HUTT PUBLIC LIBRARY. NEED FOR REORGANISATION. AND CENSORSHIP.

Evening Post, Volume LXXXII, Issue 63, 12 September 1911, Page 3

HUTT PUBLIC LIBRARY. NEED FOR REORGANISATION. AND CENSORSHIP.

Following the reading of the librarian's report at Jast night's meeting of the Hutt Borough Council, there was an interesting discussion on the affairs of the library generally. Councillor Stevenson opened it by asking what had become of the library committee appointed by the council some time ago. It was, he said, about time the council heard from it, for in hie opinion thelxs was plenty to be done. The library needed to be reorganis-ed. The council should know what port of literature was being placed on the shelves. The present collection comprised nothing but a musty lot of novels, ] which lie characterised as of the "Jack and the Beanstalk" variety. There wae nothing at all in touch with modern thought. He maintained that in future more care should be taken in the selection of books. Councillor Roots said he could easily answer the previous speaker's question as to what the committee was doing— ifc was doing nothing. It was purposely marking time, and would continue to do so for another month «t least. A proposal would then be submitted to the council to reduce toe present subscription of 10s by half, and if this was carried the committee would do all in it* power to push the institution i along. Wifeh the fee as it present it did not feel inclined to do this. Councillor Ball supported tlie argu- 1 Blent used by Councillor Roots. The fee, he said, should be reduced, .but it would be advisable to await until the commencement of a new half-year. Regardiriijj the selection of books he agreed with the first speaker. "We should sb in for a better claw of book," he said. There was, for instance, no work of a technical nature on the shelves : nothing to improve the mind in that direction. Councillor Hod gins made a strong plea for some form of censorship. He ; had recently been shown passage* from one book' (which he named) which, he contended, were, to say the least, of them, of a very suggestive nature. That style of book might, be all right for adult*, but it should not be in a public library where the books were ta.ken into homes. The book in question wa» not fit- for the young mind. Councillor Clendon, a member of the committee, said he thought some reorganisation was necessary. "When we get to work," he concluded, "we will be very careful with the class of book that will go into the library." The discussion was closed.