Evening star., 1923-07-26
The North Window
ny LEILA MECHLIN

An amusing story was recently
told by William Lyon Phelps In his
monthly contribution TO scribner'9
Magazine OF a German public libra
rian who fourlshed some Atty years
ago and. when asked about his work,
said. with n mingiing OF asperity and
pride: TN this library every book is
now on the shelves except one, and
/ know where that one is and I'm
going to get II this afternoon"
AS Mr. Phelps commented, times
have changed" The modern librarian
is not a. Watchdog: he Is a middle
man. and the modern art museum di-
rector is likewise no longer a keeper
OF antiquities but public servant.
The library ideal has altered no
more than has that of the museum.
ONCE OF museum director today
In quite as great measure does the
require idealism. knowledge, wis
dom and tact. the attributes. accord
ing TO Mr.. Phelps, OF the up-to-date
librarian.
A glance at the reports of the
TO be fact. for while every care
is taken to build up the permanent
collections. the object, which is
never lost sight of. Is not preserya-
tion but use. The exhibits are 40
arranged in most art museums that
they can be readily studied, the ex-
hlbits being arranged according TO
careful classification and frequently.
iikewise. chronologically. Improve
ment has been made. also. In the art
of display. Pictures are no longer
hung in double and triple rows,
frame to frame, but with ample
space. and in many galleries pic
lures and furniture and works of
the decorative arts are shown to-
gether in such wise as to create
environment. More than this, every
means is used to secure for the pub
lie the utmost benefit. and not one
put various classes of citizens are
metropolitan Museum in New York
there are special classes arranged
Tor designers. for statesmen, for those
In the trades. There are classes for
schoo! children and school teachers,
and though the Metropolitan Mu-
scum in New York sets an example
| II Is not unique in this branch Of
activity.
1t was prophesied some years ago
that the day would come when a CITY
or town without an art museum would
be as unusual as one today without
a public library. and 1t begins to
| look as If the prophecy were coming
true. Within the last few weeks an
nouncement was made that a little
| town in Massachusetts, in the Berk-
shire region, with a population of
less than twenty thousand Is TO have
an art museum-a separate building
which would be one Of an "Athenaeum
group library science and art mu-
Seums.
And why shouldn't little towns
| like Westfield have art museums OF
their own, provided they can afford
\ the luxury? Like so many other
! things. art museums are not mex
! pensive tribes. The change in mu-
scum policy and ideal has meant a
| large increase in the cost of main
| tenance. A director who spent his
time in residence, as it were, keep
| ing watchful eye over exhibits
| mostly In glass cases, did not re-
qufre either large salary or
numerous stan OF assistants but this
sort of a museum is no more. The
Cleveland Museum of Art reports
expenditures in excess of 5000, 900
during the past year for current ex-
penses, the latest report of the Metro
politan Museum in New York, shows
| deficit of this amount in it's yearly
! maintenance fund, which is many
many times greater. But the con-
Gressional appropriation for the Ma
! tional Gallery of Art, covering all
| expenses. including the salary Of the
director and his assistants. is $4,000
| The measure of the usefulness OF
| an art museum is to a great extent
| the amount of money it can spend
collections available and valuable to
the public.
| Joseph Pennell. in a recent letter to
J the New York Times, declared that
| the government of the United States
! takes no interest in art, and gave as
his reasons for this conviction the
fact that We have no minister or Sec
rotary of fine arts, no department or
| bureau of art, no government art
! schools. no national support of art.
| To an extent Mr.. Pinnell is right; he
usually is in the main, though he
! sometimes carries his contentious too
J far. and in this case 1t may be that
| were those things attained which he
| mentions, the condition which he Ia
! ments would not be improved
| secretary of fine arts would be
| powerless unless he had the support
! of Congress. and sufficient equipment
to carry on such work as could come
| under his department, and unless he
were endowed with wisdom of an ex-
! ceptional order he would not even
have the support of the artists of the
country. A government art school OF
the right SORT run on the same lines
as West Point or Annapolis. would,
! indeed be very worth while, provided
| of course, that 1t were conducted as
competently as either of these insti-
tutions. The government has. with
music school for the training of band
musicians, which may prove to be an
| initial step in this direction.
Mr.. Pennell suggests that govern
ment support Of art would pay this
country better than a great many
other things, and in this he is emil
nently right. Art does pay.
The bureau of education has just is
sued a pamphlet entitled Some In
dustrial Art Schools of Europe and
Their Lessons for the United States
| Extracts From the Studies Made for
the French Government. by Marius
| vachon," translated by Florence N
Levy, formerly editor of the American
Art Annual. now director of the Bal
pamphlet tells how the countries in
Europe have organized their art in
dustries and have educated their de-
isigners, with the result that they have