for overseas newspapers and can afford only a meagre supply of books.

This was the claim of a "bookworm'', who wrote to The Royal Gazette this week urging residents to donate recent used books to the library to help satisfy reading and reference requirements.

But Head Librarian Mrs. Grace Rawlins yesterday assured that the Bermuda Library's budget had been swelled this year, enabling it to renew subscriptions to several foreign newspapers and buy many new books.

Writing under the pen name "Bookworm'', the Paget resident scolded Government for not ensuring the library met "at least minimum standards for a community this size''.

"A working, functioning library is a better investment for Bermuda than overpaid politicians and everyone of them should be ashamed of themselves if they vote a raise for themselves and give none to the library,'' Bookworm wrote.

Community Affairs Minister the Hon. Wayne Furbert said that since taking up office last October he had sought and secured additional funding for the library after realising the amount it had been allotted was "not enough''.

The library's book stocks, especially the children's section, did suffer after his Ministry's budget was slashed last year, he said. Because employees' salaries were already fixed, cutting down on books seemed a logical place to make the necessary cutbacks.

Mrs. Rawlins remarked that Bookworm must have visited the library a while ago.

As Mr. Furbert had noted, the library budget had been cut in the last financial year, she said.

She had been forced to cancel subscriptions to at least a dozen foreign magazines and newspapers, and buy fewer books than normal for the period.

However, Government had provided additional funding to the library this year and she had renewed subscriptions to such well-read foreign dailies as the New York Times and London Times.

"We bought new books (in the period) although not as many as we would have liked,'' she said, adding, "I don't think any library ever has enough books.'' The library and mobile libraries budget went from $984,000 in the 1992-1993 financial year to $953,000 in 1993-1994.

Some $998,000 was allocated in this year's Budget, an increase of more than $40,000.

Bookworm wrote: "In an affluent community with a dramatically rising level of educated residents, it is a poor showing of Government judgment to cut the budget so that (the library) can no longer supply adequate children's books, magazines and reference materials.

"The Library even has to beg for daily overseas newspapers and no longer has the Sunday US or British papers which are so popular with readers.

"The librarians tell me that Bermuda is so far from meeting even the minimum Caribbean library standards that it is a joke.'' Bookworm added that books by black authors were especially needed in the mobile libraries. And even books on tape were lacking.