Page 68 - JOURNAL OF LIBRARY SCIENCE IN CHINA 2015 Vol. 41

Jianxin GU, Fang TIAN & Lei SHI / Research on Hong Fanwu’s remarkable contribution to the modern library cause of China 067

he was hired as a professor and chief librarian of the National Southeast University Library, and
later he twice became the chief librarian of the Central Political College Library and twice as the
chief librarian of Tsinghua University Library. From July 1935 on, he became the chief librarian
in National Central University Library, Nanjing University Library, and the associate librarian of
East China Normal University Library. With arduous pioneering efforts and painstaking work,
Mr. Hong Fanwu combined theory with practice, making great contributions to the construction
and development of those universities. He worked for the libraries until his death on January 27th,
1963, in Shanghai. Therefore, he devoted all his life to Chinese librarianship.
Liu Guojun spoke highly of him in the essay Mourning Mr. Hong Fanwu venerably, which
was published in the first issue of Library in 1963. He thought that Mr. Hong was one of the main
activists of Chinese “New Library Movement” in the 1920s and the forerunner of the modern
library undertaking of China, when China began to draw on the experience of western Library
Science. Yuan (1968) said in the essay Biographical sketch of Mr. Hong Fanwu that Mr. Hong is
the forerunner of the library undertaking of China, taking both theory and practice into account.
Some universities in Shanghai and Taiwan expressed their condolences to Mr. Hong. Especially,
the Alumni Association of National Central University concluded Mr. Hong as the forerunner of
the librarianship inspiring subsequent scholarship and the pioneer of the education with pupils
everywhere mourning for the loss .
① 1

1 Improving librarianship based on the theory

1.1 The thoughts of library organization and management

The great importance of the library system building, which promotes the development of
librarianship and the increase of efficiency, was noticed by Hong Fanwu early. He thought that
library management was a vital part of library business. As the chief librarian of Southeast
University Library, he compiled the book on his teaching experience of Library Science. The book
Library organization and management was published by the Commercial Press in August 1926
and was reprinted in 1933 and 1935. The academic status and influence of this book targeting at
specific readership, were proved by its reimpression in a few years.
The book is divided into 16 chapters. The first four chapters are “the meaning of library”, “the
relationship between library and education”, “the evolution of library” and “the types of libraries”,
which give a brief introduction of basic theories of Library Science. The last twelve chapters
elaborate some issues comprehensively, including the construction of library, daily management
and business performance. “The book is on the base of the author’s knowledge and experience
rather than just a translation version of other books; therefore, the argumentation records the
real insights. The points of book are supported by evidences. The ideas of library organization
① From items donated by Hong Fanwu families-elegiac couplet manuscripts.