Report of the National Library Service for the Year Ended 31 March 1958 | Page 5

maintain their good record.
SMALL INDEPENDENT SUBSCRIPTION LIBRARIES: "B" SERVICE
During the year, 832 of these libraries were linked with this Service, compared with 801 for the previous year. Of these libraries, 253 are served from Hamilton, 191 from Palmerston North, and 388 from Christchurch.
Altogether 75,997 books were on loan to the 832 libraries, an average of over 91 books per library. Over the past 10 years the average for each library has increased from 79 books, or 15 per cent, thus demonstrating the increasing interest that country readers are taking in the type of books supplied by this Service. The figures shown as basic issues do not include the thousands of books loaned to these libraries on short term through the "request service".
"C" OR HAMPER SERVICE
In places where no library exists and where it is not possible for one to be formed and visited by a book van, a service to properly established groups by means of hampers is provided. During the year 45 of these groups received service, there being 3,325 books on regular loan to them. The hamper service is also extended to six places in the Chatham Islands and to Pitcairn Island.
LIGHTHOUSE SERVICE
The postal service has been continued to lighthouse keepers, fire lookouts in State Forests, and a few very remote readers in coastal islands. During the year a total of 1,851 books was issued, mostly by a hamper service.
FREE SERVICE TO MINISTRY OF WORKS, STATE HYDRO-ELECTRIC, AND NEW ZEALAND FOREST SERVICE CAMPS AND STATIONS
During the year 54 camps or stations received visits from the book van, in addition to one receiving hamper service from the Christchurch office. Altogether 7,691 books are on loan to such places.
HOSPITAL AND INSTITUTIONAL SERVICE
Visits have continued from the book vans to 12 general hospitals with an exchange of 1,405 books. Twelve mental hospitals received 3,910 books and 13 prisons 3,125 books. During the year assistance has been given to the Department of Justice in book and periodical selection.
Difficulties occur from time to time in connection with the service to prisons and mental hospitals. They arise from the lack of supervision of these libraries by trained library staff. Officers engaged in other duties are not in a position to organise the full service which would be of such benefit to patients and prisoners.
From the special TB collection 1,620 books were exchanged at four-monthly intervals for 15 sanatoria and tuberculosis wards of public hospitals. Three hundred and thirteen books were sent on request (250 non-fiction and 63 fiction). Sixty-four requests could not be fulfilled as the required books were not available through the stock or through purchase, and the resources of other collections are not used for these borrowers.
LOAN COLLECTIONS
Collections of books, pamphlets, and periodicals to illustrate particular subjects are available for short periods not only to affiliated libraries but also to university and the larger public libraries.
USE OF LOAN COLLECTIONS
Year ended 31 March 1957 1958
Number of collections sent 628 640 Number of books included 26,667 26,645
PERIODICALS SERVICE
A total of 1,127 titles is now taken by the Wellington office, of which 821 copies are circulated regularly to Government Department libraries. Four hundred and eighty copies are sent direct from the publishers to the Country Library Service offices in Hamilton, Palmerston North, and Christchurch, and are sent out regularly to 93 affiliated libraries. In addition, the periodicals held in Wellington are available on short-term loan to public and other libraries which are interested in them.

SECTION II--SCHOOL LIBRARY SERVICE
In 1941 the Minister of Education approved the establishment of a New Zealand School Library Service, the purchasing of books to be financed from the augmented item "School and Class Libraries" in the vote "Education", the administration being undertaken by the Country Library Service, as it then was. This new service was to provide not school text books, but a wide and varied choice of books of high imaginative quality or technical excellence, suitable for children at all levels of ability and stages of development. The smaller and more remote country schools were to be given priority. Books were to be freely available for reading at home.
The provision of supplies of books which circulate among schools goes some way towards setting free the money for library books, available to schools by way of annual capitation grant and from local contribution, which is eligible for subsidy. These funds may then be used to build at each school (a) a collection of such basic reference books as are needed always at hand; (b) reading material for the preparatory classes; (c) books of purely local interest; (d) other books which it is desired to have permanently.
By cooperation between the Education Board and the Dunedin City Council considerable progress had been made in service to schools in Otago since 1938. Vigorous exploitation of a book stock selected in terms of children's interests