of 190 feet. The lot had upon it three buildings, a front of stone, an intermediate of brick and a rear building of iron and brick. The rear building had been intended for the opera house. About $50,000 had been expended in the constrution of the buildings on the lot. The front building, which was nearly complete, was readily adapted for temporary library purposes, and the rear building was remodeled for the main library. The total cost of the lot and buildings when completed was $383,594.53. This sum was paid out of the annual income of the board of education, no bonds being issued therefor. The main library was built to hold 250,000 volumes. It is fire-proof. It is probably the most imposing library hall in the United States-one hundred and five feet long, seventy-seven feet wide and fifty-five feet high. Around this hall are five tiers of alcoves, reaching to the ceiling and so arranged that all of them are properly lighted and easy of access. The ceiling is one extensive sky-light. The library was moved into the front building in December of 1870. The report for that year shows the resignation of Mr. Freeman and the election of Dr. William F. Poole as librarian. Dr. Poole continued until January 1, 1874, when Thomas Vickers was elected his successor. The main library building was opened February 24, 1874, with 61,924 volumes on the shelves. In addition to these there were 4,090 volumes deposited in the library, the property of the Theological and Religious Library, 1,521 belonging to the Cincinnati Hospital Library and 3.513 belonging to the Mussey Medical and Scientific Library, the latter a gift to the Public Library. The front building accommodated the Board of Education for a number of years, giving it space for a session room, and for the offices of the Clerk and the Superintendent. When the new City Hall was completed in 1893 the Board of Education removed its offices and session room to the apartments provided for it therein, which gave the use of the whole of the library building to the trustees. The Board of Managers remained in control until the passage of the act of April 30, '91, which vested the control of the library in a Board of Trustees composed of six members, two to be appointed by the Board of Education, two by the Union Board of High Schools, and two by the Directors of the University of Cincinnati, the President of the Board of Education remaining as formerly, ex-officio, a member of the library board, the act further providing that no member of any of the appointing bodies should be elected a member of the board. However, all the funds for the expenses of the library were still to be levied for and to be under the control of the Board of Education. This compound and complex organization was not for the good of the library and an early effort was made to have the entire control and management placed in the hands of the trustees. The first effort failed; but on April 21, 1898, an act was passed, by the General Assembly, which transferred the complete control to the trustees, authorizing that body to certify a levy of three-tenths of one mill upon the taxable property in the county, the proceeds when collected to be placed in the

county treasury subject to the order of the trustees and to be under their exclusive control. The fund was to become a general fund and was to be disbursed by the said board for the maintenance and extension of the library. The act provided for a board of seven trustees, six of them to be appointed as provided in the act of 1891, the seventh by the Judges of the Court of Common Pleas of the county-this appointee to take the place on the board formerly held by the President of the Board of Education. The act provided that the trustees then in office under the act of 1891 should remain in office until the expiration of their terms. The appointments under the act of 1898 were so arranged that the board became continuous.

The notable feature of the act of 1898 (93 O. L., 191) is found in the following section:

Section 3999a. Each and every resident of the county within which is situate any city of the first grade of the first class, having therein established a public library, shall be entitled to the free use of such library, reading rooms, and any branch of the same, and all the privileges thereof, upon such terms and conditions not inconsistent therewith, as the Board of Trustees of such library may prescribe."

Sec. 13999b required delivery stations to be established throughout the county. The passage of this law marked the most important epoch in the history of the Public Library of Cincinnati. It enabled the trustees to enter upon the many improvements in library economics that were necessary to make the library what it should be-a source of pleasure and profit to the general public. The extension of the privileges of the library to the county at large was the most radical change inaugurated, but the wonderful growth of the delivery system has justified the wisdom of the legislature in granting the authority to establish such stations throughout the county. The idea of extending the privileges of the library to the residents of the county was a unique one and wholly new to library legislation. It is believed that Cincinnati can claim to be the first to extend library privileges to the inhabitants of the rural districts. The residents of the county were entitled to the immediate use of the library. and they availed themselves of the privilege-the first card so issued being of date May 6, 1898. The delivery system was put into operation June 10, 1899, fifteen stations being opened. The circulation for the year 1900 through the stations was 179,541. The new borrowers registered through the stations alone to the present time number 7,209. There are now in operation 40 stations. The station work apparently has not in the least relieved the central library, for the circulation through that has steadily increased, it being for 1900 nearly 35 per cent over that of the preceding year. The total number of borrowers is 37,274.

During the year 1890 a Children's Room was opened. This is one of the most interesting features of the library. Located on the top story

VIMU

of the front building, wholly separated from the main library, the children. have a library of their own with open shelves. It is open daily from 11:00 a. m. to 7:00 p. m., and on Saturdays and during vacation from 8:00 a. m. There are about 5,000 volumes on the shelves in the room. The walls are beautified with many pictures; current events are bulletined

and everything is done to make the room pleasant and attractive. It was opened May 14, 1900, and there were taken therefrom for home reading to the first of January, 1901, 81,061 books, the highest circulation in any one day being 920.

The Public Library of Cincinnati has probably the finest art collection in the west. It is also provided with complete sets of the American and English patents.

There are now about 10,000 books upon open shelves, and a further removal of barriers is likely soon to be made. The library contains 195,848 books and 25,408 pamphlets. In addition there is deposited the Theological and Religious Library of 7,084 volumes and 1,477 pamphlets; the Mussey Medical Library of 6,059 volumes and 3.779 pamphlets, making a total of 208,991 bound books and 30,664 pamphlets. The circulation for 1900 was: Home use, 619,078, Reference, 152,442. No record is made of the use of Periodicals or Newspapers, nor of the more common

books of reference, such as Encyclopedias, Dictionaries, etc., of which there are some 2,000 on the open shelves.

The limit of the capacity of the building has been about reached and the Board of Trustees have in contemplation a new building commensurate with the needs of the city and county and the importance of the library to the education of the people.

By an act of the General Assembly passed April 14, 1900 (94 O. L., 204), the Trustees' power of levy was increased to five-tenths of a mill. Thereupon the board offered to assume control of all the libraries of the county which had been supported by taxation and to maintain same in as good a manner as they had been. There were several such libraries in the county maintained by local taxation of the villages wherein they were situate. Under this offer the board now has control of the libraries at Madisonville, Wyoming, Harrison and Lockland, and has made material increases in their library facilities and privileges. Wyoming has a library of about 2,500 volumes, Lockland 2,900, Harrison 1,800, and Madisonville 350. The latter was formerly only conducted as a reading room.

Twelve traveling libraries are in service, accommodating those portions of the county removed from the lines of travel by which they could be served from any of the library stations established by the board. The Firemen's Traveling Libraries are also in service. A library of twenty well selected books is placed in each of the thirty-six engine houses of the city. There are six sets of books divided into as many circuits. Each set remains at an engine house two months when it is changed and another set substituted.

The library has a cataloguing department numbering thirteen, five of the number being representatives of the principal library schools of the country. Six apprentices were obtained for the department during 1900 as a result of a very severe competitive examination; of these four were students (two being graduates of the class of 1900) of the University of Cincinnati, and the remaining two had been students at Oberlin. College. There is a card catalogue of the library containing nearly 500,ooo cards. A department for the blind has lately been established. Readings for this class of persons are held weekly, the services of the readers being gratuitous. Books are provided in the different styles of type: New York Line and Point and the Moon.

The library buildings and ground are estimated to be worth $560,000, the books and pamphlets $275,000. The expenses for the year 1900 were $83,636.37, of which $12,926.57 were expended for books.

In the early part of 1900, Mr. A. W. Whelpley, who had been librarian since 1866, died suddenly, and Mr. N. D. C. Hodges was elected his successor. Mr. Hodges at the time of his election was in charge of the scientific department of the Library of Harvard College-a life position. For some years prior to his entering upon that work he had been connected with the Astor Branch of the New York Free Public Library.

Previous thereto for a period of ten years he was editor of the magazine Science. He is an alumnus of Harvard College, of the class of 1874, and has been a tutor therein.

In addition to the persons named herein, Chester W. Merrill held the position of Librarian from January 1, 1880, to November 26, 1886, and John D. Caldwell, by virtue of being Clerk of the School Board, was Librarian from July 3, 1855, to March 16, 1857.

The Board of Trustees at the present time consists of W. T. Porter and T. P. White, appointed by the Directors of the University of Cincinnati; R. H. West and Eugene Schaefer, by the Union Board of High Schools; Drausin Wulsin and Herman Knost, by the Board of Education of the School District of Cincinnati, and James A. Green, by the Judges of the Court of Common Pleas of Hamilton County. The officers are: James A. Green, President; Herman Knost, Vice-President; Eugene Schaefer, Secretary; R. H. West, Treasurer; W. A. Hopkins, Clerk.

The notable increase in the circulation and in the number of registered borrowers denotes that the library has entered upon an era of prosperity and influence far greater than ever before in its history. It will ever be the desire of the trustees to keep abreast of the times in library work and methods, and they will constantly endeavor to make the Public Library of Cincinnati a credit to the library interests of the State.

April, 1901.

CINCINNATI.

W. T. PORTER,

Trustee.

YOUNG MEN'S MERCANTILE LIBRARY.

The Young Men's Mercantile Library Association of New York, which originated in the year 1822, was the pioneer of many similar institutions since formed in the various cities of the United States. This association had accomplished so much good as to excite a feeling in favor of establishing similar institutions in other cities.

Several prominent young men in Cincinnati had considered this matter, and one or two informal meetings had been held, at which the subject had been discussed, but the formal meeting at which the Young Men's Mercantile Library Association was founded, was held on the 18th of April, 1835, in the scond story of a building used as a fire engine house, on the north side of Fourth Street, two or three doors east of Christ Church.

There were forty-five persons present. Among the number were Messrs. Rowland G. Mitchell, William H. Harrison, Jr., John P. Tweed, James Wiles, and John W. Ellis.