The Democratic banner. (Mt. Vernon, Ohio) 1898-192?, 1915-11-23
LIBRARY
For Knox County Is Suggest.
ed By The Librarian
(By the L,ibrarIan.)

In an article In the worlds Work
for September, 1915, on the Spread
of County Libraries" Walter A. Dyer
makes this appalling statement: 'Tt
is doubtful II per cent Of our total
population ever reads books or maga-
zines" He goes on to say that IN the
cities the percentage of readers is
greatly increased on account of the
work Of the public libraries, but that
In the country the percentage comes
frightfully near zero.
Much more than half the men, wo.
men and children of the United
States live in the open country and
in the smaller towns and cities out of
reach of the city libraries" declares
DR.. p. p. Claxton, United States COM
missioner of education. Probably 10
per cent Of the entire population have
no access to any adequate collection
Of books or to a public reading room.
In only about one-third ofthe counties
Of the United States is there II.
brary Of 5000 volumes or more. In
only about 100 of these do the village
and country people have free use of
the libraries. In this, as in so many
other things, the people who need
help most and who would be most
benefited by it have been neglected"
Mr.. Dyer offers as remedy for
this the central library owned by the
county and operating an adequate
number of rural sub-stations to in
sure direct contact with all of the
people. The best example of the sue
cess of the country library is to be
found at Van Vert, Ohio. The pop
ulation in that county is 10000 and
in 1914 there were 10000 borrowers
using the library and $4,000 books
were circulated. Fifteen branches
have been established and 80 of the
113 rural schools in Van Vert county
have availed themselves of the privi-
lege of obtaining school libraries.
A short history of the library
shows how such results have been
obtained. In 1891 dozen ladies or
ganized reading room association
which became subscription library
two years later and was thrown open
to the public in 1894 In 1896 the
city council voted tax levy of $40
of mill and 1t was made a free city
library. A year later John Sanford
Brumback, Van Vert merchant and
banker, and loyal patron of the IL
brary, died, leaving a will in which
he provided for the erection of a sub.
stantial building on condition that the
county support the library by half
mill tax and that the city turn over
to the county the books and property
of the library already established and
permit the erection of the building in
it's central park. The county COM
missioners were not then legally en-
titled to do these things but with the
help of the Pomona grange and other
organizations of Van Vert county a
law was passed by the state legisla-
ture making 1t lawful for Ohio county
commissioners to bind their counties
by taxation. The cornerstone of the
Brumback library was laid with Ma
sonic ceremonies on July 1S, 1899 and
It was celebrated as big day for
Van Vert county.
Since the establishment of the
/ Brumback library the whole county
has awakened as witnessed by the
founding of county parks, county fair,
county hospital, county pixies, coun-
! ty Chautauqua, and in the near future
is to be added an endowed county Y.
M. c. A. and an endowed county Y.
w. G. A.
ivan Vert county has provided for
it's most isolated citizens an open
road to the world of books. Its
achievement is an encouragement to
the friends of popular education in
| America"
| The oranges in Van Vert county
did great deal toward establishing
these educational and social reforms
in Van Vert county.
| 1t is suggested that the oranges in
Knox county could do no better than
to follow this example and work fol
the establishment of county library
| in their own county.