of the Union has within a half dozen years adopted our system more or less fully, because of its economy and educational efficiency.

Many an eminent man has been given to the world through the influence of a single book read in youth. The increased knowledge and inspiration gained from good books means increased power and wealth and better citizenship. Considered on the lower plane alone, the state can not afford not to provide freely the best books to any citizen who wishes to read and who can not otherwise obtain them. The home education department aims to meet this ideal and has already made remarkable progress. It is doubtful if any money spent is exerting a more beneficent or lasting influence.

Public libraries. These traveling libraries are forerunners of local free public libraries which are being established in many new communities each year. Between 1893 and 1900 the number of independently organized libraries under state supervision has grown from 29 to 175, the books from 69,956 to 606,332, and the books read have increased from 192,899 to 2,182,154, or more than tenfold. The chief significance of these gratifying figures would be lost if we forgot that the New York system recognizes officially and practically that books are not necessarily good or reading necessarily advantageous. Reading is a powerful engine which can be used for evil as well as good. It is like a ladder which may be used to climb to the summit or to go down into the pit. Intelligent and conscientious selection and oversight are necessary if the state is to get the good without the evil. Our entire state supervision is on a distinct educational plane. Thousands of doubtful books and pictures are disapproved each year and better ones recommended in their places, and the local authorities are with hardly an exception not only content to receive, but are grateful for systematic and intelligent supervision which will not allow the taxpayers' money to be used for books of doubtful value or influence. No other state has yet dealt with this vital question on so broad a plane, but the experiment in New York has been so eminently successful as to prove it entirely practicable to influence the reading public very largely without giving offense or sacrificing interest. The figures show that, while in 1893 on an average through the state 100 v.

were read 276 times during the year, yet under this conscientious state supervision each 100 books is now read 360 times, or almost 50 per cent oftener. There could be no better answer to the fear that proper supervision, while it might greatly improve the quality, might sadly reduce the quantity of reading.

The public library is no longer a mere storehouse for the safe keeping of books; it is a fountain, not a cistern, and the National educational association and similar bodies now recognize it without a dissenting voice as an active educational institution which must be dealt with hereafter as a necessary ally of the public school in any satisfactory system of education. New York has been the leader in these vitally important new ideas, and has received at home and abroad most generous recognition. It has been more liberal than other states in its library appropriations, but, if it has sown plenteously, it has reaped even more plenteously. It has put its hand to the plow, and no wise citizen knowing all the facts will be willing that it should turn back in the support necessary to maintain its acknowledged leadership.

Picture exhibit. At the regents meeting June 25, 1900, Regent T. Guilford Smith stated that Mr Turner of the Helman-Taylor art co. offered to furnish without expense to the University a traveling exhibit including the pictures recommended for secondary schools by the home education department, this collection to be lent on application under rules approved by the University for public exhibitions to which a nominal admission fee may be charged, the proceeds after deducting charges for transportation and incidental expenses to be spent for schoolroom decoration. The regents

Voted, That New York secondary schools be notified of the above offer and that similar offers from other sources be treated in the same way.

LIBRARY EXHIBITS

Paris. For the World's Columbian exposition of 1893, by request of the American library association, the national library exhibit was prepared at the New York state library. By a similar request the exhibit for Paris was also prepared at Albany. With limited time, more limited space and still more limited means the problem was difficult. Mr Howard J. Rogers, who was in 1893 in immediate charge of the New York state

educational exhibit at Chicago, at Paris as director of the Amer ican exhibits in social economy and education gave all assistance. in his power. Mr Andrew Carnegie generously made the exhibit doubly profitable to visitors by bearing personally all expenses of representative American librarians who spent two months each in Paris in immediate charge. Mr Joseph L. Harrison of the Providence (R. I.) Atheneum (B.L.S. of the. New York state library school) gave his services for three months in installing the exhibit and starting the work successfully. Miss Mary W. Plummer, a graduate of the first class and later on the faculty of the school and now director of the library and library school at Pratt institute, Brooklyn N. Y. took charge quring July and August. The exhibit thus represented not only American librarianship but the spirit of helpfulness which has made our best work possible and which never fails to respond generously in time and money whenever there is need.

The chief regret was that our unceasing efforts failed to secure space adequate for what we wished to show. Every courtesy was received from every official, but the space was simply not to be had. We therefore tried to select those parts of our large exhibit which would in small space show most of our American system.

For detailed account of the exhibit, see Miss Woodworth's paper on "A. L. A. exhibit at the Paris exposition 1900," in Public libraries, Mar. 1900, 5:96-100, and Library journal, Mar. 1900, 25:116-19; Mr Harrison's "A. L. A. exhibit at Paris," Library journal, June-July 1900, 25:282-83, 331, and Public libraries, Oct. 1900, 5:326-27; Mr Dewey's "Traveling A. L. A. exhibit," Public libraries, Oct. 1900, 5:324; also Miss Plummer's "Library interests at the Paris exposition," Pratt institute monthly, Dec. 1900, 9:25-31. Miss Plummer's paper on the "International congress of librarians" may be found in Library journal, Sep. 1900, 25:580-82. See also New York state library school, Annual report, 1900, 14:348-50, appended.

To us also was assigned the honor of making the American exhibit on home education in recognition of the pioneer work done by New York. Unfortunately lack of space and money prevented any adequate exhibit, but in spite of limitations, the

list of awards is a remarkable official recognition of our library and home education work.

The jury of class 3, higher instruction and scientific institutions, assigned to the 900 exhibits 64 grand prizes, 92 gold and 105 silver medals. 27 grand prizes were given to French exhibits, 9 to United States, 5 to Great Britain, 3 each to Hungary, Japan, and Russia; 2 each to Belgium, Mexico, Roumania, and Italy; and 1 each to Austria, Canada, Croatia, Portugal, Norway, and Sweden; total, 64.

France received 44 gold medals, United States 9, Russia S, Hungary 6, Great Britain 5, Mexico 3, seven others 2, and three others 1; total, 92.

Of the 9 grand prizes and 9 gold medals awarded to the United States, the state library and home education department were honored by 3 grand prizes, 1 gold medal, and 1 honorable mention as follows:

To the American library association, a grand prize for its exhibit of statistics, publications, library appliances, etc., prepared by the state library at Albany N. Y.

To Melvil Dewey, director New York state library, a grand prize in honor of his distinguished services not only as a librarian, but as an educator whose administration during the period of revision (1889-1900) produced such marked advances in both secondary and higher education.

To the home education department, a grand prize for its exhibit of methods of education by means of reading and traveling libraries.

To the home education department, a gold medal for its exhibit of traveling libraries, study clubs and lectures.

To the home education department, a diploma of honorable mention for its collective exhibits from Chautauqua, Brooklyn institute, Pratt institute, People's institute and Rochester Atheneum and mechanics institute.

Montreal. The state library and home education department. also exhibited at the Montreal meeting of the American library association June 7-13, 1900.

Buffalo. Material illustrating our work, including and supplementing the Paris exhibit, will be shown with that of the other University departments at Pan-American exposition May 1-Nov.

1, 1901. This will include, as a specimen of the library school collection, as large a selection as space permits of the exhibit prepared by us for Paris.

ACCESSION DEPARTMENT

All statistics refer to bound volumes unless pamphlets are specified.

a Includes 179,618 in general library and 1495 in library school collection.

b Includes 6902 added to general library and 128 to library school collection.

c 12,527 v. were withdrawn by exchange, sale or gift, making the total duplicates received 23,680, the total gifts received 32,161 and the total volumes received 45,000.

₫ Includes 12,454 in general library and 128 in library school collection.

The library has grown from the 405,170 v. reported last year to 437,733, of which 245,103 are in the state library proper, 57,754 are in traveling libraries in the home education department, and 134,876 are duplicates.

Aside from the home education department, duplicates and library school collection, the additions of the year were 14,516 v. an increase of 3357 over last year. Of these 6273, or more than double the number reported in 1898, were bought. 8243 v. or 2642 more than last year, came in by gifts and exchange, including 2655 made by binding pamphlets and 932 by binding serials. 128 v. were added by gift to the library school collection.

Classified expenditures. Table F, p. 64, summary by classes, of books, serials and subject cards added, shows that aside from traveling libraries more books were added in 1900 than in any previous year, the number exceeding the 1899 record in every class, e. g. in history 956, in sociology 850, in literature 496, etc. Comparison with 1899 shows increased expenditure for books in every class except religion, philology and useful arts; the amount spent in fine arts was 66% more and in general works 55% more than in 1899. Increased expenditure for serials is shown in each class