NAPIER ATHENAEUM.

Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume XXI, Issue 5441, 23 July 1879, Page 3

NAPIER ATHENAEUM.

The annual meeting of the Napier Athenaeum was held last evening in the teading-room of the institution. The meeting was advertised to take place at 8 p^m., but the difficulty of getting the attendance of 20 members — the number required to make a quorum — occasioned a delay until 9 o'clock. Dr. Spencer was then roted to the chair. The honorary secretary (Mr J. B; Fielder) read the committee's report as follows : — In submitting the accounts for the past year your committee have to report that the Institute is in a fair and satisfactory financial condition, although it would have been desirable that a larger number of subscribers had been obtained so that more books coidd liaTe been purchased for the library. After the close of the last financial year the conversation room, was completed at a cost of £34, which sum was'iraised by voluntary subscriptions ; the room is now used by the Chess Club, the Philosophical Institute, as a smoking and conversation room, and for meetings of committee and other purposes. During the past year the reading room has ' pe&o. painted and papered, which has increased its reflecting power. The cost of the work was defrayed by an entertainment. A tender was accepted for alterations and additions to the librarian's rooms, but owing to a misunderstanding on the part of the contractor the work has not yet been commenced, and if it is to be proceeded with a special effort will have to be made to raise a sum of £50 to pay for tlie same. Your committee are pleased to learn tlint efforts are being made to bring the " Public Libraries Act, 1869," into operation in this town. If it is decided to bring ie into operation, and an application is made to convert this Institute into a Public Library, your incoming committee will no doubt call a special general meeting to consider the subject. ' J The Gymnasium Club having failed to carry out their agreement as to leasing a portion of the land of this Inststitute, tlie agreement with them is therefore cancelled. During the past year subscriptions have I been received from 134 members of the body corporate and 131 half-yearly and quarterly subscribers. | There are about 1550 woaks in the library, I 150 of which have been added during tlie . year. The average issue of books from the ! library has been 500 per month. The leading ! home and colonial papers are kept filed, and : are always accessible for reference. Your committee have to report that during the past year the reading room has been opened on Sunday afternoon froni 2 to 5 o'clock, but the attendance has been very small. Dr. Spencer has been nominated as Presi- j . dent, Mr W. Smith as Treasurer, Mr Henry Hildas Secretary, and 19 members have been j nominated as Committeemen, of which num- I ber 9 have to be elected. For the Committee, j -H. A. Cornford, Chairman. J. B. Fieldeb, Hon. Secretary. The balance-sheet was also read, a total of receipts amounting to i 4s 2d, including £51 13s 8d balance j from, last year, while the expenditure — j including the discharge of liabilities of the previous year, amounting to £34 2s 4d — was £242 Is 9d, leaving a balance to the credit of the institution of £67 2s sd. The liabilities were set down at £61 15s 7d, and the assets at £71 12s lid. * The Chairman said there were one or two points in the balance-sheet which were worthy of notice. It would be seen that the subscriptions had been £189 193 Gd, while last year they amounted only to £143 14s 9d. The sum expended in books this year was £50 Is, against £17 9s lid last year. Those figures showed, that the institution was making very satisfactory progress. Mr Spriggs moved that the report and balance-sheet be adopted. The motion was seconded by Mr Peddy and carried. Mr Spriggs said the report was very satisfactory. He moved that a vote of thanks be tendered to the retiring committee. Mr H. Hill seconded the motion, which was carried unanimously. Tbe Chairman stated that Dr Spencer had been nominated President, Mr Smith as Treasurer, and Mr H. Hill as honorary secretary, and as there was only one nomination for each of those offices, the gentlemen named must be deemed elected. The meeting would have to ballot tor nine committeemen out of a list of 16 gentlemen who had been nominated. . Messrs Cornford and Hill having been appointed scrutineers, the ballot was proceeded with, the result being that the following gentlemen were elected : — Messrs J. W. Carlile, J. B. Fielder, H. Eyre Kenny, E. Lyndon, M. R. Miller, M. D. Spriggs, H. Wall, H. Williams, and C. B. Winter. Mr Miller wished to draw attention to a clause in the report tbat was before the meeting relative, to bringing into force the

Public Libraries Act.' He thought it would be well that the meeting should express an opinion ou the subject. . He Would therefore move, "That the committee be requested" to further the effort to bring into operation the Public Libraries Act, 1869."

Mr Hill seconded the motion * remarking that he had consented to be nominated to the post of honorary secretary' oh the distinct understanding" that endeavors would be made to render the reading rbb'm.of the Athenaeum perfectly free, so that every cJiiS Who was desirous of using it might do so; Mr Large was not sure that any great gdo'd would be achieved by making the Athetueum free: The object of those who initiated the movement was avowedly to secitre the Government subsidy, but he b'.elievfcd }n self-reliance id preference to the old-fashioned idert of asking for Government support, and he felt Convinced that if the committee would work earnestly and zealously there would be no need for a Government subsidy, which seemed just now to be a general thing all oVer the country,- nothing being done without it. He was qiute' stire that the Athenaeum had been carried on as prosperously without a. subsidy as when it was subsidised by the. Provincial Government. It was Very? well known, too; that the subsidies granted to local bodies" wtiiild soon cease. Many of the ratepayers were opposed to additional taxation, and it was very doubtful whether the proposition made to them for introducing the Public Libraries Act would be agreed to. He did not desire to throw cold water on the subject, nor was he opposed to having a free library, which he considered would -be x).f great advantage, but the town was a small one and he did not believe that a revenue sufficient to support a. free library could be raised. Mr Cornford asked whether there were any life members of. the institution. He saw by the rides that a donation of ten guineas would efliitle the' donor to become a life member. Mr Large thought Mr Rhodess Wflo a life member. Mr Fielder said that Mr Rhodes held a debenture from the Athenceum for£lo, and had asked for payment, to which he (Mr Fielder) had replied that the Athenasnm had no means of paying. The Chairman said that it appeared there were no life members, but there were three holders of debentures, and he supposed they. would have to be paid if the library were made free. Mr Fielder had much pleasure in supporting the motion. As to. what Mr Large had said about subsidies ceasing,, he (Mr Fielder) did not believe that Government aid would be withdrawn from public libraries. It might just as well be Said that it would be withdrawn from aehot/lsj as ho looked upon libraries ih the same iight^asi a means of educating the people. Mr Bear asked if there were any definite period for holding committee meetings I Mr Fielder said they were held quarterly, but if there was any business requiring the holding of a meeting the secretary would call it. The Chairman wished to call the attention of the meeting to the fact that they appeared to have in their minds two distinct propositions, while the resolution dealt only with one. There was the proposition that it. was desirable to have a free library in Napier, and on that proposition the Mayor had fixed a day when the decision of the ratepayers would be taken. The second proposition was whether, in the event of the decision being in favor of a free library, the Athenoeum should be placed at the disposal of the public for that purpose, and that would have to be decided at a meeting of the members of Athenaeum that would have to be called. The resolution of Mr Miller, it would be observed, did not not touch, on that point.

The motion was then put and carried without dissent. ( Mr Bear moved, "That should the result of the poll to be taken on the Ist proximo be favorable to bringing into operation the Public Libraries Act the committe be requested to call a special general meeting of the members of the [Athenreum] Corporation to consider the subject at the earliest possible period." Judge Keenny seconded the motion. Mr McCarthy asked whether anyone could give information as to the probable income there would be for the support of a free library. Mr Cornford said that the rate of a penny in the pound could not possibly realise more than £300, but it was always found that some rates remained uncollected, and so it might be fairly computed that the net result would be about £170, and thus with the Government subsidy the income would be £340 ; but he felt sure that before long every provision for local requirements would have to be made by local taxation. He was forcibly reminded by the proposition for a free public library of an amusing article by the well-known ".Snyder " that appeared in the Coromandel Mail, in which the writer pointed out several matters that were urgently required in the place, such as an aquarium, a graving dock, a public park, and recreation grounds, but the people would forego all these, much as they were wanted, if some 10-inch by 2-inch planking where laid down at the intersection of Mary-street and Snooks-street, to render that spot passable. (Laughter,) It was the same here. Every penny that could be raised was wanted for more pressing things than a free library, which would be a farce with only an income of £170 a year to support it. When the town was in a position to Bupport a free library worthy of the name it would be time enough to entertain the proposition. But they should bear in mind that before long the hospital would have to be supported locally, along with other institutions that were now subsidised by the Government. When the drainage of the town was completed and other urgent matters attended to, then let there be a public library. He hoped that no one would think that he was opposed to a public library or to public education. All that he wished to impress on the meeting was that such an object could not be attained with the means that would be available, and that it was not desirable to tax the people for a purpose that could not be properly carried out.

Mr Filder wished to correct Mr Cornford as to the income that wsuld be available. Mr Cornford had put the amount down at £340, but he had left out the subscriptions to the library. - Though the reading-room would be made free, and books from the library could be read in the reading-room, subscribers only would be allowed to take books home. This year there were 265 members and subscribers, and if the subscription were made 10s a year they might reckon upon 300 subscribers, which would give an addition to tho income of £150. The Athenaeum would also get a grant from the Education Board, and no doubt entertainments could be organised that would bring in something. So, altogether, they might estimate the income at from £500 to £600. The Athemeum could not go on as they were now circumstanced. There were many things that were required to be done, but there were no means for defraying the expeuse. ■ The late committee were going to make additions to the building, but through some misunderstanding with the contractor the project fell through; and it was fortunate it was so, as otherwise tbe committee would' have had to pay the contractor out of their own pockets. Mr Hill said there appears to be an impression that the library would be free, when in fact it was only the 'reading room that would be so, and that would attract people and induce them to subscribe to the library. He did not see

why because the town was small it should not have a free library. He did not 'tjiink the ratepayers would object to a penny ;ratQ,. which would.be an exceedingly cheap way of distributing knowledge among the people. After some further discussion the motion was carried without dissent. A vote of thanks to the chairman closed the proceedings.