The Sun.
London, England, 1854-07-04 00:00:00

SCINDE.

Mr. J. G. PHILLIMORE asked the President of the
Board of Control, whether he will lay on the table of
the house the report of Mr. Pringle on Scinde, in which
Mr. Pringle expresses his admiration of Sir Charles
Napier's government of that province, and refutes
the charges brought against him in the report of the
Board of Administration of the Puujaub, published in
the Indian Blue Book.

Sir C. WOOD said there was no report at the India
House answering the description of the hon. member.

BRIBERY BILL.

In reply to Mr. LIDDELL,
Lord JOHN RUSSELL stated that he proposed to
take the committee oa the Bribery Bill on Monday
nela

PUBLIC REVENUE AND CONSOLIDATED

FUND CHARGES BILL,

On the motion fir the third reading of bill,
Sir H. WILLOUGHBY drew attention to the se-
cond clause, which proposed to alter the time of pub-
lishing the annual public accounts from March to July,
which he thought would prove a great inconvenience to
Parliament, as the Legislature would not be in posses-
sion of the audited accounts until the session was draw-
ing to a close.
sfr. WILSON said, under the existing system, the
votes of the house were made for the year commencing
the sth of April. and ending on the sth of April follow-
ing, but the public audited aocounts were made up from
the Ist of January to 31st of December. The object of the
clause was to make the published accounts harmonise
with the votes of the house.

Mr. V. SCULLY did not object to the general prin-
ciples of the bill, but he complained that there were cer-
tain classes of payments which were now thrown upon
the Consolidated Fund that wore intended in future to be
brought into the estimates. One of them was the
charge for judicial offices in Ireland which he insisted
ought to be exempted from the operation of this bill.
He thought the bill ought to be reconsidered in a select
committee, with a view to an amendment of the sche-
dule.

Mr. W. WILLIAMS pressed on the Secretary of
the Treasury to withdraw the clause of which notice had
been given by the chancellor of the Exchequer, to pro-
tect the salaries of existing officers. The hon. member
for Warwickshire's motion was contingent on any change
being made in the schedules, and if Mr. Wilson with-
drew the clause, the hon. member would most probably
not persevere in his motion. He would appeal to Mr.
Spooner, also, not to endanger the measure by his mo-
tion, but to take some other opportunity of bringing on
his motion.

Lord J. RUSSELL said he thought his hon. friend
(Mr. Williams) was mistaken in supposing that the mo-
tion of the hon. member for Warwickshire was at all
contingent on the clause proposed to be introduced by
his hon. friend the Secretary of the Treasury. As he
understood the motion of the hon. member for Warwick-
shire it was this, that if the house sanctioned the prin-
ciple of taking sums from the consolidated fund and
transferring them to the votes, then he should bring on
his motion. If that was so, the clause of which his hon.
friend (Mr. Wilson) had given notice did not apply to
that motion. He agreed with the rest of the speech of
his hon. friend (Mr. Williams), and he thought his hon.
friend was right in saying that the house had always
behaved with great justice and fairness to all persons
who claimed to be holders for life of salaries. He did
not remember a case where it was shown that there were
good grounds for a person expecting a salary for life, in
which the house interfered in an arbitrary manner to
deprive him of it. There may have been such instances,
and it might be necessary to introduce this clause, but it
was not rendered necessary by the proneness of the house
to deal with salaries for life in any but the fairest mail-
ner. The proposition of the hon. member for Warwick-
shire went on a very different principle. The bill went
on the principle of getting accounts of all payments out
of the revenue before the house ; it was an important
financial measure, and though there might be difficulties
in carrying it into operation, it had been much urged
by gentlemen on that side of the house, and the Chan-
cellor of the Exchequer (whose absence from indisposi-
tion he much deplored) had bestowed great care and
labour on the bill. The vote to Maynooth was a totally
different question of state policy, whether the vote for
Maynooth should be brought forward in the yearly esti-
mates or placed on the consolidated fund. That was a
question which had been brought before the house years
ago by Sir Robert Peel, and after warm debates and
great contests in that house and in the country, Parlia-
ment had deliberately sanctioned the grant, and declared
that it should be placed on the consolidated fund, and
not be made the subject of a yearly contest. If that
decision was to be reversed it should be done in the same
way as the matter was dealt with by Sir Robert
Pee'. ; it should be done by a bill, thus giving the coun-
try time to consider the matter, and the house the op-
portunity of debating the question on the several stages
of the bill, and of approving, if they thought fit, or re-
jecting
it if they thought that those who agreed with
Sir Robert Peel had come to a wise and right decision.
He (Lord John Russell) thought that a wise and right
decision, and he had supported Sir R. Peel, notwith-
standing the opposition to his bill which existed in the
country. He believed that was a wiie and sound policy
and ought not to be reversed ; and he would say more,
that if that decision was reversed on the motion for the
third reading of this bill, and the grant was put upon the
votes, it would be the duty of the Government to with-
draw the bill. (Hear.) It was for the house to consi-
der, and it was for those who were in favour of financial
reforms to consider, whether on the third reading of the
bill they would adopt a mention so much at variance
nnedilhdeeBwOnuld only give notice to the hon.
which
the
bifi
IPhaerml
proposal
pre.on)st had acted
of
late years,
the p principles
hdfrom discussion. It
member for Warwickshire that the carrying of his mu-
was a right
and • t
and would be too strong for the
totein:Ment'i ronw.n: Suet
Povl di°lpbc°e:Nrilfsalelivalerll tesosu, altti
for the Protestant
as
o hisf tihne-
to
resistaroused, ;
would be compelled to
give up this votti for Maynooth.to •
Governmentcountry wa s
bringing in a
bill upon the subject, it was absurd, for he would be de-
feated by hon. gentleman
six o'clock on Wednesdays. Let
against time until
nesdays. Let the result,
be what it might ho would press his motion to a
division ; and if they bill wleave the ere a valuable one, he would
responsibility of withdrawing it to the noble
lord.

The bill was then read n third time.
Mr. WILSON then brought up a clause which was
understood to provide for the production of quarterly
accounts.

On the clause being read a second time,
Mr. HENLEY complained that the clause had not
been printed, and urged that there would be some incon-
venience in the mode of taking the accounts proposed ;
but he spoke in so lox a tone that we were unable to
catch the purport of his remarks.
Mr. WILSON said there was no intention of altering
the mode of keeping the statistical accounts ; and the
only object of altering the way of keeping the financial
accounts was to make them connected with the years to
which they applied. The amounts would be published
on the sth of January, so that they would be in the
possession of the house at an earlier period, although
the financial year would still end on the sth of April.
With regard to the quarterly accounts, there would
be no difficulty about them, for the accounts would
still apply to the whole year, and not to those quarters
of a year.
The clause was then added to the bill.
Mr. V. SCULLY moved as an amendment, in page

undere
21,
vil? nn,teetoelfv,lxte:hi
thisecons:ose vested
tei afthledated fpltru,s,;:rho,tl:feio.
aa„tmin:yuesu,neptrtaert;cise;eitaibitglirtitegatilshur without
ehheytreiseiurrxotypsf:liPoalofraiffienrtiiheci :dee:
h's
on
Troasury would adopt them. He suggested that the
present rights of all holders of office should not be inter-
fered, and also that there should be no interference with
the retired holders of office. There were holders of office
who did not hold during life or good behaviour whose
in',crests wou'd be seriously affected if their salaries were
to come annually under the supervision of the house.
Mr. WILSON said he hoped his hon. and learned
friend would not persist in his amendment, but would
adopt the words which had been carefully drawn up for
the purpose of accomplishing what he believed to be the
feeling of the house—that the existing holders of office
should not be prejudiced by the act. The only difference
between his clause and the hon. and learned member's
was that the hon. and learned member left out the words
" during life or good behaviour.
Mr. V. SCULLY then withdrew his amendment.
Mr. WILSON then moved the following proviso :--
"That where the salary of any office holden for life, or
during good behaviour, is fixed by or under any act of
Parliament, and charged on or payable out of the said
consolidated fund, nothing herein contained shall, so
long as the present holder of such office continues to
hold the same, effect the charge on the said consolidated
fund of the salary which at the time of the passing of
this act is payable in respect of such office ;" which was
agreed to.
Mr. Y. SCULLY then moved to leave out from sche-
dule B all words, figures, and references to acts of Par-
liament relating to the Courts of Chancery in Ireland.
Mr. WILSON said it had been much argued whether
the masters of these courts were judicial officers or not.
It was the principle of this bill that the salaries of all
judicial officers should be left charged on the consoli-
dated fund. In consequence of the great difference of
opinion whether masters were judicial officers or not,
they had recourse to very high legal authority, and they
were advised that masters of all the courts might be
considered as judicial officers. He, therefore, proposed
to make an exception in favour of the masters of these
courts as well as of the masters in the Court of Chan-
cery. The officers in the Court of Chancery in Ireland
were paid out of the consolidated fund. Those in Eng-
land were paid by fees. It was the intention of Go-
vernment to pay the officers in England from the public
ecoiaequer, but the existing officers, those who were now
living, would of course be protected in the same way
that this bill protected the officers in Ireland. At pre-
sent the officers in England were virtually paid from the
consolidated fund, inasmuch as their &Janes ware
charged on certain fees, and, if there was a deficiency, it
was to be made up from the consolidated fund. When
they had provided that the existing officers should in no
way be prejudiced by the operation of this bill they had
gone as far as any existing person could have a right to
ask them, for surely it•was within the scope of the Trea-
sury and of that house to consider, not only whether an
office that fell vacant should be filled up at all, but, if
filled up, what salary should be attached to it. Govern-
ment thought that the whole of these establishments
should annually be brought under the consideration of
that house, in order that public opinion might from time
to time be brought to harmonise with these establish.
ments, and that the executive government of the day
might, from the discussions which would take place,
know how to deal with these appointments as they arose.
Mr. W. WILLIAMS said that in England these
officers were paid by fees, but their salaries were fixed.
The English Masters in Chancery received 2,5001.
a-year each, and he asked the Secretary of the Trea-
sury to state what was the salary of those officers in
Ireland.

Mr. 1. BUTT said he understood from the Secretary
of the Treasury that the result of the ill treatment of th•
Irish officers was that they were going to treat the Eng-
lish officers in the same way. They were now for the
first time sanctioning the principle that the ministerial
portion of the courts of justice should be dependent on
an annual vote of that house.

The house then divided,—
For the amendment
Against it
Majority

. 711
~ 138
-27

Mr. V. SaILAX said that division related merely to
the Court of Chancery, and he would now move a simi-
lar amendment with regard to the courts of law, in
which there might be some difference. As so many had
divided in his favour, he would try his luck again. He
moved a similar omission with regard to the officers of
the Court of Queen's Bench.

Mr. I. BUTT supported the motion on the ground
that if the salaries of the officers of the court were de-
pendent on an annual vote of the house, they might, to
put an extreme case, deprive the court of its officers if
they were dissatisfied with any of its decisions.
Lord J. RUSSELL could not think for a moment
that the house would ever be inclined to deprive these
officials of their salaries.

Mr. MALINS agreed with Mr. Butt, that the
schedule, as it stood, infringed the principle of adminis-
trative justice. The salaries of those engaged in the
administration of justice should not be dependent upon
th• caprice of the House of Commons.

Mr.' DRUMMOND observed that the consequence
of this bill would be that they would have an annual
debate upon all these salaries, while if there was one
part of the country which ought to have been excluded
from its operation more than another it was Ireland.

The house then divided, when there appeared—
For the motion
Against it
Mr,. V. SCULLY said there were two or three other
amendments that he bad given notice of. The taxing
officers in Ireland were included in the schedule ; those
in England were not.

Mr. WILSON said before the hon. member proceeded,
he bad an amendment to move, which was, that the
words "excepting the masters" be inserted in the sche-
dule after the words " Courts of Queen's Bench, Com-
mon Pleas, and Exchequer."
The amendment was agreed to.
Mr. V. SCULLY insisted that the following offices
ought to be struck out of the schedule, namely :—lnsol-
vent Debtors' Court, Ireland ; Police Magistrates or
Commissioners of Police, Dublin ; Registrars of Judges,
Ireland ; Expenses or Lodging Money of Judges, Ire-
land ; and Assistant Barristers, Ireland.

Mr. GEORGE argued that the taxing masters were
judicial officers, and ought to be excluded.
Mr. WILSON entertained a different opinion. There
were no judicial functions attached to the office of taxing
master.

Col. DUNNE was at a loss to understand upon what
principle the exclusions had been made.
Some other verbal amendments were then made in the
schedule.

Mr. SPOONER. then rose to move the amendment o
which he had given notice with regard to Maynooth. He
said he did not intend to go into the religious part of the
question, but although he abstained from doing so, it
must bo distinctly understood that his opinions upon
it remained unchanged. (Hear, hear.) The vote for
Maynooth ought never to have been removed from
the annual estimates ; it was an unconstitutional pro-
ceedieg nothing more nor less, indeed, than an
attempt to stifle the public voice, and that was why. he
called upon the house to restore the vote to its original
position. (Hear, hear.) There were only two classes
of charges which should be allowed to remain on the
consolidated fund, namely, the charge for diplomatic
agents and the salaries of judicial officers, but it was
argued with reference to this grant, that it was the re-
sult of a compact or a contract made between the minis-
ter who proposed it and the Roman Catholic body. H.
found, however, on referring to Sir Robert Peel's speech
in 1845, that there was no stipulation or contract what-
ever about it ; the real motive which actuated him in
h
proposing it was a desire to conciliate those who never
been and never could be conciliated ; for no honest
il
nl
alaonnyg being endeavouring
way until they ob-
Roman Catholics, professing the views which they did
profess, and acting up to their professions, ever could
for their religion instead of
l
yo
succeeded
first object toe
oae
gnc
eeo
dtn, ctni
ai
aat
tat
yh
cr
sh
ur
tpe
her
eoe rmi
y c
bLal eyd a
d
toleration. (Hear.) Nothing would satisfy them until
they had destroyed the Established Church in Ireland,
whichion s , a seemed
i
o‘er h
roofwtihneg theirin con-
stitution
spir
t
by establishing the spiritual domination of the
Pope in this country. (Hear, hear.) The house must
id finally ialtl be th
resist that daring aggression. Parliament should make
the Roman Catholics to know that they must rest con-
tented with the unlimited privilege accorded to all sects
worshipping their God'according to their consciences ;
they should be made to know that they must rest con-
tented with being put on a level with all those who did
not agree with the doctrines of the Church of England,
and unless that principle were maintained, the house
would soon find that the Protestant spirit which bad
been aroused throughout the country, and which
was daily and hourly increasing, would be so ex-
asperated that Parliament would be compelled to
do by force what it had now the opportunity of accom-
plishing by quiet and peaceable means. (Hear, hear.)
They could not be continually calling upon a Protestant
nation to contribute towards the support of idolatry.
("Oh, oh.") Hon. members might cry "oh, oh," but
they might depend upon it that was the light in which
the country viewed the question ; and he called upon
the house, now that they were placing almost every
' other charge upon the estimates, to take this opportunity
of regaining a control over the Maynooth grant. (Hear,
hear.) It was one of the especial duties of the house to
look after the expenditure of the country, but that duty
would not be fully and efficiently performed if this grant
should be allowed to remain on the consolidated fund,
and therefore he moved the house to add to schedule B,
" the president, vice-president, and students of Maynooth
College, and the expenses of the establishment, enacted
by 8 and 9 Vic. c. 25."
Col. NORTH seconded the motion.

The question having been put,
Mr. NEWDEGATE asked what special claim May-
nooth had to exclusion when almost every other charge
was placed upon the estimates. Ho wished to have
some explanation, some reason for it, because if, there
was any one charge more than another which ought to
be transferred from the consolidated fund it was this
very Maynooth grant. (Hear, hear.) It was proposed
by the late Sir R. Peel on the ground that the poverty of
the students at Maynooth required it, but he had.ascer-
tained since the act passed that the plea of poverty was
wholly without foundation. (Rear.) In 1842 Sir F.
Head, when travelling in Ireland, went to Maynooth, and
he found that a large portion of the new buildings at
that place were uninhabited. The whole Parliamentary
grant had been expended in mere carcase building, and
ha presumed that the authorities at Maynooth ex-
pected another large grant in order to provide the inte-
rior fittings. What was the object of this misappro-
priation of the Parliamentary grant ? He believed that
it was to enable the college to take 725 students, while
Parliament only intended that 520 students should be
received there. All these sacrifices of principle and of
capital were made in order to conciliate Ireland. But

want reland conciliated ? He would let 1848 and the out-
rages which preceded and followed it answer the ques-
tion. Had it even conciliated the Roman Catholics
here ? The abominable assumption of titles by Roman
Catholic ecclesiastics was the reply. At that time the
Roman Catholics rose like one man—(oh, ob)—to defy
the law. If the Government intended properly to gq-
vern Ireland, they should govern it in such a way that
Irishmen should be on equality with the rest of the
kingdom. (Cheers from the Irish members.) Hon.
members cheered when he spoke of equality. (Hear,
hear.) He was sorry indeed that the religion of Roman
Catholics condemned Parliament to impose restraints
upon them—(a laugh)—it was not the fault of the legis-
ture, it was the fault of those to whom Roman Catholics
gave blind allegiance. He was astonished that the
noble lord the President of the Council (Lord J. Russell)
should take the course he had upon this question, stand-
ing as he did in opposition to the whole weight of public
opinion. As to the plea of the necessity of finding a
place for educating priests, he would point out to the
house that it was said in Irish newspapers that 50,000&
had been subscribed for a Free Irish Roman Catholic
University. He said to the Roman Catholics, why did
not they build this university and send their priests
there to be educated I By that means they would get
rid of all these questions at once; they would then have
no annual or other discussion.
Mr. HEYWORTH disapproved of the manner in
'which this question was brought on. Had the lion.
-ember (Mr. Spooner) brought on a motion directly
censuring the grant to Maynooth, he should have had
his (Mr. Heyworth's) vote, but as it was he should vote
against him.
Mr. GARDNER should vote for the hon. gentleman
who moved this resolution, although he felt very indig-
nant at the speech with which he had proposed it, the
reason of his support being that he objected to all grants
whatever for religious purposes. (Hear, hear.) He
thought that the hon. members for Warwickshire were
instruments raised up by Providence for the destruction
of the Protestant Church as by law established. (Laugh.
ter, and hear.) He was surprised that the two hon.
gentlemen did not see how absurd their remarks were
when the state of Ireland—with a Church Establishment,
which it did not want, forced upon it—was considered.
For his own part, nothing but the secularisation of the
Irish Church revenues would satisfy him, and he be-
lieved that many hon. members thought with him, and
that the day was not far distant when statesmen would
think so too.
The question was then put in the usual manner, and
the house called for a division. The sand-glass was
accordingly turned, in order to mark the time allowed
for members to arrive in the house. The sand was nearly
run out when
Mr. BUTT rose, but his voice was instantly drowned
in cries of "Divide."
The SPEAKER said that he had not long since inti-
mated to the house that great inconvenience occurred
through hon. gentlemen rising just as the sand was run
out, and had intimated an opinion that it would be bet-
ter, when once the glass was turned, to consider the de-
bate closed. (Hear, hear.)
Mr. Burr again rose, but was immediately assailed
with such vehement cries of " Divide " " Oh," and
" Chair," that he did not attempt to speak, apparently
considering—and not without reason—that hon. gentle.
men would speedily weary themselves into silence. At
length
Mr. DRUMMOND rose to order. He wished to un-
derstand whether, by the statement which had been
made from the chair, it was to be considered a rule that
the debate was closed when the sand-glass was turned.
The SPEAKER said that the rule had never been
actually laid down in so many words, but when he called
attention to the matter on a preceding occasion, his view
seemed to meet with the general assent of the house.
Mr. BUTT again rose, and after a time succeeded in
obtaining a hearing. He considered that he was strictly
in order in rising to address the house ; at the same
time, after what had fallen from Mr. Speaker, he would
not stand upon what he believed to be his strict rights.
Ise had not been present when the intimation to which
reference had been made from the chair was given, and
hence he was in entire ignorance of such an understand-
ing ever having existed. (Cheers.) He trusted that this
explanation would be satisfactory to the house. (Cheers.)
Under any circumstances he would not have taken the
course he had, had he not hoped that some member of
the Government, even at the last moment, would address
the house. (Cheers.)
The house then divided--
For Mr. Spooner's motion
Against it
Majority
The result was received with loud cheers.
SUPPLY.

The house then went into a committee of supply.
The following votes were agreed to :-
3,875/. for the University of London.
7,710/. for Universities in Scotland.
3001. for the Royal Irish Academy.
3001. for the Royal Hibernian Academy.
Upon the vote of 2,6001. for theological professors at
Belfast.

Mr. WILLIAMS was not satisfied with this vote, in-
asmuch as he had understood that those allowances
were all to have been merged.
Mr. BRIGHT stated that when the question of the
Irish Regium Donum came on he intended to take the
sense of the committee against it. The present vote
was only an offshoot of it, but as it would be better to
take the discussion on the main question, he did not
now make any objection, and he trusted his hon. friend
(Mr. Williams) would also allow the vote to pass. There
was the more reason for doing so as even if the decision
of the committee should be against the Regium Donum,
Government would not like to refuse it this year though
they might do so hereafter.
The vote was then agreed to.
2,259/, was granted for the Queen's University in Ire-
land.
On the British Museum vote, 55,2551.,
Mr. A. PELLATT complained of the public being re-
stricted to three days a week for admission to this insti-
tution. The excuse was that it was necessary to give two
days a week to the students, but he believed the attend.
ance of students was comparatively small.
Mr. J. BALL expressed a hope that the question of
the management of the Museum would be considered by
the Government, and that a radical reform of the existing
system, which was replete with abuses, would result. It
was not to be supposed that the 37 gentlemen who man•
aged the Museum were enabled to devote that attention
to the subject which was necessary, and the few on whom
the management practically devolved, however talented
they might be, did not always arrive at such decisions
as were calculated to increase the efficiency of the insti-
tution. He complained especially of the refusal of the
trustees to avail themselves of the offer of two valuable
collections of English antiquities, notwithstanding the
paucity of English antiquities in the Museum. He sug-
gested that the institution should be under the control of
some officer of Government, who should bo responsible.
Mr. J. G. PHILLIMORE drew attention to the fact
that a great many of the most valuable works in the li-
brary of the Museum were still in MS., and instanced
those of Wicliffe.

Mr. GEACH saw no more reason why the Museum
should not be opened to the public six days in the week
han the Crystal Palace.

Mr. W. J. FOX concurred in the suggestion, but with
a reservation that artists pursuing their studies at the
Museum should be enabled to do so at hours when they
would not be interrupted by the general public. He had
heard it complained that the students of industrial art,
for whom lectures had been provided in Jermyn-street,
had not ready access to articles in the Museum to which
reference was made in those lectures, and suggested
that some arrangement should be made to obviate this
inconvenience. He also urged the importance of open-
ing the reading room at night, for the convenience of
those young nen who were engaged during the day in
their ordinary avocations.
Mr• J A
* M'GREGOR expressed a hope that
greater facilities would be given for the admission of the
public.

After a few words from Mr BELL,
Mr. J. WILSON assurecculd.
the' house from a con-
versation he had had with the hon. member for
Cambridge (Mr. Goulburn),
question how far it was few is eeks ago, that the
practicable to afford greater
facilities to the public for visiting
gaged the attention of the trustees, e Museum had en-
Mr. EWART regretted that Forsyththe collectionie ethaonef
Saxon antiquities had not been securd
however, that ;he system was more to. bl thought,
,holding
'unity of
trustees, who, being many of them official erasonrst
high and important offices, had not thePo
devoting that amount of time and attention
zik.r,ement of the Museum which was necessary.to the
a.." Lord SEYMOUR stated that the decision to reject the collection in question had been come to by the true_
tees, at a full meeting, after the most mature considers.
tion, tion, it having been postponed in order that there might .
be a fall attendance. Considering the amount the trus-
tees had at their disposal this question of purchasing col-
lections of antiquities was one of great difficulty. The
antiquities of every part of the world had its admirers.
One society blamed them for not buying up all the
mediaeval antiquities they could get, neglecting all others.
Another was for those of Greece or Rome only ; a
third for the Nineveh collection ; others were for
the Anglo-Saxon ; and some again for American
antiquities. Every country and every age furnished
its claims, and every class of antiquities had
its special advocates. Now it was obviously impossible
fur the trustees, with the limited sum they had at their
command, to meet all those demands, and the only
i ques-
tion was how they could best secure those which t was
most desirable the country should possess. Some collec-
tions, as those of Greece and Asia Minor, unless they
were purchased by the trustees for the
.Museum, would,
in all probability, be lost to the nation altogether ;
whereas others as those of this country, if refused by
the Museum, would be likely to fled a place in some
provincial museum—as was the case with the Forsyth
collection. He did not think, if the matter were left to
any one person appointed for the purpose, the decision
would have been different.
After a few words from Mr. J. BALL and Mr. EWART,
Mr. KINNAIRD expressed a hope that the library of
the British Museum would be opened in the evening, for
the benefit of
other time. Young men who could not attend at any

Lord SEYMOUR said the question of opening the
library in the evening had been frequently mooted. It
must be remembered, however, that the library of the
British Museum was different from a common lending
library. Its real value was not for persons who wanted
to read the common hooks of the day, or of the last fifty
years. There was scarcely any work of science, of his-
tory, or of memoirs in Europe, which had not derived
benefit from it. It should, therefore, be most open to
readers of that class who came there to compile works,
and who wanted assistance from books which were not
of ready access elsewhere. There ought to be other me-
tropolitan libraries of common books, where people
could read when they pleased ; but to admit persons