The Daily Missoulian. [volume] (Missoula, Mont.) 1904-1961, 1917-01-13
START COUNTY LIBRARY
Service already Given New
Patrons. Outside Stations
to Be Installed.


resembling the shipping department o
n wholesale house is being fitted up
In that room Missoula county's fire.,
library win presently exist.
The contract between the city o.
Missoula and the county Of Missoula
whereby the privileges Of the local Ii.
brary are to be extended to all resi-.
dents of the county, went into effec,
January i, but the contract was moi
signed until September and neces-
sary books and fittings have not yet
arrived. They are expected soon
however, and in the meanwhile ar
rangements for the wider service will
be perfected.
1 Service of restricted sort is al
! ready possible. Between SO and 50
persons living outside Missoula have
applied at the library for the blanks
which, when filled out entitle the
holder to a library card. Presently
these people may secure books at the
county department by the procedure
| used by city patrons upstairs. All
persons who expect to avail them
selves of the library should secure APP
plication blanks at once.
Miss Gladys Willard has come from
the Tacoma public library to take
charge of the county work here. She
is an experienced librarian and Is
working with Miss Grace Stoddard,
the head OF the library, on the details
ut Mt IS
work will be facilitated If prospective
patrons cooperate. Cooperation, Miss
Stoddard says, should be Of this ma
ture:
Patrons Can Help.
If you wish to take advantage
of the opportunity afforded by the
county library, make application
first of all for card.
Then, Ii the community in which
YOU live wants n branch library,
or deposit station, organize your
ncighbors. elect a. local committee
to take charge of arrangements for
the station, such as selection of n
place and appointment of q GUS
todian.
The branch libraries are not to be
established Immediately. Hundreds
of extra books viii be necessary for
that. For the time being all patrons
will be served individually, either in
person or by mail or express.
Parcel Post Service. VIZ.
The library board at recent meet
ing decided to pay parcel postage on
books one way. The patron must bear
the other half of the expense. Books
taken out by post may be retained
three weeks, the library allowing an
extra week for transportation. County
patrons may, of course, secure their
books at the library building. in which
case postal charges will be eliminated.
This service will be started within
two weeks. it is expected, as the H.
brary will be ready to register patrons
next week, if applications are taken
out now
The deposit stations will be estab-
lished just as soon as the books al
ready ordered become available. Four
will be maintained at first. One little
town has already applied for a branch
library and will be given early con-
sideration. Others should make appli-
cation Immediately. The branches
will be established in the most inn
portant towns which seem to want
them.
At Branch Stations.
Patrons of 4these branch stations
will@not have to worry over postage.
Collections of books will be sent by
freight to the branches to remain for
three or four months. Distribution to
local patrons will be under rules not
yet determined. The library officials
will make the general regulations flex-
ihle enough for adaptation to local
needs At the end of three or four
months period the collections which
will be duplicates of the best the gen.
eral library contains, will be changed.
Next winter Miss Stoddard hopes to
be able to have small home libraries
of 10 to % books which may be sent
out to isolated places to be kept for
three months or so.
The nature of the county lbrary's
book list will depend upon the demand
| AS a beginning the best in the city Ii
brary has been duplicated. Additions
will be determined by the desires of
patrons. Anything which circulates in
the city library will circulate in the
| county library If there is a call for it.
| The county library department is
nearly ready. It will provide facilities
for shipping, shelf room and will be
an office for the county librarian and
an assistant. 1t will be just like any
other library, except that it will not
deal directly with the public.
ORIGIN DOUBTFUL.