LIBRARIAN RETIRES

Evening Post, Volume CXXIII, Issue 85, 12 April 1937, Page 11

LIBRARIAN RETIRES

MR. J. C. ANDERSEN ■ ■:.'" > r

SUCCESSOR APPOINTED

Mr. Johannes C. Andersen, M.8.E., F.R.S.N.Z., has retired from the position of Librarian at the Turnbull Library, and Mr. C. R. Taylor, M.A., has been appointed his successor. Mr. Taylor has been assistant at the Turnbull Library since , 1933. Mr. Andersen's retirement dates from June 30 ntxt, but he has been granted three months' leave of absence, as from April 1. ■ Mr. Andersen's career has been as notable .officially as it has been before the public of this country. He has had exceptionally \ long service, and has contributed considerably to the culture of New Zealanders. He joined the Lands Office in Christchurch on February 14, 1887, gaining experience in all branches of its many activities till 1915, when he was appointed to the General Assembly Library in Wellington. ... : When, in 1918, Mr. Alexander, Turnbull died, leaving his extensive, and scholarly library to the people of New Zealand,- the choice /of;, the.:first librarian.{■ fell upon- Mr..Andersen, -and within' the walls /of.: this' famous institution/he has ' worked ever;,, since the beginning of 1919. ' Certainly it was a happy and advantageous appointment. Itjs given to few men to have the wide knowledge of literature and history, of ; ethnology and bibliography,- of language and research method that Mr. Andersen brought to this service. The colossal task'of organising the 55,000 volumes of the collection, was undertaken, and .within a year the library.was thrown open tp the public, while a/,steady: advance.-was, made with cataloguing and arranging. ' .■'■'■■■■'■■' /From: (then , till now 'the .history; of the library has 'been one : of marked advance. .-Despite: the fact'that/the extensive -book-buying ' programme .of Mr..VTurnbuH had ceased,/continual noteworthy accessions were secured, largely by donation, but a year-to-year vote from, the Government ensured that the important sections of the library were kept alive and xrp to date. From,time to time especially important gifts have been received, such as. the Mantel! Collection in 1926. /This/is a fine group of English .literature and New Zealand material, strong in manuscript relating to New Zealand 'and with important items' in the rare-book field.. 'From ; the late. Mr. S. Percy Smith/ came a section on English ccunty ...history, and antiquities, from Sir Robert Stout's executors, a. collection of Shetland Islands books, and from Mr. Trimbell, .of Masterton, a fine unit devoted to Italian political science and history. More recently the library benefited by the addition of part of the bequest of the late Mr^ A. R.; Atkinson, again in the splendid collection of the late Mr. Henry Wright, and l last and most : spectacular in the magnificents-library of the late Sir Joseph; Kinsey. It is.not too much to say that:in great part 'these increases have come through the' confidence of donorsJiin. the qualities ■. of Mr. Andersen. V • . :: .

•Thus.'in ihese ;years the; library has grown' to'; a. total strength; of about 80,000 /volumes, choicely- selected, and in excellent condition: and as one of the'; -wbrld's;' great libraries - it' is esteemed among, scholars and students both here'and overseas. ..'. . ■ : C^v WIDE RANGE OF STUDIES. ': ;<#; Yet in, recording Mr. Andersen's offiIcial, career, the full tale 'of his service ;to]Ne'w ■ Zealand is not told. His studies havelbeen both wide, ill their scope: and intensive in their application. His writihgs, : reflecting his wide • learning, are ,weil^top^^^ok^ewv,s.Zealandersi' ; just ::aSv^*6i'''hl^p16p.ular^'Jectufes'i'to-vniariy .'organisations.: .Probably, his favourite study. has been; that ;of Maori folklore and: customs,: arid this has borne fruit in his :;books—"Maori Life in,Ao-tea-roa," 1907, "Myths and Legends of- the Polynesians," 1927; .■ "Maori Music," 1934, "Maori String Figures," 1927; "Maori Tales," 1924; and "Maori Fairy Tales," 1908. Next in importance is his study of the technique of poetry, to which his book, "The Laws of Verse," 1928, published by the Cambridge University ;■• '■'•Press, brings authoritative opinion and penetrating examination. His published poetry includes ■ "The Lamp of Psyche," 1908;1 "Songs Unsung," 1903, "The Elfin Dell," 1934, and "Tura and the Fairies," 1936. ...

' As a member of the Maori Board of Ethnology he has been able ,to apply his'knowledge to .the benefit of both the race and our knowledge of it.

As an authority on ' New Zealand birds he has given pleasure and instruction to many'through his lecturing, while his observations have been recorded in his delightful study "Bird Songs and New Zealand Song' Birds,". 1926. : . '■■' ' ■

It is worthy of note that Mr. Andersen was a member of the committee to select the present pictorial series of postage . stamps, and in the ultimate happy choice, it is readily discernible where-the. weight of his opinion was directed. ' ■ ■ :

Mr. Andersen has been associated with many activities, probably the most important being the Polynesian Society of whose Journal he has. for several years been editor. For a number of years too he held the editorship of the Transactions of the New Zealand Institute, a service that met its reward in his being made a Fellow of the Royal Society of New, Zealand. He is a member of the Geographic Board, making —in 1934—a notable contribution to the study of place names,.' a .study he has 'followed for many years, earlier exemplified iri: his "Place Names of Banks Peninsula," 1927. Ori the executives of the Numismatic Society, the Bird Protection Society; and the' Ex Libris Society, he has fou#i scope for useful work. Last year, as delegate of the New Zealand branch of the P.E.N. Club', he attended the conference at Buenos Aires, at the same time visiting the land of his birth, Denmark, for the first time since he left it in early childhood. '■ [ A NOTABLE HISTOKX. Probably.Mr. Andersen's most monumental piece of research is the Jubilee I History of South Canterbury, published in 1916. It is "a veritable treasury 'of detailed records of the early days there, and is especially valuable for placing individuals as well as events.

In the realm of books, it is' obvious that the librarian of such an institution as, the Turnbull Library must have a wide and especially a bibliographical knowledge of books'and their values and peculiarities, and. in this study Mr. Andersen's reputation stands probably second to none in this country. It has, for example,'.'found expression in his book published last year. "The Lure of New Zealand Book Collecting."

When last week, on the eve of his retirement, the staff, past and present, of the Turnbull Library gathered to bid farewell to Mr. Andersen,, the predominant note struck was one of congratulation that, after fifty years' service to the State, Mr. Andersen should now have the full leisure and freedom to pursue his chosen studies, still in the fullness of .his mental and physical vigour. To both Mr."and Mrs. Andersen, the speakers. Mr. J. W. Heerian, Under-Secretary of Internal Affairs, Mr. C, R. H. Taylor, Assistant Librarian, and Miss A. Woodhouse, Reference Librarian, wished, in the course of appreciative remarks, all happiness and health in the years of his retirement. THE NEW LIBRARIAN. Mr. Taylor, the new librarian, is a I son of Mr. and the late Mrs. T. D. Tay-, lor, of Wellington, and la in his early.

thirties. '.He was> educated at Wellington College and the-Wairarapa.:;High. School, whence he proceeded to Canterbury University College, taking the degree of B.A. in 1928, and in the same year the Diploma in Journalism. The following year he graduated M.A., taking honours in the subject economics. As part of this degree he wrote an Economic History of Canterbury Land Settlement, which received high commendation from the English examiners. From 1923 to 1929 he was on the staff of the Christchurch Lands Office, which he left to become librarian of the Agricultural Department. Wellington.

Towards the close of 1933, having been appointed assistant librarian 'at the Turnbull Library, Mr. Taylor was awarded a Carnegie Library Fellowship, which enabled him to study library methods in the United. States, England, and Europe. Much ' valuable experience was gained by Mr. Taylor through this Fellowship, which experience, has been greatly to the benefit of the Turnbull Library.

Of Mr. Taylor's literary work, probably the best known'is a book on the Gothic architecture and a history of the Canterbury Provincial Buildings, published in 1929. :