interests as it is the natural center for university extension courses or classes. The public ought to look to the local academy as the center for all educating influences of the community. Member I represent a school which is a union free school and also an academy. We are anxious to extend our library. We can get an appropriation for a school library if it can also be a public library. We have an annual appropriation from our district which we hope to have the state duplicate; but if the library is not a public library the interest in it will be so far diminished that it is not likely that we can secure an appropriation. Pres.- This law authorizes the school or other library to turn their books over to a public library. Member In our case we can hold our library as it is if we can let the public in to the use of fiction. Pres.- This is provided for in § 7. Judge Draper thought the public libraries should report to the regents and be affiliated with the state library. If you keep your library as a piece of the school apparatus it must be kept in the building. If you want to make it a public library your school authorities can appoint three trustees who will run it as a public library. I know of nothing that prevents a circulating library from being in a school building, but it can not be under the public school trustees as such. All public circulating libraries hereafter report to the regents, while school district trustees report to the superintendent of public instruction. Sup't J: M. Dolph, Port Jervis- In 1884 we had no district. library but set about getting one. The district made an appropriation of $1000 and we obtained the same amount from the regents. This library has not been in the school building yet; it has been in rooms hired for the purpose. We have no trustees except our board of education, who are owners and controllers as representatives of the district. We have expended about $1000 a year from that time to this in adding to our library, and we have now a library of which our town is proud and for which we are glad to vote money. We have at the same time kept in one of our school buildings a reference library bought from time to time. Last year we bought $1000 worth of books, which are cataloged with the other books and are marked reference books and kept at the academy. In our case the board of education has entire charge of the library and has had from the beginning. It appears to me, if I read this law correctly, that our board of education has to legislate itself out of office as a board having charge of the library and that it must appoint or elect trustees to have charge of a circulating library. Pres.- If it is a high school library getting its money from the regents it can continue, but if the library draws a share of the $55,000 it must appoint new trustees for the public library but the school board retains charge of the school library. The circulating library reports to the regents while the school library reports to the superintendent of public instruction. Sup't Dolph-They always have reported to the regents. Member As I understand this law, the money that comes with the public school money from the state superintendent must be expended for our reference library. We must keep that reference library in the school building in charge of a teacher and we must sever the connection between the reference and circulating libraries. Pres. Yes. The books that belong to the school apparatus of the public schools are reported to the other department, but the public library system comes entirely over to the regents in connection with the state library. Prin. A. C. Hill- Is there any difference between a high school library and a common school library? Pres.-The point is simply if you draw money from this $55,000 for your high school you must put it into reference books and report them to the state superintendent, but he has nothing to do with books bought from regents' or public library money. Our study was on the public library law. This school library law as passed was a compromise bill. It will be revised this coming year with the public school law and I hope we can then clear it of this confusion. Union schools and high schools draw money from the department of public instruction; but as they report to the regents on other matters they ought to report also as to their school library and we shall try to have this simplified. room. Prin. R. S. Keyser - Our building has one suitable library We have just one library and that library started from an appropriation from the people. The idea is to use it as a district. library. Every now and then when we come to a special topic in the regents' examinations, we lay out a portion of the books that are wanted. Otherwise all the books except cyclopedias and dictionaries are circulated. If we should say to the public, you can not get any books from our library, we should never get another cent appropriated for school libraries. Pres.- Under this law your trustees can appoint trustees to take care of the circulating department, and then you will be competent to draw money from the public library fund. The law does not forbid your school to allow the new library trustees to keep these circulating books in the building. Member Is the principal of the school ex-officio librarian of this circulating department? Pres. No. Member- If he should be, he becomes so on the salary the trustees choose to give him? Pres.- That is wholly a matter between him and the trustees. The law says nothing. W: R. Eastman - Is there any public library fund available after October 1, 1893 ? Pres.-The law reads "Such sum as shall have been appropriated by the legislature as public library money shall be paid annually by the treasurer, on the warrant of the controller, from the income of the United States deposit fund, according to an apportionment to be made for the benefit of free libraries by the regents in accordance with their rules and authenticated by their seal." We think it wiser to come to the legislature every year and report the condition of affairs. If you fix the amount in the law you are tied down to that. For this year's work in the other bill you will see that § 10 provides that for the fiscal year begin ning October 1892 there shall be paid $25,000 for public library money. It was useless to ask the legislature for a dollar. Those who were interested said, "we are willing to do these things but you must not ask anything that will swell the budget this year." They consented for this year to let $25,000 out of the annual $55,000 be used for public library money. Next year we must go to the legislature, report, and ask them for such appropriation as seems necessary. This was the only way in which we could get the law passed this year. We have this matter in shape now to go ahead. We want to follow it up specially in the first three months of the next fiscal year. When the legislature comes we shall have had only three or four months start. We want not only to get it going for its own sake but for the sake of showing it to the legislature. Stimulate people as far as you can to go to work next fall. We will send some one to your town from the state library for a day or two to look over the ground and give such assistance as he can, and nothing will be charged beyond his traveling expenses. If you have some one for a number of weeks we will make just charges enough to guard against criticism. Let us do all we can to push this public library matter along this coming year. Adjourned. |