THE PUBLIC LIBRARY.

Press, Volume LII, Issue 15603, 30 May 1916, Page 9

THE PUBLIC LIBRARY.

| The Chairman of the Canterbury College Board of Governors, in his annual report to the Board yesterday, mado the following references to the Canterbury Public Library:—"During the past year there has been a slow but steady increase in the number of subscribers, but even now the number is not nearly as large as it should be in a town the size of Christchurch. Of course the cheap reprints enable some people to obtain booiis that they wish to keep for more tnan cursory* reading, but even seem to iorget that tiiere is a wide cn.oic.-e of non-iiction that is available at almost any time. There is evidence, nowever, in the monthly reports of the librarian tnat more and more the circulation of non-fiction works is increasing. This is

tiuo to two causes, probably; one tho open shelf system, winch enables tho subscriber to readily look afc the recent additions, tlie otiier, that a large number of books dealing with the war and its various aspects find readers who perhaps at otiier times wouid be satisfied with a novel. Another matter of oongratu.ation is that the Juvenile Department is increasingly patronised, not only by those who read in the Section j that i s set aside for the young folk, but | also by those who take the books homo to read. An increaso of between two and three thousand books issued for home-reading is a very encouraging sign. _ Some day, perhaps not so very far distant, a whole wing may be set aside for the Juvenile Department. The Reference Department is also largely used, indicating that a considerable section of the users of the Library recognise its educational value and the help such a department gives to those who cannot afford such expensive books as works of reference generallv are. A special concession was made to all returned soldiers, free membership for a certain time being given to those who gave the neccssai-y evidence of their bona fides. Comparatively few have taken advantage of this concession, possibly because it is not widely known."