E National Library of Peru, whose fine collection of books and I manuscripts had been built up largely by the distinguished Peruvian writer, Ricardo Palma, was almost completely destroyed by fire on May io, I943. Over a hundred thousand bound volumes were lost, together with most of the large collection of manuscripts and many maps and geographical works belonging to the Lima Geographical Society. This disaster not only erased Peru's largest library but also caused an irreparable loss in the cultural resources of the American continent. The then secretary of state, Mr. Cordell Hull, as an expression of sympathy on the part of the people of the United States, appointed a "Committee To Aid the National Library of Peru and the Geographical Society of Lima." Mr. Sumner Welles was elected chairman of the committee, and Dr. Lewis Hanke, director of the Hispanic Foundation of the Library of Congress, served as secretary. Mr. Archibald MacLeish was made vice-chairman and served as active head of the group. The committee included such distinguished scholars and specialists as Dr. Herbert E. Bolton, Mr. Donald Coney, Mr. Archer M. Huntington, Dr. Waldo G. Leland, Mr. Philip Ainsworth Means, Mr. Keyes D. Metcalf, Mr. Harry M. Lydenberg, Mr. R. Henry Norweb, Mr. John K. Wright, Mr. Lawrence Wroth, Mr. Wallace K. Harrison, Mr. Charles A. Thomson, and Mr. W. W. Norton. The committee felt that it could best aid the National Library by finding out what Dr. Jorge Basadre, the new librarian, really needed and could use. It was therefore decided to send to Lima three emissaries, one of whom should be the secretary of the committee, one a competent consultant on library matters generally, and one a scholar with a particular interest in libraries. Dr. Lewis Hanke, Mr. Keyes D. Metcalf, and Mr. Wilmarth S. Lewis were chosen and instructed to obtain information concerning the training of library personnel, the library building, and the collections of books to be given to the library. The Peruvians were genuinely pleased by the serious interest shown by the United States in sending special representatives to obtain firsthand information. Dr. Jorge Basadre, one of the most eminent scholars of Peru, particularly noted for his historical researches on the Republican period, had stipulated, when taking his post as librarian, that a library school be established to train the personnel of the new library. This was a project in which the assistance of the committee seemed logical, and it was agreed that we would help to set up and conduct a temporary school for the specific purpose of training a single class for service in the library. An understanding was reached that a maximum of six persons would be sent by the committee, three of whom would be considered as principal instructors to give courses in library administration, cataloging, and children's libraries, with two or three assistants to aid in the teaching. The Peruvian government offered to pay a liberal salary to the faculty of the