The commodious quarters in the sixth and seventh floors of the Board of Education Building, 9th and Locust streets, planned with such careful forethought, with all the appliances necessary for the administration of a modern library, which were leased from the School Board, are already proving inadequate to the demands made upon the Library.

To remedy this congestion and for the greater accommodation of the public, your Board has established delivery stations in different parts of the city, where readers can draw books and return them, thus saving the long journey to the main library.

These stations, together with arrangements made with the public schools and various institutions, etc., greatly multiply the use and advantages of the Library. The Board of Directors realizes that this great educational factor belongs to the citizens of St. Louis; and every effort on its part consistent with the income at its disposal, will be made to bring the benefits of the Library to the greatest possible number.

Under the original act passed by the Legislature in 1885, known as the Missouri Library Law, while the Board of Directors was vested with the authority to acquire real estate, it was legally powerless to provide the necessary funds for the erection of a building on any lot it might be able to

secure.

It has from the beginning been the desire of the Board to save, if possible, enough from its annual income to procure an eligible lot and thus make a beginning towards securing a permanent home for the Library. Aside from the great rental we are obliged to pay the School Board for the present quarters, which will soon be entirely too small for our needs, the great expense and inconvenience of hoisting in elevators fifty thousand people per month must be apparent to all.

With these objects in view necessary steps were taken at the last session of the Legislature; and the act was so amended as to make it lawful for the Board to issue bonds to obtain money for the erection of a building, but for no other purpose.

An opportunity is here afforded to any public spirited, loyal citizen of this great city to dedicate a portion of his possessions in the shape of a donation of a plot of ground, or an endowment of money, to the lasting benefit of his fellow citizens, and thus lay the foundation of a monument which would perpetuate his memory as long as St. Louis shall be known as a city.

Other cities have had such far-sighted philanthropists; and may we not reasonably expect that in the near future some one may be constrained to do the public this great and lasting service? Such a gift would very much simplify the problem that now faces the Board.

We venture to predict that the time will come when the Library will have become so firmly intrenched in the affections of the great mass of the people, that any legislation in the way of larger appropriations in the direction of increasing its usefulness, can easily be obtained; but this is a process of education and of slow growth.

In the meantime exigencies arise which are difficult to overcome with the present income, every dollar of which in excess of expense of administration should be expended in additions to our books-completing departments of science still lacking the latest text books and thus equipping the Library to meet every demand.

This report would be incomplete did we not refer to the superior excellence and efficiency of the present staff of the Library. This force, as you are doubtless aware, is secured and retained through the application of the rules of modern civil service. Every position is filled with the successful competitor of a rigid examination, consequently the force is a careful selection of the fittest. Promotions are conducted in the same manner. The result therefore places the administration of the Library in the hands of ladies and gentlemen of more than ordinary ability and attainments, producing an "esprit de corps" which must be apparent to even the casual visitor.

In conclusion I would add that the utmost harmony and good will prevails in the Board. Not a dissenting voice is heard; and no other aim has been apparent on the

part of each and every member than the single purpose of doing all in their power to execute the trust placed in their hands, so that this great public institution of learning shall bring its influence to bear on the greatest number, and thus fulfill its very important mission in this city.

Respectfully submitted,

OSCAR L. WHITELAW,

President.

REPORT OF THE LIBRARIAN.

To the H. Band ƒ Denitors of the St. L. vis Pic For Lingo

I have the honor to submit herewith my second annual report as your executive officer, covering the year from May 1. 1894, to April 30, 1595. This is the first full year of your direction; but not yet can the record be presented of the first full year of a free library in St. Louis, for the Library was not opened free to the public until the first of June. Registration began practically on May first, with the be ginning of the library year; and at the end of the year over 26,000 names had been registered. They came in with notable regularity, the last six months showing very little variation from an average of 2,000 a month. With this steady growth in the number of readers, it is evident that only the statistics of the last few months can be taken as any indication of the work and the popularity of the library; and the greater usefulness of a free, as compared with a subscription, library cannot be fully shown in figures until the total of a full year's issue under the new order shall have been recorded. The results to date of discontinuing the subscription fee of $2 a year ($1 for minors) may be briefly summed up thus: a registration four times as large as formerly, and a home issue 33 times as great as the maximum under the old régime. The latter ratio is obtained by comparing the issue of March with the largest month's record of the old library.

The receipts and expenditures for the year are given in the following table, which combines the monthly financial statements that have been attested by your Auditing Committee and is accompanied by the affidavit of the Chairman of the Committee.

To agree with the accounts in the City Auditor's office, which are closed with the second Monday of each month, the statement of the City Treasury fund is brought up to May 13, while the statement of the bank fund and contingent fund closes with April 30, the date when the library year ends.

It will be seen that the year's revenue from the City tax of 1/5 of a mill amounted to $59,320.97, to which was added $2,615.80, the sum received for fines, issue of extra volumes, etc., and a large balance left over from the preceding year's income, out of which only two months' expenses were drawn. The total of expenditures was $48,358.88, which will necessarily be increased with the growth of the Library and the extension of its usefulness.

Comment or explanation of certain items in the schedule, if not necessary, will, at least, not be superflous.

It is noteworthy that the increase of salary expenses from (in round numbers) $12,000 to $16,000 is not at all proportioned to the increase in the work done.

The outlay for furniture and repairs is larger than it is likely to be again for some years. As mentioned in the last report, extensive alterations and repairs were necessary to adapt the premises to the larger work undertaken by the Directors of the Free Library. The largest single item was $773.70 for painting the rooms and halls. Next to this come $783.02 for carpenter's wages, lumber, hardware and other material; $513.22 for special furniture and appliances; $200 for the system of basket carriers; $170.05 for repairs and additions to electric lights and bells; and $116.50 for metal work. The balance consists of smaller items from $10 up.

Under Expense, the largest item, next to printing and stationery, is $407.82, the amount paid for temporary service in arranging for the change in the charging system and other work of preparation, as explained in detail in the last report. The expenditure for printing and stationery was larger than it is likely to be for several years at least, since it includes the cost of 75,000 book pockets and 80,000 book cards, and also the many thousands (about 125,000 in all) of application cards, reader's cards, and cards for readers' and guarantors' indexes, besides 20,000 copies of the "Rules and Readers' Guide" and 500 copies of another pamphlet containing the State law and the City ordinances relating to the Library and the by-laws of the Board.