98 PROCEEDINGS OP THE CANADIAN INSTITUTE. 



to half a million volum-es. The lai'gest library in the world is that at Paris, which 

 contains about two and a quarter million of books and 160,000 manuscripts, 

 and France possesses in addition five hundred public libraries, containing four 

 and three-quarter million of books. Germany has no less thau ninety-seven 

 large libraries, averaging 100,000 volumes each, the Royal Library at Munich, 

 having something over 900,000 volumes, and the Royal library at Berlin over 

 700,000. We are not accustomed to think of libraries in conuection with 

 Austria-Hungary, but it stands first among all the countries of Europe for numbers, 

 having no less than five hundred and seventy-seven public libraries, containing 

 about 6,000,000 volumes, a number which is equal to about twenty-six books 

 per head for the entire population. Russia, so comparatively recent in its civiliza- 

 tion, has one library verj' nearly as large as the British Museum, and seven over 

 100,000 volumes. Even the smaller countries, like Switzerland and Denmark, have 

 respectively eighteenlibraries, ranging irom 40,000 to 100,000volumes, and four libra- 

 ries containing 725,000 volumes. I might continue the list of countries, which all 

 tell the same story, but will only mention one other, — the little Island of Iceland, 

 poor in men and means, but exhibiting to us its love of learning, has one scientific 

 library of 30,000 volumes in addition to several libraries of general literature. 

 I have purposely refrained from mentioning the American libraries, because so 

 many of them are familiar to us, and because most of us are astonished at 

 the wealth which has been expended upon them, the rapidity of their growth and 

 the energy Mdth which they are conducted. But it may well be said that these 

 are general libraries, which by the assistance of the State, or by private gene- 

 rosity are enabled to make immense collections for the benefit of readers of 

 all classes. As general libraries they strive to cover the whole field of human 

 knowledge, and do so more or less superficially. Even in the case of the British 

 ■Museum, we were recently told by a very high authority, that i'it did not 

 contain more than one-half, or at least three-fifths, of the books in English 

 which have been printed." It is not too much to say that the best library of the 

 English speaking people, is more or Jess, of a makeshift. Mr. Bullen, the late 

 keeper of the printed books in that library recognized this, when he testified 

 before the Society of Arts, "that on few or no subjects to be investigated, could 

 the British Museum atford the scholar half the necessary books." Let us now 

 turn to the consideration of societies like our own and see what they have 

 done to supply the demands of their readers. In Great Britain the Royal Society 

 has 75,000 volumes, the Royal Institution has 50,000, the Royal Irish Academy 

 80,000, the Newcastle Literary Philosophical Institute 60,000, and many others 

 with corresponding numbers of books in their libraries. But these while confining 

 them to Science generally, evidently do not meet the wants of students in special 

 subjects, for we find a Geological Society's library of 17,500 volumes and another 

 of 30,000, a Geographical of 25,000, a Statistical of 27,000, and an Electrical 

 Engineers of 100,000 volumes, and so on through every branch of- the Arts 

 and Sciences. Now think of these and then of our collection of two hundred 

 and ninety volumes in Geology, or in Geography of four hundred, or Statistics 

 of one hundred volumes. 



The fact is, that when a student enters upon a special branch of study, 

 he finds so little to help either in our own library or in other libraries in' this 

 city, that he is compelled to look elsewhere for the literature of his subject. Let 

 him be engaged upon, say, botanical research, he would find that our apparently 

 large collection contains perhaps one hundred and fifty volumes devoted to this 

 subject, and so with every other branch of Science. The closer the student 

 specializes, the more difficult it is for him to arrive at what is known, as a 

 basis upon which to carry on liis researches. It is evident that our library, 

 however complacently we may admire it, is as yet, but in its infancy. We must 

 not cease to enlarge and develop it, every opportunity must be taken to increase 

 the number and preserve the high character of its books. The council has done 

 wisely in fixing the limits within which it ought to grow. Other institutions 

 in this city have their own place to fill, and should be stimulated by our 

 example, to increase their usefulness within their own limits. We must do 

 more to meet the wants of our own students, gaining from them such a 

 knowledge of our shortcomings, as will aid us in building up our collection 



