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library work in the city which was the first to open a free library under 

 Mr. Ewart's Act ; and the empl >yment of women in libraries found a 

 vigorous supporter in Miss James. French translations of the last two 

 papers had been prepared and were circulated. Mr. Gilburt's paper 

 ought to set all aspiring authors longing to print, a-thinking. He makes 

 the astounding statement — and we believe he knows — that the unsold 

 copies of books published in London reach 300,000 every year. Some 

 half-dozen other papers were read, more interesting to the bibliographer 

 and the bookworm than to the practical librarian, and these will doubtless 

 all appear in due course in the Journal of the Association, where they will 

 receive all the attention they deserve from a much more extended circle. 



Coming now to the places visited, the first was the Mazarine Library, 

 founded by the famous Cardinal who bore that name. It was made a 

 public library in 1691, and is one of the four Government libraries of 

 Paris. It is open daily from eleven till five o'clock, free. It contains 

 300,000 books and 5,800 manuscripts, and is specially rich in early Bibles 

 and religious books among them being a copy the famous Bible printed 

 by Gutenberg, and known as the Mazarin Bible. The annual State 

 ma.ntenance grant to this institution is ^1,880, of which ^1,280 is 

 expended in salaries. The daily average of readers is about 40. 



A visit followed 10 the Library of the Society of the History of 

 French Protestantism, a most interesting place maintained by a private 

 Society, but recognised by the State. The Society was founded in 1852, 

 and now owns 30,000 books, and 400 manuscripts, some of the latter, 

 bearing on early Huguenot history, being priceless. The series of fire and 

 thief-proof safes in which these valuables are kept is not the least 

 remarkable feature of the collection. 



On the second day, visits were paid to three typical Municipal 

 Libraries, those in the First and Second Arrondissements, and to the Forney 

 Art Library. These visits were naturally among the most interesting 

 we paid, and some features in these Institutions are worthy of special 

 mention. A capital report was prepared for the Association by His 

 Excellency the Minister of Public Instruction, and this contains most 

 valuable information respecting the Paris system of Municipal Libraries. 

 The work was fairly begun in 1878, at which time there were only nine of 

 these Libraries, and five only were much resorted to by the public. Now 

 there are 64 of them, and the scheme will not be considered complete till 

 there is one in each of the eighty wards of Paris. There is one in each of 

 the twenty Mairies, and the rest are located for the most part in the 

 communal schools. As a rule they are open from 4 to 6, and from 8 to 

 10 p.m., and from 10 a.m. to 12 on Sundays. Attached to all is a small 

 Reference Department, and they all lend out bound volumes of music. In 

 the year 1890, the total issues reached 1,386,642, whereas in 1878 they 



