WONDERFUL LIBRARIES

Evening Post, Volume CXIX, Issue 31, 6 February 1935, Page 6

WONDERFUL LIBRARIES

IMPRESSIONS IN U.S.A.

MR. W. S. WAUCHOP'S TOUR

Most of his time during the six and a half weeks in which he was in America was spent in visiting libraries and art galleries, said Mr. W. S. Wauchop, ■assistant librarian at the General Assembly Library, who returned to Wellington on Monday by the Makura after being absent from New Zealand for just over twelve months. Mr. Wauchop confessed that, he had never seen anything like the libraries in America He had expected a lot, but they exceeded his expectations. The American libraries were magnificently housed, and had everything in the way ,of, modern equipment. Am& rica was fortunate in having library staffs who were tremendously enthusiastic. He was everywhere most cordially received, said Mr. iWauchop, and the various library staffs could not do enough for him. He had a most instructive and happy time at the Congress Library. He visited 36 libraries and 20 art galleries. In most of the towns in America the library was a real cultural centre, with functions.extending beyond the.lending of fiction and: light, reading. Most of the libraries'were divided into departments. The business branches of the libraries filled *a big part m American business life, and throughout the day they were thronged with people seeking business information. If some libraries had suffered through the depression, most of them had funds enough to carry on the essential work. The large selection of prints and'reproductions in the libraries were of the utmost value to art teachers,- art students, and teachers generally. The library work in connection with the sch6ols',was'another feature of American life. In America they did all they could to attract people into the libraries, and many- of the libraries carriedadvisory staffs1 'for the benefit of readers. AT THE UNIVERSITIES. He visited five wonderful university libraries, said Mr. Wauchop. The Columbia University library contained all the latest ideas in library construction, and^had^to be seen to be believed. The library at Yale'was Jhoused in a most handsome and elaborate Gothic building. It was built as a monument, and this seems to have been the. first consideration, but it was a wonderful building and the library,was a fine one. At' Harvard: there" was a wonderful drama section to the'library, including photographs, - historic theatrical documents, playbills,: programmes, ■criticisms, etc. It was the most complete drama library he had ever seen. There was a charming university library at Ann Arbor. Associated with the library was probably the foremost school-of librarianship ■ in- , America— which practically meant the world— under Dr. Bishop, who was a charming man. Another charming library was that at the University of Southern California at Los Angeles. The architecture was Mexican or Spanish The library was a 1 modern one as regards facilities, 'but it also had the advantage of an 'old-world atmosphere. Mr. Wauchop spoke highly of the State Library at Albany. A thing that impressed him in America, he said, was the presentation of private collections of books and pictures" to ""various towns, examples- of this being the Morgan Library m New and the Folger Library in Washington, 'the latter containing a wonder^ ful collection of Shakespeareana.p/^ INFLUENCE <OF FRENCH ART.^ ~ Mr. Wauchop, who1, is well known Jn art circles, said he had seen more good examples of modern French art in America, than _any where else. In Chicago, for instance, he saw a whole room of Monet's work, there being about twenty-three pictures <In Boston he saw about fifteen examples of Monet's work. In Philadelphia there were some , t wonderfuli examples 'of. Cezanne's, work., Gauguin»and Van Gogh, were magnificently* lepresented in America. American art had been influenced tremendously by the mod-ern-French school,' Jas 'was seen in the exhibition of modern American art at Toronto This exhibition was being sent on tour by the Carnegie Corporation of New York. It-would be most stimulating to art in-New Zealand if such an exhibition -.could,be sent out here, concluded. Mr. > 'Wauchop. t