The
ICopyrlght. 1903, by Guy T. Vlsknlskki.)
HAPS will Bound around the world
next Saturday bidding America's
soldier dead sleep peacefully on.
Hours before America itself has
awakened for Memorial day, a
solitary khaki-dad bugler, standing over
few graves in the little island of Guam,
will start the saddest notes in all music
on their long Journey.
Fifteen hundred miles to the west, while
the smoke from the guns of many a firing
quad rolls silently upward above the
heads of serried ranks of bronaed men
gathered about tropically-decked mounds
that mark the spots where heroes lie, bugle
after bugle will sing the song of rest In the
Islands of the Philippines. Then, as the
heart-wrung reverberations die away, the
tender message of a nation's undying grate
fulness will swell out over the narrow
homes of its defenders In the Chinese em
pire. After that, as the sun goes westward,
taps will follow It, for in many legations
and in the American colonies of Paris and
Ionion the practice of observing the day
by sounding the call Is followed. So tbc
air will bo caught up in Ruropc and sent
on Its way to Cuba and Porto Rico. There,
Instead of a lone bugle carrying the strain,
a hundred will take up the burden. This
hundred a few minutes later will give way
to thousands, for America will be reached,
and from countless God's acres in city and
town and hamlet will rise the mighty wall
of a nation for the legions that have died
for Its faith and hone.
In an ever swelling chorus the bugle's
music will sweep through the land out
over the Pacific. Far away Hawaii will
honor the heroes slumbering within its
soil and. last of all, Samoa, a'most be
tween day and night, will catch up the
notes, renew their energy over the graves
of a handful of storm-wrecked sailors, and
stand at attention while they sink.
The whole world will hare been witness
to Its noblest lesson In national grateful
ness and patriotism.
It will have teen witness, too. to the nw
spirit nf Memorial day; for it will behold
a nation mourning more In the fashion
Of the first . decoration days. Then every
noise In the land was bushed except the
Public Library a Feature
E9
HE GREAT majority of cities of
25.000 inhabitants and upwards In
the United States have a public
library of some sort, and the
same is true of many of the
miller cities. Many of these libraries
have been founded on gifts of individuals,
some have developed from subscription
libraries but the majority are now sup
ported mainly or entirely by funds appro
priated by the city government. A con
siderable number are still In the formative
stage, this being true of those for which
buildings are being erected from funds pro
vided by Mr. Carnegie and for several
hundred others for which he will probably
provldo buildings in the near future.
The conditions upon which ho provides
funds for tho erection of municipal library
buildings ure simple. The city must pro
vide a site, which It may obtain by gift
if it can, and it must agreo to provide an
nually for the maintenance of the library
a Bum equal to at least 10 per cent of the
cost of the building. Practically this offer
Is open to any city which has no public
11 bray building, but the length of time dur
ing which the offer will thus remain open
Is unknown. Under these circumstances
what is the duly of a city which either has
no public library buildings or has one
which is inadequate and insufficient for its
purpose? Should the municipal authorities
take the initiative, decide as to what kind
of library building they want, and then
make application to Mr. Carnegie for the
amount of money required for Its construc
tion? The answer to this is not unanimous.
Some good citizens think that the city
should provide Its own building and not ask
for It as a gift. Some municipal authorities
are willing to accept the buildings as a
gift If It is directly offered to them, but
are unwilling to ask for it themselves. In
such case it has often happened that a few
enterprising persons not connected with
the municipality have prosecuted the case
and asked that the offer be made at the
same time giving assurances that the offer
With the usual conditions will be accepted.
In three or four cases, however, when
the offer has been made by Mr. Carneg'e,
on the solicitation of private citizens, it
has not been accepted in at lesst two
eases because of the opposition of leaders
of the labor party, wh claimed that Mr.
Carnegie had no right to the money he
offered. It may be that there have be.Mt
one or two cases In which the offer has
been declined because the municipal au
thorises were unwilling ti guarantee the
future support of the library ta the amonnt
required.
Tht Is really the main point to be con
sidered by a innniclpjlity In tTealln? with
such an offer, but I doubt whether In many
ease it receives much th-night. In order
to make the Carneglo library an adorn
ment to the place a special feature of
New Spirit
tread of millions going cemetery wards, the
roll of muffled drum, the voice raised In
praise and prayer, the cracking rifles of the
firing squad, and the bugle's call. Then
no one, as In later years, thought of mak
ing the day a holiday.
To many next Saturday will still be In
the nature of a holiday pure and simple,
but to hundreds of thousands be.iidee the
tottering old men who will ha'tlnglr march
to the graves of their long dead coirades
the day will have solemn significance, for
it has been brought home to them. They
are the men who fought In Cuba, who
stormed the Spanish strongholds in Porto
Rico, who languished In southern mobiliz
ing camps, and who have known the hard
ships of campaigning In the Philippines.
They have learned by experience on the
battlefield and in concentration ramp what
Memorial day really stands for, and when
ever It recurs they and their kinsfolk keep
It with a new spirit which offers refutation
to the frequently mude statement that,
now that the veterans of the civil war are
dying off so rapidly, the true purpose of
their great day is as speedily being lost
In that of the holiday.
Four hundred thousand soldiers served
In the Spanish-American and Philippine
war. Kach soldier that fell had at least
ten relatives to mourn him. Kach soldier
that lives has at least ten kinsfolk to honor
him; and so four millions of people one
In every twenty In the country have leav
ened the whole body politic and given a
more serious note to Memorial day since
the late war than was present for many
years before on the anniversary of the
dead. This Is Ihe testimony of Grand
Army posts and of Memorial day speakers
throughout the country.
Their testimony could not be otherwise.
A soldier can never forget the days of his
service; he cannot be enlisted a month
without hearing in camp or In battle the
benediction of the bugle over the body of
some comrade-in-arms; and, though un
conscious it may bn, the thought Is never
from him that the name call that puts
him to pleep nightly with lights out. on the
morrow may lull him to his eternal slum
ber. It Is the contact with death and Its
militant song that brings home to him the
deep significance of ths Day of the Hero
Dead and causes Its proper observance by
the townscape certain cities have planned
buildings which by reason of materials
and architectural' embellishments, cost
about double what the same library ac
commodations could have been provided
for they spend 1100,00) for tha space that
could have been furnished for 151.0X1. If
the city were Itself paying for the build
ing this extra expenditure for the art
education of the people might be iterfectly
justifiable, but When the-e architectural
features involve the doubling of the li
brary tax for aJl future time, their desir
ability becomes more doubtful.
There may be excessive and un
justifiable taxation for the support of a
public library the amount which the city
can afford for this purpose should be caie
fully considered in connection with its
needs for a pure water supply and good
eewage disposal, for means of communica
tion, for the care of tho sick poor and for
public schools. Each case must be
judged by Itself; the only general rule I
have to suggest Is that In the Department
of Kducation the claims of the Public
Library for support are more Important
than those of a Municipal College or High
school. Thr. people who have no taxable
property, and who therefore often er
roneous suppose that they contribute noth
ing towards the payment of the taxes, are
usually quite willing to have a higher tax
rate imposed for the purpose of securing
for themselves and their families free
library facilities although in exceptional
cases religious or sociological opinions may
lead them to oppose it.
A considerable number of taxpayers, on
the other hand, are more or less reluctant
to have their assessments increased for
this purpose, and their arguments should
be considered and met. They say:
First That they should not be taxed for
things they do not want and never use.
Second That the furnishing free books
tends to pauperize the community and to
discourage the purchase of books for borne
use.
Third That there Is no evidence that free
public libraries improve the community
materially or morally.
Fourth That the greater part of the
books ured are works of fiction, and that
these are injurious tc the readers.
Fifth That most of the arguments used
In favor of free public libraries are merely
sentimental and emotional, and that those
who urge them most strongly do so for ad
vertising and political reasons, or to make
a place for themselves or some of their
relatives.
The first of these reasons would app'y
also to taxes for public schools, street pav
ing, sewerage and many other items of
municipal expenditure, and has no weight.
With regard to the second argument it Is
not a sufficient reply to say that everyone
pays through the taxes, for this would
of Memorial
him and his.
Ask any of these men who are respon
sible for the new spirit of Memorial day
or the old one revlvlsccnt why the day
is the most solemn one of the year to him,
and the answer very likely will be In the
form of on Incident of the man's cam
paigning days. And if a member of a
certain regiment that served In Porto Rico
Is questioned, his reply most probably
would contain the following story:
For days the regiment had encumped
on the brow of a hill overlooking the sea,
.waiting for tho transport that was to take
It home. As the soldiers waited and swept
the horizon for their ship they worked in
the cemetery that had been luid out to
receive the soldier dead from over the
Island. They were kept busy. A day did
not pass without one or more burial squads
being detailed to give decent interment
to some "poor devil" whose body bad
been brought on mule back or in army
wat?oii from a camp In the interior, or who
had died in the regiment's own hospital
on the sun-baked slope. So It cmne to
pass that at any hour of the day during
the weeks that the regiment sat on the
hill no one was surprised to hear taps come
to him through the tropical air from over
the grave of a newly laid soldier less than
a milo away.
At last, unexpectedly and after the regi
ment had about given up hope of getting
off the Wand in time to spend Thanksgiv
ing In "God's country." tho transport
steamed Into tho harbor, and the order was
given to break camp the next morning at 3,
that the soldiers might be snared from the
beating rays of the sun as much as pos
sible. It was when camp was broken, every
thing packed in knapsack and wagon, and
everybody, hilarious at the prospect of
sailing, lounging and waiting In the shade
of plies of baggage for the word of com
mand to fall In In the company streets.
And then, when chaff and banter wore at
their height, word was passed along that
up In Company B a soldier, overcome at
tho thought of seeing his Invalid mother,
had dropped dead of heart disease Just as
he had finished packing his knapsack.
A soldier la not afraid of death when
the beat of battle la on him, but Intruding
in Municipal Organization
apply equally well to free lodging houses,
(res lunch rooms and soup kitchens, free
fuel, etc. all of which it Is generally be
lieved do tend to pauperise a city, except
In great and special emergencies. The
proper answer Is that the free public li
brary Is an Important and Indeed necessary
part of the system of free education which
Is required to secure Intelligent citizens In
our form of popular government, and that
while In a few very exceptional cases free
schools and free libraries may tend to im
providence, or Indolence, or even to certain
forms of crime, these rare cases are of no
Importance In comparison with the benefits
which education confers upon the Immense
majority of the community, and with the
fact that without free schools and libraries
a large part of the people will not be suf
ficiently educated to be useful citizens un
der our form of government.
With regard to the third count, the pub
lic library, again, may be considered, to
gether with the public school. While It is
difficult to trace to either specific instances
of material or moral improvement, it la
certain that the general diffusion of Intel
ligence which both certainly affect, does
result beneficially In these directions. Com
munities with flourishing free schools and
libraries are usually more prosperous and
better than those without such facilities,
and while there is doubtless room here for
a confusion of cause and effect. It Is prob
able that there is both action and reaction.
Prosperity calls for Increased facilities for
education, and these In turn tend to make
the community mora prosperous.
That the majority of books withdrawn
from public libraries are works of Action
cannot be denied. Many librarians are
wont to deplore this fact, and most libraries
endeavor In one way or another to de
crease the percentage of fiction In their
circulations.
The proportion of recreative reading in
a public library Is necessarily large. In
like manner, the greater proportion of those
who visit a zoological or botanical garden,
do so for amusement. Yet tho Information
that they secure in so doing is none the
less valuable, and both are certainly edu
cational Institutions. So, If In the publlo
library a large number of its users get
their history, their travel and their biog
raphy through the medium of recreative
reidlng. we should not complain. Were it
otherwise, these readers would probably
lack altogether the Information that they
now certainly acquire, although perhaps
not In the most systematise way.
TaVing up the final count in the indict
ment, it is doubtless true that sentimental
and emotional considerations have had
much to do with library development They
have furnished the initial motive power,
as they have for free schools, for the
origin and progress of democratic govern
ment, and for most of the advances of
Day
when his arms are stacked It aobora him.
There was not a sign of merriment over
leaving the Island, as, shortly after the
news had spread, a burial detail started
for the cemetery with the man's body In a
mule wagon.
It was a solemn-faced regiment that the
colonel beheld a quarter of an hour later
when It was drawn up before him for the
final parade. It whs a brighter regiment
when the band had paraded and finished
playing "The Star Spangled Manner," as
tho flag came down, and It was almost Its
normal self when, with the officers of the
line and the first sergeants In their places
a km In, It stood expectantly watting for the
word of command that would swing It
down the hill homeward.
The colonel drew his sword and flashed
It to position.
"Reg-l-ment at-ten-tlonl" he commanded.
"Fours."
He got no further. That Instant there
came to him the notes of a bugle taps was
being played over the grave of the comrada
Who had dropptd dead an hour before. And
as tho call cut short tho colonel's order
and stopped his mouth, so It wrung an
audible gasp of sympathy from the stolid
double line of blue.
Not a man moved while trie music lasted
or Its echo could be heard making its way
up the mountains at the camp's rear. Nor
for almost a minute after the faintest re
verberations had died away did o nicer or
private move or look to right or left.
Then the colonel gave the Interrupted
order, and the regiment swung down to
the sea to the strains of "Home, Sweet
Home." Rut Intermingled In many a
marcher's mind with the bars of the song
that has brought tears even to the eyes of
savages, were the notes that had sounded
over the grave as he hsd paraded at the
top of tho hill.
From such Incidents the new spirit of
Memorial Day has sprung, and by such
Incidents It will be kept aflve until the
young men of the Spanish American War
organisations, who will decorate the graves
of their dead, in aa decimated by time as
are the ranks of the Grand Army of the
Republic that will march behind bat 11 0
acarred flags next Saturday.
civilization. They often precede deliberate,
conscious reasoning and judgment, yet
they are often themselves the result of
an unconscious reasoning process producing
action of the will in advance of deliberate
judgment. Sometimes they are pure re
flexes, like winking when the eye is threat
ened by a blow. The free public library
can neither be established nor maintained
usefully without their aid, but their meth
ods, or want of method, must be carefully
guided to produce good results.
The sentiment that we ought to estab
lish institutions for the diffusion of knowl
edge Is the expression of a real economic
need and should be directed and encour
aged, and not suppressed. Logic Is-a useful
steering apparatus, but a very poor motive
power.
JOHN G. BII..UNGB, I.L.D..
Director New York Public Library.
She Would Interrupt
Ihey went down on Twenty-third street
the other morning. Each had a bundle and
each looked happy. After a few Introduc
tory remarks. Just to Impress each other
that they were glad they had met, this cou
venation ensued:
"Yes. Mollis is down with"
"Oh, you don't ssy so!"
"She waa taken with"
The poor girl!"
"As I waa going to say. Motile is"
-And she always waa delicate."
"Yea; but I waa going to say"
"G1 e her my love and tell her I hope she
will socn be out."
"Pardon me, my dear; but I was going
to say"
"Who's your doctor?"
-'Pardon me again; but as I started to
say"
"Oh, you did start to say something; I
beg your pardon."
"As I started to any, Mollie Is down with
her aunt In Hackensack. Blie was taken
with a desire to get to the country, and
went yesterday."
And then both went back to the bargain
counters. Detroit Froe Press.
Etiquette of the Fucd
'There's Just one thing, sah," pbrerred
Colonel Goro of Kentucky, "in which we
are behind Turkey."
"What's tlmtT" Colonel Bullet asked,
quickly.
"Well, sah, after a general klllln' the
j. rlo always sends a polite note of apology
to the survivors of the massacre. If we
could only end our feuds in that way,
sah "
"Rut we can't Bah," exclaimed Colonel
Jiul'rt, excitedly, "fur tho sliuplo reason,
sah, that when one of our feuds ends no
body's left,' sah, to apologize to'." Balti
more American.
