Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1915-08-30
THE NEEDS or THE PUBLIC
LiBRARY.

THE NEEDS or THE PUBLIC
LIBRARY.
Editor Honolulu Star-Bnlletin
Sir: Two thousand miles from
mainland book stores and 5000 miles
from a big publishing center, so that
It takes six weeks to place book or
der, Honolulu Is in pressing need of
such engagements of its library as
win make it satisfactory place for
reference work and give It fairly
complete stock of literature of all
kinds.
The library of Hawaii has been I'M
der the new regime for only two
years and under the direction of a
capable force it is making long steps
in the right direction, but 1t cannot
reach a reputable standard soon
enough unless It receives a large ap-
preparation with which to lay in a
stock of sorely needed volumes The
government should vote a large sum
to be at once invested according to
the direction of the library's book
committee.
Owing TO the inadequacy of the pre-
sent stock anyone in this city attempt
ing the most elementary research will
find himself working under great
handicap for the simple reason that
he has access to no primary sources.
To send to the mainland for books Is
q process at once slow and expensive
and requires q deal of foresight and a
very elastic pocketbook. yet the tax.
payers of Honolulu have been reduced
by the inefficiency of the territorial
library to the necessity of building up
their private book collections and oft
en- to the purchase OF books of the
most temporary value.
At period when most people think
In quotation marks and try to con-
dense the world into bookcase rath-
er than go out to learn of it for
themselves, the Importance of excel
lent libraries cannot be .overestimated
In any place, but in the case of Ha-
wall its isolation renders such q need
imperative.
At the present time the Library of
the town library Of some, interior VII
lage In the states II has an excellent
range of reading material Of a gener-
al nature 1t can furnish q great deal
of amusing printed matter, but very
little that will encourage serious study
or stimulate thought. This is partly
attributed to the fact that It has not
yet recovered from the time when it
was a stibscription library. partly to
the fact that the demands of the rank.
and file Of the reading public are
catered to. In 4 WORD. The library Is
In danger of being built up according
to the desires 81 cKfldFeM and -tired
businessmen. Cd
By all means let the children have
their fairy tales and their romances.
their Sinbad, the Uncas and their
Long John Silver, and lalf the other
desperadoes who ever stklked through
the glorious pages Of Stevenson or
the Arabian Nights: but the tired
businessman, and hiss equally tired
wife come undersa different category.
Let the man who has aaxhausfed his
capacity for thoughta BY sduabbling
over phone or yelling at a stenogra-
pher, and his wife. who is equally
wearied by balancing a teacup the
while she registers epigrams on her
neighbours gowns, buy their own books
1t is crime for public institution
to furnish them free material for their
intellectual debauches. Those who
believe the sins of intemperance are
confined to such abuse of the body as
over-indulgence in liquor are pit
IDLY mistaken. There are mental in
toxications Far more injurious, and
one who values the health Of the mind |
as we'll as the health Of the stomach
will esteem people who habitually In |
dulge In r. w. Chambers or the es-
teemed Gouverneur Morris to be bet.l
ter than drunkards. Unfortunately |
the moral standards seem to be per