Evening star., 1941-10-19
Library
For Blind
Plans Show
Fashion Exhibit
Will Take Place
October %

Fashion shows always create
much interest in this city, and one
that should appeal to every group
is that which the National Library
for the Blind will give at the Shore
ham Hotel at 2:30 o'clock Wednes-
day, October %.
The show is being arranged by
Nine. Yovin of New York, Paris and
Palm Beach. One of her great
interests is work for the blind.
In addition to the display Of
gowns there will be music. Mr..
Boyd Hanchette, the blind baritone
of New York, will sing. He will be
accompanied by Mrs. Helen Camp
bell Williams at the piano and Miss
Grace Powell on the violin. Mrs.
Williams and Miss Powell are men,
bers of the Friday Morning Music
Club and are we'll known in Wash
ington
Door prizes will be distributed.
Tickets are one dollar, including
tax.
The National Library for the
Blind distributes braille and talking
books to bird persons all over the
United States and in remote corners
of the world. It's VIZ is carried on
in darkness, since the v'c"kers en-
ployed by the library are blind.
Reading Matter Mailed
Under Franking Privilege.
Reading matter for the blind IS
mailed under Government franking
privilege. Some blind readers write
in to the library, either in braille
or by typewriter, giving lists of the
books they wish to read. Others
leave the selection to the library
staff.
Braille books are bulky volumes
bound in boards or pressboard. Their
size is indicated by the fact that
Gone With the Wind" fills II huge
volumes. These books are wrapped
in heavy canvas covers and fastened
with straps for mailing.
The talking books. which are
phonograph records made to be
played at slow speeds, are packed
in heavy black boxes strapped to-
gether.
The National Library owes its be-
ginning to the late Miss Eta JOS
selyn Giffen. Miss Giffen began
with nothing but a room. The room
was located in the Library of Con-
gress and was designated in 1897 by
John Russell Young, who was IL
brarian at that time, for the use Of
the blind.
When the room became available
Miss Giffen solicited chairs and
tables from members of Congress.
Following this she invited blind
people to come to their library and
she asked well-known citizens to
volunteer to read to the blind.
.Braille books were acquired and
their number gradually grew larger.
Since there was no system of de-
llvering them blind readers were
obliged to obtain their books d.
rectly at the Library of Congress.
Progress was complicated by the
fact that several systems Of en-
bossed dots were then in use, in
cluding European Braille and Amer
lean Braille. Miss Giffen worked
for the establishment of universal
system, which finally became an
actuality through adoption by an
international conference of workers
for the blind in California in 1916.
With the financial help of bene-
factors the National Library was
finally established independently 80
years ago, At present it is housed
rent free at 1925 Twenty-first street
NV. in a building owned by the
Government.
The library needs funds for carry
ing on its work of bringing the world
Of literature to the blind. The Gov
ernment's grant of $1,000 annually
does not pay for salaries of the blind