THE BOOK SELECTOR THE announcement which was made in our December number of the proposed issue of a monthly list of books, called the Book Selector, which it is hoped will also serve the purposes of Co-operative Cataloguing, has met with a most gratifying response. We have received many congratulatory letters upon the new venture, one of which we print below, and a number of subscriptions have come to hand. We hope therefore to issue the first number, which will contain a selection of the books published during January, on February 15th next. A copy of this issue will be circulated widely in order that every librarian may have the opportunity of examining the style and scope of the work. It is believed that sufficient support will then be forthcoming to justify the publication of the Book Selector as a permanent bibliographical aid to Librarians, Students, Educationists and others. To enable us to put the work on any such definite basis we need a guarantee of at least two hundred subscribers. A correspondent writes: "I read your last number with much interest and particularly the proposal for a Book Selection Guide. "I am sure this will be a very great help to librarians, and if widely supported your new venture may become the English equivalent to the A.L.A. Book List, which we find very useful. I think the specimen entries are quite good, though a little larger type for the title might be desirable, otherwise they are equally suitable for both card and sheaf catalogues. "I shall await the first issue with much interest and I wish the venture every success." LETTERS ON OUR AFFAIRS To Zenodotus, Callimachus, Eratosthenes, Marcus Pomponius, and Aristonymus,-Greeting! I, who succeeded Eratosthenes as Librarian of the first great library at Alexandria, respond reluctantly, as befits my nature, to an invitation to try my 'prentice hand at the art epistolary. "Fools rush in where angels fear to tread," and I apprehend that my effort to address you in cold print will be but one more proof of the truthfulness of Pope's assertion. I am in a rebellious mood. Why should I, a keeper of books, be pressed to add to the world's output of pages with black ink on them?-I, Apollonius Rhodius, who have so recently joined the ranks of the Chiefs, and thus separated myself by a mighty chasm from my old colleagues of the A.Â.L.-I had nearly written L.A.A.— unless I choose to lose caste by associating freely with them as of yore. But I must quell my rebellious spirit by reading some of the dulcet poems of gentle and placid Callimachus, whose fugitive verses should be collected and preserved with our archives. N. A. L. G. O. How strange it was for me to attend my first Conference at Cardiff, and to witness at the annual meeting the uproariousness of many of those whom I had hitherto regarded with awe, if not with reverence. And how pained I was to infer from some of the speeches that the Council has a knack of doing things in a peculiar I must not use a harsh word-way. For the younger generation N.A.L.G.O. has done a tremendous service in several directions, and its persistent and untiring efforts to secure the passing of the Local Government Officers' Superannuation Act has added lustre to its name, notwithstanding the contrary opinion of some of the hoary-headed members of the Association. Oh, why did the Council desire to cease membership of N.A.L.G.O. without consulting the members of our Association? I wonder whether or no the Council is considering what steps should be taken to bring pressure upon the local authorities to adopt this permissive act? Tell me, dear Eratosthenes, if in your peregrinations you have gleaned any fragments of information regarding the doings of the Council? THE RECORD. The annual report of the Council made no mention of the pending alteration in the publication of the Record, yet there were rumours that it will be converted to a quarterly before the rank and file of the Association have had an opportunity of discussing this retrograde step. As a monthly publication the Record could be made a "live" publication, with even occasional touches of humour -I am not forgetting the effusions of the elusive F.B. or the rare flashes in the past, such as Edmonton's advertisement in the July number for library binding in "half nigger." Besides containing the transactions of the Association and most of its present features the Record ought to be made a valuable medium of inter-communication between librarians. THE L.A. CLASSES AND EXAMS. Is it too much to expect that the arrangements for the classes and the examinations shall be conducted in the interests of the students? Until recently too much latitude was allowed, as candidates could enter for the examinations to within a few days of their dates, but evidently some one " got the wind up," and now students must enter for the examinations nearly three months beforehand, probably before some of them are in a position to judge whether they should sit or no. With regard to the correspondence classes I hear that the first paper in one class was not issued until nearly the end of November or was it the beginning of December ?-and another was only issued a few weeks earlier; consequently the students of these classes will be working on their correspondence papers until a short period before the examinations. If the classes had begun early in October they would terminate about Easter, and by so doing the students would get more time for the preparation of their essays and the revision of their class-work. Methinks the Education Committee is the poorer by the transference of its Chairman to the "land o' cakes" where at the festive season possibly have enjoyed the haggis, wi' just a wee thocht o' the Auld Kirk. APOLLONIUS RHODIUS. The Editor does not hold himself responsible for the opinions of the writers of "LETTERS ON OUR Affairs."] [Readers are invited to send us items of news for this column. Brief Notes on innovations, interesting happenings, appointments and changes and other local items of general interest are particularly welcome.] The Carnegie Trustees, we understand, have replied to an application from the CHELMSFORD Town Council that they have definitely discontinued the policy of grants for the erection of Borough Libraries. In their reports, and in various speeches we have heard by representatives of the Trustees, this decision is based on the fact that local authorities have now powers that will allow them to provide their own buildings. We extract the following interesting paragraph from The Chiswick Times : The new juvenile department at the CHISWICK PUBLIC LIBRARY, recently opened, is proving a great success and a favourite meeting place with the young folk for whom it is intended It has been fashioned out of the rooms in the basement which used to be occupied by the caretaker, and has been done in a style eminently suited to the main object for which it is intended. The children pass by a desk at which they give in the books they have read, and can then make their choice of fresh ones from the shelves around the room. These are of an appropriate height, have been made by the boys attending the carpentry class under Mr. Sudds. The decorations have been carried out in pleasing tones, and the bucket lights suspended from the ceiling illuminate the room with a fine glow not at all harmful to the eyes. The children are already wonderfully appreciative of this little library den of their own and are flocking to it in great numbers. In charge is a young lady of not many more summers than themselves, yet she has them under perfect control. Each evening she appoints her monitors, and woe betide the boy or girl who makes even the semblance of an undue noise. Not that there is anything like tyranny about it; as a fact, it seems to be a case of “all done by kindness," and the youngsters seem to take a real pride in this, their new home. The shelves are a little empty yet, but the committee hope to fill them up in time, not with the "goody-goody" books which most young folk of the present-day are frankly bored with-often perhaps with very good reason-but with a well-chosen range of literature which shall make them interested-and amused-as well as informed. The tables have been covered with green covers, tied on so that they shall not slip, and at these the children sit and can consult illustrated papers specially published for their own edification, as well as the more popular journals which deal pictorially with events of the day. The room is used for lectures, when a screen is let down at one end, the tables cleared away, and a fairly large audience can be accommodated. Mr. C. Clarke has kindly given a lantern for this purpose. Councillor Pendlebury, his committee, and Miss Gilbert, the librarian, are to be congratulated on the really excellent job they have made of the work. MARYLEBONE, the only London borough without public libraries, adopted the Acts two years ago, but has several times postponed the putting of them into operation. Its Council recently decided to postpone the matter again for twelve months. There are two camps in the borough: one which thinks that no public library is needed-if such obsolescent folk can be said to think at alland the other which thinks Marylebone should have a library worthy of the status of the borough. Such a library it is estimated would cost £100,000, and it is thought (not unnaturally we admit) that the present time is not opportune for such an enterprise. The half-way solutions suggested are curious, and not particularly imaginative; that a part of the Workhouse should be used, or the basement of the Town Hall. Either might serve as a beg8nning and the library advocates might adopt that view; because it is clear that when once a library is established the prople of Marylebone will not be content for long with one inferior to that of other London boroughs. The Norwich and Norfolk Sunday School Union has co-operated with the NORWICH Public Library. The Union gave a donation in money to the Library towards the purchase of books of particular interest to Sunday School teachers, and the Library purchased other books to supplement its stock. The City Librarian (Mr. Geo. A. Stephen) compiled a special annotated and classified catalogue of about 900 volumes, and it has been published at the expense of the Union with the title "Books for Sunday School Teachers and other Bible Students." In connection with the inauguration of this scheme the Union arranged a public meeting at St. Mary's Baptist Chapel, Norwich, on Friday evening, October 27th, when an address on Religious Education and the Public Library" was delivered by Mr. T. Raymont, M.A., the Warden of Goldsmiths College (University of London), and the author of The Use of the Bible in the Education of the Young. Mr. Raymont, in the course of his address, said: "The spread of education had brought a certain restlessness, a certain suspicion that not only the historical framework of the Christian faith but the very faith itself was brought into question, and therefore the teacher needed as much knowledge of the modern view of the Bible as would enable him to guard against teaching the children in the Bible lesson that which was contradicted in other lessons and had afterwards to be unlearned. Hence the enormous importance in the future of the step now being taken. . . If the Sunday School teacher could escape from the hand to mouth existence implied in the use of lesson notes issued by the Sunday School Union, his teaching stood to gain immeasurably in vitality, in breadth and in conviction. And here came in the value of this excellent catalogue. They would have in it a wide selection of books to meet all tests and all needs. They would find that the librarian by his annotations and summaries had helped them to put their hand on just the book that was needed for any particular purpose." " PERSONAL NEWS MR. E. G. H. Carter, who was trained in library work at Holborn, Southwark and Deptford Libraries, has been appointed manager of Messrs. Grafton and Co.'s Sales Department, and he will devote his personal attention to developing the already extensive service in both books and supplies. Librarians will be aware that in dealing with Messrs. Grafton and Co., they are dealing with experts who thoroughly understand the present day methods of Library practice in all departments. THE NORTH MIDLAND LIBRARY ASSOCIATION THE 109th meeting of the North Midland Library Association was held at Newark-on-Trent on November 2nd, 1922, when Librarians and Representatives from Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Northants., and Notts. assembled in the Tudor Hall, and were welcomed by Dr. Ringrose, chairman of the Public Library Committee. The President (Mr. Alderman C. Squire) reported upon the Cardiff Conference, outlining the policies and commenting upon the general excellence of the papers and speakers. He referred in detail to Mr. Ballinger's address and also to those papers dealing with work with children. " Mr. S. J. Kirk (Nottingham) gave an entertaining paper on 'Some Difficulties of Library Administration," full of humorous happenings that had come under his notice. Mr. W. P. Woolston gave a report of the joint meetings held at Buxton on June 23rd and 24th. He said the papers and discussions were of real value. One feature was that at this smaller conference people who never got a chance of joining in discussions at the larger conferences here have an opportunity which the less formal atmosphere of the smaller conference tends to foster. The 31st Annual Business Meeting was held, and the following officers appointed for the ensuing year : President: H. W. Surtees, Esq., J.P., Derby. Hon. Treasurer: Mr. A. Vinen, Leek. Hon. Auditor: Mr. Topping, Loughborough. Council: Messrs. J. P. Briscoe, W. A. Briscoe, R. W Brown, The members and friends were entertained to tea by the Newark Public Library Committee. They also visited the Museum and Library under the conduct of Mr. A. Smith, the Librarian, to whom and the Public Library Committee the best thanks of the Association were accorded for their hospitality and the admirable local arrangeKATE E. PIERCE, Hon. Sec. ments. |