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Page 11

 The webmaster puts other government websites to shame. His painstakingly indexing of a collection of old titles and maintenance of his site is clearly a work of love, rarely seen among government servants

Those who visit the website will find to their delight that such authors as George Bilainkin, Victor Purcell, and J D Vaughan are listed as well as that excellent and informative Twentieth Century Impression of British Malaya published in 1908. They will also find a guide to the Japanese occupation journals such as Malai Sinpo, Penang Daily News, Penang Shinbun.

Already the Butterworh Library has become a popular centre for young readers who crowd into the play and reading area.  The Children’s Hypermedia Resource Centre offers access to computerised and audio-visual materials on science, mathematics, general knowledge and the arts. There is also an activity club which facilitates social interaction amongst the kids.

A room on the first floor provides reference materials on Malaysian culture, history, politics and such like. There is also a special section devoted to  Penang which contains works written by Penangites and published in Penang as well as other materials concerning Penang. Among them is the private collection and papers of  Lim Keong Lay, a prominent member of the Straits Chinese British Association who was president of  the  Penang Chinese Consultative Committee that prepared recommendations for the proposed Federation of Malaya in 1947. 

Early editions of the  Pinang Gazette and the Straits Echo,  of  the New Straits Times and the Star dating as far back as 1957 are available for perusal on microfilm.  Photostat services are available.  Access to the Internet is available from terminals located on the first floor at  RM 2.00 per hour for members and RM 4.00 for non-members 

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When the Japanese arrived, the Library occupied that side of the court building which faced St Georges Church, its location from 1905 to 1972. In the selection committee were such persons as the Rev Colin King, a  Penang Free School teacher of English, with a surprisingly wide range of reading. It was largely due to him that the Penang Free school library and the Penang Library shelves were stocked with the latest in contemporary writing. Peter Fleming’s classics, News From Tatary and News From Nowhere, and works by Jack London, Upton Sinclair, Sinclair Lewis, C D Lewis, Steinbeck , Dos Passos and Damon Runyon were all available. The devoted librarian was Lim  Swee Aun who could remember every book in that library of his.

After the war the Library was lucky to have on its selection committee Oliver Phipps, the Queen Scholar who later became a judge. Oliver Phipps had an awesome reputation as a reader of high speed who consumed three novels a day. He introduced for instance the works of  Kerouc and the travel writers such as Bruce Chatwin to members of the Library. 

The new building at Butterworth is obviously new and shows every inch of its brashness; shelves look half empty and books have not yet had time to settle down in good order. Shakespeare is haphazardly placed next to  Dostoevsky and Dickens. In the Law section, classic text booksof law have yet to be purchased. In Music, the Oxford Dictionary of  Music and Groves are missing but Elvis Presley and Cliff Richard are to be found. The biography section for some reason concentrates on the Secrets of the Stars, the living legacy of Elvis Presley, musical films, the Guinness Who’s Who of Rap, Who’s Who of Musical Films. Surprisingly Tan Sri  Dato Abdul Assis bin Zakaria’s British, Japanese and Independent Malaysia, A Memoir is among the collection.

The Library staff have a lot of hard thinking and hard work to do.

The Library is located at JKR 2118, Jalan Perpustakaan, Seberang Jaya, 13700 Perai.Phone 04-3902387/3976246,e-mail at ppap@penanglib.gov.my, homepage is at : www.penanglib.gov.my
 
 

THE ASIA AND WEST PACIFIC NETWORK for Urban Conservation (AWPNUC) was formed for the purpose of exchanging cultural information and technical expertise in the area of urban conservation. The member countries share much in common in terms of cultural heritage, building technology, urban forms as well as contemporary urban problems and challenges.

As a unique cultural organisation that links Far East Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia, Australia and the Pacific, the Network plays a significant role in heritage conservation in the region. The members are predominantly urban conservation advocates, professionals and practitioners who are actively involved in international network and/or projects outside their home countries.

The Network was formed in 1991 at a seminar in  Penang on Urban Conservation and Public Participation supported by the United Nations  Centre for Regional Development (UNCRD) of Nagoya, Japan. Since then, affiliated organisations have taken turns to host the annual symposium. At each symposium, two or more organisations  'bid' to host the next symposium.#