Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1915-10-28
LIBRARIANS IN TOWN
Association and Commission in
Annual Meeting.
Topics of Interest and value 10 tne
Members Discussed and Oh'cers
EIected-Lccture by Richard
T.. Wyche.

in the Billings library, the sessions
lasting during the entire day. DR.. Guy
Potter Benton. president OF the UNI
verslty of Vermont, made n short ad-
dress OF welcome to the 81 members or
the asst citation who were present at the
| openinC session at $3.50 o'clock In the
morning The following officers Of the
association were elected at the after
noon meeting President, Miss r. b.
Fletcher of Proctorsvile; vice president,
Mrs Eleanor Eggleston Of Manchester:
secre 10 ry-treasurer, Miss Z. G. Hills Of
Lyndt mville; second vlce-presidents, Miss
Ruth Richmond of Orleans. Miss Vera
Griffith of Dandy, Mrs. A. D. Chamber
lin OF Pomfret, Miss Katherine Mathie
son Ct Barre and Miss Anna Mower of
Morr' svile The evening session was
devoted to n lecture by Richard T.
Wyche of New York. president of the
National story Tellcrs League Of
America
After the address of welcome to the
association by President Benton. Thurs
day morning, George Dana Smith,
former president of the association,
called for the reports of the various
standing committees, which showed en-
Couraging conditions in all parts of the
State In regard to the growth and de-
velopment of libraries. Merritt D. Chit
tenden, superintendent of BURLINGTON
public schools then gave an able and
interesting address on Work With
Teacher Training Classes" Mr. Chit
tenden said that the State now has 81
teachers training classes. each with
access to a public library He en-
phasizcd the fact that it was ~ so
important for a child to leave school
with an accurate textbook knowledge of
certain subjects as 1t is that he shall
know how to find information in books.
, 1t is impossible for children to acquire
this knowledge when their teachers lack
training in the use Of books Therefore.
the future teachers now in training in
| the 81 classes should be given actual
, practice in the use of catalogues, in
, dices, encyclopedias and bulletins In
: the discussion which followed the presen-
tation of this paper. Miss r NJ Pierce
: OF Ludlow suggested that the chld's in
5 struction in the use of books should
begin when he Is in the seventh grade
1 or even earlier, at time when he looks
g upon hunting up a reference as game.
Miss r. w. Wright secretary OF the
I Vermont Free Public library commission.
r read paper on 1.-THE Selection of Books -
+ Miss Wright made plea for a generous
y proportion of children's books to be in
p cluded in the librarians lists. from one
= third to one-half in each purchase
q Miss Edith Chamberin of Vergennes
II described a system OF collecting and filing
o clippings and pictures. This lecture dem
D. onstrated the fact that Vermont libra
u rians abreast OF the modern methods
OF collecting and filing clippings in their
l. libraries. and proved of much interest to
/ the association. Miss McAllister describ.
/ ed the Nature Study club work in West
l. field and Miss Pierce of Ludlow and Miss
t Hills Of Lyndonvile described the ga rder
n flower exhibits held in the libraries OF
l. their home towns. After discussion OF
1t these papers the meeting adjourned unit
= $3.50 p. m.
" AFTERNOON SESSION.
"A An automobile ride about the city hat
=, boon planned for the hour between two
a, and three. but owing to threatening
:. weather 1t was abandoned ad Dean Per
N kins OF the University of Vermont took
"a large party through the university mu
r. scum. The afternoon session was called
= to order at 3:i5 when Miss Cornne Bacoi
:. of White Plains, n. Y, spoke on "Wha
i, 1t Means to BE a Librarian" She con
"a trastcd the duties and drudGer!es, ant
the often small salaries of the moderl
l. librarian, with his opportunities for help
- ing and with his privilege of keeping il
=, touch with the best thought of the age
NJ and without allowing his soul to becom
to touched with the faint of commercialsn
The Rev. |. c. Smart. pastor OF the Col
lege street CONGREGATIONAL Church O
Burlington. then read paper on "A sim
pie Reader and His Shakespeare" MI
H. Snart's paper was a scholarly apprecia
Is ton of the magic influences of Shakes
NJ peare's genius.
~ J VALUE OF STORY TELLING.
Is At the evening session, Richard Thoma
Of Wyche Of New York delivered n mos
tn interesting lecture on Meaning an
at Value of Story Telling" In his introduc
ton of MIR. Wyche. Professor s. I
. Emerson of the University OF Vernon
on referred to the liberal education whic
Nv the people of earlier ages obtained frol
is the lips of the story-tellers. This educf
ed ton is largely lost when the same storit
an are read to-day unless the writer he
g - been gifted with a sufficiently stror
it. Imagination to place within the book son
In. OF the dramatic power and feeling Of II
nv ancient DaTu3
its Mr.. Wyche spoke first OF the tw
qualities which story must possess, II
first of being fitted to the needs Of chill,
hood, as 1t is to-day recognized tn;
literature is made for the child and n
~ the child for literature, and, second
1a that of measuring up to a high literal
standard. He named as the five be
-, stories of all time the 1omeric stor
80, which is the best that southern Euro
~, has given to the worlds literature. Il
49, Gcandinavian epic OF Siegfred viii,
~ has come down through the centuri
~ from the hardy sons OF northern Europ
~ the Beowulf from western Englan
which is especially adapted to the pr
adolesccnt stage of childhood the Bib
-. | which came to us from Western Ash
49, and also the Tales of King Arthur. M
,ao Wyche said that these five stories we
=, supreme in modern thought and hi
poured their life into modern America
In considering the contribution
~, America to the stories OF childhood NJ
Wyche spoke Of those of the primlti
e,n, races which stand out pre-emnentl
hes namely Hiawatha, portraying the lndar
all and the Uncle Remus stories OF JIG
esss Chandler Harris. The speaker then to
OF his success In teaching the childr
OF a little country school by telling the