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XHJtv QMAJftA ' "v3 OWDAY "BEE"
THE OMAHA BEE
BEST IN THE WEST
VOL. XL NO. 41.
OMAHA, SUNDAY MORNING, MAKCH J0, 1911.
SINGLE COPY FIVE CENTS.
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Some Extensive Improvements Planned for Public Library
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LANS now about to be consummated by the
Omaha Library board will, It la believed,
mean a greatly increased usefulness for
that Institution. Tbe board has now
under consideration a contract for
doubling the capacity of tbe book shelves
In the stack room. This Improvement
would cost $8,000 and, If carried out, will make the
Omaha library a leader In cities of Its class. The
plans, drawn by Thomas R. Kimball, architect of the
hoard, provide for the raising of the present book
stack and the placing' of the new one underneath.
Handsome stairways and railings and glass floors are
to be part of the new work, also an electric passenger
and book lift, to facilitate tbe work of transferring
volumes from floor to floor. The new stack will
probably be Installed by the Library bureau of Chi
cago, which placed the original stack In the library.
The board hat also under consideration a plan
proposed by tbe executive committee for tbe rear
rangement of the rooms of the library building, aside
from the stack room, that the committee believer
would materially Improve tbe facilities. This plan. If
approved by the board, would take the boilers Into a
special building, of small dimensions, outside the
library building, on the back of the lot, and afford a
chance to Install a large reading room In the base
ment, with an entrance from Harney street
sired to get rid of. Mrs. Morris, who Is now in Flor
ida, will shortly return to Omaha to personally super
intend tbe Installation of her collection.
General C. P. Manderson has purchased the Kyan
collection tJat formerly occupied tbe room where the
Morris collection will be placed. Much of the Ryan
material will be thrown out and General Manderson
will add to what Is left enough new exhibits to make
the collection worthy of a place In the museum.
Special Department at Museum.
In its special features medical, foreign languages,
music, trades volumes, architectural volumes, garden
ing and household books treating of Interior decora
tion, house planning and the like the Omaha Public
library is becoming stronger and more complete erery
month. But the museum features are likewise prov
ing of increasing Interest steadily. In tbe Savage col
lection the library has one of the best groups of
Shakeepearlana in the west, and the Byron Reed col
lection still holds a place for intrinsic merit surpassed
by but few of its like in tbe world. In the matter of
historical curiosities, aside from books, newspapers
and coins, the library is excellently supplied.
If one visiting the library museum will take the
trouble to investigate he will And a great many most
interesting exhibits worthy of study In the museum.
Not many, perhaps, know the intimate history of ob
jects like the Aztec god, made of lava rock. This Idol
was used in the ancient sacrifices of the Aztecs, the
victim being held by four minor priests, while the sac
rificing priest, with a huge knife of obsidian, cut open
his breast, cut out his still beating heart and offered
It to the god, who was supposed to be always hungry
for gore. The victim's head was then put between
the arms of this lava figure and burned by a fire un
derneath. The library also has a figure of the sun
god of the Aztecs.
The great art glass concerns of the world today
are turning out elegant work, but in tbe Omaha
library are specimens of lridiscent glass from Egypt,
Syria, Palestine and Tyre, all closely resembling the
similar glass produced today.
Book List Growing Fast.
During the present year some large adldtlona will
be made to the number of books In the library, and
the development of special departments will be con
tinued. With the prospect of an adequate appropria
tion to care for the growth of the library. If the new
city charter is passed by the legislature, the board Is
putting considerable thought on the wisest method of
extending the efflciency of the library equipment for
tbe benefit of the outlying sections of Omaha, and pos
sibly In the suburban towns surrounding. To pro
vide for the use of the Omaha book plant by these
towns a bill is now pending In tbe legislature, under
which their citizens could take cards on payment of a
small sum by the governing boards of the various
suburbs, to be applied toward the support of the
library. Two mills on tbe dollar Is the figure set in
tbe bill. The possibility of establishing city branch,
libraries has also been receiving some attention from
the board, but nothing definite in that line has yet
been evolved.
A bill to allow of pensioning library employes after
long service, on the same basis as tbe teachers in the
public schools, has received the Indorsement of the
Omaha board and seems likely to pass the legislature
at this session.
Mrs. William Morris, a pioneer woman of Omaha,
hat presented the library with a very valuable collec
tion of Interesting objects, gathered from various parts
of the world through a long series of years, and room
has been made for the installation of the Morris collec
tion en the museum floor.' It will replace an old ex
hibit, much ot which te library people had Iqug di
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Story of the Scarabs.
When we mention Kgypt library visitors should
have their attention called to the Lininger collection
on the museum lloor. In this collection the scarabs
of the Egyptians command attention from delvers into
far-away history. The subjects of the Pharaohs were
taught to regard tho scarab or sacred beetle as the
b.vmhol of eternal life, and when one casts his eyes on
the l.tniner scarabs he cafi draw some satisfaction,
if he care'to, from the knowledge that no true scarabs
were made after tbe year 500 B. C. Egyptians with
bank accounts solid enough to afford scarabs wore
them about their necks and on their arms as amulets.
When they died the sacred emblems were placed in
their tombs and scattered through the wrappinps of
the mummies. Some have been found which date
back to 4,000 B. C, for nearly all of them bore the
name and titles of the kings in whose reign they were
made; and Bome of them are even Inscribed with an
Incident in the great man's life.
In these days of the craze for fancy lamps of odd
design the Greek, Roman and Egyptian lamps in the
library museum are worth a little study: they are all
of very antique origin and show originality and skill
In the makers; others will find their artistic sensibili
ties touched by the alsbaster vases.
The sports and idle rich of old Babylon had a good
many fads that stamp them as people of vital alert
ness while they lived; tbey had, for instance, a cylin
der mad ,t iron ore on which seals were carved,
usually with sacred figures, according to their notion
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of such things, and Inscriptions In the cuneiform, char
acters In which Babylonian scholars Indulged. In
these the names of the owner and of hit particular
divinity were coupled, and Just to show he stood In
with a god the man would Impress his seal on any
thing he found of an Impressionable character. Trampe
follow something of the same plan today at Junction
water tanks and way stations, using a knife instead
of a seal cylinder.
A great many of the gay boys of old Egypt liked
to gamble a bit, and the library museum has some ot
the dice which they rolled for coin; they are some
what larger than the dice in use today.
When the untamed Filipinos of this day set about
the task of combing their flowing locks they use
combs, made of wcod, which are almost exact counter
parts of those used in Egypt when the world wu
young and easily satisfied.
Vou can find here some evidence of the fact that
England used to produce schemers about as clever as
any credited to Yankeeland in dealing with primitive
people. A certain kind of shell Is found plentifully
along the southern coast ot Africa, and In the good old
days of exploitation English captains used to carry
loads of these shells home with them; afterward they
would be shipped to India by the generous English
men, and the natives would be thus supplied with cur
rent coin. '1 hey would make the shells Into strings,
and to tote a string worth a dollar or so meant that
the innocent savge had 2,000 shells on his person.
The shell money is still used In some purls of India,
and used to be in common use in Tripoli. The shell
money In the Omaha library is attached to a peculiar
bowl, by way of decoration.
Recent acquisitions to the library museum are a
chart of the famous battle of Brandywlne, which was
used by the division under Lieutenant Kryphausen,
and a ropy of the Phfladephla Gazette of August, 1797.
This paper whs edited by Benjamin Rush, one of the
sturdy signers of the Declaration of Independence.
Miss Lucy Bow en of Blair gave the battle plan and
Lueien Stevens, a member of the board, the old newt-paper.
The Story of a Library Book
C0L.c5A'COYDER.
Miss Mary T. Little of the Omaha library believes
a good deal in the personality of books, and in line
with this belief she hat written the following autobiog
raphy of a book:
"To be an Inanimate object Is not at all an uninter
esting affair, for I was created to soothe and entertain.
"I am & book. If it were only possible to begin
things at the beginning I would tell you how from a
vague idea I became a thought, which the author of
my being, la hie vanity, deemed good enough as the
undent for bit next message to the world, or (perish
the thought) hit next best teller. I would, If time
(noJ&52 flw$U fa M life in the making, would tell
you of my emotions when relegated to the watte
basket, as was often my late, and of my miraculous
recovery, liow my spirit recoils from the thought
that I might have been tbe machine-made paper I am
printed on! I could tell a thrilling tale ot the period
of formation wben tbe printer and the binder were
doing their best to make me attractive and to please
my author and my publisher. Dear reader, am I not
pardoned tbe pride and vanity of that short-lived hour
w'hen haughtily I stood, complete, in ray drest of
cloth-of-gold? Ob, vanity vanltatta, thy name la not
always woman, or man. Even we, inanimate crevi
IContinued on Page Two.)
