addition to its funds as would justify it in providing for the circulation of the books from this main building. The result was that the library was granted the old reservoir ground on Fifth Avenue, between 40th and 42nd Streets, and the trustees were enabled to begin planning for the erection of the splendid fireproof structure, eventually opened to the public in 1911. =New York Public Library.=—The union of these three corporations to form a single library worthy of the great American metropolis was very justly characterized by Lawrence Hutton as “one of the most important events in the whole history of the Island of Manhattan.” New York had long labored under the disadvantage of having no public library from which books could be freely borrowed by her citizens. Dr. Cogswell once remarked that a free circulating library in New York was impossible and that in five years any collection of books made for that purpose would be scattered forever beyond hope of recovery. He here showed the distrust of the book-collector and the attitude of the old style librarian towards the books entrusted to his care. The Astor and the Lenox Libraries were for reference use only, and were never open in the evenings or on holidays. Through the great generosity of Andrew Carnegie the New York Public Library is able to operate an extensive series of branches, primarily intended for the purposes of circulating books in the surrounding neighborhoods. “The main purpose of the library is educational,” said the late Dr. J. S. Billings. “It is also to furnish the means of recreation and amusement to large numbers of readers. A great library like this must be omniverous. It must have rare and costly books, indispensable to scholars, and also the ephemeral pamphlets of the day which have no commercial value when they appear but eventually become historical documents. The library should be an encyclopedia always kept up to date.” =The Spread of Public Libraries.=—From the above sketches some idea can be gained as to how recent is the development of the library into the tax-supported institution we know to-day. The last generation has witnessed the spread of the public library movement westward at such a rate that many of the most striking illustrations of the usefulness of the modern library are to be gathered from the newer libraries of the western states. Within the last two decades the public library has gained strong allies in such new organizations as state library commissions, inter-state library associations, and library training schools. The library schools have inculcated into their students the body of America’s library doctrine which has grown up with the movement in this country. The association meetings have been helpful in providing for the discussion of mooted topics and giving librarianship a unity which it could not otherwise have gained.