ABOUT LIBRARIES.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 781, 2 April 1910, Page 10

ABOUT LIBRARIES.

♦ — THE. RECENT CONFERENCE. REMARKS BY MR. C. WILSON. (By CorresDondentJ Christohurch, March 31: Mr. , Charles Wilson, chief librarian oi the General Assembly Library in Wei-." lington, is. spending a fewdays in Christ- , church,; having "broken 'his return jour- '■ .' ney nortli .here, after attending th'ev Lfc"'"• braries Conference in Dunedin.' At that gathering Mr.'■' Wilson , -, in common with '. other gentlemen who did not represent ; w,h'at are termed "public" libraries,, ; neither claimed nor exercised the right' to vote during the proceedings. Ho iri- ; formed the conference at the outset that: he had no mandate or express instruc- ■ tions from the Library Committee as to: any attitude he might adopt towards any. of the proposals on the agenda paper. Mr. Wilson: expressed the opinion in speaking to a "Press" reporter to-day that excellent service has been done by the. . holding of the conference, and he give* the , credit for its initiation to Mr. Mart Cohen. The conference was particularly ■■■ fortunate in having as its chairman Mr. Gilkison, of Dunedinl who is chairman of the Library Committee of the; City Coun-, •til, and a keen -.-.'' -i With regard to the proposed establish--ment of travelling libraries, Mr.. Wilson ■ said.that the opinion seemed to be fairly ■ generally entertained that they should get. their origin in the -Parliamentary Li- • brary, and be worked from that institu- , ition. He ; pointed out, however,, that.in . America," wherever travelling libraries' were in vogue, special stocks of bookt.--were supplied and drawn from, and exist" ; ing libraries were left intact.-: It would.. be'impracticable to have books from the Parliamentary Library circulating , allover the Dominion. Thestocks would be depleted, and 1 tho library would lose ita value entirely. Conditions in. New , .Zea>■;'-." land, as far,as distribution isi concerned, are very different from, those in America, and, even in Australia, where the rail- -'. ways converge to. one centre, 'and make distribution easy." The conference agreedthat new stocks wouldhavo to be pro-.,-' vided if travelling libraries were\ to be -V successfully, inaugurated: Tho principal difficulty was that of finance, and if that",... were overcome, 'the., problem of : distribu-,-, tionwould not present insuperable diffi-.,-' cnltics. ' ... . ■"■:*. \ The criticism of the editor :of ■ tho - "School, Journal" by one of the ■ delegates -was described by Mr. Wilson as extremely , unfair."'.Mr. Wilson says"that no Gov-> eminent officer makes such an extended use of the Parliamentary Library in look . ing out New Zealand historical doc*, ments and books as the editor of the; Jo'urnal. The remarks alleging, an almost exclusive use of the "scissors "and v paste-pot" were, somewhat harsh and.un.' called for.. ' , .■' --,-..-' ~, ~ -An important point in-connection with • which Canterbury owes something to Mr. Wilson came up when the constitution of the Public Libraries' Association or Institute was being discussed. The original • definition as proposed by a special commHtee would have excluded such libraries .... as tho Public Library in .Chnstchurch, which is controlled by Canterbury C 01.;,, lege, the Victoria College Library,, the ; Parliamentary Library, and other tutions, the use of which is confined to a , section of.the public. Mr Wilson warmly...; advocated" a broader definition, pomtin, . out thaf these, institutions had manyiu. terests in common with the public-hbrar."; ies. -His argument was supported---bj ;• other delegates, and eventually the deft.. -: rition was so amended as to; practically, include every library which is " ot o = o , n :. diiotcd' for personal gam. _ ApparentlJ some of "the delegate-,, said Wilson, desired the, association to be something, in the nature of a municipal .libranans;trade union. -In support of , tion. that'ii the. ..Parl amentary ..Itojy ; v if aVleas'a semi-pnblicV'if not ff^ ,, - institution,, Mr. Wason stated that dug ; ing last recess , 700 persons were granted - recess privileges,.including the right to take" books home' from' the- library. -Visi- : -,; crt from other parts of the Dominica - are freely admitted to the library during , their stay in the city. . On the whole, :th« system , worked very well ,and very rarely, was a book lost through the renussness o£ .. : privilege-holders. A nffiesbn waa, made at the poiifevcnce that .the librar.l should be opened at night to the pubho, but there wore difficulties m thejay. The New' Zealand Parliamentary Librarj • was the. only StAte library iiv Austra- ■ ;ial-which gave people the right to make- . use of it on such easy conditions, and al- . Wed books to be taken out by the pub- •, lie during the recefs. No vorks of fie- , ti-m are "iss'.-ed.from. th. -Parliamentary, - Library, a significant fact when it .3 re, membered that in many public libraries , about 90 per cent, of tho books taken out, are thus, described.' ....... .. ,