"We trust that this Library is to grow in usefullness year after year, and prove one of the most potent agencies for the good of the people for all time to come." ~ Andrew Carnegie

There is something so comforting about running my fingers along the spines of books standing proudly on the shelves of a stately library.
I feel smarter in a library filled floor to ceiling with so many books.

One that has been around for hundreds of years.

Placing my feet in the well-worn grooves of the stairs...

gradually formed since 1890, 

its as if intelligence enters my body through osmosis.
HeHeHe...
if only.

Andrew Carnegie...(pronounced Car-nay-gee here)

doubled his offer to make this first lending library happen...

and the Edinburgh Central Library was created 

much later than elsewhere in Scotland.

Located right across the street is the National Library of Scotland...

established more recently, in 1925.

We only observed from afar but will take a closer look on our next visit.

Carnegie's quote above is quite striking when you read Wikipedia's fact...
"Records for 1890, the first full year the library was open, show that over 440,000 book loans were issued; current records indicate that today, over a century on, the library issues over 500,000 book loans annually."
Not a huge increase in usefulness.

To be honest, I can't think of the last time I checked out a book from the library and increased its usefulness.
The blame lies completely with our love of book stores.
How about you?

Happy Tuesday.