RURAL LIBRARY SCHEME

Evening Star, Issue 22449, 21 September 1936, Page 12

RURAL LIBRARY SCHEME

TARANAKI DISTRICT CHOSEN FOR EXPERIMENT [Put United Press Association.] AUCKLAND, September 21. Following the visit or Mr Keppel, chairman of the Carnegie Corporation, New York, last year, a committee consisting of the chief librarians of the four main centres, Mr Scholefield (chief librarian ot the General Assembly Library), Mr T. D. Hall (clerk of the House*of Representatives), and Mr A. D. M‘lntosh (the Prime Minister’s Department) was set up to advise concerning the best methods to bring into operation the recommendations contained in the report on New Zealand libraries prepared by Mr Ralph Munn, director of the Carnegie Library, Pittsburgh, and Mr John Harr, chief librarian, Auckland. This committee has decided to make a detailed survey of a suitable rural .area for the purpose of recommending the inauguration of a library service for a rural district when it is hoped a demonstration will be carried out to prove the value of country libraries based on modern ideas. The district selected is Taranaki, and Mr G. T. Alley (Christchurch) has been invited to carry out the survey. Mr Alloy has been released from his‘present duties as librarian of the Association for Country Education to enable him to undertake the work, and it is anticipated that he will commence his survey early in October. Mr Alley has considerable experience with rural libraries, and in addition to his present post, which causes him to deal with library provision for the country residents of Canterbury, Ota.'m, and Southend, he has been connected with the W.E.A. travelling library in Canterbury. Y hen taking his M.A. degree he wrote a thesis dealing with" adult education in rural communities, based on his observations while dealing with that work.