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Friday, August 24, 2018

Before N.D. Hicks Reported for Duty, He Donated His Books to Rockingham Public Library, 1918

“Rockingham Public Library” by Mrs. Lucy P. Russell, Librarian, from the Hickory Daily Record, August, 1918

In these parlous times when we give everything we can think of to the soldiers, so gladly and cheerfully, it is pleasant to record the name of one soldier who thought it “more blessed to give than to receive.” A few days before Mr. N.D. Hicks left his boyhood behind him to become a man in the service of his country he came into the library with his arms full of books, 27 in all, and placed them on the shelves for the benefit of the boys who count the hours until they can get a new book. Was that not a timely and thoughtful gift?

Our neighboring town of Carthage has a library of 2,000 volumes; it is under the management of the Woman’s Club and the books are largely gifts of the women of Carthage.

Aberdeen has a library built and endowed by Mr. Frank Page, father of Walter, “Chris,” Henry,Frank and Robert; we all know the “Page boys” and we all know the reputation of the family for keen business acumen and clear-eyed common sense, and this successful, practical business man could think of no better gift to his home town than a library.

Our readers now number over 300, which means that nearly 10 per cent of our population is using the books, less than 1,000, which we offer to them. We have readers at Pee Dee, Entwistle, Roberdel 2 and 2, Ellerbe and several on the R.F.D. routes. Within a few days we will have for the children the beauriful “Oz” books by Frank Baum and for the grown ups we will have 20 of the most recent “best sellers.” By the way, have you enjoyed the keen wit of Corra Harris in her last book, “Making Her His Wife”? She knows women so well—that is as well as anybody ever knows the unknowable.

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