The Waterbury Democrat., 1934-02-07

editions; the older editions being made to serve at the branches. lt ls therefore doubly aware of tta rood fortune, in now having enough new sets to meet all de- unande..
 Repairs and Improvements
 Notable repairs and improve ments to the central building might be listed as follows, although those things starred were undertaken 90 late in 1888 that they have not yet been completed:
 Children's room painted and the stairway to this room cleaned and
 revaFnishod.
 Newspaper room painted and
 three new window sasllcs put m.
 Business and Technical room
 painted.
 Art room painted.
 Entrance porch and yerdOule
 Cutters repaired on exterior of
 the building.
 SCcIIar cleaned and wfitewaehed.
 sWOrk of painting entire four
 floors of stack begun, with naa-
 terlaIs supplied by the library
 and labor by the local branch of
 the Civil Works Administration
 New magazine rack purchased for the Reading room.
 sOnc additional unit of steel
 shelving purchased to take care
 of bound newspapers tor 1884
 and 1885.
 Battleship Iiu0Ietrm laid in the
 Genealogical room and new
 shelving and furniture purchased
 SThree new six-foot sections of
 shelving purchased for the Chil-
 dren's room.
 Fifteen drawer section catal0g
 file purchased for the Children's
 room.
 Battieship linoleuan Laid in the
 upper cnetral hall.
 Old hand elevator between sec-
 Ond and third floor central halls
 removed to make room for two
 picture files which seemed an es-
 sential part of the collection of
 books for parents and teachers
 now housed in this hall.
 Repairs other than the usual min. or repairs to be made at the three branches include the complete re- wiring of Brooklyn branch. upon the recommendation of the Board of Fire Underwriters. In Conclusion
 The increased use of the public library during these years of de- precision and enforced leisure Is alive with possibilities for it's ser- vice to the community in the new economic and social order which now seems so very near at hand as to be almost an accomplished fact. Machine production, together with an adequate system of distribution and finance, holds out the promise of shorter working hours and more leisure for everyone ct a not too distant time. How to make a wise use of this new found leisure will be one of the greatest problems of tomorrow. If 1t Is spent in meaningless recreation, or in idle ness, nothing will be gained from 1t. But if 1t is used for the en- richment of life through healthful recreational and cultural pursuits 1t would be almost impossible to overestimate the good which will result to our society, our civiliza- ton and to people themselves. The part which the library can play in helping to make this leisure an enrichn ent of life lies not only in the opportunities which books and reading offer in themselves, but also in their use as guides and sources of expert information in every known field of endeavor. Since most of the knowledge of the world Is contained in books those who wish to know what to do and how to do it should not be unmindful of the fact that libraries are the storehouses of this inspi- ration ind knowledge. I should like in closing to ex- press once again to the Board ot Agents nd to the Executive C0m- mittee my appreciation of their confidence, support and guidance and to the staff my sincere thanks for their interest and cooperation in carrying through the work of the year.
 Respectfully submitted, EMELYN M. BARRETT, Librarian.
 PICK UP FINANCIAL REPORT.
 Tha FolIaruln'ep fa fhA Ya0nrf rS