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490
REPORT OF CHIEF LIBRARIAN.
The statistical year which ended on March 25, 1893, was in
every respect satisfactory as compared with the previous year.
At each of the libraries there was an increase in the number of
bocks issued to readers, although the number of new works put
into circulation was not large.

The foregoing figures represent an increase of 47,355 over
the preceding year. There has generally been a higher per
centage of readers who have borrowed works of science, history,
art, biography, etc. The number of volumes issued in these
classes reached a total of 198,910, and fiction, mostly of the best
kind, made up the remainder.
The news and magazine rooms at each of the libraries have
continued to be used by many thousands of readers, and the
newspaper advertisement sheets posted outside the libraries at
an early hour are much used by persons seeking employment.
A large stock of books has been purchased for the new
Central Library which will probably contain over 20,000 volumes
in all branches of literature. The biographical section will be
exceptionally comprehensive, and there will also be good collections
of French and German literature, Shakespeariana,
Technology, and numerous works relating to London and
general topography.
With the authority of the Library Commissioners I am now
preparing a complete catalogue of the books to be placed in
the reference and lending departments of the new library.
Edward Foskett,
Chief Librarian.