The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-08-31

of something like shame unless 4 reason
able proportion of the wealth there accu-
mulated shall be made to serve the ends
of culture.
Il learn, however, that you are trying
to build library yourself, without any
shaking of the tree whence so many Ii
braries have dropped, full grown and
ready ripe, into the laps of other towns.
Although not without some admiration
for that extraordinary source of
public benefactions, have still heartier
admiration for the Independent spirit
which you are thus exhibiting. Some
years ago when wrote editorials for the
Youths Companion, commenting once on
the then new public library building of
Boston, stated that Boston was the first
town in the world to build a public IL
brary by taxation; whereupon the little
town of Peterboro, N. H., of whose exist
ence l had been unaware, Indignantly
challenged the statement and proudly
claimed that distinction for its own. 1
found the claim correct. and have ever
since felt a lively admiration for Peter
boro. Probably the method of taxation
could not be used In Birmingham; but if
Birmingham builds and pays for her Ii
brary herself. however the money may
be raised, shall he glad.
Something of New England
Perhaps you will Expect me to say
something of New England, where hardly
a village lacks its well administered little
library, public and free; or OF the great
library of Harvard university, In which
I spent good many years. But If 1
should say anything concerning these it
would not be. fancy. quite what you
might expect mo to say. Certainly New
England owes much of Its wealth, much
of tho merited distinction Of its public
service, much of the success, in q word,
,nr,t In, II
to it's public schools and its public libra
ries. We canot help feeling here in the
south, as We build libraries and improve
our school systems, that we are in a
way paying tribute to New England ideas.
But do not wish to see the south turned
into another New England and / do
not believe the spread of these two insti-
tutions will have any such effect. ] will
go further: Nearly all my life member
of distinctly academic communities, |
should hate to see my people public
schooled into such uniformity of intel
lectual standards as already seriously
impairs the charm of New England civil
ization. All my life lover OF Books and
a worker among them. should neverthe-
less hate to see my people public-libra-
rled into the mere bookishness which
is also too common IN New England.
1T may seem bad policy even to hint at
the possibility of so disagreable an out
come of an enterprise one is anxious to
promote But it Is wise TO face candidly
any kind of opposition: and think there
are people who do feel this kind of ap-
prehension whenever theresis talk of IL
braries and schools. Were the apprehen-
sion entirely reasonable, we should still
do best to treat 1t respectfully But l am
doubtless more ready to take notice of II
because there is hardly another civiliza-
ton in the world nearly so high as that
of our southern states, concerning which
that particular apprehension is less rea-
sonable 1t is hard to believe that any
one, after examining the statistics of
libraries and of the number of illiterates
| in the southern states, will fall to shud-
dering over the danger of a plague of
bookworms and blue stockings. And If
| this danger is too remote to be seriously
considered, what other objection is there
to meet?
Interest and Enthusiasm
Put it IS not matter, I take 1t, OF
meeting objections, Of answering oppo-
nents of the enterprise. 1t Is matter Of