Tenth Biennial Report of the State Library Commission for the State of Delaware 1921-1922

              TENTH BIENNIAL REPORT
of
The State Library Commission
for
THE STATE OF DELAWARE
1921 - 1922
THE INDEX PUBUSHING co .. PRINTERS. DOVER. DEL
TENTH BIENNIAL REPORT
of
The State Library Commission
fOT
THE STATE OF DELAWARE
1921 - 1922
THE INDEX PUBLISHING CO., PRINTERS, DOVER, DEL.
j
STATE LIBRARY COMMISSION
MEMBERS
MRS, JAMES W. ANTHONY,
SMYRNA.
A. L. BAILEY,
WILMINGTON.
HENRY P. CANNON,
BRIDGEVILLE.
ALEXANDER P. CORBIT,
ODESSA.
MISS ANNA B. HAYES,
DOVER.
MRS. CHARLES R. MILLER,
Red Oak Road, WILMINGTON.
MISS MARGARET ORR,
LEWES.
MRS. CHARLES PRETTYMAN,
MILFORD.
MRS. HENRY RIDGELY,
DOVER.
RC'appointed Feb. 4, 1921 for 5 years.
Rcappointed Feb. 4, 1921 for 5 years.
Reappointed Feb. 4, 1921 for 5 years.
Appointed Nov. 17, 1922 for 5 years.
Reappointed Jan. 21, 1922 for 5 years.
Reappointed Feb. 4, 1921 for 5 years.
Reappointed May 1. 1917 for 5 years.
Reappointed Jan. 21, 1922 for 5 years.
RC'appointed Feb. 4, 1921 for 5 years.
OFFICERS
E. B LOUDERBOUGH, Secretary
MISS-IDA V. CULBRETH, Librarian
All correspondence relating to the work of the Commission should
be addressed to The State Library CQmmi1?siQP, Dover, Delaware.
STATE LIBRARY COMMISSION OF DELAWARE
Tenth Biennial Report 1921-1922
To the Senate and House of Representatives of the State of
Delaware, in General Assembly met:
The $tate Library Commission begs leave to submit the
fo1l6wing report.
REPORT OF THE LIBRARIAN
The Librarian submits the following report for the
years 1921-1922:
In the autumn of 1922 the State Library Commission
of Delaware met with a great loss in the death of Daniel W.
Corb,ii, Esquire, of Odessa, Delaware. Mr. Corbit one of
the original members of the Commission and the president
fora-,number of years, was a cultured, kindly gentleman in­terested
in every phase of the work of the Commission and
eag,er 'to' be in the vanguard with other states in extending
knowledge and culture through good literature in his own
state.
Accessions
In 1921 $920.94 was expended for books. Eight hund­red
and thirty-five volumes were added, and about three
hundred and fifty discarded.
In 1922 eight hundred and fifty-six volumes were add­ed
to the collection at the cost of $945.80, and about three
hundred and eighty-five books were discarded. These books
were accessioned, classified, catalogued and arranged for
book wagons, for the open shelf collection, and in fixed
groupes for traveling libraries.
Traveling Libraries
The State Library Commission of Delaware was or­ganized)
in' OctQber, 190;, with traveling libraries the prin-
6
cipal activity. In 1902 there were twelve of these small
libraries in circulation, and this number was added to from
year to year until there were one hundred and . severt; At
present there are one hundred and five-two having been
lost by fire when the school buildings at ,Rox~na and Canter­bury
were burned. If the number of requests for the librar­ies
is any evidence of their popularity we can indeed feel
assured of their success, for the demand for them each year
exceeds the available number.
In 1921 these libraries were circulated one hundred and
twenty-nine (129) times, of this number one hundred and
eleven (111) were in schools, and eighteen (18) with other
organizations, and more than a thousand books w~r'e loaned
to individuals, making a total for the year 'of 'seven thusand
four hundred and ten (74,10) volumes sent out from our
office.
Thus far the autumn and winter of 1922 have been the
busiest on record with our traveling libraries. The libraries
were circulated one hundred and thirty-six (136) times, and
seven thousand six hundred ~nd seventeen (7617) volumes
were loaned. It is most gratifying to know that by .far the
greater number of requests for libraries are from schools,
and that both teachers and pupils express the ·helpand
pleasure they are to them in their work. As so few 'of : the
schools-even some of the . larger ones, in the state have
their own libraries, our books must often meet a great..need,
for from one school there was a request for eight libraries
-one for each grade, and there have been numerous re­quests
for two and three for the same school. Owing to the
limited number of libraries it has been impossible with a few
exceptions, to supply more than one library at a time to a
school.
We frequently have requests from teachers for books
for their own personal lIse, and from individuals persuing
special lines of study. and all requests are gladly met when
the books asked for are available.
Other organizations than day schools and Su·n.clay
schools using traveling libraries in the past two years in­clude
the"following: Summer school at Newark, Georgetown
New Century Club, Laurel New Century Club, Wyoming
Round Table Club, Seaford Club Library, Caulk Club Mil­ford,
Rehoboth Beach Free Library, Mrs. Brown's Library,
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Milford, asso~iations at Camden, Qoncord, Edge lVloor, Fel­'
ton, Milford, the Maritime Exchange, Lewes, the Pilot Boat
"PhHadelphia," and the summer camp of the Young Wom­en's
Christian Association. The District Secretary of the
last named wrote "You will see how we enj oyed the library
from the records, and yet they do not show the interested
girls pouring over the pages during the rest hours or leisure
moments between hikes and nature study. The nature
books were well used too, for some of the girls worked hard
for the honors given for knowing flowers, trees, birds and
butterflies."
In March, 1921, two hundred worn books were given to
the Dover colored public school. In December, 1922, eighty­one
worn books wer,2 given to Star Hill colored school, near
Wyoming.
.Book Wagons
There seems to be no falling off in the number of homes
visited, books loaned nor in the number of patrons on the
. different book wagon routes. ·There is always a kindly-often
a joyous, greeting for the librarian and her hooks, and
f~equently a word of praise for the work the Commission is
doing through eight capable and interested librarians. The
following statistics give some idea of what the book wagons
are doing in rural Delaware:
There are twenty-eight (28) routes in the state, each
route covers about twenty-five (25) miles, and each one is
visited once a month, ~hen books which were left the month
before are exchanged for others. New Castle county has
four (4) routes in charge of Miss Maloney and Mrs. Slaugh­ter;
Kent county has thirteen (13) routes in charge of Miss
Mast, Miss Cooper, Mrs. Pettyjohn and Mrs. Slaughter;
Sussex county has eleven (11) routes in charge of Miss
Hopkins, Miss Hall and Miss Morris.
In the past two years five hundred and sixty-five (565)
trjps were made, two thousand one hundr,ed and eighty­seven
(2,187) homes visited, and fifty-five thousand one
hundred and forty-three (55,143) volumes loaned.
Each year in November Miss Hopkins, one of the Sus­sex
county librarians, collects her books on six different
routes and arranges many of them for twelve traveling
librarie·s which she places in schools in Sussex taunty for
the winter months.
8
It is hardly possible to quote from all the letters the
Commission receivles, but we append to this report a few
expressions of gratitude from some of the families visited,
and requests from others to have the book wagon "stop at
our hous,e."
Subscriptions to the Christian Herald, Popular Mech­anics,
and the Saturday Evening Post are to be renewed for
Keepers of the six Life Saving Stations on the Delaware
coast. St. Nicholas is left each month at twelve schools on
book wagon routes. The A. L. A. Booklist is sent to two of
the free librari,es in the state, and the Library ,Journal and
Public Libraries are on file at the office of the State L;ibrary
Commission, Dover.
In January, 1921, the State Library Commission be­cam,
e a State Library Center of the National Organization
for Public Health, and distributes from time to time pamph­lets
and other printed matter issued by that organization.
It is a pleasure to report the re-opening of :Mrs. E. M.
Brown's library for the girls and boys of Milford, Delaware.
Her experience and wise judgment will undoubtedly be of
great value to the young people of Milford. Mrs. Brown
gives an interesting account of her work elsewhere in this
report.
W:hile there is no great evidence of the number of free
libraries in the state being increased the women's clubs are
interested in their club libraries and reading rooms, and the
Seaford Club Library is doing splendid work with the young
people of the town.
Reports from two of the free libraries in the state are
appended.
The State Library Commission of Delaware is a mem­ber
of the League of Library Commissions.
Respectflflly submitted,
• 1. V. CULBRETH,
Dover, Del., January 18, 1923. Librarian.
TREASURER'S REPORT OF EXPENDITURES OF
STATE LIBRARY COMMISSION FUNDS
From January 10, 1922, up to and including January 9, 1923
Bookwagon services .......................... $2552.62
Salary of Librarian ........................... 960.00
Books . . ..... .. ........................ -...... 876.63
Magazine Subscriptions ........................ 72.60
Telephone . . ......... .. ...................... ' 58.90
Janitor Services .............. '. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59.05
Supplies . ............................. . ...... 110.45
Light . . ......................... .- .......... 18.00
Automobile . ....................... . ........ 189.40
Miscellaneous Expenses ....................... 18.20
Freight ..................................... , . ' 2.00
Travel . ..................................... 55.66
Repairs . .................................... 23.23
Rent . . ...... ' ...................... ~ . . . . . . .. 144 .. 00
Insurance . .................................. 42.00
Coal . . ............................ : ........ : 15.50
Postage . .................................... 1.76
Total. ....................... $5200.00
Appropriation-$5200.00.
E. B. LOUDERBOUGH, State Librarian,
Trea.s urer.
REPORT OF THE TREASURER OF THE FUND OF THE
DELA\WARE STATE FEDERATION OF
WOMEN'S CLUBS
Expended with the approval of State Library Commission.
1921
1 January, 1921, Balance in bank . ............ . $215.96
31 January, 1921, Received from the Treasurer of
D. S. F. W. C ....... , ...... 100.00
Total. ................. $315.96
14 May, 1921, To American Bible Society for
Bible . . ............ $1.65
27 May, 1921, To Miss Hall, Frankford, Book
Route No.4. . . . . . . . 7.74
27 June, 1921, To Miss Hall,.Frankford, Book
Route No.4. . . . . . . . 7.74
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27 July, '.i921,To Miss Hal( Franldord, Book '
Route No.4 ....... .
6 September, 1921, To Miss Hall (for Aug­ust)
Book Route No.4
30 September, 1921, To John Wanamaker for
Books ............ .
1 October, 1921, To Miss Hall (for Septem­ber)
Book Route No.4
22, October, 1921, To Johnson Pub. Co., Rich­mond,
Va., for Books
3t' October, 1921, To Miss Hall, Book Route
No.4 ............. .
, 5 November, 1921, To John Wanamaker for
, Books ............ .
29 November, 1921, To Miss Hall Book Route
No.4 ............. .
3 'December, 1921, To John Wanamaker for
, Books ............ .
16 December, 1921, To John Wanamaker for
Books ............ .
23 December, 1921, To Miss Hall Book Route
.. .. "'- " No.4 ...... " ....... .
1922
November, 1922,
, , 7.92
7.92
67.48
7.92
10.95
7.92
163.10
7.92
8.46
1.35
7.89
$315.96
From the State Treasurer for the
Delaware State Federation of
Wom'en's ClubsT6 Messrs.
C~arke & McDaniel for Books. $100.00
R~'spectfully submitted,
1:' V. CULBRETH, Treasurer.
,EXTRACTS FROM LETTERS AND .. REPORTS:
."1 think the book wagon is an out-and-out blessing,
that it brings great pleasure into the homes and lightens
many a burden. Unless you live in a rural section you can
not imagine how impossible it is ,to get books, for one cannot
always be buying them. Personally I was starved for books
before the book w. agon came, and I hailed it with joy." . .
"What a fine thing it is that good literature is finding
such a farge place in the rural school curriculum. This has
come to pass in Delaware since the book wagon started its
work."
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. "A rural mother in reporting the pleasure , her son "w.as
getting ~rQm the books loaned by the book wagon, :saidthat
when she tried to engage him in conversation he 'replied that ,
the ,book he was reading he had waited for. twenty years."
(Remember the boy had always lived in the ~ country and,'the
book he was ' reading was Bryce's "American Common­wealth.~')
"I want to take this opportunity to expresslny appre­ci2;
tion of the grea,t work that is being done by the::,State
Library Commission. The libraries have helped me greatly
in my work and given pleasure to many of my pupils."
"The book wagon does not pass here now. ' I think it is
a shame ,to neglect a person who is anxious to get bOQk,s to
read. Can you imagine how it feels to be starved for ' ·go.od
literature? My li,ttle boy' is anxiously looking Jor those
:picture books I told him the wagon would bririg him. Don't
starve us.'" .
" "The tr,aveling library in our school has been a great
pleasure and a great educational benefit."
"Our family enjoys the books you send out for we: are
not where we can get good books, and the book wagon libr­arian
is so good ltO come in all weathers. We would be glad
for it to continue in our section if you think we are not too
selfish, for the books have certainly been good and helpful."
'.'The writer is one of those who has ,Qeen ' 'served
through the book wagon. The librarians have ' be~n so cap-
'able that we appreciate their personal par1t in the service,
but it is of the general value of the book distribution in
rurf.tl. communities that I write, believing that a few com­ments
will be acceptable. We wish the work could be: ex-tended
over a wider area, for it really means the cultivation
'of good taste through reading inoffensively supervised. Our
chi.ldren always know the date of the libr'ariari,'s next 'visit
and are keenly interested in the matter left for them giving
evidence also that the care demanded of the state's books is
promoting habits of order. , Some of the young people on
other roads gladly come for the books the adults have
finish~d, and.I have observed ' in some cases a hunger, im­pressive
and even pathe.tic. I have 'no doubt that ther~~re
exceptional instances of benefit-vital questions answered;
fitness for life work disclosed; .genius fired to early aCiion----;:
why not? The work is important and prominent among
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those services that reduce the penalty of living far from the
larger centers. I have heard that this work in our state is
_ ' conducted with small financial provision and because of this
limitation the writer does not expect to be served with the
latest books, but we hope these will be available under a
larger development of the work. We live modestly at pres­ent
on a small farm we are making out of the forest and do
not find all the latest books within our reach-I mean per­sonal
ownership. Life will be wonderfully full ' of fine
things, won't it, when all truly constructive lines of work
are officially recognized and adequately supported?"
"Please allow me to say, as a patron of the book wagon,
that I appreciate the work you are doing in distributing
books in rural districts. Noone knows, surely no one can
estimate, how much has been and is being accomplished in
m'aking good literature available to many who would not
have the means nor the inclination to procure for ,them­selves
good reading matter. For my own sake, and for the
sake of my family and neighbors, and for the sake of the
State, I hope you will find it possible to continue and enlarge
this work. Give us the best books you can gelt, give us as
many books as we can read, and you will have done a great
work."
DELAWARE LIBRARIES
DOVER-The
Dover Library contains about 6,350 volumes, and
is open to the public on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays
from R to 5 o'clock in the afternoon and from 7 to 8 :45 in
the evening.
During 1921 and 1922 two hundred and eighty-four
(284) membership cards were issued, making a total of twa
thousand three hundred and sighty-four since the library
was madefree and public in 1902. As a matter of fact, this
. number falls far short of the actual numbe·r of borrowers,
because a membership card may be used by all the members
of the family.
Nine hundred and eighty (980) volumes have been add­ed,
of which three hundred and thirty-five were gifts. Two
hundred and fifty-eight (258) books were discarded>.
46,429 books were borrowed, of which 15,596 were juveniles.
These numbers include 27,917 fiction, 14,041 juvenile fiction~
2,916 "non!,",ftc.tion. and 1,555 juvenile non.. . fiction..,
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"The periodicals, fifty-two (52) of which are on the
tables in the reading rooms, prove a strong attraction, 6,362
ha ving been loaned in the two years.
The ,total expenses of the library are about $1,399.00
a year.
The five local papers and one Wilmington paper, Great­er
Utica, and the National Humane Review are donated.
The Ladies' Library Club gave twenty-seven (27)
volumes including some valuable reference books.
Respectfully submitted,
L. BEATRICE MAST,
MARY E. FULTON, Librarians.
ODESSA-The
Corbit Library of Odessa is open to the public on
Tuesdays and Saturdays from 9 :00 a. m. to 12 noon, and
from 1 :30 p. m. to 4 :30 p. m.
We have added 500 books since the last report and 47
new membership cards have been issued.
Fifty books were given to the Middletown Library to
help replace those lost by fire.
New shelves with capacity for 1400 volumes have been
recently erected.
Respectfully submitted,
HELEN W. SPARKS, Librarian.
BOYS' AND GIRLS' BOOK CLUB OF MILFORD, DEL.
A report of the Free Library in the home of Mrs. Mary
A. Brown, Librarian, was made in 1916 and incorporated in
the Seventh Biennial Repor.t of the State Library Com­mission.
After an absence of three years, 1919-'22, the Librar­ian
has returned and the Library was re-opened in October,
1922. There are 1,700 books on the shelves, and a new en­rollment
of three hundred young people. Before returning,
the Librarian held a position for a year in the Children's
Free Library, Kinsessing Branch, of Philadelphia, having
taken the position in order to bring back both in spiration
and method to the work here.
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The State Library Commission was asked to continue
its 'a~d and to lend as many books as possible for the furtth­erance
of school work, in order that there might be a closer
knitting together ,of the schools with the Library.
The Commission responded generously with a carefully
selected list of books at the cost of one hundred dollars.
These books are proving to be invaluable to both teachers
and students.
Milford, Del., January, 1923.
,j,
IN MEMORIAM
DANIEL W. CORBIT, Esquire
Odessa, Delaware
Member of the
State Library Commission
from 1901
and
President of the Commission
from
November, 1910-September, 1922