INDIANA IIOETICULTUKAL SOCIETY. 395 



miles from Indianapolis, and wish to see what is in one of these books, 

 the present law compels you to come here to see it, or else buy some pub- 

 lication that will give you this information. By this method proposed 

 the book can be sent to you with no expense except for postage. The 

 library in this way may be made extremely useful by having the law 

 amended. This matter may not interest you. However, if it does, and 

 if you think it will be of value to you, speak to your legislators before 

 they come here in January, and then when the matter comes up they will 

 know you are interested in it and want it. 



What I am trying to do is this: I am trying to take the State Library 

 to the people. I have been in the library now for five years and have 

 made it useful to people who can come to it; now I want to make it use- 

 ful to the people to whom it can go. If the- law is modified we will print 

 lists of books that can be sent out, and every citizen will know just what 

 we have here and how to obtain the books. We have, of course, in the 

 libi'ary many rare and valuable books and books that could not be dupli- 

 cated if lost. Of course, we will all agree that books of that kind should 

 not be loaned. There will be a class of books always that we can not 

 loan, but the majority of them are of such a character that we can loan 

 them. We will distribute the lists as fully as possible, and every citizen 

 will know what we have and how to obtain it 



Mr. Kingsbury: It seems to me that this matter is impracticable from 

 the side of cost, unless special rates can be secured for sending the books. 

 The cost of the heavier books would be ten cents each way, or more. 

 "What arrangements are contemplated in regard to that matter? 



Mr. Henry: At present there are only the regular postal rates and the 

 express rates. That may be a difficulty, yet my only though is this: That 

 it is better, if you want a book, to have it sent to you at a cost of twenty 

 cents rather than have you come to the city to consult it. My idea is that 

 the State would be doing a legitimate business if it would pay the trans- 

 portation. But, so far as I know, no State does that. Indiana may take 

 the lead in that, if that is what you like. The question is now, Can we 

 better afford to pay ti'ansportation charges or buy the book, or go without? 

 The State Librarian of Wisconsin said the books were being loaned over 

 the State, but still they were limited by the cost of transportation. There 

 is an effort made to get a law through Congi-ess giving us a book rate 

 at about a cent a pound. At that rate a book would go through the mails 

 about as cheap as a letter would. If a person wants a book it is certainly 

 cheaper to pay transportation on it than to do without it or buy it or come 

 to Indianapolis, when he only wants it for a few hours. Of course, at the 

 present time, if you want a little matter of information, that can be got- 

 ten from the State Library and that can be copied without a great effort, 

 we will send it. 



