BOOK IMPORTS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 27080, 14 May 1949, Page 9

BOOK IMPORTS

NO RESTRICTIONS RESOLUTION OF LIBRARY ASSOCIATION ' CONFERENCE CONCLUDED The principle of the importation of books without restrictions apart from necessary censorship was reaffirmed at the conclusion of the New Zealand Library Association conference yesterday. Mr G. C. Peterson, who moved this resolution, said that while import restrictions on books was at present Government policy, the restrictions were contrary to the cultural enlightenment of the country. This was a bad state of affairs, and a question for the conference to consider. Dunedin, with its University ajrd public libraries appeared to contain the cream of the Dominion libraries, said Miss B. Sants, an English librarian, who has been working at Auckland under an exchange arrangement between the library associations. Miss Sants, who held a high post in the Hendon Library, a branch of the London one, added, that there was a need for the exchange of more junior assistants between the two countries. Remits Discussed A survey of salaries, increments, promotions and general prospects of librarians compared with those offered to graduates in the teaching and science professions, was proposed in one of four remits approved for submission to council. This remit, which was submitted by the Canterbury branch, stated that the council should consider the comparative survey with the purpose of ensuring that the future staffing of libraries did not suffer because the profession did not offer sufficiently attractive prospects. Some remarkable figures would emerge as the result of the survey, said Mr C. W. Collins, librarian of Canterbury University College, who moved the remit for the Canterbury branch. It would help in reaching the long term aim of adequate salaries and sufficient qualified entrants to the profession. The profession, because of its small size and varied composition, had not been able to gain the monetary advantages attained by other professions. such as the teaching ones.

The exemption of literary bequests to public bodies from estate duty was recommended to the council. It was suggested that representations be made to the Minister of Finance, Mr Nash. — Approved. s Submitted by the Otago branch, a further remit recommended the council to “ask the director of the library school to arrange for the publication of Bibliographical material and research assignments made at the school.” An alternative contained in the remit was that the material should be fully listed in the December issue of N.Z. Libraries.

An amendment proposing selective publication of the material was moved by Mr H. O. Roth, of the Wellington branch. The amendment was lost.