The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1914-02-14
LACK OF LIBRARIES
Is a Great Disadvantage to Amy Sec
tion-How They May be OBJ
tanned and Maintained
columbia, s. c., State)

(This paper written by r. N. Ken
nedy, librarian at the University of
South Carolina, was read by him be-
fore the Kershaw County Teachers
institute on January II, last).
Nothing is truer than that pleas
ure or benefit can not be rightly es-
timated or missed until it has first
been experienced.
For this reason, the public library
is an unfelt need in South Carolina.
Indeed the subject has been even so
little discussed that, if not now time
Iy, it is certainly not hackneyed.
There is no official source in the
state where authoritative informa-
tion as to the library situation can
be obtained, except as to school Ii
braries and that far from complete.
The United States bureau of eiuca-
ton reports, issued once in ten years
/ believe, are unsatisfactory.
From the 1909 report, the last is
sued, | learn that there were then
classified as ''free''-namely the
state library, the Nellie Scott at
Clinton and the Carnegie library at
Benedict college, Columbia. The
first is, l think, largely legislative
reference library; the second is un-
known to me; the third is used al
most exclusively by negroes.
Since that report there have been
established three others which, more
than any of these, may be considered
free, the only ones in the state, so
far as l can learn, deserving the IL
tie; the Carnegie libraries at Gaff-
library of which l shall speak later.
The valuable old Charleston Ii
brary, the Kennedy library at Spar
tanburg, and some smaller institu-
tions like the Timrod at Columbia
are subscription libraries and there
fore in no sense public, in the mod
ern acceptation of the term.
If l have failed to list some that
should be named, the omission is
unintentional and due to a lack ot
| data, which, by the way, l wish il
were possible for the department o.
education to collect. At present i
seems to be no mans business.
At the Wrong End
We lag, with a very few of the
mr. a n
of the South and far West, at the faE
end of the great free library move
ment in America, which William
Jennings Bryan, in recent speech
has characterized as 1.-The most i'm
portant development of moderl
times Massachusetts boasts pub
lie library in every township. Othe
states, even in the South, are striv
ing to attain, or approximate, thi
high standard.
Our want of library facilities i
not due to lack of wealth nov
among our people, nor to lack o
culture in our educated classes, bu
it is because there has been no OF
ganized movement to arouse prop
er and intelligent interest.
/ shall treat at this time more par
ticularly of the relation of the publ
library to the public school.
/ am aware of the rapid develop
ment of common and high schoC
libraries in South Carolina Of recen
years-thanks to the enlightene
policy of our department of educa
tion-so that, today, practically eN
cry school, urban and rural, has il
little state-aided collection of book
/ know, too, that some of our COLES
es have excellent libraries, more c
less available, but for referenc
work only, to the fortunate citizer
of the communities in which the
are located. That at the universit,
for instance, is largely used as a re