第23章 HOW LIBRARY WORK WITH CHILDREN HAS GROWN IN HARTFO

In 1912the boys and girls of grades 7to 9in the district and parochial schools were invited to listen to stories from English history in the Librarian's office of the Hartford Public Library on Tuesday afternoons in July and August.Some of the subjects were The Roman wall,The Danish invasion,King Alfred and the white horses said to have been cut to commemorate his victories,The Crusades,and The captivity of James I.of Scotland.The Longman series of colored wall-prints was used as a starting point for the stories.Children in grades 4to 6listened at a later hour to stories from Hawthorne's "Wonderbook"and "Tanglewood tales."The Hartford Public Library had an exhibit at the state fair,September 2-7,1912,in the Child-welfare building.In a space 11by 6were chairs,tables covered with picture-books,a bookcase with libraries for school grades,probation office,and a settlement,and another with inexpensive books worth buying for children.Pictures of countries and national costumes were hung on the green burlap screens which enclosed the sides of the miniature room.At about the same time we printed a list of pleasant books for boys and girls to read after they have been transferred to the main library.They are not all classics,but are interesting.The head of the high school department of English and some of the other teachers asked the library's help in making a list of books for suggested reading during the four years'course.This list has been printed and distributed.Copies are hung near two cases with the school pennant above them,and one of the staff sees that these cases are always filled with books mentioned in it.The high school has a trained librarian,who borrows books from the Public Library and tries in every way to encourage its use.

From Dec.3to 24,1912and 1913,the exhibit of Christmas books for children and young people was kept open by the library in the large room in the annex.The exhibit included three or four hundred volumes,picture books by the best American,English,French,German,Italian,Danish,and Russian illustrators,inexpensive copies and also new and beautiful editions of old favorites,finely illustrated books attractive to growing-up young people,and the best of the season's output.It had many visitors,some of them coming several times.We sent a special invitation to the students in the Hartford Art Society,some of whom are hoping to be illustrators,and appreciate the picture-books highly.

The boys'and girls'room received last winter a fine photo-graphic copy of Leighton's "Return of Persephone,"in time for Hawthorne's version of the story,which is usually read when pomegranates are in the market and again six months later,when Persephone comes up to earth and the grass and flowers begin to spring.

One day John Burroughs made an unexpected visit to the room,and it happened that when the children reading at the tables were told who he was,and asked who of them had read "Squirrels and furbearers,"the boy nearest him held up his hand with the book in it.That boy will probably never forget his first sight of a real live author!

Last winter we received a gift of a handsome bookcase with glass doors,which we keep in the main library,filled with finely illustrated books for children to be taken out on grown-up cards only.This is to insure good care.