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Show "Where Folks 'Read. In four counties of western Massachusetts Massa-chusetts no less than 120 public libraries libra-ries are in operation, containing 825,-000 825,-000 books. The towns where they are located have a population of 307,000. One of these libraries was started with money from a dog tax, and another was begun with dollar contributions. Where a special building is lacking, the books are cared for at the town hall, engine house, school, or the residence of some public-spirited citizen. Some of the librarians give their time without with-out salary. In several cases the pay is from $5 to 30 a year. One librarian bought a book with her own money, charged two cents a day for its use until un-til the cost was covered, and then put the book in the public collection. The will and the way on the library question ques-tion have got together in Massachusetts. |