1892-93.] NIAGARA LIBRARY. 34l 



next quarterly meeting held at Niagara, 13th January, 1802. Present, 

 Andrew Heron, Martin McLellan, Rev. R. Addison, Jno. Young. 

 Books in catalogue from 118 to 150 received at prices annexed, and 

 that George Young shall make a case for the books, for which he 

 shall be paid a reasonable price." This we find in the accounts to be 



At the quarterly meeting, April 14th, 1802, "Ordered, that Mr. 

 Tiffany print the laws of the Society, and be allowed three dollars for 

 the same, and deliver not less than seventy copies to the trustees, one to 

 be given to each subscriber, and that Mr. Murray be allowed one dollar 

 more for Robertson's History of Charles V." 



At the annual meeting, August 14th, 1S02, No. 3, " Robt. KeiT, Esq., 

 and Mr. Jno. Hill, trustees added." A stringent law is passed that " ihat 

 part of the fifth resolution of the second meeting of the Society which 

 directs that every member who shall neglect to return the books shall 

 pay into the hands of some one of the trustees sixpence currency for 

 every week he continues to hold the same after the time limited is 

 expired, be enforced by the librarian, he not being at liberty to let him 

 have another book until that sum is paid, and that that be extended to 

 every person, whether member or not." 



New members were this year to pay $5, and next year this was raised 

 to $6. In 1804 comes the first payment to the librarian, and this is 

 certainly a modest allowance. This library seems to have solved the 

 difficulty of keeping down the expenses, as through all these years there 

 is no outlay for firewood, for rent, for light — the allowance to the libra- 

 rian being a percentage on money paid by what are called non-subscrib- 

 ers. The original members are called sometimes proprietors and some- 

 times subscribers. 



" Resolved, that Andrew Heron be librarian for the ensuing year, and 

 be allowed 121^ per cent, of all the moneys collected for the last twelve 

 months from non-subscribers, and the same for the year to come, and 

 shall be obliged to make good all the books that may be lost by non- 

 subscribers." 



This seems verv hard on the librarian, but he must have been a book- 

 lover, for through all these years he remained faithful to his trust — the 

 ■emolument sometimes being ^i ys. 6d., sometimes £2 12s. 6d. For the 

 year 18 17 it was only ^s. yd., and the largest amount was £6, which for 

 those days must have been munificent. In 1804, boolcs admitted from 

 316 to 344, and in January, 1805, quite an addition was made to the 

 library as well as to the members of the society, which item tells us what 



