most effective way for conducting a
campaign is through the press. Not
only will the reading and thinking
people be reached, but an article or
editorial appearing in a newspaper,
will, because of the public notice
given it, receive greater considera-
ton than if printed elsewhere.
The people of Honesdale will
therefore be enlightened why they
need free library and we will
print in our issues reasons for hav-
ing this kind of an institution. In
fact Honesdale has the library and
the next thing is to have the public
patronize it. Our article to-day is
entitled: REASONS FOR HAVING
A FREE PUBLIC LIBRARY" by F.
A. Hutchins.
Public libraries have without de-
lay become an essential part of a
public education system and are as
clearly useful as the public schools.
They are not only classed with
schools, but have generally become
influential adjuncts of the public
schools. The number of readers is
rapidly increasing and the character
of the books is constantly improv-
ing.
Not infrequently the objection is
heard that the public libraries are
opening the doors to light and use
less books; that reading can be, and
often is, carried to a vicious and
enervating excess, and therefore that
the libraries influence is doubtful
and on the whole not good. This
argument does note need elaborate
exposure.
The main purpose of the library is
to counteract and check the circula-
ton and influence of the empty and
not infrequently vicious books that
are so rife. A visit to any news
stand will disclose a world of low
and demoralizing penny dreadfuls"
and other trash. These are bought
by boys and girls because they want
to read and can nowhere else obtain
reading material. This deluge of
worthless periodicals and books can
be counteracted only by gratuitous
supplies from the public library.
Whether these counteracting
books be fiction or not, they may be
pure and harmless, and often of in
tellectual merit and moral excel
lence. The question is not whether
people shall read fiction-for read
it they will-but whether they are
to have good fiction instead of
worthless and harmless trash.
The tendency to read inferior
books can soon be checked by a good
library. If the attention of the chill
dren in school is directed to good
books, and the free library contains
such books, there will be no thought
of the newsstand as the place for
finding reading matter.
The economical reason for estab-
fishing free public Libraries is the
fact that public officers and public
taxation manage and support them
efficiently and make them available
to the largest number of readers. By
means of free library there is the
best utilization of effort and of re-
sources at a small cost to individu-
ais.
While private library may great
ly delight and improve the owner
and his immediate circle of friends,
1t is luxury to which he and they
only can resort.
A library charging a fee may
bring comfort to a respectable board
OF directors by ministering to a
small and financially Independent
circle of book-takers, by its freedom
trn hn oh
er readers, and by strict conformity
to the notions and vagaries of the
managers. But such a library never
realizes the highest utility. The
greater part of the books lie un-
touched upon the shelves, and com
pared with the free library it is a
lame and impotent affair.
The books of a public library ac-
lively pervade the community; they
reach and are influential with very
large numbers and the utility of the
common session-books- null
tiplied without limit. Before several
OF our towns lies the question of
opening to all what is now limited to
those who pay a fee. This is not
merely limitation-it is practically
a prohibition.
Whether right or wrong, human
beings as at present constituted will
not frequent in large numbers librar-
les that charge a fee. The spirit of
the age and the tendency of liberal
communities are entirely in favor
of furnishing this means of educa-
tion and amusement by taxation,
paupers, parks, highways and schools
have no reasonable ground for deny
ing free reading to their inhabitants.
These towns spend vast sums of
money in providing education, and
yet omit the small extra expenditure
which would enable young men and
women to continue their education.
The experience of Library Com
missions of various states has amply
demonstrated that libraries and lit
erature are sought for and appre-
ciated quite as much by rural com
munities as by the larger towns,
and not infrequently the apprecia-
iG L,