poor books, while there is no dearth whatever of good
ones. It is not the business of a public library to compete with the news
stands or the daily press in furnishing the latest short stories for
popular consumption; a class of literature whose survival is likely to be
quite as short as the stories themselves.

Take an object lesson as to the mischiefs of reading the wretched stuff
which some people pretend is "better than no reading at all" from the boy
Jesse Pomeroy, who perpetrated a murder of peculiar atrocity in Boston.
"Pomeroy confessed that he had always been a great reader of 'blood and
thunder' stories, having read probably sixty dime novels, all treating of
scalping and deeds of violence. The boy said that he had no doubt that
the reading of those books had a great deal to do with his course, and he
would advise all boys to leave them alone."

In some libraries, where the pernicious effect of the lower class of
fiction has been observed, the directors have withdrawn from circulation
a large proportion of the novels, which had been bought by reason of
their popularity. In other newly started libraries only fiction of the
highest grade has been placed in the library from the start, and this is
by far the best course. If readers inquire for inferior or immoral books,
and are told that the library does not have them, although they will
express surprise and disappointment, they will take other and improving
reading, thus fulfilling the true function of the library as an educator.
Librarians and library boards cannot be too careful about what
constitutes the collection which is to form the pabulum of so many of the
rising generation.

This does not imply that they are to be censors, or prudes, but with the
vast field of literature before them from which to choose, they are bound
to choose the best.

The American Library Association has had this subject under discussion
repeatedly, and while much difference of opinion has arisen from the
difficulty of finding any absolute standard of excellence, nearly all
have agreed that as to certain books, readers should look elsewhere than
to the public free library for them. At one time a list of authors was
made out, many of whose works were deemed objectionable, either from
their highly sensational character, or their bad style, or their highly
wrought and morbid pictures of human passions, or their immoral tendency.
This list no doubt will surprise many, as including w